Selling my homemade jigs

[Bryce]

Hi everyone, Im looking at trying to sell my homemade jigs online. Iwas wondering if anyone had any advice or insight they could tell me. Also, I need to make a website, but I don't know where to begin. So, any tips would be greatly appreciated. Also, if anyone is interested in buying any, let me know

[Jim Gronaw]

Hey Bryce, this advice certainly isn't the gospel, but here is my take on the jig tying thing...

Before you invest in money for a website, I would do a little searching and see what else is out there, who is selling it and what are they charging for their product. Get on the web and check out the jig tying gig...you'll be surprised at how many people are into it.

To begin with, you might want to start from a local standpoint by offering your jigs for sale through local oulets suchas baitshops or at local fishing shows during the winter. Depending on where you live, ther may be a real desire for your jigs among the local anglers. But if you live in an area where panfishing is just not popular, then you may want to market, say, smallmouth jigs or jigs that will catch other species.

Check out what the other bait or tackle shops are trying to move, as many of them have local tyers that sell jigs through their stores. Ask yourself a question or two...do my jigs look like the ones that are available at Bass Pro or Cabelas? Is there something special about my jigs that set them apart from the others? Most importantly, do my lures catch fish, and big panfish at that?

I tied jigs for 3 years and experimented with different patterns and color combos to see which ones worked the best. Once I was convinced that my jigs were quality tied and would consistantly catch fish, I sold them locally through a fly shop. I marketed them locally and had a small but fervant following of anglers who bought my product. I never made a bunch of money and I still don't. Yet, they have been featured in the In Fisherman twice and I have sold them to several parties in the midwest states. Mine are called RiverCritters, and I tie about 3 dozen different patterns for panfish applications and bass. I also have tied striper jigs. I tie jigs specifically for bluegills, specifically for crappie and same for bass.

From a professional stand point, you might want to consider having some brochures or business cards made for yourjigs, and it would help to show a pic or two of a big fish caught on your lures or of any testimonials about your jigs.

Mostly, I just do it because I get a kick out of catching fish on my own creations and I tie a bunch for my friends. You might not get rich, but you'll surely have fun. Good Luck! Jim Gronaw

[Bruce Condello]

Excellent suggestions from Jim.

I might add another tidbit or two.

One thing you might consider is using the power of the internet in your venture. There are some excellent websites that would allow you to do some good, inexpensive marketing. Possibly you could create a colorful and fun series of business cards. When I started managing farm ponds I made some really good business cards and gave them to as many people as I could find. What I found was that I could trade my knowledge of farm pond management for permission on ponds. Maybe you could do the same! Imagine how cool it would be if you could get permission on some little cherry hotspot pond by tying and gifting some of your creations to the landowner. So many times we try to get something without giving. This would be a chance for you to give.

Another possibility would be to find a way to hook up with some local underprivileged kids and give them some of your jigs, provided they accompany you to a local public lake that has some willing bluegill. Something like this will often be of interest to the local media. Of course you'd want to do it for the right reasons. Helping other kids to get a start fishing is good for everybody, but sometimes acts of generosity get unexpectedly nice results. At the very least you'll feel great about what you're doing.

Keep us informed. We'd love to see you succeed.

Bruce

[LedHed]

Check out crappie.com - jig making section, tacklemaking.com, and tackleunderground.com. There a lot of input on getting into sellng jigs. I give away way more jigs than I could possibly sell - but one of these days...................

[Jim Gronaw]

Hey Bryce...check this out...I caught 27 crappie today on one of my jigs that I tied with the hair from the tail of our family dog! Tried other patterns, just one fish. Simple, light brown jig in slightly stained water. Got me...

I guess it pays to try ALL available materials!

[Bryce]

that awesome it feels so great to actually catch fish on jigs that you made yourself. Thats funny that you tied them from hair from your dog. Did you catch nice crappie. The water here is still pretty cold, I went out in our boat last weekend and we couldn't catch anything, except that my dad caught a toy tonka truck, it was awesome. Well grats on the catch and good luck to you for future fish.

[Ryan McCaw]

I have a website up and running. It might be possible for us to work together to get them out there and see the interest. Otherwise, I dabble in this sort of thing and could help you out. One of my sites is www.bluegillworld.com. Another that I created for an old employer is www.liftruckserce.com. That is a forklift dealer that I created according to their desires. Let me know if you are interested or just want to talk. I love small businesses and getting anything like this up and running.