Indie Designer Marketing

If so, I want you.

I’m currently putting together a new web directory called Buy Indie Wholesale.

Independent designers will be able to submit the following information:

• Name,
• URL,
• Type of merchandise available for wholesale,
• Description of the style,
• Wholesale login info (or instructions on how to contact you for wholesale rates.)

(Don’t e-mail anything to me. You’ll be able to add your listing to the directory once it’s complete this week.)

I’m currently compiling a mailing list of boutiques in the 20 largest US metropolitan areas. Every month I’ll be doing a promotional postcard mailing to those boutique owners. So who knows what opportunities will open up for you!

And if you’ve never considered selling wholesale, check out the following articles:

Talking Wholesale with ShanaLyn of Shana Logic

Wholesale, Retail, and Beginning to Sell Your Handmades to Shops, Part 1

Wholesale, Retail, and Selling Your Handmades to Shops, Part 2

The Mommy Designer
She features handmade goodies for women and babies.

Perk-u-late Wiki
A wiki featuring all things handmade. You may add pictures of your merchandise here.

Large in Charge
A monthly online newsletter for people of size. 70,000+ visitors every month.

Indie Saver
Offer discounts on your merchandise through this site.

(Hint, Hint… if you’re looking for more resources like these, then you need a copy of my Indie Designer’s Online Marketing Directory.)

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.

One of my favorite shoe shopping web sites is Zappos.com.

Have you been there? My gosh… you can get lost on that site for HOURS. It’s like heaven on earth for shoe lovers.

One of the main reasons why I love Zappos is because I can see how other buyers rate a shoe according to size, width and arch.

For example, a review for a shoe might say: 98% of buyers say this shoe fits 1/2 size larger.

If it’s a brand I’ve never worn before, these guidelines help me make a better informed decision. Thus I’m more likely to buy the shoe.

Although this is a fabulous strategy to implement, it’s not quite feasible for the average indie designer. Especially for those of you who make OOAK (one-of-a-kind) items.

But there is another way.

Compare your clothing sizes to that of another well-known brand.

For example, are your clothes sized similarly to those at Old Navy? What about Zara? Then mention this on your web site.

It’ll definitely help potential buyers feel more comfortable about buying from you.

A reader of this blog e-mailed me the other day.

“I normally run into a slow period during the summer months. What should I do to pick up the pace?”

I’m posting my response here because it’s advice that everyone can use.

In my world, creating a good product is only half of the equation. You can fire your own beads, stitch fabulous handbags and silversmith your butt off.

But nothing happens until you get into marketing mode.

And nothing ’significant’ happens until you get into full-time marketing mode. By full-time I mean doing at least 1-2 promotional tasks EVERY SINGLE DAY.

Let me repeat that… Nothing significant happens until you’re doing at least 1-2 promotional tasks EVERY SINGLE DAY.

Even well-known corporations use this strategy.

Everybody knows about the Gucci brand. But open up a copy of Vogue and what do you see? A 4-page Gucci spread.

There are McDonald’s restaurants all around the world. You can barely go 5 miles without seeing one. But turn on your television long enough and what will you see? A McDonald’s commercial.

These multi-million dollar strategies are no secret.

You can’t allow previous or current success to stop you from marketing your business.

Better yet, you can’t allow a slow period to stop you from marketing your business. In fact, that’s when you should be ramping up your efforts triple-fold.

If summers are slow for you that’s when you should be blogging your fingers to the bone.

You should be trying to get your merchandise listed in more online boutiques.

You should be contacting fashion bloggers. You should be going after links from other indie designers. You should be improving your merchandise descriptions.

And you should be doing these types of things EVERY SINGLE DAY.

After 6-12 months of consistent marketing, you’ll have built up a momentum kind of like a snowball rolling down a hill.

But it all has to start today. Right now.

Get consistent or go home.