Being a business owner comes with a lot of responsibilities, including the upkeep of your store. If you’re an online trader, then it can be a little more difficult to manage your ‘store’ because it’s virtual. If you’re not tech savvy and something goes wrong, you could risk losing out on days, possibly weeks of all important business. Here’s how you can run a successful online store.

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Man the decks

In every sense of the phrase, you should be manning the decks of your business. This means having someone on the phones during business hours to deal with enquiries and complaints. You should also hire someone that can sort out any technical issues for you if something were to go wrong and you don’t know how to resolve the issue. Finally, making sure that you have members of staff ready to pack and distribute the items that you’re selling is also very important to business.

Sort out your delivery service

One thing that many online stores fail with, is their delivery services. Often, companies will go with the cheapest option for them so that they can offer free delivery to their customers. It’s a well known fact that customers would rather pay for the delivery because it means that their package is in safe hands and often means that it will get to them much faster. Shiply offers courier services and offer very competitive prices. Choose a courier and stick with them.

Ditch automation

If you’re using a service like eBay to sell your products, then make sure that you don’t have any automatic messaging services turned on for your customers. This often comes across as spammy which turns customers away from using your service again, if at all. As mentioned earlier, make sure that you have someone on hand to answer any queries or complaints rather than sending back an automated message.

Give customers as much information as possible

Buying items online is risky because until the item arrives to you, you never know if the picture is anything like the item you’re going to be receiving. Make sure that you give your customers as much information as possible so that when they are viewing your items, they can better make a decision on whether to buy it or not.

There’s nothing worse than looking at clothing online and the sizing chart being vague with a chart that says xxs-xxl. Nobody wants to risk getting the wrong size, so make sure that you have measurements to each of your sizes so that your customers can pre measure before buying. The same goes for other items too. Make sure all sizes and weights are displayed so that your customers don’t have a shock and are disappointed when they receive their delivery. This also protects you as a company too, because you’re not lying or hiding information from your customers.

Take these things into consideration and enjoy running a successful online store!

When you run a small business, whether as a home-based sole trader or managing a small team, what could be minor problems for a huge corporation could literally be the end of your enterprise. As a small business owner, it can often seem like you are taking one step forward and two back as you attempt to navigate your way through all of the problems and issues that face a business today. You need to think about financial forecasts and business plans, how the economy could affect you, marketing, sales, customer service, website development, product or service quality and much more. One area you can’t afford to neglect is safety. Failing to protect your business adequately could see all of your time, effort and hard work come to nothing. Here is what you need to do to make sure your small business is safe and protected from threats.

Insurance

Insurance may seem expensive but it could save you a fortune. Source

The insurance you need will largely depend on what kind of business you are involved in. Some options include small business insurance, liability insurance, and extended home insurance if you plan to work there. People have a habit of putting off coverage, or only getting the absolute minimum to cut costs. But, this can be much more expensive if there’s a problem later.

Keep It Legal

Legislation and licensing also depend on your business field. But, it’s a legal requirement to get everything you need. If you work with food, you’ll need health and safety and food hygiene certificates for your place of work. If you sell to the public, you may need a sales license. Find out what you need, and give yourself plenty of time to sort everything out before you open your doors for the first time. It can take up to 12 weeks.

Back It Up

As a small business owner or sole trader, one of the worst things that can happen is losing your files and documents. Protect yourself by backing everything up. Here, Casey Explains Exactly How To Back Up Your iPhone and you should also make sure everything is saved to the cloud or on an external hard drive.

Think Cybersecurity

Being safe online is essential. Source

Cybersecurity is one of the biggest threats to both small and large businesses today. It’s one you cannot afford to ignore. Adequate cybersecurity can ensure your business is safe, both now and in the future. Just make sure you update your security systems regularly.

Trust Your Staff

One way to ensure your business is safe is by hiring the most trustworthy staff. These are the people you are going to trust to look after your business, help it to grow and spot any issues that could pose threats. Make sure you’ve got a thorough recruitment process and that their training is comprehensive.

Building Safety

Consider installing security cameras and other security cameras to keep your business premises safe.

Safety and protection might seem like another thing to add to what is sure to be a massive to-do list already. But, it’s one thing that you absolutely cannot afford to get wrong.