How to Deal with Card Rejection: Part 4

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5

Dealing With Rejection (Part 4 of 5)
Copyright © 2010 Kate Harper

Tip 7: Have you thought about luck and timing?
No matter how good your product is, luck and timing play a big part in sales. Are you trying to sell your cards in December? December is one of the worst month for selling cards to stores. January is better because the stores are out of stock after Christmas sales.

How often have you seen wonderful art on a cafe wall or heard an excellent band in a dive bar? It may not be that the financially successful musicians are necessarily better skilled than the ones struggling in the dive bar, it's just that the successful ones have had the right conditions come together at the right time.

I am a firm believer in creating your own luck. Put yourself out there. Send your cards to everyone.

I even sent my cards to each member of congress, when they were arguing too long.

Send your cards in lieu of a formal business letter. This is what I call "creating luck."


Tip 8: Are you making weekly goals?
Marketing your cards is really about setting goals for yourself and following through. There is no one store or one rep that is going to 'make it for you.' You have to continually create conditions for success and opportunities.

Collect business cards from stores. Call one person a day. Try to get an appointment once a week. Mail postcards with new designs. Set aside a day to go to research stores. When you hear about a new rep, send them a few samples and a brochure.

For me, having weekly buddy meetings or joining a local business association helped tremendously in setting goals and following through. Then when I faced a rejection I felt I have two choices:
1) Find out why the cards were rejected and then change them.
2) Try other stores to get more responses.

Either way, you need to act. Sitting around sad isn't going to help. Without support and advice, setting goals can be difficult. Having a supportive friend and colleague helps a lot.


Tip 9: Are you in the waiting phase?
Waiting is part of the process. Things don't happen all at once. Be content with holding still for several months.

Sometimes I felt like I was trying to push a boulder up a steep hill. I would try and try and try and nothing would happen. Then I would give up and everything would happen.

Once, after putting a line on the market, it took about 4 months for them to catch on, and then I was getting reorder after reorder.

Waiting can be frustrating, especially if want to move fast, but try to accept that it is not unusual for things to take time. It takes time for a store to order, after they order, they may not put your cards on the shelf for a month. Then it takes several more months to get a good retail response. When you add all that up, it could easily turn into a minimum of 5 month's time for things to get rolling.

10 Questions to ask when you're Rejected
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5

Part 1
Introduction

Part 2
Tip 1: Are you approaching the right market?
Tip 2: Are you trying to sell handmade cards to a drugstore chain, or in a rural area?
Tip 3: Did you get feedback on "why not"?

Part 3
Tip 4: Is this just one person's opinion?
Tip 5: Are you taking rejection personally?
Tip 6: Are you willing to make adjustments?

Part 4
Tip 7: Have you thought about luck and timing?
Tip 8: Are you making weekly goals?
Tip 9: Are you in the waiting phase?

Part 5
Tip 10: Who in your life really wants you to succeed?

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5

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