Thursday, December 3, 2009

Contest Advice

Beacon Adhesives decided to run a contest-a simple thing. Just use a Beacon product, send me a pic and a bit about how you put it together. It could be a card, a craft, a costume, an ornament-if you can glue it, send it in. We packed this beautiful basket chock full of Beacon products,glitter and other goodies. I prettied it up with a bow that I was quite proud of. I have never been very good when it came to bows, but I googled and found a simple bow tutorial that turned me into an expert in nothing flat. Took a picture, started facebooking and tweeting about this wonderful basket. Win a prize, y'all! It's easy! Take this opportunity to show even more people your work, or your hobby.

I figured I would get so many submissions that I would have a hard time picking a winner. There are a gazillion crafty creative people out there, and from what I have heard, free ANYTHING is a great draw. Here's a basket waiting to be claimed. Lots of great product inside to create even more wondrous things.

Thud. Not one entry. I tweeted. I facebooked. Nary a word, a message, an attempt at entering the contest. Where did I go wrong? Are the project links on our Facebook too intimidating? Even though I have tons of Facebook friends, do people ignore my posts? Do they even know we have this contest? Are crafters shy? Does it feel like Beacon Adhesives is just a Facebook page with nobody real behind it?
Baby, where did I go wrong? I need advice. I can take criticism. I would love to know how to improve my interactions.

Sunday, November 22, 2009

How to Start a Blog

I have no idea how to start a blog. I have spent hours looking through blogs I love, going back into the archives to find that first post. Some are serious, some are witty, some are simply a "test" posting.

The common thread seems to be the introduction. Who am I? What am I trying to accomplish? Why was it necessary to start this blog?

I will start with the simple stuff. This blog is the Beacon Adhesives blog. Got glue? We do. Tons and tons of glue. Glue for scrapbooking, glue for craft projects with kids, glue for jewelry, glue for foam, glue for metal, glue for fabric, glue glue glue.

We have been making adhesives since 1926. It's not like we just picked up some glue from China and decided to knock it off. There are real people behind Beacon Adhesives. Beacon got its start as a manufacturer and distributor of hatmaking supplies in the twenties. When Mickey, the son of the owner, graduated college with a degree in chemistry, he returned to Beacon to head up research and development. Mickey is still there, researching and developing, as well as heading Beacon as its CEO. I won't say how old he is, but I can tell you that he graduated Columbia University over 50 years ago. Mickey is still envisioning new products for an ever changing market, and his extensive background and complete understanding of chemistry is what makes the difference. Mickey's son David, named after his grandfather, is Beacon's president. David grew up in the business as well, and is ensuring that the company moves forward and stays current. He keeps the ship righted while his father experiments.

Then there is Mike. Mike is the president of Signature Crafts, the group that dreams up all of Beacon's consumer products.Mike is the consummate glue guy. Mike seems to work in his sleep. Is there anything new that can be done with glue? Mike is going to figure it out. He is into a million projects at once, and he is excited about all of them. He will answer his phone and explain to any customer exactly how to use a product, and encourages all of us who work for him to maintain that same level of contact. Without the consumer, we don't have a business. Mike is also incredibly funny, and if you have ever met him or seen him in a video, highly entertaining.

Then there is me. That will require a whole other post. My name is Karen. Enough for today.