What You Need to Know About E-Commerce Taxes and Regulations

ecommerce taxes and regulations

Running an eCommerce business comes with many responsibilities. Some of the most important include staying on top of taxes and regulations. This helps prevent penalties or other issues that affect your business. The following tips can help you understand these better.

Destination-Based vs. Origin-Based Sales Taxes

Many states use a destination-based approach to sales tax. This means online businesses charge sales tax based on a customer’s location. Other states use an origin-based approach, which means state taxes are based on the business location.

For example, if orders are shipped from a business or fulfillment warehouse in one state, the sales tax for those might be based on the customer’s state under destination-based sales tax sourcing. With origin-based sourcing, the sales tax would be based on the company’s location.

State Tax Rules

It’s important to become familiar with state tax rules, which differ from state to state. Some states don’t tax apps or other digital goods, while others do. Some states have tax exemptions when you sell overseas. Other tax-related issues to be aware of include sales tax holidays and exemptions.

Examples of exemptions include survival items, such as prescriptions or groceries, wholesale exemptions, and non-profit exemptions. Study the specific tax exemptions for different states to see which apply to your eCommerce business.

Sales Tax Permits and Reporting

Some states require business owners to have a permit in order to collect sales taxes in certain jurisdictions. Apply for one if needed before you begin collecting this money. For sales tax reporting, keep deadlines in mind to avoid being hit with penalties.

Partnering with the right fulfillment warehouse allows you to focus on taxes and regulations instead of picking, packing, and shipping orders. Contact Medallion Fulfillment and Logistics today to find out how we can help your eCommerce business.

5 Tips for Managing Your Customer Data

Customer Data Plan from a Fulfillment Company

No matter how wonderful your products are, you can’t simply open your eCommerce store and hope for the best. Today’s advanced technology lets you gather data that identifies and targets customers with amazing precision and accuracy. Our fulfillment company experts offer five valuable tips for efficient management of customer data.

1. Collect the right data.

Just as a handyman needs to select the proper tool for the job, you should make sure you’re collecting data that’s specifically useful to your goals. Use your KPIs as a road map to determine which information will help you attain them.

2. Protect your data.

Don’t risk the nightmare of having your data compromised by a hacker. Onsite dedicated servers are the preferred method of storage, but cloud storage has become more secure in recent years.

3. Use data wisely.

So you’ve collected all this data. Now what do you do with it? Review data on a regular basis and incorporate the information into well-defined benchmarks. Using data to create charts and other visual representations makes it easier to recognize patterns and trends.

4. Establish transparency with customers.

Digital shoppers have become increasingly wary of sharing data online. Gain trust by being upfront about policies governing collection, management, and use of data. Take the extra step of reviewing your policies with a lawyer to ensure compliance with any relevant regulations.

5. Allow customers to control their data.

With an estimated 83 percent of organizations experiencing at least one data breach, legislators are responding with changing laws regarding privacy of data. Letting customers control what data they do and don’t share is another way to establish trustworthiness.

Manage Data Safely with Our Fulfillment Company

At Medallion Fulfillment & Logistics, data protection is just as important as managing orders. Contact us to learn more.

Top Tips for Building a Business Plan for an Online Clothing Store

eCommerce Clothing Store Business Plan

Everyone wears clothing of one type or another, making it an attractive offering for an online store. That doesn’t mean you can partner with a fulfillment warehouse, then just sit back and watch the sales roll in. Use these helpful questions to craft a business plan that will establish your framework for success.

1. How viable is your business?

Clothing is a broad category with countless competitors in the field. Look for a niche, such as vintage clothing or children’s products, that will let you focus on a particular market.

2. Establish a mission.

What do you hope to accomplish with your clothing store? What sets your business apart from others? Your mission statement should tell people exactly who you are and what makes you different from your competitors.

3. Use a SWOT analysis.

SWOT is an acronym for “strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.” This analysis helps you determine what qualities you should emphasize and what measures you need to take to overcome the competition.

4. Determine your business structure.

Business laws set forth several different options, such as sole proprietorship or limited liability company (LLV), for operating a business. Each option has implications for liability, taxes, and other important factors. Consult an attorney to decide which choice is best for you.

5. Keep it simple.

Don’t fall into the trap of using lots of jargon, technical terms, and buzzwords to make your plan sound “intelligent.” Stick with simple, everyday language that can be easily understood by any potential reader.

Make Our Fulfillment Warehouse Part of Your Business Plan

We have extensive experience working alongside eCommerce retailers selling just about any type of product. Let us put our knowledge and capabilities to work for you. Contact us at Medallion Fulfillment & Logistics to learn more.

Improve Your eCommerce Business With a Fulfillment Company

Fulfillment Company Shaking Hands with a eCommerce Business Owner

Keeping customers satisfied is how you help your eCommerce business thrive. That means being able to fulfill orders quickly and get them shipped to customers as soon as possible. Handling this on your own can become a big problem as your company grows. Partnering with a fulfillment company can help keep your eCommerce business running smoothly.

What Do Fulfillment Companies Do?

These companies deal with every step of the fulfillment process. That includes receiving inventory, managing it, fulfilling orders, and handling returns. Fulfilling orders involves picking products that were purchased, packing them, and shipping them to customers. All of these tasks can take up a lot of your time as a business owner. With a fulfillment partner, you won’t have to worry about taking care of the fulfillment process.

Benefits of Hiring a Fulfillment Partner

Working with a fulfillment business can free up a lot of your time. These businesses can take several tasks off your shoulders, so you can focus on marketing your eCommerce business and taking care of other tasks. Other benefits include boosting customer satisfaction, turning more consumers into your loyal customer base, and increasing brand awareness to draw more customers. An experienced fulfillment business can help you earn a reputation for getting orders to customers as quickly as possible.

How to Find a Fulfillment Business

When you’re looking into potential fulfillment partners, how do you know which one to choose? Look for a business that can provide fast and reliable shipping speeds. Your ideal fulfillment partner should also offer years of industry experience, scalability, data and analytics reporting, and the latest technologies to improve the fulfillment process.

Ready to start working with a fulfillment company to help your business thrive? Contact Medallion Fulfillment and Logistics to get more details on our services.

Expert Tips on Growing Your eCommerce Business with Paid Advertising

Visualization of Paid Advertising Concept for eCommerce and Fulfillment Warehouses

When you’re trying to grow your eCommerce business, advertising your brand is essential. Paid advertising provides a highly effective way to reach a wide audience through social media, websites, search engines, and other online platforms.

Keep in mind that as your business grows, you should consider partnering with a fulfillment warehouse to ensure prompt and efficient order fulfillment. While searching for the right fulfillment partner, follow these tips on making the most of paid advertising.

Explore Different Types of Paid Advertising

You might find that one type works better for you, or you might find success from using multiple types. Becoming familiar with all of your options can help you choose the right ones for reaching your targeted audience. Different types of paid advertising include paid search, paid social, native advertising, podcast advertising, and print ads.

Consider Your Marketing Funnel When Targeting Users

You’ll want to think about the search intent of users. For example, top-of-funnel searches typically include reviews or the best places to buy a product. For these, you’ll need to have the right keywords to target users. Middle-of-funnel searches, such as comparing different brands or products, typically require different keywords.

Boost Organic Posts on Social Media

When using paid advertising on Facebook or other social media platforms, you’ll want to boost existing posts. This allows you to reach a wider audience using video ads, image ads, carousel ads, or other types of ads.

Use Best Practices for Native Ads

These are ads that blend in more on websites compared to display banners. Create landing pages, offer clear messaging, and come up with eye-catching headlines to grab users’ attention.

Partnering with a fulfillment warehouse is a smart step to take while growing your eCommerce business. Contact Medallion Fulfillment and Logistics to learn more about services.