GCU Forum - Sales

Linda_132742 Gold Member artist Posts: 1796	Sales Jan 28^th, 2008, 9:22am I would like to see a posting for sales, what category and how many. This would help us all by seeing what is sold, for what, and for the sales number. am I nuts or others thinking along these lines????
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Dustin_133010 Junior Member artist Posts: 99	Re: Sales Reply #1 - Jan 28^th, 2008, 9:26am Yes, I have been wondering the same thing. That would be great information to have. Dustin
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cliff_132876 GCU Newbies artist Posts: 32	Re: Sales Reply #2 - Jan 28^th, 2008, 9:31am Great idea!
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Audrey_132599 Senior Member artist Posts: 429	Re: Sales Reply #3 - Jan 28^th, 2008, 10:09am Hi Linda, Yes, that sounds great. I think it would be good to have a listing of the number of cards sold for each best seller posted. ~Audrey
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Corrie_131338

Gold Member

Posts: 1611

Re: Sales
Reply #4 - Jan 28^th, 2008, 10:14am

As far as sharing sales information is concerned - if other artists wish to share their business information in a public forum, that is their choice. However, we do not agree to this and do not give permission for our sales figures to be shared.

To everyone who's reading this thread with interest, knowing what cards are selling has a very limited value to other artists anyway. What customers buy for cards is very subjective, like art itself; what one person finds appealing, another finds appalling. Instead of obsessing about who's selling what cards, how many, and how much money someone else is making, it would be more productive to focus on your own store and improving your own sales.

Throwing a hundred virtually identical cards into a category because one artist sold well there is not going to significantly increase *your* sales. A card sells because that particular customer likes that particular card, the artwork or the sentiment or both. It's as simple as that.

Corrie
http://www.corrieweb.nl

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Dustin_133010 Junior Member artist Posts: 99	Re: Sales Reply #5 - Jan 28^th, 2008, 10:20am Hi Corrie, I'm not really interested in who sold what, though it was useful for me to get a general idea of what can be expected in the thread about personal sales. I would just like to know how many cards are selling overall, and in what categories. Dustin
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Dustin_133010

Junior Member
artist

Posts: 99

Re: Sales
Reply #6 - Jan 28^th, 2008, 10:32am

Oh, I forgot to say... I really agree with you, Corrie, that the most productive thing is to focus on one's own store. And I plan to do self-promotion of my main website and my GCU store as part of increasing my own sales.

It seems that if we just wait for sales to come from GCU's related websites only, sales may not be very high, though perhaps some are having success this way.

Dustin

http://www.harmonygardens.com

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Kathy_131448

GCU Newbies
artist

Posts: 34

Re: Sales
Reply #7 - Jan 28^th, 2008, 12:10pm

Quote from Corrie_131338 on Jan 28^th, 2008, 10:14am:

To everyone who's reading this thread with interest, knowing what cards are selling has a very limited value to other artists anyway. What customers buy for cards is very subjective, like art itself; what one person finds appealing, another finds appalling. Instead of obsessing about who's selling what cards, how many, and how much money someone else is making, it would be more productive to focus on your own store and improving your own sales.

Throwing a hundred virtually identical cards into a category because one artist sold well there is not going to significantly increase *your* sales. A card sells because that particular customer likes that particular card, the artwork or the sentiment or both. It's as simple as that.

Corrie
http://www.corrieweb.nl

I agree with Corrie - I find that I do better when I concentrate on my own card store and what is going on there. I was feeling pretty good about plugging away lately, adding a new card or two every week or so, and a slight, steady rise in my meager sales, but reading the other post subject about how many cards artists had in their stores and how many they had sold made me feel a little dejected. I guess I just don't do well with comparisons, LOL! We all have our own style, personality and situations going on, and what works for someone else's cards may not work with mine. Just my opinion! Wink

Kat

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Cara_131386

Senior Member
artist

Posts: 428

Re: Sales
Reply #8 - Jan 28^th, 2008, 12:24pm

I agree 100% with Corrie. I also would like to add that a person might have great selling cards because they are working their rear ends off trying to get their work to be popular, to increase their own sales. I know how the public works in art galleries online, and if something is successful and you release that information, there are alot of people that immediately go into "competition mode". That means they will do a very similar piece to the popular one that is selling, to try to get that sale for themselves. I have seen it too many times. Selling art online is VERY competitive. So I strongly agree that some of the artist's work as well as their secrets should be kept private, out of respect for the artist. Or by permission of the artist only. Thats my story and I am stickin to it!

Dustin!!!! I peeked at some of your work, and in a word BREATHTAKING! WOW..If you had a fanclub I would join it!

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Sue_132963

Gold Member
artist

Posts: 1224

Re: Sales
Reply #9 - Jan 28^th, 2008, 1:23pm

For what it's worth--I think each artist should have the right to their privacy. If he/she has no problem with that info being public, then fine--make it public.
If however, they would opt to keep it private--then keep it private.

Having said that, I would love to share my info and study yours. I am a writer and belong to groups where we share and I read, and read, and read of other writeres and their methods. I find it only helps one to consider the workings of others and then if the 'others' find that someone has used their idea and were a bit too successful at 'improving' upon their idea...well it can spur them on to IMPROVE their own work. In the end, everyone is a winner. The customer just keeps having a better product line to choose from, and each artist grows and blooms, and grows and blooms......

kiss

SueB

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Corrie_131338

Gold Member

Posts: 1611

Re: Sales
Reply #10 - Jan 28^th, 2008, 2:07pm

Hi Sue!

I'd say a writer's group is a very different animal than GCU; it's really apples and oranges. If a group of writers wants to compare their work and discuss it with the view of improvement, that's great. Writers can benefit from seeing how other writers do their work. My partner is a published novelist, so I'm familiar with the idea of writing discussion groups.

We think of our GCU shop as a business. We earn part of our living doing this, as well as maintaining other on-line shops. It's not a hobby or something we do for fun. Just like any other business, we don't see every artist on GCU as a friendly fellow with whom we'd love to discuss the ups and downs etc. of selling, but a potential business rival hat we compete with for sales. Knowing what other people are selling isn't relevant to our business, nor do we want to reveal our confidential information to our competition.

Corrie
http://www.corrieweb.nl

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Linda_132742

Gold Member
artist

Posts: 1796

Re: Sales
Reply #11 - Jan 28^th, 2008, 2:48pm

Good Lord, didn't think I'd stir up so much venting. I am not interested in getting sales vicariously from other artist's talent or ideas. I am not interested in learning the little inuendos of how someone makes sales. What I think would be helpful to all is a general sense of what is selling. That is it, I really have no alterior motive. If I want to see what cards have sold the most, I just look into that post which is available for anyone to see right on the opening page of GCU.

I sincerely hope I haven't offended anyone by making the request. I love it here and don't want to feel like I have done a NO NO.

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Cara_131386

Senior Member
artist

Posts: 428

Re: Sales
Reply #12 - Jan 28^th, 2008, 5:16pm

I am not upset at anyone about anything. I also hope that nobody got offended about what I had to say. Sometimes I have a difficulty spitting out what I really want to say and its kind of frustrating. One thing that I did want to say is that there is (in my opinion) something to be said for trade secrets. People in the restaurant business still keep their recipes a secret don't they?

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Mindy

GCU Administrator
Community Manager

Posts: 6566
Gender: female

Re: Sales
Reply #13 - Jan 29^th, 2008, 2:00pm

Hi all,
An important discussion of which I believe the original question was generic in nature, not wanting artist specific info.

There's a fine line in what data to provide for artists to know where the sales are without infringing on individual artists' privacy. If we step over that line, please let us know.

We certainly will continue to respect the privacy of each artist's sales and earnings information. We'll continue to provide tools and insight into what shoppers are looking for so you can create for that demand as well as tools for shoppers to help them pinpoint their "perfect card".

No one is trying to keep a secret of where the sales are to prevent other artists from selling. The beauty of art, literally, is that each artist has their own style - image, verse, point of view, colors, technique, etc. That is what ultimately sells the card. Your challenge as an artist is to find your creative niche.

For example, with oodles of shoppers for Happy 100th Birthday, not all want the same card. Some appreciate a funny wrinkled cartoon-ish character, some a lovely photographed flower, others a rusty old dilapidated tractor.

We will consider improving our existing Best Selling Categories report:
http://www.greetingcarduniverse.com/community/topcat.asp

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Donna_131383

Junior Member
artist

Posts: 100

Re: Sales
Reply #14 - Feb 3^rd, 2008, 7:42am

Quote from Mindy on Jan 29^th, 2008, 2:00pm:

Hi all,
An important discussion of which I believe the original question was generic in nature, not wanting artist specific info.

There's a fine line in what data to provide for artists to know where the sales are without infringing on individual artists' privacy. If we step over that line, please let us know.

We certainly will continue to respect the privacy of each artist's sales and earnings information. We'll continue to provide tools and insight into what shoppers are looking for so you can create for that demand as well as tools for shoppers to help them pinpoint their "perfect card".

No one is trying to keep a secret of where the sales are to prevent other artists from selling. The beauty of art, literally, is that each artist has their own style - image, verse, point of view, colors, technique, etc. That is what ultimately sells the card. Your challenge as an artist is to find your creative niche.

For example, with oodles of shoppers for Happy 100th Birthday, not all want the same card. Some appreciate a funny wrinkled cartoon-ish character, some a lovely photographed flower, others a rusty old dilapidated tractor.

We will consider improving our existing Best Selling Categories report:
http://www.greetingcarduniverse.com/community/topcat.asp

Thanks for addressing this thread, Mindy.

Personally I don't take issue with anything that any one person said... I don't think anyone was asking for anyone else's personal sales info, etc... and, I don't think anyone was asking for personal business strategies, etc.

I know that it's important for me to focus my efforts on my own shop, for sure. I've been a crazed fool as of late and it has been paying off off for me. That makes me want to create MORE and MORE...

I don't think there is one artist on GCU that doesn't want to know which CATEGORIES are selling the best, etc. So, I really like the BEST SELLING CATEGORIES report that GCU offers. Each and every artist on GCU has the ability to see them and create for them - without anyone thinking their "idea" is being copied, stolen, etc.. Every idea begins somewhere with someone. I'd hate to think that the idea of "Happy 100th Birthday" was thought up by any artist on GCU - or that putting a frame around a picture is an "original" thought created by a GCU artist, eh? Grin

I think if an artist is interested in sharing their strategies, sales numbers, etc, then, perhaps GCU can some how implement a "sign-up" and that information can then be available for only those who choose to participate. I'm not one of them, but it is something to consider for those who are!

I'm loving GCU!

Donna

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