How to get your first sales on a new online shop

To get your first sales on a new online shop, make the shop easy to trust, then go to where your buyers already are: tell your own network, list your products on Google Shopping, post in the places your customers spend time, and test a small, tightly targeted ad budget. Measure everything, and fix your product pages before you spend more.

A new shop has no visitors by default. Launch day is often quiet, and that’s normal. The first sales come from effort, not luck. Here’s where to put it.

First, make your shop easy to buy from

Sending visitors to a shop that doesn’t convert wastes money and time. Check these before you promote anything.

• Clear photos from several angles, including one showing size.
• Price and delivery visible near the top of the product page, with a delivery date if you can.
• A short, honest description that answers the obvious questions.
• Your returns policy and contact details, easy to find.
• An About page with a real person and a real story.
• A checkout that works on phones. Test it yourself.

Start with the people who already know you

Your first handful of customers often come from your own circle, directly or by word of mouth.

• Tell friends, family and colleagues, and ask them to share with anyone who might genuinely want it.
• Post the launch on your personal social media, not just the shop’s new account.
• Email past customers if you’ve sold before, at markets or on a marketplace, but only those who agreed to hear from you.

Get on Google Shopping

Google shows products from shops in its Shopping tab and search results, and the basic listings are free. To appear, you set up a Google Merchant Center account and send it a product feed.

• Use clear product titles with the words people search for.
• Use a clean main image without text or watermarks.
• Keep prices and stock in the feed matching your site.

Free listings take time to build up, but they bring shoppers who are already looking for what you sell.

Test a small, targeted ad budget

Paid search is one of the quickest ways to get your first sales on a new online shop, because it reaches people at the moment they’re searching. Keep the first test small and specific.

1. 1Pick your one or two best products.
2. 2Choose specific search phrases, like “oak chopping board large” rather than “chopping board”.
3. 3Set a daily budget you’re comfortable losing while you learn.
4. 4Set up conversion tracking, so you know which clicks turned into sales.
5. 5Run it for a couple of weeks, then keep what works and cut what doesn’t.

Social media ads can work well for products that look great or solve a visible problem. Again, start small and track every sale.

Show up where your customers are

Free, but it takes consistency.

• Social media. Show the product in use, how it’s made, or the problem it solves. Short videos tend to travel further than static posts.
• Communities. Hobby forums, local groups and online communities. Be helpful first. Read each group’s rules on promotion before posting.
• Local. Markets, fairs and local shops that might stock you. Hand out cards with your web address.
• Press and gift guides. Small publications and bloggers put together gift guides before Christmas and other occasions. A short, friendly pitch with good photos can earn a mention.

Work with small creators

People with a small but engaged following in your niche can be more effective, and more affordable, than big names. Offer a free product in exchange for an honest post.

Under UK advertising rules, creators must clearly label paid or gifted posts as ads. Make sure they do. It protects both of you.

Give people a reason to buy now

• A launch offer for the first week or two, with a clear end date.
• A welcome discount in exchange for an email address, so even people who don’t buy today can hear from you later.
• Free delivery above a sensible spend.
• Bundles of products that go well together.

Merchella has built-in welcome offers (as a tab, pop-up or drawer, with single-use codes) and abandoned-basket reminders, which help turn first visits into first orders.

Bring visitors back

Most people don’t buy on their first visit. A few things help them return.

• Abandoned-basket emails to shoppers who started checking out but didn’t finish.
• A welcome email series for new subscribers: who you are, your best sellers, a reason to buy.
• Social follows. Ask visitors to follow you so they see new posts.

Measure and learn

With only a few visitors, every one teaches you something.

• Track where each sale came from (social, Google, email, a friend’s share).
• Watch which products get views but no sales. Usually the photos, price or delivery cost needs a look.
• Note the questions people ask by email. Answer them on the product page.
• Ask your first customers why they bought, and what nearly stopped them.

Deliver brilliantly to your first customers

Your first buyers are your best source of reviews, repeat orders and word of mouth. Send quickly, pack carefully, add a handwritten note and follow up to ask how it went. Then ask for an honest review once the order has arrived.

In short

First sales on a new online shop come from a trustworthy shop, your own network, Google Shopping, a small and well-tracked ad test, and showing up where your buyers already spend time. Give people a reason to buy now, bring them back with email, and learn from every visitor. The first ten sales are the hardest. They get easier from there.