As Harry Beckwith astutely observes in his wonderful book What Clients Love, some of the most successful innovations of our time – the personal computer, Automatic Teller Machines (ATMs) and other things we now use daily – emerged not in response to customer demand or focus group results, but because someone got the inspired idea to create them.
Think about that if you’re tempted, as many artisan jewelry makers are, to try to design and make jewelry to follow prevailing mass-market jewelry or fashion trends.
People buy artisan jewelry because it is unique. A piece that they’ve never seen before.
If you’ve ever seen someone say “WOW!” when seeing a unique design, you understand what I’m talking about.
Strive to create from within, not from without.
The result will benefit the entire field of artisan jewelry, as consumers begin to learn that if they want something inspired, unusual and one-of-a-kind, there’s only one place to go for it: An artisan jeweler.
Go make something great!