Hello to all my cake friends. What can I do to market my business would love some advise .

That's a pretty general question...We'll need some more information from you so that we're giving you good advice.

First, are you working from home or do you have a store front? Are you licensed & insured? Do you have a website? Do you have a portfolio? What is your focus - Wedding Cakes, Party Cakes? Are you doing this on the side or full-time?

My advice might be different based on how you answer these questions...

It sounds like you don't have a Business Plan since you're asking this question so that is always the first place to start. Looking forward to hearing your answers....

Tammi

Ok...Sorry about that - I just noticed that you have a website and that you are a home baker...Sooo

I have a few suggestions for you so hopefully they will help. Let's start with your website. It's very difficult to find the information I'm looking for. There are so many run-on sentences in your text and your sentences are broken up, most likely from the formatting of your website. The page I'm specifically referencing is http://www.ruzicashomebakery.com/special-occasion-cakes.html - check it out.

I realize your working out of your home but you need to try and make your site as professional as possible. You definitely need some better pictures and more of them. Before you start marketing your website big time you need to make the changes and make it more professional. I know that if I came across this website I probably wouldn't contact you because it's so difficult to navigate and find what you need simply because it's hard to read. Also, there is no way to get back to the home page - you just have to go back in the browser so it does make it difficult...

I hope that I haven't offended you. I truly am trying to be helpful so that you can be successful. I started from my home as well but I don't think anyone could tell from my website because I made it professional from the beginning. Who are you hosting your website through? I use register.com and love the ease of use while building my page so I can't comment on others but there are so many people on here that use many different others - there is bound to be someone here who can help you! Good luck!

Tammi

yeah that might help if I added a few things
I have a full time business .Its home based. In my state I do not need a license unless I require refrigeration but I do not t I have house insurance but I dont know if thats enough I have a website I have a price list that I pass out to places I sell cakes and bakery Items like cookies, cupcakes pies, brownies,breads,sweet breads I lost my job so I need to make a living so Im doing this but Its real hard because Im not catching the attention of any customers I have somewhat Of a portfolio but I have no customers that want to buy and the ones that do they dont really order that often I dont know if Im charging to much or to little so I bought the cake boss to help me i dont have money to get Ingredients I am trying to find a part time job but nobodys hiring

no you have not offended me .I need outside criticism to help me be the best I can be. I really appreciate it because Im looking at it And I think gee its my website of coarse I think Its great But what would someone else think

Wow - It sounds like you are pretty overwhelmed! Do you do your website yourself? That is the first thing I would do is update your website and fix the issues with it. Also, keeping your skill level in mind you may want to put together an idea book for your potential clients to look through. It sounds like you may not have a ton of pictures for your customers to look through so you may want to start putting together cake pictures that you come across that you KNOW you can do. You don't want to put a really beautiful cake out there for your customers to see that you are not able to complete - this will save you from unhappy customers! Let them know these are not your cakes but cakes that you are confident you could provide them. Have this in a binder of some sort that you can show to your customers.

The basics of advertising your business are visibility & ease of contact. Do you have Business Cards? www.vistaprint.com is a great website to get free business cards - you only have to pay shipping. You should checking Search Engines to see how you rank in the results for your area. If you are focusing on Wedding Cakes - find every Wedding Cake site you can and get your information on there. There are a lot of websites out there where you can add your business information for free or trade links to advertise for free. Submit your site to all the major search engines yourself - you don't have to pay someone to do this - I didn't! It's very easy to do this yourself and if you are interested, I can PM you with a site that lists TONS of Search Engines and links to the pages for free submission.

I'll try to think of more later to post for you...I have an appointment soon though so I have to get going...I'll check back later. Hopefully others will have some insight for you as well...Good Luck!

Tammi

If Im not Being to forward may I see what your site looks like just to have some Idea Of what I can do to make My site Better and have a comparison because to be honest I dont have a clue On what Im doing with my site Im just winging It .And You can pm me any time Your very helpful thankyou.. And that was very helpful about the pics of cakes I didnt know I could do that because they were someone elses cake.

I would second what the previous posters said.
I don't have a business, but here's my 2cents.

ditto on Vistaprint.
I uploaded my own logo for my biz cards so it was $11 the first time and $5 there after. (I get complements on my cards, so do think carefully about a good one)

fix your website. (I can't hardly read your biz name, but I do like your background)
and work on your keywords and content on the home page.
I did a google search for 'cake strongsville ohio' and didn't find you.
since you are home based, I think you should work to try and get your business to come up on google.

next photos.
the binder is a good idea.
I used to carry a 'brag book' in my purse that I could take out to show people quickly. For a cheap yet nice looking deal... go to Target and by the clear plastic ones (used to be $2) take out the preprinted card and print your own with you logo. then fill with 4x6 prints.
people's aditude really changes when they can see photos of cool pastries.

finally, look for ways to network your work.
I have donated cookies to teacher's lunches at my school.
I have donated to silent auctions at school.
I made fancy cookies for my daughter's soccer team snack.
I did all of this out of goodwill, as I don't need any more work, but man, it has brought me so many calls!
word of mouth can be great. I get one person, then their friend calls...
some because they love the look of my stuff, some because they love the taste.

good luck!

Hi there, I just took a look at your site and your pricing page is in need of a redo. It looks like your pies are free and the tab on the top of the page can't be seen. Also you need more pics of cakes.
I see that you're pricing is only 2.00 per slice can I ask why? I think that with those prices you might just be giving your cakes away.
Good luck

what do you think I should chargewhat would be a good price. Im new to the cake thing.I looked at my site It says 10.00 for pie and the tab where it says bakery pricelist is there Ican see it on my computer I hope other people can Cuz If you cant see it then maybe thats why Im having a hard time I dont know what to do now yikes Im so nervous now

Are you looking at it by typing in the site? Cause I just looked again and still the pricing tab is just barely there. I only knew it was pricing because my cursor went by it and it said pricing!
As for what you should charge call around to bakeries in your area to see what they charge, not store bakeries though. If none in your area then try within 20 miles just to get an idea. Another way is to make a cake and see what it cost to make from start to finish including gas/electric/insurance ect.. then price accordingly.
I also still can't see your pie pricing just looked again it's an exclamation point instead of a 1 for the 10.00! LOL finger error I'm sure and an easy fix.

HtH

Hey sweetcheeks...I hope I am not overstepping here...I decided to reword your paragraphs for grammar and spelling. It's just a suggestion so of course, you do not have to use it...I just think it would be better for you. This isn't exactly how I would word it but I didn't want to change your message...

For your Home Page:

Welcome

Thank you for visiting Ruzica's Home Bakery where top quality, made to order baked goods are my business. As the head baker, I believe that using fresh ingredients is best. Owner Rose Nedeljkovic and I learned from the best; my mom. She taught us everything we know. I'm always improving and testing out new recipes so please check out my site. It is my goal to make sure that you have the best experience with your bakery so that you come back for more. I want it to be as easy as possible to help you to make the right decision. I've gotten a lot of calls about cakes so now I've added a cake price list. This is just a sampling of what I have and I can't wait for you to try them!

At this time I do not make wedding cakes but I can take orders for two tiered cakes. Set up a meeting and let's create some sweetness in your life. We all need some of that in these trying times we're living in. Sugar free and organic ingredients also available!

If you want to use what I wrote above you can just copy & paste what I wrote above into your template.

If you want me to, I can go over all your pages and do the same thing. Whatever you want...Good luck with everything!

Tammi

you mean you would take the time out of your day to help me revamp my pages your very kind. I would be happy to have your help .I dont know what I can do to repay you but your generosity and kindness are much appreciated.
thankyou so much

just saw your site its beautiful

I really don't mind at all...I was pretty swamped today so this is the first chance I've had to really sit down and think at the computer!

I like the changes you've made so far with the site appearance - it looks great! I'm starting with the Special Occasion Cakes Page...

I can meet you at your location. Delivery is available within a ten mile radius of our Parma,Ohio location for a $5.00 fee. Our Bakery and prices are subject to change without notice.

For large orders we need three weeks notice and for small orders we need 48 hours notice. We accept cash or check; you can make checks payable to Rose Nedeljkovic. If you would like to make an appointment or if you would like to request an item that is not on my price list please proceed to the contact page where you can set up an appointment. There is no obligation to buy. I feel it is important to get to know my customers.



Also, on the same page I noticed that you need to remove a comma between the words Unique & Flavors.

Other things that I have noticed throughout each page is the formatting. Things aren't centered and the lines are wrapping to the far left which makes it hard to read line by line.

Right above where your Fillings & Shapes columns are...it needs to say Three weeks notice for cakes - it's minor but just thought I would mention it.

And the last thing for this page is the Food Allergy Disclaimer. Just fixed the wording for you...Hopefully you can just copy & paste all of this if you decide to use it...

Products that I use may contain nuts, nut oils, wheat, milk, eggs as all products are made on same equipment. If you have special dietary needs please let me know and I'll do my best to make a product that meets your needs. Please allow 48 hours notice.

Let me know if you have any questions...I'll try to find some more for you and then post again...Good luck!

Tammi

I moved onto the Cancellation Policy page next...here's what I saw!



Cancellation Policy

For small orders I require two days notice and for large orders I require a week's notice. For special occasion cakes I need three week's notice. I'm not sure if this part belongs here because I'm not sure if you are trying to say that to cancel an order you need this notice or if you are trying to say that to place an order you need that much notice. If you are trying to say that in order to cancel an order they need to require this amount of time then I would say it a little differently. Let me know what you mean and I can help you with the wording.



Cancellation policy is as follows: A $25.00 non-refundable deposit is due to HOLD THE DATE for ANY ORDER UNDER $50.00. It will be applied to your final bill. If your total bill is less than $25.00, a deposit is not required.

A $40.00 non-refundable deposit is due to HOLD THE DATE for ALL ORDERS estimated between $50 - $200 and will be applied to your final bill.


I'm not sure how the formatting is affected once you copy & paste but I did notice that the font was too small for the Cancellation Policy. I would definitely make that bigger - it is really difficult to read.

Hopefully some of this will help - just let me know if you have any questions!

Tammi

This is the next thing I found - it's on the Contact me page...

Serving Parma, Ohio and surrounding areas in Cuyahoga County.
Phone: 216-326-7160

If you want to buy any bakery or have any questions please feel free to contact me. If you would like to place an order for an event please visit My services page or to contact me via e-mail at [email protected]

Ok...I think I should stop there..I feel like I'm stepping on your toes so I will shut up now! I wish you so much luck and there was some great advice earlier in the thread so I think you'll do well!

Tammi

ThatsHowTcakesRolls

Wow that was so nice of you to take time to help sweetcheeks. That's why I love this site....so many nice people.

And by the way I checked out your website and noticed your store front....it's so beautiful. I wish I could find and afford a place that looked like that.

and sweetchecks....all of this advice was very good. one thing that I did starting out to show off my work was to make dummy cakes and take pics of them. I bought square and round and would make one and then take off the fondant and make another. It will help to show off your own work without baking the cake and it gives you the practice too.

Not sure if I read this anywhere but to market also try contacting local hotels and wedding venues, take them some samples and bus cards and they may list you as a vendor.

Good Luck! Heather

Thanks Rose! I really hope that you can get your Bakery business going - it's so much fun! Just let me know if you have any questions or if I can help you in any other way!

Tammi