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[177] It’s Okay to Stay Small (& to Dream Big)

by | Feb 22, 2019 | Podcasts

Do you ever feel the pressure to ‘grow, grow, grow’ your business?

The dominant cultural narrative is that ‘bigger is better’ and that we should always be striving to grow our businesses bigger.

But… is it necessary? What if you just want a small business with a modest income? What if you only want a part-time business?

In this episode, I share why I deliberately keep my own businesses ‘small’ – and why it’s okay if you want to do the same.

 

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[173] What Do I Send my Email List?

by | Jan 25, 2019 | Podcasts

Is email marketing part of your strategy for 2019?

If you have a business that lends itself to cultivating customers who buy from you again and again, then I strongly suggest email marketing should be a vital part of your marketing strategy.

There are so many benefits to email marketing – not only do you get direct access to potential customers, but people are much more likely to buy from an email than they are to buy via social media.

I’m not going to go into all the reasons why (as I cover this in the Intro to Mailing Lists Workshop) but here are a few quick numbers for you: 

  • 77% of people prefer email as a place to recieve promotional messages, versus 4% who prefer Facebook
  • 91% of people use email daily versus 57% who use Facebook
  • 66% of people have made a purchase from an email vs 20% who’ve made one from Facebook. (source)

In short: email marketing works.

But… what do you send to your subscribers?

In this episode I outline a whole raft of things you might like to send – and why.

 

Further Resources:

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Quotes & Highlights

Some ideas of things to send to your email list:

  • Blog posts
  • Updates on markets/events/stockists
  • Special deals regular/sporadic giveaways (use to drive subs from social)
  • Helpful tips
  • Launches (use launch specials to drive subs from social)
  • Questions on direction/style (get them involved)
  • Travel/other updates
  • Answers to FAQs
  • Round-up of content in your niche (current and relevant)
  • Short course
  • Amusing/thoughtful anecdotes
  • Customer stories
  • Customer appreciation photos
  • Holiday greetings
  • Holiday gift guides
  • Highlight of a product category (earrings)
  • Personal stories/behind the scenes

[169] Key Takeaways from the Etsy search update

by | Nov 14, 2018 | 2018 Workshops, Podcasts, Workshops

Have you seen the news?

Etsy released a detailed update on how their search algorithm works – while holding on to a few trade secrets.

There were some BIG pieces of news in this update! Since the details will strongly influence your search rankings on Etsy, I wanted to make sure you had seen and digested this information.

So, in this episode I highlight the key takeaways – because in this update, Etsy have answered questions that we’ve wondered about for YEARS, including – does renewing increase your search ranking?

Listen in below, and if you want to read more details, here is the post I’m analysing in this episode.

Don’t miss these two articles, also – how to create listings that convert, and the nitty gritty on keywords. 

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[164] Should you Offer Free Shipping: the Pros and Cons

by | Oct 12, 2018 | Podcasts

To offer free shipping or to not offer free shipping – that is the question.

More and more handmade sellers seem to be moving towards offering free shipping in their online stores – especially if you sell on Etsy, as they make it easy for a buyer to see in search which items have free shipping, and which don’t.

But – is free shipping something you can realistically offer? Can you make it work for you – or is it going to cost you more headaches and more money?

In this episode, I talk about my own experiment with offering free shipping, as well as a number of pros and cons – both from my own experience, and gleaned from discussion on Facebook with members of the Thriver Circle and the wider Create & Thrive community.

After listening, I’d love to hear your thoughts on this topic – either leave a comment below or come over to the TC FB group and share your thoughts using the hashtag #freeshipping.

DOWNLOAD EPISODE

Quotes & Highlights

Pros:

  • The psychological ‘win’ of offering free shipping – a lot of people will be more likely to buy.
  • You won’t have people put off by expensive shipping, because they won’t know what is the item price, and what is the shipping cost.
  • If you’re on Etsy, you’ll show up in the ‘free shipping’ search. BUT you can do this also by offering free shipping over a certain amount – write that in your listings (thanks to Lee Ann Richards for this hack she shared on the C&T FB page).
  • You’ll be more competitive with those also offering free shipping. Especially in the beginning, it could help your business get sales faster.

 

Cons:

  • If you offer free ‘economy’ shipping that doesn’t include tracking, or want to offer express post, some people will be confused if that’s not included in the ‘free’ shipping option. You will have to manage that – even if it’s right there in checkout, some people will not see it.
  • If your items are large, heavy, or vary a lot in weight and size, it will be more of a headache to work out the shipping – especially if people order multiple items.
  • International shipping might be super-expensive, and it might not work for you – in which case, offering only free domestic shipping could work.
  • Some people actually like seeing separate item and shipping charges, and free shipping might put them off as they feel it’s disingenuous.
  • Your mileage may vary – in some countries, international shipping particularly is super-expensive. If you ship a high volume, it may pay to look into alternative shipping options, such as couriers. (FedEx, DHL)
  • Tax and bookeeping issues – you may still need to separate the shipping costs from the item costs for these purposes. We do this manually in Xero for GST purposes.
  • You may feel like including shipping in your item price (which you will HAVE to do so you don’t lose out financially) will make your items too expensive.

 

If you don’t already, consider flat fee shipping, rather than compounded shipping costs. This encourages multiple purchasing.

An alternative to free shipping is to offer free shipping when people buy over a certain amount. This is a little like selling wholesale – you might ‘lose’ a bit of money you would have gotten, but you make more because people buy more.

Also, strongly consider offering free shipping with upgrades. For example, only the lowest cost (in Oz, this is the economy option internationally) option is free – if people want tracking, they need to upgrade. If they want express post, they need to upgrade even more.

What about doing different things in different places? For example, I have free shipping in my Etsy shop, BUT not on my website. At this stage, it’s because I wanted to see what impact switching to FREE would have on my etsy sales. I may decide to change my website too in the future. It means my item costs are a little different across the two sites, but as I list in AUD on one and USD on the other, this was happening anyway due to currency fluctuations.

Focus on the Small Steps [160]

by | Sep 12, 2018 | Podcasts

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This month, I want to encourage you to focus on the small steps you can take to move your business forward.

Not grand goals, or big dreams – let’s focus down and look to the little teeny-tiny things we can do every single day to grow our businesses. Sometimes I think we get overwhelmed by the ‘big things’ and get stuck… this month, I want you to put that aside, and just focus on the small steps.

More on this can be found right here on this month’s project page.

 

Quotes and highlights from this episode:

 

  • Sometimes we can get frustrated when big progress isn’t obvious – this is a universal experience.
  • This frustration happens because of a conflict between our expectations and reality.
  • “Small steps are not failure – they are progress”
  • Try the Top Three Priorities planning method workshop. This will help with breaking projects down to the smallest possible steps which reduces overwhelm and helps you get started.
  • “Show up every day and make small steps and you will move in the direction of success”
  • Notice and acknowledge the small steps you make towards your projects and goals.
  • Enjoy the process and elements of business!
  • Write your small steps down and work at them day by day – it all adds up!
  • “Every small step matters”

156: You Don’t Have to Market the Way Everybody Else Does!

by | Aug 17, 2018 | Podcasts

In this members-only episode, I outline why you need to work out the marketing strategy that suits you, and your business… rather than doing what works for others!

I share a couple of stories from my own businesses to illustrate the point – for example, for my own jewellery business, my mailing list and social media aren’t a big part of my marketing… what?! Yep – and I’ll explain why, and what I do instead.

If you’re unsure of what marketing strategies and avenues would suit you best, this episode will give you some food for thought that will help you get clearer on what will work, and what won’t.

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Quotes and highlights from this episode:

  • Every business has different marketing needs and not one approach will suit everyone – even in the same field.
  • “Avoid falling in to the trap of everyone is doing things this way, so I should too”
  • Different marketing techniques are appropriate at different stages of your business.
  • For example – when Jess was starting out with Epheriell a mailing list was key to keeping her customers up to date on new product lines and subscription options. As the business focus shifted the mailing list no longer suited the customer base.
  • “You can’t do it all at once – you can do it all eventually”
  • Start with just one marketing avenue and grow from there.
  • Choose a strategy to focus on for a block of time – pour your energy into improving your chosen approach
  • Think through:
    • Who your customers are
    • How often they will be shopping with you
    • Where will they be hanging out
    • How will they be looking for what you make
  • Social media can be overwhelming. Try one platform at a time and see what works best for you and your business.
  • Be tactical and reserve your brand name on every social media platform. You don’t have to use it but it is ready if you ever do.