just say Julie!

Posts like this make me smile. Not just because the packaging is so fantastic (which it absolutely is), but because all the counteless hours people have poured into this site are really paying off and helping people. What a fantastic way to “pay it forward”! Grab a Coke, a smile, and kick back. Another great packaging feature / guest post coming up…by Julie Rollins Photography…

This past October 2009 is when I decided to move full steam ahead with my photography business. I scoured the Internet daily, trying to soak up everything I possibly could on how to get my business off the ground and running. I constantly read about how important branding is and I knew I had a ton of work ahead of me. I came across the Paperie Boutique website and turned to it almost daily looking for inspiration for the packaging I would eventually come up with.

My New Years Resolution for 2010 was two parts. The first part was to get my blog (julierollinsphotography.com/blog/) up and running. The second part was to design my packaging and Welcome Kit.

All of the colors in my packaging are a direct spinoff of my logo. I wanted to stick to that same color scheme, which made things easy for me.

My bags, tissue, ribbon, raffia, large Kraft boxes and Kraft pillow boxes are all from Gift Box Corp of America.

My large and small round stickers are from Zazzle.

My brown photo boxes are from DNL Photo.

My rounded hangtags are from 48HourPrint.com.

Inside the chocolate boxes you will find clear bags with backing boards, which are from Clear Bags. Also included in the boxes are 5×5 cards with portrait care and copyright information.

When my clients call to book their session, the first thing I do is send them out their Welcome Packet. The packet is full of information about my photography, pricing and session details.

♦ Please see this updated entry for the vendors used. ♦

The Kraft colored presentation folder is from Paper Presentation.

Inside my Welcome Packet you will find a chocolate petal envelope with my referral cards in it and a 5×5 card detailing the program. The envelope is from Paper Source.

Also included in my Welcome Packet are a pen and a sticky note pad. These two items along with my 4×8 rack card are from Vista Print.

The remainders of my press printed products are from local printers. I love being able to have all of this information together in my Welcome Packet, because it’s so nice to mail this right off to my clients when they call to book their session. The last thing I include in the Welcome Packet is a Session Reminder Card, which is also from a local printer.

Designing all of my press printed products took a while and then ordering all of the packaging was also a huge job. That being said, having everything done is such a relief. I felt great today when I had a new client call to book a session for next week and I dropped her Welcome Kit off at the post office this afternoon. Knowing that I have this all finished, I probably would still be trying to figure things out if it hadn’t been for the inspiration from Paperie Boutique! Thank you so much Robyn – I love your site!!!

-Julie

Thank you so much, Julie! Make sure to stop by her blog and say “hi”! (You can also see a lot of the photos above bigger and in greater detail there.) And don’t forget to submit your own packaging photos to the site (instructions at post’s end)!

In case you didn’t see today’s newsletter, Paper Source just announced a new recycled kraft paper collection. Check it out:

Don’t forget there’s just over 24 hours left to enter the “Pink Boutique Packaging Set” from Paperie Boutique and HB Photo Packaging. Go here to enter!

If you’re interested in having your own business packaging, marketing ideas, or photography-related products featured please contact me (my e-mail is in the sidebar and is robyn @ this domain – or you can leave a comment).

just a splash of color

This guest post is a double-win – it has a packaging feature and a separate vendor-promo at the end! Jamie Brokus of Color Splash Studio LLC recently contacted me to see if I’d like to feature her packaging? Are you kidding, Jamie?!? I almost want to switch my color-scheme after seeing the photos!

I was so inspired by all of the awesome packaging I saw other photographers put together, so I am sending you what I came up with following Heather Garland’s guest post at Paperie.

After hearing Sarah Petty talk about boutique packaging, bringing your brand together and then seeing all of the wonderful things other photographers have been so willing to share on this blog, I was inspired to put together my own. It is so cool to watch people walk out of my studio with bags with my name on them and tissue and have them feel like their money was well spent on the the prints they just bought.

My kraft paper shopping bags, tissue and raffia are from Nashville Wraps. I also am using their gourmet food shipping box for a shipping box. It fits up to an 8×10 box.

My shipping labels are from 123print.com.

My photo boxes are from Rice Studio Supplies. I am also using their portrait cases for 11×14 and 16×20 prints.

My logo stamp is from Simon Stamp with the big and juicy stamp pad.

My square thank you sized business card tied on the bags is from prolabexpress.com.

My business cards are from overnightprints.com and then I score them myself.

Gift card is from Miller’s Lab on water color paper and trifold brochure is from WHCC.

Circle Stickers are from Zazzle.

Small orange suitcase is from Paper Source, and costs half the price of a custom proof box.

Note from Robyn: It’s harder and harder to get the retro-suitcases from Paper Source. Land of Nod recently started carrying them, so try there as well!

Thank you so much for sending these along Jamie! (Don’t forget to visit her blog.) It should not only inspire others, but also show how quickly you can pull a look together once you decide on the direction.

And now…the promo! It’s no secret this blog is a big fan of Moo. Not only am I excited to find out I’m in “The Moo Ideas Book” (pages 3 and 33 – see the book here on display at a trade show) — I’m also excited to share a new Moo.com promo just for Paperie readers.

Using the code SHUTTER10 will give you an extra 10% off a 200 pack of Business Cards (classic or green stock) OR a 400 pack of MiniCards.

The code:
• is valid for one pack
• expires midnight PDT on March 31st, 2010
• is only valid for one use per customer
• is an additional 10% off the cost of a bulk pack (Bulk packs are already discounted, so this makes it even better value!)

Please note: the code will not work on 4 separate packs of 100 MiniCards. It must be used on the bulk-pack of 400.

Thank you, Moo! If you haven’t already, check out the sidebar to the right for free Moo template downloads from Paperie…

P.S. Don’t forget the My Funky Camera contest is still running through 11:59 p.m. EST on Thursday, March 4th!

If you’re interested in having your own business packaging, marketing ideas, or photography-related products featured please contact me (my e-mail is in the sidebar and is robyn @ this domain – or you can leave a comment).

peek-a-boo, I see you

[ Psssst... Read to the end for multiple chances to win a 5x5 tri-fold template! ]

Another guest post today, this time by Lizette Barbour of Peekaboo Studio Photography. I just adore her Boo logo and color scheme. Everything is so bright and cheery. If you have the winter doldrums, this post should definitely lift your spirits! Take it away, Lizette…

When I first started my photography business, I was completely clueless about branding. I was trying to do everything cost effectively and ended up buying 500 brown kraft paper bags. Years later, I still have a ton of these and was desperately wanting to get rid of them to make room for my new packaging created around my new branding.

After giving it A LOT of thought I finally figured out a way to incorporate these into my new look, in fact, it became the main idea of my packaging.

My little owl (nicknamed Boo) represents a nature earthy feel, so I decided to add in more recycled kraft products to tie in with the bags, meshed it together with my vibrant red and voila, my new look was born. I describe it as Nature meets Modern.

My bags and tissue are from Mayers Packaging.

The bag tags shown are what I use when I’m in a pinch. The rectangular tag on the small bag are mini Moo cards. The reverse has all my info so it also acts as my biz cards too. The owl on the large bag is printed on a 4×6 photo. I just cut it out, hole punch it, and tie it on. I have a few on hand at all times. (It is a bit time consuming, but it’s only used as “Plan B”.)

I usually use the tag shown in the center above. It’s printed out on a 4×6 photo as well, and I customize the name and pic to correspond with my client. Sometimes I forget to print one with my client’s order, and that’s where the other tags come into play.

All my press printed products are from my local printers. I’m so lucky to have them literally 5 minutes away from me! Shown below are my client reminder cards that I mail out the week before, my “what to expect next” tri-fold and my gift certificates that I package in a kraft envelope bought from Crystal Clear Bags and placed in a 5×7 red box. The sticker on the envelope is from Moo.

My boxes are from HB Photo Packaging. I went with HB for their prices, but I am definitely staying for their CS – so fantastic! I have them in sizes 5×7, 8×10, 11×14 and 4×6 proof boxes for announcement cards. I wrap the boxes in recycled twine that I purchase from my local hardware store. The “stickers” on the bottom right hand corner are actually my mini Moo cards. I cut off the orange part and use a glue gun to adhere them to the boxes. (So many uses for them.) I would love to be able to do foil embossing, but because of my multiple colors it just isn’t affordable.

I had to search high and low for these CD cases, and finally found them at ReBinder. In the left pouch is a copyright card, and printing instructions. Both are double sided press printed cards (once again from my local printers). The CD was printed at CD Print Express and I have to say their quality is awesome!

I really could go crazy with more printed brochures like welcome/info/pricing packets. I just love the look and feel of beautiful paper. But I am trying hard to stick with my nature / environmentally friendly packaging and instead have created a password protected online “client lounge” that I call the Tree House. It’s a great place for my clients to get all the 411 on what Peekaboo studio has to offer.

Not shown are my referral cards. I hand out 5 cards to each client, personalized with their photo. Also not shown are my thank you cards. I also like to personalize these with the client’s picture and a nice handwritten message inside.

Well there you have it. My packaging that seemed to take forever to create. It’s unbelievable to have this weight lifted off my shoulders of finally having everything put together AND to love all the elements. (I’m so indecisive sometimes!)

My inspiration for all this has definitely been the Paperie Boutique, so it was only fair that I share my packaging in return.

Thank you so much for sharing Lizette—your hard work has definitely paid off! For more info on Peekaboo Studio Photography please check out the website and blog.

And because everyone likes a little something for free, I’m giving away five (plus one) Fit to Print “design seven” 5×5 tri-fold templates (shown below).

How do you win? It’s simple… Cut and paste the following to either your Twitter stream or on your Facebook wall (two separate entries maximum per person, one per Twitter / Facebook account):

I start my day at Paperie Boutique by @shutterblog — you should, too! Visit and win a free trifold template: paperieboutique.com

Come back and post the link to your Tweet / post in the comments for this entry. The first five people to post will automatically win (so please leave a valid e-mail address). Never fear though! If you miss out on the “top 5″, tomorrow at noon (12 p.m. EST on Friday 02.26.10) I will use Random.org to select one more winner! So you’ll still have a chance to win!

UPDATE: Final winner is announced here – thanks for participating!

By the way, I highly suggest setting up a pop-up reminder or iCal appointment to come back to Paperie Boutique tomorrow. I’ve been holding something BIG for the end of the week, and you won’t wanna miss this one! Trust me. See you then!

If you’re interested in having your own business packaging, marketing ideas, or photography-related products featured please contact me (my e-mail is in the sidebar and is robyn @ this domain – or you can leave a comment).

think pink

It’s no big secret what keeps y’all coming back for more… The guest posts with the pretty, pretty packaging! And as luck would have it, that’s just what I’m about to serve up… Prepare to be blown away by the gorgeous stylings of courtney jade photography!

What would cake be without the icing? Well, it would still be quite delicious, however it wouldn’t be quite as beautiful. The details are so important to me, and beautiful photos deserve beautiful packaging. From the luscious chocolate brown boxes, to the pop of the pink ribbon, nothing goes un-prettied! I’ve recently updated and upgraded my packaging, and so far everyone has loved it!

First of all, I’ve switched from putting my digital images on CDs and DVDs, and now clients will get their images on a USB Flash drive. I’ve decided to do this for a few reasons. 1) Most importantly, the images will be safer for a longer period of time. As time goes by, DVDs and CDs can lose data due to deterioration. 2) USB Drives can be re-used, recycled. If a client prefers, they can back up their USB Drive, and use it for other things. 3) They look nicer. It may be my personal preference, but USB Drives are compact, sleek, and sexy! Here’s a peek at what you’ll get when you purchase digital images from me.

Print orders will come in luscious chocolate boxes adorn with pretty pink bows!

Inside, your precious prints are wrapped in matching pink tissue! All prints are packaged in clear plastic bags inside for protection and easy handling.

Another new thing I am doing for clients is creating “referral cards”. This is a complimentary gift with any print order. Most of my clients are referrals, so what better way to get my name out there, than to give my clients miniature photos from their session with my contact information on it?! Everyone loves a wallet-sized photo to hand out to friends and family, so far my clients love this!!

I’ve also been working on updating all of my client materials. I’m not quite finished yet, but I have a feeling that in this field, there will always be more that I want to create! Here is a taste of materials that I’ve had printed to hand out to my clients and possible clients.

There are still more fabulous materials on the way, but for now I feel like my brand is established, and will only grow from here.

I am so excited to be able to be a guest on Paperie Boutique! I love this blog, and I look to it for inspiration and ideas on a very regular basis. Robyn has been an inspiration to me for years now, and I am so excited to see this blog blossom and grow! Thank you Robyn, and thanks to everyone who reads and participates in this community!

<3 Courtney Jade

Thank you so much for taking the time to share your products with us Courtney! They’re absolutely beautiful and I adore the pink – everything here is tied together so well! You have very lucky clients.

Make sure to visit her blog and tell her thank you for this guest post!

More new guest post features are currently in the works! If you’re interested in having your own business packaging, marketing ideas, or photography-related products featured please contact me (my e-mail is in the sidebar and is robyn @ this domain – or you can leave a comment).

threepeat

I designed these cute 1.5″ circle stickers to add to my holiday correspondence and packaging. (HO)³ – a.k.a. “HO HO HO”. Get it? I had them printed at Zazzle. (They only print ‘glossy’ stickers by the way so if you don’t like ‘shiny’ you’re on your own.) Before any coupons, Zazzle charges $5 / sheet of 20 stickers.

→ download link ← (right-click, save as — this is not a layered file so what you see is what you get — I do not provide technical support for this download)

Select the 1.5″ labels from Zazzle: zazzle.com/custom/stickers. Check to make sure everything looks centered and how you want it to appear in their design-generator.

Don’t forget to swing by retailmenot.com before placing your order to see if there are any current coupon codes for Zazzle. If you’d like to create 1.5″ circle stickers with your logo to print at the same time, see this previous free download.

Merry, merry!

This Christmas-themed sticker template is ©Robyn Pollman, 2009. All rights reserved. It may not be copied, resold, made available for download or given away elsewhere, or redistributed without my written permission.

mocha with cream

Looking ‘expensive’ doesn’t always mean being expensive. In today’s guest post, Chelsea Stirlen of Chelsea Stirlen Photography shows how your packaging can look like a million bucks without breaking the bank (or even the piggy bank).

When I chose my packaging I had one thing in mind – COST. I knew the look I wanted, but as a new business I was, shall we say, poor. Very, very poor. I chose chocolate & ivory for my packaging because not only was it easily available from many different vendors, but frankly I loved the way it looked. I always have. I wanted to keep my branding very simple, inexpensive, and available so I had the option to shop for the best price.

This is everything I use to package (except my glue gun). Avery labels, ivory paper bags, ivory wrapping paper, white tissue paper, 1″ ivory satin ribbon, chocolate boxes, and 1″ chocolate satin ribbon. That’s it. Simpler was easier for me and had the added benefit of being less expensive. It still gives me the rich, special look I want, but it doesn’t break my bank book to package my orders.

All but the chocolate print boxes were purchased at Xpedx – a nationwide supply store. Those spools of satin ribbon & the wrapping paper come in 100′ lengths for $10 and $15 each (respectively). Much less expensive than a lot of online outlets and I don’t have to pay shipping. Unfortunately they do not have an online store, but they have retail locations all over.

The chocolate boxes are provided by my lab and my prints come pre-enclosed in clear poly bags according to size. I remove the ecru tissue paper and replace it with white, then seal with one of my thistle flowers. This flower appears behind my logo and I use it for sealing tissue in print boxes, thank you notes to my clients, and the info packets they receive at their sessions.

I’d show my info packet but you’ve probably already seen it… It’s Robyn’s Template #1 from her ‘Fit to Print‘ line. I personalized it with my own colors, included print prices & frequently asked questions. I also created a seperate 5×7 flat insert that contains my referral program and an area for order notes. My model release and photo contract are printed onto simple letterhead and are awaiting my clients the morning of their session – I do not send them ahead of time so they do not need their own packaging.

To cut costs in creating personal touches, like my thistle sticker, I opted to create my own. I created a page full of brown circles the same chocolate tone as my packaging, inserted my purple thistle flower and VOILÀ – an entire sheet of stickers for next to nothing. I print them onto full sheet Avery labels – available at any office supply store or large chain – and punch them out using a scalloped edged craft punch.

When everything is sealed up, I add ribbon. Brown boxes get an ivory ribbon and ivory wrapped items get a chocolate ribbon. Canvases, digital files, keepsake books, etc. are all wrapped in ivory paper to protect them, keep them clean and create that ‘gift’ look.

My ribbons used to be hand tied, but thanks to Robyn I now use the ‘uncrushable’ version! They hold up well, don’t come apart or become indistinguishable in shipping, and they’re quick & easy to make. When everything is sealed, wrapped, and adorned with ribbon I bag it.

I use ivory paper bags in a variety of sizes, each with it’s own Avery label. (I should be an Avery label spokesman!) On my bags I use the 2″ x 4″ labels & just round the corners with a craft punch. It has a chocolate edge, my logo inside, and a space where I can write my client’s name. As I often have more than one order packaged and awaiting pickup in my home, it’s nice to label them so I know I’m giving the correct order to my client. I use more of the white tissue paper in the bags and top it all with a small chocolate ribbon to keep the bag closed.

My vendors are few, but I do love them.
WHCC
Xpedx
Perfection Distributing

I hope this helps other newbie photographers realize that they can do beautiful packaging without bankrupting themselves. It may seem expensive, but if you shop around for the best price you can get an expensive look for a very reasonable price tag.

Thank you so much, Chelsea! Please stop by her website and blog to thank her for her time and recommendations!

If you’re interested in having your own business packaging, marketing ideas, or photography-related products featured please contact me (my e-mail is in the sidebar and is robyn @ this domain – or you can leave a comment).

they’ve got style!

So excited to present another guest post! This one was written by Heather Lickliter. Heather and Frankie Wylie own Stylized Portraiture in Athens, GA.

When we were designing our ‘look’, Frankie and I couldn’t agree on anything. I had just merged my dreamy looking biz and logo with her edgy one, and nothing fit either of us or the photos we needed to showcase. Since we do a wide range of very traditional to very non-traditional, we needed something plain, but still nice and bright enough to be eye catching.

We settled on a rounded corner logo, the middle of the road for an edgy rectangle and a dreamy circle we’d come from. Then we picked three colors we knew would go together: a warm brown, an ivory and a grassy green. More importantly, we knew we could find fun stuff in all of those colors.

The website was first, we made everything out of the rounded corner rectangles to make sure everything had a consistent look. We carried that over to the blog header as well as the inside of the flash itself; we bought a template that allowed us to make each slide one big picture, then I designed each slide in Photoshop to be a montage of photos in rounded boxes.

That pretty much made everything else easy. Our logo went perfectly onto a square sticker from GotPrint or a Moo sticker, allowing us to put them on the bags. Our rounded corner business cards are also from GotPrint. The bags and tissue come from Nashville Wraps, but the photos are also inside of brown portrait boxes from Rice Studio Supply. We tie each with green and ivory raffia.

Our appointment card is a 4×6 postcard from Marathon Press, we just circle the date and hand it to them, or the reverse has space enough for an address and a stamp. The “Thank You” cards are also from Marathon, a nice lined texture. I really like them. The client info packet is also from Marathon, double sided 5×5 cards that we ordered 500 each of all 8 pages. Then we hand hole punched them and put a ring through the hole and tired an ivory ribbon in it. The info packet has prices, a gift guide and a few wall gallery options.

Thank you so much Heather for sharing such wonderful photos, vendors and pointers! This entry is going to help a lot of photographers pull their final look together! Don’t forget to visit the Stylized Portraiture blog and let Heather (and Frankie) know how much you appreciate this guest post!

Have a question? Something you’d like to see featured here? Wonder where something on this blog came from? DON’T BE SHY! Leave a comment!

As mentioned over and over and over again now…I’m working with a handful of photographers to add more guest posts to this site so it’s not filled with my ideas and photos/demos only. If you’re interested in having your packaging, marketing ideas, or products featured please contact me (my e-mail is in the sidebar and is robyn @ this domain – or you can leave a comment).

bold and the beautiful

This is another “May We See Your Packaging, Please?” guest post. Showing off their amazing packaging today is Kimberly Kyle Photography of Augusta, GA.

Some of the products / vendors Kimberly has used to tie her look together:

♦ Envelopes – Paper Source
♦ Proof box – Paper Source
♦ Ribbon – Michael’s
♦ Natural wrapping paper – Michael’s
♦ Stickers – Moo
♦ Thank you cards – WHCC
♦ Logo – Candy Apple Studios

I’ve invited Kimberly back to discuss how she chose her business colors and overall “look” to brand herself. Make sure you drop by her blog and tell her how great this all looks, and thank her for sharing!

UPDATE: You can view part two (of two) of this guest post here.

As mentioned previously…I’m working with a handful of photographers to add more guest posts to this site so it’s not filled with my ideas and photos/demos only. If you’re interested in having your packaging, marketing ideas, or products featured please contact me (my e-mail is in the sidebar and is robyn @ this domain – or you can leave a comment).

many-MOOs

HEADS UP from Twitter!

@overheardatmoo: Keep this a secret! You can get 20% off all products at MOO this weekend, head to http://moo.com/products – remember, don’t tell anyone!

Don’t know what to do with your Moo? Well then…get a clue!

sticky sweet

It’s no secret I’m addicted to sticker books from Moo.com. My latest batch, shown above, just arrived today.

People have asked me to design Moo templates for Fit to Print for quite awhile, but since I don’t resell the stickers, I include art on mine that I’m not licensed to resell. (A lot of the cute images are actually dingbat fonts.)

But I finally put together a collection of three templates that are totally my design. You can customize these by color, change the wording, and add your own logos. See Fit to Print for more…

And check out these past Flickr entries that will give you more of an idea how you can Moo, too!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/shutterblog/2093600451/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/shutterblog/2131193638/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/shutterblog/2450414547/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/shutterblog/2538113140/

Happy sticking!

UPDATED to add: My stickers were featured by Moo.com at Photoshop World.

(Have questions about Moo stickers – like, “are they acid-free“? The answer is “yes”. And you can read more at their StickerBook FAQ…)

stick ‘em up

(Originally posted to Flickr forums in February 2008.)

Tired of printing my own circle stickers and having that blasted white ring around the edge, trying other online printers and having that blasted ring around the edge……….I decided to give Zazzle one more try because they do a computer-generated preview of what your printed label will look like. I wasn’t all that happy with them the last time I ordered because the white ring wasn’t even. But this time, I’d say about 80% of the labels are perfect. It makes a big difference having the border solid to the edge. Someone with OCD like me doesn’t notice the 1mm border shift as much that way.

Now they obviously feed these things into a machine automatically without any quality control, because the other 20% are slightly off.

But hey, I don’t have to deal with printing them myself now — the printing is decent — they’re gloss instead of matte, and you can order as few as one sheet at a time for under $5/sheet.

Here’s your chance to make your own 1.5″ bordered-circle sticker with Zazzle until a better alternative is found.

→ download link ← (please note this file was designed in CS2 and you must have Photoshop or Elements and know how to edit a .psd layered file — I do not provide technical support for this download)

There are two layers — border color and label color:

I have the border set to black and the label center set to white right now, but you can change both of those by clicking where the pink arrow is pointing in each section — just double-click each box and you can change to any color you’d like.

The maximum height to fit your logo or image in the center is 360-pixels high or 360-pixels wide.

Save your image as a .png, .tiff, .jpg, or .gif file.

Make sure to select the 1.5″ labels from Zazzle: zazzle.com/custom/stickers

Check to make sure everything looks centered and how you want it to appear in their design-generator. (I suggest not adding text in their editor — do all of your editing in Photoshop before upload.)

Voilà! (I accept thank you’s via Sephora.)

This template is ©Robyn Pollman, 2008. All rights reserved. It may not be copied, resold, made available for download or given away elsewhere, or redistributed without my written permission.

here’s the mail-it never fails

Did you know that you can get free USPS Priority Mail shipping supplies online? They make it so easy you don’t even have to leave the house!

In addition to boxes, envelopes, labels, stickers, receipts and forms being FREE – the shipping is FREE as well.

The only thing you have to do is go online and pick the box sizes and supplies that are best for you.

Then once your supplies have arrived and your packages are sealed up nice and pretty, you can print your postage online, and even request a free pickup at your door.

It’s as simple as that.