Made With Love Market 2-30

 

When I started my Etsy I was like a humming-bird slamming into a red pot with no water, I had no direction or idea of who or what I wanted to be. This was one of my biggest hang ups. BY FAR. When you start your hand crafted business you need a mark, a stamp, something that people remember when they see it! They think OH SEALED WITH A KISS = Feathers. (total lame example but you catch my vibe.) This can be tricky, because I have found out, if you’re any thing like me, and with most business starters I speak too, they have no idea where to go or have this designed for them without dishing out major dough! Lets face it, if your starting a business, chances are you’re not rolling in green….just yet. I had this AHA moment and searched on Etsy DUH! I wanted to help someone like me, small, who knew their marketing and graphic design creativity inside and out! I didn’t want to be just another number of orders but wanted to find someone who would take their time and make sure it was PERFECT! I had no idea what I was going for! My first email to the shop owner went something like this….

Hi I have no idea how to brand my self, a dear friend calls me baby bird so I would like to incorporate a feather some how and I love the classic look of Gold and Black….I want simplicity.

Within Two Days she sent me over 4 proofs to pick from and VOILA I found exactly what I had buried down in my imagination of what my “Brand” would appear to be. Than I picked a few basic things that came in the package for $40 that I thought would be crucial to building my Etsy business.

• Logo
• Reserved Listing (we will go over this later)
• Monthly Giveaway
• Banner

I was officially ready to fly. I got 500 business cards from vista print for $10 using discount codes, and was off to the races!

Branding is Crucial Friends. Like fail if you skip this step crucial. People want to know YOU. Take your time, or dive right in, but make it all about you and your style so its something that can stick for a very long time.

Simply put,your brand is a statement to your customer, a promise. It tells them what they can expect from your products and services, and it differentiates your handcrafted market to your competitors’. Your brand is who you want to be and who people perceive you to be.

Below directly from http://www.entrepenuer.com is a list of must haves when deciding WHO YOU ARE>>>>

Defining Your Brand

Defining your brand is like a journey of business self-discovery. It can be difficult, time-consuming and uncomfortable. It requires, at the very least, that you answer the questions below:

• What is your company’s mission?
• What are the benefits and features of your products or services?
• What do your customers and prospects already think of your company?
• What qualities do you want them to associate with your company?

Challenge Day Two – Find someone to help you in designing your perfect logo. Get graphic images (at least 4 saved to your computer) by lesson three. Order Business Cards and be ready to package properly!