12 Goals for 2024
New year means new goals, right? It does for Sage & Oak anyway. This year is going to be all about growth and improvement and we really can’t wait to see all that we do by the end of the year. It feels like a fresh start and we are motivated to make this our best year yet. We have many ideas in mind and have plenty of goals set to get there. This blog goes in depth of some of our goals and gives ideas about what the future of Sage & Oak might look like.
Finish 1 Certification/Course Per Month
My Content Marketing Certification from HubSpot Academy
If you know me, you know that I love to learn. I always have excelled in school and that has carried over into adulthood. To quench my thirst for knowledge, I’m attempting to gain one certification per month. If I can’t finish the course because of my busy schedule and/or the course’s length, I won’t let myself feel bad about it.
In January, I completed HubSpot Academy’s Content Marketing Certification where I learned the best practices of content marketing and how to apply them to long-term content planning, content creating, promotion, and analysis to grow my own small business. I personally love HubSpot Academy because they offer valuable information and even offer free certification courses that can help you get a job in the future. I would highly recommend checking them out if you’re interested in growing and expanding your business.
Continue 1 Blog Per Month
In 2024, I’m going to continue to write one blog post per month because that has worked out well for me over the last three years that I’ve been blogging. This year I’m going to write more educational blog posts to help those who might need it. My best performing blogs are those that are informational and I love that people find them helpful so I’m really going to play into that this year. If you’d like to learn more about marketing, SEO, and other things that can help your business grow, stay tuned. We’re going to try to cover it all this year.
If you have anything you’d like covered in a future blog post, let me know and I’ll do my best to make it happen!
Practice 1 Skill Each Month
As previously mentioned, I really love to challenge myself and see just how much I can learn. From personal skills like French, baking, and ukulele to more technical skills like crocheting, embroidery, and learning how to use my sewing machine, I’m going to work extra hard this year. The skills I have chosen to improve this year are skills I already have experience with so I’m looking to improve each skill so I can expand my business down the road. I’d love to be able to do more and the only way to do more is to learn. I’m excited to see how far I’ll go this year. Can you imagine the progress I’ll make toward each skill in 30 days time? This will be a great year for self-improvement.
Create 3 New Products This Year
Future “Affirmations” greeting card mockup
When I say new products, I don’t mean another design of glass cups or another sticker design. I mean 3 new products that we don’t currently offer. We’d love to be able to turn our designs into prints and greeting cards, clay trinket dishes (but better than those we sold previously), punch needle mug rugs, and maybe even crochet items. The prints and cards have been requested many times so those will be the first new items we launch this year. Who knows what this year will bring, but we’re so excited to see where it takes us.
Create 1 Sticker Per Month
Stickers are amongst our most popular items and so I would love to be able to grow and add more stickers to our collection this year. New stickers mean some stickers may have to be phased out to make room, but don’t worry! We’ll only get rid of the stickers that don’t sell very often. Maybe we could even keep them available online so they don’t take up too much space at our shop and market events.
I am not sure I’ll be able to get to it this year, but I’d love to be able to release a collection of stickers that benefit non-profit animal care organizations that specialize in the care and conservation of animal species like the AZA (Association of Zoos and Aquariums). You may remember us releasing three sticker designs that the profits benefitted Planned Parenthood - Southwest Ohio Region over the last couple of years. It’s the same concept as that. I love to help where I can and even if only contribute a small amount, I’d call it a success.
Upgrade Business Equipment/Materials
This photo shows how small our existing banner is that we would like to replace with a larger one
Last year, I set out to improve one thing a week about my booth during the Springfield Farmers Market season, and while some weeks it was possible, it wasn’t always and that’s okay. I decided this year it could be more beneficial to just improve one thing per month. I’m going to start with marketing materials like larger banners this year. We have a 10x10 ft space at most outdoor markets and use a pop up tent for shade. I would love to be able to get a 4’x10’ banner to spread the entire width of the tent instead of having a small one that doesn’t stand out as much and needs updated.
Add All Existing Products To Online Shop
Chances are, if you found us at a local market and took one of our business cards to shop later, you were probably pretty disappointed in our online selection compared to in person. We only have a very small selection of our products online which not only is not great for you, but it also doesn’t help us. When you visit our website, I want you to be blown away by my work but right now it’s not very impressive and a little bit embarrassing at the same time.
Not to make excuses for this, but our home has terrible lighting and that makes getting great product photos very difficult. Each time I try and get disappointed, I always get so angry at myself. This year I’m putting more focus and effort into getting all of the unlisted products online now that I know what products sell well enough to keep around. It’s all about progress, not perfection. I need to work with what I have and worry about perfection later.
Bring Back Totes But Screen Printed
If you’ve been following us for a while, you may remember we used to offer tote bags. We used to use heat transfer vinyl but after long-term use, the vinyl may start to peel. We decided to stop selling them until we could make them better by screen printing them. We have only tried screen printing a couple of times, but this year we plan to take some time to really learn the craft. Not only do we want to screen print, but we want to be able to make our own screens. We were successful in our first attempts but know we need to improve. Our goal is to offer the best quality possible so this is a place we know we can and will do better.
More Retail Locations
Our retail display at Scout’s Cafe in Springfield, OH
2024 is the year of growth, right? I think so. This year I would like to sell my products at three total retail locations (not including my own space). I currently sell my products at Scout’s Cafe here in Springfield so I’d like to find two new spots in addition to Scout’s. It’s not only a great help to us financially, but it also puts our goods in front of new faces and that is priceless to us. Whether in Springfield or not, I’m looking forward to future partnerships.
Web/Graphic Design Commissions
You may or may not know this, but I am a freelance web/graphic designer on top of a business owner. I have spent the last 6+ years building websites for clients and the last (almost) decade practicing graphic design. I’ve created many websites and designs (including my own) for people all over the United States and it’s been such a wonderful learning experience.
This year, I’d like to put more focus into not only growing these skills but applying them to real client projects. I would like to build at least two new websites this year and take on at least five new client graphic design projects. I’ll be starting a new website for a client soon so stay tuned for more information about my first website of the year.
If you have space and are looking for some cute goodies, please reach out! I would love to work with you.
Become More Sustainable
It has always been a goal of ours to do our best to be sustainable as a business but we know there are ways we could improve. For example, we use a lot of round sticker sheets to print our logo so our shopping bags can have our name on them. This is great for brand recognition because the stickers follow the same color scheme and pattern you see at our booth. Not only are the labels expensive, but they also create a lot of waste. The entire backing sheet will go into the garbage because it’s not reusable to make paper or anything.
A graphic we created to share other uses of the organza bags you’re given with earring purchases
This year I’m going to make sure to eliminate as much waste as I can. The first thing I’m going to do is invest in a stamp. This stamp will allow me to brand my packaging materials and anything else I may need without the leftover garbage. For the things I cannot live without, I do my best to find recyclable or reusable options. Instead of packaging stickers in single-use plastic, I now use glassine bags which are recyclable and biodegradable.
I do my best to use materials that are reusable such as my organza bags that I package our earrings in but I know I could be doing more. I’ll share sustainability best practices along the way so you can join me in this journey as well.
Read 1 Book Per Month
While this isn’t exactly a business related task, I do tend to gravitate toward books that push me to learn and grow. This year, I’m going to read (at least) one book per month. This sounds like an easy task, to read only one single book per month, but with my busy schedule, it’s hard to fit time in for myself. I thought by starting small I would be less overwhelmed and less likely to face burnout. I want to enjoy reading, not make it feel like a chore I have to complete.
January’s book is Of Time & Turtles by Sy Montgomery. If you love animals, especially turtles, I’d definitely recommend this book or any other book she has written but especially The Soul of an Octopus.
Since finishing Of Time & Turtles, I have started You Are A Badass Every Day by Jen Sincero and so far, I’m loving it. It is full of really great information and realizations that can help me stay motivated and pushing forward. I’m taking lots of notes to keep for the future when I need a good pep talk.
I’m always looking for other recommendations so if you have any, let me know in the comments!
I’m really trying not to overwhelm myself with the goals I have for myself and my business so these are just guidelines and if they don’t work out, that’s okay. I can take as much time as I need. Some days are busier than others and that’s just how life goes.
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