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How to Start a Home Based Business

June 14th, 2009 |

Author: Nancy

Starting a new business is scary, exhilarating, challenging and at times downright confusing. It’s easy to get overwhelmed by the huge number of tasks in front of you. When you get in that state, step back and think, “What can I do today that will get my message in front of my customers?” If you’re thinking about this all the time, the other details will fall into place.

The first thing you need to do is decide on the goals for your business. What do you personally want to get out of it? How many hours do you want to work? How many employees do you want to have? How much money do you want to make? The idea here is to get as clear a vision as possible of what your business will look like when it is established so you’ll know what needs to be done to get there. For a very clear step-by-step method to do this, I highly recommend a program called E-Myth.

Next, do the math. So many people-including me-have learned the hard way that the business they created is not capable of meeting the goals they set for themselves. To help avoid this problem, do some market research to determine how much you’ll be able to charge for your product or service and what volume you’ll be able to sell. Think about how many hours you’ll be able to work in a day and get a rough idea of the maximum amount you could make. Once you have rough estimates for those figures, you can decide if the money you could make or the time you need to put in will be worth the effort. You’d be surprised at how many people spend years working in a business that is just not capable of becoming what they hoped it would, even if everything went perfectly.

Many new entrepreneurs think success is all about developing a great product or service, but actually it’s all about selling it. Before you spend tons of time and money developing your product, make a prototype or develop a clear and concise description of what it will be, and do some market research. Figure out who your prospective customers will be, and go talk to them! Ask questions. Find out what they’ll pay. Consider their feedback and modify your design accordingly. Look at other companies that are selling similar products or services. Find out what they charge, how they market and what their competitive advantage is. Go into their stores and watch their customers. Find out what they are doing and why, and how customers respond. Once you think you have a clear understanding of what the market wants, then move ahead with your product or develop your service.

You’ll also need to decide what kind of company structure will best fit your plans (S Corp., LLC, sole proprietorship and so on). These three articles will provide you with more information on the following topics: Reasons to incorporate, Inc. vs. LLC and LLC basics.

If possible, work out of your home for awhile or rent the minimum space and equipment necessary to run your business. It’s important to keep your overhead as low as possible, at least until things start to take off. Resist the temptation to rent a nice office and fill it with furniture and equipment. I used to think that was impressive, but I came to realize it was just expensive.

Daegan Smith is the Ex-NCAA Wrestler Turned Webmaster of Perfect Home Based Business Opportunities – The Net’s Top Growing Source for Home Business Information. Webmasters & Web Publishers Make Money with our Free Home Business Content for Reprint at Free Web Site Content Read More…

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The Language of EBay

May 26th, 2009 |

Author: Nancy

Do you have trouble sometimes understanding when people talk about eBay? Don’t worry, some of the jargon is really obscure, and you can’t be expected to understand it until someone’s told you what it means. Here’s a little list of some of the most useful lingo to know, but you don’t need to memorise it – even the most common jargon is only used relatively rarely.

Commom EBay Words.

Bid: telling eBay’s system the maximum price you are prepared to pay for an item.
Dutch: an auction where more than one of an item is available.
Feedback: positive or negative comments left about other users on eBay.
Mint: in perfect condition.
Non-paying bidder: a bidder who wins an auction but does not then go on to buy the item.
PayPal: an electronic payment method accepted by most sellers.
Rare: used and abused on eBay, now entirely meaningless.
Reserve: the minimum price the seller will accept for the item.
Shill bid: a fake bid placed by a seller trying to drive up their auction’s price.
Snail Mail: the post, which is obviously very slow compared to email.
Sniping: bidding at the last second to win the item before anyone else can outbid you.

Common Abbreviations.

AUD: Australian Dollar. Currency.
BIN: Buy it Now. A fixed price auction.
BNWT: Brand New With Tags. An item that has never been used and still has its original tags.
BW: Black and White. Used for films, photos etc.
CONUS: Continental United States. Generally used by sellers who don’t want to post things to Alaska or Hawaii.
EUR: Euro. Currency.
FC: First Class. Type of postage.
GBP: Great British Pounds. Currency.
HTF: Hard To Find. Not quite as abused as ‘rare’, but getting there.
NIB: New in Box. Never opened, still in its original box.
NR: No Reserve. An item where the seller has not set a reserve price.
OB: Original Box. An item that has its original box (but might have been opened).
PM: Priority Mail.
PP: Parcel Post.
SH: Shipping and Handling. The fees the buyer will pay you for postage.
USD: United States Dollars. Currency.
VGC: Very Good Condition. Not mint, but close.

The chances are that you’ll find more specific jargon related to whatever you’re selling, but it’d be an impossible task to cover it all here. If you can’t figure one out from your knowledge of the subject, then type the term into a search engine, followed by the word ‘ebay’. The chances are that someone, somewhere will have seen fit to explain it.

While it’s good to be able to understand others’ jargon, avoid using it unless you really need to (for example, if you run out of space in an item’s title). Many people on eBay are not experienced buyers and you will lose them if you write a load of gibberish all over your auction.

By now, you’re well prepared for eBay life, and you’re probably ready to get started with that first auction. To learn more about selling on Ebay check out these programs:

Auction Freeway…the proven formula to help you make an extra $300-$500 from home! Get your FREE kit NOW!
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