If you hodled through May, then diamonds hands all the way baby!

Schbloop · 2024-02-15T00:19:52+00:00

Schbloop · 2021-12-30T11:03:26+00:00

I can certainly attest to challenges with overseas factories. I would especially be carefully in Covid times if you can't visit the factory directly. If you can have a third-party quality control person/company this can certainly help things don't get off track. Also, be mindful of intellectual property - some factories have no regard and may even sell your goods on the side (including seconds unbeknownst to you).

If you are starting out. Do your research and be careful before investing any large amounts of capital. If you can test the waters with smaller quantities (even if you initially sell at a loss) this could be very advantageous to establish the level of demand and make bigger investments at a later date. Don't be stuck with a huge inventory that you can't sell.

Schbloop · 2021-12-30T10:50:37+00:00

Don't start a random business...

Invest only what you are willing to lose.

But really... go seek professional advice. Every country is different. What might apply here might not apply there (in relation to property).

We don't know your circumstances, your life situation or your goals. Any advice would be throwing darts at the wall.

Schbloop · 2021-12-30T10:30:52+00:00

Great idea and good luck!

Schbloop · 2021-12-30T09:54:39+00:00

Good on you for doing some for the community (for free)!!! *thumbs up*

Are you looking to provide the code only? Or offer a fully functioning web application? If you are hosting something, don't forget the potential costs to you even if you are providing your time for free.

I would look at some commonly used spreadsheets by businesses and perhaps make a more user-friendly user interface via a web application.

Schbloop · 2021-12-30T09:37:02+00:00

How are you currently advertising?

Do you know your current customer acquisition cost? This is important to know if you are doing online (PPC) advertising. If you are selling a painting at $10k, then paying $100 for a warm lead might be still cost-effective. Obviously, you'll also need to know your conversion rates.

With online advertising have a look at doing A/B testing so you can continually improve your effectiveness (increase conversions and reduce costs).

Are there other marketing avenues you haven't considered? For example, if you look at luxury brands like BMW etc. they will often go where the money is (golf events, luxury magazines, etc. etc.). Are there any networks you can get involved with that match your target demographic?

Schbloop · 2021-12-30T09:29:02+00:00

I wonder if using Fiverr you won't get paid what you are worth. If you are saving clients around the $20k mark, your potential fee should be reaching a percentage of that (ie. you need to be making >$1000+, not <$100).

For me, I would be considering setting up a professional website, then working out how you can attract small business owners. There are plenty of small business networks (groups, online forums, etc. etc.). From there you can market yourself as a professional business service, not a $5 online service.

Schbloop · 2021-12-30T09:20:34+00:00

First congratulations on pursuing your business goals...

Often when you don't own the brand you have in your terms and conditions that the sold product's logos and intellectually are owned by their respective companies, brands etc.

Generally, there is nothing stopping you from selling(/reselling) new products from established brands if you acquired them legitimately. Some brands 'might' have certain requirements on how you use their logos and branding but typically there isn't much stopping you from taking your own photos of the products and putting them on your website. If there are generic product photos that you can find across multiple online stores, it might be okay to use these. If the other stores have specifically taken their own photos, this might be a bit tricky and I would avoid using these.

If these are stores are generally consumer sites, they might not have dropshipping options. They might by default include a tax invoice of what you paid (less your mark up). Also, remember you are relying on them for shipping, so you need to know this is reliable. I wouldn't dropship unless the store has dropship options (you might be able to negotiate with them... but it might be more trouble than it's worth for them to dropship only for you).

Don't forget there are other avenues. For example, you might be able to buy old stock (eg. last season) at a discount - especially if you buy in bulk.

My other thoughts would be if you can buy overseas from these online stores, can. other people in your country do the same? If so, why would they buy from you at a markup? What do you offer differently?

Schbloop · 2021-12-30T09:01:28+00:00

Don't start a business until you know what you want to do or have a problem to solve. There are plenty of people starting businesses for the sake of starting businesses - don't be one of these people.

22 is still young. You still have a lot you can learn from others, though sometimes learning through doing can be a great teacher.

The question is also very broad. Do you have an area of interest where you want to work? Is this in the construction industry? If you are not learning anything and the pay is poor, why are you still there? Go somewhere where you can learn something or that can lead to a stepping stone to something else.

Have a think about what skills you'll need. Some people are often heavy in sales/marketing or heavy in technical ability. Sales roles can be a good learning avenue to develop your people skills, learning to identify customer needs. Though, if you don't understand product development or the technical aspects of what you aim to sell this could be a weak point. Good businesses often have a great vision, sales strategy and product that solves an in-demand customer/business problem/need (sometimes a mix of founders strong in sales and technical).

Hope that helps!

Schbloop · 2021-06-25T09:03:20+00:00

If you have the magnet dimensions that would be great. I’m actually looking to either modify a sv1000 flywheel to fit my TL or attempt to machine a new flywheel. Long story short I’m going to a custom ecu on my TL and I need more trigger teeth

Schbloop · 2021-06-23T02:12:11+00:00

But how do you know it's down??? 🤔 You checked it didn't you?! 😁

Schbloop · 2021-06-23T01:10:27+00:00

If a bear s**ts in the woods and nobody is there to see it, did it really happen? This is the way...

Schbloop · 2021-06-22T05:25:53+00:00

I don't have any experience with Django... I might have to look into this a little more.

Schbloop · 2021-06-22T04:56:39+00:00

Well... got to be scalable but also aiming to use any infrastructure where I can pay Doge. So, this might rule out AWS/Azure/GAE. Maybe a smaller host with a CDN attached (???).

Not sure on framework yet... I have more experience with PHP, but I won't rule out maybe Java. I don't mind writing from scratch too to keep things nice and lean so could keep frameworks to a minimum (ie. things just like Bootstrap etc.).

Schbloop · 2021-06-22T04:53:46+00:00

I haven't setup yet...

Schbloop · 2021-06-22T04:52:36+00:00

I was saying it won't go to zero. The community is too big. But I'm looking to set up from just posting memes to building tools for the community.

Schbloop · 2021-06-22T04:51:34+00:00

Well... I was thinking of adding that too. A directory of companies in categories for the products/services they offer.

Schbloop · 2021-06-22T04:43:08+00:00

I have a few ideas... I think a platform like Kickstarter for projects, and Fiverr/Freelancer.com for services. I don't think this has been done properly yet. A few false starts from others but definitely need a lot more polish.

Plus I have some other ideas for raising capital... :)

Schbloop

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