The words ecommerce have been everywhere in recent years. Anyone who wants to make money online has at least considered this route. But, relatively few of them have made the jump. There’s just no getting around the fact that going it alone is frightening. While online business is cheap to start, it brings a great deal of responsibility. And, that’s not for everyone.
But, hesitance to start an online business doesn’t mean you can’t make a go of selling online Sites like etsy.com have made it entirely possible to sell your wares without worrying about starting up an online store of your own. This artisan marketplace provides a platform for sellers of everything from crafted wares, to vintage items. If that sounds like something you could get behind, here’s how to get started.
Develop your product
In many ways, getting started on Etsy is like going it alone. Only, you’ll have the backing of an existing site, with a customer base. But, you do still need to develop a product. You may want to get creative with this, and sell something you’ve made. Knitted or sewn items are always successful, as is handmade jewellery. It’s also possible to make this work if you aren’t the crafting type. You could always start selling vintage clothing. Head out and find some pieces which represent your image. Then, use the money from them to buy more stock.
Build your brand
While Etsy will be your platform, you still need to build a brand. In some ways, your Etsy store isn’t any different from a physical shop. You need a logo and name which catch customers’ attention. You should also display wares in the best light possible. In this instance, that means taking quality pictures, and showing your best pieces. As customers can’t touch your wares, you also need to take utmost care over your product descriptions. Make these unique, quippy, and accurate.
Take care of business
And, of course, though Etsy has already done the groundwork, there are still business matters to consider. For one, you need to know how much you should charge. The best judge for this is seeing what other companies are charging. Bear in mind that you also need to take account of material costs, and time spent on your products.
Once your pricing is taken care of, it’s time to work on a payment method. You’ll have a choice between using Etsy payments or Paypal. You’ll also need to work out how to invoice your customers. To start, you may be able to send invoices by hand. But, as business picks up, solutions like the Q2C package offered by www.dataserv.com may be a better bet. This way, you can ensure your invoices send automatically as soon as you receive payment.
And, of course, you’ll need to find the most cost-effective method to send your parcels. Again, this may have to wait until business picks up. But, once it does, contact courier companies who offer discounts for large orders.