The results are in

I found out this week that the entry that my mom and I worked together on for the Creatin Contest on Miniatures.com didn't win. After seeing the absolutely phenominal entries that did, I am not at all surprised. I've posted some pics of our entry on my flickr account. Wehaven's decided if we'll be doing this year's contest or not.

Win a $25 Shopping Spree

What would you say if I told you that on November 15, 2008 I would give you $25 to spend on my creations, that I'd mail them to you anywhere in the world for free, and I'd also feature you here on my blog; and all you had to do was to follow three simple little steps?

Introducing my first ever Blog Giveaway. It's as easy as 1 - 2 - 3

1 Visit one of my selling venues, (On Etsy: http://CogansCreations.etsy.com , or on iCraft: http://www.icraft.ca/coganscreations , or on Shop Handmade: http://coganscreations.shophandmade.com/ ) take a look around, and decide how you would spend that $25 if you were the winner. You'll notice that $25 goes a long way in any of my shops!

2 Come back here, and add a comment to this post, with links to at least two items that you might get if you are the winner. I say "might" because you can change your mind at anytime and aren't obligated to use the winnings on what you mention.

3 Now here's the catch...you knew there would be a catch, didn't you? (this is afterall, a promotional tactic!) You need to promote my shop, or an item of mine three times before November 15 when the winner will be picked. This can be anywhere that you would like....Etsy, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, Stylehive, ThisNext, your blog, or even by word-of-mouth....anywhere at all. Just send me an e-mail to coganscreations [@] yahoo.com, or contact me through one the selling venues and let me know the details of the promoting. I'll match up the e-mails/contacts received with the comments left here...and those with both will be entered into the Giveaway....so please, make sure I have a way to know who's comment goes with what e-mail (if names are different)

Now...just sit back and wait until November 15. The winner will be randomly selected from all entries recieved. I'll contact you if you win and we'll work out the details of using your $25, and getting the information for my blog feature. (You don't have to be a seller of hand-made to be featured)

This giveaway is open to anyone, anywhere who appreciates my work, or who appreciates handcrafted things, or to anyone who just likes winning free stuff. No purchase necessary to win (although purchases from me are always greatly appreciated!)

Help me and I'll reward you

OK, here's the deal: I really need some help in making my shop on Etsy http://CogansCreations.etsy.com more appealing, and need help in finding ways to reach folks who might want what I create. Sometimes I think there is so much that I need to improve that I just get totally overwhelmed at what to do first, and other times I think I've done a lot to improve and still nothing changes with regards to sales and traffic. So, I've decided to ask for help from anyone who would care to offer an opinion or suggestion.

Please give me your suggestions for specific things I can improve in my shop. Which pics need improving the most? Are my item descriptions OK? Maybe I should just totally change the types of items I make....tell me that too, if that's the case. Also, I really need some suggestions on where my target audience might be hiding, and how I can reach them to let them know that I even exist. Keep in mind that I work a full-time job (50+ hours a week), from an office at home. I live pretty much in the middle of nowhere, and don't really venture out much except to go grocery shopping on the weekends, and occasionally other errands....so a lot of my options for advertising need to be centered around the internet.

OK.....so now you're asking "what's the reward?", right? Well, everyone that gives me a suggestion - either through a comment here, a convo through Etsy, or an e-mail - will receive a coupon code from me that will entitle you to 15% discount on any item in my shop, good anytime. (I'll e-mail you the code). But wait, there's more: All of the people that give me suggestions/tips/critiques will be entered into a drawing that I'll do in two weeks (Feb 16, 2008 @ noon EST). The winner will receive, absolutely free.....the item of their choice from my shop. A pretty good deal, huh?

So, if you could spare a couple of minutes to give me your advice, it would be greatly appreciated.