Online Shop – Future of Shopping

Online shopping  witnessed spending of £178 million per week during January 2009. This means 3.7 percent of overall retail sales were through internet shopping. During 2008, online retail sales experienced steady and steep growth rate. It accounted for 3.1 percent in January 2008 and went up to 3.5 percent in December 2008. The trend is expected to continue as more and more people are showing interest in this arena of shopping.

Online shopping is extremely convenient and attract shoppers with lucrative offers. Almost every thing that is purchasable appears on the various online stores. It is impossible to summarize the entire list but few examples are books, gadgets, accessories, clothes, groceries, movies, music, shoes, heath and fitness products, cosmetics, eatables and travel tickets etc. Great variety of the products adds on to the excitement of buying online. Best holiday packages to the world’s greatest destinations are planned online within a short span of time. Even food joints accept delivery orders over the internet. Online shopping avoids the unnecessary wastage of time and money.

Initial cost to start a shop includes land prices, cost of the stock, construction rates and many more hidden costs. Additional to these costs are the running expenses of the store. On the other hand, selling products online requires no such setup and initial cost is very low. This allows attractive discounts on the deals and makes internet shopping economical for the buyers and profitable for the sellers. It is a win-win situation at both ends. The reduced cost is forwarded to the shoppers as discounts. This encourages the clientele to depend upon e-shopping for everything. The web stores offer discounts throughout the year and deals become very lucrative during peak seasons. The discounts vary from one shopping portal to another for the same product. Everyone tries to provide their products at cheapest possible rates to attract customers. Therefore shopping sites reduce their profits by offering heavy discounts to increase the volume. This calls for the concept of comparison shopping. There are many sites which offer comparison between the prices of same product on different sites. This allows user to view all deals at one location and make the best purchases. Companies and shopping portals distribute discount codes to attract internet shoppers toward their sites. The code number can be entered before leaving the shopping portal to avail discounts. Online shopping is becoming interactive and consumers share their views on various social shopping communities and blogging sites. They provide their personal experience with the products to help others make the right choice. The social shopping brings fun and excitement to the shopping experience.

Few other aspects about internet shopping requires careful attention. First is the Free Delivery advertised by sellers. It is not truly free as the delivery expenses are included in the product’s cost. Dealers accept shipment charges depending upon the distance. Therefore products delivered from close locations attract low shipment charges and other additional costs. Online dealers provide warranty for their products but the returns are difficult due to long distances. It requires the user to ship back the product and pay some additional charges in many cases. Maintaining privacy of the information supplied by buyers is another crucial issue. There are no law preventing this and sellers are free to get your information. This leak of information results in more direct-mail marketing, spam e-mails and telemarketer calls.

The online shopping is gaining continuous popularity and is becoming a growing trend among shoppers. The advantages of internet shopping are too attractive for people to resist. It is time to accept the new ways of shopping and enjoy its benefits.

Business Travel Tips For Home Based Business People

Business travel has actually increased considerably in the last decade. Even home based businesses may involve travel because small companies are now able to sell to markets all around the world as a direct result of the Internet.All this travel is putting an increasing strain on business travelers who often become stressed and fatigued at the constant need to be in another part of the world.Regular travelers tend to ensure that certain routines are carried out every time they travel as this reduces the possibility (and the cost) of wasted trips. Here are some handy business travel tips.LOST BAGGAGEWhen baggage goes missing it is irritating to say the least but for someone on a business trip it can be a whole lot more disastrous. So, wherever possible, pack as much as you can into your carry-on luggage. Having everything to hand means that your checked luggage get delayed you will still be able to meet with clients and get your work done while you wait for less essential stuff to get chased up by the airlines.HOW TO PACK FOR BUSINESS TRAVELWhen you do pack the main luggage, the clothes you won’t be carrying on as hand luggage, make sure to pack only what you need for this trip. In order to accomplish this, make do with a pair of casual shoes and a pair of business shoes only, and be sure to only bring enough work clothes to last you through the trip. All that is left once this is done is to include your toiletries and other business documentation.A way to save space and possibly take a smaller bag is to roll some of your clothing up — this takes less room and is a business travel tip well worth noting. Dark clothing is better if anything gets spilled on it, as it is harder to see stains on dark clothes. Of course if you are working to a tight schedule and the inevitable delay happens then you want to know you can attend a meeting at a moment’s notice and the way to freshen up is by using those hand and face wipes that come in travel packs.MOBILE PHONES AND OTHER ELECTRONICSAlthough most cell phones have very good standby and talk times now, you will need to make sure your phone and any other electronic equipment you take are fully re-charged before you leave home.These tips make sure that no matter what happens when you travel on business, you will be able to continue with your itinerary and those all-important business meetings. Business trips do not have to be boring and stressful if you apply the business travel tips in this article as they will allow you the opportunity to enjoy your free time even more.

When All Is Not Well With Work

When all is not well with work, what do you do? Do you quickly get frustrated and feel discontent? Do you look at each situation as a tiresome challenge or as an opportunity to learn something new? Have you ever considered looking at work problems from a spiritual point of view?When you look at work from a spiritual perspective, you will see that there are lessons for you to learn. Let’s look at a couple of situations that you or someone you know may have encountered. We will look at each scenario from a typical perspective and from a spiritual perspective.Difficulty with Boss or Co-WorkerNormally, we think that a difficult boss is just that, difficult. By all means, you are probably not the first person who didn’t get along with them. Therefore, it can’t be you who needs to change and instead the boss needs to change.From a spiritual way of thinking, you should ask yourself, “What is this person trying to teach me?” (And we’re not talking about job tasks.) Think for a moment, what is it about this person that really aggravates you? Make a list of all of their annoying attributes. How does this person make you feel? What bothers you the most? Compare the boss’s or co-worker’s list of attributes to your own behaviors. What characteristics do you have in common?Looking at the situation from this perspective, you suddenly realize that the characteristics that annoy you are the same characteristics that you embody. Recognize and appreciate your boss or co-worker for they are showing you what you need to change. If your characteristics are not similar, look for the lesson that they are teaching you.Not Getting a Well-deserved Pay Raise or PromotionFirst of all, let’s assume that your employer is not having any financial difficulties and is giving raises to other employees. Normally, we would think that our boss or employer is a louse and a cheapskate. We would wonder why we are the only person that did not get a raise.Looking at this situation from a spiritual perspective, we need to reflect upon why this is happening to you and not to anyone else. Reflect upon how you value yourself and your work. Do you sub-consciously think that you are not worthy of a pay raise? You will discover that the perception of not being worthy begins with yourself and your mindset. It is your self image that gets projected outwards. Others “see” the image that you have for yourself and act accordingly.Instead of being angry with your employer, work towards increasing your self-worth. Once, you raise your self worth then the rest of the world will recognize your shift and act accordingly by paying you what you are worth.You Hate Your Job and You Just Can’t Take It Another DayWhen you hate your job, it is easy to blame your employer for the many reasons why you despise your job. Perhaps, you are upset because your boss denied your vacation request or maybe you are bothered by the fact that you are far more qualified and talented than the person who is your supervisor.From a spiritual perspective, have you looked at why you are staying at a job that you hate so much? You might say something like, “I have excellent health benefits and can’t risk changing companies.” or “I have already spent fifteen years with this company and I would lose my retirement if I left.” Keep in mind that all of these “reasons” are just excuses. That’s right just excuses.Instead of getting upset with your employer, you need to look at why you are feeling so challenged about leaving. What is really keeping you there? Most of the time, we stay in a job that we hate because of fear. Fear of the unknown. Fear that I can’t get the same or better health insurance. Fear that I would fail in a new job. Fear of being too old. Fear of anything and everything. It is the fear that truly keeps you stuck in a place that you really don’t want to be.If you take the time to explore your fears, you will realize that you are being called to take a new direction in your career. Once you let go of the fear and accept change, you will see that you should have left your job a long time ago.Whatever challenge you are given at work, look beyond the situation at the surface level. What is really happening? What is the situation trying to teach you? When you incorporate this new way of thinking into your life, you will find that your difficulties are in reality blessings in disguise.