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Free Online Businesses – 3 Free Online Businesses Ideas That You Should Try

Are you looking for free online businesses but are having the hard time choosing the right one? Online business offers one of the most promising ways of earning money. The cost effectiveness of an online business and the advantages it offers is simply amazing. Imagine owning a business where the working hours can be adjusted depending on the person’s availability, or a business that only requires small amount of funding to start. Online business offers one of the most flexible, convenient and effortless way of generating income. What’s even greater is some of these businesses are free to join. As in zero amount of capital is required.

The secret to all free online businesses are good marketing campaigns. Marketing is the most important aspect in online business for it to run successfully. Only by establishing a strong internet presence and making the product or service known to the customers can a business succeed. Here are different businesses ideas that you might want to try.

1. Affiliate Marketing – although some companies charge a small amount of fee to their recruits, majority of them are free to join. There are many free affiliate programs that only require their recruits to fill out an application form. Affiliate marketing is a decent online business because the amount of money a person gets from here depends on the number of products that were sold under their sites. Which means the more products are successfully sold the higher the pay. Although affiliate marketing may require an ample amount of time to begin and a good web traffic strategy, the here reward is definitely worth it. Just remember that in order to make affiliate marketing work. The strategy to be used should center on how to increase the site’s web traffic. There is even no limit as to how many affiliate programs a person can promote.

2. eBay – Selling items in eBay is also a nice business for people who want to get rid of their excess items, especially those who have many extra items at home. eBay is a very popular money-making site, and almost every person turns to eBay when they want to buy or sell different items. The idea here is to try to generate money by selling unwanted or extra items online. eBay is 100% free to join and 110% effective in creating cash. In order to maintain the website running though and for maintenance purposes, eBay charges their subscribers a small amount of fee only when they successfully sell a product.

3. Paid Surveys – There are many paid surveys that can be found on the internet. Surveys are very easy to do and are perhaps one of the most effortless ways of generating money through the internet. In here a person is asked to fill up and answer a set of questions and then gets paid afterwards. Some surveys take time before they pay their subjects but the bottom line is they will get paid. This online business is free to apply.

Aside from these, there are many free online businesses that can be found on the net. Be extremely cautious in choosing though as some of these businesses are illegitimate and bogus.

Starting Online Businesses – Think Outside the Box

While surfing online, you have no doubt seen the many pop-up ads that advertise ways of starting online businesses. This may get you thinking about online business ideas that may make you a million dollars as well. After all, everyone can agree that a business which allows you to work at home and still make more than enough to support yourself is not a bad idea.

Of course, it is a lot easier to say you like the idea of working online than it is to actually sit down and brainstorm various ideas that can help you achieve your dreams. If you find yourself struggling to come up with online business ideas or even one business idea then you may want to read through the following tips.

First of all, you should target your research on things or niches that you like. You are going to be much more determined and devoted to your online business if it is centered on something you really like. Luckily enough, the internet is a very diverse environment filled with opportunities for people with all types of interests so what may seem impractical in the real world can hold many possibilities online.

Second, you want to do some research and look into niches that have not been fully explored on the Internet. While it is possible to compete with existing businesses it can be much easier to make a profit if you offer the only option online for people to visit. Thus, if you find that some of your online business ideas have already been developed you may want to spend some time thinking about how you can alter your service or product to make it unique to the online world.

Third, now you want to be creative and ingenious with your online business ideas. There is an old adage that says creativity is the cornerstone of invention. Do not be afraid to think outside of the box when it comes to your potential internet business. In fact, people often flock to ideas online that may seem completely ridiculous when taken out of the online context. If you need any proof of this idea look at the idea behind eBay. Who would have thought a giant yard sale would ever become a multi-million company?

When starting online businesses, your niches to start will not come to you overnight you have to make sure you keep your mind open and your ears sharp. You never know where inspiration will strike so make sure that you are open to its rewards!

Small Businesses – Measuring Business Performance From The Customer Perspective

Measuring your business performance from the customer perspective is a must for any business, regardless of its size. It will pay small business owners to become intimately familiar with the Key Performance Indicators used to measure, monitor and provide the actionable insights needed to readily adapt your business to the changing demands of its customers whilst maintaining a growth trajectory.

Regardless of the industry you are in there are core set of metrics you need to apply to your business. The core customer metrics you need to become familiar with are:

* Market Share/Market Penetration

* Customer Acquisition

* Customer Retention

* Customer Satisfaction

* Customer Profitability

Market Share/Market Penetration

Market Share reflects the proportion of business in a given market (in terms of customer numbers, dollars spent, or unit volume sold) that a business sells. To measure this effectively, you need access to market research which identifies the size of the total market.

These market figures are usually available from your government statistician, industry bodies and trade associations. The government statistician provides high level research and is usually available for free. Industry groups and trade associations may charge non-members, while members may access the information for free, or at a reduced rate.

While these reports usually provide information about the Market Share of each of the competitors, it is usually limited to only those competitors that hold significant share in the market, while small businesses and start-ups are lumped together in a single measure. So until you reach critical mass and are rewarded with recognition in the market research papers, my suggestion is that you substitute the Market Share key performance indicator with the Market Penetration measure.

Market Penetration uses the your business’s customer numbers, dollars spent or units of volume sold and measures them against the total market figures to get some idea as to your performance in this area.

Customer Acquisition

Measures, in absolute or relative terms, the rate at which a business unit attracts or wins new customers or business. Typically, if your business is on a grow path your objective will be to increase your customer base. Usually it is measured by either the number of new customers or the total sales to new customers. Measures could also be applied to each customer segment if you apply customer relationship management principles.

Another key measure that I suggest you apply in relation to measuring customer acquisition is the Acquisition Cost. This measures the performance of your marketing campaign in regards to the achieving the desired outcome – acquiring new customers.

Acquisition Cost is the number of new customers since the campaign started divided by the total marketing campaign cost.

The final measure to add is the Customer Conversion Rate, which measures the total number of leads generated divided by the number who actually made purchases, and expressed as a percentage.

Customer Retention

Tracks, in absolute or relative terms, the rate at which a business retains or maintains ongoing relationships with its customers. Clearly, the best way for increasing market share is to start by retaining your existing customer base. Customer Retention is measured by measuring your existing customer base at the beginning of a given period divided by the number of lost customers during that period. It is sometimes difficult to identify when they are considered to be ‘lost’. I’d suggest that anyone who did not make a purchase for over a year, is a lost customer.

Customer Satisfaction

Customer retention and customer satisfaction are driven by meeting customer needs. A successful business will be looking to provide customers’ innovative products with an excellent value proposition. Research has shown high degrees of customer satisfaction correlate with achieving loyalty, retention and profitability. Today, with competitors only a mouse click away, your focus should be on generating ‘raving fans’ by providing them with exceptional customer experiences. This not only drives repeat custom but creates valuable word-of-mouth recommendations to their family and friends.

You need to derive a satisfaction measure based on direct feedback from your customers. This measure will differ for each business, but should assess each component of the buyer’s experience to garner actionable insights which will act to focus your attention and activities.

Customer Profitability

This measures the net profit of a customer after allowing for the unique expenses required to support that customer. A financial measure like customer profitability, keeps the business from becoming customer-obsessed. Companies should aim to have more than satisfied and happy customers – they should be aiming for profitable customers.

This helps the business to assess whether they should continue in a particular market or,due to the drain on the business, should choose to opt-out.

Implementing core customer metrics in your organisation can help you track your performance and provide the basis for effective, fact-based decision-making in your small business.

10 Good Reasons Why Small Enterprises (Small Businesses) Fail

You’ll agree with me that there are so many small businesses which have contributed a lot to the growth of economy. They have created employment opportunities for many families although some remain to be small throughout their operational life.

It is obvious that those who are starting new ventures have objectives to achieve. And to mention each business has got its own objectives to achieve such as maximization of profits and sales, minimize costs, maintain a certain level of production and labor force etc.

Failing of a business opportunity is what an entrepreneur won’t want to happen. Inasmuch as we agree with the fact that there are firms which have succeeded, we should also accept the fact that a good number of them have failed even before two years lapse after they commence business.

If aspiring entrepreneurs addressed the reasons why small businesses fail, then they will not fall to be victims of the same causes of failure. This is because they’ll be in a position to identify these causes and fix them before it’s too late.

Now you may be asking yourself as to why some businesses remain to be small throughout their operational life despite some of them making profits or are capable of growing.

4 Reasons Why Small Business Remain to be Small

1.) The owners of these businesses prefer not to expand their businesses. Some sole proprietors do not want to be bothered with the challenges of managing a big business. They don’t want to employ people to assist them in running their businesses but instead they prefer to be assisted by their family members.

2.) The nature of the product/service the business is involved in doesn’t allow expansion. There are people offering products/services which make it difficult for their business to grow.

3.) Lack of capital for expansion. There are small businesses which are viable and have the potential of growing but they lack enough capital. Such businesses have the challenge of securing funds from financial institutions. Lack of capital plays a negative role in hindering the growth of small businesses.

4.) Very low demand. If the business has a very low demand for its product or service, then at the end of the fiscal financial year/trading period the business won’t realize profits, and if it does, it’s very low, therefore the chances of it expanding are very minimal. Just to mention, realization of inadequate profits as a result of very low demand hinders the growth of small businesses.

However, there must be a starting point and as such, every business starts as a small entity and it gradually grows to a medium entity and eventually it becomes a big business entity which is either a private limited company or a public limited company. Note that a partnership business can also grow to become a big business.

Reasons Why Small Businesses Fail

1.) Wrong Reasons For Commencing Business: People who start a business for wrong reasons haven’t succeeded. Just because another person is making high profits in a certain line of business doesn’t mean that you will also make the same amounts of profits as him/her if you start the same business.

2.) Poor Business Management: When there is poor management of the business it becomes difficult for such a business to succeed in its operations. Finance, marketing, purchasing and selling, planning, hiring and managing employees is what most new business owners fail to execute effectively thus making their small businesses to fail.

3.) Lack of Commitment: Starting a business requires someone who is committed in ensuring that it succeeds. Neglecting the business will cause the business to fail. Many small businesses have failed because the owners didn’t take their time in monitoring performance and in marketing them. Some business owners leave their businesses to be managed on their behalf by incompetent people who lack book keeping knowledge and the knowledge of managing a business.

4.) Lack of Finances: Small businesses have failed because of lack of adequate finances. Some of the owners underestimated the amount of capital required and as a result of this underestimation some ended up running out of operating capital thus ending the operation of their businesses.

There are those who have no reserves which has led them not to be able to take care of loses and disasters when they occur thus making them to quit business.

5.) Over-Expansion of the Business: This has led to failure of many small businesses. This happens when there is borrowing of too much money beyond what the business requires so as to expand the business. Moving to markets that are not profitable is also over expansion of the small businesses.

An ideal expansion is the one that is driven by customers due to their high demand for the products and services which leads to high sales thus the business experiences good cash flow.

6.) Location: The place where the business is located is critical in determining its success. Small businesses have failed because of them being located in areas that are not ideal for business. They should be located in areas that are accessible, populated with people and has demand for their products and services.

7.) Personal Use of Business Money: This is the biggest challenge facing many small business owners. They withdraw money meant to operate their businesses to meet their personal wants and needs. If they continue to withdraw money from their businesses without returning it, their businesses will eventually run out of finances therefore forcing them to end the operations of their businesses.

8.) Lack of Delegation: Small enterprises have failed due to owners not delegating some of the duties to their employees. They think that if they delegate them, then their employees will not perform these duties as they would personally perform them. When such owners fall sick or are away from their businesses, then the operations of some tasks will be paralyzed till they resume to work.

9.) Not Diversifying: Small enterprises which have only one product/service to offer are prone to fail easily compared to those that have a variety of products/services.

10.) Procrastination and Poor Time Management: Postponements of tasks which the small business owners feel to be unpleasant to perform has made the small businesses to fail. An example of such tasks include following debtors to pay their debts (debt collection).

Time management remains to be a challenge for many people who own small businesses. If important tasks like delivering products to customers, purchasing stock etc are not handled in the appropriate time, then the business will lose its customers.

The above are not all the reasons why small businesses fail, there are more reasons.

Make Your Existence Global With Good Home Based Businesses

Extend the sphere of your activity from home to the world and from regional to international level of globalization. The extensive service of the internet is at your disposal to help you execute this mammoth task with good home based businesses. There is no other opportunity than a home business to earn bread and butter not by running round in circle outside the home but lying back on a couch inside the home.

Doing research work at home for corporate organizations or academic institutes is one of the good home based businesses. Research is a time consuming job. Therefore, private companies to save their valuable time hire the services of freelance workers at a handsome cost to research for them.

You can grab this opportunity to make profit in abundance. To stand out in this field you need internet navigation skills, comprehension skills and knowledge of different disciplines.

Online retailing is a good option to make money online by working from home. You can do it by purchasing a stock and then selling it.

Online retailing requires you to keep clients supplied with quality products from time to time. Make sure to deliver products to clients after assessing their value and quality. An eye for minute inspection ensures long-term profitability of this field.

In the market of good home based businesses, eBay selling is another suitable money making method. eBay is a global platform to display your products for sale.

Visitors to the site purchase your products and pay a hefty amount for them. Selling quality products with customer oriented service at eBay can fire up your home business.

Affiliate selling is also a good internet based home business. Cost-effective nature of this business is the biggest advantage for you. It does not require you to invest for the purchase of a product and bear the stress of selling it.

Recommending the product or service of another person to internet buyers is the only task that you need to carry out.

Freelancing is the most rational and reasonable option among the good home-based businesses. As a copywriter, website designer or a business coach you can make your way to this online home business field.

Freelancing is selling your technical, creative, artistic or theoretical knowledge and skill. There are few other opportunities than freelancing to making money by putting your skills into application.

There are a few things to keep in mind while trying your luck in the tinsel world of home businesses.

Fast and quick access to clients from across the globe
Complete knowledge of using the internet in all possible ways
A perfect sense of professionalism
Grip on marketing techniques to promote your business
Idea of different advertising modes and methods

A home business becomes a moneymaking machine with proper application of knowledge, expertise and effort.

These three things comprise the chief capital to fuel the growth and development of good home based businesses.

How to Start Home Based Travel Businesses

Home based travel businesses are no longer the wave of the future. Home travel businesses are the hot trend right now. So if you’re considering becoming a travel agent, this brief guide will provide you with information you need to know.

First, there are generally two types of home travel businesses:

Referral agencies
Booking and selling agencies

Home based travel businesses that fall into the referral agency category do just that: they refer people to a travel agency. They may have several agencies they refer people to, but most generally have one travel agency that they work with on a regular basis. In return for the referrals from a home based business travel agent, the travel agency pays a referral fee or commission percentage on what the travel agency receives from the supplier. Part-time referral agents can earn up to $500 on each sale, and sometimes even more.

The home based travel businesses that fall into the booking and selling agencies category usually work with one travel agency. These booking and selling travel agencies actually do the booking and planning involved in making all the necessary arrangements for great trips.

These are people who enjoy attending to all the little details. They serve, more or less, as facilitators between their clients and a travel agency. Booking and selling home based travel business agents earn a lot higher percentage of the overall commission-but they DO do a great deal more work. A full-timer at this, however, can earn $50,000 or more a year.

Some things you want to consider before you decide to open your own home based travel business are:

Do I need any special training or education?
Should I pursue this part-time or full-time?
Is my family supportive of my decision?
Do I have a room in my home where I can set up an office?
Should I get an extra phone line?
What sort of office equipment do I need?
What will I do about accounting?
How do I manage my tax needs?
Is this a job I will love?
How much money do I want to make?
Should I do any advertising?
Do I have the contacts I need to pursue this business opportunity?
If I don’t, how do I make the contacts I need?
Am I willing to put the necessary effort into this business?
Does my state require me to have a business license?

Once you’ve answered all or at least most of these questions, you will need to make a business plan, outlining the steps you’ll have to take to achieve your goal of having your own home based travel business. And a plan just isn’t any good unless you follow it.

You also need to make sure your business plan is realistic. If you have to take a course to run the type of travel agent home business you want to have, deciding to open up shop next week isn’t reasonable. By being realistic in your business plan, you will save yourself an untold amount of frustration as you start and grow your business.

And starting your own business, whether it’s a cruise travel home business or a European vacation home travel business, can be frustrating. Be prepared for obstacles to raise their ugly little heads when you least expect them to, and roll with them as much as you can.

Your goal is to offer superior, professional travel services. Don’t let a cranky client get to you. Always keep a pleasant, cheerful demeanor. You can scream later. Better yet, you have a laugh or two over it with friends, while sipping a glass of fine wine that you bought with the money you’ve earned as a home based business travel agent.

Business License Requirements For In Home Based Businesses In Oregon

Salem is the capital and Portland is the largest city of Oregon. It is a good location to start any business especially home based businesses. More people have begun in home based businesses as it offers them several advantages such as reduced operating costs, saving time and money spent on traveling to the work place, getting quality time with family etc. However, it is necessary to do some research to find out if there are any licensing requirements for operating a business from home.

Business License Requirements:

It is recommended to give your business a legal structure, which can be done with the help of an experienced attorney who will also guide you regarding the type of entity that best suits your business. This can be also done by calling the Oregon Corporation Division at (503) 986-2200 or visiting their website http://www.filinginoregon.com

It will be necessary to choose a business name that has been formed in compliance with applicable State laws and ensuring that it is not a replica of any registered business.

It will be necessary to find out about the various licenses that are required for your kind of business and to check if it is permitted to operate as an in house based business. In order to get a license, all businesses have to get approval from the Planning, Building, Environmental Health and Facilities Departments of the County. In home based businesses must comply with all restrictions, regulations and zoning ordinances required by the Tax Collector, Planning Department as well as being reviewed by the Fire Department and Sheriff’s Department if the nature of your business requires it.

There are several factors to be considered, such as:

o Rule that permits only the resident of the home and one employee to work in the house etc.

o Certain commercial businesses have certain restrictions such as complying with zoning laws and regulations that may limit the size of their signboards, restricts the outdoor storage, parking space, or requires other special permits etc.

It will be advisable to contact the local courthouse to garner details about the exact licenses and permits that pertain to your chosen area of business.

Some kinds of businesses do not need licenses where as others require special business licenses and other need a general business license. Some businesses that are in home based require licenses in the State level too such as the food service industry or if you are a professional such as a lawyer, doctor etc. Businesses that offer investment advice or that sells firearms need federal business licenses.

For more information, contact Oregon Department of Environmental Quality at (800) 452-4011; OSHA at (503) 378-3272, or (800) 922-2689 inside Oregon; or the State Fire Marshall at (503) 373-1540.

For information on Oregon taxes, contact the Oregon Department of Revenue, (503) 378-4988 or visit http://www.irs.gov.

The 10 Best Home Based Business Ideas – Online Businesses Are Here to Stay

You may have noticed that Sacramento’s economic condition has not exactly been strong, of late. In fact, while conditions across the country are trying, to say the least, Sacramento, and California as a whole, seems to be leading the pack in economic devastation. With a State budget on the verge of collapse, years of arguing and posturing over the use of public funds, and what appears to be the breakdown of our State’s entire public service sector, local entrepreneurs are turning to online businesses to supplement, and in some cases actually replace their income streams.

Over the last several years, but specifically in the last six to nine months, direct sales companies have seen a surge in their membership numbers. Those companies experiencing the highest growth are companies utilizing the internet as a primary means of member recruiting as well as well-developed web purchasing interfaces.

We know this economy has been hard on everyone, and we felt that this list would be timely and helpful to our readers. What follows is a list of the 10 best home based business ideas.

Leading the pack of home-based direct sales companies are those that offer access to goods and services used by people on a regular basis, and especially those that offer discounts and/or rebates on these every day purchases. People are not interested in buying things they don’t view as necessary any more. Today what they are looking for is access to those items they have to have, and they are looking for ways to buy them cheaper and more efficiently.

And clearly in this list, the online options dominate. Fully six of the top 10 best home based business ideas we researched were online opportunities. There is no doubt that online commerce is just in its infancy. According to one report this $305 Billion industry is likely to triple in the next 5 years, and that is allegedly a conservative estimate. More and more businesses are finding online sales to be lucrative, as well as more efficient and cost effective. There are less employees required and businesses can sell to a broader range of clients spread out over a greater geographical territory. The potential is limitless.

So, without further ado, our list of the 10 best home based business ideas (in reverse order).

10. Home Day Care Center

Believe it or not, the home daycare center still ranks in the top ten for home-based businesses. The reason is that in these economic times it is becoming more and more difficult for families to stay afloat on just one income. Everyone is looking to supplement their incomes, and those with two spouses working, and kids at home, must have an alternative to the daily care of their children. Parents of young children looking to supplement income from home may find day care an excellent way to bring in income as well as spend time with their own children. There are some other benefits to this profession as well, such as the opportunity to socialize your own children at a young age. But, beware of the potential pitfalls of this industry: many children find it hard to share their personal space in their own home for lengthy periods of time, this may result in frustration for the care-giver’s own children. Also, licensing is required in most jurisdictions, so be sure to check with your local authorities before you launch a home day care.

9. Medical Transcription

This is an excellent choice of careers for people with excellent English language skills and typing ability. Many doctors outsource their transcription functions rather than pay employees to handle them. It is more cost effective for the doctors since they do not have to pay Medicare, SDI and other taxes that accompany hiring employees. This business is excellent for start-ups since it requires very low overhead and equipment purchases, and can be done in a minimal amount of space. In fact, most people already have the necessary equipment such as a desk, computer, and tape recorder. Incomes can range from $25,000 per year for part-time work to more than $90,000 per year for full-time efforts.

8. Accounting

For those would-be stay-at-home working parents, especially those with a strong background in accounting and/or financial skills, an accounting or bookkeeping career may be just the right choice. This career option offers a tremendous amount of flexibility to the working parent, and an excellent income opportunity. You can start the business right from your own home, building on referrals and low cost advertising, but it has the potential to grow with you as your children age and become less dependent, entering school, and freeing up more of your own time. Look heavily to building relationships with other professions, such as attorneys, insurance professionals and real estate agents as they will often refer clients to you. You can begin this business from scratch, or you can buy a tax and accounting franchise (a slightly more expensive option, but perhaps a shorter start-up period). Again, check with local authorities for licensing requirements in your area. Regulations can change from state to state, and there is also a wealth of information available at the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

7. Catering

Many parents love to cook and entertain, and catering can provide Moms (or Dads) an opportunity to work from home, but still get out and socialize and do what you enjoy. Most of the upfront preparation work can be done from your own home while looking after children, and then meals can be delivered, or in some cases even picked up, for delivery to the event. Parents with a modest approach can make an excellent income by simply providing the meals, those looking to satisfy a larger dream can also provide staff for set up, waiting, and tear down, or even do it themselves. Income potentials can be very good with catering services, and the most successful home-based caterers might make close to six figures.

6. Online Affiliate Programs

One of the internet’s greatest introductions to home based business owners over the last decade has been that of the affiliate marketer. This is the first of our online business opportunities, and is a position that does not require you to work for a company, purchase products, carry inventory, or even to interact with customers. You can easily start a successful and lucrative affiliate marketing business by simply finding products on the internet that you are interested in, joining the company’s affiliate program, and then marketing those products online. Most affiliate programs pay directly to a Pay Pal (or other payment processing service) account on a monthly basis. Of course, this business may require some start up capital if you choose to market through pay for service venues, such as pay per click. There are plenty of free marketing sources online as well, but they may require more effort. Still, this can be an excellent way for work-from-home parents to supplement a one-income family. You can find out all about it by Googling “Affiliate Programs” or on resource sites such as Affiliate Programs and Affiliate Scout. While this is a viable internet opportunity, it does require you to seek out and market individual companies and their products. In my opinion, a far better opportunity to consolidate this effort into a more lucrative, efficient and profitable business exists in item number one below.

5. Freelance Writing

Everyone has considered writing a book at some point in their lives, or at least liked the sound of that idea. Today’s market for writers is wide open, everything from relevant articles on travel, the arts, local scenes and business to fully fledged e-books on both technical as well as tactical topics. Especially if you are already familiar with a specific subject, this is a great way for you to share that expertise with a very broad market. There are literally millions of people searching the internet every day for information on specific subjects, and they are willing to pay for that information. Try your hand at writing first with shorter venues, and as your skill and experience grow, branch out into more aggressive projects. An excellent resource for freelance writing on the internet can be found at the Freelance Writing Jobs Network or, become an Examiner in your area.

4. Business Coach

While this opportunity is not necessarily an “online” opportunity, it is a bit of a hybrid, and it really plays to those individuals at the top of their game. This opportunity requires someone with a very strong business background, or at least some formidable business training. In today’s climate with so many people becoming displaced or seeking opportunity outside of the traditional corporate walls, there is a tremendous need for someone off which to bounce ideas, to assist in the business planning activities and to keep over-energetic CEO’s feet on the ground. If you have experience in corporate management, business acumen or other specialized skills then you can share them with those who have ideas but less experience. There is even a coaching certification program and referral service provided to the members of the International Coach Federation.

3. Web Design

Web sites are a must in today’s business climate, even for traditional brick-and-mortar type businesses. With online shopping and information dissemination becoming more and more a requirement companies are jumping onto the web in droves, and they need excellent web site designers to guide them through the process. This is truly a case where it is difficult to see the forest for the trees. There are so many facets to web design and a web presence that it is almost impossible to get started without some heavy duty assistance. For anyone familiar with html programming, CSS, SEO, or even WYSIWYG editors, this opportunity can be a gold mine. Much of your work can be done after hours when the kids are in bed, and this is one thing that makes this opportunity perfect for moonlighters and all-day parents.

2. Online Shopping Portal

Online shopping is already a $305 billion industry, and according to most reports, we have barely scratched the surface. There are several companies on the internet now that allow entrepreneurs and home-based business owners to purchase a web portal and profit from sales that occur through that web portal. Several of these companies will not only pay owners for purchases they have made through their websites, but also for the purchases made through the web sites of people they have personally referred. This is the affiliate program on steroids. This business is poised for tremendous growth, and companies also capitalizing on the “green” movement will benefit even more. Recent earth day articles and studies pointed out that online shopping is far more efficient and less harmful to the environment than traditional shopping. Watch this market explode in the next 5 years.

1. Online Marketing Education and Financial Training

Our number one pick of the 10 best home based business ideas – drum roll please – CarbonCopyPro. Whatever business you are in, and whether it is online or brick-and-mortar, these days you have to be able to market yourself online. It is essential in today’s marketplace, and will be indispensable in the future. The best money you can spend is to invest a little in your own training before you begin your online marketing campaign. And if you are going to spend a little on yourself, why not do it in a place where you can also earn while you learn? By far, the best training (and income opportunity) we have found for internet marketing, both free and paid, is through CarbonCopyPRO. At CarbonCopyPRO you will learn from the best of the best, internet marketers earning tens of thousands of dollars online every month, and they have a rather auspicious goal of creating 100 millionaires by 2012 – will you be one of them?

So, now you have the 10 best home based business ideas. Of course, there are a number of other considerations you must keep in mind, such as which opportunity best fits your lifestyle, avoiding scams, etc.; and we will delve into some of these issues in future articles. All that is left now is for you to do your own homework and decide which opportunity is best suited to your tastes. Happy hunting.

An Insight Into the Emergence of Women-Owned Businesses As an Economic Force in India

1. Introduction

During the last two decades, Indian women have entered the field of entrepreneurship in greatly increasing numbers. With the emergence and growth of their businesses, they have contributed to the global economy and to their surrounding communities. The routes women have followed to take leadership roles in business are varied. Yet, most women business owners have overcome or worked to avoid obstacles and challenges in creating their businesses. The presence of women in the workplace driving small and entrepreneurial organizations creates a tremendous impact on employment and business environments.

Indian women business owners are changing the face of businesses of today, both literally and figuratively. The dynamic growth and expansion of women-owned businesses is one of the defining trends of the past decade, and all indications are that it will continue unabated. For more than a decade, the number of women-owned businesses have grown at one-and-a-half to two times the rate of all businesses. Even more important, the expansion in revenues and employment has far exceeded the growth in numbers.

The result of these trends is that women-owned businesses span the entire range of business life cycle and business success, whether the measuring stick is revenue, employment or longevity. This strengthens the view that all governmental programs and policies should target at strengthening women’s entrepreneurship in their native lands.

Although, many of the earlier obstacles to women’s business success have been removed, yet some still remain. This has initiated the scholars of entrepreneurship and small businesses to study the influences of and the impact on business ownership by women. The number of these research studies are growing steadily.

2. What Are The Characteristics Of Women Entrepreneurs In India?

Indian women of today have taken many strides towards business ownership. The broad classification of women business owners include women who establish, inherit, or acquire a business; women who start businesses with spouses or business partners but are either at the forefront or behind the scenes; and finally, women who start fast-growing or part-time or slow-growing firms. Although earlier researches on women entrepreneurs have suggested that significant differences existed between female and male entrepreneurs. However, more recent studies have shown that there are far more similarities than differences between women and men entrepreneurs in terms of psychological and demographic characteristics. The dominant predictors of success in case of women entrepreneurs are work experience and years of self-employment.

Generally, women view their businesses as a cooperative network of relationships rather than as a distinct profit-generating entity. This network extends beyond the business into the entrepreneur’s relationships with her family and the community. Certain cross-cultural studies on women entrepreneurs have reported that their management styles emphasizes open communication and participative decision-making, and their business goals reflect a concern for the community in which the business operates.

The majority of women business owners operate enterprises in the service sectors, whereas the majority of male business owners operate enterprises in non service sectors, particularly manufacturing. Women are not only achieving economic independence and wealth creation for themselves, but through job creation, they are also providing opportunities for others, particularly for other women.

A series of researches have shown that the workforce of women-owned businesses tend to be more gender balanced than the workforce of men-owned businesses, although women business owners are more likely to hire women. Put simply, an investment in women’s entrepreneurship is an investment in the economic independence and well-being of all women.

In comparison to their women counterparts who established their businesses two decades earlier, women who have started their businesses sometime during the past decade are more likely to have the following:

o a higher level of education, previous professional and managerial experience, as well as executive level experience

o a greater appetite for capital, both credit and equity

o a strong motivation for autonomy and achievement

o a dynamic personality

o a passion for what they do

o creativity to innovate and implement

o independence and self reliance

o high self confidence

o willingness & ability to take risks

o alertness to opportunities

o ability to marshal resources

o ability to respond to market & environment signals

Thus, from the above discussion, we can conclude the following traits of personality of women entrepreneurs:

Risk taker Proactive Opportunist Visionary Inventor Tolerance of ambiguity Commercialiser Desire for independence Trader High energy Innovator Ability to bounce back Flexible Results oriented Need for achievement All rounder Internal control Decisive Self confident Self Motivated Pragmatic Flair

3. Why Do Indian Women Undertake Entrepreneurship?

In spite of the growing number of female entrepreneurs, the share of female entrepreneurs is still significantly low when compared to their participation rate. However, there are several factors responsible for increasing the level of female entrepreneurship in India:

1. Nature of Entrepreneurship: Women enter into entrepreneurial activity because regular employment does not provide them with the flexibility, control or challenge offered by business ownership.

2. Motivation : Several evidences suggest that women do not lack the motivation to enter into business ownership. They are often highly motivated than their male counterparts to overcome the barriers to business start-up.

3. Empowerment : Indian women are becoming more empowered now-a-days. Legislation is being progressively drafted to offer them more opportunities at various levels.

4. Social Conditions : Population growth results in a strong positive relationship on entrepreneurial activity. Across genders, the increase in demand and competition for jobs pushes more people into necessary entrepreneurship. For women, in particular, the relatively high involvement in necessary entrepreneurship indicates that self-employment is used as a way to circumvent institutional and cultural constraints with respect to female employment, as well as a way to provide supplemental family income.

5. Economic Conditions : Auspicious economic conditions favour the participation of women in entrepreneurial activity. The smaller amount of financial capital requirement and higher proportion of available bank loans positively correlates the level of female entrepreneurship to economic conditions. In fact, in a country like India, the relationship between the size of unofficial economy and entrepreneurial activity is positive.

6. Literacy & Education: Increased levels of education has played a crucial role in initiating the process of entrepreneurship. It is not only the illiterate that are starting the businesses but those with education & skills are also exploiting profit opportunities.

4. What Are The Needs Of Women Entrepreneurs In India?

1) More and better access to finance/credit is mentioned very frequently. Give a woman 1000 rupees and she can start a business. Give her another 1000 rupees and she will be able to feed not only for her family, but for her employees as well.

2) Access to business support and information, including better integration of business services.

3) Training on business issues and related issues

4) Better access to local and foreign markets.

5) Day care centres & nurseries for children, and also for the elderly;

6) Positive image-building and change in mentality amongst women, whereby women see themselves as capable achievers and build up confidence.

7) Breaking through traditional patrons and structures that inhibit women’s advancement.

8) Role modelling of women in non-traditional business sectors to break through traditional views on men’s and women’s sectors.

9) More involvement and participation in legislation and decision-making processes.

10) Removing of any legislation which impedes women’s free engagement.

11) Awareness-raising at the governmental as well as private level to truly and really create entrepreneurial opportunities and not just programs that stay on paper.

5. Which Important Problems Are Faced By Women Entrepreneurs In India?

1. Women hardly interact with other women who are successful entrepreneurs. This results in a negative impact on their networking skills.

2. The areas, where one can see women acting as entrepreneurs, is in the very typical women’s sectors of 3Ps. This is also the area, where women are accepted in society to be experts in and thus have the capacity for entrepreneurial activities.

3. It is clear, that women have the responsibility of getting children and taking care of them. Very few societies accept fathers taking over the role of staying home and taking care of the children. Once these children are old enough to take care for themselves, they have to bear an additional responsibility of taking care of elder parents. If they want to become entrepreneurs, the society expects them to be able to do both: take care of family and home and do business.

4. Women are very critical when it comes to themselves – can I really do this, am I good enough, maybe I have to learn more, others can do it better. It is quite interesting that many successful women have been educated in only girls colleges and schools, which often deliver a safe environment to try out ones personal strengths, learn to overcome weaknesses and be proud of oneself.

5. Discrimination – it is hard to believe but women are still treated differently in our society. Women do get lower salaries compared to men doing the same job, women do not have access to men dominated networks who take their decisions about successors in the company during golf plays or sauna meetings….

6. Missing networks – through centuries business men have build up their networks but women still have to learn to catch up.

7. A lot of women tell stories about not being taken serious by bankers, when they wanted to get a loan for their business. Often enough, they have to bring their husbands or fathers to be able to be heard and receive financing. So, the domination of men in the banking world is a problem.

6. What Are The Challenges Faced By Women Entrepreneurs In India?

One of the major obstacles faced by women entrepreneurs has been that they are not taken seriously. Even though women have achieved credibility as competent entrepreneurs in areas such as retail, personal services and business services, perceptions that women-owned businesses are less successful, credit worthy & innovative continues to be a barrier.

Besides this, there are several other challenges being faced by Women Entrepreneurs:

1. Lack of Visibility as Strategic Leaders: Changing the perceptions about the likely success of women-owned businesses depends on increasing women’s visibility in leadership positions within the greater business community. In an assessment of women’s presence as CEOs or Directors of large business enterprises, it has been anticipated that the exodus of women to entrepreneurial growth firms might be because women believe that have greater representation in strategic leadership positions in privately-held or family-owned firms as they provide better opportunities for leadership than available to women in publicly-traded companies.

2. Differential Information and Assistance Needs: Another significant need of many women business owners is obtaining the appropriate assistance and information needed to take the business to the next level of growth. In a study conducted to gather information needs of women entrepreneurs, those who were just starting their ventures, requested assistance and training in implementing the business idea, identifying initial sources of financing, and advertising/promotion. The entrepreneurs who were already established, had a somewhat different set of needs including financing for expansion and increasing sales. Another conducted study had identified ten most desired needs of fast growth entrepreneurs:

(a) using cash flow to make operational decisions

(b) financing growth

(c) increasing the value of the business

(d) compensation for self and associates

(e) hiring, training and motivating for growth

(f) succeeding in a rapidly changing world

(g) successful selling

(h) sales force management

(i) management success

(j) problems and pitfalls of growth.

Unfortunately, this differences in information and assistance needs can be found across cultures as well.

3. Family Influences on Women Entrepreneurs : The overlapping of the family and the firm is not significant for women business owners. Unfortunately, little research has been conducted on the dynamics of family-owned firms headed by women. As the boundaries between the firm and the family tend to be indistinct, women operating family businesses face a unique set of issues related to personal identity, role conflict, loyalties, family relationships, and attitudes towards authority. Additionally, family businesses owned by women are at a disadvantage financially and are forced to rely on internal resources of funding rather than outside sources. The critical role of family in business, also emerges in cross-cultural studies which show a women relying heavily on the family for start-up capital.

7. What Steps Need To Be Initiated For Women Entrepreneurial Development In India?

A possible set of three inter-linked and inter-dependent clusters of recommendations can be aimed at “pushing” a larger number of women entrepreneurs towards growth opportunities, unlocking their potential as creators of wealth and jobs, and providing a more conducive legal and regulatory framework. These recommendations can also ensure the proper positioning of “pull mechanisms” to enable the growth-oriented women entrepreneurs to expand and grow in terms of investments, markets and profits.

1. Prioritizing and Pushing at the micro-level : There is a large and seemingly ever-increasing number of women entrepreneurs operating in micro-enterprises and in the informal economy. They can be facilitated to grow into sustainable, formally registered & large enterprises with the help of following actions:-

o Conducting gender analysis for all entrepreneurial support programmes

o Gathering data on women and men entrepreneurs

o Applying “target group segmentation” to women entrepreneurs

o Using targeted approaches for priority categories in order to provide additional “push” to women entrepreneurs to the next level of growth

o Promoting mobilization and organization of representative associations

o Examining differential impacts of governmental policies, programmes and actions

o Promoting development of demand-led supports for women entrepreneurs

o Promoting more flexible and innovative financial products by banks

2. Unlocking and Unfettering Institutional Framework: Policies, laws and overall regulatory environment are frequently seen as barriers and disincentives to expansion and growth. However, they need to be promoted in such a way that women entrepreneurs see the advantages of and benefits that come with compliance.

o Reviewing impact of existing and new instruments on women entrepreneurs

o Identifying those instruments that act as barriers to expansion and growth

o Modifying or dismantling these instruments

o Taking account of the social and cultural contexts affecting policy implementation and redress inequalities and abnormalities

o Making use of IT and associations so as to minimize the administrative burdens on women entrepreneurs

o Holding regular consultations with key factors like women entrepreneurs, women entrepreneurs’ associations, financial institutions, etc, to review progress and identify new bottlenecks.

3. Projecting and Pulling to Grow and Support the Winners : The first two sets of recommendations are aimed at trying to “push” more women entrepreneurs into growth situations as well as ensuring that laws & regulations do not stand in their way. The third possible recommendation relates to facilitating and “pulling” the women entrepreneurs into situations where they can actively pursue growth strategies.

o Providing incentives for expansion and growth after removing barriers and disincentives

o Encouraging and rewarding dynamic representative associations of women entrepreneurs

o Promoting strong links and synergies with existing major economic players

o Profiling the economic and social contributors among women entrepreneurs to the national economy

o Promoting and rewarding programmes that serve women entrepreneurs

o Making full use of data gathered to inform new policies, programmes and supportive actions

o Ensuring synergies between (a) women related ministry (b) economic ministry (c) welfare & social development ministry in the government.

8. Conclusion

With relevant education, work experience, improving economic conditions and financial opportunities, more women around the world are creating and sustaining successful business ventures. This will not only have an impact on the economies of the countries in which women own their businesses but also will change the status of women in those societies. It is likely that, as we begin this millennium, this will be the century of the entrepreneur in general and of the women entrepreneur in particular.

No More Excuses for Small Business Owners for Not Growing Their Businesses

When talking about business related issues, solutions, and technologies, you will almost always group businesses as small and large. While the separation is there, it won’t be wrong to say that in a modern where digital technologies prevail, it should not be a problem for small businesses to compete with large ones. The large corporations have the advantage of having more resources without a doubt. However, there was not a time in the past when growing and expanding was as easy for small businesses as it is today.

Digital Marketing for Everyone

Digital marketing starts with a website today. When it comes to website designs, more money does not always mean a better design. If you are working with the right people and are clear about your requirements, your website can be just as impressive as the website of a large business. In fact, internet users today are more in favor of simplistic websites with a focus on the information they are looking for rather than the glitter and sparkle.

As for social media marketing, there is no difference in the size of the market that small and large businesses have to target. They are both targeting global audiences and how good they are at it is not defined by how much money they put in their marketing efforts. Social media marketing is free marketing, so there is no excuse as to who has more resources.

And if you believe that the large corporations make it to the top of the search engine results, you always have a better and more effective niche to compete within – local. With local search engine optimization, small businesses can compete with the medium and large businesses head to head. In simple words, regardless of the size of the business, everyone has access to the same market and same people today. What matters is who does it better.

Digital Solutions Are Available Specifically for Small Businesses

When it comes to software solutions for businesses, the focus is not on large corporations anymore. Today, all types of software solutions have their versions built specifically for small businesses. These digital solutions allow small businesses to cut down their costs and make use of the same technologies that large companies are using.

Take the example of CRMs. At one point, there was a notion that customer relationship management software are only for large businesses, but the things have changed quite a bit today. Web-based CRM are a revelation for small businesses. First, these CRMs provide great marketing, database, customer service and sales solutions to the businesses. Second, they are unbelievably affordable. If you own a small business, you don’t even have to worry about software integration, hardware compatibility, updates, and upgrades, etc. Keep in mind that with in-house solutions, these are the costs that make it difficult for small businesses to grow financially.

With web-based solutions designed for small businesses, you can now have access to a world-class CRM at a fractional monthly or yearly cost. Other affordable digital solutions available include invoicing software, bookkeeping software, payroll software, etc.

Customers Have the Power in Hands

The Internet has empowered customers like never before. You can’t say that just because a business is in multiple countries, it will be impressive enough for people to buy its products. The amazing thing about today’s economy is the power that customers have in their hands. Online reviewing websites, YouTube videos, blogs, etc. are among many platforms that allow customers to know more about businesses. In fact, even Google now puts business ratings and customer reviews right within its search results.

What this means is that when a customer searches for a business today, he/she is already able to see the reputation of the product they are going to buy. Furthermore, negative reviews from customers can greatly affect the sales of business, giving other businesses a chance to make their name.

Furthermore, it’s not just the quality of products that matters today. In the modern world, businesses are competing for better customer experience. If your business can give customers the experience they are looking for, your growth is inevitable despite the small size of your business.

Funding Is No Issue for Startups

It is always the starting days that matter the most for business. When you are a startup, you are looking for ways to fund your business so you can materialize your idea and polish your product/service according to the requirements of the customers. Finding a platform where you could connect with investors was a challenge in the past. This is not an issue anymore.

With like our websites, it is easier than ever for small businesses to get in touch with investors and get the right amount of investment that sets them on the path of growth. These are websites that act as a bridge between investors from all around the world and startups. With traditional banks and lenders, you are only limited to a local audience of investors. When you can’t find an investor in your local market, your hopes are almost dead.

With online funding websites, all you have to do is create a convincing pitch that explains the viability of your startup to the investors and its scope. Your pitch along with all the necessary information that you think investors should see goes on the website where it is visible to hundreds and thousands of investors. If you have done your homework and have a team of right professionals on board, getting the right investment is just a matter of hours or days.

Final Words

You can see that a small business can overcome almost all of their challenges much more efficiently today. Starting a business has become so easy that even students can be entrepreneurs today. They can lay the foundation for a business using just their pocket money. From connecting with the right investors to cutting down operational costs, all can be done from the comfort of a person’s home. The only thing that makes the difference today is if you are confident enough to take the first step.