Profitability
How to Find Products and the 5 Best Places to Earn Commissions
When it comes to affiliate marketing, your ability to earn commissions is directly proportionate to where you choose to do business and whether or not you find the best products available. If you are looking into the world of affiliate marketing and uncertain of where to start, this is information that you need to read. Understanding how to find products and choose the best merchant sites to work with is going to be an elemental part of your success. Here are some definite things to keep in mind.
The top five places to earn commissions is a good place to start. If you want to make big bucks in affiliate marketing, check out these merchant sites for the best chances of success:
- Amazon
- ClickBank
- Commission Junction
- ShareASale
- Linkshare
These are the leading affiliate merchant sites that you will find online today, allowing you to maximize your potential profits and minimize the hassles and risks involved. Once you sign up with these merchants, you can choose products that you are interested in earning money on as your affiliate marketing products.
The decision of which products to utilize in your affiliate marketing campaigns can sometimes be a difficult one. There are plenty of different elements to consider, but in the end the product that you choose should be something that you are at least a little familiar with or able to learn about easily. If you’re trying to sell something you know nothing about, it will be much harder to be successful. Take the time to focus on products that you can work with and don’t have to do much research on so that you have a better chance at success in every sale.
The great thing about affiliate marketing is that you can choose as many products from as many different merchants as you would like to sell. You can choose specific companies from one merchant and different companies or products from another, based on the types of affiliate sites you want to create. Look at the way that products generate income, as well, so that you can choose the highest earning products and set your campaigns up properly. After all, if you are unsure of what you can earn with your affiliate products, you’re not going to be able to market them properly or have a good shot at success.
Top 3 Resolutions for Virtual Assistants
Got Motivation? Of course you do. It’s almost the New Year and we can’t help but imagine all the things will accomplish in 2011. Did you know that 90% of American’s have the same top two resolutions? First, Get Healthy. Secondly, Gain Financial Freedom. But what about in the “work world”?
I surveyed my colleagues in the “Virtual” world. The top three resolutions were pretty much unanimous…but they all followed the same theory: Be more profitable. Makes sense, right?
Here are the top 3 resolutions:
1. Get Better Clients
Dump the “duds”. Clients who don’t pay in a timely manner or those who are not paying your top rate should be “introduced” to someone new. It’s not just about the “money” factor here, but the clients that require the most maintenance usually pay the least and create more stress in your world. Be careful though…make sure that you have set your clients up for success and don’t leave them high and dry. Prepare a transition plan for them. You would want the same respect in return.
2. Network More
Spend time using the social media avenues so that you can meet the people that are going to help you expand your business. Be sure to take advantage of the chance to get in front of your clients or future clients through quality social networking…not just empty posts. Take every “in-person” opportunity to tell someone about your business. You never know who they might know.
3. Get More Work-Life Balance
So this is the tough one and it takes tons of discipline. It can be difficult to “clock-out” when you know that with your computer, blackberry, or the phone is a few steps away in the other room. My advice, Make sure to SHUT DOWN at quitting time. Make time for yourself and make time for your family. If you are wound tight all the time, you won’t be nearly as productive for your clients or as present and available for your family (or yourself).
Whatever your resolutions for 2011, be sure to write them down and post them in a very obvious place. Also, check-in on a weekly basis and give yourself a new task to help you get to your ultimate goal.
Happy New Year!
Try Before You Buy
In the current economy, it is so easy to look for the quickest and cheapest way to get things done. Hey, sometimes you catch a break but most of the time, you do only get what you pay for! Anything you can buy over the internet has pretty wrapping, a list of great features and benefits, and testimonials galore. But one size never fits all. Before you purchase anything for your business, you have to take the time to do your homework. Otherwise, you will end up wasting time and money. Read the rest of this entry »
Want Some Free Grant Money?
Chances are that you have seen the ads for “Free Grant Money” posted all over the web. Sounds great right? Well, it certainly is not nearly as easy as it is portrayed to be. Before you pay someone to find grant money for your business, it’s really important that you understand the basics. Here they are…
Grant money is usually offered for limited periods of time, on a first come first served basis, and it doesn’t have to be repaid. You need to keep track of grant opportunities and to apply early. Hard work and persistence are needed to get grants, so don’t give up if your grant proposal is rejected a few times. If you keep at it, you will eventually succeed in getting a grant.
Grants money may be offered by government departments, corporations, industry bodies, educational institutions, and private / public trusts and foundations for specific purposes.
Free grant money may be provided to government agencies, non profit entities, educational institutions, businesses, and individuals.
1. What are grants provided for?
Grants are usually provided for specific projects at certain times, and may require some reporting. The provider of the grant may require the grant seeker to be a local government or registered non profit body, or require some type of tax-exempt status.
Grants are normally offered to non profit organizations that benefit society. Not much business grant money is available for organizations that work for profit. Grants meant for businesses usually have specific objectives with restrictive criteria. A business may be asked to match the grant funding by investing an equal amount of its own money.
Grants may be provided to businesses for the development of certain areas, job creation, relocation assistance, promotion of new technologies, promotion of exports, or research and development.
Grants are also provided on the basis of need to individuals with specific profiles, like students, parents, single mothers, low income earners, senior citizens, unemployed / underemployed people, minorities, handicapped people, and victims of natural disasters.
Free money grants may be offered to individuals to provide assistance for housing and maintenance, professional training, education, social security, pensions, disability, health care, utility bills, loan guarantees, and more.
2. How to find government grant money
You can visit grants.gov, which provides information about government grant money offered by all federal grant making agencies. You can register to receive information about future grant opportunities, and can also apply for grants.
Free government grant money may not be available throughout the year, and you can only apply for grants when they are announced by the different government agencies. These agencies announce the availability of grants in the Federal Register, which is published on each weekday. You can also look out for announcements by visiting the websites of the different government agencies.
3. Write an effective grant application
There is a lot of competition for getting grants and applicants have to be persistent to be approved. To be successful, you need to create a grant money application that contains clear plans and budgets.
Grant money applications need to clearly convey the goals of the applicants and to explain how they intend to reach them. Applications for grant money should justify the amount of money being sought by the applicants.
Many applicants prefer to have their free grant money applications written by professional grant researchers and writers, to improve their chances of success.
It takes rigorous research and tenacity to actually get grant money, but hey…it’s free money, so you can’t expect it to be easy, right?
Cost Comparison: In House Assistant Vs. Virtual Assistant
If you need to hire an administrative assistant, you will have to decide whether to hire a virtual assistant (VA) or an in house employee. In house administrative services may be right for you if you need assistance for several hours every day, can afford to pay for overheads, and are willing to make a long-term commitment. On the other hand, if you need a person for less time and want more flexibility, virtual assistance services may be suitable for you.
Getting help will allow you to focus on the things you do best. You will be able to do the things that are really important for profitability and growth, like planning, innovating, and meeting clients.
However, it can be risky to hire an in house office assistant at a time when business prospects are uncertain. It is not easy to find a suitable candidate and you will have to make a long-term commitment. Hiring a full time employee involves substantial monthly expenses on overheads like wages, paid leave, benefits, and taxes. You will also have to spend on office space, furniture, equipment, utilities, etc.
To avoid these expenses, you can consider hiring a part time employee or a virtual office assistant. Hiring a part time employee also takes time and involves many of the overhead expenses that are involved in hiring a fulltime employee.
You can easily hire an experienced business virtual assistant at short notice. After working with the person for some time, you can decide about whether you would like to establish a long-term relationship. You can also avoid paying for employee benefits, taxes, insurance, office space, furniture, equipment, utilities, etc.
A virtual administrative assistant is an independent professional who works from his / her own home or office. Virtual assistants have higher levels of commitment because their success depends on helping their clients to succeed. A qualified and experienced VA can be a valuable asset to a small business owner and can be hired for a fraction of what it would cost to hire an in house employee with a similar background.
Apart from this, virtual assistants use their own office space, furniture, and equipment, and pay their own utility bills. You only have to pay for the actual hours of their time you use and there is no need to make a long-term commitment.
You can view the following cost comparison to make up your own mind about whether hiring a VA makes more sense than hiring a part time of full time, in house employee:
Administrative assistant: Fulltime Part time Virtual Assistant
Average hourly rate *$14.75 *$14.75 $35.00
Hours worked per week 40 20 10
Hours worked per year 2,080 1,040 520
Annual salary $30,680 $15,340 $18,200
Cost of “water-cooler” talk $3,835 $2,400 –
Utilities, Office Supplies $5,200 $2,600 –
Benefits ** (approx. 30%) $9,204 — –
Total annual compensation $48,919 $20,340 $18,200
*Based on information from the Bureau of Labor Statistics
**Based on information from the Bureau of Labor Statistics
This comparison does not include expenses on office space, furniture, and equipment which you will have to bear, if you hire a full time or part time employee.
If you hire a part time in house employee, you will have to make payments towards legally required benefits, which are not included in this comparison.
Another advantage of hiring a virtual personal assistant is that you only need to pay for the actual hours of work, and this can vary according to business requirements. On the other hand, once you hire an in house employee, you are obliged to pay the hourly rate and benefits, even if there is very little work for the employee to do.
If you need flexibility and don’t want to spend on renting, equipping, and running an office, a virtual assistant may be just right for you. However, if you need to have a personal assistant who will be available for several hours every day, and have a long-term requirement, hiring a part time or full time, in house employee may make more sense.
A Small Business CRM System Can Boost Profitability
A small business CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system can help you to boost sales, profits, and growth. The survival and success of your small business depends on your customers. You can use a CRM management system to find more business prospects, manage and convert more of them, and increase customer retention / loyalty.
CRM customer software can help you to classify customers into those who spend more money and contribute more to profitability, those who spend little and need a lot of customer service, and those who are somewhere in between. You can also use the system to categorize customers on the basis of geographical location, age, sex, occupation, income, etc.
These details can help you to identify your best and most profitable customers, prioritize your selling efforts, and to follow up at appropriate intervals. Business CRM software can provide a higher conversion rate, reduced sales and marketing costs, and decreased sales cycles.
CRM customer relationship software has become an essential requirement for any small business. Small business CRM systems can be customized and can become an essential part of your business strategy. The current financial crisis has made it even more important to focus your attention and resources on making your best customers happy.
Customer relationship management CRM software can help you to provide a better product or service at a lower cost to your most profitable customers, and this can give you a big edge over competitors who are not as focused on their customers.
Some of the different types of CRM sales software that you can consider are mentioned here:
1. Desktop CRM systems: You can use a conventional desktop CRM application that runs on a client / server network architecture. A powerful desktop computer can be used as a server, with a few clients or workstations networked to it.
CRM solutions of this type may be suitable for networking about five workstations. Bear in mind that customer relationship management systems may have a lot of traffic and their databases tend to expand rapidly.
2. Microsoft CRM solutions: If you are already using Microsoft Outlook, you can use its customer relationship and contact management features. Even though Outlook is great for managing email, it may not be able to perform all the tasks required of a CRM solution.
You can choose from a range of applications that can be embedded inside Microsoft Outlook and can be used to leverage its strengths.
A CRM system that is designed to work with Microsoft Exchange Server may not be suitable for most small businesses. This is because Microsoft Exchange Server is expensive and requires a lot of support.
3. Open source CRM solution: Not many open source CRM solutions are available and you will probably need the assistance of an experienced IT specialist to use them. However, open source systems do offer a lot of advantages and they are likely to become more popular in the future. Open source systems can be customized, while it is difficult and expensive to customize proprietary CRM systems.
4. Web CRM solutions: If you have a fast Internet connection, you can opt for a Web based CRM system, which will be accessible via the Internet. These Web based systems are also known as SaaS (Software as a Service) solutions, and they offer several advantages over other CRM applications.
Web based CRM software systems are easier to implement and have a lower cost of ownership. Online CRM systems can be accessed easily via the Internet from anywhere, and allow rapid transmission of information to employees at distant locations. There is no need to invest in expensive hardware or software, or to deploy any backend systems. You can pay a periodic subscription to use the software.
Studies have shown that most small businesses only use the basic features of a marketing CRM system, so try to keep it simple and don’t give too much importance to systems that boast of having lots of unnecessary features.
An analysis of your business can help you to determine which type of CRM software meets your requirements. A dependable, flexible, and expandable system that you can afford may be just right for you.
