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From learning how to crochet by watching YouTube videos (I just love “YouTube University” too 🙂 ) to building a successful business beyond her wildest imagination, Angela (aka Angel) Doherty who runs the Etsy shop HookedByAngel has united her passion for crocheting with her love of her fur-baby, Remy.
Angela opened her Etsy shop just two years ago and it has grown exponentially over time, allowing her to quit her job to become a full-time crafter and crochet pattern designer.
When Angel first opened her HookedbyAngel shop, she sold a wide variety of crocheted items such as scarves and baby booties. However, over time, she has niched down her line of products to offer over 200 unique items ranging from drink cozies for pet lovers and pet scarves to crochet patterns of her cozies and DIY crochet kits, for those who prefer to DIY.
Her unique crochet cozies and patterns are designed to resemble a wide variety of dog and cat breeds, as realistically as possible.
Angel lives in Grove City, Ohio with her husband and after her three sons graduated from high school, moved out, and began attending college, she decided to pick up a crochet needle and learn how to master the art. She is a self-taught maker, designer, and entrepreneur who now has over 9 years of crocheting experience.
She shares her journey from life as a beginning crafter through to becoming a successful entrepreneur. Angel also shares how she started HookedbyAngel and what finally motivated her to open her shop (after weighing the decision for quite a while), and how her family has helped her grow her business.
As usual, this weeks’ episode is packed full of helpful tips, actionable advice, techniques and resources for new Etsy sellers as well as veteran sellers; listen in for some interesting stories about a variety of lessons Angel has learned since she began selling on Etsy. We talk about everything from SEO (search engine optimization) and using keywords to social media marketing strategies and time-management tactics.
Angel shares a lot of helpful information and helpful resources that have helped her build, grow, and expand her business in an impressive amount of time, and many of the tips and tools she shares with us today are easy to implement and incorporate into most Etsy business models.
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Hooked By Angel – Topics Discussed
- Angel explains her journey from working out of the home full time while building her Etsy business part time to quitting her job to become a full-time crafter and designer
- Challenges she faces selling across multiple platforms
- Angel’s process for creating her patterns and cozies from a simple image of a dog or cat
- Why she decided to niche down her line of products to focus on the pet-lover community and how this decision has affected her business
- Facebook advertising, Facebook groups, and social media marketing
- How and where she finds pattern testers before posting a new pattern for sale in her shop
- Email marketing and what methods Angel uses to attract subscribers
- Angel’s long-term goals for her Etsy shop
Hooked By Angel – Resources Mentioned
- Photo editing: Canva, PicMonkey
- Etsy SEO tools (and podcast): Marmalead, Etsy Rank, Etsy Jam
- Mailing tool: Stamps.com
- Pinterest scheduling tool: Tailwind
- Etsy/Creative & Handmade business community resources: Makery Space, Flourish
- Other sites for selling crafts: Ravelry, Craftsy, Creative Bug, Craft Foxes
- Etsy Seller Resources: Etsy Holiday Selling Bootcamp, Etsy Promoted Listings
- Books: Better Than Before by Gretchen Rubin
- Podcasts: Happier w/Gretchen Rubin, Creative Yarn Entrepreneur w/Marie Segares
Best Ways to Reach Angela
- Etsy shop: Hooked By Angel
- Social media: Facebook, Instagram
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For more help growing your Etsy-based business, check out these resources: