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Can you sell food on Facebook? The short answer is yes, you can. Selling food on social media is a growing trend among home-based bakeries. There was an explosion of the phenomenon at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. When restaurants started to lay off workers, pastry chefs were among the first to be let go. Rather than simply accept their fate, many pastry chefs (and hobby bakers) turned to selling food online and selling food on Instagram, creating home-based bakeries nearly overnight. As lockdowns ease and society returns to normal, small business owners can still take what was learned during the pandemic and social media to advertise and sell their delicious baked goods.
Before delving into the details of how to sell baked goods online and how to sell food on Facebook especially, you need to be sure that you understand and are in compliance with what is known as cottage food laws, which can vary significantly from state to state. “Cottage food” refers to the types of foods that are prepared in a person’s home or other location that does not meet the standards of a professional, commercial kitchen. Because of this, some places regulate the type of venues in which a person can sell these types of goods.
Overall there are 42 states (plus Washington DC) that allow home-based bakeries to sell their goods online. California has quite liberal laws in regards to cottage food, while others are far more strict. For example, the state of Indiana traditionally only allowed home-baked foods to be sold at designated farmers’ markets or on the side of the road. Selling food online was not permitted, thus selling food on Facebook Marketplace was not an option. Thanks to a new law passed in 2022, Indiana has expanded sanctioned venues for cottage food to include online sales. Now selling on Facebook Marketplace is a viable outlet for Indiana-based cottage food businesses.
So before getting too far into your research for the best baked goods to sell from home, make sure you know the laws in your town, county, and state.
The way to start a Facebook food business is to list your baked goods on Facebook Marketplace. Marketplace is Facebook’s personal platform for users to sell and buy goods from one another. It has grown steadily within the last few years as a popular place for thrifting, a type of digital garage sale, but selling cakes on Facebook is certainly a way to use Marketplace to the smalltown baker’s advantage.
Listing baked goods in the Facebook Marketplace is fairly straightforward:
For a listing in Facebook Marketplace, you should enter all the relevant information pertaining to the baked good in question. What flavor is it? What fillings were used? It is covered in buttercream on fondant? Describe your culinary masterpiece in a way that both conveys the information and whets the viewer’s appetite.
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Technically, there is no food category in Facebook Marketplace. So the question that remains is how to list food on Facebook Marketplace. This is where home-based bakeries need to get creative. Remember, as long as you are in compliance with the cottage food laws, it is completely legal to sell food on Facebook. However, because selling baked goods and other foods was not the original intent of Facebook Marketplace, bakers need to be savvy about how they go about it.
What usually happens is bakers end up creating a Facebook Marketplace food category by selecting the parent category of “Home and Kitchen” and the subcategory of “Kitchen and Dining.” From there you can select “Other Kitchen and Dining.” This is the closest one can come to accurately choose the categories that Facebook has provided. Because of this, it is important for bakers to plug many tags onto their listings so they can be found by customers seeking baked goods. Maybe in the future, Meta will see the value in a Facebook Marketplace category for food, but for now, cottage food businesses need to carefully navigate Marketplace so they are getting the most of their marketing efforts on that platform.
It is totally possible to sell food and baked goods on Facebook. Other bakers are doing it, and so can you. Just do your homework about cottage food laws and digital marketing, then get to baking!
But if you'd prefer to take a different route, set up your free ecommerce food website with Castiron today.
Everything from self-published novels to makeup samples are promoted on social media sites such as Facebook. Selling food from home may sound like a good business venture to many people. But can you sell homemade food on Facebook? The short answer is yes. There are, however, many steps you'll want to follow and pitfalls to avoid. While it is generally legal to sell food on Facebook, the seller must abide by what is known as cottage food laws. Selling food that does not require refrigeration is the type that is most often allowed. The following is everything you need to know about selling homemade food on Facebook.
The first thing you need to understand when learning how to sell food on Facebook is that they have in recent years started a new feature known as the Marketplace. The launching of Facebook's Marketplace feature is there to help entrepreneurs promote and sell their products. According to Big Commerce, Facebook Marketplace is built into the Facebook app, making it relatively easy for a person to get started. The site is sometimes compared to Craigslist or eBay. The following is everything you need to know for how to sell food on Facebook.
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So far we've discussed general information regarding selling food on Facebook. Some people may be interested in selling food on Facebook abroad. There are currently just a few countries that are allowing selling online through Facebook Marketplace. There are some differences when selling in the United States when compared to selling in Canada, the UK, Australia, and New Zealand. There may be additional regulations that a home seller must comply with when selling food online.
Some of the laws and regulations for Australia and New Zealand may be similar. So whether you're selling food on Facebook Australia or selling food on Facebook NZ, there are some food standards and guidelines you'll want to familiarize yourself with. This is good information to follow since it discusses everything from food safety skills to specific ways to prevent contamination and how to keep track of food traceability. The following information will give you some tips for selling food online in some of these different countries.
You may also be thinking of selling food on Reddit as well as Facebook. As a home chef, you'll be able to decide which one, Reddit or Facebook, is the best platform for your business. Since selling on Facebook has already been outlined in the previous sections, you'll also want to know some basics about Reddit. Reddit is a social network where people can submit content, links, images, and videos. Items are organized into categories that are called subreddits.
If you're looking to sell food on Reddit you'll want to come up with a plan that is similar to what is outlined in the first section. When using Reddit, you'll need to sign up and create or join a category where you can list your food items. It's important to note that each category or subreddit, has its own rules for posting. You'll want to familiarize yourself with these guidelines before posting any type of content or photos. Inc.com provides detailed advice for using Reddit to sell products.
The following are some specific tips you'll want to keep in mind when selling different food items on each platform.
Whether you're selling homemade food on Facebook or Reddit, make sure you read and understand all legal regulations for the location you are selling from. Starting a cottage business is always exciting and there are lots of opportunities when using these great platforms to sell your products!
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The Cake Whisperer
My business would not be the same without my Castiron website! It is an easy setup with lots of customization and tons of support! I am so glad I set up my shop last year before the holidays — it really helped increase my sales!
The Whimsical Cookie
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Castiron provides me a professional site to my customers increasing my credibility and value while giving me the tools to effectively market and manage my business in an easy, user-friendly manner.
Wesley's Treats Hallie's Sweets
Castiron has made my cottage bakery shine, and my business easy to manage. As a platform they care about my business as much as I do.
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