Looking for critical advice

[Jynx]

I have been making dreads for quite some time now, and I sold my first custom order almost a year ago. I still can't seem to get too many orders, though, and my premade sets seem to sit in storage forever. Even when they're down to 1/3 of their original price.

I'm asking for advice on how to make my dreads better, so that I can actually start getting orders. I think I've sent out maybe 10-15 custom sets in the past year.

My gallery is viewtopic.php?f=82&t=10348

My myspace, with many more pics, is http://www.myspace.com/JynxDreads

And my website is http://www.JynxDreads.com

Thank you very much!

[schwarz_engelblut]

all that I can think of is the photography. When I started taking "better" pictures, more people began asking for quotes. You've been taking some really nice pictures of your dreads recently so give it some time ^__^ As for premades, I have about.... 14 sets laying around my house I guess it just depends. For this board, making red, blue, purple or black based sets reeeeeally seem to sell.. just a thought *hint hint*

PS~ you'll always have me as a customer <3

[M1ssBehaved]

In my humble opinion, I think you could do more image wise. Your MySpace is very plain and it doesn't scream 'My dreads are awesome. YOU want to buy them!' If you know what I mean?

Also the quality of your photos. Most of them are sort of small and blurry making it hard to even see the dreads. Invest in a Polystyrene head and some good natural light so they will display better.

I don't think its the quality of your dreads thats holding you back, they look beautiful But more of a self promotion issue. Add some pizazz to your dread selling. When buying, people will naturally gravitate towards things that are 'in' and 'cool'. Maybe get some semi professional photos taken of your dreads being modeled?

hope this helps, hang in there & good luck!

[ScarletLady]

Good quality pictures will definitely help - also maybe offer discounts in return for good quality customer pics - the more good pictures of different people wearing your dreads, the more likely someone will look at them and think "well if that many people have bought them..maybe I'll give it a go"

I love your dread personally and agree it's not the quality of the dreads so don't worry about that

[halocaustic]

It's def not the quality of your work, it looks great.
The market has been saturated for the past maybe 4-5 years because there is quite a huge volume of sellers who start selling products before they're good enough. I have noticed that this trend has certainly declined over the past year or so and I have to say that most work I've seen displayed for sale around the internet has been of a very good standard in general.

As an established seller, I get a good volume of orders but I too tend to go through quiet spells. I also tend to go through spells when I work more on one thing than another. Right now I only have 2 hair orders pending and I have 8 t-shirt customisations. Normally it's the other way around!
Don't let it discourage you! Hang on in there.

[Vicsarina]

The only custom order I have had was after I put some dreads up on eBay. The person liked my work and messaged me to ask if I would do an order for her. eBay is a good advertising tool if you think about how many people scroll through every day looking though the listings?

For your photographs, make sure you use natural(sunlight is best) light and the macro function.

But even all that doesn't mean that you will get customers. People are so broke now, there is no disposible income to be spent.

[AppleBisque]

As purely a potential customer and not a dread maker at this point I will agree with those before me and say that the quality of your dreads is not holding you back, but visual display/representation of a product can have a HUGE impact on sales of an item. Your photographs and website(s) selling your products are the online equivalent of Packaging and display cases for items in a real life store.

What type of camera do you use for your photos? Do you own a tripod? Perhaps you might want to have your hand at making a Light box if you do not have an appropriately open and well lit area available to you for taking professional photos.

light box instructions - http://www.studiolighting.net/homemade- ... otography/

you would need to alter sizing probably somehow to allow for the length of dreads to be laid out inside the 'box', but having well lit, crisp photos of your products will definitely draw people in more often.

Something else you may want to think of is some sort of branding. Who is Jynx? What are JYNX dreads? What is special about them? Think about your own qualities, or certain aspects about your work that you feel would make people want to buy -your- dreads. If you personally arent happy enough with your own work to recognize some aspects of what makes them different from dreads anyone else could make then maybe try experimenting more. Find something that you can recognize and market as YOU.

Personally I would focus more on some of your unnatural coloured natural dreads(as i think they're beautiful ). Your gallery as a whole, looks rather un-eyecatching because the majority of it seems to be of dreads in shades of brown or black. Black is a good staple colour that a lot of people want anyways, but from what i've seen the 'popular' dreads sellers seem to make sets that more often than not are colourful or detailed in one way or another. Now maybe you want your selling point to specifically BE that you work mostly in natural colours. That in itself is different from a lot of popular sellers and COULD be a good selling point if marketed to the right people in the right way.

Do you advertise at all? If so, where(beyond here I mean)? Do you have any banner images people can link you with? Banner exchanges are a great way to find customers

Again it's really not the quality of your work. Your naturals are gorgeous from what I can see, but the world is a busy place full of bright flashy things that easily distract the average persons eye. When someone visits your website or gallery you want something to immediately grab their attention so that they stay instead of quickly scan and move on. That doesn't necessarily mean flashy colours etc, but could simply mean a well balanced 'display' that is meant to enhance your specific selling point to the viewer.

I hope you find more customers <3 the economy is making this type of work more competitive as people have less spending money sadly . I go through the same in my line of work which is why i can't buy lots and lots of dreads like i want to LOL

[Miss Liberty]

I say this with all due respect, but a lot of your images are a little blurry. Personally that would dissuade me from buying. I'm very stingy with my money and will only purchase something on the web if I can get a REALLY good look at it. Your work seems to be very sound, its just getting the pictures that seems to be the obstacle. It's not as easy as it seems either! I have always struggled with getting pictures of my work that shows the item true to life. Maybe enlist the help of a handy photographer friend to help you.

Also, a year seems like a long time to get started, but it is not that uncommon a time frame. It took me a good year or so to build up a client base, the interest in my work, and enough purchases to even start an inkling of a reputation. These things unfortunately take time and in no way happen overnight. Don't get discouraged though! It does eventually happen, and when you get there you will feel even more rewarded for it!

[Jynx]

Thank you all for your advice, it has been very helpful.

For quite some time I didn't have a charger for my camera (Nikon Coolpix s52), so I was using the 3 megapixel camera on my phone, which resulted in less than great pictures. As soon as I found my charger, I started taking pictures of everything I had with me still. I am very lucky to be out of the woods and into a place with great lighting, so that's no longer an issue. I am a little torn, however, on if I should take the earlier images down, or just push them to the back?

I am also working and a couple sets, one unnatural and another blond blends. I think after that if I have no more orders, I'll work on doing something with the unnatural colored kk I have around.

Within the next couple days, I will be totally revamping my myspace and website. I planned for a while to explain exactly what Jynx Dreads is, but never really got around to it. Jynx has been my nickname for years, so I have quite a bit of material for that! I am also doing a trade for a logo, which looks amazing so far!

I totally understand what the economy is doing to this business, which is why I've been trying to have sales and promotions quite often. I have left business cards in a few hair/costume shops, but besides that, here, VF, and myspace, I haven't done too much promoting. I am also very glad to here that my dreads are worth selling, some days I look at all my premades lying in storage and wonder.

Again, thank you guys so much! And schwarz, I'm going to go seal some of your dreads right now!