Handmade cards are some of the most popular and intimate ways of sending that special message, be it happy birthday or good luck to that special someone and more and more people are starting to get in on the action.

And why wouldn't they, the greeting card market in the UK in worth ?1.2 billion a year.

The big question is, ?how do I sell my handmade cards? You might want to sell them because your friends and family think there're good, you want to create some extra income to help fund your passionate hobby or just to set up a business and one day become one of the big players in the greeting card market

The first step we would recommend any crafter to do is to research their local market. Try to find out if any one else in your local area is selling handmade cards, look at their designs, look at their prices and where they are selling them. You could even go to the extent of phoning them up to see how selling their cards is going for them and how they operate.  Basically gain all the information you think you need to set and your own card business and make it better than theirs.

The next step any handmade card crafter needs to do is do what they do best, and that's create some designs. Ideally you should be looking at a wide range to begin with to see what works and which designs you like. Be creative. That's one of the main things people like about handmade cards, their originality. However don't make them too complicated. After all you don't want to spend four hours making one card, when might have hundreds to make!  Keep in mind (with the exception of Valentine cards) around 80% of cards are purchased by women

Once you have you range, select about your top six cards. These are the cards that you are going to start selling with. I say six because you don't want to spend days making hundreds of cards for hundreds of different designs, you just wont be able to do it. Instead get good at making those six designs to perfection and eventually you will be able to make some really good cards in minutes.

So now that you have your designs and hopefully some stock, you need to brand them. This is so people know that it is your card that they are buying and can contact you hopefully about buying some. This branding can be as simple as you want it to be and personally the simpler it is the better. A good example is just to create a name such as ?Jane Smith Cards? and write that on the back of all your cards with a contact number or email address. Also if you choose to package your cards, place a sticker on the packing as well. On a separate note, it is a good idea to package your cards, those cellophane wrappers are good, this is so that your cards won't get damaged or dirty while on display.

The next question is ?How much should I sell my cards for?? Set the price too low and you won't make any money but set the price too high and no one will buy your cards.

The first step is to work out how much your cards cost to make. There are numerous costs to consider and it depends on how far you want to take it.

Some common examples of costs that you should consider are:

• Supplies e.g. Paper, glue, ribbon, envelopes
• Equipment ? do you need to buy new equipment to make cards? e.g. a laminator, trimmer or a stand to display your cards
• Labour ? how much are you going to pay yourself?
• Postage and packaging e.g. stamps, boxes, petrol if you deliver them.

Once you have this information you can then work out a selling price. Pricing strategy is quite important and you should look at the prices of other peoples handmade cards in your area to ensure that yours are similar.

Now here comes the fun part, selling your cards. You should by now have about six designs of cards, some stock, know how much each design costs to make and know how much you want to sell them for.

There is a number of different ways you can sell your cards and different methods work for different people so don't give up if you don't get any sales to begin with.

One of the most popular methods of selling hand made cards is at craft fairs and car boot sales. These are good because they are easy to attend and set up costs are relatively cheap. Simply research you local fairs to get more information. Other people will also be selling cards at these fairs so the competition for customers will be quite high. Ensure your stand is presented well, invest in display stands that give good visibility for your cards and are easy for your potential customers to browse. Make sure prices are clearly shown.

The internet is a good way to start selling. EBay is the most obvious choice, easy to use and set up therefore making it ideal to sell cards on. However lot of people are selling handmade cards on eBay for very low prices so be prepared not to sell your cards for a high price. Also there are listing fees and commissions to be paid which will take away from your profit.

A more complex way of selling on the internet is to set up your own website. There are a lot of handmade card websites out there so looking at those for inspiration is a good idea. The downside is it will take time and patience and some knowledge of computers will be required..

Selling to Retail outlets is one of the more challenging ways to sell cards, but also has the potential to be very successful.

Keep a few points in mind.

Retailers typically look to sell cards around 2.3 times the purchase price, so if they buy at ?1 they will look to sell around ?2.30 including the VAT.  

Retailers are people too, if having a bad day, they're unlikely to buy your cards, but if in a good mood and like your designs, chances are they will give you a try.

It's not unusual for retailers to request greeting cards be supplied on a sale or return or consignment basis, this involves you supplying the cards and quite often a suitable display stand free of charge and returning at agreed intervals to replenish and charge for any cards sold. An easier way to get space in the shop, but more time consuming and with you carrying all the risk.

Even if purchasing outright retails will often expect a display stand to be supplied, normally on the basis of buy ?xxx of cards and get a free stand.

The most common reason for rejection is ?we don't have any space?.  Look around as you go in and suggest possible locations (make sure you have display solutions for wall, counters and free standing)

Cards tend to sell better when they are well lit so don't go and put them in that dark corner of the shop. Try to get somewhere near a window with plenty of day light or under strong lighting to really emphasise them.

?Eye level is buy level?, try and locate where customers can see easily your cards and not have to bend down or search.

The busier the shop, the more cards are likely to sell. Hairdressers and cafes are easier to get into, but sell less due to limited number of people entering each day.

Have a good pitch for the shop owner, tell them about yourself and take a stock of cards into the shop already in a display stand so they can see how it will look and make it easy for them to say yes

Some more ideas of where you could sell your cards are listed to below.

• Craft fairs
• Car boot sales
• EBay
• Own website
• Farmer markets
• Local shops
• Post offices
• Family and friends
• Caf's

Good luck selling your cards, we hope this guide is helpful, please feel free to publish or pass on to your friends.

The Contents of this article may be published in full without any alterations and without prior permission.