The stock market fell today to its lowest level in nearly two years. Many investors scrambled to sell after a spate of bad news. It’s the same sense of panic and dread if your business is failing and you are running out of money. You are getting deeper in debt. You can’t even afford to […]
Archives for June 2008
Maximizing Your Price in a Soft Economy
Establishing maximum value for your price is never easy. In today’s volatile economy, it’s even more of a challenge. For most companies, costs are increasing, yet the ability to pass them along to the customer is fraught with numerous roadblocks. The customer’s response to a price increase is rarely positive, with the usual line of […]
Common Mistakes in Starting a Business
I’ve previously written about the common mistakes of startup entrepreneurs in the article Top 10 Home Business Mistakes. However, it is also interesting to see what other authors and experts consider as the most common mistakes small owners make: Maria De Lourdes Sobrino, Founder and CEO of Lulu’s Dessert Corporation and the author of Thriving […]
Hiring Sales Representatives to Market Your Business
One way to increase sales is to build a sales force for your business using independent sales representatives. An independent sales representative or manufacturer’s representative sells the products of several different companies. Before you go out and find a sales rep for your business, here are some steps to consider when hiring sales representatives to […]
When Payment Never Comes: Options for a Small Business Owner
We are in business to provide customers with our products or service — and get paid in return. But what if the customer does not pay? How should we collect on the payment? What are our options? According to the book “The Law (in Plain English) for Small Business,” we basically have three options: 1. […]
eBay Selling Tips: How to Achieve Higher Detailed Seller Ratings
I’ve been selling on eBay for years, though mostly on-and-off in the last couple of years. eBay has mostly been my “sideline” allowing me to indulge in my twin passions of collecting (and selling) vintage postcards and pearl necklaces. However, much as I love the extra income I get from eBay, it’s extremely hard for […]
Starting a Website: Build a Broad Authority or Niche Site?
Someone posted a very interesting question in Yahoo Answers: when you start a website, should you build a broad authority site, or a smaller niche site? The asker wants to know the impact of the size of the website in terms of search engine optimization as well as potential revenues. Personally, I would go for […]
What Should be the Topic of Your Website?
I meet a lot of folks who want to start their own websites, but are stumped with the very basic question: “What should be the topic of my website?” The topic and focus of your website is a result of a number of factors: What is your objective for creating the website? A website for […]
How to Select the Right Business Partner
In some instances, a business you want to start can only be achieved if you partner with someone else. It can be because you need more capital to augment your resources, or you need someone with capital while you provide the knowhow and skillset. Sometimes, the right partner can round up all the necessary elements […]
What Makes an Effective Email Subject Line?
Online Marketing Daily has a very interesting article on the best length of email subject lines. According to the article, Alchemy Worx examined 250 million messages sent out for the last 2 years and found that “open rates climb when the subject lines are in the 50-character range or 80-character range. But, perhaps counterintuitively, they […]