A Bookkeeping System That Will Save You Money

One of the most important, least understood and appreciated aspects of any business, is its bookkeeping or accounting system. And, because very few people know much about the reasons for a bookkeeping system, most people are frightened by the thought of the work involved in setting up such a system, and the drudgery of daily maintenance.

There's really nothing complicated to bookkeeping - it's as sim§ple as keeping a daily diary and/or maintaining your personal checkbook. At the bottom line, it's simple a matter of recording your deposits - your incoming monies - and keeping a record of the money you spend.

So, the first thing you need to do is open a business account for your extra-income business or endeavors. Generally, this is simply a matter of asking the new accounts teller at a local bank for a business account registration card. Fill this card in, and with the small registration fee, send it in to the appropriate commissioner, and from there, open your new business account - complete with imprinted checks.

Drop by a local sxtationery store and pick up a loose leaf notebook, and a supply of paper. We've always picked up a supply of index tabs at the same time - either to separate the months or the accountability sections for each item we sell.

Assuming that you want to make it as simple as possible, while at the same time keeping it as efficient as is necessary - here's what you do and how you do it.

On the first page in your notebook, write on the top line and in the middle of the page: Monday, January 1st, 1994 or whatever day you officially start your business. Then, as your orders come in - if by mail, as you open your mail - jot down starting from the left side of page, the amount you received - dash - for what - from whom, and their address. The page might look like this:

Monday - January 5th, 2009

$3 - Tax-Saving Report - Jim Sloan, 97301
$6 - Tax-Saving & Dating Report - Steve Nelson, 30261
$3 - 5-Letters P/Day Report - Gloria Watson, 63222
$10 - Easy Money - Bob Elliott, 42134
$10 - How To Sell Books by Mail - Dave Sasseen, 11301
TOTAL INCOME: $3...EXPENSES: None

That's all there is to it, and emphatically, all it is to recording what you receive and what you spend.

The next entry, immediately under the first day's entry, might look like this:

Tuesday - January 6th, 2009

$60 - Deposit$11 - Check to Printer
$11 - Consulting Manual - H.P. Barnum, 33351
$3 - Tax-Saving Report - Rulon Collins, 21265
$3 - Seminar Promoter's Report, Kim Novak, 90631
$7 - H/B Business Ideas Report - Charles Johnson, 97620
$10 - Hong Kong Directory - Robert Carpenter, 89401
$2 - Money Getter's Guild Member - Glen Brinks, 83801
$15 - How To Steal $1,000,000 Free Publicity - Joe O'Malley, 77919
$20 - New Release Program - Nancy Hall, 82109
TOTAL INCOME: $7...+EXPENSES: $11...DEPOSIT: $60


And then, carry on with this recording of the money you deposit, receive and spend each day with similar entries for each day of the week - every day Monday through Saturday for each week. It's simple, uncomplicated, and a positive record of your business activity.

Then at the end of each month transfer this daily diary information to one of the low cost bookkeeping registers that your tax consultant or accountant can work from. These people won't work from your daily diary, and will not transfer the information you record in it to a formal bookkeeping register without charging you a small fortune. It's not that big of a job, and if you do it after the close of business on the last day of each month, it won't take you but just a very few minutes. Then, of course, when you're ready to file your taxes, you simply give your bookkeeping register to whoever is going to do your taxes, and you're home free.

The bookkeeping register you'll need can be any simple columnar notebook - we use an "Economic Register, Form RL-17" available in a number of different styles and sizes form Economic Systems - PO Box 11413 - Tacoma, WA 98411. All you really need is some sort of notebook with a number of columns marked off, a title written at the top of each column, and a record of the money received for each day relative to the product or service each column represents. Then at the end of each month, you can simply add the totals from each column and you'll instantly know how much money you took in form each of your offers.

Beyond the date column, will be your record of expenses or money spent. Again, you should title each of the columns you'll be entering figures into, and then record your expenditures for items falling into those categories. Then at the end of each month, it's a simple matter to add the totals from each column and know exactly where you stand relative to profit or loss - how much you took in compared to how much you spent.

Bookkeeping and/or accounting is very simple and should not scare you. Just keep it simple, and up-to-date.

How to Prepare aHow and Where To Get Money for A Franchise Idea... Part 5

One word of caution before you jump into any franchise purchase agreement: The price you pay to participate in a franchise operation is not always the total cost involved in getting the business off the ground. With some franchise operations, you may find other costs such as down payments on the purchase of property, building construction costs, remodeling or site improvements, equipment, fixtures, signs, advertising, and training.

Virtually all franchise deals require that in addition to the purchase price or the license fee of the franchise, you're required to give a certain percentage of your gross business income to the franchisor, plus extra payments for promotion and administrative costs.

Above all else, before you get involved in a franchise, or any business venture for that matter, make sure you've conducted a complete and thorough investigation of the opportunity presented. If it's a good deal, then go with it; but if you have any doubts or feel as though you're getting in over your head, back off and look around for something not quite so ambitious, or perhaps expensive.

There are a lot of good franchise opportunities, and some not so good. It's important that you be sure of what you're investing in, and that you can make money with it. From there, preparing the proper business plan and the necessary financing, while not
always a snap, can be done. Now's the time to do it! We wish you outstanding success with your franchise business.

Previous Articles:
How and Where To Get Money for A Franchise Idea... Part 1
How and Where To Get Money for A Franchise Idea... Part 2
How and Where To Get Money for A Franchise Idea... Part 3
How and Where To Get Money for A Franchise Idea... Part 4

How and Where To Get Money for A Franchise Idea... Part 4

Your best bet, in attempting to get a business loan from a bank, is to deal with commercial banks. These are the banks that specialize in investment loans for going businesses, real estate construction, and even venture programs. Look in the yellow pages
of your telephone or business directories; call and ask for an appointment with the manager; and then explore with him the possibilities of a loan for your project. One of the "nice things" about commercial banks is that even though they may not be able to approve a loan for your business ideas, they will almost always give you a list of names of business people who might be interested in looking over your proposal for investment purposes.
A lot of commercial banks stage investment lectures and seminars for the general public. If you find one that does, attend. You'll meet a lot of local business people, some of whom may be able to and interested in helping you with your business plans.

When you're looking for money to move on a business deal, it does not really matter where the money comes from, or how it all comes about. It's important that you get the money, and at terms that are suitable to you. Thus, don't overlook the possibilities
of an advertisement for a lender or investor in your local papers. Place your ad as well in national publications reaching people looking for investments. Other avenues to seriously consider are foundations that offer grants, local dental and medical investment groups, legal investment groups, business associations, trust companies and other groups or organizations looking for tax shelters.

Basically, it isn't a good idea to go to a finance company or other commercial lender of this type for a business loan. The most obvious reason is the high interest rates you have to pay. These companies borrow money from larger money lenders, and then turn around and lend it to you at a higher interest rate than they pay. Herein lies the means by which they make money from granting loans to you. The more it costs them to provide the money for you, the more it's going to cost you to borrow their money.

The only element in your favor when borrowing from one of these agencies is that most will generally lend you money against collateral other lenders just won't accept. Insurance companies, pension funds, and commercial paper houses are not too out of sight with their interest rates, but they generally will not even consider talking to you unless you're requesting $500,000 or more. They'll also pretty much require that your business proposal be backed by the best possible plan.

Finally, the bottom line is this: You must have a well-researched and detailed business plan; you must have all your documents and projections put together in an impressive presentation; and then, you will have to be the one who does the final selling of your proposal to the investor or lender. This means your appearance, personality and attitude, because - make no mistake about it - before anyone lends you any size able amount of money, they're going to want to take a close look at you personally before they hand over the money.

Actually, the different ways of financing a franchise opportunity are as many and varied as your own creativity. The sources of obtaining money are virtually limitless, and available to anyone with an idea. Continued - How and Where To Get Money for A Franchise Idea... Part 5

Previous Articles:
How and Where To Get Money for A Franchise Idea... Part 1
How and Where To Get Money for A Franchise Idea... Part 2
How and Where To Get Money for A Franchise Idea... Part 3

How and Where To Get Money for A Franchise Idea

How often have you thumbed through a business opportunity magazine, noticed a franchise opportunity advertisement, and felt you'd really like to get in on that...if only you had the money? If you're like most who are seeking greater opportunity and wealth, this probably happens with you more often than you care to admit, except perhaps in strictly private conversations.

When the average person sees one of these opportunities, or comes up with a similar idea of his own, the problems of start-up capital may seem formidable. But in reality, they may not be. In fact, just about anyone with a good credit record and an
"insider's sense of business" can get the capital he or she needs, whenever it's needed. The secret is in knowing how to put together a proper proposal, and to present it to the right per son. These are the "how-to" instructions we're going to give you in this report.

The first thing you're going to need is a complete business plan. This is a complete and detailed description of exactly how you intend to operate the proposed business. Your business plan should detail precisely the product or products you plan to sell; how you're going to produce or manufacture the product; your costs (inventory costs if you're purchasing them from a supplier); who is going to sell those products for you; how they're going to be sold; the attendant costs; when you expect to recoup your initial investment; your plans for growth or expansion; and the total dollar amount you're going to need to make it all work according to your plan. Your business plan must be detailed - complete with projected income and expense figures - through at least the first three years of business. For more details, and "how-to" instructions, see How to Prepare a Business Plan That Guarantees Big Profits...

Now, assuming you have your business plan all worked out, put together and ready for presentation with your request for capital, let's talk about your capitalization proposal.

First, keep in mind that whenever you ask somebody for money, whether it's for a small personal loan or a large amount of money to finance a business, you're involved in a selling situation. You have to prepare a "sales presentation" just as if you were getting ready to sell an automobile or refrigerator. Within this sales presentation you must have all the facts and figures; you must anticipate the questions and the possible objections of the prospective lender with answers or explanations; and you must "package" it as impressively as you would yourself for an audience with the president of IBM or General Motors.

The more money you ask for, the more "in-the-know" will be the people you want to borrow from, and so the more detailed and organized your proposal must be. This shouldn't cause you too much worry however, because you can hire a CPA to help you put it together properly, once you've got the facts and have a business plan he can work from.

Look at it this way: The more money you request for your business, the more your lenders or prospective investors are going to want to know about you, your planning, and your business. They want to be impressed with the fact that you've done your homework; they want to see that you've researched everything and documented your facts and figures; they want to be assured by your presentation that investing in your business will make money for them. It's just that simple at the bottom line. Unless you can instill confidence in them with your business plan and loan or investment proposal, they're just not going to give much positive thought to your request for capitalization. Continued - How and Where To Get Money for A Franchise Idea... Part 2

Wholesale Directory to Find Suppliers - Using Salehoo to Search For Vendors

Do you want to start your own business selling clothing on internet auction sites like eBay? Have you been looking for sources and wondering where the top eBay sellers get their merchandise? One of the sources available for obtaining your wholesale clothing is the wholesale directory, Salehoo.

Salehoo is a membership based wholesale directory that assists you with finding thousands of discounted items, including clothing and accessories, either for your own use or to sell for your own business.

Salehoo offers its members a wide array of services. Members have access to over 8000 wholesale suppliers who offer amazing prices on their wholesale items. If a Salehoo supplier does not have what you are looking for, Salehoo will find it for you, free!

The most useful aspect of Salehoo is the research capabilities it offers on its suppliers. The search engine allows members to narrow searches for specific items, brands, labels, etc. In addition, members can find wholesalers or drop shippers. In addition, Salehoo has complete vendor information about each of its suppliers, feedback from members on the suppliers, and a forum for members to share information. Vendors are also ranked based on information from members so that it becomes easier to determine the most reliable wholesale supplier.

One of the most unique services Salehoo offers its members is a high level of customer service. In addition to the forums, rankings and ability to search for items outside of its supplier offerings, Salehoo also offers a 24/7 help line. This commitment to customer service is one of the reasons that Salehoo has continued to grow and attract new members.

Wholesale directories have become quite common. However, there is always a question of the legitimacy of the suppliers listed on many of them. As with any business venture, you always want to protect yourself from potential scams or poor quality merchandise. Salehoo researches the suppliers before listing them as part of the directory. However, the member forums and feedback provide further testimony to the legitimacy and quality of the suppliers found within this wholesale directory.

Salehoo is not the only wholesale directory, but has become one of the most frequently used based on the quality and consistency of the service offered. There must be a reason why there are over 65,000 users.

For more information, click here.

How To Start A Catering Business From Scratch ?

Have you ever dreamed of Starting Your Catering Business?

This Comprehensive Start-Up Guide Kit contains all the
necessary tools and strategies you need to successfully
launch and grow your business.

The Starting a Catering Business Start-Up Guide Kit is also
includes all of the necessary forms that are needed to
operate a catering business including many financial forms,
example business letters and a complete business plan.
They are giving these to you FREE as part of the package
when you place your order today.


Click Here

How to Prepare a Business Plan That Guarantees Big Profits... Part 4

People becoming involved with any new venture want to know that the person in charge - the guy running the business knows what he's doing, will not lose his cool when problems arise, and has what it takes to make money for all of them. After showing the "muscle" of this person, go on to outline the other key positions within your business; who the persons are you've selected to handle those jobs and the sources as well as availability of any other help you might need.


If you've been in business on any kind of scale, the next chapter is a picture of your financial status - a review of your operating costs and income from the business to date. Generally, this is a listing of your profit & loss statements for the past six months, plus copies of your business income tax: records for each of the previous three years the business has been an entity.


The chapter on the explanation of your plans for the future growth of your business is just that - an explanation of how you plan to keep your business growing - a detailed guide of what you're going to do, and how you're going to increase your profits.

These plans should show your goals for the coming year, two years, and three years. By breaking your objectives down into annual milestones, your plans will be accepted as more realistic and, be more understandable as a part of your ultimate success.


Following this explanation, you'll need to itemize the projected cost and income figures of your three year plan. It'll take a lot of research, and undoubtedly a good deal of erasing, but it's very important that you list these figures based upon thorough investigation. You may have to adjust some of your plans downward, but once you've got these two chapters on paper, your whole business plan will fall into line and begin to make sense. You'll have a precise "map" of where you're headed, how much it's going to cost, when you can expect to start making money, and how much.

Now that you know where you're going, how much it's going to cost and how long it's going to be before you begin to recoup your investment, you're ready to talk about how and where you're going to get the money to finance your journey. Unless you're independently wealthy, you'll want to use this chapter to list the possibilities and alternatives.

Make a list of friends you can approach, and perhaps induce to put up some money as silent partners. Make a list of those people you might be able to sell as stockholders in your company - in many cases you can sell up to $300,000 worth of stock on a "private issue" basis without filing papers with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Check with a corporate or tax attorney in your area for more details. Make a list of relatives and
friends that might help you with an outright loan to furnish money for the development of your business.

Then search out and make a list of venture capital organizations. Visit the Small Business Administration office in your area - pick up the loan application papers they have - read them, study them, and even fill them out on a preliminary basis - and finally, check the costs, determine which business publications would be best to advertise in, if you were to advertise for a partner or investor, and write an ad you'd want to use if you did decide to advertise for monetary help. Continued - How to Prepare a Business Plan That Guarantees Big Profits... Part 5

Previous Articles:
Previous Articles:
How to Prepare a Business Plan That Guarantees Big Profits... Part 1
How to Prepare a Business Plan That Guarantees Big Profits... Part 2
How to Prepare a Business Plan That Guarantees Big Profits... Part 3

How to Prepare a Business Plan That Guarantees Big Profits... Part 3

Next comes to your table of contents page. Don't really worry about this one until you've got the entire plan completed and ready for final typing. It's a good idea though, to list the subjects (chapter titles) as I have, and then check off each one as you complete that part of your plan. By having a list of the points you want to cover, you'll also be able to skip around and work on each phase of your business plan as the idea or the interest in organizing that particular phase, stimulates you. In other words, you won't have to make your thinking or your planning conform to the chronological order of the "chapters" of your business plan - another reason for the loose leaf notebook...

In describing your business, it's best to begin where your statement of purpose leaves off. Introduce your product, the production process, which has responsibility for what, and most importantly, what makes you product or service unique - what gives it an edge in your market. You can briefly summarize your business openings, present position and potential for future success, as well.

Next, describe the buyers you're trying to reach - why they need and want or will buy your product - and the results of any tests or surveys you may have conducted. Once you've defined your market, go on to explain how you intend to reach that market – how you'll alert these prospects to your product or service and induce them to buy. You might want to break this chapter down into sections such as... advertising plans, promotions and publicity, direct sales force, and distributor/dealer programs. Each section would then be a sketch of your plans and policies.

Moving into the chapter on competition, name who your competitors are their weaknesses and strong points - explain how you intend to capitalize on those weaknesses and match or better the strong points. Talk to as many of your "indirect" competitors as possible - those working in different cities.

One of the easiest ways of gathering a lot of useful information about your competitors is by developing a series of survey questions and sending these questionnaires out to each of them. Later on, you might want to compile the answers to these questionnaires into some form of directory or report on this type of business.

It's also advisable to make contact with the trade associations and publications serving your proposed type of, business. For information on trade associations and definite trade publications, visit your public library, and after explaining what you want, ask for the librarian's help.

The chapter on management should be an explanation on the people operating the business. Those people that actually run the business - their job titles, duties, responsibilities and backfilled resume's. It's important that you "paint" a strong picture of your top management people because the people coming to work for you or investing in your business, will be "investing in these people" as much as your product ideas. Individual tenacity, innovative problem-solving and mature judgment under fire "won over" more people than all the AAA Credit Ratings and astronomical sales figures put together. Continued - How to Prepare a Business Plan That Guarantees Big Profits... Part 4

Previous Articles:
How to Prepare a Business Plan That Guarantees Big Profits... Part 1
How to Prepare a Business Plan That Guarantees Big Profits... Part 2

How to Prepare a Business Plan That Guarantees Big Profits... Part 2

The most excellent business plans for even the smallest businesses run 25 pages or more, so you'll require to "title" each page and categorize the different aspects of your business plan into "chapters." The arrangement should run as follows:


Title Page
Statement of Purpose
Table of Contents
Business Description
Market Analysis
Business Location
Management
Current Financial Records
Explanation of Plans for Growth
Explanation of Financing for Growth Documentation
Summary of Business & Outlook for The Future
Listing of Business & Personal References


This is a consistent arrangement of the information every business plan should cover up I'll explain each of these chapter titles in greater detail, but first, let me elaborate upon the reasons for proper organization of your business plan.

Having a set of "questions to answer" regarding your business forces you to take a goal and critical look at your ideas. Putting it all down on paper permits you to change, remove and refine everything to function in the way of a smoothly oiled machine. You'll be able to mark weaknesses and toughen them before they expand into major problems. On the whole, you'll be developing an operating guide for your business - a priceless tool which will keep your business on track, and conduct you in the profitable administration of your business.

Because it's your business, and your idea, it's very important that YOU do the preparation. This is YOUR business plan, so YOU develop it, and put it all down on paper just the way YOU want it. Look for the opinion of other people; talk with, listen to, and observe, other people running similar businesses; enlist the guidance of your accountant and attorney - but at the bottom line, don't ever overlook that it has to be YOUR BUSINESS PLAN!

Remember too, that statistics prove the greatest causes of business failure to be poor management system and lack of planning - without a plan by which to run, no one can manage; and without a direction in which to aim its efforts, no business can achieve any real success.

On the very first page, the title page put down the name of your business – ABC ACTION - with your company address underneath. Skip a couple of lines and write in all capital letters: PRINCIPAL OWNER - followed by name of the principal owner. On your complete report, you would want to center this information on the page, with the words "principal owner" offset to the left about five spaces.

Example:
ABC ACTION
1234 SW 5th Ave. Anywhere, USA 00000


PRINCIPAL OWNER: Your Name


That's all you'll have on that page, except the page number...

-1-


Next your heading page is the page for your declaration of purpose. This should be a straightforward statement of your primary business function, such as: We are a service business occupied in the business of selling business success manuals and other information by parcels.

The title of the page should be in all capital letters across the top of the page, centered on your final draft - skip a few lines and write the statement of purpose. This should be direct, clear and short - never more than two (2) sentences in length.

Then you should skip one or two lines, and from the left hand margin of the paper, write out a subheading in all capital letters, such as: DETAILS OF PURPOSE.

From and within this subtitle, you can briefly clarify your statement of purpose, such as: Our surveys have found most entrepreneurs to be "sadly" lacking in basic information that will enable them to reach achievement. This market is estimated at more than 100 million persons, with at least half of these people actively "searching" for sources that offer the kind of information they need.

With our business, advertising and publishing skill, it is our goal to capture at least half of this market of information seekers, with our publication, MONEY MAKING MAGIC! Our market research shows we can achieve this objective, and realize a profit of $1,000,000 per year within the next 5 years...

The above example is generally the way you should write your "explanation of purpose," and in subtle definition, why you need such an explanation. Point to remember: Keep it short. Very few business purpose explanations are justifiably more than a half page long…. Continued - How to Prepare a Business Plan That Guarantees Big Profits... Part 3

Previous Articles:
How to Prepare a Business Plan That Guarantees Big Profits... Part 1

How to Prepare a Business Plan That Guarantees Big Profits... Part 1

Achievement in business comes as a result of planning. You must have a detailed, written plan that shows you what the ultimate goal is, the reason for the goal, and each milestone that must be passed in order to achieve your goal.

A business plan is a written definition of, and an operational plan for accomplishing your goal. You need a complete business tool in order to define your basic product, income objectives and specific operating procedures. YOU HAVE TO HAVE A BUSINESS PLAN to be a magnet for investors obtain financing and hold onto the assurance of your creditors, particularly in times of cash flow shortages - in this instance, the amount of money you have on hand compared with the expenses that must be met...

Aside from an overall directional policy for the production, profit goals and sales efforts of your product - your basic "travel guide" to business success - the most important purpose your business plan will serve, will be the basis or foundation of any financial proposals you submit. Many entrepreneurs are under the mistaken impression that a business plan is the same as a financial proposal, or that a financial proposal constitutes a business plan. This is just a misunderstanding of the uses of these two separate and different business success aids.

The business plan is a long range "map" to guide your business to the goal you've set for it. This plan details the what, why, where, how and when, of your business - the success planning of your company.

Your financial proposal is a request for money based upon your business plan - your business history and objectives.

Understand the differences. They are closely related, but they are not the same.

Writing and putting together a "winning" business plan takes study, research and time, so don't try to do it all in just one or two days.

The easiest way is to start with a loose leaf notebook, plenty of paper, pencils, pencil sharpener, and several erasers. Once you get you mind "in gear" and begin thinking about your business plan, "10,000 thoughts and ideas per minute" will start racing through your mind... So, it's a good idea when you aren't actually working on your business plan, to bring a pocket notebook and jot down those business ideas as they come to you - ideas for sales promotion, recruiting distributors, and any other thoughts on how to operate and/or build your business.

Later, when you're actually working on your business plan, you can take out this "idea notebook" - evaluate your ideas, rework them, refine them, and integrate them into the overall "big picture" of your business plan… Continued - How to Prepare a Business Plan That Guarantees Big Profits... Part 2

Outsouced accounting and bookkeeping

Are you one of those many business owners who have outsourced accounting?

Well if you are not then you must be questioning what the whole process is about and why everyone is talking about it. You have to know about the process because it has so many benefits out of it.

Outsourcing is a long term contracting of a company’s business gives to an outside service provider, helping to raise shareholder value by eliminating the costs of non-core functions. This allows the company to focus on the best activity of their core business and it saves a lot of money.

Outsourcing the accounting is a business strategy. You do not have to build back office accounting function with all the technological advances because it is expensive and time consuming. Resources are distracted that could be better used to practice tactical and strategic objectives designed at improving productivity and value.

Outsourcing your accounting is the best idea for your business if any of the following applies to your present situation:

- You do not have enough time growing or running your business because you have to spend so much time managing your books.

- You feel uncomfortable with your accounting because you do not really know how to carry out some of it.

- You cannot afford a professional grade accounting or do not have the need for a full time accountant or accounting department.

- You only have a basic knowledge of financial reports, so that you stay updated about your company on an “at-a-glance” basis.

- You are not scared to ask questions when you notice things on financial statements that you do not know.

- You want the flexibility to check your accounts whenever you like, combined with the calmness that your books are being maintained by professionals.

If you believe that the whole process of outsourcing the accounting work will help your business, you must go ahead and implement this. Globally outsourcing is growing in rapid strides because there are a lot of benefits associated with the process. The best part about outsourcing accounting is that you will not have to make any new financial deal and yet you will get very good benefits out of this.

In order to get DCAA compliance and succeed any government contracts, your business must have documented policies and procedures that are accurately followed to the letter. Convinced accounting and billing properties, a system that charges labor for hourly time and specially-trained employees are also necessary.

The dcaa bookkeeping is the starting point for DCAA compliant cost pools. The dcaa quickbooks accounts are used in defining cost pools. A cost pool is known by hierarchy of accounts in the chart of accounts with each cost pool having one top-level account and one or more business accounts.

To assist you in comprehending these requirements, visit http://www.bay-biz.com.

7 Tips to make your garage sale a success

A garage sale is also known as a yard sale, rummage sale, tag sale, attic sale, moving sale, or junk sale. It is an informal, irregularly scheduled event for the sale of used goods by private individuals, in which "block sales" are allowed, so that sellers are not required to obtain business licenses or collect sales tax.

Typically the goods in a garage sale are unwanted things from the household with the home owners conducting the sale. The goods are sometimes new, like-new, or just usable, offered for sale because the owner does not want or need the item, to minimize their possessions, or to raise funds. Popular motivations for a garage sale are "Spring cleaning" or the owner's move to a new residence, to even getting some well-earned spending money. The seller displays their wares to the passers-by or those responding to signs, flyers, or newspaper ads. Sometimes local television stations will broadcast a sale on the local public channel. The sales venue is typically a garage, driveway, carport, front yard, porch, or occasionally, the interior of a house. Some vendors, known as 'squatters', will set up in a highly trafficked area, and not on their own property... click here to know 7 tips to make your garage sale a success...

How a Business Blog Helps Establish Your Brand Online

There are two aspects of business that can truly work hand in hand. These important aspects of business are blogging and branding. One can play off the other and both working together can give your business the boost it needs. Most successful blogs, when you examine them are successful because of good branding on the part of the author.

The same is true when you already have a great brand -- blogging can help promote your brand. Blogging brings to your business a piece of the puzzle that so many businesses need to integrate in order to have an online presence. Without a business blog, you risk falling behind your competition and not getting to the level of business success you hope to achieve.

In today's business world, the blog has replaced the business card (well, not quite!). Blogging will help you to create additional value in your business. The businesses that combine blogging and branding together are without a doubt, the most successful.

This is due to the fact that a well-branded business blog gives people something to remember and keeps them coming back for more. It also provides your readers something to get excited about and in turn they will share it with others, write about it on their own website or blog, linking back to yours and sending more fans and followers your way.

Blogging also allows for interactivity in your business with your clients. You can use it to create a community of fans and build up a subscriber base simply by aggregating your blog feed. Once you do so, however, it is important to blog consistently and constantly. You also want to be sure to stay true to yourself, your personal brand and your business brand when you blog. Keep in mind that everything you put online must be consistent with who you are and what you want people to know about you, your business and your services.

Your blog is your communication tool. It helps you to establish credibility and establish you as a thought leader in your niche community. A blog helps you get found easily by the people searching for solutions that you provide. When someone Google's your name you want to be found and found quickly. Quite frankly in today's society if you cannot be found online, you don't exist.

The bottom line is this: a well-branded blog helps promote you and your business, helps you get found online by your prospective clients, and helps to establish your expertise and credibility.

And now I would like to invite you to claim your free instant access to my report on Better Business Blogging so you can learn more valuable tips for extending your brand online with a blog. Visit http://www.betterbizblogging.com

From Denise Wakeman, Founder of The Blog Squad and Online Marketing Advisor.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Denise_Wakeman

How to promote your home business offline?

There are so many business person who like to use both online and offline ways of advertising their home business. This ensures that any business promotion they are doing is maximized with no excuse of an email not being read because of an overfull inbox. Here are some conventional ways you can use to promote your business that can be as effective as the internet.

Leaflets

Dropping leaflets throughout the door makes awareness of a new business that has started in the area. There is always that possibility of getting a potential customer who has been looking for a builder or a plumber and who will reach out for your leaflet and contact you. In the same way posting smart brochures of your business to all possible business clients might open your business to new customers. The key here is to make sure that any written promotional choice you decide to use should be well designed, with sufficient details and clear pictures of products you are promoting. Contact details should contain a name, email and web url and a telephone contact.

Advertising

Even though the internet is the most excellent way to advertise, there are still people who will reach out for a local newspaper and scan the advertisements put up in shop windows. Putting a well presented and helpful business advertisement in local newspapers and on the notice boards of shops is especially useful to target these customers. There are magazines that advertise particular products and these have pages designated for related businesses. For example, Daltons weekly specializes in businesses for sale while Auto trader will specialize in everything to do with buying and selling of cars. Advertising in these magazines will aim an audience of people who are interested in specifically buying products that you specialize in.

Party Plan

One of the best ways of promoting a new business project is to spread the word by hosting a gathering where you can show off a new product to family and friends. There will always be someone paying attention in buying your products or promoting them to their friends. This party plan concept works fine with products such as jewelry, perfumes, clothing, greeting cards and household products. The advantage of this business plan is that mothers with young children or people with other responsibilities can work around this during hours that suit them.

Exhibitions

Exhibitions and trade shows promote new business ideas and this is an ideal way of introducing your new business to potential clients. There is face-to-face interaction with people who visit your stand and there is the advantage of networking with other businesses for feedback and advice. It is important to have a good display set up and enough details for those who show an interest. Follow up any leads that have been generated via telephone calls, letters or emails.

Media

For those who have an adequate budget set up for marketing a new business, television and radio advertising can reach a very wide audience within seconds. We all know that having a catchy advertisement for your product leaves an impression on the viewer or listener. A product that is well advertised will stick in the mind and when you shop you automatically reach out for it just to try it out yourself.


Networking

Introducing yourself to local businesses via networking events can open your business to new clients. Working with your local community can also help you to promote a new business idea. It is worthwhile to get your business promoted through local newspapers or community advertising channels to bring it to the attention of people around the area.

Brand Name

A new business can be advertised through company vehicles, through T-shirts, baseball caps or a variety of other means. Prices will vary depending on the size of the banner or the logo required and the effectiveness of this method will depend on how visually communicative the advertisement is.
Offline advertising continues to be popular and equally effective as its online counterpart but both continue to complement each other as one can automatically lead to the other.

How to make money on the Internet without selling anything

People are always looking for opportunities to make easy money online and in the current economic climate If you Google the concept, you'll find plenty of results, but most of them seem to be geared to US citizens. Despite this, some websites accept international workers. I've tried many methods, so I can let you know what works, what doesn't and how well everything works too.

Freelance Writing:

There are plenty of freelance writing gigs online and quite often they accept telecommuters from South Africa. The easiest way to keep track of the multitude of sites where these jobs are posted, is to visit a blog such as Freelance Writing Gigs daily (or track its RSS feed). The benefit of using that kind of blog is that users also report back when jobs turn out to be fraudulent.

The other way to make money writing online is to submit content to sites which either pay you for your articles, or pay you per 1 000 clicks on your content.

Associated Content - $1.50 per 1 000 views. I reached over a thousand in the first month easily and now even Melanie Lowe's doing it.

Helium pays per click as well as giving you upfront payments per article depending on your rating there. $3 monthly to review other people's articles too. You can also write articles to compete for pay.

Triond pay per 1000 clicks.

You can also use websites such as Hub Pages, which just share their advertising revenue with you, depending on how many visits your content gets and what sales are generated. You can generate your own income that way if you have a blog or website. You can either use an international way, like Google's Adsense, or one geared towards South Africans, like Afrigator's Adgator (see below).

Advertising:

There are countless approaches to generate advertising revenue on your website or weblog. You find a scheme you like, install some simple code on your page and either get paid for view or clicks on them. Google's Adsense is tried, tested and reliable and many blog owners report that it's their top income stream. For South Africans, however, the fabulous Adgator scheme has just been launched by the AfriGreater Afrigator blog aggregator (try saying that when you're drunk) and in December I'll be able to let you know how it works - I've installed it on my Coming Out Stories blog, which is the busiest one in the stable.
Market Research Surveys:

There are a huge amount of sites that offer to pay you for completing surveys. What you do, is sign up, give them your demographics and wait to be given a survey you're eligible for. I've signed up for two and haven't had any surveys to do yet, so I'm not recommending any yet.

Referrals:

Most of the schemes mentioned so far also pay you for successfully referring other workers. They give you options like emailing invites and/or adding referral links to your own blog or site or forum signature.

When you recruit someone else, you either earn a nominal fee or a percentage of that person's earning.


Amazon Mechanical Turk:

Part of amazon.com's Amazon Web Services, this is probably the most comfortable sweatshop on the internet, but it doesn't pay cash unless you're a US or Indian citizen. It pays you in amazon.com gift certificates. There's been a lot of uproar about the fact that Amazon will no longer ship to South Africa due to postal fraud. Actually, they will ship here, but only at the most expensive courier rate. You can make upwards of $5 an hour quite easily, but you have to spend it at Amazon. Jobs there are called HIT's (Human Intelligence Tasks) and the pay ranges from a cent to a few dollars. You could be asked to rewrite something into correct US English, tag images, review something, complete a survey, transcribe audio and many other simple tasks that computers can't do by themselves.

Merchandising:

Sites like Caf Press, Redbubble and Zazzle let you upload your design to be produced on a range of products like shirts, mouse pads, posters, mugs etc. You get upwards of 10% of each sale an average of $2.20 on a t-shirt, for example. You can promote your virtual shop on your own site, as well as on social networking sites like Facebook.
Paypal Donations:

Some sites and blogs ask for donations towards their owners' time and expertise. Paypal has even developed a little widget which says things like "Buy me a beer," which then links to your Paypal account. Popular blogs etc claim that this is a very good earner.

How To Make Money Selling Products Even If You Have Nothing ??!

How to make money selling products even if you have no product, no customers… or no money?
Find out the way at 'How To Make Money Selling Products Even If You Have No Product, No Customers… Or No Money!!' e-book written by Jeff Paul and Jim Fleck.



Contents:

Part ONE:

Discover How To Make A Pile Of Money, Quick And Easy Using The Secrets Of Joint Ventures…

Chapter 1 - How To Get Immediate Cash Right Now From Joint Ventures (even if you don’t have your own product)

Chapter 2 - What Percentage Of The Profits Should You Take For Putting Together JV Deals?

Chapter 3 - How To Do Joint Ventures Online

Chapter 4 - Lifetime Value Of A Customer

Chapter 5 - Here Are Some Joint Venture Ideas To Get Your Brain Working 10

Joint Venture Idea #1 - Fitness Club JV
Joint Venture Idea #2 – Set Up Websites For Businesses
Joint Venture Idea #3 - Information Products
Joint Venture Idea #4 – How to Get A Slue Of Joint Venture Partners



Part TWO:

Discover How To Make A Pile Of Money, Quick And Easy Using The Secrets Of Affiliate Programs…

Chapter 1 - An Introduction To Affiliate, Revenue Sharing, Reseller, Partner, Bounty, Affiliate Programs

Chapter 2 - The Good Side Of Affiliate Programs

Chapter 3 - The Bad Part Of Affiliate Programs

Chapter 4 - How To Successfully Market Your Affiliate Program

Chapter 5 - How To Supercharge Your Commissions In Two Days Or Less

Chapter 6 - How To Start Your Own Affiliate Program

Chapter 7 - 6 Secrets to Making Your Affiliate Program Successful!

Chapter 8 - 15 Affiliate Program Success Strategies

Chapter 9 - The Final Word


CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

Build Your Own Business Website - How a Website Can Make You Money!

It goes without saying that any modern business needs an online presence and there is a real need for you to build your own website. An easy and profitable means of marketing 24/7 - 52 weeks of the year. We all know that it is important to make a good first impression in person and online. Your first website doesn't have to be anything flash, it simply needs to look clean, professional and work. Get it wrong and the 'back button' awaits. And Remember a great website can make you money.

So what do you need? What are the factors that make a business website a success?

The Only Formula for Success
Whether it is online or offline - business fundamentals come down to these three basic factors:

Leads x conversion x customer value

It doesn't matter what business you are in, master these and you will succeed. If you are in retail, you get more customers through the door, get more of them to buy from your store and get them to spend as much as possible.

If you have a garage - get more inquiries, turn more inquiries into the work you do and maximize the client value through additional services. You could sell products, get a referral or book in an appointment in the future for some routine maintenance.

It really is business 101.

When you build your own business website - It is no different

1. More traffic to your website
2. Higher conversion of your traffic
3. Maximize the value of every visitor

It really is that easy.. If you know how!

How do I get traffic
There a 2 key factors to getting traffic to your website. Both involve the Search Engines. For most people a search engine (usually Google) is the starting point. They type in (roughly) what they want and Google does its best to find it.

So you have to please Google (or whatever the search engine might be). How?

Well first you have to pick the right words that people are looking for. You have to let Google know that your website can answer their question. You are effectively picking very specific "keywords" that your future clients are searching for and letting Google know you can help.

The second component is a little technical. It is called "Search Engine Optimization" and is a combination of putting the right keywords on the page and structuring the layout of your page to suit the Search Engines.

When you build your own business website you are essentially building a site for two people. The search engine and the visitor - with a view to pleasing both.

The Search Engine is happy - How do I make the customer happy?
This is where content is king. It always has been and it always will be. There are plenty of people out there who try to fool search engines and it only works short term. These companies have too many R&D bods working to make sure that people searching for information get it.

Once you have the traffic you have to please it with your relevant content. You have to answer your visitors question (other it's the back button for you). This is usually best done by pre-selling your customers and not selling. You help them, warm them up and position them so that they decide to use your services and get the click that earns you money.

If you can spend a little time and invest in your website, then you can build your own business website that works.

Visit http://www.duplicatesuccess.co.uk to find out about the revolutionary CTPM process that works every time.

Click HERE to find out more.

Good luck!!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Aaron_Salter

How To Start A Small Business At Home

The idea of beginning a business from home has two sides to it; on one hand it can be hard graft while on the other hand it can be stimulating. You should be aware of this if you are planning to start a business at home.

Apart from that, certain points should be considered before you think about any such business, which could either be for a total transformation of your career or for an enhancement of your income. So you ask yourself "how start small business at home?"

Here is some information on how you can start a home business:

1. Make a feasible business plan - This is the most important thing you need to do before taking any other actions. Without a feasible business plan it is not possible to carry forward with the steps to start your home business.

2. Research - You can check out different helpful websites for the present business structure. You can also ask for advice or comment on your business plan from different professionals.

3. Learn - A person does not have knowledge about everything. You need to learn about different areas of the business like sales promotion, service, and finance. There maybe few software which you can purchase to give you more knowledge on the type of business that you are planning to start.

4. Choose a location - Since you would be conducting your business at home it is important that you select a particular region in your house where you can make it your office. You may not need to rent a place for work but you most definitely need a place that you can convert in to your workplace.

5. Determine the funds required - It is important that you make an approximate estimation of the fund that would be required for your business. I would recommend you to estimate your expenditure to be more so that you will not fall short of funds in the future.

6. Source of capital - The money you need should be your own. It is always advisable to use your own money first and if you fall short of funds then you can always apply for a grant or loan. Send an application to non-profit organizations for loans or you can even go to the bank to get a loan. You can even think about putting your name down for business plan contests in order to raise more funds for your business.

7. Seek professional advice - You would gain a lot if you go to a professional who can guide you in the business start up process. The advice you receive would no doubt be valuable and helpful for your home-based business.

8. Don't spend so much - Try not to spend so much money for setting up your business. If you have a low cost business then few mistakes would not cause a huge impact.

9. Dedication and hard work - No business can survive without hard work and dedication. With these two qualities you can make your business a success.

10. Get family support - No matter what you do; having the support of your family member would always keep you strong and confident.

Hi, I'm Akhil Shahani, a serial entrepreneur who wants to help you succeed. If you like to work smart, check out http://www.SmartEntrepreneur.net It's full of articles and resources to help you start and grow your business successfully. Please visit us & download our special "Freebie of The Month" at http://www.smartentrepreneur.net/freebie-of-the-month.html

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Akhil_Shahani

7 Ways to Make Money From HHO Gas Technology

While the primary goals of HHO gas conversion systems are to increase mileage and save money, there are several methods people have been using to make additional money from this new technology. We wanted to pass them on to you.

1. Build and sell HHO conversion kits through the classifieds, retail location or online through sites like eBay and craigslist.

If you search eBay or other online marketplaces, you'll find people selling all kinds of gizmos and gadgets to increase gas mileage. The marketplace has not even been scratched yet. With word of HHO gas spreading, demand for physical devices exceeds supply. If you like to work with your hands, there is extra money waiting to be made.

2. Build and sell HHO gas conversion kits wholesale to other resellers and installers.

Same as above, only there is better ability to brand yourself and work in larger volumes with minimum order quantities. Watch out though, you may have to hire additional help with smaller profit margins.

3. Start an HHO gas conversion kit installation business.

This is the perfect add-on service to go with #1, above. It is also a good way to make extra money if someone nearby starts selling the devices before you do.

4. Start a delivery service.

Many businesses have either set minimum orders for deliveries or have stopped them altogether. If you're getting 20%-50% better mileage, they can't compete with you. You could even start a service that operates deliveries for several businesses at once. Doing multiple deliveries in the same trip cuts costs further and provides multiple income streams from your local area.

5. Start an errand service.

Same idea, except you are servicing individual customers rather than the businesses themselves. If you're shrewd, you could combine this with #4 and "double dip" the jobs some of the time.

6. Start a recycling service.

Do a search online and you will find that you can make extra money from recycling newspaper, cardboard, computer equipment, cellphones, inkjet and laser cartridges, car batteries, etc. If you create routes and have drop offs located at area businesses, you can get large amounts by making one trip through an area each week. You could also do neighborhood routes or have school kids collect papers as a summer job for a small share of the earnings. These types of arrangements are easier to set up now since everyone wants to be eco-friendly.

7. Develop and sell business packages to service garages or parts stores.

If you have an entrepreneurial streak and don't want to have to deal with building devices or doing manual labor, this may be your ticket. Develop a mailer explaining methods the business can use to make money with HHO gas technology (kind of like this). Then sell a package where they get the information, the business idea and the plans for building and installing the devices.
If you have graphic design skill, you could even develop signs and decals to go with the deal.

Opportunities are everywhere.

This is just a small sampling of ideas. Opportunities abound for the ambitious. HHO gas conversion kit builders and installers are popping up everywhere. The higher the gas prices, the greater the demand for the product or service.



Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mj_West

How to Make Money in a Wholesale Business - Yeah!

Would you agree that thinking about your career and your future is a priority, in fact, it is of top importance this days for you and all of us? There are many opportunities on the Internet right now for a seeker and entrepreneurs all together. Too many options to think about what could be and realistic opportunities that you can plan according to budget and profit.

Unfortunately, many of this opportunities give you the sweetest pipe-line dream available to seduce your thoughts just to assist your mind in the considerable options of wholesale. Be it for wholesale electronics, wholesale DVDs, wholesale TVs or wholesale video games. The offers are everywhere found on Google, Yahoo and MSN. Edifying point being, what is the current best offer available for your needs? Important difference.

One of the brilliants things quite a few of us should be excited about is knowing how peak performance and consistent discipline can skyrocket your business results whether it is for your small business local shop or online e-commerce shop. A minor change in how you manage your productive time right now from a management point of view eventually means hours in less thinking about work in the long term if your plans are executed for less work and more income in the future. The possibilities today are endless when it comes to starting a home based business on the Internet.

As a prolific learner, one of the recommendations many of us also held accountable for achieving success in a particular career is our productive time. Very importantly to mention and remind, our producitive time is not seating in front of the PC and checking emails and answering them, that is a respectable good pay work for your virtual assistant or your offline business secretary - not for you.

Asking yourself if you do indeed have enough time to make the business work is a very important point to answer. Answering it honestly means realistic results as you may already understand. An honest answer just to remind from experience, is not telling yourself I do not have enough time to grow a million dollar business. Definitely no time for a $500,000 year business or, perhaps, a respectable beginning goal of $10,000 in projected sales in your first year.

Secret being, whether it would be for wholesale video games, among other niche businesses that we may love, you have to get out of that sweet couch. You have to work consistently and be willing to step out of your comfort zone. Having a deep study in how a successful person manages to rise to the top, many also have a self-driven motivation to test and fail. Those are tested studies from people who are actually making it big in business, financiallu.

We all need changes if want something, just be sure you are enough hungry to go to a competitot battle. A profitable recommendation for long term results is is to acknowledge the start, practice and action of great wholesale business opportunities available both locally and online for many of us.

Starting a Wholesale Business is one of the business components Joaquin serves as reference source, e-commerce coach and certified author. His focus today is assisting people receive extra income through the acquirement of a Wholesale Business

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Joaquin_Reveron