Vital Small Business Information

Top 7 Small Business Sites for 2005

If you want to start a business in 2005, and start making money almost immediately, the sites listed below are some of the best I have found. I've chosen each site because it is absolutely outstanding in providing the tools you need to get started, as well as taking you through the steps you need to get started immediately.

My1stBusiness.com - http://www.my1stbusiness.com - This site is owned by Ben Botes, who is currently working on a doctoral degree in business. Ben will take you through every phase of creating your business, and it doesn't matter how large or small it is. You'll find all of the information you need right here.

Teleclasses are currently free, and you'll find a wide variety of top notch business coaches to help you build your business.

This site is scheduled to go to a paid model soon, but it will definitely be worth the price tag. If you're looking for a one stop solution to constantly update your business knowledge, and stay ahead of your competition, this is it.

Ron Olinger - http://ronolinger.ws - Everyone needs a little motivation, and Ron is the guy to help you with that.

He offers a newsletter called "Winning Attitudes" that is absolutely dynamite. You'll find lots of quality tips and information. Definitely a must read if you are struggling to get started.

Not your run of the mill newsletter, it will help you achieve what you want to achieve in both your persona and professional life.

Ultimate Marketing Center - http://www.ultimatemarketingcenter.com - Hands down, this is the best web host on the Internet.

However, the reason I selected this site as a business site is this: it is a complete and total solution for starting your business.

You'll get a complete web hosting account with all of the bells and whistles, as well as 1000s of dollars in software and ebooks to teach you everything you need to know about building a business.

What makes this site better than any other online is that it's a complete solution. It includes affiliate program management software, unlimited autoresponders, custom made scripts the owner sells for $35 each on his other sites, unlimited email accounts, and a generous sized web hosting account.

There's nothing else like it on the Internet, and it's the only place where you can run your entire business for only $19.95 per month. The support is excellent.

Website.ws - http://www.website.ws - For the newcomer to the Internet, this is the site you need to start your business.

You'll get a domain name, a generous mult-tier affiliate program to help you build a backend income, and a website builder that is so easy to use, a child can build a web site.

There are also videos to teach you web site building, as well as a nice 20 page ebook to show you how to market this opportunity and make money from it.

It's the easiest solution I know of to starting a business on the Internet, and you don't need to know HTML. You can also use your web site account to build your primary business and generate another source of income.

Coachville.com - http://www.coachville.com - Thinking of starting a service business?

Even if you aren't interested in starting any type of coaching business, this site is definitely for you.

They offer a wide variety of free and paid courses, and you can even earn your certification as a coach. This site will cut your learning curve dramatically, and you'll be up and running in no time.

Alexa - http://www.alexa.com - When it comes to smoking the competition, this is the site you want to use.

You'll get detailed stats, contact information, site rankings, sites that are linked to a particular web site, and a whole lot more.

No other site will offer you more comprehensive information on what's hot and what's not on the Internet. They also offer a toolbar, and it's free to use the site.

Automate Internet Marketing - http://www.automateinternetmarketing.com/ - Internet marketer Patric Chan offers you a free marketing membership with plenty of excellent information. What blew my mind when I saw this is that Patric is giving it away.

If you're new to the Internet, and new to Internet marketing, start here. Patric knows how to explain marketing in a way that is easy to understand.

Whether you've started a business and want to increase your profits, or you want to start a business, now is the time. These seven resources are not to be overlooked.

Copyright 2005 Jinger Jarrett

About The Author

Jinger Jarrett is a small business coach and Internet Marketer living in Alpharetta, Georgia. She teaches small business owners how to build a fulltime passive residual income and how to do it for only $10 per month.

http://www.jingerjarrett.ws

jingerjarrett@smallbusinesshowto.com

posted by The Monetizer @ 5:11 PM 4 comments

Are You Using a Chess or Checkers Small Business Marketing Strategy?

Until the day I learned to play chess I loved playing checkers. Both games require a strategy that maximizes a player’s ability to capture her opponents pieces without first losing her own. Checkers was fun. But the complexities of chess lead to more satisfying victories and defeats.

Chess is a more complicated game than checkers as there are more variables. Therefore, much more thought and concentration is required to win a game of chess than is required to win a game of checkers.

Like chess, marketing your business is a complicated endeavor. A successful chess player anticipates future moves and will position his pieces in such a way that each piece helps add strength to other pieces already in place.

A successful marketing strategy is no different than a winning chess strategy. Every move you make must reinforce previous and future moves. Instead of rooks, bishops and queens the moves made in the game of marketing are made with advertisements, web sites, marketing messages, brochures and so on.

As a small business owner you don’t risk losing pieces to your opponent you risk losing business to your competitors.

Great chess players have a strategy that helps them win with consistency. Here’s a marketing strategy you can use to consistently win new business.

Focus Your Marketing

Target your market with a marketing message that speaks directly to the population you serve. A marketing message is a phrase or sentence that clearly demonstrates who you help and the problems you solve.

Develop and use your marketing message as often as you can. Doing so will help get your business get noticed by those most likely to buy from you. Use your marketing message in your marketing materials, your website and any and everywhere your business comes in contact with potential clients.

Effective use of a marketing message can be a small business owner’s best friend. A good one will work hard for you to generate new business and will never ask for anything in return.

Inspire Action

Once you’ve used your marketing message to grab hold of your prospects’ attention, be it at your website, after reading one of your ads or an article you’ve written, be sure you clearly instruct them to take the action you want. It doesn’t matter what the action is as long as it requires them to provide you their contact information so you may continue marketing to them.

Offer something useful and free in exchange for their information. Give away free recipes if you’re a caterer or tips on designing bouquets if you’re a florist. Just be certain to give clear directions about what should be done next to move your sales process along.

Build a Relationship

After you’ve successfully culled from your prospects’ their contact information it is now time for you to develop a relationship with them. The nature of the relationship you develop should be one that makes it clear that you know your prospect is out there, that you understand your prospects’ problems and that you can help solve your prospects’ problems.

Common methods for developing relationships with prospects are distributing articles, publishing an ezine and conducting surveys. Be sure to include your marketing message with every article, ezine or survey.

Over time you will become the obvious solution to your clients’ problems when they decide to take action to solve what concerns them.

Move Your Marketing forward

Using each of the above methods will help you position your business much like a champion chess player positions his pieces. In the end victory and more sales will be yours.

Copyright 2005, Jeremy Cohen and Better Marketing Results

About The Author

The author, Jeremy Cohen, helps small business owners and professional service providers attract more clients, grow their business and be more successful with his marketing strategy and web site enhancement service and his marketing guides. Get his free marketing strategy guide : Jumpstart Marketing: More Profits, Clients and Success at: http://www.bettermarketingresults.com/y.asp

jcohen@bettermarketingresults.com

posted by The Monetizer @ 11:17 PM 1 comments