Opinions Please: Selling Knives on Instagram/Facebook?

T

The Burgh

Active Member
Okay, I'll admit up front to a bias.

I'm a buyer (~ 2-3/month), relatively new to the handmade marketplace. I had many great hours of fun in searching out makers, investigating their websites and scanning the "For Sale" sections of various forums. What I liked most about websites were the easy availability, in categories/tabs, to drill down into galleries, "about," backgrounds/histories, awards and, if lucky, available knives.

Now, I'm encountering more makers who only maintain their presence on the annoyingly ubuquitous Instagram/Facebook. No categories. No tabs (to speak of). No "available." Really, not much of the right information and virtually no format.

Plenty of pictures. Plenty of friends/pets/vacation pictures. Plenty of chatter. Plenty of "Likes." Stuff all over the place. And all of that makes sense: THEY ARE DESIGNED AS SOCIAL SITES. If I were a maker, I'd seriously consider the demographics of potential knife buyers on the social sites.

So I have made a decision. I will most certainly miss a few makers and most probably miss out on buying a knife or two, even a grail. Plenty of makers and knives on websites and forums. And I'll continue to enjoy this hobby!

Your take on this?
 
Not long ago there was another thread on the forum discussing selling knives via social media. To be totally honest, its the hottest avenue to sell knives right now. The one constant in marketing almost anything is that the dynamics of doing it are constantly changing. Most makers who have been at it for any duration of time will have a website in addition to the other avenues. My suggestion is that if you see something that interests you on a social media site, jump on google, and search for the individual, chances are good that you will be able to find a website for them.

Another facet is the fact that many knifemakers are not technically capable of creating/maintaining their own website(s), its far less "pain" to snap a photo on their cell phone, and immediately be able to post it to a social media site. Personally, I taught myself many years ago, how to create and maintain my own website, which I think is the ideal situation. My website is there to offer details of me and my knives, where as the social media sites are the mechanism that drives visitors to my website.

I think that the biggest reason the social media sites have become the "go to" thing is because a huge majority of people no longer even use a computer.....they use their "moble" device(s). This became evident to me just a few weeks ago, when google reorganized its search results to favor sites that are "mobile friendly". Its just another sign of the times. Whether I agree with it or not doesn't matter, the fact is that we will continue to see knifemakers use of social media, and it wouldn't surprise me to someday see a social media site created specifically for custom knives.
I doubt that I would ever dump my website in favor of "social media", but if its "where the action is" I will certianly participate. To do otherwise would be ignoring a potentially huge portion of possible sales.
 
I'm a newbie, and so far have sold most of my stuff through Facebook or word of mouth. I'm not too crazy about FB either, but it works. I do try to keep my page as clean as I can and only post knife related stuff. As far as websites, most of the makers websites that I've visited have an available tab with nothing available. So is that really any better? One thing I like about FB is the group function. There are a ton of knife only or leather only FB groups that cut out the extra stuff you mentioned. Since they're moderated, you keep the spammers and junk off there. I just started with Instagram and still haven't realized if there's much benefit with it yet.
 
Thanks folks for the insightful comments!

These are all valid observations. Like any tool, the social sites being used for knife marketing will be both used/misused, effective/inefficient, popular/ignored, etc.. The train for using them has left the station. I am not opposed to it as a collector. In fact, if it proves as effective in completing SALES for knifemakers as it does in creating ACTIVITY, I am a huge fan!

Just won't use them.
 
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You can find my face book page in my signature. Like my page to be entered for a chance to win a really big "thank you for liking my page" type of appreciation notification that I may or may not get around to when I get to 2347 likes.

You may also find a design you like and we can discuss how your custom knife is going to turn out, along with any concerns or questions that a static Web page may not address....that's why I use it...it's alive.
 
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Websites are 25 year old technology. They are still relevant, but that's the fact.

Word of mouth is still the biggest driving force behind sales especially for newer makers. Social media uses that same force. One of the biggest criticsms of knife makers websites is that they do not keep the content fresh. With social media when a new knife for sale is posted, depending on the Facebook settings by the audience, the announcement goes out to anyone following a makers page and by design, may even go out to anyone on their friends list. And it's instantaneous! Word of mouth doesn't travel any faster than that.


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As a newbie maker, FB is a godsend.

1. It's free
2. Everyone on my friends list can see a post. If anyone comments, everyone on the friends list of the commenter can potentially see the post.

How else on earth could a guy six months into knifemaking have a waiting list?

I have knife ideas I want to try but I have people waiting. Every knife I make is sold before I make it. Basically I'm just filling orders and I'm overwhelmed.

People keep telling me I need a website and my answer is always the same. This is a hobby. I'm terrified by the thought of waking up and having 50 new orders. I can't make 50 knives. So for now, no way I'm doing a website.

Sooner or later my FB friends pool will be fished out. But by then I'll be a much better maker and ready for that next step. Right now I'm being paid to learn. That's the greatest hobby a person could ask for.


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