New event recordings online

If you missed any of our events from the second half of last year, here's some good news: three new event recordings are online today for CWC Members to access. Hear the creative journey's of Leah Bartholomew of Beneath the Sun, Marnie Goding of Elk, and Pepa Martin & Karen Davis of Shibori over at our podcasts page.

Note that you need to be a current CWC Member to listen to or download these recordings.

5 things to consider before opening an online shop

By Monica Ng

It’s the beginning of a new year and perhaps you’re finally ready to open your own online shop. Congratulations! With an increasing number of consumers shopping online year-on-year, buying everything from fashion, accessories, home wares, electronics and even food, it’s an exciting time to start selling online.

With so many different websites and platforms offering 'quick setup' ecommerce options,  it may be confusing deciding how to actually start and which platform you’d like to sell on. Plus, there are a few other things worth considering before you open the virtual doors for business.

Here’s my tips:

1. Do some market research.

• Determine if your product is something that customers regularly purchase online (price, size and materials of your product may be a factor here).
• Determine who your target audience is and figure out their preferred online shopping platforms (see #5 below for some examples!).

2. Think about finance.

• Ask yourself what percentage stock do you want to sell directly through your online shop, versus alternatives such as wholesale or consignment to other bricks & mortar or online retailers?
• Check out postage costs through couriers or Australia Post - some postage fees can be prohibitive to customers buying online.
• Factor in the time you'll spend photographing products, uploading product listings, preparing items to post, and even going to the post box or lining up at the post office for each and every order.
• Think about associated costs like tech support, product photography or graphic design if you don't DIY.
• Look at any fees associated with your chosen platform (see #5 for some guidance here).

3. Think about branding your online shop.

• Do you have existing business branding that will be applied to your online shop?
• Consider how tech and design savvy you are in terms of actually setting up an online shop. Do you have any friends/family who can help you?

4. Marketing and promotion

• What is your marketing strategy to drive customers to buy online?
• Do you have a strong following on social media prior to launching your shop, or are you just starting out? If the latter, how will you build your following?
• What online or offline channels will you use to promote the online shop?

5. Decide where to set up shop!

With so many different websites these days, it may be confusing deciding how to actually start and which platform you’d like to sell on. Here’s a guide to some of the key ones for creative businesses.

Etsy

Etsy is an online marketplace dedicated to selling handmade, vintage items and supplies as well with millions of unique items from shops in over 200 countries.

Pros:

• Easy to set up a shop. If you don’t know much about HTML and CSS, no problem! With a standard shop template there are options to customise your shop and the choice to link to your social media accounts
• Etsy has an extensive sellers handbook full of articles, interviews, online labs and livestream videos dedicated to all aspects of the shop ranging from branding, photography, graphics, marketing, wholesaling and Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) to name a few.
• Large and growing community, where you can join teams and contribute in the forums to ask other members and shop owners for advice, “heart” (favourite) items and shops and curate treasuries. Joining in the community can in turn bring more traffic and even sales for your shop!
• Ability to accept different payments via Paypal and direct checkout includes using credit/debit cards, Etsy gift cards etc.

Cons:

• With so many Etsy sellers, there is a lot of competition and its product categories have become saturated. Furthermore, Etsy broadened its definition of “handmade” in 2013, to include manufactured items, which may make it difficult for your items to stand out amongst the crowd.
• Customisation options are limited, with all shops following the standard shop template, shop owners can only customise shop banners and a profile page.
• Although the fees appear small, they add up. Etsy collects a $0.20 listing fee, which covers a 4-month listing period and then charges a 3.5% transaction fee. In addition, to this if the customer pays with Paypal, you also lose their fee from the total transaction price. If you have a high turnover of inventory and re-list products often, at some point it may be more economically feasible to pay a monthly flat rate on a different platform.
• Customers must have both an Etsy and a PayPal account to make a purchase. Signing up for an account may deter some customers and they may not end up purchasing your wares.

Big Cartel

Founded in 2005, Big Cartel is home to over 500,000 shops allowing makers, crafters, designers and other artists to set up an independent store to sell their products.

Pros:

• Ability to customise your shop – from simply changing the fonts, graphics or colours to modifying the HTML and CSS directly you have complete control over how you wish your shop to look. In addition, you can add slideshows to show off your new look book or sale promotions or even add custom pages such as an artist’s biography or FAQ page.
• When customers land on your site – there are no shops or advertisements to distract or lead them away to another shop, it’s just your shop.
• Offers a fully functioning free and paid plan options. Perfect for new shop owners, from free to paid plans starting at $9.99, $19.99 or $29.99 a month, each subsequent plan allows you to list more products and access additional functions such as inventory management and more data in your visitor statistics.
• Sales history is private. All sales information is only available for your eyes, so snooping competitors can’t get a look in.

Cons:

• Shops have to generate own traffic. Although there is a shop directory, most shops would need to drive traffic to the shop from social media, blog or other channels. As a new shop, this may be difficult as your fan base may be small. Also there is no search bar for customers to find you and your items.
• Not much of a community. Unlike Etsy, where there is extensive support system such as teams, forums, live labs etc it may be difficult to reach out to fellow shop owners for support and advice.
• No Phone or chat support. Big Cartel only offers email support Monday–Friday from 9am–6pm.

Shopify

Shopify launched in 2006 and today is home to over 120,000 shops that use the platform to sell online and to power retail sales in person.

Pros:

• Completely customisable shopfront. There are many store templates to choose from (both free or paid) and you can design your own template using HTML and CSS.
• Good value if you sell a high volume of high value items, as Shopify charges a flat fee per month and a transaction percentage depending on which plan you choose.
• Customer service is clearly at the heart of Shopify. Customer support via phone, live chat or email is available 24/7 as part of its monthly fee.
• Offers a range of payment gateways for checkout. Shopify can directly accept payments or else there’s the choice of checking out over 70 gateways to accept credit card payments.
• App store for third party apps. Adding more functionality to your store can help improve your sales, improve bookkeeping by integrating accounting features and allowing wholesale customers access to different pricing to name a few.

Cons:

• Shopify's fees per month can be expensive. Although they offer a 14-day free trial, the least expensive starter plan starts at $14 with other higher value plans available if more features are needed. In addition to the flat rate per month, there is an additional transaction fee, which may make it expensive especially for new shops starting out who may not sell that much in the beginning.
• Final payment must be taken in the shop’s default currency. Although goods can be browsed in their own currency, customers may get a surprise when the final payment is taken in another currency.
• Reliance on multiple third party apps can get messy. With varying levels of support, quality and costs, managing these may get complicated when you don’t have the option to customise to your liking.

Starting an online shop or have experience with one of these platforms? Tell us on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.

{Note that this post was not sponsored by any of the businesses mentioned}.

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Monica Ng left her accounting career at the end of 2013 to run Geometric Skies, her Etsy jewellery business, alongside her jewellery and object design studies at the Design Centre in Sydney. Find Monica on Instagram @geometric_skies or at her blog.

Regional creative spotlight: Kamisha Refalo – Little Wren Flowers

By Christina Atherton

Having recently made a sea change from the big smoke, I’ve noticed an abundance of local creatives doing incredible things across regional Australia, highlighting that you don’t need to live in a major city to fulfil your creative passion.

One such creative is Kamisha Refalo from Little Wren Flowers in Newcastle who is pushing the boundaries when it comes to creative floristry. Her bespoke work can be seen across retail outlets, cafes and magazines as well as weddings and special events. Here she shares some insights into running a small business and her creative inspirations.

Tell us a bit about your background? How did you get into floristry? I’ve been working in the floristry industry since I was 17 years old. My first job was at Roses Only in Chifley Plaza, Sydney. I felt like this would be the perfect ‘earthy’ job for a young country girl in the big city. I stayed there for a few years before moving back home to Bellingen on the north coast of NSW.

After that, I dabbled in the industry for a few years but never felt confident or ready to branch out on my own. It wasn’t until my partner and I travelled around Australia with our sons then 1 and 3, that I really gave some thought to starting my own business.

When we returned to Newcastle, I started Little Wren Flowers from home with just one client – Saluna Café – who I still work with today. From there, it grew really quickly and, with plenty of wedding requests and clients coming in, I moved into our studio on Darby Street.

What was the motivation behind starting Little Wren Flowers? Essentially it was to create something that could be flexible around my young children – at the moment I work part-time which I’m really grateful for. Rather than have a typical shopfront, my flower studio is by appointment only which means I can be more flexible with my hours. I never thought Little Wren Flowers would turn out to be as creatively rewarding as it is, which is great. I really love working for myself and am thankful that, at this stage, the business isn’t driven by money.

You have a really unique approach to floristry and a great eye for detail. Where do you get your inspiration from? I get my inspiration from the flowers. If you have fresh, beautiful blooms to work with, nothing can go wrong. I love natural, true-to-form arrangements – this style of floristry comes easily to me and I love that it resonates with so many people, too. In addition, living so close to the country, I am lucky enough to be able forage and handpick ingredients on a weekly basis.

How do you keep yourself creatively challenged working in a small regional business? I’m lucky that I have great clients who make me think outside the box each week. Creative collaborations are great, too, as they challenge what is possible. Social media keeps me on my toes and the changing seasons help as well, as I get to work with flowers and foliage that may often only be available for those few months each year.

What do you love most about running your own creative business? I love having flexible hours to suit my home life. I love the control and being able to drive Little Wren Flowers in the direction that is right for me. I also love the freedom to work at my own pace and indulge, at times, in creative ideas. Floristry is a very satisfying job – it’s about making clients smile using the beauty of a natural medium.

What are the challenges of running your own creative business? Like most creative people, I find bookwork and quoting on jobs can be challenging – I try very hard to please everyone! The other big challenge is to not take on too many overheads. I don’t want money to be the sole motivation of the business. At present, we only buy for clients so there is very minimal waste or loss.

I also currently have three amazing casual staff at Little Wren Flowers and we all work really well together. As the boss, I am always learning how to make my team more comfortable and happy after each big project. My aim is for my staff to genuinely love what we do and never feel like it is just a job for them.

Do you find there are any differences between working in a regional area compared to a big city? For sure! Everyone is so supportive in Newcastle and I get such great positive feedback from the locals. I couldn't imagine living in a big city, let alone operating a small business there! We have it made in Newcastle - everything is close enough that it’s rarely stressful. The furthest we ever travel is an hour-and-a-half to the Hunter Valley to set up weddings. Unfortunately the drive to the Sydney Flower Markets is a mission from Newcastle. I would love for the Sydney Flower market to be more accessible.

Is there are a strong creative community in Newcastle? Does this help with your creativity? Yes, the creative community here is very strong and inspiring. I collaborate regularly with a number of different people and am grateful for each and every opportunity. I just wish I had more time! There are so many awesome creative projects, openings and markets happening in Newcastle every day.

What does a typical day at work look like for you? I have three types of days. A typical market day sees me wake at 2:30am and drive to the Sydney Flower Markets. It’s a 2.5 hour drive each way, so I usually get back to the studio around 9:30am and unload all the flowers and group them according to events, weddings and our weekly clients. If there’s time, I head home for a nanna nap, then pick up the kids from school at 2:45pm.

A typical creative day in the studio making up wedding flowers often means I work back until 9/10pm, just to make sure everything is perfect. A wedding delivery and set up day starts at 5-6am to dress all bridal flowers, make any delicate crowns or hair flowers then pack the flowers into cars and head out to the wedding venue, usually by 2pm.

A typical studio day starts by getting everyone to school then heading into the studio by 9am to check emails. I then create any orders and weekly clients orders, deliver those then pick up the kids and head home, or stay back late and get on top of quoting and paperwork.

I love the variety of my days, so I guess there is no typical day other wise this job/career would not suit me. I love the ups and downs and the many different briefs and ideas that get thrown my way.

What are your big plans for 2015? To move to a larger studio and buy a cool room – which would be heaven. I also have some creative weddings booked which I am really looking forward to getting my hands dirty for this year. And I would love to grow more flowers!

{Photos by Hannah Robinson}

Having swapped the big smoke for coastal life, Christina Atherton is on a quest to live a more creative life and shine the spotlight on regional creatives. She has an unhealthy obsession with Instagram and loves any type of creative project having tried everything from watercolours and flower arranging to paper craft and calligraphy. When not working in PR, she spends her time as a mama, wannabe photographer and coffee addict. Christina is also the CWC Event Host in Newcastle, NSW.

Service design: what it is and how to get it right

By Jes Egan

Have you ever recommended a restaurant or product and then realised that the product or food wasn’t what you are really recommending, but the experience that you had? Or that time when you walked into the Apple store when there was something wrong with one of your ‘iDevices’ - overwhelmed by the sheer amount of people and massive technology overload - until someone in a blue t-shirt finds you, politely asks what you need and tells you to just have a wander around and ‘Aaron’ will find you. 10 minutes later, and techno guru ‘Aaron’ comes up and says ‘Hi Jane, lets have a look and see what we can do today to fix your problem’. Crisis averted.

I like to call this ‘Service by Design’. Apple have done this very well by addressing the number of people in their store, how intimidating this can be and how hard it can be to get served at times in these situations. They have just thought about everything they possibly could and developed a solution in advance.

Put simply, service design is when a company, no matter how big or small, or in which industry, thinks about every single aspect and touch point that you may have with their company or brand, and both considers and designs how to respond at each individual point.

Look at it from a different angle, have you ever not returned somewhere or purchased again from a company because you had a bad experience? I’m pretty sure we’ve all done that, a bad experience can be the end of a relationship with a customer, however, if some of it was handled differently it could result in a more loyal and happy customer.

Why service design is important In this day and age, I believe a business can no longer be just about the product/service that they sell - it has to be much much more than that. Each purchase has to be packaged with a positive experience in order for that business to stand out from the crowd. This is particularly true for a small businesses, and  it really doesn’t matter what you sell, from coffee to jewellery to photography to management solutions.

To stand out from your competitors or create a lasting impression, any interaction a customer has with your business needs to go above and beyond expectation. It is so much more than just exchanging money for purchase.

How to do it The elements of service design in one business will differ from the next, but there are some fundamental basics that can be applied and tailored to the specific needs of your individual customers:

Communication Communication is key. Consumers like to know the status of their purchase at every stage, particularly if it is an online purchase. Keeping your customer informed of the progress of their order is a little thing that can take only seconds to do (or less if you have a wonderful automated system). I personally get really excited when I receive an email or text saying that my order is in the delivery van and on its way. It builds up an anticipation about its arrival and sometimes - even when it is not something that is even that exciting - because I know it is on its way, I can anticipate that I should stay in to sign for it, or put that 'do not ring doorbell!' sign on the door (so the babes don’t get woken up!). Either way, I appreciate the communication that my purchase is on its way.

Alternatively, perhaps there is a delay with my package being sent out. Being aware of this in advance alleviates any worry or negative thoughts that might come about when it doesn’t turn up as expected.

Delivery It is such a simple thing, but the way a purchase is delivered to you can make such a huge difference. Whether you are buying face to face in a shop or at a market or an online delivery - everything from a helpful, happy sales person; a beautifully wrapped item; a handwritten note or a simple thank you. A package doesn’t have to be extravagantly wrapped, just a considered wrapping/packaging experience will do.

Follow up More often than not, this stage is overlooked. Many businesses treat the delivery of a purchase as the final transaction. It doesn’t have to be. If it’s a product, a simple email or follow up call to say 'thank you' or to offer a discount on a future purchase might be all you need to do. If you’re wanting to offer a more personalised service, a quick call or note to see if your customer was happy with their order can really make them feel appreciated.

If what you’re offering is a service, the same rule applies. Tailoring this to your business and clientele is very important - you should only do this kind of thing if you can make it relevant to your audience. A simple follow up may be all it takes to gain a loyal client. After all, studies show that it is cheaper to keep an existing customer who purchases repeatedly from you than it is to acquire a new one.

Disputes The truth is, they do happen. How a dispute is handled by your business can be the difference between a very unhappy customer (which can translate to vocalising that unhappiness on social media) and a customer who walks away reasonably satisfied. While customers can be difficult or unreasonable at times, it is important for a business to act professionally and resolve problems efficiently and kindly.

While I’m not saying you have to 'give in' and go against what you think is fair or right in the face of a demanding situation, but ensuring you deal with the issue quickly and politely can resolve it much faster and more effectively. Perhaps it is something that is out of your control, such as a third-party postal or delivery issue. The best time to think about how to respond to a dispute is not when you are in the middle of it. If your heart is entrenched in what you do, it can be really hard to not take it personally when a dispute arises. So thinking about what you would do in advance can be very effective. A solution such as offering a discount on the next purchase or a small token of appreciation could help ease the tension, and is easy to set up in advance should you ever need to play that card.

Over to you Service Design can create value. Creating a positive experience for your customer by designing your service around your offering is so important, and often overlooked. In most cases, once you have thought through how you are going to interact with your customer and put your plan into place, it’s a simple process and hopefully will become second nature. Adding a bit of service design to your business can help you create a warm and appreciated experience around your business. And service design is all about designing that experience.

Jes is a ‘practical creative’ with a past life in advertising. These days Jes is an artist, lecturer, and small business owner who can be found cutting up a storm at paperchap.com. Follow Jes on Instagram and Facebook.

How to run a business with your partner

By Emma Clark

For some couples, working together makes perfect sense. You have complementary skillsets, share a passion and vision and you obviously like them as a person and enjoy their company. Why not build on that and start a creative business together?

If you can make it work, setting up shop with your favourite person allows the kind of freedom, flexibility and work-life balance that creative people dream about. My husband and I run a bespoke timber furniture and joinery company, which allows us the flexibility to raise our young sons together. However, it hasn’t always been smooth sailing and there has been plenty of roaring arguments negotiations to get to where we are now. Here’s our advice to keep your business and relationship on track and out of the divorce court.

Be 110% sure it’s right for you Going into business with your partner is both a personal and professional investment, so think hard about your relationship and goals before working together. Relationships and careers can be difficult enough without combining the two, and a strong marriage doesn’t necessarily translate into a successful working relationship. Remember that in thirty years the business might not be there but the relationship will.

The financial risks can be significant, too. Having both partners working in the same business can be a case of putting all your eggs in one basket, so be sure to do your due diligence and be aware of the financial ramifications in case the business doesn’t work out.

That said, working together can be a great joy: it can strengthen your relationship, provide more flexibility and improve work-life balance for both of you, especially if you have kids. After all, you get to spend time with your favourite person and create something spectacular together!

Have clear roles It is unlikely that you both have exactly the same skills, so identify your strengths and weaknesses and work accordingly. For example, my husband is an amazing woodworker but struggles with dealing with clients, whereas I love chatting to people but don’t have the same trade skills, so I do the bulk of the client communication and he builds the actual furniture. We both enjoy the collaborative process of designing, so we work together when sketching new designs and bouncing ideas off one another.

A big part of having clear roles is to trust the other person. This is much easier said than done! Don’t try to do their job. Sure, you can offer advice and help each other out, but try to step back and let them have the final say. Constantly ‘checking in’ on the other person is exhausting and undermines their ability to get the job done. The answer is to know your role and stick to it.

Communication is key Keep talking! This is important in all relationships, not just for business or creative partners. Constant communication with each other is imperative in order to stay organised, happy and sane. Be your partner’s biggest fan and celebrate even the smallest wins together. If my husband and I aren’t in the workshop together, we are constantly sending pictures to each other of what we are working on or what he has been building. It’s an easy way to stay in the loop and to keep the creative process moving.

Regular date nights, even if it’s just takeaway in the backyard after the kids are in bed or a quick drink on the way home from work, can go a long way to reaffirming your relationship as a couple. Even if you have spent the working day together, asking, “How was your day?” or “How are you feeling today?” will go a long way in ensuring the other person feels supported and heard.

No shoptalk as pillowtalk – and vice versa This is a hard one. When you work with someone all day, or even just part time, it can be hard to switch off at the end of the day. It’s easy to mention a frustrating client email while you are eating dinner or remember a forgotten invoice as you are both brushing your teeth. While this is inevitable up to a point, try your hardest to keep work at work and mentally switch off at home. Above all, you are romantic partners, not just colleagues.

The opposite is true as well. It is easy for squabbles and bickering to carry over from home to work, which, coupled with the daily frustrations of running a business, can lead to resentment and seriously affect your work and relationship. Try to leave your bickering at home, especially if you have staff or other people around. Nothing is more unprofessional and awkward than being trapped between bickering spouses at work.

Share the same vision Don’t assume your partner shares the same business goals. If one partner is aiming to have your products stocked on department store shelves and the other wants to focus on craft markets, your business will struggle. It is a good idea to map out a clear plan of what you imagine your business and lifestyle will be like. Having the same goals and vision for the business is the best way to ensure it continues to grow and evolve.

Having a shared vision for your work/life balance is helpful too. Sorting out all the practical issues such as working hours, childcare, getting to and from work and wages will help you to align your expectations and help ensure you are both feeling in control.

Emma Clark is an interior designer, writer and podcaster who, alongside her husband Lee, runs Gratton Design, a timber furniture and architectural joinery company. She blogs at Worst House Best Street and posts endless photos of her sons on Instagram at @emmamakesthings.

{Photo by Ben Vella at Shoot Everything}

My Advice: Tips for the New Year

By Lizzie Stafford

Two weeks in to the start of January this year I signed a lease on a new shop. The year before was a bit of a ‘nothing’ year, and when I got to the start of January it was one of those moments when you think ‘Right, what is actually going on here.’ I sat at the kitchen table with coloured pens and a sheet of poster board and decided it was time to get real. I wrote down my ‘resolutions’. They had to be possible, but still challenging, and about doing ‘good’ rather than ‘lose 5 kgs’ or ‘get better hair’. Then I just wrote things I really, really wanted to do in large capital letters, like OPEN A SHOP, and I kept the poster visible so it was staring me in the face whenever I went near my desk. For the first time ever, I actually managed to come through with my resolutions. (Okay, most of them, anyway. Nobody’s perfect).

Normally I wait until the end of January to start to do anything, because everyone is on holidays, or it’s too hot, or I have the rest of the year to do it. And then before I know it it’s December and I’m adding it to next year’s resolutions. But I found getting motivated from the very start, and ticking off as much as I could in the first month, gave me the momentum I needed to keep me going for the rest of the year.

Of course, everyone’s different, and there is nothing wrong with taking time out in January to reflect and recharge. That’s the advice of one of the creative women when I asked about what she does to get motivated in the new year, and a trip to Europe sounds pretty darn inspiring to me.

Nick off overseas!

Elizabeth Bull, photographer and owner of One Fine Print

My first knee-jerk-reaction response when asked about tips for the new year, about getting motivated and making the most of new beginnings was: nick off overseas! As that's what I am doing on the 1st of January next year. It's a completely self-indulgent trip I've decided to take right in what historically has been quite a busy time for me! It was also what I did last January. So I thought, really am I the best to comment on this?

But then I thought about it and considered how time away from the business is actually what I've always done to prepare myself for the new year. Very early on in my business I did something that has now become my end of year activity that sets me up for the year ahead and something I look forward to and feel keeps me grounded for the busy year ahead. I go down to the beach for a few days, I sit around in a deck chair and do nothing much. It feels like a great relief after a busy December and year gone by. It really gives me the ability to just sit and think, and to discuss and play with ideas that have been swimming around in my head.

Now don't get me wrong; I travel and take breaks all the time. But rarely do I do the relaxing, sit around holiday. But when I do the “sitting around and relaxing” thing in December, I come back in January refreshed and ready to go. Over that period I think about my goals and what I've achieved in the previous year. I re-evaluate and think about what I really want out of the next year. Not in a New Year’s resolution type of way; more like a to-do list of what I'd like to achieve and how I could go about doing it.

A couple of things I've found help me clarify my thoughts during this time:

1) We completely shut down. It's the only time we do. No email correspondence; just a nice “see you in the New Year” auto responder. This time away from the computer helps me think and have real clarity without any distractions. (I don't even like cats, why am I looking at this cat video!). I guess it works for me the same way as why the best ideas always come to you in the shower.

2) Don't put pressure on yourself to "figure stuff out". Sit back and relax, and the good stuff will come to you. Surrounding yourself with people who you feel inspire and challenge you helps as well because you can bounce those thoughts around and talk them out.

3) Put your thoughts and goals into a to-do list that is achievable and manageable. Break down your ideas into small tasks so that when you are back at your desk in January you don’t become overwhelmed and disheartened.

Set the intent but leave the specifics of it open-ended.

Karina Sharpe, conceptual artist and product photographer

At this time last year I was in the process of a big decision. I had been working at my jewellery design business Karina Jean, part-time amongst motherhood, for a number of years and had just had my biggest success with a design called The Pencil Necklace. Yet in the midst of filling all the beautiful Christmas orders, I was feeling a calling to switch paths. It wasn’t an entirely new calling or an entirely new path as I had been making imagery of one kind or another, alongside the jewellery, for some time and had spent much of the previous 12 months feeling torn between the two endeavours.  I knew at my core that I couldn’t actually do both with any noteworthy success. I realise now that sometimes it takes success in something to really test your love of it, and I found my love lay elsewhere. So in January this year I began to make changes from a product-based selling business to an image-based service business / artistic practise. And much of the rest of this year has been about putting things into place and finding my niche.

For me, 2015 feels like a time for cultivation and creative exploration. In January I will make some plans for the New Year. I don’t really do New Year's resolutions in the traditional sense. I don’t go “I’m going to get fit and join the gym”, “I’m going exhibit my art” or “I’m going to make more money”. I choose to phrase things in a way that is based more on the concept or the feeling of the things I want more of in my life, rather than them being fixed goals. So instead I will say things like “I’m going to feel happier in my body”, “I’m going to make beautiful progress with my art” and “I’m going to feel richer in all areas of my life”.

I like to set the intent but leave the specifics of it open-ended. That is because I believe if it is up to me personally to set the specifics of the outcomes, I can really only set them based on how big I can imagine them to be and that can really only be based on a reasonable extrapolation of what I have already experienced. If I leave things open-ended for the Universe to deliver in its own way then the outcome can be beyond what I could have imagined for myself and things seem show up in amazing, random, and wonderful ways.

Use charts and lists and schedules, broken down into three simple questions.

Amalie Wright, director Landscapology

Charts and lists and schedules come pretty easy to me, but to know what needs to go on all those charts and lists and schedules for 2015 I’ll be taking time to answer three deceptively simple questions:

1) What is the big aim for this year? This sets the broad parameters for all other decision-making on a yearly, monthly and daily basis.

2) Who were the most inspiring, engaging, talented and fun people I worked with last year, and how do I get to do more work with them, or people like them, this year?

3) What are the things I need to do less of this year, in order to achieve numbers 1 and 2?

Lizzie Stafford is a lifestyle and entertainment writer and owns and runs Künstler, a magazine and bookstore in Winn Lane, Brisbane.

7 Tips for Starting a Podcast

By Tess McCabe Now that you've had a week since my article 'How to download and listen to podcasts' to download shows, binge-listen and basically become obsessed with podcasting, perhaps you're thinking: I could do this!

That’s great! Today I'll offer some tips on how to start your own podcast.

But first, another tech disclaimer: Emma and I are relatively new at this too, so we don't have it all down pat yet. But the info contained herein is a pretty good foundation for getting your first ep online

1. Decide on a topic. As discussed last week, most podcasts have a niche theme or overarching format, and that's what draws in listeners. When deciding what to make a podcast about, I first looked to my interests. One of my main interests involves asking people about their creative businesses (which, lets face it, I do a lot of already in various other forms!). I like TV and film, but I can't really talk about those topics in a 'critical analysis' kind of way without sounding like a dum-dum. I do like talking about my kid though, and asking people about their family situations, and talking to my mum friends. Ding! Hours of interesting content ideas suddenly presented themselves.

Having some kind of structure to your talk-topic also helps. Emma and I have somewhat of a content calendar in terms of planned interviews (which helps when one or the other needs some time off, to, like have a baby or other such important life event). We also have a running list of interesting conversation topics and topical questions to ask, and apply these to guests as we see fit.

2. Decide who you will talk to. Most of the podcasts I listen to feature between 1 and 4 people talking. Grace Bonney, for example, sometimes does an episode of After The Jump on her own about her business experiences, and sometimes she has a guest or two to interview. WTF with Marc Maron and Conversations with Richard Fidler are usually a one-on-one interviews with a different person every episode. Chat 10 Looks 3 (the brilliant new podcast by journalists Annabel Crabb and Leigh Sales) is just the two of them chatting. On The New Normal, it's generally always Emma and I interviewing a guest.

Having different guests on your podcast comes with its pros and cons. Pro, you (and your listeners) get to meet and hear different perspectives from different people. Con, it can be a logistical effort to organise guests and find new people to feature every episode.

The pros of working with a partner on a podcast are obvious: halve the workload, double the fun! Given that I have a podcasting partner, I can't think of any cons right now... probably just the logistical effort of coordinating schedules.

3. Practise talking. This one sounds like a joke, but it's not. I did NOT realise the weird and annoying (to me at least) things that I do when I talk until I heard myself recorded! Eek! With the help of editing software (see below) one can edit out unnecessary 'ums', voice cracks, and pauses post-recording, but it helps to train yourself instead to be conscious of how you talk. If this involves practise, then do it. If it involves writing down notes re: witty anecdotes or questions for your guest, then do it. No-one likes to hear drawn out 'soo... um, there was something else I wanted to ask... ummm'.

It's also worth considering the format. Practise holding back if you're inclined to talk over people. Practise speaking up if you tend to mumble. And most importantly, if you're interviewing a guest, practise listening - it's likely your listeners will want to hear what they have to say slightly more than you!

4. Figure out how and where you're going to record your podcast. We record TNN on an iPhone through an app called iTalk. It's free, and the quality of the recording is decent even without needing a separate microphone.

Considerations such as how quiet your location will be is important. Again, test your equipment in your location to see what works (I never realised how squeaky my dining table chairs were until I thought about sitting down to record there!)

5. Edit and add music. Who doesn't love a catch jingle at the beginning of a radio show? Our theme tune was custom written just for us (helps to have friends with songwriting/producing skills!), but for the CWC podcasts and recordings I found some royalty-free music online for which I pay an reasonable annual license fee to use.

Remember, you can't just use any old song as your theme song, as these would more than likely be protected by copyright.

In terms of editing a recorded file, we use Audacity. It takes a little getting used to using but once you're accustomed, you'll be cutting and editing like a pro. In an editing program you can add your theme music to the start and end of your episode, tighten the episode by removing ums, ah's, coughing fits and even boring conversational tangents, and export the file ready for uploading online.

6. Get it out there. There are a few ways to get your complete audio file online and into the ears of your loyal listeners, but often it can be a bit of a convoluted process of workarounds if you want it to remain free and (relatively) easy. Our episodes are uploaded to our BandCamp page, embedded from there via HTML code into our website blog, and then that RSS feed talks to iTunes so the episode pops up there.

iTunes is where you really want your podcast to be, but there are a few rules - you have to be 5 episodes deep before you can apply, and they have to approve your show before they put it on their system.

7. Promote and build an audience. Just like any blog or creative business, promoting your podcast and building an audience takes time, determination, and some marketing know-how. Becoming more readily 'findable' on iTunes involves gathering listener reviews, and encouraging listeners to subscribe, so that you pop up in search results near the top. TNN has its own social media accounts and listeners can sign up to receive an email whenever a new episode is released. We’re still building our audience, so you can follow us over here, here and here!

Let us know if you start your own podcast this summer!