Successful entrepreneurs know that customers are their lifeblood. Unless you're one of the relatively few entrepreneurs with a product that sells itself, repeatedly and perpetually, you can't overlook the need to actively win and retain clients.
It’s the new year and, even if you’re not making new year’s resolutions, it’s a great time to reassess your online store ready for the year ahead. It’s been estimated that Amazon will make up 50% of all US E-commerce by 2021, so there are undoubtedly some lessons to be learnt from them. We’ll also look at Walmart and Macy’s, who are in the top 5 e-commerce retailers, and bring you five lessons we learned from their online stores that you can apply to your own!
When it comes to social media for small businesses, the amount of information about how to promote your business correctly can be overwhelming. It's clear that social media can help propel sales, but the underlying question is often, "How?"
We caught up with Malka Fasten, founder of girl's accessories company Halo Luxe, to ask about how she navigated the social world on Instagram and what she recommends for other fledgling businesses just getting their feet wet. 
As an entrepreneur, you need to be a quick learner. And what better, safer way to learn than from other people's mistakes? That's why we're launching this new series — “What I Wish I Had Known" — to share lessons that successful business owners have learned through experience. We hope their advice prepares and informs you for your own entrepreneurial journey.
Do you know the expression "you should never judge a book by its cover"? It's great advice for meeting new people, but not so much for product packaging. When you run a small business, the way you package and ship your products can have a tremendous impact on how people perceive your brand, which is especially important for holiday packages.
In the dark ages that we all lived in prior to the Internet, people found Christmas gifts in one of two ways:
You put so much work into getting customers over the finish line to make a purchase that you may be missing the power that shipping has to keep them coming back. From the price and speed of your shipping to how you package and present the shipped product, this entire process has enormous potential to increase loyalty and retention. It's the only part of the entire interaction in which the customer "meets" a physical representation of your business, so ideally you're putting your best foot forward.
Your customers appreciate prompt and reliable shipping. If their product comes in late or broken, you might just lose them forever. It's important to consider their perspective when it comes to shipping and materials.
Just as you wouldn’t jump out of an airplane without making sure you have your parachute (and safety training, and likely being strapped to a qualified instructor), a professional online presence is not an adventure to leap into haphazardly.
The holidays are approaching and it’s time to prepare for the rush that comes along with “the most wonderful time of the year.” Getting your shipping and fulfillment operations in order is especially important for handling more orders, increasing margins, and getting the most out of the holiday rush. We’ve put together a checklist to get you best prepared for the holiday sales spike.
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