http://www.beadbarmy.com/2012/01/hobby-to-business-whats-not-to-like/
If you already have a Facebook page to promote your jewellery or are considering starting one, Helen Bowen’s article on the pros and cons makes for essential reading.
Facebook can be a fantastic platform for testing the waters with a new business venture and maintaining a rapport with customers when running an established concern. This is what, regular Bead Barmy reader, Helen Bowen, told us about her experiences, both good and bad.
Selling for free on Facebook – what’s not to ‘like’?
Up until about a year ago, making jewellery had been nothing more than a hobby for me. I was a busy stay-at-home mum just snatching time whenever I could to make gifts (and the odd commission) for friends and family. I loved my hobby and feedback on my work had been fantastic so starting up my own small business seemed a logical step. I think it was at a local beading group that I first heard about selling on Facebook. I didn’t have the time or money to invest in building my own website or the knowledge to dive straight into setting up a shop on Etsy or Folksy, selling for free on Facebook seemed a great way to dip my toe in the water. With limited free time available, Facebook provided the ideal platform for me to create an online presence. I didn’t need any technical skills and building a page was so quick and easy. The third party applications available provided all the functionality I needed to upload photos of my jewellery and I could take payments via Paypal. I had a basic business page up and running within a matter of hours!
One step at a time
Those early days seem such a long time ago now. I remember the initial struggle to reach the first 25 fans needed to secure a user name for my page and the excitement of my very first sale. It was hard work and meant a lot of late nights working on new jewellery pieces and maintaining my page, but it was also extremely rewarding. I loved the real-time interaction with fans and the ability to get immediate feedback on my work as well as give and receive advice on all manner of things. My Facebook sales were financing my hobby but the best thing of all, was that I was growing my business at my own pace.
A sound investment
Before I knew it, my page was celebrating reaching 800 and then 1000 fans with lots of repeat customers, some great reviews and a new network of Facebook business friends to boot. You see, the real joy of running a business from Facebook (aside from it being free and easy to do!) is that you become part of a community. If you invest the time and effort to interact with your fans, posting useful and interesting content, gathering opinions, seeking advice as well as providing it, your time will be rewarded not only in increased sales and referrals but in new friendships. Use Facebook simply as a marketing tool, continually spamming fans with offers, posting your page links on other business’ walls and growing your fan base artificially through untargeted networking such as ‘marches’ or ‘silent tagging’ and it’s unlikely that you will see the same returns.
Blank faces
The trouble with Facebook is that, from a business point of view, nothing about it is actually ‘face’ to ‘face’ at all. In fact, it really is a very faceless market in which to try and trade. As a customer, you may not be able to easily identify an individual behind a business page or work out how to communicate with a trader aside from posting publicly on their wall. For the business user, balancing the professional business image that will win the trust of potential customers with the desire to interact informally with fans can prove problematic.
Beware of other costs to your business
At all times, a business page must abide by the Facebook terms of service, contravention of which could see it closed down without discussion. Your page exists also at the mercy of the Facebook developers who may add or remove functionality without warning so if you are a creature of habit, the ever-changing world of Facebook is probably not for you! A business on Facebook does not own the content or the data on its page and if Facebook disappeared tomorrow, so would your business and your customer base. And this is not the only risk to your revenues. Whilst the informal nature of the Facebook platform can make interacting with customers easy and fun, you can also find yourself the victim of some less friendly attention because of it. The copying of jewellery designs, content and marketing ideas from a Facebook page happens more than you might think. I’ve learned from my own tough experience. Some rival page-owners are happy to steal your hard work without a second thought and it is very difficult to protect a Facebook business particularly if you do not have measures in place from the outset. Strategies for dealing with such online copycats are varied and numerous but I’ll write about those another time.
Learning from the Facebook experience
I suspended my Facebook page in early December. It was a difficult decision but one that I don’t regret. I get a real buzz from creating new pieces but the stress of having my business ideas and designs stolen caused me to lose my creative spark for a while. My growing business was also starting to impact negatively on family life. The dining room had become a workshop, all but basic housework activity had ceased and dog walks had become necessary sprints around the common rather than the old rambles in the woods.
My page was still there, a link sitting on my profile page that led to bizarre place, frozen in time. Still 1064 fans and yet a weird eeriness about the page that came with being the only person interacting with it.
Over the following weeks, I came to some decisions about my business and its future ‘face’ on Facebook. It’s all too easy to convince yourself that boosting fan numbers and gaining feedback on every status update and new photo is the sign of a healthy business. Facebook is a wonderful environment for building brand awareness and networking, but it does not have the flexibility or functionality that will allow your business to truly differentiate itself. It will also never reach those potential customers who don’t like or trust Facebook as a social media let alone as an online shopping site.
A different outlook
Ring O’ Roses – Handmade Jewellery now has a very different Facebook presence. I still share my love of jewellery and creating with friends, fans and even my competitors and I have a beautiful gallery of some of my work on my page. But, I now preview my latest pieces on my blog and sell my items through other channels including a local craft centre and Etsy.
So, if you are thinking of starting a jewellery business, it definitely pays to use a Facebook business page, especially if you enjoy interacting with your customers. Just be aware of the potential pitfalls and don’t become consumed by it. And if you already run a business on Facebook, take some time out occasionally to reassess your page. You’ll be amazed what you can achieve in the time not spent chasing fans, comments and likes or waiting for the photo uploader to work. You might even find you ‘like’ it
About the author
Helen Bowen is a member of the Guild of Jewellery Designers and a Self-Representing Artist in Jewellery Designer (SRAJD). She is owner/creator of Ring O’ Roses – Handmade Jewellery and writer of the ‘A Pocketful of Posies‘ blog. From her home in Warwickshire, she designs and makes beautiful individual pieces with a strong reference to nature and a real eye for colour and detail. She works on commission but also creates for general sale.
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