Small Business Blog

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In the article “Running Your Home Based Business – Marketing Your Business” we identified the four Ps of marketing – Product, Price, Promotion and Place and explored these different elements. Here, we are going to look in some more detail at Promotion. Most people think of promotion as advertising. Promotion is much more than this – it is about running all aspects of your business in a way that promotes your products and services. This includes your business cards, customer receipts, advertising, special offers, competitions and even your car.

Promotion can raise the profile of your business, and increase public awareness and knowledge of the products and services that you offer. Make a checklist of the advertising you have already done. This can include newspapers, Yellow Pages, local radio, and posters. Even if you have not thought much about promotion, you have probably thought about – even done- some advertising.   All of these can promote your business but they need to be used appropriately. Your promotion efforts must repay you or there is no point in doing them. They must be targeted at people who are, or may be, interested in your product or service.   Whatever media you choose to use, you have to be sure that the readers or listeners will want your product, can afford your product and can get to you to buy your product. Don’t advertise your massage therapy service in The Washington Post – it will not be cost effective. Posters are good at attracting trade to a local business but must be placed where your potential customers pass by.

Advertisements should always look professional, particularly when they will be compared with the adverts of your competitors. They should always have your business name, contact details and what you do. Typefaces and logos should be consistent with those on your headed paper, business cards, product leaflets and invoices and receipts.

It is important to be aware of the legal implications of any legislation governing advertising and selling. A general guide is that you must accurately describe the products and services you are selling and that they must be of suitable quality and be fit for the purpose for which they are sold. You may want to check with the local regulatory bodies about any restrictions that may apply to your particular home based business.

How can you improve on promoting your business? As mentioned earlier, promotion is more than just advertising in newspapers. Take a look at your stationery; ensure that your phone number is printed on all your stationery including receipts. A customer is likely to keep that for their records and therefore has something to refer to in the future. Including a promotional offer on the receipt – 5% off the purchase of specific products or services – can be another incentive for them to return or to recommend a friend.

Sending press releases to the local newspapers when you introduce a new range of products or a new service or doing anything newsworthy can be a great way to get free locally targeted publicity for your business. You can combine press releases about a new product or service with announcements of talks or demonstrations. These are effective ways of spreading the word to potential customers either directly or by word of mouth.   As you travel in your car, either on business or socially, you are driving free advertising space around the area where your customers live. Use it by getting car magnets, which have proved to be an effective method of advertising. Use smaller than usual sized car magnets that include the phrase, “Take Me Home” or something similar. Clothing is a great way to promote your business. Polo shirts printed with the business logo and phone number provide promotion and improve your professional presentation. Also, when you socialize, always carry some business cards with you as you may meet potential customers.

Always measure the effectiveness of promotions so that you know whether or not they are worth doing. Put a different reference code on each or your leaflets, adverts or posters for the customer to quote. If you change the text of any one of these, change the reference code. By doing this you are able to track which promotions work best.

Focus on low cost or free promotional opportunities. Any promotional activity, whether advertising, tee shirts or special offers must offer a product. All promotional activities should be cost effective and be tracked. Promoting your home based business will provide a great opportunity for you to be creative. So have fun with it.

What you have to remember when starting up your Ebay business is that it is no different from any other business venture. The business world is all about buying and selling and so is your Ebay project.  Conduct all your business transactions in a professional manner then you your product or service will be taken seriously.

Running a business is not as big a mission that people make it out to be.  However it can prove to be stressful at times – but you can change that by having an organised system. Organization should be one of the main priorities right from the start. Keeping on top is important – keep data up to date and file all files this will help your Ebay business to run smooth thus saving you time.

Most Ebay business`s are run from home so choose a room in the house that you can create as an office area to do business. An office type surrounding will encourage you more in your Ebay business.  Everyone has a business plan structured up so why not you – remember you are in business for yourself now.
Write your Ebay plan accordingly to comply with Ebay`s rules and regulations. Jot down your goals you expect to achieve – profits from sales or whatever comes to mind to claim success. Go research on how other Ebay sellers are successful in their business.

Another vital addition is to have an Ebay business checklist drawn up and easily at hand – list all that you would need to start up – like organizing your products for auction, this will include itemized tasks like the photo shoot, writing out a description for the sale item and remember to answer all emails – we are looking to run this Ebay business professionally and prompt replies to questions or queries is where you will gain respect from your customers. Respect can bring repeat orders.

The product or service you choose to sell in your Ebay business is entirely up to you but please do a little research on this matter – the reason being is the greater the need for a certain item then the more chance you have of a guaranteed sale.  Expenditure and costs should be limited at least till you have learnt a few tricks of the trade. Buying up front in large quantities is not a good idea – you maybe left with unwanted stock if the product you have chosen to sell for your Ebay business has a sell by date.

There should be no reason why your Ebay business can not be as successful just like the thousands of others who are making their fortune selling their wares.
In an Ebay business what are the tricks of the trade – how can you find out about the tricks of the trade – well let me tell you about a little trick picked up on the way and that is to learn from others. By doing this you can prevent yourself becoming involved in any tricky situations.

About Author: To know more about <strong><a rel=”nofollow” onclick=”javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(‘/outgoing/article_exit_link’);” href=”http://www.30minutebooks.com/effective-tax-planning.html”>tax planning books</a> </strong>and<strong> <a rel=”nofollow” onclick=”javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(‘/outgoing/article_exit_link’);” href=”http://www.30minutebooks.com/effective-tax-planning.html”>small business books</a>, </strong>visit  <a rel=”nofollow” onclick=”javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(‘/outgoing/article_exit_link’);” href=”http://www.30minutebooks.com/effective-tax-planning.html”>30minutes books</a>!Businesses, big or small are run with a profit motive. Small businesses are prone to face difficulties because of their size, as they are mostly dependant upon the attitude, skills and decision making powers of an individual. We can define a small business as a company that, according to the US norms, does not employ more than 100 people; typically privately held partnerships or corporations. To achieve profitability, the financial activities of the Small Business must be streamlined. Small business accounting should be entrusted to a competent person right from the start. A Certified Public Accountant well-versed with the bookkeeping methods best suited for Small Business is essential for running the business effectively and producing results. There are two types of Small Business Accounting– the Cash Basis Method and the Accrual Basis Method – and depending upon the nature of Small Business, the selection of either one can be adopted.  For example most service businesses operate on the simple Cash Basis Method and most manufacturing businesses involving Inventory Control and Accounts Receivable use the Accrual Method. Small business tax planning is a year-round exercise, with the object of eliminating or reducing the taxes. Broadly, Small Business tax planning has 6 goals – reducing the amount of taxable income; reducing the tax rate; controlling the time when the tax must be paid; claiming any available tax credits; controlling the effects of the Alternative Minimum Tax and avoiding the most common tax planning mistakes. The tax planning strategies for Small Businesses are countless. They cannot be fixed into a particular frame and the owner’s prudence is the key to devise a strategy most suited for that particular Small Business. It is essential that the small business owner estimates his personal and business income for the next few years for tax planning purposes. Some tax planning strategies may save tax dollars at one income level, but will end up producing a larger tax bill at another level. The same holds true time-wise, a dollar of tax saved this year could create a two dollar tax bill next year. So it is necessary to plan the tax liability that may accrue over the next few years. Tto achieve success with your tax planning strategy, the projection of sales revenue, income and cash flow are necessary to be as accurate as possible at all times. As for Small Business Taxes, the Tax Law is complex. The tax code contains more than 14,000 pages. As such, only a professional consultant can guide you through the intricacies involved in preparing your Small Business Tax Return in order to minimize the tax burden at the end of the financial year.