Where to from here (Business)

As many know, I kicked off my little online business some time ago. Since then, I spent a heap getting a web-site set up & I have ongoing hosting costs as well as an additional cost for my Business email. All this is the cost of doing Business & I am fine with that.

I spent money on trying to improve it's ranking via Google, and I tried marketing directly to some of the Roller Derby Groups. None of this has been successful.

I also encountered resistance with some of the Australian Wholesalers as they didn't want to supply an online Business, despite them themselves having an online retail presence. Deciding that I was not going to be restricted by this, I set up accounts with US wholesalers to supply some of the same products (OK, not the products that the Aussie Wholesales have exclusive rights over, but some of the others). This did limit my products, but not stop me entirely, which is what the Aussie guys wanted.

So...the website was set up with stock that I could supply, but Business was S L O W. Very S L O W. Trying to think outside the square, I started listing stuff on Ebay, but to list it on Ebay, you have to do your homework & make sure that it is cheaper than other retailers selling the same stock. Nobody else has this stuff on Ebay, only me, but it needed to be cheaper than customers could get it from established online stores. I did this, & things started selling. Great!

I also located another US skate supplier that none of the Aussie guys stocked & have been importing them. This brand is virtually unknown in Australia, but well known in the US. At the time, I was thinking that eventually I would use the website for the known brands & just stock this other brand on Ebay.

This 'unknown' brand is selling very well. Because I'm bringing in a lot at a time, the import costs are low, and because I'm getting it straight from the Supplier it's cheap. There are no middlemen. Even the other stuff I get from the US, has middlemen, so there really isn't anything in Australia that compares to my product.

Anyway, I'm at a bit of a cross-roads. Do I just list on Ebay & get rid of the website. It only costs me around $70 per month, but I'm lucky to sell that much product from it each month, let alone make a profit.

I could, I suppose, find somewhere else where the hosting is cheaper & just list less products, but I'm wondering if I really need this extra expense at all. Oh, I have no idea how I would move the website either, as it uses the Content Management System of the Company that set it up for me.
 
Keep the website. Even if you sell entirely on ebay, having a pro website and online store gives a big tick to buyers that you are not an ebay scammer.

It may not sell stuff but it adds credibility, and online stores are all about trust and credibility.
 
Keep the website. Even if you sell entirely on ebay, having a pro website and online store gives a big tick to buyers that you are not an ebay scammer.

It may not sell stuff but it adds credibility, and online stores are all about trust and credibility.

Exactly what I was going to say.

The costs might equal 2 sales. And you might lose 5 sales by not having that presence.
 
I agree with Dave and Ideo. Do you link to your website from your eBay page?

There are times when I've bought on eBay and been comforted that there is also a website and it is not a scammer (as mentioned by the others).
 
Agree with the above...
As far as moving your website, the company that set it up for you could do easily for a small fee... It would just depend on the amount of traffic you're getting as to whether or not a cheaper plan is doable.
 
$70.00 a month is a bit high for a low traffic site... however, I wouldn't suggest changing it. Many things can go wrong when you transfer a site. It is not worth the hassle.
May be you can look around when you need to redesign your site at later stage.
Why don't you ask your current hosting company to reduce the cost as you are not making much money (hence less traffic and all). They may be willing to keep you with smaller profit that losing you.
 
How long have you had this site?
It's just that I notice your FAQ's are incomplete.

Personally, I would keep the site if possible & keep driving business to it via your eBay or other site sales. Your emails should always have the site's www, paperwork, send out mailing lists with specials once a month, everything you can get away with. It's amazing how big your customer list can get over time. Even your packing/shipping labels can be low cost advertising!

I never would (and didn't), leave myself at the mercy of any particular site, cms co., etc etc. It just needs one of those things to fall over & your business is down the gurgler. I taught myself about most things website & set up my whole site using a base template (purchased), I had to learn html, payment gateways, a whole lot of crap.
I had blogs around the net, links from reputable sites - it's a slow process - and doesn't happen overnight. Website & Brands have to grow organically, especially when you don't throw stack of money at it for craploads of advertising.

I had a tv series dvd website for about 6 years. It was hard yakka, but I could sometimes get better search results than JBhifi. But alas, the dvd business is tough, with far too many players in the game (unlike yourself) and the margins are miniscule!

I finally called it quits & went into 2 years of IP reno's. I'm only just now selling off the rest of my stock (now down to 12K worth) on eBay for a massive loss just to get them outta here. I closed my site, which was only costing about $10/mth, but that was because I wasn't continuing on.

Think about it, most overnight successes actually take many years to come about. Keep on plodding..........
 
+1 for keeping the online website.
It is comforting to ebay buyers to see that you are a 'real' entity.
My suggestions are:
- make your ebay id the same as your shop name if you haven't already done so
- include a postcard voucher with all goods going out from ebay or store with a 10% off next purchase (I used to get these from vistaprint cheaply along with address lables for mailing etc)
- make sure your website is listed in the ebay listing (I'm sure you are doing this)
 
Agree totally to keep website for authenticity. But I would go one step further with your ebay stock and puts lots of the American advertising for your (unknown in Oz) brand on the website, i.e. "USA's most popular brand' or whatever is their slogan and marketing, thus assuring oz customers they are buying something that is big in USA but hasnt made it over here yet. You will find most people buying on ebay would look up a website to assure themselves it is genuine, there is where you drive the requirement for your product
 
keep your website,

I ended up closing my website due to constant arguing with ebay,

you dont want to be at the mercy of ebay and their fees,
they upped their fees recently to a ridiculous amount, nothing stopping them from upping it again next year, then you might decide its not worth it and then POOF your business is gone,
 
Keep the website. Even if you sell entirely on ebay, having a pro website and online store gives a big tick to buyers that you are not an ebay scammer.

It may not sell stuff but it adds credibility, and online stores are all about trust and credibility.
OK point taken, although you can't link sites to Ebay.

I agree with Dave and Ideo. Do you link to your website from your eBay page?
As above. Ebay won't let you add your website and even block messages if they feel you are trying to get sales outside of them.
Agree with the above...
As far as moving your website, the company that set it up for you could do easily for a small fee... It would just depend on the amount of traffic you're getting as to whether or not a cheaper plan is doable.
Already on the cheapest plan.
How long have you had this site?
It's just that I notice your FAQ's are incomplete.

Personally, I would keep the site if possible & keep driving business to it via your eBay or other site sales. Your emails should always have the site's www, paperwork, send out mailing lists with specials once a month, everything you can get away with. It's amazing how big your customer list can get over time. Even your packing/shipping labels can be low cost advertising!

I never would (and didn't), leave myself at the mercy of any particular site, cms co., etc etc. It just needs one of those things to fall over & your business is down the gurgler. I taught myself about most things website & set up my whole site using a base template (purchased), I had to learn html, payment gateways, a whole lot of crap.
I had blogs around the net, links from reputable sites - it's a slow process - and doesn't happen overnight. Website & Brands have to grow organically, especially when you don't throw stack of money at it for craploads of advertising.
That's the thing, I don't want to throw money at it if I'm not getting any benefit.

+1 for keeping the online website.
It is comforting to ebay buyers to see that you are a 'real' entity.
My suggestions are:
- make your ebay id the same as your shop name if you haven't already done so
- include a postcard voucher with all goods going out from ebay or store with a 10% off next purchase (I used to get these from vistaprint cheaply along with address lables for mailing etc)
- make sure your website is listed in the ebay listing (I'm sure you are doing this)
Again, Ebay don't let you list your store. Grrrrr

Oh & no, I use two separate names, as if I'm ever going to be accepted by the Aussie wholesalers, they will never accept me knowing I have an Ebay store.
Agree totally to keep website for authenticity. But I would go one step further with your ebay stock and puts lots of the American advertising for your (unknown in Oz) brand on the website, i.e. "USA's most popular brand' or whatever is their slogan and marketing, thus assuring oz customers they are buying something that is big in USA but hasnt made it over here yet. You will find most people buying on ebay would look up a website to assure themselves it is genuine, there is where you drive the requirement for your product
The USA stock doesn't have any advertising as such. Australia imports the two most popular USA brands. These skates are probably the third most popular.

keep your website,

I ended up closing my website due to constant arguing with ebay,

you dont want to be at the mercy of ebay and their fees,
they upped their fees recently to a ridiculous amount, nothing stopping them from upping it again next year, then you might decide its not worth it and then POOF your business is gone,

Grrrr.....EBay fees! Yes, they change it all the time, and it's annoying.
 
If eBay will not allow you to link to you website, then each item you post should have a flyer (mentioned by someone above) with it plastered all over the place. That is something eBay cannot control, and you might find someone who buys your item has friends who also skate and word of mouth might just work its magic.

As per the Bayview thread going at present, why not push the Facebook presence, and try to get "liked" (or whatever it is that puts your business in front of people's noses).
 
If eBay will not allow you to link to you website, then each item you post should have a flyer (mentioned by someone above) with it plastered all over the place. That is something eBay cannot control, and you might find someone who buys your item has friends who also skate and word of mouth might just work its magic.

As per the Bayview thread going at present, why not push the Facebook presence, and try to get "liked" (or whatever it is that puts your business in front of people's noses).

Yeah, I've got the Facebook thing going. Not a lot happening on that front.
 
Many businesses on eBay even go the extent of adding the .com & phone no's etc. I'm sure it's against the rules, but they do seem to get away with it.

Whilst it's true you could get chucked off eBay for direct links, it seems pefectly alright to me to have your business logo "SkatePro" showing in all it's glory (no link).

A lot of people have learnt they just need to type the logo name eg: "SkatePro" into google to see if you have an actual shop. I do that all the time - sometimes to find they're just around the corner. I also do it to check their credentials.
 
Oh & no, I use two separate names, as if I'm ever going to be accepted by the Aussie wholesalers, they will never accept me knowing I have an Ebay store.
Sometimes this is true with wholesalers - in the early days, some of the dvd distributors didn't want to talk to me cos I was purely online too. They seemed to favour B&M shops :( but that changed over time :)
 
Back
Top