UK Dropshipping Blog

Create A Free Favicon Online

2009-01-16T04:57:00.000-08:00

Creating a favicon for your website is an easy and free way to increase the professional look of your website. A favicon is,as the name suggests, an icon which is displayed when your site is added to someone's favourites folder.

It is also displayed in the address bar of some web browsers next to your web address. Here we show you just how easy they are to create and implement:

1) Design an image 50px x 50px to use as your favicon. This should be a simple image, perhaps a small logo, letter etc - see other icons for inspiration (i.e. Blogger "B"). The image can be designed in Paint, Photoshop or other image software.

2) Save the image then visit http://www.chami.com/html-kit/services/favicon/ and upload your new icon. This website will turn it into a favicon (.ico) for free which you can download. It even shows you a preview of what it looks like in an address bar after uploading the image.

3) After downloading and unzipping the file, upload the new favicon.ico file to your website and add the following piece of code in your web page between the opening HEAD and closing /HEAD: "link rel="shortcut icon" href="favicon.ico""

4) Congratulations that's it! Easy huh? Now ust test your site to ensure evrything is working and that you're happy with how your new favicon looks.

Direct 2u - Free Reviews

2008-08-23T00:42:00.000-07:00

Direct 2u offer womens and childrens footwear through wholesale and dropshipping. Based in the midlands the company if registered as Direct-2u Footwear Ltd.

Their website advertises both their wholesale and dropshipping operations (also referred to as an 'order fulfillment service').

Website
http://direct-2u.co.uk/

Pricing:
It is FREE to sign up for a dropshipping account.

Claims:
- No storage, packaging or postage needed
- No catch, fees or hidden charges - ever!
- Download all product information, prices and pictures
- Add your own profit ontop of the cost price
- The only company in the UK to offer dropshipping for womens & childrens footwear
- Cheapest prices in the UK (single items)
- Interactive tutorials
- Regular promotions and special offers

Products:
Categories include: Womens shoes, Childrens shoes

Interesting Fact:
They are a family run business and offer loyalty bonuses to customers.

Read Reviews:
To submit your own reviews or take part in the online polls please visit the Dropshipping Forum. In your reviews please provide feedback on whether the dropshipper, business opportunity or ebook lives up to the sales "claims". If not, how do they bend the truth? What is the reality? Have your say!

Popup Window Link Generator (HTML)

2008-08-15T04:09:00.001-07:00

Have you ever been stuck for an easy method of creating a pop-up window for a link or image. You can spend time coding your own javascript or CSS function to create the pop-up link or alternatively, if you aren't too bothered about using HTML and Javascript (rather than CSS) you can try Eric King's Popup Window Generator.

The script can be found on the DynamicDrive.com website here. In no time at all you can have a fully working popup link on your website by adding two pieces of dynamically created code.

Simply enter a few details into the form - the URL of the location, your window preferences (scroll bars, name, size etc) and click the GENERATE CODE button.

The site will then load two sections of code for you to use. The first is the Java Script which you'll need to paste into the HEAD AREA of your web page. This javascript takes care of the actual function.

Secondly the page displays your link code. Simply copy this link into your page wherever you want a link to open as a pop-up window (as many times as you like). You can use the link with text or images - it's up to you, just use the code to enclose your link.

Add A Google Sitemap to Blogger Blog - Guide

2008-08-12T00:57:00.000-07:00

Here is a guide to adding a Google Sitemap to your Blogger.com blog. Submitting a sitemap to Google can increase your chances of having your site indexed by the search engine.

Below is a step by step guide to submitting your blog's sitemap to Google:

Step 1.

Sign-in to your Google account by clicking in the top right of the Google search pages. You may need to sign-in first if you don't see the 'My Account' text link. Once you are logged in click on WEBMASTER TOOLS (click here for the direct link)

Step 2.

Paste the URL of your blog into the 'ADD SITE' area of the dashboard page. For example http://ukdropshipper.blogspot.com. Click on the 'add site' button.

Step 3.

You will now be taken to thesite overview page. This page will show you the status of your sitemap/s, details of the last site crawl and inform you whether pages from the site are included in the Google index.

Step 4.

You need to verify ownership of the site you're submitting. I find the easiest way to do this is to add some code to your area of the site. To verify ownership click on VERIFY YOUR SITE and select ADD A META TAG from the drop down box. Google will then provide you with some code to add to your site.

Step 5.

In a separate window or tab login to your blogger account, select LAYOUT and choose EDIT HTML. Copy and past the HTML meta tag provided by Google in the previous step into the HTML template just after the first TAG. Save your template edits. Return back to the original window/tab and click VERIFY.

Step 6.

You are now able to add a sitemap. Luckily Blogger supplies a ready made site map in the form of it's ATOM feed. Visit your blog and copy the URL of the atom feed (i.e. www.ukdropshipper.com/feeds/posts/full). Hint: Click on a 'subscribe to feed' link to find out your URL.

Step 6.

Slect to add a sitemap from within the Google Wemaster Tools Dashboard (the original window/tab) and choose "add general web sitemap". Paste the URL from step 5 into the area provided and click "ADD GENERAL SITEMAP" button.

You have now successfully added a Google Sitemap. In time you will be able to view various statitics through the SITEMAPS page including the date your site was last crawled, crawl stats, top search queries and diagnose any crawl errors.

Picapp: Legal use of coyright images for free

2008-08-09T15:42:00.001-07:00

Picapp makes it easy and legal to usee coyright images for free.

Small online publishers such as bloggers will be glad to know they can now access licensed images from popular sources such as Getty Images for free.

Using the Picapp tool is easy and will allow thousands of bloggers to include photographs images without worrying about breaking copyright laws or breaking the bank to pay the license fees!

Making Splash content available through PicApp offers an innovative way for thousands of blog sites to enter the content licence market by utilizing our images with PicApps ad-funded technologies and in turn, exposes our rich database of images to millions of people. Splash teams with PicApp to reduce online piracy and to create a new media revenue stream for its contributors,” said Gary Morgan, CEO of Splash News, in a press release on July 7, 2008..

We've had quite a bit of feedback from our online publisher community that suggests that celebrity/entertainment images are difficult for them to attain, primarily due to the high licensing costs and the importance of the delivery timeliness, Eyal Gura, CEO, PicScout, said. Working with Splash gives online publishers easy access to Hollywood celebrities - photos that they couldn't afford before."

Adding Splash content to PicApp's broad image library brings PicApp closer to being the de facto "one-stop-shop" for the widest range of images for bloggers, in many popular categories, including sports, technology, fashion - and now, more than ever, entertainment.

In addition to Getty Images other news and photo agencies license their images to Picapps including Splash News, Corbis and Image Source

The sample image in this blog post shows latest big brother evictee Dale Howard on his eviction night. Purchasing a year long licensing fee for a medium resolution version of this image from a photo agency would cost around £40 whereas it is free using Picapp.

License fees can vary for photographs depending on your intended use, industry, duration and exclusivity. The above is just a random example of a recent news related image.

Cottons Beauty - Free Reviews

2008-08-08T02:28:00.000-07:00

Cottons bath and beauty sell a range of bath, shower and body treats, which include Shower gel, Body Moisture, Flower Water, traditionally hand made soaps, Milk Baths, Facial Masks and bathroom accessories.

They don't advertise dropshipping directly through their website but they have featured in many dropshipping lists so it's perhaps worth contacting them through their wholesale enquiry department to ask about a dropshipping service.

Website
http://www.cottonsbeauty.co.uk/

Pricing:
Unsure - if anyone signs up to their dropshipping service please post your experiences to the forum. Website only advertises wholesale.

Claims:
- They use certified organic oils and butters in most of our products
- Their soaps contain organic palm oil from sustainable sources
- Contact them for a wholesale pack to gain prices and order processing ability

Products:
Categories include: Soaps, baby range, bathroom accessories, gift boxes and relaxation.

Interesting Fact:
According to their website Cottons Beauty now use an eco friendly parcel delivery service.

Idweb (Sex Shop 365) - Free Reviews

2008-08-08T01:55:00.001-07:00

Idweb Ltd is the UK's leading adult gift company, offering the most innovative adult products available. A family run business, founded in 2000 and has since become a well known name in the adult sex toys and sexy lingerie market.

They offfer dropshipping, wholesale, party plan and an affiliate programme. Their own retail store www.sexshop365.co.uk has over 3,500 products in stock, ranging from the vibrators to lingerie.

Website
http://b2b.sexshop365.co.uk

Pricing:
FREE - Just pay for the stock you order.

Claims:
- Free membership - just pay for the stock you order
- Unbranded catalogues available to aid your business
- You have the freedom to choose how to sell
- Orders despatched direct to customers in unbranded packaging
- First company in the adult industry to offer dropshipping in the UK
- Offers ongoing advice and guidance
- Have your company name displayed on packing slip
- Edit footer of paperwork to show adverts/promotions
- Returns dealt with via a PO BOX address
- At least 100 new products added every month

Products:
Categories include: Sex toys, Intimate Apparel, Gifts, Relaxation, Fetish Clothing, Bondage Gear, Speciality Items.

Interesting Fact:
Idweb were the first compnay in the UK to offer the revolutionary new toy "The TongueJoy Oral Vibrator". It is an exotic, chrome plated, battery operated, ornamental body jewelry which VIBRATES.

Making Money From Website Traffic

2008-08-07T10:01:00.000-07:00

There are various way to make money on the web these days. Perhaps the most obvious one is selling goods online - be it through an auction website such as eBay or through your own ecommerce website.

However, selling tangible products has it's own advantages and disadvantages. For starters, there is little chance of running a completely automated business - somebody has to pick, pack and post the orders, products have to be purchased to hold in stock and cash flow can sometimes be a problem.

A little more tempting is the sale of downloadable products. This opens up the opportunity to run a more automated web business. I stress the word MORE because it's still impossible to run a completely automated business - even customers buying downloadable products will demand a certain level of customer service. Who will answer pre-sale questions? What if there is a problem during the checkout process or with the automated delivery system? How about if somebody demands a refund?

Both of the above require a certain level of interaction and maintenance. Running an ecommerce store may feel like you're being your own boss, but ultimately you are anwerable to someone - your customer. Your site must be maintained, be in full working order and meet security guidelines, especially if you are taking payment directly through your site.

In recent years people have been earning money online without selling tangible or downloadable goods. Instead they simply rely on advertisers to pay for page impressions or clicks on their websites. This opens your site up to being fully automated so you can sit back and watch the money roll in and be safe in the knowledge that you really aren't answerable to anyone. Well, theoretically all this is possible. However, in order to be successful your site must attract visitors and this usually means providing useful information through your website. Depending on how the advertisers pay you they won't be too bothered about how popular your site is but if they pay monthly you will still find you're answerable to someone!

Whether you update this information daily, monthly or annually is up to you and it depends on your circumstances. How much money do you want to earn? How much time can you dedicate to creating new material? How much demand/competition is there on your topic? Do people want to read the information you're supplying? How quickly will the information become dated or obsolete?

I don't want to go into a discussion about site content in this post, instead I'm going to look at the options available to you if you wish to monetize your informational website.

1) Google Asense or Yahoo Publisher Network
Both are free to setup and automatically pair paying advertisers to your website based on the content. This saves you having to find advertisers to sponsor your website, however, you only receive a percentage of the ad revenue with Adsense/YPN taking the rest.

2) Seek own Advertisers
Particularly useful if you've created a local website. You could approach businesses to pay you for displaying their ad on your site. You can charge a monthly fee, per impression fee or per click fee. The first option is quote easy to set-up and maintain whereas the other two options would require some software to track impressions/clicks.

The advantage of sourcing your own advertisers is that you will receive 100% of the money generated, however, you may have difficulty finding advertisers and it may take a few months to fill all your ad space. Customers may also demand to see proof of past visitor numbers before advertising

3) Affiliate Schemes
Affiliate schemes were very popular a few years back, however, many people switched to using services such as Adsense etc. Now, however, affiliate schemes are growing in popularity once again as mpore website owners look for the most profitable option. Companies like Commission Junction allow you to group affiliate schemes together, allowing you to pool revenue and receive bigger & earlier payouts.

One of the main reasons people abandoned Affiliate Schemes in the past was because many never received a penny in commission due to certain 'minimum payout' thresholds etc.

With multiple options available to you including selling tangible goods directly to consumers, B2B services/products, dropshipping, downloadable products and advertising revenue you are sure to find some way of creating money from your existing website. Exactly how much you make is entirely down to you and the popularity of your site.

Bookmark & Sharing Button - AddThis

2008-08-07T09:03:00.000-07:00

If you've been looking for an easy way to allow visitors to your website to share your content throughout their social networking sites then look no further than AddThis.

Effective, easy to use and a doddle to set-up, AddThis could be your ultimate FREE tool for generating extra traffic through social networking websites.

Visitors can easily add a link to your site on Digg, MySpace, Reddit, Furl, StumbleUpon, Del.icio.us, Google Bookmarks, Slashdot, Facebook and more. Gain more hits by receiving repeat visits from users who add your site to their favourites and new visits from people the refer through social networking.

AddThis also includes free statistics to help you keep track of usage. If you are having problems displaying your statictics make sure that you are logged in before creating your Addthis button. Once you have everything up and running you'll be able to check how many people have bookmarked your site or added your feed through the AddThis button.

The button can be added to your website as a whole. or alternatively if you're a blogger you can add it after every post.

Installing AddThis on a Blogger Blog

To add the button to Blogger you must insert the code for the button within the "POST FOOTER" of the layout file. To do this click on EDIT HTML, ensure the "Expand Widgets" box is ticked and search for div class='post-footer'.

Simply paste the AddThis code below this DIV CLASS and voila - a button will be placed beneath evey individual Blogger blog post.

http://www.addthis.com

Ebook Reviews & Download Sources

2008-08-07T06:15:00.000-07:00

If you would like to read reviews on an ebook before you make a purchase or would like to search for the cheapest source please use the search function of this site to search for the ebook title.

Alternatively you can browse through our list of ebook pages in date order below:

(18 July 08) - Shareware Creator

Fast2Net.co.uk

2008-08-07T06:11:00.000-07:00

Fast2Net say they can provide you with a way to 'get your part of this £15 billion business (Intenet) boom' by providing you with your very own website.

Website
www.fast2net.co.uk

Websnapr makes creating website thumbnails easy!

2008-08-07T05:45:00.001-07:00

Have you ever wanted to create a snapshot of your website? If you have you've probably resorted to cropping a 'print screen' in the past or signed up to a newsletter etc in order to receive your thumbnail by email.

Websmapr 2.0 allows you to create thumbnails with ease within seconds. No more PRINT SCREEN commands, cropping images or handing out your email addresses!

Websnapr lets you capture screenshots of (almost) any web page. Allow your visitors to instantly visualize any web page before clicking. Increase site traffic, click-through rate and site stickiness.

Websnapr is completely free of charge, very easy to use and very fast. Try it today: http://www.websnapr.com/

The Select - Free Reviews

2008-08-07T05:24:00.000-07:00

The Select are possibly one of the most debated dropship companies on UK forums. The company claims to be 'The UK's leading dropship company' on their website and they offer a range of packages from £49.99 - £1999.99.

Website
www.theselect.co.uk (Registered March 2004)

Pricing:
Their GOLD DROPSHIP PACKAGE is rather pricey at £99.99
A BRONZE package is available for £49.99 but profit margins are lower (under 50%)

Claims:
- With profit margins upto 80% on RRP is perfect for high end users who are interested in making some serious profit!
- Work from home with potential earnings of £1000-£1500 per week.
- Average earnings £400-£1000 per month.
- Guaranteed lowest prices on ANY dropship company
- Guaranteed stock availability
- Next Day delivery on orders placed before 2pm

Products:
Categories include: Baby care, entertainment, fashion, gadgets, household, mobile phones, office, sound & vision, sports and toys. They advertise xbox, ipods and psp's as being amongst the HOT SELLERS on the homepage.

Interesting Fact:
According to the website they guarantee to offer the lowest prices of ANY dropship company. Their terms and conditions clearly state that "All subscription packages are non-refundable" so please consider this before signing up then complaining on the forum.

First Point Dropshipping - Free Reviews

2008-08-07T05:00:00.000-07:00

First Point Dropshipping is run by the same company as Chyannes and offers a lifetime membership to both for £39.99.

Website
http://www.firstpointdropshipping.com/ (Registered March 2006)

Pricing:
Annual membership is £19.99. Alternatively a lifetime membership can be purchased for £39.99.

Claims:
- All goods 100% brand new with 1 years manufacturers guarantee
- One of the safest, most reliable and most established online dropshippers
- Recommended by some of the biggest wholesalers and directories
- Orders despatched within 24/48 hours
- All goods covered by 100% satisfaction guarantee
- VAT registered business (VAT receipts etc)
- Replacement goods sent to buyers for missing items

Products:
Categories include: Telephones, faxes, mp3's, stationary, wireless routers, sat-navs and Dymo products.

Interesting Fact:
They also own another dropshipping website: Chyannes (http://www.dropshipping.chyannes.com/)

DVD Dropship - Free Reviews

2008-08-07T04:48:00.000-07:00

DVDdropship claim to have over 850 CD/DVD/Software titles to profit from, starting from just 99p!

Website
www.dvddropship.com (Registered November 2004)

Pricing:
Annual membership is £24.95

Claims:
- Europes largest DVD dropshipping company
- The worlds most professional DVD dropshipper
- 850 titles to profit from, starting at only 99p
- The products are classic bestsellers.
- Considered one of the best home business start-up packages in the UK
- All DVD's are original, brand new and sealed
- No minimum order
- Just under half (45%) of members turnover at least £20,000!

Products:
Categories include: DVD's, CD's.

Interesting Fact:
Their bestselling DVD's come from the Fishing range. Other bestsellers include Postman Pat and Erotic Witch Project.

Dropship Services - Free Reviews

2008-08-07T04:33:00.001-07:00

Unlike some dropship companies, Dropship Services don't make a big sales pitch with bogus statistics or made up testimonials. They don't appear to make any false claims and don't charge for membership, however, their prices don't offer as much profit as some of the paid dropshippers.

Website
www.dropshipservices.com (Registered December 2002)

Pricing:
Dropship membership is FREE

Claims:
- No big pre-sales claims
- FREE to join

Products:
Categories include: Automotive, Jewellery, Computing, Safety Signs and Beauty products.

Interesting Fact:
The site allows you to view all their products at RRP before signing up for a FREE account.

Dropshipland - Free Reviews

2008-08-07T04:20:00.000-07:00

Dropshipland claim to be the 'UK's Largest Dropshipping Company' and can provide you with great profits on 4500+ products. Annual membership is £29.95.

Website
www.dropshipland.com (Registered September 2006)

Pricing:
Annual membership is £29.95

Claims:
- The UK's largest dropshipping company
- The UK's number one home-working solution company
- DVD's from only 99p
- Every profitable product range from one website - Dropshipland.com
- Number one dropship website to ebay powersellers in the UK
- No minimum order requirements
- Most members already making good profits by the end of the first day.

Products:
Categories include: DVD's, CD's, football products, inks and toners, lingerie, ties & cufflinks.

Interesting Fact:
Dropshipland.com is a trading name of SRG Direct Ltd who also trade as DVDdropship.com

ATS Distribution - Free Reviews

2008-08-07T04:02:00.000-07:00

ATSdistribution supply a range of different products via dropshipping and wholesale. Their dropshipping service allows you to order in single units with no minimum order.

Website
http://www.atsdistribution.co.uk

Pricing:
There is a one off fee of £40 to open a dropshipping account with ATSdistribution.

Claims:
- Order in single units
- No minimum order
- Choice of delivery options
- VAT to be added to products
- View product prices after free registration
- Unable to place orders until after paying the £40 registration fee.
- eCommerce website account available at £99 + £9.99 per month

Products:
Categories include: Batteries, camera cases, camera memory, cassette players, clocks, DVD players, radios and earphones.

Interesting Fact:
All orders are despatched using Royal Mail First Class (recorded) or ParcelForce24.