5 Tips for Creating a Fabulous Login Page

Did you know you can customize your customer login page? You can! Just check out these amazing examples from CraftHub customers Sonya de Hart and Claudine Hellmuth! How can you make a fabulous log in page? Here are 5 tips to get you started!

Sonya de Hart Custom Login Screen

1. Make it look fabulous!

Branding matters!
Does your shop have a logo or banner? If not, now is a great time to make one! Match the look and feel of your login page to the look and feel of your Etsy shop. This will help your customers to know that they have come to the right place.

Keep it simple.
Resist the urge to include everything. The more text and images on your page, the harder it will be for your customer to find the most important information. Organize information using headings, grids, and bullet points to help your customers find what they are looking for.

Fancy fonts are great (but not for everything)
Fancy fonts are great for drawing attention to titles and headings, but they can also be hard to read. Use a simple font for instructions and information.

Claudine Hellmuth Custom Login Screen

2. Provide easy-to-follow instructions

The download instructions are the most important information you need to convey to your customers. Sonya and Claudine both do an excellent job of providing easy-to-follow 1-2-3 instructions in an accessible visual format. When writing instructions it's important to:

• Write every step. 
• Use short sentences.
• Avoid long explanations.

When you are finished, have a friend try to follow your instructions. Ask them for feedback to see how you can make your instructions more clear.

3. Provide Troubleshooting Tips

What should your customer do if the download doesn't work? Think about the most common issues your users encounter. Some common issues we encounter are:

• Customer can't find where their files are saved
• Customer reached their download limit
• Files are IP locked

Then tell them what they should do to resolve the issue. 

• Check their download folder.
• Contact you.

4. Include Your Contact Information

Be accessible! Is there anything more frustrating than having an urgent question and not knowing who to ask? Provide a way for your customers to contact you right from your login screen. Your customers will be grateful!

5. Add Links to your social media outlets

Connect with your customers! Add links to your social media outlets so your customers can stay in touch with you.

Feeling Inspired?

We want to see your login screen! When you are done, post a link to your login page in the comments below.

New Updates to your Products Page!

I am excited to announce that we have made updates to your Products page! The new changes make it easier to see which media files are attached to your product listings.

Are your files attached?

We've made it easier to tell if files are attached to your product listings. In the "Attached Media" column you will now see a link to your files. Click the links to confirm that the correct files are attached to each product. If no links appear, that means no files are currently attached.

To add or remove files, open the product listing by clicking the Product Title link. You will see your available files below the product information. Use the check box to add or remove files. If the box is checked, the file is attached. If the box is not checked, the file is not attached.

Click the red "Save" button to save your changes. If you want to upload a new file, click the "Upload New Media" button at the bottom of the screen.

When you click the "Upload New Media" button you will be redirected to your Media page. By default, the new media item will be attached the product listing you have open. Turn the "Attach to Product" button to "off" if you do not want the new media file to attach to the open product.

Instant Download

The instant download feature is now activated by a check box. If the box is checked, your product is available for instant download. You can activate or deactivate the instant download feature for each product on your Products tab.

How to Write your First Pattern in 6 Steps

CraftHub is delighted to present Stacey Trock of FreshStitches! In addition to designing for FreshStitches, Stacey has written two crochet books: Crocheted Softies and Cuddly Crochet. She's also CraftHub's first ever guest blogger! Thanks, Stacey, for sharing your pattern-making tips with us!

How to Write your First Pattern in 6 Steps

You might think that you need a whole bunch of fancy software to put together a professional-looking pattern, but it just isn't true! You can put together a great-looking pattern using what you probably already have on your computer!

I’m going to assume that you already have written a clear set of pattern instructions, and I’ll give you tips to turn those instructions into a beautiful pattern!

Step 1: Take fabulous photos

You don’t need an expensive camera! You just need your product, some good lighting and a regular point-and-shoot camera.

If you’re not rock-solid on your photography yet, check out my 5 Photography Tips and my detailed write-up of how to create a seamless white background.

The secret to good photography is taking oodles of photos. You can always delete ones you don’t like, but you want to maximize your chances of snagging that perfect one!

Don’t forget that in addition to the cover photo, you’ll want to take photos that show off any detail work or unique features of your design.

Step 2: Select your format

Chances are, you have a word processing program like Microsoft Word on you computer… great! You can use it for formatting your pattern!

Have a look at the features your program offers. Go to File > New. Is there an option of using a template? A template can be a great way to get started with the design of your pattern.

If you don’t want to go the route of the template, think about setting key elements of the pattern apart with simple design elements. Perhaps your materials listing could go in a colored text box. headers) to break up the text. Keep in mind that many people find a huge, solid block of text difficult to read, so use design elements (and headers) to break it up.

Step 3: Insert your photos

To insert your photo into a document, go to Insert > Picture, and pop in your selected photo.

Take a look at the top of the screen after you've inserted your photo… do you see formatting options? In my version of Word (above), you can see a variety of picture formatting settings: such as changing the shape of the photo or adding a border. This is an easy way to add a personalized style to your photos.

Step 4: Add your information

Do you want to add copyright information? How about putting your email address on the pattern so customers with questions can contact you? Or maybe you’d like to include your website?

Don’t forget these details… remember that the pattern instructions are a way to communicate with your customer! You want to make things easy for them… don’t make them hunt you down if they have a question!

Step 5: Try a font!

Once you have your text and photos in… you’re finished (and can skip to step 6)! This step is optional, and just adds a little extra to your pattern!

I’m a big fan of fun fonts, and downloading a new font is a great way to add your own sense of style.

My favorite website for browsing new fonts is dafont.com. There are two things to keep in mind.

One, be sure to read the conditions on the the particular font you’re interested in: fonts designed for personal use only aren’t intended to be used for commercial purposes. (…just like patterns!)

Two, most people find fancy fonts in the text difficult to read, so keep the fun stuff to headers and titles.

Step 6: Make a PDF

PDF stands for ‘portable document format’, and it’s called that because it’s a file that shows up exactly the same on every computer. You’ll want to convert your document into this format before it’s ready for distribution.

Fortunately, this is easy! In the old days, you needed fancy additional software, but now, it’s as easy as going to Print in your Word Processor and selecting Adobe PDF as your printer.

The result is your pattern… that’s ready to distribute!

Are you ready?

You shouldn't let fear of technology or lack of a graphic designing degree keep you from putting together a pretty pattern that you can be proud of!

I hope I've encouraged you to give it a shot!

This post was written by Stacey Trock of FreshStitches. Find her at www.freshstitches.com (http://www.freshstitches.com).

CraftHub.me Dashboard Overview

In this post, I will orient you to your CraftHub.me dashboard and explain the setup options for various features. You will find information about:

• Navigating your CraftHub.me Dashboard
• Where to locate account information
• Where to locate and alter settings
• Two ways to Upload files
• How to attach files to products
• Using transaction reports

Dashboard Overview

When you log in to your CraftHub.me dashboard, you will see is some basic information about your account. Including:

• How many monthly transactions you have remaining
• When your renewal date is scheduled
• How many roll-over credits you have
• Announcements from CraftHub.me. 

You can get to this page at any time by clicking the blue eye icon at the top left of your screen.

Icons

There are four icons in the upper left portion of your dashboard. 

• The "i" icon will take you to our tutorials page
• The house icon will take you to the CraftHub.me homepage
• The speech bubbles icon will take you to our FAQ page
• The single speech bubble icon will take you to CraftHub.me blog

To log out, click the CraftHub logo in the upper right portion of your screen.

Tabs

There are seven tabs along the top of your CraftHub.me dashboard.

• Settings
• Account
• Media
• Content
• Etsy
• Products
• Reports

Settings

Use the Settings tab to:

• Find the name and email address associated with your CraftHub.me account
• Change your password
• Set a maximum number of downloads for sent files
• Set an expiration time for sent files
• Set your products to auto renew on Etsy
• Turn the IP Lock feature on or off

Remember to click the submit button to save your changes.

Maximum downloads for sent files

CraftHub.me allows you to set a maximum number of times that your customer can download their purchase. This field is set at 0 by default, which allows your customer an unlimited number of downloads. In my store, I have set the maximum downloads to five. I do not want a customer to be locked out if they have trouble with the first download. If a customer exceeds the number of available downloads, they will receive an error message.

Days a file has before it expires after sending
You can also set an expiration date on your files. This field is set to unlimited by default. I have set mine to 30 days. I don't want the link to be active forever, but I want the customer to have plenty of time to download their purchase. If the customer tries to access the link after the expiration date, they will receive an error message.

Auto Renew
CraftHub.me can relist products for you in Etsy. Click the button to turn this feature on or off.

IP Lock
When IP lock is turned on, your customer can only download the file to a single IP address. This is meant to limit the number of devices to which a customer can download your product. The lock is set to the first IP address the customer uses to access the file. If they open the file to view it from their work computer, then try to download it at home, they will not be able to access the file from their home computer. I recommend keeping IP Lock turned off to avoid causing your customers unintended frustration. For more information, see our post on the IP lock feature.

Account

Use the Account tab to:

• Change or renew your subscription
• Unsubscribe
• Enter promotional codes
• Find your referral link

CraftHub.me offers a variety of account levels to support your business needs. If you find you need more or less transactions per month, you can unsubscribe from your current level and resubscribe at a new level. Remember to resubscribe right away to avoid any gap in service.

If you refer CraftHub.me to a friend, please give them your referral link. Click here to learn more about the CraftHub.me affiliate program.

Media

Use the Media tab to:

• Upload media files
• Edit information for media files
• Delete media files

On your Media tab, you will see a list of your available media files. Click on a file to view and edit information about that file.

To upload a new media file, scroll to the "Upload new files" section at the bottom of the page. You can upload files up to 50 MB. For information on how to set up your files, see our post A Guide To Starting Your Digital Business on Etsy. When you upload a file from the Media tab, it is not automatically associated with any of your Etsy products. You can attach media files to products using the Products tab, which I will discuss later in this post.

NOTE: You can also upload media files on your Products tab. I will discuss this option shortly.

You can also delete media files from the Media tab. Be careful that you do not delete a file that is associated with an active product listing.

Content

Use the Content tab to:

• Customize your automatic email to customers
• Customize your Customer Landing Page

When your customer purchases a product, they will receive an automatic email containing a link to the Customer Landing Page. The Customer Landing Page is where your customer can download their purchase. For information about customizing your email and landing page, check out our post How To Brand Your Message and Landing Page.

Etsy

Use the Etsy tab to:

• Link your Etsy shop to your CraftHub.me account

Your Etsy tab is where CraftHub.me links to your Etsy account. Your shop name should be visible and turned on. You can only associate one Etsy shop with your CraftHub.me account.

Products

Use the Products tab to:

• View your product listings
• Turn the Instant Download feature on or off for a product
• Add or remove media files from product listings
• Upload media files

When your Etsy shop syncs with Crafthub.me, your products will appear in your Products tab. Only items that are listed as active in your Etsy shop will sync with CraftHub.me. CraftHub.me will automatically sync your product listing with Etsy once per day. You can always refresh your listings manually by clicking the refresh button at the top of the page.

The on/off button next to each listing allows you to select which products to offer for instant download. Before making a product available for instant download, you need to attach at least one media file.

To attach a file to the listing, open the product by clicking on it. The Product Info is imported from Etsy. Under "Assign files to listing" you will see your available media files. Use the on/off button next to each file to attach or remove it from the product listing.

You can also upload new media files by scrolling to bottom of the page to the "Upload new files" section. If you upload media files from here, they will be attached to the open listing by default. If you add the wrong file by mistake, you can turn it off under "Assign files to listing."

Reports

Use the Reports tab to:

• View transaction reports
• View the date and time emails were sent to customers
• View the address that emails were sent to
• View Customer Landing Pages
• Resend, kill, refresh, and unlock links

Your Reports tab contains a report of each transaction processed by CraftHub.me. You will see the date and time your customer received their email, as well as the address the email was sent to. If a customer claims that they did not receive an email, you can check your reports tab to see if the message was sent.

Click the Etsy Receipt ID to view the Customer Download Page for a particular transaction. You can send a link to this page directly by copying and pasting the URL into the body of an email.

Use the Resend Email button to resend the automatic email to your customer.

The Kill Links button will end a customers access to your files. You can use this option if you suspect a customer of misusing your files.

The Refresh Links button will reset the number of downloads and expiration time on your downloads. The refresh links button will only reset an individual transaction. You can change the number of downloads and expiration time for all transactions on your Settings tab.

If you are using the IP lock feature, you will also have a button that gives you the option to unlock a transaction link. You can use this to remove the IP lock from a specific transaction. You can remove IP lock from all transactions on your Settings tab.

How To Brand Your Message and Landing Page

This post will show you how to add a personalized image to your CraftHub.me customer landing page.

Adding your Etsy Shop banner to all of your CraftHub.me materials, creates visual continuity for your brand. It will also help your customers to quickly understand that the email and link are related to their purchase and not unwanted spam.

Your customer notification e-mail message and download landing page can be customized using some simple html code.

In order to add your banner to your CraftHub.me landing page, you will first need to host your image online. There are many sites that offer this service. I’m going to use Imgur.com because they will host my image for free. After I create an Imgur.com log in, I am able to upload an image to their site.

As you can see, I have uploaded my shop banner to Imgur.com. Above my image there are six fields containing code. For today’s purpose, I am interested in the field labeled, HTML Image (websites / blogs). Copy the code from this field by clicking on the page icon to the left of the field.

Now return to your CraftHub.me dashboard. In the Content Tab, paste the image code into the "Email Body" field (make sure that you do not delete the existing code "[%files%]"). Next, paste the same code into the "Download Page" field. Make sure you save your changes.

Now that I have added my image html code to my "Email Body" field my customers will see my banner when they open the e-mail message that they receive after their purchase is complete. 

When your customer clicks on the link in the email, they will be taken to their personal landing page. Adding your image code the Download Page field will make your banner appear here as well.

If you haven't had any CraftHub.me transactions yet, I recommend asking a friend or family member to purchase something from your Etsy shop. **Note** some email providers do not show images unless the user requests it.

Once a purchase has been made, you can view your landing page by going to your reports tab and clicking on the Etsy receipt ID.

If you have followed the previous steps correctly, your image will be visible. If it doesn't show up, make sure you have copied your code correctly and saved your changes on the content tab. Refresh the landing page to see your changes (you do not need to repeat the purchase).

I hope this guide has been helpful. If you have any questions please feel free to leave a comment. Check back frequently for more CraftHub.me tutorials!

A Guide To Starting Your Digital Business on Etsy

Selling digital items on Etsy is a great way to diversify your product selection and increase sales. If you sell tangible goods on Etsy, digital patterns and tutorials can make a great addition to your shop. For digital artists and photographers, Etsy can be a great venue for your products.

CraftHub.me has made selling digital items on Etsy virtually hands free. CraftHub.me allows your customers to download their purchases instantly. For you, CraftHub.me provides automated delivery and can even re-list your items when they sell.

Over the next three posts, I will guide you through the process of preparing digital content, setting up your Etsy shop, and connecting it to CraftHub.me. I will use my own recently created digital Etsy shop, Conteximus, as an example.

In this post, Preparing Your Content, I will cover important considerations for creating your content, preparing your files, and protecting your digital content.

Create Your Content

Your content could be an image (such as a digital photograph or graphic) or information (such as a pattern, tutorial or ebook). Both kinds of content should be created with your customer in mind.

Ask yourself:

• Who is my target customer?
• How will they use this item?
• What do I NOT want customers to do with this product?

The answers to these questions will depend on your product. They will also help you determine how to prepare your file. I answered these questions for my own shop below.

• My Etsy shop sells nature themed digital art.
• My target customers are individuals, educators, nonprofit organizations and small businesses.
• They will use my products in small scale print and digital projects such as scrapbooks, educational materials, newsletters and websites.
• I do NOT want my customers to re-sell my products or use them for commercial production. 

Prepare Your File

It is important to understand your customer's needs when preparing your file. The type and size of your file will effect how it can be used. If you are selling graphic files, then you must also consider the image dimensions and resolution of your files.

Here are some questions to ask yourself when preparing your file:

• Is my file primarily text or images?
• Will my customer need to print this file?
• If so, how large will they print it?
• Will my customers need help figuring out how to use my files?
• Does my customer need a specific software or technical knowledge to use this file?

Your answers to these questions will affect how you prepare your file. I have answered these questions for my shop below.

• My files are primarily graphic.
• Some of my customers will need to print my files. Others will use them online. I will prepare my files for both uses.
• Some of my customers may not feel comfortable with preparing images for production. I will distribute files in a user friendly format. 
• My customers will not need a specific program to open my files. I will save my images in a common format so that they can be easily used with any program that supports images. 

File Type

The file type determines how information is organized within the file. Different file types have different advantages, so it is important to choose the right file type for your purpose. You can tell what format a file is in by look at its extension. The extension is the part of the file name that comes after the dot. If my file is named EXAMPLE.JPG, then JPG is the file extension. 

Computer programs usually have a default file type. For example, Microsoft Word uses the format .DOCX. However, most programs give you the option to save in a variety of formats, so you can choose the one that best fits your needs.

Not every computer program can open every file type. Some file types are common and can be opened by many programs. Others may require a specific program. To maximize the number of customers that can use your product, use a common file type, such as JPG, PNG, or PDF. If your product is targeted toward a specific group, such as Adobe Photoshop users, it makes sense to offer your file in the format that best suits their needs. If you are unsure what file type is best for you, find a vendor selling similar products and ask what format they use.

Common extensions for images files are:

• JPG (or JPEG)
• PNG
• GIF
• PDF

Common extensions for text files are:

• PDF
• DOC
• ODT

I will offer my images in both JPG and PNG formats. JPG images are the most common type of image that most of your customers will be familiar with. A PNG file allows me to save my images with a transparent background. This will be useful for my customers who want to layer my images onto their own documents and photos. 

File Size

File size is measured in bytes. A byte (B) is a unit of digital information. The more information your file contains, the larger it will be.

Bigger is not always better when it comes to file size. Large files can take a long time to download and open, they load slowly on webpages, and many email providers limit the size of file attachments.

CraftHub.me hosts files up to 50 Megabytes (MB), but for most uses a smaller size is better. If your customer is printing a postcard, they won't need an image scaled for a billboard.

Your file size will depend on what it contains, but here is a quick guide for an estimating an appropriate size range for your file.

Image Dimensions and Resolution

If you are working with images, the dimensions and resolution of your images will contribute to your file size. Digital files are measured in pixels. The resolution of an image is determined by the number of pixels per inch (ppi or dpi). The quality of an image depends on the number of pixels it contains and the scale at which it is shown.

For example, an image 50 x 50 pixels wide shown at 1 x 1 inch has a resolution of 50 ppi. However, the same image shown at 5 x 5 inches has a resolution of 10 ppi. For a quality print, your image resolution should be between 180 and 360 ppi.  The standard resolution for web images is 72 ppi.

I have decided to size my images at 1500x1500 pixels. This will allow my customers to print a high quality image up to 8 inches, a size that can be printed on most printers. 

A Note on .Zip Files

Creating zip files is a great way to limit the number of files that your customers have to download. A zip file is a file format that is used for compression and archiving. Each individual file can contain many images or files. For example, if you have a digital paper pack that contains 10 images. Instead of sending each file individually they can be combined into a single zip. You can read details about creating a zip file here.

Check back soon for part two of this guide, Setting up Your Etsy Shop.

CraftHub.me Introduction Video

CraftHub.me Walk Through

Take a video tour of CraftHub.me with our Creator and CEO, Chris Marinic.

About Ad Hoc Links

What is an ad hoc link?

Ad hoc links are a way to send files manually. You can use an ad hoc link with any media file you have uploaded to Crafthub, even if it is not attached to a product listing. Ad hoc links are helpful if you want to send a file to someone without making them purchase the item through your Etsy shop. Each ad hoc link costs one transaction.

How do I make one?

1. Go to your media page.
2. Open the media file you want to send by clicking the title.
3. Click the red "create ad hoc link" button.
4. Copy and paste the link into an email to send it.
5. Ad hoc links follow the same expiration rules as automatically generated download links. You can track your ad hoc links on your reports page.

Open the media file you want to send by clicking the title.

Click the red "create ad hoc link" button.

Copy and paste the link into an email to send it.

Ad hoc links follow the same expiration rules as automatically generated download links. You can track your ad hoc links on your reports page.

How To Protect Your Files Using CraftHub.me Security Features

File sharing and piracy can hurt your business. It is impossible to fully prevent these things from happening but CraftHub.me has created features that give you more control over how your files are distributed.

Your first line of defense is setting download limits. On your settings page you have to option to limit the number of times a file can be downloaded. You can also limit your files by setting how many days you would like each download remain active.

Our tracking statistics include date/time of each download as well as what IP address the files were delivered to. If you see that your files were downloaded in 2 places at the same time, chances are that your customer sent their download link to a friend (unless the other IP address is yours). I would like to think that my customers always respect my wishes and do not share files. Unfortunately, that is not always the case and happens quite often.

The IP lock system is optional. By default your account will be set to have the lock turned off. You can activate this feature on the settings page.

Our IP locking system automatically locks file downloads to the first internet connection that accesses the files. The IP lock is activated per file, not per order. You can also release the lock by finding the order on the reporting page. If the lock has been activated you will have the "release lock" option.

If you elect to use the IP lock feature your files will be more secure. While it is still possible to share files after they are downloaded, your customers will not be able to share their direct download links.

The disadvantage of using the file lock system is that there is more potential for customers to have download issues. It is up to you to decide if you think that the extra security is worth the possibility that you will have to provide additional customer support when a customer wants to download files at work or if their IP address changes.

About CraftHub.me Tracking Statistics

Each transaction can be viewed in the reporting tab. Each report is created as soon as we get notification of payment from Etsy.

Information in this table by default is sorted by date and time.

A copy of the e-mail message is included so it can easily be accessed if you need it later. It's a great way to find links quickly to send to customers who misplaced their original delivery.

The Statistics include title of the item, date and time of download and the IP address that your files got sent to. If your customer has not yet downloaded their files the Download Stats column will be blank. The titles in this table are from your private media description. If you did not create your own title the text displayed will be the title associated with your Etsy listing.

To quickly find an old transaction enter the customer's email address into the search bar. The e-mail address that we reference is the address associated with the customer's Etsy account.

Setting Up Your First CraftHub Instant Download Etsy Listing

This tutorial will show you how to upload a file to your CraftHub account and attach it to an Etsy product. Before you begin, make sure you create a CraftHub account, log in and connect your CraftHub account to your Etsy shop.

When you connect your CraftHub account to your Etsy shop your active product listings will be imported automatically. You can see your product information on your products page.

Step #1: Upload a file.

Watch our video tutorial here:

Or follow step-by-step written instructions:

1. Navigate to your Media page.
2. Scroll down to the upload new files section.
3. Click the choose file button to select your main file.
4. Click the choose file button to select your thumbnail image.
5. Enter a title in the public title field. This is the title your customer will see, so I recommend making it the same as the one they will see on Etsy.
6. The other title field is for your internal title. It can be the same or different as the public title. Your customer will not see this title, however it is important that you enter something in this field.
7. Enter a product description in the description field. This can be whatever you want.
8. The internal code field is optional. If your shop uses a coding system to organize your files you can enter that here. Otherwise, leave it blank.
9. Click the red upload button. 

A note about editing files: Your file will appear on the Media page. Click the title link to open the media listing. From this screen you can view and edit the file's details. Click the download link if you ever want to download your file. If you ever edit the file (aka your media listing), make sure to click the update button to save your changes. When you update a file the new version will become available to all of your previous customers.

Your first file is now uploaded! Next Step:

Step #2: Attach Your Uploaded File to an Etsy Product.

Watch our video tutorial here:

Or follow step-by-step written instructions:

1. Navigate to your Products page.
2. Click the product title link to open the product listing you want to attach the file to.
3. You will see your available media listings.
4. Use the check boxes to select which files to add (or remove) from the listing. If the box is checked the file is currently attached to the product. If the box is unchecked the file is not attached.

How do you know that you attached the correct files? You can check if the correct files are attached to your product listing by clicking the links in the Attached Media column. If no links appear, that means no files are currently attached.

Your download is not live yet. One more thing:

Step #3: Activate Product for Instant Download

The final step in setting up your products is to activate the instant download feature. Once the Instant Download box is checked your file is available for customers to download.

1. Navigate to your products page
2. Check the instant download box

Your product is now available for instant download in your Etsy shop!