Save some pennies and swap those business skills
Jul 07, 2022
Here at Creativity Found we are firm believers in the power of community to grow your business. To be able to ask other people in the same boat as you for advice, or even just to ask a favour, can make all the difference to your business plans – check out the Create a Scene membership if this sounds like the type of community you want to be involved with.
If you don’t have someone in your network that can answer a particular question, or can supply you with a service, the fear is that outsourcing could be a costly affair.
Well, my lovely small businesses, sole traders and artists and crafters that don’t have money to burn, here’s where the UK Swap Shop could help.
The thinking behind UK Swap Shop is simple. An individual, company or charity can ask for help with a service, in return for offering a service, all free of charge.
Here’s how I used Swap Shop recently.
I had a bunch of flyers printed about the Creativity Found directory, membership and podcast, to take to an event I was presenting at. Because Creativity Found is nationwide, I dolled them out among friends in different areas and sent them in packages to people who could help distribute them from further afield.
I put a swap on the UK Swap Shop website, asking for people to distribute my flyers in cafes, community centres, on notice boards etc., in their area, and in return I would do the same for them.
Simple.
I heard back from Sarah from Inkwells Creations, who makes beautiful handcrafted and personalised gifts. So, we posted our flyers to each other.
Whenever I put a Creativity Found flyer up in a café, or put a bunch in a communal area, I put Inkwells flyers up too.
And now the Creativity Found concept can be seen in parts of Derbyshire, a county I would not visit ordinarily, and the same is true for the Inkwells brand, which can be seen in Oxford city and where relevant in the lovely places I have visited in the Oxfordshire countryside – I've also taken some on my travels to Southampton and London.
So, if you have a hitherto unsolvable problem, and can offer your expertise in return, pop your own swap up and wait to see what community magic might ensue.
This is just one of the tips that you can find out about if you join the Create a Scene membership, a support network for creative small businesses who share their creative experience through workshops, courses and kits. Find out more about membership here.
