To Ning or not to Ning, that is the question

Ning.com is very cool. The Ning architecture allows anyone to set up and customize blogging and social networking features to create a social network suited to their needs. It even includes built-in photo galleries with the option to sort images into albums.

This free resource should be ideal for an artist to set up a network and interact with consumers.

So why isn't it more popular?

Another Way to Market a One of A Kind Item

This story about a $10,000 dollar Gund teddy bear caught my eye:

http://toyconversations.blogspot.com/2010/02/10000-bear-stirs-up-quite-buzz.html
In a nutshell, Gund has produced a Ultra-Deluxe model of it's popular Snuffles bear to auction for charity. The bear is made with white alpaca fur, black pearl eyes, and 10 Caret diamonds on his white gold hang tag.

The production of this special bear is in commemoration of the bears 30th birthday. What I find most intriguing in this article the way Gund has managed to use a high-end artisan piece to generate a buzz for their appearance at Toy Fair 2010.

I am also impressed with their use of  a take-away for visitors. As convention-goers leave their booths, they are presented with "I hugged Snuffles" sticker. While this little token may not seem like much, it is an excellent way to generate good-feelings in a customer and instill brand loyalty.

In the same way record labels (http://www.touchandgorecords.com)and t-shirt designers (http://www.threadless.com/) include bonus stickers into every package, many crafters are tossing in small items like key-rings and hand-painted business cards with their big items. These smaller items are low-cost ways to keep the brand on the consumers mind.

Is social networking best left to the Big Guys?

The Toy Industry of America has recently decided to close it's branded social networking site in favor of developing its presence on the more common (and more popular) social networks like Facebook and Twitter.

Toy Connections issued the following statement:

"The world of social media is constantly evolving and ToyConnections – an industry-specific networking website for the toy community – was no longer the convenient “go to” destination it was intended to be. Public websites such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube are where you are … and where the conversations and interaction that were happening on Toy Connections need to be as well.

"Therefore, as of COB on Wednesday, March 31, “Toy Connections” closed its virtual doors. We are happy that you’ve been a part of our online community, and welcome our ongoing online connection as a “fan”, a “friend”, a “follower” or a “contact”:

 It appears to me that the business that have the most potential are the ones that can integrate within an established (and popular) venue rather than the ones that try to start fresh.

Keeping that in mind, I think it is a necessity that independent artist and designers remember to maintain a social network presence, and not just focus on their own website.