#311 The 3 Pillars of Online Sales with Megan Auman
Selling your jewelry online is how independent designers thrive in today’s market.
I met Megan Auman many years ago at a jewelry event. We immediately hit it off because we have so much in common.
Megan is an artist, a metalsmith, and the founder of Designing an MBA. She’s passionate about helping artists make a profit from their work – just like me!
After earning a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in fine arts, she considered going back to school again for an MBA.
That is, until a friend told her, “That’s crazy. You could already teach this stuff.”
So she did, and Designing an MBA was born.
We got together to chat about something we’re both passionate about: teaching artists and makers to sell their work online.
Megan likes to break down a successful online sales strategy into 3 key pillars: emailing your list, having a consistent content strategy, and leveraging other people’s audiences.
Click here to download the show notes
Email Your List
Email marketing is something you might shy away from because you’re afraid of bothering people.
Megan says let go of that shame.
You should be emailing your list once a week, at the very least.
It doesn’t have to be anything extravagant. In fact, Megan hates the word “newsletter” because it sends the wrong idea about what effective email marketing actually looks like.
Keep it simple. A beautiful image of your product, a few sentences, and a strong call to action about how to buy it.
Consistent Content Strategy
Successful business owners know that consistency is key in any online content strategy.
Megan recommends picking one platform and getting really good at it.
Every platform has its own set of rules and best practices. It’s better to build a strong online presence on one platform than to halfheartedly push content to every platform.
Consistency means a high quantity of content, too. Try setting one day aside to batch as much content as you can, then slowly release it on your platform of choice.
Leverage Other People’s Audiences
When we talk about leveraging other people’s audiences, you probably think about working with influencers.
That’s one way to do it, but it’s not the only way.
Any time you’re able to connect with a broader audience through someone else, you’re leveraging another person’s audience.
This could include selling your product in stores, going to retail shows, selling on other platforms, working with an influencer, getting featured in a blog, etc. etc. etc.
Figure out what works for your brand. But most importantly, don’t wait for people to come to you. You have to put yourself out there to get the exposure you want.
This is only skimming the surface of Megan’s expert advice.
Listen to the full episode above for a deeper dive into how you can implement each of these strategies in your own online creative business.
xo, Tracy
Links:
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Resources for Jewelry Designers
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