Get a Dot Com Business

Internet businesses are exciting and rewarding. What are their benefits over a street based business and how do you start one?

Benefits

The costs and therefore the risks are so much lower. There is no investment in buying or leasing a high street shop. The equivalent in an online business can be around only two dollars a week for a domain name and web hosting. Startup costs are low. You can create a website free using WordPress and its ecommerce plugins. Or you can pay someone to create one. It's still cheaper than opening a shop on the street. The whole world is the market for a dot com business. For a shop on the street the market is only within the travel distance from the shop.

So how do you start?

Products

Find products or services that you could be passionate about marketing. Choose consumable products that produce frequent repeat orders. Become an expert in your products. Learn everything there is to know about them, or ensure access to support from suppliers. Is there a ready market for that product? Do some research. Is there a ready supply at a price that you can resell at a reasonable profit? If the big chains are already selling it, can you deliver it cheaper?

Business name

Register a domain name to include a key word relating to that product. Don't let ego trap you into a domain name like billsmithenterprises.com. A domain name that relates to the products that you market will help your position in a search of Google for such products by prospective customers. If your domain name is easy to remember it will be easy for customers to refer other customers to it. Register a business name relating to your domain name. Get a PO Box number and a bank account for that business name.

Website

Arrange hosting of your domain name to include installation of WordPress with an ecommerce plugin. You can do this yourself or get help from a web designer. There are some 1600 free WordPress themes available and thousands of plugins. Learn about search engine optimization. Make a website that is easy to navigate and is Google friendly. After launching it get some other websites to link to yours. Start a home page with a lot of text including key search words. Enter your products, using as much description and information as you can. In Google the websites with more information get ranked higher than those with less. Pictures are worth a thousand words to the prospective customer, but Google ignores pictures and indexes your words. Decide on delivery charges and payment options. Publish guidance on the use of your products. Publish a returns policy, a privacy policy and any other information to assure customers they can safely order from you. Publish the name of your business along with the PO Box number, town and state address plus a telephone contact. Prospective customers like an assurance that you are in the same country and that they can phone for more information and support. We have seen online businesses fail when they tried to be anonymous.

Operating your business

Be prepared to work very hard to get started. The first two years are critical as in that period most business failures occur. We worked hard for two years to gain customers. Now a few years later we work hard to keep up with the orders and with servicing hundreds of customers in every state. In your contact with prospective and existing customers make them feel that they are experiencing personal attention rather than automation. Be on first name terms. They will want to continue dealing with your business. Be systematic on processing orders and shipping them promptly. Be systematic in recording your accounts. Your bank statement and your PayPal history can be downloaded and used for preparing your annual tax accounts. Your ecommerce website should provide sales history.

Summary

A dot com business has no limits to the size of its market. Choose the products carefully and become an expert in them. Enjoy the freedom of running your own business.

Setting Up an Ecommerce Store: The Basics   The Benefits of an Online Store   Got $20? Why Not Start Your Own Business?   Online Shopping Carts That Are Safe and Reliable   Where Does E-Commerce Go?   

Opening Up The Market - The Advantages Of Ecommerce

The invention of the internet has opened up access to information. In the past, consumers and businesses were required to use offline channels and communication to learn more about a subject or topic. Now, anyone with internet access can type in a subject topic and be presented with a range of options to pursue for further information. Consumers now have greater choice and businesses have the ability to reach a larger audience base. The primary advantage of e-commerce is that it acts as a centralized information and market exchange for businesses and consumers alike.

Greater geographical reach is an advantage of e-commerce. Consumers can now search for products that are offered by companies on the 'other side of the world'.

Companies that want to expand geographical reach can now showcase their products to all corners of the globe. Language translation software, online payment gateways, chat programs and email allow buyers and sellers to converse and transact with each other. Irrespective of currency differences, the built in exchange rate adjustments used by payment processors allow both parties to do business in a common format.

Instant access to products and service is one of the benefits of e-commerce.

Busy professionals can now make purchasers online and pay bills from the convenience of a computer terminal. This is a great time saver. Greater search access allows consumers to compare product offerings and make informed purchase decisions without ever having to leave the comfort of their own home. Online mediums save time for consumers and costs for businesses who can reduce physical personnel and replace it with online infrastructure.

An advantage of e-commerce is that it has created a new industry. With the growth of internet access and the demands of business and consumers, new services and jobs are created to meet the demand. This creates jobs for web developers, designers, online engineers, sales personnel and the need for companies that provide specialized infrastructure such as payment gateways, processing and hosting. New educational programs are developed to provide the necessary expertise for support services. This facilitates economic growth, raises educational standards and improves overall quality of life.

Another advantage of e-business is the reduction in startup cost, operating cost, and the reduced barriers of entry for entrepreneurs. Inventory management, marketing expenses, and automation through software now bring the ability to run an online business 24x7 for a fraction of the cost of a comparative offline counterpart. This levels the playing field for individuals and business that were conventionally 'locked out' of a market due to cost barriers. This is independent of technical 'know how'. The right business startup structure and access to online educational support material now provides an opportunity for willing participants to take advantage of the internet.

Setting Up an Ecommerce Store: The Basics   The Benefits of an Online Store   Got $20? Why Not Start Your Own Business?   Online Shopping Carts That Are Safe and Reliable   Where Does E-Commerce Go?   

US-China Legal Exchange Provides Valuable Perspective on State of E-Commerce in Both Countries

The 17th U.S.-China Legal Exchange, a joint US Department of Commerce ("DOC") and PRC Ministry of Commerce ("MofCom") program, was held August 27-31 with workshops held in Harbin, Beijing and Guiyang focusing on recent developments in intellectual property rights enforcement and e-commerce issues. I had the privilege of being part of the governmental and private U.S. delegation head up by Department of Commerce General Counsel Cameron Kerry.

The exchange offered some important insights into the state of e-commerce in both countries. In my presentations, I spoke of the evolution of U.S. regulation of the internet as moving from a frontier society approach, where regulation was adopted by consensus and initially focuses on measures designed to ensure e-commerce's viability so that consumers felt safe to shop online, to the current state where the number of actors and the complexity of issues involved has increased substantially and consensus is elusive. During this tour of China, Chinese media was abuzz with a price war between leading online players that left some consumers concerned whether the prices would be honored, This demonstrated that China, who soon will overtake the United States as the largest e-commerce market, was still in the "frontier phase" of internet regulation as internet penetration and trust in e-commerce takes root in China.

The process of explaining the history of U.S. regulation of e-commerce on foreign soil, was a reminder of the success of the "light touch" approach to regulation that has been applied to the internet to date. In addition, where regulators have acted they have been wise to focus on the conduct of the parties and not the technological platforms used since the internet makes both good and evil more efficient, a point I emphasized to the Chinese audience.

My presentation also touched on emerging legal issues such as crowdfunding, consumer privacy and cyber smearing. In concluding, I stated that it had been an honor to discuss this exciting new age where the vast ocean that has separated us for centuries can be navigated in seconds with the click of a mouse.

I believe that the internet is and will continue to transform China. For example, while there is much discussion about the Great Firewall used by the Chinese government, that merely captures the tip of the iceberg thus leaving untouched a great mass of discussion and debate occurring in social media and elsewhere on the internet at levels unprecedented in Chinese history.

Setting Up an Ecommerce Store: The Basics   The Benefits of an Online Store   Got $20? Why Not Start Your Own Business?   Where Does E-Commerce Go?   

How to Start Your Internet Business - Focus On Your End Goal

What if you discovered how to get started with your online business on the right track and move towards your end goal easily?

Do you want to know the benefits that you will receive if you focus on your end goal starting today?

The purpose of this article is to get you started on the right track and show you how to focus to reach your dream goal.

Here are 4 simple steps to get you started.

Step 1 - Be clear.

Step 2 - It motivates you to go till the end.

Step 3 - It helps you to formulate a better plan to move towards your end goal.

Step 4 - It gives you a feeling that you are on track.

The purpose of this article is to inform you that you can achieve massive success on the internet only if you discover and experience the ultimate power of focus.

Here are step by step details to get you started right now.

Step 1 - Be clear.

When you focus on your goal you should be clear as to what you exactly want out of your online business.

When you are clear you start looking for a plan to help you reach there.

This is how you get started and when you move slowly step by step you reach your end goal.

Step 2 - It motivates you to go till the end.

When you are focused you automatically get motivated to move towards your end goal.

Your subconscious mind will support you and give you all the necessary drive that will help you reach there.

Step 3 - It helps you to formulate a better plan to move towards your final goal.

Setting up a step by step plan is important to move yourself towards your final goal.

When you are highly focused you will automatically get the required ideas and inspiration and your primary plan will be right in front of you.

Step 4 - It gives you a feeling that you are on track.

You will feel good and successful. The reason is that your subconscious mind knows that you are on the right track.

It is highly important that you focus on your goal starting today. You should have a definite purpose in life and have a burning desire to achieve it and then nothing can stop you to move towards your end goal.

Make sure that you use the above steps starting today.

Setting Up an Ecommerce Store: The Basics   The Benefits of an Online Store   Got $20? Why Not Start Your Own Business?   Where Does E-Commerce Go?   Online Shopping Carts That Are Safe and Reliable   

Stay Hungry Stay Foolish!

In the current recession more millionaires have been made in the internet marketing industry than in any other! An online entrepreneur does not require a physical workplace or even a factory to manufacture physical goods. Its essentially a one man show who can go to work anywhere at anytime just by simply switching his online device on and linking up to the world wide web!

Furthermore an online entrepreneur does not need to physically chase after customers and there is also no limit or boundary set on the targeted clientele! The world wide web services all and sundry and is not subject to border controls or customs or any other such obstacles put up by the 256 countries in our world!

What is then this online money making concept? First and foremost despite the typical knee jerk reaction this is not a fraud and there is now a most impressive list of online millionaires who lend credence to the fact that this stuff works!

The world wide web is like the ocean which is still to be fully explored. There are many intriguing sites to visit, facts to study, people to socialize with and the like. In fact in this online world you are able to do what you want! You have the double option of not only accessing various ways to make money but you also can avail of various ways to spend it too!

Just like with everything else there are many scams out there in the online industry and the job of distilling through to the genuine deal can be quite arduous and difficult. This however should not shift focus from the fact that there are some very real and lucrative opportunities for you on the internet to make money. It might be hard but is not impossible. The only thing you need to do is to work smart and follow the game-plan.

The art of making money online is all about making full use of your skill-set and accordingly you need to first of all identify your key expertise which will then lead you towards the optimal channel to utilize the same and generate revenue therewith.

To establish a profitable cash generating online business is not an easy feat and you will need to do a lot of routine monotonous tasks every day especially in the beginning start-up stage.

Some of the top things that you absolutely must keep in mind in context of your online enterprise are as follows:

First and foremost you must understand the necessity of being persevering and not give up whatever may be the situation. This enterprise requires you to devote a lot of time and effort to establish the momentum towards earning money online. Be consistent and make your level best efforts to making your online business succeed.

It is vital to first set your goals and then the strategy to achieving them.

It is but inevitable that in the future there will be situations that would require you to alter your game plan and strategies but you should go on undeterred and not lose sight of the big picture to earn money from your online enterprise.

All road blocks, obstacles are in fact challenges that you need to accept as such and keep going forward towards your goals.

Furthermore you should realize that it is of paramount importance that more work is accomplished in lesser amounts of time. You are free to outsource your work; however do ensure that it makes economic sense to do so or or it will be worthless to you.

Setting Up an Ecommerce Store: The Basics   The Benefits of an Online Store   Got $20? Why Not Start Your Own Business?   Online Shopping Carts That Are Safe and Reliable   Where Does E-Commerce Go?   

How to Apply for a Successful High Risk Merchant Account

If you are applying for a high risk merchant account, merchants are hanging by the thread due to the fact that there is no concise information to why high volume merchant account providers reject most of the applications. Merchants need a way in accepting credit cards online and there is no other way to do it than signing up for such accounts. It is either they are too lazy, or they do not provide a standard customer service for these kinds of services. When a merchant has submitted an application, the merchant account provider will discuss the terms and conditions like the merchant cannot receive payment for almost several months or the merchant is not approved due to their marketing plan. The worst case is the merchant is never approved, and they lose money even before they earn it. Another annoying thing about high risk merchant application is that the process of merchant account providers will take a very long time before it gets approved. This is because the provider assess the business first and checks the rate of fraud or track backs that can happen in the high risk merchant. Also, you spend more fees compared to a regular merchant account.

However, it is not too late to try. When you really need a way in accepting credit cards, you have no choice but to apply for a high risk account. Before you try one, let me give you some quick tips to get you approved in a high volume merchant account. First consider that when you are offering an offshore services, your high risk account application is likely to be declined than accepted since there are so many offshore scam services online. Next is to check your credit rating, your credit rating will determine if your account will be approved or not. A poor credit rating is simply an indication of getting your account automatically rejected. You don't need to open your own bank account because it will be transferred directly in your bank. Most high risk merchant gets accepted because they have a minimum monthly credit card sales volume ranging from $10,000 up to $50 million. During the processing of your high volume merchant account, you will likely to be checked of the following: personal credit of the owner, business lifespan, business profile, monthly processing volume, fraud or charge backs history, processing history. And here are some things you should know during the application: Some require minimal volume caps some don't; You can choose your own international bank; the merchant listed as terminal merchant file will still have a chance to get approved but only if they are not involved in any kinds of fraud in your account. Once the account is approved, you can start accepting credit cards in a matter of weeks, or as soon as the terminal software has been set up.

Start remembering these conditions before you start applying for a high volume merchant account and I guarantee your chance of approval.

Setting Up an Ecommerce Store: The Basics   The Benefits of an Online Store   Got $20? Why Not Start Your Own Business?   Online Shopping Carts That Are Safe and Reliable   Where Does E-Commerce Go?