My Power Mall is one of the fastest growing online business opportunities on the internet today. With over 80,000 members in over 1000 countries world wide its hard for other programs to match the success that they have already seen in its only 3 years of existence.
My Power Mall offers its members millions of products from thousands of stores all at highly discounted prices all at no cost to you for membership. And the stores you buy from will even go as far as donating a percentage of all sales to charities. MPM will save you a lot of money. But they can also make you a lot of money too. Many members of My Power Mall have already quit their day jobs to pursue their online business with the help of this program.
When you sign up with My Power Mall you'll be provided with your very own website full of stores and their products. Every time somebody buys something from one of these stores you get paid a percentage of the sale. But the best thing is that you don't actually have to provide a product, ship anything out, or anything like that. They can handle everything for you. All you need to do is get people to your website. But how do you get the visitors to your online mall? Don't worry about it. After you've signed up for free you'll gain access to personal business trainers and you'll be gives plenty of resources to promote your business, from ebooks to flyers. MPM offers many ways to keep an eye on your business. From toolbars with live web site stats to in depth sales statistics, you'll know at all times exactly how your business is running.
Every time a MPM member gets a friend, family member, whoever, to sign up they get cash. And you'll then receive a percentage of any sales they make through their mall forever! But theres more. Every time one of your referrals signs someone up you'll get paid again.
So in total thats 3 different ways to make money without the stresses of a day job. Many online businesses are hard to survive off of. But thats because they only allow one stream of income. Not only does MPM have 3 ways to make money but they also save you a lot of money in the process.
Tuesday, February 05, 2008
Credit Card Processing Is A Wise E-Business Investment
If you're in business for yourself on the internet you've probably been told that to make money you have to spend money. A more accurate way to think about it would be to make money you have to invest money -- as in investing back into your Web-based business in the form of services that will increase sales and profits.
This brings us to the decision whether or not to add credit card processing service to your e-store. It would seem to be a no-brainer. Studies have shown that e-stores processing plastic see increased traffic, repeat business, sales and profits. More than 80% of all purchases made over the Web are paid for with a credit card. In the last two months of 2007, the holiday shopping period, close to $30 billion in sales were racked up by e-retailers.
Those numbers are hard to ignore. And while there are going to be some expenses involved with the ability to accept payments online, with a little research you can make a cost-effective choice that helps you maximize the investment.
Indeed, before you even get close to making a decision on a merchant account company, spend some time cruising through a half-dozen provider Web sites. Most sites will include a list of charges and fees associated with doing business with them - and you might be surprised at the differences. Compare charges for things like transaction fees, internet processing gateway fees and statement/customer services fees, among others.
Be cautious of credit card processing companies that charge an application fee, which can vary from $100-300. The major players, as a rule, do not feel the need to levy this. These are the companies whose reputation for service and support mean they don't need to boost their bottom lines with a lot of add-on fees.
Indeed, when it comes to the costs associated with merchant account services the ability to offer discounts can be attributed to one of two factors. Some companies say they're cheaper, but make the money with hidden costs and fees. Great providers are able to come in at a lower price point because their customer retention allows them to do so, and those are the companies you'll want to talk to when you're ready to accept payments online.
And speaking of costs be wary of doing business with any concern that charges for calls to the technical support department. Good service after the sale should not have a price tag, and this applies to getting help when something's not working properly and slowing the progress of your business. Plus, unfettered access to support insures that small problems are dealt with before they have a chance to grow into big ones.
Make sure the company you sign up with is also the company that will be processing the transactions. Some use third-party processors that can slow down the amount of time it takes money to be put into your account. And improved cash flow is one more advantage of allowing card processing on your Web store.
A preferred way to sleuth out the good credit card processing companies is to get references and make some calls. A satisfied customer will tell you all you need to know, and should be more believable than what a company will say about itself.
Another good indicator is what the industry says about a provider. Companies like Apple and America Online have ratings for e-commerce providers that give unbiased third-party reviews for companies that give a Web business an avenue to accept payments online.
This brings us to the decision whether or not to add credit card processing service to your e-store. It would seem to be a no-brainer. Studies have shown that e-stores processing plastic see increased traffic, repeat business, sales and profits. More than 80% of all purchases made over the Web are paid for with a credit card. In the last two months of 2007, the holiday shopping period, close to $30 billion in sales were racked up by e-retailers.
Those numbers are hard to ignore. And while there are going to be some expenses involved with the ability to accept payments online, with a little research you can make a cost-effective choice that helps you maximize the investment.
Indeed, before you even get close to making a decision on a merchant account company, spend some time cruising through a half-dozen provider Web sites. Most sites will include a list of charges and fees associated with doing business with them - and you might be surprised at the differences. Compare charges for things like transaction fees, internet processing gateway fees and statement/customer services fees, among others.
Be cautious of credit card processing companies that charge an application fee, which can vary from $100-300. The major players, as a rule, do not feel the need to levy this. These are the companies whose reputation for service and support mean they don't need to boost their bottom lines with a lot of add-on fees.
Indeed, when it comes to the costs associated with merchant account services the ability to offer discounts can be attributed to one of two factors. Some companies say they're cheaper, but make the money with hidden costs and fees. Great providers are able to come in at a lower price point because their customer retention allows them to do so, and those are the companies you'll want to talk to when you're ready to accept payments online.
And speaking of costs be wary of doing business with any concern that charges for calls to the technical support department. Good service after the sale should not have a price tag, and this applies to getting help when something's not working properly and slowing the progress of your business. Plus, unfettered access to support insures that small problems are dealt with before they have a chance to grow into big ones.
Make sure the company you sign up with is also the company that will be processing the transactions. Some use third-party processors that can slow down the amount of time it takes money to be put into your account. And improved cash flow is one more advantage of allowing card processing on your Web store.
A preferred way to sleuth out the good credit card processing companies is to get references and make some calls. A satisfied customer will tell you all you need to know, and should be more believable than what a company will say about itself.
Another good indicator is what the industry says about a provider. Companies like Apple and America Online have ratings for e-commerce providers that give unbiased third-party reviews for companies that give a Web business an avenue to accept payments online.
Saturday, February 02, 2008
An Easy Website Split - Testing Schedule You Can Use
I am a testing fanatic! I firmly believe that there is no way to know if your marketing is performing at its absolute best unless you test. You should be testing your display ads, your sales letters, your email messages and yes, even your website.
I don't seem to have any trouble convincing my clients to test their copywriting and their ads. But, when it comes to website testing, many of my clients shy away. It's easy to look at your site and get totally overwhelmed and unsure of where to start your testing. So I thought I'd share the schedule I plan to use with one of my clients during the upcoming year. What follows is an outline of the website elements I will be testing in 2008. You can use this list to kick off your own split testing campaign.
Remove The Reset Button
The first test I will be performing - because it is one of the easiest - is to remove the reset button from my clients' forms. If you are using a WYSIWYG html editor to create your forms, the reset button is probably generated automatically. And, it's usually placed extremely close to the submit button. Unfortunately, all this does is present your visitor with a distraction and the opportunity to accidentally hit the rest button instead of the submit button. For most forms, there is really no need to have a reset button anyway. In past tests, I've seen this simple change increase conversion rates by as much as 22%. Since it is so easy to create a new page version without the reset button, this is a great place to get started with you're A/B testing.
Make The Submit Button Bigger
After testing the rest button, I'll be moving on to the submit button. Most online marketers agree that when it comes to submit button, bigger is better. So I'll be tested various sizes of graphical buttons until I land on the perfect size. You'll want to keep a close eye on this test as I have a suspicion that a phenomenon similar to "banner blindness" will probably come into play. That is, at some point, the submit button will become so large that it will be overlooked as just another page graphic.
Test The Font Size
Testing your font size is extremely important if your market is older adults or younger children. In the past I have found that a 12-point sans font for body copy converts the best on line. I'd suggest testing that against a 14-point font for kids or seniors. And after you test your body copy, be sure to test your headline. Here is an interesting piece of test date that might give you some useful ideas: http://www.modernimage.com/small-font.htm
Reduce the number of columns
The number of columns on your webpage is another easy element to test. Past test data indicates that a one-column page layout performs the best, often yielding over 40% increased conversions. Since my client is currently using a multi-column newspaper page format, I plan to create a test page with only one column of body copy. If your audience is heavily from Asia, I recommend you weight your one column page a 25 or 30% during the testing phase. I've recently come across data that suggests visitors from Asian countries might prefer a more cluttered page layout.
Add dynamic content to your landing page
I'll admit, for the novice this is not an easy element to perform, but since it can have such a huge impact, I am presenting it as an option. One online merchant experienced a 71% increase in revenue simply by adding dynamic data to his landing page. If you're not comfortable with script programming, you might need to get your "tech guy" involved in this one, or search the internet for a ready-made script.
I don't seem to have any trouble convincing my clients to test their copywriting and their ads. But, when it comes to website testing, many of my clients shy away. It's easy to look at your site and get totally overwhelmed and unsure of where to start your testing. So I thought I'd share the schedule I plan to use with one of my clients during the upcoming year. What follows is an outline of the website elements I will be testing in 2008. You can use this list to kick off your own split testing campaign.
Remove The Reset Button
The first test I will be performing - because it is one of the easiest - is to remove the reset button from my clients' forms. If you are using a WYSIWYG html editor to create your forms, the reset button is probably generated automatically. And, it's usually placed extremely close to the submit button. Unfortunately, all this does is present your visitor with a distraction and the opportunity to accidentally hit the rest button instead of the submit button. For most forms, there is really no need to have a reset button anyway. In past tests, I've seen this simple change increase conversion rates by as much as 22%. Since it is so easy to create a new page version without the reset button, this is a great place to get started with you're A/B testing.
Make The Submit Button Bigger
After testing the rest button, I'll be moving on to the submit button. Most online marketers agree that when it comes to submit button, bigger is better. So I'll be tested various sizes of graphical buttons until I land on the perfect size. You'll want to keep a close eye on this test as I have a suspicion that a phenomenon similar to "banner blindness" will probably come into play. That is, at some point, the submit button will become so large that it will be overlooked as just another page graphic.
Test The Font Size
Testing your font size is extremely important if your market is older adults or younger children. In the past I have found that a 12-point sans font for body copy converts the best on line. I'd suggest testing that against a 14-point font for kids or seniors. And after you test your body copy, be sure to test your headline. Here is an interesting piece of test date that might give you some useful ideas: http://www.modernimage.com/small-font.htm
Reduce the number of columns
The number of columns on your webpage is another easy element to test. Past test data indicates that a one-column page layout performs the best, often yielding over 40% increased conversions. Since my client is currently using a multi-column newspaper page format, I plan to create a test page with only one column of body copy. If your audience is heavily from Asia, I recommend you weight your one column page a 25 or 30% during the testing phase. I've recently come across data that suggests visitors from Asian countries might prefer a more cluttered page layout.
Add dynamic content to your landing page
I'll admit, for the novice this is not an easy element to perform, but since it can have such a huge impact, I am presenting it as an option. One online merchant experienced a 71% increase in revenue simply by adding dynamic data to his landing page. If you're not comfortable with script programming, you might need to get your "tech guy" involved in this one, or search the internet for a ready-made script.
How To Find Proven Methods That Will Make Money Online
There are proven methods that can empower you to be your own boss. You can work on your own terms. Do you need flexibility in your work schedule because of children or caring for an elderly parent? Do want to be available for your daughter's softball game and your son's baseball game? Do you want the freedom to travel and not worry about rushing back to the office because your office will be your laptop? If you are set to make money online, you can work from your home office, the corner coffee shop or even the beach. You are as free to roam as technology will allow.
If you are looking for a get rich quick scheme then give up now. There is no such thing. If you are looking for a way to make money online by doing absolutely nothing then quit. You will not find what you are seeking. On the other hand, if you are looking for a way to make money online by giving a bit of effort while still enjoying time with your family, then there is a packet of information ready to guide you. If you are looking for solid income that does not require an MBA or any other kind of degree then you will find what you are looking for.
Make Money Online
The internet is in nearly every home, library, office and school. It is in the coffee shop down the road and the hotel off the interstate. No matter where we go, most Americans are connected. 75% of Americans have regular internet access. Top rated television shows do not even get 75% of the viewing public.
Holiday Money Crunch-No More!
The only thing more hectic than the holiday gift buying crunch is the money crunch that comes during the following months. Many Americans find themselves heavily in debt at the end of the year. With the right steps, you can avoid the need for holiday debt.
If you are looking for a get rich quick scheme then give up now. There is no such thing. If you are looking for a way to make money online by doing absolutely nothing then quit. You will not find what you are seeking. On the other hand, if you are looking for a way to make money online by giving a bit of effort while still enjoying time with your family, then there is a packet of information ready to guide you. If you are looking for solid income that does not require an MBA or any other kind of degree then you will find what you are looking for.
Make Money Online
The internet is in nearly every home, library, office and school. It is in the coffee shop down the road and the hotel off the interstate. No matter where we go, most Americans are connected. 75% of Americans have regular internet access. Top rated television shows do not even get 75% of the viewing public.
Holiday Money Crunch-No More!
The only thing more hectic than the holiday gift buying crunch is the money crunch that comes during the following months. Many Americans find themselves heavily in debt at the end of the year. With the right steps, you can avoid the need for holiday debt.
Friday, February 01, 2008
Creating a Small Business Online Store
There are literally hundreds, if not thousands of online opportunities on the internet. The internet has literally changed the way millions people across the world do business. And for a few savvy entrepreneurs, the internet has been a virtual goldmine. And for a few, crating a small business online store has been their path to massive success. In this article, we'll explore how to create a small business online store with relatively little working capital.
First of all, the number of small business online stores is steadily increasing across the internet. There are a number of reasons for this, and it is partly due to the number of advantages that this type of opportunity provides. For instance, with an online store, you don't need a lot of money for start-up costs, nor do you need a lot of money to pay for on-going business expenditures. Furthermore, an online store is open to the global market which extends up your profits potential by huge margins.
So how do you start creating small business online store?
First, as the title suggests, you'll build an online store. There are a number of ways to do this. You can get started right away by creating a yahoo store for instance. Or you might create an eBay storefront. Both of these methods a relatively low cost, but can get your product or service out to the masses very quickly.
After you've decided on which avenue to create your store, you'll then need to decide upon all the things you're going to sell through the store. To speed your research up, you may look to see exactly what people are buying online. In this case, you'll let the market dictate your offerings. If, however, you have a hobby or passion you'd like to turn into profits, you might consider selling that via your online store. In other words, the sky is the limit to what you might sell via you online storefront.
What if you don't have your own products to sell?
If you don't have your own products to sell online, you can always promote other people's products or services. This is known as affiliate marketing. Now affiliate marketing has its own set of advantages and disadvantages. However, one huge advantage is that you don't have to worry about product development, shipping, taxes, returns, or questions from the customers. No! You simply have to worry about sending traffic to your affiliate products and services. Forget about inventory, payments, complaints, delivery and other business matters. You only need to worry about getting traffic to your site.
How to generate more profits to your small business online store?
To generate more profits from you small business online store, focus on acquiring your prospect's email addresses so you can follow up on them with other offers. Additionally, focus on providing excellent customer service and make your site very user friendly and easy to navigate. By focusing on "your customer's needs" and providing an excellent customer experience, you'll gain their repeat business, and may even gain referrals from them.
A small business online store has many advantages. With the right product or service and a good amount of traffic, your small business online store is sure to be a success. Good Luck!
First of all, the number of small business online stores is steadily increasing across the internet. There are a number of reasons for this, and it is partly due to the number of advantages that this type of opportunity provides. For instance, with an online store, you don't need a lot of money for start-up costs, nor do you need a lot of money to pay for on-going business expenditures. Furthermore, an online store is open to the global market which extends up your profits potential by huge margins.
So how do you start creating small business online store?
First, as the title suggests, you'll build an online store. There are a number of ways to do this. You can get started right away by creating a yahoo store for instance. Or you might create an eBay storefront. Both of these methods a relatively low cost, but can get your product or service out to the masses very quickly.
After you've decided on which avenue to create your store, you'll then need to decide upon all the things you're going to sell through the store. To speed your research up, you may look to see exactly what people are buying online. In this case, you'll let the market dictate your offerings. If, however, you have a hobby or passion you'd like to turn into profits, you might consider selling that via your online store. In other words, the sky is the limit to what you might sell via you online storefront.
What if you don't have your own products to sell?
If you don't have your own products to sell online, you can always promote other people's products or services. This is known as affiliate marketing. Now affiliate marketing has its own set of advantages and disadvantages. However, one huge advantage is that you don't have to worry about product development, shipping, taxes, returns, or questions from the customers. No! You simply have to worry about sending traffic to your affiliate products and services. Forget about inventory, payments, complaints, delivery and other business matters. You only need to worry about getting traffic to your site.
How to generate more profits to your small business online store?
To generate more profits from you small business online store, focus on acquiring your prospect's email addresses so you can follow up on them with other offers. Additionally, focus on providing excellent customer service and make your site very user friendly and easy to navigate. By focusing on "your customer's needs" and providing an excellent customer experience, you'll gain their repeat business, and may even gain referrals from them.
A small business online store has many advantages. With the right product or service and a good amount of traffic, your small business online store is sure to be a success. Good Luck!
An Easy Website Split - Testing Schedule You Can Use
I am a testing fanatic! I firmly believe that there is no way to know if your marketing is performing at its absolute best unless you test. You should be testing your display ads, your sales letters, your email messages and yes, even your website.
I don't seem to have any trouble convincing my clients to test their copywriting and their ads. But, when it comes to website testing, many of my clients shy away. It's easy to look at your site and get totally overwhelmed and unsure of where to start your testing. So I thought I'd share the schedule I plan to use with one of my clients during the upcoming year. What follows is an outline of the website elements I will be testing in 2008. You can use this list to kick off your own split testing campaign.
Remove The Reset Button
The first test I will be performing - because it is one of the easiest - is to remove the reset button from my clients' forms. If you are using a WYSIWYG html editor to create your forms, the reset button is probably generated automatically. And, it's usually placed extremely close to the submit button. Unfortunately, all this does is present your visitor with a distraction and the opportunity to accidentally hit the rest button instead of the submit button. For most forms, there is really no need to have a reset button anyway. In past tests, I've seen this simple change increase conversion rates by as much as 22%. Since it is so easy to create a new page version without the reset button, this is a great place to get started with you're A/B testing.
Make The Submit Button Bigger
After testing the rest button, I'll be moving on to the submit button. Most online marketers agree that when it comes to submit button, bigger is better. So I'll be tested various sizes of graphical buttons until I land on the perfect size. You'll want to keep a close eye on this test as I have a suspicion that a phenomenon similar to "banner blindness" will probably come into play. That is, at some point, the submit button will become so large that it will be overlooked as just another page graphic.
Test The Font Size
Testing your font size is extremely important if your market is older adults or younger children. In the past I have found that a 12-point sans font for body copy converts the best on line. I'd suggest testing that against a 14-point font for kids or seniors. And after you test your body copy, be sure to test your headline.
Reduce the number of columns
The number of columns on your webpage is another easy element to test. Past test data indicates that a one-column page layout performs the best, often yielding over 40% increased conversions. Since my client is currently using a multi-column newspaper page format, I plan to create a test page with only one column of body copy. If your audience is heavily from Asia, I recommend you weight your one column page a 25 or 30% during the testing phase. I've recently come across data that suggests visitors from Asian countries might prefer a more cluttered page layout.
Add dynamic content to your landing page
I'll admit, for the novice this is not an easy element to perform, but since it can have such a huge impact, I am presenting it as an option. One online merchant experienced a 71% increase in revenue simply by adding dynamic data to his landing page. If you're not comfortable with script programming, you might need to get your "tech guy" involved in this one, or search the internet for a ready-made script.
Before you start split testing, be sure you have adequate points of reference to measure against. Study your log files over the next few weeks to determine your current traffic levels, click through rates and conversion rates. This will become your benchmark to gauge all future tests against.
I don't seem to have any trouble convincing my clients to test their copywriting and their ads. But, when it comes to website testing, many of my clients shy away. It's easy to look at your site and get totally overwhelmed and unsure of where to start your testing. So I thought I'd share the schedule I plan to use with one of my clients during the upcoming year. What follows is an outline of the website elements I will be testing in 2008. You can use this list to kick off your own split testing campaign.
Remove The Reset Button
The first test I will be performing - because it is one of the easiest - is to remove the reset button from my clients' forms. If you are using a WYSIWYG html editor to create your forms, the reset button is probably generated automatically. And, it's usually placed extremely close to the submit button. Unfortunately, all this does is present your visitor with a distraction and the opportunity to accidentally hit the rest button instead of the submit button. For most forms, there is really no need to have a reset button anyway. In past tests, I've seen this simple change increase conversion rates by as much as 22%. Since it is so easy to create a new page version without the reset button, this is a great place to get started with you're A/B testing.
Make The Submit Button Bigger
After testing the rest button, I'll be moving on to the submit button. Most online marketers agree that when it comes to submit button, bigger is better. So I'll be tested various sizes of graphical buttons until I land on the perfect size. You'll want to keep a close eye on this test as I have a suspicion that a phenomenon similar to "banner blindness" will probably come into play. That is, at some point, the submit button will become so large that it will be overlooked as just another page graphic.
Test The Font Size
Testing your font size is extremely important if your market is older adults or younger children. In the past I have found that a 12-point sans font for body copy converts the best on line. I'd suggest testing that against a 14-point font for kids or seniors. And after you test your body copy, be sure to test your headline.
Reduce the number of columns
The number of columns on your webpage is another easy element to test. Past test data indicates that a one-column page layout performs the best, often yielding over 40% increased conversions. Since my client is currently using a multi-column newspaper page format, I plan to create a test page with only one column of body copy. If your audience is heavily from Asia, I recommend you weight your one column page a 25 or 30% during the testing phase. I've recently come across data that suggests visitors from Asian countries might prefer a more cluttered page layout.
Add dynamic content to your landing page
I'll admit, for the novice this is not an easy element to perform, but since it can have such a huge impact, I am presenting it as an option. One online merchant experienced a 71% increase in revenue simply by adding dynamic data to his landing page. If you're not comfortable with script programming, you might need to get your "tech guy" involved in this one, or search the internet for a ready-made script.
Before you start split testing, be sure you have adequate points of reference to measure against. Study your log files over the next few weeks to determine your current traffic levels, click through rates and conversion rates. This will become your benchmark to gauge all future tests against.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Common Press Release Mistakes: Include your Contact Information
Contact information is by far the most important part of your press release and you need to make sure that you provide enough information so that a reader of the press release will be able to reach you. There are some news publications that will take your press release and write a news story without contacting you; however, most news sources who want to base a story off of your press releases will attempt to contact you before they write an article to get more information and their own quotes. If their request is not met in an appropriate time frame, they will go with another company. As a result, it is very important that you include a phone number and / or e-mail address that you check frequently so that writers and journalists will be able to contact you and get the information they need quickly.
I know that some will not want to give their personal information as any one will have access to your e-mail address or telephone number and as a result, I suggest that you create a new e-mail account for press releases where journalists can contact you. pr@domain.com is a very common e-mail address for the public relations department of a company or web site. Many companies who are large enough to have their own public relations expert or press release staff use the business e-mail address of their PR personnel to handle all requests for more information.
I know that when many people register at a new web site, they often give fake or incorrect information but a press release distribution web site is the last place you want to do this. If these distribution services realize that the information you gave does not match up, they may not even send out your press release and terminate your account.
Bottom Line: Most journalists and writers who want to write a press release about you or your company will request and require further information before publishing your release so it is vital that you provide correct information in the “Contact Us” section of the press release. If a journalist can not contact you within a reasonable time frame of sending a press request, your news will not be covered and the purpose of the press release will be defeated. Simply put, make sure you can easily be contacted by those who are interested in writing a story based off your press release.
I know that some will not want to give their personal information as any one will have access to your e-mail address or telephone number and as a result, I suggest that you create a new e-mail account for press releases where journalists can contact you. pr@domain.com is a very common e-mail address for the public relations department of a company or web site. Many companies who are large enough to have their own public relations expert or press release staff use the business e-mail address of their PR personnel to handle all requests for more information.
I know that when many people register at a new web site, they often give fake or incorrect information but a press release distribution web site is the last place you want to do this. If these distribution services realize that the information you gave does not match up, they may not even send out your press release and terminate your account.
Bottom Line: Most journalists and writers who want to write a press release about you or your company will request and require further information before publishing your release so it is vital that you provide correct information in the “Contact Us” section of the press release. If a journalist can not contact you within a reasonable time frame of sending a press request, your news will not be covered and the purpose of the press release will be defeated. Simply put, make sure you can easily be contacted by those who are interested in writing a story based off your press release.
Proprietary And Confidential Information and Franchise Disclosure Documents
A franchisor must be concerned with their proprietary and confidential methods of doing business in business secrets. The confidential operations manual must be guarded and kept away from competitors in the marketplace, who will he immediately use such knowledge to hurt up to franchise system and team. It is for this reason that you should pay special attention in the franchise agreement with regards to proprietary and confidential information. In my franchisee company by chose to insert a special clause, which I had designed personally, you'll find a below;
3.19 Proprietary And Confidential Information
The System includes valuable confidential information. Franchisee agrees to not communicate or divulge the contents of our Confidential Operations Manuals, our Confidential Marketing Manuals, our Franchisee Forum intranet system or any other information related to the System or to the operation of the Franchise or The Car Wash Guys or the WASH GUY.COM franchise system to any person or entity except those Franchisor authorizes in writing to receive the information. Franchisee agrees that those contents and information are confidential. They are Franchisor’s exclusive property, and Franchisee may only use them in the Franchise subject to the provisions and duration of this Franchise Agreement. Franchisee agrees to fully and strictly adhere to all security procedures Franchisor prescribes for maintaining the secrecy of the information. Franchisee agrees to disclose information to their employees only to the extent necessary to perform the franchise business.
Franchisee will assure that Franchisee and all their agents, employees, consultants, partners, owners, officers, directors, and shareholders and other persons in their control, to whom any information is communicated, keep, preserve, and protect all confidential information.
Franchisee acknowledges that during the term of this Franchise Agreement, Franchisee will have access to, become acquainted with and have disclosed to Franchisee by Franchisor confidential information, programs, devices, methods, techniques and processes that are not generally known to the public pertaining to the promotion, marketing, operation and management of a business that offers the cleaning, washing and waxing of automobiles and fleet vehicle washing including the information contained in the Confidential Operations Manual and on the Franchisee Forum intranet system.
Franchisee will not, during the term of this Franchise Agreement or thereafter, communicate, fax, e-mail, post on an internet electronic bulletin board, divulge or use for the benefit or any other person, persons, partnerships, associations, companies or corporations any confidential or proprietary information, knowledge or know-how concerning our methods of operation of the franchised business Franchisor has licensed to Franchisee or any information Franchisor has communicated to Franchisee in written, verbal or electronic form, including intranet passwords, for the operation of the Franchised Business.
3.19 Proprietary And Confidential Information
The System includes valuable confidential information. Franchisee agrees to not communicate or divulge the contents of our Confidential Operations Manuals, our Confidential Marketing Manuals, our Franchisee Forum intranet system or any other information related to the System or to the operation of the Franchise or The Car Wash Guys or the WASH GUY.COM franchise system to any person or entity except those Franchisor authorizes in writing to receive the information. Franchisee agrees that those contents and information are confidential. They are Franchisor’s exclusive property, and Franchisee may only use them in the Franchise subject to the provisions and duration of this Franchise Agreement. Franchisee agrees to fully and strictly adhere to all security procedures Franchisor prescribes for maintaining the secrecy of the information. Franchisee agrees to disclose information to their employees only to the extent necessary to perform the franchise business.
Franchisee will assure that Franchisee and all their agents, employees, consultants, partners, owners, officers, directors, and shareholders and other persons in their control, to whom any information is communicated, keep, preserve, and protect all confidential information.
Franchisee acknowledges that during the term of this Franchise Agreement, Franchisee will have access to, become acquainted with and have disclosed to Franchisee by Franchisor confidential information, programs, devices, methods, techniques and processes that are not generally known to the public pertaining to the promotion, marketing, operation and management of a business that offers the cleaning, washing and waxing of automobiles and fleet vehicle washing including the information contained in the Confidential Operations Manual and on the Franchisee Forum intranet system.
Franchisee will not, during the term of this Franchise Agreement or thereafter, communicate, fax, e-mail, post on an internet electronic bulletin board, divulge or use for the benefit or any other person, persons, partnerships, associations, companies or corporations any confidential or proprietary information, knowledge or know-how concerning our methods of operation of the franchised business Franchisor has licensed to Franchisee or any information Franchisor has communicated to Franchisee in written, verbal or electronic form, including intranet passwords, for the operation of the Franchised Business.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Right Tools For Right Jobs
When choosing a Content Management system or a shopping cart for your web site it is usually a good idea to ask yourself - what is the problem you are trying to solve?
Choosing the right CMS (Content Management System) is very hard. Most people (as noticed on quite a few message boards) make same mistake - they try to figure out what software they need to make money online. "I want to create a community, what software do I need?". First of all - what kind of community is it going to be? Writers? Photographers? Make-up artists? Everyone has different requirements, and different level of knowledge. Photographers are a little easier to please, as they are used to complicated and cumbersome camera controls, but try to cater same interface to a community of models and make-up artists (same industry, after all) and you will be hit with an outcry for mercy.
Choosing a shopping cart is just one notch easier. First - customers already knows that he wants a shopping cart solution. Second - he is aware that whatever choice he makes is going to affect him in the future. Uploading or entering inventory is a time consuming task and not many people have time to experiment with that. But the ultimate question remains the same - what kind of problem the customer has? What is he/she selling and in which quantities?
There are customers who's only reasonable solution would be an eBay. Some people can use quick shopping cart options, like PayPal's shopping cart or BuyNow buttons, or even CafePress. Some could benefit from ZenCart, osCommerce, VirtueMart or peers. Sometimes company grows out of bunch of Excel spreadsheet and starts using CRM, sales and inventory tracking systems, such as RegKeeper, some flavor of QuickBooks, Configure One's electronic catalog software or other platforms. Certain clients order a custom web site with integrated CMS and shopping cart.
Using full-blown shopping system if you only need to sell two flavors of your widget is unwise. Using PayPal for web store with thousands of clients may cost you significant percentage of your business. Each tool has its own (limited) scope of use. Management 101: Before offering a service think - what is the problem the service is going to solve. If you have the answer to this question - you will find tools in no time.
Choosing the right CMS (Content Management System) is very hard. Most people (as noticed on quite a few message boards) make same mistake - they try to figure out what software they need to make money online. "I want to create a community, what software do I need?". First of all - what kind of community is it going to be? Writers? Photographers? Make-up artists? Everyone has different requirements, and different level of knowledge. Photographers are a little easier to please, as they are used to complicated and cumbersome camera controls, but try to cater same interface to a community of models and make-up artists (same industry, after all) and you will be hit with an outcry for mercy.
Choosing a shopping cart is just one notch easier. First - customers already knows that he wants a shopping cart solution. Second - he is aware that whatever choice he makes is going to affect him in the future. Uploading or entering inventory is a time consuming task and not many people have time to experiment with that. But the ultimate question remains the same - what kind of problem the customer has? What is he/she selling and in which quantities?
There are customers who's only reasonable solution would be an eBay. Some people can use quick shopping cart options, like PayPal's shopping cart or BuyNow buttons, or even CafePress. Some could benefit from ZenCart, osCommerce, VirtueMart or peers. Sometimes company grows out of bunch of Excel spreadsheet and starts using CRM, sales and inventory tracking systems, such as RegKeeper, some flavor of QuickBooks, Configure One's electronic catalog software or other platforms. Certain clients order a custom web site with integrated CMS and shopping cart.
Using full-blown shopping system if you only need to sell two flavors of your widget is unwise. Using PayPal for web store with thousands of clients may cost you significant percentage of your business. Each tool has its own (limited) scope of use. Management 101: Before offering a service think - what is the problem the service is going to solve. If you have the answer to this question - you will find tools in no time.
Getting Started In E-commerce
The hardest thing about starting anything new is knowing where to start. The amount of resources available on the internet for getting started in ecommerce can be a blessing and a curse. A blessing as there is help at hand and a curse due to the amount of sites that provide information and some of the 'advice' conflicts.
There is an easy way to start without the head ache. Look at your idea as a business from the start. This way you won't be unpleasantly surprised by what needs to be done to both get your idea off the ground and manage it successfully.
The starting point is an idea. Should you not necessarily know what the 'idea' for you is yet, then a great place to start is to list out the things to love to do, the subjects your are passionate about. Having a list of two to three ideas is far better than just one.
The key advantage of looking at your ecommerce idea as a business from the outset is that there are activities that you can undertake to measure and plan to verify if the idea is worth investing money in.
It does take money though to conduct the research thoroughly. Free research tools can provide part of a story. However it is far better to spend a bit of money here, than find out later the ugly side of the story. You can spend the time, greater amounts of money and effort required to get the site up and going to later find out that other side of the story and the up hill battle that may lay ahead to get a return.
There are two tools that I would recommend.
1. Wordtracker.
Wordtracker is a purpose built keyword search and research tool. As such the information available is superior than what is available on free tools. Another great aspect to Wordtracker is that they offer a free trial period, meaning you can begin researching for free to complete the majority of your research prior to having to spend any money.
2. SBI Brainstorm It!
Should you be in a position of little doubt that you are going to start an ecommerce venture I would highly recommend SBI or Site Build It! This is a full host and domain registration service that massively over delivers. An example of this over delivery is the Brainstorm It tool that comes with your subscription. It is a high quality tool, easy to use and has some fantastic user friendly features.
So to get started in e-commerce make sure you treat the process like it's your new business. I would recommend 4 first steps.
* One, get organised. Have a clear space to work in and free of distractions.
* Two, list your ideas. Have two to three ideas that you are passionate about.
* Three, research. Conduct research on your idea to attain keywords, keyword demand and supply statistics to realistically evaluate if your idea is a flyer.
* And four plan your activities to get your site or blog up and running.
There is an easy way to start without the head ache. Look at your idea as a business from the start. This way you won't be unpleasantly surprised by what needs to be done to both get your idea off the ground and manage it successfully.
The starting point is an idea. Should you not necessarily know what the 'idea' for you is yet, then a great place to start is to list out the things to love to do, the subjects your are passionate about. Having a list of two to three ideas is far better than just one.
The key advantage of looking at your ecommerce idea as a business from the outset is that there are activities that you can undertake to measure and plan to verify if the idea is worth investing money in.
It does take money though to conduct the research thoroughly. Free research tools can provide part of a story. However it is far better to spend a bit of money here, than find out later the ugly side of the story. You can spend the time, greater amounts of money and effort required to get the site up and going to later find out that other side of the story and the up hill battle that may lay ahead to get a return.
There are two tools that I would recommend.
1. Wordtracker.
Wordtracker is a purpose built keyword search and research tool. As such the information available is superior than what is available on free tools. Another great aspect to Wordtracker is that they offer a free trial period, meaning you can begin researching for free to complete the majority of your research prior to having to spend any money.
2. SBI Brainstorm It!
Should you be in a position of little doubt that you are going to start an ecommerce venture I would highly recommend SBI or Site Build It! This is a full host and domain registration service that massively over delivers. An example of this over delivery is the Brainstorm It tool that comes with your subscription. It is a high quality tool, easy to use and has some fantastic user friendly features.
So to get started in e-commerce make sure you treat the process like it's your new business. I would recommend 4 first steps.
* One, get organised. Have a clear space to work in and free of distractions.
* Two, list your ideas. Have two to three ideas that you are passionate about.
* Three, research. Conduct research on your idea to attain keywords, keyword demand and supply statistics to realistically evaluate if your idea is a flyer.
* And four plan your activities to get your site or blog up and running.
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Using Your Internet Business To Create Wealth
Many people seem to create wealth and money easily while others struggle just to make ends meet. Too many people are looking for the easy or quick way to do things. Fast profits, fast food, easy money... Many of these seemingly easy roads to quick profits turn out to be worthless gimmicks. The only one that makes money is the promoter. Those who struggle to make ends meet seem to be attracted to this type of program and lose money time after time.
What are some of the real requirements to create wealth using your online business?
1. Develop a plan.
You need to develop a solid plan. Develop your business plan using successful individuals as a model. Don't try to re-invent the wheel. Do what you know works.
2. Work your plan!
The key word here is work. It is the rare business indeed that requires no work and pays big dividends. Almost all successful businesses require some sort of work. And most successful business owners started out working long and hard. Many of them started out by working 12 to 14 hours a day. If you feel that it is not worth it making that kind of effort, maybe you weren't cut out to create wealth. Maybe that is the reason that you have been struggling just to make ends meet.
2. Use technology.
Whenever possible, use technology to perform mundane repetitive tasks. In almost every case, it is much cheaper to spend a few bucks upfront and get a computer to do a routine task than it is to do it yourself time after time. This frees you up to work on more important and more productive parts of your business. Spending time on the most productive parts of your business will create wealth and make you money!
Do you want to learn more about how I make money? Get my Free ebook entitled, How To Make Money Every Day!
What are some of the real requirements to create wealth using your online business?
1. Develop a plan.
You need to develop a solid plan. Develop your business plan using successful individuals as a model. Don't try to re-invent the wheel. Do what you know works.
2. Work your plan!
The key word here is work. It is the rare business indeed that requires no work and pays big dividends. Almost all successful businesses require some sort of work. And most successful business owners started out working long and hard. Many of them started out by working 12 to 14 hours a day. If you feel that it is not worth it making that kind of effort, maybe you weren't cut out to create wealth. Maybe that is the reason that you have been struggling just to make ends meet.
2. Use technology.
Whenever possible, use technology to perform mundane repetitive tasks. In almost every case, it is much cheaper to spend a few bucks upfront and get a computer to do a routine task than it is to do it yourself time after time. This frees you up to work on more important and more productive parts of your business. Spending time on the most productive parts of your business will create wealth and make you money!
Do you want to learn more about how I make money? Get my Free ebook entitled, How To Make Money Every Day!
eBay Stores and e-Commerce Website Choices - Build It In-House or Hire a Professional?
When you have made the decision to get your products online via eBay and/or your own eCommerce website, what is the next step?
First Question: Build it in-house or hire a professional?
Yes, you can build your companies eBay store and website with talent already existing within your organization.
Website design is taught at most high schools or community colleges these days so, chances are good that your employee pool may have budding web designer talent. Are you ready to trust your company marketing and image to that in house talent is the real question?
eBay provides numerous tools and a great deal of information for anyone to accomplish the task of getting a store up and running. The question is... does eBay provide these tips and tricks to help you as a business or to help their business? Obviously, if you are a seasoned business professional you will soon realize that a company such as eBay does nothing without a reason.
eBay Stores
Most of eBay's teaching tools and to a certain extent, eBay's entire growth strategy is based upon making the process of setting up an eBay selling account and consequently an eBay store easy for home based businesses. eBay wants mom & pop to go garage sale shopping with an eye towards making a few extra bucks for the cookie jar. To that end they want to get mom & pop up and running with an eBay store as soon as possible (and funneling fees into eBay).
Just because eBay has based a majority of their marketing focus on home based businesses does not mean that an eBay store is not a valuable asset for any established brick and mortar retailer or other "real" business concern. eBay is simply going after the largest number of potential users of their products. Unfortunately this also leads to numerous eBay store failures...
These home based eBay store owners do not have the prior background, sources or resources to take advantage of the world wide marketing giant and revenue producer now known as eBay. Therefore, while getting your company eBay store up and running may seem to be an easy in-house task for any intern, or kid just out of college with a great computer science degree... the real nuts & bolts set up and operation of an eBay store or e-commerce solution or both in tandem (the best option) is better left to professionals who work with eBay and e-commerce each and every day. If you are reading this because you are interested in moving your business more into an Internet sales based program you should consider the wisdom of hiring eBay and Internet marketing professionals to help you and your company get a head start toward those goals.
Still Thinking About Doing it yourself?
Building an online business requires ability in several completely different arenas: graphic design, programming, database development, Web design, copywriting, photography, and online marketing. This is just a short list of what is required to start from scratch or to add Internet marketing to your sales operation. If you have these skills in-house or if you plan on learning them yourself, please take this advice to heart.
Make a list of your employees' available skills as well as which skills they can learn. When you have a choice between learning a skill that will directly translate into making more money for your company or learning a skill that will let you do cool stuff on the Web, make a careful choice. Decide how much time you really want to devote to learning and doing things that really don't help you sell more products. Do you want to be an online retailer, or do you want to be a Web developer? The highest and best use of your available time & resources probably isn't learning the ins and outs of XHTML, but taking care of customers, finding new products, and promoting your business.
Making it Happen
Anything you can do yourself on a website design or to a eBay Store can be delegated or outsourced. You can hire eBay Stores Certified design professionals to design your eBay store from the ground up, create a custom logo, develop a corporate identity with unique colors and fonts, build your store product database, take product photos, write sales copy, perform search engine optimization on your site, custom-build XHTML templates that do almost anything you want them to do, and even manage your orders and perform customer service. It all depends on your budget.
After you've decided that you need help, you have lots of choices to make. The first decision is the size of your budget, which determines who you can hire. You can find prices for "building a eBay Store" that range anywhere from $300 to $5,000 and up. You can get a bargain using offshore designers (working anywhere from eastern Europe to India), college kids, or even professional designers moonlighting out of their basement. If you want a more "professional" experience, expect to pay up to $15,000 for a complete branding, marketing, and design package from top-drawer eBay store and Internet marketing firm. Both your web e-commerce site and your eBay store should present your branding and image as you expect them to. Getting the eBay image and your website image to mesh almost seamlessly is your goal, this can be quite difficult for even experienced web designers.
Using a CMS or Content Management System type of website design can significantly reduce your web design costs. There are a huge amount of new and exciting options available for web development, do not think you must use a "hand coded" html site to get your branding and image in front of the public. Some companies are even using simple blogging platforms like Wordpress or Typepad as the basis for corporate websites. These blogging platforms are very inexpensive to set up and the software is free. These CMS or Blogging platforms may also be used in conjunction with an eBay store or a with an eCommerce plug in (or both) to craft a unique Internet marketing funnel for your company.
You get what you pay for...
eBay store designs can run between $2,000 to $5,000 from a qualified eBay Stores designer. eCommerce website designs sometimes run in the tens of thousands of dollars with continual maintenance costs and webmaster fees. If your budget makes you choose between the two options, an eBay store is the more economical and faster route to success when managed correctly. Subsequently an off eBay eCommerce site can be developed for your best selling items. This allows you to use the power of eBay for marketing and SEO purposes while saving eBay fees on sales made through your own eCommerce website.
The best part of an eBay stores set up is that once it is installed as you want it, you have very few outside maintenance costs. Your company will have complete control of the products presentation (with the use of a template) and the inventory management is a simple to learn affair on eBay. Advanced tools are available to help with the management of large inventories and to help you create a listing just as you would within a word processing program or text editor.
When you get a quality eBay Stores design, sometimes the results are more than just superficial. Qualified designers improve the shopping experience, which can dramatically increase sales from your existing traffic by increasing your conversion rate. Also, many designs, when set up correctly improve the way your site looks to search-engine spiders, too! (This is the power of an eBay stores "me" page and other exclusive features and benefits of eBay stores packages).
After you determine what parts of the store building process you can do and what you can't do or would rather not do, you're ready to look for some help with the heavy lifting. First, you have to decide what type of vendor you want to work with because there's a big difference between working with a freelancer or independent consultant and working with a large design company or eBay Stores certified design specialists StoresDesigner.
eBay Stores certified design specialists - eBay Stores Designer
eBay Stores certified design specialists (certified eBay stores designers) provide the best overall experience. Your company will get the personalized attention it deserves and you will know that the design is based upon eBay marketing principles. Look at the portfolios of these certified eBay stores designers and decide which firm best represents your companies' image. Stay away from home based eBay stores designers with frilly eBay templates and flashy bouncing mouse pointers. You should be looking more for a corporate image that sells product and more importantly, cross sells more products for your company.
Look at the online stores you frequent in your daily life, think about the type of image and features you would like to emulate for your eBay store. Look at the designer's portfolios and or ask them if the features you think are most valuable are available in their design packages? Some eBay stores designers can deliver very advanced packages designed to promote more than one primary product at a time. If you are looking for growth in your Internet sales segment, these are the designers to contract with. Talk with several designers to find the one you are most comfortable with and the one who you think will represent the image of your company best with an online design. If the same designer can also develop your off eBay website e-commerce design, you should place that designer high on your list of candidates.
Having a web presence for your company which flows from eBay to your own website with the same "look and feel" is very important. Your goal should be to make your customers feel confident in your products and your company. If you (and your design company) have made an effort to create a nearly seamless shopping experience between eBay and your own e-commerce website, the confidence of the buyer will increase and your conversion rate will as well. Drawing eBay shoppers to your website from within eBay is not only possible, but very probable with a eBay store design done correctly.
Ask your prospective design firm the right questions and you will know immediately if you have made the best choice. Example Questions:
* Are you a certified eBay Stores Designer?
* Do you have examples of cross marketing designs?
* Can you create an eBay stores design which matches my existing website or can you create an e-commerce design to match your eBay stores design?
* Is SEO important for eBay?
* How important is a eBay about me page?
* Do your templates appear correct on all of the major browsers?
What kind of changes can be made to the design after your job is complete? (Can I offer a special sale item in my listing template?)
If your chosen designer is not informed in these questions you should look further. Not every eBay or Internet design firm has the necessary skills or background to help your company effectively cross-market your products. Find the right design firm which will give your firm a solid foundation from which to grow and prosper in the new world of Internet retailing.
First Question: Build it in-house or hire a professional?
Yes, you can build your companies eBay store and website with talent already existing within your organization.
Website design is taught at most high schools or community colleges these days so, chances are good that your employee pool may have budding web designer talent. Are you ready to trust your company marketing and image to that in house talent is the real question?
eBay provides numerous tools and a great deal of information for anyone to accomplish the task of getting a store up and running. The question is... does eBay provide these tips and tricks to help you as a business or to help their business? Obviously, if you are a seasoned business professional you will soon realize that a company such as eBay does nothing without a reason.
eBay Stores
Most of eBay's teaching tools and to a certain extent, eBay's entire growth strategy is based upon making the process of setting up an eBay selling account and consequently an eBay store easy for home based businesses. eBay wants mom & pop to go garage sale shopping with an eye towards making a few extra bucks for the cookie jar. To that end they want to get mom & pop up and running with an eBay store as soon as possible (and funneling fees into eBay).
Just because eBay has based a majority of their marketing focus on home based businesses does not mean that an eBay store is not a valuable asset for any established brick and mortar retailer or other "real" business concern. eBay is simply going after the largest number of potential users of their products. Unfortunately this also leads to numerous eBay store failures...
These home based eBay store owners do not have the prior background, sources or resources to take advantage of the world wide marketing giant and revenue producer now known as eBay. Therefore, while getting your company eBay store up and running may seem to be an easy in-house task for any intern, or kid just out of college with a great computer science degree... the real nuts & bolts set up and operation of an eBay store or e-commerce solution or both in tandem (the best option) is better left to professionals who work with eBay and e-commerce each and every day. If you are reading this because you are interested in moving your business more into an Internet sales based program you should consider the wisdom of hiring eBay and Internet marketing professionals to help you and your company get a head start toward those goals.
Still Thinking About Doing it yourself?
Building an online business requires ability in several completely different arenas: graphic design, programming, database development, Web design, copywriting, photography, and online marketing. This is just a short list of what is required to start from scratch or to add Internet marketing to your sales operation. If you have these skills in-house or if you plan on learning them yourself, please take this advice to heart.
Make a list of your employees' available skills as well as which skills they can learn. When you have a choice between learning a skill that will directly translate into making more money for your company or learning a skill that will let you do cool stuff on the Web, make a careful choice. Decide how much time you really want to devote to learning and doing things that really don't help you sell more products. Do you want to be an online retailer, or do you want to be a Web developer? The highest and best use of your available time & resources probably isn't learning the ins and outs of XHTML, but taking care of customers, finding new products, and promoting your business.
Making it Happen
Anything you can do yourself on a website design or to a eBay Store can be delegated or outsourced. You can hire eBay Stores Certified design professionals to design your eBay store from the ground up, create a custom logo, develop a corporate identity with unique colors and fonts, build your store product database, take product photos, write sales copy, perform search engine optimization on your site, custom-build XHTML templates that do almost anything you want them to do, and even manage your orders and perform customer service. It all depends on your budget.
After you've decided that you need help, you have lots of choices to make. The first decision is the size of your budget, which determines who you can hire. You can find prices for "building a eBay Store" that range anywhere from $300 to $5,000 and up. You can get a bargain using offshore designers (working anywhere from eastern Europe to India), college kids, or even professional designers moonlighting out of their basement. If you want a more "professional" experience, expect to pay up to $15,000 for a complete branding, marketing, and design package from top-drawer eBay store and Internet marketing firm. Both your web e-commerce site and your eBay store should present your branding and image as you expect them to. Getting the eBay image and your website image to mesh almost seamlessly is your goal, this can be quite difficult for even experienced web designers.
Using a CMS or Content Management System type of website design can significantly reduce your web design costs. There are a huge amount of new and exciting options available for web development, do not think you must use a "hand coded" html site to get your branding and image in front of the public. Some companies are even using simple blogging platforms like Wordpress or Typepad as the basis for corporate websites. These blogging platforms are very inexpensive to set up and the software is free. These CMS or Blogging platforms may also be used in conjunction with an eBay store or a with an eCommerce plug in (or both) to craft a unique Internet marketing funnel for your company.
You get what you pay for...
eBay store designs can run between $2,000 to $5,000 from a qualified eBay Stores designer. eCommerce website designs sometimes run in the tens of thousands of dollars with continual maintenance costs and webmaster fees. If your budget makes you choose between the two options, an eBay store is the more economical and faster route to success when managed correctly. Subsequently an off eBay eCommerce site can be developed for your best selling items. This allows you to use the power of eBay for marketing and SEO purposes while saving eBay fees on sales made through your own eCommerce website.
The best part of an eBay stores set up is that once it is installed as you want it, you have very few outside maintenance costs. Your company will have complete control of the products presentation (with the use of a template) and the inventory management is a simple to learn affair on eBay. Advanced tools are available to help with the management of large inventories and to help you create a listing just as you would within a word processing program or text editor.
When you get a quality eBay Stores design, sometimes the results are more than just superficial. Qualified designers improve the shopping experience, which can dramatically increase sales from your existing traffic by increasing your conversion rate. Also, many designs, when set up correctly improve the way your site looks to search-engine spiders, too! (This is the power of an eBay stores "me" page and other exclusive features and benefits of eBay stores packages).
After you determine what parts of the store building process you can do and what you can't do or would rather not do, you're ready to look for some help with the heavy lifting. First, you have to decide what type of vendor you want to work with because there's a big difference between working with a freelancer or independent consultant and working with a large design company or eBay Stores certified design specialists StoresDesigner.
eBay Stores certified design specialists - eBay Stores Designer
eBay Stores certified design specialists (certified eBay stores designers) provide the best overall experience. Your company will get the personalized attention it deserves and you will know that the design is based upon eBay marketing principles. Look at the portfolios of these certified eBay stores designers and decide which firm best represents your companies' image. Stay away from home based eBay stores designers with frilly eBay templates and flashy bouncing mouse pointers. You should be looking more for a corporate image that sells product and more importantly, cross sells more products for your company.
Look at the online stores you frequent in your daily life, think about the type of image and features you would like to emulate for your eBay store. Look at the designer's portfolios and or ask them if the features you think are most valuable are available in their design packages? Some eBay stores designers can deliver very advanced packages designed to promote more than one primary product at a time. If you are looking for growth in your Internet sales segment, these are the designers to contract with. Talk with several designers to find the one you are most comfortable with and the one who you think will represent the image of your company best with an online design. If the same designer can also develop your off eBay website e-commerce design, you should place that designer high on your list of candidates.
Having a web presence for your company which flows from eBay to your own website with the same "look and feel" is very important. Your goal should be to make your customers feel confident in your products and your company. If you (and your design company) have made an effort to create a nearly seamless shopping experience between eBay and your own e-commerce website, the confidence of the buyer will increase and your conversion rate will as well. Drawing eBay shoppers to your website from within eBay is not only possible, but very probable with a eBay store design done correctly.
Ask your prospective design firm the right questions and you will know immediately if you have made the best choice. Example Questions:
* Are you a certified eBay Stores Designer?
* Do you have examples of cross marketing designs?
* Can you create an eBay stores design which matches my existing website or can you create an e-commerce design to match your eBay stores design?
* Is SEO important for eBay?
* How important is a eBay about me page?
* Do your templates appear correct on all of the major browsers?
What kind of changes can be made to the design after your job is complete? (Can I offer a special sale item in my listing template?)
If your chosen designer is not informed in these questions you should look further. Not every eBay or Internet design firm has the necessary skills or background to help your company effectively cross-market your products. Find the right design firm which will give your firm a solid foundation from which to grow and prosper in the new world of Internet retailing.
Right Tools For Right Jobs
When choosing a Content Management system or a shopping cart for your web site it is usually a good idea to ask yourself - what is the problem you are trying to solve?
Choosing the right CMS (Content Management System) is very hard. Most people (as noticed on quite a few message boards) make same mistake - they try to figure out what software they need to make money online. "I want to create a community, what software do I need?". First of all - what kind of community is it going to be? Writers? Photographers? Make-up artists? Everyone has different requirements, and different level of knowledge. Photographers are a little easier to please, as they are used to complicated and cumbersome camera controls, but try to cater same interface to a community of models and make-up artists (same industry, after all) and you will be hit with an outcry for mercy.
Choosing a shopping cart is just one notch easier. First - customers already knows that he wants a shopping cart solution. Second - he is aware that whatever choice he makes is going to affect him in the future. Uploading or entering inventory is a time consuming task and not many people have time to experiment with that. But the ultimate question remains the same - what kind of problem the customer has? What is he/she selling and in which quantities?
There are customers who's only reasonable solution would be an eBay. Some people can use quick shopping cart options, like PayPal's shopping cart or BuyNow buttons, or even CafePress. Some could benefit from ZenCart, osCommerce, VirtueMart or peers. Sometimes company grows out of bunch of Excel spreadsheet and starts using CRM, sales and inventory tracking systems, such as RegKeeper, some flavor of QuickBooks, Configure One's electronic catalog software or other platforms. Certain clients order a custom web site with integrated CMS and shopping cart.
Using full-blown shopping system if you only need to sell two flavors of your widget is unwise. Using PayPal for web store with thousands of clients may cost you significant percentage of your business. Each tool has its own (limited) scope of use. Management 101: Before offering a service think - what is the problem the service is going to solve. If you have the answer to this question - you will find tools in no time.
Choosing the right CMS (Content Management System) is very hard. Most people (as noticed on quite a few message boards) make same mistake - they try to figure out what software they need to make money online. "I want to create a community, what software do I need?". First of all - what kind of community is it going to be? Writers? Photographers? Make-up artists? Everyone has different requirements, and different level of knowledge. Photographers are a little easier to please, as they are used to complicated and cumbersome camera controls, but try to cater same interface to a community of models and make-up artists (same industry, after all) and you will be hit with an outcry for mercy.
Choosing a shopping cart is just one notch easier. First - customers already knows that he wants a shopping cart solution. Second - he is aware that whatever choice he makes is going to affect him in the future. Uploading or entering inventory is a time consuming task and not many people have time to experiment with that. But the ultimate question remains the same - what kind of problem the customer has? What is he/she selling and in which quantities?
There are customers who's only reasonable solution would be an eBay. Some people can use quick shopping cart options, like PayPal's shopping cart or BuyNow buttons, or even CafePress. Some could benefit from ZenCart, osCommerce, VirtueMart or peers. Sometimes company grows out of bunch of Excel spreadsheet and starts using CRM, sales and inventory tracking systems, such as RegKeeper, some flavor of QuickBooks, Configure One's electronic catalog software or other platforms. Certain clients order a custom web site with integrated CMS and shopping cart.
Using full-blown shopping system if you only need to sell two flavors of your widget is unwise. Using PayPal for web store with thousands of clients may cost you significant percentage of your business. Each tool has its own (limited) scope of use. Management 101: Before offering a service think - what is the problem the service is going to solve. If you have the answer to this question - you will find tools in no time.
Getting Started In E-commerce
The hardest thing about starting anything new is knowing where to start. The amount of resources available on the internet for getting started in ecommerce can be a blessing and a curse. A blessing as there is help at hand and a curse due to the amount of sites that provide information and some of the 'advice' conflicts.
There is an easy way to start without the head ache. Look at your idea as a business from the start. This way you won't be unpleasantly surprised by what needs to be done to both get your idea off the ground and manage it successfully.
The starting point is an idea. Should you not necessarily know what the 'idea' for you is yet, then a great place to start is to list out the things to love to do, the subjects your are passionate about. Having a list of two to three ideas is far better than just one.
The key advantage of looking at your ecommerce idea as a business from the outset is that there are activities that you can undertake to measure and plan to verify if the idea is worth investing money in.
It does take money though to conduct the research thoroughly. Free research tools can provide part of a story. However it is far better to spend a bit of money here, than find out later the ugly side of the story. You can spend the time, greater amounts of money and effort required to get the site up and going to later find out that other side of the story and the up hill battle that may lay ahead to get a return.
There are two tools that I would recommend.
1. Wordtracker.
Wordtracker is a purpose built keyword search and research tool. As such the information available is superior than what is available on free tools. Another great aspect to Wordtracker is that they offer a free trial period, meaning you can begin researching for free to complete the majority of your research prior to having to spend any money.
2. SBI Brainstorm It!
Should you be in a position of little doubt that you are going to start an ecommerce venture I would highly recommend SBI or Site Build It! This is a full host and domain registration service that massively over delivers. An example of this over delivery is the Brainstorm It tool that comes with your subscription. It is a high quality tool, easy to use and has some fantastic user friendly features.
So to get started in e-commerce make sure you treat the process like it's your new business. I would recommend 4 first steps.
* One, get organised. Have a clear space to work in and free of distractions.
* Two, list your ideas. Have two to three ideas that you are passionate about.
* Three, research. Conduct research on your idea to attain keywords, keyword demand and supply statistics to realistically evaluate if your idea is a flyer.
* And four plan your activities to get your site or blog up and running.
There is an easy way to start without the head ache. Look at your idea as a business from the start. This way you won't be unpleasantly surprised by what needs to be done to both get your idea off the ground and manage it successfully.
The starting point is an idea. Should you not necessarily know what the 'idea' for you is yet, then a great place to start is to list out the things to love to do, the subjects your are passionate about. Having a list of two to three ideas is far better than just one.
The key advantage of looking at your ecommerce idea as a business from the outset is that there are activities that you can undertake to measure and plan to verify if the idea is worth investing money in.
It does take money though to conduct the research thoroughly. Free research tools can provide part of a story. However it is far better to spend a bit of money here, than find out later the ugly side of the story. You can spend the time, greater amounts of money and effort required to get the site up and going to later find out that other side of the story and the up hill battle that may lay ahead to get a return.
There are two tools that I would recommend.
1. Wordtracker.
Wordtracker is a purpose built keyword search and research tool. As such the information available is superior than what is available on free tools. Another great aspect to Wordtracker is that they offer a free trial period, meaning you can begin researching for free to complete the majority of your research prior to having to spend any money.
2. SBI Brainstorm It!
Should you be in a position of little doubt that you are going to start an ecommerce venture I would highly recommend SBI or Site Build It! This is a full host and domain registration service that massively over delivers. An example of this over delivery is the Brainstorm It tool that comes with your subscription. It is a high quality tool, easy to use and has some fantastic user friendly features.
So to get started in e-commerce make sure you treat the process like it's your new business. I would recommend 4 first steps.
* One, get organised. Have a clear space to work in and free of distractions.
* Two, list your ideas. Have two to three ideas that you are passionate about.
* Three, research. Conduct research on your idea to attain keywords, keyword demand and supply statistics to realistically evaluate if your idea is a flyer.
* And four plan your activities to get your site or blog up and running.
Friday, January 18, 2008
Online Shopping: Legal Challenges for Taxing Authorities
E-commerce offers customers the chance to eliminate many stages in the sales/distribution chain. The mark-ups that occur between manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors, retailers and consumers can add the cost of goods purchased by consumers. In contrast, when consumers deal directly with manufacturers on the internet, the process whereby intermediaries between the manufacturer and the final consumer are eliminated from the supply chain is known as "disintermediation".
E-commerce differs from mail order and telephone solicitation, the two most traditional forms of business using remote sellers, because these involve the delivery of goods by common carrier to and from a specific physical location. In short, there is still a physical delivery of property from an identifiable seller to an identifiable buyer. States jurisdictions have wrestled with the issue of collecting taxes from out-of-state mail order sellers and telephone solicitors for decades; e-commerce enables almost any business large or small to sell to customers in different states and countries.
Out-of-state vendors engaged in e-commerce do not have an obligation to collect sales taxes if traditional remote sellers, such as mail-order and telephone solicitation vendors, do not collect sales taxes. Sales tax cannot be levied on a transaction just because the purchaser uses e-commerce to access the seller's computer to acquire property, goods or service. Also, states cannot use an "agency nexus" theory to claim that a purchaser's ISP is an in-state agent for the seller.
Commerce Defies Traditional Tax Jurisdictions
Using the internet, a company can, in theory, move its e-commerce business to a tax-haven country and conduct e-commerce outside the jurisdiction of any country that would otherwise tax the transaction.
Also, because of the speed in which transactions occur and the frequent absence of a traditional paper trail, it will be very difficult, if not impossible, to apply traditional notions of tax jurisdiction. This is especially true with intangible property transmitted by computer such as software, digital music or electronic books and services.
While governments which depend on an income tax might have difficulty taxing e-commerce, states and local jurisdictions that rely on sales and property taxes to fund their operations could be in deeper trouble.
Lack of a Paper Trail
Unless a tangible product is delivered by common carrier, it is impossible for a taxing jurisdiction to determine that an e-commerce transaction occurred. For instance, if a consumer downloaded a computer game from a computer located in a foreign country for $19.95, paying by credit card, how would a taxing jurisdiction discover that such a transaction occurred? How would it determine the physical location of the seller? What if the purchaser had an internet service provider (ISP) in a foreign country as well?
Transmitting Property from Tangible to Intangible
Consider the following issues: Would the receipt of a computer game in electronic form convert the game into a non-taxable intangible item, whereas the purchase of the same game at a local computer store would be taxable because it is a tangible product?
Also, if a newspaper has an exemption from sales tax will a newspaper that is downloaded in electronic form receives the same exemption? If not, would the tax levied on the electronic version of the newspaper be a discriminatory tax in violation of the commerce clause?
E-cash Issues
Electronic money is a type of debit card similar to a telephone calling card where the card itself keeps track of the remaining balance, rather than a third party bank. This could emerge as the preferred medium of exchange for e-commerce. E-cash will have the same anonymity as cash does in the current "underground" economy. Use of e-cash will further frustrate states and local jurisdictions on taxing e-commerce.
Multiple Taxes
Multiple taxes on the same transaction or service, either in the same taxing jurisdiction or two or more taxing jurisdictions, are prohibited. This could occur if a state-taxed internet access services as telecommunications and then taxed located telephone services as well. Unless a credit is given to eliminate any double-taxation, such a tax would violate the prohibition against multiple taxes.
E-commerce differs from mail order and telephone solicitation, the two most traditional forms of business using remote sellers, because these involve the delivery of goods by common carrier to and from a specific physical location. In short, there is still a physical delivery of property from an identifiable seller to an identifiable buyer. States jurisdictions have wrestled with the issue of collecting taxes from out-of-state mail order sellers and telephone solicitors for decades; e-commerce enables almost any business large or small to sell to customers in different states and countries.
Out-of-state vendors engaged in e-commerce do not have an obligation to collect sales taxes if traditional remote sellers, such as mail-order and telephone solicitation vendors, do not collect sales taxes. Sales tax cannot be levied on a transaction just because the purchaser uses e-commerce to access the seller's computer to acquire property, goods or service. Also, states cannot use an "agency nexus" theory to claim that a purchaser's ISP is an in-state agent for the seller.
Commerce Defies Traditional Tax Jurisdictions
Using the internet, a company can, in theory, move its e-commerce business to a tax-haven country and conduct e-commerce outside the jurisdiction of any country that would otherwise tax the transaction.
Also, because of the speed in which transactions occur and the frequent absence of a traditional paper trail, it will be very difficult, if not impossible, to apply traditional notions of tax jurisdiction. This is especially true with intangible property transmitted by computer such as software, digital music or electronic books and services.
While governments which depend on an income tax might have difficulty taxing e-commerce, states and local jurisdictions that rely on sales and property taxes to fund their operations could be in deeper trouble.
Lack of a Paper Trail
Unless a tangible product is delivered by common carrier, it is impossible for a taxing jurisdiction to determine that an e-commerce transaction occurred. For instance, if a consumer downloaded a computer game from a computer located in a foreign country for $19.95, paying by credit card, how would a taxing jurisdiction discover that such a transaction occurred? How would it determine the physical location of the seller? What if the purchaser had an internet service provider (ISP) in a foreign country as well?
Transmitting Property from Tangible to Intangible
Consider the following issues: Would the receipt of a computer game in electronic form convert the game into a non-taxable intangible item, whereas the purchase of the same game at a local computer store would be taxable because it is a tangible product?
Also, if a newspaper has an exemption from sales tax will a newspaper that is downloaded in electronic form receives the same exemption? If not, would the tax levied on the electronic version of the newspaper be a discriminatory tax in violation of the commerce clause?
E-cash Issues
Electronic money is a type of debit card similar to a telephone calling card where the card itself keeps track of the remaining balance, rather than a third party bank. This could emerge as the preferred medium of exchange for e-commerce. E-cash will have the same anonymity as cash does in the current "underground" economy. Use of e-cash will further frustrate states and local jurisdictions on taxing e-commerce.
Multiple Taxes
Multiple taxes on the same transaction or service, either in the same taxing jurisdiction or two or more taxing jurisdictions, are prohibited. This could occur if a state-taxed internet access services as telecommunications and then taxed located telephone services as well. Unless a credit is given to eliminate any double-taxation, such a tax would violate the prohibition against multiple taxes.
Electronic Commerce - An Overview
The benediction of science and technology are so many to describe. But the invention and application of internet services deserve special mention. Internet services are being randomly used throughout world. Right from shopping to fixing a business deal, everything is being done with the click of a mouse. People have become computer savvy. Their lives have been shaped by various electronic gadgets. With their dependency of electronic gadgets, terms like e-book, e-cards, e-commerce etc. have evolved.
The term ‘e-commerce’ is now a very well-known word. The word ‘e-commerce’ itself signifies ‘e-commerce through electronic medium’. It can also be described as the selling and buying of goods and services on the internet. A new term e-business has also evolved to mean the same thing. We can say it is commerce conducted electronically or simply interpret as an online business. It includes customer service functions, sales, marketing, advertising and many more. It also conducts exchange of goods, information, products or services via electronic medium.
Through this medium a buyer can make his purchase just with a click of a mouse, sitting at home but the seller had to crack hard nuts. So conducting e-commerce is not that easy as the word sounds. To start an online business a big and proper planning is the first thing. There should be an adequate source of production. Proper funding also plays a crucial part in any kind of business to keep it going. But that’s not all. To create markets for the products and to collect customers for selling those products are also vital points to remember. To taste the pinnacle of success, a strong customer service should be there.
E-commerce is also advantageous to other traditional businesses in many respects. If an e-commerce site is implemented well, the cost of transaction is quite lower than others. Moreover an online shop never closes. They always remain open and this provides the customers the opportunity to shop anytime of the hour. With the advent of e-commerce, the concept of shopping from home has emerged. Information about any article is available on the net. Customers can search and gather knowledge according to their needs. Before making any kind of purchase, the customers could widen their frontiers of knowledge so that they did not repent later. Geographic limitations are no more a hindrance in commerce. E-commerce makes the products and the services easily available to the customers without any geographical hurdles. Through this type of commerce the sellers of the goods and services are reaching easily to a wide range of customers, both inland and abroad. The buying process in this type of commerce is also advantageous. It provides the customers with a platform to search product information through global markets with a wider range of choice. They can tally the prices also to buy the cheap but the exclusive article. Delivery time and costs are saved when such purchases are made like e-books, audio clips, software games etc. Distance education is delivered via internet. Global reach of internet able different organizations to send messages worldwide, exploring new markets that traditional markets have difficulties accessing.
But there are also various disadvantages in this kind of commerce for both the buyers as well as the sellers. Expenses of getting popular server for the organization are very high. It is difficult enough to get people know about the product of the company and to made them visit the site. The demerits involved from the buyer’s angles are mainly the touch and feel factor. You cannot smell the product, nor can you take its warmth. You are only guided by feature list and the visual impression. Above all to get all these, rather to enjoy the beauty of the product you have to count days for its arrival. If the shipping is lengthy, certainly it will take the test of your patience. And when you come to realize what you purchased is not what you were looking for or the quality is not at par, there is no easy way to get it exchanged or return it to the seller.
With all these merits and limitations, E-commerce is here to stay. Because it is powered by the most precious thing in modern world, yes, it is time. In future it may change its color, can shift or penetrate into a different media, but the purpose will never be eradicated. In this fast paced world, people want to buy time so that they can invest it in earning money and E-commerce targets that. So, you know who will win.
The term ‘e-commerce’ is now a very well-known word. The word ‘e-commerce’ itself signifies ‘e-commerce through electronic medium’. It can also be described as the selling and buying of goods and services on the internet. A new term e-business has also evolved to mean the same thing. We can say it is commerce conducted electronically or simply interpret as an online business. It includes customer service functions, sales, marketing, advertising and many more. It also conducts exchange of goods, information, products or services via electronic medium.
Through this medium a buyer can make his purchase just with a click of a mouse, sitting at home but the seller had to crack hard nuts. So conducting e-commerce is not that easy as the word sounds. To start an online business a big and proper planning is the first thing. There should be an adequate source of production. Proper funding also plays a crucial part in any kind of business to keep it going. But that’s not all. To create markets for the products and to collect customers for selling those products are also vital points to remember. To taste the pinnacle of success, a strong customer service should be there.
E-commerce is also advantageous to other traditional businesses in many respects. If an e-commerce site is implemented well, the cost of transaction is quite lower than others. Moreover an online shop never closes. They always remain open and this provides the customers the opportunity to shop anytime of the hour. With the advent of e-commerce, the concept of shopping from home has emerged. Information about any article is available on the net. Customers can search and gather knowledge according to their needs. Before making any kind of purchase, the customers could widen their frontiers of knowledge so that they did not repent later. Geographic limitations are no more a hindrance in commerce. E-commerce makes the products and the services easily available to the customers without any geographical hurdles. Through this type of commerce the sellers of the goods and services are reaching easily to a wide range of customers, both inland and abroad. The buying process in this type of commerce is also advantageous. It provides the customers with a platform to search product information through global markets with a wider range of choice. They can tally the prices also to buy the cheap but the exclusive article. Delivery time and costs are saved when such purchases are made like e-books, audio clips, software games etc. Distance education is delivered via internet. Global reach of internet able different organizations to send messages worldwide, exploring new markets that traditional markets have difficulties accessing.
But there are also various disadvantages in this kind of commerce for both the buyers as well as the sellers. Expenses of getting popular server for the organization are very high. It is difficult enough to get people know about the product of the company and to made them visit the site. The demerits involved from the buyer’s angles are mainly the touch and feel factor. You cannot smell the product, nor can you take its warmth. You are only guided by feature list and the visual impression. Above all to get all these, rather to enjoy the beauty of the product you have to count days for its arrival. If the shipping is lengthy, certainly it will take the test of your patience. And when you come to realize what you purchased is not what you were looking for or the quality is not at par, there is no easy way to get it exchanged or return it to the seller.
With all these merits and limitations, E-commerce is here to stay. Because it is powered by the most precious thing in modern world, yes, it is time. In future it may change its color, can shift or penetrate into a different media, but the purpose will never be eradicated. In this fast paced world, people want to buy time so that they can invest it in earning money and E-commerce targets that. So, you know who will win.
Friday, January 11, 2008
E-Business and Its Significance in Today's Marketplace
Although it may seem like a new word, the term e-business was hatched back in 1997, making it no spring chicken. Considering the fact that it describes an entirely new way of conducting business, however, it is safe to say that it’s still in its early stages of use. With every turn of the page you’ll see the term defined in a different way, shape or form. Perhaps this is because it describes such a large scope of processes, ranging from sending out a newsletter to selling an Audi online. So, what exactly is e-business and what does it mean to the future of a business owner?
E-Business Defined
The United States Census Bureau defines e-business as "any process that a business organization conducts over a computer mediated network. Business organizations include any for profit, governmental, non-profit entity. Their processes include production-, customer-, and internal or management-focused business processes." In a shorter broader sense, e-business is the process of conducting business electronically or over the internet. Electronic mail is e-mail, electronic commerce is e-commerce, and following this formula, electronic business is e-business. Every time business is conducted over the internet, e-business takes place and as the internet grows, so grows e-business.
Where Does E-Business Take Place?
E-business is offered to all users via the internet, to internal users via an intranet (similar to the internet, an intranet is a smaller network of computers usually within a single organization), and to specified users via an extranet (an intranet partially accessible to specified users from outside an organization via a valid username and password).
Three Main Types of E-Business
1. Business to Consumer (B2C)
The most widely recognized form of e-business, B2C is the exchange of information, products or services taking place between a business and a consumer over the internet. As the internet develops, B2C is continually changing the way consumers acquire information, the way products are compared against one another and the way in which they are purchased.
An example of a B2C only site is amazon.com. Ae.com is an example of a B2C site housing a physical location as well.
2. Business to Business (B2B)
The largest form of e-business in terms of money spent is B2B. Business-to-business allows trading to take place between businesses, using a low-cost sales channel for the sale of goods and services and is responsible for constantly changing corporate buying habits.
An example of a B2B site would be a car part company selling parts to a car dealership, another company, rather than directly to consumers.
3. Business to Government (B2G)
B2G is the online exchange of information and transactions between businesses and government agencies, also known as e-government. B2G allows government agencies and businesses to use electronic means to conduct business and interact with each other over the internet.
An example of a B2G site would be one that offers electronic tax filing.
E-Commerce and its Relation to E-Business
The United States Census Bureau defines e-commerce as "any transaction completed over a computer mediated network that involves the transfer of ownership or rights to use goods and services. Transactions occur within selected e-business processes (eg. selling process) and are ‘completed’ when agreement is reached between buyer and seller to transfer ownership or rights to use goods or services." So while e-business covers the entire range of online business dealings (from customer service to selling), e-commerce refers specifically to one entity paying for goods or services from another entity via the internet. With this in mind, remember that e-commerce can relate to all types of e-business involved in the transfer of goods or services, including but not limited to B2C, B2B and B2G
E-Business Defined
The United States Census Bureau defines e-business as "any process that a business organization conducts over a computer mediated network. Business organizations include any for profit, governmental, non-profit entity. Their processes include production-, customer-, and internal or management-focused business processes." In a shorter broader sense, e-business is the process of conducting business electronically or over the internet. Electronic mail is e-mail, electronic commerce is e-commerce, and following this formula, electronic business is e-business. Every time business is conducted over the internet, e-business takes place and as the internet grows, so grows e-business.
Where Does E-Business Take Place?
E-business is offered to all users via the internet, to internal users via an intranet (similar to the internet, an intranet is a smaller network of computers usually within a single organization), and to specified users via an extranet (an intranet partially accessible to specified users from outside an organization via a valid username and password).
Three Main Types of E-Business
1. Business to Consumer (B2C)
The most widely recognized form of e-business, B2C is the exchange of information, products or services taking place between a business and a consumer over the internet. As the internet develops, B2C is continually changing the way consumers acquire information, the way products are compared against one another and the way in which they are purchased.
An example of a B2C only site is amazon.com. Ae.com is an example of a B2C site housing a physical location as well.
2. Business to Business (B2B)
The largest form of e-business in terms of money spent is B2B. Business-to-business allows trading to take place between businesses, using a low-cost sales channel for the sale of goods and services and is responsible for constantly changing corporate buying habits.
An example of a B2B site would be a car part company selling parts to a car dealership, another company, rather than directly to consumers.
3. Business to Government (B2G)
B2G is the online exchange of information and transactions between businesses and government agencies, also known as e-government. B2G allows government agencies and businesses to use electronic means to conduct business and interact with each other over the internet.
An example of a B2G site would be one that offers electronic tax filing.
E-Commerce and its Relation to E-Business
The United States Census Bureau defines e-commerce as "any transaction completed over a computer mediated network that involves the transfer of ownership or rights to use goods and services. Transactions occur within selected e-business processes (eg. selling process) and are ‘completed’ when agreement is reached between buyer and seller to transfer ownership or rights to use goods or services." So while e-business covers the entire range of online business dealings (from customer service to selling), e-commerce refers specifically to one entity paying for goods or services from another entity via the internet. With this in mind, remember that e-commerce can relate to all types of e-business involved in the transfer of goods or services, including but not limited to B2C, B2B and B2G
Ecommerce - Boost Your Business ROI
Did you know that over 90% of all online orders are processed by credit cards and that web sites that offer customers the ability to pay with credit cards can achieve up to 300% more sales than those that do not?
It's a fact. Not only do more customers buy, statistics prove that customers actually buy more when given the option to pay with their credit card. Here are some recent trends that will reinforce the need to sell your product or service on the internet- if your business is not yet doing so:
•At the end of 2000, over 400 million people- world-wide- had Internet access. That number passed 1 billion in 2005!
•Almost 100 million people in the U.S. are now making a purchase after using the internet to conduct their research.
•A study conducted jointly by Goldman Sachs, Harris Interactive and Nielsen/Net Ratings pegged holiday season sales up 25% from the previous year. This comes at a time when traditional retail sales are growing in the low single digits.
•Forrester projects that total e-commerce sales in the U.S. will increase by approximately 20% per year, growing to $229 billion in 2008, making online retail transactions 10% of total U.S. retail sales by 2008.
In addition, in a survey conducted among more than 500 businesses with e-commerce enabled sites, the overwhelming majority indicated that they were either very satisfied or at least somewhat satisfied with their company's e-commerce return on investment (ROI).
It's no wonder- when compared to traditional forms of direct marketing such as mail order catalogs, the cost of establishing and maintaining an e-commerce website is more cost-effective. Additionally, user-friendly storefront applications simplify the task of establishing and maintaining a professional e-commerce enabled site.
What’s more, if your company sells products to consumers or businesses and you don't have a fully automated e-commerce website, your business is simply not operating at its full potential and you're sending customers to your competition!
It is no longer a luxury for businesses to have an e-commerce enabled site-but a necessity to stay competitive in the marketplace.
Rick Caraballo is Director of Business Development for e-volution Digital Marketing, a multicultural full service interactive agency with offices in Europe, Latin America, and the US. In his current role, Rick is responsible for the acquisition and retention of Fortune 500 accounts that target the US Hispanic Market, as well as, the markets in Latin America.
It's a fact. Not only do more customers buy, statistics prove that customers actually buy more when given the option to pay with their credit card. Here are some recent trends that will reinforce the need to sell your product or service on the internet- if your business is not yet doing so:
•At the end of 2000, over 400 million people- world-wide- had Internet access. That number passed 1 billion in 2005!
•Almost 100 million people in the U.S. are now making a purchase after using the internet to conduct their research.
•A study conducted jointly by Goldman Sachs, Harris Interactive and Nielsen/Net Ratings pegged holiday season sales up 25% from the previous year. This comes at a time when traditional retail sales are growing in the low single digits.
•Forrester projects that total e-commerce sales in the U.S. will increase by approximately 20% per year, growing to $229 billion in 2008, making online retail transactions 10% of total U.S. retail sales by 2008.
In addition, in a survey conducted among more than 500 businesses with e-commerce enabled sites, the overwhelming majority indicated that they were either very satisfied or at least somewhat satisfied with their company's e-commerce return on investment (ROI).
It's no wonder- when compared to traditional forms of direct marketing such as mail order catalogs, the cost of establishing and maintaining an e-commerce website is more cost-effective. Additionally, user-friendly storefront applications simplify the task of establishing and maintaining a professional e-commerce enabled site.
What’s more, if your company sells products to consumers or businesses and you don't have a fully automated e-commerce website, your business is simply not operating at its full potential and you're sending customers to your competition!
It is no longer a luxury for businesses to have an e-commerce enabled site-but a necessity to stay competitive in the marketplace.
Rick Caraballo is Director of Business Development for e-volution Digital Marketing, a multicultural full service interactive agency with offices in Europe, Latin America, and the US. In his current role, Rick is responsible for the acquisition and retention of Fortune 500 accounts that target the US Hispanic Market, as well as, the markets in Latin America.
Wednesday, January 02, 2008
Frustrated With Website Marketing? Use This 4-Letter Word
When I set up my very first website, I must admit I used some 4 letter words. Struggling with HTML, tracking down an elusive web designer, wondering who really had answers...yes, I had many reasons to expand my vocabulary of colorful words.
And when I had slow weeks, I agonized. I asked friendly acquaintances. I paid consultants. Which domain name would be best? Which headline?
Everybody had an opinion.
"Your web colors are too bright."
"Jazz up your headline."
"Forget the website and market off-line."
But nobody ever yelled the 4 letter word I needed to hear: "Test!"
When I first heard of testing and tracking, I must admit I didn't pay attention. It seemed so complicated..something only the gurus did.
But after dipping a cautious toe into the Pay-Per-Click water, I was shocked. It wasn't that hard. It's not that expensive (if you do some homework ahead of time). And it was cheaper and more accurate than the opinions of acquaintances, including some pricey self-proclaimed gurus.
Now I believe testing is an essential part of website marketing. I've adopted the fanaticism of the new convert.
What to test? You can test headlines, specific words used on a website page, background colors and a whole lot more.
(1) How do I name my book, product or website?
Tim Ferriss used Pay Per Click to choose a title for his best-selling Four-Hour Workweek. You can test your domain name, e-book title, keywords and more, all with google adwords or another pay per click system.
Even a small change can make a huge - and surprising - change in response from website visitors and Internet surfers.
For example, I tested two versions of a title for a product targeted to men and women in the 40-60 age range. I found "mid-life" attracted 3 times as many clickthroughs as "midlife."
Hyphen-power!
I also compared 2 sales letters with identical content, headlines, body copy, font -- everything. I just tested two different background colors. One color pulled twice as any signups as the other.
(2) Do I need more traffic or better conversion rates?
On some web pages, I find the conversion rate surprisingly high -- but almost nobody comes. On others I get great traffic but few clicks.
The results help you figure out your next step: do you need to attract traffic or work on the copy to increase conversion rates. When you guess, you just waste time, energy and (usually) money.
(3) Do I need a picture here?
Should you add a graphic with your book cover? Your own photo?
You've been told you'll get more sales if you had a photo. Or you consider adding a graphic of your book cover to your sales page.
But no rules hold 100% of the time. Sometimes adding a picture actually reduces buyer interest. You have to test.
And after you realize you can sell your product or service, it's time to test price. Some product actually sell more if you raise prices. Some die if you add a penny to the price. That's another article.
Two facts you don't have to test.
(1) Testing takes time. Some professionals fine-tune their marketing materials over a period of months and years.
(2) It's worth it.
And when I had slow weeks, I agonized. I asked friendly acquaintances. I paid consultants. Which domain name would be best? Which headline?
Everybody had an opinion.
"Your web colors are too bright."
"Jazz up your headline."
"Forget the website and market off-line."
But nobody ever yelled the 4 letter word I needed to hear: "Test!"
When I first heard of testing and tracking, I must admit I didn't pay attention. It seemed so complicated..something only the gurus did.
But after dipping a cautious toe into the Pay-Per-Click water, I was shocked. It wasn't that hard. It's not that expensive (if you do some homework ahead of time). And it was cheaper and more accurate than the opinions of acquaintances, including some pricey self-proclaimed gurus.
Now I believe testing is an essential part of website marketing. I've adopted the fanaticism of the new convert.
What to test? You can test headlines, specific words used on a website page, background colors and a whole lot more.
(1) How do I name my book, product or website?
Tim Ferriss used Pay Per Click to choose a title for his best-selling Four-Hour Workweek. You can test your domain name, e-book title, keywords and more, all with google adwords or another pay per click system.
Even a small change can make a huge - and surprising - change in response from website visitors and Internet surfers.
For example, I tested two versions of a title for a product targeted to men and women in the 40-60 age range. I found "mid-life" attracted 3 times as many clickthroughs as "midlife."
Hyphen-power!
I also compared 2 sales letters with identical content, headlines, body copy, font -- everything. I just tested two different background colors. One color pulled twice as any signups as the other.
(2) Do I need more traffic or better conversion rates?
On some web pages, I find the conversion rate surprisingly high -- but almost nobody comes. On others I get great traffic but few clicks.
The results help you figure out your next step: do you need to attract traffic or work on the copy to increase conversion rates. When you guess, you just waste time, energy and (usually) money.
(3) Do I need a picture here?
Should you add a graphic with your book cover? Your own photo?
You've been told you'll get more sales if you had a photo. Or you consider adding a graphic of your book cover to your sales page.
But no rules hold 100% of the time. Sometimes adding a picture actually reduces buyer interest. You have to test.
And after you realize you can sell your product or service, it's time to test price. Some product actually sell more if you raise prices. Some die if you add a penny to the price. That's another article.
Two facts you don't have to test.
(1) Testing takes time. Some professionals fine-tune their marketing materials over a period of months and years.
(2) It's worth it.
Turnkey Internet Business - Is it Right for You?
If you want to get involved in internet marketing but don't know html or how to set up a website, then a turnkey internet business may be your answer.
With most turnkey internet businesses you don't even need a website. Instead you receive a special link that you drive traffic to. Here is how it works: You join an affiliate program that the turnkey internet business promotes and receive an affiliate code. This affiliate code is included in the link you receive. When visitors click on your link and purchase something, you receive a commission.
Your affiliate link usually leads to a professionally designed sales page. If the sales page has a high conversion rate this can help you make more sales. Of course, this will also depend on the amount and type of traffic you send to the sales page.
When your visitors make a purchase through your affiliate link, you don't need to worry about processing the order. Why? Because the vendor you sent your visitor to processes the order, which usually consists of an ebook or software package that is downloaded. The vendor also takes care of any customer service issues as well.
So with a turnkey business your primary focus will be driving traffic to your affiliate link. There are a number of "free" and "paid" methods to accomplish this. Some free methods include: Article marketing, link exchanges, posting on forums, etc. Examples of paid methods include" Pay-per-click (PPC), ezine advertising, advertising on specific websites, etc. There are many more but this at least gives you some methods to research further.
So if you want to leave the technical aspects of setting up and maintaining a website to others, don't want to worry about processing orders and dealing with customer service issues, then a turnkey internet business may be your answer. If you plan to pursue this route, then my suggestion would be to research the various ones on the market today.
With most turnkey internet businesses you don't even need a website. Instead you receive a special link that you drive traffic to. Here is how it works: You join an affiliate program that the turnkey internet business promotes and receive an affiliate code. This affiliate code is included in the link you receive. When visitors click on your link and purchase something, you receive a commission.
Your affiliate link usually leads to a professionally designed sales page. If the sales page has a high conversion rate this can help you make more sales. Of course, this will also depend on the amount and type of traffic you send to the sales page.
When your visitors make a purchase through your affiliate link, you don't need to worry about processing the order. Why? Because the vendor you sent your visitor to processes the order, which usually consists of an ebook or software package that is downloaded. The vendor also takes care of any customer service issues as well.
So with a turnkey business your primary focus will be driving traffic to your affiliate link. There are a number of "free" and "paid" methods to accomplish this. Some free methods include: Article marketing, link exchanges, posting on forums, etc. Examples of paid methods include" Pay-per-click (PPC), ezine advertising, advertising on specific websites, etc. There are many more but this at least gives you some methods to research further.
So if you want to leave the technical aspects of setting up and maintaining a website to others, don't want to worry about processing orders and dealing with customer service issues, then a turnkey internet business may be your answer. If you plan to pursue this route, then my suggestion would be to research the various ones on the market today.
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