Making jewellery to desire

Every handmaker wants their jewellery to be desirable, but what exactly does that mean? Desirability is a subjective judgement. And, guess what? Somethings that I love, you'll hate. So, how to go about designing desirable jewellery?

Well the first thing is to accept that you can't be all things to all people. And, similarly, if you want to create a strong urge to buy in some people, that's going to mean turning others off entirely. Try to tread the middle ground and please everyone and you'll probably wind up being uninspiring. Failing to get anyone really salivating over your work probably won't help your fortunes. Better to accept that you'll turn some punters off, whilst turning others very much on. But how do you know whose buttons to push and how?

If you've read some of my previous posts, you can probably guess what sermon's coming next: niche positioning. You've got to decide who your customers are and why they are going to buy your jewellery. There is no secret universal pheromone-like characteristic that'll have everyone queueing up for your craft. You need to narrow things down by choosing a smaller part of the market to focus on - your niche. There's more about developing niche products here.

Addressing your products toward a clearly defined niche is a good start, but there is more to desirability. Often, we think we want a product, when actually we want what that product says about us. That's why brands are so important these days. It's not enough for a luxury car, for example, to be luxurious; it has to say the right things about us too. And, fashion isn't fashion. It's D&G, Prada and Armanni.

OK, so in all probability you are not going to have the cash to establish a spontaneously recognised brand, even within your tiny niche. People are not going to flock to you en-masse. But, when punters do discover you, that's when they start 'experiencing' your brand. Your website, packaging, leaflets, invoices, personal manner - everything that customers see, touch or hear - say something about your product. So, if you want to position your work as "young and funky", BE young and funky - in everything you do. You can't afford to be boring or come over all
corporate at any point!

So, desirability is an idea really. An idea that is attractive to buyers. This idea is embodied in your product, but should also run through the fine grain of your business. When you're selling your jewellery, you are selling the idea more than the object. Or at least you should be!