Creative and Free Promotions Are Great! The Diary 2010 Project.

As an online seller of handmade jewelry, I am always looking for free promotional opportunities. Forums are a good resource for free promotional opportunities as you will see calls for product and seller features. I am always keeping my eyes open!

An annual project that I love and have had GalleriaLinda participate in for three years is the Diary Project, which is organized and implemented by Fantazya, a long-time Etsy seller of handmade.

The current Diary 2010 Project is getting to the final deadline for artwork.

The diary is a spiral bound calendar book that has all pages created and designed by handmade artists! The artists work their shop information into the designs and get year-round exposure for FREE.

This has been a successful and popular concept for several years. When the artwork is sent, Fantazya coordinates the printing and cover options. Pictured above is my 2009 diary with GalleriaLinda pages. You will see the plain cover I ordered so I could embellish it myself. These make GREAT gifts too.

I encourage my handmade artist/crafter friends to participate in this free opportunity! Fantazya is so great to work with and you will be among featured artists.

You are NOT obligated to purchase the Diary. Diaries are offered to participants at a discounted rate, should you care to purchase.

Each page is a miniature original art presentation for each day of the year. See the Diary 2010 Project Flickr group to see what has been created so far.

Go now to lock in YOUR date today, send in your designed page with your shop information, and you have year-round exposure of your web site or shop URL to people all over the world.

This year, for the first time, the diary will be available in three languages: English, French, and Spanish. Impress your friends by being "in print!"

Go right now to get YOUR
Diary 2010 Project date.
Artwork deadline is JULY 15.

Weathering the Economic Storm with Earrings

Isn't that just like a woman? When the economy goes down, ladies buy earrings! At least I'm hopin'. Well, really, they are.

Last fall when the economy in the US was at a standstill, I made a decision to stock GalleriaLinda's iCraft shop with $12.99 USD earrings. That is not a huge investment, but still, earrings can be a great wardrobe brightener.

And, it worked. I have had new customers purchase earrings the last few months and I have been in an earring designing frenzy for a while, making up a storm!

A small business has to be nimble without devaluing the product. Adding a less expensive option to my shop made a lot of sense!

Participating in iCraft's Sellers' Bootcamp!

I am embarking on a high-energy Sellers' Boot camp in iCraft.ca!! Already, the sales strategies are electrifying!

This is a new admin-supported program started by Christine of PillowThrowDecor for sellers on iCraft.ca! Christine not only produces the most elegant pillows for your home, but she is also a sales expert that creates energy that motivates!

She is the one that started the awesome "Odd Sock" category to move merchandise. Check out PillowThrowDecor's "Odd Sock" deals - unbelievable!

The Sellers' Bootcamp program goes for 28 days with assignments for each day that will help you fill your promotional "bag of tricks" by the end of the month. The idea is to get into the habit of spending 30-45 minutes a day doing things that will help sales. You can check out the iCraft.ca Sellers' Boot camp forum.

Retired from another career, Christine states that a part of her professional background is in sales training. She states, "As independent business people it is all about accountability. I do much better when I know there is a team of people marching along with me every day and are as committed as I am to doing assigned activities!

If you are considering trying iCraft.ca as your handmade selling venue, now is the time! Remember, if you use a referral number when you pay your one-time registration fee, you receive six months of shop fees free for an unlimited number of items! Shop fees are very reasonable. In case you need one, GalleriaLinda's referral number is: 1c28439c38!

Must go...off to boot camp!!

Anticipating Handmadeology!

I can hardly wait! Handmadeology is coming to town on January 26, 2009!

Offered by TimothyAdamDesigns, it is billed as "teaching the formula that I use to sell handmade goods online," and if you have followed Tim at all, you know he makes good on his word.

Often sharing tips and strategies for online marketing and advertising on his timothyadamdesigns blog, he sets himself apart by actually showing results of his efforts using the same strategies.

TimothyAdamDesigns is well-known for cool, contemporary metal jewelry. He has made a reputable name for himself in his knowledge of the online marketing process and how to use online tools to his advantage.

Sign up for the handmadeology free newsletter today! I think handmadeology will have highly useful content, based upon the blog content for the last year.

Selecting the Right Online Selling Venue

It seems to be the time of year to try new things!

As a business owner of the online jewelry business GalleriaLinda.com, I read forum posts in the various indie arts areas online and have found that when one person discovers a new or little known selling venue, everyone jumps on board and clamors to set up additional shops.

Much discussion is had and I too get caught up in the excitement and sheepishly admit I have a variety of shops setup all over the Internet, some which are empty! Many, as it turns out, are not conducive to selling to my target customer...

Defining your target customer.....

Read the rest of this article on GalleriaLinda's indie business blog: Indie CEO!