Pedddle Founder Nicki recently spoke to Emily of Emily Harvey Art. Emily has experienced much success as an illustrator, running her own monthly Patreon subscription service and a successful YouTube channel, as well as selling her original artwork via various platforms. She really is an inspiration!
Nicki spoke to Emily about her small business success, how she manages those multiple income streams and setting goals as a small business owner, alongside managing the work/life balance as a young mum.
You can watch the IGTV below (via the PedddleUK Instagram IGTV).
Main take-aways from the IGTV Live chat:
Tell us more about yourself and your business
I’m an illustrator and worked in the animation industry, then in 2019 I had my little boy. By May 2019 I had no job, was living on maternity pay, and figured out I needed to go back to my love of drawing. I started off drawing in my spare room, and it went from there! There was no long-term plan, I just knew that I needed to share my drawings and show who I am. I was trying different things and exploring, and Emily Harvey Art spiralled from there!
I know that I want to be able to drop my son off for school and pick him up every day, to go on holiday at least once a year and to be able to pay my mortgage comfortably, and so my work goals are based around achieving those things. My main goal is to be present as a mum, and I set my business goals based around that.
Believe in your vision
Even if your goals seem far out of reach, it’s so important to believe in yourself, give yourself time, and ask for help when you need it. It’s ok to grow slowly – all of your decisions have led up to this point.
Don’t compare yourself with others. Going slowly, building your business slowly, is the key to success. That’s how you grow a solid infrastructure and fully understand your customers and why they buy into you.
How did you discover your various income streams?
When I started, I knew I needed a steady income stream. I’d heard of Patreon, a monthly subscription service, but nobody knew who I was. I gave myself 6 months to build my following and draw more art, and aimed for 10 monthly followers after that. I ended up getting over 40 Patrons sign up! I then decided over the next 6 months I’d grow this to bring in an income of £600 a month, which ended up taking me a year to do – but it’s all about building slowly and hanging on in there.
The pandemic really helped my Patreon growth, as people sought community. I started off with 60 Patrons and this grew to over 390! It’s grown more slowly since, but that definitely helped.
I also make content for YouTube. This only brings me around £200 a month from advertising, but I use the YouTube content to help me advertise the other aspects of my business. It all links in, so it’s important to be seen in as many places as possible.
Have you got any tips for Patreon?
Build your following first. You’ll know it’s the right time when you feel confident that people will sign up to your Patreon. This means doing the publicity first – talk about it, send out the link, and have a clear launch date. Make an event of it so that you feel confident people will sign up on launch day.
Also be willing to change. I began thinking that I’d end up teaching how I draw and offering art techniques via my Emily Harvey Art Patreon, but I soon realised that people wanted to get to know me, to be a part of a community, and that they enjoyed my content and seeing behind the scenes, so I offer content based on these things. I’m not a mentor, but if someone has a question and I’ve been through it, I love sharing my experiences. It’s important to be adaptable.
Not everything goes to plan – how do you know when to give up?
By the end of 2020 I was earning a good monthly income from Patreon, so I thought about setting up another type of subscription package as a mid-level, where people could get access to all of my digital content, join my Zoom calls, and they’d also receive a goodie box with an exclusive postcard illustration. In 2021 I launched a £10 a month tier with this postcard subscription, but nobody was joining that tier of my Patreon. I kept trying, but I realised that it just wasn’t working – so I knew it was time to call it quits. Giving up lifted a weight off my shoulders, I knew it was ok to let it go.
How do you set goals?
A few weeks ago I was sat thinking about when I last had a sale – it was 10 days ago. I realised I wanted to create a sales tracker, so that I knew exactly what my targets were and to help motivate me. I put it on the wall and I think it makes me a better salesperson – I celebrate every win, and people can join in with me. This helps at markets too, f you have an idea of how many sales you want to make in the day, you can then work out how many sales you need an hour, which will help to motivate you.
I’ve offered this as a FREE download – click here to get it. There’s versions of 10, 20, 50 and 100 sales for the month trackers – download whichever suits you best.
Don’t be afraid of showing off your sales and celebrating your wins, customers will want to celebrate them with you. I mark customer’s names off and truly celebrate every single sale.
It can be used at a market too. Print it off and mark off the sales of the day – you could even ask people to sign it or tick it off themselves and put their name underneath. Letting customers join in will encourage them to help drive sales too! You could even offer a freebie at a certain number of sales, e.g. a free bookmark for your 20th sale.
Making sales shouldn’t be taboo, so many people are afraid of coming off as ‘sales-y’ – but we all need sales to survive!
The personal touch really does count in so many ways. As well as marking customer’s names on my sales tracker (which always gives me a smile, and then I recognise repeat customers too!), I always include a hand-written note in my orders, which customers love. I also personalise Reels, for example when I make a packing reel I say ‘watch me help pack Laura’s order’, and then customers can spot themselves which is lovely.
How Pedddle can help stallholders at a market
We definitely think Emily’s sales tracker would be brilliant to take to market.
We also have a BRAND NEW feature, where stallholders can add their very own personalised QR code to their Pedddle board! Once you’ve signed up as a stallholder member, customers can scan your QR code at a market and sign up directly to your emailing list, access special market day discounts and Favourite your stall, helping customers to buy from their favourite stallholders easily. Click here to find out more.
Find out more about Emily Harvey Art
Catch up with Emily over on her YouTube channel – click here.
You can join Emily’s Patreon page or find out more about the subscriptions she offers by clicking here.
Check out Emily’s website to see more of her art.
Watch the full IGTV Live here:
Good luck with setting your goals and growing your confidence in 2022! If you download Emily’s sales tracker, don’t forget to tag her on social media to share the happy news!
Check out our other blogs for further small business tips.