Posts Tagged ‘Growing Your Business’
by Larry Slusser on April 9th, 2008
Entrepreneurs have been described as many things over the years in a variety of mediums. Aggressive, type A, intelligent, calculating, assertive, savvy, and many other terms and descriptions have been used.
Tai Chi is often called a passive martial art form, and “whole body and mind” form of exercise. Known throughout the world as a form of exercise to help with stress, how can Tai Chi be compared to being an entrepreneur? After all, one of the more famous quotes in Tai Chi is action through inaction which would seem to run counterintuitive to the entrepreneurial spirit.
Dig deeper in... Read more »
by Carrie Hinkel on April 4th, 2008
Are you one of those people who checks their email every five minutes? And do you practically have a panic attack when you’ve realized that you left your Blackberry at home or in the car? Well, you’re not alone. Today, in this digital age, workers have become so reliant on their email communications that it has become more of an obsession, making workdays less productive.
When you consider emails over phone calls, it’s easy to see how emails can be time savers: a quick 30-second email verses a 10-minute phone call. Okay, so what is the problem? Well, considering emails... Read more »
by Larry Slusser on April 2nd, 2008
You are considering going wireless in your organization giving you and your staff more flexibility. However, you are not sure how to go about implementing Wi-Fi in your organization. Below are some tips to keep in mind when researching the equipment ensuring that your organization will be secure with the flow of information.
There are certain alphanumeric standards that you to know when researching Wi-Fi, which are 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11i, and 802.11n. It is important to know that 802.11i is a security standard and the rest are networking standards. Moreover, 802.11a is the only one that runs on 5... Read more »
by Danny Brown on March 31st, 2008
In order to bring in new customers, many businesses use expensive advertising methods. From newspaper adverts to trade magazines, radio or television commercials or more, the cost to get your business name out in the open can often be an expensive undertaking. However, there is another method that you can use, and it’s both inexpensive and hugely effective – social marketing.
What is Social Marketing?
At its simplest, social marketing is a method of online marketing that can bring very substantial results for businesses that use it. By working to a set plan over certain timescales, you can use things... Read more »
by Carrie Hinkel on March 27th, 2008
Most entrepreneurs have learned that seconds count when trying to convince other buyers and investors that their business, products or services are worth looking into. It may be that you could talk for hours about your business, but you can bet that no outsider is going to give you anywhere near that amount of time. Think you can’t possibly widdle down your presentation to a mere two minutes? Think again. Here are some ideas to help you make a compelling quick pitch:
Show excitement – Rule number one is in order to get others excited about your idea; you have... Read more »
by Leeia Ladipoh on March 26th, 2008
When small business owners think of giving away something to their customers, they merely think of the cost of giving something away. Instead, they should be thinking about the profit potential.
The bottom line is that the business world is very competitive. There are very few one-of-a-kind businesses. Even those that are unique now will have competition tomorrow. Therefore, it is imperative that once you get customers you learn how to retain them.
Retaining customers revolves around making them think there is nowhere else they can get the products and services that they will get from your company.
While it... Read more »
by Leeia Ladipoh on March 26th, 2008
All companies have two ways of looking at things -the short-term and the long-term.
It is important to keep these in balance in order to help your company continue to be profitable over time.
The initial outlay to begin a small business is usually a major expense. Many entrepreneurs hit the ground running, waiting for the profits to roll in to pay off the initial expenses and start putting a lot of cash in their pocket.
Before you earn those profits, you have to decide whether you want to be able to keep your business running – or just take... Read more »
by Rebecca Button on March 24th, 2008
Okay, let’s be honest from the start. We all have bad days. But if you run your own business and you don’t get any work done, you don’t get paid.
And if your business happens to be a network marketing one which involves delivering catalogs door to door, it can be really hard to motivate yourself to get out and earn your money when it’s hailstones and lightning outside.
Is it worth it?
This true story may help you make your mind up on that one. It’s a friend of a friend story, but it is true and there’s a... Read more »
by Carrie Hinkel on March 20th, 2008
Understanding your business’ range of potential risks can help you to manage them, or even avoid them all together. By anticipating risks and potential pitfalls for both your business and the industry as a whole, you can protect your business and improve its success. Here’s how:
Step one: Identify the risks
There are two categories of risks facing companies: risks that directly affect the business and risks that face the business’ industry as a whole. For the former, make a list of potential risks that are affecting your business. It might include things like: specifically-named competition, price increases, material shortages,... Read more »
by Leeia Ladipoh on March 18th, 2008
You may have heard of writer’s block, when writers are stuck as they try to pen new words. Writers are not the only ones who have this type of experience. For those who run their own business, there is entrepreneur’s rut as well.
Entrepreneur’s rut is what happens when you have been running your business and become a part of the engine instead of the spark that is running it. You are in a routine. You are accustomed to the daily grind and just float along, keeping things at the status quo.
While this approach may keep things chugging along... Read more »