How often do you change your shop avatar?

[Former_Member]

Hi all,
Just curious, how often do you change your shop avatar? If you change it often, or have never changed it, do you think it makes a difference?

[WilliamsGiftshop]

Never.
Your avatar, banner, image on your business cards, etc., are all part of your branding. And branding is very important.
Whenever people see William's face anywhere on the internet, they think about me and my creations.
That is what you want to use your avatar for.
If you change it, nobody will recognize you in for instance these forums.

[Former_Member]

For me, I found one I like and now I'm sticking with it. I find it helps to not change it, and to use to for my facebook page, my blog avatar, and on here, and then people will recognize it (and hopefully remember me better!)

[angelshaug]

Hmmm I have never changed mine, but am starting to think that i should. Don´t think it can make a big difference?!

[Former_Member]

I can't decide on a good one. I sell mainly log candle holders and concrete items. I used to have a picture of three of my candles, maybe I should play around with that and somehow add my shop name in there too.

[Former_Member]

I have the same one across various sites I'm on - I think it provides consistency - for me anyway!

[Former_Member]

I tried using one of my products for a while, but switched back to my own face, as anyone coming into my shop can see the products anyway, but they have to click on my About Me page to see my face.

Personally I do like to see the face behind the shops and products. It's nice to know there's a real human there.

[Former_Member]

See I'd use and Like the real face thing...but for things like.

Well lets say i(or random buyer) share you shop link on FB or in some forums...the Photo those sites pull is always your avatar :/

[Former_Member]

Ok, any thoughts on this one? It is pretty plain, but hopefully memorable. Any thoughts?

[Former_Member]

I like how classy it is, but I'd still love to see something of your product included, as the title of your shop doesn't clue me into your product.

Maybe just one of your candles on the bottom right-hand side, with the text left-aligned?

[Former_Member]

@Amanda, that would be pretty! I am not sure how to do that, but I will work on this weekend. :)

[Former_Member]

I'm not positive myself :P But I think you can probably get just the image of the candle separated in microsoft's "paint" program and paste it into the avatar you've already created?

[Former_Member]

Is this a little closer? I wasn't sure which candle to use. Any thoughts? :)

[sewbigkeepsake]

Stuck for a year....think it is part of my brand!

[Emariecreations]

Usually a few times a year, though mostly for the spring/summer, fall and winter, that way I can "showcase" certain seasonal items.

[Former_Member]

Never really thought of changing my avatar, I see it as an image of who I am

[Former_Member]

I like that one a lot, Cindy!

[Former_Member]

My avatar is also my logo, and I use it everywhere as part of my branding process. I want people to see it and think "Flickertail Fibers" or at least, hey, I've seen that logo before!

[Former_Member]

I have changed my avatar once. I used to use a photo of myself modeling one of my creations. Then I decided this yin yang brooch depicts the essence of my brand pretty well. Not sure if I'll change it again.. Branding is something I don't have set in stone yet. Still working on it.

[Former_Member]

At first I changed my a LOT as I was trying to figure out what I wanted, but now that I've settled into my style, it's not going to change for awhile. There's definitely something to be said for establishing strong branding, since people tend to recognize you by your avatar. Keep in mind though that if you aren't feeling good about your current avatar, changing it would be better than keeping with a look that doesn't represent your shop well.

One thing you can consider doing is making an avatar/banner that can be subtly changed w/o affecting your branding. Mine for example, could easily be switched out with a different color hat and it would still carry the same brand identity that I've established, just color-matched to the seasons.

[CarolaBartz]

I haven't changed mine and I don't intend to. It's part of my branding and I want people to recognize it/me.

[rusticcraftdesign]

I used to have an engraving with a heart---but have changed it to the christmas tree engraving for the holidays =)

[Former_Member]

love the little candle cindya! your avatar looks cool now.

[Former_Member]

I change mine regularly to match my mood, or to showcase a new prouduct, or announce a sale, etc...

I figure my avi is like my mood ring. Some days it's professional, some days it's a cat. I get compliments on all of them, I can't say if one works better than another since they all work in their own way.

I know some like to keep it consistent, I get bored with the same look and have to switch it up once in a while. Same with my banner, although my current one has lasted the longest, I will throw in some holiday ones here and there.

I think I do this because I make banners and graphics, so I have the capability of changing mine whenever I feel like it.

[Former_Member]

I do like my avatar, but it's not representative of my shop anymore. As a new seller and amateur photographer, it was hard for me to get a nice avatar to work. When I found this one, I just stayed with it. I should change it, though.

I'm just a part time seller. I do have business cards and a blog and a little thank-you photo postcard, but they're not strongly branded. It's okay with me as this represents the nature of my business. I know that goes against etsy advice, but honestly, I like keeping it low-key and authentic.