Wholesale & Import Sterling Silver Jewelry - Top 6 Factors That Determine Cost

If you're considering a business in jewelry as an importer, wholesaler, or retailer, understanding the costs of that jewelry is critical. Having this knowledge allows you to better appraise pieces you purchase and avoid being ripped off by those offering over-priced or fake jewelry. This article pertains specifically to the costs associated with the creation, distribution, and marketing of sterling silver jewelry.

Demand Driven Costs

Every year, 650 million ounces of silver gets mined from countries like Canada, Australia, Mexico, Peru, and the United States, with more coming from scrap recycling and investor trading. In 2001, 24% of the silver was used in photography, while 33% was used in jewelry, 40% for industrial uses, and only 3% for coins and medals. Within these categories, silver is used in a myriad of ways; from circuits in electronics, as anti-bacterial treatments in medicine, and is even sprinkled on food as decoration.

As a result of this supply and demand from competing industries, the last century has seen tremendous fluctuations in the price of silver. Prices saw an all-time high in 1980, when it reached $49.45 U.S. dollars per Troy ounce.

Precious Metal Costs

While less expensive than gold and platinum, jewelry pieces made from silver still sell for a high premium on the market. The first cost associated with sterling silver jewelry is the cost of silver. The current cost per ounce is around $16.00 U.S. dollars, having risen sharply in the past few years. The base cost of the metal used is usually only a fraction of the costs that go into creating and delivery a piece of jewelry to the end customer.

Costs of Extra Material

Silver is often not the only component used in Sterling Silver Jewelry. The addition of Crystals, Pearls, Jade or other stones will increase the final cost of the piece. Many silver pieces also come coated with other more expensive metals, such as Platinum, Gold, or Rhodium, either to add tarnish resistance or improve shine.

Costs of Labor

Jewelry pieces are handled by a person at one point or another, often for the more delicate tasks of design. Everything from setting the stones and creating the finish are part of the significant processing costs associated with turning a piece of silver into jewelry. Such labor costs are heavily influenced by where the jewelry is made. Thus, in countries with higher labor costs, jewelry production is usually more expensive regardless of whether the pieces are of higher quality or better design.

Overhead costs

The creation of jewelry and its distribution is a business that incurs costs like any other business. These costs are offset by the profit made selling the product. The jewelry manufacturer sells at a price to cover the costs of business overhead, such as machinery, staff, sales, and marketing, as well as turn a profit. This process occurs again down the supply chain when the importer, distributor, or retailer must sell the item at a price where these costs can be recouped and a profit made. The importer will have to factor in shipping and customs duty costs involved with getting the jewelry into the country, while a distributor may have to add costs for warehousing and storing the pieces. The final retailer will often have costs of running a brick and mortar location and advertising to customers.

Marketing and Branding Costs

A final cost worth separating from standard overhead costs involves the branding and marketing of certain collections. A sterling silver piece from Tiffany's will cost more than one from Walmart. Such costs are the result of the time and money the brand holders have put into their brand.

To learn more about Wholesale Imported Sterling Silver Jewelry, visit Wholesale of Asia at http://wholesaleofasia.com/, where you'll find a diverse collection of jewelry, including Wholesale Sterling Silver, Precious Stone, Pearl, Jade, and Customized Jewelry, all at a low cost and imported directly from manufacturers worldwide. Get an edge over competition and increase your bottom line today!

Note: Article may be freely circulated if all content, author info, and links remain unchanged.

About the Author:

Since 2006, Lee Shyu has helped businesses connect with Manufacturers, Importers, Wholesalers, and Retailers worldwide. His business is based in the United States and sources a wide selection of products, including Jewelry and Gifts, for small to mid-sized businesses looking to expand their product lines and increase their competitiveness in today's global marketplace.

If you're a woman who loves Silver Rings check out Silver Jewelry Emporium!

2 Step Marketing

Do it Right.

I receive postcards all the time. The other day I received a postcard trying to sell me a copy machine. It had tiny, tiny lettering slathered all over the front and a large portion of the back of the card.

It was extremely hard to read, so hard in fact that I threw it away.

Several days later I received a postcard with 32 words on it telling me that I could get complete information on unrestricted long distance telephone service for 5.5 cents a minute with no additional monthly fee by calling the 800 number on the card.

I did call. I got the information, had my questions answered and ordered my long distance service changed.
The company who offered me the long distance service was using a time tested 2 step selling process:

Step 1. Generate a lead - Get me to call their 800 number.

Step 2. Provide the requested information - Provided to me on the phone by one of their sales representatives, who was able to answer my questions and make me feel confident that I could save quite a bit of money on my long distance bill and that the service would be as good or better.

What's So Good About 2 Steps?

It is much easier to create interest (a lead) than it is to get a person through an entire buying process (a sale).

You aren't getting the prospect or existing customer to part with any money just yet.

You can use postcards to inexpensively promote to your target prospects and customers and generate leads (inquiries about your products and services) to then be followed up on and converted to sales.

This 2 step process also helps you to create a list of people who were interested enough in what you offered to contact you.

You can then recontact the one's who you didn't complete a sale with when they first inquired, preferably until they do buy from you.

IMPORTANT: Be sure to get the information you will need to recontact the people who responded to your postcard offering.

Repetitive follow-ups with the people who contacted you will result in increased sales. Make it a company policy to follow up with those people who contacted you about your products and services.


The Most Effective Use of Postcards:

The purpose of your postcard's message is to generate a sufficient level of interest in the mind of your prospect to get him/her to contact you to ask you about your offer.

You are generating interest, not collecting their money (not yet anyway). That is what the 2 step marketing process is about. Generating interested prospects and customers who contact you for more information.

Your message needs 3 parts to be most effective:

1. A clear statement of the biggest benefit of your product or service (in the long distance example, it was cost savings).

2. A good reason for them to contact you NOW.

3. A simple, easy way for them to respond (an 800 number for example).


Your message should be short and to the point. Short messages on postcards produce more leads than long ones.

For example:

Call 800-555-1212 for Your Copy of Our Free Report:

What 99% of Business Owners Don't Know and Will Never Find Out About Using Postcards to Explode Their Profits

Offer ends 5-5-01 (Print a date 3 weeks from your mailing date to create some urgency)

Lots of people will respond to find out what they might not know. Don't forget, they responded, which is least some interest in the information you have created a curiosity about.

This method works and is sure to produce a large number of inquiries if sent to your proper market.

This 2 Step Marketing Process Works.

Use the tips you have read here to create your next postcard's message and see what happens.

You will generate a bunch of leads from people who are truly interested in your products and services.

Get Discount Business Cards Here

For Discount Business Cards Online

Living With an Alcoholic

When you live with an alcoholic the situation can range from instability to physical abuse. At the least you will constantly be on edge because the alcoholic you live with is so unpredictable. You don't know what to expect. You don't know if the alcoholic will come home drunk or if he or she will come home at all. The one thing you do know is counting on an alcoholic is not a good idea. And living with an alcoholic is very taxing on the non-drinker because it is so all-consuming and stressful, and wears tremendously on your self esteem. If you live with an alcoholic for any length of time, chances are you don't have your own life anymore.

The person living with the alcoholic needs to understand that an alcoholic with a true addiction to alcohol is unable to stop drinking because of a physical and psychological addiction. This is very real and makes alcohol a formidable adversary. The alcohol is running the show, not the drinker and this is what normal people don't grasp. Alcoholism is chronic, meaning it never goes away. Even when an alcoholic stops drinking for good, it still lurks in the background somewhere. In spite of that, with help, many drinkers can successfully stop.

In A.A. literature there is a statement that people view the alcoholic with mingled pity and contempt. The assumption by normal people is that alcoholism is a moral deficiency or weakness of character. Closer to the truth is alcoholism is probably genetic, and combining genes with an environment that promotes alcohol, the resulting alcoholism is almost inevitable.

So here you are. You are living with an alcoholic. What are your options?

First, know the fact is that the percentage of alcoholics who recover without help is very low, probably in the single digits, and few can pull it off. In addition to that, it has been proven time after time that the alcoholic will be unable to stop drinking for you, his or her family or anyone else. They have to get help and they have to stop for themselves. Until they reach this point the drinking will continue.

If you elect to stick it out you can attend meetings for codependents in your area that exist to teach you how to stop covering for your alcoholic and how to distance yourself from your alcoholic's behavior and get on with your life.

So when will the drinker you live with stop drinking? Getting help is always the first step.

You can stop drinking and it doesn't have to be painful. Visit us at:

http://HowIStoppedDrinking.org

Living with an alcoholic is very taxing on the non-drinker because it is so all-consuming and stressful, and wears tremendously on your self esteem. Visit http://www.livingwithanalcoholic.org for some dos and don'ts

Cheap Or Discounted Hearing Aids

Discount hearing aids

Hearing aids are the boon to the hearing impaired patients. New technology and system has provided the best to the patients. But earlier it was such that only the one who was rich was able to get reach of these hearing aids. But with the new era and lessen of difference between the rich and the poor, things are in the reach of the people. Discount hearing aids also provide hearing aids at a discount to the people who are not able to get the expensive hearing aids for themselves. It also provides free hearing tests to the patient and their family members.

Suitability of the hearing aids

Hearing aids should be such that it fulfills every needs of the customer, right from the hearing and durability purposes to the price of the hearing aid. There come in market a lot of hearing aids, which are of good quality and also of high price. But is not required that only these products of high rate are good enough and durable. There also comes quality in a cheaper price. For your health price should not be a concern. There are various products which are cheap and of good quality and keeps you in a safer side. They are Waterproof hearing aids, Ear mold tubing, Wraps, Headbands and Dehumidifiers. There are many a companies who provide the patients with the hearing aids with a discount.

Necessity of hearing aids

Although one can survive with just one ear, life is ever so much easier and pleasant when we have both the ears functioning properly. Getting a hearing aid is required and is advantageous. While wearing two hearing aids one can better locate the sources of the sounds. This ability to locate the sources of sounds in three-dimensional space is called localization. Our brain uses three auditory factors namely, the slight difference in time it takes for a given sound to reach each ear; the difference in the loudness of a given sound as heard in each ear, and; the slight difference in the pitch of a given sound as heard in each ear. This helps in locating where the sounds are coming from. It works because the head is an obstacle to sound waves. The extra time sound needs to cross the head and reach the ear, which results in a slight delay in time.

Cheap hearing aids

Cheap Hearing Aids has behind the ear hearing aids. It provides canal hearing aids also at wholesale prices for children, adults, and seniors. Cheap hearing aids provides with a scheme of save hundreds, or even thousands, of dollars while buying hearing aid devices direct, and receive a full warranty and free lifetime batteries with the most complete hazard warranty in the hearing aid industry. Hearing aids are used for mild to moderate to severe hearing loss by millions of people worldwide. Children, adults, and seniors have benefited thanks to hearing aid technology. Anyone who is hearing impaired will benefit from the huge discounts provided on behind the ear and in the canal hearing devices. Hearing health is very important. Cheap hearing aids provide the products of the same quality in the cheaper or wholesale rate of what you get in the expensive market.

Other products by cheap hearing aids

Hearing aids should be such that it fulfills every needs of the customer, right from the hearing and durability purposes to the price of the hearing aid. There come in market a lot of hearing aids, which are of good quality and also of high price. But is not required that only these products of high rate are good enough and durable. There also comes quality in a cheaper price. For your health price should not be a concern. There are various products which are cheap and of good quality and keeps you in a safer side. They are Waterproof hearing aids, Ear mold tubing, Wraps, Headbands and Dehumidifiers.

Reason to wear a hearing aid

Although one can survive with just one ear, life is ever so much easier and pleasant when we have both the ears functioning properly. Getting a hearing aid is required and is advantageous. While wearing two hearing aids one can better locate the sources of the sounds. This ability to locate the sources of sounds in three-dimensional space is called localization. Our brain uses three auditory factors namely, the slight difference in time it takes for a given sound to reach each ear; the difference in the loudness of a given sound as heard in each ear, and; the slight difference in the pitch of a given sound as heard in each ear. This helps in locating where the sounds are coming from. It works because the head is an obstacle to sound waves. The extra time sound needs to cross the head and reach the ear, which results in a slight delay in time.



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The advantages of using motorcycle helmet

Accidents are a thing that we are not expecting and there are lots of stories on how Motorcycle helmet have helped us in this so called accidents. Even though there are lots of accidents that are occurring you can still feel somehow safe with the use of Motorcycle helmet. If you are going to count this people I bet you will see that there are lots of lives that are saved. But if you are going to do some search there are also cases where in people died because they are not using a helmet.

As we all know there are lots of accidents that are occurring because of motor vehicle. Motor accidents have been a real problem from any country. You will be needing lots of discipline for you to avoid accidents. Since the use of helmet is very much proven, there are lots of states that implemented a rule of using the helmet in mandatory. This law has proven that the ratios of death in motor accidents have decreased. Since this is really useful there are lots of countries who are using this kind of law.

The good thing is that even the Motorcycle helmet companies are having its progress in creating a secured helmet for everyone. The helmets that we have today are now comfortable to wear. They are also giving much attention on the protection that we can have during accidents with the use of helmet.

People have been complaining about the use of helmet before. They are not in favor with the use of helmet because they can’t hear enough. Fortunately this has been solved because of the kind of design that we have today.

All you have to do is to look unto the designs that will suit your personality. It is better that you try wearing the helmet for a minute at first so you can decide. The designs in the helmets are indeed important but the first thing that you need too consider is your safety.




Motorcycle Helmet

DOT Helmet

Using Hypnosis the Right Way – The Dos and the Don’ts

Hypnotherapy can be a great way to cure a number of problems in your life, be it psychological or mental. It can even help you to improve your lifestyle, character, outlook, career and relationships very efficiently. And there is much more that you can achieve through proper hypnosis methods.

However, there are a number of points that are worth noting down with respect to hypnosis so that you are able to make the most of it and avoid trouble through it. Let us check out some dos and don’ts in relation to hypnosis to understand what your approach should be towards this great tool to improve your life.

Discipline

The most important factor to consider with hypnosis is discipline. Unless and until you are able to show enough self control, you may never get the best effects or results out of hypnotherapy.

Positive Mindset

The more positive you are before the hypnosis sessions, the better it will work for you. If you start the session with a very negative approach, giving importance to thoughts like “I don’t think all these things work”, you have already programmed your mind to accept the fact that hypnosis is worthless.

Remember, hypnosis lets your conscious and subconscious minds interact with each other. It has a lot to do with making your subconscious mind believe in the things that you want to achieve. If you start with disbelieving the fact that it is possible to make things work, it will become even more difficult for you.

Using It the Right Way

Hypnosis can help you achieve some unbelievable things in life, like career improvement, losing weight, relationship development, etc. But if you plan to use hypnosis towards negative actions and thoughts, this will probably not work. Some of the mind experts have stated this point very strongly, that hypnosis should only be used towards achieving the positive aspects of life.

No Medication

It is very important to understand that hypnosis does not require you to go for any sort of drugs or medication to get you to the results more effectively. If you have heard about such ideas, it is completely a myth and can be quite dangerous for your mind and body.

Try Self Hypnosis

You can try out self hypnosis as well. This may prove to be quite difficult in the beginning, but once you learn how to get to that state of mind, it may prove to be a great tool for you. You can save a lot of money that you may have needed to spend on a professional if you learn the self hypnosis methods in the best possible way!



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Developing a Local Business Directory Into a Thriving Web Portal

Developing a local business directory is a very good way to go for anyone who aspires to have a successful offline-online consultancy business. The advantages of such a strategy are the provision of a valued service to the local community, as well as a profitable return to your business.

However, you need to differentiate yourself from other local business directories, many of which are little better than link farms. The only value such directories provide is to list the local business in an appropriate category. And what use is that?

Your local directory must dare to be different. You need to draw in local businesses who are willing to pay a premium for a quality listing.

Therefore the key issue becomes: how can you as a consultant to small businesses, provide that winning edge that will entice local businesses to list with you, as opposed to avenues such as The Yellow Pages or other similar utility portals?

The way to go about this is to create a full page description of each local business listing with you and re-direct surfers to that page. The page may, for example, contain a video of an interview with the business owner. This approach gives the site visitor a more personal feel for what the business has to offer. The visitor can then be sent to the local business website in order to purchase a product or service. If the business doesn't yet have a web site then the visitor can simply be sent to the business address.

You will need to use your creativity and imagination in order to get top class presentation pages. When you achieve this you will get greater exposure in the search engines because you are providing relevant local content that will rank highly. If you use basic optimization for keywords then the local businesses will get traffic that they never had before. This means they will be willing to pay you a premium for a listing in the directory.

Make no mistake - if you develop a local business directory into a thriving web portal, you will not only provide a solid foundation for your business, but you will have a valuable asset that can be on-sold for a lucrative profit.

Do you want to become a successful online consultant to offline business? Developing web portals is only a small part of the picture. Get the big picture at http://www.offlinebusinessonlinewealth.com/

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