As the owner of a business, you will no doubt be interested in anything that can enhance customer experiences and make your operations more productive.
Blockchain can help you to achieve these things and more. You can even use blockchain to attract investment in your business.
It is not too expensive to implement Blockchain
If you are a small business owner then you might be thinking that it is too expensive for you to implement blockchain.
The reality is that it does not as expensive as you probably think to take advantage of blockchain in your business.
It is simply not true that only large companies can afford to implement blockchain. There are now blockchain development companies that provide their services at a reasonable cost to small and medium sized businesses as well as Fortune 500 companies.
You can use Blockchain for an Offline Business as well as Online
Another popular myth is that blockchain is only for online businesses. Blockchain technology can provide several benefits to businesses that use real physical spaces to operate. Some offline businesses that are interested in blockchain technology include:
- Restaurants
- Wholesalers
- Gyms
- Bakeries
- Nail salons
As we have said many times in this report, the possibilities with blockchain are almost endless. Do not discount your business as not suitable to benefit from blockchain as this is very unlikely to be the case in reality.
Accept Payments with Cryptocurrencies
An easy way for you to embrace blockchain with minimal cost is to start accepting cryptocurrencies as a form of payment for your products and services.
Many people now hold the popular cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum and you are likely to attract more customers if you let them pay using these coins as well as fiat currency.
There are companies that have already made the move to accepting Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies for payment. A couple of examples of this are Overstock and Expedia who will both accept Bitcoin as a payment method.
If you operate an online store (or are thinking about doing this), then you can use e-commerce platforms such as Shopify who already have the option to accept the major cryptocurrencies for payment. More business owners are turning to Shopify now due to the lower transaction fees and the fact that there are no chargebacks with cryptocurrency payments.
There are some things that you will need to put in place before you can accept payment by cryptocurrency. You need to plan this properly so that it is worth your while. A digital wallet is necessary and you need to know what “gas” fees apply on the different blockchain networks to convert crypto to fiat currency.
It will require thought, effort and testing to be able to accept cryptocurrency as a payment method but you will send a strong signal to your customers that you care about them and are willing to provide them with the features that they want. You are likely to attract new customers by doing this.
Another advantage of allowing your customers to pay using cryptocurrencies is that you can save on transaction fees charged by conventional financial institutions such as banks. Once a payment is made using Bitcoin for example, it cannot be reversed and it is permanent.
So, if one of your customers requires a refund for some reason and have paid using cryptocurrency, they will need to directly contact your business. This will provide you with the opportunity of discussing the issue with the customer and possibly preventing the refund.
Chargebacks are a nightmare for businesses. A customer will make a purchase using their credit card and then will cancel this payment with their credit card provider. This creates a big problem for your business. There are no chargebacks possible if the purchase is made using cryptocurrencies.
Transfer Money with Blockchain
Blockchain is perhaps most commonly known for its ability to handle money transfers in a secure and efficient way. When you use blockchain technology for transferring money you will also avoid high transaction costs from banks for example.
Businesses are now hiring people in different locations across the world. Sending money using conventional methods can be slow for the employee and expensive for the employer. These things are not an issue with blockchain.
Recording of Transactions
If there is an aspect of your business where you need to document transactions with some different parties properly then blockchain can definitely be the answer. Several businesses are considering blockchain and are looking at how they can use distributed ledger technology to their advantage.
Blockchain can provide a lot of benefits for supply chains, the processing of deals and audit trails. The use of distributed applications was first pioneered by Ethereum back in 2015. With the introduction of “smart contracts” on the Ethereum blockchain, many businesses were able to use this as a secure and fast way to manage multiple transactions.
There are other benefits as well such as the use of permission ledgers. This ensures that all transactions completed on the blockchain network are very secure. When a business uses a permission ledger, they can reduce the amount of time that they spend monitoring logistics and shipping activities for example.
Every party that is involved in a supply chain will increase the amount of work that a business has to do using conventional methods. Blockchain should reduce the amount of work required no matter how many parties are involved and it is much more secure.
Blockchain Contracts cannot be manipulated
It is likely that you have to deal with contracts in your business. Here you are placing your trust and confidence in words on pieces of paper. Unfortunately, there have been many situations when contracts have been manipulated and businesses have lost out.
You can use blockchain to create contracts with others and once these are in place then they are not easily changed.
There is no need to use a lawyer when you implement a blockchain smart contract. When the conditions of a smart contract are fulfilled then the transfer of value will take place with certainty.
Use Blockchain for Secure Storage of Data
Blockchain technology is a lot more secure than client server technology. One of the things that you can definitely do is to use blockchain for the secure storage of your important data.
When data is stored on a blockchain network it is always encrypted. Only those people that have the unique crypto key will be able to access the data.
These days you will find that many companies offer data storage using blockchain for a reasonable fee. Data is much safer stored on a blockchain network and several businesses are already utilizing these services.
Storing your important data using blockchain is a good alternative to using cloud services. There are billions spent on cloud storage each year and if you are using cloud storage it is likely to be more cost effective to switch to blockchain. Your data will be a lot safer as well.
The use of Smart Contracts is on the rise
Blockchain can provide a business with the ability to create smart contracts. These are self-enforcing and self-verifying contracts between a business and its customers. A blockchain network will store the smart contract and this cannot be changed without the right permissions.
Businesses are using smart contracts on blockchain right now for different applications such as:
- Contracts with employees
- Contracts with customers
- Contracts with suppliers
- Contracts for commercial leases
One of the major advantages of using blockchain smart contracts is that it provides you with an affordable level of protection. In a lot of cases you will not need to involve a lawyer with a smart contract and this can save you a lot of money.
Raise Capital using Blockchain
An increasing number of businesses are using blockchain as an alternative way to raise capital. They are creating Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) or Initial Token Offerings (ITOs) as a way to attract investors in a virtual way.
For example, your business can use the Ethereum blockchain to issue coins and create secure records of the distribution of these coins. This can be a better alternative to conventional funding methods such as using financial institutions, venture capitalists, crowdfunding and more.
With an ICO or ITO, investors can freely trade their coins or tokens with others. You can use this alternative fund-raising method for revenue share models or the provision of company equity for example. When an investor decides to invest in your ICO they will receive coins from you on a blockchain network.
These coins could be accepted by your company in exchange for the products and services that you provide. Or an investor can keep hold of the coins to obtain a higher return in the future as their value increases.
Bounty Campaigns with Blockchain
Another way to raise the awareness of your brand is to provide small cryptocurrency rewards to your customers.
You can do this with blockchain technology in the form of a bounty campaign. Your business will provide coins or tokens on the blockchain network that have some form of value.
An example of this is using these coins in exchange for the products and services you are going to provide in the future.
You can use a blockchain platform for your bounty campaign and allow anyone to join in. Some companies pay coin holders for completing simple tasks. Promoting your brand is the main aim of a bounty campaign.
Find ways to take advantage of Blockchain Technology
Look for ways that the use of blockchain technology can be advantageous to your company. For example, if you are part of a supply chain (a lot of businesses are) it is likely that others involved in the supply chain will want you to track your processes digitally. Blockchain is an ideal way to do this.
When you are supplying products to the B2C or B2B market then being able to reliably track the source of your products will provide you with an advantage. These days, an increasing number of customers are demanding that their product purchases come from sustainable sources. You can use blockchain to prove this and charge higher prices.
The tracking of shipments is another ideal application for blockchain. You can use blockchain with smart contracts to ensure the accurate tracking of shipments. Shipping giant Maersk is already using blockchain to monitor their cargo with customs agencies in Holland, the Department of Homeland Security in the US and customers who use their services.
A smaller business could easily use blockchain to implement a similar system. For example, they can use smart contracts on a blockchain to automatically place orders with suppliers when their stocks reach a specific threshold. With blockchain all events in a process are recorded and any payments made verified properly.
Learn more about Blockchain for Business
While there are a lot of advantages to utilizing blockchain in your business, there are some potential disadvantages as well that you need to be aware of. It is important that you go beyond this special report and learn more about blockchain.
There are plenty of resources available online to learn more about the use of blockchain in business. You can find training courses of high-quality offered for a very reasonable cost on platforms such as Udemy.com.
Alternatively, there are plenty of books published about using the power of blockchain in business. A good place to look for these books is Amazon.com. If you prefer to go to a physical store then Barnes and Noble could be a good choice.
What will Blockchain do for your Business?
You need to ask yourself some important questions if you are considering utilizing blockchain technology for your business. Here are some good questions to ask?
- Will using blockchain provide my customers with a better experience?
- Will using blockchain increase my customer base?
- Will using blockchain reduce costs?
- Will using blockchain simplify business processes and make them faster and more efficient?
- Will using blockchain in my business make my life easier?
It is very important that you have specific goals for any blockchain implementation project. You need to be able to measure your progress towards these goals.
Start with one small Blockchain Project
With all of the advantages of using blockchain it can be tempting to want to implement as many applications as possible to derive all of the benefits.
It is not a good idea to tackle more than one blockchain project at a time as things can easily become overwhelming.
We recommend that you choose a small blockchain project first and focus all of your attention on it.
Get used to this one blockchain system and closely monitor how well it is performing for your business before you move on to another project.
