If you’re in the United States, you’re being bombarded with
“back-to-school” advertising. I decided to put my own spin on the
back-to-school theme by sharing 8 free and low-cost resources you
can use for professional development to help you launch, manage,
and expand your yarn-related business.
Here’s a preview of the 8 ways you can take advantage of these
free or inexpensive resources:
- Use your local, regional, or federal small business development
center
- Read
- Connect with colleges and universities
- Apprentice or barter skills with a master crafter
- Participate in a blog challenge
- Take a video course
- Listen to a podcast
- Volunteer or speak at an event
1. Use your local, regional, and federal small business
development centers
As a small business owner, you may be entitled to free support
services from the government. These services may include workshops,
free clinics with legal or tax professionals, or one-to-one
business counseling. Check out the Small Business Administration Learning
Center or SCORE for more information.
While often these organizations have limited understanding of
the yarn industry, home-based businesses, and online business, they
can be very helpful in providing information about “basic” business
information that doesn’t feel very basic when you are starting
out.
You may also want to investigage business improvement districts,
economic development zones, or related local initiatives to support
small business growth.
2. Read
In general, reading books is an inexpensive way to learn new
things, but I’m going to share some tips for saving even more on
books.
- Use your local library system. In
addition to books, your local library is likely to have a variety
of DVDs and audiobooks, as well as access to research databases and
other resources for small business owners. Some systems even have a
dedicated business branch. You may also be able to request books on
business or craftsmanship via interlibrary loan from nearby library
systems for free. Additionally, many libraries hold classes
on-site. If your library doesn’t have the resources you need, get
to know your local librarian. S/he will be more likely to help a
valued local branch customer.
- Use a subscription service like Amazon
Prime. I’m an Amazon Prime customer and affiliate.
Amazon Prime is a subscription program that costs $99/year and
offers several different benefits including free 2-day shipping,
access to free streaming music and video, cloud storage for photos,
and the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library. You can borrow up to one
book free each month from the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library. Each
book can be kept as long as you’d like, but you have to return it
in order to take out another book.
- Listen to audio books through Audible’s subscription
service. Many crocheters and knitters prefer
listening to audiobooks to reading physical or e-books, but
audiobooks can be expensive. Audible is a subscription service
operated by Amazon, and you can listen to one or two free books
each month with your subscription. There are tons of great business
books on Audible.
- Write book reviews. If you have a
consistent following on your blog and/or social media accounts,
approach a book publisher’s marketing or publicity department
directly to request a review copy, or sign up for Netgalley,
which coordinates advanced review copies of ebooks. Ask to review
books that focus on the areas you’d like to develop to get the most
out of your review experience, and don’t forget to properly
disclose your receipt of a review copy as per FTC
guidelines.
3. Connect with local colleges and
universities
Colleges and universities frequently have guest speakers,
workshops, and conferences that are open to the public. These
events may be free or low cost. As a side benefit, you may make
connections with potential student interns or professors who might
be willing to use a challenge facing your
business as a class project.
Your local business school may also have additional
opportunities available, including free classes for small business
owners. If your local college or university offers majors (e.g.,
textiles, fashion design, marketing, new media, etc.) that are
relevant to your business, consider how you may connect with
faculty and students.
4. Apprentice or barter skills with a master
crafter
Apprenticing or working closely with a local artisan or business
owner can help you improve your skills rapidly under the tutelage
of an expert. Approach a master and ask to be an apprentice or
intern. This approach is much more time-intensive, so you should
consider it more cautiously. You may also barter your skills with
this person in exchange for private lessons.
5. Participate in blog challenges
Information on almost anything a small business
owner might need is freely available online, but
the hours required for research can be daunting. Many bloggers
curate this process for you by holding challenges focused on
improving your skills. These challenges sometimes convert from free
experiences to paid courses once they are archived, so join in when
you have the chance!
Some of these challenges are delivered via email, while others
are posted directly to blogs. These can be difficult to find, so
use Pinterest or your search engine to look for “TOPIC
challenge.”
6. Take a video course
Video courses are often cheaper than other forms of professional
development and you are usually able to learn at your own pace and
review the materials, which are added benefits. There are many
great options for taking video courses online. Two of my favorite
resources are Udemy and Craftsy.
- Udemy. Instructors create their own
courses and then add them to the Udemy platform. Although courses
have to be approved, this allows a wide variety of styles and
options to exist. There are courses on business, computer
applications and technology, photography, and more. You can read
customer reviews to find the best course for you. Udemy offers both
free and for sale courses, and they also frequently have sales on
courses, so sign up for their email list to save even more.
- Craftsy. Craftsy’s courses are curated
and filmed at Craftsy’s studios, so there is a more uniform
appearance. The courses are affordably priced and they offer
frequent sales, too. Some of the more helpful courses for
yarn-related business owners are the advanced courses in crochet,
knitting, or spinning, as well as photography courses. They
also offer several free mini courses.
You may also want to consider MOOCs (massive open online
courses) from colleges and universities. You can find business
MOOCs on edX here and Coursera here. These courses are often free but
rarely carry college credit.
7. Listen to a podcast
I’m assuming that if you listen to the Creative Yarn
Entrepreneur Show, you may find listening to podcasts a great way
to learn. Here are some shows that I listen to regularly which I
think may be helpful for growing your yarn-related business.
- The #AskGaryVee Show: This
live Q&A format video show also has an audio version. It’s
hosted by entrepreneur, Gary Vaynerchuk, and covers a wide range of
business topics with a focus on entrepreneurship, marketing, and
new media. There are several short episodes released each week.
Spoiler alert: Gary is known for his colorful language, so if you
are sensitive to cussing, this may not be the show for you.
- Web.Search.Social: This
is a show co-hosted by husband and wife team Ralph and Carol Lynn
Rivera. They focus on marketing and other business issues from the
perspective of the small local business owner. Their show is
muti-format and includes read blog posts, interviews, and
conversations. Except for the read blog posts, they tend to be
chatty. This isn’t a “quick tips” type of show.
- Etsy Conversations Podcast: This weekly
show features interviews with Etsy sellers and is hosted by Ijeoma
Eleazu, who I interviewed in Episode 9. Ijeoma also
occassionally interviews service providers who may of use to Etsy
sellers. You can learn a lot about Etsy selling, but I find the
show most inspiring for its focus on creativity and
inspiration.
- Smart Passive Income Podcast: This
show is hosted by entrepreneur, Pat Flynn. It is usually an
interview format and focuses on developing passive income
opportunities.
- Tim Ferriss Show: This
interview show is hosted by Tim Ferriss, the author of The
4-Hour Workweek. Tim does a great job of
getting his guests to open up, and many of the shows deal with
creativity, overcoming adversity, and other inspiring topics that
have motivated me in my business. I usually only listen to specific
episodes rather than on a weekly basis.
- I listen to three weekly author/self-publishing podcasts. These
share valuable information about self-publishing and author
marketing. The first two also talk a lot about creativity and the
business side of being an artist or creative
indie. The Creative Penn is hosted by author
and professional speaker, Joanna Penn. Her guests often share
insights on creativity and the mindset of being a business owner as
a creative person. Rocking Self Publishing is a weekly
interview show hosted by Simon Whistler. The Sell
More Books Show is a weekly roundup of writing,
self-publishing, and publishing news and is hosted by Bryan Cohen
and Jim Kukral.
- There are two inactive shows with helpful archives you may want
to listen to. How They Blog is
hosted by Kat Lee. The format is mostly interviews with an
occassional Q&A. The show covers all aspects of blogging. Kat
is a devout Christian and many of her guests talk about
Christianity and spirituality and how that impact their blogging.
The show is currently on hiatus. Oh So
Pinteresting was hosted by Pinterest expert, Cynthia
Sanchez, who I interviewed in Episode 30. The podcast, not
surprisingly, focuses on Pinterest. While some of the oldest
episodes are less relevant with recent Pinterest changes, most
share valuable information that you can use in your business.
8. Volunteer or speak at an event
Most conferences and events are not free or low cost, which is
why few of us attend regularly. Most craft industry events (as well
as blogger, business, and social media conferences)
rely on volunteer staff to help things run smoothly. In exchange
for your services, you are typically granted access to the vendor
area, demonstrations or lectures, and sometimes even to classes and
workshops. You can learn more about this option in Episode 43,
where I share tips for getting the most out of conferences and how
to save money on attendance as a volunteer.
You can also save on events by speaking. I share tips for
pitching your proposals to conferences and events in Episode
33. If you already have an existing relationship with a company or
brand, you may even be able to get a sponsorship to a
conference.
Events and conferences allow you to learn while also networking.
I think this is a really valuable option for home-based business
owners, so try to attend if you can!
If you enjoyed this episode
The Creative Yarn Entrepreneur Show is no longer broadcasting.
Episodes are available as a service to the yarn community. This
episode originally aired in August, 2015. Be aware that content may
be outdated.
If you'd like to chat with other yarn-related business owners,
join the Creative
Yarn Entrepreneurs Facebook group. Support Marie's work by
buying one of her books, Make Money Teaching Crochet: Launch
Your Business, Increase Your Side Income, Reach More Students
(Amazon
| Gumroad) or Design
It, Promote It, Sell It: Online Marketing for Your Crochet and Knit
Patterns (Amazon | Gumroad).