How To Sell Crafts During Recession?

Tough times are tough for everyone- buyers as well as sellers. Fancy items like fashion accessories,  arts & crafts are certain things whose purchasing is postponed during recession or financial downtime. However, not all experience financial crunches at the same time. There are many who want to buy specific crafts, even during economic downtime. There is the need to find out those buyers. Here are some tips for marketing your crafts during recession to such buyers.

• Do a lots of personal networking- Keep in touch with friends, vendors, customers. Leave your business card at grocery shop counter, restaurants, in the envelope containing payments of bills and the like. You'll be amazed to get calls making inquiry about your products.
• Respond Quickly- Never take any business enquiry for granted. Immediate respond to client inquiries.
• Women crafts persons can be a member of some women's networking group, particularly if her target customers are middle to upper income group. Give presentation of your craft making process to generate interest about your crafts in the group. Male crafter can join recreational or some other groups to formally or informally promote his products.
• Join online craft artists’ forums and discussion boards. Follow peers, customers, gallery owners and even your competitors on social networking websites. If possible, make your own website, either for showing off your work or as a retail sales outlet. If you can't afford a website- make a blog to promote your business.
• Take help of auction and sale sites for selling wholesale crafts as well as for retail selling.
• Advertise on cellphones. Followers of many sites willingly let them advertise through SMS in exchange of some offers. Explore such more avenues to advertise your work.
• Design and sell handicraft for charity auctions or fundraising. Keep some share with you and give the rest as charity. Many people just buy things to help others. This way your business can help the needy too.
• Join institutes like Museum Store Association and get listed on their website as a vendor. This list is often referred to by buyers from museum stores, antiques or collectible stores, zoos, national parks, etc. You can even get listed on online business directories who offer a free listing to businesses. For example, if you are in making wood crafts, you can get listed on Wooden Handicrafts B2B marketplace. And if you deal in beads or beading craft, get listed on Beads Manufactures Marketplace. Just a Google search on net and you'll find many directories pertaining to your niche market.
• Leave a tourist brochure with hotels having large tourist traffic. They prove to be promising buyers of local crafts.
• Organize home craft parties at your and friends', relatives' homes and present your work there. Make arrangements for profit sharing with them for regular organizing of such parties.