The report card for any business is its profit and loss statement and in order for the business to succeed, profit is determined by two categories, income and expenses. As all business owners know it is easier to adjust expenses than it is to increase income but for profits to show a significant rise, income should go up while expenses go down. Some businesses make the mistake when they are reducing their expenses of eliminating costs in some of the wrong areas.
Typically, one of the biggest items on any business's expense sheet it payroll, often times making up 60 percent or more of the business's expense line. Many businesses will automatically reduce their payroll expense when they have to increase the profit line. This may be a short-term solution but it can cause long-term ramifications. When a business has to layoff employees due to the lack of business, the employee suffers personally and the business suffers because the remaining employees have to pick up the slack.
Cutting an employee's pay typically is never discussed, as this will not only ruin relations with that employee it can affect the morale of everyone else on staff. Businesses are advised that while it may provide the quickest reduction in expenses, cutting payroll should only be the last resort. There are going to be several line items in the controllable expanse account that can trim some debits off the account before sending people home.
Consider utility costs, for example, as electricity and natural gas prices have risen significantly over the past few years. Even if you do not have the money to go out and buy energy saving light bulbs and appliances provided in the business, there are some ways to trim a few cents a day off the utility cost. If you have unused areas in your facility, only provide enough heat to protect anything in the room and then close it down. Make sure all the lights are turned off in every unused room and keep watch for light bulb sizes that can drink electricity like water, which are not necessary.
Maintaining your facility for the comfort of yourself, your employees and customers if applicable, can help improve morale and the customer experience, but if you are closed at night, turn the thermostat down. If you can find it in your budget, buy and install a computer operated thermostat and set it to a lower temperature when no one will be in the building and turn it back up before opening the next day. Use the same common sense with the air conditioning. Use it when it is needed, but turn it off when it is not.
Your business rent is probably a fixed amount with little room for improvement, but utilities can save a little and office equipment and supplies can eat up cash that you might be able to use to avoid layoffs. Ordering from a catalog and having all your stuff delivered to the door may be convenient, but it also going to be expensive.
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Monday, 31 March 2008
Sunday, 30 March 2008
Doing Clerical Work From Home
Let’s say that you have made the decision to enter the job market but with the focus on working from home, what sort of job would be the most appropriate for you? Working from home can be portrayed as something that is very rewarding and can help make a difference for your. You want to be certain that you’re doing the right kind of job and not end up doing something that does not suit you and this might mean doing something similar to what you are already doing or one that you already know how to do.
The best thing that you can do as you are looking for a job from home is to look for something that you are good at. IF you are good in the clerical field, then doing clerical work from home can be a great step for you. All in all, clerical work from home is very popular for many reasons.
First of all, clerical work from home is popular because it is some of the easiest work to do from home. Think about doing clerical work in an office setting. You are answering phones, filing papers, doing faxes, and keeping records. All of these things are things that you do individually, even if you are in an office. Therefore these things can easily be transferred to your home. Doing clerical work from home can be great because you can just keep on doing the work that you are doing, but do it from your own home.
If you are already working in this field, one thing that you can do is ask your boss if you would be able to do your work from home. Many times, you will find that this is easy for you to do because it is actually something that you know that you can do. Doing clerical work from home is often one of the easiest things to do, and sometimes you don’t' even have to worry about changing jobs in order to do it.
If you have to change jobs, you can still find lots of clerical work from home. There are many companies that will hire online secretaries, and these secretaries can really make a difference with all of the things that they are doing. You should be able to get all of the work that you want, doing your clerical work from home.
When you are doing clerical work from home you will know that you are taking control over your own future and making sure that you are able to do all of your work from home, where you should be. This will give you the time that you need with your family and the time that you need to truly get things right in your life. Just be sure that you have all of the supplies you need to do clerical work from home and that you are working for a company that will value you and keep you working hard.
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The best thing that you can do as you are looking for a job from home is to look for something that you are good at. IF you are good in the clerical field, then doing clerical work from home can be a great step for you. All in all, clerical work from home is very popular for many reasons.
First of all, clerical work from home is popular because it is some of the easiest work to do from home. Think about doing clerical work in an office setting. You are answering phones, filing papers, doing faxes, and keeping records. All of these things are things that you do individually, even if you are in an office. Therefore these things can easily be transferred to your home. Doing clerical work from home can be great because you can just keep on doing the work that you are doing, but do it from your own home.
If you are already working in this field, one thing that you can do is ask your boss if you would be able to do your work from home. Many times, you will find that this is easy for you to do because it is actually something that you know that you can do. Doing clerical work from home is often one of the easiest things to do, and sometimes you don’t' even have to worry about changing jobs in order to do it.
If you have to change jobs, you can still find lots of clerical work from home. There are many companies that will hire online secretaries, and these secretaries can really make a difference with all of the things that they are doing. You should be able to get all of the work that you want, doing your clerical work from home.
When you are doing clerical work from home you will know that you are taking control over your own future and making sure that you are able to do all of your work from home, where you should be. This will give you the time that you need with your family and the time that you need to truly get things right in your life. Just be sure that you have all of the supplies you need to do clerical work from home and that you are working for a company that will value you and keep you working hard.
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Saturday, 29 March 2008
Choosing The Right Business Location
As it has often been said in real estate, location is everything and the same can be said about locating a new business. Obviously, price is going to be a major concern when looking for a place to open your new business, but the potential for traffic flow should be the near the top of the location's requirements. Making sure the building is large enough and sufficient parking is available are all part of the equation, but before signing a lease or purchase agreement, you should check out everything around the business.
Many business fail simply because of their location. It is also harder to attract new business if your store or shop is off on its own in the middle of nowhere. Many businesses count on the traffic from other stores to bring traffic into their store. The next time you are visiting a big box store, pay attention to the smaller stores around them. Many of the big store's competitors will locate nearby as they know the big guns are going to drive a lot of traffic into the lot.
If the big stores does not have what the customer is looking for, there is a better chance they buy from you than if you were located in the middle of nowhere. Consider where you like to go on vacation, likely a popular destination with many different attractions, and apply that same logic to locating your new business. If your building is the only one for miles around, your business will have to be the destination for customers to stop in. If they do not normally do business with you, chances are they are not going to go out of their way once you open.
Your business also needs to readily accessible. Consider traffic flow in and out of the parking lot and how much trouble your customer might have trying to get to your location. On busy streets it may be easy to get into your parking lot but a real bear trying to get out, especially during heavy traffic times of the day. If you have any doubts, visit the location during peak traffic times and experience what your customers will go through. Some may not mind but odds are many are not going to feel the fight is worth the visit.
Also consider available utilities as in some more rural areas electricity may be the only available utility. Heating with oil or propane in the winter can be expensive, providing the delivery truck shows up on time and the quality of the water in some areas may be questionable at best. Although these locations may be less expensive, there is a reason the building is empty.
If you do find a favorable location in a crowded area, make sure you understand the borders of the parking lot. While business owners adjacent to other businesses cannot always control where their customers park, making sure you respect the other store's space will make for a better relationship among all the business tenants in the area.
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Many business fail simply because of their location. It is also harder to attract new business if your store or shop is off on its own in the middle of nowhere. Many businesses count on the traffic from other stores to bring traffic into their store. The next time you are visiting a big box store, pay attention to the smaller stores around them. Many of the big store's competitors will locate nearby as they know the big guns are going to drive a lot of traffic into the lot.
If the big stores does not have what the customer is looking for, there is a better chance they buy from you than if you were located in the middle of nowhere. Consider where you like to go on vacation, likely a popular destination with many different attractions, and apply that same logic to locating your new business. If your building is the only one for miles around, your business will have to be the destination for customers to stop in. If they do not normally do business with you, chances are they are not going to go out of their way once you open.
Your business also needs to readily accessible. Consider traffic flow in and out of the parking lot and how much trouble your customer might have trying to get to your location. On busy streets it may be easy to get into your parking lot but a real bear trying to get out, especially during heavy traffic times of the day. If you have any doubts, visit the location during peak traffic times and experience what your customers will go through. Some may not mind but odds are many are not going to feel the fight is worth the visit.
Also consider available utilities as in some more rural areas electricity may be the only available utility. Heating with oil or propane in the winter can be expensive, providing the delivery truck shows up on time and the quality of the water in some areas may be questionable at best. Although these locations may be less expensive, there is a reason the building is empty.
If you do find a favorable location in a crowded area, make sure you understand the borders of the parking lot. While business owners adjacent to other businesses cannot always control where their customers park, making sure you respect the other store's space will make for a better relationship among all the business tenants in the area.
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Friday, 28 March 2008
Accurate Pricing In Business
The basis for making profits is to have accurate pricing in business. Home based businesses are expanding and many business owners are enjoying making their own money. Profits are the reason that all people go into business. The American dream is to make as much money as possible. A business owner that is not making money is losing money and time. Accurate pricing needs to cover your business costs, enable you a reasonable return and be attractive enough to attract customers. Pricing can make or break your business.
Pricing for their time and expertise causes many new business owners trouble. Some new business owners will work cheaply because it is a job they can finish quickly while waiting for a job that they really want. This is fine when starting out and you want others to learn about your company. The down side of this is that they will associate your business name with the word “cheap”. No business owner wants to be known as this if he plans to be in business for some time.
Another attitude taken by some business owners is that they should only work for outrageous wages. These owners have a set price and will not take any job that does not pay them this price. This attitude causes their business start up to be much slower than others. The one advantage of this style of work is that it helps build a firmer foundation when the business is established.
There are some basic principles is use when beginning your own home business. You always need to remember that all your company costs have to be covered by your pricing. If you lower your costs, you can lower your pricing. Make sure to include the surrounding environment when pricing a job. Your pricing needs to be in a comfortable zone for your customers. Be sure to include your time, investments and risks while considering your pricing.
Pricing needs to include your direct costs, overhead and labour expenses. Direct costs are the costs of your parts, supplies and materials. Overhead expenses include rent, taxes, office supplies, insurance and utilities. The labour costs are the salary and benefit expenses for your staff. You should calculate labour cost with a simple formula; hours multiplied by wage than add in a percentage for fringe benefits. Many business owners use a profit margin of 15 to 20 percent. This profit margin is what you will use to expand your business.
At some point you will want to increase your profits. This is usually done by raising your prices. A quick evaluation of your company will allow you to see if you have some latitude to raise your prices. You can also research your competitors or do a competitive analysis on them. A competitive analysis is legal and can be accomplished by reading their advertisements, talking to suppliers or employ mystery shoppers. This analysis will show if you will have an advantage over your competitors.
All business owners are concerned about profits and accurate pricing in their business. Profits and pricing can be raised and lowered as needed or desired. Time and experience are the best ways to teach you about pricing and profit and what works best for you.
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Pricing for their time and expertise causes many new business owners trouble. Some new business owners will work cheaply because it is a job they can finish quickly while waiting for a job that they really want. This is fine when starting out and you want others to learn about your company. The down side of this is that they will associate your business name with the word “cheap”. No business owner wants to be known as this if he plans to be in business for some time.
Another attitude taken by some business owners is that they should only work for outrageous wages. These owners have a set price and will not take any job that does not pay them this price. This attitude causes their business start up to be much slower than others. The one advantage of this style of work is that it helps build a firmer foundation when the business is established.
There are some basic principles is use when beginning your own home business. You always need to remember that all your company costs have to be covered by your pricing. If you lower your costs, you can lower your pricing. Make sure to include the surrounding environment when pricing a job. Your pricing needs to be in a comfortable zone for your customers. Be sure to include your time, investments and risks while considering your pricing.
Pricing needs to include your direct costs, overhead and labour expenses. Direct costs are the costs of your parts, supplies and materials. Overhead expenses include rent, taxes, office supplies, insurance and utilities. The labour costs are the salary and benefit expenses for your staff. You should calculate labour cost with a simple formula; hours multiplied by wage than add in a percentage for fringe benefits. Many business owners use a profit margin of 15 to 20 percent. This profit margin is what you will use to expand your business.
At some point you will want to increase your profits. This is usually done by raising your prices. A quick evaluation of your company will allow you to see if you have some latitude to raise your prices. You can also research your competitors or do a competitive analysis on them. A competitive analysis is legal and can be accomplished by reading their advertisements, talking to suppliers or employ mystery shoppers. This analysis will show if you will have an advantage over your competitors.
All business owners are concerned about profits and accurate pricing in their business. Profits and pricing can be raised and lowered as needed or desired. Time and experience are the best ways to teach you about pricing and profit and what works best for you.
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Thursday, 27 March 2008
Are You Really A People Person?
As a business owner you have to have a certain level of people skills in order to deal with customers as well as with your employees. Too many times, people will put on their resume the blanket skills that they are a "people person" while having no idea what that means. It is a catch phrase often used in recruiting advertising looking for managers with excellent people skills and not only the people hiring for the job, but also the people applying for the position have no clue what a people person is all about.
One of the first steps needed to be a true people person is the ability to understand people. Everyone is going to be different, regardless of their appearance, education and abilities. It is nearly impossible to sit down with a stranger and instantly begin a conversation on any subject. However, after spending a few minutes with someone getting to know them will make talking to them easier and build a free flow of ideas. More than just names and general interests, you have to understand their body language, the speed at which they talk as well as their gestures.
Another trait of a good people person is being able to express their thoughts clearly and in a concise manner. However, you also have to understand the capabilities of the other person to understand what you are saying. Not to insinuate you should talk down to people, they may actually be smarter than you are. Rather, you should speak to them in terms they understand and once you have expressed your point, you need to ask not only if they heard what you were trying to convey, but that they understood what you had to say.
Asking for feedback from the other person, and responding to that feedback is another sign of having people skills. Listening intently to what they are saying and asking questions if you do not understand their point lets them know you are listening to them and appreciate what they are trying to communicate. On the other hand, too many supervisors are unable to tell people the truth for fear of hurting someone's feelings. A real people person will be able to offer constructive criticism without being aggressive and causing hurt feelings.
Some of the best people skills are conveyed when the business owner or supervisor addresses a specific behaviour instead of being personal. When discussing a negative behaviour the sentence should never being with 'you' as it makes the other person believe the attack is personal. Instead of berating someone for a mistake, it can be addressed by asking what actions can be taken to assure the same mistake does not happen again.
A true people person will be able train people to do their job, which is important for any business owner. Not the ownership part, but the basic operations. Once the owner trains others to run the daily business, they can be out looking for more work or finding new ways to do things.
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One of the first steps needed to be a true people person is the ability to understand people. Everyone is going to be different, regardless of their appearance, education and abilities. It is nearly impossible to sit down with a stranger and instantly begin a conversation on any subject. However, after spending a few minutes with someone getting to know them will make talking to them easier and build a free flow of ideas. More than just names and general interests, you have to understand their body language, the speed at which they talk as well as their gestures.
Another trait of a good people person is being able to express their thoughts clearly and in a concise manner. However, you also have to understand the capabilities of the other person to understand what you are saying. Not to insinuate you should talk down to people, they may actually be smarter than you are. Rather, you should speak to them in terms they understand and once you have expressed your point, you need to ask not only if they heard what you were trying to convey, but that they understood what you had to say.
Asking for feedback from the other person, and responding to that feedback is another sign of having people skills. Listening intently to what they are saying and asking questions if you do not understand their point lets them know you are listening to them and appreciate what they are trying to communicate. On the other hand, too many supervisors are unable to tell people the truth for fear of hurting someone's feelings. A real people person will be able to offer constructive criticism without being aggressive and causing hurt feelings.
Some of the best people skills are conveyed when the business owner or supervisor addresses a specific behaviour instead of being personal. When discussing a negative behaviour the sentence should never being with 'you' as it makes the other person believe the attack is personal. Instead of berating someone for a mistake, it can be addressed by asking what actions can be taken to assure the same mistake does not happen again.
A true people person will be able train people to do their job, which is important for any business owner. Not the ownership part, but the basic operations. Once the owner trains others to run the daily business, they can be out looking for more work or finding new ways to do things.
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Tuesday, 25 March 2008
How To Prevent Your Home Business Dream Turning Into Nightmare
For many people owning their own business and working from home is like a dream come true. Unfortunately, falling into a dream with your eyes closed can quickly turn that dream into a nightmare. Many people enter into a home business with high expectations that may not be tied to the reality of operating a business at home and they quickly become discouraged. On the other hand, going into business for yourself without all the hype of the kind of freedom and riches that will fall in your lap can help you create a successful work at home business.
It does not matter the type of business you planning to open, there are certain realities that you have to face. Forget about having tons of free time to only do what you feel like doing. Ignore the hype about only having to work a couple of hours a day. Part time work rarely results in full time pay and the notion of pulling in obscene riches working at home is a dream only realized by a few individuals, who are not likely to share any proprietary information with you or anyone else.
Working at a home business has to be considered as a job, and like any type of job you have to put in a certain amount of effort. With home businesses, the more effort you put in the bigger rewards are available, but believing that you can start your home business and instantly start earning the big bucks is the kind of unrealistic thinking that quickly causes a lack of sleep and when sleep does come, it is interrupted by nightmare.
Now that you understand that instant riches are not going to come from running your home business, you also need to understand that like all jobs it is going to require work. No matter what type of home business you plan to operate, chances are you are not going to be able to afford a full staff to do everything for you. At least in the beginning, if there is something to do, you are going to be in charge of getting it done. There is no advertising staff, no accounting staff, no billing and certainly no cleaning crew. It is all on you.
So much for having all that free time. Many people who quit their jobs on the basis of living the dream of owning their own business do not fully comprehend what it takes to earn a living working from home. Amid the constant interruptions of family and friends, the clients or customers that are demanding your time and the self-set deadlines to get things done will quickly take a toll on your patience.
Then there is the collections department, in charge of making sure your services or products are paid for on time. Yep. You are the only one there as well and threatening calls to a client to pay up will probably lead to the loss of a customer. In some cases that may actually be a good thing, but many home business owners find that a little diplomacy can go a long way to inflate the checking account.
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It does not matter the type of business you planning to open, there are certain realities that you have to face. Forget about having tons of free time to only do what you feel like doing. Ignore the hype about only having to work a couple of hours a day. Part time work rarely results in full time pay and the notion of pulling in obscene riches working at home is a dream only realized by a few individuals, who are not likely to share any proprietary information with you or anyone else.
Working at a home business has to be considered as a job, and like any type of job you have to put in a certain amount of effort. With home businesses, the more effort you put in the bigger rewards are available, but believing that you can start your home business and instantly start earning the big bucks is the kind of unrealistic thinking that quickly causes a lack of sleep and when sleep does come, it is interrupted by nightmare.
Now that you understand that instant riches are not going to come from running your home business, you also need to understand that like all jobs it is going to require work. No matter what type of home business you plan to operate, chances are you are not going to be able to afford a full staff to do everything for you. At least in the beginning, if there is something to do, you are going to be in charge of getting it done. There is no advertising staff, no accounting staff, no billing and certainly no cleaning crew. It is all on you.
So much for having all that free time. Many people who quit their jobs on the basis of living the dream of owning their own business do not fully comprehend what it takes to earn a living working from home. Amid the constant interruptions of family and friends, the clients or customers that are demanding your time and the self-set deadlines to get things done will quickly take a toll on your patience.
Then there is the collections department, in charge of making sure your services or products are paid for on time. Yep. You are the only one there as well and threatening calls to a client to pay up will probably lead to the loss of a customer. In some cases that may actually be a good thing, but many home business owners find that a little diplomacy can go a long way to inflate the checking account.
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Monday, 24 March 2008
Finding The Best Work From Home Jobs
Finding ways to control your life can be hard when you are tied down at a job that you might not like and this is why many people love the idea of finding the best work from home jobs because it means that they will be able to control what they are doing and when they are doing it. It also means that they will finally be able to know that they have the time that they need. Finding the best work at home jobs can be difficult, but it is something that is totally worth doing.
When you are looking for the best work at home jobs there are a few things to keep in mind. First of all, you should find the best work at home jobs that match best with who you are and with what you like to do. When you are looking for the best work at home jobs you want to be looking for jobs that can focus around who you are and what you have to offer to the world. Try to find jobs that fit into who you are. The best way that you can do this is to think of something that you are really skilled at, such as writing, creating things, or doing office work. Then, you should think of something that you really love, such as a hobby or something else that you love. If you are able to put these two things together in a good way, you might be looking at the best work at home jobs for you. Remember that the best jobs that you could do will usually involve something that you are very good at and something that you absolutely love to do. These will be the best jobs for your own needs.
Along with this, you can search online or offline for the best work at home jobs. Be sure that you are doing research on all of the jobs that you have been offered however. You want to be absolutely sure that when you find the best work at home jobs you are finding jobs that are legit and that aren't going to cause you any problems. Therefore you want to be sure that you do as much research as you can before you start. This will help you make sure that you aren't going to be taken in by any scams or that you aren't going to have any problems at all. This type of situation might be difficult for you, but if you keep working at it you will see that finding the best work at home jobs isn't really as hard as you believe that it might be.
Lastly be sure that you are finding the best work from home jobs that seem to be something that you will enjoy. Remember that doing a job you don't like just because it is a work from home job is not the best way that you can be happy. Try to find something that you love and go from there.
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When you are looking for the best work at home jobs there are a few things to keep in mind. First of all, you should find the best work at home jobs that match best with who you are and with what you like to do. When you are looking for the best work at home jobs you want to be looking for jobs that can focus around who you are and what you have to offer to the world. Try to find jobs that fit into who you are. The best way that you can do this is to think of something that you are really skilled at, such as writing, creating things, or doing office work. Then, you should think of something that you really love, such as a hobby or something else that you love. If you are able to put these two things together in a good way, you might be looking at the best work at home jobs for you. Remember that the best jobs that you could do will usually involve something that you are very good at and something that you absolutely love to do. These will be the best jobs for your own needs.
Along with this, you can search online or offline for the best work at home jobs. Be sure that you are doing research on all of the jobs that you have been offered however. You want to be absolutely sure that when you find the best work at home jobs you are finding jobs that are legit and that aren't going to cause you any problems. Therefore you want to be sure that you do as much research as you can before you start. This will help you make sure that you aren't going to be taken in by any scams or that you aren't going to have any problems at all. This type of situation might be difficult for you, but if you keep working at it you will see that finding the best work at home jobs isn't really as hard as you believe that it might be.
Lastly be sure that you are finding the best work from home jobs that seem to be something that you will enjoy. Remember that doing a job you don't like just because it is a work from home job is not the best way that you can be happy. Try to find something that you love and go from there.
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