Marketing your Hobby
If your Pastime Can Make you Money here’s How to Promote it
Many successful businesses, large and small, started off as hobbies but now produce a full-time living for their owners. Whether you plan on building a multi-million dollar enterprise or just generate a bit of extra cash, the more effective you are at promoting and marketing yourself, the more you should be able to make.
Firstly, it needn’t cost a lot of money but you will have to spend something. It’s like buying the materials for your hobby – you need to invest to create.
So what marketing do you need? Think of it in three ways; Infrastructure, Reactive and Proactive.
The Basic Infrastructure
This is the minimum you need and could include business cards, labels for envelopes, packaging, letterheads for invoices and a website. Identify what you need to make your business appear serious and professional. Read Essential Marketing Materials for more details.
Reactive - How People Find you
You want people actively searching for your product or service to find you, so look at how people buy – do they use Yellow Pages or online? Do they use other directories or see adverts? Is it craft fairs or recommendations from other people? It may be a combination of things or one in particular. Whatever it is, that’s where you need to be.
Proactive - Finding People to Buy your Goods
If Reactive purchases do not generate enough sales you’ll need to seek prospective buyers. To do this you may need to attend craft fairs or car boot sales, or perhaps use direct mail or advertising. Think about where potential buyers are likely to be found and target that place.
Make sure you have your Infrastructure and Reactive items in place first before spending money on Proactive items. A little investment in proper materials at this stage can go a long way so don’t skimp on it. Many designers and printers offer business start-up packages providing everything you need for a fixed price. It’ll also look very professional.
Getting Noticed
Put your name, website address and telephone number on everything you produce so people can find you. Labels may be enough for this or you may want to include a flyer or basic leaflet with anything you sell. If you do use a leaflet make sure it mentions your full product range and how to get in touch.
If you go to craft fairs, car boot sales or exhibitions remember that you’ll be competing against lots of other exhibitors. It’s like creating a shop in a mall – why would people come to your shop rather than someone else’s? You need to attract people to where your work is displayed.
For a large event there may be a programme or directory in which you can advertise. Think also about producing a banner or poster for your stand. If people see something different they will naturally wander over to see what it is. Then they’ll browse your creations…
Try asking local craft or bric-a-brac shops to stock your goods. You may have to provide some samples on a ‘sale or return’ basis but you’ll know very soon if your work appeals or whether it should remain as just a hobby.
If they do stock your goods it will get your name in the market. This is where your contact details and a basic website are vital, so people can enquire further if they see anything they like or want to purchase more.
Now that you are starting to make money from your hobby, you might think about advertising or networking to generate even more sales. Read Measuring Advertising Results and Using Networking for your Business to find out how.
