I have recently set up an online store. I have learned a few things on here
also that will help.

Thanks to everyone for your ideas and suggestions. This thread is now read-only.

Hello, It sounds like you are dropshipping product, which is an excellent way to get your business started without having to stock any inventory. As an online business you will not need any licenses or permits, you can operate your business online without these. You will need to keep track of your orders and make sure you report your income to the government to pay your taxes. You may also want to contact your local government to find out who you need to charge tax to. With my online business which I operate online but I am located in Canada I do not have to pay tax on any orders from the US, just Canadian orders. For loans I would attempt to go to your bank first, it is really difficult to find start up money. Hopefully that helps. Cheers! Ben Reed WoW Account ---This post was edited to remove a commercial link. Read our discussion policies for more Community best practices.

There are many resources, and yes, too many. My advice for fast track is this from my experience: 1) If you want to go wholesale and dropshipping - register a DBA, get a sales tax certificate from your state. Then research. I personally signed up to a drop shipping directory which helped my research. It is run by a former employee of ebay. 2) Go into affiliate marketing - there are many courses and ebooks teaching you how to do things. Driving traffic, and doing the proper SEO on your website to propper PPC on Google. SEO is key for any online entrepreneur, so start studying SEO in your own time, it will save you money and you will be wiser and richer for it. 3) There are no quick fixes. It's a serious learning curve. The fastest track would be, find a product, build a website. Run Adwords advertising keeping click costs low, and ensuring that there is enough margin of profit when you make a sale. Do your planning on conversion ratios of 10% Click through ratio, plus 5% conversion rate. That should give you an inication whether your product is well priced and can ride the curve. I am an SEO Consultant and could be of service to you, or some free advice. --- This post has been unlinked. Read about Community Best Practices here. Message Edited by ChristineL on 01-18-2010 11:00 AM

Actually, If you are aiming to open up an online store there are many consideration you must take into account! How are you going to get the customers? There are millions, if not billions, of websites out there. How will the potential customers find your website? Another thing that is often left out, how does your site differentitate itself from others? See, if you can't niche yourself enough, creating a sense of trust for an exquisite targeted group of people who can related to the products you offer, then you'll find it hard to make sales. Knowing your customners, niching, and being realisitc about the traffic you can get online, and what that costs, are just a few but good starting points to consider beofre getting to work. Good Luck though.

Please remember that the Community is for sharing wisdom and best business practices, not for improving SEO. We welcome you to add new insights to this thread, or you can agree with a previous post by giving that post 'Kudos.'

You can also use Amazon stores. Alibaba also provides same thing.

NicoleD wrote: Please remember that the Community is for sharing wisdom and best business practices, not for improving SEO. We welcome you to add new insights to this thread, or you can agree with a previous post by giving that post 'Kudos.' Hi Nicole, I was wondering if some one seeking help regarding SEO. Can't we help him to guide him right way.

By the way, how to calculate foreign custom fees? Message Edited by Muranochand on 01-19-2010 03:52 AM

Maybe you must Finding and selecting a good drop shipping wholesale company can save you time, money, and headaches. Spend the time to research and investigate drop shipping companies before committing resources to them. -------------------------------------------------------------------- MAISITE Hot Runner Technology Co., Ltd. is a research and development, production and sales of professional suppliers of hot runner,hot nuzzle,andmore.. , the company after several years of development, the majority of plastic has been increasingly recognized by industry friends and promotion and application. Message Edited by NicoleD on 09-09-2009 03:12 PM