Innovators: Accelerator Group for Jewelry Designers

Mission Statement: Instead of going through the pain of figuring it all out on your own, we're here to accelerate your learning curve and help you through it. This is a multi-purpose accountability group, education course, and peer circle all in one to encourage growth, creativity, and profit. We are going to be the facilitators of the right collaborative team you will need to make your business profitable.

Course description: Jewelry professionals who are just starting out, or are looking to expand beyond their initial first-year or recent sales will join together in small groups with Sapphire Collaborative's certified business coach Matthew Perosi and jewelry marketing professional George Blair IV for a 25-week/bi-monthly session on the several topics.

Objectives:
To enable jewelry designers and professionals to:
 •  understand fundamental standards in the industry
 •  develop techniques in presentation and marketing consistent with their brand
 •  discuss, revise, and consider multiple points of view in the field
 •  utilize feedback from instructors and other designers to develop their own voice
 •  understand and consider the importance of audience

Learning outcomes:
By the completion of this accelerator, participants will:
 •  understand fundamental standards of print, web, and social marketing
 •  develop structure to their marketing and their brand as appropriate, integrating research
 •  identify concerns and issues with the sale of their pieces
 •  apply the feedback from experts and your contemporaries to your business model
 •  gain a better understanding of how to run your jewelry business

Required materials:
 •  Smartphone (newer model Android or iPhone; we would prefer to know in advance what type)
 •  Internet access (we will post important information on our Toolbox site and Rough Cuts newsletter for your review and to encourage class discussion; a Google account will be needed for some video conferencing sessions)

We will also make camera, computer, software, and other business recommendations frequently for you to explore and give recommendations on where to find them.

Agenda:

First Year's Opening Session: What you can expect, during the course of your first year as a jewelry designer/professional. We encourage designers in advanced years of development to join us, to provide their perspectives to newcomers to the field. We will also very briefly go into topics that we will address more thoroughly in later sessions.

We will also discuss the following topics, and more, over the 25 weeks, with usable data, success stories, horror yarns, advice, and open forum, including the mistakes everyone makes (and how they got out of the mess they were in).

 •  Get Yourself Together ... We will help you create a sustainable plan for the first 5 years of your business

 •  Social ... What should you be using to provide exposure to your jewelry, expertise, and story, and how interact with your client base?

 •  Audience ... Understanding your target audience, who will appreciate your niche and determining your direction

 •  MJSA, Trade Shows, and Other Buying Groups ... Using the full potential of the trade groups out there

 •  Websites ... What to do, what not to do, what to learn from, and picking the right platforms

 •  Personal Life ... Balance your personal life with being a business owner: personal relationships, parent traps, and the inevitable ultimatums you'll get from loved ones

 •  Scheduling ... Setting realistic marketing goals and business timelines

 •  Press On ... PR companies, DIY press releases, press kit assets, and more

 •  Pitfalls & Pushback ... Just because you love your jewelry doesn't mean a jeweler will; find out what they will say to you and don't be discouraged

 •  Selling Direct or Through Retail ... Should you have a complete business and sell direct through a website, or would you rather just be the creative genius designing the jewelry and let the retailers deal with consumers?

 •  Photography Extensive Course ... Matt will go into this 2-part series for novice and experienced photographers with tested and proven advice

 •  Assembly Line Jams ... Analyzing and improving your process, and discovering roadblocks in the manufacturing and office side of business

 •  Creating a Scene ... Picking your displays and layouts

 •  Funding Yourself ... Navigate financing for your company

 •  Paying Yourself ... Do you have a nest egg and who will support you until your sales take off enough to sustain you?

 •  The Money's All Been Spent ... Managing your budget, addressing your expenses, and protecting yourself; lowering production costs to improve profitability

 •  Taxes ... What you need to know from a tax advisor

 •  Money Gremlins ... Real talk on shipping costs, custom fees, handling, and extra expenses and charges you need to account for

 •  Face/Off ... Splitting time between the creative and the business

 •  To Memo or Not to Memo ... How to write your first memo; then dealing with the payment terms jewelry stores may force on you

Register for Orientation by February 1st	... Everyone: $75 per month
Register for Orientation on or after February 2nd	... MJSA Member: $105 per month ... Non-MJSA Member: $125 per month

Upon Request:

Assessment: On occasion, we may invite a guest to sit in on a discussion, or limited access to the Sapphire Collab Toolbox to review materials.

Private, one-on-one coaching with one of our advisors, via telephone, email, and text: $700 for 2 hours per month; this can include business topics, S.E.O. analysis, and any other topic you'd like to have covered in deeper, private constructive consultation sessions.