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This is a difficult question for me because I never made an actual product. I only purchased products for resale. However, I'm going to fall back on my experience looking for products for resale and what I looked for when selecting products.

I would make sure to have the following information before I even started approaching:

1. Catalog (no pricing)
2. Price List Insert (easier for updating later)
3. Terms of Sale (shipping, minimums, etc.)
4. Business Card
5. Samples (optional based on product you are trying to sell)

Make sure all of the above are professional looking with your logo on everything. This is a business and as a business you want to convey to another business that you are serious about your business and what you have to offer.

Once you have these things ready to go, now comes the fun. Finding other businesses to sell your product. For me, I want to get my hands on the product and see the actual product. I don't want to hear about the product or read about it, I want to actually SEE it. So if you are going to another business, be sure to bring along a sampling of what you have to offer so they can at least see it OR depending on the type of product you have, leave a sample with them.

As for approaching businesses, do your homework. If you are after local businesses, visit them first to see what they have to offer. Will your products fit in with what they have to offer?

If yes, take the time to ask who is the main contact for purchasing for the store. Then either leave your information there OR send them a letter introducing yourself and your products. Send the basics such as the letter and the brochure/catalog and your terms. Then follow up 7-10 days later by phone to see if they have had a chance to look over the materials you sent them.

You might even wish to call first before sending but it has been my experience that a phone call is sometimes like the pesky telemarketers, you don't want to be pestered by phone. Give me the info to look at first.

If you are looking at more of a national scope for wholesaling, it might be wise to create a large postcard with images showing off your products. Give basic terms such as order minimum, shipping, etc. and then provide all of your contact information. The better presentation of the postcard or even a brochure, the more likely it will draw the recipient to pick up the phone and call or even visit your website.

Search engines today spend more time looking at the content of your website than they do the Meta Tags of the past. In my experience, focusing more time and energy on using the keywords and product information in my content has yielded better search engine ranking for the various pages of my website.

Product descriptions, like every part of your website, can be keyword rich. However, you don't want to saturate descriptions with repeating the keyword. Instead of focusing ONE keyword and using it over and over, be descriptive to the keyword.

As an example, instead of using the word "candle" be descriptive of the candle such as "classic jar candle". Descriptive words and details will combine together to be picked up in search engine rankings.

At the same time, you don't want to be too wordy. Be detailed but don't write paragraphs of information. That may turn the buyer off if they can't find the information quickly. Sales copy is important, but essential details of a product is better than to the better. Leave your "sales copy" or "pitch" to informational pages of your site. Good for search engines but doesn't distract the customer when they are looking to buy.

In the past, when I talked about my success of building up an eCommerce website, I most often mentioned that I couldn't do it without my mailing list. I had over 30,000 subscribers who wanted to know more about what my company had to offer on either a weekly or monthly basis.

Immediately the question was: "How did you get those subscribers?"

By no means are any of these a guarantee but it is what I did to build my subscriber base. I hope they help you in your effort to build suscribers.

1. Place a "subscribe box" on every page of your site.

Mailing list subscribers are going to subscribe if they want to but how can they know to subscribe if you don't make it readily visible and available to them to do so? Make sure you a place for people to subscribe and make it readily visible. Don't hide it, show it off! Put it right at the top and close to your navigation.

Make It Say "YES! Come and subscribe and see what we have to say about our website!"

2. Entice your subscribers with "FREEBIES"

All of us are guilty of wanting something for FREE. So entice subscribers with something for FREE! Whether it be a coupon, a small gift, a recipe, a pattern or whatever SMALL but thoughtful free item you can give to show your appreciation to those who do subscribe.

Think of it as saying: "Thank You! I appreciate you want to know more about our business."

3. Place a "subscribe box" during the checkout process.

For those customers who have made the decision already to purchase with you, make sure you ask them if they want to be updated and hear more information about your business. Whether it is a checkbox, comment or other method, ask them: "Do you want to hear more about our business?"

The best way to build a customer base is to get the come back and shop for more. How are you going to get them back after the sale if they don't know about what's new or on sale or the news you have to share?

4. Hold a Monthly Drawing for something FREE

By far the most successful way I drew in subscribers. I gave away something for FREE, no charge to customers, no purchase required. It might have been small or it might have been large but it had VALUE to the customer.

Sure you are going to get the individuals who just want something for FREE! But eventually if they keep coming back and see what you have to offer over and over and over again, you will have a higher chance of turning them into a customer because they will be more enticed to BUY.

And to capture those drawing junkies who like to enter and win, list your drawing on websites that cater right to those individuals. My #1 recommendation is Online-Sweepstakes.com. It's free to list and you gain access to over 141,000 members.

But remember, before holding a contest, drawing or sweepstakes, that you find out the laws of your state on holding them.

5. Referring New Subscribers

If your current subscribers like what they are reading, make it easy to refer new subscribers to you. Use a script or link in your newsletter that all they have to do is click on and enter the e-mail addresses of friends to forward it to.

It's a quick, simple and easy way to have the message about your site spread and the best part is that your current subscribers are doing the work for you!