Approaching Rio De Janeiro

Sailing into—or out of—Rio de Janeiro is simply spectacular.  Indeed, no matter where you are, in or near Rio, the views are stunning.

A New Marketing Strategy—Rio Style

I’m here to tell you that the art auctions on P&O and Cunard cruises are amateur acts compared to the Jewelers From Rio.  What they do is get on the ship as a regular passenger, usually the port before Rio, and just mingle and make friends with everyone else.  And, to anyone who is interested, they offer (free) a private car with driver and guide for the day (or part thereof) to take you wherever you want to go.  The only catch is, you will also be taken to their store in Rio…No obligation to buy, just to look.

There were, to my first-hand knowledge, three such ‘representatives.’  But, alas, only two days in Rio, so one was not able to sample the wares of all of them…  The first afternoon my friend, Dianne, and a young man named Jason  from England – a superb pianist who had been onboard to give a couple excellent concerts — and I were hosted by Saban Jewelers of Rio.  We first went to the Sunday flea market, which was busy and fun,

At least one stall holder found it all too much

then to the Saban shop, which was on Copacabana Beach.  Their jewelry was gorgeous.  (Purchases were made.)

We were returned to the ship in time to get ready for the evening’s entertainment—a lively and colorful, and very cheeky ‘Carnival’ performance by about thirty local dancers and musicians.  In traditional Brazilian style, the costumes consisted mostly of feathery headdresses, thongs, and…silicone.  But  great colour and rhythm…

The next morning our host for the day—this time from Ben Bros Jewelers—was ready to collect us promptly at eight.  We had a full agenda, starting with Corcovada (which means ‘hunchback, and describes the shape of the mountain on which the iconic and imposing statue of Christ stands and towers over Rio).

"Christ the Redeemer" on Corcovado

Much to the annoyance of our guide, however, it turned out that none of our quartet of women had any (or at least enough) Brazilian money to get us into the site.  An unplanned detour back into the city to find a bank that was open was required.  Brazil is a bit awkward in that regard—no ATMs except in banks.  At least it was awkward for us.  But finally the deed was done, and maybe the detour was to our advantage, as our driver took us via a ‘shortcut’ to Corcovado which I’m sure was better than the usual route.

It was a steep and winding climb, lined with interesting—and sometimes grand—houses. Views everywhere. It would be difficult to find a spot in Rio that didn’t have a spectacular view!  A little way into the National Park we had to transfer to a bus that would take us to near the base of the statue where we would take a lift, then escalators.  I needn’t describe the statue—pictures are better—but the crowd was amazing.  One could scarcely move, and apparently it is like that all of the time.  Many people wanted their photo take with their arms outstretched, like the Christ; it seemed to be the thing to do.  Apart from the statue itself—which is quite compelling in its beauty and simplicity—the 360^o views were awesome.

Next stop:  Ben Bros Jewelers.  I will only say: purchases were made.  Then on to lunch, which was at a typical (and very popular) Brazilian barbeque restaurant.  Everything except the meat was available at an extensive buffet.  The meat was brought around on large skewers by waiters who would slice it off directly onto your plate.  I didn’t sample the meat, but my companions did and all three reported it was delicious.  I guess it would be—we were in Brazil, after all.

Rio was a surprise to me in some ways.  It didn’t have the smothering density that you find in Sao Paulo.  It’s a  big, busy city, but not suffocating.  Of course, the beaches everywhere help…  Ipanema and Copacabana are only two.

Sand Castle on Copacabana Beach (sorry for the quality of the photo--was taken from a moving vehicle)

On to Sugarloaf.  Even though it is not as high as Corcovado, I liked the views better.  We took two cable cars up to the top, where the crowds were not nearly as dense as at Corcovado.  Again, pictures are better than words here.

View from Sugar Loaf

As you can no doubt guess, I loved Rio.  I’d never had a burning desire to go there, but I’m very pleased that I did.  And I have some rather nifty momentos to remind me what a swell place it is…          MM

My beautiful Brasilian dancing doll

Time passed. I made more pieces. And more. Then the question was What to take? What to leave behind?

I took what I thought would sell, along with a few extras, mostly earrings and bracelets. I took only enough necklaces as I had displays to mount them on.

One day it dawned on me that maybe I should take more. Afterall, didn’t I hope that every piece I made would find a home?

This past summer I took a lot more than I thought I’d sell. And it was a great decision. I’ve sold more necklaces from the trays behind my display than from the pieces in front of potential buyers. Go figure.

If someone expresses interest in my necklaces but nothing on the table appeals to them I mention that I’ve brought more if they’d like to see them. Sometimes there’s nothing there that appeals either — but more often than not I make a sale.

Laying flat in the tray doesn’t show pieces to their best advantage but that doesn’t stop some buyers. Two women bought necklaces right off the tray before I had a chance to take them out.

I’m not sure why this approach works — maybe it’s the fun of seeing something behind the scenes that others aren’t privy to. I know whenever I’m near a booth and the vendor pulls something out from under the table I’m right there taking a look.

When I first started making jewelry I made several necklace and earring sets only to discover that few potential buyers wanted both. Hmmm.

So I stopped making combinations. Fast forward a few years and wouldn’t you know it — at a recent show & sale I met a woman who never buys jewelry unless she can buy both the earrings and the necklace together.

Fortunately she found a pair of earrings that would go with a necklace she already had so I didn’t lose the sale.

Elegance Set

To set or not to set is one of those questions like How long should I make a necklace? It depends. It depends on the style, on the beads and also on the potential buyer who won’t appear until some time in the future. So you have to make a decision.

My solution to this conundrum is to make what pleases me. Which means that most of my pieces are standalone items. But if an idea pops up for an earring/necklace set or a bracelet/earring combination then I’ll probably try it out.

The key for me, however, is to price the items separately, not as a unit. That way the buyer chooses what best fits her needs. And that’s the person who counts.

About 30 artists were displaying and selling their work — paintings, watercolours, wood carvings, pottery, sculpture, stained glass. It’s inspiring to be around such talent.

The response to my jewelry was very positive. To date my shows have been in rural areas and small towns. This was my first venture into a city setting and it certainly exceeded my expectations. And so did my sales. Ain’t that fun!

Eventually I hit on a design for earring cards that works for me. It does two things. First, it displays the earrings vertically so that potential buyers can see how they hang. Second, it incorporates my business card so that it doesn’t detract from the earrings.

I make these in batches of 10 or 15 at a time. That way as soon as I finish a pair of earrings they can go on display.

Step 1

I use 4×6 inch blank file cards and cut them in half lengthwise using a matte knife. I use a metal ruler to guide the knife as it has a smoother edge than wood or plastic. An old bread board protects my work surface.

Step 2

Fold one end of the file card up one inch, then make another fold above that. (I have a handy little ruler that’s an inch wide — I lay that on the card and fold.)

Step 3

Next tape the folded end of the file card to the business card. Make sure the folded file card is facing up as in the photo below. This will ensure that when a buyer looks at the back of the display your business card will be visible. Otherwise it will be facing to the inside of the display.

I use clear/matte removable tape so the buyer can save my card. It may take a little practice to decide exactly where to tape the file card to the business card. Fold the cards together to form a upright display.

Step 4

I use a large hat pin to poke holes for the earring findings. A piece of cork works well for this. Heavier earrings should be a little lower down otherwise the card will be top heavy and have a tendency to fall over.

Step 5

Add the earrings and voila! A pretty display for your lovely creations.

Did you notice the rock in the last photo? If I’m selling outdoors or have a top-heavy pair of earrings, I tuck a small round stone out of sight inside each display to keep it upright. But don’t be too clever.

At a recent show a woman was about to buy a pair of my earrings but decided they were too heavy. I suddenly realized that she didn’t know about the rock. When I pointed it out she laughed and said in that case they were just what she was looking for and I made a sale!

P.S. All things change — and so it seems do file cards. My original stock from years back finally ran out. It took me quite awhile to find blank cards again and when I did I discovered that they aren’t as stiff as the originals. They’re also slightly narrower — which means my business card sticks out a wee bit so for now I’m cutting the size to fit and only using one half of the original file card.

This month I’m the featured artist on the Wellspring Visual ArtNetwork website.

Wellspring is an association of Central Alberta artists. It was founded in 2006 to give rural and small-town artists more opportunities to showcase their work. It’s a wonderful mix of artists and art forms — painting, photography, fabric, pottery, wood turning, stained glass, water colour, lampwork, wood carving, jewelry and more.

Wellspring also  sponsors ArtWalk, a two-month celebration of Central Alberta artists. Five towns are taking part this year. You can download the brochure from the Wellspring site. It shows locations for each artist along with a photo of his or her work. Touring around these towns is a great way to spend many enjoyable hours. And who knows? You might find  just the piece of art you were looking for.

I had recently read an article about Kristy Lin, a jewelry artist who was attempting to launch a new jewelry line, and was searching for money.   She turned to a website called Kickstarter.com to get some assistance in creating a fund-raising campaign.    Now-a-days, you need to be very creative to get your creative endeavors off to a start.

Kickstarter.com is one of a new set of fundraising platforms called “crowdfunding”.    The website facilitates gathering monetary resources from the general public.   This model circumvents traditional avenues for raising money.

People must apply to Kickstarter to have a project posted on the site.   Projects are promoted for a fixed timeframe.  They have millions of visitors to their site daily.  They can invest as little as $1.00.   The artist much reach the full target amount to receive any funds.   Otherwise, no funds are provided.     Kickstarter keeps 5% of the funds raised.    They do NOT keep any rights over your intellectual property.

Kickstarter offers an online tutorial for how to package and write up your project for maximum impact.

They promote both big and small projects.   They define a “small” project as something a group of friends might want to accomplish in a weekend.

And Kristy Lin was successful.   She sought $10,000 in start-up funds, and received $10,015 within the alotted time.   Click Kristy‘s name to view her Kickstarter.com campaign.

Despite the sometimes cool and often windy weather, it was a lot of fun. I got to meet some new local artists and to spend time with artist friends I don’t often see.

I also spent time working on new projects as well as unravelling old bits and pieces of beadwork. All in all a fun way to pass the hours. Oh, yes. I also sold several pieces. Icing on the cake!

If you’re out and about this long weekend, you might want to drop by Otter Pottery on the west side of Sundre.

Potter David Todd has invited several artists to join him in an outdoor show & sale.

In addition to David’s beautiful barrel-fired pottery you’ll find paintings by Tom Swanson, masks by Danny Joe Jones, metal sculpture by Michele Jorgensen, painting and pottery by Barb Bell, photography by Andrew O’Brien, wood turning by Robert Braun, and more. I’ll also be there with my jewelry.

The event will run Saturday and Sunday from 10 to 5 pm in front of the Otter Rafting store .

Hope to see you there!

I was surprised at the large number of people who came to see the show, from seniors to babes in arms. And the crowds kept coming all day. Great to see such support for rural artists and artisans.

Necklaces? Earrings? Bracelets? Yup, I’ve got them all, in various styles and colours. Rich browns and golds. Springtime greens (Yes, Virginia, spring will arrive this year). Hot chili red. Cool turquoise blue. Swarovksi crystal pendants and earring dangles.

Click here to see  recent examples  of my work. Click here to see earlier pieces.

If you’re at the show please drop by to say hello.

For the last 2 years I’ve had my jewelry in a local business on consignment.  When I started putting things there, there were the remnants of my old stock from my storefront that consisted of a lot of imported jewelry.  It was affordable and sold well, but it wasn’t a lot of my own designs.  Things have changed markedly since then.  I don’t want to sell a lot of imported stuff.  You can buy jewelry from Nepal and Mexico everywhere and unless you know a lot about your supplier, you’re likely buying jewelry made at virtual slave wages in abysmal working conditions.  I was lucky enough to have great suppliers but I want to sell my own jewelry now.  I no longer NEED to keep large amounts of stock to fill store-shelves, so I can concentrate my energy and finances on building my own line.

It was a really tough decision to let the storefront deal go but it was a necessary one.  They offered me a place to sell when I really had no clue what to do about storefront space and I am very grateful for that, but I want to access the global marketplace.  I do a lot of shopping online for items I cannot purchase locally so I am well aware of the power of the internet.  I’m  a Facebooker and if you’re reading this you already know I’m a blogger.  In order to sell online I need constant access to my stock.  It would be a bad, bad thing to have an online customer purchase something and then to discover it had just sold at the storefront.  It’s a simple case of “either-or” and the decision had to be made.

So I’ve done a ton of research and have made the leap.  I’m setting up an Etsy store, have signed up for PayPal, have registered my domain name and now I’m telling YOU.   As we work far less in the summer at our music studio, we’re also going to look at selling at Fairs and Farmer’s Markets.

I’m so excited I almost can’t stand myself.  I feel inspired again.  Maybe it’s because it’s spring.  Maybe it’s because I know you guys are going to support and encourage me as you always do and I love you SO MUCH for that.  Maybe it’s the sense of anticipation.  You know….the kind where you’re on the high rocks at the river….you’re looking over the edge….you’re thinking the water looks sooooo cool and inviting…..

………you’re thinking “OMG that’s a long way down”………..

……………………….”I don’t think I can do this”………………..

…..”but I really WANT to do this”…………………………

…………………………………………………………………..so you take a reeeeeally deep

breath, close your eyes……..and

……..

…….

…….

JUMP!!!!!!!

I was in Hobby Lobby yesterday using a Christmas gift card from my Hubby (employing the “matching gift” program — match with my own money the value of the gift card!) and picked up the January/February 2011 issue of Victoria Magazine. I haven’t subscribed in years, mostly because I felt it was too much about decorating and less about history and a serious look into things vintage.

But I still pick a copy up now and then for the visual appeal and occasional article on successful women entrepreneurs. This issue is the “Special Entrepreneur Issue” so it appealed.

Of the six women featured, two really caught my eye — Eileen Eisele and Kate Hines. Ms Eisele because she has taken a totally mundane commodity — packing tape — and turned it into something elegant; and Ms Hines because of her longevity in the jewelry making business.

TapeSwell‘s identity is clear: “Practical. Pretty. Tape.” I’m going to order some of the Envelope Wrap Tape. This one, I think:

It’s called Lyra.

And I love their brown paper shipping labels for packages:

According to Victoria, Eisele was an interior design and art student, then had a successful career as a photo stylist.

Kate Hines came out of the Rhode Island School of Design as a metalsmith and has been a successful jewelry artist and now entrepreneur for thirty years. Kate Hines Jewelry features pearls of all kinds — freshwater, cultured, and saltwater . Her bridal line is understated and classic. Being a traditionalist and a vintage lover, pearls are queen in my book.

Here’s a beauty called her “Grand Tier Necklace” with pearls, crystals and moonstones. Lovely and affordable at $195.

Hines’ success story includes being picked up by blockbuster retailers like Sakes Fifth Avenue and Bloomingdale’s, then designing for catalog giants like Coldwater Creek and J. Jill.

But what interested me most was what Hines had to say about growing her business. The fact that her jewelry appeals to women of all ages (classic endures!) she owes to following a set of rules.

She says: “If you are going to put a product on the marketplace you must ask three questions: What is it? Why does it matter? Why now? And the answers must always be apparent.”

I’m answering these questions in my own business right now and it always helps to have someone else who is successful in your field validate the process.

nOir Jewelry is a phenomenal hit among the celebrity set, and a visit to their website shows you why.     Fantastic, imaginary pieces.

Leeora Catalan is the owner and designer of this 14 year old company.    She produces jewelry that is glamourous, fun and edgy at the same time.    She has produced special pieces for various clothing designers, musicians and actors.

From a marketing standpoint, how do you capture the excitement and thrill her pieces generate?

Let’s look at some of her pieces, and then look at one of her marketing ads, and compare.

And now the promotional ad:

Now, I’ve only presented a sample of her pieces, so it may not be fair to compare what I’ve shown to the ad-copy.     However, to me, the ad seems to showcase nOir as art deco jewelry.    But it seems to be so much more than that.    Her jewelry has power and artistry beyond deco.

What do you think?   How would you begin to get ahold of noir jewelry, from a marketing and ad-copy perspective?

With or without the marketing, it’s clear that Talent has found Talent.

It was a great evening. Business owners and representatives dropped by to meet the artists and enjoy refreshments. As they browsed the work they had to list their first 3 choices. It was hard for many. A comment repeated over and over during the evening was I never knew there were so many talented people here. Ain’t that grand?

Once the business-and-artist match-ups are complete the brochures will be off to the printer. Artists will set their work up between June 21 to 25. ArtWalk runs until September 7. If you’re in the area it’s definitely worth a look-see.

All the tables and wall space were given over to nine Wellspring artists to display their work which included woodcarvings, silk work, pottery, photography, paintings and jewelry. It was an enjoyable evening and one that Pierre plans to host again later in the year.

The organizers also had great food and live music by local musicians. And of course, it wouldn’t be springtime in Alberta if we didn’t get a real blizzard as we were packing up to go home.

This was my first time at the show and I loved it. It has a real rural flavour. People came and went all day, some returning more than once. Old and young, babes in arms, singles, families — there was something for everyone to see.

Some of us did demonstrations. Duncan Robertson was a real hit with his “quiet woodworking”. I spent my time beading. It’s an enjoyable way to meet people. When I do demonstrations I’m also more likely to make sales — which I did. A great way to spend a day!

The owner agreed to view my pieces and showed me to a small room where I could put everything out on display. I then waited while he and his daughter helped some customers as they walked into the gallery. One lady was interested in some carved bone pendants from an artist so I listened in on the conversation to see how they handled the sales. The woman was intrigued with a dolphin carving in particular and asked quite a few questions. She wanted to know about the artist, where she was from and what the materials were. The saleslady, the daughter of the owner knew the answer to all her questions and was very insightful about the piece. She was amazing!It was like each piece had a story and as I listened I became engaged.

I started thinking to myself that perhaps I was not entirely ready to present in this way. I have thought about including a card with each piece to illustrate the various materials and why I chose them for the particular piece yet I had not found the time to do this. I had no story of my own, I had not thought that purchasers would be interested. I realized then that it was a personal acquisition, like finding an amulet or a collector’s piece. The art we make as jewelers moves people and calls out to them just as a particular work of art would to a collector.

Eventually the owner broke free and sat with me to look through my pieces. He wanted to know if I used “composite” in my work and I had to ask him to explain. “Composite” meant manufactured stone like Howlite or chalk turquoise. I assured him that I had a direct and reliable source and gave him the name of the areas where the raw materials were obtained. His daughter seemed more interested in my jewelry but her father only held on to one piece as he looked through the others. They only take pieces on consignment and only feature a set number of artists so that they may showcase them in an appropriate manner – which is the kind of representation you would want. He took my card and said he would call me.

I visited 4 more shops but the buyers were unavailable.

I took a great deal away from this experience. Although I have spent the time learning my craft and finding my style it is not enough to compete with more professional artists. Now I need to build my brand, my story. Start collections with groupings of a style instead of a mish-mosh of one-of-a-kind pieces that don’t show consistency in the designs. Include presentation with my work, like artists cards for the pieces to explain why they are special.

Time to go back to the studio and start on the next phase of my business: marketing

Because jewelry is small, and the details even smaller, it’s difficult to get good images of your pieces, and it’s difficult to display them well.

Here’s a clever idea for getting people to notice your pieces and spend a little more time exploring their details.

Parking Garage Karlsplatz, Düsseldorf

Ten objects of differing sizes have been threaded into the perforated façade of the parking garage on Karlsplatz. They are greatly magnified pieces of jewelry of the kind that might be worn by the users of the parking garage in the fashion center, Düsseldorf. The modular façade, which cannot be
experienced except as a foreign body in the Old City, is turned by the jewelry worked into it into the display case of a heterogeneously furnished jeweler’s shop.
 
Fotos: Peter Stumpf

ArtWalk 2009

ArtWalk, Art Walk, artwalk — however  you spell it, it’s a great way to showcase your work.

I’ve been in our local ArtWalk for the last two summers and this year to my surprise and delight one of my original designs was featured on the cover of the brochure. 

While a number of art walks are brief — some run only a few days — this one goes all summer.

It’s a real feast for the eyes: paintings and watercolours, hand-dyed silk scarves, intarsia, barrel-fired pottery, stained glass, steel sculpture, felt and fibre art, sterling silver jewelry and more.

This year my work has been at Touchstone Gallery, a lovely shop in Uptowne Olds owned by Lorraine Shippobotham. In an age of mass-generated schlock and big-box stores it’s a breath of fresh air to walk through her door. Her many repeat customers seem to feel the same way.

Touchstone Gallery

If you’re in Olds, stop and say hello and check out her beautiful line of gifts.

You have to be creative in how you stage the set for photographing your jewelry.   If people are web-surfing, you want to entice them to stay on your page a little longer, rather than click-thru to somewhere else.    If they are looking at items in a magazine or newspaper, you want them to linger a bit longer than turning the page.

I first began looking for some good ideas for photographing jewelry at the 7th International Festival of Fashion Photography in Cannes.     There were few examples of jewelry photos, however.   These included two by Marc Turlan

marc turlan

marc turlan

These didn’t excite me, so I kept web-surfing and came across the website of a fashion photographer names Niva Kedem.     Now I was getting closer to the mark.

Her website:
www.nivakedem.com

She groups her photos into photo-style categories, so you can actually learn a lot about imaging on her website, from how she groups her own examples.

niva kedem

niva kedem

niva kedem

niva kedem

It’s difficult to photograph jewelry.  You need to convey details in the piece, and the details are small.    You want to convey a sensibility about the piece — its emotions, its sexuality and sensuality, its use of materials, its relevance to certain contexts.     Many of the components have reflective qualities, which can change colors in photos, or affect the colors of the nonreflective surfaces around it.    You want to convey the artist’s style.

“The photography of jewelry can achieve a whole lot more than just depicting products. It can focus on unique details that generate very different feelings and can contribute to the visual communication of the jewelrys inspiration. Unfortunately, we see time and again that jewelry designers adopt a strangely ambivalent position when faced with how to communicate their products. This applies in particular to jewelry manufacturers in the initial stages of their careers. It is a crying shame that there are so many designers able to achieve the highest standards of precision and perfect craftsmanship in the production of jewelry and then proceed to take inferior photos of it that in no way do justice to their own excellent work. Conversely, established designers who are familiar with trade fair business and with handling the media have usually already discovered or experienced how important it is to define a clear approach in communicating ones own style of jewelry and its special features. An idea of who is or may be the target group for the jewelry can help the photographer or designer find a suitable language of images….   –

One day, however, when I was feeling particularly bold, I called up the woman who runs our local farmers’ market. I stumbled through my introduction and almost apologetically asked if I might bring a few pieces to sell. Of course, she said, come join us.

Hey, that wasn’t so bad. Then the fear hit: What if nobody liked my stuff? What if nobody bought anything? So I made a fallback plan — if I bombed, I’d sell my bead stash and do something else. Nothing like starting with a positive attitude I always say.

The evening arrived and a convention of butterflies was holding sway in my stomach. By the time I arrived at the market they were in full flight. But the world hates a coward so I paid my $10 fee, found my table and proceeded to set up shop.

In hindsight my display was, well, to be kind … awful. I simply laid everything flat on the table. I’d booked on such short notice that I didn’t have time to put together anything more inspiring. Then I brought out a beading project, sat down and got to work. I didn’t want to look up and see the expressions on those passing by. Poor dear, I imagined them saying, I hope she has a day job.

But the evening wasn’t a complete loss. Several friends stopped by to visit and even admired my work. (Friends are wonderful.) After several hours, when it looked like I wouldn’t even cover my table fee, a friend who sells homemade jams and relishes stopped by. She’d sold out and was on her way home. Kind soul that she was she bought 2 pairs of earrings to send to a friend in England. An international sale! 

So, dear reader, I didn’t have to sell my bead stash after all. I kept beading and I kept making phone calls. My markets are expanding slowly but steadily. And I never lay my jewelry flat on the table anymore.

Sea Foam

http://www.couturelab.com/editorial/story-lydiacourteille.html?utm_campaign=lydia_May2009&utm_medium=email&utm_source=email&utm_content=newsletter

From diamond encrusted frog earrings to a stunning pink jasper rose and jeweled monkey bracelet, Lydia Courteille has a talent for transforming aspects of nature into exquisite works of art.

Pay close attention to this promotional photograph of her jewelry.   The photo captivates her artistic perspective.   It enhances the appeal of her jewelry.   It makes you want to buy her pieces and wear them.

It’s difficult to display or present cuff bracelets, whether it’s an image, or on the shelf.   You can’t easily get a look at the full piece, or a sense of its essence.   This is a great display image for her monkey bracelet.

This wonderful piece is a ring.

Flan? The Spanish kind or the Mexican version?

Flans? Whatever they are – automotive parts?

Franny-Lisa-Alicia-Nancy kind of stuff?

Would you ever buy a Swarovski necklace of glass pearls, crystallized elements, 14KT gold clasp and real faceted emeralds from The Flan Corporation?

The Flan Corporation is a Chinese company that sells handcrafted, beadwoven jewelry. I don’t know what “Flan” means in Chinese, but, here in the US, it’s not a word that would immediately make me salivate about handcrafted, beadwoven jewelry.

It’s really difficult to pick a business name. It’s harder than naming your child. It’s harder than naming your dog. I’ve tried many times with varying degrees of success. And the first business name you pick might seem great and work great at the beginning, but will it evolve with your business as well? Maybe yes, maybe not. What’s important is not only how good your business name sounds, and how appealing it is today, but also how adaptable it is over time, as you grow or change your business.

I can’t claim 100% success with my tries at naming a business. Take “Land of Odds.” This has been my best name-selection to date, but it hasn’t been perfect.

I came up with that name 30 years ago for a hobbyist type business, where I refinished antique lamps, and some other antiques, for people. When James and I started our jewelry, beads and gifts business, I thought that Land of Odds would be good for that, as well. The name “Land of Odds” always gets such great responses from people. And it is memorable.

As our business grew and grew, Land of Odds – the name – grew with it. We added more handcrafted jewelry, unusual greeting cards, some neat clothing, collectible lines. The name still worked.

Then our business hit a wall. We were located downtown, and the city of Nashville took away 6,000 parking spaces within an 18 month period of time. The city had renovated this downtown historic district, and for various reasons, cars and parking got in the way of continued development. Our business dropped precipitously. I had to put us into Chapter 11 for awhile. James and I dissolved our business partnership, and we put most of the assets in a new business for him that we called Be Dazzled, and we put most of the liabilities under the Land of Odds name.

Now we were functioning with two names used to describe similar businesses that emphasized unusual, often hand-crafted jewelry, gifts, collectibles, gourmet foods, posters, clothing, and beads and jewelry findings.

I shut the physical Land of Odds store down, and continued the business as an internet company – http://www.landofodds.com . The online company was still called Land of Odds. At first, I put all our merchandise online – beads, jewelry, gifts, clothing, posters and gourmet food. Only two categories did well – beads and posters. I slowly began narrowing our focus to beads and posters, and eventually beads only.

As an online entity, we needed to get top placements in search engines in terms of key words like beads and jewelry findings. Search engine robots that indexed a business name with the words beads and/or jewelry findings in the name, would automatically assign it a higher ranking for those terms. A better online name would have been Beads At Land Of Odds or Land of Odds Beads.

“Land of Odds” was still a name liked by all, but it no longer had the same strong association with beads and posters, and then with beads only. The business grew quickly online, and “Land of Odds” began to have a strong “brand” following. But again, no longer the most strategic business name, given what I was doing now.

“Be Dazzled” was another popular name. The image James had for this business was jewelry that was hand made and wowed people. The business faltered, however. We got rid of most of the merchandise, turned Be Dazzled into a bead store, and eventually recombined Land of Odds and Be Dazzled. At the time we recombined them, both had strong brand identities, so we kept both names. We managed the physical store called Be Dazzled separately from Land of Odds – the online store. When Be Dazzled became all “beads”, I added the word “BEADS” everytime I referred to Be Dazzled — “Be Dazzled Beads” — , from our stationery to answering the phone to setting up its website — www.bedazzledbeads.com .

In the bead business, there are many variations on the name “Beadazzled”. Most people, even regular customers who visit the shop everyday, think that’s our name. We were lucky that Be Dazzled/jewelry morphed so well into Be Dazzled/beads. But we would have been better off if we had worked “beads” into the name somehow. There are a couple of small chain operations called “Beadazzled.” For awhile, someone opened up a bead store in Nashville called “Beadazzled”. There’s always some confusion for and with our shop name.

Several years ago, I began making high end, handcrafted jewelry.    I anticipated my retirement many years down the road, and wanted to establish some activity now that would generate some extra income after I eventually close my shops.    Coming up with a name for this business was difficult, as well.    I settled on Warren Feld Jewelry – www.warrenfeldjewelry.com .

Several things went into consideration here.   I wanted to create a strong brand identity associated with my name.   I wanted to make it difficult for other people to copy my business name.   Since I anticipated that most of my business would be conducted on-line, I wanted a key word that search engines would see and associate with my business.   

However, I settled for a name configuration that is so common among jewelry designers – Your Name Jewelry – that it was not a name that would stand out as much, set me off from the pack as much, or be as memorable as much.    Also, if I ever entertained thoughts of selling this business, having my name in the business name would probably be a negative.

Settling On A Name
First Steps

If you were starting from scratch, and trying to name your jewelry-making business, what things could you do?     What factors are important?    What do you want your name to communicate?

What types of business names are jewelry designers currently using?  If you do a Google search on “jewelry designers” or “directories jewelry”, you can come up with lists of names other people use.    Most use the artist’s name and either the word “design” or the word “jewelry”.   Susan Fein Designs.    Susan Fein Jewelry.  Susan Fein Jewelry Designs.   Susan Fein Designed Jewelry.  

This has pros and cons.  On the positive side, it’s important to get your name associated with jewelry, and a certain style, look and/or quality of jewelry.   This is called branding.   You always need to keep re-emphasizing your name.     In terms of both positive and negative, this gives the search engines something to work with when indexing.     The name is user friendly in that it is easy to interpret and understand.   On the negative side, it seems that almost everyone you are competing with uses the same naming construct.   If a potential customer is paging through the yellow pages, or scrolling down a list of designers in a search engine, you can get lost in the crowd.

The Google search will also show you other types of business names jewelry designers use.  You might also page through jewelry popular and trade magazines.

Brainstorm.   When making the decision about words and names, brainstorm a lot.   Brainstorm with yourself.   Your friends and family.  Potential customers.   In this initial part of the naming process, don’t reject anything.   You want to pull out as many ideas as possible.   You never know what combination of words and phrases might click.

How would you describe your jewelry and your work and your design abilities?  How would anyone else describe these things?    What qualities do you want people to associate with your jewelry?

Do you have a specific target or niche market?   A target area? Demographic? Socio-economic group?     How will your products benefit these target groups?

Where do you see yourself in 3 years, 5 years, 10 years, 20 years?   What will you be selling, to whom, at what price?    Will it be the same merchandise you began with, or very different merchandise?

Write down everything you can think of.   Write down all the qualities you associate with your jewelry.   All the materials you are using.   The price points.    Write down all the types of things you think you will sell – right now, a few years from now, many years from now.   Available only through you, or at local stores?    Write down everything you think makes your jewelry better than that of anyone else’s that your likely customer might buy.   Better made.   Better materials.   Better designs.    Better prices.   More accessible.   More sensitive to customer needs, or customer situations they find themselves in.    Better colors, more relevant colors, more needed or wanted colors.

What are your styles of jewelry?   Sophisticated, every day, novelty?    Gemstone, crystal, glass?    Only one of a kind, or more mass-produced?    In what settings will you sell your jewelry?

Start Putting Words Together Into Phrases.   From this list of potential key words and tags, start putting words together in various combinations.   Say them out loud.   Plug in some of these words into the GOOGLE or Yahoo browser bar, and see what other key words they are associated with.  

For some of your favorite words, you might look these up in different languages – French or Spanish or German or Italian or whatever.    Check these words in a Thesaurus to find related words.    For each 2 or 3 or more word combinations, do a Google or Yahoo search on them, and see what comes up.    Are these the kinds of businesses you want your own to pop up with in an internet search?    See any other words other businesses use that relate?    Does it appear that no other business is using the same name you want to use?

If you are marketing to a multi-lingual audience, will the words you use be recognized in more than one language, and will they be seen as positive and have no negative connotations?  

As you begin to narrow down a name, check with the US Trademark office to be sure no one else has used these names.   Go to www.uspto.gov , and search the business names.   Your state trademarks office may also have a searchable list.

Check to see if anyone has registered your business name online as a registered domain name.   Go to http://www.networksolutions.com/  or  www.GoDaddy.com and type in the name you want.   If the name you want is taken, you can always vary the domain type, such as “.net” or “biz” instead of “.com”.   You can vary a name by adding punctuation like a hyphen or period or deleting a space between words.   You can vary a name by making it plural.   You can vary the name by playing with the spelling of certain words – even making up your own creative spelling for some words.

Best names function on more than one level of understanding – a play on words.     That is, a word or part of a word can convey more than one meaning, and each meaning can be appreciated.     A business called “JewelryWorks” suggests that the jewelry is handcrafted, as well as successful – it works! – for the wearer.

Your name choice can make your business the talk of the town, or doom it to obscurity.  

Keep your name choice simple.   It should convey what your business does.  It should be pronounceable and understandable by your target market.   It should be memorable.  

Avoid tongue twisters.  Avoid words that are more than 2 or 3 syllables.    In most cases, avoid acronyms or names using initials, unless these are very meaningful to your customers.   Your name should be flexible over time as your business grows and evolves.   Avoid trendy names and amateurish or silly names.

Don’t Settle On The First Name You Come Up With

The best approach is to generate 3-5 business names, and start pre-testing them.   

Again, search Google, domain name registries and trademark offices.  

Show your friends and family members all 3-5 names, and ask them to pick their favorites, and tell you why.

Type out the names, using different type-font faces.   You can easily do this in your word processing or web-page editing software.    How does it visually appear on the page, and do you like it or not.

Does your business name lend itself to a logo.     A long time ago, I had done some consulting with a friend – Marge Feinson.     We called ourselves Feinson-Feld Planning Associates.    “Feinson-Feld” was easy to say, sounded professional and established, and we liked it.    We had a terrible logo, however.    We took the “F” of both of our names, and had one F upright and one F facing down, to form a right-leaning box, and people would frequently ask which one of us was the upside down F.  (Of course, it was me!)

Hold your jewelry next to your name.    Match?  Mismatch?

Say your business name out loud.   How easily is it to say and pronounce and be understood?   Have other people say your business name out loud.

Does the name seem as workable for a physical bricks and mortar business, as it does for an online business?    Think about how you intend to market your business – brochures, directories, ads, email campaigns – does your name feel good and fit with these marketing strategies?

If your primary means of marketing is a listing in the Yellow Pages or some other directory, then the first letter of the name might be important.    Should your business start with the letter “A”?   Should your business name avoid the “a”, “an” and/or “the”?

Will the name limit you in any way over time?    Have you chosen something like Tennessee Jewls, and may want to sell outside Tennessee, or have non-Tennessee products to sell?    Do you think you might want to expand beyond jewelry?

If you have an identifiable major competitor, does your business name sufficiently distinguish you from them?

Pick The Name

Pick your business name.     People often make snap judgments about your business based on your business name.   Your business name can often make or break your success.

Protect your business name by registering the name as a trademark or service mark.   Also copyright your brochures and advertising copy, and any sets of instructions, if you create these.  

As soon as you pick your business name, register it as a trade or service mark with your state trademark office.    Each State you do business in, as well as the

US as a whole, offer opportunities to protect your trade or service mark.  In Tennessee, this process is especially inexpensive – around $40.00 per trade or service mark.   You can prevent someone else from using your business name, or product name, by registering this name with the state(s), or US.   You would put a TM next to the name you’ve trademarked, such as Be Dazzled Beads_TM .    Getting a US trademark is expensive, and I’d suggest using the services of a trademark lawyer in this case.

You can copyright any documents or marketing materials (brochures, instructions, etc).  You can do this by registering a copy with the Library of Congress, or just putting © YOUR NAME, date   somewhere on the document.   Or you can send a copy to yourself in a Registered letter, write on the outside of the envelop what is inside, and don’t open the envelop when you receive it back in the mail.  This is a proof of date, should you need to challenge anyone.

Next, register a business domain name, so that you protect your business name from other people who might use it on-line.     In translating your business name to an internet domain name, keep in mind that your email address will include that domain name.   You want people to be able to easily and quickly type in your email address into an email.   You do not want people to confuse the spelling or any added punctuation.

Determine how you want emails to be directed to you.    Never use “info@yourname” or “customerservice@yourname” or “webmaster@yourname” or “store@yourname” or “mail@yourname” and generic things like that.   These too often are challenged by spam prevention systems as spam.   You don’t want your customers’ email systems automatically deleting your emails.  

Create A Tag Line

On written documents, brochures, stationery, envelopes and on online documents with titles, headings and the like, you have an opportunity to present more “words”, that is “meanings”, about your business.     This gives you a second opportunity to convey things about your business that perhaps your specific business name falls short on, or needs more emphasis.

After you’ve come up with a business name, return to your lists of key words, and not-so-key words, and think of a tag line.

First write a 9 words or less tag line.   Settle on a final draft.

Then, come up with a 25 word description of your business.

Then, come up with a 100 word description of your business.

Last, come up with a 250 word description of your business.

All these will be useful, when creating written documents, as well as web-pages, and, just as important, will be useful for filling out forms to register your business name with various search engines and directories.

Name Your Jewelry

I find it useful in increasing attention and sales to name my jewelry.   I name each piece of jewelry, and organize similar pieces of jewelry into collections and series.  

This helps people relate to the various pieces I make.   They get connected to my pieces because the “titles” give them meanings to relate to.     Naming allows me to segment all the jewelry I make into smaller subsets.   This enables me to explain techniques and materials pertinent to particular pieces, so I don’t end up, in my sales pitches, making broad generalizations about what I sell.    And I find people often like to own more than one piece within any series or collection.   People are natural “collectors.”   The familiarity these names generate seems to encourage people to want to own a second or third piece of mine. 

COPYRIGHT, 2009, FELD

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