New Products

It's been a busy week and of course there are some new items to show case. In a big attempt to re-vamp my store I took the big step of seeking out some models for some of my itesm and the results are FANTASTIC! I used Ellie Bean Models and am so very pleased with both the service and professionalism that I dealt with. The whole process was very effortless and the results are top notch! I would HIGHLY recommend Ellie Bean Models to anyone looking to have some of their items modeled. You have a choice of weather or not to pay the model or do the photo shoot on trade. It is a great opprotunity to really vamp up your store front. Here are a few samples of some of the pictures that I just received back:

Here is my Gorgeous Hand Knit Green Fern Scarf:

Here is a fun picture of my Fun Hand Knit Fingerless Gloves:

Here is my Burnt Red hand Knit Scarf:

And last but certainly not least here is a picture of another pair of hand knit fingerless gloves:

I just can't tell you how happy I am with the way the pictures turned out. If you are looking for a great way to re-vamp your store and are a little short in your area in the modeling depaprtment go check out Ellie Bean Models
. They offer a top notch service and are great to work with! And of course if you are in the mood to shop stop in at Tyler Rae's Boutique and have some fun. We are having a big Sunday Super Sale today March 27, 2011. Take 25% off your entire purchase. See store for more details!

Target Market

I think one of the toughest parts about owning and running your own small business is trying to identify your target market and how to effectively reach them. So many small business owners struggle with this aspect of running their business that sometimes they quit before they even get started. To help eleveate some of the difficulty I have compiled a little check list of things to consider doing to identify and reach your target market audience without going crazy.

1. Write down all of your ideas in one notebook and keep it with you at all times.
Some of my best ideas have come to me in some of the most inconvienent places. I find that if I carry a notebook with me I can easily write down the idea and recall what my idea was with much more clarity later. It saves time and head aches. So keep your notebook handy at all times.

2. Research! Research! Research! Spend a lot of time researching your product. There is no reason to try and totally reinvent the wheel here. If another company has a similiar product line as yours how did they market their product line? What worked for them? What didn't? What is working for you in your marketing efforts? You may want to start a spread sheet and keep track of your efforts to see what areas are really performing and what areas are falling short. Constantly research your product line and new techniques. Technology is constantly changing so in the marketablilty of your product you have to be able to change as well. Staying up and in the know will help keep you and your business ahead of the curve instead of out in left field.

3. Know what your customers want and need. Again, this touches on doing research and understanding your customers wants and needs. This will change frequently as trends and people change so you need to be prepared for how to handle that change. Lets say you are the maker of hand knit wool scarves and the summer months are fast approaching. You don't necessarily want to pull your entire stock out of your store but you realize that your customers aren't going to be looking for wool scarves in July. So what do you do? Get creative, maybe switch to lighter materials like cotton and make some very light weight spring amd summer scarves. Maybe even make some really cool hand knit belts or try your hand at knitting some great decorative necklaces and lariats. The possibilities can be endless and it can be easy to get overwhelmed. Try to focus on using one or two of your ideas and see what happens.

4. Try creating your own market survey. This is such a powerful business tool. You can find out very easily what your target market is and how to reach them with a simple survey. It could be something very simple to something a little bit more complex. You can submit some surveys to survey companies and have their clients give you feedback for a fee. You can also utilize both your family, friends and community to serve as your research subjects. Keep your survey relatively short and uncomplicated but long enough to actually get useful information.

5. Know where you are advertising and what their audience target market is.

For example; You certainly wouldn't want to advertise your awesome handmade jewelry on a website that has a target audience of sportsman fishing equipment. That certainly isn't going to bring in droves of customers now will it? Be smart with where you advertise, espeacially if you are paying for the advertising. Pay attention to their changing trends and make sure your product still fits into their target market audience. Is the site or publication over loaded with the same sorts of products? Will your product stand out? These are all sorts of questions you need to ask yourself when you get ready to spend those precious advertising dollars. Even if you are working with the non existant advertising dollars and are trying to do free advertsing, placement and target market audience are still key. Even free advertising has it's place but you aren't going to get any where advertising in the wrong sections and markets.

Finding your target market and keeping things fresh in your market doesn't have to be the end of the world. It can be quite fun and the rewards can be very positive, both financially and in your new found knowledge. You will be surprised at all the things you will learn not only about your customers but about yourself as well. So get out there and find YOUR target market!

How It All Started

My love affair with knitting began about 15 years ago. It was never something that I was ever interested in learning about. It just sort of happened but once it did I was hooked and haven't put the needles down since. As crafters both professional and hobbyists we all usually have a story on how we all got started in our craft. Weather it be a talent handed down from a parent or grand parent or through school or work we all got started some how. The story of how I learned to knit was born out of having the most incredibly boring job ever and how my boss and I decided to make the day go by faster.

I had just moved into a small northern Michigan community and was looking for work. A friend of mine told me that a local bank was hiring bank tellers for their drive-thru branch and I thought "oh what the heck...I'll give it a try". Two weeks later I got the job and had gone thru training and was now an official bank teller. In this particular branch the drive-thru part of the bank was separate from the main branch building of the bank. So all day long it was just three people out in this little tiny building with not too much to do except on Thursday and Fridays. Don't get me wrong we had customers come through the lanes but it was never a very steady stream of traffic until Thursday and Fridays so we usually had a lot of time to kill in between customers. We would play cards, listen to music, count money of course and get completely stir crazy. I think I had been working at the bank for about 3 to 4 months when one day my boss walked in with this big huge bag with needles and yarn sticking out of it. She had been teaching herself how to knit for the past couple of months and finally worked up the courage to start and complete her first knitting project. It was a sweater vest. The other teller and I watched in amazement as she knitted up her sweater vest right before our very eyes. We both were very curious about our bosses project and wanted to attempt to make something of our own. We both set out that evening and hit the local craft store and picked up a teach yourself how to knit kit complete with instructions, needles and enough yarn to complete your own scarf. We were all set to get started the next day.

We came into work the next day proudly displaying our new found purchases, eager to get started. We had an advantage of actually having someone with us that already knew how to knit so getting started wasn't very difficult. We still had to figure out how to get everything stitched right and not have any holes in it but by lunch time we had knit through our practice swatches and were feeling pretty confident. By the end of the day I was already planning out what yarns I was going to stop and get after work. I knew that I was hooked and that I just loved knitting. How would I have ever discovered this new found love of knitting had I never decided to take the job as a bank teller? It relaxed me and was quite easy to learn. I could just imagine all the neat things I could make and create. For the next couple of months we didn't play any games out in our drive-thru building we just knit. We made scarves and wash cloths and I even knit up a blanket for my husband while working at that bank. When customers would drive up they would all smile and ask questions about our projects. It was quite the experience. But the a-ha moment came when a customer came through our lanes and asked us if we ever thought about selling any of our creations online or in regular stores. The other two tellers just laughed but not me. That statement hit me like a ton of bricks because in truth I had never even given the idea any thought but once she said it I was enthralled with the idea. I went home that evening after stopping off to get more yarn of course and began talking out a plan with my husband about how to take my new found love of knitting to the next level. It took a few months to work out the kinks but I eventually left the bank and haven't looked back since. I am forever grateful to my boss for teaching me how to knit because if it wasn't for her I probably never would have known I had a hidden love for knitting and would probably still be working in that drive-thru bank. Here I am 15 years later still knitting and still loving it! I have my knitted items in some regular shops in town and also have a few stores online. I have earned enough from my knitting to be a stay at home mom. Now I find myself branching out into other creative outlets like sewing and painting. The possibilities are endless. But, that is how it all started for me...in the little drive-thru branch of a bank in a little northern Michigan town. It all seemed so innocent...:) Do you remember how it all started for you?