Comments on: Successful Entrepreneur Guide – How to Get Your First Customer http://brianlinton.com/successful-entrepreneur-guide-how-to-get-your-first-customer/ Entrepreneurial Lessons and Adventures from the founder of United By Blue Sat, 28 Jan 2012 03:04:09 -0700 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.2 hourly 1 By: admin http://brianlinton.com/successful-entrepreneur-guide-how-to-get-your-first-customer/comment-page-1/#comment-701 admin Sat, 31 Jan 2009 00:31:18 +0000 http://brianlinton.com/?p=730#comment-701 hey Adam, Thanks for stopping by! To answer your questions: I actually started with wholesale. I started by just going into random stores in Cape Cod, MA and selling them wholesale quantity jewelry. Now I incorporate a small amount of retail sales into my website...but 98% of the business is still wholesale. I am a big fan of wholesale as opposed to retail. Here is why. The overhead is lower (this is only if the customer doesn't need it right away). You can take large orders, then manufacture them, then deliver. This is because most stores place orders months in advance...retail doesn't allow this, the endline consumer buys retail, and when they buy, they want it right then and there. Secondly, although the profit margin on wholesale is smaller, the quantity and overall gross revenue potential is higher. Thirdly, it is a way to get your brand out there quick and make it look bigger than it actually is. If you have a retail location you will only be able to start with that one location, it is too expensive to open multiple locations off the bat unless you have millions in funding. Wholesale allows you to get into hundreds of stores. The stores buy the product and do the hard work for you, which is selling them to endline customers (although you do want to help them sell the product in any way you can...your real profit is in the reorders). Now that my brand is 'somewhat' established I am now considering opening up a few retail locations...but I would have never done that even a year ago. A retail location has the potential to be highly profitable, but unless you have the time, money, and brand strength to make it work, it is not a good way to go. I would always recommend selling wholesale at first (and a little retail online). So that's my five cents. I hope it helped... by the way, this is a good topic for a future article. I hope you keep coming back to see what's new!!! Also, consider checking out the business model of the company 'Life is Good'. They are similar to how I operate Sand Shack. Google search life is good to read their story. Oh, and here is a related article, about tradeshows and store-to-store selling: http://brianlinton.com/is-attending-a-tradeshow-or-selling-store-to-store-better/ Cheers, Brian hey Adam,
Thanks for stopping by! To answer your questions: I actually started with wholesale. I started by just going into random stores in Cape Cod, MA and selling them wholesale quantity jewelry. Now I incorporate a small amount of retail sales into my website…but 98% of the business is still wholesale. I am a big fan of wholesale as opposed to retail. Here is why. The overhead is lower (this is only if the customer doesn’t need it right away). You can take large orders, then manufacture them, then deliver. This is because most stores place orders months in advance…retail doesn’t allow this, the endline consumer buys retail, and when they buy, they want it right then and there. Secondly, although the profit margin on wholesale is smaller, the quantity and overall gross revenue potential is higher. Thirdly, it is a way to get your brand out there quick and make it look bigger than it actually is. If you have a retail location you will only be able to start with that one location, it is too expensive to open multiple locations off the bat unless you have millions in funding. Wholesale allows you to get into hundreds of stores. The stores buy the product and do the hard work for you, which is selling them to endline customers (although you do want to help them sell the product in any way you can…your real profit is in the reorders). Now that my brand is ’somewhat’ established I am now considering opening up a few retail locations…but I would have never done that even a year ago. A retail location has the potential to be highly profitable, but unless you have the time, money, and brand strength to make it work, it is not a good way to go. I would always recommend selling wholesale at first (and a little retail online). So that’s my five cents. I hope it helped… by the way, this is a good topic for a future article. I hope you keep coming back to see what’s new!!!
Also, consider checking out the business model of the company ‘Life is Good’. They are similar to how I operate Sand Shack. Google search life is good to read their story.
Oh, and here is a related article, about tradeshows and store-to-store selling: http://brianlinton.com/is-attending-a-tradeshow-or-selling-store-to-store-better/
Cheers,
Brian

]]> By: Adam http://brianlinton.com/successful-entrepreneur-guide-how-to-get-your-first-customer/comment-page-1/#comment-702 Adam Fri, 30 Jan 2009 23:43:03 +0000 http://brianlinton.com/?p=730#comment-702 Hey Brian, Great stuff, I really enjoy hearing your opinions on entrepreneurship and actually seeing you put your words into action. I am maybe a year younger than you and I am just starting to get into entrepreneurship, so I am trying to take in any information I can get before I actually go out there and start a business or sell a product. I was wondering, what is your opinion on wholeselling versus directly selling a product? Do you think it is better to start off with one or the other? For example, directly sell your product to establish your brand then try to wholesell it? I thought I remember reading that you started off selling jewelry at the shore (I may be mistaken though). Should you keep doing both, meaning sell your product on your website and in stores (like you do for Sand Shack) or eventually focus one option? I see you suggest to use wholesale to establish your brand, but could you elaborate some more and maybe tell the pros and cons of each choice? Thanks a lot. -Adam Hey Brian,

Great stuff, I really enjoy hearing your opinions on entrepreneurship and actually seeing you put your words into action. I am maybe a year younger than you and I am just starting to get into entrepreneurship, so I am trying to take in any information I can get before I actually go out there and start a business or sell a product.

I was wondering, what is your opinion on wholeselling versus directly selling a product? Do you think it is better to start off with one or the other? For example, directly sell your product to establish your brand then try to wholesell it? I thought I remember reading that you started off selling jewelry at the shore (I may be mistaken though). Should you keep doing both, meaning sell your product on your website and in stores (like you do for Sand Shack) or eventually focus one option? I see you suggest to use wholesale to establish your brand, but could you elaborate some more and maybe tell the pros and cons of each choice? Thanks a lot.

-Adam

]]> By: admin http://brianlinton.com/successful-entrepreneur-guide-how-to-get-your-first-customer/comment-page-1/#comment-700 admin Fri, 30 Jan 2009 21:29:59 +0000 http://brianlinton.com/?p=730#comment-700 Jens, haha, yes, the singing was fun. I totally get what you mean about the video. Showing personality is difficult with words, but video is a completely different story. What I have found recently is that video is a very powerful tool online for a number of reasons. I think one of the ways I can use it better in normal posts is not to necessarily outline the entire article, but maybe use it to show a certain thing that words cannot express, sortof like how I did it in this post: http://brianlinton.com/what-if-my-company-fails/. haha, also, that's a neat analogy about the speckled gold tiles (although if I had my choice I would want pure gold, no?) Jens, haha, yes, the singing was fun. I totally get what you mean about the video. Showing personality is difficult with words, but video is a completely different story. What I have found recently is that video is a very powerful tool online for a number of reasons. I think one of the ways I can use it better in normal posts is not to necessarily outline the entire article, but maybe use it to show a certain thing that words cannot express, sortof like how I did it in this post: http://brianlinton.com/what-if-my-company-fails/. haha, also, that’s a neat analogy about the speckled gold tiles (although if I had my choice I would want pure gold, no?)

]]> By: Jens http://brianlinton.com/successful-entrepreneur-guide-how-to-get-your-first-customer/comment-page-1/#comment-699 Jens Fri, 30 Jan 2009 21:18:53 +0000 http://brianlinton.com/?p=730#comment-699 :) Don't get me wrong. This video is also very good and as you are a very telegenic person it's nice to watch what you are talking about and a video can set a course to under- or outline a certain point more specific. My point was that you should focus on being really outstanding. At the end of the Roadshow video 1.2 (or 1.3?) you are taping yourself singing in the car, that's of no entrepreneurial value, but it delivers your personality and it gives the video a great touch. So these little things are really nice. Just think of a bathroom with black tiles that got little spots of gold in it - these look way more awesome than tiles made out of pure gold. :) Don’t get me wrong. This video is also very good and as you are a very telegenic person it’s nice to watch what you are talking about and a video can set a course to under- or outline a certain point more specific. My point was that you should focus on being really outstanding.
At the end of the Roadshow video 1.2 (or 1.3?) you are taping yourself singing in the car, that’s of no entrepreneurial value, but it delivers your personality and it gives the video a great touch. So these little things are really nice. Just think of a bathroom with black tiles that got little spots of gold in it – these look way more awesome than tiles made out of pure gold.

]]> By: admin http://brianlinton.com/successful-entrepreneur-guide-how-to-get-your-first-customer/comment-page-1/#comment-698 admin Fri, 30 Jan 2009 20:35:51 +0000 http://brianlinton.com/?p=730#comment-698 Jens, Cool, thanks for the great advice and insights. I definitely agree with you on that point...it is a little repetitive eh. And real life action is more valuable and rare on the internet than a talking head sitting in the kitchen...yes...I see. Cheers, Brian Jens,
Cool, thanks for the great advice and insights. I definitely agree with you on that point…it is a little repetitive eh. And real life action is more valuable and rare on the internet than a talking head sitting in the kitchen…yes…I see.
Cheers,
Brian

]]> By: Jens http://brianlinton.com/successful-entrepreneur-guide-how-to-get-your-first-customer/comment-page-1/#comment-697 Jens Fri, 30 Jan 2009 20:31:17 +0000 http://brianlinton.com/?p=730#comment-697 I really love to watch your videos, but what I find is, that if your post is about something more "technical" or about strategy its better to just write some text. Video is fine for all the lazy fellahs, but it can be also some kind of an overload. Plain text is also better for selective reading. On the other hand: The video in your persistence-post is priceless. There is no substitude for that. It was awesome to see you operate under real conditions. No bla bla or creepy talk, plain, direct action. So when there is a more emotional or real action topic than a video is really invaluable. And I think too many clips won't keep your blog real, like a blog is meant to be - just oldsk00l. I really love to watch your videos, but what I find is, that if your post is about something more “technical” or about strategy its better to just write some text. Video is fine for all the lazy fellahs, but it can be also some kind of an overload. Plain text is also better for selective reading.

On the other hand: The video in your persistence-post is priceless. There is no substitude for that. It was awesome to see you operate under real conditions. No bla bla or creepy talk, plain, direct action. So when there is a more emotional or real action topic than a video is really invaluable.

And I think too many clips won’t keep your blog real, like a blog is meant to be – just oldsk00l.

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