Cart 0 items Login | Register | Help Buy Sell Alchemy Community Blog Your Etsy Handmade Items: tags, titles Handmade Items: tags, titles, descriptions Supplies: tags, titles Vintage: tags, titles All items: tags, titles Sellers: usernames Materials Home > Workshop > Minutes Workshop Minutes: Street Team Meeting 2007.10.02 Minutes Started Tue Oct 02 2007 17:31:57 GMT+0000 (UTC) sarawearsskirts: so, for today, if you have a question about the storque or contributing a team article sarawearsskirts: for the storque, if you could type /ask moondogtreasures left the room EtsyLabs joined the room EtsyLabs left the room sarawearsskirts: with your question, we'll work through the queue to answer them sarawearsskirts: and then we'll open things up for general teams discussion Please vote: has everyone checked out the storque? moondogtreasures joined the room Vote results: 9 yay, 0 nay, 2 abstain Messaging enabled. Messaging reserved for room moderators and admin only. sarawearsskirts: okay, so go ahead and fire away with the questions now - it's /ask before the text. moondogtreasures left the room baconsquarefarm left the room SweetyPrize asks, where do we send our storque article, to street team admin? baconsquarefarm joined the room moondogtreasures joined the room bonghinatura left the room Vanessa: If it's a Teams related article, send it to teams admin sarawearsskirts: teams@etsy.com sarawearsskirts: and if you send it to teams via email, then you don't need to pitch it to the storque on the pitch form Vanessa: when I get ones through the pitch form relating to teams, i forward them to Sara and Amy sarawearsskirts: right. sarawearsskirts: so we'd like to cut down on redundancy when we can Vanessa: yes sarawearsskirts: to be sure we see everything that gets submitted. wonderamy: yes indeedy. SweetyPrize asks, how is a storque article different than the teams blog info we'd submit? sarawearsskirts: if you're emailing an article for the storque, you can email me an idea. sarawearsskirts: and i'll try to get back to you asap sarawearsskirts: and then you can flesh it out into a full article wonderamy: and, we will no longer using the teams blog at all...all new teams related info will go to the Storque. sadiejayne joined the room Vanessa: that's right sarawearsskirts: or you can send it to me in press release type format - moondogtreasures left the room sarawearsskirts: right. to be honest, it'll get published a lot quicker if it's already written up well, and if you include good images baconsquarefarm left the room sarawearsskirts: images for the storque should be 565 pixels across, 72 dpi wonderamy: yes...reduce the work for us, and you have more control over your own work if you complete it rather than having us complete it Vanessa: true! wonderamy: find good, fun images that will look great on the Storque pages... Vanessa: also, you must have the copyright to tthe image Vanessa: or have permission to use the image sarawearsskirts: yes, and we credit the images, so know who on your team took it wonderamy: (if you haven't had a chance to yet, spend some time getting to know the Storque before pitching an article...there is a lot there to be inspired by, and you'll get a sense of the kinds of images and stories that are published) art4milkbones asks, how do you decide which teams get a storque plug - I submitted our Pup Palchemy info & nothing sarawearsskirts: right now, we're trying to include as many as we can. sarawearsskirts: i love the pup palchemy event as an idea... sarawearsskirts: refresh my memory, did you email that one to me? moonstr asks, if i wanted to do a funny interview with a fellow etsyian where would i send it? Vanessa: honestly, we've got too much to be able to respond instantly. sarawearsskirts: you'd submit something like that, not teams related, to the pitch form on the storque Vanessa: a funny interview like for the Etc section? SweetyPrize asks, so then the teams admin are putting our articles on the storque? sarawearsskirts: (when you're reading the storque, it's on the lefthand column) wonderamy: yes, if its a team-related article. sarawearsskirts: yes, amy and i are submitting teams content to the storque SweetyPrize asks, but can it be the same type of info you were previously posting to the blog or must it have a more public focus since its on such a main page? sarawearsskirts: so, as you might imagine, it's a bit time consuming, which is why we're asking for your help in getting the content as print worthy as possible. Vanessa: we're just starting this because i've had too many to be able to be efficient wonderamy: it can be the same kind of info, but keep in mid its going to a larger audience, do don't use insider-speak... sarawearsskirts: generally, you want to make it something that will be of interest to a majority of the etsy members Vanessa: all pitch form articles were going to me and now I'll be passing teams related ones to sara and amy sarawearsskirts: contests and things are great. sarawearsskirts: things that are fun that you want more participants in wonderamy: submissions can be simlple, like an announcement for an event, or detailed, like a longer article about an interesting issue relevant to the event, or an interview with the event organizers or artists, etc. sarawearsskirts: or if you have a big event, you can do an after-the-fact wrap up on how you planned it, how it went, things of note, etc are great, too Vanessa: Events that are more etsy-related than not will be more likely to get covered in the storque sarawearsskirts: we like when teams share tips and advice for other teams. wonderamy: Try to think about what you would find interesting in an online newspaper about all things handmade. use the storque to really spotlight how original or unique or interesting your Team or your event is. moonstr left the room sarawearsskirts: right - show how your team is being successful with an intriguing reason why we should spotlight your events or contest. Vanessa: that's right wonderamy: True Vanessa. Also, you may notice that articles have listing cards/links to "related items" at the bottom - the more we can use the articles to bring attention to Etsy sellers, the better. sarawearsskirts: think of this as motivation for coming up with original and well organized online events and things. Vanessa: making a really cool flyer to promote the event (565px across) helps too sarawearsskirts: we want it to be really dynamic for the reader - make them want to seek out your team's shops after reading. Vanessa: :-) wonderamy: and motivation for getting more people looking at your shops and items! sarawearsskirts: okay, we're going to open the floor up for some general storque/teams discussion now (please stay on topic!) Messaging enabled. SweetyPrize: can i have more hours in the day please? SweetyPrize: maybe, 5-6 more hours would be good sarawearsskirts: ha, that'd be great. if you find them, let me know where. wonderamy: sweetyprize, no. wonderamy: :) sarawearsskirts: :) SweetyPrize: heehee Vanessa: man , i wish wonderamy: i think vanessa must have found some in order to have been able to create the Storque...are you a superheroine Vanessa? sarawearsskirts: we really have been getting tons and tons of submissions, it's been a lot of work going through them and coordinating. SweetyPrize: do you want items too for the bottom? wonderamy: which is wonderful :) sarawearsskirts: we want to give all the teams who are doing great work some time to shine. sarawearsskirts: yep, item id's is always helpful sarawearsskirts: related ones for your article. sarawearsskirts: as much info as you can provide makes it a better article, really. Vanessa: right, another tip: email or send a plain text doc. Our admin tool hates pre-existing formatting. sarawearsskirts: yes! sarawearsskirts: good tip, vanessa. SweetyPrize: rockin' wonderamy: does anyone here have an idea for an article you want to share, and get feedback on? sarawearsskirts: you're a quiet bunch today! bethbrown: how about something about handspun yarn sadiejayne left the room sarawearsskirts: sure! what exactly about handspun? wonderamy: that would be cool bethbrown art4milkbones left the room SweetyPrize: the etsyfast street team is having its trunk show, we'll certainly submit something for that Vanessa: Ooo, that's a great idea. it could be a trends piece about yarn sarawearsskirts: i've been talking to the fiber arts team about working to promote fiber fridays. bethbrown: ummm i don't know. lol maybe the different styles sarawearsskirts: what about incorporating an article on yarn with some easy how-to's? how to cast on, knit, purl, etc? bethbrown: that's an idea sarawearsskirts: or some links to great patterns for knitting on etsy? like a start to finish? SweetyPrize: can we submit how-tos via the pitch? bethbrown: I could do a how-to on knitting melaniesOriginals joined the room melaniesOriginals left the room Vanessa: One thing we are always thinking about lately is how the storque can help potential buyers. or intrigue them. That's a good thing to keep inthe back of your mind Vanessa: yes, there's a part in the pitch form where you suggest which Storque section, how-to would be one wonderamy: you could integrate into your how-to, links to unusual yarn items on etsy... sarawearsskirts: http://www.etsy.com/storque/pitch/ sarawearsskirts: so, i guess what we'd like to get out of this workshop today is establishing the difference between submitting more general stories to the pitch link http://www.etsy.com/storque/pitch/ SweetyPrize: is the labs blog down too? Vanessa: yes Labs blog is closed Vanessa: they're using Storque too sarawearsskirts: and then submitting teams related ideas, events and things to the teams@etsy account for us to publish. Vanessa: (Labs blog still up for referencing back to posts) sarawearsskirts: everyone's using the storque now - it's a one stop news place. sarawearsskirts: right - the blog at team.etsy.com is just going to stay as it is now with the links in the ifinal post for refernce. SweetyPrize: its the equivalent of rupert murdoch Vanessa: Oh NO! Vanessa: hahah sarawearsskirts: Ha! vanessa, that's yoU! Vanessa: please god no SweetyPrize: can we send videos to the storque? sarawearsskirts: nah, vanessa's way cooler than rupert. Vanessa: if you have videos on youtube or blip or whatever, yes Vanessa: send me the link Vanessa: the link would be one item in the pitch form SweetyPrize: alrighty then virtuallori asks, is there a way we can promote team contests on the storque other than by writing an article? Vanessa: even when we have a video, we need text to go with it Vanessa: what do you have in mind? virtuallori: to clarify my question, as in a calendar of contests? sarawearsskirts: like a blurb instead of an entire article? virtuallori: yes. Vanessa: blurbs just a few sentences are fine wonderamy: it does need to be an article, but remember, it can be brief. you'll see in the Storque that there are submissions of many sizes. Vanessa: just clarity of info is importnat sarawearsskirts: i think vanessa and amy and i are going to come up with some easy to read and check calendar of teams events Vanessa: also a calendar, visually laid out is a great idea virtuallori: I think we have a unique spin on our upcoming contest, and I think it will be article-worthy, but time is an issue SweetyPrize: is it odd if one person from our team keeps submitting very different pitches sarawearsskirts: we're going to do some brainstorming soon, right ladies? Vanessa: BUT that involves the engineers programming something SweetyPrize: do you want a bredth of authors, too? SweetyPrize: not just v engaging ideas? sarawearsskirts: we want the storque to represent the cross section of what's on etsy, right? Vanessa: well SweetyPrize, authoring something in the storque does give you exposure. so you may want to share the love with your other team members sarawearsskirts: also, if you need more hours in the day, delegating writing tasks to different members may help! SweetyPrize: alright i'll slap the shyness outta them Vanessa: And I do think that what with allll the pitches we're getting we are going to try to feature people/teams who haven't had a chance yet SweetyPrize: there ya go SweetyPrize: i ask good questions sometimes wonderamy: great question sweety! SweetyPrize: yay! sarawearsskirts: i think this has been a really helpful workshop, thanks, vanessa! wonderamy: yeah, spread the love with authorship. It really is big visibility to get published in the Storque. sarawearsskirts: yay for vanessa (and alison) and the storque! wonderamy: ha! sarawearsskirts: :) virtuallori: thanks! sarawearsskirts: alright, everyone! i can't wait to get these minutes posted, i think they'll be helpful for teams in general. Vanessa: i gots to get back to the grind you guys. Vanessa: thanks for inviting me in sarawearsskirts: so, thanks, again, vanessa! SweetyPrize: thanks vanessa virtuallori left the room Vanessa: bye dudes sarawearsskirts: have a great afternoon, everyone! Vanessa: haha Vanessa left the room bethbrown: thanks guys! sarawearsskirts: see you next week! Minutes Stopped Tue Oct 02 2007 18:05:44 GMT+0000 (UTC) About | Press | Contact | Teams | Jobs | Merch Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Copyright Policy © 2008 Etsy Inc.