Loading...
Answers
MenuI have a skincare brand of 3 amazing products but it has been very difficult to get sales. How can I sell my inventory without breaking the bank?
I have a skincare brand of organic, natural, vegan, and cruelty-free products. I have 3 products so far and formulas for the rest of the line but it has been very difficult to get sales and I am thinking of selling the inventory that I have (2,500 bottles of each one of my three products), and then analyze how to relaunch the brand. But first, I need to monetize and the only way to do this is by selling my inventory. Should I find a distributor and if so, where do I find a good one?
Answers
Consider working with social media influencers (either YouTube or Instagram) to get your product out there. Assuming you have a website setup and can sell product directly, micro influencers are are great way to spread awareness and drive people to your website.
First of all, well done you for starting a business and taking a risk! Tricky especially with the minimum order quantities that you had probably to submit to....
It is really difficult to answer your question as we don't know if your product is not selling because the product is bad, the price too high, the target group is wrong, the ads are not connecting or the distribution channels are wrong, or all of this or something else :)
In anycase, in general you will most likely sell those products at loss whatever the channel you select. Therefore my suggestion, assuming your product is good (we could spend time defining what "good" is but let's keep this for a future discussion), is to send it as a gift to people that :
- can give you feedback or reviews on the product
- can be your future partners (Social media influencers, journalists, retailers...)
- family and friends .... and anybody who you could ask a favor to in the future ;)
Before you do that, I'm happy to jump on a call to understand what should be fixed in your offering, communication or distribution. It might be only a couple of elements.
Hello. All i can say is that you can sale your beauty brands in the following ways without breaking a bank.
You will need to set up your online store in case you do not have one. I will recommend signing up at- https://www.bluehost.com/track/caesim/ since they have affordable rates, free SSL certificate, and a free domain name for the first year. Try out their free trial, i am sure it will cost you nothing.
Now use your website to describe the texture, application, finish, and use of the product. Customers do not have access to trying your product on their own skin. So be as detailed as possible. Keep it less cluttered while adding full ingredient listings, warnings, allergy notices and beauty tips. Enhance product pages with large clear images of the product on a white back ground. Consider using more media like videos and make up tutorials can live on product pages or gallery on the website. Bluehost has nice themes which are fully customizable and can accommodate your brand’s logo, fonts, colours and design.
Market your beauty products. The beauty space is so challenging and competitive for emerging brands, while the industry is saturated with large brands that have even larger ad spends. Now for your case if you do not want to break a bank then i would recommend you sign up for a marketing software called GetResponse at https://www.getresponse.com/?a=WVK9TnCHHf. Depending on your niche audience, identify them, find out where they hang out, speak their language.
Tip. Email marketing will be an important means to get you sales and all this is possible with Get Response. GetResponse is a powerful tool , simplified tool to send emails, create pages, and automate your marketing. By the way, they have a free trial which you can decide to try out. So with GetResponse you will get leads, sales and your business will grow.
Also use the power of social proof and product reviews. Study shows that 70% of people say they look at product reviews before making a purchase. Word of mouth from your average customer can be powerful. So consider offering discounts on future purchases or send product samples to encourage sharing which in the end will give reviews to your products hence making more sales.
You can also use brand partnerships and use of beauty influencers. There are people who make their living by promoting other brands. An example is James Charles who has been viewed more than 43 million times. Most beauty customers are turning to their online influencers on TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram before buying a product. If you decide to partner with an influencer , there are many lesser- known creators with smaller but engaged audiences who may be more affordable to work with if you are just starting out and you do not want to break a bank.
If you follow the above methods then am sure you will be able to sale your beauty products without breaking a bank and more so i am available for a strategy call just in case you have more questions. Let me know what you think or share with me what you think will be appropriate for you to sale your beauty products from the above methods.
I think the best way for you to sell your products would be a product funnel (a lead magnet with opt-in page, a really good sales page for each product, a checkout page and email automation).
If you want to sell more than one product at a time or build a brand you'll benefit from a website with a home page, about and contact page.
Next, send as much traffic as you can afford to your sales pages with FB ads.
This is a reliable way to make sales and grow your brand. Probably one of the fastest too.
However, I don't know what your numbers are... so Facebook Ads may not be affordable.
I'm able to get leads for $0.41 cents, but I've seen average cost per lead metrics ranging from $4 to $22. And that's just leads (email signups) only a percentage of your leads will convert to customers.
My conversion rates are between 10% and 60%, but most people convert below 10% (many times at 1%). That means less than 10% of the people who's email addresses you collect will actually buy one of your products. That's why it's important to grow your subscriber list.
If you're looking for the lowest cost solutions, try the influencer marketing as someone else mentioned. You can get some big wins with this strategy.
This article should give you a good start:
https://www.bigcommerce.com/blog/instagram-influencer-marketing
You can also try selling on FB Marketplace, ETSY or eBay.
Tip #1: Your best option is almost always paid ads (if you know what your doing). They really are cheaper and get results faster... but, you need to have some money to invest in your ad spend.
Tip #2: If you don't know what you're doing, hire it out. Marketing doesn't break the bank. It's an investment. If you're not making $5-$10+ for every $1 dollar you invest in marketing or advertising, you should hire it out.
If you need more information or clarification, book a free consultation.
Securing a professional business coach or a mentor that is affordable and specialize in marketing will be the best investment you can make at this point. They will be able to help you with packaging and messaging that will help you stand out and attract buying customers to you. It may take you awhile but don't give up. If you want to explore some options with me I will be glad to connect.
Hi! Great question. Have you considered contacting both large and small subscription box companies? They're always looking to buy new, innovative products and you could offer them wholesale so that you take some profits home. The other idea you could also try out is selling at local markets. Hope this helps and am happy to throw out some more ideas if needed!
Related Questions
-
What should my consulting rates be as a freelance developer who can also do SEO, social media optimization and other marketing services?
Pricing for different tasks that require the same amount of time from you tells the Customer (and your subconscious) that you're working at a 5 on task x, but working at a 9 on task y simply because it costs/earns more. That seems to be a disconnect. Your time is your most precious asset, and I would charge for it whatever you're doing. If you build a site, and they are happy with your dev fee, but feel like you should charge less for SEO, simply let them find another SEO guy. That's their choice, but YOU are worth $xx.xx, no matter what you're doing. Also, in general, take whatever you're charging and add 10% to it. If you're still busy, add another 10%. Let the demand level determine how much work you do, and at what cost.SL
-
How can a small offshore development company find companies/software sales people to sell their service in the US/UK?
My company does a lot of consulting with offshore firms who are looking for a way to generate new business, so I hear this question a lot. My first reaction is that you need to totally reverse your mindset when you talk about your own company. You mentioned that you have: a great software developers team, proven track record, passion, real value But, everyone says that. There a 10,000 companies that have those things, so a customer isn't going to notice it. You need to figure out what your company is best at (doesn't have to be technical) and present it as a solution to a specific problem that clients have. Maybe a speciality, or really good project management, really good communications, a special expertise or experience, a personality, experience with a certain type of client.. really anything.. But, there must be some thing that makes your company 'special' otherwise you will be lost in the mix. Don't worry about things like rates, or the fact that you have 'great' developers. Those are generic. Think about why a client would really choose you, and try to build on that! After you understand your company identity, it gets much easier to identify and engage marketing channels because you understand your target.DH
-
Whats the best way to find commission sales reps?
This is not my specialty, however, I have been in your position many many times -- maybe this will help. If the product is in-tangible, then look for JV partners on the Internet. Try to find an expert that deals with these JV opportunities (like me). If the product is physical, then look for sales organizations that have networks of sales people across the country. You do the deal with the organization and the independent network of sales people sells your product. It's a sweet setup if you can negotiate a margin that works for everyone. Hope that helps - Cheers - NickNP
-
What do (bootstrapped) startups offer to new sales hires? Commission only? What are some good examples to keep people motivated and still survive?
Generally bootstrapped startups should avoid salespeople, for a few reasons: a. they typically can't afford the base and overall comp required to attract sales people who can actually sell / or afford to support them with marketing, management, etc b. it will be very difficult to find the rare person with the right mix of sales and startup DNA along with the critical domain knowledge, consequently the startup is likely to settle c. the founders need to be very involved in the selling and customers will demand it That said, if the plan is still to hire a salesperson, find someone who has demonstrated sales success in startups and is excited by the early stage in company building. Create a comp plan heavily leveraged on sales results (unless you are in an industry where 100% commission is a common practice, would recommend against $0 base as this creates the false impression that your hire isn't passing time with one company while looking for another job with a richer comp plan - you want your rep focussed). Sell the vision and opportunity to be part of a growth story. I have written a several blog posts on hiring sales people into start-ups. You might find these useful: http://www.peaksalesrecruiting.com/ceo-question-should-i-learn-to-sell-or-hire-a-sales-person/ http://www.peaksalesrecruiting.com/start-up-sales-and-hiring-advice-dont-stop-selling-once-you-hire-your-first-sales-rep/ http://www.peaksalesrecruiting.com/hiring-start-up-sales-reps/ http://www.peaksalesrecruiting.com/startups-and-salespeople/ Good luck!EB
-
Recommended copywriting course?
Writing skills are best learned through practice, critique, and revision. Curriculum is a waste, in my opinion – that is, listening to generalizations about how to write something other than the task at hand. Only the actual words on the page are worth discussing. Not rules. Maybe courses would be worthwhile if they entail a lot of hands-on interaction with a brutally honest, pragmatic instructor. What your team would really learn from, I suspect, is watching someone perform surgery on their copy, pausing to explain why the guts are being ripped out here, why the sutures are stitched up in such and such a manner there, etc. Consider hiring someone to workshop in person with your team. No prearranged abstract curriculum. Just critique.JP
the startups.com platform
Copyright © 2025 Startups.com. All rights reserved.