Comments on: Need Advise for A Strong Online Jewelry Presence

By: Cat

Cat — Tue, 25 Feb 2014 07:06:45 +0000

I, too, send my prayers your way, Jeanne. It’s hard losing our moms. I see alot of comments about Etsy on here…no one has mentioned ArtFire, which is where I list. Etsy is great, and I used to be on it, but ArtFire has one price you pay each month, with no added fees, whether you list or sell one or a thousand items. I believe it’s $9.95 a month now. With Etsy, you pay to list, pay to sell, and your items will expire after three months (if they still do it that way). With ArtFire, your items never expire.

Just wanted you to have the opportunity to check both sites out.

Cheers,
Cat

By: Ellie

Ellie — Sun, 16 Feb 2014 16:07:32 +0000

Hi Jeanne
I’m 66 years young and have just jumped into online selling on Etsy. They make setting up your shop very easy but you MUST have good photos which I didn’t at first.
I’m not shy about asking for help and thankfully my neighbors knew how to set a digital camera to the proper setting for outdoor photos. Jewelry is very difficult to photograph because for the glare so Jeanne, please do your photos first and upload them to your computer.
Once that’s done, setting up the actual website is very easy and you can always go back and “edit” your listings with better descriptions and tags after the first posting.
Hope this helps and let us know what you decide so we can all go to your website and see your work.
Ellie

By: Anne Perez

Anne Perez — Thu, 13 Feb 2014 17:52:08 +0000

Sorry to hear about your mom. If you are taking your work online, spend some time learning how to photograph your work to look its best. I’ve been trying to get good pictures of my work for judging and for posting online and it is harder than it seems. My experience is that casual browsers are often put off by poor photography even if the jewelry looks great.

Also, I know 2 artists who generated steady business just from good Facebook pages. So if you aren’t consistent yet, pick just one place to start with and refine your style there. You can always branch out later if you want.

By: Nancy

Nancy — Wed, 12 Feb 2014 11:26:51 +0000

Etsy is a great way to get your feet wet. There are certain types of jewelry (e.g., bridal) that seem to do better than others so far as being found by outsiders is concerned. Although it is mainly for newbies and hobbyists, there is a lot of helpful information available on all sorts of topics. I don’t know if they still have the chats, but they were fun when I had the time.

On the down side, don’t expect a large number of sales. There is a huge number of jewelers, and very few make enough sales for it to be profitable. But a few do make it, and who knows? You may be one of them! 🙂

By: Robyn

Robyn — Tue, 11 Feb 2014 19:06:27 +0000

Jeanne,

That’s a question that a lot of us struggle with! I have an Etsy store, as well as a blog, a Facebook page, a Twitter account, and an Instagram account. I’m also on Tumblr and Pinterest, but get a lot less traffic from those.

I agree that consistency is key. Whenever you post on a blog or social media, you can mention your store, what you’re working on, anything relevant that you’d like to share. By having interesting things to say, people will follow your posts and you will build a fanbase.

Use lots of relevant tags, both on Etsy and on social media. That way, when someone does a search for those things, they have a chance of finding you. When you’ve got a handle on that, learn about SEO and how to make it work for you. This is something that is constantly changing, and that is a challenge that will help you in the long run.

Good luck to you!
Robyn

By: Val

Val — Tue, 11 Feb 2014 16:34:55 +0000

Hi Jeanne,
I’m sorry to hear of your mom’s passing. Jewelry shoppers are overwhelmed these days with the abundance of sellers online. From experience I feel that social media is very important.

I have had my own site which I shut down in 2013 since it was to much work to keep up and market. So I have stuck with what works, the hosted sites like Etsy. With social media, consistency is important. You need to be seen to bring traffic to your shop. I also find marketing others helps. I network with crafters in various aspects and we all support each other.

I think that others who make handcrafted items are the most likely to purchase handcrafted items so I view them as my target market.

To be consistent and seen it will be important to create daily schedules where you may want to post your pretties and network with others. It is good to vary the times each day to increase your chances of being seen. Most importantly, have fun with it so it does not feel like work.

I hope this makes sense! Have fun building your business online.
Val

By: Nancy

Nancy — Tue, 11 Feb 2014 11:14:46 +0000

Hi, Jeanne …
I am also in my 70’s. I call myself the Grandma Moses of jewelry. Glad to know I’m not alone! I have a website that I’m trying to revamp … not easy when you’re as clueless as I am! … and am getting ready to dive into marketing via social networking. Can also use all the helpful hints I can get!!!

By: Rena Klingenberg

Rena Klingenberg — Tue, 11 Feb 2014 00:11:40 +0000

Hi Jeanne, I’m so sorry for your loss of your mother. My thoughts and prayers are with you.

My first thought about building your online presence was – did you build a customer list when you were doing craft shows? If you have mailing addresses, email addresses, or even phone numbers, you can contact your craft show customers and let them know you’re moving your business online.

I’m sure you have many clients from over the years who would be pleased to continue shopping for your jewelry online now that they can’t visit you at shows.