Selling Toys Online

[jayveen]

If you wanted to sell something like toys online, what would you do? I've google'd a bunch of toy stores and they all have shopping carts, but I can't tell if they do their own shipping or just have them dropshipped. Also, I've noticed that their traffic rankings in Alexa are a lot lower than I would think. None of the mom-and-pop stores are in the top 100,000.

The big brands rank well of course, so Toysrus and Amazon and Walmart are ranked, but I just wonder how one could make money off of that niche. One of the sites at the top of the 2nd page is just a link of adsense directories. If I'm going to put a lot of work into something, I'd like to have some idea of how it will pay off, and I don't think that adsense would be very good. Amazon affiliate is pretty bad too, both because people just browse and don't buy from you (I think they end up going to Amazon without my aff code), and because the commission is so low.

Anybody know the best way to make money from relatively inexpensive physical products?

[mhartmann]

SEO for specific toy names and variations in spelling for same. For very popular ones (or ones that will come out soon that you know will do really well), you could get great traffic.

They all dropship, but might have their own people to do so.
You'd have to get in touch with the toy manufacturers and set up a system.

You're looking at a real business here.

[derekwong28]

It is a pretty difficult market to get into but there are a number of successful cases.
There is also a lot of action on eBay as well. When products are so cheap, you have to take into account of the shipping costs as well. Another problem is that you will probably not be able to pay much for advertising and also your affiliates should you have a program. Therefore, you will have to depend a lot on search engine traffic.

[priyankeshu]

Step 1 Research
what you a re doing is researching the current market structure and not your TARGET AUDIENCE. Try to find out who is your target audience who will buy the product and why will they buy it. Reach out in the forums and look at those sites to see what they are talking to their customers. This will help you to determine>>

2. Their Needs and Wants
Yes, research alone will give you good ideas. Creative thinking depends on looking at all the options. though it is a very saturated Niche you can think creatively and learn how can your blog/site can get popular for your target audience. Once you get those people coming to your blog you can redirect them to your affiliate site.

Persistence and patience is the key (if you do not have any money to invest) and looking for traffic through organic search results. Another good way is to go using Adwords and other advertising systems. But it can be a bit risky...

So evaluate and chose an option that is good for you...

[TiffanyDow]

If I were you I'd read Info Product Killer. I specifically did this starting last year and I got good results. I continue making money using his strategy all year round. Christmas is wonderful though.

[Traffic-Bug]

I would set up an ecommerce store with dropshipping for toys sales. But as you said, it takes market research from quantitative data to form a opinion about whether this line is going to be profitable or not. The only resources available are quantcast, compete and dataopedia. You can input your competitor urls into them and check what kind of traffic they get and from what sources. Then it may be possible for your site also to get the same kind of traffic if the proper promotional methods are used.

[mikemcmillan]

You might want to consider selling collectible toys. There are manufacturers of toys such as action figures who sell their line to American retailers. However, they sometimes have additional figures which are sold in foreign markets. There are serious collectors out there who may have complete sets they have picked up in the U.S., but they don't have the ones marketed in foreign countries.

If you can find a source or a way to get your hands on these foreign products, they are highly saleable to U.S. collectors online. Trust me they are. It's all about finding the foreign outlets or suppliers.

Don't sell stuff like this as an affiliate, you won't make any money. Take physical delivery and sell it on eBay or somewhere like that. There are many twists and opportunities. Many buyers will buy multiple units because they can easily be traded within their circle of collectors for other items they want.

[cragar]

You could get as many different ideas as there are niche's on how to make $$ with a toy store.Myself..I am not wanting to STRAP myself to a JOB.I just want to drive traffic and refine my skillls at that and make $$ along the way. So... grab your favorite keyword research tool and find a domain name that is going to get some major traffic.Bye that domain name and set up a minisite using a simple WP theme.Add phpbay and adsense to it and optimize the site. Here is the phpbay lite plugin for WP

http://www.wiredstudios.com/phpbay/p...n-displayebay-auctions-in-wordpress.html

Add your adsense to it and your done- Set up in less than 1 HR. and ready to rock.
This will of course put eBay auction products on your site and you will get paid on any purchases made from your site.Just remember to add your ebay PID in the phpbay edit area

Here is a freind of mines site for you to check out using the very same techniques I just shared www.18tyres.com The Cheap Tyre Superstore or www.vipertek.co.uk
Just please do not click on any of the links on the site as it will affect the pay. JUST LOOK PLEASE after all I am helping you with an idea here

Also..You can create these minisites and provide proof that they are making revenue and then sell them also. Getting anywhere from 200.00 to 5000.00 a piece depending on the traffic and sales.

Just an idea here..you asked.If you don't like it..leave it!

[fasteasysuccess]

The way to go is find a supplier who will drop ship for you if you don't have the products and then set up your site and offer the products. Also on site make sure you have opt in or some way to capture names for people that want say free report and savings and so on. Then do seo on keywords that your major competition is missing the boat but get steady traffic and then do more long tail keywords to bring targeted traffic to you and jump on the competition. If you need any help, give me a ring.

[marnia]

Hire a SEO to make your website popular.

[Chris Kent]

Sounds like you've already narrowed your choice down to toys, but more important is the actual toy itself. If I were you, I would not restrict yourself to toys.

But anyway, for example, a friend of mine sells American skate clothing on a market. This particular brand of clothing is American but only sold by a few retailers outside the US.

I guess that while they may be known in the US, they are using the slow burn method of international expansion. This scarcity means that consumers outside the US will pay big prices for them.

It's a bit like Quiksilver T-shirts. In the US, they are nothing special and can go for less than 10 bucks a pop. Outside the US, expect to pay at minimum double and often more.

So like Mike says, exploiting inefficiencies between international markets can be a goldmine. This is something I really need to get into myself, but if I was to go into toys or any other physical products, I'd make sure that I had such an "edge" first.

Same with going into China and importing something new and catchy. The risk there is that the market may be untested and there is a chance your product could flop.

[mandela10]

I would suggest you try your hand on dropshipping these products, you will have full control over them instead of redirecting people to another site. you woudl also have a better chance of competing and ranking higher than those big sites

[bgmacaw]

Originally Posted by jayveen

Also, I've noticed that their traffic rankings in Alexa are a lot lower than I would think. None of the mom-and-pop stores are in the top 100,000.

Alexa number are meaningless in this niche. Any niche outside of those infested with IMer's, blogging for dollars types and webmasters will have typically have much lower numbers.

For example, I have a toy/hobby niche site that has far more traffic, as much as 10 times more, than any of the sites in my sig. But, its Alexa number is over 1 million.

Originally Posted by jayveen

The big brands rank well of course, so Toysrus and Amazon and Walmart are ranked, but I just wonder how one could make money off of that niche.

So far as affiliate marketing goes, eBay (EPN) was the best option. Unfortunately, they've made it exceeding difficult to qualify for and the earnings now are about 10%-20% of what they were 12-18 months ago due to payout changes. I haven't found any plan to replace EPN that converts and pays out as well as they do even after the major changes though.

Originally Posted by jayveen

Anybody know the best way to make money from relatively inexpensive physical products?

Dropshipping is a potential choice but the margins are very thin on it and their are a number of dishonest operators out there. I've only done it selling on eBay a few years ago and it was barely break even. I know some people do quite well with it but it's not easy. You have to manage your cash flow and customer service very tightly.

Stocking your own products is tricky as well. Many niche manufacturers in the toy/hobby industry prohibit you from selling online (to keep prices artificially high or to protect their own website) and/or require you to have a real brick and mortar store.

Purchasing and reselling closeout, return and liquidation lots is another option but it's also rather costly upfront and usually requires that you own/rent a loading dock warehouse location.

[Chris Kent]

Something else you might want to consider also if you decide to deliver your own product is to try and find something that has a high value per unit weight.

I recently had a great business idea that I intend to start in maybe 3 to 6 months time. The items are tiny and yet command a good price. Less hassle for the same amount of money I might earn with a higher turnover of lower value, bulkier goods.

[Tina M. Rideout]

Purchasing and reselling closeout, return and liquidation lots is another option but it's also rather costly upfront and usually requires that you own/rent a loading dock warehouse location.

Or you can broker toy load deals. Taking a commission off the top, which can earn you from 500.00 - 1000.00 and higher per load, depending on the toys.

No need for a warehouse or anything else. Just sell to the guys that have the warehouses or other brokers.

[John Durham]

Originally Posted by Tina M. Rideout

Or you can broker toy load deals. Taking a commission off the top, which can earn you from 500.00 - 1000.00 and higher per load, depending on the toys.

No need for a warehouse or anything else. Just sell to the guys that have the warehouses or other brokers.

Hey Tina, good to see that a year later you are still in the liquidation industry. Guess that course wasnt a waste afterall.

Listen to her guys. She learned from the best!