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2/28/2011

Marketing Monday: Branding

I've been thinking about branding and cohesiveness again lately.
Sellers Assisting Sellers had a post this weekend:
How To Tell If Your Business Is Branded.
I'm not sure about the 'tell a story through your descriptions.'
I prefer a clear and concise description, both as a buyer and a seller.

One of Hearts (Screwed)
JohnnyNoThumbzzz

Catherine of Olivebites, Home of Uncorked and Polarity
has been writing a marketing series on her blog. From
Marketing This Thing Part IV: Strategy Is Not Just For Generals,
I really enjoyed this advice,

Now, we want to be creating our own brand and not
copying anyone else's, but seeing someone else doing
something really, really well can get us thinking of new
ways of looking and thinking about our own work.


Fortune Pendant - A pleasant surprise
CandyCalamity

So what do you prefer? A story? A concise description?
Have you found your brand?

2/25/2011

Feature me Friday: Unik Creations

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This week we feature: UnikCreations
The perfect excuse for addictive creating.
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Who is UnikCreations?
UNik Creations is myself, a sophomore in high school with an abnormal amount of ambition and a passion for sewing,
dancing, and creating.
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What’s the first thing you remember making?
The first thing I can remember making was a halloween costume when I was, say, in the third or forth grade. I remember taking
an old dress, ripping the bodice from the skirt, and then using
the skirt over an old tutu so that it was like an old fashioned puffy, hoop skirt. My mother nearly killed me, considering it was a beautiful dress that could have been worn by my sister, but I loved it, my first taste of taking something and giving it a new voice. I've been doing it ever since.
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Where do you work?
For my sewing and crafting I basically invade a decent chunk of my families basement.
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What are your favorite tools?
My sewing machine (which I often refer to as my baby), my
duct tape dress model, and most importantly my seam ripper.
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Why work with recycled materials?
Working with recycled materials began because they were easier and cheaper for me to get my hands on, but has become something that inspires me. When your materials have a history,

I feel like it becomes a more interesting relationship. I'm not just taking my ideas and making them new, but taking things that already have a past and giving them new life. That's really the beauty of working with recycled materials for me.
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What music do you listen to while you’re working?
It really depends, if I need to chill I'll listen to classical, if I need to get pumped up I'll put on the radio to some awful pop station, and sometimes I just like to listen to some soft indie rock.
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Who inspires you?
So many people. Both my grandmothers are insanely talented and artistic, they partly got me interested in arts and crafting. My dance and art teachers really inspire me both in their determination and their willingness to experiment and "play" with what art is. I'm also so so so SO inspired by all the amazing things I see on Etsy, as we all know it can be mind shattering how much talent and creativity is both close to home and thousands of miles away. Not to be too corny, but I have become inspired really by this team's noble ideas, which are so much a part of me.
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Been to any great exhibits?
I live in a vibrant 5 college area, so I have been able to see so much local and global art. Recently I was awed by an exhibit called Luscious, by Emily Eveleth at the Smith college museum which was these enormous still life's of jelly doughnuts. Very memorable.
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Read any good books lately?
A few. I loved the book Button Button by Terry Talyor, I discovered it right after I began to work with buttons and was thrilled to hear so many other creative minds were thinking the same thing.
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How do you get from A to Z?
Biking and public transportation all the way- parents gave up on the whole issue a while back ;)
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What do you do for fun?
I love biking, swimming, dancing, cooking, painting, drawing, sewing, designing, and just plain playing.
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Besides Etsy, where can we find you work?
As a high school student, my main work domain is still school, but I also work as a teacher trainee at both my dance school and my temple. Basically I teach/ control little kids, and try not to be that horrible assisant teacher who is detested forever.
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How do you promote your work?
facebook for sure, flickr, email lists, handy business cards, word of mouth, plus my website and blog. To be honest, it's an area I probably need to work on.
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What’s in your future?
I'm still in high school, but someday I'd love to be able to really do what I'm doing now, crafting and beingable to live of it.
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Have any words of wisdom?
You are your own unique person... just like everybody else.
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Images & Text © UnikCreations
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2/11/2011

Feature me Friday: JohnnyNoThumbzzz

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This week we feature JohnnyNoThumbzzz
One of a kind creations from a man that's one of a kind.
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Who is JohnnyNoThumbzzz?
Johnny No Thumbzzz came from an old episode of Golden Girls in which Sophia had to talk to Mr. Thumbs about the old days and who he was connected to. An old girlfriend started calling me that and it went from there.
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What’s the first thing you remember making?
The very first thing I remember making is a Christmas ornament in kindergarten. It was a cut and curled construction paper monstrosity.
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Why work with recycled materials?
I started working with recycled materials because I couldn't afford "real art supplies". I had majored in ceramics in college and after graduation found that it was hard to continue working with those materials. So I started making things with whatever I could find.
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Where do you work?
I work mostly in the basement of my house, but sometimes in
the garage or outside on the patio. Here's a photo of my severely cluttered work bench...
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Who inspires you?
Inspiration: Andy Warhol, Jean Tinguely, Rauschenberg,
Jim Dine, Arman, Antoni Tapies, Yves Klein...
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What are the best thing you’ve purchased on etsy and where did you find it?
Best thing I purchased on Etsy was a porcelain skull ring by Mishko. I was just doing random searches on etsy and found it.
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What do you do for fun?
For fun I ride my 1999 Yahama V-star Motorcycle or garden.
I have a great perennial garden. I also have 4 cats that keep me entertained.
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Read any good books lately?
Just finished reading Rich Dad, Poor Dad. Currently reading
Just Kids by Patty Smith.
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Been to any great exhibits?
Haven't been to any good exhitions lately, but I am really liking the images posted at the Dudecraft Blog.
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How do you get from A to Z?
A-Z transport is Big Blue Skulltruck, my everchanging art truck.
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Currently Blue has been updated with a lifesize plastic skull hood ornament with red led's for eyes. There are two smaller skulls on the left and right sides that are also wired with red led's and are wired into the turn signals. Blue was featured on the Skull-a-Day Blog.
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What are your favorite tools?
Favorite tool has to be a Craftsmen rotary tool.
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What music do you listen to while you’re working?
I don't really listen to music when working. I just let the voices in my head jabber away. (just kidding). I'm on a sound of silence kick these days.
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Besides Etsy, where can we find you work?
Besides Etsy my work can be found at Collector's Corner at the Toledo Museum of Art and The Hive Creations, Anna Maria Island, Florida.
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How do you promote your work?
Still trying to find a good way to promote my work. Have tried Google Adwords, and I'm currently considering other options
like Art Fairs. I'm on Facebook too.
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Have any words of wisdom?
Words of wisdom: ? Live Long and Prosper!
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What’s in your future?
I intend to keep pushing forward with my artwork and intend
to make it my day job. I want to be able to support my wife and myself in a manner in which we'd like to be accustomed.
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Images & Text © JohnnyNoThumbzzz
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2/07/2011

Marketing Monday: Square


If you have any sort of booth, at any sort of show,
where you need to be able to accept credit cards, then you need Square.
I witnessed one first hand last week at the To Bead True Blue show in Tucson
[one show of the much larger Tucson Gem and Mineral Show].
Just plug it into your iPhone, iPad or Android device and swipe cards right at your booth.
Customers sign with their fingertip, you receive your payment instantly,
and you can immediately email the customer a receipt.
For me, this sort of thing is priceless,
but it will only cost 2.75% of total receipts, plus 15 cents per transaction.