Creative Income

The blog dedicated to all things crafty business!

  • Home
  • About
  • Giveaways
    • Win a Ticket to Snap!
  • Newsletter
  • Free eBook
  • Join our Facebook Group

5 Basic Lessons of Marketing (Or, How To Win Some)

March 21, 2012 by CreativeIncome 6 Comments

I could go on about search engine optimization, or how to take better pictures, or go into the whole philosophy of Winnie the Pooh, but this is easier, more basic, and I believe more necessary.

Five Basic Lessons of Marketing

  1. You are not what you sell. I don’t care if you literally put your own blood on there (yeah, don’t ask), but it is not you. It is your stuff. You are selling stuff. Not you. With that in mind, remember, not even Elvis or the Beatles had 100% of the market share when they were at their hottest. So, get over yourself. Your new mantra: “Not everyone is going to love my stuff.” I repeat, get over yourself. Realize that some (read: many) people will walk away and not even look at you. Do not take it personally. This is business and it just is. No deep philosophy. No “it’s okay, it’s not you, it’s them.” It just is. So, look up, smile, you need to get busy. Your new goal is to find the people that will love your stuff and keep them coming back.
  2. Set your goal: “Find the people that will love my stuff.” This is a fancy term used in professional circles as business development, marketing and the like. Now, how to do that? There is a key. This is very important and it will take some work on your part. You need to figure out what types of people will like your stuff. Who is your audience? Some Easy and Obvious Samples – Selling earrings? People with ears. Selling signs that hang on doors? People with doors. Selling sugary baked goods? People who eat sweets and who are not diabetic. Selling life coach techniques? People who live life. When you figure out who your audience is, you need to get answers to the following questions. What type of things do they like to do? Where do they live? Where do they hang out? How can I get there? Meet them? Know them? You need to spend the time to figure this out or you will not know where to go next. Once, you answered the questions above. Then, start hanging out at those places. Find their common interests. Find their goals. Figure out their problems and offer them solutions. Investigate this. Once you find them, then, you can tell them about your stuff. Be yourself, or at least be really really nice.
  3. Don’t just stand there, show off! After you have found the people who love your stuff, show them your stuff. Take great pictures if an online shop, or present a great group of items in person. Be neat. Be professional. Look your Sunday best. This is the impression they will take with them. Yes, this is when they will judge your stuff. No pressure. But, this is the reason they will stay and look, or go buh-bye with their wallets.
  4. Keep them coming back. Once you have found the lovely people who love your stuff and stayed to give you their money, then, take care of them – very well. It does bear repeating, take good care of them. This is also known as customer service. Provide a great one and they will keep coming back for more. Then, they will tell their friends about your stuff. Their friends will probably be the same type of people that they are. So, there is a good likelihood that their friends will also love your stuff. And, these new friends will also be telling their friends about your stuff. And on and on the circle goes. You just tapped the best kind of marketing in the world, word of mouth, a.k.a organic marketing.
  5. Grow. Change. Be better. We all love the way things used to be. We all like to go back to the good ‘ole days. Nostalgia is deceivingly fun. It’s a distant memory and it’s over with. So, of course it is fondly remembered. But, reality is we are in the here and now. And, reality is everything changes. Everyone changes and people do grow. Do you want to play catch up or do you want to be in front? So, change, improve, get better. Somehow be more interesting. If you are more interesting, then, you are not boring. I know, it is so obvious. Yet, it has to be said. Do not be boring. People are just not attracted to boring people. Just saying.

So, five very easy and basic tips. Now go on and do.

Do you have any tricks for increasing sales and readership? What is your blog demeanor?

_______________________________________________________________

Fine Heart's MindstreamArticle By: Yvette for Fine Heart’s Mindstream
Originally featured on Fine Heart’s Mindstream. Republished with permission.

 

  • Author
  • Recent Posts
Follow us
CreativeIncome
Do you love to create? Are you dying to turn your creativity into profits? You've come to the right place! Join our community of creative experts and learn how to sell your designs, how to get published in magazines, books or online, and pick up some great craft fair ideas and tips along the way.
Follow us
Latest posts by CreativeIncome (see all)
  • 10 Tips for Creating a Successful Craft Blog - December 18, 2020
  • Pricing Your Handmade Goods for Craft Shows - October 21, 2020
  • Beat The Blogging Blues - October 14, 2020

Share and Enjoy !

0Shares
0 0

Filed Under: Marketing Tagged With: blogging, goals, marketing, sales, SEO

Comments

  1. Laura says

    March 29, 2012 at 1:23 pm

    good advice

    Reply
  2. DEB says

    September 3, 2012 at 6:17 pm

    THANKS FOR THE 5 Basic Lessons of Marketing

    Reply
  3. edith bostick says

    October 3, 2012 at 10:22 pm

    an eye opener, thanks and please keep it coming

    Reply
  4. Harold Sauls says

    December 6, 2013 at 9:42 am

    Great article! I have used some of these tips and will continue using them for my Home Made Heating Pads on my site Kraftscorner.com
    Thanks,
    Harold S.

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. How to Run Successful Online Promotions says:
    April 7, 2012 at 6:10 am

    […] is for every situation life hands us, it certainly rings true when it comes to starting and growing an online business. But with a little (okay, a lot) of hard work, and even more kindness–you will find success. Just […]

    Reply
  2. How to Market Your Craft Work | Crochet News Today says:
    May 21, 2014 at 1:53 pm

    […] Creative Income:  5 Basic Lessons of Marketing […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Email Email Facebook Twitter Pinterest YouTube RSS

Subscribe to the Creative Income Newsletter.

Getting Started

5 Easy Steps to a Successful Handmade Business

Start a Handmade Business: Free CreativeLive Class You Don’t Want to Miss!

Categories

Craft Fair Tips

16 DIY Craft Booth Ideas

Does your craft booth need some Tender Loving Care - TLC? Whether you’re looking to completely revamp your space or to add a few new additions here a … [Read More...]

Archives

Blogging

10 Tips for Creating a Successful Craft Blog

Craft Fairs

16 DIY Craft Booth Ideas

General Advice

7 Essential Tips for Accepting Credit Cards at Craft Shows

Getting Started

Starting a Business? Don’t Make These Rookie Mistakes

Organizing

5 Ways to Maximize Space in Your Craft Room

Sales Tips

Real Life Sales: Getting Your Crafts Into a Shop

Prime Publishing Craft Group
Copyright © 2021 · Creative Income - A Prime Publishing LLC property. All rights reserved.

About Us Advertise Contact Us FAQs Privacy Policy Do Not Sell My Personal Information Subscribe Terms of Service Unsubscribe

Copyright © 2021 · Tidy Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in