Im just wondering if Im giving enough information on my postings. I want to post more but i suppose im holding back becausr of uncertainty
1 Like
I am wondering what hourly rate you have allowed yourself in those prices. The blankets must take you several hours. The wool costs you money and out of the price you have to pay Folksy commission and also PayPal or Stripe.
I think you could perhaps charge a more realistic price. Please do not sell yourself cheap. 
2 Likes
Thank you for that indirmation but i didnt want to push up my prices until i had a few sales
2 Likes
Change your avatar to something else, ie part of your brand etc. the broken computer does not loo, professional.
I agree easier to put your prices up now and perhaps offer a new shop discount for say a couple of months.
Promote on social media as much as you can. A business page on Facebook with the business suite will allow you to schedule a post and post to Instagram at the same time.
1 Like
Hi Kim,
I will agree with the above. I crochet myself and although your items are beautiful, your prices scream cheap and cheerful to me at the moment, as I know how much effort it takes. It is tricky to find the right prices, but you need to be left with something after taking out the cost and the fees, and that something should reward your time & effort somehow.
Since you are referring to baby items, maybe some more info for the yarn you use, for example not everyone knows what double knitting wool means, but most people will understand terms like cotton, acrylic etc.
Also, complete your About Me and try to use the announcement as well. (you could for example let people know about any ânew shop offersâ there, like Caroline @Caroleecrafts already suggested.
Can I iron them or not? Can I put them on the line or lay them flat? Machine or handwash? Imagine you are referring to a young parent who has no idea of anything like that, what care instructions can you give? I wash everything before use, if I put it in the washing machine and it comes out half the size, Iâm not gonna be very happy, so let me know about any special treatment. Maybe mention you include a care card (if you do)?
Also, fill up your tags and colours. You have left your tags empty and itâs one of the most important tools so you can be found.
As a new shop you will need to add more items and as much info as possible, so people donât think you just opened a shop quickly with a few pictures and very low prices, to grab some sales and go without sending out anything (happens all the time on the internet unfortunately).
We have all been there, you will get some good advice in the forum, and your items are lovely, it just needs a lot of effort x
3 Likes
Like already said, they are very cheap. My blankets start at ÂŁ35. And that price does not give me a very good hourly rate.
I agree with a higher price and then offer a discount.
I looked through 1 listing, there were no tags, and I would check spelling.
2 Likes
Another vote for please put your prices up - when I see things priced cheaply I assume (rightly or wrongly) they are made with inferior materials. Make sure you put the yarn composition in the main description (along with full care instructions) customers like that sort of info and it gives you a chance to up sell the product eg made from a super soft acrylic wool blend so you get the easy care qualities of acrylic with the warmth of wool.
4 Likes
Great items but definitely put your prices up (ÂŁ12 should realistically be ÂŁ25 (or more!) even when youâre just starting out).
Have a look at what other similar shops are charging and how they present their shops - especially the âshop announcementâ and âaboutâ sections and also do fill in your tags and put more info in your descriptions. Mina @theslothscavern and every one else has given you some really good advice to follow.
Good luck.
3 Likes
welcome to Folksy.@MrsBusyHands (Kim)
I am an artist but spent most of my life designing and making and selling knitwear/crochet
I made for high class shops , did craft fairs and sold to friends.
If you sell , there is a legal requirement to give details of the yarn content of your itemâŚIF you are not sure, you are allowed to put ( fibre content unknown).
You also need to give washing instructions.
You can either put a label on your items, or a swing ticket and it is also OK to just include written instructions ( a flyer) with each sale.
One of your blankets says variegated woolâŚis it wool?..or is it acrylic.?..Wool and acrylic are not the same thing at allâŚyou will find the fibre content on the ball band of your chosen yarn. It is important to get it right so that the customer knows what they are dealing with when washing and caring for the item.
I spent many years chatting to trading standards officers and these are simple things for you to doâŚ
Hope you do well.x
3 Likes
Hi Kim @mrsbusyhands
I agree with everything already said by other sellers, you have lovely crochet items in your shop, your listings do need some work and additional info and your prices are too cheap, welcome to Folksy and good luck with your shop.
Make sure you start with the prices you would like, i began making bears to sell in 2014, I did the same, I started my prices at around ÂŁ25, I didnt take into account the cost of joints, eyes, stuffing, threads, insurance and definately didnât charge anything for my time, just the fabrics i was using. i made no profit at all. I sold every bear i made in record time and was snowed under with commissions, each one took a week to make as they were fully embroidered . Over the next few years I worked myself silly and still didnt show a profit, my prices were increasing slowly and i now covered the costs but still no wage. It is only now that i am starting to show a profit but still canât make a proper wage. Because I started too cheap it was so difficult to increase to were i needed to be. Donât make the same mistake I did, 9.5 years on my prices have increased a lot but the cost of materials are also more than double.
Recently a new Folksy seller contacted me who use to be a bear maker, she said my bears were excellent but too cheap and for mohair should be starting in excess of ÂŁ125, for the amount of work i put into them and the quality of fabrics she said they should be at least double. When i questioned who would buy them she said there is a market for every price range. I agreed with her and explained what i have just said. I am still gently increasing prices. I have come close to closing every time i do my year end accounts when I am disappointed at the hours I have put in for the profit I have made. If someone had advised me when I started about pricing I know I wouldnât have made such a huge error. My bears take anywhere from 25 to 50 plus hours to make my wage is still probably ÂŁ2 per hour and the more work there is in them the less I make so some donât even give me that return. At around ÂŁ70 to ÂŁ100 I am still struggling to keep more than half a dozen on my shelf, my custom base has canged but I am still selling continously. Some of my customers are collectors and would not have looked at them at ÂŁ25 and as Sasha said they would have thought they were only worth ÂŁ25
2 Likes
Some very sensible advice for you and Iâve learnt a lot as well. Good luck with your shop, you are very talented and should not undersell yourself
1 Like
Your crochet is lovely but I agree with@Joysofglass. You are seriously undercutting yourself with prices like this. Maybe you do not need the money but there are many people on here who are trying to make a living from their craft and they could not possibly compete with prices like this. You must charge more. I donât often comment on here but I .can see you have real skill and you shouldnât be undervaluing yourself like this. Go for it gal and put your prices up, not down. 
2 Likes
I really do appreciate all your comments but when youâve charity knit for many years giving everything including your time its hard to evalute your work, but from many commentsI feel i have offended many of you by my low price structure which was not my intention. I have more things to add to my page but will be carefully looking at my.prices. Thank you all once again
2 Likes
There is No offence taken. People ask advice on here and it is given because we are all rooting for everyone else to sell well.
3 Likes
Definitely not offended, when I started I would check out other sellers who sell similar and price nearer the lower end. Now I price nearer to top end.
There is a lot to learn when starting out and everyone here is just trying to help
2 Likes
Oh no you havnât offended anyone @mrsbusyhands, it is difficult sometimes with text and people often donât read it as it was meant. Everyone is trying to help. I know mine was a little long winded lol but I wanted to explain where I went wrong, if I had had the lovely Folksy sellers to advise me all those years ago I am sure I would have been much further on financially with my little business than i am now. It was a huge huge error on my part and I dont want anyone to make the same mistake, I suppose in the short I just meant it is not easy to increase the prices to where you want to be if you start too low.