Showing posts with label showings. Show all posts
Showing posts with label showings. Show all posts

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Traveling jewelry "showings"

So, a friend of mine suggested I bring my jewelry up to her work place because it would be easier than her trying to get them to come to my jewelry showings at my place. 
A few weeks ago I did.  And it worked REALLY well.  I let them know a week or so in advance through my friend what day I would be there.  They let me set things up and I made several sales!  Then, they suggested my friend call over to one of their branches on the north side of town and see if they would like to see my things as well.  They told me to come on over.
I made about $150 in sales between the two places.  It was a good experience.  I'm wondering how to branch this out to more places but wouldn't even know how to go about it.

Add to that, I had a lady ask me to bring some piece to her shoe boutique to show.  So, I also have some pieces in a boutique here in town.  Nothing has sold yet but at least my pieces are being seen more now.

Monday, May 10, 2010

Jewelry Showings

I have planned and tried to hold a couple of jewelry parties in my home now and it seems they don't always pan out so well.  After those experiences, I formulated a different plan.
I am trying this new plan out this week.  I am hosting not one but two jewelry "showings" in my home.  I figured if I took the "party" out of it that a) it wouldn't seem to everyone like they HAD to come and socialize with people they didn't know b) it would become a little more of a casual "drop by when you can" type thing c) I wouldn't have to worry about making finger foods that wouldn't get eaten or punch that wouldn't be drunk and d) it would seem less sad if no one showed up. 
So, what is a jewelry "showing" you may ask?  Here's kind of what I have come up with.
A jewelry showing is an event where an artist sets up a display of their artwork and invites people to come and see it.  If they happen to purchase a piece, then its a good deal.  If they choose not to, at least that's one more person who has viewed your work and can pass on by word of mouth to others what they saw and if they liked it.  I also am planning to do a tour of my studio and have my supplies on hand for viewing, should someone want something custom made.  I also like the come and go aspect of it.  It gives people a chance to eat dinner, run errands etc. without feeling the pressure of having to be at my place at a certain time or for a certain length of time.  I like that better for my schedule as well. 
The reason I chose to do two showings is to broaden the scheduling net a bit.  Someone who can't come on Tuesday may have a Friday night open.  Those who are busy on Fridays or traveling out of town, might be better suited to drop by on a Tuesday evening after work. 
This time around, I scheduled them both in the same week.  Next month I may try spreading them out over the month a little more.  It's an experiment in promotion.
I am also hoping to promote the idea of others hosting me and my jewelry in their own home for a "jewelry party" or even just a showing... kind of like a Tupperware party.  I think having people come in and see my jewelry may spark the idea of how many people they know who would also like my work.
At any rate, I'll report back my findings with this method after each showing.  After a few months, i should have a pretty clear picture about whether this idea works well for promoting my jewelry or not.  Stay tuned for future reports.