U - Understand Your Target Market

Understand Your Market - Every small business person has to understand his or her target market. They must know who they are marketing to and what that group of people values.

An artist who sells high-cost sterling silver and gold jewelry probably won't be selling to teenagers, whereas a funky artist who creates plastic jewelry out of shrinky dinks might. Artists need to continually think about who their work is intended for. This doesn't mean that they have to change their work to fit a different market, but instead find the market that is perfect for their work.

Artists can look for certain variables in the market to determine their target market. These variables include age, gender, financial affluence, geographic location, and even whether or not the target market are parents. Each artist or crafts person will have different criteria for assessing their target market, but they should continually be thinking about who could best use their products. For instance, a crafter making baby blankets probably wouldn't want to participate in an art show on a college campus. Even though there may be parents there, the concentration of parents would be less than if that crafter was at a street festival for families.

By understanding the target market and choosing to participate in events that appeal to that market, an artist can maximize his or her earning potential. Artists can also spare themselves the time, money and effort of participating in an event that doesn't adequately showcase their work for the right market.

Though no event is ever totally targeted to only one market, artists can use some smart business sense to pick events that will get them the most contact with their target market. In this way, artists can be even more successful and build a strong customer base.

Y - You Own It

You Own It - Running a business means that you own any successes and failures. Successful business owners take charge, work hard and adapt to adversity to make their businesses work.

Small business owners have to be master problem solvers and incredibly self-reliant. That doesn't mean that they can't ask for help, but they have to be motivated enough to make that help work for them in their business. An art business requires daily hard work and dedication that not everyone anticipates. It also is filled with many disappointments, both financially and professionally. Artists must know how to pick themselves up, brush themselves off and persevere through any tough times.

Whether your business is a success or a failure, remember that you own it and only you can make the changes necessary to make it great.