Many people ask how many graphs or charts they should have in their business plans. As with most other business planning questions, the answer is "it depends." This article discusses the key factors influencing the number of graphs and charts to include in your business plan. To begin, the key point to consider in developing your business plan is the time restraints of your audience. If your audience is a retired angel investor, he may have few obligations and can spend an hour reviewing your b More..

A Small Business Must Have a Solid Foundation

We all know that a building has to have a strong foundation if it is to survive, so, too, a business. There are many planks that support a business but there are four corner-posts that bear the most weight? The four corner-posts are Marketing, Selling, Production and Financial Control. There are a multitude of other aspects which helps to make a business profitable. For example, customer service, adequate capital, and location. But I can guarantee that if a firm is failing in any one of marke More..

How Mastering 5 Essential Money Making Ideas Can Lead Your Business to Longterm Cashflow

Essentially there are 5 tremendously powerful methods to make money online. These methods were not always available but have only become available due to the large amount of internet commerce being conducted each and every day online. While it is possible to make money, and lots of it, using other methods, these are in my opinion the best for 3 reasons. First, they are some of the cheapest methods around. Imagine running a business for an entire year where your total cost was less than $1 a day. More..

25 Valuable Phone Numbers For Small Businesses Success

Starting and growing a small business can be a daunting and sometimes lonely process we have compiled a list of 25 helpful phone numbers for agencies and services that work with small businesses. They can give you information, ideas, and resources to help you be more successful. 'small Business Administration, 409 Third Street, SW Washington, DC 20416 1-800-U-ASK-SBA Created to help America's entrepreneurs form successful small enterprises, and offers financing, training and advocacy for small More..

A Great Logo Is A Marketing Must-Have. But Is It Affordable For Small Business Owners?

And is having a logo really that important? My answer to both of these questions is an emphatic YES! A logo is a graphic or visual representation of your brand. Your brand is your business, product or service and what it stands for. It's whatever you are out in the marketplace selling. Why do small businesses need a logo? Why can't they just market using their company name? Logos are expensive, right? Can a small business owner really afford to get a logo? Or at least a good logo? Lots of qu More..

If You Want to Work from Home

Here are some important points to take note of if you want to work from home. working from home is a dream occupation for many people, but only a few of us will dare to trudge that path. As long as you keep to your basic principles, keep focused, learn how to motivate yourself, be patient and learn how to manage your time properly, you CAN have the best of both worlds. Set your working hours No doubt, you're working from home but consider this - your TV remote control is just a stretch away. Th More..

Due Dilegence 101 Or What You Do Not Know Can Kill You! - Part 1

Introduction: This article is written as a general discussion on the subject of "Due Diligence". It is for informational purposes and not intended to be a definitive guideline for your exact situation. You should consult the appropriate professionals with regard to your specific transaction or situation. Further, this article is in no way advocating, suggesting or implying that anyone engages in any type fraudulent activities whatsoever. These are simply the things a buyer should be aware of whe More..

You Dont Yet Know What You Dont Knowf

Someone new to business ownership recently told me, "Before I opened my business, I thought I was pretty well prepared. I knew how to produce and deliver our product. I worked through the numbers with my accountant and banker. I talked to many others in the same business. I was optimistic that my first year would go well." "But the stuff I knew was the easy stuff. It was the stuff I didn't know that was hard. We were open just a short time when I started realizing I was spending most of my time More..

How to Sponsor an Event for Fun and PROFIT

How do you sponsor an event and get personal introductions at the same time? So how can sponsoring help you to be visible to the business community and gain the right contacts? It is actually quite simple, you need to find events that are visible to the audience you are interested in. Find out: Whom you wish to do business with Which sports they like What community events they like Where the upper management families live and their community involvement The events that they watch are the one More..

Making a Donation to Bring MORE Business

How a donation is different from a sponsorship and what is the advantage to you? Donations are different from sponsorships, as a sponsorship is more likely to headline you for an event whereas a donation will let you be listed as one of the many donors. You do not need to headline every event to get business attention; you can simply donate an amount of funds and be listed. You may find that donors are listed in categories of the amount donated. The donations may be cash or they may be donation More..

Racing the Competition

What is the Big Race all about when it comes to creating relationships? The big race is simply the ability to win the deal on a consistent basis. You will need to perfect your message, be able to state it clearly and precisely, and follow up relentlessly. Without all these factors, you are losing ground to the competition. You need to stay ahead at all times by keeping an eye on what your competitors are doing well, and not so well. This is also your opportunity to capitalize on the competition More..

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5 GREAT WAYS to Gain New Contacts

What are the 5 best ways to gain new contacts? There are many ways to use the media to promote your business. You must ultimately decide what is best for your business. It may be all the items you have read about, or it may be only a few, but whatever you choose, you must get a precise and clear message across to your potential buyers. You must also make sure you form an excellent business relationship with those companies before you do business. You want to create an atmosphere of a solid busi More..

How to Give Informative Talks

Why should you do informative talks to smaller groups? Informative talks to smaller groups allow you more intimacy with the audience. You will be able to more closely connect with their needs and their responses to your speech. You have something to say that is important not only to you but to the audience as well. They will take time to listen and not socialize as long as what you have to say is relevant to their pursuits. If you are not relevant, you must find a way to make your topic somethi More..

The 5 Traits of Baby Boomer Business Owners

As a practitioner and student of Small Business Marketing, I was recently contemplating ways to enhance my business. I found it fascinating to realize that over 95% of my customers and hot prospects were Baby Boomer's who own a small business. With this group identified as my target demographic, it was important to understand them better. Who are these people? What attracted them to me? How can I work with them most effectively? I found the following five characteristics common among this growi More..

How to Give FREE Advice and Make Money

When is advice free and when should you charge for it? A question is often asked as to when to charge for information. This is not an easy question to answer as it really depends on the situation. If you are doing a speech for non-profit, then your advice can be pro bono (at no cost). I would have no difficulty sharing my expertise with such an organization but I do draw the line when a profit organization asks for the same privileges. Non-profits are exactly what their name say, and even thoug More..

Online Search: Small Businesses Level The Playing Field

Seventy percent of US households use the web when shopping locally, and about 25 percent of all searches are looking for local information. As more and more households make the switch to broadband connections, this trend will continue to escalate. Search engines have eclipsed print and TV ads as the primary way consumers find local products and services. But until now large national and international brands had a stranglehold on Internet search marketing. Only they had the manpower or outside r More..

Freelance Tips: How to Cope with Spring Fever When Theres Work to Be Done

We all know how glorious those first warm days of spring feel. The trees are blooming, the birds are singing... boy, it's sure hard to keep your head out of the clouds when the skies are blue and the sun's shining brightly. But if you're outside enjoying the warm weather... who's running your business? Spring fever is a notorious distractor for those of us trying to earn a living on our own. There's no stern manager telling us we'd better hurry back from lunch. There's no one to stop us from c More..

Seven Common Mistakes Made By Small Business Owners

Most new small businesses won't be in business this time next year. That's the cold hard facts. Though it is easy to start your own business, it takes a lot more to succeed in business. There are seven common mistakes made by small business owners. Let's explore them so you can avoid them. Mistake #1: Neglecting Your Continuing Education You are the only renewable resource, besides your employees, your business has. You may be a master at getting the most out of your other resources, but how a More..

Small Business Owners - They Owe You The Money Why Dont They Pay?

Doesn't it frustrate you when you've given good service, sometimes super service, and the customer doesn't pay you? Some of them aren't doing too well and are struggling for cash, but, gee, so are you. In the time they take to pay they could have paid off a little each week and the debt would be gone. You know others have the money but it takes them six months of sending them copy after copy of invoices, letters and telephone calls before they open their purse? And often the worst are Governm More..

Starting a Mobile Auto Detailing Business; Dry Wash or Pressure Wash?

Many experienced auto detailing professionals who have started out using a pressure washer rarely use Dry Wash n' Guard. Most would say this is a matter of preference more than anything else. Each side has logical arguments as to why their methodology is better. Many pressure washing mobile detailers only use dry wash on Aircraft at customer's request or in certain instances on race cars, antique cars in show rooms and customers whose cars are kept in near dust free garages and only driven rarel More..

Starting a Pressure Washing Business

Are you thinking of starting a small pressure washer business to help clean up the world and make a little money? You might be surprised how many mobile pressure washers companies there are in the United States; approximately 45,000 of them. And since God made dirt on the Third Day; Genisis 1:9 - 1:12. Obviously since God created the dirt it keeps getting all over everything and thus a business was born. Starting a Mobile Pressure Washing Business is not as difficult as you think. It is importan More..

How to Find A Group that Needs Speakers

How do you find groups that are in need of speakers (at no charge)? Finding groups that use speakers is not difficult. I find that most organized service groups use speakers for their regular meetings. I am a member of Rotary and have been for nearly fifteen years. In that period of time, the clubs use a speaker almost every week of the year. There are thousands of Rotary clubs all over the world. The most important thing to remember, especially for Rotary, is that the topic must be of interest More..

Launching your Business with a Chamber of Commerce

Why are Chambers a good launching pad? Chambers provide you with more ways to get to know the business community than most organizations. I was once elected President of a Chamber and the Board strived to get businesses involved with each other. One of the mandates was to make sure that we had opportunities for networking and socializing both between members and with other Chambers. We often put on professional development talks. A good example of how a Chamber helps the business community is t More..

Business Relationships Defined

What makes a business relationship? What really makes a business relationship? This may be very hard to define as it goes beyond just meeting the person and chatting about something you have in common. A relationship is developed over a period of time and usually does not happen instantly. I once met a person at a Rotary function and this person was ideal for me as a business partner. I spent some time chatting with him at the event; we exchanged cards and agreed to meet on another occasion to More..

How to let go of your EGO

When does your ego get in the way? Let's go back to that networking meeting and scan the room again. Have you seen the person that never stops talking? He is the one that is talking about how great his business is and how great his services are. He even gets bold enough to take your card and to try and set an appointment with you to sell his services. This is the person that has placed their ego in front and even though they are enthusiastic about what they do, they are also enthusiastic about More..

Who Makes the BEST Business Partner

How do you find the best business partners? Finding a good business partner (outside partner, such as an alliance) requires an amount of due diligence. This simply means you will need to look at all aspects of the other person's business and sometimes a bit of their personal life. You will need to find a common thread with the potential partner and then spend time developing the relationship before embarking on any kind of partnership that will tie you financially. I have heard so often that pa More..

Starting a Business in New Hampshire

Hew Hampshire car wash market. Well we have visited every city in New Hampshire over the population of 10,000 at least twice, the larger ones four and five times talking to many people in various industries. Landscapers, brick layers, Heating and Air, Plumbers, Car Dealers, Professional People, Politicians, wood be politicians, chamber of Commerce Personal, Economic Development people and just nice folks on the street. Including skateboarders; Hockey and Soccer Moms; Canadian Tourists and this l More..

Starting a Tractor Washing Business

In the heavy equipment cleaning business you can make good money and provide an important service for your clientele. You can save them man-hours, chemical costs and free up time for more important needs such as preventative maintenance and repairs. The client also has a better looking fleet which makes community public relations easier and also helps in operator retention. Heavy off road equipment needs to be clean, especially radiators and ventilation to prevent over heating. It is best to cha More..

California Department of Corporations Attempts to PR Their Benefits to Consumers

On Monday the Department of Corporations in California revoked franchise registrations of two franchising companies. In a Press Release the Department said; "The CDC has taken enforcement actions that have resulted in the revoking of registration of two franchise businesses operating in California... also ordered to stop the offer and sale of unregistered franchises in the state." There reasoning was that the two companies in question had not completed registration or sent in paper work on time More..

Employee Email and Internet Use - A Small Business Guide

Introduction It is widely recognised that Email and the Internet is here to stay! Both mediums have become a vital part of business and personal communication in a world that increasingly relies on technology. We understand its benefits and sometimes berate its downsides; too much email, lack of personal communication, spam, the risk of employees accessing inappropriate material and using employer resources for personal gain. This gain in technology has not come without cost as increasingly em More..

Small Business - Would You Still Need An Accountant If You Didnt Need A Tax Return?

After over thirty years advising small business it still comes as a surprise to see the number of small business owners who are only interested in their financial results when it is time to do their tax return. Many still think that their accountant is there to 'cook the books' at tax time! It is not surprising that almost invariably the business owners who approach their accounting in this way are those whose business is not doing well. Three out of five businesses fail within the first thre More..

Provide Affordable Health Care To Employees At Little To No Cost To You

You can provide affordable health care plans to your employees. If you feel overwhelmed by health care plan costs, you may be able to achieve far more than you believe. Here is how. REAL NEEDS, REAL SOLUTIONS Today, millions of EMPLOYED Americans depend on government aid, charitable organizations, and their own incomes to pay medical expenses. Until an extended illness or hospitalization occurs, these resources usually suffice. When faced with catastrophic health expenses, people often turn t More..

Finding the Right People for your Business

Where do you find the right people for a business relationship? Finding the right people may not be as difficult as you may think. Quite often they are in your neighborhood and within your inner circle. There are three things that you can do in order to find the right fit for a business relationship. First, you will need to define the ideal customer. This ideal customer will have a number of criteria or traits that must exist before you will want to do business with them. You should list all th More..

How to Manage Your Pipeline

How is your pipeline structured? I assume most of you have heard about the sales pipeline. Your pipeline is what keeps your business going. It is a lot like a funnel: at the large end, you need to do lots of activities that will generate a slew of interested contacts; some of these move down the funnel and become coached; of these, a few get qualified, and even fewer go on to be selected and finally closed. Once you have a customer, the tendency is to spend your time at that end of the funnel f More..

How to Define Business Objectives

Why does a good business relationship rely on having some common business objectives? As you attend networking events, you will gradually find ways that make it easy for you to mingle and be heard. Your message will need to be clear, focused and consistent each time. You will find that many of the people you met at one event will attend others you go to. These are the people that you will likely form a kind of bond with. It is these people you can work with to brainstorm on the best networking More..

Profits are within 6 Degrees of Freedom

How far away is the person you need to meet? We have spent some time discussing your inner circle and have suggested that you take time to list all of the people that you know and that KNOW YOU. This inner circle is the start of finding out who knows a person that you need to meet. You will need to take time to contact your list with news and make sure you ask for referrals. I know this is somewhat difficult as I hate asking friends and acquaintances for anything. The best way to get support fo More..

If You Want Business - Be Consistent

Why does consistency in the message havean effect on how the business relationship is formed? Your message to others needs to be consistent. You need to define your expertise and develop your elevator pitch. Do not go to events and change what you do just because the person you are talking to needs something just outside your sandbox. Remember that they are at a networking meeting as well. If you tell one person something and another person something else, they may talk about you and then wonde More..

Keeping Business Alive

Who is responsible for maintaining the business relationship? Nurturing a business relationship will take effort on your part and effort on the part of the other person. If you feel the business is worth having, then you must take the time to make sure you are in touch on a regular basis. I call these touch points. Each touch point you have with the client is a point in your favor. Most people like to keep the channels open for conducting current projects or for future business. I know a CEO of More..

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How to Integrate Yourself in Someone Elses Business

When do you need to get more involvedwith the day to day activities of your business partner? The best business relationship you can have is one where the client does not know whether you are a contractor or whether you are an employee. Working alongside the client, you are the one that offers solutions to problems. These relationships take time to develop, but if your expertise helps make them a profit, then they will be more open to having you "on staff". In order to place yourself in this ty More..

How to Bond a Business Relationship

When should you create a foundation in order to solidify a business relationship? Before you bond any business relationship, you need to make sure that this is a relationship that you both want to have. No relationship is a one way street; the relationship must work in both directions. You must have expertise that the client needs and they must have the resources to reward you for those services. You should never try to downplay your offerings with deep discounts, changes in what you provide, o More..

Power Tools for Business

How do we keep track of our business deals? If you are only working with one or two deals, keeping track of them is a simple matter. However, most of us have far more than two deals on the plate and even more coming down the pipeline. It is sometimes quite difficult to keep track of all the details and remember who said what to whom. You need to keep track of the names of people on each deal or project and what their responsibilities are. There are many techniques that you can use to keep on to More..

How to Create an Information Plan

What is in an information plan? Before you even meet with a potential customer, you should have an action plan in place. The action plan should consist of 5 areas. Each area will deal with certain aspects of any potential deal and information that will need to be gathered. Let's look at each of the areas and see what you need to learn about the client. First, the contact information for the decision maker and the personality type (we will deal with personality types later in the book). You will More..

The Benefits of Using Freelance Consultants / Trainers for Your Project

What are the benefits of using a Freelance Consultant / Trainer for your next project? Companies are often wary of employing freelance trainers when setting up a new project or contemplating a 'roll out' operation or 'change' scenario. There are however distinct advantages to using freelance as against permanent resources, and some of these are outlined as follows. 1. Financial Although the initial costs (hourly/daily rate) of freelance trainers may seem expensive, this has to be set against t More..

New Habits, Rebounding Economy Help To Sell Giftware and Collectibles

Just a few years ago, when one thought of a home-based sales business, Tupperware, Avon and a host of multi-level marketing schemes might have come to mind. Today, however, changing market conditions and evolving consumer habits have converged to make home-based selling businesses a realistic opportunity with real profit potential. This is especially true in the world of collectibles and giftware. In years past, collectors-who are among the most discerning shoppers-had few avenues for convenien More..

Common Sources of Financing for Small Business

The choice of financing is an important determinant of whether a product reaches the market, or whether an existing business can survive. The choice of financing is an important part of being an entrepreneur and business owner, and the ability to raise cash when you have no or limited history takes skill and creativity. There are a number of sources of financing. The suitability of the alternatives depends on what stage you are at, and will change as the company matures from stage to stage. The More..

The Role of the Business Model and Strategy for Business

People will always stress that having a well researched business plan is key before you start your business. Although creating a business plan is often an important step in the evolution of a business, particularly if you need financing or you are not experienced at running a business, it is not necessarily the essential first step. There are two key elements that should be completed prior to the business plan: * The business model * The strategy What is a Business Model? While the w More..

Do You Want Your Own Fully Programmable ERP? - Part 3

Continuing from the second article: 6. About the aground mathematical model, let us to see the product k: * First quantity received in 10/6/98, quantity 1,000, unit cost US$ 34.00. * Second in 12/11/98, quantity 1,300, unit cost US$ 23.00 * Third in 1/10/99, quantity 760, unit cost US$ 36.00 Therefore, if not been sold we would have 3,060 units in stock today. But you sold - in several opportunities - a total of 1,300 units, and our current total stock is of 1,760 units. We also More..

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