Ten episodes ago, I talked about some of the math involved in running an ecommerce business. Episode 250 ended up being one of our most impactful episodes to date.
So I thought it would be a good idea to do a deep dive on all the essentials of ecommerce accounting. To do this effectively, I needed to have an expert on board to break down all these things with me.
Luckily, I sat next to Scott Scharf and his wife at a dinner during this year's Ecommerce Fuel Live and he agreed to come on the show.
Scott Scharf is the co-founder of Catching Clouds, an accounting services company that caters specifically to online businesses. Through the company, he’s worked with ecommerce entrepreneurs for nearly eight years, helping them stay on track financially.
In this episode, Scott and I go full Ecommerce Accounting 101. Here are some of the basic concepts and terminologies discussed.
Listen to the entire podcast to get a grasp of all these accounting basics to make your better sense of your financials.
EcomCrew Premium is opening on June 26th through July 1st. Pre-register today so you can have access to tools that can help jumpstart your online business.
We’re having a free webinar tomorrow! Learn email marketing fundamentals and hear us talk about our favored strategies to capturing emails and building your list.
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Want a physical copy of our tried-and-tested Amazon launch strategy complete with examples and screenshots? Get your free book here.
Join season two of the 5 Minute Pitch by filling out and submitting the application form.
Finally, if you enjoyed listening and think this episode has been useful to you, please take a moment to leave us a review on iTunes.
If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them below. Happy selling!
Season 1 of the 5 Minute Pitch was a great success. I got to hear and weigh in on the pitches of a diverse set of entrepreneurs, each one putting themselves out there to make their dreams come true.
Another awesome thing about that first season was the response we got from people who watched the show on YouTube. Now we’ve made it possible to listen to all of the pitches whether you’re working out at the gym or during your daily commute.
Introducing the 5 Minute Pitch Podcast. Listen to all your favorite contestant’s pitches at different stages of the competition anytime.
Today, I offer you guys a preview of what the episodes are like. Here’s one of my favorite contestants doing his round one pitch.
Subscribe to the 5 Minute Pitch podcast and get the chance to win over $6K in prizes.
Want a physical copy of our tried-and-tested Amazon launch strategy complete with examples and screenshots? Get your free book here.
Consult with Mike at your business premises and be featured on the podcast. Sign up for the EcomCrew Roadshow today!
Join season two of the 5 Minute Pitch by filling out and submitting the application form.
Finally, if you enjoyed listening and think this episode has been useful to you, please take a moment to leave us a review on iTunes.
If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them below. Happy selling!
Over the past couple of weeks, you’ve heard a handful of podcasts recorded in the Philippines. You’ve heard from Mia and all our employees, including Abby and Muffins.
If you’ve listened to episode 256, these ladies talked a little bit about their specific responsibilities for EcomCrew. But what distinguishes them from the rest is the fact that they work directly for Dave and me.
So, I wanted to get them back on the podcast and hear their perspective on what it’s like to work on the brand and for the ‘EcomCrew Guys’. Mia didn’t leave the room soon enough so she’ll be making a cameo on this episode too.
I’m the type of employer who doesn’t want to micromanage so I value initiative in the members of my team. The ladies had to pick up this skill and hone it while working for the brand and now have confidence and autonomy in their tasks.
As you all know, I love to travel. I also enjoy it when I’m with first-timers in a favorite city. Hong Kong is certainly that city. Last April Abby and Muffins were able to join us there for the EcomCrew Mastermind and check out the booths in the Global Sources Summit. It was their first international travel and I daresay they both had a great time.
Listen to the full podcast with these awesome ladies of EcomCrew.
Want a physical copy of our tried-and-tested Amazon launch strategy complete with examples and screenshots? Get your free book here.
Get advice from Mike and have your business featured on the podcast? Sign up for the EcomCrew Roadshow today!
Join season two of the 5 Minute Pitch by filling out and submitting the application form.
Finally, if you enjoyed listening and think this episode has been useful to you, please take a moment to leave us a review on iTunes.
If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them below. Happy selling!
Dave’s back on the podcast with me to talk about one of our favorite topic - tariffs (insert sarcasm). As anyone caught in this plight will know, the US and Chinese governments have reached another impasse in the ongoing trade talks. This resulted in the Trump administration raising tariffs from 10% to 25% on $200 billion worth of goods imported from China effective this month.
Here are some key points from our discussion.
Both sides of the fence are playing it tough in this trade war for distinctly different reasons. Trump believes he’s a great negotiator and is convinced that he will sway the Chinese and bring back manufacturing jobs to America. The Chinese, on the other hand, has learned not to kowtow to any country that perceives itself as a ‘superpower’. It stands firm on its position and will retaliate if necessary to push their trade agenda forward.
On June 17, 2019, the implementation of 25% tariffs on the remaining $300 billion worth of goods (List 4 | the final tranche) will be reviewed. If a trade deal isn’t reached, it could take effect late in the year.
If Chinese imports are tariffed to the hilt, there would be inflationary consequences.
How does an ecommerce company like yours prepare for this?
If your products have a low-profit-margin, increasing prices is inevitable. It’s also good to monitor invoices from your Chinese manufacturer and determine how you can cut back on those.
And if this mess with tariffs has taught us anything, it’s to diversify, diversify, diversify. Source from different countries. China might be a manufacturing powerhouse but other countries like have their strengths too. Vietnam, for instance, produces great textile products.
The situation is downright frustrating. But I hope that the insights shared in this episode can still be helpful to all ecommerce sellers out there impacted by the enforced tariffs increases. If you have questions or comments, I’d love to know. Please leave them in the comment section below.
Want a physical copy of our tried-and-tested Amazon launch strategy complete with examples and screenshots? Get your free book here.
Get advice from Mike and have your business featured on the podcast? Sign up for the EcomCrew Roadshow today!
Join season two of the 5 Minute Pitch by filling out and submitting the application form.
Finally, if you enjoyed listening and think this episode has been useful to you, please take a moment to leave us a review on iTunes.
MORE RESOURCES:
Each year since starting Terran, I make it a point to travel to the Philippines to visit our team there. If you’ve been following the podcast since day one, you’d have heard me mention Cebu a couple of times. That’s where our team is located and every year, I would make the journey to touch base with them in person.
Working with employees on the opposite side of the world is challenging. The time difference and slow internet in the Philippines are just some things you need to deal with. But I am truly grateful for the team that we’ve got. Not only are they able to overcome these challenges, but are able to produce stellar work that exceeds my expectations.
There has been so much growth over the past two years. We had three employees to start with and now our Cebu office is home to 10 full-time employees, each making a significant contribution to the brand they work for.
Get to know a little bit about our talented and hardworking team members in Cebu when you listen to this podcast.
Want a physical copy of our tried-and-tested Amazon launch strategy complete with examples and screenshots? Get your free book here.
Want to get advice from Mike and have your business featured on the podcast? Sign up for the EcomCrew Roadshow today!
Join season two of the 5 Minute Pitch by filling out and submitting the application form.
Finally, if you enjoyed listening and think this episode has been useful to you, please take a moment to leave us a review on iTunes.
If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them below. Happy selling!
RESOURCES:
Episode 96: Our Philippines Team – Hiring and Maintaining a Team of Rockstar VAs
Episode 249: How Our Filipino Team Reacted to the ColorIt Sale
Today we’re joined by Scott Voelker of The Amazing Seller podcast. Scotty’s not just a personal friend but a comrade-in-arms in a number of ecommerce projects, the most recent being season one of the 5 Minute Pitch along with Steve Chou and Greg Mercer.
Scott and I have many similarities when it comes to our background and how we’ve grown our respective ecommerce businesses. So, after hearing his presentation on ecommerce business sustainability at this year’s Sellers Summit, I got him on the show solo.
Ecommerce is a dynamic industry. It’s constantly evolving according to the latest market trends and who’s dominating it (big “bad” Amazon).
Strategies that may have worked will lose their edge eventually. As Scott puts it, “Things that worked yesterday may not necessarily work today”. Innovation and a good understanding of the market are crucial for being successful long-term.
“Attention is the new currency.”
Speaking of marketplaces, what we’ve found that does work is capturing the market’s attention. How do you that? By being genuine and bringing something valuable to the table. After you’ve identified a target market, you’ll need to create a plan that grabs and sustains their attention. This usually involves putting out content in some form or another.
But offering valuable content is only half of the picture. You also need to establish that trust with your audience. Do so by proving your expertise in the subject and your willingness to guide people who may not experts themselves, but are working towards getting on that level.
Tune in to the full podcast episode for more insights on how you and your brand can navigate the changing tides of ecommerce and remain relevant in the years to come. And check out the resources section of this page for more information on an ecommerce event Scotty’s putting together in September.
We have a book and we’re giving it away for FREE. If you want a physical copy of our tried-and-tested Amazon launch strategy complete with examples and screenshots, get yours here.
Want to get advice from Mike and have your business featured on the podcast? Sign up for the EcomCrew Roadshow today!
Join season two of the 5 MInute Pitch by filling out and submitting the application form.
Finally, if you enjoyed listening and think this episode has been useful to you, please take a moment to leave us a review on iTunes.
If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them below. Happy selling!
E187: How to Save on High-Quality Content for SEO – Under the Hood with Sebastien Taché
Avid listeners would have heard me mention Mia, our PH office director, in this podcast time and again. She is our rock and, through dedication and impressive skills, has single-handedly grown our team from one or two VAs to 9 full-time employees.
Mia made her debut on the podcast on episode 142. Back then, she and I talked about her experience with transitioning from a virtual assistant to a managerial role, and how the team she’s formed has been doing.
Two years later, we’ve got more people on board and looking to add some new talent to the roster. I caught up with her again to chat about the biggest changes that have happened to date. These include:
Tune in to the full episode for a glimpse into Mia’s headspace as she navigates the Philippine team through all the new and exciting things in store for the company this year and beyond.
If you want a physical copy of our tried-and-tested Amazon launch strategy complete with examples and screenshots, get yours here.
Want to get advice from Mike and have your business featured on the podcast? Sign up for the EcomCrew Roadshow today!
Catch the finals of the 5 Minute Pitch on YouTube. Join season two by filling out and submitting the application form.
Finally, if you enjoyed listening and think this episode has been useful to you, please take a moment to leave us a review on iTunes.
If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them below. Happy selling!