Strider Software introduces TypeStyler version 11

December 10, 2011 by John Dilbeck · 1 Comment
Filed under: CafePress, Macintosh, Zazzle 

Yesterday, Strider Software introduced version 11 of their outstanding text editing software.

I’ve been using TypeStyler for years and love it. Mostly, I use it to create new designs for products I sell in my Cafepress shop and my Zazzle shop.

I start by creating the design in TypeStyler and export it to a jpg file. Then, I open that jpg with Pixelmator for fine-tuning, sizing, and adding the copyright notice.

(Here’s more information about Pixelmator: Pixelmator – Pixelmator Team)

I’m using TypeStyler version 10 and I’m very happy with it. I wasn’t aware that version 11 was about to be introduced, but it’s available now in the Mac App Store, with a holiday introductory price of only $59.99, which is about $40 less than the normal, full price.

You can read more about Typestyler, and can purchase at the holiday price by going to the Mac App Store, here: TypeStyler – Strider Software, Inc.

TypeStyler is a Mac-only product and is useful for developing lots of different designs for various uses, including labels, posters, boxes, cans, and so forth. It can do much more than what I use it for. If you are a graphic designer and don’t know about TypeStyler, I urge you to look at it.

Here’s a quick video introduction to using the app…

There are other introductory videos on YouTube on the TypeStyler channel.

I’ve been in contact with Karen Stillman at Strider Software, and she said she’d send me an update about how long the holiday pricing will be in effect. I’ll comment on this post as soon as I know more.

There are other tools that can do some of what TypeStyler does, but I don’t know of anything that is as easy to use — even for a non-artist, like me — than TypeStyler. I’ve tried doing similar things with Photoshop, Pixelmator, Adobe Illustrator, and others and all of them are harder than TypeStyler for creating the designs I enjoy. In fact, I wasn’t able to create the designs I wanted, when using the other apps.

You can export designs to several vector and bitmapped graphics formats from TypeStyler, for further enhancements, if you want. Version 11 offers new grunge effects, social sharing of designs, and more.

Here’s another quick video showing how easy it is to drop graphics into text and shaped blocks with TypeStyler…

Learn more about TypeStyler, here: TypeStyler – Strider Software, Inc.

Act on your dream!

JD

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Typestyler – how I start my designs for CafePress and Zazzle

August 15, 2011 by John Dilbeck · 12 Comments
Filed under: Affiliate Marketing, CafePress, Macintosh, Zazzle 

Selling my designs on CafePress and Zazzle

In addition to affiliate marketing, I also enjoy creating designs and selling them in my Cafepress and Zazzle shops.

If you visit either of those shops, and I hope you will, you’ll notice that most of my designs are styled text. I’m not much of an artist, but I know how to use computer programs to help me express my visions for new products.

Windows

Please note: Windows users, I don’t have any advice for graphics processing software, because I’m strictly a Mac user and haven’t touched a PC in nearly 20 years. I’m sorry I can’t offer any advice or recommendations for you.

As you already know, most people use Windows computers and there is a wide variety of graphics editing programs that are used to create designs for selling on Cafepress and Zazzle. And, of course, you can open your own shop on either site and/or join their affiliate programs.

I just don’t have any experience I can share about the process using Windows.

Macintosh

Now, back to how I do this on a Mac…

Create the design

If you are an artist and/or photographer, you’d start by creating the artwork or photo, but I use styled text on almost all of my designs, so that’s where I start. Below this section on TypeStyler, I offer some advice about several graphics editing applications in which you may have some interest.

TypeStyler

Almost always, I start the process with TypeStyler, a program that is designed specifically to, well, style text on a Macintosh. (You can download a fully functional version that you can use for 60 days, for free. If it suits your needs, you can purchase it for $180.) (I wish they had an affiliate program!)

Edit the JPEG file

Once I get the design how I want it, I export it as a 300 dpi JPEG file for further editing in a graphics editing application.

One of the things I can quibble about is how TypeStyler doesn’t do an excellent job of exact sizes when exporting to JPEG files. It gets it close, but I still find it necessary to tweak the file in a dedicated photo-type bitmapped image editor.

I used to use Photoshop and GIMP for that, but both of those programs are too complicated and offer much more than I need. So, last year, I went searching and found three graphics programs that offer the tools I want, and the prices are good, too.

I should mention that a lot of people, who don’t need all the features of Photoshop, like to use Adobe Photoshop Elements 9 Editor, by Adobe Systems Incorporated. I’ve never used it, but I’ve heard from people I trust that it is a good application, especially for home users who are not graphics pros. Since I’ve never used it, I can’t recommend it to you, but it should be mentioned, for completeness.

Instead of using Photoshop, I’ve switched mainly to Pixelmator, by Pixelmator Team and like it much better. It offers all of the tools I used in Photoshop and the interface is similar enough that I didn’t have a lot of relearning to do, yet it seems more responsive and the cost is much better.

(The Pixelmator team is working hard to finish and release version 2, which will have a lot of new features and will improve the existing tools. They’ve promised that anyone who buys version 1 through the Mac App Store will receive a free upgrade to version 2 when it is released. I think that’s a great deal, especially when you consider that the software sells for only $30.)

Sometimes, I’ll edit graphics using Acorn – The Image Editor for Humans, by Flying Meat and I almost always create new coupons using Sketch, by Bohemian Coding.

Vector graphics

I do very little work with vector drawing, other than coupons. Sketch works perfectly well for that. It does take a little getting used to. It works similarly to Illustrator, but certain tasks are very different.

If you want something that will do what Illustrator does, this is not the application for you. A step up from Sketch would be Artboard, by Mapdiva, LLC, but it is still not a complete substitute for Adobe’s Illustrator. I have not used Artboard, yet, but it’s on my wish list and I expect to buy it this year and put it to the test, so I’m not qualified to recommend it to you.

Just as Pixelmator does most of what I used Photoshop for, Sketch does what I used to use Illustrator for, and it costs much, much less.

Years ago, I spent a lot of money buying PageMaker, Photoshop, Illustrator, and the full version of Acrobat. I spent hundreds of dollars for each of those programs. Now, for around $100 total, I can replace them with Pages, by Apple®, Pixelmator, and Sketch. I don’t have a need for Acrobat, since any application on a Mac can produce a PDF file.

Pixelmator and Acorn are very similar. I just happen to like the feel of Pixelmator better. Both are good apps.

For the most part, however, Typestyler and Pixelmator are the graphics programs I use over 90% of the time.

I’m not going to get into a review of these products, except to say that I really love using them. Each of them offers some things not available in the others, so they make a good toolset for modifying graphics and photos.

And, this is very important to me, they are specifically designed for a Mac and make very good use of the underlying graphics tools that are built into Mac OS X.

Want to put a frame on your image?

I recently found another application that will be part of my photo editing toolset, but it won’t be used for designs I sell on CafePress or Zazzle — I don’t think. It’s called ImageFramer3, by Apparent Software and it does just what its name suggests. It adds frames to photos, and I’ll be using this a lot on my websites where I show photos. I think they look better when they’re framed.

I recently learned that you can add relatively simple frames to images on Picnik, for free.

But, let’s get back to preparing a design for CafePress and Zazzle.

As I already said, I start with TypeStyler and use it to create the text. It is a very versatile application and it lets me create all kinds of text using all the fonts on my system and then I can stretch and shape the text in a variety of ways. I can add texture, bumps, highlights, gloss, and much more so that the text on each design can have an unique appearance, or I can save a particular type style and use it on similar designs without having to design everything from scratch each time.

The text is created in a raster format that allows for easy manipulation and it can be exported in a variety of formats, both raster and bitmapped. It takes a little time to really master all that TypeStyler can do.

As I said, I usually export it as a JPEG file for further customization.

When I’ve completed the design and exported it as a JPEG file, I open it in Pixelmator, and that’s where I do the precise sizing of the image so that it fits within an 10″ by 8″ rectangle at 300 dpi.

(Yes, I can make larger designs for Zazzle and I might do that in the future, but, generally, I like to use the same design for both sites. Pixelmator does an excellent job of tweaking the image and/or canvas sizes and creates very clean graphics when it resamples and resizes.

If I’m going to add a bitmapped image, this is when I’d do it. Usually, I skip this step.

I have a custom brush in Pixelmator that I use to put a watermark copyright notice on each design, before uploading it. I try to make it small and use a color similar to the design to make it less noticeable.

Upload the design and add it to products for sale

Then, it’s a simple matter to upload the design to either sales site (Cafepress and/or Zazzle) and add it to the products I choose.

I have to admit that I’ve been rather lazy the last few years, and put the designs on the products that take the least work. That was acceptable while I was so sick, but now that I’m feeling better, I’ll be adding the designs to more products in an effort to increase the sales.

The better you promote your designs, the more you sell

I’m talking about this now, because it won’t be long before people all over the world will be looking for gifts for their friends, family, neighbors, associates, and themselves. I want to have as many products available as I can.

Fortunately, each year I can add to the number of designs, so I’m still selling items I created years ago. Now, I need to step up my marketing of those designs so people learn about them and can find them easily. That’s something I seriously neglected over the last three years, or so.

Still, I make regular sales without much promotion, so I expect a lot more sales with more widespread promotions.

Open your store on Zazzle

Later this week, I’m going to write a post about selling products on Zazzle, and even if you don’t want to sell in your own shop, I’m going to suggest that you sign up for one, anyway. They’re free.

Why?

Zazzle Affiliate Program

Because, as soon as you have a shop, you also become an affiliate, and you can promote any of the millions of products you want to on your own sites and blogs and earn an affiliate commission for each sale you generate, even if you never sell any designs in your own store.

In fact, you can sign up as an affiliate for Zazzle — if you’re not already one — and promote my designs. Any that sell based on your referral will earn both of us a commission.

So, the more the merrier!

Of course, you’re also free to promote the items in any Zazzle store, so you can find products that fit with the theme of your blog or website. It’s a pretty easy way to earn some extra cash.

Get started on Zazzle, today

Additionally, if you’d like to create and sell your own designs on Zazzle, go here and get started by creating your first product. It’s free.

Later in the week, I’ll talk more about selling the products in your Zazzle shop, and I’ll write another post about promoting products, designs, and stores in the Zazzle affiliate program.

Extra money is nice

I’m nowhere near to getting rich with my Cafepress and Zazzle shops, but I enjoy spending the few hundred dollars I earn each year.

In this case, I’m creating and selling these products mostly for the fun of it and to earn a little extra spending money. I’m not doing it as a major part of my business. It’s just a little side-line that I do when I feel like it.

What about you?

Do you have any experiences or opinions you’d like to share on the topic of creating and selling your designs on Cafepress and Zazzle?

Act on your dream!

JD

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New to Zazzle and liking what I see

January 20, 2010 by John Dilbeck · 11 Comments
Filed under: Affiliate Marketing, CafePress, Zazzle 

Selling my own designs on CafePress

I have been selling products in my CafePress shop for several years and there are many things I like about it.

I enjoy selling my designs and earning commissions on a regular basis, but I’m not much of a graphic designer and there are many things I like that I don’t have either the time or the talent to create and sell.

Promoting designs created by others on CafePress

At one point, I was doing well with earning commissions through the CafePress affiliate program, but that dropped to almost nothing when they went from a private affiliate program to using Commission Junction.

CafePress changed the pricing model for products sold through their marketplace

Last year, CafePress made some changes and when one of my designs sells in their marketplace, I earn a smaller commission than when the same product with the same design sells in my shop.

Most of my sales in November and December were through the CafePress marketplace, so my earnings were smaller than they would have been if they were made through my shop.

On top of that, I didn’t earn any affiliate commissions.

Getting started with Zazzle

So, I decided today to look into Zazzle and see if it was something I wanted to try.

I have a lot of friends who have either moved from CafePress to Zazzle, or they have shops at both of them.

Getting started with Zazzle is very easy

I set up my account and opened my brand new Zazzle shop today.

There’s not much in it, yet.

Basically, I’ve chosen a theme, entered a bit about me on my profile page, uploaded my standard profile photo, and set up some of the optional stuff for promotions.

Adding designs and products to Zazzle

Now, it’s time to modify some of my best-selling designs and add them to products at Zazzle. That’s going to take some time and will be an ongoing process. My goal is to have most of my best selling designs on both CafePress and Zazzle before October, so they’ll be ready to promote in time for the massive November-December buying season.

I’ll start later this week with one of my best selling designs on CafePress and see what it takes to add it to multiple products on Zazzle. I’m sure there will be differences and I may run into obstacles as a result of my experience with CafePress and being so new to Zazzle. We’ll see if these are serious obstacles or just speed bumps.

Zazzle has their own private affiliate program

in addition to selling my own designs, I’m looking forward to trying their affiliate program and selling designs created by other people that I find and like.

For instance, when browsing through their marketplace, this afternoon, I found a design that cleverly combines two things that speak to me, and possibly to you, with a bit of humor.

I’m a huge Star Trek and Star Wars fan and I was really angry last year with the bailout of banks and financial institutions that were considered too big to fail.

That’s why I laughed when I saw this design:

Death Star: Too Big to Fail shirt
Death Star: Too Big to Fail by starwars
Browse more Death T-Shirts

A lot of people use the abbreviation, “lol,” to say that they laughed out loud when seeing something. I don’t make a habit of that, but I really did laugh out loud when I saw that design.

I like it better than my own Too Big To Fail design.

The nice thing is, if someone sees this and buys either a product with my design or the more clever death star product then I’ll earn a commission.

I enjoy earning a commission.

Really.

The more, the better!

Even though I don’t have a single product in my Zazzle shop, yet, I can still earn by promoting other people’s designs, and I like that.

When I have products in my shop, then I can benefit from any other Zazzle shop owners who choose to promote my products.

A sale of one of my designs through someone else’s affiliate link slightly reduces my earnings, but that’s more than made up for by their promotional efforts, so I’m happy to share part of the profits with them.

There are significant differences between CafePress and Zazzle

So, I still have a lot to learn about Zazzle, but I’m liking what I’ve seen and learned up to this point.

Another difference between CafePress and Zazzle is that you have to pay for a premium shop on CafePress in order to have multiple designs in your store, but on Zazzle, it’s totally free.

Even though it only costs about $7 per month for a premium shop on CafePress, this ought to appeal to you if you don’t want to pay anything and still have a way to earn money through online marketing.

Discussing Zazzle on Squidoo Marketing

I’ve started a discussion in the Zazzle Group on my Squidoo Marketing community for discussing opening a Zazzle shop, creating designs, adding them to products, and promoting them.

Since I’m a complete newbie on Zazzle, I’ll use myself as a guinea pig and talk about some of the things I do to create the products and market them.

I’m sure I’ll make some mistakes and I may have some ideas you never thought of, so I’m hoping it will be a useful discussion. You can see it here:

I am a newbie to Zazzle – do you have any advice?

That discussion is primarily for people who enjoy using Squidoo to market their products, but we’ll also be discussing other avenues of promotion and sales. You’re welcome to come and join us there, if you want.

In conclusion…

I like what I see so far at Zazzle and I’m looking forward to exercising what they offer and promoting designs I find that were created by other people, too.

I’m looking forward to seeing if I can develop a new, reliable, and growing income stream with Zazzle.

What about you?

Do you have any thoughts about CafePress, Zazzle, or either of their affiliate programs?

Act on your dream!

JD

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