Daily Wire Jewelry Making Tip
January 06, 2010

Question:

In one of the recent “Tips of the Day” you mentioned “a frame bundle to make a cabochon pendant” when answering a question about pattern wire. What is a frame bundle?

Answer:

What I often refer to as a ‘frame bundle’ is the group of wires organized and then wrapped together before forming into a setting that goes around or ‘frames’ a cabochon or gemstone pendant made with wire.

Answer contributed by Dale “Cougar” Armstrong

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Buying gifts, especially wire jewelry, during the busy holiday season can be a challenge if you choose to go the retail route, in and out of stores.  It is particularly difficult to find custom pieces “in a store.”  So, why not take your journey to buying online?  This article will help you find the right pieces for your loved ones.

First of all, you need to make your list of whom you are buying for and what they might like.  Ask friends or other family members about your idea to buy a piece or set of jewelry for someone to find out what he/she thinks would be a great piece of jewelry whether it be a ring, necklace, earrings or a matching set!  Ask what their favorite colors are if you don’t know and if they like dainty things or robust?  This will help you narrow down the “look and feel” of the jewelry gift idea.

Next you will want to search online for jewelry “stores,” and maybe not so much a store but a designer of jewelry.  There are many jewelry designers, each with a website on line complete with pictures and pricing.  You can peruse to your heart’s content without interruption or pestering by a salesperson.  Wire jewelry is very popular because of its unique designs and wide range of creative possibility – with almost every piece being custom. So, search for keywords like, “wire jewelry designers,” or “shop for wire jewelry,” etc.

Be sure to search far and wide to see what’s out there and to get a sense of price, quality, and other features.  Compare and contrast and narrow your search to what you believe are the best value closest to what you envision your special one will love.

You can then share your various selections with your key people who are assisting you in finding the right piece(s).  There are often share buttons or you can grab the URL and email it to someone.  They can comment before you make your choice, just in case you are not sure.

Before you buy, check the return or exchange policy.  Don’t forget you can call the designer direct if you have questions.  Most online merchants, at this time of year, will gift wrap your purchase before shipping for free.  Be sure to ask about insurance so that if the item goes missing, you are covered.  Finally, be sure to print a copy of your receipt and hide it so that if your special someone frequents your receipt area, they won’t find it!

Happy Holidays!

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When using the Internet as your vehicle to advertise custom wire jewelry that you design and create, you need to find a way to reach customers.  How exactly do you do that?  Well, you first start your outreach utilizing free tools.  After you have exhausted those you then start looking for low cost ways to get more customers.  This article will guide you through the freebies and then lay out some very low cost ways to get found too.

First, you need an attractive, easy-to-use website to refer prospects to, so don’t overlook this valuable asset.  Be sure to “optimize” your website so that the words on the page match with the keywords that define your business.  Name your photos by what they are, not, “pic1, pic2, or pic3″ since the search engines read them too.  After you’ve got a website that will engage and manage sales, you will want to start some advertising campaigns.  As mentioned, you will start with “free” advertising.  Search the web for FREE “jewelry-related” websites where you can list your website, creating a profile about your business and upload pictures.  Sometimes, these websites offer an upgrade for a premium listing.  Before you start paying for them, be sure to research and find the best ones that will help you achieve your goal.

Then after you’ve exhausted your search for places to list your website, set up your Facebook, Twitter and Blog (using WordPress) and apply badges to your website so that people can quickly follow you / become a fan, etc.  Write articles frequently (weekly) and post to your Facebook page daily if possible – Tweet daily as well.

Also, list yourself in Google local maps by going to Google and clicking on the “maps” link.  You will find a link to list your business, following the instructions.  You can also add yourself, under the proper category, into the DMOZ database.  Ask your webmaster to help you add a site map and track your website views by adding Google Analytics to each webpage.  If you don’t know what this means, ask for help from your webmaster.

If you have a budget you can also leverage the power of Google’s AdWords – read more by visiting the advertising link on Google.com.  Facebook ads are as effective, maybe even more.  Go to Facebook and read about their advertising program.  Beyond these then there are the “yellow page” online directories where you might consider a listing.  Each website offers one free listing to each business, so it behooves you to get included. What you are creating when you add your website to other websites across the web are “link-backs” which increase your popularity in search engines, yielding better results when people are looking for wire jewelry you create.

When you advertise, be careful to always use keywords that are directly related to your product.  The keyword “jewelry” is very broad and if you want to attract people broadly and pay for it, then that’s great.  But, if you want to attract people looking for exactly what you sell, narrow your keywords.  For example, if you design and create gemstone rings made with silver wire, then use these keywords in your campaigns.  Your conversion from viewers to buyers will be higher.

Finally, getting “hits” to your website is an effort that is ongoing and requires a commitment on your part.  If you do, you will be rewarded with business selling the wire jewelry pieces you design and create.

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Many of you have heard that social networking is a low cost and effective way to connect with people online and hopefully build those relationships to yield sales.  This article is about how to use one of those tools, Facebook, to keep your fans informed and up-to-date with new wire jewelry pieces, specials, or events you will be attending showing off your wares.

First of all, you must create a Facebook account.  If you already have one – that’s great but the next step is to build a “page” in Facebook where you can have “fans” sign up to follow you.  Think of it this way, Facebook friends are personal and Facebook fans are about business.  So, after you have created a personal Facebook account, now it is time to add your business page.

Sometimes it is difficult to actually find how to create a Facebook page.  I find the best way is to click on “pages” and scroll down to find the link to “create a page for my business.”  You will need to name it.  Be careful to include your business name or something very close to your business name since people will more easily identify your posts if you use it.  You’ll also pick your category and create your page.

Remember to add a photo to your page profile that represents your business.  There is the temptation also to create a brand new account in Facebook just for your business, but you’ll find that it’s not best to have 2-3 accounts with friends and fans spanning across all of them.  It is easier to streamline to one.

After you’ve created your page, you will want to post to it daily.  You will also want to put the badge to sign up fans, on your website and in your blog; every where you can.   Give people a reason to follow you as a fan – tell them that they can stay up-to-date with your specials or when you release a new wire jewelry piece or line you can announce it.  Use Facebook to notify all of your fans of anything new including when you post an article to your blog – in fact LINK your blog and Facebook with Twitter.  Doing so increases the buzz about your wire jewelry business.

Finally, you may need to start increasing your fan base by inviting friends, family and other associates to become a fan.  It’s a good thing to get started with several hundred before it grows organically.  Once you have a following you can send updates to your fans easily by sending an email to them – see the sidebar of your pages with all of the options available.  Get your Facebook page today!

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Daily Wire Jewelry Making Tip
November 13, 2009

Question:

I was preparing to make a wire pendant and was reviewing the necessary pieces of wire I would need. The list called for a 21 gauge #8 spring-hard wire. Is this some special gauge of wire?

Answer:

The number represents the hardness of a wire and #8 is ‘Spring Hard’. This means that the wire has an extremely hard temper that causes it to ‘spring back’, making it a perfect choice to make ear wires and pins with. Although these will not have the same ‘spring’ feature, you may substitute either full or half hard temper. Many bead stores do not regularly carry the wire needed for wire wrapping, unless it is round, however I am sure most will special order for you. Just ask!

Answer contributed by Dale “Cougar” Armstrong

Have a question? Submit your question here!

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