The Crafts Report: Public Opinion

What is Your Best Marketing Trick?

What’s your opinion?

Each month, The Crafts Report invites readers to respond to the Public Opinion question. Responses are published in the magazine.

This month’s question is: Should show promoters require artists to label their work to indicate where it is made?

Please respond by Sept. 8. Responses to this question will appear in the November 2003 issue.

E-mail: publicopinion@craftsreport.com; or answer online here.

Send responses to: “Public Opinion,” The Crafts Report, Box 1992, Wilmington, DE 19899; fax: (302) 656-4894.

Anonymous responses will not be published.

I finish some of my jewelry pieces and unique artists’ books at the gallery, during receptions, so that clients can see the end result of so many work hours coming together in one moment. I love the process of creation almost more than the finished object. The clients get to participate in that thrill, and I’ll often make sales and teaching commissions from these demos.

We just introduced a new product line of handcrafted cigar box handbags. One of my best marketing tools is to carry one of our handbags whenever we go into high traffic areas (i.e. malls, museums, restaurants, special events etc.). All it takes is interest from one person and a small commotion usually follows. Whenever people see a small crowd starting to gather their curiosity brings them right over. I always keep a stack of business cards with me. This is how I actually acquired my first two wholesale accounts.

The one thing that seems to work best for me is to get people to touch my work. As a glass artist I find people are very reluctant to handle my fused glass plates, bowls, etc. Glass is such a wonderfully seductive medium that if I can just get them to touch it, the connection is made and so is the sale.

My best marketing trick is not really a trick, it’s common sense — just talking to the customers. People who attend craft shows do so because they like the interaction with the artists and they like the special attention they get when an artist addresses his or her wants and needs. It makes for a win/win situation for my customers as well as myself.

My best marketing trick by far is wearing the hand woven garments I make and looking good. Be your own model!

Keeping my past and potential clients informed of new artwork, exhibition schedules, and commission artwork in process. Each month I e-mail them a quick note about what’s new on my Web site.

It’s not that much of a trick, but I do try to follow-up with customers after they buy one of my pieces. Sometimes I just send a thank you card or an e-mail. And you wouldn’t believe the difference that a little note can make. It’s a great way to turn a one-time customer into a collector. Just showing how much you appreciate their business makes them feel like they have a real relationship with the artist.

I haven’t been doing this long, so everything still feels like a trick to me, but I’ve found that giving some of my pieces to my family and friends, and asking them to wear them to special events makes a big difference for my sales. People can become billboards for your work and create word-of-mouth “buzz,” which is so valuable to any business.

I try to get people involved in my work. At shows, I want everyone to feel comfortable touching and trying on the scarves I make. I don’t overwhelm them; I just suggest a scarf that would look good on them and help them wrap it.