My top tips for building a product based business

I am obsessed with e-commerce and love to build this type of business. So much so that I have been able to start multiple e-commerce businesses which are continuing to grow. I love that you can be creative, create a product and make sales at any time of the day. I thought it would be helpful to share my top tips for building a product based business if it’s something you are considering doing.

Building an e-commerce brand is not always easy and there is a time and financial commitment to building a product-based business. This is the case for any business but for products, it can be a bigger outlay to begin with.

my top tips for building a product based business:

1 – Test your product – Unless you are bringing a new business to the market (even then you will want to test it) then you might need a lot of testing until you get your ideal product or designs out there. You might start with a theme such as travel and then test different products until you find the one which resonates with the consumer or you might start with a product such as t-shirts and again test different designs until you find the style that people like. Eventually, you will find your target audience and the best products for them.

2 – Have a system – The reason I have been able to build multiple product based businesses is because I have a system when I receive a sale. I outsource much of the product creation which gives me more time. If you are making your products then this will be a large part of your day once you start making sales. There is no right or wrong, you have to find what works for you. For me, I didn’t want to be shipping products each day and so outsourcing that was the best option.

3 – Use marketplaces – Using a marketplace like Etsy can be a great place to start. You can use this alongside building an e-commerce website on Shopify or even start with Etsy to test your products and add in your own website in the future. Again there is no right or wrong but if your products fit on Etsy or other marketplaces they can be an additional revenue stream for your business.

RELATED: WHAT I’VE BEEN LEARNING ABOUT ETSY

4 – You are a marketer – The most important element to running an e-commerce business is a marketing strategy. I have found the highest priority of marketing is emails and social media can be huge as well. As small business owners If we’re ever not sure what to do in business, marketing is always number 1!

5 – Have patience – It’s easy to see the quick success stories online but in reality building a successful business can take a lot of time. It takes time to build your potential customer base, get the product out into the world for people to see and to create a brand that people can trust. It can happen and it will if you stay patient, be consistent and keep going. Once you have 1 sale you can have so many more!

Building a successful small business can be fun and challenging all at the same time but when your phone goes “cha-ching” and the sales arrive it is always worth it.