# CustomMade.com working for me



## pashley (Mar 22, 2008)

About a year and a half ago, I entertained the idea of joining custommade.com, a website in which craftspeople like myself are connected to prospective customers looking for custom made crafted products; not just objects of wood, but metal work, apparel, glasswork, and more. Not only do craftspeople submit their items for sale - a portfolio - but there is a jobs board in which potential clients submit "want ads" that craftspeople can bid on. In theory, it was a great way to bring these two parties together (where else would you go if you wanted a custom pet bed or stained glass window?).

Problem was, from my perspective, that they wanted in excess of $500 to buy an account. That was a lot of money for essentially a cooperative website, so I didn't buy into it. I don't recall if they also wanted a percentage of your sales. So, I begged off.

It's tough selling woodworking online. Problem is, people want a great table, but refuse to spend (for instance) $2,000 for it, when they can but one at Ashley furniture for $600 - and hey, it looks great! Never mind the finish will wipe off in about 2 weeks, and the legs will start getting wobbly just in time for dinner. Another disadvantage is that people can't see the piece in person - they can't feel how solid it is, touch the smooth finish, admire the beauty of the wood, from a small picture on their computer. You also have the problem of search engine results - if you aren't on the first page (if not the top three results) on Google, you might as well not bother; people aren't going to find you. So not only do you have to be an expert at mortise and tenon joints, but in search engine placement; and then, hopefully you will be considered for the job (if you have a great looking website, by the way). I won't sugar coat it - I wasn't doing squat for sales - and I was trying very hard. I designed web sites, briefly, so I can put together a decent presentation.

Obviously, people have to know you exist for them to buy from you. You can pay for advertising in an appropriate magazine - figure about $500 an issue - or trying putting up your own website, paying someone to do that and experimenting with pay-per-click ads on Google - which never worked for me either. Look, we are woodworkers, not marketing geniuses; we just want to sell our stuff. We don't have thousands to throw at websites, search engine optimization, hosting fees, advertisements and so on. What's a good solution for us?

Turns out, it IS CustomMade.com. I revisited them a few months ago - I was always interested in their model - and discovered that they have changed their pricing structure; they only charge one dollar a year now, and take 10% of your sales - a fair amount. The website is also vastly improved (expect for their confusing messaging system between client and maker), and they obviously have interest from prospective clients, as evidenced by the over 1,000 job requests on their client board. So, I bit the bullet and joined. You're on my website, and I'm sure you've seen I sell off of here (as well as Etsy), but having another venue is not a bad idea. Turns out, it was a great idea. I've gotten more business there than I ever have anywhere else - and I've only been on about 3 months. I wished I'd had joined a year ago (or whenever they changed to this new model). Also, you can dictate terms for payment - typically, that's 50% up front, 50% on delivery, but that can modified to suit your arrangement.

So let me give you some tips on CustomMade. First, you need to be pretty darn good as a woodworker (or jeweler, stained glass artist, etc), because the guys already on there are VERY good, and you'll have competition. If you have pictures of your work, they have to be very good - not some crap of a clock against a wrinkled laundry sheet, or such ( I should put up a blog post about how to take good photos). You should have at least 10 items in your portfolio, and your profile filled out. Your profile photo can be your logo, a decent head shot of you, or of your in your shop - but nobody really cares what your shop looks like, honestly. You IN the shop? That's better. When you go looking for a job posted by a potential client, don't just reply, "Yes, I'll do that for $500″ Make it a pitch, sell yourself. If possible, show them a concept drawing, either freehand, in Sketchup, or an image from the Internet. The tenor of your pitch should be "business friendly" - that is, businesslike, but not a rigid robot. Instead of "I can do that sewing cabinet - $500″, say something like "Hi Jane, that's a very interesting project you're looking to have done. I did something similar with my medicine cabinet - which you can see in my portfolio. I took the opportunity to re-sketch that project to hopefully fit into your vision for this project - hope to hear from you." Something like that. People want to be wooed a little bit here.

Let me stress too, that you need to exceed expectations for customers, not just meet them. I'm not saying put gold leaf on the project, but things like keeping the customer up to date with pictures and messages (which increases excitement), shipping it earlier than expected, packing the piece professionally, including a nice little thank you note inside the cabinet, things like this. Give them what the big-box stores won't. If you wow your customers, they are going to come back, and they are going to tell their friends about you, and that's exactly what you need to depend on for future sales.

So that's been my experience; I haven't had much success with Etsy, my own website, or even advertising; but I have had great experience with CustomMade, and I would recommend them.


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## RussellAP (Feb 21, 2012)

Thanks man. I just got an account. Lets toast to our success.


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## BTimmons (Aug 6, 2011)

That's great to know! Thanks for the detailed write-up. Guys like me that are starting out really appreciate it. I'd been looking at getting set up there before, this reinforces that motivation. Gotta build that portfolio…


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## rance (Sep 30, 2009)

Thanks for the heads-up Pashley.


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## jap (Oct 10, 2012)

interesting


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## fge (Sep 8, 2008)

Thanks for the positive review. I just signed up and looking forward to the inexpensive marketing.


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## mojapitt (Dec 31, 2011)

Sounds well worth it. Part of me is very interested, the other part says I can't keep up now! Glad your doing well.


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## mmsalg (Jan 16, 2012)

This is a great article and EVERYONE at CustomMade is thrilled things are going so well for you!! Many changes have taken place since our beginning (and more will come), however, we sincerely want to support the maker and work extremely hard to provide the best platform for you to grow your business.

If anyone is interested in becoming a member, please feel free to email Tammy, our maker curator, at [email protected] Please include a few photos of your work and a website (if applicable). She will contact you will all the details and answer any questions you may have.

Here's to more business for all of you in 2013!!!!


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

Interesting ,thanks for you input on custommade.com


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## RussellAP (Feb 21, 2012)

mmsalg, I have been waiting more than 24 hours for my account to be activated. I've uploaded three projects to my portfolio and an not able to upload more pictures. Running your own business is very time consuming, I need a website that can get things done in a timely manor. Is there any hope that things will quicken up anytime soon?


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## pantango (Oct 24, 2012)

love hearing people doing great with their woodworking business. I also love reading sound advice, thanks for sharing…


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## RussellAP (Feb 21, 2012)

Has anyone who started an account actually got in yet?


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## mmsalg (Jan 16, 2012)

Hey Russell, your portfolio is actually active, as is yours Jerry (but you need a profile picture!) Approval can sometimes take up to 48 hours as we process everything by hand. Also for quality assurance so we maintain a beautiful and professional site. We definitely work in a timely manner to get your pages up and running. Thanks for checking.


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## RussellAP (Feb 21, 2012)

mmsalg, I know. Tammy fixed me right up this morning.


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## OwlWood (Nov 29, 2012)

It can be a little bit tricky to find where to join as a woodworker but I ended up finding it here http://www.custommade.com/maker-signup/


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## fge (Sep 8, 2008)

Thanks mmsalg. I will get a profile pic on there. I look forward to working with your site.


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## mmsalg (Jan 16, 2012)

Glad you found it OwlWood. Remember the email [email protected] as she is always happy to help. Also, you can private message on our FaceBook page and I'll get you what you need. http://www.facebook.com/custommade


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## mmsalg (Jan 16, 2012)

Gald you're up and running Jerry.


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## Smitty_Cabinetshop (Mar 26, 2011)

Pashley, thanks for posting this. I'll watch this site and see if there's something there for me!


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## pashley (Mar 22, 2008)

*CustomMade suddenly NOT working for me anymore.*

They REQUIRE that you use their payment system, "WePay" in order to transact - or even communicate with existing customers. I was using Paypal.

The rub? You don't get your downpayment, or your last payment, for up to a week?!

I've written to the co-owner…they are screwing this up.


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## DrDirt (Feb 26, 2008)

Pashley -
Other than the payment hassle
Is the site still generating reasonable contacts to a clientele that will pay for the craftsmanship - or are things getting slow versus a year ago?
Thanks


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## rrww (Aug 12, 2012)

I too was notified that I require a WePay account. It would be different if anyone actually heard of or used WePay. For me this is a business and time is money. I'm not going to use this payment program - its just more to keep track of - checking payment status, transferring money. I use PayPal, because its used by millions and trusted. Plus it can be used as a merchant account, website payments, and on the go with PayPal here.

Did the owners of Custom Made buy/start the WePay company? Or did they just get a contract for a % of the transaction fees? Think e-bay & PayPal. Seems like a good way to get paid on transactions plus the 10% they get from each job. This is not a business practice that I buy into. Greed.

If you don't get paid for up to a week, can you wait to ship the item to the customer? I think not. In today's world everyone expects everything to be done yesterday. Customer service is a big part of what makes a "custom" builder successful - this is just putting more liability on yourself for no payoff. So who has to float the freight bill until you can get your money? Hint: its not the freight company.


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## Loco (Aug 11, 2013)

LOL. Looking at the prices I guess









I'll have to get $10,000 for my chairs.


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## rrww (Aug 12, 2012)

That is a sweet chair - well worth all of 10K. (-10% of course)


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## RussellAP (Feb 21, 2012)

Alright now Loco, specs man, specs.


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## pashley (Mar 22, 2008)

I BELIEVE that WePay is either a created subsidiary of CustomMade (CM), or WePay gave a lot of venture money to CM. Either way, they are sleeping with each other.

*DrDirt* I haven't been looking for clients lately, as I have plenty of work. I suspect the client end hasn't changed. It's just this we've-got-you-by-the-balls attitude that I - and many other makers - don't like. Why should I have to wait for my money? What good reason is there for me to go with WePay? Customers have never heard of it, nor have I. They were often skittish enough going with Paypal, an established brand, now here comes this newcomer….

It's a stupid move. You want more revenue? Ok, increase your take of my share from 10% to 10.5%; but don't put up payment barriers for customers, or hold back my money.


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