Category: My Marketing Advice (Page 5 of 26)

How to Find the Best Summer Selling Opportunities

March 23, 2022 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

How to Find the Best Summer Selling Opportunities Now that COVID restrictions have been lifted, there are numerous opportunities for you to sell in person this summer and into the fall.

To find local selling events, use Eventbrite. Type in keywords such as, “popup shop”, “festival”, “flea market”, “farmers market”, “trade show“. They do tend to book months in advance so get going!

If you can’t afford a booth or stand on your own, go in with another local but non-competitive business.

If you wish to travel, there are large national festivals you can sell at, but it would be the most beneficial if your target market is the main audience.

For example, Bonnaroo is a large music festival held every June in Tennessee, ideal for people selling bohemian inspired fashion and decor. They offer various onsite selling opportunities, such as a 10 x10 artist/crafter space in the main venue for four days for US$1,500, and they expect 80,000+ people to attend.

The Telluride Yoga Festival in June in Colorado is ideal for anyone selling yoga or wellness products, but they like artisans as well. The cost is $450 for a shared space of two vendors. It’s also a great way to write-off a summer vacation 🙂

My Awesome Idea for Your Next Local Sales Event

March 22, 2022 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

No matter what you sell, everyone wants a deal or a bargain. Therefore, at your next local selling event – whether it is at a farmer’s market, craft fair, popup store or trade show – have a “Discount” table or bin as part of your display.

This is where you can put products that are out of season, that you don’t want to make anymore or just didn’t sell. There are various names you can call it: Marked Down, Clearance, Bargain, 70% off, Under $20, Final Sale, Last Chance, Today’s Specials, but I guarantee that it will be your most popular attraction.

Alternatively, you could mark up your prices a little higher, with the intention that you are willing to barter. People love feeling like they got the price down.

This is also a great opportunity to test out various pricing strategies, and see which ones customers respond to the best.

My Simple Tip for More Cost-Effective Ads

March 21, 2022 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

My Simple Tip for More Cost-Effective Ads If you’re advertising an individual product or service, you only want to advertise listings that have the highest sales conversion rate.

For example, I have a lot of clients who just blatantly advertise every listing in their Amazon or Etsy store, which is not a smart advertising strategy. What you want to do is go through your individual ad stats and only continue running ads on listings that have the highest sales conversion rate (orders/visits), and/or a conversion rate of at least 2%.

Why pay for ads on listings that are not resulting as highly in sales, when you could instead direct traffic to listings that are giving better results? You pay for each click, so make sure it has the greatest chance of turning into a sale.

Follow my blog so you don’t miss more upcoming ad tips, or set up a call to get more personalized advice.

simple ad tips

How Your Business Could Benefit From “Group” Orders

March 17, 2022 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

Every time a neighbor wants to get something done to their house, like septic cleaning or window washing, they ask if we need it done in hopes that together, we will get a better offer from the company because they will get two sales instead of one.

Therefore, if your business offers local products or services, try encouraging neighbors to do group ordering so you get more business at one time.

For example, if you’re a neighborhood restaurant, make the offer: “Get four of your neighbors to also order from us tonight and you all get free delivery” (this is from my 12-Month Marketing Plan for Restaurants).

Try it with your business and see what happens.

Check this out: Love this inspirational carousel post from Canva today.

©2022 Gail Oliver. All rights reserved.

Small Office Home Office Ideas

March 13, 2022 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

Are you looking for some small office home office decorating ideas?

Most home offices can be a very small space, maybe no bigger than 8×8. So you need to maximize your desk space and organization to make the most of it. Here are some great small office home office decor inspiration I found.

Bookcase Your Home Office Walls

small office home office ideas

A great way to save space in a small home office is to take the wall and turn them into floor to ceiling bookcases, ideal for all types of office storage, not just books.

Put the Desk in the Corner

home office ideas with desk in corner

Putting the desk in the corner of a small home office just narrows the back side of the desk, which you do not really use anyway. This idea also really maximizes the space under the desk.

Filing Cabinet and Desk All in One

ideas for small home office

Using your filing cabinets or bookcases as a means of holding up your desk top frees up space in a small home office.

Turn Shed Into Small Home Office

small office home office

The ultimate small office home office if you live in the right climate is to simply convert an outdoor shed.

Try a Closet Office

small office home office

If your home office space is limited, a closet can always turn into a quick small office home office.

Tuck Away Your Home Office Into the Wall

wall desk small home office idea

Just like a Murphy Bed, this small home office idea features a desk that folds out of the wall, exposing needed storage as well. Great for an apartment dweller.

Attic Home Office

attic small office home office

Unused attic space is a great place to put a small home office.

Hallway Small Office Home Office

small office home office

Why not turn a long hallway into a home office?

Office in a Niche

small office in house niche

Much like the closet idea, a niche in the wall is a great place to place a small home office.

Office Under the Stairs

tiny home office under stars

Make use of that space under the stairs but putting your home office there.

Nursery Office Combo

nursery home office

When space is limited in your house, sometimes you have to take space from another room, and the nursery or playroom is a good option.

Start Your Home Business!

Are you ready to start your own business or company? Be sure to check out my Starting a New Business Planner and get tons of free business advice on my blog.

My Quick & Super Easy Marketing Idea You Must Do!

March 9, 2022 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

Need a quick easy marketing tip?

One of the top searches this weekend will be “Daylight Savings Time Change”. You can use this as an opportunity to email your customers. For example:

Friendly Reminder: ⏰ Clocks “spring” forward Sunday at 2 am.

Also, it makes a good posting idea for your social media accounts.

Shop My Best Sellers!

Also read: 3 Hot Pinterest Marketing Tips

Small Business Name Ideas: My Tips on Choosing a Name

March 2, 2022 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

Are you in need of some Small Business Name Ideas? I get this question all the time from clients, so below are my key points when trying to choose one for your business or brand.

Small Business Name Ideas: Does It Represent What You Sell?

While not necessary, it is impressive when a business name has a connection to what you sell. For example, the business Scentered® is a mindfulness lifestyle brand that uses the power of sense of smell as a tool to direct thoughts, emotions & actions to live happier lives. So the name is brilliant as it combines “Scent” with “Centered”.

Small Business Name Ideas: Is It Memorable?

You want a business name that is memorable the first time someone hears it. For example, the wine brand, Fat Bastard, definitely is a memorable name in a market where names are often difficult to recall. But there are drawbacks to a funny name. Does it make you think wine? Would you feel comfortable asking for it in a store? Would you gift it to your boss? So memorable but remember the goals of your brand.

Small Business Name Ideas: Is It Easy to Spell?

If you make up a name or use an acronym, you are making it challenging for your customers to find you, such as typing your name into a search engine or recommending you to a friend. For example, the brand WKND Apparel. It does represent what they sell, but by shorting the word weekend like this, people might not type it in correctly when searching for it.

Small Business Name Ideas: Is It Easy to Say?

Same issue as spelling. If the name is not easy to pronounce, you are challenging customers who speak their searches into their phones, or again, want to refer you to friends. For example, the popular appliance company Miele, is actually pronounced mee-luh, but most people pronounce it mee-lee.

Small Business Name Ideas: Is It Not Too Long?

Short names have the benefit that they can appear larger and more readable on signage, business cards, labels, etc., plus they tend to be more memorable and easier to say. For example, nail polish bottles have small labels, so short brand names like OPI and Essie make sense.

Small Business Name Ideas: Is It a Single Word?

Maybe you just want to take one word and make it your business name. For example, names like Target and Chewy are short, everyday words that are unlikely to be mis-spelt or mispronounced. The downside is that they can be very difficult to trademark as a result.

Small Business Name Ideas: Is It Your Own Name?

Maybe your name is John Smith and you want to call your business the John Smith Company. There can be issues with this. For example, you are now the brand, as opposed to what you sell. Also, if you want to sell the business one day, it will be difficult. And, if someone with the same name was to do something controversial, like become a serial killer, it wouldn’t bode well for your business.

Small Business Name Ideas: Does It Have Your Location?

Some businesses want to appeal to the lure of supporting a local or national business. For example, the Harlem Candle Company pretty much tells me where this company has its roots, and if I’m from New York, I may want to support them just for this reason.

Some Inspiring Small Business Names

Madewell – quality clothing brand
Bauble Bar – trendy jewelry
Edoughble – edible cookie dough
Butcher Box – meat delivery
Headspace – meditation apps
Lord of the Wings – chicken wing restaurant

Let’s Work Together!

I have been helping small businesses online since 2012, so check out my EXTREMELY affordable phone consultations and business downloads including my How to Start a Business planner.

Fun Marketing Idea for Your Next Sales Event

February 20, 2022 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

Fun Marketing Idea for Your Next Sales Event If you sell at farmer’s markets, or your business is appearing at a trade show, or you have a store front, always try to have something customers can pose with.

We have become a picture-taking society, and people love to pose with quirky statues or cutouts and post them to their Instagram accounts. If the statue or cutout is branded with your business name, it’s free advertising for you.

Even entice them to do so by offering them 15% off their order if they post the photo and tag your business.

What People Search for on Google in March

February 16, 2022 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

Want to know what people search for on Google in March?

I track the top Google searches daily so I can refer to them the next year for various marketing reasons. But these popular searches can help your business too (besides SEO opportunities) including:

Inspiration for social media posts
Inspiration for blog content
Inspiration for promotions
Inspiration for products and services

For example, an idea from my 12-Month Marketing Plan for Restaurants (although, any type of business can use this idea) is that every October, the top Google searches are always “fall festivals near me”, “corn mazes near me”, “haunted houses near me”. Therefore, why not create a one-page Local Fall Events Calendar listing these events, but also has your restaurant menu on the other side.

Then place it in local mailboxes, in doors, or hand out on a corner. It’s something people will keep and refer to, and you get relatively cheap advertising for your business. You could even ask these local events to sponsor the flyer, and then it costs you nothing.

So based on last year’s results, here is what people will likely be searching next month:

March Madness (starts March 13th)

What is March Madness?
Where is March Madness?
When is the next March Madness game?
When is March Madness over?
Who is still in March Madness?

Spring Cleaning

Gutter cleaner equipment
Tips for organizing your home
Deep cleaning house tips
How to clean a cast iron skillet?
How to clean white shoes?
How to clean makeup brushes?
How to clean dishwasher?
How to clean suede shoes?
How to organize kitchen cabinets?
How to organize your closet?
How to organize a pantry?
How to organize your room?
How to organize your fridge?
DIY carpet cleaner
DIY drain cleaner
DIY jewelry cleaner
DIY oven cleaner
DIY window cleaner

St. Patrick’s Day (March 17th)

Corned beef and cabbage recipe
Colcannon recipe
Irish stew recipe
Soda bread recipe
Reuben sandwich recipe
Green food
Green beer
Green snacks
Green candy
Patrick’s Day nails

National Puppy Day (March 23rd)

How to potty train a puppy?
How to crate train a puppy?
How to train a puppy?
How to cut dog nails?
How to clean dog ears?
Why does my dog lick me so much?
Why does my dog eat poop?
Why does my dog stare at me?
Why does my dog follow me everywhere?
Why does my dog smell like fish?

April Fool’s Day

April Fools pranks on kids
April Fools pranks on boyfriend
Pranks on friends
Last-minute April Fools pranks on parents
April Fools pranks on teachers

So use these top searches to drive more traffic to your business, through social media post ideas, content marketing, promotions, SEO, products and services.

Keep Reading

Is It Time to Rethink What You Sell?

January 27, 2022 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

is it time to rethink what you sell

As I’ve said before, it is not always your marketing that is hurting your sales. It could just be what you are selling. So try going through these quick three steps below to make sure your offering is covering all the bases.

Does the Product Solve a Problem?

A great way to find out if your product covers all of a customer’s needs, is to read the negative reviews about products similar to yours on Amazon. There is a wealth of information here about what people didn’t like, so make sure you deliver on these things in your products, and emphasize this in the product description. If you sell services, try reading reviews about competitors on Yelp or Thumbtack.

Does It Have the Features Buyers Want?

An easy way to find the product features that customers want is to go to Google and test some search phrases that end with “with” and “for”. It can be for a product, a service or even an occupation. If they are searching for it, they want it. I did it using Google autocomplete and found these top searches, for example:

Travel agent for destination weddings
Baby onesie with mittens
Realtor with low commission
Restaurant with private room
Wedding dresses for older brides

Is the Product Innovative or Interesting?

Buyers love products that put a new twist on a classic product. Recently I came up with an “attention getting” idea for a client of mine that sells candles. My idea was to create a candle with layers of red, white and blue wax (that smells like apple pie) in honor of team USA for the winter Olympics. The idea was to tell potential customers that every time the USA wins a gold medal, light the candle and place it in the window. Product ideas like this are also a great opportunity to get free publicity from blogs looking for interesting Olympic editorial, which brings new eyes to the shop.

Would you like me to take a look at your products, tell you which ones have the best sales potential, which ones need to be amped up and even give you an attention getting product idea? Then set up a 30-minute brainstorming phone consultation with me. I guarantee you’ll leave inspired!