Stacey Trock is the owner of FreshStitches. After a technical failure during our interview at The National NeedleArts Association summer show in June, we talked over Skype about the success of her kit club and why she is switching to digital subscriptions. We also discussed how and why she's diversified her income and her perspective on pacing her business growth, customer service, social media, and more.

About Stacey Trock Stacey Trock, the owner of FreshStitches, recently relocated to Los Angeles with her husband and daughter. Stacey started her business in 2008 selling crochet amigurumi patterns as PDFs and has since expanded her business and diversified her income.

• She is the author of Cuddly Crochet, Crocheted Softies, and Modern Baby Crochet.
• She is a nationally recognized knitting teacher (and she explains why in the interview), as well as a crochet instructor of Craftsy/Bluprint classes. She also teaches business classes from time to time.
• She blogs and sells crochet and craft kits and craft eyes through her website. 
• She designs crochet and knitting patterns.
• And, she recently transitioned her kit club to a digital ami club.

You can find Stacey on FreshStitches and follow her on Etsy, Facebook, Instagram (as @staceytrock and @amiclub), Pinterest, Ravelry, Twitter, and YouTube.   About the Episode

This episode was inspired by a question Delisa Carnegie, the yarn dyer behind Apocalypse Friday, asked in the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Delisa wanted to hear from someone who had a subscription club, and since Stacey's club was the most successful one I knew about, I reached out to her. (Since the original request for an interview in the spring, Stacey has actually ended her kit club. You can read more about that and watch the video where she explains this to her audience here. Her new digital Ami Club is opening soon.)

Stacey shared her perspectives on several important business topics in this interview, including:

• How and why she diversified her business from exclusively selling PDF amigurumi patterns in 2008 to starting an educational blog, selling individual kits, a her kit club (which has now transformed into the digital Ami Club), selling craft eyes and other supplies, writing books, teaching, and launching a yarn line;
• Managing a club, starting with understanding your customers, determining your price (and cost), deciding between prepaid and month-to-month subscriptions, being strategic about supply orders, technology for managing payments, inventory, packaging, shipping, and more;
• Her DIY approach to running her business, how she thinks about scaling, and deciding when and if to bring in contractors and employees to help;
• Her business philosophy, including her focus on flexibility, customer service, time management, organization, and social media; and
• Mindset, including speaking your business fantasies into reality.

Stacey also answers questions from Delisa at Apocalypse Friday, Angie Doherty at Hooked by Angel, Carmen Nuland at A Simple Homestead, Angela Plunkett at Little Monkeys Design, and Anita Bose Natarajan from NitaB&NishaN.

Listen to the podcast for more discussion from me and Stacey. 

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in November, 2016. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

Kim Russo is the yarn dyer behind Kim Dyes Yarn. We met at The National NeedleArts Association summer show in June, and later I spent some time talking to Kim, who shared how her business has transformed over the past 10 years, how she transitioned her fully online business to one that includes face-to-face elements, and her approach to time management.

About Kim Russo Kim Russo, owner of Kim Dyes Yarn, lives in Virginia. She is obsessed with gorgeous colors, the way colors look when mixed and matched with each other, and how to achieve the next great idea in her head. She is a life long learner and her work reflects her continuing determination to keep learning about dyeing and color and fibers. Kim also loves baking, cooking, her family, and the Gilmore Girls.    Kim Dyes Yarn uses a variety of dyeing techniques on quality yarns and spinning fibers including gradient dyes, semisolids, variegated yarns, and mini skeins sets.    You can also follow Kim on Facebook and Instagram.   About the Episode

In this episode, I chat with Kim about her business and we cover many topics including:

• How she started in business 10 years ago as a maker of wool soakers (diaper covers), selling her items online as Sit on Knit. 
• How she approached naming her current business.
• How she used a combination of photography, clear policies, and customer service to build her brand online.
• How she transitioned from an entirely online business model to one that includes selling yarn at fiber festivals and other events.
• Why she decided to "put her big girl panties on" to overcome her shyness at events.
• How she developed and uses online relationships to find business collaborators and to get advice when needed.

Kim also closes the interview by sharing some words of wisdom for shy creative business owners. Listen to the podcast for more discussion from me and Kim.

 

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in October, 2016. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

If you're like most home-based business owners, you're bootstrapping your business and keeping costs low with a DIY approach. In this episode, I interview author, speaker, and digital entrepreneur, Lorraine C. Ladish, about how she bootstrapped her business. We also discuss when to invest and spend in your business, taking risks, taking care of yourself, and more. 

About Lorraine  Lorraine C. Ladish is a bilingual author of more than 15 books, and a writer, editor, speaker, and digital entrepreneur. Lorraine is the founder and CEO of Viva Fifty!, a bilingual online community that celebrates being 50+. Lorraine is a contributing writer for NBC News, Huffington Post, AARP, BabyCenter, and Mom.me.   You can learn more about Lorraine by visiting her website and VivaFifty! You can also follow her online on Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn | Twitter  About the interview

In this episode, I talk with Lorraine about a variety of topics, including the evolution of her own business, taking risks and gaining confidence, bootstrapping vs. working with investors, staying true to yourself and your mission, and knowing when to spend on your business. Lorraine also talks about defining success and setting goals for your business, writing a book, and how her yoga practice keeps her pain free and reduces the stress of being an entrepreneur.

 

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in April, 2016. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

Have you considered joining The National NeedleArts Association (TNNA)? In this episode, I interview knitting teacher, designer, and tech editor, Beth Whiteside, about the benefits of membership, newly formed Business and Creative Services sector, and power tips for getting the most out of the TNNA trade show. 

About Beth Beth Whiteside is a knitting teacher, designer, and technical editor whose curiosity has led her to visit many countries (stranded color, EPS, k1b, lace, ...) on the knitting-world map. Originally from New England, she now lives in San Francisco, where mountains, ocean, and Haight Street are always good sources of inspiration. She has been teaching locally since 2003, and nationally since 2005. What she loves most about teaching is finding ways to make light bulbs pop on in her students' heads and helping them grow as knitters.   You can learn more about Beth by visiting her website,  Beth Whiteside Design. You can also follow her online on Facebook | Instagram | Ravelry | Twitter  About the interview

In today's episode, I talk with Beth about the evolution of her own business, Beth Whiteside Design, and her involvement with The National NeedleArts Association for the past 10 years. We talk about Affiliate membership, attending the trade shows, and the newly formed Business and Creative Service sector, which focuses on individuals and agencies that offer creative and business services to the needlearts industry including authors, bookkeepers/accountants, copy editors, designers, fiber artists, finishers, graphic designers, illustrators, marketing specialists, photographers, teachers (business­-to-­business and consumer), technical editors, website developers, and those in video production.

Resources mentioned in this episode

You can find The National NeedleArts Association online at its website. Follow TNNA on Facebook | Instagram | Pinterest | Twitter.

Links to other TNNA resources we mentioned:

• You can learn more about membership types here. Most regular listeners will probably fall into the Affiliate member category, with the exception of indie dyers, spinners, and other yarnies (and yarn shop owners). For yarnies who sell directly to consumers, Retail membership is less expensive than Wholesale membership, but doesn't allow you to exhibit at the trade shows. There is also a Student membership option.
• You can find a list of upcoming TNNA events, including trade shows and webinars, here.

I also mentioned a previous episode that you may want to go back and listen to:

• Episode 33: 7 Steps for Pitching Your Ideas for Workshops, Presentations, and Panel Sessions to Conferences and Events

 

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in April, 2016. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

I interview Elayna Fernandez, author, speaker, and owner of The Positive Mom. 

About Elayna

Elayna Fernandez is an author, international keynote speaker, and a key Latina influencer and storyteller through ThePositiveMOM.com. She lives with her loving husband and her three brilliant bilingual daughters (and home school students) in Fort Worth, Texas.

Elayna's mission is to encourage, empower, and equip moms to have more influence at home, more impact in the world, and more income to make it happen. Elayna is also an award-winning Certified Guerrilla Marketing Master Trainer and the creator of the Guerrilla Positioning System™ (GPS) for mompreneurs or aspiring mompreneurs who want to increase their Credibility, Visibility and Profitability™.

You can learn more about Elayna by visiting her blog, ThePositiveMOM.com. You can follow her online at Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn | Pinterest | Twitter | YouTube

About the interview

I had the chance to meet up with Elayna in person at the #WeAllGrow Summit by Latina Bloggers Connect in Long Beach, California. She was part of a very inspiring keynote panel. In the interview, Elayna shares her suggestions for involving your family in your home-based business, talks about how she uses her morning ritual to set herself up for success, gives recommendations for dealing with negative feedback and negative energy, and explains the way she organizes her time so she can be more productive.

Resources mentioned in this episode

Elayna recommends the following:

• The Four Agreements: A Practical to Personal Freedom by Don Miguel Ruiz
• The 5 Love Languages website

 

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in March, 2016. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

Today's episode is a double header. I'm interviewing Kara Gott Warner, host of Power Purls Podcast, and she's interviewing me! Read on for more details and then have a listen to both episodes.

About Kara Gott Warner

Kara is the Executive Editor of Creative Knitting magazine. She began her career in the yarn industry as a knitting designer in 2002. Kara's designs have been published in several magazines, including Creative Knitting, Vogue Knitting, Family Circle Easy Knitting, and Interweave Knits. Kara has also worked as a technical illustrator, working with craft book publishers such as Random House, Lark Books, Sterling Publishing and F+W. Kara joined Annie's Publishing in 2008 as knitting book editor, and she became the Executive Editor of Creative Knitting and Annie's knitting publications.

Kara's also a podcast host! Her first show, the Morning Cooldown is a seasonal program that is currently on hiatus. Knitters and yarn industry folks may prefer her latest show, Power Purls Podcast, where she loves to dig deep and ask those burning questions about what turned her guests on to the "two sticks and fiber," in the first place, and what keeps their needles moving.

You can find Kara online on her website, as well as on Facebook and Twitter.

About the interview

Kara shares an editor's perspective on the magazine design submission process, along with tips for increasing your likelihood of getting a design accepted, and how to build a strong relationship with a magazine as a freelancer.

We also talk about the importance of networking within the industry, developing multiple streams of income, and using morning rituals to increase your productivity.

Resources mentioned in this episode

Kara recommends the following books:

• The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod
• Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert
• Jocelyn Glei's Make Your Mark, Manage Your Day-to-Day, and Maximize Your Potential, 
• Designing Knitwear by Deborah Newton
• Knitwear Design Workshop by Shirley Paden
• Sweater Design in Plain English by Maggie Righetti

You may want to listen to these back episodes of the Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show for more discussion about topics addressed in this episode:

• Episode 1
• Episode 43
• Episode 49
• Episode 56

You can find Kara's interview with me on Power Purls here.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in March, 2016. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This episode is all about multi-business collaborations, including blog hops, multi-designer make-a-longs, and in-person events. I share 4 reasons you might want to participate in such a collaboration, 7 tips for organization a multi-business collaboration, and 5 ways for being an ideal collaborator when you're not organizing the event.

4 reasons you might want to participate in a multi-business collaboration

There are many reasons you may want to participate in such an event, but here are the four major ones:

• Introduce your business to a new audience and expand your reach.
• Network with other businesses and sponsors you may not have access to on your own.
• Earn more money.
• Develop friendships with like-minded business owners.

I share more details about each of these in the episode.

So, are you ready to organize one of these collaborative shindigs?

If so, here are 7 tips for successfully organizing a collaborative event.

• Manage your fear of rejection.
• Decide who's in charge.
• Choose to curate or have open invitations.
• Get organized.
• Invite and follow up.
• Reach out to sponsors.
• Keep your word and thank your collaborators.

I go into more detail about each tip in the episode.

Hmm, that sounds hard. I'd rather participate than organize.

Here are 6 ways to be an ideal collaborator that gets invited back again and again.

• Join groups.
• Read and follow directions.
• Ask questions if you're confused or have concerns.
• Communicate, especially about problems or delays.
• Promote the entire event/collaboration, not just your participation in it.

And, for bonus brownie points, offer to help the organizer(s). I share more details on each way in the episode.

 

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in February, 2016. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

I share six different income streams for yarn-related business owners to consider in this episode. Many of us start our own businesses part time and by leveraging our existing skills. As you plan for expansion in 2016 and beyond, consider these different options for earning money for your business.

Six Income Streams for Your Yarn-Related Business

Here are some options to consider. Most successful businesses have a combination of income streams which helps to mitigate risk and to standardize cash flow.

• Consumer Products: This is a very broad category including...
  • Handmade products you sell directly to the end user (e.g., crochet/knit finished objects, artisan hooks and needles, hand dyed or hand spun yarn),
  • Handmade products you sell via retailers (wholesale or consignment),
  • Items you purchase from a manufacturer/wholesaler and resell,
  • Digital products you sell directly to the end user (e.g., patterns, ebooks), and
  • Services including teaching face-to-face and online.
• Advertising and Sponsorship: You may work with an ad network (like Google AdSense, Media.net, Rivit, etc.) or negotiate your own relationships with brands.
• Affiliate Marketing: As an affiliate, you promote another company's products and earn a commission when items are purchased through you. 
• Business to Business Services: Many yarn-related business owners provide services to other businesses on a freelance or contractual basis. Some examples include writing, designing patterns, tech editing, sample making, social media coordination, and virtual assistance.
• Membership/Subscriptions: Magazines, pattern subscriptions, and yarn clubs are some examples of yarn-related membership and subscription options.
• Crowdfunding: Crowdfunding can be used in exchange for product pre-orders through KickStarter, IndieGogo, and other services, or by allowing your fans to support your business on an ongoing basis through Patreon and related services.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in January, 2016. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

If setting up (or enhancing) an email list for your business is on your list of New Year's Resolutions, listen to this episode.

In this episode, I talk about why you should start an email list, how to get started, the different approaches you can take to an email list, and how to grow your subscriber base.

Why should you have an email list?

Here are just a few reasons why having an email list by benefit your business.

• It provides you with a direct connection to your fanbase without another platform as an intermediary.
• People check their email regularly throughout the day, so you can connect with them on their schedule.
• Your subscribers will have a direct, individual connection to your emails (rather than the feeling of being "broadcasted at" that comes with social media posting).
• Business report seeing boosts in sales after sending out emails to their subscribers.
• When your business faces another disruption (e.g., your website goes down), it's a great way of letting your audience know what is happening.

How should you set up an email list?

The most important thing is to get started, not to develop the most masterful email strategy that ever existed. You can always improve and update over time.

I recommend starting with MadMimi or MailChimp, both of which have permanently free accounts for small subscriber lists. Both offer affordable plans for people with smaller lists, as well, so you can grow your list before spending a lot of time researching different companies and features. MadMimi is a bit easier (more "low tech") to use, while MailChimp offers more features in its free plan.

How should you approach your email list?

There are several simple options to consider for your email list.

• RSS feed: If you have a website or blog that you update with some regularity, you can set up an RSS feed so that your subscribers are alerted via email to any new posts on your site.
• Newsletter: You may want to write an email to your list on a regular basis (e.g., weekly, biweekly, monthly, quarterly). This can include links to your latest posts, original content for subscribers, roundups of relevant information you've found online, and more.
• Updates: You may choose to send sporadic emails to your list when something new happens in your business (e.g., a new product is released, you're teaching a new class, or there's a sale).
• Autoresponders: You may choose to set up a sequence of replies that are automatically delivered to your subscribers on a schedule based on when they subscribed. For example, the first email can be sent one day after they subscribe and the second email can be sent two weeks after they subscribe.

Listen to the episode for more details about each approach.

How do you get subscribers?

Once you understand your approach, you can start recruiting subscribers. Consider letting potential subscribers know more about your approach wherever they can opt-in to subscribe.

Here are some other ways to grow your email list.

• Update your website: Include subscription opt-ins in a sidebar, your About and Contact pages, and even in posts on your site.
• Update your social media profiles: Use the "sign up" option on your Facebook page, and include a link to your email list on your Ravelry, Etsy, G+, and other social profiles.
• Update your "thank you" message: Change the automatic reply sent to your customers on Etsy and Ravelry (or other marketplaces) to include a link to your mailing list.
• Giveaways: Some companies offer giveaways to their subscribers as an incentive to encourage people to sign up.
• Lead magnet: Offer a free ebook, checklist, or other desirable product "in exchange" for a subscription. Tip: Do not get stuck on this. If you don't have a lead magnet, you can still start an email list.

Resources mentioned in this episode

• Listen to Episode 27: Connecting with Your Mailing List and More with Vashti Braha to learn more about Vashti's approach to her email list and how it impacts her business.
• Read 10 Reasons To Use Email Marketing (As Told By Small Businesses) on Forbes
• Check out the Useletter by Amy Lynn Andrews as an example of a curated/roundup approach to an email list
• Read more about (or sign up for) a free MadMimi or MailChimp account

 

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in December, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

Time management can be more challenging for part-time business owners. Whether you work full time, run another business part time, or rely on several part time jobs or gigs, if your yarn-related business is part time, you may struggle to manage your time and stay productive.

In this episode, I share my time management approach to being a part-time business owner:

1. Start by setting your short- and long-term goals
2. Look for "chunks" of time in your schedule that can be devoted to your business
3. Arrange the activities required to meet your goals into types of tasks
4. Organize the tasks into your available time slots
5. Find a time management system that works for you
6. Don't compare yourself to other businesses (especially those run by full timers)
7. Find social support

You can hear more details by listening to this episode.

If you struggle with time management, you may also want to listen to Episode 10: Time Management Tips: An Interview with Lindsey Stephens from Poetry In Yarn.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in December, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

As creative business owners, we thrive on feeling inspired. But what about those days when you just aren't feeling inspired or creative? I share 5 things that I do when I'm not feeling inspired to keep my business moving forward.

• Work through it
• Focus on other crafts
• Do a "mindless project"
• Take a break from the creative side of your business
• Express gratitude to someone else

Other resource mentioned in this episode:

• Interview with Steven Pressfield on The Creative Penn podcast

You can listen to the episode for more tips on dealing with a lack of inspiration.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in December, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

In this episode, I talk about increasing blog traffic in response to feedback from the listener survey and and email exchange with Lindsay Lewchuk from Knit Eco Chic.

I'm listening to episode 48 & am a bit bummed that she wouldn't get into particular dollar amounts.  I've got content on my site (content I'm proud of), but I have very little traffic...  I know I haven't done any SEO but am completely lost online with how to do it & what to do.  I want to budget for this, but have no idea.  Do you have any insights of which company I should be looking at and how much I need to budget for it?  Is it really as simple as the yoast plug-in (which makes absolutely no sense to me)?

Lindsay was previously a guest in Episode 26, where we talked about niche marketing and eco-conscious knitting. (She also shared a great tip in Episode 47: Best Advice for Yarn-Related Businesses.)

Here are my suggestions for increasing your blog's traffic.

First, focus on strategy and measurement.

• Clarify your blog's purpose in relationship to your entire business.
• Begin tracking your blog's traffic. 
• Analyze what you've tracked, and make changes as appropriate.

Some of the tactics I've used to increase my blog traffic in the past year include...

• Establishing an editorial calendar.
• Posting more frequently and focusing on specific types of posts based on my goals.
• Adding subscription options, including an RSS feed subscription and a weekly email newsletter (with links to that week's blog posts) subscription.
• Guest posting on other sites.
• Participating in link parties. (See below for a list of link parties.)
• Linking your blog posts to projects and stash on Ravelry, and sharing those projects and stash in groups.
• Sharing old/archived posts on social media daily.
• Changing social media schedule, frequency, and/or platforms based on analysis of blog traffic.
• Submitting links to referral sites more regularly (especially the growing network of Prime Publishing sites).
• Joining private blogging groups where you can share information with other bloggers.
• Attending blogging conferences, reading blogging books, and/or taking online blogging courses to further develop skills.

Listen to the episode for more details.

If you're focused on improving your blog and increasing traffic, you may want to listen to these prior episodes:

• Episode 4: 6 Ways to Engage with the Blogging Community
• Episode 23: Diversifying Your Income and Boosting Your Blogging with Tamara Kelly from Moogly
• Episode 32: Journey to 100k Monthly Blog Visitors with Sedie Maruska from Yarn Obsession
• Episode 48: Website Strategy and Working with Digital Marketers for Your Business with Carol Lyn Rivera

 

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in November, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

Dedri Uys is the crochet designer, blogger, author, and teacher behind LookAtWhatIMade. I spent some time talking to Dedri and she was incredibly open and generous in sharing how she is able to work a full time job, be a devoted wife and mother, and still find energy and inspiration for her crochet business.

About Dedri Uys

Dedri Uys is the crochet blogger, designer and teacher behind LookAtWhatIMade.  She is best known as the designer of Sophie's Universe, a stunning continuous square crochet blanket pattern available as a free, 18-part crochet-a-long. She is the author of Amamani Puzzle Balls and the coordinator/author of Big Hook Rag Crochet. Dedri is also a Scheepjes blogger and recently returned from her native South Africa, where she taught several crochet classes as part of a tour organized by BeInspired.Love. Dedri "believes that crochet is more than just a craft. It is a lifesaving panacea, a necessary creative outlet, a calming tool and a rewarding passion."

Dedri lives in London with her husband, 3 sons, and a cat. Four days a week, she's a radiotherapist at Charing Cross Hospital. You can also follow Dedri on Facebook | Instagram | Pinterest | Ravelry | Twitter About the Episode

In this episode, I chat with Dedri about her business and we cover many topics including:

• How she started, grew, and diversified her business.
• The benefits and challenges of growing organically, including how she manages looking back on past projects that may not be "perfect."
• How teaching keeps her energized, even though she was initially nervous about it.
• Working full time in addition to being a crochet designer, and her suggestions for time management, involving others in your business, organization, and caring for your loved ones.
• Building the self-confidence to learn to say no to new opportunities to avoid burnout, stay inspired, and find more time for family, inspired by the C.J. Langenhoven's quote, "Yes is like credit. No is like cash."
• Learning to be vulnerable and the difference between guilt and shame from Brené Brown. (Dedri especially recommends this interview with Brené on Chase Jarvis Live: Authenticity and Bravery in a Digital World.")

Dedri also closes the show with 3 things she wishes she knew when she started her business. Listen to the podcast for more discussion from me and Dedri.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in September, 2016. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

In this episode, I answer a listener question from Caroline Ruzicka from Cherie in Wonderland about using LinkedIn for a yarn-related business.

Caroline asks,

What about LinkedIn? I didn't see anything on your podcast about it, so I believe you didn't cover it yet. I use LinkedIn a lot in my main job environment (which is not related to yarn) but honestly I'm not sure this is really working in the yarn industry or for networking in this creative environment yet. I had a quick look today and it seems to me that most of  the groups are closed and rather small.

I actually do use LinkedIn for my yarn-related business, and unless there's a compelling reason not to use it (e.g., you work in another industry full time, and adding it to your profile may harm you professionally in that industry), you may want to use it, too.

A few things to keep in mind about LinkedIn:

• It's a professional networking site, so language tends to be more formal.
• You will probably find it more useful as a site for professional networking, professional development, or finding business-to-business prospects, and less useful as a way to connect with consumers.
• It's alright to talk about yourself in third person or in first preson in your profile.
• Most yarn-related business owners won't need to share update on LinkedIn as frequently as on other social networks.

Some of the ways yarn-related business owners might want to use LinkedIn are by:

• Joining groups on writing, self-publishing, social media, marketing, or other topics that may support the development of their businesses.
• Writing long-form posts that may help to build a portfolio for freelance writing or coaching. (You can find instructions for share these posts on LinkedIn here.)
• Searching for contacts at specific companies.
• Building a professional network.

You can listen to the episode for more tips for using LinkedIn for your yarn-related business.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in November, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

In this episode, I answer a common listener question: Do I need to formalize my yarn-related business? There are legal, tax, and mindset reasons for formalizing your business.

But first, let me mention that I'm neither a lawyer nor an accountant. You may want to consult one if plan to formalize your business.

So, why might you choose to formalize my yarn-related business?

• You may find it easier to get a business bank account, buy products wholesale, and protect your personal assets in the event of legal action.
• You may find that you are more accountable to your business once you formalize it.
• Your customers and family may respond more positively to the formality of an established business entity.

Here are some resources mentioned in the episode:

• Find your local Small Business Administration office (U.S. only) here.
• Find your local Small Business Development Center (U.S. only) here.
• The Internal Revenue Service Small Business and Self-Employed Tax Center

You can listen to the episode for more details about the advantages of formalizing your business and common business entity types for yarn-related businesses in the United States.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in November, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

In this episode, I answer a common listener question: How do I get my patterns published in a magazine? Even if you aren't a designer, you may want to listen as the same process is used for submitting tutorial or article ideas.

But first, I shared why I was on a 6 week (!) podcast hiatus and my new philosophy about show notes. (Spoiler alert: They will be shorter.)

So, how do you submit your crochet or knitting design proposals?

• First, if you haven't already, listen to Episode 1: Identify the Right Magazines to Target for Your Article, Tutorial, and Design Submissions for more information about choosing magazines that are a better match with your goals and design aesthetic. There's also a document with links to many magazines' submission information.
• Look for design submission guidelines, mood board, or other documents on the publisher website, and/or scan the Ravelry Designers group for current Calls for Submission.
• If you have guidelines from the publisher, follow them closely.
• If you don't have guidelines from the publisher, email to ask for an editorial calendar or to be added to their designer email list.
• In the absence of guidelines, share a sketch, swatch, romance text/description of your proposed pattern, along with a short bio and links to your Ravelry design page (or project page, if you've never published a pattern before). Fit this onto one page if possible.

You can listen to the episode for more details about preparing your sketch, swatch, and romance text.

 

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in October, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

If thinking about your company's website makes your head explode (even just a little bit), you'll want to listen to this week's episode.

I talk with Carol Lynn Rivera, a digital marketer at Rahvalor Interactive and the co-host of the Web.Search.Social podcast, and she shares great information about how to think about a website for your yarn-related business.

You can find also Carol Lynn online on Facebook, Google Plus, and Twitter.

This week's episode

In my interview with Carol Lynn, we talk about different ways to approach your website. Carol Lynn brings many years of experience working with other small businesses on their websites and digital marketing and answers questions like, "Do you need to have your website, or if it's alright to rely on a digital marketplace like Etsy or Ravelry?" and "Should you do your website yourself, or hire someone to do it for you?"

Spoiler alert: The answer to both questions is "It depends" (but it all sounds much more elegant when Carol Lynn explains why).

So, do you need your own website?

Carol Lynn recommends developing an ecommerce site for your yarn-related business only if it can be done well. If that is outside of your current capabilities or financial resources, tap into the ecommerce and marketing strength of a larger site like Etsy or Ravelry.

Even if you don't want, need, or can't manage ecommerce cabailities, what about having a website for other reasons?

Carol Lynn recommends thinking about what your website will do for your business. What are your goals for it and what do you want the site to do?

Once you have your strategy, you can decide whether it is a DIY project or something that needs additional resources. In general, a site with more complexity will require more resources. If you aren't already familiar with the technology, think about whether you have more time to invest in training yourself, or whether hiring out is the best appraoch.

If you take the DIY approach...

Carol Lynn recommends taking an inventory of other sites to start. Look at websites in other industries as well as some in the yarn industry and your specific niche(s). Examine what is being done wrong (hint: avoid those things) and what's being done well. Try not to copycat, but think about what is appealing and what makes you interested in browsing the site. Are there similar elements that you could incorporate into your own site?

Don't forget to start with the strategy and purpose for your website, but understand that a website will continually evolve. It can't (and won't) be "perfect" on your first try. Start where you are and then build towards your goals.

Carol Lynn also reminds you that your website isn't just a visual aid. The content is more important than the design (though pretty looking designs don't hurt). If that isn't something you are prepared to develop yourself, it can also be outsourced (or, you can work with a digital marketing company to develop a strategy that you can implement on your own).

There's a continuum between DIY and pay someone else do everything. Based on your budget, available time, experience, and comfort, choose the approach that makes the most sense for your business.

If you decide to hire  someone...

Carol Lynn shares 5 important tips for finding the right company (or individual).

1) You should be able to communicate easily with the company before you contract with them. Ask a lot of questions so you can understand the company's approach to your site and their services. If you can only communicate via email, that's a red flag. You should be able to have a consultation over the phone or using Skype/Google Hangouts before making a decision. Consider whether your communication styles work well together. 

2) The company should have an online presence that you can preview. If the company is in the digital marketing space, it should have an online presence including a website and active accounts on one or more social media platform. This allows the company to test out new approaches on itself, not on your business.

3) Get it in writing. Once you settle on a company, you should get a clear outline of the services they will provide and the costs involved in writing. Read through the information, ask questions about it, and don't sign anything until you have satisfactory answers. The document can be just as clear about what the company is not providing as about what it is providing.

4) The company should have insurance. Carol Lynn talked about the prevalence of "day trippers" in the industry - people who have limited expertise but offer digital marketing services. The presence of insurance indicates the company is serious about their business, and also protects you as the client from the negative impact of problems resulting from their work on your website or social marketing activities.

5) You should have access to your site and its analytics. Even if you plan to be completely hands off and delegate all of your website and social marketing activities to another company, you should have access to all the login details, analytics, and other critical information in case of emergency. This is also helpful if you decide to switch to another company in the future. If you need a horror story to drive the point home, listen to "Don't Hire a Web Developer Until You Read This," a fascinating episode of the Web.Search.Social podcast where Carol Lynn and her husband, Ralph, interview a business owner who lost access to his website, email, and more. It also includes a link to a helpful (and free) business continuity plan document.

You may also enjoy these additional resources

Carol Lynn has written several related articles that you may want to read.
How To Hire A Web Developer7 Things Your Web Developer Will Never Tell YouThe Lady In The Garage Can't Build Your Website
Dear Customer, This Is What You Should Pay To Hire A Marketing Company

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in August, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This week's episode is a special one-year anniversary episode of the Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show. Listeners and former guests share their best advice by telling us the one thing they've done in the past 2 years that has had the most benefit for their businesses.

Before we started on the advice, I shared the top 10 episodes from the first year of the show. Can you sense the themes?

1. Episode 32: Journey to 100k Monthly Blog Visitors and More with Sedie Maruska

2. Episode 8: Affordable Crochet and Knitting Fonts with Adriana Hernandez
3. Episode 1: Identify the Right Magazines to Target for Your Article, Tutorial, and Design Submissions
4. Episode 9: Selling on Etsy, An Interview with Ijeoma Eleazu from the Etsy Conversations Podcast
5. Episode 2: 10 Ways to Use Pinterest to Grow Your Business (In Just Minutes A Day)
6. Episode 3: 8 Tips for Organizing Your First Pattern Test 
7. Episode 23: Diversifying Your Income and Boosting Your Blogging with Tamara Kelly from Moogly
8. Episode 29: Selling on Etsy, Passive Income, and Using Trending Keywords with Alexandra Tavel from Two of Wands
9. Episode 21: 10 Habits for Successfully "Owning" (or Working) from Home
10. Episode 4: 6 Ways to Engage with the Blogging Community

It seems that topics related to blogging, selling on Etsy, and self-publishing patterns are enjoyed by most listeners!

And, now on to the advice!

Michele Wang

Michele is a knitting designer. Michele says:

"In regards to my design business, the one thing that has been the most beneficial is outsourcing. I've found a wonderful tech editor to work with, and have also worked with great sample knitters. It's increased my productivity and allowed me to focus more on designing."

Joy Grise

Joy is a crochet maker and designer. Her business is called Joy of Crochet. Joy's advice is:

"Write your patterns!

Crochet lends itself to improvisation so easy. Many crocheters can see a picture on Pinterest and they make a similar pattern off the top of their head. They assume that others can do the same and do not write the patterns that they come up with. So if you are making the same thing as everyone else, say you make a Minion hat, write up the pattern and offer it for free. If you make a pattern that fills a need that you have noticed so you made the product, write up the pattern so that others can make the item too. Don't be intimidated by your own skill level whether you are an expert or a beginner. 

The examples in my own life are my Ultimate Upcycled Owl which is a free pattern and my Half-Finger Fingerless Gloves."

Tamara Kelly

Tamara is the (mostly crochet) designer, blogger, and teacher behind Moogly. I previously interviewed her on Episode 23. Tamara's advice:

"I think the most important thing is to stay true to yourself, and your own voice. It's important to listen to your readers/customers, but you have to keep going with the stuff that made you passionate about getting into this business to begin with. Otherwise it becomes just another "job" - and burnout will follow along soon enough!"

Dana Gervais

Dana is a knitting designer and owner of Dana Gervais Designs. Dana says:

"I have noticed a shift in my business since I made the decision to approach my business with the same attitude and focus that I gave to my prior careers. I have taken the systems and tools that I used successfully in my previous ventures and adapted them to be applied to my knitwear design business.  This has given my business structure, routine and made me much more productive."

Amy Ramnarine

Amy is the blogger and crochet designer behind The Stitchin' Mommy. I interviewed her on Episode 31. Amy's advice:

"One thing that I have been doing for the past year or so, that has been the most beneficial to my blog, is sharing my posts across many social media sites. People are constantly on social media. They use it for news updates, to stay in touch, and get inspiration for projects, recipes, fashion, and more. I noticed that by sharing my patterns on different social media sites such as Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Google+, StumbleUpon and even Ravelry, I am able to get more exposure for my blog from different groups of people. It has helped me tremendously with my traffic."

Anita Bose Natarajan

Anita is the knitting designer behind NitaB&NishaN, Inc. Anita says:

"Invest in Yourself!!! Learn financial, business and 'your area of interest' skills.

If you are starting out and have no funds, learn from all the freebies you can find - internet, people, print articles - anything.   If you have some funds, research classes/subscriptions that will really benefit you, check on their pricing regularly and when the prices drop, buy them and learn.   If you have funds you can set aside regularly for investing in yourself, keep a listing of nice to have classes/subscriptions, keep tabs on the pricing, and when the price is within budget, buy them and learn.   I have always done one of the above depending on my financial situation and managed to move ahead - snail pace, but still ahead."   I agree! I talked more about how I invested in myself and my business in Episode 18: 8 Best Investments I Made In My Business in 2014. Lindsay Lewchuk

Lindsay is a knitting designer and maker, and the owner of Knit Eco Chic. Lindsay was my guest in Episode 26. Lindsay's advice:

"Let your passion and character shine through each design."

Joanna

Joanna is a crochet designer known as Goddess Crochet. Joanna says:

"My business is fairly new so the conclusion I came up with is: I didn't quit. Staying motivated to keep going and not give up is a must when you're dealing with a business that cannot be grown overnight.

There are a variety of ways I keep motivated but the most impacting has been listening to podcasts. Listening to your podcast, small business podcasts, mom business podcasts, affiliate marketing podcasts, SEO podcasts, really anything I can get my ears on. Hearing tips as well as other regular people's success stories really motivate me to keep going, and to up my game."

Kathryn Vercillo

Kathryn is a writer and the blogger behind Crochet Concupiscence. Kathryn's advice:

"I thought I'd share my simple-but-true business tip ... The best thing I've ever done for my business is stay true to my heart. It's important and smart to take a strategic approach to business but it's equally important to let your head quiet down so you can hear the beating of your own truth inside, following that towards any changes in business."

Ashwini Jambhekar

Ashwini is a knitting designer and tech editor. She is the owner of Ashwini J Designs, and she shared her approach to pattern grading in a bonus episode. Ashwini says:

"As a newer designer, the two most important things I've done have been to 1) persevere and 2) diversify. I think it's tempting to envision rags-to-riches outcomes in this business, but I suspect that's not realistic, especially in the current climate. Even though sales were dismal at first, continuing to produce high-quality patterns has definitely begun to reverse the trend. There were times I wanted to give up: as I mostly design garments, each pattern is a tremendous amount of time and effort, and there were times it seemed not worth-while. However, I'm glad that I persevered and stayed true to my aesthetic style, as I'm slowly starting to see the pay-offs. Secondly, I've learned various aspects of the business by designing for different formats/ venues. I've published three designs in third-party publications in the last year and half, and all of them have operated a little differently from each other. It has been informative to see how the professional publishers display and promote my work. I also recently completed my first project with yarn support, and the logistics of the promotions and marketing have been different from what I've experienced for self-published designs without yarn support, or for 3rd-party publications. The skills I've learned by designing in each of these settings will be valuable in whichever direction I take my business in the future."

Angela Plunkett

Angela is a crochet designer and maker, and the owner of Little Monkeys Shop. Angela's advice:

"The tip that has made a daily impact on me is about my tools - If I am going to crochet everyday, I need to use the best crochet hooks out there to keep from getting hand cramps, etc. I'm not sure which of your episodes this is from, but after that show I ordered myself a set of the Tulip hooks and love them! They were expensive, but much better than hand cramps!

I'm know that I have utilized several other tips that you have passed one, but this tip is the one that stands out to me, probably because it's the one tip I use every day." Vashti Braha Vashti is a crochet designer, indie publisher, and yarn manufacturer. She was previously my guest in Episode 27. Vashti's advice:   "I thought the answer to your question would be simple but I ended up with a list of ten things! Then I realized that five of them are all aspects of the same thing:   Doris Chan crocheted ALL sizes of a new design in ALL colors of DesigningVashti Lotus yarn. At two CGOA conferences we had "fitting labs" with them, and had them all modeled at once in the fashion show of each conference. This ensured that crocheters got to know the yarn in the best possible way: they experienced the yarn's special drape and sheen as they tried on the garments. They saw all of the colors up close as well as on a runway. They gained lots of valuable and inspiring information about crocheting clothing in a memorable way: how more than one size of a well-designed garment fits fine depending on the look you want (for example, a smaller size may look trendy in a cropped, figure-enhancing way, while a larger size on the same person may have a breezy, swingy, streamlining look). How two people who wear the same size but have different body shapes look different in the same size. What good blocking does for a stylish design. Ideas for altering the pattern, for example, add repeats of the edging, or change sleeve length. (Doris also crocheted some simple variations.) And, they experienced all of this while chatting with the designer directly." Danielle Chalson

Danielle is the knitting designer behind Makewise Designs. She also happens to be an intellectual property attorney, and I interviewed her about IP issues in Episode 7.

"For me, the one thing that has been the most beneficial is to learn to trust my gut more. By that, I mean: trusting my instincts when a design idea is working or is compatible with my design sensibilities, but more importantly, trusting my instincts when a design idea is NOT working. It could be the shaping, the yarn choice, a stitch pattern, or the whole design altogether. Learn to trust that inner voice that the idea needs to be tweaked or even abandoned. I think that the more I do that, the more my designs will reflect a cohesive aesthetic or "voice" that is hopefully unique!"

I don't suppose I could sneak away from this episode without sharing my own tips...

Since I made the transition from being the full time employee of an organization with a side business in 2013 to being a fully self-employed person, I've found that there are 3 things that have allowed me to be self-supporting without relying on a full time job for income.

• Flexibility. I've had to be willing to make adjustments and course corrections to my businesses (while still staying true to myself, of course).
• Learning. I've had to make frequent investments of time and money in myself to keep learning new things to help my businesses thrive.
• Diversification. I have more than one business, and within each business, I have activities that lead to multiple streams of income. I've found that each one contributes to the others in unexpected ways.

Recent review

Kathy Kelly from Crochetbird gave the Show a 5 star review on iTunes. She says, "I am always surprised at the amount of useful information included in these podcasts. Definitely worth the time and an enjoyable listen too." Thanks, Kathy!

If her name sounds familiar, it's because I responded to questions from Kathy in two past episodes: Episode 4: 6 Ways to Engage with the Blogging Community and Episode 45: How to Balance Two Creative Businesses.

 

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in August, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

If you're in the United States, you're being bombarded with "back-to-school" advertising. I decided to put my own spin on the back-to-school theme by sharing 8 free and low-cost resources you can use for professional development to help you launch, manage, and expand your yarn-related business.

Here's a preview of the 8 ways you can take advantage of these free or inexpensive resources:

1. Use your local, regional, or federal small business development center
2. Read
3. Connect with colleges and universities
4. Apprentice or barter skills with a master crafter
5. Participate in a blog challenge
6. Take a video course
7. Listen to a podcast
8. Volunteer or speak at an event

1. Use your local, regional, and federal small business development centers

As a small business owner, you may be entitled to free support services from the government. These services may include workshops, free clinics with legal or tax professionals, or one-to-one business counseling. Check out the Small Business Administration Learning Center or SCORE for more information.

While often these organizations have limited understanding of the yarn industry, home-based businesses, and online business, they can be very helpful in providing information about "basic" business information that doesn't feel very basic when you are starting out.

You may also want to investigage business improvement districts, economic development zones, or related local initiatives to support small business growth.

2. Read

In general, reading books is an inexpensive way to learn new things, but I'm going to share some tips for saving even more on books.

• Use your local library system. In addition to books, your local library is likely to have a variety of DVDs and audiobooks, as well as access to research databases and other resources for small business owners. Some systems even have a dedicated business branch. You may also be able to request books on business or craftsmanship via interlibrary loan from nearby library systems for free. Additionally, many libraries hold classes on-site. If your library doesn't have the resources you need, get to know your local librarian. S/he will be more likely to help a valued local branch customer.
• Use a subscription service like Amazon Prime. I'm an Amazon Prime customer and affiliate. Amazon Prime is a subscription program that costs $99/year and offers several different benefits including free 2-day shipping, access to free streaming music and video, cloud storage for photos, and the Kindle Owners' Lending Library. You can borrow up to one book free each month from the Kindle Owners' Lending Library. Each book can be kept as long as you'd like, but you have to return it in order to take out another book. 
• Listen to audio books through Audible's subscription service. Many crocheters and knitters prefer listening to audiobooks to reading physical or e-books, but audiobooks can be expensive. Audible is a subscription service operated by Amazon, and you can listen to one or two free books each month with your subscription. There are tons of great business books on Audible.
• Write book reviews. If you have a consistent following on your blog and/or social media accounts, approach a book publisher's marketing or publicity department directly to request a review copy, or sign up for Netgalley, which coordinates advanced review copies of ebooks. Ask to review books that focus on the areas you'd like to develop to get the most out of your review experience, and don't forget to properly disclose your receipt of a review copy as per FTC guidelines.

3. Connect with local colleges and universities

Colleges and universities frequently have guest speakers, workshops, and conferences that are open to the public. These events may be free or low cost. As a side benefit, you may make connections with potential student interns or professors who might be willing to use a challenge facing your business as a class project.

Your local business school may also have additional opportunities available, including free classes for small business owners. If your local college or university offers majors (e.g., textiles, fashion design, marketing, new media, etc.) that are relevant to your business, consider how you may connect with faculty and students.

4. Apprentice or barter skills with a master crafter

Apprenticing or working closely with a local artisan or business owner can help you improve your skills rapidly under the tutelage of an expert. Approach a master and ask to be an apprentice or intern. This approach is much more time-intensive, so you should consider it more cautiously. You may also barter your skills with this person in exchange for private lessons.

5. Participate in blog challenges

Information on almost anything a small business owner might need is freely available online, but the hours required for research can be daunting. Many bloggers curate this process for you by holding challenges focused on improving your skills. These challenges sometimes convert from free experiences to paid courses once they are archived, so join in when you have the chance!

Some of these challenges are delivered via email, while others are posted directly to blogs. These can be difficult to find, so use Pinterest or your search engine to look for "TOPIC challenge."

6. Take a video course

Video courses are often cheaper than other forms of professional development and you are usually able to learn at your own pace and review the materials, which are added benefits. There are many great options for taking video courses online. Two of my favorite resources are Udemy and Craftsy.

• Udemy. Instructors create their own courses and then add them to the Udemy platform. Although courses have to be approved, this allows a wide variety of styles and options to exist. There are courses on business, computer applications and technology, photography, and more. You can read customer reviews to find the best course for you. Udemy offers both free and for sale courses, and they also frequently have sales on courses, so sign up for their email list to save even more.
• Craftsy. Craftsy's courses are curated and filmed at Craftsy's studios, so there is a more uniform appearance. The courses are affordably priced and they offer frequent sales, too. Some of the more helpful courses for yarn-related business owners are the advanced courses in crochet, knitting, or spinning, as well as photography courses. They also offer several free mini courses.

You may also want to consider MOOCs (massive open online courses) from colleges and universities. You can find business MOOCs on edX here and Coursera here. These courses are often free but rarely carry college credit.

7. Listen to a podcast

I'm assuming that if you listen to the Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show, you may find listening to podcasts a great way to learn. Here are some shows that I listen to regularly which I think may be helpful for growing your yarn-related business.

• The #AskGaryVee Show: This live Q&A format video show also has an audio version. It's hosted by entrepreneur, Gary Vaynerchuk, and covers a wide range of business topics with a focus on entrepreneurship, marketing, and new media. There are several short episodes released each week. Spoiler alert: Gary is known for his colorful language, so if you are sensitive to cussing, this may not be the show for you.
• Web.Search.Social: This is a show co-hosted by husband and wife team Ralph and Carol Lynn Rivera. They focus on marketing and other business issues from the perspective of the small local business owner. Their show is muti-format and includes read blog posts, interviews, and conversations. Except for the read blog posts, they tend to be chatty. This isn't a "quick tips" type of show.
• Etsy Conversations Podcast: This weekly show features interviews with Etsy sellers and is hosted by Ijeoma Eleazu, who I interviewed in Episode 9. Ijeoma also occassionally interviews service providers who may of use to Etsy sellers. You can learn a lot about Etsy selling, but I find the show most inspiring for its focus on creativity and inspiration.
• Smart Passive Income Podcast: This show is hosted by entrepreneur, Pat Flynn. It is usually an interview format and focuses on developing passive income opportunities.
• Tim Ferriss Show: This interview show is hosted by Tim Ferriss, the author of The 4-Hour Workweek. Tim does a great job of getting his guests to open up, and many of the shows deal with creativity, overcoming adversity, and other inspiring topics that have motivated me in my business. I usually only listen to specific episodes rather than on a weekly basis.
• I listen to three weekly author/self-publishing podcasts. These share valuable information about self-publishing and author marketing. The first two also talk a lot about creativity and the business side of being an artist or creative indie. The Creative Penn is hosted by author and professional speaker, Joanna Penn. Her guests often share insights on creativity and the mindset of being a business owner as a creative person. Rocking Self Publishing is a weekly interview show hosted by Simon Whistler. The Sell More Books Show is a weekly roundup of writing, self-publishing, and publishing news and is hosted by Bryan Cohen and Jim Kukral.
• There are two inactive shows with helpful archives you may want to listen to. How They Blog is hosted by Kat Lee. The format is mostly interviews with an occassional Q&A. The show covers all aspects of blogging. Kat is a devout Christian and many of her guests talk about Christianity and spirituality and how that impact their blogging. The show is currently on hiatus. Oh So Pinteresting was hosted by Pinterest expert, Cynthia Sanchez, who I interviewed in Episode 30. The podcast, not surprisingly, focuses on Pinterest. While some of the oldest episodes are less relevant with recent Pinterest changes, most share valuable information that you can use in your business.

8. Volunteer or speak at an event

Most conferences and events are not free or low cost, which is why few of us attend regularly. Most craft industry events (as well as blogger, business, and social media conferences) rely on volunteer staff to help things run smoothly. In exchange for your services, you are typically granted access to the vendor area, demonstrations or lectures, and sometimes even to classes and workshops. You can learn more about this option in Episode 43, where I share tips for getting the most out of conferences and how to save money on attendance as a volunteer.

You can also save on events by speaking. I share tips for pitching your proposals to conferences and events in Episode 33. If you already have an existing relationship with a company or brand, you may even be able to get a sponsorship to a conference.

Events and conferences allow you to learn while also networking. I think this is a really valuable option for home-based business owners, so try to attend if you can!

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in August, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

In this week's episode, I answer a listener question from Kathy Kelly, a crochet designer and teacher at Crochetbird and a jazz musician at Kathy Kelly Vibes! Kathy wants to know how to juggle two creative businesses at once. She says:

I'm a jazz musician and a crochet teacher/designer. When I start to have some success in one area, it's hard to keep things going in the other area, and I'm kind of making lopsided progress.

Since my crochet and knitting business isn't my full time work either, I thought I would answer this by sharing some of the things that I do to balance my different entrepreneurial activities. As you might know, I teach business education at the college and graduate level, and work for a local non-profit organization in addition to being a crochet and knitting designer, teacher, blogger, and podcaster. (For more details about what I'm currently working on, you may want to check out my LinkedIn profile.)

I shared four things that have helped me to be successfully in multiple businesses.

• Set your goals for each business. Have a clear idea of what you hope to accomplish with each business in the near and far future. Whether you decide to write business plans, create lists, journal your goals, or speak with a coach, think through this process so you can articulate your plans for each business. Since you are committed to keeping both businesses part time, be aware that you may reach a ceiling in one or both careers because you will not be able to devote the time and energy to take one business to the next level while still maintaining the other business.
• Schedule and organize your routines. Put structures in place to support each business based on the goals you are hoping to achieve. (I talk more about this in Episode 21: 10 Habits for Successfully "Owning" (or Working) from Home.) You may want to have multiple workspaces and devote specific days of the week to each business. It can be distracting to jump back and forth between radically different types of tasks and activities, and you'll be less productive in each business as a result.
• Automate when possible. Find some activities in both businesses  you can automate to increase your impact and decrease the amount of time you spend on these activities. I automated social media sharing for all of my different businesses and freelance projects this year using Hootsuite and Tailwind. This has increased my focus on what I'm sharing and reduced the amount of time I waste on each social site. It has also increased traffic to my blog from different social sites. You may also find outsourcing helpful.
• Plan ahead. Detailed planning for each business allowed me to focus and use slow periods in one business to work on the other. I started using this free blog planner from Elite Blog Academy earlier this year, and I've been able to write up patterns to share during the semester when I'm busier. (Tamara Kelly talks about how she uses her planner in Episode 23: Diversifying Your Income and Boosting Your Blogging with Tamara Kelly from Moogly.)

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in August, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Episode

I'm sharing 10 tips (plus a few bonus ones, too!) for attending and getting the most out of your first blogging or social media conference. As regular listeners know, this year I spoke at the #WeAllGrow Summit by Latina Bloggers Connect and #BlogHer15: Experts Among Us. These were my first two blogging conferences, and I have plenty of ideas to share!

You may be thinking this episode isn't relevant to you if you aren't including blogging as part of your business model, but most of these tips are transferable to any conference or event where both colleagues and potential sponsors are in attendance.

The tips are:

1. Pack thoughtfully and light
2. Dress for your niche
3. Bring business cards
4. Read ALL of the emails
5. Organize and plan before the event
6. Know your purpose
7. Pad your budget
8. Go the expo (or marketplace or vendor area) during off hours
9. Add recovery time to your schedule
10. Don't forget to follow up

These tips will help you prepare for, navigate, and then get the most value for your business out of the event.

But first…

Let's talk about saving money on attendance. The primary reason I haven't attended blogging conferences in the past is because I didn't want to spend a lot on registration and travel. There are four great ways to save money on any conference you plan to attend.

• Register at the Early Bird Rate. Virtually all conferences have an "early bird" rate for people who register far in advance. This rate often expires prior to the finalization of the agenda, so you may feel anxious about signing up for an event that may not focus on exactly what you need for your business. The good news is that most of these events allow you to transfer your registration for a small fee, so you can sell your ticket to someone else after the early bird period ends for a slightly higher amount without losing any money.
• Use a promo code. Most conference speakers and some sponsors will have promotional codes that provide a discount. These may be a bit harder to find (unless you stalk each and every speaker on social media/blog/podcast before the event), but the savings are generally quite significant.
• Volunteer. Many events offer free registration to volunteers who may staff registration, the expo, assist with workshops, etc. This option is much more hands on and requires that you do some work! But it can also be a great way to meet people and get on the radar of the organizers before next year's event. Some of sponsors and vendors may also need help staffing their tables. While these (usually competitive) opportunities are often announced closer to the event, be proactive and reach out to the organizers to ask about available volunteer positions early.
• Speak. Panelists and workshop speakers are generally provided with free registration (and some events provide additional compensation including room and board and/or a speaker fee). For more tips for getting started as a speaker, listen to Episode 33: 7 Steps for Pitching Your Ideas for Workshops, Presentations, and Panel Sessions to Conferences and Events.

And, it goes without saying that you'll save a lot on travel by attending a local conference.

10 Tips for Attending (and Getting the Most Out of) Your First Blogging or Social Media Conference

Once you've gotten registration (and travel plans, if necessary) out of the way, let's talk about the other ways to get the most out of the event.

Pack thoughtfully and light

As yarn crafters, we often travel with yarn, hooks and needles, works-in-progress, and more. I'm definitely guilty of this. However…

• You may not have as much "down time" for crocheting or knitting as you expect,
• You may be picking up quite a few free samples, gift bags, and other items at this event. You'll need as much space in your bag as possible to bring these goodies home.
• Don't forget to bring comfortable shoes, as you may be on your feet walking and standing a lot
• If you organize and plan before the event, you'll know exactly what type of clothing to bring for all the activities you plan to participate in.

Dress for your niche

Dress appropriately for your niche/brand. Fashion-oriented bloggers will need to dress differently from mommy bloggers. As a yarn-related business owner, don't miss the opportunity to show off your handiwork. Handmade accessories (or clothing) are great conversation starters and help people to recognize you. There are hundreds (or thousands!) of people at these events, so everything you can do to stand out (while promoting your business) helps.

At each of these blogging conferences, someone came up to me and introduced themselves, knowing who I was based on recognizing something I made!

Bring business cards

As an online business owner and blogger, you may think that everything is electronic, on your smartphone, or in the cloud. Actually, a lot of people are still dealing with paper!

Here are two bonus business card tips:

• Design your own cards with a matte back with little to no text. This allows people to take notes on the back of your card, increasing the likelihood they will remember (and follow up) with you.
• Bring a small pouch for your cards and a pen. While many people use their ID badge holder for their own business cards and those of others they meet, I prefer to bring a small pouch that holds a pen and my cards, with room for picking up other cards. This allows me to always have a pen handy for my own notes. The pouch also keeps everything together once I get home for easier follow up.

Read ALL of the emails

This is the hardest tip to follow! Most events will bombard you with emails, especially in the weeks leading up to the event. When you are stressed out about taking time off for a conference, it might seem best to skip reading these all together.

These emails often include special pre-conference events, opportunities to meet with sponsors, and other activities that may not be on the formal agenda. By deleted or skipping these, you may miss out on a lot!

Organize and plan before the event

Again, with the time pressures before the event, many bloggers just want to show up and dive right in. As an introvert, this strategy doesn't work for me as I get easily overwhelmed once I'm on site.

Instead, I review the emails and the posted agenda and I create my own schedule. This may include workshops or panel events I plan to attend, meetings with sponsors, meetups, sightseeing, or meals with friends. I create two tiers in my schedule – activities that I must attend (like a one-on-one meeting with a potential sponsor) and activities that I might attend (like a workshop that looks sort of interesting). When I get on site, I'm very flexiblle about ditching those activities in the second category.

Know your purpose

So, what are you hoping to get out of this event? Understanding your goal in advance will help you focus all of your preparations and your activities at the conference.

Some of the main reasons people attend blogging conferences are to:

• Learn. Are you primarily in attendance for professional development? You may find it important to spend more time in workshops, panels, and other structured activities.
• Network. Are you primarily looking for other bloggers to collaborate with? You may find it helpful to keep your schedule flexible so you can spend a lot of time chatting informally. You might also want to connect with some people of interest before the event to set up meetings or interviews.
• Find a sponsor. If sponsorship is your primary goal, you may spend more time in the expo hall and at sponsored workshops, and be more thoughtful about the brands you wear or bring with you to the event. You could also reach out to some of the brands in advance to try and schedule one-to-one meetings.
• Get ideas for your own event. Perhaps you are planning a local meetup or small blogging conference. In that case, you may want keep a critical eye on the way the event is organized and presented.

Pad your budget

Conferences can get expensive. If (ahem) you're also a bit on the cheap side like me, you'll find it tempting to have a very tight budget. Keep a cushion for a restaurant lunch with new friends (rather than the on-site panel lunch), sightseeing, or to purchase books or other goods from vendors and speakers.

If you're also an introvert, you may also need to skip some of the larger meal events and eat alone, so having some leeway in your budget is helpful.

Go the expo (or marketplace or vendor area) during off hours

If you want to speak to sponsors and vendors, schedule your visits in the off hours. These will be different depending on the conference, but in general the night before the main conference "kick off," during workshops or popular panels, and early in the morning are quieter times. Avoid the scheduled "expo break" times, if possible.

Add recovery time to your schedule

You may be losing out on a lot of work or family time to attend a conference, so what many people do is work up to the last minute and then try to immediately jump right back into the swing of things when they return.

If you're traveling, you may be jet lagged or have a travel delay. Even if you are in your hometown, you'll find that you may be exhausted after the conference. You'll probably be doing a lot of walking, projecting your voice in loud spaces, etc. Be sure to add some recovery time into your schedule. You may find that prescheduling blog and social posts for the week of your return will give you some breathing room.

Another bonus tip: Preschedule some of your social media activity related to the conference, using the official conference hashtag. This will give you more time to focus on the conference and not on sharing while on site.

Don't forget to follow up

Separate yourself from the pack by following up with people after the conference. Build time into your schedule after the conference for following up with potential sponsors, collaborators, and others that you meet. Even if you do one or two emails a day, you will be doing more than most people.

Think about how/if you want to follow people you met at the event. I find Twitter lists very helpful because I can keep track of people I met at an event without going over my follower limits.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in July, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Episode

I'm wrapping up the Crochet & Knitting Design & Self-Publishing Mini Series by talking about promoting your pattern after release.

 

Updates from Last Week's Episode

Since last week's episode, I've been informed that CraftFoxes now offers a digital download option. I can't find anything about it on their Seller Help page, but a quick scan of the Patterns section in the Shop confirms that several sellers are offering digital downloads.

Additionally, there has been some concerns raised about selling on Craftsy. In the episode, I share two tips for your PayPal settings that can protect you from both issues.

Promoting Your Patterns

I talk about two different aspects of promotion in this episode: strategy and systems.

Promotional strategy

Promoting your pattern is part of your business's overall marketing strategy.

• Think about your target audience and where they congregate (online, or off).
• How does your target audience prefer to get information? Are they interested in detailed backstories about how the pattern came to be, or do they just want a pretty picture?
• If your target audience is very defined (a "niche"), you might find that you should only promote patterns in certain areas where they are likely to congregate. If your target audience is more general, you may want to consider something more like a "mass marketing" approach, where you share information about your new patterns widely.

It helps if your promotion of each pattern – your methods of communication, your "voice," and your pictures – is consistent with your overall brand as well. Of course, you may need some time to try different concepts out before you settle on your strategy.

Promotion systems

I recently created a checklist to formalize my process for promoting my Underground Crafter patterns online. I've found that having this system makes things easier because I don't have to "think" about what to do with each pattern, and I can also track traffic (and potentially conversions, depending on the site) more easily.

You can customize this system, or process, to meet your own needs.

Ravelry

• Create a project, including all of your pattern photos. Link to the yarn used.
• Add the pattern to the Ravelry pattern database, whether or not the pattern is available as a Ravelry download.
• Link the project to the pattern.
• Share the project (and yarn, if you received yarn support) with relevant groups.
• Add the pattern to the appropriate bundle(s) on your Ravelry designer page.

Blog/Website

• Write a blog post. If the pattern isn't available on Ravelry, remind readers to add the pattern to their queue or favorites on Ravelry and include a link.

Back to Ravelry

• Link the blog post to the project and yarn. Now your pattern will show up (as a project) in your groups as a "recent blog post."
• Announce the pattern in appropriate threads. I announce the new pattern in my own group on Ravelry, as well as in the Designers group's monthly new designs threads. If appropriate, add it to a relevant group's new designs thread, and to one of the "Big 6" boards (both Needlework News & Events and Patterns have promotional threads).
• Be cautious about violating Ravelry's Guidelines: "Posting the same message to more than 2 boards without permission from the group owner/moderators is not permitted. Unreasonable crossposting is considered spam!" Some groups explicitly allow people to cross post, and of course, you always have permission to cross post in your own group.

Email

• If you received yarn support, email your contact at the yarn company. Thank them for their support and provide a link to the new pattern. You may also want to include a photo they can share on social media.
• If you bought yarn at a local yarn shop, email the shop and let them know about the pattern, too. You may even want to ask if they want to display the sample in their shop.

Schedule future posts

• Most of us promote once and then forget all about our pattern.
• If you use a social media scheduling tool, schedule some future posts about your pattern. I currently use Hootsuite.
• Or, add a reminder to your calendar in 30/60/90/180 days to remind you to talk about it again!

Twitter

• Tweet a link to your pattern with relevant hashtags and mentioning the yarn company and/or yarn shop.
• Share pictures to promote more engagement.

Pinterest

• Pin your pattern to your own board for your designs, as well as any other relevant boards you have created.
• Pin your pattern to group boards. Group boards have been very helpful in driving traffic to my patterns. Be sure to follow the rules of each group board you belong to about what types of content can be pinned (e.g., crochet, knitting, free, for sale) as well as the frequency (e.g., no more than 3 pins a day).
• I now use Tailwind for Pinterest scheduling and really enjoy it. You can hear more about it in Episode 30: Going Beyond the Basics on Pinterest with Cynthia Sanchez. The Interval Scheduling feature allows me to spread out the Pins over a period of days, weeks, or months across the different boards.

Facebook

• Write a post about your pattern on your own page with mentions to the yarn company and/or local yarn shop.
• Add a picture to an album of your own designs with mentions to the yarn company and/or local yarn shop.
• Share the pattern in relevant Facebook groups.
• Tag your own page when sharing to groups and in the picture so people can easily find you if the post gets shared.

LinkedIn

• If your full time career is yarn related, or your side business as a designer won't negatively impact your other career, you can also share the news of your new pattern release on LinkedIn.
• You can share this information as an update, duplicate your blog post as a post, or in appropriate groups.

Instagram

• Since I don't have a smartphone, I don't use Instagram. However, I've heard from many designers who find that sharing pictures of new patterns via Instagram is very helpful.

Kollabora

• Share your project on Kollabora, whether or not it is being sold there, especially if it is fashion-oriented and/or has great photography.
• Link to the pattern on Kollabora or another site where it is available.

Add the pattern to other sites

In addition to Ravelry,

• Free patterns can be listed on CraftFoxes, Craftsy, and Kollabora.
• For sale patterns can be listed on CraftFoxes, Craftsy, Etsy, Kollabora, and Patternfish.

Free pattern directories

• If your pattern is available for free, submit it to one or more free pattern directories.

Email newsletter

• Let your email list know about your new pattern release. I send out my Underground Crafter newsletter weekly, so I add the new pattern to my list of things to share that week. In the past, I used it more like an announcements list, and I would send the email earlier in the promotion process.
• If you're new to mailing lists, you may want to listen to Episode 27: Connecting with Your Mailing List and More with Vashti Braha.

If you'll also be hosting a crochet- or knit-a-long

• Share the information with CraftGossip or CraftGawker.
• List your CAL/KAL in Ravelry's KAL Fanatics group in the appropriate threads.

So what link should you share?

If you share the link to your website and you use Google Analytics or a similar tool, it's easy to track where people are finding your link. This may help you to narrow down or focus in on particular promotional methods. You can also provide links to multiple marketplaces, if you use them, and allow the buyer to choose a preferred site.

On the other hand, if your pattern is for sale, a direct link to the shop may increase "impulse" buys.

What about advertising?

I've found that Ravelry ads are quite affordable. You can find more information in this brochure.

Many craft bloggers also offer affordable options for advertising on a sidebar, in a newsletter, and/or on social media. 

Should you discount?

Many designers release their patterns for a discounted rate as a "scarcity tactic" to encourage people to buy it before the price goes up. Others never (or rarely) discount their patterns.

Don't forget face-to-face promotion!

Wear or use your sample as much as possible. You'll be surprised about how many sales you can make this way!

Getting others to promote you

If you feel shy about promoting your patterns, consider working with others to get the word out.

• Some crochet and knitting bloggers do pattern reviews. You can reach out to such a blogger and gift her/him a pattern for review.
• If you have a collection, consider organizing a blog tour. You will need to gift patterns for review, write guest posts, be interviewed, and/or offer giveaway prizes for the blogs on the tour.
• Consider offering the pattern as a giveaway prize in a large or multi-designer event to extend your reach.

Make this checklist your own!

Create your own checklist so you can routinize some of your promotions to save time and increase consistency.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in July, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

If you missed the live Google+ Hangout on Air for getting the most out of Ravelry for your yarn-related business, or you want to watch or listen again, here is the updated post.

In this week's episode, I shared seven tips for optimizing your use of Ravelry. The video (which you can watch here) includes screenshares and walkthroughs, and the audio podcast includes an additional summary.

7 Tips for getting the most out of Ravelry for your yarn-related business:

• Optimize your profile to include information about your business, a link to your blog or website, and relevant social profiles. (Bonus tip: Always check your links to make sure they work.)
• Link to your yarns and/or designs. If you are a designer or yarnie, be sure to connect your yarns and patterns to your Ravelry profile. Optimize your designer page or yarn company page to be visible to non-Ravelry members.
• Document your projects and optimize your project pages to feature any collaborators, such as other yarn companies or designers.
• Connect blog posts to projects and stash and you can share your projects with relevant groups to increase the possibility you will be found by new customers.
• Save searches so you can keep track of trends, competitors, and other information.
• Use bundles to make it easier for customers to search your work.
• Consider Ravelry advertising as part of your marketing plan.

I also answered questions from Anita Bose Natarajan about how to get more exposure for new patterns.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in July, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

Jennifer Dickerson is the crochet and knitting designer, blogger, author, and YouTuber behind Fiber Flux. I had the chance to chat with Jennifer about how she got started with video and grew her YouTube channel to over 125,000 followers in less than two years. In this interview, she shares her practical tips for working with video, building a YouTube channel, time management, working for free, and monetizing your blog and videos. 

About Jennifer Dickerson

Jennifer Dickerson is the crochet and knitting designer, blogger, and YouTuber behind Fiber Flux. In addition to her blog, she launched the Fiber Flux YouTube channel about two years ago and has grown to 125,626 followers as of this writing. Jennifer is the author of Mini Flower Loom Crafts and has another book forthcoming. You can also follow Jennifer on Facebook | Instagram | Pinterest | Ravelry | Twitter

About the interview

In this episode, I interview Jennifer about getting started with video and growing a YouTube channel, but we also chatted about other aspects of her creative business.

Some of the topics we discussed about video included:

• Jennifer's practical tips for getting started in video.
  
  • Start by recording your back catalog so you don't have deadline pressure.
  • Use simple tools. Her recommendations are to use artificial lighting from a kit with a "natural light" bulb, a camera that has both automatic and manual options (should you decide to experiment with settings), and a tripod. She uses the YouTube Editor to edit her videos within the interface.
  • Remember that you don't need to film in sequence. Jennifer credits Celina Lane from Simply Collectible Crochet for reminding her that she can film the process in any order and then edit later.
  • Focus on transitions. You don't necessarily need to film an entire process, but remember to share a transition before moving on to the next step (e.g., "Continue to repeat this step until the end of the row and I'll meet you there.") 
• Jennifer's suggestions for growing your YouTube channel.
  
  • Use the Creator Academy, YouTube's free resource for creators.
  • Release videos on a consistent schedule so your audience returns to your channel often.
  • Start each video quickly with a strong opening and link between videos on your channel to encourage viewer retention. 
  • Make the opening of your channel an "event."
  • Remember to promote the channel itself, not just embedded videos on your other online properties.
  • Ask viewers to subscribe.
  • Remember that your YouTube followers may be different than your audience on other platforms.

We also talked about other aspects of Jennifer's business, including how Jennifer...

• Monetizes her blog and channel,
• Approaches her editorial calendar and time management, especially when working on larger projects (like a book),
• Decides if and when to work for free,
• Has become a published author, along with suggestions for other aspiring authors. 

Listen to the podcast for more discussion from me and Jennifer.

 

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in August, 2016. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Episode

I'm continuing my Crochet & Knitting Design & Self-Publishing Mini Series by talking about publishing your pattern. I'll be exploring six different online marketplaces in depth (Craftfoxes, Craftsy, Etsy, Kollabora, Patternfish, and Ravelry), and will be briefly talking about other self-publishing options (such as your blog/website, ebook vendors, and printing patterns).

This episode is longer than usual, so I'm including some time stamps if you need to pause in the middle of the show. You can scroll down past the time stamps for detailed show notes.

• 0:00 – 17:25
  • Introduction and announcements.
  • Feedback on pricing after Episode 40.
  • Factors to consider when exploring different options for self-publishing.
  • Marie's thoughts on selling directly from your own site.
  • The Alexa rankings of each of the six marketplaces we focus on today.
• 17:26 – 33:50
  • Interview with Lisa Fulmer, Senior Editor at CraftFoxes, and overview of CraftFoxes.
• 33:51 – 52:43
  • Interview with Stefanie Japel, Senior Acquisitions Editor at Craftsy, and overview of Craftsy.
  • Changes to Craftsy's affiliate program since the interview. If you sign up to be an affiliate, please let them know I referred you!
  • A "work-around" for non-EU designers selling on sites that don't collect VAT MOSS.
  • 2019 Update: Craftsy is now Bluprint and is not currently inviting new patterns for its marketplace. 
• 52:44 – 1:08:46
  • Interview with Lindsey Ibarra, who manages Editoral, Social, and Trends at Kollabora, and overview of Kollabora.
• 1:08:47 – 1:26:09
  • Interview with Julia Grunau, Prime Minister at Patternfish, and overview of Patternfish.
  • 2019 Update: Patternfish is now closed.
• 1:26:10 – 1:32:42
  • An overview of selling on Etsy.
  • Marie's thoughts on patterns as passive income.
• 1:32:43 – 1:35:24
  • An overview of selling on Ravelry.
• 1:35:25 – 1:45:28
  • The pros and cons of selling on these six marketplaces.
• 1:45:29 – 1:48:22
  • Self-publishing through mainstream ebook sites.
• 1:48:23 – 1:50:51
  • Self-publishing printed patterns.
• 1:50:52- 1:56:57
  • So where should YOU self-publish? and conclusion

Pricing (again)

There has been some interesting conversation in the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs group on Facebook about pricing since the last episode in this series. Many designers noted that their more expensive patterns sell better than their less expensive patterns.

Food for thought: Does that mean you may be underpricing your patterns? Or does it mean that you have correctly gauged the demand for more popular patterns and increased their prices? Let me know what you think in the comments!

Publishing Your Patterns

We're going to focus on six different marketplaces in this episode.

I find these four questions helpful to think about when you consider whether a marketplace is the right place (or "a right place") to sell your patterns.

• Who is your target audience and how much does it overlap with the site's target audience?
• What is the cost of selling on that site? Consider your own time for setting up shop and adding patterns as well as listing fees and merchant charges when sales are made.
• What kind of exposure can you get from this site? Consider both the traffic the site receives and how likely it is that your work will be seen through search or be featured by the site.
• How easy is the site to use? The ease-of-use may be higher on sites that you are already using, or sites that have a better user interface.

I also shared the current (as of mid-July, 2015) Alexa rankings for each of these sites. Alexa is a site that ranks websites based on their traffic. Please use caution when interpreting these rankings. With the exception of Patternfish, all of these sites do more than sell crochet and knitting patterns, and therefore, the overall traffic is not necessarily indicative of the popularity of pattern sales!

The sites, ranked in order, are:

• Etsy: 43 (US)/157 (Worldwide)
• Ravelry: 647 (US)/2,156 (Worldwide)
• Craftsy: 828 (US)/2,801 (Worldwide)
• Kollabora: 31,166 (US)/132,671 (Worldwide)
• Patternfish: 67,971 (US)/315,301 (Worldwide)
• Craftfoxes: 70,543 (US)/186,421 (Worldwide)

I also talked about the challenges of selling patterns directly from your own website.

CraftFoxes

I interviewed Lisa Fulmer, the Senior Editor of CraftFoxes, a multi-craft social network with a marketplace. You can find information about becoming a CraftFoxes seller here.

Some of the key features to consider about CraftFoxes are…

• Their marketplace is oriented towards physical/tangible item sales. They do not support digital/instant downloads at this time. Pattern sellers will need to email the pattern to the buyer, or bundle patterns with a physical item (like a yarn or supply kit).
• There is a $0.10 listing fee (which lasts for 3 months), but the first 50 listings are free. CraftFoxes also deducts 4% from any items sold. Additionally, PayPal will deduct their standard fees. CraftFoxes is not involved with the collection of VAT MOSS, a tax for digital sales to buyers in European Union member countries.
• Knitting and crocheting are the most popular crafts on the site. In particular, amigurumi, wearables, and beginner-friendly projects and patterns are very popular.
• For designers without a blog (or who want to amplify their blog posts), you can also share free patterns or projects with links back to your patterns.

You can learn more about CraftFoxes in this episode of one of my favorite crafty shows, the Etsy Conversations Podcast.

Craftsy

I interviewed Stefanie Japel, the Senior Acquisitions Editor at Craftsy, a multi-craft site that features online courses, a craft supply marketplace, a digital pattern marketplace for independent designers, and more. 

• 2019 Update: Craftsy is now Bluprint and is not currently inviting new patterns for its marketplace. 

Kollabora

I interviewed Lindsey Ibarra, who manages Editoral, Social, and Trends at Kollabora, a social network and DIY/crafts community. You can find information about setting up a Kollabora pattern shop here.

Some of the key features to consider about Kollabora are…

• The marketplace is curated. Apply to be a brand here. There are no listing fees, but Kollabora collects a 20% commission on each sale. Kollabora is not involved in the collection of VAT MOSS.
• Seller support is available at partners AT kollabora DOT com.
• Sewing is the most popular craft on Kollabora and it also has a vibrant knitting community. Crochet is the third most popular craft on the site.
• Kollabora's users are younger and aesthetic-oriented. Most are multi-craftual so beginner level patterns do well. Tops and shawls are very popular.
• Kollabora users can share tutorials and videos and host make-a-longs on the site.Kollabora likes to feature their designers in their newsletters, so if you sign up to sell patterns on their site, be sure to keep them informed of your latest activities!

You can also share pictures of your projects for patterns sold (or distributed for free) elsewhere. Kollabora projects can also include links to your blog or shop, and you don't need to sign in to see projects.

Patternfish

I interviewed Julia Grunau, the Prime Minister at Patternfish, a site exclusively focused on selling crochet, knitting, and weaving patterns.

• 2019 Update: Patternfish is now closed. 

Etsy

Etsy declined to be interviewed, but you can learn more about opening an Etsy shop here. You may also want to listen to these previous episodes to learn more about Etsy:

• Episode 9: Selling on Etsy, an Interview with Ijeoma Eleazu from the Etsy Conversations Podcast
• Episode 28: Indie Craft Fairs, Negotiation, Freelancing, the Hazards of Etsy and More with Grace Dobush
• Episode 29: Selling on Etsy, Passive Income, and Using Trending Keywords with Alexandra Tavel from Two of Wands

Let's talk about Etsy's fees.

• There is a $0.20 listing fee (which lasts for 4 months). Etsy also deducts 3.5% from any items sold. Additionally, PayPal will deduct their standard fees and Etsy will deduct additional fees if the customer uses Direct Checkout instead of PayPal.
• Etsy has taken an unusual position on VAT MOSS, which you can read more about here. Essentially, they are taking legal responsibility for it, so as a seller, you do not need to worry about it.

While Etsy has a huge volume of traffic, it can be difficult for a buyer to navigate. For this reason, I've observed that shops with superior, staged photography and where the sellers do a lot of promotion tend to be more successful than those who assume that keyword optimization with drive all of their sales. I would also surmise that beginner-friendly patterns would do the best, as many visitors are casual crafters or DIY enthusiasts who aren't necessarily master crocheters or knitters.

Ravelry

Ravelry also declined to be interviewed, but you can learn more about getting started as a Ravelry designer here. (You must be a member and logged in to view this page.)

Let's talk about Ravelry's fees.

• There are no Ravelry fees for pattern sales under $30/month. For sales from $30 to $1,500/month, Ravelry collects 3.5% of your sales. There is a discount for designers who sell over $1,500/month. In addition, PayPal collects their standard fees.
• Ravelry is now responsible for the collection of VAT MOSS. They previously had a partnership with Love-Knitting for VAT MOSS collection, so you can choose to sell your patterns to EU customers on both sites.
• 2019 Update: LoveKnitting is now LoveCrafts. Sign up here as a LoveCrafts designer.

You can list all of your patterns in Ravelry's database, whether or not you choose to sell or make them available for free on the site. You can have both free and for sale patterns available for instant download in your pattern shop on Ravelry.

Ravelry is the only site with the opportunity to easily wholesale your patterns local yarn shops. You can learn more about the In-Store Sales program here.

I suspect that Ravelry is the only one of these six sites where more complex patterns could be popular.

Mainstream ebook sites

You may also want to consider selling your patterns on mass marketplace/ebook marketplaces for use on ereaders.

You can learn more about becoming an ebook publisher on each of these sites by following the links below.

• Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing here.
• iBooks Author here.
• Kobo Writing Life here.
• Nook Press here.
• Smashwords here.

My assumption is most crafters are not seeking highly specialized patterns on these sites and that beginner-friendly projects would be more likely to succeed on these platforms.

These sites require different file types, and formatting images for non-PDF can be challenging. Pricing standards are also quite different for ebooks when compared to individual pattern prices on the six marketplaces discussed earlier.

I would recommend starting with the craft-focused sites using PDF patterns and later expanding into these other marketplaces after further research unless you have prior experience with formatting .mobi or .epub files.

Self-publishing print patterns

These days, it seems the demand for single, print patterns is waning. Many yarn shops are moving towards Ravelry's In-Store Sales Program. However, if you do wish to self-publish print patterns, I know several designers use print-on-demand services like MagCloud.

So, where should I sell my patterns?

As I mention in the show, I think that most designers will have more success if they can list their patterns on multiple sites. While there is certainly overlap among the dedicated crocheters and knitters, there are many potential buyers who may use only one of the sites but not the others.

However, when you are first starting out, you may want to choose one or two sites that you seem the most suited based on the four criteria (audience, cost, exposure, ease-of-use) mentioned earlier. Once you feel more confident, you can expand into other marketplaces.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in June, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Episode

I'm continuing my Crochet & Knitting Design & Self-Publishing Mini Series by talking about pricing your pattern. I'll be exploring the advantages and challenges of offering all of your self-published patterns for free, all for sale, or some combination of free and paid.

The subtitle for today's episode is "To free or not to free?"

Let's start by examining 3 strategic approaches to pricing your self-published patterns. (By the way, your pricing strategy for your self-published patterns might be the same as the pricing strategy you use with third-party publishing, or it might be different.)

Offer all of your self-published patterns for free

You may choose to only self-publish patterns for free. Here are some reasons why you might take this approach.

• You are a hobbyist designer: You haven't yet set up legal and financial structures for your business, so the logistics of accepting payments for pattern are too challenging to navigate at this time.
• You use a contribution model: Some designers self-publish patterns for free with hopes that their audience will feel a desire to reciprocate by contributing, either to the designer using a "pay what you wish" model, or to a charity the designer has designated.
• You monetize through the use of ads, affiliate relationships, and/or sponsorships: In this case, your patterns are free because your time is compensate through other means, most of which are dependent on traffic.
• Your patterns support another aspect of your business: If you are primarily generating income through another aspect of your business, such as selling yarn or supply kits, you may use free patterns as a bonus for your customers.

Some of the benefits of self-publishing your patterns for free are because free patterns…

• Present a low barrier for customers. You can easily hook them in.
• May be easier to promote online (e.g., through Pinterest group boards, participation in link sharing, etc.)
• Don't require any additional thought about pricing, thus saving you time and thought.
• Are more consistent with the general expectation of consumers that web content will be free.

Offer all of your self-published patterns for sale

On the other hand, you may choose to only self-publish patterns for sale. Here are some reasons why you might take this approach.

• Your social-political beliefs and values. Some designers feel very strongly that offering patterns for free devalues the work of women and the importance of crafts. Since many patterns with this view point are quite outspoken, you may also choose to self-publish all of your patterns for sale to align with this vocal group of fellow designers.
• You don't want to have your own website. If you don't want to manage your own website or blog (for financial, time management, or technology reasons), you will not have many other options for monetizing your patterns, so you will need to sell them. You may also prefer to benefit from the traffic on a publisher site (like Ravelry) rather than to build your own traffic to an external website.
• You want to wholesale patterns to yarn shops. If you'd like to create a symbotic relationship with yarn shops without spending a ton of time building relationships, you may want to use Ravelry's In-store sales feature or work with a distributor to sell your patterns to shops. Free patterns are eligible for the in-store feature and many reputable stores are leery of sharing free patterns.
• You believe that selling patterns will reduce the likelihood of piracy. It may also be easier to track the source of the theft of a for sale pattern.

Offer some of your self-published patterns for free and others for sale

Hopefully, by combining approaches you will get "the best of both worlds."

In the self-publishing book industries, this approach is common for ebook series. The first title may be "permafree," allowing customers to try it out and then pay for the rest of the series if the would like to continue.

You may prefer to offer your patterns for sale, but want yarn support from a company that only works with self-publishing designers for free pattern releases.

This option also allows you to test out both methods and make adjustments that increase your income. The primary disadvantage is that you will need to spend more time considering which patterns should be available for free and which should be for sale (as well as what price is appropriate for your paid patterns).

Let's talk pricing

If you decide to offer some or all of your patterns for free, how will you price them?

• Uniform pricing:  You can save time and energy by establishing a set price for your patterns and spreading it across your entire line of paid patterns.
• Scaled pricing: You can establish multiple price points for different types of patterns. For example, many designers price garment patterns (especially if they are in multiple sizes) higher than accessory patterns.

In the audio recording, I discuss some reasons why these different approaches might (or might not) work for your business.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in June, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Episode

I'm continuing my Crochet & Knitting Design & Self-Publishing Mini Series by talking about photographing your pattern. I'll be focusing on 3 topics: the photographer, the model (or backgrounds/props for non-wearables), and tutorials.

Let's talk about the photographer!

As the online world has shifted to becoming more and more visual, pattern photography has become increasingly important. As a self-publishing designer, you may be your own photographer or you may choose to work with another amateur or professional photographer.

Designer as photographer

If you take your own photos, you have complete control. You control the styling, the framing, the editing, etc. of each photograph. (If you don't happen to be a professional photographer, this may not always be a good thing, though!)

Other benefits of taking your own photos is that it is cheaper (in money, though not necessarily in time) and you can photograph on your own schedule.

If you decide to take your own pictures…

• Be sure to read the manual for your camera (or smartphone or tablet or whatever you use to take pictures) so you understand all the features and how to use them.
• Use natural lighting when available, and/or consider investing in a light box. You can buy one affordably and there are also many online tutorials for assembling your own light box.
• Take many, many pictures, and then choose the best ones.
• Get some professional development. Here are some suggestions.
  • Read The Crafter's Guide to Taking Great Photos by Heidi Adnum (which I reviewed here). Though it is mostly geared towards product photography (i.e., of toys and home decor items, not wearables), it is a great photography resource.
  • Craftsy has a vast array of photography classes. 
  • There are many online photography courses available on Udemy as well. I took Beginner Nikon DSLR Photography and found it quite helpful.
  • I have several Pinterest boards with links to photography resources that you may find helpful.
    • Photography: General How To
    • Product Photography: How To
    • Photo Editing: How To
    • Photographing People: How To
    • Photography Classes & Books
  • And of course, these days most large fiber festivals offer photography classes.

Since your photographs will form the first impression most people have about your designs, if you are your own photographer, make those impressions as good as you can by investing in yourself and your skills.

Amateur photographer

Some designers rely on a spouse, partner, family member, or friend to take pictures. This has the benefit of being free (or very inexpensive/paid with barter), but it has all of potential disadvantages of being your own photographer. To make the most out of one of these partnerships, ask your amateur photographer to get more training and make sure the emphasis is on the samples, not on you or the models.

Professional photographer

Working with a professional photographer will likely lead to the highest quality photos. This can be a worthwhile investment in your business. If this photographer isn't familiar with handmade items, you may need to be more involved with styling or be more explicit about your needs.

Some designers are able to work out barters or trades in exchange for professional photography services if paying a photographer is outside of their budgets.

Let's talk models!

If you design wearables, you will have to decide whether to be your own pattern model, have other (human) models, use a dress form/mannequin, or take flat product photography.

Designer as model

The advantages of being your own model are keeping costs down, making scheduling easier, and associating your face with your designs and brand. You will definitely need to become comfortable with posing, and if you are also your own photographer, you will need to become very familiar with your timer and have an excellent tripod.

Working with amateur and professional models

You may choose to work with models for sizing reasons, diversity, or because you are camera shy.

When working with models, a release form is critical. The American Society of Media Photographers has several release form samples that you can customize for your business.

Friends and family are often a first choice for designers, but they may not be comfortable in front of the camera. Consider bringing another friend along as a stylist or to chat up your camera-shy friend while you or your photographer take pictures. Taking breaks to switch accessories or change outfits can be helpful in allowing your model to relax and look more natural.

These days, many people have concerns about sharing images of children online. If you work with child models, consider taking photos from behind or the side so the full face isn't in view.

I have had good luck photographing local college students. Their rates are generally reasonable.

You may want to make recommendations to your models about what to wear, or bring clothing props.

Working with dress forms/mannequins

Your dress form or mannequin presumably doesn't have an active social life and is always available when you or your photographer have time to take pictures. If your dress form/mannequin fits into your light box, then you are also able to take pictures even when no natural lighting is available.

Some people feel that models are preferable to dress forms, but I've heard just as many people say the opposite. When in doubt, go with the preferences of your target audience.

Consider the "look" of your mannequin/dress form, as well. Do you want something with a neutral background and/or no face, or something with decorative fabric and/or a "lifelike" appearance. Ideally, you would make a choice that both fits your brand and budget.

Taking flat/product photography

If you primarily design home decor items and toys, this option may be right for you. However, if you primarily design wearables, consider whether flat photographs do your designs justice.

Think carefully about what is in the background of your photos, especially when taking flat photos. Having random junk in the background can be distracting, but having some common decorations can help support your brand.

2019 Update: You can find my 10 tips for how to photography your handmade crafts with flay lay photography here.

Let's talk tutorials!

Some designers never shoot tutorials, some only shoot tutorials when they are deemed necessary (by the designer), and others include tutorials with all of their designs.

If you never shoot your own tutorials, you don't need to worry about the photography of tutorials.

Considerations for tutorials

Whether you create tutorials occasionally or always, here are two things to consider.

• Will you only include specific elements (e.g., a difficult stitch or unusual construction method) or a complete project in your tutorial?
• If your tutorial is photographic rather than video, will you include your hands in the shots?

If you plan to include tutorials for each pattern, you may want to develop a cohesive format (akin to a style sheet). What size photos will you use, and at what distance? For video tutorials, will you introduce each one face-to-camera, or will the video start with a product shot or yarn in your hands?

Final thoughts on photography

Consider bringing a stylist if you are the photographer. Not only can this person serve as a second set of eyes, but s/he can also help the models feel pampered!

Post-production (photo editing) is also important. This can be even more important as you are developing your photography skills.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in June, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Episode

I'm continuing my Crochet & Knitting Design & Self-Publishing Mini Series by talking about polishing your pattern through editing and formatting.

If you're new to self-publishing, or your current approach to editing isn't working as you hoped…

You may want to listen to these two earlier episodes.

• Episode 3: 8 Tips for Organizing Your First Pattern Test, and
• Episode 25: 8 Tips for Contracting with Your First Tech Editor.

Each of these episodes outlines strategics, tactics, advantages, and pitfalls of using testers and/or tech editors to edit your patterns.

4 Approaches to Editing

In this episode, I share 4 different approaches to editing your self-published patterns. Each has advantages and challenges.

Self-editing

Many self-published designers edit their own patterns. The obvious advantage is that this method is free (although you may be surprised by how much of your own time is used for editing). You may also be able to edit more quickly since you aren't reliant on anyone else's schedule.

If you are not particularly detail oriented, if you have a lot of distractions in your work area, or if math is not your strength, you may find self-editing particularly difficult.

Some tips (borrowed from writers) that may help you remain objective while editing are:

• Review the pattern from the final row/round to the first row/round. This will help you look at the structure of each part of the pattern in isolation.
• Give yourself a break. Try not to edit the pattern just after writing it or making the sample.
• Find a workspace that is distraction-free.

Using pattern testers as editors

In a previous episode about pattern testing, I talk about the challenges of using testers as editors. Many, many wonderful testers have no specific talent for editing. They may not be very detail oriented, or they may not be articulate enough to describe pattern problems and suggest alternatives.

If you do use testers for editing, seek out testers who are very detail oriented and willing to share feedback. I recommend soliciting online testers through Ravelry's The Testing Pool group and hosting online tests in your own Ravelry group.

I also respond to questions about other challenges of working with testers,  including how to address copyright/piracy concerns, how to turn down or reject a tester, and how to deal with problem testers. Thank you to @HookedbyAngel from Hooked by Angel and to @hookabeeCrochet from Hookabee for sharing your questions!

I also challenge designers to think about their expectations for testers in relationship to what they are offering to their testers. While an individual pattern is worth a lot of money to you as a designer (because of both the passive income potential over your lifetime as well as the time and expenses you have invested in the pattern), an actual pattern is worth about $5 to a consumer. Are your expectations for pattern testers in alignment with the value of your pattern to an individual consumer?

Skill sharing

Some designers trade editing services with other designers. The advantage of this approach is that it is free. There are quite a few (potential) disadvantages, including the possibility that this designer will claim your pattern as his/her own. The other disadvantages are the same as those for self-editing, with the addition of potential delays in turnaround time. And, of course, you have to do more work, too, since you'll need to edit your colleague's pattern.

Tech editing

I've found that tech editing works best for me as an approach for editing patterns. The benefits are that you have an objective and skilled set of eyes looking over your pattern. The primary disadvantage is cost – you will need to pay a tech editor before you've earned any income from your pattern.

With that being said, there are challenges to using tech editing. It is critical for a designer to work with a tech editor that you can trust and who has tech editing skills. Chemistry/personality fit is also important. I share more details about my approach to working with a tech editor in Episode 8.

Formatting your pattern

When I talked about having a style sheet in the first episode in this series, we didn't explicitly discuss the formatting of your pattern from a graphic design standpoint.

I suggest choosing the software that you are the most comfortable with and that you can manipulate easily. I know designers who use word processing software (most commonly, Microsoft Word or Google Docs), PowerPoint, and InDesign. If you are thinking about how to visually brand your patterns to match other elements of your business, you may find Episode 6: Free and Low Cost (Visual) Branding Resources helpful.

I also recommend that you allow other people – perhaps your pattern testers – look over your format before distributing patterns. You may get valuable feedback about readability and visual appeal.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in June, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Episode

I continue the Crochet & Knitting Design & Self-Publishing Mini Series with a focus on Drafting Your Pattern. In today's episode, I talk about drafting the written pattern (including pattern grading) and creating the sample.

But first…

I wanted to mention that Dianne from Same DiNamics Crochet recently completed a Crochet Design Series. I was one of ten crochet designers she interviewed. Most of the information is also applicable to knitting. I have linked up her posts below.

• Meet the Designers
• 1 In the Beginning… Design Inspiration
• 2 The Writing Phase
• 3 The Testing Phase
• 4 The Modeling of Your Project Phase
• 5 In the End… Marketing Your Pattern

You may find it interesting to hear the perspectives of multiple designers as you consider which approach works best for your business.

Drafting the pattern

There are three major approaches to drafting a pattern.

• Reverse engineering: Designers who take this approach create a sample first and then attempt to deconstruct it, write a pattern, and make a second sample. This is a more organic design process and the designer can "test" the efficacy of the reverse engineering process while making the second sample. Unfortunately, it can sometimes be difficult to accurately determine the pattern through this technique and it may produce projects where the patterns are not easy to follow. Additionally, it isn't very scalable.
• Write as you go: Designers who take this approach stitch one row/round and then write the instructions. This method tends to be more accurate than reverse engineering, but it may not be very scalable.
• Write first, then create the sample: With this approach, the design is thought through first and written up. The designer or sample knitter/crochet then checks the pattern while creating the sample. This is very scalable because the sample isn't dependent on the designer and it can be tech edited faster. This method can be very challenging for a difficult pattern because the designer may be trying new techniques and/or stitches and will be pulling back frequently.

Consider your current method and whether it fits with your business at this time. Should you introduce another method of drafting the pattern instead?

Creating the sample

Most designers start out creating their own samples. Some eventually outsource the production of samples to sample crocheters/knitters. Sample makers are not quite the same as pattern testers. Here are some key differences.

• Sample makers (in general)…
  • Are provided with yarn and compensated financially,
  • Do not own the finished sample and have to return it to the publisher, and
  • Are required to work the pattern exactly as written, at the same gauge, and in the publisher's required size.
• Pattern testers (in general)…
  • Supply their own yarn,
  • Own the finished sample,
  • Choose the sample size,
  • Often make "tweaks" or customizations to the pattern, and
  • May not meet the required gauge.

Several years ago, Karen Ratto-Whooley shared a questionnaire for sample crocheters on her mailing list. It was designed to assess the makers technical skills and attention to detail in reading a pattern, so consider both if you plan to outsource your samples. Sample makers are often compensated by the yard, and you can generally find out about prevailing rates by asking around in the Indy Pattern Designers' Resources group on Ravelry. The group even has a "stickied" discussion thread called Sample knitters/crocheters.

You can learn more about pattern testers in Episode 3: 8 Tips for Organizing Your First Pattern Test. I'll also talk about testing in more detail in next week's episode.

What about pattern grading?

Pattern grading is a process of sizing the pattern up or down sizes and keeping the design integrity the same.

Many designers start by creating multiple samples in different sizes. Unless your designs are very small (like hats), this isn't very scalable because it adds much more work and time to your self-publishing process.

Grading involves both math and art. Formulas can be used to adjust the stitch counts proportionately for various sizes, but in many instances, design elements will not work the same way in every size. For this reason, some self-published designers limit the size range of their patterns, while others make change to design elements to maintain the integrity.

If you haven't done pattern grading before, or would like to improve your skills, here are some resources you may find helpful.

• In a bonus episode, I talked with knitting designer and tech editor, Ashwini Jambhekar, about using percent difference – rather than a flat different – between sizes when grading. The examples included in the episode are applicable to crochet as well.
• Kim Guzman frequently offers a Crochet Pattern Grading course online through Crochetville. I took it a few years ago and found it extremely helpful and well organized.
• A crochet designer introduced me to Sweater 101: How to Plan Sweaters That Fit… and Organize Your Knitting Life At the Same Time. Cheryl Brunette includes detailed schematics for 30 standard sizes, from 6 months to men's size 50, for drop shoulder, raglan, and set-in sleeve sweaters. The book also thoroughly explains the math behind sweater design and has worksheets you can use to organize your sweater designs.
• Many designers use the Craft Yarn Council size charts to guide their grading decisions.
• Faina Goberstein teaches Sizing Knitwear Patterns on Craftsy. I have not taken this course, but I have heard good things about it from knitting designers.

Another approach is to ask your tech editor to do the grading and/or to walk you through the grading process. This will likely be more expensive than just a pattern edit.

You might also want to try grading a smaller project (like a hat) or a project with minimal shaping (like a blanket) as your first grading experience.

Ask yourself where you want grading to fit in during the pattern writing process – before you make the sample, at the same type as making the sample, or after finishing the sample.

Next week's episode will be all about Polishing your pattern. We'll talk about testing and tech editing.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in May, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Episode

I launch the Crochet & Knitting Design & Self-Publishing Mini Series with a focus on Planning Your Pattern. In today's episode, I talk about style sheets and yarn support, as well as aligning your style sheet with your ideal customer's preferences and needs.

But first…

Thanks to Angela Doherty from Hooked By Angel (on Etsy and Facebook) for sharing the first bit of audio feedback on the show! Angel had some wonderful things to say about the show (thank you!) and she also reminded me that I like to say, "That makes sense" a lot during interviews. (I also seem to like to say "So" but that's an aside.)

Angela was one of the people who inspired me to take the leap into starting a Facebook group for friends and fans of the Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show. You can join the group, Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs, here.

Let's talk style sheets

What in the world is a style sheet? Think of it as a template for formatting your crochet and knitting patterns.A style sheet can benefit you by making the process of writing up your patterns faster as well as by setting a consistent tone for your customers. As you create your own style sheet, think about…

• Your ideal customer. Does this person need more or less detail? Does this person prefer pattern abbreviations or stitch symbols? Do they want or need lots of photos and tutorials, or do they prefer very condensed, print-friendly designs.
• Abbreviations. Will you use the Craft Yarn Council standard abbreviations for crochet or knitting, or will you develop your own variations on these abbreviations? Will you use US or UK abbreviations, or both?
• Stitch symbols. If you plan to include international stitch symbols in your patterns, will you design your own charts or pay a tech editor to do this for you? If you'd like to create your own, you may want to check out this tutorial by Pia Thadani from StitchesNScraps about how to use Inkscape to make crochet charts. You may also want to listen to Episode 8 where I interview Adriana Hernandez from AdriPrints about her affordable crochet and knitting fonts.
• Writing style. Will your patterns be recipe style, conversational, formal, informal, optimized for printing, filled with detailed tutorials, or…?
• Phrasing. Are you writing sentences or phrases? How will you explain special stitches or techniques?
• Yarn. Will you recommend a specific yarn for each pattern or just describe the type of yarn that is best suited to this project? Will you provide recommendations for substituting yarn?
• Skill levels. Will you use the Craft Yarn Council standard skill levels, will you create your own skill levels, or will you list the specific stitches/skills required for each pattern? Will you including tutorials within the pattern or direct your customers to another source? Or, are your customers more experienced or adventurous (and therefore, don't need tutorials).
• Grading. Will your patterns be graded with specific instructions for each size? Or, will each pattern be for one size? Or, will you make a sample in one size and then explain to your customers how to adjust the pattern to fit?

These are just some things to consider as you develop a style sheet. I recommend looking at other designer's style sheets to see what components you like or don't like before you develop your own template. Here are two of my free patterns, which use the same overall format of my for sale patterns:

You may also want to check out some traditional magazines, books, and online magazines for ideas.

What about the yarn?

As I mentioned back in Episode 34, yarn support is when a yarn company provides a designer with yarn for free in exchange for the designer listing this yarn as the sole recommended yarn in the pattern and in the Ravelry database.

When possible, secure yarn support for your self-publishing patterns. Not only does this save you money, which allows you to grow your business faster, but it also makes it less likely that the yarn you feature in a pattern will be discontinued around the time of publication. Believe it or not, there are many crocheters and knitters who try to make their projects using the same yarn as the designer.

If you can't secure yarn support, or choose not to, consider whether or not using a discontinued or other stash yarn is acceptable for your pattern and target customers.

And don't forget your audience, your goals, and your mission

As Lindsey Lewchuk from Knit Eco Chic mentioned in her interview in Episode 26, she always checks her idea for a new pattern against her foundational philosophies to see if it is a good fit.

Even if you don't have a mission statement or articulated philosophy, before you get started think about whether this design will resonate with your target audience or if it fits into your short or long term goals.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in May, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Mini Episode

In this week's mini episode, I announce a new series on designing and self-publishing your crochet and knitting patterns that will start next week. So far, I'm expecting the series to include episodes focused on:

• Planning and drafting your design,
• Polishing your pattern,
• Pricing,
• Publishing (including an exploration of different online marketplaces like Amazon, CraftFoxes, Craftsy, Crochetville, Etsy, Kollabora, Patternfish, and/or Ravelry), and
• Promoting.

I shared some questions from Goddess Crochet, Junee B Designs, Patterns Tried and True, and Hooked by Angel, but I'd love to answer other questions you have about self-publishing in this series. Also, if you have a favorite online marketplace, let us know what it is (and why) so I can share that during the publishing episode.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in May, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Episode

I'm talking about ways to source yarn inexpensively (or for free) for your yarn-related business. 

Getting your yarn for less (or for free) can have a huge impact on your profits as a yarn related business! In this episode, I'll be sharing 4 ways to source your yarn for less money.

The 4 ways are:

1. Establish a wholesale, maker, or professional crafter account with a yarn company
2. Apply for yarn support for your crochet and knitting patterns
3. Shop for discounts
4. Use  discontinued yarns

Not every one of these ways will be right for your business, but hopefully one or more is!

By the way, I know nothing about the world of spinning (sorry spinners!), so I don't share any resources for fleeces or roving. If you're a spinner and know more about discounted options, let me know so I can update this page!

Establish a wholesale, maker, or professional crafter account with a yarn company

Many yarn companies will establish wholesale, maker, professional crafter, or teacher accounts with indie businesses who aren't yarn shops. There may be a lower order minimum for these smaller vendors than for a yarn shop, and the yarn prices will be substantially below retail..

In general, your business will need to have a tax ID and permission to collect sales tax through your state to take advantage of these discounts. If your business isn't already formalized and you are located in the U.S., you may want to check out the Small Business Administration Learning Center or contact SCORE for advice and mentoring.

If you're a dyer, you may want to check out Henry's Attic. Although I haven't worked with them directly, I've heard good things about their yarn. (Full disclosure: I previously worked with Galler Yarns, which is owned by the same family.)

You can also reach out to your favorite yarn companies through the website contact page and ask if they provide discounts to makers, teachers, dyers, or whatever your type of business is.

Apply for yarn support for your crochet and knitting patterns

Yarn companies will often provide "yarn support" to designers/authors who are creating samples in their yarn. Typically, the company will provide the yarn at no cost (or at a substantial discount) in exchange for being listed as the only yarn in the pattern and/or on Ravelry.

Some yarn companies will only provide yarn support for patterns that are published by third parties (i.e., magazines or traditionally published books), while others also provide yarn support for independently published (i.e., self-published) patterns.

If you'd like to pursue yarn support for upcoming designs, reach out to yarn companies and ask about their process for requesting yarn support. Some companies have a form to complete while others want to see a magazine-style design submission with a sketch, swatch, and description. There are also companies comfortable with just a description of the design and a link to your Ravelry designer page. If you like working with independent yarn companies, check out the Yarnie/Designer Connection Thread in the Designers group on Ravelry.

To maintain your relationship, remember to notify the company when your pattern is published. It doesn't hurt to mention the company when you announce or share the pattern on social media, either.

I maintain a spreadsheet with contacts at the different yarn companies that I have worked with (or plan to work with in the future) for yarn support, and I include notes on whether they support independent designs, too, or only third-party publications.

Shop for discounts

If these formal methods for sourcing yarn inexpensively don't work for you, another option is to shop for discounts. Perhaps your business isn't formalized or your portfolio is small. Shopping for discounts on currently available yarns is another way to save money. Sign up for the email lists of big box stores and local yarn shops in your area, as well as for the major online yarn sellers, like WEBS, Jimmy Beans, and Loopy Ewe. Although you are still paying retail prices, you will be still be able to buy the yarn at a discount.

Use  discontinued yarns

Discontinued yarns are often available at a substantial discount. While some designers may find that pattern sales will suffer if their samples are made with discontinued yarns, makers may find that their customers aren't concerned about using a yarn that is no longer in production. Another challenge of working with a discontinued yarn line or color is that you may only have access to a limited range of colors and it can be difficult to match dye lots. Smiley's Yarns is a shop that specializes in selling discontinued yarns at a deep discount.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in May, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Episode

Today's topic was suggested by last week's guest, Sedie Maruska. I'm going to share a 7 step process for pitching your ideas to conferences and events. This process is what I use both for yarn-related events, like regional fiber festivals, and for other types of venues, like blogging or social media conferences.

The 7 steps are:

1. Define your goals
2. Identify potential venues
3. Find the speaker or workshop guidelines and understand the compensation practices
4. Choose your pitch
5. Refine your pitch
6. Submit and wait
7. Follow up (maybe)

Some Background

As a teenager, I was part of a pilot program to train youth as HIV prevention peer educators. As a result, I received a lot of training in public speaking. This was very helpful because I'm a very introverted person (and was even more so as a teenager). I ended up entering into a career path which involved a lot of public speaking as a result. Pitching workshop ideas to professional conferences has been part of my career since way before I entered the yarn industry, and I wanted to continue that practice for my yarn-related business.

I've presented workshops at several local and regional fiber festivals, including the Finger Lakes Fiber Arts Festival, the North Jersey Fiber Arts Festival, and the Pittsburgh Knit and Crochet Festival. This year, I began presenting at blogging and social media conferences, including the We All Grow Summit by Latina Bloggers Connect, Social Media Week New York, and the upcoming BlogHer15.

1) Define your goals

There are many different reasons you might want to speak at an event. Some common goals are…

• To build your platform. You may want to grow your reputation in a certain niche, or more firmly establish the association between your brand and certain topic areas. If this is your primary goal, you may want to narrow the topic ideas you pitch and the events you approach. You may also be soliciting potential clients or students for existing courses, books, and other products and services.
• To share the love. Perhaps you want to spread your love of knitting or crochet or meet new friends. Your reasons for speaking are more altruistic.
• To travel. Some speakers want to find a reason or a pathway to attending far flung events so that they can expand their travel opportunities.
• To gain free admission. You may have a specific event you'd like to attend, but the admission to the event is outside of your budget. Most venues provide free admission to their presenters, so this might be one way of making a specific conference affordable to you.
• To make money. Spoiler alert: Most conference speakers don't make money speaking, at least not initially. In many cases, your time and/or travel will be only minimally compensated. Typically, a speaker must have a large existing platform to command high speaking fees. However, we all have to start somewhere, so if this is your eventual goal, you may want to begin by building your speaking portfolio.

2) Identify potential venues

Once you have a clear idea of your immediate goals, you can start to identify potential venues. You can then narrow your focus to the events and conferences where you could most easily and quickly meet your goals by being selected as a speaker.

My favorite resource for finding fiber related events is the Knitter's Review list of events. Larger, more established events may be looking for speakers as far as one year in advance, while smaller, local events may be refining the speakers list just a month or two in advance.

If you're more interested in presenting on topics related to blogging or small business issues, She Owns It has a regularly updated list of Retreats for Women, Entrepreneurs, and Bloggers that I've found very helpful.

You can find out about other local or regional events through your crochet or knitting guild chapter, your local yarn shop, the local U.S. Small Business Administration field office, your area's chamber of commerce, or any face-to-face business or professional associations you belong to. You might also hear about events from LinkedIn groups, podcasts you listen to, or blogs you read. Don't forget about local themed events like Social Media Week or heritage events in your area!

New events are often more open to accepting speakers without an established background. Keep your eyes open on Twitter and other social media networks for announcement of new conferences and events.

Colleges and universities often host events and conferences. Students often organize these events and are looking for outside speakers. You can find more information through the college's events calendar.

3) Find the speaker or workshop guidelines and understand the compensation practices

Review the event website looking for sections for teachers or speakers or information on workshops or the agenda.

Sometimes you will find a call for speakers, an email list sign up for prospective speakers, or forms to fill out with a clearly stated deadline and compensation. More often, you will need to reach out to the organizers via email and ask for more details.

If it isn't explicitly stated, don't forget to ask about compensation practices. I share some tips for pricing for events where you are asked to determine your own course fee.

4) Choose your pitch

Once you've narrowed down the list of potential venues, consider your goals as you decide what to pitch. You may want to consider different formats (e.g., a hands on workshop, a multi-speaker panel, a presentation/lecture). You will also have to decide whether to pitch one idea or multiple ideas. Some of this is decided for you by the venue as fiber events in particular often prefer to have each teacher offer multiple workshops, thereby requiring multiple pitches.

It's important to follow directions for submitting your proposal. This is not the time to shine for your individual creativity :).

5) Refine your pitch

Conferences and events usually use a juried process to choose speakers, teachers, and presenters. For that reason, I often ask a colleague to look over my pitch before submitting it. (If that's not possible, spend some time self-editing.) Consider whether the tone and content is appropriate to the venue as well as if you've clearly "sold" yourself as a great presenter.

6) Submit and wait

Submit your proposal following the event's guidelines and wait to hear back. Some events have a clear timeline for responding to speaker proposals.

7) Follow up (maybe)

In some cases, gentle follow up may be helpful to your submission. Rather than contacting the organizers to ask about the status of your application, you may want to share targeted updates that serve to highlight your expertise or skills as a teacher/speaker.

Other Tips

• Be aware of any non-compete clauses for speakers. Some events require speakers to sign non-compete clauses agreeing not to present on the same topic and/or in the same geographical area for a certain number of days before or after the event.
• Consider "add on events" when traveling. If it doesn't violate your speaker clause, consider setting up additional workshops, trunk shows, book signings, or other events in the local area at local yarn shops or related venues when traveling.
• If you don't have a background in public speaking or lack confidence in public speaking, I recommend you check out your local Toastmasters chapter. Although I have never personally worked with them, I have heard good things from many members. Toastmasters is an affordable alternative to public speaking coaching.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in April, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Episode

In this episode, I shared an interview with Sedruola "Sedie" Maruska from Yarn Obsession. Sedie is a crochet designer, blogger, and crochet business consultant. I wanted to talk with her about her public journey to 100,000 monthly unique visitors to her blog. We also chatted about pricing, empowering women business owners, prioritizing different elements of your business, and more.

About Sedruola "Sedie" Maruska

Sedie started Yarn Obsession as a hobby and eventually started selling her finished crochet items as a maker. Later, she started designing but noticed she was getting a lot of questions from other makers and crochet business owners, so she started offering crochet business advice and coaching services. Sedie continues designing to keep current in the industry so her consulting services are always up-to-date. Because pattern design isn't her core business, she uses an unusual pricing tactic. Yarn Obsession is Sedie's full-time business, but she does have a part-time job.

You can find Sedie online at Yarn Obsession, as well as on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

About the Interview

I invited Sedie on the show to talk her plan to increase traffic to 100,000 visitors per month to her website. (You can read more about her goal here and you can find her monthly progress reports here.) Sedie was inspired by blogger Neil Patel's post, Why Transparency Is The New Marketing, to share this journey publicly. It also helps her to stay accountable for moving towards her goal.

We also talked about empowering women to find their voice and confidence so they can be successful in their businesses, dealing with negativity online, distributing your time between different income streams in your business, and pricing. Sedie also shared some tips for getting started with video for your yarn-related business.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in April, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

Heather Solos is a director at Feedblitz. I met Heather at the 2016 Snap! conference and we later had a Skype chat about best practices for growing, maintaining, and monetizing your email list. 

About Heather Solos and Feedblitz

Heather Solos started blogging in 2004 and became a professional blogger in 2006. She joined FeedBlitz, an RSS and email marketing company, in 2012 where she built the customer service team. She's now a director at Feedblitz and swims in a sea of email, marketing, and best practices. When she comes up for air, she works for Home-Ec101.com, a site that earned her the blogger dream, a book deal in 2011.

Heather is raising four kids, a dog, and a hedgehog with her fiancé in the Lowcountry of South Carolina. She runs on spite, caffeine, and wine and recently picked up a crochet hook in an attempt to resist checking her phone in the evenings. She now has more washcloths than dishes.

About the interview

In this episode, I talk to Heather about her own experiences with email lists as a blogger and what she has seen through her work at Feedblitz. (If you're new to the topic of email marketing, you may want to list to Episode 55: Email Marketing 101: Or, Why and How to Set Up an Email List for Your Creative Business.)

Some of the topics we discussed included:

• Ways to monetize your email list through advertising, sponsorships, digital or physical product sales, and bundles/special offers for subscribers.
• The email open rate companies will be looking for before sponsoring a list.
• When to consider opt-in freebies to grow your list.
• When it's ok to use a more "salesy" approach to your list.
• Content ideas for autoresponders.
• How to approach an email list if you don't have your own website but operate out of a marketplace like Craftsy, Etsy, or Ravelry.
• How to find out the deliverability rate of your email list.
• What to avoid in your subject line, format, and email text to stay out of spam filters and when to use different email formats.
• List hygiene and maintenance.
• Tips for sending emails more regularly.

Listen to the podcast for more from Heather about best practices in email marketing for creative businesses. I also share my experience using with the Feedblitz "test drive" and the service.

 

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in July, 2016. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Bonus Episode

I'm sharing an interview with serial entrepreneur Lane Kennedy today as a bonus episode. Although Lane isn't involved in the yarn industry, she has a lot to share about managing your business while being a mom. Since I'm not a mom, I thought her perspective would be helpful for listeners who are! I also thought this episode would pair nicely with my interview with Amy Ramnarine earlier this week about how she planned out her maternity leave.

About Lane Kennedy

Lane is a serial entrepreneur who is also a coach and a podcaster. Her message is all about empowering women and living a straightforward life. 

You can find Lane online on her website, on Facebook, and on Twitter. 

About the Interview

Lane is the daughter of an entrepreneur and has had an interesting series of careers and businesses that have brought her around the world. Later in life, she unexpectedly became pregnant while in the middle of launching a business. In this interview, we talked about the changes she made to her life to manage both her entrepreneurial endeavors and her family life.

Lane took 18 months off after her son was born and then slowly returned to her career. She shared several suggestions for moms who want to making the most out of their working time.

• Find support. Lane started with 15 hours of child care weekly from someone she trusted as she transitioned back into running a business.
• Connect with other mompreneurs. Lane organized a local group of mom entrepreneurs for nearly 5 years. The group met monthly with a focus on networking and business development. Although the members were moms, the group focused on entrepreneurial topics rather than family life.
• Optimize your schedule and prioritize your time. Lane uses a shared calendar to chart out her week and separates family, personal, and business time. She also schedules tasks based on her natural rhythms so she can be more productive.
• Don't forget to take time for yourself. Lane recommends taking a vacation alone at least once a year.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in April, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Episode

In this episode, I shared an interview with Amy Ramnarine from The Stitchin' Mommy. Amy is a crochet designer and DIY blogger, and a fellow New Yorker. We met up at Martha's Country Bakery in Forest Hills, Queens back in March. (By the way, Amy recommends the Strawberry Shortcake which is made with real strawberries.) I wanted to talk with her about her plans for maternity leave. We also chatted about collaborations that expand your business, blog monetization, customer service, and more.

About Amy Ramnarine

Amy is a full-time crochet and DIY blogger. Her background is in finance, but she worked as a pre-school teacher before her first daughter was born. As a stay-at-home mom, she launched  The Stitchin' Mommy as a maker. She later became a designer and expanded her blog beyond crochet to include additional DIY topics and tutorials.

You can find Amy online at the The Stitchin' Mommy, as well as on Facebook, Instagram,  Pinterest, Ravelry, and Twitter.

About the Interview

I invited Amy on the show to talk about how she's planning for maternity leave. While you may not be planning a pregnancy in the near future, Amy shared a lot of information that can help any yarn-related business owner who anticipates a break from the business.

• Plan ahead. Amy started planning her leave about 4 months before she was planned to take off time. During the planning period, she increased her workload to meet her goals for her absence.
• Create a content calendar. Amy created a calendar for about 3 months of blog posts with her typical release frequency to include the types of content that she has seen success with in the past, such as free patterns, book reviews, pattern roundups, and more.
• Connect with other small businesses. Amy reached out to her network of bloggers and designers and asked for guest posts and designer spotlights to supplement her own original content.
• Find and train support. Although Amy hasn't used a virtual assistant before, she started to train one who can maintain some of the social media accounts of her business while she is on maternity leave.

We also talked about collaboration. Amy's inspiration has been Chef Carla Hall, who often says "There's power in the yes." This philosophy has helped Amy to expand her business by reaching out for opportunities and collaborations. One example is the Link she co-hosts with Rhondda from Oombawka Design. (We even teased Rhondda a bit about her fear of Skype.) Amy talked about how she grew her blog with collaborations, posting frequency, customer service, and by submitting content to free pattern directories like AllFreeCrochet. We discussed the different ways Amy monetizes her blog and the support she gets from RFE Hosting. Amy also talked about her approach to customer service.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in April, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Episode

Back in February, I had the opportunity to meet and interview Cynthia Sanchez at the We All Grow Summit by Latina Bloggers Connect. Cynthia is a Pinterest marketing expert, so in this interview, we talked about taking your Pinterest use to the next level for your yarn-related business. (If you're just getting started on Pinterest, you may find Episode 2: 10 Ways to Use Pinterest to Grow Your Business helpful.)

About Cynthia Sanchez

Cynthia Sanchez has a background in healthcare as a nurse navigator. In 2011, she was interested in using social media to get the word out to patients, but since she didn't have an established online presence or a background in marketing, she decided to start up a personal blog first. Cynthia had recently begun using Pinterest and was finding that it was transforming her life, so it seemed like the perfect topic for her to explore through blogging. Cynthia soon became a recognized Pinterest marketing expert. In addition to hosting the Oh So Pinteresting podcast, she also speaks regularly at national conferences social media events.

You can also subscribe to the Oh So Pinteresting podcast on iTunes and Stitcher. 

About the Interview

In this interview, Cynthia shared her advice for going beyond the basics in using Pinterest for reaching your target audience. Here are some of her suggestions.

• Take the time to develop a Pinterest strategy. Consider who you want to reach (your target audience), and then create boards populated with the types of images they want to see. Once you have established your overall strategy, you can think about the posting frequency/schedule that works for you.
• Consider different approaches to Pinterest boards based on your business's size and brand. Solopreneurs/micro business owners might share more personal interest boards than larger businesses, since the owner's personality may be considered part of the brand. Owners who have a business serving both B2B and B2C audiences might consider creating separate accounts to focus on different audiences. Businesses of all sizes may want to consider using more secret boards for interests that may divert attention from their core business activities.
• If you have multiple accounts, establish group boards to share crossover interests with both audiences. I do this with my Crochet Business Tips board, which is shared through my Underground Crafter and my Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show business accounts.
• Browse boards and pins in categories unrelated to your business. Yarn-related busienss owners may want to check out sports or history to see Pinterest with fresh eyes. Discover what appeals to you visually, and incorporate that into your own boards as well as into the images you share online.

Cynthia also shared several recommendations.

• The Pinterest for Business blog is Cynthia's favorite resource for staying on top of Pinterest changes.
• Tailwind is the Pinterest scheduler and analytics tool Cynthia recommends for small businesses and bloggers. It is an approved Pinterest third party app and it has affordable pricing options.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in March, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Episode

I interviewed Alexandra Tavel, a crochet and knitting maker and designer. Alexandra owns the Etsy shop, Two of Wands. We met up in person in New York City (where we both live) to talk about how she launched her shop, how it became her full time income, and what she enjoys about the platform, as well as other topics related to owning a yarn-based business.

About Alexandra Tavel

Alexandra Tavel earned dual degrees in fashion design and costume construction technology from Indiana University. After graduation, she moved to New York City with plans of entering the fashion industry, but she ended up working in a nonprofit organization for 8 years. In late 2013, a series of life changes led to her launching an Etsy shop, Two of Wands, where she sells her finished knit and crocheted projects as well as instant pattern downloads.

You can find Alexandra online at the Two of Wands Etsy shop, on Facebook, Instagram, Kollabora, and Ravelry. You can subscribe to her newsletter here. Additionally, Alexandra was recently profiled here as a Featured Shop on Etsy.

About the Interview

Alexandra talked about how she studied Etsy's blogs and newsletters before opening the Two of Wands Etsy shop to sell finished knit and crochet items in November, 2013.

Alexandra's signature photographic style actually developed by happenstance. After Etsy launched digital downloads, Alexandra read an Etsy Quit Your Day Job post that inspired her to begin to sell her patterns in her shop as well. Alexandra's designs started with simple design and construction so that she could easily create and finish finished items, but as she began to see her pattern sales allowing her business to scale, she is reconsidering this approach.

In this very conversational interview, we covered a variety of business topics including

• Selling patterns on other platforms, like Ravelry, and the target audiences available on different e-commerce platforms,
• Incorporating mainstream and pop culture ideas into your designs (and keywords) without infringing on the intellectual property of other businesses,
• Optimizing workflows, dealing with seasonality, and creating passive income streams for handmade businesses,
• Pricing,
• Providing customer service,
• Designing for children, and
• Analyzing website traffic and ordering trends, and using that information for planning.

Now, this interview was recorded several weeks ago before I interviewed Grace Dobush for Episode 28, read Grace's article in WIRED, "How Etsy Alienated Its Crafters and Lost Its Soul," and learned about Etsy's announcement that it filed papers for an Initial Public Offering. If I had a time machine, I would have asked for Alexandra's feedback on these issues.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in March, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Episode

I interviewed Grace Dobush, a full time freelance writer and part-time crafty business owner, in this week's episode. Grace and I talked about many topics including prepping for your first indie craft show, deciding whether Etsy is the right online marketplace for your craft business, tips for starting up as a freelance writer in the craft scene, negotiating for a higher rate, and more!

About Grace Dobush

Grace Dobush is a freelance writer and a part-time crafty business owner. She is the organizer of the Crafty Supermarket, an indie craft show in Cincinnati, Ohio; author of the Crafty Superstar craft business guides for part-time business owners; and the maker of smiley poop emoji ephemera.

You can find Grace online at the Grace Dobush website and on Twitter. Crafty Superstar has its own website, Facebook page, and Twitter account, and is also available through Grace's author page on Amazon. 

About the Interview

I'm a volunteer book reviewer for the Crochet Guild of America's blog and late last year, I received a review copy of the 2015 Crafter's Market: How to Sell Your Crafts and Make a Living from Fons & Porter/F + W Media. Since this book is the first Crafter's Market, I wanted to interview one of the contributors, and Grace was happy to oblige.

In our interview, we talked about the topics covered in Grace's two chapters in the 2015 Crafter's Market, "Indie Craft Shows" and "Pricing Your Work." We also discussed Grace's February article in WIRED, "How Etsy Alienated Its Crafters and Lost Its Soul" and Etsy's recent announcement about filing a registration statement for an initial public offering (IPO). I referenced a recent discussion about whether Etsy is the best online marketplace for yarn crafters, as well as an interview I did with Alexandra Tavel from Two of Wands on Etsy that I'll be sharing on the podcast next week.

Grace also shared her tips for getting started as a freelance writer in the crafting space, as well as her philosophy on negotiation.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in March, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Episode

I share an interview with Vashti Braha this week. Vashti has been in the crochet business for over ten years. She has experience as a freelance designer, a self-publisher, a publisher of another designer's work, and now, as a yarn company owner. I invited her on the show to talk about something else: her mailing list. Vashti created an email newsletter, Vashti's Crochet Inspirations, in late 2010, and she shared what she has learned about email marketing and how her newsletter impacts her business.

About Vashti Braha

Vashti Braha is the crochet designer, publisher, and yarnie behind Designing Vashti. I had the pleasure of interviewing her on the Underground Crafter blog in 2012. (Vashti shared some great tips in that interview for people entering the crochet business, some of which I excerpt in today's episode.)

You can find Vashti on the Designing Vashti website or blog, and on Facebook, LInkedIn, Pinterest, Ravelry (as vashtirama, in the Vashti's Crochet Lounge group, and on her designer page),  and Twitter.

About the Interview

In this interview, I talked to Vashti about her crochet career. She started it unexpectedly when she attended the Crochet Guild of America's annual ChainLink conference in 2004. There she met several people, including Doris Chan, Marty Miller, Rita Weiss, and the late Jean Leinhauser, and launched her career as a freelance crochet designer after attending the Designer Meet and Greet. 

A few years later, Vashti started blogging as a way to continue the conversation with fellow designers and crochet professionals between conferences, and to build an online portfolio in the days before Ravelry. She launched her newsletter in late 2010. In the interview, Vashti explained her approach to Vashti's Crochet Inspirations and indicated that it does reliably increase sales. We also talked about the yarn lines she has recently launched. Vashti will have a booth with yarn and kits at The National Needlearts Association's summer show.

I also asked Vashti if she had any updates to her recommendations she gave for new designers in a blog interview from 2012, and she shared some additional perspective.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in March, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Episode

This week I share an interview with Lindsay Lewchuk, the owner of Knit Eco Chic. I invited her to talk about her business, which is entirely focused on using organic, natural, or sustainable yarns. She shares her insights on both managing an eco-conscious business and on marketing to a smaller niche of knitters and crocheters, knit-a-longs, social media, and more.

About Lindsay Lewchuk

Lindsay is the knitting designer and maker behind Knit Eco Chic. She began knitting in earnest while hospitalized about a decade ago. Her medical condition limited her to the use of organic cellulose fiber yarns and bamboo needles. Her personal values also support using sustainable materials, and eventually Lindsay launched Knit Eco Chic.

You can find Lindsay on Ravelry as KnitEcoChic or in the Knit Eco Chic group. Lindsay has both an Etsy shop and a growing EcoHabitude shop where she sells both patterns and hand knits using organic, natural, or sustainable yarns. Lindsay is KnitEcoChic on both Pinterest and Twitter, and you can join her mailing list here. Lindsay is also TJSpecialties on Elance, where she does freelance graphics, web design, and writing (including those pesky knitting pattern layouts). And, in case you are also a fan of Puddles, you can find his Facebook page here.

About the interview

In this episode, I spoke with Lindsay about Knit Eco Chic's foundational philosophies:

Knit Eco Chic…provides the highest quality hand knits and knitting patterns featuring organic, natural, socially responsible, sustainable, and alternative fiber yarns for the modern age.  Knit Eco Chic embodies three foundational philosophies:
1. Use of eco yarns
2. Knits that fit curves
3. Unique and intricate patterns
These foundational philosophies are supported in both of the divisions: knitting patterns and custom hand knits.

Knit Eco Chic also has a dedicated baby department! Knit Eco Chic Baby specializes in hand knit to order baby hats featuring organic, natural, sustainable, or alternative eco yarns.

Lindsay talked about why she developed her business philosophy, how she uses it to guide her everyday decisions, and why she shared it on her website.

Lindsay also shared her tips for other yarn-related businesses that focus on eco-friendly and/or ethically-sourced materials. (By the way, she has a great list of organic cotton yarn companies in her Ravelry group here.)  Lindsay talked about many of her marketing tactics which can apply to any business focusing on a niche or subset of yarncrafters.

We also talked about knit-a-longs and a new mystery knit-a-long Lindsay is launching on March 20, 2015 for a non-pi circular shawl in organic cotton and bamboo yarn. And, we touched upon #wearyourknitting, a social media campaign Lindsay is spearheading to encourage people to showcase their hand knits online.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in February, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Episode

In this week's episode, I share 8 tips for contracting with a tech editor for the first time for your indie patterns. Even if you have worked with tech editors in the past when your work was third-party published, you may find the experience of finding and hiring a tech editor for your self-published patterns daunting.

8 Tips for Contracting with Your First Tech Editor

1. Ask yourself why are you getting your patterns tech edited and what you expect from a tech editor
2. Always check references
3. Find out what the rates mean
4. Choose someone who responds promptly
5. Get an estimate
6. Start with one pattern
7. Check your pattern before sending it out
8. Review the experience before contracting again

These tips will help make the experience of working with a tech editor for your self-published patterns more manageable and also will minimize the costs.

Ask yourself why are you getting your patterns tech edited and what you expect from a tech editor

There are many reasons to use a tech editor. Some of the most common ones are to:

• Reduce errors and inconsistencies,
• Develop a style sheet with assistance,
• Get support with pattern grading,
• Produce symbol charts or graphs,
• Convert symbol charts or graphs to written patterns, and
• Meet an external requirement of a co-publisher.

Not all tech editors provide all of these services, so having an understanding of what you want and expect will help you choose a tech editor who can meet your needs. You may also want to consider whether you are seeking a tech editor who specialized in crochet or knitting, or one who is able to edit both types of patterns.

Always check references

If you know other designers you can trust, ask for recommendations! You may want to specifically ask for a tech editor who has worked with them on self-published patterns, especially if your pattern writing style is unconventional.

If you don't know a designer who can make a recommendation (or, more likely, their tech editor is booked!) scour the threads in the Indy Pattern Designers Resources group on Ravelry. When you reach out to prospective tech editors, be sure to ask for (and then check) references.

Find out what the rates mean

Tech editors generally bill at an hourly rate. The rate varies quite a bit but $15-$30/hour is not unusual. Some tech editors charge the same rate for the entire project and others may charge a different rate for grading or producing charts.

You should also know what increments of time the tech editor bills in. For example, do they only bill in 1 hour increments, or in 15 minute or 30 minute increments?

Choose someone who responds promptly

A tech editor may have wonderful references, but if s/he cannot respond to your introduction in a timely manner, it's likely that you will get a delayed response to your editing requests. An overbooked tech editor will reduce the spontaneity you have in self-publishing.

Get an estimate

Ask for an estimate and ask the tech editor to contact you before incurring additional costs. Let's say the tech editor estimates it will take 3 hours to edit your pattern, but soon discovers a major error or inconsistency. If s/he doesn't contact you first, you can easily go outside of your budget. You may want to take a pattern with many errors back and make adjustments before returning it to the tech editor. Or, you may opt to have the editor fix it. Either way, you should be allowed to make a choice that impacts your budget.

Start with one pattern

It can be very exciting to work with a tech editor for the first time, but to minimize costs and ensure a good fit, start with just one pattern. Choose something that is typical of your tech editing needs. Consider this a test run – if it's successful, it will be the beginning of a great partnership. You will probably learn a lot from the experience of having your pattern edited, and you may want to make changes to your next pattern before sending it along to the tech editor.

Check your pattern before sending it out

Although you can send out your rawest work to a tech editor, it will likely cost more than you want to spend for them to edit the pattern into the right shape. To minimize costs and get the most out of your tech editing experience, check your pattern over before hand. You may want to review it yourself, line by line; ask another designer to review it (and do the same in return); or conduct a pattern test. 

Review the experience before contracting again

Once you've received the pattern back and published it, review the experience and decide whether this tech editor is a good fit for you. Some things to consider are timeliness, overall communication, and accuracy.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in February, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Episode

In this week's episode, I interview Lorene Eppolite from Cre8tion Crochet and Kathy Lashley from ELK Studio Handcrafted Crochet Design about the weekly Crochet Business Chat Live event they co-host on Mondays at 12 noon Eastern in the ELK Studio Crocheters Facebook group. We also talk about connecting with your audience and the crochet industry as a whole.

About Lorene Eppolite

Lorene Eppolite is a crochet designer, blogger, and owner of Cre8tion Crochet. In addition to her website, you can find her online on Facebook, Pinterest, Ravelry, Twitter, and YouTube. Lorene started as a maker, but people would often ask for the patterns for the projects she shared on Facebook.

Lorene soon converted her blog to be focused on designing. After meeting Corina Gray from Stitch11 in a mommy group, she began monetizing her blog. Lorene runs Cre8tion Crochet full time, and is also the mother of three children.

About Kathy Lashley

Kathy Lashley is a crochet designer, blogger, and owner of ELK Studio Handcrafted Crochet Design. You can also find her online on Etsy, Facebook (on the ELK Studio page and in the ELK Studio Crocheters group), Pinterest, and Twitter. Kathy is a sonographer who recently earned a Master's in Business Administration from Auburn University.

Kathy also started her crochet business as a maker, but grew bored of making the same things. She had been blogging for some time on advice from a class speaker, and later set up the ELK Studio blog to promote her crochet business. She started monetizing her blog in March, 2014. After earning her MBA, Kathy decided to continue her crochet business. She now works part-time as a sonographer and manages ELK Studio as a part-time business.

About the Interview

In this interview, we discuss about how Kathy started the weekly Crochet Business Chat Live event in the ELK Studio Crocheters Facebook group, and how she teamed up with Lorene as a co-host. We also talk about the information they both share about the business of crochet on their blogs and through social media. Listen to the episode to hear more about how designers and makers can work together, advice for connecting with your audience, pricing and wholesaling for makers, and how Lorene and Kathy view branding, competition, mentoring, and more!

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in February, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Episode

In this week's episode, I share an interview with Tamara Kelly from Moogly. Tamara's crochet and knitting business is quite varied, and I talk to her about how she got her start, how she diversifies her income, and her tips for blogging and time management.

You can find Tamara online on the Moogly website and blog, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Ravelry, Tumblr, and Twitter. I previously interviewed her on the Underground Crafter blog here.

About Tamara Kelly

Tamara started crocheting when her oldest child was young. After her other children were born, she hoped to make some side income by selling her crocheted items. She sold her finished projects informally through friends and on Facebook. Soon, she converted a mommy blog she had started into a platform to support the sales of her crocheted items.

Tamara discovered that the free patterns she shared were some of her most popular posts, and since she preferred creating new designs to crocheting the same projects over and over, she decided to change the focus of her blog, and her business.

In addition to income from advertising and affiliate relationships on her blog, Tamara recently began working as a freelance designer for magazines, teaching a Craftsy course, and writing sponsored posts on Moogly.

About Moogly

In this interview, Tamara talks about the evolution of her own business and shares several tips for other yarn industry indies.

Diversify your income

Tamara adds new income streams when she feels confident about her schedule and processes related to her existing income streams. The internet changes quickly, so she takes a trial and error approach. She regularly rotates affiliate partners based on earnings. She tries to remain open to new opportunities. Tamara also repurposes content when possible.

Network online and in person at industry events

Tamara encourages bloggers and other small business owners to network within the industry. When possible, she encourages attendance at industry events. Tamara also suggests carrying your business cards everywhere since you'll never know who you may meet. (And, she shares her tips for navigating the Knit and Crochet Show Designer Meet and Greet in the audio interview.)

Tamara also shared several ideas for powering up your blog.

• Network with other bloggers with a similar style and audience. Tamara recommends doing this online and in person when possible.
• Develop a working schedule including an editorial calendar for your blog.Tamara developed her own schedule and calendar system.
• Focus on photography and photo editing because blogging and social media are very visual. Tamara emphasizes using natural lighting, taking lots of pictures, and using PicMonkey for photo editing when necessary.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in January, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

I answer questions about teaching crafts and self-publishing as I wrap up the virtual tour for my new book, Make Money Teaching Crochet.

About this episode

In this episode, I share the edited audio of a Facebook Live event I hosted earlier in the week where I answered questions from listeners about teaching crafts and self-publishing. Thanks to Rosalba Bassora, Novella Bobo from MadebyNovella, Patrice Walker from Yarn Over, Pull Through, Rachel McKinney from 100 Creations, and MG Camacho from Booktalk 'n More for sharing questions beforehand!

I reference a lot of different resources, which you can learn more about by following these links:

• Craft Yarn Council Certified Instructors Program: This certification program is a requirement if you want to teach crochet or knitting at a "big box" store. In the book, I talk about other reasons you may want to consider getting certification, or why it may not be necessary for your specific teaching business.
• Scrivener: This is the software I used to convert my book to .mobi files for Kindle and .epub files for Kobo. I also used it to organize writing the book because there is a great "corkboard" feature where you can organize what looks like little index cards for notes on your book. Scrivener has a 30 day free trial, but the days aren't consecutive. You only "use up" your free trial on days when you open the software.
• Kindle Direct Publishing: I used KDP to self-publish my Kindle book and my print-on-demand book. 
• Kobo Writing Life: I used this to self-publish the .epub version of the book.
• Canva: I used Canva to create the cover for the ebook using the pre-sized template, my own selections of fonts, and a photo.
• Fiverr: Bdboss is the Fiverr seller who transformed my ebook cover into a cover for the print book to meet CreateSpace requirements.
• Gumroad: This is where I sell the direct downloads of my ebook. It also has a great affiliate program that is super easy to set up.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in July, 2016. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

On this week's show, I share a recording of the second live episode of the Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show! During this Google+ Hangout, I talked with Carlota Zimmerman, a forensic coach, author, blogger, social media expert, and entrepreneur. We shared our thoughts and answered questions on time management, productivity, budgeting, and social media.

About Carlota Zimmerman

Carlota Zimmerman is the forensic coach, social media expert, blogger, and writer known as the Creativity Yenta©. Carlota helps her clients articulate their professional goals — from writing a book to starting a small business — and then helps them create the opportunities necessary to bring their dreams to life. She writes for the Huffington Post and Thought Catalog, and was listed as a social media expert by US News & World Report.

You can find Carlota online on her website, Facebook page, Twitter (as @kittenmagix),Pinterest, and LinkedIn. She previously joined me for a live episode of the Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show last year.

About the Google+ Hangout

Carlota started off by talking about creating a mental framework that values your work and your business. I shared some of my home office productivity tips, including several that I spoke about in more detail in Episode 21. We both talked about choosing the right time of day for you for challenging tasks based on your own internal clock, having access to appropriate workspaces, and prioritizing based on activities that generate income.

I save time by having a different bag for each offsite activity (e.g., for each class that I teach). I don't need to spend time packing materials or looking for things before I leave for classes. Carlota mentioned that she schedules "off" days where she doesn't meet with clients or spend time on social media/online. These days allow her to catch up on other tasks.

We both talked about creating realistic objectives for productivity and the dangers of comparing yourself to "perfect" or "super" small business owners.  I suggested turning off notifications on your computer or smart phone when you need focused concentration, and talked about the joys of living without a smartphone.

Christina Sofina asked how to minimize "getting caught up in life" and avoid skipping your small business routines, particularly blogging. I suggested that if you are still building an audience, it might not be noticeable; if you have a large audience, they usually understand. Carlota and I talk about how it may benefit you to take time off from creating content rather than putting out lackluster content. We give several suggestions for getting back into a routine after your blogging has been interrupted, including guest posts, creating a content calendar, pre-scheduling posts when you have time, and forgiving yourself for stepping away from the blog.

Marinke Slump asked about how to create the balance between work that will pay off in the future and work that pays off immediately. It is challenging, but if you only focus on the immediate payments, it is difficult to create a cycle where you can have a balance of cash flows. It may be helpful to create a budget and be sure to always include a mix of activities that includes some that pay off in future. Carlota talked about trying to do at least one thing a day that creates an opportunity for future income. (She also recommends doing one thing a day that terrifies you in terms of your business.)

Beate from Patterns Tried and True commented on the increasing expectations for free content. I talked about my decision to monetize the Underground Crafter blog in 2014 and how that connects to my overall budget for my business. Carlota talked about the importance of valuing your work. She suggested thinking about seeking sponsors once you've developed relationships through your small business.

Marinke wondered about increasing your professionalism. I recommended outsourcing to other professionals. My crochet tech editor, Juanita Quinones, was on the Hangout and I mentioned working with her as an example. Depending on your business you may want to consider working with editors, photographers, or technical support professionals. I also suggested getting professional development/training. I shared several tips for accessing professional services and training at a lower cost when your business budget is tight. Accessing these skills will definitely help you to bring your work to the next level.

Carlota recommended apprenticing for free or as part of a skills exchange with a professional with certain skills. You could also consider bartering services.

We talked about dealing with negative comments. I mentioned adding a comments policy to my blogs this year. Beate commented about negative reviews on Facebook. Carlota and I shared some suggestions for creating positive engagement on your social media outlets so that negative reviews are less visible.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in January, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Episode

Happy New Year! In response to feedback from the listener survey I shared with the email list, I'm sharing 10 habits for successfully 'owning' from home. 

I've been a full-time solopreneur for about 15 months, and I had to learn some new habits and modify others. Owning a home-based business has some interesting challenges and isn't quite the same as working from home.

10 Habits for Successfully "Owning" (or Working) from Home

1. Shower and dress
2. Prioritize weekly (or more frequently)
3. Establish work areas for different tasks
4. Structure the schedule
5. Minimize distractions
6. Find and use appropriate audio and visual aides
7. Stay hydrated
8. Eat regularly
9. Schedule time with peers
10. Don't forget to take days off

These habits help me stay productive and focused, and allow me to face the many challenges of operating a home-based business as a solopreneur.

1) Shower and dress

I start the morning off just as though I would be going to work in a traditional setting by showering and getting dressed. Although I do wear very casual clothes when working from home (in the tradition of the housedresses my grandmothers wore), the process and structure of these morning rituals help me to have a more defined day, and to get myself mentally prepared for work.

2) Prioritize weekly (or more frequently)

On my most productive weeks, I review my to-do list, my future plans, and recent emails on Sunday night to develop a list of weekly tasks to complete. I may even specify the days when each of these tasks should happen, or set an internal deadline within the week.

During the year, I tried another tactic I read about online. Instead of listing specific tasks for the week, I listed the projects I planned to focus on during the week. This method is supposed to reduce the feeling of overwhelm that is sometimes associated with long to-do lists. I didn't find this tactic to be helpful, but I mention it in case it might work for you and your business.

I also include habits I'm trying to develop on my to-do list. For example, when I was first getting back into regularly posting on Pinterest, I would write down "Pin 5 things" and list each day of the week so I could cross off each day as I posted my Pins. Once I have developed a habit, I no longer list it on the to-do list. (So, I don't list "check email" on my list, but the list is otherwise quite detailed and specific.)

I may adjust the list during the week as priorities shift, but I still find it helpful to maintain.

3) Establish work areas for different tasks

Although many articles I've read about working from home stress the importance of creating a work space/desk, I find that having multiple work areas is more effective. Each space should be optimized for the type of work you do from that location. For example, I prefer to podcast from an area that has better sound, do accounting at a desk with a larger monitor, and crochet my samples from a cushioned chair.

This doesn't mean that each area is the size of an entire home office, but rather that you consider what spaces are the most appropriate for certain tasks. I also have some out-of-home places that I enjoy working from on occasion. One of my local libraries is very quiet, has a large communal desk next to a window that I can work from, and is well staffed and well lit. It makes a great location for writing without distraction.

Working from different spaces can also help to break up the monotony of working from home, which may lead to a creative rut.

4) Structure the schedule

On a related note, consider choosing specific days of the week or times of day to do specific types of work. As you set a structured schedule, consider when you have the most energy, when you can work with the least interruption, and the length of blocks of time you have available on different days.

When I've done this, I've found that I'm much more efficient because I'm not constantly switching back and forth between different types of skills, energy, and workspaces. For example, you may want to cluster your writing activities on a certain day when you have few distractions and during the time of day when you feel mentally alert.

5) Minimize distractions

I don't have a smartphone, I don't have any alerts set up on my laptop, and I usually keep my cell phone on vibrate. This lack of electronic distractions helps me maintain focus and determine when I will be interrupted. I can maintain more control over my day because I choose when I will check my email, voice messages, Facebook notifications, etc.

There are other types of distractions as well. Perhaps you own/work from home and you have caregiving responsibilities for children or other family members. Consider how to structure your day to minimize distractions or to work on demanding tasks that require more concentration when you're least likely to have interruptions. Or, ask for help with caregiving responsibilities when you have important deadlines or need to focus on a concentrated business task.

6) Find and use appropriate audio and visual aides

I find that listening to instrumental music allows me to maintain an energetic pace without the distraction of lyrics. When working on simple crochet or knit samples, I enjoy watching streaming shows or catching up on video tutorials. While commuting and doing errands, I enjoy listening to podcasts. You may have similar preferences for audio and visual aides.

I use a secret Pinterest board to organize tutorials I plan to watch. I have queued films and shows on Netflix. I subscribe to the podcasts I listen to regularly and make sure to download them at least weekly. And, I maintain a list of internet radio stations I listen to regularly and keep a few instrumental playlists on my laptop. This way, as soon as I'm ready for a specific type of audio or visual information, I don't need to waste time searching for the right content.

7) Stay hydrated

Staying hydrated keeps me alert and keeps my skin healthy so I don't have too much dryness when crocheting or knitting my samples. Drinking water at regular intervals also provides a reason for me to get up multiple times during the day, which is critical when you are sedentary for most of the day.

8) Eat regularly

I make sure not to skip meals during the day so that I can keep my energy level high and my mental focus strong. Even when I'm "in the zone," I will step away from an activity to prepare a meal so that I don't fizzle out later.

9) Schedule time with peers

People who work in traditional work settings interact regularly with peers and co-workers, and most home-based business owners don't have such frequent interactions with peers. I recommend you schedule time (face-to-face or online) to talk with other home-based business owners.

Specifically, I'm referring to private settings online where you can have honest discussions with your peers about concerns or challenges in your business. So, I'm not including Ravelry groups, for example, but private Facebook groups. 

If you can find creative entrepreneurs or, better yet, other yarn industry indies, you can talk even more specifically while also networking with your peers.

10) Don't forget to take days off

It's easy to fall into the trap of working all the time when you own a home-based business, but taking time off to relax, spend time with family and friends, and just to regain focus can be critical to your business success. If you are feeling unmotivated or burned out, taking a day off can give you time to recharge so you return more productive.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in January, 2015. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

Bonus Episode

I'm sharing an interview today with Ashwini Jambhekar as a bonus episode! I temporarily misplaced the recording (gasp!) while organizing files and, since I also skipped a week of podcasting this year, I thought I'd add this interview back into the fold as a bonus.

About Ashwini Jambhekar

Ashwini Jambhekar is a part-time knitting designer with a background as a scientist and ballet dancer. Ashwini has designed her own projects for years, but she got her start as a published designer back in 2011. She frequently shared her finished knit projects on Facebook, and a friend from dance class referred Ashwini to her mother-in-law, who was writing a knitting book. Ashwini ended up submitting the design for the Jive Sweater, which published in 10 Secrets of the LaidBack Knitters: A Guide to Holistic Knitting, Yarn, and Life by Vicki Stiefel and Lisa Souza.

Ashwini can be found online as Ashwini J Designs on her blog, Facebook, Ravelry (as AshwiniJ, on her designer page, and in the Ashwini Sashka Designs Group, which she co-moderates with my knitting tech editor, Sashka Macievich). Ashwini is currently participating in the Ravelry Indie Design Gift-a-Long through December 31, 2014, and she was recently interviewed about it on Sarah Jordan's  blog here. Ashwini also recently got started as a tech editor, and you can read more about her services here.

About the Interview

In this interview, Ashwini talks about how the perspective and skills she learned through her training and career as a scientist inform her knitwear design. In particular, she talks about the concept of grading patterns using a percent difference (or "fold difference") rather than a flat difference in measurement.

Ashwini also writes her pattern instructions in different ways and then chooses between them considering which write up is clearest, what may be lost by being more concise, and understanding her audience. Because Ashwini targets intermediate to advanced knitters, she places value on in her patterns, but she also includes notes in the Ravelry pattern pages to indicate difficulty.

She doesn't use a formal style sheet for her own designs but she adapts her writing from previous patterns. Ashwini doesn't see an intrinsic value to sticking to a very specific style sheet nor to always changing your format.

Ashwini also talks about what she enjoys about collaborating with third party publishers on her designs, as well as the benefits and potential challenges of sharing Ravelry group with another designer.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in December, 2014. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).

This Week's Episode

In this week's episode, I share the 8 best investments I made in my business in 2014. While the topic may seem oddly personal, I talk about why each investment added value to my business and what you might take away from the list to support your yarn-related business in 2015.

8 Best Investments I Made in My Business in 2014

1. (Improved) Web hosting
2. A (more reliable and faster) computer
3. Comfort tools
4. Monthly massage therapy
5. A (multi-functional and higher quality) tripod
6. (New) tools and training for business expansion
7. Conference (or face-to-face event) attendance
8. Time for networking with other solopreneurs

Why invest in your business on an annual basis?

Even when you are operating on a shoestring budget, it's really important to invest in your business on a regular basis. You might use earnings from your business activities or money from your savings. It's virtually impossible for your business to expand and improve in today's economy without making periodic investments in it.

This week, I'm sharing the 8 investments I made in 2014 that added the most value to my business. I'm also including substitutes that may be relevant for your yarn-related business.

1) (Improved) web hosting

I had been using the same web hosting company since 2008. When I first started Underground Crafter as a business, I didn't know much about web sites, web hosting, or small business services so I didn't adequately research the company. I had increasing technical and customer services problems with this company over the years, and in 2014, I finally made the switch to another web host.

In 2014, I upgraded to use InMotion Hosting. Their service is much more reliable, and, equally important, they have better tech support and customer service. I actually ended up saving money by pre-paying for a 2 year plan, but switching web hosts was a major investment in time and energy. It look literally weeks for me to transfer the files and databases and to rebuild the Underground Crafter website, but it was totally worth it!

2) A (more reliable and faster) computer

I've been using the same laptop since 2007, and it started to slow down, make unusual sounds, and, even worse, occasionally shut down. I knew that if I was going to launch the podcast this year and focus on my photography, I would need a more reliable and faster computer.

I set a target at the beginning of the year to publish a certain amount of patterns through external publishers so that I could raise the money to buy a new computer. I met my target and was able to buy an Apple MacBook Pro in May.

You may not need to spend as much as I did on a computer, but if your business is partly or fully online, having the right hardware has to be a high priority. Even on a small budget, you should be able to identify the hardware (whether a computer, netbook, tablet, or smart phone) that performs all the functions you need for your business. Unreliable hardware can stop your business in its tracks. You may want to dedicate the device for business use only, especially if you have limited funds. (Also, don't forget to back up your data, whether you use hard drive(s) or cloud based file storage.)

3) Comfort tools

I currently crochet and knit all of my own samples, so preventing strain allows me to increase production. I bootstrapped my crochet and knitting business using my existing supplies, but as I've been making more and more samples, I started to worry more about comfort.

I currently use my Tulip Etimo crochet hook set for most of my crochet projects. This year, I upgraded to the Knitter's Pride Karbonz interchangeable knitting needle set, which feel smooth and soft like wood handles, but have metal tips, and the Knitter's Pride Dreamz interchangeable crochet hook set for Tunisian and double-ended projects.

If you plan to be in this business for the long haul, find tools to help you reduce stress injuries and make repetitive tasks more pleasurable. You may want to consider things like ergonomic chairs, desks, safety materials, or supplies that are more specific to your craft, as a substitute.

4) Monthly massage therapy

I suffered for years from the recurrence of an old back injury. This worsened when I began crocheting, knitting, and blogging more often because I would sit for long periods. About 17 months ago, I started to see a massage therapist, Jenny Hall, and the results have literally changed my life. Having monthly "tune ups" have improved my mood and keep my body operating at a more optimal level – both have allowed my business to grow in 2014.

You may want to substitute with another routine care activity to optimize/maintain your body. Some possible options include yoga classes, acupuncture, visits to a chiropractor, or gym membership in addition to or instead of massage therapy. While you are moaning about how expensive this investment is, consider how much income you may loose if you are prevented from working due to an injury.

5) A (multi-functional and higher quality) tripod

I want to highly recommend the Manfrotto 190xPROb, or something similar. This tripod has an adjustable horizontal bar that makes photographing tutorials (or filming tutorial videos) much easier. It is a full sized tripod, so it's also useful for self portraits, and it can hold the weight of a DSLR without tipping, even in the horizontal mode.

This has allowed me to sell more tutorials to magazines in 2014 and take better self portraits for my designs, so I've been able to earn more money and also save on models and the inconvenience of scheduling photo shoots.

6) (New) tools and training for business expansion

I wanted to improve my photography and add the podcast to my business in 2014, so I needed to get new tools and then learn to use them.

I asked for a DSLR as a gift from my family last year, and I now use the Nikon D3200. For about the past 20 years, I have been using a point and shoot, and I didn't really remember the purpose of all the functions on this type of camera any more. I started by taking the Beginner Nikon Digital SLR (DSLR) Photography course by John Pullos on Udemy. The course was free when I took it, but it's now $27 (and worth it).

I needed more, though, to encourage me to take my photography to the next level, so I took Digital Photography I with Jim Beecher at the International Center of Photography. (This course is also available as an online course if you aren't in the New York City area.) In this class, I learned how to use Adobe Lightroom, and ended up buying this software to use on my new computer.

To launch the podcast, I needed a microphone. I generally use the Blue Snowball (in purple). I also purchased ecamm Call Recorder for Skype for $29.95. I had a more difficult free set up with worse audio quality, and decided that it was worth it to upgrade.

I'm able to use these devices for other purposes that what I originally intended – to create videos, to host live Google+ Hangouts, and to do virtual consulting – so the investment was worth it. The training helped me to consider other ways to use the tools, so it was also valuable.

7) Conference (or face-to-face event) attendance

This year, I attended the Podcast Movement in Dallas in August. Although I considered attending the Knit and Crochet Show or one of The National NeedleArts Association events, I chose this event for three reasons: it was shorter and less expensive to attend, I needed more training/professional development in podcasting than in crochet/knitting/yarn industry topics, and I didn't have an established network in podcasting.

The take away here is to try and get to a face-to-face event to help your business move forward. This may be for professional development or for networking – or, ideally, for both. You can also learn a lot about teaching (the good, the bad, and the ugly) by attending workshops.

On that note, I'll be presenting at the #WeAllGrow Summit by Latina Bloggers Connect in Los Angeles in February. If you'll be attending, let me know, because I'd love to meet you there. I'll keep you posted as I add conferences and events to my 2015 schedule.

8) Time for networking with other solopreneurs

As solopreneurs, we have unique challenges. I used to work at a full-time job and my crochet and knitting business was a part-time evening and weekend gig. Although my crochet and knitting work is still only one part of my income, when I shifted to being a solopreneur I realized how important it is to connect with other indie business owners.

By putting aside this time, I can commiserate, receive coaching, and stay accountable to someone else. I do some activities online via Facebook groups, and some in person. You may find that this is a time investment only, or it may also be a financial investment, depending on whether you choose to work with a coach or join a mastermind group. The solopreneur I connect with most regularly in person is Carlota Zimmerman, who has co-hosted episodes of the Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show with me.

Having another contact can help you avoid the feeling of isolation that sometimes comes with being a solopreneur. This person can also serve as a sounding board for new ideas or pitches.

If you enjoyed this episode

The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting. Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This episode originally aired in December, 2014. Be aware that content may be outdated.

If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners, join the Creative Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students (Amazon | Gumroad) or Design It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).