The reason I was so interested in checking out  the Philadelphia Buyers Market of American Craft is that it seems like there's so much talk lately in the craft community about turning what you love into a business.  

Especially in an economy like this one, people are exploring alternative to supplement their income.  I wanted to meet people like me and like you who are trying to do just that.  It was a major bonus to see Handmade Nation and have a chance to hear Faythe Levine talk about her thoughts on living a DIY lifestyle.

I don't pretend to be an expert on starting a craft business ... or a business of any kind ... but I do want to share my observations with you and see what you have to say about all this.

Make Something People Want To Buy
First and foremost, you have to make something that other people want to buy.  Sounds obvious, right?  But I'm not sure it is.  

Someone will say to themselves, "I love making widgets.  I'll turn that into a business."  But if no one wants to buy your widget, it's never going to work.  I think coming up with a salable product is the hardest thing to do.

Set A Financial Goal
Second, you have to do the math.  How much do you need to make selling your stuff?  This number is different for everyone.  One person might just want to make enough to pay for an extra vacation every year.  Someone else might have a family of 3 to support.  Figure out that number.  Then figure out how many widgets you have to sell to make that number, adjusting for material costs.  Then determine if it's possible for you to make that many things.

A point that Faythe made during the movie Q&A is that many of the friends she interviewed in the documentary had discovered what a toll manually creating crafts can take on their bodies.  Is the thing you make going to injure you when you become your own mini sweatshop?

Do You Really Love Making That?
Third, you need to be able to make the thing you're going to sell ... both physically and psychologically.  Paul Overton at Dude Craft wrote a great post named Soul Motivation about the effect of your motivation could have on your finished product.  He also spoke to Diane about this in CraftyPod #95: Crafting for Money vs. Passion, with Paul Overton.  

Keep in mind, though, even if what you make has mojo, people still have to want to buy it and you have to physically be able to make enough of them to meet your financial goals.  And in any case, mass producing your product line needs to not drive you completely nuts.

Professionalism Counts
OK.  So you have a product that people want to buy and you've determined that you can product the number it will take to meet your financial goals without crippling yourself.  Next, you need to create and maintain a market for your wares.

I think professionalism is the key here.  Think about the companies that you have good feelings towards and what makes you feel good about them.

Personally, I like a consistent brand identity that is carried through all aspects of the company: products, marketing materials, website, advertisements, logo, business cards, displays, and everything else.

Tell Your Story
You also need a good story.  People need to know why to care about you and your work.  Tell them what's important to you, how you make your work, or why you started the company in the first place.  Above all, your story needs to make people feel good.  They need to feel good about you, your products, and supporting you.  Everything in your company needs to be infused with your story.

Definitely tell the truth, but tell the happy truth.  Personally, I love creepy, depressing, and weird stuff ... just look at the list of movies I like and the music I like.  But most of the stuff I like isn't popular and the people who create the stuff I like struggle to make enough money to stay artists.  If you think you're going to hit the jackpot by giving people the sads, think again.

Many of the vendors I met have a small web presence and seemed unaware of the value of engaging with people online.  When I introduced myself as having a craft blog, one person asked, "Crack Blog?"  teehee :)  All of them could benefit from using a website or blog or Twitter to keep their story evolving and to *involve* their audience in their story.  

Be Prepared to Learn
I almost titled this section, be prepared to make mistakes.  But people don't always learn from their mistakes.  Chances are, if you start your own business making things, you aren't going to discover the perfect formula and balance right away.  It's going to take trial and error.  Be prepared to learn from your mistakes and adjust accordingly.

One vendor said she was going to the New York Gift Show later this year and she was glad she'd cut her wholesale market teeth in Philadelphia first because she'd learned a lot even though she wasn't getting the amount of wholesale orders she had hoped to get.  Even a failure in what you set out to do could turn into a success in some other way.

The Buyers Market was the first for Melissa of Sqrl & Bee Studio.  She said she got the opportunity to do the show and even though she wasn't sure where it would lead and the whole idea was out of her comfort zone, she jumped at it.  I think that kind of "fearless in the face of fear" attitude is valuable when trying to build a business.  Which brings us to ...

Be Brave
Take chances.  You might surprise yourself.  This point was brought home when the sisters of Biggs & Featherbelle told me their goal when designing their product line and packaging was that everything be shelf-ready for a retailer like Whole Foods.  And, in fact, Whole Foods now carries their products in their East Coast Stores.  Don't underestimate yourself.  Dream big!

What Do You Think?
Do you have any advice for people who want to start a crafty business?  Did I forget something?  Do you think I'm way off the mark?  I'd love to hear what you have to say!