Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Freebies for Photographers and Etsians

Hi to the blogspot world!  Being that this is my first post on this site I thought I would start with a bang.  How about some info on freebies? I knew you would like that.  Being new to the business of professional photography, I don't have a lot of revenue flowing in in order to reinvest into advertising. Most if not all goes to my product.  This caused me to search high and low for great deals on how to get my name out there. And lucky you gets to the benefit of those finds.

One of the best places for business cards is Kodak  They are called mommy cards but can be used  as business cards as well.  There are some limitations such as the text amount allotted on the front, but the texturing and color is well worth the 3.99 you pay for shipping. You only get 50 but that should be enough to get you started

If you want a bit more items to chose from then the next great site is Vistaprint. There are a myrid of free products to get your advertising juices flowing. They range from 250 free business cards to bumper stickers and car magnets.  You, again, only pay for shipping, which is a little more then Kodak and will go up depending on what you order.  It says that the shipping could take 21 days but I only had to wait a week.  I will forewarn you that they are going to fill your inbox with junk mail.  To prevent that just simply create a junk email (one that is only used for junk email to land)  After you order they will offer you more free items to order as well.  Just be weary as you are placing your order they will ask you to add on a ton of extras. Simply skip right on through and you should be fine.  Also don't sign up for a rebate for doing a survey.  It will end up costing you if you are not careful.

If you are one that likes to do shows but doesn't want to drag along all of your product another great option is photobooks.  There are two great sites that you should check out.  One will include an automatic $20 gift code to use towards any project and the other will randomly send you offers through your email.

The first one is My Publisher. I, myself have not had a chance to order my book just yet but will be doing so in the next week. You will have to download some software but it's not too bad. This site was brought to my attention by a friend.  I had a chance to glance at her book and it was amazing.  The quality was beautiful and it made me excited to make one of my own. The gift code will enable you to either get a soft cover photo book for free plus shipping or a hard cover for $10 plus shipping.  They also offer discounts throughout the month on shipping and other items.

The next site is Shutterfly. I have had the chance to receive two free hard-cover books in two years.  The book is good quality and the software is easy to use. There are a lot of choices on themes and page backgrounds as well as the allowence for custom set ups. The only major drawback is you don't know when the email for a free book will come.  You do immediantly get 50 4x6 prints free. And you also never have the worry of having your photos deleted. At least at this time.

My final secret is not a freebie but just a plug for a great site.  MPix, is a wonderful site for photo processing.  The have some of the best prices around and they quality is out of this world.  You can keep up with any specials or sales they have by following them on Twitter or on Facebook. They print 8x10's for as low as 2 bucks and let me tell you they make my photos look like works of art.  They also place a custom copyright on the back of your photos, so there is never a fear of infringement. Draw back is they don't have much in the way for editing so what you upload to their site is what you get. They also have a 60 day policy, this means that if there has not been an order placed in two months your images could be delated.

Well that's all the insider tips I have for today.  I hope they can help you find your way in the world of Etsy, craft shows and beyond.

If you have time please stop by my shop Rae of Light Photography
Until next time Take Luck

*I have not in anyway been paid for these endorsements these are simply some offers I found by searching on the internet.

Photo of the Day

4 comments:

  1. Very nice blog. Thank you for the suggestions! I will try Kodak.

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  2. Great tips! I like the background pic of your blog too :)

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  3. Thanks for the great tips and good luck with your blog!

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  4. Your blog looks great and your tips, spot on! Look forward to following. :)Pam

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