Wanting to QUIT beads!! I really need all of your advice please!!!!

[airwynnglass]

Hey everyone .... ok, so here goes, I'm going to swallow my pride and ask for some help here! This may be a lot to read, but I'm begging you ... please read through this and be PERFECTLY HONEST in your opinions and advice PLEASE!!! No harsh feelings for ANYTHING said, okay?!?!?!?! Good!

I've been lampworking and selling my work for about 3-1/2 years now. I've done shows (please take a look at the types of shows I've been doing http://www.airwynnglass.com/Shows.html) ... I've tried eBay several times http://myworld.ebay.com/airwynnglass , with really no success ... either no bids at all or very few bids which makes me unhappy with the final price that I got for my work. With eBay, I've tried low starting bids, high starting bids, free shipping, etc... I've now signed up to Etsy, which granted, I know I've only been signed up for nearly a week but in all fairness I've looked up other fellow lampworker' etsy stores and they have been selling continuously and/or their view counts and "favorites list" has been increasing at a good rate as well ... and these fellow lampworker's have only been signed up on Etsy for the same or very similar time period as I have been. My items are a little cheaper than some I've looked at ... I'm offering free shipping for the first month of opening my Etsy store ... and I'm really confident in my photos and the quality of my work!!!

Especially when I'm at shows, I get TONS of compliments from both fellow artists and customers, saying how "GORGEOUS" and "STUNNING" my beads/jewelry are, but I don't get many sales. So... I think to myself, "maybe my prices are too high then?" Well, I've had mostly fellow beaders/artists, but also even customers tell me that "hey, your work is great and you are underpricing your work girl!" So, I'm thinking now, if my beads are "GORGEOUS" and cheaper than expected ... why don't those two add up and make a SALE?!?!?! Grrrrr...

I DO love making beads ... although I have to say that sometimes it's hard for me to get motivated to make them, because sometimes I have the attitude "oh well, why waste my time if they're not going to sell anyways"

I forgot to mention that I do also have some beads in some local shops ... I've had to pull my beads out of three of the five shops because it was not lucrative for my pieces to stay in there ... in 5 months I only made $25.00 from ONE focal bead sold!!!! THAT'S ALL!!! Again, the shop owners said that they got lots of compliments on my beads ... just NO SALES?!?! So, I took my stuff out of the shops, in my own best interest because I don't like the idea of my own stuff collecting dust on another persons' shelf, while I could be using that for show stock! Am I wrong in thinking that way?!

I feel that I have been trying for 3-1/2 years now, ... and to be perfectly honest with you, I think if I was being too hard on myself, I would've quit a long time ago ... it's very frustrating financially. I work P/T elsewhere, I have a ton of debt from starting this little lampwork business, and I'd LOVE to be able to do it full time! I guess I just am envious to the lampworkers out there that do this full time and make great money at doing something they love. I wanna be like that! LOL! hehehehe I know it takes time though. <sigh>

I've done one home party too. It was very lucrative actually financially, but I really didn't enjoy it that much. I WILL try more though. The party I did, there was about 12 women there for about 4 hours, and I took in about $1,100 CDN. It was great money for that one night, considering no booth cost (only a free gift for the hostess). Again, a lot of compliments from the 12 women, but no one signed up or wanted to book another show? That's how home parties tend to work isn't it?

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE take a look at my website, and my eBay and my Etsy www.airwynnglass.etsy.com ... and please be 100% honest ...

AM I MISSING SOMETHING? Is my work not good? Are my beads priced wrong? I put a lot of time and effort into making my beads and finished jewelry, I take great pride in my work and I am confident that it is of great quality and workmanship! I really do honestly like my own beads ... so...

I just don't get why things have not been going well for me. But before I throw the towel in on everything and sell off all the contents of my studio, I thought I'd ask the people whose opinion would mean the greatest to me ... my LE friends! I've also posted this on WC to my pals there too.

Any advice or tips on anything I can do, shouldn't do, or maybe I'm doing wrong, please let me know! I'm counting on you!

Thanks a million!

~Erin

[Karen Hardy]

I looked.
Your beads look really nice actually (I was all prepared to be honest and
say "well - they SUCK", but really - they don't at all :grin:).
I think that they are pretty well photographed and that the price
isn't incredibly high or out of line with the general market.
You might (and I know it hurts to hear this) try dropping the
prices a bit on your focals - say from 29$ to something like 9.99
for a short time until you develop a base of customers.
However, on the flip side, sometimes RAISING the prices
can also drive business your way too. Some people won't buy
a bead for 29$ but they will for $60. Go figure.
Do some experimenting up and down - see if anything happens.

I DO think that the boulder beads are a little misleading.
You have a pic of 9 beads, but the price is only for one.
True, it does state that in the info - but for some reason
people always seem to find this off putting. My advice there
is to put in the pictures exactly what people will be getting - no more, no less.

I'd say maybe you might want to look at new advertising areas
to get the word out on your beads. Many of the others here
probably have better advice than I could give you on that
(I'm more of a throw it against the wall and see if it sticks
kind of advertiser myself).

However, beadwise - they look great!

[Kalera]

One thing about eBay that I've found true for myself personally is that I have to be listing there CONTINUOUSLY for about three months before people notice me and I start getting consistent bids. I always start my eBay listings at the lowest dollar amount I'd be comfortable receiving for them, so I won't be disappointed if I only get one bid. I have noticed that for me, sets sell far, far better than focals. To sell focals, I really have to have a distinct style that I make a lot of... then collectors want them.

Having a website with a shopping cart helps a lot. Selling through multiple venues (except local galleries, for me) helps a lot too. Posting on forums helps. The more people see your name and work, the more familiar you will seem to them, and name recognition is the best advertising you can get.

Good luck!

[Gelly]

I can't give any advice on shows, shops or home parties... I have never sold anywhere other than on the internet.

I think your beads/pics/website all look fantastic. Your lack of sales isn't due to any of that. The only thing I can think of is advertising! You need to get your name out there if you are wanting to sell on ebay/etsy. One of the best ways is to join bead boards, such as LE and post in the gallery threads, and self promotion section. On etsy, it's better to space your items out while listing them (instead of doing mass listings) so that there are new items showing on the front page of etsy or the first pages of your category. Ebay has lots of bead boards that you can join and post your auctions on their gallery threads also. Etsy has street teams you can join and they also have msg. boards you can post on. It takes a lot of self promotion when you are trying to break into the online market. Your beads ARE beautiful, you just need to expose them to more people. Don't give up! Good luck!

[Kalera]

Oh, I was going to throw out there... while your prices on bigger focal beads seem very reasonable, your prices on smaller beads (the sorts people use for bracelets or multiple-bead necklaces) seem to be at around $20/bead on your website... I think I saw $12.50 on your Etsy page. For the most part, designers won't spend that much on bracelet beads. They'll usually spend $5-10 per bead unless you are a "name" beadmaker.

A lot of my bread-and-butter beads are really simple; I sell those for $5/bead. My best-sellers are encased with silver leaf and transparent color; I charge $6.50/bead for those. I have a very few that I go higher on. I prefer to sell sets so people don't have to think about how many beads they want; they just get the set and figure out what to do with it. So far, so good!

[Karen Hardy]

Kalera is spot on with the advice about posting in forums.
Check out some of the forums over at bead and button
or yahoo groups. A lot of people I know who sell beads get involved in
the discussions there and then mention when they
have new things available on their sites or auctions
(or they just sometimes include a link to auctions and sites
in their signatures).

I think (IMHO) if you are going to post in forums to get business,
the best bet is to be honest and find something that you really like
and get involved in. Don't just jump into a PMC or a Chainmaille forum
with random posts and expect people to think that you're all that.
There's one person in particular that does that (he's not on this
forum!!!) - jumps in, makes some posts and then starts plugging his stuff
and it's so insincere that he usually gets booted off in the first month.

Find a group or forum that interests you and hang around - learn something
new, and try and share some of YOUR knowledge with the folks.
I find that my bead sales also go up when I make a piece using
one of my beads and then put it up in gallery sections on the forums (and say
"here's my (type of jewelry) made using one of my beads"). That way people can
get a good idea of how to use my beads too!

[GlassGalore]

Erin,
While I would love a good Garage Sale of all the tools and torching goodies you must have collected by now, I would hate to see you give this up with all the experience you've earned in 3+ years!

I checked out your Etsy shop, and while I know you're just getting it up and running, the first thing that struck me was that most all your offerings are either blue or green. (Lots of those colors in your web site gallery too.) So if I'm a potential buyer and I'm not in a blue/green mood, I'm moving on to another shop. The advice here would be to try to keep a range of bead colors / styles 'in stock' to interest more buyers.

I also agree with Kalera that consistent listings over time will help get you noticed, whether it's on eBay or Etsy or in forums. So even if sales are slow and bids are low or not coming, be persistent. Etsy has some cool tools for self-promotion too, in forums and treasuries, so be sure to check that out once your store is stocked up!

Wishing you growing success! :)

[Kevan]

One thing with Etsy, you shouldn't list everything at the same time. People look at new stuff when it's posted.

I thought the beads on Ebay were not photographed to their best. Photos are all you have to sell your product with. That's your packaging also. If you just photograph them like "here's a bead" then that's what people see. If you present it like, "HERE's a BEAD;-)" you might get a different response.

You have to build a base. When I first sold a goddess I sold her for $10.

I don't think your beads suck at all. I would hate to see you give up. Have you tried JustBeads?

[MaryBeth]

I think everyone has made some good points. Expanding your color range would certainly help. Make something with raku or pink. These can be keywords that will help people find your beads.

I would lower the price of the focals - but probably not lower than around $20.00. For the single smaller beads I would cut that price in half and show a single bead in the main photo. You can still show a strand of them but make that a secondary picture.

And, I have heard that list something new every day advice a lot for Etsy! It sounds like it works. That's the only reason I haven't listed there yet. I don't have enough stuff finished to list something every day.

Your beads are very nice by the way!:grin:

[Lisa]

Hi - I don't sell yet, have been haunting the forums and honing my skills, and have looked at tons 'o beads, and even bought some (from Kevan and Sarah Hornik). This is more from a buyer's/browser's point of view.

Yes, you have gorgeous beads (but you really do know that already, it's not a quality problem you have, it's a sales/presentation problem).
Re Etsy:
In pricing the ".99" just pisses me off whenever I see it - cars, furniture, beads, fruit at the market - it's an automatic, almost subliminal negative ding. There's a cleanness to a straight $25.00, $30.00, that I much prefer.

On Etsy try putting some scale references in the photos - like you have in your gallery photos on your web page.

I like blue and green, so the color palette doesn't bother me. I would like to see a set of "spacer beads" to compare both size and price.

Definitely re-jigger how you're displaying the beads where you only get one - in the first photo on the main page there's a picture of lots of beads and a $12.50 sticker price -- another sucker/negative impression is made on a buyer when you realize you can't buy them ALL for the price given up front. Again, the proportion issue - how much bigger or smaller are they than the focals?

I also question the $2 price difference in some of the focals --- if it's not as good as the others that you have to drop the price, I would expect a greater price difference ... or they should be the same price.

The Emerald Bubble photo is a bit dark.

Your web site is okay - you might consider putting a picture of a bead at the top of the page, to give an idea of what you do. You know, eye candy.

The prices on your finished jewelry are out of my league -- perhaps a broader price range - no way could/would I pay +300 for a bead necklace, but you might get $40 out of me for a pair of earrings in the same line. Unless, is that Canadian money? You might think about clarifying what currency the pricing is in.

In the gallery, think about grouping the pictures by category/bead type (necklaces, bracelets, pendants, finished, sets, focals, reds, blues, greens). I always like having sets and focals to go straight to, with plenty of cross links back and forth.

All very IMHO. Good luck!

[NorLigh]

Erin,

I think your beads are fabulous, and I have to be honest- I don't have much to add to your issue, but I sure can learn from it because as I read your post all I could think was "ditto!" So I hope that you don't mind if I learn something from you and your experiences.

Here is some advice someone recently gave me. Keep a strong listing of all your prior customers and send them e-mails or newsletters, and maybe around the holidays a small gift. Maybe something slightly wonky to YOU but not to them! LOL I have beads I've made that I HATE because I notice a slight smudge in the encasing, or one side is slightly different than the other (I'm totally anal) and other people love them~ they are my "gift" beads.

Remember to "step out of your box" when making beads. I noticed most of your beads look similar, most likely in a style you are partial to. I am partial to your style. I don't really care for bright primary colors, dots, etc. because I love organics. I rarely use pink. I love purple and green a silver BUT- not everyone does!!! I have to force myself to make dots, retro looking stuff, use bright opaques like red yellow bright blue, etc. Make sure you "mix it up" a bit when making your beads.

For now if you do not have a photobox (I don't either) try photograhing your beads outside in natural light. I find that my pics look better (altho mine have shadow issues so I am NOT an expert on picture taking. I must get a photobox SOON.)

I've already been told to list at least one bead at a time on EBay, all the time. I fear my newest listing will not get a bid, and neither did my last one- so please don't fret. Um- I don't mean to offend you, but I do think your etsy beads are listed too expensive for now, being that you are trying to build your client base. For now I am keeping my Etsy focals under $20.00. I've sold 3 so far, bless my lucky stars is how I feel about that, and I've kept those under $20.00. I remember before I even thought of making glass beads, I would see them in magazines and realize that I CAN NOT afford to pay over $20.00 for a delicious looking focal bead most of the time, and I think, in my heart, that I need to offer my stuff to those who have the kind of budget I do- who would like to indulge in a pretty focal bead for under $20.00.

Good luck to you!!! I will send you any tips I accumulate :)

[ellyloo]

I think your photos are great!

[GinaJ]

In addition to what has already been said, I think you should put some good bead photos at the top of your homepage on your website..... so that when someone goes to your website, the first thing they see are some of your favorite beads. Right now, you have to make an effort to see them. (some people, like me, skip intros.)

[airwynnglass]

good ideas everyone THANK YOU! I will put some bead pics at the top of my home page for sure!

I can't express enough how much I appreciate the comments, tips, advice and positive encouragement!

Love you guys!

[anneli]

Erin:

I just realized that you were in the Glass Line magazine last month...and I remember reading that article....and I remember how much it inspired me. I have been thinking of quitting my part time job and doing beads full time....and your story gave me great inspiration! Your work is beautiful and I hope you reconsider quitting. I know sometimes it gets discouraging...it has for me at times too. I have been doing this for about 2 1/2 years now..and my sales are good so far...but like I said, sometimes it gets slow, and it's really people like you, that give me the inspiration to keep going at it. :) I hope you stay with the glass...best of luck to you...Anne :)

www.freewebs.com/sparetimedesigns

[lldesigns]

I agree 100% with the comments about expanding your color palette. Your beads are technically fantastic but the colors are too limited. I like to check the Pantone seasonal color palette and work from there. I also browse eBay and see what's selling. Right now I'm seeing more muted and darker colors.

I hope you don't give up because you're really talented! I think many of us have gone through what you're going through.

[Pine Cone]

Hi Erin,

You're brave to ask for the kind of comments that I'm about to make, but if the following is offensive to you in ANY way, please ignore.

I'm not a lampworker yet, but I buy lampwork on eBay, plus I put a lot of eBay sellers' auctions on my Watch list, because of the artistry and interest of it.

However, I recognize your name, and have clicked on your auctions a few times in the past, and then, as they started to load, realized why I had never yet seen even one of your beads. Your pages take FOREVER to load on dialup, even with my terrific service provider, AT&T.

Perhaps the entire rest of the world has gone to faster connections, but not me. And I'm a Buyer.

So, for the sake of attempting to respond to your anxiety, I allowed a recent auction of yours to load into my browser.

It took OVER 10 MINUTES. Not a good thing.

So I took the liberty of checking your file sizes.

HUMONGOUS file sizes. Several images over 400K and over 500K each. No image that goes into an eBay auction should be over 50K in size.

Your DIMENSIONS (a separate issue) are also HUGE so you look like the jolly green giant, even though I have my monitor set to a high resolution (which squishes more pixels into less inches than many people out there).

SO.......

There are two MAJOR things wrong with your photos. They are too big in terms of file size (Kb) and too big in terms of how they look on the page.

Please understand (and most people don't) that these are two separate issues. I'm a digital photographer and painter so I truly understand these issues and deal with them every day. Each must be dealt with properly, in a different way.


MINI INSTRUCTION SET

I'll just quickly say that you need to DOWNSIZE in two ways. (If you don't know what I'm talking about, ask, in this thread, and I'll post more detailed info):


SUMMARY:

1. Downsize the total number of pixels.

2. Optimize the remaining pixels.


SLIGHT EXPANSION OF THE ABOVE:


Step One: Downsize the total number of pixels across for each image. Despite the advice that many give out about dpi or ppi, you can ignore rulers (dpi and ppi). Remember that rulers are fictional helpers when it comes to NONprinted work such as photos for your eBay auctions. The total number of pixels is all the matters for the internet. The end viewer's settings determine how they are distributed across THEIR fictional rulers, so just make sure that you give your viewers an appropriate TOTAL number of pixels.


....... but your file sizes will still be larger than they should be unless you ALSO do STEP TWO .......


Step Two: Optimize the total pixels you achieved in STEP ONE down to 50K or less (yours are running even above 500K - YIKES). I do this in Photoshop CS2 with ImageReady. There is other software that handles JPEG optimization as well.

Remember that "OPTIMIZING" is important because it will result in a lower file size FOR THE SAME NUMBER OF PIXELS as you would get if you don't optimize those pixels.


TO REPEAT:

1. Downsize total number of pixels.

2. Optimize the remaining pixels.


I hope this helps for all your selling venues.

I offer you best wishes for your success.

[airwynnglass]

WOW, I had no idea my photos were taking that long to load! I do have photoshop and I will try to tweak the pictures in the way you have described! Thanks for posting that!

[Rose]

If you have Photoshop click on FILE and see if there is an option SAVE FOR WEB. Save it that way and your file size will be reduced and those issues will be history. I just figured this out myself when I was trying to post a picture here to the gallery. I couldn't figure out how everyone else's pictured were so big and mine was tiny. Now I can post large pics also. Try it!

Rose

Oh, I see someone was already telling you about this. Oh well :)

[Carolyn M]

Great advice so far, what struck me as was commented before was the 'sameness' of your beads. They are very nice, but very similar in style, and I've found in the long run that doesn't work well for me selling on ebay. I always challenge myself to try new styles/colours/shapes and have a variety listed. When I get lazy and start to list similar beads, sales start to drop off.

Good luck and keep plugging along, things will get better!

[airwynnglass]

Well ... I just got back from the Canadian Bead Oasis fall show, and it was a great success for me! I took some of the advice posted here and it turned out very well! Thank you so much everyone! Of course, I know changes will need to continue ... but I was very pleased with the outcome so far!

I met a lot of my "fans" LOL! People who said that they came to the show specifically to see me and my work! People who had bought beads from me previously came back to buy more! I had a ton of compliments on my website actually too! A lot of people said that they loved my site and that they keep me on their bookmarks! I also had a lot of compliments on my display! I'm not sure if it was one thing in particular, most likely a combination of a lot of things ... lowering my prices just a little (to create a following at first) ... changing my display to more easily allow customers to pick up and play with the beads ... raising my table to a more convenient level ... and simply just selling MYSELF too!!! It all worked so thank you all so much for your words of wisdom! Keep any comments coming still please ... change doesn't happen overnight!!!

~Erin

88431

[extexnick]

You don't have to quit because you are not making a fortune. Unless this is your primary source of income then maybe you should slow down and perfect one style. What I've seen is beautiful and you should be really proud of the beautiful art you bring to the world. I have thought about quitting because I wan't making a bucket of money but that's not why I started lampworking. I started because until I was 57 years old I never had a hobby or craft and now I am doing something that creates both beautiful and sometimes very ugly objects that I can say is mine.

Stay with it, the world can use more creative beauty

nick
ridetherainbow.etsy.com (nothing listed right now because I've donated it to my daughter-in-law at swarmofbeads.etsy.com

[ellyloo]

I"m glad it was a success! you seemed energized and happy and glad to be there!

Your table was great!