What to Create on TpT

Do you treat your TpT store like a business or a hobby?  The answer to this question may help you determine if you should make what you love or tailor your creations based on what you know will sell.

In our TpT journey we’ve done both.  For the most part, we create products that we actually use in our job.  These projects are fun to work on because they sustain our attention and the material comes more naturally.  That’s not to say they are easy to make or that we love every minute of creating them.  Even our “passion projects” put our patience to the test.  But it keeps us engaged and moving forward in our business.  It reminds us that this “business” is actually something we enjoy.

But what about creating products that you absolutely loathe, or that hold no interest?  We have done this as well, and while we may have dreaded these tasks, they have absolutely, positively, 100%, paid off.  Here’s an example: our first summer on TpT, we began creating “I Can” posters and checklists for Kindergarten.  It wasn’t horrible, but definitely not fun.  We convinced ourselves to do first grade standards as well, because, why not?  There are a lot of K/1 combo classes out there after all.  As we kept pushing ourselves forward, we decided to just go for it we ended up going all the way up to sixth grade.  For every single subject area.  It. Was. Horrible.  So boring.  So monotonous.  So tedious.  So time consuming.  There were So. Many. Standards.  But when that first fall rolled around, you can bet that the products neither of us wanted to make were now making us consistent money.  Teachers were SO grateful, because WE had spent the hours and hours of time to create something that would save them hours and hours.  Happy customers are more likely to return to your store and this has been the case for us.

If you treat your store as a business, and if your goal is to see a profit, you realize that not every moment is going to be sunshine and rainbows.  Sometimes it’s a total grind.  Success will come to those who are willing to put in the work, even when it is tedious.

When you see a need for something and have the ability to create it, go ahead and do it.  That sweet cha-ching does not discriminate.