BusyBodies is a big (and growing) store. When I first joined CafePress in 2003 I had to manually add my design to one product at a time, type in each description individually, type in my price mark-up, and type in my product name. Don't even try to do the math...I spent hundreds of hours building my shop! Lucky for all of us CafePress shopkeepers today, they have added a wonderful "bulk changes" feature. However, there still isn't a clear cut, click-of-the-button way to add a section quickly with images sized appropriately with the bulk changes tools. With a little creative gumption there is a way to do this using their existing tools.
How do I add new sections to my shop?
Create a hidden product import section
First of all, I created a hidden section that I titled "all products import." In this section I hand picked products I wanted to feature throughout my store. I then arranged these items carefully, putting the white T-shirt at the top, along with other best sellers (always put the best selling products at the top).
IMPORTANT: I chose a design and applied it to the front of all my products. I then went through the section and sized it appropriately on each product (full size on shirts, smaller on buttons, etc.). Since I purposely make all of my new BusyBodies designs 8"x 10" sizing is important for the product import section.
I added a generic title and a generic description "Makes a great gift." I priced everything appropriately and then made sure to add my logo and website to the backs of all shirts for added brand recognition.
Upload new image
Back to adding that new design... I then upload my design, tag it, categorize it and go to my "manage products and sections" area.
Create new section
I choose which category I want to add my design to and click "create a new section." Immediately after creating the new section I hide it until it's finished.
Import products
While in my new empty section I click on the "import" button. This takes me to all of my sections of all of my stores. I click on the "All products import" section. I then see all of the products I had created in this section. I choose "select all" and hit "import." Now my section is filled with products.
Swap out the old image for a new one
I then click "select all" and "change image." I swap out the existing image with my new uploaded image and when applied, the new image is perfectly sized on all products.
Bulk changes and categorization for the marketplace
Now all I have to do is do bulk changes to my title & description. Once that is complete I categorize, title, and describe that section, click "show" so it's visible in my shop and my new section is ready. No need to resize or price anything!
Do you have another method of adding sections? If so, please share in the comments!
Minggu, 06 Agustus 2006
Sabtu, 05 Agustus 2006
Sisters Heidi & Gretchen
Heidi Panelli and Gretchen Fleener.
Originally uploaded by Heidi Panelli.
Here we are, posing for a press photo.
How do I get the press to notice my CafePress shop?
It's not easy running a business.
And if you're like most CafePress shopkeepers, your CafePress shop is a part-time job and you don't have the funds to pay for a full-color ad in the newspaper! But with a little creative gumption, you may get even better exposure for free like my sister and I did here in the MN Sun Newspaper this week.
Having a news story written about your shop is just one way to promote it. And although it doesn't cost dollars, it does take time...and a story that is interesting that people will actually want to read. CafePress recently launched their PR program which walks you through the steps in how to get noticed by the media. Since Marc Cowlin did such a good job at it, I'll just let you read what he has to say: Shopkeeper PR Program
What I can add to their tutorials is a true story of how my sister and I took CafePress' advice and made it work.
Timing is everything
Since my sister and I got our start at the Dakota County Fair, we thought pitching a story around fair time might catch the attention of the local papers around Farmington (where the Dakota County Fair is held each year). I read the outline Marc Cowlin has in the CafePress tutorials and wrote, along with my sister, our story. We decided to make the story more about the fair since that is what would capture the attention of a reporter and ultimately, a reading audience. I had an editor friend of mine look it over (thank you, Jeff!) and after a couple revisions we had a press release ready to send out!
Think local
Our story would've been wasted sent out over the newswire because it was focused on the Dakota County area of Minnesota. So I did a search on Google (where else?) and found a listing of Minnesota papers. I then found contact info. for about a dozen papers. From there I emailed the contact just to ask who I should send a press release to about the Dakota County Fair (I didn't want our release to be ignored in the wrong hands). I got a few replies and then sent out the release, with photos to all of the addresses I had gathered.
Timing is everything (have I mentioned that timing is everything?)
One paper in Lakeville ran our press release as-is last week. But the better news for us came when Joseph from the MN Sun Newspapers replied and said that they were just then working on a Dakota County Fair feature and were looking for local angles. Not only was our story perfect for that section with it's local interest, but we had it in their hands just in time before the Dakota County Fair started.
Joseph was kind enough to interview us both, had his photographer come and take our pictures and wrote a great story that has run in a few papers so far and will run in several more cities next week during fair time. He talks about how Gretchen and I got our start at the fair and how we've since grown our businesses online through CafePress.com. Great publicity for us and an interesting story for local readers.
Gretchen's Book, Facepainting, a step-by-step guide can be found on her site, Paintertainment.com
My business, BusyBodies Stick Figure T-Shirts & Gifts can be found at iBusyBodies.com
And if you're like most CafePress shopkeepers, your CafePress shop is a part-time job and you don't have the funds to pay for a full-color ad in the newspaper! But with a little creative gumption, you may get even better exposure for free like my sister and I did here in the MN Sun Newspaper this week.
Having a news story written about your shop is just one way to promote it. And although it doesn't cost dollars, it does take time...and a story that is interesting that people will actually want to read. CafePress recently launched their PR program which walks you through the steps in how to get noticed by the media. Since Marc Cowlin did such a good job at it, I'll just let you read what he has to say: Shopkeeper PR Program
What I can add to their tutorials is a true story of how my sister and I took CafePress' advice and made it work.
Timing is everything
Since my sister and I got our start at the Dakota County Fair, we thought pitching a story around fair time might catch the attention of the local papers around Farmington (where the Dakota County Fair is held each year). I read the outline Marc Cowlin has in the CafePress tutorials and wrote, along with my sister, our story. We decided to make the story more about the fair since that is what would capture the attention of a reporter and ultimately, a reading audience. I had an editor friend of mine look it over (thank you, Jeff!) and after a couple revisions we had a press release ready to send out!
Think local
Our story would've been wasted sent out over the newswire because it was focused on the Dakota County area of Minnesota. So I did a search on Google (where else?) and found a listing of Minnesota papers. I then found contact info. for about a dozen papers. From there I emailed the contact just to ask who I should send a press release to about the Dakota County Fair (I didn't want our release to be ignored in the wrong hands). I got a few replies and then sent out the release, with photos to all of the addresses I had gathered.
Timing is everything (have I mentioned that timing is everything?)
One paper in Lakeville ran our press release as-is last week. But the better news for us came when Joseph from the MN Sun Newspapers replied and said that they were just then working on a Dakota County Fair feature and were looking for local angles. Not only was our story perfect for that section with it's local interest, but we had it in their hands just in time before the Dakota County Fair started.
Joseph was kind enough to interview us both, had his photographer come and take our pictures and wrote a great story that has run in a few papers so far and will run in several more cities next week during fair time. He talks about how Gretchen and I got our start at the fair and how we've since grown our businesses online through CafePress.com. Great publicity for us and an interesting story for local readers.
Gretchen's Book, Facepainting, a step-by-step guide can be found on her site, Paintertainment.com
My business, BusyBodies Stick Figure T-Shirts & Gifts can be found at iBusyBodies.com
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