idea for your business

Archive for March, 2010

Outsourcing, online business is a basic Chinese industry. China’s political and economic system is relatively stable compared to other developing nations such as many countries in Africa, especially in international trade. According to Official Census bureau, Foreign Trade Division, imports from China in 2006 were over $290 Billion dollars; for the first nine months of 2007 imports from China were over $130 Billion dollars. The changed scene is infact due China outsourcing and online business methods. Main risks associated with doing online business with a China outsourcing agency are less as compared to other countries.

Chinese legal system has improved a lot to check the online business and risks involved in outsourcing of products in international trade. Therefore, it is vital to develop good relationships with the proper online business partners associated with China outsourcing. It is also important to have excellent international trade legal counsel to comply with the complexities of contract law, local Chinese law and relevant protective measures while doing online business by the virtue of China outsourcing.

International trade and online business- purchase order financing is complicated and complex in details, but the concept is simple. If we have a product that can be manufactured in China, and we have made the proper arrangements for production and shipping but lack sufficient capital to finance the transaction- with a large purchase order from a creditworthy customer, a commercial online business finance company will agree to have their bank issue a Letter of Credit to guarantee that the China outsourcing factory producing the product will be paid. When the goods are shipped and delivered to your customer, the online business finance company pays the China outsourcing factory. Between 70% and 100% of the product’s cost may be financed depending on the product’s gross margins and the risks involved in online business. As in international trade, purchase order financing may facilitate our exponential growth and profits for all concerned .The expertise of the online business finance company can be invaluable with regard to helping us succeed in this challenging international trade market. The success in international trade evaluates our limit potential when it is just as easy to set our expectations higher. For online business and China outsourcing that sell manufactured products to other businesses, online business- purchase order financing may be the way to reap the benefits of the China outsourcing and online business advantage.

The potential to lead in international trade is a issue in China outsourcing but the online business supply chain which is supposed to get raw materials to assembly finished goods to retail units on time is an issue. A new study says that online business companies that manage the increasing supply-chain troubles with creative solutions will get a profit in international trade. Many online business suppliers and related supply chains or producing major components and products locally in international trade market, accepting high unit manufacturing costs as a cover for lower supply- chain costs and dependable delivery schedules will help greatly.

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Every person now seems to see the Internet as the Business Holy Grail… ha… ha… ha!

What we find when we look deeper is greed… greed… greed. Sorry, no exclamation. If you believe different then you are naive.

The internet first gave us all great hope that a new dawn was beginning. That here was a great place to be, where everyone could be equal. Where every person could communicate honestly with each other. Where everyone could set their stall to making money any way they desired. That certainly holds true for the crooks and scammers. Sorry, but again, no exclamation.

We get bombarded with emails from what are called opt in lists. We see something we like, so we sign up with our email to get a regular sample of a supposedly new product or information that will change our lives for the better. You must be joking!

Our email address then gets sent about the internet to various joint venture lists, known as JV lists. And then we are called the simpleton list. The easy touch list and many other names.

What is happening now, and always has happened with the internet, reminds me of the old wild west of America, during the Gold Rush days. The old pan handlers had this inner desire to strike gold, much the same now with many people having a desire to win the lottery. Or start a home business online with their great idea. Every person wants to obtain great wealth quickly.

Those old westerners went on a great walkabout, searching here, searching there, searching everywhere for the business holy grail of quick, easy money. They were mostly hard working honest men, desperate to better themselves. And that is what made them easy pray to the vultures of greed. Just like now on the internet.

However, where there is money there is always ingenuity and greed. Some people realised that the gold prospectors would need equipment to search for gold. Some realised that tools would be needed, so they started a tool business and made a lot of money. Some realised that food would be needed, so they started a food business and made a lot of money.

But, the person who probably made the most money was the person who invented the trousers, called jeans. Well… except for the odd miner who struck gold. The people who made great wealth quickly and gave the rest of the gold prospectors hope for the future.

Is that now the same with the internet? Do we see, or more likely read about, some person gaining great wealth because they sold their internet business… and then believe we can do likewise? So how do we start to make money online? That is the burning question we would all like to know. Because what will probably happen is that an internet scammer will get us first.

The greatest desire with most modern people is probably to start their own home business. A business working from home that will give them their own financial independence. A home business where they can make money selling internet goods. However, where do we find such a home business idea that can generate great wealth for us? Or even just a regular above average business income.

First, we need to find something to sell. Next, we need to get lots and lots of internet visitors to our website. Oops, I should have probably mentioned the website first. How can we sell goods online without a website? But, then again, how can we sell something if we do not get visitors to our website? How can we sell something if we do not have something to sell on our internet home business? It is all starting to get rather confusing now. What came first… the egg or the chicken? Who cares. We must keep focused on our business idea. What business idea? I have not found one yet!

The above paragraph probably applies to the vast majority of people who have a great desire to break away from their mundane life and start their own business. However, what most people need to realise now is that internet selling does not only apply to the future. It applies to the here and now. If you want to be successful, then you need to learn to sell online. You need to keep focused and hopefully avoid the internet scammers.

Once you have an idea for your home business and have set it up, you then need to know how to get visitors or traffic to your website. The search engine Google seems to have a monopoly in that area. There are other search engines, like Yahoo and MSN, but for now, Google is king.

But for how long, I wonder? Nothing lasts for ever. Most large businesses start to lose a direction from their original roots with their thirst for expansion and over-expand. That usually makes a business ripe for takeover. A rising business will eventually reach a pinnacle. It can either stay there or meet another rising business on its way down.

What makes Google a lot of money is their ingenious Adwords system. You agree to pay Google a certain amount of money for certain types of keywords connected to your business. Then, when people search Google using your keyword a small ad box will appear, describing your product. If they click on the ad box your website will appear, where you can hopefully sell your product. You will also pay Google the agreed price for people clicking on your ad.

Would it not be fantastic if we could find an idea where we could obtain free ads from Google? A business idea that brings us thousands of visitors to our website from Google for free. Such an idea would save us thousands on ads. It could also make us extremely wealthy.

In 1999 a New York physician did come up with such an idea. Although he was a medical practitioner, he always had a dream of having his own home business. He wanted to work from home selling products instead of having the daily stress of attending to public health problems.

The business idea he brought to the internet originated in the offline business world. It was kept secret for many years by a select few business people, to ensure they made millions from it. What those business people did and still do, was use a simple method to obtain free ads in top class magazines. Ads that would normally have cost their business thousands were obtained free! And 100% legal.

By 2007 this New York physician had amassed a personal fortune of $75million with his free Google ads idea. But he always kept quiet about his free ads system.

Now retired from business, he decided to release his idea in e-book form. You can read how his business idea became a reality by downloading his ebook. It contains 124 pages with step-by-step clear instructions on how to obtain free Google ads.

This is one home business idea that turned into a multimillion dollar empire. The real deal.

Bill Gates probably doesn’t invest in mutual funds (funds), maybe because most of his money is tied up in Microsoft stock.  Warren Buffet made his billions by managing investments, so he does not need their help, either.  But, if you have money to invest and don’t really know how to invest and manage an investment portfolio, you should consider investing in mutual funds.  Millions of average investors do.

Keep in mind that mutual funds are designed for folks who want professional investment management at a moderate cost.  These are not short-term investments, but rather are for people with longer-term investment horizons.  Once you have cash reserves in the bank for short term needs like emergencies, you are ready to invest.

 Should you invest in mutual funds?  If one or more of the following apply to you, you probably should.

If you want to accumulate a nest egg for retirement, give these investment packages consideration.  For example, if you have a typical 401k plan at work, most of the investment options available to you are mutual funds.

If you decide to open a traditional IRA or Roth IRA, consider going with a major mutual fund family.  This will give you a wide array of investment options, from safe and conservative to aggressive and growth oriented.

If you want to start slow and learn how to invest as you go, you should invest in mutual funds.  For example, you can set things up so that $100 a month automatically flows from your checking account to a couple of mutual funds within a fund family.

If you want to invest in stocks and/or bonds, but don’t know how to invest in them, join the crowd and do it the sensible and easy way with funds.

If you have a lump sum of money to invest from a retirement plan, a CD that matured or from an inheritance, look no further.  For example, if you leave your job where you had money in a 401k, you can move it and avoid taxes and penalties with a direct rollover to a mutual fund family.

If you are retired and want to earn a higher return with relative safety, try bond funds in addition to money market funds.  When you want to receive a monthly income, they will send you the amount you specify.

If you want an investment in real estate, oil & gas, or gold the easy way, invest in mutual funds and let them deal with the details.

It doesn’t matter if you are young or old, rich or of modest means, conservative or aggressive as an investor.  You need an investment portfolio that contains a variety of investment types.  Unless you really know how to invest and can manage your own stocks, bonds, and money market securities…you should invest in mutual funds.

Finally, if you don’t know much about investing…you’re probably a red-blooded American.  As a financial planner I worked with folks from all walks of life.  Few knew how to invest on their own, so I often recommended mutual funds.

Business management refers to one’s ability to manage a business effectively and efficiently while retaining profitability. But what does that mean? Anyone can ‘manage’ a business, right?

But do we really know how to manage a business? And if we do, what does that entail? Do you just run around your company telling people what to do or run to the bank and make deposits at the end of the each week? Is that business management?

If that is all it takes to run a business, why isn’t everyone a business owner? If managing a business is so easy, why are there consultants? Simple answer: business management is more daunting a task than we may think.

I have always said that no matter how large or small a company is, it is an overwhelming task to manage the everyday issues. We could all use a little bit of help.

Traditional business management, which is what I have studied and is the methodology I use when discussing business issues with clients, takes into account all aspects of running a business, large or small.

Whether it is a million-dollar company or a billion-dollar company, all companies run the same.

Traditional business management is pretty much self-explanatory; it is managing business through traditional methods that have been used for many years.

Those traditional methods incorporate three aspects: sales and marketing strategies, efficient operation and productions methods, and finance and accounting (SG&A). I believe all business owners should have some understanding of these areas of business and try to manage them as best they can. Most large companies focus on these areas in that they have the resources to pay employees who specialize in these particular areas.

For example, consider some of the largest companies in the United States like Home Depot, Starbucks and Dell. These companies require precise and expert management of their business operations at all times while maintaining a positive financial position for investors. These businesses pay full-time employees to function in the company in particular capacities.

When we look at small businesses in the United States, we have to ask, “Do small businesses have the financial resources to pay for similar resources such as a chief financial officer, or a qualified VP of Sales”? Quick answer: no! Actually, no is the only answer.

When we look at larger companies and how they manage their sales and marketing efforts, we find that larger companies have the financial resources to hire employees on a full-time basis who are experts in sales and marketing.

We can say the same for the third aspect of traditional business management, operations and productions. Once again, large businesses have the revenue available to have full-time positions for a general manager, a production manager, and sometimes, a Vice-President of Operations.

Again, small businesses rarely have the opportunity to pay experts full-time salaries, which could cost a business thousands of dollars annually.

So, now we know that traditional business requires the expertise of individuals in particular areas, such as finance, marketing, sales, production, operations, and management.

As a small business owner, can you pay the full-time wages of each of these employees? Do you have to hire all these employees in order for you to spend less time in the office worrying about business issues?

I have seen many million-dollar companies and I have seen a few billion-dollar companies; the only difference is that one pays for expert full-time employees and the other doesn’t. Obviously, the larger companies have the money to pay for expert employees, and small businesses don’t.

So how does the small business owner learn the basics of business management without paying for an MBA or spending thousands of dollars in annual salaries for experts?

Recently traditional business management had to make room for a new aspect of business: technology.

Through the years traditional business management has had to marry its strategies with the proliferation of technology where every business owner from Starbuck’s to Jim’s Auto has had to incorporate technology into its everyday operations.

The problem is that business believed that technology was going to be the solution for every problem, but it wasn’t until recently that business management thinkers realized that technology will fail if it is not implemented properly. That is, traditional business management must seamlessly marry itself with technology.

So, now you have this traditional business model to think of, and you also have to think that the model has incorporated technology. You see, managing a business is not as easy as it sounds. When you look at this business model I know for sure that you have never looked at your business in this way before. Believe it or not, graduate schools teach this stuff and larger companies obviously have the money to pay someone to think of this stuff, but what about the small business owner?

Small business owners do not have the financial resources to pay for this thinking and consulting companies for some reason; do not necessarily speak to the small business owner. Why not? Most consulting companies are always looking to fry the “big fish”, the 1% of businesses in the United States that can afford the phenomenal fees they charge.

Larger consulting companies do not have the time or the desire to speak to small businesses, nor will they change their fees which range over $400.00 per hour.

One of the comments I hear often in small businesses is, “Great idea, I wish I could get my people to do that, but I can’t expect them to change their ways.” I say, “You’d better get them to change their ways or you could be out of a job”!

Oddly enough, small business owners are reluctant if not skeptical in getting help for their business. To this day, I have yet to figure that one out. Why don’t small business owners look for help?

I firmly believe that business is business regardless of the size of the company, the annual revenues, or the number of employees. Keep in mind that the largest businesses in the world were once small businesses and today they are worth a great deal of money. All businesses “managed” their way to the top, regardless of the industry.

I have seen numerous multi-million dollar businesses in every industry, to include contractors, restaurants, service companies, and manufacturing companies. And I have also worked for companies that are worth billions and billions of dollars. They all have one thing in common: They all run the same some just have more revenue than the other.

I have always said that no matter what you produce to sell, HOW you produce it is what is of paramount importance to the growth of your business.

Your business is not too small or too large for a review of its current business processes. I have not met a business owner, a president or CEO of a company who can tell me that their business is running so smoothly that they don’t need to change. That is simply not true.

The natural stirring of the U.S. economy is what causes the need for change in all businesses of all sizes and I guarantee that if you are not constantly rethinking your business strategies, your competition is.

Can you say that your business is flexible enough to manage your competition and stay ahead of the curve, or that your business can handle the daily economic fluctuations in the U.S.?

Ask yourself some of the following questions.

1.Have your total revenues gone up or down from last year?

2.Has your profitability gone up or down from last year?

3.Where is the next dollar coming from?

4.Are you tired of going to work?

5.Do you have adequate inventory levels?

6.How many employees report to you on a daily basis?

7.Do your employees actually do what you ask and expect of them?

8.Do you have a management team in place?

9.Is there business expenses you wish you didn’t have?

10.Does every employee in your company have a specific job function that justifies their labor burden?

11.Do you remember when owning your business was fun for you and your family?

12.Do you believe your company operates as smoothly and efficiently as it could?

13.Do you have a long-range plan?

14.Do your employees share your vision of the business?

15.Who do your employees go to when there is a problem?

16.If you actually met me, would you be able to tell me that your business doesn’t need to change, or that it is truly profitable?

If you are ready to move your business forward, get some help. Believe it not, the success of your business is important to this great Nation.

The idea of starting a business is alluring to so many people.  There is the vision of wealth, providing opportunities and security.  Also there is pride and purpose- knowing what you’re doing is for you and your family.  And of course, one of the most appealing reasons is the freedom of being able to work from home and choose your own hours.  

These visions are wonderful and, in many cases, attainable.  In fact, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce, there are over 17.6 million businesses with one or more owners but no paid employees.      

So why are so many aspiring entrepreneurs left on the sidelines? 

It turns out, there are three reasons.  One, as you can imagine, is good old fashioned fear.  Fear of the unknown.  Fear of failure.  Believe it or not, fear of success.  The second reason is a lack of knowledge.  “Where do I start?” “I don’t have enough resources.”  “I don’t know anything about marketing.” And the third reason, which I will be discussing in this article, is about the business idea, itself. 

Business Idea Paralysis

What is business idea paralysis?  Quite simply, it’s a condition that prevents people from starting a business because they get held back in the idea generation stage.  Basically, they are stuck in neutral.  Below are the two most common reasons why:

 The Pet Rock Syndrome

In 1975 a gentleman named Gary Dahl created a product called the pet rock.  Many of you have probably heard of it.  In case you haven’t, it was nothing more than a rock set in a box on some straw.  Within 6 months, Dahl had sold over 5 million of these pet rocks for $3.95 each.  It cost him less than 30 cents to produce the rock.  So, when you do some basic number crunching, he made over 15 million dollars in just 6 months – selling rocks.   

What does this have to do with anything?  Well, quite a bit actually.  Imagine how much your life would change if you could sell something as simple as a rock and become a multi-millionaire in just 6 months.  Pretty tantalizing isn’t it?  Unfortunately, it has tantalized people so much that they never end up starting a business.  They only end up chasing their own “pet rock” gimmicks that never catch on.

The reason is simple.  Some people just haven’t been blessed by the idea gods.  The gods have failed to spring upon them the multi-million dollar idea that they believe they need.    No matter how hard they try to come up with the next pet rock, they can’t.  If you don’t believe me, take a look at how many get-rich-quick schemes are being sold today.  If people can’t think of the next great idea, then they will buy the idea from someone else.  Well, guess what?  It doesn’t work.  Mr. Dahl was an aberration.  He hit the winning lottery ticket.  Chances are you won’t.

After you have wiped the pet rock syndrome from your head, beware of the next, equally as paralyzing syndrome that can keep you from getting to business with real, tangible ideas. 

Peace, Love and Happiness Syndrome

On the other end of the spectrum we have the peace, love and happiness camp.  This group is a little more realistic in their pursuit of a business idea.  Their problem, however, is that they love too many business ideas.  In fact, they love them so much that they can’t decide on the best one.  They become paralyzed by trying to figure out which idea is best, and ultimately, never try any of them.

These types of people, I have found, are extremely visionary.  They love to explore all of the different business angles and long term visions.  The problem is they don’t take action because their heads are filled with amazing ideas and forecasts for success.

If you fall into this camp, I have bit of advice.  Stop it!  You need to choose an idea and then let your mind run wild within the boundaries of that idea.

How Do You Find the Right Business Idea?

There are two schools of thought on how to come up with the right business idea.  I’ll discuss them below:

The Traditional Approach

The traditional theory for finding the right business idea states that you should find a need and fill it.  In other words, you need to pay attention to your surroundings and look to see where there might be an opportunity to offer a new product or service that people may need.  Once you do, that’s what you will build your business around. 

There is no question that this method of generating business ideas work.  It has led to many great inventions and innovations over the years.   It is for this reason that pharmaceutical companies make billions of dollars.  They develop new drugs to satisfy a need, such as a heart condition.  You can also see the traditional approach at play with today’s green technologies.  New, “green” businesses are trying to fill the need for clean, renewable energy.

There is one problem with this method, however.  It can be quite expensive and time consuming.  First, you have to develop the product or service.  This includes spending a lot of time and money on market research and sampling.  Second, you have to spend a lot of money on marketing to not only introduce the product or service, but to also convince people that they really do need it. 

If you’re a typical entrepreneur with limited funds and expertise, this may not be the best method of generating business ideas. 

The Give Them What They Want Approach

There is a second school of thought about coming up with a business idea that in many ways is far less risky and is much less expensive.  This theory is based on the idea that you should come up with an idea that already exists.  Or, simply put, offer people a product or service that they are already buying. 

Wait a minute, you may say, but doesn’t that mean there is more competition?  Isn’t the market already saturated?   Um, I would reply, tell that to Netflix. 

In 1997 the originator of Netflix reportedly hit upon the idea for movie rental-by-mail when he was forced to pay $40 in fines after returning an overdue videotape of the film Apollo 13.  Renting movies was not a new business “need” that needed to be satisfied.  In fact, Blockbuster had been renting movies for over 10 years, and in 1998 had served nearly 60 million people who rented more than 970 million movies and video games.  Netflix took a proven market (movie rentals) and simply enhanced the service by offering movie rentals by mail, with no late fees.  The result:  today, Netflix has over 10 million monthly subscribers while generating  an annual revenue of over 1 billion dollars.  Blockbuster, on the other hand, is struggling to stay afloat. 

The point is that if you know what people are buying, a good business idea is nothing more than simply enhancing the product or service and/or marketing message.  It’s a lot less risky and more often than not, a lot less expensive.