Who knew the world contained this variety of duct tapes?

I've been thinking a lot about community.
And culture.
And what makes a space a space.

Havi talks (brilliantly) about culture.
And Diane has been talking about (financial) sustainability in our crafty world.

And the range of answers in her comments has me wondering: what is our online, bloggy, crafty world?

There are craft bloggers and podcasters (like Diane) that don't sell what they craft.
There are crafters who don't blog or podcast but want to sell what they craft.
And crafters who sell what they make, but don't blog or Twitter or even get online.

And then there's me.

I starting blogging (oh Diaryland!) 10 years ago (and no, you can't read what I wrote then) and have been writing something online ever since.
But it's not really humor.
It's not really tutorials.
It's not really essays on the craft world.
It's not really…anything.

Over at Blonde Chicken Boutique, I write about my yarn. How I make it, what inspires it, what to do with it.

Here, I talk about having a crafty business. What that's like, what I've learned, how you might do it.

I'm part of the community, but I'm not interacting in the same way.
And this works for me.
It's built a business and friendships and allowed me to do what I really adore (talking to other crafty business-lovers).

But is that allowed?

Several of my newest clients are brand-new to the whole online-craft-world and they're wondering if they should do it all: blog, tweet, podcast, sell their craft.

My answer is always the same: do what suits you.

If you like writing (as I do), write.
If you like photography, Flickr.
I you like getting to know strangers with similar interests, tweet.

I'm not sure where I fit into the greater craft blog world and that's ok.
It's ok if you don't know where you are either.
And it's really ok if you don't blog or tweet or sell your thing.

You are welcome here all the same.

(Remember, there are no secret handshakes.)

Finding what works for you is the first step to making sure you spend your time on doing what WORKS for you.
What brings clients.
What fulfills your needs.
What makes your business hum with fun and profit.

I'm working on a class that will answer your specific questions on using social media (blogs, twitter, etc) to sell your thing (it's not quite ready to announce yet, but you can sneak a peek here), but before I announce it, I just wanted to remember:

It's ok to be where you are. It's ok to NOT use social media.
It's ok to use it however you've been using it.

Really. You can't do it wrong.

The only thing that's wrong?

If  it isn't working for you.
If you're not getting what you want and need.
If it's wasting your time and frustrating you.

And that's what my class will be about: ignoring the shoulds and finding what works for you, in a non-icky, totally full-of-ease way.

I'm curious: what do you know works for you?

This photo has nothing to do with anything, I just thought you should know that it really IS this snowy.

In our CraftyBiz Kitchen chat this week, someone asked a gorgeous question:

How do I get involved in my community if they're not online?

This is brilliant, because most everything that I talk about in the Right People class, assumes you're reaching a community online.
But you might not be.

If you're selling online, then the community you build will be online.
(Of course you can have an in-person community to, but it's much easier to just link to your shop online than in the middle of a conversation)

If that community is NOT already online, then you should probably pursue different methods of distribution: wholesaling or consigning to shops or craft shows or something else.

The method of your distribution (how the people get your thing) will determine the community you join and build.

If you open a yarn shop, hold knitting nights, classes and attend the knitting groups that already exist.
If you sell to retail locations, become a part of their community: attend wholesale shows, take them out to lunch, talk to them.
If you sell locally, meet your customers where they are: classes, community centers, book clubs, golf courses.

The one caveat: if you sell crafty things, you will NOT find your Right People at a crafting group. If they make the craft, they probably won't buy the craft, right?

In other words?
Go where your people are.
And then talk to them.
Be uniquely, crazily, obsessively you….
And that's it.

Everything I've ever said about Right People will be applicable to any community of people, if you first get really clear on who they are and where they are.

And when you start thinking about building the community (not just getting involved in what that already exists), read this great post by Tara (uh, not me!) on the 3 pillars of community building.

Where's your community of Right People?

Should I give away free patterns or products or services or tutorials?

This is a question many people (those who have been steeped in the crafty community but yet to open a crafty business) ask me.

My answer is different for everybody, but this great post and Free + Sustainability + Community by Diane at CraftyPod reminded me that I've wanted to talk about it for a while.

The short answer:

Free is fine. But what do you hope to accomplish with Free?

Is there another way to reach that goal, one that's more sustainable for you and that sets up the right relationship between you and your people?

(Right Relationship = the relationship you hope to have with them long-term. For my yarny people, it's a yarn-buying relationship. For my craftybiz people, it's a more personal relationship: we work together to craft their businesses.)

The long answer

Free is fine.

But before you start giving stuff away, think about your Right People, think about your Right Relationship.

How can you build that sustainably over time?

What can you give them that will build the Right Relationship?

Realize this: if you give it away now, you won't be able to charge for it later.

When free is great:

• When  it's a prize for getting the interaction of your Right People (ex. 50% off when I spin a yarn that you suggested).
• When it's in exchange for information you need (ex. a survey, or a sign-up to your list).
• When it's building the relationship through building your expertise, your cleverness or whatever it is that highlights your YOUNESS.
• When it's a taste of your awesomeness (ex. I send mini-skeins (5 yards) to regular customers if they want to try a new yarn) that entices them to pay for the full awesomeness.

When does free work for your CraftyBiz?

PS. We'll be talking a LOT more about baking Right Relationships in the Starship.

I've been thinking (and plotting!) a lot for my own crafty business this week and I've been talking to others about what they want (and what they aren't getting) with theirs.

And I'm sad to say that lots of us aren't getting everything we want from our business.
We have this sinking feeling that it should be more.
That we should be more.

First of all, you're doing the best you can.
You shouldn't be different or better or work harder.

There are just some (pretty simple to move) obstacles in your way that you're not seeing.

1. You don't know what you want.

Yeah, you may have a general overview (quit my dayjob! Be happy! Spend my time crafting!), but you don't know specifically what you want. How much do you want to make a year? A month? A week? How much time do you spend crafting? How much time writing, photographing, bookkeeping, shipping? What would your day look like if your CraftyBiz was wildly succesful?

The truth is: we can't get what we want until we know what we want.

2. You don't prioritize.

Once you have a clear vision of what you want from your business, what comes first? Growing a list? Creating new products? Creating content? Fixing your pricing?

3. You don't have support and accountability.

Even the most driven amongst us (and I was raised by two Marines, so yeah, I'm a bit obsessively driven), can't keep up the sort of sustained, long-term work (and play!) in a vacuum. Especially in the beginning, when you're not getting any feedback from customers (because you don't have them yet!) or your community (because you haven't found them yet!).

From the outside, this problem shows itself as lack of focus, or lack of commitment, but the more CraftyBiz-ers I talk to, the more I'm convinced that beating yourself up is NOT the answer.

A much saner (and sustainable!) solution is to find a support network.

People to who will check in (kindly!) with you.
People who will give you honest (gentle) feedback.
People who will brainstorm awesome ideas with you.

The good news

You can fix this!

• You can spend the time figuring out what you want with your notebook + a few hours.
• You can list your prioritize in a few minutes of focused attention.
  (That is, if you know what you want (see #1!) and the business basics of how to get there.
  You can learn that via classes or through reading everything you can get your hands on and trial and error.)
• You can form your own accountability circle on Twitter, Facebook or just your email buddies.

Or.

You can join the CraftyBiz Kitchen.
We'll spend the first class working on our goals + dreams + plans + getting specific about what we want.
We spend one-on-one IdeaStorming sessions prioritizing the what-to-do-next after we've had classes that cover the how-to-do-it.
We have accountability and brainstorming and a general fun time during the chats.

Either way, don't let these things get in between you and what you want.
Don't let your business feel like a weight when it could feel like a joy.

Ask for help.
Seek answers.

And no matter what, don't treat yourself like a Marine drill sergeant would, ok?

——

Ah yes, I keep forgetting to say: the CraftyBiz Kitchen closes next Wednesday, 1/12, because that's the day of our first class and I don't want anyone to miss it.
Please get all the details and sign up here.