Amazon hosts websites you visit every day, sells billions in products each year, and collects more information about you than you realize. All this success all starts with a huge amount of data collection. Kim is joined by guest Jason Boyce, author of “The Amazon Jungle: The Truth About Amazon, The Seller’s Survival Guide for Thriving on the World’s Most Perilous E-Commerce Marketplace.”
Reader question: 'What can I use instead of QuickBooks?'

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Small business owners: Simplify your life with one financial tool that does it all

Are your finances as organized as you’d like them to be? Come on, be honest. For most business owners, the answer is a reluctant no.
As your company grows, you will have more expenses, contractors, KPIs and hands managing it all. If your communication happens through email, over the phone, in messages, and via spreadsheets, you will hit a wall sooner or later.
Amazon tracks and sells your data: Secrets they don't want you to know
Look at me, I’m the coder now: Nvidia’s Jensen Huang says coding is dead, long live “vibe coding,” which is basically sweet-talking a chatbot into writing software for you. You don’t need Python if you’ve got polite vibes and ChatGPT. Congrats, your great aunt just launched an e-commerce site from her iPad.
🤖 AI to the FAQ-cue: Biz owners, need help with your product’s FAQ page? Try this with ChatGPT or your favorite chatbot: “Imagine you’re an e-commerce specialist. Create a list of FAQs with answers for my [product] with [item details].” Giving the bot a role gets you better answers.
Struggling with Excel? 3 tips and tutorials to help you out

Ah, Excel. It’s been around since the ’80s, yet it can still stump many of us. There’s a lot to learn, from creating complex formulas to navigating pivot tables.
So, where do you turn? You can buy a paid course, which will give you a lot of bang for your buck, but you can also start smaller — and free.
Best timekeeping, accounting and money-management software

Time is money, and every minute counts. Detailed time tracking and bookkeeping can seem like a hassle if you’re running things independently.
If a skeleton crew operates your business or you’re managing everything on your own, that means relying on the right tech to get the job done. Don’t waste your time and money on software that doesn’t work for your needs.
🤳 Am I hot or not? That’s what people are asking ChatGPT. They upload photos, ask for an honest opinion, then get glow-up advice (think skin care routines or makeup tips). Kinda sketchy now that ChatGPT has a shopping feature that recommends products. AI meets e-commerce. Its advice could be influenced by ads, not what’s actually best for you.
📦 Not bad for a side hustle: A California mom bought a few Amazon return pallets, listed the items on eBay and made $10,000 in the first month. Now, she runs a multimillion-dollar e-commerce business. Love American success stories like this. Do you have one? Let me know here.
Shop local: Bet you never thought about it while browsing cheap stuff on Temu, but after President Trump did away with a tax break for e-commerce companies, the site’s algorithm changed. Now you’ll see more products from the Chinese retailer’s U.S. warehouse marked with a green “local” badge. Yeah, I still won’t use Temu.
Budgeting tip: An easy way to slash your monthly charges

Your dollars don’t go as far these days. Sure, things are more expensive, but “buy now” buttons and shiny new services add up much faster than we’d like to believe. It’s no surprise that subscription-based business models are so popular.
Amazon may be coming to a mall near you

The entire world has shifted from brick-and-mortar shopping trips to buying from online retail sites in response to COVID-19. Purchases that used to require a quick trip to your local big-box retailer for things like toilet scrubbers or Ziploc bags are now done via e-commerce sites with the click of a couple of buttons. Looking for online shopping deals? Check out what’s on sale for August that you should buy now.
Mysterious seeds from China mailed out across the US
Americans all over are receiving packages in the mail from China that, on the surface, look like jewelry is inside. What’s really going on is an e-commerce scam called brushing.