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I talk about the economy on Small Business Copywriter a lot. Not because I’m worried about it (and I’m not) but because I know many people are. My clients are, their competitors are, anybody starting a new business is, and anybody who feels their job or industry is in danger are.
The media doesn’t help. I feel certian the current economic downturn wouldn’t have been so extreme had the media not have stuck their nose in, but we can’t blame them. Sticking their nose in is what they do.
Continue reading What Does Your Business Offer During the Recession?
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Etsy – I go on about it a lot. Because Etsy is cool. My other site – Wedding Skulls – sell through Etsy, and I also sell some Etsy-specific copywriting packages through our Etsy shop.
Today, Etsy buyers and sellers the world over have gathered to promote Etsy to the public who might not have heard of this wonderful online shopping mall. I’m doing my small part to get involved by blogging about ‘Etsy Day’.
Etsy – for all my blog readers who don’t yet know – is a platform for buying and selling handmade crafts. To buy from Etsy, you signup for a buyer account and browse away – they offer crafted goods in many different categories, from home decor to fine art to jewellery to books and zines to lamps to cushions to clothing to ‘everything else’ (yes, that’s a category!).
If you’re a maker of handcrafted products you can set up an online store on Etsy. The store is free to setup – you pay 20c US every time you list an item, and a small percentage every time something sells, but otherwise, it’s an inexpensive method to reach thousands of eager buyers.
The Etsy site has several excellent resources for buyers looking for that perfect handmade item – the Front Page features stunning shops every day – the Showcase shows top items by category, the treasuries group items under unique subjects and the Storque (the Etsy blog) always features great articles about interesting shops. You can ‘heart’ items and save a favourites list so you can always find desired items again. Etsy shopping is simple, painless and too much fun!
Sellers can participate in the business forums, Etsy chat, sign up for Street Teams to promote via city, country or subject matter (I’m in Etsy Dark Side team). We can be featured on the Front Page, treasury or Storque, as well as network with other sellers, buy advertising in the showcase and make treasuries.
So yay, go Etsy! If you’ve never been before, go and have a looksee. I promise you’ll find something you love.
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In my last post I discussed the pros and cons of profiling other businesses on your blog, especially if those businesses are in direct competition to you.
Please don’t assume that I think you should NEVER profile another business on your blog. Many successful blogs use this technique to . I’m just saying to exercise caution before making this decision.
If you’ve weighed up the pros and cons and still want to profile a business, I can give you a few tips for writing a successful business profile. I write business profiles for my Wedding Skulls blog, and I follow a basic formula and protocol for each profile I write.
First, I email the seller and tell them I want to feature them. I check they’re happy for me to lift photos from their website, or they can email me hi-res pictures if they wish. I give them a rough estimate for when the profile will go up on the blog.
Next, I write the profile, and ask the seller any questions that arise. Once the profile goes live I send the seller a thank you note and a link to the profile. I ask them if they want anything changed and remind them that they’re welcome to post a link to my blog on their own website :)
Finding Businesses to Profile
While I’m browsing the net – as I’m want to do – I save bookmarks to interesting shops in a specific folder in my browser favourites. I choose sellers from this – sometimes I group them together into themes.
Occasionally, I post on discussion forums asking for volunteers. Beware of doing this as you may get many responses from inappropriate shops (not bad shops, just shops you’re readers wouldn’t be interested in) who may expect profiles since they’ve volunteered. Make it clear in your post that you reserve the right to pick and choose profiles for your blog.
Business Profile Writing Tips
Use keywords and anchor text like you would for any other post. Build a reputation for being a blog that directs quality traffic to your profilee’s shops.
Wherever possible, get quotes from sellers about their business. Adding that personal touch helps give your profiles authority.
Try to write at least 250 words. If you’re struggling to come up with more to say, ask yourself what potential customers want to know:
- Who is behind the company?
- What do they sell?
- Will they ship to me?
- Do they take custom orders?
- Why are their products better than their competitors?
- Why have you chosen them for a profile on your blog?
- Where can I find more information: website, blog, etsy, press, etc?
Add at LEAST one photo to the listing. Always ask sellers before you uplift photographs from their shop, and if they use a specific photographer, make sure to credit the artist in your article.
Always proofread your listings. This should go without saying, but I’m saying it anyway 
Hopefully you’ll find these business profile writing tips useful. Remember, before profiling any business on your blog, you need to decide whether you’re making the best business decision FOR YOU! There’s plenty of other things you could write about.
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I’m working more and more on my own Etsy shop and with copywriting for Etsy clients, and as a result of this, I’m reading more blogs from small craft sellers. One trend I’ve noticed is sellers profiling other sellers on their blogs. I thought today I’d examine whether profiling other sellers is a good decision or not.
Many small businesses in the early stages of blog writing struggle to think of appropriate blog topics. An easy solution can be to profile other sellers/artists/businesses. You definitely have something to talk about – and you know you’ll have at least one person viewing your blog (the business owner). And everyone else writes profiles, so they must be working, right?
Not necessarily. I don’t think enough bloggers write a business plan for their blog before they begin. Have they really thought through their purpose in profiling other sellers – businesses that could be directly in competition with them?
Do your readers WANT to know about other sellers? Your blog should stand out from the hundreds of other business blogs in your niche. Do you stand out? Are you just writing what everybody else is writing? What are you saying that I might want to hear?
Don’t forget the obvious – by profiling other sellers, you’re promoting them and posting links that carry your readers AWAY from your blog. On the other hand, many blogs build their reputation on placing the right products in the hands of consumers – be that blog for your niche, and you’ll reap the benefits of business profiles.
All bloggers can write profiles – but only a few write excellent profile that are worth reading. If you’re not going to be one of those bloggers, give profiles a miss. (In my next post I’ll discuss writing successful profiles)
Often, business profiles can help a startup small business network with other sellers, and this can only be a good thing However, the downside is that a blog focused purely on other businesses tends to attract business owners, rather than buyers (your target audience).
In the end, the decision to profile other sellers comes down to your target market. Would they be interested in other products and services? Focus on finding other businesses that compliment your own products, rather than directly compete. This is how I choose sellers to profile on my Wedding Skulls blog.
Business profiles are one of MANY blog topics your business could write about, and each has it’s pros and cons. Before you dive in to writing business profiles, consider the advantages and disadvantages to your blog and your own business.
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One of the biggest lessons any small business promoting online needs to learn is the difference between traffic and conversions.
I’ve been reading a great beginners ‘how-to’ guide to online marketing by marketing guru Holly Berkley. In her book, Low-Budget Online Marketing for Small Business, Holly discusses one of her first online banner campaigns – a complete disaster.
Yahoo had just come out, and EVERYONE was exclaiming over the exposure for businesses through their banner ads. So Holly recommended her client purchase 100 000 page impressions on Yahoo’s main page.
And guess what happened? The 100 000 impressions came and went in seconds. And resulted in not a single click through. Not one. As for sales – well, you can imagine.
The main problem with this campaign – which Holly discusses in detail in her book – is that she’d been more concerned with traffic than conversions. She’d wanted to get more people to click through to her website, without giving the thought to ‘who’ would be reading her ad.
Lets look at two definitions:
Traffic
The number of people clicking through to your website.
Conversions
The number of people buying products from your website.
Sometimes, even if traffic to your website is very low, your conversion rate can be exceptionally high – this is called targeted traffic.
Targetted traffic are visitors arriving to your website because whatever you’re offering answers their specific needs.
When planning ANY online advertising or promotional campaign, your business needs to search out you targetted traffic. Where do they hang out? Where do they go on the web when they need answers to their questions? THAT’S where your ads and links and reviews need to be.
Remember, all the traffic in the world won’t do you any good if those clickers aren’t buyers. Conversions OWN traffic any day!
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I’ve been discussing my new Etsy business ideas with a friend recently, and the topic of business models came up. I showed her the model that I’d created so far, and she squinted at the docoment breifly before saying “Why do you need that for? Isn’t all this stuff self-explanetory?”
Um, well…no.
Continue reading Write a Business Model
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Every business that’s in the market of selling something – whether a good or a service – will have customers. I have customers (sometimes I call them clients) for my copywriting services, and customers who buy my ebooks.
If your business is online, customer service becomes even more important, because your competitors are only a mouse-click away.
Think about your experiences as a customer. I always remember the shops that have treated me badly, especially the shops who’ve been rude to me because of my vision problems. Likewise, I always return to businesses who’ve shown me kindness and friendship, even if I can get the same products/services somewhere else.
My husband drive to a salon an hour away for his haircuts. He’s done this for twenty years. Because of their customer service.
We buy jewellery (and we buy a lot for birthday/chirstmas presents) from the same shop, even though we could get similiar pieces elsewhere for cheaper. Because we love going there – it’s a treat.
Develop clear business policies. When do you accept refunds/exchanges? How will you resolve problems? What is your policy on free samples to reviewers? Write your policies on your website or on a sign at your shop so customers can read them.
Be aware of the language you use. Avoid negative terms like ‘I can’t’. Always appear relaxed and in-control. A stressed seller makes the customer feel stressed, too. Don’t snap at customers who complain to tell them others have more pressing complaints. Say “Thank you for bringing this to my attention,” and outline how you’re going to solve the problem.
Follow up with your online customers. Sending a quick email to check whether a shipped item arrives safely means you can ensure every transaction has a happy ending. Customers like happy endings.
When you make a promise to a customer, you must keep it. So don’t promise lightly. If you say you’ll call before Wednesday, you better call. If you say you’re shipping on friday, don’t ship on monday. Customers remember these promises.
Above all, respect your customers. Without them, you wouldn’t be in business. So treat them with dignity and kindness. I admire and respect my clients for their keen business sense, adventurous spirit and unerring creativity. They’re more than just the writers of my paychecks: they’re friends.