This post is part of a series of articles that will teach you how to build your own website, step by step. You can read an overview of all of the steps, right HERE (plus get a printable checklist). I am re-doing the video for this post, as the checkout process has been updated a bit. ...
Choosing (and buying) a domain name for your website.
This post is part of a series of articles that will teach you how to build your own website, step by step. You can read an overview of all of the steps, right HERE (plus get a printable checklist). Choosing your domain name is the "pre-build" step in creating your own website. But first, what exactly is ...
Re-listing on Etsy is NOT a marketing strategy.
I received an email yesterday that I just love...and I love it because Kellene is speaking my language! I CONSTANTLY see the advice that if you want more sales in your Etsy shop, you should re-list your stuff as often as possible. And that advice drives me nuts. Re-listing is NOT a marketing strategy. Re-listing over and ...
Are you “chase marketing?”
One of the biggest things that tends to keep handmade sellers from blogging is the belief that it's going to take over their entire life. Or, maybe they've already tried blogging, and it DID take over their life. So they quit. Believe me, I get it. We aren't superheroes. Between making your products, and photographing them, and ...
Etsy or Indiemade? And what about WordPress?
I received a question yesterday from Sandy, of Sandra Fox Designs, and I wanted to post this here because I think this is something that just about all of us handmade sellers have wondered about at some point or another. With so many options for selling, and hosting, and blogging, and ugh... how do you ...
Why Etsy sellers should blog.
(image by Steve Snodgrass, used under CC BY 2.0, modified from original.) Owning a blog is not just about the act of blogging. Not anymore. It's about having a haven for your business. It's about having an unwavering empire which continually brings your business traffic, and continually builds on itself. Blogging is about having your very own business ...
How do your readers find you? (And where will they go next?)
We are all, always, trying to think of ways to get new visitors to our blog. But, how often do we think about what happens once they've gotten there? A mistake I made for years was assuming that a visitor would automatically do what I wanted them to do once they'd found me. I assumed (okay, hoped!) ...
A roadmap to blogging success.
Inspirational Warning: This blog post is a little long. Bear with me though if you're in the mood for some blogging-for-handmade-business advice... there's lots here. When I first began blogging for my ornament business, I struggled big time. The beginnings of my blogging days are just plain embarrassing. I was honestly frustrated and overwhelmed even trying. So, ...
Your website, your empire.
(image by Jose MÂȘ Izquierdo Galiot, used under CC BY 2.0, modified from original.) Many handmade entrepreneurs (I'll even venture to say, most handmade entrepreneurs) begin by opening up shop on Etsy or some other online marketplace...and then eagerly begin working to drive traffic to it. It becomes the Grand Central Station of their business; in ...
5 ways to get more people to sign up for your email list.
On the list of "Imperative Must-Do's for your Business," collecting the email addresses of your shop visitors sits right up at the tippy top. (You can read why it's so important right HERE.) But, like I've talked about before, your visitors will not willingly hand over their email addresses without a good reason. Therefore, it's up to ...