I promised some back-logged posts. Unfortunately this one doesn't have pictures :-\ But there is a great link about sustainability! I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comment section. More posts on the way!

3/10/14:
I'm so ready for the snow to melt and spring to get here so I can start planting my seeds!

I love the annual Seed Swap that The Toledo Botanical Gardens hosts every year. It is such a great way to get new, FREE seeds for the garden plus discover other local organizations that share and support similar interests. This year I discovered Toledo-Lucas County Sustainability Commission and I'm so excited to see what great improvements they bring to this area. One of my long-time desires is actually on the THIS YEAR list!: Complete Streets! (aka, safe road sharing between bicyclists, cars, & pedestrians!)

This year I picked up a lot of flower seeds for growing a variety in front of the white picket fence we will be putting in at the back of our yard, separating us from the alley, to replace the rotten one we took down our second summer here.

I also picked up a few veggie seeds for kolhrabi, beets, yellow squash & zucchini. But my favorite finds this year were definitely the Sustainability Commission.

5/3/14
I also swung by the Plant Swap and picked up some lemon balm, white violets, gerber daisies, and citronella. So far I planted the lemon balm in a planter, the citronella in a self-watering container, and the daisies & violets in a flower bed border. The lemon balm is doing well, the citronella needs weeding and I haven't checked on the flowers in a little while. They are interplanted with poppies. :)

Along the same lines as Blogging Tools, I found myself getting into tools/sites that I use for sales so I broke that off into this post:

Etsy

Even as I am starting to branch out into physical booth for sales (and possibly consignment??) I still like to have Etsy as a landing page & sample of work available by me.

Along the same lines, I like to keep a dedicated Pinterest board to my previous work, especially when it comes to one-of-a-kind pieces to be referenced by customers or used as inspiration for future work. This has also been handy in knowing what needs to be duplicated for popularity's sake. I also use Pinterest to brainstorm my craft show set up, new patterns to try, and any marketing or advice I might come across that I find worth referencing.

Square Up

Square has been a great tool for accepting credit payments in person plus generating a neat, digital sales receipt for anyone requesting one. ~~So far the only draw back has been that my particular smartphone (LG Spectrum 1st gen.) is not fully supported so I always have to type in the card numbers which results in a higher fee.~~ I still did fairly well at the Make It Indie fair in November but it sure has me thinking about that next phone upgrade this spring....
*Edit: Now that I have a Samsung Galaxy S5, the Square card reader works like a charm!*

Facebook

To promote art/craft shows I am participating in, to send customers for product + experience feedback as well as interaction, share new items listed in the shop, latest blog post link, and anything I find interesting that I think my followers may also enjoy. I like to keep my Facebook light-hearted but centered around the knitting/crocheting/crafting theme.

Maybe not so surprisingly, I have noticed that some have even used my Facebook page as a way to contact me via message instead of my email. This is how I was invited to join the Merchant's Landing Arts & Craft Show!

Free "scrap" bracelets

Freebies

Speaking of physical shows, I've also found that a little freebie is a great draw to your table. I like to crochet long leftover scraps of cotton yarn into bracelets which I offer for free to whomever. I find it is a great way to strike up a conversation with anyone "brave enough" to pick out a free bracelet. :)

PDF Compressor

Once I started selling PDF patterns, I needed a compressor for the large image-heavy files that are my pattern's signature. And not only do I want to make friends wait hours to download a large file, but Etsy does not allow pattern files greater than 20mb. So needing a solution, I found Chrome's free PDF compressor + was instantly impressed with not only it's ability to crunch the size of my recent pattern from 38mb to 1.35! But it even preserved the quality of the crisp images! Sold!

Wholesale

So far I haven't branched out into wholesaling (purchasing or selling) but it has crossed my mind several times. Does anyone have any wholesale experience?

Spread the Word

And as always, word of mouth through supportive friends and family members has helped generate a fair handful of sales this past holiday season. Plus a few times when asked what do I do for a living (a question that always makes me cringe), I mention that I am a knit/crochet instructor as well as an Etsy shop owner. I like to show pictures of what I make via my smartphone (images taken directly with my phone as well as pulling up my Etsy shop on my phone) and hand them a business card, encouraging them to explore my shop more when they are home. I don't know how well it works, but I figure it can't hurt, right?

I'd love to hear what tools you use for "pedaling your wares" :) If you already have a post about it, would you mind pasting a link to it in the comments section? I'd love to read it!

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