Episode 44: Leanne Pressly - Stitchcraft Marketing and The Colorado Mama
Leanne Pressly began her career at Interweave Press working for sheep breed specialist Deb Robson who was the author of the Fleece & Fiber Sourcebook. Deb also taught Leanne how to knit, and now sewing and knitting both passions of hers. Today, Leanne lives in a small artist’s community in the mountains of Colorado, where she runs Stitchcraft Marketing, a full-service agency specializing in yarn, fabric, and craft companies.
Leanne talks in depth about helping people create businesses that are built on their passion. She explains, “I get calls every single week from people that say, I love what I do, I want to spend more time being creative. And I know I have to do this marketing, but I hate it. Or they'll say I know I have to do it. But I don't know how, and I don't want to learn.”
As Leanne wisely points out, nobody knows how to master all the things required to build your business. That’s why you hire other professionals with the skills and tools to handle the parts of the business that aren’t in your wheelhouse. That way, you free up your time and do more of the creative things that you're passionate about and excel at.
In the course of the conversation, Leanne shares the basics of marketing one’s creations, while emphasizing the importance of building and nurturing relationships with customers. Once you’ve grabbed someone’s attention you have to engage them, keep them engaged, and earn their trust. She cautions people about viewing social media as a magic bullet, because while it’s important, it’s not a “one-and-done” proposition. You must keep building your brand while building your following. One way to do that is by building a brand persona, what Leanne refers to as a brand avatar. This helps you create a trust funnel, which is essentially the idea that people buy from people they know, like, and trust. She also shares valuable tips on how entrepreneurs can bring more people into sewing and quilting, as well as how trends are evolving and changing. (7:03-15:05)
In addition, she dispels some of the misconceptions around who the people are that pursue those crafts, and how you can take advantage of these new opportunities. She stresses the fact that diversity and inclusion are something the entire crafting industry needs to start thinking about. This includes not only ethnicity and lifestyle, but also the economically disadvantaged. “Ensuring opportunities for anyone and everyone who wants access to fiber and crafts is going to be one of the only ways that we grow and survive and thrive as an industry.” (17:35 -21:40)
This casual conversation with Leanne is chockful of helpful information, whether you’re thinking about starting a business or are already a business owner. To get more great insights, you can reach Leanne at stitchcraftmarketing.com or her podcast, Business of Craft.
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