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Will You Add? - Mom & Pop Internet Business Thrives Despite Dot Com Bomb
A collection agency is understood as another party, a third party, that acts as a representative of any business requesting such representation in order to collect an unpaid debt. Let's face it, businesses are in whatever chosen market to make money, not to lose it, and in some instances it becomes necessary to hire a third party to actively pursue unpaid debts. A collection agency will sometimes collect debts for businesses or lenders and in other situations, they purchase unpaid debts so that the debt can be collected and the money then goes to the collection agency.If a collection agency doesn't buy the entire debt from a business or a lender, they may actively pursuit debts for a commission of the collected funds. The commission will obviously vary from one collection agency to another - an agreement between the business and the agency will be established before any debt collection action is taken. Typically, a debt agency will follow up with consumers that have not paid certain bills with an onslaught of telephone calls and multiple letters.A debt agency is required to abide by certain laws. For example, they must always maintain a person's privacy, whether they have contacted the individual by mail or by phone. Letters must remain discreetly addressed and messages that explain the nature of a debt cannot be left with anyone but the person that owes a particular debt. A debt collector can continue to contact a debtor for as long as they like, as long as they abide by the laws enacted. If a deb
Select Quality Vendors
The Rowes examined a lot of web sites and picked things that they liked and found the vendors that supplied what they wanted to sell. "We were fortunate to find all good people in our various vendors. We have a personal relationship with almost all of our vendors," says Christi. "That means that w
Before we start, could you open your Yellow Pages directory?What do most of the ads look like? To me they are nothing more than enlarged business cards. Basic contact information, logo and a slogan.A few list a little more… Like a florist who does weddings and funerals. A limo service that drives to proms. Custom framing that does photos and art. And this one is great: massage therapist who does… massage.It's hard to believe businesses pay so much money to tell people something they already assumed.Sometimes, they’ll give a few more details. Like what awards they’ve won, or how long they’ve been in business.Normally the biggest items on the page are their name, logo and slogan.Why The Most Common Form of Advertising Is the LEAST Effective for the Yellow PagesSlogans and logos. This is the basis of “branding.” The theory is… advertise your “image” repeatedly before the public. Eventually, prospects automatically will think of you when a need or desire arises for what you sell.The results are slow… They are expensive. You can't track them. You can't even be sure they work.But you can be certain branding will not work in the Yellow Pages. Because when someone opens the Yellow Pages, they’re seeking someone they can turn to NOW.Placing your name or logo before them does not help them DECIDE. And if your business hasn't spent the millions of dollars like the McDonalds, the Coca-Colas or the Microsofts have in “getting their name out there
Year by year, the business has grown. There have been some ups and downs. "We have survived a recession, the dot com bust, the 9/11 terrorist attacks and subsequent loss of consumer confidence (that is, loss of business), and two wars," says Bill.
We asked the Rowes what tips they have for entrepreneurs who want a home based business that has a good chance at success.
A Passionate Focus
"The first thing we looked at was whether our shop would sell goods or services, and to pick something you are passionate about. We also recommend a narrow focus so that you, as a small business owner, may compete with the big guys," said Bill.
Bill adds, "Finding and filling a niche with a narrow focus it crucial. It is better to be zoned in on one subject and do it well rather than try to have a little of this, a little of that, and not much of anything, especially with the competition one has on the Internet. I saw one web site that just sold clown shoes, not clown noses, not clown wigs, not clown makeup. I was impressed with that."
Inventory or Drop Ship?
The next thing that the Rowes considered was whether or not to carry inventory. "In 1999, there was a lot of talk about having a catalog of items that you did not have on hand and have the maker drop ship when you got an order. I found some problems with that," says Bill. "For one, the cost of the items appeared to be higher. For another, there would be quite a bit of time for the third party to fulfill an order. And finally, what if a customer bought some jewelry from two or more vendors? The customer would get two or more packages, at different times. So, I decided that we would carry inventory and do our own fulfillment. We would be able to buy at better prices and we would be able ship very quickly."
Select Quality Vendors
The Rowes examined a lot of web sites and picked things that they liked and found the vendors that supplied what they wanted to sell. "We were fortunate to find all good people in our various vendors. We have a personal relationship with almost all of our vendors," says Christi. "That means that w
“Thank you for calling XYZ Company. Your call is important to us but not important enough for us to answer it. Please hold for eternity or leave a message and a representative will contact you as soon as it is convenient for us.”If you’ve ever used the telephone to contact a business you can relate to the frustration that can result from voice mail or automated answering services. Undoubtedly, when they first became “the way to do business” it was extremely annoying; however, times are changing, folks are automating and imprudent business practices such as this are gaining acceptance (or at least tolerance).Of course the ole’ time principles of customer services – such as answering the phone before the third ring, avoiding putting a customer on hold if at all possible, and providing personal service – are still superb solutions to customer satisfaction. But, in our automated world, it is vital to recognize the importance of responding to customers quickly and appropriately, especially if they have been forced to listen to a long recording and traipse through a jungle of push buttons in order to leave a message for you instead of being afforded the luxury of speaking to a warm-blooded human.Whether a customer makes contact in person, via telephone or through email, businesses should strive to provide a timely, if not an immediate response. Customer satisfaction is reliant on responsiveness.So, you may ask, “What is a timely response?”Honestly, the definition of a timely response re
We asked the Rowes what tips they have for entrepreneurs who want a home based business that has a good chance at success.
A Passionate Focus
"The first thing we looked at was whether our shop would sell goods or services, and to pick something you are passionate about. We also recommend a narrow focus so that you, as a small business owner, may compete with the big guys," said Bill.
Bill adds, "Finding and filling a niche with a narrow focus it crucial. It is better to be zoned in on one subject and do it well rather than try to have a little of this, a little of that, and not much of anything, especially with the competition one has on the Internet. I saw one web site that just sold clown shoes, not clown noses, not clown wigs, not clown makeup. I was impressed with that."
Inventory or Drop Ship?
The next thing that the Rowes considered was whether or not to carry inventory. "In 1999, there was a lot of talk about having a catalog of items that you did not have on hand and have the maker drop ship when you got an order. I found some problems with that," says Bill. "For one, the cost of the items appeared to be higher. For another, there would be quite a bit of time for the third party to fulfill an order. And finally, what if a customer bought some jewelry from two or more vendors? The customer would get two or more packages, at different times. So, I decided that we would carry inventory and do our own fulfillment. We would be able to buy at better prices and we would be able ship very quickly."
Select Quality Vendors
The Rowes examined a lot of web sites and picked things that they liked and found the vendors that supplied what they wanted to sell. "We were fortunate to find all good people in our various vendors. We have a personal relationship with almost all of our vendors," says Christi. "That means that w
Rejection is just a short term set back. You are only being rejected for one job, not for every future possibility. We need to pick ourselves up and apply for the next job.Be prepared. It's easy to send off a standard CV without really considering how well you match up to the job. This is a great way to get rejected! Better to take the time to research a job properly and carefully target your application.Are you aiming too high? If you are not getting interviews when you are applying for jobs as a marketing manager, senior sales manager etc, it could be that you are aiming too high. Maybe you need to apply for jobs that you are qualified to do.Accept responsibility for your part in the rejection. Think about your performance, how could you have done better?Focus on the progress you are making. It is highly unlikely you will be offered the first job you go for, and we improve with each application and interview. Each time you go for an interview you are likely to improve in the way you come across and the belief in yourself.Accept that rejection is part of the job search process. With every job advertisement, there is one winner and many people who receive the "regret" letter. Perhaps you were a very close second but someone else's experience was a closer match. We need to treat it more like an audition.Seek feedback. Find out why you didn't get the jo
Inventory or Drop Ship?
The next thing that the Rowes considered was whether or not to carry inventory. "In 1999, there was a lot of talk about having a catalog of items that you did not have on hand and have the maker drop ship when you got an order. I found some problems with that," says Bill. "For one, the cost of the items appeared to be higher. For another, there would be quite a bit of time for the third party to fulfill an order. And finally, what if a customer bought some jewelry from two or more vendors? The customer would get two or more packages, at different times. So, I decided that we would carry inventory and do our own fulfillment. We would be able to buy at better prices and we would be able ship very quickly."
Select Quality Vendors
The Rowes examined a lot of web sites and picked things that they liked and found the vendors that supplied what they wanted to sell. "We were fortunate to find all good people in our various vendors. We have a personal relationship with almost all of our vendors," says Christi. "That means that w
As children we all hear the question, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” So we grow up, we pick a career and work at it for a while. But then what? Does the choice we made at age 20 bind us until age 65?For many people that seems to be exactly what happens, and that’s a fine choice if you’ve made it consciously. But there’s no rule that says you have to pick one career and stick with it until you retire. You can enjoy many different careers if you so choose. Many people experience this by accident (such as when they lose a job), but you can also do it by choice.Sometimes young people are paralyzed when faced with choosing a lifetime career. Picking one thing means denying yourself everything else. What if you have a lot of different interests?Pick one career and get started. Go into it with the expectation of mastering it, but also feel free to move onto something else when you get bored. A career switch will often give you much more growth than staying in the same line of work for decades.Consider Leonardo da Vinci, one of the greatest geniuses of all time (if not THE greatest). His interests included painting, sculpting, engineering, architecture, science, geology, anatomy, flight, optics, gravity, and lots more. This variety of interests served him well because he was able to use his scientific knowledge to improve his art (more realistic and precise artwork) and his art skills to improve his science (detailed drawings and diagrams).Instead of trying to follow 10 different i
Select Quality Vendors
The Rowes examined a lot of web sites and picked things that they liked and found the vendors that supplied what they wanted to sell. "We were fortunate to find all good people in our various vendors. We have a personal relationship with almost all of our vendors," says Christi. "That means that w
Some people are still skeptical about legitimate work at home jobs, they find difficult to believe that they can trust somebody that they cant see face to face and where everything is handled over the internet.However, as the internet has become more popular, there are established business owners that provide legitimate work at home jobs on their sites. This sites offer the service of work exchange between employers and employees and most of the time people that use them to find jobs are called freelancers.Whats special about this freelance sites? This sites offer the security of work exchange and transactions between you and the employer, in other words, you can be sure that you will get paid for the work you agreed to do for your employer.This legitimate work at home jobs can be on a temporary basis, on an ongoing basis or per project. That means that you can find job posting that will pay you to complete a specific project, others will pay you on the amount of work that you get done on a week or day and others will pay you on an ongoing basis because you will work for them month after month.Once you sign up with one of the freelance networks to find online jobs, you will then browse on the category that you feel you have skills and find jobs related to it. After you find the job posting that you want to do, you have to bid how much you want to get paid for the work, sometimes the employer will tell you what is the maximum he is willing to pay for the job.As you can see finding a le
Select Quality Vendors
The Rowes examined a lot of web sites and picked things that they liked and found the vendors that supplied what they wanted to sell. "We were fortunate to find all good people in our various vendors. We have a personal relationship with almost all of our vendors," says Christi. "That means that we can often get faster treatment in case a customer needs something in a hurry."
Credit Cards?
The Rowes also considered how their web site would work in general terms. "There were plenty of commerce sites then that did not offer online credit card payment," says Bill. "They might have had offline credit card payment where a customer could call in, or accept checks and money orders only. We believed strongly to give our customers the most choices possible, so that meant online and offline credit card payments, fax, telephone, and mail orders. For the business, we got a toll-free number for orders, a must have even then."
Web Site Specifics
The next big hurdle was primarily technical: How to get a professional web site that offered online credit card payment. After searching for a good ecommerce software package, the Rowes selected a commercial package that was used on over 300,000 ecommerce web sites at that time. "We picked that system because it was a database system that allowed us to enter the information once for each product and have each product in one or more categories," says Bill. We spent some time to devise appropriate categories that allowed our customers to find what they wanted easily."
"The system is also modular and allows third party developers to write useful extensions to the basic software, a feature that the Rowes have used to advantage.
The Rowes then selected a merchant web site host that specialized in their system. The Rowes went to their bank and applied for a merchant account linked to their business checking account. Then the Rowes had to find a credit card acquiring company and an online credit card transaction service that worked with both their system and with their bank. "This was, by far, the most complex, most nail-biting part of the endeavor," says Bill. "We needed for a customer to be able to pick the product he or she wanted to purchase form our online catalog
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