Categories
Online Business

3 Simple Sign-up Strategies Revealed to Grow Your Email List!

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Driving traffic to your website is only one side of the coin; once you’ve got visitors there you then need to get them onto your list! Having a sign-up box on your website detailing your ‘free taste’ in exchange for their name/email address is one way that you can do this, but deciding WHERE to place your all-important sign-up box for maximum impact is also just as important.

Depending on whether your page is a sales page, an information page, or some other type of web page will determine the strategy you use for enticing your web site visitors to sign up to your list.

I’d like to share three different, but very effective, sign-up page strategies with you.

1. At The Top Of Every Web Page

Your sign-up box should appear at the top of every single webpage on your website – the top right-hand corner has been researched to be the most effective place to put this.

Why?

Because you never know where someone will enter your website from. As your site grows and more pages get added, it will be getting picked up by the search engines for different terms or key phrases – and they might be phrases that aren’t on your home page, but on one of your other pages instead.

Someone could enter your website and leave via the same page (in other words they don’t stop to look around), and if you haven’t got a sign-up box on that page, you’ve got no chance of getting their name and email address – and they won’t know you offer a ‘free taste’.

2. Using Exit Grabber Software

Another sign-up strategy that I’m currently using is Exit Grabber software. This is a clever piece of software that knows when a visitor is about to leave my website and only pops up just before they leave.

The popup box reminds a visitor not to leave without first grabbing their free report.

3. Adding A PS To A Sales Page

Internet marketers have done their research and the conclusion is that a lot of visitors to your sales page are going to scroll straight down to the bottom of your sales page first to read your PS’s!

So, if the first two strategies aren’t suitable for a particular page on your website or one of your sales pages, be sure to include a PS that tells your visitor what your ‘free taste’ is. And rather than include the sign-up box in the PS, provide a hyperlink that takes them to your sign-up page.

All three sign-up page strategies offer something slightly different, depending on your particular web page, and are very effective for getting your web site visitors to sign up to your list.

So once you’ve got traffic coming to your website ensure that you’re capturing your visitor’s information by implementing at least one of the three different strategies I’ve shared with you today.

Categories
Finance & Capital

Fast Small Business Valuation Methods

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Article Contributed by Ray Haiber
As a small Business Broker in Arizona one of the most common questions I receive from small business owners and entrepreneurs I meet is the following: How do I get a quick idea what my business might be worth? More often that not, most of these individuals are just looking for a rough “street valuation” to determine if they should sell now or sometime in the future. Although there are many unique factors to consider when valuing any individual business, and there are generally no definitive or concrete rules on what any particular existing business maybe worth at any given time, below are a few widely used quick business valuation methods that should give most small business owners an adequate starting point to help determine what their business might be worth in today’s market place.
Multiple of Seller’s Adjusted Net Cash Flow:
The most widely used method to value and determine an asking price for a small business is based on the adjustment or recasting of a business’s most recent annual profit and loss statement. The goal in this process is to determine the true earning power of the business by adding back to the net profit all the non-essential or discretionary expenses not necessary to run the business to demonstrate a more realistic net cash flow for the owner.
Once this number is determined, the next step is to multiply it by a business category related multiple (service, retail, manufacturing, etc) that are widely used as rules of thumb by the business valuation and business brokerage community. For instance, in general terms small service related businesses are generally valued at a multiple of somewhere 2 to 2.5 times the Sellers annual adjusted net cash flow. Small manufacturing businesses generally receive higher multiples that can be in the 3 to 3.5 times range.
There are a variety of resources available to the public to find and research cash flow multiples that may be relevant or specific to your business. This includes well known guides such as the Business Reference Guide by Tom West, and business for sale directories such as BizBuySell.com that provide a data base of recent business sales and the multiples achieved. You may also want to visit fastbusinessvaluations.com which provides a free online business valuation calculator based on widely used industry related valuation multiples.
I would also recommend if you are considering selling your business to contact a local professional business broker in your area. He or she may be able to provide you with valuable information about recent sales in your market of similar businesses like yours, and the net cash flow multiple that they eventually sold at. You can find small business brokers in your area by visiting a directory like findabusinessbroker.com.
Industry Rules Of Thumb:
Another commonly used quick business valuation method is to use a general rule of thumb. A rule of thumb valuation basically consists of using a simple formula that estimates the value of a business through a set of established and very general business pricing guidelines. For example:
Auto Repair Shop: 35% of annual revenues
Full Service Gas Station: 2 to 3 times Sellers Adjusted net
Fast Food Business: 40% of annual revenues
Janitorial Service: 2 times Sellers Adjusted net
Motels: $20,000 per room
Keep in mind like all quick valuation methods “rules of thumb” are subject to the various unique characteristics of each target business being valued. Reference books like the aforementioned “Business Reference Guide” offer a comprehensive and excellent database of “rules of thumb’ by individual business category.
Market Comparables:
With the advent of the Internet, business owners now have the ability in most cases to view dozens (sometimes more) of real time listings of businesses very similar to their own on large online “business for sale” directories. Although it’s been my observation that many of these small businesses listed for sale tend to be overpriced, these directories such as bizbuysell.com still can provide a very useful source of free raw data, including rough comparables of both “for sale” and “sold” business listings. Keep in mind also that very few businesses will ultimately sell at there listed asking price, but if priced properly, (and the price can be supported with good financial records) many should ultimately sell with in 80% of their asking price.
Liquidation Value:
This is a relatively simple and fast way to value a small business by determining what the sale or liquidation of all the businesses’ hard assets (equipment, inventory, receivables) would generate in total proceeds on the open market after paying off any liabilities or debt associated with the business. Although a business liquidation valuation is a relatively straight for ward process, it does have significant draw backs as a valuation method because it does not take in to account the value of important factors such as goodwill, established customer/client base, future growth potential, and more.
Summary:
Keep in mind that even though all these valuation methods above offer either a quick and inexpensive way to get a rough idea of the value of most small businesses, or can be used as pricing guidelines when selling a business, at the end of the day a business is worth what some else is willing to pay for it.
About Author:
Ray Haiber has 10 years experience as a professional franchise opportunities sales consultant. Visit here to get a fast and

Categories
Sales & Marketing

Importance of Email Marketing

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Marketing to Women Online: There is a consistent mantra among marketers right now – do more with less.
Marketing budgets are being slashed, or are simply non-existent. Yet, even with anemic budgets, marketers are still expected to deliver results.
Email is one of the cheapest ways to drive sales. And, according to Marketing Sherpa, people are still reading their email.
I attended Marketing Sherpa’s Email Summit this last week. Here are some of the top learnings I took away:
5 must-do’s – Don’t share subscriber’s email address with others
– Offer special pricing for email subscribers
– Allow subscribers to customize frequency
– Allow subscribers to customize information they receive from you
– Give subscribers a first look at new products
Segment your list – “Batch and blast” emails are going the way of the dinosaur. Segment your list and customize messaging and offers for each segment. The more relevant you make those customized emails, the higher the response you’ll get. (examples of segments: gender, frequency of purchase, amount of activity, area of interest, etc.)
Test and test some more – Test subject lines, content, calls to action, conversion rates. Your gut is often wrong. By testing to see what gets the highest response you can dramatically increase your results.
Scrub your list – get rid of invalid email addresses, inactive addresses and other dead-weight that’s hurting your delivery, your response rates and your reputation.
Bottom line – it’s all about being relevant to your audience.

Categories
Networking

Having a Good Coach for Business

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Blogtrepreneur by adam: The incredible advances in modern communication and the prolific use of the internet have made the coaching profession blossom in the past five years. But many people are still unsure about what coaching really is and what it can do for them.
A coach is an individual who has experience in a particular field, and who offers their services to other people trying to accomplish things in that field. A good coach can serve as a catalyst for huge changes in your career, business, or personal life. They provide you not only with valuable education and resources, but with much-needed accountability and moral support as you take on challenges like starting a business, losing weight, or writing a novel.
Coaching is similar to mentoring, but it also incorporates a process of education and teaching. An experienced coach can adapt themselves to the individual needs of their clients. They are not tied to a rigid outline or lesson plan. Instead, they develop a working relationship with the client to facilitate personal development that will affect real change.
Other important elements to a good coaching relationship are:
– A non-judge mental, supportive environment that allows the client to think outside the box and be creative with their life decisions.
– Regular meetings (virtually or in person) which keep the client on a schedule, moving systematically toward their goal.
– Specific exercises and assignments which provoke the client to think in different ways.
– Honesty and objectivity by the coach—not simply telling a client what they want to hear.
– Professionalism
It is important to remember that while the coach and client have a relationship, and are often discussing deeply personal issues that the client must work through; there must always be a level of professionalism and enough emotional distance between the two parties to allow them to be objective when working together. The coach does not want to allow their personal feelings to color the advice and support they offer their client; and the client needs to be able to assess if their coach is really helping them or just being a “nice person.”
More information on Blogtrepreneur

Categories
Business Trends

Will The Stimulus Bill Create New Franchise Opportunities?

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Article Contributed by Ray Haiber
With the recent passing of the huge economic stimulus package there has been some speculation about whether some of its provisions will create or spur the development of new franchise business opportunities in certain industries like health care or renewable energy. The obvious question is whether major government incentives and investments in these 2 highlighted industry sectors will create sustainable franchise business models after the initial boost from the stimulus spending bill plays out.
In my opinion the answer is that this is a very realistic development given the scope of the stimulus bill and some of stated new policies of the current administration regarding health care and energy. In fact, potential small business opportunities emerging from the stimulus bill are becoming more obvious, (particularly in renewable energy) and appear to have a very good chance to create some viable franchising opportunities for entrepreneurs.
Heath Care
According to what I have read, the economic stimulus package includes nearly $20 billion dollars to help digitize or computerize health and medical records in the United States. I would think this could present some serious potential opportunities for small business owners and entrepreneurs because obviously private companies will become involved in providing services for this enormous and long term project.
Even with the recent news that Sam’s Club and Dell intend to enter this market by selling software to digitize medical records doesn’t mean there will not be plenty of other niche opportunities and markets available to develop and service. According to recent stats only about 17% of doctors offices are currently digitizing medical records. And with nearly 800,000 active physicians in the United States, many with small to medium size practices, their will undoubtedly be opportunities for smaller players to develop business franchising models that can service business opportunities that emerge from this program.
Renewable Energy
From what I have read and heard nearly $60 billion of the $790 billion stimulus bill will be spent on alternative and clean energy projects and other environmental related projects and research. This includes billions of dollars for greening government buildings, weatherizing homes and businesses, and providing significant tax credits and grants to help fund and subsidize renewable energy applications across the board.
Surely this type of massive government investment will almost certainly spawn a number of new franchising concepts to service the emerging business and consumer needs that will be created by this commitment. This would conceivably include the development of solar power franchises that would provide installation of photovoltaic panels for residential and commercial applications. Or green consulting franchises that would provide expertise to commercial businesses on how to “go green” or conserve energy. Or maybe new home improvement related franchise businesses will emerge that specializes in weatherization and residential energy efficiency.
In summary it’s going to be an interesting time to see how the franchising industry will adapt and ultimately capitalize on the potential business opportunities and new markets that will be created and supported by the stimulus bill spending. My guess is that it should ultimately produce some viable and profitable franchise companies that may someday become familiar household names and brands.
About Author:
Ray Haiber has 10 years experience as a professional Arizona Business Broker. View and research franchise opportunities for sale across the USA here including master and area development opportunities.