How To Achieve Great Success From A Home Based Business

Profitability is the most important factor to success with any home based business. A home-based business can run for a long period of time as long as you make it profitable.

However, as many businesses don't make a profit to start with this is often the first goal of the home-based business owners, and you should achieve this goal as soon as possible.

To achieve this goal you should focus on business development, be careful with your expenses and focus on what you are offering.

Focusing on growth is a key way to build your home-based business profits. In order to influence your results you should have the right mindset. If you don't have a profitable mindset then you are likely going to stay where you are.

Rather focus on growth and have the mindset to notice opportunities when they come along that can lead to gain, and then take action on these opportunities right away before they are gone. Again, success loves speed.          

Next you must pay attention to your expenses seriously. All businesses have some expenses when they first start out even home-based single person businesses. Make sure you set up a budget that includes things such as advertising, utilities, office supplies and anything else that may be necessary to the specific home-based business you are considering.

On your list write down the expenses that are necessary for operating your business, these should be items that you need in order to make your home-based business profitable.

You will likely run into some expenses that you don't really need to operate your business. These are the expenses that don't make your business grow and only take away from the profits of your business.

Carefully consider before you truly need these expenses and if they don't make any profit then you should cut them for something that will actually help with the growth of your business.

However, you can only move your business so far by restricting your expenses. You also need income in order to gain profitability from your home-based venture.

Promotion is the most important factor to developing any business and gaining profitability. Basically you should focus on making your business known to people.

You can't expect to do business with them if they aren't aware of your company. While this may seem like an obvious point, the fact is that many businesses (home-based, store front, and internet based alike) fail simply because individuals don't spend enough time promoting their business. Once again, promotion is the key for your success.

If you have more than one product that requires promoting then consider focusing on just one main product for your business since you can focus most of your attention on marketing one product and once you get interested customers or visitors you can tell them about the additional products.

This will make it easier to run your business and you will also have better results from your actions. Remember, it isn’t impossible for you to promote many products at the same time, just time consuming and has a habit of dividing your concentrations.

These tips don’t just apply to those who are starting a new home-based business. You can still use these helpful advice to let you move your business in the right direction if you have been working on it for awhile and just can get it to work for you. By applying these tips you will be able to have success with your home based business no matter how long you have been in business.

Don’t forget that I am here for your success, if you have any topics that you want me to cover, drop me a line and let me know.

Black Friday is Coming

Christmas Shopping the Day after Thanksgiving

I know, I know, you are still trying to get ready for tomorrow's Thanksgiving feast and don't want to hear about Black Friday. For those readers who may not be accustomed to U.S. holidays and traditions, or you may just live off the grid, another famous tradition in this country is the day after Thanksgiving, which is commonly referred to as “Black Friday”.

This day is traditionally one of the busiest shopping days of the years and for many signifies the first day of Christmas shopping.

While the term black Friday was originally used to represent the day in which retailers returned to profitability many who work in the retail industry use this term as a way to describe the crowds and chaos which accompany Christmas shopping on the day after Thanksgiving.

Likewise consumers expect significant sales to go along with the large crowds, which flock to stores, camp out the night before to be the first ones in the door and often fight each other over the last toaster on the shelf.

For many shopping on the day after Thanksgiving it is a tradition, which wouldn’t be missed for the world. These individuals look forward to the sales and starting their shopping as a way to get into the Christmas spirit.

These individuals can be counted on to arrive before the malls and shopping centers even open to get a great parking spot, to make multiple trips to their cars to drop off packages before returning to the shopping area to make more purchases and to almost literally shop until they drop.

These are the individuals that retailers count on each year to boost their quarterly earnings and to help them report profitability for the year.

Those who enjoy Christmas shopping on the day after Thanksgiving feel this way for a number of different reasons. Some enjoy shopping on this day for the tremendous sales, which are inevitable.

Still others enjoy shopping on this day because they like to take things one season at a time and figure now that Thanksgiving is over; it is time to start focusing on Christmas.

There are even others who like shopping on this day for the excellent people watching opportunity the day presents (trust me, the only reason I would get out on Black Friday would be to watch the craziness that takes place).

Whether or not they get any actual shopping done these individuals flock to shopping malls on the day after Thanksgiving because they know there will be tons of other shoppers to observe.

Finally there are those who start their Christmas shopping on the day after Thanksgiving because of a sense of tradition. It is these individuals who have simply always started their Christmas shopping on this day out of habit.

Their parents probably started Christmas shopping the day after Thanksgiving and they simply learned this is the day to start Christmas shopping. They will also likely pass on the habit to their own children.

Conversely there are other shoppers who absolutely refuse to step foot inside a mall or shopping center on the day after Thanksgiving (ME). For these shoppers trying to get any shopping done on this day is near impossible.

They are willing to sacrifice the opportunity to buy some items as gifts at excellent sale prices just to avoid the cattle stampedes of shoppers who swarm the stores on this one particular day.

However, it is important to note that just because these shoppers avoid shopping areas on the day after Thanksgiving does not mean they don’t enjoy great sale prices on the Christmas gifts they purchase.

These shoppers may take advantage of sales throughout the year to accomplish their Christmas shopping within their set budget. Or, like me, you may do most of your smaller items, stocking stuffers, etc. the week after Christmas to set up for next Christmas and then only concern yourself with the bigger gifts as it gets closer.

There are still others who typically do not do any shopping on the day after Thanksgiving but these individuals do not necessarily avoid the malls and shopping areas on this day either.

Whether you are an early Christmas shopper, a last minute Christmas shopper or just a people watcher, you likely understand it is appropriate to expect large crowds in malls and shopping centers on the day after Thanksgiving. It is up to you to decide whether or not you choose to join the shoppers on this hectic day.

Now you are probably asking why I posted all of this. First, I want to be the first to wish you a Merry Christmas season, second I want to remind you that tomorrow is Thanksgiving, so try not to celebrate being thankful on one day only to follow it up by being ungrateful the next. If you are getting out and about on Black Friday, remember that every retail worker, from the store clerk to the server at the restaurant is going to be stressed that day and swamped, so give them a little slack. Also, thirdly, I want to remind you to be safe if you are getting out and about for this sub-holiday tradition that we call Black Friday.

Take care.

Planning Your Thanksgiving Party on a Budget

 

Are you hosting a Thanksgiving party this year?  If so, how much do you intend to spend on your party? 

Unfortunately, a large number of party hosts do not have as much money to spend on their party as they wish they had, but at the same time, often spend more than they wanted to. Whether you are looking at a personal party or a business party, budget can get you in over your head and make you regret the holidays if you aren’t careful.

While this may make you want to change your mind, about hosting a Thanksgiving party, it doesn’t have to. There are a number of different ways that you can go about planning a memorable Thanksgiving party while on a budget.

One of the best ways to plan a Thanksgiving party on a budget is to develop a plan for everything.

You will want to plan what types of foods you would like to serve at your party, how many guests you would like to invite, and what forms of entertainment you would like to have on hand. 

Making a detailed list of everything mentioned above is the best way to determine how much money you could expect to pay for everything that you want. 

Now, it is important to remember that what you could expect to pay might not necessarily be what you could afford to pay; that is where the budgeting comes in. 

After you have created a list of what you need to purchase, including food and other party supplies, you will need to determine exactly how much money you have to spend on your Thanksgiving party. 

If you notice a difference between what you want to spend and what you have to spend, you may find that you need to cut a few corners.  While it is nice to have the Thanksgiving party of your dreams, you will not want to go broke while doing so.

If you eliminate a certain type of food or a number of guests, to cut down your costs, you may easily be able to add them back on, depending on how much money you save when shopping for all of your needed Thanksgiving party supplies.

If you want to save money, when purchasing the supplies needed for your Thanksgiving party, as you likely do, there are a number of different steps that you can take to make that happen. 

Perhaps, the most important step to take is buying your food whenever you see it on sale, especially if you need to have a large amount of food.  Whether your party includes snacks or a full fledge Thanksgiving dinner, you can save yourself a fairly large amount of money by purchasing your food or drinks while they are on sale.  Typically, in the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving, you will find that many grocery stores lower the prices on their most popular Thanksgiving foods and cooking supplies.  This may be the best time to get your shopping done.

Since a party really isn’t complete without decorations, you may wish to purchase party decorations for your home.  For the largest selection of Thanksgiving decorations, it is advised that you purchase your decorations as soon as they hit the store shelves.  Unfortunately, it seems as if many retail stores skip Thanksgiving and jump right to Christmas.  This means that many retail stores are limited on the number of Thanksgiving decorations they carry and when they are gone, they are often gone. 

For the most affordable Thanksgiving decorations, you are advised to shop at discount stores, dollar stores, and department stores.  However, since there is a good chance that thousands of other shoppers are looking to get the same deals as you, it is important that you act fast, while you still have the chance. As I have often heard people like Brian Tracy say, “success loves speed’, and in this case speed can make or break the bank on supplies.

Along the lines of Thanksgiving party decorations is party seating.  Whether you are hosting a formal Thanksgiving party, complete with a sit-down dinner, or just a casual party, there is a good chance that you may need extra chairs and tables.

Your first impulse may be to buy them yourself, but you can save money by renting extra furniture from one of your local rental stores, particularly a party rental store.  You can also get extra tables and chairs, for free, by asking those that you know if they have any seating arrangements that you could borrow. 

The tips mentioned above are just a few of the many ways that you can plan a Thanksgiving party on a budget.  With the right amount of planning, it may be a well-kept secret that your party was not only easy to plan, but easy to afford.

Have a safe and happy holiday season.

(My favorite Recipe)

You Make The Money - Let Someone Else Sweat The Small Stuff

This one is for the control freaks reading my posts…come on, you know who you are.

Most people with an entrepreneurial spirit are looking for the right opportunity for them.  Many of them end up jumping from opportunity to opportunity, never really settling in on the system that will work well for them in their own particular circumstances. 

One of the main problems with these types of opportunities is that they look good on the outside but on the inside they are full of unrealistic dreams and just far too much work for the average person to be able to do. 

That is why in order for you to actually make money realistically in today's marketplace, it is necessary for you to be able to start up a business and let somebody else take care of most of the work for you.  It truly turns into a win-win situation.  But does such an opportunity actually exist?

15 years ago, nobody would've thought that you could sit at home, behind your own personal computer and reach an audience that was almost unlimited in size. 

Most people that do have a basic understanding of how business and the Internet work, realize that it is not only a possibility, it is truly a reality. 

Any good business opportunity is going to make use of the Internet but not in the same way as many of the opportunity hopping systems make use of it.  The Internet is commercial in nature, and it certainly is possible for you to build a successful, long-term business by using it. 

By going with the proper system, you will be able to build your business by piggybacking on the strengths of those who both started and maintain the system to the benefit of everyone involved.

Automation is really the key when it comes to Internet marketing. 

Although there is some work involved, any good online home based business opportunity will take on the bulk of the work involved. 

There are so many different scripts and automated systems that can not only help you to understand how the business works, it can also put it on autopilot for you.  The true leaders in these businesses know that they must take on the bulk of the work in order for their members to be successful.

That helps you to be able to start your business and to maintain it in the time frame that you have available.  They will be able to take care of everything from getting new leads to selling to those leads for you.  Once you are in the system, the entire process should be fully automated.

Don't fall for the marketing tactics of fly-by-night online business opportunities.  Success can certainly be yours by choosing an opportunity that will not only fit in with your lifestyle; it will be able to help you with the process as you need it.

 In this way, you will be able to build yourself a successful business and to progressively grow it around your own existing schedule.  Small successes feel good, large successes feel great and so does build you a future that you can actually see.

 

Accounting Principles

Yep, another one on accounting, but trust me when I say that this is only going to help you to make a successful transition out of the rat race into a successful lifestyle that you want, deserve and will enjoy.

 If everyone involved in the process of accounting followed their own system (or no system at all) there would be no way to truly tell whether a company was profitable or not. Most companies follow what are called generally accepted accounting principles, or GAAP, and there are quite a few books in libraries and bookstores devoted to just this one topic. Unless a company states otherwise, anyone reading a financial statement can make the assumption that company has used GAAP.

If GAAP are not the principles used for preparing financial statements, then a business needs to make clear which other form of accounting they've used and are bound to avoid using titles in its financial statements that could mislead the person examining it. 

GAAP are the gold standard for preparing financial statement. Not disclosing that it has used principles other than GAAP makes a company legally liable for any misleading or misunderstood data. These principles have been fine-tuned over decades and have effectively governed accounting methods and the financial reporting systems of businesses. Different principles have been established for different types of business entities, such for-profit and not-for-profit companies, governments and other enterprises.

GAAP are not cut and dried, however. They're guidelines and as such are often open to interpretation. Estimates have to be made at times, and they require good faith efforts towards accuracy. You've surely heard the phrase "creative accounting" and this is when a company pushes the envelope a little (or a lot) to make their business look more profitable than it might actually be. This is also called massaging the numbers. This can get out of control and quickly turn into accounting fraud, which is also called cooking the books. The results of these practices can be devastating and ruin hundreds and thousands of lives, as in the cases of Enron, Rite Aid and others.

I promise, this will be the last dry post on accounting, but I cannot stress enough that proper accounting will keep you out of the hot seat.

Again, make sure to subscribe, 2016 is the year that you can change your destiny.

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The Basics

Basic Accounting Principles

Going off of my last post, I have gotten some feedback that indicates that accounting is one of those areas of contention for new start ups, so I will hit on the subject in a little more detail.

Professor of Accounting at the University of Michigan, William A Paton, is defined as having one basic function: "facilitating the administration of economic activity. This function has two closely related phases:

1)      Measuring and arraying economic data;

2)      Communicating the results of this process to interested parties."

Ok, before you tune me out, I know that was a little dry, but I can’t stress that your business is going to comprise of many “dry” things that project your business forward.

As an example, a company's accountants (if you are a solo act, this is you) periodically measure the profit and loss for a month, a quarter or a fiscal year and publish these results in a statement of profit and loss that's called an income statement.  These statements include elements such as accounts receivable (what's owed to the company) and accounts payable (what the company owes). It can also get pretty complicated with subjects like retained earnings and accelerated depreciation.

Much of accounting though, especially if you are just starting out, is mostly concerned with basic bookkeeping. This is the process that records every transaction; every bill paid, every dime owed, every dollar and cent spent and accumulated. 

But the owners of the company, which can be individual owners or millions of shareholders are most concerned with the summaries of these transactions, contained in the financial statement.

The financial statement summarizes a company's assets. A value of an asset is what it cost when it was first acquired. The financial statement also records what the sources of the assets were. Some assets are in the form of loans that have to be paid back. Profits are also an asset of the business.

Where this comes into play in the very beginning is when you are trying to create business accounts at a bank, get loans, or lines of credit from suppliers.

In what's called double-entry bookkeeping, the liabilities are also summarized. Obviously, a company wants to show a higher amount of assets to offset the liabilities and show a profit. The management of these two elements is the essence of accounting. javascript:void(0);

There is a system for doing this; not every company or individual can devise their own systems for accounting; the result would be chaos!

I know, I know, it bores me at times too. I just noticed that this was an area that new business start ups have a problem with, so I am doing what I do best, informing the masses. If you can use this information, great, if not, keep reading future posts they aren’t all this dry.

I have actually had a few start ups and when I first created my business, it lasted about three years, all because of not keeping accurate accounting records, so I can’t stress enough that if you haven’t got a good accounting system in place, start one immediately.

The shoe box of receipts in the bottom of the closet doesn’t work when your business actually starts bringing in revenue.

Make sure to to subscribe to the RSS feed so you don't miss a post. There are new changes, freebies and more coming in 2016. Come be a part of it. In the mean time, if you need extra help geting started with making money online, check this out.

Love Your Accountant

 

Even if you are great with numbers, you should still have an accountant or CPA go over your numbers just to double check. Remember, these people are trained to find things that you may overlook.

The accountant is the person that generally gets overlooked in a business until tax time comes, but a good relationship with a great accountant all year round can and will be an asset to your business.

It doesn’t matter if your business is just you and a computer working from the library, (My business model for almost a year) or if you run a corporation with multiple employees, your accountant will help keep the numbers straight and the IRS off of your back.

What Is Accounting Anyway?

Anyone who's worked in an office at some point or another has had to go to accounting. They're the people who pay and send out the bills that keep the business running.

They do a lot more than that, though. Sometimes referred to as "bean counters" they also keep their eye on profits, costs and losses. Unless you're running your own business and acting as your own accountant, you'd have no way of knowing just how profitable - or not - your business is without some form of accounting system in place.

No matter what business you're in, even if all you do is balance a checkbook, that's still accounting. It's part of even a kid's life. Saving an allowance, spending it all at once - these are accounting principles.

Every business and every individual needs to have some kind of accounting system in place. Otherwise, the finances can get away from you; we wouldn’t know what we've spent, or whether we can expect a profit or a loss from the business.

Staying on top of accounting, whether it's for a multi-billion dollar business or for a personal checking account is a necessary activity on a daily basis if you're smart. Not doing so can mean anything from a bounced check or posting a loss to a company's shareholders. Both scenarios can be equally devastating.

Accounting is basically information, and this information is published periodically in business as a profit and loss statement, or an income statement.

I, myself, have always had issues with numbers; long story going back to 7^th grade and a teacher that didn’t like me much…but I digress. Anyway, in business, it is important to know the numbers but it is also one of those jobs in your business that you can turn over to a professional and concentrate on whatever it is that you do that makes your business money.

Remember that anytime you are doing something in your business that takes you away from what it is that brings in the money, you are losing money.

That being said, the next few posts are going to be about accounting, because even if you have the best accountant in the world, you still want to have an idea of where every dollar goes.

You Never Get A Second Chance To Make A First Impression

 

 

In many cases, your website is the first thing your new potential customers will see when they meet you. Are you making a good first impression? Meeting someone online is little different than meeting them in person; unfortunately, you have less than a minute to catch their attention and keep them reading.

Do they like how you look? Are you saying what your customers are looking to hear? With the future of your online business riding on your words, are you making a good impression? Here are five ideas to have your customers staying longer and remember you long after the encounter ends:

l. Dress nicely and be well groomed. Have you ever been to a website you were ready to leave as soon as you got there? I have. Chances are things were too loud and too busy.

Though there may have been something there of interest to you, you weren't likely to have found it because there was just way too much stuff going on.

So what is the well groomed website wearing this season? Not too many loud flashing headlines. Instead, make sure your site is calm and confident. Your headline and first paragraph should be a summarization of the website theme. Who you are, what you're going to share with them and why you decided to do so.

No one likes to read half a page only to find the site didn't deal with his or her issue of interest. No flashing lights, no neon headlines, no blaring music or boisterous sales pitches blasting away.

2. Have a nice voice; be friendly and pleasant. Have you ever met someone you initially thought you'd like to get to know... and then they opened their mouth and you realized you knew all you needed to? Your website should speak to your readers like a good friend might. Be easy to understand. Write in short sentences, with short paragraphs.

Each paragraph should have a theme, stated in the first sentence, and elaborated on through its conclusion. And though it's so tempting to put some fancy font on your website, you have no idea what they'll see based on how their browser may be set up, which browser they are using, or if they are reading your site on a laptop, desktop or smart phone.

Stick to the basic Arial, Helvetica, and other Sans-serif fonts. They're easy on the eye.

3. Talk just to them; treat them like they're the only one. Rather than talking to the masses as a whole, write to a particular person. Picture them in your mind and write as though you are having a private conversation with them.

Be their friend - This is something for 'you', not just anyone. They'll feel like you really like them and like they have your undivided attention. Always use active voice rather than passive.   It will make them feel as though you're speaking directly to them.

4. Always focus on their needs rather than being pushy and trying to move too fast. Nobody likes to be around someone who pushes the relationship too quickly. You want to get to know someone before you get too emotionally involved. There was a reason this person chose to visit your website. Address that need. How can you solve their problem? Don't tell them what you have; tell them what problem of theirs you can solve. Making a purchase is an emotional decision. If you move too quickly, they won't be ready to commit emotionally. Get to know them first.

5. Give them a reason to stick around or come back. Give them something they can't get anywhere else. While yes, they probably won't feel as special at any other website, but on the off chance the competition is also following these five steps, give them a free mini-course. Let them see you care about their success and about them. Show them you value the relationship. Give them a free report; something to help them reach their goal.

If you follow these guidelines, you'll make a wonderful impression and your new friends won't want to leave. They'll appreciate your thoughtfulness and stick around long enough to see what an absolute 'peach' you really are.