Dear Rich,

I have a website and many [handmade apparel items] and some traffic but no buyers. How can I get a buyer?

Handy in Harrison

Dear Handy,

Probably one buyer isn’t going to help; you need a regular stream of buyers if you want to turn your skill into a business. I took a quick peek at your site and here’s some feedback:

• You need more traffic. Your site is almost invisible to the search engines, so you’ll need to invest some time and money in search engine optimization (SEO). You’ll need to perform a keyword analysis so you know what your prospective buyers are looking for when they’re at Google. The name you give your product may not be the same as what your prospects call it. You’ll need to rewrite the copy throughout the site, concentrating on title-tags, headers, body copy and intra-site links. Also, check out Nicki Hicks’ Maine SEO Blog for plenty of good tips.
• Your website could be more…um…professional looking. Ouch, I know. But if you’re selling things that have an aesthetic quality, whether they’re [handmade apparel items] or plastic surgery, you need an aesthetic website.
• Your product photography is um…poor? OK, now I’m just being cruel. But it’s true: if you want to sell something, you should invest in some professional level photography. If you can’t afford it, maybe you could barter with a local photographer who needs a [handmade apparel item.]
• You need to make it easier to buy from you. I had trouble finding the product page; you should make it easy to buy products from you. Put products on the home page, and write more enticing descriptions of your product. Be persuasive.

If you can’t afford all those services–SEO, photography, copywriting and web design can add up–you might want to take a look at a site like Etsy or Shopify that will get you up and running in no time.

And good luck!

Rich Brooks
Cruel to Be Kind

Photo Credit: antwerpenR