Category: Business Tips

Fear of Rejection: How to Effectively Overcome It As An Entrepreneur

Posted on by Gary

As an entrepreneur you are going to run into rejection, it’s inevitable. You might turn in a proposal that gets denied or try to sell your services and get denied. Either way, it’s important to remember your goals and keep pushing towards them. Don’t let a simple no stop you from achieving your goals. Some of the most successful people have been denied multiple times before reaching their spotlight. Just keep that in mind on this journey of entrepreneurship.

Never take it personally. Most rejections are based on the well-being of the other company. If you get rejected it’s simply because they don’t think it’s a good fit. It’s not because you suck and your company sucks. It’s literally just business. Let business be business, and don’t take it to your heart. Don’t let it affect your motivation, or ability to market yourself.

You should use rejection as a tool to figure out what your next step is or even how you could present yourself better next time. Take it as a learning opportunity and figure out what needs to change in order to land that next deal. Your goal is to be successful and grow your company, so use rejection as a tool to guide you in a better direction. Just because one person denied you doesn’t mean there’s not someone else out there that has been looking for someone just like you.

Never be afraid of rejection. Rejection is part of the growth process, and without it, you wouldn’t know where to begin, or even where you should go next. You should never fear being denied because a denial is all it is. It doesn’t affect you negatively to be rejected. If anything, you and the person that denied you are the only ones that are even aware of the rejection. You don’t have to showcase how many rejections it took until you succeeded. Just remember that each rejection leads to another possible deal. Don’t hesitate to put yourself out there in fear of being rejected. Just live for the moment and if you get denied then that’s all that has happened is you got denied. You are still an entrepreneur and you are still striving.

Another thing is don’t give your hopes up to soon. Just keep in mind that rejection is inevitable, and it’s bound to happen to you at some point while venturing as an entrepreneur. Stop hesitating to put yourself out there, because, in the end, it will be nothing but beneficial. You can’t land deals, without putting yourself out there. Regardless of rejection, you are still an entrepreneur and you still need to get your services out there. You can’t wait around and expect something to come to you because that is not realistic. Like I said, rejection is bound to happen on your journey, just don’t let it stop you from marketing your services or company. Use it as a tool to succeed.

5 Good Reason Why Personal Branding is Crucial To Career Success

Posted on by Krissy

Living in a digital world, it is incredibly important to focus on your personal branding. Your brand is something that will get people to talk about you. It’s what inspires people to turn to you for the particular expertise that you offer. Your personal branding is how others view you, making a significant difference in the likelihood of job prospects or selling your products or services. This will look at the top 5 reasons why personal branding is so crucial to your success.

  1. Building an Audience

In a digital world, your audience will actually determine your value to other potential customers. For instance, imagine a popular YouTuber. A good YouTuber, one that has a solid fanbase, has a massive audience. This audience attracts new people to their audience. The same applies in the business world. People will see your value thanks to your personal branding, which means that they will be more likely to hire you or trust you to provide the quality products or services that they are looking for. Once you build an audience, you can leverage them to be more successful.

  1. Have a Competitive Edge

There is a lot of competition in the digital age, so having a strong personal brand can give you the competitive edge that you need to stand out. They want to trust someone who is an authority in their specific field. You get the credibility that you need that will make customers more likely to trust you to offer the solutions they are looking for. A strong personal branding makes you more valuable than your competition, who may not have as strong of a personal brand.

  1. Create Relationships

Connecting with other people is so important these days. You need to network and market yourself to be more attractive to prospects. Through personal branding, you can connect with other people. As you connect with people and form relationships, you can spend time nurturing these relationships. Through developing relationships and focusing on them, you create creating loyalty to your brand and increase the chances of people returning to you for your products and services.

  1. Better Networking Abilities

These days, networking is so important no matter what your industry is. If you have strong personal branding, you will be more likely to get invited to events that allow you to connect and network with others. These events can often be so important to being successful and climbing the career ladder.

  1. Better Opportunities

Probably most importantly, personal branding can unlock amazing opportunities for you. After you have created an audience, built up your authority in the industry, and formed relationships, you can start unlocking better opportunities. You can capitalize on your personal branding to get a better job, achieve your goals of being an influencer, or start getting more sales.

Personal branding is essential to helping you become more successful and advance your career. This is why it’s so important to focus on building a strong personal brand.

5 Professional Skills You Need To Master In 2021 For Professional Growth

Posted on by Alex

Knowing how to grow in your professional life might seem daunting. Not many people know that all the tools they need to do this are already in their possession. Each person has the potential to succeed professionally, but only a few do. Make 2021 your year for professional growth by mastering our top 5 skills listed below.

  1. Motivation

The simplest, yet most effective skill you need to develop is self-motivation. When you’re motivated, you show up and do your work. Motivation can initiate, guide, and help you maintain goals. To be motivated in your profession, you need to have a personal drive to achieve work-related goals. Staying committed to this desire, being ready to act upon it, and being optimistic that you will reach it even when some rocks are thrown in your road, is the key factors to staying motivated.

  1. Flexibility

When you’re flexible, you’re valuable. No matter where you are professionally, challenges and obstacles are bound to show up on your doorstep. Even when your career is rigid, unpredictable events can come knocking any day. You should always be able to adapt and adjust easily without compromising the quality of your work if professional growth is what you’re looking to achieve.

  1. Initiative

Don’t ever sit around during work hours doing nothing. When you have nothing to do, find something to do! Being proactive and taking initiative will have a great impact on your professional growth. When it comes to your career, taking initiative can mean more than asking for extra work. Doing more than what is expected from you and identifying future problems and working on solving them is a great step in the right direction, but you can also grow this skill by working on your career plan, your confidence, requesting feedback on work already done or sharing ideas for improvement.

  1. Time Management

One of the best skills to develop is time-management. Successful careers require effective management. Knowing how to prioritize tasks and meet deadlines can push you further than you might think. Effective time-management also includes setting time aside for breaks. Relaxing every now and then will give you a much needed-boost and prevent you from getting stressed out which will be detrimental to your growth.

  1. Leadership

Never make the mistake of thinking that leadership skills should be reserved for senior-ranking professionals. Leadership includes the ability to inspire others and everyone should be able to do this if their end-goal is success. Whether you have leadership in the form of patience, empathy, and being a good listener or are able to take risks and make decisions, developing the skill unique to you can improve your professional growth drastically.

Expanding your skillset can never backfire. Whether you use these skills for professional growth or in your personal life, being able to adjust, show leadership in asking situations, stay motivated and take initiative all while making the best use of what time you have, is what will make you stand out amongst the rest.

The 5 Biggest Challenges Faced by Entrepreneurs Today

Posted on by Gary

 

The world continually challenges us to be our best possible selves, but how can entrepreneurs best ensure that they are prepared for these challenges?

From company conduct to company communication and the impact imposed by COVID-19, we will discuss the best responses for entrepreneurs to take.

Keep reading for 2 more challenges that entrepreneurs must consider in their future plans as well.

Company Communication

The COVID-19 pandemic has revolutionised the way that we work. We have begun to take to our desks at home to get the job done, and this has severely impacted the ability of your company to communicate with each other. As workers are no longer in a concentrated area in their offices, entrepreneurs are becoming increasingly worried as to how best to meet company targets.

A great way to boost communication methods is through the use of video streaming services such as Zoom. This allows the concentration of your team into one area once again, and assuming no technical difficulties, allows the re-establishment of clear communication.

Company Conduct

Consumers are becoming increasingly interested in a company’s position on social issues, and this is a crucial challenge to entrepreneurship. If you are unable to understand what your consumers want, it might be difficult for your company to appear reliable.

As an entrepreneur, by gauging an understanding of consumer wants in your approaches to things, you may be able to implement more environmentally friendly initiatives, for example, showing consumers that you are a company that cares about the wider issues and not just about business.

Company Competitiveness

As an entrepreneur, you will always be competing against the next best person, but COVID-19 has severely changed the way that we do business. It is not worth targeting your marketing strategies to things that people are only going to see if they enter your stores, as online purchasing has skyrocketed.

For this reason, it is crucial that you develop your social media presence and begin creating a presence on there that your consumers can interact with, allowing you to remain more competitive in a much more difficult world.

Company Health

Whilst doing business is the primary goal of any entrepreneur, considering that your workers, and yourself, need to take care at such a critical time is also crucial to productivity and overall happiness. This is because it can actually damage internal relations if people are dissatisfied, making this a top priority matter.

Taking frequent breaks is a great way to look after yourself, and understanding that some workers may be more affected than others shows your willingness as an entrepreneur to be considerate and caring of your workforce.

Company Finances

Finally, money may be tight at the moment due to the impositions of the pandemic, and it is important to realise that asking for help is necessary at this time.

If you have loans, speak to your bank about potential extensions, and tap into your network to see if they are willing to support you in any way possible.

5 Marketing Strategies to Fuel Your Business Growth

Posted on by Gary

Not all people who want to enter the world of business possess a booming marketing skill. This brings fear to a small business owner who finds it difficult to start with just a small capital. However, there are several ways you can learn to acquire this certain skill to make an incredible income. Most entrepreneurs experience the same feeling you have when they started their business so don’t be scared – you can be successful, too.

Highlight the benefits of your products or services

You do not have to compare your products to the competitors just to emphasize the values which make them different. Learn how to match the price based on the quality and value of your offers. In every feature of your product, associate it with its benefit. Most consumers value their money by purchasing goods that are useful and beneficial to them. Always remember the difference between buying a product because they need it or they want it.

Profile your potential customer

Base your offer on their gender, age, living status, household activities, and many other preferences so you know how to position your product or service. You may feel dismayed every time a customer ignores your direct offer due to their personal reasons. To gain their attention, ask few things which may let them express what they need so you can discover the ideal product they want. Listen to them and analyze the things they need.

Use many types of marketing platform through the powerful influence of the internet

Nowadays, social media has influenced its large number of users. In this way, your products can reach the awareness of millions of people which is the primary advantage provided by the internet. In addition, creating compelling content for your website can also attract more customers. Other forms of marketing strategy are crowdsourcing, affiliate marketing, and video marketing. Through your creativity and proper use of these tools, you can boost your sales in a short span of time.

Let customers provide their feedback or suggestions

The impression of customers is very important to help you produce a product that is efficient and valuable to many users. Use their feedback to help you meet their needs and resolve underlying issues before you spend a lot in producing products that you think will still be useful for them.

Track every single money you spent on your marketing campaign

This is very important because this will allow you to compare which of those marketing channels you use is more effective. The records will also help you analyze the resolutions you can do to improve your techniques. You can pinpoint the areas of your product which customers need and which ones needs improvement or changes. Through this guide, you can prevent the waste of money focusing on something that is not effective.

5 Effective Sales Strategies And Tactics to Close Deals Faster

Posted on by Alex

In a world where generation after generation we have been raised to obtain a good-paying job to support the family, a man’s personal pursuit for happiness had to be put on the back burner. Today, things are so much more different than anyone could have imagined. With the advancements in technology and the World Wide Web, societies began to morph, and new ideas paved the way for new opportunities. Entrepreneurs began emerging with the tools now available for them to research, communicate, and market their ideas.

Now you have the chance to be your own boss and actually have a shot at turning what you love to do into a paying job. However, your success can’t be achieved alone. Rome wasn’t built in a day, and it definitely wasn’t built by one man. No matter what your new business endeavor is, you may at some point need to deal with investors, business partners, clients, and consumers. You depend on these entities to support your endeavor, but you have to win them over first. In business terms, you have to “close the deal” and come to an agreement on something.

Clients agree to pay a specific price for a service or product you agree to provide.

Investors agree to fund an idea that you agree to pursue.

It might be harder to close the deal with one person over another, but the one thing that they all have in common is the fact that they are just humans, like you. One thing to remember is that if you can capture someone’s attention in a positive way, they are more likely to want to back up your idea. This brings us to the first way to seal the deal with your investor or client.

Believe in Yourself

Investors especially look for someone who can convince them that the idea is worthy and a solution. If you have a great idea but lack confidence in your execution for bringing your idea to life, you’ll quickly lose their interest. Your goal is to convince your investors that you believe wholeheartedly in your pursuit. Your enthusiasm and energy play a big role in how you can convey this.

Most of the decisions that we make as individuals are based on some level of personal preference. The next four ways that can help you close a deal related to capturing the attention of investors and clients by appealing to their senses and emotions

Visual Appeal

What we see affects how we think and feel. A presentation can highly benefit from visual stimuli, such as blueprints, logos, graphs, or sketches. Whatever it may be, giving your audience something to look at will keep their mind on the concept of your idea. There is even proof that specific colors can enhance our mood, thus affecting our decisions.

Verbal Appeal

An art form in itself, being able to eloquently communicate through language to your audience is a quality that will surely impress anyone. It’s a common human characteristic that we judge others based on the way they word things and their tone of voice. Also, don’t try to overpower a conversation. Always ask for feedback or input from whomever it is that you are speaking to.

Emotional Appeal

We see it everywhere in advertisements on tv, in magazines, and on billboards. A situation is presented to you that makes you feel an emotion. This same concept can be brought into luring a client to your product or service. Be careful not to lean towards a sad or upsetting reason to try and convince your audience.

Logical Appeal

Facts and data talk. People like to see evidence of success or at least why you believe you will succeed. Doing your research on competition, consumer data, location, and product/service practicality are like science to the business mind. It looks like clear evidence to them as to why you believe you can succeed.

Each of these ways can stand out on its own if utilized in the right way to highlight your idea as an entrepreneur. Create your game plan and find an angle that you want to use to grab the attention of your audience. Typically, within the first ten minutes, an investor or client has already made a decision in their head on whether or not they want to close the deal with you. It’s not always about the final statement. The willingness for your audience to close a deal is a culmination of their entire experience with you.

5 Ideas For Businesses You Can Launch For Cheap Or Even Free

Posted on by Gary

Are you looking for easy and cost-friendly money-making projects? Do you want to earn extra income without having to withdraw most of your savings account? Well, I might just have the answer to those questions.

Starting your own enterprise does not always require a lot of money and a degree in Business Administration. There are a number of businesses that require only your time, skills, and a little from your pocket. All you need to do is tap into your creativity, resourcefulness, and perseverance.

Moreover, ask yourself about marketable talents that others might be able to make use of, and then find ways to let them know that you offer such services. It does not have to be something elaborate and you can even just utilize your social media accounts to let people know you are an entrepreneur on the rise.

So here are a few simple and economical business ventures you can start with:

1. Pet sitting.

This business only requires one thing, your unconditional love for animals and anything furry. A lot of people these days have their own house pet, and there are situations when they cannot bring their beloved critter with them. So, why not turn that into an opportunity to earn a few dollars?
You do not need an office or a capital to start this business; however, having a lot of friends with pets would be an advantage.

2. Online Freelance Writing

If you have a knack for literature, and secretly corrects everybody else’s grammar, then this might be a good business to start with. You can create an online profile highlighting your expertise and pose sample of your work and other related projects.

Another way to market your skills is to set up a blog. The key is to choose a specific niche in order to build an online presence.

3. Virtual Assistant

Virtual Assistants are like online admin assistants who are hired by professionals to do mundane admin tasks which they no longer have time to do. You will either sort through emails, write a few communications, and do research.

To make this a lucrative business venture, you will need your own laptop, stable internet connection, and flexibility in your schedule.

4. Babysitting

A lot of parents these days need to work and have a very little amount of time to relax, which is why the demand for babysitters have also increased. Though experience is not a necessity, growing up with little brothers and sisters would be a great advantage on your part.

Also, a little insight into child psychology would impress parents because as we know parents want the best for their children. Patience and tolerance are rather important when dealing with kids, but if you know magic, you are definitely a winner.

5. Homemade goodies

If you make killer homemade cookies or cupcakes, you got a gold mine right there. A lot of big bakeshops these days started out in their kitchen and had slowly taken off as soon as a lot of people had heard of their products.

Some cupcake bakers open online shops on Instagram and take orders through their page. It saves you money and time for marketing, and you can start your bakeshop even without the actual shop.

8 Effective Ways To Drive More Traffic To Your Website

Posted on by Alex

Every company or business has its own website or online portal because it is important to keep track of every person who visits your website because each person could be a potential customer. So, how exactly and effectively can you attract more customers to boost your site traffic? Below is a tell-all guide on how to be successful in driving more traffic to your website.

A simple secret to help you in your endeavour is to follow the trade secrets that work for your closest competitors. Why would you want to waste time trying to experiment with new techniques without knowing if they will work for your company, industry, or domain? The following techniques will explain to you how to “steal” their keywords and backlinks in order to leapfrog traffic on your website. All you have to do is follow the steps enumerated below:

1. Your website functionality: You need to make important and effective tweaks on your website and use the maximum number of tools available online to boost your ranking among your competitors.

2. Competition: Find out who your real competitors are and who can turn out to be tough competitors in the near future. Keeping close tabs on this information can give you a good perspective about what you have to do to stay ahead of them in the rat race.

3. Keywords: SEM Rush is one of the best tools that help with the researching of keywords. Using the appropriate keywords can increase your website traffic by increasing the number and frequencies of hits to your site.

4. Organic Rankings: This will give you an insight into the most remote areas of your closest competitors and using this information, you will know where exactly to increase your focus.

5. Building links: You need to go through the websites of your closest competitors so see their link building processes. Tweaking it to your advantage will ensure more traffic flowing into your own website.

6. Advertising: Compare all the strategies by your top three or top five competitors and see what works in your domain or industry. Use the same strategy to suit the needs of your website and those of your customers and potential clients as well.

7. Social media marketing and management: The largest number of hits happen in social networking domains due to a large number of people present in this space. It is also easier to carve a niche for yourself in this space since it gives you more space for creativity and innovation.

8. Reporting tools: Use such tools to generate important data about your website and where you can channel your attention in order to stay at the top of the ranking charts.

SEM Rush is a tool that helps you with improving the traffic to your web site. This tool helps you to zero in on the most common comprehensive words related to your domain and business. Using these words on your website and blog will automatically increase the number of hits to the website thus, considerably increasing the traffic. This, in turn, means that you will have more potential clients who will later turn into loyal customers.

Search engine traffic makes a big difference as the browsers will naturally go in for the website at the top of the search list since it is closest to what they are searching for. With this tool, you can understand the drawbacks of your website, its speed, and areas of improvement. Collect benchmark data to give you a better idea about the closest competing website to compare with your own. Remember that more paid searches might cause a drag in the speed of your website. Organic searches being higher in number compared to your paid searches can help in the ranking of your website analytically. Also, check the number of keywords that are distributed in the blog and content section as keywords when placed strategically will help your website have a better rank in the search list.

Following the tips above can help attract more organic traffic into your website – all you have to do is be consistent and committed to your goals.

5 Daily Scheduling Methods To Bring More Productivity To Your Day

Posted on by Gary

Productivity is probably this generation’s biggest dilemma. The rising numbers of freelancers and entrepreneurs indicate that more and more people are choosing to work outside the regular 9-5. But outside any supervision or deadlines, they often end up wasting a major chunk of their time distracted with technology, calls, relationships, etc.

After some initial damage, they sense the need to be more productive if they ever want to achieve their goals. According to a study, only 50-60% of a regular workday is productive. There are numerous blogs, articles, courses, and books that claim to help you achieve the “perfect schedule.” But the reality is, there is no one-size-fits-all method when it comes to productivity. What works for one person could be a total disaster for someone else.

To give you an example, let’s compare some of the most successful leaders of our generation. Elon Musk wakes up early and spends his first 30 minutes answering “critical emails” while drinking his coffee. Zuckerberg doesn’t wake up early but maintains a morning routine where he works out or goes for a run, eats breakfast, and gets dressed before heading to the office. Richard Branson wakes up at 5 am, gets in some cardio before breakfast with the family.

As you can notice, there is no set path to productivity. It’s what works for you the best that matters. Some of the techniques with a proven track record in upping productivity are listed below. It will take some effort and consistency to figure out the right combination and stick to a schedule until it becomes a habit.

Start your day early

There is a reason why this gets featured in most of the productivity articles, courses, and recommendations by successful entrepreneurs. Starting early gives you a head start. You can use the additional 1-2 hours to accomplish tasks like your work out or mindfulness exercises along with one task that you think is important. It could be checking emails or responding to connections. Whatever it is, it will bring a sense of accomplishment and set the tone for the rest of the day.

Create a morning routine and stick to it

There is no hack to productivity. It is a matter of habit and intuition. And building a new habit takes willpower and consistency. It requires some initial motivation before the result presents itself. Some say it 21 days to build a habit while others vouch for the 90-day rule. Whatever it takes you, you should be motivated enough to put in the work.

Use Time-blocking Method

Time blocking is probably the most widely used productivity method. It requires you to break your day in 40 mins to 1-hour time slots dedicated to specific tasks. A time block method will have slots for following up with connections and scheduling calls and meetings. By blocking tasks into slots, you can achieve great productivity with the time block method.

Avoid unnecessary decision making

You must have seen the likes of Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg wearing the same type of ordinary clothes every day. It is not a coincidence but a planned strategy to avoid decision burnout throughout the day. You can choose what decisions are best avoided so you can focus on getting things done.

Avoid working late

If you are serious about productivity then don’t make the mistake of working late into the night. Take your mind off work in the evenings. If you have a hobby, this would be a good time to indulge in it. Why is it so important you ask? To be productive the next day.

4 Affiliate Marketing Tips for Beginners

Posted on by Krissy

Starting your own business can be an overwhelming experience. However, we now live in a world where building a business doesn’t need to be so overwhelming anymore. If you’re looking for a much simpler way to start your own business but with very little capital needed, then you should definitely consider affiliate marketing. Basically, this is where you promote other people’s products and services and in return, you earn a commission from helping out. You just need to find a product you want to endorse, promote it to other people, and you can earn money for every sale that you make. Since there are plenty of affiliate products and services available today, you need to find a unique product or service to promote. Just remember that your desire and determination to succeed are also equally important if you want to succeed as an affiliate marketer in the long run.

Find High-Quality Products

You need to choose high-quality products or services if you want to become successful as an affiliate marketer. If what you’re promoting is of high quality; then chances are, the customer support and supply chain process of the company you are promoting are also of high quality which will give you credibility as a marketer.

Choose Something You’ll Get Value From

You should always choose a product or service that you can see yourself using or getting value from. It should be an extension of you. The program you are affiliated with should offer value for all your efforts. You should also look for a program that provides valuable free gifts. Remember that online reviews and feedback can make or break your business. Once customers get free gifts, they will no doubt be impressed and give you great reviews in return.

Look for a Niche Market with Big Problems to be Solved

You should always look for a niche market with significant problems to be solved and provide a quality solution to these issues. If you are able to fix a problem, especially the big ones, you will gain the trust of your customers and that is no doubt a big plus for your business.

Variety of Products

Look for an affiliate program that offers a wide range of products so that you can encourage your customers to keep coming back for more. Variety helps build a solid fanbase, which is definitely good for business. For instance, if the affiliate program is offering ebooks that discuss weight loss, it is also a good thing if it provides supplements and exercise equipment. So, you should pick an affiliate program that offers a wide range of products so that your customers will also most likely recommend you to their friends and colleagues.

One of the best benefits of affiliate marketing is that you can promote as many affiliate programs as you want. This means that your earning potential is big as well. Some people give up their 9-5 job to focus on their online business. Another benefit of affiliate marketing is that you don’t need to leave your home just to promote a product or service. Even if you are in your pajamas, you can still work and sell online because you can promote the program on your website or social networking sites. Some affiliate programs even provide their affiliates with a website where they can promote the products or services.