As a business startup, you have no doubt developed a business plan that outlines your need for funding to get your company off the ground. While you may have a clear purpose and objective, angel investors are looking for specific details that let them know that your business start-up has what it takes to make it in the marketplace.
With a seed investor seeing hundreds of business plan proposals each year, you need to make sure yours hits the high notes and resonates with them. This means that you have to hone in on what is important to them and help them see why they need to put their funding dollars into your business. Use these tips to enhance your business plan and garner the attention of an angel investor for your business start-up.
Industry Experience
Angel investors are savvy when it comes to industry experience, and they want to see that you have what it takes to make it in the marketplace. They want entrepreneurs that have intimate knowledge of the industry they are looking to break into and have even worked in a similar business for a time or two. This can help your business plan sing as you are able to relate your experience to what your business should and shouldn’t do to succeed.
Market Need
Using your business plan to show that there is a definite market need for your product or service can help your angel investor see the potential of your business start-up. They will easily understand the consumer problem you are looking to solve and see how your offerings fit the bill. Be detailed in your references and be sure to show how the market will respond to the availability of your product or service.
Competitor Knowledge
Knowing your competitors is key to understanding where you will stand out and separate yourself from the pack. Remember that your private investor may not be as fluent in your competitors as you are and you need to break it down in your business plan for them to grasp as fully as you. This can prove to be beneficial in gaining the funding your need to grow your business.
Business Traction
Showing what your business startup has done so far to generate revenues is a boon for potential angel investors to see. This lets them know you are on the right track and that your company has traction. Be sure to detail all your revenue streams as well as any upcoming deals you have secured to ensure they see the big picture of your business’ potential.
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It can be easy to lose sight of the very reasons why you wanted to open your business startup. You can get wrapped up in the day-to-day operations, leaving little time to focus on what makes your business startup standout in the market. Having a strategies in place that allows you to keep you motivated can ensure your business stays on a path of success.
Fall In Love With Your Business
Any business that you invest your heart in soul in should be the great love of your life. You need to nurture it and watch it grow. Having a real passion for what you are doing and the products and services you sell can make your business startup a real labor of love. You should have a real hunger that drives you to do well. Making your business startup idea one that you can stand behind and love to eternity is the first step in achieving success.
If it seems that you are losing that connection with your company and not really feeling the love, take a step back and allow yourself to remember how it all started. This can spark your emotions for your business and allow you to fall back in love with what you are doing. Your passion for your business is often times enough to get you through the challenging times.
Surround Yourself With Good People
From your employees to your professional network, the people that you surround yourself with can have a strong influence on your business startup. These very people can give you new ideas and help educate you on your business’ operations.
Having positive people to lift you up can be a strong motivator and allow you to have someone to bounce thoughts off of when you feel uncertain about a decision. Use your network to gain valuable information and learn from your peers on what mistakes to avoid. They can prove to be a big part of helping you run your business and ensuring it is successful in its endeavors.
Don’t forget your employees; they can be a big part of keeping your focused on your business startup on a daily basis. Good employees will drive your customer service and in turn your revenue. When your employees believe in your business and the vision you have set for it, it makes it that much more important that you deliver now and into the future.
Create A Marketing Strategy
Having a marketing strategy in place to promote your business is necessary to help achieve strong revenues. You should have prepped and planned a strategy that you want to adhere to market your business startup to your customers. It doesn’t have to be a large portion of your budget, but it should include some effort on your part.
Think about where your customers go for their information. Be visible to them and make sure you use every opportunity that is available to you to market your business with both new and existing customers. Try social media, check into local advertising, hold and an event, and use what is available to you to reach your customers and introduce your business’ products and services to the masses.
If you stay aggressive with your marketing plan, you are sure to garner the attention of your current customer base as well as a new group of potential clients. This can bring in more revenue and keep your business startup on a path of success.
Get To Know Your Customers
It is your responsibility as a business startup owner to know everything there is to know about your customers. You should have a strong idea of who they are, what their likes are, and where they are located. When you truly understand your customers, the more effectively you can serve them with your products and services.
While your attention may be turned toward gaining new customers, don’t lose sight of your current clients. They are the bread and butter of your business, and you want to make sure you are not replacing existing customers with new customers at a losing pace. Show your loyal customers how much you appreciate their business. Without them, your business will only see marginal success, and you want to make sure to grow your business startup rather than be stagnate in its approach.
Take Time For You
It may be difficult to imagine, but you need time away from your business startup. You may think that you can’t take time away or that your momentum will crumple without you, but taking a vacation every now and then is one of the best things you can do for your company. When you step away for a moment, you allow yourself the opportunity to recharge and refresh. You’ll be able to see your business in a new light and be surging with motivation when you return.
You’ll be surprised at how much a vacation from your business startup can do for you. You’ll be filled with new ideas and solutions to problems that you previously thought unsolvable. Being able to see your business from a new angle can be just what you need to take it in a new direction, move it forward, or reach to new heights. Your business startup will appreciate the time you took, and you will be ready to take on new challenges with a fury as your drive will be restored and you will feel anew.
Plus, you have good people surrounding you that you can trust to steer the ship when you are away. Rely on your employees and allow them to do what you hired them to do. You’ll be pleasantly pleased with how quick they are to pick up the slack when you are away and the positive results you’ll see upon your return.
Having a strategy in place can ensure your business stays on track and experiences great success now and into the future. It is important to stay focused, think about your customers, and take a break when you need it. By embracing your business startup and trusting in yourself, your business will reach the success that you deserve and have always envisioned.
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It can be difficult path sometimes once you decide to set up a good pitch on a site platform. Whether it be crowdfunding or raising capital from accredited investors. You will find many of the same attributes that are similar to finding the right pitch to attract views to your posting or profile.
Posting
Your posting “tile” is the image that show the image and the description in a rectangular box that is aligned with many other posting tiles. The top image can be from 1”-3” squared and the title is usually under or above the image. The describer or the short content that is directly below the image and title and is describer content box. Also on the posting tile will show what you are trying to raise, your industry, you location or other items of that might be specialized be each platform. Once the posting tile is clicked by user it will take you inside page(s) depending on the platform. It is important you use quality images and very catchy title with a description that is very to-the-point. Your capital raise price must make sense to how you have arrived at your capital asking level.
Your Inside Page
This is where your main image and other images of what you need to include. This has to also be very good images that shows your story, product or methodology. It can be actual photos of a process, or if the business is a fresh startup with no images, you can find advertised free images and art online, or purchase images from paid third-party websites to avoid any copyright infringements. Your content must be very clear and if lots of content to title each section and outline. Your inside page may have a section for a team bio. If it’s just you, it’s okay as lots of startups can be a one-man-show to start. If it allows you to post a photo of you, do so.
Support Documents
If you have a business plan, and the platform lets you include, do so. If you do not have a plan, then upload a cover letter about you and your company. It is always good if you are competing against other pitches and your pitch tile gets opened then next step is to show you have an attachment and have taken the time to put something together that the funder can take away or download.
Summary
It is always good when putting your best foot forward to have everything prepared to make the first impression by getting more traffic and interest to your posting and pitch. Making a good first pitch impression is really key and to rush to get initial interest would not be swapped out if it meant you lack on your Posting, Inside Page and Support Document material. Get a second opinion on how it looks and don’t be afraid to make changes earlier than later.
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You might have a small business today, but you don’t want that label for the life of your business. When entrepreneurs make endeavors, they are looking to create a business that will rule the world one day. However, every business has to face some struggles in the beginning that it must overcome to become a big business. The way you handle these challenges decides the fate of your small business. Today, you will read about these challenges and the solutions to them, so if you are a small business, you can set the foundation for its success.
Knowing the Target Market
One of the biggest issues with most small businesses is that they don’t know their exact target market. Sometimes, they don’t know how to narrow down to the target market. This is a huge issue because you could have a perfect product, but you might pitch it to the people who don’t need it. Keep in mind that people who don’t need your product won’t buy it even if you try to give it to them for free. On the other hand, people who need your product will be willing to buy it even if it is priced high. For your business to survive, it needs to start selling as quickly as possible, and that’s why it is important to find your target market before launching your product.
Solution
The first step of identifying your target market is to know your product well enough. You have to ask yourself some important questions about the product and write the answers down. For example, you have to ask yourself “what existing problem does my product solve?” You also have to know if there are any other solutions available in the market for the same problem. If yes then you have to see how your product is better than them or how you can make it better. Conduct surveys on the street and social media to know the personas of the best buyers of your product.
The Right Type of Marketing
Businesses, small and big, have huge parts of their budgets allocated only for marketing purposes. However, the modern technological advancements have proven that a big marketing budget does not translate to successful marketing. So, you might have done a great job in identifying your target market, but if you approach them in the wrong way or through the wrong channel, you will not be able to reap any benefits from even the most potential market for your product or service.
Solution
Identifying your target market should help you identify your marketing methods and channels too. For example, if your product is for people aged over 50, you would not want to make Instagram the prioritized marketing channel because only 18% of the users on Instagram are aged above 50. Similarly, any product that targets executives, marketing officers and professional people should be promoted on LinkedIn before any other platform. After knowing the buyer personas, you should also select the type of marketing that best suits your potential audience. If you are creating a hip-hop music video for marketing to retired individuals or an opera video for 18-year olds, you are doing it wrong. Use website analytical tools to know what appeals or does not appeal to your website, visitors. Base your digital marketing campaigns on data—this is the era of data-driven marketing.
The Funding Problem
If there were no funding problem, every person who thinks of a unique idea would have a business. In the real world, funding is always a problem, and it is exactly the point where the journey ends for many aspiring people in business. However, it is not always the lack of funds that kill many small businesses before they even start. In fact, the important part is how much dedication you show in arranging those funds. Sometimes, people have the options available, but they do not knock on all the doors.
Solution
First, you have to know all the options you have available for arranging the funds. If you are not okay with arranging funds through the bank or in the form of a loan, take a look around at your family and relatives. You will be surprised to know how many of the people in your circle will be ready not only to give you the investment you need but become a part of the endeavor. The crowdfunding options are also there. You don’t even have to go to the investors personally today as you can visit a platform like funded.com and arrange funds online. Places like Credit Karma can be one of many free options to monitor a couple credit reports that business credit might be attached to a personally signed business account.
The Right Leadership
You can’t make a business successful unless you have the right leader in place. It is not completely untrue that the attitude of the leader sets the attitude of the rest of the employees at a company. If you lack confidence in your leadership, you will end up hiring people who lack confidence in themselves. One of the biggest problems with most small business owners is that they can’t convince themselves to delegate responsibilities. They believe in their skill so much that their mind never accepts that someone else can handle the responsibilities too. They end up taking the responsibility of everything on their shoulders and mismanaging things at the end of the day.
Solution
The first thing that needs to be fixed here is how you think. If you find it hard to delegate responsibilities, get rid of this habit as soon as possible. You can’t handle everything as the business grows and so you have to create a team right from day one. Do not hire people just because they can do the job—hire people who share the same vision as you. Do not settle for good employees because finding the best ones is taking time. Do not try to take matters into your hands all the times. Listen to everyone that’s part of the team and the decision making process. Have a great relationship with your employees.
Setting the Price
One of the most difficult decisions for a small business owner is to set the price of its service or product. When you are a small business, you can’t afford to have a full-fledged marketing department. Of course, when you have a marketing department, they can set the price of your products, but when there is no marketing department, you are the one to take this decision. Price your solutions too low, and you might not make any profit at all. Price your solution too high, and customers might never buy your product.
Solution
It will be tremendously helpful in this scenario to take a look at your competitors and how they have priced their products. Secondly, you have to know a simple rule to set the prices of your products and services. You first set the price to cover your costs. Once you have started covering your costs, you set the price to cover the costs and make a profit. Once you have done that successfully, you start adding your “value” to the price. You should also know the buying power of your target market so you can keep the price within their comfort zone.
These points cover pretty much every big challenge that a small business comes across. Keep in mind that some of the challenges might be exclusive to your business and industry too, but if you can overcome these common challenges, you can cover the industry-specific difficulties as well.
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With the rapid growth in technologies, the ERP software market may cross $41.69 billion in profit by 2020. The statistics are enough to demonstrate the impact of this technology on businesses. This figure is undeniably impressive and reflects how important it is for companies in the future. Incorporating ERP software is one-way marketers can give their brand a competitive edge.
If your startup is in the initial phases and you are looking for a technology to help you manage business functions, ERP software is ideal, and if you don’t, this article is worth reading.
What is ERP?
ERP stands for Enterprise Resource Planning system. Many organizations use this software package to manage business activities, including project management, procurement, accounting, distribution operations, and manufacturing. It helps in day-to-day business functions while centralizing them within an integrated system.
The software is more useful when managing supply chain activities or keeping a track record of the moving parts of distribution and manufacturing. The use of ERP software is not confined to these business domains. It is utilized by many different domains that include nonprofit groups, construction, healthcare, and hospitality. Companies requiring inventory, staff, and customer management can rely on this advanced software.
In addition, ERP software stores data in a single database that allows different sections to collaborate by using the same information. ERP can organize and analyze data in the form of reports. In short, ERP software is great for bringing together the following functions into a single system:
Human resources
Financial management
Customer management
Business intelligence
Inventory
Supply chain functions
Here are some more reasons why your business needs ERP software.
Why Your Business Needs ERP Software
You might be wondering how ERP software is different from other software that performs similar functions. Although ERP software has the same goals of managing business functions, it has several unique features that make it extremely distinctive from other software.
Saves Money
You may find it a surprising fact, but ERP software is a good investment in terms of flexible pricing and saving money. For small companies, the initial price may seem heavy, but once they start using it, the software can save a lot of money.
This means ERP software can significantly increase ROI. It is merely because the system unifies multiple systems that businesses often use in fragments. From accounts payable to product development, the staff can access the necessary tools using a single centralized system. The software efficiently helps save time by keeping employees from hunting down information across different systems.
Improves Collaboration
This ERP feature generally varies as it depends upon the program business is using, but it does have a substantial impact on collaboration in one way or another. As mentioned earlier, ERP works with a unique centralized database that provides the business a source to work in collaboration. Not only does it reduces the risk of errors caused by incorrect data, but it also minimizes costs.
Moreover, ERP software reduces during projects as team members can access whatever data they need. The information doesn’t require merging within sources or systems because data is carefully collected, stored, and shared through one system. To put it simply, employees do not have to worry about the accuracy, completion, and security of data files.
Helps in Better Analytics
Businesses need ERP software if they want to improve data analytics and statistical reporting. In this regard, ERP software is ideal as its store’s data as input and makes for an unparalleled business intelligence tool. If vendors provide good functionality, ERP can be a great help in generating fast and accurate reports. The efficient software makes report compilation (that used to take days) a matter of minutes.
Besides this, the option of a customizable dashboard enables executives to see the reports when they are uploaded onto the system. The reports include information related to expense statements and custom KPIs that has essential insights for specific functions. Report access is also beneficial when a company has to make a quick and better decision.
Improves Productivity
There is no comparison of software and traditional methods that make tedious tasks even more difficult. Employees used to invest hours for monitoring inventory, generating reports, processing orders, and timesheet tracking. These tasks were time-consuming and lowered the morale of employees, increasing the risk of errors.
ERP software solves all these problems as it can conveniently automate even the most tedious task. With its integrated database, ERP eliminates all the redundant and time taking tasks, like data entry. It improves productivity by allowing the system to do advanced calculations quickly. The automatic features free up employees and allow them to focus on other essential tasks to improve ROI. That means ERP software can increase business productivity, profitability, and efficiency.
Simplified Risk Management
ERP is must-have software if your business expands internationally to keep track of imposed regulations on the business. Even if the business is local, there is a plethora of human resources, information security, and environmental rules you need to consider.
The good news is that ERP considers these regulations so that businesses can maintain compliance. The software incorporates built-in auditing features to assist businesses with documenting tax provision and chemical use. This makes everything incredibly easy, from formulating reports to sending them to the pertinent governing authority. This feature makes ERP software a great tool to manage risk.
Final Thoughts
In a nutshell, ERP software is a panacea of all the hectic, tedious, and manual business functions. The advanced software is multifunctional and helps businesses improve functions, accuracy, reliability, and financial management. The integrated system can manage a wide range of business activities, from supply chain management and procurement to accounting and operations.
In other words, businesses cannot deny this all-in-one software’s functional significance to enhance their overall productivity.
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You might have heard of rising of Artificial Intelligence, right? Owing to utmost advancement in technology, people observe novel inventions in science and technology that bring unknown changes in every field of life. One of the very changes that have taken place is the incorporation of Artificial intelligence in most areas of life. Since it has been primarily infused in multiple departments of our lives, we can do a great business out of it. This article has been written to cast light on its applications and how it can be a great business. So, let us start without further ado!
What is Artificial Intelligence?
Artificial Intelligence directs the capability of machines or controlled robots to perform specific tasks that are generally affiliated with intelligent or human beings. In simple words, Artificial Intelligence makes possible the simulation of human intelligence processes and functions by machines, particularly computer programs. Operations that AI performs are learning, planning, and problem-solving.
Typical examples of Artificial intelligence are the following:
Self-driving cars
Robo-advisors
Conversational Bots
Email spam filters
Smart assistants
Article spinning software
How does AI work?
Artificial Intelligence works by merging large sets of data with intelligent, mathematical, and programming processing logarithms to absorb patterns and features in the data being analyzed by AI systems. Artificial Intelligence applications can be gauged by their working and processing. AI enhances its performance and adds expertise by assessing and measuring its performance, each time performing a set of data processing.
Since it is operated through software, it does not need any break while calculating even thousands and millions of tasks exceptionally swiftly.
It still confuses you, right? But, essentially, AI consists of many computers to solve problems, making it an entire scientific discipline.
The critical goal of Artificial Intelligence and Robotics is to model human behavior. As a result, it can solve complex problems via human-like thinking processes.
To accomplish these problems, the AI system employs a whole series of strategies, techniques, processes, and a vast range of technologies.
What disciplines comprise the field of Artificial Intelligence?
Different components can also be referred sub-fields of the most crucial science of AI.
Each of these departments is generally employed by AI:
1-Machine learning:
AI has astounding applications in this field that enables computer systems, programs, and applications to learn and improve results based on experience automatically.
2-Deep learning:
It is a particular machine learning that permits Artificial Intelligence to learn and improve by processing data. Deep understanding utilizes artificial neural networks which imitate neural networks in the human brain to process.
3-Cognitive Computing:
It is another significant part of AI dedicated to mimicking the interactions between humans and machines. This incorporates text, voice, and speech AI parts.
4-Computer Vision:
One of the most prolific and applaudable uses of AI is to review and interpret the content present on the image with the help of pattern recognition and deep learning. For example, computer Vision allows AI systems recognize components of visual data like captchas you usually find on websites.
Common Applications of Artificial Uses:
Although Artificial Intelligence applications are great in number in our natural world, we are presenting a few uses that we observe often:
1-Cyber-security:
AI plays the pivotal role of guarding against unauthorized attacks regarding important and susceptible data of an organization, be it private or governmental. The concept of Cybersecurity has been coined to cope with savage attacks from hackers, and AI plays an important in doing so for you. AI systems can detect cyberattacks and other cyber threats by monitoring the data that has been fed. Once this system detects a cyberattack, it can trace through your data to find the origin of the attack and help to prevent a potentially devastating failure.
2-Customer Relationship Management:
Artificial Intelligence and Robotics are bringing massive changes to Customer Relationship Management systems. Since software involved in Customer Relationship Management like Zoho and Salesforce require considerable human intervention to run the system accurately, AI has great potential in carrying out such tasks. When you AI technology to these platforms, the CRM system advances to a self-updating, auto-correcting system that causes your CRM system to excel.
3-Internet and Data Research:
Artificial intelligence helps internet users to improve their search experience by affording them more relevant information about their inclinations and circumstances. As Artificial Intelligence technology advances swiftly, users get better and more customizable experiences.
4-Data Research Assistants:
AI has eliminated all the repetitive hassles of doing emails and answering common queries by completely changing the company operating from the inside. AI offers chatbots acting as personal assistants to assist manage your emails, maintaining your calendar, and even give you suggestions about smoothening processes. Moreover, these AI assistants can also help respond to questions customers ask who call or chat online.
We have summed up Artificial Intelligence Applications.
Why is AI business worthy of investing and what is its Future?
Having thoroughly read about this technology, you might have got some understanding regarding its bright future and demand. As technology progresses by leaps to bounds, the upcoming world will likely have much more crucial problems to contemplate and devise solutions to rather than doing simple routine tasks. Therefore, its future is very bright, and it will overwhelm the globe with its catchy features. Owing to its productivity, it will be a sought-after technology that is worthy of investment. The artificial Intelligence business is still soaring and will soar with more impetus, generating humongous revenues.
Funded.com is the leading platform for accredited investors network worldwide. We monitor and provide updates on important funding events. Angel Investors and Venture Funding can be a key growth for a startup or existing business. Whether it is a first, second or third round financing having a strategic alliance with an Angel Investor or Venture Capital financing can propel a business to the next level and give the competitive edge.
Chances are this is not your first business plans if you are considering starting a new business. Studies have shown that today’s successful entrepreneurs have tried 3 or 4 times before to start a business sales. Sharing that information is not meant to be discouraging though. It’s meant to be motivating because true entrepreneurs don’t give up easily.
In fact, you may like to know that Bill Gates and Paul Allen started Microsoft in 1981 after 3 prior failed business attempts. The 3 failed attempts were The Lakeside Programmers Group in 168, Traf-O-Data in 1970 and Micro-Soft partnership in 1975. In reality, the 3 failed companies were not failures at all in one very important sense. These 3 companies taught Gates and Allen a lot about business planning and development. They used that information to start Microsoft, Inc. and the rest is history as they say.
One of the strategies for managing a new business venture is the business plan. Because it forces the entrepreneur to identify sales specifics so that investors are comfortable providing equity, loans or other capital. The entrepreneur should also consider a graceful exit should the business not succeed as planned. Though you would not present a business destined to fail to investors, the people you are asking for money also want to know how their investment will be protected as much as possible.
When developing sales projections for the business plans, it’s important to go through each step with due diligence. It begins with a product or service description, followed by a market study. A sales estimate is calculated which drives needed production capacity. The needed production capacity then drives facilities planning and workforce estimates. Finally, the financial analysis is calculated.
One of the issues to be addressed in the business plan is the timing of sales growth. This is where entrepreneurs often get too optimistic. The end result is disappointed investors and a failed first, second or third venture. Sales projections need to be as realistic as possible because inflated numbers don’t do anyone any good. The business plan needs to tell an honest story and that will greatly increase your chances of getting the new business right the first time.
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How E-commerce can be a great startup business and can generate considerable revenue
The contemporary age is influenced by modernized e-commerce business of variegated natures that will likely generate handsome revenues and innumerable jobs. Apart from conventional businesses, the world is steering towards crafting new startups to meet the ever-changing necessities of the globe. New startup businesses are not only imperative for generating new job opportunities but also beckon the interest of fiscally gigantic investors to invest and help these businesses to soar. Startup businesses should be vigorously funded to meet the needs and prompt the researchers to invent more objects and products to enhance the living standards of society. We have dedicated this blog to accentuating the lucrativeness of the E-commerce business so that readers become conversant with it. So, let us start without further ado!
What is E-commerce?
E-commerce implies buying and selling different products and objects via the internet and transferring data and funds. Transactions in business can be made as either business to business, which is known as B2B, Business to Consumer (B2C), Consumer to Consumer(C2C), and Consumer to Business (C2B). Often, E-commerce and E-business are interchangeably used. Similarly, e-tail is employed for the transaction processes that constitute online retail shopping.
In the previous decades, the excellent use of e-commerce platforms like Amazon and eBay has efficiently brought about pronounced growth in online sales. Scalability of this business can be fathomed by its rapid increase to 16% from 5.1% in 2007 till now. This business has a base website called the E-commerce website.
How does E-commerce work?
Essentially, it works on the internet, allowing buyers easy access to products and services they are looking for and then placing an order for the desired service or product.
Once a buyer places an order, the web browser on the buyer’s side will start communicating with the server of the online website store. Data regarding the established order will be passed on to a central computer called the order manager; after that, the data is passed on to databases managing inventory levels and a bank computer. This whole process ensures whether the customer funds are sufficient for the order to be processed. Post to order validation, the order manager will instantly inform the store’s web server, then notify the customer by displaying a message that the order has been successfully placed. After that, the order manager will convey this data to the warehouse to prepare the product to be delivered. In this phase, tangible products are dispatched to the customer’s address, whereas access is given to digital products. In E-commerce, marketplaces are dedicated for sellers to sign up and start buying services and products simply. You can use an eCommerce application instead of using a web browser to carry out all this process.
Types of E-commerce:
A few types of e-commerce need to be understood before you start an e-commerce setup. Let us have a glance over them:
1-Business-to-Business (B2B):
B2B implies exchanging goods, products, or services between businesses rather than between customers. Typical examples of B2B e-commerce are online directories, development, and supply exchange online stores/websites that enable businesses to search for products, services, or information and commence transactions via e-procurement interfaces.
According to research conducted in 2017, it was predicted that B2B will surpass 1.1$ trillion in the United States by 2023.
2-Business-to-Consumer (B2C):
It is such a retail part of e-commerce that incorporates selling products, and services by businesses to customers directly. This term became popularized during the dot-com boom in the late 1990 when online retailing was no less than a marvel! Nowadays, there is a plethora of virtual stores and malls selling products and goods. The most prominent example of a B2C e-commerce website is Amazon which is the most dominating in this spectrum!
3-Consumer-to-Consumer(C2C):
It is a type of e-commerce that incorporates trading products, services, and goods between consumers. All the transactions in the C2C kind of e-commerce are conducted by a third party that affords an online platform on which transactions take place. Typical examples of C2C e-commerce are online auctions and classified advertisements, with eBay and Craiglist one of the most renowned platforms of this ilk.
4-Consumer-to-Business (C2B):
It is a sort of e-commerce business where consumers craft products and services for online companies and corporations to meet their manufacturing needs. This is contrary to the traditional trading model of B2C.
A prominent example of a C2B platform is a market that aims to sell royalty-free images, photographs, and design elements like iStock.
Advantages of E-commerce:
E-commerce business wields enormous profit when set up professionally. Here are some of the advantages of E-commerce that are fetching enough to invest in this business.
1-24/7 Availability:
Irrespective of electricity and internet outages, e-commerce sites are 24/7 available to generate revenue by allowing customers to browse their desired products and services from an unending panorama of variety. Its super availability makes it a worth-investing business.
2-Wide availability:
E-commerce enables the online business to span across the whole globe and possesses many products that are quickly dispatched to the customer’s doorstep. In this way, every nation or country is aimed at without much hassle, leading to massive revenue and brand development. Moreover, every person can easily avail of services by using E-commerce applications.
3- Ease of accessibility:
Customers can easily access their desired products by scrolling through the variety of products on the online store without the hassle of physically visiting the out-let that is entailed in conventional marketing. So, this feature makes it a profitable investment business.
Why should new E-commerce businesses be started?
Our world is gradually being overwhelmed by the internet world that is changing the modality of several processes, with the conventional ones being obsoleted by the modern ones. Business through E-commerce has gravitated a huge number of people towards it since it eliminates hassles of physically outreaching the outlet, punctually adhering to time for the outlets being open. Although there are already a few booming e-commerce businesses, there is a vast scope in this business that can be racked up by targeting several specific niches and maintaining great quality and timely delivery. Therefore, we are inviting investors to help bolster E-commerce businesses since these businesses are highly profitable and easy to build a brand.
Author statement:
Funded.com is the leading platform for accredited investors network worldwide. We monitor and provide updates on important funding events. Angel Investors and Venture Funding can be a key growth for a startup or existing business. Whether it is a first, second or third round financing having a strategic alliance with an Angel Investor or Venture Capital financing can propel a business to the next level and give the competitive edge.
Whether you have a startup, a small business, or a large enterprise, chances are the year has passed at the speed of light for you. You were review and designing your marketing campaigns, availing growth opportunities, and looking through reports when the year-end arrived. While people dedicate this time of the year to holiday delights and festivities, this also happens to be the perfect time to do a review of your finances, whether you are just an individual with a 9 to 5 job or a small business.
Why should you spend your end of the year for a financial review? Here are the top reasons.
A Strong Visual of Your Financial Standing
The most important thing about a year-end financial review is that it gives you a complete visual of where your business is standing at the moment. Everything that has happened throughout the year is now on the reports before your eyes. You can look at the information and see what has performed and what has not performed. You must have put a lot of money into marketing your products, services, and the brand as a whole. You can now see which of those campaigns have yielded promising results and which of them have proved to be futile.
The same goes for your account receivables. Compare your account receivables with those from the previous years and see if there has been an increase or decrease. If there is an abnormal increase, it is a telltale sign that you might need to change your payment plan or push more to receive your pending payments faster. Every activity you have done in the past year has painted a picture now in front of you. Whether you grew as a business, stagnated, or receded is evident at the end of the year.
The Best Time to Set New Goals
Based on how you performed in the preceding year and whether you have achieved your set targets and goals, you can set goals for the coming year. Your previous year’s performance should clarify how you have to put your marks for the coming year. Keep them realistic yet motivating and challenging enough to leave room for hard work, struggle, and progress. Not only should you be looking at how successful you were in achieving the previous year’s goals, but you should also pay attention to your current financial standing.
Best Time to Apply for Loans and Credit Processing Services
Regardless of how long you have been in business, when you apply for certain services, the service providers look at your previous year’s performance. For example, let’s say that you want to apply for a merchant account (maybe a high-risk one), so you can start processing credit card requests for your customers. When you approach a merchant account provider, they will ask for some history of your business activities—at least three months. By the end of the year, you have enough data to show to lenders and credit processing services to convince them to do business with you.
Of course, a financial review will give you a good look at whether you have done enough to impress these service providers or not. You can apply for these services with a quarterly credit history, but it will not be considered sufficient in most cases.
Best Time to Get Your Tax Files in Sync
Yes, you have been extra careful about your tax filing and preparation the whole year, but the overall integrity of your records still has a question mark on it. You need to prepare your tax files at the end of the year and calculate your liability with utmost accuracy. While tax preparation software has made the job much more manageable, complex tax files still need your accountants’ attention to get everything in sync. The important thing here is that a review not only helps you escape penalties that you might attract by putting wrong information on your file. You want to update your information at the end of the year because you want to calculate your benefits too accurately, e.g., tax credits, exemptions, standard deductions, itemized deductions, etc.
Time to Start Afresh
Your business might not have been a very successful venture. Many companies don’t make the best start, and it seems in the beginning that it would be difficult for the business to survive. However, small changes in strategies and cuts in costs can prove to be incredibly beneficial for companies. The best time to start afresh and renew all your reports and files is the end of the year. While you can change your strategies and plans midway, too, it is natural for most humans to feel the need for a new start at the start of a new year. For example, people can decide to lose weight at any time of the year, but it seems it makes the most sense to them when they do it at the start of a new year.
If you think your business has not performed well, but you still want to give it a shot, the end of year financial review can clear the path for you by telling you if you can afford to give it another try or not.
Bottom Line
There is no restriction on when you want to make changes to your business plans and strategies. However, people find it natural and more motivating to set new goals, learn from past mistakes, and make new moves when a new year starts. Throughout the year, your main goal is to keep the ball rolling.
However, at the end of the year, you have enough data collected from all your business operations and activities to know how fruitful your efforts were, which actions you should consider in the future, and the expenses that have kept you from progressing. In short, a financial review at the end of the year helps you make new and important decisions for your business.
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When you think of starting a business, the first thing that comes to mind is money/capital. Of course, you need money to start a business, even if it is very little considering the fact how easy it is to start a business in the digital age. However, there could be many other factors that affect a business in today’s digital economy—some you show serious concern to and some you don’t really pay attention to much.
Blockchain Is Affecting All Types of Businesses
One of the biggest concerns for today’s entrepreneurs before they start business is probably blockchain or crypto technology. The world is seeing the rise of crypto technology and how it is being integrated into the existing business ideas. A little more than a couple of years ago, you must have heard the term “bitcoin”. From bitcoin, people still believe that blockchain is all about digital currency i.e. money in the digital world. However, this is far from truth. Blockchain is expected to affect all types of businesses and industries in the world in the coming days.
It is a technology that redefines the security aspect of many businesses in 2018, introduced decentralization in modern business technologies and benefits the end consumers in multiple ways. For example, you could launch a gaming platform where no one needs the existing currencies. You could launch your own platform with your own money today. You don’t really have to start everything from the scratch; instead you could base your currency on the existing blockchain platforms like Ethereum. Through ICOs, you could have investors from around the world invest in your idea. So, blockchain is definitely a consideration for all businesses starting in 2018 and the coming years.
Physical Warehouses Are Not Necessary
A few years ago, only a certain types of business could be called truly online businesses. For businesses where products have to be stored for some time, a complete online presence was not the solution. Entrepreneurs who had such business ideas in mind had to have enough money to have their own warehouses. However, this has also changed quite a bit in the past couple of years. With the idea of drop shipping becoming common with time, it is becoming easier for businessmen to start their own businesses without much investment.
In a drop shipping model, all you have to do is collect orders from customers, forward those orders to the manufacturers or suppliers and have the goods shipped. You only act as a liaison in this particular model because it is the supplier that sends the products directly at the customers’ doorsteps. You will still need an online store with all the products listed for customers to see. However, you don’t need any warehouses because you don’t have to own, buy or store any products. The good thing is that this model now allows drop shippers to offer much more competitive rates so penetrating into the market is easier for them.
Big Data Is the Big Difference
Another technology that has been influencing business decisions and the way businesses operate is big data. While the term “big data” seems that you are referring to just large amounts of data but in reality, you are also referring to the methodologies and technologies that are in use to handle big data. You will be completely wrong to think that traditional software and hardware solutions can deal with big data in any way. Let’s take the example of a bank. A bank could have hundreds of branches located all around the country. In these hundreds of branches, the bank will have hundreds of thousands of customers.
The bank has account information of hundreds of thousands of these customers. In addition to that, the bank is constantly investing in stock and foreign markets, storing and utilizing that information. The same bank handles the data of all micro and macro loans it is forwarding to its customers. It is also storing information about customers through its mobile application to know what customers expect from the mobile website. On all of those hundreds of branches, the bank also has CCTV cameras collecting terabytes of footage on a daily basis.
Do you think all this data goes to waste? No, the data bank collected from banks is utilized in making bank branches securer. Data from mobile devices helps bank refine their mobile application. Data collected through financial softwares helps a bank improve its insurance, loan, mortgage, etc. offerings. It may seem on the surface that big data is a headache for big businesses only, but big data is just as important for small businesses as well. What this mean is that businesses starting in 2018 will have to have a big data approach right from day one.
Internet Security Is the Biggest Threat Now
It is unfortunate that rather than making the world a safer place, the new technology has led to greater internet threats. Cyber attacks are becoming more frequent with time, and much more sophisticated too. In the past few years, cyber attacks on some of the biggest companies of the world, including tech companies have proved that security has to be the major concern for every business—small, mid-scale or large. If you think starting a new business or having a small business gives you any advantage over large ones, here is something you would want to take a look at.
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