Tea and a Chat with Ana from Channelled Creations

Hello!  Good to see you, the kettle’s just boiled – what would you like to drink?

May I have a cup of Organic Chicory please?

You certainly may! So, tell us a bit about yourself and your business.

My name is Ana Goncalves originally from Portugal (born in Lisbon) I have been living in the UK for 21 years now. I have always been very expressive since small be it through writing, dancing, acting, painting, or crafting and believe that it is the gateway to the soul. Expression became like a gateway to express my feelings and gain awareness and clarity through the creative medium. My Etsy Shop Chanelled Creations sells a variety of colourful and heartfelt original artwork, stationery items, prints and intuitive readings.

What inspired you to start your creative business? How did it all begin?   

My Etsy Shop Chanelled Creations was born out of my need to share and empower others through the Art that I make, and to show that you too can discover the richness of connecting to your own experiences through creativity. The decision to open up a shop came almost naturally, as I was moved into it to share and make a difference.

How has your business changed and developed since it started?

I opened Chanelled Creations on Etsy in April 2011 and since then I have made many new friends, learnt a lot of new things (and still learning) while growing inside and being open to new opportunities to arrive. My business has become a vehicle in which I can express myself freely and in that make a difference and uplift others in ways I couldn’t possibly imagine. I am very grateful for that.

What are the main ways you promote your business?  Which methods have been the most successful for you?

When I started I submitted my Etsy Shop to all the craft directories manually, and to all the main search engines. I gradually started using Facebook joint with Twitter and Pinterest. I also promote via Etsy teams which has become my community, where I get support and make new friends. I enjoy stopping by new places and discovering new artists and making connections. I also approach blogs, and do guest blogging, giveaways and soon will write for online magazines. I have also participated in exhibitions, offline Etsy events, trades, exchanges,  and hand out my business cards to people I meet.

I believe that everything that I have done has helped me to be where I am right now, and it is a continuous process to promote and always be open to new opportunities and ways for others to discover you and your work.

What’s your workspace like?  Can we have a sneak peek?  And do you have any workspace organisation tips for the rest of us?

My workspace varies, sometimes it is very unorganized and other times it is very neat. I leave it just the way I want because it reminds me what I need to do next, and where I am at. I think it is important to just go with the flow of your work space and do what feels right for you. It doesn’t have to be fully organized all the time. What matters is how it makes you feel, and whether you are content and at peace with it.

What are the best and worst bits of running your business?

I think the best part about running the business is when people buy my work, and tell me that they are inspired by it and that it makes them happy. I am grateful for the friends that I have made as that is an invaluable gift in itself.

The one thing I have learnt on this journey is to price my items according to my time and the love that I put in, and so if I had known that before I would have spent less time worrying about that aspect. On the positive side it has made me more aware of how others deserve to discover my work and it doesn’t matter what cost it is.

What other small (or not-so-small) creative businesses do you admire? 

I admire anyone who has the courage to express their creativity with the world, because they are leaving a mark and making a difference. I am continuously inspired by people and what they create and knowing that they are contributing a part of them into the world. I respect and appreciate anyone who follows their own path, and what they do.

What tips can you give to others who run (or hope to run) a small creative business?

Be open and receptive to each experience that you encounter and know that it is all an opportunity to grow and learn. Trust yourself in every moment and have faith. Don’t be afraid to ask for help, and learn from others who inspire you.  Have fun, enjoy the journey and celebrate your successes as well as your lows. Don’t be too hard on yourself, and breathe when you need to away from your business as you will be thankful for it in the end. 

What are your hopes, plans or ambitions for the future? 

My plan is to offer more of my custom based services to clients, and to expand into new possibilities and ways to work with others in creative projects and even a centre.

Finally, where are the places we can find you online if we want to partake in a little friendly cyber stalking?

Etsy shop - 30% OFF Coupon Code: BIRTHDAY

Blog- Currently have a September Birthday Giveaway on my blog - feel free to stop by and enter

Facebook

Twitter

Thanks so much for stopping by – it was so nice to be able to take the time to chat with you!

Thanks for having me - it's been a true pleasure having tea with you.

Choosing a Business Name

This article, all about choosing a business name, was written for us by Magdalena of Cocoa and Heart

Choosing a Business Name

It is natural for us crafters to concentrate on what we know and like doing best – crafting and creating our products.  But if one day your hobby becomes your business, you will need to deal with other aspects of running your business.  That might sound boring and mundane, but it doesn’t have to be. 

If you think about your business as a three legged stool, then skills are one leg and finances and marketing are the other two. If one leg is shorter than the others, your business – like the stool – might be in danger of collapsing and falling over. So, branding is a part of marketing and choosing your logo and business name is a very important part of establishing your business.

If you are choosing a name from scratch think about the following practical checklist:

1.       Do your research – No matter how original you think your name is, the chances are that somebody else has already thought of it. When I was choosing a name for my business, I woke up in the middle of the night and thought of ‘Cinnamon Rose’. I loved it and wanted it, until I ‘Googled’ it and found that others had thought about it first.

2.       Know your market – You need to know who are your potential customers. If your customers are trendy fashion conscious people, then an old-fashioned name will not bring them in (unless it’s ultra cool and vintage…).

3.       Keep it simple – Don’t try to be too clever – if you need to explain to your customers what your name means and how to spell it, then the chances are that they will not remember you. From a practical point of view, if your name becomes a web domain and people won’t be able to type it in correctly, you will lose your customers.

4.       Keep it short – Your name needs to be memorable and should have a strong visual image behind it. If your name is awkward and long people will not remember it. If they can’t immediately picture something behind your name, your name will not stay in their memories.

5.       Make it a positive name – I don’t believe that in our crafting world many people would do this, but it is a good idea to bear in mind that positive images (and names) work better than negative or offensive names, that will deter people immediately.

6.       Finalise your choice – write all your choices down and ask for an opinion. You can try your friends and family, but I would really recommend asking people who don’t know you. They are likely to be more honest…

 There is nothing wrong in using your own name as your brand – in fact most designers do this and if you are successful, people will start recognising your name as the ‘brand’ (think Laura Ashley or Cath Kidson). But, until you get there, the brand of ‘Maureen Table’ will not mean anything to others. That is why some people choose a name that symbolises and describes what they do.

Also think about the name from a business point of view – if your name is ‘Maureen’s Handmade Cards’ and you decide to add other product lines and expand your business, by sewing cushion covers, people might be quite confused about the name and you will need to keep explaining that you ‘also do cushion covers’. So, think about a name that could be used for not just now, but also in the future – e.g. ‘Maureen’s Handmade’.

Another good reason for choosing your business name carefully, is to check whether that name is available as a website, e-mail, Twitter or Facebook domain. This will be important if you decide to have a website or blog in the future. There are any number of domain providers (such as Reg 123) where you simply key in your chosen name to check if it’s available. The yearly fee is anything from £2.99 to £14.99 (or more). It is worth securing your domain early on, so that nobody else can take it later. There are number of endings to each website e.g. co.uk, com, biz etc., so if you want to make sure that nobody uses the same name (but just with a different ending) buy all the domains.

Your business name can either be descriptive, so it is obvious what you do or you could think of a name that will evoke the ‘feeling’ about your products and the feeling that you want to evoke in your customer (e.g. Bespoke Vintage, Rose Vintage). You might also like to leave a bit unravelled, so that the customer is interested about the name and will want to know more (‘Through the looking glass…’).

Finally, you have to be comfortable with the name you choose. You will be the one, who will promote it and say it a million times to your potential customers, so it has to be something you have a strong connection with. In my own experience, it took me a few months to come up with a name and it was not for lack of choice ! My well meaning friends and husband suggested names, which I politely, but firmly refused. There was ‘The Midas Touch’. When you pronounce ‘Midas’ it sounds like my family name in Czech, but nobody would get this, would they ? Also, I do not work with gold, so why chose this name ?! My own first suggestion was: ‘Magdalena’. Well that is simple enough, it is my name after all and everything I do (which is quite a lot of different things) is linked back to me. Yes, a good choice, I hear you say, but then I saw that the cheapest web domain was 10 k (!!!) to buy and it was not even .co.uk…

My otherwise lovely husband suggested ‘Sweet Touch’ on the basis that everything I bake is sweet and lovely, but I felt it sound it more like a massage parlour. I have already mentioned Cinnamon & Rose (or Cinnamon Rose), which I loved, but loads of people already had that, when I googled it.

Choosing your business name is exciting, it means that your business properly exists and you start creating your own piece of crafting world.

Oh, by the way, the name I chose in the end, came to me in the middle of the night and it was just perfect. I make chocolate, but also sew and most of my designs are in a shape of a heart. My favourite perfume is Coco Mademoiselle and all my things are made from my heart. So, that is how ‘Cocoa & Heart’ was born.

All images are from Cocoa and Heart, and you can find out more about Magdalena and her Cocoa & Heart business here:

Website: www.cocoaandheart.co.uk

Blog: www.cocoaandheart.blogspot.com

Twitter: www.twitter.com/Cocoaandheart

Facebook www.facebook.com/cocoaandheart

Shop Focus: Butterfly Blossom

Today's interview is with Nikki - read on for more about her small craft business:

Tell us what you sell and where you and your shop can be found

I create unique and modern handmade cards & notelets, bunting and cute little sewn goodies although my range is always expanding as I have new ideas. I have an online shop (www.butterflyblossom.co.uk) and a blog (www.butterflyintheblossomtree.co.uk). I have also very recently opened a Folksy shop (http://folksy.com/shops/ButterflyBlossom) which I am slowly uploading items to and I am on Facebook (www.facebook.com/ButterflyBlossomCards) , Twitter (www.twitter.com/ButterflyBlossm) and Pinterest (http://pinterest.com/ButterflyBlossm)! 

How much of your time goes into your business?  Is it full time/part time?  Juggling act?

I work full time for a fostering agency so I run Butterfly Blossom in the evenings and at weekends which takes up most of my spare time and there are never enough hours in the day! I would love for it to become a full time business but since the company is in it’s early stages this is a dream for the future.

What have you learned since opening your online shop?

That running an online business is just as hard (if not harder) than running a conventional shop! It is difficult to get the exposure needed for online shops as you don’t get the passing trade that a normal shop would get and your photos and descriptions have to really sell the item to potential customers as they can't pick up your goods and handle them for themselves.

Approximately what percentage of your sales are online?

Around 40% of my sales are made online through my various shops. I also sell at Craft Fairs and fetes and am currently in the process of finding a stockist to sell my products in a local shop. I do find that I get the most custom orders through my website though.

What do you think your biggest challenges are?

Time constraints on making, photographing and uploading products to my website is definitely a big challenge for me. Because my time is limited I can’t make as many products as I would like to and I can spend several evenings just photographing and listing my items. I also find that advertising my shop and blog is difficult as people won’t search for you if they don’t know about you! Having a teeny tiny work space is also a pretty big challenge and I have become pretty good at balancing large things on tiny work tops!!

What are your main ways of promoting your shop?  Which methods do you think have the most success?

As soon as I launched my shop I simultaneously launched a Facebook page, a Twitter account and started writing my blog. I knew that these methods would get me the biggest number of visitors to my site in the quickest amount of time. Because I wrote my blog about topics that are often searched in Google my site got lots of hits on popular posts such as product reviews and tutorials. This increased traffic to my site and in turn pushed people to my shop. I have also tried leafleting but I found this time consuming and there is an obvious cost to this that Facebook and Twitter do not have. The most successful method of promoting my website has been through taking part in Blog Hops and Link Parties such as Handmade Monday (every week here on Handmade Harbour). This has gained me a steady set of new followers who give me advice, tips and constructive feedback to help me develop my products.

What are your plans for the future?

My dream is to open a shop in my seaside town of Whitstable. My shop would sell all of the items that I make, the materials needed to make them and I would have a make and take area where people of all ages and abilities could pop in and create something using the materials I have in my shop. This is a dream for a long way in the future. For the shorter term I would like my business to be successful enough that I can work part time in my job and part time fulfilling orders.

Which other shops (handmade or supplies) do you admire?

Oh the list is endless!!! I am a massive fan of most of the American paper crafts companies such as Echo Park, Basic Grey and American Crafts. Handmade-wise I love paper-and-string for all of her yummy sewn goodies and I have a particular soft spot for an American crafter called Kerry’s Paper Crafts. She gives great tutorials on how to make the things she makes which is where a lot of my inspiration comes from – thanks Kerry!

Anything else you’d like to add?

Please spread the word if you like what I create – word of mouth is the best (and cheapest) form of advertising! Thank you for reading and happy crafting!

Thanks so much for taking part in this interview Nikki - I love these insights into other people's businesses!  Do let us all know if thay dream shop ever becomes a reality - it would be a lovely place to visit!