Category: Business Ideas

Article Contributed by Marketest

Who has never seduced friends and family with a business idea?

Guess what? They’re bias! Your enthusiasm along with the fact that the people you question are influenced by their connection to you means this data is far from relevant.

Although many start-ups develop detailed business plans before they launch their business which is of course vital, much of the research done for the business plan is limited. Either limited to secondary or biased primary research.

Having a great idea needs to be proven. Moreover it must be proven in a reliable way. Questioning biased participants is not viable and will not aid your product or service launch, if anything it will hinder it as you go forward with your business plan with unreliable and biased figures.

A great idea will not be an instant success based on your beliefs and the support and opinions of your immediate network. However, many entrepreneurs still do it. Being realistic is key to business success for start-ups. But we all know your close contacts, the majority of times are not the most reliable source, this is not to lead you down the wrong path purposefully, it is simply due to your infectious enthusiasm.

Little does your close circle realize that in fact, what is a benefit to your business plan is entirely the opposite! Objective research is vital; these are real opinions without any bias. You can ensure you are targeting the type of people that you plan to sell your product or service to. This is your opportunity to get inside the consumer’s minds and ask the important questions you need to know.

Objective market research has many benefits for start-ups and entrepreneurs, the following are the key ones:

• Unbiased views
• Reliable data
• Valid results
• Factual figures

All of the above enhance your business plan and even more importantly your pitch for funding. Start-ups have a series of barriers to overcome when seeking credit. This unbiased information can allow you to build a product and service which will meet your client’s needs. When a product or service can satisfy a need or a want in the target market the business plan pitch becomes far more valid and reliable.

Competition coupled with the economic climate means that effective business planning has never been so vital to start-up success. You may believe you have not fallen into this trap, surveying consumers outside your close circle, but when you are questioning people about your project, it will never be an independent view, your love for the idea will infect those you question and again result
in biased opinions. Independent research, neutral opinions is what you need to create a realistic, impartial business plan.

With over 10 years experience in cost effective, fast, online market research and an international panel of over 950,000 panellists, Marketest can deliver viable facts and figures bringing reliable statistics and insight to your business start-up.

About the Author

With over 10 years experience in cost effective, fast, online market research and an international panel of over 950,000 panellists, Marketest can deliver viable facts and figures bringing reliable statistics and insight to your business start-up.

Working is not always fun and it is a fact that at some point you will hit a point where you don’t feel like doing anything. Entrepreneurship is not always fun and taking a slump is common, hence the need to know how to get motivated and retrace your performance spirit. In order to have a happier, more energetic and productive working etiquette you should observe the following 5 great ways to stay motivated in the office.

First and foremost, you should practise listing of positive remarks you get form your clients so that you have something to feel appreciated about even in low seasons. Whenever you get a positive remark sent to you, you may at least save it in a separate document so that you can refer to the compiled list when need be and get a renewed perspective. This is a definite approach to get motivation even if the same clients are the ones giving you a hard time at that moment.

Second, it is necessary that you find a distraction from the normal routine, so that you break the monotony of the office. You can find anything different to do such as having lunch with a friend or meeting up with some colleagues for any fun activity. You can also shut the office and take time to do some exercises. You may try jogging, swimming or any other favourable work out that you can manage. It is important to note that whatever you do should not be in any way similar to what you are used to doing.

Third, you need to arrange your office so that it is comfortable and easy to manipulate. The desk organization, sitting position and ventilation of your office should be reviewed to offer a unique and more exciting perspective. Sitting in one corner of the room everyday can become boring and at the same time a clustered room can be very demoralizing. You need to make changes such that you shift your position and get roman blinds ready made to allow light and air into the room. They are great in lighting up the room and making it more conducive.

Fourth, you should find people to talk to and share your office problems or even the regular happenings of your workplace with. Forums are quite exceptional for airing such views because you can find people with the same situation and this can be motivational even though it might not be helpful in solving the problem. Your mind will be settled knowing that you are not the only one with the problem.

Lastly, you should try and take a look at your previous projects and find the ones that were most interesting. Once you get the pattern, you can then seek the same kind of work to make your freelancing more exciting.

The Ultimate Small-Business Cheat Sheet is presented by Slate

Think you’re the next Jeff Bezos or Mark Zuckerberg? If so, this list may not be for you. The world’s meteoric startups—the rare few that topple industries and remake society—are usually built by breaking rules, not following them.

On the other hand, you probably aren’t them. Startups that turn into multibillion-dollar companies are the business world’s equivalent of lottery winners. Stake everything you have on a dream of a jackpot, and you’re likely to end up holding worthless scraps of paper.

Judging from the responses we received when we put out the call for nuggets of entrepreneurship advice, our readers understand that. Some have probably been through it—and if they came away poorer, they also came away wiser about what it takes to start a business that has a realistic chance to survive and prosper over time. The flipside of the sobering fact that roughly half of all new businesses fail within five years is that the other half survive. If you long to be in that number, read on.

What follows are 10 rules for starting a small business, chosen from among the many Slate reader submissions on the basis of readers’ votes and our own favorites. The list is designed not to encourage you to chase your wildest dreams but to help you turn your more viable dreams into a real livelihood. And, of course, it’s designed to provoke debate—so feel free to rebut, quibble, corroborate, or expound on these rules in the Comments section below. Thanks to all those who participated, and congratulations to those whose rules made the cut.

1. Be Realistic About Your Business Model by Patrick L.

When contemplating a business model, look around and find successful examples of that model to study. If you can’t find any, then you are either an extraordinary genius, or the business model can’t work in the real world. Choose whichever is more likely.

2. Don’t Invest Your Own Capital by Greg L.

If you knew with 100 percent certainty that your oil well would strike black gold, then you’d be better off borrowing the money to start it up, knowing full well that you could pay off the loan and keep all the future profits to yourself. But since most businesses are very risky ventures, especially new ones, you should take on equity partners instead (or consider crowdfunding sites like Kickstarter). That way, if things don’t pan out, you won’t be on the hook for the startup costs and you can move on to the next venture without debt hanging over you like a cloud.

3. Be Your Own Slave Labor by bubbg

Unless you are willing to work for hours on end, forgoing your own benefits and health—or unless you’re blessed with a 401(k) or a trust fund—entrepreneurship may not be for you. Many people burn through their savings, raid their children’s college money, and max out their credit cards to build a product using consultants, laborers, and experts—but not all these products even make the market. You can’t hire people cheaply unless you’re willing to work cheaply yourself (at least at first).

4. Value Your Time by Bruce Oberg

I mean this literally: Pick a dollar amount that your time is worth. You may not actually be paying yourself, but just having the number can help you make many day-to-day decisions. For instance, say your time is worth $60 an hour: If Costco will deliver your weekly supplies for $100, and it would take you two hours to do the shopping yourself, then Costco is the way to go.
(Editor’s note: This might sound like it contradicts Rule 3, but an economist will tell you that even slave labor has an economic value.)

5. Hire Well by Dom

Regardless of how small a business you own, eventually you will probably have to hire outside help, whether in the form of a cashier, clerk, or accountant. I can think of nothing worse than a business owner who has a vision for their business yet hires employees who consistently thwart this vision. Make the hiring process as careful and deliberate and important as the starting of the business was.

6. Sell on Features, Not on Price by Jerome Graber

When starting your own business, you naturally will be desperate for sales. But if all you are competing on is price, soon you will be selling at cost (or even below). No one can beat the “Wal-Mart” of their own industry on price alone. Instead, master the art of explaining to your customers why your higher price is actually a better value.

7. Know Your “Nut” by Ms. Sterling

Know exactly how much money you need to stay in business—everything from rent, electricity, and worker’s comp insurance to coffee, toner cartridges, paper, and even how much you pay your tax preparer. Divide that number by the number of days a year that you’re open for business, and that’s your “nut”—the minimum amount of money you need to bring in every day. Keep track of it on a daily basis: If you have a lot of days where you don’t make your nut, you need to rethink things.

8. Embrace New Technologies by Center for Public Policy Innovation

New technologies such as cloud applications and mass data storage have lowered the cost of entry for small businesses. These technology solutions are inexpensive and allow small businesses to compete with large corporations on a scale never before seen. Small businesses need to take advantage of low-cost technology tools, leaving entrepreneurs with more money to invest in their ideas.

9. Treat Your Vendors Well by David Myers

Treat your high-volume vendors at least as well as your best customers. They can discount your raw materials based on volume, or even just on the relationship and the hope of future volume. Also, with a good relationship you can count on them to be understanding about late payment on invoices and open to waiving finance charges or not putting you on COD.

10. Be Damn Good at What You Do by L.M.

An employee at a large corporation can afford to be mediocre—you can’t. Every job you do for a client has to be the best job you can do; every widget you make has to be the best widget you can make. Do that, and word will spread. Self-employment is a meritocracy.