Sourcing Hard Goods!

From Theresa Coffey, TNT Editor...

If you want to sell hard goods on the Internet, either you make the products yourself or you find third parties who do. Finding third party "makers" is called "sourcing" product.

If you create your own products, you will likely sell a relatively small volume of high-end, hand crafted products (anything from art to xylophones), at least to start. If you find you have a winner, your entire operation may expand into a larger operation, but that is beyond the scope of this discussion.

Many artists, artisans and crafts people do not like "business." So you could represent a small number of such artisans, creating a site for each, or aggregating several in such a way that they all "fit together" in a sharp, appealing way into a single site (ex., an art gallery that focuses on Caribbean islands or on seascapes or on killer whales, etc.).

And this "aggregation" concept leads into the concept of "sourcing" in the more conventional sense of the word...

If you source products for your store, you are likely selling a fairly high number of items (called SKUs... Stock Keeping Units). Naturally, there is no way (as a small business person with limited means) that you could develop and produce all these items.

So your key role, instead of "creator of product," becomes "aggregator of products."

An "aggregator" is someone who pulls many things together from many places and puts them together in such a way as to create something new, wonderful, and valuable. In a sense, your store is your product... that is what you sell to visitors. If they "buy" your store, they'll buy your products.

Actually, the Net makes it (almost) easy. Source at Web sites like the Thomas Register (thomasregister.com, tipcoeurope.com), not to mention directories like Yahoo! (drill down to the correct category rather than doing a keyword search) and Search Engines like Google (do related keyword searches). Another option is drop-shipping (where you process the orders but the manufacturer does the fulfillment, shipping directly from their own warehouses). A good online resource for locating drop-shippers is http://www.mydssd.com/ .

These starting points will get you going into the fascinating world of sourcing makers of products for your online store. Sites for trade shows, trade directories and other industry resources will take you even further.

And, of course, source offline too...

Is there a nearby flea market with some terrific local artisans? They're mostly computer-phobes. Aggregate them into a cool, online store.

Do you have a friend with an offline gallery or retail operation? Be partners and run the online division.

Is your area famous for anything? Napa wines, Inuit sculptures, smoked B.C. salmon... all good examples of things easily taken into the online world.

Here's the bottom line...

You can put a product line together. Just figure out what turns you on, find products to match, and then assemble it all in a sharp, new and fun way. Take your time here. "Prepare... Don't Repair" applies to prospective storeowners 1,000%. The time you spend finding "just the right products" and developing your concept will repay you one hundred fold.

You will find some excellent little suppliers for your burgeoning store this way. When you do... don't tell a soul. Your sources are your gold -- don't give them away.

Consider your aggregation of products and your store concept to be your "product." Compare your product development (i.e., store-creating) cycle to that of a single-product online entrepreneur. It can take months to develop a product from scratch -- your store should be no different.

Shouldn't you put the same efforts into getting your product (i.e., your store) just right?

Important Reminder: You have important things to do well before you put the store itself up. Actually most online storekeepers do exactly that... put the store up, get their merchant account... and die. This will not be the case with you.

You will be part of the successful 2%, who first focus on "information, information, information" (i.e., content) and building traffic, rather than collecting the money.