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Starting a Small Business! Avoid these Four Major Entrepreneurial Mistakes

It is with much hope that every entrepreneur sets off starting a Small Business. Making money was his main objective. Failure was never in his mind but things don’t seem to happen the way he had planned for. Even the hope for Survival seems to have disappeared and Failure haunts him at every turn. Why does this happen and happen so often to numerous small business entrepreneurs?
The four major mistakes often made by new small business entrepreneurs are:

1. Improper or No Research:

The most fundamental thing to do before starting a small business is to do a market research to find out whether there is sufficient demand for the product or products you have to offer.
Perhaps the reason for the failure to generate the funds is that there is no market for your product or the market is saturated. The need for your product in your area of business activity should be your prime consideration before starting a small business. Only if there is sufficient demand for your products, you will be able to generate the funds necessary to help you run your small business, survive and succeed.

2. Improper or Under Funding:

Quite often the urge to start a small business is so great that the very vital aspect of funding is not given due importance. Businesses are started on a shoe string budget and shops open with very little stock and offices with insufficient equipment. To ensure the purchase of stock and equipment it is absolutely essential to have proper funding in place before commencing your business. Furthermore your business might take several months to start making a profit and hence funds are necessary to help your small business survive and keep your morale up during these early months.

If you don’t have sufficient funds of your own, it will be wise and proper to obtain a loan before starting your business. This could be obtained from your bank or you can seek the assistance of the Small Business Administration which offers numerous loan programs to assist Small Businesses.
It is important to note that the SBA acts primarily as a guarantor of loans made by private and other institutions.

Taking huge loans out of proportion to your needs can also be detrimental to your small business since provision has to be made for higher interest payments.

3. Insufficient Advertisement and Promotion:

No Business can be successful unless the public is made aware of the existence of your small business and its products. The best of equipment and stocks cannot generate sales unless the public is made aware of it. Hence advertising your small business and the products before the commencement of your business and thereafter should be a major consideration. Failure to do so has been the cause of failure of several small businesses.

4. Unnecessary expenditure:

One of the major causes for the failure of a small business is the improper handling of the funds. Extravagant expenditure at the initial stages such as the purchase of expensive cars, equipment and expensive business lunches completely out of proportion to your needs can eat into the capital and leave your small business with very limited working capital. Hence proper and wise handling of funds especially at the early stages can make all the difference between success and failure.

Conclusion:

Failure to avoid the above mentioned mistakes for one reason or the other can be detrimental to the progress and success of your small business.
Securing the services of a consultant to help you plan out your small business before starting will be a wise move to ensure success.

You Can Find the Best Home-Based Business and Make Real Money Online If You Understand This

To find the best home-based business for YOU, a key to making real money online one must first start with a little research. While it may look like all home-based businesses are equal in their income potential, there are some critical components that an online business must possess to give you the best chance at success.It All Starts With YouTo find the best home-based business for you, consider your skills and interests. Are the products or services that you would be selling something that you can promote with enthusiasm? Also consider your marketing and web skills. If you feel your skills in these areas are inferior, then you should definitely make training and support a priority.A Solid Business PlanThere are two strategies for being successful in a home-based business; you can either go it alone by creating your own business or you can join an established business like a network marketing program and simply duplicate the strategies that others have parlayed into success. To go solo, one should already have a product or service to market AND the skills to build an internet business from the ground up. This approach can take a long time to get into profit, since critical pieces of a successful business must be established.If you wish to build your business more quickly, then joining an already established network marketing company may be more towards your liking. Do your research here to find a business whose products reflect your interests and already has a successful business plan in place. If you go this route, be sure the company you choose has superior training and support and offers business tools you’ll need to be successful.Resources Versus OutsourcingEven the most experienced solo internet marketer occasionally needs the help of experts who can help complete projects for which he either lack the skills or time to do himself. A simple Google search on “internet marketing outsourcers” will reveal a host of places to find these talented individuals. Indeed, you can find web designers, article writers, copywriters, or virtually anyone you need to help you grow your business. If you choose to participate in an established network marketing business, these resources (or at least most of them) should already be available to you. In fact, the top home-based businesses have ready-to-use websites, autoresponders, sales pages, and fulfillment programs in place, ready to use. Here, you won’t need to spend time developing the infrastructure of your business, so you can concentrate on results and making real money onlineThe Credibility FactorIt wasn’t long ago when owning an internet business was considered risky. But today, as more and more marketers are showing that you can make real money online, online business ownership has become much more widely accepted. In fact, most brick-and-mortar businesses have an online presence, and many have used the internet to extend their global reach. For this reason, owning a home-based online business has become very attractive to people looking to improve their financial status.To continue the rise in credibility of the online business and network marketing models, we should all choose to offer quality products and services with superior customer service and ethical marketing strategies.It’s taken a few years, but internet marketing has now “come of age.” And with research and planning you, too can find the best home-based business for YOU, and make real money online.

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Auction Listings Are Vital to the Success of Fundraising Auctions

Fundraising Auction Tip: You should always provide potential bidders with a printed Auction Listing of both your Live and Silent Auction items at any Fundraising Auction. A printed Auction Listing is vital for several reasons:

An Auction Listing informs bidders of the order of sale, and what is coming up next. If you keep your bidders guessing, they will simply not bid.

If bidders are not 100% certain of what they are bidding on, they will not bid. A printed Auction Listing should answer any and all questions about what is being sold in order to encourage bidders to bid as much as possible.

Bidders often need time to plan their bidding strategies, especially on multiple and/or larger value items. A printed Auction Listing helps them to do that.

Couples often need time to consult with each other about what they are willing to spend on something. A printed Auction Listing helps them to do that.

Potential bidders need to know the specifics, the benefits, and the restrictions on any item they are going to bid on, especially on travel and/or other higher value items. A printed Auction Listing should answer all of their questions, in writing.

After bidders see that they have lost an item to another bidder, a printed Auction Listing makes it easier for them to re-strategize on what else they can bid on.
Printed Auction Listings generally come in 3 forms:

Printed in the Event Program or Auction Catalog.

Printed on loose sheets of paper and hand-inserted into the Event Program or Auction Catalog.

Printed on loose sheets of paper and hand-delivered to all attendees, or left on each dinner table in the room.
Auction Listings cost practically nothing to produce and they can make the difference between the success and failure of a Live and Silent Auction. You should never conduct a Fundraising Auction without one.

A Case Study

Let me share a real-life experience with you. Once I was hired to conduct a Fundraising Auction for a nationally renowned organization. The event was held in a major hotel, in one of the country’s largest cities, with several hundred “black tie” participants attending. It was an extremely professional event, with the music, singing, lighting, speeches, and awards all perfectly timed and choreographed. Everything was done to perfection… exception the Fundraising Auction.

Although I had signed an agreement to serve as their Auctioneer nearly one year in advance of the event, no one bothered to contact me for any advice or help. Approximately one week prior to the Auction date, I contacted the group to see if they had replaced me with another Auctioneer. But they said that I was still their man.

Upon arriving at the event I asked for a copy of the Auction Listing. I was told that there were none. I’m not sure whether they felt that the Auction Listing wasn’t necessary, or whether someone forgot to have them printed. This was never made clear. When I asked what I was to use at the podium, I was told to copy the list of Live Auction items from a committee member’s computer. It took me about 30 minutes to copy three pages of hand-written notes in order to prepare for my role as their Auctioneer.

I knew that they had created a PowerPoint program showing the various Live Auction items. When I asked whether the PowerPoint slide order corresponded to the order of sale I had copied from the committee member’s computer, I was met with a blank stare. The committee member left to check the slide order, and returned to let me know that the slide order did not correspond my notes, and he provided me with the correct slide order… hand-written on a paper napkin. This forced me to re-arrange my three pages of hand-written notes before taking the podium.

There was a Live Auction Table with descriptions of the Live Auction items that were to be sold, but the table was not clearly marked, and it received significantly less attention than the Silent Auction Tables, which were clearly identified. Since the Live Auction Table was located adjacent to the “Raffle Table”, it appeared that most people thought it was part of the raffle and therefore paid very little attention to it.

According to the event program (which did not include an Auction Listing), I knew approximately when I was to begin the Live Auction. At the designated time the Master of Ceremonies announced the start of the Live Auction to the several hundred people in attendance, and introduced me as Auctioneer. As I approached the podium I realized that photographs of award winners were still being taken… directly in front of the podium where I was to stand… which required me to stand aside for several minutes until the photographers were done. Can we say “awkward moment”?

As the photographers cleared, I approached the podium and began my Live Auction introduction. Approximately one minute into my introduction, the “Raffle Committee” approached the podium and stopped my Live Auction Introduction in order to pull the 8 or 9 Raffle Winners. These drawings lasted about 5 minutes. Upon it’s conclusion I was allowed to resume the start of the Live Auction.

When standing at the podium two intense and extremely bright spotlights were pointed directly at the podium. The lights were so bright that I literally could not see the center 1/3 of the room. I could see the tables on the right, and on the left, but was totally blinded when looking straight ahead. It took perhaps five minutes before the spotlights were turned off.

While at the podium and describing Lot #1, I had to ask someone to start the Lot #1 PowerPoint Slide… because apparently no one was assigned that job.

So with only the Auctioneer’s verbal description, and a PowerPoint slide, it appeared that few people in the room had any idea about what we were selling… or when we were selling it… until it was announced by the Auctioneer. As a result, bidding was extremely light and the final results fell several thousands of dollars short of where they should have been
The learning experience is this:

The Live Auction is where you place your better items, and where the real money should be made at any Fundraising Auction. Let bidders know as far in advance as possible what you will be selling, and the order of sale, so they can get excited about the Auction, and plan their bidding strategy accordingly.

Auction Listings are absolutely vital to the success of both Live & Silent Auctions. In my opinion, revenues at this Auction fell thousands of dollars short of where they should have been, because no Auction Listing was provided to the guests.

If bidders are not perfectly clear on what is being sold, including both the item’s specifics, benefits, and restrictions, they will not bid.

When you have a committee of volunteers, especially volunteers having full time jobs and/or very busy schedules, the services of a professional Fundraising Auctioneer can help to keep the committee on track.

And once you retain the services of a professional Fundraising Auctioneer… use the services that you are paying for.

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