Advertising asides.

It's advertising time in Bear Land again. The annual Hugglets 'UK Teddy Bear Guide' is due for publication very soon and after a break of some years, I feel the time is right for me to take a colour ad promoting my work, once again.

I'm always frustrated by my limited graphic design skills but needs must, so I've battled on in an attempt to create my own advertisement. This year I've decided to use 'Billy Buttons' for the guide ad. My photographer sister Tina took this fabulous pic for me and this is the end result of my fumblings ...

I love to see my little ads popping up in specialist publications; even after all these years I still get a buzz from flicking through the pages until I spot my own advertisement. The downside of course, is the cost of advertising which unfortunately limits the frequency of my ads ...

Aside from the 'UK Teddy Bear Guide 2008' (http://www.hugglets.co.uk/) which is published by Hugglets once a year here in the UK (please visit their website if you would like to purchase a copy) and which is a fabulous reference for anyone interested in teddy bears, I also try to take regular advertising space in my favourite UK magazine 'The Teddy Bear Scene' (http://www.teddybearscene.co.uk/); in fact, the above ad will also pop up in the December issue of TBS which goes on sale in November.

Next year I'd love to tackle the US magazines, but to do that, I'll need to plan well ahead because their ads really don't come cheap and sadly, there is only so much of this particular bear maker's advertising budget available to spread around!

So, why do I advertise? Well, apart from the obvious need to keep collectors informed and to draw new collectors' interest to my own work (after all, a girl needs to eat!) I advertise for the bigger picture. I think it's vital to keep our niche publications on newsagent's shelves, available for everyone to enjoy. If they fade away from sale in the High Street, how will we capture the eye of new collectors? The kind of collector who doesn't yet realise they are about to become a collector? How will we invite new people into our fascinating world?

Without advertisers, it's impossible for the magazines to stay with us, working on our behalf. So, above all else, that's why I advertise. A little bit of support from as many bear artists as possible, goes a mighty long way to supporting our bigger picture.