I’m pretty sure you have just described me. Hard work ahead. Thanks!

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SO much to do. I love this article. I am doing that with my first shop on Etsy. Even after almost three years…I KNOW it is time for am upgrade and evaluation. Thanks so much for writing this.

Good question. What is our message?

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Great article Amber… Shortly after I opened my Etsy shop my brand was developed and I knew who I was as an artist and seller. I had been designing and selling for a few years off line before that. Knowing who you are as an artist will give you a path to follow and a direction to head.

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Thank you for a great article! It is an overwhelming task that requires confidence and passion. (and sleeping children!)

GREAT ARTICLE! I am a new shop owner on etsy and I am already rethinking several things. I am one of those people that have about 1000 idea’s in my head. Now I just need to focus them.

Thanks for using one of my typewriter key necklaces!!!

Cheers
Bonnie
GwenDELICIOUS

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Great advice! This is what ‘branding’ is really all about, telling us who you are & why you are different from the rest. It’s an ongoing process, since to grow, we need to change & when we change, who we are has changed. Thanks for posting.

I’ve been wrestling with this for the longest time. Thanks for bringing this topic front and center. It is about taking a ‘stand’ and letting go ……..! Best ~ Will

Loved the article! Lots to think about…

Branding has to be one of the hardest things for a small company. The thing I struggle with is capturing diversity in my branding and logo. Everyone tells me that diversity it wrong and that I should specialize in one thing but to me that feels like putting on a pair of shoes that are several sizes too small, it just doesn’t fit with who I am and the type of business that I want to be.

I know I can make it work but have yet to find the key to unlock the branding mystery. It’s a journey for sure.

Thank you so much for this article! It has really inspired me to figure out what my plan is and to get to work on it! Thanks for sharing it with me….

great article! i’m still struggling with this.

my vision is gradually growing from
‘i make jewelry from broken glass’ to
‘i create unique and beautiful jewelry from reclaimed liquor bottles’ to
‘i create one-of-a-kind artisan jewelry from beautiful recycled glass that i cut and grind into classic shapes and then embellish with silver wire and decorative lead-free, silver bearing solder’.

Each time my self esteem goes up, so do my prices as i begin to realize the skill and work involved transends the materials used.

Great truth serum! Jewelry is such a dime a dozen business, glad your articles outline pratical ways to reach a goal.

Excellent article. Just rewrote my shop announcement again. And probably not the last time. :)
Thanks for the valuable tips and insight!

Thanks for another great reminder. I’d love to tell you who am, but I don’t really know. I’ll come back when I do. LOL.

Very good article.
It has been a process for me to develop my brand. I do handmade pottery and always felt lost with so many potters.
But once I developed a line a decoration which I could relate to my influences and fascination with India and the color, fabrics, embroidery that go with it, it was easier for people to find me. It also helps in clearly talking about your work, because you get more focussed, rather than being all over the place.

I wish I knew who I am…. Help!!!!

I have been making handmade beauty products & cosmetics for 10 years now and I understand the power of branding.

When I first started I knew I wanted to create products that are natural and fun to use. Most natural beauty companies have very plain generic packaging and the fun trending beauty products were not good quality. I wanted to combine the fun and natural and I created my slogan of “Get Your Mojo On”

I used “Get your Mojo On” whenever I was talking to customers, interviewing, and selling my products to get people interested. Then I used it on my labels and packaging. People remembered the slogan more than the name.

Branding was a simplification of what my company embodied and what the average consumer would remember about me. I took a picture of me mixing a batch of lotion and created a cartoon-like image with 2 colors so that I could make a stamp, create t-shirts, and use to get the message that all the beauty products were handmade. The labels for my beauty products looked so professional that when I opened up my store/spa people thought we were a large franchise and did not realize it was all handmade by 4 people. Having the picture on my sign outside of my store in Chicago and on my website sends a clear message.

If you do anything write down what you want people to know and what you want to be known for and create everything around this idea. You should always try to improve your branding because things change.

In the past 2 years I changed my slogan from “Get your Mojo On” to “Where Beauty Meets Comfort” because all the new products I was developing and our comfort spa at the store was cohesive with the idea of comfort. As you grow and develop it is good to change your branding to represent that as well.

Bottomline: Know who you are which builds confidence which builds a business!

Thank you for the thought provoking article. I know who I am but I probably need to do a better job of getting it across to my shoppers.

Great article, thanks! I’ve let my brand evolve rather than decide up front what/who I wanted to be! Work lies ahead for me …

Great article! Made some really good points. Any advice for the “ADD” artist who honestly can’t handle just making one thing really good – instead must make LOTS of things really well?

Excellent Advice ! Thanks so much.

Diana / lunaessence
http://lunaessence.etsy.com

Kim…. I would say in your case focus on the look of your products. For example I make furniture, jewelry , clocks, and jewelry trees. With my product photography and presentation people know that these different items are made by me.

Kim (KimsCraftyApple)
Great article! Made some really good points. Any advice for the “ADD” artist who honestly can’t handle just making one thing really good – instead must make LOTS of things really well?

Great article that you shared with us Tim!
And regarding above comments from Kim………..
I have clients who if they see my paintings before they see my jewelry designs or sandblasted glass or see me sing with my band, or whatever it is that I am working on at the time, they will sometimes say why don’t you just focus on your oil painting and just do that…. or….. Well my answer is that I love all the things that I do! It is part of who I am ! I don’t want to do just one, and I am never bored, life for me is a creative adventure.
I belive we are painting and creating our own canvas each moment of our life, each day is a new adventure with new hope and promise, new ideas and inspiration. Of course I do believe before we put our work out into the public eye, we need to be sure it is professional quality work.

So don’t let anyone one discourage you, live your dreams and have LOTS of them should you so choose!

AHHH, such great food for thought. Thanks!

Jeanne

Did the answers from your survey help you become the Loose Leaf company? I am having a hard time figuring out how you went from average to phenomenal.

This sage and timeless advice can never come too late. When my customers come back for seconds and thirds, asking for more “kaboogies”, it makes my heart sing. It gives my product a personality, and sometimes I forget to run with that. Putting on my thinking cap, got to keep boogying!

Thanks for the artice Tim. I know who I am, but I guess I did not think it was important to express it, now I know I will

This article has given me a wider perspective!! Thanks :)

A great article! I’ve been selling on Etsy for 2 and a half years now and I always thought I had a pretty strong brand, but it occurs to me lately that even though I know who I am, I might not be directly communicating that with my customers. I agree that no matter how long you’ve been going, there’s always room for change if you’re not happy.

My branding would be all things seashells, but I have yet to find out who exactly my target market is. Being with Etsy for over a year and getting sales now and again just isn’t cutting it. I feel what I’m selling is unique, and I love hand painting them and I know who I am I just don’t know who to sell them to. By posting here is this what SEO call an outside link to bring traffic?

Awesome post! Giv3e me a lot to think about. Thanks!

BrendaLea

Always a work in progress…updating, tweaking, trying to find the right words to express who I am and what I’m all about.
I’ll keep at it and one day I’ll get it right…hopefully before I die!! lol!

Thanks so much for sharing this!

Thanks everyone! I’m so happy that you enjoyed this article. Here to help anytime if you have specific questions. Oh and @natalie it was a long process to boost our image. Networking with other companies at Trade Shows and being very selective with our choices for retailing and wholesale. Once we caught the attention of some (chefs, hotels etc) it took off from there. The owner had fantastic connections in the restaurant industry so we used those contacts and really worked them. You never know who your friends know. Keep the circle wide and always ask questions! We also nailed down our graphics to keep our image consistent across the board. At the time, Tea was a newer concept so it was a little easier to narrow down an untapped market. Trade shows specific to your craft are a great way to network. Sign up for “advanced educational courses” within your trade and get to know the trainers. They are usually business owners within your field and can be a valuable mentor for you.

realy need to arise from the ground bt need to obtain an bank account to meet some of the needs to lounch the shop

Great article! That was about me too. I need to work on it. Thanks!