Hi,

I have a new business I am starting (please see
www.irishwaterwheels.com) and I would like to find the extent to which
this product or differing versions of this product are being sold
worldwide? I have done a quick search but only came up with the
following sites which do not seem in the slightest bit professional;
www.samsgazebos.com
www.waterwheelsoftexas.com
www.garden-nz.co.nz/ waterwheels
www.thatravenmagic.com/ flywaterswheel.html

So essentially, I am looking for as many similar sites that sell a
product such as mine and some evidence that it is feasible to invest
in this business and market it online... i.e. proof that there is a
market for it?

Any feedback is most welcome.

Regards,
Alan.

---

Clarification of Question by ivorystraws-ga on 26 Jul 2005 07:43 PDT

Hi,

I have a small new business I am starting (please see
www.irishwaterwheels.com) and I would like help in
- Establishing the extent to which this product or differing versions
of this product are being sold worldwide?
- Methods and options available for Marketing/Sales?
- Suggestions on how to structure my website for optimum Sales?

I have done a quick search but only came up with the following related
sites which do not seem in the slightest bit professional;
http://www.samsgazebos.com
http://www.waterwheelsoftexas.com
http://www.garden-nz.co.nz/ waterwheels
http://www.thatravenmagic.com/ flywaterswheel.html
http://www.waterwheelfactory.com/
http://www.puddleandpond.com/water_wheels/
http://www.ironhorse.citymax.com/main.html
http://www.runnerduck.com/projects.htm 
http://www.runnerduck.com/projects.htm

So essentially, I am looking for as many similar sites that sell a
product such as mine and some evidence that it is feasible to invest
in this business and market it online... i.e. proof that there is a
market and sales channels for it?

Any feedback is most welcome.

Regards,
Alan.

---

Request for Question Clarification by pafalafa-ga on 26 Jul 2005 08:03 PDT

ivorystraws-ga,

Best of luck with your business -- your water wheels look quite nice.  

I'm sure I could put together a list of other companies marketing
similar sorts of water wheels.

But as for the 'evidence' you're looking for, I'm not sure where to go
with that one!  What sort of evidence would work for you?

Something that sells well 'on the ground' would probably sell well
over the internet, too, as long as shipping and handling costs don't
make your product prohibitively costly.

The reverse isn't always true however.  People sometimes find that
things that don't sell particularly well in person, might start moving
over the internet, where there is the opportunity to reach millions of
potential customers.  It's hard to know in advance just which products
will produce the necessary buzz, however.

Give some thought to the type of evidence that would suit you, and let
us know in a bit more detail how we can assist you.

Thanks.

pafalafa-ga

---

Clarification of Question by ivorystraws-ga on 26 Jul 2005 09:26 PDT

Thanks for your interest pafalafa. Since this is a brand spankin new
business, I have only had mild interest on the ground but have not
invested much time or effort in marketing/sales of the product.... it
has been featured in the August edition of a Gardening Magazine (Irish
Garden Magazine) but it has not generated any interest!
Initially I wanted to know how popular a product such as this would be
and potentially how unique I could make mine? I would like to have
estimates of shipping costs and where I can source the best/cheapest
shipping provider (I realise this will vary depending on weight and
how it is to be shipped but any advise is helpful)?

I suppose if I could confirm that other people were making a viable
business from the same product, it would provide me with some
confidence and show that the product is feasible but any other
indications that would show that this business is viable would be very
helpful. I could also use their websites as reference websites for the
product, it's design and the product's associaed accessories. My
website is currently under design (using a freelance webdesigner from
elance.com) and my product range is being expanded to include 3 to 4
different sizes.

Basically my Sales/Marketing plan consists of "paid" and "unpaid"
advertising as follows;

- Sales and Marketing (also www.cj.co.uk)

	Unpaid:
	* Submit to Magazines, Newspapers etc for feature inclusion
	* Submit to other WaterWheel Manufacturers as channel resellers/ potential buyers
	* Submit to other Forums
	* Flyers, Banners, Placards etc put up locally, DIY stores, Garden
Centers, housing estates etc.

	Paid:
	* Direct Marketing (www.Garden.ie for list of Service providers) with
Welcome letter, Product Brochure, Business Card, Web Details,
Laminated Placard etc
	* Submit ad to Golden Pages, Newspapers, Magazines etc
	* Register with Commission Junction UK for reseller Partners in Ireland and the UK
	* Use SEO and Internationalisation to increase Website traffic and
potential interested audience
	
Any thoughts, suggestions, criticisms you may have and can share with
me wuld be very helpful.

Thanks advance for your help.

Regards.

---

Clarification of Question by ivorystraws-ga on 27 Jul 2005 01:42 PDT

Hi pafalafa, just a thought... if you could get stats on any
respective companies Sales/Sales Merics/Sales Channels/Where and how
they sell/How they market their product, that would be extremely
helpful but not essential.

Regards,
Ivorystraws.