The Summit of Awesome Day 1

Day 1 at The Summit of Awesome and before 6 hours have even gone by I've made my own name tag, attended two sessions, screen printed a t-shirt with the conference logo on it, made my first zine, watched a man receive a Shower Art (http://www.uglybaby.Etsy.com) and become a bit bewildered, stolen a t-shirt from a nice lady and eaten tater tots.

I can only wonder what tomorrow will bring.

Today I attended Danielle Maveal's session called "Unblocking Your Creativity." she put together a little zine handout with some exercises to help you realize your creative potential. One of the tasks was to make a list of the top five reasons you aren't able to do the things you want to do - what is holding you back. Then, you make a list of why each of the reasons you gave is total bullshit.

Touché Danielle. Touché.

I'm leaving the conference with something tangible that I can use to call myself out in my free time. Watch it self!!

Here's a picture of Danielle looking kind of sick of me saying, "Look cuter. But don't move. Nope, cuter." it's a rough process, but just look at the results!

I also attended the session on Getting Press for Your Business with Kari Chapin (author of Handmade Marketplace) and Christine Ernest (Hello Craft).

I learned some great stuff and was relieved to know that I probably don't need to write a really official press release-ey press release but that I can contact folks online and introduce myself and my projects that way.

If a traditional press release is up your alley, here are some tips I learned:

Figure out what your hook is.

Figure out what season you want to promote yourself in. Do your products male great gifts? Are they more of a back to school item? Figure it out.

Depending on the type of publication you are sending your release to, you should time your pitch accordingly. For example, releases to national magazines should be sent 3-4 months in advance (or six months for holiday pitches).

It's important to target your release well. Know who you want to send to and why. Know what you want from them and consider whether you are prepared to receive press. Will you be able to fulfill orders and keep up with demand?

If you are targeting online publications and blogs then great photographs are essential. If you are emailing images to someone, only attach low resolution files and let them know that high resolution images are available.

Create an About page with high resolution images and quotes from customers that bloggers can refer to for more information.

Always follow the submission guidelines to the letter.

Always address people by name.

Make it as simple as possible for them.

If you can find a features editor and make them your best friend, you should. Or, if you can get a gig as a features editor, take it. The compile e products for montages in printed magazines. Look in the masthead of any magazine you think would like your products to find the listed features editor. Write to them directly and introduce yourself.

Make a fact sheet with lots of bullet points about your products. Include lots of white space so the amount of information isn't overwhelming.

In closing, here's a cute picture of Kari. Yay, Kari!