If you are like many scrapbookers, you love this hobby so much that you think about it constantly. You are inspired by ads, or you see a combination of colors in a magazine, and you realize it's perfect for that layout you've been thinking of, or perhaps you dream up layouts in your sleep. It's known as being addicted, and you're not alone. Perhaps you're ready to take that next step. Have you started thinking that you'd like to try to make some money from this hobby? Maybe your friends and relations who have seen your work are encouraging you to start a business with it. But the next question is, how? How do you start a business? What all is involved?

There are certainly many things to think about before starting a business of any kind. I would like to just mention a few of them here. First, you need to decide on a focus for your business...even before deciding on a name, because the focus will most likely impact the name you choose. So, focus. Do you want to solely do custom albums for others? Do you want to include premade albums among your products? Perhaps you're more comfortable making other paper crafts rather than scrapbook layouts, or custom cards and invitations.

Next, who is your market? The customer of a custom album designer is usually upper middle class females with young children. Is the area in which you live the correct area for this business? Or, if  you're going to do paper crafts, will you market them at craft shows, or at local boutiques. If so, can you make the quantities needed for such ventures? As you can see, there are a lot of things to think about when deciding your focus or niche in the market.

Once you have decided your focus, you can then think about a name for your business. Your name is very important. It is what you will be branded with, and how people will think of you, so you need to pick a name that is catchy and descriptive at the same time. You can choose cutesy or sophisticated, again, keeping in mind your focus and feel you want your company to have.

To learn more about starting a business in the scrapbooking industry, look for my upcoming e-book on Scrapbook Industry Careers - the Ins and Outs