You are browsing the archive for small business.

by admin

Small Business Owners – It’s Time to Buy Local, Virtually That Is

July 16, 2010 in small business by admin

If you are just starting out in the business creation process, or you currently own an on-line business, chances are that are member of certain lists and forums. Perhaps you even participate or run them. There is a growing movement of people that think we need to get everything for free on-line and get angry when people that provide content occasionally ask for money. Read on to find out how to combat this.

If you provide on-line content or you enjoy someone else’s content you need to start asking for some support. There are many customers that will rebel against a marketer that has created free content for years, and all of a sudden they start pitching a product here and there. The people on the lists bail out in droves. At first glance it just appears as though the groaning customers are just being greedy, however this is the fault of the business owner.

If you own an on-line business, it is just that. Creating valuable content for free is a way to increase readership, but you cannot be shy about asking for the sale. If you set up your content from the very beginning by asking people to purchase your products if they want to know more information and educating them that it is the way you make your living, then you will create a list of people that respect that.

On the flipside, if you just begin a business on the basis of giving everything away, you will never lose that stigma. People revolt later thinking you are greedy, because you have built the wrong list of non-customers. Instead, start with a profit model from the beginning, showing your customers that they are “buying local” from the person that is creating all of the great content they enjoy on a daily basis.

Sure, you will lose people here and there, but you should look at losing a few people off your list as a good thing. That just means that your message did not match with what they were looking for. The people that are left are the ones that are going to put money in your pocket. The “unsubscribe” button is a blessing not a curse. Once you have developed your voice in the content that you create, make sure that every message that you send out also contains some kind of profit generation for you as well. Get the customer to take action or you are going to go a away hungry with a pile of free content and nothing to show for it.

Visit the flagship resource site for entrepreneurs at http://www.UnderdogMillionaire.com for the free Underdog Millionaire Wealth Pack: including 5 FREE e-books and daily wealth building tips for the bootstrapping small business owner- in the areas of sales, marketing, motivation, product creation and more. FREE Wealth Pack.

Advanced construction Construction builder Concrete

by admin

Small Business Owners – They Owe You The Money Why Don’t They Pay?

June 26, 2010 in small business by admin

Doesn’t it frustrate you when you’ve given good service, sometimes super service, and the customer doesn’t pay you?

Some of them aren’t doing too well and are struggling for cash, but, gee, so are you. In the time they take to pay they could have paid off a little each week and the debt would be gone.

You know others have the money but it takes them six months of sending them copy after copy of invoices, letters and telephone calls before they open their purse…

And often the worst are Government Departments and large businesses. You don’t want to lose sales to these customers but your cash-flow is hurting and you dropped your price to get the contract as well.

Is there any way to stop it?

Perhaps not completely, but there are ways to control the problem. Owners should have a clearly defined Rules of Credit which is known to staff and customers…and they should apply them consistently.

Many owners started off with some rules but over the years they have become lax at applying them. Customers and staff have become so used to breaking them that it’s as though there are no rules at all.

The minimum rules are:

  • Credit check for all new clients
  • Credit limit for all clients
  • Terms of payment 7 days, 30 days etc. Customers will have to negotiate a longer period.
  • Procedure for letters 1, 2 and 3.
  • Procedure for phone calls after letters.
  • Cash Sales only after limit is reached or deviation from payment policy.
  • Procedure for debt collection.

It doesn’t matter what the rules are, as long as your customers know them and know that you will apply them without favor.

You may need some help from your accountant to fine-tune the procedure and help with the letters and telephone script. http://www.profitstrategies4business.com

About the Author

Kelvyn Peters CPA is one of the longest serving Tax Agents in Australia. He registered as a tax agent in 1962 and was appointed as a CPA in 1964.

He is well-known for his ability to rescue an ailing business. http://www.profitstrategies4business.com

aviation pharmaceuticals

by admin

Small Business and President Obama’s Stimulus Package

June 24, 2010 in small business by admin

Recently the credit freeze has had effects on every area of the economy, including small businesses. Small business owners and entrepreneurs, both those in the business and those who are trying to make a fresh start after losing their jobs, are out of money and energy. They are looking to the government for help.

With the formation of his stimulus package, President Barack Obama is clearly hoping that he will give the financial assistance needed to get small businesses to act in a way that will boost the failing economy. The president has assured Americans that he is going to make sure credit is given to entrepreneurs and business owners. His administration believes that small business is the key to the economic recovery as they create about 70% of new jobs each year.

The stimulus package, officially the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, became law on Feb. 17, 2009. It involves spending $787 billion in incentives and tax cuts with the goal being to kick-start economic growth and create new jobs in the next three years.

Obama has shown that he is committed to small businesses, increasing the budget of the Small Business Administration by 100% and giving out over $6 billion in small business loans since the package went into effect. Recently it has been suggested that bailout funds earmarked for banks may be diverted to small businesses. This would surly signal a shift in focus.

Many of our clients, having read about the plan in the newspaper or having heard about it on the T.V., are ready to accept the government’s promise. Legal professionals will have to help them sort through the messages and find the facts in order to help evaluate the pros and cons of the U.S. government’s Financial Stability Plan.

For tips and facts about how you can benefit from Obama’s Home Stimulus Plan – or to find out if you qualify, visit our no nonsense home stimulus guide: http://ObamasStimulusPackage.net

Apparel General contractor

by admin

Small Business Marketing – Making Use of a Mission Statement

June 6, 2010 in small business by admin

Many entrepreneurs think they do not need a mission statement since their business is small. They mistakenly believe that this statement is something created by Fortune 500 companies to hang on the wall in the CEO’s office.

But a mission statement is especially important for a small business. It is a brief description of your business’s purpose and overall goal. In a nutshell, it tells the world why your business exists and what needs your business fills.

Your mission statement will help your business from running adrift. It ensures that you and any team members you may have are all on the same page, each and every day. It also serves as your basis for creating your business plan, choosing your growth strategies and selecting your marketing tactics.

With a well-defined mission statement, you will have a foundation for making business growth decisions and implementing those decisions, knowing you’re moving your business in the right direction. It will help you establish priorities and define goals. It will provide the critical focus that most entrepreneurs desperately need.

A well-defined mission statement will keep you from spreading yourself too thin. As entrepreneurs, we’re constantly coming up with new ideas and inspiration. However, not all of our ideas are the perfect fit for our business. But once your mission statement is created, you’ll have a barometer to measure each new idea by. You’ll know that every new project you take on is one that is propelling your business forward.

Write Your Own Mission Statement

When putting together your own mission statement, here are a few guidelines to consider:

  • It should clarify why your business exists and what you are attempting to accomplish.
  • It should be clear and concise and easily understood rather than vague or imprecise.
  • It should incorporate your business’s strength, competitive advantage and unique selling proposition.
  • It should describe your approach to differentiate your business and explain your definition of success.

Test Your Own Mission Statement

An effective mission statement will be:

  • Short and strictly focused; ask yourself if your statement is a good definition of what you do, why you do it, and what you’d like to be remembered for.
  • Clear and concise and easy to get behind; ask yourself if all of your team members can easily understand and clearly articulate your statement.
  • A guidemap for moving your business in the right direction; ask yourself if your statement provides direction for setting priorities and keeping yourself and your business focused on your primary priorities.
  • Inspirational; ask yourself if your statement stirs your passion and deepens your commitment to your business goals and activities.
  • Timely; ask yourself if your statement has been updated within the past three years and if it addresses your current objectives and targets.

Your mission statement spells out how your business will achieve your overall vision. It takes patience and commitment to come up with an effective statement, but the effort will pay off many times over.

Karen Scharf is a small business marketing consultant who helps business owners attract and retain more clients. Karen coaches and trains website owners on various tricks and techniques that have been proven to increase website conversion. She offers several whitepapers, reports and checklists, including her FREE 4 Simplest Tactics for Increasing Your Customer Base and Growing Your Bottom Line. Download yours at http://www.ModernImage.com

Winning cash

by admin

How serious money with a really small business authorities

May 17, 2010 in small business by admin

The problem with the idea of a small company is that usually these "so-called" small business, all require a considerable amount of money to start, operating, money that most people do not or simply do not afford the risk in a companies, at least in these times of economic turbulence.

Another problem is that often the idea of a small business as low monetary income, good in the sense that some may be putUpfront plus a lot of time and effort to build your business only to find themselves to make barely enough money for your former salary Day Job.

So you wait, you can create a small business, a little reality, which is enough money to earn a living and a comfortable save for the future?

I want to tell you that the answer is complicated, and it is this or that is, but the simple truth that the answer is deadsimple: Yes, it is very possible, not just that simple.

But to do this, you must abandon the traditional business model and persistent address another way to make the first commercial one, the input can not be who you are, but expectations are sure to take less risk and much more fast.

This approach represents a significant model for a different business model on-line to be more specific to. In case youask what the world is in the "business model online," is all that you can start running the operating system and computer with the ability to generate revenue.

So if I say that in terms of business to make money with its own small, is to build and operate an online business, not just think about things for sale on eBay, because even though this is a way to go, there are many other opportunities, less time, less effort and less risk of demandin relation to investment.

In any case, you can be sure that the creation of small online business is not in need of $ 5,000 or $ 20,000 at stake, because it is the beauty of this business model: You can start over, you can really small, but you can become a huge, if you want (and need not gifted to do so).

Conference calling services