November 14, 2015 / como / 0 Comments
Whether you are running, or planning to run, an offline or online business the traditional basics of achieving business success apply. For instance, it is well-known that a business that has no plan is almost certain to fail. No matter how small a business is, it needs a plan. A business plan compels you to think before you act. It compels you to find out about your business area before you start; i.e. to research your business area or to establish its groundwork.
A business plan forces you to think hard about your competition and how you are going to beat them in the market. It forces you to establish whether your business idea is worth pursuing. Why start a business that is going to fail? Isn’t that stupid?
A business plan forces you to establish the expected costs and revenues of your business, and hence to determine profitability. Why run a business when, at any time, you cannot tell whether or not the business is succeeding? If you don’t know your costs or your revenues you cannot compare them together to tell whether your business is succeeding or failing.
An online business is no different from an offline business, when it comes to business planning. It needs a business plan! Yet, how many newcomers do we see trying to make it online without even understanding the concept of business planning? Is it then a surprise that too many fail?
This article discusses 12 fundamental principles that you must understand and use in your business planning if you are going to run a successful business. The principles are as follows…
1. The Requirements Principle
A business plan must comply with the requirements of funding bodies. This is particularly key when you are applying for funding, but is also necessary when you are not applying because the compliance act itself makes the business plan rigorous. Funding bodies always have requirements that a plan must meet, and some of these are: technological innovation, presence of technical risk, and presence of commercial potential.
2. The Objectives Principle
A business plan must have clearly defined objectives and it must accomplish those objectives. A business plan is a strategic business document, and fundamental to any strategic planning process is the need to have objectives which the formulated strategies must aim to accomplish.
3. The Motivation Principle
A business plan must have clear motivations which highlight its importance. The motivations of a business plan are the reasons for completing the plan. These reasons tell us why the plan is important.
4. The Background Principle
A business plan must be the work of someone with a relevant background (the founder, for a start-up business), and the plan must comply with its authors background. A business plan should be prepared by the person or team who is going to run the business. For a start-up business, this is critical because the planning process prepares the owner for running the business. If the planning is delegated to someone else then it is unlikely that the owner will understand the plan sufficiently to be able to implement it. In these circumstances, the owner abandons the plan and does his or her own thing with deleterious consequences for the business.
5. The Detail Principle
A business plan must be sufficiently detailed to inspire confident action when executing the business; yet it must be flexible. A detailed plan is easier to implement than a superficial plan. A detailed plan suggests that the plan has been thoroughly researched and thought over. Detail inspires confidence in the owner of the business (assuming that he or she prepared the plan). A detailed plan should be flexible to accommodate changing times.
6. The Conservatism Principle
A business plan must be conservative. This means that it must always underestimate revenues while overestimating expenses. The reasons for this are underpinned by risk. A business is always executed under uncertainty… we never have all the knowledge we would like to make business success certain. An immediate consequence of this is the tendency to underestimate cost, only to find that we run out of money at critical times of a business’s execution. We also have a natural propensity to overestimate revenues… to dream!
7. The Cash Balance Principle
A business plan must always have a positive cash balance. A negative cash balance means that you plan to run out of money… to be insolvent! If you cannot realistically get the cash balance positive, without padding figures, then this is a sign that the business idea is not worth pursuing.
8. The Insolvency Principle
A business plan must guarantee against insolvency… against running out of cash. There are four ways to do this: conservative estimates so that the business always outperforms its plans, detailed cost identification to minimise omitted costs, contingency planning to accommodate forgotten items, and a positive cash balance throughout the plan.
9. The Risk Management Principle
A business plan must manage risks by convincingly dealing with uncertainty, reducing it to as close to zero as possible. This is simply stating that a business plan must be thoroughly researched, including desk research and field research. The more thoroughly a plan is researched the more it rests on sound facts, knowledge, and understanding, and the less the uncertainty and risk associated with the plan.
10. The Evidence Principle
A business plan must rest on supporting evidence, and guess work must be minimised. Sound evidence increases the reliability of a business plan and reduces the risk associated with it. And the less risky a plan is the more likely it will guide a business to success.
11. The Rigour Principle
A business plan must be rigorous complete, correct, and reliable. This means that the plan must be derived from a systematic process that attends to all the issues that must be addressed. In particular, the plan must not be rushed. The issues must be sequenced and dealt with, each at the right time.
12. The Collaboration Principle
A business plan must be founded on collaboration (not confrontation) it must satisfy the collaboration principle. This means that a business plan must be based on the works of others. It must not be opinionated. It also means that a collaborative, rather than a confrontational spirit, must exist in any business planning team if the results of that team are to be worthwhile.
Final Remarks
This article has discussed 12 killer principles of business planning that any plan must satisfy if it is to be taken seriously. Five of such principles are: requirements principle, objectives principle, motivation principle, background principle, and detail principle. These principles are a must for anyone running an offline or online business. If your business is failing it is more than likely that your failure to comply with one or more of these principles is to blame.
November 8, 2015 / como / 0 Comments
Membership sites are exploding on the net as the core of business opportunities. Membership sites that have month-to-month membership subscriptions can produce you a massive recurring income every single day, weekly month to month and for every single year ahead.. Membership sites are gaining popularity on account of of their solid business models and chance to create recurrent income from multiple sources. Membership sites are great revenue models, both for your own business and for having the allure to affiliate marketers who will be eager to profit from your program.
Abundant articles about membership sites appear to be by folks who have not actually owned a lucrative one. I will make the same main point in relation to membership sites that other folks do: in basic terms that they are the best marketing on the internet business model going. One of the biggest reservations about getting a membership site open is the challenge of the graft that goes into the first setup; but this is always get over.
Membership
Membership sites are thriving and more mand more favour WordPress as the content developmentstructure. The ease of WordPress blogs makes them ideal as a Membership management platform. Membership businesses are much less vulnerable to changes in the marketplace. I’ve listed below the peak OCI keywords from a search on membership sites that I conducted using Market Samurai.. High OCI means that those searching on that search term are more inclined to purchase. What is apparent is that here is a strong benefit in health-oriented membership & building online businesses around those topical key words would be profitable. The other key trend is that there is an appeal in setting up membership sites themselves: people are searching on terms like “membership site scripts” with an intent to BUY…
Membership site oriented key words with 60-99% OCI:
membership camping
gym membership
gyms membership
travel membership sites
health club membership
cash membership site
fitness center membership
membership site scripts * people are looking to set them up…
athletic club membership
membership site for sale
gym memberships
esporta membership
health and fitness membership
gym membership software
mini membership site* mini sites always a popular model
mini membership sites*
instant membership site creator* there is a market for the computer software
memberships sites
memberships site
membership sites for sale
gym membership rates
membership site software
nysc membership
build membership site
build membership sites
membership sites software
wp membership site
business membership site
membership site creator
membership site design
membership site owner
building membership sites
membership site management
Enterprise
Marketplace share is essential to any business and membership merchandising provides a way to acquire massive market share. You don’t need to be an expert… anyone can begin an Internet membership business. Here’s why you must. The membership business model translates into a dependable income stream. They offer stability – folks become members in something they are eager about or for something they need. A membership site offers you satisfaction of continual interaction with your clients. If you get an idea for a new enterprise I soundly endorse building it around a membership site.
Promotion
Internet marketing is not for lazy people! Even the most excellent and most appealing ideas need to be put ‘out there’ before they can work. If you do search phrase research in the Internet marketing niche you can observe that among the most frequently searched for expressions: is how to make money online.
If you’ve been struggling to break even with your on-line home-based business, or even if you’re earning ‘okay money’ using Internet marketing, affiliate programs, niche marketing or blogging, prepare for a MAJOR SHIFT in your beliefs. I must have tested them all: niche internet marketing, pay-per-click, affiliate promoting – in short, a whole raft of other ways to earn a living on the internet but nothing actually ‘clicked’ for me. My blog is THE most important marketing tool I’ve employed to profitably promote my membership sites. Another impressive feature of a membership site is that you simply have to generate the content once and subsequently you can keep promoting it again and again.
WordPress
WordPress is extremely well-liked for the reason that it delivers you a powerful contents management platform. With WordPress its uncomplicated to generate a multi-leveled membership site using free wordpress plugins. With a WordPress weblog you can immediately host password protected contents without special plug-ins being required. Thesis Theme is one of the most common, SEO optimized premium WordPress Themes that allows you to mark out your entire web site layout. Irrespective of whether the membership site is paid or free, WordPress is a perfect software platform to turn your blog into a cash-producing membership site.
Conclusion
Membership sites are able to sell for a top price for the reason that business people are conscious of the intrinsic worth of a buying customer base. No matter if youre seeking to sell-on or not, membership sites are magnificent way to make cash on-line. Historically membership sites required costly and complicated scripts.
A membership site can be a major informational focus. Information sells and you can undoubtedly make a great deal of cash by offering well packaged knowledge in the formula of a fee-based membership website. Entrepreneurs with huge membership sites typically have email lists numbering in the 1000’s and their brand gets known as expert. I did not anticipate that creating membership sites would be easy!
November 6, 2015 / como / 0 Comments
When you are getting ready to order business cards there are some things that you should think about. First consider what you would do if you were to get two business cards from two of the same types of businesses. One of these business cards is going to be black and white and have the basic information while the other is going to have the same information and be colorful and glossy. It is likely that you are going to be more impressed with the glossy business cards. This is something that you should remember because both of these are going to contain the same basic information like the contact person, website, email address, phone number, and physical address. Plus they are going to announce the business and what the business is known for. If you are more likely to pick the glossy version than that means that a lot of other people are going to be keeping your business cards if this is your choice as well.
Today the glossy business cards are one of the more popular choices because the economy is not doing well and there is so much competition for businesses and jobs. So if you do not have much money to invest in advertising for your business then this is one upgrade that can really help you to improve your business and get your investment back. They are going to get you far more business than the plain or standard versions are and they are going to get you noticed more. In fact it is important to know a few statistics when it comes to business cards like that twenty percent of them are thrown away within twenty four hours of when someone gets them. This can be a problem for your business because it can cost a lot of money for you that is basically being thrown away. When you choose the glossy coated ones they are likely to last longer than the normal version and they are going to be more impressive to those who receive them.
There are two different versions of glossy business cards. Some of these are just regular business cards that have been printed and then covered in a glossy coating making them thicker and causing them to last longer. Others are just printed on glossy paper and these are not going to last as long. In fact the first are going to be resistant to water and sun and will actually keep from aging but the others are going to still have problems with fading and yellowing and will not hold up against water. So if you are going to spend the extra money you should make sure that you are choosing the ones that are coated with the glossy coating.
Finally remember that this is going to help you to be able to get the most color on your cards as well. You will find that this is going to help the colors to be more vibrant and more noticeable. Plus it is going to help you to have the best overall effect for your business so that you will be happiest with the purchase that you have made when you order business cards.
November 6, 2015 / como / 0 Comments
There are many advantages of business presentation folders. One of the biggest is organization. Obviously, if you plan to present your company to potential clients, it’s important to stay organized. The other big thing is that you need to recognize that your presentation folders keep circulating after they leave your hands.
Your presentation folders are going to be spending more time than you might think in the hands of your clients. Not only can a great folder put your presentation at the front of the list, but it can invite reuse.
All offices need presentation folders, you see. So, your clients may decide that, rather than throw your folder out or toss it in some sort of dead folder file, they’ll actually re-purpose it to suit their own needs around the office. You may never know it, but you folder could circulate around their offices for days, weeks or even months after you’re gone, continuing the advertising campaign for you.
Those are some very good reasons to make sure that you put your best foot forward by creating the ultimate presentation folders. On top of those reasons, though, a customized folder can also show your creative side. Anyone can put paperwork in a folder. It takes time, care and imagination to make the folder part of the pitch, though. Companies are apt to recognize that extra effort.
Digital printing has made it easier than ever to make that extra effort. In fact, you can even design your own folders right on your computer. All it takes is a little time and templates, which you can download from your print company’s website.
The age of digital printing also means that you no longer have to buy folders in bulk. You can order them in any amount, including single folders. That saves money and also helps to save the environment.
Speaking of saving the environment, another great thing is that you can order folders that are made out of recycled materials. Not only will that give you a good feeling that you’re doing your part to save the environment, but it will also impress many of your clients.
In fact, you might influence your clients to recycle your folders themselves around their offices. After all, extra file folders always come in handy. That means that your company logo and mission statement could be seen a lot more often and by a lot more people than you expect.
So, regardless of what sort of presentation you’re creating, be sure to create the right folder for it. Whether you use gussets, bright colors or special business card holders, it can really make your presentation pop. In fact, for a little added flair, you can even customize the size and shape of your presentation folders. The choices are entirely up to you and the possibilities are only limited by your imagination.
November 6, 2015 / como / 0 Comments
Im not gonna lie, building a business can be hard work! We got into this whole Mobile Bartending thing because we love bartending and making money and it is a really fun gig!
But there are times we have to do things we dont like and it can suck, right?!
Well, its time for a mindset change that I would like to share with you. Once I had this mindset shift, it really made things not just easier, but more enjoyable for mewhich resulted in more money in less timewhich is good!
Ok, you ready? Its all about creating SYSTEMS in your business. Basically, you need to ask yourself, should I need to implement a system for particular things in my business? Yes you have too, I’ve been there and When you start to implement systems in your business, you are starting to work ON your business, not IN it. You should really only be concentrating on the things you enjoy in your business and create a system for the rest.
So, how do we create systems?
First, for about a week or two, all I want you to do is observe your actions. What are you doing each day, or week that you dread? What is taking up a lot of your time? And what are the reasons you end up like a snail crawling on your works? These are the things that you need a system for.
Let me give you an example: When I first got started Mobile Bartending, I would create a customized shopping list for each and every customer. That means I would write and email and spend 20 minutes coming up with everything I thought they needed for their party! 20 minutes!! It wasnt until I created a Sample Shopping List that I could simply attach in an email to every client did I realize I had a system in place. Its a simple system but it took me from 20 minutes of work down to about 10 seconds.
Once you have identified crucial areas that need to be systemized in your business, you need to ask yourself what you can do to make this quicker, easier and more efficient. Sometimes it is using technology and the power of the Internet or software to have it done for you. Othertimes you might need to actually hire someone to take care of this aspect of your business. I have a virtual assistant working for me at just $3.50/hour out of the Philipines, she helps me trememndously!!
I also remember that setting up for a big event would take all day! I literally spend 5-6 hours setting up, cleaning tools, and prepping everything I needthat is a joke! Now? 30 minutes! Why?! Because I found a more efficient system that removed myself from the process!
Just remember, do what YOU love, and systemize the rest-and watch you and your business grow! Realize every important steps that you should implement to increase the growth of your bartending business is a very wise alternative choice.