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We are particularly interested in the ethics of salesmanship, and in wholesale and drop shipping — the means by which many minipreneurs have secured for themselves a second income — even managed to earn enough, on a regular basis, to quit their full-time jobs and work independently. The last paragraph of the essay (below) provides a good description of our approach.

We assist small businesses, non-profit and special interest groups with copywriting, editing, optimized site design and promotion. Personalized Web services are provided in addition to a complete Web hosting package, including a free domain name for life and the option to build a site independently, with no knowledge of HTML. We also present information on various turnkey storefront packages, some of which are pre-stocked with product and provide one-click eBay integration. See, for example, Resellers Solutions and Dropship Design.

Wholesale and Drop Ship Sources

We actively research suppliers and services in China, providing reviews and supplementary information for resellers who want to explore this avenue in a safe and secure manner. Our first review, for Chinavasion, will soon be followed by others.

Our reviews present accurate, up-to-date information at the time of writing. Periodically, our reviews are updated to reflect changes in company policies, services or product offerings and pricing structures. We cannot guarantee that such variables have not changed in the interim. The reader is advised to visit respective sites for recent changes and more comprehensive information.

Research on various rules and regulations is presented in excerpts, synopses, and links to third-party resources the reseller may need to (1) register a business, (2) learn about and deal with import tariffs and taxes, (3) set up a storefront or website, (4) market the business, and (5) optimize profits.

If, with respect to any given review, you (1) find an error of any sort, or (2) have comments or questions concerning the substance thereof, please let us know. We will respond.

"MINIPRENEURS"

Trendwatching.com publishes a free newsletter that is one of the few I really enjoy reading. If you're not familiar with this Amsterdam-based group, you're missing out on valuable trend spotting and marketing insight provided through a network consisting of more than 6,000 trend watchers in 70 countries.

The September 2005 issue of the newsletter deals with what are termed minipreneurs, defined as consumers who have become active participants in the market, making a little money on the side through innovative projects of their own. No longer a passive audience, these minipreneurs represent

a vast army of consumers turning entrepreneurs, including small and micro businesses, freelancers, side-businesses, weekend entrepreneurs, web-driven entrepreneurs, part-timers, free agents, cottage businesses, seniorpreneurs, co-creators, mompreneurs, pro-ams, solopreneurs, eBay traders, advertising-sponsored bloggers and so on.

The numbers are startling, but the trend is not surprising in an economic environment that necessitates niche initiatives in response to conditions not within an individual's control. Driven by circumstance, people are realizing that they can leverage their own expertise — do "a bit of manufacturing, enterprising, venturing, selling, trading, or auctioning themselves". Minipreneurs have been training for years, gathering experience and know-how. They're motivated, and they often face far less risk in these small-scale enterprises than they would in larger ventures.

They're offering something that's different, that's special, that's vintage, that's quirky, that's customized if not beyond personalized, that's fringe, or that's just not profitable enough to be developed by big corporations instead of well-meaning enthusiasts.

Some minipreneurs produce product on their own, utilizing personal resources, while others benefit from online services like those offered by Zazzle.com, Qoop.com, CafePress.com or eMachineShop.com, "where you can design, price, and order your custom parts online". But that's not the only way to approach this ecosystem.

You can also participate in the minipreneurial trend by facilitating the efforts of others.

Ask yourself how you can help them to make money by facilitating their admin, their production, their advertising, their insurance, their travel, their networking, their selling, their tech needs, their learning, their payments, their suggestions, their hosting, their new business ideas. Don't ask them to consume; help them to create, to produce. Or ... help them to become journalists, banks, human billboards or headhunters!

INTERNET BUSINESS & MARKETING RESOURCESWith in-depth info on Wholesale Drop Shipping in Canada and the U.S.

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Wholesale and Drop Ship Sources

INTERNET BUSINESS & MARKETING RESOURCES
With in-depth info on Wholesale Drop Shipping in Canada and the U.S.