GETTING YOUR JEWELRY-MAKING BUSINESS
STARTED
The purpose of this class is to provide the how-to knowledge
anyone needs to know to get started in the jewelry-making
business. Specifically,
1) Getting federal, state, local licenses and registrations
2) Setting up an accounting general ledger to track revenues
and expenses
3) Other record keeping
4) How to define your “business model”
5) How to understand what your costs are
6) How to begin to understand your market and how to market
7) What the differences are between retail, consignment, and
wholesale
PRICING
AND SELLING YOUR JEWELRY
One of the greatest thrills of all time is when someone pays
real money for something you have designed and created.
The first question pops up: Can I make some serious
money making jewelry?
Why not? With smart planning, strategizing and marketing,
you should even be able to make a living from your creative
impulses.
This class teaches you how to use a specific formula for
calculating both retail and wholesale prices for the jewelry
that you make. It takes into account the cost of your parts,
the cost of your labor, and the cost of your overhead.
Also discussed:
Business/Management strategies related to pricing issues.
Retail/Wholesale/Consignment
Last we review all the stages of the marketing process. Emphasis
is on teaching you what kinds of questions you need to ask
of yourself and your business, to optimize your ability to
be successful at jewelry sales.
SO
YOU WANT TO DO CRAFTSHOWS...
Doing craft shows can be fun and profitable! That’s
how I got started with Land of Odds. I made up a lot of jewelry.
I put together some glass covered display boxes. I set up
for the public, hoped for great weather, and prayed that my
spread-the-word campaign would pay off. And it did. I repeated
my success over and over again, with only a few exceptions
– what I call “learning experiences.”
The topics covered in this class are:
Defining Your Business/Setting Goals/Getting Started
Finding Craft Shows/Choosing the Right One
Application/Acceptance Process
Packing Up Before The Show (And After The Show)
The Set Up
Inventory
Pricing
Cash/Checks/Credit Cards
Promotion
Booth Etiquette and Event Guidelines
Links to Craft Shows Directories and Databases
Magazines and Newsletters
INTERNET
MARKETING FOR VERY SMALL BUSINESSES THAT WORKS!
Today's successful jewelry-designers and other very small
business entrepreneurs maintain a very visible presence on
the World Wide Web.
They may have a web-site that functions simply as a billboard
or business card. They may list merchandise on their site,
with prices, and information about how to order it. They may
present their jewelry on E-Bay or other auction houses. They
may let someone else promote their jewelry on-line in exchange
for a commission or royalty. Or they may have a fully functioning
shopping cart system on their own dot.com.
Whatever their level of involvement on-line, they must put
into place active and deliberate strategies for creating visibility
for their site and their products, and for maintaining and
enhancing that visibility over time.
Successful marketing of any kind means:
-- Getting Seen
-- Getting Known
-- Getting Your Competitive Advantage Recognized
-- Making the Sale
To achieve these marketing goals on-line, requires putting
into effect various internet strategies, some technical, others
not. Towards this end, we provide insights about the following:
1. Conducting an Initial Marketing Audit of your business
and/or web-site
2. Optimizing Your Front Door Page
3. Choosing and Placing Key Words
4. Site Usability and Navigation Concerns
5 . Intensive Site Placement and Linkages
6 . Inexpensive Things You Can Do To Get Noticed
7 . On-line Advertising
8 . Getting Customer Feedback
9 . Competitor Surveillance
10. Establishing Baseline Site-Activity Indicators
WHAT
GLUE SHOULD I USE?
Over the years, I've gotten
many questions about what glue to use with rhinestones
and other beading and jewelry-making projects.
I'm a craftsperson and silversmith, and I have a shop where
I sell rhinestones, beads, jewelry findings, cabochons and
the like.
Nothing is perfect, but based on my experiences, here are
some good tips.
Includes a review of different types of glue and their uses.
HOW
TO CLEAN STERLING SILVER JEWELRY
I work with many different types of sterling
silver beads and findings, and I occasionally make my own
sterling pieces from wire and sheet with torch and flame.
Over the years, I have gotten many questions about how to
clean silver jewelry, liquid silver jewelry, marcasite jewelry,
and jewelry with gemstones.
Nothing is perfect, but based on my experiences, here are
some good tips about different kinds of cloths, dips and cleaners.
