Who are your clients?

[PolymerClayTutorials]

I just wonder... Who do you think buys polymer clay jewelry? If you sell polymer clay jewelry, what is your target client base? Are these people looking for bargains? For something unique? Edgy? Do they even care about the material? What is your experience?

[Former_Member]

My customers are mostly gamers and geeks. :D Not all of my jewelry is polymer clay based, but much of it is. I don't necessarily think they are looking for bargains. I believe they are a lot like me - they don't have a ton of money to spend on non-essentials, but they are willing to pay a fair price for unique gamer and geek jewelry that they wouldn't be able to find anywhere else. I don't know that they care about the material so much as that the item they're getting is well-made and unique.

[MorningHeirloom]

Great topic to discuss and to know. I just opened shop at Etsy in the mid of November 11. My style work is about nature Jewelry from Polymer Clay, I like flower. So far, I only got 2 buyers , so I don't know much how sales in Etsy for Polymer Clay Jewelry. Both of my buyers are from Non Seller and Needle Felted Shop.
I put my works in retail store in tourist area where I live, mostly, they bought natural style Jewelry such as leaf and flower. I had craft show last month, it was not very good. Looking forward other artist or shopper opinion.

[ChrisOsCreations]

Your pieces are amazing:-)
i loved you cherry blossoms if i wore pink i would bight it for sure:-)
you know i got my first sale after 5 months
i've changed the style of my shop and know it's a little better
but i still have a specific style only here cause i love creating anything:-)
my buyers are 50-50:-)

[PolymerClayTutorials]

Alia, nice explanation, thank you. Love your stuff, by the way! So, your jewelry may be called a "niche product". It looks like you have a clear idea who your customers are, and that helps you to sell your works. Makes perfect sense to me.

Hardia, beautiful work! I especially like your flower bracelets. So, are you saying that people are buying your work because they look for a particular style? "Nature-inspired" jewelry or something like that?

Chris, your shop has a certain style, like on the darker side. My daughter (who is into gothic) would love some of your pieces. But I see what you mean about different styles even from your current selection. I feel the same way and cannot limit myself to one style. What do you mean when you say your buyers are 50-50?

Thank you for all the answers so far. I would love to hear more.

[MorningHeirloom]

@ Chris, thanks for the Cherry..Spring still far..lol..I like your button..

@ Eugena, Yes, most my customers bought Nature Inspired Jewelry..sorry for the confusion.

[ChrisOsCreations]

the half were knitters and the other into gothic^^

[PolymerClayTutorials]

Anybody else? I would love to hear more stories.

[Former_Member]

I've noticed that my buyers are usually ladies (40 - 60 years), who are looking for something a little bit quirky and different, but not too "young" looking.

Certainly not the target market I set out for (I didn't really have a plan actually haha!), especially since I'm nowhere near being in the demographic myself.

It makes marketing difficult since most of them aren't online... So I'm learning to show off what I make in person, and some wonderful lady friends of mine are doing a fantastic job of advertising what they've bought from me to their friends. I'm starting to roll in some repeat business which is really exciting!

[Former_Member]

My buyers are people who look for something both pretty AND unique. It matters to them that every piece is different but on the other hand they have a bit of a choice between a few items that are sort of same style. From many people I hear that they love a piece but still they wouldn't buy if it weren't OOAK thing. This works perfectly when I'm selling in person, on-line is not that good.

Basically I think the problem with PC is that some people buy it because it's kind of cheap, but lots of others DON'T buy it because... it's considered to be a cheap material. From my point of view none of those would be preferred buyers, I would like to be selling to people who just appreciate the pieces, just like Alia said. So far it only is working like this when I'm selling in person, on-line it's not working at all ;)

[PolymerClayTutorials]

Kit, Jagna, thank you for your responces. You both explain it very well, and I see the same things with my jewelry as well, especially for the high-end pieces. People love them when they see them in person (and buy them happily as well), but on-line I seem to be able to sell only the less expensive items. I simply cannot justify spending the amont of time it takes to photograph, describe, and list a one-of-kind item that will then be sold for $15...

On the other hand, I am not sure it is the price that attracts the buyers. I seem to be lacking the right key words to lead people to my more expencive items. How do I describe them to be found - elegant? unique? beautiful? You can say that about nearly any jewelry item, right? But when I say "Steampunk Heart Necklace", it is clear enough for the right people to find it and buy it.

[Former_Member]

I have been blessed, but I must say my store did not start off that great. I had to do a lot of self study and reflecting. I read the little how to and help tutorials offered for free from etsy and really took a look at the shops successfully selling product similar to mine. Granted no one has the same thing but we often hit on the same market or share a similar theme such a neo Victorian or steam punk. I had to make many changes and still do a lot of work on my shop on a nearly daily basis. Such as today I reviewed products that had not pulled any favorites in a few weeks and edited the title, wording, tags, and switch out a different view of the product from the photos on the sale page. Believe it or not this really helps. One of the edited products sold today that had not even been noticed in weeks from other buyers. I highly recommend trying new things slowly every few weeks and see what gets the best results... But I must say, my store started to really take off when I invested time and effort to branding. There are wonderful articles on branding, but the main thing is to have a general theme and feel to your store. For example if you visit my shop you will see the same colors rotate in the back ground also notice I try to work in vintage lace in many shots. Gold, browns, creamy, lace, sea foam green and teal are used repetitively on everything from the banner to the photo props. When used in this ways it makes a relaxed cohesive feel to my store. I still have a lot of work to do and was just thinking about how I needed to update some of my props. I'm even going so far this New Year to get matching ribbons, printed stickers and coordinating tissues to package my products. I always include a free gift such as simple matching earrings made from the extra beads of findings from the project or a decretive dust sleeve for my shoes or gloves. This has lead to repeat customers and more buyers taking the time to leave positive feedback. You don't have to spend a lot of money; my backgrounds are either self maid or picked up at thrift stores. My packaging supplies are printed at home or purchased from outlet stores. My gifts are from supplies that while nice, would go in a destash pile if not used. The most important thing is DO NOT GIVE UP, keep trying new things. You have already invested time and efforts in opening your store and presenting it to the public have faith in the quality of your product and your future success

[Former_Member]

I definitely think people appreciate the little touches you add to your packaging. I always have nice wrapping, and include a sticker on the back with a handwritten "Thank you!" I have receive a lot of appreciation for those little additions. Being quick to respond to customers and updating them on the status of their purchase, etc, has won me quite a few repeat buyers. I agree that having a theme and feel to your store helps a lot. My store has quite a variety of themes (post-apocalyptic, gamer, kawaii) but they are all pretty much in the geeky sub-culture vein. The best advice I have to having a successful shop is find a niche or item that no one is making (that you think people might be interested in) and make it. Constantly list and relist items, and have a variety of items in your shop. It also seems like the more items the better. Of course, getting magazine and website features also helps alot. Nobody even noticed my shop until that happened for the first time.

[Former_Member]

Oh oh oh oh please tell me how do you get publication to notice you? I really want to get my products out to the public eye more, I have a blog and try my best to stay engaged online. but I must say I often feel like I'm pulled in too many directions from spending time online, creating new works, photo graphing, listing est.... My head spins

[Former_Member]

OMG, unicorns and puppies, your stuff is so cute Alia B. Never mind, I know how you got those articles; the sheer gravitational force of your awesomeness pulled the press to you!!!! I need to sell some more stuff so I can buy yours!

[Former_Member]

Ha! "The sheer gravitational force of your awesomeness". That's hilarious. I didn't solicite anyone for exposure, I just seemed to get lucky. I was first featured on Kotaku.com's website and that's when my shop started to become popular. My most exciting feature happened last month when some of my jewelry was published in Playstation Magazine. I still can't believe how awesome that is.
I know what you mean about getting pulled in too many directions. I try to update my facebook and do other online networking, but I don't know how effective it is so I usually just stick to my crafting and listing new items, and it seems to work better than anything else.
I love your shop! Maybe we could do a trade sometime. :)