I am thrilled that after reading one of my previous articles about starting a home-based beauty business, one of my readers decided to take my advice and start a small business from home.
She got in touch with me and we have talked about it in great detail. We got really close and have even been exchanging tips. She has been kind and opens enough to share her whole experience with me right from where she sources her raw materials to the local designer who does her labels.
But, of course, every business has its downsides and hard times just like everything else in life. The thing my reader found hardest was doing the actual selling. Obviously, she found happy and eager customers in her relatives, friends and colleagues. But she has more ambitious plans.
She realized she needed to get word of her products out there. So she decided to turn to the best source to accomplish this – the Internet, where the whole world hangs out every day.
We have been talking for months now so I have been privy to the things she tried to sell. She was so excited when her plan started to work that she asked me to share her ideas with other readers so that they would know what to do in case they ever started a business of their own too.
Create Your Own Website
If your business does not have a website, it will not have any credibility. This is a fact in today’s world. People do not think a website is necessary to promote sales as they feel that they can do it all themselves.
But let’s face it. There is no feasible way to sit a potential customer down and tell her about each and every one of your products. And what about the millions of other people in the world who you cannot meet face to face? You’ll miss out on them altogether.
A smarter way to do business is to give a customer a brief idea of your business face to face, then hand over a card with your website among your contact details. You can take down their details and follow-up in a couple of weeks.
Write a Blog
Perhaps your business is at too small a stage for you to consider creating a full website. No problem. You can write a blog about your company instead. Blogs are free to create and attract many readers and thus customers if your material is good.
eBay
Everyone knows of eBay but few will actually use it. Try selling your products through this site and you will be grateful you did when the orders starts rolling in.
