Small Business Loans Won't Help You - Unless You Know How To Use Them Right

Far too many small business owners look at small business loans as magic bullets or magical devices that would take their business to the next level or, more commonly, save them from impending collapse or ruin. Sadly, small business loans don't work that way. Sure, you can apply for small business loans and get approved. However, if you use them the wrong way they will not only fail to make your existing problems go away but they might even make things worse. Much worse. If you are thinking of taking out small business loans, keep the following tips in mind. There is a right way and wrong way to use them. Use them the right way and they will provide much-needed rocket fuel that can truly take your business to a whole new higher level. Use them the wrong way and you might just expedite your trip to bankruptcy at worst or bad credit at best.

Getting A Business Loan Today

Small Business Financial and Loan Services

Don't Take Out Loans For Regular Business Expenses

If your business is having a tough time covering your operating expenses, taking out small business loans will only provide a temporary solution. Taking out small business loans at this point will be like trying to apply a small bandage on a gaping bullet hole. It can stop some of the bleeding, but it doesn't really do enough to take care of the larger problem. You will still eventually die. Instead of taking out small business loans to take care of operational expenses, you should focus your efforts instead of taking out the cause of the massive bleeding. Address core structural issues that are causing a massive black hole in your business' operations which is putting your business in the red. Once you have addressed this issue, you would be in a better position to take out small business loans that might lead to profit. However, don't take out this type of financing until you've identified your current cash flow problems and you've fixed such problems.

Don't Take Out Loans Out of Desperation

When you are drowning, it is way too easy to grab on to everything thrown your way. Everything is better than drowning, right? Well, not really. Sometimes, the 'solutions' we employ end up putting us in a worse situation. In certain cases, applying for small business loans might be a cure that is worse than the disease. When you do things out of desperation, you tend to lose sight of the big picture You lose perspective. You lose a sense of proportion. It is easy to get into a mindset where anything is easier or preferable than bankruptcy. Well, in many cases, bankruptcy is better than getting small business loans out of desperation. You might end up ruining your personal credit. You might gain a local reputation for bad corporate or business risk. In many cases, taking out small business loans while your business is sinking is like pouring gasoline onto bright-red embers-it ends badly.


If you are feeling desperate and you think there is no hope for your business, it would be a good idea to catch your breath and sit down. Whip out a piece of paper and write out your business' current numbers. Get a clear idea of the current health of your business. Once you have clear numbers, you can map out some strategies to get out of your current situation. The key to success is to base your decisions on clear numbers-real evidence-instead of emotions, wishful thinking, or fantastic projections. Remember: hope is not a strategy. Focus your efforts at saving your company based on what exists instead of how things should be. We, after all, don't live in a perfect world. We can only do the best with the hand dealt us. This is the proper framework for using small business loans

You Must Have a Clear Objective For your Loans

If you have decided to pull the trigger on small business loans, make sure you have a clear objective for your loans. You have to know what you'll spend the funds on. More importantly, you have to be clear as to what you expect in return for your investment. You must expect some kind of return. Don't think for one second that scoring small business loans adds to your bottom line They are loans! They have to be repaid. In short, the extra money is a tool that you should use to get your business out of a hole or get your business to expand. It is a very good idea to have a loan proceeds plan before you take out the loan. Not only should you spell out how much you'll spend, when you'll spend it, and what you expect to get some return from your extra capital.


By being clear about the right and wrong uses of small business loans, we increase the chances that such loans will work the right way for us. If you want your business to benefit tremendously from small business loans, you should keep the tips above in mind.



Cheers,

Genius Online Marketing

Three Killer Small Business Ideas That Can Make You Money

If you want to gain financial freedom, maximum peace of mind, and a sense that you truly have maximum control over key aspects of your life, nothing beats self-employment. Sure, everyone needs money to live but when you earn your own money at your own terms and at your own schedule, you enjoy many benefits that truly increase the amount of enjoyment you get out of your life. While there are many ways to work for yourself, the best involves small business. When you build a small business and if you build it right, you build a series of systems that work together to produce one goal and one goal alone: to put money in your pocket. When thinking of small business ideas, you have to think in terms of grand or big concepts. Don't draw your ideas too tightly, or you might just build a business with a limited market or appeal. Think big. Expand your parameters and think of large concepts instead of getting too hung up on a specific model or type of business.

Sell Convenience

Whether it takes the form of saved time, saved effort, saved thinking, saved emotional energy, or a combination of any of these, convenience sells. In fact, convenience is so important in the modern economy that people are willing to pay quite a premium to have it. The key to small business ideas that focus on convenience is that they must offer a value proposition where it is very clear to the target consumer that the he or she will enjoy a massive difference in comfort and convenience with your service or product than with any previous model. The key to selling convenience is its level of obviousness. You can still sell incremental increases in convenience, but you won't be able to sell it for optimal value. To truly make a lot of profit, your convenience-based small business ideas must demonstrate a clear and convincing difference in convenience and end-user comfort. This is why you have to be very clear regarding the metrics of success you use. Your metrics must be the same as the end user's and the difference between older products/services and yours is very clear when measured by the metric you employ.

Help Convert Their Unused or Unwanted Assets Into Cash

Most consumers, throughout their lives, tend to accumulate lots of possessions. Many people might think they don't have much stuff, but they will quickly figure out how much they have hoarded when they have to change residences. People tend to pile up stuff-quickly. It is no surprise then that small business ideas that help people convert their unused or unwanted stuff into cash are met with open arms by consumers. People are always looking for ways to turn their spare junk into spare cash. Finding the demand is not the problem. However, the problem most small business ideas focused on helping people convert their unwanted assets into cash involve clearly communicating how they will enable consumers to unload their stuff. These small business ideas must not only be clear as to their operations but they also must clearly convey that their particular methods are superior to existing methods. This is the clincher. This is what separates good small business ideas in this particular niche from bad ones. The difference must also be expressed in terms of convenience. The more convenience, the more money saved, the easier you make things, the higher the chance your idea will actually end up putting money in your pocket. Moreover, successful small business ideas in this niche must incorporate existing mobile or web technology. The more seamless, simple, and automatic a particular idea is, the better.

Sell Information

The great thing about small business ideas that focus on selling information is that such businesses do away with all the traditional headaches of brick and mortar businesses. First, you don't need a warehouse or refrigerators to store your stock. You merely need to make a master file and you keep making copies of the original digital file when you have an order. Second, customer service can be reduced to a series of emails, web-based question database, or targeted Skype or live chat communications. Third, you don't need to ship your inventory. Delivery is instant. In fact, in many cases, the buyers only need to click a link to get a copy of whatever it is you are selling. While it is easy to get excited about small business ideas that focus on information sales, you have to keep in mind that you are not the only person who has realized the great benefits of information sales. This is why the Internet is filled to the brim with eBooks. This is the key challenge to small business ideas that focus on information sales: how to get noticed amid all the clamor of competing products.

Make no mistake about it-the secret to small business success is access to and implementation of the right small business ideas. Your business is built on the foundation of a good idea. Every idea has its own set of advantages and disadvantages. Keep a clear eye on the strategic pros and cons of key small business ideas discussed above so you can start your small business on the right footing.



Cheers,

The Genius Online Marketing

How To Find And Buy The Best Used Furniture From Craigslist Houston

Isn't Craigslist Houston grand? Seriously. From jobs to free stuff to everything in between, you have a very powerful resource in Craigslist Houston. This free classified ads site makes buying local not just easy but fun as well. Whether you just moved into the Houston (TX) area or are a long time resident, Craigslist Houston can definitely set you up with some great used furniture options. Getting furniture for your home or office can be quite challenging because the prices of new furniture items can be quite steep-especially in this challenging economy. Craigslist Houston can help you get the right items for your home without it costing you an arm and a leg. With that said, you can't just go to Craigslist Houston and expect to scoop up the best used used cars or furniture. It doesn't work that way. Believe me, other people have tried in the past and they only walked away disappointed. You have to be strategic about it. If you want to get the most out of this version of Craigslist, you need to use the following tips.

Downtown Houston, Texas (TX)

Make a short list of the stuff you want

Let's face it, there are so many things being listed on Craigslist Houston that it can be downright confusing. Too many people looking for great used furniture end up having the best items slip through their fingers because they were too slow on the draw. The problem? They were too distracted by other items being put on sale that when they finally got around to deciding on a few items that were previously posted, the items were already sold. While browsing Craigslist Houston can feel like taking a stroll through a candy store, you have to be focused. You have to have a clear idea as to what you want. Otherwise, you're just shopping at random and you are just hoping to get lucky. Not exactly a winning strategy for a site as competitive as Craigslist Houston.

Prioritize your short list

If you could only buy three items from your short list, which items would those be? Are you sure? Give yourself the time to look over your list and come up with a priority list. Don't stop there though. Make sure you have a plan B. Considering how fast things move on Craigslist Houston, you need to assume that your top priority items may be snapped up very quickly so you need to focus on your secondary list.

Check Craigslist Houston regularly

Make it a point to visit Craigslist Houston regularly. Don't be shy about visiting this site. Make sure you bookmark it so you can get there with a bare minimum of clicks. Always check to see if the items you are looking for have been listed.

Check in the right categories

Since home furniture can sometimes be listed in several sections, make sure you are aware of the different categories your preferred items might be listed in. This will give you a strong competitive advantage over fellow bargain hunters who might not be aware of alternative listing locations. Bookmark these other places and set up your Chrome or Firefox browser to load those pages together. This way, you don't waste any time clicking from section to section. Also, this makes for a quick load, scan, and leave sequence.

Ask the right questions and act quickly

Once fortune shines on you and you find the items you've been looking for in Craigslist Houston's listings, don't beat around the bush with silly or off-base questions. Make sure you have a clear idea of what information about the item you'll be asking about. Make sure the ad's details didn't already answer your questions. Be clear about what details you're looking for. Don't just start and end the analysis and conversation on the price or condition of the item. Once you have gotten the information you are looking for, be quick to set up an appointment to see the furniture items. Strike while the iron is hot. Remember, other people want the same stuff as you. This is no time to haggle. Get the seller's address and hit the pavement.

Haggle only when you have to

Considering the amount of waiting you went through, don't blow the deal by trying to haggle the price significantly. As long as the price is reasonable and the condition of the used furniture is to your liking, you might want to fight the urge to drive the price down and accept the seller's price. Of course, you have to factor in supplemental costs like moving costs when evaluating the seller's price. Most sellers are reasonable so if you are willing to be flexible, you should be able to agree to a mutually acceptable price.


Keep the tips above in mind when shopping for used furniture from Craigslist Houston. It is too easy to play the game wrong and end up losing every single time. Considering how many other people are looking for great used furniture in the Houston (Texas) area, you have to be strategic about buying used furniture off Craigslist or else your chances of success might be just like other people trying to buy without a plan-pretty low.


Cheers,

The Genius Online Marketing

Top 5 Ways To Get More Out Of Craigslist Advertising

Make no mistake about it-Craigslist is a very powerful addition to your online advertising arsenal. Regardless of whether you're doing email marketing, pay per view marketing, or pay per click marketing, you need to supplement your advertising initiatives with a craigslist advertising component. Don't neglect the traffic driving power of the Internet's biggest, and arguably most effective, classified ads websites. While there are many other websites like craigslist, few compare to the original when it comes to traffic firepower and targeted reach. If you want to get the most out of your efforts at spreading the word regarding whatever product, service, cause, or brand you're promoting, you need to add craigslist advertising to the mix. Here are the top 5 ways you can get the most out of your classified ads campaigns with Craigslist as wells as with websites like craigslist.

Craigslist Advertising

Be clear about what you are selling

Too many people who first try out craigslist advertising try to be cute. They really do. They try to be witty. They try to be mysterious. Sadly, ad titles that have these qualities tend to fall flat on their faces. Seriously. The number one rule on Craigslist and websites like craigslist is clarity. You have to quickly and effectively communicate your value proposition. Otherwise, your target audience or would-be buyers would quickly move on to a clearer ad. You have to be clear about whatever it is you are offering. Mention model names. Mention crucial elements in the title. Don't leave anything to chance.

Be descriptive

While chances are high that people who will be browsing your ads will know what you're offering based on the clarity of your headlines, this is not enough. This is enough to get your foot in the door, but if you want your craigslist advertising efforts to yield the most results, you need to be descriptive. Don't be lazy. Don't just assume that the reader will automatically get what you are trying to say. Spell it out. This advice applies to websites like craigslist as well. As much as possible, describe in bullet points all the key features of the items you are selling or the qualities of the services you are pushing. Don't leave anything to the imagination. Take control of the opportunity by drawing the reader in. Remember, it is your ad so you are in control of the conversation. Make it lead to where you want it to lead: a sale.

Appeal to their needs

Most of the people who will be viewing your craigslist advertising will probably be on the fence. They will not be 100% sure they want to buy. You have to remind them why they are looking at your ad in the first place. In short, you have to remind them of their needs. Appeal to their needs by bringing up key features of the product or service you are promoting. You can't just list these. You have to frame it in such a way that it is clear that it meets key needs. For example, if you are selling a food processor, lay out its functions and expand on the functions by giving examples regarding the types of dishes that can be handled by each function of this product.

Appeal to their emotions

Visitors to Craigslist and websites like craigslist are not immune from appeals to emotion. We are all, after all, emotional creatures. The secret is not to overplay your hand. Don't go overboard. Don't come off as cheesy or silly. Definitely don't come off as manipulative. Subtlety is the key. Choose your words carefully. Paint small pictures of the emotional benefits and impact the product or service you are promoting brings to the table. This is the difference between flat ads and effective ads. Remember, there are probably going to be many other ads like yours pushing the same thing or service. You need to stand out from the competition by having a clear dialogue with the reader. This is a crucial factor in craigslist advertising. In fact, it is so important that even stripped down websites like craigslist produce better results with emotionally-written ads.

Call your reader to action

If you have reached this stage of the selling process at Craigslist but failed to call your reader to action, your ad will probably fail. I hate to break it to you but you need to get your readers off the fence. Sure, great descriptions got them interested. Sure, appeals to emotion got them excited. Don't leave them hanging. Tell them what to do next. You'd be surprised as to the huge amount of craigslist advertising out there with no clear and powerful call to action. If you want to succeed at Craigslist or websites like craigslist, you need to be clear, direct, and emphatic with your call to action. No-'contact me' is not a call to action. You have to pair it with the value the reader will get.


Craigslist advertising yields powerful results. Not only is Craigslist free, it is also a great source of traffic. However, you have to play your cards right. You can't just market to this site like you would on websites like craigslist, social media sites, or other traffic sources. Keep the tips above in mind to step your marketing game up on the planet's most powerful classified ads site.


Cheers,

The Genius Online Marketing

Trends And Adjust Your Online Marketing Strategies Appropriately

Online marketing has gained a lot of reputation globally. Most successful companies in several countries have adopted it as their main strategy to boost their business. Online marketing can be more beneficial to the company if it has a website that ranks well in all the search engines. To make this possible, a lot of effort is required to increase traffic to the site. There are online marketing experts who have mastered the skill to ensure that your website dominate the search engines. These experts have a deep understanding of the importance and demands associated with each kind of business in every niche. They are therefore able to switch in between strategies to make their online marketing strategies work for every industry.

Online marketing is structured to drive prospective customers to your site. When visitors come to your website, they get to see what products or services you offer, and possibly decide to make a purchase whiles you profit immensely from it. Institutions and organizations (no matter their capacity) can tap into the power of online marketing to grow and become more successful ahead of their competitors. Keep in mind that at the core of this effective online marketing strategy is search engine optimization (SEO). Not only does SEO help to increase a website’s rankings in the search engines but it also provides much targeted traffic to the website. This practice has been a proven and reliable method since the internet emerged at the end of the last decade.

For your business website to yield the desired results, you have to ensure that there is always fresh content for your site visitors. You have to update your site content frequently and also make your posts interesting to be able to engage your readers. The essence in this is that, the content on your website is what hold the fort and interact with your prospective customers whiles you are away. Remember to provide valuable and relevant information to your visitors while avoiding grammatical errors and other unpardonable mistakes.

In order to be successful with your online marketing, I recommend you choose and stick with the right marketing strategy to push your message. Prior research of your niche is key to attaining success online. There are several good online marketing firms you can consult to assist to you to enhance your online visibility.

The blueprint I have outlined here is exactly what all companies, big or small are using to profit from the web. Where you choose to start from is immaterial; what matters is that you start something, because, if you are not marketing your business online, your competition is. If you are in doubt, just do a search on your competitors on the social platforms and article director sites.

Undertaking a continuous research is very vital in achieving success in online marketing. This allows you to adapt to changing trends and adjust your online marketing strategies appropriately.


Cheers,

Genius Online Marketing