You have taken the life-changing choice to take your homemade pastime to the next level. You are ready to sell on a wider scale, but your company has not yet developed to the level where you can afford to rent or buy a commercial facility.

Working from home is a good and affordable option, but how will you reach your customers from your living room? Below are tips for selling your brand without a physical location.

1. Spread the word

Selling a product that no one knows about is very difficult. Therefore, spreading the word is critical. You can reach out to your prospects through various social media platforms such as Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.

Social media is currently very popular, which makes the world a smaller place where people meet. This makes the internet a great platform for marketing your products. You can develop brand recognition and drive traffic to your website by offering free samples, special discount codes, and running social media campaigns. Because social media is all about engaging with potential buyers, do not purchase followers or artificially inflate your statistics. Recovering from any form of sham marketing or advertising campaign if discovered is quite difficult, so it is essential to invest the time and effort into cultivating a legitimate fanbase for your business.

Since you don’t have a physical store where you can interact with your customers, it is always a good idea to take every available chance to meet up with them. Attend many social events, trade exhibits, and other community events that bring people out to the streets. Although some of these events may require you to pay vendor fees, it pays off in the long run in terms of direct marketing and sales.

Make sure you are ready by bringing business cards, flyers, and brochures, as well as your items to sample and sell at such events.

2. Design a good website

Create a visually appealing website for your business. This might be an expensive prospect, but it is a worthwhile investment in your company’s future. Ensure that your website is appealing, eye-catching, and, most importantly, user-friendly. You want consumers to be able to buy your goods easily and quickly, and all information to be clearly presented in a format that is easy to understand.

Ensure that your website is mobile-friendly, has blog posts about your product/brand, easy-to-fill online forms, and FAQs. These features encourage customers to stick around and browse your site. The longer they stay on your site, the more likely they are to purchase from you, which results in better sales figures.

Use available analytics to gain a sense of who your ideal customer is, their purchasing habits, and other useful information. This data will assist you in making modifications and successfully marketing to your consumers through methods such as email discounts or loyalty programs, resulting in more repeat orders.

If your business is still small and creating a website is too expensive for you, look into online stores that allow you to sell on their sites.

3. Be prompt

After placing an order, customers wait eagerly for their product to be delivered. Prompt delivery is something that every buyer will appreciate.

Fill orders as soon as possible to ensure that you satisfy demand within a reasonable timeline. Notify your client as soon as your product is back-ordered and again when it ships. To make this easier, you can generate automated emails as part of your shipping system. Giving your customers a tracking number for their orders can help minimize queries and concerns on your website regarding shipment delays. Setting up a good procedure from the start can help you avoid numerous snags and issues later on.

4. Deliver high-quality items

Maintain consistency in your product and follow all relevant food handling and quality requirements. Don’t cut corners on ingredients or supplies.

Customers will stop purchasing from you if the quality of your goods deteriorates. You want repeat buyers, and they will demand the same level of quality whether it’s their fifth or their twentieth order.

5. Don’t complicate the purchasing process

Customers are more likely to purchase from you if the ordering process is simple and fast. No one appreciates difficult and complicated procedures.

To make your customers’ journey simple from the time they visit your site to when their order is dropped at their doorstep, make the payment procedure simple. Allow them to pay using their credit cards and another payment method such as PayPal.

It’s a huge plus if you can give free delivery on orders exceeding a particular price number and/or special promotions that offer it on specific days. Customers love this option and are more likely to purchase more merchandise if they receive free shipping. As a result, even if you pay for a delivery, you obtain a higher ticket sale and make more profit. Many customers are prepared to spend more on a higher quality product if they receive free shipping.

6. Design great packaging for your items

Packaging plays a crucial functional role in safeguarding items throughout transit until the buyer opens the box. If the consumer receives a broken product, their opinion of your business will be affected. It is also important to ensure that the packaging is easy to open, as this improves the customer experience.

Choose the right colors for your logo and typeface, since this impacts the customers’ buying decisions. We highly recommend involving print experts in the packaging process for the best results.

7. Win customer loyalty

All the above-mentioned things will help build a loyal customer base, but there is still more that you can do to have repeat customers and have them recommend you to their friends. Introducing loyalty programs is an excellent way to do this.

People are of the notion that members receive services that are more special than ordinary customers. This increases their likelihood of participating in loyalty programs and recommending your goods to others.

8. Upgrade your customer service

Customer contentment is essential to the success of any business. Since some problems are bound to occur, offer your customers a reasonable method for resolving them. Never disregard a complaint. Respond to emails, phone calls, and letters as soon as possible. Make refunds and apologies. Give out free merchandise, or do whatever it takes to pacify a dissatisfied consumer. Always honor warranties and guarantees provided on your website.

Although some customers are difficult to please, the majority believe they have a genuine complaint, and if you accept that and do your best to handle the issue quickly and equitably, you may have a client for life.