Free Things To Do In St. Louis, Missouri

My wonderful friend, Amanda is now an editor/writer for an online Woman's Magazine called Bella Online. She is a great writer, so check out her articles HERE...
"Wondering where you can go for some cheap thrills? How about free? Head on over to Saint Louis! There is more than enough to do in an afternoon or a week-long visit. And, though it is hard to believe, none of it requires a penny from you!

The Saint Louis Science Center is jam-packed with information for young and old alike. The facility includes different galleries, a planetarium, and an Omnimax theater! It is open daily from 9:30am-4:30pm (staying open until 9:30pm on Fridays).

The Saint Louis Union Station is a wonderful place to go to gather information about the history of the city. Free tours of the station are offered but require reservations. There is shopping and restaurants all throughout the interior of the building. It is open daily from 10am-9pm (closing at 6pm on Sundays).

Cahokia Mounds harbors the remains of the civilization of Cahokia which existed from A.D. 700 to 1400. Free guided tours through the mounds are available. They have events planned year round. Their hours are 9am-5pm Wednesday through Sunday.

For the art lovers out there Saint Louis provides the Contemporary Art Museum. They have new installations and events going on frequently. Their hours are 10am-5pm Wednesday through Saturday and 11am-4pm Sunday.

Grant’s Farm is a wonderful retreat into the world of animals! It is home to over 1,000 animals from all different continents. They offer tram rides through the park and shows free of charge. They are open spring through fall from 9:30am-3:30pm.

The Holocaust Museum and Learning Center provides information and images of the Holocaust and its survivors. The museum shows series of films. It also has writing and art contests with the winning work put on display. Their hours are Monday through Friday from 9:30am-4:30pm (closing at 3pm on Fridays).

The Laumeier Sculpture Park is a great place to go and witness an open-air art gallery. The exhibitions include pieces from a wide range of artists. The park is also home to a large annual art fair. They are open year round and their hours are 8am-sunset daily.

No trip to Saint Louis would be complete without a visit to their famous Zoo! It houses hundreds of animals from around the world. There is an insectarium and a bird garden housing the winged creatures. And all around the zoo there are animals large and small to treat the eye and increase wonder. The zoo is open year round from 9am-5pm daily.

There are so many more free things available in the Gateway City. So take some time out of your schedule to educate and inspire yourself!"

How do they do it? Etsy supply sellers...

I just don't know what to think here. Maybe this is a good idea???
♥♥Deby0 4,332 sales
♥♥PinkBirdBeads 2,536 sales
♥♥urbanrose 5,934 sales
♥♥caramelos 4,188 sales
♥♥FabBeads 3,214 sales
♥♥jwlrysupply 7,202 sales
♥♥yukidesigns 1,874 sales
♥♥fabricsupplies 13,363 sales - My goodness!!!
♥♥dimestoreemporium 7,077 sales.
Basically EVERY Supply Seller I clicked on was like these! CHECK IT OUT HERE.

Etsy Success Tips n Tricks : Poor Economy a Stewin'

I found this article from an etsy email I got. I am quoting th earticle I found HERE.
"After wrapping up a very busy and sometimes lackluster holiday craft show season, I have come to a few grand conclusions about the economy at the moment, and – no surprise – it sucks! Though the jury is still out on how the craft community will be impacted by our nation’s (and world's!) crashing markets, it's always good to prepare for tough times when in the midst of uncertain ones. As independent artists and crafters with scarcely a safety net in sight, we are vulnerable in many ways, and I sometimes worry that we may be hit the hardest. Sadly, many customers are now opting for the lower quality, cheaper priced, large chain store gifts over our handmade masterpieces. While sitting there for hours at my booth at various craft shows contemplating this fact, I dwelt on what I could do better next time in order to combat the holiday season of lookie-loos...

1. Be flexible: It might be time to think outside the box with special promotions, painstakingly hunt for a cheaper supplier, or work on a fresh new idea that you may have been stewing over. The more items you carry and the more price points you have, the wider audience you can appeal to and the more sales you will make.
2. Learn to tighten your own belt: Do not under estimate the smaller, more local craft shows, such as the ones run by craft mafias or Etsy Teams. Since many of these shows are well-run and attract a specific audience, they are some of the best and cheapest ways for you to get your items out there. The simple fact is that the more money you spend traveling and paying for tabling, the more money you need to make in order to break even.
3. Network, network, network: Get to know other crafters, and listen to the wisdom they have to share about specific craft shows, cities, and markets. Why waste your time sewing purses for craft show in a city that is really into housewares and already flooded with handbags? You are just wasting your time and supplies. I know it takes time and can be tedious, but check out the Etsy forums, Craftster.org forums and the switchboards for some real talk about the business end of things. It does not cost anything to be friendly!
4. Promote intelligently: I think I find this the hardest part of this business, because I tend to just sit around and think the customers are going to come to me. However, in these tough times, we all know that is not the case. Stop just giving everyone a plain boring business card or an elaborate promotional item that costs way more to make than you have to comfortably spend. This year I started giving people buttons, magnets, and pencils with cute images of items in my shop. Not only do the customers love to get free gifts, but when I got home, I had tons of new hearts and orders from people who got my promo items at a show. These promo items were cheap and easy to get and got me a much better response than a plan business card. Also, get creative and friendly with your local print shop – you will save money doing the printing yourself.
5. Be realistic: Although some of us (like myself) really depend on the money made from crafting to live, it's time to get realistic about potential changes that you may need to undertake in order to stay afloat during these lean times. If buyers are thinking twice about their purchases, then you need to think twice about the best, most cost effective way to run your business. Be smart and in the true spirit of D.I.Y., do it your damn self…it is cheaper anyway ; )
6. Don’t underestimate the quality of your own work: Many people might not understand the time-consuming process or expensive materials that go into producing your items. However, once made aware of the time, effort, and love you put in, buyers will be more apt to fork out the cash. I noticed this a lot at craft shows. A person would pick up a yarn from me and admire it, but when I told them about the almost 6 hour process that goes into making every one, I think they felt more comfortable paying almost triple what they would for it at a large chain store. Don’t be afraid to market your process. Describe it in your Etsy listing and profile; include it on the back of your price tag, or chronicle it on your blog.

Mahar Dry Goods Round 2

I recently featured this same artist, but just saw that they attended the felt club in December. Mahar Drygoods had a smaller setup, but it was still very cool, and filled with awesome goodies!! I love their stuffed lime green monsters too :)

Adorned by Robin - booth display

This jewelry maker has a beautiful eye for quality and approachability. See her flickr photos HERE. She has a very impressive and high quality diaplay/booth. In this set of images, she was practicing doing an indoor booth display. Since many crafters get used to relying on the EZ Up tents, it becomes difficult to visualize or even approach an indoor booth setup swithc. This artist practiced in her basement before the show itself. This practice run also allowed her to have a decreased stress factor while setting up for real, and also gave her very nice images to send into the jury process. Nice work!!!

A Traveling Skethbook Show to Join

I found this invitation here...from THIS LADY.
"The Sketchbook Project is coming to Soulard Art Market

The folks at Art-House Co-op agreed to exhibit the Sketchbook Project at Soulard ART Market on March 11, 2009 from 6 to 10pm. The Sketchbook Project is like a concert tour, but with sketchbooks. Art-House sends you a sketchbook, you make the art. Then Art House is taking all the sketchbooks on a 6 city tour to galleries and museums across the U.S. The goal of the exhibition is to encourage anyone to create artwork and build a collective of sketchbooks made by artists from all over the world. The sketchbooks will be plastered across our wall and on tables , free for people to flip through. Art House in Atlanta Georgia is bringing artists together and giving everyone a chance to show in museums and galleries around the country. It's all about community.

You can participate by requesting a sketchbook from Art House Co Op. The deadline is February 22, 2009 for submission. Visit Art House website at www.arthousecoop.com/sketchbookproject

Soulard Art Market
2028 South 12th Street
St. Louis, MO 63104
www.soulardartmarket.com

Hours: Thur/Fri 6pm to 10pm
Sat//Sun noon to 6pm"

BIZ SERIES : Marketing on the Cheap

I fond this wonderfully helpful article HERE. Stay Tuned for More to Come!!
It's every new business owner's Catch-22: getting word out that you have set up shop, but not having any money to do it. You need customers to create the money to market the business, but to get customers you need to tell them you exist!

Before you do any sort of marketing, you need to work out your strategy by answering the following questions:

• What do you want to achieve through your marketing? For instance, is it to build your brand, attract customers, or tell potential customers you are there?

• Who is your target market? Such as fellow business mums, teenage boys, men aged 25-40 years.

• What is the best marketing method for your business? For example, brochures, website, direct mail or networking.

• What are you going to say? Will your marketing include a special offer, opening specials, or your business tagline?

• What makes you special? Work our your USP (Unique Selling Proposition) that makes you stand out from your competitors, such as "We are a networking group for business mums" or "We only sell Fairtrade products".

Once you know what you want to say, to whom and how, you are ready to get started on the marketing itself.

There are many marketing techniques you can use to build your business profile. Some will just cost your time and others may involve a small outlay, but the results are worth your effort and money.

• Give something away for details - it could be a free pen with every purchase, your monthly newsletter or a free e-book, but make sure you use the opportunity to get their information at the same time. In return for the item ask them to supply their name, email address and phone number so you can add them to your list and market to them in the future (with their permission of course!).

• Think local - find out who your local media is (newspapers, magazines, websites, radio, newsletters, TV stations) and tell them about your business's grand opening, new product line or new service. Local media always like local stories so make sure you promote the local angle prominently.

• Competitions - give away something of value to your target market and before long you will have a healthy list of interested prospective customers.

• Team up with other businesses - cross-promote each other to build customer lists for both. You can offer a prize from one of the businesses or discount vouchers as an incentive and share the cost.

• Editorials - make a list of your industry magazines, appropriate sections in metro newspapers, radio and TV shows that cover your industry and tell them when something important happens with your business. Remember that while editorials carry a lot of credibility with the public, you are not paying for the media space or time and you have no say over what is included or when.

• Online PR - after sending your press release to the media, upload it on the free PR websites, like Free Press Release and 24-7 Press release, to increase your search ranking.

• Be an expert - use the knowledge you have in your industry to position yourself as an expert by writing for an industry magazine, website or newsletter, speaking at industry events and information sessions or publishing your own blog or e-book.

• Use the Internet - list your business on free industry websites and business directories like Aussie Web, Hot Frog or Linked In. Make sure your listing contains all the key words potential customers are likely to type in to search engines so you come up in searches.

• Network - find out about your industry associations and networking groups, as well as complementary groups, like Business Mums, and become a member. All you need is your business card and a willingness to talk about your business.

• Don't forget your existing customers - keep in regular contact with your customers through an email newsletter. This is a great way to tell them what is going on in your business and keep you at the top of their minds. A good content mix is an informative article, special offer or giveaway and tips or tricks to help.

• Word of mouth - an often forgotten marketing method, but the one that I think is the most valuable. If someone is happy with your product or service ask them to tell their friends.

All these tips involve some research on your part, but very little (or no) money. They are a great way to get your name out there and get customers clambering for your product or service.

Johanna Baker-Dowdell is a freelance writer and public relations consultant. She owns and manages Strawberry Communications, a consultancy that helps businesses tell their stories through great words and PR. Johanna is based on the NSW Central Coast just north of Sydney, Australia.

For more information on Strawberry Communications, log on to http://www.strawberrycommunications.com.au or email Johanna at johanna@strawberrycommunications.com.au

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Johanna_Baker-Dowdell