Something New For 2012

In between the mulled wine and mince pies many of us are thinking about the coming year and what we can do to achieve our business goals. At least that’s what we tell ourselves we are going to do. With the economic climate still looking uncertain at best, this makes that process even harder.

What’s worse, is that our inability to set out our priorities for the coming year (other than survive) creates anxiety as we go through the year. So that come the end of the year, we’re so frazzled and drained, that all we can do is eat more mince pies, drink more mulled wine and start all over.

I used to go through this cycle, year after year and as the financial crisis hit in 2008, would regularly find myself starring into the abyss of my computer, alone and helpless.   Shortly after 2008 I decided to do something about it, but there was very little available for the jewellery trade as a whole and for the creative designers even more so.  That is when I decided to do something about it.

If you have received my recent emails, or my invitation card, you may already know that I have decided to share what I’ve learned in the past few years on how to deal with the extreme economic crisis that we are all currently living through. I am a firm believer in creating a vision and setting goals. So from January, I will be launching my Creative Year Planner. It is a free monthly guide that will take you through the steps that are essential to get motivation and clarity in your business and most importantly, how to take it forward.

Vision and Goal setting is a much tried and tested successful method for me. I have found that setting goals gives you a long term vision with short term motivation. It minimises distractions and focus’s the mind, in fact goal setting is one of the strongest keys to a successful business. Clarity and Vision ensure that your efforts are focused on achieving a clearly defined outcome.

It all sounds like hard work, but it really isn’t. It does take time, direction and a little dedication.

Good news is that there is still time to sign up for the Yearly Planner, just follow the link www.thegembank.com/yearplanner

Share your visions and goals!

Happy New Year!

Richard

What do you mean by community?

I hope you’ve had a chance to have a look around the site a little.

When I tell people that I’m trying to put together a community in the trade, I often get a blank look back. So I thought I’d take this opportunity to go into a little more detail about that. Ultimately it will become a section in a book, but for now it will remain a humble paragraph in an email.
Read more

FEWER BETTER THINGS

‘Our lives are full of things. Disposable distractions, stuff you buy but do not cherish, own yet never love. Thrown away in weeks rather than passed down for generations.

Perhaps things will be different now. Wiser choices made with greater care.

After all, if the fewer things you own always excite you, would you
really miss the many that never could?’

Cynicism aside De Beers have finally put out a message that resonates.  If we implement this philosophy in what we do and how we do it, the jewellery trade can rise out of the mass produced, over inflated, poorley made mindset that has got so many into trouble recently.

Have pride in your work, choose quality gemstones and craftspeople to make your jewellery and  pay attention to detail.  Sell better things and more will come.

Draw on this… for the New Year

Now Christmas has been and gone and you’ve taken stock of how the year went, it is the perfect time to look at your business from a new perspective. If there’s one thing we know for sure, it’s that the next few months (and we really don’t know how many that is) things are not going to be easy. However before we completely withdraw into the media fuelled depression everyone is expecting, it’s worth looking at how we can make little but important changes to our businesses no matter whether you’re a retailer, wholesalers, trader or designer.

Talk to your customers…

It is the most cost effective marketing tool you have. You use it countless times a day without even thinking about it, and the one time you could use it to make you money you shy away. The telephone is such an everyday part of our lives that we really do take it for granted. Yet used appropriately, with a little thought, it can turn your business around. Try calling a customer now, but know what you want from them before you do. You might just want to re-establish contact and let them know what you’re up to. You might have seen something that might be of use to them, whatever it is, find an excuse (positive) and call them.

If you’re a retailer, and you can’t just call your customers, write them a hand written letter. Buy some nice heavyweight paper, find someone in your business or family with good handwriting and send your customers a New Year card. Nothing can be more personable and let’s face it we’re all going to have a little more time on our hands to do these kinds of things.

Re-evaluate your brand…

Look at what you think your brand is saying to your customers, and then ask them what it is saying. Now ask yourself what changes you need to make to your business to in order to realign your message with your customer’s perception. Do you focus on lines that seem to sell more and streamline your inventory accordingly? Do you spend time educating your staff to better sell the products that are more profitable for you and communicate a more professional and knowledgeable attitude to your customers in the process? These are the types of questions to ask yourself.

Overhaul your website…

This can be one of the most cost effective things any business can do. In spite of common perceptions, it doesn’t need to cost a fortune (ask me how by email). It’s not just about showing your stock or portfolio online, your website can offer so much more. It says who you are, what you do (literally if you want it to), it can talk to your customers and your piers, and it can even make you money. You have to take responsibility for it, get clued up on what’s actually out there, learn a little of the ‘tech talk’ and be an informed buyer (saving you money and getting you what you want).

I would like to hear if anyone has actually tried any of these out or has any other suggestions that they think make a difference in these difficult times. Please post your feedback below.

Follow your intuition…

Creative Visionaires are more likely to make the right decisions when they act on instinct. According to a new study your unconscious brain is designed to make the best decisions possible. Overturns the theory by economic theorists that conscious reasoning makes most of the decisions otherwise shareholders and employees may get upset. Visionaires are not only free to be irrational but may move more swiftly and generate more value and brand awareness through their inventive, intuitive and imaginative instincts. Source: Daily Telegraph 26.12.08 / Neuron Journal / The Creative Economy by John Hawkins

Welcome to Colour in its Element

Colour in its element is the gateway to TheGemBank.com (where you can search my stock of Gemstones and Coloured Diamonds) and Gemrunner the Concierge service where I look for stones not found in my stock). It is somewhere to read an article about the trade, or other business matters and comment on them if you wish. You can even visit the free picture gallery and send a friend a postcard form there.

In time you’ll be able to do a lot more from this site. Please let me know how I can improve the site and your experience of it. Feel free to let me know what topics you are interested in or even write one yourself for posting. You can do all that by leaving a comment below or emailing me

Thank you and enjoy
Richard