On Packaging & Branding & Etsy

I thought a lot about those things before I opened my Etsy Shop and actually before I even started making jewelry I wanted to sell.  Everything from the type of jewelry I make, the name of my shop, the way I package sold items, my business card, and the way I take my photos has been thought out completely.  This is branding.

I love creating a look, coming up with a feel or brand for something and then having that trusty theme to fall back on for every visual challenge there is in having a business.  It makes things much simpler when you have the ideas from the get go, but it's also important to let these things grow naturally.  I am constantly re-shooting jewelry as I get better at taking close-ups.  I re-edit my listings when I think of something that could sound or look better.  It sounds tedious and it is.  But I think in the land of online marketplaces, that branding is the most important thing a seller can do to promote themselves.

I hope my shop speaks to the ideas of "natural", "rustic", and "antiqued".

One of my favorite things about my Etsy shop besides making the jewelry product is the packaging that I came up with (and admittedly my hubby has a big part in).  I got to mail another package off today and It makes me feel so good every time!  Would you love to get this in the mail?

The cost of making this little wooden "crate" is calculated in my shipping costs, I really love the way it looks and the handmade message it sends.  Matt makes the box.  I pencil on the Shop Name and then Matt burnishes the letters into the wood.  The order is packed in the crate with eco-friendly wood shavings and then the whole thing gets ribboned and surrounded in cardboard.  That's it!  Makes me smile every time.  I feel a little like Santa too.

An artist is not paid for his labour but for his vision. ~ James MacNeill Whistler