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Understand your marketing and selling channels
Tara and Carl Darnley knew that if Darlyng & Co. was going to be successful, they needed to reach their customers. Social media platforms like Instagram were just becoming popular, and parents—Darlyng & Co.’s primary audience—were flocking to social media to share pictures of their children. When Tara Darnley got the first prototype of the Yummy Mitt, she posted it to Instagram—and it went viral. So before even selling anything, Darlyng & Co. was able to build a community of customers.
This led to their second challenge: where to sell the Yummy Mitt. The Darnleys initially didn’t sell on Amazon. Then they heard from a buyer who had spent twice what they should have on the product and realized someone was reselling the Yummy Mitt on Amazon. As soon as Darlyng & Co. started selling on Amazon, the company sold out of their product.
Carl Darnley said the quality of the Yummy Mitt is so good that many parents use it for their first, second, and third child. That means the Yummy Mitt is a high-quality product but not necessarily one that customers often buy again. “Tara and I basically had to figure out a way to have other products that were reoccurring,” said Carl Darnley.
They began expanding their product line with items that parents would repeatedly buy. It started with skin care and baby bath soaps, and has since grown to include everything a parent needs for their child, from toys and games to clothing and food. To come up with new product ideas, Tara Darnley said she would ask herself questions like, "What are some of the things that our customers are going through?" Finding answers often involved understanding what parents, like the Darnleys, were facing while raising young children, from teething and eczema to day-to-day duties like feeding and play. The key was considering how those items would impact customers’ lives.
Tara Darnley admits she was hesitant when Darlyng & Co. started selling on Amazon because it was a new process. She spent days looking through videos on the Seller Central dashboard, which provides detailed videos for new and existing sellers on how to get started and how to grow a business’ storefront. “There are tons of videos you can use that you would otherwise pay thousands of dollars for,” she said.
Darlyng & Co. also used tools available in Seller Central to grown and protect their business. The Darnleys learned how to run video ads to tell stories about their brand, and they leveraged tools like Amazon Protection that help sellers protect their brand and trademarks.
Amazon Lending provides several different loan options depending on a seller’s goals. Darlyng & Co. accepted a Term Loan, which is a non-revolving, lump-sum loan with a specified payback period that’s great for larger projects and long-term growth. “That was our first loan. It came in our bank account in a few hours. It was incredible,” said Tara Darnley.
Alternatively, a Line of Credit helps eligible sellers request funds as needed, and they only pay interest on what they use. This can be great for supporting unexpected sales spikes and other surprises where working capital can serve as an emergency fund.
Eligible new sellers looking to grow their business with no upfront collateral can take advantage of a Merchant Cash Advance, where repayments are based on actual sales. This means the seller is protected during periods of slow or no sales.
Learn more and check your eligibility at Amazon Lending.
