January Sales and the best place to sell handmade items
It might seem early days to be talking about January sales when the celebration, colour, noise and busyness of Christmas hasn’t even started yet! However, once the hustle and bustle has begun, we’ll all be held in its thrall for a couple of weeks and we’ll be distracted from thinking about the year ahead. Then, when it’s all over there’ll be that familiar sense of sadness; a warm oasis of time with family and friends in the midst of an ever more crazy world and everyone is back to their everyday challenges and the reality of what needs to be done in the new year! For some of us, January comes as a welcome relief; for all the fun and festivity of Christmas, it’s good to clear our homes and lives and settle back into our normal routines. For all of us, it is a good time to reassess, not only our own habits and rhythms, but also our business vision and goals. So let’s talk about it ahead of time.
January can be a gloomy, grey month, but there’s much beauty to be seen in the silhouetted trees, the stillness of the damp air and the mist that hangs over our towns and countryside. In a fast-paced world, it can be tempting to view January as a time of deep hibernation, a time to regroup, to rest and be still. For craft businesses, however, January doesn’t have to be a slow month, it offers a raft of opportunities! January is a great time to reassess the direction of your business, where you want to be heading this year and set some goals to help you get there.
Looking at your sales strategy, one question it is good to re-examine is where is the best place to sell handmade items UK? This will obviously differ for each business, depending on your size, your location and your products. You may sell mainly online, with January a perfect time to apply discount codes to your website or online shop or start exploring the world of Google or Facebook Ads to promote your products to a wider audience. You may be plugged into a local crafting community and sell locally, or you might concentrate on larger national fairs. Most small business will grow with a combination of all of these, plus any other marketing opportunities which present themselves. As you look to expand your business it could be helpful to think strategically about your customer base, how to expand this and how to keep loyal customers while encouraging them to spend more. One of the ways you can do this is by using incentives, rewards and offers as part off your marketing strategy.
Everyone loves a bargain, but for you as a small business owner these have to be financially beneficial to yourself. If you are looking to attract new customers and are selling mainly online, rewards for referrals, reviews and for new customers are all worth considering. Using social media to your best advantage is a savvy move as it offers you so many opportunities to build your audience organically as well as using campaigns to push seasonal product lines or goods; as well as your website, ensure that you are making the most of your Facebook page and Instagram account. Customers often have to see an offer several times before they will act on it, so be consistent in posting and use Instagram stories regularly. New customers may be reluctant to buy online as they can not actually see or touch the product. They may like to know a little more about you and the company, and this is an area in which you can excel as a small crafting business. Make sure you have plenty of detail in your “about” section on your website, popping in a few personal touches to enable customers to relate to you, and also be sure to promote your sustainable and community-focused credentials. All this will start to build up trust between you and your customers. You might consider sending out emails with updates on the business, new lines and include a January offer with a discount code for anyone who signs up to receive these.
One way to get the word out there about your products and discounts is through advertising; this can be pricey but you can widen your reach considerably using Google or Facebook Ads. Also, check out local paper magazines or consider writing a short blog post for a crafting blogger with wide readership in return for advertising your website and offer. Make best use of Instagram stories by asking friends and followers to tag your current product and offer in exchange for tagging them straight back. A win for everyone.
All the above will work particularly well for attracting new customers, but what about rewarding loyal customers or encouraging them to look at your new range? Targeted offers can work, also the “three for two” multi-buy offers and straightforward discounts, maybe on a new range. These can be sent out via email if you have collated a mailing list.
So far, we have mainly discussed online selling, but as we ask where is the best place to sell handmade crafts in the UK we need also to look at the very many options of face-to-face sales and the advantages these bring, especially with a tempting offer attached. January is a good time to plan for craft markets, fairs and seasonal events. Explore your options, decide which to go for and pop them on your calendar. You can then look towards which ranges you will aim to sell at each event, and can plan discounts or incentives. For example, your display and offers for a family event at which there will be children with pocket money to spend will be different from that of an artisan fair.
One last factor to consider when looking for the best place to sell handmade items UK, planning your annual marketing strategy within this and organising customer incentives around it, is seasonal selling. As a nation, we can boast a bold list of celebrations; celebrations of the everyday and ordinary, as well as big, full-on, festivals. These include Candlemas (there is a gradual resurgence of this light-filled festival in February), Easter, Mothers’ and Fathers Days’, May Day, numerous regional summer festivals, Harvest, Bonfire night and Christmas. All these are opportunities to pop a discount onto one of your stunning handcrafted products, go out to meet the public and sell with confidence.
A final note : remember to check your insurance is in place for the year ahead. Drop us a line or give us a call and we can ensure you have the correct insurance backing in place as you head out into the New Year as the owner of a growing craft business, selling unique and high-quality products.