One of the best ways that craft businesses can help with economic recovery is in the creation of new jobs. This also happens to be one of the most overlooked ways that craft can contribute to improving the economy.
Many of us look at our businesses and think that hiring someone, or paying someone to do work for us, is completely out of the question. But that could be because the people you’re thinking about hiring don’t actually contribute to growing the business.
We often think it would be nice to have someone help pack up the orders, if and when they come. Or have someone help us with production and making stuff.
And while these are good and valuable jobs, in order to hire these positions, your business already needs to be in a place where sales are good. (At the very least, that sales are higher than you can manage on your own.) But many of us just aren’t there.
Instead, what if we started hiring people that would actually boost our sales through the jobs they were doing? Instead of waiting for sales to improve before hiring someone, you’re hiring someone with the idea that their position would help improve your sales. (And more than pay for itself in the process.)
When I talk about hiring, I’m not necessarily talking about hiring them full time as a traditional employee, though this is certainly an option. More so, what I’m talking about are virtual assistants, independent contractors, and other service providers that you might hire in order to help boost your sales and help the economy through the creation of new jobs at the same time.
Let’s take a look at some of the jobs that would help boost sales in your business:
- Sales. One of the best ways to boost sales is, of course, to hire someone whose sole job is to increase sales. And because sales reps normally work on commission, you only have to pay them when you see results. Most product-oriented businesses will sign on with a sales rep or a rep group who also represents various other makers. While this is always a viable approach, you could also hire a sales rep who works only for you (but still works on commission.) In The Ultimate Sales Machine
, author Chet Holmes gives a great description of the process for hiring someone to help boost your sales.
- Marketing. If you’d rather create than market, why not hire someone who can focus on marketing tasks for you. Whether a virtual assistant or independent service provider, there are lots of people who can help with the day-to-day, or long term marketing strategies, of your business. Some areas where you might look for a little help are:
-
- Copywriting. If you have trouble talking about your own work, a copywriter could be the perfect thing to help you boost your online sales.
- Social media. If spending time on social media isn’t your thing, there are plenty of virtual assistants available who can help market your business that way.
- SEO. If you’re trying to bring more traffic to your website, hiring a Search Engine Optimization consultant could be the way to go. (But I would make sure my copywriting is spot on first.)
- Public relations. Working with a traditional PR firm can be expensive, and of the jobs I’m talking about here, can take the longest to see a return on your investment. However, getting help for PR isn’t limited to hiring a firm. A good VA can research potential press contacts, help draft a pitch, and even email editors on your behalf.
There are many other options to hire people who can help your business grow while providing a boost to the economy. When you think about how your business can help contribute to the economy, consider how hiring someone can be a boost to your bottom line as well.
So true! Since I’ve hired very flexible part timers, its released me to work on my website, generating more contacts and establishing more presence in what I do. It makes me more available in the “meet-n-greet” aspect of my business.
It takes a little time to get everyone up to par but well worth the weeding out and gaining the good help you need to grow and expand your business. Everyone brings something to the table. I love it!
spot on, megan! it is so important to look at hire help as a way to produce more income and not a suck on your finances.
even just hiring someone to help with administrative tasks that allows you to free up more time for doing things that make more money is valid. trust me – i’ve done it, wouldn’t give it up!
remember, time is money. if you pay someone less money than you would charge so that you can do more work that pays, you’ve made out. and you’ve really & truly helped someone – in a big way! – in the process.
and another thing… i just handed $25 bucks to the lawn mowing service. ya know, that’s “hiring help” that’s helped me boost sales too! it gives my husband and i more time to balance the needs of our family & the needs of my business.
this idea is really important – and can go a lot further than you think!
I’ve been seeing this message around lately and have recently bit the bullet and hired out for almost all of my graphic and web design. I can manage to do it on my own, but I have to learn along the way so it takes SO much time, as in hours and hours to do those things myself! I realized that it’s much more cost effective to have a professional do it for me so that I can focus on the important stuff. And, you can find some really good designers who work for really good prices on Etsy.
I would encourage other small business owners to look for good graphic and web designers to help them because, unless you’re really skilled, it takes away so much time.
Wren
{The Apron Thief, TheApronThief.etsy.com, EachDay.typepad.com, TheApronThief@gmail.com}
Great post Megan! I recently hired a part time assistant who can help me promote the business as well as give me a hand with orders fulfillment.
As Tara says, time is money and instead of pretending to be a super human being and do everything yourself – something has to give.
I am looking forward to seeing where this takes me. Hopefully more sales and more exposure.
I agree with your post but I think that a business owner shouldn’t underestimate the value of ‘personal time’.
By hiring people to do some of the more laborious jobs it may not directly affect your sales but it frees up your time – and you ‘invest in yourself.’
Over the years I have found that the best investment has been when I ‘invest in myself.’
The girls that work for me are incredibly proud of the work they do for us and they know that it frees up my time to relax more and allow the creative process to happen.
So true! Last August I hired a marketing person. She’s done such a great job that I now have two part-time employees. For the summer, I have personally taken a small pay cut so that I can hang out with the kids more. I could never do this without my awesome co-workers!
This post really hit the nail on the head. it’s scary to do, but tons of stuff is scary that we do every day. What’s the worst that can happen?
🙂