7 ways to boost your creative business

Like so many creatives right now, you might be feeling a bit stuck and need to try out a new idea or two.

Sometimes all it takes is a little inspiration to pick yourself back up again so if you’re a maker or creative we hope these tips help you get your mojo back and put you on the right track.

Having great images is key to attracting new customers and building your brand. Ideally, you can support other local creatives and invest in a professional shoot but if that’s a bit beyond your budget the follow these tips. 

If you are after a clean product shot, make sure you clear the space within the frame and remember you can style and stage your products to tell a story. You can also put them in context; accessories and can be worn and home wares can be shown on the right piece of furniture.

Use natural filtered sunlight. Side lighting through a window or filtered light under a balcony or tree works best. Use a white card or sheet of paper to bounce light back onto the object so that it’s not all light from one side. If outdoor and without shade, avoid shooting from above in the harsh light of the middle of the day as you’ll get strong shadows.

Take multiple photos from various angles and choose the best ones to perfect with the photo editing software – you don’t need to have Adobe Photoshop, there’s plenty of free image editors available online.

It’s a new financial year so what a great time to move on some of your stock and creations with a sale. Whether you have your own website or sell your products through an online store or platform like Instagram or Etsy, a flush out of old stock will feel great and help attract customers.  Create a special sale to cross-promote on your social platforms.

Once you’ve made some room, you’ll have both the headspace and webspace to plan for launching your new season of works or creations.

Now is the perfect time to think about how you are marketing yourself, your brand and products on social media.

As they say, video is king. It is a great way of engaging an audience and showing a bit more about your practice. Try creating a behind the scenes piece showing the viewers in your ‘making’ space. It will help build your story of who you are and your work. Then give them a taste of your new collection.

Write up a content plan that includes your photos, videos, stories and blog posts, but also share other people’s posts. By engaging with others and sharing their content you will inadvertently build a little tribe of like-minded people who could turn out to be some of your biggest supporters.  Connect with influencers who love hand made things.

Make sure you’re using the right hashtags to match your offering and what people are searching for.

Were you mulling over new product ideas through lockdown? If you haven’t already then give them a go,  you’ve got nothing to lose,ow is the time!

Believe in yourself, put one foot in front of the other and test the market. It could be the best thing you ever did.

So it’s likely you haven’t been able to have a market for a while now. But, lucky you, we have an affordable space that you can hire for peanuts and it’s available now.

Ask fellow makers what they are doing and maybe join forces? Create a pop-up shop and get the word out!

Here on the Northern Beaches, we have a community that loves to support local makers by buying handmade things but they can only do that if they know what you’re selling and when. So put together a brief marketing plan that includes content for your social channels and email list, share content with your tribe to share, list on the event listing and contact local media.  Don’t forget good old flyers and posters too – they are cheap to produce and an excellent way to complement your social media marketing.

If it’s been a while since you’ve seen some of your regulars or even since you’ve sent out an email to past customers then it’s time to reach out. Tell them about what’s been happening in your practice, what new products have you developed, what special offers or sales are you holding. Most importantly tell them where they can find your products.

Building your community of fellow makers is so important. It can help stay you motivated when you feel like a pep-up. It can help inspire you and challenge you and sometimes they can even become your best customers. Makers love other maker’s products, because hey, they know what goes into making!

The Creative Space is a purpose-built, affordable art space at North Curl Curl owned by Council. We are passionate about helping local makers and creators get up, and back on their feet.

We are taking short term bookings for workshops, exhibitions, pop-up shops and more, between July - September 2020. Call us to discuss 0466 391 955.