Etsy Back Up, Advertising, and Winter
My Etsy store, MadeSeenFound, is back up. I had three sales the other day and yesterday I drove into Taos to mail the packages. I hadn't started the car in a few days and I was worried that the battery might be too weak to get the engine going, but it was fine. I also drove out through the five inches of snow with no problem. It's just a hobby, really, and the store gives me a way to clear out some of the stuff I've made and get some reimbursement for the materials I buy to make things. I wouldn't mind if it turned into more but frankly I hate the acts of marketing and being marketed to, and I don't want to encourage anybody to buy anything unless it's something they need or it really enriches their life in some way. I think my jewelry has the potential to add some beauty to someone's life, I know I have jewelry that has done that for me, but I still don't want to be part of a consumer culture.
I do support the idea of Etsy as a place to go to get handmade, artisan gifts and things for one's self, and I support local craft fairs, so I can see selling the things I make within those contexts. But advertising to attract people to those venues, interrupting people's experiences and attracting their attention to tell them about these places to shop--that I'm not so keen on.
I've never been very good at selling my skills and knowledge. Which in one way doesn't make sense; people want things and they're willing to pay for them, whether it's a piece of jewelry, a piece of writing, or a class to be taught. To get these things, they need to know they exist. Advertising is a means of letting them know that you have the things they want.
But obviously advertising is much more than that. It doesn't just describe a product that someone seeks out because they have a specific need. It also creates needs and is persuasive. It's often disruptive and intrusive, and it degrades our experience of the world. It seeks us out, demands our attention, and tells us we need something other than what we already have to be content. That's what I don't want to be a part of.
Anyway. The views going into town were stupendous. Parts of the mountains and mesa were clear and parts were obscured as a thick blanket of snow moved in. It was my first day out on the roads for about a week and everything looked different. It definitely seems like we've settled into winter.
I do support the idea of Etsy as a place to go to get handmade, artisan gifts and things for one's self, and I support local craft fairs, so I can see selling the things I make within those contexts. But advertising to attract people to those venues, interrupting people's experiences and attracting their attention to tell them about these places to shop--that I'm not so keen on.
I've never been very good at selling my skills and knowledge. Which in one way doesn't make sense; people want things and they're willing to pay for them, whether it's a piece of jewelry, a piece of writing, or a class to be taught. To get these things, they need to know they exist. Advertising is a means of letting them know that you have the things they want.
But obviously advertising is much more than that. It doesn't just describe a product that someone seeks out because they have a specific need. It also creates needs and is persuasive. It's often disruptive and intrusive, and it degrades our experience of the world. It seeks us out, demands our attention, and tells us we need something other than what we already have to be content. That's what I don't want to be a part of.
Anyway. The views going into town were stupendous. Parts of the mountains and mesa were clear and parts were obscured as a thick blanket of snow moved in. It was my first day out on the roads for about a week and everything looked different. It definitely seems like we've settled into winter.
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