Anyone that spends any time on-line will quickly learn the
importance of publishing your own ezine. I do not remember
one Gurus information reports that I have read that did
not suggest that you create your own ezine to aid in
building an on-line business.
What I do no believe I have ever read anything about though
is the importance of reading these Ezines!
With the Ezines that I subscribe to that publish daily or
more then once a week, I probably get 150 plus Ezines a week.
And I read every one of them.
I will admit that this is a very time consuming task especially
on Fridays when many weekly Ezines go out. As some of your know
I work full-time at home now and spend an average of 80-100
hours a week on building my on-line businesses.
I could probably cut out well over 15 hours a week if I just
unsubscribed to all these Ezines, or just deleted them all.
Why would anyone spend that amount of time reading Ezines
each week? The list is almost endless!
First, I have to be honest and say that I am afraid I am
going to miss something if I do not take time to read these.
Most Ezines are more then just a bunch of ads. To me, they
are my newspapers for on-line life.
From some of these I build personal relationships. I am kept
updated on the struggles one publisher is having with their
health and trying to keep all the work caught up. Another
shares the vacation highlights that they took. So why
should you care about who is sick or who went where?
If you work full-time at home, it can be a very isolated life.
I will admit this is part of the appeal for me. I also know
that I can not lose touch with the fact that people out there
are real. They have pains and trials, good times and bad,
and they take vacations. They are human and they are what
I want my on-line life to be about.
By reading about what is going on with other publishers, I
am reminded that I will have tough times, and that I can make
it through them. I am reminded that I am not alone in spirit
even though I work alone. And I am reminded to get off the
computer and have some fun occasionally, like taking a much
needed vacation.
The next thing I gain from reading all these Ezines is
knowledge, plain and simple. No one ever knows it all no
matter how long you might have been doing something. By
reading other publishers, I find knowledge that I can put
to use, and information I want to share with you. The useful
resources I find in all these Ezines are endless.
I also get ideas on how to improve my ezine. If there is
an ezine I particularly like, I look at why and see how I
can incorporate that positive into The-Net-Review. I find
ideas on how to grow this ezine so that my readers get
more benefit from their advertising.
Even the few Ezines that are not my favorites tell me
what I dont want to do like make The-Net-Review nothing
but an advertisement medium for me and my interests.
One of the biggest benefits I get from reading all these
Ezines comes from advertising opportunities. I place every
free ad I am offered. I enter every contest for chances
for free classifieds or solos. I send out my articles to
other Ezines for the writing experience and the free publicity.
Granted, classified advertising does not work as well as
solo ads do, but they do work. Take advantage of every
free advertising opportunity you can find until you can
afford a bigger advertising budget.
I also learn from reading others ads. If I am seeing
advertisements for a business opportunity in virtually
every ezine I read, I know that I should check it out.
You can often times end up much higher in a matrix for
a hot business opportunity because you saw the growth
before someone that doesnt bother with Ezines.
As I said at the start, the benefits that come from
reading Ezines can be endless. When you are trying to
figure out what to start on next, or get motivated to
even start, pull up an ezine. Spend a while reminding
yourself what you are trying to build, to accomplish.
Relax for a while then get back to work.
I understand how precious at-home work time can be if
you are also working full-time outside the home.
I firmly believe the time we put into reading Ezines
pays off tenfold. If you need to, print out some and
read them on your work breaks or lunch. I print off
e-books and read them while my daughter and I watch a
show together. She really doesnt care if I see the show,
she just wants me off the computer and close to her for
awhile.
Only you can decided if the time sacrifices that
reading a bunch of Ezines may take pays off for you.
But you wont know the benefits you are missing until
you spend the time seeing what you are missing.
There is a principle which is a bar against all
information, which is proof against all arguments
and which cannot fail to keep a man in everlasting
ignorance that principle is contempt prior to
investigation. Herbert Spencer
FAB FLIERS FOR SOARING SALESMeredith PondCould your small business use a boost without breaking the bank?
Well, contrary to popular belief, you don't have to spend a lot
of money to get decent results.
Even in this day and age, you still see occasional ads and fliers
on your front porch, windshield, tucked under your door, or in
your mailbox. Why? It's simple: because they work!
Especially during summer months, when people are out and about,
working in the yard or taking walks through the neighborhood,
distributing fliers can be a very effective way to market your
small business.
You might be thinking that most of these fliers will eventually
end up in the trash can. That may be true, but before you
dismiss fliers as a marketing tool, think about what you do with
a flier BEFORE you throw it away. Don't you at least look at it
first to see what it is? Better yet, do you keep it around to
use as scratch paper? Anything that will get your flier inside
the house will help you get your foot in the door.
Now, if you're concerned about littering, try attaching rubber
bands to your fliers and hanging them around doorknobs instead of
laying them on porches. This will ensure that your flier is
seen, plus keep them from blowing around the street. If you want
your fliers to be more environmentally friendly, try printing
them on recycled paper and including a note at the bottom to
remind your prospects to recycle. If you want to take it a step
further, give them a date when you'll be driving through their
neighborhood with a truck, picking up things to take to the
nearest recycling plant. You'll not only help clean up the
neighborhood and our environment, but you'll also get a chance to
be seen (with your logo on your truck) and even talk to people
face-to-face.
Now let's discuss the nuts and bolts of putting your flier
together. First and most obvious, make copies of your flier on
brightly-colored paper. This will make them visible and more
likely to be picked up.
When writing your flier, keep in mind that you're not writing the
great American novel. Keep your fliers to a half-sheet, allowing
you to save a lot of money and a lot of paper. The type should
be bold and large, in an easy-to-read font so it takes very
little time to read.
All your flier really needs is a snappy headline, a bulleted list
of the benefits of your product or service, and a phone number
with your business name. The headline will grab their attention,
the list will quickly state what you can do for them, and your
phone number, well, that's obvious, isn't it?
In short, a responsible flier campaign is a simple, down-to-
earth, effective way to get the word out. Best of all, they're
nearly FREE!
Meredith Pond is editor and manager of DrNunley's
http://CheapWriting.com. See her low-cost writing and editing
services for students and business people. Reach Meredith at
meredith@drnunley.com or 801-328-9006.
FACTORING AS A SOURCE OF BUSINESS FUNDING
By: Berwyn J. Kemp
Do you supply products and services to commercial customers and are unable to secure traditional bank financing? If so, do you very often have to wait 30 to 90 days or longer for your customers to pay your invoices? Which often leaves you short of the capital you need to effectively operate and build your business.
If you answered yes to both of these questions. Then there could be a source of business funding that could work for your business. That source of funding is the factoring of your accounts receivable invoices. Which could very well give you the capital you need to more effectively operate, expand, and grow. Because youll no longer have to wait for your customers to pay your invoices.
Whats more, the factoring of your accounts receivable invoices is much easier source of financing to access that traditional commercial bank financing. Because the factor doesnt look at the credit rating of your business, nor do they look at your personal credit rating. Both of which can be a problem particularly for new businesses. And other kinds of Businesses that dont meet the very conservative standards of most commercial banks. Instead factors base their decision to factor or not to factor your invoices on the credit of your customers.
Therefore, if you supply products and services to commercial customers who have good credit ratings, such as, government agencies, well established commercial firms, hospitals, universities, insurance companies, etc.. Then you can more than likely qualify for accounts receivable factoring.
In addition, as a rule, factors dont require long term contracts as in more traditional kinds of lending, nor do they ever audit your books. For these reasons and more, this makes obtaining an accounts receivable factoring loan a relatively quick, simple, and easy process, to give you the business funds that you need.
What the factor basically does is advance you between 70% to 80% of the value of your commercial invoices. The factor then collects the invoices directly from your customer. Once the factor collects on the invoices they subtract their fee, and then sends you the balance of the invoice amount. What will factoring cost you? Well, factoring fees start at about 4% for invoices collected within 30 days goes up to about 15% for invoices collected in 120 days or so. Thus, the fee depends on when the factor actually collects the invoice.
There are some business people who wrongly believe that factoring makes them appear financially unsound to their customers. If this is what you believe it is simply not true. Today many modern firms are factoring their accounts receivables. As a way to get the capital they need to effectively operate and build their profits faster. In fact, many commercial banks are actively referring they cant finance to factors. In addition, a number of major commercial banks have actually opened factoring divisions.
While factoring is not right for every business, it could be right for your business as a source of business funds that works for you. Particularly if your business is new, or you are unable to tap traditional commercial bank financing. Then factoring could very well be the answer to your business funding needs.
