There are lots of online store options now. Some free, some not-so-free. I like free, so I will be checking out a few of them over the next few months. Stay tuned for updates.
I do limited credit card transactions, so I'm using the PayPal Here and Square Card Reader apps for the few sales that require it. Square has launched a free online store, well, not completely free since it's subject to their 2.75% transaction fee for all sales, but free enough. Etsy also has a similar pay-as-you-go deal. I'll give them a shot later on.
For now, I'm starting out with Square and will provide an update as things go along.
Setup was fairly simple, and categories are easy to establish. Photos are easy to upload, and it seems straightforward enough. You can set taxable and nontaxable items, I've even uploaded some yard sale items just because.
You can customize your web address, and there are promotional links for each item that you post and a nice script to enter on your website. For now, I'll just give you the direct link: http://mkt.com/wiredcoast/
Square has a new promotional offer, sign up through a referral link and get the first $1,000 in transactions free. Much like Dropbox's free space for referrals, both parties will get the free transaction bonus, so if you want to try Square for your online or offline business, click here and get some free transactions.
Square has limited web analytics, and less SEO optimization apparently as I have seen very little traffic, despite my use of social media promotions. I used the same promotions for my Etsy store and had significant traffic. Well, significant compared to the limited traffic on Square. I started with different content on Square, but that doesn't really account for the drastic difference in traffic. I'll keep plugging away at it, but for now, Etsy wins in the marketing department.
UPDATE 1/24/15: Square also doesn't really allow for digital downloads. You can set up an item so that you can email or send a link to another site for downloading, but you can't do an "instant download", at least not yet.
Etsy has a new app for managing your store. Now, I haven't opened my Etsy store yet, but it looks promising. For now you can't create a store with the app, but you can manage one. Looks like store creation in the app is a "coming soon" feature. With many people using phones & tablets for their primary internet experience, that will be a positive change in their app and burgeoning web presence.
I did open an Etsy shop, which was super easy. Once you open the shop by listing a single item, you can then add to or manage existing listings through the app. Since most of my photos were on my phone, this worked great! Etsy has a powerful search engine and great web stats as part of their service. I've noticed significant web traffic that outpaced my own social media promotion. This is a great way to get your products noticed! No sales yet, but lots of interest...and it's been less than a month. Take a look here: http://wirecoast.etsy.com/
UPDATE 1/24/15: Etsy allows for digital downloads, which is completely awesome! The 20c listing fee applies to the listing no matter whether you list it to sell one item or 1,000. The listing will need to be renewed when you sell out of the quantity you list or in 4 months, whichever is first. You will also incur an new 20c re-listing fee every time something sells (if you are selling multiples under a single listing). So, in essence, what you are saving by listing multiples under a single heading is the listing fee for unsold items. That's a help if things stay on your site for awhile before selling out.
Keep checking this page for updates as I work on this and other sites
Wednesday, October 29, 2014
Friday, October 3, 2014
Casino Gambling
Some truly relevant insights on gambling from contributing author Tucker Hoog.
[Addresee's name withheld]
My name is Tucker Hoog. I called the UCLA Gambling Studies Program today to try and get answers to two questions and they told me I should e-mail you. I’m very interested in casinos, what people say about them, and how people view them. I’m sure I’m not going to say anything you don’t already know, and I can go on about this stuff forever, so please bare with me.
My first question is are casinos comparable to bars? I see many people say things like “Much like the alcoholic has to live in a world filled with bars and liquor stores, the gambling addict has to find a way to maintain control in a world of casinos and race tracks.” Steven Hart, who used to be President of the Illinois Council on Problem Gambling said that. Other people say “casinos don’t cause gambling addiction anymore than a bar creates alcoholics.” I know there are addicts in both a bar and a casino. But a bar doesn’t do anything to encourage alcoholics (other than happy hour). A casino will send offers for free play, hotel rooms, and food. They actively reward you for playing longer and with more money. A bar does not give you anything for drinking more beers in a shorter time frame. A bar doesn’t make outrageous claims with their advertisements like casinos do by saying how many millions they have paid out or “you can’t lose.” The most a bar promises is a fun night at a cost. The casinos present themselves as life changing, harmless, almost free entertainment and it’s ironic that they’ve cost so many people so much. I’ve seen many people get thrown out of a casino and to my knowledge the casino is never investigated. After a few fights happen in a bar that bar is shut down for a time period. I feel like bars are socially acceptable. So when people compare casinos to bars they are trying to push casinos as a socially acceptable form of entertainment. People are also addicted to nicotine, caffeine, heroin, and cocaine, but casinos are never compared to those industries. I understand that people get addicted to both but we treat alcohol and casinos very differently as a society.
My second question is is there anything inherently dangerous about casinos? As a society we make it common knowledge that alcohol, tobacco, drugs, too much sugar, too many calories, etc, comes with risks. The substance is dangerous, and the user needs to be informed. Every alcohol and tobacco container comes with a health warning. Food is labeled with nutritional information. Casinos, on the other hand, are always assumed to be safe and the user is assumed to be dangerous. There is no product information in casinos. There are no warnings. They list the signs and symptoms of being a problem gambler and put a big “IF” in front of that list and ask the sick person to self diagnose. No alcohol or tobacco product lists the signs and symptoms of drinking too much or cancer or liver disease. The casinos don’t even put that list on the product. It’s usually at the entrance and exit to a casino.
Thank you for taking the time to read and consider what I wrote. Anything you say would be greatly appreciated. Thank you for the work you do at the UCLA Gambling Studies Program.
V/R
Tucker C. Hoog
[Addresee's name withheld]
My name is Tucker Hoog. I called the UCLA Gambling Studies Program today to try and get answers to two questions and they told me I should e-mail you. I’m very interested in casinos, what people say about them, and how people view them. I’m sure I’m not going to say anything you don’t already know, and I can go on about this stuff forever, so please bare with me.
My first question is are casinos comparable to bars? I see many people say things like “Much like the alcoholic has to live in a world filled with bars and liquor stores, the gambling addict has to find a way to maintain control in a world of casinos and race tracks.” Steven Hart, who used to be President of the Illinois Council on Problem Gambling said that. Other people say “casinos don’t cause gambling addiction anymore than a bar creates alcoholics.” I know there are addicts in both a bar and a casino. But a bar doesn’t do anything to encourage alcoholics (other than happy hour). A casino will send offers for free play, hotel rooms, and food. They actively reward you for playing longer and with more money. A bar does not give you anything for drinking more beers in a shorter time frame. A bar doesn’t make outrageous claims with their advertisements like casinos do by saying how many millions they have paid out or “you can’t lose.” The most a bar promises is a fun night at a cost. The casinos present themselves as life changing, harmless, almost free entertainment and it’s ironic that they’ve cost so many people so much. I’ve seen many people get thrown out of a casino and to my knowledge the casino is never investigated. After a few fights happen in a bar that bar is shut down for a time period. I feel like bars are socially acceptable. So when people compare casinos to bars they are trying to push casinos as a socially acceptable form of entertainment. People are also addicted to nicotine, caffeine, heroin, and cocaine, but casinos are never compared to those industries. I understand that people get addicted to both but we treat alcohol and casinos very differently as a society.
My second question is is there anything inherently dangerous about casinos? As a society we make it common knowledge that alcohol, tobacco, drugs, too much sugar, too many calories, etc, comes with risks. The substance is dangerous, and the user needs to be informed. Every alcohol and tobacco container comes with a health warning. Food is labeled with nutritional information. Casinos, on the other hand, are always assumed to be safe and the user is assumed to be dangerous. There is no product information in casinos. There are no warnings. They list the signs and symptoms of being a problem gambler and put a big “IF” in front of that list and ask the sick person to self diagnose. No alcohol or tobacco product lists the signs and symptoms of drinking too much or cancer or liver disease. The casinos don’t even put that list on the product. It’s usually at the entrance and exit to a casino.
Thank you for taking the time to read and consider what I wrote. Anything you say would be greatly appreciated. Thank you for the work you do at the UCLA Gambling Studies Program.
V/R
Tucker C. Hoog
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)