As online shoppers ourselves, we will be the first to admit that the advent of free one-day shipping has been amazing. As small business owners, it's kind of a bummer.

Most small businesses like us simply do not have enough warehousing to compete. The benefits of large corporate selling platforms continue to be attractive to buyers and even to sellers, as they help businesses reach a wider customer base and offer help with time-consuming tasks like customer service and returns.

However, the cost of this help and networking is more than most small businesses can afford. Large selling platforms charge sellers anywhere from 30-50% of a business' revenue for purchases made through their platform--more if sellers opt-in to use the additional streamlined services.

This loss of revenue requires businesses to scramble for higher profit margins which can in turn lead to negative side effects like poorer product quality, unhelpful customer service, and ultimately small businesses going under. 

The good news is, you can help these businesses by choosing where you purchase! Many businesses offer comparable shipping and return policies and protections and can often offer lower pricing for the same products on their own websites. Help support small businesses by purchasing directly from small business websites, or if you still prefer larger platforms, click through products links if available on the seller's websites to help them earn commissions from these larger selling platforms and recoup lost revenue.  

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Thank you for supporting small business!

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Jacquie Mercer

Owner of Mercer of Montana