Could it have anything to do with the fact that people are selling finished reborns (even Realborns) on Mercari for $100 or less?
4 Likes
That cheap? That’s ridiculous.
Hold on. I have a lit of thoughts.
My sales have been nonexistant since November. I don’t sell on Mercari and I don’t know a lot of people that even know about the site.Traffic on Reborns.com was slow for me, too, since before Christmas. On Facebook, I have gotten ridiculously low offers and my Ebay auctions get very little attention unless the bidding starts at 0.99 and they still don’t pull enough bids to cover the cost of materials. That said, I only have two dolls left in my nursery because I haven’t had the money to make more until recently due to household financial pressures needing my dolly funds. I imagine a lot of people are in that boat. They are not my best work, so maybe my new litter will boost sales and get those two bargain babies gone.
I think that a lot of my problem is photos. I am a poor photographer and my pictures don’t even come close to capturing the quality of the doll. I have bought dolls at similar price points to mine with amazing photos and been very disappointed and what I actually receive. I am practicing and learning, though.
I also don’t tend to send 100 things with each doll, either. I am not looking to jack up the price of a baby by adding expensive clothes and accessories - I want mine to be affordable and quality at the same time ($200-400 range). For example, I would rather pay $400 for a doll worth $400 than pay for a doll that’s may be worth $200 but also has a whole bunch of crap that comes with it. Maybe it turns people off not having an elaborate box opening 
. Maybe a big box opening is what I need to set my dolls apart from the cheap Chinese wannaborns that have flooded Ebay. I know I personally have never bought a reborn and kept the clothes that came with it. Maybe I will try it next time I have a new doll.
Could be the economy, too. No one I know personally has any disposable income (I am a teacher and we’re always broke 
). All I know is that I enjoy the hobby and I will continue to make dolls and offer them at the prices I want. I would rather donate them to nursing homes than sell a doll to someone who won’t value it because they got it cheap, or worse, sell it to a scalper.
4 Likes
I’m super busy and still maintain a small waiting list. I am taking some customs, but am picky. My make to sell dolls also sell pretty quickly. I mainly paint for previous customers who are comfortable with my style and new ones who choose gender and hair color, but otherwise let me do my thing. The ones that I turn away are super picky, those wanting me to paint like someone else, people who are in a rush, or anyone who seems like they would be difficult in general.
For anyone struggling with sales, I would suggest social media marketing. Dont just post finished dolls for sale, post your WIPs and try to interact with people. Follow other accounts, other artists and collectors, and engage with them there as well. It is a big mistake to list anywhere and just leave it unless you don’t care how long it takes to sell your doll.
Second thing is to get as far away from these low priced dolls as you can. Let people who want to slap a flesh tone and some blush on a doll compete for the price of supplies. Make sure people can see why yours are better. Taking good photos is hard (my weakness, for sure), but try to use good lighting and pose the baby in a natural way. If it came down to it, I would wait for a sale rather than to try to compete with others on price.
A big box opening is not necessary (mine is very basic), but make sure what’s in there is nice. I try hard to coordinate my outfits, making sure there is a cute hair accessory to go along with it. If I can’t find what I want, I’ll make one and coordinate the paci too sometimes. Whatever it takes to make the baby look good, go for it.
Lastly is customer service. I am very professional with my customers. I definitely under promise and over deliver. My repeat customers really get taken care of. Besides my typical Thank you card, I upgrade their doll’s outfit to something nicer or slip something extra in the box to let them know that their business is appreciated. If you do this, every time they see a sculpt they like, they will think of you, and this is exactly how you want it.
15 Likes
Thank you for your experienced words 
I am a newer artist, so I don’t have a customer base, yet. Reborning is a pastime for me atm. Any additional advice for attracting customers when you are first starting out? I like the idea of a doll I paint however I want, but letting the customer choose hair and gender. When you offer that do you just post the bald baby in a white onesie?
You are welcome, @Peachtree.
This did not happen overnight, trust me. In the beginning I had to sell for less and my customers were mostly moms looking for a pretty baby for their daughters. I really love making these babies, so I try really hard to improve my dolls. I have gotten better over time and that’s when adult collectors started to notice. If they are happy, they show their friends and then they want one. Some of them have roleplay accounts and YouTube channels… it just snowballs from there.
Right now, I have a table full of customs, but am working on one ready made. With him, I’m going to finish him up and offer him as a partial custom. If anyone buys, they can choose his hair color and gender. If not, I will do what I want and list him. It’s fine either way.
You need an audience for this, so start your social media marketing. It will take time to grow. That and price fairly for whatever level you are on and that’s it. With good exposure, everything priced according to what the market will bear should sell.
3 Likes
I’d like to follow you on social media. How can I find you? 
1 Like
Same with me - most of my sells are repeat customers. I turn a lot away because I am only doing bald babies. To me, it is not profitable because my rooting skills are subpar and I always end up selling them as boo boo babies because I feel like that is what they are. Then the person gets them and tells me that they think its great - go figure. lol
Anyway - I do a nice box opening BUT everything comes from a thrift store - which I also let them know upfront. I don’t send anything that isn’t new or like new condition. I have a super nice thrift store near by and they have half off regularly so I may get a complete layette for $3. Sometimes with tags. I never send more than $8 - $10 in extras. I save the extra nice items for customer who have bought 2 or more babies. A friend gave me a ton of baby fabric so my blankets are very simple and handmade BUT FREE - lol but they are cute as can be. I have learned to crochet hats and those are like 15 minutes of work and not much yarn so that is an inexpensive handmade item - I think people like that. Now if I could master booties!
1 Like
Make your booties like tube socks on a loom. It works great and you can add decorations-ribbons, flowers, lace, etc.
1 Like
totally agree, same here <3
1 Like
I guess I don’t understand what you mean?
My sales have been steady. I sell on Etsy, Mercari, and Reborns. Mercari I sold a $400 doll in November but not really worth my time. A lot of people just want more pictures which is impossible on there. A lot of bad dolls on there to say the least.
I have sold 2 on Reborns this month. I have 1 one layaway on Etsy, 3 sales, and one custom order.
I have a spread sheet that keeps track of my last years sales and then I estimate by that how much I want to sell per month. So I tripled what I made last year (my goal was double, but last year was a small month). But next month I had a big month last March, which I am anticipating not reaching that goal since I don’t have the inventory as of now to even make it.
I agree on the social media. I do a lot on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook. I do sell time to time on Instagram.
2 Likes
Awesome! How do you like Etsy vs Ebay and Reborns? I have sold on both of the others, but I have held off of an Etsy shop. Any advice?
Can you elaborate on what you do on pinterest? Do you just pin your dolls so people can find them?
On Facebook, are you a member of any kind of group or do you just run your page?
You seem organized like I would like to be some day.
Etsy is where I sell the most. I opened my shop in 2010, but the hardest part is learning how to show up on search pages without promoting. Which would be the SEO and writing tags and titles. They do charge around 9% in fees. Not every month on there is great but from August-December I am a mess. I actually take a month off from my day job to do my other job. I do like reborns and I do the gold plan. It is a little slower for me because I think the competition is really high. I would say to open an Etsy shop and try it. It cost .20 cents per listing every 4 months.
1 Like
That would be like a listing for a $300 reborn would cost you $27.20 in total, correct?
I have a board that is under my business name, and other boards like patterns. I seem to get a lot of followers on there. I just post each time I make a doll, but it may be since I have had it forever. I sometimes will post a baby in one of the boards that I have more followers. Then they repin my pin and the journey begins.
Facebook I am a member of two reborn group however I have never listed there including the Bountiful Baby one. I find the groups full of drama . I have more success on my own page. I get views that are organic but I still reach a few people. On my Etsy listings I put find me on Facebook sort of thing on Etsy.
My spreadsheet is nuts. I make monthly goals and yearly goals. Some months I make them and others I don’t. It is more for me then anything. I treat my hobby as a business. But it also puts things in perspective for me. Plus this spreadsheet helps me with supply costs, materials, clothing, and profit. I finally got done with my inventory spreadsheet, but that was a big thing. Now I need to take inventory of my bodies and then I will be organized. 
2 Likes
How many pages did that take? 
I think it was you that won, hands down with no close second place, bb forum members kit hoarding contest. Lol
One nice thing about spreadsheets is it keeps going and going. 150 limited editions and 300 regulars Now when my hubby sees my spreadsheet he has no idea how far it goes down 
5 Likes
Yup, you still win, @trilliants. If you ever want to post pics of your stash, we would love to see. I’m sure nobody here outside of BB staff has seen that many kits at one time. 
3 Likes