At last count, there were more than 62 million independent sales representatives worldwide who generated over $114 Billion in retail sales in the direct sales industry. With such impressive statistics, it is easy to see why so many people start a home based business with a direct sales company.However, while there are innumerable home based business opportunities on the market, they are not all equal. Some will earn you the money you need to achieve the financial and personal freedom you are striving for, while others will merely waste your time. Ask yourself these three questions to determine if your home based business is your ticket to the success you’ve been dreaming of.Are people outside the company interested in the product?There is a home based business opportunity for just about every type of product available on the market. From personal products to financial services, you can start a business selling anything you are passionate about.The problem is, however, that many of these companies sell products that either do not interest the general public or sells the products at an outrageous price point that only people in the business would buy in order to maintain their minimum level of sales. An important part of having a successful business is offering a product that people will buy. Without that, your home based business will fail.Are the marketing tactics effective?Possibly the most important component of a successful work from home business is the marketing aspect. You can sell a ton of mediocre products with a great marketing campaign. Proof of that can be found in any retail store. However, if you use a poor marketing strategy, even the best product in the world will fail to sell.Many work from home business opportunities use outdated sales and marketing methods to attract qualified buyers. Some rely on cold calling or treating every person you meet like a prospect rather than a person. Most customers have developed a resistance to this type of hard selling which causes you to be subjected to endless rounds of disheartening rejection. If your home based business relies on this style of marketing rather than the newer, customer friendly marketing system, then your business may not survive its first year.
Can you develop streams of residual income?Residual income is money that continues to be made long after the effort to generate has been put forth. For example, a musician will earn royalties on his music long after he creates the CD compilation and distributes it to the public.In order to achieve true freedom, the bulk of your income should come from sources of residual income. When you income is not based on active ongoing effort, you’ll be able to spend your time doing the things you want to do rather than working on the things you have to do in order to earn money. If your home based business doesn’t pass the test, then it is time to change to something new.
Is Your Home Based Business the Best Opportunity For You?
How to Ensure Your Home Based Business Gets Off to a Good Start
The home based business industry has flourished since the turn of the century. This is mainly due to the fact that the internet has provided numerous opportunities for people to earn good money from the comfort of their own homes.There are many stories in the media about the latest online success story from the multi-billion dollar guru to the university student who is making a small fortune using just a laptop in his bedroom.Having a home based business is very appealing to many people, especially those who are struggling to make ends meet, or those who have a very stressful job with long commutes and long hours. Many of these people mistakenly think that it is easy to set up a home based business thinking that all they have to do is create a website and the orders will come flooding in. “Build it and they will come”Needless to say it is not that easy, especially now that internet marketing has become so competitive. It can be a lot of hard work setting it all up, it is also important to be aware that in the early days you will earn little or no money and what you do earn may have to be reinvested back into your business in order for it to grow.If a website is likely to be a major part of your home based business, then it is vital to take advice and have a fully optimized web site created by someone who knows what they are doing. This is particularly important if you are going t need to set up a shopping cart on your website. Lots of newbie internet marketers fall into the trap of trying to create their own with little or no knowledge of what they are doing. Needless to say they are usually disappointed and disillusioned when they get little or no traffic and subsequently very few sales. This is the most likely time for people to give up thinking that internet marketing doesn’t work.If you have a cash flow problem in the early days there are plenty of free options available to you such as blogs and other web 2.0 sites that enable you to write articles and create one page web sites.The most important thing with any home based business is traffic. You need to get visitors to your site, whether it is a blog or a web site. The most important thing is to ensure that your blog or website has good quality content that is updated on a regular basis. The search engines want to find unique content on your website.Many people find writing difficult in the first instance or may not have the confidence to publish their own words on the net. If that is the case you may want to consider hiring a professional copywriter to write your articles for you, or maybe to purchase a bundle of articles that you can edit. This may well be money well spent and would help you to get your home based business off to a good start.One of the one aspect that many newbie home based business owners forget about is their market research. Is there a market for your product or service and what is the competition that you will need to beat in order to get custom? If having done that you feel that your home based business is viable you need to do your keyword research to find the best keywords to use in your articles so that you attract traffic to your site. It is pointless having most amazing interesting site, even if it has good information if no one is searching your keywords. The chances are you won’t be indexed in Google and it is highly unlikely that anybody will find you.Preparation, research and planning done in the early stages will build a solid foundation for your home based business. It will be time well spent and will give your business the very best chance of being successful both now and in the future.
Hiring An Auction Company
Estimating your assets value:
Typically, one of the first questions a business owner will ask me is, “how much will the assets bring at an auction”. After taking the time to review the assets, the auctioneer should give the client a conservative estimate of the sale based upon his experience and the current market trends. It is important that the company give realistic expectations so the seller can make informed decisions based on their best interest.
Compensation and Expenses:
Is the company you are considering working for you or against you? The agreement you decide may determine this.
A business owner should carefully consider how the auction company is compensated. The most common commission structures include: straight commission, outright purchase of assets, guaranteed base with a split above to both auctioneer and seller, guaranteed base with anything above going to auctioneer or a flat fee structure.
In a straight commission structure, the company is paid an agreed upon percentage of the total sale.
In an outright purchase agreement, the auctioneer simply becomes your end buyer. The company purchases your assets and relocates them. While this can be an option in some unique situations, keep in mind that they will want to purchase your assets at a very reduced price to make a profit at a later date.
In a minimum base guarantee, the auction company guarantees the seller that the auction will generate a minimum amount of sales. Anything above that amount either goes to the auction company or split with the seller. While a seller might feel more comfortable doing an auction knowing that he is guaranteed a minimum amount for his sale, keep in mind that it is the best interest of the auction company to secure a minimum base price as low as possible in order reduce their financial liability to the seller and secure higher compensation for the sale.
In a flat fee structure, the auctioneer agrees to show up for the sale and call the auction. There is no incentive for the auctioneer to get the best prices for your assets. The auction company is compensated regardless of the outcome of your sale.
What is the best option for business owners? In my experience, an agreed upon straight commission structure. This puts the responsibility on the auction company to offer the best outcome for everyone involved. There is an incentive for the auction company to work hard for both parties, set up and run a professional sale, get the highest bid and sell every item on the inventory. Successful auctions translate to a higher bottom line for both the seller and the auction company.
Auction Expenses:
In most auction agreements the expenses to conduct an auction are passed to the seller. If the auction company pays for the expenses, it is simply absorbed in higher commission rates.
All expenses should be agreed upon in advance in a written contract. Typical expenses will include the costs of advertising, labor, legal fees, travel, equipment rentals, security, postage and printing. A reputable auction company will be able to estimate all expenses based upon their experience in previous auctions. An agreement should be actual costs charged as expenses, not an estimated amount.
Advertising is typically the highest cost in conducting an auction. The auction company needs to set up an advertising campaign that will promote the sale to its best advantage and not overspend to simply advertise the auction company.
Once the auction is complete, the auction company should provide a complete breakdown of all expenses to the seller, including copies of receipts within the auction summary report.
Buyer’s Premium:
What is a buyer’s premium? If you attend auctions regularly, you are very familiar with this term. The auction company charges a fee to the buyer when they buy an item at auction.
The buyer’s premium has been around since the 1980′s and is standard auction practice. It was first used by auction houses to help offset costs of running brick and mortar permanent auction facilities. Since then, it has spread to all aspects of the auction industry. It is prominent in online auctions and allows auction companies to cover added expenses incurred from online sales.
It is the responsibility of the auction company to provide clear disclosure of the buyer’s premium to both the buyers and the sellers. Those not familiar with auctions are often taken back by the buyer’s premium. They looked upon it as an under handed way for the auction company to make more money. Reputable auction companies will provide full disclosure within the auction contract, advertisement and bidder registration.
Typically, an auction company will charge online buyers a higher buyer’s premium percentage than those attending an auction in person. Extra fees are incurred with online bidding and are charged accordingly to online buyers. This provides the seller a level playing field for both online buyers and those attending the auction in person. Without the buyer’s premium, there is no way to do this.
Pre-Sales:
We’ve all been there. We’re looking forward to attending an auction only to find that some items were sold prior to the auction date.
As an auctioneer with over thirty-six years of experience, I can honestly state that pre-sales will hurt an auction. When a company decides to liquidate their assets, it is easy to sell off high-end pieces of equipment through online sources, equipment vendors or to other businesses. The seller receives instant cash and avoids paying a commission to an auction company.
Auctioneer’s find themselves appearing to acting in a self-serving capacity when potential clients say they are planning to sell off parts of their inventory prior to an auction. It’s hard not to consider the auctioneer’s commission when they warn you not to pre-sell anything. Yes, the auctioneer wants to earn a commission on those sales but it is more important that the auctioneer protect the sale from potential negative backlash that comes from pre-selling. The buying public knows when an auction has been “cherry picked” prior to the sale and it reflects in their bidding. It becomes a sale of “leftovers” and that impacts prices.
A buyer who purchases prior to the auction usually does not attend the sale. They already bought equipment at a good price with no competition. If they do attend the auction, they tend to let others know of their great pre-sale purchases which again, impacts prices and the overall excitement of the sale.
It is important to understand that auctions work best with a complete inventory. You want competition on your higher end equipment. The easy to sell items make it possible to gain respectable prices for hard to sell items.
When a business owner decides to liquidate their equipment assets, there is only one opportunity to do it right. Hiring a reputable auction company will assist you with a professional, orderly and timely liquidation.