5 Steps To Start Selling Your Crafts As A Business

Posted on by LaTersa Blakely



I love all things crafty and I get so excited to share my knowledge and expertise to help other moms just like you to start your business. I can imagine that you have tons of ideas and ways that you want to start making money with your crafts. I started my first business back in 2009: The LaTersa Diaper Cakes™ and boy it was a world of adventures, mishaps and all kinds of scams. Yep, the mommy maven lost a ton of money when I began my gift business. I was too thrilled to be in business for myself that I took for granted things I needed to legitimately start my business the right way.

My first year in business, I made -$3,000 in my business and because I was spending out more money than was coming in, I was forced to take a good look at my business structure. At that rate, I wasn’t going to be in business much longer, so I had to do something different. It wasn’t until I hired my first coach (who was in the gift business industry) that I began to turn my company around to the positive bank account. I want to share with you my top five tips for getting started with selling your crafts/gifts.

5 Steps To Start Selling Your Crafts As A Business

    • Get clear on the products that you will sell: I don’t care what you are selling, you have to be able to educate your potential audience on what it is you sell. You need to be able to present your products in a beautiful packaging.
    • Pick your business name: Go to your local revenue or taxes office to secure your business license. Years ago, I paid fifteen dollars for my business license.
    • Purchase your domain: You can grab your domain for as little as $1 at godaddy.com… While you are at it, go ahead and purchase your domain of your name as well. (www.johndoe.com)



  • Get your seller’s permit: You need this in order to sell in public. If you are doing craft shows or any type of function in the public, you will need this. Your seller’s permit is also included when you incorporate your business (LLC, INC, or solopreneur). You will need to speak with an accountant for more details.
  • Open up a free shop first: Site like Etsy.com, handmade site before purchasing your website. It’s much easier to start there, as opposed to dealing with a new website. You can have your domain forwarded to your Etsy shop to make a professional look. You can learn about more handmade sites to sell your crafts here! 

I hope these few tips help you get started on your journey of becoming a gift business owner. Let me know how it goes for you. Leave me a comment below:

QUESTION: What is the name of your gift business?



5 Ways To Make Money From Your Crafts

Posted on by LaTersa Blakely



I am a crafty gal at heart! My happy space is when I’m doing my crafts and for those of you who have been following me for a long time, you know that I started my first business The LaTersa Diaper Cakes™. When I began my journey in the gift business industry, I had no clue where to start. I began selling through my online store. Along the way, I got better and better at how to fully function as a gift business owner. Now, mind you I was the freebie queen and it took me a long time to realize that the questions I had in my head were not going to get answered from searching YouTube or Google. After my first year in business, I made a -$3,000 of my income return. It frustrated me so badly, that at that very moment, I made a decision to try something different.  This was a turning point for me and was when I hired my first coach and the icing on the cake was that she was also in the gift business industry. Today, I want to take some time to share with you some of my favorite ways to make money with your crafts.

3 Ways To Make Money From Your Crafts

  1. You can sell your crafts at local craft shows. Usually, the fees include your admission to the show and your table. The highest I ever paid was fifty-five dollars. I must admit, my very first one was not so profitable, even though I made a little amount of money, I didn’t make a profit. You have to count up the cost of inventory and your fees to attend the event.
  2. Sell them to your family and friends. Everywhere you go, tell people about your gifts and what you have to offer. Remember, people won’t know what you have to offer or sell, if you don’t open your mouth.
  3. Sell them on online crafts sites. When I first started selling my diaper cakes, I opened a free shop on Bonanza and their fees are pretty reasonable. You pay once you make a sell.

If you are interested in making big bucks in your gift business, and not just making money every once in a while, Learn how to secure big corporate contracts and have money coming in on the regular.

I hope this post gets your creative juices flowing! Let me know some of the ways you are making money in your gift business. If you enjoyed this post, please share this with your family and friends.

If you want to learn how to crochet and learn other techniques, click here!

QUESTION: Let me know some of the ways you are making money in your gift business.

P.S. Join The Mommy Maven’s Group!



5 Online Market Places To Sell Your Handmade Items

Posted on by LaTersa Blakely



I love crafts or anything that deals with creating with my hands.  When I was in high school, I use to make pillows, sew and quilt, make gift baskets and so much more.  Never in my wildest dreams, did I think about how much money you could make with making handmade gifts.  As years went by and I became a mother, I wanted to put my skills to the test.  As a newbie, I had no clue where I could sell my gifts and make a great profit for them. Below are five great platforms where you can start selling your gifts/ and handmade creations…

5 Online Marketplaces To Sell Your Handmade Items

1) Bonanza.com is a FREE business platform where you can list all of your handmade gifts and get access to thousands of new and potential customers. This platform has a variety of selections of things you can sell. It’s cost you only a small percentage when your item sells. I highly recommend this platform. This is where I started when I first started my diaper cakes gift business.

2) Ebay.com  Now, everybody knows about this popular platform.  Not only can you open up a store for FREE, but you can sell anything on there.  It is not limited to just your handmade gifts, you can sell whatever you want.  You just need to connect your Paypal account to your store so your customers can pay you.  Ebay and Paypal take a small percentage on every sale you make.  This is a huge platform and I will warn you, it’s very competitive on there with various sellers.

Are you struggling with pricing your handmade items or services, join me and learn how to charge what you are worth. Sign up now!

3) Etsy.com  This is another FREE platform to sell your gifts on. Just like bonanza and eBay, it is easy to open a store and they do take a percentage of each sale that you make and I also think it cost like $0.20 to list each item. I say it still beats having to pay for a full-blown website, with hosting fees and designer fees.  But, at least when you open up your shop, invest in your own personal domain, and have your domain pointed to your shop website address.  It just looks more professional.

4) Artfire.com  Artfire is one of the fastest growing marketplaces online for selling handmade products internationally. They have more than 30,000 registered active sellers.  It’s an easy to use platform which allows the seller to customize their store to fit their brand.  There are tons of categories that you can list your items under.

5) Shopify.com  Now this is a platform you can also use to sell your handmade items.  But this one has a fee and I believe the lowest plan starts at $14.95.  If you want that e-commerce type of feel to it, then this would be a great start.

Are you struggling with pricing your handmade items or services, join me and learn how to charge what you are worth. Sign up now!

Remember when starting your online business, please make sure that it is something you are passionate about, otherwise, you will lose your enthusiastic energy and interest very quickly!

Love & Prosperity,

LaTersa

P.S. Join our growing community: The Mommy Mavens

Recommended book for learning to sell on etsy!