I must admit that customer service does not come naturally to me. When it comes to dealing with customers, I always feel like I have to become someone that I’m not, someone who is infinitely patient, helpful and cheerful all at the same time.

For me, the hardest part of customer service is remaining polite and keeping my big mouth shut even though the customer might be a complete jerk.

The good news is that I think I’ve gotten much better over time. Since I’ve been answering phone calls for our online store for quite a while now, I think I’ve finally gotten the hang of it. I’ve learned what to say and what not to say when dealing with certain customers. I’ve learned to control my emotions in the presence of irate customers. I’ve learned how to avoid getting myself into sticky situations.

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Most people are lazy. When it comes to doing something relaxing and leisurely versus something you consider work, your inclination is to always choose the path of least resistance. That is why it is so difficult to make progress on any project even though deep down you truly want to do it.

Take it from me. I’ll pretty damn lazy. Sometimes I feel like I weigh 3000 pounds because once I lie down or sit on the couch, it takes a forklift to get me out. If my favorite show is on television or if there’s a big NCAA mens basketball game on, you can forget about it. I’m not moving to do anything.

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If you are interested, my laziness is well documented in a previous article entitled how we stopped short of becoming lazy pieces of crap so I won’t go …

It’s safe to say that a large percentage of our customers are not very tech saavy. But for some strange reason, I always expect a minimum level of computer competency whenever I speak with a customer on the phone.

For example, if a customer is able to find our store via the world wide web, isn’t it safe to assume that they know how to use a web browser? Shouldn’t they have at least a basic grasp of what a URL or what a web address is?

I discovered the hard way that this assumption is grossly false. This particular customer came across as a competent web user but turned out to have a very Google-centric view of the web.

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Me: What can I do for you today?

Customer: Yes, I found your website the other day via the world wide web. But today, I was unable to …

You are probably wondering why I randomly chose to write about how to automate backups for your online store or business. After 2 years and 3 months of running like a champ, our online store database crashed a couple weeks ago.

It wasn’t one of those mini crashes where you can simply fix up a broken table or two. Instead, it was a complete crash in which the entire database got hosed.

How does one hose an entire database? Well that day, the server that our store was hosted on was on the fritz and kept going down. The last straw broke when a few of our customers were in the midst of checking out when the server went out for an extended period and corrupted our database.

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I’m An Idiot
This all happened while I was at my day job so I began …

I admit it. I’m a lazy person at heart. If I’m watching television and I can’t find the remote, I’ll watch whatever channel happens to be on. If I have a craving for a certain food but have to cook it myself, I’ll just eat leftovers instead. If I’m lying in bed and I’m thirsty, I’ll stay thirsty.

In fact, my wife can probably provide you with a hundred more examples of my laziness, but the topic of this article isn’t about that kind of laziness. The laziness that I’m referring to is the laziness that stops you from taking charge of your life.

The laziness that I’m talking about is what makes you stay with that 60 hour a week job that you hate so much. The laziness that I’m alluding to is what stops you from pursuing your personal goals and aspirations because you …

Every entrepreneur has gone through it at least once. It’s not pleasant. It’s not fun. But things will go wrong and you will feel like quitting.

Especially early on when your business is fragile, it doesn’t take much to get yourself into a rut. It could be something as simple as dealing with an irate customer or losing a big deal or contract with a large account. Maybe the lack of profitability and frustration has finally caught up to you. Whatever it is, you are going to want to throw in the towel and you’ll have to dig deep to snap yourself out of it.
Our Story

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With our online business, my wife and I fell into a deep rut a month after the launch of our business when no one was visiting our online store. We had the merchandise ready. The …

If you are on Facebook, you’ve probably seen a viral message being passed around in regards to posting 25 random facts about yourself.

Instead of pretending that I find this practice stupid and childish, I think it’s a great way to get to know some of your friends and acquaintances.

Even though I always write my articles from experience, I find that I reveal very little about my actual personality on this blog. Here’s a chance to get to know me a little bit better.

25 Random Facts You Don’t Know About Me

When I was in elementary school, I had this one buck tooth which grew practically 90 degrees sideways out of my mouth. As a joke, my friends used to give me tin cans to open with my teeth. Thank goodness for braces
In 6th grade, I was a member of honors chorus which was a singing group composed of …

One of the many worries of starting your own business is getting stomped on by large hulking competitors in your market space. Large companies have more money, more manpower and more resources so how could a small business possibly compete?

First of all, if you are trying to go head on against a large company, you are probably going to lose. Ever watch the movie 300? You can’t just charge in head first against your larger brethren and hope to succeed. You need to take advantage of your small, agile size and use guerrilla tactics to make your business stand out.

Every small business has many advantages over its larger competitors. Here are some things that you can do with your small business to give yourself an edge.

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Give Personalized Service
Large businesses will always have issues providing personalized service to their customers. With fleets and …

The number one question that I receive from readers who want to open their own online store is how to go about finding vendors and suppliers. Do I purchase wholesale? Should I drop ship or should I contact the manufacturer directly?

When my wife and I first started our online store, we faced these exact same questions. But having done a fair amount of research on each of the above options, I’d like to talk about our experiences and our take on each of these ways to stock merchandise for your online business.

While our experiences are primarily related to wedding linens, what we are about to tell you should apply to almost anything that you choose to sell in your online store.

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Drop Shipping
Most people fall into the trap of getting excited about drop shipping when they first open their online store. Drop shipping seems appealing …