Around The World: The Benefits Of Selling Jewelry Online

One of the great things about selling jewelry online is that you can reach out to an international audience. It's funny; I recently had a discussion with my husband about the "small" size of our world. In the not-too-distant past, we thought that we'd conquer distance by changing our transportation systems (i.e. have flying cars, etc.). Instead, it's our communication that's changed and has given us the chance to easily contact almost anyone in any country.

Anyway, Etsy has an international audience and because of that, I often sell items to people outside of the United States. I've sold several pieces to Australians, Canadians and Brits... and I recently sold a pair of my wire wrapped squiggle earrings to a woman in Greece!

I'm always psyched when I sell to a new country (not that ancient Greece is anywhere near being new, but it's new for me...). It's really surreal to think that my pieces are being worn all around the world. I'm happy enough when I see one of my friends wearing my jewelry, but it's a little weird to think that I could be wandering the streets of Athens and see my earrings.

There are some things that I don't like about the Internet. I feel that we no longer spend enough time meeting up in person and that people are sometimes nastier than usual online because they can hide their true identities. However, the Internet is also very useful, especially to small-time artists/vendors like me. In the past, we would've had to rely on selling our goods at local craft fairs and maybe getting our work displayed in a gallery. I'd still like for the latter to happen, but sites like Etsy give artists a wider reach. I'm grateful that I live in a time when it's a little less difficult to turn a hobby into a career.

To purchase my jewellery, head to Naomi's Designs or MayaGirl Creations.

Selling Jewelry Online: Dry Spell

When interviewing actors for my former magazine job, they often told me that in their profession a) they could get fired or their show could be cancelled at any time b)that when a job ended, they could never be sure that another would come along c) but they had to keep acting because it was what they loved to do.

I sometimes feel as if I'm in a similar position when it comes to being a jewelry artist, particularly one who sells online. It is NOT steady work. It's dependant upon trends, seasons and the whims and tastes of everybody who goes online to shop. Basically, every day is a gamble and a question mark when it comes to whether or not I will make sales -- which is the case with any business, but even more so when you can't even see the people to whom you're selling.

That said, there are bound to be dry spells and downtimes, and right now, I'm going through one of those. I haven't sold a damn thing all week and it's frustrating, as hell, especially since I made sales every day last week. I thought I was on a roll! This is why I never take any sale for granted and try to not get cocky about sales increasing, which they have for the most part.

I don't think it's me, necessarily. I mean, if I were making so many sales last week, people aren't going to suddenly hate my stuff. And I've been getting plenty of views on Etsy. I think it probably has something to do with it being summer in the Northern Hemisphere. I do have some Aussie buyers, but most of my clients are from the United States and Europe -- and everyone there is going outside or going on vacation. They're not sitting in front of a computer shopping.

There are also no major holidays during this time in the U.S. between July 4th and Labor Day. So there are no events to shop for.

Though I am worried about the lack of sales, I'm trying to instead think about the near future, meaning the holiday season. In the past, I've done very well with online ventures during this time and I plan for this to be a really good year. I'm going to do several craft shows to get the in-person crowds and plan to make some limited edition holiday jewelry and ornaments. I love the fall, anyway, so I'm looking forward to all of this. I'm also trying to work more on getting my jewelry into stores, and to put out a "Back To School" line for my kids' site.

So even though things might be slow right now, I'm thinking positively and am using this time to work ahead. There's always something I can be doing and I figure that it'll pay off in the long run.

To purchase my jewellery, head to Naomi's Designs. To purchase my children's jewelry, head to MayaGirl Creations.

Driving Traffic To Your Etsy Shop With A Blog

This feels a little meta posting this here, but I think it's valuable information for anyone who's looking to make money online in some way. This is an article I wrote for HubPages about using a blog to drive traffic to an Etsy store.

Making money online -- whether it's through writing, opening a shop on Etsy, or whatever -- is a complicated business. And yes, it's a business. When I began writing online about three years ago, I knew NOTHING. I thought that I could post some articles and people would automatically find my site. Same goes for Etsy; though I wasn't quite as naive when I opened my shop, I still did many things wrong. In both cases, I had to learn about search engine optimization (SEO), backlinks, rss feeds and all of these other new, unfamiliar words. It was like learning a new language and a new culture ... all so I could make a few extra bucks.

I've been fairly successful with online marketing and feel confident enough to share my expertise with the rest of the world. When I began, I looked for articles that catered to people like me -- people who really didn't know too much about using computers to make money. I'm hoping that my easy-to-understand approach will assist those who want to get started and don't know how.

I won't lie. Making money online is NOT easy. I've put a lot of time into marketing my writing and my jewelry, and while I've done pretty well, I'm still not nearly as successful as I'd like to be. I'm still learning. I hope that my words make this learning just a little easier for someone else.

To purchase my jewelry, head to Naomi's Designs.