Make It

Pursuing Press Mentions (continued)

If you haven't yet had a chance to read the comments from my earlier post on press mentions, take a look now and check out the great suggestions that have been left. Thanks to you commenters who took the time to share your wisdom on that post or on any post.

In other press news, I did some intense Googling and found this really interesting interview with the beauty editor at Teen Vogue where she outlines some of the best ways to get your product noticed and current trends. I especially found this paragraph encouraging:

PRWeek: What are some trends in beauty and health that may affect the content you publish, either on the Web or in print?

Chen: Right now, beauty, as it has been for the last few years, is very individual…I think women and girls want to feel like they're getting a product just for them, so I think customizing products will continue to be popular. I think finding new ways of using one product will also grow to be important, especially because of the economy. Readers are…constantly on TeenVogue.com sending me questions, sending me requests for information. I'm already getting questions online like, “My allowance has actually been cut so how do I make this one product work like six different ways?”

Ever since I came up with the idea for screenprinted soap wrappers, custom patterns and colors has been something I've been planning to add. Maybe it's time to move that project to the front of the line and pitch Teen Vogue. I've got an idea in the works and I hope to share a mockup later this week.

Tiltshiftmaker

Hours of fun to be had at www.tiltshiftmaker.com. This is the feature that's often used to make cityscapes look like little toy cities, like this. But you can apply it to any kind of photo to get a kind of fuzzy halo effect.
Before:

After:

Freshening Up

I've tweaked the blog design a bit. If you're using a feed reader, you might want to click over to check it out. Next on my to-do list is updating my website (now just a page with examples of my custom work) to reflect my soapmaking.

OLD:

NEW:

Pursuing Press Mentions

I got some 4 x 6 postcards made at Overnight Prints (I always use Overnight Prints for postcards and before I place an order I always google "overnight prints coupon" to find the latest coupon codes that I can use for discounts or free shipping on orders). They're blank on the back, which was intentional because:
1) It was cheaper
2) This way I can customize the card for a variety of uses.

So far, I've been including them as thank you notes with some orders, but I'm also planning to use these in a press kit to magazines. I've never pursued magazine press. There was that one time a Domino editorial assistant contacted me (!!) and a few mentions in the Metro but aside from that I've stuck mostly to the online world for press mentions.

I'm ready to branch out a bit so I'm thinking of the best way to present my work to editors of glossy magazines. For example, is it necessary for me to send samples of every soap or just a bar or two of my best sellers (reminder: the BESTSELLERS discount code for my shop expires on Sunday, April 26)? Does a handwritten note seem personal and inviting or would a typewritten press release and bio appear more professional? And how exactly do I find the right contacts? Of course the one magazine where I had actually corresponded with someone is now out of print, so I'll be starting from scratch with every publication. I've got a handful of blog posts on the subject to review plus Craft, Inc which is a great resource I refer to often. Any other suggestions for how to make big impact with editors?

Who's a guest columnist?

Me! I'll be writing a monthly (with potential to become more frequent) column on Modish Biz Tips- a new blog devoted solely to business advice and inspiration for designers and crafters. Jena already has alot of great info and features already on the site, so my column will focus specifically on Etsy. Today's post is an intro to the column and a little commentary on why I think Etsy is such an important tool for small businesses.

Craft Revival: Recap

Yesterday started early - 6:30am - so that I could get to Ypsilanti and meet Marcy of All Things Grow to carpool to Detroit. When we got to the venue, we unloaded our wares - up a few flights of stairs! - set up our tables and waited for the sales to roll in.

This was the first time this fair was being held and I think it went pretty well. There was a steady stream of customers, though never really a big rush, and the people who did come were definitely in the mood to buy. I made about half what I earned at November's Shadow Art Fair, which I'm quite pleased with considering this wasn't a holiday show. The day got off to a great start when I sold two soaps to another vendor - Wei's Open Secret - before doors even opened, a great confidence booster. I recognized a few vendors from November's fair and met some new ones.

This was my first fair with the soaps and I definitely have a few changes in mind for future fairs. I need to work on my display. I love the idea of setting my table up like this (imagine soap instead of cheese) with a bunch of various soaps and labels spread out across the table.
I definitely want to expand my offerings. I'm setting a goal of 20 scents by the time Holiday 2009 rolls around. Yuzu (Japanese Grapefruit) and Sweet Almond Cookie were by far the best sellers. I actually sold out of Yuzu! It's a great feeling to sell out of something, even if it means I missed out on later sales. Now I know to bring more next time and I'll look into adding some additional citrus scents to the lineup. I brought some of my card inventory and sold a few but nothing like the soap sales, validating my decision to move away from stationery and into soaps. Mini sizes were more popular than full sizes - which I had predicted - and so I had made sure to have plenty of those. I think people like the idea of purchasing a little pretty treat for themselves for $4. Lots of really great feedback regarding both the scents and the wrappers.

All in all I had a great experience at Craft Revival. As an introvert, I find fairs draining. But after it's all over, I'm usually glad I participated. And lately, I've had some nice earnings to show for it. I'm now debating whether to apply for July's Shadow Art Fair. 12-hours of straight salesmanship is kind of my equivalent of running a marathon. But I had alot of fun and sales last year so that might just be enough to woo me back.

Also, if you've been interested in trying my soaps but wary of ordering them because you can't smell the scents, I've put up a special listing of one mini yuzu and one mini sweet almond cookie. I will waive the shipping fee (on this item only) for blog readers who enter the discount code BESTSELLERS. Type the code in the message to seller after ordering and I'll send you a revised invoice (or refund you if you've already overpaid).

Craft Revival

I apologize for the lack of blog activity lately. Not much new to share these days, though I'll have more in the coming weeks. If you're missing you're rifferaff fix, I've been a little more active over on Twitter.

I've been prepping for Craft Revival taking place at The Magic Stick, tomorrow April 18, info here. This will be my first show as a soapmaker and I'm not sure what to expect. I did really well at the Shadow Art Fair back in November, but given the economy (especially in Michigan) and the fact that this isn't a holiday show, I think it may be slower. Who knows. Full recap on Sunday.

Baggu

I've been doing a little reading online about Baggu. Love everything from the product to the colors to the website. Such a simple idea but the visual identity of the brand really kicks it up a notch. Sometimes I think I might want to keep the paper wrappers for the soaps very simple and do them up in a wide range of colors like this.

Mix and Match Gift Sets

I've already got a Mother's Day gift set in the shop and I just added an option for mix-and-match gift sets. Two full sized soaps of your choice in a clear box with a ribbon and card for $16. I'm always at a loss for gift giving so this is one way to make it easy peasy.

Etsy continues to grow despite recession

 Impressive March stats for sales and visits on Etsy:

• $12 million of goods were sold; roughly 18% higher than February's $10.2 million.
• That represents 788,253 items sold for the month, 16% higher than February’s 682,631.
• 1,321,317 million new items were listed in the month, 16% higher than February’s 1,140,185.
• 157,000 new members joined the Etsy community in the month, up 25,000, or 19% from February. 
• 502,705,157 page views were recorded on the site this month, a 15 % increase from February.

There have been lots of articles lately about how the handmade movement continues to grow and flourish despite the economic downturn. Now, we see the numbers to back it up.