For years we have been the king in the jewelry making instruction business.  Are there other companies out there that have instructional videos and trainings for wire-sculptors?  Yes.  But the bottom line is… nobody competes with Wire-Sculpture.com for useful, valid, easy-to-use instructional wire-wrapping videos and ebooks.

From our Small Biz Jewelry Course to our Master’s Course, our customers have access to over 20 years of valid hands-on training materials to help them get started in their jewelry making hobby or profession.

Up until today, these packages come in….well….packages. When you buy the Master’s Course you receive over 30 DVDs , wire, tools, eBooks, and much more. This package retails for over $4,000, and we sell it for only $997. Pretty good deal, right?

Let’s face it, nearly everyone’s pocket book has been affected by the current economic crisis, almost everyone is now being tested for Swine Flu, and our government is spending Trillions of our hard earned dollars. With all of these things going on who has an additional $1000 laying around?

Don’t worry. If you’re thinking, well, maybe I’m the only one that can’t afford this, you’re not the only one, trust me. There are hundreds of other people thinking the exact same thing.

But Jewelry Making is at the very center of our very being! Who among us, doesn’t love sitting down and using our hands to create a masterpiece out of some wire and some cabochons? I think all of us do! We all yearn to be good at jewelry making, so that we can truly enjoy the experience.

That’s why Wire-Sculpture.com is introducing their very first DVD Auto-Ship program! All of our most popular DVDs are now available for a fraction of their normal price. And more bonuses are being added to each of our new packages!

If you’ve ever thought about purchasing one of our instructional DVD packages, but couldn’t afford it, now is your time! We have broken down a few of our most popular packages below:

-    The Master’s Course now is only $299.25 each month for 4 months! You receive all of the same great stuff, but it’s delivered to you during a 4 month period. This allows you to go through the materials at your own leisure and learn the art of wire-sculpting at your own pace! During those 4 months, you’ll receive all of the same DVDs, EBooks, tools, wire, etc.

-    If you’re thinking that $299.25 still sounds like a little too much right now, don’t wory, we have 2 additional options for you! You can choose to receive the same DVDs as our popular Master’s Course over a 24 month period for only $59.95 per month. Or you can opt for our 12 month package at only $99.95 per month. Same great jewelry making DVDs, at a very low price! Plus with either of these options you will get some great bonuses, click here to see them all.

-    If you just want to get to the very meat of jewelry making we’ve put together a fun and exciting package just for you! You can now receive 2 DVDs per month during 6 months. These are our most popular DVDs and tools put together for a truly fascinating and unique package! In this package you’ll receive our amazing Rings, Bracelets and Pendant DVDs, 12 DVDs in all. This package is only $84.95 per month for 6 months!

And if that weren’t enough, for 3 days only we’re going to include some great bonuses for Free when you sign up for one of our Auto-Ship programs before the end of the day Wednesday May 13, 2009! Here are a list of bonuses that you will receive:

Jewelers Double-Horned Anvil ($12.97 Value)
Stainless Steel Ring Mandrel ($37.95 Value)
Free Upgrade from Wire-Sculpting Tool Kit to Master’s Tool Kit ($49.96 Value)
Automatic Upgrade to Gold Club Member Status (Priceless!)

So what are you waiting for? These courses will never be as affordable as they are now. Now is the PERFECT TIME to start learning how to wire-sculpt or how to perfect some of the skills you already possess as a Jewelry Maker.

We’ll see you soon!

Brandon Hutchins
Wire-Sculpture.com
877-636-0608

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Soldering is the most common technique for joining two or more metals together.  In the soldering process, two elements are used: heat and solder. A solder is a metal alloy that has a lower melting point than the metals do that are to be joined together.  When the heat from a soldering torch comes into contact with the solder and metals, the solder will melt before the metals do, causing the melted solder to flow and connect the separate pieces together.

Solders are categorized into hard, medium, and easy (soft).  The categories indicate their melting points.  For example, soft solders have lower melting points than medium and hard solders.  It is the hard solders that are typically used in jewelry making or for precious metals.  If a piece needs to be soldered more than once, start with a hard solder, and then move to a medium (or a medium and move to a soft).  This way the first solder will not remelt.

Recommended Materials
Solder
Flux
Flux brush
Tweezers
Torch
Soldering Block
Safety glasses/eye protection

Steps in Soldering

1.    Fitting
2.    Cleaning
3.    Fluxing
4.    Solder Placement
5.    Heating

Note:   It is important to take safety precautions when soldering.  Wear protective clothing, eye protection, make sure the area is well ventilated, and don’t touch the tip or element of a soldering iron.  The three major hazards of soldering are heat, fumes, and the lead content of the solder.  When possible, substitute lead free solder for leaded solder.

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Now you’re in the jewelry business, making lovely pieces and you need to figure out how to price them so that they will actually sell!  Below are some tips on how to set prices.

First of all, as a jewelry artist you need to decide what flavor of wire wrapped designer/jewelry artist you are.  Are you inclined to attract the value shopper who wants something low cost but still attractive or would you rather sell to the middle tier customer who considers jewelry an expression of who they are?  Or maybe your desired customer is the investment type who believes that buying a “brand” is as important as the jewelry itself?  Once you decide which type you are creating for, then you can begin to determine your prices.

The best way to start is to assess the pricing levels of your competitors.  Again, your competitors will fall in the three categories defined already – budget jewelry, quality costume jewelry, and designer jewelry.  Within each category there are various subcategories such as ethnic or regional, artist, handcrafted, semi-precious stones, precious metals, etc.  Search online for the products that are similar to what you craft.  Identify a number of different manufacturers and ask them for pricing.  If you don’t feel comfortable asking, persuade a friend to help you because if you don’t know what the competition is doing you can’t effectively price your product.

Another rule of thumb in manufacturing is to charge five times the cost of production.  Jewelry however usually has an additional 40 – 200% markup beyond this because often there are middle-persons who need to get paid for merchandising the product.  If you don’t have this layer in your sales process then you can compete to garner more sales for a similar product found in boutiques or department stores.

You may choose to sell direct to a retail store but you will see yourself getting paid 20-40% of the actual sales price because of this markup.  Selling online is an effective way to merchandise your jewelry also; however you will need some lessons in building a store and then marketing it.  It will require that you build a recognizable brand, build business and consumer relationships, and pay for advertising and marketing that utilize online tools.

Finally, you can always change the price if it’s not working for you, adjusting it up or down until you find the sweet spot that covers your cost of production, your overhead and a profit.  Also, don’t forget to enjoy this pricing process.  Lowering prices does not necessarily increase sales; sometimes the opposite is true because your jewelry will be seen as more valuable, more in demand, and more compelling to own.

For more on Pricing Your Jewelry make sure to read our How to Price Your Wire Jewelry (Article).

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Probably the most challenging aspect of jewelry making once you know how is to come up with unique designs that people want to buy.  This article is to help you find inspiration that when filtered through who you are produces unique pieces that your customers connect with and want to buy.

One of the best places to find inspiration is through cultural influences. Every culture has its own aesthetic beauty, many of which are vastly different from what you may just assume to be the norm of beauty. A trip to your local library, or even doing research on the internet, will unearth a multitude of ideas.  Start at the continent level and work your way down into its indigenous people.  Study their art, way of life and language to discover shapes, textures, materials, and objects that influence your creativity.

For example, in the East Indian culture a dominance of gold and silver tones is used that bring out any color that they are juxtaposed with. You may want to create some pieces heavy in gold that are juxtaposed with stones of a strong color. The result is an eye-catching work of art. There is also a great emphasis on detail and decadence in this culture.

Another inspiration from culture can come from the geometric simplicity of Asian clothing as well as architecture. And yet other cultures have their own distinct art, lore, and artifacts to draw from.  Even modern cultures such as our own can inspire you, even skyscrapers or concrete – using gray labradorite stone to represent it.

Another area for inspiration that you can tap in to for design ideas is nature. You can draw from things organic and alive or from landscapes of burned out forests.  Wind, rain, water, sand all offer immense inspiration.  Start out by defining those things that you love in nature and feel in touch with before you narrow down what it is that really inspires you.

Another area of inspiration is from other designers.  Look at their works of art and start cataloging what it is about the various pieces that you love.  Assess their qualities and define where they got their inspiration from. Working backwards from the end product will help you find your way to your own pieces.

The most important thing is to find and then stay true to your own unique artistic vision. This thematic expression that you create is what will intrigue and connect you with your customers and keep them coming back to buy more of your pieces.

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When families struggle to make ends meet or react to the loss of income, suppliers of goods and services must respond to keep an even keel in their business.  But, saying so is not as easy as doing so.  Erecting sales signs or spending more money to land fewer customers is a “knee-jerk” reaction and not the only thing businesses can do.  For jewelry makers, it’s easy to consider their product a “luxury item” which feels as if it will be hit the hardest by the downturn.  However, thinking so is counterproductive as you probably already know.  So, how can you insulate yourself from declining sales, turn the loss of sales around, and increase business?  Following are some specific things you can do that will work for you!

Work harder. If you worked 40 hours a week when the economy was strong, it’ll take 50 or 60 hours to get the job done now.
Assess & Analyze.  What has been working for your business?  What has sold the most and what produces repeat customers?  Once you analyze exactly what it is that has worked, focus all of your energy on it and ignore and shelve those things you did that maybe were more fun, but didn’t give you the return on investment that you wanted.

Create new jewelry pieces. What you say – start something new?  Yes!  Sit with friends and family and brainstorm jewelry ideas that WILL be in higher demand in an economic downturn than other pieces and develop your go-to-market strategy to get them in front of your buying audience.

Keep Marketing. It is so tempting to scale back on marketing and advertising in a downturn because marketing expenses don’t have a direct and immediate impact on sales. However, you are in a fight for market share and if you don’t want to lose more than your competitor you have to stay in the game. If people don’t know who you are or why they should care, you’ll not only lose opportunities, you’ll lose the customers you have because someone else with a voice will take them.

Put resources into sales. Companies are loath to add cost when business slows, even in the sales department. Yet for the reasons stated above, expanding the sales force enables you to outperform the downturn, while contracting pretty much guarantees you’ll do worse.

Do whatever you can to be remembered by your customers. When business is booming, customers often overlook the nice things you do for them. But when customers are struggling, they never forget even the smallest gesture. Recessions are opportunities to build long lasting relationships. The reverse is equally true. Treat a customer roughly in tough times and they’ll drop you the first chance they get.

Innovate. Now is the time to squeeze more performance out of all your efforts by streamlining and lowering the cost of doing business.  Look at areas where you can reduce cost of goods sold, rent, energy, and the efficacy of your policies, procedures and information management.
Keep spirits high and instill confidence in those around you. Show appreciation for the extra hours and extra effort by those around you. Give people a chance to blow off steam. Force yourself to take a break. Nobody works well when they lack motivation, and this is especially true in tough economic times. In a recession, strategy and tactics become more important than ever, but the human element – more important still.

Ask your customers. Don’t be afraid to reach out to your best customers and ask them what ideas they have to increase your business.  Is it really price and if prices could be lowered, would that stimulate a purchase?  Is offering a lower cost alternative the answer?  Do your customers require financing?  Whatever it is that will stimulate a purchase is what you need to figure out and then keep repeating it.

In closing, sometimes in an economic downturn it feels like the ceiling is going to come down on you and your business but in fact, these times are when the best opportunities present themselves to those that are positive, eager, and prepared to see them.  Are you one of those business people?

For more ideas on positioning your jewelry during tough economic times make sure to check out our incredible wire jewelry sales and marketing books!

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