Welcome to LA Handmade, the craft blog/bazaar site for the
Los Alamos and White Rock communities. This document will walk you through the
process of becoming a vendor on the site.
1. If you are interested in becoming a vendor, please email Jenny Webb, using the Gmail email
address you would prefer to use in association with this site. It can be your
regular email address, or you may wish to have a separate email account for
selling your items. (It needs to be a Gmail address because you will need to
have a Google account to be an author on this blog since it’s on the Blogger
platform.) Jenny will then send you an invitation to that email account to
become an author on the LA Handmade blog. Accept the invitation.
2. Once you accept
the invitation, you then have the authority to make posts on the LA
Handmade blog. Posts should be for items you either have available currently
(in stock) to sell, or items that can be ordered and that you are willing to
make within a certain timeline. Your posts will be most effective if they group
similar items together (rather than making a separate post for each individual
item you wish to sell).
To make a
post on the LA Handmade blog:
A. Go to www.blogger.com
B. Login to your blogger account
C. Locate the LA Handmade: Keep
it local blog on the blog list (if you have other Blogger blogs, they will also
show up, if you don’t, LA Handmade will be the only item on the list)
D. Click on the orange button
with a white pencil on it to create a new post
E. Click in the white box and
type up your post
F. To add photos, first place the cursor where you would like the
photo to appear. Next, click on the small blue photo button in the middle of
the composition bar at the top of the page. Select “Choose Files” and then
navigate to where you stored the photo. Click on the photo file, then click
“Open.” The photo will upload and be highlighted in blue. Click “Add Selected”
to import the photo into your post. Once your photo appears in your post, you
can click on the photo to bring up a small blue photo options bar that will let
you determine the size of the photo (Medium is best for this blog), its
position on the page, and whether or not it has a caption.
G. Include your contact information. Don’t forget to include the
phrase “To purchase, contact YOUR NAME” at the end of your post. Highlight YOUR
NAME and then select the “Link” button from the bar at the top of the page. Select
“Email address” and then enter your preferred email address. Then click OK.
Your email address will not show up on the blog, but your name will be
highlighted in your post and if people click on it their email client will
launch an email addressed to you.
H. LABEL! This blog will not work
without vendors using labels to organize their posts, so this step is very
important. On the right hand side of the page, under “Post Settings,” click on “Labels.”
The Labels window will open. Labels that are already in use can be added by
either typing them into the white box or by simply clicking on them. If you
would like to add a label that is not in use yet, simply write it into the
white box. Separate multiple labels by commas. Every post must contain at least three labels: your name (so that
people can search for everything you’re selling), whether the items listed are
Current stock or Available to order (using both is fine if your post lists
both), and at least one identifying item type label (e.g., Baby, Children,
Teens, Adults, Men, Women, Boys, Girls, Christmas, Valentine's Day, Easter, 4th
of July, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Holiday, Jewelry, Cards, Clothing, Hair
accessories, Accessories, Ceramics, Art, Photography, Home decor, Paper goods,
Food, Beauty supplies, Office supplies, etc.).
I. When you are all done, click
the orange “Publish” button at the very top of the page.
J. Tips: Remember to title your
post, and remember to list your prices!
K. Note: Posts will appear on the
blog in the order they are posted by date. Updating your posts will put them
back on the top. Keeping your posts current and updated, then, also serves as a
way to remind shoppers of your items. However, it is rude to republish posts
without actually updating them just so they will move back to the top of the
page.
3. Please read through (and follow) these LA Handmade community guidelines to
ensure a positive experience both for yourself and for those shopping on the LA
Handmade site
A. You are responsible for
maintaining your posts. If you sell something, update your post accordingly.
Note: to update a post, login to Blogger, select “LA Handmade” from your
blog list, click on “Posts” on the left-hand side of the page, locate your post
on the list, hover the mouse over the post title and then select “Edit”, edit
your post, then select the orange “Update” button at the top of the page. You
can also be logged in to Blogger/your Google account, go to the LA Handmade
blog, locate your post (use your name label under the Vendor list to bring up
all your posts), and then click on the small editing tools icon at the end of
your post to initiate the editing process.
B. The items listed here must be
handmade/assembled. This definition is broad and inclusive of all types of
goods. However, LA Handmade is not a place to list gently used items for resale
and reserves the right to remove posts that do not follow this policy.
C. Respond to customer emails in
a timely manner. A bad experience with one vendor may affect a customer’s
opinion of all vendors on the blog.
D. You must have all legal rights
to sell the items you list. LA Handmade is not legally responsible for the
items listed by vendors in any way.
E. LA Handmade has no responsibility
for any financial transactions. If a customer wishes to purchase an item, they
will email you. It is your responsibility to arrange all details of the
transaction.
F. Repeated customer complaints
against one vendor may result in that vendor being asked to leave the LA
Handmade community.
G. Vendors must reside in the Los
Alamos / White Rock area.
H. Vendors must supply their own
Gmail email address to participate on the blog. These addresses are freely
obtained via Google.
I. Vendors are responsible for
their own technical support (i.e., provide their own photos, create their own
posts, etc.). Limited technical support may be available by contacting JennyWebb.
J. Vendors must specify any
privacy concerns in their initial request to become a vendor. LA Handmade
policy is to identify vendors by the first and last names. If you do not wish
to do so, you may note that you would rather use your first name and last
initial. Pseudonyms are not accepted.
K. Vendors may list their phone
number on their posts if they wish to provide that as an additional means of
communication for potential customers. LA Handmade has no legal or financial
liability for any actions that result from a vendor posting her or his phone
number online in a public forum.
L. LA Handmade is a positive and
supportive place for individual crafters to display their items for sale, much
like an ongoing craft bazaar. It goes without saying that all Vendors must be
polite and civil in their posts (i.e., not trash-talking someone else’s work).
Vendors should not interfere with another vendor’s posts in any way.
