I've been working feverishly over here - on orders, deadlines for magazines and coming up with a better game plan. The last part is always the hardest for me. Taking stock, seeing what is really working in my business, what is just keeping me busy vs. what is really bringing in an income. One thing I've decided is to scale back the beads in my etsy shop. I will keep a few of the best sellers, but it will mostly be limited editions, one-of-a-kinds and jewelry by the end of the month. Some of the items in my etsy shop have been made to order, but with the exception of the personalized ornaments everything over on etsy is now in stock and ready to ship.
I've been updating my website and have more beads to add to my line as a part of the Humblebeads collection, this includes some of the tops sellers from my new Kiss series! I've redesigned my bead shop page for easier ordering.
My website offers my favorite beads and those that have proven popular sellers. Most of the beads are made to order. I keep my best sellers in stock, but it never fails that someone will order something that I just ran out of or was wiped out by a rash of wholesale orders! So I decided to face facts and give myself a reasonable amount of time to fill my retail website orders, which is 5-7 business days. I also decided that due to the intense nature of handcrafted art beads, there had to be a minimum order on my website of $30. For those looking for just one or two Humblebeads there is the choice of what is on hand in my etsy shop, a new line of beads that will be in a new marketplace at the end of the month and also Bello Modo carries a nice selection of my beads with no minimum order and free shipping.
My ultimate goal is to find a balance between work and spending more time with my family and friends. It's hard to admit that I can't do everything and there are only two hands making these beads. (Jess helps with shipping at night and on the weekends, God Bless him!) Hopefully my new plan will relieve some of the pressure!
My ultimate goal is to find a balance between work and spending more time with my family and friends. It's hard to admit that I can't do everything and there are only two hands making these beads. (Jess helps with shipping at night and on the weekends, God Bless him!) Hopefully my new plan will relieve some of the pressure!
3 comments:
That sounds like good business sense. Those two hands can only make so many beads at a time. A $30 min. is very reasonable. Your etsy shop is always filled with wonderful Art Beads and beautiful jewelry.
I gotta say, I personally would have NO PROBLEM whatsover, picking out $30 worth of beads at your website!
:)
Good post. Shows that you are only HUMAN and not a machine, and well that's the whole point of buying handmade!!
I think these are good changes, especially giving yourself more time to fill orders.
As for the website minimum, it makes perfect sense to me. My shopping style tends towards using Etsy for when I just want to impulsively buy one bead, and to use a website when I need to stock up on lots. And $30 is a very manageable minimum.
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