first-BUSINESS-service – Business Service & Equipment

You Can Being Successful Using Email Marketing

January 19, 2018

Before trying to use email marketing for your business, you need to know how it works. Avoiding the spam folder and making sure that your customer actually reads what you are sending is crucial. Read on to get more great advice on email marketing.

Send emails to people who are familiar with you and request your notifications. When you do a mass mailing to random recipients, they are often received in a spam filter. They will wonder if they know you and whether or not they care about what you’re offering. They’re likely to delete your email, wasting everyone’s time.

Make sure you include limited promotions and special offers in your newsletters; this will keep your customers interested and always on the lookout for future emails. This email strategy has the dual benefit of rewarding your customers for their subscription to your newsletter and inspiring them to recommend that their friends and family do the same. Referrals are an invaluable way of increasing your email list and customer base.

Utilize various resources and learn as much as you possibly can about the concept of email marketing. There are lots of books both online, as well as in libraries. In addition, lots of local classes and workshops can be discovered in your area. Therefore, it would help you to attend these when you can.

Prior to contacting customers through email, be sure to obtain their permission to do so. All unrequested emails are spam, whether or not that was the intention of the sender. Sending out emails to large groups of individuals without permission might violate ISP policies.

Keep in mind that the ultimate goal with email marketing is to get your product sold. Thus, each and every message ought to increase the likelihood of a sale. Do this by creating emails that offer product information – new and old – as well as information on special discounts.

Don’t send more than one email marketing message per week. Most likely, your subscribers receive dozens of emails every day. Customers may skip your emails if they receive too many of them.

It is wise to have a clean, unsubscribe link. Don’t fail to include one or bury it so that it is not readily apparent. It is important that your customers feel in control and that they aren’t being forced into anything.

Remember, that many of your email subscribers will be reading your mailings on mobile devices, like smartphones. Many mobile devices have lower resolution than the average computer monitor. Figure out what your restrictions are and then work within them.

The emails you send out should entice your customers. Customers who get something out of working with you are more likely to buy from you. For example, clicking on a link and making a purchase could award them free shopping.

By following the tips found here, you can produce a campaign that is reader worthy. You can use these tips to improve your current projects or start working on a brand new campaign.…

These About Facebook Marketing

December 22, 2017

Do you need to market a service or product, but are uncertain how to begin? If that’s the case, check out the options for Facebook marketing. The millions of Facebook users are all potential customers. If you think you can benefit from the power of Facebook, check out the helpful tips below, geared to gain you an audience.

Regular interaction is key. Check out anything posted to your wall. Numerous successful businesses have benefited from marketing ideas learned from the public. Don’t ignore your fans.

Giveaways are a great method of drawing attention to your page. You can boost your costumers and fans by offering something that they’d love to get. Post the winners up on your page, and do the same thing all over again when you find you need more “likes.”

Try very hard to make your Facebook page more unique and memorable than others. You can do so by giving your page an attractive and eye-catching design. An appealing page is much more enticing than an ordinary page for Facebook users.

When using Facebook, think of it as a strong platform for sharing quality content. Facebook is for more than just idle conversation; it is a primary channel for content. Use it in this way. Write blog posts and then promote them using your Facebook page. This will increase your traffic and profit in the long run.

Facebook advertisements can help your marketing goals. The ad can be targeted to users of a certain gender or age. There are many budget tools to work with as well. Finally, there aren’t any long term commitments involved. Whenever you would like to end your ad, you can.

If your need for customer interaction is not a regular thing, then a Facebook page will not be of benefit. There is no reason for these customers to see the daily happenings at your company. Instead, put your money into Facebook ads.

You can have a place for people to sign up right on your Facebook. You can provide incentives for people to do so, which will make communication easier going forward. You can give a prize for signing up, or require registration to enter a contest.

A great way to boost conversion of visitors to followers is by hiding content from those who are not yet fans. Having hidden content will make it so those who are interested will have to become a fan. One caveat, you lose SEO when content is hidden; therefore, limit the amount of content that is hidden.

You may have a hard time figuring out how to market on Facebook if the concept is new to you. A good start is to add a Facebook button to your site. This method is unobtrusive and will help your customers and other visitors to your site to connect and interact with your business. When they “like” your business on Facebook, you will be able to easily update them on happenings in your business.

As you can see, with a little effort, a Facebook marketing campaign can reap big rewards. All that you have read here may help you if you practice. You will be happy that your message is marketed to people worldwide!…

Do You Have A Startup Business Spirit?

September 13, 2021

This article speaks directly to your personality. I don’t discuss planning and budgeting but you should be aware that you will need to plan, plan, plan but don’t get caught up in “paralysis by analysis” and no matter how good your business plan you will not receive money from “angel investors” or banks unless you’ve already started your business and have a proven track record with a large upside – which you don’t have if you are a business startup.

First, here’s the quick synopsis of opening your own business

Start doing business.

Really? That’s all there is to it? Yes, that’s all there is to it. Unfortunately, its so easy that many businesses fail because they do exactly like what’s above. There are a few skills that complement success and generally you’ll either have those skills or will develop those skills over time. Here’s what you can expect.

You’ll work crazy hours.

You’ll be a salesperson.

You’ll always worry about your business.

You’ll become an expert on many things because you can’t afford to hire experts – especially in the beginning.

What many don’t realize is that you are always a salesperson. If you don’t like sales then having a business of your own is not for you. If you don’t have an outgoing personality you’ll need to develop one quickly. Whether you’re set up a booth at a county fair, open a retail mall location, or work from home you will be a “people-person”. You will network with others, attend events, and more. Sounds like fun? For many it is but remember while you’re somewhere having fun someone has to run the business. Here come the crazy hours.

If you’ve got customers or clients then you’ve got projects that you haven’t been working on while you’re out selling yourself and your company. So now after the fun is over you will begin your day’s work. Remember that while you were out networking you were creating your future (and probably spending money) but now you’ve got the present to think about. How do you pay your bills? What about the customer that is late with the payment? Now the worrying begins.

You’ve got bills to pay and customers to satisfy. You may have a payroll to meet or at least you’ll need to make ends meet. Is there enough cash flow or have you extended credit because you are new and the thought of work, any work was too much to pass up? How do you collect on unpaid invoices without offending and thereby cause other problems? Oh the fun never ends.

Lastly (for this article), you’ll need to learn how to be an expert. There’s nobody to do the day to day accounting but you or hopefully, a significant other so you’ll become a bookkeeper and bill payer. There’s nobody to design graphics for your marketing materials so you’ll learn software programs and design principles for creating brochures, flyers, and business cards because those first few you did were not exactly professional quality.

The list goes on but the point is made. It’s not easy to be a business startup. it’s not easy to stay in business. But along with the pressure comes a rush of excitement that you can’t get working for someone else. That feeling of excitement knowing that you are in control of your own future and nobody can take that away from you. So if you’ve got what it takes then go for it.…

Common Cents When Financing Your Small Business

September 8, 2021

“The Best Advice is always free”

Starting a small business requires bucket loads of wisdom. Financial wisdom offered through various media is not always inherently beneficial to the reader and their business.

The foundations for financial excellence are elementary and logical; here is a new perspective on financial insight to starting your small business. Making use of purely scenario planning this illustrated scenario would be a recommendation for all businesses that you intend financing.

The average cost of setting up a franchise and small business in U.S.A. is currently in the $300,000.00 to $ 474 000.00 marks, a sizeable sum taking into consideration the prevailing economic climate and business confidence levels.

Loans or Finance

In order to stimulate the economy, banks are eager to finance new business as this has a long-term stimulus on the economy and contributes to job and wealth creation.

Most individuals do not have the entire capital amount available to finance their new venture and financing becomes the preferred and logical route to market.

Taking into consideration the average price of a new franchise $474 000.00, the average cash portion of financing that particular business would be $ 153 000.00 which includes the initial, cash joining or franchise fee.

This would equate to a financing portion of $321 000.00 or 68% of the initial set-up cost of the business.

From a personal and statistical point of view, the gearing or debt ratio is too high and the minimum recommended debt ratio should never exceed 50%.

Why is gearing so important?

It is nerve-wracking and soul-destroying to build a business for you only to allocate the major share of your income and profits to servicing a loan and the commensurate interest payments. The strain on the cash flow and reserve funds is too great, and the business rapidly becomes a financial risk to the entrepreneur and the banks concerned.

“The Free Advice”

Total Cost

When using the above figures as our reference and benchmark, if the inclusive cost of the business is $474 000.00.

It would be prudent to assume that if shares were offered at $1.00 per share then the business would have 474 000 shares on offer.

Share Distribution

Taking my advice of a 50% gearing or financing ratio, the business when financed by the entrepreneur would allocate to the entrepreneur, 50%(237 000 shares) of the shares currently on offer (The portion he/she has paid cash for)

The remaining 50% of shares on offer would be the right and technical ownership of the banks or financing institution.

The Thinking Motivating This Strategy

As the entrepreneur pays off the loan, their ownership or share-holding increases exponentially.

Goals are easy to set, time and financing permitting the entrepreneur sees his/her goal of 100% ownership as achievable and desirable.

When the bank is essentially a partner in your business the relationship changes, the entrepreneur can take the banks perspective into consideration as they are a valuable share-holder, the logic of having a “you” and “me” approach becomes a “we” approach to the business.

Any extra funds available will inherently go toward servicing the loan on the business.

The Ultimate Lesson

That our thinking and approach has changed, it is a recommendation that one ignore financing by financial institutions and approach friends, acquaintances, and family to finance your business using this share-holding approach. The entrepreneur develops a fiscal policy that is easy to equate and calculate, profit distribution is just as equitable, and the entrepreneur has a clearer indication of the status of the business free of financing and interest costs and charges.…

How to Develop Your Ability to Synthesize Information – A Key Entrepreneurial Skill

September 3, 2021

Successful business ownership is all about gathering information, picking through it to decide what makes sense, and making sound decisions based on all available data. Synthesizing information in this way can be a difficult task to master, but a little time and practice can make you an expert in no time.
Synthesis is the final step in critical thinking — after you analyze, evaluate, and organize information from different sources, this step requires you to put it all together. Many people struggle with this step, but really all you are trying to do is select the best answer, or combination of answers, from a wide range of data. In fact, the odds are that you do this on a regular basis anyway, whether you are aware of it or not.
As you may have noticed, the internet is flooded with all sorts of conflicting information on just about any subject. Trying to find the best answer by surfing the web requires that you consider the merit of a variety of sources and choose for yourself which idea makes the most sense to you. You might find yourself coming up with an entirely different answer than those you read is synthesizing.
Essentially what is happening is that by examining and evaluating a number of sources, you are identifying consistencies and relationships between and among the data. With these connections, you are better able to create a new idea that can be supported by the various knowledge you have picked up along the way. Not everyone will come up with the same solution, and your own solution may not always turn out to be right, but by starting with a wealth of data you improve the odds of missing something important.
In the context of entrepreneurship, synthesis is a critical skill for every step, from planning your business idea to growing your company. Most first-time entrepreneurs do not have a complete toolshed of basic business knowledge, much less the details of their own product, market, and competition. Gaining this knowledge is essential, but very little of it has clear right and wrong answers. In any type of business, there are hundreds of small decisions to make along the way, each of which has the potential to make or break the entire venture.
For example, a critical portion of business planning is developing your marketing plan. In order to create an effective marketing plan, it is essential to study the basic tenets of marketing, the various routes for getting your message out, and the best ways to convince your target market that your product or service is the way to go. Search for “Marketing Plan” on the internet, and you will get hundreds of results, millions of ideas and opinions, and several dozen sales messages telling you that they hold the “secret” to effectively marketing your product. The reality is that there is no right answer for every business, so you must review and analyze a multitude of information, then come up with a plan that incorporates the best of these ideas that will be most effective for your business.
The key to effective synthesis is to collect enough data to understand the fundamental concepts. Use a variety of sources and mediums to develop your knowledge base — read articles and books, talk about your ideas with those in the know, watch what happens around you. Look for opinions that differ from your own to ensure you have considered all different perspectives. The more information you have to draw from, the easier it will be to make informed, justifiable decisions to keep your startup on track and on the road to success.…

Affiliate Marketing: A Guide to Successful Promotion of Products and Services

August 30, 2021

Affiliate marketing is a growing business over the internet these days because of the number of businesses vying to drive traffic to their sites and generate more sales. As we all know, website traffic is one of the deciding factors to a company’s success over the internet, be it in search engine rankings or customer following. This is why a lot of online companies these days are paying top money to affiliates who can drive traffic to their sites and generate sales for them. In most cases, commissions as high as 75% of a generated sale goes to the affiliate who is able to sell the product through his or her website or blog.
A lot of people are taking advantage of affiliate marketing because of the high income potential without money going out of their pockets for start-up expenses. This is more promising than the conventional methods of starting a business where you have to shell out a chunk of cash to open shop. What’s better is that affiliates can do business without leaving home and can make money even if they don’t go online on a particular day. If you want to be an affiliate marketer, here is a guide that can help you.
First off, think of a niche that has a need for certain products or services but is rarely tapped because of its size. Large companies don’t market to small niches as this may prove costly for them in terms of the number of customers actually buying the product.
Second, find a very good affiliate marketing program that is related to the niche you’ve chosen to market. You can search the internet for websites that offer lists of affiliate programs that cater to almost any niche. Make sure to compare each program to come up with the best rates with which you will be paid once you become successful in producing a sale.
After you’ve chosen the right affiliate program, create a website or a blog that will cater to content relating to the niche you are trying to market. Make sure that these are optimized so your readers and potential customers can easily find you.
Always provide fresh content for your readers and target niche. Affiliate marketing is only successful if you keep the contents fresh and informative so people can be encouraged to try out the product you are promoting. New posts and write-ups should be done on a regular basis to keep your target audience checking back for additional information.
It may also be a good idea to sign up for search engine and RSS directories and encourage your followers and customers to sign up for RSS feeds. This will keep them updated on whether there is new content available on your site or blog.
Of course, do not expect to earn from these programs overnight as this requires patience and a good network of affiliate sites that you can set up. For each niche that you want to target, create a separate website or blog to be able to keep track of your success. Affiliate marketing can work for you in many ways, but you have to put in the necessary effort as well.…

How to Find the Right Opportunity Before Starting a Home Based Business Online

August 26, 2021

If you’re currently an employee, chances are at some point in your career you’ve thought about being your own boss! Entrepreneurship is the only way to become the employer, but it’s not for everybody, it takes hard work and dedication!
If you’ve decided to become an entrepreneur, starting a home based business online is the best way to be your own boss! Not only do you get to work from home and set your own schedule, but with the right opportunity you can establish a passive residual income that can have the potential to set you free financially. Before you begin, there are some important basic elements you must evaluate about the business opportunity you choose!
How “young” is the opportunity?
Is the company you choose a start-up? There are some advantages to starting with a company that is in the beginning stages, but you should still make sure they’ve been around long enough to establish a decent track record. Select an opportunity on the ground level, but make sure their growth has been stable for as long as they’ve been in business. Most online home based business opportunities have been around for a while, so be weary of brand new companies.
How will the company stand the test of time?
The long term feasibility of your business is very important. Top home based business opportunities not only adapt to changing times, they actually embrace these changes. With the myriad web 2.0 technologies emerging almost daily, companies capitalize on the internet and make it an integral part of their growth, choosing an online business opportunity is one of the best ways to ensure long term viability. Since the long term growth of your organization is determined by your effort, take the time to chose a company with a product or service that allows for your results to be easily duplicated.
How does the opportunity train its reps?
One of the keys to success in any business is training and support! The majority of people who start a home based business fail in their first year because of a lack of proper training, and a solid duplicable marketing system! The training and support the company has in place is essential to growth, it allows the business owner to learn from and network with top earners and executives. The Network Marketing industry is one of the best choices when starting a home business. Most companies in this industry take advantage of the internet for marketing and training, and focus more on self development, which is another key component to home based business success. It doesn’t matter how great your product or service may be, if you can’t market it you won’t sell it, and without a quality training system in place, getting your business off the ground can prove to be a chore!
How does the product or service stand alone?
When you start a home based business you commit yourself to provide prospective clients with a quality product or service, and a good way to determine quality is to chose the opportunity with a product or service you would use. The company with the right business model should have a superior
stand-alone product. If you provide true value for your customers they will continue to buy from you, especially in difficult times, which makes your opportunity recession proof, which ensures a passive residual income!
How much do you have to invest and how long will it take you to get it back?
We all know there’s no such thing as something for nothing, at least not in business, so if you’ve decided to start your own home based business online, then you know there will be a start up cost. High ticket items can be challenging to distribute, while cheap opportunities may not provide any real value. When you become an entrepreneur you guarantee your own income, so your return on investment will depend entirely on your effort. Make sure you invest what it takes to be able to pay yourself back in a reasonable period of time.
Starting a home based business online can be very rewarding, but there is no guarantee that you will be successful from the very beginning. Doing your due diligence before choosing the right home based business opportunity will save you a lot of headaches.…

Reducing Your Risks When Starting a New Business

August 22, 2021

There are a number of ways that you can substantially reduce or eliminate a number of the risks of starting a new business. Foremost, the best way to ensure that your new company will be profitable is to develop a highly focused demographic analysis that showcases the need for your products and services within your respective market. If you are thinking of starting a small business then it may be in your best interest to talk to local residents to see whether or not they need the products or services that you intend to sell. Prior to starting any business, you should complete an extensive competitive analysis that will allow you to understand how many other businesses are offering products or services that are identical or substantially similar to what you intend to provide.
One of the best ways to reduce business start up risk is to initially develop a website that showcases the services that you offer. You can then advertise this website by using popular pay per click programs to drive traffic to this website. If you receive a significant amount of inquiries regarding your services then you may be able to effectively start your company as a home based business before you move into a formal location. Many highly successful companies initially started as home based businesses. As such, if you are able to provide your services from your home then you will be in an excellent position to determine whether or not you should continue to grow and expand this business in a formal capacity. However, it should be noted that using this type of technique is only appropriate for new businesses that offer services.
Additionally, you can always hire a market research firm or business development company to complete an economic viability analysis on your behalf. These companies will essentially use a number of methodologies regarding whether or not a business will be viable from the onset of operations. It should be noted that the expense of using these types of services is extremely high. A formal opinion as to the potential profitability of a business can cost upwards of $5,000. However, this cost is small compared to the typical start up costs associated with launching a new business venture. Of course, it is important to note that very few businesses become profitable within the first six months of operation. These companies will provide you with expert advice as to whether or not there is a significant demand for the products and services that you will sell through your company.
If you are primarily engaged in the sale of products then it may be in your best interest to use a popular third party website that will allow you to sell your products without having to go through the expense of launching a traditional retail location. If you intend to sell products online then you can expect a highly competitive market. One of the ways that companies that sell products online have become successful is by using a number of sales techniques that are coupled with local delivery services. This provides a tremendous benefit to your customer in that they are able to receive their merchandise on the same day that they placed their order.
In conclusion, there are a number of ways that you can reduce or eliminate the risks of business failure by first determining if there is a substantial market for your specific product or service. We strongly recommend that before you engage in any business venture that you work closely with a number of business professionals before you make a substantial investment into developing a new company.…

Think You Are Ready To Start A Business?

August 18, 2021

I am contacted all the time by people who want to start a business and need my services, but who don’t realize that they actually aren’t ready. So then what does it take to BE ready to start a business?

The majority of clients who contact me about starting a business only have an idea in their heads. They don’t have a business plan, they haven’t saved up the cash they need for capital expenditures, and they haven’t thought through the costs of actually running and marketing the business. All of these entities are requirements for setting yourself up for success; skipping any or all of them can cause you to stumble later on down the line.

It’s important to note that creating a solid brand takes time and varying amounts of cash. Have you calculated how much money you need to create a website, create your image and brand identity, and create your marketing materials? Have you saved up the money to cover those costs? And if not, are you trying to get started on the cheap by hiring the most inexpensive (and often least professional) help possible, thereby setting yourself up for failure before you even begin?

Lately my advice to new clients has been this: take some time, research your market and competition, write down your expenses, and save some capital to fund your endeavor. When you have done that, I can do my job and help you grow. And you will be ready for success.

So, think you are ready to start a business? Use this list as a reference:

Have you written a business plan?

Have you researched your market and competition?

Do you really know what you need to get started?

Do you have enough money saved to cover your capital expenditures?

Are you capable of funding marketing activities for your business once it’s off the ground, and do you know what those will be?

Have you set goals and targets for your business so that you can gauge whether or not you are being successful?

Starting a business is not an easy endeavor, nor is it a fast one. Because everything in our society is so fast, people want to get their businesses going quickly without having to put in the time and effort.

But remember: you have to do the work first in order to be successful later. Take the time to plan, save, and research so you set yourself up for success. Consult with a professional so that you know what you are doing. That way you have a better chance of achieving the ideas and dreams you are so passionate about.…