Modish Biz Tips

Do What you Love: An Interview with Patricia Zapata

Our next interviewee up in the Do What You Love series is the lovely Patricia Zapata. She is a graphic designer who also wrote the book on paper crafting (literally- it's coming out this summer!) She was one of the first indie business owners I "met" years ago when I opened my first little jewelry shop and she's been a constant source of inspiration, both in how she conducts herself and how she manages her business. I think she's also our first mom in the series, so you'll be able to get a little insight into how she runs a family and a home based business at the same time! Let's meet her!

What do you do for a living?

I am an independent graphic designer and I own two businesses. I design corporate identity and collateral materials for small to mid-sized businesses for my Zapata Design clients. Through A Little Hut, I sell paper illustrations, wall art, design stationery, printable PDFs and block printed note cards. I’m also the author of Home, Paper, Scissors, a papercraft book, which will be published in August of this year.

How long have you been self-employed?  What made you decide to take the leap?

I left my design job when I had our first child. It was a leap of faith and a choice purely inspired by the fact that I was a new mom. After being a full-time Mom for a year, I realized I needed to work creatively again. I felt my artsy neurons demanding some exercise again. I’ve been self-employed since 2001 and I haven’t looked back since.

Do you work from home or have a studio/office elsewhere? 

Choosing a Business Structure

{photo by Alberto Mari. Now that's what I call structure!}

One of your first decisions as you start your business will be to decide how you'd like to structure your company. So actually, first, you need to start thinking of yourself as a company and then as one that has structure. :)

Even if you're making hand-sewn brooches in the corner of your living room, if you're looking to turn that into a legitimate business, it's time to start thinking like one. Here are some simple rundowns of the different business structures available to you:

Sole Proprietor

You will more than likely start your business out as a sole proprietor. It's the most common choice for an individual who is running their business solo, without any employees. It's the easiest business structure to get started with, doesn't require any special legal filing. Basically, you'll just start your business and come tax time, file a schedule C claiming business expenses along with your 1040.

As a sole proprietor, you own the business and you are the business. You are individually responsible and held liable for all its assets and profits (which will hopefully come down the road, someday :) and also all its expenses and debts.

Competition, Resentment and Letting your Ego get in the way

{illustration by tommy the pariah. Are you your own worst enemy?}

I think there comes a point in every creative person's work life (or every person's every day life) when you may feel like you're not being valued. Like you're good enough, you're smart enough and gosh darnit, people like you, yet you're still not being recognized for all the hard work you do. What gives?

I think this feeling happens when you start getting too worried about what your competition is up to.

It's easy to compare yourself to your competitors in a way that becomes detrimental. When you start to view them as being "more successful" than you, in whatever your personal measures of success may be, you can find yourself right up against a fit of anger, jealousy and resentment.

I know, I've been there, I've felt it before. I've been in the place where I felt like all my ideas were being "copied" by others, like I wasn't been recognized for doing this first, or doing that better. I felt like I put so much hard work into something and where was my credit? My prize? My gold star that said, job well done!

I'm sure you've felt that little voice inside you too. The voice that creeps in to ask "How has she made 500 sales on etsy?" or "why is that person getting written up on so many blogs?" or "how the heck did he get so successful when my stuff is way better?" And you know what that horrible little bugger of a voice inside you is?

Your ego.

Baking Business with the BAKERY girls

I'm sure you've heard of BAKERY by now, a new business run by Jaime Derringer of Design Milk and Erin Loechner of Design for Mankind to help you, yep you, run your indie business better! I thought it'd be nice to learn a little more about what exactly it is they're cooking up over there, to help you decide if you need some business baking services of your own. So, let's meet the dynamic duo, shall we?

 

As two girls who are used to running their own show, what made you decide to go into business together?

Jaime: Great question! We both have independent spirits, but we work fabulously as a team because we both have different strengths. For example, Erin makes everything I say sound pretty.

Erin: Ha! You are crazy, Jaime. That's totally not true. It's funny--- Jaime's the professional one, and I'm the bubbly one. Our clients will meet us on the phone and will laugh at how different we are. Anyway, I'm rambling... It was totally Jaime's idea. She twittered me one day about a project she wanted to start [she has like a million and one projects!], and I was on board from the get-go. We both get so many emails a day asking us how we do what we do, so it seemed natural that we start offering our services to everyone!

How did you come up with the name BAKERY?

Jaime: We spent a lot of time thinking about the right name, but we kept coming back to BAKERY. We wanted a name that was descriptive, yet fun and creative. We're not your average internet marketing company, so we didn't want to scare people off by using a name like "So-and-So Consulting". It also reflects our personalities fairly well: we're both kind of silly.

Erin: AMEN! Plus, I like to wear an apron when I work...
Kidding. That's a lie.

What sort of services do you offer to independent businesses?

Dare to be Different (and you'll sell more too!)

{photo by nickwheeleroz. Do you stand out in a crowd?}

We may grow up trying to hide our differences in order to "fit in", but when it comes to your business, the best thing you can do for yourself is to really work on standing out.

As you market your business, you need focus on the inherent differences between you and your competitors. What makes you different than the next shop over that also specializes in eco-friendly recycled letterpress cards, or also makes refurbished vintage jewelry or also sells funny screen-printed cotton tees?

I've heard it said that no idea is original, and undoubtedly that's true, but that doesn't mean you have to resign to be just another shop that sells just some more of whatever. Customers don't buy from "just another shop," they buy from the shop that has something different to offer, something that they see as valuable beyond what the competitors offer.

What makes your shop special? What do you have that no one else has? Focus on what makes your business different, and work to communicate those differences to your customers.

What are the differences in your designs, your materials, your techniques? Also think of what you offer in terms of customer service, selection, price points, quality and expertise that is different than your competitors.

Emphasize those differences to engage your target customer. Who you are selling to? Why do they buy from you? You might even want to ask some of your past customers why they chose to shop with you, as they might have a more objective reason that you wouldn't even think of yourself!

Take a peek at your competitors and see what they claim makes them different. Who is their target market? How are they approaching them? How you can approach them differently?

Once you find those things that make you stand out from the crowd, emphasize them in your marketing efforts whenever you can. Now is not the time "fit in" unless you want to find yourself getting passed by.

Do What you Love: An Interview with Abigail Percy

Today I'm so pleased to bring you another installment of our do what you love series, featuring one of the first jewelry designers whose work I ever truly fell in love with, Abigail Percy. She creates her mind-bogglingly stunning creations out of her home in Glasgow, Scotland and has been successfully living off her creativity and talent for almost 4 years now. Let's read a little more about how she got started and how she makes it all work, shall we? 

What do you do for a living?

I am a Designer Jeweller, and so I make and sell my jewellery, in addition to some prints and drawings on occasion too...

How long have you been self-employed?  What made you decide to take the leap?

I have been self-employed for just shy of 4 years now. I decided to take the leap straight out of art school, after graduating, because I wanted to get stuck straight in and knew that if I got used to the security of a job, it would be a much harder leap to take later on in my 20's, 30's etc...I had also made some money at my degree show from sales and awards, so I could invest in some equipment to help get the workshop established.

Do you work from home or have a studio/office elsewhere?