Hello, and welcome! Today's Tuesday Tips theme is branding.
Branding is probably one of the hardest things for a new company or venture to land correctly the first time. Your brand is supposed to represent both you and what you sell, stay in the mind of your buyers (they are supposed to remember it when they see your products) and be easily conveyed. A difficult combination.
When I started my Etsy shop I knew what I wanted to sell, but not so much what I wanted my brand to be. It took time to get it all, if not 100% right, at least to a point where I'm fairly happy with the results.
1. Shop name
This is the first thing people hear about your shop and how they will remember it by. It should make sense and have some sort of connection to who you are and what you sell.
The Really Crafty Store came about because I was already running The Really Crafty Link Party here on the blog and I decided to use the same idea. Probably not the cleverest of alternatives, but it made sense to me and doesn't clash with anything I sell (or may want to sell in the future).
"The Handmade Gifts Experience" slogan is aimed at conveying the message that if you want a handmade gift, I offer everything you may need to go with it - eco-friendly gift wrapping and handmade gift tags too. This is a concept I know I need to invest more on but right now, with the shop on vacation, I'm just focusing on crafting and coming up with new product ideas.
2. Logo
My preference is for simple and uncomplicated logos, but that's just a personal inclination. As long as it represents your shop well, the logo should be yours to choose.
My logo was a source of much internal debate. I wanted something streamlined and easily identifiable, but that I loved the same time. It took me a while to decide, and then I used Canva to design it myself.
3. Business cards
Business cards are a must in, well, every business.
My business cards are just a printed version of my logo. Some have just the shop web address, others include social media links too. I hand them out according to the occasion, but one business card always accompanies my shipped orders.
Here's a batch of my business cards, fresh out of the printer. Now I just need to cut them to size and they'll be ready to use:
4. Shop banner
Another important way to convey your brand. On a physical shop you have shop windows to showcase products - and you know that the most dressed up the windows are, the more attractive they will look. In the digital world your shop page is the shop window, so it should also be dressed up and look as good as possible. I really think banners help improving the visual look of a shop and nowadays when I'm browsing through Etsy and I see a shop without a banner it looks kind of empty to me.
My banner was again designed using Canva, including the logo colors and showcasing some of my favorite items. But I've seen beautiful banners around which are just an extension of the shop logo. As long as they don't clash too much, I think it's again a personal preference.
5. Other branding materials
Other than the logo, the banner and the business cards, there are lots of other ways to convey your brand.
I print out tags with the logo for some of my products and use a ribbon with a matching color to wrap up my orders before placing them in the bubble mailers for shipping.
I also include a handwritten thank you note. It's a folded card, blank inside to write a message but with, again, my logo on the cover:
And I print sets of self adhesive labels with the logo to use in the packages as well:
And these are my branding tips. I'm by no means a specialist, and I like to do everything by myself so sometimes I go by trial and error, but so far I'm happy with the results.
When I started my Etsy shop I knew what I wanted to sell, but not so much what I wanted my brand to be. It took time to get it all, if not 100% right, at least to a point where I'm fairly happy with the results.
1. Shop name
This is the first thing people hear about your shop and how they will remember it by. It should make sense and have some sort of connection to who you are and what you sell.
The Really Crafty Store came about because I was already running The Really Crafty Link Party here on the blog and I decided to use the same idea. Probably not the cleverest of alternatives, but it made sense to me and doesn't clash with anything I sell (or may want to sell in the future).
"The Handmade Gifts Experience" slogan is aimed at conveying the message that if you want a handmade gift, I offer everything you may need to go with it - eco-friendly gift wrapping and handmade gift tags too. This is a concept I know I need to invest more on but right now, with the shop on vacation, I'm just focusing on crafting and coming up with new product ideas.
2. Logo
My preference is for simple and uncomplicated logos, but that's just a personal inclination. As long as it represents your shop well, the logo should be yours to choose.
My logo was a source of much internal debate. I wanted something streamlined and easily identifiable, but that I loved the same time. It took me a while to decide, and then I used Canva to design it myself.
3. Business cards
Business cards are a must in, well, every business.
My business cards are just a printed version of my logo. Some have just the shop web address, others include social media links too. I hand them out according to the occasion, but one business card always accompanies my shipped orders.
Here's a batch of my business cards, fresh out of the printer. Now I just need to cut them to size and they'll be ready to use:
4. Shop banner
Another important way to convey your brand. On a physical shop you have shop windows to showcase products - and you know that the most dressed up the windows are, the more attractive they will look. In the digital world your shop page is the shop window, so it should also be dressed up and look as good as possible. I really think banners help improving the visual look of a shop and nowadays when I'm browsing through Etsy and I see a shop without a banner it looks kind of empty to me.
My banner was again designed using Canva, including the logo colors and showcasing some of my favorite items. But I've seen beautiful banners around which are just an extension of the shop logo. As long as they don't clash too much, I think it's again a personal preference.
5. Other branding materials
Other than the logo, the banner and the business cards, there are lots of other ways to convey your brand.
I print out tags with the logo for some of my products and use a ribbon with a matching color to wrap up my orders before placing them in the bubble mailers for shipping.
I also include a handwritten thank you note. It's a folded card, blank inside to write a message but with, again, my logo on the cover:
And I print sets of self adhesive labels with the logo to use in the packages as well:
And these are my branding tips. I'm by no means a specialist, and I like to do everything by myself so sometimes I go by trial and error, but so far I'm happy with the results.
Happy Tuesday, stay safe and don't forget to check the other Tuesday Tips posts from this fantastic group!
Kelsey's Crafts
Kelsey's Crafts
Awesome tips! Thanks for sharing them. :)
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