Attack of the Magnetic Doll Bookmarks!

I think my title says it all...  I just finished a fun custom order for a friend of my sister of 40 magnetic doll bookmarks for a wedding shower!  Every single one of them has a small wedding message in Japanese inside.  It gave me a great chance to use up some smaller quantities of paper I had lying around for some beautiful color combinations!  For about a week, my apartment was covered in these little colorful things!

While I was making them, I started thinking about my shop (always a dangerous thing)!  My magnetic bookmark dolls are usually the first thing my friends and family want me to make.  They are small, cute, have a definite function, and make fast and easy gifts.  However, for some reason when it comes to selling them online, my origami dolls always sell so much faster.  I'm not sure if it is my photography or the fact that it is harder to convey their concept online, but it really brings up the difference between marketing a physical concept that people can tangibly see before their eyes and a virtual product that they need to see through photographs.

Do any of you have that one object that sells so quickly in person, but struggles online?  I'm not sure what I can do to fix the problem!  I'm thinking of designing a cute graphic "how to use" for my shop so people get the concept better.

I am working on a huge batch for this week so we will see if I can't turn it around a bit!  I'm also going to start selling them in "grab bag" fashion (i.e. 5 random bookmark dolls for a fixed, reduced price, but you do not get to choose specific patterns).  I have so much paper that I need to use up!!

Tutorial: Etsy Mini on Wordpress

As I am sure many handmade bloggers know, it is impossible to get an "Etsy Mini" (the small virtual showcase of your shop) on Wordpress. WP does not allow javascript or flash in their widgets so getting what you need to make your handmade blog a viable competitor against  other sites can sometimes be a challenge. Considering how much I love WP, this is a challenge that I am definitely up for! I have tried other blogging sites and none of them suit me quite as well. So I was introduced to a workaround posted by retrospectro on the etsy forums that I thought I would share and outline for you all! You can see my "Etsy Mini" in my right sidebar or a different style on my "Shop" page.

1. Go to the website http://www.esellerads.com and input your username.

2. It will create three kinds of ads for you: 300x250, 120x600, and 160x600. To "Activate" your ads, you need to input your e-mail address.

3. Check your mail! An activation link will be sent and you can click on that to make your ads permanent.

4. Choose which ad you like best for your WP blog. Click the button that says "Share" on the ad.  Choose Wordpress.

5. Input your wordpress information. Username and password are the same ones you log into wordpress with and make sure the URL reflects your blog (which may or may not be the same as your WP username). Click post!

8. Go to your WP blog and Edit > Posts. You should find an untitled post scheduled. Click on that.

9. When looking at your post, switch your view from "Visual" to "HTML" -- Copy all that code gibberish.

10. Go to Appearance > Widgets. Create a new textbox widget in your side-bar and paste the code in. Save, and enjoy your new WP-friendly Etsy-Mini!

The pros of using ESellerAds is that (a) you can post it on WP, (b) it displays up to 100 items, not just your most recent, (c) you can click on the photos to read a short blurb about your product, and then click the "Buy" button to add the item to your shopping cart. You need to visit and update your link when your items change, which sure as heck beats trying to turn the Etsy Mini into a screen shot image! Just be sure to fave. place that link. The con is that... it isn't an Etsy Mini, and lacks that typical streamlined look of the Etsy website.  But hey -- beggars can't be choosers!  I am just glad I finally have a way to display my shop items.

PLUG!: The Fine Line Between Spam and Promotion

For the life of me, I cannot figure out why Etsy (and Artfire) sellers are so determined to "plug" their way to the top.  In a market flooded with handmade goods, the one link I am most likely going to avoid is the person spamming my Twitter or Facebook homepage with self-promoting "PICK ME, PICK ME, PICK ME, [insert shop link here]"  Maybe it is because it feels good to interact with real people with real creative pursuits, but the spam-culture that we have all settled into is really starting to grate on my nerves.  Don't get me wrong--I love learning about new products and additions to everyone's shops, and the occasional reminder about a great item that needs some exposure doesn't bother me either... I love hearing about creative processes, frustrations, and (get this!) even about what you are doing in your day-to-day life!  But the thoughtless self-promotion needs to stop.  Comments on this blog are moderated, so I often will delete those that are mere promotion and do not correspond to the content of my post but I cannot moderate Twitter and other platforms.  It seems like I am not the only one concerned about this as Vanessa over in the Etsy Storque has a great post about spam on Etsy entitled, "How Not to Spam While Being Active Online."  A fitting title!

I think the nicest ways to use social networking is to be social.  period.  Some of the best exposure to my shop has been through My Craft Corner -- a community of crafters that functions the same way a Facebook would, but for this niche group.  I've made a lot of friends through their forums (people creating work very different from my own!)  Of course, Twitter and Facebook have been invaluable tools to get my name out there, but I really hope that those people that have been kind enough to fan me do not regret their decision!  In person, if someone asks me about a pendant I am wearing I am always careful to chat up the work and the process before whipping out my business card and thrusting it into someone's face...  We should all try to extend the very same courtesy online!

I guess the recent bout of spam on this blog has just gotten to me, so I will step off my soap box now.  I know 95% of the people I meet are not offenders, it is just that measly 5% who gives a bad name to Etsians everywhere...  (You know who you are!)

Resource: Carbonmade Portfolios

On my small netbook, I run a small, netbook-specific Linux OS called Jolicloud.  It has a wonderful repository of web-apps that you can browse through and try out.  Usually those apps have been beneficial to my work, but not to my origami...  That is, until I came across a cool app that was recently added:  Carbonmade.

Although you need to pay for unlimited space, you can get a small, free account (named the "Meh" package) which allows up to five "Projects" and 35 images.  The portfolio site does not require any html to construct, and the end result was quite pleasant.  You can have your choice of background and font, and have a great deal of control over the way the images are displayed  Although I only have 35 images to play with, I was quite pleased with my ability to showcase some of my favorite pieces on here.

Although I think the site caters more to those in the graphic arts, I think the site in an indispensable, stream-lined way to present your work to others.  They even have an option that you can check to let others know that you are available for freelance work.  And hey -- crafters need portfolios too!