E194: Growing a Highly Niched Ecommerce Business (Under the Hood with Elias Manopla)

I always enjoy meeting people who listen to our podcasts. Our audience base is largely located in the United States, however; we do have listeners in the Asia Pacific and in Europe. More recently, I’ve discovered that we’re reaching entrepreneurs in Central America. Proof of this Elias Manopla, our featured ecommerce entrepreneur on this episode of Under the Hood. Elias owns an online butcher shop that sells a variety of barbeque meat, poultry, and fish items in and around Panama. Grill accompaniments like corn and arepas, the local corn cake, is also available for purchase.

Taking quality meats ‘online’

Elias, a big barbeque fan, got the idea to sell these products after ordering meat from a supplier that was recommended to him by a friend. Impressed by the quality, he has since partnered with this supplier to make these meat products available online. He used Shopify to set up an online butcher shop and is now looking at ways that he can grow the business by extending his brand’s reach.

My two cents

Elias’s ecommerce business belongs in a highly niched industry. Given where he’s located, it can also be assumed that a chunk of his target market has yet to try shopping online. Some might not even have access to the internet.

Facebook ads are great for reaching more people with minimal effort. However, they have to be strategically targeted in order to work. Start with existing customers. Do they have something in common? Knowing your target demographic allows you to be more successful at targeting those ads.

Speaking of ads, videos are a great medium for promoting foodstuffs. Creating videos should be part of the marketing plan.

Finally, increase repeat orders by crafting a flawless post-purchase sequence. The goal is to turn first-time buyers into loyal customers.

Listen to the full episode for more tips on how to grow a unique food-based ecommerce business like the one Elias has.

Under the Hood is a segment where we do an hour-long coaching call with one of our listeners. We take a look at their businesses, provide honest feedback, offer our best business advice, and answer whatever questions they have. In exchange for the free coaching, we will turn the call into a podcast episode so that our community can benefit as well. It’s a win-win! Registration to EcomCrew Premium is closed indefinitely. But, you can still learn from us through our suite of free courses. There’s a total of 20 videos covering ecommerce topics like Importing from China and Building a 7-Figure Business. Find more information on the link below. Free Video Courses As always, thanks for listening to this episode! If you enjoyed listening and think this episode has been useful to you, please take a moment to leave us a review on iTunes. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them below. Happy selling!