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Holes, Not Drills

Lesson 6 from: The Art of Selling What You Make

Tara McMullin

Holes, Not Drills

Lesson 6 from: The Art of Selling What You Make

Tara McMullin

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Lesson Info

6. Holes, Not Drills

Lesson Info

Holes, Not Drills

In this segment, we're going to get down to the nitty gritty of understanding why your customers actually buy your products and I think this is one of the places that makers, artists and designers go wrong. Most often people don't buy our products because there awesome because are and they don't buy our products because their products they buy our products because of what our products help them to accomplish, and so we need to figure out what that is. David ogilvy, who is is a famous ad man, said people want holes, not drills we don't buy a drill, just tow have a drill, right? We don't buy a jewelry piece of jewellery just to have a pizza julie reed, we don't buy a pillow just to have a pillow we don't buy a print just to have a print, we buy it because it helps us create something people by drills because it helps them create holes. What does your product help people dio and really internet? If you want to go ahead and just give us your first take on that right now, what does your pro...

duct help people dio will come back to that at the end and see how close you were once we get brainstorming a slightly different way, so I'm gonna help you figure out what those holes are that your customers are creating with your product so just as a reminder the key to more sales more effective marketing and happier customers is to understand how your customers air using your product on what your customers are trying to accomplish and once you understand this you give people a reason to buy now not just to buy in and this is a big problem that I see in passion driven businesses and I think all of you are really running passion driven businesses you put your passion at the forefront of of of your marketing of your product descriptions the way you take the photographs of what you create and that's awesome and it gets helps people to buy in but it doesn't give them necessarily a reason to buy now buy in is all about the things that inspire people that that help us come together that created comm munity that create another standing of the why behind all of our business is probably a lot of you are familiar with simon cynics idea of people don't buy what you dio they buy why you do it and that's true people do buy why you do it but they buy in because of why you do it it doesn't give people a reason to buy right now and so if you've got lots of people on facebook on twitter in your ft shop harding things liking things retweeting things that people are getting excited at shows and they're saying, oh my gosh, I love this but you're not getting those sales if people aren't if prospects are converting into buyers, you've probably on ly gotten half of the puzzle, right? You've gotten the buy in peace, right? People are excited they've bought in. They like the idea of what you're doing, but they don't know why they should buy it that's the by now piece that's understanding how your customers air using it, and what it's helping them to accomplish and communicating, too that to them through product descriptions, through email marketing through the way we merchandise are products or photograph are para products on what we can create that picture of exactly why someone needs to buy this right now, they actually dio they get the memo, and they realize this is filling a need that I have in my life right now. So I break this down into five different ways you can think about what your customer is trying to accomplish through your product, and I call these things jobs. The first job category is behaviors ah lot of times most fundamentally, most tangibly, our customers are trying to change their behaviors. They're trying to change the way they act there's trying to stop standing in front of their closet for half an hour every morning, and they're trying to start putting together out flit outfits easily and without having to really think about it too much. You know, they're trying teo change the way they buy gifts for people so that they're not just buying gift cards all the time and instead they're buying gifts that allow them to express themselves they're trying to not to stop trying to decorate their house so that it looks like a pottery barn catalogue had a log and there started and they want to start decorating their house so that it looks like them. Those are our behaviors that you can help people change these air. This isn't you trying to convince someone that what they do is wrong? This is you trying to answer a need something that they're perceiving already that they want to alter aboutthe way they're showing up in the world. I want to change what I do from this to that and a lot of people think about what they want in exactly those terms that some of the most tangible way you can talk about the results of your product and yes, all products create results. The next most tangible way to talk to people about what your products are helping them to accomplish is through environment people want to change what's around them so that might be their physical environment, changed their home, change their workplace, changed their car change all you know, all the different environments that we have, it could also be our relationships, how are you relationships changing there could be your mental environment as well, changing from having a cluttered mind space to having a mind space that's full of clarity and organisation and so people change environment all the time or they're wanting to change their environment all the time and that's again a really tangible way you can communicate what is going on differently for what could be going on differently for customers after they buy your product. The next thing is skills people want to learn how to do things people like tto learn new skills this is an economy that we're in right now we're teaching someone a new skill helping them feel confident about a new skill is a huge benefit to them and that could be something as kind of a normal skill like teaching someone how to embroider, helping them embroider better or it could be something that's maybe a little bit more out there with your product teaching them how to put together a good outfit teaching them how to put together ah well decorated home so those air skills that your products can be a part of people learning as well next our beliefs and we've talked earlier today about cem cem different beliefs that your customers already hold and perhaps some new beliefs that they want to hold customers often use products to help them change beliefs about something how they can look how their home khun b decorated whether there uh yeah you could also change all sorts of beliefs through products as well and then finally identity products help us assume new identities so whether it is about being a cultivated collector or whether it's being someone filled with wonder or someone who's reclaimed their creativity products help people accomplish a new way to think and relate to themselves here's the thing not all of these jobs are created equal lots of products and lots of buying in happens up here where we do talk to people about becoming a collector or we do talk to them about reprogramming a certain belief but the thing about marketing up here is that this isn't very tangible it takes a lot of trust to be able tio bye into something too by now something that you actually believe is going to help you change a belief or an identity and so a lot of times those byeon ideas start up here but they don't go anywhere they don't ever change to sales because this is hard to believe it its heart is easy to get behind hard to make a buying decision about but down here behaviors environment skills these things take a lot less trust to buy into two by now for and so we believe that we can make an impulse purchase or that we could make you know kind of a low cost purchaser inaccessible purchase and actually change of behavior actually change our environment looking at some of the things that participants have here today and you know if I put this print up on my wall made five put megan's print up on my wall I am changing my environment just like that and putting this print on the wall might also remind me of my identity is a creative person norris or is an interesting collector of wondrous things but fundamentally it's changed my environment and I probably bought it for that reason and so a lot of us understand our products up in here and we really need to get down to here to the tangible lt's off why people buy and how our products are changing people's lives in the most tangible ways possible easiest to understand and then as they moved through that customer lifecycle as we serve them mohr and more frequently we can start to market in these ways as well and we can actually create relationships with our customers where they understand our products in terms of their identity or beliefs and that might come into play when you know let's say you're a jewelry designer and you're the behaviors of the environment that you're helping someone changes you know, just simply accomplished through a pair of earrings just a simple pair of earrings that that changes the way you think about yourself in the murder changes the way you act in the morning while you're getting ready for your day but as a zai add more pieces to my jewelry collection I don't just start to change behaviors or my environment I start to assume that new identity I start to assume new beliefs and so I'm willing to pay more for larger pieces same kind of thing happens with commissioned art all the time people will buy prince that help them change their environment but when they're really ready to make a fundamental shift in who they think of themselves as they're ready perhaps to make that big commission and so that's when they go looking to buy that as well but often that comes out of a a relationship with a provider and not just something that happens on the fly so ask yourself are you providing products that help people change their behavior's change their environment changed their skills or are you only providing products that perhaps change in environment or beliefs and vice a versa you wantto have products that have all different levels of trust to them that's one way you can kind of ensure that your business model will really work you wanna have ways that people can move through your product offerings so this isn't just doesn't just pertain to marketing messages but also pertains to the very fundamental way your building the core of your your product spread in your business the core of your business model makes sense guys okay great now it's time to get to work on that so in your workbooks remember those fancy pants workbooks? Where on page twelve? Um yes excuse me. I just want to point out for those folks who might have just joined us that you could get this work but by going teo, I'm gonna let you talk oh, okay, uh you can get this workbook by going to the course page and just clicking on it and you need to be logged in and you can download it right there. It's a beautiful pdf called the art of selling what you make and it's all yours go to page twelve when you do it e I so I'm gonna walk you through figuring this out for your business right on the spot today so before we do that let's, think about what we talked about in the last segment in terms of readiness and vision. So this is a quick review in your workbooks, right down and one to two sentences absolutely gnome or when your customers are ready to be participating in the conversation your business is participating in when are they ready to buy the products that you have? What are the circumstances? What are the questions that they're asking? What are the desires that they have in one to two sentences? What when is your customer ready for your product? Then once you've done that, we're gonna flip that around you got a jot down one just two sentences about why your product or when your customer uh excuse me? I am tongue tied this hour you're gonna write down one to two sentences about how your customer will describe herself when she's achieved your shared fishing. So when your customers kind of reached her goal and when she's also reached the goal that you have for her so let's get some quick shares here to sweep. Got some examples. Meghan, can I go to you first when your cousin what do your customer's ready for you? Um when they want to make their surroundings reflect their personality? Okay, fantastic! And when have they achieved your vision, when they have outfitted at least a den or a library that place that they go to the most for inspiration when they outfitted that with the work that makes them happy? Fantastic, great, alright, great example. Any other examples we want to share meeting a new gift I needed to get for someone obviously okay, fulfilling that sicily man alright, fantastic now want you to think in terms of before and after. So we're going to kind of break this down into a kn actual product or service that you're already offering or if you're just starting your business, think about it in terms of a product or service that you're thinking about offering but for those of you with businesses I want to I want you to concentrate on a particular product maybe this is the best selling product that you have or maybe this is a product you think should be selling a lot better and you really want to work on the message around it because you believe you could you could get more from this product so without your customer knowing about this product in particular consider consider her before essentially what is her life like before she buys this product give me a before frame. So what are her circumstances? What are her needs? What is she looking for? What's her day to day like you can just jot down a a few words but what's her before what is you know you this I used to love a makeover story on tlc before tlc we came all honey boo booed this's in college this is a very long time ago on do you know it's always it's always about the book for the after and that transformation, though is where the story really takes place that's where your product really comes into play but we have to know that before and the after to be able to communicate that transformation for people so sasha, tell me about the before of the product that you're thinking about okay, I'm feeling like a loser or that something's wrong with you like I'm sort of shut out of this game that everyone else participates in gotcha. Ana, can you give me a before? Um yeah I guess they feel frustrated by the lack of unique and personable products out there that they choose to celebrate a person or event with yeah frustration is such a great word teo on it is it always a marker for an opportunity when people are feeling frustrated there's always some way that you can serve them or that they can be served in that space of frustration and if your business is the one that serves them in that space of frustration that's that's a great way to position a particular product all right, so let's do the flip side of this what's the after your product has been but it's been delivered it's been used what's different what's different about their certain circumstances their situation the way they think about themselves the way they feel about themselves what is different what's the after what's that big after picture yes um feeling feeling better about them being individual because actually it's it's funny because the the before it's feeling like no one knows me which is actually an individual but it's just like not sorry and then afterwards it's it's basically celebrating your individuality on actually feeling uh feeling okay with no one knowing you yeah, okay or feeling better it's fine yeah, a feeling better about being a one in a million kind of person, right? Yeah exactly I think that's that's a really great example of an after I just really agree with that comment as well, you know, I mean the whole point of us making things is to change our customers lives and so if they're happier or it makes them think or reflect about something you know, maybe that they're struggling with her that not even struggling doesn't have to be but right just if it effect is really that you want it to affect people in touch people in a way that maybe they can't do themselves because we're the artist's exactly brilliant no that's really it yes for sure these people can't do it themselves right? And our product is the way we serve for them to go back to what we talked about way at the beginning this piece of this thiss customer perspective process puzzle is all about learning this service element to our products and what happens between the before and the after is a service it's not just the purchase of an item it's not just the unwrapping of an item it's the use of that item and what that does for our customers each individually and you know I think it's very easy to think that our products well they don'tjust they don't do that much just this it's just that, but when it comes down to it, think of your favorite products think of the things that, you know, make you feel better on a daily basis, they could be just this is or just that, but they're not they're the things that give you that reinforced meaning in your life, they're the things that represent your values. They're the things that make you feel. Mohr, you and I think it's it's a very powerful goal for all makers and artists and designers to feel like they can have that role through their products in their customers lives so never, ever, ever under estimate the ability of your product, too it make a change in your customers lives and figure out what that change is. So if you've done your before and your after that's the first step, that's the first step to figuring out what that change could be? Um yes, some really amazing participation and I love you've included thiss follow along because it just makes it so doable in the action is happening right now, so just to share a couple of before and afters with you. If that's cool deb it's, just to remind you she sells like lotions and things that you put on your body so before the products are too pricey, too many additives can't pronounce it, don't achieve the results they claim after it does what it claims to do makes my skin feel incredible doesn't break the bank little or no additives, and I know what they are. And then badlands yoga obviously doing yoga. I'm says before goes to yoga classes, maybe that's um, online videos, maybe it just feels like there's something more, something more. She wants to go deeper, but not on someone else's terms after she owns her own practice, like owns it, whether she's going to a class or on her own matt, or in private or in traffic or online, she just knows that she can create that space for a practice that is for own use enough? Yeah, I love it. Were there any questions? I know this this part can be a little. I do have a question from pixel foul and then we'll go to the studio says, this is my problem. I'm sorry pixel frau, I'm stuck on how a service might change someone's environment could you give a few examples for somebody who has a service? Sure, so not every product fits into every category, but they're different ways that you can think about it. What your product or service actually does know a lot of services don't really affect people's environment at all and that's totally fine you don't need to feel like you have to put a job into each of those categories, but many many products do affect people's environment and the effect to that environment is the service that those products provide that does that clarify yeah don't force this one is the same as what we said earlier don't overthink this for many products there's the opportunity and we're gonna work through this in just a minute there's an opportunity to describe your product in a number of different ways and I like to encourage people to push a little bit but you don't have tio find something to fit in each category well pixel frau says yes that makes perfect sense and thank you weigh do have another great eh example completely have time for it on that's from haida who says I'm a graphic designer and I designed a lot of branding marketing material for my clients before they do not really have a face in the market after that khun go out feel that their businesses actually riel it has a logo, a business card, a website and other marketing products that helped them enter the market this will give them confidence yeah, so this is a great example and that I can kind of draw out for you as well and that's that so you mentioned confidence and you, you know, mentioned feeling like they really own their own business like this is a real thing. So I want you to think how that affects their behaviours because this is this is super comet. If you've got a website that you don't like if you've got business cards that aren't aren't very snazzier thatyou're not real proud of what do you do? Well, maybe it's really a question of what don'tyou dio you don't hand out the business cards, you don't tell people about your website and then nobody knows about what you're doing and instead them. Once you have those things, once you have the website that you're super proud of, once you have the business cards that make you feel really confident of really professional about what you do when you hand what the change in behavior that is that your hand in those business cards out all the time you're telling people all the time about your website and that's going to bring new business in the door. And so that difference in just being able to tell being able to transition your messaging from feeling confident or actually feeling like a real business owner tio to instead talking about the behaviour, not handing business cards out to feeling. Proud and handing business cars out all the time. That's a very tangible change in the way people behave and it's a great way to market to sell your product yeah, he actually our studio audience has anything else that they want to share anyone? Yeah, um, I noticed one I first did my business card, I was so excited about it and and then later on and I was so excited about my website because they didn't yeah, everything's so amazing! And then after a while when I had looked more art stuff and I have to add more stuff to the computer and I'm not, I don't understand anything about computers or anything like that, and I knew that I couldn't afford, like bringing the same person back to, like, help me out and because I had to ask a lot of questions, whatever, I start feeling more, um, not so excited because I wanted it to be newer and and I also felt like what, when, once these cards and then I will make new what are, once they're like low, I'll make new ones, you know? And and then when they do become low, I end up just printing the same thing I am and it's just so frustrating, yeah, I think it's a very common problem for business owners all right, so let's dive into actually figuring these things out for our business and so we're going to start with behaviors and this is a page thirteen of the workbook and our goal here is not to put this in really quote unquote juicy marketing language, the goal here is to be really straightforward and think these things each through so don't feel like you need to make fancy shiny sentences here I'd actually love for you to stick teo the the patterns that I have written in the workbook so the first category that we're going to tackle is behaviors your customers want to change their behaviors from what toe, what and that might you might have multiple behaviors there or you might have very few behaviors there, but everyone has to come up with the behavior. This is not something that I'm going to let you compromise on, so thinking about behaviors what is changing because of your product? Megan, I'm gonna pick on you again let's talk about the embroidery club what people, what behaviors air people changing by purchasing the or as a result of purchasing the embroidery club they're giving themselves more time for themselves so they have a reason to sit down once a week and just curl up on the couch, not have to deal with you know the kids with a spouse and just have some alone creative time gotcha! So the product creates a reason to actually change the behaviour of scheduling self care time essentially beautiful that's a great example awesome uh other examples of behaviors sasha um I've had a couple of people very clearly decide I'm leaving a job that I don't like and then they go off and freelancer, we basically go through a period of experimentation and feel better and it's been interesting there's so many different changes that happened when people get in touch with themselves but that I mean that's one concrete one yeah, so the behavior of stopping going to the job that you hate because you've realized something about yourself wanting to get back in touch with your own quirkiness with understanding what turns you on and what doesn't turn you on translating teo a change behavior in finding different work in doing something different for work awesome let's move on to the next one changing environment. So what is it about people surroundings that they're trying to change? I want to be surrounded by blank instead of blank. So again, the megan's print is such a great example of this I want to be surrounded by wonder by creativity by something unique and fun and difference instead of may be the same old block art from the big box store or um hand, we've got so much good stuff up here we've got sahar's is this cochet mitt okay, fantastic so we've got a net art piece here and that could change people surroundings by being make making them feel more warm I want to be surrounded by warmth instead of coldness yeah so we changed in woe yeah speaking of live television okay, here we go dont touch anything so yeah so we changed our environments in all different ways and do you have anything for this one? Um pie route? I want to be so surrounded by whimsy, humor and celebration instead of be expected and like mass production so if I went a little too no no no I think actually that's that's pretty tangible because you're talking about when individual whimsical pieces as opposed teo the usual stuff that everyone picks up at the big box stores, right? Sasha I just recently that people in my class were saying they were so happy because it was authentic stimulating conversation and not vanilla conversation, which I thought was really interesting because they were all like we don't like that vanilla conversation that we're surrounded by and I'm normal live that's fantastic sports or politics like doesn't go deep yeah yeah that's a great that's a great illustration I think of thinking thinking of environment and a different way and being surrounded by things that sound different, that arm or interesting to us is probably definitely one way a lot of people would like to change their environments great example next one skills what skills to your customers want to learn with skills your customers want to learn? Do they want to learn how to put together a better outfit? Do they want to learn to express them how to express themselves through x wires e do they want to learn how to re decorate the house? Did they want to learn how to embroider? Did they want to learn how to knit? Do they want to learn how to paint? Because you know lots of artists and makers designers make money teaching their own skills as well and that's a very viable revenue stream for a lot of people and as I said, skills in this economy are big business you know there's so much that happens around us as if by magic almost from, you know, technology and just you know, if you start your day too the way you entered a there's a lot of magic that happens and we don't know how stuff works and so teaching people how to do things has become big business but your individual products can be a cz well, it doesn't have to be teaching something, but it could be learning through your product we have examples of this one yeah, well I work out of a maker studio here in san francisco called tech shop and so I don't know if people know about it but it's it's cool there you could make whatever you want their butt and that's where I used the lasers as well but I find that I mean in addition to people being curious how they make it they're just curious about everything you know like and it's it's really interesting and if we're at this intersection right now where the arts are combining with technology and it's just this really I mean with three d printers and lasers and plastic mold machines I mean it's just so it's changing the way everyone can do art and I think it's changing the accessibility of it but awesome sweet green example uh any other skills that we want to share, you know, gry line as always thanks everybody for sharing let's see for kate taylor pastel learned how to take up letter writing more intentional thought out sentiments to make their love ones feel more from them accent was breathing card that wound I think so yeah, I love that andi we actually do have jen draws actually recognizes the fact that skills are a big business or teaching of the skills and was an art teacher for fifteen years but says that they don't want to go back so what about the teachers that are burnt out from teaching? Yeah so I mean the internet is the perfect place for that there's lots of people earning a very good living teaching even skills like painting or drawing or writing on line through video courses, through written courses, through courses with photography, you know, obviously on a platform like creative, live that's one option, but their platforms that you can create yourself, I mean, this is my first time teaching on creative live, but it's certainly not my first time teaching on the internet on, so I've done that in a number of different ways, and you can as well, and it takes a lot of the hassle of being in the school system out on dh it takes, you can actually earn more money through your own platform, a lot of times that he could teaching at a community college or teaching in your community. It just takes building up your your platform and getting all your products and services together. But this is a great way to figure that stuff out. What do people want to learn, how to do? And where does that match up with your own skills? And maybe some of that frustration of teaching is not necessary. Sarah really? I mean, I don't I'm not putting words in their mouth, but maybe it had to do with some of that struggle that you have of not understanding had a package and sell and just had that flow. So you run the right place? Yeah that's for sure did you have anything else? Kind of yeah, there were more examples coming through one from celtic wizard who says but they want to learn how to detox through a combination of essential oil, salt, sugar, spice and from the outside great so that brings up a really good a really good point to which is is that really what your customers want to learn? How to dio? Is that the way they're talking about what they want to learn how to dio or is that what you want them to learn how to do now? I could be wrong, but I have a feeling what they're asking for is probably something a little different and if you think back to the last segment when we're talking about markets or conversations and putting your marketing, putting your messaging, putting your sales, your product descriptions all in terms of the way people are actually talking about what they want that applies here as well, so ask yourself what's most imp horton in that statement I have a feeling yeah, they do want to learn how to detox you know what all is involved with that for them on they may not realize that it involves a combination of essential oils and this and that that's fine that's where you come in, but for now think in terms of what they're actually saying because it might give you some some really brand new ideas as well, it might give you a better ways message what it is that you're talking about, sasha well, I know that I am probably all of us have a lot of skills but their natural to us and we don't even know what they are and that people would want to learn them from us and I mean, part of my question about my businesses, well, there might be a class that I could teach that a lot of people would really like and I would like to teach you, but I haven't been able to name that exactly what it was. So what would you suggest as a discovery process? Yeah, great question. So the first thing I would suggest it's a discovery process is using those milestones, tasks and questions that we started talking about last segment because they often tie directly into the jobs that your customers they're trying to accomplish these holes that they're trying to drill right on dh. So if you can use that really think hard about, you know what is on their to do list on a daily basis and where you can help them with that because you're right, most people don't realize all the variety of skills that they have and you also want to choose skills that really pertain to your brand and what it is that makes you special as a business but yeah so I would start there and really think about that that life cycle figuring out where the skills that people are going to want to learn or the behaviors that they're going to want to change fall on that timeline and look for the opportunities to phil needs that you haven't been filling before that makes sense yeah okay cool all right let's keep going we've got two more of these to fill out and that's beliefs and identity and these khun b the tough ones or sometimes these are the places that everyone starts and then they don't know where to go from there so changing beliefs I want to stop believing this and I want to stop billy era start believing that I want to start believing this ten tied again I want to stop believing this and start believing that on so you know I mentioned earlier I wanted to stop believing I was frumpy and start believing I could o r that I was stylish that I was hip on dso that's that's a particular belief that you could change I want to stop believing I live in a dreary home or in a pottery barn catalog home and I want to start believing that I live in a home that represents me so what are the beliefs that your customers have or want to change and then finally and going hand in hand identity what is the identity that your summers are trying to assume through using your product? Think back to that vision that we outlined earlier your customers have a vision for how they want to end up. When we talked about the adjective now in pairs and someone mentioned cultivated collector emotional collector, I'm confident mom connected human all of those identities, their new identities that we want to assume so what's the identity that your customers have now and what's the identity that they want teo assume so beliefs what do I want to stop believing and what I want to start believing on what's the identity I have now and the identity I want to assume we've got one for you already sweet I know who you are fast katie laura castel stop believing that a deal or quick and easy find is the best to start believing quality originality, uniqueness is more lasting and more meaningful on dh lace like and well, I guess that's the product another product of your product is laced like ink and watercolor designs, greeting cards, stationary prints and journals. Thanks for clarifying. Yeah, so let me say something about that and that this is really pertinent to this topic and that's we can't convince our customers of anything right and not a lot of what intends to feel icky in the sales process when we're making a sales pitch when we're writing a sales message, it's trying to convince some someone of something. And so, while many customers may make the change in belief from not for believing that quick, quick and cheap is best and change into a belief that quality and individual products are best, while that might be something that naturally happens through buying your product, you're not going to convince anyone of it. And so that could be actually kind of a harmful way toe lead into talking about a particular product. People don't want to be convinced of anything, they don't want to be converted, they want you to see their need and presents something to meet it. If your product meets that need, then they'll be willing to buy it may not be within their budget and that's something different it may not be, you know, price in a way that they can afford to spend on it, or that that they value spending on that. But you've got to look for the need and then present something to buy, so I would ask, you know, what would be the belief, that or what? What would the need be that people are going to be really looking for a really quality, individualized piece like that and think about it, perhaps in those terms. And also remember that we're thinking about all of these things from the perspective of our customer and so your customer may maybe but probably not thinking that she wants to change from thinking cheaper is better to believing that, you know, a customer or a high quality item it is best that might not be a belief that she perceives she wants to change once believe she perceives she wants to change that's really where the gold is, what other? What examples of beliefs or identity do we have in the audience? Okay, so, um they want to stop, uh, believing that they're serving and better fitting the man and sticking up and sucking up to, uh, whatever society put upon us and start believing, helping and loving myself equals loving and serving everyone without discrimination. Okay, so great, I know it sounds really if you know, but but that's I don't think they're thinking of art I don't think they're thinking of a certain thing when when they want to change behaviors race no and that's, exactly right. This all always requires us kind of divorcing ourselves from thinking about the actual products that we sell because what did I say earlier? Our customers are not waiting around with their credit cards out waiting to buy from us they're not spending all day thinking about your product, but they are thinking about things I like that that's great and definitely a big picture thing and so it's not necessarily what what we want to lead within a product description but it might be a great piece for your blogger for email marketing or for just having a conversation in the community so that's that's big that's great and I want and this is I want to be instead of I want um I want to be um an individual instead of conforming be myself instead of conforming okay is that nice? Sure yeah, great other examples of beliefs or identity sasha uh I want to stop believing I'm alone and start believing that I'm not alone great that's huge yeah. What about identity uh a uncertain too confident was basically okay fantastic. Fantastic. So these jobs where do we use them? Why does this matter? As I mentioned earlier there's a difference between getting people to buy into your business and getting them to buy right now the's air the kinds of things that you want to be able to use in a product description. These are the kinds of things that could inspire the way you photograph your items. These are the kinds of things that can turn an email marketing message from a oh, you know, I put this new thing in my shop and if you want, you should check it out to a really strong message about hey, I finished this here's why here's what it's for here's how you can use it go check it out because if there's anything I hate more it's apologetic sales messages so stop that so yeah so these are the things that can help you make a much more confident product description ah much more confident email marketing message yeah photographs these this is huge I think people need to think much more about how they merchandise the work that they're offering especially online you know, in a store a boutique owner that's one of the biggest things that they're doing for you is that their merchants merchandising your items to tell a story and often their merchandising their their items to tell a story that relates directly to these things when you're products online when you're selling it you know in a catalogue of one essentially you don't have that luxury you need to come up with the surroundings for these objects yourself and so if you can think about how you know if you could demonstrate a behavior change through a photograph you know so that might be showing a woman who's wearing the jewelry with it kick ass outfit and you know looking looking snazzy feeling snazzy and you can project all that through a photograph that might be one way you show a difference in behavior for environment you might show you know not just the pillow but the pillow on a couch in a room that you know, matches the idea of what people are wanting to create. It allows them to align with something and feel like they're part of that picture like that is attainable. That change in environment is attainable on dso, you know, product descriptions that's pretty easy because that's all written out and that's. What you guys have been doing for the last five, six hours is writing things out about your business. But you could include that in product descriptions to create a story that gives people a reason not to just get excited about your work, but to hit the by now button right away. We don't want people just harding your stuff, right, or clicking the like button. We want people to click the by now, but in the add to cart button and so really grounding your product descriptions, grounding your photography, grounding your marketing and sales messages in these type of description, it allows you to create a story where that actually happens.

Class Materials

bonus material with purchase

The Art of Earning.pdf

bonus material with enrollment

The Art of Selling What You Make.pdf
Indie Craft Show Guide_v12.pdf

Ratings and Reviews

Ramona W
 

I came in on the rebroadcast. Tara is so AMAZING!!! She made me realize that I could take my product out of the box on how we think about selling our products into awesome creative ways to get my product out into the world. I purchased this course to refer back to in the uplifting style of selling that Tara brings to life. Tara is uplifting, energetic, optimistic giving you confidence in yourself and your product. Well worth the purchase!

a Creativelive Student
 

I loved this workshop. It gave me so many good actionable things to do to move my business forward. This is the 2nd course I've taken from Tara Gentile, and I highly recommend anything from her. She knows her stuff, and pushes you to build a community around your business to make it a sustainable and meaningful business. I also met a lot of wonderful ladies who are on similar journeys. I highly, HIGHLY recommend this course!

a Creativelive Student
 

Amazing workshop! Such a mass of useful information and ideas. I will be implementing them for the next year probably. It was wonderful that it was specifically geared towards selling what you make, not a lot else like this out there. I loved the format with the five entrepreneurs who asked specific questions and then were helped individually by Tara. She helped them to tailor an approach that fit exactly their business needs. Now I just have to get organized and start making it happen!

Student Work

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