Christmas Advertising Ideas

Christmas has to one of the hardest and easiest things to advertise for. It is very easy to slap together an ad and give a certain % off an item or service and call it good. Despite what you pocket book feels like during the holidays, spending is decreasing for the majority of the shoppers out there. So to get these dollars is getting harder year after year. You need to make your product or service stand out and be more “needed” than the next ad. I’ll go into a few ideas next post on what we can do to make your ad or offer stand above the crowd.

The Master has spoken!

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Marriage survival

This is a tough one. Starting and running a business is a very successful endeavor. But with this reward comes trials and heartache. I believe that if you are to succeed in your business life, you need a good support partner. If your partner isn’t behind you 100%, then it will be an uphill battle the whole time. You must also take a break from business and live your life. Make your significant other the most important thing in the world. Because hopefully, he or she is just that. Do a lot of small things for your spouse to make up for all the time you will be spending at your business. Get some fun stuff for the bedroom to spice that up as well from Tickled Pink. Go on a romantic trip to one of my favorite places Catalina Island for 3 or 4 days. Anything to show them they are the most important thing in your life.

The Master has spoken!

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Did you remember insurance?

Insurance is one of those things my clients always don’t figure into their fixed monthly costs. There are 2 types of insurance that you absolutely have to have for your business.

The first is liability insurance and it can save your butt. It’s pretty straight forward. If someone gets hurt on your property, you are liable. Shift that liability to your insurance company and be done with it. Most policies will run you around $50 a month depending on your size of business and what services you offer. Make sure you ask your agent if it covers your type of business. I know some construction type businesses or medical business insurance can run pretty high there.

The second type of insurance is for loss from fire, theft, or vandalism. This is good if your business is in a high risk area or has high dollar equipment. My wife’s tanning salon is open 24 hours, so her insurance is very important for those late night, up to no good type.

There are also other types like Error & Omission, Architects & Engineers, and Accountant insurance. Ask your agent about the type that you need. I’m just here to remind you.

The Master has spoken!

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Funding your startup

If you are ready to start a new business venture but you don’t have any or all of the funds to do it. Maybe you should start a business then eh? Well, there are ways around this TINY little problem.

Here are 10 places to find some cash.

1. Bring in a full partner (not family)

2. Bring in a silent partner (no control, just funds for profit)

3. Government Grants (takes at least 6 months

4. Small Business Loans (better have good credit)

5. Ask your family for a loan (my advice is don’t do it)

6. Home equity line of credit (works like a credit card, secured by your house)

7. Second Mortgage (only if over $20,000 and you don’t mind losing your house)

8. Personal Savings (I think the best way)

9. Cash in your investments (you aren’t quitting your investments, you are finding a new vehicle for them)

10. Sell as many assets as you can and replace them with shiny new ones when you make it big.

The Master has spoken!

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Selling on value

We talked about selling on price, so now let’s talk about going the “value” route. Like I have said in the past about my wife’s beauty and tanning salon, she sells at a higher than normal price. She does this because of the value she brings to the customers. She markets to the women that see the value of being pampered and the experience, not just the end result. She starts with the décor and the mood of her salon. It is vintage 1940’s French style. The whole place is. And not like a grandma’s house. This is done in the way a real vintage boutique would have been done. The music is even period specific to set the mood. The girls make a fuss over each and every client with drinks, treats, and every client is introduced to the other clients.

The customers get a genuine unique experience. This is the value. For this she gets top dollar. Her overhead might be 15% higher than anyone else in town, but she can charge 50% more than anyone else.

The Master has spoken!

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Selling on price

Selling on price is the nation’s oldest way to get the sale. Undercut the other guy. This can be one of the worst things you can do for your business. This could also be the best thing for your business. I’ll just state the obvious. If you can’t afford to give Wal-Mart prices, then don’t advertise that you can. But if you can get in the position to be the “Low Price Leader”, then you might be wise to do it. You can do this a couple of different ways. First is to sell a cheaper product or find a better source of your product than your competition. (or cheaper labor). The second way is to have very, very low overhead to be able to afford to make a smaller margin on your product or service. But don’t kid yourself thinking you can just “make less” than you competitor just to make the sale. You will fail and inevitably have to close your business. It has been tried and tested this way. If you aren’t in the position to sell cheap, DON’T DO IT!

The Master has spoken!

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Happy Birthday Master

It’s my birthday today. I decided to work the weekend, but next weekend I’m taking off for a fun little trip with the wife. I hope all of you take a little time for yourself when your special day comes around. You are worth it aren’t you?

The Master has spoken!

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How to research your competition

We have talked about researching your competition in the past and how important it can be to existing businesses and new startups. Let me tell you a couple of ways to do your research. First thing to do is to figure out what you want to learn. What level of service do they provide, what is their price points, what areas do they service, and the big one. How can you kick their ass! This is ultimately what you want to do. When I ask my local clients here, that is one of the first things on their list. Either they know the guy running the shop down the street and they hate him, or they are best friends and they want to outdo each other. Either reason is ok. As long as you want to better, then you will be better.

I would start with your friends. Ask them if they have had any run ins with your competitors. Be a customer of your competitors and try them out if you can. Send in a secret shopper. Research online for reviews of your competition. Find some of their coupons and check their offers. Heck, even go through their trash if you want to get real info. These are just some ideas that you can use to take a stronger position in your market

The Master has spoken!

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Your Unique Product

Is your product or service unique? If not, then does your city or town really need you there then? I’m not a big fan of having junk business around my city. If you don’t have something that sets you apart from the rest, then why the heck be in business. This doesn’t mean that standard products or services aren’t needed. Let’s take the Beauty Salon industry. From the cheap to the expensive, they all have their place. The Dollar Cut style salons are for those customers that don’t really have a big need to look good or are in a big hurry, or maybe just don’t think a haircut is worth more than $8.99. Then you have the high dollar salons, like my wife’s hair and nail salon, that they are charged $50 for a basic cut and up to $100 easy. These are for the quality conscious and those that loved to take a couple hours out of their day to be pampered. As you can see, each one has its place in the market, but if you plan on opening or running a Dollar Cut style salon, and there are 5 others in your town just like it, then don’t bother.

Do something unique to make you stand out.

The Master has spoken!

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What’s the competition looking like?

Anyone looking to start a business should definitely look at the area they plan on servicing and find out who their competition is. If you are starting a carpet cleaning business and are going to be in an area of 72,000 people and there are 68 carpet cleaners, I would say this would be a bad move. Business saturation in an area is a scary thing. I will never know why some cities don’t limit the amount of licenses that go out for any given field. Now there are things that you can take into consideration when it comes to a high amount of competition. If there are too many “carpet cleaners” in your area, maybe be different in your product or service. You could offer organic cleaning or same day guaranteed cleaning. Something that will make you stand out from the rest. Now if there is very little competition in your area, there might be a reason. Is there no call for your service and other entrepreneurs are already wise to that? Or maybe you are just smart enough to take advantage of this. The most important thing would be to take a strong position in the marketplace and find a way to keep it. Either way, do your research and don’t make a BIG mistake right from the beginning with your new business.

The Master has spoken! 

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