Management and Leaderships
This week I learned a great deal about the difference between managers and Leaders. But, they are the same thing you say. Not so. If you have heard the story of the shepherd and the sheep herder you may know where I'm going with this. You may know plenty of managers, they may even be great at their jobs, but they will only ever be just a manager. A leader inspires and is loved by their subordinates. Just like the sheepherder who knows his flock, a leader takes time to understand his subordinates. A managers objectives are centered on themselves and the company, a leader is focused on the company as well but meets that end by focusing on the people.
$100 Challenge Update
This week I was able to finish one of my projects I had set out to do. I made the solar cell phone charger and wrote up a how-to article on it last night. It's been up for 24 hours and it has seen 1,664 (scratch that, make it 1,674 now) visitors, and has received 87 favorites by it's viewers. It has 24 affiliate links incorporated into the instructions so I'm hoping it performs well. The link stats won't show up for another day or two so we shall soon see how it is performing. I posted it to four groups on facebook, and pinned it to pinterest. I could take it a step further by making a youtube video for further marketing efforts. Time will tell if this will prove to be a great performer. I expect it will earn a little at first, but will eventually flat line after the hype dies down.
Saturday, February 28, 2015
Saturday, February 21, 2015
Week 6 Entrepreneur Journal Update
Customer Focus
This week was all about customer focus. Smart business is good business. Smart business means doing less for more. Keeping customers is far easier than finding new ones, and the financial rewards are up to five times greater. To do this you must know who your customers are and target those customers according to what they want. As you hit this target consistently you will retain more and more of your customers and profits will continue to rise. Finding out your customers wants can be as simple as asking them. "What is it we can do better?" "How much would you pay for this product or this service?" "Why did we lose your business?" Find out what it is your customers want, and hit that target.
$100 Challenge
This week I purchased materials for the portable cell phone charger which I hope to be getting next week. I have written up instructions and just need to get the materials to build it. I am nearly finished with another project that has taken some time, "Self Watering Bottle Planter." The instructions are written, it has been built, and nearly all the pictures are up. I started this one three weeks ago, and just need to wait for the plant to grow. It sprouted a couple of days ago so I will give it another couple of weeks to finish up. Next week I also plan on starting "How to Build a Survival Crossbow." I'm expecting this will be a big one and am excited to get started on it.
This week was all about customer focus. Smart business is good business. Smart business means doing less for more. Keeping customers is far easier than finding new ones, and the financial rewards are up to five times greater. To do this you must know who your customers are and target those customers according to what they want. As you hit this target consistently you will retain more and more of your customers and profits will continue to rise. Finding out your customers wants can be as simple as asking them. "What is it we can do better?" "How much would you pay for this product or this service?" "Why did we lose your business?" Find out what it is your customers want, and hit that target.
$100 Challenge
This week I purchased materials for the portable cell phone charger which I hope to be getting next week. I have written up instructions and just need to get the materials to build it. I am nearly finished with another project that has taken some time, "Self Watering Bottle Planter." The instructions are written, it has been built, and nearly all the pictures are up. I started this one three weeks ago, and just need to wait for the plant to grow. It sprouted a couple of days ago so I will give it another couple of weeks to finish up. Next week I also plan on starting "How to Build a Survival Crossbow." I'm expecting this will be a big one and am excited to get started on it.
Saturday, February 14, 2015
Week 5 update
It's week 5, and it was a rough one for me. I'm being faced with the possibility of losing my job, and we are in the process of closing on a home. I know, great combination right! This might just be the catalyst I need to launch my own startup; who knows, this could be a good thing! Ok, enough about me. This week I learned a ton about marketing.
One of the most important things we can do in marketing is first obtain the customer, but then hold on to them. It's said that it costs five times more to acquire a new customer than it does to keep one. Having a loyal customer base will be one of the most important things in business because it is more of a reliable source of sales/income.
Building a loyal customer base requires relationship marketing. It is similar to building a long term relationship. First you get them interested. You do this by branding towards your target market and standing out from the competition. Once you acquire a customer you can build on the relationship by getting to know them better and by building a relationship of trust. You can get to know them by finding more about what they are looking for, and what is important to them. This could be as simple as friendly service, or something unique like knowing specifically what they want how they want it and by whom. It all depends on the customer. You build a relationship of trust by consistently meeting their needs. As you do this they will feel more comfortable with your business, and will be loyal to the customer business relationship. They will be more willing to spend more simply because they trust and enjoy your business.
$100 Challenge Update
This week I made $42 in advertising fees after releasing "Light Box Photo Studio." It's a how-to instructable showing you how to make a small photo studio for less then $20. It contains only three affiliate links, but seems to be doing alright. It has already earned more than 200% the cost of the project. I'm sure it will flatline, but it will continue to produce results even if it is small. That's the joy of affiliate marketing. If you can create rich content, it will work for you 24/7 with only a small amount of effort. So far I'm really enjoying it.
With the money I'm going to use some of that to fund other projects. March will be a big month for production and milking the cow as everything I bring in after a certain point will go towards my KIVA recipient.
One of the most important things we can do in marketing is first obtain the customer, but then hold on to them. It's said that it costs five times more to acquire a new customer than it does to keep one. Having a loyal customer base will be one of the most important things in business because it is more of a reliable source of sales/income.
Building a loyal customer base requires relationship marketing. It is similar to building a long term relationship. First you get them interested. You do this by branding towards your target market and standing out from the competition. Once you acquire a customer you can build on the relationship by getting to know them better and by building a relationship of trust. You can get to know them by finding more about what they are looking for, and what is important to them. This could be as simple as friendly service, or something unique like knowing specifically what they want how they want it and by whom. It all depends on the customer. You build a relationship of trust by consistently meeting their needs. As you do this they will feel more comfortable with your business, and will be loyal to the customer business relationship. They will be more willing to spend more simply because they trust and enjoy your business.
$100 Challenge Update
This week I made $42 in advertising fees after releasing "Light Box Photo Studio." It's a how-to instructable showing you how to make a small photo studio for less then $20. It contains only three affiliate links, but seems to be doing alright. It has already earned more than 200% the cost of the project. I'm sure it will flatline, but it will continue to produce results even if it is small. That's the joy of affiliate marketing. If you can create rich content, it will work for you 24/7 with only a small amount of effort. So far I'm really enjoying it.
With the money I'm going to use some of that to fund other projects. March will be a big month for production and milking the cow as everything I bring in after a certain point will go towards my KIVA recipient.
Saturday, February 7, 2015
Week 4 Journal
This week was all about budgeting. Budgeting is a crucial element in personal and business life. Without knowing your budget you will likely overspend, miss opportunities for growth, and likely fail. The budgeting plan should be a year out and be made based on good forecasts and understanding the assumptions. It's crucial to understand your companies costs, whether they are variable or fixed. Variable costs are especially important to consider because they can change (hopefully shrinking). When the costs change your opportunities change. You could come upon a great opportunity for growth, or a problem that needs looking into. Without watching these shifting variables you may miss a chance for improvement.
Friday, February 6, 2015
$100 challenge update part 4
This week I took some time to go through my instrucables.com posts and edited all of my articles. I embedded affiliate links with hopes that they will bring in traffic and revenue. So far my 14 instructables, as they call it, are getting 180 visitors a day. In the past five days my links have gotten 28 clicks, and six orders for a conversion rate of 21.43%. That's not all that impressive, but I haven't yet released my first project for this challenge either. This is solely based on past projects that are now flat lining.
I'm still waiting for a few parts to arrive in the mail, and then the real fun begins. Since the parts haven't gotten here this week I will have to catch up next week.
I'm still waiting for a few parts to arrive in the mail, and then the real fun begins. Since the parts haven't gotten here this week I will have to catch up next week.
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