As you can see, this blog looks sad and lame. So I’m calling out to all you awesome graphic artists out there. I need a super hot new logo. I have revamping my biz to fit my personality and I want a logo to match.

My new logo will be here on my blog and on all my print material. Now I know that your time and skill is valuable. You may be wondering why I just don’t hire some one. Well, I’ll tell ya, contests are so much funner. I challenge you to get those creative juices flowing and show us your amazing skills.

What do get? The joy of helping me be cool? Yes and more. You will get a feature on my blog, free ad space on this site, me tweeting about how you rock, free coaching session, and since I’m a jewelry, artist a pair of OOAK wire wrapped earrings.

Is that enough? Do you need more? Let me know. I’m all for adding mystery prizes.

To enter, comment to this post or send me an email with your ideas. Contest starts to day and ends Oct. 31st. Email me

P.S. It was pointed out to me that I didn’t list size. See the width of this blog post? No wider than that and 300 pix or less high. Not restrictive enough for ya? Too bad, put your creative child hat on and get busy!

Naming you new business is important, fun, and more difficult than naming your first child. Get it right and you will have a easy to remember name that people will think of every time they are shopping for what ever you sell. Get it wrong and no one will be able to find you and if they do they’ll be mad because you don’t have what they are looking for.

There are many ways to go about naming your business. There is the keyword strategy, emotional strategy, and the just for the hell of it strategy. Which strategy to use is an individual choice. We like that.

The keyword strategy is choosing a name that is full of keywords. I bet you guessed that one. If you sell a niche product a keyword name will be easy to come up with. For example if you only sell purple beaded jewelry and nothing else, you could use purple beaded jewelry as keywords and as a business name.

The downside of keyword naming is that depending on what your selling they keywords can be very competitive and make it difficult to get your business name as a domain name. If you want to try the keyword strategy, check for domain names before you settle on your business name.

Now that I just said that about domain names, I’ll tell that I have know some business owners to just search domain names and then name their business based on what was available. There is nothing wrong with doing that if you find one that really fits your business.

The emotional strategy is of course based on feeling. You choose a name that reflects how you feel or would like your customers to feel about your product. Is it cutesy, funky, snuggly, or romantic?

Your purple beaded jewelry could be elegant lavender bobbles or cool calm relaxation jewelry(yes I know I stuck a keyword in there). Some of my clients like to make a list of words that describe their product both physically and emotionally and test out different combos to find the right fit.

The just for the hell of it strategy is naming your business something that has nothing to do with anything about your business. These names are normally things that just make you smile or very curious. They can be catchy and easy to remember if done right. You may decide to call your purple beaded jewelry business Tiny Cat Tracks, Hot Swiss Cheese, or George. Pull of this strategy and your customers will be telling everyone how much they love Hot Swiss Cheese. You will smile big every time someone writes Hot Swiss Cheese on their checks.

Yes, I realize that there are a ton of other ways to name your business. Some of you will use your own name. There isn’t anything wrong with that if it fits your business and you are fine having your name attached to it. Sure I don’t mind having Delisa’s Magickal Hat company, but I’m not so big on Delisa’s Fresh Potty company.

Come up with as many names as you can. Test them out on friends. I used to sell handmade soap. I was going to call my business Lush Mountain Soaps, until a friend told me that it made her think of drunks and not the beautiful green I was going for. You might not agree with your friends thoughts, but it will give you some ideas on how customers might see your business.

My biggest biz naming tip is to get creative and have fun!

My life revolves around creativity. When I learned about creativity coaching, I knew I had found the right work for me. I took classes and all that, set up shop, and got hit by a big negativity train.

People would get quite upset that someone would have the nerve to tell them how to be creative. They had missed the point because I had failed to clearly explain what I do to them. I tell my clients to clearly state there business purpose. What is your business? What exactly is the benefit of your business. If you don’t know, how will your customers?

I work with people that, want to reconnect with their creativity or earn money from there creativity. It is about finding solutions to what ever it is that keeps them from fulfilling their dreams. Sounds a little cheesy huh? Maybe, but it is wonderful.

I understood what I just said about my business did you?

I have something really important to say to you about taxes. Stop asking for tax help in random forums! Every business related tax is super important. You can’t just take the advice of anyone. It’s not like asking, “Should I paint my walls white or beige?” I mean really people.

Each state, town/city, and even county has its own tax laws and requirements. While you have them on the phone asking what kind of business license you need (again not random forums) ask them about taxes. They want to help you because they want your money.

Taxes are a total pain in the ass, but not nearly as bad running into legal problems and getting audited. You don’t want the tax man showing up and your home do you? Ok, so really it would most likely be a letter, but still it sucks.

Treat you biz with the love and care it deserves. Do your own research and learn how taxes apply to your business. Once you know, taxes won’t seem like such a big baddie. If you are still confused about the tax laws, call a local tax PROFESSIONAL. Even if you are on a tiny budget, it is worth it.

Put your big girl pants on and run your biz like you mean it!

All In The Details: The Marks Of Excellence In Your Handmade Business
Written By Carolina Gonzalez

Beside the quality of your craftsmanship, little things will matter more than
your customer care to make your business stand above the others. Almost
100% of us buy from other crafters – ah, the joy of a well-presented package,
the thrill of a good discount, the surprise of that extra goodie that the artisan
added for free to your purchase!

Customer care is so essential to keep your business growing as it is to
improve your skills and materials; and, as your craftsmanship refines and
grows, your marketing skills have to do the same. I have said this before in
other articles, but I really need to state it again:
your customers are your only investment.

Making someone feel like it’s Christmas morning, and letting them know that
they are appreciated and treated as individuals… that is priceless, both for the
maker and the buyer. The better you treat your customers, the more likely
they are to come back and buy from you again – and that is an artisan’s
dream customer.

I hear a lot that “I’m an artist, not a salesperson” statement, but to be honest, I
find marketing really enjoyable! Really, it’s all about taking your time to make
everything special, understanding that there are no bigger or smaller parts in
the process. I use my creative mind when I’m inventing a new promo item
for my best customers; I use my creative mind when I’m designing a new ad,
or a new slogan, a new tag for my products. And when I’m packaging my
beautiful crafts on tissue paper, adding a matching ribbon and handwriting a
thank-you note, I don’t feel like I’m doing marketing, I feel like I’m making
art and expressing my love and gratitude towards the buyer – which most of
the times becomes a friend shortly after. Double reward: a customer and a
friend! Oooh, we are lucky!

It is very important to keep a balance between expanding your customer base
and caring for those who have already purchased from you. It makes no
sense to dedicate all your “marketing time” to meet new people, when you
already have a dedicated group of followers waiting for your creations! I can speak from experience here: in the last three years I have had a few
different online businesses, and some were more successful than others, but I
have customers that have purchased items from each one of them.

Whether it was jewelry, prints, tattoo designs or Tarot readings (and now digital items),
some of my customers wanted to try a bit of everything that I’ve offered.
Why? Because from the beginning, they were given the Royal Customers
Treatment, and knew they would get more than they asked.

My dear friend Rena, editor of Home Jewelry Business Success News and
publisher of many of my articles, always tags my work as “spiritual” – well
yes, I’m a spiritual person, but my dears, this is all about earning money! My
father was a bank director, and I learnt from very little how much a business
like that spends on giving treats to their best customers – and if it works for
banks, who are we to contradict? Of course, all those gifts did not mean any
losing of wealth to the bank, so translate the percentage to your earnings and
look for inexpensive methods to reward your customer’s loyalty to your
cause.

Etsy is full of promo makers, don’t forget that! For less than you think, you
can buy badges, prints, notebooks, stickers, postcards and many other things
to say thank you in a personalized way. Go back to your 2008 order archives
and look for those 10, 20, 30 or 100 customers that helped you pay your bills –
they really deserve a big thank you.

It is our duty to encourage people to keep buying handmade on this global
economic uncertainty – the best way to make it is being thankful and
generous, rewarding those who spent their hard-earned money on us.
——————————————————————————————————
Carolina Gonzalez Acosta
Self taught artist and Eclectic Witch for 20 years, has been publishing
articles on creative living and marketing for home-based art businesses
for three years online. Her articles have been featured on more than 50
websites – you can find her work at http://magickshop.wordpress.com/

Most of us lead very busy lives. One of the top 10 reasons people give for not following their dreams is time. Normally this isn’t really true. The lack of time excuse can be a cover up for fear. In fact, most of the reasons we give for not following our dreams are cover ups for fear. Fear is what really keeps us from passionately pursuing out dreams. I believe that by understanding and overcoming these excuses, we also work through our fears.

I understand that you may not have big chunks of time to devote only to your dreams every day. This is alright, and no reason not to start working toward achieving your dreams now.

I suggest making a detailed schedule of your daily life. With this schedule you can see where your time is going and where you can gain time for your dreams. After doing that you will realize what a big time suck was and be mad at me. You found the time to do it and you can find the time for creativity.

I’m not just talking about taking time to actually make something. I’m also talking about taking time for yourself. We all need to recharge our batteries and refill the inspiration well. Taking care of business means taking care of yourself.

Here are some tips to help you make the most of your schedule and make time for your dreams.

1. Change the time you wake up or go to bed. Altering one or both of these times, even by 30 minutes can give you enough time to get some dream building tasks done. I try to get my clients to work on their projects first thing in the morning. This allows them to work before their day has cluttered up their minds.

2. Group errands, activities, and chores together. I think most people already do this with their errands. I it is worth mentioning because you may have things other than errands that can be grouped. The schedule you made will help you find these things.

3. Skip the dishes! Pick one or two household chores a week, that you can skip once and awhile. This won’t give you huge blocks of time but can add some flexibility to your schedule.

4. Turn off the t.v. I’ll admit, love t.v. It can be very easy to let it take over chunks of time, especially when we are avoiding our dreams. If you can work while watching your favorite show, great. If not, consider skipping in once and awhile.

5. Delegate, delegate, delegate. Did I say delegate? Try to delegate work and chores whenever you can either at home or at work. People that work from home can be dead set that they must do everything themselves. This attitude can cause stress and other problems. It is ok to let others help you! Delegate and take a break. Being able to relax even for 15 minutes recharges our batteries and keeps us going.

6. Get a sitter. If you are the main care giver of your children, consider getting a sitter. Having a family member, friend, or baby sitter watch your children for an hour once or twice a month will give you some uninterrupted time to focus on your dream. Don’t feel guilty about it either!

Last night on PBS (yes, I watch it and love it) they had Wayne Dyer on. He was speaking about excuses and his book Excuses Begone! While I didn’t watch the entire program, I knew right from the start he had a point. He was telling his audience similar stuff to what I tell my clients, only he uses nicer words.

We humans have excuses for everything. We use them every day for all kinds of reasons, most of the time without thinking or realizing how we are limiting ourselves, because sometimes we are mindless morons (myself included).

Have you ever thought about the excuses you use? Did you come up with it yourself or did your parents teach it to you? Does it have any basis in reality? I have excuses that I use to hold myself back, just like everyone else. At least now I have learned to stop myself and look for the real reason I don’t want to do something.

Have you taken the time to think about what you are hiding from when you use an excuse? Over the years, I have come to think that most excuses come from fear or laziness. If you tell yourself you can’t, then you don’t need to try or take any risks. Of course, you also never get what you truly want.

“I can’t afford that.” This statement may be totally true, that doesn’t make it a good excuse. You may not have the money to buy that new toy right now. It doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t try to find ways to get it. Telling yourself you can’t, is giving yourself permission to never go after your dreams! Why would you want to do that? Why force yourself to live a limited life?

The I cant’s, come in many forms. I think that all excuses are just ways of saying “I can’t”.
“It’s too risky.”
“I’m too old.”
“I was born this way.”
“My parents were poor.”
“I don’t have the time or money.”

All of these, and the tons of others I won’t list, are just ways of giving yourself permission to do nothing. You have probably heard the saying, Mind over Matter, well it is true. If you tell yourself you can’t, you will believe you can’t, and you never will. You mind is an amazing and powerful tool, get it working for you. You can change the way you think and change your life. I firmly believe that.

If you have been here before you will have noticed some changes going on. I have decided to take my own advice and revamp my biz into something more me. While I still hold my core beliefs that everyone is creative and that creativity is very important, I’m injecting my business with my personality. Some of you will love it and some of you will hate it. I’m ok with that.

I have been trying to make myself fit in with other popular creativity coaches, crafty, arty people. I know, it was a terribly naughty thing to do to myself. I was miserable of course. I love making all kinds of crafts. I knit, crochet, rubber stamp, & too many other things to list.

Most of the sites, books, teachers, coaches, & patterns where so not me. They were for fluffy bunnies. I wanted darkly silly things. I don’t want to make sparkle pink hart cards or lavender lace tea cozies. I can’t be that kind of coach either. I have to be true to myself, just as you should be being true to your self.

Where does that leave us? Hanging out in the cool crafters with balls and maybe odd senses of humor area. Helping people reach their goals and live more fulfilling lives, makes me feel warm and fuzzy, it doesn’t make me a fluffy bunny.

There are many different ways to get your business on the net. Blogging has become very popular and the number of blogs continues to grow. Having an internet presence for your business it an important marketing tool, even if you only offer your services locally. With all the different website and blogging tools, how do you choose which one to work with? It is important to have a clear idea of your business’s needs and yours. The platform you choose needs to fit your needs and skills.

Does your business need a blog or a static website? Blogs are normally updated weekly with posts or articles related to your business. A static website isn’t.

Do you have the time to keep a blog up? If you are super busy, you may not have the time to write blog posts. If your business continually has new things to share, you may want to hire someone to blog for you.

Do you know how to install or set up a website or blog? With all the different platforms and web, building tools and a little patients just about anyone can put up their own site. If you don’t have the time or desire to do it yourself, you can hire someone.

Over the years, I have tried blogger, wordpress, drupal, joomla, and a few others. My favorite is wordpress with drupal being my second favorite. It is easy for DIY site set up. Before you set up your site know what your needs are and research different platforms to find the best match. I can tell you from personal experience that it is very disappointing to take the time to set up a site only to discover after all your hard work that it doesn’t meet your needs.

A plan!
My email box is full of emails from people telling me about how they are ready to start their business. Then they ask me a ton of questions. I enjoy answering their questions. From what they ask I can tell that their minds are going in a million different directions and they have forgotten something important. They almost always make the mistake of skipping the first step.

Before you set up shop, even before you get any license or selling permits, you must have a plan. Some people get a little intimidated by the thought of writing a business plan. It really isn’t that difficult. If you don’t need to get a loan to start your business, no one but you ever needs to see it. Basically, your plan needs to state clearly what your goals are with your business, how you will accomplish those goals, who your target market is and how you will reach them. Of course you can add as much detail to your plan as you can. The more clearly you can envision your business the easier it will be to create it.

You can find free business plan templates on sites like SCORE and other places around the net. If you are only creating the plan for yourself, have a little fun with it. You may find it easier to see your plan as an art project. Once you have your plan and you know where you are going then you are ready to move on to the next step. A good business plan will help you keep your business moving in the right direction for you.