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#252: Hosting Paid Workshops to Increase Your Income… Pow!

ByJillian Leslie

Want to learn effective strategies for hosting paid workshops? Great! Because paid workshops are a great way to get started selling digital products and increase your income. Paid workshops are easy and fast to put together, and if you can solve a problem for your audience, can be very lucrative.

Today on the podcast I have wreath-maker, Etsy shop owner, blogger, and TikToker, Ashley Greenwood, from 3 Little Greenwoods, on the show to share how she built her Etsy shop, became a TikToker with over 40k followers, and has made close to $3,000 hosting paid workshops teaching crafters how to make seasonal wreaths.

In this episode, we discuss:

  • The economics of selling wreaths on Etsy
  • Burnout from creating handmade goods
  • How to grow a following on TikTok
  • How to host paid workshops using MiloTreeCart and why it’s lucrative and fun
  • Building out more digital products to sell to your audience
  • And so much more!

If you plan to grow your income in 2023 by selling digital products to your audience, Ashley shares all her paid workshop hosting strategies so don’t miss this!

Hosting Paid Workshops to Increase Your Income... Pow! | The Blogger Genius Podcast with Jillian Leslie

Show Notes:

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Intro 0:04
Welcome to the Blogger Genius Podcast brought to you by MiloTree. Here’s your host, Jillian Leslie.

Jillian Leslie 0:11
Hello, my friends. Welcome back to the Blogger Genius Podcast. I’m your host, Jillian Leslie. I’m a blogger, serial entrepreneur. I started my career in 2009 when I built Catch My Party with my husband and we’ve grown it into the largest party ideas site on the web.

Jillian Leslie 0:27
Then we built our pop-up app MiloTree to help you grow your social media followers and email subscribers. And we’ve launched MiloTreeCart as the easiest way for you creators to sell digital products to your audience with no tech skills necessary.

Jillian Leslie 0:46
So, if you are hoping to turn on a new income stream in 2023, to sell digital downloads, coaching, workshops, memberships, subscriptions, anything you could sell digitally. This is an awesome time to buy MiloTree and we sell it as a lifetime subscription.

Jillian Leslie 1:02
So, to get you lots of goodies, please please get on the waitlist for our MiloTreeCart Black Friday special and all you have to do is go to milotree.com/blackfridayspecial.

Jillian Leslie 1:16
The first 20 people who purchased during Black Friday get a whole VIP experience worth over $150 plus we are giving away stuff we have never given away before. Don’t miss this go to milotree.com/blackfridayspecial.

Jillian Leslie 1:34
For today’s episode. I have my friend Ashley Greenwood on the show and she is the blogger behind 3 Little Greenwoods. She is a craft blogger. She is a wreather, somebody who makes wreaths. She has a very successful Etsy shop and she’s a TikToker.

Jillian Leslie 1:52
Ashley shares the story of how she grown her business and how she has started hosting paid workshops, teaching people how to create beautiful wreaths. I think Ashley’s is a great story of how you have to just put stuff out there and test it and see because sometimes you can find tremendous success.

Jillian Leslie 2:14
So, without further delay, here is my interview with Ashley Greenwood.

Hosting Paid Workshops to Increase Your Income

Jillian Leslie 2:20
Ashley, welcome to the show. It’s so great to have you.

Ashley Greenwood 2:25
Thank you, Jillian, I am so excited to be here.

Jillian Leslie 2:29
So, you are ready for it? A wreather. Is that the term you use?

Ashley Greenwood 2:37
Yes, I am a wreather. I am a wreath maker. I have my own successful Etsy business. I have my own online floral business that I host on the Etsy platform. That’s how I like to say it.

Jillian Leslie 2:52
Whoo. So, let’s step back. Tell me, how did you get into making wreaths? How did you start selling them? And then how did you start teaching people how to make them themselves?

Ashley Greenwood 3:08
I’ve always been extremely crafty. I’ve always made my own wreaths for our house. And my own home decor. I love doing that for years and years. I’ve been a school teacher for over 20 years teaching little people, kindergarten.

Starting an Etsy Shop Making Wreaths

Ashley Greenwood 3:29
One day I was home after school. And I was on Facebook and I saw this lady making wreaths. And I was just so interested in it. And then I realized that she actually had a successful business selling wreaths online. And at the time, I was teaching 4K at a private preschool.

Ashley Greenwood 3:53
And I just really wanted to make more meaningful income for our family. So, I just started doing more research about wreath making and how do you start a wreath making business.

Jillian Leslie 4:04
What year is this?

Ashley Greenwood 4:10
I began in October of 2019.

Jillian Leslie 4:14
Wow. So, right as the pandemic was hitting.

Ashley Greenwood 4:22
Yes. Pretty much.

Jillian Leslie 4:26
Right before.

Ashley Greenwood 4:30
So, the next thing I know, I had started an Etsy shop. And I was selling locally. Here like a couple of my friends began to support me. Here in my small town, you can only sell so many wreaths to your friends.

Jillian Leslie 4:43
Where are you located?

Ashley Greenwood 4:46
I am in South Carolina. In a small town in South Carolina. So, I just went all in on Etsy and I treated it like another job like I was getting a college education. I did as much research as I could, trying to figure out best practices and what I should be doing. Because I really went into it as a business, not just a nice little crafty thing that I did on the side.

Ashley Greenwood 5:17
I can see the potential of making money. And I wanted to do that. So, when the pandemic hit, and the schools closed down, and I was at home with my three children, I really went all in on Etsy. And just learned as much as I could create as many products, wreaths arrangements, those that I could to fill up my Etsy shop.

Ashley Greenwood 5:45
And incredibly, people were at home, they were bored, and tired of looking at their four walls. And they really did a ton of online shopping, which made my Etsy business really take off and grow.

Jillian Leslie 6:03
So, let’s break this down. How much does a wreath sell for?

Ashley Greenwood 6:12
In my shop wreaths typically run from $150 to $200.

Jillian Leslie 6:18
$150 to $200. Is wreathing or putting wreaths on your door a southern thing predominantly? Because in California, I went to this mastermind in Texas, and they were talking about wreathing. And I’m like, “What is this concept?”

Jillian Leslie 6:36
And it took me a really long time to figure out that they were wreath makers, and that there’s this enormous business, on Etsy, but also people just have shops, and of course, I understand that people put wreaths on their doors, but I didn’t understand the scope.

Jillian Leslie 6:47
And that people will switch out wreaths seasonally, that kind of thing. And that wreaths are expensive and people will buy them.

Ashley Greenwood 7:04
Yes, it is traditionally a southern thing. My client base is typically all the way to Texas, and up towards the New England states. I sell mainly on East Coast. But I also ship to California and Wyoming and Utah. So, they’re everywhere. And there are so many doors in the world that we can all put wreaths on.

Ashley Greenwood 7:31
So, our wreath making community is a community where you’re supportive of each other. We always say hey, I learned how to do this from this person or hey, I learned how to do this from that person. So, it’s a wonderful community that we have built.

Jillian Leslie 7:48
Okay, you’re selling wreaths for $150 to $200.

Ashley Greenwood 7:52
Yes.

Jillian Leslie 7:53
How much do the materials cost to go into a wreath and how long does it take for you to create one?

Ashley Greenwood 7:59
Typically, the cost to go into a wreath are $50 to $80, it depends on what type of wreath I am making. So, the materials that we are putting into it they are not inexpensive. They are high quality materials that we are putting into them so that’s why they cost so much.

Jillian Leslie 8:24
And how about shipping?

Ashley Greenwood 8:28
Shipping ranges between $16 to $24 to ship. It depends on where I’m shipping to in the States. I am in South Carolina so to ship to California the shipping is at least $26. If it is closer to me here in the South East shipping is about $15, $16 for a large wreath.

Jillian Leslie 8:49
Do you offer free shipping? I know Etsy went all in on wanting shop owners to eat the shipping or at least put that in the price of the item.

Ashley Greenwood 9:06
It is included in the price of my item. So, it is free quote unquote shipping but it is not free. It is just included in the price of the item.

Jillian Leslie 9:15
Got it. And how long does it take you to create a wreath?

Ashley Greenwood 9:20
45 minutes to an hour.

Jillian Leslie 9:23
Okay. So, did you leave your teaching job?

Ashley Greenwood 9:29
I did. This is my second year of going all in full time on my wreath business. I was in a part time private preschool when I stepped back from teaching and I could just see the potential of being able to earn way more than what I was earning teaching preschool. So yes, but I did teach in the public school system for over 20 years.

Jillian Leslie 9:56
And is there room for other new wreathers to come into the market, or do you feel like it’s a very saturated market?

Ashley Greenwood 10:06
There are a lot of us, but there’s always room for more because there are so many doors and rooms. And they all need wreaths. And we’re all different just because I admire a wreath maker and I want to make a wreath just like them. We are all different, our styles are all different.

Ashley Greenwood 10:29
We can all try to make the same wreath but they’re going to be a little bit different. So, there’s room for all of us.

Jillian Leslie 10:37
How long did it take you to learn Etsy? Is Etsy a hard platform to sell on?

Ashley Greenwood 10:45
It is not a hard platform to sell on it is an easy start. I’m a quickstart girl and it was really easy to get started. But you really have to do your research on how to set everything up.

Ashley Greenwood 10:59
Like I said, when the pandemic hit, I went all in that means I got myself a business coach who knows about Etsy and really taught me the steps that I needed to take to be successful on Etsy.

Ashley Greenwood 11:13
And it’s truly all about SEO, Search Engine Optimization. People are going to Etsy to look for specific things. You need to know what to name your products so that they can find it.

Jillian Leslie 11:31
So, it’s not just a spring wreath, it could be floral wreath, it could be a baby shower wreath, people could have a lot of different ideas of what they’re looking for. And they all could be pointed to the same wreath but it’s how you classify it for the person looking. Is that right?

Ashley Greenwood 11:55
Yes, that’s right.

Jillian Leslie 11:58
And by the way, I’ve had Damon Oates on my show, and he’s like a big wreather. Is he somebody you’ve studied with?

Ashley Greenwood 12:08
Yes, Damon is fantastic. He is full of knowledge. And I always love learning from him. He shoots it straight. He tells you what you need to do.

Jillian Leslie 12:18
Yes, I’ll link to that episode. Now tell me in your day, how many wreaths are you making?

Ashley Greenwood 12:26
I don’t just make wreaths I make urn fillers, which are artificial planters that you put on your front porch. Typically, during a day, I can make three to five, orders a day or wreaths a day. It just depends on how intricate they are. And if they are what we call a multiple.

Ashley Greenwood 12:53
The real trick on getting traction on Etsy is to have a listing that you can reproduce over and over and over. Because the more you sell it, the more multiples you make. The more juice that gets behind that listing, the more Etsy pushes it out. So, if it’s a multiple, and I’ve made it 50 times, then it doesn’t take me as long as if I’m just starting from scratch.

Jillian Leslie 13:21
And that means is each one listing and then you sell it. And then you relist it or you say there are 50 of these wreaths available? How does that work?

Ashley Greenwood 13:30
I have a best seller wreath. It’s a pink peony wreath. That’s a beautiful wreath and I have sold hundreds of them. And I just have one listing. But I keep changing the quantities. Right now, I have 20 that are available, and then I’ll sell all of those out. And then I’ll relist it again and say I’ll have 20 more. Does that answer your question?

Jillian Leslie 14:01
Yes. And do you hire people to help you make wreaths?

Ashley Greenwood 14:07
No, I do not hire people to help me make wreaths but I do have a virtual assistant that helps me with all of the background all of the social media things.

Hosting Paid Workshops to Increase Your Income... Pow! | The Blogger Genius Podcast with Jillian Leslie

Burnout from Selling on Etsy

Jillian Leslie 14:19
So, let’s talk about that. Before we get into that. Do you ever get burnout making wreaths and all of these different crafts given that you love crafting? How is it now to take something that you love and turn it into a business?

Ashley Greenwood 14:41
I have my best seller wreath I have made that thing so many times and there are points where I am just absolutely sick of making it but this is my job. And even though I’m tired of making it and I don’t want to make it anymore; it keeps selling and this is a business. It is my job so I just keep making it.

Ashley Greenwood 15:03
And then I go and make something different to get those juices flowing again.

Jillian Leslie 15:09
Say you’re going to have 20 in stock. Will you just make 20 and then move on to something else? Or will you just do the peony wreath and then do other things and then come back to it? What’s your process like?

Ashley Greenwood 15:27
They’re made to order. It is easy for me to store the supplies of wreaths than it is for me to store one big wreath that I have to hang on every wall in our home or find someplace to put it so it’s easier for me just to make them as the orders come in.

Jillian Leslie 16:25
There’s a whole machinery I take it behind just your Etsy shop. And I know when I first started talking to you, that you, for example, have a really big presence on TikTok. So, you first started your Etsy shop then did you start a blog? And then did you start social media? How did this whole thing come about?

Ashley Greenwood 16:46
I actually started a DIY blog in 2013. So, it’s just something I kind of played with and I dabbled into the social medias. But then that was during a break from teaching when I was a stay at home mama with my three children, then I went back to teaching. The blogging was on the back burner. I always kept it going. I had ads on my blog.

Jillian Leslie 17:15
I was going to say were you monetizing it?

Ashley Greenwood 17:17
Yes, I had reached the point where I was able to monetize it. So, I just kept it going in the background. And then I began my Etsy shop. And then I started TikTok, my business coach encouraged me to start doing short form video.

How to Grow a Following on TikTok

Ashley Greenwood 17:38
And I was like, TikTok seems so silly. My boys are into it. And they kept, “Mama, you got to look at this video. It is so funny.” I thought it was just dumb. But I was like, you know what, I’m going to try it. So, I began to do just short little videos on TikTok. This was a year ago, I started TikTok in October of 2021.

Ashley Greenwood 18:06
I’ve only been on it a year. At first, it was more look at my beautiful wreath. Don’t you want to buy it kind of thing. And then I slowly started sharing wreath making tips. And here’s how I do this and answering questions. And I think that’s what really led me into the teaching side of it. Because people were so engaged. They wanted to know more.

Ashley Greenwood 18:38
And I love teaching. I taught for a long time. So, that is what I think flipped it over to not just being a product seller on Etsy but sharing my knowledge and my love of wreath making with others.

Jillian Leslie 18:56
So wait, how many TikTok followers do you have right now?

Ashley Greenwood 19:00
I am almost at 40,000.

Jillian Leslie 19:02
Oh my God! When I met you, I want to say you were at maybe 20,000.

Ashley Greenwood 19:09
Yeah, yeah.

Jillian Leslie 19:10
Wow.

Ashley Greenwood 19:11
Slowly but surely. I love going live doing tutorials live. And the engagement on TikTok is just phenomenal people chatting with me; talking; asking me questions. It’s just been so much fun and such a great way to grow.

Jillian Leslie 19:31
So, how many TikToks do you make a day?

Ashley Greenwood 19:36
I typically post one a day. But sometimes I just don’t get to it. But at least five to six a week, if not one every day.

Jillian Leslie 19:49
And then how often you going live?

Ashley Greenwood 19:52
At least twice a week.

Jillian Leslie 19:54
For how long?

Ashley Greenwood 19:57
Probably about an hour each time because it takes me about an hour to make a project, and I’m chatting the whole time I’m working. That slows me down a little bit. So, probably about an hour each time.

Jillian Leslie 20:13
Wow, are your TikToks meme TikToks Like, hey, everybody is doing this funny thing, and I’m going to more fit into my niche, or are they, hey, check out this way to tie a bow, what are your TikToks look like?

Ashley Greenwood 20:30
Every once in a while, I’ll do what I call a cutesy TikTok, where I use a fun, a sound or a song. But mostly they are answering questions that people ask on my previous videos, they are explaining how to do something, and maybe a time lapse of a wreath that I have made. But it’s really serving my audience. So, it’s not just dancing around.

Jillian Leslie 20:57
So, it is entertaining, but it’s less like, “Hey, look at me, Aren’t I cute or funny?” And more, “Hey, you’re nuts and bolts, if you want to make wreaths follow me, because I’m going to give you real information to help you.”

Ashley Greenwood 21:12
Exactly, because that’s the kind of people I want to attract.

Hosting Paid Workshops to Increase Your Income... Pow! | The Blogger Genius Podcast with Jillian Leslie

Free Digital Product Personality Quiz

Jillian Leslie 21:18
I want us to take a short break, because you know, I am all about creators selling digital products to their audiences. But you might be going well, okay, that sounds great. But I don’t even know where to start. I don’t know what kind of digital product to make.

Jillian Leslie 21:33
And that’s why I created a digital product personality quiz, you can get this at milotree.com/quiz. And based on your personality, it will tell you which product you might start with first plus, attached to it is a worksheet where you can put the details in and really flesh out what you can sell. Again, go to milotree.com/quiz.

Jillian Leslie 21:58
And now back to the show.

Jillian Leslie 21:59
It’s so funny because I know with Damon for example, Facebook and Facebook Lives were huge for him. Is that still a thing for you? Or was that ever a thing for you?

Ashley Greenwood 22:16
I don’t think I went all in on Facebook. I think that Facebook has wonderful potential to gather your community and your audience together. But I think that where you put your time is where you’re going to grow and I got such immediate interaction on TikTok. That’s where I put my time.

Ashley Greenwood 22:40
Every time I would go live on Facebook, no one was there. No one was watching or commenting. It was just like a dead zone. So of course, TikTok was giving me love so I gave it love back.

Jillian Leslie 22:54
So funny. And again, I think, a really important point that you just made. I would assume when I think about your customer, I’m assuming maybe it’s a woman and maybe 50s 60s. Maybe has grandkids wants to decorate her door for the holidays. So, of course I’m thinking Facebook, no way would a TikTok audience show up for you.

Jillian Leslie 23:19
When I’m doing TikToks my daughter is making fun of me like, “Mom, you’re way too old to be on TikTok.” And what I love is you found this big audience on TikTok and are they 50, 60 year old moms, grandmas or are they young people who want to make wreaths?

Ashley Greenwood 23:38
That’s a little hard for me to tell because on Facebook you can see people’s faces, they have their names. You can kind of investigate them just a little bit to get some more information about who they are, how old they are, their family situation. On TikTok, you can’t really do that.

Ashley Greenwood 24:01
So, I am assuming that they are women 40 to 60 that are crafty and creative have always wanted to learn how to make a wreath for their front door and those are the people that I attract.

Jillian Leslie 24:16
That’s amazing.

Ashley Greenwood 24:17
It’s harder to figure out on TikTok than it is on Facebook. Do you ever ask? No, I do ask if they are wreath makers, or if they’re just crafty, and it’s about a 50/50.

Jillian Leslie 24:35
So, when they’re wreath makers, are they selling wreath? If you are a wreath maker, does that mean you sell wreaths or does that mean you just like decorating your door?

Ashley Greenwood 24:44
I’m not sure about that. I would assume that if they’re a wreath maker they are selling.

Jillian Leslie 24:51
So, you’ve got people who follow you because they want to be making wreaths and selling wreaths like people who want to be doing what you’re doing?

Ashley Greenwood 25:00
Yes.

Instagram Strategy

Jillian Leslie 25:03
Now, what about Instagram? Has that been a place for you?

Ashley Greenwood 25:11
When I first began my blog, in 2013, Instagram was the place for the beautiful, pristine, well cultivated and put together images. And I could just never get on board with Instagram. So, Instagram has not gotten my love either. But now that I have a virtual assistant, she’s helping me grow that over there as well. I’m everywhere.

Jillian Leslie 25:42
Are you taking your TikToks and repurposing them as reels on Instagram for example?

Ashley Greenwood 25:48
Yes.

Jillian Leslie 25:49
And is that helping you grow on Instagram?

Ashley Greenwood 25:53
Yes.

Jillian Leslie 25:53
And how many followers do you have on Instagram?

Ashley Greenwood 25:57
I’m not sure.

Jillian Leslie 25:59
Are you making sales on TikTok or on Instagram?

Ashley Greenwood 26:04
I am making sales on TikTok?

Jillian Leslie 26:07
So, you have a link in your bio. And it links to your Etsy shop?

Ashley Greenwood 26:14
I have lots of links for places for people to go. So, now I am shifting my business from just being a product seller to being a teacher. So, I always encourage people to go to the link in my bio on TikTok because there are free wreath making tutorials.

Ashley Greenwood 26:36
There are places where I shop, all sorts of goodness that they can get into. There is also a link to my Etsy shop. So, I’m trying to hit all of those different people that are coming to follow me.

Jillian Leslie 26:51
Can we talk about how we connected?

Ashley Greenwood 26:56
Yes. I have been a follower of you for a while, because I love your podcast. And I really wanted to grow my business. And I love listening to podcasts. Anytime I could get some business tips from any podcast, I am like all in on that. And you always have good things to say about growing your business and what you should be doing.

Selling Paid Workshops Using MiloTreeCart

Ashley Greenwood 27:26
One day, I heard you mentioned MiloTreeCart, which is a way to host workshops, all sorts of goodness, all sorts of things. And I was interested in that. Because yes, I have a blog. But it’s not a Shopify site. I cannot take money on my blog.

Ashley Greenwood 27:51
So, I didn’t know how to sell workshops. And you were my answer for that. MiloTreeCart helped me set up workshops to be able to start teaching workshops this fall.

Jillian Leslie 28:06
Yes. Let’s talk about the first one. You came to me, and you’ve got this TikTok audience, and I had no idea if the audience would translate into people coming because they’re getting your content passively on their phones. And are they going to really get off of their phones to come show up for you?

Jillian Leslie 28:25
So, I helped you, we put together a sales page, and it was a fall wreath. This was relatively recently. And we were going to go through just a basic, pretty fall wreath. And I think you charged $19.

Ashley Greenwood 28:40
I did.

Promoting the Wreath-Making Workshop on TikTok with Success

Jillian Leslie 28:41
And then you started promoting it on TikTok, and I’m watching from the back end, so I can see your dashboard because I have no idea. It’s so funny. I’ve shared this story before, but somebody was like, “Where did you get this product idea?” Because I always say please run product ideas by me.

Jillian Leslie 28:59
And this woman said, “Here’s my product idea.” And I thought it was great, but it wasn’t like in a niche that I knew that much about or whatever. And she goes, “Do you think it’ll be successful?” And I’m like, “I have no idea if it will be successful.”

Jillian Leslie 29:10
And it was same thing with you. You’d never taught and gotten paid before. And I think you had a very small email list. Am I right?

Ashley Greenwood 29:21
Yes, like 700.

Jillian Leslie 29:23
Which is not super small, but it’s not like 7,000 And I always feel like the money is really in your list because you’ve got a closer relationship when you email somebody versus showing up on social media where you don’t know if somebody is going to be there.

Jillian Leslie 29:43
It’s kind of a crapshoot, your TikTok is going to show up and they’re going to see it or you’re going to be live and they’re going to be there versus say email which has a little bit more of a direct way to be in touch with somebody.

The Importance of Testing Your Digital Product Idea

Jillian Leslie 29:57
So, you, my friend, start doing TikToks or doing something and I’m watching sales on the backend. And I’m like, oh my god, actually, you got this. So, when you talk about how you started promoting it, because honestly, when we set it up, I’m like, I hope it works. I don’t know if it’s going to work.

Ashley Greenwood 30:17
I didn’t know if it was going to work either. This is the first time I had ever done anything like that. Yes, I have been growing my email list with lots of opt-ins, trying just to get my people to come to me, but I didn’t know if it was going to work or not.

Ashley Greenwood 30:32
I started going live on TikTok at least twice a week. Every time I would go live, I would say, “Hey, look, this is what we’re going to be making in the fall wreath workshop. I would love for you to join me.” And people just started coming in. And I was so excited.

Ashley Greenwood 30:53
Every time I would go live, I would get four more people, six more people. Three more people. My little stats just kept adding up.

Jillian Leslie 31:03
Where did you put the link to sign up?

Ashley Greenwood 31:08
I put the link in my profile. Through my email service AWeber it’s kind of like a Linktree where it’s lots of little buttons for them to choose where they would like to go. I put it right at the top. I linked to the sales page that you helped me set up; you walk through that with me. And that’s how they would join the workshop.

Jillian Leslie 31:32
Would you say go to the link in my bio and sign up like you gave them the direct information. You didn’t make it hard.

Ashley Greenwood 31:40
No, over and over and over. Go to the link in my profile, go sign up for the workshop.

Jillian Leslie 31:47
So, I think the first workshop you did you got $900 worth of sales?

Ashley Greenwood 31:56
$700.

Jillian Leslie 31:57
Okay. $700. And then you had to do it. And what was that like?

Hosting a Paid Workshop in a Facebook Group

Ashley Greenwood 32:04
It went really well. I hosted it in a private Facebook group, because the majority of my community also have a Facebook page. And that would just be easier for them to access it and go back and watch them over. So, I hosted it in a private Facebook group. I went live over a two day period.

Ashley Greenwood 32:25
At least three times I went live and then there were also some pre-recorded tutorials in there as well for them to access. It was very successful?

Jillian Leslie 32:39
What do you mean at least three times.

Ashley Greenwood 32:41
I would do the tutorial with them live on the Facebook page making the wreath.

Jillian Leslie 32:41
Three times.

Ashley Greenwood 32:44
We also had three different times.

Jillian Leslie 32:56
Oh. So, you did the same wreath?

Ashley Greenwood 33:01
No. I did multiple tutorials. So, we went live to begin with a welcome video like, “Hey, everybody, I’m so happy you’re here. Here’s the supplies that we’re going to be using, here’s what we’re going to be making.” And then the next day or later that night, I would go live with a wreath tutorial and we would make it from start to finish.

Ashley Greenwood 33:24
And they could watch that. Plus, it’s also saved in the group so they could go back and rewatch it as many times as they wanted. And then I went live again, making a different version of the wreath complete tutorial, start to finish showing them step-by-step how to do it.

Ashley Greenwood 33:45
And then at the end of the workshop, we had a question and answer session where they could ask me about wreath making or starting an Etsy shop or anything they would like.

Jillian Leslie 33:54
Wow. And then you’re inspired to do it again. And in fact, when we just got on this call, I didn’t even know that you had done it again. This time with like a Christmas wreath. So, what was that experience like?

Hosting a Second Wreath-Making Paid Workshop

Ashley Greenwood 34:07
That was awesome. I up my price. So, went from $19 to $24. I had fewer participants, but I made more money because I had increased the price. It was a two day workshop where I went live multiple times teaching the same tutorial.

Jillian Leslie 34:28
In the same Facebook or new Facebook?

Ashley Greenwood 34:29
A new Facebook group, a new private Facebook group. I had people that went to my Fall one and joined me again for the Christmas one I had brand new people that had never come to any of my tutorials before so it was really successful.

Ashley Greenwood 34:49
And I really enjoyed being able to take the time with that small little group just to get to know them better and to teach them how to make something beautiful.

Jillian Leslie 35:03
Wow. So, it’s a totally different side of your business. You’re not just a shop owner. You’re now a teacher.

Ashley Greenwood 35:13
Yes, I am a teacher again.

Jillian Leslie 35:16
And how does that feel?

Ashley Greenwood 35:17
Awesome. It feels good. I had said for years ever since I first started my Etsy shop business, friends would say, “Are you going to teach? Are you going to teach people how to do it?” And I was like, “No, I’m not teaching you how to do this. I don’t think I can teach how to do this.”

Happy to Be Teaching Again

Ashley Greenwood 35:37
But gradually, I think the cause of TikTok and sharing with my audience over there, I was like, you know what? I think I can teach people how to make wreaths. And people really love listening to me and watching my tutorials. They tell me all the time, “It cracks me up.” They say I have such a nice voice.

Jillian Leslie 35:58
I was just going to say you have that kindergarten teacher vibe. I just love you. I want you to put me to bed at night. Like it’s nap time

Ashley Greenwood 36:09
Yes. I have that kindergarten teacher vibe.

Jillian Leslie 36:10
You totally do. Here’s a question people have had; we haven’t even talked about this. But a lot of people who’ve been doing paid workshops, have been then selling them as mini courses. Have you thought about that? So for example, you did a Christmas wreath you’ve got a long time before Christmas.

Jillian Leslie 36:30
Have you thought about just taking the video creating a sales page in MiloTreeCart and selling it as a mini course? And going to your TikTok audience and your email list. But it seems like your TikTok audience is super engaged and saying, “Guys, buy this. You want a wreath for your door? Here, this is it.”

Selling the Recorded Workshop as a Mini Course

Ashley Greenwood 36:52
Yes, and I can tell people you didn’t miss out. Don’t worry, you can still get this. I think something that holds people back from doing online workshops is they’re like, “I don’t have the time, I’m not going to be able to get there on that date.”

Ashley Greenwood 37:08
And we need to just educate them and say, “It’s okay, you don’t have to be here on that day. This is going to be sitting waiting for you right here. So don’t worry about it.”

Jillian Leslie 37:20
And you can download the videos from Facebook, if you want, you can send them into the Facebook group or download them and upload them as unlisted videos on YouTube, which just a link, and then when they purchase, you can just send them the link.

Ashley Greenwood 37:36
Yes.

Jillian Leslie 37:36
I would totally do that. Because somebody just recently did it. And she just went back to her email list. She has a big email list. And just turned on a new income stream and made like $400 in a week and by repurposing the email she had previously sent.

Jillian Leslie 37:52
And it was like she reached out to me and goes, “Guess what I just did? I just sold the recording.” Again, not that she did anything to the recording, she didn’t edit it. She just said, “Hey, get the replay.” She had already downloaded it or gotten a link for it. Because for the people who purchased her workshop who couldn’t be there live, she had a link.

Jillian Leslie 38:12
She had; I think put it up on YouTube as an unlisted video. So, she already had it. And I think there was a PDF that went along with it. So, she just went to her list and said, “Do you want to buy this? It was a recording I did. I’m selling it now as a mini course. And you get the PDF as well.”

Jillian Leslie 38:29
And boom, it was like no brainer, it was easy money, because she’d already created the content and the content was valuable.

Ashley Greenwood 38:36
I think that all of us need to be more intentional about what we do. And to work smarter and not harder. We sometimes just make things so complicated, and it doesn’t have to be that complicated.

Ashley Greenwood 38:52
And MiloTreeCart really helped me bridge the gap of, hey I want to teach a class, but I don’t know how to get the money for it and it seemed very complicated, but it truly isn’t.

Jillian Leslie 39:08
Oh, that makes me so happy. It’s funny, I was just talking to somebody about MiloTreeCart and she said, “You know, what I need is fewer features and that’s what MiloTreeCart offers.” And somebody just recently said to me I have all the tech if I wanted to do this myself. She has a guy who is like her tech guy.

Jillian Leslie 39:30
She goes, “But I just want a place where I can play around muck around and I will mess it up.” And I’m like, “You can’t break it. Go do that. Go put up sales pages and see.”

Jillian Leslie 39:42
It’s so funny because I do remember saying to David my husband going, “Ah, Ashley just got a bunch of sales. I don’t know what she’s doing.” It was almost I felt as if it was every day be checking and going she has more sales. This is amazing. Especially, you said in the beginning, you’re like, I don’t know, maybe I’ll get three sales.

Ashley Greenwood 40:07
Oh, yes, my goal was for five participants to show up. And the first workshop there were 36. And for the Christmas workshop, there were 40.

Jillian Leslie 40:22
So, let’s talk about the future of your business or where you see it going. When you look out, I know you’ve got busy busy Christmas coming up. This is like your big time of order. So, you’re going to be watching Netflix and making wreaths for the next four weeks, five weeks, six weeks.

Ashley Greenwood 40:42
Yes.

Jillian Leslie 40:44
So, your house is going to be this explosion of ribbons and flowers and all that.

Ashley Greenwood 40:49
And glitter, everywhere glitter.

Jillian Leslie 40:52
Glitter. So, after you get through that, where do you see it in 2023? What are you thinking?

Hosting More Workshops and a Membership in 2023

Ashley Greenwood 41:01
I would love to host more workshops, I want to sit and plan out my year and think like, what would people be interested in learning how to do? How can I serve my customers or my community that I’ve built my little email list and my community on TikTok.

Ashley Greenwood 41:21
I want to host more workshops and maybe eventually, I will have my own paid community.

Jillian Leslie 41:28
Like a membership?

Ashley Greenwood 41:29
Like a membership. I think that would be really awesome. Because instead of just selling one wreath that takes me an hour to make and getting paid for that I could reach so many people in the same amount of time, it would take me to make that one wreath.

Ashley Greenwood 41:29
I could really expand my business and provide more meaningful income for my family.

Ashley Greenwood 41:34
What I think is interesting, is I think that you are a teacher. And I think that at least the workshops you’re able to scratch that itch. So, do you get to scratch the itch of being a crafter because I feel like you are just so inherently creative? But now I feel like you’re able to do both. And to feed your soul. That’s what I feel.

Ashley Greenwood 42:26
Yes, I agree with that. For a long time, like I said, I didn’t really want to pursue teaching this craft. But once I got into it, I just really love it. And I love it when people say I followed your tutorial. Here’s what I made. And it looks just like what I taught.

Ashley Greenwood 42:44
I’m thinking, okay, well, I must be doing pretty good if what she made looks very similar to the way that I taught it. So it just fills me up.

Jillian Leslie 42:54
And I don’t know, did we talk about this? I don’t know if you’re doing this, but it was somebody else I was talking to you, which is then after people come to your workshop is like a little added bonus, if they take a photo of what they’ve created, you’ll post it and if you’ve been doing that. Just elevate them.

Featuring Her Attendees Wreaths on TikTok

Ashley Greenwood 43:10
With my Fall workshop. And they loved it, that made them so happy that I would feature something that they had made on a TikTok video, which of course I’m repurposing all over everywhere.

Jillian Leslie 43:23
It’s so funny. Just you know, I was talking to somebody else who has a following on TikTok, not like yours, but big, and I said something about wow, I worked with this other TikToker, by the way, I call you a TikToker just so you know.

Ashley Greenwood 43:52
They will be so impressed.

Jillian Leslie 43:42
I know. I said I was working with this other TikToker, and she had tremendous success. And she said, “What’s her name on TikTok?” And I looked you up and I told them, and they go, “I already follow her.” So, just so you know, it was so funny. I’m like, “Oh my God,” which made me feel so good.

Jillian Leslie 44:01
And I had like that Association thing. Where I felt good about me because I know you TikTok wreather it was like, “Oh, yeah, I know her.” And she’s like, “Oh, yeah,” so it was just this really funny moment. So, just know that you do reach this big community of people especially on TikTok. The people know you.

Ashley Greenwood 44:26
Who knew? My teenage boys will be so impressed.

Jillian Leslie 44:29
I know. Ashley, if people want to see what you’re doing, see your Etsy shop. Let’s say your blog, your TikTok. Where would you send them?

Ashley Greenwood 44:42
All over everywhere I am 3littlegreenwoods it’s the number 3, the word Little and the word Greenwoods. That is the name of my blog that I started in 2013 when it was just mainly about my children and their birthday parties and look at the DIY that I just did for our home. I am all over everywhere with that.

Ashley Greenwood 45:10
And I would love to offer a free wreath making tutorial to your audience. If they would be interested, we can leave that in the comments if that would be okay.

Jillian Leslie 45:20
Absolutely. Yes. That’s terrific. I love working with you. I love watching the growth. You’ve been just so satisfying for me. And this is exactly the kind of person who initially it was like, I don’t want to deal with any of this tech. I don’t know how to set this up.

Jillian Leslie 45:41
And yet you were able because you have this audience to turn on a revenue stream and that it’s been so satisfying.

Ashley Greenwood 45:50
Yes. And I could not have done it without your help. So, I truly appreciate you.

Jillian Leslie 45:55
Oh, it’s been my pleasure. Well, Ashley, I just have to say, thank you so much for coming on the show.

Ashley Greenwood 46:03
Thank you, Jillian.

Jillian Leslie 46:04
I hope you guys liked this episode. For me just getting the chance to work with somebody like Ashley, who just took a leap of faith and was able to turn on a whole new revenue stream and feel so satisfied in the process there’s nothing better for me. Just hearing her story just makes me smile.

Jillian Leslie 46:23
And honestly, I wish this for all of you if you’ve got an audience like Ashley was able to cultivate but you are not selling to them. You are leaving money on the table and my hope is that I give you the tools, the strategy and the confidence to go make it happen for yourself.

Jillian Leslie 46:42
Again, get on my waitlist for MiloTreeCart for our Black Friday special at milotree.com/blackfridayspecial, grab my quiz at milotree.com/quiz.

Jillian Leslie 46:55
And I will see you here again next week.

Other related Blogger Genius Podcast episodes you’ll enjoy:

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