25 Things We’ve Learned in 25 Years of Business

This year, One World Direct celebrates our 25th anniversary. It’s hard to imagine now, but when we launched in 1994, the internet barely existed, and very few people would have predicted that it would become such an integral part of our daily lives. 25 years felt like a good time for us to reflect on what we’ve learned as we’ve built OWD.

Here are 25 principles we’ll be using to guide our next 25 years:

  1. Go with your gut.
  2. Know where you’re headed.
  3. It’s good to be at the front of the parade, but if you’re too far in front, you aren’t part of the parade anymore.
  4. Set measurable goals.
  5. Write down your goals and action steps. Assign tasks. Follow-up.
  6. Be honest with yourself about the numbers.
  7. Be clear about what your company does well and focus on that.
  8. Being the low price leader is a race to the bottom.
  9. If you’re losing money, make hard decisions quickly. Otherwise you could lose it all.
  10. Get the right people on the bus.
  11. Work with people you enjoy.
  12. Stay connected with your team with daily and weekly video or in-person meetings.
  13. Everyone is replaceable.
  14. Figure out what you love about your industry, then build a company for clients who love the same things.
  15. Clients choose partners for lots of reasons, not just price.
  16. Make sure no client is worth more than 25% of your business.
  17. Abusive clients aren’t worth it, no matter how much you’re getting paid.
  18. Be clear about your core values.
  19. Create a culture where people aren’t afraid to hold you accountable.
  20. Pay yourself a fair wage.
  21. Spend time away from the daily grind every quarter so you can create and innovate.
  22. Read as many books as you can – even one nugget of info can change how you think.
  23. Do the job in your company that brings you joy. Delegate the other stuff.
  24. Business is creative.
  25. When shit hits the fan, reach out to every friend and acquaintance you have for ideas.


What are the things you’ve learned in business? We’d love to hear.

Tags: 25th AnniversaryBusiness AdviceGuiding Principles

Fulfillment Costs

Fulfillment costs are based on three criteria: size, weight and delivery time.

OWD offers five service levels: economy (7-10 days); Standard (5-7 days), 2-Day, Overnight and International.

Starting At

$3.99

Per Unit

FAQs

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International Shipping

The old way to ship internationally

DDU means Delivery Duty Unpaid – where the buyer pays for all of the import fees at delivery.

Unexpected import fees give buyers sticker shock – not good. When they refuse to pay, you’ve lost a sale and must pay to return your product, or abandon it.

DDU is an old idea whose time has passed. For these reasons and more, OWD doesn’t recommend DDU for e-com sellers.

The best way to ship internationally

DDP is an acronym for Delivery Duty Paid. DDP means that the seller pays for all the duties and import fees.

With DDP, your customers won’t be surprised with unexpected customs charges – good!

With OWD’s landed cost calculator, your foreign customers will know exactly what their various VAT, customers and duties will cost. No unhappy surprises.

Ship flat-rate anywhere in the world starting at:

$16.39

One World Direct, B.V.

For large-scale operations needing a full solution in Europe, there’s OWD Europe, based in Amsterdam.

We Make Contact Center EASY

Sell More with Live Agents

The Services

OWD handles phone calls, e-mails and web chat eighteen hours a day from our own state-of-the-art facility.

We’ll handle your inbound sales and customer service contacts.

You get career agents who speak American English and know how to sell.

The Costs

$99 gets you 200 calls, e-mails or chats handled every week.

You get your own phone number and custom e-mail.

We do a lot more. Call for details.

More than a Call Center

Get Virtual Assistants as needed

One World’s contact center in Mobridge, South Dakota.

The Voice of Your Brand

We Make Returns EASY

Returns? Yuck.
One World has a simple solution.

All-Inclusive Returns

OWD’s all-inclusive Returns service provides simplicity and high-end customer service. OWD includes a pre-printed return label as part of your packing slip. Your customer need only drop it in the mail.

What’s included: packaging slip with return label, QC inspection, re-bag, re-tag and return to stock. What’s excluded: postage cost, poly bags and any special packaging.

Base Price

$4.95

Add-On Services

Call For Quotes