Republican Senator Marco Rubio announced bipartisan legislation on Tuesday to prohibit China’s popular social media platform TikTok, putting more pressure on the platform’s owner, ByteDance, amid concerns that the app may be used to spy on Americans and restrict content.
“It is troubling that rather than encouraging the administration to conclude its national security review of TikTok, some members of Congress have decided to push for a politically-motivated ban that will do nothing to advance the national security of the United States,” a TikTok spokesperson said in a statement, reported Reuters.
The legislation would bar all transactions from any social media company based in or influenced by China or Russia, according to Rubio’s office, which added that a companion bill in the United States House of Representatives was sponsored by Republican congressman Mike Gallagher and Democrat Raja Krishnamoorthi.
Due to national security concerns, Alabama and Utah joined other states in restricting the use of TikTok on state government devices and computer networks on Monday.
Twitter’s subscription option will be relaunched on Monday, and the social media network will further color-code timelines by introducing gold checkmarks for businesses and, later, gray checkmarks for government.
According to Esther Crawford, Twitter’s director of product management, the Twitter Blue membership will be reintroduced on Monday, beginning in five countries before rapidly extending to others.
Twitter tweeted that Twitter Blue will cost $8 per month on Android or $11 on iOS “to get access to subscriber-only features, including the blue checkmark.”
“Businesses who previously had relationships with Twitter will receive goldchecks on Monday. We will soon open this up to more businesses via a new process,” tweeted Crawford.
Meta is releasing new ways to earn money on Facebook and an update that enables creators to receive payment more quickly, the company announced.
Meta is enabling Stars on all public Facebook material, including Reels, and will hold events throughout the month to encourage users to buy Stars. Stars is a virtual good that allows fans to show creators love while also allowing creators to show love back.
Furthermore, Meta is decreasing the criteria creators must fulfill to receive their first payout.
“We’re expanding virtual gifts on Facebook Reels, and testing a new set of content-tailored virtual gifts so that fans have more ways to show appreciation for a creator’s content,” said Meta.
In addition, Meta is “decreasing the payment threshold for US-based authors from $100 to $25. This will assist tiny, early-stage creators in receiving payment sooner.”
Meta also said it “included new updates to our in-app Creator Support Hub, available on eligible Pages and Professional Mode profiles in the US, to tackle some commonly asked monetization questions with an expanded set of self-help articles and in-app education on earning payout dates.”
5 Tips On How To Generate More Sales On Your Online Store In 2023
If you’re just beginning to sell online or you already tried but Christmas didn’t go as planned, then make sure to read this article because we will show you how to open 2023 with a bang!
These 5 tips will help you take your Dropshipping business to the next level in 2023 and finally score it big this time.
From general marketing tips to product research tips that will turn any product into something your customers will HAVE to buy from your online store.
If you want to make 2023 truly count, then this article is a must read!
1. Prepare Yourself For The Next Big Events – Valentine’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day, Mother’s Day & Father’s Day
Yes, Christmas is just around the corner so if you planned on selling Christmas themed products then you’re a bit late to the party. But does it mean you have to sit idly by and see how others are posting their Shopify profit screenshots?
The answer is NO. Why?
Because there’s some preparations to be done for the next BIG selling days which are Valentine’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day, Mother’s Day & Father’s Day.
For some people, these holidays can even be bigger than Christmas itself! And from my personal experience, there’s nothing like a good Valentine’s Day to start the new year in a bang.
So don’t get too upset because you missed Christmas or maybe it just didn’t go your way… Start preparing for the next Holidays and find good products to sell.
Here are a few tips to open up 2023 with a bang(with the help of upcoming holidays):
Use fulfillment services that offer local delivery – Some fulfillment services out there like CJ, Drophippo, and others tend to have warehouses in USA and Europe. This gives you the option to ship the products super fast without having to worry about missing the deadline.
Product research is key – Take your time and do a good product research before picking that one product to sell. I would start by browsing old winning product on Ecomhunt and looking if there’s an available upgrade to the same product on Aliexpress. A tiny design change or an extra feature to the same old winning product is enough to advertise it as a totally new product. The target audience will see something fresh and you’ll be on your way to earn some good money.
Update your online store – Tweak your store design and prepare some special promotions to fit the current event. If it’s Valentine’s Day, then a few hearts popping randomly on your website and a few color tweaks will set up the mood for your customers. Once they’re in the current holiday mood, getting their money will be much easier ?
And don’t forget to set up the mood of the current holiday with your ads as well. CTAs, video text description, video colors, and everything in general should SHOUT that the holiday is upon us and call your target audience to buy your product.
2. Personalize Your Existing Products
Some of you may remember the Aliexpress music box which was one of the BEST sellers before COVID. This music box exploded on Facebook and many Dropshippers did a lot of money selling it.
But the trick here isn’t the song played when you turn the handle or the vintage design – It’s the custom message that made this music box blow up!
The original music box started as a regular music without any messages… It was a simple box that played some tunes from fan favorite movies.
It was selling well on Aliexpress and some Dropshippers jumped on it as well and made some money.
But there was one Dropshipper out there who thought about a nifty little idea that made this music box really stand out.
It was the personalization aspect! And it was so simple…
All he did was message the seller on Aliexpress and ask him to engrave a quote. For the Aliexpress seller, this task wasn’t a problem and he had it ready within a few days.
For the Dropshipper, this was now a totally new product that he could direct towards a certain audience and make a killing!
And so, the customized music box was born and it made sh*t ton on money to the original Dropshipper and the fast ones who followed his steps.
I had to tell you this story to help you understand that Aliexpress sellers are also humans, and it’s possible to contact them and ask about stuff which aren’t always related to shipping times.
Here’s a quick example:
Let’s say you’re in the Pet niche and you sell this calming pet bed.
This pet bed was a crazy best seller for year and this Winter it can reappear again and make some good money again.
But it won’t be that easy because you have to practically reinvent yourself and prepare new marketing materials, new strategy, and more stuff to make this product really sell.
But what if you could personalize this product? Like a small square patch with a name of the pet somewhere on the bed? Suddenly this product has an edge to it that can drive customers.
Now your ad will not only be about the product, but also about the personalization! Your target audience who have seen plenty of pet beds by now may stop and this time actually buy it from you because of that.
And what did it cost you?
15 minutes of your time to message a few sellers on Aliexpress
A maximum of $1-$2 addition to the price of the product
Again, this is just an example. I didn’t check it myself and the numbers could be different, but in general this is how it works.
If you have a product on your store, think about a way you can personalize it depending on your niche. If it’s a simple task, Aliexpress sellers won’t have an issue to make it happen.
It can cost you a bit but it’s worth it because you basically get a new product which no one else is selling. It will take time for others to join the party, and by then you could make a killing!
3. Look For Products That Were Selling In The Past And Remarket Them
One of the best ways to make money with Dropshipping is by riding on existing trends OR by reviving old products that were killing it in the past.
Imagine you had a product database with the hottest products that sold in the past. These products aren’t just “trendy” products that people like…
These products are the kind of products that make people open their wallets and actually BUY them!
Now I know these products are old… And I know that they were advertised a lot of Facebook already by other Dropshippers.
But does it mean these products are completely dead? Is there no chance they can reappear again and sell?
I think that by now you know the answer to these questions.
And in case you don’t, then the answer is YES.
Old winning products that proved themselves in the past can reappear again and make even more sales than they did in the past!
It all depends on the marketer and the strategy he/she chooses.
If you choose an old winning product and decide to sell it the same way as other did in the past, then you’re not going to find the same success and there’s a chance you won’t make a single sale.
But if you take the same product and market it differently, then there’s a good possibility it will sell.
New marketing footage, different strategy, better deals, new audience, product upgrades, etc. These are your options to take an old winning product and bring it back alive to make you some money.
4. Email Marketing & Retargeting
I’ve seen it happen quite a lot, especially with newbie Dropshippers – The sellers promote a product that makes sales but all their focus is on Cold traffic.
There’s no retargeting ad campaigns running in the background, no email remarketing sequence to people who abandoned their cart, and not even regular email marketing to already existing customers who can possibly by more.
And this is quite sad because:
It doesn’t cost that much to bring these people back to your store. It’s much cheaper than brining a batch of completely new people every time.
Email marketing costs NOTHING compared to your ad spend and without it your existing customers act as internal store decorations.
You see… Sometimes the different between a successful campaign and a losing one is the ability to use all the tools in your possession in order to squeeze more sales out of your traffic.
And the main tool is having a closed loop around your store to drive your Warm traffic back to your store again, and again, and again!
You don’t have to wait for 500 visitors in order to create a custom audience on Facebook and launch really simple retargeting ads.
You don’t have to wait weeks or months before promoting a new product to your existing customers via email.
And you need to have a separate email sequence or an ad retargeting strategy to catch the people who started the checkout process but didn’t complete it.
Getting traffic isn’t getting cheaper so you have to make every little click count!
5. Try Out Different Self-Serve Ad Platforms Like TikTok, Twitter, Pinterest, And Others
TikTok is the HOTTEST thing right now and a day doesn’t pass without hearing about this ad platform and all the celebrity content creators it generates from thin air.
But TikTok isn’t just a place for content creators to get famous, it’s also one of the best ad platforms right now and many Dropshippers are jumping ship from Facebook and riding the current trend wave.
But is it really because TikTok is super trending or maybe it’s because Facebook isn’t the only alternative right now? I personally think it’s both.
Even if TikTok wasn’t as popular, people are getting tired of Facebook and all their bullsh*t. And even if Facebook was as good as it was a few years ago, why not give try a new ad platform and see how it goes?
Especially if this ad platform allows us to promote our product/service without minutes.
So now, as you may understand, it’s not only about TikTok – It’s about all the ad platforms out there in general.
Reddit, Pinterest, Twitter, Bing, Google ads, and the list goes on with new self-serve ad platforms that will keep on appearing…
It looks like all the big companies out there begin to slowly understand the power of giving the people the option to promote on their platforms, and this is absolutely amazing because there will be now competition between all of them.
So if you’re tired of Facebook, or even if Facebook is your personal goldmine, you should still go out there and try other ad platforms.
You’ll never know the ad platform’s full potential if you don’t try it out for yourself!
To Sum It Up
With Christmas around the corner, it’s safe to say you missed the timing to earn big if you didn’t already start 1-2 months ago.
But at least now you have a lot of time to plan your 2023 strategy to open the new year with a bang!
Plan your strategies carefully, do a good product research, and don’t always go with the flow by trying different ad platforms and new advertising strategies.
Implement the tips in this article and you should be ready enough to finally make some real profit in 2023 with Dropshipping.
Good luck!
Struggling to find good products to sell? Not sure who’s your target audience? Tired of losing money on products you were sure were “winners”?
Then Ecomhunt is what you need! Find hot winning products that are added daily, spy on their ads & stores and import them into your store in 1 click and Start Selling Today!
Instagram announced Wednesday that it is launching new transparency capabilities so you can check whether your pictures and videos are being promoted in the app.
“We’re expanding Account Status to help people with professional accounts understand if their account’s content is eligible to be recommended to non-followers, and what they can do if it’s not,” stated Instagram in a blog post.
You can now check to see if your material can be recommended to non-followers in places like Explore, Reels, and Feed Recommendations.
“If your account’s content is not eligible to be recommended, you can see a sample of content or components of your profile that may go against our Recommendations Guidelines and any content that has been removed for violating our Community Guidelines,” stated Instagram.
In addition, you can now edit or delete posts that violate the guidelines or appeal and request a review if you think a mistake was made on your account.
Bitcoin’s price has fallen 63%, while the whole cryptocurrency market capitalization has declined by $1.63 trillion, reported Reuters.
Bitcoin balances on crypto exchanges, where individual investors frequently transact, have dropped to roughly 2.3 million from an all-time high of 3.1 million in 2020, according to exchange Bitfinex.
“There are signs that a significant number of retail investors have been discouraged to the point of exiting crypto entirely,” Bitfinex analysts said, according to the report.
Linda Obi, a crypto investor in Lagos, Nigeria, who works at blockchain firm Zenith Chain said, “This is not the winter season anymore, this is a bloodbath, because the FTX crisis was like a domino that toppled so many companies.”
Retail crypto investors losing money is nothing new. For example, a Bank of International Settlements (BIS) analysis done between 2015 and 2022 estimated that 73% to 81% of cryptocurrency investors lost money.
TikTok is causing national security worries, according to FBI Director Chris Wray, who warned on Friday that management of the popular video sharing app is in the hands of a Chinese government “that doesn’t share our values.”
The FBI was concerned that the Chinese had control over the app’s recommendation algorithm, “which allows them to manipulate content and, if they want to, use it for influence operations,” according to Wray, the AP reported.
Wray also said that China may utilize the app to gather data on its users for traditional espionage activities.
“All of these things are in the hands of a government that doesn’t share our values, and that has a mission that’s very much at odds with what’s in the best interests of the United States. That should concern us,” said Wray.
TikTok spokesperson Brooke Oberwetter said, “While we can’t comment on the specifics of those confidential discussions, we are confident that we are on a path to fully satisfy all reasonable U.S. national security concerns and have already made significant strides toward implementing those solutions.”
After quitting her “soul-crushing” 9-to-5 job, a 22-year-old college dropout reveals she earns $40,000 per month working just 10 hours per week from home in a business “anyone can do.”
According to a report in MailOnline, 22-Year-Old Madysen Glynn makes $40,000 a month dropshipping and has made nearly $1 million since she began two years ago.
Glynn has no university degree and said she started with less than $1,000 in her bank account.
Glynn began a degree in communications but dropped out at the age of 20 and was working a 9-5 job in real estate when she “accidentally” discovered dropshipping through a YouTube video, according to the report.
Her first store was in women’s clothing, and she has subsequently expanded into pet supplies and home furnishings.
Keep your emails brief and to the point. Long emails bore people, so keep yours between 60 and 200 words, according to a report by Search Engine Journal.
People appreciate graphics, particularly in email marketing, so include images of your products or services.
Social proof persuades readers that your offer is genuine and worth their time. This includes using links or information from industry experts, positive testimonials, or influencers who use the brand.
According to the report, you should lead the reader to go where you want afterward with a call to action, such as a link.
Regular email sending is the key to effective email marketing. But even once a week is insufficient. According to studies, individuals respond better to frequent emails than infrequent ones.
Another tip is to ensure you have a strong lead that grabs the readers’ attention right at the beginning and in the subject line.
In addition, you should segment your emails so that different subscribers receive different content based on their status as a customer.
Personalizing emails with the name or company of the recipient is also beneficial.
And lastly, make sure your emails are mobile-friendly.
Shopify, an e-commerce platform for stores, reported a record-breaking Black Friday, with sales totaling $3.36 billion from the start of Black Friday in New Zealand to the end of Black Friday in California.
This represents a 17% increase in sales over Black Friday 2021, Shopify announced Saturday. Shopify merchants jointly saw sales of $3.5 million every minute at 12:01 PM EST on Black Friday.
“Black Friday Cyber Monday has grown into a full-on shopping season. The weekend that started it all is still one of the biggest commerce events of the year, and our merchants have broken Black Friday sales records again,” said Harley Finkelstein, President of Shopify.
“Our merchants have built beloved brands with loyal communities that support them. This weekend, we’re celebrating the incredible power of entrepreneurship on a global stage,” he said.
According to Shopify, the top-selling countries and cities where customers made purchases were: the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada, with London, New York, and Los Angeles being the top-selling cities on Black Friday.
Apparel and accessories were the most popular product categories, followed by health and beauty and home & garden.
The average cart price was $102.31. Cross-border orders hit 15% on Black Friday as a percentage of total orders globally.
