Shall we chat?

I agree LuAnn!

I guess it depends too, on how one shops. For example, I am NOT a gallery shopper at all. I can't even think of a time I saw a LO and said "I must own that!". I am buyer based on previews, and my biggest downfall, ISO threads. So it's not that I think everyone is like that, but I tend to promote my designers in those threads more often. I don't know why I don't play the praise game, I usually get a few comments when I do, but I guess I'm someone who likes 1-2 meaningful comments, then 7-10 "great layout" comments. I get great comments here, they are specific to my actual LO, and mean a lot more to me.
 
scrappurple said:
Here is an opinion from someone who is just a buyer of kits ... not a CT, designer, etc. When I buy a kit, it is because of what is on the preview (and the pages that will follow. ie. paper, elements, etc). When I view a gallery it is to get layout ideas, not to look for kits. When I tag a lo it is becaue I like the design of it, not necessarily the kit. There are many favorites that I have tagged, not because I like the kit, but because I like an idea on the page. I don't think I have ever looked at a lo and bought a kit from it. But, like someone said about me, I could be an "old ball". ;)
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As a fellow buyer, I completely agree with this. I buy kits based primarily on the previews that are put up in the shoppe, not by lo's that I see in the gallery. I look at lo's for ideas of how to put a page together, not before buying a kit. I've browsed a lot of stores because of designer names mentioned on here and if they don't have good previews and closeups of their products, I don't buy them. I think there's only two products I've purchased after seeing a lo with them in the gallery - and I've bought a LOT of stuff. :p
 
I actually am a gallery shopper. I always look at the previews here @ SSD, but I also look at the CT lo's that come out on Fridays. I really don't shop at other sites though, so I buy kits from other sites when I see a great lo with that kit.
 
I only occaisionally browse DST, but I have tracked down kits and purchased them because of seeing them in action. I dont necessarily leave comments in the process either. I have never been on a CT though, so my POV is purely as a buyer.
 
psalm149 said:
I actually am a gallery shopper. I always look at the previews here @ SSD, but I also look at the CT lo's that come out on Fridays. I really don't shop at other sites though, so I buy kits from other sites when I see a great lo with that kit.
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Me too. Sometimes the preview doesn't always do it for me... then I see an awesome scrapper really rock a kit and might change my mind. I know I've been influenced to buy more than one kit when I've browsed Cindy's gallery. lol... and I know people who have told me they bought kits after seeing some of my LOs.

I HAVE bought kits based on other pages I saw at DST... that's how I found Kitty Chen and Gina Marie Huff... and I have been a faithful Gina buyer ever since seeing that ONE page.
 
From a designer standpoint (albeit a small unheard of one), posting in the ISO threads does MUCH more.

I'd be willing to not even require layouts in exchange for that, almost.
 
Darcy Baldwin said:
As a designer, I'm not trying to make it harder on my team to ask them to post a layout at DST. Being that it's a big, popular gallery (same with MSA), I'd like to have my stuff there should anyone look for it. That's my reasoning :)
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This is how I look at it too . . . I mean I post up my layouts so that if anyone is looking for pages done with XXX they may stumble upon it. I only play praise games once in awhile. I try to support designers by responding to ISO threads and linking up my credits. And sometimes a designer may use a layout I've done for an ad. But I've never felt like I needed to get views on my uploaded layouts :o.
 
NettieB said:
Thanks, Heidi - your input is appreciated! do you pay attention to the ISO - In Search Of threads then when looking for a specific kit?
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Umm, no. Not even sure what that is. :huh: If I see a kit that I like or an item I like, I look at the credits of a lo and go to the shop. But like I said, that doesn't happen very often. It is the preview that gets my attention. :)
 
I agree with you Lena.....if I play the praise game at any site, I do actually look at the LO's and if I see something I like then I may just go purchase it...but I try to play here {haven't in awhile I have to admit} and I really look at the LO's and have bought a few kits just from viewing them that way...I personally think DST is just SOOOOO big that you can't possibly get the exposure even if you do play the praise game....I do know that I post ALL of my LO's at ACOT no matter where I got my kit and I think people there get ideas from my LO's and will tend to buy products from my LO's posted ....and yes, I am a guest of La's this month and I TOTALLY LOVE that she only makes us post here and at her site...ACOT also only requires us to post there and at 2 other sites {and they are sites of your choice}...I did come across Jofia Designs by playing the praise game at DST...so I think depending on your style, shopping and scrappin style you may buy a kit or elements from a LO that you view from the praise game....but I am guilty of not being very active at playing this game, but I do try and when I do I pretty much try to post on at least the 10 previous posters before me...only becuase I just don't have the time to puruse the gallery when in 1 day there are 7 new pages of LO's that have been posted...that's just my 2 cents and I hope it made sense:p
 
HeatherKS said:
As a fellow buyer, I completely agree with this. I buy kits based primarily on the previews that are put up in the shoppe, not by lo's that I see in the gallery. I look at lo's for ideas of how to put a page together, not before buying a kit. I've browsed a lot of stores because of designer names mentioned on here and if they don't have good previews and closeups of their products, I don't buy them. I think there's only two products I've purchased after seeing a lo with them in the gallery - and I've bought a LOT of stuff. :p
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I TOTALLY AGREE!!! If the preview looks "cheap" or blurry, then I don't even give it a second glance. I like being able to click on the "larger image" and see all the papers, then all the elements. THAT is what gets me to buy a kit. :thumbup:
 
joelsgirl said:
at MSA and DST the only way to get noticed is to be a "heavyweight" like Gina Miller or Cindy or to play praise. Being a total lightweight, I play praise.
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I HOPE that is not referring to me LOL because I'm in the lightweight category!!
ALOT of the time my LOs don't get very many views or comments unless I play the praise game, and honestly if I weren't doing almost 95% CT LOs I wouldn't play it. It does take a lot of time to reciprocate comments, and then I feel bad if I am not able to reciprocate back to everyone.
I do feel like I owe it to SSD and my CTS to try to at least get views on my LOs, which is why I play. I definitely have noticed a shift in the comments I get at DST, and lately alot more generic comments. What annoys me is people who play the game 3-4 times with the same LO....so weird, and I've had people leave a link to one of their LOs in my comments as if to say make sure you comment back LOL. I will say that I do think the praise game sometimes works for selling products because if I do buy from another store, it is usually because I have seen a LO in the gallery through the praise game.
The number of views you get is so dependent on the time of day you post too, has anyone noticed that.....and also if you play the praise game early in the day you often get way more comments and views.
Great question!!!!!!!
 
joelsgirl said:
I think this leads to the question, "Is it really wise of designers to have Creative Teams?" I think if a designer's personal CT is big AND the site CT is big, maybe they're actually LOSING business by giving away their products to all these folks. What do y'all think?
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Are you trying to lose our jobs for us Kellie LMAO!!!:D :D :D
 
I have to tell you though, I am less likely to buy a kit if there is no layout in the store preview. I like to see how amazing the kit can be. The CT layouts do that for me. They spark my creative juices.
 
Honestly I think that the galleries do help, here. I don't know if they do at DST or MSA, because those galleries are opened and they just get too much traffic.

Here, you actually get a chance to see layouts before they get pushed out by new layouts.

I love looking at the gallery here, I'm not a big commenter, because I can't come up with anything clever to say. But they do influence what I buy.

I don't like the galleries at DST and MSA, to be honest because there are a LOT of crappy kits that are used there. I'm sorry, but I hate seeing layouts made out of the cheap kits, or the ISO threads and all I get is crappy looking stuff.

I love it here because i don't have to deal with that. Everyone that designs here it top notch. There are no quality issues, the scrappers here are fab. I think closed galleries are better for the designers.
 
I have to say that playing the praise game doesn't persuade me to buy a kit and never has, but that's just me. If am I really interested in a kit and I really want to see more layouts, I will actually go to the designer's site and see the layouts done there by their CT. SSD is a perfect example. If I'm on the fence about a kit, I know that I can see amazing layouts done by the CTs and know that I can definitely be pushed over the edge to buy. I agree that it's good practice for us CT members to try to do all we can to promote our designers, but I understand that in such fast moving galleries like DST, it's hard to feel like you're doing anything at all. Personally I am a fan of the closed galleries like SSD. Maybe I'm just biased though because it is SSD. :wub:
 
Oh, and I wanted to say how much I LOVE hangin' at MSA every now and then... I don't get many views in the gallery, but posting in the forum every now and then has resulted in me being RAK'ed by :wub: Natalie Braxton, Kasia, Traci Murphy... and just for posting in a thread once I got a GC to Kate Hadfield's store and another time a GC to Cori Gammon's store... the designers that hang out at the MSA forum are very generous and since the forum is so much quieter, you are much more likely to receive awesome RAKs there rather than at DST. BUT I did get RAK'ed once by Krystal HArtley at DST once! That was fun! :thumbup:
 
heatherdumas said:
I have to tell you though, I am less likely to buy a kit if there is no layout in the store preview. I like to see how amazing the kit can be. The CT layouts do that for me. They spark my creative juices.
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I have to agree here. I like that when I go check out a product there are linked CT layouts included (as in SBG, SO, and in the future SSD). But what also works for me is that on a particular day I notice layouts from the same kit flooding the galleries, it really catches my attention to a kit/product.

I do play the Praise Game in MSA and the ISO threads when I can. I think, what also helps the designers in getting product noticed is if it's LINKED in the credits. So in that case, open galleries like DST and MSA work.
 
For me, I like to promote my CT's in the ISO threads. I do play the praise game sometimes but I have a husband and 3 little ones that deserve my time more than games. I certainly believe in working hard for my CT's and I do try my very best but my free time as a mom and wife is very limited and I have found through my comments from praise games that people are not really paying attention to my credits anyway. I especially see this in my LO's using templates and lifts because people are alwasy trying to credit me for someone else's work even though it is plainly spelled out in the credits, so obviously lots are looking right over them. I don't mind posting at DST and MSA. I don't have a huge problem uploading there so I might feel differently if I did. I guess I just despise praise games LOL, although I have played and will continue to play them on occasion when I feel the need to waste an hour of my life each time LOL!
 
I do think it's good to get your layouts noticed. Up through July, I was pretty active at DST, playing the praise game (only once per LO), and reciprocating lots of comments. There was a stretch where I probably averaged about 30 comments per layout. Then I got really busy designing and just haven't had as much time to do it all.

As a designer, I require my CT to post to DST (although we are currently discussing switching that requirement to MSA) just because I like to have a central place to browse and leave comments. I also require one other gallery...preferably, one in which they hang out quite a bit because that's where they will get more genuine interest in their layouts.

I also encourage them to post to their blogs. I get WAY more traffic on my blog on any given day than my best day of views in the gallery, but I do link the images to the gallery for full credits, etc. (Need to switch out to MSA though because DST is having so many issues.)

Speaking of CT requirements and exposure...what about enabling threads? It's definitely not a requirement for my girls. Do people actually look in those threads to shop? I can't imagine that they do. I think only other CTMs probably ever see those posts.
 
Kellie brings up a valid point re: the 'businessmanship' (not a word) of the digital scrapping industry. One of its biggest selling points, of being a cottage industry where every person with the desire and gumption can become a designer, is also its biggest downfall when it comes to being financially lucrative.

Businesses like Target, Walmart, etc. publish expense reports that can be read by the public as well as other businesses. They hire marketing firms that analyze numbers and market trends and share this information accordingly so that the business can capitalize on their strengths and shore up their weaknesses. Etc.

Designers, on the other hand, seem to keep much of their financial information close to the vest. Many designers, though possessing the desire and talent, do not have experience in marketing, public relations, bookkeeping, and the many other tasks required of a business owner and their businesses may suffer for it. They do not bring about enough revenue in order to hire professionals to further delegate work to in order to make the business more successful. While CTMs can be well versed in the trends of the industry, experienced scrappers, and genuinely good honest sweet people, they are not necessarily professionals, either.

For an industry made of enthusiastic amateurs where schooling, training, and experience are not requirements, I think CTs are the best solution to the problem. While CTs are not necessarily ideal for designers, as Kellie pointed out, who either make very little revenue from megasites like DST and MSA OR have made such a name for themselves in the industry that people will buy from them regardless of actual product, they are the best we can do in a personalized cottage industry like digital scrapping.

To put it another way, giving away product to 25 CTMs on a regular basis is much less expensive than 4 years of an M.B.A. with an emphasis in Entrepreneurship, Marketing, Public Relations, or Finance.
 
krystalhartley said:
Speaking of CT requirements and exposure...what about enabling threads? It's definitely not a requirement for my girls. Do people actually look in those threads to shop? I can't imagine that they do. I think only other CTMs probably ever see those posts.
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I have been influenced several times to buy stuff that was in an ISO thread that I did NOT start... that's how I found (and became addicted to) Kasia. :thumbup:
 
to be honest I dont think I have ever really bought a kit because of a layout I have seen. When I browse galleries it isnt really to look for a kit to buy but more to ideas or inspiration or just to see what other people are doing. So I guess I do not really think that its necasary to upload to so many galleries but Im not a designer so maybe it does help with sales. What I do like though is when you click on a kit to look closer and it has the enlarge feature to show more details and it doessnt just have one preveiw but several and sometimes shows the layouts made with the kit. While having the layouts isnt really important I like to see the papers/elements details because there have been some kits which I bought thinking it looked great then once I unzipped it all it didnt really look as nice as the preveiw
 
nesser1981 said:
I don't like the galleries at DST and MSA, to be honest because there are a LOT of crappy kits that are used there. I'm sorry, but I hate seeing layouts made out of the cheap kits, or the ISO threads and all I get is crappy looking stuff.

I love it here because i don't have to deal with that. Everyone that designs here it top notch. There are no quality issues, the scrappers here are fab. I think closed galleries are better for the designers.
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TOTALLY agree!!! :thumbup: One of the reasons I've slowly migrated here (and because it seems this is the only store I spend any money at :p so that must mean all my fave designers are here!)...
 
Krystal - I have never went browsing through the enabling threads. I was required by a site I used to CT for to post there at least 4 times a month. I know that doesn't sound like much but it was truly one of my reasons for leaving the team.

ETA: I may have misunderstood you on this. Sorry. I have bought product from ISO threads but the CT enabling thread at DST I never open!
 
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Trina said:
TOTALLY agree!!! :thumbup: One of the reasons I've slowly migrated here (and because it seems this is the only store I spend any money at :p so that must mean all my fave designers are here!)...
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Sounds like me! ;) Honestly, I think it is a style issue too. Some sites have certain "styles". I hang out at a certain site and enjoy it there, but don't really like their kits. I LOVE the kits here and have decided to start hanging out here. Therefor spending more $. :p
 
mturnidge said:
I have been influenced several times to buy stuff that was in an ISO thread that I did NOT start... that's how I found (and became addicted to) Kasia. :thumbup:
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I shop from the ISO threads WAY.TOO.MUCH :blink: Even if I don't NEED the item that is "ISO," somehow I always find something in these threads that I could put to use :unsure:
 
Teresa said:
ISO- "In search of"

MSA- My Scrapbook Art (digital forum)

Hope that helps (HTH) :)
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I don't get the "in search of" ... pardon my lack of knowledge on that one. I probably know exactly what it is, just never put a name to it. Is it going looking through a forum for a certain kit? Thanks!
 
scrappurple said:
I don't get the "in search of" ... pardon my lack of knowledge on that one. I probably know exactly what it is, just never put a name to it. Is it going looking through a forum for a certain kit? Thanks!
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You'll see a thread that is titled ISO: Football kits. That means the person who started the thread is looking for (in search of) football kits...
 
I very rarely get comments or views at DST. I think there are just too many layouts uploaded, and mine aren't that spectacular to get attention. I also do not have time to join in the Praise Game threads. By the time I get through my routine for the day with work and the kids, I'm lucky to have the time to do the uploading at the sites I'm required to.

Some of my designers have started to take DST off of their required posting list because of the lower views, etc. Can't say I'm complaining about that! ;)

Ok, now that I've read the rest of the thread, I'll share my purchasing trends. I have to see a preview of a kit ... a nice big preview. And I absolutely LOVE seeing several examples of it being used. I love Sneak Peek Fridays. After I see a kit I like, I search the gallery for the name of the kit and look at layouts where it was used. I look at how it was used, and how easy it appears to work with. If I wasn't already sold with the elements/theme, colors or papers in the kit, I look to the layouts using those kits to help me decide.

I just used a Gift Certificate tonight here at SSD ... I was so tickled to cross off a couple of "MUST HAVE" kits ... and it was because when I saw the previews I remembered awesome pages I'd seen using those kits, and I snapped them up! :D

Have I bought because of a LO I saw at DST? Nope. (Am I bad for not knowing what MSA is?) I don't stay there long enough to notice the other layouts. I've pretty much picked the stores I visit and only branch out on rare occassion, and I get the weekly newsletters and check the previews out and go from there to the gallery to search the title if I think I want a kit.

Melinda
 
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You got it right the first time...I should have been more clear. I was referring specifically to the CTM enabling threads (posted each morning at DST)...not ISO threads or the "look what I found" kinds of enabling threads.

I've also made a purchase or 2 from ISO and regular scrapper enabling threads, but I've never, ever browsed the CTM enabling thread. I'm just honestly curious if it's a viable marketing venue...if people want to know what's new from designers, wouldn't they just browse the new products threads?

gracielou said:
Krystal - I have never went browsing through the enabling threads. I was required by a site I used to CT for to post there at least 4 times a month. I know that doesn't sound like much but it was truly one of my reasons for leaving the team.

ETA: I may have misunderstood you on this. Sorry. I have bought product from ISO threads but the CT enabling thread at DST I never open!
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