Hannah MBA - The Ceramic School

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Step 1/12: Introduction

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Introduction

Hi, my name is Hannah, and I am writing my MBA master thesis about how globalisation and digitalisation have affected pottery businesses.

It would mean a great deal to me if you complete this short survey.
This survey will help to understand how the pottery market is performing and what potters can do to improve their businesses.

There are 15 main questions which require an answer – which are marked as (required).
All other questions are optional, multiple-choice, and it should only take you about 5 minutes to complete.

Thank you so much!

Your Age

0-20

20-40

40-60

60-80

80+

Your Country

In terms of your skill level, do you consider yourself a:

Beginner

Hobby Potter

Semi-Professional

Professional

Do you consider your pottery business as:

Just a Hobby

I enjoy it, not interested in selling.

Casual sales

I sell sometimes to friends and family to free up space in the studio

I work half-time in my pottery business.

I am able to sell my ceramics to support half of my income.

I work full-time in my pottery business.

I am able to sell my ceramics to support all of my income.

Your Ceramics

Where did you learn ceramics?

College/University

Community Studio

Learning by doing

Self-Taught (YouTube/Blogs/etc)

Paid Courses (Online or Offline)

Which kinds of ceramics do you make?

Mugs/Cups

Plates/Bowls

Teapots

Vases

Sculptures

Installations (Public Art)

Other

Would you say your ceramics appeal to:

Mass Market

Absolutely everyone would be interested in buying my ceramics

Broad Market

Not for everyone, but lots of people would be interested in my ceramics

Niche Market

Only a few people interested in a certain topic would be interested in my ceramics.

How do you think most of your audience finds you?

Mostly online

(social media, search engines, website, etc)

In real life and online about 50/50 split.

Mostly in real life

(shops/galleries/markets etc)

How many hours do you spend making ceramics per week on average?

(not including administrative tasks like sending emails, taking photos, etc)

0-5 hours

5-10 hours

10-20 hours

20-40 hours

40+ hours

How many hours do you spend on administrative tasks per week on average?

(For example, sending emails, taking photos, uploading products to your shop, posting on social media, etc)

0-1 hours

1-5 hours

5-10 hours

10-20 hours

20+ hours

How many pieces do you make per month on average?

0-5

5-10

10-20

20-50

50-100

100-500

500+

Social Media

Do you use social media for your pottery business? (required)

Yes

How did you learn about using social media for your pottery business?

Learning by doing

Self-Taught (YouTube/Blogs/etc)

Paid courses (online or offline)

Outsourced / assistant

Do you use Facebook for your pottery business?

Yes

How many followers do you have on Facebook?

0-500

500-1000

1k-5k

5k-10k

10k-50k

50k-100k

100k-500k

500k+

Do you use Instagram for your pottery business?

Yes

How many followers do you have on Instagram?

0-500

500-1000

1k-5k

5k-10k

10k-50k

50k-100k

100k-500k

500k+

Do you use Pinterest for your pottery business?

Yes

How many followers do you have on Pinterest?

0-500

500-1000

1k-5k

5k-10k

10k-50k

50k-100k

100k-500k

500k+

Do you use TikTok for your pottery business?

Yes

How many followers do you have on TikTok?

0-500

500-1000

1k-5k

5k-10k

10k-50k

50k-100k

100k-500k

500k+

Which formats do you post to social media?

Text

Images

Videos

Reels

Stories

Links

Live Streams

Which kind of content do you post to social media?

Product photos (white/gray/gradient background)

Lifestyle photos (magazine style images of your ceramics in use)

Product videos (Showing your ceramics)

Lifestyle videos (Showing your ceramics in use)

Behind the scenes of your business

Sales posts (upcoming shows, online sales, etc)

Personal life (not ceramics related)

Do you re/post the same content to all of your different social media channels?

Yes

Are your followers on social media mostly:

Local

(Same state/county as you)

National

(Same country as you)

International

(Different countries than you)

I don't know

Do you use hashtags in your social media posts?

Yes, 100% all the time

Yes, most of the time

Yes, sometimes

How often do you post to social media?

Multiple times per day

Daily

Weekly

Monthly

Other

Do you plan your social media content in advance?

No, I don't plan

Yes, I plan for the day

Yes, I plan for the week

Yes, I plan for the month

Yes, I plan for the year

Websites

Do you have a website? (required)

Yes

How did you learn about making websites?

Learning by doing

Self-Taught (YouTube/Blogs/etc)

Paid courses (online or offline)

Outsourced / assistant

What can people do on your website?

Learn more about me (Artist statement/bio/cv/etc)

Learn more about my values & beliefs (e.g. Eco-friendly)

See photos/videos of my ceramics

Read FAQs (e.g. shipping costs/return policy/etc)

Contact me (e.g. by phone/email/contact form)

Join my Email list

Find my social media accounts

Buy my ceramics (online shop)

See where to buy my ceramics (shops & galleries & upcoming events)

Other

Do you use any tracking codes on your website?

Facebook Pixel

Google Analytics

Pinterest Tag

TikTok Pixel

Email Marketing tracking pixel

Other

Roughly how many visitors do you get to your website on average per year?

0-500

500-1000

1k-5k

5k-10k

10k-50k

50k-100k

100k-500k

500k+

I don't know

Where do you think your website visitors mostly come from?

Social media (Facebook/Pinterest/etc)

Your Email Newsletter

Search (Google search/Yahoo/etc)

Offline advertising (Business cards/flyers/posters/etc)

Online advertising (Facebook adverts/etc)

Other websites

Other

Do you plan Search-Engine-Optimisation on your website?

Yes

Does your website have a blog?

Yes

What topics do you write about on your blog?

Upcoming events (Sales/shows/etc)

About your ceramics/collections/faqs/etc

Behind the scenes of your business

Personal Life (not ceramics related)

Random blog articles

Email Marketing

Have you ever sent emails to your audience about your pottery business? (required)

Yes

How did you learn about email marketing?

Learning by doing

Self-Taught (YouTube/Blogs/etc)

Paid Courses (online or offline)

Outsourced / assistant

How do you send your emails?

Email Inbox (e.g. Gmail/Hotmail/Yahoo/etc)

Through an Email software (e.g. Mailchimp/ActiveCampaign)

Through my online shop (e.g. Shopify/Weebly/Square)

Through my website

Other

Roughly how many email contacts do you have?

0-100

100-500

500-1,000

1k-5k

5k-10k

10k+

I don't know

How many of your customers would you estimate to have received an email before buying from you?

None

0%-25%

25%-50%

50%

50%-75%

75%-100%

How often do you send emails to your audience?

Once per week

Once per month

Once per quarter

Once per year

Less than once a year

Which type of emails do you send?

Newsletter emails

Special offer emails

Milestone emails

Review request emails

Welcome emails

Curated content emails

New product announcement emails

Abandoned cart emails

Other

Do you offer an incentive for people joining your email list?

Discount codes

E.g. 10% off first order

First access to online sales

E.g. first access to your online shop updates hidden behind a password

Extra content

E.g. free video, or pdf download.

Giveaways

E.g. people join your newsletter for a chance to win something.

How has sending emails affected your sales?

Sending emails has increased my sales

Sending emails has not increased or decreased my sales

Sending emails has decreased my sales

Selling your Ceramics

Have you ever sold your ceramics? (required)

Yes

How did you learn about sales and pricing work?

Learning by doing

Self-Taught (YouTube/Blogs/etc)

Paid Courses (Online or Offline)

Outsourced / Assistant

How do you usually determine the price of your ceramics?

Just a feeling

I don't have a set pricing strategy.

Penetration pricing

Penetration pricing strategy is when companies enter the market with an extremely low price, effectively drawing attention (and revenue) away from higher-priced competitors.

Competitive pricing

The competitive pricing strategy sets the price of your ceramics at the current market rate by comparing what others are selling similar ceramics for.

Cost-plus pricing

To use cost-plus pricing, you calculate the total cost of materials, labor overhead that go into making a product and then adding a markup so you earn a profit.

Value based pricing

Value-based pricing uses the customer's perception of your product's value to set prices. Using this strategy involves measuring and analyzing your customer base's ideas about your products worth. E.g. High priced luxury goods.

Other

How many pieces do you sell each year on average?

0-10

10-50

50-100

100-500

500-1000

1000+

What's the average price of your ceramics?

$0-$25

$25-$100

$100-$500

$500-$1000

$1k – $5k

$5k – $10k

$10k +

What percentage of your customers are local?

(Same state/county)

None

0%-20%

20%-40%

40%-60%

60%-80%

80%-100%

All

What percentage of your customers are national?

(Same country but different state/county)

None

0%-20%

20%-40%

40%-60%

60%-80%

80%-100%

All

What percentage of your customers are international?

(Different Country)

None

0%-20%

20%-40%

40%-60%

60%-80%

80%-100%

All

What percentage of sales is from repeat customers?

0%-5%

5%-10%

10%-15%

15%-20%

20%-25%

25%-50%

50%-75%

75%-100%

Selling your Ceramics in Real Life

Have you ever sold your ceramics in real life? (required)

Yes

How did you learn about selling ceramics in real life?

Learning by doing

Self-Taught (YouTube/Blogs/etc)

Paid courses (online or offline)

Outsourced / assistant

Have you sold work to friends and family before?

Yes

Have you sold work at a farmers market / art fair before?

Yes

Have you sold work in a shop or gallery in real life before?

Yes

Do you think that selling ceramics in-real-life could be replaced by selling ceramics online?

Yes

Roughly what percentage of your sales are made in real-life?

0%-20%

20%-40%

40%-60%

60%-80%

80%-100%

All

What advantages have you experienced whilst selling your ceramics in real life?

(Please check all that apply)

Allowed me to get direct customer feedback

Increased my status / Advanced my career

I reached a local audience of potential customers

Allowed me to increase my profit

Allowed someone else to focus on selling my ceramics so I don't need to.

Allowed me to sell more ceramics

Allowed me to increase my prices

Saved me time (compared to selling in online)

Allowed me to forge real/better relationships with customers and local community

Gave me a regular income – a steady stream of sales

What disadvantages have you experienced whilst selling your ceramics in real life?

(Please check all that apply)

It's hard to put yourself out there and make sales face-to-face

Selling on consignment and got sent back unsold ceramics

High commission rate or booth-fee cut into my profit

Spent more money at an event than you made in sales

Over saturating your local market leads to sales decreasing

Selling in real life takes more time compared to selling online

Paying for an event with uncertainty of sales is risky

No buffer zone between you and the customer so you may get bad feedback

Selling your Ceramics Online

Have you ever sold your ceramics online? (required)

Yes

How did you learn about selling ceramics online?

Learning by doing

Self-Taught (YouTube/Blogs/etc)

Paid Courses (Online or Offline)

Outsourced / Assistant

Roughly what percentage of your sales are made online?

0%-20%

20%-40%

40%-60%

60%-80%

80%-100%

100%

Where do you sell your ceramics online?

Social Media

Etsy

WooCommerce

Shopify

Weebly

Square

Other

How do you sell your ceramics online?

Sell in batches (Shop Drop)

You make ceramics until you have enough to fill your shop, then put them all online at the same time.

Always available to ship right away

You make multiples of certain pieces, and customers can order them right away and you could ship them the next day.

Order on demand (takes time to make fresh)

You sell a set style of pieces, and customers can order them, but it takes you time to make them from scratch (e.g. 2-4 weeks wait time)

Pre-Orders on demand (takes time to make fresh)

You have a set style of pieces, and customers can pre-order them. It takes you time to make the pre-orders from scratch (e.g. 2-4 weeks wait time).

Auctions

People can bid on your ceramics one by one until the highest price wins.

Custom Commissions

Customers can contact you to make custom commissioned pieces.

Subscriptions

Customers can sign up for a monthly payment and receive a piece of your ceramics e.g. every month, every quarter, or once per year.

Other

How do you advertise your online shop?

I don't

Social Media

Newsletter

Website

Offline Advertising

Online Advertising

What advantages have you experienced whilst selling your ceramics online?

(Please check all that apply)

Increased my status / Advanced my career

Allowed me to sell more ceramics

I reached a worldwide audience of potential customers

Allowed me to increase my prices

Allowed me to time my sales on my own schedule

Allowed me to increase my profit

Allowed me to expand beyond my local market & sell to customers around the world

Saved me time (compared to selling in real life)

Allowed me to get direct customer feedback

What disadvantages have you experienced whilst selling your ceramics online?

(Please check all that apply)

It's hard to learn how to setup an online sale

Shipping ceramics that have broken in the mail

Had to lower my prices to compete with other online sellers

Sold less than I would at a local event

It's a lot of work to grow my online audience

Selling online takes more time compared to selling in real life.

Had to decreased my profit margin due to the costs of selling online

It's hard to do the accounting / taxes

Technical problems have stopped me from making sales

Shipping your Ceramics

Have you ever shipped/posted your work? (required)

Yes

Have you ever posted your ceramics locally?

(Same state/county)

Yes

Have you ever posted your ceramics nationally?

(Same country but different state/county)

Yes

Have you ever posted your ceramics internationally?

(Different country)

Yes

How do you charge for shipping?

Free shipping on all orders

Free shipping on orders over a certain value

Fixed price shipping (e.g. $10 for all orders)

Dynamic priced shipping based on address/weight etc

Other

How has shipping/posting your ceramics affected your audience?

Increased my customer base

It has enabled me to sell my ceramics outside of my local market

Neither Increased or Decreased my customer base

Has not changed my customer base

Decreased my customer base

It has NOT enabled me to sell my ceramics outside of my local market

How has shipping/posting your ceramics affected your sales?

Increased sales

Has neither increased or decreased sales

Decreased sales

Advertising

Have you ever done paid online advertising for your pottery business? (required)

Yes

Which kind of paid online advertising have you done?

Facebook Adverts

Google Ads

Instagram Adverts

Banners on Websites

Online Magazine Classifieds

Influencer Accounts

Pinterest Adverts

TikTok Adverts

Other

What was the aim of your adverts?

Reach new potential customers

Make a sale

Increase repeat purchases

Send people to your website

Get more likes/follows on your social media account

Get people to join your email newsletter

Advertise an online event

Advertise an event in real life

I don't know

How did you target your adverts?

No targeting

Geography

Interests

Existing contacts (customer lists, email contacts)

Website activity (page views etc)

Abandon cart potential customers

People who like my social media account

Friends of people who like my social media account

I don't know

Do you feel that paid online advertising was beneficial to your pottery business?

Yes

Have you ever done paid offline advertising for your pottery business? (Real life magazines, etc) (required)

Yes

Which kind of paid offline advertising have you done?

Posters/Flyers/Business Cards

Magazine Classifieds

Magazine Adverts

Newspaper Classifieds

Radio Adverts

Other

Do you feel that paid offline advertising was beneficial to your pottery business?

Yes

The Covid-19 Pandemic

Would you say that the Pandemic had:

A positive affect on my pottery business

No affect on my pottery business

A negative affect on my pottery business

How were your Online sales affected during the pandeimc (2020-2022)?

Online sales increased

Online sales stayed the same

Online sales decreased

How were your Real-Life sales affected during the pandeimc (2020-2022)?

Real-life sales increased

Real-life sales stayed the same

Real-life sales decreased

During Covid-19 pandemic (2020-2022), did you:

Start a website

Start selling online

Start social media

Start an Email Newsletter

Cancel an In-Real-Life event (Exhibition, art fair, market, etc)

Final Question:

Can we contact you to talk about your answers?

Yes

Your Name

Your Email

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