Alaska’s Finest Seafoods

The taste of a non-baked Cheesecake is an experience that is second to none. The flavors tickle the palette, entice further exploration of the dessert, and create a response within the mind that is the equivalent of a multi-sensed dive into euphoria- the taste buds tingle, the nose fills the lungs with warm, sweet smelling air, and the eyes scan every surface of the dish in anticipation of the next bite.

Cheesecake is easily the single most popular dessert since the creation of ice cream, and it’s twice as sinful to enjoy. There are thousands of different recipes that you could prepare, though the chocolate inspired cakes are the ones that get most attention when presented to an audience. With names that inspire your senses and inform your stomach, such as “Triple Chocolate Cheesecake” or “Toblerone Chocolate Cheesecake”, you immediately know what you are indulging your desires with. Other recipes, such as the “Chocolate Reverie” or “Sensual Silk Cheesecake”, tease the mind with images of things to be.

Regardless of the name or even the kind of cheesecake being consumed one thing remains true for all cheesecakes: the proper and correct preparation and presentation of a cheesecake is a highly sought after commodity, and the artists which choose cheesecake as their medium of expression or very well respected within the community.

Not a Pastry, Not a Cake

What makes cheesecake so unique is the sheer amount of different ways that it can be prepared and presented. Cakes can be presented in thousands of different ways, and there is no shortage of recipes that would like to offer their input. Cheesecakes are the same way, and their creators soon find themselves exploring methods of preparation that are far beyond the traditional circular shaped cake. Unlike a regular cake, however, cheesecake can be made to bring out the attributes of its accompanying flavors. After all, what’s a good cheesecake without some kind of intricate flavoring.

A plain cheesecake, often referred to as a “New York” style cheesecake, is typically served unflavored with fruit on the side. This type of cake is rich in flavor, quite creamy, and absolutely delectable to those who enjoy controlling exactly how much flavor goes into each bite. The flavor of the cake is well known – cheesecake is kind of infamous that way – though the quality of the fruit accomplice is often questionable.

Flavored cheesecake quickly takes off from the baseline set by a New York cheesecake, and from there the sky is the limit. Those seeking a fruity flavor will find refuge in a strawberry and banana combination cake, or perhaps in a blackberry, raspberry, and blueberry mix. For someone in the mood for something a little more sultry, a double chocolate cheesecake with a white chocolate ganache may be just what the doctor ordered.

But don’t let this article preach to you the wonders and value of cheesecake- treat your taste buds to a piece of cheesecake from a local craftsman and try for yourself.

It is simple, because the company has a responsibility. I will be blatantly honest, I started this business as a means to do better for myself… it is a lifelong dream of mine. In the short time I have been running this business I have learned a lot, that includes staying committed to my word, customer satisfaction and so much more. In turn I’m not only doing better for myself but I am giving back to the online community any way I can.

There is no possible way I will run a profitable business with unhappy customers or employees, the products we sell at Alaska’s Finest Seafoods are amazing and the service has to match that. With the internet there are more scams than ever, so many people out there are ready to steal your money from you and run.

So why should aksfinest care? We cannot afford not to, your trust in us puts food on the table. We inform you the consumer on real issues and even if you leave the website without an order of Jumbo King Crab legs you still go away with a greater knowledge about what may be going on with the Environment, your Health or just how it is to become an Entrepreneur.

As the business grows our responsibility will increase but I am perfectly fine with that, I actually cannot wait. This journey is not about Net profits, it is about redefining the standard for which this business serves you.

Interesting and Funny Facts About Alaska

Many people forget that Alaska is part of the United States. Alaska, though separated from the rest of the country by a rather large Canadian divide (eh?), is America’s largest single state.

Did you know that Alaska has over three thousand rivers and over three million lakes. If it was a little warmer it would be the perfect cottage destination! Alaska also has over fourteen thousand miles of coastline and it shares a border with Canada’s Yukon Territory. In fact, Alaska has more coastline than the rest of the United States combined.

Alaska’s largest city, Anchorage, covers nearly two thousand square miles. The state of Rhode Island covers just over one thousand square miles, and Deleware covers just under two thousand square miles. That’s a big city!

If Alaska were to separate from the United States, it would become a sovereign nation that is as large as England, France, Italy, and Spain combined. It’s vast oilfields and fisheries would give it a strong sustainable economy, and its departure from the United States would reduce the size of America by nearly thirty percent!

Did you know that there is only once city in Alaska with a population larger than seventy thousand people? If the rest of the United States had the same population density as Alaska, Manhattan would only have sixteen people living in it (where’d everyone go?). Alaskans also love to fly, as Alaska has the highest pilot per capita ratio than any other state. This makes complete sense as the Alaskan capitol, Juneau, has no road access to the rest of the state.

What’s even more interesting is that Alaska was purchased from Russia in 1867 for less than seven and a half million dollars (it brings a tear to any real estate agents eye), and it was originally settled due to the high quality furs which could be found there. In the 1890’s gold was discovered, bringing a rush of people to the state in an attempt to capitalize on it.

Though Alaska was purchased for around 5.9 cents per acre, the economic value of Alaska has been immense. In fact, Alaska is one of the richest states in America, pumping out over thirty-nine billion dollars per year into the economy. This is due to the oil and gas industry, as well as the emerging and extremely lucrative fisheries. Alaska accounts for over twenty-five percent of the United States’ total oil production.

Alaskan Wild Salmon is one of the most sought after sources of Salmon on the planet, and the largest Alaskan King Salmon every caught by a rod and wheel was over 100 pounds!

Lastly, Alaska is a mere three miles away from Russia (though they are separated by water). How’s that for a “great divide”?

Should I be concerned that I have made more mistakes in eCommerce? It has certainly been a long journey with ups and downs, there are a lot of things I would do differently but had I done that I would not have the knowledge I have now.

Learning from my Mistakes

I could not have said it better (actually I could have) but in a nutshell if you do not learn from the consequences they will be repeated. I have made tons of mistakes with ‘Alaska’s Finest Seafoods’ but that is perfectly fine with me, as long as I take the experience as a lesson and not make the same mistakes I believe I’ll be okay in the long run.

Perseverence

This is something I have learned from my sisters and its a quality that admire almost as much as ambition. I believe a lot of businesses fall off of the map because they are not willing to stick it through the hard times, if the eventual payoff is huge then due diligence is iminent.

Ambition without Fear

Actually that is a lie, I do get a little scared but I believe that is what we’re supposed to do as humans, I would be concerned if I didnt have any fear at all. I am not afraid of failure, because in the grand scheme of things if this business never takes off I still succeeded in taking a step toward my dream and that is what its all about. I do not think there is a successful entrepreneur around that does not have a story of failure and if anything it made them a better person.

Thinking outside of the Box

Alaska’s Finest Seafoods in Douglasville, GA, that right there sums it up. I live in an area flooded with Salons, Barbershops, Wing Restaurants and wannabe real estate investment companies. People see one idea work and flock to it, and for some it works but the real reward is in blazing your own path. If you’re going to start a business hit a niche that is untapped.

Embrace Technology

My service never faulters, when an order is placed it is shipped the next day at the latest. I give complimentary customer service and have not had one complain, and technology enables me to do that at a relatively cheap rate. I get notifications via my cell phone of orders, I process the orders on my laptop, my 800 number rings wherever I need it to. Its a beautiful thing and it opens up so many opportunities for small businesses.

No idea is safe! Thats right, lock your ideas tight because if it is making money then you are sure to become a victim. In all seriousness I’m sure copycats are common in business and date back to ancient times, at the same time I understand selling Alaskan Salmon or Cheesecakes is not ground breaking.. but then again selling Alaskan Seafood and Desserts in Georgia may be.

But that is not what I’m addressing, what I’m talking about may not be classified as eCommerce, what I am talking about is someone who copies an idea that is groundbreaking and makes a LOT of money then the market becomes flooded and the idea is worthless. For example, The Million Dollar Homepage, the guy made over a million dollars in months by selling 1 million pixels on his home page.  An AMAZING feat and I commend him for it but suddenly I’m seeing identical pages being advertised, I mean carbon copies.

I guess this is a gripe because I feel these copycats are setting theirselves up for failure, when someone creates a template for success that means the great reward is gone! Is it that hard to come up with something new?

Yes I can admit when I am wrong and make boneheaded mistakes, and I made plenty of them. I am writing this as a reference for anyone else that is considering diving into the wonderful world of eCommerce, feel free to learn from my mistakes.

Not Testing the REAL Market

Well I did, but how I went about it was all wrong. I simply took surveys on price and interest in each product. I received nothing but excellent feedback only to sell two products in the first 4 months. Alaskan Salmon sounds good in theory but gaining the consumers trust is a completely different step. If I were to start all over I would put my products on EBay just to gauge the response to the product, this would allow me to plan for any unforeseen issues and adjust my service accordingly.

Extremely High Overhead

And the sad thing is I started this business with low overhead in mind. There are CMS (Content Management Systems) out there that will do all of the dirty work for you. For some bonehead reason I felt my site needed a custom system from scratch which ended up costing me around $12,000. Now I am implementing a more functional and user friendly system that is FREE! Yes FREE! My cost has only been $800 to implement and the addition of this blog on my site is a part of that. Needless to say I feel like a big, BIG dummy.

Check References!

Another mistake I overlooked, I found my first two web designers on car forums that I frequent. That would be the equivalent of looking for a home builder at a car dealership. Between these two alone I lost $5,750 and ended up with nothing. A portfolio does not tell the full story, talk to the people that have hired the company you are considering, and ask tons of questions. Use an intermediary like eLance (www.elance.com) and it doesn’t hurt to use your credit card, if you get messed over by a vendor and dispute with the credit card company they will investigate and most likely get your money back.

Offline Marketing for an Online Business

There is a local publication here in Douglas County Georgia that caters to the community. I read that offline marketing generally does not convert to online sales but I’m the type that has to touch the iron to know its really hot. (I actually did that as a youngster) The publication hits 30,000 homes in the area and I just knew at least 10% of those would visit my site. I ended up with 10 visitors and no sales, just another one of those hard lessons.

Discounting the Importance of Search Engine Optimization

Search engines hate ugly Url’s, for example:

http://www.aksfinest.com/category_product.php?CatID=10

Is ugly

http://aksfinest.com/blog

Is simple and beautiful! And that is what search engines like, but SEO (Search Engine Optimization) goes so much further than just URL’s. Build links, minimize flash, there are a ton of tips but that is a totally different blog.

Content is King!

For an eCommerce site content is tough, other than product descriptions and store policies there is not a great deal to say. This is why a business blog is so valueable, search engines love content and what better way to present it? It also allows better communication between the business and customer. I finally understand this and that is why I have added this blog.

Patience

I still struggle with this one but I have learned that while we would like to have an overnight success it does not always happen that way. Some eCommerce sites take off immediately, others it may take years but I have learned that you work just as hard today as you did yesterday.

1 Extra Tip

Be flexible, and I’m sure this holds true with any business out there. You can plan every aspect of the business but over time things will change and you have to embrace that. I had no intentions on carrying Cheesecakes or Gift Baskets but saw an opportunity to give my customers options have not regretted that decision since then.