Notes from Chris

Episode 2059

Of all the made-up holidays in the world, the most capitalistic or “let’s go shopping” one is no doubt Amazon Prime Day. This comes from a middle ages Nordic tradition originally spread by the Vikings to England and then the colonies eventually reaching the far west coast and Seattle in particular, where Amazon.com rebranded it to encourage people to buy stuff.

Some of that is true.

You know what else is true? In 2022 Amazon’s Prime Day resulted in $12 billion in sales! Naturally, it’s not just Amazon that celebrates Prime Day now; lots of other retailers are like “Hey what about us??”

Today’s listener is wondering about a side hustle version of Prime Day. Can there be such a thing, or should the smaller sellers of the world simply piggyback on what Amazon has done since everyone is shopping anyway?

“Amazon’s annual Prime Day sale is now a week-long event, and lots of other big companies have sales around the same time. On the one hand it seems a little desperate, like a made-up holiday, but clearly it must be working for some of these brands.

What do you think of side hustlers and other small businesses jumping on the trend and having their own version of Prime Day? Also, if they were going to do it, would it be better to align around Amazon’s sale dates or do it at a totally different time? Personally I could see an argument for either way.”

Do you have any tips for making the transition?”

Listen to today’s episode to learn more…

SEE ALSO:

• Catholic Designer Creates Stylish Apparel Line: What shall it profit a man to gain the whole world but not sell any t-shirts? This designer cast his bread upon the waters and ended up with a profitable fashion line.
• Seattle Couple Creates New “Income LiveStream”: When a married couple runs into logistical problems at their wedding, it leads to an innovative service that other engaged couples need during the pandemic.
• Role-Playing Pastor Rolls The Dice On $2800/Month Hustle: Listener success story! This Presbyterian minister turns to his lifelong interest in role-playing games to set up a sustainable second income source.

Inspiration is good; inspiration combined with action is better. Now get back to work!

Yours in the revolution,

Notes from Chris

Episode 2058

A listener has been selling on Etsy but wants to make the switch to Shopify. What’s the best way to do this?

And not just the best way, but what’s important to do along the way, and also why would you want to make such a transition in the first place?

“I’ve been selling on Etsy for a while, but mostly I’ve been listing on Etsy. I make a few sales here and there, it’s just not what I’d like it to be.

I’m in the process of setting up a Shopify store, which seems fairly complicated even though they have lots of tutorials. There are also lots of “apps” you can use with Shopify, a bunch of options and features to choose from, and I tend to get decision fatigue from these things–which might be why I’ve stuck with Etsy.

Do you have any tips for making the transition?”

Listen to today’s episode to learn more…

SEE ALSO:

• Catholic Designer Creates Stylish Apparel Line: What shall it profit a man to gain the whole world but not sell any t-shirts? This designer cast his bread upon the waters and ended up with a profitable fashion line.
• Seattle Couple Creates New “Income LiveStream”: When a married couple runs into logistical problems at their wedding, it leads to an innovative service that other engaged couples need during the pandemic.
• Role-Playing Pastor Rolls The Dice On $2800/Month Hustle: Listener success story! This Presbyterian minister turns to his lifelong interest in role-playing games to set up a sustainable second income source.

Inspiration is good; inspiration combined with action is better. Now get back to work!

Yours in the revolution,

Notes from Chris

Episode 2055

Today’s listener has a moral dilemma: they made more money by raising their prices!

(Wait, what’s wrong with that? Listen to their question to find out.)

“This is more of an observation than a question, but I guess I’m wondering how common it is. I sell hula hoops and party games on an ecommerce website. I know that sales and discounts motivate buyers, and you talked recently about having a permanent sale.

I decided to try something: I made a coupon code for 20% off everything in my shop, but I actually raised most of the prices in advance, so that the discount was more perception than reality. Guess what? I sold a lot more! I even made sales to customers without the coupon code, which surprised me.

Have you heard of this happening before? Do you think this is something others should try? Lastly, I don’t think I’m doing anything unethical with this strategy, but I’d like to get your take on it.”

Listen to today’s episode to learn more…

SEE ALSO:

• Catholic Designer Creates Stylish Apparel Line: What shall it profit a man to gain the whole world but not sell any t-shirts? This designer cast his bread upon the waters and ended up with a profitable fashion line.
• Seattle Couple Creates New “Income LiveStream”: When a married couple runs into logistical problems at their wedding, it leads to an innovative service that other engaged couples need during the pandemic.
• Role-Playing Pastor Rolls The Dice On $2800/Month Hustle: Listener success story! This Presbyterian minister turns to his lifelong interest in role-playing games to set up a sustainable second income source.

Inspiration is good; inspiration combined with action is better. Now get back to work!

Yours in the revolution,