Small Business Entrepreneur blog

Four DIY Projects to Beautify Your Business

2013-02-08T07:55:36Z

It goes without saying that a successful business is one with a positive history and a solid reputation. But a long-standing business doesn’t have to show its age across its exterior walls and on its lawn. It is important for any business location to not only maintain a squeaky clean reputation, but a crisp, inviting exterior that boldly states, “We are open and ready to serve you!”

Following are four DIY outdoor improvement projects that will have the exterior of your business rolling out the welcome mat and laying the groundwork for a successful future.

Shape Shrubbery for a Manicured Look

Before addressing the exterior walls of your business, make sure to clear away the hedges. Most hedges can be pruned anytime, so all it takes is electric or gas hedge clippers to get the job done. These can be rented at most hardware stores, and they will make the job far easier than manual tools.

There are two types of hedges, so keep these in mind before starting up the clippers.

Formal hedges: Formal hedges take on a specific shape and should be pruned twice each year. The most popular form for these hedges is an upside down “V,” and the top should be flat or slightly rounded.
Informal hedges: Informal hedges are planted side by side, and grow naturally together. They are pruned once a year to thin out old wood and maintain a preferred height and width.

Don’t just focus on the hedges around the building, though. Make sure to shape other shrubbery on the property for consistency. This will provide a kempt look that will make your business pop.

Power Wash for a Cleaner Appearance

Location is critical for any business, and there is no better place to attract customers than on a well-traveled thoroughfare. Unfortunately, this also means dirt and other pollutants are constantly stirring, and are at war with the facade of your building. Renting a power washer is inexpensive, and you can spray away dirt and grime in no time.

Note: each sprayer nozzle attachment has a specific purpose and distance requirement (how far away you stand when you spray) based upon the material of your building’s exterior, so be sure to discuss that with your home improvement specialist when you rent your washer.

Once you have the power washer, follow these steps to a brighter exterior:

Inspect the exterior of the building to make sure that there are no areas that could be harmed if they become wet.
Mix together cleaning solution that can be purchased at the rental location with your equipment and pour it into the tank.
Connect the water hose to the power washer, and plug it in.
Once it is turned on, use the sprayer in a sweeping motion to blast away the dirt and grime that has accumulated on the surfaces.
Once the job is complete, rinse the equipment before returning.

Paint and Texture to Make the Building Pop

Consider a fresh coat of paint or a spray texture to bring new life to the walls. Airless paint sprayers and texture sprayers are available for rent, are easy to use, and will brighten the personality of even the gloomiest structure.

Airless paint sprayer: A bucket of paint and a paint brush may sound simple, but this traditional approach is not one for the faint of heart. The secret to a new professional-looking paint job is an airless paint sprayer, which makes it possible to cover large swaths of wall space with broad strokes. Pick out a fresh color in an exterior paint (make sure it’s compatible with your sprayer!) and quickly and easily give your business a new coat.
Texture sprayer: Texture sprayers allow you to elevate the paint job on the exterior of your building, and with the right nozzle, they can create a unique look and feel. Knock down, orange peel, or stucco nozzles will define your building with a personality that will welcome customers.

Edge Walkways and Sidewalks for Clean Lines

With the building clean and painted and the shrubbery finely manicured, it is time to pull it all together by adding fine lines to the walkways and sidewalks. An edger can finish the crisp look that you have been craving with the following simple steps:

Make sure that your edger is powered, whether with gas, a new battery, or outlet connection.
Begin at the corner of the driveway or walkway, and place the guide wheel so that it sits against the surface.
Press the trigger and guide the edger as you walk the edge of the walkway, making sure to keep the blade the same distance from the edge.

In a few minutes, the sidewalks, walkways or driveway will have a crisp, clean look that compliments your clean, bright exterior.

It is easy to become overwhelmed when considering the many options for improving the look of your business. But it doesn’t take a high-dollar, high-effort project to create a do-it-yourself success story. It simply takes a little time and the right tools.

What are some of your favorite outdoor power projects? Do you have any tips for first-timers?

Mike Tuma is a Home Depot store associate in the Chicago area, where he has been helping customers since 2005. Mike focuses on outdoor products ranging from a standard chipper to chainsaws and lawn mowers.

Doing business in Africa – a strategic guide for entrepreneurs

2013-01-18T06:46:53Z

First ever systematic management book on Dutch entrepreneurship in Africa launched with major contribution of RSM professor. Doing business in Africa – a strategic guide for entrepreneurs – is a joint production of Berenschot, the Partnerships Resource Centre at RSM Erasmus University Rotterdam and the Netherlands African Business Council. The book will be launched Thursday 18 January in a meeting with the Minister of International Trade and Development Lilianne Ploumen in a festive meeting at the headquarters of Heineken in Amsterdam. Prof. Rob van Tulder of the PrC and the Department of Business-Society Management is one of the lead authors of the book. The book, in his words, brings together ‘business practice, academia and policy for the first time to present a broad perspective on Dutch entrepreneurship in Africa. The book continues where others stop, not only pointing to macroeconomic opportunities and challenges, but showing how to actually do business and reap a sustainable competitive advantage in Africa’.

Small Business Plan Competition in the Winston-Salem area

2013-01-13T10:05:52Z

The Community and Business Development Department is highly devoted to promoting the growth of business enterprises in the Winston-Salem area. Numerous entrepreneurs approach the department weekly for assistance in writing business plans and starting businesses. In an effort to reach more individuals, the department will be hosting a Small Business Plan Competition this spring. The goal of the competition is to provide seed money to help more entrepreneurs get their business ideas to fruition.

The winner of the competition will win:

$5,000 grant for startup costs
$5,000 potential matching micro-loan
Free Change of Use Review (valued at $250) by the Inspections Division to evaluate what changes and expenses are needed to bring a proposed business location into building and safety code compliance
Opportunity to apply to Small Business Loan Program

Timeline for the competition

Tuesday, January 15 – an informational meeting to discuss the business plan competition will be held at 6:00 p.m. in the 5th floor conference room of the Bryce Stuart Municipal Building located at 100 E. First Street in downtown Winston-Salem.
Friday, February 15 – executive summaries and business descriptions are due. Judges will review the submittals and select the top finalists that will go to the final round. Information can be dropped off in the Community and Business Development Department office located on the fourth floor of the Bryce Stewart Municipal Building.
Wednesday, May 15 – final draft business plans are due for evaluation by the Small Business Loan Committee.
Early July- a winner of the competition will be announced.

If you are interested in joining or learning more about the Micro-Enterprise Business Loan Competition, please contact Ruben Gonzales, Business Development Supervisor, at (336)747-7474 or rubeng@cityofws.org.

IMS research: 55 Percent Growth in Telehealth Market in 2013

2013-01-04T05:07:48Z

From 2010 to 2011 usage of remote patient monitoring, or telehealth, increased by 22.2 percent as the number of patients enrolled worldwide reached 241,200. However, telehealth device revenues only grew by 5.0 percent from 2010 to 2011; and 18.0 percent from 2011 to 2012. InMedica, a division of IMS Research (now part of IHS Inc. (NYSE: IHS)) attributes slow revenue growth over the last year to poor economic conditions leading to restrictions in healthcare funding particularly in Europe, and ambiguity on the impact of healthcare reform and readmission penalties on telehealth in the U.S.

Entrepreneurial Training Course 2013

2012-12-26T06:01:04Z

The course is sponsored by the Small Business Development Center in Watertown, NY, but will be conducted entirely online

The purpose of the Online Entrepreneurial Training Course is to provide guidance and support to individuals interested in starting or expanding a small business. The online course consists of reading materials and exercises designed to guide entrepreneurs through all aspects of starting and running a small business. It also includes a one-on-one discussion with an SBDC Advisor to discuss each participants’ specific business project, whether in person or through email or phone contacts.

The course covers how to check credit reports and how to address any related problems; learning what goes into a business plan, what types of insurance are recommended as well as information on contract agreements, marketing and bookkeeping and many more relevant topics. Local professionals are featured in video segments within the course.

When

Monday, 28 Jan 2013 10:00 AM – Monday,
06 May 2013 11:55 PM – (GMT-05:00) Eastern Time (US & Canada)

To register or to find out more, click here.

Launch of Young Entrepreneur Competition (YEC 2013)

2012-12-24T10:17:34Z

Under the patronage of HH Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Dubai Crown Prince and Chairman of the Executive Council, Dubai SME has announced the launch of the 9th cycle of the Young Entrepreneur Competition (YEC 2013) in three different locations: Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Ras Al Khaimah. The four days event brings together students from different private and public High schools, Colleges & Universities across the UAE, who will set up their stands and sell their products in a competitive environment. The competition aims at educating students on the basic principles of starting and operating a private business, and to inspire the students to become entrepreneurs in the future by creating a simple entrepreneurial environment.

Participation is open for students in High schools (from Grad 10), Colleges & Universities. Age from 15 to 25 years old.
Each project can have one student and the maximum number of students in each project should not exceed 4 students.
Students from different schools, colleges & universities can participate in one project.

Find out more on www.yec.ae

5 Ways You Can Have More Work/Life Balance With the Internet

2012-12-11T11:04:38Z

Trying to maintain that work and family life balance has been an elusive goal for many people over the years. Many careers have an often unspoken rule that states a certain protocol is required and must be followed in order to move up the ladder in the organization. This often involves arriving before most other employees, leaving after everyone else, traveling and working during vacations.

Online Businesses Are A Viable Option

Opening an online business offers a number of advantages for these individuals. It is these benefits that draw ever increasing numbers of people to the Internet as they open their own small businesses online.

Easy To Set Up

In most cases, online businesses are easy to set up. All that is needed to get started are a website that details what the business offers and a web hosting service to host the website. Over time, the website can be fleshed out to add more details about the business. Additionally, various marketing techniques can be employed to help the business reach more clients.

Flexibility Is The Key

Setting up a small business that operates solely online opens up a vast arena of possibilities. From an online consulting business to an indie book store, from a graphic design business to selling a particular product they are passionate about, the possibilities are limited only by the imagination of the individuals involved. In addition, these types of small business owners are also able to work as much or as little as they need to in order to meet their financial needs.

Availability Is Quick And Simple

Due to the widespread availability of the Internet, people can work almost anywhere in the world. As long as they have a device that is Internet ready and they are able to access an Internet hotspot, work can be completed. This makes it possible for the owner of a small business that is completely online to check emails, look for supplies or any number of myriad tasks when they have a few minutes of free time.

Work When It’s Convenient

With the technological advances that have occurred in the past few years, it is possible for people to complete work in advance so it doesn’t interfere with their plans with family members. Online programs allow for the streamlining of services such as ordering supplies, bookkeeping and communicating with clients that allows the owners of small online businesses to juggle their work demands with their family responsibilities almost effortlessly.

No Overhead

With an online business, there is no overhead involved. It is not necessary to rent out office space or storage space since the bulk of the work is performed online. Transportation costs for an online business are significantly reduced. Though it is likely that some commuting is possible in order to attend meetings with clients, this won’t need to include a morning or afternoon commute to the office each day.

An online business can be the solution many people are looking for when trying to find the right work and family life balance.

–

Guy Ascher is a freelance tech writer and SEO enthusiast. He enjoys sharing his insights on various marketing blogs. WhoIsHostingThis is a review service that focuses on the performance of various webhosts.

Competitive Feasibility Fund for the Midlands Region 2012

2012-11-03T06:46:22Z

The objective of the Competitive Feasibility Fund for the Midlands Region is to assist a new start-up company or individual entrepreneur to investigate the viability of a new significant growth orientated business or proposition to be located in the Midlands Region (counties Laois, Longford, Offaly and Westmeath) and which has the potential to become a High Potential Start Up (HPSU) company. These are companies that can develop scalable innovative technologies, products or services for sale on world markets. We are seeking to support projects that are likely to achieve significant growth in three to four years (sales of €1m per annum and employment of 10 or more) or where a company is required to have FDA or CE approval, to have €1million in sales within three years of approval to sell.

The objective of the feasibility grant is to provide the necessary information to enable the promoter (and Enterprise Ireland) to reach firm conclusions regarding the project’s viability and set out investor ready plans and financials associated with developing and commercializing the innovative product or service on international markets.

The completed application form must be sent by email to csu@enterprise-ireland.com on or before 6:00pm on Tuesday 20th November 2012. Late applications will not be considered.

More information here.

The Fund is open to applications from the ICT, Industrial, and Food sectors including the following sub-sectors: Internet, Games, SaaS, Cloud Computing, Enterprise Software, Telecoms, Lifesciences, Cleantech, and Industrial Products.

STEP Export Assistance for Small Business in Minnesota

2012-10-29T05:43:47Z

The STEP program provides financial and technical assistance to qualifying Minnesota small businesses with an active interest in exporting products or services to foreign markets.

Participants may be first-time exporters or companies that are currently exporting but are interested in expanding into new international markets.

Financial Assistance Available
Small businesses may apply for reimbursement of up to $500 for export-training that will result in the development of an export strategy or up to $7,500 for approved export-development activities, including:

Participation in trade missions
Exhibiting at trade shows or industry-specific events
Translation of marketing materials
Development of foreign language websites
Gold Key or other business matchmaking services
Company-specific international sales activities
Testing and certification (such as CE marking) required to sell products in foreign markets

More information about eligibility and how to apply here.

Guest post: 5 Lessons to Be Learned About Starting a Home Business

2012-10-09T17:07:19Z

With mergers, company closures, retrenchments, layoffs and a scarcity of jobs plaguing the planet nowadays, starting a home business has emerged as an attractive option for many people around the world.

Time was when a home business was limited to persons with special talents or skills, like cooking, sewing, making toys, handicrafts or the like. Today, with modern technological tools available to almost everyone, home businesses have expanded to include highly technical and professional jobs like accounting, graphic design, software development, medicine, law, and almost any business that doesn’t require a factory or an office.

Mighty oaks from little acorns

While many home businesses are offshoots of a hobby with very limited ambitions, that’s the way many of today’s mega-corporations started. To name a few…

Apple, Inc. – started in the garage of Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak
Hewlett-Packard – another high-tech giant born in a one-car garage
Rembrandt Group – the South African conglomerate that owns brands like Rothmans, Cartier, Dunhill and Montblanc
Amazon.com – the world’s largest online retailer which started as an online bookstore
Koorong – one of Australia’s largest retailers of Christian books and media
Lindos Electronics – a leading British manufacturer of equipment to measure audio quality

Avoiding common home business mistakes

Many people who start a home business learn as they go along and are bound to make mistakes (sometimes a lot) before hitting on a winning formula. A good way around this is to learn from the mistakes of other home business startups. Here are 5 of the more common ones.

Fuzzy business plan – Many a home business is the result of an “Aha!” moment. A person has an inspiration for a home business and starts to organize it without making a clear business plan. What exactly are you selling? Who is the target customer? How do you make the product known? Who’s going to distribute the product? How much time will it take? What are the prices? How much money to invest? These are just some of the questions that are often brushed over by the budding home businessperson.
Frills over substance – It’s easy to get carried away by the trappings of a home business. Renovating a room to serve as an office; designing a logo, stationery and business card; choosing a computer and other equipment are just some of the frills that take up a lot of time at the expense of the more fundamental issues like objectives and targets, finding customers and fine-tuning the product.
Unwise investments – There’s always some investment needed in starting a home business. However, spending a lot in startup facilities before establishing an income stream can cripple a home business. Whether it’s buying a new, larger oven (for a home-based cookie business) or a state-of-the-art computer (for an online venture), startup expenses should be minimized until the business starts to earn some money. Borrowing, renting or outsourcing are options that should be explored before incurring large starting costs.
Wrong mindset – A home business neophyte has been either an employee for a long time or unemployed like a full-time housewife. For the erstwhile employee it takes some adjustment from having many business services provided by other departments to taking care of everything on your own. For a previously unemployed person, taking a home business “seriously” and applying the discipline of a traditional job can take some doing. The inability to acquire the right mindset can hinder the progress of a home business.
Poor marketing – Many home businesses expect customers to start lining up from Day 1. The lack of aggressiveness in looking for customers, creating awareness of the product and marketing it through the most efficient means available is a major reason why many home businesses fail to take off.

There are, of course, other possible mistakes that you should be aware of but these five are the most common errors that startups fall prey to. Be wary of committing these and give your home business startup a better chance of survival.

About the Author:

Lewis Edward is one of the owners of TheOfficeProviders. He is a real estate investor with many interests in other sectors. Lewis researches and contributes various written features for TheOfficeProviders in areas regarding real estate, including office space for rent and servised offices and general business and economy matters. Lewis is experienced in the inner workings of both the traditional and flexible workspace industries and has developed close links with various figures in real estate circles, as well other circles.

Things you should know before starting a software business

2012-09-30T19:16:38Z

I’m trying to write this post for some time now – I kept on postponing because I needed some time to understand things first. I’ve entered the software business back in 2001 – as a fresh graduate, which I think makes me young enough to try to keep up with things and old enough to have some background under my belt.

The thing is that, well, things have changed dramatically especially in the last 5 years. While back in the 2000′s things started to got back to normal after the bubble (and by normal I mean you had to prove strong sales and forecasts to sell a business) nowadays things start to look blurry again. Just look at most big software companies acquisitions – it’s not anymore about how much you can sell, but about how many users you have. The freemium era.

And that’s kind of hard to understand for the It people coming from the early days. I mean, how on Earth do companies that make only free products with a paid upgrade work? Or even more, companies giving everything for free, getting thousands of users, then getting acquired?

This means there are a few things you should know before starting a new business in software nowadays.

Bootstrapping is easier. And harder in the same time. It’s easier because creating a product is cheaper (crowdsourcing for development, cloud for hosting, young people are eager to work from home). But harder because there are plenty of “free” products out there, made by companies that don’t really follow real economical principles (meaning they don’t make a profit but they get acquired for millions based on their users base.
Everything has been done before. And still new things appear all the time. Because it’s so easy to create a new software company nowadays and have products rolling out, I think 99.99% of the ideas have been done before. You think about a mobile application to do x, well, it takes about 5 minutes that there is an application that does x. You plan to develop IT services, well, it’s done remotely from China. But, on the other hand, even more successful products and customized IT services and IT support are developed launched and sold each year. How many times you have told yourself – what an easy idea, why on Earth I couldn’t come up with it? Well, because it’s all about the little details that make the change.
Build it and they will come it’s no longer valid. Unless you’re getting social traction. Remember the times when you only had few HTML editors? Clearly, any innovation or new product in the HTML editing area were destined to success. Nowadays, as I said before, we already have everything available. But it’s amazing what the powers of social media can do for a product.
Everything is done in China. And yet just few IT jobs were lost anywhere else. I remember a few years ago everybody got paranoia that China and India are causing IT jobs loss in the Western World. But, well, the thing that actually happen is that IT grew more than the outsourcing countries could provide.

It is hard to become successful in software nowadays and not because of the crisis or because you can’t find a new idea. It’s hard because things change so fast and everybody is so competitive. But hard is good, because otherwise everybody would do it and you wouldn’t have any rewards down the road.

Case study: Implementation of a Live Video Training Solution for Dentists

2012-09-28T10:35:05Z

UNAS Romania (the acronym stands for the translation of “The National Union of Dentists’ Associations”) Executive Board wanted to implement a modern online training platform that would allow live video communication between a group of experts and dentists throughout the country to discuss best treatment approaches.

The UNAS live video training platform was launched in May 2012 and it was the first platform dedicated to the improvement of medical services of the Romanian dentists.

As a result, dentists from remote areas in Romania can take advantage of hands on collaborative discussions regarding special treatment cases, from the comfort of their offices without spending money and time traveling to medical conferences.

Read the case study on the implementation of the live video communication platform.

Case study: Implementing an e-learning platform for the Family Doctors in Romania

2012-09-27T12:15:43Z

Can e-learning be an efficient tool for doctors aged over 40?

FormareMedicala.ro platform was launched in March 2011 and:

over 3000 doctors have joined the platform in the first year
8 courses published in 2011
more than 7000 family doctors have subscribed to the monthly newsletter
90% of the doctors appreciated the quality, accuracy and clarity of the courses as being excellent

Read about the successful implementation of an e-learning platform for the Family Doctors in Romania here.

New interviews with entrepreneurs

2012-09-22T10:20:11Z

Read some inspirational stories from new and old entrepreneurs that started a business against all odds:

Interview with Abbie&Rose ready-to-wear label for men in Brussels

Abbie&Rose is a new Belgo-French ready-to-wear label for men based in Brussels, Belgium. The brand was launched with a first collection in February 2012. Long story short, after almost 8 years in finance, one of the founders decided it was time to take his future in my hands and find the project that would keep his days (and, so it turns out, nights) busy for the next few years. However, I wasn’t keen on taking unnecessary risks, so I decided to take 6 month sabbatical from his job. Then he used the free time to meet with entrepreneurs he had met in his previous career. And this is how Abbie&Rose was born. Well almost… Read the interview here

Interview with Luke Kupersmith – transportation and logistics business

As CEO and co-founder of Source Consulting , Luke Kupersmith has exemplified strong leadership skills for the past eight years to facilitate a successful business. Source Consulting, a privately owned logistics consulting and solution provider, has become one of the leading transportation and logistics consulting companies in the country, earning a spot on Inc. Magazine’s “500 Fastest Growing Companies” list in 2011. Read the interview here to find out if you can make a business in the transportation and logistic field.

Using Twitter to Promote Your Small Business

2012-07-30T10:58:32Z

After making an important decision on which ecommerce hosting service you will entrust your business to (Shopify ecommerce website specialise in this area), you need to embrace social media such as Twitter to get your message out there.

Twitter will work wonders for your small business, as long as you keep tweets relevant and interesting.

Get a Grip on Twitter

If you’re a first-time user of twitter, get acquainted with Twitter for Business. Learn the ins and outs of how twitter works, why it’s useful and how it can help you achieve your business goals.

It’s such an effective and powerful promotional tool because it’s instant, it’s relevant to your business and it keeps your customers engaged with you.

With a maximum of 140 characters in your tweet, you can speak to your audience and keep them entertained through contests, links, downloads, discounts, and relevant web content.

Be Friendly

Using a serious and heavy business tone in your tweets is not a great idea. It lack’s personality, vitality and can cause serious annoyance issues with your followers.

Keep your language light, friendly and personable. It’s irrelevant what your business sells, whether it’s insurance or venetian blinds – your followers won’t hang around long if you don’t amuse and entice them. Aim to tweet your information in an appealing way.

Don’t speak in the third person (‘Trylex is offering 2 for 1’). Use first person narrative instead (‘we’re giving you 2 for 1 today’).

Use Call-To-Action Tweets

Call your followers to action by sending them tweets that they can’t resist. Use creative phrasing to capture their attention.

CTA’s incite the customer to subscribe, retweet, buy what you’re selling, download or click on a link for example. CTA’s encourage your followers to participate and maintain a relationship with your business.

Exclusivity Wins Loyalty

Offering your followers exclusive discounts and deals only via Twitter will make them feel privileged and special. It’s a win-win situation because they will receive your exclusive offers and you will receive their loyalty. Additionally, they may retweet your tweet – which will increase your brand awareness amongst other users.

Include Twitter on Your Website

Twitter offers resources such as widgets and tweet buttons that you can place on your website. These will encourage your web customers to keep up to date with the latest information and offers, as well as potentially widening your customer base. Differentiate these buttons from the rest of your page, possibly through the use of vibrant colours.

Create an Interesting Twitter Profile

Twitter followers would have viewed many profiles, so try to make your twitter profile unique and interesting. Customise your profile to reflect your brand in a vibrant and approachable way – one that’s full of personality. Remember that your profile is entirely public, so even non-followers can view it.

The end game is to promote your brand through the heightened engagement and interest of your followers and beyond.

Minnesota Small Business Friendliness

2012-07-27T09:12:32Z

2012 Thumbtack.com Small Business Survey, in partnership with Kauffman Foundation

After a two-month survey of over 6,000 small business owners nationwide, Thumbtack.com has released new data showing that Minnesota small businesses are the fourth-fastest growing nationwide.

Some of the key findings for Minnesota include:

Minnesota small businesses were the nation’s #4 fastest growing. However, the state earned only a B and a #18 ranking nationwide for its overall friendliness towards small business.
Surprisingly, male-owned small businesses in Minnesota felt much more comfortable economically than did their female counterparts. Male entrepreneurs were 17% more likely than female entrepreneurs to rate their company’s current financial situation as “good” or “very good”.

Find out more on the http://www.thumbtack.com website.

10 things you should know before starting a small business

2012-05-26T13:32:07Z

1. Everything will be harder than you think.

If you are employed, it’s a bit hard to realize that some of the things that come natural for your employer are things they got achieved in years. For example, your employer has already a channel to distribute products, previous customers and experience to sell, basically its enough to launch a new product and have some sales on it without big efforts. Not to mention the system that makes everything work starting from contract templates, legal advice, suppliers contracts, after sales support and so on.

2. It will take longer than expected to break even.

Plan for at least a year. You have 2 options here: have enough personal money to survive for a year without a paycheck (but that’s going to affect your morale), or before starting on your own, have at least 1 contract with a big customer that’s going to pay your expenses for a year. Prepare to take longer than the worse plan.

3. Find a niche.

I know in the beginning you will think you could do any product, any service, anywhere. This is not true because your message when finding customers can not be “we can do everything”. If it is, you will compete with everybody in fields you’re not the best. You can’t just go to any potential customers in the market and say we can do whatever they want. Let’s say you want to open a flower shop. You can’t just go out and have flowers, gardening tools, gardening services for every type of customer. A niche might work better for you because building experience, customers and market in a niche needs less effort. Open a flower shop for corporate gifts, if it feels like a good niche, even if you feel you might make some money out of landscaping services. In the beginning focus on what brings you most money and advantages, because the first year is a race.

4. Don’t worry if you can’t do anything the customer wants on your own.

To explain, when you go to a potential customer, some of the requests are outside of our expertise. You could either refuse the business (but that’s a suicidal approach in the first year), work your butt to do something you are not the best, spend a lot of time and resources in the process (and that’s suicidal also) or find a trusted subcontractor to do it, even if you don’t do any profits on that particular section of the deal. Besides gaining the customer, working with subcontractors also gives you the chance to learn from their expertise and know better next time.
5. Don’t invest that much in marketing in the beginning.

I hear what you say, at first it’s very hard to find customers, so how can you leave marketing out? Well, if you are on a niche and provide good service, the main selling channel will be word of the mouth. Invest more into networking and knowing people that can bring you repeated business.
6. Keep your options open.

If everything else fails you should still be able to get a job. It happen to the best of us.
7. Work hard & play hard.

I know from my own experience that you get so many things to do that you fail to celebrate victories. And when this happens you are missing the satisfaction and slowly you are not going to enjoy things anymore.

8. Time management.

One of the most important things entrepreneurs fail at is time management. You can’t see the forest because of the trees. You get a customer and because you need to give your best, you end up spending much more time on it than the money you get. And when the year ends you have happy customers but no profits. That’s going to kill your business.

9. Calculate the cost of the selling effort.

You know, when the prospect of selling something is there, you tend to spend unlimited time just to get that contract. And even if it’s your own time (and “that doesn’t cost anything because it’s just time”) you will end up losing money, because selling effort is never part of the quoted price…
10. Just do it.

The more you think about the hardships you’re going to have, the more you’re getting away from actually doing it. Sometimes is better to jump into the water and see what’s going to happen.

Why Aesthetics is Important in Product Design

2012-04-25T12:32:25Z

Product design is something that we all know a little about. It can be found everywhere we go these days. However, what many people don’t realise is just how important aesthetics actually are when it comes to product design.

First of all, imagine that you are out with your children and you go into a store that sells fizzy drinks and sweets. Out of all of the products that are in the store, you can guarantee that the child will go for the brightest colours, or the designs that catch their eye the most. Designers of packaging on sweets and fizzy drinks know that this is what children go for, which is why they do it. This might not sound very good, but it does make their products sell.

Another good example is the mobile phones that are available these days. If you had a choice between the Apple iPhone and one of the very first Nokia model, which would you choose? The majority of people will go for the iPhone. Why? Because it looks nicer than the old Nokia phones. This is something that we are all faced with on a daily basis, but it is something that we don’t think about. As you can see from these two examples; aesthetics are incredibly important when it comes to product design.

So, if you are introducing a new product into the market, one of the main aspects to consider is the products aesthetics. When you are discussing and deciding on the aesthetics for your product design, be sure to keep your target audience in mind, and what you feel like would find appealing. Aesthetics in product design are so important as they can be the difference between a successful or unsuccessful product.

Fortunately, these days’ manufacturers have the help of a design consultant. These consultants will have had many years of professional training, as well as years of professional experience. A design consultant will be able to make sure that the design that they come up with is guaranteed to make your product sell.

If you want to find a design consultant who specialises in product design, then it is a good idea to talk to several different consultants to enquire about their ideas for your product. This way you are able to see who has the best ideas that offer you the biggest chance of success. So, don’t risk your product being unsuccessful, contact a product design consultant today.

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CMD,with Multi Award Winning Industrial Design Consultancy specializing in the design and development of products, providing turnkey product and strategic design solutions from concept to manufacture.

5 Tips to Increase Brand Awareness

2012-04-21T08:39:24Z

No matter what industry you’re in, raising brand awareness is a key part of thriving and distinguishing yourself from competitors. In fact, achieving a certain level of recognition is something that nearly all big name businesses have accomplished. With that being said, let’s discuss 5 tips to increase brand awareness for your business.

1) Start by creating pages on a variety of social media websites. For example, you could get started by setting up accounts on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest. To effectively brand your business, you should integrate your logo and slogan onto each page and network with other relevant individuals in your industry. This includes following relevant people in your niche, posting content from your primary website and connecting with your target audience.

2) Utilize the power of search engine optimization to get your website ranked highly. This typically involves choosing keywords with minimal competition and maximum searches, using proper keyword density, tagging your content and creating quality backlinks. By reaching a high position in Google and other search engines, the overall exposure for your business should increase as well as your authority.

3) Create a blog for your business. This is a great way to keep your clients or customers updated on recent activities while simultaneously getting your name out there. Blogging is incredibly cost effective and especially powerful when used in conjunction with social media. Just be sure to provide readers with valuable information and not over promote your products or services to the point that people find it annoying.

4) Take advantage of more traditional, offline marketing techniques. For example, you could use printing services to create items like stickers, business cards, shirts, corporate clothing and tee shirts. If you have a larger budget, you could also purchase ad space on billboards or in magazines. While this form of branding is a bit more expensive than online techniques, it can help create a more complete identify for your business.

5) Attend trade shows every once in a while. These events allow you to set up a booth where you can display the logo and slogan of your business and interact with other relevant people in your industry. You can talk with clients or customers and explain what you and your business are all about. Consequently, this is a great way to bring a level of legitimacy to your business.

To summarize, it’s important to implement as many strategies as possible when increasing brand awareness. By using social media, search engine optimization and a blog, you can usually reach a large demographic on the global level. By using offline techniques like print advertisements and trade shows, you can expand your reach and achieve even more credibility

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Written by Lisa Smith – Lisa has 5 years’ experience as a freelance writer for business process development, internet marketing and social media topics. She represents a number of clients and is currently working with http://www.aplclothing.co.uk .

Things to Consider When Choosing the Best Email Marketing Software

2012-04-18T19:14:52Z

Businesses seeking new ways to communicate with customers will find many benefits from using comprehensive and professional email marketing software. Top notch software allows businesses to create and send a variety of marketing materials such as white label email, newsletters, and documents. Never before has there been such a wide choice of email marketing software available to choose from. There are several key factors to consider before spending valuable time and money on any type of business software.

Usability Factor

Not everyone has an advanced technical background with skills capable of managing email marketing campaigns. That is why it is important to consider how user-friendly a particular software or program is. Efficient software will make it easy to install, configure, and set up custom email lists in the least amount of time possible. A user interface that is simple to navigate will produce positive results and allow better use of time and investment.

Features and Implementation

The best email marketing software will offer a comprehensive list of features that can easily be implemented by the user. Creating custom and attractive emails quickly and easy is necessary. Professional software should include a large selection of visually appealing email and newsletter templates to choose from. Many businesses find it necessary to customize emails with multiple colours, photos, background images, sound, and video. Content management features such as managing duplicate emails, removing unsubscribed contacts, and the ability to import mailing lists in specified formats also play an important role when selecting software.

Reports and Statistics

Knowing what works and what doesn’t work is imperative for businesses using email management software. The reporting of successfully sent emails, how many emails bounce back, and how many emails recipients read are just several crucial statistics that are necessary to analyse. Emails sent using marketing software will usually give the reader with the option to subscribe or unsubscribe to future mailings. The ability for a business to track subscribers is a key element to managing successful email marketing campaigns.

Customer Support

An acceptable level of customer support is necessary when using any type of email marketing software. High quality software will offer multiple support options that are available to users 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Contact forms, email support, user forums, and an informative knowledge base are all helpful support methods. Telephone and live chat support should also be available to users who are in need of help.

Pricing

The cost of email marketing software varies based on features and services provided. With a range of products to choose from, finding software that is affordable and fits the company budget has never been easier. The number of contacts that handled by the software will often have an overall impact on cost.

Try Before You Buy

It is beneficial to select email marketing software that allows a free trial to customers. There is no better way to become familiar with a particular piece of software other than using it first-hand. The ability to test drive and experiment with features will put businesses in the driver’s seat when it comes time to spend money on software that will manage their marketing campaigns.

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My name is Nisha, I represent a site called neteffekt.com. I love to write about business advice and tips.

TEST PREP DOMINANCE

2012-04-03T05:24:13Z

The Rise of TestMasters

By Daniel J. Cohen

During the recent “Great Recession”, US industries as a whole saw a great drop in revenue. Led by the fall of finance and real estate, normally robust industries fell face first into downturn. Tech companies that had dominated for decades saw stock decline and profits decrease. Even blue chips were in pain; some of the most stable companies in the world suffered from widespread panic.

But there was one industry that thrived:

Education.

There is an old saying in education markets. When times are good, business is good. When times are bad, business is better. High unemployment leads to job seekers, and competitive job seekers have to do everything within their power to get an edge. One obvious and immediate move is to improve one’s skill set or knowledge base.

And the fastest way to do that is to get an education.

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Enter Testmasters Education Services, one of the leading education companies in the world. Started in 1991 as a family business by MIT graduate Roger Israni, Testmasters has seen one of the most successful initial twenty year runs of any modern American company. The company teaches test prep classes to students looking to beat standardized tests.

You might say the business itself was a lock for Israni, who scored perfectly on his own SAT and began his company on the backbone of his own strategies. By spending hours on research and development and diving headfirst into the test, he found easy shortcuts, tips and tricks that outpaced other test prep companies.

By the time he was ready to launch his first class, he knew he had the best material available. But getting high school students to pay attention in class isn’t easy… unless you use the number one secret weapon to get people to pay attention:

Humor.

“Our teachers really bring comedy into the classroom,” says Israni. “We throw our students candy, play games, things like that. It keeps them engaged and really increases how much they learn.”

The fun paid off. The first Testmasters class was a smashing success and the company hasn’t looked back since. Through its excellent strategies, engaging classes, and strong referral system, they began to reach full capacity in their initial location and opened another center. Then another. Then another.

Eventually, the business became so busy that Israni had to stop teaching and dedicate all of his time to research and running the business, carefully training teachers to uphold the quality of the classes and materials.

And of course, maintain the necessary level of humor.

Testmasters also eventually expanded its classes to include the full range of major standardized tests. Using its same strategy of dedicated test prep research and humorous, engaging material, the company now offers preparation for the SAT, PSAT, ACT, GRE, GMAT, LSAT, HSPT, and ISEE and OLSAT. They are the largest test prep company in the Houston area, and have expanded nationally and internationally over the last decade, largely assisted by its renowned online programs.

The major brands in the test prep industry have disintegrated as of late. Princeton Review, the leading test prep company in the world for a long time, decided in the last few days to sell its test prep unit in favor of other industries. And Kaplan, the original company in the space, has lost major ground recently due to its decision to concentrate on its university program.

These events leave Testmasters with room to grow at a time when they have the resources and momentum to capitalize. Testmasters has become greatly engaged in social media, a strategic decision based on their specialized customer base.

“We have found that many of our students need not only help beating the test, but information about the exam itself,” says Israni. “Our blogs and social media sites aim to give them a better understanding of thins like college admissions and upcoming changes to the test.”

Testmasters assists students with its GRE blog, It’sNotGREek, and college admissions blog College Compass. They also accept referral coupons, something taken advantage of by its current and former students on a regular basis. If you Google “Testmasters referral coupon”, you are likely to find search result pages littered with the company’s $25 off discounts.

If you want to prepare for a standardized test or simply would like to find more information about the company, call (281) 276-7777 or visit the company website at www.testmasters.com.

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Daniel J. Cohen has a Masters Degree in public relations from the University of Houston and serves as a copywriter and communications specialist at BrightBox Marketing in Houston, Texas. A master wordsmith of the modern PR era, Cohen constantly seeks out innovative message strategies and uses them to get his clients the best results. You can read his insights on the BrightBox Brand Marketing blog, or his own personal blog Copy and Tweet.

When something can go wrong it will go wrong!

2012-05-14T04:52:42Z

Spending some money on Internet Security Software might just save your business

It was one of these regular Mondays when everybody was trying to pick up things after the weekend. One of my colleagues returned from the coffee machine, and while on his laptop, he started laughing. “Who opened up these strange sites while I was away?” he said believing we were doing jokes on him.

Well, the bad news was that we weren’t playing any jokes on him. He got a virus! He quickly went and downloaded a free antivirus and tried to clean up the computer. Of course, once you got a virus is way harder to clean it, so prevention is always better. So, here we go, out of nowhere, on Monday morning he had to go to the computer shop to re-install Windows and then, the other software he was using. This took all day long and a hefty computer repair bill.

And you probably already know it better than me, when you are a small business with 3-4 people and a bootstrapping budget, you kind of feel when one of the colleagues is missing and even more, it comes back with bills to pay.

But wait, there is more. After he left, we soon discovered that our file server was also virused. We had there, amongst graphical resources, documents, contracts and so on, a wiki installation where we kept all our business intelligence: market researches, product documentations, coding examples and so on. And what do you know, nobody thought to have backups on that server.

It took almost 2 weeks to put some things back (I can’t even calculate what was the cost of rewriting stuff), and we couldn’t really re-do everything. We lost about 6 moths of gathering data, writing product documentations and so on.

And this, in small business terms means tsunami.

This probably has to do something with the way bootstrapped companies start. You have an idea, you gather with a friend and start working on something. Naturally you probably use your own laptop and every penny goes into growing the business. You never think that investing just a bit in some Internet Security Software might be an investment in growing the business. Lesson learned!

Geek Dominance: Teeks for Geeks Starts Worldwide IT Training Dojo

2012-03-09T05:59:05Z

IT is one of the largest, most expansive, and BOOMING businesses in the entire world. To that end, IT training is becoming more and more valuable every day. In a time of economic uncertainty, one of the only universal statements people agree to in business is that technology will continue to advance.

But when it comes to IT Training, finding the right lesson can be a pain. Whether it’s expertise, time, distance or money that presents a barrier to your IT advancement, IT training just isn’t incredibly accessible.

Seems odd given that social networks, the ultimate platforms for convenient meeting places, have arisen out of tech but haven’t been used to solve IT training issues?

Well, someone finally caught on:

Teeks for Geeks.

Teeks for Geeks is the brainchild of a group of Homeric geeks who had been through the ups and downs of the IT training landscape, attending training classes fit for sleep therapy sessions and more time-consuming than they were enlightening.

Seeking to bring a dash of much-needed engagement, understanding and fun to the IT training landscape, they created Teeks for Geeks, the ultimate cloud-based platform and social learning haven for geeks around the world. Through bite-sized learning units (teeks), Teeks for Geeks was built to provide elite IT training and blow old, dusty textbooks and droning lecturers out of the water.

Teeks for Geeks travelled far and wide –through the hills of the Sahara and the expansive terrain of social media- to find gurus and teeks worthy of its collaborative social learning environment. And, after arranging an extensive set of teeks on IT skills ranging from network administration to coding, Teeks for Geeks finally opened the doors to its multilayered online community.

But before offering training to the world, Teeks for Geeks added several extra incentives to join the fun. The Teeks for Geeks brain parents added two more features: a rewards system based on Brazilian JiuJitsu, and GuruMate, your very own personal monitor for IT progress. That way, our geeks can feel the truly fun, competitive nature of IT learning and still have a best friend to fall back on for IT information and education.

Teeks (Teach Exercise Earn Know, in case you were wondering) are truly special for several reasons. They are interactive, personalized, self-paced, and centered around a diverse but useful collection of tech information. Teeks cover Android apps, Google I/O, Linux, Javascript, Python, HTML and more. Many are free, and all of them are valuable. They also take place online, where the IT universe is thriving.

Many IT specialists seem to like to teach themselves, but Teeks for Geeks brings a new wrinkle to the IT training world by allowing for semi-guided yet incredibly open IT learning method and medium. As long as they continue to innovate and provide engaging content, they will survive and thrive.

How to Motivate Your Staff in a Start-Up

2012-03-08T05:53:55Z

Guest Post: This post was written by Ella Davidson of couponing website, Coupons. They offer premiere couponing information alongside top brand and retailer coupons and deals.

In the past decade, the world has witnessed the birth of businesses like PayPal, Facebook, and YouTube. We have heard the infamous stories of start-up companies moving from garages and basements to multimillion-dollar headquarters in a matter of years. But, for many entrepreneurs, the reputation of start-ups as golden tickets to wealth and popularity has been both a blessing and a curse. The name “start-up” now suggests the beginning of something promising and fulfilling. But in an industry where success is expected and not always immediately achieved, it can be difficult to retain employees, let alone keep them happy and motivated.

Even if you’re out of the basement and into an office, chances are your start-up company has yet to build its first “Googleplex.” You’re paying your employees, but you may not yet be able to afford competitive salaries, alluring benefits, or free passes to the local rock climbing gym. So without the glitz and glamor of in-office Zumba classes or luxurious annual retreats, how can you keep your staff from shutting off once they’ve started-up?

One easy way to keep your staff running is to create and maintain an office atmosphere that is aesthetically stimulating. Due to limited funds or real estate, it can be hard for start-ups to control where your office is located or how many windows are in the building. What you can control, however, is how you personalize your company’s space. By hanging decorations on the walls, keeping plants in the office or having an iPod on rotation, you can keep your employees from catching that “trapped in the office” feeling. Encourage your staff to decorate their space or bring in items they want to be surrounded by. The break room especially can benefit from the creativity and playfulness of a small library or a second-hand foosball table.

A personalized work environment can also be a great way for you to develop quality relationships with your employees. Whether it’s framed pictures or ticket stubs from sports games, these items can help you create meaningful conversation with your staff. In many start-ups, there is not a lot of administration or bureaucracy between you and your employees. While genuinely engaging with your staff may require more time and energy, it also means that you have the potential to create a loyal and committed team. While you may not be able to beat other companies salaries, you can outperform them in quality of life. By making time for frequent evaluations, goal-setting meetings and weekly check-ins, you can receive the personal and professional feedback necessary to keep your staff affirmed, empowered and motivated.

Additionally, you can always motivate your staff by maintaining an exciting and challenging workplace. Start-ups, by nature, often attract creative workers with a strong work ethic. As a CEO, it is your job to keep your staff satiated, and employees who do the same work everyday can often face burnout or boredom. To avoid this, do your best to provide professional development opportunities that create a learning-focused and challenging environment. Try encouraging your staff to take turns shadowing each other on the job or give your employees the opportunity to present their work to the rest of the team. This sense of community will build a team atmosphere while encouraging individual growth among entry-level employees and creating a sense of pride for seasoned staff. You can also keep on the lookout for free or affordably priced lectures or webinars by experts in your field. By creating a culture of learning, you are providing your team with the perfect blend of freedom and guidance necessary for professional fulfillment.

If you are as creative and attentive with your employees as you are with your ideas, you and your staff will undoubtedly finish what you start. Take the time, both privately and publicly, to acknowledge the good work being done at your company. By following these simple suggestions, a motivated staff and a successful start-up are in your future. Keep up the great work!

How do entrepreneurs feel about 2012?

2012-02-26T19:54:14Z

I got a note on this infographic from http://www.phoenix-training.co.uk/ about how do entrepreneurs feel about their small businesses in 2012. The thing is that because of the crisis everybody feels like every business is going to fail. You only hear about lost customers, lost sales and businesses that went belly up.

But amongst all this disaster, end of the World, bad news predicting the falling of Euro, Greek bankruptcy and so on, a little bit harder to spot, there are new businesses created each day. And believe it or not, starting a new business haven’t changed that much and it’s following the same rules: finding an idea and doing something about it. Of course, it might be a bit harder to get financed, and a bit harder to find customers. But that’s exactly what makes you strong and validates your idea. Because if it’s going to work now, it’s going to be thriving when business will get back on track.

And that’s why it might be the best moment to start something up. If you fail you can even blame the crisis.