Craft Inc. Business Planner [Diary]

Meg Mateo Ilasco (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 9, 2009

This action-oriented take-along planner is packed with advice and worksheets that guide creative entrepreneurs in their hot pursuit of profit. From big picture goals (writing a mission statement, developing marketing campaigns, launching a new line) to immediate to-dos (getting a business license, pricing products, packing for trade shows), this essential guide brims with how-to tips from industry experts. Roomy pockets catch important business cards, while tear-off notepad pages offer space to jot thoughts on the go. The lay-flat portfolio packaging makes this planner both easy to tote and durable enough to withstand all that the bumpy road to success may bring.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Meg Mateo Ilasco is a designer, writer, and illustrator based in the San Francisco Bay Area. She was in grad school when she started designing wedding invitations for extra money. Eventually her company became a full-time job, expanded into stationery and accessories, and was featured on NBC's Today and in The Knot. Meg has since sold that business and has launched an eponymous housewares and gift company, Mateo Ilasco. She recently debuted a home office line called Utile that has sold well at See Jane Work, SFMOMA, Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art, Fred Flare, Curiosity Shoppe, and elsewhere.

Product Details

• Diary: 140 pages
• Publisher: Chronicle Books; Spi edition (September 9, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811869954
• ISBN-13: 978-0811869959
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 6.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #96,546 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Meg Mateo Ilasco is a writer, designer, and illustrator in the San Francisco Bay Area. She is the principal of the eponymous stationery and housewares company, Mateo Ilasco . She's authored several books including the best-selling business book "Craft, Inc."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very Useful, January 28, 2010

By 

Sheryl Westleigh "Bringing cephalopods to the... (Maine) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Craft Inc. Business Planner (Diary)

I bought this business planner because I greatly enjoyed Meg Ilasco's Craft, Inc.: Turn Your Creative Hobby into a Business and you should really consider getting both because they really compliment each other well.

This planner is most useful for someone just starting their craft business it's still very helpful for more established businesses to help bring things into focus. I haven't finished all the sections yet (and a few like tradeshows aren't yet applicable to me) what I have filled out has helped me better organize my business. For someone who organization is difficult laying everything out in the planner is great motivation.

I do have to concede that the use of yellow text on white paper on the section table of contents is quite hard to read it doesn't greatly effect it's usefulness since none of the actual workbook pages have this color combination.

On recommendation for anyone getting this planner is to make sure you fill things out in pencil so you can later update it as things change.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must-Read for Emerging Businesses, February 22, 2010

By 

L. Yang (San Francisco, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Craft Inc. Business Planner (Diary)

This planner fantastically fills the void for craft-based businesses like my own that are ready to take the next steps beyond trunk shows and online shopping but don't know the best practices. I picked up Craft Inc. Business Planner when I was ready to transition my business to wholesaling. The planner became my go-to resource for preparing for my first tradeshow in Vegas this past week; without it I would have been far less prepared! I'll continue to review the planner to learn about post-show followup, getting more press, and more.

Also, I love the cheery, clean design of the planner! Good design always lifts up the content. The yellow type on white only occurs at the section dividers and is still legible. Look past it and you'll see that the book is an invaluable resource and definitely worth purchasing!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great planner - no issues with text color!, January 17, 2011

By 

Elizabeth M Hennessey - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Craft Inc. Business Planner (Diary)

Wow, I was afraid to order this business planner because of the "yellow text on white" complaints in the other reviews, but did anyway. I'm so glad I did. The publisher must have changed the printing, as there is NO yellow/white pages anywhere in this book.

I've been in business for four years and find this planner very helpful for goal making, organizing, and keeping information about shows, suppliers, wholesale accounts, etc.

For beginners, it teaches as you go.

Great tool!