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Any info for entrepreneurship and ecommerce?
I'm a senior in high school right now, and I am very interested in ecommerce and entrepreneurship. Is there any valuable info about ecommerce or things i should know and keep in mind for entrepreneurship, like how i can find quality suppliers and unique designs and products? #entrepreneurship #business
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10 answers
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Adam’s Answer
you should follow blog posts and info from ecommerce platforms like shopify, etsy, etc. Start by creating some shopify store and etsy stores and working through your buy process with your friends.
I think you can find local wholesale suppliers through these platforms vendor network.
I think you can find local wholesale suppliers through these platforms vendor network.
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Steve’s Answer
Great question. I spent my career in SaaS startups / ecommerce and my observation is that you are either wired for this type of work or you simply are not. You will quickly find it's not for you. Early in your career is the perfect time to find out. My goal early on was to get exposure to as many disciplines across the business as possible. Entrepreneurs need to understand technology, finance, sales, marketing, security, compliance and everything in-between. It's hard to master such a vast set of disciplines quickly without on the job experience. I would find a startup in your area and figure out a way to contribute (even if you start out for free). Once you are leaning in and making a contribution you will likely end up with a paid role. From there I would try to work close to one of the executives or senior leaders who enjoy mentoring. My caution is to know that entrepreneurship takes a ton of grit, work and creativeness. It's not for the faint of heart and will likely require big sacrifice in other areas of your life if you want to be great at it. That said, for the right type of person there is nothing more rewarding than building up a new good or service with an amazing team to help your customers solve a problem. It's an amazing ride. So my advice is to find out really early if it's for you before putting all of your eggs in that basket. If it is for you be fearless and get after it!
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Judi’s Answer
If not done so already, check out the Small Business Administration’s website - not only for guidance on how to get a loan but also on some of the responsibilities about running a small business. Being an entrepreneur is a lot of fun and is challenging but you need to be ready to set up your business to succeed.
https://www.sba.gov/
Your local state will also have help, for example your state may have a website about how to setup e-commerce within your local area.
Above helps you “run the business”. These institutions may also have some free workshops and incubator programs for fostering new ideas.
https://www.sba.gov/
Your local state will also have help, for example your state may have a website about how to setup e-commerce within your local area.
Above helps you “run the business”. These institutions may also have some free workshops and incubator programs for fostering new ideas.
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Adrianne’s Answer
Follow some different ecommerce platforms (Shopify, BigCommerce, etc). They have some really great blog posts and resources for entrepreneurs and people who want to run their own stores.
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David’s Answer
I started doing e-commerce in the late 90's. At that point, the big idea was to share your catalog of goods with the world. Now things have changed. You have to establish trust in your offering in order for anyone to follow through with giving you money. So as the others pointed out above, you need to leverage an existing platform that helps provide the trust in payment and delivery.
Remember that even if they payment is delayed via solutions like venmo, you as the provider are most at risk.
in terms of what to sell or offer your customers, we know that every industry or business is ready to be uprooted. So if you have a unique idea, it's a great time to go for it. If you have an instinct for a product that can make a splash there is little risk to trying to sell it online.
it's amazing how many services, products and opportunities are out there.
Remember that even if they payment is delayed via solutions like venmo, you as the provider are most at risk.
in terms of what to sell or offer your customers, we know that every industry or business is ready to be uprooted. So if you have a unique idea, it's a great time to go for it. If you have an instinct for a product that can make a splash there is little risk to trying to sell it online.
it's amazing how many services, products and opportunities are out there.
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Sharool’s Answer
More narrow definitions have described entrepreneurship as the process of designing, launching and running a new business, which is often initially a small business, or as the "capacity and willingness to develop, organize and manage a business venture along with any of its risks to make a profit
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Sendil’s Answer
A somewhat broader definition of the term is sometimes used, especially in the field of economics. In this usage, an entrepreneur is an entity which has the ability to find and act upon opportunities to translate inventions or technologies into products and services: "The entrepreneur is able to recognize the commercial potential of the invention and organize the capital, talent, and other resources that turn an invention into a commercially viable innovation.
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Danielle’s Answer
My two cents would be to start with a business plan. Writing a business plan will help ensure you have a compelling business idea in mind that has the potential to be successful. And don't skip over the 'competitors' section of the business plan. Very important to know your market and with whom you are competing.
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Brandon’s Answer
You could start by running a small business and/or helping someone you know who owns a small business.
Many traditional businesses still need help with e-commerce, websites, social media, email campaigns etc..
This would be a great way to learn about business in greater detail, while filling out a resume.
Maybe its a small restaurant, boutique store, lawn company, etc. So many businesses are having to transition to e-commerce right now.
This is a great time to engage with small local businesses and understand their transition to include more online/virtual transactions and how you could possibly ease those hurdles as a future professional
Many traditional businesses still need help with e-commerce, websites, social media, email campaigns etc..
This would be a great way to learn about business in greater detail, while filling out a resume.
Maybe its a small restaurant, boutique store, lawn company, etc. So many businesses are having to transition to e-commerce right now.
This is a great time to engage with small local businesses and understand their transition to include more online/virtual transactions and how you could possibly ease those hurdles as a future professional
This is great advice. Learn from people who are doing what you aspire to.
Brad Kramer
Updated
Timothy’s Answer
Hi Dorian,
Great question! E-commerce definitely presents some exciting opportunities! My firm has effectively utilized e-commerce to help grow our business. Unfortunately, the information on how to get started is limited and fragmented. There is a lot more to learn than a brief post will provide, but hopefully, it can give you a good start.
Once you have identified the product you would like to sell, you will need to find a supplier. Googling for suppliers will help find local companies. If you need to look internationally, there are a handful of sites to find international manufacturers. Once you find a supplier, they will need to see your design. For our products, we looked for local designers who were reasonably priced to help realize our vision. I would make sure that they are capable of converting their designs into a CAD file. Many manufacturers require a CAD file for their engineers to build your prototype.
Again, working with a designer/artist can help realize your vision of making your product unique. This is important because, as you can imagine, with the popularity of e-commerce, there can be several sellers of the same product. Your competitive advantage in a sea of sellers is to make something unique and compelling. Spend some time with this step, as this will help define your new business venture. Share your design with friends/family and others to get feedback and make changes before making a prototype. Nothing is worse than spending a lot of money making a product that nobody wants.
After that, work on your Shopify/other e-commerce platform skills. Shoppers are attracted to a well-designed website with an easy-to-use interface. There are many templates you can use that will help you save time on building the site. The keys are good photography of your product, easy site navigation, and an easy purchase and checkout process.
Good luck in your venture, and I wish you a ton of success!
Great question! E-commerce definitely presents some exciting opportunities! My firm has effectively utilized e-commerce to help grow our business. Unfortunately, the information on how to get started is limited and fragmented. There is a lot more to learn than a brief post will provide, but hopefully, it can give you a good start.
Once you have identified the product you would like to sell, you will need to find a supplier. Googling for suppliers will help find local companies. If you need to look internationally, there are a handful of sites to find international manufacturers. Once you find a supplier, they will need to see your design. For our products, we looked for local designers who were reasonably priced to help realize our vision. I would make sure that they are capable of converting their designs into a CAD file. Many manufacturers require a CAD file for their engineers to build your prototype.
Again, working with a designer/artist can help realize your vision of making your product unique. This is important because, as you can imagine, with the popularity of e-commerce, there can be several sellers of the same product. Your competitive advantage in a sea of sellers is to make something unique and compelling. Spend some time with this step, as this will help define your new business venture. Share your design with friends/family and others to get feedback and make changes before making a prototype. Nothing is worse than spending a lot of money making a product that nobody wants.
After that, work on your Shopify/other e-commerce platform skills. Shoppers are attracted to a well-designed website with an easy-to-use interface. There are many templates you can use that will help you save time on building the site. The keys are good photography of your product, easy site navigation, and an easy purchase and checkout process.
Good luck in your venture, and I wish you a ton of success!