Mar 7, 2017 |
Hey Rebels! Today we chat with Katie Hunt, the wholesale guru, to tell you all about the ins and outs of wholesale. You don’t want to miss this one!
Katie Hunt is the founder of Tradeshow Bootcamp, a business strategist, and mentor to creative entrepreneurs. She is a firm believer in professional development, surrounding yourself with community and pushing ‘go’ even when you might not feel 100% ready.
Katie has taught classes for CreativeLive, The Savvy Experience, Seanwes Conference, Be Sage Conference, Unique Camp, and Makers Nation. She frequently speaks about strategies for creating a product line, selling wholesale, business planning and the importance of community for entrepreneurs.
Katie earned a dual MBA in marketing and finance from Loyola Marymount University and has spent the last 16 years coaching large corporations and entrepreneurs on marketing and business development strategies.
Her strengths lie in connecting people and bringing ideas to life – brainstorming, making a plan and executing. Katie has a passion for creating, a mind for business and a strong desire to help others succeed.
Quote Love From Katie Hunt:
Focus on your product first.
Variety keeps the company coming back!
Always communicate clearly with your buyers.
Function over fashion is critical when shipping your orders.
Links from the show:
Issuu.com-wholesale catalogue
Genius Scan App
Stitch Labs-inventory management
Quickbooks
Convertkit
Mailchimp
Shipstation
Podio
Insightly
Where to find Katie:
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Courses
Follow us on instagram (Creative Biz Rebellions) and interact with us for a shop shout out!!!
If you have a second please jump over to iTunes and leave us a review! Click on the link and then click on “view in iTunes” to leave us a review. We give you all the virtual fist bumps. Thank you!
JOIN THE REBELLION! Signup for our newsletter and get our fave list of Instagram hashtags FREE!
YOU CAN FIND KELLY ONLINE AT:
www.helloworldpaperco.com
www.kellyparkersmith.com
www.helloworldstamps.etsy.com
YOU CAN FIND CAROLINE ONLINE AT:
www.carolinecreates.com
www.carolineannhull.com
www.carolinecreates.etsy.com
SHOW YOUR REBEL SPIRIT WITH SOME AWESOME GEAR FROM THE CREATIVE BIZ REBELLION SHOP:
www.creativebizrebellion.com/shop
*This post does contain some affiliate links*
Mar 2, 2017 |
I love running an online shop. It is such a rewarding experience to put something on my online shop and have it purchased by someone I do not know. While running an online shop can be rewarding, it is also quite challenging, especially when you are just getting started.
What most online shop owners do not think about is how their shop is working for them. I like to picture my shop as an actual brick and mortar. People come to my homepage or through the door and then they begin to browse. So what makes them buy? How can you encourage them to get to that checkout?
First you need to make it easy for them to shop and you need to make your online shop work for you, not against you.
Here are 5 ways your online shop is working against you:
- There is no easy way to click and buy from the homepage. You need to spell it out for people. Have a button that says shop or even better, highlight some products on the homepage that your customers can buy directly.
- You do not have your policies and procedures laid out for your customers. I can not stress enough the importance of a policies or FAQ page. Before your customers buy, they will have questions. Be sure those questions are answered in your shop.
- Everything is lumped together. Be sure you have your items categorized or the ability for the customer to sort them. Perhaps they are only looking for a specific type of design or color. Create sections for easier browsing.
- There is no contact information listed. You must have a way for customers to contact you. Email works fine, but be sure you have a contact page. Also, be sure to have other ways your customers can connect with you such as links to social media. My favorite places are in the footer and then of course on a contact page.
- There are not enough pictures or the pictures are too dark. Computer screens can be straining to the eyes. Don’t make it worse by horrible photos. Be sure your online shop and photos are visually appealing and easy for long term browsing.
Remember, we all have to start somewhere. My shop didn’t always run so smoothly! Making small changes will make a huge impact down the road. Take it one step at a time and your customers are sure to notice!
I created a quick checklist to guide you through the must haves for your online shop. From there, you can from an action plan to improve and totally rock your online shop.
Feb 28, 2017 |
Hey Rebels! In this episode Caroline and Kelly talk all about the importance of giving back. This is actually how Caroline and Kelly met! Kelly and Caroline talk about how important giving back is to them and their biz. Kelly wanted to continue her love and passion for teaching. By giving to Pencils of Promise each month she is working towards building a school! Caroline continues her passion by giving to a non profit organizations. Her inner hippy came out after her Colorado trip. After her trip she decided to use recycled paper and products for her biz and she wanted to plant trees. Now her donations go toward an organization that plants trees and educates people for “green jobs.” There is also an option of adding planting a tree at checkout when you shop with Caroline!
Ways to Give Back:
Recycle your materials you use to produce your products or use in your office
Volunteer in your community
Donating items for various causes/events
Being a mentor
Give back at what you are good at-business specific-get creative
Quote Love From Kelly & Caroline:
You don’t have to give away the farm -Kelly
You are doing more than someone who is doing nothing -Kelly
It makes a difference when you are doing something you love -Caroline
When you give back, you are in total control -Caroline
I was single handedly killing all the trees -Caroline
Kelly’s Pencils of Promise School Page
Toms Shoes
Start Something That Matters- By Blake MyCoskie*
The Promise of a Pencil by Adam Braun*
Website that will help you find a reputable charitable organization:
Charity Navigator
Follow us on instagram (Creative Biz Rebellions) and interact with us for a shop shout out!!!
If you have a second please jump over to iTunes and leave us a review!
Click on the link and then click on “view in iTunes” to leave us a review. We give you all the virtual fist bumps. Thank you!
JOIN THE REBELLION! Signup for our newsletter and get our fave list of Instagram hashtags FREE!
YOU CAN FIND KELLY ONLINE AT:
www.helloworldpaperco.com
www.kellyparkersmith.com
www.helloworldstamps.etsy.com
YOU CAN FIND CAROLINE ONLINE AT:
www.carolinecreates.com
www.carolineannhull.com
www.carolinecreates.etsy.com
SHOW YOUR REBEL SPIRIT WITH SOME AWESOME GEAR FROM THE CREATIVE BIZ REBELLION SHOP:
www.creativebizrebellion.com/shop
*This post does contain some affiliate links*
Feb 23, 2017 |
We’re almost two months in to 2017, but now’s the perfect time to put some processes in place to make your life so much better this time next year. I’m sharing three simple things you can do right now to make 2017 super successful when it comes to your business finances.
Make bookkeeping “business meetings” with yourself for every month of 2017.
Choose a date for each month and create an appointment for yourself. Treat this like a client meeting. You wouldn’t cancel last minute on a client or keep pushing the meeting back. When the meeting time arrives, go to your office or a coffee shop and get your bookkeeping done for the month.
By scheduling the bookkeeping meetings before the year starts, you’ll be mentally prepared to set aside the time needed. After a couple months, it becomes old habit and just another thing on your to-do list. If you keep pushing your bookkeeping to the bottom of your list, it will snowball and feel unmanageable.
Set up monthly folders for your receipts (digital and physical).
I don’t know about you, but when I get home from a business lunch meeting, that meal receipt has a 50/50 chance of getting lost in the depths of my purse or making it up to my office. To increase my odds of rescuing receipts from my purse, I labeled 12 envelopes with the months. I keep the current month’s envelope in my purse or in my kitchen so it’s a no-brainer when I get home and have receipts to file.
For digital receipts you can set up folders in your email where you can save receipts as soon as they hit your inbox. Since the IRS accepts digital or paper receipts, don’t feel like you have to print out every emailed receipt.
Every month, when you have your bookkeeping date, make sure you export your emailed receipts to PDF format and save in a secondary location. I’ve heard horror stories of emails being hacked or history being deleted and then losing all of that important documentation. While it’s an extra step to save your documents in another location, it will give you peace of mind.
Create a separate savings account to save for taxes.
The key is “out of sight, out of mind.” By creating a completely separate account from your day-to-day business operations account and transferring a portion of your profit to this account, you’ll be less likely to spend the money that you’ll need to pay for your taxes.
This concept can be used for sales tax that you collect from customers as well as setting aside money for income taxes.
Setting up the account is simple. Go to your current bank (or do it online!) and let them know you want a business savings account. Make sure the account has a limit on transfers out so that you aren’t tempted to take money out for personal use, only for tax payments.
This will set you up for success when it comes to saving for taxes and help ensure you never have to feel that awful feeling of not having enough cash when it comes time to pay your taxes.
Catch Amy on our latest podcast episode!
Amy Northard is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) who has a passion for working with creative entrepreneurs all over the US and making the tax and accounting side of owning a business less stressful. When she’s not getting nerdy with numbers, she loves to knit and take Instagram pictures of calculators.
WHERE TO FIND HER
website :: youtube :: instagram :: facebook
Be Your Own CFO
Feb 21, 2017 |
Hey Rebels! In this episode Caroline and Kelly chat with CPA Amy Northard.
Amy Northard is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) who has a passion for working with creative entrepreneurs all over the US and making the tax and accounting side of owning a business less stressful. When she’s not getting nerdy with numbers, she loves to knit and take Instagram pictures of calculators.
In this episode Amy and the Rebels talk about:
- The early process of money management and setting up your business.
- Some bookkeeping tips to get you started.
- Tools that Amy recommends for managing your biz finances.
- Tips for preparing your product based biz for taxes.
- Amy’s course – Be Your Own CFO
- How you shouldn’t be afraid to reach out and ask for help!
Quote Love from Amy:
If you can keep on top of the taxes, you will be good to go.
It is nice to get a refund back at the end of the year.
If your system is working, stick with it.
I’m trying to get out of my comfort zone & try new things
Links:
Quickbooks
Wave
GoDaddy Bookkeeping
PaperandSpark
Genius Scan App
Where you can find Amy!
Amy’s Website & Blog
Amy’s Youtube Channel
Course: Be Your Own CFO
Instagram: @amynorthardcpa
Twitter: @AmyNorthardCPA
Facebook: @AmyNorthardCPA
Follow us on instagram (Creative Biz Rebellions) and interact with us for a shop shout out!!!
If you have a second please jump over to iTunes and leave us a review!
Click on the link and then click on “view in iTunes” to leave us a review. We give you all the virtual fist bumps. Thank you!
JOIN THE REBELLION! Signup for our newsletter and get our fave list of Instagram hashtags FREE!
YOU CAN FIND KELLY ONLINE AT:
www.helloworldpaperco.com
www.kellyparkersmith.com
www.helloworldstamps.etsy.com
YOU CAN FIND CAROLINE ONLINE AT:
www.carolinecreates.com
www.carolineannhull.com
www.carolinecreates.etsy.com
