Getting a Small Business Loan

by: Dave Ryan

Are you in need of financial resources in order to start or even maintain your small business? Most of us are. The fist step is to take a look at the vast number of commercial loan sources that offer help in this area such as Chase, Citibank, etc. Also, with the Small Business Administration (SBA), you should be able to arrange a connection with one of these banks. This is one of many organizations that specialize in loans to small businesses.

Contrary to the belief that bankers actually look for reasons to turn down prospective clients in need of a loan, they are in the business to lend money. This means that every time a banker is sitting in front of a potential client, they are hoping to make the deal work just as much, if not more than the client wants it to work.

A bank’s primary role in the small business lending area is funding growth. An example of this would be to finance the expansion of small business with a proven track record. Most banks can offer a wide variety of loan packages designed to finance expansion of an already existing small business.

Below are a few examples bank loan packages :

1. Asset Based Financing. Asset Based Financing is a general term describing a transaction whereby a lender accepts collateral and assets of a company in exchange for a loan. Most asset based loans are collateral against other accounts receivable, inventory, or equipment. Accounts receivable is the most favored of the three because it can be converted into cash quickly. Banks will only advance funds on a percentage of receivable or inventory, typically being around 75% of the receivable and 50% inventory.

2. Line of Credit. A line of credit involves the bank’s setting aside designated funds for the business to draw against for the cash it needs. As the line of credit is used, the credit line is reduced and when payments are made the line is replenished. One major advantage of a line of credit is that no interest is accrued unless the funds are actually used.

3. Floor Planning. Floor Planning is another form of asset based lending in which the borrower’s inventory is used as collateral for the loan. Car dealerships are a prime example of a business that often uses floor planning as their primary financial tool.

Factoring Financing: How to grow your business without debt or loans

by: Marco Terry

What is factoring?
Accounts receivable financing, also known as factoring, is a powerful financial tool that has fueled the growth and success of a number of companies.

Factoring enables companies to capitalize on their unpaid receivables by selling them to a factoring company for immediate payment. With factoring, companies

immediately get paid for their invoiced work from the factoring finance company, while the factoring company waits to be paid by the customers. Factoring

strengthens a business' cash position by shortening the time to get invoices paid to 48 hours and providing the needed funds to meet current expenses and

target new opportunities.

Factoring Benefits

As opposed to loans and lines of credit that require that the client have tangible assets and strong financials, factoring relies more heavily on the

financial strength of the clients' customer. This is a critical feature,since many new and small businesses do not meet the financial criteria of traditional

lending institutions. However, many small businesses have a roster of financially strong customers that can be leveraged. Factoring empowers businesses to

capitalize on their customer list, and provides them with a tool to transform outstanding receivables into immediate cash, without generating debt. Since

Factoring is not a loan, it is an ideal financial product for the following:

o New and emerging businesses including small and home businesses, consultants and solo-preneurs.
o Businesses with financially strong customers
o Businesses that are preparing to grow significantly
o Business with intangible assets (e.g. consultants)
o Businesses that do not want to take a loan

An additional benefit of factoring is that the factor usually assumes part of the clients' credit risk for the customer. This means that if the customer

becomes financially insolvent due to bankruptcy and does not pay the invoice, the factor will assume the loss. This is a critical service for small companies

who may not be able to afford the bankruptcy of a customer.

Costs

The costs of a factoring transaction - also known as the discount - vary based on a number of variables such as the financial strength of the customer and

the amount being factored. Generally, the discount is a percentage of the invoice's face value that increases with time until the invoice gets paid. Small

businesses, those that have between $20,000 and $300,000 in yearly revenues, can expect to pay a discount rate of about 2% for every ten (10) days that the

invoice remains unpaid. Businesses with factorable revenues in excess of $300,000 can expect lower discount rates.

Factoring at Work: Business Services and Products, Inc. Case Study

Business Services and Products, Inc. (BSP, Inc.) is a small fictional company, which provides business consulting and equipment to local companies. It has

$300,000 of annual revenues and during the past year BSP Inc. has enjoyed significant sales growth. Although most business owners would be very happy to

manage such a company, Jane Sullivan, BSP Inc's president, is very worried about her company's financial position.

Most of BSP Inc.'s customers are large companies with a good reputation for always paying their invoices. However they always take between 30 to 45 days to

pay them. BSP Inc., however, needs to pay their employees every two weeks and their vendors every four weeks. This discrepancy between the time that

customers pay their bills and the time BSP Inc. needs to pay their employees and vendors has created cash flow problems in the past. Furthermore, these cash

flow problems have already caused Jane to delay payroll twice this year and have placed her trade (vendor) credit in jeopardy multiple times. This has also

caused her to pass on a number of significant business opportunities because she was unsure of the company's financial ability to hire and pay for additional

staffers. Unfortunately, BSP Inc. did not have a large enough financial cushion in the bank to afford paying employees while waiting for 45 days new clients

to pay their invoices.

The following table provides an overview of BSP, Inc's current financial position.

Business Services and Products, Inc (without financing)

Yearly sales: $300,000
Lost new sales opportunities: Unknown
Total Sales: $300,000

Variable Costs (60% of Sales): $180,000
Fixed Costs (Rent, phones, etc): $20,000
Total Costs: $200,000

Profit (Sales - Costs): $100,000

Although the company's prospects appear great, Jane may have to stall her company's growth until she builds a large enough cash cushion at the bank to

finance her company's growth. After careful consideration, Jane decided that a factoring line of working capital could help strengthen her company's

financial position. Furthermore, factoring her invoices would enable BSP Inc. to take on new customers and continue growing, knowing that she could

capitalize on her slow paying customers. BSP Inc.'s financing agreement will provide the company with an advance of 70% of her invoiced services. This means

that the company can get 70% of the face value of the factored invoices within 24 to 48 hours of submitting them to the factor. The remaining 30% of the

funds, less the factoring fees, will be quickly rebated as soon as the customer pays their invoice.This line of working capital strengthened the company's

financial position and bank account, enabling Jane to pay for new employees to service new contracts. Jane also decided to use the extra capital to pay her

vendors early, obtaining quick payment discounts and helping to reduce the cost of factoring.

BSP Inc. customers pay their invoices within 30 days of receipt. The discount (factoring fee) for these invoices is 6%. Every time an invoice is paid, the

factor rebates BSP Inc. the remaining 30% that was not advanced less the factoring fee. This means that once the transaction is completed, the factor rebates

24% (30% - 6%) to BSP Inc. Thanks to the factoring line of working capital, Jane was also to secure an additional $120,000 worth of business, bringing her

annual revenues to $420,000.

The following table shows BSP Inc.'s financial position a year after using factoring.

Business Services and Products (with factoring)

Existing Sales: $300,000
New Sales: $120,000 (factored)
Total Sales: $420,000

Variable Costs (60% of Sales): $252,000
Fixed Costs (Rent, phones, etc.): $20,000
Cost of Factoring (6% of $120,000): $7,200
Total Costs: $279,200

Net Profit (Sales - Costs): $140,800

As can be seen from the above table, factoring helped BSP Inc. increase profits substantially from $100,000 to $140,800 - a 40% increase. It placed BSP Inc.

on a more stable financial footing, priming it for growth. Furthermore, the cost impact of factoring on the bottom line was minimal, as it was easily

absorbed by the additional business, showing that factoring was paid for directly by the growth.

Effective Management – 4 Ways to Inspire loyalty in your Business

by: Olakunbi Korostensky

Copyright 2010 Flaming Life Coaching INC.

Today as people become increasingly conscious of their worth, they are no longer willing to stay in a job that has become intolerable and impersonal to them.

This means that in the corporate or business world, it no longer suffice to have a system in place and expect people to just comply by them.

Without some form of human connections, things won't work out for long and the strength of commitment from your employees will simply disintegrate.

Whether you're an executive, a business owner with employees or an organisation with a team of board members, you have a common ground. Your biggest asset is people and the number one key to ensuring that your business runs like a clockwork is to secure the loyalty and trust of the people on your payroll.

The days of people working for altruistic reasons have long passed. People want to feel appreciated and emotionally connected and without loyal people at your side, your business will go nowhere and die.

There are very simple ways to keep the loyalty of your workers and co-workers. When you implement these practices, you'll reap substantial benefits for yourself and your business will become strong to wager any storm.

1. Make an effort to know the people who work for you. When you find a way to get to know your workers and to approach them as individuals, people feel appreciated and become devoted to you.

Most people spend their whole lives trying to get noticed and be someone. This can be very frustrating for them, especially if their efforts remain unnoticed.

Too often, many top managers forget too quickly where they started from. Remember how you once had to slowly work your way up the corporate ladder and how you felt working persistently away in a dingy place. Maybe you even ached to be noticed and get an encouraging word from your former boss. Well if you did, you're not alone. Other people also long for the same thing you once yearned for.

You may think, well I 'm not a psychologist and my duty is not to hold my workers' hands. Just think again. If you want dedication, you certainly won't get it by refusing to pay attention to those who work for you. And if that's what it takes, then it's wise to become proficient at it.

2. Be open and straightforward with people. Show people you care, and tell them what you expect of them. Be upfront and clear about your position in relationship to them and their work. Let them know exactly what they can expect from you in return.

We all model our lives after someone. My own business life has been modeled and influenced by two great men. My father who was a great lover of people and my uncle who was a visionary industrialist with an unquenchable passion for supporting others.

These two men taught me 2 crucial things about people:

a) Humility: that no matter how high you may get, without people you are nothing. For it is people who made you what you are.

b) Ingenuousness: When you hide your true self from people, you end up not knowing your-self.

3. Encourage and support your employees. In order to encourage people, you need to know their strong and weak points.

Many people have great gifts and talents, but feel timid and are self conscious as a result of their pre-dispositions or the environment they grew up in. Do yourself and the society a favour and support people to grow and you'll be greatly rewarded ed in return.

Also save yourself and your business a great deal of unnecessary sufferings. Find out what people are truly good at and place them in the position where they feel nurtured and can fully implement their abilities.

When people know that you have their interests at heart, they will naturally strive to apply themselves. This is because people want to belong to "a fold" they can tender, even if that "fold" is a business. But you must be genuine about your intention. Because if you're not, people will soon see through you.

4. Go the extra mile by being vigilant and showing some interests in the lives of your workers. This is also a good way of keeping the path of communication open. People trust someone who takes the time to ask after them and really listen to what they have to say. One reason why psychotherapy flourishes so well is the attention people get.

I know of some business owners, who make it a point to seek out their employees on their birthdays. One man in particular does a round of his three-storey business building every morning when he gets to work. He says that he checks his workers' lists of names at the end of each day and makes note of the names of birthdays coming up the following day.

The first thing he does the next morning is to go to each "birthday kid" as he calls them, and congratulates them personally! Now that's what I call awesome. Especially since he has 350 employees in his business. Who says you can't find time to be personal with your workers?

He even takes the time to visit his workers at their home when they suffer a loss of a loved one, or if they're absent from work for more than 3 days with an illness. His personal assistant never fails to sing his praise in admiration.

It is no wonder that this man enjoys excellent references and great respect. Which is also portrayed by the profits he makes.

People have natural needs which include acknowledging their existence. If you, as a business owner, forget to cater to these needs, you may end up sitting in a big but empty arena, wondering what went wrong. If, on the other hand, you make time for your employees, you'll be rewarded with great gratitude through, relentless and undying loyalty.

eBusiness - Small Business Necessity

by: Rick Hendershot

The rapid growth of the internet commerce in recent years presents established small businesses with a serious dilemma. On the one hand, they can stick with the business model that has worked for them for the last number of years. On the other hand, they can make the shift to serious eBusiness.

Choosing to stand pat is usually much easier in the short term. But in the longer term this almost certainly means they will be left behind by technology, and lose many of their most important clients to more aggressive competitors.

But shifting to eBusiness may involve committing substantial resources to developing a new game plan. That usually means refining product lines to make them easier to sell online, upgrading computer systems and websites, and training personnel at all levels to be more web savvy. It also means developing or hiring staff to handle the administration of new marketing, sales, and delivery systems, and working with outside consultants and service providers to handle the technical aspects of the new program that cannot be handled by your own people.

Is adopting an eBusiness Solution worth the effort?
Are the short term difficulties involved in making the transition to eBusiness worth the effort?

In virtually all cases, Yes.

It is like any other investment in your business. Some businesses look at the cost of upgrading production equipment or of renovating their office or retail space and decide it is simply not worth the cost. They decide the future is too uncertain to risk moving ahead, so they opt to tread water until either circumstances change, or they simply cannot continue any longer in business.

In this sense, choosing to stay abreast of technological changes is a business necessity. And these days, deciding to get involved with eBusiness is the most important technological decision many current businesses will ever make.

Advantages of eBusiness

Here are some of the more important advantages of moving to eBusiness.

You can develop a more cost-effective Communication and Marketing Strategy - The most obvious advantage of "upgrading" to eBusiness is that it gives you a vital web presence. In an upgraded "eBusiness environment" your company web site becomes the focal point of your communications and marketing strategy. And in an era when an increasingly large number of people are using the web as their first source of product and service information, "being there" 24/7 is extremely important.

You can reach New Markets World Wide - The internet offers exciting ways of reaching new markets that could only be dreamed of in the past. There are methods of promoting your products online that allow you to precisely target the customers you are after whether they are in your town or on the other side of the world.

You can reach Local Customers and Prospects more effectively - Until recently, companies offering a product or service to local customers could not see the benefits of having an online presence. But as more and more people become comfortable with using the internet instead of traditional advertising sources like classified ads or yellow pages, having an aggressive web presence makes better business sense even for local companies. This may also offer a springboard to developing new markets further afield.

You can cut Advertising and Marketing Costs - Online advertising is not only more efficient, but it is often less expensive than traditional advertising. After sales training expenses can also be reduced by utilizing online seminars, training videos and tutorials.

You can streamline the Ordering Process by taking orders online - Implementing an online ordering system allows you to eliminate manual paper work or telephone order taking. It also offers the possibility of integrating your sales order system with order fullfillment and delivery so customers can be up to speed on the progress of their orders at all times.

You can cut Communications and Telephone Costs - While the costs of voice communications using long distance telephone services have been coming down rapidly over the last few years, switching to an eBusiness model offers the possibility of totally eliminating many of these costs. Of course there is traditional email. But beyond that, there are systems like "Live Help" where customers can chat live with support or sales staff. And the most recent development is VoIP (Voice Over Internet) which promises to completely revolutionize telephone service.

Finding the right eBusiness Solution

Every business is unique, so every business will require a unique eBusiness solution. Chances are most small businesses will not have the resources inhouse to make the move. In that case they should find an eBusiness solution provider that takes a comprehensive approach to each situation. Rather than offering a pre-packaged program, they should be able to look carefully at a business and make recommendations based on its specific needs. That includes the ability to provide staff training and ongoing support long after the initial system is put in place.

Do you have a Business Idea?

by: Seb Jay

Every year tens of thousands of people strike out on their own with a vision of starting a successful business. They have the idea, they've got the plan…all they need now is to take the actions to turn their dream into reality.

It is at this point that many a budding entrepreneur comes unstuck. No matter how hard they try, failure seems to greet them at every turn. Of course, all seasoned entrepreneurs know that it takes a hell of a lot of determination and guile to keep on driving forward in the face of adversity. It also takes some know-how…practical knowledge that stacks the odds of success in their favor.

Getting to grips with Joint Ventures

One of the best routes to business success for entrepreneurs is establishing joint ventures. The right joint venture partner can help kick-start a business and get the all-important cash flowing in. What's more, setting up a joint venture does not require a financial outlay on the part of the entrepreneur either.

So, what could a joint venture partner bring to your business? They could bring expertise, a ready-made customer database, manpower, equipment and access to foreign markets. The right joint venture partner could even run your operation for you in return for a share of the profits generated, or provide financing in exchange for equity share. The possibilities are endless!

Finding Joint Venture Partners

Historically, locating joint venture partners to work with tends to be a drawn-out process. First off you must advertise your requirements and then conduct interviews to find the right type of candidate who fits with your needs and company ethos.

Today, thankfully, there is an easier way. Joint venture search companies, such as www.jvbase.com provide entrepreneurs with quick access to joint venture partners.

These types of joint venture search facilities screen potential joint venture partners, manually matching them up with your requirements. They remove a lot of the hassles that are traditionally associated with finding joint venture partners, so leaving you free to concentrate on the more important aspects of moving your business forward.

If you have a business idea and have the determination to make it work, no matter what obstacles stand in your way, get together with a joint venture partner. By doing so, you could find yourself on the fast track to success.

Double Your Business Results Using The Penny Model

by: Leanne Hoagland-Smith

Doubling your business results is much easier than many you realize. Especially, when you can implement a simpler process, you CHANGE how you THINK. Before explaining how to double your business results, I would like to share with you the penny model. Using this approach YOUR business results DOUBLE in 30 days.

Beginning on Day 30, you now have a penny. By Day 60, your one penny has grown to 2. Within 3 months or 90 Days, you have 4 pennies. Are you starting to get the picture?

Continuing on with the Penny Model, your fortune starts to look something like this:

Day 120 – 8 pennies
Day 150 – 16 pennies
Day 180 – 32 pennies

Six months have now flown by and you have increased your penny 32 times. Wow! And you thought doubling your business was not possible.

Day 210 – 64 pennies
Day 240 – 128 pennies
Day 270 – 256 pennies
Day 300 – 512 pennies

Ten months later your efforts are now securing a 512 return from that initial first penny. Yet, the best is still to come.

Day 330 – 1024 pennies
Day 360 – 2048 pennies

A year has now passed and that one, single penny now has the value of 2,408 pennies, far more than doubled. And even if for some reason, you didn’t achieve 2,408 pennies, would you complain if you only had 128 or even 32? I think not.

Okay, “So what does that mean for my business?” you may be asking yourself right now? Plenty and let me explain why.

Let the penny represent your daily actions or activity. For example, you call 100 people, speak to 20 of them, schedule 5 appointments and receive one sale. By increasing your calls on a daily basis for the next two weeks to reach another 10 people each day, you will have another sale at the end of two weeks.

Or maybe you currently schedule only 3 appointments per week and it took you 50 dial ups (number of time attempting to contact a potential sales lead) from the previous week to secure those 3 appointments. By doubling your dial-ups to 100 per week, you would now have double the appointments to 6. Given your close ratio, you could easily double or triple your business within a very short time.

Even if you believe that you can’t double your phone calls (your belief system may be another reason why you can’t double your results and that’s an entirely different article), consider what would happen if you increased your performance by just 10%. A 10% increase in effort, which isn’t that much more, can be compared to a penny to a dime or a dime to a dollar.

If I am currently averaging $52,000 in sales per year, 10% would mean an additional $5,200 or just $100 more per week. Using your sales and tracking numbers, which I am sure that you have, you will know exactly how many calls you will have to make to increase your weekly sales. Maybe it is just a case of up-selling or even asking a good client for a referral.

The Penny Model is a very simple way to see how quickly your activity can double your business results. All you need to do is to keep an open mind and look to the possibilities instead of limitations. Of course, a proven goal setting and goal achievement action plan probably wouldn’t hurt either.

Don’t Let Passions Rule When Buying A Business

by: David E Coffman CPA/ABV, CVA

For many, the American dream of owning a business is in queue right behind owning a home. I was a teenager when I owned my first business. Since then I have bought or started many businesses and helped others do the same. Here are some common mistakes I have witnessed or committed myself.

Paying too much
This results from the combination of all other mistakes. Many new business owners set themselves up for failure by paying too much, which results in higher loan payments, lower operating funds, and reduced borrowing capacity.

Letting your emotions rule

If you have always dreamed of owning a business, it is very easy to get caught up in the strong emotions invoked by seeing those dreams coming true. To counteract your emotions, take your time, do your homework, and enlist the help of objective advisors.

Paying for potential

You should only pay for the business as it stands at the date of purchase, not what it could be in the future. You will have to spend time, effort, and money to develop its potential. The seller chose not to invest these things, so he does not deserve to be paid for them.

Not evaluating yourself

Do you have what it takes to run this business? Try to match your strengths to the important duties you will be required to perform. Running a small business requires the owner to do many things. No one can be good at them all, so make provisions for those areas in which you are the weakest. Some tasks like payroll and bookkeeping can easily be contracted to outside vendors. Possibly your spouse, other family member, or a partner could do things that you cannot or do not want to do.

Not building a team of experts

At a bare minimum, you should enlist the aid of an attorney and a CPA. The attorney can prepare and review documents, help structure the deal, and make you aware of legal and liability issues. The CPA can provide a financial analysis of the business, and advise you about tax and accounting matters. You should consider adding a business valuation professional. His valuation report can be used to determine the reasonableness of the asking price, negotiate a lower price, and provide valuable information about the business, the industry, the competition, and the economic conditions.

Relying on bad information

You should verify all important information about the business. Your CPA can check financial information like receivables, payables, and inventory. Your attorney can review loan documents, leases, and contracts. Your business valuation professional can analyze the competition, the industry, and the economic conditions. Use independent appraisers to value real estate and equipment. Get a credit report on the business through your CPA or banker. You can do some of the investigating yourself to save money, but do not cut too many corners – it may cost you in the long run.

Changing too much, too fast

Once you own the business, you will be tempted to start making wholesale changes from day one. You risk alienating long-time employees and customers. Unless the business is in bad financial condition and needs immediate action, its better to take some time to get to know the business, your employees, and your customers before making changes. This is a perfect time to solicit suggestions from employees and customers.

Buying a business because you like to do what the business does

One reason restaurants have a high failure rate is people buy or start them because they like to cook. Very few restaurant owners spend time cooking. Their time is spent managing staff, ordering supplies, doing paperwork, and handling daily crises. A small business owner must wear many hats – including that of manager.

Not being interested in the business’s product or service

I made the mistake of thinking that because I am a CPA and smart that I could own and operate any business. I bought a business that sold high-performance auto parts to young men who drove jacked-up, four-wheel drive pickup trucks and went to the drag races every weekend. I did not do either and never understood why anyone would. I could not relate to my customers and went out of business in about a year.

Conclusion

Buying a business is a complicated, emotional process. By avoiding these costly mistakes, you can prevent turning your dream into a nightmare.

Creating A Value Proposition For Your Business

by: Trey Pennewell

Marketing experts have long been using the concept of creating a value proposition for their services or products. If you do not know what your value proposition is or even what a value proposition is then you need to spend some time developing one. A value proposition has many names. Some refer to a value proposition as a unique selling point or an inferred positioning statement. No matter what name you give it, a value proposition is critical for a business to successfully sell their product or service.

A value proposition has three primary elements that you should focus on. The first of these elements is the target market segment. Who are you trying to sell your product to? Who do you believe that your customer base is? These are easy questions to answer for some while difficult for others. If you are selling men's hair coloring to remove gray hair then it is easy to identify your target market. You are looking for men over 40 years old primarily. If you are selling make-up then you are focusing on women only. However some products make it more difficult to define the target market segment. If for example, you are selling automobiles then you want to appeal to a vast array of people, men, women, various age groups, etc. You need to spend time thinking about which target market segment that you want to buy your product or service and whom you think will actually purchase it. If you are selling high dollar furniture, you do not want to market to a lower socioeconomic customer base. If you are selling low priced automobiles, you will want to focus on that market segment instead of the more affluent market.

The second element to a successful value proposition is the reasons why a customer would buy your product or service. This is a point of differentiation amongst your competitors. Put simply, why would a potential customer choose your product or service over a competitor? Depending on your marketing strategy there are a variety of reasons that a customer may choose you over a competitor. Some of these reasons may include, price differentiation, quality, brand name, customer service, etc. As a business owner you need to decide which of these factors you want to focus on the most. Do you want to set your product apart from others because of the price? Do you want to draw a customer base that is focused on quality? Of course in a perfect world we would offer the customer the best of all these categories, but that is very hard to achieve. Appealing to both the cost conscience and the person looking for name brands is quite challenging and may very well be impractical.

The third element of a successful value proposition is comparison with other products. This is similar to defining why customers would choose your product or service over others. This is a frame of reference for you and for potential customers. If you sell Kia automobiles your frame of reference will likely be on the value of the vehicle. Conversely, if you sell Mercedes automobiles your frame of reference will be on the prestige associated with it and the quality of the vehicle. Volvo is often associated with being the leader in safety in the automobile industry so their frame of reference is different from both Kia and Mercedes. Understand that all of these automakers are extremely successful in their individual target markets. You too must choose what approach you want to take with your product or service line. Do you want to position your product as a value, a prestige product, a higher quality, etc.? Once you have decided what your frame of reference is you can begin your marketing campaign.

It is critical that you choose a marketing position that you can defend. Much like Kia is able to defend their claim to be inexpensive, Volvo has numbers to back up their safety claims. Positioning involves making a clear choice of the target segment to be served, the points of difference compared to the competitors and the frame of reference for the customers. A successful business offers more than one single benefit and appeals to more than one segment of the market while staying focused on the key benefit of that product or service while identifying to whom it has the greatest appeal. Positioning allows the business to choose with whom it competes.

Now look at your product or service and start thinking carefully about what you want your value proposition to be. It is quite difficult to change that value proposition once it has been implemented. For example, consider if Kia tried to compete with the customer base that Mercedes has. It would be quite difficult to implement, although not impossible. So get started today in developing that value proposition before throwing away money on misdirected advertisements.

Creating a Business Strategy

by: Hans Hasselfors

On a scale of one to ten, having a good business strategy rates about a fifteen!

No matter what kind of business you have -- whether you sell products or a service, as the saying goes, "if you fail to plan, then you're really planning to fail."

Creating a strategy can mean the difference between you working 60 to 80 hours a week all year long -- and then breaking even, or worse, losing money.

On the other hand, many successful entrepreneurs who have a strategy work fewer hours and make piles of money -- and they usually attribute their success to having a strategic plan and following it.

So what is strategic business management? Very simply, it's the process of defining the goals and objectives for your business, creating an action plan so you can reach them and then following the plan.

How do you create a strategic plan for you business?

1. First, know what your vision for your company is. If there were no barriers, nothing stopping you from taking your company as far as you could -- what would that look like?

2. Next, what are your company's core operating values? What are its guiding principles? In other words, why are you in business and how do you do business?

3. Now create a 3 to 5 year plan. Your long-term plan is based on the broad objectives that will help you get from where you are now, to where you want to be.

4. Develop a plan for this year. These are the specific objectives you plan to accomplish this year that will lead you closer to your long-term goals. Remember to be "SMART" when setting your annual goals (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, Time-oriented). Include a list of the barriers that are stopping you from getting where you want to go. Figure out what resources you've already got, and what resources you need to get you past those barriers. And then create an action plan that clearly lays out how you will achieve your goals. Involve key employees with this part of the planning process.

5. Create a set of milestones or benchmarks. This is very important, so that you can measure your progress.

6. Share the plan with your employees, and anyone else who will be involved in the process. Your annual strategy is the roadmap that will make sure everyone ends up at the same destination -- but to be effective, everyone needs the same map!

7. Put the plan into action. Now that you have the roadmap, it's time to begin the journey.

8. Check your progress. Just like any trip, you need to check the map every now and then; to be sure you're still on the right road. If something isn't working, the sooner you figure it out and make the necessary adjustments, the sooner you'll be back on track.

9. Follow the same cycle next year. (Dream, Plan, Act, Check).

Creating a business strategy and following it will ensure that you enjoy the journey as much as getting to your final destination.

Convert Leads Into Customers, And Customers Into Super-customers!

by: Kirsten Hawkins

A simple definition of marketing is "the getting and keeping of customers." To sell your product or service, you must have customers. To increase your revenues, you must have customers, and you must turn those customers into repeat super-customers.

The easiest way to do this, both on- and off-line, is through a content newsletter. There is no doubt that content sells. Useful content builds trust and credibility, and over time turns your customer from a stranger to a friend.

An online newsletter is easy to begin--all you need is an autoresponder. I use Aweber for my newsletter (http://aweber.com/?203081). You can advertise your newsletter on your website, on forums, on your business card, in articles you write, on traffic exchanges, and in your email signature. If you faithfully do these marketing tasks, your email list will grow over time.

You must provide useful and informative content in your newsletter. If you want subscribers to read it and (eventually) buy from you, do not offer them junk. I define "junk" as opt-in spam. Don't fall into the habit of sending out advertisements veiled as "articles." Don't send only solo ads. Instead, research topics for your newsletter and write quality articles. Subscribers who are impressed with your newsletter will buy from you. But it will take time to build trust. Trust is not built through junk.

There are three phases to this process: 1) Get a lead; 2) Convert that lead into a customer; and 3) Convert that customer into a super-customer. Your newsletter will help you accomplish all three tasks.

If you sell or market a product or service, and you are driving traffic to your website, you typically have only one shot at capturing the interest of a prospect. If I go to your site and click away, I may never come back. You need some sort of follow-up system. A newsletter is the perfect vehicle for follow-up.

If you are sending targeted traffic to your site (any other type of traffic is a waste), visitors will be interested in the content of what you are offering. To keep their interest, and to keep your name in front of them, offer a f-re-e newsletter. Even a simple, once-a-month newsletter will do.

If they sign up, you then have a chance to build a relationship. This is done through your content. Many people don't buy something the first time they see it, but as they come to know you and your product through your newsletter, they become more willing to purchase. Over time, just by offering a newsletter, you can convert more leads into customers.

You turn those customers into super-customers also through your newsletter. If the product or service they bought from you was quality, you have built even more credibility with them. Perhaps now they will make repeat purchases, or join a membership site you offer, or even become an affiliate for your product or service.

But the key is to offer useful, informative content. If the premier issue of your newsletter is nothing but an ad similar to your site, you will lose that lead. Build relationships through high-quality content, and you will convert leads into paying customers into paying super-customers.

Remember - no list, no money.

Connecting With Customers

by: Paul Lemberg

I just got off the phone with a friend of mine. Business is up he said, but he didn't know why. I asked him a few questions, but the more we spoke about it the more concerned I became.

"What do you mean, you don't know why they're buying?"

"We never know why they buy," he told me.

"Never?"

"Nope. They just do."

My friend thinks he knows what is great about his product. They believe they understand it's applications, they just don't understand what drives sales.

And there's something else - it has to do with pricing and profits.

Since they don't really know why customers buy from them, it follows that they don't understand the full value customers get from their products. So they don't know what to charge! They discount to make sales - since they don't fully understand the customer's pain points - and that means - they always leave lots of money on the table.

When times are tough - and many people are feeling squeezed these days - there is tendency to panic. Who wouldn't? The economy, the financial markets, and now - terrorism. I read where a group of psychiatrists saying the country was on the brink of a nervous breakdown!

That's certainly not what I want for my customers! Is that what you want for yours?

I think this question can be a profitable one. What do you want for your customers? I started thinking about this and came up with a few others for you to ask yourself.

Why do you want to serve your customers? What do you love about your particular customers? Are they perfect customers? If not, who would be? Describe them.

Case Studies and the Value Proposition

So I began thinking about my friend's sales problem - which brought me to thinking about a favorite topic of mine - the value proposition. Not in the sense of your USP, but in the sense of - what is the value of your product (or service) to your customer?

In other words, what is your product worth? How much - in money terms - does your customer save or earn when they use whatever it is you sell? Can you quantify that?

If you can't, well - you need to. It will make it much easier to sell.

But it's too complicated - we can't really say what they get from it.

No wonder you have trouble selling when times get tough. If you knew what it was worth, and it was worth more than you were selling it for, you'd have customers lining up pounding on your door for it.

You have to go out and do case studies. Exactly why did they buy. Exactly what is the application. Exactly how much more did they earn because of it and how did they earn it. Or, exactly how much did they save because of it and how did they save it. Get five or six of those and you'll be able to build a return-on-investment case for any prospect, and damn the economy. Which brings me to one last thing - the holy trinity of repeat sales.

Up-sell, Re-sell and Cross-sell What is your best possible source of revenue right now, bar none?

Your existing customers, right? Of course - they always are. Which means you should have a regular program to stay in contact.

What are you doing about repeat customer sales? When was the last time you contacted each customer, and made them an offer of some kind? What - you're waiting for them to call you?

Conclusion: You've got to contact your customers. Under any pretext, for any reason.

Why?

To solidify and maintain your relationships, and reconfirm why you want to do business with them. To understand your value from their perspective. And lastly, to make sure they are being served properly and to sell them everything they need.

Communication Smoothes the Path of Change

by: Helen Wilkie

Productivity almost always suffers in times of great change, because employee stress dramatically increases due to the universal fear of the unknown. In these times, communication becomes more important than ever.

Often senior executives genuinely believe they are communicating with employees when it comes to matters that affect them. Unfortunately, they often underestimate the number of matters that includes, for the fact is that most high level decisions will affect employees in one way or
another. (That's why a new law recently went into effect in Britain forcing employers to answer employees' questions on any changes or decisions that affect them.)

So how do you know what is important to employees and what to tell them? Well, you need to put yourself in the position, the mind, the heart of employeesÑone employee at a time. If you were that person, what would you be worried about right now in the current situation? What would be important for you to know? What is the worst thing that could happen, and would you want to know about it in advance? How would you want to be told?

Of course, you can't answer those questions yourself. You need input from the very people you are trying to understand. Depending on how much you can discuss or how much is already known, you might ask a few individuals what the grapevine is saying, and what people are worrying and wondering about.

Now, armed with this information, draft the answers to the questions. Of course they must be truthful answers, for insincerity is easily recognized and will deal a death blow to your communication efforts. Then they must be couched in terms that are clear and uncompromising, but also considerate and compassionate. It's worth spending some time on this partÑlack of commitment to your message is also easily read and will automatically raise the cynicism level among employees.

Next comes dissemination of the information. There is, as we all know, no shortage of communication technology in the business world. However, the way a person receives news can dramatically affect how he or she feels about it, so you need to choose the medium very carefully. E-mail can be perceived as cold and unfeeling in many cases, although it is useful for routine updates that don't have emotional overtones. Some messages are better spoken, either by managers to their groups or by the CEO to the whole organization.

If the messengers don't have highly developed communication skills, it's worth engaging the services of professional speech writers or presentation coaches to help them, but be sure the message remains honest, clear and compassionate.

And above all, follow through on your commitments and promises. Nothing turns employees off more than empty words, but sincere, caring, ongoing communication can form the basis for building employee engagement when the present time of turmoil ends.

Choosing A Business Tax Service

by: Don Kransteuber

There are a number of ways that you can find tax services companies. The yellow pages is a good place to start for companies in your area but, depending on where you live, the list of names may be extremely long. It is a good idea to ask your friends, colleagues and business partners to recommend the tax services that they have found helpful and efficient in the past. Then you can call the tax services professionals that you have on your list and discuss your requirements.

The first step in finding the best tax services for your needs is deciding what level of help you require. Perhaps you simply need someone who can file a simple tax return but has to wade through your slightly disorganised accounting documents, or maybe you have a number of employees and need
assistance sorting out their tax withholdings or you may even want all of these tax services, and more. The size of the tax services company may also be an issue. You may want one person to be able to perform all of your tax work, especially if you are only a small business owner or you may want a team of tax professionals and you want to find tax services that have a number of specialists available. Once you have identified the type of tax services then you can begin your search more easily. Your available tax services budget is obviously going to be an issue but you should try to allocate as much money as possible to ensure that you can afford the best possible tax services. Remember that you can incur heavy fines if you have incorrectly filed your tax return or are late paying any type of tax that your business is liable for.

Apart from professional qualifications and references one of the most important points to consider when assessing which of the tax services companies you want to use is whether you feel comfortable with the person you are dealing with. At the end of the day you are going to trust them with your financial records and it is essential that you feel that you can depend upon the person.

Every business, at some time, needs the help of some type of tax services at some stage. Large organisations usually have their own tax services department with accountants and tax lawyers but small companies often have to hire tax services on a regular basis to help keep their tax returns and other issues in order. It is important to know how to find the best tax services, no matter what type of business you are involved with.

Choosing A Business Opportunity - Starting Your Own Business

by: Rick Hendershot

Millions of people are desparate to escape the 9 to 5 grind. One popular alternative is to look for a business opportunity that turns you from an employee into a self-employed entrepreneur running your own business.

There are many good reasons why this can be a wise move. Being your own boss means you can set your own hours. This can be very important if you have small children, or simply want to spend more time at home. Working from home can also save valuable time, if the alternative is spending two or three hours every day commuting back and forth to your work place. And of course, working for yourself also gives you the opportunity to make a whole lot more money.

In other words, being your own boss gives you that valuable commodity called freedom. It sets you free from the limitations of being someone else's paid employee, and in return makes you responsible for your own future. As a self-employed entrepreneur you are free to set your own hours, establish your own work habits, choose what work you will do or will not do, create your own products, drum up your own customers, and do what you have to do to make those customers happy.

And perhaps most importantly, when you are self-employed you are free to set your own prices and make as much or as little income as you are able. You will not have to answer to anyone other than yourself, your suppliers, and of course, the ever-present taxman, after you become successful.

**How to get started -- Two Alternatives**

There are two obvious ways you can go about starting your own business. The first way is to quit your day job and launch full bore into your new business. We'll call this the "All or Nothing Approach". The second way is to continue on with your current employment and develop a business on the side, in your spare time. We'll call this the "Spare Time Approach".

Depending on your point of view, taking the All or Nothing Approach can be either an act of bravery or just plain recklessness. Unless you are independently wealthy, planning and timing are very important with this approach. That's because once you leave your previous employment your source of income will be gone and you will have a limited amount of time to make your business work. It is "sink or swim". And you can sink pretty quickly without a source of income.

So that means you should plan the changeover to self-employment very carefully. Every situation will be different. An acquantance of mine was able to step from his quasi-government job into a private consulting business because he spent the last few months of his employment developing leads and contacts within his industry. When he went on his own he had customers waiting in the wings and was able to more than double his income in his very first year.

But most of us are not so lucky. We do not have the quality leads or the specialized skills. Nor do most of us have the opportunity to use our present employment to build a launching pad of potential customers before we take off into the wild blue yonder of self-employment. Most of us are starting from scratch with a few vague ideas, a questionable set of yet-to-be-defined skills, and severly limited income. So our venture into self-employment had better take off within a few months or we're likely to crash and burn.

That is why the Spare Time Approach is best for most new self-employed entrepreneurs. The Spare Time Approach lets you test your ideas, develop your skills, and build your business slowly. If you are unsure about the products or services you intend to sell, the Spare Time Approach lets you try out different product lines and see how well they fit in with your overall objectives. Often new entrepreneurs find that their first ideas are not realistic, or there is no market for the services they want to provide. Or they find they cannot charge enough to make any money providing the products or services they have chosen.

**Choose your product carefully**

Like all new entrepreneurs, whether you take the "all or nothing approach" or the "spare time approach" you should be very tight-fisted with your limited resources. That means do not invest any serious money in a product or business idea until you have checked it out thoroughly. The best way to "check it out" is to:

- Talk to people who are already selling the product or service.

- Establish the credibility of the person or company providing the product or service.

- Make sure the company provides on-going support for their product(s).

- Make sure there are no hidden or unexpected costs (such as franchise fees) that will eat away your profits.

This applies whether you are looking at an online product such as an MLM or affiliate scheme, or a more traditional product or service aimed only at local customers.

For example, an associate of mine produces Business Card Displays. The idea behind this product is that it provides new entrepreneurs the opportunity to set up an advertising service for local businesses. With this product, the entrepreneur creates a network of displays placed in high traffic retail outlets like grocery stores, hair salons, and bowling alleys. Then local advertisers can place their business cards in one of the compartments in the displays across the network. If someone browsing one of the displays sees a service they are interested in, they just take a card for future reference.

Sure, it's not everybody's cup of tea. But for someone willing to put in a few months of hard work at the beginning, it is a pretty easy way to create a business that will return a handsome income for years to come.

And this manufacturer stands behind his product. He can show you examples of successful advertising networks where his displays are used. He will also provide testimonials and contact information from real people whom you can ask how well the product is working for them. And to top it off, he uses the product himself in a network of over 40 displays, and can provide hands-on information about how it actually works in a real-life situations.

This is pretty rare in the world of "business opportunities". Many are run by "take the money and run" types who make wildly exaggerated claims about how successful you can be. But in many cases they have never actually made the idea work for themselves.

As any successful entrepreneur will tell you, your choice of products is crucial to your success or failure. Many products are simply bogus ideas with no hope of working. And many others are designed to produce maximum profits for their creators, and minimum profits for people like you and me who sell them. So no matter how hard you work, or how committed you are to being successful, if you choose the wrong product you will be operating with a millstone around your neck.

Checklist for starting a business

by: Matt Bacak

Use this comprehensive checklist to plan each step of your new business and transform your dream of entrepreneurship into reality. These steps may not necessarily be completed in the order listed; however, you can use them as a guideline for completing all of the necessary business startup tasks.
- Determine what kind of business you want to start.
- Learn about the industry for your business.
- Analyze the market for your business.
- Study your competition.
- Educate yourself on running a business.
- Join trade associations.
- Name your business.
- Perform a trademark search.
- Register a domain name.
- Design a website.
- Obtain a logo.
- Determine business structure (sole proprietor, partnership, or corporation).
- Evaluate your personal budget.
- Write a business plan.
- Write a marketing plan.
- Locate financing.
- Create a list of start-up supplies with budget.
- Set up a system for accounting and payroll.
- Apply for business license, fed tax ID, fictitious business name.
- Select a location and set up shop.
- Order signage.
- Obtain business tools (computer, printer, fax, postage, office supplies, and fixtures).
- Order business stationery (business cards, letterhead, brochures).
- Obtain inventory.
- Create an operations and employee manual.
- Hire employees.
- Set a launch date.
- Plan a grand opening event.
- Send announcements to everyone you know.
- Send press releases.
- Turn on the OPEN sign!
- Revisit your business plan and update often.
- Evaluate your marketing strategy often.
- Prepare a realistic business plan.
Think of this as your business road map. Define exactly where you want to get to with your business and then you can effectively map out your path towards achieving your goals!
By creating a detailed business plan you should cover all options and eventualities and have a clear future vision that will guide you through the rest of the start-up processes.
- Your business plan should encompass the financial considerations of starting your small or home based business:-
Do you have the capital required?
Do you need to raise additional funds?
Who are you going to approach for finance?
Who do you trust for advice?
And don't forget to open a business bank account…
- Consider the legal implications of becoming a business owner and proprietor.
Are you better off as a sole trader, a limited company or are you considering a partnership?
Make sure you consider all the angles and protect yourself and your assets personally from the outset.
Anything you bring to the business has to be itemized, valued…even if you're a sole trader.
And make sure you are professionally covered with the appropriate business indemnity insurances.
- Get your family and friends behind you from the get-go.
Make sure your family and friends are fully understanding and supportive of your ideas to venture into small business start-up.
Do they understand the level of commitment you will have to show for on-going and long term success?
Their belief in you and continued support of you will work wonders towards your on-going success, so don't forget to look out for them too.
- Protect your family, protect your business.
If, God forbid, something were to happen to your health, how would your business survive, how would your family cope?
Consider insurances - from health, critical illness and income protection insurance to life insurance - and consider your pension and long term financial security.
- Face those 'taxing' questions from the start.
Your small or home based business has to consider its taxation situation.
Do you need to register your business for sales tax purposes; have you informed your tax office of your business's inauguration?
Do you have a good tax professional lined up to guide and assist you?
The bottom line when it comes to taxation is that from the outset you need to make sure your papers and books are in order, this will save you time, money and heart ache in the long run.
- Prepare realistic and achievable goals and targets for your first year.
Do not expect to conquer the world with your first year's business returns.
Starting a business is a life changing undertaking and one you must be patient with. The rewards are there, but make sure you set yourself achievable targets - when you reach them they will give you the confidence and satisfaction to set new goals and to continue building your business' success.

Can An Employee Survey Help You?

by: Matthew Noel

An employee survey can provide you with a good understanding of what is happening within your business when you are not there or what your employees think of working there. While any company can benefit from doing an employee survey, there are many reasons for those companies that have issues with such things as poor retention of employees and high turnover to those companies that have a low productivity level. Finding out what is happening behind the scenes will help you to determine what you can do to improve these situations.

For many of those who do an employee survey within their business, it is an eye opener. It can relate good things such as why employees like working with you and how well you pay them and treat them. But, it is also a great way of measuring ways in which you can improve. For many businesses, it can be a turning point.

Because the survey will be conducted through the use of a blind study, that means that the employees who partake in it can do so with the confidence of knowing that their opinions will not be judged or they will not receive harsh treatment if they do not provide good answers.

So, what areas can you learn about on the employee survey? You can learn about many areas from communication down to how well your management team is treating employees. You can learn of why people think about quitting and what things you can do to make things better for them. Little things are often important things to employees. You can also find out about really worrisome issues such as harassment and be more aware of what is really happening behind the scenes.

The employee survey can be done by any number of outside agencies who will provide for your employees a questionnaire. They will then review the information provided and come back to you with the information you need. You'll find that you have options in helping to create an employee survey or you can use a generic model as well. Whatever you choose, realizing that you can benefit from getting an employee survey taken care of is very important in helping your business take the next step forward.

Canada Internet Merchant Account

by: Dane Collins

If you knew that a Canada Internet merchant account could dramatically improve profits and reduce overhead costs, would you get one? Well, the good news is that it can and you should! A merchant account conveys a host of benefits that can help your business expand to meet the demands of today’s time-conscious consumers. To apply for your merchant services account, simply follow the following easy steps.

1. Apply for a Canada Internet merchant account through a reputable banker, loan agent, or financial underwriter. You may be able to work with a banker with whom you have already established a business relationship. Or you can shop around for a better deal if you feel your bank is asking too much money for too few benefits. These accounts can be quite competitive, so it pays to browse a host of providers in your town or on the Internet, where financial offers are waiting for your perusal. Just do a search for merchant accounts or merchant services, and you will soon find that a number of potential lenders will pop up on your screen. You also may want to get the names of other financial institutions from colleagues, friends, and family members who already have successful merchant accounts.

2. Check out possible Canada Internet merchant account providers by running their names through a business checking service, like the Better Business Bureau. While this is not a comprehensive background check or a certification of the lender’s ability to meet your needs or keep its promises, it does provide a starting place for ensuring that the provider is not a total fraud and may be somewhat likely to live up to its promises. You also can check out online testimonials or ask for references. If the company has a longstanding history of providing merchant services, there is a fairly good chance that it will work out well for you, too.

3. Browse available services offered by Canada Internet merchant account providers. Perhaps the most sought-after benefit is the ability to offer credit card payment processing services to clients who shop at your Internet site. Find out how much this service will cost through your choice of Canada provider, and determine whether the benefits are worth the asking price. You may end up paying some of the expenses yourself, such as a domain registration and site-hosting fee, but this is to be expected from just about any provider. It is important to compare fees among various lenders to get the most affordable package. Some underwriters will ask for an application fee or an annual membership fee, as well as several other types. Look for the lowest available costs before deciding on the provider you want to work with.

4. Find out which services will by covered by your choice of Canada Internet merchant account underwriter. Some companies may provide free monthly statement printouts while others charge for this service. You also need to check service rates, which typically are billed by a few cents per transaction or via a low monthly interest rate. Set up your company budget and evaluate your customers’ buying patterns to figure out which billing method will work most in your favor.

Finding the right underwriter will help you to maximize your Canada Internet merchant account.

Buying a Franchise

by: Matt Bacak

is not for everyone. This guide will help you evaluate whether buying a franchise is right for you. It will help you understand your obligations as a franchise owner. Many people dream of owning and running their own business but are often let down by the reality of doing so.
By purchasing a franchise, you often can sell goods and services that have instant name recognition and can obtain training and ongoing support to help you succeed. But be cautious. Like any investment, purchasing a franchise is not a guarantee of success.
A franchise typically enables you, the investor or "franchisee," to operate a business. By paying a franchise fee, which may cost several thousand pounds, you are given a format or system developed by the company ("franchisor"), the right to use the franchisor's name for a limited time, and assistance.
While buying a franchise may reduce your investment risk by enabling you to associate with an established company, it can be costly. You also may be required to relinquish significant control over your business, while taking on contractual obligations with the franchisor.
Outlined below are some of the main points you need to consider before buying a franchise:
- Franchise fee: Your initial franchise fee, which may be non-refundable, may cost several thousand to several hundred thousand pounds.
- Royalty payments: You may have to pay the franchisor royalties based on a percentage of your weekly or monthly gross income. You often must pay royalties even if your outlet has not earned significant income during that time. In addition, royalties usually are paid for the right to use the franchisor's name.
- Advertising fees: You may have to pay into an advertising fund. Some portion of the advertising fees may go for national advertising or to attract new franchise owners, but not necessarily to target your particular outlet.
- Controls: To ensure uniformity, franchisors typically control how franchisees conduct business. These controls may significantly restrict your ability to exercise your own business judgment.
- Terminations and Renewal: You can lose the right to your franchise if you breach the franchise contract. In addition, the franchise contract is for a limited time; there is no guarantee that you will be able to renew it. A franchisor can end your franchise agreement if, for example, you fail to pay royalties or abide by performance standards and sales restrictions. If your franchise is terminated, you may lose your investment. Franchise agreements typically run for 15 to 20 years. After that time, the franchisor may decline to renew your contract.
Before investing in a particular franchise system, carefully consider how much money you have to invest, your abilities, and your goals.

Business Laws: What you Need to Know

by: Matt Bacak

There are a myriad of things you must think about when opening any type of business whether it is a small business or a large corporation and one of those is how business law may affect you. Failure to pay attention to business and corporate law can land you in a world of trouble-both legal and financial. The good news is that you do not necessarily need to be a graduate of a fancy business law college or have a business law major to brush up on the basic ideas of small business law and corporate business law.
If you've paid attention to the headlines lately, you probably know that employment law for business is one of the number one areas where you can get into trouble if you aren't up on all the employment laws and regulations. There are numerous laws that govern the employment of both regular employees and contract employees. Just for a broad overview, take a look at all the employment business laws you must meet:
· Civil Rights Act of 1966.
· The Equal Pay Act of 1963
· Americans with Disabilities Act
· The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986
· The Age Discrimination in Employment Act
· The Equal Employment Opportunity Act
· The Bankruptcy Act
· The Occupational Safety and Health Act
· FMLA, the Family Medical Leave Act
· Employee Polygraph Protection Act Labor Law
· FLSA, the Fair Labor Standards Act
And that's not even counting the various state employment business laws that might apply to your business! If you aren't sure of whether you are meeting all the regulations, it's a good idea to get a checkup for your HR department.
Do you happen to work in the international arena? If you have anything at all to do with international business, then you should be aware of the many ways in which international business law can affect you, your business and your bottom line. At a minimum, you need to make sure that you meet general international business laws, specialized export laws, import laws and any laws of the foreign country in which your business operates.
And what about the business law scene at home? Were you aware that in addition to Federal business law and international business law, you are probably required to meet State business law regulations? Do you know whether you need a business permit or license? Failure to obtain one can result in the shutdown of your business and hefty fines and penalties. This is just one of the ways that state business law, such as California business law, can affect the health of your business if you aren't careful to stay on top of things.
Finally, what about Internet and online business laws? Were you even aware that there was such a thing? The Internet has exploded so much in the last decade that the government has found it necessary to institute Internet compliance laws. If you operate a website of any kind and do not meet the compliance regulations, that site could be shut down and you could face criminal prosecution and hefty fines.
Of course, no one should ever attempt to navigate the complexities of any type of business law alone and the best course of action is to always seek the qualified professional advice of a business law firm, but hopefully these tips will help you to understand a little bit more about business law requirements.
Summary: When operating a business, regardless of whether it is a small business or a large corporation, you need to be on top of business law compliance. Even if you hire a business law firm, it's still a good idea to understand what regulations you must meet.

Build a Profitable Subscriber List

By Kathleen Gage

Why is it some people are incredibly successful at utilizing the power of the Internet in their marketing while others can’t seem to figure out the winning formula?

How often do entrepreneurs and salespeople look for that next magic formula to build their business and increasing revenues, never quite making any of it work? Many people make it much more difficult to succeed than it need be while others know exactly what to do … and they do it.

Ask anyone who has effectively integrated the use of the Internet into their overall marketing strategy and they will tell you success in building your business, both online and off, is about systems. Simple as that.

Developing and utilizing systems is nothing new. Yet, the great search for the pot-of-gold at the end of the rainbow and getting-rich-quick continues.

The place you’ll find more gold than virtually anywhere else is in doing something many people just don’t find appealing. It is in developing and maintaining a solid database. Unfortunately, many people don’t find database management “sexy” enough. So they continually buy into that next “secret formula.”

Fact is, with a well-groomed database you can increase your revenues and decrease your marketing costs. You can build customer relations and keep your name fresh in the minds of your market by keeping in touch. This establishes excellent position within your market.

Most people would be amazed at how simple it is to build an incredibly profitable database by applying a few simple strategies. Remember, simple is not always easy. It will take time, commitment and focus.

Bigger is not necessarily better when it comes to your database. Depending on your industry and what you sell you may be well served to focus on the few dozen or few hundred who want to buy from you rather than thousands who couldn’t care less about what you offer.

On the other hand, there will be situations where building a massive list is exactly what you need to do. Especially if you have mass quantity products you are selling at a very low price. Then you may want to go for the numbers.

Driving traffic to your site is an ongoing process as is building and maintaining your database. If you are serious about using the Internet in your marketing you need to lay the groundwork to optimize your opportunities.

-Develop a fully operational web site
-Have a way to capture contact information such as a sign up form
-Give people a reason for leaving their contact information such as an Ezine, free report or ebook, an article of interest to your target market or anything that is of benefit to the reader
-Develop a series of content driven messages that address your customers’ needs
-Keep your name in front of your market consistently without being annoying
-Write and distribute articles to various online resources pertinent to your market
-Create a resource box containing your web address
-Do not make the articles a hard sell. Rather, provide information that positions you as a resource before you are a vendor
-Develop a list of forums and discussion groups you can participate in
-Commit to the long-term.

By focusing on developing a solid database and providing incredible value to your market you can and will achieve success in your business. Guaranteed!

Broken Teams Damage Your Business

by: Barbara Giamanco

A profitable business bottom line depends on effective teaming as much today as it ever did; yet, “effective teaming” may be destined to be no more than another irrelevant buzz phrase, because by and large teams are still dysfunctional and broken.

If you’ve ever worked in a team – and I’ve yet to meet someone who hasn’t – I know you have at least one horror story to tell about a team that crashed and burned. Isn’t it ironic that with all that’s been written about the negative impact dysfunctional teams can have on business and with all the training available to help correct the problem, success is still elusive.


It’s easy to ignore the damage that dysfunctional teams can do to a business, but the financial impact can be huge. Consider the wasted time in meetings debating the same issues again and again, as well as the constant squabbles and in-fighting over priorities that lead to inaction or worse, bad decisions that result in good money being thrown down the drain.


A recent Microsoft study found that U.S. workers spent an average of 5.6 hours per week sitting in meetings and 69 percent reported that they were not productive. Business is about increasing revenue and profits, so the financial implications to the organization are significant. A $100,000 worker will cost their employer roughly $13,000 to sit through meetings that waste time and do nothing to further the organization’s business goals. Ask yourself if you can afford the $130,000 price tag for having a 10 person team waste hours week after week.


Though some are jaded at the prospect that teams can work together successfully, I believe they can. Developing the cohesiveness that ensures success, though, requires that the root causes of team dysfunction are identified and cured. However, overcoming the issues that lead to dysfunction in the first place is a daunting task requiring openness, disciple and the courage to see it through. The reality is that many teams can’t or won’t summon the strength to tackle the challenge, but those willing to take it on will surely reap the rewards.


There are scores of reasons why teams don’t work. Common ones touted are a lack of clarity about team member roles, a lack of focus on doing the right things at the right time in the teaming process, a lack of appreciation for the unique strengths of every team member, and a failure to reward and recognize the contributions made by each person. Mix in conflicting professional agendas, increasing diversity, lack of trust, a global business world where people are teamed together “virtually”, as well as a resistance to clarifying goals and roles up front, and it’s no wonder teams are stuck.


For teams to perform at their peak, it all begins with trust, unfortunately a rare commodity these days. Trust is the first and most critical component of building a strong team. However, trust cannot be forged when team members put their personal agenda first, refuse to ask for help, when they are unwilling to admit mistakes and blame others, or they summarily dismiss the opinions and ideas of other team members. If team members don’t feel they can trust each other, effective teaming is impossible.


One way to begin building trust is to recognize that people behave differently; they exhibit different behavioral styles and they have different motivations. While you cannot motivate another person, all people are motivated. The mistaken assumption often made is that all team members are motivated by the same things and nothing could be further from the truth. For example, in a situation where a team is working together to achieve a sales goal, it might be easy to assume that everyone is motivated to hit the sales target. But are they really? What happens when not everyone on the team stands to earn compensation for hitting the goal? Sure, the sales person cares, but does the support staff have the same motivation if they don’t share in the commission? Doubtful.



Taking the time to develop a greater understanding of individual behavioral styles and motivations will foster a trusting environment, improve communications and builds a foundation for effective interactions with other people. And before you start griping about not having enough time, remember that it costs your company in more ways than one if you don’t make the time. Doing the upfront work positions teams for innovative performance.


Cohesive, high performing teams give an organization a powerful competitive edge. Great teams don’t waste precious time focused on the wrong issues, nor do they constantly revisit the same topics over and over again, in meeting after meeting, because team members didn’t buy-in to the goals from the beginning. High performing teams make high quality decisions; they get more done in less time without the normal personal hassles and frustrations. Finally, when it comes to keeping great talent in the organization, which is itself a significant competitive advantage, remember great people don’t walk away from teams that get it right!

(c)2010 Barbara Giamanco and Talent Builders, Inc.

Avoiding Home Business Failures

by: Srinivasan R.G.

It’s been said that 80% of all small business dies within the first 3 years. And the rest are somehow struggling along with meager revenues. Only a handful is successful. Home based business has an even shorter lifespan. Every enthusiastic home based venture starts out with a big promise, a lot of excitement and enthusiasm.

However at the first signs of trouble or a slow take off the people become panicky. Having been accustomed to regular pay check, when the money does not roll in week after week and the bank balance hits the low digits, there is a sense of panic and the exciting home business gets trashed.

My own experience tells me this happens just when you are through with organizing, setting up and the difficult transition period of reaching out to the customers, you decide to wind up the business in favor of a job.

Now here are a few tips to persevere and make a success of your home business.

Plan in advance your finances for running your family for a minimum period of 6 months.

Plan every aspect of your business – right from creating the product to final shipments - on paper. Don’t leave out anything. This is what is called a business plan. Make it elaborate and group each aspect under a heading and subheading.

Home workers need to set a disciplined work schedule. Having no bosses around or compulsions of commuting may make you take things easy and relaxed. At least for the first 6 month work as if you are in employment and put in the required hours. You can relax and cut down on working hours when you start earning enough.

Don’t procrastinate or put things off for tomorrow. Action is one major ingredient for success. If you need to do something do it today. Do it now.

It is essential to keep your motivation high. Read about the success of other small business and home business owners and learn what they did right. Duplicating someone else who has succeeded makes it easy to succeed yourself.

You may suddenly find yourself alone without the social support of colleagues and friends. Even persons you considered your best friends may avoid you if they feel you are in trouble. That is OK. You get to know who’s who in times of adversity. Learn to depend on yourself than outside support.

Be prepared to take the temporary pain and denials. Robert Kiyosaki of ‘Rich Dad Poor Dad’ fame and his wife slept in their car for a few months and lived in a basement of a friends house for many more months to achieve what they set out - their financial freedom.

Believe in yourself and keep going even if the going gets tough. The rewards far outweigh the pains and temporary sufferings. Remember the darkest hour is just before the dawn breaks out and sun rises.

Avoiding Common Work at Home Business Pitfalls

by: Charles Fuchs

Not everything works for everyone, everytime, so understanding how to avoid certain work at home business pitfalls can keep you from relying too heavily on methods used by other companies that may not work for you. Know your own business needs to avoid certain work at home business pitfalls that so many other organizations fall into.

First, understand that how and where you advertise make a difference in how effective it will be for your business. One of the most common work at home business pitfalls is to assume that any advertising will work for your business. However, you need to target your advertising to bring in the right consumers. Define your market, and create advertising to target that market.

Another one of the common work at home business pitfalls is to believe if you start a business people will flock to it. Starting and maintaining a business takes a lot of work. You will need to advertise and network to build your work at home business. Making personal contact with potential clients will bring in significantly more business than advertising alone.

Customer service is key to building and maintaining your business. So you want to make sure you treat your clients well. However, another one of the most common work at home business pitfalls is believing that you need to hold onto every business relationship, no matter what. Make sure you weigh out some of your problematic clients with what they are costing you and your business. It is not all about the bottom line, either. If you have a client that is keeping you up at night, you may want to consider breaking off the relationship.

Of the common work at home business pitfalls, believing that if something works, it works for everyone or in every situation will cause your business to have slow to little growth. Yes, you may have done it that way since you started your work at home business, but the method may need to change for your growing business. It is always good to keep an open mind.

You can try, but as your business grows you won’t be able to do it all anymore. Starting your business from your home may have been a way to get away from the rat race, another of the common work at home business pitfalls is to try to do it all alone. If something is not your strength or you no longer have the time to complete common tasks, you need to see if it is within your budget to get someone to help you out.

Remember, you want your business to be successful. Avoiding these common work at home business pitfalls to help you maintain flexibility to create a successful business environment.

Autoresponder Services For Your Business

by: scott morris

In the world of ecommerce, millions of sites are fiercely competing with each other to gain new clients. For any ecommerce site to succeed, it must capture the interest and the trust of its visitors. It is not enough that your site is impeccably designed or has the latest in animation of content. You should focus your efforts not only in attracting visitors but also in leading them to make a purchase. There are dozens of marketing strategies you can use to attract more buyers and pump up your sales. One of them is by establishing an excellent and professional reputation for prompt and efficient response.

As more potential customers visit your site, you should expect a flood of inquiries and requests for information. This is an excellent opportunity for you to capture more clients and lead them to buying from your site. Thus, it is important that you carry out an efficient and prompt response to every email you receive. The fastest and most effective way to do this is by utilizing Autoresponder services.

Autoresponder services use a computer program that automatically returns a prewritten message to anyone who sends an email to your site. It is widely used for responding to consumer inquiries and visitor comments and suggestions. Autoresponder services are also used by e-zines in responding to people who subscribe or unsubscribe to their online magazines. Companies, who send out their e-newsletter regularly, also use Autoresponder services.

How can effective Autoresponder services help boost your business? The answer lies in its ability to return a prompt response to any e-mail the site receives. By responding rapidly and efficiently, you create a very good impression on your potential customer. Good Autoresponder services help you get important information back to these customers immediately. An effective Autoresponder service helps you communicate your message promptly, creating a sense of professionalism and efficiency that your clients will definitely appreciate.

Another very important advantage of Autoresponder services is that it saves time with multiple marketing tasks. Certainly, you do not have enough time to personally make and send all correspondence. Autoresponder services allows you to send thank you letters, newsletters, product information, brochures, orders etc. to hundreds of clients almost immediately and simultaneously. Autoresponder services are also indispensable in any email marketing campaign.

Choosing the right Autoresponder services is very important. What then should you look for in an Autoresponder service? First, you should pick an Autoresponder service that is reliable and can give you 24/7 service. You cannot afford to lose a customer because your Autoresponder service failed to answer his query or request for information. The ability to respond promptly is the first thing you must look for in any Autoresponder services.

Another key factor you should consider when choosing Autoresponder services is flexibility. Good Autoresponder services allow you to customize unique responses that will have maximum effect on the customer. You should avoid creating an impression that the customer is communicating with a machine instead of a real human being. Excellent Autoresponder services lets you provide the information that is specifically targeted for what the potential customers are looking for. Because any email from potential customers essentially represent the customer's intent on getting more information about your product, which can ultimately lead to direct sales, all emails are important. Thus, a top Autoresponder service must fulfill all these duties to help you boost your business.

Are You Serious About Your Work At Home Business?

by: Nicole Dean

Are you treating your business like a Fortune 500 Company or like a Yard Sale? Take this quiz to find out.

How would you describe your Office?
a.) Corporate or b.) Chaos

Which word describes you personal appearance while you’re working?
a.) Success or b.) Mess

And, how would you describe your attitude towards your business?
a.) Winner or b.) Winging-it

If you chose only ‘a’ answers, then congratulations! You’re thinking like a Fortune 500 company!

If you chose even one ‘b’ answer, then keep reading…

We oftentimes think “What does it matter what my desk looks like? And, who cares what I look like in front of my computer at home. Nobody can see me.”

Well, it does matter. It matters, because you matter and because your business matters. And, if you treat your business like something of value and take care of it, it’ll take care of you. And why shouldn’t you? Your business is just as important as any Fortune 500 Company. It’s yours and it’s special.

Here are some steps to take today.

1. No more working in chaos.
Make your office a “no toy zone”. Your office is your turf. Protect it. If you have little office helpers, then establish one area that can have toys, perhaps a basket or drawer – and don’t let it spread.

2. No more working in jammies.
You wouldn’t show up to work at IBM or Microsoft in your fuzzy bunny slippers, would you? You don’t need to wear a suit, but simply feeling more professional will lead to more professional results.

3. No more amateur phone message
Review the outgoing message on your answering machine. Does it sound like the office of a professional or like chaos central? Rerecord it to make a good first impression upon clients when they call.

4. No more ‘winging it’.
Begin each day with a list of six jobs that you want to accomplish. If you make the list achievable with small goals, you’ll feel much better about at the end of the day.

Are you ready to treat your business like a valuable Fortune 500 company? I hope you’ll take your first step today towards success.

Are You Guessing In The Dark When It Comes To E-Commerce?

by: Jinger Jarrett

In the early days, guessing was considered to be the smartest thing to do. After all, we needed to start somewhere and develop ourselves from scratch so we were ready to find out what works and what doesn’t.

Today, guessing is the least smart thing do. In fact, it can be the most expensive thing to do in terms of time, effort and maybe money.

So, what has that got to do with you and starting your internet business? A lot!

In my experience, I cannot help but notice that most internet business novices prefer to take the guessing path even though there is a lot of uncertainty when you first step into the cyber marketplace.

I think I will probably never know why, but I believe the reason is, is that they would prefer to save the little money they have rather than to invest in the essential education they need to succeed online. Money is another subject by itself that I can’t cover in this article but I’d like you to know that it’s “time over money” and not “time is money” dogma that most of us subscribe to.

If you don’t believe me, here’s a case study for you.

Ed has $500 to spare on his internet business. He wants to start an internet business but he doesn’t know how to. He came across a $97 E-book that can teach him how to do just that, but he decided that $97 is too expensive and decides to take the free way. Ed wants to get web hosting and domain name but since buying a domain name has a price tag on it, he decides to use a free web hosting service at Yahoo! Now, Ed doesn’t know how to get started let alone recognize his available options. By luck, he’s heard about affiliate marketing and decides to be one. After a couple of months without much success, Ed decides to create his own information product but doesn’t know how to. There’s a paid guide on how one can create his own information product but decides that $37 should go to filling his stomach.

Now let’s zoom into year two, and what are the results for Ed? A lot of precious time wasted shooting in the dark, lousy results, a hole in the pocket, and maybe a swell in the pride. What an expensive price to pay for being a cheap skate!

By the way, the name Ed is a fiction. However, the case study is REAL. And I don’t know how many more people are just like Ed.

Even after a few months in business online, the internet business novices are still just that, internet business novices. This explains why we still have people complaining in public forums about not heading anywhere with their internet business even after a couple of years working online.

Is that what you really want? I don’t think anyone wants to remain an amateur for the next three years, let alone forever. Not me, that’s for sure!

I’d prefer to pay for information that can save me from doing the guesswork. You can say that in a way, I’d rather pay other people who have done the guessing for me so I can get ahead quickly. I don’t mind forking out the money as long as I get to save my own time and effort.

However, most people just don’t seem to value their time. This is evident as most novices prefer to save the few dollars they have than to invest their small sum in saving their time from guessing. This explains why we have people whining about not progressing much online even after a couple of years working online.

If you have been trying to save the few dollars you have from investing in the essential education you need to succeed online, you are guaranteed to have little or no results with so much of your precious time wasted.

So, are you going to guess in the dark or invest in your essential education to succeed in your internet business? It’s your choice from here.