Creating goals for your Etsy shop is one of the first steps to a successful online business. You need them, so why not spend a little time to get them just right? Planning a bit will lead you down the quickest road to success.
What we consider to be successful varies from person to person. Some people have Etsy shops as a hobby or to fund their ever-growing craft habit, while others are striving to grow their handmade business into a future dream job. Whatever your idea of success is , goals are a great way to get there.
3 Steps to Creating Your Handmade Business Goals
1. Know what you want from your business and keep your goals in line with what you want.
It can be tempting to let other people’s success story sway your goal setting ideas. Think about what you want from your Etsy shop and what’s actually possible with the amount of time you have to devote to it. This might change from year to year, but your goals will most definitely need to fit with your life.
Some people are looking to sell their designs to large companies and others are hoping to make extra money with handmade items made while their children are taking a nap.
You’ll never guess what my first goal was for my Etsy shop! I wanted to sell enough to pay for Christmas gifts that year and I was THRILLED when I did! I met and passed many goals over the last 6 years and the future seems to just keep getting brighter for selling online!
Here are some goals I’ve heard from other Etsy sellers…
- Increase my online sales to pay for a new car.
- Grow my business enough to quit my day job.
- Expand to a brick-and-mortar shop.
- Sell enough to pay for all my college books.
- Double my sales and hire a helper.
- Get my items published in a magazine.
2. Create exciting goals! Be ambitious and set challenging goals that you’ll want to strive toward all year long.
Try using a vision board to keep you on the right track. Something creative could help you more than the latest computer software or daily planner. I need a little creativity and a planner…use a combination of what works for you.
These are a few of my favorite organizing tools…
- Evernote {to keep track of ideas}
- Google Calendars
- My Filofax Metropol Organizer {to keep my life in order…ha!}
- Free 2014 Printable Calendars
- And lots of sticky notes!
3. Take baby steps. Larger goals can seem overwhelming if you don’t break them down into smaller steps. Try starting with a year-end goal and working backwards to create monthly or weekly steps to get you to your goal.
I break down my goals into mini goals with dates and list the next steps to get me there. I like to cross thing off, so this gives me plenty of small actions to cross off each week making me feel pretty awesome. 🙂
Reaching small goals can motivate you to keep striving…pat yourself on the back on a regular basis for all your successes along the way.
Write down your goals, paint your goals on the wall, or sew your goals on your clothes…whatever it takes to keep you on the right track…ha!
No matter what your dreams are, now’s the time to take action!
Selling online and blogging can open up a world of opportunity for you and your family. I know because we are living it! My sweet husband had no idea what he was getting into when he created a blog for my Etsy shop back in 2008!
Don’t wait! A year from now you may wish you had started today!
Now, let’s talk about your goals, your life and your business!
Whether you’re looking for extra Christmas money or to quit your day job, now’s the time to plan the way to your goals. What are the main business goals your have for the next year? What do you want your business to look like in the future?
I’d love to hear about your goals in the comments!
Happy New Year!
~Kim
I use SOO many sticky notes! Haha! I’m glad I’m not the only one! Great post, I loved it!
Wow… I would love to make enough to buy a new car… or just a new camera. Seriously… even before I start thinking about money goals, I’d just like to create stuff on a regular basis. I need to dedicate more time to creativity in general. I’m working on the current goal of having one new craft item done per week. *fingers crossed*
This is a really great article, btw, thank you!
Google calendar is seriously a life-saver. I’ve also recently started using Evernote. Thanks for the tips!
My goal is to find more time to make things to help increase my shop inventory and my sales.
2013 was a great year for me. I grossed over $114,000 in sales! It is my full time job and I love every minute of it.
My goal for 2014! To take a vacation and hire some help as I work some long days.
Happy New Year 😉
Great post – this is so appropriate for me as I have just started a blog (really scarey) and I am in the middle of creating handmade stuff to go on in. I realise that setting goals is important but I am a big cowardly custard when it comes to goal setting. I need a kick in the pants I think. I will be taking all your advice onboard, Thank you.
I guess I am behind the learning curve since I have a goal of starting an Etsy or eBay shop this year.
Great post! I’m just starting out with my business (I’ve got the store, but no items posted yet), and this is something I definitely needed to read. I’m trying to do as much research as I can before I actually open up shop, that way I don’t get frustrated and abandon the project. So, I guess my first goal would be to actually get some things listed in my shop–hopefully no later than March. My overall goal for my shop right now is to make enough money to pay off some credit card debt. Once that happens, then we’ll see where I’ll go from there!
Great post and just what I needed. I really want to open at Etsy shop in 2014 and needed this kick in the pants to help me focus. Thanks for all of the great info. I love the site!
Just getting it all together for 2014 will be good for me. 1) We have a huge pole barn but I am doing my work at my kitchen table because we do not have a heat source for the barn yet. My poor husband has to run, through the snow and ice, to the barn to cut or sand my wood. 2) This one relates to #1 all my supplies that I once had a little organized are scattered all over my dining workshop. I am working on that. My darling husband got me a rolling cart from Kmart that has helped bunches.3) Although I have the Etsy and Ebay accounts set up I now need the stock, pictures, and descriptions to be ready to list and sell. I also have my blog and FB business page set up. So wish me luck for a heat source or warmer weather. Good luck all!
Great blog and good advise. We’re hoping to stock gallery this year as well as selling on our etsy shop and craft fairs. Fingers crossed.
Thanks for stopping …your shop is lovely!
~Kim