Career change

If you're thinking of changing careers, you may need to meet with a career counselor at your previous college or one in your area. Career counseling can give you an idea of the opportunities available, the income potential and the courses you will need to qualify for entry level jobs.

Update your education

Making a career change may require that you return to college for another degree or attending graduate school of an advanced degree and specialization. Visit with campus financial aid and scholarship representatives to get an idea of costs and how you can qualify for any school aid or federal loans to pay for your education. If you are working full-time, you may want to consider the many online graduate degree programs or online undergraduate offerings. These online universities will also help you determine fees and see if you qualify for aid, scholarships or low cost loans.

Look at trade schools

Many fields today don't require a university degree but are taught at the trade school level. Careers that require medical billing training are popular trade school subjects as are computer repair training, bartending school and cosmetology school. Some of these trade school offerings may be located in your area and have classes that you can attending during evenings and weekends. Check out the possibilities available so that you do not have to quit your day job.

Real Estate agent or broker

If you have always wanted to sell real estate, this is an area you can study for an possibly even get started with while you're working your regular job. Find out where you can take classes in your area such as attending a local community college. You can contact the school to learn about testing and licensing requirements for your area and state.

Starting a business. Do you dream of owning your own business? With the affordability and easy access of online, Web-based businesses, you can be a small business owner while working your regular job. This is a great way to get started, build up your business and profits before you quit your day job. Consider the pros and cons of starting an online business versus as "bricks and mortar" business with a fixed location. Do plenty of research on the type of business you want to start, talk to others in the same industry and then give it a try. If you need to learn business basics, check into the community college in your area for available classes.

If you are motivated and wanting a change, you can get the training you need to jumpstart your career or change careers and begin something new. Whatever you do, have a solid plan and learn the skills you'll need before taking the plunge. Then you'll know you are setting yourself up for success.

The first step is to take a look at your present marketing system.

Most distributors don't even have a marketing system in place! Others have a marketing system so manual that they can't move away from their computers for even one hour. If you ever plan to achieve long term success in MLM, you must have an automated marketing system, and this system must be duplicatable so it can also be used by your downline as well.

When I said marketing system, what I mean is the mechanism you use to promote your business opportunity. Providing a simple step by step plan on how to promote your business is essential to duplication. When you create a marketing system and 1-2-3 success plan, you will be established as a leader in this industry.

One example of a successful marketing system is the funded proposal. All you need is an information product that appeals to your target market, and can be sold 24/7 via pay per click advertising. Once you gather customers, you start recruiting or "back-ending" those customers to your MLM. Then, you ask those new distributors to sell the same info product, gather customers, and then backend their customers to their MLM.

Another example of an automated marketing system is viral duplication. Now, I don't know if such a word or phrase exists, I just made it up. But the essence of viral duplication is to TAP into a recruitment or marketing method that WORKS, and then simply pass on the knowledge to your downline by providing VIRAL tools such as ebooks. Those free viral ebooks explain your methods and strategies on how to promote your business, and then they must pass that e-book to all their downline members as well.

Providing your downline with the same tools and resources that you are using is also important. Recommend autoresponder services, training courses and traffic exchange opportunities. All these will contribute to your goal of raising your success status and inspiring network growth.

Then came the wonderful Internet! With the stroke of a key, you were transported to an array of sites. High fashion, wholesale, Ebay and any Mall storefront that you would find in the most extravagant cities. But, not just any store mind you, an e-commerce store that was as intoxicating as it was unique. A new world has been born. An extremely "Jetson" shopping experience was invented, one easy to maneuver and one that allowed transactions to be even simpler to complete. In a click of a mouse, you could come up with a whole new wardrobe and just as easily apply your discounts or any special requests you may have. How easy? Just take a look at your shopping cart. Online sites are created with you, the trendy shopper, in mind. Big money has gone into putting together the highest quality, the simplest steps and the safest environment in order to make any transaction feel like an ultimate pleasure.

A shopper's dream come true? But, of course, as the statistics rise, it's becoming quite clear, that more consumers are preferring this mode of purchasing. No more long lines, no more rude sales clerks, no more hours wasted and best of all? A parking spot has now become a distant memory. Could it get any better? Yes! Fancy handmade sweaters that are only made in England? Poof, it's yours! How about Swiss Chocolate, made in, get ready... Switzerland!!! Just type in the quantity, please, and it's on it's way. Fantasy and reality intertwined, all wrapped up in a lovely fed-ex package, waiting patiently at your front door for you to arrive.

Groceries can be planned for with care, customized to your family's needs and made ready to deliver in a blink of an eye. Your loved ones are now able to prioritize schedules and events, without the sometimes unnecessary hassle of trudging into the neighborhood grocery store. This is especially invaluable during the often chaotic holiday seasons. A blessing of sorts, and may soon be taken for granted.

The Internet has changed the world. Enormously. Brick and Mortar stores can still hold a nostalgic feel and provide you with endless opportunities to see, feel and hold your selected merchandise. But, the Internet miraculously brings the world to your fingertips. It's an amazing era we're now experiencing. One that conjures up extravagant images. And, just imagine, this is only the beginning.

 

Again I suggest that adding shopping cart will increase your store popularity in marketplaces. The tools will make your consumer feel enjoy while they are accessing your site. Such tools will lead them to the certain condition on which people know how they could buy the goods and how to pay for it. With such certain tools you have been increasing your online store fluidity to all of your audience.

At least four reasons why you should add this easy to install software :

1. Affordable

   The tools allow you to build top shelf online stores with a small monthly investment. But with a certain support you could get back the benefits soon.

2. Easy

   Anyone could install such ecommerce software.

3. Total Solution

   With all securely hosted the tool also provide free email services, design, and full fraud alerts

4. Customisable design

   Enjoy the design of the tool in any of you want without any restriction to do.

Moreover, it has expanded from its existing business of selling books to selling a wide variety of products such as DVDs, music CDs, computer software, video games, electronics, apparel, furniture, food and more (Wikipedia 2006). Similarly, Amazon aside from its domestically shared market also set up four other separate online stores in the United Kingdom, Germany, France and Japan, thus shipping globally on selected products (cited in Haddad & Sheth 2001).

Overview of the Online Industry

The population of the Internet and World Wide Web has raised fast since 1990s with the development and advancement of computer technologies. Many firms have launched their business through the Internet because of this technology innovation. This resulted in various and widely sales of products in the Internet business. Online buying grows at an amazing rate. Therefore, companies that carry out Internet based business have great opportunities to succeed. Conversely, there is a greater competition and threats are all around considering that many companies had entered the online business (cited in University of Texas at Dallas.com n.d.).

Amazon.com vs. Other Online Bookstores

Book retailing is one of the flourishing industries. Barriers to entry into this industry are quite high and suppliers have modest influence over booksellers. The introduction of the internet has brought about many changes to this industry because it has increased rivalry, buyer power and substitutes (American Booksellers Association 2002).

The largest market for books is the United States. Before, book publishing is still fragment, thus high percentage of publisher's sales occurs through the wholesalers. However, with the emergence of superstores like Barnes & Noble and Borders.com which are directly supplied with more than 95 percent of books from the publishers such percentage decreased (American Booksellers Association 2002).

Since these stores can reduce intermediates like wholesalers, they can sell their products at a discounted price. Because of this strategy, their sales growth rate raised to 71 percent compare to 4 percent sales of non-superstores. In addition, according to their self-report, they are growing almost 25 to 35 percent a month. Many independent stores have gone out of business because of this happening. Such scenarios are the threat to the success of Amazon.com (American Booksellers Association 2002).

It is necessary to understand the book industry as a whole and the competitors in order to remain competitive in the market. Two of the Amazon.com largest competitors are Barnes & Noble and Borders.com.

Book Retail Industry Analysis

The book retail industry was expanding at a phenomenal rate during 1970's and 1980's. New stores were opening and growing into markets previously not served by any bookstore. The number of new books published each year grew because new authors increasingly found their way into print. Similarly, the profit for publishers rose in robust percentages. The book retail industry began evolving into the maturity stage of the industry life cycle in the mid of 1990s. Mark Domnitz, ceo of American Bookseller Association, predicts that Internet book purchases will grow exponentially over the next few years (cited in University of Texas at Dallas.com n.d.).

Porter's Five Forces of Competition framework such as competition from substitutes, entrants, rivals, supplier power, and buyer power is a valuable tool in analyzing the industry (cited in University of Texas at Dallas.com n.d.).

Substitutes

Substitutes for reading include watching television, going to movies, renting movies, listening to CD's, tapes or the radio, playing computer or video games, talking on the telephone, surfing the Internet, playing sports, exercising, etc. Booksellers are conscious of their prices since some of these substitutes leisure activities do not directly cost the consumer like watching television and making local phone calls (cited in University of Texas at Dallas.com n.d.).

Entry

The book retail industry has very high barriers to entry. The capital requirements necessary to establish a bricks and mortar bookstore would be virtually impossible for a newcomer. Consumers know the big name players. High product awareness and large marketing budgets make it very difficult for new entrants to enter into this industry (cited in University of Texas at Dallas.com n.d.).

Rivalry

Looking at the entire book retail industry, competition is quite diverse. A consumer could purchase books from a bricks and mortar store, which could be a large chain, a non-book retail store, or a small independent store. A consumer could also choose to buy their books on-line. With the onset of Internet bookstores, price is even more of a factor in consumer book purchasing (cited in University of Texas at Dallas.com n.d.).

Buyer Power

Buyer power in the book retail industry is very high. This fact can be directly associated with the significant amount of substitutes and intense rivalry in the industry. As mentioned earlier, if a consumer is looking to purchase a book he/she has many options. The amount of buyer power ultimately depends on the need or desire for the book (cited in University of Texas at Dallas.com n.d.).

Supplier Power

Supplier power in the book retail industry would be considered moderate. Book retailers can purchase books from over 1,700 publishers as well as wholesale distributors. Publishers have control over the distribution of titles (through copyright protection), the list price and the retailers' cost price. These limitations do afford the publishers some supplier power over the book retailers (cited in University of Texas at Dallas.com n.d.).

Amazon.com Competitors' Analysis

Two of Amazon's largest competitors are the Barnes & Noble and the Borders Group, Inc.

Borders Group, Inc. is the second largest operator of book and music superstores based on sales and number of stores. It offers customers over 650,000 titles and 10 million book, music and video items in stock and ready for immediate shipping from Border's distribution center (Durkin, MA, Kass, C, Modi, T & Ulin, M 2000).

Barnes & Noble is the largest bookstore chain in the world. . From its fledgling beginning of one store in 1971 Barnes & Noble acquired and ran several mall based bookstore chains including B. Dalton Bookseller, Doubleday Book Shops and Scribner's Bookstores. It carries a range of 60,000 to 175,000 titles. In 1997, Barnes & Noble once again expanded its operations to make books available to customers through the Internet (Durkin, MA, Kass, C, Modi, T & Ulin, M 2000).

Several aspects of these two largest competitors posed a threat to the company. Barnes & Noble launched its online store in 1997. If it succeed because of its unique operating channels such as the retail stores, the Internet, 1-800-THE BOOK and mail order, it would capture some of initial customers and develop some brand loyalty (Durkin, MA, Kass, C, Modi, T & Ulin, M 2000).

On one hand, Borders.com has offered books, music, CDs and videos. Such actions would be also a threat to Amazon.com because the company expanded its product line to include music. Thus, it is expected that the competition between Amazon.com and Borders.com will be increased sharply in the diversified products market (Durkin, MA, Kass, C, Modi, T & Ulin, M 2000).

Analysis of Amazon.com

Amazon.com identifies the key success factors in its business model such as a strong brand, providing customers with outstanding value and a superior shopping experience, massive sales volume and realizing economies of scale (Durkin, MA, Kass, C, Modi, T & Ulin, M 2000).

Amzon.com is the only bookseller in the world's top 500 websites, according to Media Metrix. Additionally, according to one analyst report, Amazon.com is estimated to have over 80 percent of the online bookstore market (cited in Durkin, MA, Kass, C, Modi, T & Ulin, M 2000).

However, Jeffrey P. Bezos' vision, founder of Amazon, has evolved much further than just being the earth's biggest bookstore. The vision is to be the world's biggest one place-shopping stop for online shoppers and to become a premier general online retailer by leveraging its existing brand and business model (cited in Durkin, MA, Kass, C, Modi, T & Ulin, M 2000).

Amazon.com has several core values which play a crucial part in the success of the company. The first one is excellent customer service based on extraordinary technology. The company provides various services such as book reviews from other customers and from staff. In addition, many featured books contained descriptions, snippets of reviews and interview posted by authors (Durkin, MA, Kass, C, Modi, T & Ulin, M 2000).

Convenience and price is the second core value of the company. It sells books through Internet and has its own distribution system. Similarly, Amazon does not have to spend too much money on real state and other operation because it is pursuing Internet-based business. Thus, it can reduce its inventory expenses (Durkin, MA, Kass, C, Modi, T & Ulin, M 2000).

On one hand, the company has several key resources and capabilities to meet the challenges presented by opportunities and threats. These resources and capabilities have thus far allowed the company to be the world leader in the special retail industry. Jeffrey P. Bezos, founder and chairman of Amazon since 1994, is the driving force behind the company. He is a valuable resource that gives the company the competitive advantage with above-average return (Haddad, N & Sheth, J 2001).

Amazon.com has also a very strong brand name presence in the online-retail market which is primarily due to their successful exploitation of their "first-mover" advantage. It would be able to leverage this brand name as it realizes its plans for expansion in the future (Haddad, N & Sheth, J 2001).

In addition, the technological infrastructure of the company also gives its competitive advantage against the other rivals. It can pen a new store which has different products very easily because its core shopping technologies are easily re-usable (Haddad, N & Sheth, J 2001).

On one hand, its website is elegantly designed, easy to navigate and quick to load. It also has numerous proprietary inventions like the click shopping, personalized recommendations and user rating which make shopping more pleasurable (Haddad, N & Sheth, J 2001).

The four strategies such as outsourcing strategies, strategic partnership, compelling value, and active advertising (see Exhibit 1) implemented by the company have contributed to its success in sales growth and cost efficiency (Haddad, N & Sheth, J 2001).

However, transitioning the company culture is one of the problems and weaknesses may face by Amazon.com. A lot of changes have to be made in order for Amazon to adjust to different situations especially since the rules of business keep changing rapidly. Amazon was only a start-up few years ago but it grew rapidly and successfully in the online retailing business. Thus, Amazon is no longer can be considered a start-up but a company moving from one culture to another because of its expansion and time in the industry (Durkin, MA, Kass, C, Modi, T & Ulin, M 2000).

Another is the financial difficulties brought about by its international exposure. The fluctuation of exchange rates from different currencies into U.S. dollars may affect Amazon's money market. The success of Amazon's international expansion also depends on local economic and political conditions (Durkin, MA, Kass, C, Modi, T & Ulin, M 2000).

Conclusion

Amazon has grown admirably from its initial beginnings as a small online bookseller to a giant superstore company. During this process of rapid growth, it has incurred significant losses and it becomes more expose to a greater competition and threats. Cutting costs and achieving profitability remain Amazon's greatest challenges. However, there are key factors such as a strong brand, providing customers with outstanding value and a superior shopping experience, massive sales volume and realizing economies of scale which contribute a lot to the success of this company. These factors and the people around the company help Amazon.com to face the threats pose by other online bookstores. Essentially, the company should aim to maintain its gross margins in its existing business and in future product lines such as music CDs and videos. In order to do this, Amazon.com should develop strategic partnerships with all of its main suppliers.

Exhibit 1: Amazon.com Company Strategies

The internet today is full of various fly by night self proclaimed gurus who claim to have secrets which can make you rich overnight, it has however, been discovered that most of these so- called internet experts are nothing but scams. Many of them don't make honest income on the net, as their main objective is to rip and defraud unsuspecting visitors who seek genuine business opportunities online of their hard earned money.

I can say this because I have once been a victim of these so called gurus who take your money and leave you with some funny phony programs which cannot make you even a cent. I was discouraged but got wiser and decided to do my research thoroughly before putting my money on any program again.

The purpose of this blog is not to discourage you but assist you to avoid the various pit falls and traps I fell into two years ago, it's also intended to release to you my reader resources and useful recommendations which if followed will help you make informed decisions while taking business away from these scam lords.

I will also make recommendations regarding genuine income opportunities from time to time, also I will take care to bring to you list of non active site or out rightly dead opportunities.

Before I drop I will like to say something about scam review sites. These are also scattered all over the net, as such it is necessary to be careful as to which review site you take your advice from, because only a handful of them are actually genuine.

I discovered in research that the usual practice of these sites is to pick a number of programs they want to promote and build their own review sites around them. On these sites, they make you believe that many business opportunities are either scams or are out rightly bad while recommending their own preferred program. To my disappointment, I discovered that quite a number of these blacklisted programs are actually genuine and good. It is necessary for you to note that some of the programs recommended by these so called expert review sites ended up being time wasters as they don't usually yield enough to commensurate the time spent on them.

Most review sites also lack visitor feed back, its either they have no email address for enquiries or when they have it on the site they don't respond to your enquiries, their only concern is to sell their preferred program to you.

In my next post, I will look at the different types of scams that exist on the internet and what to look out for to avoid falling victim of these net fraudsters. I will also attempt to give you a list of some business review sites to avoid when making your research for which business opportunity to invest in on the internet.

College textbooks buyback services are growing rapidly as more students experience that these services are convenient and also affordable. For example, a site named Ecampus that allows college students to make money online by buying and selling college textbooks at discounted price. Also you get free shipping on the orders of $59 or more. And $59 can be the cost of just one book, so you can take advantage of their policy and get the books at your doorsteps without any problem. This is also a way for college students to make money online. And not only this ecampus is also selling other goods that you can buy after selling the textbooks. The store offers goods like DVDs, college apparel, and also non academic books. So you can get some great gift for your loved ones.

There is also one more site named Textbooks.com this is also one more site that deals in the used college textbooks. The site is popular as it offers very good buyback offers to the textbook owners. As we all know that due to the increasing cost of printing and publishing, buying new books has become a very costly affair for the college students. So to buy the used college textbooks is the most common thing among the college students.

Here is one more website you should look at Sellbackbooks.com this is also a great site that allows the college students make money online. Here you get some great deals for the used books you want to buy or also the used books you want to sell. This is a good place for college students to make money online.

There are many ways for college students to make money online but all that business takes a lot of time, but making money out of your own used stuff is really a smart way to earn money. Here you don't have to give away anything also it is not so time consuming. All you need to do is to get enrolled with the website, select the books you have for sale and just be relaxed, you will get replies from other students who are looking for those books and you can sell your used college textbooks to them. Here it also provides you with a noble cause that you are able to help some students who wish to study and do not have enough money to buy the new textbooks.

This is also a good way for college students to make money online. Thus they can give away the used college textbooks and also earn some extra money out of it.

Here Are 8 Ways To Ignite Your Sales Without Draining Your Profits:

1. Train your employees to work as a team. This means teaching them the knack of relying on each other. Remember, no man is an island. This is never more true than in the workplace. The success of the business depends on the collective efforts of all employees, not the singular efforts of one individual.
2. Convince people that buying your product is their own idea. Naturally as the owner of a business you are doing everything within your power to promote your product or service, but you don't want to overwhelm your customers with your efforts. Let them feel that they are making their own decisions. They will feel more confident and be more likely to make a purchase from you. All that's really necessary is to state in your ad, "You're making a smart decision for buying our product.", or "Your family will be delighted with your choice." Anything along those lines will reinforce the idea that they are deciding for themselves to make a purchase, and not being led into it by clever advertising.
3. Promote yourself, not just your product or service. Post your picture and a little information about yourself on your website. Also write articles, reports, ebooks, give testimonials, etc. When people get to know you and find that you are forthright and honest, they will be happy to buy from you.
4. Be prepared to show your prospective customers several testimonials from people who liked your product. People are more easily influenced by a few favorable opinions than just one or two.
5. Get the most from your advertising budget. It's not in your best interest to go broke while advertising your product or service. It makes more sense to begin with a small group of loyal customers who will buy your products faithfully and then gradually increase your advertising base along with your profits.
6. Create an additional product or service based on the one you are promoting to serve as an up sell or back end product. This will save you the trouble of having to create a brand new product.
7. Use the power of suggestion to your advantage. Tell people what they're thinking and feeling as they read your ad. All you have to do is plant the suggestion and most people will latch on to it and follow through by purchasing your product.
8. Make your product or service sound unique. Point out all the advantages it has to offer that you can think of, and while you're at it, throw in a couple of free bonuses to sweeten the deal.

It doesn't matter what you're selling. You either have competitors right this minute trying to sell to your customers…or you'll have competitors within the next year. They are out to sell products and services to your customers so you're not needed anymore.

The only way to win in this overcrowded marketplace is to develop strong offers, great sales copy, and an enduring brand name. Of the three, developing a brand name is probably the most misunderstood and underutilized. Most people never realize they can create an enduring recognizable brand as a small business.

Sure, you may never have name recognition like Nike does, but you don't need to be that well known in the general population. Small businesses such as yours only want to be "branded" in their own little niche audience.

For example, the general population has no idea who "Terry Dean" is, but if you ask most e-zine publishers,they know exactly who I am. I don't sell to a general audience so I don't care if they know who I am or not. I only sell to people who are passionate about building their own small or home-based businesses on the Net. A large portion of this market knows my name quite well. My name is my brand to them (I'll explain how and why more in the information section of this special report).

People like to buy from brand names they can trust. Think about your own buying habits. All things being equal…you will go for the well-known brand names over the unknown competitors any day.

Products without established brand names are forced to go after only one specific type of shopper…the bargain shopper. This is the type of customer who gives you the lowest margins and very limited profits.

This is not the market you want to be in. Establishing your company as having the lowest prices is one of the most dangerous positions to put yourself. Although it can and will work for a while, as soon as a larger competitor with greater buying power comes into the market to compete with you…you're dead. They can quickly establish themselves as cheaper than you and wipe out everything that may have taken you years to build.

Look at most of the big brand name companies such as Nike, Reebok, Harley-Davidson, Adidas, and Microsoft.

None of those companies have the lowest prices in their markets. Look closely at few of them and you'll realize they're the most expensive companies in their markets. Does Nike make the lowest price sporting goods? No.

Is Microsoft the cheapest software developer? No. Are Harleys the cheapest motorcycles you can buy? No.

Harley-Davidson is a brand name synonymous with motorcycles. Say

Motorcycle to many people and the first image in their head is a Harley. They have over a dozen competitors, but they've ingrained their name onto people's consciousness. Even more interesting is the fact that most of their competitors cost around ½ the price for the exact same quality motorcycle.

They developed their brand name as the American Made motorcycle even though there were other American motorcycle companies. They built their entire mystique around this brand. They were American motorcycles and anyone who was serious about motorcycling needed to have a Harley (this also shows they built themselves on an exclusive appeal as well since they're the most expensive and have the longest waiting lists to purchase).

Most big companies don't figure out how to create a brand this well. For example,” Where's the Beef" may be a well known commercial in the US, but it didn't help Wendy's sales one bit. It was an expensive experiment, which entertained the public, but it didn't leave many people remembering Wendy's as having larger burgers than other competitors.

How does this apply to you…the small or home based business?

Direct Response Branding

Most direct marketing experts immediately ignore the word “branding” it because it has been so misused and misunderstood that we haven't wanted to have any part of it.

When most people think of "brands" online they think of cute little logos, corporate mission statements, and other useless items. We're not talking about any of that. We're talking about branding your name into the minds of your customers so they want to continue to do business with you. Then, they tell their friends to work with you as well.

Your Internet brand can't be focused on you or your company. It must be focused on your customer and only your customer. I've taught thousands of people how to write effective ad copy and the key to success with ads is focusing on the benefits. When writing an ad, online or offline, you focus every sentence and every line on your customer. What benefits will they receive? What can you do for them? What problems can you help them with? Every visitor to your web site is tuned into the station WIIFM which stands for

"What's In It For Me?" Let's make this a little easier to understand.

Trying to build a web site around the brand, "Business Systems 2000: The Company who Cares" would be a horrible idea. Nobody cares. They don't care about your company name or what you care about.

They want to know what's in it for them. Using the brand, "When You Buy Any Book From ABC Online Booksellers…You Get a 90 Day Money Back No Questions Asked Guarantee" is a much better idea. Most booksellers don't offer full money-back guarantee on everything in their bookstore. If you give customers an ability to reduce their buying risk, then you've branded yourself as the company who cares (unlike just trying to tell them you care from the paragraph above).

To create the brand, "XYZ: Our Products Work" wouldn't tell anyone anything. I hope your products work, but it doesn't provide a real benefit to your customers. How about this one, "XYZ - Our Staff Is Available 24 Hours a Day at 1-800-Help Now to Help You With Any Problems."

In other words, you have to build a Direct Response Brand. Your brand needs to get over to people the benefits they only get if they buy from you instead of doing business with your competitors.

Find out what your customers want from you instead of trying to force your game plan on them. Do this and you will already be ahead of 99% of your competitors? Become a friend to your customer.

Stop thinking like a marketer or a business owner and start thinking more like a customer. You will learn more about what your customers want and what they are thinking if you take on their mindset. Become a customer in your market.

What does a customer want from your business? What pains are they experiencing already? What are their desires and dreams? How can you help them either relieve the pain in their life or reach their desires in life? That is your goal in developing a direct response brand.

How to Build a Brand: Here's the simple step-by-step solution for building your own powerful web brand.

Step One: Research Your Competitors:

Find out what your competitors do well…and where they are lacking. Visit their web sites. I love to do this research using the Goto.com search engine because I can find out how much my competitors are willing to pay for visitors while I do my research.

Start searching for your competition using the keywords your customers would be searching for. Mark down your opinions of the web sites you visit (this would require you to keep a small notebook handy to take notes). Make at least one note of something you like and something you don't like on each site you visit.

Step Two: Research Your Market

Go to Forumone and Liszt to watch and listen to your future customers. Do a search for your keywords and then join the groups who are most representative of your target market.

Start watching the discussions for at least a week or two. Take notes when people ask questions about web sites or are having trouble looking for specific items. If people seem to keep talking about the same problems over and over again, then you know this is a desire that needs to be filled.

Step Three: Look At Some Other Companies and Ideas

One of the major reasons most Internet marketers never come up with any good ideas is because they only visit web sites in their own market. Most of the breakthrough marketing strategies you will come up with will occur when visiting websites, which aren't in your niche.

Go over to Hot100 and visit some of the top sites on the Net. Do the exact same thing you did when visiting your competitor's sites. Mark down something you like and something you don't like about every one of these websites when you visit. Do any of them make outstanding offers you could somehow apply to your product?

Step Four: Prepare a Sheet of Paper

This is where we get down to the real nitty-gritty of developing your web brand. Take one sheet of paper and at the top write, "Most ________ web sites…" Write the type of business you have in the blank (gift shops, tennis, marketing, etc.). Then go through and write the average offer being made by your competing sites. Halfway down the page, write, "What we do is…" Now write how you are going to make your web site and brand different from every single one of your competitors.

Why should a customer buy from you instead of any of your competitors? Take the whole rest of the page if necessary. How are you going to stand out in the crowded online marketplace? How will you make your business unique?

Step Five: Break It Down

You've written down how your brand is going to be unique on the web. Now you're going to cut it down to just one sentence that will become your unique web brand. If the above step focused on the fact that you guarantee your electronics for 3 years while most online companies only give a 90-day guarantee, then focus on this. Write Down something simple, "If Your Electronics Aren't Perfect…We'll Fix Them Free For 3 Full Years."

The reason we want to cut it down to just one sentence is so we can use it everywhere for your online business. You will want to use it in your signature file, on your business cards, on your letterhead, on your web site, etc. You are going to want to create a phrase, which can become synonymous with your business, product, and service.

If and when you have a logo designed for your business, it will feature your phrase. Your sentence will be put on your answering machine and voicemail. It will become the guide for your sales letters and future products.

10 Possible Brands

1. Price

Having the lowest prices will always force you to have razor-thin margins and to make up for it in high volume.

If a bigger better financed competitor opens up a store right next to you, you're in trouble. This is what has happened to a multitude of small shops across the US when a Wal-mart appears in their town. They didn't recognize or capitalize on any other advantage they could have had...so they were put out of business by not being able to offer the same level of pricing.

On the Internet, this is even more likely to happen. Large corporations go online with no intention of earning a profit for years...so they are quite willing to under price you and put you out of business completely.

2. Higher Quality

You can focus on developing a high quality product and market to a more exclusive market. For example, Mercedes has no intention of pricing themselves at the same level as a Ford. They price themselves significantly higher and then focus on the quality of their cars.

You could follow this same model for your products. Instead of being known as having the cheapest prices, focus on providing the most value for someone's dollar. Think value, not prices for this model. Value and price are two different things completely.

It is all about selling dollars for dimes...give a dollar worth of value for every 10cents that your item costs. In other words, you must show the customer how much more value they will get out of your quality product for their money than they will out of a lower priced item.

3. Longer Warranty or Guarantee

Forget those wimpy 30-day guarantees that are required by law anyway. Show how good your products are to your customers. Guarantee your work for 90 days, 180 days, 365 days, 3 years, or for a lifetime. If everyone else in your market only offers 30-day guarantees, then your two-year guarantee will stick out in the marketplace.

You could quickly develop market dominance by simply providing a better warranty and guarantee than everyone else. You can show your customers you are willing to stand behind your products even if none of your competition is.

You could even do a slight variation on this theme and let your customer receive your product before they have to pay. Give them a 30-day trial period where you don't deposit their check or process their credit card. Then, if they are satisfied that the product is everything you say it is, you process their payment. This way you take all of the risk from your customer.

4. Better Education

This method can work wonders on the web. You can be the one who provides the best education for your prospects and customers. A statement that has worked for many web sites is "Give First and Prove Your Worth." Give education to your prospects on your products. Then, also continue the education process with customers and show them how to get the maximum value out of your products or services.

Home Depot has built a thriving home development business on this type of theme. They not only sell you the items that you need for your house, but they also teach you how to do home projects through articles and even live training classes. If you attended one of their classes, any competitor would be very hard pressed to switch you away from them.

5. Greater Bonuses

This goes back to the dollars for dimes principle again. If you can provide a much greater value for your customer's money, then they will be more than willing to buy from you instead of your competitors. Include free bonuses in every product you sell. Hint: They don't have to be provided by you. You could contract with a magazine that is interesting to your customers and ask for a very wholesale discount for you to buy subscriptions for aloof your customers (or you could also ask for free subscriptions for your customers since they are the exact target market the magazine is trying to reach cost effectively).

You could buy the rights to a book and include the book as a bonus with all product purchases. Start thinking in terms of value added packages instead of just individual products for the best results from your online marketing.

6. Customer Service

Many companies have neglected their customer service horribly. This opens the door to those companies, which truly put their customers first place. You could have a customer service UWP.

Not only do you sell the product, but you also are available by 800 number follow-up calls if your customer has any trouble using it. Computer companies have started using this method quite effectively. Everyone knows they are going to have computer problems. So, if they become the company who cares, they become the company everyone wants to buy from.

7. Greater Selection

This is Amazon's brand. They are the World's Largest Bookstore. Whereas most large bookstores carry 60,000 books, Amazon can send you every book currently being published (this numbers in the millions).

If most companies only offer one or two colors in 3 models...then, your company can offer 27 colors in 15 models. This is an advantage you can really work on with the web. Most stores are limited in the size of potential inventory they can carry. If you set up contracts with outside distributors, then you could potentially have hundreds of warehouses at your beck and call.

Look at what Blockbuster video has done. They now have "Guaranteed Rentals.” If you want to rent a movie on Blockbuster's guaranteed rental list, then if they don't have it, you get a coupon to rent it free next time. So, if there is movie you are sure everybody wants, you should check Blockbuster first.

8. Trade-In Programs

This is the exact method Gateway is using to build their customer base. You get computer today and they will provide upgrades on your trade-in in the future (plus they get to keep you as a customer forever this way with new products). Many software manufacturers build in their residual backend incomes this way. Whenever they come out with a new software version, they give a discounted price for upgrades. Then, they have a built in profit stream every year or every two years for each of their new versions. Bill Gates is quite an intelligent marketer, isn't he?

9. Specific Market

Instead of selling web sites to every business, you could focus on only selling websites to consultants, golf clubs, real estate agents, etc. In other words, narrow down your market and specialize. Then, when a real estate agent needs a web site, they are much more likely to go with the real estate web site developer over everyone else. You begin to build a name for yourself in one specific market.

Plus, you will also begin to understand the particular needs for your market and their mindset in setting up a web site. Not only can you command more business in one niche market, but you are actually much more valuable in your market because you will understand it better than all of your competitors.

10. Faster Service

We live in the microwave generation. We want things we order to be in our hands yesterday. Don't you dare tell me the product I want to order will take 4 to 6weeks for delivery? I guarantee I'll go somewhere else. Fed Ex has built a business on when it absolutely positively has to be there overnight. Use them as one of your shipping options to get your products in customer's hands quickly.

Urbanfetch.com, a company that has only been in business one year, expects to earn over 30 million dollars this year. Guess what their brand is. They guarantee free delivery within an hour in New York City. No one can beat that for quick shipping and convenience.

This new drive has seen small to medium scale industries being created and run by ordinary Zimbabweans who previously did not dream of owning or running a business. While five years ago, people would jostle for jobs at factories in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe's second city and industrial hub, these days the slogan is: "Create your own job" and contribute to national development.

Government figures show that about 80 percent of the Zimbabwean economy is in the hands of small businesses, i.e. small farmers, small miners, small producers, small exporters and small marketers. All of these people combined form a big part of the economy.

The small to medium enterprises (SME) sector has grown to become one of the biggest employers in Zimbabwe, particularly at a time when employment within the formal sector has shrunk rapidly.

According to estimates from the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries, at least 70 percent of Zimbabwe's working population is employed in the informal sector. This figure could rise as more and more people are developing their entrepreneurial skills through vocational training so as to be able to venture into product-manufacturing businesses.

Two young men in Bulawayo have demonstrated that building a successful business enterprise does not require one to have a Masters in Business Administration or plenty of capital, but sheer determination and focus.
The two, Derrick Dube and Easy Kazeze both aged 24, have been running a successful artifacts business along the Bulawayo-Beitbridge road, one of the country's busiest highways.

What started off as a hobby for the two young men in their backyards has turned out to be a vibrant business enterprise, earning their families much-needed income. Made from a special type of reed grass, their household range of products e.g. bar stools, hanging chairs, ornaments etc which are in demand locally are now finding their way onto the export market.

My success is a result of hard work and determination after years of suffering. I could not get a job because I didn't have any qualifications, in the end a friend convinced me to venture into business and become my own employer, said Kazeze.

This was not the case for his business partner, Dube, who was retrenched from a brick-making firm three years ago, when the company streamlined its activities following a dip in the construction business. "I toiled for years, trying to find another job, but companies were not employing anymore".

"I never really thought I could do something for myself, starting a business was never in my mind. I loved art so much and during my spare time, I used to make small ornaments which I displayed in my home. I never thought, this could be a talent that I could explore and develop," said Dube. Now, with a monthly turnover of around Z$55 million, the business has given their families a lifeline.

What makes their business enjoy so much success is the uniqueness of their products and the artistic flair exhibited in their designs. "We receive a lot of orders from visitors to the country, this way our products have attracted a lot of foreign customers. We get orders from as far as South Africa, Zambia and Botswana, this has helped us a lot," added Dube.

The business has also received a lot of support from locals who order products in bulk for sale throughout the country. The business has enabled the owners to buy equipment such as welding machines and it has also generated employment for three youths. "Our wish now is to expand our business and diversify our product range, but to do that we need capital," said Kazeze.

This is one of the major hurdles faced by local entrepreneurs trying to develop their businesses. The majority of small businesses are hamstrung by a lack of adequate financing, particularly in the absence of collateral security.

Government has however promised that it will do everything in its power to nurture and grow the small to medium scale sector. It has so far this year allocated a total of $55.4 billion in loan facilities to support small to medium enterprises. More than 3000 jobs have been created and a further 2000 sustained.

Addressing mourners at the national heroes acre recently, President Mugabe said "apart from a revolving fund for SME"s, Government was determined to establish bigger markets for locally produced goods'. He said, in order to equip business owners with the requisite skills that would enable them operate effectively; training in various business management programs was in progress in all the country's provinces.