Hello, my friends and visitors!
I seem to keep running behind on posting these days. Not only that, but I feel like I am trying to earn a PhD in pivoting. If I keep this up, I could start a career in ballet! Don’t worry, though—that’s one career I know I’m definitely not suitable for.
Pivoting—again. That is the topic of today’s blog post: how, why, and where this latest shift is taking place in my colorful world of handcrafted treasures. I seem to do a lot of that!
Here is the thing about pivoting, though. It happens once you’ve learned an important lesson and realize you need to do things a bit differently. You have to adapt to stand a chance at success, so pivoting isn’t a bad thing. (Even if it can get a bit annoying at times—haha.)
The private sales group I set up on Facebook—which I announced in my last post—went spectacularly sideways, and it was all my own fault! I tried to combine too many things into one group.
In my old group, I focused heavily on building a community. I hosted Q&As to get to know my members, posted polls, shared stories, and even started a weekly ATC Trade Saturday.
I still posted my handcrafted products, of course! But without engagement, those posts kept sinking to the bottom. Everything else quickly took center stage, and my original goal faded into the background.
The end result? I had to close the group down. I did it with a semi-heavy heart, but I knew it was the right call.
My private group wasn’t the only place where I drifted away from my original mission. I somehow managed to get completely lost on my official Facebook Page, too!
I spent so much time giving shoutouts to everyone else that my page started looking like a pro-bono ad agency. Don’t get me wrong—a handful of small business owners and fellow makers were polite, grateful, and even returned the favor. I truly appreciated their support! But the end result remained the same: I completely lost control of my page’s true purpose.
So, I publicly admitted my mistake, apologized for changing direction, and spent time weeding out two months of old posts. I finally brought the page back to its core: my art, my handcrafted treasures, product announcements, and updates about my three new public groups.
And guess what? The moment I shifted the focus back to my own work, engagement plummeted to almost nothing. Supporters dropped off overnight.
It wasn’t that I wanted to stop supporting my fellow makers and small businesses. I just couldn’t sacrifice my own business page to do it anymore.
So, I decided to split everything up into dedicated spaces and created three brand-new Facebook groups:
- ReginaCreates™ – First Dibs VIP Direct Sales Group
- Artisan Regina L. Introduces: Fellow Independent Makers & Small Businesses
- Trade & Treasure: ATC, Cards & Handmade Crafts (NO SALES)
As you can see, I am still offering everything I did before! I just gave each idea its own proper home so everyone gets the right spotlight without cluttering up the main shop.
Creating all three groups within two days of each other was a whirlwind—the Trade and Shoutout groups launched on the exact same day, followed by my VIP group two days later.
Talk about an important lesson learned!
The Trade and Shoutout groups already have over 45 members each, though only three or four people are actually active on either one (including me). Meanwhile, my VIP group sits at six members so far (again, including me).
By splitting up the old group and revamping my page back to their true purpose, the truth became crystal clear: members in my old group simply weren’t interested in buying my creations. As heartbreaking as that felt at first, it was a crucial lesson to learn. My handcrafted treasures are still working hard to find their true audience—the people who love what I make and are ready to back that support up financially!
That said, it isn’t all gloom and doom. I have made a few direct sales through both my old and new groups, and I even landed two custom orders that I absolutely loved making.
Here are the custom creations I just finished up and shipped off:
I have started accepting custom bracelet order requests—in the styles shown above—for active VIP group members in good standing.
Oh dear, this post is getting way too long again!
I will share the rest of my pivots and what’s coming up next very soon. In the meantime, why not check out the groups? Feel free to join whichever ones spark your interest and see what’s available in each!
Have a lovely week,
Artisan Regina L.
