What I wish I'd known before I started selling online.

In the 5 years I have been selling online it has been a steep and continuous learning curve!

Here are the key things I wish I had know at the beginning that would have saved a lot of wasted time & money, and also help fast track to where we are now:

1. Build your product website on the right platform. As a green entrepreneur, we paid a friend £000's to build a website on a platform that we couldn't make changes to ourselves, then we spent lots of time waiting for small changes to be updated and it was hard to move the site forward. This platform also didn't integrate well with other apps. Then we found Shopify and have never looked back. Shopify integrates easily will all Meta platforms and has free apps for many of the things you will need to do as a new business. They also have a 24 hour English speaking support line that are very helpful - perfect if you are starting as a side hustle and working around another job.

2. Build your e-mail list. I learnt the hard way, having spent years religiously posting on Instagram every day, and getting to 10,000 followers, we got hacked on Black Friday & Meta took down our account and we had to start again. Had we not had an e-mail list we would have totally lost out on Christmas sales. Meta owns your Instagram profiles & Facebook groups. You own your e-mail list.

3. Pick 1-2 platforms and nail them. Whether it's your website, Amazon, Etsy, EBAY, Tik Tok - the list goes on. Don't try and be all things to all people. Know who your target customer is and where they hang out. Do a good job of 1-2 platforms.

4. Outsource key tasks. This one is hard when you are a start up and funds may be limited, but ultimately paying someone to do tasks such as manage your Facebook advertising works out better, as it is the fastest way to lose a lot of money if not done right!

5. Understand your numbers. The 5th and by far the most important. Sales are absolutely pointless if you are not making profit. Really spend time understanding your overheads, how many sales you need to breakeven, the cost of packaging, shipping, website hosting, build in marketing costs, so you understand EVERYTHING. It is very easy to get carried away with beautiful product, and gorgeous packaging but if you are not making sufficient profit then it is a fruitless task. A trap many people fall into.