It is with much hope that every entrepreneur sets off starting a Small Business. Making money was his main objective. Failure was never in his mind but things don’t seem to happen the way he had planned for. Even the hope for Survival seems to have disappeared and Failure haunts him at every turn. Why does this happen and happen so often to numerous small business entrepreneurs?
The four major mistakes often made by new small business entrepreneurs are:1. Improper or No Research:The most fundamental thing to do before starting a small business is to do a market research to find out whether there is sufficient demand for the product or products you have to offer.
Perhaps the reason for the failure to generate the funds is that there is no market for your product or the market is saturated. The need for your product in your area of business activity should be your prime consideration before starting a small business. Only if there is sufficient demand for your products, you will be able to generate the funds necessary to help you run your small business, survive and succeed.2. Improper or Under Funding:Quite often the urge to start a small business is so great that the very vital aspect of funding is not given due importance. Businesses are started on a shoe string budget and shops open with very little stock and offices with insufficient equipment. To ensure the purchase of stock and equipment it is absolutely essential to have proper funding in place before commencing your business. Furthermore your business might take several months to start making a profit and hence funds are necessary to help your small business survive and keep your morale up during these early months.If you don’t have sufficient funds of your own, it will be wise and proper to obtain a loan before starting your business. This could be obtained from your bank or you can seek the assistance of the Small Business Administration which offers numerous loan programs to assist Small Businesses.
It is important to note that the SBA acts primarily as a guarantor of loans made by private and other institutions.Taking huge loans out of proportion to your needs can also be detrimental to your small business since provision has to be made for higher interest payments.3. Insufficient Advertisement and Promotion:No Business can be successful unless the public is made aware of the existence of your small business and its products. The best of equipment and stocks cannot generate sales unless the public is made aware of it. Hence advertising your small business and the products before the commencement of your business and thereafter should be a major consideration. Failure to do so has been the cause of failure of several small businesses.4. Unnecessary expenditure:One of the major causes for the failure of a small business is the improper handling of the funds. Extravagant expenditure at the initial stages such as the purchase of expensive cars, equipment and expensive business lunches completely out of proportion to your needs can eat into the capital and leave your small business with very limited working capital. Hence proper and wise handling of funds especially at the early stages can make all the difference between success and failure.Conclusion:Failure to avoid the above mentioned mistakes for one reason or the other can be detrimental to the progress and success of your small business.
Securing the services of a consultant to help you plan out your small business before starting will be a wise move to ensure success.

Home based business opportunity, what does this exactly mean? A home based business opportunity can represent a number of ways to start your own business from the comforts of home. You could decide to become a freelancer and write articles as a ghostwriter or make a website and sell your products that you have created as a home based business opportunity.

A business operated from home can give you the freedom to work when you want to, as much as you want to, and wherever you want to. You can log in at a library and check your email and your website while being on the road if you don’t have a laptop. You can visit a friend and check on business and even attend a web conference while visiting with family during the holidays. The type of business is yours to choose and yours to control.

A business operating from your home comes with great tax breaks. You can claim a home office whether it is a room, or ten feet by ten feet of space, by using a home based business. You can deduct whatever you use for the home office along with any equipment you had to buy to start your home based business opportunity. A great example is a brand new computer. You can use this for your new home based business opportunity and let it depreciate. Take all your pens, copy paper, and everything and claim as a business expense.

You could be introduced to a business opportunity by a friend or something you were reading online. Maybe selling vitamins caught your attention or learning internet marketing as a great potential business opportunity. Or, perhaps you wanted to try affiliate marketing as a business based out of your home and not even touch the products or services at all. With this type of business, all you have to do is place classified ads and get internet users to click on your affiliate link. There are many great ideas to think about when you have a business you can run from your home.

There are a lot of businesses available today that you can operate from home and they are structured to quickly get you on your feet and keep you financially stable. All you have to do is set goals every day, every week, and every month to achieve them and then once achieved; live your dream life.

When looking for a home based business opportunity, be realistic about the goals you have set. It takes time for things to fall into place. Look for something you love to do in a home base business. If you are not sure about a specific type of business, try another idea that you are more comfortable with. You can start slow in your business by reading and learning before the actual doing. There are plenty of eBooks and how to websites to give you help and ideas to make your business a success.

A Home Based Business can give you the freedom you need to have more time with your family. You never know, a home based business opportunity may entice some of your family members to start their own venture alongside you!

Utilizing the Different Online Advertising Network Formats for Your Business

The Internet has become increasingly complex over the years, so much so that today, it has almost become a necessary household tool that’s being used by almost everyone.

And, with the evolution of the Internet, also comes the evolution of online advertising. Today, online ad networks come in different formats and vary on how they serve advertising content to users, and it is a business owner’s responsibility to know and understand more about these formats, in order to find out which one is best used for a given marketing strategy.

CPC Advertising

CPC stands for “cost-per-click” advertising, and is arguably one of the more simple advertising formats to use. It’s a format that generates revenue for the publisher when the user gives a single valid click-through on the advertisement hosted. CPC ads usually come in text-based and rich media formats, and the most effective ads utilize some form of “call to action” to be noticed.

Utilizing the service of a CPC ad network is effective when the business is attempting to generate new leads, as well as driving new and potential customer sales. Hence, it is best utilized by publishers who have lower amounts of web traffic.

CPM Advertising

CPM stands for “cost-per-mile” advertising. In this format, the advertisers pay the publisher a set amount for every thousand actions a certain ad receives. CPM advertising is quite similar to CPC, but on a much larger scale. CPM advertising networks usually cater to publishers who receive a large amount of web traffic prior to their approval, due to the volume of potential leads that this format generates. CPM advertising networks are best used when the product being advertised is now receiving a growing amount of product exposure or recognition.

CPA Advertising

CPA stands for “cost-per-action” advertising, and is a commission-based advertising format in which the publisher receives revenue when a user clicks AND buys the advertised product or service being served. The amount of revenue the publisher receives is a percentage of the total price of the product being purchased. CPA advertising networks, or “online affiliate networks” as they are commonly called, are preferred when the business wants not only to increase their potential leads, but also their sales.

What to Use?

Deciding on what advertising format and online ad network to use largely depends on the capital available for the business, as well as the quality of the product being published. For newer brands who are taking some time to build their reputation, a CPC advertising network is preferable. Once the brand has generated enough leads, and has build up a very strong reputation level, switching to a CPM advertising network should now be considered to avoid running low on capital when the ads have a higher click-through rate. Finally, once the product and brand has established a very firm foundation for its reputation, a CPA advertising network should be used.

Of course, limiting yourself to one ad network certainly isn’t going to get you anywhere. In order to truly succeed, utilizing all of these in conjunction with each other is the best strategy to generate the maximum leads and revenue possible.