Welcome to Episode 7 of the E-BusinessOnline Podcast
Host & Speaker:  Fred McKinnon
Topic:   Fred answers questions from fellow EBO’ers on Facebook, Messenger, and Reddit
Summary:   Fellow EBO’ers (that’s code for folks in our E-BusinessOnline community!) ask questions and have them answered here on the podcast.
Question #1 from the Facebook Group from Martin Mendez:
Commercial General Liability Insurance. when do you need it?
Thanks, Martin!   According to Amazon, you have to have this when you become enrolled in their Professional Selling Plan:
Sellers with professional selling plans on Amazon.com must provide proof of Commercial General Liability insurance. This insurance, obtained at the seller’s expense, shall cover up to $1,000,000 per occurrence and in the aggregate and must include products liability, bodily injury, or personal injury, property damage, and other requirements as stated in the Participation Agreement. The insurance must indicate that “Amazon.com, Inc., and its affiliates and assignees” are added as additional insureds.
Fred tells a story of how his Liability Insurance rescued him from a case where a cash register possibly caused the fire in a saloon.
Question #2 from the Facebook Group from Jerry Mills:
Recommended tools/metrics for researching potential products?
Great question, Jerry.   There are so many awesome tools, but a few that I really use frequently include:

* JungleScout Chrome Extension
* Keepa – Amazon Price Tracker Extension
* CamelCamelCamel – Amazon Price and Sales Rank Tracker
* HowMany? Chrome Extension

Question #3 from Reddit user kcolabear:
How do you stay on top of quality and shipping times when you dropship? I’ve never understood that business model. I’m so extremely anxious about quality assurance that I touch every single item that I sell! I’d love to reduce my workload?
Thanks, K – this question is addressed in Episode 4 but I can tell you a few important things would be:

* Be sure that you keep with accurate inventory in using inventory buffers
* Be sure you understand shipping cutoff times, shipping methods, and set your “lead time to ship” or “fulfillment latency” accordingly.

Question #4 from Reddit user DavidECom:

* How will small business compete with amazons 1 hr delivery / drones?
I believe the best way is to exceed expectations with superb customer service and personalization.  More details in the podcast.
* What are the top 3 selling channels? How’s the landscape changed over the last 5 years?
For us, it’s Amazon, Walmart, and Jet.   eBay is also a top-contender.  Many are crushing it on Etsy.
* Do you think Amazon is destroying brands?
Tough question.  Long answer on the show, but my short answer is yes and no.  Some brands feel the low pricing on Amazon has destroyed their brand and eroded their product’s value.  Others have been able to use Amazon to launch their own brand and see great success.

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