Yes, you can make and sell almost anything online in this modern age, especially candles and candle accessories. Note that just very few can resist the warm glow that a candle’s flame brings. For as long as we humans can remember, candles have seemed a necessity in our lives, from serving as home décor to being a very crucial part of spiritual practice. However, beyond the candle’s flame is its scent, which also serves to induce warm memories, or just provide a unique fragrance to a stale room.
Reports have that about 75 to 80 percent of all candles sold in the United States are scented, and they are estimated to generate approximately $3.2 billion annually. At present, fragrance remains the leading factor influencing candle sales. Since a good number of consumers buy scented candles to reduce stress and provide a channel for aromatherapy, most scented candles in the market are a combination of both natural and synthetic fragrances.
Candlemakers are known to carefully pick from over 2,000 essential oils and aroma chemicals, each somehow becoming a very critical layer of a new and unique scent. A good number of candle makers offer consumers a product line made up of about 1,000 to 2,000 varieties of candle shapes, types, and scents.
Best Online Platforms to Sell Candle Scents
Just like many business-to-consumer retailers, one of the most profitable platforms to sell candle scents is online. Note that you can leverage multiple digital platforms, like social media and your eCommerce site, to reach potential customers all over the globe. Although not every digital platform will bring success, here are a few places online where you can sell candle scents.
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Amazon and Handmade Amazon
Amazon is noted as one of the best places to sell your unique, handcrafted goods to hundreds of millions of customers globally. Both Amazon and Handmade Amazon are worthy platforms to consider when looking for places online to sell your candle scents. Anyone who already sells on Amazon will genuinely have an easy transition to the handmade platform.
However, for those who don’t already sell on the mega-site, this is an opportunity to get your products in front of a large audience. They have over 250 million customers worldwide.
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Facebook
This is one of the easiest ways to start selling candles and candle accessories. However, if you intend to leverage this platform, you have to start a Facebook page for your candle business and take orders manually. In addition, you can run paid advertisements and grow your business on Facebook without much stress.
Note that when your business grows, it can be very challenging to manage and track all your orders. When that time comes, you may have to move to a dedicated selling platform.
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Instagram
A good number of small businesses and lifestyle brands found enormous success building a sizable following on Instagram. Just assemble a feed of beautiful images connected to your brand, stage photos of your products to show off to customers, and reach a larger audience.
You can also leverage Instagram to connect with brand evangelists and offer a behind-the-scenes peek at how you make your candle scents. With 700 million monthly active users, Instagram is nothing short of a pop culture phenomenon. Think about all the reach your items could have – with the best tags, of course.
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Etsy
This platform is advertised as a creative marketplace where over 33 million buyers around the world spent more than $3 billion in 2020. Be you a small or large-scale creator, you’ve more or less heard of Etsy. With 1.6 million sellers, Etsy’s creative marketplace is perfect for artisans who may not have their own website or are more interested in controlling the number of sales they do each month. Additionally, with Etsy’s “vacation mode,” sellers also have full control over when and how often customers can buy from their store.
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Zibbet
Zibbet offers you the platform to join 57,444 other artists, crafters, and vintage collectors gaining exposure to millions of shoppers from all over the world. Note that this platform attracts sellers with a “no listing fees, no sales fees, and a free account” approach.
If you’re starting to sell your handmade candle scents, then this unique and low-risk marketplace may be the ideal place for you. Home to over 50,000 independent creative’s, Zibbet provides you with one-of-a-kind items that you’ll be proud to list alongside.
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Reddit
Note there are “boards” you can visit where you can sell your candles and candle accessories on Reddit, and you can also swap items. According to reports, this platform encourages users to include links to previous reviews on websites like Amazon.
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Cratejoy
Cratejoy’s Marketplace is ideal for subscription box businesses eager for subscribers in their niche, and the platform fulfills its promise of working hard to find quality subscribers for you. Have it in mind that candle makers and artisans interested in recurring revenue would more or less benefit from this subscription commerce model.
If you create new products often (or have a killer inventory), a monthly subscription box is a wonderful way to create and grow a community around your patrons. Note that Cratejoy’s marketplace is home to more than 500,000 subscribers every month and is the only marketplace primarily made for subscription boxes
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Snapchat
This is another highly visual platform to consider when eager to sell your candle scents online. Being one of the fastest-growing social media platforms with more than 200 million users, DIY hustlers can leverage this platform to market and sell to an increasing audience.
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Pinterest
Have it in mind that home décor is a well-regarded category for users of Pinterest, which is one of the biggest platforms customers leverage to find brands and products. Owing to that, it is recommended for homemade candle and candle accessories businesses to consider Pinterest as a pediment in their marketing and sales strategy.
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Develop Your Website
If you are serious about selling your homemade candle scents, creating your own website is something to consider. Your website design should be consistent with the colors, fonts, and style of your brand. In addition, keep your copy consistent with your branding, and tailor it to your target customer.
To be successful, your website should include a minimum of four pages: your Homepage, your About page, which explicitly tells your story to clients, your products page, and a Contact page. Note that your online shop will have to be located on the products page. You can simply name it “products,” “store,” or anything that connotes with your brand.
It should be easy to navigate and optimized for mobile devices. A good number of your customers will buy directly from their phones, so endeavor that your website is mobile-responsive as well as built to take payments from a vast range of sources.
Conclusion
Indeed, you can make candle scents at home to sell online and make extra income. The process is very much straightforward; the only challenging part is creating marketing strategies to sell them. Consider the online platforms discussed above to target your customers and create a presence that appeals to their lifestyle. Remember to be innovative with your digital marketing to generate a buzz around your candle scents and start watching your sales grow.