Question

Topic: E-Marketing

How To Start And Promote An Online Store

Posted by Anonymous on 2/18/2009 at 2:20 PM ET 250 Points
I want to have an online store to sell in the US and Canada for hand crafted natural woolen garments made in Chile. The materials are mainly natural and organic dyed lamb and alpaca wool. These will be women's clothing like jackets, scarfs, sweaters and others, also for children and men. Maybe home decor like pillows, throws, small rugs and art to hang in the wall. I want to enhance the organic, hand made origin and uniqueness of the products.

I have three daughters that I want to participate with me in this project. One is a fashion designer, the second is good at quality control, buying and business so she can look after manufacturing and shipping to me (I plan to distribute from the US). Both live in our country of origin. The third daughter has an Art degree and lives in New York. I live in the US as well. I am very good at photography, I am computer literate, cater to high quality products and services (as well as my daughters) have a passion for arts and crafts and have a small amount of money to start this project. I have a background of excellency at customer service and I have retail store experience.

I want to promote my country's art, help women there to have an income. Most of them are poor and struggle to have food on their tables. I also want to donate part of our income to a children's care organization in my country, besides generating income for my daughters and myself.

My questions are:

1)-Where to find non costly templates to build a website that I can customize and update myself?

2)-Where to register and advertise our website so it gets known? The down side is that we don't have money to hire a marketing company now.

3)- Is there any organization that we could belong to as being a small company helping women to have a better life?

4)- What are the regulations regarding taxes and permits that we will have to have? I live in Florida.

5)-Website name, logo and tagline ideas?

All your suggestions and advice are greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

Patricia
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RESPONSES

  • Posted by CarolBlaha on 2/18/2009 at 2:32 PM Accepted
    As far as orgs, I think the fair trade orgs would be a good start. https://www.transfairusa.org/content/about/mission.php. Why don't you take your products to stores specializing in fair trade goods, and organics? Like Whole Foods?
  • Posted on 2/18/2009 at 3:55 PM Accepted
    Try the Small Business Administration (I think their website is www.sba.gov) they have a good amount of resources on their site that may answer some of the questions you pose. Also, there are some government programs out there that provide special assistance to women/minorities who are starting a small business...
  • Posted by michael on 2/18/2009 at 5:11 PM Accepted
    There are several out there who have templates. One you can try for a short period of time free.

    We don't post those here, so you can click on my name above and I'll send it to you.


    Michael
  • Posted by Jay Hamilton-Roth on 2/18/2009 at 10:35 PM Accepted
    Talk to your local SBA or SCORE chapter. They provide free advice and no doubt have the answers to many of your specific questions. You need to make sure you're starting with solid footing with business planning, otherwise all your effort/passion won't make your business sustainable.
  • Posted by Harry Hallman on 2/19/2009 at 8:16 AM Accepted
    Here are some suggestions:

    1)-Where to find non costly templates to build a website that I can customize and update myself?
    I suggest you look at Network Solutions Ecommerce solution https://ecommerce.networksolutions.com/

    2)-Where to register and advertise our website so it gets known? The down side is that we don't have money to hire a marketing company now.
    Get profiles on MySpace and Facebook and build contacts. Advertise on Google Adwords. Spread the word via comments on blogs and forums. Try not to be too salesy, rather be helpful.

    3)- Is there any organization that we could belong to as being a small company helping women to have a better life?
    Not sure about this one.

    4)- What are the regulations regarding taxes and permits that we will have to have? I live in Florida.
    At this point, you probably need a Sales Tax certificate for the county where you live in Florida. You may need a business license as well. Your need to get a Federal ID number and incorporate. You can do an LLC yourself and inexpensively.

    5)-Website name, logo and tagline ideas?
    Get your daughters together and brainstorm. You have the name in you.

    Owning an online store is no easy. It takes a lot of work and time to build sales. Be patient.

    I would also spread the word with all of your daughters and your friends and family and ask them to spread the word for you.

    Good luck.
  • Posted by CarolBlaha on 2/19/2009 at 9:07 AM Accepted
    My first website was a Network Solutions template. Another and cheaper, is godaddy.com
  • Posted by Tracey on 2/19/2009 at 6:28 PM Accepted
    Templates: You may also try checking out WordPress. It's a blogging software, but you can use their templates to build an entire site.

    Hosting: For hosting the website, Media Temple has been recommended to me. (You can buy the domain from GoDaddy, but Media Temple might be a better solution for hosting).

    Store: Look into etsy.com. It's a store where crafters can sell handmade items. The companies on there are not just at-home crafters, many are full-time businesses. This may be a good place to start, especially as you learn more about creating, hosting, and maintaining the website and the business.

    Website name, logo and tagline ideas:
    I would suggest you first take a step back and really think about what your brand means, and document it. If you haven't learned about branding yet, just google it and you'll find some information readily. Your name, logo, tagline, and website should all reflect the unique brand promise that your company offers. For example, you might base your whole marketing on simply the quality of your handmade wool items. Or, you might focus on the aspect of helping other people -- both could be very successful ways to market, if done consistently. Focus is the key here.

    If you haven't done your business plan yet, I highly recommend it. Good luck!
  • Posted on 2/19/2009 at 9:18 PM Author
    Thank you all for your kind and helpful responses. It has been of great help!

    My best to you all,

    Patricia
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