This is part 2 of a part 2 series! Click here for part 1.

6. Don’t Undersell Yourself– This is a lesson you need to learn fast or you won’t be able to stay in business long. Make sure to take overheard costs, materials, time, and profit all into account when figuring out how to correctly price yourself. Check to see what the competition does too, but don’t fall into the trap of undercutting yourself and losing out on money just to compete. Plenty of sellers underprice and don’t let their mistake hurt you! Having trouble figuring it out? There are plenty of calculators out there designed just for this, including this one from craftybase.

7. The Ins and Outs of the USPS- This will come with time as you get more experience, but do some research into the actual cost of shipping. As of the 17th, shipping prices actually increased, so stay on top of the latest news. See what shipping method (first class, media, priority) works best for you and your items. And don’t forget about insurance! If your item gets lost in the mail, you are responsible for it.

8. Choosing a Niche and Sticking With It – This might be already solved for you or you might still be struggling. You can certainly sell a little bit of this, a little bit of that, so feel free to do that! But in my experience, you bring in the most customers when you concentrate on one area per shop. Instead of having 10 items in Category A and 7 items in Category B, you can have 17 items under one roof. It also helps your shop look cleaner and more professional if all items are related. Since my shop is a Mother-Daughter effort, we do have a bit of two worlds, but we use the same material – wool.

9. The Exciting Christmas Rush- You probably won’t have to worry about this for a bit (seeing as it is only January anyway), but I had wished I had been more prepared for this! My first Christmas rush happened the second year my shop was open. I received so many orders, online and at a craft show, that I became overwhelmed with work for a bit. And every year it has become more and more busy, but I’ve come to expect it now! Have some stock saved up for October-December and start planning your Christmas designs even earlier. It WILL pay off!

10. Have Fun – I said this earlier in the post, but try not to think of this as a “Get Rich Quick Scheme.” Because in most cases, it won’t happen like that. Selling handmade items really takes effort, work, and growth. Even with these tips, you’re going to run into a dozen other issues that you weren’t even aware existed. So relax a bit, take a breath, and realize that it doesn’t have to happen TOMORROW. If you keep working at it and keep learning, you will be satisfied with the end result! Just don’t give up! And think about why you enjoy it so much 🙂

**Have a tip of your own for new handmade sellers? Have an issue you’ve run into that you can’t quite solve? Leave it in the comments below!