Business Strategy For Small Business » entrepreneur

“How did you manage to leave the good old Hitech life, with a very comfortable and respected position as an executive, to start your own company and achieve success? Can you give us any tips?”

Although now a days, with the economical crisis and uncertainty, it may not be bad to be “stuck” in such a job working for a large company. Personally, after a long and demanding Hitech career as an employee, with a few “almost” huge startup exits, I have decided that it is time to take my destiny into my own hands and do the things that I like doing.

I have opened my own company (www.HitechStrategies.com) which helps many hitech startups and ventures to reach success and at the same time provides me with a nice steady income; I have become an entrepreneur; I have founded and joined several startup ventures as a part time partner or advisor; I have been teaching entrepreneurship and international marketing at several educational institutions (including Tel Aviv University’s MBA program); I coach several dozen entrepreneurs and CEOs of early stage startups; I connect investors and startups…I will stop here, I think you got the point.

As you can see, I enjoy a very diversified and exciting living, very different from the long days at my office as a hitech executive.

As for tips, it is difficult to provide a school-book recipe, but I can say that each person has to find their own niche that they feel good about and provide value. It does take some guts and entrepreneurship and a will power to take a risk and start over, even at a cost of having a lower income temporarily. Here are some of my retrospective insights:

Networking

One big tip is to take yourself out of the office and start networking and reconnect with friends and professional colleagues. This is usually the first step in exposing yourself to new ideas and opportunities. Find out what others are doing; maybe even find a partner or a venture to join. As I think back to my career, I sometimes wonder how I got myself so entangled in my day to day work, that I was almost unaware of things that were going on outside my domain. Not to mention the relationships and contacts that were neglected.

There have been many articles and a lot of buzz about networking in recent years. I find it quite straight forward and not as elaborate as some make it to be. Of course, not everyone is going to be a networking Guru or what Malcolm Gladwell, in his great book “The Tipping Point” called a “Connector”. But, even so, just meeting up with old acquaintances and going to several industry and networking events, will make a huge difference. You will be surprised how talking to people outside your daily work circle, will broaden your horizons and uncover new ideas and opportunities.

Training

Another good tip is to enroll in one of the many entrepreneurship course and forums that are out there. If you are like me and have worked as an employee all your life, you probably have never opened your own business, or issued an invoice to a customer. You can of course Google and read about everything in the Internet, but I recommend that you take a course that will give you an overview of everything you need to know to start your own business or startup company. This will include things such as: the legal aspects of establishing a company, business or a founders partnership agreement, fund-raising and funding sources (there are many government incentives to help you start without spending your own money), accounting and financial aspects of running a business, tax issues, IP and patent filing, creating a business plan, building a team, marketing and sales (online and offline), etc.

These courses are usually short (3-4 months), not time consuming (can be done on a one evening a week basis) and not expensive. The key benefit, other than the studies, is that you will hear from entrepreneurs’ own personal experience, talking about how they did it, and you will meet many people like you who are thinking about or are already starting their own companies.

Follow your aspirations

Each one of us has a special unique set of qualities, talents, knowledge and experience that we can foster to excel in that or the other. We are usually good at what we do or have done, but some of us also have dreams and aspirations to do other things that we have not had the time or the opportunity to try. Others feel they have exhausted their occupation and are looking for something that will make them more excited and fulfilled. Well, it is never too late to try something new. What is the worst that can happen? You might not succeed, but at least you know you tried. And, you can always go back to what you were doing before. Or, you may actually be doing what you really like and always wanted to do; that is already a great feeling. And yes, you might even really succeed in it.

Be patient and keep at it

Starting a new venture is not easy; it takes a lot of work and passion. And, it does not happen overnight. So, you should be patient with yourself and not expect everything to go quickly and smoothly. In the beginning, you might need to live on no or very little income and even use up some of your savings. If you are not in a position to do that, you may elect to stay in your current job and to work on your startup during your off-work hours (nights and weekends) or you may change to a part time job. The key is to work through the challenges, move forward, step by step, and not to get discouraged on the way. If you keep at it, you will eventually reach your goals.

Do your homework; get help from experts

Like any business decision, before you are about to invest your time and resources to startup a new venture, you should do your homework. If you think you have a great idea (e.g. the next “Facebook” or “iPhone”), you should research your target market and competition. You need to validate that there is a real need for your idea and that it will have a distinct advantage over existing alternatives. You should talk to key opinion leaders and customers in your market in order to confirm this. Finally, you should create a business plan so you have a clear understanding as to what it takes to develop your product or service and how much funding will you need. If this is the first time you are doing this, you are better off getting help from experts or consultants who can do this (i.e. prepare a business plan) for you or with you, to ensure you are not making critical mistakes and that your venture has the maximum chances to succeed.

Finally, great rewards for your efforts

If you do decide to startup your own venture and you manage to get through the obstacles, you will realize some great benefits:

Being your own boss and in control of your life

Since I have become an entrepreneur, I can really focus on doing what I want and what I think can be beneficial to me or to my company (this is not usually the case if you are an employee). I am also fortunate to try many things that I have never had the time to do.
Being able to balance work, family and social life

Being an entrepreneur does enable you to be much more flexible with your time. You can make time for your family whenever they need you, spend more time with friends and take on hobbies. If needed, you can compensate for it by working at night after the kids went to bed or by simply working more efficiently.
Working from home

One of the main benefits of being independent is that you can work from home anytime you want and you don’t need to ask for your boss’s permission. I have set up a very comfortable fully equipped home- office, so I can choose to work from home and be very productive; I also avoid 1-2 hours of driving to/from work in traffic on any given day. Re-kindle all your friendships and professional contacts

Another great benefit is that I was able to enjoy more social time with friends and
colleagues and build my professional network; that helps a lot with generating leads and opportunities. Benefit from the fruits of your success

With in a year from the time I had started my venture, I managed to surpass the level of income that I had when I was working as an executive in a hitech company. I also have stocks in several startups that I hope will one day be worth millions.
Enjoy fulfilling your aspirations and doing what you love

Need I say more?

The writer is an ex veteran hitech executive, turned an entrepreneur and serves as the managing director of HitechStrategies.

For more information, you may contact:

Boaz Gruener

www.HitechStrategies.com

Email: boaz@HitechStrategies.com

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Personally, after a long and demanding Hitech career as an employee, with a few “almost” huge startup exits, I have decided that it is time to take my destiny into my own hands and do the things that I like doing. More in the article..

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Tips and Strategies for a Small Business Entrepreneur to Beat the Competition

admin — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 17:25:33 +0000

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Tips and Strategies for a Small Business Entrepreneur to Beat the Competition

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Entrepreneur Tips – Having Fun While Earning Big

admin — Thu, 04 Nov 2010 17:25:49 +0000

by LunaWeb

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Entrepreneurship is a serious deal that you can have fun with. Even if you have to focus on making yourself profitable, you should never deprive yourself from enjoying the aspects of the business. Success is even sweeter if you achieved it through hard work, enjoyment and satisfaction. Listed in this article are things that an entrepreneur should always have in mind:

1. You will face challenges.

No business is worth doing without the challenges it entails. You are surely going to work with a lot of people, face different clients and evaluate a number of products. These are only three of the challenges you are to face in a business. If you embrace the responsibilities with a willing heart, you will do well with the business.

2. Maintain professionalism.

Your desire to become a successful entrepreneur should not impede in keeping your values. Be professional. Make sure that all the things you undertake do not violate the values you’ve upheld for so long.

3. Be ready to face failure.

It is not an unknown fact that a lot of baby-boomers in an industry pull out their operations. Nevertheless, you have to look at the brighter side; a failure is never futile if you can pick up the learning experiences that can be gotten from it. These will make you wiser and more ready for another set of challenges of being an entrepreneur.

4. Simply have fun.

You may have developed the best product of the year and you are famed for being able to come up with such, but the final question is always whether you had fun or not. Do not be too pressured with the tasks; the real entrepreneurs are the enthusiastic ones!

There are a lot of strategies to making money on the Internet, but nothing makes sense unless you have a big list. Email Marketing is the most profitable way to make money on the Internet. When you build a list of hot and hungry prospects or leads, you control your future. Discover how to use the Internet and turn your computer into a cash gushing machine. Sign-up right now for your FREE online newsletter to find out how to do exactly that – Go here: http://www.UltimateResultsMarketing.com

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Business Help and Tips for the Online Entrepreneur

admin — Sat, 23 Oct 2010 17:28:05 +0000

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Running a business online has many benefits from a traditional career or small business. You are able to save money by not needing to maintain a physical location, likely working out of your home you are able to save time and money by not having to commute to work and possibly not requiring child care, and you are able to work at whatever hours are most convenient for you. All of these traits contribute to an enhanced quality of living and, through their cost-savings, may enable you to start your own business without seeking financing. However, there are several challenges unique to the world of the online entrepreneur that you will need to keep in mind.

Finding Clients

Finding clients is a common issue for the online entrepreneur. In a traditional business, you may have foot traffic, you get visibility from your location, you may get clients that found you in the phonebook, and you can run ads in local newspapers or on radio stations to gain exposure. None of these methods can be easily applied to the online entrepreneur. Online entrepreneurs have to look towards methods such as blogging or article writing, social media outlets (i.e LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook) and other such resources to gain exposure for products and services.

Market Awareness

As an online entrepreneur, it can also be difficult to see market trends as they emerge and to understand the elative magnitude of those trends. For example, people are shopping online for just about everything, but do you know what percentage of people looking for your service look online as opposed to a phonebook? How many of those people prefer to deal exclusively online? How many require face-to-face contact? Knowing the answer to these questions can mean the difference between a successful online entrepreneur and an unsuccessful one, even if online sales/services are only a fraction of your business.

New Opportunities

There are many online business opportunities available to the savvy online entrepreneur, be they a particular marketing niche or partnering with an online business opportunity provider. Making sure that you are aware of these opportunities and that you know how to maximize them is a good step towards finding your own success online. By reading forums, both those related to your target customer and those concerned with your trade itself, staying abreast of articles and postings, and perusing independent reviews of the market and business opportunities, you can gain a solid knowledge of online entrepreneurship. Also, if you do choose an online business opportunity provider, make sure that you find one that offers ongoing support and tools for lead generation and the closing of sales.

If you are unsure how to find clients, what the market is doing or where the best opportunities for you lie, consider hiring a business coach. There are a variety of training companies , some of which are online business opportunity providers as well, that provide training, assistance and support for all aspects of your business. Visit www.HelpingYouHelpYourself.com for great business tips for the online entrepreneur and to get a complete help package to help you become an online entrepreneur and gain the time freedom you have always wanted.

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Resume Tips: Making the Shift from Entrepreneur to Executive

admin — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 17:29:10 +0000

by paulamarttila

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Were you lucky enough to start your own business that had success for years, but now find yourself looking to step into corporate world at the executive level? There are a lot of entrepreneurs who have successfully made the transition, which is good news for you.

Unfortunately, many entrepreneurs downplay the importance of a good resume, and this can be fatal when applying for executive level positions. So before you get started on your journey, take a look at the following resume tips …

Maintain a Tunnel Vision Focus

One of the main focal points of writing a resume that shows a shift from entrepreneurship to an executive position is using tunnel vision when writing. Just because you’ve been a successful entrepreneur, a company can’t assume that you’re automatically a good candidate for an executive job. As an example, say that you were the sole owner of your business–while you might have gotten quite a bit accomplished in terms of workloads, products delivered, and time frames met, you might not be able to claim experience in management or customer service work.

So as you write your executive resume, you want to spend time really looking at the position you’re applying for then looking at what you did in your position as business owner to determine your qualifications. When jotting down your experience and accomplishments, be sure to quantify as much as possible (how many people you’ve managed, how many products you sold, revenue, etc.). Your new role’s responsibilities should line up with your accomplishments as an entrepreneur. If the employer sees you’ve been able to deliver like an executive, it will be easier to envision you in the position you’re applying for.

Create an Executive-Level Title for Yourself

When creating your resume, it’s also a good idea to create a title for yourself that reflects your executive-level ambitions. Ever hear the old business adage, “fake it til you make it?” It’s sort of like that, except that you’re actually pooling your skills and accomplishments and creating a title that reflects them all in the executive realm.

For instance, if you were the CEO of your company, but also handled the responsibilities of an Executive Sales Director, you could use this as your title. You would be able to provide plenty of experience to qualify your title and also offer insight into the role you plan to take on in a corporate position.

Add Keywords

Since you’ve been working for yourself for some time, you may be out of the resume-writing loop. If this is the case, it’s important understand keywords and their importance. In order to weed out unqualified resumes, many businesses use keyword software that searches for relevant phrases in every resume received. For instance, if you’re in marketing, “trade shows” is a good industry-related phrase. To find keywords and phrased related to your industry, simply Google “resume keyword phrases” to get started.

It’s good to know that transitioning from entrepreneurship is possible with determination and a good resume. Using the tips above can give you a strong foundation for your executive resume and your new career.

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Business Tips for the Entrepreneur

admin — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 17:28:52 +0000

by LunaWeb

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Entrepreneurship is the profession of the twenty-first century. Technology and globalization has made it possible for anybody with a good business idea to start multimillion dollar companies with nothing more than a computer and an internet connection. Many of the barriers to entry are facilitated with business loans, international suppliers, affiliate marketing, and cheap communication thanks to the internet.

What many entrepreneurs fail to do correctly is choose their market before they get too excited about their product. The graveyard of failed businesses is overloaded with ideas for incredible products that nobody wanted. The best tip an entrepreneur can take to heart is to do market research first and choose the demographics for your business before you invest time and money into a product or service.

Another important tip is how to land joint venture partners. Venture capitalists look at deals every single day from aspiring entrepreneurs, so you got to do your homework before you go begging for money. You want to have real numbers and real results to justify your projections.

No venture capitalist got rich by diving into projects that had no facts to back up the numbers. Another thing to keep in mind is that venture capitalists do not really care about how cool, new, or unique your product is. What will impress your joint venture partners are your marketing plan and your numbers. Good venture capitalists admire enthusiasm and will bring some of their own resources beyond cash into the deal.

Be prepared to fail. Do not fear failure, learn from it and try again. Persistence in the face of failure is a sure formula for success. You will never be beaten until you give up because no matter what you lack, somebody else has what you need and you can get it somehow.

Focus your energies on building systems to protect your legal status and be sure to take careful care of accounting. Many booming businesses have been busted by poor accounting or by lawsuits due to ignorance. Do not become a victim, do everything right.

The most expensive advice is bad advice, so hire only qualified professionals to counsel you. It costs less to hire a lawyer or a certified public accountant to get you set up than to hire them later to try and fix your mess. The most important aspect is to build a business you can resell. Do not become the business.

Outsource whatever you can because your most precious asset should be your time. Make sure you use your time building the system and not doing the business yourself. Many small businesses succeed but are unable to cash out of their business because they do it all themselves.

Seek the benefits of a small business with the power of a big business by keeping your resources and expenses low but your profit margin high. Never outsource your managing, however, since nobody will ever manage your business as well as you will. Maintain the power for all business decisions, especially the ability to write checks for the company

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Defining Entrepreneurship: Are you an entrepreneur?

admin — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 17:42:10 +0000

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Defining entrepreneurship is not difficult. An entrepreneur is someone who is willing to take a calculated risk and to start his or her own business is. Entrepreneurship is not for everyone. Are you a budding entrepreneur This article provides a few tips to help you on the path to business success.

visit, you can also go to a membership site and get specific training on the niche that your Internet business is in. You can even buy hard bound copies and CDs, if you want to get away from your computer.

Also, in the definition of entrepreneurship, we have to mention certain qualities that must be a man. You need success focused and always willing to go the extra mile to achieve your goals. You must be willing to take calculated risks based on solid research, and you must be able to identify a niche with real profit potential and develop it. If this sounds like you then I would say that you definitely have the stuff to a real entrepreneur!
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Great Business Marketing Solutions for Small Business

admin — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 04:24:59 +0000

Small Business owners, you have to read this article. Great marketing solutions to make you win the market. Enjoy reading!!

Consumers often make snap decisions about who to do business with – and companies with a polished, professional image usually win out.

If you’re like most entrepreneurs, this comes as no surprise. In fact, according to a recent survey of small businesses, nearly two-thirds believe that having sleek, cohesive communications is key to attracting new customers. However, while the majority feel this type of well-designed collateral is essential, nearly half admit they don’t even have business cards. In fact, nearly 30 percent of respondents stated that their business doesn’t even have a logo.

So what’s the disconnect? More often than not, it’s a budget issue. Most small businesses don’t have the luxury of a dedicated art department or marketing team to create their brand identity. The good news is that developing professional-looking materials has never been more accessible – or affordable.

Investing in corporate image not only helps your small business look larger, but it just might be what sets you apart from the competition. Simple things like a unique logo, an attractive website or appealingbusiness cards will help to establish your business’ brand identity and define its role and services in the marketplace.

Interested in creating some of these materials for your business? Here are a few tips to help you get started:

• Back To Basics. A business card is one of the most essential items that a company should possess. For a minimal price, a business can design and print professional-lookingbusiness cards to attract new customers and ensure existing ones know how to get back in touch with you.

• Invest In Your Image. What will people think of your company? An image is one of the most important elements of any organization, and this can start with the creation of a corporate logo.

• Look Professional. With more and more shoppers visiting the Web to research products and services, small businesses need to have a website that will instill confidence. Make sure that your website has a consistent look and feel to other marketing materials and that important information such as phone and fax numbers, business address and hours of operation are prominently listed. If products are being sold on the site, be sure to take the proper measures to ensure customers are shopping on a safe and secure site.

• Give Customers Something To Remember. People love to get things for free. Wouldn’t it be even better if this freebie was branded with your company logo? Items such as pens, pencils, notepads and other items can be purchased and branded with your logo at a minimal cost.

Maximize your company’s potential by utilizing some of these cost-effective and easy-to-use tools. Creating professional-looking materials doesn’t have to be a huge expense – and with available online service options – it’s more convenient than ever before.

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The Right Mix for First-Time Entrepreneurs

admin — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 16:15:10 +0000

Entrepreneur Mindset:Five Tips For Better Profile Pictures

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Posted via email from DJ Judah

Forget all of the advice that you’ve heard from bright lawyers, accountants, Angel investors, venture capitalists, and other high-level advisors. Most of it is wrong. You don’t need to be well-funded, have a buttoned-up business plan, and all that smart. Trust me – my first attempt at a startup taught me what not to do even though I thought I was keeping costs down and listening to the right people. I’m not a proven entrepreneur and it remains to be seen how successful my startup eROI will be, but here is some of my candid, unconventional advice for first-time entrepreneurs:

1. You’ve got to be naive and a little insane. How is being naive an asset? As a first-time entrepreneur of a high-growth company, naiveté of the challenges you’ll confront is a requirement. Otherwise, you’d never start your company in the first place. As the Adidas ad campaign says, “Impossible is Nothing.” A few simple truths: you’ll get close to bankruptcy at least three times in your first couple years. Which leads me to my second bit of advice:

2. Don’t worry, be scrappy. Cash flow is everything. If you need to incorporate your company, start with online resources like www.filinginoregon.com and talk to a small law firm that will quote you a small project fee to guide you through this process. Manage expectations and always ask how much things will cost before having a vendor start the project. If possible, recommend a partial trade-out for product or services that you can offer the vendor.

3. Do NOT write a 40-page Business Plan ever (until you’re no longer a startup)! Write a 2-3 page Executive Summary where you focus on how your company makes money and how quickly that will happen. Do not get carried away with how big the market size is or how popular or unpopular your niche is in the investor community – it does not matter. All that matters is that you address a need in the market with a unique solution or approach and that you make customers happy. But don’t settle for that, turn customers into evangelists for your brand. If you can begin doing that early on, you won’t need to rely on outside funding and investment will come to you when you don’t even need it.

4. Network, network, network with other entrepreneurs and with as many people in your industry as possible. You’ll find partners, customers, employees, speaking engagements, and great ideas among this group of people.

5. Balance is the secret of life. Most first-time entrepreneurs work 80 hours per week and it shows. They look dead tired, even though the overwhelming passion puts a warm glow on their fish-belly white complexion. The ironic thing is that entrepreneurs with more balance can think more clearly and work strategically on the business instead of in the day-to-day business. Get some sleep, go on a hike, bike ride, or get some turns on the ski slope. Your company will be better for it.

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Tags: entrepreneur, page business plan, venture capital

The Best Things In Life—and Internet Marketing—Are Free

admin — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 04:18:01 +0000

I recently received this email from a subscriber to my Article Marketing Secrets & Breakthroughs newsletter:

Dear Article Marketing Expert:

After reading your articles in your free weekly e-newsletter, I’ve come to realize that writing and marketing articles online is the most effective, most cost-effective way to publicize my website, and promote my products and services online.

I’ve followed your invaluable advice, and have asked my virtual assistant to find the top websites, e-zines and directories within my niche that accept article submissions and have a strong emotional connection to their audience. Although, my articles can be found all over the Web, I have yet to make a sale. Can you please tell me the number-one secret to increasing my conversion rate?

Sincerely,
Conversion-less

Believe it or not, the answer to increasing your conversion rate and building your very own hyper-responsive list of hot, rabid customers is very simple and basic – if you know what the #1 most powerful word in marketing is.

Do you know what the #1 ‘MOST POWERFUL Word’ in marketing is?

We’ll the #2 most powerful word is NEW. But, according to Phoenix based entrepreneur extraordinaire and direct marketing legend, “Millionaire Maker” Dan Kennedy, the #1 most powerful word is…. (drum roll)……. FREE!

It’s a word that jumps out at most people and catches their attention. When you offer something for FREE in your bio box, your readers are more likely to be interested in what you have to offer.

Yet, eight out of 10 article marketers forget this very important marketing principle. They forget that people don’t usually buy on the first introduction and that you must first develop a relationship.

Here’s My List of the Top 4 Free Offers To Promote In Your Bio Box – So You Can Build Your List & Increase Your Conversion Rate:

1. Promote a free e-zine: If I read your article today, but I’m not ready to buy from you today (and there’s a 99% chance I’m not), you’ve likely lost me forever when I click away. But if you invite me to sign up for your free ezine that features helpful information on the topic I came to learn more about anyway, I’ll be more than happy to sign up. And, if you write a decent ezine, I will more than likely pass it on to friends and colleagues. After several months, of promoting your articles and free ezine you can have thousands of readers from around the world on your list — thanks to viralmarketing mixed with some promotional legwork.

2. Promote a free special report:
The special report is an effective tool that educates, informs and, most importantly, influences a prospective customer. The viralmarketing power of a good special report can be astonishing, especially when you’re trying to educate and influence corporate executives in large companies. In fact, statistics show that decision makers in organizations use them as their first external source of information. I guess that’s why the special report is considered to be the standardmarketing tool today. Yet, it is surprising how few article marketers have created their own special reports.

3. Promote a free e-Book: When you write a book, you gain instant credibility. By offering your readers the opportunity to download your free e-Book and receive real content– in exchange for their names and contact information — you are taking advantage of a powerful viralmarketing tool that can literally provide you with an entire network of people who promote your business, absolutely free. And don’t forget to promote your books, products or services for sale within the context, embed affiliate links, and add sales letters at the end of the e-Book to generate even more income.

4. Promote a free sneak preview: This is a perfect promotion if your article marketing’s goal is to promote your books. In order to capture his prospect’s names and email addresses, best-selling author, Mark Hyman M.D. promotes a free sneak preview of his book UltraMetabolism — The Simple Plan for Automatic Weight Loss in his bio boxes.

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Tags: entrepreneur, Marketing, marketing articles