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Member You - 10 Essential Tips for Starting Entrepreneurs - Ignore these at Your Peril!
Most small business owners have heard of direct mail marketing, but may not really know what it is. And there’s good reason to consider direct mail to promote your small business.It’s versatile, effective and affordable. It allows you to give prospects one-to-one direct attention, and it allows you more control over growth than nearly any other type of promotion.Direct mail marketing is one of several types of direct response copywriting. I suppose it’s somewhat confusing, but most tend to think of the two terms as interchangeable. There is however, a subtle difference.Direct mail marketing can be defined as one-to-one communication sent by mail directly to potential clients with the goal of specific action by the recipient. Direct response copywriting is basically the same thing, but isn’t limited to snail mail delivery.Direct Mail Marketing is VersatileDirect res
3. Multiply Your Expected Startup Costs by Two--or Maybe Three: When I started my business, an honors MBA grad with 15 years of solid business
It is so easy to do. A small typo. But it can have big consequences. Especially if it is in your media release.It can cause millions in lost sales, damage your reputation forever and cost you political elections.Just take the case of Western Australia's last state election. A missing zero in a media release on the costing of a water canal development just days before the election most certainly contributed to a loss of voter confidence at a critical time.Even seasoned professionals can make mistakes. So what can you do to prevent costly and embarrasing errors?If you follow these five easy steps you'll never have to take chances with media releases again.1) Get It Right First TimeWhatever your original source of information is, always get it right first time. Incorrect information will just be repeated. In your news release and then by the media.
Instead, choose what you love. You'll know what that is when you find yourself being incredibly productive, forgetting the time passing by, and not being able to wait to get up in the morning to do more! At Solo-E we call that being juiced...but whether you call it being in the flow, or the zone, or whatever, FIND IT!
2. WRITE DOWN Your Business Plan: As a small or solo business owner, you still need a business plan. Even if you aren't getting a loan! Would you invest thousands of dollars of your own money buying stock in a company that didn't have a written prospectus? (I hope not!) Then why would you spend thousands of dollars AND hours of your precious time on a business that doesn't have a written plan?
Write your plan, get it critiqued by professionals, and most important, BE READY TO CHANGE IT. This may seem counterintuitive...why bother writing it down if it's just going to change? Because writing it down makes it more clear...and helps you get to the next stage of learning and planning and revising. It's critical--67% of businesses that failed had no written business plan. Want to play the odds?
3. Multiply Your Expected Startup Costs by Two--or Maybe Three: When I started my business, an honors MBA grad with 15 years of solid business e
Prospective firms frequently receive dozens, if not hundreds of applications for sought after open positions. The job market for high level positions can be extremely competitive. Candidates often neglect several little known ways to be easily recognized in a sea of job applications.The majority of candidates submit applications via traditional mail, email, or web forms. The fax machine is used infrequently and overlooked by most candidates. Many top level executives will reach for several documents received via a fax machine, before considering an overbearing pile of traditional mail or dozens of emails. Fax machine numbers are often unpublished, but can usually be obtained with a nonspecific call to a receptionist. Submitting an attractive cover letter and resume via the fax machine will greatly increase the chance of being noticed.Addressing applications to an appropriate contact greatly increas
Instead, choose what you love. You'll know what that is when you find yourself being incredibly productive, forgetting the time passing by, and not being able to wait to get up in the morning to do more! At Solo-E we call that being juiced...but whether you call it being in the flow, or the zone, or whatever, FIND IT!
2. WRITE DOWN Your Business Plan: As a small or solo business owner, you still need a business plan. Even if you aren't getting a loan! Would you invest thousands of dollars of your own money buying stock in a company that didn't have a written prospectus? (I hope not!) Then why would you spend thousands of dollars AND hours of your precious time on a business that doesn't have a written plan?
Write your plan, get it critiqued by professionals, and most important, BE READY TO CHANGE IT. This may seem counterintuitive...why bother writing it down if it's just going to change? Because writing it down makes it more clear...and helps you get to the next stage of learning and planning and revising. It's critical--67% of businesses that failed had no written business plan. Want to play the odds?
3. Multiply Your Expected Startup Costs by Two--or Maybe Three: When I started my business, an honors MBA grad with 15 years of solid business
If transport industry is a game of soccer, there are sure signs that the goal posts are shifting*. (Note: for better viewing experience with appropriate colour highlights, please refer to original article, url attached)Goalpost #1: Previous goal post (1996): LTA White PaperWe only started MRT operations in 1987. We cannot grow a comprehensive network over the next few years. However we will build up the network incrementally, properly sized to match our city of the future. Over a decade or two, the results will be significant and clearly visible. Our target is to have as high as percentage of trips on a quality public transport system as in Zurich, where 75% of trips into the city centre are by public transport.Current goal post (2006): Speech by Raymond Lim, 23 OctThe aim is to increase the proportion of trips taken on public transport during the morning peak pe
2. WRITE DOWN Your Business Plan: As a small or solo business owner, you still need a business plan. Even if you aren't getting a loan! Would you invest thousands of dollars of your own money buying stock in a company that didn't have a written prospectus? (I hope not!) Then why would you spend thousands of dollars AND hours of your precious time on a business that doesn't have a written plan?
Write your plan, get it critiqued by professionals, and most important, BE READY TO CHANGE IT. This may seem counterintuitive...why bother writing it down if it's just going to change? Because writing it down makes it more clear...and helps you get to the next stage of learning and planning and revising. It's critical--67% of businesses that failed had no written business plan. Want to play the odds?
3. Multiply Your Expected Startup Costs by Two--or Maybe Three: When I started my business, an honors MBA grad with 15 years of solid business
Especially powerful when business, non-profit, public entity and association managers plan for and create the kind of external stakeholder behavior change that leads directly to achieving their managerial objectives. All the more so when they persuade those key outside folks to their way of thinking, then move them to take actions that allow their department, group, division or subsidiary to succeed.What they will have done, of course, is apply public relations strategy to doing something positive about the behaviors of the very outside audiences that MOST affect their operations.And the payoff from combining sound public relations strategy with effective communications tactics is achieving the bottom line – perception altered, behaviors modified, employer/client satisfied.And now the hard part. What steps must managers take to apply this public relations approach to
Write your plan, get it critiqued by professionals, and most important, BE READY TO CHANGE IT. This may seem counterintuitive...why bother writing it down if it's just going to change? Because writing it down makes it more clear...and helps you get to the next stage of learning and planning and revising. It's critical--67% of businesses that failed had no written business plan. Want to play the odds?
3. Multiply Your Expected Startup Costs by Two--or Maybe Three: When I started my business, an honors MBA grad with 15 years of solid business
According to the American Health Insurance Providers (AHIP) the number of individuals enrolled in an HSA-type insurance plan went from 438,000 in 2004 to 3.2 million in 2005...a seven fold increase in one year! And, by the year 2010, the Treasury Department projects 40 to 45 million people will be covered. As an employer or business owner, this means you should have a thorough understanding of the HSA (Health Savings Account) versus other health insurance plans. In these unfortunate times of rapidly rising insurance costs, both you and your employees can benefit from this new trend in health insurance.Dual Option PlansMany carriers now offer Dual Option Plans for those who want the security, affordability, flexibility and control that a traditional high-deductible plan alone might not offer. This allows the employers with ALL levels of employee sophisticat
3. Multiply Your Expected Startup Costs by Two--or Maybe Three: When I started my business, an honors MBA grad with 15 years of solid business experience behind me, I figured I was smart enough to estimate my startup costs accurately. I knew all the things I needed and made conservative estimates and I was still WRONG! That's right, I was still off by a factor of almost three. Don't make this mistake! One of the biggest reasons small businesses fail is because of lack of capital. Give yourself the best possible start by saving or acquiring sufficient startup funds NOW. Before you start!
4. Make Your Market Niche as Small as Possible: Again, this is counterintuitive--shouldn't you try to appeal to as many people as possible? The paradox is that the more you try to appeal to EVERYONE, the less you will appeal to ANYONE. Let's say you are selling your house...would you rather list it with the agent who operates in 14 counties, sells both commercial and residential real estate, and sells everything from cottages to estates? Or would you pick the agent who specializes in your community, selling only houses in a well-defined price range that she knows extremely well? Ruthlessly define your niche, make it as small as possible, and stay true to it. You'll thank me later!
5. Do Marketing Your Way: The temptation is to choose all the marketing methods that the competition uses. To stay with tried-and-true marketing channels. To place advertisements that you know nothing about creating, or make cold calls that give you heartburn. Why? Because (all together now) "that's how it's
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