Small Business Marketing

There are two types of costs “direct” and “indirect.” Direct costs are also called “variable costs” and refer to costs that are a direct result of producing, delivering, or returning your product/service. Examples of these are materials and labor needed to produce/deliver the product that only occur once you sell the product, transactions costs like visa commissions, sometimes shipping charges, etc.

Indirect costs are also called “fixed costs” and refer to expenses that your business will have regardless of sales volume. Examples of ithese are rent, utilities, wages that are not based upon commission, interest expense, advertising, automobile, etc. The tricky aspect of these are that a cost may increase with increased sales, e.g. an increase in sales may require overtime or the addition of staff but the relationship is not direct.

A good tool for managing direct and indirect costs is to monitor the costs on your monthly income statement using percent of sales. Divide the cost by total sales.

Direct costs as a percent of sales will remain within a narrow margin, e.g. materials costs if 30% of sales at $1,000 sales then materials should be right around 30% at the $5,000 sales level. The actual dollar amount of materials used to produce more products will go up but as a percent of sales, it will remain close to 30%. What would lower the percent is if you got a better deal from your supplier.

Your indirect costs when monitored as a percent of sales will respond differently. For example, rent equaling $500 per month remains $500 per month even if your sales increase to $5,000. $500 divided by $1,000 in sales equals 50%. $500 divided by $5,000 in sales equals 10%. (It is that old math axiom in action here: A numerator divided into a larger denominator produces a smaller fraction.)

So why is this important? Knowing the difference between direct and indirect costs provides you with a couple of valuable management tools, break-even analysis, and your contribution margin. Break-even analysis is a handy management tool for quickly determining if a solution is feasible. Contribution margin is the remaining profit after direct costs are taken out of a sale. For example, if you sell a bookcase for $250 and it cost you $75 to make your contribution margin is $175 or 70%. The contribution pays for all the Fixed expenses/overhead.

A good way of organizing these costs is to put all the direct costs in the “Cost of Goods” section and the indirect costs in the expense area of your income statement. By doing this Gross Profit equals Contribution Margin and is automatically calculated for you.

Another reason to identify your direct costs is when bidding in a competitive environment. Ever wonder how your competitor beat you on a bid??

Imagine a situation where you know you have covered your overhead expenses for the month with normally bid projects. A quick project comes up for bid around the 15th of the month and you have a crew available to work on it. You figure it will be very competitive and if you use your usual estimating process on it you will not get the project. Since you have already covered all your expenses for the month and any margin above your direct costs is profit. Plus you have a crew that it would be better to have working on a project and being paid by a client versus cleaning the shop being paid by your profits. You decide to aggressively go after the project with a bid slightly above your direct costs.

By: Bruce D Hunter

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Working from home is a great way to earn an income while staying home with the kids and enjoying savings on gas, sitters, and inventory. You might even be considering your own home business. A home business can come in many shapes and forms. Let’s explore the different types of home based businesses and how you can start your own home business with minimal investment.

Start-Up Ideas

There are several ways to start a home business. You can sell tangible products and keep an inventory on-hand in a warehouse, storage building, or even in a spare room of your home. You can offer a service that requires no inventory, only skill. You can sell informational products online in the form of e-books, password training sites, or e-newsletters. Or, you can find a home business opportunity in which a company or individual provides a proven blueprint for success based on their research and experience.

Investment

No matter what type of home business you are considering, an initial investment will likely be required. If you plan to sell a tangible product, you will have to invest in inventory, website design, and marketing. If you offer a service, you will need a website or local marketing campaign to promote your services. If you plan to join a home business opportunity, many of these require a start-up investment if they’re legitimate.

The amount you invest should be based on what you can afford and how soon you feel it will return a profit. Don’t over-estimate the potential of a business. It’s best to expect less at the start, and rejoice later if the home business exceeds your expectations. What works quickly for one person might take much longer for you.

Consider your experience in the field and how well you understand marketing and promotion. Is it possible to start small with this endeavor until you see a profit on your bottom line? An investment that doesn’t bring profits is lost forever. Think it through before taking a leap with your money.

Ups and Downs of an Internet Business

If you’re a newbie on the Internet, it will take time to learn all the ins and outs of online marketing. The Internet is a great marketplace and provides many opportunities to earn money, but it’s also a very competitive market. It has grown so large that popular products and services can be difficult to promote. Explore niche markets to find popular products or services that few companies are offering. Use the search engines to find out how many companies are offering the service or products. Then, be sure there is a demand for what you plan to offer. A small demand online can still mean thousands of potential customers!

The good news is you can start an Internet home business fairly cheaply. Websites, once designed, can be hosted for very low monthly fees. You don’t have to pay rent for a building or high utility bills. You’ll avoid landscaping costs, heavy equipment maintenance (except your computer), and sometimes even high local taxes.

Learn from Others

If you’re uncertain about how to get started with an Internet business, find a home based business opportunity that offers detailed instructions on how to promote and earn profits. Many gurus have found business formulas that work well and they are willing to share these with you.

There are websites that research home businesses to find lucrative opportunities, and you can usually try their offerings for a minimal investment. You might be surprised at how simple it is to start your own home business online.

By: Chris Robertson

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Debt management solutions exist because people find themselves in debts that seem overwhelming and very difficult to tackle. The best and most cost effective debt management solutions can be developed without much expenditure. In order to make a strategy, debtors can either plan it with the help of a professional or by themselves. Depending on the size of debt, debtors need to create a plan by determining the exact amount of money that is spent on essentials and non-essentials. This helps to discriminate between necessary and unnecessary spending habits, which debtors can avoid.

A self-managed effective debt management solution starts with calculating the total amount of debt. This gives the debtors a precise idea of the amount they owe to the creditors. Now they can analyze the total household income and expenses incurred every month. Next, all the unnecessary expenses need to be eliminated and a limit ought to be put on the amount spent on luxuries.

Debtors can also take help from professional services that can present a debt management plan as part of their debt management solution. The main focus of most debt management solutions provided by these professionals is to reduce the interest rates on the debts. This is considered necessary as a major portion of the periodic payment is applied to the interest and not to the principal. Usually, consolidation is the option suggested by the debt management solution providers, as it converts the debts into a single affordable payment.

These debt management services usually negotiate with the creditors on behalf of their customers. They find out the amount that the customer can pay per month and then negotiate with the creditors for lower monthly payments. However, they do not negotiate the manner in which it will be reported to the credit bureaus, which could have an adverse effect on the credit rating. Therefore, besides negotiating for the payments, it is also important to negotiate for the type of report the creditors will send to the credit bureaus.

Debt management solutions depend on the seriousness and the size of debt accumulated by the debtors. By taking into consideration all the factors, a workable solution can be found.

By: Elizabeth Morgan

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When people decide to borrow money, it is never with the intention of getting into serious debt. But paying back the money that was borrowed doesn’t always work out quite how you might have been expecting it would when opening the line of credit in the first place. Even well intentioned debt management plans aren’t always successful.

The truth is that even some people with great financial management skills wind up having overwhelming amounts of debt. Of course, problems with debt can be blamed on poor planning as well. Debt management is not always successful for the following reasons:

1. Jobs get lost. Due to outsourcing and downsizing on mass levels by large companies, many people have found themselves suddenly jobless. Such an unexpected change financially can cause serious money problems, including the inability to pay off debt.

2. Financial problems can be related to health problems. A host of debilitating illnesses can leave their victims without the ability to work, as do many accidents. Because of having medical expenses but not having an income, putting money towards the elimination of debt on a monthly basis becomes very difficult to arrange.

3. Unexpected occurrences bring unexpected expenses. Despite careful budgeting, expenses that were never planned on can arise and leave you incapable of paying for monthly bills. Some common examples of such unexpected expenses are property damage caused by catastrophic weather events, appliances that just stop working, and pricey car repairs. These and other similar things can greatly affect your ability to work at eradicating debt.

4. Not saving enough. While not all financial woes can be completely avoided, they can indeed be made easier to deal with by being able to rely on savings to help in the case of an emergency. Sadly, many people do not see the importance of adding monthly savings to a budget. Doing so, however, is essential to successful management of debt.

Problems that cause initial debt can have a similar effect on individuals that are trying to get out of debt that has already piled up to uncontrollable levels. Debt consolidation can make such precarious situations more manageable. In the end, even consolidation is not always enough, and bankruptcy must be filed for by some.

Stopping debt from getting out of hand is the most effective form of successful debt management. Saving money for expenses that were not expected is certainly beneficial, and a financial reorganization can help if savings alone are not enough. Although regaining control over your financial situation might not be the simplest thing to do, the benefits you get from doing so are well worth the effort.

By: Michael Geoffrey

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Debt Management

It is not wrong to say that many people have a lot of debt. Many people in the modern world are faced with the problem of paying off their debt. Considering that the prices of goods and commodities are increasing and the average salary of workers is not keeping pace, it really is safe to assume that many people are struggling to pay off debt. Therefore, these people should weigh their options and consider getting debt relief consolidation.

To most people, it is very difficult to pay the minimum monthly payment for their bills. One option to consider is a consolidation loan such as a home equity loan. The main advantage of this kind of loan is that it gathers all the high interest rate debts and turns them into a single low interest payment. These loans, which are of low interest, are given to those who have low credit scores. In the end, they can save more money in every monthly payment.

Another great advantage of this kind of loan is that the interest that people pay on the loan can be used as a tax write-off. It’s like killing two birds with one stone. Since you save money on your interest payments., this is a good reason to get a consolidation loan.

Now, for other people who don’t have their own homes, they can get credit counseling for their debt relief consolidation. The counselors can give out advice on how to resolve your credit situation. They can also represent you in negotiations with loan companies and may assist in helping you get a reduction on interest rates for your loan. So, if ever you need help in your credit situation, then a good credit counselor would be indispensable.

People should consider all the options available for debt relief consolidation before making up their mind. For people who want to reduce their debt, debt relief consolidation is the right step towards their goal. A well thought-out program can help them get back on track as well as help them practice ways on how to control their spending while increasing their savings and most importantly, reducing their debt.

By: Elanora T. Kelly

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Debt Consolidation

What business & personal finance advice do you wish had been taught to you when you were at school? Isn’t the purpose of education to prepare children for the real world?

I believe that all children should learn basic business & personal finance skills from the age of twelve to sixteen years. Why not teach children how mortgages and pensions work. Everybody needs a place to live and if they have a long life they will need to retire one day.

Schools should teach their students how to manage credit card debts. They should be taught how credit card companies make their money by charging extortionate amounts of interest far higher than a personal loan to people that pay late.

Students should learn how to negotiate and barter. After all they are going to be doing this every day for the rest of their lives. What about learning the difference between mark up and profit margin?

Learning how to handle money would be the best compulsory course at school. If you add a class like “Business & Personal Finance” and make it standard for all children then what subject would you remove or do less off?

I had a period a day of Latin. This has been pretty much useless in my life. Has anybody benefited from learning Latin? I read about the Greek gods, translated old books and I have to admit that after doing it for over 4 years, I only remember a handful of phrases now.

How many of you remember sweating over stuff like Algebra and Trigonometry? Has this been useful to you in life? Surely this does not need to be taught in such detail to every child & only needs to be taught to budding scientists and mathematicians?

I had art classes. Where they really necessary? I was also taught how to knit and dance? What was the point of that? What about religious education? Shouldn’t this type of stuff be taught in Sunday school? Should this subject really be taught in school at all?

I am not advocating that we remove these subjects completely. As you can see it would be really easy to teach slightly less of some other subjects to make space for one period a day of Business & Personal Finance for all older children.

Would this benefit the UK economy? I am sure it would. Imagine students leaving school having basic understanding of fixed and variable interest rate mortgages. They would have learnt how to manage their bank account and check their bank statements. Wouldn’t it be great if they knew how to calculate gross / nett profit margins and compare one investment with another?

Many people will make the argument that this information should be taught by parents and not by school teachers. The problem is that many parents themselves do not understand basic concepts of personal finance! Some view their own personal finances as a private matter that should not even be discussed in front of the children.

What subjects do you think they should teach more of and which subjects should they teach less of to make room?

By: Nazir Daud

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