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| 7/27/2005 3:03 AM |
| How To Make Money As A Self-Improvement Guru |
As you know, I'm always on the look out for new and exciting products that will make you and me money. That's partly what this newsletter is all about: when I find new opportunities that show tremendous promise, I feel obligated to share them with you.
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| 7/21/2005 4:07 AM |
| How To Boost Your Bottom Line With Just Two Little Words |
I hate to sound like one of those cheesy get-rich-quick commercials, but this week I am going to let you in on a little secret that is so powerful that it will immediately change the way you do business. In fact, this little secret is so powerful that you will be amazed at its immediate effect on you, your employees, and your bottom line. This little secret is guaranteed to improve your relationship with current customers and if used wisely, can get you lots of new customers without spending a dime on marketing or advertising.
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| 6/22/2005 12:41 PM |
| How To Create Multiple Streams of Online Income E-course |
I love the E-course concept because it gives you the opportunity to learn from the comfort of home. There are no heavy books to lug around, no rushing off to class, no smelly dorm roommates :o)
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| 6/22/2005 12:37 PM |
| How To Profit Using eBay's Saved Search Feature |
Did you know that eBay will help you locate products you can buy cheap, then flip for a quick profit? No? Then listen up, because I am about to let you in on a little known feature of eBay that can literally stuff wads of cash in your wallet in less than 24 hours.
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| 6/22/2005 1:14 AM |
| You Get To Ask The Questions For Upcoming eBay Teleseminar |
Remember way back in November of last year when I invited you to go to my website and submit your most burning question about starting, running, and prospering from your own eBay or online business?
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| 6/17/2005 10:52 AM |
| Are You Mentor Material? |
Typically, there are three things every good mentor should have: time, patience, and a genuine desire to help another person succeed without expecting anything in return. If you have an abundance of those things, then being a mentor can be a highly rewarding experience. If not, please see the rubber plant reference.
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| 6/6/2005 9:28 AM |
| An Entrepreneur and a Life To Be Remembered |
Most of you who read this column probably have no idea who Corey Rudl was or what he accomplished during his short life, and thats OK. You also have no idea of the imprint he made on me and millions of others who make our living (at least in part) as online marketers. Again, thats OK. For all his accomplishments, those who knew him well have said that Corey was more concerned about building his businesses than being a public figure. By those accounts, Corey never really cared about being in the public limelight, even though he was probably the most visible and successful entrepreneur in his field.
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| 5/30/2005 3:00 PM |
| The Latest Email Scam Is Nothing New |
The eBay scam is just the latest in a long line of sophisticated attempts to steal personal information through online means. Customers of PayPal, Amazon, Dell Computer, eTrade, Bank One, and many other online merchants have been the target of such scams in recent years.
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| 5/29/2005 3:00 PM |
| Is Brick and Mortar A Passing Fad? |
During the dot-com boom the mantra was Brick and mortar is dead! Then when most of the dot-coms crashed like an elephant sitting on a wicker chair, the mantra suddenly changed back to The Internet is dead! Long live brick and mortar!
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| 5/28/2005 3:00 PM |
| For Entrepreneurs A SIMPLE Plan May Be Best |
Let me give you a quick overview of a few of the retirement plans available to small businesses so you at least have an idea of whats out there before you start your search for a good financial advisor.
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| 5/27/2005 3:00 PM |
| To Go or No Go, That Is The Question |
Many entrepreneurs would rather have their front teeth pulled without anesthetic than go to the time and trouble of creating a feasibility plan; often because they are afraid of what it will reveal.
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| 5/26/2005 3:00 PM |
| How Good Is Your Big Idea |
Every business idea, no matter how good it sounds while bouncing around inside your head, should be put to the test before you invest time and money into its execution. Success lies not in what you think of your idea, but what the buying public will think. Many entrepreneurs find out too late that the publics opinion of their idea differs greatly from their own.
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| 5/25/2005 3:00 PM |
| Veteran Entrepreneurs Are Growing In Ranks |
What my eldest offspring doesnt understand is I have a great life. In fact, I am living the life I have always dreamed of living. My life just happens to revolve around Planet Business. I am an entrepreneurial addict, a business junkie. Business is my chocolate, my Krispy Kreme donut, my nicotine, my caffeine, my crack. Maybe Ill start a 12 step program for entrepreneurs who want to kick the habit and charge a cover to get in. Hi, my name is Tim, and Im an entrepreneur... Sounds like a great business idea to me.
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| 5/24/2005 3:00 PM |
| Opportunity Does Not Knock |
I can tell you that as a breed, entrepreneurs are an impatient lot and many jump on the first business bandwagon that comes along just for the sake of being in business. Thats a big mistake that usually comes back to bite them in their entrepreneurial behinds.
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| 5/23/2005 3:00 PM |
| Teaching The Big Boys To Think Small |
Last week I told you about a recent report from The Conference Board that has a lot of big company CEOs concerned about competition from smaller, more innovative and entrepreneurially-minded companies. To refresh your memory, The Conference Board's CEO Challenge 2004 reported that 87% of the 540 global businesses surveyed cited innovation and enabling entrepreneurship as priorities for their companies, and 31% considered these issues of "greatest concern.
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| 5/22/2005 3:00 PM |
| Teaching Large Companies To Think Like The Little Guys |
The fact that innovation and entrepreneurship run rampant in smaller companies, but is often suppressed in larger companies is nothing new. Management guru Peter Drucker first addressed the issue in his 1985 book, Innovation and Entrepreneurship. Drucker wrote that one of the most often-asked questions in many a 1985 boardroom was, How can we overcome the resistance to innovation that plagues most organizations?
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| 5/21/2005 3:00 PM |
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| 3/7/2005 10:33 PM |
| Entrepreneurs Just Get Better With Age |
According to recent studies 22 percent of men and 14 percent of women over 65 are self-employed. That's compared to just 7 percent for other age groups. According to a Vanderbilt University study the number of entrepreneurs age 45 to 64 will grow by 15 million by 2006.
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| 3/7/2005 10:31 PM |
| When It Comes To An Office Lease, It's ALL Fine Print |
One of the biggest mistakes many entrepreneurs make when leasing commercial space is not reading the lease. Forget reading the fine print. When it comes to a lease its ALL fine print. Don't believe me? Let me tell you the true story of my friend, Homer, whose name I have changed to protect the ignorant.
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| 3/7/2005 10:30 PM |
| What's The Customer Service Buzz About Your Business? |
If you're a regular reader of this column you know that my number one pet peeve is bad customer service. Nothing chaps my backside more than paying hard-earned money for a product or service only to have the provider of said product or service become apathetic, obnoxious or just downright rude after the transactional smoke has cleared.
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| 3/7/2005 10:29 PM |
| There Are No Dumb Business Questions, Not! |
I've gotten a few head-scratchers in response to this column. You know who you are, but don't worry, your secret is safe with me. I have a confession to make. Writing an advice column, whether it be advice for love or money or business, is often hard to do with a straight face. Occasionally a question comes over the digital transom that just makes me go, "Huh?"
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| 3/7/2005 10:28 PM |
| The Thick Line Between Buddy and Boss |
I have made just about every business blunder you can imagine. I am like the Evel Knievel of the small business world, if Evel Knievel wrote a weekly column on motorcycle safety. One of the more unpleasant things I've had to do is fire a good friend who was not doing the job I hired him to do. He needed a job, I needed an employee, so I thought I would give him a shot.
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| 3/7/2005 10:27 PM |
| The Business Autopsy: A Fact Of Life |
Last week we discussed the importance of performing an autopsy on a dead business. No, I haven't been watching too many of those wonderfully graphic, TV forensic investigation shows. The reason I recommend you do a business autopsy is to uncover the exact reasons why the business died.
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| 3/7/2005 10:26 PM |
| The "Other" New Year's Resolution |
"This year I will start my own business!" I call it "The American Dream Resolution," and like most New Year's resolutions it is a proclamation of intent that is often made, but seldom carried out (at least in an effective manner).
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| 3/7/2005 10:25 PM |
| Perceived Value Is In The Eye Of The Beholder |
Pricing is an important aspect of every business because price is used to create financial projections, establish a break even point, and calculate profit and loss. It's also important to establish a good price point from the beginning because it is much easier to lower prices than to raise them.
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| 3/7/2005 10:24 PM |
| Investing In Son's Business Could Cause A Real Family Feud |
It sounds like your wife wants to make a gift of the money, expecting nothing in return but the undying love of her last born son. You, on the other hand, don't know if you should offer the money as a loan (should I loan him the money) or as an investment (worried that my investment will be lost). Until you can make that distinction, your money should remain in the bank.
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| 3/7/2005 10:24 PM |
| How To Tell If Your Amazing New Product Idea Is Really Worth Gambling On |
I'm a lousy poker player, mainly because I can't help grinning like the village idiot when blessed with a winning hand or frowning like a sad clown when dealt a dud. I also never make odds on the success of "amazing new products" because more often than not the only thing that's amazing is the way the product is totally ignored by the buying public.
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| 3/7/2005 9:57 PM |
| When It Comes To eBay, Don't Follow The Herd |
While it's true that selling products on eBay can be a quick, low cost way to launch an online business, following the herd by selling the "hot product" of the moment, is not a great idea. To the contrary, chances are you will be stomped in the ground by the herd and left lying in the dust with your unsold inventory in hand.
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| 3/7/2005 9:55 PM |
| Don't Fall For The Latest Internet Identity Theft Scam |
The shear number of PayPal customers is one reason it has become a popular target of scam artists trying to steal personal information from individuals and businesses alike. Identify theft is on the rise. Thanks to the Internet stealing someone's identity has never been easier. At any given moment, there are any number of Internet thieves using all manner of high tech wizardry to steal personal and business information from unsuspecting souls, and many times they can gain access to this information simply by asking the person to provide it through fraudulent means.
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| 3/7/2005 9:31 PM |
| Does Your Website Induce Seizures? |
If visitor's are not clicking past your fancy Flash intro page, you don't have to be a genius to figure out that therein lies your problem. Remove the Flash intro page for a few weeks to see if your website's click-through rate improves and the number of page views increase. "Click-through rate" refers to the number of visitors who click links on your homepage to go deeper into your site. "Page views" refers to the overall number of web pages that were viewed by visitors. If click-through and page view rates improve, you'll know that the Flash intro was your problem.
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| 3/7/2005 8:36 PM |
| How To Create Your Own Info Product |
In the last article we talked about why informational products are the best type of products to sell online. An informational product can be a digital book (known as an e-book), a digital report or a white paper, a piece of software, audio or video files, a web site, an ezine (electronic magazine), or a newsletter.
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| 3/7/2005 8:36 PM |
| Is Selling On eBay Just A Hobby Or A Real Business? |
With so many people selling on eBay these days this is a question I get all the time. To many eBay sellers the thought of running an actual business is about as appealing as getting negative feedback, so they go out of their way to convince themselves that selling on eBay is really "just a hobby" and therefore, should not be susceptible to income tax laws.
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| 3/7/2005 8:36 PM |
| Is The eBay Fee Increase Actually Good For Business? |
This will be the fifth rate hike in as many years for the auction giant and should really come as no surprise. Price hikes are a normal course of business. It was the size of the hike that has many sellers upset.
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| 3/7/2005 8:36 PM |
| What's The Best Product To Sell Online? |
I wish I had a dime for every time I've been asked, "Tim, what's the best product to sell online?" I also wish I had a nickel for every blank stare I received when I answered: "That's simple: information." I'd have enough money to finance another startup or two.
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| 3/4/2005 4:01 PM |
| Taking Your Business International |
I called on Jose Rodriguez, President of RISMED Oncology Systems, a Huntsville company that provides high medical technology to radiotherapy professionals around the globe, to get his input on the subject. Jose is an old friend and client and if anyone can give pointers on doing business internationally, Jose is the man.
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| 3/3/2005 1:12 PM |
| The Great American Customer Service Unawareness Campaign |
I'm so sick of you so-called business experts always saying the customer is always right. This is my business, not the customer's, so I'm the one who's always right. Sure, they can have an opinion, but in the end it's up to me to decide who's right and who's not. And if the customer doesn't like it they can take their business elsewhere.
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| 3/3/2005 1:08 PM |
| Franchises Offer Shortcuts, But Not Control |
Franchising can be a great way to start a business career, but you should make sure you're not just trading one job for another. Unless you plan on being an absentee owner, which I highly discourage, you are gong to be working in the business just as an employee would, so be sure the business you choose doesn't turn your lifelong dream into a never-ending nightmare.
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| 3/3/2005 11:51 AM |
| Writing The Book On Great Customer Service |
You probably can't compete with the superstore on volume of inventory or on price, but there are other things you can do to help keep the customers coming in your door. One of the best ways to ensure customer loyalty is to offer superior customer service.
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| 3/3/2005 11:44 AM |
| Website Design Considerations |
If you want to be a web designer, be a web designer. However, if the key focus of your business is building widgets, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that your time would be better spent building widgets, not Web sites.
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| 3/3/2005 11:42 AM |
| Use Noncompete Agreements To Help Protect Your Business From |
Renegade former employees riding the free enterprise wave is one reason noncompete agreements are gaining in popularity among employers who hope to use them to help protect their business from competitive threats launched by former employees. Many employers are now demanding that key employees sign noncompetes as a stipulation of employment.
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| 3/3/2005 11:41 AM |
| Turnkey Dropship Websites Save You Time, Trouble and Money |
Lucky for you and me there are now a number of companies on the Web that can help folks like us set up a turnkey dropship website without ever breaking a sweat.
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| 3/3/2005 11:32 AM |
| The Joy and Hazards Of Finding Your First Office |
Putting your name on a commercial lease is one of the first tangible commitments an entrepreneur makes to his or her business and searching for that first office or retail space can be a truly invigorating experience.
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| 3/3/2005 11:29 AM |
| Starting Your Business By The Book |
To begin, here's the best legal advice I can give you as a new business person: find yourself a good lawyer and make him or her your very best friend. Granted, your new best friend will charge you an hourly fee for chatting on the phone or talking business over lunch, but you'll find it to be money well spent. A good attorney can save you far more than the cost of his services. I rarely make any decision that has the potential to impact my business without first consulting my attorney.
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| 3/3/2005 11:27 AM |
| SBA's 8(a) Program Can Help Some Companies Compete |
The 8(a) Program (named after the section of the Small Business Act from which it comes) is an SBA program created to help small disadvantaged businesses better compete in the U.S. marketplace and within the arena of government procurement. The SBA provides business development, technical assistance and other services to the small businesses that are accepted into the 8(a) program.
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| 3/3/2005 11:23 AM |
| Navigating The Internet Sales Tax Laws |
Internet sales taxation has always been a hot topic for those of us who make our living selling goods and services online. One of the more controversial points is that no one, including our own government, has a clue how to implement a fair and logical Internet taxation process.
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| 3/3/2005 11:21 AM |
| Managing Employees Is A Little Like Herding Cats |
I hope you have a full head of hair now, because depending on how quickly you get a grip on this situation, you could end up bald in a very short time. And if you're starting out bald all you can do is put on a cap and read on.
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| 3/3/2005 11:18 AM |
| If It Was Easy Everybody Would Do It |
Even on the best of days running a business can be incredibly stressful, not to mention overwhelming and exhausting. It's only natural that there will be times when you wonder if it's really worth it. Asking yourself the "should I just get a real job" question simply means that your human side is showing. And as a human you have a limited tolerance for things you can not control. And that's really where the stress of being an entrepreneur comes from.
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| 3/3/2005 11:14 AM |
| How To Handle The Occasional Oop-See! |
First off, it's important that you understand that the magnitude of your mistake will determine the course of action you take to make amends. If your company's error was such that it caused your customer a significant amount of lost time or revenue, embarrassed them publicly, caused damage to their reputation, or otherwise negatively affected their bottom line, you may face legal repercussions that saying "I'm sorry" will not deter.
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| 2/23/2005 1:51 PM |
| Achievements Outweigh Education and Experience |
Many successful businesses were started by first time entrepreneurs who never went to college. Natural talent, ambition, drive, determination, and good old dumb luck have fueled many success entrepreneurs, myself included. I don't have a degree (I drove past a college once. It looked hard, so I kept going). Would a degree have helped make my business trek easier? Perhaps.
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| 2/23/2005 1:51 PM |
| Business Lessons Learned At The Mall |
No offense to my mall merchant brothers and sisters, but a trip into the deepest jungle is more appealing to me than a trip to the mall. I get no joy out of trudging from store to store, attempting to communicate with salespeople from other planets, browsing discount racks of last season's dollar merchandise and peering into windows at mannequins that seem to be in some sort of inanimate pain (why can't they make a happy mannequin?).
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| 2/23/2005 1:51 PM |
| Choosing A Business That's Right For You |
Many successful businesses have been built by taking a traditional business and making it better. Domino's Pizza was certainly not the first to offer home delivery of pizza, but they were the first to guarantee it would be delivered piping hot to your door in 30 minutes or less. Amazon.com was not the first company to sell books, but they were one of the first that would let you buy books from the comfort of your own home while sitting in your underwear.
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| 2/23/2005 1:51 PM |
| Protect Your Ideas With Copyrights and Patents |
A patent is a form of protection granted to an inventor that protects his invention in the United States for up to 20 years from the date of application. Patent law states that, "whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, composition of matter, or any new and useful improvements thereof may obtain a patent." Owning a patent gives you the legal right to stop someone else from making, using or selling your invention (or one that's very close to it) without your permission. However, proving that someone is infringing on your patent is often difficult and usually requires a trial to settle the dispute.
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| 2/23/2005 1:51 PM |
| The Big Website Question: If You Build It, They Will Come? |
When it comes to attracting customers, opening an online business (or an online branch of an existing business) is no different from opening a traditional brick and mortar shop. Without a little fanfare and a well-devised marketing plan, chances are your website will become just another spot of roadkill on the Information Superhighway.
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| 2/21/2005 6:36 PM |
| Beware Of Spam Withdrawals |
| Q: I am so sick of all the spam that is sent to my business email address. I spend an hour every morning just trying to sort out the good email from the bad. I know I could just delete it all, but I'm afraid I'll accidentally delete email that might be important to my business. Short of unplugging my computer, what's the best solution for dealing with spam? A: I feel your pain. I, too, miss the good old days when the only time you'
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| 2/21/2005 6:36 PM |
| Dropship Your Way To Ebusiness Success |
Dropshipping has been around since Sears first started selling goods from its mail order catalogs over a hundred years ago. However, the idea of dropshipping still confuses many people who don't understand exactly how the process works.
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| 2/14/2005 10:06 AM |
| What Does Your Website Say About Your Business? |
In 1998, which was decades ago in Internet years, the future of electronic commerce or "ecommerce" as it's come to be known, was anybody's guess, but even the most negative futurists agreed that all the signs indicated that a large portion of future business revenues would be derived from online transactions, or from offline transactions that were the result of online marketing efforts.
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| 2/9/2005 9:16 AM |
| SWOT Analysis Is No Magic 8 Ball |
| Q: A key investor in my business has suggested that I hire a consultant to do a SWOT Analysis to help plan for the future. I try not to argue with my investors, but I'm not so sure I need to have this done. What do you think?
-- Laurie B. A: Laurie, before you call in the SWOT team to deal with this investor (sorry, couldn't resist that one), let me tell you exactly what a SWOT Analysis is and how it can not only help you plan for
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| 2/9/2005 8:47 AM |
| The Business Failed, But Did You? |
| Q: After years of dreaming about starting my own business, I finally took the plunge a little over a year ago. To say the least, my dream quickly became a nightmare. The business didn't do nearly as well as I had hoped. I ran out of money within six months and had to take out a second mortgage on my house just to keep things going. I have now closed the business and am left with a pile of bills that will probably put me in personal bankru
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