need help in getting sales

[smallwonderlingerie]

Hi everyone,

my website has been going for a while as some of you will know but I am having alot of trouble getting sales online. I sell lingerie for women in smaller sizes.

I have done the following to increase traffic:

- Facebook page
- Twitter
- Bebo
- Flyers
- Gumtree ads
- Facebook ads
- Having stalls at fashion fairs
- newsletters
- press releases to lingerie blogs etc

I am getting hits but not any sales, I really need sales as I am badly struggling with money at the moment and need some help.

please can you suggest anything to help with getting sales

Thank you

 

Hi everyone,

my website has been going for a while as some of you will know but I am having alot of trouble getting sales online. I sell lingerie for women in smaller sizes.

I have done the following to increase traffic:

- Facebook page
- Twitter
- Bebo
- Flyers
- Gumtree ads
- Facebook ads
- Having stalls at fashion fairs
- newsletters
- press releases to lingerie blogs etc

I am getting hits but not any sales, I really need sales as I am badly struggling with money at the moment and need some help.

please can you suggest anything to help with getting sales

Thank you

Your site in general looks great. In order to do well always look at your competitors and look at how you could do better.

Homepage
-"My Cart: You have no items in your shopping cart." You could add something like ''purchase an item today" to encourage people to buy.
-Also the left side of your site looks rather empty. Homepage footer - you could inform people of the payment methods you accept.
-You should add an F.A.Q a frequently asked questions section (that may reduce the number of people contacting you).

General
Have you thought about offering incentives like ''refer a friend and you'll get £2'' etc? Or offer a buy one get one free or seomething like that. Just examples.

Advertising/Promotion
Keep doing what you're doing.

 

[smallwonderlingerie]

Thank you. in response I offer 15% off to every new customer for their next order. I advertise this on flyers and in my newsletters.

 

[mud-stx]

what about changing your images? They do not look that fresh and clean (no offence) because if the image is appealing then the customer will be attracted to the product.

You say you are getting hits, could I ask how many? If you are getting decent traffic, then the problem lies with the site not being appealing enough.

You have a Facebook page? How many fans do you have? Because Facebook marketing is very good for lingerie, I currently run a campaign for a lingerie client with some very good results...what's your Facebook account name? I'll have a look at it, if you like?

 

[smallwonderlingerie]

Hi

I am currently changing some images at the moment, my images are from the suppliers. I have thought about gettting professional images but thought it may cost way too much, would it help with sales?

my facebook page is under small wonder. I dont have a lot of fans to be honest but it does increase by 1 or 2 weekly

 

[AndyP]

Apart from what has already been mentioned I would say that the biggest barrier that you have is lack of trust to be honest with you. I am not saying its not there but try as I might I can find no physical address whatsoever so where do I go if you run off with my money? Your contact us page is a simple anonymous form that could go anywhere....central London, Malaysia, or the trash bin...who knows? I want to phone you....oops, I can't ....NO phone number! An about us page that is sadly lacking in content, no business registration details at all and images that are massively too high in resolution for website use so that your pages all load incredibly slowly....ask yourself the question....would you buy from you? It's all easily addressed but, for me, trust is the key, without it you're a dead duck!

 

[mud-stx]

IMO image is worth it, the images are what will grab your customers attention and if they are lacking quality, then that may have a negative effect. I mean would you buy something personal from a site with lacklustre images?

With regards to facebook why don't you try and market from a different angle? Try and make friends using a personal character (ie.you) and then promote your business and fan page through that?

 

[AndyP]

IMO image is worth it, the images are what will grab your customers attention and if they are lacking quality, then that may have a negative effect. I mean would you buy something personal from a site with lacklustre images?

With regards to facebook why don't you try and market from a different angle? Try and make friends using a personal character (ie.you) and then promote your business and fan page through that?

I am not talking about reducing the image quality per se, I am talking about reducing the resolution...the internet has a limit to what it can display resolution-wise...so there is no advantage in having a print quality image on a website (unless it is a high-res download for print use of course, but that is not the case here)....reduce the resolution OP, you will not lose quality and your pages will load ten times faster.

 

[wholesalecity]

try affiliate program

 

[AndyP]

try affiliate program

No disrespect but what a stupid suggestion at this stage. Thats trying to run before you can walk mentality. There are various immediate remedies required to correct onsite issues. These are of far more importance than branching into an affiliate scheme.

My guess is that your post is more about self promotion that advice to the OP.

 

[gois333]

I completely agree with AndyP. I always check websites for phone numbers / addresses before I purchase and NEVER purchase if I cant find a phone number at least - I had a bad experience once where I was emailing and emailing a shop and it took a long time to get a response, so never again.

Even if you don't have a fixed office you could get a forwarding number, there are plenty of 0845 forwarding services or even local geographic number forwarding.

 

[Miss Pretty Pink]

Have you tried adding your site to Hot Frog,Brown Book ,Qype etc and are you on Google's map ?
I have loads of stuff I need to do my site,which is going to cost me money hence me going back to full time work,but I want my fab online store to succeed .
But these last few days had some great sales,and I don't use PPC.
Good luck!
Regards
Miss Pretty Pink
Pretty Pink Vintage Online Boutique

 

[finejewellerys]

yes,in most condition,we all get massive visitore traffic but with low sale volum.so we should make good effort to improve the conversation sale rate with some good ideas.maybe let customers trust us more.

 

[Adam_Watson]

You should constraint on off page on page optimization as well do social media marketing u can see result.

 

[murdoch]

good luck with it....

I have a few points about your website....

• dont like the font you use
• dont like the no items in your shopping cart
• dont like the photos particularily
• do you need so many images on the home page, perhaps cut out a couple of products and have an image and some text telling us more baout your company

it looks at first glance like a free 'zencart' or something which has been thrown together in a few days.
Now, on closer inspection, and from everything you say, in fact its much better than that. But it does just seem rather 'sterile' and bland to me.

For strengths, as a plus, you do say on the site, tucked away...

Small Wonder was set up after the frustration of trying to find bras in my size on the high street. I became more aware that many other women had the same problem and decided I wanted to do something about it.

I set up Small Wonder to provide women with lingerie in smaller sizes that will make you feel beautiful.

...so, why dont you highlight this issue on the frontpage? make more of a deal out of this..........
i imagine its tricky to buy a bra online, but, if its true what you say you want to help people find bras if need small bra sizes, well, make this your focus, play on this point, find this niche, emphasize it more!

good luck, (my sites need a lot of work too!)

 

[Corset Laced Mannequins]

Agree with the above comments, esp about trust.

To be quiet honest I feel that your website is not girly enough. It doesn't have a unique feel/soul and looks a bit dull. I don't like the pink and blue colours and some of your images are poor...I'm thinking of the Passion Nights bra. Have you checked out the competition...I googled "petite lingerie" and none of them are that great. Which is fantastic for you as you could update your website, be more unique and grab the attention. It doesn't have to cost the earth either...check out pappashop.com or boutiquemama.com

I checked out your about us page too but you don't tell me your name...I love buying from individuals rather than companies so I think you should enphasize this too.

I'm sorry I sound so negative. Its offered with a kind heart. I do love your name...Small Wonder...its lovely. Good luck, Lucyxx

PS feel free to comment on my website...Its great to get feedback..esp the bad bits which all our websites have.

 

[mud-stx]

I'd be careful about who you go to for SEO, I would recommend asking the members on the forum to check out whoever you are thinking of doing SEO with (if you are doing SEO)

Just some friendly advice (too many people out there get burnt)

 

[AndyP]

What a shame that the OP has apparently gone AWOL. When people take the time to respond and give advice, the very least that the OP could do is to acknowledge the effort that has been put in for them. I wonder if a customer or potential customer who has completed the anonymous contact us form on the OP's site is having to wait as long for a response. I wonder if the OP is still wondering why she has no sales.

 

[quikshop]

Start again with your shops design. It fails on useability, consistency of navigation, presentation of products, trust (as mentioned earlier) and any feel of being a shop that could deliver an order.

Your competitors are not that much better so spend a bit of time and perhaps invest in a professional shop design to at least give your business the feel of knowing what its doing.

What a shame that the OP has apparently gone AWOL. When people take the time to respond and give advice, the very least that the OP could do is to acknowledge the effort that has been put in for them.

Maybe the advice given was too cutting

 

[AndyP]

Maybe the advice given was too cutting

No point in pussy footing around.... I've always taken the view that if you do something do it properly or don't do it at all

 

[curvelining]

What is your selling point?

I guess your target customers are small size women.Then concentrate on that.

 

[That Guy]

Your page title is "Home Page" when you should have something with keywords in like:

"Small Wonder Lingerie - Bras, Briefs, Camisoles, Thongs, Maternity Wear"

Something along them lines anyway. Someone might know of a better way to lay it out, but never just have "Home Page" as the page title is valuable keyword space!

 

[SneakSMS]

No address, no phone number, no sale! Your website doesn't inspire trust. Have a look at figleaves - massively successful so you should be able to learn a bit by navigating through their site

 

[crossdaz]

No address, no phone number, no sale! Your website doesn't inspire trust. Have a look at figleaves - massively successful so you should be able to learn a bit by navigating through their site

Figleaves have never made any money though?

 

[SneakSMS]

Figleaves have never made any money though?

So you don't think it's a good idea to look at the pretty much top position website for "underwear" to take some inspiration?

 

[AndyP]

Figleaves have never made any money though?

Neither did Amazon for, what was it, 11 years? Strategically, and I would add that I am no financial expert by any means, there is a strong argument to not make profit.... whilst building the value into the site. Maybe there is an exit strategy in place.

 

[patientlady]

Hi

I am currently changing some images at the moment, my images are from the suppliers. I have thought about gettting professional images but thought it may cost way too much, would it help with sales?

my facebook page is under small wonder. I dont have a lot of fans to be honest but it does increase by 1 or 2 weekly

Hi
I took a quick look at the images and to be honest apart from the headline pics in each section the others cannot be seen. May I suggest you look at the M&s site. All pics can be enlarged with front side and back views. Whilst I understand that M&s can chuck wads of money at this, I just do not think many of yr pics would sell the product at all. With buying clothing in particular lingerie as much information as possible needs to be given.
Have you thought of approaching the local 'photography college', someone might be prepared to take the pics as part of a project!

 

[caoyiDVDsupply]

immediate remedies required to correct onsite issues. These are of far more importance

 

[mckellar]

the photos dont make me want to buy anything, i'll be honest (ok, im male, but im speaking as if i was a customer)

they look boring, they need to be bigger, brighter, i'd maybe suggest if you have the stock, to get a modeling agency to contract you someone who'd be 100% fitting to your company, ie: petit in size etc

 

[emmiejay]

I had a look and for me the pictures do need some work. Not to give too much away, but I'm your target market and the pictures just didn't sell to me. The picture styles are inconsistant, which doesn't help give your brand a 'feel', and I found it odd that on a site aimed at the smaller lady there were pictures which (however uplifting the bra is!) were clearly of women of a larger size. I think you want your pictures to demonstrate how pretty the bras look on someone with those proportions.

I'll keep an eye on your site though, and wish you all the best.

Sorting out some better pictures for some products on my site has been on my list for a while, and doing this exercise on some else's made me realise it's a job that really needs to get some attention :redface:

 

[DealSwift]

PM me. I can help

 

[freeroam]

Perhaps your potential shoppers don't trust your site well enough to hand over their details.

You could join ISIS (Google it) for a hefty fee, also suggesting your own site to Arnaria.co.uk. I'm not sure if this is 100% legal but nothing on the Arnaria website says any different. I suggested my site to Arnaria and was lucky enough to receive an award. These sites vouch your site is reliable and trustworthy in your transactions.

 

[conor22]

Your best bet for a niche market such as yourself would to target the market you want i.e. advertise on relevant sizing

you could also advertise on possible sites such as youtube, facebook, flickr etc and place your advert beside relevant pages i.e. images on flickr on fashion for smaller ladies

 

[pool guy]

i will be back here soon

 

[oldeagleeye]

There is an old saying OP and that is that sometimes you have to be cruel to be kind and it does no-one any good pussy footing around the facts.

1) You web site is lop sided and looks positively amateur with poor graphics.

2) It doe not as others have said instil trust.

The real piggy however is that your stock is utterly - utterly boring. Even compared to M &S as another member hinted.That and there is hardly any of it.

You have what about 6 pairs of knickers. About the same in thongs & maternity wear and only 2 cheap looking camisoles.

Not exactly an incentive to buy - is it. In fact I doubt if you could give that kit away on top of which it is all overpriced too.

What. £7 quid plus for a boring pair of knickers. Even my aunt who is 85 buys hers from Le Stanza. 5 pairs for £12 quid. Those boring camisoles @ £32 quid on your web site. How about this complete set just £23 - available almost anywhere at similar cost and there is usually a choice of at least 20 or 30 on most lingerie web sites. Is it any wonder then that the vistors that you do get are not buying from you.


That is the negative side. On the more positive. You seem to have done extremely well in marketing your web site OP. My suggestion is then that you dump most of that stock in the wheelie bin and spend not just £50 quid on new but at least £1,000 .

If you can't afford that buy single items at a decent market stall as you go along - or you could even earn more than 25% selling Ann Summers kit and get all the great graphics. The firm pay more than 25-30% to party planners. Trade prices will probably allow a 100% mark up.

Robert.

Old Eagle Eye saying. "Helping a damsel in distress who has fallen of her horse isn't about throwing her her mke-up and saying she is looking great a few minutes later. It is about helping her back on her horse again and given them jospers a slap so she is off at a gallop gaining her confidence again"

 

[patientlady]

deletion.....

 

[patientlady]

Never a dull moment Oldeagleeye

 

[oldeagleeye]

LadyP. We know that fashion can be subjective - but that stock - what little there was of it really was a dull lot gear. I just hope however the young lady didn't take it as a personal criticism.

Far better to hear that coming from me in a business forum then than say her standing on a market stall all day long trying to sell that stock and have not only your average shopper turn their nose up at it but old granny's too.

Rob

 

[AndyP]

LadyP. We know that fashion can be subjective - but that stock - what little there was of it really was a dull lot gear. I just hope however the young lady didn't take it as a personal criticism.

Far better to hear that coming from me in a business forum then than say her standing on a market stall all day long trying to sell that stock and have not only your average shopper turn their nose up at it but old granny's too.

Rob

LOL...priceless!

 

[Adam_Watson]

Hi dear always study about your competitors website. How there site look and what offers the offered and there back links also you should check and make implementation....