The Etsy Ireland needs two brave volunteers!!Soon myself and Alex will be hanging up our hats, but we have not found anyone to replace us yet. We've mentioned this at meetings and on the blog before but we've had no takers yet. So we thought we would spell out the reality of what going to happen. Unless we find two people to take on the team co-ordinators roles at the end of June things are going to grind to a halt. We gave it our all but it's not feasable to continue working like this on a volunteer basis. So that means no more blog, no new members, and nobody behind the scenes promoting us in the mainstream press. We hate to put it so harshly but there really is no other option, the two of us have reached the end of our 6 month stint, and it was fun while it lasted but we are ready to hand over the reigns to some fresh new blood. The way we divided up the work was:
PR and admin: Alex took on the role of contacting mainstream papers and magazines and generally tried to bring the Etsy Ireland team to a wider audience. This involved emailing writing proposals and being the general go to person. She also did an amazing job of recruiting new members, convoing them with details of how to join, and then posting new members on the blog. Through all her hard work we've really seen our numbers flourish.
Blog: I took on the role of co-ordinating all the posts and timtabling different articles for different days. This involved contacting all the members regularly and asking for new contributions, signing people up to publish and letting them know how to do it. It also meant filling in a fair few holes on the blog myself, so doing a good few fab 5s and how to's over the past few months.
So is anyone up to the challenge?? It's very rewarding, and you get to know al the team members very well which has been really lovely.There will be a cross over period where myself and Alex will be there to answer lots of questions and give tips to the new co-ordinators. Anyone who is interested please leave a comment here and we'll contact you
Just looked at the 'job descriptions', and decided after a lot of hesitation to volunteer for the 'Blog' post. I've been working as a web editor for years, and know I would enjoy running the blog, although...phew, that's some very big shoes to fill - Ruth, you're doing such a fab job!!!
ReplyDeleteHey girls, you've both done an amazing job with the team! Maybe we should break up the roles into bite size chunks? a crafty ireland committee perhaps? that way we could keep everybody in the loop and make team management less of a chore....
ReplyDeleteI have some ideas on how we could make it work ;)
Its such a treat to read the blog everyday. You have been doing such a fantastic job!!!! I like what Tanya is suggesting. Maybe sharing the work load somehow.?
ReplyDeleteI dont have any experience with blogs, but i would love to help somehow. Due to ill health i am not able to comit to the role, but if i could help in some way sometimes,i am more than happy.
sorry girls, i know you are looking for more comitment.
Well done girls on a first class job! Yay to Purls for being the first to step up.
ReplyDeleteTanya brought up the idea of the committee at the meeting and I thought it was a great idea, not only because the team is growing at a really fast rate, thanks to the girls, but because that also means different people will have different talents to bring to the table.
I want to be part of it, but I can only do it in bite sizes. (Medusa, your post sounds eerily like me!) I had to down-size my career and life after a wee brain haemorrage a few years ago. I can do something, but in small bites, maybe part of the admin, like looking after new members for example? I don’t know what else to volunteer for. My energy levels fluctuate drastically so maybe the Admin is something Medusa and I could share?
If we ran with the committee idea, maybe 1 or if needed, 2 people would step up?? I wonder , for example, if there is someone on this growing team with some sort of background in PR?
Thanks for the input from those above. And yes, Tanya, I think your idea is a good one. I'm happy to continue to a small degree with my role but would be happier to hand over the more substantial chunk of it to others.
ReplyDeleteAnyone out there with PR experience who could perhaps take on the publicity/promo aspect of the team for the next 6 months or so, as Anne-Marie suggests?
Cheers, Alex
I have to admit I was very hesitant to volunteer for so much that I don't have a clue about but am more than willing to learn one task and do it regularly.
ReplyDeleteWell done Purls for being the first to step up you're very brave.
Thanks Purls, you're my hero!! I'll be in touch soon with a more detailed description of what is needed.
ReplyDeleteTanya I think you def have point there. What I think might help with the blog if people were to commit to doing several blog posts rather than hunting down articles for every day for 6 months.
Maybe I should run away now ;)
ReplyDeleteThe idea of a committee sounds good to me - it's always good to have more people chipping in, especially if somebody suddenly does get an enormous amount of sales (I wish!) and is busy with orders...
I would like to help where I can?
ReplyDeleteAgain though, don't know how much I can, working 5 days a week etc, commuting, blah di blah, but the offer is there :)
Fi
Good on you purls! I agree lets try break it all up into small bites. I set up the facebook site which is v easy to manage now that its linked to automatically update on twitter etc. I'm happy to keep managing that for now if needed.
ReplyDeleteIf everyone on the team could make a big effort to submit more blog articles then it would be more about 'managing/formatting/posting' blogs than chasing or creating new blog articles. I have 2 jobs & etsy so can't commit to more I'm afraid but I will make an effort to submit more blog articles whenever I can if that helps
I don't know how much I can do but would be happy to submit some blog articles over the next few months if I can. Hopefully we can discuss it at the next team meetings and get delegating!
ReplyDeleteI love this blog so much and you've been doing such a great job up to now, Tanya, Sarah, Alex, Ruth and everyone else who contributes! Looking forward to the next phase of its success :)
congratulations to ruth and alex for the fantastic job! ♥
ReplyDeletei'd be more than happy to contribute blog posts, just buzz me when you need a volunteer Purls!