Teaching Tuesday: How To Drive Traffic To Your Site

Gregory submitted a question to our survey:

What is the best way to get people to my site?

This is a pretty broad question. So I took a look at his website to see if I could tell what marketing methods he was already using. And that’s when I discovered several problems, that I actually just talked about a few weeks ago at Winning Sisters.

I would like to recommend SEO (Search Engine Optimization), which is the most cost effective method of of driving people to your website who actually want what you are selling. Do-it-yourself SEO is free, and if done properly, will grow your business by leaps and bounds.

When done right, SEO enables your site to rank within the top 10 search engine results for the terms people type into the search engines when they are looking for your products.

Of course, the key is “done right.” For this reason, I believe it’s wise to invest in learning the proper methods of SEO. And I recommend SEO Power Up as the place to go to receive that training. It’s very affordable at $10 a month for 12 months.

What I noticed on Gregory’s site is the use of frames, session IDs and javascript navigation. Each of these website elements alone will prevent the search engines from properly indexing your site. This means that when the search engine visits your site, it can’t access your information, so it can’t store your web page content. This means that when people search for terms that are related to your products, your website will not appear in the listing.

My solution: What Gregory needs to do is find a shopping cart, like the Shop Kit Plus, that does not use frames, session IDs or javascript navigation.

Once he has removed those elements from his website, he needs to invest in SEO training, such as SEO Power Up, and learn how to properly optimize his site. Once he has done that, he can look into other marketing methods, such as press releases, article marketing, email marketing, etc.

Teaching Tuesday: Do I Need A License To Sell Products Online?

Debra LoRusso submitted this question to our survey:

Do I need any type of license besides a “seller’s permit” or a city business license to sell my product on the internet? I live in California and I have to do a little sewing to make the product. Thanks for your advice.

My response: You do not need a license to sell products online — at least not if you live in a desert island in the middle of nowhere. Or maybe on the moon.

However, if you live in a city, you may need a permit or a license from your municipality. You may even need to check the zoning of your home. In most cases though, if you aren’t going to have a ton of inventory stashed in your house, or people stopping buy to shop, you shouldn’t have any zoning issues. I would check with your city though.

If you live in the U.S., you most likely live in a state (insert tongue in cheek). As a business owner, you need to file a DBA (doing business as) form with your state, and you’ll need to register your business as either a sole-proprietorship, LLC or corporation, and you’ll need to request a state tax ID.

I also recommend that fill out the paper work for a federal tax ID, also known as an Employer Identification Number. You’ll use this when filing your taxes.

Since you’re a California resident, you can go to the California Secretary Of State website for more business information.

Do you need answers? Submit your question to our Product Seller’s survey!

Teaching Tuesday: Should I Start A Separate Businesses?

Pat Sandy submitted this question to our survey:

I am trying to help my mother-in-law get her business on line and I also want to do the same for myself with a different product. My mother-in-law designs counted cross stitch graphs and wants to sell them (she completes a sample of which a photo has been take). I make quilts and wall hangings. I think these need to be two separate businesses and would appreciate your advice. Thanks.

My response: Whether or not you run separate businesses, or start one business depends on a few factors.

First, do the two of you have the same vision for where you want the business go to? This is very important. Let’s say person wants to start a business, but is really just in it for fun. She just wants to sew when she can and really is interested in making some money from a hobby. On the other hand, the other person is serious about building a business, earning a profit and paying off some debt.

If these two people start one business, there will soon be friction over where the business is going to go. In many cases, this can result in lost relationships, and sometimes in loss of the business altogether.

So, my advise is to make sure you’re on the same page with your mother-in-law.

Second, are the two products related. If one person is selling baseball bats and the other person is selling baby slings, you’re going to run into trouble. Those two products have nothing to do with one another, making marketing one business tough. In this situation, I’d recommend two businesses.

Since your product and your mother-in-law’s product are similiar — handmade crafts — you may be able to get away with running one business.

Third, you need to consider the target market. Do the same people who buy cross-stitch graphs also buy completed quilts and wall-hangings? It seems to me that a person who buys a graph is not going to be the same person who buys a completed craft item. I recommend you study your target market to find out.

If you’re still not sure which option you should choose, you’re welcome to try my one-on-one business coaching services.

Teaching Tuesday: Most Economical Way Of Selling Products Online

Ana Rodriguez submitted this question to our survey:

What is the most economical way of selling products online? This means not having a shopping cart and instead using Paypal or money orders? Is cost of Paypal worth it?

Does this shut out people who are not members of Paypal or don’t want to use it? My business is a fundraiser and I am currently setting up a website and figuring out the logistics of this.

PS I am doing fundraisers for churches and I am trying to set something up on website where churches can be assurred that all outside orders are being credited to their account. It’s either that or put the order-taking in their hands? These are custom orders.

My response: I see many websites that are most likely trying to save money by not having a shopping cart or online payment system in place. Unfortunately, I think what they are doing is leaving money on the table.

When people are shopping online are in the buying phase of online shopping, they are wanting to make a purchase — and they want to do it now. Requiring people to fill out a form and wait for an invoice, then send a money order takes too long and most buyers will have found an automated system somewhere else.

Using Paypal’s buttons is a step up and makes the process much easier from the perspective of the customer. However, if you have inventory, then managing the inventory and orders is going to quickly become a hassle without a shopping cart, such as the Shop Kit Plus.

So, in my opinion, it’s more economical financially and in terms of time, to use a shopping cart with Paypal, at least.

Now, Paypal is one of the leading payment gateways online. Most people who have been online for very long are familiar with it. From that perspective it is definitely worth having and worth the fees.

On the other hand, there are some people who would prefer not to use Paypal. For them, I recommend you have a second payment processor, such as Authorize.net with an internet merchant account (if you process more than $1,000 in sales per month), or a solution like Propay if you want to process the cards manually. (You can do this with Paypal, and you can allow people to pay through Paypal without signing up for an account. But those who don’t like Paypal are still not going to trust this option.)

In your situation, I would recommend setting up a site (hosting account and domain name) for each church and using a shopping cart and a Paypal account that is in the church’s name. I would also require each church to be in charge of maintaining their own sites — unless you want to offer maintenance for a fee.

Do you need answers? Submit your question to our Product Seller’s survey!