Technology Toolkit

Summary: Arts and Crafts shows are an excellent way to earn extra money. If you have a talent for making arts or crafts, then you can begin a handmade business. This type of opportunity offers individuals a way to supplement their income on the weekends.

Do you have a talent for working with your hands in an artistic fashion? If so, you could earn extra income by displaying your creations at arts and crafts shows. These shows are hosted all across the nation with customers in line to spend their dollars.

Step One – Plan

The first step you should take in preparing for a show is to plan. Decide how many days you have until the date of the show and then mark these days with tasks. By doing this, you will be able to accomplish everything you need to do and still find you have time to relax before the big day.

Step Two – Create

Decide what type of handmade goodies you want to peddle. Consider what type of show this is and what customers will be visiting. It is a good idea when pricing your products to have a line priced low and a line priced high. Having a price range allows people to have a choice.

Another great idea is to demonstrate how to make your craft before your customers. It is in human nature to want to know how something is created. Bring products made in advance at different stages, such as the beginning, middle, and end stages. You can show visitors how each step is made.

Step Three – What to bring?

Think about your product and how much of it will fit in your vehicle. Do you have enough storage capacity to carry it? Do you need to ask a friend to assist you in carting your wares and helping you mind the table?

When you arrive at the show don’t fall into the temptation of cluttering your table with every piece you brought. Too much product on the table is not easy on the eyes and won’t draw customers. Instead, strive for a balance with your products, aiming for the right mix of products on your table.

You will want to make a list of everything you will need for the show. Don’t forget a few items which will make your life a little easier such as, bags for purchases, an apron with pockets, a calculator, plenty of change, tape, tools, and an invoice book.

Step Four – Chatter

Like a street merchant, you want to chatter or have an opening line to say when customers come near your table. Remember to smile and have a pleasant demeanor. Talk about how your product will enhance your customer’s lives.

Another idea is offer a promotion at your table. Talk to customers, inviting them to put their name in the drawing for a prize. Make your giveaway item something fun.

Conclusion

Preparing for an arts and crafts show may be tedious, however if you plan your business venture than you will see rewards. Handmade businesses can earn extra money for crafty individuals.

Writing a bio for a blog or a website need not be hard. Your online presence will be enhanced with a well written bio paired with a user picture. Use these easy points and you’ll be writing your bio with all the ease of a technical writer.

POINT OF VIEW

In writing a bio, it is important to use the right point of view. Your bio should be written as if someone else was writing it for you. A bio should be written in third person. You will want to refer to yourself in the he/she tense.

PERTINENT FACTS

A bio should be short and not wordy, listing facts only. A lengthy bio will frustrate the readers causing them to lose interest and stop reading. Decide what facts concerning your life are important to the bio. Prioritize this list of facts. Use only the most pertinent ones. Write your bio with tight sentences. Delete any extra words. Notice your verbs. Use strong active verbs in describing yourself.

PERSONAL INFORMATION

You want your bio to sound professional, so state who you are and what you do. Don’t list anything too personal, like your address or telephone number. Imagine introducing yourself to a stranger. What kind of information would you tell a stranger? Be careful what you share on any public forum. Only list general information about yourself, such as your career, the state you where you live, and what you like to do in your spare time.

PERSONAL EXPERIENCE/ACHIEVEMENTS

Write in you bio any experiences which stand out or any notable achievements. If you’ve won awards based on skills or obtained a degree with honors, this is where you can brag a little…just a little, since you’re keeping the bio short and sweet. This part seems to be the toughest for people to write. No one wants to appear to be a braggart, but in this instance give yourself permission.

PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS

Memberships to organizations tell others more about you. The fact that you are paying to be involved in a specific community shows what you’re interests are. If you belong to several of these groups, only list the ones most important to you.

PUT IN THE HOOK

Just like in a novel where every chapter ends with a hook, you’re bio should end with a thought-provoking hook. State something about yourself which is out of the ordinary. Have you accomplished something or performed something that is unusual? Maybe you like to travel to the Rain Forest? Maybe you have flown around the world? Whatever it may be, end on a positive note, which says something unique about you and sets you apart from everyone else. This step is optional.

CONCLUSION

A bio is a combination of personal information, experiences, achievements, and memberships written in third person point of view, using strong verbs. Combining these easy steps will help you in writing one of the hardest topics to write about…you.

Creating business cards is an act which you can perform with ease. The benefits of designing your cards are many. The major benefit is saving money. Other benefits include your control of the finished product and if you own a printer it doesn’t cost you extra to use pictures.

Step One

Open a blank document in your word processing software. If you are using Microsoft Word, open the tab, “Mailings”. A new bar will be visible. On this bar, open, “Labels”. A window will pop up. On this window, click “Options”. Now you should see a scroll window where you can choose the size of your document. You will want to choose “Business card,” and choose the one which is the correct size of the business card paper you have bought.

Step Two

Now it is time to create your business card. You can choose a background color or picture. In your Word document, you can choose the tab “Insert”. Here you will find icons for inserting, pictures, Clip Art, shapes, WordArt, or text boxes.

If you do not have many Clip Art images, you can find a plethora of free images on the Microsoft website. You can download as many as you want on to your computer. You can use these copyright free pictures for your business card.

Step Three

You want your business card to have your information on it. To do this, look for the tab which says, “Insert”. Here you will choose the icon, “Text box”. A box will pop up on your screen with a cursor inside of it blinking. Choose a readable font and font size. Cursive fonts are not easy to read. Ariel or Times Roman Numeral is very easy to read. Font sizes which are too tiny tend to be hard on the eyes.

When making your business cards, you may want to consider who you are giving your information to? Sometimes business people who have a website and a professional phone number want to use that information on a business card. Other times people want to have their personal information on their cards such as address, telephone number, and personal blog to give to family and close friends. Consider making two different types of cards for the types of individuals you want knowing your information.

Step Four

Review your card. Move your images and text boxes until you are comfortable with what you see. Save the document. Then print a test page to see how the card looks on stock paper. If you are satisfied, transform your business cards into a full sheet of cards. Print another test page. Sometimes after the transformation, the print edges are altered. You may have to make some adjustments, so the cards will print to the page.

Step Five

Load your printer with card stock. After the pages have all printed, you may need to cut the cards with a paper trimmer. If you are not satisfied with your trimming, call some photo stores and ask how much they will charge to trim your business cards.

You can love punk rock music. You can enjoy the atmosphere created at a concert. You can even enjoy the lifestyle of a punk rocker, but in the end the dynamics of punk rock are not conducive to great online marketing. We’ll even get to an explanation as to why these are problematic at the end of our list. Let’s look at the music.

1. It’s loud. The music can assault the auditory senses of those less accustomed to the music. It’s an atmosphere that allows for only one voice to be heard with no regard for any other. Much of the punk rock music relies on screaming.

2. It’s in your face. The scene of punk rock is dominated by bold imagery that can seem foreign and frightening. It can seem intimidating and causes some decisions to be made with the motivation of fear.

3. It can be offensive to some. If you were not raised in an atmosphere where puck rock was accepted the music, clothing and culture can seem less than civil or appropriate.

4. It can seem angry. Punk rock has often raged against authority in favor of personal expression. To those less acquainted to the culture the anger (real or imagined) can seem dangerous.

5. It doesn’t seem safe. If there is danger in the punk rock movement then there is a void in safety for those involved. This can also be detrimental to the acceptance of the movement.

How does this list relate to online marketing? One of the keys to success in your business objectives is to work at making decisions with the least amount of negatives. Let’s revisit this list in terms of marketing.

1. It’s loud. Maybe people will hear you, but it may come across as brash.

2. It’s in your face. The boldness of the message can seem less in touch with the average consumer and may only find acceptance among a certain demographic.

3. It can be offensive to some. By catering to a certain group you may unintentionally be alienating some who may be drawn to your product in other circumstances.

4. It can seem angry. Clients are not looking for confrontation especially with someone they are considering buying a product or service from.

5. It doesn’t seem safe. If a customer believes the marketing approach is unsafe they will not have an interest in purchasing the product.

Punk music relies on a counter cultural approach to reach a disenfranchised group of individuals who identify with the music and the angst. This may work in this genre of music because there is a niche of music lovers who identify with the themes and culture the music represents.

There may also be a niche market for this type of approach to marketing, but the fact remains consumers are generally drawn to those things that have the fewest negatives. It’s not always the positives a consumer pays the most attention to, but those things that leave the least downbeat impression. So, while the attitude of punk rock works for music it doesn’t work very well in reaching business customers with a ‘positive’ message.

The mystery of developing your own website has been removed with web building technology, but there are some who do not see the value in assuming the responsibility of personal web design. You may find it’s not remarkably different than setting up a social media page.

Here are some reasons to consider the personal development of your own site.

No one knows your vision better than you. You can explain what you have in mind to a Webmaster, but it will still be tainted with their personal vision of what you are seeking to accomplish. You might just be paying them significant cash to misunderstand.

You like to save money. The cost of personal web design may be 10% of the cost of hiring an outside firm to provide a site for you. You can probably find something better to do with the 90% you save.

You are willing to try new technology. If you don’t have a significant fear of technology you may find that developing the site can actually be a fun experience and the access to multiple tools can create a site that is more comprehensive than you ever expected.

You don’t like waiting for a Webmaster to update your site. Face it many webmasters are there for you until the site is finished then they venture off to assist new clients develop their dream. The difficulty you might experience is making future changes in a timely manner once you say the words, “It’s perfect, you did a great job.”

Radical alterations can take place quickly. If you make a decision to start a sale today you can adjust your site to reflect the immediacy of that decision. If you want to ad new content there is no waiting. You simply enter the user panel and revise as needed.

You like your site to be as current as possible. Customers like sites that are kept up to date so unless you have an in-house developer that can make those changes it might make sense to pursue options that allow you to take responsibility for how current your site is.

You hate waiting days, weeks or even months for a complete design. Some people who use this technology have a fully functional ecommerce site available within 24 hours of the first time they look at the software. Some have reported a website to their liking within 2 hours. How much money can be made in those days, weeks of months that you would have waited?

The satisfaction and pride of a job well done. There is a boost of confidence in those who personally complete the design. It can create an interest in developing secondary money making opportunities when the consumer knows they can create the platform for cash creation on their own. This provides the best sense of personal empowerment.

Web building is not the only method you can use to create a website, but it can be one that makes the most sense from a financial standpoint. It is less expensive to develop and maintain – and it is allows you to begin selling your product and service faster.