Failure to Communicate

We have so many ways to "reach out and touch someone" these days. Phones, cell phones, internet, e-mail, snail mail, fax....you name it, we can do it. But does this easy access to communication actually make it happen? No, not at all. They are just tools of communication, and they still rely on our initiative and action.


I have been surprisingly busy right through this month. Not swamped, but not idle, either. I delivered the fifth order in the last two months to a local shop. I love working with this shop owner. If she needs something or has a question, she picks up the phone, or shoots off and e-mail. And the easy flow of communication has paid off nicely with all the sales she has generated with my work. It never takes more than two contacts by either of us to make something happen.

On the other hand, I am awaiting to hear from another customer about a pending order. I know they want early January delivery, but still no order giving more details about quantities. Will I spend Christmas in my studio,....... or will I have some time to spend with my family while they are off from school and work? I want it to be the later, but the delay in getting information creates anxiety. I have called. I have left messages. I have spoken with people. Still, no order. Just the promise of an order. I am making product for them, but will it be enough?


I am not the best person at communicating, so I am willing to cut some slack to those who also struggle to make that phone call, or get the letter out. But, when I have to call again and again, and I get no response, I end up frustrated by the experience. Good communication means much more than finding the right words. It has to involve action.


I am seeing first hand how valuable clear and open communication is between our accounts and ourselves. There is a delicate balance between regular communication and harrasment....one person's regular check-in could be considered pestering by another. Understanding expectations, and working to keep open communication can make the difference between a good relationship and a disaster.


Do you find you struggle to find a balance in communication with your customers or galleries? Or have you managed to find the balance? And how do you manage the unresponsive?

If I was to pick one area to work on in the coming year, this might just be it. Do you have one thing that needs a little extra attention? Perhaps a goal for the new year. Now is a good time to start thinking about where you want to go and what you want to accomplish in the coming year. Accomplishments do not always have to be about getting a certain number of new accounts, or doing such-and-such a show. Sometimes setting goals to work on things that present an on-going challenge can do more to help our business get stronger than focusing all our energy on the externals. Something to think about in the next few weeks.....

Is It a Matter of Timing?

Here is the question I am left with after the Providence show. Why would the same product do well wholesale, and sell as slow as molasses in winter, at a retail show? The wholesale buyers were buying twice their intended amount of work when presented with a pick box, but the buyers at the retail show were collecting business cards and postcards. What is going on?


It could be any number of factors, but after a conversation last week, I am wondering more and more about timing. Perhaps the shopping patterns of the American consumer are changing enough that they no longer go to craft shows to buy. Rather they go to be inspired, and gather information. Often ascertaining whether or not the artist has a website as they collect cards.

Why? I have a theory that perhaps people are not buying in anticipation of a holiday or birthday several months away, as much as they might have in the past. Purchases are limited to an impulse purchase here and there, or the person who does have an occasion to shop for a gift.

The pace of life today is accelerated. We have gotten used to being able to go on line with our fiber optic, wireless connections, spend a few minutes and purchase whatever we might want, and have it shipped to us overnight, or in no more than a few days. We don't even have to leave the comfort of our couch. Why buy today what you can wait and purchase in a month, or two?

Perhaps, the reason that work is selling better through wholesale than retail. The customer knows they can buzz over to that great little shop, that always has something new and unusual, and pick up a gift when they need it.

Maybe, immediacy is a more important factor in the decision process for shoppers now, than it used to be. If I don't need it today, or at least this week, it can wait. Wait and get it locally. Or wait and go to the craft show that is closer in time to when you need something. It seems as if the end of year holiday buying season has gotten more and more compressed over the last few years, when retail sales are reported during those critical weeks.

The craft show is not dead. But it is not a vibrant retail outlet that, at least not in the Northeast. I remember visiting shows where you could hardly walk, the aisles were so crowded. Those same shows have no where near the same numbers of visitors, and more and more of the visitors to a show are walking around without any purchases in hand.

There are other factors to be sure. The price of heating oil has skyrocketed here in New England, and we are entering the heating season. Gas at the fuel pumps is at a very high level. Anyone holding an adjustable rate mortgage is facing large jumps in mortgage costs. And there is the uncertainty that always happens as we approach a major election. Especially when we know that there will be a change in administration, and we are at war. Uncertainty has a way of cramping impulse shopping.

This is strictly some theoretical thinking going on here. Tell me what you think? Do you see your shopping habits changing? Do you see a change in the retail craft marketplace, and if you do, how would you describe it? I am truly interested in your thoughts, so please be sure to add to the comments, and see if we can get a discussion of sorts about this.