drusilladarkwillow Posted July 17, 2016 Share Posted July 17, 2016 No more replies please, I have changed my mind on this topic. Someone please delete this, it doesn't show a delete option for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wherorangi Posted July 17, 2016 Share Posted July 17, 2016 i think the first thing is for you to decide what it is that you think the investor can do for you, apart from give you money so that one day hopefully you can give them more money back when can answer this then a investor might listen to your proposal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alwin Alcott Posted July 17, 2016 Share Posted July 17, 2016 make a good business plan first... creating a shop in SL doesn't need to cost a lot, you only need a few prims and space. That's not the costs... so for what you need money? What's the term you think there's profit out of sales? What's the term you think the investment will pay back? What's your share? What you want to sell? Reseller or original designs? What's your market? and so on... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lutricia Roux Posted July 17, 2016 Share Posted July 17, 2016 You would basically be selling part of your ownership, investors are bosses. Why do you need money at all? Does your business actually require external investment? Why not put your own money to start-up slowly and retain 100% of your business, consider rather to reinvest all funds back into the expansion and growth of your business as opposed to losing a chunk of your business to an investor? Something to consider if possible first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mylie Foxclaw Posted July 17, 2016 Share Posted July 17, 2016 Do you actually need an inworld store? I mean you have the marketplace. Depending on what you sell, you can always set demos on mp itself. An investor has to be trustworthy and also what if they pull out suddenly? You'd have to start afresh. If you can't afford an inworld store, stick to mp for a while. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drusilladarkwillow Posted July 17, 2016 Author Share Posted July 17, 2016 I have a business plan already written up. Yes land is low in cost and I don't need the money for that. What I need it for is new materials I'm an original designer, I don't really resell unless it's with a clinic or bloodlines clan. Both of which I haven't had land for in ages as I have gotten out of them. Your other questions, I do not fully understand, maybe a missing word. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drusilladarkwillow Posted July 17, 2016 Author Share Posted July 17, 2016 I could try but I'm currently strap for cash in real life. I'm working on paying off my credit card debt (which isn't much) and I'm going back to school so I'm on a payment plan for that. Right now about 80% of my income is going into paying for my college classes (I forgot just how expensive college is). I have what I need to open up an inworld shop so it's really just materials for new items. I could do the slow pace, I have done it in the past. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drusilladarkwillow Posted July 17, 2016 Author Share Posted July 17, 2016 My maketplace store is four stores tossed into one. I had added it all in after getting rid of my land holdings as I wasn't online often enough and the tier was just too much of an upkeep. I now have a very small plot inworld (under $10 monthly tier paid to LL), I don't need an investor for that. I'm just thinking on it as I'm in need of marketing and new materials. So it's a thought that I'm looking into before jumping in. I'm liking what everyone is saying thus far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alwin Alcott Posted July 17, 2016 Share Posted July 17, 2016 drusilladarkwillow wrote: What I need it for is new materials what materials? it's SL, you can create everything yourself perhaps explain a bit what you mean? (there's nothing missing in my post as far i know ..just a few questions ..) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wherorangi Posted July 17, 2016 Share Posted July 17, 2016 like Alwin I would also like to know what materials are you meaning ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pamela Galli Posted July 17, 2016 Share Posted July 17, 2016 You have almost 300 items on MP. I would think those would generate enough income to cover expenses, including these mysterious "materials". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amethyst Jetaime Posted July 17, 2016 Share Posted July 17, 2016 Pamela Galli wrote: You have almost 300 items on MP. I would think those would generate enough income to cover expenses, including these mysterious "materials". Much of what she's selling is resellable stuff in limited quantities. So maybe the money for 'materials' is money to buy more things to sell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Codex Alpha Posted July 17, 2016 Share Posted July 17, 2016 As was stated earlier in replies, you have 300 items for sale - you don't need an investor. I have much less so far, but building up over time as my skills build up - I have an inworld store (or lack of one) based on the funds I can create in SL only. This limits me to small parcels or affordable rents, and that will increase as the income increases. Only rent land if you're going to feature your products visually - its a waste of time if all you are going to do is hang pictures of your products which are more easily browsable through the marketplace and adds no value to anyone who visits your inworld store. Why even consider an investor, and just let your business grow organically - more income = more funds to re-invest into SL. I fund 100% now of my SL with earnings with far less items - and I could argue I am much farther stretched for cash in my life right now that really isn't helping much (in many facets), but I still invest some time to moving myself forward. I currently have a small inworld store that supports 465 prims ( a good start ), I pay for my Premium membership with SL funds, and have even paid for a website with it as well. I've had to use some SL income for emergency RL matters that came up 2015-2016, but my intention is to turn every $L back into it - be it online courses in Maya/Blender/Substance/Etc to improve my work and other things. If I can do it with really small numbers of products - you can do it without an investor with a relatively larger store. Also, in RL, I know people who started businesses and rented expensive stores, bought expensive furniture, decked out their 'office' with art and plants, etc - but then forgot they have to get sales to pay for it... Don't be like them. Start with land you can afford to support and go from there. My first year or so as a merchant I was on the MP 100% only, now I'm finally making a shaky transition to 'some' land at least, and we'll see how it goes as it all progresses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drusilladarkwillow Posted July 17, 2016 Author Share Posted July 17, 2016 Scuplt and mesh building compondents. I'm not good at creating those myself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drusilladarkwillow Posted July 17, 2016 Author Share Posted July 17, 2016 I don't rent land, I own it. Majority of what's on my marketplace right now are yard sale items that I'm trying to get rid of from my inventory. Most of mine hasn't moved and I did better with an inworld store then a MP one mainly because my targeted audience shops inworld more then the marketplace. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drusilladarkwillow Posted July 17, 2016 Author Share Posted July 17, 2016 Scuplt and mesh building compondents. I'm not good at creating those myself Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amethyst Jetaime Posted July 17, 2016 Share Posted July 17, 2016 So basically you are looking for someone to fund you by either giving you the money to get the building components you need and/or renting or buying land for an in world shop large enough to display and sell your products. Since you can't pass things full perm you create that contain components you buy from other creators (due to license restrictions) to a business partner to sell if you bow out, they really have nothing to show for their 'investment'. Also this is something they could do on their own by buying the same things you want to buy. They also have no way of verifying how much money you are making and if you are really giving them the agreed upon percentage. They can't see your transaction history as it is against the TOS to share your password. You'd have to own any split profit vendors used. The problem there is it is possible for the vendor owner to change a split profit vendor to give themselves more than agreed. I am not saying you are or would be dishonest but from an investors point of view, it would be a very high risk. Your best bet would be IMO to do what other's have suggested and start small and build your business by reinvesting any profits you make. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wherorangi Posted July 18, 2016 Share Posted July 18, 2016 drusilladarkwillow wrote: Scuplt and mesh building compondents. I'm not good at creating those myself a way to get started with mesh is make stuff with prims and then use a TPV (Firestorm or Singularity for example) to export them to Collada dae format, and then re-import them as mesh it will give you a idea of what it is your stuff should look like to begin with, when you also start importing them into tools like Blender, to start working on your mesh modelling skills to save a lot of money in terms of upload fees then can either go on the SL Beta grid, or my personal preference when learning this stuff, is to install a private Opensim on your computer and use that to help learn your way into Blender make stuff with prims on your private Opensim, export to collada. The advantage with this is that can use as many prims as you like to make complex curved shapes. Import and examine/mod/play with it in Blender, looking to optimise your model, reduce/remove unnecessary triangles, faces, etc. [Re-import into your Opensim and see what the effects are ] when you kinda got a idea with how it all works, then go on the SL beta grid and upload and see what is. When have got a idea of how that all works then upload to main grid as you do this you begin to get a good idea of how to mod stuff (how the tools work) in Blender. From which you will eventual be able to make stuff direct in Blender and direct upload to SL eta [ ] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lutricia Roux Posted July 18, 2016 Share Posted July 18, 2016 Instead of getting an investor to start up your business, have you considered to work to earn lindens within Second Life? Various places like hosting events at clubs etc. could slowly enable for you to build up a small amount to start to invest in full perm mesh to resell. It does work but requires some patience. I know by experience since I started that way myself, not wanting to add any of my real world money. Best luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alwin Alcott Posted July 18, 2016 Share Posted July 18, 2016 ehm.. well as they say at Shark Tank and sortlike shows.... "i'm out" I think there's not a huge chance to find a investor getting involved in resale activities. Start small and try to expand with your own earnings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bitsy Buccaneer Posted July 19, 2016 Share Posted July 19, 2016 I think a yardsale marketplace is confusing for customers, especially if you're going to put your own work up as well. As tedious as it would be to move that stuff to another av or two, it might be worth the time. You said that your customer base tends to shop inworld. Is it something that might help draw traffic to a sim and keep it there? Trying to find someone who's willing to give lindens to a stranger to buy stuff for her business seems a rather hard sell, but you might have better luck finding someone who is willing to give you some spare prims and space and share marketing with you. That's come through for me a few times, though it's all been from close friends who wanted to seed new retail areas they were developing or appreciate the traffic I generate. What can your work bring to someone else's SL? IMO thats the question to ask rather than hoping someone is willing to take a risk financially. (P.S. It took me ages to get the hang of Blender, but I am so glad I invested the time in myself and my shop. It gives me so much more flexibility and control. Keep plugging away at making your own mesh. It is possible to learn and very rewarding. At least when you have something finally finished and uploaded and your hair has grown back in. :matte-motes-smile:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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