Patents. They’re great things aren’t they? It gives you absolute control over that product. It protects you from unscrupulous competitors. Life is good. Have you given any thought to the day when that patent runs out? Maybe it seems so far away, that it simply isn’t on the radar. Twenty years off seems like a life time. Maybe just worry about it when the time comes. For many that’s the conventional wisdom. I’ve known companies who did exactly that. During the patent years things were good. Business was growing and the future looked promising. And then it happened. Where did…

Entrepreneurs and ambitious start-ups growing frustrated with working from their spare room or study face the dilemma of whether to stay small fry or take the next step up the ladder into their own premises. Working from home often seems like a great idea initially, but it comes fraught with challenges to overcome. Home life can become a distraction, left without motivation, privacy and an increased sense of isolation, resulting in a poor work-life balance. Taking a leap of faith and moving into your own dedicated office may seem like a daunting step to take, but the benefits of working…

I know you may be thinking… that’s like a bad word! Don’t talk about that! Many entrepreneur friends of mine feel that way and if you do too, good for you! But I’m still going to talk about it because I’m not really talking about luck. What others see as ‘luck’ actually has a formula. Listen in to find out… Key Takeaways Keep going Work it Give it time Sacrifice [display_podcast] Resources & Mentions Exposure & Profit AutoSiteSaver Rate us on iTunes

I just returned from a successful workshop in San Diego where I facilitated (with a friend Marcia Hoeck). We were teaching graphic designers how to drive profits by building brands for clients before any design work is done. Our audience was graphic design firms from across the U.S. Essentially we went through Marcia and my eleven step branding process. One important issue kept cropping up – confidence. It would appear that our audience that day and i’m sure many small businesses in our audience here, have a rough time selling with confidence. Especially a new service like ours. I’ve found…

There’s no business that doesn’t require selling. Even when you are selling life-giving water. Something everyone on this planet needs. You need to sell people on your water vs other alternatives. A big part of selling is to ask. But why? Why do we have to ask? Don’t people just know we have it? People will know to ask me if they want to buy. Wrong. In this episode, we talk about why you need to ask and ask often. Listen in now… Key Takeaways Never assume people won’t buy Don’t assume there’s no room for you after competition Why everyone has…

How Does QMS Software help you ? Industry regulations are ever-changing, and operating a successful business is hard enough without having to keep track of industry compliance regulations, and whether or not your business matches up. Of course, not keeping track of this information would be detrimental to you (particularly because the law says so), and until the release of QMS  (quality management systems) software, businesses were forced to keep track of compliance standards and data manually. Now, thankfully, keeping tracking of quality management information need not be tedious, require a team of employees, or necessitate a daily referral to…

Bookkeeping and pay roll services: Bookkeeping and pay roll services are required by almost every company in Singapore, as accuracy in business accounting is necessary for its success. All types of businesses, need these services for their proper growth but they hire them as per their volume of work. Though big businesses may engage whole time bookkeeping and payroll services, but medium and small business usually opt for freelance service providers in both of these fields. Most of the businesses in Singapore outsource the bookkeeping and payroll services in Singapore to fulfill the business accounting requirements of their business. They…

If you have never attended a business event in person, then you absolutely must try at least once this year. There are so many reasons why you should which I covered in this show and also the mistakes I see people make regularly. Listen in now… Key Takeaways Come out of your introverted shell. You’ll do just fine, from one introvert to another. Choose the right event. Spend time networking. Crazy to not network at an event yes. But people do that. Don’t bury your nose in your device. Bring your business cards. Yes, business cards and we’ll talk about…

When you make the right offer, to the right people and the right time, you are going to meet your financial goals. It’s really simple. You need to make offers to get the sale. Today, I’m going to share 7 methods to help you craft effective offers, the smart way. Key Takeaways Be constantly on the lookout for what’s going on around you Review your feedback Reward your special audiences Bulk and repeat order discounts or special orders How payment alternatives can help Why offer gift purchases What kinds of bundle and value added offers you can make [display_podcast] Resources…

We all have good days and bad days. What do you do when that stretches to weeks and months? It’s the kind of situation that has your mind playing all kinds of tricks on you. Has your run come to its end? Have you lost your mojo? Maybe the world simply doesn’t need your product or service anymore. You start to point fingers at all kinds of reasons to explain this increasingly desperate situation. This post comes from a conversation I had recently with an associate of mine. They felt the problem was that on their website the tone of…