Effective Business Ideas

With the rapid rate the internet is gradually becoming a part of our everyday life, it’s no secret that this has led to the birth of countless career opportunities and business niches to venture into.

If you are like the American who spends an average of 4.7 hours each day on the mobile phone, there are chances that a high percentage of your time is spent on the internet day in day out.

However, instead of spending twenty years each day chatting and blabbing away time with the rest of Facebook users, instead of jumping into every trend thereby helping smart entrepreneurs generate huge income without stress, it’s high time you consider turning yourself from being an internet freak to an internet entrepreneur.

7 Smart Business Strategies That’ll Catalyze The Growth Of Your Startup

By Joseph Chukwube

In business tips, marketing

Running a business, whether large scale brand or small scale, is often overly tasking. Also, the early stage of every business, the startup period, is often the most backbreaking. As a result, most startups crumble within this period — an analysis on why startups fail shows that 9 out of 10 startups fail.

Ouch… that’s a lot of them.

The few brand owners who survive the long-run, however, often work unnecessarily hard before embracing the bigger market sphere.

Nevertheless, as a startup owner, this shouldn’t discourage you. There are smart ways to get through these hurdles. The entrepreneurial journey is actually an epic, lifelong adventure once you embark on it with the right mindset and take the right approaches.

7 Simple Tweaks To Grow Your Business Massively In 2017

By John Stevens

In business tips

What’s your business value in the year 2016? Are you relevant in your field? Were you able to meet up with your business goals?

If you weren’t satisfied with how your business went in 2016, then it’s time to set your direction right for the year 2017. One of the biggest ambiguity in the world today is why some businesses are stagnant/ fail and others grow!

The number of businesses in the world increases daily but do you know that only about 50 percent of them are likely to grow to survival? Growing a business is more difficult than creating one. As a matter of fact, report has it that in 2016, out of the total 5.5 million businesses in the world, 76 percent of businesses could not employ anyone aside from the owner? What a discomfiture!

Is Your Business Ready for The Growth of Online Shoppers?

By June Whittle

In business ideas, business tips

If you want to succeed in the race you have to keep up with the pace. Online shoppers, young and old, are the new generation of consumers. The new trend of using Mobile devices to buy products or services online is here to stay. The generation we live in is increasingly becoming controlled by technology. Therefore, many businesses are creating apps to make life more convenient for their customers. Are you ready to get up to speed with this latest trend?

Statistics showing the growth of online shoppers

The growth of online shoppers will have a big impact on traditional shops. There is nothing wrong with having a bricks and mortar shop. Many of them do quite well. However, if you want to reach a wider audience and possibly sell globally, you must be online.

It’s evident from research that information technology has influenced consumers.

“The recession has induced many shoppers to buy online rather from traditional stores. The fact that internet search is comparatively easy and predictable has made online retailing very attractive for a wide range of products. Retail focus on the growing use of mobile technology is an additional factor in making online retailing attractive and convenient.” Source

Online sales in the U.S. are forecast to grow from $349.20 bn [�215.38 bn] in 2015 by 14.4% to reach a total of $399.48 bn [�246.39 bn] in 2016. Canada’s online sector is comparatively small, but is forecast to grow from US$17.14 bn [�10.57 bn] in 2015 to reach $22.96 bn [�14.16 bn] in 2016, an increase of +34.0%. Source

Your business needs an online sales channel

First, your business must be online. Second, you need to be eCommerce ready. Your website is similar to your shop front. It’s what people see when searching online. As a result, it is the place where you should sell your products. Your existing or potential customers can browse and shop at their leisure wherever they are.

Consider this… internet access is widely available globally. And so, if you sell products or services you will lose money by not providing an online sales channel.

Take advantage of this new and growing trend to reach online shoppers, increase sales and reach more customers, globally.

Sell, even when you’re asleep

This is more than ideal. Your business can take orders while you’re asleep. Imagine not having to stay up late taking orders. They will come in without you having to answer the phone. In addition, using secure payment methods such as PayPal or widely used credit cards will also take away the stress. You know that customers who buy are paying without you having to chase for payment.

If you’re willing to ship abroad, customers from other countries can buy from your eCommerce store when it’s convenient for them. Your online store is your connection to people who can’t come to your physical store.

Low maintenance costs

Adding or setting up an eCommerce website won’t break the bank. There is various free website platforms and software to get you started.

Maintaining a virtual store is far cheaper than running a traditional store. For a start, there are no overheads such as electricity, rent, or other utility bills to worry about. But do think about the hosting and other related costs. Also, unless you’re tech savvy, you will have to pay a website developer to keep on top of things such as maintaining and managing your eCommerce site.

Track data

Use analytics to track data on your website. You will be able to find out where your traffic comes from, search terms they use, bounce and conversion rates.
There are free plugins are available for tracking data. Google has an Enhanced eCommerce Analytics plugin.
This valuable information will help you plan and keep control of stock.
This is also a useful insight for you to see which products are not selling well. Moreover, which are the most popular ones.

Stay in the race with your competitors

Don’t get left behind and drive your customers to buy from your competitors. Take a peek at what they’re doing by looking at their websites. Be one step ahead and do better. Got the extra mile.

Send out regular surveys to check if your customers are happy. Don’t take them for granted and presume you know what they like or dislike, or they may wander over to your competitors.

Conclusion

Embrace the internet, step out of your comfort zone and take your business to a new level. Put an eCommerce store on your website ready for online shoppers. Keep an eye on new and emerging market trends. Adapt when necessary. Always make sure your customers are catered for at all times, however. They are your bread and butter.

6 Ways You Can Use Your Skills to Make Money

By June Whittle

In business ideas

Cultivate your skills and build a profitable side hustle. Many small business owners started out by making use of their passion, knowledge and skills to develop a successful business. On the other hand, maybe you need to make money to fund a big project such as deposit towards buying a house or a car. With careful thinking and planning, you can earn a substantial income from your skills.

Let’s look at the various ways you can make money from what you know or already have…

7 Powerful Secrets of Successful Billionaires

By June Whittle

In business tips, motivation

Billionaires have a positive mindset. This sets them apart from poor people. They approach failures with an “I can do it” attitude. Therefore, they use stumbling blocks as stepping stones to success. Billionaires believe failures are valuable learning curves. They love challenges. Similarly, they’re not afraid of taking calculated risks.

If your desire is to become a billionaire, check out your personality. It plays an important role. Also, individuals with the right mindset, drive and abilities are the ones who succeed.

5 Strategic Business Lessons You can Learn From Mary Kay

By June Whittle

In business tips, motivation

Mary Kay Ash was a dynamic woman. Her unique business idea began one week after she retired. She wasn’t content to sit around relaxing. Her get-up-and-go energy was too strong to ignore. Mary Kay assessed the experiences she gathered over the years. During this thinking period, she made a life-changing decision.

Armed with a wealth of knowledge from her direct sales background, she established “Mary Kay Cosmetics” in 1963. It’s now one of the largest direct sellers of cosmetics and skin care with a sales turnover of $4 billion in 2015.

5 Top Ways Facebook Business Page can Grow Your Business

By June Whittle

In business tips, marketing

A Facebook business page has the potential for getting you leads if you manage it properly. There’s a huge scope for new customers on Facebook. Therefore, it’s worth using it as a marketing channel to grow your business. In the second quarter of 2016, Facebook had over 1.71 billion active monthly users. In addition, it’s the most popular social network across the world.

Let’s dive into this option and look at how you can use Facebook to make the most of your marketing tactics.

7 Young Entrepreneurs Create New Innovations in Africa

By June Whittle

In Insights, motivation

Go-getting young entrepreneurs are putting Africa on the map. They are under 30 with fresh, innovative business mindsets. Many may not recognize their names; nevertheless, they are making progress in the African business world. They’re shrewd, alert, focused and prepared to dive into new unexploited opportunities.

Let’s see who they are and how they’re making an impact in the African industry…

How to Turn Your Hobby Into a Profitable Business

By June Whittle

In business ideas

You have an exceptional hobby. You’re good at it and believe you could turn it into a business. But how do you know if will become a viable business? One way to find out is to test the waters before you jump straight in. Turn your hobby into a part-time side hustle while you still have a day job. But before you do that, research the industry related to your hobby. This will help you identify if there is a need for your product or service. After you’ve done your research, write a business plan. Use it as a roadmap for your business journey.