The Role of the Telephone in Today’s Business Environment

 Subscribe in a reader

The role of the telephone has changed over recent years but today it remains a vital instrument in any successful modern business. Whilst there may be alternative methods of communication available none has the reliability nor guaranteed response that the telephone provides. How would you choose to contact the emergency services for instance?

The telephone provides an immediate connection with a real time response. It is due to the mounting pressure for immediate response that has driven everyone who may at any time be away from their office to carry a mobile phone. The mobile telephone however has its downsides, for example how many times do you find yourself in an area with no coverage or call someone on their mobile and not get an answer?

The telephone in the office is always reliable and inevitably your backup to your mobile phone "…for urgent enquires please call my office on…".

The telephone today is used for enquiries requiring an immediate answer therefore effective use of the phone is mission critical if you are not to lose your customers to a competitor. If you are selling a product and they cannot find out if product X has feature Y they will find your competitor and ask the same of them, the result being that a sale is lost. After sales care is just as important if you have a customer with one of your products that has a problem and they can not get an answer from you when they call, you can expect no repeat business from them especially if this is their first experience of your level of customer support.

When a customer calls you for whatever reason they expect an immediate answer to their enquiry. It is therefore extremely important that you handle the call efficiently. There are a number of problems that you need to overcome to do this. The first is to know who is calling so you can have any relevant information about the customer available. You may know this from their Caller ID however you can not know what the enquiry is regarding and this presents another problem. You must answer the call quickly and find out what the caller needs from your organisation. However, statistically more than 70% of calls can not be handled at the first point of contact and need to be held for more than 45 seconds before being connected*, so the chances are that you are going to hold the caller while you find someone able to help. If you dump the call into a telephonic abyss of silence callers have been shown to hang up typically within 45 seconds so you will lose the call. With a competitive commercial market in today's business environment losing calls is something which is vital to avoid. The solution to these logistical problems is to provide music on hold on your business telephone system as this will reassure the caller that they have not been cut off and to keep them on the line while you try to find someone to help. This may be a member of staff on their mobile but due to the foibles of mobile phones this may not be successful, for example if they are in an area of poor coverage or have their phone switched off because they are with a client. For guaranteed availability and speed of response it is better to transfer the call to someone in the office where at all possible.

Until we have a technology as reliable and robust as the telephone it will remain a mission critical part of today's successful modern business.*Source: Network Magazine December 2006

Paul White

http://www.phonemusiconhold.com

Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource where you can promote your business, products and services around the world.

How to Prepare for Trade Shows

 Subscribe in a reader

Most companies, even small businesses, have occasion to attend a trade or industry show. Ordinarily, these shows and conventions are held in very appealing locations. For that reason they are a popular event among sales staff. Many reps view them as a good excuse for a beach trip during winter or to catch the latest Vegas show. However, smart small business owners understand the real reasons which make them an important component of any marketing plan.

Attendance at trade shows provides multiple benefits. The ability to sell to a large group of prospects in one place is the obvious one. Lesser understood is the importance of networking with peers and competitors. Valuable competitive intelligence can be gleaned through casual conversations with competitors and vendors servicing multiple parties in the same space. This intelligence can assist your market analysis and product pricing decisions. Do not ignore this valuable aspect of trade show attendance.

It is important to have an attractive and eye catching booth. There is intense competition at larger shows for the attention of the crowds. Using color in everything from your business cards to your poster printing is important. A monochromatic booth and associated sales copy will typically just gather dust. Poster printing allows for deployment of posters in a wide area around the show driving more traffic to your booth.

Your sales reps need to be in a particular sales mode during trade shows. They need to understand that their prospects, much as themselves, view the event as a quasi vacation. Prospects are not in a mind frame to be bombarded with detailed spreadsheets and volumes of information. That can come later. At the trade show it is best to stay within the psychology of the attendees and make interacting with your booth fun. The many leads generated can be followed up with a more detailed sales effort.

It is almost assumed today that each exhibitor has some form of promotional item to hand out to the crowds. There are several things to consider when selecting your items. You want to pick something durable. The longer it is around, the more eyeballs that see it. Color is important as well. Make the item useful to those in your industry as opposed to a generic cheap gadget. A shoddy item does not speak well of the company distributing it.

It is very important to follow up after the event. Most often, only initial discussions occur at the actual show. The sales process only really begins once the booth is packed up and shipped home. Many sales reps let all the business cards collected just sit in a drawer. This represents a complete waste of your marketing dollars. Ensure all attendees have a plan for post show follow up.

Trade shows are both fun and productive. However, it is necessary to ensure your staff remains focus and follows a predetermined plan. Take advantage of both the selling and networking opportunities. A smart trade show strategy will provide for significant ROI on the significant expenses attendance incurs.

For comments and inquiries about the article visit: Poster Printing

Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource where you can promote your business, products and services around the world.

Double Your Promotional Email and Ecommerce Revenue

 Subscribe in a reader

Most newcomers to email marketing think that they can send a promotional email to a list of subscribers and then sit back and watch the money flow in. If only email marketing was that easy. That said, email marketing does have the potential to generate a lot of revenue from promotional email campaigns and ecommerce, but it requires some ingenuity.

If you want to be successful in ecommerce, you will have to work harder than just shooting off a newsletter. With just a little bit of effort, you can double the revenue generated from an ecommerce website All it takes is some effort, careful analysis, testing different methods, and then refining them. Make sure you concentrate on building your email list, creating outstanding content for your emails, managing your list, dividing your list into categories and testing.

A good home page does not necessarily translate to revenue generation. You should get traffic that converts. You have to get new subscribers who visit your website regularly to check out new products or services. This can be done by list building, which in turn is only possible if you expand your current list. Make sure your website has an opt-in subscription form on practically every webpage.

Your chances of getting new subscribers will increase if you offer some kind of incentive. An incentive can be anything from an offer for free shipping to giving $20 off on the first order. You can easily get a new customer`s email address through the shopping cart form. Make sure you add a link to the subscription form in the transaction confirmation email. This opportunity can be also used to get further details like gender, likes and product interests.

A Pay-Per-Click (PPC) program, if used effectively, can generate a lot of traffic. One of the most used methods to look for products is to search for them online, and a PPC program will definitely help you here. However, make sure that you have an easy sign-up process, whether the visitor buys a product or not. In addition, concentrate on search engine optimization to get targeted traffic to your website.

If you have a physical location of your business, then offer sign-up forms to your customers at the cash register. This way you get their subscription while the customers are present and you can then send them in-house promotional offer through email. Whenever you send a newsletter, make sure it has an eye-catching subject line,which will compel readers to open the email.

On your website, products should be divided into categories, so that visitors can find it easy to locate what they want. Give your subscribers enough options to select what is appropriate for them. You should not forget to personalize your emails by using the customer`s first name. Adding a "send-to-a-friend" option in all your newsletters will help to generate new subscribers, provided your content is good.

If your email message has a great content and design, you can be sure to get a good open a click-through rate. Finally, keep checking your email program so that you can eliminate any issues before the mail is sent out.

Author, Johnny Modal is owner of the arts article directory, which is an human edited article directory where you can find the great niche arts articles online. Visit now for great free articles or to submit your articles for website promotion.

Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource where you can promote your business, products and services around the world.

Four Tips to Write Effective Copies before Getting Your Printing Quotes

 Subscribe in a reader

Before you think about your printing quotes, decide first what your ads are going to contain. Sometimes, all is well in the presentation and all the technical aspects of your advertisement. But one thing is lacking, the implementation of the words that the ads contain fall short.

The print medium may be effective when it comes to marketing. But you still have to consider a lot of factors before you can come up with the likes. It is not that easy. Not only because you've got competitive printing quotes and you can afford the service of the best printing company that it will lead to your own success.

This is not the case with advertising. This is the world where you will think through things for other's sake more than your own. And each process must be accompanied by a real desire to advance through the competition.

As an advertiser, you must be vigilant as to what your competitors have come up before you. You can either pattern yours on those or you stay very far away from their styles. It is your choice. Whatever you do, you must remember to put importance in what you write. The words on your print ads count. So be very careful in coming up with the right tag lines in order for you to sell.

1. Start with an attention-grabbing headline. This will make people aware the instant they see your ad what your ad is really all about. This will make them decide if they want to continue reading the rest of your tool or just drop it all out because it doesn't interest them.

2. Descriptions are good. If your ad contains too many vague or even technical words, descriptions will help you to be understood by your target audience. If you want higher responses, then tell your target market what you really want to say as clear as possible.

3. Highlight on the things that will draw people's attention on to your ads. You can use bold letters in order to be specific about this. For example, you highlight on the word sale. But that word must be surrounded with descriptions. You can't fool people by highlighting the sale word without giving further information about the said event.

4. Stating the price also works most of the time for print ads. You need all the convincing powers that you can master on this one. So you must be transparent even with the price concern. This way, people can easily decide on whether they can afford what you are offering or not.

Writing effective ad copies requires talent and passion. But more so, it requires the understanding of who do you want to please and who is going to read the ads in the end. As a business owner, you are not expected to know it all. You can get the services of professionals for this task.

Having your printing quotes done while you have a clearer view of what you want your ads to contain will make the process less complicated. You will serve what the people want from you and you'll stand better chances with the competition that you are in.

printing quotes provides clients an estimated prices on your print jobs. More on this topic can be found at Color Printing Wholesale

Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource where you can promote your business, products and services around the world.

Tips on Saving Money As A Small Business

 Subscribe in a reader

Many small business owners work very hard, especially in the beginning years, to get their company in the green. Both traditional and Internet based companies need the same thing, they need to improve profits and cut back on expenses. It`s not always easy to boost your profits just because, but you can save on your costs. Plenty of companies are seeing how they can spend less and in that way, they earn more.

Companies with very little upfront costs are more likely to become successful more quickly than those who go all out, buying the best stuff and equipment. Even if you`ve been funded very well for your business, that doesn`t always mean you should spend every dollar. Saving money for those lean months should be a part of your plan.

Necessity Verses Want

When you start a small business, you start by thinking big. You envision what your company will look like, how it will run. You want the best. You might budget for the best technical equipment, a hundred employees, and enough office space in a high-rise building.

If you take a moment to think about it, many successful businesses did not start out with fancy, plush offices. Dell started with two men working out of a garage, building computers. Most companies start small, some starting out of a home and building up.

A business isn`t about fancy equipment and a corner office. A business is about helping your customers get what they want. If you can do this from your kitchen table, then that`s all you need, for now, and then, if you still want the plush office, plan for it, in the future when you`ve become successful.

Shop Smart

When you`re buying equipment, you want the best quality product, but you also want a real deal. You don`t want to expend your budget on high cost equipment right from the get go. Think about what you want to buy. Do you really need today`s latest model of computer and phone equipment? Will last year`s models do just as well?

Negotiate prices where you can. This doesn`t mean on just products and equipment. The services you use, like your phone or Internet services, can be negotiated. Ask about discounts if you buy in bulk or paying months in advance. You can get great deals if you offer to buy up front, instead of later down the road.

Buy used, where possible. A desk at a used furniture store will cost half of what a new one would, and can work just as well. Substitute where you can with used or reconditioned equipment. A spare room or your garage can make for storage space that you won`t have to pay extra for.

Work out what you really, really need for your business. Maybe you don`t plan on making many faxes, why buy a fancy office fax when an online service would do? Maybe you don`t need the 10 connected phone lines just yet. Check where you can to get good deals on only what you really do need for your business to function.

Employees or Independent Contractors

Part of growing as a new business is about bringing on others to help you do the work. You can`t grow and still run your business as a one-man band. You eventually hire others to be able to produce more work, and get more income.

However, many people misjudge what they need, exactly. Some just don`t know how to hire the right person. If you hire someone who is under qualified, just because they cost less, you might be paying more out than you are getting back. Each employee should somehow improve production and benefit you so that you make more money.

There are ways to save money by hiring employees to do the right jobs for you. Think of the jobs that it would be easy to replicate. Perhaps returning client phone calls with quotes, or researching new vendors is something that takes up your time. You could spend less time on little tasks and spend more time on the things that actually make you money, like sales. You could also hire on a sales team that will help you produce more sales.

There are other alternatives as well than to hiring employees right off. Many small businesses are now opting to hire independent contractors. These professionals might cost slightly higher, but they get the job done right, and well. You can hire them for more complicated tasks, like accounting or sales. They might cost more per hour, but they`ll save you tons of money. You pay only for what work they complete.

You can also hire employees or independent contractors to work from home. People who work from home will save you loads of money on additional electric, internet, phone, computers, office space and much more. At home workers also are often paid on production. You can save hundreds of dollars on the cost of an employee if you let him or her work from home.

Borrow From Other Companies

Combine your small business with that of another. Sublease equipment, the other half of the office space, whatever you want to split the cost of. It helps out when you can connect and work as partners in the beginning.

If you`re going to try it this way, it is best that you get it in writing from the get go about who is to pay what and when and how.

You could also borrow equipment. Like the fax machine you didn`t really need. Suddenly for one client you are working with, they want you to fax some things over and it would be easier for you to use a fax machine. You can borrow from another company, then exchange the favor later; perhaps they can use your services.

These aren`t the only ways to save money in your early years. As long as you keep your goals in view, and understand that it`s the bottom line that counts, you`ll realize that there are so many things you can probably let go of. Planning ahead and knowing where to save money can really help you in the long run in making your business successful.

Metroispeed.com is a proven leader in providing fast, secure and reliable internet fax solutions. Visit them online for an affordable solution that will save your business money.

Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource where you can promote your business, products and services around the world.

Create Your Business Plan From These 8 Questions

 Subscribe in a reader

Are you ready for the recession? Here`s how you can turn it into an opportunity to survive and thrive: set up your own online business and create an extra stream of income.

Starting a new online business does not mean that you have to give up your current job. You can set it up doing extra work in your evenings and weekends and keep your income from your current job while the income from your new business grows.

So what do you need to do to maximise the chances of success of your new business?

Find something that you`re either good at or passionate about. Then you need to research and plan properly.

Here are 8 questions - answer them in full for your situation and you`ll have the basis of a sound plan for your business:

1. What are your skills?

Can you teach? Can you write? Can you sell? Are you technically proficient?

2. What do people want to buy? In a recession.

Luxuries and frivolous things are not going to be at the top of people`s shopping lists if they are struggling with the effects of recession. Necessities are.

3. Is there a market?

Is there a demand for it? How much would people be prepared to pay for it? What will affect demand for it (e.g. weather, strikes, competition) and how? How much competition is there? How much is your competition charging?

4. What will the process be?

How are you going to make it? How are you going to market and sell it? How are you going to deliver it? How will people pay you?

5. What are the dependencies?

Do you need premises - if so what type? Do you need outside suppliers - if so for which parts? Do you need licences - if so what licences? Do you need special equipment? Do you need staff?

6. What are the costs?

Premises, raw materials, suppliers, marketing, delivery, license costs, staff costs, lawyers and accountants, day-to-day operational expenses.

7. How much money can you make?

How much can you sell it for? What sales volumes do you think you can achieve? What sales channels will you use? How will you promote it?

8. Do you have sufficient funds?

What are the start-up costs? What are your marketing and promotion costs? How long before you can break even? Where is the funding going to come from?

It doesn`t matter what type of business you`re thinking of, going through that checklist is a good way to make sure you`ve got most things covered.

Use the answers to those questions to create your business plan.

And here`s some good news: if you start an online business many of the items above won`t apply.

With an online, affiliate marketing business, for example, your start up costs would be negligible, your delivery and logistics costs zero, you would have no need for special equipment or premises and no need for separate outside suppliers.

But you still need to develop a plan!

It`s important to remember that, whether your business is online or off-line, it`s still a business.

Don`t be taken in by all the promises of easy money online. It simply isn`t the case - if it was everyone would be doing it!

But it IS possible to make good money online - as long as you treat it like a real business.

There are lots of resources available to help you with developing and promoting your online business - just make sure you pick top quality ones.

And run as fast as you can from anyone who promises that you can be making thousands of dollars each month for little or no work.

I grew up in Zimbabwe and now live in Hong Kong. My blog is written for people running an online home business and provides tips, support and resources through the articles I post each week. For more information visit: http://www.wealthydragon.com/blog

Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource where you can promote your business, products and services around the world.

7 Tips For An Effective Landing Page

 Subscribe in a reader

A landing page is the first page the web user arrives at using a specific URL, or clicking a link in an email or at another site. They are popular because they are more effective at accomplishing their purpose than standard pages. However, there are certain characteristics that effective landing pages have in common - here are seven of those characteristics.

1. The landing page should have only one objective. The objective can be for the reader to buy a product, sign up for a newsletter or to click on an active link to go to another page. The action can be anything that you want. The key is there is only one thing you are asking the reader to do. There is no confusion for the reader - they either take the action or they don`t.

2. The landing page copy should target a specific audience. One of the ground rules of all effective marketing and copywriting is know your target audience. This may mean you need different landing pages to appeal to different target audiences. That`s OK. Each landing page can speak to its individual target audience. For example, you may offer a coaching program that is designed for women of all ages but the benefits of your program to a woman who is 30 may need to be presented differently than to an audience of women who are 50.

3. Create a compelling headline. Since you only have 7-10 seconds to capture your reader`s attention, your headline needs to immediately grab the reader. You may need to try a couple of different headlines before finding one that keeps the reader on the page.

4. Keep the page simple and easy to read. Don`t distract your reader with too many fancy graphics and moving objects. Make sure the layout of the page is not confusing. Visitors should know exactly where they should read and what they should do. A single column seems to work best as it keeps the reader going down the page. Including an audio or video message on the page has been proven to increase conversion rates. Don`t include any links not related specifically to the action you want your visitor to take.

5. Place your most critical information "above the fold" - that space on the page that is seen before you have to scroll down. This is where you are conveying the heart of your message. Whether audio, video or the written word, above the fold is the first place visitors will look to determine if your message is of interest.

6. Clearly state the benefits of your offer. Use sub-heads and bullets to highlight the benefits of what you are offering. Even if you want the reader to click on a link to another page, tell them what the benefit will be as a result of moving to the next page. If you have a testimonial that fits in with the benefits - use it.

7. The action you want the reader to take should stand out from the rest of the page. If you want the reader to buy your eBook, a large button saying "Click Here to Buy This eBook" leaves no doubt what the reader should do. Don`t be shy about making it obvious what you want the reader to do. Everyone is in such a hurry these days, the easier you make it for your visitor, the happier they will be.

So how do you know if your landing page is effective? Review your web statistics and determine your conversion rate - the percentage of your visitors who are taking the action you want them to take. Depending upon who you ask, the average conversion rate is about 3.5%. However, highly optimized sites can achieve rates between 50% and 80%.

These 7 tips are just the basic steps of an effective landing page. More advanced strategies for maximizing landing pages include using popovers, popunders and optimizing keywords, among other tactics. Use these tips to create a landing page or evaluate your current landing pages.

Nancy D Waring, Internet Communication Strategist and owner of OnPoint Communication Solutions, assists coaches and other service professionals who are not internet experts more effectively manage their online marketing so they can spend more time on their business. For more information about solutions to expand your business using the web, pick up her special report at http://www.onpointcommunicationsolutions.com

Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource where you can promote your business, products and services around the world.

Two Tips To Go Green And Help The Environment

 Subscribe in a reader

"If you do not design your own life plan, chances are you will fall into someone else's plan. And guess what they have planned for you? Not much." By: Jim Rohn: Author and Motivational Speaker

It was food shopping night last night. It was that night where the wife rounds me and the kid up and drags us along to do what I think has to be one of the most boring things possible. The thought of walking up and down the isle for an hour looking and comparing just makes me think or sheer boredom. But then again I do not like to shop much for anything unless it involves a Best Buy, Home Depot or Lowes. But that's me.

However it is one of the necessary things in life you have to do, otherwise there would never be any food in the house, kind of like the days of being a bachelor. Days my wife has told me she'd rather not experience. Many of you know what I am talking about. Images of an empty fridge with a lone bottle of ketchup on the center shelf just took you back to your good ole days or maybe it is your "current" days. You get the point.

Shopping did give me an idea though. All of these products to choose from but more importantly the trash that gets created when they are empty made me realize of the affects it would have on the environment.

The hot topic besides gasoline right now is going green and helping the environment. So I did some research and found a couple of pretty fascinating things you can do to help and you really do not have to make any life altering decisions.

According to the Real Simple website they recommend you should "Skip red meat once per week". Now if you do not eat red meat then you are ahead of the game. They claim, "Meat production — especially in mass-produced beef — is extremely resource-intensive. It can take seven or more pounds of grain to produce one pound of beef, and livestock consumes 70 percent of America's grain. Eat less of it and choose pasture-fed, sustainably raised beef whenever you can. If you alone gave it up once every seven days, you would save the 840 gallons of fresh water it takes to produce a single serving."

I never thought about it in those terms, however I am beginning to make an adjustment to only eat red meat no more than once per week.

I already have one of these in my home but if you do not, get a programmable thermostat installed. Real Simple says, "It will automatically adjust the heat or the air-conditioning to match your daily patterns. You won't waste energy while your home is empty, and you won't have to remember to turn the thermostat up or down. Want to do better? Turn it down two degrees in the winter and up two degrees in the summer and you'll keep nearly 880 pounds of carbon dioxide from warming the earth."

Wow! Now that is some advice we can all use to help better this planet.

So there you have two tips that came to mind to help better our planet. See I told you they would not be earth shattering, life altering changes.

By: M. Podlesny

About the Author:
Mr. Podlesny is a freelance writer for http://www.Indocquent.com, an online resource and social network, where you can advertise your business, products or services without pay-per-click prices or auction fees.

Read Mr. Podlesny`s 5 Additional Tips on Going Green

Download Indocquent`s free social bookmark utility for your website or blog by Clicking here

Follow us on Twitter by clicking http://twitter.com/indocquent

Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource where you can promote your business, products and services around the world.

Creating a Business Plan Could Be More Simple Than You Think

 Subscribe in a reader

"I like thinking of possibilities. At any time, an entirely new possibility is liable to come along and spin you off in an entirely new direction. The trick, I`ve learned, is to be awake to the moment." By: Doug Hall: Professional inventor and idea guru.

If you are thinking about starting a business or maybe have an idea that you think is great and you can turn it into a business, there is no question you need to get your thoughts down on paper.

This is normally done in the form of a business plan. However, most people think business plan and immediately cringe and start fearing it is beyond their means.

I like to watch the show "The Big Idea" hosted by Danny Deutsch on CNBC. It is a very motivational an educational show about getting you on the right track in starting a business or becoming a successful entrepreneur. In one of their most recent episodes they were talking to some people that, yes, did have a business plan, but it was not the traditional one that you might imagine.

It did not have all the bells and whistles of a Madison Avenue type of plan, but then again most business plans do not. What they all do need to have is your thoughts written down in a clear and concise format that you can understand with information that is pertinent to what you are trying to accomplish.

For one person on the show, her plan was simply a drawn out diagram of how she could get her product from point A (the starting point) to point B (into the customer's hands as a sale). Your plan may require more work, or then again it may require less.

I have put together some questions that you need to ask yourself as budding entrepreneur. Use these questions as a guideline for your plan, or even the plan itself. Most importantly, answer these questions honestly and thoroughly and you will soon see a clear vision of what you want to achieve come into light.

MISSION STATEMENT
Come up with a mission statement. Before you do anything write down your mission statement. In other words what is the mission you are trying to accomplish with your product or service?

YOUR BUSINESS IDEA
Write down your business idea. If you are selling a new product write down what it is.

NEED
Write down what need your product or service addresses. Whatever it is you sell it must fill a need otherwise no one would buy it. Define the need that it fills.

SALES AND PROMOTIONS
Define how exactly you are going to sell and/or promote your business. Are you going to be a brick and mortar storefront or sell and advertise over the web? Don`t worry about financials of either right now. In this process we are trying to define your business's purpose and who your customers are.

DIFFERENTIATE
Write down what makes your product or service different from all of the other similar products out there.

THE MARKETPLACE
This step will require some research. I recommend going to the library and asking a librarian to help you out. In this step you need to define how big your market is for your product or service and how much your customer is willing to pay for it. Based on this information define how big your market can grow. If you sell women`s suits that appeal to the 35 to 45 year old crowd, you can obviously come up with your growth and market numbers.

KNOW YOUR ROLE
Define what your role will be in your company. Are you in sales? Marketing? Accounting? Maybe you are all of the above. You need to define your role.

YOUR STAFF
Will anybody be helping you? Do you need to hire additional help? If your new business will require help from others here is where you will write that down. Define what you need and what their roles will be.

INCOME
In this step you need to write down how your customers will pay you and based on your market research under "The Marketplace", how much your product or service will cost your customer.

HOW MUCH
This also requires some research. How much money will you need to get your product based or service based business off the ground? Write down everything it will take to get your product from design, through production and into the customer's hands. If it is a service, define the cost of getting this service to the customer, the tools you use and so on.

HOW ARE YOU PAYING FOR THIS
Define where your startup money is coming from. Now that you know how much you need, where is it coming from? Friends, family, banks, savings etc.

SUCCESS
Define your success. In order to know whether or not you are succeeding, you need to define what it means to you to be successful. If your goal is to sell a million dollars in suits, write that down. Maybe you want to sell 1,000 suits, write that down. Whatever success is to you, then you need put it into the plan.

MILESTONES
Write down your milestones. Every business has a milestone. Whether it is getting your first customer, making your first dollar or selling your first product, these are all type of milestones. Date each milestone and that will hold you accountable to your plan.

Answer each section above thoroughly and you will have the plan you need to succeed. Just remember to revisit your plan on a daily basis and update it with new information that you find. This will keep your plan up to date and current.

By: M. Podlesny

About the Author:
M. Podlesny is a freelance writer for http://www.Indocquent.com, an online resource and social network, where you can advertise your business, products or services without pay-per-click prices or auction fees.

Download Indocquent`s free social bookmark utility for your website or blog by Clicking here

Follow us on Twitter by clicking http://twitter.com/indocquent

Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource where you can promote your business, products and services around the world.

How Do I Increase My Search Rankings?

 Subscribe in a reader

"The strongest single factor in prosperity consciousness is self-esteem: believing you can do it, believing you deserve it, believing you will get it." By Jerry Gillies: Author and workshop leader

As someone who runs a website I understand people's frustration when you work extremely hard to build a great site, add a lot of functionality to make it a hit with web surfers and no one visits. You could spend a ton of money on pay-per-click advertising, however more often than not, people who arrive at your website through pay-per-click advertising are nothing more than "tire kickers". In other words they really have no intention of buying or registering, they are just curious as to what you have to offer.

In steps the variety of search engines from which your potential customers can locate your website. The best part is you did not have to pay for them to find you. The issue arises as to how you can get your website to rank higher on those search engines.

There is no question that there are a number of ways to do this, but in this article we will cover a couple of them to get you started.

Start with adding content to your site that is related to what ever it is you are selling. In other words let's say you sell widgets. Start adding content to your site related to widgets. Simply write informative articles about the products. Do not allow your articles to sound like infomercials or advertisements. The reader of your article should come out knowing more about widgets then when they went in.

This content now becomes indexed searchable text by all the search engines. So let's say you have an article titled "How to use a widget properly?" When people do a search with those keywords you will appear higher in the rankings so as long as there aren't hundreds of other websites with similar articles. This brings us up to issue number two.

In order for your content to appear higher than that of other websites your site itself must be ranked higher. This is simply done with back links. The more websites that point back to your website without you having to point back to theirs will drive your website way up the ranking system of most search engines.

This can be accomplished by writing additional articles related to widgets and submitting them to many article directories such as Ezine or Article Dashboard. Do not submit the same article you wrote earlier. That will defeat the purpose of adding the content to your website in the first place. Instead make sure your article is new and well written content so other websites can add it to their site. At the bottom of the article, called the resource box, add in your tag line with a link to your website. It should read something like this, "Mr. Jones is the CEO of Widget International. To learn more about their widgets visit their website at ."

Just make sure the link to the website is an active link so people can click on it. This can be done by enclosing the link in html anchor tags. More importantly than people being able to click on this link is the fact that the search engine spiders see this as a one way active link, pointing back to your website. One way links are the strongest links your website can have.

Above are just two of the ways you can increase your search engine ranking and get closer to the top of those results. Keep repeating this process and over time you will have enough content and enough back links where search engines will invariably put your website in the number one position.

By: Bruce A. Tucker

About the Author:
Mr. Tucker is the Associate Director of http://www.Indocquent.com, an online resource and social network, where you can advertise your business, products or services without pay-per-click prices or auction fees.

Download Indocquent`s free social bookmark utility for your website or blog by Clicking here

Follow us on Twitter by clicking http://twitter.com/indocquent

Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource where you can promote your business, products and services around the world.

Push Yourself Beyond Your Limits So You and Your Business Can Grow

 Subscribe in a reader

"Do a little more each day than you think you can." – by Lowell Thomas

Since as long as I can remember I have been writing things down in a notebook called my "to do" list. It is this list that I consider my daily life line. I truly believe that without this list I would be lost.

Each morning (or sometimes in the evening before I go to bed), I write down everything that needs to get accomplished for that day. I look over my goals and ask myself the important question, "What do I need to do today to get me closer to achieving my goal". Then I continue to write my items down that need to get done, then add some extra items to push myself above my daily limits.

It has been this process that has helped me achieve many of, if not all, of the things I have in my life, both personally and career wise. What I think that has propelled me to levels greater than I originally thought I could ever achieve was the last part of my daily routine and that is the ability to push myself a bit harder.

It is not always easy to do that. In fact unless you are truly motivated and passionate about something, chances are most people won't push themselves beyond their limits. I use to fall into that second category. Without pushing yourself beyond your limits I believe you can not grow.

For our online business we have what is called our pipeline of work. This pipeline is nothing more than what is on our to-do list to make our website better, faster more efficient and so on. Each item in our pipeline has a deadline date. These dates are determined by the complexity of what has to be done, man power and a variety of factors. Now that we have that deadline, we then shorten it. This allows us to push ourselves to limits we would have never thought possible.

In our personal lives, lets take weight loss for example, pushing yourself to limits you never thought possible will make stronger, healthier and in the long run happier. Especially when it comes to weight loss, but can be true in almost anywhere in life, the fact is we can't always do it alone and push ourselves. We need help. In the gym you would hire a personal trainer to help push you beyond your limits. In the classroom your teachers would do it, and at work your bosses should be doing it.

If you are an entrepreneur you too need to be pushed to new heights. You can hire yourself a business coach, talk to the counselors at S.C.O.R.E, give the local SBA office in your area a call and see if they can point you in the right direction. To get beyond where you are, you need to go higher than you thought possible.

If you are unable to do this on your own, as most people are not, me included, then get someone to help you. They will be there to push you over your limits.

By: Bruce A. Tucker

About the Author:
Mr. Tucker is the Associate Director of http://www.Indocquent.com, an online resource and social network, where you can advertise your business, products or services without pay-per-click prices or auction fees.

Download Indocquent`s free social bookmark utility for your website or blog by Clicking here

Follow us on Twitter by clicking http://twitter.com/indocquent

Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource where you can promote your business, products and services around the world.

Use Words like Hope, Belief, Faith and Victory to Succeed in Business and in Life

 Subscribe in a reader

"Never talk defeat. Use words like hope, belief, faith and victory." By: Norman Vincent Peale.

You only need to look to the presidential race and see these words in true fashion. Since he began his run for president, Senator Barrack Obama's campaign has been centered on the content of this very quote. From his book, "The Audacity of Hope", to his rock star-like venues that he speaks at., his words hit every point of hope, belief, faith and victory.

Whether it is in your personal life or business life you need to keep a positive look on things even when they seem bleak. There is not one person on this planet who is successful that has not been faced with some type of adversity. Thomas Edison failed over 1800 times before he invented the light bulb. Donald Trump filed bankruptcy. Michael Jordan was cut from his High School basketball team because he was too short and didn't have the right skills. Bill Gates dropped out of college. The owner of Federal Express (whose name escapes me at the moment) handed in his business plan to his business instructor at Harvard and was given a C on it! He was told although the plan seemed revolutionary, it was impossible to achieve.

The list goes on and on of the ultra successful. One thing they have in common, when you hear them speak, is how they believe in themselves, their abilities and that they will see victory through to achieve their dreams.

So how do you keep a positive look on things when nothing looks good or seems really bad? Here are some suggestions that have helped me in my life, and hopefully they will help you as well.

Stay organized. Sure it is no-brainer, but staying organized will keep your mind clear of clutter. A disorganized home or office will lead to a disorganized mind.

Write it down. Write everything down. Keep a to-do list. Make sure on your list you put the important things that need to get completed first at the top. As you complete these items cross them off your list.

With each issue that you are tackling in your life, write down what I call the goods and the bads. In other words, write down everything and anything that you can think of in relation to the issue you are facing that is good about it, positive and will lead you in the right direction. On the flip side of that, write down all of the worse possible situations and things you can think of if something goes wrong. I have found in my own experiences, when I can see it down on a piece of paper my mind truly analyzes the problem and sees it for what it truly is. You'll be shocked that many problems that you face are not as scary as you think.

Get to work. In other words start working on your problem and run to it as opposed to running away from it. I am believer, and it took me a lot of time to learn this, that you need to attack your problems head on. Not only does this allow you to get through it quicker, but it also "toughens" you up as well. Eventually you will become accustomed to handling problems no matter how great they are.

Hopefully this article has been inspirational and educational to you and that you take the advice given here and go after those problems you may face.

By: Bruce A. Tucker

About the Author:
Mr. Tucker is the Associate Director of http://www.Indocquent.com, an online resource and social network, where you can advertise your business, products or services without pay-per-click prices or auction fees.

Download Indocquent`s free social bookmark utility for your website or blog by Clicking here

Follow us on Twitter by clicking http://twitter.com/indocquent

Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource where you can promote your business, products and services around the world.

How Do I Properly Do Research For My Business?

 Subscribe in a reader

"Until you can apply the information that you've learned, then and only then will you be rewarded." - Andy Fuehl: Founder, Wealth Builders of America.

I am sure you like me have spent a lot of time for your business doing many hours of research to decrease the chance of failure. Now the fact is at some point in your business career, if you haven't done so already, you will hit failures and roadblocks. Do not let that discourage you. I will get to more failure in another article. For now I want to concentrate on the importance of research, how to do it, and show you that unless you do something with it, you won't be rewarded.

As the quote above by Andy Fuehl translates to, all of the information you gather will do you no good unless you actually do something with it. I have seen so many people in both their business and personal lives, gather a plethora of information to help better them, and then do nothing with it.

Let's start with information gathering and some ways you can look for what you need and how it pertains to the business world.

Step one is to take the time to sit down and write out exactly what information you need and the questions that you need answered. For example, let's say you want to start a business on selling cookies. Now that you know what you want to do, write a list of information that you will need when you start your research. I do not know much about the baking industry, but a quick question that comes to mind is what is a recipe or recipes that you will need?

Continue coming up with every possible question that you need answered to see if your idea of selling cookies could be a profitable one. Once you have all of your questions written down, it is time to start answering them with a little research.

Start with the internet. I know this sounds obvious, but there is more to it than that. Although I would start with Google and type in search keywords, do not let Google be the end all for your search engines. Use other search engines such as Yahoo!, Lycos and Ask.com. You'd be surprised as the different results each brings back.

After you go through searching that method visit some business oriented websites such as CNBC, Entrepreneur, Inc. Magazine or the Wall Street Journal. Contact people from those sites and ask them some questions. They will gladly help or point you in the right direction.

Keep in mind the questions that you need answered are important. The more information that you have increases your chances of success and good decisions.

Visit your local library. If you are stumped on information or need to expand on some information that you already have, visiting your local library and working with the professionals there is a huge benefit. The people that work at the library are highly trained in research. You want them on your team. If you are fortunate like me and live in a town where you can contact your librarian through their website then you definitely want to find out how. Your librarian is a resource you should not be working without.

Finally, do not be afraid to ask someone already in your business or has retired from your business. In our example we would visit a local bakery or the bakery shop in our grocery store or super market. Ask them for some advice. You'd be surprised as to the help they would give you. They are experts and I have found in the past, experts love sharing their experience.

Now that you have all of your information and are an expert in the field in which you are pursuing, if you put all that information you just gathered into a big binder and put it on top of your refrigerator to never look at it again, do you think you would ever get off the ground? Of course not. That would be ludicrous and unrealistic. This gets us back to the point Andy Fuehl made in his quote, that you can only be rewarded if you do something with that information.

Now you need to do something with the information you have just gathered. Ask yourself what is it you want to do? If you are trying to start a business, then visit the people at score.org. The free counselors there can help move you even further toward your end goal of success.

By: Bruce A. Tucker

About the Author:
Mr. Tucker is the Associate Director of http://www.Indocquent.com, an online resource and social network, where you can advertise your business, products or services without pay-per-click prices or auction fees.

Download Indocquent`s free social bookmark utility for your website or blog by Clicking here

Follow us on Twitter by clicking http://twitter.com/indocquent

Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource where you can promote your business, products and services around the world.

How Do I Get My Press Release Evaluated for Free?

 Subscribe in a reader

The other night I was getting some much needed rest and relaxation. There I was sitting in my comfy recliner, feet up in the air, and a tall glass of caffeine free diet coke, iced down of course, sitting on the table next to me.

While sitting there I was doing what most people would do in my relaxed state. No not sleeping. I picked up the remote control and started that most highly competitive event, at least it is in my family, of channel surfing. Click, click, click the channels went up. Nearly one hundred channels to choose from and I find it harder now to find something to watch then when I did as a kid before the days of cable and satellite television.

However, I got lucky. I came across a business program that was talking about a variety of topics, most of them financial and economic oriented. One of the topics that caught my attention was when they were talking about the importance of the press release.

I have written many articles about the use of a press release but wanted to cover today what I learned the other night as it is definitely a good technique to use. What they talked about was getting your press release evaluated before you submit it to editors of magazines and newspapers and so on.

One idea they threw out there and one I agree with is having others from around the world read your release. There are a number of discussion boards on the internet that you can subscribe to and ask for help from those that would love to read it and critique you. Everyone loves to be a critic and now here you are letting them express their deepest, darkest wisdoms of what they know.

Another good source to be critiqued that I thought of is S.C.O.R.E., America’s counselors to small business. They have literally hundreds of volunteer workers with years of business experience that would love to take a look at what you wrote. You can find them online at www.score.org. Best part both options are free.

Do not get discouraged when you receive negative feedback. In fact you should expect it. If you didn’t then you would already know your release is perfect and would not need the help of others. Remember anything they respond with will only make your release better.

After you receive your responses, make the necessary changes and submit them again. Keep repeating this until the press release is perfect. Once finalized submit your release the news sources that it pertains to and off you go.

So there you have it. You wanted to know how to get your press release evaluated for free and I have provided two ways to do just that. The rest is now up to you. I am going to get back to my channel surfing. I still have about 40 more channels to go before I get back to the start.

Bruce A. Tucker

About the Author:
Mr. Tucker is the Associate Director of http://www.Indocquent.com, an online resource and social network, where you can advertise your business, products or services without pay-per-click prices or auction fees.

Download Indocquent`s free social bookmark utility for your website or blog by Clicking here

Follow us on Twitter by clicking http://twitter.com/indocquent

Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource where you can promote your business, products and services around the world.

Are You Excited About Your Business?

 Subscribe in a reader

I am a pretty big hockey fan. From days of yester year I can remember long Sunday afternoons during the winter time where friends and I would get together to play. It didn't matter if it was ice hockey or street hockey (roller hockey did not exist at the time). We loved to play the game. We would all throw our sticks into the middle, mix them up and then someone would just randomly make up teams by taking a stick from the middle and tossing it to one side then the other.

The other night while watching the Stanley Cup finals I was really getting into it. One team was dominating while the other seemed all but surely to lose. Yet, the team on their heels prevailed and won the game. What made me really excited about the game was not the fact of who won or lost but the amazing action going from end to end.

This level of excitement made me think about my own business and what we have to offer and of course the changes that are in the pipeline to make our website even better. Like I do for hockey, I truly have a passion for what we offer now and what we will be offering in the future. Do you have that same passion in your business?

From the research I conducted and other successful business owners that I have talked to, one thing remains constant. That common denominator is not the fact that they had tons of experience in what they do, as most do not, but that they had a passion for what they do.

You can see the excitement in their faces and hear the enthusiasm in their voices any time they talk about the company they own and the products they sell. Because they have such excitement and enthusiasm you get the sense that they would go to the ends of the earth for you so that the products they sell to you would make you just as happy as they are.

Whatever it is you do, whether it is selling products or providing a service, you need to give off that outward bound sense of joy and happiness as mentioned above. When people see how excited you are about what you are offering, it draws them to want to do business with you. Chances are if they are happy doing business with you, then the people they tell will also be happy.

I am sure you have seen it before. You go into a store or call a business on the phone and it looks and sounds as if they would rather be sleeping in bed then helping you in regards to information about what they sell or provide. Do not be that type of business.

If what you are doing right now does not get you excited, find something that does. Develop that into a business and get moving. A wise person once said, "Do what you love and success will follow." That could not be truer.

By: Bruce A. Tucker

About the Author:
Mr. Tucker is the Associate Director of http://www.Indocquent.com, an online resource and social network, where you can advertise your business, products or services without pay-per-click prices or auction fees.

Download Indocquent`s free social bookmark utility for your website or blog by Clicking here

Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource where you can promote your business, products and services around the world.

Criticism Could Be Your Key To A Better Business Plan

 Subscribe in a reader

I was watching a recent episode of CNBC's "The Big Idea". I really like the show as they always have a lot of inspirational and educational leaders from the business community. Hosted by Danny Deutsch, they do their best to provide a variety of differing personalities in regards to how you can succeed in business.

In the episode that I am referring to, they talked a lot about criticism and help from others. What they specifically were referring to is trying to get the points across that if you are an aspiring business person or entrepreneur, do not be afraid to seek help.

I have learned this in my own business. As with all businesses, I developed a business plan. I developed a model by which my company would run, how it would run, how it would profit and so on. After I finalized the plan I really wanted to know if my business plan was viable. In other words, is it realistic and are the numbers accurate or did I make a mistake with them just to appease myself with what I wanted to see.

So how did I finally realize my plan was a good one? Very simple, I obtained some help in the form of business critics. I contacted various members of S.C.O.R.E., the counselors to America's Small business. I contacted the specific members in my area who were experts and knowledgeable about business plans. I asked them if they would review my plan to make sure I covered all of the bases, and that the numbers were somewhat realistic.

In all I contacted about 50 members, of which, about 40 of them agreed to look it over, with the other 10 not being able to, due to either time constraints or they did not have the expertise in my area of business. What came next was a flood of valuable information that helped me enhance my plan.

I received phone calls and emails from all of the counselors with such criticism (both good and bad) that it propelled me to make changes and fine tune the plan. I was told to do more research on my marketing techniques and be descriptive, up through, how I needed to outline a more decisive exit strategy.

Historically speaking, I have never been one to take such criticisms. As a former software engineer, to be told what you are doing is wrong, or won't work, doesn't sit well with most people who have developed software for a living. Those in the same line of work know what I mean.

What I found from all of this criticism was such a great wealth of knowledge, that it helped me fine tune the plan, make it better, and have me realize that, yes, others do know more than me and are willing to share that knowledge.

If you are an aspiring entrepreneur or are already in business, and you need to find some ways to increase sales, employee productivity or a number of other things, get the help of those in business that are currently successful. Many times a set of eyes on something that are not emotionally attached to it will give you a more clear vision of where to go. Contact S.C.O.R.E. (www.score.org) counselors in your area. I know it helped me, and I am sure it will help you also.

By: Bruce A. Tucker

About the Author:
Mr. Tucker is the Associate Director of http://www.Indocquent.com, an online advertising and social network medium where you can promote your business, products or services without pay-per-click prices or auction fees.

Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource where you can promote your business, products and services around the world.