Selling furniture online: tips and instructions

In order to make money through online furniture sales, it is essential to find the right assortment and have a well-crafted business strategy. Before even making a first sale, you will need to develop a business plan that will highlight the strengths and weaknesses of your idea. Furthermore, a classic online store is just one sales channel among other alternatives.

Online furniture sales: relentless competition and enormous potential¶

When you search for online furniture sales, you quickly come across well-known companies in this sector that seem to dominate the market. Omnipresent on the Web, these furniture stores have a huge network of physical stores that allow their potential customers to see, touch or try on the sofa or bed before even purchasing it. So, of course, the market is very competitive. But the good news is that there is still room: if you want to participate, you will then have to find a niche market and offer impeccable (online) service. Our guide shows you how to achieve this, step by step.

Having your own furniture store: the advantages of online sales¶

Do you want to sell furniture on the Internet? You will benefit from certain advantages that physical stores do not have:

• You can start with little capital and you don’t have to worry about premises from the start.
• Geographically, you target a wider clientele than if you had a physical store in a specific region.
• You have the possibility to try new things more easilysuch as the launch of a new product, a new marketing strategy, new services.
• You are (more) free regarding the time you invest in your online business and you can work from anywhere. These are two basic advantages when running an online store.

Selling furniture online: the conditions to meet¶

There are some paperwork you need to follow when selling furniture online. This is normal when you want to start a business, no matter which one. For example, you must declare your activity and choose its legal form. Also find out about insurance, accounting and taxation.

Instructions: Steps to Selling Furniture Online¶

How to make furniture sales a success? We describe, step by step, how to get there. Once you have completed each of these steps, you will be able to create a business plan. This will serve as a guide and allow you to confront your idea to reality. It also allows you to analyze risks and exploit opportunities. Finally, it allows you to gain credibility with potential investors and business partners.

Step 1: assortment planning¶

Before creating your online store, you must first take care of your assortment. To avoid entering into direct competition with well-known furniture stores, find the ideal niche. For example, you can specialize in second-hand furniture, one-of-a-kind handmade furniture, or even elegant and original armchairs.

L’origin of furniture must also be defined: do you make them yourself? Do you buy them elsewhere? Will you need a place for storage? All these questions are important because they define the final price of the product, but also the delivery times, the shipping method and the marketing strategy.

Step 2: Market and target group analysis¶

Analyze the entire online furniture sales market as well as that which concerns your niche. Who are the main suppliers? What is their communication strategy? What prices do they price their furniture at? It is by carrying out a detailed market analysis that you will analyze the opportunities to be seized.

Determining the target customer base is part of market analysis. What type of audience are you going to address? For example, characteristics such as age, financial situation or values ​​are important.

Step 3: the company profile¶

Once you’ve found your target audience, take a closer look at your business and its structure. Are you going to work alone? Will you need to employ staff or find business partners? Also analyze your own SKILLS. Where are your strengths and weaknesses located? Then think about the communication channels you want to set up, the services you will offer and the image you want to convey.

Step 4: Commercialization and Marketing¶

To sell furniture on the Web, an online store will be ideal. However, there are interesting alternatives. For example, it is possible to make sales via Instagram or other social networks or via marketplaces. We will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of these sales channels in detail later in the text.

You need to define how you are going to sell your products online. First, you need to improve the visibility of your own website, then you will need to carry out a marketing strategy. targeted online marketing. For example, you can create advertisements on Google, produce a Newsletter or run campaigns on Facebook and Instagram.

Step 5: logistics¶

Furniture is generally a large product that does not fit in a shoe box. Therefore, do not underestimate the logistical aspect of this type of sale. Do you want to store and ship the furniture yourself? Then you will need a lot of space, know-how and manpower. An alternative: it is simpler to use dropshipping suppliers. They are the ones who will take care of the storage and shipping of the furniture.

Step 6: costs and financing¶

To make your idea a reality, it is essential to make the right calculations. Here are the different types of costs you will need to cover:

THE initial costs are the costs necessary for starting a business, from registration to expenses related to creating your online store with WordPress or with another operating system. THE current expenses are all the expenses that you will incur for the proper functioning of your store: for example, hosting costs, producing photos for the site, as well as adding products to the system.

These expenses are offset by the revenue generated. You can then calculate the price of each product and estimate your sales. With a financial plan, you will be able to determine when and how you will make a profit with your online store.

You may have need financing depending on your starting capital and your needs. It is possible to request funds or credit from an investor or a bank. It is from this moment that the business plan becomes interesting.

How to sell your furniture online?

Basically, there are three possibilities for selling your furniture on the Internet. There is no method better than another, you often have to do a mix of them to succeed.

Within own online store, you have the advantage of being very flexible. You can present and sell your furniture in any way you want. But if you don’t have sufficient knowledge regarding technique and design, you risk making mistakes and imposing a heavier workload on yourself.

Marketplaces offer an excellent alternative. The structure of the site is already predefined and if you encounter any problems, there will be professionals available to help you. The inconvenients ? This type of platform limits your creativity and withdraws a commission on each sale. Among the largest marketplaces in France, we can cite Amazon and eBay.

The third possibility for selling your furniture online is Social Selling. You sell your furniture directly via Facebook, Instagram, etc. Here too, you are not entirely free to do what you want. But the advantage is that you can interact with your community and build customer loyalty more easily.

Advantages and disadvantages of different sales channels¶

Selling furniture online: content is king¶

Selling furniture isn’t just about business, it’s also about feelings. As everything takes place online, your customers will not be able to touch or test the sofa for sale. Of the quality images and content will be essential to ensure your success.

When it comes to product photography, choose photos that convey emotion and have an aesthetic that catches the eye. Optimize images for Google.

The same goes for textual content: of course, it is important to provide a detailed description of the object, but also don’t forget to convey emotions. Within your online store, you must use product descriptions to inform your potential customers about what they are going to buy. Don’t forget to optimize your texts for search engines.

In summary: how to succeed in your online furniture sales store?

To succeed in the online furniture sales market, you need to find the right product that will propel you towards success. It is better to specialize in a particular niche or product because competition is high in this industry. Develop a business plan that will help you analyze market opportunities, risks, trends, target customers and the structure of your business. Think in particular about logistics, distribution but also your marketing strategy. An online store is ideal if you want to have maximum freedom. Think about marketplaces and Social Selling to complete your sales strategy.