Setting up a website

[beadyeyes]

Hi!

I've been making my own jewellery for some time now and have publicised to friends and family through craft fairs and facebook. This has proved quite successful in that I've had loads of requests from people for prices etc. It's proving difficult for people to pay for the things they order so I've started using paypal. Obviously though, there is a limit so I need to set up my own website but don't have a clue where to start!!
Can anyone help??
Also, I don't really know how these things work with online shops etc. Any advice?
Finally, I only ever make one of each item and all items are really unique. Because I do craft fairs I may sell something at a craft fair and then have to remove it from the website but obviously there will be a slight overlap in time in that two people may buy the same thing. I know I'm being optimistic here in that I'll sell the same thing at the same time but how do others get around this problem? Do I make things solely to sell on the website and make different items stored in a different place for the craft fairs and jewellery parties that I do?
Help very much needed!
Beadyeyes, x

[Minky Magic]

Hi there little beadyeyes,

Oh yes that old problem back again! From my own experience I've started my website purely as a means of contact and a kind of portfolio. I have yet to delve into selling online but it looks quite complicated and i'm not ready for that yet!
As i said to someone earlier - I made a template from microsoft office/hotmail but a friend recently recommended moonfruit website which i wish i had found before. There is lots of advice around the forum, maybe you could do a search on here as lots of people have asked the same questions and concerns before.....

Good luck

Marie

[bynicki]

Hi there beady!.

I set my website up with MrSite. You buy the program (costs about £20 from Amazon) and set your whole website up - really easily - online. It has a built in shop so as long as you have a paypal account your good to go. You get one free domain name and the help people are really quick at getting back to you with any queries you have.

As Minky said there is also lots of info on here about websites.

Hope that helps. Nicki.x

[Poppy4lee]

I'm with Mr Site too and, for the money, I've been really pleased with it. I've upgraded to Mr Site Pro (for their site boost thingy).

If you list all your jewellery in your shop, maybe you could delete the items that get sold at craft fairs. I'm not sure what other people do but I'm sure a jewellery maker will be along soon to give more advice.

Good luck :D

[wendy]

Hi beadyeyes
I have just set up a website with http://www.theartistsweb.co.uk - I cannot praise it highly enough! I know nothing about setting up websites or online shopping, but was able to do it all in a couple of hours, although I've been "tweaking" ever since! :)

What has impressed me most is:

free trial for two weeks and they didn't even ask for any details upfront, only an email address.
so easy to do, just upload photos (they resize them for the web) and type in or cut and paste your writing.
a real person at the end of an email to support and help
I was listed on google within a week of starting the free trial
listed on their directory immediately
forum attached
stats included but can upload your own statcounter too
averaging over 100 visitors a day (from 22 countries) after two weeks online.The only downside is it costs a bit more than the DIY sites in a box - and there's an annual fee. If you sign up for it, sign up for the newsletter first as you get 20% off. It works out at 76.00 for the first year, and 95.00 after that, but there is a cheaper option if you're not selling from the site.

It is aimed at artists, but there are jewellers on there, as well as cushion makers, etc.

Have a look and see if it's for you. Have a look at my site (in my signature) as an example of what a technically-challenged person :pc: can do, and decide whether it might suit you. It won't cost you anything to try it, even if you decide it's not for you. ;)

Good luck!

Wendy

[Angie]

I looked - wow - the website is good BUT your paintings are gorgeous - you are very talented.

I hope it goes well for you

Angela

[aurrida]

you will need a web publishing programme. mr site seems to be a favorite here.

begin to understand the basics of seach engine optimization, seo, and make sure you intergrate them into your site

creat a site map file .xml

look for a host to post your site on, i guess in uk about 5 pounds a month.

submit your site through google webmaster tools and yahoo site explorer.

display your site here.

submit to relevant directories.

dont worry if you dont understand its a steep learning curve.

take the steps one at a time. seek more help as you go along.

if have missed any basic steps hopefully someone will chip in.

dont be in a rush, expect it to take a year to become functional. if you are, it will cost you money and a lot of your time.

[wendy]

Thanks Angie, your comments are much appreciated. :)

Cannot emphasise enough how easy the website was to build with the artists web.

Beadyeyes, if you decide to go with Mr Site (it does seem popular) I have heard it is cheaper to buy it from Amazon than direct from Mr Site. Worth checking out! :)

Wendy

[annnoble]

Hi,

You can also use open source (free) web things. We used zencart which is easy ish to use and you just need time to do it no outlay.

Ann

[Chris W]

I looked at various options but in the end I paid a professional to set up my shop so that it would load well and be optimised for the search engines. My site has a stocktaking function so it removes sold items. It was the most expensive option but in the long run should work out cheaper than paying a monthly fee.

[naomi126]

I'm in the MRSite camp! i really have found it to be very good!

[steve-bead]

Hi,

Well, Ive been thinking of an answer to the issue of what to do if you sell an item offline that you have listed on line - and its not an easy one to tackle!

I think it would all depend on how your sales were going. If you were making so many sales online that it was a big issue, then perhaps you would need to look at keeping your offline and online stuff seperate.

For very occasional times - you could just apologise to the customer and refund their money - not the best way to run things, but if it has to be, it has to be!

Would it be possible, if it only happend rarely, for you to make the item again to order?

Overall, I always favour action over in-action, so dont worry about it too much, get going and see what happens when you come to it!

All the best

Steve