[TheForge] Advertising your craft

Wed Mar 5 16:12:01 2003

Ray, just a quick, question how would a 6 mo. backlog for a part timer, translate for a full time metal worker? and do you feel this type of exposure would generate enough work to keep a full time shop busy? Also, with railings, do you do the installations, or do you sub out that work.
John C.

[email protected] wrote:

> I do NO advertising, not even the yellow pages. I keep a solid backlog, as a part timer, by having a group of interior design firms that know what I can do for them, and periodically I show my face to remind them, OH, yea we have something we need for you to do.
>
> I have also passed on the Home and Garden shows, unless I want to be in the $20 a pop garden stake business, I have done work for builders and interior designers for the homebuilders association home show for the past several years and that has generated a ton of work year after year, but only railings, for the most part. And as I work mostly alone, and mostly "part - time" I had a 6 month backlog and way more stress than there should be in a "hobby".
>
> I have no plans to participate in future shows. I believe my time and money would be better spent cultivating good relationships with more interior designers and starting to work with more architects. (I have a couple of them that always specify me for railings whenever their designs call for iron).
>
> Ray Miller
> Cincinnati
>
> >
> > From: "R.C.Mundt" <[email protected]>
> > Date: 2003/03/05 Wed AM 08:10:06 EST
> > To: <[email protected]>
> > Subject: Re: [TheForge] Advertising your craft
> >
> > My whole deal started w/ an ad in a local advertising paper, I ran an ad
> > pretty much continually for 3-4 years.  It's pretty hard to keep paying for
> > an ad when you only get a ocasional call and only a small percent of them
> > actually buy any thing. I read somewhere that the average person will read
> > an ad 7 times before responding to it. I rented a booth at our local hom and
> > garden show 2 years in a row , first was good , second  year was a waste of
> > time.   The local newspaper did a story on me  about 3 years ago, got a few
> > calls no work, atleast not imediatly.  I ran an ad in a paper in a
> > neighboring city for several wks. w/ no response so stopped the ad. a yr.
> > latter I got a job from that ad. Right now I'm in the yellow pages and thats
> > all  its an easy way for people to find me.  People  who want iron seem to
> > know I'm around now just wish more people wanted iron.  I dont have a web
> > page, the business's I know w/ web pages don't seem to think they get any
> > business from them.  I think it would be a good plkace to send customers to
> > view your wares once they found you some place else.
> > What do you guys w/ web pages think , do they bring in any work?
> > Randy Mundt
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "Shannell Sugrue" <[email protected]>
> > To: <[email protected]>
> > Sent: Wednesday, March 05, 2003 1:05 AM
> > Subject: [TheForge] Advertising your craft
> >
> >
> > > Just wondering how most of the professional smiths here advertise their
> > > wares and abilities? Im in the yellow pages of course with a link to my
> > > website but am now looking at promoting a showroom Ive just completed via
> > > local media. My goal is to get people to visit my real world "gallery" and
> > > see the sort of stuff I can do. Ive got a quarter page coming up in a
> > > national "lifestyle" magazine, that cost a heap, but am interested in how
> > > anyone else does it.
> > >
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