Explore Your Enthusiasm

Over the last several years I've talked to hundreds of makers and gotten an inside look at what works for them, what they're really making, and how they're making it all work. I've shared their stories with interviews and in lessons learned...but as great as those are, they still don't dig deep enough to the real numbers - traffic, sales, reality.

In this episode, I tell you how I want to share the real numbers with you and how you can help. It's all anonymous and it's all for a good reason - to get real about what works in small crafty businesses.

Listen to the episode here, then share your numbers here.

Let's be honest: Sometimes, everything is awful. (On the other hand, sometimes everything is awesome and you find yourself singing this song.) When things are awful, it helps if you have a list ready to go, to help you get through it (without giving up). In this episode I'll share the list of things I do when everything is awful and the tricks that work best for my clients.

Listen to the episode here: TaraSwiger.com/podcast50/

Every successful creative entrepreneur I work with has one thing in common. It sounds almost ridiculous, but science backs me up. What matters most to your business growth (and success, however you define that) is ... your mindset. Do you believe you can grow or change? Or do you believe everything is stuck?

Listen to the episode here: TaraSwigercom/podcast49/

The key to making your marketing effective: Talking directly to your people, about what they care about. But how do you know what they value and what will speak to them? It's super simple: Listen in. 

Listening to you, my dear listeners (!), led me to create the Starship, which is now open, just until this Friday. Beam up here.

Listen in to the full episode here: http://taraswiger.com/podcast48/

"I do some design work for the knit/crochet toys I make. What should I
do with my "seconds" or failed design attempts? They are completed,
it's just that I'm not really happy with the way the turned out and
end up making a modified version of the same toy.

Would selling them at a discount at a craft fair devalue my other work?"

In the second episode of Ask Tara - I answer this conundrum with three options.

To ask your questions, send an email with the subject line “Ask Tara” to [email protected], or fill out the form here.

To watch this episode, visit http://taraswiger.com/?p=8997

Not everything requires a complex solution. Sometimes, you need to make a decision but you feel stuck. You're not sure what you should do and your head is all swirly. It's time to pull out my favorite business tool: a conversation.

The Starship opens next Monday for only 5 days. Get on the list here to be notified first: http://eepurl.com/fHWJA

Want to have a conversation with me? You can book it here: http://taraswiger.com/product/flight-plan/

Listen to the full episode here: http://TaraSwiger.com/podcast47/

You do not need to get better at "managing your time." You need to take action. This is not about getting more done. It's about spending the time on the things that matter to you (including your business!).

In this episode I'll share

Listen to the full episode here: http://taraswiger.com/podcast46/ ‎

Welcome to the first episode to Ask Tara!
Today I'm answering the question of where to start with accounting and bookkeeping for your small creative business. I share my clients' favorite accounting resources and walk you through what I do.

Resources

For more information, visit http://taraswiger.com/?p=8992

How do you fit together everything you know about your people, plus your product and tools, into something that you can actually implement, and that is effective at reaching your right people? We'll cover the step by step process in this episode. We'll also talk about :

We've talked a lot about bits and pieces of your marketing in past episodes:

Listen to the full episode here: TaraSwiger.com/podcast45/

There are so many ways to communicate with your people - how do you choose the one that works best for you, your business, and your people? It's easy to just use what you see other people using, which means you're competing in the exact same spaces. Instead, take the time to thoughtfully choose the right communication method and set it up so you can stay consistent and effective.

In this episode you'll learn:

To listen in, visit TaraSwiger.com/podcast44/