Q: I would like to start an online dropshipping business, but I have no idea how to get started. I would like to specialize in giftware and accessories. Where do I find products and how do I get set up a website without any technical knowledge?

A: In the good old days of the Internet, i.e. last year, it took a considerable amount of effort to launch an ecommerce website, especially one that offered dropship merchandise.

The to-do list for building even a small site was extensive.

You first had to find a company who would dropship merchandise for you. Believe it or not, there was not a dropshipper on every corner of the Web back then.

Once you found such a company, you had to set up a formal business account with them, which often meant filling out forms, jumping through hoops, providing them with proof of a business license, a tax ID number, a pint of blood, the promise of your first born, and on and on.

Then the real fun began.

You had to tear apart the company’s print catalogs and scan in the pictures of merchandise you wanted to sell on the site.

You had to build the website by hand with an HTML editor, and type in all the product descriptions and prices, which made updating the site a manual nightmare. Changing $1.95 to $2.95 could literally take half an hour.

You had to find a dependable hosting company to host the site. This was harder than you might think. Finding a dependable hosting company in the golden age of the Internet was like finding a painless dentist in the old west. They just didn’t exist. You had to opt for the hosting company that you hoped would cause you the least amount of pain. And you were always wrong.

You had to register a domain name. This part was fairly simple, IF you had the genius IQ required to think up a coherent domain name that was not already taken by another business or a &^%$# cyber-squatter (low level life forms who register domain names and ransom them to individuals and companies that could really use them).

And when you finally think you have thought of everything there is to think of, that you have done everything that needs to be done, you launch the site amid little fanfare and much prayer.

Then it suddenly occurs to you (always in the middle of the night) that the only thing you forgot to build in to your new site is a way for your customers to pay for their purchase online with a credit card (there was no Pay Pal in the dark ages, my child…).

You awake in a cold sweat and finally understand why you haven’t sold a single Beanie Baby since your site was launched.

Ah, the good old days… Thank God they are gone.

Lucky for you and me, Beth, there are now a number of companies on the Web that can help folks like us set up a turnkey dropship website without ever breaking a sweat.

One company that offers a variety of turnkey, dropship packages can be found at:

Power Pak Gifts
By turnkey, I mean they will provide you with a complete, payment- enabled website and the merchandise to sell on the site. All you do is turn the key (so to speak) to start your new business.

You select the design of the site, the products you want to sell, and they do the rest. They can show you how to setup an online payment system, help you register a domain name, offer technical support, and more.

It is up to you to market the site and drive customers to it, but in some cases the companies will even help you do that with free search engine submissions and marketing tips.

You can also sell the merchandise at online auctions like eBay and Yahoo! Auctions. There is no quicker way to get your dropship business up and running in a matter of days.

Tim Knox
Entrepreneur, Author, Speaker, Radio Host
“Check Out Tim’s New Radio Show!”
http://www.timknoxshow.com
Preorder Tim’s New Book:
Everything I Know About Business I Learned From My Mama
http://www.timknox.com/amazon/

Help desk by itself is meant to provide an interface for your customers to communicate with you, without the disorder caused by spammers, hackers and spam blockers. Help desk helps in immediately resolving technical and operational problems faced by your customers while using your website, product or service.

A web helpdesk software system provides the added advantage of allowing access to customers from any computer and any location in the world. Similarly, you and your technicians can also access customer requests from wherever you want.

A web-based system is preferable to an email-based system because in the case of the latter there are chances of more than one technician trying to solve the same problem. Help desk systems allow a customer request to be assigned to one or more technicians as per the service requirements and only those designated technicians can work on these requests.

Some helpdesks enable their customers to create their own trouble ticket which is nothing but a format similar to a web application form that takes all the information necessary to trouble-shoot and cohesively record a customer request. As an administrator, you can display information from the recorded history of requests made by a customer.
This will help you provide a customized quick solution to your customer.

A web helpdesk software solution may also provide FAQ and knowledge bases to customers. This enables customers to solve their problems independently and without taking much time. The problems that cannot be solved this way can always be logged in through the ticket system or sent through email. You may think that being a software application this solution comes with a cost. The fact is that most of these solutions are freely available or priced inexpensively.

In addition, the so called installation procedure may just be registering to a web site, specifying the settings and copying the source code to your location. This is the least you would need to do for an up and running web-based helpdesk. If you still find the need to test it out, you can take a trial before you register yourself. Like most software, trials are for free. In case of commercial software, after you register for permanent use, you may need to pay a subscription fee at a monthly, quarterly or annual rate.

Once you are satisfied with the trial, be sure to check out other aspects of the web helpdesk software. For example, certain solutions may charge you later sighting updates and chargeable components as a reason. To check these out, ask as many questions as you can such as whether there would be updates, the number of times the updates would be made, the number and names of components and whether they are charged as a whole and so on.

If you need a powerful solution for your support make sure you check out the Premium Response Web Helpdesk Software for more info.

There a plenty of great reasons to go into business for yourself. Maybe you’re intrigued by the challenge of entrepreneurship. You’re ready to step out of the day-to-day routine of working for someone else, which will lead to success on completely different levels and the opportunity to realize your fullest potential. Nonetheless, the key to running a lucrative company is finding the business opportunity that’s right for you. In today’s competitive marketplace, many ventures fail, which makes the prospect of starting a business rather intimidating. Fortunately, business franchises provide great opportunities for everyone, even beginners with little or no experience. Most importantly, the failure rates for franchises are significantly lower. This is true because franchising offers benefits such as brand name recognition, marketing plans, training, on-going support and lower start-up costs.

Grow Your Business and by Improving Theirs with Business to Business Franchises

Some companies supply products and services to customers. Rather that meeting the needs of individuals, these franchise opportunities offer business aides to other companies and organisations. These services can be fairly simple, with industries like shipping, telecommunications and accounting. Meanwhile, you may be interested in something more strategic, which may draw you to a franchise opportunity like Business for Breakfast, a marketing system centered on word-of-mouth advertising. It’s been proven time and time again that this form of advertising is the most beneficial of all, which means that your services will be in huge demand.

Furthermore, if you would like to take advantage of the staggering growth of online businesses, you should consider a franchise with Orca, a company devoted to making the Internet work for businesses. The World Wide Web is definitely the new frontier of profitable businesses; thus, small and medium-sized companies now realize they are missing out, making your services increasingly valuable. Also, if you’re searching for a low cost business, you should consider franchises like these. After all, they do not require stock, employees or a great deal of start-up capital. Of course, not all business to business franchises are strategic in nature. In fact, some of the most important services are the ones you rarely think about. Most importantly, they’re also some of the most worthwhile investments you can make.

As a Laser Tech franchisee, for example, you will sell print cartridges and other office supplies. Every office uses paper goods and most other supplies and nearly all of them need print cartridges. Obviously, the demand for your products is there. The same is true for accounting franchises. All businesses need accountants, whether in-house or outsourced. TaxAssist Accounting, for example, allows you to venture into this industry by appealing to self-employed professionals and small business owners. Many of these practitioners have found that traditional accountants charge a lot more for the same services. TaxAssist is devoted to doing the paperwork, allowing the small business owners to take care of their companies and make money. And yet, not all financial businesses are focused on taxes. Franchises like Epi International specialize in helping businesses spend money efficiently. Thus, you help companies and public organisations maximize profits by re-engineering the way they do business.

For many new franchisees, everyday services like these become extraordinary business prospects. If you’re still having trouble narrowing your options, there are other factors to consider. Start by examining your previous experience and education. Most franchises don’t require experience or previous education because they provide all the training you need; but, if you have experience in a particular area, it can only add to your chances for success. Another issue to keep in mind is how much flexibility you want. At a glance, it would seem that everyone wants more flexibility in their business, especially since many entrepreneurs find success with a home business. Franchising with companies like Rapid Results Business Marketing, Billboard Connection and Laser Tech gives you the change to enjoy all the benefits of working from home. These include low overhead costs, the ability to make your own schedule and more time with your family (less time commuting to and from work).

However, some franchisees find that too much flexibility is a hindrance. This is the case for people who have a difficult time separating chores of the home from responsibilities of work. Perhaps you’re already concerned that this is a problem you may face. If so, you shouldn’t become discouraged. Many people need the structure a business setting can offer. Businesses like TaxAssist Accounting, New Opportunities (telecommunications) and Sign-A-Rama have actual locations and employees. This means that you have the advantages of an orderly business in addition to the profitability of a franchise.

Business to Consumer Franchises can be Equally Rewarding
Have you ever wondered if your favourite hobby could become a money-making business opportunity? Maybe you love to clean, sew, throw parties, repair things around the house or play football. All of these hobbies can translate to lucrative opportunities because there are so many different franchises in the market today.

Some of the most popular businesses are children’s franchises. These include Little Angels Children’s Photography, Baby Prints, Go Kart Party and Brazilian Soccer Schools. To begin with, Little Angels is a great prospect for photographers. This home-based business allows photographers to work with pre-school groups and nurseries, which gives them steady clientele. Photography is highly competitive and it’s usually difficult to build a name in the beginning. One rewarding thing about a franchise like Little Angels is that you only work part time. This makes it easy to do different projects (weddings and other special events) on your own time. Otherwise, a business like this can work around the needs of your family. Mums find Little Angels especially attractive because they can take their children to and from school everyday without any interference from work.

Moreover, not all memories are captured on film. No one knows this better than Baby Prints franchisees. Stay at home mums and dads who decide to go into business for themselves have found that casts of sweet little baby feet and hands are turning a sweet little profit they can not ignore. As a Baby Prints owner, your job is to capture every precious little wrinkle and dimple on baby’s fingers and toes, creating a cherished keepsake. Like Little Angels, Baby Prints is a work from home business with modest start-up costs. Additionally, this is one business for sale that offers exclusive sales territory.

By now, you may think that children’s franchise businesses are mostly for mums. However, this is not so. Case in point: Brazilian Soccer Schools is a fantastic business for football fans, many of whom are men. Even if you do not know a great deal about coaching, this company will provide training in both business and coaching. Better yet, Brazilian Soccer Schools can be operated in addition to your existing job during the first year. This makes the transition from traditional employment to entrepreneurship much smoother.

Certainly, owning a business will enrich your life as well as the lives of those around you. You’ve probably make this determination on your own by now. What you may not have considered, on the other hand, is that some businesses can impact your life in a completely unexpected way. For instance, Rosemary Conley Diet and Fitness Clubs, the largest fitness group in the UK, will do just that. Not only will you have a chance to be your own boss and earn revenue doing so, you can also achieve a healthier lifestyle. Imagine the positive outcome this kind of business will have for you and your family. Most of all, you’ll have the unsurpassable satisfaction of helping others live better.

There’s a Brand New Career Path Just for You!
You’ve learned about a few of the franchise business opportunities available to aspiring businesspersons like you. Yes, these are only a small sampling, which may be overwhelming. The important thing to remember is that there is a franchise that’s perfect just for you. Once you have taken the time to analyze your experience, education, talents and personal goals, you will find it much easier to narrow down and then choose your business. After that, all it takes is an investment of your resources, time and discipline. Such effort will inevitably lead you to the right business opportunity and all the benefits that come with it.

Find UK business franchises, home based businesses and information for entrepreneurs at Franchise Gator UK.