Make money online using

Web Sites

Social Media

Storefronts

What This Talk Covers One Site Is Not Enough!

What this Talk Doesn't Cover “How do I get online?"

"What's a Web Site?“

“Do you spell it Web Site or website?”

"What's the single best sure-fire product I can sell online?"

Assumptions About You

Looking for a new career/extra money

Laid off and looking for work

Creative individual looking to express yourself

Someone with great product or idea

Ready for a change

Who Is This Guy? Author of 40-plus Books

Five books on eBay

Starting an Online Business

for Dummies

eBay PowerSeller

Contributing Editor,

ECommerceBytes

Find out more at www.gregholden.com

Secrets of the eBay Millionaires

Part I: Why Start a Business Online?

Cons:

▪ Lots of competition

▪ You need a good idea

▪ You need to really work.

▪ You need to learn how to sell, market, promote

▪ You need "gumption“ (What’s gumption, Greg?)

Pros: ▪ Low overhead ▪ Lots of resources to help you ▪ Lots of models to follow ▪ Many ways to sell ▪ (Twitter, facebook, web, auction, mobile) ▪ Online Payments are widely accepted ▪ New ways to raise capital (Kickstarter) ▪ Easier than ever to start a website or blog

(Onepager, WordPress)

Learn By Example

1. Phil Leahy: Reinvent yourself; be a salesman.

2. Ryan Hatfield: Be creative; use your tech skills.

3. Lisa Bettany: Follow your passion; create a product that people need.

4. Dean Pettit: Share/sell what you know.

“Go from your strength, mate!"

Write down your plan:

▪ Six month

▪ One Year

▪ Five-Year

"Put your plan on paper."

Ryan Hatfield

Ryan's Online Business Goals:

1. Break even

2. Avoid Bankruptcy

3. Keep his apartment

4. Earn a livable wage

5. Recover his previous lifestyle

6. Reach his previous salary.

7. "Be able to live in a luxury and never have to work again."

Lisa Bettany

Had idea for an app: Camera Plus

Hired a programmer although nearly destitute

Put it for sale in iTunes for $0.99

Has sold 8 million copies; 10th best-selling iPhone app of all time

Can be found at MostlyLisa.com

Dean Pettit Laid off from NASA

Started Space Coast Outdoors (www.spacecoastoutdoors.net)

links to contents

Display ad

John Satterfield ("Tentblogger")

Traffic Generation Cafe

Ana Hoffman’s Income from blogging, Aug. 2012: $1951

How to Get there from here?

Identify a need

Determine what you have to offer

Specialized knowledge or experience?

Connection to a supplier?

Can you make/paint/sew something?

What do you love? What's your passion?

Find Stuff to Sell

Option 1: Make It Yourself

Option 2: Clean Out Your Closet

Option 3: Sell Someone Else's Stuff

Option 4: Find Secondhand Stuff and Sell It

Option 5: Find a Wholesaler

Wholesale Suppliers

Alibaba

Drop-Shippers

Worldwide Brands

Come Up with a Business Plan

1. Executive Summary

2. Market Analysis

3. Elevator Description

4. Organization/Management

5. Products/Services

6. Funding

7. Financial/Sales Projections

www.gregholden.com/busplan.doc

To-Do List

Set Goals

Get Help

Find Merchandise to Sell

Set up a Website or Storefront

Payment System

Put Your Products/Services Online

Develop a Platform (i.e., market yourself)

Triangulate: Website-Storefronts-Social Media

Take a Break!

What kind of business

do you want to start?

Let us know.

II. The Three-Part Profit Plan Website

Storefronts

Social Media

What’s in a Name?

You need a domain name

Keep it short and catchy

Register it

Stick to .com domain if available

Examples:

Ecommerceattorney.com, Amberartisans.com,

Lp2cdsolutions.com, InflatableMadness.com!

What’s in an Image: Your Logo •Builds your brand •Represents your business

Logos Can Be Simple

A General Website Host…

Gives you shared space on a server

Gives you a way to upload files

Ideal for personal or service-oriented websites

An E-Commerce Host…

Gives you a shopping cart

Provides "Buy Now" or "Add to Cart" buttons

Gives you a secure server

Provides a payment method

Provides SEO and marketing

Might consult on your store/business

Generally costs more than a general website host

Shopping Cart Software

1

2 3

Shopping Cart Options

Do You Need a Designer? …Not if you only sell here:

A Template Kickstarts Your Design

Content that Sells

Get Specific!

Get Organized

Layer Your Information

Write Headings and Subheadings

Create Sales Categories/Subcategories

The More Categories, the Better

Clear, Simple Organization

Personal Details Build Trust

Leave Shoppers a Trail of Crumbs

On Earrings section page, A link to “Necklaces”

Bulleted list

Add to Cart Button

Content Essentials Provide lots of details

Include a “call to action”

Tell a story; get the customer to visualize

Be concise

Offer Promotions and Deals

Free Shipping Reminders

Coupon Code

Keep Shopping!

How to Create a Coupon How to offer a

Site-wide discount

Specialty Marketplaces

Etsy

Abe- books

Ruby Lane

Planet Diecast

Why Open Another Storefront? First, get customers and a revenue stream

Storefronts bring you more customers

Storefronts help you get a business up and running fast

They bring you a user community

They supplement your website

They build trust

They come with a shopping cart/payment plan

A Suggested Plan

1. Get a domain name/store name

2. Start up a simple (non-e-commerce) website

3. Open one or more storefronts and start selling

4. Turn your website into an e-commerce store

The Elephant in the Room: eBay

Advanced Search

Research What Sells

Check “Completed listings”

Sold

Unsold

Unsold

eBay’s Sell Your Item Form

1.

2.

“feeBay”

Creating an eBay Store

Selling on Amazon.com

Click here

Your item Shows up here

Customers Can Buy Here

Webstore by Amazon

Fulfillment By Amazon

How to Win on Amazon

Keep Adjusting Your Prices

Maintain Sufficient Inventory

Respond Quickly to Customer Inquiries

Try Fulfillment By Amazon

Get Positive Reviews

Get the “Buy Box”

Why Choose a Small Marketplace?

Less Competition

Lower (or No) Fees

More Personal Attention

Specialty Marketplaces Attract Earnest Buyers

Sellers Are In Charge

Some Marketplaces Are Free

Do You Have What It Takes?

…to Open Multiple Storefronts?

Revenue Stream

Regular Customers

Time and Energy

Sufficient Inventory

Books Alibris

ABEBooks

Kitibain.com

Valorebooks.com (textbooks)

Antiques Ruby Lane

TIAS

GoAntiques

Arts and Crafts

Artfire

Cargoh.com

Silkfair

ArtByUs.com

Etsy

CafePress

A Multiple-Store Empire

Sharon’s Vintage Store (her main website)

Sharon’s Booth (her Bonanza Store #1)

Sharon’s Collectibles (Bonanza Store #2)

Sharon’s Vintage Jewelry (Artfire Store)

Best Necklaces On Line (eCrater Store #1)

Vintage Corner Store (eCrater Store #2)

Collectibles 4 U (eCrater Store #3)

Animal House Jewelry Shop (eCrater Store #4)

Social Marketing on Facebook

What Is Social Marketing?

Personal page/Business page

Do “Likes” Lead to Sales?

How Do You Market with Facebook Posts?

Free Posts

Paid Posts

Facebook Stores

Facebook Paid Ads

Free Posts Build Loyalty, Community—and Spread the Word What’s the best thing you can do on Facebook?

Open a Facebook Store Providers with Facebook Store Options: Ecwid, Volusion,

Artfire

Facebook

“Social Store”

Twitter Chat directly with your

customers

140-character mini-ads

Giveaways, announcements, contests

Blogging for Fun and Profit

Start with an “online diary”

Branch out to your news and views

Connect with people who are passionate about your subject.

Post regularly: set a modest goal (2-3 posts/week) and work up from there.

Selling Your Experience and Expertise

Market yourself

Announce, describe, and thus sell your products

Consider possible ad revenue

Improve search engine placement: link early and often

Answer questions

Explain the ins and outs of what you do

How Do You Find Time for All This?

Come up with a schedule

Find students, relatives, anyone to help

Prepare to work long hours

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

What keywords do customers use to find you or your products?

Put your keywords

In your page title

Put your keywords

In your heading

Make sure they

Appear in the 1st 50 words

Repeat often without

Getting carried away

Page Rank Depends on Freshness

Depends on Links to Other Sites

Depends on How Many Links Point to Your Site

Depends on Keywords in your site

Determine your optimal keywords

Sprinkle them liberally around your site

Keep your site up to date (a blog can help)

Make your site well-connected (links)

Build Links to Your Website(s)

Ask bloggers to review your products

Do interviews

Make guest blog posts

Submit your site to online directories

Take advantage of your own storefronts

Newsletters and Subscriptions

Gather email addresses

Make sure it’s OK to keep contacting customers

Send them a newsletter containing

Sales and promotions

Instructions

Calendar of upcoming events

Bonuses and special discounts

The Ultimate Goal: A Platform

You are “known” in your sphere of business

You have regular customers

You have an active community on Facebook, Twitter, etc.

You send out regular emails to subscribers and they respond with inquiries, purchases, etc.

Branding Yourself

Get a Kick Start!

Putting It All Together