Fabulous Photo Gifts - A4 size 96 piece personalised photo jigsaw picture

Hi Jigsaw puzzle fans.

What a week its been so far for Fabulous Photo Gifts personalised photo jigsaws. Firstly, the website went live Sunday evening, then came the posters and flyers design which is complete (for the moment).

We will probably be refining the design of the flyer a little bit but there's so much info to include - jigsaw sizes and dimensions, the myriad of uses - superb personalised gifts and presents, fund raising for schools, charities and clubs and of course the business aspects - promotion, re-selling, business awareness, the list of possible uses goes on and on.

We also included a postal order form on the back of the flyer and details of how to order photo jigsaws from Fabulous Photo Gifts by post.

One thing we are very keen on is making our pricing structure straightforward and transparent so we've included all the bulk purchase prices and information online as well as including personalisation, delivery and vat in the price you see for online orders.

We've included a picture of the A4 96 piece photo jigsaw in its two part box with the completed image printed on the lid above.

Because we're always striving to offer our customers the very best product we can, box designs may differ from that illustrated, without prior notification.

Normal delivery times are around 10 days but you should allow 28 days for delivery.

Fabulous Photo Gifts is already taking a lot of enquiries for Christmas present requests so our advice is place your order as soon as possible (if not now) to avoid disapointment.

Fabulous Photo Gifts.

Article - ppc versus organic listings

Earlier today, this article snippet appeared in the fabulous photo gifts inbox about pay per click versus organic listings with regard to conversion to sales rates.

"Keywords bought on a pay-per-click basis at search engines such as Google, Yahoo and Microsoft MSN had a median conversion rate of 3.4 percent, compared with 3.13 percent for unpaid results to search queries [...] Both forms of search were far above the overall conversion rate of about 2 percent for most e-commerce sites."

Recently, Purple 13 (the digital photo art of Mandy Collins) embarked on a modest pay per click campaign. It had three main purposes.

1) To raise awareness of Purple 13, Mandy's art and therefore increase sales.
2) To back up an advertising campaign that was running in Living Etc magazine.
3) As a dummy run for when Fabulous Photo Gifts launched and would use pay-per-click as part of its marketing strategy.

All 3 objectives were successfully completed. However, it was interesting to note that the increased sales via the increased exposure could not be directly attributed to the pay per click. Rather, as part of the purchasing decision.

Perhaps customers saw the advert. Much later when browsing, they remember the Purple 13 but not the full address so conduct a search and see the sponsored listing.

My point is this. I don't think its enough to just have pay per click marketing for most online products or services. The 'selling message' needs to be re-enforced with good organic listings and if possible, other media marketing.

Consider adding a "where did you hear of us?" drop down selection menu as part of your checkout procedure but don't make it compulsory otherwise customers will leave your site rather than supply the information and complete the transaction.

Purple 13 Webmaster

3 kittens have new homes

Three of Purple 13's office cat Amy kittens, have now got new homes thanks to the online photographs and adverts placed in local newspapers.

With a fourth leaving us later this week and three people interested in the last female of the litter, its been a week of comings and goings for our expanding kitten family.

It's very difficult to pick a favourite - they're all so cute - but 'Molly' is staying with us. Hopefully if she sits still long enough for a photo, then we'll be able to personalise a jigsaw puzzle with her photo on it for grandparents at Christmas.

That's the door bell so I'd better go and show a prospective owner the ginger and white kitten they've come to see.

Purple 13.

Fabulous Photo Gifts goes live

Hi Purple 13 'Ploggers'.

The last few days have seen some frantic moments as the seconds ticked away to Fabulous Photo Gifts .co.uk going live and now that moment has come.

In the last few hours, fabulousphotogifts.co.uk completed pre-launch tests and once online, needed minor adjustments to be open for business.

Fabulous Photo Gifts offers you the chance to choose from a wide range of Jigsaw Puzzles, that you can personalise with your own photograph or image.

Prices include personalisation and postage and delivery. They even include your picture on the lid of the box at no extra cost.

Personalised photo jigsaws also make a great fund raising idea for schools, groups or charities.

They also make an excellent reseller opportunity or business awareness tool with some very keenly priced bulk discounts that quite frankly, if you were putting a jigsaw together on your lap, would make you jump up and knock the pieces to the floor.

Resellers, businesses and groups can make their purchases online also by clicking on the Bulk Orders option.

Private and individual buyers can order and personalise their own fabulous jigsaw gift by clicking on the Individual Orders option.

We know things have been a little quiet on the blogging front but we know you'll agree when you visit fabulousphotogifts.co.uk, that the wait has been worth it.

Mandy looks forward to offering you even more choice and value in the future.

Purple 13 - the visual pep pill

Every so often, when checking visitor statistics to purple 13, an unexpected search phrase shows up in the stats that people have searched on and arrived at Purple 13.

Today was one such occasion. Visitors to Purple 13 may have noticed on the reviews page a comment by Fabfotos - an online art sourcing directory - in which they refer to Mandy's artworks as "wild and vibrant".

They go on to heap praise upon her works by saying "if you are in need of a visual pep pill visit this site".

Mandy was very pleased to receive such an endorsement of her work and their comments were added to her review page. The line about a visual pep pill was so good, that it is repeated at the bottom of her home page.

Pep Pill was the search phrase in question. Try typing it into Google right now, searching under UK results.

Purple 13.

Purple 13 art at Ashley's Race for Wheels

Some good friends of ours along with local bikers groups are holding a charity rally / 4th birthday party for their grandson Ashley.

Ashley has Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA type 2) which means his muscles are wasting away and do not support him properly. Even simple tasks like coughing or crawling are beyond him.

Despite all of this, he is a remarkably cheery and 'savvy' little chap and Purple 13 is pleased to be given the opportunity of donating artwork for the grand auction at the rally.

Hopefully, they'll raise the target £8,500 to buy him a specialist wheelchair which will also raise and lower him and give him the freedom to attend school.

You can read more about Ashleys Race for 'Specialised' Wheels on his own website - ashleysraceforwheels.com

Ticket availability and how to make a donation / contact details can be found there.

Thanks.

Fabulous Photo Gifts will offer extended range

As work nears completion of Fabulous Photo Gifts, following successful testing of the online basket mechanism, personalised photo jigsaw buyers will be able to choose from an extended range of jigsaw puzzles.

Initially, Fabulous Photo Gifts was going to launch with A6 postcard size, A5, A4 and A3 sized jigsaws.

However, we are very pleased to be able to offer, in addition to the above sizes, A6 and A5 Fridge Magnet Jigsaws as well as larger than A3 jigsaws including a 1500 piece square jigsaw and 560 piece and 1300 piece panoramic jigsaws, all of which can be personalised with your own images.

Individual buyers will be able to buy online there and then and upload their electronic image to accompany their order to our secure servers.

In addition, bulk purchasers of promotional jigsaws and resellers will be able to access bulk supply prices.

Of course, Mandy is always available via email or phone to discuss individual projects and requirements personally with customers.

With demand for the magnetic backed A5 expected to be high, given their unique suitability for fund raising as well as corporate 'give-aways', it was decided to bring forward the introduction of this option, supplied flat mounted on card and clear shrink wrapped.

More details will be available during the coming week as Fabulous Photo Gifts prepares to go live ahead of the start of an advertising campaign in Location, Location, Location magazing at the beginning of October.

A strange Profile picture?

We've received one or two comments about the "strange profile picture" so we thought we'd better explain further.

It's actually an artwork by Mandy Collins entitled Eve's Apple. Eve's Apple won a prize in the Novartis and Daily Telegraph Visions of Science Photographic Awards 2005.

Mandy attended an award ceremony at the Royal Society in London and received her prize from TV Personality Dr Adam Hart-Davis.

The work then went on a major UK tour with the other catergory winners, starting at the Science Museum.

Naturally, Mandy is very proud of her award and hence has adopted Eve's Apple as a popular example of her work.

The image itself started life as a flower from a Bleeding Heart picked for her by her Daughter who demanded it be photographed immediately. The stem was placed in an egg cup in the windowsill and photographed many times.

The resulting photos were then worked on by Mandy for many hours and the end result became an award winning piece of art.

You can read the full story of Mandy's award by clicking here.

To view a larger image of Eve's Apple, click here.

Eve's Apple is available for purchase in print, framed signed limited editions and giant stretched canvases. Click here to view finish options and prices.

Article - The dangers of testing your site online

As readers of this Blog will be aware, Mandy is about to launch Fabulous Photo Gifts. A new online and postal business producing personalised photo gifts. The website will launch with personalised photo jigsaws.

Because they make great ideas for school, club or charity fund raising as well as an ideal business promotion 'give away', the website also has specific information about these uses, as well as one off gift ideas.

Last weekend saw the final pre-launch testing of the online shopping basket and its integration with PayPal. One of the tests involved placing a full order.

To help achieve this, the web design team created a test product with a nominal value.

This is where the problems started.

The website under construction index page currently live had a link to a sneak preview intended for the fund raising customers. Unfortunately, an image carried onto this page contained an embedded link that if clicked on, took you straight to the basket page detailing jigsaw specifications and prices.

One such visitor happened upon this link and enquired via email about supplying a number of personalised photo jigsaws at the test nominal value.

Email correspondence followed between Mandy and the customer, and the situation was explained and a confirmed price quoted for their requirements.

So all ended well. However, it should be noted here is a lesson for all web developers.

When conducting such tests, make it absolutely clear that the basket is a test version etc just in case a visitor stumbles across it and tries to place an order.

Purple 13 web team

Nasa calls it a beautiful sight

May we take a personal moment to add our congratulations to Nasa and the crew of the Space Shuttle Atlantis on a quite superb launch yesterday.

Our best wishes for a successful mission and a safe return to Earth.

If you haven't checked out the launch video at nasa.gov, then head there now and be prepared to be amazed and excited.

(But don't forget to visit Purple 13 once you've finished watching!)

Purple 13 Webmaster

P.S. OK, so i did rewind the video several times. It was worth it!

2nd Office Cat has kittens

The Purple 13 office is getting a little crowded with the arrival in the last half hour of two kittens and it looks like there might be another one to come!

So its going to be a busy night here. At present, the two kittens born are black/dark coloured with white legs.

Proud mum Storm and the two kittens (so far) are doing fine.

Catch up with Amys kittens at 31 days old by going to their own web page at Purple 13. Click here to view the kitten log.

P.S Late update - make that three! That's all folks! (we're going to bed now)oh, and the third one is ginger in colour.

New pictures of the Purple 13 office cat's kittens online now

As readers of the Purple 13 Blog will be aware, our office cat recently had six kittens, and very cute and cuddly they are too.

We've just posted some new pictures of the kittens at 31 days old for everyone to go aaaah over.

Go to the Kitten Pages to see them now. You can even catch up with the pictures of last years litter.

With two sold and one being kept for our own children, we have three left just longing for a good home when they are ready to leave mum cat Amy in October.

What people are saying about Purple 13 Art - Review

Re: Purple 13

"I have to say this looks brilliant, the way the colour flows and merges into a truly bright and strong image.

There is a statement being made by the use of bold and imaginative colour that draws the viewers eye in, a touch of velvet even.

I will recommend the site because there are lots of differing subjects on display, and they are good."

Paintings and Prints 2.

Purple 13 advert at Sainsburys checkouts this weekend

Purple 13 adverts will be running in the next 3 months editions of Location, Location, Location - the popular magazine of the Channel 4 program by the same name.

In an exclusive marketing deal, this will be the only magazine on sale directly at Sainsburys checkouts in the run up to Christmas. The October edition, the first featuring Mandy's advert will be on sale from this weekend (September 9th).

This latest media advertising follows on the back of the successful summer campaign in Living Etc magazine.

This new advert promotes Mandy's artworks, prints and stretched canvases as well as the clothing and other gifts available featuring Purple 13 art. All of which can be purchased online.

The November editions advert (due out in October) will feature a seperate advert for Mandy's latest online venture - Fabulous Photo Gifts which specialises in personalised photo jigsaws featuring your own photographs or Purple 13 art.

More news can be found on the Purple 13 Blog as the Purple 13 web designers put the finishing touches to the new website - fabulousphotogifts.co.uk.

What would Kirk and Co' have made of it?

The other night, we were sat around watching a film called The Forgotten and very good it was to. As the credits rolled, I gazed to the section of those responsible for the music and noticed James Horners name. He also composed the music for Star Trek 2, The Wrath of Khan (one of my favourites).

I thought I'd detected a hint of the theme from Star Trek 2 in the film we'd just been watching and voiced my opinion. Mandy and the others were singularly un-impressed with my thoughts even when I went onto explain my reasons for suspecting Mr Horner had had a hand in the films score.

"Its the way it was phrased I replied. That little piece of music that inspired hope just like when the Enterprise is leaving orbit at the end of the film with William Shatners dialogue about Spock echoing above the music."

This caused some merryment I can tell you. Undeterred, I tried to press my point but to no avail. It did however lead me to daydream about a possible conversation between the crew of the Enterprise upon discovering one of Mandy's artworks....

The Enterprise is flying through deep space in Beta Quandrant, scanning for those Klimt Klingons, Raphaelite Romulans and Cubist Borg. Spock looks up from his scanner (which closely resembles a fascial steamer)...

Spock: Fascinating Captain - I'm picking up a strange image on the scanners. Its clearly an artwork.
Kirk: On visual Mr Sulu.
Mr Sulu: Aye Captain, artwork on visual.
Kirk: What is it?
Spock: According to the ships library, its an ancient earth piece entitled Dandelion Fire.
Kirk: Incredible. What do you make of it Bones?
Dr McCoy: Damm it Jim I'm a Doctor, not an art critic!
Kirk: Any more information Spock?
Spock: Yes it was created by award winning artist Mandy Collins. Apparently, a digital photo artist of some international reput. Born UK, lived in Derbyshire during her abstract period.
Chekov: This is impossible Mr Spock, we were always told she was a great Russian artist.
Kirk: Uhura - inform Star Fleet HQ. Spock, What do you suggest?
Uhura: Aye Captain
Spock: We could capture it with a tractor beam and present..
Kirk: Excellent idea Mr Spock, we'll lock on a tractor beam and bring it aboard. Scotty can clean it up and we'll present it to the Ambassador as a gift from the federation.
Scotty: Captain, the warp drives at maximum, i'm not sure the engines can take it.
Spock: If I may Captain, the collective works of Mandy Collins are available to buy online from her website - Purple 13, perhaps we should just order another one for the Ambassador when we reach Altair 4?
Picard: Make it so.
Kirk: That's just what I was about to say.
Spock: I find this illogical - why would anyone name a piece after their brain?
Kirk: 21st century artists - the giants!
Dr McCoy: I liked him better when he was dead!

From the Archives - Purple 13 News Page 28/09/2005.

We thought it would be fun to re-visit the Purple 13 news archives and re-print news snippets as they first appeared on the News Page. They're still there to read and the links to follow.

This news item appeared on the Purple 13 News Page on the 28th September, 2005:

28/09/05 - Novartis award winner Mandy collects award at London presentation

Mandy Collins was invited to the Royal Society in London to receive her award for her entry into the Novartis and Daily Telegraph Visions of Science Photographic Awards. She won an acclaimed 2nd place in the coveted Arts section after judges looked at over 5,500 entries during the summer months.

TV Presenter Dr Adam Hart-Davis, one of the judges himself, awarded the prizes at the ceremony which preceedes a UK wide tour of the winning artworks and photography.

Mandy was delighted to learn her work had won and said " This award will help firmly establish my artwork within both the art and business communities".

To read more about Mandy's prestigious award and view the winning artwork - Eve's Apple - which is for sale in Print, Framed and Stretched Canvas options as well as licenced uses, please visit the special 'Novartis' page using the link on the Home page.

Purple 13 advert hits Sainsbury's checkouts

This weekend saw the publication - Location, Location, Location hit the streets with one very important difference.

The magazine of the popular house hunting programme on Channel 4 will be carrying an advert from Purple 13, advertising Mandys artworks, canvases, clothing and gifts.

The advert will run in the next three monthly editions, which can be found at the exclusive checkout position at Sainsburys stores throughout the country as well as the usual sources.

Editorial will be focusing on home style - the perfect place for Purple 13 Art.

How do you solve a problem like Maria?

Don't know of the top of my head but it makes great television. Following after the X Factor, is there a better way to wind down after a hectic day of web building on Purple 13 and Fabulous Photo Gifts? (Which is so close, you can almost smell the personalised gifts).

Purple 13 Webmaster.

Fabulous Photo Gifts website nears completion

After a marathon night of programming last night, small hours and candles burning etc, we could definately see the light at the end of the tunnel on Mandy Collins newest online project - Fabulous Photo Gifts.

The site will specialise in personalised photo gifts - jigsaws, mugs, coathooks etc - some really different and unusual gift ideas. Visitors can choose their gift, personalise it by uploading their image and complete their order by paying online.

Fo those who prefer to, you can also add an artwork by Mandy Collins or send in an old photo that requires restoration, have it restored by Fabulous Photo Gifts and then have the finished result added to the gift of your choice.

A few graphics to change and a bit more programming and it should be ready to go live next weekend. We're very excited about it as we're also aiming the site and its services at schools, clubs and charities as an excellent fund raising idea as well as businesses for corporate awareness or product promotion.

The site will go live with personalised photo jigsaws and then other gift ideas will follow. The photo jigsaws are available in A3 and A4 size (2 part box with completed image on lid), A5 and A5 magnetic backed. We're finalising details of larger wooden piece jigsaws for youngsters or those with impaired site or mobility etc.

So, you heard it here first. http://www.fabulousphotogifts.co.uk - add it to your favourites now, sign the Purple 13 guestbook (see link on the right) and be one of the first to order a fabulous personalised photo gift.

You'll just love giving (and receiving) them.

Purple 13.