Me too! I’ve been starting a business with Stampin’ Up!® on and off since 2017.
Although I have had this blog since 2017, I have been inconsistent with it until 2020. It wasn’t COVID-19 that prompted me to start consistently blogging again, it was a need to make a decision about my relationship with Stampin’ Up!®
Starting a business with Stampin’ Up!® 2017
In 2017 I signed up as a hobby demonstrator. I wanted to make cards, scrapbook and get the discount. I held successful card making classes in my home. No one bought anything and I didn’t care.
How is that successful you ask? Because people showed up, we used product and we had fun. My goal was not business minded. It was filling my bucket with feel good, social mojo. I wasn’t starting a business with Stampin’ Up!® at this time.
Three quarters into the year my husband and I had THE chat. You know the one where the kids are now at fulltime school, are you going to go back to work, kind-a chat. I decided to turn my Stampin’ Up!® affiliation into a business.
I thought starting a business with Stampin’ Up!® meant I should hire out a space to meet with like-minded crafters once a week and hopefully gain customers. Several time slots were available to cater for work and school schedules. My business was advertised in the local paper and on Facebook. I signed up for business courses and sought advice from the small business centre to get a business plan together. NO ONE TURNED UP. I persisted for 3 months. Nothing. Nudda. Nil. I was still my best customer.
I gave up. Applied for a teaching job and went back to work. I was back to being a Stampin’ Up!® hobby demonstrator.
Starting a business with Stampin’ Up!® again 2020
A new teaching position in 2020 gave me the opportunity of a little bit of time on my hands. I was in a new town with no friends and no social circle. I decided to put myself out there as a card maker, make a few friends and sell a few products on the side.
But…COVID-19 shut everything down, making it difficult to meet new people. I decided to go all in and set my Stampin’ Up!® affliation as an online side business.
Since I am still in the baby stages of building my business and blogging about creative card making I hope that sharing my journey will inspire other newbie Stampin’ Up!® bloggers in the way that I have been inspired.
A monthly report will also keep me accountable. I am interested in seeing my growth and analysing what is working and what is not working. I will share my goals to help me stay on track and maintain focus.
My main goal is to show my journey from baby blog making absolutely nothing to a successful income-producing one.
And gaining a few online card making friends would be the cherry on top!
March and April 2020:
- I started working on my niche and identifying who my audience is. My initial idea was to combine my teaching and card making. I started sifting through my potential audience looking for people that were interested in paper crafting with children. This is a great niche but it’s not a great fit as a focus for a Stampin’ Up!® business.
- Facebook page likes: 20.
- I signed up for Stampin’ Up!’®s Demonstrator Business Web Site (DBWS) and I decided to start posting on the blog once a month.
June and July 2020:
- Enrolled with Wealthy Teachers: On Course Social and learnt the ACES method for content creation. I implemented the ACES formula and scheduled a post a day to Facebook.
- June and July saw very little growth in page likes, reach was on-par with my audience numbers but engagement was between 0 and 2. I kid you not. This page was DEAD.
August 2020:
- ACES one post a day on Facebook.
- Facebook ad $1.50 a day. Every week I would change my target audience for the ad, looking for my perfect person.
- I did 3 Facebook Lives.
- Page likes beginning of August 40. Page likes end of August 42.
- 48 Page Follows.
- Best organic reach got to 85.
- Engagement single digits.
September 2020:
- ACES on post a day on Facebook.
- Facebook Ads. Still changing the target audience on a weekly basis, sifting for those perfect people.
- Page likes beginning September 42. Page likes end of September 53.
- 59 Page Follows.
- Best organic reach got to 29.
- Engagement single digits.
- Retook Rachel Millar’s 100 Perfect People course.
Success in the creative industry is all about long term strategy.
Lisa Jacobs, 2014
I’m looking forward to full disclosure in this 2020 – 2021 Stampin’ Up! year.
Loved this read? Get regular updates when you SUBSCRIBE!
[…] I am in the baby stages of building my Stampin’ Up!® business and blogging about creative card making. I hope that sharing my journey will inspire other newbie Stampin’ Up!® bloggers as they build their businesses. Click here to read about my initial failure to start as a business. […]