Small Business Day: Fleeting Thought Turned Sale!!

It's Small Business Day at Three's 4 Me blog and one of my necklaces is featured over there!

Small Business Tuesday

http://www.etsy.com/listing/83403093/multi-colored-braided-and-rolled-triple?ref=pr_shop

This week I want to share how one fleeting thought brought me a sale.  Yay!  I don't know why I haven't thought of it before.  The other day while I was writing a post I was searching for just the right picture of myself to add to it.  I just wanted one picture to go along with a poem that was about me.

Then, I remembered the "Journey" necklace photo I took for my shop.  So I added it to the post which was perfect.  I added the details of the necklace and the link to my shop below.


Guess what?  Someone loved the necklace and bought it!!!  Not only that, when I went to check out the order, she had bought 3 other items too!!  Yay!!  I have been adding other blogs and shop links on my blog homepage if I had won something from a giveaway or if a giveaway was done by another blogger on my blog.  I have been advertising for everyone else but not for myself!  Light bulb!


So here are the other pretties that went to a new home with the necklace.

Lesson for the week:

- add photos of your products in your blog posts

- add an album for your shop on your Facebook Fan Page

- add an album for your shop on all your personal media outlets

- share on Facebook or Twitter regularly about your products

- make up greeting cards of all kinds that feature your products

I have not added any holiday items to my shop but these go along well with the holiday spirit.  Red, White, and Green.  These are available in the shop and are awaiting a new home or shall I say a new owner to love them and wear them proudly.

All Lei are crocheted using ribbon and yarn.  They are very soft, easy to wear, and look like real flower lei depending on what combination of ribbon and yarn are used.  These can be used to wrap around vases, on any type of hats but look great on cowboy hats and women's floppy hats.

Hoping to share new items next week.

Until then choose Handmade for your Holiday shopping...  

Visit shop here:

If you already do these things things to promote your business, how has it been working for you?  Do you have other ideas you would like to share?  If you try these tips, please let me know how it worked for you.


Good luck, see you next week!




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Small Business Day - What's New In The Shop

New Items

Ribbon and Yarn Crocheted Lei

 Recently SOLD

Lei are my best sellers so far.  5 sales, all Lei.

I created this new shop button to showcase a little of each item listed in the shop.

As you can see I still have not changed my shop name.  For now, Naluana Creations by Salena Lee will have to do.

New Shop Button

Since the last link up, things at home have been chaotic.  Since my baby turned 2 years old at the end of October and now climbs out of her bed, I have had less time to produce items and list them in the shop.  Uninterrupted time seems to be non-existent for me so I haven't been focused on my goals or shop.  My girls are on different sleep schedules which leaves me hardly any time to sleep myself let alone have alone time to create.

One of my goals was to have 20 items to sell at the big Mililani Mauka Craft Fair with my mom.  The craft fair is next week and  I will probably just take what I have on hand.

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SBM Challenge # 5: Fortune 500 Goals

Small Business Challenge #5

Here's our challenge:

write your goal{s} out like a Fortune 500 CEO would.

Naluana Creations

Fortune 500 CEO Goals

1. Naluana Creations will have a permanent shop name by December 31, 2011
2. Naluana Creations will have a purpose/theme chosen by December 31, 2011
3. Naluana Creations will have a new logo by February 1, 2012
4. Naluana Creations will have a stationary and packaging theme picked out by February 1, 2012
5. Naluana Creations will have a set schedule for production, planning, and customer service by November 1, 2011
6. Naluana Creations will have made 20 or more items for the Christmas Craft Fair on December 5, 2011
7. Naluana Creations will have a safe environment to hold all completed merchandise by October 31, 2011

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Small Business Month:: Challenge #4 Diversifying Your Audience

Small Business Month Challenge #4

DIVERSIFYING YOUR AUDIENCE: 

Okay, we're getting into the nitty-gritty. Really think here: What are a few ways you can do this? Could you attend a craft fair? Should you attend more craft fairs with different demographics? What about guest posting on other people's blogs? What about thinking outside the box and guest posting on a man's blog to promote your products to his wife? Should you advertise outside of blog world? REALLY think about this one. Tell what you can do to DIVERSIFY YOUR AUDIENCE more than you already have up until this point.

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My etsy shop is new so I haven’t really thought about it.  In the past I have done craft fairs, sold at work, word of mouth, through family and friends.   I will be doing a craft fair with my mom in December.

So far with my shop, it’s too early to tell.  I’m in the middle of my second giveaway in a blog swap but so far, no sales. 

I haven’t thought of advertising outside my blog because I started my shop just to have a little extra money to help my family.  Once my sales pick up and there is more of  a budget for advertising that is when I will look into it.  Right now, all the sales I make will need to go to providing for my family.

I have never thought about advertising to men or asking men to look into wish lists for their significant other.  This is a great idea actually and one that I will look into especially with those who don’t want to go out shopping and walking the mall for gifts.

One thing I need to do is get my daughters into this and have them wear my merchandise.  There are 6 of them and 2 sisters I can make use of.  6 out of these are adults who are in the business world and could bring in some interested customers I’m sure.

I feel like one challenge for me living in Hawaii is that the influences I use in my merchandise is geared more toward the local people here.  I’m trying to figure out how to change things up to meet a broader group of people.  I think I’m still trying to figure out what types of creations are me.  I tend to just whip things up because I feel like it or something inspires me.  I don’t usually stick to one type of thing. 

Once I figure this out then I think it will be more clear on who or where I should focus on.

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Linking up here:

Small Business Month:: Challenge #3 My First Sale

Today's Small Business Month Challenge is to

tell, in detail, about your first sale. Where were you, what were you doing, who did you tell first, did you jump up and down in excitement, did you call your mom, did you scream the news at your husband, what?! I know you remember!

{And if that first sale hasn't found it's way to your inbox yet, what will you do when you see those blessed words, "transaction complete?"}

{Don't act like you haven't thought about it!}

My First Sale!!!

I woke up to check my etsy shop the following day after I listed my first few items and noticed a message in my box.  I was quite shocked to find that someone left me a message about living in the local area and needed the product the next day.  I didn’t think I would get a sale that fast.  I honestly sat there for a while not knowing what to do.  It was my first sale and had a read through all the handbook info yet?  Ummm, no.  =)

The first person I told was my husband.  He wasn't as excited as I thought he was going to be.  I'm thinking it's probably because I've sold stuff before so it's nothing new to him.  ???  Well, that's what I keep telling myself.  

I replied to the customer and we decided to meet in the middle because she lived on the other side of the island.  For those of you who don’t know… I live on Oahu, Hawaii.  I live on the Leeward side and she lives in Town.  25 miles away.  Yes, for those living on the continental US, this is a short lovely drive. 

My husband works on the way so I asked him to make the delivery.  I didn’t think of packaging at all yet so I frantically tried to think of a way to package her purchase.  I thought maybe I should print the invoice and send her a little message so I had to create something fast because my husband was on his way out the door.  Just in time I got it all together to hand him the box and phew, I was relieved and yet anxious about what the customer thought of my product, the last minute packaging and my note.  I haven’t heard from her so I’m assuming all is well and she loved her purchase.

The next thing I did was shout it to the world on Facebook.  I was excited that I was an official etsy shop seller.  I felt great about how my first sale went but I can’t wait till the next time because then I’ll be more prepared! 

All my heart…

Salena

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Small Business Month:: Challenge #2

October is...

Today's prompt is this:

Tell about one challenge you've come across since you decided to start selling your merchandise, whether it be through an online retailer {Etsy}, during craft shows, or just from friend-to-friend. Could it be book keeping? Balancing the family? Creative block? Marketing challenges?

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These are some of the challenges I have come across since I decided to start my blog and selling my merchandise.

Challenge #1: Balancing my family

Keeping up with my Blog, opening up my etsy shop, and finding time to make stuff to fill my shop has been weighing on my family.  I didn’t that I would be addicted to doing all of this!! There is much more to it than I thought but I love it.  I need to find a way to make it all work.

Challenge #2: Anxiety

I have lived with anxiety all my life and post-partum depression since I had my almost 4 year old.  I've noticed my anxiety levels have skyrocketed since I started my Blog and now I’ve added my etsy shop.  The stress is high.  Time just flies by so quickly.  Having 3 young kids at home with my husband working odd hours and having no sitter… I find it hard to focus and concentrate to write my Blog or to create products for my shop.  Some days are easier than others.

Challenge #2: Doubting Myself

I doubt my ability, my grammar, my products… I lack the confidence needed at times to just put myself out there whether it be my Blog or my shop.  Self doubt causes me to waste a lot of time pondering instead of just doing.

When I look back and read these three, I guess my problem is not having enough time or not knowing how to use my time.

Does anyone have any suggestions as how I could get out of this rut? 

All my heart…

Salena

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Small Business Month:: The Moment I Decided to turn my Hobby into my Business

October is...

This week...

Here is the theme/challenge:

Tell about the moment you decided to turn your hobby into your business, and if you have not opened your "doors" yet, what is stopping you?

{Time? Resources? Fear?}

A Little Piece of Me
The Blog... Started on August 14, 2011

I am a stay at home mom and have stumbled onto some great blogs.  Two of the first and very inspiring to me... Little Miss Momma, and Momma Go Round.  I would read get excited when a new post was up because I could not wait to hear what they had to say about their life.  The were real, honest, made mistakes, and it was okay.  I was encouraged by them and how relatable they were.

Recently I came across another blog, Miss Mommy.  The first post I read on her blog was about a toddler meltdown while out shopping.  I could relate to that so well, I remember what I wrote to her.  From that moment, I would stalk read all her posts and the more I read the more I felt like she was relatable to me and my life in various struggles.

I told Nicole, from Miss Mommy that I was inspired by Ashley, from Little Miss Momma, and Nina from Momma Go Round and had been thinking of starting my own blog.  I've been addicted to facebook for the 2 years I've been using the social network and I'm always sharing different heart thoughts, emotional updates and other things that I don't think people care to hear on facebook.  I mean, there are those things being circulated about "I don't care about your farm, mafia, kids pictures.... etc...." so I figured I needed another outlet for those who want to hear what I have to say to get my thoughts someplace.  so with a little reply back from Nicole telling me I should go for it... I did!  I mean, I've had my blogger account for a long time, just never used it.  I have 6 kids and I had trouble enough trying to name them... now I gotta come up with a name for my blog?!  Yikes!  I had no idea what it should be.  But that day I slapped something together and published it.  I have loved it ever since.


A Little Piece of Me

The Etsy shop:: Opened October 2, 2011

This part was easy.  I have been creating things for as long as I can remember.  My mother is an excellent artist, sewer, crafter, baker, plumber, landscaper, maintenance, well... you get the idea.  Yes, I am serious.  She does it all.

So I have sold my creations before but not as a business.  When I saw my fellow bloggers opening up their etsy shops I finally gave it serious thought.  I already have stuff I could list that has been just sitting around the house so that part wasn't hard at all.  


This is all new to me.  Previous to this I worked as a File Clerk for a Real Estate Owner/Management Company, started and failed my Realtor-Associate Career, and been a stay-at-home mom.  I have been searching for so long for something that would suit me.  I finally feel like this is what I should be doing.  Now, If I could only make some money doing it, everything would be perfect!  =)


How about you?  Do you have a Hobby that you turned into a Business?  If so, what was your moment?  If not, what's stopping you?

All my heart…

Salena

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