DIY home décor: Transforming your hobby into a profitable venture

DIY home décor: Transforming your hobby into a profitable venture

In recent years, the DIY movement has spread like wildfire, allowing individuals to unleash their creativity while giving their homes a personal touch. From handmade wall art to custom furniture pieces, crafting has become an enjoyable pastime for many. But what if your love for DIY home décor could also bring in some extra income? In this blog post, we’ll explore how you can transform your hobby into a profitable venture and turn your creative passion into a thriving business.

1. Identify your niche

Before diving into the world of DIY home décor entrepreneurship, it’s crucial to identify your niche. What type of décor resonates most with you? Are you drawn to rustic farmhouse designs, modern minimalism or Bohemian chic? Perhaps you have a talent for upcycling charity shop finds or creating personalised gifts. Defining your speciality will help you stand out in an increasingly saturated market and attract your ideal customers.

Tip: Research trends and analyse competitor offerings to find gaps in the market or unique twists to existing products.

2. Develop your skills

While you’re already a DIY enthusiast, refining your skills can make a significant difference in quality and appeal. Take workshops, follow online courses or watch tutorials to learn advanced techniques. Investing time in honing your craft will not only improve your products but also boost your confidence as you embark on this new venture.

Tip: Practice on projects that excite you; showcasing your best work is key to attracting customers.

3. Create a business plan

Every successful venture starts with a solid business plan. Outline your goals, target audience and marketing strategies. Determine the costs involved in materials, tools and potential overhead expenses. Additionally, consider how you’ll price your products – make sure to account for both material costs and labour to ensure profitability.

Tip: Include short-term and long-term goals in your business plan. This will help you stay focused and motivated as you grow.

4. Build an online presence

In today’s digital age, having an online presence is essential. Create social media accounts on platforms like Instagram, Pinterest or TikTok, where visual content thrives. Share your creative process through behind-the-scenes footage, tutorials or showcasing finished products.

Tip: Consider starting a blog or YouTube channel to share DIY tips, tutorials and home décor inspiration. This will help position you as an expert in your niche and attract future customers.

5. Set up an online shop

There are numerous platforms available to sell your creations, such as Etsy, Folksy, Amazon Handmade or your own website. Choose a platform that best suits your products and audience. Ensure your shop stands out with professional photos, engaging product descriptions and clear pricing.

Tip: Offer a mix of products at different price points to cater to a broader audience. Consider seasonal items or limited-edition pieces to create urgency among buyers.

6. Sell at local markets

While online selling is a great way to reach customers, don’t underestimate the power of in-person interactions. Look for local craft fairs, farmers’ markets and pop-up shops to showcase your work. These venues offer an opportunity to engage with customers directly, get real-time feedback and build a loyal local following.

Tip: Have an eye-catching, well-designed stall that reflects your brand aesthetic. Provide business cards and flyers with information on where to purchase your products online.

7. Embrace feedback and adapt

As you embark on your entrepreneurial journey, be open to feedback from customers and peers. Constructive criticism can be invaluable in improving your products and service. Monitor sales trends and adjust your offerings based on what resonates most with your audience.

Tip: Consider running polls or surveys via social media to gauge interest in potential new products or designs.

8. Scale and expand

Once you’ve established a steady stream of sales and built a customer base, consider ways to scale your business. This could mean expanding your product line, offering workshops or classes or collaborating with other local creatives. Explore wholesale opportunities or retail partnerships to reach an even larger audience.

Tip: Cross-promote with other DIYers or home décor businesses to combine audiences and boost visibility.

Conclusion

Transforming your DIY home décor hobby into a profitable venture is not only achievable but also incredibly rewarding. With passion, dedication and strategic planning, you can create a thriving business that lets you share your creativity with the world. So gather your tools, set your sights on your goals and start crafting your entrepreneurial journey today! Your dream of turning passion into profit is just a project away.

Benefits of remote access for small businesses

Benefits of remote access for small businessescredit

With a small business, it’s important to note that remote access isn’t something that will only be beneficial for larger corporations. A lot of small businesses are finding that when they can access office files and resources remotely it provides a lot of benefits for the business as well as for employees. Supporting flexible and remote working is an obvious benefit, and by using remote access it means that the business will still be able to keep up to date and catch up, in this post-pandemic era. Remote access solutions are something that can benefit your small business, and they don’t have to be things that are expensive or out of your budget.

Illustration of remote working outdoors

Flexible office solutions

One of the big costs that a business will have is the office space that they occupy. With employees who work flexibly and work remotely the majority of the time, you can reduce the office space that you use, if you need one at all. If there are fewer workers that need a desk space, the cheaper or smaller place that you could rent for an office, if at all. As the site https://physicaladdress.com shows, you don’t have to have a physical office space to be able to get business mail, neither do you need to include a personal address on a business website. If you do decide to go down the route of getting rid of the physical office, then you have real flexibility as well as more adjustable office solutions.

Interview taking place over a conference call

Talent recruitment

If you work flexibly and run this across the whole of your small business, then it improves the talent pool that you can reach when it comes to recruitment. Normally, the talent pool for a business only extends to people who live in a commutable distance from the office. However, if you work flexibly and allow employees to work remotely, then it increases the geographical location of potential candidates. You can really choose the best people that apply, rather than having to choose the people that apply only because they live in the vicinity.

In a similar vein, you can also have continued access to existing staff. If they’re moving home to a different part of the country, they don’t have to leave working for you when remote access is implemented. Another benefit for business and the business budget.

Three people working remotely and collaboratively

Collaborative working and resource sharing

When you have a remote working business, you can work with colleagues on a collaborative basis, as well as externally with clients, third parties or suppliers. When you interact remotely, it helps to save time on travel, save money and improve productivity on the part of all involved.

Using remote access and accessing something in the cloud for document sharing means that you can share work with others, wherever they are in the world. As documented here, https://workplace.com/cloud-collaboration, cloud collaboration can be something that can really benefit business and be a good thing for employees too. You just need to think outside the box and it will help to make a difference to how your business works.

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Things to put in place when setting up your new small business

Things to put in place when setting up your new small business | H is for Home

Setting up your own business

When starting up your own company, the work needed can be hard, but the end result is usually worth the struggle. Here at H is for Home we know what it’s like to be an independent business and we love to be able to bring individuality into homes, which is something we love to do when it comes to our vintage décor. Learning about your products and what you really want to achieve is a great place to start when setting up your new small business. Therefore, we decided to create some tips to help you if you’re planning on setting up your own small business.

H is for Home website

A website

If you’re looking to start up a small business, a website can help to attract potential customers. A website is important as it offers a place for your products to be purchased, a way for potential customers to get in touch with you and so much more. Having a website also offers a sense of security for those who are looking to buy from you.

The H is for Home packaging box

Packaging

Perfecting the art of packaging is key to making a good first impression as a new small business. By using packaging which can be recycled, like what Lil Packaging offers, allows the consumer to dispose of their packaging with ease. They offer a number of different types of packaging in different sizes, all of which are plastic free.

Marketing illustration

A marketing plan

Working out how you’re going to market your business is key, deciding how your marketing budget is going to be used to maximise the results before spending it. If you make a plan of what you’d like to achieve in terms of sales targets, follower numbers, unique users, clicks etc, it’s beneficial to set goals to work towards.

If you need help with creating a marketing plan there are plenty of people out there willing to offer advice on where to get started. Check out digitalspotlight to know more about digital marketing.

Smart phone social media apps

Social media

Social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook and Twitter are free services that should always be utilised as a small business; not only does it allow you to promote your business and products online, but it also allows you to interact with potential customers and help them to get to know you and your business better. You can share customer reviews, respond to any queries and issues as well as distribute any news or updates.

Some other helpful tips:

  • Getting business cards can be useful for events and for sharing your contact information. Although these are not essential, they make a good, and lasting, first impression.
  • Prioritise your budget where it needs to be most, whether you can only put a small amount into marketing and more into product production, you know how and where your money needs to be split.
  • It’s OK to ask for help if you feel like you’re struggling, there are plenty of others who have been in the same boat as you and would be happy to lend a hand; that could be professionals in your sector or even free advice from places such as the Citizens Advice Bureau.

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4 Essentials to help small businesses stay afloat

4 Essentials to help small businesses stay afloat | H is for Home

They say that a rising tide lifts all boats, but if and when the UK economy takes a turn for the worse, there are likely to be many small businesses that will struggle to stay afloat.

However, there are many steps business owners and managers can take prior to a downturn that can increase the chances of their business surviving (and even thriving) when the economy is tanking. Here are four things to get you started.

Inventory illustration

Inventory by Nick Youngson CC BY-SA 3.0 Alpha Stock Images

1. Check your inventory management

You need to get a grip on your inventory management in order to ensure your business isn’t losing money unnecessarily, but you need to do so without sacrificing on quality.

Is there a better supplier? Is it cheaper to source products locally? Is it better to outsource work or be entirely self-sufficient? These factors can vary greatly from one small business to another.

Just because you’ve always used the same supplier or done things in a particular way, doesn’t mean you have to keep doing them like that. Perhaps there may be other ways to save you money.

Two figures holding a red arrow

2. Out-compete the competition

If your business is going to cope during an economic downturn, it’s important that you try to hang on to existing customers at the same time as attracting new ones.

How can you do this? By offering something more or something different from the competition. Research your competition and see what you can offer to entice their customers into becoming your customers.

Figures representing customers being attracted by magnets

3. Make the most of current customers and clients

Having regular and loyal customers can help to future-proof your business, but how do you keep existing customers coming back time after time?

One of the best ways to retain customers is by focusing on good customer service. It might also be worth looking into customer loyalty programmes, which help to incentivise customers to stick with you and even refer their friends. While these programmes are often associated with larger businesses there’s no reason SMEs can’t launch their own.

Illustration of woman walking a tightrope towards a gold coin

4. Insurance is key

There’s one thing that every business has in common: they’re all susceptible to a wide range of risks that could impact their business operations, whether it’s theft, damage and injury to employees or other liability claims.

Luckily, though, there are specialist insurance policies for almost every type of risk a business faces. If you own a workshop, for instance, you can get a workshop insurance policy that can protect you from a wide range of different commercial risks.

While there’s nothing that will guarantee that your business remains watertight in the event of a recession, it’s possible to take steps that will greatly increase the odds of your remaining afloat during turbulent times.

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