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The Four Keys to Raising Capital
Raising Capital to grow your business or invest in property has become harder. The key to raising capital is a person’s ability to sell. Selling is a crucial skill for any entrepreneur. The main question you come across while planning to raise capital is ‘What are you selling’ or ‘What is the lender or investor looking for’.
According to Kim Kiyosaki, the key to raising money, whether it’s to start or expand your business mainly depends on four factors:
- The Project
- The Partners
- The Financing
- The Management
If you can show a prospective lender or investor that you have command over these four key factors, then selling will not be an issue, and you will attract more money than you thought possible.
It’s important to know the overall “want” of a lender or investor. Every investor is mainly interested to know whether he/she is going to get healthy return on his/her investment. That’s the overall want of an investor. The same criterion applies to every lender or investor whether it is a traditional bank or a lending institution or an individual.
To know how to address these key points clearly and confidently, read Kim Kiyosaki’s article, visit: http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/217347
About Jim Jacques
Jim Jacques is the President of United Virtual Office, a leading nationwide provider of virtual offices for entrepreneurs, startups and small businesses. A virtual office includes an address at a prestigious business location in the US, live virtual receptionist, courier services and more. Google +
Four Steps to Make Advertising More Effective
Testing and measuring the results of your advertising and marketing efforts can increase your profit and enable you to identify what works and what doesn’t. Brad Sugars suggests useful steps to help you make the most of your advertising efforts:
Follow the TOC formula: Target, Offer and Copy are the three elements that build the foundation of a strong advertisement. If you know your target market, your advertisement should be placed where your potential customers will see it. First thing you need to do is figure out your target market to determine the viability of your business. If there is no market, your business is not viable. Include a specific offer when writing your headline. You can search online to find out how online marketers do it. Your headline should prompt your potential customers to call you. Start with test adverts which could be in the form of classified, small space or online advertisements via Google. Such a test is an easy and inexpensive way to evaluate whether your product or service is offered to the target customers.
If you are targeting the right market with a decent offer and a clear call to action, you should generate some response. Examine what you can do to boost the response, modify your adverts and retest it. If your adverts don’t generate any response, just scrap them and move on. Once you find something that works you can expand. If it is a small classified advert, try a bigger display advertisement.
To know more about how to make ads more effective, read the article: Visit:http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/217794
About Jim Jacques
Jim Jacques is the President of United Virtual Office, a leading nationwide provider of virtual offices for entrepreneurs, startups and small businesses. A virtual office includes an address at a prestigious business location in the US, live virtual receptionist, courier services and more. Google +
Start a Service Business
Each one of us has skills, knowledge and experience and anyone can turn these assets into a lively and profitable business. Anyone with these assets can start a service business. Other people are willing to pay for these specific skills in the form of a service. Anyone with a need or desire to earn extra money can sell a service, regardless of age, education or experience.
The biggest advantage of starting your own service business is you become your own boss and take full control of your future. Self-employment gives you freedom and independence which is difficult to achieve when you work for someone else. You get an opportunity to earn much more money than what you earn when working for others. You can hire employees to increase revenues. You have liberty to open new branches of your business and offer services to new customers. You can’t do these things when you work for others and if you do, it is more likely to benefit your boss than working in your favor.
You can cover-up the areas where you lack some business skills like time management, accounting or effective advertisement. You can learn and master these skills by practice and experience. Any skill that you possess can be your best marketable asset. Do you know how to safely walk a dog? Are you capable of planning and throwing a party? Can you sell products and services on line? People are willing to pay you for these skills.
To have more knowledge about starting a service business, read James Stephenson’s article: Visit:http://www.entrepreneur.com/startingabusiness/businessideas/article80686.html
About Jim Jacques
Jim Jacques is the President of United Virtual Office, a leading nationwide provider of virtual offices for entrepreneurs, startups and small businesses. A virtual office includes an address at a prestigious business location in the US, live virtual receptionist, courier services and more. Google +
Are You a Great Leader or a Competent Manager?
The difference between the two lies in the ability to inspire your team, especially during difficult times. “Leader” and “Manager” are not one and same. A Leader is one who influences people to produce desired results whereas a Manager is a person who merely directs a team. Leadership also requires the ability to create an enjoyable work place. Most businesses face the challenge of proper management training. During an economic downswing, training programs are often the first to be eliminated to cut costs. In fact, it’s the wrong choice and reflects lack of foresightedness and vision. Most managers who have successfully undergone management training are likely to stay with their employer longer. The effectiveness of company leaders from the CEO and down is a crucial indicator for a company’s success. Business owners may face difficult times but they should remember employees are the most critical part of any business and true leaders can weather the storm by motivating their team to stay with them in difficult times. Want to know more about some of the core traits of a true leader? Read the article; Visit: http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/217494
About Jim Jacques
Jim Jacques is the President of United Virtual Office, a leading nationwide provider of virtual offices for entrepreneurs, startups and small businesses. A virtual office includes an address at a prestigious business location in the US, live virtual receptionist, courier services and more. Google +
The Importance of Schedules and How to Keep Them
As a business entrepreneur – particularly when starting a new venture – you need to adjust ways of working and maintain schedules that work best for you. If you are an entrepreneur, balancing various tasks – an office, a home and a family – you might end up making an unplanned commitment with your scheduled tasks. Some proven ways to make schedules work for you are:
- Block off certain times of the day for completing parts of any large task.
- If your business requires meeting clients – pick one or two days of the week to fix a client meeting schedule and focus only on clients appointments.
- Consider mixing other important family tasks with your office work schedule (a school pick-up or drop-off, doctor visit or a grocery pick-up etc).
- You may have a relation building day if someone wants to schedule a lunch or coffee.
- If you write articles or blogs choose most relaxing or quiet times for your writing activities.
Stick to one task/project on a particular day.
Sometimes you may need to plan your work schedule around someone else’s schedule. Planning work schedules and keeping them can certainly help you complete different projects smoothly. Get more information on this topic, visit:http://www.womenentrepreneur.com/2010/12/when-you-need-to-avoid-going-insane-the-importance-of-schedules.html
About Jim Jacques
Jim Jacques is the President of United Virtual Office, a leading nationwide provider of virtual offices for entrepreneurs, startups and small businesses. A virtual office includes an address at a prestigious business location in the US, live virtual receptionist, courier services and more. Google +
How to Create a Mastermind Group
Developing mastermind group requires an alliance of a small number of people who are willing to make regular commitment to each other to achieve a common goal. It may sound simple but in practice it can be quite difficult. Compare mastermind group dynamics with the art of baking bread. The process might be simple and straightforward but mixing all the ingredients in right proportion and proper kneading of dough is something that needs an expert and delicate touch.
Mastermind groups often find it difficult to sustain the passion with which they are started. May be members of the group find they don’t have sufficiently similar interests and goals. Developing element of mutual relationship is important for achieving common goals of the group. Some of the ingredients suggested for developing a mastermind group are:
- Time commitment to meet on fixed schedule ? preferably once a week.
- Right number of members in the group – 5-6 members is “just right”.
- Flexible meeting agenda – allowing more time to a member if it is so required.
- Accountability – members should be accountable to themselves and to the other members of the group for the steps they agree to take for achieving their common business goals.
Sounds interesting? Read Nina Kaufman’s article – visit:
http://legal.entrepreneur.com/2010/11/30/how-to-create-a-mastermind-group/
About Jim Jacques
Jim Jacques is the President of United Virtual Office, a leading nationwide provider of virtual offices for entrepreneurs, startups and small businesses. A virtual office includes an address at a prestigious business location in the US, live virtual receptionist, courier services and more. Google +
Making Time for Marketing
Most self-employed professionals feel they have no time for marketing. If you are the only one to serve the clients, manage the business, and perform all the sales and marketing functions, you really feel scarcity of time. Some Time Management techniques can guide you to defer tasks or delegate them; you can manage time for making calls, writing letters, or updating marketing materials. Have you already tried all those methods and discovered that time is still scarce”
What is your real challenge – to find more time for marketing or to MAKE time” Every day, you take part in many time-consuming activities which surely arent related to marketing. You could integrate marketing with all those things you are already doing if you could check some examples of how that can work:
- Attending workshops or cultural events with some business contacts can help develop better relationship instead meeting one-to-one.
- If you are planning to meet someone on lunch or coffee, add one or two persons to this get-together. This is great way to make new contacts. New invitees would appreciate the opportunity and you can have a rewarding group discussion.
- It is good to invite someone to join you for a walk in the park or a game of tennis. Such meetings help building business contacts. You can meet some contacts in golf course where you can discuss business while doing exercise.
- While reading an interesting article in a magazine or online, think of three people whom you could send it with a short “thought-you-would-be-interested” note. It will take only a moment, but can make a big impression on the recipient.
Sounds interesting” Get familiar with more ideas to make time for marketing, visit:
http://entrepreneurs.about.com/od/salesmarketing/a/marketingtime.htm
About Jim Jacques
Jim Jacques is the President of United Virtual Office, a leading nationwide provider of virtual offices for entrepreneurs, startups and small businesses. A virtual office includes an address at a prestigious business location in the US, live virtual receptionist, courier services and more. Google +
Deciding Price Strategy For Your Product or Service
As an entrepreneur, first thing you need to decide is your price strategy. Fixing right price for your product or service is major aspect of a marketing program. Considering some basic factors may help you in taking right decision in this direction.
- How do you plan to position your product in the market” If you are planning to market your products through a discount store, you will try to keep your prices lower than your competitors. On the other hand, if your product is an exclusive luxury item, keeping low price tag might hurt your image. The pricing must be consistent with the positioning. People strongly emphasize to the idea that you get what you pay for.
- Do some market research to find out acceptability of your product at a particular price. Work out demand curve at various prices to assess the best price for your product or service.
- Calculate the fixed and variable costs of your product or service. Ensure that your gross margin (price minus cost of goods) sufficiently covers your fixed overhead to get you acceptable profit margin. Many entrepreneurs under-estimate this aspect which gets them into trouble.
- There are other areas to be examined before you decide pricing your product or service. To get detailed information on this topic visit:
http://entrepreneurs.about.com/od/salesmarketing/a/pricingstrategy.htm
About Jim Jacques
Jim Jacques is the President of United Virtual Office, a leading nationwide provider of virtual offices for entrepreneurs, startups and small businesses. A virtual office includes an address at a prestigious business location in the US, live virtual receptionist, courier services and more. Google +
The New Approach to Business Development
As a smart startup entrepreneur you should minimize your time and efforts by shifting your approach to business development. During the early stages of your business planning, you come across two groups of tasks:
- The busy work: The startup busy work means the task oriented stuff. Starting the busy work doesn’t necessarily mean that you’ve started the business.
- The business work: This is the area where business development ideas are constructed and dissected. Actual business planning starts during this period,
Few things might help you plan your business development smartly.
- Finding couple of trial client is important before you spend substantially on marketing materials. Get an impressive presentation folder with one sheet description of your business. You will have to meet 10 persons to get your first two customers. Those ten will help you figure out whether you are moving in the right direction.
- Organizing demonstrations and presentations in your potential client meetings can help you find solutions about enhancing sale appeal of your product or service. Wisely allocate your budged on product or service development.
- Dont avoid meeting a new client. The key to balancing busy work vs. business work is to plan as you go. Most of information that you need for business development will come from actual clients.
To get a clear picture of the direction your new business will take, focus on business development activities and resist procrastination by hiding behind busy work.
To know more on this subject, visit http://www.womenentrepreneur.com/2010/11/the-new-approach-to-business-development.html
About Jim Jacques
Jim Jacques is the President of United Virtual Office, a leading nationwide provider of virtual offices for entrepreneurs, startups and small businesses. A virtual office includes an address at a prestigious business location in the US, live virtual receptionist, courier services and more. Google +
Buying a Business
When buying a business, it is important to know what to look for, and not to rush into anything. It takes a lot of time and thought to buying a business, and failure to consider these factors may result in harming the business overall. Many people make the mistake of buying the wrong business. It is vital to buy a business that suits your interests, personality, skills and knowledge. Try looking for one that has some sort of relevance to work you have done in the past, or the skills you possess
You must ensure whether the business you are interested in buying is the right business for you and you are confident enough that you can offer what is necessary to make it successful.
Want to know some basic factors to consider when buying a business? Visit http://www.gaebler.com/Factors-to-Consider-When-Buying-a-Business.htm
About Jim Jacques
Jim Jacques is the President of United Virtual Office, a leading nationwide provider of virtual offices for entrepreneurs, startups and small businesses. A virtual office includes an address at a prestigious business location in the US, live virtual receptionist, courier services and more. Google +