If you love making handmade gifts or have started getting into crafts more recently, you could have a steady stream of income on your hands. But setting up shop isn’t always easy, especially if you have a full-time job or young kids to take care of. This blog will help you to streamline your side hustle and give you some ideas as to how you can make even more money than you already are. It will take some time and effort, but in the long run, you’ll be so happy you started today instead of next year.
Make Payments Easy
Setting up a stall at a local crafts fair can seem like a great way to get started, but if you can’t accept card payments, a lot of customers will be walking away unhappy. Investing in a credit card terminal can help you to make more sales and actually makes payments quicker for you as well. Instead of counting out change and taking your cash to the bank, you’ll have all your money logged into your account straight away. This also makes it much simpler to keep track of your finances for accounting and tax purposes.
Buy Wholesale Supplies
Taking your craft business to the next level means cutting down costs so you can make more of a profit. One of the easiest ways to do this is to buy materials in bulk. Whether you use a lot of glue, glitter, resin, or wool, look into suppliers that will sell you a lot of it for a lower price. You’ll be amazed at how much less you’re spending when compared to your local crafts supplier that’s designed for people making gifts as a hobby.
Don’t Forget About the Internet
Even if your in-person stall is going well, don’t forget there’s a huge potential customer base online. If you’re willing to ship your goods across the country (or even the world) you could really grow your business. Get started with a professional website, social media channels, and a solid marketing strategy to get the word out there. Your website will also help with your local sales, as you’ll be able to advertise dates when your stall will be up and running.
Outsource
Are you spending a lot of your time on admin or answering customer questions when you could be crafting? If your budget allows for it, then outsource these tasks to a virtual assistant or other professional for a low cost. While it might seem like you’ll be making less money by spending on these services, you’ll have a lot more time to actually make products or boost your marketing strategy and drum up sales. In the long run, outsourcing menial tasks will pay off and one day you might even need to hire a full-time employee to help out.
Running a crafts business isn’t for everyone, but if you want to get serious then the above tips are a really great place to start.
