Cafe Press Doesn't Treat Designers Fairly

This blog is meant to be a place for me to share my experiences about being a business owner, but I've delayed writing about my experiences with Cafe Press, because I didn't want to post something on the internet that I'd regret later.

I'm not good at being succinct, but I will try. Cafe Press really let me down. Cafe Press does not value the designers. They switched to a mandatory maximum profit of 10% for the artists who actually create the designs. I strongly believe that I contribute far more than 10% to the finished products. For those of us who have already invested hundreds of hours, it's not easy to know what to do next. For any artists, designers, or stay home moms looking to start a new business, though - let me be very clear. YOU SHOULD NOT DO BUSINESS WITH CAFE PRESS. You deserve better.

I've started the long, involved process of switching to another Print On Demand company. Many Cafe Press designers switched to Zazzle, and I've been very impressed with everything I've seen of them so far. This whole experience has been very upsetting, so I thought it would make me happiest to focus on one small niche in my designs and to choose something that I am personally invested in . . . I chose to focus on my Unitarian Universalist designs. I've opened a gallery selling Unitarian Universalist gifts featuring my original artwork at Zazzle.

The process of uploading and organizing designs is very different, so I've got a steep learning curve. One of the designers at Zazzle, Praire Ghost, has been particularly helpful. She's given me lots of one on one tutoring, and I'd love to be able to create Personalized Greeting Cardslike hers. Feel free to click the previous link and have a look around her shop. She's been kind to me (a stranger) and I'd like to promote her gallery.

Because it takes a while just to get a design up at my store, I still have a very long way to go. But one day after I uploaded my Elements Chalice Design, I sold 10 UU chalice keychains! I haven't even done a Google Feed yet!

Here's a picture of the keychain with my design. Just click the picture to buy now . . .

Bright Elements Chalice by uufaith
Design promotional key chains At Zazzle
See other Religion Keychains

One of the things I really like about Zazzle is that even though I've chosen a few products to display each design, customers have total control of which products they choose. Even if you don't see one of my drawings already on a particular product (for example, a framed poster) . . . you can just choose to have it printed on that product. And there is always the option of customizing a product by shrinking my drawing and typing in any text. At Zazzle, you can personalize in this way immediately (rather than waiting for me to do it) at no extra charge.

I have a long way to go, but I'm feeling cautiously optimistic.