What roles are you avoiding in your Woodworking business?

In the first installment I took you through some of the often overlooked mental requirements for selling your woodworking online. Surprising, wasn’t it? This time, let’s take a look at the roles you’re going to have to adopt if you’re going to sell your precious work online or even in real life for that matter.

A lot of woodworkers (yours truly included) start out thinking that it’s enough to just love to make things and that passion and superior craftsmanship would be the only tools needed to make a terrific living in woodworking. Fast forward some years later, and you have a totally different scenario. You’re either convinced that there’s no way to make money doing what you love, or you’ve reserved yourself to the idea that in order to make a living, you have to take on less-than-stellar work that doesn’t excite or satisfy you in any way. More often than not, woodworkers find themselves in one of these scenarios because they’ve ignored the vital roles that must be adopted in order to really succeed in business.

While this is certainly not an exhaustive list by any means, I am going to hit on what I believe are the top 3 roles that are ignored, or fearfully avoided by a lot of woodworkers.

Marketer

This is a big one. I’ve heard a lot of woodworkers say things like, “I’m a woodworker, not a marketer, so I don’t understand marketing at all. I shouldn’t have to.”

I used to work in my shop with those exact words running through my mind. Is it any wonder why I didn’t make great progress the first five years? Is it any wonder why you haven’t either?

The marketer role is one you’re afraid to assume because you feel inadequate, unlearned, or have been turned off by sleazy marketers in the past. Well, it’s time to fear it no more. In fact, it’s high time to embrace it because, if you are going to make a living or even a supplemental income with your woodworking, you’re going to have to get comfortable and confident with who you are and what you have to offer. That’s what you’re communicating anyway – who you are and what you believe.

For most of you, the problem lies in your understanding of the word marketing. In the beginning, most of you probably think marketing is advertising. You immediately think of newspaper ads, radio and TV commercials, full page magazine spots…and that leaves you dwelling on the crippling costs involved. Well, advertising can be part of marketing, but it’s really only a small fraction that you can choose to implement.

Marketing in it’s simplest definition is communicating your core message to the people who are seeking that message. The marketing role is the backbone of your woodworking business. Virtually everything you do is a form of marketing because virtually everything you do communicates a message to people. Your design, construction methods, wood choices, preferred finishes, and even finished photographs are all a part of your marketing message. All of those aspects communicate something about you to potential buyers. So, since you are already marketing (even though you aren’t aware of it) why not embrace this role and begin to hone these skills as passionately as you hone your woodworking skills? I promise you’ll like the difference this mind-shift makes.

Need a better grasp on marketing your furniture? I know someone who can help.

Salesperson

I think, by far, this role is the most avoided and detested out of all of them. Why? Because you have told me so on numerous occasions.

Run the word “salesperson” through your head and pay attention to what happens. I’m betting most of you kinda threw up a little didn’t you. It’s because we’ve all had bad experiences with plaid suits pushing junk cars, insurance policies, and other not-so-stellar items or services. Sales isn’t sleazy, people are. But, like anything else, the past should not dictate your current reality or forthcoming future.

Sales is important, no make that crucial, for your success online. How else do you expect people to buy? They have to be convinced that your product or service is the one and only thing that will make their life better. This does not mean deceiving, slick-talking, or pushing them into doing something they didn’t want to do in the first place. That is not selling. That’s scamming. BIG difference. What I’m talking about is learning your ideal client’s needs, wants, likes, hopes, desires, and loves. Then, you present the offer that provides that for them. Yes, again I’m over simplifying, but it sounds a bit more noble now, doesn’t it.

Take the initiative to begin learning how to be the salesperson for your woodworking products. Who better to communicate the beautiful benefits of experiencing your work, then you, the maker? Like anything worth doing this is a skill to be exercised daily. Study, observe, and DO great sales tactics and techniques. You’ll be very pleased in the long run.

Writer

“Writer?! I’m a woodworker. I’m not going to write anything!”

Before you let this ridiculous phrase stick in your cranium, let me just remind you that we are talking about online sales here. Online as in the Internet, as in websites with content, product descriptions, sales pages, and lest we forget blogs. If you’re going to sell your work online, then your primary method of communication will be writing. It’s the material people read when they come your site. It’s the blog posts you’re crafting for your ideal customer. It’s even the content of your About page.

You will, I repeat, will be spending a great deal of time writing if you are going to put any serious effort into making money online with your woodworking. It’s essential. Solid writing skills allow you to show the benefits of your products in the least amount of words. It gives you the ability to touch people’s hearts and minds with your core message that in turn, ignites their hidden flame of desire to own the product around that message. Like you I loathed the idea of writing and learning to be a stellar writer. Nowadays, I’m seeing it differently. That’s why I’m taking great strides to become an effective communicator through the written word. The benefits just make too much sense to not do it.

Stop Avoiding to Start Succeeding

These roles are the Big 3 that I see avoided time and time again in existing solo woodworking ventures. Doing this is certain death. You won’t make real progress in online sales without adopting and embracing them. You can certainly hire out each of these roles, but in the beginning I believe it’s vital you learn them intimately first. For those of you in the “I wish” stage of selling your woodworking online, it’s important to gain a true perspective on the necessity of these roles for your soon-to-be business.

As many of you know, I’ve been on a quest to turn around the last 5 years of my woodworking business faux-pas. Part of that involved confronting my avoidance of these roles. As I have changed my mind about them over the last 18 months, something very surprising happened. I became downright fascinated with learning them as best I can. Now, I get as excited about the latest marketing article as I do about this month’s woodworking magazine! Selling is no longer a concept that turns my stomach. Instead, it’s an opportunity to learn more about my customer and deliver what they need. And that’s the secret. Change your mindset about these roles, and let them become as intriguing as learning to make a housed sliding dovetail key.

These roles are simply just another set of tools and skills to learn. The only difference is instead of the end result of a finely crafted piece of furniture, you get a finely tuned business. I promise good things ahead. When you stop avoiding these 3 roles, you stop avoiding your success.

Are you avoiding these roles? Why? Why not? What other roles should be included on this list?

P.S. If you need help designing furniture that sells, grab this free resource now.

Related posts:

1. Do You Have What it Takes to Sell Online?
2. 3 Questions to Get You Something Free

What do you do when you see a real need in your world?

You make something valuable to help as many people as possible!

As the internet sees more and more woodworkers harnessing it’s amazing potential, the need to learn solid principles of marketing and selling one’s work becomes more urgent.

It’s no secret that Alison Heath and I have been working at joining forces lately. (If you’re not familiar with Alison, you really need to check out her new site here!)

With Alison’s background and expertise in furniture marketing, and my experience as a growing woodworking entrepreneur, we decided that we could help a lot more people in the online woodworking world by working together rather than both of us trying to go at it alone.

So, we decided to get together and make something amazing, awesome, and FREE just for you.

Seriously. We want to make a free resource that helps you take your ideas of selling your woodwork online and turn it into solid reality. In order to help us make and give away exactly what you want, we would really appreciate your help letting us know what that is exactly.

We have a small 3 question survey that will give you the chance to tell us exactly what you would really like to have. Please take a minute to fill it out. It would mean a lot to us. Think of your answers as the intricate, perfect-fitting joinery that will hold this project together!

Take the survey here.

Thank you so much for helping out Alison and I. You’re opinion is really important to us.

Be looking for this free resource very soon and just think, you’re helping build it! How cool is that?!

Related posts:

1. Why Are You Avoiding the Big 3? (Selling Online pt. 2)
2. Do You Have What it Takes to Sell Online?

The internet is truly magic. Where else can you accomplish so many things at once? It’s the only place that I know of where I can watch skaters getting hurt, check my email 15 times a minute, read my buddy’s blog posts, download the greatest obscure hits of the 80’s, play a never-ending game of Street Fighter, carry on micro conversations, and learn Scottish Gaelic. All while eating breakfast!

Ok, maybe I’m exaggerating a wee bit, but there’s no denying the amazing potential that exists for anyone looking to harness this instant portal to millions of eyes and minds. In the last few years, the internet has allowed a huge number of companies to take shape, when in the conventional real world, they would have never gotten off the ground. It’s this draw that has a lot of people seriously considering making a living using online resources. It’s also this draw that has my inbox seeing the same question on a regular basis:

“How do I get started selling my (woodwork) online?”

That’s a big question. There are a lot of factors to consider when taking your work online. Besides the product itself, there’s branding, the marketing plan, web presence, social platforms, payment and shopping cart integrations, shipping options, …hey, that’s just the tip of the iceberg. But, before your head starts swirling trying to contemplate all of that at once, you need to ask yourself the most important question that will determine the future of your online woodworking career.

Do I have what it takes to sell my work online?

What does it take, exactly? You hear all the time about passion, desire, determination, etc. Those are crucial, to your success. For sure. But, what’s at the level right above those things? What exactly does the passion and desire fuel? What’s next after you recognize your passion for woodworking and your desire to begin selling your work?

Self identity as a woodworker.

Throughout your lifetime as a woodworker, you will change directions, shift your focus, and reinvent yourself on numerous occasions. But, at the beginning it’s vital to get a realistic view of who you are as a maker and what you have to offer. This means sitting down, taking time to understand where you are now in the craft and getting a vision of where you really want to be down the road. Do you desire to work by yourself in a small shop creating one of a kind pieces? Is your vision of the future perhaps designing high end work that others than build for you in a shop of 10-15 employees? This vision of the future will help dictate the first moves you make in selling your work online.

This sense of identity also includes your designs. Take stock in what you design and how you design it. What are your influences? Why do they influence you? How is that showing in the work you do now? Will people resonate with those designs, or does it only appeal to you? Is there room for them to expand and evolve, or have you designed yourself into a proverbial corner?

Self identity is confidence in your abilities now and confidence in the abilities you will gain as you grow. This confidence is vital to carrying you through the process of learning to sell.

The ability to handle consistent rejection.

Guess what? The majority of people who see your product in the beginning are going to pass you by. Yep. It’s true. This is due to a number of factors, like not enough recognition, wrong product in front of the wrong audience, not being persuasive enough, etc. I’m not telling you you’ll never make a sale. What I’m telling you is that until you learn who needs your work and how to put it in front of them, you’re going to face some rejection. It won’t be mean, or hurtful. It will be a lot of nice compliments followed by, “No thanks.” It happens, and it will continue to happen throughout your career.

The first signs of rejection can send woodworkers crawling back into their shops vowing to never waste their precious time on the ungrateful general public again. It’s hard not to take it personally. I still struggle with it at times. You and your work are so intimately connected that if someone rejects your offer you really feel as though they flat out rejected you as a human being. Your subconscious is designed to defend you emotionally like that. Learning how to take rejection from the very start will really be a huge step in moving forward to selling online and in person.

It might seem like you need some thick skin to handle all of it, but I challenge you to shift your perspective on this. What if all of those “no thank you’s” ended up being a terrific source of marketing info? Think about it. With each rejection, you’re learning exactly who your work is not intended for, how not to present an offer, and how not to close a deal. Each rejection presents you with the opportunity to learn and grow with experience, and puts you one step closer to doing it right.

Patience to start slow and work up to where you really want to be.

How long did it take you to acquire the woodworking skills you use every day in your shop? How many of those skills allowed you to execute a brand new technique with absolute perfection the first time you tried it? I’m guessing that barring the rarest alignment of the planets, your answer is never. That’s because you need the trial and error experience of doing that skill in the precise manner that produces the desired result. Having never done that before, it’s very hard to visualize exactly what that perfect execution of skills looks like. Repetition of that skill produces the visual record of what works and what doesn’t. That’s why it’s so vital that you never give up until you learn to achieve the desired result.

The exact same formula of success is true when the skills being executed are sales, marketing, and relationship building. You need patience to start where you are now and move forward at the pace you can manage. Repetition is the key. You’ll fail at times and succeed at times. Take careful notes for both instances. Get that visual record of what works in your mind so you can repeat it over and over again with greater results.

It’s no easy task taking your personal woodworking pieces and placing them in front of a world wide audience. However, from my experience, if you possess the key foundation blocks that are necessary before attempting to sell online, then you stand a very good chance of continuing to sell and sell successfully when all others have given up. So, do you have what it takes to sell online? Only you know for sure.

What has been your experience with selling your woodworking online? Are there other qualities that you have found essential for starting this path?

Related posts:

1. Why Are You Avoiding the Big 3? (Selling Online pt. 2)
2. 3 Questions to Get You Something Free

2010 State of the Craft Address

2010 is your year!

• This year more than any other, you have the power to transform your woodworking blog or website into whatever you want it to be!

• You can become the go-to authority as this community grows. You do not need anyone’s permission or approval to sell your work, teach your methods of woodworking, or get in with the “big dogs” of woodworking. You have that power now!

• You have all the tools right at your fingertips to make 2010 the Year of the Internet Woodworker!

If you agree with this video, please spread the word! Tell the world why you agree.

Post link to it.

Embed it to your blog. Just click on the embed button on the player.

Tweet This!

Share it.

If you disagree with this video, then by all means do the same thing. Share it and tell the world why you disagree with it.

Leave a comment telling why you agree or disagree.

If you want to make 2010 your year as a woodworker online, then sign up now for the advanced list. You’ll get first dibs on all the training and resources that are coming from the Woodworker’s Journey to make your pursuit of woodworking, a more passionate and fulfilling experience.

Related posts:

1. Two Resources to Help You Sketch Your Design Success for 2010
2. Video Comments, Collaborations, and Surfing?…

One of the things I love about community, is the ability to promote and share the work of others. When there is a resource that I feel can really benefit you, I’ll spread the word. It’s a big world, and we have a lot to learn from everyone. The only way to grow a community is for all involved to thrive.

Here at The Woodworker’s Journey, design is emphasized as part of the foundation to a passionate and fulfilling experience in woodworking. Without good design, you don’t have much of a foundation to build from. I wanted to pass along two resources that will help you with your new designs for this new year.

Design Really Does Matter

The first is George Walker’s new blog, Design Matters. It’s a wonderful exploration of the principles that guide design and often pulls references from history. The blog is an extension of George’s forthcoming design column over at Popular Woodworking due out in February. He’s also working on a series of furniture design DVD’s. (The first two are out now through Lie-Nielsen.)

George, a veteran woodworker for over 25 years, conveys his experience and research through well-thought and expertly crafted posts. No matter your level of experience in furniture design, you will walk away with a new perspective on…well, perspective. Head over there and join the conversation. Tell him Adam sent you!

Every Day Design

The second resource is a new project from friend and fellow furniture maker, Jamon Schlimgen. He’s committed to drawing one piece of furniture everyday, for the entire year. Each day he posts his sketch for all to see at The Drawing Boards, where he includes his inspirations and observations concerning each design.

I want to bring Jamon’s project to your attention because he’s putting in to practice the one key to ultimate design success – action! It’s daily action, even. A lot of you have expressed confusion and fear about learning to draw and sketch your ideas on paper. Well, today is your day! What better way to really cut those new design teeth, than with a 365 project of your own. Seriously.

I challenge you to join Jamon in his daily designing. Spend some time each day simply drawing a quick sketch of a piece that’s been on your mind, or perhaps it’s something that just come to you in a flash of inspiration. The key is to do it. I can hear you now already complaining about the quality of your drawing. Stop it! That’s no excuse and it never will be. These aren’t supposed to be miniature works of art. They’re quick representations of your inspirations. Got it? Good.

Now, the second part. After you draw them, post them on the web. Put it on your blog, link to them in the comments on Jamon’s site, post them on Twitter, or if you don’t have access to any of those, let me know and I’ll see about putting them up here. The point is to make it public! “But, that might open me up to criticism!” Yes, but it also opens you up to valuable feedback and it gets you designing. A pretty fair tradeoff in my book. So, now that we have your excuses out of the way, it’s time to get started.

Step 1: Read these posts from The Woodworker’s Journey and subscribe if you haven’t yet.

Step 2: Go see George Walker to find out why Design Matters.

Step 3: Head over to Jamon’s 365 project to see how it looks, leave a comment, and let him know you’re doing it too.

Step 4: Start drawing and post them to the web.

Step 5: Reap the rewards of a fresh perspective and renewed design inspiration!

Let me know how it’s going, in the comments, will you?

Related posts:

1. A Simple Process for Design Success
2. How Do You Go From Inspiration to Sketchbook?

This topic was producing the longest post in the history of blogging, so I broke it up into a series.

Years ago, I was talked in to displaying and “selling” at a local art show. I thought it would be good chance to show the community that there was some quality woodworking happening around them. I spent several weeks toiling away on smaller items people could buy and carry around with ease. I wanted to make it as easy as possible for people to buy. I remember having visions of crowds backed up to my booth, and all the other vendors scratching their heads in amazement. I was so sure people would want what I was making because these were fresh designs, complimented by “expert” craftsmanship.

Finally the day came, and I set up my table with all of the beautiful items. I unfolded a couple of chairs for people to sit and talk if they like, and unlocked my money box. I was ready for the tidal wave of art patrons! One by one, people slowly started walking by,pointing and making comments to themselves. A few people grew to a small crowd after a couple of hours. Then, by midday I was immersed in folks standing around asking questions, discussing construction methods, and wood choices. I was thrilled! I talked to so many people that day, that I lost my voice.

The show ended, and I was beat. I had stood there all day talking, greeting, and telling my story to literally thousands of people. I finally sat down, and opened the money box to see how much I had made. Empty. What?!?! Nothing?! No sales? That’s right. No one bought anything. I was devastated. I spent the rest of the day putting everything back in the shop and feeling very worthless. One question kept running through my mind that evening; “Does the world really need my furniture?”

At some point in time, I’m sure this question has run through your mind. You work in your shop, alone, and wonder if what you’re doing really matters. You might ask yourself:

Does it really matter to anyone else but me whether I make furniture or not?

Who wants my work? (other than family being nice)

What good does it do to make things no one sees or cares about?

What good are you doing if your work isn’t being featured in the magazines, isn’t on display in prestigious galleries, or isn’t even being asked for by clients? Is there even a reason for you to keep working? There can be many reasons for giving up in your pursuits of mastering the craft, so why do you keep going?

The way of the craftsman can feel very lonely at times. Especially when there is no one waiting with open arms for your completed work. Before you throw in the proverbial shop towel and sell your tools on Ebay, I just want to tell you that there is hope. People do want what you make, and in fact they might just need it.

In part 2 we’ll look at what the world might be needing from you as a woodworker.

So, did you come up with any answers when you asked yourself those questions? Have you found a reason to keep making your furniture? Is there a bigger picture that you keep in mind while designing and building those precious objects of distinction?

Let’s talk about it in the comments.

Open the eyes of the world to your work by subscribing to The Woodworker’s Journey.

No related posts.

I can’t say it enough – Thank You!

I’m grateful for all of you who have made The Woodworker’s Journey possible.

I wish all of you a Merry Christmas. I hope and pray that today is a time of peace and blessing. Whatever you do today, do it with gratitude, and enjoy every moment.

I can’t wait to see where this coming year will take us as we passionately pursue our journeys in woodworking.

Related posts:

1. Two Resources to Help You Sketch Your Design Success for 2010
2. Does the World Really Need Your Furniture? Pt. 1

You’ll notice I disabled the video comments for Woodworker’s Journey. It was due to a lot of technical problems with them and no support. It seems the folks at Riffly don’t exist anymore, so tech support was nill. Also, none of the video comments could play in IE.

(NO ONE should be web browsing with Internet Explorer in the first place. Firefox is best for PC people.)

Also, it wasn’t quite the platform of connection I had hoped it would be. My vision for The Woodworker’s Journey is to have a meeting place for all of us to share, connect, and inspire each and every one of us on our personal Journey. Each post, each video (coming next week), each feature that appears here is for the sole purpose of arming you with the knowledge and tools to work with greater confidence, passion, and fulfillment than you were before. So, I thought small videos could strengthen the connection between us all. I think it could still work, but there were too many cons to keep going with it. So, I’ve updated the comment system with several plugins that will help us continue discussions and connect to each other easier.

Real time collaboration and feedback is crucial to your success in, well…anything you do, not just woodworking. But a problem that occurs in this age of internet woodworking is a lack of real time critique and support. (check out the comments here)

Enter Google Wave. A real time platform for collaboration from the folks at Google. It’s still being tested and it’s invite only. I think it gets more hype than it deserves right now, but a small group of us woodworkers have been testing it’s potential to connect, share, and create. It’s been interesting. Right now my evaluation is simply that it is working for what we want to do with it. The more we play with it the more abilities we discover within it. It’s got potential, and I can’t wait to see where Google will take it.

That being said, Google Wave is again, invite only and I happen to have 19 (14) invites to give away.

If you’re even remotely interested in trying this experiment with us, leave a comment below and say that you want an invite. I’ll email you an invitation and then, you’re in! I really want to help assemble a committed group of woodworking innovators on this platform. We should embrace new technology and adapt it to our needs as a community. Let’s see what we can do to further inspire your woodworking journey while riding the wave.

What do think? Is there room for this kind of innovation in woodworking or are we just distracting ourselves from the real work? Let’s keep talking.

Want to join in on the experiment? Leave a comment below and indicate that you want an invite.

Related posts:

1. I Might Just Get In Trouble For This…
2. Two Resources to Help You Sketch Your Design Success for 2010

The last two days have produced some interesting discussions. The other day I was speaking with Rick from The Splintered Board about scaling down your tool use, and then yesterday there was a discussion of a similar topic on Twitter, which prompted Shannon of The Renaissance Woodworker to write this post.

I’ve had this post in queue for a while, so after yesterday it was clearly a good time to publish it.

The woodworking community is bombarded and really saturated with the shiny, the fancy, and the alluring. It comes to you in the form or a catalogue, an irresistible deal at your local dealer, or a flashy ad on a website. It’s the latest. It’s the greatest. It’s a must-have for anyone who’s “serious” about their woodworking.

By now, you’re completely aware of what I’m describing. It’s all the jigs, gadgets, and so called time savers that are produced and paraded in front of a salivating audience eager to acquire anything that appears to offer a shortcut or advantage. You, my dear woodworking friend, are the audience.

I’m not condemning them. I’m not even saying they’re bad. In fact, some of them are downright genius. The problem is when you give in to the thinking that your work isn’t complete without them.

Essentially you begin to hide behind them out of the fear of learning to do it the “hard way.” It’s almost as if you’re stacking the boxes they came in between you and your workbench. Seriously. Go do that. Take all the boxes your jigs and fixtures and gadgets came in, line them up going away from your workbench, and then stand behind them. Can you reach your bench? Can you even see your bench? Chances are, you’re probably in the middle of your driveway, parking lot, or neighbor’s yard.

All these fancy toys prevent you from connecting with your essential tools, materials, and ultimately yourself. The more you collect these marvels of woodworking mastery, the more you prevent yourself from forging a deeper connection with your work, and ultimately you rob yourself of the fulfillment and passion you are seeking in the first place.

The time spent learning all of these things could be spent learning the process with the tools you already possess. In fact, the longer you spend honing the skills to master your craft, the fewer tools you find yourself using and needing. I know that’s the case in my shop. I spend more and more time at the bench than in front of a machine. You can see this shift happening in Shannon’s article.

The lack of confidence you have in your abilities cannot be compensated by placing your trust in another fancy jig. That’s only going to keep pushing you further away form the goal. You acquire confidence through consistent practice. Repetition. Like anything else in life worth gaining, you do it over and over. Simple as that.

If you’re going to trust the outcome of your work to the ability of an expensive time-saving shiny object, then you failed to trust yourself. If that’s going to keep happening, then it’s time to close up shop. You’re done.

What’s your take on this? Have you experienced this disconnection?

Let’s discuss.

Related posts:

1. Does the World Really Need Your Furniture? Pt. 1
2. Two Resources to Help You Sketch Your Design Success for 2010