How to succeed on Hyena Cart

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I started my first cloth diaper business in 2004. At the time, I knew nothing of Hyena Cart, as it was just starting out. I built my little business on the world wide web the old fashioned way and it was slow going at times.. It wasn't long before I began to hear people talk about Hyena Cart and all the wonderful items that could be purchased there, if you were talented or lucky enough to "score."

When I first looked into Hyena Cart for my own business, I felt I didn't qualify. Hyena Cart was built specifically for high demand items that drew so many customers most standard cart systems would crash. But not long after, the customer base grew and so did the sellers, so I joined.

At times my items were in high demand, but as my business evolved to resale I found a steady and consistent customer base even if everything didn't sell out within seconds of stocking. As the years went on I began to study the Hyena Cart environment not just as a seller, but also as a customer. I must admit I still shop there and have been guilty of finding items I just can't live without at Hyena Cart on a regular basis. I'm glad that the customer base and the sellers have grown over time. My own family continues to grow and evolve, and our needs change constantly!

This article is based not just on those years as a seller, but perhaps more importantly on the time since that I've spent as a buyer. As a Hyena Cart shopper it is much clearer to me what is important. I am more in tune with what makes me click a thumbnail for more information, what moves me to purchase, and what seller mistakes will make me leave a site to shop somewhere else. Never forget that on Hyena Cart, customers can easily search other stores for simliar products while still in your store!

Know your talent- This isn't to say that you can't start a new craft tomorrow and sell out all your items starting next week. Of course, you could also buy a lottery ticket today and wake up a billionaire. The chances of both of those events are pretty small. Most quickly successful businesses on Hyena Cart follow one of two paths. Either they draw on years of experience to produce a superior, original product. Or they build their business on lots of testers, trades, freebies, and other aveneues that generate word of mouth.
Research- The first thing to consider when considering a busines is your cost of goods (commonly called COGS.) Once you know the cost of your goods you can decide on a price for your items. Is there a market for your item, or are there a dozen other carts selling the same item for cost? Search every product you are considering offering. Take a little time and watch the trends, are similar products in your target price range selling, or just sitting?
Cart Appearance- I find it helpful to think of this in terms of a real life store. Consider two stores next to each other, one with the bare bones and just a plain sign out front. The products are laid on tables with no thought to presentation or organization. In the next store, selling similar products, there is a warm and welcoming feeling to the store. The products are showcased beautifully and the store is organized so casual shoppers can easily find what they are looking for and also run across items they didn't know they needed. A professional appearance makes your potential customers feel at home and comfortable, a key component to a sale.
Policies- Shoppers who are new to a store want to some reassurance that they can trust you. Well written policies let your customers know that you stand behind your products.
Goals- Now that you know your COGS and potential pricing, it's a good time to think about what you expect from your business. While it's true you should write a business plan, that is pretty intimidating to most of us. But putting in writing how many items you need to sell weekly or monthly to reach a specific monetary goal is a good start, and will help you keep focused while you grow.
Promoting Yourself- It's hard to let people know your company exists and has the products they are looking for without some form of promotion. Message boards can be a valuable tool if you are careful. Remember that everything you post is out there permanently for customers to read and search via Google, even if they are not members of that board. Specials, trades, directories, yahoo groups, Twitter, Facebook, and blogs can also help you reach customers.
PICTURES- When it comes down to it, there is only two things a customer uses to decide if they will buy your item or not- pictures and descriptions. Consider going into any department store tomorrow and buying a shirt for yourself or one of your children. Will you look at that item from 10 feet away and then buy it without ever touching it, trying it on, or looking at it any closer? Even if you don't try it on, you likely feel the fabric and would notice if it had holes, poorly sewn seams, or other obvious flaws. Many of these things can be missed if you're buying from just one picture. But providing multiple pictures showing detail makes a potential customer feel more comfortable. Even if some are stock photos, such as one showing the typical interior construction of a diaper, will help customers to visualize what they can expect to recieve.
Descriptions- Your description should be a full, complete description of all relevent aspects of the item you are selling. Include things such as measurements, fabrics or other materials used in the construction, how the item is sewn, etc. I found it helpful to write out the steps as I created an item, and then use that as a basic template to describe the item. Obviously, no one cares that you cut the pattern from the fabric, but they may care that snaps are reinforced, straps are triple stitched, some or all of the item is topstitched, seams are serged, etc. This is a good place to have someone else unfamiliar with your product read the description and see if they have any questions.

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