How to Price Your Handcrafted Jewelry to Sell More Handmade Bracelets Earrings
Sep 25, 2011 handcrafted artisan jewelry, handcrafted jewelry, handmade bracelets, handmade earrings, Handmade Jewelry, home-based business, how to, small business, unique jewelry, wholesale jewelry
As handmade jewelry artisans we like to focus on making handcrafted jewelry, not so much the selling of it. But in order to continue to making our artisan jewelry and doing what we love, we need to be able to sell it at a price that we make money. It is very important that handmade jewelry artists learn how to price their handmade earrings and handmade bracelets correctly to be able to sell handcrafted jewelry quickly and at a profit.
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There is no single approach to pricing your handmade jewelry. What you will be able to sell your handcrafted jewelry for depends on a variety of factors, such as your ability as an artist, the demand for your style of work, how well established you are and many more. If you are just starting out or if you have been creating handmade jewelry for a while and you are looking to start selling it, there is no need to worry about all the factors. Focus on the cost of materials and the time it takes to create each handcrafted jewelry piece. There are strategies and pricing structures that you can put in place to build a customer base and gradually increase the perceived value of your handmade jewelry.
We would all like to start out selling our unique handmade jewelry pieces for hundreds of dollars but the simple truth is that without demand or a designer label it is not likely to happen. However, as a new handcrafted jewelry artisan just entering the marketplace you have the unique opportunity to establish buyers who can grow with you, perhaps into avid collectors of your work. And the simple fact of the marketplace is that collectors mean demand and demand means increased sales as well as heightened prices for your work. But before we get too carried away, take a step back and look at how we can price our unique handmade jewelry to get to this point.
As an entry-level handcrafted jewelry artist, you need to look to sell to entry-level buyers, which will inevitably mean entry-level prices. And again, these prices can depend on the particular market you are looking to sell to and the type of unique jewelry you are trying to sell. You will need to do some research, find some similar handmade jewelry artisans in your area or similar handmade jewelry pieces for sale, and decide what the common price points are. It may be very low, under $20 or for more elaborate styles above $50. Either way, you need to find a reasonable price point to start with depending on the cost to make the handmade jewelry piece and the amount of time it takes to create. Nothing is written in stone, if you find certain handmade earrings and handmade bracelets are selling quickly, you could raise your average price on those items and lower the prices on the slower selling pieces.
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Once you have sold your first few handmade bracelets and handmade earrings, you should be starting to create a customer base. This does not necessarily need to only include people who have purchased your work, you may have come across people who are genuinely interested in your work that you could include in your customer base to market your handcrafted jewelry to in the future. The idea here is not so much to focus on selling your handmade jewelry now, but to establish ways in which you can continue to sell your unique jewelry in the future.
Make sure you align your pricing with the current target market you are looking to sell into. Knowing who your customers are is very important. The age range directly influences pricing strategies for your handmade jewelry. If you are making funky, bright colored handmade bracelets for a younger person then your prices need to be lower than if you are making sophisticated handmade earrings for the 35 – 50 age range. Younger people usually have less money so you need to make the price reasonable.
You do not need to continue selling your handmade jewelry at the initial price points you establish. Remember that as your customer base grows larger and with customer loyalty for your handcrafted jewelry the demand increases, your average price point for your handmade earrings and handmade bracelets can also increase. Also take into consideration that the more experience you have making handmade jewelry the quicker and more cost effective you will be able to create each handcrafted jewelry piece. Once you have a great line of profitable handmade jewelry you may want to expand into the handmade wholesale jewelry market and begin to wholesale jewelry to gift stores and handmade shops.
Tags: business, how to price jewelry, increase sales, marketing, success tips, tips to succeed, unique handcrafted jewelry, unique handmade jewelry, wholesale jewelry suppliers
How to Sell Handmade Jewelry Handcrafted Earrings Bracelets on Consignment
Sep 17, 2011 handcrafted jewelry, handmade bracelets, handmade earrings, Handmade Jewelry, home-based business, small business, unique jewelry, wholesale jewelry
If you want your handmade jewelry business to succeed then first of all your handmade earrings and handmade bracelets have to be exceptional. The quality of work has to be better than other handmade jewelry artisans and the components have to be unusual and high quality also. Your designs have to be unique and creative but most of all the colors and textures have to be balanced and complimentary. Your handmade jewelry has to stand out from the crowd and be extraordinary. People are not going to buy handmade earrings and handmade bracelets if they could make it themselves.
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Once you have established a unique line of handmade jewelry that sells well with a variety of designs and items you may want to begin to sell at wholesale jewelry prices to retail stores. Most importantly for the wholesale jewelry business you must be able to make your unique handcrafted jewelry quickly, with high quality and sell at a reasonable price.
There are a number of ways to begin selling your handmade jewelry wholesale. Many times you will find that retail gift store owners attend local art and craft shows looking for new handmade jewelry lines. Wholesale gift shows are a great way of meeting buyers from regional markets but tend to be quite expensive when starting out. Selling your handmade jewelry on consignment is a good way to become established.
When you sell on consignment you leave your handmade earrings and handmade bracelets on display in a store, the store collects the money, then pays you after the handcrafted jewelry pieces are sold. It is an advantage to the store because they do not have to invest in buying stock nor are they stuck with anything that does not sell. You have the advantage of all their customers looking at and buying your handmade jewelry! Consignment is a good way to get your foot in the door. Once they see that your handcrafted jewelry is selling well hopefully they will buy outright at wholesale jewelry prices.
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It is best to do some investigating before you approach anyone about buying your handmade jewelry. Actually go to a store and look around to see what they sell. If it is the kind of store that your jewelry would stand out, ask the sale clerk when the owner or manager is available. Be confident and show some samples of your best selling handmade earrings and handmade bracelets. If the manager is not available ask for a business card, then later call to set up an appointment with the owner or manager. Slowly travel to around the area and sell to all the best stores in the area.
When consigning jewelry it is your responsibility to keep the display full and dusted. Perhaps you could make a routine of checking on the stores and their stock every two weeks. You will want to take away items that are not selling well and make sure there is extra stock of the best selling designs. It is important to keep records of what jewelry you leave at the store and what jewelry has sold since the last time you were in. Carry extra stock with you at all times so the display is always full. Most stores will keep track of your account and are often quite surprised at how well your handmade earrings and handmade bracelets have sold.
Needless to say every jewelry artisan would prefer that store owners buy their jewelry outright. Consignment ties up a lot of stock with no money in your pocket until after the sale. It might help to offer incentives like free jewelry or bigger discounts if they buy outright.
Sometimes there are accounting problems where your records and the records of the store do not match. When this happens you could run into trouble getting the store to pay what they owe. Usually it is due to shop lifting, they did not sell it and it is not there. Many store owners will only pay what is in their records. You must be careful of the type of store and where the display is located so that shop lifting does not occur.
Although you have to be careful when putting your handmade jewelry into a store on consignment, we have had these stores become very good wholesale jewelry customers. It is hard for a gift shop owner to buy handcrafted jewelry outright without any knowledge of your product. Once they have the experience of how well your handmade earrings and handmade bracelets sell they are more willing to purchase the best selling designs as wholesale jewelry.
Tags: animal jewelry, cat jewelry, copper jewelry, handmade jewelry business, increase sales, selling on consignment, tips to succeed, unique handcrafted jewelry, unique handmade jewelry, wholesale jewelry suppliers
Why People Prefer Handcrafted Jewelry
Sep 6, 2011 handcrafted artisan jewelry, handcrafted jewelry, handmade bracelets, handmade earrings, Handmade Jewelry, unique jewelry, wholesale jewelry
Many people use handcrafted jewelry to help express their individuality and how they feel feeling on any given day. Some ladies love glitter and sparkle, gold and silver, bright colors like hot pink to make them the center of attraction where ever they go. Others prefer simple, classic styles in subdued colors and earth tones that give an air of sophistication and elegance. Still others choose to show their love of nature and their free spirit by selecting butterfly jewelry, hummingbird jewelry or wolf jewelry. What ever style handcrafted jewelry you prefer you are sure to find the perfect handmade jewelry just for you.
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There is a disturbing trend toward mass-produced, low quality, generic jewelry, which still costs as much as real handcrafted jewelry without the character or charm of authentic handcrafted jewelry. There are times when you have purchased something online only to feel disappointed, and at times, even betrayed that the picture looked so much better than the actual piece you received.
A friend purchased earrings from an internet jewelry website. They were silver hoops with gorgeous butterflies in the middle. Then she wore them to work and got several compliments, but then after a couple of hours noticed that one of the butterflies was missing. My friend contacted the company who had sold the earrings. The procedure was long and complicated to replace the butterfly jewelry earrings she just gave up.
One day my friend went to a craft show and visited many handcrafted jewelry artisans there who make all their own handcrafted jewelry. Every one of them would stand behind their unique handcrafted jewelry, no paperwork required. She bought several handcrafted bracelets and handcrafted earrings which are all beautiful, unique jewelry pieces and still look as good as they did when she bought them. The moral of the story is simple, handcrafted jewelry from a real person is the way to go.
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Many of these same handmade jewelry artists had their own websites. Anytime and anywhere anyone can order the same beautiful handcrafted jewelry from real people not huge corporations. Handcrafted jewelry artisans put their hearts and souls into each pair of handcrafted earrings and the handcrafted bracelets they create. Each piece of unique handcrafted jewelry is made by hand with love and patience, and with appreciation for not only the handcrafted jewelry piece, but also the person who is going to wear it and cherish it for a lifetime. Handcrafted artisan jewelry can and should bring people together.
Everyone should pay more attention to the jewelry they buy and wear. Each handmade jewelry piece should reflect and emphasize your personal style whether you prefer classic, flashy or butterfly jewelry. Most importantly you should always feel special each and every time that you wear handcrafted artisan jewelry. Also, when you are wearing unique handcrafted earrings and handcrafted bracelets you will greater understand and appreciate the high quality and patient craftsmanship that handcrafted jewelry artisans put into their creations.
Tags: animal jewelry, butterfly jewelry, hand crafted jewelry, handcrafted bracelets, handcrafted earrings, hummingbird jewelry, unique handcrafted jewelry, unique handmade jewelry, wolf jewelry
How to Take Great Photos of Handmade Jewelry Earrings Bracelets
Jun 1, 2011 handcrafted artisan jewelry, handcrafted jewelry, handmade bracelets, handmade earrings, Handmade Jewelry, unique gift ideas, unique gifts, unique jewelry, wholesale fashion jewelry, wholesale jewelry
Great photography is a necessity when you have a handmade jewelry website. Unfortunately, handcrafted jewelry is very difficult to photograph. Many jewelry artisans cannot afford to go to a professional and so they want to do it themselves. There are some simple techniques that even amateur photographers can use to obtain better results with minimal effort. The following suggestions should allow anyone to achieve results they can be proud of.
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In the olden days we spent thousands of dollars on film and photo processing but nowadays we are so blessed with the digital camera. I could write an article just about the virtues of the digital camera. It does not have to be the top of the line professional camera anymore as most digital cameras have a macro feature which is specifically for photographing small objects like handmade earrings and handmade bracelets. It is worthwhile to read your camera manual to learn how to put the camera in macro mode.
If you are thinking of investing in a new digital camera just for photographing your handmade jewelry, one of the most convenient features we use constantly is a direct camera to computer cable. We adjust all the settings from the computer and press the space bar to take the picture. No more shaking or movement of any kind and all the settings are the same every time. Technology makes our lives much easier.
The keys to good handmade jewelry photography are sharpness, lighting and exposure. The macro lens is a big help for the sharpness factor. Another key to a sharp image is a tripod. It is absolutely essential to use a tripod or similar camera support when taking pictures of handcrafted jewelry. A sturdy tripod is better than a flimsy one, but any tripod is many times better than no tripod. Always use a tripod and your photos will be sharp.
The second key to great handmade jewelry photography is the lighting. Normally diffuse lighting works best for jewelry so that there is no glare. We cannot sit around waiting for the perfect slightly cloudy day to take pictures of new handcrafted jewelry designs. You have probably already discovered that an on-camera flash does not lead to good photos. Not only is the flash too bright at such a close distance, it will also create bright spots and distracting shadows. Rather than flash it is better to use continuous lighting for photographing handmade earrings and handmade bracelets. Using daylight balanced bulbs for lighting provide natural-colored light. You can purchase these from photography suppliers. We use 5200 K bulbs which resembles daylight most closely. Even these lights will need to be diffused and for that use a light tent as the diffuser.
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A small light tent makes it easy to reduce glare and control shadows for handcrafted jewelry photography. These are commercially available in a wide range of sizes and shapes, but are generally quite expensive. It is not difficult to make your own lighting tent from white rip-stop nylon material, a couple of metal coat hangers and double-sided tape. The light tent tends to soften the shadows and eliminate glare, while providing a clean and clutter free background. We place the tent on a glass table and have a light under the table to reduce shadows.
Proper exposure is the last key to good handmade jewelry photography. If your background is actually white but appears gray in your image then the image has been underexposed. This means you need to let more light get to your camera’s image sensor. Adjust your camera exposure compensation setting to slightly overexpose the image. Nearly every digital camera has an exposure compensation setting, but you may need to read your camera user manual to find how to adjust yours. Once you locate the controls for exposure compensation simply increase the exposure until the image looks correct. We adjust the white balance so that the background shows white and this dramatically affects the crispness of the colors.
If you are comfortable with photography you can experiment with the settings for aperture and shutter speed to see how they affect the exposure. Once you find the perfect settings for your handmade jewelry you will find that you can easily adjust them for different pieces. We tend to take photos for new handmade earrings and handmade bracelets all at once so that everything is set up properly only once. You can also look at the settings on photos that you are happy with and keep the same settings each time.
Imaging software, even inexpensive software like Photoshop Elements™ can make handmade jewelry photography much easier. It may seem like it would be faster to use an image exactly as it was shot. But in reality, it is difficult to get your handmade earrings and handmade bracelets to look exactly how you would like it to appear. Imaging software allows you to crop an image, re-size it, adjust the exposure, remove the background and even sharpen the images. I especially like the auto-enhance for just the right color balance.
We having been taking our own handmade jewelry photos for many years and just as it is with making our handmade earrings and handmade bracelets, it does get easier with time. I hope these suggestions help you to take great photos of your unique handcrafted jewelry.
I personally think that taking good photos is more difficult than making our handmade jewelry! Everything has to be perfect to do justice to your handcrafted artisan jewelry. A picture is worth a thousand words if you’re a writer, a picture is priceless if you are trying to market your handmade jewelry and unique gifts online! You can never have enough information about photographing handcrafted jewelry so please check out these great Handmade Jewelry Photography Tips.
This is an original article by Jennifer Hisir of Handmade Jewelry by Copper Reflections
Tags: animal jewelry, butterfly jewelry, copper jewelry, dragonfly jewelry, hand crafted jewelry, handmade jewelry photography, how to take great photos, jewelry photography, photography tips, unique handmade jewelry
