The Handmade Jewelry Designer Who Turned It Around
Today, I want to share with you a real life example of a handmade jewelry designer who was able to significantly increase her ability to sell handmade jewelry by making a few simple changes to her marketing strategy. It illustrates how a few minor alterations in your marketing plan can often produce big results.
Patricia has been designing and making handmade jewelry for the past 2 years and she's quite good at what she does. Her jewelry has a wonderful organic, natural look with clusters of semiprecious beads and finely polished woods enhanced by touches of sterling silver. She has refined her line so that has a consistent theme that is uniquely her own, making it quite easy to brand.
Patricia's primary means of selling her jewelry is via jewelry/craft shows and word-of-mouth referrals. She does do some limited marketing and wholesaling to local boutiques and galleries in her area. She sells very well at the craft shows she attends which shows that there is a strong market for her handmade jewelry. Her chief complaint is that she doesn't receive enough orders in between her regular shows and there are a limited number of shows for her to attend. She came to our store seeking guidance on how she might increase her sales.
After talking to Patricia, we discovered several potential avenues that Patricia could use to both reach new customers as well as increase sales to her current customers. At the time, Patricia did not have an online presence and didn't want to take on the responsibility of managing a full website. She did have a professionally done business card with her contact information and a tag line which described her unique jewelry concept. Here are the changes we made:
1. Patricia signed up to display her jewelry on an online art gallery. She needed a gallery that was slightly higher end since her jewelry sells at a higher price point due to the expense of her materials and the unique appearance of her line. (I'll eventually be adding photos to this site, so I can give you some visual illustrations). We chose this gallery for her work since they were relatively inexpensive, offered a free trial, and actively promoted their artists via the search engines.
2. We redesigned her business card by adding a photo of her one of her most beautiful, "showstopping" pieces and then added the URL of her online gallery in bold print at the bottom of her business card.
Now when Patricia attends craft shows, she can hand out her business with her showstopping piece prominently displayed. This serves to remind customers of the unique nature of the jewelry she offers and further brands her beautiful jewelry line. They can then take a close look at her entire jewelry line from the comfort of their own home because she was smart enough to include the URL of her online gallery on her business card. Does this result in increased sales? You betcha!
When a customer makes a purchase of her handmade jewelry, Patricia hands them her photo business card and shows them the link to her online gallery. She lets them know that they can find many more handmade jewelry pices in her gallery and gives them suggestions on additional items that might coordinate with their current purchase. After hearing her suggestions, customers will often access her online gallery the same day and will make an additional purchase.
PLUS, Patricia has each customer sign her email book so she can send them periodic emails to remind them that her jewelry makes the perfect gift item for that special person. Of course she includes a link to her gallery.
AND, she leaves her photo business card with her gallery link everywhere she goes. The showstopping photo on the card is a strong motivator for potential customers to take a closer look at what she has to offer.
Patricia couldn't be happier! Her sales have increased in a big way without her spending any additional time marketing her jewelry which leaves her more time for design and production. She's decided at this point to hire a person to help with production while she starts to gradually build the wholesale end of her business. She can direct the boutiques that are interested in her line to her online gallery, essentially having it to serve as a "wholesale showroom" of sorts.
This illustrates that a few simple changes to your handmade jewelry marketing strategy can often have a very significant effect on sales. Maybe it's time for you to reassess your own marketing plan. Are there a few simple changes you could make to increase your sales?
Hope everyone has a fantastic week. :-)
Kristie
Today, I want to share with you a real life example of a handmade jewelry designer who was able to significantly increase her ability to sell handmade jewelry by making a few simple changes to her marketing strategy. It illustrates how a few minor alterations in your marketing plan can often produce big results.
Patricia has been designing and making handmade jewelry for the past 2 years and she's quite good at what she does. Her jewelry has a wonderful organic, natural look with clusters of semiprecious beads and finely polished woods enhanced by touches of sterling silver. She has refined her line so that has a consistent theme that is uniquely her own, making it quite easy to brand.
Patricia's primary means of selling her jewelry is via jewelry/craft shows and word-of-mouth referrals. She does do some limited marketing and wholesaling to local boutiques and galleries in her area. She sells very well at the craft shows she attends which shows that there is a strong market for her handmade jewelry. Her chief complaint is that she doesn't receive enough orders in between her regular shows and there are a limited number of shows for her to attend. She came to our store seeking guidance on how she might increase her sales.
After talking to Patricia, we discovered several potential avenues that Patricia could use to both reach new customers as well as increase sales to her current customers. At the time, Patricia did not have an online presence and didn't want to take on the responsibility of managing a full website. She did have a professionally done business card with her contact information and a tag line which described her unique jewelry concept. Here are the changes we made:
1. Patricia signed up to display her jewelry on an online art gallery. She needed a gallery that was slightly higher end since her jewelry sells at a higher price point due to the expense of her materials and the unique appearance of her line. (I'll eventually be adding photos to this site, so I can give you some visual illustrations). We chose this gallery for her work since they were relatively inexpensive, offered a free trial, and actively promoted their artists via the search engines.
2. We redesigned her business card by adding a photo of her one of her most beautiful, "showstopping" pieces and then added the URL of her online gallery in bold print at the bottom of her business card.
Now when Patricia attends craft shows, she can hand out her business with her showstopping piece prominently displayed. This serves to remind customers of the unique nature of the jewelry she offers and further brands her beautiful jewelry line. They can then take a close look at her entire jewelry line from the comfort of their own home because she was smart enough to include the URL of her online gallery on her business card. Does this result in increased sales? You betcha!
When a customer makes a purchase of her handmade jewelry, Patricia hands them her photo business card and shows them the link to her online gallery. She lets them know that they can find many more handmade jewelry pices in her gallery and gives them suggestions on additional items that might coordinate with their current purchase. After hearing her suggestions, customers will often access her online gallery the same day and will make an additional purchase.
PLUS, Patricia has each customer sign her email book so she can send them periodic emails to remind them that her jewelry makes the perfect gift item for that special person. Of course she includes a link to her gallery.
AND, she leaves her photo business card with her gallery link everywhere she goes. The showstopping photo on the card is a strong motivator for potential customers to take a closer look at what she has to offer.
Patricia couldn't be happier! Her sales have increased in a big way without her spending any additional time marketing her jewelry which leaves her more time for design and production. She's decided at this point to hire a person to help with production while she starts to gradually build the wholesale end of her business. She can direct the boutiques that are interested in her line to her online gallery, essentially having it to serve as a "wholesale showroom" of sorts.
This illustrates that a few simple changes to your handmade jewelry marketing strategy can often have a very significant effect on sales. Maybe it's time for you to reassess your own marketing plan. Are there a few simple changes you could make to increase your sales?
Hope everyone has a fantastic week. :-)
Kristie
posted by Your friends at Beads Indeed | 5:18 AM
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