TeXt Marks The Spot

I wrote and designed the following PowerPoint Videos as part of a course I made for Milady U. Click here to read more about the project. Click the videos below to watch them in Flash.

Double Your Day with No Additional Clients!

In this course, you learn techniques that the most successful professionals are using to increase their add-on service sales, keep their clients happy, and make more money in less time. These are skills a hairstylist, esthetician, nail technician, or massage therapist can use to double their day. You’ll learn how to increase your service sales by at least 50%, improve your client satisfaction, and increase your income.

Getting Organized

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Becoming a Day Maker

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Price-Raising Myths

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Suggestive Selling

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I wrote and designed the following PowerPoint Videos as part of a course I made for Milady U. Click here to read more about the project. Click the videos below to watch them in Flash.

How to Work Smart & Make More Money

In this course, you learn how to work smarter, not harder. We teach you a step-by-step system that the top salon professionals in America are using to make a six-figure income. You will learn information to immediately grow your salon sales, as well as how to increase the amount your clients spend with you. You’ll also find out why it is good business to recommend retail products!

The Needs Assessment

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Establishing Trust

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Client Referrals

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It’s The Ticket

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Not every idea I have is successful (shocking, I know), but I really did think this one had legs. The motivation? My thinking that collectors can often be as enigmatic and interesting as the artists with whom they’re obsessed. The premise? To find “superfans” of artists in the designer vinyl scene, ask them ten questions about their obsessive collecting, publish amazing photos and reward them with a gift certificate to Kid Robot. The problem? Turns out people don’t care as much about the collectors as I do. Maybe this will come back as a viable series someday. Never know. But for now, check out a truly beautiful collection of Joe Ledbetter art and an interview with his superfan, Jeff Tucker, here at ToyCyte.

On May 15th, 2008, I wrote possibly the most clever dumbest post of my career in toy blogging. I’ve never quite understood the fascination with this particular genre, and I decided to work it out with wordplay.

Customization has certainly become a large movement in the designer toy community. This latest entry from Dookie-Poo seeks to fill the void in defecation DIYs. If you’re not just a floater, which is to say you customize with some regularity, you should be able to really turn it out here. There’s a huge load of prizes to be had, so you’ve got to distinguish yourself from the pile. You may experience some relief and satisfaction if someone on the Kidrobot forum dumps on you by saying your piece looks like shit. But remember: there’s only one grand prize, #2 wins nothing! Now go off to the thinking room and come up with something that isn’t pure crap. But hurry up and pinch one out, the contest begins soon. Check the pipes for contest rules here and then drop your deuces here.

The original (b)log remains here, and, yes, I’m still proud of it.

Art and Artifice: Examining Copyright: 3-Part Series

Last month a 350-page art book, Colorful Illustrations 93°C, came out in China and made bloglines across the world. Every single word and image had been plagiarized from Darren Di Lieto and The Little Chimp Society international illustrators’ portal. The author and artists, who include many names from the designer toy community, received no credit or pay. In this series, I take a look at what happened, talk to Jon Burgerman, Jeff Miracola, Luc Latulippe and MCA/Evil (all of whom had work in the book) and review the basics of copyright and fair use. Click here to read it on ToyCyte.

This article also embodies an aspect of blogging I really enjoy: the simple ability we have to link to one another and circulate an idea. I was psyched to see the story got a nod in the blog of Jeff Miracola, a mention in The Little Chimp Society and a link from the FAQ of one of my favorite artists, Jon Burgerman.

Sacramento Puts the “Art” in Party: a 2-Part Series

I went up to Sacramento to cover a show at one particular gallery and ended up finding more than I came for along the 2nd Saturdays Art Walk. Read more here on ToyCyte.

Checking In With Curster’s Erin Currie

It makes me all happy inside to see a great artist put in years to the craft and then make it. Erin Currie’s Cursters continue to stand out in a now-flooded designer doll market. Following her first solo art show and just before the launch of her premier manufactured toy, I checked in with her. Read about it here on ToyCyte.

De-Vinyl Inspiration Makes a Gallery Out of Gridlock

This story is about a collaboration of gigantic proportions. It’s local, it’s vinyl, it’s ecological, it’s art…Just read it here on ToyCyte.

The Maker Faire

ToyCyte sent me to The Maker Faire to scoop out stories on toys. Between all the robots, hand-made plush dolls and motorized cupcakes, I had enough material to write a 5-part series. Read about it here on ToyCyte.