The logos are in the order in which they landed in my folder that I opened them into.

PLEASE NOTE: I will open voting in a few hours. I want to give time for mistakes and/or omissions to be spotted and corrected before voting begins! It is just after 4:30 p.m. here…. I will open voting around 7 p.m. my time.

Voting is live! (You must be logged in!)

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goldbase.be
greenbuddy.be
silvertag.be
picoband.be

*edited to add: it appears that several more .be URL’s are now surfacing*

For information about what to do, you may visit this page at Mashable: http://mashable.com/2009/05/24/goldbasebe-facebook/

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1. Satisfaction Guarantee prominently posted. 

2. Single Click Shopping for those customers who don’t need to wade through all of the options.

3. No more going from page to page to choose options. Customers can now choose the product (print, canvas or greeting card) on the same page!

4. Displays a few more pieces of art from that artist’s gallery.

5. Quicker load time.

6. Related tags, colors and categories are featured on the page to help customers find the perfect piece.

So what do you think of the changes?

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I’m pleased enough with them that I’m currently working on my own shops there AND they get their own Skreened forum here! 

Imagine my delight when one of my valiant mods mentioned that he was going to interview them for his site and would write up something for POD For You as well! Brian visited Skreened yesterday and sat down with the owner, Daniel. You can see Brian’s two part story, complete with pictures, at Selling Out on Digital Gryphon. Part one is already up and part two shall be coming tomorrow. As a complement to his story, Brian provided the following Q&A to us. Enjoy!

Brian: Who came up with the idea of Skreened? When? And is what you have now what that first idea was or has it changed?
Daniel: It was me, I came up with the idea. Now to say that I came up with the idea is a misnomer because I was definitely aware of CafePress and Zazzle at the time, so in a sense we are standing on the shoulders of great companies.

Brian: No idea is totally..
Daniel:Yes- it didn’t happen in a vacuum. I was working as a designer for Nationwide Insurance at the time- and I wanted to start a T-shirt site. And so I could either design all the t-shirts or I could help people design them and print them and have a whole community based around it. That sounded a whole lot more appealing; a community of designers – not me to just try to crank out five good designs a week (I’m not that great of a designer). So the business model had been kind of pioneered by these other companies and then we got into really sourcing it. It didn’t start being an Ethical company so in a way what’s changed is that.

I started off wanting to be kind of ‘The Hipster Designer’ niche. To some degree I think some people would call it that, and to some degree it’s more general, I think it’s a little broader appeal than that. But definitely holding strong to not exploiting people anywhere along the supply chain; something we hold really dear.

Brian: Did you specifically change to become ethical or did you just put a name on what you’d always been?
Daniel:In the process of sourcing and discovering some of the things out there, and some of the practices, we made certain decisions that put us squarely in what we could call ‘ethical’.

Brian: So it wasn’t a business decision that said “let’s be ethical” – it was that when presented with the evidence you made the obvious choice.
Daniel:Yes- and the same thing with being ‘green’ – it was like the whole kind of trend in Marketing happened and we took a step back and said “are we doing all this stuff, kind of already?” and we’re like “ya we’re doing a lot of it. Is there some more stuff we could do? Ya- let’s put it on our ToDo List and we’ll just keep moving in that direction” And one of those things was the packaging which is great.

Brian: How is Skreened different from:
a traditional screen printer,
from the walk-in t-shirt shops (’head shops’),
other web-based POD sites?
Daniel:it is different from a Screen-Printer in that we do ‘on demand’ (obviously) and the technology makes that different- we use ‘direct to garment’. That gets into the difference from head shops and the iron-on places in that it’s a huge quality jump up when we’re dealing ‘direct to garment’ digital print from something that gets ironed on.
And then ‘how are we different on the web-side?’ – which is really where the story is for us. In that we are 100% ethically made in the United States under supervisory labour laws and good things like that. So we’re really pushing being an ethical company; being responsible as far as where we’re sourcing our garments from.

Brian: You mentioned before we started; the store front is fairly new.
Daniel: We started in Sept 2006; production facility was basically just me in a room with a printer. We’ve actually grown, had a lot of growth, in the last 6 to 8 months; since we opened up the retail store. So we’ve got our Production Facility and our Retail Store sharing the same space. And anybody can come in with a Zip drive or whatever and get whatever they want. They can also order off the web-site. So if somebody in Arkansas uploads to Skreened anybody in Columbus can come in, search that design, and buy it. So we’ve got a secondary, retail, outlet for their designs.

Brian:On your website you mention that you also offer traditional screen-printing for a minimum 25 pieces- where is that done?
Daniel:We have another facility we share for that.

Brian:Roughly how many shops, designers or designs are available?
Daniel: Since they’re dynamic numbers just go to the site. Just do a search and don’t type anything in, hit “Search” .. I know we’ve got about 12,000 different designs up. What some other places do is multiply that by the number of products you can get it on and you come up with millions; so our mulitplier is somewhere around 800,000.

(I did check the site; 2,786 stores with 12,637 unique designs)

Brian: From the website it looks like you can print pretty much the entire front of a shirt.

Daniel: Yes- that translates to 11 x 17. This is one of the things I want to feel more comfortable about; that preview would be analogous to a Men’s Small. So if someone were to get that on a 2x or 3x it would not look the same.

Brian:I see you can print on the backs; is that for everything, and is it the same print area?
Daniel: Yes and yes.

Brian:You have some bright colors; are you planning on offering Dark Colours; printing on a white underlay?
Daniel: We have the technology to do that; it looks bad and it costs a lot. I’ve played with it (done it as a special) but I don’t think people will be happy with the quality.

Brian:If someone has a file that is significantly smaller- not wanting it bigger, but say the print area is 10×12, does your uploader allow the artist to position it?
Daniel: Yes you can scale it regardless of resolution (at this point) and place it wherever you want; it’s a complete drag & drop- drag & scale operation.

Brian:Are you looking at adding either more apparel or anything non-apparel beyond the totes? Say- anytime later this year.
Daniel: Yes.

Brian:And that’s all you’re going to say? [laughter]
Daniel: We’ve got one thing coming out that we may brand under a different name; way may launch a separate brand ‘Powered by Skreened’. We’ve done some prototyping, If you sniff around Twitter you may- well enough about that.

Brian: Do you offer, for anyone who sets up a shop, any customization of the layout?
Daniel: When we re-launched our site the other week, one of the things we did was get everything in line css-wise so that all of those things can be toyed with- customized. I think it’s even to the point of where we have a tab that says ‘customize your shop’s css’ ready to be enabled.

Brian:Later this year?
Daniel: Absolutely- it’s going to be tested and verified in the coming weeks.

Brian:What’s your policy on ‘mature content’? Anything from gross humour to a leather pride flag… where’s the limit?
Daniel: Hate speech. It’s at our discretion; after years of doing this I don’t believe we’ve had anything that’s really crossed the line. I’ve found a couple of things that tempted me, and I’ve erred on the side of letting them stay up. Anything that is considered Hate Speech is not appropriate for this site.

Brian:Other than that…
Daniel: Other than that… it’s not a public forum, it’s not ‘free speech’. It is paid speech so we have the right to take down anything, but we’re pretty loose with what’s appropriate. We get far more things that are just ‘bad’ than ‘morally bad’. Oh- pornographic stuff. I don’t think that (genitalia) would be appropriate in explicit illustration or photographic nature.

Brian:Given this opportunity to speak to designers actively involved with PODs elsewhere, what can you say to interest them in looking at you as another source?
Daniel: In one sense it’s more of an argument of ‘why not?’ Here’s another sales outlet that costs nothing…it’s going to take a certain amount of time to set up. So it’s that; is it worth investing my time to upload my files, describe and tag them?

Brian:There are companies around the world agressively pursuing people. Some of them are companies that I flatly refuse to give any time to; for a variety of reasons. Some of them coming back to your Ethics argument, others to quality. But there are still a dozen companies that I or any designer could use for their next shop- so back to the question: why Skreened?
Daniel: This may be tipping my lack of ‘business acumen’, but I don’t think we’re for everybody. I think we’re for people that care about Human Rights. I think there’s, you know a lot of people want the cheapest thing and they want to get it out there and make a buck. They don’t care what happens along the supply chain. We’re not that company.

“We’re a company for people who create original things; if people are reading this and they want to rip off.. the underbelly of POD , people that are just ripping stuff off the web; No Thanks! That’s not a good faith use of our site. We produce a high quality image; we use high quality garments, we verify where stuff comes from. We care about what we’re doing.

“An example, someone (not a customer or shopkeeper) emailed me a long, long email. I get back to her with a long, long email within the hour. I own the company. Michelle would have done the same (Michelle is in charge of Customer Service). Joe prints, Sharon ships, Michelle prints; you can get ahold of us.

Brian:Who is Michael?
Daniel: Mike is our web developer. You can tell us what you like, what you don’t like- and we change it. We’ve got this system in place; it works fairly well. There are some bugs; tell us about a bug and we fix it. It’s people- you know who you are dealing with.

Brian:I can’t say how many readers will suddenly decide to visit Skreened.com and sign up for a shop- but is your new site ready for it?
Daniel: Yes. Our new site is ready and able to handle hundreds more designers.”

Brian Gryphon has been producing photographic images for over 30 years. He operates a number of POD shops that offer his floral photography on apparel, prints and other merchandise.  He brings experience in commercial and retail sales, marketing, management, and commercial art + design; as well as college training in business techniques, programming and applied arts.  Brian is also a published author, poet and photographer. He started playing with computers by programming basic for an IBM-XT and continues to design and operate a number of web-sites; business and personal. He can be found Twittering as well as on-line on various forums and Instant Message services. Or else he may be at the world-famous Whetstone Park of Roses or the local ‘no-kill’ rescue shelter.

Brian Gryphon can be found at  digitalgryphon.com or digitalgryphon.net .

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———————–
Hello! 

We’re having a one-day Shopkeeper Sale tomorrow, March 24. It’s a perfect time to stock up for Spring (and check out the new organic apparel)!

Here are the details:
$20 off orders of $100*
Coupon code: *20DAY1*

OR

$10 off orders of $50* 
Coupon code: *10DAY1*

* Save $20 off purchases of $100 more, or $10 off purchase of $50 or more. Offer excludes shipping charges and applicable sales tax. Excludes Gift Certificates, Flip Minos and bulk orders. Coupon code must be entered at check out. Promotion starts on March 24, 2009, at 12:00 a.m. (PST) and endson March 24, 2009, at 11:00 p.m. (PST).

Happy Shopping!

[cpgrid prodtypes="17" return="3" preview="3"]shopping[/cpgrid]

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This great little icon not only tells readers how many times a post has been tweeted, but offers a VERY easy way to let them retweet the post! They simply click the green “retweet” button and they are automatically redirected to their Twitter home page where they will find a RT already filled in with the post name and a link. All they have to do is hit their update button and their RT is sent out into their Twitter stream.

Awwww…. come on…. I know you want one, don’t you? Then go and grab the Tweetmeme plugin and install it to your Wordpress blog. After installation, you can decide where to put your snazzy new button. You can also use the full version like the one you see at the top of this post, or you can choose to use a smaller version. 

Don’t forget to follow me @kayecee and if you like this post, please RT. *smooches*

Kayecee gives the Tweetmeme plugin a five shoe review! (5/5 Shoes)

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I began working from home full time in 2002, but not entirely by choice–I was downsized. Now they say things happen for a reason, and that may just have been the kick in the pants to get me started. I’d been freelancing in my spare time since 1984 so I turned my side job into my full job and have been happy with the outcome since.

Working at home is NOT all roses and daisies. Yeah, you get to work in your jammies but you also have to deal with the paperwork, paying your own insurance, social security, and quarterly taxes. Collecting from slow paying customers is now more urgent because there’s no “real job” to fall back on. Your family doesn’t understand that you’re not just sitting at home all day playing on the computer.

A whole new mindset comes with working at home as well. Here are a few things I’ve found that keep me on track and productive. Maybe they’ll work for you.

Keep a Schedule/Set Daily Goals
If you are a structured environment person or work better with a little rigidity, then set up “office hours” for yourself. They don’t have to be business hours. If you work better in the middle of the night like I do, then set your hours for the middle of the night. If you have to deal with clients “in person” via phone or meetings, those days can be planned in advance and worked in.

If you don’t need the structure of set hours, then set a daily goal list. Unlike a “To Do” list, a goal list is a list of things that you can and will accomplish in a regular day’s work. In this scheme, as long as you get the daily goals met, a 3 hour lunch with a pal isn’t going to disrupt your workflow. But remember that “daily” means within a 24-hour period that also includes reasonable sleeping time, meals, breaks and chores.

Be Flexible/Prioritize
Once you’ve set your daily goal, be flexible enough in your mindset to allow for minor interruptions. If a client calls and needs a paragraph added to something and it will only take you 5 minutes, work it in. It keeps the client happy and might net more work.

If you don’t have clients to work with and are mainly designing for PODs and doing affiliate, then be flexible enough to restructure your goals and still meet them. If the work you planned on one niche/design isn’t motivating you right then, add that to another day’s goal, and work on one that is allowing you to get something done.

Treat It Like A Business
Even with all that jammie wearin’ flexibility, you still need to treat your home business like a business. Be firm with family and friends about bugging you during “work” hours if it becomes too frequent. Be firm with yourself about running off for that 3 hour lunch if you know it will impact your goal. The three hour lunch is NOT worth staying up all night when something doesn’t work out like you’d planned.

Which comes to the next point. While working at home does often mean that you work more hours than you normally might at an outside job, don’t let the work overtake your entire life. Part of the appeal of working at home is to allow more freedom to actually enjoy things. If you work 20 hour days, 7 days a week and don’t even get overtime, what have you gained? Take at least one day a week off and don’t feel guilty about it. The world won’t end.

Write it Down
It may seem silly, but start your day or your week by writing your daily goals down. Having them in your head is not the same thing. It’s way too easy to edit in your mind.

I find having a day planner is worth everything in this area. I have sections where I write down ideas and a section where I write my daily goals. I have even designed my own tracking sheets and goal lists that I print out and use in my planner. It’s cheaper than buying those fancy planner pages, and I can make them suit the way I work.

Attitude Matters
Roll your eyes all you like, but attitude makes the difference between joy and drudgery. The way I see it, we have to work to make a living so why not enjoy it? Working from home should be a first step to realizing that joy.

When I was downsized, the first thing I did was break a few things around the house, wonder how DARE they do this to me (and the rest of my team), plot some annoying revenge scenarios, and wonder if the world was out to get me. After that hour passed it was time to get down to business.

Setbacks happen, things go wrong, clients go away and it’s natural to be upset or angry. But once that’s done with, get to work. Instead of wasting time playing a blame game or beating your chest and rending your garments, use that energy in your work and make things that much better. Overcoming setbacks is the best revenge. EVAR.

There’s nothing wrong with the power of positive thinking, either. I have taught myself to try and see the good part about any bad situation. If the good part is only that it boots my butt to get going on something new, then so be it. I find that operating in this manner lets me sleep better and makes me look forward to coming to the computer to work on my projects. Not to mention it makes me a more pleasant person to be around, I’m told.

In Summary
Yes, I hear you grumbling “oh that pie in the sky stuff never works! I have to work 22 hours a day just to get by! I can’t let up! I can’t stop”. Well, yes you can. That kind of thinking can wear you down and can actually impede your work and lead to illness. Yes, there will be some times when you need to put in extra hours to get a project off the ground. But learn to target your efforts and organize them. If you go in with a scattershot approach you might hit something just by chance, but if you aim precisely, you’ll make a kill every time with a single shot.

Working accounts for 25 percent of our week (actually 23.8% but close enough). We might as well make the best of it. Our success is in our own two hands and how we structure our time and deal with setbacks can make all the difference.

As a reporter turned typesetter, RPF spends her time fiddling about with Robert Plant, and trying to build a POD empire. She has been working from home as a freelance typesetter and designer since 2001, and has been exploring the world of POD since 2002. She is located in Kentucky–a stone’s throw from Amazon.com and 3 stone throws from CafePress.

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Do you have a website that would be suitable for Rolling Stone gifts? You can now offer Rolling Stone Authentic framed covers from every decade at Imagekind. Great gift items to promote on your sites! The Imagekind affiliate program is currently available on ShareASale.

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So what’s a busy girl to do?

Simple… I found a great Wordpress plug in called Automatic SEO Links. This baby is wonderful! I installed it and simply entered the keyword and URL. Now, whenever I type the keyword, the plug in automatically inserts the link into the first instance of it on the page! I can even choose whether to make the link Follow or NoFollow. 

If I’m doing a site about gardening and want to link the word lawnmower to a specific landing page for a certain company, I simply enter the keyword “lawnmower” with the proper URL and BAM!!!! Proper link! The company changes platforms, closes its affiliate program, or switches networks? No problem! Simply go to the Admin area and edit the keyword to change links. 

Kayecee gives Automatic SEO Links a five shoe review! (5/5 Shoes)

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Greeting Card Universe has announced new shipping options:

*Standard  (3 – 7 business days from ship date)

*2nd Day  (2nd business day from ship date)

*Priority Overnight  (next business day from ship date)

*International Shipping  (typically 7 to 20 days)

These new options can be found during checkout under Shipping Method next to the Promotional Codes box. For the international shipping option, Greeting Card Universe is unable to designate any packages as gifts and certain countries may charge additional fees.

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