The FREE DomainTools Android App is HERE

The FREE DomainTools Android App is HERE:
Great news for those of you who have been asking about a DomainTools Android app — it’s now available in the Google Play store! If you have an Android device, let us know what you think about it, as we’d love to know what you like or how we can improve on it. Comment on this blog or email is at MemberServices (at) DomainTools (dot) com.
For those of you who just want a sneak peak at what it does – check out this video overview:
DomainTools Android App Preview
The new Android app provides Whois Lookups on domain names together with website screenshots, key registration dates, and valuable domain profile stats. Like our web-based Whois Lookup product, the DomainTools app combines data from multiple sources into a single view to give a complete perspective a domain’s ownership and history.
We’ll be announcing more details about our whole mobile strategy soon, so there’s more to come…

Register with our blog and create your own posts here.

Keeping you Updated on the Score

Keeping you Updated on the Score:

Tweet

Here at Klout, we process terabytes of data every day to help you understand and leverage your influence. We have our own internal metrics to verify that every network is being processed correctly and scoring runs smoothly. We know that processing this data correctly is part of what makes people trust Klout.

This weekend we experienced a bug with our pipeline for processing data for LinkedIn, and this resulted in a score drop for about 0.001% of our scored population which lasted approximately eight hours on Sunday. We know that even though the number of affected users isn’t large, it’s a big deal to anyone who is relying on the score and we take it very seriously.

We’re working to ensure we keep you, our users, updated about any issues we experience and work to resolve them quickly. We’ve setup a dedicated @KloutStatus twitter account, so you can follow the updates as they happen

We’re always working to improve our processes and we have big improvements coming very soon. If you think you can help, we’re hiring.

A Quality Score Rant Plus 3 Suggestions For The Engines To Improve It

A Quality Score Rant Plus 3 Suggestions For The Engines To Improve It: Far too much has been written about Quality Score already and I’m loathe to add to the pile, but I have some ideas that might help us all. The exact recipes for Quality Score on Google and Bing are unknown, and it is that uncertainty that creates so much room for mischief and blather....



Please visit Search Engine Land for the full article.

How To Create Content That Engages Your Audience

How To Create Content That Engages Your Audience:

More Engagement – Better Rankings

There are a whole list of benefits for creating content that engages your audience. You build relationships through interacting. Your links are shared more often through social media. People comment on your blog posts. Your follow-base will stay on your site longer. And above all, Google will start to rank you higher in the search engines; allowing you to expand to a larger audience. These are the most important, I feel. But what needs to take place for this to happen? I’m going to share with you a few tips that I find quite helpful!

Content Is King

Remember, without good content – your site will never go anywhere. You must start to develop and post new and informative information. Writing articles that answer questions and solve problems are key to your success. If you have solved someones problem or answered their exact question; chances are they will not only come back, but tell others about your site.

Good Titles Are Crucial!

Writing compelling titles are more crucial than you may think. Remember, these are the very first words a reader reads when visiting your latest post – if the headline isn’t enticing, they will just click the ‘back’ button in their browser and leave. It is also what a person reads when your link is floating around on social media -  your title should be designed to get a reader to click the link; if you fail to do this, you could be missing out on a lot of traffic!

Easy To Comment And Share

We are now living in a society where everybody wants everything right this moment – no waiting. If you want a better chance at readers sharing your link – you must make sharing simple. Install a Plugin on your blog that makes it easy. Shareaholic is one example; there are many others. Nobody wants to take the time to highlight, copy, and paste the URL to their social media page. Though this is simple, a reader many may avoid sharing just because it takes an extra 3 seconds. Get a Plugin and increase your odds.

Call To Action

If you really want someone to share your link – ask them! Most readers will not even think about sharing content unless you remind them. Hint at it or ask politely, but don’t demand it.

Build Relationships With Your Readers

This is the most crucial tip I can give you. Imagine going to a very well-known site and you happened to leave a comment. You were notified that someone left a comment on yours, through e-mail. You go back to the site to check the comment and it was the actual site that commented on your comment and they thanked you for doing so! Is that friendly or what? What are the odds that you will head back to that site in the near future just because of this reason alone? My guess is pretty good. Relationships are very effective. If you show your reader that you care – they will visit and participate more often!

In A Nutshell

The reality is, if you want to have a long-lasting site that is ranked high in the search engines and have a large follow-base; you are going to have to put a little bit of elbow grease in to it. Think of the sites that are not doing this – if you want to stand out from your competition in your niche market, you will need to work a little harder and smarter. Food for thought. Hope this helps!

Brock is the current CEO of Worldline Marketing and owner of How to Sponsor. The company focuses on assisting average people earn a healthy income working from home. He enjoys traveling, hiking, and meeting new people.

Google Analytics Webinar: Getting started with Multi-Channel Funnels

Google Analytics Webinar: Getting started with Multi-Channel Funnels:

A few weeks ago we launched Multi-Channel Funnels, a powerful tool to help you understand all the online interactions that lead your users to conversion. With five insightful reports, you can now measure the full conversion path, from first interaction to last click. More important, Multi-Channel Funnels provides actionable analysis about how your marketing channels work together, and answers key questions such as:

• How much time does the average user take between first interaction and conversion?


• How many interactions does it take to convert?


• Which of my marketing channels are “assisting” conversions and which are “closers”?

To help you get the most out of this tool, we’ve scheduled a webinar to walk through the new reports and go over common uses with Bill Kee, the Product Manager for Multi-Channel Funnels.

Title: Getting started with Multi-Channel Funnels

Date: October 11, 2011

Time: 10am PST

Register for the webinar

Have questions about Multi-Channel Funnels? Send them to us ahead of the webinar so we can make sure to answer them. You can also vote for the questions you want to see answered most. You can submit your questions on our Google Moderator page.

If you can't attend the webinar, please check the Google Analytics YouTube Channel for a recording about a week after the live event. You can also read more from the initial announcement of Multi-Channel Funnels and watch a video about the tool.

We hope that you will be able to participate!

Posted by Sara Jablon Moked, Product Marketing Manager, Google Analytics team

Google Sandbox – How we scrambled out

Google Sandbox – How we scrambled out:

 

Recently we had one of our clients experience what some online professionals call, the Google Sandbox effect. Over the course of almost a month we researched our problem, and the problems of others online, to find out what it exactly was, and what, if anything, we could do about it.

What is the Sandbox Effect?

First there is a lot of debate as to if it exists at all. However we can clearly show, with one of our domains at least, that there was an instance of this phenomenon occurring. A website, with a new domain, in a highly competitive niche, first experienced relatively good rankings for a few weeks. Then, suddenly, the ranking dropped across the board to levels well below what would be expected. In the early stages not a single thing could be done about it. We focussed only on links from highly authoritative sources, but there was not a single movement in position for a few weeks. Matt Cutts has already said something cryptic on the matter;

Q: Does the sandbox exist? A: Matt said here comes the audience part? How many feel there is a sandbox? How many feel there is no such thing as a sandbox? SEOs normally split down the line. There are some things in the algorithm that may be perceived as a sandbox that doesn’t apply to all industries. He knows it works to keep some spam out.

Basically, from what we can tell, if you are in a very competitive industry, you will find some keywords are have built in mechanisms to stop a range of spam. These mechanisms kick in to stop “over optimised” sites from showing up in the early stages.

How long does it last?

In our experience, this only lasted about 3 weeks. Some people have claimed it can last months, but we guess this would happen with spammy sites, or sites that don’t have much content and are struggling with good quality links. The thing you have to remember with Google is that there are less than a handful of instances where a website has been singled out for punishment, or reprieve. If you are in the sandbox, normal SEO and website behaviour will get you out.

How did we get out?

Three key things to getting out;

1. Time. If you are being blacklisted by Google, then time is the only thing you can rely on. If your content is good, and gets organic links, Google will not keep you in the dungeon for long.
2. Organic Links. Normal linking behaviour from sites that have good quality signals are what it is all about. If you can get links that look natural, or maybe even actually are, then it is hard for any algorithm to keep punishing you.
3. Good content. In this instance I am not even talking about a blog entry or two. Good content just means original information that Google can see is worth reading. Make your pages make sense to humans and you will be fine.

Related posts:

1. The Fallout from Google Panda – Not Permanent
2. What is Google Panda? (AKA Farmer Update)
3. The Panda Fallout – Has Google Missed The Mark?

Banned By Google – The Many Possible Transgressions

Banned By Google – The Many Possible Transgressions:

There are many ways you can be punished by Google. The punishment usually involves your website being removed from the world’s largest Search Engine. Here are a list of ways that Google has found to punish sites either specifically or generally across the board. If your website is completely banned, you can submit your site for reconsideration, if you have addressed the problem.

1. Not protecting yourself, or your website. If your website is hacked, and you find yourself at the wrong end of a Malware attack, Google will show little sympathy.
2. Use hidden text or hidden links. It used to be fun in the old days to use white text on a white background. Or to use the CSS tag “Display:none”. But now it is an explicit no-no.
3. Use cloaking or sneaky redirects. 301 redirects are generally the most widely accepted methods, because it is clear what you are doing to the browser. Using anything that sends users to one page, and search engines to another is a massive rule breaker.
4. Send automated unauthorised queries to Google. You could easily fall foul of this if you set up a system to check the ranking of a website on Google, without protection against massive traffic using the system. Google Apps have an API you can use to do just this without actually affecting your IP address.
5. Load pages with irrelevant keywords. This is sometimes called over optimisation, and can result in your website being punished. It basically falls under the banner of quality content.
6. Create multiple pages, subdomains, or domains with substantially duplicate content. Some systems allow you to create pages automatically based on certain search queries. If your WordPress website has a particular type of search bar, then it will do this. You have to be careful that the pages are marked correctly, and that there is enough content there to show the search robot, and the reader, that the page is either content or search information.
7. Create duplicate content. If you have an automated content scraper, or you allow other authors onto your site, you may come across this. At the moment I have never seen this affect entire sites completely, but if you don’t have enough original content generally, then your domain quality signal could be reduced.
8. Create pages with malicious behavior, such as phishing or installing viruses, trojans, or other badware. Again, you may do this by accident or even for fun. If you spoof the Google log in page (or any other page like a bank etc), even as a joke, if people could be confused, you are breaking the rules.
9. Create affiliate programs with little or no original content. Affiliate programs are a popular way to sell products on the web. However you have to make sure that you are not copying the information across from the vendors website without adding any other information. You could add your own spin on why you are endorsing the product. You could build unique testimonials from other users.
10. Dont add value. Provide unique and relevant content that gives users a reason to visit your site first.
11. Use words that are from a known ban list. Be careful when using words like “Joints” or “Sex” in the description of your business. Your whole website could be affected by being slapped with an “adult content” tag, or could be removed from Google Places.
12. Overuse Adwords or other advertising. Google pushes its own platform, but only wants it to be used on quality sites. In the last Panda update, Google specifically singled out sites that have used Adwords heavily on their sites to drive revenue. In our post on the subject, the main question you should be asking yourself would be “Would you trust the information on this site?”.
13. Link to bad places. If you are linking to site that can cause someone to download malicious content, or that might be seen as a site that breaks one of Google’s rules, then you can suffer too.
14. Link out to too many irrelevant websites. This is known as a link farm, and is seen as offering no value.
15. Try to manipulate your Page Rank. Even though PR is relatively meaningless, if you use “nofollow” “noindex”, and other particular internal linking methods in a way to manipulate your PR, then you could fall foul of this rule.
16. Sell links. You can charge an admin fee for setting up a directory, but you cannot blanket sell links back to a website.
17. Offer financial incentives for people to link to you. There was a recent story of a University Book store that offered a discount to people who provided a link to their site. Their website was quickly banned across all keywords. This was one of the few times one website was particularly targeted in this way.
18. Don’t create systems that can manipulate outbound links in any way. If you give away a free services, such as templates or plugins that link back to you, don’t use those links to manipulate the system

Related posts:

1. What is a link farm?
2. Sitemaps And SEO – Do Sitemaps Help Your Google PageRank?
3. Google sets sights on boring sites

The Most Widespread Ways To Get Web Traffic

The Most Widespread Ways To Get Web Traffic:

In fact, there are many different ways how you can actually get traffic online. But in this article we will certainly explore only some of the most widespread ways to get web traffic. And thus you can get this kind of traffic through paid advertising which is clearly known as pay-per-click advertising. Besides, when you actually have PPC advertising, you definitely pay money each time when some persons really click on your ad.

Of course, Google certainly has the most widespread paid advertising program. However, there are some other web sites which offer paid advertising. Well, besides PPC advertising, there are some other ways, for example such as CPI advertising. And with this type of advertising, you definitely pay for the cost per thousand impressions of the ad.

For sure, this is commonly reserved for larger advertisers, thus many various small businesses actually advertise their products and services through pay-per-click. Moreover, there is another way to really get traffic to your web site: through free traffic. And thus when doing a Google search, the white section of search results is free traffic. But it is also known as organic traffic.

In fact, Google certainly decides which pages exactly must appear in the search results based on some complicated Google formulas. In addition, many individuals obviously have no idea how particularly Google decides which results must appear. Well, for many different sites, it is quite essential to get as high in the search results as only possible.

However, a big part of all the searches for any special keyword will definitely come in the first three spots of Google. And finally, getting into those three spots of the search results is very important to the success of your business. Of course, this way you can really get free traffic from the major search engines without paying for it. You should remember this!

Small wonder that every site requires website traffic today as it directly influences one’s online business. There exist many ways to attract traffic and one can take advantage of free traffic which can be driven from this free traffic site.

Possibly Related Posts:

• How To Get Targeted Web Traffic


• How To Get Massive Web Traffic


• Uncover Excellent Key Terms By Using Market Samurai


• Ways To Generate Web Traffic


• How To Get Free Web Traffic Working For You

 

Video Marketing Workshop

Video Marketing Workshop is exactly what it says on the tin,...

Share and Enjoy:

How To Get Targeted Web Traffic

How To Get Targeted Web Traffic:

To make sales online, it is necessary for you to receive targeted web traffic. All web traffic could potentially lead to sales, but it is only targeted web traffic that will bring you the most money.

In fact, there are a lot of different ways to get targeted web traffic. You have to know that some of these methods will cost you money while others are for free. Remember that all you need to have is a great strategy, determination, positive attitude and some patience. If you are planning to get your targeted web traffic to come through search engines, article marketing, links from other websites and many others, you have to develop a strategy and follow it.

If you have enough money to spend on your website, then you can purchase advertising space on a website similar to yours, but more popular online. You have to know that the investment could be worth it, especially if the website has a page ranking of at least five or six. That way your advertisement will be seen not only by many people, but these people will be targeted. Having your page linked to a similar website with a higher page rank than your website will increase yours as well.

If you are planning to develop your website with search engine optimization, you have to be ready to do some hard work. Remember that search engine optimization and article writing go always together. In the case of search engine optimization it is necessary to write several articles a week with approximate keyword density of about 2%-4%. As well it is necessary for you to make sure that all your articles are interesting and well written.

As well it is necessary to add a lot of great meta tags to your website. But if you are not sure about what keywords to use, there are a lot of different search engine optimization specialists out there to help you.

Small wonder that every site needs web traffic today as it directly influences one’s Internet business. There exist many ways to attract traffic and one can make use of free traffic which can be obtained on this web traffic site.

Possibly Related Posts:

• The Most Widespread Ways To Get Web Traffic


• How To Get Massive Web Traffic


• Uncover Excellent Key Terms By Using Market Samurai


• Ways To Generate Web Traffic


• How To Get Free Web Traffic Working For You

 

Video Marketing Workshop

Video Marketing Workshop is exactly what it says on the tin,...

Share and Enjoy:

Google Adds “Standout” Tag for Featured News Content

Keeping you up to date with the new Standout Tag. ~elaine


Google Adds “Standout” Tag for Featured News Content: Google announced a new content tag for the U.S. News edition, allowing publishers to point to “standout” content within their own or other publications.


The new tag, placed in the HTML header of articles, is visible only to automated...

Internet Marketing Techniques For Those Who Want To Quit Their Day Jobs

Internet Marketing Techniques For Those Who Want To Quit Their Day Jobs:

Marketers who are serious about making their Internet marketing businesses as strong as possible know they will one day need to walk away from their day jobs in order to continue growing. The following article deals with a few easy to apply tips that can help you on your journey towards quitting your day job and taking on your Internet business full time.

Share Your Goals: The time that you need the highest amount of motivation and encouragement is right after you quit your day job and start to focus on your Internet marketing business. You can’t proceed with such a large change unless you’re totally determined and committed.

One thing that can make a big difference at this time is having a support network around you; when you share your plans and objectives with friends and family, it will make you feel more confident knowing that you’re not alone in your endeavor. Another advantage to talking about your objectives is that this will make everything clearer to you, and this can sometimes make you more alert to the next opportunity that awaits you. This isn’t hard to do. You can start with people such as your loved ones who support your aspirations. You never know where this will lead, as someone close to you may put you in contact with people who can help you with your online marketing endeavors. Figure out what you’ll be doing when your perfect day rolls around. How would you make use of this time? You should not leave your day job until you know the answer and are confident about it’s impact. When are you going to get up from bed? What kind of work will you have to do? How would you spend your time learning and unlearning? How will you stay in shape mentally and physically? The more details you can plan for your perfect day the better prepared you’ll be to make that day a reality. Although it might be difficult in the beginning it’s a good idea to practice envisioning this perfect day so that you can make it a reality.

You must have faith that you can do this and make money doing it before you even think about leaving the security your 9 to 5 job represents behind. It’s true there are no limits to what you can do with your Internet marketing business. If you’ve made it to where you are now without a driving passion behind you, can you imagine how different your future will look when you’re able to use passion to guide you? Building to a point where IM can replace your salary does take some time but dedication and diligence make the time fly so much faster. The only thing between you and Internet marketing riches is the proper mindset.

Brandpreventie and Domeinaam Check are a couple of sites the creator operates.

That time of the month again….accounting

That time of the month again….accounting:

One of the biggest obstacles when I was starting out was accounting and everything that went with it. I went to design school not business school, so I knew what looked good, but didn’t know how to legally sell it and be recognized as a legitimate business. Luckily, long time personal accountant, Mike Brandt was available to take on a new business account and help guide me to establishing Pixie Chicago as a documented business.

He was also kind enough to answer my questions to help out other small companies and wrap their heads around this whole accounting thing we all dread doing every month.

What form of business entity should you establish?

The form of business really depends on the size of your business and any personal exposure you might have. Generally, starting out if your annual sales are less than $75,000 you can be a sole proprietor. Then as your business grows you should look at incorporating either as an S-Corporation or a LLC.

What are the most important things to have when starting a business?

You want to show the IRS that you are in business to earn a profit and not just writing off losses from a hobby. The best way to show this is to apply for a federal employment identification number (FEIN), get a bank account with your business name, insurance for your business if needed, letterhead with your business name & address, a city business license and other things of this nature that show you are a business. This will help you deduct any losses you might incur in the early years.

How often would you recommend small businesses update their accounting?

This would depend on the amount of business being done, how many business transactions you have. Every 3 months would give the owner a pretty good idea of how their business is performing. If the business generates a lot of activity, you should update your records every month.

What is the best way to pay yourself or an employee out of your company?

As a sole proprietor, you can draw money out as needed. Since you report your company’s net income on your personal income taxes, there is no need to formally set yourself up on payroll. If you incorporate, you have to pay yourself through payroll which involves paying income taxes -social security, federal and state. Anytime you have employees you have to pay them through payroll whether you’re a sole proprietor or incorporated. You could pay employees as independent workers however the IRS prefers everybody to be payroll employees.

When do you need to start paying estimated taxes?

I recommend paying estimated taxes once you figure your federal tax liability will be more than $1,000.

Advantages of Hiring an Accounting Professional (via Freelance Folder)

There are some definite advantages to hiring an accounting professional to take care of your business accounting needs. Having an accountant handle your finances can:

• Ensure that your bookkeeping is set up the right way, legally and practically


• Make things easier for you when your taxes are due


• Help you discover potential problems


• Provide a second set of eyes to eliminate math mistakes


• Reduce your tax bill by making you aware of all the deductions and credits that may be available to you as a self-employed person


• Give you pertinent advice customized to your specific situation


• Free up your time so that you can focus on tasks that are more central to the core of your business

Why Pixie Chicago uses an accountant vs. QuickBooks:

After signing up for QuickBooks, I soon realized it was a mistake. I still needed an accountant to answer my tax questions, it was too expensive, and it’s also quite complicated; filled with features that were not relevant to my company. When I found myself emailing Mike questions about QuickBooks and how to use it, I decided to narrow down my sources (and expenses) to only an accountant.

If you find a knowledgeable accountant, they should be able to answer business questions for you which QuickBooks obviously cannot as it’s just a software program. Mike was kind enough to provide Oh My Handmade Goodness readers with his email, if anyone is looking for an accountant or if they have specific questions feel free to contact him: Mike Brandt: michaelb20@comcast.net.

Do you have any other questions about small business accounting? Share them below in the comments!

How to Make Handmade Buyers Sit Up and Take Notice

How to Make Handmade Buyers Sit Up and Take Notice:

“The Beggar” by mattscoggin



Our family dog, Daisy, is a basset hound mix whose favorite pastime is . . . well, sleeping. In fact, she sleeps so soundly that she often snores. She is quite inactive most of the time, but I know a little trick to make her sit up and take notice. Tennis shoes.

Even though Daisy likes to sleep, she also loves to go for walks with our family. As soon as I pull my tennis shoes out of the closet, she starts wagging her tail and gets about as excited as a basset hound can be. Who knew that tennis shoes could send a dog into an excited frenzy?

Just as I get out my tennis shoes when I want Daisy to get ready for our walk, handmade sellers can follow a few steps to make customers sit up and take notice. With all of the fabulous handmade product websites on the World Wide Web these days, you may be wondering how to entice customers to purchase from your shop. Read on for 6 ways to make your handmade shop noticeable.

1. Sell a Unique Product

Of course, you don’t have to invent a brand-new product to sell it successfully online. You do, however, need to present it uniquely and/or create a product that takes a different “spin” on an already-known product.

2. Describe the Product in a Way that Convinces Customers to Buy

As you know, great product descriptions are the key to selling more products. You must (1) catch the customer’s attention; (2) describe the details of the product so that the customer feels comfortable purchasing it; and (3) convince the customer that his/her life won’t be complete without it!

For more tips about how to write irresistible product descriptions, you might enjoy my free e-course.

3. Sell Your Products in an Attractive Environment

Handmade sellers have several options for selling their products, and each venue must be as attractive as possible.

* Your online shop

* Your brick & mortar shop (if applicable)

* Your craft fair booth

* Your product photos

As soon as prospective customers enter your selling venue (real or virtual), they should experience the “wow factor”!

4. Communicate with your customers

Make them customers for life by communicating in a way that is (1) prompt, (2) helpful, and (3) passionate. Communicate about shipping times and follow up after the product has arrived.

Here are some links with more information about effective communication:

6 Ways to Exceed Your Handmade Customers’ Shipping Expectations

How Great Communication Can Improve Sales and Grow Your Repeat Customer Base

5. Build Your Brand with Fabulous Social Media Venues

Do your blog, your Facebook fan page, and your Twitter page work together to attract customers and strengthen your brand? Yes, these venues take time and effort to keep fresh and fantastic, but they build a closer relationship between your business and your customers.

If a blog, a Facebook page, and a Twitter presence are too many “balls” to juggle at once, focus on one venue and make that one great. You can always add other ones later.

6. Share Customer Testimonials

Shoppers considering making a purchase from your shop often believe the word of previous customers more than they believe your own description of the product. Add a testimonial or two at the end of each product description, or set up a testimonials page on your blog. Use this powerful tool to your advantage!

Additional reading about testimonials:

Tap Into the Power of Customer Testimonials

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Evaluate your handmade business: are you pulling out the “tennis shoes” to catch your customers’ attention? What small changes can you make today that will make your customers sit up and take notice?

Entering the Wholesale Market

Entering the Wholesale Market:

 

You have a fantastic product, even a loyal fan base and you’re ready to expand. How do you get your products into retail stores? It is an interesting challenge that Anointment is navigating right now. With a store having to choose between a myriad of products, how do you make YOUR product stand out from the bunch? This is the big question.

The answer is complicated, but here is a checklist of items to think about as you approach stores with your product.

1. Have a quality product, image and branding to go with it. I’ve seen it stated before, even right here on Oh My! Handmade but it bears repeating. Get it right before you take it to market. Your product is fantastic and retailers will want to research your website and promotional material – and will judge you and your business accordingly. Once a customer has tried your product, hopefully they will be hooked – but getting them to buy is key!

2. Social Media. Anointment is on Facebook, Twitter, a personal blog and Oh My! Handmade. I update Facebook frequently – usually on a daily basis and strive for blog posts at least three times a week. Of course, the blog posts are not always business related, but as always with me, life is business, and business is life. I like to think I’m a pretty well rounded person, so you’re going to get a little bit of everything. The great thing about social media is the connectivity and the customer feedback.

3. Farmer’s Markets and Craft Fairs. Anointment began at the historic Halifax, Nova Scotia Farmer’s Market in 2002. In 2011 my family and I moved from Halifax to Sackville, New Brunswick where we now participate in a much smaller but very well supported farmer’s market. We have met so many fantastic people in the four short months we’ve been doing it and have received press in a regional newspaper and opened a successful new wholesale account as a result – you never know who you might meet on Market Day.

4. Hire a Sales Representative. We have retained the services of a regional sales representative with contacts throughout the region in a variety of types of retail stores. A sales representative will have long-standing relationships with store owners and be armed with product knowledge, anecdotes about how the products are doing in other stores, catalogues, order forms and samples. Our rep has been working on opening new accounts in areas of the region where we are less able to reach individually. Be sure that the sales representative you hire will represent you in a way that is favourable – do your research, ask for references. When I owned a retail store I had one representative who came in with greasy samples, smeared business cards and body odour. I wish I was joking. Keep in mind that working with a sales representative means creating an agreement over their territory, commission and how you will manage any existing retail accounts within that territory. Be clear and put your agreement on paper. There are many variables.

5. Use your contacts. It’s all about who you know. If you’ve fostered relationships with retail store owners via social media, LinkedIn, a former job or other means – use it. Send a personal or personalized letter along with a catalogue and samples and follow up within two weeks with a phone call. If you have retailers that haven’t ordered for some time, send them one too, particularly if you have updated your branding, launched new products, received an award, etc.

6. Flexibility. I have set up a number of new accounts on consignment. It’s a gamble – some may work, some may not, but it is a means of reaching stores you admire or where you think your product will do well without an initial investment on the part of the store itself. Particularly in today’s economy, stores are typically working with less capital and having to compete harder with discounters.

7. Support your retailers. Don’t forget to support your retailers with regular newsletters keeping them in touch with what’s happening in your workshop, in-store promotional material, newsletters and clips they can forward to their clientele. Your relationship with your retailers is much like your relationship with your spouse – it takes time and effort to build and maintain it!

8. Have Patience. This is probably my biggest downfall. I want it all and I want it right now. You’ve got to put a a cap on that Veruca Salt Syndrome. Building relationships takes time and retailers will take a significant amount of time to try, evaluate, budget and eventually buy your product. The trick it to keep them up to date without overwhelming their inboxes and calling out of the blue. Tip: frequent calling is very tricky. Retailers are very busy and easily annoyed. It is a delicate balance.

You may find that once you reach a “critical mass” of stores they start coming to you to open accounts – fantastic! Don’t forget to keep fostering those relationships with the stores that took a gamble on you and be careful about territory. Wholesaling can become a very political game. Have your policies clearly laid out and abide by them (while still maintaining some flexibility – tricky, I know). Be patient and keep at it. Good luck!