Publicity cant hurt.
And having people know what you do is always good.

But magazine articles seldom have an immediate effect, not like, say, winning the lottery.

I have been written up in many many places, nationally and locally.
Mostly, nothing happened.
So dont expect miracles.

It is true that people save articles, and I would get calls years later saying- "I saw you in Metropolitan Home"- and some of them did lead to sales. But I am talking YEARS.

Make a good color copy of the article, and give it away to potential customers, sure.

But better to do specific marketing- get your work out there. Do trades with restaurants or stores to make them signage or gates or benches. Talk to architects and contractors, and show them pictures of work.
Do shows of all sorts- art shows, craft shows.
Call the local high school shop teacher, or the local community college welding instructor, and offer to have their class over for a field trip.
Donate to fundraising auctions for causes you believe in- I have sold 3 chairs to somebody who bought one at an auction.

It all helps.
Its all cumulative.

Kevin,

Like Ries said, all advertising is good. Now that the article is out there, you should capitalize on it. Have copies made of it and send them,with a professional cover letter, to all the architects and designers in your area. The fact that your work has already caught the attention of the press will give you a bit of added credibility and they may actually save your contact information. Be sure that each mailing includes a business card for their Rolodex.

If you have any furniture/furnishings galleries or shops in your area, now might be a good time to approach them for a showing of your work - if you have some ready to go. If not, perhaps you could plan a show with one of them.

Is your vehicle lettered? Tat is a rolling billboard that lots of people see. You may want to check on potential issues with commercial licensing and/or insurance regarding that, but if those aren't problems then it is well worth doing. If you have only one vehicle and have to use it for other purposes, you can always get magnetic signs.

Demos, classes, tours, open studio days, etc - all these things increase your exposure.

For the most part, the people you want to attract are the ones who have the money to buy your work. Look at ways to get your work out in places they go - good restaurants, county clubs, Mercedes-Benz dealers, etc. If you can get some work into those places you'll get your name where you want it. Little notes on the bulletin board at the laundromat only get you people who want stuff you can't afford to waste time making.

It also pays to become networked with other tradespeople in your area - stone masons, builders, glazers, etc - they may have leads to some good jobs that need iron work.

Rich

Hi Kevin,

Ries and Rich's comments are spot on. The only thing I might add is to think of your marketing as a long term investment. Things like magazine articles don't necessarily bring in business instantly, but it helps associate and solidify your name with custom metal work in the area. You should take advantage of every opportunity that you can to make this happen as long as it doesn't involve you spending a lot(if any) money. The ultimate goal is a situation where whenever a group of people start talking about a project involving metalwork, at least one of them brings up your name. That doesn't mean everyone in town, you really just need the ones that are involved with such projects. At that point, it's all up to your proposal and quality of work. Keep in mind though that you will be accomplishing this goal only a few people at a time at first, but after a while the marketing begins to take effect exponentially as you reach more people and they in turn tell people and so on. So don't get discouraged by a small response. If you keep at it and you do they work that you say you can do, it's almost impossible for the marketing to not work, but you have to keep at it.

Good luck with the article and let us know if it works.

Jake

Jake Balcom
Mettle Design
Lincoln, NE