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Make Your Line Sheet Better

Lesson 18 from: Sell Your Products to Retailers

Megan Auman

Make Your Line Sheet Better

Lesson 18 from: Sell Your Products to Retailers

Megan Auman

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Lesson Info

18. Make Your Line Sheet Better

Lesson Info

Make Your Line Sheet Better

Let's, take a look at anna's line. All right, so first thing uh uh, not the worst I've ever seen. Okay, good. Uh, but I want to see to things straight after that these were the first two pages of your line sheet, so its vertical not horizontal. I would flip that if we're looking at this screen, which a lot of buyers are. One page takes up that whole horizontal screen, but soon I looked at two pages of your website and I haven't seen a picture of your product yet, right or not, you're upset, you're legit. So one too there's no product images. So I'm not getting any kind of visual story from this if I'm a buyer, so now I'm asking them to flip one, too three, three, four, five there's product okay, and I agree, I think the policy should go at the end and you're right, I think that's a good idea and I think it's okay to tell your story in the front, but tell it with images to ok, yeah, um I also think I don't know what fonts you're using on your website, but it's it's feeling like the firs...

t page feels a little branded and then it kind of I feel like it loses its branding a little bit, okay, um so I would make sure that you're applying because you've got great branding on your website you're really kind of telling a visual story and the way I want to tell that on here c s so we're going to move all of these you know, further back all of those terms years is a case where you're gonna want those per piece minimums I think right? How are people ordering now? What have you been finding with that three hundred? Usually they'll pick the designs that they like and then they'll order they kind of set their own like it just kind of naturally falls into like, bill pick the sizes that work for their store in their clientele and then they'll naturally order two or three of each right sit in the color says they're going to do that just make it that that they have teo so do you think like two per size? I think your sight alert to her size per style okay, so if there's like one that comes in six different colors, just say two three to six to six to twelve and it doesn't matter with the color is what I'm asking because there's a very does the color change like your manufacturing? Is it like easy for you to jump like isn't easy to make one of this car in one of this color is it easier if they're like two to two it is easy to do the first style because we do keep us or an amount of inventory on hand so that we can just pull and I pack easily then you could probably say to you probably won't have to go down a color okay uh at least in the beginning okay, this may be a case is you move forward in the future where you start to actually have mohr more strict in minimums per piece where you're really trying to get stores to order a little bit more volume. Okay, um and you also might want to think about now that we're upping your prices upping that minimum opening order okay? Because three hundred might is not gonna get them as many pieces as I got them before. Okay, right. So you know, I don't think you have to bump it up very far, but maybe even just to go to four hundred leave that minimum order at the beginning or do you want that at the end with the policies I usually just put it at the end um because you don't want it to become like a barrier they see a number and they think, oh, like now now I got to get there I want them to look at all the product and fall in love with the product and then be like four hundred dollars that's nothing can get there easily yes, we want to like, make them love the product first and then get them in on the details and when we talked to kelly yourself that's how they operate, they fall in love first and then they look details so let's make them fall in love, right? They both said aesthetics right our first right? Uh, and so I think this is a thing here where you you're giving us pretty solid information. The one thing that I think starts to get confusing is if we've got the style code, then how do they tack on what size they're adding? Thank you, yeah, I've been china resolve that and yeah, yeah, so what I want teo is I would actually just create a little cheat sheet that says, um, you know, like c l b k and then like they get dash three six so it's three, six months and then to see the other thing that you could do is you can just set it up so that they're using some kind of order form where all those numbers are in and they're plugging it in so I want it already says c l b k thirty six months and then they're saying too, so instead of making them try to come up with coz, they're never in a scenario where they can't just check a box okay so they're like an online platform basically okay does that make sense yes okay uh so that's what I would do and I think here's a case where you could actually shift the scale so pictures a little bigger information a little smaller okay so that again we're making them love the product first that's really important nails or not you had a little something else don't sell it you know that first image like the very first page might be like cute baby wearing the card again right and then the rest can certainly be like this um I think it's totally fine to use like the clothes pin the wood background I think that works really well it works with your branding but I might I would make sure that all of the backgrounds are consistent yes so I was like all the same kind of wood you can use different colors close friends at school but I would switch that yeah so and what you could also do is one big image and then smaller thumbnails to show all the different colors oh so won gives more of it ok right so won gives you like here's the whole product I really see it it's big it's beautiful I want it and then boom boom boom down the side here the different color schemes that happened okay? Because there's no reason you know it does start to get a little repetitive so tell the big visual story and then show the options so yeah so you can just kind of adjust those sizes and I think that starts to just tell a better story. So do you have any other particular questions I do so I know you mentioned like that opening like cover image um and maybe the ones along with like our branding story should have maybe some kids in them but these should all be straight products yeah yeah so your first page or two might tell more of that lifestyle story but yeah, product shots really clear really easy don't make them like work for it basically I think it's mainly around like because I do have like design color size, design color neckties you know there's the's different right? You have those pieces and I think that's where you know you have big image that shows design small images that show color and then very clearly list here the sizes with the code right for that because in house we have a six it goes like so something like that top left in a size three would be c l zero three g l so that's what we use in house but I don't really know how to communicate that easily, you know, I would just list that out if you're if you're using a code like that's a better code system because it's more detailed than this you should be using the same system in house with your weak with their stores. You shouldn't be too difficult. Like what you're saying about with your system, that's, we don't even talk where I need a three to six business time. We're just like I need a billow three rd place times too, and we just yell if you're doing that, then that's exactly what it should say and that's. Okay, we communicated my business too, like I actually went through this whole process where I you gave all of my necklaces. These names, they're named after women who make a statement so retail they have these names on the first thing my assistant said to me was I want to learn those names, right, she's like there it's item numbers. And I was like, it's fine it's item numbers. Yeah, they're using those item numbers. Use them here. Don't try to put two different schools on there because that's going to be really complicated. Okay, I think that's my question is how to effectively communicate that to them. So okay, so, yeah, so it's really just then becomes like, you show the style and you say that like, this is the color you want to tweak it a little bit, but I wouldn't use different systems. It gets too complicated. You want it to all be the same. And then as you know, you asked the question about kind of inventory management. If you're using one system in in an order for an order from a store and using other system in house, that gets a really complicated. So one set of numbers for sure. Okay, awesome. Thank you. You know that now? I told you it wasn't that so we're gonna take one more really quick here, tiffany. Yeah, you guys don't know. I just put a minutes or in order so very under construction. By the way, I want like, one page of my line. She actually finished, I think. That's. So? So for being under construction, your first page is beautiful. This is a great image. We get such a good sense of your brand, so don't don't tinker with this one. You get to keep that cool, thie only thing that I would actually do here. Stick your picture. Yeah, I'm tiffany I want to see tiffany. I need to hire somebody to dio and actual good like artist. Picture the army. Yeah, just take take a nice head shot, but even if it's not you and your studio, just a picture of you you know when we go to break your standing we're staying on their good lights have someone snapped a picture with your iphone really quick it's gonna look great these lights are fantastic so good lighting better that right better to put something in here in that's like good like have a good picture instead of waiting for the perfect picture all right so now now we get to the under construction inside so I like what you're trying to do with communicating the scale that is not the picture that does I so I think this is a case where you khun steele exactly what I did in my line sheet okay just put them in there don't try to photograph them all in one picture take your individuals take one picture one picture one picture one picture and then show them at actual size and if you want to do it on a textured background that's fine and then just pull out the squares this is the big size this is the next size ok, let them see it at full size um because this at the end of the day probably isn't going to give them the information that they want I um and then in the case of this so one of the things that you're doing is you're kind of doing all images and then you've got the skews the product descriptions there's a lot going on here uh um so I would recommend you don't really need those product descriptions like they are very retail focused yeah what just fine when we're talking about and selling you know what you're going to get you in the next segment but you don't really need them on a line sheet it's better to have those great clear images and make those bigger and then kind of make your information a little smaller underneath okay and it's okay to use a background but I would make them super consistent they all yeah normally the other words are going on so figure out you know what that background is where you want to put it you know I would say that because this gives us such a strong impression use a background that's goingto echo this and most of my product pictures are on that background on me a new website like everything else is photographed like that but I have some lingering products not photographs like none of those hoops have been re photograph so you actually do it yeah on dh then the other thing is you know you say you've got these cues and then we have to move all the way over here to get the specs okay those things should be I feel like closer together it starts to get a little like is it small is that this material I just think I'm a buyer I'm not totally sure I know how to order from this sure um how do you feel about having each picture of the three different metals or should I just have the one page or I have him in actual size and then have each actual size one maybe in a different metal I wouldn't probably as long as if you're doing the different sizes but then you you're showing all three different metals on the same page I think that's okay what I wouldn't dio is show say like all silver and then say it's also available in these other two without having that visual because stores won't do it right so it could be like a large and goal that's right? Exactly and then make sure you say like as schoen's like this item number as shown and then here are my other options I was had as shown here are the other options yeah, so you've definitely got a lot of chances to do that last yes, sir is what the rest of them are starting to transform. Perfect. Yes. If you're starting to shift to this where we get a sense of the same I actually kind of like the mid one like that to me still kind of feels like the same aesthetic uh it's a slightly I kind of I might just a personal preference I tend to prefer the slightly lighter colored image ok, but also think about, you know, printing ink if you're right, they're running it off like a ton of dark images might not read super grates. That's. The one thing you ought to be careful of this stuff kind of gets lost on a white back, right? I wouldn't. I wouldn't go white. Oh, yeah, I would add, actually, not go white, uh, but I kind of like how there's still a smidge more brightness going on in that middle one, okay, but that's, something you can play with as long as they're all consistent, yeah, I think you're gonna be good. Okay, all right, thank you, yeah, alright, wearing a wrap of those critiques for now. Thank you, both of you. It was really great to see those examples, so

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Sample Order Form and Wholesale Terms
Trade Show List By Month
Trade Show Packing List
Private Facebook Group Access
Store Prospect List
Workbook
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Ratings and Reviews

a Creativelive Student
 

This is the first course I have bought. That's how valuable it is! I have a wish list of courses I dream of owning, but alas I'm on a 'starving' artist budget. I wish I had more time to watch all the free courses on CREATIVELIVE. I WISH I could 'save' a once for free watch time. they aren't 'conveniently' timed. And there are reasons I don't buy w/o seeing what the course entails vs. cost etc. I might buy more if I was able to do such. There are so many I am interested in but time constraints for watching it or catching a re-run are really prohibitive. I won't buy 'blind' and funds are limited. So I must be selective in choosing what to buy. It has to fulfill multiple requirements for me personally. Perhaps others have this dilema and CL could work on that. Or hey, maybe everyone just has more $ than they know what to do with. That said I am astonished that there are only 2 reviews that are lukewarm at best. This course crosses over so many platforms that whether or not I am ever intending to sell to retailers (which I have zero interest in) it is jammed so heavy with idea's and info on how to expand your mind and creative thinking processes that it's inspired me into action!!! My brain is on fire. Thank you Megan! I'd shave my head to own everything that Sue Bryce has taught. Megan is in that league of sharing insider info that is impossible to put a price on! I was only able to listen to a small percentage of Megan's free class, but it was enough to know that it was pure GOLD! Such Inspirational and visionary idea's are dense in this course. I also have sitting next to me two bags of coffee from one audience member! I think Creativelive is the #1 most amazing source I could ever hope to find and I still can't get over the steller excellence of the team that runs this. I live 4 hrs from Seattle (on a good day) and crave to be in an audience...but I love watching from my forest hideaway! The glitchiness in streaming during this course was annoying. I have broadband and multiple browsers to avail upon but there's something afoul in the air possibly because each browser had issues. Either audio was not working or visual was not working. I had to open 2 browsers. One for hearing and one for seeing. I hear from other brick and morters that make me think it is/was statewide. I will put the blame on Century Link because that was the common denominator. I'm following through on that one. They have been quirky ever since they took over Qwest. I'll end with major kudo's for the fantastic offerings that CREATIVELIVE has given to creative's everywhere! My life was changed when I stumbled on this tremendous opportunity. I am so forever grateful!

user fb434d
 

This is the perfect class for me! Was looking for this kind of information about doing trade shows and getting in to retail stores and found driblets of info here and there online. But, this is the whole deal and real deal. I think Megan is an AWESOME teacher and find her so easy to connect with. I love that she is funny and engaging and she clearly cares about the studio audience. She's a talented metalsmith and talented teacher. The information she gives in this course is so so so valuable. I feel like after going through this course and having it as reference I will be so ready and confident with taking my jewelry business to the next level. She makes it so approachable and breaks everything down. Thank you Megan!!

Ronda
 

Absolutely fantastic! Meg's course was one of, if not THE, most comprehensive and educational pieces I've seen in a long time. The knowledge she shared was dead on, inspiring and very, very generous and gracious of her. Meg presented the materials very well and the added bonuses were...well, just awesome! I've followed her blog for a long time and now I'm a fan of her classes. I'll be taking/buying more! Thank you SO much, Meg and Creative Live! 10 out of 5 stars for this class! - Ronda

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