Tips & Talk 56 – At What Point Do You Turn Pro?

Hi there.

It's Sue.

And thanks for joining me for tips and talk day.

These are bite-sized topics that I pull from community questions and

things that I'm observing in the world of handmade small business.

If you'd like to submit a topic,

DME, over on Instagram at gift biz unwrapped,

It's a dark and dreary Saturday afternoon,

and you have an idea.

You have scissors and a ball of string in the kitchen

drawer. You have a bunch of half burned pillar candles in

all sorts of colors.

There are Mason jars in the basement from last year's canning.

And of course,

pots and pans in the kitchen,

you decide I'm going to try my hand at candle making.

So you pull up a YouTube video,

follow the step-by-step directions,

substituting equipment and ingredients with what you have on hand.

And while you've made a candle,

you know,

it needs some time to set for awhile and the color

isn't that great.

Since you remelted and combined wax colors that you had on

hand. Yes,

it's a little chunky and you don't know yet if it'll

burn or smell like anything,

but you did it.

And the process was fun.

You tested your innovation and creativity,

a wonderful activity for a Saturday afternoon.

Can you now call yourself a candle maker?

I guess you can.

I mean,

you made a candle,

right? Having patients,

you wait a while to light your candle.

Clearly the string didn't work.

The flame burnt down.

As soon as it touched the wax,

your experiment didn't produce what you expected,

but it was fun.

And you want to try again,

but not with your nice double boiler and this time with

the right ingredients.

So you plan for round two,

purchasing candle,

wax, a couple of essential oils,

real candle wicks this time.

And you begin again,

some of the steps are easy now because you've done it

once before.

And you've learned that you need to position the WIC as

the wax cools.

So it doesn't flop over to the side,

like the last time,

yay. Your results are so much better.

And your candle actually burns.

Are you now a candle maker As time goes on you

perfect. Your candle,

making skills,

test out and decide on the product elements you like best

which wicks,

which type of wax and you've experimented with all sorts of

containers that you now know are called vessels in the industry.

You've also learned about sinkholes sent loads and burn rates.

You've even added some creative elements to your candles with dried

rose pedals from your garden.

And even some dried herbs,

your candles are looking and smelling pretty fabulous.

If you don't say so yourself,

and you're now giving them away as gifts to friends and

family, whether you call yourself a candle maker yet or not,

your becoming known as one in your personal circle,

your passion for your candle making grows.

You never knew how rewarding it would be.

When people comment on your candle gifts,

they praise you for their quality and beautiful scent.

Some like them best because of the artistry you've added.

Unlike others,

they've seen on the shelves at local big brand stores,

and they want you to make more of them and they'll

pay you to do so.

In fact,

they say,

I bet other people would want your candles too.

Have you ever thought of selling them?

You're taken aback,

selling them well,

yes. The idea had occurred to you,

but only as a far-fetched dream,

you know,

others have turned their handmade products into a business,

but you have no training in that area in response to

how much you would charge.

If someone wanted to buy your candle,

you pull a price out of the air.

If you charge for the candles,

your friend requested at all,

and then it happens again.

Others ask for your candles too.

Are you a candle maker?

Now at this point,

it's pretty obvious that yes you are.

And the idea of making money from this seems more realistic

given that you decide to give it a go,

you choose a name for your business.

Sign up for a small church,

Bazaar and prepare for the event.

Yes, the nerves and anxiety kick in.

But with your friends support,

you do it anyway.

Your table display is kind of mediocre compared to some of

the others,

but you pick up some tips.

It's exciting to make sales.

And once again,

see positive reaction to your candles.

Maybe I can do this business thing you think to yourself,

you begin to truly believe it.

As time goes on,

you attend larger shows.

You adjust your pricing.

So your sales will actually be profitable.

Your cousin builds you a website and your businesses growing.

There are definitely bumps in the road.

Sales look really great for awhile.

Then some months they get slower.

You have to learn how to make sales on Etsy because

you found that business doesn't come to you just by being

online. And then there's the whole social media drama.

But you're slowly finding your way.

Now at this point,

your not only a candle maker,

but your turning pro you've put in the time,

effort and financial investment to get your products to the level

that they are.

Now, you've experimented with techniques,

special equipment,

and along the way,

added your own techniques to produce the product now available for

sale today.

The truth is you were a candle maker from that very

first candle.

And along the way,

probably without even recognizing it,

you turned pro the pro part is what makes you an

expert in your industry.

And yes,

I am calling you an expert,

the story of your candle making journey from that first Saturday

afternoon, through your trials and challenges and successes to where you

are today is what separates you and your special candles from

all others.

The thing is,

you need to tell this story,

how will anyone else know?

I want you to re-listen to this podcast,

as an example,

and write down your origin story,

the one that's true for you and your product,

and then add it to your about me page.

Do a blog article,

sharing your journey include funny mishaps from your experimentation on social

media or in your emails.

All of these things demonstrate your investment in your craft and

your commitment to the quality and individuality of the products that

you offer today.

Your authentic story,

it's powerful,

brings credibility and honesty to your brand trust in you as

the artist and reinforces your position as an expert,

a specialist and a pro That's a wrap.

I'm a get to the point kind of girl.

And this is what you can expect from these quick midweek

sessions. Now it's your turn go out and fulfill that dream

of yours.

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