The creative process of designing and crafting a unique piece of jewellery is all-consuming.
It’s important, however, that as well as embracing the creative process, jewellery designers grasp the other side of the business – the money-making side. Most importantly for a new jewellery maker, this means marketing.
To point you in the right direction, here’s some simple advice on where to start.
It is essential to know who your customer is. This may sound obvious, but many a designer has tried to sell their jewellery in the wrong places and found themselves either without a customer base, or categorised in a way they don’t want – both of which are hard to recover from, especially when you have already invested time and money.
Craft shows are an effective means for testing the viability of your work, and building a reputation at the same time
Market research
The best thing to do is research companies and jewellery designers out there to get an idea of where your designs fit within the market. This can be time consuming, but it is time well spent, as it will constitute a significant investment for the future.
Once decided on your market, you need to work out where you are going to start. Building a customer base is essential; once people know and like your work, they will seek you out rather than the other way around.
Craft shows are an effective means for testing the viability of your work, and building a reputation at the same time. Search online to find some in your area, and then visit them.
As good as a particular show might sound, you need to evaluate whether it’s the right show for you.
Does it focus on handmade pieces? Is the show specifically for jewellery, and if not, would it be an appropriate event for selling your jewellery?
Does it attract your chosen consumer demographic? Good shows book up well in advance – so be proactive and start your research early.
Think outside the box
The second starting point is getting your handmade jewellery into some shops or spaces your customers visit. Boutiques and crafts shops are good places to begin.
Try to think outside the box. Maybe a display case in the right hairdressers might get you some attention.
Remember though, there will be a cost associated with any of these options; you may have to pay a fee to the shop/place for displaying your work, or they may require a commission per piece sold. Therefore, find out their policies prior to discussing your costs, to avoid promising prices that will put you out of pocket.
Sell online
Finally you need to start selling your work online as it allows your established customer base to purchase your pieces at their leisure. Online jewellery is a fast growing and dynamic business, and although building your own website is going to be a lot cheaper than opening a shop, it can still be a considerable outlay if you’re not a web designer yourself!
However, it is still possible to sell online through existing websites, which might consider your work suited to their target market. If websites are open to hosting new designers then they’ll usually make this clear.
Remember, as wonderful and unique as your jewellery may be, if your buyer doesn’t see it, it doesn’t exist. You’ve just got to make a start – good luck!
