Penny for your thoughts...

[creativestitches2004]

I may handturned pens and am already selling on ebay and etsy with limited success. I find that I get most of my sales from someone seeing me write with one and asking where I got it. Any ideas on how to make online sales of this item more successful?

Dusty

[Stephan Iscoe]

Hi, Dusty!
How about a link to one of your listings or online sales page...
A few things spring to mind; maybe you already have these covered -
1) great pictures, including a couple showing your craft process
2) testimonials
3) an outrageous guarantee
4) a killer headline
5) a compelling description
6) free shipping
7) multiple payment options
8) and with every sale - a Gift Certificate for a Discount Price
on future orders (they can give these to friends who want to
know where they got their pens!)

Best of Success,
Stephan

http://StephanIscoe.com

[pete]

I've met several pen turners through forums. Most seem to do well at craft shows. It seems to me they go to everything from school / church affairs to mall craft shows to Ren Fairs and such.

You have found on your own that until someone sees some handturned pens and becomes interested in them, it is not something that they will go looking for. So, it pretty much takes a one-on-one seeing is believeing experience to introduce folks.

[sprock]

One of the first things I would recommend is to research what is working and especially other sellers. (as I don't know what your user ID is, it's possible any of the examples I have below may be yours)

Pilot Custom Wood - sold for ...$147.50 (http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-1751-2978-71/1?AID=5463217&PID=1630249%20&SID=AUHforumPENS&mpre=http%3A//cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll%3FViewItem%26item%3D160045710420%26c ategory%3D73537)


Handmade Custom Wood - sold for ... $40.00 (http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-1751-2978-71/1?AID=5463217&PID=1630249%20&SID=AUHforumPENS&mpre=http%3A//cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll%3FViewItem%26item%3D130062097845%26c ategory%3D7281)

Handmade Rollerball - sold for ... $41.25 (http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-1751-2978-71/1?AID=5463217&PID=1630249%20&SID=AUHforumPENS&mpre=http%3A//cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll%3FViewItem%26item%3D250058811823%26c ategory%3D967)

Check Out This Seller (http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-1751-2978-71/1?AID=5463217&PID=1630249%20&SID=AUHforumPENS&mpre=http%3A//myworld.ebay.com/markg_pen_arts/)

Great Pen, but needs better Picture (http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-1751-2978-71/1?AID=5463217&PID=1630249%20&SID=AUHforumPENS&mpre=http%3A//cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll%3FViewItem%26item%3D290067668793%26c ategory%3D29827) ... One of the things that stood out with this auction is the seller placed the pen on a background that blends too well with the pen. A better choice would be to use a background that offers higher contrast so the pen is the focus and stands out from the background.

You mentioned you find most people don't go looking for wood pens, but once they see one they realize their value. Perhaps you can place other descriptive keywords in your title that would allow them to be found. Or if you can get name brand kits then that could be a good marketing angle.

One keyword that comes to mind is "Unique Gift" or "Unusual Gift". Try to think of ther terms a customer might think to search for where you can include it in your title.

I remember reading a forum post (can't remember where) that talked about the pen itself isn't really what people go for, rather how the pen feels when you write with it ( I would agree ) the discussion went on to show how an expensive name brand refill could be modified slightly to fit in an inexpensive G2 Pro Pilot pen. The refill was a fraction of the cost for a new pen of that brand, but when placed into the G2 Pro one couldn't tell the difference in how it writes with the expensive name brand version.


Something else I noticed when doing a little research in this market was some of the more expensive name brand pens such as Montblanc were sold with very attractive display boxes. I also saw many other pens when pictured with their display/gift boxes really added a sense of higher value.

If you aren't already, describe what is involved with each pen you make, describe the quality of materials and the attention to detail that goes into each pen. Also stress the fact that no TWO pens are the same (well not exctly the same)

Something else to consider if you're not already doing so, offer custom options, such as engraving, rollerball or fountain, custom colors or requests, etc.

You will want to study the auctions of successful pen sellers and see if tere is anything you can improve on. That doesn't mean you have to limit yourself to sellers of handmade wood pens. Be sure and study any successful pen seller.

[creativestitches2004]

I'm working on a discount program, or perhaps a refer-a-friend type of thing. Sometimes after seeing what others are selling for I wonder if I'm not priced too low and people wonder what they are getting for that price, if that makes sense??

I have a really great source for my wood, even the more exotic woods I can get for next to nothing, which allows me to keep my prices low. I'm a firm believer in selling things to make a reasonable profit, not "sticking it to the other guy." The acrylics are by far my highest cost to buy and in most cases I can still make a very nice pen for a sell price of around 30 dollars.

I thought I might also play with different display methods, I'm gonna see what interesting things I can come up with. I think I can order the boxes some people use to send them out. I had a few and they looked cheap compared to the pen, so I went back to the clear plastic tubes.

Thanks for the great advice everyone, it has my wheels turning --the hamster in my head will be busy!!!

Dusty

Thanks for the great advice

[Maggie]

I sat down with a cup of coffee in one hand and a plate of delicious, home-made pancakes in the other - and wondered how I was gonna type this reply to you!

This was my reply to a discussion in another forum where a copywriter described how to put some zing into your sales copy. His argument is that the headline of a sales page has to be good - but the opening sentence has to be special to keep folks reading.

Margaret

ps - I'm going to modify my signature file (Done!) to give a link to the forum - you have to sign up to get access - but that's free.