Expanding Your Product Line - Without the Risk

Do you have an existing business or website that you want to bring in more money?

Raising prices or finding more customers are some obvious ways you can go about it - but what about expanding your product offering?

Stocking additional inventory can get expensive - and it's a risk, but what if you didn't have to take that risk? You could test some new product lines to see what interests your customers and grow from there.

Where many entrepreneurs are using dropshippers to make a living on eBay, you can replicate this idea in your own existing business - without having to compete with thousands of different sellers in one marketplace.

What made me think of this was that I saw inflatable spas available for wholesale through a dropshipping service. So what if you had a pool-cleaning company or a physical therapy service where you could offer compatible products with your current offering - as an option? Make sense.

Some of the products I've seen through dropshipping services surprise me. You may never know the income possibilities you are passing up (virtually risk-free no less!) If you think this idea may work for your business, take a look.

What Insurance do You Need for Your Home Business?

Most homeowner’s insurance policies cover a limited amount of business equipment, so when it comes to insurance, you want to treat your home-based office just like you would a retail space.

Here are a list of items you should consider when evaluating business insurance coverage:

• Equipment
  
• Inventory
  
• Vehicles
  
• Workers’ Comp, if you have employees
  
• Fidelity Bond, if you perform work in customer’s homes or property
  
• Liability

You may be able to save money by getting a package deal on insurance. Some insurance companies offer “in-home insurance policies”, which covers both business equipment and liability. Another package option is a business owners policy, designed specifically for small and mid-sized businesses.

Get a free quote on business insurance from multiple carriers and save money.

Real Estate Surge = Business Opportunities?

You've probably heard that home sales are on the rise. Many of which are first-time home buyers taking advantage of the first-time buyer tax credit. What products and services are these homeowners going to need - and how can you provide it to them?

The interesting thing about this whole "home sale surge", is that the number home of unsold homes on the market has actually increased since last month. However, if home sales momentum holds up, this may not necessarily be a bad thing.

Think about it. You've got lots of people (or banks) needing to sell homes, AND lots of new homeowners who usually need additional products and services. There's no shortage of business opportunities here. Provide a product or service that saves people or companies time or money - and you've got a profitable business idea in your hands.

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- Apartment/Home Rental Service for those who have lost their houses to foreclosure
- Construction Project Management Service for new homeowners
- Corporate Retreat Rental Service
- Mobile Home Broker - a low-cost start up idea
- Real Estate Auction Business - Why not?
- Property Clean-Up Service, to prepare a home for sale
- Moving Service to assist people without trucks to haul large appliances, furniture and more

You can read more about many of these business ideas at Entrepreneur.com, including start-up cost estimates.

In addition, families and couples are spending less money on vacations - why not turn a foreclosed property into a bargain-priced Bed & Breakfast hotel - or start a Self-Storage Company to help people store their stuff when they move to smaller accomodations. You can find business start-up plans here, among other things related to real-estate business.

Simple, Small Business Idea Gone Big

What a heart-warming story to start my morning! Add a creative touch to a simple idea and voila - you've got customers (and lots of them!)

Sometimes a great business idea doesn't come from you sitting down and brainstorming to find one. It comes from noticing a compliment some gives you on something you've made or something you do or a "thank-you" for a service you voluntarily give. Pay attention as you go about your day - and a business idea may pop up when you least expect it.

Read story here

How to Save Money with the "Back-to-School" Strategy

OK, this makes sense: stock up on your office supplies when the prices are low - typically this time of year when the "Back to School" sales are going on.

This includes computer equipment, shipping supplies - even furniture for your home office (think college dorm room advertisements, you know you've seen them). This article I'm reading actually has a list of items that you most likely need if you don't have them already. Check your inventory to see what you need for the year and buy it now. You can save big bucks.

Read article here. Also, Office Depot is having an online clearance sale where you can save 40%. Items are limited.

Need promotional items? Brandershas lowered prices about 20%, so now's a good time to stock up on marketing materials you'll need throughout the year.

How Much Do I Charge?

There are several variables when it comes to determining how to price your product or service. You don't want to price your product so high that it will not sell - but pricing it too low will hurt your business as well.

Entrepreneur Delores Williams sums it up very well in this article, showing us five basic steps in figuring out, "How much to charge".

If you want to increase your profit, but still keep your retail prices low, consider some ideas for reducing your business costs.

Online Auctions Starting at $0?

Shopping for a computer, camera or a flat screen tv for your business? The best bargains may be found at auction - and maybe not at eBay! (These are not just luxury items - don’t overlook the fact that most products can actually help your business earn more money).

Swoopo is a new online auction site that focuses exclusively on “entertainment” products like TVs, cameras, computer equipment, tech gadgets - even high-tech coffee makers (what next?!) They say that you can save up to 75% - and I’ve actually seen a lot of great bargains at their site.

And guess what? All auctions start at $0!

5 Tips to Get Your eMail List to Respond

I recently read an interesting article on list-building. So much emphasis is put on getting people to sign up, building a big list or finding targeted, qualified subscribers.

But what about getting them to respond? Not just read your email or newsletter or watch your video - but to take action. Maybe even buy something, for goodness sake!

If you're into list-building or have your very own non-responsive list, you may want to get some help, and check out this cool article on The 5 Best Strategies for Developing a Responsive List. Surprisingly simple and painless stuff.

Need a sales letter template so you can write your letters and website copy in a snap? I recommend Yanik Silver's Instant Sales Letters.

Get Paid to Drive Your Own Car

Yes, regular people are making an extra $900/month just driving their own cars... with an ad on the side. This is such hard work, no wonder they are paying people $700-$900/month.

All kidding aside, this is no pocket change. Over the course of a year, you could be making an extra $10,800. You can read this article to find out more and where to get started, and remember - don't sign up with a company that charges you a fee. There are a few that have turned out to scams.

Not interested in driving around with a big advertisement on your car? You can take surveys at home - right from your computer. It's a great way to earn some extra cash, but by no means a full-time business. You can join Survey Adventure for Free Here

Alternative to High-Cost Health Insurance

Many doctors are as frustrated with the US health care system as consumers are. A growing number of primary care physicians are starting to use a "direct fee for service" model to bill patients instead of going through insurance.

So what does this mean to you?

If you are self employed with no health insurance or are looking for an alternative to the growing monthly cost of insurance - you have another option. Read more here

You can also save money on health insurance premiums by setting up a Health Savings Plan, or HSA. Find out more about Health Savings Plans or HSAs

There are other ways you can save on health insurance that you may not know about. Things like free community clinics, tax breaks, medical bill "auditors" and ordering prescriptions by mail instead of your local pharmacy. Check out this article: Health Insurance for Solo Entrepreneurs

Smartphones: Not Just for Business Executives

Business executives aren't the only people busy these days - "Power Moms" may be just as big of a target market for Smartphones as the corporate world.

If you are marketing any sort of business product, don't forget that you may be able to provide a solution for mothers, families or students who also share the busy schedules and tech-savvy-ness of your business clients.

If you want to add another stream of income to your business, there are opportunities to sell smartphones and other hi-tech devices through companies like River Offers who offer free affiliate programs to people who want to promote their products. You can find out more about Smartphones and other mobile devices here, or read more about the "Power Mom" target market on Cnet.

How a Cake-Baking Business Pays the Mortgage

If you are strapped for cash and need to make some extra income - like this month - a simple money-making idea may be right under your nose.

Take a look at (1) your skills and (2) how you can help.

Let’s take an example. Angela Logan is an actress studying to be a nurse. She was not being paid by her talent agency, and was unable to make her monthly mortgage payments - and FAST!

She looked at her hobbies and skills, and realized she enjoyed baking and had a unique family recipe for apple cake. Voila! A simple money-making idea and a little effort turned into a successful operation which turned out to exceed her income goals.

You can read more about Angela here. And if you’re interested in selling your own food items, you can see more about starting a gourmet food business here.

Business Caters to the Budget-Conscious... and Makes a Profit

Don't think that cheap people won't spend money. Everyone loves a bargain, no matter what state the economy is in.

McDonald's has just proven that you can grow your profits in a recession, simply by providing products or services to people who want to save money.

It may sound obvious, but wait - aren't those McCafe espresso-based coffees more expensive than their regular cup of coffee? If your business is struggling with sales, why lower the price on your current product? Instead, it may be to your advantage to expand your product line to include a more expensive-style product... at a "bargain" price.

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Attention All SEO Marketers: Bing

Do you want to get your site ranked on the first page of Microsoft? Free?

Then why don't you let Microsoft tell you exactly what to do?

That's right, Microsoft has just released instructive guidelines on creating friendly, easy-to-index websites - while at the same time looking attractive to their search engine spiders.

Bing may not be the most-trafficked search engine, but they've developed several new user-friendly search tools to make "finding" easier. I've even switched to Bing when I search for images because I find it easier to use. The point is, Bing could be a great, very effective free marketing asset for your business.

How to Use Microsoft's Bing to Your Advantage.

Business Idea: Promote Being Green & Saving Money

More and more people want to “live green”, and in today’s economy, there is a also a big focus on saving money. So how can you put these two ideas together and profit from them?

I heard a story of one woman’s quest to successfully incorporate these two ideas together. Amy started the website MyGreenCasa.com, an online resource for green remodeling - turns out it’s a very useful tool.

The story, however, talks about getting an “energy audit” to see how you could cut your monthly energy costs. As we know, these monthly energy costs can add up significantly over time.

If you have an interest in being green and helping others do the same, why not start a business offering something like energy audits to people. Get knowledgeable in this area and help people understand what they need to do and how much money they will save. No doubt many people would be interested - especially with someone showing them exactly what they need to do.

You could even partner with local contractors to complete the work, or suppliers for materials. Partnering with another company (and it’s customer base) is also a great way to cut advertising costs for both parties.

Think it may be hard to find customers? How about offering a free energy audit? Clients only pay for materials to complete the work themselves (which they can buy from you), or if you're qualified, they can pay you to complete the work for them. Or they can hire your local contractor partner, who in turn pays you a commission fee for the referral. There are lots of ways to go about running your business.

Why Start Your Business Now?

You don't need to know exactly what to do before you start your business.

Yes, it's a good idea to have some sort of business plan, but you don't have to know exactly how you're going to reach your goal. That's part of the excitement of running your own business - you can count on the unexpected to happen pretty much everyday.

If you have a good business idea and are excited about it - why not take a small step and get started? What are you waiting for - to be sure it will work? You'll never know unless you try it - or someone else tries it first. Now that's a gut wrencher.

One of my favorite radio show hosts Clark Howard said this morning, "There is always money to be made when someone can't stomach the risk." Right now you'll probably agree that we're in a pretty risky environment - what better time to start a business?

Need some inspiration and re-assurance that YOU can do it? Watch these videos of entrepreneurs who went from nothing to something great. Then take some great advice from other recession entrepreneurs.

GM Auctioning Cars on eBay: Good Idea?

I'm so interested to see if this GM auction marketing idea will fly. Their website is so simple, it has really taken car shopping to a whole new level.

If General Motors is successful at selling Chevys, Buicks and Pontiacs online at auction, will other big-ticket items like homes, vacations or businesses begin to be auctioned off in this manner as well? Will eBay become even bigger than it already is? If you advertise your products online - could this affect you do business? So many questions.

If you are interested in checking out this story, you can read it here

4 Exercises to Sharpen Your Brain

Have you ever had a day when you feel stuck at a standstill because you can't figure out an answer to a problem or situation?

Being a business owner means you need your brain to work. To help you efficiently tackle problems and quickly come up with creative solutions you need to keep your brain active.

Don't worry, giving your brain a workout doesn't really have to be a chore. Even simple techniques can be really effective at giving your brain a boost. And in addition to helping you spend less hours in the office, it's good for your overall health.

Dr Mao, a Yahoo Health Expert for Alternative Medicine, shares 4 Exercises to Sharpen Your Brain Also, keeping your mind focused on goals will help you achieve them. You can try goal software free here.