How to start from scratch?

[Feralines]

Like me, many of you would want to start business that is not in any ways associated with your existing social circle. How do you then share your works and attract new, like minded friends and prospective client to join your new social networking platforms without your local friends peeping into it?

All thoughts are welcome

[StuckOnSilver]

I suggest you rethink excluding your friends. What prompts this penchant for secrecy? I love it when my friends comment on (and buy) my jewelry!

[Feralines]

I will be more than happy to share it with my friends. But I've had some not so good experience in the past. My mom makes these wonderful fashion accessory for women. When we opened a shop in our town (it's a small town, most of the folks are connected in some way) instead of buying her stuff, they would see it on Facebook and come to her, sit for hours asking how she made it. It was very discouraging to see most of them went home and started making very poor version of it. My mum is 70 years old, it was not nice to see her efforts being wasted like this.

[StuckOnSilver]

I've had people ask how I make things also but at some point I need to steer them to taking a beginning class in precious metal clay, etc. I don't worry when people say, "I know the price of sterling silver and would not pay your prices for earrings" etc. That is their option.

But you wrote "...they made a very poor version..." and this is the reason people will buy well-made arts and crafts.

Don't worry about people ripping off your designs. It may happen; it may not.

My advice: Welcome one and all to your site. Do your best, Enjoy what you do and do what you enjoy.

All the best,
Bev

[Former_Member]

I don't advertise to my Facebook friends but I will send out things sometimes on Twitter.

My issue is that I don't want to "spam" my friends. Some of my Facebook friends do this, and IMHO, it's a turnoff. Unless they sign up to these notices (liked your business page, signed up to a newsletter, etc) I figure they don't need to know every time I add a new item on etsy.

But that is me. I think it depends on your circle of friends and whether they are open to it or not.

So I would suggest creating a seperate business page/profile for your shop, that way your friends can opt in or not. Having a Twitter/Facebook/Instagram, etc. that is just for your shop keeps that separation between personal and professional and I think it helps create that "brand recognition". Good luck!

[CaliforniaCrownJewel]

I only use Pinterest. You can set up an account with a different name that people won't know to look up, then you can create a board with your shop name and post your listings to that board.
https://www.pinterest.com/cacrownjewel/california-crown-jewel-my-etsy-shop/
<3 Jewel