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A lot of business advice talks about needing to find your ideal customer. That hypothetical person that you need to understand inside and out - from what stores they shop at to what value system they use to view the world. And while this is important, what most of that business advice does not tell you is that it is nearly impossible to figure out who your ideal customer is without first actually putting yourself out there and trying to sell your work. But of course, there’s a huge gap between initially trying to sell your work and learning who your ideal people are. Most of us wish we could skip through the awkward pre-teen-like business years of uncomfortable situations and conversations with non-ideal customers. I get it. I’ve been there. 

And while there’s no way to truly avoid those growing pains, a great way to be able to protect your own energy through the process is to know with absolute certainty that what you are doing is taking care of people. Not recommending the most expensive item in your booth because you want to make the big sale, but instead, recommending the item you genuinely think will solve the problem the person has described to you. While I could tell you all about how to define an ideal customer, at the end of the day, what I was reminded of during my chat with Makeda Smith is that all of this making a living from the things we make craziness starts with building relationships. Not only between fellow makers to help us through the unknown (as I talk about so frequently), but also in building relationships with the people we are meeting that may - or may not - buy our work.

Guest Resources:
Makeda's  Instagram - @sioceramics
Website - https://sioceramics.com/

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As much as I talk about analytics, strategic decisions, data, systems and all the very pragmatic things about building a small business… Honestly, a lot of this whole making a living from the things you make thing is still ultimately, emotional decisions. But how can those pesky emotions help guide us in our decisions rather than derail us? We can't possibly trust every fleeting feeling we have, can we?

If you are interested in diving deeper on the questions addressed in this episode - questions that require nuance and trust - you might want to check out The Community and see if it just might be the safe oasis you've been looking for. Learn more at: makersplaybook.com/community

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In this chat, you are going to hear my unfiltered shock at how little I actually know about Maya’s personal life - proof that you do not have to overshare on the internet in order to use social media for strategic business growth, how Maya has pivoted her audience over the years through drastically different styles of making, and (equally exciting for me), how she changes her business model throughout the year based on what her personal life needs - Hallelujah!


Guest Resources:
Maya's  Instagram - @melissamayapottery
Website - https://melissamayapottery.com/collections/online-workshops-and-consultations

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When you dream about going full-time with your craft, what is the real job? Is it really going to be your hands in clay all day, every day? Getting to hit that coveted “flow state” in the studio because you finally have no other interruptions and can simply focus? I mean, that sounds like a dream, but more often than not, the big surprise for any of us starting a small business can be that the bulk of our time isn’t actually spent on the thing we think it will be spent on. Cara Steinbuchel of Cara Mae Skincare (and the beloved Potters Skin lotion) brought up this exact subject on our chat this week and we peeled back the curtain about on her “real” job while also laughing about it all along the way.

Guest Resources:
Cara 's  Instagram - @caramaeskincare
Website - https://www.caramaeskincare.com/

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I think it’s a safe assumption to make that most of us enjoy sharing a story about how we made a piece we are particularly proud of. Or heck! We enjoy sharing a funny fail story about a flop on the wheel (once enough time has passed that we can laugh about it, of course). Now what if I told you that storytelling is actually all you need to do in order to sell your ceramics. 

My chat today with Naomi Clement is going to shed some light on how all sales really is, at least when done well and perhaps more naturally than your local used car guy - is simply storytelling. Which actually isn’t so bad.

Episode Links:
Loved this chat? Continue the conversation inside of The Community! Learn more here by clicking here.

Sign up for Naomi's free webinar: Artist Statements 101. Save your spot here.

Come say "hey!" on Instagram! @themakersplaybook
Naomi's IG: @naomikclement

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Sometimes, making art can feel less important as we scroll through the news and battle with all that’s happening in the world. How can the things we make battle racism? How can a pot positively influence the needs of climate change? It sounds a little silly. Until we realize that culture is what changes the world. And art is uniquely linked to affecting culture and thus, change. Today’s guest, Kristina Batiste, creates minimalist ceramics that hold these huge subjects within their beauty and reminds me that the things we make can bring about the change we dream of. 

Links mentioned in this episode: 

Tacoma Pottery Salon: tacomapotterysalon.org

Click here for the interview with Osa Atoe on Tales of a Red Clay Rambler

and click here for Kristina’s website

Kristina's Instagram - @juniperclay

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Doors to the Maker's Photography Styling System are once again open! But only for the next week. If taking better photos faster sounds like a dream, come learn how together we can make it a reality by clicking here: makersplaybook.com/mpss

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There are few things in life I find more encouraging than finding colleagues who understand your life. With all do respect to our supportive loved ones, there’s just something different about the depth of conversation you can have with another person who understands how heartbreaking it can be when you bump that perfectly trimmed bowl you’ve been working on for days off the shelf or how thrilling it can be to sell your first pot. Only the people doing these same things really feel the same depth of those feelings with us. And if it wasn’t obvious from Part One of my chat with Lisa & David of Dault Pottery, when I get a chance to connect with others who are building their life in ways similar to my own, I’ll chat for hours. So we’re back for Part Two, which really only ended because the kiddos made us! 

BIG ANNOUNCEMENT:
We're hosting our FREE Live Webinar on the 4 Most Common Instagram Photography Mistakes (and how to avoid them) once more this year and just in time for all of that holiday shop update prep! Save your seat here: makersplaybook.com/instagram-photography/

Guest Resources:
The Dault's  Instagram - @daultpottery
Website - https://daultpottery.com/

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When I hear people talk about boundaries and cutting back on work hours and all of that beautiful sounding work/life balance stuff, I assume the person preaching this has already reached a certain point of success. I think to myself, “Well, of course you can cut back on your work hours now. You already have -insert whatever- going for you, so it's safe to slow down." But what if the very reason for launching your small business in the first place was in service of building an un-hurried lifestyle? I've said many, many times that we must choose our lives first and build our businesses around them, second, but I didn't figure that out until I messed up the order with my first business. On this episode of the Maker's Playbook, Lisa & David Dault share how they are ruthlessly eliminating hurry from their freshly full-time pottery business right from the very beginning.

BIG ANNOUNCEMENT:
We're hosting our FREE Live Webinar on the 4 Most Common Instagram Photography Mistakes (and how to avoid them) once more this year and just in time for all of that holiday shop update prep! Save your seat here: makersplaybook.com/instagram-photography/

Guest Resources:
The Dault's  Instagram - @daultpottery
Website - https://daultpottery.com/

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A lot of the time, we think about the benefits of in-person markets solely related to the sales we do on the specific day(s) of the market. But what if you thought a little bit more strategically? This week’s guest shares how she’s approaching selling at markets as a means of direct market research for who her ideal customer just might be… or not be.

Guest Resources:
Yvonne's  Instagram - @_yvonnerausch

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