Example 1: a catalogue entry. “Kasuti bookmark – gopura. Hand-embroidered on cotton in Gavanti and Murgi; the back is as neat as the front. Size: W × H cm. About 3 hours of hand work. Ready to ship / made to order in N days. Care: hand wash cold.” Photos: front, back, in a book.

Example 2: a quick reply for commissions. “Thank you for asking! For a commission I need: a photo of your cloth, the size of the area, your colours and the date you need it. I’ll send a chart and a quote. Work starts after the advance.”

Example 3: a week of posts. One process video, one close-up of the back, one finished piece in use, one short story about a motif. Four posts, all from work you are already doing.

• Use a separate number for the business if you can, so you can switch off.
• Set an away message with your working hours and when you reply.
• Prop your phone on a stack of books above your hoop to film stitching hands-free.
• Film in daylight by a window; avoid yellow room light.
• Add captions to videos; many people watch without sound.
• Use the same few hashtags each time, such as the craft name and your city, plus your own brand tag.
• Save your best posts into Highlights: “The back”, “Commissions”, “Care”.
• Reply with a question, not just a price: “What is it for?” helps you suggest the right piece.
• Never send bank details in a public comment; move to a private chat.
• Keep a broadcast list only of people who asked to hear about new work.

Many enquiries, few orders.

1. Check your first reply: does it answer the question and suggest a next step?
2. Show the price method or a range early, so people who can’t afford it don’t wait.
3. Prevention: put the key facts (size, time, process) in the catalogue.

A customer stops replying after you send a quote.

1. Follow up once after a few days, kindly.
2. Offer a smaller alternative.
3. Prevention: send quotes quickly while interest is high.

Someone claims to have paid but nothing arrived.

1. Check your own bank or payment app, not a screenshot.
2. Wait until the money shows in your account before starting.
3. Prevention: never treat a screenshot as proof of payment.

Your posts get little attention.

1. Post more process and the back, fewer flat product shots.
2. Post at a steady rhythm for a few months before judging.
3. Prevention: plan a simple weekly pattern, as in Example 3.

Messages arrive at all hours and you can’t rest.

1. Set working hours and an away message.
2. Use quick replies for repeated questions.
3. Prevention: a separate business number you can silence.

Someone uses your photos to sell their own work.

1. Report the post to the platform.
2. Ask a lawyer about your options if it continues.
3. Prevention: a small, neat watermark with your name on product photos.

• Starting work before the advance arrives.
• Posting only the front.
• Adding people to broadcast lists or groups without asking.
• Using music or photos you don’t own in posts; use the platform’s licensed music or none.
• No written order record: chat history is not an order book.

• CA: “Do payments I receive through UPI or payment links need any particular records or receipts?”
• CA: “What should a receipt or invoice for a small sale show?”
• Lawyer: “What must I tell buyers about returns, cancellation and my business details when I sell through social media?” (Consumer-protection rules for online selling: check current.)
• Lawyer: “What should I do about keeping customers’ phone numbers and addresses private?”

Note: rules on tax, registration and export change. Check the current position with a chartered accountant or the office named before you act – this lesson tells you what to ask, not the answer.

• Does your WhatsApp catalogue show the back of every piece?
• Do you have quick replies for your top three questions?
• Do you post the process, not only the product?
• Do you wait for payment to show in your account before starting?
• Is every order in your order book?