Category — Work From Home
How Much Debt is Safe for Businesses to Borrow?
So I’m still trying to get one of my businesses off the ground and I finally realized that I might need some capital investment (Play music-Dun Dun Duh)…The problem at hand: I hate debt. My original plan was to bootstrap but that will prove difficult while trying to pay for a wedding, honeymoon, and a new home for myself and my bride to be.
That being said, I finally talked myself into perhaps getting funding because, like all of us, we want our babies to be successful.
So how much debt is safe for businesses to borrow?
The long answer:
Finance for Entrepreneurs has a nice piece on this topic.
The short answer:
Borrow at least 25% less than they’ll give you.
-E
April 14, 2008 No Comments
The Greatest List Of Web Developer Resources
Some friends and I are finally starting the web development business that we have talked about since the first year of college. So during the past five years, I have done a lot of research on web development and now I have an extensive list of resources for web developers.
Well spring is in the air and it’s time to clean out those developer links that I have accumulated over the years.
So hear they are, I hope they are as useful to others as they have been to me.
General Web Developer Resources
A step-by-step guide to becoming a freelance web developer
Web developer Firefox extensions
Things that web developers should always do for clients
Fonts and Text
Preview fonts
Search Engine
Submit your sites to the major search engines
A Google Tech Talk about internet security
Google search tools collection
Colors
Tricks and Other Useful Information
Ways to hide an email on a webpage
Smart ways to redirect a webpage
htaccess - prevent hot linking your images
-E
Technorati Tags: Web, Developer, Reference, Tools
June 21, 2007 1 Comment
10 Stupid Business Ideas That Actually Made Millions
Over the past couple of years, I’ve noticed a trend of odd but legitimate businesses arise.
For instance, if I would have told my parents that for a living I wanted to sell pixels on a web page or create a million dollar brand with a catchy phrase and no products, I probably would have been institutionalized. Let these crazy stories prove to you that no idea is too unusual to profit from.
Bobble headed toys of famous characters and people
A unique way to notify your friends and family of a pregnancy
Those smiley faced antenna balls
Use your vacation to test out your unusual dream job
Creating unusual party hats for corporate events
A Record Company for musicians who play in subways
CPR dummies for practice on…Dogs?
Who ever thought an ecosystem in a bottle could be so profitable
Do not let anyone tell you that your business idea is stupid.
-E
Technorati Tags: Business Ideas, Stupid Business, Unusual Business, Unique Business, Online Business, Make Money Online
April 15, 2007 1 Comment
Things Entrepreneurs Can Do To Keep More Money
Starting your own business can be straining on your finances, especially if your used to living off of larger amounts of money, eat out often, or you just must have the latest and greatest of everything (cars, electronics, video game systems, whatever).
You can try getting rid of that pesky cable bill and replace that time with more productive things. Or you can just learn some simple money management techniques that will allow you to keep more of your hard-earned cash.
Readers Digest had an interesting article some of the things you could do to take control of your finances. Many of the tips can be translated over to aspiring entrepreneurs since finances are a very important part of starting a business (for yourself and the business).
From the article
“DO refinance your mortgage if your rate is more than two percent higher than current rates, and you have less than two years until maturity, says Aileen Pollock, a Toronto financial advisor. Check with your mortgage holder to determine the penalty for getting out of your deal…
“DO pay off your consumer debt before investing. It’s like earning a re-turn that equals the interest charged on your debt…
“DO pay yourself first. “That’s my most important rule,” says Alison Keene, a senior vice-president and managing director of BMO Nesbitt Burns in Calgary…”
Read the entire article at Reader’s Digest
-E
Technorati Tags: Money, Save Money, Keep More Money, Readers Digest, Pay Yourself, Entrepreneur, Finances, Bootstrapping
April 15, 2007 No Comments
The Best Advice For Young Entrepreneurs (Startup School Notes Roundup)
Although I have only attended the 1st semi-annual Startup School, I can honestly admit that the advice I received there is priceless. Below you will find summaries of the Startup Schools that have taken place so far. Guest speakers at these events include Steve Wozniak, Paul Graham, Chris Sacca, Chris Anderson, Tim O’Reilly, Om Malik, Mark Zuckerberg, Michael Mandel, and the list goes on. The advice you will receive will include Intellectual Property, C Corporation vs. S Corporation, best way to start a business, and how to strike business deals.
March 2007 Notes and Via Scribd
-E
The Amazing Blindfolded Pianist That Plays A Medley Of Mario Brothers Music. Truly Amazing Video!
Technorati Tags: startup school, y-combinator, Steve Wozniak, Paul Graham, Chris Sacca, Chris Anderson, Tim O’Reilly, Om Malik, Mark Zuckerberg, Michael Mandel, businessweek, harvard, silicon valley, young entrepreneurs, start a business
April 11, 2007 No Comments
How To Start Multiple Online Businesses
As the old saying goes, “don’t put all your eggs in one basket” (no Easter pun intended), is still true today with regards to making money online. The internet changes so fast that what may be a excellent income stream today, may be gone tomorrow with little notice. That is why I recommend using the following tips to grow your online business presence.
Think Simple. Simple ideas are, well, simpler, both to implement and maintain. Leave the big ones to the big guys. Take the new domain naming service CleverSiteNames.com, for instance. Simple idea, endless possibilities.
Take each idea, feature, and business step by step. As Tina Seelig says, “You can do it all, just not all at once.” Break down your problems and solve them bit by bit, not as a whole. Your results will come much quicker.
Automation is your friend. Automate anything that can be automated. Software like WordPress has gazillions of plug-ins - feel free to take advantage of them, in fact, feel like your getting the bad end of the stick if your not using them. It will save you time and frustration. This is especially true if you are running multiple popular websites and/or online businesses. There are only so many hours in the day. Wouldn’t you rather be spending time with family, doing a hobby, or starting another business anyway?
Traffic is King, but the content which dictates traffic is Queen. Its like the saying goes “getting initial customers is expensive, getting sustained customers is where the money is.” (I’m just full of sayings today!) The same rule is true on websites, even if you are not selling anything per se. Without great content, it is difficult to get anyone to return to your site more than once.
User driven and constantly changing sites give people a reason to return. I’m not talking about layout, though. Change that rarely or you will probably piss off a lot of people and prevent them from coming back. I’m talking about content. Update and add new content often. You may not notice immediate effects, but in the long run, your traffic is likely to expand as your content grows.
-E
Technorati Tags: Multiple, Online, Business, Traffic, User Driven, Content, Wordpress, CleverSiteNames.com, Domain Name, Naming, Easter, Simple, Automation, Simple Business Idea
April 6, 2007 No Comments