It's mighty quiet

The eCrater store has been silent since September. I've been adding items dutifully, posting about them on the member forum, and blogging here. Still (gritting teeth) have not paid for any advertising anywhere. Search after search for collector forums have turned up few, if any results, for me to post about our offerings. The odd hit here and there has new rules for those wanting to post about selling collectibles. No surprise, really, since the competition is so very fierce. But the few collectible forums that exist now exact a payment - nominal, but still - for those who want to post about their e-stores. As long as we're paying rent for booth space at Patty & Friends here in St. Petersburg; that is, paying out money there, I'm not keen about paying out more money on the internet to attract sales for the eCrater effort. One money pit at a time, as it were. This year it's the retail booth space. Next year maybe I'll try a marketing budget for e-retail.

The saving grace is, of course, that the eCrater store is not costing us any money. It's just sitting there. And sitting there.

I could be writing more Squidoo Lenses - but I'm still rather at a loss about best to utilize this tool. I know that it's a directional, traffic building internet tool; but I'm at a loss at how to fill the content to my satisfaction. If you're not sure what I'm talking about, or what a Squidoo even is, just try Googling it, and see if it makes any more sense than I can explain it here!! To me, it seems like more of an informational tool, rather than something that sends buying traffic to the store.

In the meantime, then, I've taken up with some limited jewelry making designs to use the odd, single earrings and broken necklace and bracelet bits that surface from our purchasing. Lately I have been dealing with a strained elbow injury, and so I found that a project using magazine pages actually used my non-dominant hand, allowing the injured arm to continue to rest.

The photo is of my first ever necklace. I am pleased with the colors, and the use of a single earring.