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Saturday, November 2, 2013

Small Business Tips for Developing an Online Marketing Plan

Small Business Tips for Developing an Online Marketing Plan
When it comes to starting and growing your small business, it's better to have a plan and deviate from it than to have no plan at all. After all, how do you know where you are going and realize you've arrived, if you don't have a destination in mind or a map to show the way?
The best results come from online marketing that is planned in advance. To brand your company, you must use an integrated campaign that utilizes social media, search engine marketing and more. Here are my tips for creating an online marketing plan to be used as a guide to success - or deciding if you need an internet marketing consultant to create this tool for you.


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What is Included in an Online Marketing Plan?
Is an online marketing plan different from your overall marketing strategy? In some ways, yes, although today many entrepreneurs simply focus on internet strategies rather than relying on print, radio and other types of media. So in some instances, they may be one and the same.
Your online marketing plan should consider several key components. At the very least it should include: a monthly/annual budget, a SWOT (strengths/weaknesses/opportunities/threats) analysis, a definition of your target market(s), an overview of what media will work best to reach your target market and a way to track results.
So, you might determine that your accounting firm, for instance, needs to develop its professional image. The next step is to come up with a theme for your campaign which includes a custom tag line, perhaps a special offer and always a specific call to action. Determine what keywords are most important and devise several short headlines that succinctly convey your message.
What if your ideal customers are women over the age of 30 who are small business owners in the Midwest? In order to pique their interest, you may want your campaign to focus on the year-long value of hiring an accounting agency. In order to reach them, you will need to develop a strong Facebook and LinkedIn presence - and you may want to start a Pinterest account, too. A Google PPC campaign targeting specific keywords related to the preferred geographic area would be helpful, as well.
Further Considerations
In order to make your online marketing strategy work, you simply must have one or more people in your organization dedicated to starting and maintaining specific campaigns and tracking the results in order to determine what's working and what's not.
If you don't have someone with enough time to dedicate to your marketing project, then it may be in your best interests to hire an internet marketing consultant. There is really no point in setting up social media accounts, PPC campaigns, banner ads and the like if your goal is to simply set it, then forget it. Internet marketing is a dynamic, constantly evolving form of advertising and branding your business. Unlike other forms of media, it must be constantly updated, responded to, changed, tweaked, reviewed.
Having an online marketing plan in place provides a road map of where your business is currently positioned and where it needs to go. As the plan is developed, you may just identify opportunities and threats you might have overlooked or find a new, under-served target market. It's a valuable process and a dynamic tool that every entrepreneur needs to do business in the digital age.

Want to know more about how to use inexpensive ways to market your small business? For the new business owner looking for help, Web Navigator Gal will steer you in the right direction for success and profitability. With experience marketing for companies with global renown, such as Disney, Fox. Sony and Mattel, Web Navigator Gal knows how to get your online presence going and your internet marketing up to speed. Visit her
online marketing site
to learn more about how easy it is to get your company noticed on the internet.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Laura_M_Wallis

Source:
http://emailgoal.blogspot.com/2013/06/small-business-tips-for-developing.html?m=1

http://innovationova.blogspot.com

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Friday, November 1, 2013

Admittedly, I don’t relish the bookkeeping aspect of selling online

Admittedly, I don’t relish the bookkeeping aspect of selling online
By Sian

Creating, advertising, packaging, posting, and networking plus keeping up with the blog takes up a great deal of my time … who has time to keep records on top of everything else?

Yes, keeping records this isn't the most exciting creative business topic but it is something we all need to do. Good record keeping will:

- Keep you organized
- Make you more productive
- Keep you informed on how your business is doing


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Here's just a couple of questions that are answered by keeping records.

- What do I have in stock?
- Where do I have each item listed, how much is it costing me and how many times have I renewed the listing?
- Do I have materials in stock to make more items today?
- How much did I spend to make my items this month?
- How much should I sell my handmade items for?
- How much am I paying on sellers fees?
- I am losing or making money?
- How much profit in total did I make this year?
- Your record keeping doesn't have to be complex and your don't need a diploma in Excel to keep records well.

The important point is to have a system that makes sense to you and is easy to update regularly.

Etsy provides great record keeping tools and you can even download a spreadsheet of sold transactions but if your selling on multiple sites and also at markets or local shops your going to have to set up systems that collect data from all avenues of selling and sales.   There are a couple of simple ways to get started:

- Store your receipts – keep a box or folder and throw all the receipts for stuff your purchase for your business in it.

- Track your Sales – adapt the free excel document I've created to keep track of stock, sales and costs.

- Set pricing for your items using this sheet.

- Keep a notebook and jot down sales and purchases

- Use an excel spreadsheet

- Create a list of all the items you sell. 

Download Free Excel – Keeping Records

I've created an excel spreadsheet for keeping records which you can download for free here.  Please keep in mind that I am not an excel expert, in fact I would consider myself a beginner.  The sheet is intended as a starting point for you to edit to suit your needs.

Be your own success story

It might sometimes seem like a lot of work, but good record keeping can save you time and money in the future.  Keeping good records means you can see any profits, which you can use to help your business grow.


Source:
http://www.projecteve.com/keeping-records-for-your-creative-business/
http://innovationova.blogspot.com

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6 Ways to Get in the Head of Your Consumer

6 Ways to Get in the Head of Your Consumer
There is a concrete us and them when it comes to business. You, the business owner, have something to offer them, your consumers. However, it helps if you think like them.   You're an owner. Outside of your company, you're an everyday consumer. But do you think like a consumer when it comes to your company? Why not? Consider ways to think like a customer.


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Use Your Product

Have you actually used your product?  Step outside of your ego. Be critically honest. Is there room for improvement? If you don't allow yourself to see it, believe your consumers are seeing it.  Use your product for one or two weeks. Make note of all your thoughts, suggestions, critiques, and accolades. Realize the more brutal you are, the more improvement you're creating.

Make Communication Easy

Have you ever wanted to get in contact with a brand, only to be confronted with no telephone number, or computer-generated phone messages?  Wouldn't you rather talk to an actual human?  When you send an email, are you left wondering when the brand will return your email, if they do at all?  Are you making getting in contact with your store or brand easy for your consumers?  The same aggravation you feel is shared by your consumers.  Imagine you need to contact your brand this very second.  Can you get a worker on the phone or get a response within the next business day?

Staffing

Have you ever waited a long time for a retail employee to come to your aid?  Have you ever wondered why one person is left to man the cash register, help consumers, and tend to stocking needs in the back? Sure, you save some money by skimping on the number of present employees on a given shift. However, what kind of attention is being provided to your consumers? Are you making it easy for them to buy your products? You're not if they are waiting for assistance. Placing another employee on each shift may cost a bit more; but, how will improved customer service influence your ultimate revenue? Walk in your store on any given shift; survey the level of traffic in comparison to those on staff to offer help.

Ask Them

How often do you ask customers about your products, service, store ambiance, prices, etc? Do you know who the best marketers for your business are? Your consumers are. Give them what they want. You'll never know exactly what that is until you ask them.  Give them an incentive for their feedback. Offer them a coupon or discount code for filling out surveys in your store or online. Don't expect business; create business by providing value in exchange for your consumers' dollars.

Go in a Competitor's Store

Regardless of your chosen vertical, it's likely you have some competition. Have you ever walked through your competitors' stores as a consumer? Of course, you're likely to scoff at spending money there. But put yourself in the shoes of one of their customers. What are they doing right? What are they doing wrong? Get ideas of what to do and what not to do through the eyes of your competitors' customers.

Make Yourself Available/Visible

Have you ever gotten a "we appreciate your business," wondering who the "we" is exactly. For instance, when you hear it at Starbucks, do you really assume the CEO knows you personally? Of course, you don't. They are not present in their stores.  Their customers don't even know them; and, they don't know their customers. As a small business owner you can be present.

Customers like knowing who is responsible for provided products/services. Make yourself available and visible to them. Talk to them. Ask them questions. Make sure they know you and you them. Do you know who is providing better customer service than Starbucks though their revenue is not equal? The small café owner who knows their customers by name and what they drink is way ahead of the Starbucks CEO when it comes to making themselves available. Think about that; consumers do.


Source:
http://inspirationfeed.com/articles/business/6-ways-to-get-in-the-head-of-your-consumer/
http://innovationova.blogspot.com

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Tips on How Entrepreneurs Start a Home Based Small Business

Tips on How Entrepreneurs Start a Home Based Small Business
There are many ways by which entrepreneurs get on the road to success. Some entrepreneurs choose to take advantage of franchise opportunities and from there, move on to greater glory.


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There are a lot of things that can be said about franchising. For one thing, franchise opportunities let you penetrate the market with an already-established brand name. People already know the product or service so you won't have to go through the trouble of making a name.

Of course, you have the responsibility to make a name for your business and not just the product. This means you'll have to sell yourself. After all, people can get the product or service from other franchises, so what makes you any different? You'll have to show them that you are different from other businesses even if your products are the same. You'll have to do your best to convince people that getting the product from you is the best decision that they can make.

If you don't think that taking advantage of a franchise opportunity is the thing for you, maybe you should consider starting a small, home based business.

A lot of budding entrepreneurs put up small home based businesses for different reasons. Here are some of them:

1) Lack of funding – most entrepreneurs have small home based businesses because of the simple fact that, as a beginner, most do not have the funding to rent office space.

When you think about it, a small home based business is perfect for a budding entrepreneur. He or she actually gets to save money on the rent of commercial space. We all know how hard it can be to manage finances when you are starting a business, so saving all the money you can is a very good idea.

2) Convenience – for entrepreneurs, small home based businesses can be very convenient. When you think about it, they can stay at home all day and still make a living.

Entrepreneurs find small home based businesses convenient in other ways as well. Much legality is eliminated when you base your venture at home. Getting a lease on a commercial space may sometimes prove too complicated, as compared to having your business at home.

3) Customer base – some entrepreneurs start small home based businesses because of the fact that they may already have an established client base there. Some restaurants, for example, get started because of a person noticing that his or her cooking is very popular around the community.
Now, by starting a restaurant in the home, he or she would already have a customer base, willing to pay her for her cooking.

Many people know just how hard it can be to start your business as an unknown. By basing your business at home, you know that you will already have established connections and you know that people will find it more convenient to go to you for their needs.

Remember that you need to plan properly. Most entrepreneurs' small home based businesses fail because of poor planning. You need to learn how to separate your business finances from your home finances, and learn how to record each correctly.

In order for you to be able to properly handle your business, you might want to consult three people: an Accountant, a lawyer, and an advisor. Between these three people, you can get the big picture of what to expect when running a small home based business as an entrepreneur.

You have to be strong. Many people can tell you that business and personal life don't mix very well. But history has shown that entrepreneurs with small home based businesses often succeed at becoming globally competitive.

Three nerds in a garage have as much chance at succeeding in a business venture as an executive in an office with a view. Technology today has made possible that all resources be within your grasp. All you actually need to do is find the will to take the first step.

There you go: those are just some tips to get you started on that first step. By remembering to take calculated risks, you should be fine in getting your small home based business of the ground, entrepreneur.

What are you waiting for? Go!

Source:
http://www.entrepreneurspro.com/tips-on-how-entrepreneurs-start-a-home-based-small-business/

http://innovationova.blogspot.com

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10 Major Causes for Failure in Leadership

10 Major Causes for Failure in Leadership
By Chanelle Yarber

In Napoleon Hill's "Think and Grow Rich," he outlines the major causes for failure in leadership. As I read through the list a few times, I had to be introspective of myself and my leadership style. Most leaders desire to be a good one or at least deceive themselves into believing they are. So here are Napoleon Hill's reasons for a breakdown in leadership. Before you attribute them to your superiors, examine yourself and your communication style to see if there are things you can tweak to become a more effective leader yourself.  


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1) Inability to organize details: If you want someone to follow you, you have to have a detailed plan of action for your subordinates. It is one thing to have a great vision, it is another to communicate it effectively and in digestible steps that others can easily follow. Even Habakkuk 2:2 instructs leaders to "write the vision and make it PLAIN so that he that reads it can run with it." If you fail to organize details, it's the small foxes that will inevitably spoil the vine in your endeavor.

2) Unwillingness to render humble service: No one wants to follow a haughty leader. If you're too good to serve your followers, they won't want to serve your cause either. Your subordinates will become resentful of your leadership style if it consists of a "do as I say, not as I do" mentality. Leaders do what is necessary to get the job done by leading by example, not by an authoritative iron fist or high minded approach.

3) Expectation of pay for what they "know" instead of what they do with what they know: It doesn't matter if you have read the entire Encyclopedia Brittanica, speak four languages and know how to code the entire Internet, if you don't APPLY that knowledge, what good is it to anyone? Sometimes leaders in positions feel they should be paid more for their education, meanwhile someone else with less education is their subordinate who is actually applying their knowledge and getting results. Want to get paid more? Do more.

4) Fear of competition from followers: We all know that leader who boxes out their subordinates and doesn't allow them to attend client meetings or doesn't pass on necessary contacts or information out of fear that that person will take their job. It's not necessary. Good leaders produce good leaders. Consider it a tip of your hat if one of your followers surpasses you. It's a sign you are an effective leader!

5) Lack of imagination: Creativity is key in leadership because things always change on the fly. You have to stay on your toes and imagine new ideas. If you aren't imaginative and continue to create stale solutions, people will tire of following your lead.

6) Selfishness: This is a HUGE one! Who wants to follow and serve someone who is all about themselves? If you are an "all about me" person, your motives will seep through in your leadership style and people will resent you. If you can't provide mutually beneficial relationships and outcomes, people will only follow you grudgingly and out of necessity, not because they like you or want to be a part of your team.

7) Intemperance:  If you lack self-control, moderation and fairness how can you maintain influence in a leadership capacity? It's simple. In order to lead, one must be respectful and respected. If you display excess, greed or partiality you are likely to lose respect.

8) Disloyalty: In order to acquire loyalty from others, you have to show loyalty. If you are loyal only to yourself or to someone else's agenda who can assist you in ascending to another level, this leads back to point #6 – selfishness. If you waver between two agendas, gossip behind people's backs or come off as snide, this shows you aren't fair or stable minded enough to properly lead others.

9) Emphasis of the "authority" of leadership: Let's face it, some people get in leadership positions to flex on others. Whether it is because they're insecure or seeking some sort of validation, pulling rank has no place in true authentic leadership. If the only thing you have to stand on to get people to follow you is your position of authority, you aren't a true leader. How many times have we seen a peer be able to influence another before a superior can?

10) Emphasis of title: Just because you have a title bestowed upon you doesn't mean you are an effective leader. We see this every day in politics. True leaders don't need titles. And just as with point #9, if the only thing you have to stand on to get people to follow you is throwing your title around, you aren't a true leader.   


Chanelle Yarber is the Founder and Managing Consultant for BrightGirl Media, a digital media marketing firm. The consummate entrepreneur and innovator, Chanelle enjoys creating and implementing Internet marketing and video solutions for her clients as well as being a connector and helping individuals succeed in their entrepreneurial endeavors.  

Source:
http://www.projecteve.com/10-major-causes-for-failure-in-leadership/
http://innovationova.blogspot.com

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Startup Stories: Diversity and Global Inclusion

Startup Stories: Diversity and Global Inclusion
By Darshana Nadkarni

Q: Tell us about your entrepreneurial product or service.

A: I provide recruitment & staffing services to biotech and medical device companies.
I have made serial forays into my own business. Having a PhD in Psychology, I began teaching psychology in several bay area colleges. Then I started my business in offering lunch time trainings to bay area companies. I grew my training business and focused on Diversity and Global Inclusion trainings (mostly to fortune 500 companies). However, intense traveling was a severe challenge (more so, after my divorce and while raising my children single-handedly). I then got a chance to do recruitment and I jumped at the idea. I now do some trainings and I focus more on my recruitment business.


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Q: What inspired you to launch your business idea?

A: My foray into this business as accidental. Prior to this I taught psychology at several bay area colleges and I had a business in doing training in the area of Diversity and Global Inclusion (which I continue to do). I enjoyed the independence of having my own business and enjoyed working with people.
At one time, I paired a friend looking for a job, with a friend looking to hire and it clicked. Then I sent another person looking for a job to my friend looking to hire. After he hired two people, he suggested that I do this as a professional recruiter and get paid. I got some tips from him and began my recruiting business, with him signing up as my first client.
Then I began to attend conferences and events to familiarize myself with the industry and cultivate contacts and I simply, completely, totally fell in love with the life science industry.

Q: What problem does your business or organization solve?

A: Finding excellent candidates who gel with the team and the work environment, is often challenging. However, it is infinitely more challenging in the life science industry, where requirements are stringent, regulatory issues are complex, focus on quality is relentless, multi-functional work environment is the norm. In life science startup, there may be an opening for a Mechanical Engineer, however this person needs to have experience with class III devices (that are implanted inside the body), further they may need to have experience with plastics, catheters, and tubings, further they may need to have experience specifically with cardiac diseases or neurological diseases. Being highly active and relentlessly networking in the industry, enables me to stay in touch with people and make appropriate connections between those looking to fill opportunities and those looking for right opportunities.

Q: What has been your biggest challenge as an entrepreneur and how are you working to overcome it?

A: During economic downturn, no one in life sciences was hiring, leave alone requiring professional recruitment assistance. As things began to pick up, life science industry has been slower and lagging behind in the hiring. It is plagued by FDA issues, stringent requirement, morass of regulatory issues and investors looking for quick returns focused on software and other industries.
During the downturn, while I continued to work (and downsized), I also began writing and covering professional events, workshops, and bio-medical conferences. This enabled me to attend such events and stay in touch, in addition to providing valuable content to the readers to my blog (where I also post job opportunities). As the economy became more stable and the hiring picked up, it greatly benefitted me to have stayed current.
However, the interesting part is that during the down times, I also began to write movie and book and play reviews. Bay area theater companies offer me complementary passes for all their events and I have greatly enjoyed developing an additional avenue for mental stimulation.
I feel that capitalizing on my other interests during the downtime, it helped me to weather the tough times, keep my interest alive, access entertainment at low cost, find effective and fun stress relieving avenue, and keep professionally current for a comeback when things picked up, which now they have.

Q: Give us one word that people might use to describe you.

A: Integrity, personable, client satisfaction.

Q: How has Project Eve helped you and/or your business?

A: I love the inspiration articles on Project Eve site and the feeling of community of women successfully dealing with the challenges and sharing their perspectives and learnings. I also enjoy sharing my blog posts here.

Q: Give us an insider tip that relates to your industry or startup story.
and rewards are infinitely slow in coming. What sustains these people?

A: People who work in this industry are not only extremely bright (an amazingly high concentration of PhDs, MDs, and engineering and science specialties), but people who work in this industry have a strong commitment, dedication, desire, and passion to contribute to improvement in the quality of life.


Source:
http://www.projecteve.com/startup-stories-diversity-and-global-inclusion/
http://innovationova.blogspot.com

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Common Features Shared by Successful Entrepreneurs

Common Features Shared by Successful Entrepreneurs
Most research indicates that there is a set of common characteristics among successful entrepreneurs. As these qualities were identified as critical for success in business ventures. Seems most successful entrepreneurs to possess a good degree of administrative and organizational skills in addition to being innovative and creative and the ability to predict the future.


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Some of the hallmarks of the most successful entrepreneurs as follows:

Good health is the hallmark of the entrepreneur. Most entrepreneurs keep them healthy, strong and flexible and can work after hours as and when required to grow their business.

Businessmen always feel strong drive to achieve what they want. Most entrepreneurs are goal oriented and clearly focused towards the development of successful business strategies. Often, nature enthusiast puts them under difficult to operate in highly structured organizational set up since they always tend to feel others do not catch up with their speed.

A tremendous amount of self-confidence is one of the most important attributes of successful entrepreneurs. They never faltered because of the challenges and difficulties as they come and they immediately take measures to fight them successfully or change the course of action in order to find suitable alternatives for the implementation of the project forward.

Entrepreneurs are always in the process of thinking out of the hat and develop new ideas to develop and encourage companies guided by their knowledge of the market and long-term forecasting skills. They always hate being lethargic or inactive and are eager to get things done within the specified time.

Skillful problem solving abilities to maintain business apart from the rest of the masses. Most entrepreneurs are able to analyze a problem situation and take a decision on which is the best solution for the organization. They are also able to work on multiple challenges in a particular time and to develop solutions that do not affect other areas, and can be given to the overall development across a range of platforms.

Source:
http://www.entrepreneurspro.com/common-features-shared-by-successful-entrepreneurs/
http://innovationova.blogspot.com

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