I love business planning! And no, I don’t mean a creating a boring document that you’ll never read. I mean creating a plan for how much money I want my business to make, and how I want it to get there. Check out this video to learn my business planning strategy and to find out [...]
It’s a new year, and that means you’ve probably set some goals for where you want your business to go in 2011. I know I have. Setting goals is important, but your goals can only take you so far without a plan of attack. And I want to help. I want to make sure I’m [...]
Today I’m excited to share a guest post from Marie Young of Young Creative. Marie shares her tips for looking at the past and the present to help plan for the future of your business. Thanks, Marie! Every successful business must live in three dimensions simultaneously: the past, the present, and the future. Too much [...]
I’ve bee meaning to write about some of the concepts from Good to Great for the last week or so (since it is the book club book this month) but the scope of the book is so vast that I was having a hard time finding an entry point. But last night I was reading [...]
Thursday’s post on skill, price, and Etsy as business incubator generated a lot of good discussion, and I wanted to elaborate on a few more points. First, my key point is this, if Etsy isn’t meeting your needs, you’re under no obligation to stay. However, if Etsy is meeting your needs, that’s ok too. Stay [...]
I think a lot of craft businesses get started the same way – you have a process or technique that you love and you think, “I could do this as my job!” Maybe you went to school to learn this skill, or maybe you taught yourself. Or maybe it’s a product you started making that [...]
A few weeks ago, I sat down for an impromptu review of my business numbers. I calculated monthly income based on revenue stream, monthly expenses, and net profit. Then I set monthly sales goals for each revenue stream, and created a plan of attack to make those numbers a reality. After I was done, I [...]
Thanks to everyone for all your wonderfully supportive comments on all the growth week posts! A little later today I’ll be posting this week’s business buzz with a focus on more articles about helping you grow your business. (Plus a few links to peoples’ responses to growth week – so if you were inspired to [...]
When you’re just starting out wanting to sell the products you make, Etsy is an obvious first choice. It’s low cost, low risk, and it lets you test the waters of the marketplace. Add to that a growing legion of fans and a built in sense of community and there are plenty of reasons to [...]
One of the themes that has come up this week is that accelerated growth requires money. Whether it’s hiring a web designer, tackling a trade show, or simply buying materials for a new collection, everything has it’s cost. So how do you finance growth? Well, you could borrow money from friends and family, dip into [...]
Megan Auman is a designer, maker, educator, and entrepreneur who has built a multi-faceted business around her passion for great design and sustainable business. Her eponymous jewelry line is sold in stores across the US and online. In 2009, Megan founded Crafting an MBA to help designers and makers develop their business skills. In 2011, the site name was changed to Designing an MBA.
Learn more about Designing an MBA.
