Skip to main content

Packaging upgrade

My husband said something that stuck with me.

Yeah, go figure.

Seriously. He said the last bastion of good packaging is in luxury goods.

Remember your first iPod...or iWhatever? The box, the way it was placed inside the box which was heavy and beautifully made. The accessories were cleverly placed and the whole look and process of discovering your new toy was pretty special. It helped you feel good about buying such a spendy item. The presentation reinforced the luxury status of the Apple brand. It's exclusive, but in a good way. The receiving should be a continuation of the joy of purchasing.

I had a similar experience when I ordered a camera tote bag from a small, specialty designer. It came in a lovely presentation box with tissue, ribbon and a note. By extension I felt privileged and appreciated. And who doesn't love that?

As part of any business that sells a tangible thing, I needed to plan my packaging strategy. I looked at lots of pictures. Evaluated options. Weighed costs.

And then I decided traditional jewelry boxes were kinda dumb.

I have thrown away dozens of cute little white, black, purple or brown craft paper boxes.

They are useless. They are clutter.

Beyond the initial presentation, what are they good for?

Being a practical woman I thought about what I'd rather have. Something I could enjoy opening and seeing my jewelry in for the first time. Yes. That's a must. Jewelry is a luxury item no matter what the price of the piece, so making my buyer feel special is important.



The idea of re-usability kept niggling me. Then I hit on it. How about a cute little tin? Over the years I've kept a few Altoids tins because they're so clever and useful. Why not try it? I found a place online that sells in smaller quantities than whole cases and I got two sizes to use. I also designed and ordered a couple of sets of stickers to use on the tins and other promo items.



Plus the jewelry inside would be well protected on its way to her. You know the mail service is none-too-gentle. Not only could a metal box be useful to the woman who receives it, but it could remind her of my brand and her jewelry purchase. Every time she takes it out of her purse to get her earbuds, she'd get a little pop of the Wire Smith.

But a tin alone is just too sterile. Too harsh. It needs a bit of softness. Enter ribbon and tissue - staples of handmade jewelry makers everywhere. It isn't exact, but the tissue and ribbon I found is very close to my brand colors and I can always branch out to the others in my palette.

So I'm very pleased with what I've put together so far.


I haven't done any photos of the larger size yet, but I'll get to it. For now I'm adding one of these images to my product listings so people will see how they will arrive. 

It looks like things are coming together!! 



Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Jewelry Making Tools

Part of the mystique of jewelry manufacture is the tools. I admit it, I love new tools. I love good tools. Finely worked tools that have special and often obscure purpose. Sometimes I just go through catalogs looking at stuff and wonder what the hell a person does with such a gadget. I remember spending a lot of time as a little girl at my dad's workbench, messing with his tools (lord help me if I misplaced any). A while back while on a visit to my folks' house I spied dad's coping saw (frame saw/jeweler's saw) in his workshop and told him I coveted it. He laughed and said I could buy one for about $10 at Lowes. He's right of course, but that old one looked sweet. My own tool collection is modest and consists largely of the inexpensive variety. Until this craft starts to pay off, I can't justify the expense when money is put to better use buying materials (Christmas is coming and you never know what Santa will bring – Lindstrom, hint hint). But every ...

Paid Advertising

It's been something I've been contemplating for months now as it seems I get more and more lost in the sea of online jewelry sellers. I've read every online handbook, marketing blog, thread, website and tip sheet I can stand, have been doing as they preach and it hasn't made a difference. Views at both shops are low no matter how I massage my descriptions, keywords and tags or participate in the venue's SEO efforts. Direct emailing didn't work out. Optimizing the way this blog is seen by Google hasn't made a noticeable change, although that does take some time I'm told and I could be condemning it prematurely. Back when it was available to the individual, Google Base didn't work. Participating in online fashion and shopping communities hasn't made a dent. Tapping into online communities in which I am a member, but not as an artist hasn't worked either. Ditto my consignment efforts that I was so excited about. Plus there's the whole t...

Less than a week

Lately I've been devoting my time to producing work for sale in a spa that's opening soon. It's tough to know what will sell ahead of time in this market, so I'm making a variety of things (many photos posted to my portfolio here). This means my online shops have been quiet and nothing new has hit them for a while. If business takes off, I'll know better where to spend my time, but for now it's tough filling all the mouths. Here's some shots of some new things for the spa - I just love my little hang tags and stuff. I'm using 26ga brass wire to hold them onto the bracelets and stuff. Kind of funny and I don't know that I'll continue, but I was at a loss the other day and duh - I'm the Wire Smith for heaven's sake. Anyway...I'm off to my mom's. She's helping me make a bracelet display for the spa.