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Did you try art NFTs in your attempt to figure out how to monetize digital art? 

But did the whole experience leave you confused? Then, there are simpler ways apart from selling digital art as NFT.

It works when you are not confident about how to make money as an artist online.

Find out about them by reading below.

23 Ways To Know How To Monetize Digital Art

1. Sell Digital Art Prints

If you create physical art. Then, you can create their digital version to sell as well.

The best part is that this technique works on almost all art forms.

2. Sell Physical Art + Upsell

You need to understand the art of upselling to perform this task. It involves selling the physical art form + 1. Adding a few more dollars to the physical art and clubbing a digital version can do wonders.

3. Print-On-Demand 

Print-On-Demand involves converting digital art to a physical form. There are several companies like Redbubble and Zazzle that you can use.

You can create mockups of your art on everyday objects of utility. Then, people buy those products which then get shipped by the POD companies.

With the POD option, there are innumerable options to sell digital art. Think in terms of bottles, mobile sleeves, backpacks, t-shirts, tote bags, etc.

4. Collaborate With Brands/Companies 

As a creative maker, you can work for companies. Various organizations need artists to visualize their product designs. Awesomemaps employs artists to create products designed with maps as a theme. You can work with organizations like these to monetize digital art creations.

5. Offer Services On Freelancing Websites

Most artists know how to monetize digital art by freelancing. You can offer your services to other artists and organizations. Or you can offer it on freelancing websites like Fiverr and Upwork.

Getting a foothold on freelancing websites takes effort. You should emphasize building strong connections with clients. That way you will establish a stable foundation. 

6. Start Your Website  

This piece of advice can never go wrong. Irrespective of the niche of your art, a website is a must.

A self-hosted website facilitates monetizing by working as a platform for opportunities. Display ads and selling art as an affiliate are some of the monetization methods. Though there is always the option to sell your original artwork on the website. 

7. Start A Youtube Channel

Displaying your art through videos on YouTube is a great way to garner an audience. The more you post, the more you get to connect. 

In all likelihood, your audience will engage with your videos and end up buying your artwork. Furthermore, the monetization opportunities from YouTube will add to your bottom line.

8. Sell Stickers

The demand for stickers never ebbs. They are popular with planners, organizers, and journals. The best part is that they sell well in digital form as well.

If you have a flair for illustrations and shapes. Then, try selling digital stickers or stickers. One can download stickers and print them. 

Stickers are a wonderful addition to a stationery business. I also sell them in my digital shop.

9. Sell Coloring Books

Coloring is popular for all age groups. So, you can create them for kids as well as adults. I buy coloring book pages in a digital pdf format to download and use. 

Several artists sell digital coloring books on Etsy.

10. Offer Illustrations As A Service

Even if you know nothing about how to monetize digital art, you can draw for others.

Many columnists and writers require drawings and illustrations for their content.

As an artist, you can offer your services to them.

11. Offer Printable Designing Services 

I got no education in design. Hence, I struggle in creating printables. But still, I manage to sell printables in my digital shop. 

If I knew some graphic designers, I would have taken their services. 

Like me, there must be many digital entrepreneurs requiring printable designing services. So, as an artist, you can offer digital printable designing services.

12. Write A Book 

Art is a skill that only a few can possess. Hence, you can introduce your design process to others through a book.

It could be a self-help book that can teach art and design. Artists like Austin Kleon have done the same with success.

Amazon Kindle is a great platform to sell self-published books. Others are Kobo, Lullu, and Smashwords are some probable alternatives.

13. Sell Design Courses  

If you cannot write a book to teach art. Then, creating videos to teach is another option.

Platforms like Skillshare and Udemy are popular for learning almost any topic.

You can also use course platforms like Teachable and Thinkific.

14. Tattoo 

The tattoo is popular as a tangible art done on bodies. But you can sell it in a digital form by creating temporary tattoo designs.

On can download and print temporary tattoos on sticky paper.  They are a great digital product to create and sell.

15. Designing E-Invites

Digital invitations are a norm in this fast-paced technology era. Celebrations like marriage, birthdays, and official events require digital invitations. 

You can design unique invitation letters or poster content for events. 

16. Stock Photography 

It goes without saying that digital pictures are a huge business. Almost every business buys stock imagery.

Hence, the photography business of selling photos online is a great idea. Considering the competition in this business, sticking to a niche will help.

17. Workshops

I am sure you know how to monetize digital art by conducting workshops.  

Till you gain experience in selling art online, you can take online art workshops. Workshops happen online as well as offline.

18. Comics

Creating comic books and cartoon strips is a great way to put your illustrator skills to use. 

The comics could be both digital and physical. You could weave a story around an interesting character for comic strips.

Artist Nathan W Pyle can be a role model for digital comic artists. His webcomic series Strange Planet is a global rage.  

19. Cartoon Clips

Much like comics, cartoons, and animated clips have an audience. You can cater to them by providing entertaining cartoon series. 

Simon’s Cat is a great way to learn how to monetize digital art. The series has expanded to a digital shop with branded merchandise.

20. Design Consultancy

Offering creative knowledge to organizations is one of the ways to make money. You can offer your design expertise through Zoom calls. 

Apps like Acuity can help you with online appointments.

21. Crowdfunding

Indiegogo, GoFundMe, and Kickstarter help innovations find money and support.

You can use them as per the art project that you are working on.

Solutions offering utility and a universal appeal do well on these crowdfunding platforms.

22. Design Contests

Design Contest is a website that helps connect designers with anyone having a need for a design.

As the name suggests, artists compete in a contest to bag the project. There is tremendous scope to get work through this platform. 

There are other options like 99Designs and DesignCrowd.

23. Printables

I saved the best one for the last. This is the monetization method that works best for me. 

Printables sell as Amazon digital products. Or you can sell them on your website. You can even sell them as digital downloads on Etsy. 

Most of the printables are in PDF format. Hence, they work as downloads that one can print and use forever. 

Conclusion

If you keep asking yourself how do I sell my digital art? Then, this is the article you should keep coming back to.

It enlists some of the most places where to sell digital products.

You can try as many as you can to figure out how to monetize digital art.

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Handmade sellers keep looking for Etsy alternatives. It does not matter how satisfied you are with Etsy as a platform. It does matter to know what you can do better for your business.

As a creative entrepreneur, do you keep asking yourself – Do I need an e-commerce website? Then, you need to check out the following:

Etsy Vs Own Website: 9 Key Differences

1. Trust And Validation From The Community

It is one of the most pertinent differences between Etsy and any other platform. The large user base of Etsy brings auto-validation to the platform. 

The mammoth site has about 7.3 million sellers and 93.9 million buyers.

On the other hand, there is no concrete data on how many artists have self-owned websites. Thus, bringing a trust deficit in starting a stand-alone website.

2. Ease Of Starting

If technology is a challenge, then for sure, Etsy is an obvious choice vs a website. 

The idea of starting a website overwhelms artists. But as a matter of fact, it is not that difficult to do so.  

The argument is similar to convincing an artist to begin selling on Etsy. The way selling on Etsy has become natural to artists. So, can become starting a website to sell art.

3. Marketplace Advantage And Disadvantages

Then comes the pros and cons of the marketplace economy. 

It is probable to make a sale on Etsy the moment you list. It is possible because of the marketplace advantage of Etsy. The platform already has buyers eyeing products. Hence, you can make a sale within a few days or even hours of listing. 

But the marketplace comes as a double edge sword. Over-saturated niches struggle for sales due to fierce competition. Sales in a crowded niche would require SEO skills and paid advertising.

For your own website, sales would depend on your marketing capabilities. So, the better you are at SEO and email marketing, the more the potential for sales.

4. Huge And Confusing Fees

Etsy confuses me all the time with its prices. It consists of 5 components:

Listing Fees

Transaction Fees

Payment Processing Fees

Advertising Fees

Shipping Label Fees

The first three fees are mandatory, while the last two are optional. 

The listing fee of $0.20 cents is regardless of whether or not the item sells.  

Transaction fees are 6.5% of the selling price. 

Payment processing fees differ for countries. But it is a minimum of 3% plus some fixed amount.

As you can see, selling on Etsy gets expensive over time. So, if you sell for $1000, you lose about $100.

Setting up your website to sell crafts is not the cheapest way to sell online. The costs include:

• Domain charges
• Hosting fees
• Email marketing expenditures
• SEO Apps 
• Payment Processor Charges

It gets difficult to put prices on these as it depends on the company/plans you buy. But if you start with Shopify, the basic fee is $29 per month. In addition, there is 2.9% + $0.30 cents per transaction.

So, if you sell for $1000, you lose only about $30-50. That is because the monthly cost would average out on all your sold inventory.

I do not want to start on the gift-wrapping expenses that Etsy charges. The reputation of the platform is for handmade items. Hence, it is a given that most requests are for handmade gifts that require devout wrapping.

But if you offer wrapping and shipping as paid service. Then, it adds to the charges that you pay to Etsy. It becomes a problem when buyers filter out sellers who charge for shipping. That adds to the extra expenses of making a sale.

But that will not be the case with your shop. You pay Shopify on the final selling price. This weeds out a lot of confusion in the minds of the buyers. They either choose or do not choose gift wrapping.  

5. Too Much Competition

If you are reading this, then, I am sure you suffer from dwindling sales on Etsy.

I get it because a platform ends up getting fierce competition.

The few possible ways to survive heavy competition are:

• Lowering Prices
• Advertising More

But both these tactics eat away your margins. Thus, bringing you back to square one.

With your website, it is possible to find customers who stick with you. The brand recall value is high when you operate as an individual store. That is one way to weed off competition from me-too brands on Etsy.

6. No Control Over Data And Consumer Information

This is the biggest difference between Etsy vs own website. As a seller on Etsy, you got little to no control over finding what fuels your shop.

Your e-store has analytics to know what search terms got you visitors. Or which location brings you the maximum customers.

On Etsy, it is difficult to get consumer data. The biggest hurdle is in getting the emails of customers. It hinders email marketing strategy that is a must to scale the business.

You can try putting QR codes on your Etsy cover picture. Or try to offer newsletter subscriptions by bartering a discount code in orders. But these tactics have a poor success rate. It might also attract a ban from Etsy if they update the rules in the future.  

7. Slow, But Solid Growth

The same efforts on Etsy and an e-commerce store will bring different outcomes.

Years of a successful stint on Etsy do not guarantee further success. There are several instances where Etsy shut the shops of sellers. Sometimes the reasons were not even disclosed to the sellers by the platform.

Such situations make you realize that owning a store is your biggest asset. It may take a few years to scale. But the growth will be solid with an unshakeable foundation.

8. Rules At The Whim Of Etsy

Etsy’s rules and policies have undergone several changes over the years. The most prominent ones are regarding shipping. 

Etsy states that they focus on sellers offering free shipping on products worth over $35. It is one of the recent changes that can hamper the margins of sellers.

Though some changes work in their favor. One of those is regarding the no-return policy on digital sales.

Thus, the mammoth platform works both in the favor of sellers and buyers. But in the end, these are policies that you as a seller has got no control over. As a seller, you got to learn to live with the Etsy pros and cons.

With your self-hosted store, you design the rules. So, you set the return, shipping, or sales policies. The freedom to operate the business your way sets marked differences.

9. The Url Says It All. No Recall Value With Etsy

This one is my favorite argument for all Etsy fanatics. Try asking any Etsy shopper to ask where did they make their latest purchase from? Without even skipping a breath, they will reply “Etsy” with excitement.

That is the foundation difference between Etsy vs own website. Your website-cum-store brings in branding and recall value which Etsy can never provide.

So, if you want to build a mind share in your customers. Then, think about moving from Etsy to own site.

Conclusion

Do you keep a track of your sales on Etsy? Does your profit make you question is selling on Etsy worth it? 

If such doubts keep recurring. Then, you must look out for options that let you put eggs in different baskets. Selling on Shopify is one of those alternatives. It is unlike free selling platforms. But spending on it is an investment that brings fruit with consistent efforts. 

Do let me know if you know of other differences between Etsy vs own website. I will add it to this list and give you the credits.

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Candle making business is one of the most popular handmade business ideas. If creativity is your forte and you love the idea of solopreneurship. Then, making hand-poured candles is for you.

You can read further to know more about the business of handmade candles.

How To Start A Candle Making Business

Is Candle Making Profitable?

Suppose your selling price is more than your expenses.  Then, for sure your candle making business will be a successful one. The expenses also include the cost of marketing, shipping, and making costs. The raw material costs are a small portion of the entire cost.

Though it is easier said than done. When you are starting a candle business, you would get overwhelmed by the entire ordeal. But if you follow a candle making business plan. Then, the entire process will streamline and will seem easier to follow.

How To Start A Candle Making Business

1. Invest In Candle Making Courses 

To sell candles, you must be able to create them. You can learn through the process of trial and error at your home. Though, you would require a professional course to master creative candle making.

This post may contain affiliate links. That means if you purchase any of the products mentioned in this article through routing via the links in this post. Then, I may end up receiving a certain monetary percentage from the sale. Though the one who purchases through the link does not end up paying anything extra apart from the mentioned MRP on the product. Full disclosures on the Affiliate Page.

A professional candle maker would guide you with various candle properties like :

• How to make candles last long
• How to add natural fragrances
• How to create candles that do not add to pollution
• How to create candles with creative shapes
• How to make personalized candles

2. Identify Who Buys Hand-Poured Candles

Understand this as knowing your customers. So, if you know what kind of handmade candles your customers prefer. Then, it is easier for you to create the ones that will propel your candle making business.

For instance, some people would prefer simple candles with witty humorous quotes. Though some would like the ones with exotic shapes.

So, if you know about your target market. Then, it gets easier to excel in your candle business niche.

3. Select A Suitable Name For Your Candle Business

An appropriate name for a business plays a vital role in brand pull. Therefore, pick up one that best suits your business image. 

If you cannot think of one. Then, try to play with your name in a quirky manner. Coco Chanel and Versace are examples of brand names made out of individuals. 

The best tactic would be to create a short and memorable word with your initials. Of course, you must check if there is no copyright issue with the name. That will save you legal troubles later on when your business becomes successful.

4. Look For The Best Candle Making Supplies

Wax is the raw material for making candles. So, you would need it in bulk to create all sorts of candles.

Most handmade candles are of beeswax or soy wax. The other elements of candle making supplies list include wicks, dyes, and moulds. 

Once made, you would then need labels and packaging supplies for shipping. 

Hence, it would be wise to look for wholesale candle making supplies.

5. Price Them Right

Much like the niche, the price of your candles matters. Every niche within a category can have different price points. 

As per your business goals, you will have to set your price. Struggles associated with pricing will ease if you price as per your niche.

While starting out, the price similar to your direct competitor. From there you can go higher or lower with experience up your sleeve.

How much money you make selling candles should align with your pricing strategy.  

6. Dress Them Well

It is rare for first impressions to go out of memory.

So is true for candles as well. It is rare for anyone to use an unpleasant-looking candle. Hence, it is the good-looking and smelling candles that run the show.

Along with creating fabulous candles, you should also package them well.

Branded packaging/labeling helps in the marketing strategy for the candle business.

So, if your candles are high in aroma. Then, the packaging must keep the scents intact.

7. Identify The Best Places To Sell Candles

Craft shows and handmade fairs are the best starting points to test your candles.

Depending on the feedback, you can decide on expanding/ limiting your product line.

In the current times, the best way forward would be to start your online store. Though, you can also invest in small kiosks to facilitate visual sensation.

8. Comply With Regulations

Since candles create fumes, your business would require pollution certifications. The laws would differ depending upon the country where you operate/ sell.

So, you must get the mandatory certifications sorted out before you become big.

9. Start Marketing And Never Stop

Marketing is a marathon that never ends. Over the years marketing has become synonymous with digital marketing. 

Therefore, the sooner you learn how to promote your crafted candles, the better it is.

Organic marketing with content and SEO is the best way forward. But for a boost, you can also try performance marketing.

10. Stick To A Simple Handmade Candle Business Plan

Planning is an important part of the business. It is all the more important to stick to a strategic plan when you are starting out.

Several steps and sub-steps complicate the business plans. That is one of the reasons why small handmade business owners shy away from using one.

To tackle the challenge, you can start with a small 2-page business plan.

It should collect basic data like supplies/product/customer management. Calculating the number of hours spent and the break-even point will be a bonus.

This basic information will track your progress. Plus, it will also help analyze your business with real data.

11. Make Learning A Routine 

Not only for business, but learning should also be a routine for life.

To grow your candle making business, you will need expansion plans. That means exploring new markets along with product innovation.

For instance, you can bundle candle holders with candles and sell them as an upsell. Subscribing to business bulletins will help you with such golden nuggets.

So, keeping a holistic intent of your category and small businesses will help.

Conclusion

Starting a business from home seems scary. But it gets easier when you take small but consistent steps.
This article lists a few of the basic steps that will help to start a candle business. Do share it with someone who is looking for candle business tips.

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Ever thought about earning by turning your home into an Airbnb? If you have gone beyond the phase of letting in people through Couchsurfing. Then, you can try to make some extra bucks from your home through Airbnb.

You can read further to understand how to start an Airbnb business.

What Does It Mean By Turning Your Home Into An Airbnb?

Airbnb is the brand name that has become a generic term for renting homes worldwide.

So, turning your home into an Airbnb means letting it out for people to stay. The stays could be both long-term and short-term. 

5 Steps To Turning Your Home Into An Airbnb

1. Have Access To A Property

It is obvious to have a property to let out for others to stay in. You can have a property in your or a relative’s name to rent out. Else, you can also Airbnb a rented or leased property. 

My Airbnbs are also on leased property. As long as you have legal access to a property, you can have it listed on Airbnb.

The property could be a tree house, a campervan, or an igloo. It is not necessary to have a traditional apartment. The Airbnb listings vary from castles to houseboats, ryokans, and riads.

2. Make The Property Worthy Of Listing On Airbnb

A place should look appealing to stay in. The property should have attractive amenities worth someone paying for it.

Airbnb lists many amenities and accessibility features to list properties on its platform.

You can mention the amenities that you provide in your listing. That will clarify what you offer/do not offer. That will spare a lot of chaos in later stages.

3. Take Drool-Worthy Pictures

The transactions on Airbnb happen through their app and website. That means the customer does not get to see the place in person at the time of booking. 

So, to facilitate the sale, you must provide clear and realistic images of your property. 

My experience of running an Airbnb suggests hiring professional photographers to click pictures. The platform also lets you connect with photographers around your listing area. So, you can use Airbnb’s ecosystem to increase your listing’s reach. 

4. Set Reasonable Pricing

Pricing is an essential element for a guest to select a rental place. That is why it is perplexing for a host to come up with the ideal pricing. 

An Airbnb property is not an established hotel. Thus, it becomes difficult for a complete newbie to set up a rental for their property.

The good news is that the inbuilt pricing feature of the Airbnb app comes to the rescue. 

When you upload the pictures, tick the available amenities on the hosting app. Then, the app itself comes up with ideal pricing. 

From then on, you can select the “Smart Pricing” feature to let the app decide the apt valuation. 

The pricing feature fluctuates as per the competition and seasonality. Thus, Smart Pricing removes the guessing game from the equation. The subsequent bookings and reviews also play a role in pricing a property.

5. Deliver Excellent Customer Service

This is obvious since a lack of service to customers will jeopardize the Airbnb business. 

Customer service is a broad term that has a different connotation for everyone. 

I have had almost a year of handling five individual Airbnb units. From my end, the service to the guests has been consistent and the best.

Though every guest received it in different ways. I am fortunate that almost 90% of them found my offerings satisfactory. The rest found flaws in my offerings. That was irrespective of the additional efforts made from my end to provide what they asked.

Now I have made peace with the fact that not all guests are the same. Nor am I capable of making every guest happy.

But what I can do is – provide the best of services from my end.

That is why I provide the amenities listed below to make the stay comfortable. The list is not comprehensive but a general Airbnb amenities list.

This post may contain affiliate links. That means if you purchase any of the products mentioned in this article through routing via the links in this post. Then, I may end up receiving a certain monetary percentage from the sale. Though the one who purchases through the link does not end up paying anything extra apart from the mentioned MRP on the product. Full disclosures on the Affiliate Page.

• High-Speed Wifi
• Basic Kitchen Utensils
• Electric Oil Heater
• Portable Fan
• Hair Dryer
• Blue Tooth Speaker

I also provide free early check-ins and zero cancellations before 24 hours of arrival. 

Tips For Renting Your Home On Airbnb

The biggest challenge in turning your home into an Airbnb is to handle the dilemmas. Most of us think that the services and amenities have to be at par with the established hotels.

That notion is untrue in its entirety. As a business, Airbnb expects you to provide services with consistency.

So, if you mention that you provide a “fireplace”. Then, the guests should be able to use it when they book with you. Likewise, if you mention that electricity is not available at certain hours. Then, the guests have to adjust to that challenge while they stay with you.

As of writing this article, I can come up with a few tips that have helped me to run a smooth Airbnb business. You can read about them below:

1. Do You Need Permission To Run An Airbnb?

Many society laws and apartment rules do not permit short-term rentals. That could be a deterrent to running an Airbnb business.

I know friends who had to shut down their Airbnb business for these reasons. Hence, it would be wise to pre-confirm the rules before turning your home into an Airbnb.

Even my society and the landlord have laid out rules regarding Airbnb rentals. As per them, I am allowed to let in people as long as they are Indian nationals. Hence, I have to let go of bookings from non-Indians.

Moreover, every state in a country has its rules regarding short-term rentals. You should check with your respective government bodies to know about those.   

2. How To Start An Airbnb With No Money?

You can let a portion of your house operate as an Airbnb. In that case, it would mean turning your home into an Airbnb at zero costs.

That is possible if your place is enough for a guest to pay without you spending any money on extra amenities. In high tourism traffic areas, such a scenario is possible.

Else, you would need to bear the Airbnb startup cost to furnish a place to compete with the competition.

3. Should I Airbnb My House Or Rent?

I struggled with this dilemma for months before I decided to Airbnb my place.

The decision is yours to make as per your goals and lifestyle. My life involves a lot of travel, and my Airbnb is in a tourist location. Thus, long-term rentals do not make sense. That is why I opted for Airbnb short-term rentals. 

So, I stay at my Airbnb location during the peak season. The rest of the seasons do not gather many bookings. So, Airbnb works best for me.

In terms of earnings, it works out almost the same since long-term rentals are cheaper than short term. So, short-term Airbnb bookings match up the long-term ones with their high pricing.

So, take a call as per your preferences. 

4. How To Do Airbnb Without Owning Property?

As mentioned before, you need legal access to a property to run an Airbnb business. So, that can happen even without owning a property. 

Leasing would be the best way to run an Airbnb business since it saves capital costs. Else you could also rent and sublet a property. 

One of my friends manages Airbnb(s) without leasing/renting/owning any property. She earns a part of Airbnb arbitrage by handling the guest bookings for the actual Airbnb owners. It is another way to make money from the Airbnb business.

5. Can You Airbnb Your House While On Vacation?

Of course, you can Airbnb your house while you are away on holiday. I do it all the time as I spend more than six months each year away from my home. 

Before letting guests into your home, you should manage your assets. You can build a safe or keep locked premises for your expensive valuables.

Also, make it mandatory for the guests to adhere to the house rules before booking.

Conclusion

Airbnb seems like a lucrative business. It is cool to let out your space to earn some bucks. The best part is the minimal expenses on marketing as their app does it for you.

Apart from marketing your property, it also manages and brings systems in place. If you get the nuances of hospitality, then it is profitable to run an Airbnb business from your home.

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Did you ever think about starting a stationery business? If you did, then this is the right time to do so.

A basic Etsy search will lead you to thousands of results for the term “Stationery”. The sub-niche “Gratitude Journals” within stationery items is more than 25,000 results. The results are impressive for planners as well.

That indicates the wide scope of operating a stationery business.

You can read further to know more.

Starting A Stationery Business: An Overview

What Sells At A Stationery Store

The word stationery includes all the items related to writing. You can consider it as a catch-all for gadgets, instruments, and tools that aid to write.

So, it would include pens, paper, pencils, writing boards, and other office supplies. 

In recent times, stationery also includes digital downloads that you can print to use for writing.

Thus, the range of items included under the umbrella of Stationery is huge. All sorts of cards, envelopes, stickers, labels, and planners are stationery too.

Advantages Of Stationery Business

1. The Range Of Industries To Cater To Is Huge.

It caters to almost all sorts of businesses. That means there is a wide scope for selecting a niche. 

Any and every kind of business needs content-driven communication materials. Stationery is an important tool to achieve that purpose. So, as a stationery business owner, you are free to choose whichever industry you have an affinity for.

2. There Is Tremendous Scope For Upselling.

The demand for stationery does not end at one product. For example, a certain soap business will need printed packaging materials. Their needs will not stop at that. 

They would also require stationery like soap labels, business cards, and QR code cards. Hence, the chances of selling printed materials increase after the first order.

3. There Is Always A Scope For Bundled Selling.

The term stationery comprises a huge range of materials. Thus, you can sell a lot of complementary items. So, if a customer requires paper. Then, you can suggest buying pens, paper, bookmarks, and paperweights too.

This increases the scope of aggregating similar products to sell at attractive prices. Thus, the bundled selling options lead to cross-sales and hence more revenue.

4. High Profits If You Include Digital Stationery.

The digital products industry has seen huge growth. The stationery industry is not left behind in this technology era. 

One would assume the writing tools and accessories to take a hit because of digitization. Rather, digital stationery has become massive due to technological advancements. 

So, starting a stationery business with digital products will prove fruitful. My business saw huge growth after I introduced digital planners in my shop. 

5. It Caters To All Economic Strata Of Customers.

The good part about stationery as a product is that everyone needs it. 

A pop-up from a street vendor to a Fortune 500 business requires stationery. That brings in scope to cater to customers from a wide range of economic backgrounds. 

So, it does not matter at what price point you position a stationery business. The overall future of a business in the stationery industry is long living.

Types Of Stationery Business

1. Wholesale

As the name suggests, the wholesale business caters to retail stationery business owners. It involves buying in bulk from brands and supplying to small business owners. 

Such a business model has low margins that need tall orders to achieve large revenue figures.

2. Retail

Retail stationery stores are the most common form of stationery business. You could open a stand-alone store of a particular brand in a franchisee format. That would be a physical store. 

But if you wish to enter the e-commerce space. Then, you can pick from the following options.

2.1. Stock And Sell Multiple Brands

This one is a no-brainer. The majority of the stationery stores operate on this model. They buy from various brands to sell their stock to their customers.

Erstwhile stationery stores have been the brick-and-mortar ones. But technology advancements enable adding online stores to the arsenal.

Along with an e-commerce store, you can also sell on third-party platforms like Amazon.

2.2. Print-On-Demand

This is a unique stationery business that does not involve stocking inventory.

It involves creating mock-up designs that integrate with an operations partner. The operations involve printing the stationery and supplying it to the customer.

The best part about a print-on-demand business is not owning or shipping the products. The printing partner stocks and ships the printed stationery to the customers. 

So, as a stationery business owner, you own the designs. But the hassles of creating prints and shipments are not on you.

But you would need solid marketing skills to bring your designs out to the ideal customers.  

2.3. Handmade Stationery Business

This is my favorite method of starting a stationery business from scratch. If you have design skills, then, the sky is the limit. 

Canva can be the starting point if you lack professional design skills. But you can always upgrade and learn to come up with unique designs.

There are several stationery ideas to sell. Though the most popular handmade stationery items are as below:

• Planners

• Journals

• Coloring Books

• Stickers

• Labels

You can sell these products in print as well as digital art forms.

This post may contain affiliate links. That means if you purchase any of the products mentioned in this article through routing via the links in this post. Then, I may end up receiving a certain monetary percentage from the sale. Though the one who purchases through the link does not end up paying anything extra apart from the mentioned MRP on the product. Full disclosures on the Affiliate Page.

How To Make Stationery To Sell

This one is a little tricky question to answer. Although, starting a stationery business requires proficiency in design software like Adobe. But you can start with basic ones like Canva and  Affinity Designer.

From there on you can upgrade to the best ones in proficiency.

If you have been my customer, then, you would know that my designs are basic. My products are functional with minimal design features. Thus, you can also start in a similar way and update your skills on the go.

If you are looking for options to learn. Then, Suzi Whitford has a fantastic course on creating Printables. That is how I started my 6 figures income selling handmade digital printables.

Starting A Stationery Business Online

The best way to reach the maximum number of customers in a stationery business is to go online. An e-commerce venture lets you understand the visitors with real-time data. That in turn helps to turn them into customers.

Moreover, it enables direct contact through email marketing to induce repeat orders.

Shopify and Gumroad are good options to open a stationery store. You can also try Woocommerce and Thrivecart to sell from your blog. 

Else Etsy and Amazon can be the starting points for testing your designs.

Conclusion

As a creative maker, if you wish to know how to start a small stationery shop. Then, this article is for you. 

Gone are the days when buying from established brands and selling was the only option. Today, you can start a homegrown stationery brand with basic design skills. Thanks to the various design software, it is possible to learn and experiment.

You can even sell digital stationery that customers can print and reprint. Or you can take the print-on-demand route to concentrate only on design and outsource the rest.

Irrespective of how you operate, it is possible to make a career out of creative pursuits.

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According to market research firms, souvenir business ideas will lead you to success.

The reports suggest that the worldwide gifts/souvenirs market will grow by $13.04 Bn from 2021 to 2026. That is an impressive CAGR of 3.4%.

So, until now if you have been on the fence about starting a handmade business. Then, picking up the niche of novelty gifts and souvenirs is worth a try.

Why Souvenir Business Ideas Matter

Memories lead to connecting and collecting items that become souvenirs. Tangible collectibles, keepsakes, or tokens fall under the board category of souvenirs. Their purpose is to refresh memories and reminisce about the good times spent.

In popular culture, the travel industry has brought a huge boost to the market of souvenirs. So, as the travel industry grows, so does the market for unique curios depicting the culture of a place grows too.

Moreover, the charm of souvenirs is not bound to physical geography or location. Collectible tokens can be of an event as well. So, consider music shows, roadshows, charity events, and marathons on the list.

So, if there is an iota of nostalgia attached, consider starting a souvenir gifts business.

How To Open A Gift Shop

If it is the brick-and-mortar route, the answer is simple. Pick up a space where you can stock and display your products. But anyone who has done business knows it is much more than that.

Your store should be in a prominent space where you expect an influx of customers. Since the purpose of a souvenir shop is to facilitate remembering past events. Therefore, the display of souvenirs, relics, and mementos should happen on busy streets. A gift/ souvenir shop could also pop up around a popular tourist monument.

In an ideal scenario, busy tourist spots are perfect for souvenir business ideas. 

Real estate prices are high all over the globe. Thus, owning even a small kiosk in a prominent place would charge a high premium. Opening an online store could be the next viable option to deal with that situation.

Top Selling Gift Items Worldwide

1. Fridge Magnets

These are the most popular form of souvenir business ideas across the world. They are easy to create, plus, they are fast selling. You can create these or outsource the bulk production. A successful souvenir-selling business started with fridge magnets as its only product.

2. Wall Art

There are numerous art forms that can come under this term. They could be handmade paper-based wall hangings like quilled art or digital art. Art depicting local traditions and culture would make the souvenir business ideas relatable. Thus, increasing the sale value of the product.

3. Stationery 

These also form a broad category of products. Stationery items are helpful and generic. Hence, they offer scope to sell premium upsell products as well. For instance, you can make a stationery kit of notebooks, journals, and pens to sell a product curation. The list of items under stationery could be –

• Diary
• Pens
• Pencils
• Coloring books
• Art Prints
• Bookmarks
• Post Cards
• Greeting Cards
• Planners

4. Mugs

Mugs, glasses, and tumblers offer an opportunity to showcase your sojourns. They have a practical application. So, they make one of the best souvenir business ideas as well.

5. Trays, trivets, and coasters

These would go complimentary to mugs and glasses. I end up buying these during travels since they serve multiple purposes. Apart from serving food, they also hold good as jewelry and trinket catch-alls.

6. Furnishings and Linens

Turning your rooms into memoirs of vacation travels makes a wonderful idea. Hence, cushions, bed sheets, throws, and curtains could be top-selling gift shop items. You can screen print handmade designs. Or you can even hand paint or do digital prints.

7. Keychains

Without a doubt, this is the most popular souvenir item all over the world. It would be rare to not find a keychain at a popular tourist spot. 

They are inexpensive. That is why you can increase their value by adding local motifs to them. 

Also, adding a bottle opener function to a keychain enhances its utility.

8. Wine stoppers

They are a popular gifting accessory when you are unsure about what to gift someone. As the name suggests, they serve the purpose of preserving the wines after the removal of the cork. Hence, they can be a befitting addition to a souvenir gift shop.

9. Apparel/accessories  

Apparel and accessories find daily use. So, customizing them as per the respective tourist attractions makes sense. 

Therefore, it is common to find T-shirts, caps, hats, and slippers as souvenir business ideas. There are tons of crazy artistic ideas you can try with them to make unique fast selling products.

10. Wallets, Bags, and Passport Holders

Although they can fit in as accessories. Since wallets, bags, and passports are a necessity for travel. Thus, they deserve a separate category.

There are different bags for travel ranging from backpacks to duffles and rucksacks. Likewise, wallets and passport holders have different classifications. 

As a souvenir gift shop owner, you can add such travel essentials to your product range.

11. Chocolates and Candies

Who does not like to munch on some sweet snacks? They are popular as thoughtful gifts as well. 

That is why they are my go-to products to give back to my dear ones after travels.

You can research some native flavors to create unique chocolates and candies. That will give the travel gift shop a distinctive flair.

12. Personalized Souvenirs 

Personalized and customized gifts have a separate fan following. Moreover, they are great as an upsell since they have an emotional connection. 

A few ideas to personalize souvenirs are embossing names, dates, and even pictures.

Personalization does take some time and effort. But it is worth the revenue it brings. The best part is that each gift item can have personalization.

13. Candles

Candles bring in light and positivity with their appearance and aroma. Hence, a definite must-have in a curio gift shop. You can make melt and pour handmade candles. Also, you can get them from a creative solopreneur creating and selling from their home.

14. Soaps

Much like candles, there is tremendous scope in making artisan soaps. You can utilize the trend and offer native aromas from local ingredients. That will make your soaps unique to your geography of operation. From there, you can even expand to a wide range of toiletries.

15. Mats

Mats and rugs have utility along with the aesthetic value. Thus, they serve as beautiful souvenir business ideas.

Persian and Kashmiri rugs/mats are popular as gifts worth buying.

16. Trending viral products

Viral trends contribute to the influx of sales in huge numbers. If you catch them early. Then, you can improve your bottom line. Some past viral products are fidget spinners, unicorn-themed products, and slime.

17. Local cultural sentiments

It goes without a mention that products that embody local sentiments fascinate travelers. Therefore, every gift shop item must convey the feelings of the local culture. You can add local flair to almost every product in the souvenir gift shop.

Conclusion

Travels and vacations are at an all-time high owing to revenge tourism. Since the lifting of the lockdown, people all over the globe have started traveling wide and far.

It brings in an opportunity to offer gifts and tokens pertaining to local places. That is why opening a gift shop selling souvenirs seems a great idea. 

There are opportunities for handmade products that offer a glimpse of local culture. A local stand-alone store is the best option. Though, you can also provide an online extension to the physical store. 

A high-quality inkjet printer would help to print handmade designs and figures. Else, you can outsource the job to reduce the cost of starting a gift shop.

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