Hey Everyone,
Now that the word is out there a little more and we have had a chance to really get stuck into putting together an outline of some of these evenings for you all, we thought that it would be a good time to give you all a sneak peak at what we are planning.
Last weekend we printed a bunch of flyers and handed them out at the Devonport Craft Market. A few stall holders were lovely enough to even keep some on their table for people to take (thank you to all of you who did). By the end of the day, they were almost all gone! Jess had some great conversations with everyone about it all and received some really excellent (and valuable) feedback.
As you may already know, we're kicking off our first evening in March 2010. Below you will find a bit more of an overview of the variety of topics we are going to cover each month. These aren’t in any particular order at this stage, as we will need to finalise our guest speakers for each evening in the New Year so that you know well in advance what will be coming up.
Now that the word is out there a little more and we have had a chance to really get stuck into putting together an outline of some of these evenings for you all, we thought that it would be a good time to give you all a sneak peak at what we are planning.
Last weekend we printed a bunch of flyers and handed them out at the Devonport Craft Market. A few stall holders were lovely enough to even keep some on their table for people to take (thank you to all of you who did). By the end of the day, they were almost all gone! Jess had some great conversations with everyone about it all and received some really excellent (and valuable) feedback.
As you may already know, we're kicking off our first evening in March 2010. Below you will find a bit more of an overview of the variety of topics we are going to cover each month. These aren’t in any particular order at this stage, as we will need to finalise our guest speakers for each evening in the New Year so that you know well in advance what will be coming up.
(Please note this is only a brief overview of the topics, further details will be in the online enrolment on our website as evenings become available)
Marketing
This will cover a variety of aspects from working out who your target market is, online vs offline advertising, give-aways and how to do them effectively and inexpensive marketing idea's.
This will cover a variety of aspects from working out who your target market is, online vs offline advertising, give-aways and how to do them effectively and inexpensive marketing idea's.
Book Keeping
It’s a must for any business, so we will shed some light on things like basic book keeping, tax, defining your business, and your obligations. Of course we are in no way experts, so we will have an accountant as our guest speaker.
It’s a must for any business, so we will shed some light on things like basic book keeping, tax, defining your business, and your obligations. Of course we are in no way experts, so we will have an accountant as our guest speaker.
Intellectual Property
One of the things that often gets forgotten when running a small business, but a very important topic. We’ll discuss issues around copyright, trademarks and protecting yourself. A knowledgeable Intellectual Property expert will be the guest speaker.
One of the things that often gets forgotten when running a small business, but a very important topic. We’ll discuss issues around copyright, trademarks and protecting yourself. A knowledgeable Intellectual Property expert will be the guest speaker.
Social Networking
An online presence is very important in this day and age, so we will be discussing Blogging, Twitter and Facebook in detail, with a successful blogger along to chat to you all about creating an effective online persona and making a blog that is highly regarded.
Markets
A topic that a lot of people will all be well aware of, but perhaps there are some things you may not have thought of? We’ll cover things such as applying for markets, getting ready for your market, displays, advertising materials and more.
Branding
Branding is more than just a logo, here we will explore why it is important to have a clear focus when you are creating your brand. We’ll discuss public relations, getting yourself noticed and maintaining a consistent image.
Christmas and Holiday Planning
Pre-Silly season can be a very busy time for crafters with plenty of markets and people doing their Christmas shopping. We will be discussing keeping your head above your orders, interesting packaging idea's and other important tips. We will help you get prepared for the busiest time of year.
Online Selling
Markets are one very effective way of selling your items but selling online is also very popular too. Not to mention it’s easy and cost effective to do. We will have a guest speaker that will give you some top tips of what to do (and what not to do!) when it comes to selling online with places such as Etsy, Felt and Big Cartel.
Customer Service
This is usually a second nature to most people, but it is always great to get some tips and pointers from someone in the know. It’s often a bit more personal and you have your heart on your sleeve when you are selling your own creations, rather than something mass made and generic. We will have a guest speaker helping you turn an unsuspecting browser into a buyer.
Planning your year
New Years are fabulous. It’s a great time to think about your future, not only personally, but for your business too. If you have spent the last year thinking about something you want to try, be it a new product range or perhaps a new craft altogether, then we want to help you get sorted. We will discuss revamping your business and planning for a productive and busy year ahead.
Wholesaling and Consignment
Selling to stores, galleries and retailers is a whole different ball game. We will cover things from pricing, to approaching stores, the pros and cons of selling wholesale and on consignment and how to set yourself up with a wholesale information kit.
Photographing Your Items
It is very important when selling online that your photographs of your products look their best. You need to make sure your customer gets a really accurate idea of what they are purchasing. Plus, the photos need to stand out if you are selling in places like Etsy and Felt. We will discuss different (as well as cheap and free) ways to photograph your items to their full potential by using a regular digital camera.
Packaging
We''l talk about how to make your items cohesive and professional. Do you need tags, care labels, instructions or protective packaging? Make them yourself vs. outsourcing, mailing your goods and how to make your items stand out.
We want you to get full value for money and plenty of expert advice so will source some awesome guest speakers for each event. Our evenings will be held on the third Thursday evening of each month, with a break during December and January (as we know you will all be busy enough during those months).
An online presence is very important in this day and age, so we will be discussing Blogging, Twitter and Facebook in detail, with a successful blogger along to chat to you all about creating an effective online persona and making a blog that is highly regarded.
Markets
A topic that a lot of people will all be well aware of, but perhaps there are some things you may not have thought of? We’ll cover things such as applying for markets, getting ready for your market, displays, advertising materials and more.
Branding
Branding is more than just a logo, here we will explore why it is important to have a clear focus when you are creating your brand. We’ll discuss public relations, getting yourself noticed and maintaining a consistent image.
Christmas and Holiday Planning
Pre-Silly season can be a very busy time for crafters with plenty of markets and people doing their Christmas shopping. We will be discussing keeping your head above your orders, interesting packaging idea's and other important tips. We will help you get prepared for the busiest time of year.
Online Selling
Markets are one very effective way of selling your items but selling online is also very popular too. Not to mention it’s easy and cost effective to do. We will have a guest speaker that will give you some top tips of what to do (and what not to do!) when it comes to selling online with places such as Etsy, Felt and Big Cartel.
Customer Service
This is usually a second nature to most people, but it is always great to get some tips and pointers from someone in the know. It’s often a bit more personal and you have your heart on your sleeve when you are selling your own creations, rather than something mass made and generic. We will have a guest speaker helping you turn an unsuspecting browser into a buyer.
Planning your year
New Years are fabulous. It’s a great time to think about your future, not only personally, but for your business too. If you have spent the last year thinking about something you want to try, be it a new product range or perhaps a new craft altogether, then we want to help you get sorted. We will discuss revamping your business and planning for a productive and busy year ahead.
Wholesaling and Consignment
Selling to stores, galleries and retailers is a whole different ball game. We will cover things from pricing, to approaching stores, the pros and cons of selling wholesale and on consignment and how to set yourself up with a wholesale information kit.
Photographing Your Items
It is very important when selling online that your photographs of your products look their best. You need to make sure your customer gets a really accurate idea of what they are purchasing. Plus, the photos need to stand out if you are selling in places like Etsy and Felt. We will discuss different (as well as cheap and free) ways to photograph your items to their full potential by using a regular digital camera.
Packaging
We''l talk about how to make your items cohesive and professional. Do you need tags, care labels, instructions or protective packaging? Make them yourself vs. outsourcing, mailing your goods and how to make your items stand out.
We want you to get full value for money and plenty of expert advice so will source some awesome guest speakers for each event. Our evenings will be held on the third Thursday evening of each month, with a break during December and January (as we know you will all be busy enough during those months).
We really hope this little taster of what’s to offer has wet your appetite and excited you about our impending evenings. We would really love to hear any suggestions on what you would like to see and learn about — You guys are the ones we want to help, so knowing what you want to learn is very important to us.
Don’t be shy... send us an email. We'd love to hear from you.
Kylie and Jess
xx
xx
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