Tag: technology

Adapting to Online Business during the Pandemic

More likely than not, if you have a business, it has been dramatically affected by the recent Coronavirus pandemic. In order to prevent further spreading of the disease, social distancing and quarantine has become the new norm. This, however, has not been beneficial for many businesses. Without customers walking into their stores, many offlines businesses have seen their revenues drop, and some have even had to close.

Adapt to online marketplace

One way that businesses have learned to cope with such circumstances is through adapting to and embracing a new online marketplace. While in-person shopping and services may be suffering blows right now, online shopping and services are booming like never before. And learning to tap into this market could mean a world of difference for businesses going through troubles. If there has ever been a time for entrepreneurs thinking about growing their online businesses to make it happen, it’s now.

Grow your online sales

First of all, many businesses have begun to use incentives to grow their online sales. Whether it’s through coupons, deals, or free shipping, these incentives can draw a lot of attention to businesses. In fact, one survey found that 56% of customers are interested in the initiatives that brands have put in place during the outbreak. Other businesses have taken the approach of creating offers for free or heavily-discounted services that ease the current situation (like free meditation apps or online yoga instruction) in hopes of increasing brand awareness and of retaining customers after the pandemic and the deal end. However, businesses should always consider the costs of any customer incentives to ensure they don’t outweigh the benefits.

Online meet ups could be helpful

While selling online, businesses can also think about new products or services they can provide their customers. Although the avoidance of close contact might mean fitness classes, restaurant meals, and other in-person activities are no longer possible, these industries have done their best to meet old customer needs through the internet. Exercise classes are being hosted on zoom and restaurants are cooking meals to-go. In this same manner, other businesses that were similarly previously reliant on human interaction should consider what replacements they can offer instead, how they can solve the old customer needs with new methods.

Adapt to the changes by introducing new products!

Another idea to consider is producing something new that caters to new pandemics needs. For example, some businesses have also started selling product bundles that provide at-home entertainment like crafting or cooking kits. While it might mean shifting away from their pre-pandemic mode of operation, businesses should be open to expanding into open niches. And as always, they should feel free to do outreach and simply ask customers what they want.

Everyone is on social media now…

As businesses expand their online practices, social media is one of the top factors to keep in mind. While growing their online practice, businesses should use social media and virtual outreach to engage customers. During the pandemic, reflecting on the current citation (including any struggles) is a way to connect with them. With quality social media handling and interaction, businesses can significantly increase brand awareness, increase consumer trust, and draw in new sales. Some ways stores have taken advantage of social media stores include going live on different platforms to display their wares in lieu of in-person browsing or to show off behind-the-scenes activities and to post on their Instagrams stories with polls and questions. A blog is another means of sharing valuable content with readers, and it can become a reliable, authoritative source of information. Moreover, social media and email are also both very effective ways of marketing.

Optimise your website!

Of course, if their aim is to expand online business, businesses must ensure their website is functional. First, check that the website loads and displays well on both desktop and mobile. Next, make sure it is up-to-date and answers the following questions: Is the business open? If so, at what locations, on what days, and during what hours? Have there been any other changes in pace due to the pandemic? It may even be useful for some businesses to create a Corona FAQ page if the pandemic has created enough uncertainty around their operation. Businesses should also keep their Google Business listing updated with the same important information.

Stay healthy, stay happy

Lastly, aside from concrete changes, business owners should also try to keep within a positive and constructive state of mind to aid themselves, their business, and their community. Although the switch to online business may be abrupt and stressful, taking advantage of new internet shoppers and maximising online sales can result in an expanded market that will last long beyond the pandemic. Additionally, seeing this pandemic as a time to learn a new skill, whether it be related to online business or not, can prove to be useful in both the short and long run. Taking this time as an opportunity to work together with and lean on other businesses within the same industry can provide needed assistance and forge new connections for the future. If a business has the means, a local community or charity focus can also improve brand name, especially as the coronavirus outbreak has created a new sense of responsibility to the community for many people.

All in all, while the shift to online business may have been unexpected, there are still many things businesses can do to make the best out of it and even possibly grow in the proces. Just remember, even small changes matter, meet customer needs, and focus on maintaining building your brand. And, of course, make sure to keep on top of quarantine restrictions as they change and know what they mean for you!

在疫情下，中小企和創業家們是如何應對的呢？讓GoBuddy和你看看他們用了什麼方法吧！

✨適應網上市場

企業已學會擁抱新的網上市場。儘管面對面的購物和服務正遭受打擊，但在線購物和服務正以前所未有的速度蓬勃發展。學會打入這個市場可能對遇到瓶頸的企業帶來不同商機。如果你曾經考慮發展自己的在線業務，那就是現在！

✨增加您的在線銷售

許多企業已開始使用激勵措施來增加在線銷售量。無論是通過優惠券，交易還是免費送貨，這些激勵措施都可以引起廣泛關注。實際上，一項調查發現，有56％的客戶對品牌在爆發期間採取的措施感興趣。其他企業則採取了創建免費或打折優惠服務的提議的方式，以緩解當前的狀況（例如免費的冥想應用程序或在線瑜伽指導），以提高品牌知名度並在交易結束後留住客戶。但是，你還應考慮措施的成本，確保它們不會超過收益。

✨在線聚會？

在網上銷售時，企業還可以考慮他們可以為客戶提供的新產品或服務。儘管避免親密接觸可能讓大家不再上健身課，外出用膳等，但這些行業已盡力通過互聯網滿足老客戶的需求（網上健身課程正在流行中！）同樣，以前依賴人機交流的其他行業也可考慮提供哪些替代產品，以及他們如何使用新方法解決老客戶的需求。

✨通過引入新產品來適應變化！

要考慮的另一個想法是生產滿足新需求的新產品。例如，一些企業還已經開始銷售新產品，這些產品可提供家庭娛樂，例如手工製作或烹飪套件。雖然這代表要改變經營方式，但企業應該願意向開放的市場擴張。

✨現在每個人都在上社交媒體！

隨著企業擴大在線業務，社交媒體是首要因素之一。在發展在線業務的同時，企業應使用社交媒體和虛擬外展吸引客戶。在疫症期間，反思當前策略是與建立聯繫的一種方式。通過高質量的社交媒體內容和互動，企業可以大大提高品牌知名度，增強消費者信任度並吸引新的銷售。例如在不同平台上直播來展示商品或展示幕後活動，並在Instagram故事中進行互動。寫blog也是與讀者共享內客的另一種方法，它可以成為可靠，權威的信息來源。此外，電子郵件也是非常有效的營銷方式喔！

✨優化您的網站！

如果目標是擴大在線業務，企業必須確保網站正常運行。首先，檢查網站是否可以在所有裝置上正常顯示，確保它是最新的版本。此外，創建一個FAQ頁面會很有用！企業還可使用重要信息來更新其Google Business列表。

✨保持正向！

最後，記得保持積極的心態！:) 幫助自己，企業和社區，將現在視為學習新技能的時機，無論是否與業務相關，增值自己在短期和長期都是有用的！以此為契機，與其他企業合作還可為將來建立新的商機！來為你身邊的人帶來正面影響吧！

Do you need to go to University for entrepreneurship?

As we all understand- there is no direct path to success. If there was, we would all be successful. Wanna be a doctor? Go to Med School. Wanna be a lawyer? Go to Law School. But, what about if you wanna be an Entrepreneur? Is there an Entrepreneur School, per se? Is there some kind of academy where they teach you how to be great Entrepreneurs? Well, there aren’t. Yes, there is college and they provide majors in Entrepreneurship but with the significant cost of tuition fees and an even enormous student debt- Is it really worth it?

Unfortunately, there isn’t any correct answer. Its all based on a personal level. College provides lifelong learning and skills which you might not have access to had you not attended any university. It helps you grow personally and professionally. I think it has more to do with what exactly fascinates you- what is it that you love? Maybe you’re into painting.. perhaps you could open up your own art studio. No matter what type of business you dream of starting someday, there are some skills you NEED to have as an Entrepreneur. You need to be able to market yourself, you need to have a little more than basic accounting and technical skills.

I do think before you decide to start your own company, you should work for someone else. It is the best kind of learning. It teaches you numerous things about how a business operates and gives you the kind of experience college never would. You will come across various opportunities and challenges and it will teach you how to overcome them. Working for someone else will also give you some financial flexibility and stability. You need to have enough capital of your own in the beginning so that you don’t drown in debts.

Going to college and starting your own business right after- I would say it’s quite burdensome. It would be quite difficult to continue investing in your company and making profits when you have a 6 figure college debt hanging over you. Perhaps online courses would be a good idea? Community college for some courses? Maybe that would be a cheaper option.

Whatever you decide to choose, make sure you know what you’re doing. There isn’t any correct answer- it depends on you, your personality, how you like to get things done. Many successful businessmen did not go to college or dropped out of college- and while that may be encouraging to hear- it shouldn’t affect your decision.

眾所周知，成功沒有捷徑。

普遍社會認為的是：想成為醫生嗎？去考醫學院。想成為律師嗎？去考法學院。但是，如果您想創業呢？有企業家學校嗎？是否有某種學院教我們如何成為優秀的企業家？我們或許會想起各大學的商學院，他們提供創業課程，但是我們卻要支付高昂的學費和學生債務-真的值得嗎？

這並沒有正確的答案。大學提供終身學習和技能，它可以幫助您個人和專業成長。這與您喜歡的知識有關-您喜歡什麼？如果你喜歡藝術，也許你可以開設自己的藝術工作室。無論你夢想有一天開始什麼類型的業務，作為企業家都需要具備一些技能。您需要能夠進行自我營銷，還需要具備基本的會計和硬知識。

另外，在決定創辦自己的公司之前，為別人工作是最好的學習方式。它會教你許多有關業務運作方式的知識，並為您提供了大學不能學到的的實際經驗。您一人田日遇到各種機遇和挑戰，而它將教您如何克服挑戰。為他人工作也會為您帶來財務上的靈活性和穩定性。開始時，您需要擁有足夠的自有資本，為之後舖路。

上大學後馬上開始自己的生意不是不可能。如果你不需也許在線課程是一個好主意？社區大學的一些課程？也許那將是一個更便宜的選擇。

無論您決定選擇什麼，請確保您知道自己在做什麼。沒有正確的答案-這取決於您，您的個性以及完成工作的方式。許多成功的商人沒有上過大學或輟學了，儘管這可能會令人鼓舞，但它不會影響您的決定。

How to digitalise your business

The idea of starting your own business can be very exciting. As an entrepreneur, you are your own boss, work more flexible hours, and have greater ability to dictate the direction of your future. Moreover, you can follow your passions and feel a sense of pride in your business’s growth and accomplishments. And for many people, online business poses a very attractive alternative to traditional offline business. Without costs like rent or utilities, online businesses are often much cheaper, and they can be open 24/7 for greater customer flow. Over the past few years, online commerce has become a very profitable market as well as more and more people turn to the internet to shop for both products and services. Moreover, there are many avenues you can take when deciding what kind of online business you want to start so you’ll be sure to find one that suits your interest and skills.

Entertainment

One option you can choose to take is the entertainment route. With the global connections the internet has established, it’s never been easier to reach such a large audience.

Blogs are one such option to consider. You may think they seem out-of-date or that the market is already saturated, but if you believe you have valuable information and love writing, blogs may be a fantastic business for you. Just look at your passions and hobbies and think about what you can share with others. All you need to start is a website, and this renders the start-up cost close to, if not, nothing. Blogs, however, aren’t an easy way to make money quickly. You have to be consistent in posting, post quality information, and interact with your readers. If you succeed in building up a sizeable following though, you can make quite a living through ad space, product sales, sponsored posts, etc. Vlogs provide a slightly more modern update to blogs, and you can similarly monetize your videos.

Alternatively, podcasts have also become a popular form of entertainment in recent years. As with blogging, start-up costs are low and allow you to focus your business around your interests, but growing your business enough to reap a sizable profit can require substantial time and effort.

寫部落格是不是過時了呢？

在2020的大家每天接觸大量社媒資訊，部落格好像和我們愈來愈遠。但部落格真的『過時』了嗎？還是它們換了個方式存在呢？讓Gobuddiers跟大家看一看吧！

部落格的吸引力⋯⋯？

互聯網有很多資訊，以文字、聲音、影片存在。部落格算是以文字為主、影音為輔的形式。它能讓讀者和作家有更深的認識和共感，增加長期影響力和互動。

有名的部落客們

他們都有個共通點—-部落格並不是他們唯一的媒體！他們把內容以不同形式放到網上，吸引不同類型的粉絲。所以如果你希望經營自媒體、或在社交媒體上宣傳你的品牌，不妨試試在不同媒介放上你的內容，找出最適合你的媒介！

或許部落格只是更多以不同形式存在，並不是完全過時呢。畢竟大家也是喜歡看真心的分享，也許文字是適合你的形式！

Products

If you’d rather stick with a more traditional form of business however, you may prefer to stick with selling a product.

One possibility is to run an e-commerce store store. Much like a physical store, simply sell products of your choice but just do so over the internet. Admittedly there is a large amount of competition for ecommerce and customers may be more comfortable buying from a large, established business like Amazon. However, you can do a few things to increase your odds of success. First, look for profitable markets where there is still room for growth. And second, make sure to consider all the costs associated with your product (like manufacturing and distribution costs) to make sure the revenue will be enough to offset them.

Another option is to try your hand at dropshipping. If you’re wary of the costs associated with creating and selling your own product, this business idea may suit you better. With dropshipping, you act as the middleman sending customer purchase orders to a third-party seller, taking a commission from each sale or setting the price on your site slightly higher than that of the third-party seller. Entry costs are lower than for e-commerce as you don’t have to pay to produce your own product, and you don’t have to worry about losing money if the product doesn’t sell.

如果您希望採用更傳統的業務形式，銷售產品可以是一種形式。

一種可能性是經營一家“電子商務商店”。就像實體商店一樣，只需出售您選擇的產品，而只需有互聯網即可。當然，電子商務存在大量競爭，客戶可能更願意從像Amazon這樣的老牌大型企業購買商品。但是，您可以用一些策略來增加成功的機會。

首先，尋找仍有增長空間的市場。

其次，確保考慮與產品相關的所有成本（例如製造和分銷成本），以確保收入足以抵消這些成本。（可以參考我們之前的創業成本帖文）

另一種選擇是嘗試“經銷”。如果您對與創建和銷售自己的產品沒有興趣，則此商業模式可能會更適合您。通過直接托運，您可以充當中間人，將客戶購買訂單發送給第三方賣方，從每次銷售中收取佣金，或者將您網站上的價格設置為略高於第三方賣方的價格。入門成本比電子商務要低，因為你不必為生產自己的產品而付費，並且不必擔心如果產品不賣就賠錢。

Services

Lastly, perhaps the most diverse category of online businesses is those centered around a service.

Digital courses are a booming market. Online classes give you the opportunity to monetize your knowledge and skills. There are already courses for a large range of both academic and nonacademic subjects, and during the recent Covid-19 pandemic, people have only become more creative in finding ways to teach new subjects and activities online as customers seek new ways to learn from home. In addition, you can also sell prepared materials or downloadable content that compliments the course.

Consulting is another way for you to turn your expertise and experience into profit. If you have a deep understanding of a subject and manage to build up a reputable name, people may be willing to pay a pretty penny for your advice. In fact, it can be one of the most profitable online businesses. From finance to business to social media consulting, the options are plentiful and you’ll be sure to find your niche.

Another popular online business option is marketing. Within marketing itself you have a few options, two of which are affiliate and SEO (Search Engine Optimization) marketing. With affiliate marketing, you promote someone else’s product for a commission with each purchase. Using advertising, social media, blogging, or other methods, affiliate marketers aim to draw customers to the producer’s store. SEO (Search Engine Optimization) marketing is a sought after service, however it does require a greater skill set than some other marketing types. SEO refers to the process of working a website so it appears higher up on search engine result pages. As the ease of finding a website can greatly impact an store’s success, other online businesses are eager to utilize these services and to pay handsomely for them. One thing to keep in mind though is that Google’s search algorithms are constantly changing so you will have to make sure to continually educate yourself on these changes and understand how they will affect SEO.

Web design and development are two more options for your online business. If you have the creative inclination and program knowledge and access to do so, web design simply consists of putting together an attractive and engaging website that will draw in readers. Web development has a slightly higher barrier to entry as you do need the coding knowledge of how to build a website from the ground up. But if you put in the time and make the effort to learn, the payoff can be well worth the cost, and the demand for such work is fairly consistent.

Yet another service your online business can provide is virtual assistantship. Such a service typically consists of completing basic administrative tasks like answering phone calls, responding to emails, and making travel plans, as well as others like entering data or conducting research. As you need only organizational and task management skills, the startup requirements are low.

Last on this list is SaaS (Software as a Service). With SaaS, you develop and sell a software on a subscription basis. Of the business ideas on this list, it is perhaps among those with the most potential for profit. It’s all digital so input costs are low, and as long customers find the software worth the price and keep their subscriptions, you have a steady source of revenue.

While this article already ecompasses several potential online business models, it is nowhere close to an entirely comprehensive list. The options for online business are nearly limitless, so make sure to thoroughly consider and think through your options before choosing the one that suits you best!

Copy blogger https://copyblogger.com/blog/

Gary Vaynerchuk

https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/

Tim Ferris

https://tim.blog/