Marketing

[JJ Roberts]

Curious about how others are marketing themselves...shows..websites..mag advertising..joining clubs..etc. etc. etc.

Yours truly,
JJ Roberts
School of Artisitic
Engraving
Manassas, VA
www.angelfire.com/va2/engaver

 

[Andrew Biggs]

Hi JJ

Good topic of discussion.

A very cheap and easy way to market yourself is to contact local papers and tell them about an engraving job that you have either finished or are still working on. Engravers have special skills and turn beautiful objects into even more beautiful things.

Newspapers are always looking for "fill in" human interest articles about local artists/people. It may surprise you who reads them. That may lead onto one good customer who in turn becomes and advocate for your business/skills.

If you don't put yourself out there then nobody is going to know where, or who you are.

It's not easy to ring someone and say "look at me"..........but if you don't, then nobody else will.


Another good way to promote your skills is to volunteer to do a talk, slide show, power point presentation, or engraving demonstration for a local club. It can be gun, knife, jewellery or the local dog club. It dosn't really matter.

The most important thing is to have a couple of showpiece samples of your work plus photos etc.

These are really simple and almost free ways to get your work out there.

Cheers
Andrew

 

[shonn]

Go around to Engraving shops and tell them what you do.
Most engraving shops only do Flat items but as a hand engraver you can do round things and put designs on them and logos , scroll work, and more tell them whatever they can draw( or your drawing) you can engrave. Sign companies, art work (needs name plates under art work) art shows, expensive car dealerships, you can do gearshift knobs, air plane parts
then with your business cards take them around to everyone that has expensive items anything metal walk in have some examples of scrolls, lettering, designs, and be positive ( attitude) . When they see you and your work they will want it done.

 

[webad2006]

We were thinking of having some of those graphics made up that you put on your auto-windows with our buisness info on it? I see those guys at the flea markets printing those things out pretty cheap. Just think, depending on where you live, and how much you drive, how many people would be exposed to your product?

We've done some work for Charities/Churches/School groups/ Etc in the past hoping for a little more publicity/sales, but it only led to more, and more people asking for free stuff. Not complaining, and more than willing to help, but not a good source for income!.....

We also looked at working on some buisiness cards, and building up a few sample items/photo albums, and see if some of the local boot/saddle makers or western shops would be willing to display them, we may even offer a small commission for doing so?.

At this point we really don't know what else to do? Really would like to here some input from others!.......

Everyone started somewhere, how did you do it?

 

[Andrew Biggs]

And there is the kudos that comes from getting your work published in a magazine. A lot of people wonder why the same engravers get their photos published in magazines several times over. The reason is simple…………….they send the publisher photos of their work. Magazines are often like newspapers. They need fill in photos. You can’t win the lottery if you don’t buy a ticket. There are no guarantees, but you may as well keep trying.

FEGA members can send photos of their work to me and the chances are that it will get published at some stage. The main proviso is that the photo be a good one that can be printed. You can take it a step further and write articles if you are so inclined.

So the saying that “your work is as only as good as the photo” is quite true. It’s no use telling people that your work really pops in real life and then hand them an awful photo. Most potential customers will only see the photo……so it has to be good. That doesn’t mean you have to buy a whole lot of expensive camera gear. Most digital cameras these days are pretty good. Learn to properly use the camera gear and lighting you’ve already got.

Another source of potential marketing is your own trade guild or association. FEGA for instance has a place where you can show your work on the web site along with all your contact details. Some other industry guilds may have the same thing.

Showing your work on the forums is another good one………but again you need decent photos.

Invest in a really good business card………….printing has never been cheaper than it is today. Don’t go for the cheapest as that tells potential customers that you are cheap.

Everything I’ve just said is free or really inexpensive to do. There is no one way to market yourself and your work. It’s more a matter of a little bit here and a little bit there. All of which takes constant time and energy which is the hard part.

Avoid schools, churches and charities like the plague. These organisations are black holes for constant freebies. Rather aim your efforts at people and organisations with money.

Hope this helps
Andrew

 

[Sam]

Avoid schools, churches and charities like the plague. These organisations are black holes for constant freebies. Rather aim your efforts at people and organisations with money.
Hope this helps
Andrew

Good advice, Andrew. Several years ago a local silversmith contacted me about engraving a chalice he had to make for a church in Alabama. The church had a pair of chalices and one had been stolen. To make a long story short, they paid us nearly $7,000 to duplicate the remaining chalice. Many churches have plenty of money.

 

[ron p. nott]

hey JJ .. as Andrew said ,, what a good topic , and Andy that could be a good article for the next news letter , get JJ and others to contribute to it ..
well here is my way .. several years ago , back in the 80s I knew Ken Hurst and one day I called Ken and asked him how to get exposure and Ken said , go to gun shows and set up your engraving equipment at an end of the row of tables and make a lot noise and get attention and have some of your finished work on your table to show .. that is what I did and now over 17 years ago I still do it and Ken was right, it did work and that is all I do for now and I agree with Andrew , magazine articles are another way to go and I will be looking into that this year .. ron p.

Andrew I hope to have a cd ready for you when I get to Reno ..

 

[John B.]

JJ, thanks for starting this marketing thing.
First of all, let me make it clear that I have nothing against power assisted engraving.
And I also use it, but never at shows.
A good reason to learn or start with hammer and chisel is in the eary marketing of yourself.
If you set up at a show and demonstrate engraving with H&C the tap-tap noise of the tools will draw a crowd around you without fail.
Make sure to stop, talk to the people and pass some items around for them to look at.
While it is going around, have a duplicate piece to put in the vise and cut on so that they can see you at work.
The important part of this is not to be working at something that needs to be finished in a hurry for a few bucks.
I never do work for money at the show, the quality of quickie stuff can reflect poorly on your skill.
I did have some small things done at home, engraved bola ties, pendants, rifle floorplates or scrimshaw that could sell to make a little money to pay for the show expences.
The most important thing is to talk to the people and answer questions and take orders for future work.
Many of these people who are attracted by the hammer tap-tap will become clients then or in the future.
When I decided to engrave full time this was my main marketing method.
Using this MO I maintained 2-4 years backlog of gun work when I was seeking work.
I believe that JJ will agree with me, the tap of the hammer sure draws customers.
And Andrew makes a great point, send GOOD photos to gun, knife and other magazine editors.
The pictures are unpaid salespeople for you.
Just my methods and thoughts. Hope it is some help.
John B.

 

[ron p. nott]

John I totally agree with you and that is how I got started . on the sending photos to the mag. how do you know where to send them to .. ron p

 

[maryw]

I have had a lot of referrals from other places that offer engraving but cannot engrave something for a customer because they mostly just do the flat surfaces. Just approach them to tell them you aren't trying to be in competition with them but offer your services to customers for whom they cannot do the engraving. This helps them out because the customer appreciates their efforts.

I've also done the charity route with great results. Return customers. People just have to find out there is someone who can engrave more than just a flat surface. Get a business card made up - go to appropriate businesses - talk to them and tell them what you do - and ask about putting a few of your business cards in their shop. That works as well. Gun shops, knife dealers, any place that would be conducive to engraving - they most likely would love to have your cards to give to their customer. It's all about having that customer return - and customers always return to the shop where they feel valued and cared for............and you're helping that shop owner provide customer satisfaction.

Just my penny's worth. Best of luck to you!!!
Mary W

 

[John B.]

Hi Ron.
One place that never failed to publish a picture that I sent them was the "Gun Digest."
I bet I got 20-25 calls a year from folks that saw these pictures and probably got 8-10 jobs out of each.
That is just one book but this particular book might not work the same for engravers who only do very high end, true art engraving, I don't know.
These were mainly nice trap and skeet guns and also plenty of good hand gun jobs.
Another one was "Handgun Digest." Most of it was good work but not museum quality.
Still it was stuff you could be proud of doing, while earning a living.
But there are plenty of other books and magazines that will attract different levels of quality clients more suited to the full art engraver.
Just my way of putting bread on the table.

Best regard to all. And to Ron, you stay well. John B.

 

[JJ Roberts]

John,

I agree with you about the gun shows, and doing demonstrations with hammers, chisels, and hand gravers. I remember us talking about this at the blade show. I showed you some pictures of the way I set up at a gun show with guns and gun parts..also engravers vise, hammers, chisels, 3 ring binder with photos of my work, complimentary letters from my clients, also I never let anybody get passed by table without giving out a business card. I have a show case locked up with my samples, also practice plates laying on the table for people to pick up and look at with a magnifying glass. I'll add some more ideas soon. Keep up the good work.

Yours truly,
JJ Roberts
School of Artistic Engraving
Manassas, VA
www.angelfire.com/va2/engraver

 

[JJ Roberts]

Doing gunshows over the years has its perks: I have gotten to see some marvelous gun collections that not everyone gets to see, also have access to 3 different properties to hunt on (one with a trout stream), and what a great way to make friends..does it get any better then this. Keep up the good work everyone.

Yours truly,
JJ Roberts
School of Artistic Engraving
Manassas, VA
www.angelfire.com/va2/engraver

 

[griff silver]

Internet is key to a home based business

I think that the internet is key to hame based business, A web site or at the very least a my space page. My space pages are very easy to make. That in conjuction with ebay can get you about 300 to five hundred lookers a week. For example if you do lets say a braclet or a key chain something small. list it on ebay they allow you to put a link in the decription about the item that can direct them to your site or my space. There is one catch you cant have an "item for sale" but you can have a bookoo of pics and a price list with your email address atached. To avoid the cheap wads you can list in "western americana" which is made up of mostly a collector market and guns, knives etc are surly encompased in that catagory. Just a though but it has worked for me and several others. GRIFF

 

[Ken Hurst]

When I started out, I attended gun shows in my area only. The reason being , it was close enough to home so that I didn't have to spring for a motel & meals (which I was hard pressed to pay) And, many first time engraving project clients like to know you are close. After I exhausted those local guys, I extended my range further out (by now I could better afford the motel) so as to further my existance & capture new clientel. Fresh blood is a must if you are to continue to grow.

Working at a show or event as Mr. John and Mr. Ron agree, will attract attention via your activity, noise & the necessary lights. Have you ever noticed that most shows have dismal lighting ? I would always try to get a table as close to the entrance as possible (preferably backed up to a wall ) and pay the extra for a power outlet so that I could plug in a few lamps. The bright light in a dimly lit area will pull people who are interested in the reason for the lights and to investigate the cause of the noise. I would never carry just finished work even tho it is essential for display --- you will need something that you can actually be working on for "show and tell." Leave your cards " spread out across your table so that they can easily be reached. Smile alot and answer stupid questions --- remember, you asked the same questions somehow when you first started getting the idea to engrave.

I have had a front and back cover on the Digest as well as many mag. covers over my 49 years but don't share the opinion that this will bring you anywhere near the work as going to shows --- JMHO. Nothing beats the face to face exposure of a show and the possible clients being able to examine your offering ( as in handle personally). Eventually you'll develop enough following where you'll never have to attend another show. I haven't been & sat up at a show for about 20-25 years. At the moment , I am still working seven days a week & have been for the past 15 years or so. Many wouldn't like to do this but it works for me. Never had a client complain that I delievered to quickly or didn't charge enough. I only offer this short missive as this is how I work --- do whatever suits you best. Best regards & best of fortune, Ken

 

[magicmaker]

I "play" at metal engraving for fun and making gifts. Glass/crystal engraving is the business. I no longer seek out local customers as I prefer internet sales as such sales are much more efficient timewise.

For over 20 years I did engraving demos at selected stores - starting with a small high end gift shop then moved to a high end department store chain. In the beginning I set up my 1850 vintage German copper wheel lathe. I always took a large involved engraving project with me as the demo piece being worked on. I knew well that it would not get completed during the demo. There was no pressure to complete anything. Inventory already bought by the stores was being sold. I was merely demonstrating what was required to complete the elaborate engravings and chatting with customers and handing out business cards.

As the business grew, I limited demo days to one per year at a very well known high end local shop. I did these demos for 15 years or so. For at least the last 10 years of these demos, I took only my micro motor engraving equipment. Now, knowing how the retail side of businesses works, I was able to land this cushy demo situation. All I did was to personalize Kosta Boda and Orrefors crystal items for customers - everything from snowballs to several thousand dollar vases. This made all engraved items NON-RETURNABLE. The shop knew that anything I engraved was really sold and would not end up being returned. The shop mailed out flyers weeks in advance to the event and always had a stack of items for me to engrave. I chatted and did PR work with customers while working and handed out business cards.

I charged the shop a flat fee for the four hours or so I demoed for them. My expensive fee was actually paid by the crystal companies not the shop as part of an advertising incentive. Everyone made money with this arrangement. My crystal engraving is a real business not a hobby and is run as such. Any hand engraving business should be run based on good business principles.

A very similar situation could be done by a metal engraver. If I was as fast and good at metal engraving as I am crystal engraving, I could make a killing selling personalized bracelets at Valentine's and Christmas times.

I have switched to pure internet sales of items through my web site. I have more work than I need. The web site is my only advertising.

Enough for now. If there is any interest, I'll add more info in another post.
Jim

 

[John B.]

I agree with Ken H. and JJ about the best clients and work coming from face to face at shows.
The thing about pictures in Digest and other magazines that I mentioned was in addition to the one-on-one
face time and demo's at the shows, not instead of.
Many of the folks that called and ordered after seeing a picture in a book said that they had met me at a show before and were reminded of me and had held my work in their hand.
Yes, have nice and plenty of cards available. But also have some nice 8 1/2 X 11 color printer photographs with your name and contact to give to everyone you talk to in detail.
These don't get lost like cards.
We all know how easy it is to loose a business card with the contact information.
Engraving lights, as Ken mentioned, the noise of the hammer taps and the crowd itself draw attention.
And he hit it right on the head; answer the same old questions a thousand times with a warm, friendly smile and a thank you.
Remember, people do business with people they like whenever possible.
Just my thoughts, John B.

 

[Andrew Biggs]

"Remember, people do business with people they like whenever possible.
Just my thoughts, John B."

Yip John, that sums it up perfectley. You have to put yourself out there in as many ways as possible.

Cheers
Andrew

 

[Ken Hurst]

Right on Mr. John. I use to tell my student to "make a friend, not a client ---- your friends will soon enough ask to be a client." FWIW, Ken

 

[dclevinger]

Forums like this are also a great place for free advertising. I participate on several other forums that have to do with various things that interest me and Ihave done pretty well with it. Most forums offer a "signature" that is attached to any posts. Just a simple www.blahblah in every one of your posts can generate a ton of hits. The forum that I get the most hits from has absolutely nothing to do with guns or engraving.

David