In today’s interview series, we talk with Laura Morris of RentABuggy…

My name is Laura Morris and I am a single mother to my beautiful daughter, Ashleigh, who is 4 years old. I founded my business www.rentabuggy.co.uk in 2008 and I am just coming into my second year. Rentabuggy allows families to ease cash flow and rent top selling pushchairs on a monthly basis. We also provide holiday rentals Nationwide including travel cots, highchairs, sterilisers and much more. I am also Co-Founder of www.networkingmummies.com that was started in February 2009 with my business partner Joanne Dewberry of www.charliemoos.co.uk. We provide free events with no membership fees for women in Business. We also do further events throughout the year including exhibitions, workshops and much more.

Why I started selling online…

As soon as I had the idea for Rentabuggy, I knew it was an online business. I didn’t even contemplate having premises as I knew where my target market was.

What has been my biggest online marketing challenge…

The way that the world is moving is all about Social Networking and to the massive extent of using this for your business. It is a new way of ‘word of mouth’ advertising and it took me a while to get my head around how it would work for me and my businesses. However, only this week I actually held a Networking Mummies workshop for 17 people on how to use Social Networking to market their businesses!

What do I like best about my website…

I like that it is sleek and simple and I like my logo.

My top online marketing tip…

Use a blog. I have only recently within the past six months started using a blog but it is great to let my customers know of any news, competitions and offers and not only that but by using correct keywords etc, I can increase my Google rankings.

www.rentabuggy.co.uk

www.networkingmummies.com

www.mumtomumpreneur.co.uk

My Site in Cyperspace: Laura Morris is a post from: Online Marketing Village

more marketing posts:

1. My Site in Cyberspace – Mamascarf
2. My Site in CyberSpace: Victoria Dixon
3. My Site in Cyberspace: Tracie Heasman

In today’s interview series, we talk with Liza O’Donnell with Dress Ups

My name is Liza O’Donnell.  I am the mother to 2 fantastic little boys, Max (6yrs) and Paddy (4yrs), and wife to the Ramollescence Ryan.  I adore being a part of my wee family …so much so that I couldn’t bear to go out to work … so I bought work to us!

Dress Ups epitomizes innocence and all the lovely sweet and grand things of being a child.  In case you don’t know who we are (Shame!) Dress Ups is a niche, online children’s boutique, retailing wholesome and handcrafted children’s dressing up costumes.  Dress ups do not even attempt to compete with the large, mass produced costume companies and our customers are always very happy to find us.

“Dress Ups, Dress Ups, and Make Believe…  Take me to the place where I can dream.  Take me to this place where young minds are the pot of gold, and play our never-ending rainbow!”

Why did you start selling online ?

Because we couldn’t keep Dress Ups a secret …we just had to share with the world!

What has been your biggest online marketing challenge?

In one word …budget!  Advertising is very expensive.

What do you like best about your website?

Our products … and our images … and all our little quotes are real!

Your top online marketing tip?

If you are on a budget … social marketing.  It is time consuming but free.  You must be very disciplined, though.  It is not too much about being personal and it is not all a sales pitch either.

I like blog advertising as well … it is generally priced well and fits into that slightly more personal category that sets Dress Ups apart.

My Site in Cyberspace: Liza O’Donnell is a post from: Online Marketing Village

more marketing posts:

1. My Site in CyberSpace: Anna Seager
2. My Site in CyberSpace: Victoria Dixon
3. My Site in Cyberspace: Diane Hurford

In today’s interview we catch up with Victoria Dixon of Enhance Me

My name is Victoria Dixon and I live in the beautiful Orkney Islands. I have two young children. Milly who is 5 years old and Robbie who is 2 years old. I offer a range of personalized Magical portraits that make a very unique keepsake or a wonderful gift. Having had over ten years experience using a variety of different computer programs and effects I am able to take everyday photos and transform them into fantastic, enchanting works of art. I am providing a unique and beautiful way to add something completely different to a photograph. I am able to add a little bit of magic to make a beautiful personal gift for a friend or family member. I work to achieve an as photo realistic effect as possible – Sometimes photographs just don’t capture the magic you feel they should. I just pulled a lot of my skills together – web design, creativity and photography and www.enhance-me.com was born.

Why did you start selling online?

For me being able to sell online was the most cost effective way of running my business. I have a worldwide customer base…many opportunities to be able to market my products and services and a huge network of like minded business contacts right at my fingertips!

What has been your biggest online marketing challenge?

My biggest online marketing challenge would have to be SEO and tying this in with promoting my services to potential buyers. It’s tricky to get it right and make sure I have the correct keywords and information. Keeping track of competitors and making sure I stay high in the search listings can become quite time consuming.

What do you like best about your website?

I am easily bored with my website – I want to keep changing it – making it fresh. When I first launched ‘Enhance-Me’ my website was far too busy – way too much information packed into each page which I feel can be quite off putting for some people so I always aim to keep my website simple and clear. I like that I have the knowledge and am equipped with a husband who is a web designer to make any changes I feel are necessary to keep my website ‘current and up to date’ I get really lovely feedback from my customers who say my website is easy to navigate and clear though I am feeling that it is time for a change!

Your top online marketing tip?

Social media is a great way to market a business online. I use it in a number of ways and find that it has been invaluable for my business. It’s like an online word-of-mouth and allows me to connect with people and other businesses that I may never have had the opportunity to before. I use Facebook, Twitter, Squidoo and a variety of other networking sites to promote by services.

I use Twitter to announce news, competitions, new products and to connect with businesses and bloggers. This has resulted in a number of marketing opportunities and very beneficial business contacts. I also feel that twitter allows my customers to see the person behind the business to an extent and adds a new level of personalized care. I also have a blog which I update as often as possible – I think the great thing about social media is that you can connect everything together – when I update my blog a tweet is automatically sent out announcing the update as well as a post on Facebook which saves valuable time!

My Site in CyberSpace: Victoria Dixon is a post from: Online Marketing Village

more marketing posts:

1. My Site in Cyperspace: Laura Morris
2. My Site in Cyberspace: Chloe’s Mummy
3. My Site in CyberSpace: Anna Seager

For today’s interview series, we hear from Anna Seager of Little Crab Designs…

My name is Anna Seager and I run Little Crab Designs (www.littlecrab.co.uk).   I create and sell nursery pictures and wall art for children.

Why did you start selling online?

Initially I started selling through craft fairs, school fairs, house sales etc – but soon realized that the best way to make the business work for me – round my children and based at home – was to get the online sales going, so I set up my own website.  I chose a Mr Site website working on the basis that for the £25 it was at the time – if it didn’t work – I hadn’t lost a huge investment.  Three years later I still have that Mr Site website and it is working wonders for me!

What has been your biggest online marketing challenge?

My biggest challenge was working out and learning how to turn a pretty looking website that couldn’t be found, into one that was.  At my first business review, I remember the adviser saying to me – “it’s a lovely shop window – but that is all it will remain if you don’t start getting some passers by!!”  I have trawled the net, watched loads of seminars online on SEO – been to various events on SEO and worked my way through two books.  After a lot of trial and error, hard work and patience – my site is now listed on the first page of Google, yahoo and bing for most of my keywords and I even hold position one for some of them.  Not bad for a “package” deal website at £25 that a lot of people told me would never work!!

What do you like best about your website?

My website is very simple – I guess I am lucky because the artwork provides all the colour and interest it needs.  As I don’t want to detract from that, as after all, that is what I am selling – I keep it very simple and plain – and I like that about it.

Your top online marketing tip?

My top online marketing tip would be to keep chipping away at it a little every day – trawl the internet, forums etc for advice – and do a little bit each day and get a book called ‘Search Engine Optimization An Hour Day’.  It has done wonders for me!

My Site in CyberSpace: Anna Seager is a post from: Online Marketing Village

more marketing posts:

1. My Site in Cyberspace: Teeny Munchkins
2. My Site in Cyberspace: Liza O’Donnell
3. My Site in Cyberspace: Diane Hurford

In the latest in our interview series, we catch up with Diane Hurford and her online company, Brolly Sheets , a company selling waterproof bedding that is attractive and easy to change.

My name is Diane Hurford and I live in Auckland’s North Shore with hubby Glenn, and children Mia (8) and Lewis (6).

I came up with the idea of a Brolly Sheet when Mia was sleeping in a bottom bunk bed and we just started night time toilet training. Every night when I had to change her bed I would hit my head on the top bunk.  I don’t know about you but the sooner I can get back to sleep, the more reasonable I am the next day. There had to be a better way to get her bed changed.

I couldn’t find anything on the market that made it easier for me to get back to bed as soon as possible.  The few options available were either too expensive, too complicated for a 2:00 am bed-change or looked too sterile.

So I went to Spotlight and bought some PVC and some pink fabric and made a very basic “Brolly Sheet”.  After an accident, it was quick to pull off and replace with another in seconds rather than minutes.  Gone were the days of completely stripping and remaking the whole bed, gone were the bruises from the top bunk!  After I made the first couple of sheets, friends at Playcentre wanted one, then it just grew.

The reason I decided to sell online was mostly due to my husband.  He has extremely “itchy feet” and we have lived in Washington DC, Hamilton, Auckland and Sydney.  I wanted a business I could “take with me” if we moved again.  The funny thing is – now the children are older his itchy feet have past and we are happily settled into “domesticity”.  (In fact he has left corporate banking and is now full time with Brolly Sheets).

What has been your biggest online marketing challenge?

The biggest marketing challenge would be finding the right publications to advertise in to drive customers to our site.  It is all very well having a web based business – but if people don’t know you are there you won’t be in business for long.   This has been an even bigger challenge since we launched in the UK last year.  Trying to take our message to the Brits has been tricky.

What do you like best about your website?

The best thing about our website is how easy it is for our warehouse to pack orders directly off the back end.  It is simple and quick for them which in turn means less errors and time spent.  The best thing about Brolly Sheets is simply having Glenn working with me from our home office.  He is able to spend more time with the kids, makes the school lunches – we are just having an amazing time.  Life is good.

Your top online marketing tip?

Make your site easy to navigate around.  I have checked out hundreds of sites over the past few years.  Some look amazing but you can’t find what products are available.  The worse thing I hate is not knowing the shipping fee till I get to the check out.  Everything has to be visible and easy to find.  If you are putting together a web based business – check out other sites.  Look at their “about us” pages, “customer service” pages etc.  Look at what you think works and doesn’t work.

My Site in Cyberspace: Diane Hurford is a post from: Online Marketing Village

more marketing posts:

1. My Site In Cyberspace – Bibble Dribble
2. My Site in CyberSpace: Anna Seager
3. My Site in Cyberspace: PhotoFairytales

Today’s interview series is with Claire Willis of Snugbaby.

I am Claire Willis, and I live in Cumbria with my husband, Lee, and our two sons, Ben, 5, and Josh, 3. In 2008 I began SnugBaby, selling my brand of soft baby carriers, through my website, www.snugbaby.co.uk

In 2009, I also set up another website, www.getyourhandsback.co.uk to raise the awareness of babywearing, and promote the use of baby slings to a wider audience in the UK. Through Get Your Hands Back I publish reviews, news, special loffers and updates about slings and baby carriers from UK sling companies.

Why did you start selling online ?

I started SnugBaby after being unable to find a carrier for myself and Josh, when he was a baby. I made a sling, and got lots of comments about it from strangers in the street. Friends asked me to make them one, and I thought there may be a business to be built, although it took me until he was over a year old before I was able to put my plans into action.

I wanted to sell online as it is easier to appeal to a wider customer base – my local market would not have sustained a shop selling baby slings, but I knew I could make an impact if I was to sell nationally.

What has been your biggest online marketing challenge?

To start with it was quite hard to encourage people to visit my website. Although Lee has good technical knowledge, SEO is very difficult. I invest a little in advertising, but I am constantly working to improve the quality of my links to raise the visibility of SnugBaby in search engines.

What do you like best about your website?

I like the overall style of my websites. SnugBaby is very much a shop, with a blog attached, whereas Get Your Hands Back is basically a blog, with a lot of information and internal links. They look very different, although the writing style is similar, as you would expect. I think the colour schemes and the fonts used reflect the different purposes and the different messages tat I am trying to get across.

Your top online marketing tip?

The majority of my new customers come to me from personal recommendations, so getting myself known is really important to me. I use social media marketing  effectively, and have gained lots of new customers that way. I give a mix of personal and business news – I think people like to feel they know the people behind a company too. I also think it’s really important to keep in touch with existing customers, so I send out regular newsletters and updates to all my customers to remind them of what I can offer them, so I get a lot of repeat business too.

Claire Willis is a post from: Online Marketing Village

more marketing posts:

1. My Site in Cyberspace: Chloe’s Mummy
2. My Site in Cyberspace: Jessie Pengelly
3. My Site in Cyperspace: Laura Morris

In the latest of our interview series, we talk with Sarah of PhotoFairytales

My name is Sarah, and I run an online business called www.PhotoFairytales.co.uk. I’m a married mum to Amy who is now 7, and I run my business from our home in Norfolk. I specialize in creating unique personalized gifts, keepsakes and portraits for my customers – my aim is to offer something really unusual and individual. After studying art and design, my career took a turn into marketing. From time to time I’ve returned to working in graphics and design however, and this is where my passion lies. I love the fact that I have now found a great way to combine my creative and artistic side, with my marketing experience. I’m passionate about PhotoFairytales in a way that is unlike any other job I’ve ever done – I’m constantly striving to add new products and increase the range of items on sale, and I work hard to ensure my customers are delighted with their purchases.

Why did you start selling online?
I started an online business as it seemed the perfect way to achieve a good work/life balance with my family after we had Amy. The internet provides a fast, effective and low-cost way of joining the retail market. I wanted to find a career that I could adapt and work around being a mother, and wife to someone who runs his own business too (and therefore works weird and wonderful hours most weeks!). Flexibility was high on the list of requirements, and working for myself running an online business seemed to be the obvious direction. Although I work full-time, my hours and the style of work I do are flexible enough to enable me to adapt to the things being a mum throws at you: school holidays, sick days, etc.

What has been your biggest online marketing challenge?
I was determined when I started PhotoFairytales that it would be on a shoestring. It was important to me that this would be a low-risk venture. I think this was mainly due to two things: having a partner who is also self-employed made me want to be especially cautious, as did being a parent. In the past, my husband and I had sold everything we had to buy a business – we were happy to take that risk in those days as it was just the two of us. Being a parent does tend to focus things a little more though! I guess my biggest challenge is always how to raise the profile of the business, and promote it, on a minimal spend. Having said that, this is where an online business can really come into its own – the internet provides the ability to reach customers in a low cost way. However, I’ve had to learn from the ground up and although I had experience in marketing in the past, I had never applied it online so I had a lot to learn (and still do!). It can be very time-consuming if you’re working on a strict budget. Whilst it is easy to pay for advertising online, it is much harder work to achieve results with little or no outlay.

What do you like best about your website?
I think I’ve now managed to organize my site in a much more user-friendly way. As new lines and products have been added over the last year, PhotoFairytales has grown into a large site. I took time recently to take a step back and try to review it as a customer would – I’ve now arranged it in such a way that it is much easier (I hope) to navigate around and ultimately easier for customers to find items they love and wish to order! Although I’m only a small business, I always work hard to make sure the site is professional and gives a good impression. I hope I’ve achieved that…

Your top online marketing tip?
Without doubt, when you don’t have much to spend, social networking is by far the most effective online marketing I have so far found. Link building, SEO, etc, is all extremely important of course, but getting involved with sites such as Facebook, Twitter, forum/networking sites, etc. is the most effective of all for me. Not only are they great for meeting potential customers and telling them about your product, but they are great avenues for running competitions, discounts and giveaways. Plus you make some invaluable contacts and friends, particularly on business networking sites that can give you the inspiration you sometimes need. I’ve found a huge amount of my customers come to me on the recommendation of others too, and social networking is a great way of spreading the word.

My Site in Cyberspace: PhotoFairytales is a post from: Online Marketing Village

more marketing posts:

1. My Site in CyberSpace: Victoria Dixon
2. My Site in Cyberspace: Jessie Pengelly
3. My Site in CyberSpace: Anna Seager

Continuing our interview series, we are talking today with Jessie Pengelly

My name is Jessie Pengelly, I am a working mom to my 3 year old amazing daughter Alexandria.  I suffer from Endometriosis, Postnatal Depression and Narcolepsy.  I find working full time and balancing that with the needs of my daughter a constant battle.  I felt that I needed to look for another alternative to generate an income and started my nutritional products business.  The company I work through has always been direct to customers in order to keep the costs low and be available to anyone, anytime and anywhere.

The biggest online marketing challenge aside from costs that it attracts is to figure out who you want to target and how you are going to do it.  You want to ensure the site is functional and easy to look at but draws in the customers your are looking for.  It’s the balance of too much info can put people off where too little makes them feel you are not genuine.  Its also trying to get the important facts across like our products is Pharmaceutical grade and Doctor recommend without coming off boring.

What I like best about my website is that the company that I work through supports me in it and has linked its online shopping cart to it! So customers can purchase online without any hassle!  It’s such a blessing!

My top online marketing tip is to talk to as many people you can before going with a web designer and web hosting company. Some of the charges are ridiculous! And prevent home based business from getting started. This is what drove my husband to start his web design and hosting company!  Good service and support at an affordable cost! Also its important to look at what is already out there and find a point of difference to make you stand out!

My Site in Cyberspace: Jessie Pengelly is a post from: Online Marketing Village

more marketing posts:

1. My Site in Cyberspace: PhotoFairytales
2. My Site in CyberSpace: Anna Seager
3. My Site in Cyberspace: Diane Hurford

In the latest of our interview series, we hear from Tracie Heasman and her home-based business generating 2D & 3D floor plans.

Hi, I’m Tracie.  And I generate 2D and 3D floor plans for or real estate agents, builders & private home sellers. It’s useful for people wanting to see their prospective home in 3D before the building has even started, as a lot of people have trouble visualizing a home in a 2D floor plan.

Why did you start selling online ?

I started selling online because it’s the easiest and cheapest way to market my product while looking after my one year old son.  I consider it similar to a brochure, for a fraction of the cost. I can let clients know about my product by referring them to my website, as all the information they need is there.  This also cuts out any bulk printing and posting costs.

What has been your biggest online marketing challenge?

This would certainly be getting a decent number of visitors to my website.  I get most of my business through self promotion by phoning businesses.  I only average about 4 unique visitors to my website a day.  I’ve submitted to all major search engines, as well as NZ online directories, and have even tried link reciprocation, but my numbers don’t seem to be increasing.

What do you like best about your website?

I’m quite proud of my website because I designed and produced it myself using a helpful site builder website.  I think it has a good amount of graphics as well as information.

Your top online marketing tip?

I think an immediate reply to queries from your website is vital.  The one downfall the web has is how impersonal it is, and when you buy something online, or ask somebody a question it never feels like you are dealing with a real person, which can be a little unnerving.  So I think to reply to somebody’s query in a fast, friendly and informal yet professional way can make all the difference to a sale.

My Site in Cyberspace: Tracie Heasman is a post from: Online Marketing Village

more marketing posts:

1. My Site in CyberSpace: Anna Seager
2. My Site in Cyberspace – Mamascarf
3. My Site in Cyberspace: Teeny Munchkins

This week I discovered that trade shows are not the only place you can bag a decent bizz freebie.

Let me introduce you to my latest hobby – collecting wisdom from the Gurus.

The hobby is not hard to manage. It work like this:

1. Find a Guru
2. Visit Guru’s website/blog
3. Download freebie

In the never-ending rush to list build, you’d be surprised at what people are willing to give away – MP3 training, Audio recordings of teleseminars, workbooks, CDs, worksheets, organisational tools…

All in return for my email address. As I’m genuinely interested in what the peeps have to offer, being on their mailing list is no hardship – I may even become a customer – and in return I have a mountain of audio and PDFs to enjoy. All of it is fab stuff as I’ve been careful to only connect with Gurus I’m interested in.

My top tips are as follows:

Identify a guru whose thang you love – via facebook, twitter, word of mouth, whatever

Once you’ve downloaded their freebies, take a look at who they’re linking to and check out those sites

Try US/Canada sites for some of the most desperate generous freebies

Only download stuff you will find useful – no point clogging up your inbox with rubbish

Enjoy!

photo credit: •°°• ♥♡ baghi ♡♥ •°°•

Hoovering Up Bizz Freebies! is a post from: Online Marketing Village

more marketing posts:

1. #Follow Friday @selfemployedmum – 10 July 2009
2. #FollowFriday @selfemployedmum 14 August 2009
3. My Site in Cyberspace: PhotoFairytales

In the latest of our interview series, we catch up with Karen of Chloe’s Mummy.

My Site in Cyberspace: Chloe’s Mummy is a post from: Online Marketing Village

more marketing posts:

1. My Site in Cyberspace: Tracie Heasman
2. My Site in CyberSpace: Victoria Dixon
3. My Site in Cyberspace: PhotoFairytales

Just a quick drive by ad for a free webinar I’m hosting next week over at my bizz, the SEO Training Club.

I have managed to persuade Natalie, my other half here at Self Employed Mum, to spill her secrets about authority blogging – I can’t wait to ask her all about being a pro blogger and why her blogs have been such a rip roaring success!

If you’re nosy too, then head on over to the SEO Training Club to read more or sign up here – it’s free!

photo credit: ctaloi

I Get to Grill Natalie! Hehe ;) is a post from: Online Marketing Village

more marketing posts:

1. What is a Blog
2. My Secret Weblife: Alison of Self Employed Mum
3. How to Encourage Blog Comments

Friday afternoon again, and if you’re in the mood for a shirking session, I have just the online delight to share with you.

Last year I raved to you all to Samorost, now from the same Amanita Design stable comes their latest masterpiece: Machinarium.

It’s a simply stunningly rendered point and click adventure game in the same style, but replacing Samorost, we have a robot who needs our help.

The puzzles are still frustratingly tricky at times, but there’s both a help forum, plus in-game hints if you get really, really stuck (which I did do at times!).

Machinarium combines beautiful graphics with spookily atmospheric music and a complex storyline which you uncover bit by bit as you progress through the game. The fantasy world is a delight to move through and the attention to detail is exquisite. Characterization is strong and you find yourself rooting for a happy ending for the little robot. It’s also mind-bogglingly addictive – time and again I promised myself the current level would be my last but then had to carry on, just to see what would happen next.

The first few levels are free to play, then if you fancy stretching your brain muscle a little more, you can download the remainder for $14.99 (PC and Mac versions). Be warned, it’s as horribly addictive as their previous adventures!

Shirker's Secrets: Machinarium is a post from: Online Marketing Village

more marketing posts:

1. Shirkers Secrets: Samorost
2. Shirker's Secrets: Vision
3. Shirker's Secrets: The Mystery of Time and Space – MOTAS

Last week I got an email from a virtual contact of mine. Someone who lives in my village but (to my shame) all our previous communication has been online via various business forums.

I rang her for a chat and she suggested that I tried out a local breakfast meeting as her guest. Now, although I’ve now been self employed for a few years now, I confess that most of my networking tends to be online, in the virtual world that many geek type peeps inhabit these days.

The fact is that unless it’s a women’s event, almost every get together in “the real business world” is entirely geared around those without children – after all, how many parents can make a 7.00 am meeting unless it’s with Peppa Pig in their own front room?

So, thanks to my DH being able to get both children up, dressed and off to where they should be, I found myself off to try out my first ever breakfast network meeting.

The group was informal (thank goodness) and also much younger than I expected. There was the usual smattering of service types (accountant, solicitor) plus some other more diverse business types such as a lighting specialist. The format was pretty simple – introductions, news, a 10 minute talk from a member and then a very civilised English breakfast!

One rule I set myself is that I don’t do anything that takes up my time without taking some action for a positive benefit to the business. So I don’t lurk on forums for example. From this meeting I got a great contact that I’m hoping I can use to sort out some of my organisational needs, plus a meeting with a business coach, to access 3 months free coaching courtesy of Business Link.

And I was back by 9.15 a.m.!

I’ll keep you posted as to whether this group becomes a regular part of my working life. I’m certainly interested enough to go back next week. In the meantime, if any of you are in the Central Lancashire area and are interested in networking, you can contact Shout Network.

photo credit: arvindgrover

Up With the Larks! My First Breakfast Network Meeting is a post from: Online Marketing Village

more marketing posts:

1. Social Network Websites – Myspace For Business – Pt 2
2. Business Mums London Meet Up – 7 October
3. Online Networking – Five Things to Figure Out First

In the previous posts in this series we have looked at starting out with an initial idea, researching your idea and analyzing your competitors. Now it’s time to think about putting all that hard work together in the form of an action plan.

I read a lot of debate online about whether you should write a business plan when you set your new bizz up. After all, isn’t it a whole load of faff?! Isn’t it just something you do when you want to grovel for some money from the bank?

Well, the truth is, if you’ve followed some of the things I’ve written about in the earlier posts then you are already well on the way to having a plan good and ready. If it helps, call it an action plan rather than a business plan too.

Think of it this way, you wouldn’t set out on a long journey to somewhere you’ve never been before with out a map, would you? So don’t make your journey into your new online retail business any more difficult. Write an action plan so you know where you’re going and how to get there!

I’m not going to go through everything you need to write in your action plan – hell no, there are whole books out there you can grab from Amazon or your local library which show you in great detail what you can put in a business plan.

Instead, I recommend opening up a file on your computer and writing down everything you’ve done so far under these headings:

• Customers: your target customer, your marketplace,
• Sales/Marketing: How will you promote your business? Your pricing?
• Competitors: (the results from your competitor analysis)
• Suppliers: Who will you buy your stock from? Their terms and conditions
• Resources: What do you need to set up your business?
• Management: Who will be running your business?

After you’ve jotted notes down all your notes, put it away for a couple of days, as it can feel a bit overwhelming to get down every bit of detail you have in your head.

I’ll be coming back to this post shortly with some more details and some parts that you’ll need to add, but for the time being, pat yourself on the back. By writing down a plan, you’re already on your way to running a successful online retail business.

Doesn’t it feel better to have written down the results of your planning and research?

First Steps… In Online Retail – Writing Your Action Plan is a post from: Online Marketing Village

more marketing posts:

1. First Steps… In Online Retail – Research Your Idea
2. First Steps… In Online Retail – Competitor Analysis
3. First Steps… In Online Retail – Starting Out

I’ve blogged previously about the usefulness of trade shows and how to get the best out of your visit.

It’s not easy to decide which you’ll opt for, but new start ups should take the time out to attend all they can and make a note of their usefulness  for the future when you may be more time-poor.

So here are some of my recommendations for six of the best UK trade fairs.

Don’t forget, even if you’re not sure you’ll make it, it’s still worth signing up for the mailing list, particularly Spring Fair which gives regular industry news updates throughout the year.

Always make sure you register in advance as sometimes you have to pay otherwise (and get stuck in a long queue when you’re itching to get started “walking the floor”).

1. Business Startups – general start up advice – worth attending more for the seminars and the training sessions. Some of the government exhibitors such as the IPO have useful 1-2-1 sessions.
2. Bubble - after the demise of Premier Kids this is now the best (only?) event to get the most leads for the children’s fashion industry. Originally a US import it’s now hosted at the cool setting of the Business Exhibition Centre, Islington. Not as quirky as before, but here in the UK, beggars can’t be choosers.
3. Spring Fair – hall after hall of types of gift related goods including toys, jewellery, household goods… Worth a two day visit if you are seriously seeking established brands. There’s also a smaller “Autumn Fair.”
4. Harrogate Nursery Fair – Great trade fair for picking up nursery suppliers and one of the very few to take place outside the the twin centres of the NEC (Birmingham) or the London Excel/Olympia circuit. Includes furniture and other nursery accessories as well as prams. Joining up with BPA Baby Show for a new event this October (2010).
5. Pulse – leading edge interior and living suppliers here with a contemporary twist. Pulse London offers the only Summer trade event focusing on the gift sector.
6. Top Drawer – Two fairs a year (January and September, London). Top Drawer covers the design-led gift, children’s, stationary and greeting, home and fashion sectors.

Have I missed any must-sees ?

photo credit: kevindooley

Six of the Best UK Trade Shows is a post from: Online Marketing Village

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Alison Pinney

In the latest of our interview series, we hear from Alison Pinney, mum of 4, and wife of 8 months. She runs Teeny Munchkins and Mums Business Club (Cambridge) and is also a full-time childminder!

Teeny Munchkins was set up in August 2008 and is going from strength to strength. It has recently has a site makeover and this has seen the comany’s sales figures increase dramatically. Teeny Munchkins has just launched a dropship service of its party bag fillers and Manhattan Toys range and within 4 weeks they have had over 30 resellers sign up.

Why did you start selling online ?

It was more to make a bit of pocket money so I could give those little extras to the children.  Before Teeny Munchkins I worked in party plan but left due to being crippled with a bout of arthritis.  This eased with medication and I decided that, rather than line somebody elses pockets with the money I made from sales, I could run my own business and line my own pockets.  I do not intend to go down the party-plan route though!

What has been your biggest online marketing challenge?

Getting our name out there and ranking well with Google.  Many of my customers tend to know what they are looking for when it comes to the Manhattan Toy range and I am starting to rank very well with some of our top sellers on Google.

What do you like best about your website?

It has recently been re-vamped which I am absolutely delighted with.  I have had many comments from customers and visitors saying how much improved it is and just looking at my stats tells me that most visitors are now bookmarking my site ready to come back to later.

Your top online marketing tip?

I use Facebook a lot!!  I also use Twitter but not as much.  I would say to use both these tools as much as you can to attract potential customers to your site.  They are very powerful and can quickly get your brand name known.

My Site in Cyberspace: Teeny Munchkins is a post from: Online Marketing Village

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The winner of my inaugural $64,000 Internet Marketing Question was @Shnuggle who tweeted:

“Selling online. How to keep attention of visitor? High hits, but short stay and high bounce rate! ”

@Shnuggle wins her answer – “Lower Your Bounce Rate: Sticky Solutions for Getting the Second Click.” A 15 minute audio MP3 recording and 15 Page Workbook.

If you’d like your own copy then it won’t cost you $64,000 – just $9.97 – available in the Village Shop

Sixty Four Thousand Dollar Question Winner: How to Lower Your Bounce Rate is a post from: Online Marketing Village

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Last week I decided to ask my twitter followers what their “Sixty Four Thousand Dollar Question” about internet marketing and selling online really was.

With two online retail businesses, a few blogs and more sites now than I care to admit to, I wondered whether the problems I wrestle with are still the same as everyone elses. After reading the replies, I can safely say yes. The difference is that over the years I’ve picked up enough hints, tips and info- and spent many an hour trawling the interweb -  to be able to uncover the answers – eventually!

Your questions came in, thick and fast. So many that I’ve decided to run the “Sixty Four Thousand Internet Marketing Question” as a competition.

You ask me the question. If I pick it as my favorite of the week then you win The Answer – in the form of a very snazzy freebie.

Deal?

All you need to do is tweet or email your question to me and I’ll take care of the rest!

photo credit: dr_tr

Internet Marketing: The Sixty-Four-Thousand Dollar Questions? is a post from: Online Marketing Village

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I have a gazillion domains – some pure gold, others OK and some, er, turkeys

If you’re like me though, and want to have a higher gold to turkey purchase ratio, then you need the new uber cool tool Domain Samurai!

Here are 3 good reasons to get Domain Samurai:

1. Domain Samurai helps you to find keyword optimized domains, which boost your rankings in the search engines;

2. You won’t be asked to pay a penny for Domain Samurai – it’s being given away to you totally FREE;

3. AND if you want even more… Plug Domain Samurai into “DomainFace”, and get access to their high value Aged Domain data
feeds.

Then, use this data to discover PageRank 4 or 5 domains, keyword optimized domains, domains with backlinks, rankings and traffic – in your industry – often selling for as little as a few dozen dollars.

(Imagine using these domains to overtake the big businesses in your niche in just weeks – instead of building your site up slowly over months years.)

Here’s where to get Domain Samurai, or to find out more – I’ll be doing a review of Domain Samurai in a couple of weeks

Cool FREE tool for Nifty Domains! is a post from: Online Marketing Village

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I love these quirky fossils of the future, according to their creator, KB Sculptures, this is how our ancestors will remember us!

This one is a mouse fossil (the computer kind) and it’s set with lots of ” fossils” in a lump of rock. A great talking point for your office desk and the perfect present for the computer geek.

It’s cast in Herculite and makes an ideal paperweight too.

Approximate  size 14 x 9 x 6cm

Price: £11.50 plus  £2.50 postage.

Office Candy: 21st Century Fossils is a post from: Online Marketing Village

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If you’re running an online business, then you have probably already discovered the importance of knowing where you traffic is coming from. Just one of the benefits of having a web analytics package reporting your stats is discovering which marketing strategy is working the best for you.
I’ve tried loads of different tracking software and at the moment I’m using my “old faithful” Google Analytics and one of the new kids on the block, Clicky.

One of the advantages Clicky has is “stats in real time” so no twiddling your thumbs wondering what in the world is going on with your site today! Another thing Clicky has that no one else has implemented is Twitter analytics. Keep tabs on what is being said about your site by choosing keywords you would like to monitor, Clicky will do the rest and provide you in depth charts and reports.

I get all the juicy details on where my visitors come from, watch goals and conversions and much much more! Clicky Stats offers tons of options for a very reasonable price. It’s also offered in several unique packages and price points for everyone, including a FREE demo.

While I wouldn’t be without my Google Analytics, Clicky definitely satisfies my immediate curiosity and the link up with twitter makes it a must-have if you Tweet as part of your online marketing strategy.

Product Review – Clicky Stats is a post from: Online Marketing Village

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This week my Macbook has become painfully slow. In fact, it would be easier if I got out and pushed.

To combat this unexpected turn of events, I did what I usually do and googled my problem. I was presented with a gazillion different things to do from modifying firefox (and add-ons) to cleaning up my desktop (admittedly the desk top is as cluttered as my actual desk!)

When all this failed to fire up the Quatro, I fell back onto the “download a bit of software from the net – that’ll do the trick” option and used a recommended programme, cutely called “Macaroni.”

Macaroni seems to do the usual sorting out of hard drives stuff, with the ability to schedule daily, weekly and monthly clean ups. It also had one addition I’d never thought of before: the “foreign language clean up.”

Yep, it removes all those files in other languages on your Mac. To be honest, I’d never given much thought to the uselessness of having Albanian versions of Read Me text files before. Or how much hard drive space they were taking up. However, with the click of a button all was revealed. rather a lot, as it turns out.

Voila, Macbook now souped up and running at top speed again. Thanks Macaroni

Macaroni – FREE 35 day trial and then $9.99 to buy.

photo credit: Pink Sherbet Photography

Trying Out: Macaroni is a post from: Online Marketing Village

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Even geeks can grow office plants!

This planter from the Science Museum puts NASA’s proven technology to good use, helping even the most green-challenged gardener grow plants.

The planter defines soil-less gardening, and provides an ideal growing environment for herbs, flowers and fruit. All you need to do is seed it, feed it and leave your plants to grow. With no soil to mess up your desk, it’s the perfect home-office solution!

Power Plant £35.00 plus delivery from £4.95 (UK only).

Office Candy: Power Plant from the Science Museum is a post from: Online Marketing Village

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If paperweights make you swoon then feast your eyes on this simply gorgeous paperweight from UK designer, Panic Tuesday. “Vintage Time” is a resin paper weight with watch parts, beads, a vintage button and a fabric rose, plus natural inclusions.
The width of the domed paper weight is about 3 inches and the base is covered with black felt to protect your office desk (my desk needs protection from myself!) This would make an unusual present and is also gift-wrapped free of charge.

£22.00 plus £2.00 postage.

Office Candy: Vintage Time Paperweight from Panic Tuesday is a post from: Online Marketing Village

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