Meizu M2 launched in India for Rs. 6,999, exclusive to Snapdeal

After launching the M2 note, Meizu has launched its smaller sibling in India, the Meizu M2. Priced at Rs. 6,999, the device is available from Snapdeal exclusively, and the registrations to purchase the smartphone have begun today. The device is available in blue, grey, pink, and white colours.

Meizu M2 Specifications

• 5-inch IPS LCD display, 720 x 1,280 pixels (294 ppi), Dragon Trail Glass
• Android 5.1 Lollipop-based Flyme 4.5
• MediaTek MT6735, 1.3GHz quad-core Cortex-A53 CPU, Mali-T720MP2 GPU
• 2GB RAM, 16GB internal storage, and microSD card slot (uses SIM 2 slot)
• 13MP primary camera, autofocus, LED flash, 1080p video recording, and 5MP secondary camera
• 4G LTE, 3G HSPA+, dual-band Wi-Fi b/g/n, Bluetooth v4.0 (with LE), and GPS (with A-GPS and GLONASS)
• microUSB v2.0 port, and 3.5 mm headphone jack
• Ambient Light Sensor, Digital Compass, Gravity sensor, Hall Effect Sensor, and Proximity Sensor
• 2500 mAh battery; 140.1 x 68.9 x 8.7 mm; 113 g

The Meizu M2 runs Android 5.1 Lollipop-based Flyme 4.5 UI, and is equipped by a quad-core 64-bit processor, 2GB RAM, 16GB internal storage, a microSD card slot, and a 2,500 mAh battery. In the imaging department, it has a 13-megapixel primary camera with f/2.0 autofocus lens and 1080p video recording, and a 5-megapixel secondary camera.

In terms of connectivity, the Meizu M2 has 4G LTE connectivity with a dual-SIM card slot, Wi-Fi b/g/n, Bluetooth v4.0, and GPS. Please note that you can either use a second SIM or a microSD card, but not both at once. It has a 2,500 mAh battery that the company claims to last upto 23 hours of talk-time. At this price, the device competes with the likes of the Xiaomi Redmi 2, the YU Yuphoria, and the Lenovo A6000 Plus.

Period Tracker App Clue Gets $7M To Build A Platform For Female Health

Berlin-based Clue, which makes a period tracker app designed to let women keep tabs on their monthly cycles and help predict their fertile window, has closed a $7 million Series A round, with investment from New York’s Union Square Ventures and London-based Series A fund Mosaic Ventures. The new round brings Clue’s total raised to-date to $10 million.

Clue launched its app in 2013, and says it now has more than two million active users on Android and iOS in over 180 countries. It’s currently available in 10 languages.

As well as tracking periods, Clue users can also choose to keep tabs on other hormonal changes taking place during their monthly cycle, such as low or high sex drive or PMT related symptoms such as low energy levels or insomnia. The app also lets users record when they had sex — useful data to correlate with your fertility window if you’re trying to get pregnant.

While there are a lot of period tracker apps in the market, co-founder Ida Tin says Clue has a more ambitious aim than most — and talks in terms of building a “platform for female health”.

“What we want to do is basically bringing this whole amazing field of female health into the whole age of data,” she tells TechCrunch. “Seeing how we can integrate all kinds of data streams from various sensors and so on and bring this all together and give women a really powerful way to understand what’s going on in their bodies.”

In a blog post announcing the new financing, Clue says it will be using the new funding to fuel growth by expanding its feature set, hiring more staff and developing new markets.

Fleshing out Clue’s plans, Tin added: “The main thing we want to work on is simply deepening the insights that women can get from the data. So getting even better at working with the data we have to make predictions more accurate. And also making notifications more advanced and more contextual.”

The accuracy of Clue’s predictions will vary depending on the user’s cycle — so women with very regular monthly cycles will likely get more accurate fertility predictions than those with irregular cycles. Providing users with a sense of how accurate the app’s predictions are for their particular cycle is also on the roadmap, says Tan.

“These are some of the things we can now start exploring now because now we really have a big data set, and we can also start doing our own clinical research in it,” she says. “For instance the app will be able to say it looks like your cycle looks to be falling into this particular pattern — so for this particular pattern these and these and these things might be relevant to track — or your accuracy will be so and so because you fall into this category. So we can say for you specifically your accuracy is probably within this range.”

Clue has also been approached by multiple universities interested in working with its data on studies around female reproductive health issues. Tan says it’s working with several at this stage, including Stanford, Columbia in New York, the University of Utah and Washington University. (During the on-boarding process Clue users are also asked whether they want to opt in to being contacted to participate in specific research studies.) The opportunities for research are clear.

“Most women still don’t really know what’s going on with their reproductive health and that’s a huge opportunity because it’s an area where very big life decisions are made, and there’s a lot of emotions around it, and it’s impacting our health in many, many ways and it’s impacting our everyday life in many ways, and our relationships as well. So it’s not a ‘nice to have’; it’s a ‘need to have’ kind of area. And there are no players that have really managed to solve this in a really fulfilling way. And that’s what we’re trying to do,” adds Tan.

“One thing we are already looking at is bleeding patterns in relation to IUDs [intrauterine contraceptive devices]. And then there are things people are curious about — like do you bleed together with other women in the same cycles, or can you time trying for a boy or girl if you’re trying to get pregnant. So these more kind of ‘lifestyle’ type questions, which I think we can conduct some real science around. But these are just kind of the ‘light end’ — it’s all the way from these kinds of things to more medical [questions like] do people who experience heavy PMS do they also experience heavy bleeding, for instance? What kind of correlations do we find?”

Has it been easy to raise funding with a pitch to build a heath-focused platform that has potential relevance to the lives of some 50 per cent of humans on the planet? “No it has not been easy,” says Tan. “I do think that this field of female health and reproductive health is exploding, and I think we are going to see so many cool products and services in this field, and they are going to be funded, but I still think that could be accelerated massively.

“I still think there’s lots of investors who will say that it’s interesting, but they don’t write the check…”

In what is perhaps something of a related ‘penny-drop’ moment, Apple corrected a glaring female health oversight in its own Health app this summer by finally adding period tracking.

“We need more female partners of course,” adds Tan, on the investment point, after I bring up the gender imbalance in the VC firms fueling the tech industry.

Markets wise, Tan says Clue’s main focus at this stage remains Europe and the U.S. (which is currently it’s biggest market), with LatAm and Japan also “quite interesting” at this stage. It’s also looking at India with a view to figuring out whether there’s an opportunity to do something from “more of an education/global good” point of view, she adds.

My Five Rules In Beating The Odds For Success In Business

Robert Burns said it eloquently "The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry". Business is more than just being smart but lucky as well. However skills and planning can definitely help in making the odds more in your favor. The most important part is that it takes money to make money. Unless you're independently wealthy, then start-up and working capital is a must. If you begin a business venture with not enough capital taking a shot you're doomed from the start.

Where ever you do receive capital from most times they need to be paid back. Generally that payment is incorporated into your operating costs, which uses revenues and percentages to show profit. Make sure your estimated monthly sales are as accurate as possible, and I would suggest reducing them by ten to twenty percent. This way you'll know in slower times that at least the fixed expenses will be covered. 

Here's a hypothetical example, you open a restaurant in a great location, and two weeks later the city starts doing road work making the street none accessible for like a month or two. Very little business comes in but you're on the hook for expenses regardless. If you don't in advance ensure enough working capital, and overestimate sales then you be out of business in a heartbeat. Rule number one in beating the odds, be aware of your business financials!

I've honestly met the worst business people in the world, unorganized, not focused, lazy, terrible with numbers, and extremely successful, how does that happen? Most know inside they're not the sharpest pencils in the box, so they counter that with hiring exceptional people to make them look good. As a result through the staff's hard work in spite of the owner's defiance's the business grows. Rule number two in beating the odds, hire those who might be more skilled than you in certain areas, and most important let them fly!

Make sure the product or service is competitive within your market place. In today's world with the economy so poor more people are purchasing on price than quality. It is vital that you study your demographic, the competitions pricing prior to making a business investment. Rule number three in beating the odds, the money is made in the buying not the selling!

Set a budget for marketing and advertising building a loyal customer base, and make a plan of action that will entice people to check-out your products or services. In developing a brand one must figure-out what will make them stick-out with customers feeling they need to be there. Rule number four in beating the odds, set a better mouse trap!

My final one is never put yourself in personal financial jeopardy when going into business. Make sure to incorporate your business so you're not personally liable if things should go south. Going bankrupt with an incorporation allows you to walk away not in a moral way, but a business one on clear and free. 

If you sign personally have no choice but to go bankrupt they'll take everything cars, house, any personal asset of value. Rule number five in beating the odds, always cover your butt!

7 Step Revenue Planning and How to Ensure Profitability

A few years ago I was at a closed door meeting of business owners. We had gotten together to share information and work on our businesses.

One of the members had just crossed the $500,000 mark in her business. She was understandably psyched and we were for her.

Later, after dinner, we were talking and I asked her what her profit was (cheeky I know).

Her net was under $50,000. On $500,000 in revenue. And she paid herself a salary of $60,000 so it wasn't that she moved $300,000 to her personal savings.

Thinking back on it, my mouth must have dropped. I hope it didn't, but don't see how it didn't.

She then asked my net and her mouth did drop. While hers was under 10% of revenue, mine was closer to 35%.

We talked late into the night about revenue, expenses, profit, taxes, retention and much more.

The next day she hired me. Flash forward 12 months and her revenue was a little under $550,000 and her profit was just over 20%.

When it comes to small businesses, "profit" often seems to be "that thing we never speak about", a secret to remain hidden, often shamefully, brought out from under the bed only during tax season.

What if your profit was public?

Would you be proud? Embarrassed?

What if you were to plan for your profit first?

Years ago I gave away a revenue planning template. One where you actually plan what your profit is rather than "just let it happen". (Hint: It almost never "just happens".)

7 Step Revenue Planning

The planning template was simple and all about reverse engineering your revenue:

1. List all your known expenses, including your salary
2. Add in your desired profit
3. Total them
4. Multiply the total by 10-15% for unknown expenses
5. Add Numbers 3 and 4 together
6. Multiply the new total (#5) by 30% or your tax percentage if known
7. Add Numbers 5 and 6 together. This is your revenue goal

The above works for planning, but what about day-to-day reality?

Day-to-day is simple although it requires a little more discipline to continuously follow the process - that said, if you do, you'll be thrilled with the results.

Ready?

For every dollar of revenue that comes in, give it a home.

1. X% to your Profit
2. Y% to your "Salary"
3. Z% to your Taxes

The remainder is what's left for your expenses.

Depending on your preferences (and whether or not you can keep your fingers out of the other pots), you may wish to set up separate accounts to "house" these sums or simply move it within your bookkeeping file.

Personally I keep separate accounts (out of sight, out of mind).

Following this process:

• ensures that your business is profitable,
• ensures that you get paid,
• ensures that your taxes are paid and
• ensures that you don't spend more than your business makes.

Don't worry about what's happened in the past. Choose today to move forward. The above will help you do that even if you start small and increase over time as you reduce your expenses and, if necessary, pay down debt.

Questions? Hit reply and let me know, I'm happy to answer them.

And, if you're ready to work together on your business, you'll love our "Keep It Simple" Non-program Program designed for the business owner who is looking for a trusted partner to run things by, brainstorm with, get advice when things come up and yet doesn't necessarily need a set schedule of calls.

* Note that, on a personal level, I used to pay for pet insurance each month. Then I applied this same concept and created a savings account just for that - now the funds come out automatically each month and are available when I need them without the feeling of "throwing money away" when the insurance company would deny claims.

Forex Options Market Overview

The forex options market started as an over-the-counter (OTC) financial vehicle for large banks, financial institutions and large international corporations to hedge against foreign currency exposure. Like the forex spot market, the forex options market is considered an "interbank" market. However, with the plethora of real-time financial data and forex option trading software available to most investors through the internet, today's forex option market now includes an increasingly large number of individuals and corporations who are speculating and/or hedging foreign currency exposure via telephone or online forex trading platforms.

Forex option trading has emerged as an alternative investment vehicle for many traders and investors. As an investment tool, forex option trading provides both large and small investors with greater flexibility when determining the appropriate forex trading and hedging strategies to implement.

Most forex options trading is conducted via telephone as there are only a few forex brokers offering online forex option trading platforms.

Forex Option Defined - A forex option is a financial currency contract giving the forex option buyer the right, but not the obligation, to purchase or sell a specific forex spot contract (the underlying) at a specific price (the strike price) on or before a specific date (the expiration date). The amount the forex option buyer pays to the forex option seller for the forex option contract rights is called the forex option "premium."

The Forex Option Buyer - The buyer, or holder, of a foreign currency option has the choice to either sell the foreign currency option contract prior to expiration, or he or she can choose to hold the foreign currency options contract until expiration and exercise his or her right to take a position in the underlying spot foreign currency. The act of exercising the foreign currency option and taking the subsequent underlying position in the foreign currency spot market is known as "assignment" or being "assigned" a spot position.

The only initial financial obligation of the foreign currency option buyer is to pay the premium to the seller up front when the foreign currency option is initially purchased. Once the premium is paid, the foreign currency option holder has no other financial obligation (no margin is required) until the foreign currency option is either offset or expires.

On the expiration date, the call buyer can exercise his or her right to buy the underlying foreign currency spot position at the foreign currency option's strike price, and a put holder can exercise his or her right to sell the underlying foreign currency spot position at the foreign currency option's strike price. Most foreign currency options are not exercised by the buyer, but instead are offset in the market before expiration.

Foreign currency options expires worthless if, at the time the foreign currency option expires, the strike price is "out-of-the-money." In simplest terms, a foreign currency option is "out-of-the-money" if the underlying foreign currency spot price is lower than a foreign currency call option's strike price, or the underlying foreign currency spot price is higher than a put option's strike price. Once a foreign currency option has expired worthless, the foreign currency option contract itself expires and neither the buyer nor the seller have any further obligation to the other party.

The Forex Option Seller - The foreign currency option seller may also be called the "writer" or "grantor" of a foreign currency option contract. The seller of a foreign currency option is contractually obligated to take the opposite underlying foreign currency spot position if the buyer exercises his right. In return for the premium paid by the buyer, the seller assumes the risk of taking a possible adverse position at a later point in time in the foreign currency spot market.

Initially, the foreign currency option seller collects the premium paid by the foreign currency option buyer (the buyer's funds will immediately be transferred into the seller's foreign currency trading account). The foreign currency option seller must have the funds in his or her account to cover the initial margin requirement. If the markets move in a favorable direction for the seller, the seller will not have to post any more funds for his foreign currency options other than the initial margin requirement. However, if the markets move in an unfavorable direction for the foreign currency options seller, the seller may have to post additional funds to his or her foreign currency trading account to keep the balance in the foreign currency trading account above the maintenance margin requirement.

Just like the buyer, the foreign currency option seller has the choice to either offset (buy back) the foreign currency option contract in the options market prior to expiration, or the seller can choose to hold the foreign currency option contract until expiration. If the foreign currency options seller holds the contract until expiration, one of two scenarios will occur: (1) the seller will take the opposite underlying foreign currency spot position if the buyer exercises the option or (2) the seller will simply let the foreign currency option expire worthless (keeping the entire premium) if the strike price is out-of-the-money.

Please note that "puts" and "calls" are separate foreign currency options contracts and are NOT the opposite side of the same transaction. For every put buyer there is a put seller, and for every call buyer there is a call seller. The foreign currency options buyer pays a premium to the foreign currency options seller in every option transaction.

Forex Call Option - A foreign exchange call option gives the foreign exchange options buyer the right, but not the obligation, to purchase a specific foreign exchange spot contract (the underlying) at a specific price (the strike price) on or before a specific date (the expiration date). The amount the foreign exchange option buyer pays to the foreign exchange option seller for the foreign exchange option contract rights is called the option "premium."

Please note that "puts" and "calls" are separate foreign exchange options contracts and are NOT the opposite side of the same transaction. For every foreign exchange put buyer there is a foreign exchange put seller, and for every foreign exchange call buyer there is a foreign exchange call seller. The foreign exchange options buyer pays a premium to the foreign exchange options seller in every option transaction.

The Forex Put Option - A foreign exchange put option gives the foreign exchange options buyer the right, but not the obligation, to sell a specific foreign exchange spot contract (the underlying) at a specific price (the strike price) on or before a specific date (the expiration date). The amount the foreign exchange option buyer pays to the foreign exchange option seller for the foreign exchange option contract rights is called the option "premium."

Please note that "puts" and "calls" are separate foreign exchange options contracts and are NOT the opposite side of the same transaction. For every foreign exchange put buyer there is a foreign exchange put seller, and for every foreign exchange call buyer there is a foreign exchange call seller. The foreign exchange options buyer pays a premium to the foreign exchange options seller in every option transaction.

Plain Vanilla Forex Options - Plain vanilla options generally refer to standard put and call option contracts traded through an exchange (however, in the case of forex option trading, plain vanilla options would refer to the standard, generic forex option contracts that are traded through an over-the-counter (OTC) forex options dealer or clearinghouse). In simplest terms, vanilla forex options would be defined as the buying or selling of a standard forex call option contract or a forex put option contract.

Exotic Forex Options - To understand what makes an exotic forex option "exotic," you must first understand what makes a forex option "non-vanilla." Plain vanilla forex options have a definitive expiration structure, payout structure and payout amount. Exotic forex option contracts may have a change in one or all of the above features of a vanilla forex option. It is important to note that exotic options, since they are often tailored to a specific's investor's needs by an exotic forex options broker, are generally not very liquid, if at all.

Intrinsic & Extrinsic Value - The price of an FX option is calculated into two separate parts, the intrinsic value and the extrinsic (time) value.

The intrinsic value of an FX option is defined as the difference between the strike price and the underlying FX spot contract rate (American Style Options) or the FX forward rate (European Style Options). The intrinsic value represents the actual value of the FX option if exercised. Please note that the intrinsic value must be zero (0) or above - if an FX option has no intrinsic value, then the FX option is simply referred to as having no (or zero) intrinsic value (the intrinsic value is never represented as a negative number). An FX option with no intrinsic value is considered "out-of-the-money," an FX option having intrinsic value is considered "in-the-money," and an FX option with a strike price at, or very close to, the underlying FX spot rate is considered "at-the-money."

The extrinsic value of an FX option is commonly referred to as the "time" value and is defined as the value of an FX option beyond the intrinsic value. A number of factors contribute to the calculation of the extrinsic value including, but not limited to, the volatility of the two spot currencies involved, the time left until expiration, the riskless interest rate of both currencies, the spot price of both currencies and the strike price of the FX option. It is important to note that the extrinsic value of FX options erodes as its expiration nears. An FX option with 60 days left to expiration will be worth more than the same FX option that has only 30 days left to expiration. Because there is more time for the underlying FX spot price to possibly move in a favorable direction, FX options sellers demand (and FX options buyers are willing to pay) a larger premium for the extra amount of time.

Volatility - Volatility is considered the most important factor when pricing forex options and it measures movements in the price of the underlying. High volatility increases the probability that the forex option could expire in-the-money and increases the risk to the forex option seller who, in turn, can demand a larger premium. An increase in volatility causes an increase in the price of both call and put options.

Delta - The delta of a forex option is defined as the change in price of a forex option relative to a change in the underlying forex spot rate. A change in a forex option's delta can be influenced by a change in the underlying forex spot rate, a change in volatility, a change in the riskless interest rate of the underlying spot currencies or simply by the passage of time (nearing of the expiration date).

The delta must always be calculated in a range of zero to one (0-1.0). Generally, the delta of a deep out-of-the-money forex option will be closer to zero, the delta of an at-the-money forex option will be near .5 (the probability of exercise is near 50%) and the delta of deep in-the-money forex options will be closer to 1.0. In simplest terms, the closer a forex option's strike price is relative to the underlying spot forex rate, the higher the delta because it is more sensitive to a change in the underlying rate.

Top 10 eBay Trading Assistant Drop Store Reality Checks

Running an eBay consignment business can be complicated, time consuming, and nerve wracking...

As a business, consignment selling on eBay is not the easy get rich quick scheme some would have you believe. While initially setting up an eBay consignment business may sound like a ticket to easy street...

Whats better than selling other peoples stuff and making a 40% commission from the sale?

Having a retail store without owning inventory... 

When one gets right down to the facts, its not that simple...

eBay consignment has its rewards and challenges, like any other business. The difference here is the dependence eBay consignment sellers have on outside influences. Outside factors have a great deal to do with how well an eBay consignment based business will prosper or if it will even survive.

Some of those outside sources of influences are:

1.     eBay - eBay itself controls whether you have a business at all. If you make just three bad decisions, your account can be closed forever and you will be shut down. Tough to be a eBay consignment business without eBay. Knowing the rules of eBay is sometimes just enough to stay out of trouble. But as we all have seen recently, eBay can change the rules at any given moment and these rules are interpreted by different eBay employees with differing view points at different times. One day you can be perfectly OK, the next day all 250 items you have listed this week can be removed without even an email warning. Be aware of the risks because the listing fees you lose will be your own.

2.     Local Government - Your local or State Governments can decide in a moment to come down on your operation for breaking rules you were not breaking the day before. (SEE PENSYLVANIA)

3.     Customers - Your first customers - the sellers, are your life blood, without them you have nothing to sell. They all want you to work for minimum wage and they have a hard time understanding why you need to "charge so much". Customers can also lead you into peril with outside factor number 1 - eBay, if just one customer places a shill bid, or gives you stolen merchandise to sell... can lead to trouble your business can not withstand and you did not deserve.

4.     Expenses - You are not really running a store without inventory, your landlord knows that and so does you're insurance agent. You are operating what the insurance companies want to classify as a Pawn Shop. When insurance company underwriters see the code for "Pawn Shop", whatever that code may be, on the agents form for your quote... they immediately think guns, and robbery and all kinds of unsavory situations involved with bailee insurance coverage. They quote high rates, if they return a quote for coverage at all... and you end up paying much more than a simple retail store would for a similar exposure. - Other expenses including eBay fees, PayPal fees and Software expenses sometime become a reality no one at the franchise office or eBay warned you about.

5.     Hours - If you thought eBay consignment was a 9-5 type of job for a store owner, well you may have been mislead. Running an eBay consignment or drop store will take a great deal of time. Each item you accept through your doors must be handled and processed in multiple steps both in intake and when processing for shipment. Plan on each item taking up at least one hour of employee or owner time, start to finish, if your lucky. Multiply that by the 250 - 400 items you should be trying to process per week and you get the picture. Lower the number of items processed by raising the bar on what you accept is one option... but then you reduce your overall numbers and raise the amount of time each higher priced item will demand of your man-hour pool. (Higher priced items get more questions, demand better photos and need more careful handling and packaging).

6.     eBay Sellers & Buyers - As a consignment seller it is necessary to include numerous disclaimers in your listing details sections on your eBay auctions detailing the facts . i.e. "This is not a new item, there is no warranty, we only take returns if we did not describe it correctly, you will pay shipping for returns etc"... All of these necessary protections are reasonable from your point of view as a consignment seller. They are not reasonable from the point of view of most buyers on eBay. If the eBay buyer smells a possible problem, they bolt and do not bid. Your standard disclaimers hurt your chances to sell your items. It is a catch 22. Buyers are your second set of customers for each item you list and hopefully sell. This second set of customers, the buyers, are very inquisitive and they demand to know certain facts about certain items you have listed for sale. Some of these questions may be difficult to answer. This in turn causes you to either fake an answer, ignore the question from the buyer, or to forward the question to your seller. Your first customer the seller may answer in a less than honest manner to get the item sold. All of these questions and answers take time and in the case of incorrect answers returning from your seller customer, can put you in a bind with the buyer customer. - In the end you are in the middle serving two customers for each item sold.

7.     Unsold Items - It is a fact that not every item will sell on eBay. Some items will not sell, no matter how much you lower the price. If you run these items as auctions on eBay too many times for your first customer the seller the eBay listing fees will build up to unacceptable amounts. Even if you charge an up front fee, the eBay fees are lost money if an item does not sell. To make money on each item brought through your door just from a man-power and eBay listing fee perspective, you would need to charge an upfront fee to your first customer - the seller of $25 or more. (Consider labor, electricity, lease payment, insurance costs, etc etc...). We all know mechanics charge $35 to just estimate the repair on a car, but when it comes to eBay consignment it is very difficult to get reimbursed from your first customer - the seller what you have spent for your time.

8.     Employees - Do you need employees? Yes, you do... One person can not process the amount of product necessary to meet the monthly overhead of a full eBay drop store operation. Three full time people is the usual minimum used for successful operations. (By successful I mean meeting the overhead and paying the landlord). So, why are employees an outside source of influence over your business? Most business owners know why, but in this instance the reasoning can be a bit different. Finding good employees, who understand the intricacies of this business is the first challenge, keeping them is the second. After those challenges are met, your next hurdle includes trusting other people to handle and describe , merchandise you do not own. If a description is incorrect or the right keywords are not selected for the title of the item on eBay, you can lose money for yourself and your first customer the seller. As the owner of the business your job is to bring in sales and handle marketing. You must depend upon your employees for your product presentation (eBay description). Unless you plan on describing every item yourself... You should have good employees. Good employees with computer skills, customer service skills, no criminal record etc... are not inexpensive, nor are they easy to find and keep. Offer those employees incentives in the form of commissions on sales and you will open up a whole new can of worms. Shill Bidding - Your employees can not have any incentive to bid on your consignment items themselves. If they do it, you will lose... possibly your entire business. Be very wary of offering commissions on sales.

9.     Limited Venue - eBay... Yes eBay... Everyone I know is painfully aware of the fact that I sing the praises of eBay every chance I get... I fully and completely believe, as a marketplace eBay is unmatched, but it is just one marketplace. Placing your entire business plan and future prosperity in the hands of just one provider or one outlet to sell your consigned items... is a very risky proposition. I think the events of the past week have proven this to be true (See REDOL). eBay changes the rules, when they want to. They have not a care about the investment you have made in your business. When you set up an eBay consignment store or TA business, your banking on the fact that eBay will be there with you 100% and will not change the rules or raise the fees, or eliminate your ability to offer your services (as in the case of eBay Motors recently) to the public. Almost every successful Internet business today sells in many "channels" or on multiple venues. Stand alone eCommerce websites, Amazon, Yahoo, Buy.com, Overstock, even Craig's List. eBay is not the only game in town any longer. As an eBay consignment seller, especially if tied to a franchise, you are pretty much locked into one solution or venue to sell your wares. This is a choice no savvy marketer would make in good conscience, not if long term stability and profitability were in his/her goals.

10.   Progress - Read the tea leaves... eBay is changing and morphing into a new and some think a better place. eBay is too large and has too many high dollar, high profile new merchandise sellers to remain a place where used Pez dispensers can be sold at a profit. Repeatable inventory sales is the future... or actually the now of eBay. No consignment seller will have repeatable merchandise to compete with the big sellers on eBay. When you list a used item for your customer -( the seller) and learn that a brand new item or one very similar, can be purchased for pennies more than what you know your customer should receive for his nearly new item... you know the game is up. eBay has become the land of mass merchandising.

Used item auctions will remain as the core of eBay but the role of auctions will continue to diminish over time. See the recent quotes by new eBay CEO John Donahoe. In addition as people become more Internet savvy and sell their own items on Craigslist or Kijji for free the demand for eBay professionals to provide this service will be diminished. Progress is inevitable, when the eBay consignment industry was born most of our consignment customers did not know how to turn on a computer or surf the web. Now it is estimated high speed Internet connections will be available in 70% of US homes in the next few years.

Grandmothers are selling on eBay and kids are inventing new and interesting worlds online like Second Life or Club Penguin. If you don't know what those last two places are, you are no longer an Internet savvy pioneer and have become one of the old school Internet professionals. Kinda feel like a blacksmith?

What to do?

If you are contemplating opening an stand alone eBay consignment drop store, one which sells nothing but merchandise brought through the door by consignment customers... Please study your numbers, your costs, your soul... before dedicating any of your own assets to this type of venture. As a former franchise representative for an eBay drop store chain, I can tell you the numbers were not looking good nationwide back in 2006. This is 2008 and many of the market factors limiting the profitable outlook for a stand alone eBay drop stores have only become more competitive.

If you are thinking about adding eBay sales and eBay consignment in a limited fashion to your pre-existing business...

Great idea! Just be aware of the consignment challenges and be sure to include selling other new and repeatable merchandise in your eBay business plan. eBay selling and an eBay Stores website can be a huge benefit for any retail or wholesale operation needing a boost in exposure, sales, and eCommerce revenue. Using consignment to boost your existing revenue or offer a trade in program for your regular customers is a great way to increase overall business. This is what we do for our clients at All Business Auctions and I can tell you it works. There is no better and less expensive way to get your brand and your products in front or more buyers worldwide. As long as your outlook is focused on the advertising and exposure benefits and possibly the service to existing customers aspects, you will find an eBay program to be very rewarding for your business.

If your currently a eBay drop store franchisee or owner...

Look for ways to move your business into other markets. Most franchises are trying to offer import good from the far east as a way to placate their franchisees who are not generating the revenue originally projected for the eBay drop store consignment business. I think these measures are someone foolhardy. Yes, every eBay drop store owner could profit by selling repeatable merchandise. The merchandise offered by the franchises does not seem to be repeatable however. (small lots of no-name brand second run merchandise). Be careful about what types of merchandise you import or buy to supplement your store sales. You do not want to end up owning a container full of widgets which also can not be sold. Some drop stores have begun to sell pallet loads of returned electronics and other merchandise bought from brokers. This is a difficult way to add to your bottom line. The high rate of returns inherent with this kind of already returned merchandise will do nothing for your feedback rating or your labor costs.

Bottom line for current drop store owners is... look for a way out.

If your store is just on the edge of profitability or it has never reached profitability then you should be looking for better ways to make your money work for you.

You can do what I have done with All Business Auctions and move your business from a consignment only model to that of a business to business service provider. Become what you are in your community - an eBay and eCommerce expert. Use the knowledge you have gained during this time of eBay growth and decline of eBay consignment to further your goals in business. Business to business coaching and consulting is one of the most lucrative professions in the world.

If set up and trained correctly you can make enough money in one afternoon of consulting to cover the overhead of your store for a month. How many businesses in your community would be interested in learning about how to sell product on eBay without having to pay you a commission on each item sold? What if you could set them up with the software, the eBay store design and the tools necessary and then be there for them as a paid consultant to help them get online and selling smoothly and efficiently? Could you sell your local chamber members on a service like that?

I am sure you could... Sometimes there is opportunity in the darkest moments. If your consignment sales business has been floundering, maybe you should look at it differently. Look at the time spent as a training program for your future.

Become an Internet Business Mentor... rather than a eBay Drop Store owner. It even sounds better...

Three Ideas To Get Right Co-Branding Partner

Partnership is a key to great success. Good marriages result in big personal achievements. Long and strong marriages pave a way for major accomplishments that seem impossible individually. Well, this article is not about marriage but it is about sound business partnerships or co-branding. 

You must have heard about two big brands forming a merger or getting into partnerships. Yes, it can be possible even at the smallest level. Two like minded people can start a brand together. As it grows, a third person who has a complimenting business can be your partner.

The chain can grow in this manner, mutually benefiting each party. Such an example, is present in the nature, Lichen is a plant that is formed by the symbiotic association or partnership of an algae and fungus. The algae provides food to the fungus while the fungus provides protection to the algae. Together, they form a strong partnership and survive the changing climatic conditions.

Co-branding thrives mainly on the "Lichen" phenomenon. Where one party provides a complimentary benefit to the other. It is also an improved version of the old fashioned barter system. Recently, such a co-branding example was shown by Spotify and Starbucks. It is needless to say, that Starbucks has already charmed the world by its amazing business model. 

The Starbucks and Spotify partnership will set another big example of successful co-branding. In this partnership, Spotify subscribers will be getting "reward points" or stars and they will also get to recommend songs to be played in the Starbucks stores.

Now, let's see how co-branding can benefit a small business owner or an e-Commerce business owner as well.

1) Make Your Own Statement:

There is something about being different and thinking out-of-the-box that appeals to the audience. Taking this mantra search for the partners. If you sell the locks then search for the partner who sells keys and not locks. This will benefit both of you. Hang your ego and preset notions on the tree in your backyard. Move forward with a flexible and open mind.

2) Search For The Soulmate

This is not a dating article and it does not intend to be. But no matter how much this concept is considered illusionary, it has it's roots in reality. Similar minds and souls make successful and lasting partnerships. Just like your life-long friends are your soulmates, your brand partners should be just the same. It can be an odd partnership but if you vibe in the same way, go for it!

3) Choose A Valuable Partner

Co-Branding is a very risky business. In fact, it can be riskier than starting your own business if you don't partner with the right brands. Bad partnership can be a call for the dooms day. Therefore, while you make your choice, select the partner who elevates your value. 

It is essential to note that this does not necessarily mean aiming for the big name although it may be a good thing. It actually means, going for the right partner who will be a positive influence on your brand.