Ravelry Loves Yarn Shops!
Yarn shops are so important to Ravelry, and we love to help connect Ravelers with local shops! Here are some things you can do to use Ravelry more effectively.
Get Connected to your Shop Information
We have a Local Yarn Shop Directory under the Yarns tab. Listing your shop is free! Please search our LYS directory to see if your shop is already listed. If it isn’t listed and you would like to add it, you can add it with our handy shop wizard, which will add your shop to Ravelry, connect it to your Pro account (or add a Pro account for you if you don’t already have one), allow you to apply for the In-Store Pattern Sales service, and send you a helpful email with information that will help your shop with Ravelry!
Use the LYS Advertising Options
We have options geared just for local shops: LYS Logo ads ($10/month) and Text Link ads ($5/month), which allow you to list all the yarns your shop carries (this list will also appear on a yarns tab on your shop’s Ravelry LYS Directory page).
Our wiki guide to LYS Ads on Ravelry has all the information you need to get started. If you have questions, please email Mary-Heather through the form on this page and she’ll be happy to assist you!
Sign your Local Yarn Shop up for In-Store Pattern Sales
With Ravelry In-Store Pattern Sales, participating LYSOs can search for patterns available through this service and sell them to customers through their shops, printing the pattern for the customer in-store if desired. Patterns can also be emailed to the customer and saved in their Ravelry library. At the end of each month, shop owners receive a combined invoice for all the patterns sold during that month, and pay for them through the invoices section of their Ravelry Pro accounts via PayPal or a credit card. There are no Ravelry fees to shops for this service! To sign your shop up, please go through our Shop Wizard, which will walk you through the process and get your shop ready for review and activation.
Communicate with Ravelry members & other shop owners through groups
Setting up a group for your Yarn Shop is a free and easy way to stay connected with your customers, even when they haven’t stopped by your shop lately. You can use it to follow-up on shop knit-alongs, share your latest class schedule and let them know when there are new yarns in your shop. If you are unsure about maintaining a group, find a customer or staff member who is an active Raveler and ask them to help! There are also groups for yarn shop owners that can be a very helpful resource. You can search for them under the groups tab.
