UPDATED! A Giveaway to Increase Visibility!

Okay I had posted here about the giveaway I participated in that increased my Facebook following so significantly that in four days I went from 74 Likes to 1,500+.

I had a lot of inquiries about the process and it became apparent that I was unclear. However I have now been informed of another giveaway in the Month of May and I want to encourage all my Team Members to involve themselves.

Keep in mind that this is a tool for you to increase your own visibility, but if you win that is great too!

The complete details are HERE! (The link has been removed as sign up is closed)

READ THE INFORMATION COMPLETELY! 

The way this works is you follow the very simple rules. Which are...

1. This is FREE to get on the rafflecopter! 2. You MUST have this giveaway shared by your Facebook Fan page between 9:00 p.m. EST, May 3, and 9:00 a.m. EST May 4. 3. You MUST promote this giveaway a total of 9 times on your Facebook Fan page throughout the 3 weeks it is live. 4. This giveaway will run from 9:00 p.m. EST on May 3 through 12:01 a.m. EST on May 24.

The Rafflecopter is the way people enter the contest, and once the contest opens then people must "like" your Facebook page to enter the contest.

Now if you don't follow the rules, the administrators of the contest will remove your information from the contest, and in some cases not allow you to participate in future events.

When people connect to you, they will then see your posts in their feed, and it is only reasonable that it will increase your views and hopefully in turn result in sales.

I entered the first contest trying to win, because I wanted a Kindle Fire. So the entire situation was shocking to me once I learned what I had actually done.

However Etsy tells us that using social media to our advantage is a plus, and if we can find ways to expand our social media footprint then I think that is a great plan!

UPDATE: As soon as I see another opportunity like this I will post it as well. I am very sorry for the short amount of time for signing up, I had no idea they would close it that fast. 

GOOD LUCK! Let me know if you have any questions at all!

Ways to Grow Your Visibility!

Trying to Find AREtsy! 

I know that all of us struggle at times with getting people to look at our products, but we all know that if we can generate more traffic our chances of sales go up. I accidentally fell into a way to make this happen, and it has been SHOCKING! Almost too easy for words.

First when I started my blog I read a book by The Simple Dude called Grow Your Blog. It was only $1.99 and it gave me some simple tips and ways that help your blog grow. Now I have seen dramatically increased traffic, but as of yet I haven't gotten to his level of success. I have faith though.

I know not everyone has a blog and it can be a little daunting and confusing to get it all started and set up the way you like it, but if you already have one this may be a good idea. If you are interested in starting a blog, I would be happy to help, and could even do maybe a series of tutorials to help Team Members if you are interested.

Second, I found a contest where they were giving away FOUR Kindle Fires. I know it is somewhat foolish to think that I will get one, but it was also foolish to think I would win the $540 million power ball, but I gave it a $2 try anyway.

Now I had never heard of this site before and didn't know a lot about it, but they have these contests with varying prizes frequently. The trick to them is that they use a company called Rafflecopter, and on of the biggest ways to gain entries into the contest is to "Like" the Facebook pages of participating companies.

I know this can be annoying, but in 24 hours I received an additional 1200+ additional Likes to my Facebook page. I also saw an increase in number of people reached from an average of 60 to a new number of 275!

Here is what you need to think about, when people like your companies page all the items you post on your Facebook go into their News Feed. A ton of people that know nothing about you see your items, and it is only reasonable to think that someone will eventually click on your item.

Third, use some of the opportunities we are cultivating to get your name out there more. I have been asked by the Arkansas Women Bloggers to request donations for some of their events. They are not looking for really expensive items, just things that they can give as door prizes etc.

The benefit to us is that if you donate, they will post your shop information on their website, ask their members to blog about your items, and your information will be included on the flyers that go out with each event. They have a total of 171 members in their directory of women bloggers in the state, and based off their research there are some staggering numbers about how those members can help you as well.

If you are interested in donating for their events, keep an eye on Facebook and Twitter which is where I generally post this information, and if you ever have questions you can contact them directly as well from their site!

Etsy tells us that using social media to our advantage is a highly successful and FREE advertising method. It doesn't matter how you get people to like your page, you just need to get them there. I stumbled into this hopefully highly advantageous event, and wanted to share with my team members.

Good Luck!

UPDATE: As of Thursday the 12th I now have 1,400+ Likes on my Facebook Page and have reached 935 people. Now I was asked by another person about the raffle copter. They only administer the contest, and I agreed to participate PRIOR to the start of the contest, but Acadiana's Thirifty Mom does these frequently. Keep your eyes peeled and if you agree to the terms of the participation, you too can get this kind of a boost. Think of how great that visibility is!

April Featured Seller - Lybly

This month, we are going to feature our captain! Marisa and her shop Lybly!

Tell us a bit about yourself.

I have two insanely beautiful and wonderful daughters, Lyric (9) and Blyss (8).  They are the most amazing gift and I never get enough of them.  I live in Hot Springs currently, but work in Little Rock.  I have always been a creative/creating-obsessed person, but started trying to narrow in a business of creating things when I was between jobs 2+ years ago.

Apart from creating things, what do you do?

In my day-job, I am a creative director at an advertising agency and have been working in marketing and advertising for the last 10 years.  I can usually be found with a book in my hand, listening to a book during my freakishly long commute, or trying desperately to get outdoors and do something – bike, hike, whatever.

Where does your inspiration come from?

My inspiration for creating things usually comes from the smallest spark of an idea that comes out of nowhere.  It never comes from the same place twice and hits you very unexpectedly.  And, unfortunately, it is just not something I can plan (or I’d probably be way better off).

What does handmade mean to you?

I just love everything that handmade stands for.  I feel like it keeps the human element in those ‘things’ that you love to keep around your house or wear or flaunt.  J  And, if everyone would buy handmade, think of all those small businesses and artisans that could stay in business and support their family the way we all want to.  Dream world, right?!?

Who has been most influential in your craft?

I guess my girls.  Both, because they like to craft with me (they love to help anywhere they can) and because they always have wants or needs for things that I’m like “I can make that for them.”

When did you know you were an artist/maker?

I was itty bitty when I realized I was quirky than the other kids. J  And, always wanted to be the artist in the game of Life, never a doctor or astronaut.  I think I have just always known I’d go somewhere down that path, but have definitely never gone the exact direction I planned.  So, I’ve just learned not to plan, then you are constantly surprising yourself.

How would you describe your creative process?

It has no rhyme or reason.  I never do things the same way for too long and am never happy with how I did, so I’m always looking for better/new ways to try it.

If you could peek inside the studio of any artist, designer or craftsman (dead or alive), who would it be?

I would have given anything to have had the opportunity to be a part of Andy Warhol’s chaos, or watched Robert Rauschenberg or Roy Lichtenstein work.  Actually, the list of people I would (or would have) liked to get a glimpse of is miles long.  I just am so inspired by people who create and why they do it and where it alls comes from.

What handmade possession do you most cherish?

I love anything and everything that I can buy or have handmade.  I don’t think I have one possession I cherish more than others, unless of course it is something my children made.

How do you get out of your creative ruts?

I do seriously get in these moods where I can’t make myself do anything!  Does everyone have this??  Everything I’m working on seems like its terrible and I can’t get any motivation.  I have found that when this happens for me, I need to force myself into ‘something’ and I’ll just naturally find a way out of it.  It might take my a few hours or days of internal arguing to ‘force’ my way out, but it always seems to work when I do.  J

Where would you like to be in ten years?

I’m not really sure where I’d like to be in ten years.  Life has thrown me for some loops in the last couple of years, so I have turned into a rather ‘go-with-the-flow’ kinda person.  I do know I would like to have a thriving business of my own creation and have a happy and healthy home.  Other than that, I’ll probably just ride the wave and see where it takes me.

Find our leader at all of the following links: Store, Website, Facebook, Twitter, and Blog!

Thanks Marisa, for letting the team get to know you better! 

Calling All Team Members!

We have been working on our directory and a pack of other things. However we are having some trouble getting good information on craft shows and other vending opportunities.

Come on team! Let's get to posting!

If you are participating in ANY craft show any where in the state, or even just across the lines.

Let us know about it! We want to help our team with as much advertisement, and getting seen is the only way to do it!

If you are at a show or fair, tell people about AREtsy! Tell them to visit the other shops! If they are looking for a certain item and you know of a team member that sells that, then send them in that direction!

We want to help as many as possible! I know it is a slow process, but we want everyone to have as many opportunities as possible to succeed!

Happy St. Patricks Day

Today is brought to you by the color green, oh and AREtsy Artists!

If you click on the photos it will take you to our Team Members Listing!

Making Money on your Blog!

Today I wanted to discuss some various options for ways to make money on your blog.

1. Ad Sense by Google. If you are on blogger there is a widget called ad sense. This is a "we pay you for click through" type thing. They review your blog and must approve you, so no naughty naughty things on there, and then you can have the widget (or multiple) that they will stream relevant ads to these widgets. You can also have more than one. 


2. Other stream widgets. There are other providers that do the same thing. Here is the Top Networks of those providers. 


3. Selling Sponsorships. In this aspect I am referring to actual sponsorships that you write a post that is an advertisement and then list that the ad is sponsored by Company XYZ. Some people don't like these as they want to see what you have to say, not what your trying to sell people. This could result in loss of viewers if you do it too much. 


4. Selling Blog Sponsorships. This one is when other bloggers pay you to be advertised on your site. Such as the way Lucky Pups does their sponsorships on a monthly basis. You can set your own pricing and you post about the sponsors through the month. This can also be people like Etsy stores, Cafe Press or Zazzle designers, or anyone that is willing to pay the fee. However be very careful to judge if you want that type of person advertising on your site. If your viewers click through to view your sponsors and find adult content when they wanted new dog bowls you might get people offended, fired (if they view at work) and loose viewers.  You should always tell people that you reserve the right to refuse advertising.


5. There can also be different types of ads. 
1. Text ads - "Check out my good friends over at Company/Blog ABC" and insert a link to go view them
2. Graphic ads - Use a button with an embedded link to send viewers to the desired location
3. Banner ads - These are graphic ads that are generally larger, and can have more than one link in them sometimes. 


6. Selling your Services. This is something that you can do by sometimes guest posting for a fee or freelance writing for other publications. There are other ways to sell writing services, but as I am not a writer and haven't done this I don't know that I would be any good at suggesting options. 

Now not all of these methods will be highly lucrative, but the more you post, the more followers you get, the more you work your blog, the more likely you are to make more money.

Keep in mind, if you post controversial things or if you are amusingly irreverent it is highly likely that there will be people that do not want to advertise on your blog, or that you will get turned down by an ad service. This is not a personal affront to you, but just means you can try other avenues for funding.

Good luck out there! 

March Featured Seller - The Little Chick

 

Tell us a bit about yourself.  

In my previous life, I owned Designs I.C., a corporate aviation interior and residential design firm.  I traveled a lot and when I had my daughter I didn’t want to leave her so……I refocused my life.  I now devote my time and attention to her, my husband, two dogs and The Little Chick Boutique.

Apart from creating things, what do you do?  

Aside from working in my studio, I spend time with my daughter at the zoo (where if she had her way, we would go every day).   I do a lot of volunteer work with the Junior League of Little Rock and I am training for my second half marathon, which will be in two weeks……

What would be the title of your memoir? Why?  

“Crazy, Hectic, Fantastic Lady…….I mean Life.”  I wouldn’t change anything in my life, unless I could win the lottery, then I might make one or two changes.  My life is crazy, hectic and fantastic…..I think I’m pretty fantastic too most of the time.  I only have that confidence because I juggle my daughter, my husband, a small business and a household.  I think most who can handle this are pretty fantastic and there are a lot of us out there.        

Where does your inspiration come from?  

My inspiration comes from fabric.  I love to look at and imagine all of things that I can make with it.  I love to weave together different patterns and colors.  Not one thing ever looks the same when you mix fabrics so it’s inspiring to see all of the things one can come up with. 

What does handmade mean to you? 

Handmade to me means exactly what it says “Hand Made.” My items are all completely handmade except for the obvious items; such as, fabric, thread, etc.  Buying an item; i.e., a backpack, shirt, burp cloth, etc and monogramming a name on it is not handmade…..its partial made.  I have a separate website besides Etsy for those items that I carry that are not handmade.    

Who has been most influential in your craft?  

My mother!  She sewed all of my clothes growing up and even though she always wanted to teach me how to sew, I never wanted to learn until I was older, but I must have paid attention more than she ever knew. 

When did you know you were an artist/maker?  

I always felt like an artist when I was doing design work with aircraft, even if I was just designing and watching other people make it, but I truly felt like a “maker” when people started wanting to pay me for things that I made. 

How would you describe your creative process?  

Scattered…..I wouldn’t call it a process at all.  I have a journal beside my bed because most of my ideas come in the middle of the night and I have to jot them down before I can go back to sleep.  It’s always fun to wake up in the morning and see what I thought about because lots of time I don’t remember. 

If you could peek inside the studio of any artist, designer or craftsman (dead or alive), who would it be?  

Rachel Ashwell because her shabby chic style is right up my alley.

                                                                                        

What handmade possession do you most cherish? 

The clothes and blankets my mother made for me when I was a little girl.  She kept a few of them and they are special to me because my daughter has actually worn a few of them.

How do you get out of your creative ruts?  

Running…..it never fails when you’re on mile 2 or 3 of a 4 mile run, you will think of something creative and have nothing to write it down.

Where would you like to be in ten years?  

In ten years, I won’t say how old I will be, but my daughter will be in school so I hope to have more than two days to really devote to my craft.  I hope to be doing more tradeshows and quite possibly have my own brick and mortar shop….the last one is on the lottery list so I’m not holding my breath. 

  

To Find The Little Chick Boutique check out their Blog, Facebook, Etsy Store, and their Web Page.