How to Win the Advertising and Promotion Game Copyright © Stone Evans, The Home Biz Guy
Eight Star Diamond Factory
I am certain that, as a business owner, you have often entertained the question as to how much to spend and where to spend your advertising dollars. For most small business owners, these questions can add to the headaches suffered in the course of normal everyday operations of their business.
THERE ARE NO SIMPLE ANSWERS
The how much to spend and where to spend it questions have no easy answers.
Depending on your type of business, many people suggest that the *how much* should be equal to anywhere from 4% to 10% of your gross receipts.
The quandary is that a business cannot survive without a fresh flow of incoming customers. But, a business can seldom generate a fresh stream of customers without spending money to get the word out about their business.
THE CHALLENGE OF DEVELOPING EFFECTIVE ADVERTISING
Have you ever paid for advertising and sat back to await the fresh flow of customers, only to find yourself sitting and sitting and then sitting some more?
Don't feel bad about that. It has happened to many of us before.
See, knowing where to spend the advertising money is not enough to get the job done.
Where to spend the money only begins to highlight the other issues connected with advertising:
· Marketing Plan
· Advertising Strategy
· Headlines, Ad Copy and Visual Presentation · Tracking the Success of Your Advertising Campaigns
THE MARKETING PLAN
The Marketing Plan is used primarily to identify your own products and services, costs, strengths, weaknesses and the strengths and weaknesses of your competitors.
ADVERTISING STRATEGY
It is important to understand what you expect to gain from your advertising.
Do you simply wish to get your name known so that when your customer will need you, they will think of you first? Or, do you wish to get your customers in your front door on Saturday?
Do you want your customers to come in and take a look around to discover the next object that they cannot live without? Or, do you want them to come in and buy a specific widget?
Do you hope that enough people will come in to buy enough products or services to pay for your single ad? Or, do you expect to gain a lifelong customer who will help pay for your advertising over the course of several years?
When you know what you want, then you will better understand just how to do it.
HEADLINES, AD COPY AND VISUAL PRESENTATION
You might be surprised how many business owners put out advertising without regard for the quality of the sales pitch or presentation. The quality of your distribution outlet or the amount of money you spent to get there will do little for you if the advertising vehicle is a junker.
Test all of your advertising materials in smaller markets before blowing your advertising bank roll on it. You must absolutely know the value of your advertising before putting large sums of money behind it.
TRACKING THE SUCCESS OF YOUR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS
Tell your customers to save another 10% when they tell you they heard or saw your ad in such-and-such location. Suggest that they can register to win a free widget if they fill out a form and have them to tell you how they heard of your business.
Advertise a specific widget in your ad and track the sales of that widget.
It does not matter how you track your advertising --- just make sure you do it!
IN SUMMARY
The ideal way to spend your advertising budget is to buy a rifle with a high-powered scope and to only shoot your targets in the light of day.
If you are not tracking your advertising, then you are shooting a pellet gun without an attached scope, with blinders on, and shooting in the dead darkness of night.
Even with a bigger gun, the blinders in the dark constitute the single largest mistake made by advertisers. If you are unable to track your advertising to learn what is working well, what is working somewhat, and what is a money pit, then you are condemned to repeat your mistakes over and again.
By relying only on gut instinct, you may be choosing to spend more money in the money pit and to lose all of your money in the process.
When you get down to the nuts and bolts of making money from your advertising, you should plan, prepare, track and study your results. You must have factual information on which to base your advertising decisions. When you are making the right advertising decisions, then making money from your business might just come easy.
About the Author:
------------------------------------------------------------
Stone Evans helps ordinary people all over the world make money online with affiliate programs. If you can follow 3 easy steps, you can get your own customized website, autoresponder (email follow-up software) and pre-written email marketing campaign professionally designed and installed and ready to pull in profits for you in 24 hours or less! See details at and sign up today at:
Eight Star Diamond Factory
------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Beginning of a Home Business
Beginning of a Home Business
Copyright © DeShawn Ducksworth
http://www.HawaiiBeachBodies.com
I stumbled upon affiliate marketing while looking for a way out. I no longer wanted to spend time away from my family. You see I am in the United States Navy. I work a minimum of 10 hours per day on base and 14 hours plus at sea. I deploy to combat operations 6 to 10 months each year. Having a wife, 4 kids and 1 on the way inclined me to the conclusion that I wanted to start a home business. Missing out on so much of their lives is the key factor. Getting deployed to Kuwait with the possibility of not coming back to my babies was not an option I wanted to consider. So I went to Google and the search began. I was determined to work from home.
I found a program that paid per lead. Not having any experience, I thought I had the next best thing since sliced bread. Depressing to say I was very wrong. I made money, but I could have made so much more if I would have educated myself before jumping into the first thing coming. I was generating leads and only getting paid once per sign up. Wow, talking about a wasted couple of thousand people!
After a few weeks of trying to optimize my income I discovered “residual” pay. After knocking myself in the head a couple times, I began to read on this method of affiliate programs. You will not believe this! Instead of only getting paid once per lead, you get paid indefinitely as long as your lead stays on the team. Imagine getting paid each month from the 1000+ that you sign up vs. just once.
Now imagine taking that same 1000+ and signing them up in multiple affiliate programs. You have just created multiple streams of income. If one program is slow or fails to supply, then you will have other profitable markets to cushion you check book.
Include a strong marketing campaign and you will have “Income on Autopilot”. It is like maintaining a well oiled machine. That machine requires little maintenance at all. You can monitor your site a few hours a week from home. Now you work at home and have as much time as you like with your family.
Growing my own home business with children around, definitely appeals to me more than spending countless hours away from home. What would you choose? Consider a few months per year or never seeing them again vs. writing articles in your bedroom with the one year old in your lap. Not a difficult decision is it? Start your own home business. You deserve it!
About the Author:
-----------------------------------------------------------------
To find the best home based business idea and
opportunity so you can work at home visit:
Independent Beachbody Coach
-----------------------------------------------------------------
* You have permission to re-print this article on your own website, newsletter or blog as long as you leave it intact including the full text and "About the Author" box. Thanks!
Copyright © DeShawn Ducksworth
http://www.HawaiiBeachBodies.com
I stumbled upon affiliate marketing while looking for a way out. I no longer wanted to spend time away from my family. You see I am in the United States Navy. I work a minimum of 10 hours per day on base and 14 hours plus at sea. I deploy to combat operations 6 to 10 months each year. Having a wife, 4 kids and 1 on the way inclined me to the conclusion that I wanted to start a home business. Missing out on so much of their lives is the key factor. Getting deployed to Kuwait with the possibility of not coming back to my babies was not an option I wanted to consider. So I went to Google and the search began. I was determined to work from home.
I found a program that paid per lead. Not having any experience, I thought I had the next best thing since sliced bread. Depressing to say I was very wrong. I made money, but I could have made so much more if I would have educated myself before jumping into the first thing coming. I was generating leads and only getting paid once per sign up. Wow, talking about a wasted couple of thousand people!
After a few weeks of trying to optimize my income I discovered “residual” pay. After knocking myself in the head a couple times, I began to read on this method of affiliate programs. You will not believe this! Instead of only getting paid once per lead, you get paid indefinitely as long as your lead stays on the team. Imagine getting paid each month from the 1000+ that you sign up vs. just once.
Now imagine taking that same 1000+ and signing them up in multiple affiliate programs. You have just created multiple streams of income. If one program is slow or fails to supply, then you will have other profitable markets to cushion you check book.
Include a strong marketing campaign and you will have “Income on Autopilot”. It is like maintaining a well oiled machine. That machine requires little maintenance at all. You can monitor your site a few hours a week from home. Now you work at home and have as much time as you like with your family.
Growing my own home business with children around, definitely appeals to me more than spending countless hours away from home. What would you choose? Consider a few months per year or never seeing them again vs. writing articles in your bedroom with the one year old in your lap. Not a difficult decision is it? Start your own home business. You deserve it!
About the Author:
-----------------------------------------------------------------
To find the best home based business idea and
opportunity so you can work at home visit:
Independent Beachbody Coach
-----------------------------------------------------------------
* You have permission to re-print this article on your own website, newsletter or blog as long as you leave it intact including the full text and "About the Author" box. Thanks!
Sunday, December 16, 2007
Children in the Home Business Environment
Children in the Home Business Environment Copyright © Stone Evans, The Home Biz Guy
http://www.PlugInProfitSite.com/main-20011
Operating a home business is seldom easy and interruptions come in all shapes, sizes and forms.
Between the family, friends and neighbors who call or come by, and the telemarketers who insist on ringing your number off the hook, getting through the workday can be a real challenge.
When you introduce children into the home office environment, your productivity and patience can be seriously tested.
For example, right now my three-year old daughter is pulling on my shirt and begging me to read her a story. Clearly, Im in the middle of something important here, but how can I say no to those eyes? Ill be right back...
Ok, that wasnt so bad was it? Shes happy, Im happy (having bonded with my daughter) and now Im back to continue my conversation with you :-) Whats the lesson here? Flexibility is a major key to balancing your home business priorities with your familys needs.
I can tell you from first-hand experience that maintaining a deep level of concentration on work in a home business for long periods of time is next to impossible. Naptime does offer some reprieve, but any break from the kids is usually short lived.
Even with older children, summertime introduces new challenges with kids running in and out of the house all throughout the day.
I would like to share with you some of the tips I have discovered to help manage your home office with children in your midst. Since children of different ages pose different challenges, I will present my tips in terms of age groups.
OLDER CHILDREN AND TEENS
We will look at older children first since they pose the least challenge to our work productivity.
Children, who are old enough to understand the idea of schedules and chores, are old enough to understand the needs of your home business. Explain to your children that you do your work at home so that you can be near them when they need you. But also be sure they understand that you must do your work so that you will have the money necessary to keep your house, feed the family and to provide them with money for entertainment.
Once your children understand the necessity of your work, then outline a work schedule and explain it to them. Do make sure they understand that emergencies are definitely an acceptable reason to interrupt your work. Then make sure they understand that between hours x and y, you will be doing work --- and then hold them to respecting your schedule.
INFANTS
Infants will never understand your needs for work. But fortunately, babies do well under a schedule or routine. Instead of expecting your child to work around your schedule, schedule your work around the needs of your baby.
It is simple. Babies eat, sleep and poop. Sometimes they play.
Fortunately, babies sleep more than they do anything else.
Naptime offers the best advantage for getting your work done.
Get your baby into a routine of eat, sleep and play, and you will experience unexpected levels of productivity.
TODDLERS
If you have a toddler running around the house while you are operating your home business, then you may find that your hair turning gray or disappearing altogether. But, gray hair is a sign of character, right. ;-)
I am venturing to guess that the person who devised the door lock for the inside of the house did so because he had toddlers in his own home. Inside door locks should only be utilized when you are making that important phone call and your toddler is screaming for your attention. At all other times, your door should remain unlocked with your door open.
Develop a routine with your children for meal times, naptimes, and play times. Work these times into your work schedule and adhere to them. If you fail to keep appointments with your children, your children will have less respect for your work and do more to prevent you from the completion of your work.
Don`t be afraid to let your children sit in your lap while you are working. It helps them to feel wanted and it helps them to be a part of your daily life. There are times when it is okay for them to be sitting in your lap while you work, and at other times you need them out of your lap. Don`t be afraid to tell them to get down and go play or read a book so that you can resume your work.
Permit your children to have their toys in your office. Often they will sit contently and play while you work. Just knowing you are near is enough to keep them happy.
Be prepared to take an hourly break to deal with your toddler.
Try to do potty breaks at your hourly break and to do drink refills. This can help your child grow into a routine that will work well with your home business. At each break, spend a few minutes with your child giving hugs and kisses and talking with your child about what he or she wants to talk about.
Toddlers don`t always do well with the routine, so be prepared to take a few minutes when needed to give the attention that your child so desperately needs in the moment.
IN CONCLUSION
I hope these tips serve to help you in the challenge of operating a successful home business.
My home business permits me to fulfill my financial obligations
*AND* see my children grow up. I would never contemplate trading my home business for another kind of business. Even with the added challenges of dealing with toddlers in my home office, the upsides far outweigh the downsides.
Growing my own home business with children around has definitely given me a new respect for all people who successfully run a home business with kids in the work environment. I tip my hat to you... You deserve it!
About the Author:
------------------------------------------------------------
Stone Evans helps ordinary people all over the world make money online with affiliate programs. If you can follow 3 easy steps, you can get your own customized website, autoresponder (email follow-up software) and pre-written email marketing campaign professionally designed and installed and ready to pull in profits for you in 24 hours or less! See details at and sign up today at:
http://www.PlugInProfitSite.com/main-20011
------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.PlugInProfitSite.com/main-20011
Operating a home business is seldom easy and interruptions come in all shapes, sizes and forms.
Between the family, friends and neighbors who call or come by, and the telemarketers who insist on ringing your number off the hook, getting through the workday can be a real challenge.
When you introduce children into the home office environment, your productivity and patience can be seriously tested.
For example, right now my three-year old daughter is pulling on my shirt and begging me to read her a story. Clearly, Im in the middle of something important here, but how can I say no to those eyes? Ill be right back...
Ok, that wasnt so bad was it? Shes happy, Im happy (having bonded with my daughter) and now Im back to continue my conversation with you :-) Whats the lesson here? Flexibility is a major key to balancing your home business priorities with your familys needs.
I can tell you from first-hand experience that maintaining a deep level of concentration on work in a home business for long periods of time is next to impossible. Naptime does offer some reprieve, but any break from the kids is usually short lived.
Even with older children, summertime introduces new challenges with kids running in and out of the house all throughout the day.
I would like to share with you some of the tips I have discovered to help manage your home office with children in your midst. Since children of different ages pose different challenges, I will present my tips in terms of age groups.
OLDER CHILDREN AND TEENS
We will look at older children first since they pose the least challenge to our work productivity.
Children, who are old enough to understand the idea of schedules and chores, are old enough to understand the needs of your home business. Explain to your children that you do your work at home so that you can be near them when they need you. But also be sure they understand that you must do your work so that you will have the money necessary to keep your house, feed the family and to provide them with money for entertainment.
Once your children understand the necessity of your work, then outline a work schedule and explain it to them. Do make sure they understand that emergencies are definitely an acceptable reason to interrupt your work. Then make sure they understand that between hours x and y, you will be doing work --- and then hold them to respecting your schedule.
INFANTS
Infants will never understand your needs for work. But fortunately, babies do well under a schedule or routine. Instead of expecting your child to work around your schedule, schedule your work around the needs of your baby.
It is simple. Babies eat, sleep and poop. Sometimes they play.
Fortunately, babies sleep more than they do anything else.
Naptime offers the best advantage for getting your work done.
Get your baby into a routine of eat, sleep and play, and you will experience unexpected levels of productivity.
TODDLERS
If you have a toddler running around the house while you are operating your home business, then you may find that your hair turning gray or disappearing altogether. But, gray hair is a sign of character, right. ;-)
I am venturing to guess that the person who devised the door lock for the inside of the house did so because he had toddlers in his own home. Inside door locks should only be utilized when you are making that important phone call and your toddler is screaming for your attention. At all other times, your door should remain unlocked with your door open.
Develop a routine with your children for meal times, naptimes, and play times. Work these times into your work schedule and adhere to them. If you fail to keep appointments with your children, your children will have less respect for your work and do more to prevent you from the completion of your work.
Don`t be afraid to let your children sit in your lap while you are working. It helps them to feel wanted and it helps them to be a part of your daily life. There are times when it is okay for them to be sitting in your lap while you work, and at other times you need them out of your lap. Don`t be afraid to tell them to get down and go play or read a book so that you can resume your work.
Permit your children to have their toys in your office. Often they will sit contently and play while you work. Just knowing you are near is enough to keep them happy.
Be prepared to take an hourly break to deal with your toddler.
Try to do potty breaks at your hourly break and to do drink refills. This can help your child grow into a routine that will work well with your home business. At each break, spend a few minutes with your child giving hugs and kisses and talking with your child about what he or she wants to talk about.
Toddlers don`t always do well with the routine, so be prepared to take a few minutes when needed to give the attention that your child so desperately needs in the moment.
IN CONCLUSION
I hope these tips serve to help you in the challenge of operating a successful home business.
My home business permits me to fulfill my financial obligations
*AND* see my children grow up. I would never contemplate trading my home business for another kind of business. Even with the added challenges of dealing with toddlers in my home office, the upsides far outweigh the downsides.
Growing my own home business with children around has definitely given me a new respect for all people who successfully run a home business with kids in the work environment. I tip my hat to you... You deserve it!
About the Author:
------------------------------------------------------------
Stone Evans helps ordinary people all over the world make money online with affiliate programs. If you can follow 3 easy steps, you can get your own customized website, autoresponder (email follow-up software) and pre-written email marketing campaign professionally designed and installed and ready to pull in profits for you in 24 hours or less! See details at and sign up today at:
http://www.PlugInProfitSite.com/main-20011
------------------------------------------------------------
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Your Home Business: Turning Pennies into Dollars
Your Home Business: Turning Pennies into Dollars Copyright © Stone Evans, The Home Biz Guy
http://www.PlugInProfitSite.com/main-20011
Henry Ford taught us that to simplify the manufacture of automobiles, that the best way to do so was to install the assembly line. That one change revolutionized the auto manufacturing industry permitting the industry to build cars at a cost whereas the average person could afford to buy one.
The lesson we should take from this is that having the ability to improve the process of getting the job quicker and cheaper, without compromising the quality of the job being done, will help catapult the person who simplified the process to the top of his/her field.
Pennies saved in your home business can turn into dollars at the end of the day, and dollars can quickly multiply into hundreds or thousands of dollars over time.
Doubt me if you will, but let me ask you a question. Do you think a saving of two fifths of a penny could make any real difference in the profit margin of a home business? Of course the right answer is "it depends on how many transactions are done in a year, utilizing the savings of the two fifths of one penny."
You only have to think back a couple of decades to really appreciate this question. Do you remember the nut that lived and died in a Las Vegas hotel room? You know the one who was a billionaire, and was so worried about germs that he died of starvation? If you guessed Howard Hughes (1905-76), pat yourself on the back.
Now Howard did not make all of his money on his two fifths of one penny. He did however make a ton of money from his two fifths of one penny. It seems Howard owned a can manufacturing company. And one day, Howard`s team figured out how they could make one minor change in the design of their food can to reduce the amount of tin necessary to make a single can.
As the story goes --- if my memory serves me correctly --- the reduction in tin usage equaled a saving of two fifths of one penny per can. Howard --- being the really smart businessman that he was --- decided that he would not be so greedy as to keep all of the savings for himself. What Mr. Hughes did do was to keep half of the savings for himself, and give the other half to his customers. The incredible thing about Mr. Hughes decision is that by saving his customers an extra one fifths of one cent per can, he managed to take more market share away from his competition --- netting his company an additional and substantial portion of the total market share in the canning industry.
Let us return our thoughts to your home business. Have you ever gotten the feeling of excitement --- when you read something or thought of something --- that you could not wait to implement this new idea? This could be one of those moments...
In every home business, there are certain processes that we do over and again. Sometimes it may be possible to trim the time or expense of a process which in turn will add pennies or dollars to your bottom line. If it is a process that you do hundreds or thousands of times per month, then your savings will multiply into hundreds or thousands of dollars in monthly savings.
Imagine what running a home business was like BEFORE the computer...
Before the personal computer, we had to hand type all letters and invoices. Now, we can setup a letter or invoice that we send out quite often, and we can save it in our word processor so that when we need to use it again, we can print it quickly and efficiently. There is no longer a need to type the document again from scratch.
The computer has simplified our business communications and has provided us the opportunity to reduce our costs of doing business.
Think about all of the other processes that the computer has enabled us to do for far less expense than what we could in the past.
In this case, the computer is a tool that permits us to save time and money.
So, my challenge to you is to begin examining the processes in your own home business and look for ways in which you can save yourself time and money. It is far better for you to contemplate on this matter than it is for me to do so for you. Simply put, you know your business better than anyone on the planet does.
Therefore, you are in a better position than anyone to find those extra dollars that will decrease your costs and increase your profits.
The extra pennies and dollars you could extract from your business could spell the difference between success and failure for your home business enterprise.
About the Author:
------------------------------------------------------------
Stone Evans helps ordinary people all over the world make money online with affiliate programs. If you can follow 3 easy steps, you can get your own customized website, autoresponder (email follow-up software) and pre-written email marketing campaign professionally designed and installed and ready to pull in profits for you in 24 hours or less! See details at and sign up today at:
http://www.PlugInProfitSite.com/main-20011
------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.PlugInProfitSite.com/main-20011
Henry Ford taught us that to simplify the manufacture of automobiles, that the best way to do so was to install the assembly line. That one change revolutionized the auto manufacturing industry permitting the industry to build cars at a cost whereas the average person could afford to buy one.
The lesson we should take from this is that having the ability to improve the process of getting the job quicker and cheaper, without compromising the quality of the job being done, will help catapult the person who simplified the process to the top of his/her field.
Pennies saved in your home business can turn into dollars at the end of the day, and dollars can quickly multiply into hundreds or thousands of dollars over time.
Doubt me if you will, but let me ask you a question. Do you think a saving of two fifths of a penny could make any real difference in the profit margin of a home business? Of course the right answer is "it depends on how many transactions are done in a year, utilizing the savings of the two fifths of one penny."
You only have to think back a couple of decades to really appreciate this question. Do you remember the nut that lived and died in a Las Vegas hotel room? You know the one who was a billionaire, and was so worried about germs that he died of starvation? If you guessed Howard Hughes (1905-76), pat yourself on the back.
Now Howard did not make all of his money on his two fifths of one penny. He did however make a ton of money from his two fifths of one penny. It seems Howard owned a can manufacturing company. And one day, Howard`s team figured out how they could make one minor change in the design of their food can to reduce the amount of tin necessary to make a single can.
As the story goes --- if my memory serves me correctly --- the reduction in tin usage equaled a saving of two fifths of one penny per can. Howard --- being the really smart businessman that he was --- decided that he would not be so greedy as to keep all of the savings for himself. What Mr. Hughes did do was to keep half of the savings for himself, and give the other half to his customers. The incredible thing about Mr. Hughes decision is that by saving his customers an extra one fifths of one cent per can, he managed to take more market share away from his competition --- netting his company an additional and substantial portion of the total market share in the canning industry.
Let us return our thoughts to your home business. Have you ever gotten the feeling of excitement --- when you read something or thought of something --- that you could not wait to implement this new idea? This could be one of those moments...
In every home business, there are certain processes that we do over and again. Sometimes it may be possible to trim the time or expense of a process which in turn will add pennies or dollars to your bottom line. If it is a process that you do hundreds or thousands of times per month, then your savings will multiply into hundreds or thousands of dollars in monthly savings.
Imagine what running a home business was like BEFORE the computer...
Before the personal computer, we had to hand type all letters and invoices. Now, we can setup a letter or invoice that we send out quite often, and we can save it in our word processor so that when we need to use it again, we can print it quickly and efficiently. There is no longer a need to type the document again from scratch.
The computer has simplified our business communications and has provided us the opportunity to reduce our costs of doing business.
Think about all of the other processes that the computer has enabled us to do for far less expense than what we could in the past.
In this case, the computer is a tool that permits us to save time and money.
So, my challenge to you is to begin examining the processes in your own home business and look for ways in which you can save yourself time and money. It is far better for you to contemplate on this matter than it is for me to do so for you. Simply put, you know your business better than anyone on the planet does.
Therefore, you are in a better position than anyone to find those extra dollars that will decrease your costs and increase your profits.
The extra pennies and dollars you could extract from your business could spell the difference between success and failure for your home business enterprise.
About the Author:
------------------------------------------------------------
Stone Evans helps ordinary people all over the world make money online with affiliate programs. If you can follow 3 easy steps, you can get your own customized website, autoresponder (email follow-up software) and pre-written email marketing campaign professionally designed and installed and ready to pull in profits for you in 24 hours or less! See details at and sign up today at:
http://www.PlugInProfitSite.com/main-20011
------------------------------------------------------------
Monday, December 10, 2007
How to Stay Focused on Your Home Business Goals
How to Stay Focused on Your Home Business Goals Copyright © Stone Evans, The Home Biz Guy
http://www.PlugInProfitSite.com/main-20011
When you are the owner of a home business, you will find hundreds of distractions that vie for your time, energy and focus.
Common distractions include: children, family, friends, neighbors, pets, phone calls, mail, household chores, video games, television, neighborhood children, visitors, and so many more.
As an owner of a home based business, you must always remember your purpose in bringing your profession home. What was your reason for wanting to own a home business? Was your goal to work from home so that you can share in the lives of your children?
Was your goal to be out from under the rule of a tyrannical boss? Was your goal to have the freedom to work when it is convenient for you? Was your goal to make tons of money working for yourself?
Here`s a few good tips that will help you stay focused on your home business:
TIP #1:
Whatever your reason for going out on your own, you must keep your reason in the forefront of your mind. If you forget your reason for starting your own home business, you will not be working for yourself for long. It is far too easy to let circumstance drive your activities --- and when circumstance is in the driver`s seat, you are more likely to crash and burn.
TIP #2:
Remember --- your own business is a lot like a real job. Some people go to work to play, some go to socialize, and others --- most often those who are paid in a commission or tip environment
--- go to work to work and to make money. When you work for yourself, your salary is directly proportional to your productivity. Therefore, wouldn`t it make sense to stay focused on getting as much done in as short of a period as possible?
Go to work to work and to make money. Leave playtime and recreation for when your workday has ended.
TIP #3:
When you are dealing with family in the course of your workday, it is important to schedule your activities as much as possible.
With small children, you must take time when you must, but you should also work hard to make sure you dedicate a specific number of hours to your workday.
With older children, it is much easier to tell them that you will be working between the hours of x and y. Your children and your friends must understand that certain hours of your day are devoted to the activities of your business.
TIP #4:
Don`t permit your friends and extended family to run over you.
Many people get the blind idea that if one works from home then they are not actually working.
Well-meaning people may try to fill your doorway to bring advice about getting a real job. Others may simply believe that if you are at home, then you are fair game for chitchat and socialization.
You must stand firm. You must make certain your friends and family understands that when you are working, then you ARE working! If they wish to socialize with you, then they need to do it during the hours that are not dedicated to your home business.
You are the only one who can stand up for you. Your friends and family will seldom be able to appreciate your dedication to your home business, unless you make the effort to make sure that they have the same respect for your business that you do.
TIP #5:
You should allot a certain portion of your day to email and to regular mail. For example, allot one hour in the morning and one hour in the afternoon to handling your written communications.
Unless you dedicate certain times to the handling of these communications, you will soon find yourself on the downward slope of decreased productivity.
TIP #6:
When you find yourself spending too much time doing non-productive activities, then you should seriously consider finding a third-party service provider who will assist you in those non-profitable business activities.
As an example, you might be in the mail-order business. You might believe that your time is best spent writing ad copy and setting up your advertising, but you find yourself spending far too much time taking care of your books to take care of your advertising in the manner that you should. In this event, it might make more sense to hire a bookkeeper to handle your financial records for you.
CONCLUSION:
In the end, the success of your home business is entirely and completely reliant upon you and the decisions that you make.
You had your reasons for deciding to start your own home based business. You must always keep your reasons in the forefront of your mind. You must always be able to rely upon your own self and your dedication to the success of your business.
Your friends and family might be annoyed that they cannot come visit upon their own whim, but when success comes to you and your business, they will better appreciate you for putting your foot down when necessary.
Success is within your reach, if only you can stay focused on your goals. You must decide to reach for your goals, and then, you must have the discipline necessary to reach them.
About the Author:
------------------------------------------------------------
Stone Evans helps ordinary people all over the world make money online with affiliate programs. If you can follow 3 easy steps, you can get your own customized website, autoresponder (email follow-up software) and pre-written email marketing campaign professionally designed and installed and ready to pull in profits for you in 24 hours or less! See details at and sign up today at:
http://www.PlugInProfitSite.com/main-20011
------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.PlugInProfitSite.com/main-20011
When you are the owner of a home business, you will find hundreds of distractions that vie for your time, energy and focus.
Common distractions include: children, family, friends, neighbors, pets, phone calls, mail, household chores, video games, television, neighborhood children, visitors, and so many more.
As an owner of a home based business, you must always remember your purpose in bringing your profession home. What was your reason for wanting to own a home business? Was your goal to work from home so that you can share in the lives of your children?
Was your goal to be out from under the rule of a tyrannical boss? Was your goal to have the freedom to work when it is convenient for you? Was your goal to make tons of money working for yourself?
Here`s a few good tips that will help you stay focused on your home business:
TIP #1:
Whatever your reason for going out on your own, you must keep your reason in the forefront of your mind. If you forget your reason for starting your own home business, you will not be working for yourself for long. It is far too easy to let circumstance drive your activities --- and when circumstance is in the driver`s seat, you are more likely to crash and burn.
TIP #2:
Remember --- your own business is a lot like a real job. Some people go to work to play, some go to socialize, and others --- most often those who are paid in a commission or tip environment
--- go to work to work and to make money. When you work for yourself, your salary is directly proportional to your productivity. Therefore, wouldn`t it make sense to stay focused on getting as much done in as short of a period as possible?
Go to work to work and to make money. Leave playtime and recreation for when your workday has ended.
TIP #3:
When you are dealing with family in the course of your workday, it is important to schedule your activities as much as possible.
With small children, you must take time when you must, but you should also work hard to make sure you dedicate a specific number of hours to your workday.
With older children, it is much easier to tell them that you will be working between the hours of x and y. Your children and your friends must understand that certain hours of your day are devoted to the activities of your business.
TIP #4:
Don`t permit your friends and extended family to run over you.
Many people get the blind idea that if one works from home then they are not actually working.
Well-meaning people may try to fill your doorway to bring advice about getting a real job. Others may simply believe that if you are at home, then you are fair game for chitchat and socialization.
You must stand firm. You must make certain your friends and family understands that when you are working, then you ARE working! If they wish to socialize with you, then they need to do it during the hours that are not dedicated to your home business.
You are the only one who can stand up for you. Your friends and family will seldom be able to appreciate your dedication to your home business, unless you make the effort to make sure that they have the same respect for your business that you do.
TIP #5:
You should allot a certain portion of your day to email and to regular mail. For example, allot one hour in the morning and one hour in the afternoon to handling your written communications.
Unless you dedicate certain times to the handling of these communications, you will soon find yourself on the downward slope of decreased productivity.
TIP #6:
When you find yourself spending too much time doing non-productive activities, then you should seriously consider finding a third-party service provider who will assist you in those non-profitable business activities.
As an example, you might be in the mail-order business. You might believe that your time is best spent writing ad copy and setting up your advertising, but you find yourself spending far too much time taking care of your books to take care of your advertising in the manner that you should. In this event, it might make more sense to hire a bookkeeper to handle your financial records for you.
CONCLUSION:
In the end, the success of your home business is entirely and completely reliant upon you and the decisions that you make.
You had your reasons for deciding to start your own home based business. You must always keep your reasons in the forefront of your mind. You must always be able to rely upon your own self and your dedication to the success of your business.
Your friends and family might be annoyed that they cannot come visit upon their own whim, but when success comes to you and your business, they will better appreciate you for putting your foot down when necessary.
Success is within your reach, if only you can stay focused on your goals. You must decide to reach for your goals, and then, you must have the discipline necessary to reach them.
About the Author:
------------------------------------------------------------
Stone Evans helps ordinary people all over the world make money online with affiliate programs. If you can follow 3 easy steps, you can get your own customized website, autoresponder (email follow-up software) and pre-written email marketing campaign professionally designed and installed and ready to pull in profits for you in 24 hours or less! See details at and sign up today at:
http://www.PlugInProfitSite.com/main-20011
------------------------------------------------------------
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)