Marketing Strategies

[charmiesonline]

Hi, guys, I am trying to sell my candles, but am not sure if I am doing everything I possibly can. I have a website, sell on ebay, post in forums, have google adwords, have yahoo's ppc, pass out fliers, do craft fairs, leave business cards out at salons, etc., and tell everyone i see about my website.

Part of the reason is definitely because I live in New Orleans, which is still completely devastated. I have had to go out into other parishes (counties) to pass out fliers. I was thinking about yard signs. what do you all think about that? also, do you have any other marketing strategies?

any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Tiffany

www.charmiesonline.com

[Candybee]

Sounds like you've got some good strategy already. It does take time. I don't know how long you have been selling but always promote your products when you sell with flyers, bus. cards., etc.

I love New Orleans. I used to live not to far in Baton Rouge and go into New Orleans all the time. Its going to take time locally so I would promote my website as much as possible.

Do you have large signs to hang up at your shows that show your web addy in large letters? Make sure your website is on everything, all your promotional literature.

Does your website have bread crumbs and META tags?

[charmiesonline]

I tried to add meta tags awhile ago, but I couldnt figure them out. What are bread crumbs?

[Crowded House]

"FEMA Trailer Jewelry"? Man that is a GREAT hook!

Have you done truck stops? No joke, truckers live in a can just like you do. Head up to Hammond and see what you can do.

Also, have you thought about any consigment or wholesale accounts with the Tiger Truck Stops (assuming they're still there)? They're used to be three of them, one up on I-20 but another over on I-10 just west of red stick.

I'd give it a shot. Good luck to you.

[JenT]

Hey...on your web builder, can you insert html codes?

If so...you would add a meta code right at the top of your site.

If you go on to your website...not in a web builder...and click on "view" then "source"...you can see what search engines pick up. If you dont have key words....etc...your site wont be included in searches.

Here is a link that can help you

http://www.mothersworkathome.com/mothers_meta_tags.htm

Then add your site to EVERY free search engine that will allow you too!!

[prairieannie]

Hey...on your web builder, can you insert html codes?

If so...you would add a meta code right at the top of your site.

If you go on to your website...not in a web builder...and click on "view" then "source"...you can see what search engines pick up. If you dont have key words....etc...your site wont be included in searches.

Here is a link that can help you

http://www.mothersworkathome.com/mothers_meta_tags.htm

Then add your site to EVERY free search engine that will allow you too!!

Actually, that is not true. Without getting into the whole meta tag debate, I can assure that you won't find any "key words" on my site, and I can also assure you that my web stats show plenty of hits from search engines.

[JenT]

Maybe I am thinking optimizing?

Honestly I am NOT a web builder person...lol...learning things as I go along. I do know...I was contacted by a company 2 years ago about my site...I was only getting hits through people who knew about my site or from eBay. This company contacted me...told me to go to my site...click on the view...source...etc....then had me go to another site and do the same. The other site had key words and basicly I was told thats the reason for not coming up in search engines when people typed key words.

They wanted to charge me $1500 to.... I'm pretty sure now... optimize my site...NO way I was paying that! So I looked into it myself and added a meta tag with key words and finally started coming up in key word searches...I also added my site to search engines...did the google page thingie on my site...something worked...and I didnt pay $1500...lol...

[prairieannie]

Maybe I am thinking optimizing?

Honestly I am NOT a web builder person...lol...learning things as I go along. I do know...I was contacted me a company 2 years ago about my site...I was only getting hits through people who knew about my site or from eBay. This company contacted me...told me to go to my site...click on the view...source...etc....then had me go to another site and do the same. The other site had key words and basicly I was told thats the reason for not coming up in search engines when people typed key words.

They wanted to charge me $1500 to.... I'm pretty sure now... optimize my site...NO way I was paying that! So I looked into it myself and added a meta tag with key words and finally started coming up in key word searches...I also added my site to search engines...did the google page thingie on my site...something worked...lol

It's a common misconception.. I've gone the rounds with people over this, and there are a LOT of people who make a living on optimizing people's sites right now. A very GOOD living I'm sure A very large number of people on this board who have websites would argue with me on this point as well.. because this is what folks have been told. However, months ago, one of the folks who argued most vehemently about it was proven very wrong, when his own site (and he provides site optimization for other people) couldn't be found anywhere on the first 50 pages of google using a very large number of variables to try to get it to come up!! He argued that it "worked with his search terms" but we tried every combination we could think of, and still couldn't get it to show up.. after 50 pages each time, we gave up, so we still don't know if it even showed up after THAT! The funny thing was, out of the first 10 sites that DID show up on google using those same search terms, only 1 of them had any type of meta tags and keywords at all, the rest had nothing! And that 1 was number 5 or 6 on the list, I can't remember which. This meta tag myth is a very easy one to debunk if you just do a little research yourself. I certainly don't think that using meta tags hurts you in any way shape or form, but I wouldn't count on their use to get me listed very high on google's or anyone else's search engines. You can pay people who do SEO a whoooole lot of money to get your site optimized if you wish, but if it doesn't come with a 100% guarantee to get you where you want to be (the top ten no doubt, maybe even the number one or two) then you're wasting your money in a big way!

[JenT]

I'm glad I didn't spend all that money!!! Thank you for telling me about that! When the companies contact you about optimizing...course they don't tell you all that....I bet he was red faced...good thing he didn't pay money for it!

[VerticallyEnhanced]

Other things I can think of:

Get a mailing or email list together and send out occasional coupons/specials/etc.

Invest in some magnetic signs to put on your car or window decals

Donate to charities...I get a lot of business from doing that.

Freebies. At Christmas I made a big basket of votives and took it to my bank as a "thank you" for all their help during the year. SO many orders stemmed off of that and now about once ever four months, they ask be to bring about six cases of candles up there, leave them for a day and they go "shopping."

If I am in a business I frequent, I will say, "Hey, If I bring you a candle, will you let me burn it in the store and let me know what you and the customers think?" They have always agreed completely and when I drop it off, I leave some cards and boom...start getting orders. "Hey, I smelled your candle in the liquor store..."