_4/11/2011

For Small Business | Joy Lynskey

Ghostwritten by Danica Sorber

The P-P-P-Power of e-Commerce: How to Create & Market Your E-Store – Part I

Here is a factoid that you probably already know, but will hear again anyway…there are over 6.8 billion people on this planet. That is a lot of people; all of whom have needs, wants, and desires, and many of them fulfill those needs, wants, and desires online. No, not everyone on the planet has access to the internet, but with over 300 million Google searches per day, and over 175 million people logging into Facebook every day, there are plenty of people with access to online goods and services—goods or services that you can provide.

If you are like the billions of other people on the planet, you are experiencing something we like to call, “being broke”. That means that you don’t necessarily have or make all the money you need to get by from month to month. You’ve tried everything from working two jobs, to cutting back on what you buy, to having summer “staycations” in your back yard, but nothing seems to help make ends meet.

Well, have you considered selling goods online? Is there something you can make with your own hands? Do you have consistent and reliable access to the internet? Do you have a few extra bucks stashed away that you can use as start-up capital?

If you said yes to the above questions, you just might have what it takes to create and market an e-store.

The Products

When it comes to selling in an online store, the most important thing is having a product people want to buy. You can spend all your valuable time marketing a collection of nightclub matchbooks, but no one (well, maybe a really select few) will want to buy them. When you’re stepping out of the corner store and into online market, you need to provide a product that people need, want, or desire.

If you can make things with your hands, for instance: figurines, quilts, hand woven baskets, grandfather clocks, pottery, blown glass, jewelry, knitted clothing, handbags made of Mexican candy wrappers, or lunch boxes made from old Capri Sun pouches, you can make something that people are looking for and willing to pay cash money to own.

If you’ve found a niche and believe that you can make money selling lanyards wholesale, why not do some research on the types and designs of lanyards that sell well, buy a stock from a wholesale supplier, and add them to your e-store inventory?

If you do a quick search on eBay, you’ll find that millions of people are successfully selling pre- owned or wholesale items through the normal eBay auction service, or through their own eBay Storefront.

In the world of online stores, there are two major players in the e-store game. Etsy and eBay. Etsy caters to buyers and sellers of handmade items, whereas eBay caters to all buyers and sellers (of legal items anyway).

-Etsy: To become a seller on Etsy you first need to register and create an account. This includes creating a name for your business, filling out the payment information (you need a credit card to create a seller account), and reading the terms and conditions. Once you’ve done all the obligatory typing and clicking, you can start setting up your storefront by creating or uploading a banner, uploading your inventory (pictures, product details, and pricing), and finally getting a hold of your storefront URL.