The Create & Thrive Podcast

I have done just that – many years ago, I ran an Earring-of-the-Month Club, which was quite successful.

Customers could sign up for a monthly subscription, or they could buy 3, 6, or 12 month subscriptions (which made great gifts!).

In this episode, I tell the story of why I started the club, how I ran it, and why I eventually wound it up.

I also outline some reasons why you might like to consider offering some form of subscription for your own products, and how to go about doing so!

This is a premium episode, available only to members of the Thriver Circle.

You’ll be able to get access to the FULL episode, as well as ALL past premium episodes when you become a member.

You can make a secure donation (of the amount of your choice) via the Paypal button below.

Each donation helps cover the cost of hosting, show-note writing, research, interviewing, recording, editing, etc. etc.

In short – it helps to cover the time and financial costs of putting together a free weekly show to help you grow your handmade business.

You can also:

 That’s the position that my guest today – Ryan Popov – finds himself in – and as he stated himself in the podcast, he never dreamt he’d be where he is today when he was perfecting that wallet for himself 6 years ago.

His business has been incredibly successful in a relatively short timeframe, and in this episode he shares:

 I had so much fun chatting to Ryan for this episode – he’s clearly passionate about his craft, and about his business, and I hope you enjoy listening to his story as much as I did!

You can make a secure donation (of the amount of your choice) via the Paypal button below.

Each donation helps cover the cost of hosting, show-note writing, research, interviewing, recording, editing, etc. etc.

In short – it helps to cover the time and financial costs of putting together a free weekly show to help you grow your handmade business.

You can also:

 So how do you make sure to stay on top of everything while maintaining your sanity?

That’s what today’s podcast is aaaaaall about. I’ve got 16(!) strategies that will help you stay sane and survive the silly sales season when you’re running an online business.

You can make a secure donation (of the amount of your choice) via the Paypal button below.

Each donation helps cover the cost of hosting, show-note writing, research, interviewing, recording, editing, etc. etc.

In short – it helps to cover the time and financial costs of putting together a free weekly show to help you grow your handmade business.

You can also:

More info:

And I get it, I’ve been there – it’s almost impossible to not take it personally, especially the first time it happens to you in your business journey.

The fact is: it’s inevitable that at some stage in your business you will have an unhappy customer.

The old saying ‘you can’t please 100% of the people 100% of the time’ holds true for every business, no matter how hard you try or how awesome you are (and I know you’re awesome!).

You can’t live in fear of it happening though! You must contemplate in advance that it is going to happen one day, and rather than stick your head in the sand, be aware and realistic, and ensure you are prepared to deal with an unhappy customer when the time comes.

The truth is: sometimes things go wrong. Sometimes you will stuff up. Sometimes it will be out of your control. Sometimes you will be able to turn it around… and sometimes you won’t.

No matter the situation, this episode outlines some ways you can be prepared and ensure you manage the situation effectively: with compassion, rationality, humility, honestly, and grace.

This is a re-broadcast of episode 82.

You can make a secure donation (of the amount of your choice) via the Paypal button below.

Each donation helps cover the cost of hosting, show-note writing, research, interviewing, recording, editing, etc. etc.

In short – it helps to cover the time and financial costs of putting together a free weekly show to help you grow your handmade business.

You can also:

Maybe you want to grow your followers and your community.

Maybe there’s a cause you want to promote, or something you want to celebrate.

Whatever the reason, Instagram challenges can be a lot of fun, and a great way to engage your followers… but they are also a LOT of work.

In this episode I chat to my friend Amanda Adams about her experience running her successful IG challenge #bpsewvember over 5 consecutive years.

This is a premium episode, available only to members of the Thriver Circle. If you want the whole episode, you’re in luck – membership is open right now, and closes on October 29, 2019!

So you’ll be able to get access to the FULL episode, as well as ALL past premium episodes when you become a member.

You can make a secure donation (of the amount of your choice) via the Paypal button below.

Each donation helps cover the cost of hosting, show-note writing, research, interviewing, recording, editing, etc. etc.

In short – it helps to cover the time and financial costs of putting together a free weekly show to help you grow your handmade business.

You can also:

This happens to most of us eventually – especially those of us who have been in business for a long time.

How do you know if or when it’s time to quit?

In this episode I give you some food for thought, and outline a few key questions to ask yourself in order to decide if it really is time to throw in the towel, or if you’re just having a bad day.

You can make a secure donation (of the amount of your choice) via the Paypal button below.

Each donation helps cover the cost of hosting, show-note writing, research, interviewing, recording, editing, etc. etc.

In short – it helps to cover the time and financial costs of putting together a free weekly show to help you grow your handmade business.

You can also:

There is no one-size-fits-all solution to this question – but in this podcast episode, I do my best to lay out all of the things you need to consider when making the decision.

I outline 15 different aspects to consider – things like price, security, design & much more!

I also discuss the difference between selling on a marketplace (like Etsy, Amazon, Ebay) versus selling on a stand-alone website (like Squarespace, Wix, or Shopify). AND – why you might want to do both.

If you are just getting started, my usual recommendation is to begin with an Etsy shop – but that shouldn’t be the be-all and end-all of your online presence – and I outline why that is in this episode, too.

If you’ve been wanting to set up shop online, but don’t know where to start, this episode will steer you in the right direction – as will my course, Set Up Shop, which is open for registration right now – and class starts October 14, 2019! 

Do you want to learn how to set up your own online craft shop and get it right, first time?

Check out my flagship course – Set Up Shop

You can make a secure donation (of the amount of your choice) via the Paypal button below.

Each donation helps cover the cost of hosting, show-note writing, research, interviewing, recording, editing, etc. etc.

In short – it helps to cover the time and financial costs of putting together a free weekly show to help you grow your handmade business.

You can also:

It’s back! Those of you who are long-time listeners to the show may remember the original Making It Podcourse I ran in July 2018.

Well, I’ve re-organised the lessons, and am bringing this free course to you again in September 2019 – but this time, in weekly chunks. 

Each episode will be approximately an hour long, packed full of lessons.

Today is the fourth and final week of the course, and in it, I talk about all things business management.

I’m going to cover managing a whole range of things – your focus, your energy, your expectations, your business systems, your time, and your schedule. Some of those might seem like somewhat of a surprise, but I promise you – managing all of them well is the only way to ensure everything flows smoothly in your business.

In September I’ll be releasing an episode once per week, via the Create & Thrive Podcast – on the topics of mindset, money, marketing, and business management.

To create this course, I’ve drawn on my 10 years of experience running my own successful handmade business, coupled with over 6 years of teaching other makers about handmade business right here at Create & Thrive.

I wanted to create something that was actionable and practical for all makers, no matter what stage of business you are at: and that would allow you to dig deep into 4 key aspects of the crafty biz journey.

I hope it helps your handmade business to thrive!

If you want to take your learning to the next level, the course conversation is happening daily over in my private membership community for makers – the Thriver Circle.

You can find out more about the oodles of benefits of membership right here. Membership will open again in late October, 2019.

Jess x

Just enter your email below…

You can make a secure donation (of the amount of your choice) via the Paypal button below.

Each donation helps cover the cost of hosting, show-note writing, research, interviewing, recording, editing, etc. etc.

In short – it helps to cover the time and financial costs of putting together a free weekly show to help you grow your handmade business.

You can also:

It’s back! Those of you who are long-time listeners to the show may remember the original Making It Podcourse I ran in July 2018.

Well, I’ve re-organised the lessons, and am bringing this free course to you again in September 2019 – but this time, in weekly chunks. 

Each episode will be approximately an hour long, packed full of lessons.

Today is the third week of the course, and in it, I talk about all things marketing.

What exactly IS marketing? Why does it matter? What is your Brand Story and how should you tell it? What is visual marketing? What is SEO and why does it matter? I’ll also discuss how to use social media, a mailing list, and more. 

In September I’ll be releasing an episode once per week, via the Create & Thrive Podcast – on the topics of mindset, money, marketing, and business management.

To create this course, I’ve drawn on my 10 years of experience running my own successful handmade business, coupled with over 6 years of teaching other makers about handmade business right here at Create & Thrive.

I wanted to create something that was actionable and practical for all makers, no matter what stage of business you are at: and that would allow you to dig deep into 4 key aspects of the crafty biz journey.

I hope it helps your handmade business to thrive!

If you want to take your learning to the next level, the course conversation is happening daily over in my private membership community for makers – the Thriver Circle.

You can find out more about the oodles of benefits of membership right here. Membership will open again in late October, 2019.

Jess x

Just enter your email below…

You can make a secure donation (of the amount of your choice) via the Paypal button below.

Each donation helps cover the cost of hosting, show-note writing, research, interviewing, recording, editing, etc. etc.

In short – it helps to cover the time and financial costs of putting together a free weekly show to help you grow your handmade business.

You can also:

It’s back! Those of you who are long-time listeners to the show may remember the original Making It Podcourse I ran in July 2018.

Well, I’ve re-organised the lessons, and am bringing this free course to you again in September 2019 – but this time, in weekly chunks. 

Each episode will be approximately an hour long, packed full of lessons.

Today is the second week of the course, and in it, I take you on a money journey – helping you figure out your money story, clarifying what you can expect out of your business in the early days, addressing the ‘what should I charge’ question, clarifying profit, and much more.

In September I’ll be releasing an episode once per week, via the Create & Thrive Podcast – on the topics of mindset, money, marketing, and business management.

To create this course, I’ve drawn on my 10 years of experience running my own successful handmade business, coupled with over 6 years of teaching other makers about handmade business right here at Create & Thrive.

I wanted to create something that was actionable and practical for all makers, no matter what stage of business you are at: and that would allow you to dig deep into 4 key aspects of the crafty biz journey.

I hope it helps your handmade business to thrive!

If you want to take your learning to the next level, the course conversation is happening daily over in my private membership community for makers – the Thriver Circle.

You can find out more about the oodles of benefits of membership right here. Membership will open on September 16th, 2019.

Jess x

Just enter your email below…

You can make a secure donation (of the amount of your choice) via the Paypal button below.

Each donation helps cover the cost of hosting, show-note writing, research, interviewing, recording, editing, etc. etc.

In short – it helps to cover the time and financial costs of putting together a free weekly show to help you grow your handmade business.

You can also: