Everything you need to know before starting a small business...

Hey everybody! It’s Laura and I’m back with another blog post! So I know that many of you either have a small business or want to start one. So today I am going to be talking all about the basics of starting a business! One thing that people might not know about me is that I’ve actually owned two businesses. The first one being a slime shop in 6th grade and the second one being Slice of Summer which I currently still own! After starting both businesses I definitely have gotten the basic idea of starting one. There are so many important things that many people tend to skip over when opening a shop and it causes their business to not be successful as it could be. So I hope that today's blog post will be helpful to all of you!

1. Pick your shop name

Picking your shop name might seem like an obvious thing to do but it is very important! You want to make sure it represents your shop completely and that it's something original. Your shop name will be on your logo and basically your whole shop. When people think of your shop they will think of your shop name so make sure it is something you like and wouldn't want to change. It's ok if it takes a while to think of a good shop name because in the end it will be worth it!

2. Pick your shop aesthetic ( brand your shop ) ​

After you find your shop name you want to go ahead and brand your shop. You want to pick who you're going to be targeting, what your shop colors/aesthetic will be and just basically how to represent your brand in everything you do. You want to make your shop appealing to your target. For example, if you're targeting teenage girls who enjoy arts and crafts and bright colors, make sure your colors and products are something that they would like.

3. Buy/make a logo

Just like your shop name, a logo is very important. It’s basically the face of your brand. You want to make sure that your logo matches your shop aesthetic and represents your shop well. If you don't want to create your own logo or don't know how to, there are plenty of people who can do it for you! Ximena did my logo and she was so awesome at seeing what I wanted and transferring it into the logo! If you are looking for someone to do your logo or just anything for your shop (business cards, instagram covers, etsy banner ex.) I would 10/10 recommend Ximena! You can look at her services here!

4. Create your shop and your social medias ​

Now that you have your logo and shop name it's time to create your website! There are many places where you can do this! If you don't want to spend a lot of money on a website yet I would recommend etsy! It's a million times cheaper than starting a website ( I think an etsy is only 20 cents for every item you have and little costs like that! )  and it's very easy to make! The reason you should make your shop and social media very soon in the process is because you don't want anyone taking your name and by making the accounts early it kind of secures your name as yours! You definitely don't have to post anything/ upload listings yet but just having them made is very helpful.

5. Choose what you will be selling ​

Now it's time to create your shop! You should have an idea of what you will be selling but now it's time to pick what colors, supplies, names you will need for each product! For example if you're selling tie dye shirts you need to know what colors for each shirt, how much each one will cost and all that jazz!

6. Order your supplies 

Obviously you won't be able to start a shop without any supplies so the next step is to order some! Here's a basic list of what you may need!

• Mailers/Boxes to ship out stuff ( different sizes if you are going to be doing large and small things ) 
• Some sort of packaging! Make your packaging cute! Tissue paper? Thank you or business cards? Confetti? Stickers? 
• Supplies. If you need tshirts, hoodies and masks to tie dye… then order them.

You can order more but this is just the basics! 

7. Make your products

Now you need to create your stock! Its best to ( if you can ) make everything in bulk that way when you get an order all you have to do is package it up!

8. Take pictures of your products + upload them to your shop!

Congratulations it's finally time to open your shop! Make sure to get well quality photos that will attract customers! You can definitely use your phone or tablet for photos but make sure the lightning is good and that the background is clean! Once you have your shop open, it's time to share it with the world! So go ahead and tell your friends and family and post all about it!

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So that was it for today's blog post! I really hope it was helpful to you guys! I wish you all the best with your businesses and I will see you next time!
​-Laura