The end of an era…
// As I mentioned in my last newsletter, The Online Trader is about to be put to bed forever It is almost six years since I first published an email newsletter and since then, I have sent out a newsletter every two weeks (ok, I did miss a couple of dates but if you look back through the archives you will see that my delivery was pretty faultless!) The vast majority of my newsletters are archived here: http://www.theuktrader.co.uk/archives-4/ although I am afraid I didn’t keep copies of the very early editions so I guess they are gone forever… So why am I stopping? Well, there are several reasons but the main one is simply that it is time for something different. After so long, I must admit that I am finding it harder and harder to sit down each week and come up with something worthwhile to write about. Don’t get me wrong, I have plenty of information etc to pass on but it is often too much to fit within a single page newsletter. Also, if I am being completely honest, I have lost a lot of my interest in the ‘email newsletter’ format. It is something which has been
How much easier can it get?
// In my last newsletter, I wrote about how you need to put in a fair amount of hard work before your online business becomes successful – there is no such thing as an ‘overnight success’. Despite this, setting up and running an Internet business is a hundred times easier today than it was, say, five years ago. There are just so many more services and products available to assist you and I got to wondering how much easier things could really get? This week, the UK Post Office has announced a new free service which allows people to buy their stamps online. You simply pay for the stamps you require with a credit/debit card and then print off a label to stick on your envelope. I haven’t used the service yet but as far as I can tell, the label even includes the address to which the letter is going so you don’t even need to write it out (or print off a second label)! A similar service has been in operation in the US for some time but this is fairly new technology in the UK. Just think how much time this new service could potentially save the
How much effort do you actually think you need to put in?
// Before the Internet came along, if you wanted to set up your own business it took a lot of money and an unbelievable amount of hard work. You would have to give up nearly everything and live hand-to-mouth for months and work every single waking hour. You would never get a day off and eventually if luck was on your side, you would end up with a thriving business which generated a nice healthy income for you and your family. You would still have to work most days (if not all) and when your normal working day was complete, there would always be paperwork to do in the evening. If you were fortunate enough to be able to go on holiday you would still have to ‘check in with the office’ – however good your staff were, you couldn’t possibly leave them on their own for more than a day or two without making sure everything was ok. Of course, you could close the business down while you were away but this would mean that you would be losing money everyday that you were lying by the pool (which might take the edge off the enjoyment slightly). (I could
The problem with many Internet businesses…
// The problem with so many Internet businesses is that they are often run by just one person. But surely that’s a good thing right? Well, it can be – it means that you have complete control over everything you are doing and you know exactly what is going on with every aspect of the business at all times. BUT there is one big downside which is that each individual only has 24 hours in the day and this means there is a clear limit as to how much work you can actually get done in that time. Don’t get me wrong, I am as guilty as everyone else who falls into this trap. I am a self-confessed control freak and for years I wouldn’t outsource any of my business tasks. If I wanted to do something, I would spend hours/days/weeks working out how to do it myself rather than letting someone else handle the work for me. The upside of this approach was that I did learn a lot but the downside was that I wasted a huge amount of time. Over the years I have got a lot better at outsourcing work but I still tend to only
Gain and retain customers by giving exceptional value!!
// It may seem obvious but if you offer your customers exceptional value for money, you will gain new customers AND retain existing ones. Unfortunately not everyone seems to realize this I don’t know whether it is just me but I do get the feeling that many online sellers are more interested in lining their own pockets than providing a top quality service and superb value for money. Now, don’t get me wrong, we all need to make a living BUT the ideal business transaction is one where everybody involved wins and that means both the seller AND the buyer. Regardless of what you are selling, be it tangible or intangible products, there is always a way of going the extra mile to give your customer that little bit extra. The benefits to you and your business will far outweigh any small cost that might be involved. For example, let’s say you are selling a tangible product online and it requires batteries. Instead of shipping the product without batteries, include them in the package. Batteries are incredibly cheap and you don’t have to send your buyers the top of the range Duracells! If they weren’t expecting them, it makes
