Entrepreneur Resources: Small Business Blog

Always Charge What Your Time Is Worth

Posted on January 22, 2010 with 1 Comment

For many new small business owners, one of the hardest things to figure out is pricing.  This is especially true for service-based businesses that charge by the hour.  I know I’ve been kept up at night after sending off a proposal wondering whether I charged too little or too much.  I say no more of this. 

I declare 2010 the year to stop second-guessing your pricing plan. 

Before taking my declaration and running with it, make sure you’ve first covered off the basics – industry research, deciding on your target market and a competitive analysis.  Then ensure you’ve taken your background into consideration as well.  That MBA, 10 years of corporate experience in your field or an extensive past clients list may give you the right to charge more than your peers.  Be comfortable with that.  

When it’s time to present an estimate to your potential client, do so with confidence.  Whatever you do, don’t open the conversation with, ”Well, if this is too much, perhaps we can work something out.”  Your time is too valuable.  If you are open to negotiating because you really want to work with the client or need to build your portfolio, go in knowing the lowest possible price you’re willing to take and be prepared to walk away.  I remember being excited to speak to a potential client about writing grants for his non-profit organization.  I presented my pricing estimate.  He balked.  I clearly explained how I arrived at that price, and he made a counteroffer of $100/grant.  For those not familiar with the non-profit industry, some grant proposals can require over 20 pages of program descriptions and documentation.  When I explained this to the potential client, his response was, “But don’t you need the money?”  No!  Ok, yes, I needed the money, but my time was worth more than the $5/hour or less he was willing to pay.  I walked away and didn’t look back.  You should be prepared to do the same.

Remember if you don’t value your time, who will?

Bringing Your Store to the World Wide Web

Posted on January 15, 2010 with 1 Comment

For many small business owners, creating an online store is a natural step in their business growth.  Perhaps you own a brick and mortar clothing boutique and are ready to expand your client base worldwide, or maybe you’re a new business owner who will sell your products exclusively on the Internet.  Either way, you should follow a detailed plan to get your store up and running.  While selling on the Internet can seem intimidating, it doesn’t have to be.  Continue reading as we cover four key steps, from registering your domain name to creating a credit card processing account, that will get your online store open for business in no time.

Step 1: Register a domain name and select a web host

Your domain name (http://www.YourOnlineStore.com) will serve as the virtual address for your store, so you must choose it carefully.  It should be memorable, distinct and say something about the type of products you’re looking to sell.  This way, it will be easier for search engines to crawl.  For example, the clothing boutique mentioned above would be much better served by a domain name of SophieVintageClothes.com than SophiesStore.com. 

Once you’ve chosen your domain name, you should select a web host.  Depending on the number of products you want to sell and the hosting features needed, fees can range from $9.95 – $49.95/month.  As your host will house all of your store’s files and serve in a technical support capacity, make sure you research before signing up.  Use our Selecting a Reliable Web Host article as a starting point. 

Step 2: Decide on a web design company

Yes, there are several “do-it-yourself” web sites out there, but I urge you to consider a professional web design company to create your site.  This way you’ll ensure a polished, unique design and also have another layer of technical support if something goes wrong.  If maintenance is your concern, most web design companies are able to create a sign that you can update yourself.  The cost to build your web site will vary based on your business needs and the design company you choose.  Expect to pay $1000 or more for an eCommerce site.   

Step 3: Pick an eCommerce software platform

Now that you’ve decided on your domain name, selected a web host and found a professional web design company, the next step is to choose an eCommerce software platform that meets your store’s needs.  Your web host or web designer may have suggestions on what to use.  Before signing up, however, use your business plan to make sure the software will include all the tools you will need for the site, e.g. inventory management, cross-selling, web analytics, etc.  Software costs can vary.  Some programs may even come pre-installed in your web hosting account but may have limited capability.  You can purchase a basic, commercial program that maintains your daily activity for $100/month, or you can get a customized, state-of-the-art system that costs nearly $10,000/month.  If possible, look for programs that offer free demos or a trial kit.  This way you can test the product before purchase and see if it’s a good fit for your business needs.

Step 4: Find your Merchant Account         

Most online shoppers, including your potential customers, use credit cards for their online purchases.  In order to process credit cards, your business will need a merchant account.  A merchant account is opened with a merchant services provider or a merchant bank to enable your online store to accept credit card purchases from your customers.  This will allow for immediate credit card processing for all major credit cards such like Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, etc.

We wish you much luck and prosperity as you build your eCommerce presence.

Stock Photography – Find the Perfect Photo Fast!

Posted on October 3, 2009 with No Comments

This article comes courtesy of Elizabeth Himmerich of Fotosearch.com.  She shares valuable information on how her web site can help you find the photos you need quickly.  Thank you Elizabeth for the article.  Enjoy!

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Have you ever been in need of an image for brochure or website but thought you couldn’t afford a professional image?

Think again!  There are many online options that make professional images an extremely attractive option these days.  Think how much time it would take to set up your own photo shoot, not to mention the hassle of dealing with legal requirements like “model releases.”  Would you really be saving any money?

Fotosearch Stock Photography provides a portal where users can search through all the top photography publishers at one site.  Not only do you get a first-rate images at a reasonable price, but you also save a LOT of time.  And, how much is your time worth to you?

Users can find either royalty-free or rights protected images through the portal.  (Royalty-free images are cheaper;  rights protected images tend to be more exclusive.)  Image quality varies from low resolution, web images to high- and super-high resolution suitable for magazines or billboards.  Many images offer a variety of resolutions, so you can pick what is most appropriate – and cost efficient – for your use.

In addition to photos you can find clipart, illustration and medical illustration, stock footage/video clips, and stock music.

Why waste your valuable time when you have professional-grade, top quality images at cost efficient prices, just a click away?

Selecting a Reliable Web Host

Posted on September 21, 2009 with 1 Comment

In addition to finding a professional, affordable web site designer, securing a web host is another crucial step in the web site design process. A web host is a company that stores your web site’s files. All the pages you see on the net are a collection of pages stored in an online folder. You pay a web host to store your files in its online folder. Having a reliable web host is crucial to your business. Everytime you send a potential or current client to your site, you need it to be up and running error-free. Since this is so important, we have listed a few guidelines in selecting a reliable web host:

How cost effective is this web host?
Before selecting a host, shop around and make sure the price and features of the account you are considering are competitive for the industry. Remember: expensive does not mean best! You do not need a well-known hosting provider if a smaller company can provide the same services more effectively and for 1/2 the price.

Does the host have a proven record of reliability?
There are TONS of web hosting companies on the net as I am sure many of you realized as soon as you searched for “web hosting company” in your search engine of choice. Top rankings in Google, MSN, or Yahoo do not guarantee a reliable company. These rankings only guarantee that a company spent time and/or money on search engine optimization (getting its site to the top of the charts). Before you purchase web hosting, ask other business owners which company they recommend and why. Also, check out forums such as http://www.webhostingtalk.com/. This forum allows customers to sound off about their web hosting company (positive and negative comments are welcome). Here you can hear what customers have said about their hosting experience with company XYZ before you buy.  Also, ask your colleagues or web designer for hosting information.  Some of the best companies can be found through word of mouth referrals.

Is it easy to leave if I change my mind about this host?
This is a crucial question that many small business owners do not consider. Small business owners do not always realize that hiring a web site designer and securing a web host can be affordable. Instead, they look for an all-inclusive web hosting package that offers pre-built web site templates or site builders. These are tools are helpful ONLY IF you plan to stay with that hosting company throughout the life of your web site. You would be using the web host’s design software, so if you left, the web host would still own your web site files, leaving you to start designing your site from scratch. Before using a site with pre-built templates or site builders, find out if you are allowed to keep your web site if you later decide to move to another host.There are also a few other items to consider: site uptime (is the site guaranteed to be available 99.9%), late billing consequences (is there a grace period, or will site be immediately taken down), and frequency of back-ups (if the web hosting company’s servers go down for any reason, will your site have been backed up and ready to go once the problem is resolved, or will your site be lost).

As a precaution, always back-up a copy of your web site to your home or work computer’s hard drive. This may not be possible if you use a pre-built template or online site builder software, but it is important in case something happens to the hosting company. Remember to always read the fine print of all hosting contracts you sign (albeit digitally) AND to choose a host that allows you to keep a back-up of your web site on your home or work computer (without any extra costs or fines).

How reliable is the customer service/technical support team?
If your site goes down unexpectedly, the hosting company should have an answer as to when it will be back up almost immediately. When problems with your web site arise, or if you have a question about setting up your account, technical support should be able to you. Make sure the host you use either has a posted customer service policy, has good customer service ratings on http://www.webhostingtalk.com/ or comes highly referred by one of your associates.

If you are unsure, one way to test the effectiveness of the company’s customer service is to send a pre-sale question to the customer service team to see how long it takes you to get a response. If it takes 3 or 4 days to answer a question about a potential sale (MONEY), then it will probably take twice as long as to answer a technical support question (when you are already a paying client).

After following these steps, your small business should be on the right track to selecting a reliable web host for your company’s web site design project. If you have any questions about web hosting that were not adressed in this article, contact Inspired Graphics Media for help. We would be happy to find a solution for you.