Communicating the Right Message

FINDING THE RIGHT HOME FOR OUR STERLING SILVER CHAINS



I wanted to buy a safe to house our sterling silver chains. We have a lot of finished chains that we keep in 16" and 18" lengths [link for figure 8 or satellite]. And we wanted to move the chains away and create more room for our sterling silver findings. On the recommendation of the building management, I drove out to see a company selling and delivering large safes. I want to share this story with you because it punctuates my thoughts on proper marketing message.

I spoke to a man named Gabe. He gave me the directions and I was to drive 40 minutes to Scarborough to see a man named Phil. I know lot about sterling silver chains, nothing about safes, and even less about Scarborough. I wasn't impressed driving past a temporary garbage transfer dumpsite they've put on a beautiful park. So, this wasn't starting off very well. I get to the bottom of the bridge over railroad tracks and turn off to a seedy industrial road. It's been raining and the potholes are shiny with muddy water. I take note of the peeling paint on all of the little squat cement and sheet metal buildings and I'm rethinking why I need a discount on the safe. I'm looking for number 61 and I can't find it. I see 57 and 63, with a building in between. There is a truck that reads Scarborough Waste Disposal. The windows of the building are all boarded up. I hear a guard dog barking and I wonder if it is a German shepherd or a Doberman. I can't outrun either one and I still can't find any sign of the company name anywhere. I call the owner again. He insists that I am at the right place and I need to walk down a lane and find the side door. Remembering that I am a mother of 2 and all of the lessons I've learned from the CSI television show, I call my own office to leave a message of my whereabouts, and to leave a trail of evidence wherever I can. I walk down the lane, under barbed wire, and approach a pile of old lumber and broken locks. A man with tattoos up to his ears opens the door. I ask for Phil, and without a word, he thumbs the door behind him. I pass the rusty door and enter a room full of debris and old lumber. There was not a safe in sight. I am as far away from my world of sterling silver chains as possible at this moment. A very large man with a buzz cut approaches. He looks more like a Bud than a Phil, but I'm too nervous to think about it quickly utter my name and who sent me, all the while trying not to stutter or seem nervous. The Doberman is in the back of my mind, or is it a German shepherd. "What size are you looking for?" He asked as he walked past me without any formalities. I reply "Big,....like my height." He turned around and, with a straight face, said "you're not very big." I laughed and admitted out loud that he was the wrong person to say that to. At that time, another tattooed and baldly shaven man walks by. I see more broken lumber on the floor and not a decent safe in sight. I am now seriously wondering if I've made a horrible mistake that will cost me more than just lost time. It felt like a room from Silence of the Lambs, only with more hardware, and all I wanted was a cheap safe for our sterling silver chains.

I am writing this in the safety of home, so the story ends nicely. The guys turn out to be very nice, though I must have been as foreign to them as they were to me. However, the situation did not leave me feeling confident, even though we will likely buy a safe from him since he furnishes most of the safes of high security neighbours of our building. I am certain that I would have a lot more after sale satisfaction and confidence, and was willing to pay a lot more, if they had made a bigger effort on the marketing message. A proper showroom, fewer tattoos, more working models, proper lighting, and less refuse would have gone a long way. However, the guys are good people and this was perhaps totally oblivious to them.

You should always know who your customers are, what they want to know about the product and service you provide, what is of value to them, and what would signal to them that you're going to stand behind your product. From that, you can create the proper marketing message.

All of this said, I am sure I am not communicating the high quality and great designs of our sterling silver chains properly. Perhaps we are as incongruent to you as the tattooed big boys selling safes were to me. I'm thinking I should tell them what I think. You should certainly tell me what you think.

To Look through some of our great selection on Sterling silver chains, click here!

Sterling Silver Informational Organization

Organizing Sterling Silver Findings
I really can't say enough about the importance of organizing one's supplies, like sterling silver findings. There are two different categories of organization: physical organization, and informational organization. And I'd like to touch on both and tell you a bit from personal experience, and invite you to send me your thoughts, personal solutions that you'd like to share with others, and tips on how to improve our system at Stones And Findings. In this article, I will talk about the informational organization of sterling silver components and jewellery.
Informational Organization
Informational organization is different from physical organization , and it's an area that many creative people tend to neglect. As the jewellery business grows, this part becomes more important and can be one of the biggest bottlenecks for growth. Supplier and cost information must be kept in a complete and easy to find manner. Without knowing the cost, you run the risk of pricing too low, especially if you are dealing with larger quantity orders or more reorders. Without knowing who the supplier is, it becomes time consuming to trace back and approach all of the likely sources if you need to reorder. You'd be surprised at how many customers email us to find out if we were the ones who sold them certain sterling silver findings , and usually they’re in a desperate hurry to know. Sometimes people call in to reorder some sterling silver findings that are "roundish and kind of shiny" . Well, that doesn't help much. Thankfully, we have all of their past orders, with pictures, on our computer screen. However, we'd still have to go over 10 or 15 things that fit the description before ascertaining the desired roundish shiny thing.

The most inexcusable disorganized people are the suppliers. When I bought from local sources for my jewellery making business quite often they would ask me to send the actual sample because they had no codes to begin with. And even if I give them codes that we agreed on before, they've forgotten. I resorted to creating a file in their office, and with each item I bought, I made sure they kept the sample in that file, with a code we agree on. I was buying large quantities, so I could do this and they wanted to make the effort. Even still, I'd they would prefer I bring a sample in because they couldn't figure things out and was not confident in their file. Well, by the time I send them the sample, and they receive it, it could be several days. It's just so unproductive. And I vowed that we would not be like that at Stones and Findings.

There are some very simple things that you can do to help yourselves keep organized:

keep set of actual sample of sterling silver findings in Ziploc bag with code info

Photocopy the component if can’t or don’t want do above

Use a binder and some slide holder sheets to keep samples and pictures of sterling silver components organized

Create folders in your email Outlook for suppliers, different folders for each supplier. Ditto with document, hard or soft copy

Ask suppliers to email you copy of your invoice, in Excel format. Use this to cut and paste into a Master order form for the supplier. Enter reorder quantity and save as another PO. While you are doing this, you can also look through to see what else you've bought from them on that list that might be running low.

Create a shopping list of staples that you use regularly. Keep it in a place that you'll look at as you create orders. The staples list is a reminder so you don't have to pay extra shipping just because you forgot some sterling silver findings that you use all the time.

Stones and Findings will be switching to our alphanumeric codes, which will be only 5 digits/letters long. This is will be more efficient. However, it will not affect your records or reorders as both codes can be used. We're always trying to be more organized, and with ever an increasing selection of sterling silver findings, it will be necessary.
If you have any tips or ideas, please email them to us at Lucy@stonesandfindings.com
If you would like to read about Physical Organization of Sterling Silver Findings and Jewellery Components please click here .

Create a High Polish Finish on Sterling Silver

The high polish finish is often a standard finish, the reasoning is, is that this finish can be done a few different ways. A high polish finish can be used using a tumbling machine, be done by hand, or be done by a polishing wheel. A quick way to finish, and this is why it’s often a standard in so many components is that you are able to tumble these piece and in a few short A standard in jewellery components, they have often been tumbled to achieve this finish. You can use a rotary tumbler to polish jewelry and to remove burrs from jump rings or other metal components.

Materials List

• Small rotary tumbler and barrel.
  
• Soap (not detergent). Ivory soap flakes are recommended.
  
• Polished steel shot. You want enough to fill the barrel about halfway.

Procedure

• Pour the shot into a clean barrel to about the halfway mark.
  
• Add enough water to cover the shot plus about 3/4 inch.
  
• Add a tablespoon of soap flakes.
  
• Load the jewelry and/or components into the barrel. You want them to be able to tumble, so pack them loosely.
  
• Seal the barrel and let the tumbler rotate for 6-8 hours.
  
• When the pieces are sufficiently polished, remove them from the tumbler and rinse them well with water.
  
  
  

Helpful Tips*

Keep your steel shot covered with soap and water. All it takes is a few hours exposed to air for the shot to develop rust.

Don't polish more than one chain at a time unless you derive pleasure from untangling some serious knots. You can add other jewelry in with a chain (earrings, rings, components), just don't polish chains together.

If you use the same barrel for jewelry as you use to polish rocks, make certain that the barrel is absolutely clean. Otherwise, you may find yourself scratching your jewelry rather than polishing it!

Remove chemical 'antiquing' before polishing. Otherwise, a chemical reaction can cause green deposits to coat nooks and crannies.

Use extreme care if you are polishing plated or filled components (e.g., silver-plated or gold-filled). You run the risk of wearing or chipping the outer layer of metal.

Don't tumble components with stones, as they can become scratched or dislodged from their settings.

However you can take this to the next level, so it will be free of knick and scratches. If you have three different grades of emery or sand paper, and a rouge cloth you will be able to reach this yourself. A Rouge Polishing Cloth and it will really bring out that shine for your components.


When deciding on what finish to use, there's no need to only use just one. Be sure to mix up the finishes. Placing a high polish finish next to a brushed finish or even a satin finish can have a very beautiful effect and create a stunning and dynamic one of a kind piece.


*Credit to About.com for information about tumbling jewellery