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A LITTLE BIRD TOLD US THAT YOU’D LIKE TO MAKE MONEY SELLING YOUR HANDMADE PRODUCTS…

🎉 AND WE COULDN’T BE HAPPIER ABOUT IT! 🎉

WELCOME TO THE TIZZIT HQ COMMUNITY, YOU ARE GOING TO LOVE IT HERE!

We are a community of makers and handmade shop owners who are determined to turn the handmade hobby they love into a consistent income they adore.

Maybe for you, the number that would make a difference is $1000 a month or $3,000 a month or even $10,000 a month.

Whatever amount you’d love to see dropping into your bank account each month, we know and understand it could make the world of difference to you and/or your family.

That’s why we’re all about empowering you, the maker, to use your handmade skills to design and sustain a life you love – without feeling stressed, overwhelmed or like you’re in this alone.

In fact, going it alone doesn’t mean the journey has to be lonely, because at Tizzit, we’re all about community.

We know that with the right resources and a friendly and supportive community of experts and peers to guide you every step of the way, you can turn your handmade shop into a wild success – whatever that means to you.

For this reason, we are committed to holding a safe and creative space for you to grow and thrive, empowering you to feel creatively, personally and professionally accomplished.


our easy-peasy community guidelines


We created these community guidelines to facilitate an amazing community experience for you and make sure that you make the absolute most of this fantastic and supportive community.

Please take the time to read them before participating in our community forums and live community calls.

The (very) short version 👌

Be kind and respectful of other people.
If you are having or noticing a problem, please contact our administrators (names and details are here).
If a member is being a problem, he/she may be asked to leave the Tizzit HQ Community.

The long(er), more better-er version 😉👇

You can click on the links below to go directly to a section: 

  1. HOW DO WE SUPPORT AND INSPIRE EACH OTHER HERE?   👌👊… and how can *YOU* make the most out of this community so you can make amazing progress with your shop?
  2. TOP ✨7 TIPS ✨TO GET FABULOUS ADVICE, FEEDBACK AND ANSWERS TO ALL YOUR QUESTIONS, big and small, so you can reach your goals?
  3. OUR COMMUNITY VIBE KILLERS
  4. THE LEGAL SHIZNAZ OUR LAWYER BEN ASKED US TO PUT IN THERE 🤷‍♀️
  5. AND REMEMBER…  🥰

1. How do we support and inspire each other here?

… and how can *YOU* make the most out of this community so you can make amazing progress CONFIDENTLY and get the results you want from your shop? (<– helloooo consistent monthly income!)

➡️ OUR COMMUNITY IS INTENTIONALLY POSITIVE

The Tizzit HQ community is an intentionally positive community that recognizes and celebrates the creativity and collaboration of our members and the diversity of skills, talents, experiences, and opinions that they bring to our community.

We value and encourage honest and constructive feedback (positive or negative) between members, and believe it can and should always be delivered respectfully.

Similarly, we encourage you to be open and coachable when you ask and receive feedback from other members. This is one of the best ways to learn and grow 🙂

The best way to make sure that the feedback you give is honest yet also kind and respectful is to make sure that it is as constructive as possible.

If you are sharing an opinion, for example if someone asks: “Which shop banner do you prefer? A or B?”, make sure that you explain your thought-process behind it.

For example, try not to just reply “I prefer B!”

Instead, you could say something like…

“I prefer version B because it is simpler, the text is easier to read on the colored background, and I think generally it will appeal to your customers more. Version A is a bit busy in comparison and doesn’t explain as clearly what your shop is all about.”

Here is another feedback example, from a logo feedback I gave to Jacqueline, helping her understand what she could improve with actionable suggestions:

There are many free communities and groups for makers out there where you might have seen some … hum … how best to describe it 😅? … let’s say “unreasonably negative tone”.

You know the ones… full of frankly negative conversations, nasty feedback and comments and, generally speaking, discussions more geared around what’s wrong and broken, not-very-helpful-at-all-opinions, hear-says and guesses around what a platform might be about to do or not (i.e. algorithm changes tend to be a favorite in those spaces), etc.

You won’t find anything like this in our community.

We are positive-minded and we think critically.
We look for and talk about solutions instead of problems.

Data. Not drama.
Facts. Not fiction.
Strategy. Not panic.
Solutions. Not problems.

We focus on what you CAN control to help you build a successful shop because we KNOW this is how you will find the success you truly want and deserve… now, and for years to come!

Instead of posting:

“My sales have dropped like crazy the last 2 months – anyone else?!”

Which would only encourage answers like…
“Me too! Omg, yes, I too experience that problem!”

And then have the conversation focused only on the problem, rather than the solution…

… We prefer you post something like:

“Hi guys,

I’ve had some pretty consistent sales over the last year but the last 2 months have been quite bad. My sales have dropped by XX%.
I can’t think of any changes I made to my shop that could have caused such a big drop and would love some help in troubleshooting this so I can understand how to course-correct.

Thank you! ”

In both cases, it’s the same problem/question => “my sales are dropping and I’m not sure why” (which is totally fine by the way!  the community is here to help you when you get stuck!) but a completely different approach when asking for advice around the problem and how to solve it.

The first one won’t get you a solution, the second one will 🙂

➡️ OUR COMMUNITY IS diverse and inclusive

The Tizzit HQ community is an inclusive environment, based on treating all individuals respectfully, regardless of gender or gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability, nationality, ethnicity, religion (or lack thereof), skill level, or career path.

We value respectful behaviour above individual opinions.

One of our core philosophies is “no one-size-fits-all”.
You are uniquely you, and so is every other member of this community.

You have your own set of personal and financial goals, your own unique products. Your success path and the handmade business model that will work best for *you* might look different than it does for other members.

We are a diverse bunch of creatives, and this is our super-power.
We embrace those differences..

We support each other in reaching our individual goals and we learn from our diverse experiences.

For example, when a member selling a different type of products or selling or marketing on a different platform than you are receive advice or feedback, instead of thinking…

“that won’t work for me” or “that doesn’t apply to my niche and products”

…we encourage you to instead ask yourself:

“What can I learn from this?”
“How can this apply to me and my shop?”

We promise … there is ALWAYS something you can take away from someone else’s experience, no matter the niche, products or level of experience.

➡️ OUR COMMUNITY IS kind and supportive

We are here to support and encourage each other, and we love nothing more than celebrating our members’ wins, big or small.

We revel in the little victories and tiny breakthroughs of our members, because we know that all the success they achieve in their futures will stem from these ‘small’ moments.

So please, small wins, big big or anywhere in between, share our wins with us in the Share Your Wins section – it’s seriously inspiring!

From… “My first sale to a stranger!” (<— we all know that amazing feeling!)



To… “I just launched my shop” (woohoo!)

 


To… “People are signing up for my email list!” (well done you brilliant you!)

 

To… “I just reached 6000 sales” (fantabulous!)

 

 

Or … ANYTHING in between, please share your wins and celebrate the wins of others! They all count 👊🥰

We also don’t know of any such things as “silly questions” around here.

You will learn some amazing strategies and tactics within the HQ courses and by following the Maker’s RoadmapTM System, but it’s totally normal that, as you implement it… some questions will pop up!

So… if you need help with something, simply ask 🙂
Seriously, we’re all here to help!

99% of the time what you think is silly turns out to be a brilliant question that helps many others, and the 1% remaining?

Well… if it helped even just you in moving forward confidently then it would have been silly NOT to ask 😉

Jane might have though her question was “silly” but if she didn’t ask it… we would have missed out on a great conversation around how to organise yourself and productivity that benefited a lot of other members!

That’s a GREAT question, not so silly at all!

Same here, with a question from Natasha about Etsy SEO:

It started an important conversation around Etsy tags that benefited many members (and got covered in the next coaching call by Deb!)

Remember, there is NO such thing as a silly question! When you ask a question for yourself, you help OTHER members too 🙂 

➡️ OUR COMMUNITY IS sharing and welcoming

We encourage our new members to introduce themselves and our existing members to welcome them with open arms in the Introduction section (which is, by the way, full of so many creative, smart makers! soooo inspiring!)

We believe in community over competition, in the power of paying it forward and that what you give and share will come back to you tenfold.

If you need help with something make sure that you give help back or add something to the community as well.

So for example, when you ask a question, consider answering one (or, even better, a few) from others – taking a little, giving a little.

Pssst.. You’ll soon notice that helping others helps YOU too!

As you interact and support others in the community, you’ll become better at thinking critically about issues and will start finding answers and problem-solving like a pro, which will help you grow faster!)

When you think you don’t have an answer, your insights still might be very helpful to another member!

Every insight is important and valued here, no matter your experience – when you don’t have an answer to another member’s question, you can always ask her/him more questions 😉 Seriously!

This is actually a great way of helping someone find their own answers or guide their thought-process.

For example:

If someone is asking:

“Hi guys! I am not sure what to do about Christmas this year, I want to make the most out of it but I feel am a bit late to the party and worry I won’t have time to get things organised in time to really make some sales.
Does any of you have experience with Christmas promotions?
When do you usually have everything ready by?”

You might NOT have any experience with Christmas promotions and marketing, maybe you haven’t even opened your shop yet… but you could still help this member by asking some questions, for example:

“Hi Sarah! I don’t have any experience myself with Christmas but I do have some more questions for you 😉 Sorry 😂 not what you asked for, but they could maybe help you think through some options?

  • What do you have in mind at the moment i.e what would you “like” to do for Christmas in your shop?
  • Could you think of a more “minimal” promotion that would be quicker to implement, and if so, what could that look like?”

Even though you didn’t answer any specific questions, this is a SUPER helpful answer!

➡️ OUR COMMUNITY IS FIRST AND FOREMOST A BUSINESS COMMUNITY

(but we love to get to know each other too!)

At its core, the Tizzit HQ community is a business community for makers who wish to turn their handmade skills into a profitable and successful business.

For conversations not directly related to starting, growing or managing a handmade shop or business, please use our Virtual Coffee Chat section inside the community forums.

Most topics are welcome in the Virtual Coffee Chat section but please avoid potentially divisive conversations (for example… politics).

2. ✨ Our top 7 tips ✨

…TO GET FABULOUS ADVICE, FEEDBACK AND ANSWERS TO ALL YOUR QUESTIONS (BIG AND SMALL) SO YOU CAN REACH YOUR GOALS

The best way to get fabulous advice and feedback…
… is to ask ✨ fabulous questions! ✨

Sounds simple, but it changes everything.
Here are 7 tips to help do just that:

TIP 1️⃣ Try to have a clear title that helps other members understand straight away what your post is about.

For example a not-so-good post title would be “HELP!”. It doesn’t tell us much about what the issue you’re having is. 

A better post title would be “A few questions about Pinterest rich pins”.

TIP 2️⃣ Try to provide enough context in your post/question so that others can help you without having to ask for much more details…

…but not so much so that they have to filter through your post to find what’s most relevant.

Giving details and contextual information is very important, so feel free to make your post as long as it needs to be – but try not to make it longer than that 😉 You can also attach screenshots and images to share context/information.

TIP 3️⃣ Formatting will help you get (a lot!) more answers

A post well formatted is SO much nicer to read and often a lot easier to reply to too. For example, the post on the right can look a little overwhelming and is likely to get less replies than the same one, formatted, on the right:

Hi guys! I am setting up my WooCommerce Shop and do not know if I need to set up shipping tax or not.
I will be charging sales and use tax in my home state of North Carolina. I just don’t know what to do for any other state. Currently I am not selling enough perhaps to warrant needing to pay taxes anywhere else but I do not want to be surprised. Also, why would I charge shipping tax? I don’t even know what that means. Does anyone have any thoughts on this?

Hi guys!

I am setting up my WooCommerce Shop and do not know if I need to set up shipping tax or not.
I will be charging sales and use tax in my home state of North Carolina. I just don’t know what to do for any other state.

Currently I am not selling enough perhaps to warrant needing to pay taxes anywhere else but I do not want to be surprised.

Also, why would I charge shipping tax? I don’t even know what that means.
Does anyone have any thoughts on this?

TIP 4️⃣ Actually ask a question 🙂

This sounds silly, but sometimes we dive into explaining the issue and giving context and then we just forget to actually ask a question 😉

Make sure that you clearly ask a question, even if it is just something like:

“What would you guys do in this situation?” or “Where should I start?” or “What can I do to troubleshoot?”

TIP 5️⃣ Be specific 

Specific questions and feedback requests will always give you more specific and actionable answers.

For example, instead of asking “can you guys take a look at my shop and tell me what you think?” it’s much more helpful (and you’ll also get more replies) if you ask something specific you’d like feedback on like:

“Hi guys! I am getting a fair few visits to my shop but not so many sales. Could you please take a look and let me know if you think that maybe I should work on my product photos some more, or if it could just be that my shop isn’t easy to navigate? Any insights as to why people would take a look but not purchase (grrr!) would be greatly appreciated!”

TIP 6️⃣ Before asking a question, try finding the answer to it yourself first

It’s ok to ask something that’s already been asked, but sometimes you can find some gold nuggets using our really handy search feature. Click here for a little demo.

Beyond that, we always encourage you to “try” and answer your own question in your post, even if you get it wrong (totally ok!). This helps other members understand where you’re getting stuck and give you even better advice.

For example: “I am really not sure what to do about this but I thought I could maybe do [——], do you think that’s a good idea?”

or 

“I am not sure I understand what Rich pins really are. From what I understood, they are [——], but I feel I am missing something because they show up looking exactly like regular pins in my account, which doesn’t make much sense. Can you please help me understand or point me to the right resource?”

TIP 7️⃣ If as you write your question/post, you realise it’s starting to be about a few different things (which is totally ok!), it’s best to split that post into different ones.

Often if there are several topics or themes in your post, the answers you’ll get and the general conversation that follows ends up covering mostly one of them.

To make sure you get an answer to ALL your questions/concerns and keep the conversation organised, simply create 2 different posts instead 🙂 That’s ok!

3. our community vibe killers

In order to protect this safe place, here’s a list of community vibe killers that we obviously encourage members not to do and might be reaching out about if we or other members notice:

  • Technical, membership or account-related questions should be sent directly through our support team via our support page our directly to support@tizzit.co
  • We strongly encourage our members to share links to their shop/website/social accounts to get feedback on their work, ask for advice or introduce themselves and their wonderful products but self-promotion is a no-no.
  • We prefer to stay away from comments and conversations about named competitors’ programs (good or bad).
  • We strongly encourage our members to share useful resources, but the promotion get rich quick schemes or snake oil selling is (duh) a no-no also.
  • During the Tizzit HQ Live Check-in Calls (our accountability calls), you must show who you are by turning your camera on and using a name that can be easily recognized (either your community username, or your full name).
  • Unreasonably negative or disrespectful tone (see “our community is intentionally positive” just above for what we mean by that) 

If you ever notice something that doesn’t match our community guidelines or is “killing the vibe”, please reach out to an administrator (see below for their names and contact details) directly.

 

4. THE LEGAL SHIZNAZ OUR LAWYER BEN ASKED US TO PUT IN THERE 🤷‍♀️

Please, help us in making Ben happy and take the time to read these points carefully:

( ⬆️ ⬆️ That’s not Ben but he does look a bit like him! Doesn’t he just look so happy?)

  • We retain the right to remove any comments or content we feel are inappropriate, without explanation
  • TIZZIT is not responsible for any comments or content members upload on the website
  • If a member breaks these community guidelines or commits community vibe killers, we reserve the right to cancel his/her membership at any time, without refund
  • Please use good judgement and common sense when sharing confidential information within the group. You are responsible for the information you share and the interactions you have with any other participant
  • TIZZIT is not responsible for the actions, behaviours or practices of any individual, group, or company that is involved in TIZZIT or mentioned by a member in the community
  • The Tizzit HQ community is not a replacement for mental or physical health/medical care. If you require health, medical, and/or psychological care, please seek the services of a licensed medical professional. Please do not rely on the site, its members, teachers or moderators for medical attention and personal care. The sole purpose of this community is to provide educational materials and coaching in the area of business and marketing

The administrators

The administrators of the Tizzit HQ Community are:
– Deborah Engelmajer
– Alicja Kudla

To contact the administrators, please email support@tizzit.co

OK – that’s the legal shiz-naz D.O.N.E and D.U.S.T.E.D  (you’re welcome Ben!) … now… before you go… 

Congratulations, friend! You’ve just joined an incredibly supportive community of makers who are here to lift each other up and support each other in reaching their goals.

When one member wins, the entire community wins. 

We’re all in this together, with one common goal:

We are SO excited to have you, and can not wait to see the progress you are about to make!

A BIG thank you for helping to make our home the kind, respectful, supportive, inspiring and inclusive community that it is.