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Hi there,

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it's Sue and thanks for joining me for Tips and Talk

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Day. These are bite-sized topics that I pull from community questions

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and things that I'm observing in the world of handmade small

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business. If you'd like to submit a topic,

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DM e over on Instagram at Gift Biz Unwrapped.

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Before we get started,

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I'm gonna share a secret with you.

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One of my superpowers is the ability to get an enormous

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number of tasks and projects done each and every week.

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I easily meet deadlines,

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rarely forget to do something,

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and know at the start of each day what needs priority,

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attention and action type A personality.

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Yes, and a follow through on the Kobe assessment,

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which should have given me the clue,

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but it wasn't until people started commenting to me that I

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realized not everyone naturally knows how to do this.

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It's the biggest single contributor to the growth I always see

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in my businesses without spending hours and hours working either.

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It's about focus and doing the right things efficiently.

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Prompted by all the questions on how I do this,

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I went about finding a way to help you perform at

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a higher level too.

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I analyzed my methods and formalized my process,

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which is one many of my coaching clients.

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Now also follow.

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You can use it too.

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It's all part of a tool called the Inspired Daily Planner,

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made specifically for gifters,

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bakers, crafters and makers.

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Make no mistake,

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this is not your ordinary planner.

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First off,

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it comes with a video explaining my productivity strategy and the

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physical planner isn't dated,

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so you can start using it the second it arrives at

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your doorstep,

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and that's not all included for each day is a motivational

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or business building tip and plenty of space to capture and

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book in time for to-dos scheduled appointments and all those ideas

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that are now getting lost.

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You can watch the video for free and then get your

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inspired daily planner@giftbizunwrapped.com

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slash inspired.

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I recently returned from the Philly Candy Show.

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This is an event focused on candy makers most specifically Chocolateers.

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I've been doing this show for,

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oh gosh,

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probably about 10 years or so now,

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if you were to walk into the exhibit hall,

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you'd see big machines complete with combinations of industrial mixers,

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coders, and cooling trolleys.

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I'm quite sure I'm not getting the terms right,

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but you get the picture.

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You'd also run into booths selling ingredients and enhancements and all

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sorts of molds and other chocolate making equipment.

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Of course,

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there'd be packaging resources too,

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like label machines,

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clear boxes with cavity trays to separate the pieces and of

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course, this is where we fit in with our ribbon printing

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machines. It's always so interesting to me to see all the

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different types of things that each product industry uses.

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I love these specialty trade shows for just that reason in

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this case,

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to get a peak behind the scenes of the world of

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chocolate. I'm interested,

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even though I have no need to be a chocolate expert,

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I'm just an expert chocolate taster.

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Anyway, a few years back,

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the board at the Philly Candy Show decided to add business

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development programs into their course roster.

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I've had the honor of conducting classes on various topics ever

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since this year.

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They also asked me to sit on a panel each morning,

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very informal,

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where attendees could ask any questions they'd like.

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I've never attended these in the past because the questions have

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always revolved solely around chocolate production.

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That of course,

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changed when I was included to talk about the business side

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of things,

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but still many questions were about chocolate that provided me with

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even a deeper level of exposure to the world of a

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chocolatier. It was fascinating.

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For example,

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I didn't know that the environment is all important for chocolate.

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Now, obviously as a consumer,

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I knew that heat would melt your chocolate bar if you

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leave it in a hot car or a cake will be

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a wilted mess if the sun shines down on an outdoor

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wedding cake for too long.

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But I didn't know that air from a ceiling vent could

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completely ruin one side of a tray of chocolate by turning

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them white,

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and then the other side could remain totally unaffected.

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Or the constant opening and closing of a chocolate shop door

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with customers coming in and out can raise havoc on the

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product being made that day,

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even if it's in a designated area in the back,

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sealed off by a second closed door,

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chocolate production.

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Is that sensitive?

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I didn't know that.

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The filling of a truffle needs to be a very specific

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consistency that varies from flavor and ingredients,

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and if it's not right,

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it will break apart.

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Their term is explode when dipped in the coating chocolate.

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I didn't know that trays and bowls need to be completely

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cleaned between batches or it affects or potentially ruins the outcome

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of what comes next.

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Even if that next batch is of the exact same chocolate,

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and I didn't know that in an experienced chocolatier making a

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product that they'd done consistently for years one day may follow

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the exact steps they always have and they find themselves with

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a completely worthless production run without an understandable rhyme or reason.

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Chocolate is that finicky Who knew all these discoveries led me

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to a whole new appreciation for chocolate.

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I had no idea of the complexity involved in creating these

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delicious confections that we love so much.

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You can be assured that the next time I savor a

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dark chocolate grand marnet truffle melting in my mouth,

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I'll stop savor and consciously notice how much I enjoy it

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because I now do know all it took to provide me

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with this experience.

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Okay, now,

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why am I telling you all this?

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It's because I could never have gotten to this deeper level

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of appreciation for chocolate if I hadn't been exposed to the

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knowledge of how skilled a chocolate maker needs to be to

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produce their candy.

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From there,

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my mind goes to you and your products.

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Regardless of what you make,

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there's a skill that you've had to perfect,

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and there are certain critical production points or special additions that

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you include that make your creations unique and yours exclusively.

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There are cooling times,

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temperature levels,

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material quality specs,

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interesting tools of the trade,

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and I know so much more that you take for granted

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with your craft because you use them all the time.

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Yet we know nothing about showing these things to your customers.

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Things they never have the ability to know or see otherwise

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adds to their perspective of the value of your products.

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And the great thing about this is this added value doesn't

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cost you more in materials or production time.

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You are already doing it.

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It's just that your audience doesn't know about it and it's

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well worth your while to tell them.

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Share interesting parts of your production in social media posts or

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reels. Write a blog article about a funny or not so

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funny at the time story that brought you to a current

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level of expertise.

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Talk about these things to booth visitors at craft shows.

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Even better.

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Do demos at live person events that always draws a crowd

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and sparks conversation.

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Maybe I can best summarize it by saying,

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don't make in private and sell in public.

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Show them all stages of how you get your product from

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start to finish.

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They'll be intrigued and like what's happening with me with chocolate?

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They'll have a new found appreciation for your creations,

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which of course leads to more business and new customers.

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That's a wrap.

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I'm a get to the point kind of girl,

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and this is what you can expect from these quick midweek

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sessions. Now it's your turn.

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Go out and fulfill that dream of yours.

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Share your handmade products with us.

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We want them and they bring us both.

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So much happiness.