Who Else Is Starting Their Own Online Business?

Starting your own online business is one of the smartest moves you can make to invest in your future. Now more than ever, people are putting their ideas into practice and becoming first time entrepreneurs. Starting out as a new business owner has never been easier. Booming online businesses make up a huge percent of products sold. It’s evident that e-commerce is here to stay.

People from all walks of life, professions and ages are looking to start their own online business. From real estate agents to single parents, from mortgage brokers to people who have lost their jobs, form government employees to corporate executives and CEO’s, there is no restrictions to being an online entrepreneur.

Can I Start My Own Online Business?

The great thing about setting up your own online business is that the start up costs are very low as in comparison to a conventional bricks and mortar business. Old or young, people of all ages and experience can build a business they really like from anything that they are enthusiastic about. Regardless of whether it is selling traditional furnishings, golf equipment or selling services, there will be specific niche market just right for your talents. So who are the people who are starting online businesses?

The Offline Business Owner.

This is someone who already owns a traditional ‘offline’ business and realises that there are many more customers on the internet. The last few years of economic downturn have really hit hard and by putting their years of expertise from both life and business to work for them, many traditional business owners are are now realising how starting their own online business will generate additional income.

An Employee Made Redundant.

Often in a difficult employment economy, middle-managers and new employees are some of the first people to be made redundant. Businesses often try to keep the younger people in the job because they do not have to pay them as much. It is not very fair, but it does occur. If you are in that group who has lost your job through no fault of your own, it can be the launchpad that catapults you into the entrepreneurial adventure of creating your own business online.

The Internet Newbie.

A newbie is somebody who is aware the internet is the way to generate income, but they have yet to get started with their own online business. Many first time entrepreneurs are are work from home mums or younger people who work in a job that they find uninteresting and boring.

People Who Are Retired.

In a number of jobs, there are government requirements that stipulate that people must retire from at a specific age. This is unfortunate as in many cases, the people with the years of experience make better employees than the newly employed ones. Many people who are forced to retire want to continue to keep working to keep their minds productive and to give themselves something to look forward to. Transforming from a life of active work to being home all day can be quite an adjustment. But starting your own online business can help to make that adjustment for both the person retiring and his or her family.

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How to Start an Online Business Step by Step

To start an online business is not an easy task to perform. There are so many things to prioritize in its whole process to make sure that it will bring great results in the end. It needs to be provided with a sufficient and excellent set of investments to make sure that it will be very exciting and really satisfying. But always remember the fact that money is not enough to provide a business with an amazing startup.

1. How to Write and Sell your own eBooks

An online business must always be supported with several eBooks that are containing unique contents and useful information for the consumers. Such items can help a businessman to enhance the reputation of an online business more effectively. The best way to write an eBook is to rely on excellent references and to ask for the assistance of a reliable SEO company. Selling eBooks will become much easier to accomplish when conducted in a trusted online store like Amazon.

2. Promoting the Business with Social Media Such As Facebook, Twitter

A business will never be so popular in the market and trustworthy for consumers if it was not provided with a set of high quality advertisements that are showcasing its set of products and services. Businessmen should always try their best to advertise their businesses more effectively to achieve increased traffic and revenue. One of the most convenient and effective ways to do that is to utilize the power of social media. Create interesting sales pages and fan pages in social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter to promote a business more effectively without spending a lot of money.

3. Part-time or Full-time Online Income Stream

One of the most effective ways to fund a business as the time passes by is to rely on the advantages of part-time and full-time online income streams. It’s easy to create a set of special accounts for these online income streams. Such things can really help businessmen to allocate their reserved financial assets more efficiently on the daily needs of their businesses.

4. How to Sell eBooks on Your Own WordPress Website

All types of WordPress Websites can be used by businessmen to sell their unique eBooks online without spending a lot of effort. But what is the most effective way to perform this process while aiming to gain higher rate of income? Well, the best answer to that question is to add a PayPal account in a very responsive WordPress website which has an excellent amount of traffic every day.

5. Guide To Selling eBooks on Google, eBay and Fiverr

Google, eBay and Fiverr are examples of the most reliable search engines in the internet nowadays. The most effective way to sell eBooks on the stated search engines is to rely on the performance and features of the dependable online stores and sales pages that are available in its search results pages. Mastery of the idea of online marketing and creating several accounts in search engines are included in the list of best strategies that businessmen can use to sell eBooks faster in Google, eBay and Fiverr.

6. ClickBank Success Guide

ClickBank success starts with the process of mastering the uses and advantages of ClickBank in online marketing as an affiliate. It becomes more useful in the process of promoting a business when used to prove to online consumers that the online payment process for the products of a business is totally safe and secured at all times.

7. How to Success in Internet Marketing

Success will never be impossible to achieve in the field of internet marketing if a businessman has a very responsive website to use in the promotion of an online business. A responsive website can provide an online business with a very high rate of traffic every day which can be converted into a huge number of real buyers through a perfect traffic conversion process.

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The Different Types of Business Insurance

In the UK there are many different types of Business Insurance. It’s because of this diversity that the options available can sometimes be confusing. So for a new business that has no staff or an existing enterprise with teams of employees it’s important to decide what level of insurance you must have and those that are advisable.

Here is a list of 16 different types of Business Insurance you might consider.

Employers’ Liability Insurance – The Employers’ Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969 requires that employees be covered against injuries whilst doing their job – Mandatory.

Motor vehicle insurance – Most business policies are comprehensive or third party, fire and theft. Legally you must, at least, insure your legal liability for injury to others and damage to their property – Mandatory. If you use private vehicles for business use, make sure the relevant policy accounts for this.

Professional indemnity insurance – Protects businesses against injury, loss, or damage, arising from their professional negligence or that of their employees. Depending on your industry certain profession MUST have insurance, these include; architects, accountants, solicitors, surveyors, insurance brokers and financial advisers.

All of the following types of Business Insurance are recommended.

Business travel insurance – Some employees travel extensively around the world. Cover against delays, loss of life and injury; equipment and money is recommended.

Fidelity guarantees – If you are worried about dishonest employees Fidelity Insurance covers against loss of cash or stock.

Key Man insurance – Some businesses would cease to function properly without certain individuals. It’s not uncommon to insure Directors and senior managers against the loss of income from death.

Premises insurance – Much like home insurance your business premises should be insured for the complete rebuilding cost.

There are two types standard and “all risks”. Talk to your broker about what level of cover you might need.

Contents cover – If you business holds any type of stock you might consider business contents insurance.

Plant and business equipment – Much like contents insurance, you can insure your machinery or business equipment.

Goods in transit cover – This is a popular insurance if you are looking to dispatch high net worth items. The post office always asks the value of your item being sent. Goods in transit cover operates in the same way.

Engineering insurance – Engineering insurance covers against electrical or mechanical breakdown.

Business interruption insurance – The riots in London in 2011 resulted in claims for disruptions to your business. Claims for loss of income and expenses would be likely.

Public liability insurance – This is a very common policy that covers your business from damages to members of the public, either for death, injury or property damage.

Product liability insurance – If you sell a product you need to consider carefully whether that product may harm an individual due to defects or negligence in manufacture. If so, you need to talk through the risk with your legal adviser.

Pollution risk insurance – Pollution is taken very seriously by the Environment Agency. If your business is caught polluting the environment you could be liable and fined and forced to pay to clean it up.

Directors and officers insurance – Company directors and officers have specific duties and responsibilities, for which they can be held responsible. Directors and officers insurance provides cover for compensation and legal costs, if they are found to have inadvertently acted outside their terms of reference.

There are differences in the legislation depending on which part of the country you live in. If you live in Scotland or Northern Ireland you should check local laws.

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Starting a Small Business – Insurance Tips

Your Company and those like it is the anchor of this country. Almost all people assume large companies create most of the revenue the United States produces, although they just don’t understand in total Small Businesses hire a lot more people and produce even more income compared to those large companies. When you start your own business there are lots of elements you’ll want to consider within your business strategy plan. An Insurance policy mitigates your risk, small business insurance is just about the most important factors within your strategic business plan. When looking in to Business insurance packages, there are many kinds of insurance you’ll want to check into and now we can look at the various insurance policies. While we will look at insurance coverage’s that are based upon many types of businesses, you might want to speak with an experienced insurance agent with regards to your businesses requirements.

Commercial General Liability

This is the first protection you will want to take into consideration because it is on the list of needed insurance policies it is possible to acquire. The following insurance policy coverage that defends your company for both bodily injury and property damage claims. This means that this protects your company for accidents that your fault, and insures your company for scenarios when an individual or property is broken and / or wounded. Every business enterprise will need to have this particular coverage because this will handle many types of claim instances. This particular policy defends your business for libel and slander as well as slip and fall incidents. This type of coverage does insure you for several claim circumstances, it doesn’t cover them all. The types of insurance not covered under your standard liability policy are; Liquor Liability, Assault & Battery, Commercial Property, Workers Compensation, Professional Liability or Business Auto. The coverage limits for this type of insurance policy goes up to one certain limit and for a limit on top of it, you will need an Excess Insurance Policy. An Umbrella Policy may also go over your Auto Liability as well as your Workers Comp coverage increasing those limits of liability. When deciding just how much Liability Insurance you must consider what amount you have to lose.

Small Business Property Insurance

Now you have a policy coverage which can protect you for both the building you own as well as the property inside of it. Generally, the following coverage plan covers the Building and/or contents for many kinds of incidents such as fire. This coverage doesn’t insure property that leaves the premises, for that you’d need an Inland Marine insurance. An Inland Marine policy can cover small equipment to large construction tools or all kinds of other kinds of Property that would be removed from the businesses premises.

Small Business Auto Insurance

This coverage is auto insurance for your business autos. Typically a small business requires increased coverage limits of auto insurance compared to your own personal auto policy. Your small business auto policy would have increased limits of liability coverage, but the insurance coverage’s are relative. Your typically looking at liability insurance coverage along with the following; Medical Payments, Uninsured Motorists coverage, Comprehensive, Collision, Towing & Rental Coverage. If you ever rent an auto or your have a staff member drive their own personal automotive on an errand, you need to have Hired & Non Owned Auto Liability. Whenever your LLC or Corporation owns the vehicle, then you should make sure the autos are insured on a Commercial Auto Insurance policy.

Workers Compensation

This particular insurance coverage, also known as Employers Liability, would be the coverage which protects the employees and can pay for claims in which any employee was hurt on the job. Yet again, yet another critical coverage considering that Medical Treatment is incredibly costly. Without having insurance you’re self insuring and you will be liable for just about any healthcare expenses or law suit. This coverage does not cover discrimination or sexual harassment claims for that you’d will need an Employment Practices Liability Insurance.

Insurance is an important part of any Organization. It protects your business for various kinds of claims. It’s important for you to understand just what you are getting, in which area’s this insurance will cover you, and just what is not insured within an insurance policy. Make sure to always understand your policy. Insurance are generally complicated knowing that is the reason you really need to buy from an insurance broker that’s versed in Small Business Insurance. Having been providing business owners like you insurance for more than 35 years, we have the experience to help you with all of your Small Business Insurance needs. Contact us for an insurance quote. We write insurance in several states and we can easily help you get the insurance coverage you may need.

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Business Insurance Provides Comfort and Security

Many businesses are either underinsured or over insured. Talking with an insurance representative can help clarify what kind and how much insurance is needed. A good business insurance representative will present several different scenarios for a business that might require insurance protection. Doing a risk analysis of assets and liabilities will also help in deciding which are important enough to be insured, or which might cost too much money if they were to remain uninsured.

When doing a risk analysis of the business, think about all aspects, including property, building, equipment, and even personnel. Businesses need to determine where they are vulnerable. Make sure to insure the property, including the building where the business is run, and all the contents of the building.

Business Insurance Tips

One good tip is to always insure equipment, not only for the value of the equipment, but against employee theft. Always take into consideration that three other types of insurance are likely to be mandatory, depending on the insurance company and federal and state laws. These are worker’s compensation, unemployment, and employee benefits.

Business insurance can help protect the business against several different kinds of losses. Check with the state insurance department to find out what is required by state law. Then decide what kind of insurance coverage is necessary. These include, but are not limited to the following:

  • Property insurance
  • General liability
  • Umbrella insurance, and
  • Worker’s compensation

Purchasing the right kind of insurance can mean the difference between running a long and prosperous business and complete financial ruin. Understanding the state and local laws, as well as federal laws is crucial. When starting up a business, one of the best business tips is to buy insurance as early as possible, in order to protect the business against accidents and damages. To reduce exposures, install security systems, fence off the property (so people won’t get injured), get rid of any potential risks, and be sure to screen employees very thoroughly to guard against employee theft.

Another important tip is to inform the insurance company of the complete history of the business. This may help to provide lower insurance premiums. It is also very important to check the insurance information periodically to be sure everything is accurate. Any time changes are made to the business, it is extremely important to recheck the policy for possible changes that need to be made in order to be covered as completely as expected.

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Understanding Commercial Insurance Risks and Business Insurance Covers

If you own or manage a business, either large or small, you will require some type of insurance to protect your company against the various risks and potential multitude of claims, that your business will face.

Commercial insurance or Business insurance as it is commonly known, is a complicated area of underwriting and because all businesses are different, and face different risks depending upon the nature of the company, various packages and combined policy covers have been introduced by insurance companies and commercial broker schemes, to make the process easier.

An example of a small business insurance package which is commonly sold online is the Tradesman’s insurance package, which includes all elements of cover required by a small business or self employed trader such as basic liability covers and theft of tools.

Other small business insurance packages that are trade specific and can often be obtained online are available for shopkeepers, offices, surgeries, hotels and guest houses, restaurants, public houses and builders.

Large companies will be offered what is known as a commercial combined policy which has many different elements of cover which can be combined to make a bespoke policy for the enterprise. Most large companies will require some degree of risk assessment before the policy is underwritten, which may often include a visit to the business premises or site, and for this reason these types of larger business usually employ the services of specialist commercial insurance brokers.

Business Risks

The largest risk that a business faces is from liability to others, and the potential costs and damages a company could face if a claim was made against it.

All companies are required by law to have in place liability cover, called Employers liability insurance or EL, to protect their staff against all potential risks and accidents  while in the workplace.

Business liability insurance is usually sold as a package and will always include Public Liability, often just known as PL, which protects the company against claims from the public whilst on the business premises.

A further type of liability insurance called Product liability is also available to companies under a commercial liability policy which protects the company against claims made for design or manufacturing faults in the product.

Company directors can also protect themselves against liabilities with Directors and Officers insurance (D&O) cover.

Property Damage

Most business large and small will have premises that need protection against buildings perils such as fire and flood and commercial property insurance is available to cover all buildings insurance risks. Similarly commercial contents insurance for business premises is available which covers office and business equipment including files and data processing against the common perils. For companies that carry stock, this type of business contents insurance can be extended to cover risk such as deterioration and damage.

For the small businessman who works from home these covers are often available with strict limits of indemnity, as a bolt on to a standard home buildings and contents policy. This type of cover is often effective for self employed people with just a computer and a home office.

Business Contingency Cover

One of the largest problems faced by a business is that of how to continue in business should the worst occur, for example a fire that destroys the premises. In order to deal with this Insurance companies have devised a cover called ‘Business Interruption Insurance’. Based on your previous years annual turnover, this protection insurance covers your company against all losses caused by interruption to trading due to any of the perils mentioned on the policy and will pay out on a indemnified basis for the period of cover agreed in the policy. Most policies will also offer some type of alternative trading accommodation to enable you business to continue whilst the premises are being repaired.

Additional Commercial Risks

Because commercial insurance is designed to cover all classes of business, there are many various trade or business specific covers available which can be added to a combined policy. Examples of these covers include loss of licence to trade, glass cover, goods in transit cover, book debts, commercial vehicle insurance, hauliers cover, warehouse cover, engineering insurance and plant inspection services, and theft by employees.

Outside of most combined policies are additional risks more often sold under separate policy covers, that should be considered to protect your business against all eventualities.

Examples of these are, Commercial Legal Expenses insurance cover which protects the company against claims made by employees for unfair dismissal and allows you to bring cases against suppliers.

Various protection policies are also available for businesses including Keyman insurance which provides cover against the loss of key people within your organisation. Business mortgage protection provides a monthly payment for business premises should you suffer and accident or sickness. Group ASU policies are also available to protect your staff and employees.

Purchasing Business Cover

Purchasing commercial risks insurance can be a daunting experience for the uninitiated small business owner and unless the risks are straightforward and can be underwritten online, it is advisable for all companies to approach the services of a local or regional commercial insurance broker. Insurance Brokers will not only be able to assess the complete range of risks that your business is exposed to, and provide the correct levels of cover, they will more often than not have a unique local knowledge of the risks involved and will be able to negotiate premiums that reflect the nature of the risks. Furthermore, in the event of a claim, and as most businesses will be faced with claims at some point in their trading life-cycle, the broker will handle all the settlement negotiations with the insuring company and allow you to continue what you do best – running your business.

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Business Insurance Explained

If you have just started a new enterprise or have been asked to look after the company’s insurance renewals, business insurance can at first seem a daunting proposition. After all, much of the language and industry jargon such as endorsements, indemnity levels and excess periods can at first appear alien.

Then there is the question of knowing what covers to get.

With the responsibility of ensuring that the business activities and property are completely covered from risks that the firm might face, a new small businessman may well also be confused by the plethora of covers, plans and policies that are available today.

Business insurance is however fairly simple even for newbies, if you break it down from the top.

There are basically two types of risk that a business may face in daily operations, these being business property risks and business liability risks.

All business insurance policies contain elements of the two risks either separate or combined under a single plan. If you need cover for business buildings and premises contents, you will need property insurance. If you need cover for the work you do, you will require liability insurance. Most businesses need elements of both.

Business property buildings insurance protects all risks to a business premises covering loss,material damage and consequential loss to all buildings, outbuildings, fixtures and fittings on the premises. The premiums are calculated on rebuilding costs of the business property and will also contain elements of public liability to protect a business against claims from the public of for example, a wall falling on a passer-by.

Property contents insurance covers loss or damage to the contents of the business premises. Business contents policies typically have provision to cover items such as furniture, tables and desks, computer equipment, telecommunications equipment, business electronic equipment, data, tools, machinery, stock, high risk stock, raw materials, fabricated, assembled, manufactured or stored goods and anything used in the daily operation on the business premises. Freight, cargo and goods in transit cover options provide insurance for the businesses property away from the premises.

Business property insurance polices are typically marketed by the type business property they provide insurance for. For example office insurance, shop insurance, hotel insurance and pub insurance are popular commercial property insurance schemes which contain all the relevant covers for each use of the property type.

Much commercial property is either rented or leased, in particular offices and shop space. Business insurance provides specialist cover for property owners of these types of premises with a let property insurance policy, which is tailor-made for business landlords.

Liability Insurance protects a business against all liabilities that the enterprise might be liable for as it carries out its daily actions. Liabilities are events which occur that could lead to claims against the proprietor, trader, owner, partnership or company. Liability insurance cover protects the company profits against all damages and costs incurred resulting from the claim.

Business Liability Insurance includes Public Liability Insurance, Employers Liability, Products Liability, Directors and Company Officers Liability and Professional Indemnity Insurance.

Public Liability protects the business profits against claims from members of the public and this cover forms the basis of a standard business insurance contract.

If you employ staff you will require by law Employers liability insurance which protects your business against claims resulting from accidents and injuries to paid employees and sub contractors whilst anywhere at work.

If you sell or provide goods or parts your business will need Products liability insurance.This cover is usually automatically included in for example, a shop insurance policy.

Nearly all business insurance polices sold, in particular those online, are what is known as combined business insurance or trade packages that have been specifically designed for particular trades or professions. Find one that is suitable for your particular company by carrying out a search for your trade, service or profession insurance. These combined business insurance policies contain all the covers you will need in your line of work, ensuring that if a claim against your company is made, you will be covered.

The company owners or directors can also purchase Directors & Officers Insurance or D & O insurance as it is often called, which covers them personally against both civil and criminal liabilities resulting from business activities.

Additionally professional services should purchase Professional Indemnity insurance which covers the service against the liability of any advice that might be given professionally and later turns out to be negligent.

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How Commercial Insurance Price Comparison Sites Compare Business Insurance Quotes

You may think that one commercial insurance price comparison site is much the same as another. Some people swear by them, others cannot stand them but not all price comparison sites are the same. There are two distinct types and each has its own benefits, advantages and disadvantages.

This is why different businesses and commercial enterprises have very different user experiences, depending upon which type of comparison or price aggregator site they have visited. They may well prefer one brand comparison site over another, purely because they prefer the way that particular brand’s website works and this often has nothing to do with the quotes it returns.

In order to understand the large differences it is necessary to get under the bonnet and look at the anatomy of a commercial insurance price comparison website’s internal engine.

Inside a Commercial Insurance comparison

Leaving aside the prices quoted which are subjective and variable, the major factor that differentiates price comparison sites user experiences, is the location of the rating and underwriting engine that produces the quotes.

This engine is the rules based logic that produces the commercial insurance quotes you see in your browser. It can be either local with centralised processing, or remote with what is known as distributed processing.

Centralised comparisons hold all the commercial insurance policy and rating information local to the web server where a prospective businessman can compare quotes.

Distributed comparisons have to visit each insurance company or business insurance broker website to retrieve quotes and all the policy information which is then displayed on the comparison website. Distributed processing comparison websites are known a ‘Scraper sites’ because they scrape data from the fields of one form and pass it into equivalent form fields at a remote web server.

When someone visits a commercial or business insurance comparison website, they will initially be asked what type of cover they require for their business. For example a shop or office policy or perhaps just simple public liability cover. Commercial insurance is particularly difficult to underwrite, so the type of policies that are available on Internet tend to be packages where blanket levels of cover can be offered, in order to be suitable for the widest range of business activity and customers.

However all commercial risks have some common elements such as levels of cover required, which need to be captured in order to auto-rate and make comparisons. These are called rating factors.

Comparison Screens

The user is next presented with a screen that has been tailored to ask specific questions that are necessary to rate the chosen commercial insurance. Both types of comparison website offer variations on a theme for data capture, however both will use a typical form that requires filling.

As a businessman completes the online application form, the data entered requires validation. The values entered need to fit standardised parameters and exclude all those businesses that do not fit this standardisation. This is achieved by limiting the choice of the user. For example, the comparison site when asking the applicant to describe their business activities or trade type, will only present to the user the businesses and trades it can quote for, in the form of a drop down list.

Centralised processing comparisons are much more likely to do all the policy and underwriting criteria validation on the front-end form, with for example validation of postcodes, addresses, eligible business types, and numerical validation on sums insured. The centralised comparison system uses Javascript and calls to local tables This gives the system a very quick user experience and assures that the system can return a range of quotes for the prospective business. It also allows the system the provide as much data about available polices before the quotation process is complete, because it knows as the form is being filled out, what policies offer what covers for each of the questions asked.

Conversely, scraper processing sites need to feed data into the screen fields on a variety of remote websites, all which tend to require varying details and user input, in various sequential orders. Scraper sites therefore need to ask many more questions in order to be able to try to satisfy as many rating factors and underwriting rules required for as many different competing companies. The complexity of a commercial insurance policy often requires certain information that you cannot ask for later in the process.

Rating

When all the information has been collected, the data is sent to the rating logic to calculate the rates and premiums.

Trade, Turnover and other factors provided by the user about the business are used by the system to define coverage, policy clauses, excesses and limits of indemnity, which can be returned to the user as part of a quote offer.

Rating tables are held online either locally for a centralised rating system or on the remote websites for scraper style distributed rating. The premium price is calculated from the values of the rating factors provided by the user when compared against the online tables. The actual rating factors vary depending upon the type of commercial insurance policy being applied for, suffice to say that if the system is asked to provide quotes for commercial property cover, the risk address postcode will be used to define the theft rate and flood rate, which combined with the rate for the risks of fire for the trade concerned, will produce a rate for the property perils risk. Rates for commercial property, for example, are usually expressed as percentages per hundred pounds of sum insured.

Processing

It is at this point in the process that the differences in the two types of comparison site become apparent to the user.

When a comparison rating engine sat on a local server, processing is much faster. A locally rated panel will return quotes commercial insurance quotes and covers instantly. The system has all it needs at hand to calculate premiums and also return comprehensive policy comparisons of cover and risk options in micro-seconds.

A scraper site however will consist of extensive ‘middleware’ processing, which inevitably slows down the process. The role of this ‘in the middle’ software is to communicate with the remote websites where the rates are held, and pass all the users details. It then needs to collect the quotes and associated data coming back from the broker or insurance company server and structure and order it into a webpage that shows a price comparison.

The process may take a few minutes when multiple business insurance providers are being asked to quote. The upside is that distributed processing scraper sites generally compare far more policies or companies offerings and more often than not, will return many more quotes. If you can be prepared to wait! You have to wait for the processing to complete on the remote brokers servers and for the quotes, excesses, and terms and conditional clauses to be returned to the comparison website..

Distributed processing comparison sites may have a lot more companies competing and returning quotes, although this does not necessarily mean more choice of commercial insurance. Quite often they are offering the same product from the same company, the only variance being a price differential.

Offering too much choice can also have its downside and create technical and promotional problems. Many of the smaller brokers offering more specialist business insurance propositions, have joined large, well-known brand name commercial insurance comparison sites that employ the scraper methodology. However they often complain that they do not have the server processing power to be able to handle a flood of multi-stringed requests for remote underwriting and processing and by time the quotes are returned to the comparison site, the user has already been offered perhaps thirty or more policy propositions and gone elsewhere.

Comparing Business insurance Quotes

After all the processing has been completed the quotes are presented to the user, usually in order of cheapest first.

Both types of quote and policy comparison site allow the user to compare prices and premiums quoted, however only the centralised sites allow in-depth policy comparisons and to make changes to the original data entered.

Locally centralised comparisons allow the user to compare premiums and also adjust the propositions, add or remove covers and tailor a policy to a particular business needs.

Scraper sites do not allow this as they require all the information beforehand and demand that the user chooses any options or additional covers before the quotation process.

In this sense they only provide a range of premium prices and attached policy conditions for the user to choose from. The scraper sites make no provision to compare policy covers, whereas a centralised local processing comparison site will have all the information to hand for a complete policy and cover comparison. These features are not available for a comparison site that uses remote underwriting. In order to do this it is necessary for the user to visit each individual site, make the adjustments and return to the comparison site to compare quotes, before repeating the process, which is obviously very time-consuming.

Security should be a concern for all those using commercial insurance comparison websites. Although all comparison sites use secure servers and SSL sockets for transmitting the information supplied about the business, by its very nature a centralised processing site will be more secure. With scraper sites your details are being passed around possibly to up to fifty or more different sites around the web, each which could be compromised at any stage of the data transmission, including payment. Furthermore passing your details to fifty companies is effectively adding your business details to fifty mailing lists.

In summary, the user experience is much faster and more informative for businessmen seeking to compare commercial insurance quotes if they use a centralised price comparison website where everything is in one place. Better deals may be had from a distributed processing scraper site, however the process is long-winded with too many questions and too much waiting time. Too often insufficient policy information is returned with the quotes for the prospective buyer to make an informed decision about which business insurance product to purchase.

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Is Going Direct Really Cheaper Than A Broker Or Price Comparison For Small Business Insurance?

The UK media is currently awash with advertising slogans from direct commercial insurance companies targeting small business owners in an attempt to make them switch their provider of business insurance.

‘Get 12 months cover for the price of ten’ and ‘You won’t find us on price comparison websites’ are typical of the slogans emanating from these companies, in a language more akin to the selling of car insurance than the traditional professional and almost stoic approach to the selling of business insurance cover.

In the current recession, price has become the determining factor in winning the war of market share for all goods and services and insurance is no exception. Prudent small businessmen and women are looking to cut costs in all areas of their business and the large direct insurance companies are well aware of this.

The large insurers are also aware that the UK market has over five million small businesses of which a fifth are sole traders, self-employed and people working from home, many of whom are familiar with purchasing their personal insurance direct with the provider, either by phone or on the Internet.

There are three types of provider in the current market for business insurance in the UK.

Intermediaries such as insurance brokers and agents, price comparison sites and direct commercial and business insurers.

Each has their own advantage and disadvantages, however whether one distribution channel is cheaper than another is often a subjective view from a particular trade, or dependent upon factors many of which cannot be quantified in price.

Direct Insurance companies claim to be able to offer cheaper polices because the cut out the costs of the middleman. It is certainly true that direct insurers do not have to pay an intermediary for the cost of the lead or introduction, however it is questionable whether this cost saving is actually reflected in the prices offered to the public.

Certainly there are economies of scale to be made by centralising the life-cycle of a policy from sales point to claim and renewal, however all those functions that are performed by an intermediary still have to be carried out in-house by the direct company and these have a cost.

Many large composite insurers often have distinct direct divisions with their own target market and premium rates. The same company may also have a broker or intermediary division or channel.

It is quite often the case that a large broker with a large book of business of, for example, small builders liability, will receive much more preferential rates then the same companies direct channel, because that insurance company wishes to retain that brokers clients.

Commercial Insurance brokers then are often able to offer preferential rates because they have more flexible schemes and arrangements than the direct channel.

One of the main benefits of using an insurance broker or intermediary in purchasing commercial insurance for small business, cannot be quantified in price and is worth the commission or fee that they may charge. That is advice, market and product information and knowledge, access to various markets such as Lloyds and some human help if the worst happens to a business and a claim is needed.

A commercial or business insurance broker is often able to negotiate far better claims settlements than if an individual were to deal direct with the insurer. The main reason for this is once again the insurer wishes to retain that brokers share of the total risk pool and will often pay out to a broker on an ex-gratia basis. This cost of this service is not quantifiable at the quote stage where small business cover may well just be valued for the price paid or the covers bought.

The third major way in which small business owners can purchase cover is by visiting a price comparison website. All the major UK comparison sites have recently begun to offer online cover aimed particularly at the small business sector, with under 50 employees. This is in direct competition with the direct insurers for television and media advertising space, aimed in particular at self-employed tradesmen and women who require business liability insurance and perhaps commercial van cover.

The comparison price proposition is that they can compare the market or at least a small section of it, to find the cheapest business insurance. They often do not provide any assistance in the purchasing decision-making process and the reality often is, that the cheapest commercial and small business insurance can be found in one of the other distribution channels.

It is therefore important that a small businessman shops around and takes some time to compare offerings including premiums, covers and services from all three sales channels. Prices tend to vary immensely by trade across the direct, broker and comparison markets and often it is a case of finding the provider or supplier who is the industry leader for a particular business type or trade in order to make large savings.

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Purchasing Business Insurance for the First Time? Things You Need to Know

Having adequate business insurance is primary to every business, regardless of its size, geographic location or product it offers. While running a business you need to deal with complex issues that may rise when your business is in operation. The most important ones are the risks associated with your business. You can reduce risks by purchasing a comprehensive insurance coverage.

If you are purchasing insurance for the first time, you need to be very careful as it can make or break your business. This article discusses things you need to know when purchasing business insurance for the first time.

Know how much coverage your business requires:

Before purchasing insurance for your business, you need to know how much coverage your business requires and for that you need to understand the severity of risks that your business may face. There are several factors that you need to identify and evaluate before purchasing insurance for your business. Assess the risks to your business to protect it from them.

Do thorough research:

Different businesses have different insurance needs. Therefore, before purchasing an insurance policy, you need to list the needs of your business and research thoroughly the type of insurance cover for your business. It depends on the size and nature of your business.

You need to check certain things before purchasing business insurance like the type of coverage that is ideal for your business, where to purchase insurance policy, etc.

Take the help of experienced people:

Insurance coverage required by your business is unique, so it should be tailor-made according to the specifications of your business. For that, you need to talk to experienced and knowledgeable people in the industry. Get their advice to get an idea on the several risks that may affect your business operations, so that you will have a clear picture in your mind on which policy to purchase for your business.

Basic things to look for in a business insurance policy:

As you are planning to purchase business insurance for the first time, you need to consider the basic things while purchasing business insurance policy. Make sure you look for options such as minimum liability, property coverage, stock and equipment coverage, auto coverage, business interruption, etc. You need to opt for primary coverage and create a check-list, so that you are sure you have enough coverage that suits your business needs.

Understand what you are buying:

Firstly, you need to understand what type of policy to buy and how it will help your business. There are several factors associated, including the risks of losses and liabilities while buying business insurance. You need to make sure that you are getting enough coverage for your business – all the risks and events are covered under the policy. Also avoid buying unnecessary coverage, as you may have to pay an extra on the premiums.

Shop around:

If you are looking for the best price when purchasing business insurance, you need to shop around and check out with several insurers, as the cost of the coverage differs across insurers. To get the best quotes at a reasonable price, take help of brokerage firms, as they are experienced and knowledgeable, and they will help you out in purchasing the best coverage that suits your business.

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