How to Successfully Avoid Becoming One of The 80% of Small Businesses That Will FAIL
July 26, 2008
It’s a commonly quoted statistic: 80% of all small businesses will fail within the first five years of running. In fact, in Internet marketing, this figure can be as high as 95%. Yes, it’s a commonly quoted statistic but for some reason, people are not very good at saying exactly why this happens. And it happens to what seems like nearly all newborn businesses.
It may be simply due to the usual factors i.e. inadequate time and energy investment in advertising, poor dedication, lack of perseverance, no focus, ambitiously low goal setting and so on.
But the sadder news is that even with full and enthusiastic application of none of the above, many entrepreneurs may be headed slowly and steadily towards what can only be described as business suicide.
The number one reason why several businesses fail is lack of good quality, regular, astounding and highly relevant advice. It’s that simple.
Running a business successfully is all about making decisions on a daily basis. The decisions that we make depend on a number of things including:
1. Past experiences and
2. Factual knowledge.
A new business owner may have relatively little or no experience.
Building Marketing Momentum For Your Small Business
July 15, 2008
The success of your business depends on your ability to build marketing momentum. Without the ability to generate new sources of leads your capacity to sell will slump and the growth of your business will stagnate or shrink.
Unfortunately, many small business owners are at a loss when tasked with coming up with new ways to market while others are frustrated into stagnation by seeing consistently ineffective results from their marketing efforts. It doesn’t matter if your business is young or established. If your business is young you must market well simply to survive. On the other hand, if you have had marketing success with a method that does not increase your opportunity to generate new business your success will be stunted by your limited ability to find new sources of business.
Building marketing momentum is like kicking a ball down a hill that keeps getting steeper. Each time the hill becomes a little steeper the ball will roll faster and pick up momentum. In marketing, any tactic you add to attract attention to what you do is like making the hill a little steeper.
Top 7 Small Business Resources for 2005
July 4, 2008
If you want to start a business in 2005, and start making money almost immediately, the sites listed below are some of the best I have found. I’ve chosen each site because it is absolutely outstanding in providing the tools you need to get started, as well as taking you through the steps you need to get started immediately.
My1stBusiness.com - http://www.my1stbusiness.com - This site is owned by Ben Botes, who is currently working on a doctoral degree in business. Ben will take you through every phase of creating your business, and it doesn’t matter how large or small it is. You’ll find all of the information you need right here.
Teleclasses are currently free, and you’ll find a wide variety of top notch business coaches to help you build your business.
This site is scheduled to go to a paid model soon, but it will definitely be worth the price tag. If you’re looking for a one stop solution to constantly update your business knowledge, and stay ahead of your competition, this is it.
Ron Olinger - http://ronolinger.ws - Everyone needs a little motivation, and Ron is the guy to help you with that.
How to Profit Handsomely From a Secret Business Model Virtually No Small Business is Using!
June 23, 2008
Have you been searching for the perfect home-based business? I have spent nearly twenty-five years searching for the holy-grail of home-based businesses. Now this article is not about a business, but rather a system that Fortune 500 companies always use but it’s rarely used by home-based businesses, affiliate or network marketing companies. And based on my experience, you should not even attempt a home-based affiliate or network marketing opportunity unless you use a system that almost guarantees you’ll be successful.
But before we get into the specifics of the secret business model, let’s first talk about what most people do wrong and why 95% of home-based business operators fail within the first few years in business.
Here’s a Few Reasons Why People Fail
* Lack of sufficient capital for promotions and marketing. It takes lots of money and time for your message to capture the attention of your prospective customers. It is a proven fact that most people must see or hear about your product or service at least five to seven times before they’ll inquire or purchase.
How To Plant Seeds of Success With Small Business Ideas
June 11, 2008
Think of all of your business ideas as tiny seeds that have the potential to germinate and grow into huge fruit bearing orchards! However, the proper steps must be taken; you can’t scatter the seeds haphazardly on pavement and expect they will germinate. Growing a business is no different; it needs a fertile environment conducive to growth in order to germinate and thrive. Seedlings needs protection from the wind and rain when young, and can withstand hurricane force winds when mature. A business is no different. The strongest businesses are started as a small idea in the mind of an entrepreneur. The idea is then cultivated, nurtured, planted and cared for. It just didn’t start out as a large orchard!
So don’t think your idea is too small, or too insignificant. Don’t think that only the wealthy start companies. This is simply not the case. You are in effect throwing you ideas onto pavement with that type of thinking!
Take the time to imagine the possibilities. Dream. Then ask yourself a few questions. "What is stopping me from realizing this dream?" Be honest. Write down all of the things that you see as obstacles.
Starting a Small Business? ?Tips from a Veteran
June 3, 2008
Congratulations, you are starting a small business! You are taking charge and going for your piece of the American dream! Your excitement is high, and the adrenaline is pumping! Everyone dreams of freedom and owning a successful business, but not everyone can successfully create that reality. Now that you’ve made the commitment to give it a shot, let me give you the single most important tip that I can give you to insure your success. Businesses that succeed whether large or small all begin with a business idea. Your challenge is to determine if your idea will be a winner or a loser.
You may be surprised to know that in most cases it is not the quality of the idea, but rather the quality of the planning that determines the success of the business. That’s right, small businesses that start with a good idea often fail because they lack a plan to successfully execute the idea through both the good and the bad times. The plan to succeed is probably more important than the idea. Fail to plan and you plan to fail.
Do You Make These 7 Deadly Cash Flow Mistakes?
May 19, 2008
Managing cash flow is every small business owner’s most important function. Avoid these seven deadly mistakes to make sure you aren’t creating cash flow problems in your business.
1. Using the "Fly By The Seat of Your Pants" Accounting Method.
When tax time rolls around do you find yourself pawing through piles of paper on your desk looking for credit card receipts from your business trip? Or are you upside down digging under the seat of your car trying to figure out where all your gas receipts are? Are you wondering if that coffee stained piece of paper is an invoice from a supplier? Do you have a vague feeling that someone, somewhere owes you money but, you just can’t remember who it is? If so, you’re probably guilty of operating with the "Fly By the Seat of Your Pants" accounting method.
Using this accounting method has a tremendous impact on your business’s cash flow. Unless you have a system to track your business finances, you’ll always be operating in the dark and in danger of imitating George of the Jungle as he slams into a tree.
2. Not Knowing What the Numbers Are All About.
Smart PR Tactics for Small Businesses
May 10, 2008
Small businesses need Public Relations, possibly more than large corporations, to put them on the map. If you consider that time is money, however, you may find that handling your own public relations is a daunting task and not necessarily worth the monetary savings. Here are some ideas of how to get the best bang for your PR buck by thoughtful outsourcing:
Use your business library. If you are savvy enough to identify the best media for your primary target audience, your local library or the nearest city library near your very small town has valuable informational tools to assist you at every turn. The librarian is a public resource that your tax dollars pay for anyway.
Having identified your target media, find a PR agency that charges by placement success instead of a standard six months or yearly contract. In that way, you can share the PR burden by supplying the media to be targeted, and pay only for premier hits. Besides, if the placement is impressive enough, you can put it on your website, and get incredible mileage from it.
Four Reasons Why Small Businesses Succeed (or Fail)
April 28, 2008
The American system of business management has been admired and emulated around the world. This system is characteristic of two traits in the American psyche: (1) enthusiasm for the future and making things better, and (2) an openness and willingness to change in order to achieve that end.
No society in the world is better or more prolific at creating new businesses than the United States capitalistic system but often we are so busy commercializing ideas and starting new ventures that we don’t take the time to learn basic, successful management principles that have been developed by our larger companies.
Many entrepreneurs are technical experts in what they do but start a business without any formal training or experience in management practices and principles. By "management" here we mean the business of successfully managing the non-technical side of the business, the "back room" activities. As a result of inadequate management, many small businesses fail in the early years. They fail not because of a weakness in the product or service concept they have, but because the business was not properly managed in the back office.
Small Business Computer Security, the Basics
April 18, 2008
Anyone in business today realizes both the natural dependency on computers in the workplace, and also the potential dangers associated with storing important data on them. Today’s business owners are constantly being reminded that their company’s data is at risk by the daily reports on various news stations, or even their favorite business-related website.
But what can a typical small business owner do to protect their network from these threats that are broadcasted in so many ways? Dangers lurk at every turn on the Internet. There are thousands of attacks or areas of security that could be discussed, but I am going to try and focus on three general nuisances associated with today’s computers: viruses, spy-ware, and traditional "hackers" that will intentionally try to exploit your computer systems for various reasons. All of these attacks, although different, serve a specific purpose for the attacker, yet basically translate into three things for a business: lost productivity, lost data, and the end result? lost money.
Here is brief descriptions of what the aforementioned attacks are, consist of, and what a typical small business can do to protect their technology investments.
