Knifemaker's Advice Needed:

After you got on the web, how long before you made your first knife sale?

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shadowknives

Joined
Aug 6, 2006
Messages
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OK, here goes: I have been making knives for 30 years and as much as I know about how to make a knife is conversely how little I know about selling a knife. My wife of 20 years has helped immensely in the marketing department by putting up what I think is a helluva website and pointed me to BF.

BF has helped me to improve already (especially with photos), so who better to ask then y’all?

Being brutally honest with myself, I think I should get out to more gun and knife shows, and I intend to….The Blade Show in Atlanta 2006 was my debut. When folks got to fondle my blades, they bought them, a bunch of them! But, I am a typical knifemaker, reclusive and living in my own head a lot, just cranking out knives in the shop is what I enjoy most. I am going to Asheville next weekend a show at the Civic Center there, so hopefully I will have some more luck in selling; not to mention a chance to brush up on my people skills.

Any suggestions as to how to better sell my wares? Or am I just not being patient enough? To those of you who have experienced success in selling, how long was it from the time you got the product on the web to the time you made your first sale?
 
If you want to sell through a website, the key is to get traffic to that site (getting noticed).

Handing out cards at shows and maybe doing a little advertising could help.

I'm in a somewhat different position, however. Generating web traffic has been easy for me because of the types of knives I've specialized in making. My problem has been having something to sell on my site.

This is how it would work for me:

I'd make a batch of knives (A few pattern-welded "Viking" daggers, a bowie or two and a few hunters). Then I'd begin listing them on ebay (usually starting with the simpler items). At first, the prices are what I'd consider 'minimum acceptable'. I'd do one at a time, 10 day auctions. By about the middle of the batch, the prices, and the numbers of people looking at the auctions, increase noticeably. By the end, I'm getting to the 'art stuff', there are more people watching and things go for better money, I'm getting requests, doing 'side sales' and generating a lot of web traffic.
(I put up a pattern-welded medieval sword up for 10 days and got something like 14,000 hits on my site during that period, but that was useless becaue I didn't have anything to sell on the site.)
My big problem has always been production capacity. By the time I have another batch ready, the 'trail is cold' and I'm almost starting over again with this cycle --- with the exception of adding a repeat customer or two each time around.
I have a few of these repeat customers now and for some time, I've just sold to them ... I send the pictures, and it's gone. The problem with this is that I don't get the continuous exposure, so precious few people know I even exist. Still, I sell as much as I can make, so I guess that works out. Meanwhile, my site goes terribly outdated, and my knife-related ebay presence is almost nonexistent.

No matter which approach(s) you take, the trick is getting noticed in a particular venue and that might require a little investment and persistence.
 
First off, I went to see your blades...nice man. Wouldn't dare clean a deer with 1 of those. Yeah, i see where you might experience production problems. i jusst really admire the patience.

I've read alot about what you speak of and can hopefully avoid the cycle....i really tried to prepare for what i might encounter out here. the production is a breeze-- i have done and can do again 1200 a year. i think i have enough different types of knives to please.

And I have thought about ebay a hundred times. I chose to get the site up first, but i may give it a try. Thanks so much for taking the time to spell it out for me!
 
This would be better in the knifemakers area.

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since you asked, here are a few opinions:

forget ebay - it's like trying to sell knives at the flea market. unless you already have a good reputation there...you won't be able to make good money.

The best place to sell online is on the various knife forums.

Use your website as an enhanced business card. Putting stuff for sale there is ok too...but requires more maintenance.

Also, check into big online knife shops, like Steel Addiction, Blade Gallery, Arizona Custom Knives, etc. They do a lot of sales.

Best of luck! :thumbup:
 
Thank you very much! I'll add em to my list. very much appreciated. i'm getting to be a BF junkie! Is there a forum for that, too?
 
Daniel Koster said:
since you asked, here are a few opinions:

forget ebay - it's like trying to sell knives at the flea market. unless you already have a good reputation there...you won't be able to make good money.

The best place to sell online is on the various knife forums.

Use your website as an enhanced business card. Putting stuff for sale there is ok too...but requires more maintenance.

Also, check into big online knife shops, like Steel Addiction, Blade Gallery, Arizona Custom Knives, etc. They do a lot of sales.

Best of luck! :thumbup:
Click to expand...

This is good advice! Ebay is pretty tough unless you're doing something sufficiently "different" to distinguish yourself from the others.

Never tried the online knife shops, though I have wondered about them. Does anyone know their terms?
 
Yeah, forget ebay, you won't get much there. Just bargain basement hunters, people who won't pay you squat.

Try the forums, friends, family, etc.

My early sales went straight to friends. When they heard I was making knives, they offered me money for a few I had finished. I refused saying that they could have them for free, but they insisted that they pay for them -so that was pretty cool. :)
 
AS for your question about the website, it started out as just a description of my hobby - not really a sale site. Within a couple weeks I had a query - three weeks to make the sample - three weeks to circulate the sample and close the deal - which was for 245 knives. That order has led to hundreds more by word of mouth.

For marketing, tell people to drop by any time for free sharpening of the blade you made them. It takes three minutes and keeps you on their mind - word of mouth.

If you hand out a business card, always hand out two at a time. Magnetic business cards are more likely to be stuck on the fridge or the gun safe a year from now. Paper cards may be at the bottom of the 'stuff' drawer. (Warn them not to put the magnetic one in their wallet next to their C/C) :eek:

Attend banquets for hunting clubs Ducks Unlimited etc. Donate one as a door prize and set up a table. Targeted marketing.

Make sure your makers mark is enough to track you down. If someone sees a blade they like with just initials on it, the search likely won't work for them.

Ebay isn't a sales tool so much as a marketing tool. Figure out how much it would cost you to keep a blade or two on there. Then look at the number of hits on your hit counter. Then decide if that price is worth the request targeted marketing. You can't link directly to your site, but you can can discuss your experience and encourage people to contact you with any questions.

Trendy fall "craft shows" (not flea markets) are where many people with deep pockets do their Christmas shopping, looking for something unique.
 
Your web site , to me, is difficult to get in to and once there, difficult to navigate. I think once you get your knives in the hands of some forum members followed with a short review posted here that sales will increase. I would certainly like to check out your folders. Put up some detail photos of them, front side, back, ect. Highlight some of the favorable points of your knives. Just an opinion.
 
Wow! That's alotta info to take in, i've been going over and over it and i want to respond to all-
I guess the poll question should have been 'to ebay or not to ebay'! but yeah, i see the good and bad of it better. I have not been exposed to it hardly at all, but that's all you hear about.

flatgrinder- I cover those bases pretty well (family friends forum), even took 2 knife orders at the family reunion, but just started into the forums. looked at knifeforums.com, but didn't seem to be many people there. did see some good reference stuff right up on the front page, easy to get to.

Rob!- 1. sharpening- yup, do it pretty much like that, but do ask folks that can't drop by to pay for the shipping. I just got my wife to put that in a little section of my site in the knifecare tips. Interesting story I need to do something about...Blackie Collins designed a knife that Meyerco sold and I made by hand last year. This guy bought one and contacted them to tell them he skinned not 1, but 2 elk without having to resharpen! Even I was amazed. I thought I ought to get him to be THE customer testimonial!
2. I like the clubs/craft show ideas! i've donated one of my knives for a local fundraiser (note to self- that's a tax writeoff not taken advantage of)

Daniel- about the maintaining the website, since I can be so reclusive, it is my wildest dream to sell right from there. I don't have to worry about upkeep, since like I said here and there, my wife is the webgirl and I don't have to wait for some company to make changes. Just the occasional fight over me or her on the PC!

Lanza- sorry you had trouble...um..is it because all the pics aren't on 1 page? we are so far out in the sticks we have only dialup option, so we definately built the site with dialup users in mind....wife manages site and is getting better pics up everyday. I will put the folders next on the list for new photos and she can probably put them on there by monday nite. If your email allows, I'll try to send them straight to you.

All again- I really appreciate all responses! I've only been on BF for a short while, but really feel like it was money well-spent. OK, i'm experiencing BF overload again, but lovin it! Later all!
 
Instead of the shows I choose to open my on retail shop for my knives and have had one for over 18 years at this location. It is in a town of 300 folks with a small amount of tourists and a great out of state hunting area. This keeps me very busy 10 months out of the year. During the winter months I will use the internet including ebay if needed.

I have found that sales and prices are much better when folks can actually see you work and handle your knives. My forging area is highly visible and I hang a welcome sign out to encourage folks to watch a knife in progress. On high traffic days I will do all my hand sanding and sheath making in the retail shop. They just love to stand around and watch the efforts that go into this business.

These efforts have led to numerous local TV coverage and publication articles. This is just a bonus however and doesn't lend itself to a lot of sales but good for name familiarity.

Just another option for you to consider.
 
You're knives look good but the pictures of them don't do the knives justice. If you are going to sell knives mostly on the web, the pictures have to good or no one will take a chance. A lot of those knives are worth more than you are charging.
 
jim moyer- I Always admire the metal-pounders; patience of saints! I'm too shy and too far out in the sticks for your type of operation, besides my shop is 16 X 16. It gets hard to move around with all the equipment and my 2 lazy dogs. But I agree they sell easier when someone can touch it, hence the blade shows. Hunting season and holidays right around the corner, in person sales should jump. Thanks so much for the comments!

tmickley- we are working on the pics, making pages with detailed views and adding as we shoot. and the price comes from 30 years of producing enmasse for others, but what a nice compliment! I really appreciate it. I'm just really enjoying having a few knives to work on at a time and give em that extra TLC. thanks again!
 
flatgrinder- Coop sent that the other day on one of my 'for sale' posts, and I'm fashioning from that now, so they should get better and better, just replacing one pic set at a time and adding on the detailed pic page thinking those interested would click, others would move on to the next. Thanks! still aint getting this whole web thing, where do i look at your pics?
 
Not a knifemaker, but as someone that goes to sites to get an idea of what knives I might like to purchase, this is something I would like to see. When I go to your homepage, I see a photo of a very nice hunter. When I try to find information on that knife, it appears that there is none. If you are going to put a photo of a knife on your site, you should describe it, and since you give pricing, you should let potential customers know how much it sells for.
 
Thanks Keith! Good point! That was a Model IV in Stag that I sold at the Blade Show ATlanta minutes after PointSeven took the pic!
I see what you mean-- the picture jumps to the main knivesforsale page, but doesn't tell you what model or the price, or availability. Of course it's listed in the Model IV's for ordering, but how would you or anyone else know??!! Funny how stuff we assume is only OUR heads! we've looked and looked, but needed the new eyes to catch stuff like that. Thanks again.!
 
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