You only base your price off of similar items. So, there are other small businesses selling a similar item to yours, so you think you’ll beat the competition by pricing your item lower than theirs. Wrong! This isn’t always the case, and you aren’t considering all of your own costs before determining your item’s price. What’s more, if your item is priced much lower than your competitor’s, you could be sending the message that your item is of lower quality. When listing your item, make sure to include an item description which explains to a potential customer why they are paying more than or as much as similar items from other companies. Why is your piece unique? Do you use high-quality materials? In fact, if you’re using premium materials and your competitor isn’t, then you should definitely be pricing your items higher than your competitor.
You never raise or lower your prices. You should always remember to listen to your customer. Are they not buying your product? If it’s not the product itself, then maybe you’re receiving the message that your product is too expensive for your target audience and you need to experiment with lowering your prices. This could mean changing your materials to ensure that you can still make a profit while being able to lower your prices or you can offer a temporary “special sale” on specific items. If those items sell well, then you know you need to offer lower prices to sell your product. In contrast, you might be selling lots of product, but you haven’t raised your prices. Look at your competitors — have they raised their prices over time? If the demand is there, then try raising your prices to match the quality and popularity of your product.
You don’t value your time or skills. Oftentimes, a maker doesn’t value his or her time and skills enough to factor in enough of a labor cost in the total product price. Don’t forget to consider your level of expertise and training in your field. Also, you should be providing yourself with a livable wage, so that means factoring in a profit for yourself and not just the cost of your goods + overhead costs. You must remember that you are, in fact, an artist and your skills are worth paying for. Sometimes, pricing based on labor can be difficult because some projects take a very long time to complete. Consider options for cutting your production time and to produce product more efficiently. Or, really consider how much your time is worth. Even if you think your product has a steep price tag because of labor, remember that the labor is one of the major values in your product! Don’t assume what other people are willing to pay until you give it a try and give yourself the compensation you deserve.
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I have been sewing, crocheting and knitting for many, many years. Now retired I could use some extra income. I mostly crochet now, taught by my grandmother over sixty years ago.
I am so many, many things I have done, my hubby said he wished we had another room to sort and display some of my items. From baby things to afghans I love to create. I do not have a website but am on facebook.
Great tips!
Thank you for tips. I am new to this and am a sponge for great information
I am a primarily self-taught silversmith after a head injury. I also tumble my own stones from geodes. I love what I do but people do not realize the amount of time and effort that it takes to create a piece that is “Zales” quality. I have been told over and over again I could sell my items to the big boys but yet people want everything to be under $60! I’m currently experimenting with being in different areas of town to see if that helps with the sellability and pricing.
I make handmade greeting cards using fabric for my designs for the past 23 years – I used to do lots of craft shows and usually do okay – regular customers come back to my shows – but the shows are getting too much for me to set up and take down – the older I get, the harder it gets. I opened a website more than 10 years ago and have tried to attract customers to it listing more than 200 different designs on cards for every occasion – even customers from the craft shows will not frequent my web siteI I’ve had 3 site in the past 10 years and none were worth what it cost to keep them up! I love creating cards, but to keep doing what I love I have to sell them- so my prices are very low – even online – I offer free shipping! What am I doing wrong?
I have similar experience with selling handmade greeting cards. It had partly to do with the product: with all the e-mail and other digital communication tools available sending an ‘old school’ postcard has become quite undervalued nowadays. With the exception of typical occasions eg weddings. And with competition from mass-produced card manufacturers the pricepoint is set quite low in people’s minds. I found that people buy a little better when the card comes with a good story (i.e. my price includes some fundraising for a local or well-knowhow charity fund, whereby the chosen charity is in line with my personal beliefs and values – so the “story” I tell with the Card fits with me and my work). You may also consider expanding your product range with other items that people value giving and receiving, e.g paper-based gift wrapping, in addition to cards. With your focus on selling through online chanels, do you know why your ‘frequent craft show buyers’ do not return online?