Don't Ever Make Price Your Selling Point, Right? small business |
- Don't Ever Make Price Your Selling Point, Right?
- Will I loose money if I pay myself right now?
- Potential new hire is adamant on earning equity over time. How to deal with this?
- The #1 Business Mistake That Can Ruin an Entrepreneur’s Personal Finances
- Best budget-friendly website builder?
- Invoicing/book keeping software suggestions
- Startup : Involving Close Friends a Good Idea
- Biggest problem in your businesses?
- What do you do with your profits?
- Have you had a swift money transfer to China be rejected and returned to you?
- QR code covid tracing tool for small businesses
- Anyone in e-commerce need help setting up email auto responders?
- Tips on furthering my small business journey
- Tips needed
- Paid Marketing Playbook
- How I made friends and masterminds with other businessowners (crosspost from r/internetmarketing)
- COA in NY State
- Is there a way to defer or transfer tax on selling a business property?
- Advice Needed on Equity Offer
- Would love feedback on the website, especially the call to action. Is it too wordy?
- No fee promo for PayPal card reader for small businesses?
- Best bank for app development/online sales?
- I need advice and guidance from art business owners
- Anyone looking for help with selling on Amazon?
| Don't Ever Make Price Your Selling Point, Right? Posted: 24 Oct 2020 09:21 PM PDT So yea, that's basically the golden rule on here. Pricing should never be what you sell because someone else can always undercut you. I absolutely believed this from the start and that's why I took a deeply, absurdly, in debt company and make it into a thriving business with about 15 employees now. All debts are paid and now I just am handling a large payroll as well as some large loans I've been given that I used to pump product into the brick and mortar stores as well as give it an entire facelift. So my problem. My service is the best. This is why people come to me. My best clients openly state that they don't mind paying maybe 5% more for my service because it means its 20% faster than any other competitor. This is even against billion dollar industrial giants. They're just so big and have so many customers that they can't compete with my, when compared to them, miniscule customer base. So yea, they could get it for 5% cheaper usually from a giant, but they get it from me so they don't have to wait. So where's the problem you ask? These industry giants, and even my local competitor who is about 3-4x larger than me, all provide the same product. You guys, including myself, say that price should never be your selling point. Well.... we all offer the same exact product. We're all basically glorified delivery services. Do you see where I am going with this? My gross revenue is up yet another 4.5% this year compared to last. That's with COVID wiping out all of March and some of April. Our sales are a huge driving force and its incredible what we've done in my company. So why am I posting? Well, returns have gong up from 15% to 21.5%. To me, returns should be static. There is no way that just because my total gross sales have gone up that the return/defect % should go up. That's like ordering a medium pizza and always have one tiny slice that no one wants. Fine, you accept that. But when you order a XXXL pizza that 1% shitty slice should still remain just 1% of the pizza no matter the size. So how the hell is it possible that my returns/defects could increase so drastically? I believe that my clientele, at least some of them, purchase from the huge corporations or even my local competitor, and they return their product to me. If you dont follow, they basically order from me due to my superior service, then order from them to get the same product only to return their product to me. This ensures they get insane service but also the cheaper price. Hurts no one except me. How the hell do you deal with that? Ive considered the following: Marking every product. (Time consuming and Costly) Selecting potential abusers randomly or by their return % and trying to catch them in the act and banning/firing them. (Difficult to do we move 100's of product daily) Lower Costs. (Ok so I lose some profit margin but this deincentivizes the conmen at the cost of my profits, still doesnt ensure that someone beats me in pricing in the future regardless) Scale Down (Everyone wants to scale up. I love building a foundation and making things perfect. Im a perfectionist and my foundation is sound. The only issue I have is this point Im reaching. Im at 3mm in annual sales and this is where its really starting to show. Like any strong foundation, the higher you go up the more evident the flaws are. Maybe this is a small flaw but its becoming very clear that its there... maybe. Finally... Maybe its just COVID. Sales have been dipping everywhere. Maybe customers are losing their own sales and in return returning more because of COVID. People dont have money to spend and in my industry the Winter is a dark time. Things get really bad. So maybe with COVID and less discretionary spending this is why Im seeing this issue. But I also see competitors out there while Im making my rounds, so I do think they are sticking their noses in to my clients. Here for any advice. Like I said. I think Im leaning on scaling down. I want to let go of non essential personalle and get back to greater efficiency maybe at my own expense since Ill have to take back the reigns in certain departments. [link] [comments]  |
| Will I loose money if I pay myself right now? Posted: 24 Oct 2020 08:26 PM PDT My business has $10k in it's account right now. After expenses, I made 1k, in net income so I believe my biz will only be taxed for 1k. I want to pay myself $5,000, do I suddenly have to pay personal taxes on $5,000? Would it make more sense to pay myself next year and bring down my gross income for 2021? [link] [comments]  |
| Potential new hire is adamant on earning equity over time. How to deal with this? Posted: 24 Oct 2020 10:53 AM PDT Hello fellow small business owners! I am hiring for a sales manager position as we just need help there, and an applicant, who, for all other occasions seems to be great for the role, is wanting to get equity. He is saying he wants equity in the company once he can prove his value. It is something I am completely unsure of. As someone that gave up so much equity in their former company I will not find myself there again, but I am also worried that he will not have the same ideology that I have when it comes to this business. How do you deal with potential employees that want equity over time? Am I crazy for being REALLY uncomfortable with this? Like, I barely know this guy and he is talking equity. It makes me uneasy, even though I know this is something that is not coming for months. The fact that it is clearly his main goal worries me if we cannot find a number that would work for us both he would have me by the balls, controlling our sales and such. Let me know your thoughts.. [link] [comments]  |
| The #1 Business Mistake That Can Ruin an Entrepreneur’s Personal Finances Posted: 24 Oct 2020 05:30 PM PDT because the ease of making this mistake, coupled with its long-term effect on your personal financial well-being, is shocking. I am talking about using a personal line of credit to fund your business. On paper, this process does not sound catastrophic, dangerous, or worrisome. In fact, it sounds logical and easy. The typical thought process individuals share with me is as follows: You are passionate about starting a business or maybe buying an existing one, you have a good credit history, and the bank has given you access to a line of credit. It is sitting there waiting to be used and you realize that it's an easy way to fund your dream of entrepreneurship—be it buying computers, equipment, paying yourself a salary, or depending on how large your line of credit is, even buying a business. You can simply take the money out of your personal line of credit and transfer it to your business. Easy! In reality, however, this simple transaction can decimate your personal financial well-being, cut off your personal access to credit, suck you into a whirlpool of high interest rates, and leave you with a subpar credit rating for years to come. A cautionary tale A few years ago, I met David (name changed) and his wife for coffee. David was interested in buying a ski equipment shop where he worked from its then current owner. Both David and his wife were in their early 30s, did not have kids, but wanted to start a family soon and the dream of buying and running a business was very appealing to them. In the course of our conversation, I asked David whether he and his wife had any savings, to which he replied, "No." As you can imagine, skiing is a highly seasonal sport. In the summer months the business dries up, revenue generation is uneven, creating unbalanced cash flow for the business and its owner. I expressed this concern to David, given his personal financial situation and the fact that his wife was planning on staying home and not working. The combination of the highly seasonal nature of the store, coupled with David's limited savings and his wife's desire to start a family, all led me to recommend to David that he was not ready to purchase the business. I advised him not to buy the store as I was concerned that he may be in way over his head. [link] [comments]  |
| Best budget-friendly website builder? Posted: 24 Oct 2020 04:10 PM PDT Hey, everyone. I'm currently in the processing of starting my own business (completely online), and I need a good website builder. Coding a website isn't currently an option. I would just like recommendations STRICTLY on website builders, and what the best ones are for the price. And what kind of prices am I looking at ? I've heard both wonderful and not-so-great things for every website builder out there: Shopify, Squarespace, Wix, etc... I also heard that Shopify charges you per payment transaction? Not too sure, but I believe I read that somewhere. I would love something offering simple and clean layouts, is user-friendly, and something I can also add subscription options to (e.g think monthly subscription boxes for clients), if I end up going that route eventually. I live in Quebec, if this helps anything. Thank you everyone! I appreciate any/all advice 🥰 [link] [comments]  |
| Invoicing/book keeping software suggestions Posted: 25 Oct 2020 03:31 AM PDT I'm fairly new to managing business finances. Recently started using https://www.waveapps.com/ (Canadian based- I think) software for recording all money moving in/out. I like it because it's free. I can email receipts. Nice customer invoicing and statements. Wave doesn't work with banks in my country which means some features are not available to me, I imagine when I get staff I'd need to find payroll software. I've tried the native software my bank offers and it's very clunky and doesn't intergrate with it's own bank statements. Is there any software you use that intergrates with your workflow: payroll, estimates and invoicing? [link] [comments]  |
| Startup : Involving Close Friends a Good Idea Posted: 24 Oct 2020 11:24 PM PDT Hi Guys and Gals, I was hoping I could get any gems from your wisdom concerning my situation at hand. Sorry for the typos in advance. Anything you have to tell me is appreciated and I am grateful for it, as I dont have many that can relate to this. Ill briefly tell you about myself. I am a (business and financial) manager for CMS (Medicare) and Medicaid Healthcare companies that focus on End of Life Care (Hospice). I workd at my first job for a tenure of five years and rosed myself from the literally the bottom. I helped come up with core methods and implement strategies for the business/financial operations to expand a five site bussiness into a 23 office, multistate company. Then, I was pursued by a headhunter (private investor) to open up a single office. I thought it was a good idea to put my skills to the real test to see if I wss truely capable of what I thought I could do. In ten months I created and sustained a mutlimillion dollar net income business (tenure of 2 years) from scratch and sticks and stones.. I have landed on an opportunity now at a fairly young age to own my own business(es) with a business partner (a former employee of mine). I learned a horrible lesson from my unique and perspective, that it is not wise to involve family, already as since I am the "baby" of my family they try to boss me around (as if I dont know my job and how to do it) while refusing to fully understand that the aspects of managing a businesses like these a is multilayer cake and not one dimensional... So without pressing into my family problems as it is not appropriate to speak out loud on....- , Ill get to the matter at hand.. I wanted to involve my close friends into my business. But I am conflicted, through the expierence I had with family. My friends are like younger brothers to me (one is a foriegner that I helped accilimate to US culture and I have known him for ten years). They come off to me as arrogant or ignorant at times which can be really disrspectful . I worked extremely hard to be where I am and I had lady luck and fortune on my side to take me where Ive been ( I accredit most of my success more to luck than my ability to bust my tail 24 hours a day consistently because just because you play your heart out doesnt mean everybody gets a championship ring..). I have a big heart and I know better than to be offended by the behavior.. I feel it is not their true intention to come off that way, but being an adult means coping with all hardships, trauma, abuse, bad luck, and often time our shortcomings in Life and it could be more their personality complex or a mental block they have from observing their own behavior. Not all my friends know the opportunity I have, as I didnt share it with everyone. But the people that know and I told, all have began acting off with me once they knew the opportunity that landed on my lap. Anger, Disrespect, Arrogance - which from my end could signs of jelousy or envy OR could be them having a hard time dealing with their own postioning, possibly. My family did kinda the same thing (I had to fire them all) but they took things a few steps further which frieghtens me as my intention is not to push people away. I honestly want to share my blessings and elevate my friends.. They are too young to realize how brutal business can be and how hard it can be to climb the ladder. Its almost like they are projecting their dissappointment onto my opportunity when I am truely commited to helping my friends and family as much as I realistically can while I progress.. Its like my personal success is bringing out some deep resentment that they are shooting off to me, and I know it cant be ME and that its somethint within them... I understand what they see. The biggest fear I have of success is reaching it alone. In some aspects, I know I will reach it alone (which Im okay with) but I want my close friends or some people familair with me that know me to be involved on the journey. I feel very lucky and fortunate to have gone so fsr at such a young age. I think involving friends could be a good idea as I trust them and trust is invaluable in regards to handling business as it gives me reliable information and my job so much easier. And I also really want to help them, as they express unhappiness at their current situations (probably from realizing how difficult the landscape truely is) however they come off to me in such a rude way when we speak. Almost like they are projecting (self defense coping mechanism) onto me instead of being happy or excited that one of us is making it happen. However I already know that they lack the clarity of how multidimensional business is and are arrogant to how truely difficult the elevation/promotional process is in the business field and also not understanding the code of conduct/ettiquette that is required when handling business. (simply put they lack manners around me).. I know they lack respect as some lessons in life have to be learned through experience and not heard by through words. But I want to share my blessing but the people around me, seem upset or angry... And I have done nothing wrong to them, to justify them acting that way (so far as I can see).. Is it a bad idea to pursue them to he involved. Could that be why they are expressing themselves like this to me. Should I invovle these types of people (practically everyone that knows what I am doing) with my startup, cut them off/let them be entirely, or circle back once I have setup and then help them out. Thank You for reading this message and God Bless. 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| Biggest problem in your businesses? Posted: 24 Oct 2020 07:35 PM PDT What is so far the worst thing you encountered in your business?[link] [comments]  |
| What do you do with your profits? Posted: 24 Oct 2020 10:47 PM PDT Started my first successful business in August. Made 45k in profits so far. Haven't touched any of it. Should I invest it or let it sit? What do most people do? [link] [comments]  |
| Have you had a swift money transfer to China be rejected and returned to you? Posted: 24 Oct 2020 09:12 AM PDT We had one of our payments to the manufacturer rejected by the Chinese bank for an error. They have sent the money back but we are yet to receive it. Our transfer company (Transferwise) said since it is a swift payment it can take up to a couple months to be returned. Has anyone had any experience with this? [link] [comments]  |
| QR code covid tracing tool for small businesses Posted: 25 Oct 2020 02:23 AM PDT To help out small businesses struggling to reopen during covid lockdowns, I built a free tool that you can use to set up a QR code for contact tracing https://qrtracer.org [link] [comments]  |
| Anyone in e-commerce need help setting up email auto responders? Posted: 25 Oct 2020 02:21 AM PDT Hi, I'm looking for someone who has an e-commerce store who needs help setting up auto responder emails. Simple emails such as welcome emails, abandoned carts and post sales follow up. I'm just starting out so just looking for a project to sink my teeth into. [link] [comments]  |
| Tips on furthering my small business journey Posted: 24 Oct 2020 12:31 PM PDT Hello! I'm a 21 yo female artist. I make handmade goods, such as ceramic mugs and paintings/signs. But besides that I work with digital art quite often. I own an Etsy shop with my handmade products on it, but I've only made 10 sales so far. What I envision for my small business is an e-commerce store featuring apparel with my designs on it; possibly my handmade mugs, tshirts, possibly pins and other things. I haven't had any schooling on business owning, so I have quite a few questions. What do I legally need in order to start this? I live in Wisconsin. I did a craft show once and I was told I don't need anything unless u make over 2000 dollars a year... does that apply to online businesses too? Or just vendor shows? Also how do taxes work for people like me? At what point to I need to file taxes for my sales? I need a lot of information so if you can provide any of it I'd be more than grateful. [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 24 Oct 2020 10:55 PM PDT So I want to start a hosting service but I don't know the things I need to look out for. I live in the US the servers will be in the eu and we use PayPal for prossess payments business account. We also do things differently like for 1 I would like to send some profits to charity (maybe every 6 months) around the US or world I guess and don't know what I need to look out for. Also I'm a solo owner with no workers. [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 24 Oct 2020 10:22 PM PDT I am planning to create a paid marketing playbook. Would love to hear your inputs on what are the aspects you would expect in it. Please share your thoughts! [link] [comments]  |
| How I made friends and masterminds with other businessowners (crosspost from r/internetmarketing) Posted: 24 Oct 2020 12:20 PM PDT Hey guys, I wanted to share tips on how I made friends and created masterminds with internet marketers like myself. But I expect it will work for all businesses. For a long time I left lonely building a business by myself. And getting to know others like me is among the smartest decisions I've made. For two reasons: 1. It's such a relief to chat day to day life with guys doing the same thing. It makes the whole thing more fun. And I cherish the jokes, stories and support. 2. I've learned a lot from these guys. More than books, YT videos and courses combined. Simply from bouncing ideas off each other. If you read Think and Grow Rich you know it makes a big deal about getting a mastermind going. I now see why. I urge you to do the same. Anyway, here's how I went about it: #1: Be active in growing your business. People like to talk business and life with others on the same level or above. So the more you do the more people who want to know you. There's also another benefit. Taking action makes you feel good about yourself and people feel this. It's a great vibe and people like it #2: Go where people like you hang out. For me it was internet forums and subreddits. But there's facebook, discord, telegram etc. The logic is simple. To mak friends and share ideas you gotta be where others are. Generally speaking smaller communities are better than big ones. This is because there's fewer posts, which means your posts (and others) won't be missed. You'll all know each other by username, which gives a familiar feel - which is a natural bridge to easy friendships. #3: Share advice, experience and things you've learned. Most people aren't of much value. They happy to ask for help but give nothing back. Don't be that guy. Share stuff and regularly. Start new posts. And be an active part of the community. People will notice you. They'll appreciate your effort, and because people gravitate to people actively pursuing interests they care for, they will want to talk to you. #4: Be positive, supportive and joke around. Some people are negative by nature. Stick em behind a keyboard and they evolve into real cunts. This includes guys who share advice. Some of them give off such a "I'm better than you vibe" and it's lame. Be supportive. Be positive. And by all means have fun and share your personality. The latter is important. Remember, you want to meet others who like you as you are. And by showing them what you are is how you do that. #5: Invite people to Whatsapp. After a while two things will happen: A) People will reach out because to say thanks for something you shared. If you think they're cool, invite them to WhatsApp. B) You will find there's certain members you would naturally like to chat with. Simply message them and ask if they want to chat on Whatsapp. Don't overcomplicate these messages. Just tell em' straight up with no pressure. Here's a simple message you could use: "Hey man, I read a few of your posts and love them. I'm in a similar boat and been doing [insert something bout you]. I'm friends with a few guys from here and we chat over Whatsapp. If you like to join us, swap tips and stories then shoot me a message on [insert phone number]" Keep in mind you need to be the one contacting others. People LOVE meeting others like them but few are proactive about it. Of course not everyone will take you up on the offer, but there's plenty who will and appreciate you like mad for asking. Hope that helps. If you liked this and wish to meet and share tips with other internet marketers check out the r/internetmarketing subreddit. It's a wonderful little community where we discuss how to sell ebooks and online courses. I'm a moderator there and would to see you join us. If you're not, but found this post helpful I'd appreciate you spreading the word about our subreddit elsewhere. Peace! [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 24 Oct 2020 06:05 PM PDT Hi, I'm a professional engineer licensed and residing in NY state and practice engineering work in the state of NY. My employer has headquarter in different state and doesn't have COA in NY therefore I have to get my work stamped from 3rd party. Is there any way, I can register myself as a company in NY and obtain COA while employed by another company? [link] [comments]  |
| Is there a way to defer or transfer tax on selling a business property? Posted: 24 Oct 2020 05:12 PM PDT Hi Reddit, I am trying to find some guidance on something before I go out and hire a lawyer to do it. Are there any simple methods to defer or reduce our tax liability in the following situation? Our small business recently sold a warehouse we are trying to reinvest the proceeds from the sale without paying capital gains tax on the funds from the sale, preferably we would like to defer or something of the sort. I am familiar with a 1031 transfer, however, we are not wanting to purchase real estate at this time. We have a few options to lend another business money or could put it into index funds. Any ideas or paths that you guys could recommend? [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 24 Oct 2020 04:11 PM PDT Hi Reddit: I need your advice. I work for a small business providing managed services. We have no unique technology or products, but we provide results and excellent customer service and our retention is pretty good as a result. My employer is generous and compensates me well and definitely understands my value. I'm happy. My boss is currently in the process of buying out two of his partners, and has recently begun to talk to me about assuming the role of CEO and buying equity (10% of the company) to have 'real skin in the game'. In past roles, I've become accustomed to sometimes receiving phantom or non-voting shares from an employer as an incentive. I understand those shares are very different than 'skin in the game', and that they are often subject to massive dilution and are therefore of questionable value, especially when presented in lieu of additional compensation or benefits. Here's the problem, and I really don't want to sound egocentric, but I really feel this way: were I to take my ball and go home, it would be a catastrophic blow to this company. I am deeply embedded into sales and operations, and I personally manage (and in many cases have personally won) many of the companies most lucrative ongoing relationships. I have been advised by two of my friends with startup experience that I should not put my own cash into the company and should instead ask for the equity on the basis of my value and position. Is that realistic? If you had an employee who felt that his value was such that he should be given some measure of ownership, would you give it to him? I really don't know what the rules/conventions are here, but I've been sort of dodging my boss on this topic for a while now and I don't think I can dodge indefinitely. I just feel that the company's dependence on my efforts warrants some kind of special consideration, and I personally feel that he is massively overvaluing the shares. What should I do? TLDR: Boss wants me to buy equity, I've been advised that due to my contributions, I shouldn't have to. Shares seem overvalued to me. What should I do? How should I navigate this conversation? [link] [comments]  |
| Would love feedback on the website, especially the call to action. Is it too wordy? Posted: 24 Oct 2020 10:08 AM PDT This is our current landing page and I've been struggling to figure out a strong call to action, right now the button says "0% processing fees." Feedback on the site and the idea in general would be great! PiipPay doesn't really do much right now other than allow customers to pay with their phones by scanning a QR code (they don't have to download an app or make an account). Might rebrand to platypus pay. We just finished a closed beta and are now working on an open pilot. Our goal is to work with small businesses: farmers markets, foodtrucks, street vendors. Because right now the current alternatives for contactless are really expensive machines by Square or Clover, and most of the businesses we want to work with can't afford that, even if they want to switch from cash to something safer. [link] [comments]  |
| No fee promo for PayPal card reader for small businesses? Posted: 24 Oct 2020 03:44 PM PDT I drove past a billboard for PayPal that I thought said they were offering a card reader with no processing fees thru the end of 2020. Has anyone seen this promotion? Are there better deals out there? Thanks! [link] [comments]  |
| Best bank for app development/online sales? Posted: 24 Oct 2020 03:34 PM PDT I'm an app developer (incorporated as an LLC). I have an app that I built + am looking to sell, and therefore I'm looking to set up a bank account for my business. However, I'm not really sure what the best option is. Big banks seem to have a lot of annoying and/or harmful requirements (eg opening fees, minimum balance, monthly charges, transaction fees etc.). I've seen advice to go with local credit unions (mostly to avoid all this stuff it seems like), but also wondering if an online-only option e.g. Azlo makes sense - what would people recommend/what are the pros/cons of each of these? FWIW I suspect aggregate transactions will be pretty minimal/low-balance at first (and also will all be digital). Ideally I'd like a minimal hassle option (along the lines of "here is my business info" -> "okay we'll give you a place to store money"). [link] [comments]  |
| I need advice and guidance from art business owners Posted: 24 Oct 2020 10:45 AM PDT I am 21 years old ..studying in university and trying to start a small invites and cards business. I want to include handmade birthday cards ( which i make alot all by hand ) and wedding or party invites. Can someone please recommend me what i need to know or should be aware of before i step into the process ..also i will be very thankful for advices from all art business owners Also can you all awesome art people can pls tell me what i need to buy (like what printers or embossers , cutters to make my invites? ) If you have invite / card business ..can u please give me advice? I will be thankful Im feel im good at crafting nd i want to make use of my talent This is my Instagram link , i put the cards i made in the highlights (https://www.instagram.com/exonster/?hl=en) [link] [comments]  |
| Anyone looking for help with selling on Amazon? Posted: 24 Oct 2020 01:31 PM PDT I just went through the entire process of setting up my new Amazon Seller Account, Brand registrations, and sold out my products in less than 15 days. It's incredibly hard for a new Amazon seller to sell especially learning the complexities of setting up accounts, UPC management, Amazon PPC Ads, listing optimization, etc..and I know this because I just went through all of this past 6 months. I am happy to help any other small businesses struggling to make a sale on Amazon. [link] [comments]  |
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