Pandora's Box will continue to be updated as I come across new resources that could be useful to you.
There will be posts in the Facebook group if any major updates happen.
I will also be working on different guides and extra resources in the foreseeable future which I will add access links to here.
There will be posts in the Facebook group if any major updates happen.
I will also be working on different guides and extra resources in the foreseeable future which I will add access links to here.
Tools.
Levels:
Hobby - If you're just starting out, this is a really good place to start. These tools will get the job done.
Amateur - This is a mid step that's usually more affordable than professional level tools, but gives you more control than the hobby level tools.
Professional - If you want to go big and have plenty of room to scale, these tools are your best friends.
Alternative apps, softwares, and programs are ones I haven't necessarily looked into as deeply, but I encourage you to investigate and do your research so you can find what works best for you.
Hobby - If you're just starting out, this is a really good place to start. These tools will get the job done.
Amateur - This is a mid step that's usually more affordable than professional level tools, but gives you more control than the hobby level tools.
Professional - If you want to go big and have plenty of room to scale, these tools are your best friends.
Alternative apps, softwares, and programs are ones I haven't necessarily looked into as deeply, but I encourage you to investigate and do your research so you can find what works best for you.
Money Management
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Money Manager
Price: FREE (paid ad-free option) Level: Hobby What it is; App (for your phone) What it's for; Tracking your money Pros;
Alternative Apps; Search "Money Management" or "Money Tracking" in GooglePlay/Apple Store for similar app options.
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Wave Financial
Price: FREE Level: Amateur What it is; Software What it's for; Tracking business money Pros;
Alternatives for Wave Financial;
Zip Books, AND CO, Freshbooks, Xero, HoneyBook |
QuickBooks
Price: $$ (monthly plans) Level: Professional What it is; Software (phone, tablet, computer) What it's for; Tracking business money Pros;
Alternatives for QuickBooks;
FreshBooks, Xero |
Extra Resources on Money;
Time Management & Organization
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Google + Google Workspace
Price: FREE / $$ (monthly plans for Workspace) Level: ALL Levels What it is; Software, Productivity Tool What it's for; Organization and Collaboration Tools Included;
Pros;
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Notion
Price: FREE Level: Amateur/Professional What it is; Software, Productivity Tool What it's for; Organization and Collaboration Pros;
Cons;
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Scheduling Meetings
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Calend.ly
Price: FREE / $$ (paid upgrade) Level: ALL Levels What it is; Platform What it's for; Scheduling Meetings Pros;
Alternatives for Calend.ly;
Acuity Scheduling |
Zoom Meetings
Price: FREE / $$ (paid upgrade) Level: ALL Levels What it is; Software What it's for; Online Meetings Pros;
Alternatives for Zoom;
Google Meet, Skype |
Want to link all your apps together?Zapier is an app that allows you to link 5000+ apps together and automate things between them. This means if you update something in one app, Zapier will automatically update it where you tell it to in other apps. This can be really useful once you start using a lot of different apps to run your business where not all of them are automatically compatible.
(I'm just starting to use this app, so I'll post my honest review once I'm a little more familiar with it) |
Extra Resource;
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Branding
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Canva
Price: FREE / $$ (pro upgrade) Level: Hobby/Amateur What it is; Online Design Software What it's for; Design and brand consistency Pros;
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Adobe Photoshop & Illustrator
Price: $$$ (Monthly Subscription) Level: Professional What it is; Design Software What it's for; Photo-editing and design creation Pros;
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Tailor Brands
Price: FREE to try, $$ for copyright Level: Hobby What it is; Online Logo Generator What it's for; Design and brand consistency Pros;
Copyright TrackingPixsy will track your images and notify you if anyone is using them without permission. It will also guide you towards how to take legal action if necessary.
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Social Media
These social media platforms are listed in the order that I would recommend building up from.
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Instagram
Growing a Following: Mid-difficulty Sale Conversions/Income Potential: Good Built-in Shop: Yes Best for Sharing; Photos, videos, lives Connecting to Your Audience; Good |
TikTok
Growing a Following: Easy! Sale Conversions/Income Potential: Good Built-in Shop: No Best for Sharing; Short Videos, lives Connecting to Your Audience; Excellent |
Facebook
Growing a Following: Mid-Difficulty/Hard Sale Conversions/Income Potential: Really good Built-in Shop: Yes Best for Sharing; Photos and text Connecting to Your Audience; Good |
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Patreon
Growing a Following: Difficult (paid subscribers) Sale Conversions/Income Potential: Extremely good Built-in Shop: No Best for Sharing; Photos, videos, text, lives Connecting to Your Audience; The BEST. |
Pinterest
Growing a Following: Mid-Difficulty/Hard Sale Conversions/Income Potential: Really good Built-in Shop: Kind of (shop link integration) Best for Sharing; Photos Connecting to Your Audience; Okay |
YouTube
Growing a Following: Difficult Sale Conversions/Income Potential: Good Built-in Shop: No Best for Sharing; Videos, lives Connecting to Your Audience; Excellent |
Other Social Media Platforms;
These other platforms are great to consider if you want to continue to expand, but aren't necessarily your top priority as an artist.
These other platforms are great to consider if you want to continue to expand, but aren't necessarily your top priority as an artist.
Scheduling Apps;
The built in scheduler in Facebook is your best bet for Facebook and Instagram. That goes with any other platform that has a built in scheduler. It's always the least likely to affect the algorithm! However, here are a few external app options as alternatives;
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Compatible with; Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, TikTok
Price; Limited version FREE, plans start at $15/month |
Compatible with; Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, YouTube, TikTok
Price; FREE 30 day trial, $49/month after |
Compatible with; Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, YouTube, TikTok, SnapChat and more
Price; FREE 15 day trial, $26/month after |
Copywriting Resources;
Here are a few blog posts on copywriting to help you with your writing;
Answer The Public;
Link in Bio
Use one of these platforms to create a link for your social media bio.
Website Builders
Most website builders are more or less really similar, so just feel it out and find the one you vibe with the most!
Website Builder |
Level |
Shop Integration |
Price |
Pros |
Cons |
Link |
Weebly |
Hobby/Amateur |
Limited |
Free limited version, $$ for your own domain and extra features. |
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SquareSpace |
All levels |
Yes |
Free limited version, $$ for your own domain and extra features. |
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Wix |
Hobby/Amateur |
Limited |
Free limited version, $$ for your own domain and extra features. |
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GoDaddy |
Hobby/Amateur |
Limited |
Free limited version, $$ for your own domain and extra features. |
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WordPress.com |
Amateur/Professional |
Yes |
Cheap monthly/yearly plans. |
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WordPress.org |
Professional (requires coding knowledge) |
Yes |
Super low fees, extra for extensions but still the cheapest option there is. |
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Shop Builders
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Etsy
Price: $0.20/listing + 6.5% transaction fee Level: Hobby/Amateur Pros;
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Big Cartel
Price: Monthly plans (Free-$20), no transaction fees Level: Amateur Pros;
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Shopify
Price: 14 day free trial, plans start at $29/month Level: Professional Pros;
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Drop-Shipping
You can also just use any of these drop shippers to order stock to re-sell yourself.
Payments
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Payment Plans;
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Collect Donations;These are great platforms for followers to be able to support you without committing to a purchase for them, or extra work for yourself.
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Crowdfund a Project;I'm working on a step by step guide to crowdfunding a project on Kickstarter. It will be available here once it's ready. If you have any particular things you would like to see included in this guide, please let me know in the feedback section at the bottom.
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Email Sign-Up
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GoogleForms
You can just use a google form to start collecting emails, even if you're not sending any out yet, just so you have a list starting to build up. But start collecting emails NOW! |
MailChimp
Price: Free with optional paid monthly plans Level: Amateur |
Active Campaign
Price: Starts at $37/month Level: Professional |
Hiring |
Team Management |
Printers
Prints
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Stickers
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Packing Supplies
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What they carry;
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Sustainable shipping supplies including;
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This is the shipping label printer I would recommend once you're in a position where it makes sense to print your labels rather than manually writing addresses on your boxes.
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Print Business Cards or Thank You Cards for Your Orders;
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Affordable and fast.
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Sustainable and fancy printing options.
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Affordable and fast.
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Sustainable seed paper products that grow.
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Bonus Resources;
Find Art Shows and Art Contests to Apply to Online;
Books.
These are all books I have read myself, they're a great way for you to dive deeper into the topics that spark your interest.
I have included what module each book is best fits to keep things nice a clear.
I have included what module each book is best fits to keep things nice a clear.
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The Soul Sourced Entrepreneur
By Christine Kane Topic: Entrepreneurship, Business This is a great overview on what it means to run a business from the soul. Artist's are not your average "business (wo)man", so their businesses shouldn't be designed in the same way as corporate businesses. They should be designed in a soul-centered way. Module: Welcome to Artrepreneur Accelerator |
Secrets of the Millionaire Mind
By T. Harv Eker Topic: Money Mindset This book is a great starting point to helping you understand your relationship with money and the steps you need to take to shift your mindset. It's simple, easy to read and understand, and to the point. Module: Money Magic |
Rich Dad Poor Dad
By Robert T. Kiyosaki Topic: Money Mindset A total classic, gage where your thoughts and patterns with money sit on a scale from poor to rich. It's a super clear breakdown on what thoughts differentiate the lower, middle and upper class and how you can shift where you are on that scale. Module: Money Magic |
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The Energy of Money
By Maria Nemeth Topic: Money Mindset This is probably my favorite money book. It digs and finds all the little nuances in where you're still holding on to limiting beliefs around money. There are loads of journal exercises included that really help you dissect and analyze where you're at. Module: Money Magic |
Soul Modes
By Carlie Maree Topic: Working With Your Modes Although this book is targeted at women, everyone could learn a thing or two from this book. The focus is identifying how you flow through life and how to design your life to work with your flow rather than against it. My "seasons" metaphor is an adaptation of the ideas presented in this book. Module: Get Sh*t Done! |
Fried
By Joan Borysenko, Ph. D. Topic: Burnout Learn to identify burnout, get the tools you need to overcome it, and of course, all the prevention measures to avoid burning yourself out again. This is the science of why we burn out, exactly what is burnout, and everything you need to get through it. Module: Get Sh*t Done! |
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Find Your Artistic Voice
By Lisa Congdon Topic: Finding Your "Style" and "Message" This book helps you look at your artistic practice and figure out exactly what you're trying to say through your art. It is designed to help you find where you fit in the art scene and exactly what makes you authentically unique. Module: Creating Your Authentic Artist Self |
Big Magic
By Elizabeth Gilbert Topic: Authenticity Follow your inner calling and intuition, become authentically yourself, overcome your fears and follow your creative calling. This book is all about getting you to step into the highest version of yourself and the magic that unfolds when you do so. Module: Creating Your Authentic Artist Self |
Talk Like TED
By Carmine Gallo Topic: Public Speaking If you want a deep dive into how to grab and keep your audience's attention in presentation, this book is super helpful. The tools can be applied to video voice-overs, live streams, and video content. If you're scared of public speaking, this just might help. Module: Become A Social Media RockStar |
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Sell Like Crazy
By Sabri Suby Topic: Sales Crystal clear, easy to read, and a really good overlook at how to sell like a pro. This book definitely isn't targeted at artists, but the concepts can be applied and will help you understand the art of selling even if not everything will apply to you. Module: Sales for Days! ** You have to watch some vids to get the book for free and I know it's super salesy, but at the end of the day it's worth understanding these concepts.
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I would LOVE your feedback!
Help us improve Pandora's Box;
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