Thursday, 4 April 2019

Why E-Commerce Businesses Fail : Statistical Analysis


While every entrepreneur wants to be a boss, just the desire of it does not mean you can be successful. Web entrepreneurship requires a great degree of patience and fortitude to turn an innovation into a running business. Such ventures enact a significant effort from the entrepreneur and the chances of failure are always higher than success.

From securing a startup capital and establishing an office space, to building an online presence and conducting e-commerce operations, every stage requires thorough decision making and careful management to proceed onto the next. A misstep at any of the stages can prove catastrophic and could even cost you your entire business’s worth. This article will read you exactly why such incidents occur.


Lack of Patience

In startups, there are no shortcuts and get-rich-quick schemes. Each successive step requires a significant deal of work, patience and time before you can move onto the other. Even large multinationals don’t have the privilege of guaranteed success when it comes to online startups.
Jack Ma, a Chinese Business Magnate and co-founder of the multi-billion-dollar e-commerce juggernaut Alibaba has stressed the imperative of patience as one of the key reasons behind his success. In his own word he says,

Sadly, impatience has become a common byproduct of today’s entrepreneurial mindset and has spiraled many ventures from “en-route to success”, to “costly catastrophes”. Without patience, you cannot determine the success potential of your business and not on how strong and profitable your business idea is.
By making patience your virtue, you not only learn from mistakes and come back harder but enhance the overall possibility and probability of your online startup’s success.


Absence of Vision

Web-based startups are quite competitive and demand on-the-spot creative thinking to identify problems and develop solutions. Whichever sector, activity, product or service you belong to, as the startup founder there will be a lot more expected from you than just signing legal documents and approving leaves.
As a CEO you will be responsible for many things outside your financial and administrative duties. You will have to step up and motivate your team with realistic optimism, allocate your resources to improve efficiency, promote collaboration, and build response plans and strategies when a competitor emerges. Above all, you must possess the utmost willingness to take calculated risks when the time comes.
Effective leadership is among the key aspects of a successful venture but becoming a good CEO takes a great deed of hard work and dedication and certainly is not for the faint of heart.


Insufficient Devotion

To me, sky diving and entrepreneurship are oddly similar. Quitting your job and diving into the world of startup has the same risks when you jump out of an airplane and free-fall. In the startup, your optimism will become a test of faith whereas in skydiving you’re wondering if the parachute will open to save you or not. In both circumstances, opportunity cost becomes a determinant.
Although, keeping a job on the side may help you stay financially afloat, it will eventually prove detrimental to your startup’s progress when things begin to pick steam. Besides, a true relationship with your start-up can be reflected from how much you are willing to put yourself into it.
While there are numerous debates made on it, many that contest on the idea of leaving a soundly pleasant and steady career for a business pursuit that is full of uncertainties. While there may be many risks associated with running a startup, a Hobson’s Choice has to be made, taking into account how one of the choices will benefit you from the other in the future.


Bad Financing Choices

Securing an appropriate sum to fund your startup always comes with a fair share of challenges. The most common mistake between new entrepreneurs is they waste a disproportionate amount of time on schemes than focusing their efforts on PR and marketing to bring investors.
While crowdfunding has been one of the most successful and fastest means to secure startup capital, its saturation in the market, continuous misuse and growing distrust between crowd funders has given a bad rap to new entrepreneurs. Similarly, incubators and accelerators are established with good intentions and clear goals, but end up excluding entrepreneurs who need their help the most. Loans and credit schemes are equally distressing and are mostly built around the idea of exploiting the investee. Government grants are quite rare and require a ton of paperwork and legal procedures.
Unlike experienced entrepreneurs who already have a pool of capital from previously sold ventures or a reliable investor backing, as a newcomer, you must go the extra mile to finance your venture, establish client connections, gather investment contacts and conduct other PR efforts to bring attention towards your idea.


Weak Digital Presence


As an online startup, digital has to be your strong sides. This means you must put extra effort to build a robust digital foot print for your brand in order to achieve your business goals. 90% of ecommerce startups that fail have either completely ignored to create an online presence or have neglected in their efforts to deploy effective online marketing strategies to achieve their KPIs. An ecommerce startup requires a fast, functional and visually appealing website that can be optimized for Search Engines. Search Engine Optimizing (SEO) is one of the deciding factors for your ecommerce website’s success. Without SEO you may never achieve a good ranking on Search Engine Result Pages (SERPs) and produce conversions your products or services need. Moreover, poor web security, bad layout, non-responsive design and high shipping rates can also contribute to the ultimate failure of your online startup.



This post is taken from  : https://propakistani.pk

Top Ten Profitable Banks of Pakistan in 2018

Related image


2018 was a challenging year for a majority of banks due to stiff competition, operational and regulatory issues but few banks outperformed the rest despite all such issues, maintaining growth in profits while expanding the business at the same time.
The operational strategies of banks reflected upon their balance sheets and their bottom lines, which showed the performance of the banks and their position in the overall industry.
As the financial results of 2018 were announced in recent weeks, it was revealed that banks’ position has been changed dramatically with regards to their profits in the overall banking industry.
Here are the top ten profitable banks of Pakistan.
  1. MCB Bank
MCB Bank was the most profitable bank in 2018. The bank secured its first position replacing United Bank Limited at the top.
The bank posted a profit of Rs. 21.36 billion in 2018, which is 4.8 percent less than the profit of 2017 though this figure remained the highest in the banking industry.

  1. National Bank of Pakistan
Related image
National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) maintained its second position in the banking industry in terms of profitability.
NBP recorded a profit of Rs. 20 billion in 2018 against Rs. 22.3 billion in 2017. The bank’s profitability was affected by the huge loan-losses in the outgoing year undermining the bottom line of the bank at the same time.
On the other hand, NBP registered a couple of records in the same year. It has become the first bank to cross the mark of Rs. 2 trillion in deposits. It also earned the highest revenue of Rs. 96.9 billion— highest ever number in the seven decades of its operational history.

  1. United Bank Limited
Image result for ubl bank head office
United Bank of Limited (UBL) failed to retain its crown position in the banking industry in 2018. It fell from the top position to number three in terms of profits in the banking industry.
UBL recorded a profit of Rs. 15 billion in 2018 as against of Rs. 25 billion in 2017, showing a huge loss of Rs. 10 billion in its profitability which also impacted the industry. The steep decline in profits was due to the impact of non-performing loans including the operational loss suffered by the bank due to the closure of its New York branch.
In 2016, UBL posted the highest ever profit of Rs. 27.7 billion and remained at number 2 after HBL. The bank’s profit declined substantially in the past three years.

  1. Allied Bank Limited

Allied Bank Limited not only maintained its position at No. 4 in the banking industry but it also recorded a slight growth in its profitability in 2018. The bank recorded a profit of Rs. 13 billion in 2018 with a less than one percent growth compared to 2017.
The bank seemingly has strengthened its footing in the banking sector to grow its operations and profit in 2019 to show its sustainability in business, operations, and profitability.

  1. Habib Bank Limited
Related image
Habib Bank Limited, once the leading profitable bank of Pakistan, is now standing at No. 5 in the banking industry. The bank reported a profit of Rs. 12.4 billion in 2018 with a healthy growth of 41 percent compared to 2017.
Under the new leadership, the bank is aggressively working to regain its previous leading position in the banking industry. 2018’s profit is not even half of the profit it made in 2016 (Rs. 34 billion—the highest ever in the history of banking industry).

  1. Standard Chartered Bank
Related image
Standard Chartered Bank managed the sixth position in terms of profitability in 2018.The bank made its highest ever profit of Rs. 11.2 billion in 2018.
In 2017, the bank stood at No. 8 with a profit of Rs. 8.24 billion. Its competitors such as Bank Alfalah and Bank Al Habib stood ahead of this bank in terms of profit.
However, the business and operational strategy of the bank worked well with positive outcomes and it regained outstanding profitability in 2018.

  1. Bank Alfalah Limited
Related image
Bank Alfalah Limited maintained its profitability in 2018 as well. The bank stands at No. 7. It recorded over Rs. 10 billion in profit in 2018 as against Rs. 8.61 billion profit reported in 2017. This is also the highest ever profit of the bank since it has been operating in Pakistan.

  1. Meezan Bank
Image result for meezan bank head office
Meezan Bank stands at No. 8 with a profit of Rs. 8.96 billion, which is also the highest ever profit of the bank.
The bank showed impressive growth in this year with 42 percent growth over 2017. Its position improved because of an increase of Rs.2.64 billon in profit in 2018. The bank left behind Bank Al Habib which stood ahead of the Islamic bank last year.

  1. Bank Al Habib Limited
Related image
Bank Al Habib dropped from eight to nine in 2018. The bank’s profit declined by 1.4 percent in 2018 to stand at Rs. 8.41 billion, which was the first time the bank showed a profit with negative growth.
The bank recorded its highest ever profit of Rs. 8.5 billion in 2017. In 2018, it was replaced by Meezan Bank at No. 9 position.

  1. Bank of Punjab
Image result for bank of punjab head office pakistan
Bank of Punjab (BoP) has come to No. 10 from nowhere. The bank posted a profit of Rs. 7.6 billion in 2018 thanks to the support of tax rebates and reversal of provision. The bank was a surprise addition as it showed a loss of Rs. 3.3 billion in 2017 but it gradually converted its losses into profitability in each quarter of the outgoing year. Of course, the government support as the owner was pivotal to help out the bank from its financial crisis.


Banks’ Performance in 2019

Out of 10, six banks reported profit growth whereas the remaining four banks saw negative growth in their profitability due to specific reasons, which portrays that the overall banking sector is now moving towards profit growth.
The policy rate surged by 4.25 percent in 2018 which was further increased by 0.75 percent to settle at 10.75 percent. The increase in policy rate will push the interest rates of the banks and their interest income accordingly last year, bank advances reached an all-time high of more than Rs. 1 trillion.
The competition among these banks will intensify in the coming months but the business performance and strategy of the individual banks will determine its ranking of 2019 with close margins.
These ranking were based on profit values. There are also other benchmarks which drive the position of the banks including their asset values, paid-up capital, and network penetration.

This post is taken from  : https://propakistani.pk

Thursday, 14 March 2019

Your Guide to Pay E-Challan in Pakistan [Guide]




Pakistan is crippled by poor traffic situation; a problem which has also suffered through the hands of corruption in the past. To overcome these problems and eliminating human interface, Punjab Safe Cities Authorities (PSCA) introduced the E-Challan system in Lahore last year in September.

The E-Challan system, initially launched in Lahore, is now being replicated in other cities as well which includes the capital, Islamabad.

In order to identify the traffic violators, ANRP cameras are installed at various locations throughout the city. Following the identification process, the challans are then dispatched to the home address of the violators which is stored in the database.

This process not only eases the lives of the authorities but also for the perpetrators, who have the facility to pay their dues over the internet. Previously, this process was extremely tedious and involved hours of standing in long queues.

There is denying that this was a much needed step. This process has eliminated human interference which means the chances of corruption are practically zero. Additionally, it has also helped the culprits to pay their fines much quicker.

Now that we understand how E-Challans are generated and what the benefits of it are, let’s talk about what are the steps if you are served with a notice.

Checking E-Challan Online

If you have broken any traffic law then expect a challan to be delivered at your door within a week. Here is how the challan copy looks like:


The authority informs the culprits in two manners:

1.    Physical copy of the challan will be sent at your home address
2.    Information regarding the challan will be updated on their website

o   To check, visit the website
o   Enter the *CNIC and vehicle registration number
o   Download the challan form on your device

*Note that the car must be registered under your own name. If it isn’t then enter the CNIC of the actual owner of the car.

Paying the E-Challan

Currently, the system is fully operational in Lahore but the process of paying the dues in other cities will also be the same (unless we post otherwise).

Here are few of the methods through which you can pay the e-challan fine:

How to Pay E-Challan with Physical Copy:

  • Take the physical copy delivered at your home address to the nearest branch of Bank of Punjab or National Bank of Pakistan and pay the fine there.
  • You can also use the Bank of Punjab ATMs to submit the fine if you don’t want to be subjected to standing in long queues.
  • If the E-Challan is not delievered to your address, you can do the following things:
    • Go to the E-Challan website, print the challan and repeated any of the above two methods

How to Pay E-Challan via Internet:

  • In order to pay the challan online, the mobile application is currently under development through which the fines can be paid with ease.
  • Once developed, it will be available for download on Play Store and App Store both, catering to all kinds of smartphone users.



This post is taken from https://propakistani.pk

Monday, 4 March 2019

Jeff Bezos is now the Richest Person in World




Amazon’s Founder & CEO, Jeff Bezos has now beaten Bill Gates to become the wealthiest man in the world with a total worth of $141.9 billion. Last year, Bezos was beaten by Gates in just a few hours to become the richest man in the world again. However, since the start of June this year, Bezos’s net worth has grown by $5 billion making him $49 billion richer than Bill Gates and $60 billion than Warren Buffet.

Earlier this year, Bezos helped Amazon become the second most valuable company and also dethroned Apple & Google to have the most positive impact in the society. His success can be traced back to his decision to quit his job and kickstart his own business at the age of 30.

Being a straight-A student and a class valedictorian, Bezos got accepted to Princeton via early admissions to pursue computer science and electrical engineering. After completing his education, Bezos worked at an array of finance and tech firm. When he was serving as the Vice President of D.E. Shaw, Bezos had a light bulb moment to sell books over the internet. He discussed this internet bookstore idea with his boss who appreciated the idea but also pointed out the significant risk of compromising a stable job to pursue this idea.

Bezos was inspired to see how internet usage was increasing 2300 percent per year. He has never heard about something that grew this fast. His idea to build an online bookstore with millions of titles excited him more. Something like this could not be possible in the offline world. That’s when Bezos reflected if his 80-year-old self will regret not seizing this opportunity. What followed rest is now history.

In 1994, Bezos quit his job to follow his entrepreneurial aspirations. Three years later, Amazon had gone public. Since the company’s debut, Amazon has been rising exponentially in the Fortune 500 ranks to come close to its ultimate competitor, Walmart. This year, Amazon made history for the first time breaking into the top 10 listing of Fortune 500, ranking 8th amongst the biggest American company.

With this ranking, Amazon has gone up four ranks since its last year’s 12th spot. In 2002, Amazon made its debut on the Fortune 500 list at 492nd rank, the same year Walmart first landed the top spot in the list and continues to do so. In a span of 16 years, Amazon is catching up with the biggest American company. With its exponential progress and constant innovation, it is only a matter of time that it beats Walmart.


This post is taken from https://techjuice.pk
Link to original post is : https://www.techjuice.pk/jeff-bezos-founder-of-amazon-is-now-the-richest-man-in-the-world/

Saturday, 2 March 2019

Reduced Sales Tax on Earnings through Websites : FBR




The government has now decided to reduce sales tax for earnings made via online websites.

A 6% tax will now be implemented on online websites that generate revenue, granted that the owner of that website provides all the sales data to the Federal Board Revenue’s Computerized system through the required software. Under FBR rules, the standard rate of sales tax is 17% but online sales can get avail a lower 6% rate if they register with the FBR system and provide the necessary data.

As per the new rules devised by FBR, any online business or online sales made through a website which is hosted with a registered domain name will be treated in the same way as the sales that are made through a point of sales on any regular physical outlet and is accordingly covered under this rule, provided that the complete sales data is transmitted to the FBR’s database through a prescribed integration software with the same particulars as specified with invoice provided to the customer with particulars.

Websites that generate revenue through online earning will now be registered with FBR’s computerized system and are now required to provide the following details:

  • Domain name
  • Domain name provider
  • Name of service provider managing the website
  • Addresses of supply centers and warehouses
  • Furthermore, social media portals may also come under this category if they generate revenue via these online platforms.


“Sales made through social media portals shall also be treated as covered under this sub-rule if the same are recorded through a point of sale and relevant provisions are complied with,” FBR added.

Good news for the leather and textile sector is that FBR has allowed these industries to integrate with FBR’s online system through which these sectors will be able to avail the benefits of reduced sales tax rates under SRO 1125(1)/2011.

With the introduction of these promising tax reforms, the government will be hoping that more and more business come under the tax-net and register themselves as legitimate businesses with proper payment of the required taxes.



This post is copied from https://techjuice.pk



Tuesday, 26 February 2019

Freelancing Earning Report : Batch-I of DigiSkills



According to statistics released by Digiskills.pk, an initiative of Ignite and Ministry of Information and Technology, about their first graduating batch, freelancers graduating from this program are earning nearly 30 dollars a day (more than 4,000 Pakistani Rupees per day) on average.
Digiskills was launched back in 2018 with a combined effort of Ignite and Ministry of Information and Technology. It is Pakistan’s first large scale program to provide youth with training related to freelancing skills. It’s the first batch graduated back in October 2018 and has so far shown some amazing results.
According to the Earning report and projections around the first batch, the freelancers who graduated have amassed more than 82,000 US dollars in earnings, with the annual earning of this first batch estimated to be around 11 Million dollars.
A total of 5,552 individuals were trained as part of Digiskills.pk’s first batch, out of which 2,2294 individuals are currently earning through freelancing. The total cost of training one individual through this program comes out to be about 7 dollars. It is expected that each individual will provide a 7,526 percent rate of return on that insignificant initial Investment.
When PTI’s government came in power, it promised to create a million jobs during its tenure. With ICT sector jobs on the rise and lower software production costs in Pakistan, freelancing is one area where the government sees a lot of potential to create a quick and easy source of income for the unemployed in Pakistan. Initiatives like Digiskils can go a long way to give the initial push to the talented youth of Pakistan in giving them a means of showcasing their skills to the rest of the world.

This post is copied from https://techjuice.pk

Saturday, 16 February 2019

Islamabad : The Capital of Pakistan







Islamabad (/ɪsˈlɑːməˌbɑːd/; Urdu: اسلام آباد Islāmābād [ɪsˌlɑːmɑːˈbɑːd]) is the capital city of Pakistan, and is federally administered as part of the Islamabad Capital Territory. Islamabad is noted for its high standards of living, safety, and abundant greenery.



With a population of 1,014,825 as per the 2017 Census, Islamabad is the 9th largest city in Pakistan, while the larger Islamabad-Rawalpindi metropolitan area is the country's third largest with a population exceeding four million.The city is the political seat of Pakistan and is administered by the Islamabad Metropolitan Corporation, supported by the Capital Development Authority (CDA).




Islamabad is located in the Pothohar Plateau in the northeastern part of the country, between Rawalpindi District and the Margalla Hills National Park to the north. The region has historically been a part of the crossroads of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with the Margalla Pass acting as the gateway between the two regions.



The city's master-plan, designed by Greek architect Constantinos Apostolou Doxiadis, divides the city into eight zones, including administrative, diplomatic enclave, residential areas, educational sectors, industrial sectors, commercial areas, and rural and green areas. The city is known for the presence of several parks and forests, including the Margalla Hills National Park and Shakarparian Park. The city is home to several landmarks, including the Faisal Mosque, the largest mosque in South Asia and the fourth largest in the world. Other landmarks include the Pakistan's National Monument and Democracy Square.


The city has the highest cost of living in Pakistan, and its population is dominated by middle and upper middle class citizens. The city is home to twenty universities, including the Quaid-e-Azam University, PIEAS, COMSATS Institute of Information Technology and NUST. The city is one of the safest in Pakistan, and has an expansive surveillance system with 1,900 CCTV cameras.






Thursday, 14 February 2019

Explore the Beauty of Pakistan through these Photos.

Pakistan is a very beautiful country with diverse landscapes. It ranges from lofty mountains in the north, the Karakorum and the Himalayas through dissected plateaus to rich alluvial plains of Punjab. Then follows the bareness of Baluchistan and the hot dry deserts of Sindh blending into miles and miles of beaches on the Makran Coast. Lets see some of very good pictures of it:-

Hunza Valley
Hunza Valley

Honza Valley

Hunza Valley

Hunza Valley
Skardu
Shandur

Shandur

Swat

Swat

Swat
Gilgit Baltistan
Attabad Lake
Biafo Glacier Karakorum Mountains