Posted by Cynthia Boris
This week we're talking with one of the queens of IndieMade social media marketing. We see Nancy on Twitter everyday sharing her pieces as well as pieces from fellow artisans both on IndieMade and Etsy. Today, she's here to talk about how she got started selling online, what inspires her and what she would do if she had the whole day to herself. Please welcome Nancy of Jazz it Up with Designs by Nancy.
Tell us everything we need to know about you in 2 sentences.
Nancy: My passion for colors and designs drives my creativity. Nothing makes my happier than working on something special, selling it and getting feedback from the new owner that it was just what they were looking for.
What kinds of items do you make and sell?
Nancy: I make handmade gemstone jewelry and knit women’s fashion (scarves, hats, wraps, gloves), baby blankets & clothing, men's hats.
Why did you choose that field or did it choose you?
Nancy: Crafting is what I do to satisfy my creative side, it seems like something I have just always done. It soothes me and just keeps me focused. I learned to knit as a child and has been my chosen hobby ever since.
Tell us about your favorite piece either currently in your store or in the past.
Nancy: Hard to choose as I have several. My favorite all time was a piece I made for my friend. This is also the first piece I tried wire wrapping. I had these beads for years and could not figure out how to use them and then came up with this design.
The second favorite is a hand knit shawl and it is still available at this link. This is the first item I used wool yarn and it combined two different blends of luxurious wool and sillk.
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Talk about the decision to start selling your work? Was it a difficult decision to make? What, if anything, was holding you back?
Nancy: When I started to accumulate multiple pieces, and showed them to my friends, they kept telling me to sell them. At first, I was hesitant, but I really thought it would be fun and gratifying.
How do you market your business?
Nancy: I really market by tweeting and posting items in all the different social networks. I did initially try to advertise, but it was not that successful.
What inspires you?
Nancy: I love textures and colors and patterns. My first love was gemstones and being able to create a design that would make them pop. For my knitting, I am inspired by intriguing patterns and different yarns. The soft texture of yarns, or the rich blend of colors coming into a pattern, inspires me to design something very unique.
What frustrates you?
Nancy: The most frustrating thing, is how much time marketing and promoting take me away from being able to do my crafts. The lulls in sales are also disheartening.
What’s something you’ve kept since you were a child?
Nancy: We traveled across the country when I was a child. During this travel, I found so many unique rocks and just loved them and built a collection of different rocks & gemstones….I still have this collection today.
If you could get up tomorrow and do anything at all, what would you do?
Nancy: I would love to spend the entire day shopping for gemstones and then come home and design a new piece.
Your friend is going to sign up with IndieMade tomorrow (while you’re off doing whatever you wanted to do). What advice do you have that will help her be successful?
Nancy: Do what she loves and just have fun doing it.
Is there anything else you’d like to add or say to our audience of creative people? Feel free.
Nancy: One of the best things I have built-up doing this business is a wonderful set of creative people to network with. It is one of the things that helps me to continue in the lulls of no sales. I have built some wonderful friendships across the country and some in other countries. This network is one of the best networks that I have been involved with in all the different types of work I have done over the years.
If you'd like to "network" with Nancy, you can find her all over the 'net!
Nancy's store: http://jazzitupwithdesigns.indiemade.com/store
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JazzitupwithDes
FB: https://www.facebook.com/JazzItUpwithDesignsbyNancy/
Tumblr: http://jazzitupwithdesignsbynancy.tumblr.com/
