Craft Kits, Online or In-person? How to Diversify Your Kids Crafting Club

In today's video we’ll help you pick the best way to thrive with your kids crafting club in this new normal world:

• Selling craft kits

• Teaching virtual/online classes

• Teaching socially distanced in-person classes

Whether you’re looking to get started with your kids crafting club or you want to grow/pivot your existing business and need some extra support, you’re in the right place.

Watch the video or read the written version below.

This past year we’ve been pushed outside our comfort zone in ways that we never thought possible.

The impact of COVID-19 has been devastating for many, all around the world. Society’s stress levels are at an all-time high, kids are feeling the pressures and many kids are stressed.  

And we as creatives are in the perfect position to serve, to be present and to give children and parents an opportunity to be creative, to express themselves to be part of a community and to escape from the stresses that life presents.

Because now more than ever people need connection. People need community and the power of creativity.

NOW is the time to do what you love, to make a change and pursue your dream.

Despite the challenges that life is presenting us, there are still many opportunities to use your passion for crafting and creativity to make the difference you were born to make.

Crafting creates a safe environment for kids and families to connect with one another in a meaningful way, to explore, to develop and create. 

So as we move into this episode I want you to think of your own desires, talents and situation and ask yourself, how can you best bring creativity to the kids in your community? Is it by teaching in-person,  online or with craft kits? 

There is sooo much opportunity for creatives like us. As long as you’re willing to try and learn.

If you’re looking to get started with your club this year, this training will be useful so that you can decide what appeals to you the most, teaching in-person classes, teaching online or selling craft kits. Or maybe it’s a combination of them?

If you already run a craft club, you might find some ideas to add additional revenue streams to your business. In any business, it's important to think about how you can diversify your income.

Before we dive in I want to talk about something really important.

With a kids crafting club and with any business for that matter, the main goal should be to build a sustainable business.

That means, to build a stream of steady income that comes in on a monthly basis and not to just have once-off injections of money.

A great way to achieve this is to set up your club so that your customers pay on a monthly or termly basis.

Even better is to have a subscription model, but let’s keep it simple for now. 

With that in mind, let’s have a look at the 3 ways that are working well right now to bring arts and crafts to kids:

#1: Craft Kits

For those who are not familiar with craft kits, here’s how it works:

Craft kits are a bundle of craft supplies that you put together for your customer to purchase once off or on an ongoing basis for them to get creative at home.

It’s like getting a Christmas present filled with goodies! 

Adding craft kits to your business is a great way to reach more people, make additional income on top of classes and of course work really well to serve your customers if you have COVID-19 restrictions in your country/state.

We've seen craft kits work well in two ways:

1. To send out to customers (with supplies & instructions) to craft at home
2. To up-sell as part of your online classes. You provide the supplies and your customers tune in online to attend the class.

If you’d like to do craft kits there are 7 important decisions you need to make:

1. Who’s it for? What age group? 
2. What packaging will you use? 
3. What will you put inside the kits? 
4. What price is it? 
5. How will you get the word out about your kits? i.e. marketing
6. How often do you send them out and do they order once off or on a subscription basis?
7. How will you get them to your customers: deliver, pickup or ship?

If you’re just starting out with kits, it's best to keep it local at first, use your existing customer base, keep it simple - drop them off or let your customers collect from somewhere central.

If you do want to ship, make up 1 kit, get a quote on shipping (they usually give you a quote based on dimensions of weight) and make sure you calculate this into your costing or pass the cost on to your customer. 

2 Very important tips: 

• Don’t buy stock before you get orders in. make up one example, market it, get orders in before a specific date and then get the supplies, assemble and ship. Otherwise you might not sell them all and sit with loads of stock. 
• Give people a deadline to order by to create urgency and scarcity - people need a nudge, doing this WILL boost your sales.

And lastly, don’t try to be too fancy, keeping it simple is always best.

#2: Online classes

Right now, millions of people are turning to the internet, looking for ideas to stimulate themselves and their children creatively using platforms such as Facebook on a daily basis.

This is a huge opportunity and one that is here to stay.

You can do it from anywhere (and if you’re anything like me do it in your yoga pants!) 

There is no limit to the number of kids you can accommodate, so unlike a physical space, capacity is never an issue, so there is potential for high volumes and high profit

You are also not limited to your geographical area and can teach kids literally all across the world. 

You don’t need fancy software, venue rental expenses or equipment to host classes, you can use Facebook and your phone to record, which doesn't cost a cent!

Other than Facebook you can also use software like Zoom/ google meet and Microsoft teams.

Let’s briefly chat about these options:

Facebook Group:

• It’s free and people are used to using it
• There is no cap in the number of students you can invite
• The video is also automatically saved on facebook so those who want to watch it again or those who missed the class can catch up
• It's also fun to see everyone posting photos on the facebook group of their crafts and craft setups at home.

You can also grab the Free Checklist that will show you step-by-step how to host an online crafting class using Facebook. 

Messenger Rooms in Facebook Groups and Events

Admins and members of a Facebook Group can create a Room right from the Facebook Groups and Events they belong to, and host up to 50 people on a Messenger video call for as long as they want. Click here to read more about this feature.

Zoom/Microsoft Teams/Google Meet etc:

Using one of these platforms creates a different experience than FB groups.

It’s interactive in the sense that you can SEE the kids, you can ask them questions and they can respond, you can ask them to hold up their work and show you after each step.

This works well for small groups and you might have to pay a monthly fee to get access to the software.

If a child cannot attend the class or would like to view it again, you will have to save and share a copy of the video with your students.

If you are looking to host big classes a Facebook group might be the way to go.

Some general tips on online classes:

• Practice makes perfect, do a few practice rounds with your family or a small group of friends before you open it up to your customers. 
• Remember to pick craft lessons that are a bit easier than you would do in an in-person class as you’re not there to assist. 
• Also it helps to use a lot of recycled items and things that people will have at home to make it easy for everyone to gather supplies and to join in 
• Try to shift your mindset from 'I hate seeing myself on video' to 'It's not about me, it's about THEM'. Try to focus on the massive value you are offering your students and how much they need you right now and not on yourself. 

Going live on video the first time is pretty scary!

But we are living in a weird world at the moment and the truth is no one is expecting perfect right now!

Don't be scared to make mistakes and figure it out as you go along. 

We didn't get it right from the get go.  

To be exact, the first video we hosted we weren't aware that the camera on the phone had rotated and the entire class was hosted at 90 degrees. Literally!

This still makes me laugh! Our customers had to tilt their heads sideways to see the steps in the craft!

And you know what, it was okay!

Like with everything in life, practice makes perfect! And more importantly, practice builds confidence!

As soon as you see the excitement and smiles on the kids’ faces when they create something beautiful and unique, from recycled items they've gathered at home, it will bring so much warmth to your heart! 

If you’re looking to teach online check out this episode: 5 Simple Ways to Improve Your Online Class Videos. We’re giving it all to you on a silver platter today! ;-)

#3: In-person classes

We looove teaching in person. We know it’s not possible for everyone with all the COVID-19 lockdowns and restrictions that are currently in place.

If it is possible for you to teach in person classes or workshops, from your home, as an extra mural at schools or from a public venue such as a church, community centre or restaurant.

We’ve covered in person classes extensively on our blog and we’ll link to 2 of our most popular episodes below:

• 4 Simple Steps to Start a Mobile Craft Club (no studio? no problem!)
• How to Teach In-person Crafting Classes During Covid-19 (PLUS Behind-the-Scenes Studio Tour!)

So to wrap up, the world has changed forever and has opened up so many more opportunities for creatives like us. 

Now, we’d love to hear from you. 

In-person, online or craft kits?

Tell us in the comments what you are planning for 2021!

 Until next time, cheers!

P.S. WANT TO START AND GROW YOUR VERY OWN KIDS CRAFTING CLUB? Join the waiting list to be the first to know when enrolment to the Creative Crafting Club Membership opens.