13 Types of Selling Artisans

Well, we’ve discussed our customers so often – how they communicate, what they write and ask, how and to what they react – that it’s finally time to look behind the scenes at the artisans. And not just any crafter, but artisans who sell.

I honestly remembered almost all the cases when I was a customer of masters. And I tried to analyze very honestly how I wrote to buyers, what I told them, and how I acted as a selling handmade artist. I remember a lot of interesting things.

I offer you a description of the types of master salespeople. Because the communication occurred mainly in online correspondence, it was possible to draw certain conclusions based only on such data.

1.The “Business” type

Such masters communicate with customers exclusively on business and politely. This is likely due to the high sales volume when there is no time and energy to discuss unimportant little things with each client. Such a master is not hard to understand. I even think that the “business” type of master seller is the master who has seen a lot, communicated with a lot, understood a lot, and finally reached a kind of “enlightenment. She has become capable of communicating politely and evenly with any customer. If the buyer himself is not in the mood to communicate on unrelated topics, the tandem is perfect. Buyers who like to talk may find this type of salesperson a bit dry.

2.The “Soulful” type

Such a master is tactful and soulful at the same time. She is polite without being boring. Especially if you already know the customer and the previous experience was positive. Soulful masters, be sure to ask about the buyer’s health, how is the toy that the buyer bought earlier, or whether everything is all right with the jewelry that was purchased. If the buyer has children and the customer mentions it and buys something for them, the master will certainly ask about their well-being, in a word: soulful. Here the situation is just the opposite of the previous type. If the buyer is the same spirit – it will be a perfect match, perhaps even create lasting friendships. If the buyer is more reserved, then this style of communication from the master can be a hardship for him/her.

3.The “Friend” type.

Even if you place an order for the first time, such a master will immediately behave as if you have known each other personally and intimately for many years. It feels like a close approach, using something personal. It feels like you kind of know each other, but she remembers “what happened between you,” and you have entirely forgotten. It’s uncomfortable, to be honest. Although to tell you the truth, I have rarely encountered this type of handmade artist, just two or three times.

4.The “Everything strictly according to plan” type

This type of artisan has adopted a unique way of protecting herself against situations of “Oh, I wanted the wrong color. She agrees with the buyer on what should be, when, and how. Advanced artisans of this type even have a checklist. This crafter sends the buyer a photo of the intermediate stages, references, and tracks numbers exactly when she promised, accurate to a second, it is almost impossible to find fault with her, and if someone tries, it is in vain; the crafter has “all the moves are written down. She always performs the work within the stipulated time.

More often than not, she can defend her position firmly (in a good sense of the word) and objectively, arguments, referring to the agreements reached, recorded in writing (in correspondence). Those who want to insist on their own quite quickly retreat, and if this approach in sales does not suit them and there is a desire to get something else besides the ordered goods, like the pleasure of a scandal or an additional service, a discount, do not come back, looking for a master who is not yet so experienced in confronting those who want something more.

– 13 Types of Selling Artisans

5.The “Nervously cautious” type

In correspondence with such masters, there is initially a feeling of wariness, a presentiment of problems with your order and with you. And not because the master is paranoid, but rather because she has been “lucky” with such orders for some time, and she is just tired, afraid of recurring difficulties, realizing that it is impossible to foresee and provide for everything. She tiredly tells you that the production will take a certain number of days, that there are no refunds, that the prepayment is – but it’s all somehow “no light,” doom, in the expectation that “now it will start again. She is still afraid even if you want a finished product from the store and are ready to pay here and now. If you assure the master that there will be no problems with you, and you understand her very well, and you have faced such issues, then maybe you can calm her down a little, although some people, on the contrary, are even more tense.

6.The “Anxious” type

Many anxious artisans are just starting to sell their products, especially if they have read or listened to the advice and stories of “experienced” people.

An anxious artisan will apologize to the buyer for any reason, and even then, there are no reasons for apologies; for example, when a buyer has made an order, and the artist is away on vacation and will only be back in 2 weeks, and she doesn’t have the slightest opportunity to start fulfilling the order right away. And even if the client is ready to wait for a month because it’s not an emergency, the alarmed handmade artist will still suffer the rest of the vacation with her disgusting attitude to the client. She will start executing the order after returning from the trip.

In terrible cases, a disturbing artisan will write or call the buyer even after the order is finished – is everything alright, does everything need to be redone, is there a thread missing… Of course, it is a good idea to ask the buyer if everything is alright, but doing it with dignity and confidence that everything is okay and there should be no problems, then accidentally give a false idea that there could be problems with the product.

The main danger for such artisans is those buyers who will take advantage of their anxious state – they will start to be capricious without reason, making claims and asking for discounts. However, buyers and this style of communication can be tiresome.

7.The “Busy” type

Such a master is unlikely to make you wait – for the answer, photos, or any other information, but she will pay attention to some little things. For example, note the order completed, especially if you have already received your order and have even managed to use it for its intended purpose. You are happy to leave a positive review, but you can not. And then you have to write again to the master, this time with a request to close the sale. By the way, once such a “busy” artist, after fulfilling my order, canceled the deal two months later – due to the expiration of the order’s deadline. Who knows, maybe there are so many cases that it is impossible to keep track of and do not remember how and what happened.

So my advice to you masters – use the CRM system, or at least keep notes in a notebook.

8.The “Armor” type

Such a master reduces all communication on the order to the minimum possible. Ignore all the secondary in his opinion questions – if the product in the photo in the store with a ruler and its size is generally obvious – to question the size is useless, even if you need it for some entirely objective reasons. If the fur pompom looks purple in the photo, your question, “Is it more purple or lilac” will be ignored. “Are these all your colors, or can you make more?” – also will not know. Such a master will not spend a second of her time on the insignificant from her point of view nuances. At the same time, she will never tell you that all the details are in the ad. And you will either have to buy what you see or go to another store.

In general, I understand this master – well, really, what is not clear if the description shows all the details? But sometimes, it is a matter of principle of every millimeter and the smallest nuances of shade. Speaking of fur pompoms – this is from personal practice. I caught it twice: the first time, 5 cm pompoms turned out to be 7 cm. I bought many of them but could not use them, at least not yet. Blue pompoms turned out to be smoky gray. And the second order went exactly as I described, but I was lucky: I got the right size and colors, but I had to explain to the store owner that if he had some other colored pompons, which were not in the store, I would like to buy them too.

I am sometimes troubled by additional and often very long and detailed questioning about millimeters and shades, but I try to respond calmly to them – I need to know what the buyer picks up and why she wants it. After all, I’m the same way.

– 13 Types of Selling Artisans

9.The “I’m not gone, I’m working” type

This type of master usually finds all the order details, agrees on a deadline with the customer, and… disappears. She doesn’t call, doesn’t write. She then reappears with the work already completed – she sends a photo to the buyer, usually on the agreed date or a little in advance. If I have questions or force majeure circumstances that jeopardize the order or move deadlines, I write to the buyer, and if everything goes according to plan, I do not write anything. If the execution of the order takes a few days, it’s okay; if it takes a more extended time, the buyer may begin to worry – remember it. Is the order in progress, or can it no longer be expected? The master of this type may even be surprised by such a question – of course, everything goes according to plan, we agreed.

As a rule, such features have masters who firmly keep their word and sacredly observe the agreements – for them, it is in the order of things; they can not even imagine how you can take an order, even without prepayment, and not perform. However, to avoid making the buyer nervous, such artisans should inform the buyer about the intermediate stages of work. On the other hand, some buyers genuinely do not understand – what is the point of informing them – everything is agreed on. Calmly work; when you finish – you will write.

10.The “Level 80 perfectionist” type

This incredible type of seller is just great! Her work is simply flawless – each one would easily take the top prize in any contest.

The only “sin” of such a artist is that she doesn’t always meet the deadline, but for super good reasons, of which there are several:

She looks for – and is sure to find – the fabric of the texture and shade (buttons/beads…) that is perfect for the work. The material will be tested for durability. Launder it to find out if it sheds, and turn it in your hands in different lighting;

She chooses the technique that suits her the best; he might even watch a couple of video lessons and do some practicing to polish the technique, and only after making sure that he understands it thoroughly will he start the realization of her order;

After doing the work, she begins to crash-test it by wearing it on herself all day long to see if any of the beads would fall off;

If there is the slightest doubt that the creation is ideal, she will continue to rework it until she is happy with it, and only then will she tell the client that it is done.

A master of this type goes into work head over heels, immensely and sincerely loves every stitch and every bead in her products, and is painfully sensitive to criticism. A buyer should be patient and ready to wait, but you will get an absolute masterpiece in return.

11.Type “1=2”

This type of crafter is as rare as it is strange. Such a master can make you two toys instead of one for the same price, although you have not even discussed it. Or to the ordered knitted hat as a gift to knit a toy, not a small, but a medium-sized toy. Yes, a gift to the order is a good thing. However, as a rule, making a gift should take less time than making the order itself. I only thought of this type of artisan because I encountered them twice.

The main thing is that after communicating with this type of master, the buyer is not asking the next master – why is there no second sweater as a gift with the ordered sweater?

For the next two types of selling masters, it is unclear if they are selling something. I didn’t get to buy anything from them.

12.The “Somewhere not here” type

This must be a very busy salesperson. Because even if you placed the order by all the rules, she would still see it very soon through the cart. I don’t mean in an hour. In a week or a month or more. I’ve had this happen to me a couple of times. One time I ended up just canceling the order – after a few months, and the other time the same after a few months, was canceled by the crafter herself. And the crafter in both cases appeared to be alive and well, often online, with some sales going on. But she didn’t answer me. No, I did not communicate with these artists before, and my “customer history” was good, and the order was the most usual – something ready from the store. It needs to be clarified.

– 13 Types of Selling Artisans

13.The “Guerrilla under interrogation” type

I rarely bought anything from such crafter. By the end of the conversation, I didn’t even want to. With such artisans, it takes a very long time to ask the essential things – the cost of the product, the terms of sale and delivery, which for some reason are not written anywhere.

Recently I had to buy several packs of macarons as a New Year present. I found an option I was interested in beforehand. There needed to be more information: it was unclear whether there was a minimum order, what time it had to be made, and where and how to pick it up. It took me three days to find out. Three days! I even asked if it was written somewhere, and I couldn’t find it. No, it wasn’t written anywhere, although the store was nicely decorated, with good photos and customer reviews. As we discussed, it became clear that we still had to decide on the packaging, cost, and design. I had to find out what packaging and how much it costs…

And I did not demand any discounts, special conditions, or free delivery; I was ready to order on the terms of the master and in advance. By the end of the third day, I was so tired that I decided not to order. Not only was the master not upset, but, in my opinion, she did not even notice that I had not made the order, although it was a large sum.

I always do not understand this case: the master does not want to communicate or does not care what, when and how much she will sell. It’s a mystery.

Of course, we may behave differently in sales depending on the situation and our mood. It is also important to remember that customers are different; each behaves differently, and the best option – in each situation is to adjust and consider the nuances and characteristics. It is difficult but necessary.

When meeting with a not-entirely-simple artisan, the buyers will find a way to meet them halfway, find the right words, understand and, if possible, accept these characteristics. By the way, from personal observation – many buyers do!

Which of these types of salespeople have you encountered more often?