Another year, more changes!

Ok...so I've managed to let almost two years go by without posting to my blog!  I am so sorry!  Life has definitely been crazy in a good way since my last post.  The biggest change being I got married on New Year's Eve 2010!  And with that marriage has come more changes.

I left my position last week with my sister's business and will now be working with my husband full-time.  He is a tax preparer and has decided after several years of working for someone else, it was time to have his own office/business.  So after meeting me and realizing that I brought the marketing/encouragement/business knowledge he didn't seem to have to the table, he took the leap and we will officially open our business next week! Check us out on facebook at www.facebook.com/wellspringtaxservice if you are looking for fast, reliable tax preparation! We work with clients nationwide!

So with these changes, I have found myself getting back in to some of my old habits...such as jewelry designing and putting my marketing skills back to use!  I hope to get this blog back up and going a little more than I have in the past and also hope to help handmade businesses, such as yours, with business marketing reviews.  I'll share more details about this later, but when I offered them before I was overwhelmed with helping create/design new marketing materials for handmade businesses! 

For now you are up to date and I promise, I'm back and will be posting more often!  Thanks and have a very blessed and wonderful new year!

WOW...Long Time...No Posts! Will you forgive me?! :-)

I can't believe I haven't posted a blog since September of '09.  My apologies to all of you who are followers.  I never intended for the delay in posts to my blog, but a lot has happened the past few months...all of which has been good, but has kept me away from writing!  If you don't mind, I'll share a little of it with you and bring you up to date and share some thoughts about the direction of my blog!  :-)

At the end of September, my sister and brother-in-law approached me about coming back to work for them.  Their new business venture (one year old at the time) had taken off more than they expected and they found the need to hire help.  With having worked for my sister in previous years with her business (resume writing) and learning/knowing the new business venture from evenings of helping out when I could, I was their first choice when it came to thinking about hiring an employee again!  It happened at a great time for me because the current position I was in was becoming a headache for me and I wasn't enjoying the work anymore.  So when they called and asked if I was interested, I immediately said yes and found a new job doing what I enjoy doing....being creative, helping others, assisting businesses with marketing products/ideas and more!!  And being able to do that with family on a daily basis makes it even better!!  :-)

I continue to have my jewelry business and it is doing really well for me.  I did two celebrity gift opportunities last year and as a result, received another call a few weeks ago to provide 26 pieces of jewelry for the 2010 Oscar Nominees/Presenters who will be staying at the Four Seasons in Beverly Hills during Oscar Week in a couple of weeks! My online store continues to do well for me and I enjoy the business as much as I ever have!!

The focus of my blog has always been about helping handmade businesses with marketing/advertising ideas. That will continue, but not on this blog.  I will be closing down this blog in a few weeks.  I encourage you to follow me at http://zonezmarketing.blogspot.com/.  I want to continue that focus...providing more of a general marketing/advertising direction for all business types.  With my current position with our family company, we work with small businesses every day on creating marketing materials, promotional products and much more and we are constantly staying current with trends and ideas that are the latest in helping your business stand out in a crowd.  

I hope that you still continue to follow me on my new blog and share it with others as a tool to help grow and find new ideas and ways to promote your business, whether big or small!  :-)  I appreciate you reading and following and hope my posts have been a help in some small way over the past few months.  Stay tuned for more to come and a new look to our blog in the next few days/weeks ahead!  

I would love your feedback/thoughts on the new changes and let me know if you have any questions or suggestions about topics you would like to see covered here!  

Many blessings and best of luck to each of you with your business endeavors!

Dawn

Give To Get...Have You Considered It?

Yesterday, I was given the opportunity to provide 65 earring gift packs to be put in the celebrity gift bags for the world premiere of Tyler Perry's new movie "I Can Do Bad All By Myself," which will be in New York City next week. In case you aren't familiar with Tyler Perry's movies, he writes and produces his own material based off the character of Madea (who Tyler himself usually plays!). "Diary of A Mad Black Woman" is probably the best recognized movie he's created!

When I got the email from the PR agency handling the event and got their request, I was overwhelmed with excitement, but then overwhelmed with the task as I have had less than 48 hours to design, create and package all these gifts to ship in time to NY for the event!

In talking with some friends and colleagues, their immediate response is "how much are you getting paid for that?" And when I tell them nothing, they all but yell at me! But I'm completely content with it! Here's why...

I am getting the opportunity to put my jewelry in the hands of celebrities and some potentially amazing customers for a very small investment. I am also getting the opportunity to say that I've had my jewelry included in celebrity gift bags for a world premiere movie event. Both of these opportunities for some businesses will never happen or would cost businesses thousands of dollars! So why wouldn't I take this amazing opportunity and have fun with it and promote my business?! I'd be stupid if I didn't!

So if the chance to give your handmade goods ever comes up, take the opportunity!! Whether it is on a local scale for a charity auction or on a bigger scale like for a movie premier...take it! You don't have to do it all the time, but it does make for some great PR and usually only costs you a few dollars and some business cards!

Give a little to Get a little...consider it for some great PR for your business!!

Until next time....Blessings!! ~ Dawn

Facebook Does Make a Difference!

I had read several posts on various craft forums about using Facebook to help promote your business. I read good posts and bad posts. Still I wasn't sure if FB would do much for my jewelry business, but I thought I'd try it. It wasn't going to cost me anything and it was easy to use!

My on-line store is done through Etsy and recently they added a feature in which you can publish your new listing to your FB page instantly. I've been using this feature and it has really helped gain exposure to my jewelry. I have over 300 Facebook friends so when I add a new items to my store and then in turn publish that info to FB, I am getting another great advertising tool for FREE!

By adding my listings to my personal FB page as well as to my FB business page, I am creating more exposure for my jewelry. Since adding my links to my personal FB page, I have gained more sales and have opened my jewelry line to an entirely new audience that otherwise might not have seen my jewelry. Friends and family who didn't know I had a jewelry business now do and they in turn have been sharing my links with their friends and family!

So when someone asks me what I think about using FB for business, I say definitely use it. It has opened doors for my business and helped me reach more customers!

Let me know how using Facebook has helped your business! And if you want to add me as a friend on FB, feel free, the link is on the side of the blog!

Until next time...Blessings! ~ Dawn

I'm Back...

After a few weeks of writing for www.handmadenews.org, I have decided to step down from that position and get back to what I enjoy...and that is helping other small business owners and crafters with their businesses.

I was asked by the President of ArtFire to write and share my insights with their website and I was happy to do that. However after I got started I realized that I know longer wanted to be involved with their great project and that I wanted to get back to what I enjoyed. I encourage all of you to check out www.handmadenews.org and read the articles. There is lots of great information on a vareity of topics and I'm sure that will continue!

Over the next few weeks I am hoping to get my new Etsy group up and running, which is for several states in and around Ohio. With this group, we hope to get craft business owners together to share insights in to running a business and have a chance to talk face to face with other owners in small round table discussions. These meetings may also have a guest speaker on various topics important to business owners and crafters. This project is very early in its development, but I'm truly excited about it and hope that it can bring together the craft world to share ideas, thoughts and help small business owners grow their business more.

Any thoughts, ideas or comments you might have are always welcomed and appreciated! If there are topics or questions you would like to see covered on this blog, just email me at shadesjewelry@aol.com and share them with me.

Thanks for sticking with the blog and I look foward to reconnecting with you all again!

Blessings, Dawn

Find Your Niche...Then Market

My new article has been published at www.handmadenews.org!

Please check it out....http://www.handmadenews.org/article/index.php?id=1347

Feel free to leave comments, suggestions, and vote for my articles if you find them helpful! As writers we need your feedback! ;-)

Thanks and have a great week!

Until next time...Blessings! ~ Dawn

Teaching As A Marketing Strategy

New Article on Handmadenews.org! In this article I share with you how teaching a class on your craft is a great way to market your business! Enjoy!

http://www.handmadenews.org/article/index.php?id=889

Please leave feedback or comments on articles! We appreciate it. You can also vote for the articles if you like or dislike them! As writers, we need your feedback!

Thanks, Dawn

Add Products Often...

Hi Friends...

I have a new article on www.handmadenews.org. Here is the link.... http://www.handmadenews.org/article/index.php?id=893

Seriously, check out this site if you have a handmade business. There are tons of articles on various topics that will certainly benefit your business greatly. There are also advertisers starting to appear on the site that I'm sure you'll also want to check out. Maybe you might want to advertise your business there?! There is a link for that on the site so check it out!! And even if you don't have a handmade business, check it out anyway! Maybe something will help you with your business or turn you on to a new place to shop! ;-)

Thanks for reading and until next time...Blessings!!!! ~ Dawn

Follow Here or Follow There!

Little did I know when I started sharing information about marketing, advertising and promotions for handmade businesses via this blog that it would lead to other ventures, but it has! I'm now a columnist for another site (read on!), I'm starting a street team on Etsy to get store owners together to have face to face discussion about their handmade businesses and the list goes on!

While still fairly new to Twitter (and still not sure if I like it or not), I've met some interesting people along the way and have gained almost 400 followers in just the three weeks I've been on there. One person whom I met via Twitter suggested I venture over to http://www.handmadenews.org and check out the site and see if I would be interested in becoming one of their columnists in their marketing section. I went and checked out the application and decided I'd apply, but thinking the entire time, there are more qualified people out there and I'm probably waisting my time on this, but I'll try it. I had to update my resume (thank goodness sister is a Certified Professional Resume Writer for over 20 years) which I did, supply a writing sample and answer several other questions. I hit send and thought, ok, end of that, move on and forget about it.

Well, that wasn't the case. A few short days later, I woke up to an email from one of the sites VP's saying that I had been selected as a columnist for the site. I honestly thought it was a joke, but it was true. I was pleasantly surprised and humbled that I'd been chosen among the hundreds of applications I know they received.

I appreciate each and everyone one of you who follows me on this blog. I will continue to post links to this blog which will be for the articles I am writing for Handmade News. The articles for that site will be on marketing, advertising, promotions as well, so nothing will change!

And if there are topics, questions or things you would like to see articles on, please don't hesitate to contact me anytime. I'd love to hear from you! Email me at shadesjewelry@aol.com or leave a comment here!

Again, thanks and I look forward to more handmade business blogs with you!

As always, Blessings!! ~ Dawn

Pricing Your Creations - Do What Is Best for You

This is a subject that hits different nerves in each of us who have our own handmade businesses. And this question is the one I get asked the most about. How do you determine your prices?

My on-line business is different for me than for most. When I decided to turn my hobby in to a business, one of the first things I determined was it was a hobby for me, something I did on the side after my full-time job. It was then and still is today this same way. I don't ever plan on making it my soul source of income. I don't want to have to rely on my selling of jewelry to survive. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying it is wrong to live off your handmade business!! For those of you who can, I applaude you. This is simply a decision I chose to make for my business! I see my business as a way to support my beading/jewelry making habit and to also give back to a couple charities that I support.

In pricing my items, one of the biggest contributors to my price is the market/region in which I live. I live in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains and the county in which I live (Athens Co., Ohio) is the poorest in the state. Several of my customers (even though my business is on-line) live and work in this area. In knowing this, I decided to create jewelry with quality materials, that is stylish, trendy and affordable for everyone.

Many find it hard to believe that I produce the jewelry that I do and price it as I do. I have several tell me that I don't charge enough, that I make it difficult for other jewelry designers to get more for their items that are comparable in design/materials, and the list goes on. But on the flip side of those comments, I receive feedback from my customers that is completely opposite; "what a great deal for such quality," "love buying from you because I get something that is one of a kind and is well made but doesn't cost a fortune!"

When I get the criticism, I immediately tell them why I do this and that it is my goal to provide quality that is affordable. Jewelry for many is a "luxury" and I want everyone to be able to afford it, no matter what! People are looking for good deals, especially in today's market and I am doing what I can to reach out to those who want to "splurge" on themselves, but still have a little money in their pocket!

Does that make someone else's creations not worthy of the price they charge? Absolutely not!! We are designers/creators/artists in many different formats and we create items that you can't find in "big box stores." We use our hands and our home studios to create items that are personal to us that we want to become personal to those who purchase them. And because of this, I encourage all of you to be able to justify why you charge what you charge when someone decides to criticize or question it.

So to answer the question, "what should I charge," I will answer it this way. Do what works for you. If you are doing this full-time and making a living off of it, then make sure you are covering the cost of your materials, your time, etc. If not, and you simply want to pay for your hobby, then price according to that. It is different for each of us and I believe there is no easy answer to this question unfortunately, other than do what is best for your business and stand firm that your creations are personal, unique and deserving of the price you are asking, no matter how high or how low!

Now, go create and have fun! Until next time...Blessings! ~ Dawn

First Facebook, Now Twitter!

Social networking is certainly on the rise! I must admit that it took me a long time to finally jump on the Facebook bandwagon for several reasons. But now that I have, I'm glad. The personal side of it has allowed me to reconnect and stay in touch with so many family members and friends.

But, the business side of it has been great as well. Adding my store link to my personal page introduced my business to about 90+ people who had no clue that I designed jewelry and owned my own business. They have emailed me about it, checked out my site, joined my mailing list and better yet, have made purchases! It has also introduced me to some new friends and "fans" on my business Facebook page that I also created.

If you haven't take the leap yet in to the social networking scene, I would encourage you to give it a try. It doesn't require a lot of your time (ok, it could if you let it, but don't!), its very easy to use and it can introduce you and your business to an even bigger audience!

Have fun with it and enjoy spreading the word about your business with the social networking site that are available! If you already do Facebook or Twitter, share your success stories with a comment below and also share your site! I'm always looking for new sites and friends! ;-)

Until next time....Blessings! ~ Dawn

PS...the link to my facebook page is on the left side of the blog page and if you would like to "follow" me on twitter, that site is: http://twitter.com/shadesjewelry

Three Things to Remember for Any Business...

I saw this post the other day while reading through the Business Topics on the Etsy Forums section. It immediately caught my eye and I asked the author of the original post if I could share it with my blog readers because I felt it was some great information!!

This was written by the owner of NeatThings who has her store on Etsy at www.neatthings.etsy.com. I encourage you all after reading this artcle to check out her store as well. She has some great products like mini note cards (great for thank you notes!!) and cards and much more that could be helpful in your store!!

For now..here are three things to remember for those of us in business....

1. It doesn't matter if people hate you.
Some people are going to love you and your shop. Some people are going to hate you and your shop. If you're me, some people might want to kill you in your sleep and never see any reference to your shop again. At the end of the day, who cares what people think? The ones who love you will buy things. The ones who hate you will talk about how much they hate you to other people, some of whom will love you and buy things. It’s win, win all around. So be yourself and everything will be just fine.

2. If you blame the economy for your business failure, you'll never succeed in business.
I mean it this time. If business has slowed down and you're looking at the DOW and deciding that the economy is to blame for your failures, you might as well close up shop now. Sure, the economy may contribute. But other businesses like yours - on Etsy and off - are moving product. If it really was the economy's fault, no "luxury" good would be selling to anyone.Instead, take responsibility for your business. Look at those businesses that are selling. Figure out a way to promote or rebrand or change something about your business instead of blaming your failure on something you cannot control.

3. Artists complain, business professionals act.
You can bet your bum that Warren Buffet didn't become the "world's shrewdest businessman" by whining to the world about how horrible things were when he was getting started. Steve Jobs didn't whine about having only 3% of market share, instead he created a new product that became an empire (iPod, iPhone, iEmpire).Sure. Sometimes things are going to get you down and you might want to vent a little.

But if this becomes modus operandi (i.e. happens more than once per year), you're going to trap your tail in the great spinning wheel of failure.If failure isn’t an option, next time you're tempted to complain, think. Solve the problem. See if you can improve your situation in some productive way that doesn't involve burdening others with your misery.

You can either be buried by your problems, or let them catapult you to great achievements. The choice is yours.

Everything she has shared with you in these three points is very accurate! The success or failure of our businesses is entirely up to us. We need to remember these things and act accordingly when they arise! :-)

Until next time....Blessings! ~ Dawn

We Never Know When An Opportunity Will Happen

I wanted to share this story even though I've talked to you before about the importance of always being ready to wear or market your work and have those business cards available as well!
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Over the years I've made jewelry for my mom and my sisters to wear. They are some of the best advertising I can ask for and they carry my cards as well. My oldest sister was wearing one of my creations the other day in her office. I told her that I should take that piece back from her because I could probably sell it and we had a good laugh about it.

Later that day a client stopped in and my sister said she noticed her starring at her necklace. The client asked her about her necklace and complimented her on it and she told her about me. She told her that she wanted to talk to me because she wanted to see about adding my jewelry to her store. My sister gave me her email address and we've chatted and it looks like my jewelry will be added to her store soon.

That same evening my sister stopped at a gas station out of town after going to dinner and she was still wearing the necklace. The lady working the counter commented on the necklace and told her she loved it. My sister told her who created it and she gave her my website and the lady said she'd be getting in touch with me. And she did!

So with one piece of jewelry, I've gained another retail location and a sale.

Are you always wearing your products (if you can) or sharing your work with others? If not, you should be! This is some of the best marketing and advertising that money can buy you! A little time invested in materials and creating the item is all you are out. But what it could gain in return is going to be more than worth it.

I encourage you to always be ready with your merchandise and also your business cards. Opportunities can happen when we least expect it!

I wanted to share this with you all as a friendly reminder to always be prepared and always market/advertise whenever you can! I've talked about this with you all before. Be bold and talk about your work. And find others who will talk and share your work as well.

Until next time--Blessings! ~ Dawn

Home Shows - A Few Tips

I've had some email questions about home shows lately so I thought I'd take this post to share my thoughts on them.

I think home shows can be a good way to advertise your business. I have done a few and have always found them to be a good, relaxing, no pressure type of situation to share what you do with a small audience. They are usually easily done with little to no cost to you, so that's always good! Getting some good advertising without breaking the bank never hurts!

Here are some tips and ideas for this type of show that you might find useful...

1. In sending out invitations for home shows I always make sure that I send out all the info on the event myself. I never leave that up to the hostess. I want to make sure that all the materials that go out have my logo on them and match my other business items such as business cards, labels, etc. I ask the hostess for the names/addresses of those she wants to invite and I take it from there. A week or so after the event, I usually follow-up with a brief thank you note and a business card enclosed and thank them for coming and let them know that I will extend the discount offered at the show until a certain date via my on-line store as well.

2. In my invitations I stress that this is a relaxed time away for them with friends and food and a chance to see some jewelry at the same time. I don't want them to feel pressured to buy anything. While we'd all love for them to come with their checkbooks and cash to throw at us for our merchandise, we don't want them to feel they have to do that. Making the guests feel at ease and give them a chance to have some time out is always a good way to address your show.

3. I always talk to the hostess and see if she wants to offer food. Most of the time the hostess has already thought of this or is willing to handle this aspect of the event. If for some reason she isn't, then ask her if it would be ok if you brought food. Having some type of light snack/finger food is always good at these shows. It's always a good way to get people socializing and talking at the event and food usually does that with people!

4. To start the event, I usually say a few words and thank them for coming to the show and encourage them to get some food and a drink and relax and enjoy the time. I thank the hostess for inviting me in to her home and allowing me to share my jewelry with her and her friends. I tell them a little about my jewelry (keep it brief!) and also throw in that if they are interested in making a purchase that night I will give them a discount on their purchase. I tell them to browse and if they have any questions, feel free to ask. I leave it at that. I don't pressure them, follow them around, etc. I let them enjoy their evening at their leisure.

5. Try to have a nice variety of merchandise and also offer different price levels if you can for your items. Since you may or may not know everyone in attendance, this gives you a chance to "reach" everyone there. Making attractive displays or groupings of your merchandise is always good as well. Be selective as to where you set up and make sure you have plenty of lighting and space for everyone to browse. Clustering up in a small room or having poor lighting could hurt your event so seek out the best place possible for your show. Arriving early if you aren't familiar with the hostesses home will help!

These are just a few tips and suggestions for doing a home show. If you do home shows or have done them in the past, feel free to share your thoughts and ideas with the other readers in your comments.

Home shows can be a good marketing tool for your business in your local market. Even if they don't purchase that night, you have at least gotten your name out there and connected with those in attendance. This could lead to purchases in the future!

Good luck if you decide to do a home show or if you do them regularly! Let me know how it works out for you!

Until next time...Blessings! ~ Dawn