Tips & Talk 33 – But Will They Buy?

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,

if you started a business around your handmade product,

you plan to have people buy it,

right, obviously,

but here lies a potential problem and common mistake.

I see people make just because your creations are perfection in

terms of style and workmanship.

And you've gotten compliments from friends,

family, and beyond that,

doesn't automatically mean that people will pull out their credit cards

and buy it's.

For this reason that I was thrilled.

When I saw Doreen post a photo in gift biz breeze

for a new holiday product she's made.

And she asked for feedback on whether we think it's going

to sell.

I'm happy because she's asking the question.

Most people don't.

The common mistake is to assume people will buy it's the,

if I make it,

they will buy field of dreams,

mentality. Then a lot of inventory is made,

which as we all know is an investment of time and

money into materials and production,

of course,

but it's all done before you even know if it's going

to sell.

So what's the solution.

How do you determine a sales winner?

The hard answer is at first,

you don't,

especially when you're brand new,

still getting a feel for your market.

You don't know for sure about product interest,

not to mention the best sizes,

flavors and colors that your specific audience will want.

This all comes with time,

but fear not.

When you ask the question and validate your product first,

you'll save yourself a lot of axed.

It's also in this beginning stage that adjustments are really easy

still, and you're not stuck with a lot of unsaleable product.

You can make the necessary tweaks to your product that do

interest your customers and entice them to place those orders.

Or you switch out the product entirely because as adorable as

it is,

nobody actually really wants it.

Specially, if they have to pay for it,

gosh, that's a hard pill to swallow.

Isn't it.

But way better to know this early on,

than later in the game,

the best way to approach product validation is at a live

show. Whether it's a craft show,

holiday church,

Bazaar, or farmer's market,

getting in front of people with your product is the golden

research ticket.

You have the opportunity to see how they behave when first

seen your products.

And you also have the ability to ask questions,

questions to yourself,

and then also for your customers directly,

things that you'll think about in your own mind and ask,

as you're observing are of all the products I'm showing,

which ones are people gravitating to most?

Do they know what it is and how to use it?

Don't laugh.

This is important because I've seen some products out there where

people really aren't quite sure what it is.

Here's another question.

How are people interacting with my products?

Do they pick up the shells and test to see how

soft they are?

Do they open a candle jar to smell the scent?

Do they check out the weight of your largest earrings side

note here?

When someone picks up your products,

take note,

not only of which ones they're reaching for,

but what you think it is.

They're trying to discover by picking it up.

All of this observation is valuable unto itself,

but interacting in hearing from your customers directly is another way

to learn how people are responding to your creations,

ask them about how they think they'll use it.

Is it for themselves or a gift,

or maybe you've been thinking of adding in more sense.

So give them some options of some of the sense you're

considering and listen to what they suggest and what they would

like best.

There are so many ways to interact with questions.

Where are you planning on hanging your new painting?

Have you already decided where in your home,

this new Afghan will go?

Are you buying this necklace for a special event?

Things like that.

It gives you great ideas for social posts.

In addition to educating you with what goes on in your

customer's head,

plus it starts establishing a relationship between you and your potential

customer. So back to the main point here today,

how do you know if something will sell?

If it's a version of a product that you already have,

you should be able to gauge sales success for that product

based on projections,

off of your own experience and sales numbers.

Or if you have a friend who makes a similar product,

they live maybe three states away or so.

And they see that it's really taking off.

That could be a good indication that it might work for

you as well.

But notice I said might because every market is just a

little bit different.

However, the odds in this case are stacked in your favor.

But if your product has never been seen before,

you'll have to try it out to see you won't know

until you do.

So. The answer to the question,

how do I know if my product will sell or not?

You won't until you test,

but when you do test the market and validate that there

are customers who are willing to buy what you make,

you've just shortcut your path to growth and can go full

steam ahead,

not through wishful thinking,

but through testing and real Results.

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,

share your handmade products with them.

We get to the point and they bring us both.

And this is what you can expect from these quick sessions.

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

yours. Share your handmade products with us.