“Christmas is here again, it’s time to make great sales. Hurray!!!”
This is what some entrepreneurs are saying. But the really good news is, Christmas or any other festive season doesn’t need to be, in fact should not be, the only period your business benefits from consumers’ local-minded spirit. Whether you own a retail business or a restaurant, or provide a service, here are some ways any business that depends on local customers can enjoy great sales every day of the year.

1. Hire right. It’s easy to train someone how to work a cash register, but you can’t teach a grouch how to be friendly. Always make it a standard to hire employees with people skills and fit the bill for friendliness and helpfulness.

2. Know your stuff. Of course, friendliness isn’t everything: Employees need to be helpful and knowledgeable, too. Make sure your staff is well-versed in what you sell and can help customers compare options to find the best products for them. Educate your team about new merchandise and how to showcase what makes your business unique.

3. Offer something special. You can’t compete with Shoprite on low, low prices, so don’t even try. Instead, go the opposite direction of mass-produced and focus on hard-to-find items. Promoting products customers can’t find anywhere else is an easy way to make your small store stand out.

4. Make your place a ‘hangout.’: Is your business somewhere customers want to get in and get out of quickly, or do they linger? If your business becomes a community hangout, you’ll enjoy the benefits of growing sales and word-of-mouth. Figure out what would make your business more enjoyable and add it.

5. Keep in touch. Capture customer information when they make a purchase. It’s easy to ask for an email address at the point of sale or include a form customers can fill out. Once you’ve got their information, you can stay in touch with personalized emails and offers throughout the year. Streamline customer connections by noting purchase history as well as contact info so you can really tailor your marketing messages to what customers are interested in.

6. Team up. Sales during festive seasons works because everybody is excited and want to share gifts with loved ones, but you don’t have to wait until next year to join with other businesses in your area. Work with nearby businesses to come up with event ideas—a sidewalk sale during the summer months, a “taste of” event with local restaurants or anything that draws local customers to your area.

Get busy. Get innovative, Make great sales all year!
http:///1iyqg0g

It’s normal for small-business owners to fall out of love with what they do. But you can get that spark back. These 5 tips will help.

The stages that entrepreneurs experience are fairly predictable. Typically there’s apprehension and fear at the beginning—questions about whether your new business will thrive or fail. Then, there’s an adolescent-like, new-romance phase when you’re so in love with your work and the flexibility it enables—taking half a day to see your daughter’s school play—that you can’t imagine how you lived any other way. Then, almost inevitably, just like those teen-relationships, the dazzle of something new fades.

You realize that despite the fact that you own your own business, you still have to produce results to please your clients. You have responsibilities to generate revenue and meet or exceed expectations. It’s not uncommon for entrepreneurs to go through a stage in which they feel chained to their own businesses and to become disenchanted with their work.

Sound familiar? Don’t worry; you can get that spark back.

1. Get back to your purpose. Yes, money matters, but that’s not the only reason you started your own business. There’s far less risk in taking a job and working for a paycheck, but at some point you felt compelled to strike out on your own. Remember why you started your own business—what you wanted to change, the function you wanted to serve in your community—and you’ll regain your sense of purpose and direction. (If you don’t quite know why, besides money, you started your business, then it’s time to figure it out!) Your purpose pulls you forward, makes it easier to keep on producing excellent results.

2. Reconnect with your immutable laws. We all have core values that make us feel good when we uphold them and feel bad when we transgress them. Define your own immutable laws by examining what fulfills you as well as what beats you down. Make a list of your immutable laws and work toward hiring employees and clients who share those values. If we let our staff or our customers trample all over our immutable laws, then we’re going to feel depleted, drained by our work, rather than invigorated. Work the way that makes you happy.

3. Look beyond the money. [/b]A Time article in 2010 cited a Princeton University study that demonstrated money does contribute significantly to happiness, but only until you reach a salary of $75,000. After that salary is achieved, basic needs can be met, and any additional money only contributes to happiness if it’s used to achieve a goal. Money is the amplifier of habits, so once your basic needs are met, you’ll find greater happiness only if more money lets you do more of the things that matter to you. It’s about what you do with the money.

[b]4. Look at the impact you’re having on your community. We all experience periods in our work that require old-fashioned hard work, the kind that isn’t very much fun. We can derive satisfaction from the effect we have on the folks we come in contact with, though. If your business provides a service that enriches customers’ lives, you should feel good. If the profits you earn support a local little league team, then you’re making the world a better place. Strengthening your business’s ties to the community makes your work more fulfilling.

5. Get to know the impact you have on your employees. Taking the time to reflect on your significance to your employees’ lives can be enormously satisfying and can help you foster the kinds of relationships that sustain us through the tough times. Understanding that your staff takes pride in their work, derives satisfaction from providing excellent service, and relies on their income to support their families gives you a sense of the degree to which your vision as an entrepreneur really matters. Knowing that a host of people rely on your willingness to get out of bed and dig in to your work is certainly a great responsibility, but it’s enormously satisfying to handle that responsibility and know that people appreciate it.

To a large degree, these tactics are about adjusting your perspective—re-centering your mindset to reflect on the reasons you fell in love with your business in the first place. Just like a marriage, businesses that thrive over time and survive adversity require work, dedication and the determination to succeed. By connecting your vision to your community and working in a way that fulfills your values, you’re better able to find that dedication each day.

Culled from openforum.com
http://www.bizngr.com/lessons-for-startups/start-hate-business/

Yes, cos they are likely to get use to doing business as usual. Which is very dangerous

enigmagu1: Improve on their weaknesses cos no matter how powerfull a company is it must be lacking somtin....

e problem with being an entrepreneur can be reduced to a single word: Resources.

As in “a lack of resources.”

The people you are competing against have more money; more people and “more” just about everything than you do.

So how can you use the competitors’ strengths against them? That’s simple. The first thing to do is figure out exactly what their greatest strength is.

With that by way of context, here are some “tricks” you can try to use against your giant competitors.

1. Upgrade. Take a basic product and make it special, either by adding value to it or marketing it as a status product.

2. Downgrade. Take a product that has always been associated with status and reduce it to its underlying concept.

3. Bundle. There are certain products or services that almost always go together. Instead of requiring people to pay for them separately, combine them. You will be offering your customers convenience.

4. Unbundle. Just the flip side of what we discussed above. Ask yourself what products have been so fussed over that you can sell the individual components? Break them down into tiny comfortable components.

5. Move it. Certain companies dominate a particular region. Why compete head-to-head against them? Sell a version of their offering where they are not.

You have the biggest advantage here, use their very size against them.

Culled from Forbes.com

Do you know of other ways to beat your giant competitors? Please Share


http://www.bizngr.com/business-ideas/5-ways-use-competitors-strength/

I tot so too. That wasn't a nice picture

gbanikiti: If not that he is the father of the child,my first impression would have been he is trying to molest the child by kissing her.

hahahaha I feel you. But we can make a decisive effort to become more than average.

specialguest: I wanna be Rich but how do i memorize all these verses? Nice post

Several logical reasons have been given to explain the huge gap that exist between the average people and the rich people. One of the most popular reasons is the varying views both classes hold about money, goals and success.

Here are 16 ways rich people think differently according to Steve Siebod, author of “How Rich People Think”.

1. Average people think MONEY is the root of all evil. Rich people believe POVERTY is the root of all evil.

2. Average people think selfishness is a vice. Rich people think selfishness is a virtue.

3. Average people have a lottery mentality. Rich people have an action mentality.

4. Average people think the road to riches is paved with formal education. Rich people believe in acquiring specific knowledge.

5. Average people see money through the eyes of emotion. Rich people think about money logically.

6. Average people set low expectations so they’re never disappointed. Rich people are up for the challenge.

7. Average people believe you have to DO something to get rich. Rich people believe you have to BE something to get rich.

8. Average people believe you need money to make money. Rich people use other people’s money.

9. Average people believe the markets are driven by logic and strategy. Rich people know they’re driven by emotion and greed.

10. Average people live beyond their means. Rich people live below theirs.

11. Average people teach their children how to survive. Rich people teach their kids to get rich.

12. Average people would rather be entertained than educated. Rich people would rather be educated than entertained.

13. Average people think rich people are snobs. Rich people just want to surround themselves with like-minded people.

14. Average people focus on saving. Rich people focus on earning.

15. Average people love to be comfortable. Rich people find comfort in uncertainty.

16. Average people believe they must choose between a great family and being rich. Rich people know you can have it all. Do you think these meters are accurate? Please comment.

http://www.bizngr.com/tips-for-startups/16-ways-rich-people-think-differently/

Hi creative nairalanders in the house! I saw this and thought to share with y'all.
Pls moderator, it's no advert. Trust me. At least not on my part.
Just stumble on it on this site and want to share it.
It's Pan Atlantiv Universiy school of media and comm.
I think they have the workshop yearl. I cannot afford it now, maybe next year. But if you do, and you're interested, maybe you should check it out. No knowledge is a waste.
Cheers!
http://www.bizngr.com/events/animation-technology-workshop-motioning-graphics/

Success is a learnable skill. It would be terrible for you to be held back in life because you lack one easily learnable skill that could enable you to multiply your results and possibilities. The key to success is effective time management and continuous learning.

In military parlance they use an expression ‘force multiplier.’ A force multiplier is what enables a smaller force to defeat a larger force. One of the force multipliers that we study are, speed; a smaller force moving with greater speed can take advantage of an opening. Another is intelligence. In business the force multiplier of intelligence means that you learn and you know things about your customers, your markets and your potential that other people don’t, that enable you to get a market advantage.

Become a Self-Made Millionaire With These Leverage Factors

In order to become a self-made millionaire, you must follow these 7 force multipliers or leverage factors so that you can use it in your work to get vastly more done.
1. Work Harder For Business Success

Just simply work harder. It’s amazing how lazy people are, and how little they work and how much time they waste. So if you make a decision to just work hard when you get to work, concentrate on your task, put your whole heart into what you’re doing and just work, work, work, you’ll find that one of the greatest reasons for success in life is that people work harder. Eighty-five percent of self-made millionaires said that the reason they became millionaires starting with nothing was because they worked harder than their competitors. They worked harder than other people. And you can do the same thing.

2. Work Faster

Pick up the pace. Pick up the tempo. Imagine that you’re in a heck of a hurry and just work quickly. Do your jobs quickly and get back to people quickly. A great time management principle I learned was the principle of working in real time. That means that when something comes up, deal with it now. When you get a phone message, phone back immediately. When you have to make a decision, make it immediately. When you have to answer an email that’s important, do it now. Don’t accumulate tasks. If the task can be done in less than 2 minutes, in almost every case you should do it right away, and then get back to your main task.

3. Work Longer

This again is one of the great secrets of success. Start a little earlier, work a little harder, stay a little later. Come in one hour earlier and get your day planned and get your work under way before anybody else gets there. Work through lunchtime. Don’t go out for lunch, just eat quickly and then get back to work, and do more work. Then, work an hour longer. Let everybody go home and crowd all the streets. You just go in behind them in the slipstream, and you’ll get home at pretty much the same time. But, you’ll get twice as much done if you start a little earlier, work a little harder and stay a little later.
read the rest here. Have been tutored already. Just though to share with us too
http://www.bizngr.com/management-tips/7-leverage-factors-key-business-success/

Nice one! Palm oil and bags of rice to sell to neighbours and friends.

So I saw this post on www.bizngr.com and i kinda liked it. I laughed so hard cos in know twas true. Every bit of it. Some are serious and practical and the others... judge for yourself.
One thing most people have in common is their desire to become rich. Yes, wealth is a general craving but how to get it is the difference.

Here are seven common ways of getting rich, maybe more. Some are downright inappropriate while some are encouraged. Yet, some are illegal for obvious reasons. Which one works best for you? Let us know.

1. Being born into a Rich Family or Inheritance
You don’t need to do anything to become rich this way. You are rich the moment you are born. In some instances, you may not come into the money until certain events happen, hence you don’t have control until the money is handed over to you. One disadvantage of this method of getting rich is that if you do not know how to manage the wealth, you can end up poor again. This is the stuff a lot of ex-millionaires are made of.

2. Marrying into Money
You can get rich by marrying into money. It may be marrying for money or falling genuinely in love. Whatever the case, you become rich the moment you say “I Do”. This method favors mostly women, though men also benefit from this method of getting rich, although they are often viewed with suspicion. With the advent of prenuptial agreements, you may become poor again as fast the moment you say “I Don’t”.

3. Becoming Frug[/b]al
This is a very popular way of getting rich, and is promoted by many personal finance experts and frugality enthusiasts. You get rich slowly by tightening your belt, cutting cost, going for cheaper options, living below your means. The money thus saved is multiplied through the power of compound interest. There are also disadvantages with this method of getting rich.

It is a very slow method. You become rich in your 60s

You are perpetually tightening your belt. Your spouse can revolt after a while

You can expose yourself to health and safety issues arising from cheap options e.g. flying economy on long haul flights, sending your children to a cheap school, not eating healthy, buying substandard appliances etc

You can make your life miserable, always going for the cheapest

You can develop a lack mentality

You can become cheap
[b]
4. Winning the Lottery
You can become rich by winning the lottery. The main disadvantage is, since you did not work for the money, you may not know how to manage it, and after a few unwise spending decisions, you are back to praying for another win, as the fool and his money soon part ways. Very few lottery winners end up rich in the long run. Some win a second time, but it is not common.

5. Being Smart and Innovative
You can become rich by being smart and generous, offering a service that people are willing to pay for. This is how most rich people at the top become rich. They are mostly business owners or investors. Some of them become billionaires in their 20s and 30s. The Forbes Rich List is filled with such. This is a place you want to be. This is how the likes of Dangote became rich.

6. Becoming a Star or Celebrity
You can become rich by being a start or celebrity. Becoming rich this way does not guarantee that you will remain rich for the rest of your life. If you do not learn the skills of managing and investing your money, you can end up in the history book of ‘once upon a time’ millionaires. Sport stars have limited time corridors to earn. As they hit their mid 30s, the sun starts to set on their careers and their high earning days come to an end. Celebrities can fall out of favor. Your show can get axed, new stars on the block can edge you out, and personal challenges can derail your career. If you did not invest your earnings wisely, you can end up as a poor ex-star.

7. Climbing the Corporate Ladder
You can become rich by climbing the corporate ladder. The main disadvantage with this ladder is that it has the shape of a pyramid. Very few make it to the top. Many fall by the way side, pushed out of the game by corporate politics. Some companies offer stock options to their staff before going public. Many employees have become rich through their company’s IPO. This is not common. You have to be at the right place at the right time to benefit.

http://www.bizngr.com/personal-finance/tips-personal-finance/7-ways-getting-rich/

don't worry, you did right.

dryakson: my brother I didn't ask any money from him he just decide on his own

To become an entrepreneur is no easy little task.
Here are five secrets successful entrepreneurs wished they had been told

1. It is lonely at the top.
Yes, it’s cliché but that is what it feels like when you always have to make the final decision and bear the ultimate responsibility. You can get advice from a management team or an advisory board, but the buck stops with you. Remember: There are always upsides. When things go bad, it’s your responsibility. When things go well, you get to enjoy the profits.

So dear entrepreneur, brazen up, you’ve got a long night to spend alone with your decisions.

2. They have doubt daily.
For all the bravado, ego and beaming confidence, entrepreneurs daily have a crisis in confidence. They think – “what if I am wrong?” No amount of reassurance from customers, employees or advisors can quell this nagging fear. Remember: Every entrepreneur has doubts. An uncertain outcome is what makes the business so exciting.

You’ve got to be daring and self-assured even in times of crisis. Watch out! If you do not have any doubts about your decisions, lose some sleeps and worry a little then something in terribly wrong.

3. They fear failure.
As much as they say they value failure as a way to learn, they are scared when it happens to them and wonder if they will ever recover. Many times there is really nothing to learn from failure. Remember: When you do fail, learn what you can and then let go of it. This will give you another opportunity to succeed.

Oh dear! Aren’t we all afraid of failure? But then, the good news about failure is when you know where you went wrong and then hit the ‘Do Better Next Time’ button.

4. They are worried about going broke.
They are constantly thinking about the financial risk they are placing on their family and the money they have borrowed to make this venture happen. They fear being penniless. Remember: Don’t bet the entire farm. Set limits on your personal investments so if the business goes bad, you will get a second chance to succeed.

Remember the story of the farmer who placed all his eggs in one basket? He was so excited about his first major produce that he quickly packed all the eggs in a cart without placing them carefully or properly in the basket. He got to the market square with cracked eggs. He made little profit because he had carried all his eggs in one basket.

Do you know a better story? Share with us.

5. Success can sometimes be a relief.
Rather than celebrating success, they see it as temporary relief and are afraid to celebrate too hard. Remember: It is important to pause and celebrate the victories since that is what will be remembered the next time you fail.

Relax, enjoy your success. After all, the thought of failure may have propelled you to succeed.

So what do you think?

http://www.bizngr.com/tips-for-startups/5-secrets-entrepreneurs-will-never-reveal-2/

Christmas is near! Isn’t it? As an entrepreneur, this is the best time to plan how to maximize profit on some of the business opportunities that comes with the season. Here are 6 small but profitable Business Ideas to start during the Christmas season.

1. Design and Sell Christmas Cards

There are two ways to doing this: make beautiful handmade cards (if you are a creative artist) or buy in wholesale quantity in Eko – Dosumu or Oke Arin Market in Lagos Island. You can sell them to friends, families and business organisations. People don’t usually have that time to go shop for Christmas cards. You will be saving them the trip while also making some good profits.

Read more by clicking on tie link below.
http://www.bizngr.com/business-ideas/6-profitable-business-ideas-to-start-during-the-christmas-season/

I prefer the hamper business. Which do you prefer?

Hey! my friend is going places! She designed some great stuff for some of the fashions houses in the on going Lagos fashion show

James Bond? wow. True sha. these tips are effective in business.

you guys checked this out. I like the 007 twist.
http://www.bizngr.com/tips-for-startups/5-business-scoops-learn-james-bond/

I appreciate this. Ideas is key and then how to deploy it into a money making project

You mean in Nigeria?

Am surprised no one had really commented on this post! Such story is inspiring and we can learn from it instead of chasing unrealistic money stories around

“My journey started with a passion to become a filmmaker. Unfortunately, even though I got admission to some good universities, I couldn’t afford to go...
http://www.bizngr.com/business-ideas/case-studies/amuwa-oluseyi-asurf-learnt-youtube/

Let’s face the fact, people only care about you when you’re really doing well. No one cares about a loser. Especially a broke loser.

Always plan and take care of your finances because, in the end, you may be evaluated by it either deliberately or otherwise.

But if that’s not enough motivation to make managing your finances a top priority, consider the following reasons to do so:

1. Because You’re the Only One Who Will

The harsh reality is that it’s up to you to improve your financial situation now and prepare for your future. Not all debt is so easily wiped out by bankruptcy and it’s not likely you can look forward to a company pension when you retire. If you don’t start dealing with your financial problems, you’ll suffer for it now and into the future.
Clique link to read more...
http://www.bizngr.com/personal-finance/lessons/top-4-reasons-why-you-should-care-about-your-finances/

Yes, don't down size anyone! Nice job here

bizngr:
Being a good manager entails a number of things. Some of which you ought to have before you take on the job while you learn the others over a period of time.

Here are some tips that would improve your managerial skills.

1. Use your ears: a good manager always listens. Never see yourself as a “know it all”. Keep your ears all the way to the ground. Always listen to people, no matter who it is. Don’t downsize anyone. Good listeners are great learners.

Read more here---------- http://www.bizngr.com/management-tips/want-to-be-a-good-manager-try-these/

Have a productive week!

Bottom line, be careful and not get too carried away

InvertedHammer: /
You have ended up enumerating the qualities of about 95% of people in the world.

I guess the best bet is "NO BUSINESS".

It is called People and/or Business Management for a reason.

You will be managing tough situations which include human beings.

//

Running a business is like riding on a roller coaster. Although it is fun and exciting, there will be times when you’ll be scared and feel powerless. You will also experience great success if you don’t give up. Business success is everyone’s dream. But not everyone has a successful business story to share.

However, you cannot experience these feelings -the good and the bad- if you don’t have a dream to begin with.

Consider this five ways to stepping up your game and then get on it.
http://www.bizngr.com/business-ideas/business-plans/5-ways-to-step-up-your-game-by-omotayo-bakare/

Running a business is like riding on a roller coaster. Although it is fun and exciting, there will be times when you’ll be scared and feel powerless. You will also experience great success if you don’t give up. Business success is everyone’s dream. But not everyone has a successful business story to share.

However, you cannot experience these feelings -the good and the bad- if you don’t have a dream to begin with.

Consider this five ways to stepping up your game and then get on it.----------->

http://www.bizngr.com/business-ideas/business-plans/5-ways-to-step-up-your-game-by-omotayo-bakare/

Guys! also check this post. You would be amazed..

Correct!

Shedysworld: Sometimes they are needed to propell you, but you also apply wisdom

Yes, you need the money. But do not because of the money forget your self and the real goal you have set for your business. In the end, if you tolerate these people, they will bring you down and all you've worked for crashes.

oxygen47: How can I need people dat will destroy me?
@op, see me see case o!
Ur write up says I shud stay away from them
Pls modify topic sharply
Thanks
Note: A good percentage of business financiers fall into one or more of this category
We need d money
How do we handle dat?