Marketing Homemade Products
While most products are thought to be manufactured in a factory somewhere, many are created by individuals working from home. There's a demand for homemade products, resulting from their uniqueness and perceived craftsmanship as well as a desire to support small business, but vendors operating from home will face serious competition when it comes to marketing their products.
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Market to Businesses
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One way to sell your homemade products is to sell them to a store. Then, the store will do all the marketing by carrying your product and you'll simply need to keep them supplied. You must demonstrate that you're a reliable vendor, able to handle expected demand, since no store wants to have a fulfillment problem after customers have been sold.
Open a Booth
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Sell your products yourself by opening up a booth at a craft fair or similar event. There's usually a charge to get in, but you'll have access to very targeted customers who are already interested in purchasing the types of products you sell. Many urban areas have local Farmer's Markets that offer great opportunities for home businesses to display and sell their items.
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Market Directly
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You can sell your homemade products by marketing directly to consumers by going door-to-door, cold calling, or sending a catalog or direct marketing letter. Some vendors don't like directly marketing to consumers because they feel like they're spamming them, but this technique works well when customers have already expressed an interest in the product. Direct marketing can be expensive, so make sure the product sells for a price high enough to justify the expense.
Give Away Goodies
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Try to get customers used to using your brand by either sending them free samples or discount coupons. For many people, "seeing is believing," so they have to see that they like your product, before they'll commit to buying it. Others may give it a try if they believe they're getting a good deal...and your hope is that they become hooked.
Marketing Food
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Before marketing canned food products, you must be sure you're following the state and federal regulations regarding food preparation, testing and labeling. Your food must be tested in a laboratory to determine the shelf-life of your product. If your shelf life is adequate, you'll be able to market your food and ship it to customers, but if you have food with a shorter shelf life, you might need to market it to a local grocery store. Your home must also be converted into a licensed laboratory, meaning you must spend money to make your kitchen sanitary and submit to unannounced inspections by regulatory agencies.
Internet Marketing
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Anyone can sell products online, whether through an auction site like eBay, or buyer and seller communities specializing in homemade crafts such as Etsy and Hyena Cart. You can also start your own website. You'll have a lot of competition selling online, so you'll need to establish a unique niche and slowly cultivate a loyal base of clients. You may choose to purchase advertising space on other websites or use social media to drive traffic to your site.
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References
- Power Home Biz: How To Start Retailing, Marketing and Promoting a New Home-Made Product
- Pick Your Own: Can I Sell My Home-Canned Salsa, Jams and Other Preserves?
- Auction Bytes: Making Your Own Items to Sell Online: A Look at Three 'HomeMade' Entrepreneurs; David Steiner; 2001
- Dot Com Women: Selling Handmade Products Online
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Brand X Pictures/Getty Images
