Sending Newsletters Is Fun

Should that be "are" fun? No...I think is is right. *grin*

I finally sent a new newsletter out today, after being MIA for several months. I think my last one went out all the way back in MARCH. Oh the shame.

Sending a newsletter is stressful and nerve wracking, but ultimately a lot of fun. It's the one chance I get to communicate with everyone who has signed up or purchased something in the past.

This latest newsletter announced and explained all the new changes regarding my website and my Etsy shop. I'm sure some folks will not want to purchase via Etsy, but hopefully the positives will outweigh the negatives for people.

Have you thought about sending a newsletter before? At one point in time I used Constant Contact but for someone as small as me the cost was insane. It's a monthly fee even if you don't send out a single newsletter. And the fee goes up if you want to send more than a certain number of e-mails (It was 200 for my small account) - which may not sound like a big deal but you'd be surprised how fast you can build up a 200-300 member newsletter list.

So last year I switched to Mail Chimp. I LOVE IT! They've gone through a lot of growing and changes but their communication is excellent. So is their pricing structure! I don't pay a dime unless I actually SEND an e-mail. Imagine that!

Instead of a monthly fee, you pay for credits - each credit represents an e-mail address. So if I have 500 members on my list I will need 500 credits to send an e-mail to them. Prices range from $0.03 a credit down to $0.01 a credit. I go with the in between because I don't have a ton of e-mail addresses - so each person "costs" me $0.02 to contact. My last newsletter cost just over $10 to send out.

Think about that...It's a lot cheaper than the mail service. And the layout is a lot nicer looking than just a regular text e-mail. And for about $10 I was able to communicate with over 500 people! And I'm not going to be charged another $15 monthly fee or anything like that.

Plus isn't the monkey cute??? *grin* Their monkey mascot cracks me up.

You can use Mail Chimp for all kinds of newsletters, not just for business. If you have tons of family and don't want to shell out the big bucks for fancy holiday cards or announcements, Mail Chimp is a great option. Or just to keep in touch.

The Monkey lets you sign up for a free trial account too. So you can try it out at no risk and if you decide to sign up (and you do so from my link here) you will earn $30 in credit! Woohoo! And so do I! Woohoo again! Win Win.

I'm not loving on the Monkey (so to speak) just to get credit though. I really do love their service. Any time I've had any issues (only twice...and trust me it was user error) the staff has been more than helpful. Plus they've done a bunch of upgrades lately and their site is even easier to use than it was before (and it was easy to use before!).

So let's all keep in touch, k? =) Feel free to sign up for my newsletter ... I'm going to try to be better at sending one out at least once a month...maybe once every six weeks.

Oh...I forgot to mention that it's really easy for people to sign up for your distribution list too. There are all kinds of tutorials on how to build a sign up page - although I had my web lady do it because I'm too dumb for that kind of thing. hahahaha

You can also manually enter e-mail addresses (and I think you can upload them too) as long as you have permission.

Spread some monkey love today! =)

Stuffy Cold Weekend

I'm not talking weather... Friday night I started feeling stuffy in the nose and head. Saturday morning I was sick but determined to go to the agility demo with Trooper.

By Saturday evening I was curled up on the couch, not even interested in the computer or TV. I was in bed Saturday night by 8 p.m. and asleep by 8:30.

Yesterday was horrible. I got nothing done. I didn't even get out of the house to buy my newspapers for the coupons! Trust me...that is sick. I'm hoping my friend can get me some extra copies...but they will be from the Tacoma newspaper, not the Seattle paper - which has the best coupons. *sigh*

Now I feel kind of tired and the stuffiness is there, but held back by the medicine. I'm so glad I got some free Robitussen a few weeks ago! I got the cough and cold kind and it works really well. On top of that I got hit with horrible cramps...stupid period.

So it's definitely a Monday right? So here's a fun survey...feel free to disagree. =) Anyone planning to watch the Veep debate this week? I'm leery...a little nervous but optimistic.

New Changes at Casto Creations

There are quite a few changes at Casto Creations and I thought I'd take some time to explain them here. This is long but I tried to use headers so you can browse quickly. :)

Simplicity.

That is my new goal. Simplify my life. Having my own website with a shopping cart and a merchant account has become so stressful to me that I didn't even want to create new pieces of jewelry. I wanted to ignore the whole thing ... as I tend to do when something stresses me out.

New Plan - Purchase through Etsy

I still have a 'regular' website, but it no longer has a shopping cart feature. Items posted there will be for gallery style viewing only and I'll maintain my policies and about pages, as well as my contact form and newsletter sign up page.

The new setup for selling my jewelry will include Etsy and Paypal. I don't know what people did before these two companies existed. And with recent upgrades and changes they are even better.

To purchase from my Etsy shop you will need to create an Etsy account, if you don't already have one. The process for making purchases through Etsy is "simple" but can also create some confusion. There are several steps needed to complete a purchase.

1. Click the "Add to Cart" button (green, to the upper right of each item listed)
2. If you are done shopping click the "Checkout" button
3. Enter your address or pick a saved address.
4. Select a payment method.
5. Send Your Payment (This is the most often skipped step!)

That last one gets skipped a lot because after the 4th step it kind of looks like you're done...but you aren't. =)

While this may look complicated I can promise you that once you get the hang of it, it takes seconds. I've purchased tons of items and it's a simple process once you get used to it.

Using Paypal

Some people get nervous when they hear about Paypal. I promise it's not as scary as it might sound. I've been on Paypal for more than 5 years. I started using it as a customer on Ebay when I bought a lot of beads and supplies.

I resisted getting my account linked to my bank account but honestly it was an easy transition that has made my life easier in the past few years. As a business it makes sense to hold me accountable and have a link to a "real" bank.

Your information is safe!

Really...I know there are horror stories out there about how bad Paypal is, but as a customer using Paypal to buy items and as a business owner taking payments I have never had any major issues.

The key is to be smart about answering e-mails that claim to be from Paypal. NEVER click on a link that claims to be directly from Paypal in an e-mail message. EVER. [This is different than paying an invoice sent to you though.] Always directly type in the paypal address directly into your browser to check your account. Seriously. It's the best way to do things. And if you ever have a question about an e-mail just forward it to spoof@paypal.com and they will confirm whether it is a spam message.

And if you can't stand the idea of creating an account, don't worry. Paypal now allows you to pay with a credit card without signing up. It is just like inputting your card information to any other site shopping cart and is secure.

Coupon Codes

This is the one issue that bothers me most because I loved the ability to give coupon codes for people to save. Etsy does not allow for the use of coupon codes (yet...I hope they will eventually allow this) so all discounts have to either be made to the item listing or given after the fact.

All coupon codes will still get you a discount - but the discount will be in the form of a refund via Paypal. For example...

• You buy a necklace for $100 and have a coupon code for 20% off.
• Leave the coupon code in the 'notes' section of the Etsy checkout process.
• Complete the payment process through paypal.
• You would receive the $20 discount as a "refund" before the necklace is shipped.

Questions?

I'm hopeful that this setup will allow me to stress less and create more. I love love love designing jewelry and it is the highest compliment when someone is willing to part with their hard earned dollars to buy a piece of my work.

I always am available if there are any questions. I still will do custom pieces and if you have an idea for something you want designed feel free to contact me.

And thank you all for your patience and understanding!

Tired, Frustrated, Disappointed

I'm trying really really really hard to not watch the news. Seriously. It's just utterly depressing and I need no help being depressed.

Of course I'm still listening to my favorite talk radio shows ... but for the most part they are up beat. Not all of them of course, but Medved is my favorite and he tends to have a very positive outlook. So does Hugh Hewitt, who I adore. He's been taking calls from ONLY female first time callers for the last two weeks. Which is apparently unheard of in radio. I haven't called yet but only because everyone else has said what I've been thinking.

This whole bailout thing is ticking me off though. My hubby and I work very hard to pay all of our bills and save our money. When we bought our house we were offered a variable rate but turned it down. I have a low risk tolerance and didn't like the idea of a rate that went up in the future, even hypothetically.

I don't know who some of these people went through to get their home loans that they didn't have to prove that they could actually PAY for the house...our mortgage folks required all sorts of crazy paperwork and proof of employment. But I wasn't offended ... it makes sense that you have to prove that you can AFFORD to pay for a house. Duh!

Nor did we try to buy more house than we could afford. As much as I would love the $500,000 home with acreage, I'm not stupid enough to think that the stress of trying to pay for it would not kill me. We'd be so screwed right now if we'd tried to do that.

And since some people got greedy, wanting more house than they could really afford or trying to buy homes to "flip" them for a profit...and because the government tried to play social experiments by forcing businesses to give loans to those who couldn't really afford it in order to increase home ownership for "minorities" ... and because a few lenders got greedy ... hubby and I will potentially suffer.

I do not want my taxes paying for someone's home just because they were greedy, stupid, or "tricked" (in which case how smart were they really?). I don't have a ton of sympathy for people who got in over their heads. I was only 24 when we bought our home (and we weren't even married yet!) and I knew better than to do some of the things people did to get homes.

If the bailout doesn't go through, the company I work for will probably be hurting a bit. I don't *think* that I'll lose my job but who knows. I'm trying not to worry about it and leave it in God's hands. There's nothing I can do at the moment to fix or change anything.

Do I think we're headed into the next "great" Depression? No idea. I don't think so. I think the government is running around crying "wolf" when really it's just a wolf cub. Is it serious? Oh heck yes. But I just don't think it's as doom and gloom as some of the politicians want us to believe.

We'll see how it turns out. *sigh*

Oh...and I'm disappointed because my monthly friend just showed up. I was kind of hoping there'd be a reason for her to stay put for 9 months. :( No such luck.

Wait...My Chocolate Isn't Chocolate???

Where have I been? When did Hershey's stop using the term "milk chocolate" when describing some of its candy??? I am so not that observant.

Check out this story on The Consumerist.

Apparently consumers like the new formula. Yeah, maybe. And I certainly didn't notice (not that I eat a lot of Hershey's candy bars).

But isn't it a little weird...our chocolate isn't really chocolate.

And did you know that there is a Candy Blog out there? I love it!

If I Were to Buy Jewelry

I'd TOTALLY buy from this shop. I just love her pieces!


Don't they rock? I know how hard it is to control a patina so I'm super impressed with her ability to get these awesome colors.

Patina is a fun thing to play with and I'm really impressed with her work. I wish I knew how she was getting her color to "stay" as mine eventually fade with wear.

Super Bandaid

Seriously.

You know how most bandaids, when you get them wet, will fall off?

Well, super coordinated me sliced my pinky finger last night with a pair of scissors.

I'm lame ... I know.

I've never ever ever sliced my finger when opening a box before. But there's a first time for everything.

So the slice bled pretty bad and I had to put a bandaid on. :( I hate bandaids. They are a pain and since it's on my finger means I can't really bend my finger properly.

However, since I started clipping coupons I've been stocking up on free things like Bandaids and have several boxes of the more expensive style Ultra Bandaids. Free is good and I probably wouldn't have bought them outright - they are slightly more expensive and I am cheap. However the cheap ones do fall off.


Let me tell you - they rock. Seriously...through washing my face last night, taking a shower this morning, and washing my hands just a few minutes ago the Bandaid is still on my finger! I'm going to take it off soon to allow the wound to breath but I'm so impressed that it hasn't fallen off (and no, it doesn't feel wet just a few minutes after washing) that I had to share.

I know...it's one of the most important pieces of information you'll get all day. =)

*** No, this was not a paid advertisement or request from Band Aid. I just wanted to share. ***

Survey: More TV Junkiness

For some reason I thought I watched a lot more TV but there are tons of shows that I do not watch.

I can't wait for Survivor to start though! All these seasons later I'm still hooked.

Happy Monday

Well, are Mondays ever happy? I wore a hot pink turtle neck to work today. I wanted to be optimistic. =)

An update on my website...It is being worked on. In an effort to simplify my life, I am going to go ahead and have my shopping cart system scrapped. All sales will either be through Etsy or direct paypal invoices. I will still have an independent website at www.castocreations.com but to purchase pieces people will need to either create a user account on Etsy or contact me and ask for an invoice.

This creates several inconveniences for me and for anyone who wants to buy my jewelry. However in the long run it is better for me and my family. And perhaps even for customers. I will be sending out a newsletter e-mail explaining the changes as soon as they are in effect. If you aren't already on my newsletter list you will be able to sign up again once my site is back up and running.

So while I wait for my new site to be loaded I started feeling more inspired than I had in months! I created two necklaces, four pairs of earrings, and a ring this weekend. Woohoo!!!


First one up on Etsy is one that I really want to keep for myself. It is just so gorgeous (in my humble opinion).

I called it Crystal Ice ... it just brings to mind an elegant black tie event with chandeliers at Christmas time - lots of ice cycles, white and blue decorations, quiet music.


Hope you like it. =)

Now for Some Really Important News

IT'S INTERNATIONAL TALK LIKE A PIRATE DAY.


So I officially say "Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr" =)

If you've never talked like a pirate you are seriously missing out on some fun. Never fear though - you can learn how to talk like a pirate.


My official Talk Like a Pirate Name is ....

Pegleg Jackson

Have a great one folks!