Dear knit designers,
you make a plan, you spending months designing, writing, and testing a knitting pattern, you share it with the world. But coming from the other side is only a disappointing result.
How can it all go so wrong?
You believe in what youโre doing, you so deeply want people to love your design. You werenโt expecting a disappointing result and now youโre questioning everything.
This has happened to every single one of us. Itโs a part of knitting business and that wonโt change. But what can change is how we approach it.
Think of a disappointing result like a BETA test.
Rather than take it as a sign that you are a terrible knit designer, itโs time to resolve the problem fixing why the pattern didnโt perform.
Common problems for the disappointing result
Marketing
Do you know that a customer must be exposed to your marketing message multiple times in order for them to decide to buy?
Have you started teasing your pattern launch at least a month before its release?
Have you shared sneak peeks, or photos of your test knitters or about interesting details?
Next time, plan your launch one month ahead and engage with your community about it.
Photography
Are your photos cluttered or dark?
If they are bad, youโre not going to attract buyers.
Since you are selling online, photos are the only point of reference that buyers have.
Good photos are simple to take, even with your phone. There are lots of mobile apps that make editing more simple, I use VSCO and I love it.
Information
Have you thought what a potential buyer might need to know?
Have you shared all of the information? All the details?
Construction, size, yardage,โฆ
A customer will not buy if he has to buy a pattern in order to find something out.
Community
Do you have a following? People buy from a designer they know and trust.
If you donโt yet have a community, start building it!
Create content, interact genuinely, reply to every comment, DM, or email.
Build relationships on social media searching who you think would like your style of knitting patterns and commenting on their content.
Make your interactions genuine and the community will come!
I also want to note that not everyone will be your ideal client.
There will always be things that are out of our control.
It is up to you to decide what you do to make your next launch more successful.