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This article is from Shopify, and was republished and shared through Elksourcing with the permission of Shopify.Original link:https://www.shopify.com/blog/break-even-analysis Starting a business often carries risk. As the saying goes, “You have to spend money to make money.”While that’s not always true, there is one very effective way to lower your risk: do a break-even analysis. A break-even analysis will tell you exactly what you need to do in order to break even and make back your initial investment. If you run a business—or you’re thinking about starting one—you should know how to do a break-even analysis. It’s a crucial activity for making important business decisions. What is break-even analysis? A break-even analysis is a useful tool for determining at what point your company, or a new product or service, will be profitable. Put another way, it’s a financial calculation used to determine the number of products or services you need to sell to at…

This article is from Shopify, and was republished and shared through Elksourcing with the permission of Shopify.Original link:https://www.shopify.com/blog/15334373-small-business-accounting-101-ten-steps-to-get-your-startup-on-track If you’ve just launched or are about to start your small business, congratulations! It takes uncommon passion and perseverance to get to where you are today. However, as you know, business ownership is a constant flood of satisfying milestones coupled with expanding to-do lists. With your launch, you’ll need to get on top of the accounting tasks that come along with owning a store. This list of small business accounting steps will give you the confidence to know you’ve covered your bases and are ready to move on to the next item on your business to-do list. How to do accounting for a small business Open a bank account Track your expenses Develop a bookkeeping system Set up a payroll systems Investigate import tax Determine how you’ll get paid Establish sales tax procedures…

This article is from Shopify, and was republished and shared through Elksourcing with the permission of Shopify.Original link:https://www.shopify.com/blog/local-delivery According to our consumer trends data, more than half of North American buyers say the pandemic has changed the way they’ll shop going forward. One breakout trend is increased support for small and local businesses, with more than half of consumers specifically seeking out local, independently owned businesses. Nearly a third of buyers say they’ve bought something online and had it delivered locally during the first three months of the pandemic. Local delivery is a great way to connect with nearby customers, drive sales, and provide a great customer experience.  You may be wondering how to set up local delivery or if local delivery is right for your business. Below, we’ll take you through the ins and outs and how to get started with your own local delivery service.  Table of Contents What…

This article is from Shopify, and was republished and shared through Elksourcing with the permission of Shopify.Original link:https://www.shopify.com/blog/shopify-shipping-services Getting orders to your customers is a vital part of running your ecommerce business, and there’s a lot involved, from choosing product packaging to planning your shipping strategy. Underpinning those strategic choices, however, is the fulfillment method that gets your order from point A to point B. Choosing a delivery method, carrier, and shipping services are important aspects of your logistics process. It’s all about finding the right balance between what your customers want and what you can realistically provide, both from an operational and a budget standpoint. Shopify Shipping works directly with multiple carriers each offering multiple mail classes to make the process as streamlined as possible, so you can get orders into your customer’s hands quickly and affordably, whatever that means for your business. Table of Contents What is Shopify Shipping? Choosing a carrier…

This article is from Shopify, and was republished and shared through Elksourcing with the permission of Shopify.Original link:https://www.shopify.com/blog/ecommerce-packaging The market for ecommerce goods has changed drastically over the last decade. The demand for product packaging solutions to handle shipping and logistics, as well as to create a unique customer touchpoint, has grown alongside it, with a total market value of $61.55 billion dollars expected by 2025.  For ecommerce businesses, shipping and fulfillment represents the most direct touch point and connection with a customer. It also happens to be one of the most underused marketing opportunities. Packaging came out of a need to protect products during the shipping process, but focusing solely on function means you might be overlooking the potential marketing impact of your packaging. Done well, a branded packaging and unboxing experience is a chance to deliver a functional product and create a memorable moment for your customers. What is product packaging? Importance of product packaging…

This article is from Shopify, and was republished and shared through Elksourcing with the permission of Shopify.Original link:https://www.shopify.com/blog/international-shipping If you’re looking to grow your ecommerce business, expanding beyond your borders could be a great next step—but that means you need to figure out how to ship internationally. To do international shipping right, you’ll need a strategy that works for you and your business. You don’t need to know everything about shipping, but you do need to understand the available options, and find an approach that will work again and again. There are a lot of reasons you might not be shipping internationally right now. Maybe you’re just starting to consider it as an option. Or maybe you’ve even tried once or twice and you’d rather stick to your local or domestic market. Selling beyond your borders can be an important growth area for your business, even if you only ship some products internationally, so…

This article is from Shopify, and was republished and shared through Elksourcing with the permission of Shopify.Original link:https://www.shopify.com/blog/return-policy Returns, refunds, and exchanges are all a part of doing business online. Just in the United States, Statista estimates return deliveries will cost businesses $550 billion by 2020—a 75.2% increase from four years earlier. Plus, nearly 41% of shoppers buy with the intent of returning. Customers might be unsatisfied with their order for a number of reasons—it arrived damaged, they ordered the wrong size, or it simply didn’t meet their expectations. So they ask for a replacement or for their money back. But without a proper system for handling them, these requests can eat up a lot of time, energy, and money with hours spent on customer service emails and spikes in shipping expenses for replacement products, especially after the holidays. The good news is that it’s never too late to address the problem. With a great return…

This article is from Shopify, and was republished and shared through Elksourcing with the permission of Shopify.Original link:https://www.shopify.com/blog/shipping-policy “How much will shipping cost?” “When will my order arrive?” Some of the most common questions you get as a store owner will inevitably be related to shipping. A well-thought-out shipping policy not only helps you proactively set the right expectations around shipping times and costs, but it also becomes an asset whenever customers come with questions about their orders. Your shipping policy is a living document for your business, one that you update and adjust as your operations and circumstances change—especially when the unexpected forces you to adapt. Whether you’re creating a new shipping policy from scratch or updating your existing policy to curb customer support inquiries, we’ve put together this resource to help you cover and communicate the right details—with a template to get you started along with examples you can borrow ideas from. What…