Remember that cool project from Ames C.art we posted about a while back?ArtVend (aka, the vending machine where you can sell handmade items).

Right. Well, you can submit stuff! (As long as it can fit in a vending machine and handle the drop.) Just visit the ArtVend submission page and fill out a few questions. Ames C.art will let you know how to package and deliver your items.

From the ArtVend website:

[ArtVend] is a vending machine that has been transformed to display and sell the work of local artists and crafters (aka Makers). The machine will spread homemade morsels of Central Iowa where they might not normally reach, and local Makers will have a unique option to promote their work. The presence of the ArtVend will encourage the integration of creativity into everyday life.

You need to have a website so people (read: new customers) can find you in a Google search. So get one! It’s easy — all you need to post is your contact information and a few photos. Here are some tools to make your own portfolio website.

1: Carbonmade. Make a gorgeous photographic portfolio. It’s easy. It’s pretty. It’s free. Nuff said. 

2: Flickr. So simple: Just upload your photos and fill out your profile.

3. Re.vu. This fun, interactive resume-making site a fun way to tell your story (and your vital stats).

4. Professional Nameplate Site. Here are a few more suggestions for “professional nameplate sites” via Lifehacker.

Holy cow! We found some great tips about grabbing customers’ attention and encouraging them to buy things. Jacqueline, the tip-master, hosts a craft show (the Made By Hand Show, to be exact) and has been selling handmade for five years — so she knows a thing or two. Take a look and start raking in the dough at your shows. Original post from Handmadeology.

Guest post by: Jacqueline from the Made By Hand Show

Starting out a crafting business can be scary. Most of us start online through an Etsy shop (or something similar). A great way to gain exposure for your company is to showcase at local craft shows and fairs. It’s an opportunity to network and give customers a chance to see, smell touch your products.

Going to a show for the first time can be intimidating. I have been participating in craft shows since 2007 showcasing my handmade cards and paper crafts (Made by Jacqueline).

Last year I started a new venture the Made by Hand Show, hosting craft shows. As we begin a new year, I thought it would be a good time to share my 10 TIPS TO ROCK IT AT YOUR NEXT CRAFT SHOW:

#1 GOT CHA: You have 3-5 seconds to grab a customer’s attention.

#2 DISPLAY: Space, Clean, add height or risers to grab the customers eye

#3 DEMO YOUR PRODUCT: (ie. if you sell jewellery wear it, demo your products if you can) – have a sample out that people can touch, feel, taste.

#4 WHO ARE YOU? When a customer walks by do they know who you are and what you’re selling? Think about a banner or a sign.

#5 ATTRACT: Attract Customers to your booth – Free samples, Candy, games, prize draw.

#6 ADVERTISE: Tell your contacts what booth you’ll be at; maybe offer your present customers a discount for coming to the event.  This is where social media and your mailing list comes in handy.

#7 SMILE: Be friendly, start conversation ‘hello’, SMILE (there is nothing worse than a vendor that seems uninterested, grumpy or bored at their booth, it turns away customers).

#8 PRICE IT RIGHT: Vary price points (for example you may have a piece that is $100 but also make sure you have something in the $20 range or lower to grab impulse buys).

#9 BUILD: Have a mailing list on your booth so customers can sign up.  It may lead to a future sale and it helps build your client list.

#10 FOLLOW-UP: Post event follow-up with everyone you meet (promptly after the show). It can be as simple as a quick “Thank-you for visiting my booth”.

Now that you have the tips .. I encourage you to apply to a local craft show in your area.

~Jacqueline

Now that you have the tips .. I encourage you to apply to the Spring Made by Hand Show on April 21, 2012 at the International Centre in Mississauga.
Happy Crafting!

pinterest:

Photo by Erich Ernst

Shop owner, music lover, poster collector, and 60s mod aficionado. Chrissy Jensentook some time out of a business holiday season at her shop Domestica to share how her business got started and what and why she pins.

I’ve been around Market Day since the beginning, helping out and doing the graphic design. I’ve always been a crafty person, and I loved the idea of selling things I’d made, but I simply had no idea where to start. 

I made feather accessories for a few friends, but I never thought I’d be able to sell them. Cat and her husband Scott Rocketship encouraged me to give it a try, so I leapt in. I didn’t sell a lot, but I had a great time, and I came back the next year more involved and more motivated.

Taking cues from Cat and Scott as well as the many amazing vendors we work with at Market Day, I began to brand myself. I built a display. I saw my sales double each month. Black Friday was really the turning point for me. I grew a fan base, met future wholesalers, and finally got the guts to start up an Etsy shop and start selling online. We’re now three seasons into Market Day, and I’ve gone from a hobbyist making 10 hair clips for a show, to a business with hundreds of sales under my belt, and I’m Market Day co-director to boot.

This is my first year stepping up to the plate to co-direct, and I honestly don’t know how Cat and Scott did it alone for two years. It’s a lot of work, and there’s nothing in it for us financially, but I wouldn’t give it up for anything. I love seeing businesses grow and thrive. I love throwing in my meager two cents and watching it help someone out of a plateau. I love watching customers carry out brightly colored bags and packages, or snap photos to tweet to friends.

I’ve always been a bit of a mall rat, and I know there’s fun to be had on Black Friday. I used to do it, going to packed stores, looking for deals. The problem was, I never really found any. I was never willing to get up at 4:00 AM, nor wait in hour long lines. This is the real beauty of Market Day. 

Market Day STARTS at 9:00 AM, people! Sleep in, have breakfast with the family. There will be over fifty vendors in one spot, no driving from store to store. I can guarantee you that no one has EVER been injured or in a fight at Market Day, and I’m guessing they never will. You’ll find a great deal, and a truly special gift for everyone on your list. Something that they’ve never seen before, something that’s special and original.

Best of all, when you buy from Market Day, you’ll be helping out businesses like mine. Businesses that might not have started without a venue like Market Day, that might not have found their way. Businesses that you can GUARANTEE are local, that you can feel good giving your money to, knowing that it’s not going to a corporate entity that doesn’t care about the community. You’ll help grow a business that support your neighbors, people like me! And you’ll have fun doing it.