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When is the last time you searched on Google "best day ever!" or "I love my dog"?
We don't take time out of our day to search for the key to happiness if we are holding it in our hand, right?
We all have a problem, an ache, a need.
And just when you think you are problem-free even the smallest of events can get you grabbing your phone and looking for a solution.
So, for example, when your favorite mixer breaks you start searching "best mixer reviews" or “mixers on sale.” Your mixer is broken--that is your need. Odds are you weren't looking at mixer reviews the week before when it made your favorite cake and it worked just fine.
When all is well with your new puppy you don't spend time seeking out puppy information. But suddenly at 2AM you are Googling "how to stop my puppy from barking at night."
Most successful businesses begin from a problem they are trying to fix.
We are going about our day when a problem stops us.
If you watch Shark Tank on NBC you will notice that a Shark often asks "what made you start this business?" and every person has a story. "My daughter got sick... my house was broken into... I needed to improve my health..." etc.
Small businesses often begin because a person had a problem and thought "I can't be the only one with this problem... maybe I could...."
A small business owner notices the gap, the pain-- and sees an opportunity to make a difference.
Sure there are people who really are trying to make a fast buck--but those kinds of businesses rarely last.
I love getting to know--and yes, buying from-- small businesses that started with a story and a dream. The small business owner who is striving daily to make someone's life easier, more comforting, more fun, more faith-filled.
While most of the world thinks "someone should do something about that..." entrepreneurs step forward and say "I am going to do something about that!"
And yes, it gets exhausting along the way...
Joel and I have always tried to ride the wave of challenges. Grab a pretend surfboard and hang on!
From the beginning when I was hospitalized for some health issues to smaller hurdles, like the day the internet went out and packages had to ship. We were at Fed Ex Kinkos printing out postage and I recall saying "This is a good thing because it's happening now, so if it happens during the holiday season, we know how to do this."
We couldn't have predicted that in a matter of months we'd be working out hotels for 6 weeks while our house had major renovations due to a pipe leak.
Not only does the small business owner juggle the logistic, but all the emotions too.
Gutsy Goodness originated out of a few different "problems" and we tried our best to flip them into opportunities.
If I was going to dedicate my soul to this business, moving from ministry to a 'business', it had to have a purpose.
I had been running my own chronic illness ministry for twenty years. I heard stories thousands stories that described emotional pain that was not acknowledged. It's hard for people to empathize with something they do not understand or haven't experienced.
My own story of living with rheumatoid arthritis since 1993 had led me to believe that everyone hurts.
We may all hurt in different ways -- but we each have something that tries to demand our attention at 3AM with worry.
The pain that pops up in our life over and over. That grief cycle? Some of us go through it repeatedly.
So I wanted to create something tangible, like a piece of jewelry, that could be worn to represent some of those emotions, whether it was claiming our faith or acknowledging our journey.
I also wanted to give everyone the opportunity to tell a person in her life "I see you... I see what you're going through and I don't have all the answers, but I care."
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Yes, Joel and I began Gutsy Goodness because... we needed an income.
Sometimes the best business plan is "we cannot fail because we have to pay health insurance."
Personally, we feel like we have worked as hard as humanly possible --and God has blessed our business. We know that people work extremely hard and businesses fail every day. We aren't any more special than others. Our attitude is "get up every morning and do what God puts in front of us."
I love the quote by Erma Bombeck:
"When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say: 'I used everything you gave me.'"
And that is what drives me to continue on those tough days.
One can see why a business is so personal. It becomes your "baby". It is born from an idea, a whole lot of labor is involved, and then (hopefully) you see it grow. It is part of you and every breath you take.
And then you have to stop thinking about what you want or need and remember what your customer wants or needs.
Because if we want our customers to really feel like friends, we are obligated to give them the chance to see themselves represented in our own products or purpose.
C.S. Lewis once wrote…
For a business to continue to grow and expand, and to make an income for you or your family, you must consider what the customer wants... and sometimes that means putting your own desires aside and considering what will make your customers say...
“What? You too? I thought I was the only one.”
"But I don't want to sell out!" you may be tempted to holler. "I designed this business for a reason! I refuse to change it just to get a few sales.”
And that makes complete sense. I get it. Succumbing to every brainstorm or request customers have can move you further and further away from why you began it in the first place.
I recall getting phone calls from a friend during the first year of our business who always had a better idea. “You could make ___ and ___ and sell those!” she’d say.
“Thanks for your advice,” I’d say. “We will keep it in mind, but right now we are really building a brand and sticking with this style.”
“But you could sell more and make more money!” she’d exclaim, frustrated I didn’t share her vision.
Her enthusiasm was appreciated, but she didn’t know my vision. Expanding to a variety of products too quickly would just water down our business.
We weren’t trying to get-rich-quick. We wanted to build a business that would last and be recognizable.
We weren't trying to use tricks to make the dollars roll in. We wanted to do what we felt called to do and see if God might bless it.
Keep in mind that your business is personal and that may be what has made is successful so far. You don’t have to start adding products or services that do not align with your vision or brand.
“What could be designed or altered to better provide my customer with something she wants or needs that she is currently clicking away from my website to go get somewhere else?”
Mark Cuban describes this as "Follow the green, not the dream."
"I am not in it for the money" you say. “I just want it to be fun…”
That is fine.
Don't let anyone tell you it's not okay. I am guilty of trying to tell someone how with a few steps they could turn a hobby into a profit and she didn’t want to.
She didn’t want the pressure, the headaches, the learning curve, and to spoil the fun of making the product.
There is nothing wrong with that—in fact it is a wise woman who knows what she wants... and what she doesn't.
We all are allowed to own the purpose of our business and turn it into a hobby.
But if you do want to earn an income, you do want to at least break even and cover your bills, occasionally you are going to have to stop designing, creating, and dreaming and ask yourself ...
"What do people want that I am not providing them with?"
This doesn't mean changing the purpose or brand of your business.
It doesn’t mean compromising your values.
But it may be creating products or services that you never would have considered previously, but that may be exactly what people desire.
For example, at the beginning of Gutsy Goodness one could easily see where my heart was. Many quotes were about getting through tough days, a positive attitude and faith (Joel has just had his job of 20 years eliminated.)
But customers were also wanting some light-hearted quotes, even if they didn't have a deep purpose. And some wanted more humor.
So I started designing what people wanted...
Every so often we attend a local craft show in our community and there are so talented artists who exhibit and sell everything from glass blown bowls to hand carved chess sets. One booth always includes the local women who make those quilts that fold up into a pillow.
The creations are cute and they have put their heart and soul into sewing all these. It is a lot of work to pack them up and bring them over to craft fair, sit in the hot sun and try to sell them for $50.
I’ve never seen a single one sold. In fact, people stop at their booth more out of sympathy than interest.
I believe part of it is the fabric they are choosing. These quilts that fold into pillows have had fabric templates at the craft stores for decades and the average person is going to walk on by without hesitation.
I always wonder… instead of trees or acorns on the fabric, what if it had some trains on it? Or a castle?
Because a whole lot of grandmothers are customers at these craft shows and would a good percentage walk by and think "my grandson has to have this! He's so into trains! He's four and this will be the perfect blanket for him."
When it comes to sales people are drawn in by emotion – “My grandson loves trains! My grandson could use a blanket.”
We justify pulling out our credit card because of logic – “I know he has a bunch of blankets, but this one folds into a pillow and it’d be perfect in the car for those road trips they take.”
Few people purchase on onlyemotion or only logic. We need both to feel confident about our choice.
So if the women who are making these simply changed fabric, it could draw in a certain customer by creating more of an emotional connection: “What? You know someone who likes trains too?”
And putting up a little sign: “Perfect for grandkids to travel with in cars and planes”could result in more logic justifications for buying it.
Grandmothers would stop walking when they saw the fabric, they’d buy when they read the sign.
So, if you design car coasters, for example your goal may be:
"I would like to sell 10 items of this design each day."
Considering a 30-day plan, ask yourself:
What value would this product need to have in order to justify…
"If I cannot justify these numbers, what needs to change in order to be able to do so?
Dreams are a good thing. But to turn them into plans we must make sure that we have an open mind to new ideas and how we are serving up this solution to a problem.
So, if you design car coasters, for example your goal may be:
"I would like to sell 10 items of this design each day."
Considering a 30-day plan, ask yourself:
What value would this product need to have in order to justify…
"If I cannot justify these numbers, what needs to change in order to be able to do so?
Ask yourself: "Where do my customers go when they are researching the problems I solve?"
Do they go to:
You are certainly able to make things that you love. There will be people that tell you that you need to change it, enlarge it, discount it, change the color of it, etc.
Remember, it is okay to make things that you love.
Now granted, if you make things that you love… and no one buys them… you have a hobby. Occasionally, hobbies can make you a little money.
And hobbies are good for the soul. Hobbies rarely keep you awake at 3AM.
Know your brand and don't be tempted to stray too far from it in order to accommodate everyone's desires. They may buy one item if that and you will never hear from them again.
Protect your business with discernment.
However, never be afraid to put aside everything that you know to be true about your business, every sure-thing, and look at it with fresh eyes.
Ask your customers what they want:
Some people, like Joel and I, begin a handmade business from the beginning. Meaning, we started making the handmade items at the same time we began our business. Up until we began a business I had only made a handful of necklaces for volunteer gifts.
Others have a hobby making a handmade item for years and then decide to turn it into a profitable venture. The hobby itself becomes “less fun” as it takes on all the aspects of a business from sales tax to permits, to policies and payroll.
Whatever your path, if you can separate the handmade hobby-like perspective and shift into business mode it will be an easier adjustment.
Take the passion for the hobby along with you, but don't let go of good business sense just because you have a personal attachment to the products.
The most successful business come from passion. Whether it is fish tacos or a mug warmer the joy of making a handmade item should never cease.
Here is to those who are turning dreams into plans!
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