What Do You Want?

[smitty0312]

I am weighing my options on a website vs Ebay for the "Smitty Sled".......I own the domain www. smittysled .com......there are monthly fees associated with both....... the fees I payed to Ebay last season is basically the same as a years worth of website fees which vary from site to site......since this item is so seasonal (Nov-Jan) I wouldn't sell much after January........ not sure if sales will continue grow anymore......I am a 1 man band & have a full time job in which I may becoming the operations plant manager where I work, that will require more hours there......I guess that's the dilemma of a lot of small business owners...... what would you guys want to see? Website or Ebay for sales?

Thanks for everyone's opinions. Tight Lines.

[OldSailor]

I would go with whatever puts the most money in the bank!! Being seasonal, maybe Ebay is the way to go. You would need to pay for your website year round to keep it current wouldn't you??

[3300]

offer an off road wheel kit sold separately so it could be used year round. made of air filled rubber tires. some ideas for it are already here.

offer a top for them or box to give it even more versatility.

offer a dump mode if you make various box's to go on top.

if you get more sale, then expand.

main thing now is to advertise and get those sales going. ask big box stores or local store if you can sell kits or diagrams. make paper plate banners with phone number and start posting them inn stores. get the word out. that is the most important thing you can do.

i'm not sure if your with att, but they pay for the domain name (annual cost of one time to keep the name per year) and they help design and post a web page. it wouldn't be any extra cost if you are with them.

make up some business cards and set them in key areas that is okay to do like plumbing shops or any where you see other cards laying together or in card holders.

seek out other web sites that would be willing to swap a banner if you use theirs, when you have your site going.

try selling on craigs list too.

look into making different models for different needs and for different people. we don't have just one car to pick from.

selling just plans would be the cheapest and fastest way to get it done, but offer pre-fab kits too and see what people want. i wouldn't have too many pre-fabs ready until you get an idea how long they take so you know how to fill your orders better.

think of some sales strategy's like free shipping (help get more sales. may make friends go in together) after so many dollars and tax included and look to get people signed up for emails to get a small discount on first purchase. look into an email client made for bulk delivery.

thanks for sponsoring again here. nice work!

[smitty0312]

offer an off road wheel kit sold separately so it could be used year round. made of air filled rubber tires. some ideas for it are already here.

offer a top for them or box to give it even more versatility.

offer a dump mode if you make various box's to go on top.

if you get more sale, then expand.

main thing now is to advertise and get those sales going. ask big box stores or local store if you can sell kits or diagrams. make paper plate banners with phone number and start posting them inn stores. get the word out. that is the most important thing you can do.

i'm not sure if your with att, but they pay for the domain name (annual cost of one time to keep the name per year) and they help design and post a web page. it wouldn't be any extra cost if you are with them.

make up some business cards and set them in key areas that is okay to do like plumbing shops or any where you see other cards laying together or in card holders.

seek out other web sites that would be willing to swap a banner if you use theirs, when you have your site going.

try selling on craigs list too.

look into making different models for different needs and for different people. we don't have just one car to pick from.

selling just plans would be the cheapest and fastest way to get it done, but offer pre-fab kits too and see what people want. i wouldn't have too many pre-fabs ready until you get an idea how long they take so you know how to fill your orders better.

think of some sales strategy's like free shipping (help get more sales. may make friends go in together) after so many dollars and tax included and look to get people signed up for emails to get a small discount on first purchase. look into an email client made for bulk delivery.

thanks for sponsoring again here. nice work!

Thanks for that reply 3300......it all takes time......that's the problem......I may be getting a big promotion at work to operations plant manager, that may take away from this....I hope not however.....

[rl_sd]

If you do not plan on continuing to grow your brand with additional products then I would stick with ebay

[mr.clean]

Smitty0312 since I assume you currently need your main job for income and medical benefits I say stick with Ebay and see if you can advertise nationally on web sites like Craigslist. Also develop a plan for expanding Smitty Sled business . I remember problems folks had when Ice Gator's product first hit the market and got very popular over night causing delays in people receiving their order and long wait for repairs when problems developed with the product. In my mind the question you need to answer is how big of a business do you want Smitty Sled to become do you see it becoming your main job at some point in the future .
Steve

[missoulafish]

the whole world is using social media......way more people than those that  look at websites....

[river rat78]

I would just use Facebook to promote. It's free to use.

[missoulafish]

yup!

[hardwater diehard]

Maybe get in touch with one of the farm and fleets ...they seem to have seasonal ice fishing items from a couple of small manufacturers ...some items on line only.

[Light liner]

EBay store be your best bet.
You can pay month to month or annual fee for a little less.

[Spider1]

I would think that ebay would not only be a better bet for seasonal sales but would most likely consume much less time during the rest of the year. A web site needs to be attended to more often. Use ebay for the sales and then use social media to advertise during the fall and winter to move your ebay merchandise during your more active seasons.

[smitty0312]

I would think that ebay would not only be a better bet for seasonal sales but would most likely consume much less time during the rest of the year. A web site needs to be attended to more often. Use ebay for the sales and then use social media to advertise during the fall and winter to move your ebay merchandise during your more active seasons.

I am leaning towards keeping Ebay at this time........looks like my best "business option" right now.....