If you have an artistic flair and a fondness for pretty things, beads and sparkles, then you may have considered designing and making your own jewellery. While for a lot of people this is simply a fun hobby that allows them to get some unique and attractive pieces for themselves and to give as gifts, there is something of a trend these days for turning jewellery making into a personal cottage industry. If your pieces are good enough, you can sell them to people from all over the country or even the world via websites like eBay or Etsy, or you can sell your creations at craft fairs and other shopping events. If you are thinking about turning your own jewellery making hobby into a money making enterprise, here are some tips:
Learn About Online Marketing
No matter how cool, original or pretty the things you make are, in order for you to sell them people are going to need to be aware of you and what you do. This means that you are going to need a good web presence. There are lots of people making and selling jewellery, and while your products may have what it takes to stand out from the crowd, your website, online store and social media account have to have something impressive about them too. You can either hire an internet marketing company to work with you on a strategy, or you can study things like search engine optimization and social media marketing yourself (there are lots of resources on the web), but you do need to make sure you are employing a well thought out approach rather than assuming that simply having a web page and an eBay store will guarantee you visitors.
Work Locally
While the web does give you an opportunity to sell your pieces of jewellery to anyone, anywhere, unless what you make is really unusual you are in a highly saturated market. This means that it makes sense to have a two pronged attack when it comes to drumming up business, i.e. you use the internet and use it well, but also try and put your creations in front of real, local peoples’ faces whenever you can. This could mean trying to get your items in the jewellery cases in local stores, which you may be able to do simply by approaching them and asking to pitch your line to the shops’ owners, or it could mean running your own stall at local events. You also need to make sure that when you do sell a piece to a person you meet, some effort is made to forge a continuing relationship. This could be simply giving them your card, or something more interactive like asking them to register for your mailing list. If someone loves one of your pieces, chances are they will be keen to buy from you again, so don’t let them forget about you!
Like any craft based business, making jewellery can be really satisfying and fun, and, if you are good, lucrative. You do however need a firm grasp of how to market what you do, as well as the artistic skill to create really desirable things.
