Hello everyone!
Just a heads up...this will probably be long-winded!
My husband is the executive chef for a catering company in our town, so he deals with LOTS of weddings. I've always been fascinated with weddings, so I decided I would like to try out invitation/stationery design. Little did I know the endless hours of learning and research it would involve! Once I made up my mind that this was what I wanted to do though, there was no turning back! Having never touched any of the Adobe programs (besides the occasional Adobe Reader to open PDFs), I realized I had a lot of work ahead of me. I'm now about 6 months into everything and actually just getting to where I have started designing things. I'm primarily using Photoshop. I tried Illustrator, but it was literally like learning another language! Kudos to those of you who have gone to school for Graphic Design! In no way am I trying to minimize anything that you all have worked so hard for and spent so much money to earn that degree! I am merely trying to start up a side business, as I work a full time job and have two children to care for. If the business takes off after time and I can work less at my other job, that's fantastic.
My goal is to have a lofty amount of designs put together before I open up shop. I would really like to get a printed portfolio together also, as the wedding planners I have talked to locally tell me that they only have one or two people they work with for invitations around here.
So...with all of that said...I have a few questions for those of you that have been doing this for a while. If you would be so kind to share any advice with me, I would truly appreciate it, but I do completely understand the competitive nature of the business also, so no hard feelings here if you don't want to share!!
Thanks in advance!
1) Which is better to sell - Digital Downloads or Printed and why?
2) If offering Digital Downloads, do people generally prefer to edit the file themselves or have you do the editing and just send them the finished file?
3) For printing, I have just used Staples recently when I made my daughter's b-day invitations and brochures for my friend's business. They seem reasonable for pricing, did a great job, and were super helpful for all of my rookie questions! Would you agree that they are a good place to print with or do you have a favorite place that you use?
4) Printing from home seems like it would be more hassle for possibly just a little more profit. Is that a fair assumption?
5) If you have a successful business on Etsy, how long did it take for you to have a steady flow of sales and have your business moving?
6) Do you have a lot of local work that you do in your city? If so, what did you do to market your business to brides-to-be?
7) Any advice you can give me in starting up a new shop on Etsy (and locally) would be so appreciated! Good or bad....I'm all ears! I am extremely organized, so I HAVE to get all my ducks in a row before I even begin with this!
Thank you all!!!
