The 4 Business Plan Threats

April 5, 2010 · Posted in Eco Conscious Consumer · Comments Off 

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There are four critical areas causing business plans to change. All are changing trends in the business environment. The four areas we will examine are: 1) government trends, 2) economic trends. 3) technological trends and 4) cultural trends. Each one causes a specific impact on our decisions and requires us to make adjustments. Some changes are dramatic and require dramatic reactions to minimize their effect on our business.

First are government trends. There are several different sources caused by changes in regulations, tax policies and new legal precedence. Most of these are not a direct result of what we are doing in our business, but are the result of political and social shifts. On the legal side, changes result from court cases. It is absolutely necessary to address these changes because of both the financial and legal jeopardy. The result will be changes to not only our business plans but also our business conduct.

Second are economic trends. These changes occur because the local, national and international environment changes. Read more

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What Are the Most Profitable Small Businesses – Profitable Small Green Businesses

October 31, 2009 · Posted in Green Business · Comments Off 

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When looking at what are the most profitable small businesses, there are many avenues to explore. One of the challenges small business owners and home business owners face is marketing their business effectively. In addition to sound marketing methods, marketing to popular trends and markets with growing interest is important.

Advertising can be very expensive, but there are very effective ways of generating free exposure, especially today. With the technologies available via the internet many small business owners are generating massive profits with little or no marketing expense.

There are many opportunities right now for having a profitable small green business. Read more

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Getting A Federal Grant From The U.S. Government

October 30, 2009 · Posted in Eco Friendly Loans, Green Grants · Comments Off 

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Grants are given in various levels of government. There is the federal, state and then those being offered by non profit organizations.

The application process in any of these is the same. The difference will be in the requirements so the person has to get a brochure or do the necessary research online to pre-qualify.

The amount that a person can get from a US federal grant is not fixed. This means that Mr. X can get more than Mr. Y depending on the merits of the proposal. When this is awarded to the recipient, every penny spent must be recorded because the government would like to see where the money went. Read more

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Small Business Ideas in “Green”

October 23, 2009 · Posted in Eco Conscious Consumer, Eco Friendly Business · Comments Off 

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The world is becoming extremely environmental conscience. With great pushes to save the environment and reminding everyone that they can do their part, the market in green has become huge. By the “green” market we are speaking of items that are environmentally friendly. There are several areas where the opportunities for small businesses are huge.

One area is the search for green apparel. Individuals are looking for eco-friendly clothing and the market in this area is growing. This means using organic materials such as cotton and using environmentally friendly dyes. Small businesses can find a market in this area because they can offer unique environmentally friendly clothing. Read more

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Differentiating by Going Green

October 19, 2009 · Posted in Business Strategy, Marketing, Sales & Business Development · Comments Off 

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As any experienced marketer knows, differentiating your business from your competitors is a primary key to attracting new prospects and customers and retaining them once they decide to become your customers. But will the same “hook” that attracted them to become your customer be enough to maintain their loyalty? Let’s examine a few strategies:

Low Price: As people are always price conscience, especially in this slow economy, this can be an excellent method to attract new customers. However, unless your company plans on being a “discount house” operation, you will need to evolve a different strategy to retain those customers, otherwise they will simply seek out the next big discount elsewhere. Read more

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Going Green Saving the Environment, Gas, & Reducing Stress While Increasing Personal Profits

October 17, 2009 · Posted in Green Business, Green Business Investments, Small Business Operations · Comments Off 

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In today’s global market place people are looking to go green for many reasons.
One good reason is the environmental impact going green has.

If you consider the impact of fuel burn in the daily commute to work the overpowering reason to go green is the cost of gasoline.

More and more the ability to stay at home and telecommute is taking first choice for many people.
Inter the home business arena and the ability to have family time when you want it, work in your sweats and slippers, not have to suck the exhaust fumes of the traffic ahead of you on the daily commute is another environmental plus. Read more

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An Overview of Local Start Up Business Grants and Where How to Get Funding

October 15, 2009 · Posted in Eco Friendly Business, Eco Friendly Business Grants, Green Business Consulting · Comments Off 

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Grants come in a wide array of sizes, for a broad array of purposes, from a myriad of sources. While most grant information rests at the Federal level, there are plenty of other sources of funding for a business startup out there. This article will focus on getting grants from your local community.

First, there are sound reasons for your local chamber of commerce and better business bureau to offer grants for businesses to start up – businesses employ people, and boosting the local job market is one of the important things your city government does. Even if your business just employs two part time shipping clerks, it still makes sense for your local business development center to host a grant program to help new businesses start out. Read more

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Venture Capital For Small Business Growth

August 14, 2009 · Posted in Venture capital · Comments Off 

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In past years, attracting venture capital interest might have been considered to be a relatively unchallenging feat by most successful entrepreneurs and small business owners. With a sound business model and a good growth strategy, it seemed fairly straightforward to obtain the financial investment and support which was needed to boost the business to the next level. However, recent months have certainly changed the face of venture capitalism, and it is important to fully understand the most effective means of approaching investors in the light of the economic downturn.

There are many small business owners who have shied away from the concept of venture capital in recent times, for three main reasons. The first reason tends to be a general uncertainty as far as the economy is concerned. With global financial institutions and national banks collapsing in ruins as a direct result of risky or foolhardy investments, how is it possible to find a good, solid investor? The last thing any business needs is an investor promising the finance and then failing to deliver. Read more

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Business Beginners Needs Their Personal Financial Information in Good Shape

January 7, 2009 · Posted in Eco Friendly Loans, Green Business 101, Green Business Ideas · Comments Off 

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If you are determined to make a go of building your own business, then you will be faced with a major challenge because of the lack of an established business track record. Most brand new businesses require some capital in order to get started, but without past business financial information it can be difficult to secure a loan for that purpose.

Banks and other types of lending institutions rely on receiving a variety of fiscal information from small business borrowers in order to make a decision about loaning money to them. If you are just starting out and your business is brand new, then you will not have cash flows or dividends information, or financial statements for your business that you can supply to the lenders. Without that detailed history of business operations and financial reports it is difficult to secure a loan. Read more

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Business Finance Options For New Start-Ups

January 7, 2009 · Posted in Green Business 101, Green Business Investments, Green Venture Capital · Comments Off 

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There are various business finance plans open to a new start-up, but they all fall into 2 major categories, namely, owner financing and borrowed business finance. Each of these 2 major categories has an upside and a downside that every entrepreneur seeking business finance should be aware of. The key to success in business finance would then be finding ways to exploit the advantages of one’s chosen financing option, while also mitigating against its downside.

The first major business finance category is owner financing. Owner financing refers to money that the entrepreneur and other promoters of the business contribute to start it. In most cases, owner financing comes from the entrepreneur’s savings. Read more

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