We talked to Jane, of Kent-based family business Be Charmed Jewellery, about her experiences of building an online business with Daily.co.uk. Be Charmed sells over 700 products with an eShop Business package using Google Checkout and PayPal Express.

What made you start the business?
I am a web designer and my mother is a retailer and between us we were itching to start a retail business online, because hopefully with my web skills and her retail experience we could really do well.

We spent 4 years searching for the right product! From the web perspective, we needed a product for which we could already identify keywords – a brand name or product that was already being searched. From the retail point of view, we wanted a small product that was easy to store and to ship.

When the popularity for charm bead bracelets started there were a couple of brand names already being searched online, so we bought into another brand name and used keywords for all three to enhance our own product searches.

How did your business evolve?
We initially started in November 2007 with an eBay shop, where there were around 350 similar items listed at any one time. By February 2008, this had increased to over 3000!

We saw the popularity was increasing and knew that it was imperative to get our products into our own store.

We built our shop with the Daily.co.uk eShop Business package. Business has been wonderful, and has far surpassed our expectations since we launched the site in March 2008.

We’ve also just tried out the integrated newsletter tool, sending out to 500 people and generating 3 big orders within a few hours. We are far happier selling through our Daily.co.uk shop than eBay, as in our Daily shop customers “fill” their baskets, sometimes with up to 10 items, whereas eBay buyers seem to just buy one or two items at a time.

What attracted you to Daily.co.uk?
I came to Daily after testing a similar product with another company. I was very disappointed with their service – they didn’t answer support emails for days on end. I did a Google search, read about Daily.co.uk and made a quick technical call.  I got an answer within a few rings and my question clarified within minutes, so I set up shop with Daily.co.uk. Everyone has been very helpful and quick to answer our questions. I am so impressed with the Daily service that I am also contemplating taking out a Reseller account for my web design business, where I am currently hosting 40 domains for clients!

What was the biggest challenge you faced in getting Be Charmed to where it is now?
Our biggest challenge to date has been marketing. In my role as a web designer, I am constantly learning about new search engine optimisation techniques and ways to expose the website to more visitors (hence taking up the opportunity to feature on the Daily Blog!). I never miss an opportunity to promote.

Our other challenge has been understanding how to “read our customers’ minds”. It seems that some members of the British public are sceptical about online shopping, thinking that they are about to get stitched up! For us, reassurance is paramount and we always answer the simplest of questions in the most friendly and expedient manner. We try to reassure them on the site with as much detail as possible.

What’s next for Be Charmed Jewellery?
Our next step is to grow the business by gradually adding more ranges. We will take this slowly and surely, testing the market at every step of the way. We will be especially interested to see how the Christmas period pans out. In our first year we did well, but we expect to do much more during Christmas 2008.

Further information:

• Go jewellery shopping at Be Charmed.
• Find out more about Online Shopping with Daily.co.uk eShop.