Indie Designer Marketing

When I was around 7-8 years old I used to read Archie comicbooks.

There was always this one mail order advertisement in there. It was a whole page full of these ultra-cool looking toys and gadgets.

For months I eyeballed a hover car in that ad. I imagined myself gliding around my neighborhood in that $6.95 speed demon. The envy of all the other kids.

I finally convinced my grandfather to buy a money order so I could get that hover car.

When it finally came in the mail - nearly 2 months later - I got my first dose of false advertising reality.

I don’t want to turn this into a rant, so let’s just say it wasn’t ne-e-e-early what I expected!

And gosh darnit, it’s still happening today.

I’ve ordered jewelry off the Internet on many occasions. And 8 times out of 10 I’m pleased as punch with my choices.

But sometimes I get a pair of earrings that are a lot smaller than I expected. Or I’ll tear open a package, panting for a necklace that looks big and dangly on the web site. And in real-life it’s as delicate as a butterfly.

Of course it’s not false advertising. But it almost feels deceptive. Kind of like when you see those perfect looking hamburgers on television commercials…

So ponder this - are your product photos making your jewelry seem a lot bigger or smaller than it really is?

Make sure you’re giving sizes and dimensions.

I actually look for inches and centimeters on jewelry web sites nowadays.

Do a side-by-side comparison.

Place a penny or a dollar next to your baubles in just one of your photographs. This gives potential buyers an accurate point-of-reference.

Show it on a live model.

This option usually helps me a lot, especially with necklaces. It allows a potential buyer to judge length and size.