bizthreads.net: Business Information for Entrepreneurs by an Entrepreneur

From: Louise

Thanks for your blogs, Buzz.

Where do you see the biggest opportunity for growth in business right now?

Response:

Hi Louise!

The business world is so integrated that a development in one area will mean trickle-down developments in other areas… making it very difficult to answer your question!

I think that manufacturing is on the decline right now: the economy is strong but consumers are wary… an early sign of a slowdown. As well, many manufacturers are looking to trim costs and move jobs out of urban centers… making it difficult for the “small guys” (or women) to compete.

The online world is huge and growing as people find new ways of transferring money and shipping goods. But software and information products are beginning to peak… unless it's a completely new topic, you're seeing increasing competition on the bigger topics (diet, making money, etc.)

I think the biggest opportunity for people right now is in services, either services performed online or in person. People are busy and getting busier; they are stressed and becoming more stressed; they are tired and in danger of becoming more tired… they want someone else to do the things they don't want to do (or don't have time to do) because there's only a sliver of personal time left and they don't want to give it up. So services like concierge services or planners are good. But so are twists on old jobs… like mobile car repair or dentists who do house calls… generally, businesses that will meet people where they are at.

Good luck in your business!

Other Resources: Nouveau Riche The Billionaires from 1991

From: John

[In response to a post on Deming management techniques]

You may find the Deming posts on my management improvement blog interesting:

http://management.curiouscatblog.net/category/deming/

You may also find Deming on Management worthwhile:

http://curiouscat.com/deming/

Response

Thanks John!

What I like about Deming is that he saw a world in which corporate profit and world peace were not opposites. Without getting too political, it seems like many special interest groups tend to view it that way but Deming saw it differently: he felt that businesses could improve the world and still earn profits. His 14 Points:
http://curiouscat.com/management/demings14points.cfm and his System of Profound Knowledge
http://curiouscat.com/management/demingsystempk.cfm is a testament to that way of thinking.

I wish every business course taught that profit and good citizenship are not mutually exclusive, but rather highly complimentary.

From: Ron

Help!

I am at my wit's end. To have a product so awesome and not have an audience to present it to can be quite discouraging. I have a PDF sample of my product and if someone seriously takes a look at it and the supporting data, they too would see the potential millions in revenue it will produce. Not only that, to add insult to injury, what it would take to produce this product is nothing; all I need is someone to invest in attorney fees.

Response:

Sounds like you have a real winner, Ron! I don't have a lot of details on your project, so some of this might not be specifically applicable to you, but there are a few things you might be able to do:

• I'm assuming that you have a website with pay per click (PPC) advertising (like Google AdWords, etc.). If not, that should be a priority.
• A very popular method is to create a regular e-newsletter for the industry your product serves and then use an email list management company like MailerMailer to send the e-newsletter out. Of course, you'll want to advertise your product in it.
• If you already have made sales, ask your customers for referrals and give them an incentive to pass referrals on to you.
• If PPC advertising is proving ineffective or out of your reach, try submitting your idea to sites that business opportunities. Some are free, some are paid. One good site to look at is www.craigslist.com
• Be sure to try sites like www.clickbank.com which helps to enable the sale of your product (if it is downloadable)… give generous commissions to affiliate marketers who will market your product for you.
• If your product really needs to be seen, consider hiring a sales person to help you sell it. This wouldn't be an employee of yours, but just someone who generates leads that you contact… or contacts people for you. Independent sales people can be hired at a site like www.guru.com in their front-end sales section: http://www.guru.com/category.cfm/1200.

Those are my initial ideas, but here's my suggestion: if your product is downloadable, go with Clickbank. If your product is not downloadable, outsource your sales at Guru.com.
Good luck!

From: Michael

Great Blog…..just wondering if you have any access to a basic sales compensation or commission plan you can share or direct me to.
Response from Buzz

Thanks, Michael!

For basic compensation information, I really like the Bureau of Labor Statistics at www.bls.gov. Specifically, the site, http://www.bls.gov/bls/wages.htm is a wealth of information on wages (be prepared for plenty of clicking… I'm not sure what your industry is so I just provided a general site and you'll have to “drill down” yourself). If you click on “Earnings by Industry” you'll get to a map (currently on the bottom right of the page) that allows you to select your state and view a variety of information. Very specific wage plans for sales staff can be found here: http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_nat.htm#b41-0000.

As for commission, that's a little more difficult… it seems like everyone keeps their commission a secret even within organizations. My advice would be to:

• Hit a site like www.monster.com and look for similar jobs and see what they are paying.
• If possible, call them up as an interested candidate for employment and ask them some basic commission questions.
• Ask them how many staff are reaching those goals… then trust your gut; your instincts rarely guide you wrong. The economy is fairly strong and there are many jobs out there.
• If it's a fairly major company, type in the business name and the word “hate” or “sucks” into Google and you'll find out if employees have set up “hate sites” on the company which could outline potential problems in wages (among other things).

This week, I'm answering a few readers' questions.

From: Mark

“I had a question for you about venture capital. I read recently in the Los Angeles Times an article where many VC firms are ramping up their funding of high tech Internet companies once again.

Some of the companies being funded are startups, with what appears to be very little in terms of history, track record, experience and the like.

My question is, do you think it is possible that a VC firm would fund a startup with a good business plan that did not have a history, experienced management, or even an office?”

Response from Buzz:

Hi Mark!

In the tech bubble of 1999-2001, it seemed like all you needed behind your name was a “dot-com” and you became the recipient of mountains of venture capitalist (VC) money. Some companies didn't even have a business model that would earn them a profit… and they still got money! Of course, today things are very different.

I think that VCs today will continue to take risks and invest in high-tech but will be far more measured than those early days of the “Wild West” of the web. Many VCs will want to see that history or experienced management, but I suspect that some will even willingly forgo history and experienced management as long as they can identify two things: a profitable business model and a ready market… two things that the VCs of the 1999-2001 tech bubble didn't always look for.

If you are looking to get VC money, don't worry if you don't have the history or the experienced management. But make sure your business model has profit built into its forecast AND that there are real people looking to buy your product.

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