If you are looking for somewhere to set up shop, I have previously given reviews on a couple of market places. I went back to a link that I have on my website for Free Craft Fair - Business Resources for Crafters, to see if there was anything new that I might be interested in. I came across a section under the Sell your Crafts tab about On-Line communities. They had some great advice and suggestions about how joining an on-line community can help. Unfortunately, they didn't give any links to on-line communities. I am probably pretty stunned because I didn't know what an on-line community is.

Thank-you Wikipedia. I searched online communities and this link gave me some insite http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Online_community and I realize that I already belong to a number of on-line communities. The article is fascinating and helpful.

I searched on-line communities and came up with the Wikipedia link for virtual communities. This was even more helpful and I realized that I was involved in a great many more on-line communities than I thought.

Great examples of on-line or virtual communities are:

Chat rooms,

Blogs,

Internet Message Boards - forums

Facebook

Twitter

When you are trying to sell on the internet, getting the word out about your website and your craft is important. Search engines find your site and rate it higher the more it is accessed. The more visits (hits) on your site, the higher your site is rated. Being involved in on-line or virtual communities is a great way to get the word out.

They are also a lot of work. I have been posting, reading, updating, chatting all over the place. My fingers hurt, my brain is tired, and I have three half finished projects on my work table. It is, however, working. I note that when I search GLC Mall, my store is one of the stores that shows up on the Google search. It is not my actual website, but it does have my personal site there. I get a few links to my site from GLC Mall.

As the holiday season approaches, I am planning an ad campaign, probably on Facebook to generate more interest in my Facebook page where I have been posting new items and talking more about them than I do on my website. I have generated hits to my website from Facebook thanks to my brother, who posts it up periodically that I have some great things for sale.

Off to do some crafting, I think I will crank up some music and work on an idea I have for my kids for Christmas. If it works, you will be the first to see it.

Happy Crafting
CraftyLadyLiz

I was browsing through Google Blogger today to find some interesting blogs to follow. Subscribing to and following Blogs is a good way to generate interest in your website. I don't really want to follow too craft blogs as I do have other interests. I came across one that looked interesting as it was titled Felt & Wire Shop. I like to work with both and thought it might be interesting. What I found was a "marketplace" Unfortunately, it has nothing to do with felt or wire, but rather paper. It is a curated marketplace for printers, designers, bookbinders, and artists.

You apply to be a seller and can be approved or denied. The sellers are from all over the world, predominantly the US but also Canada and Europe.

I browsed through many of the designers and saw some really awesome paper craft. Lots of unique products and interesting designs, from note cards to wedding invitations, art, and blank books. Check them out at http://feltandwireshop.com/

This is a link I will definitely add to my website - the card can be as unique as the gift. If you are interest in selling hand made paper products, check this out as a potential marketplace to set up a store. Unfortunately, without applying as a seller, I didn't find anything on the website about cost of the store. If you do apply as a seller, please let us know more about setting up shop.

I am off to find more blogs. My favourites are about cooking and healthy eating, but think I will see if I can find something else this time. I have come across some interesting recipe ideas in a few of the blogs that I follow that make me want to spend my day cooking and that means shopping. As it is rainy and blustery out today, I am in the mood to stay in. Maybe I'll see if I can find out anything about home decor as my son is now off to University and I have a whole room to redecorate, any way I want.

Happy Crafting

CraftyLadyLiz

It has taken me this long to recover from the craft show at the Markham Fair. This is the third year that I have been at the fair. I knew what I was getting into. I knew it was in an outdoor picnic shelter that has four open doors, I knew that it was the end of September, I knew it would be cold. I have done fairly well there in the past, and had hopes that I would do better this year. In a way I did do better this year, there was just very low attendance at the fair. It was so cold and so windy, one person didn't return the next day as her displays kept blowing over in the wind. I didn't put out a lot of my stock as it would just blow away. We spent a lot of time straightening things on the table.

There was someone there who was prepared. She had weights on her table cloth and nothing blew away. Her stock was also heavy enough that it didn't blow away. I will go looking for weights for the table covers.

One of the good things about the lack of attendance was getting to know the other crafters and getting tips and suggestions. One crafter gave me a great idea for increasing web presence and another told me about a great packaging place where I could get what I needed for a few of my sets at a reasonable price. I even had time to check out the website on my Blackberry. We also exchanged information about craft shows and made suggestions about ones to go to and warned against others. I got some very good suggestions. We got talking about transporting out merchandise and where to get some good totes on wheels.

I did decide not to go back to the show next year. There was no sign on the building and none of the listings on Facebook mentioned the craft building. Fair patrons would come in to get warm and leave immediately as there was no relief. Given the cold and the length of time we had to be there, we all felt that they could have done a bit more for us to get people in. However, with a windchill of -1 on Sunday morning, I think I will pass next year. There are enough shows inside at this time of the year that I don't need to be chilled to the bone.

I did sell some of my new bookmarks, they were quite a hit, and as always, my felt ornaments did well, even if it was only the first of October. Hopefully the flyers I handed out will net me some interest closer to Christmas.

As with anything, the more often you do things, the better they get. I tried out new display ideas that worked well, although one did not. I will have to check out a Grid Wall distributor to see if I can get the size I want. I really want to display my product up, not just flat on the table on hanging from the unusual items I have found at the thrift store. More about craft show displays later.

Happy Crafting

CraftyLadyLiz