It’s Never Too Late to Bet on Yourself
WITH A SMALL ONLINE SHOP
Maybe you’ve always thought you could make and sell those hand-painted signs. Maybe friends keep telling you that your cookies are good enough to sell, you have a knack for finding vintage treasures, or have made a stack of sketches that could become greeting cards.
And maybe you’ve also told yourself the same thing a hundred times: That would be fun, but I wouldn’t even know where to start.
Here’s the thing: You don’t have to quit your day job, rent a storefront or develop a 20-page business plan to find out whether your idea could become something more. Sometimes betting on yourself simply means giving an idea a chance.Start With
Something You Already Love
The best little businesses often begin with something you already know how to do or genuinely enjoy. Think about what people already compliment you on, what you could happily spend a Saturday afternoon doing or what you find yourself making for friends and family anyway.
The goal isn’t to invent the next big thing. It’s to find something that makes you think, I wonder if other people would like this, too.
Start Small — Really Small
One of the biggest advantages of starting a small creative business today is that you don’t have to make a huge investment before you know whether anyone wants what you’re offering.
Instead of making 100 candles, make 10. Instead of ordering boxes of inventory, start with a handful of products. Instead of designing an entire collection, see what happens with three or four ideas.
You aren’t trying to build an empire on Day One. You’re testing an idea.
Etsy Makes a Good Starting Point
If you’re selling handmade, vintage or creative goods, Etsy can be an approachable place to experiment because you don’t have to build your own website or figure out how to get people to find it.
Start at Etsy.com/Sell and select “Get Started.” Etsy will walk you through creating an account and setting up your shop, including choosing a shop name, adding your first listing and setting up payment and billing information.
Once you set up your tiny storefront, you’ll create your first listing, which will need the basics shoppers expect: good photographs, a clear title and description, pricing, shipping information and details such as size, materials and variations.
Don’t worry about making it perfect. Your first listing is a learning experience.
If Etsy doesn’t feel like a good fit for you, do your due diligence and visit some alternatives. Check out Amazon Homemade, eBay, Facebook Marketplace, and Artisans Cooperative.
As you grow, you may decide you want more control. Shopify is a leader in the online storefront landscape. For print-on-demand and drop-shipping items like t-shirts and tote bags, check out Printify, CafePress, and Printful, although there are tons of other options depending on what you want to design and sell.
Where Do You Get the Stuff?
You don’t need a warehouse full of supplies. Start with what you need to make a small test batch.
For crafting supplies, Michaels and Hobby Lobby have locations throughout Tarrant County and offer everything from beads and yarn to blanks, paints, fabric, tools and packaging supplies.
As you get more serious, explore online wholesale suppliers for supplies and packaging. Buying larger quantities can bring down the per-item cost, but there’s no reason to buy 500 of something before you know you’re going to use 500.
And don’t overlook what you already have. Your first product might be hiding
in that craft closet you’ve been meaning
to organize.
Take Pictures Like a Shopper
You don’t need professional photography equipment to create a good product listing. A phone, natural light, and a clean background can go a long way.
For each item, you’ll take several kind of photos: a clear main photo showing the entire product, close-ups that show texture or details, a photo that demonstrates size or scale, different colors or variations, if available, and the product being used or displayed, when appropriate.
Think less like the person who made the product and more like the person deciding whether to buy it. What would you want to see before clicking “Add to Cart”?
Give Yourself a Tiny Goal
Instead of saying, I’m going to start an online business, try:
I’m going to make five things.
Then photograph them.
List them.
Tell a few people what you’re doing.
See what happens.
Maybe they sell immediately. Maybe they don’t. Either way, you’ve learned something you couldn’t have learned by thinking about it.
And if you discover that you love the process? Make five more.
Know When to Ask for Help
Once your little idea starts looking less like a hobby and more like a business, it’s worth getting professional advice about things such as taxes, business structure, insurance, licensing and other requirements that may apply to what you’re doing. An accountant or attorney can help you understand what makes sense for your particular situation.
You don’t need to know all of that before you make your first product, though.
You just need to know when it’s time to ask. For more resources specifically geared toward women starting and growing businesses, look for our “10 Hot Resources for Female Entrepreneurs” in this issue.
Your Open Invitation
You don’t have to know where an idea is going before you’re allowed to begin.
Maybe your online shop becomes a thriving business. Maybe it becomes a creative outlet that pays for itself. Maybe you sell 12 things, learn a few new skills and decide your original idea wasn’t quite right.
All three outcomes are worthwhile.
Because betting on yourself doesn’t always mean making a big leap. Sometimes it means giving yourself permission to take one small step and see where it leads.
