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  1. #1
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    Default My black dolls don't sell well/marketing correctly

    I have a small etsy shop that's nearly empty right now, with the exception of a couple dark brown dolls a couple snowmen fidget/stress toys. I try to concentrate on making dolls of color. I have lots of different brown fabrics and only a small tiny bit of white-doll fabric.

    But I spend most of my online time at a forum that has mainly white mothers and only a few people of color. It is a very progressive forum, and there have been several times when a white family will purchase their white kid a black doll, but most of the time, parents want to find their kid a doll that looks like them, and that means they want white dolls.

    What usually happens is I'll put up about 2 or 3 dolls of color, and one white doll, and the white dolls will get snatched and the black dolls will just sit there and sit there. Meanwhile I'll get asked for a ton of custom orders for more white dolls. (I use to do custom orders, but I don't any more. Too much on me.) Then, since my business is small and just starting out, I'll have to sell some of my brown dolls before I can have enough $$ to order fabric for more white dolls, but the brown dolls just sit there, and things remain at a standstill.

    Where and how should I be marketing my shop to people of color?

    It's getting to the point where I might have to just reduce my black dolls and brown fabric and start concentrating more on white dolls and fabric so I can get the $$ for my business to kick off well. that would change the whole aim of my business, though. I wanted there to be more of a focus on dolls of color.
    Thanks to whoever panked me!

  2. #2
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    Find black mothers. There are groups like Mocha Moms that target your customer base.

    1. Define your target market
    2. Find out where these people are and how they communicate
    3. Communicate to them using their preferred method.

    Try to connect with Mocha Moms. Put together a list of the top African-American bloggers and see if you can get them to feature a story about your dolls. Give a couple of free sample to popular Youtube bloggers who have daughters like BronzeGoddess and ask for an endorsement or a mention.

    You will need to build an independent website (with a built in blog) that uses Etsy as its shopping cart. You can do that with Wordpress.ORG and get it up and running for about $20. Of course, you'll need Facebook, Instagram and other social media accounts. You can do a weekly feature spot of customers sending in photos of their kids with your dolls. Blast those photos all over your social media.

    Try getting your dolls into some specialty shops in your area. If you know of any African American groups or gatherings, ask if they can feature your dolls or allow you to sell them at their events, meetings, etc. See if you can get them to feature you on their website or link to your site.

    Write a press release and submit to press release distribution sites. If you can think of an angle, pitch your story to local media including local parenting magazines and other independent outlets.
    No one can make you feel inferior without your consent. -Eleanor Roosevelt

  3. Likes Mirah Nirvana, gigglezk, AStone, Bithiya liked this post
  4. #3
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    Thanks ChaCha, I'm seriously going to take your post and make a list.

    I just realized that I forgot to add the right keywords to my listings, like African American. Dur. I went back and fixed that, now we will see if it helps at all. I think I need to seriously work on increasing inventory as well.
    Thanks to whoever panked me!

  5. #4
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    What is your site coal? I have a lot of women ask me if I make black dolls and I always have to turn them away. I only make stuffed animals, would love to send you the business

  6. Likes Bithiya liked this post
  7. #5
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    Wish I knew about your store. I just bought a Barbie for my niece and I am not too happy with it, mostly because the black doll selection is pretty limited up here.


    Blog - Twitter - Ravelry - Pinterest
    To those of you who've been digging through Celebrerie archives and liking my posts, thank you

  8. #6
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    My shop's name is Buttergoon. I'll go dig up the link in a minute. I only do baby dolls. Not good with any other kind.

    I only have two dolls right now. I struggle to find the perfect fabric. So they are all in the same shade of brown because it's the only perfect fabric I have right now.
    Thanks to whoever panked me!

  9. #7
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    it won't let me copy and paste. It's www.etsy.com/shop/buttergoon
    Thanks to whoever panked me!

  10. #8
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    The pee and poop dolls always get snatched fast, except for the brown ones. there was a time when the brown ones went fast too, but I only had a few people to sell brown ones to, and after they got theirs, they had no reason to order more, so the rest of the brown ones just sit there.
    Thanks to whoever panked me!

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