Entrepreneurs Archives - BOLLYWOOD SURKHIYAN

Could Celebrities Be Cutting-Edge Marketers – Leading Online Business Entrepreneurs?

“Where is The Future of Online Business –

Could Celebrities be showing mainstream business the way?”

Have Your Competitors ‘Caught On” and already Talking to Your Customers in this latest marketing evolution for Web Success? (And are they doing it Auto-matically and VERY Cheaply!) SO MANY Crucial Questions to answer… please read on.

The following Report is the Cover Story for “Australian Business Solutions” magazine“

YOU WILL DISCOVER HOW CELEBRITY MARKETING STYLES ONLINE LEAD ‘AUDIENCES’ TO WANT TO BUY RATHER THAN THE CONVENTIONAL BUSINESS APPROACH OF SELLING AND CLOSING. YOU WILL DISCOVER VALUABE, IN FACT ESSENTIAL INSIGHTS AND IDEAS THAT EVERY MARKETER, ENTREPRENEUR AND BUSINESS OWNER MUST NOW EMBRACE!”

(WARNING: THIS REPORT MAY FRIGHTEN YOU… IT WILL DEFINITELY ENLIGHTEN YOU!)

There is a buzz around on the television news, radio, in the print media, at business networking groups and meetings and especially on the internet right now. There seems to be a shift of focus for how people look for products and services and then decide how they spend their money.

In terms of influence and power, the new way people search for products and services and make their buying decisions online could even rival the search engines. And it’s been said that this buzz could be the single biggest thing to happen in business since the industrial revolution!

Sounds over the top, but is there enough evidence (for you) to be a part of it too? And is this buzz a fad or could it be here to stay?

If you’ve watched TV news or listened to radio or brought a newspaper in the past 2-3 years, you will have noticed references to websites in both stories and advertising, where you can find out more – including how to get more information about a product or service and/or how to buy instructions. In more recent times nearly every news presenter, TV show host, journalist and celebrity are also promoting how you can ‘follow’ their lives, interests and activities online too – and it all seems to be centred around websites such as Facebook.com, Twitter.com, YouTube.com, Digg.com and more, collectively known as Social Engines.

Celebrities are using these sites to raise their profile, build their brand and most importantly, solidify their popularity and [hopefully] longevity in their profession and industry. AND, these sites enable their audience (loyal army of fans) to talk directly back to them. And this is at the heart of the buzz and current shift – and why it’s so very important you read on and learn more.

On the Social Engine Twitter.com, Ashton Kutcher and Ellen Degeneres have more followers (fans) than the entire populations of Ireland, Norway and Panama. Their brand awareness and popularity building is personal, although as that increases, so too does their value to corporations looking for product endorsements to drive their market penetration and increase their market share.

Sporting stars like celebrities have broadened their talent base too, becoming more entrepreneurial and business savvy, seeing their name, brand and product value increase, in many cases, to a higher income level than the actual core sporting talent. In other words, acting, playing a sport, being a comedienne or whatever is their core talent is no longer their only talent. They have embraced the concept of brand building (and protection), marketplace communications and conversations – opting for direct contact via sources like online Social Engines. Here they can touch far more people quicker and easier than say a traditional autograph signing exercise.

A true business woman, leader and entrepreneur, celebrity Oprah Winfrey instantly connects and updates a loyal army of over 2 million+ people that follow her on Twitter. Her power and influence is no surprise or revolution in itself, but her army of followers are able to directly provide instant feedback and ideas to her too -and marketplace feedback is a life blood to your business growth and long term sustainability. (Try ignoring it and see where your business goes.) Everyone wants to be heard and Social Engines give you, your business and your customers a voice.

A loyal army of followers can also provide a viral effect to disseminate information quickly too, meaning they can ‘spread the word for you’ if you ask them to – this can be particularly useful if you want to spread good news and conversely if your brand comes under attack via other mainstream media mechanisms or on the Social Engines themself.

Although it might be hard to fathom, could celebrity entrepreneurs like these be showing more traditional businesses how to connect, behave, build our brand, increase our marketplace value and build our business too using these Social Engines?

Is this a valid idea and model for mainstream business or not?

Firstly, the power of Social Engines extends far beyond Twitter.com alone. Some of the other leading Social Engine sites sprout some pretty impressive visitor and member statistics, as well as services.

Facebook.com – If it was a country rather than a website, it would be the world’s 3rd largest after China and India.

On Facebook there are more than 250 million active users and more than 120 million of them log on to Facebook at least once each day and more than 5 billion minutes are spent on Facebook each day (worldwide). The fastest growing demographic is 35 years old and older and within that, the fastest growing segment is 55-65 year-old females. Do people 35+ and women influence the buying decision for your products and services? This is worthy of your attention.

And there’s more… more than 1 billion pieces of content (web links, news stories, blog posts, notes, photos, etc.) are shared each week on Facebook alone and more than 2.5 million events are created and advertised each month. More than 45 million active user groups exist on the site and more than 50 language translations of that content are available on the site. The people supplying all this content include business owners and professionals, some of whom are surely in your industry and probably your competitors. And if you think because you’re a localised business that this doesn’t count, you’ll find this statistic most enlightening- 70% of Facebook users are outside the United States.

All of those statistics are just for Facebook alone (source Facebook.com/press/statistics).

You can also purchase Pay Per Click and Pay Per Impression advertising on Facebook (and other Social Engines). They take your spend to a whole new level of value and ROI with their member data allowing you to display your adverts for keywords AND additional, specific demographics of the member base. For example you can display your advertising message to women, 55+ in Melbourne who are single. You can even target people specifically on their birthday with a relevant offer.

YouTube.com – take a look at YouTube (which is owned by Google for good reason) – People are watching hundreds of millions of videos a day on YouTube and uploading hundreds of thousands of videos daily. In fact, every minute, ten hours of video is uploaded to YouTube -including promotional videos, education, product consumption/direction videos and client testimonials for business. Plus every video you add to YouTube includes a spot on the webpage where you can put a link back to your website. PLUS you can add these videos to your blog posts, making them more interesting to your blog readers on other Social Engines too (more about blogs in a moment).

YouTube’s user base is broad in age range, 18-55, evenly divided between males and females, and spanning all geographies. Fifty-one percent of users go to YouTube weekly or more often, and 52 percent of 18-34 year-olds share videos often with friends and colleagues.

And could this be the good reason Google brought YouTube? It’s the 2nd largest search engine in the world today, 2nd only to Google.com. If you want to connect with your marketplace on volume, this is worthy of your attention.

Twitter.com – let’s take a statistical look at that quickly too. Twitter’s footprint has expanded impressively in the first half of 2009, reaching 10.7 percent of all active Internet users in June with 83.1% of users over the age of 25. In July 2009, the Twitter website recorded 23,284,395 unique visitors – who else wants to be ‘front-of-mind’ to an audience of that size? Does your target market include people 25+? This is worthy of your attention.

Twitter has been described as the “Pulse of the Planet” given its instant, viral spread-the-word-to-the-world-instantly nature. It has boosted box office numbers and it’s killed them too, just ask the makers of the movie “Bruno” – overnight ticket sales dropped by more than half thanks to the frank and instant feedback from those that had just seen it. It was so quick too because 80% of Twitter usage is on mobile devices. People update anywhere, anytime – imagine what that means for bad customer experiences and you!

Do you let your customers walk away with a bad experience, only to stand out the front of your store or hang up the phone and blast their frustration and disappointment to hundreds, thousands maybe millions of people -in the ‘heat of the moment’?

The true power of Social Engines is not to be feared, it is to be embraced and when done well, you can influence large numbers of people in the ways you want them to know and represent you. This is worthy of your attention.

Understanding the nature of Social Engine participation is important and the question to answer is – What are people doing on these Social Engines? They are looking for ideas, insights, invites, offers, information, inspiration and conversation.

Savvy business owners, entrepreneurs and professionals are providing it all to them and at the same time, in a more passive or softer way than conventional advertising, promoting their business, building their reputation and ultimately getting more leads and customers to their web sites. These business owners, entrepreneurs and professionals are using resources within services like Facebook that include a Personal Profile Page, Business and Product Pages, Fan Clubs, Groups, Time-sensitive Events/Promotions, Classified Advertising (PPC) and more… and the really smart ones are sharing content direct from their website blog feed too (more about that in a moment).

Then there are sites like LinkedIn, a professional social network and directory of business owners and professionals who can communicate quickly and easily with one another. In a 2009 survey, 80% of businesses and companies who are members were using LinkedIn as a primary recruitment tool to find new employees. This is worthy of your attention.

On these Social Engines, people can say what they want about you and it’s uncensored. What do you do about it? Ignore it and hope the customers and prospects that really matter to you don’t see it? Should you take a proactive approach and start by monitoring what’s been said about you and then start providing your brand of information, insights, ideas and inspiration to your marketplace and control the information flow you want through them?

We are living in an era now where what happens in Vegas goes ON and STAYS ON YouTube, Flickr, Twitter, Facebook and more.

“Because of the speed in which social media enables communication, WORD of mouth has become WORLD of mouth.”

Love them or hate them, social engines are here to stay simply because ‘the people’ love them and trust others on them. Facebook and MySpace are among the most popular destinations on the web. And even though they can be extremely annoying, there is one inescapable fact: the most irritating thing about Facebook is the 200m-strong army of people who use it.

And here’s the final enlightening point- Social Engine participation has overtaken pornography as the #1 activity on the Web.

SO Do you get involved or not? And if so, how do you do it easily and cheaply but still ‘play the game’ like a Celebrity with a 2m+ loyal army of followers?

The reality is that even if you’re not involved, your customers and prospects AND competitors probably are – and they’re talking to one another, perhaps about you and without you so the sooner you start, the better chance you have to becoming both a part of the conversation and then lead it.

The answer for businesses, entrepreneurs and professionals is automation – this is the single biggest break-through strategy and tactic that very few people have worked out, including many larger corporations who are successfully using Social Engines but they are not leveraged with automation, also known as things happening ‘auto-magically‘.

In many cases, businesses are employing specialist online staff on top of web masters and advertising/SEO experts. With automation, you can do a whole lot for very little extra time and virtually no money.

HOW DOES IT ALL WORK?

At its essence or core are six words that will transform the way you generate leads and make repeat sales online – those words are YOUR WEBLOG FEED PLUS SOCIAL ENGINES.

A Weblog or blog as it’s more commonly known is a type of website or part of an existing website that allows you to add content as blog posts or articles and display them on your website – content like information, ideas, insights, offers, news, invites, images and more and you can create blog posts quickly and easily without ever needing to get a webmaster to do it for you.

There are over 200,000,000 Blogs online today and that number grows every day. Again, not all blogs and blog owners are equal, many are neglecting to include automation and leverage and integration with Social Engines so there are many nay-sayers about blogging, but that attitude is changing as more people are enlightened.

A Feed or RSS Feed as it’s more commonly known will distribute your blog posts well beyond just displaying them on your website. Feeds permit subscription to regular updates of your blog posts, delivered ‘auto-magically‘ via a web portal, news reader, or in some cases good old email. Feeds also make it possible for your content (information) to be packaged into “widgets,” “gadgets,” mobile devices, and other technologies as shortened or full length messages, which Social Engines happen to LOVE. Your Feed makes it possible to display blog posts just about anywhere on the web or web connected device and most importantly directly to the millions of people online every day.

That means a Blog with an RSS Feed can ‘auto-magically‘ distribute information you create about you, your business, your products and your services quickly and easily across thousands of sites on the web. And you only have to create your pieces of content once!

A blog is a powerful code (invisible to the human, non-techie eye) and every time you add content to an existing or new blog post, like you would add content to a word document, it is distributed around the web in seconds and is fed directly into the biggest marketplaces and communities of people online every day.

What makes a blog with a feed even more powerful is that it reaches the biggest sources of people (leads) online – who by the way are not just using Search Engines anymore to find out about products and services, they are also using the “Social Engines”. PLUS your Blog Feed can also ‘auto-magically‘ update Google and Yahoo about your site too, so you still stay connected with the Search Engines for no more extra work, or money.

Now if you’re anything like me, when I first heard about these Social Engines, I dismissed them as not being a viable business and marketing channel because they appeared to be for personal networking and friendship (and they are indeed used for those reasons). Whilst many businesses, entrepreneurs and professionals are using these engines and winning new business – only a handful are doing it easily and quickly, because most of them do not know about the power of connecting your Weblog RSS Feed and how it fits in with using Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Digg and hundreds more Social Engines.

In my own experience, I was wrong to not get involved with Blogs and Social Engines sooner (like many business owners and professional managers still are) as my competitors began to build an edge I did not have with my marketplace, simply because I did not understand and connect these two key points about connecting your blog directly to Social Engines. If you want to find new customers quickly and easily and build better sales from existing customers:

Your website must be a Blog with a Feed and/or include one as part of your website
Your online marketing mix and strategy must include sharing your blog post information with people on Social Engines like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Digg etc.

And here’s why…

Your competitors have possibly already figured out that social engines are where they can connect with people who include your customers and potential customers because the Social Engines are where your customers and potential customers are going online – and they’re going to these Engines regularly and for long periods of time. And people are making buying decisions based on the conversation they are having and the feedback they are hearing.

Even if you [believe you] have no competition, you’re not connecting with your marketplace as directly and as easily as you can, if you are not using the true power of Social Engines. These online sources or marketplaces attract people 24/7/365, who stay for a while each time. How could you NOT promote you, your business and your products and services there?

Every time you add content to your blog, it is circulated out to many Social Engines, once you set up a FREE account with them… people at these Engines who have an interest in what your business offers then come to your website to find out more.

Here’s an example of how your website Blog, its Feed and these Social Engines work together. (Note this diagram also includes the two largest Search engines -let’s not forget them. Using your Blog and RSS Feed, you can ‘auto-magically’ update them too.)

At the centre of this relationship are your website blog and its RSS Feed. Every time you add content to your blog, the Feed distributes it out to the Social and Search Engines with a link back to your website. People on the Social Engines instantly see a summary of your blog post and a link back to your blog/website. If they are interested in you, they click on the link and follow it back to your website to find out more about you and move forward with you.

“Although we like to feed information to the Search Engines for free listings, the Social Engines outperform them in providing INSTANT, FREE traffic (people) to your website… meaning Social Engines host millions of people live online at any given time who are exposed to your blog post instantly… and not only will they follow your link back to your blog/website if they are interested, they also have the power to make your Feed ‘viral’ – voluntarily passing it on to their friends who in turn pass it on… and so on.

The Social Engines and the people on them help you grow your prospect and customer base quickly, easily and cheaply – you can’t get any cheaper than free!”

The Social Engines are places where people go to and stay at; whereas Search Engines are places people only pass through ‘in search of’ a final site destination. This is the major difference and the significant extra power you’re missing out on if you are not involving your business in the Social Engines. Remember though, the Blog Feed is vital to ensuring your participation is mostly ‘auto-magic’ otherwise participating in them could over run your day, your week and your life!

The Blog Feed allows you to ‘auto-magically‘ update the Social Engines, minimizing the ‘air time’ you personally allocate to this.

So, who’s already taking this seriously and using Social Engines as a powerful, quick, cheap and easy tool and media to generate free leads quickly too?

Firstly, no matter your business, products and services, you’ll find prospects and possibly existing clients already participating in these sites on a regular basis. You are bound to find your competitors there too, it makes good business sense to be present on an Engine where millions of people congregate, converse and seek out people with the products and services they require – someone in your industry is probably joining them and being ‘front-of-mind’ and it should be you.

Everyone that gets it commits to it. These world-wide companies, brands and industry leaders have dedicated resources to connect and cultivate relationships with prospects and clients on the Social Engines with reportable, measurable results:

Motor Vehicle Industry: Chevrolet, Ford, General Motors, Honda

Travel and Tourism Industry: JetBlue, Southwest Airlines, Luxor Las Vegas, Marriott International Hotels and Resorts, Carnival Cruise Lines, Hertz Car Hire

Sporting Teams: Chicago Bulls, Detroit Pistons, Portland Trail Blazers, San Diego Chargers

Entertainment: 92Y, The Travel Channel, ComCast, Marvel Entertainment, Direct TV, Pop Caps, TV Guide

Finance: Wachovia, H&R Block, Intuit

Retail: Best Buy, The Home Depot, American Apparel, Rubbermaid, Whole Foods, Zappos.com

Food and Beverage: Starbucks, Burger King, Dunkin Donuts, Popeye’s Chicken, Tastidlite, Kraft Foods (see Vegemite Case Study below)

Other Global brands: Dell Computers, EMC and Kodak – all benefitting by directly connecting with their target marketplace – whether that’s existing customers and/or potential customers.

Case Study:

Kraft Foods have taken an interesting Corporation-Consumer collaborative approach to product promotion and development using Social Engines. Here’s what they say about their social engine strategy:

For many of our strong brands such as Vegemite – we acknowledged that we are simply (proud) brand custodians and that the brand is owned by ‘the people’. We focused our first two years of social engine participation on simply listening and asking questions.

Two of these questions were:

How do you individually like your Vegemite?
If there ever was to be a Vegemite variation what would this be?

Recently Kraft launched their latest product “Name me” a vegemite plus cream cheese experience. Here’s how they are using Social Engines to develop it.

“This is a work in progress; we spent two years listening and now with the product on shelves the Kraft Communications team is engaging with Vegemite loyalists and cynics alike on the 12 top social engines. They are engaging and getting samples out on and off line- and encouraging debate on the new products. There are a number of Facebook groups sitting in the following camps: pro original, pro new flavour and anti new flavour.”

This is just one way Social Engines are helping businesses already to grow brand, product and corporate awareness. There are many other ways to use it too that can and do lead to direct and immediate sales. No matter the size of your business and marketplace, Social Engines, like the internet at large give you a level playing field with industry leaders like Kraft Foods and the others mentioned here.

Your website with a blog and feed will provide regular content to the Social Engines ‘auto-magically’. You need to support that by also visiting the main Social Engines and engaging people on a weekly basis, as it forms part of your marketing, CRM and all the other pay-offs mentioned previously.

Adding content regularly to your Blog Feed, ‘auto-magically‘ keeps you in touch and front of mind to millions of people around the world, on the Social Engines (and Search Engines) so they can access your business, products and services quickly and easily.

The buzz appears to be more than a fad so for your business it becomes not a question of ‘if’ these Social Engines are going to be a valuable marketing tool for business. Rather, the question now is:

“How quickly will you get your business on the Social Engines

… to Capture Your Competitors Clients too?”

HOW TO GET STARTED

Here’s a checklist to help you get started with your new, exciting and FREE Social Engine Strategy:

1) Get a Blog website with a domain name of your choice OR if you already have a website, get a new sub domain or folder added called blog

2) Open an account with at Google, Feedburner, Yahoo, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Digg, and LinkedIn.

3) Install an RSS Blog Feed and set up a Pinging list on it then add your Blog feed to the Search and Social Engine accounts you created in the step above.

4) Create content-rich education videos that can be added to your YouTube account and your Blog – that is then ‘auto-magically‘ added to your Search and Social Engine accounts.

5) Actively participate in or create new Facebook Groups, Events and Pages.

6) Make promotional videos about you, your business, your products, how you help and support people and upload them to your YouTube Channel then add them to your blog posts.

To really make this all work well for you, you need to know there is a big secret in succeeding with growing your business using Social Engines. You’ve read this far, so here it is: Social Engine success rest largely with you getting to grips with:

Being a ‘face’ of your business and allowing people to connect with your ‘authenticity’ as a person ahead of a product, and
the need to ‘listen’ to your marketplace, innovate with change to meet their ever-changing needs and then share information that will help them, rather than push product.

Millions of dollars are spent monthly with pay per click advertising on these sites and more millions are paid to ‘search engine specialists’ who supposedly help you reach number 1 ranking on keywords relevant to your business. It’s a fierce fight between serious players for top spots on search engines, both free and paid listings. An entire industry is built on it and around it. But you now know how to become a leader in your industry on the most powerful Social (and Search) Engines online today and how to do it Quickly, Cheaply, Easily and Auto-Magically.

In some cases, target market demographics may not be using Social Engines; therefore it would not be worthwhile. Consider these statistics when making your evaluation:

78% of consumers trust peer recommendations. Do you rely on 3rd party endorsements to build buyer confidence? If this is not a necessary part of your marketing and sale process, you may be able to ignore Social Engine Marketing.

Successful companies in social media act more like Dale Carnegie and less like David Ogilvy – Listening first, selling second. Would your competitors be prepared to connect and listen to your prospects and customers directly to discover what they want, and then give it to them? If not, then you may be able to ignore Social Engine Marketing… and least for a little while.

The worst part is the first part. When you start, your ‘following’ could be small but that is far better than not monitoring what’s been said about you at all! The only way to change that is to get in the game!

Get started right now, before your competitors do -it’s the future of marketing your business online, because that is where the people you want as your customers are going online. It’s only a matter of time before someone in your industry emerges as the leader on the Social Engines – get you and your business front-of-mind first. Enjoy the experience and I’ll ‘meet and tweet you’ on the Social Engines of the World!

Can Network Marketing Help New Entrepreneurs Learn Vital Business Practices

As the corporate United States starts to decrease people seek a new way of earning an income. Many rush into a business, and due to lack of understanding about how to make a business successful they fail. There is a way to get into business and work at home all with a small investment. Can MLM Network Marketing be the best way to learn how to run a successful business?

Points covered in this article:

* Why start business from home?

* MLM Network Marketing defined?

* Plusses of joining a MLM Marketing opportunity

::: Why start a home business? :::

You may want to become financially free or be able to set your own work schedule. Some of the reasons people choose to work at home are:

– Save time from travelling

– They have small children and want to be at home with the children

– They have small children and can’t afford nursery care

– Make more money then in day job

– Live in a remote place where transport is hard

– Disabled and homebound

Starting a home business does have many benefits. One of the many drawbacks with starting any kind of a business is that of finding an idea, creating a lengthy business plan, and one of the hardest ultimately getting finance for your business idea. Not to mention the headache with worrying how you are going to pay that finance back.

::: What is MLM Network Marketing :::

MLM Network Marketing is a system of business which allows people to market the products. In effect you become the salesman for the company. This has the added benefit of cutting out the middleman and putting you in its place. MLM Network Marketing allows you to earn more profits with this system. The biggest earners are sales people. Even Bill Gates from Microsoft wouldn’t be a billionaire if it weren’t for the good sales people bringing us their great software.

::: Benefits of joining a MLM Marketing opportunity :::

Network Marketing opportunities can come to the rescue. With a low investment required to get started, MLM Network Marketing can be one of the best ways to get into business much more easily. When you decide to join a MLM Marketing opportunity, you are given the ability to plug into a proven business with a proven product.

Network Marketing opportunities give you a blueprint you can follow to become successful. When you join a MLM Marketing opportunity you are starting a new lifestyle. A lifestyle which is part of a downline of people who are committed to success, not just their own, but your success as well.

One of the biggest benefits I have seen with being part of the MLM Marketing opportunity is the whole ethos about how MLM Network Marketing works and why it works. MLM Network Marketing fundamentally says “I win – only when you win”, and this is a fantastic model to follow. When you buy products which promises to make you wealthy, even though the person producing that product may have your interest in mind, it still doesn’t fully create the win-win which we see in MLM Network Marketing.

MLM Network Marketing does require work. MLM Network Marketing is no easy ride, but with commitment to achieving your success, a MLM Marketing opportunity can be the best thing you decide to join. MLM Network Marketing promises so much, and MLM Network Marketing can deliver as long as you commit to your success. With consistent effort you can find financial freedom with MLM Network Marketing, as long as you put in the effort necessary to succeed.

To your success,

Kozan Huseyin ~ Network Marketing Expert, Internet Marketer, Life Coach, Writer.

What Potato Chips Can Teach Entrepreneurs?

America, and the developed world, is saturated with cheap, convenient, pre-packaged snack foods. These tasty treats are available in sweet, salty, chilled, or warmed styles and presentations. None is more popular, and ubiquitous, than the potato chip.

The potato chip in America was historically a very local mom and pop business until the 1930’s. The end product, the potato chip crisps; were very difficult to ship, handle and preserve without advanced packaging techniques. Prior to the invention of coated bagging components, chips were made in local kitchens and sold in a few local stores, typically out of barrels. As soon as the barrels were opened, and the shop owner scooped the sold product for the consumer, air entered the barrels and the potato chips became stale. Consumers of these chips were taught to heat the chips at home before serving to mitigate the lack of freshness.

This type of trade was adequate for a local service business model, but it did not allow for economies of scale or national distribution. In addition, each town and region developed a favorite type of chip that enjoyed local popularity only. The opportunity was ripe for an entrepreneur to consolidate and commercialize the snack business in a major way and revolutionize the category.

That entrepreneur was Herman Lay. Mr. Lay was a route salesman for the Barrett Food Company of Atlanta. He sold the Barrett brand of potato chips in an assigned territory in Nashville, TN during the 1930’s. He was a natural sales talent, developed and quickly grew his territory and soon hired route salesmen to work for him. The owners of Barrett noticed his success and offered to sell Herman Lay the whole business. He struggled to cobble together financing. This was at the height of the depression. Somehow, a combination of loans, savings and preferred stock was assembled and the $600,000 selling price was secured.

The new Company immediately changed the name to the H. W. Lay, Company. Mr. Lay recognized that mechanization was necessary to expand his distribution and lower costs. He invested every dollar of profit in self-contained potato processing machinery that took a whole potato and produced a finished chip. The crisps were then packaged in the new non-permeable bags that insured freshness for the product as they were shipped and sat on store shelves until purchased and consumed.

The onset of World War II proved most profitable for the salted snack industry. Chocolate and sugar were heavily rationed during the war and products that utilized these ingredients became rare and expensive until the war was complete. Salt, however, was never rationed and the availability of salty snacks made them the preferred choice of consumers seeking a quick treat during the war. In addition, these salty snacks were consumed in huge quantities by the troops.

Lays Potato Chips and snacks became ubiquitous on store shelves in the American south during and after the war. The Company bought up small, under-capitalized competitors and expanded aggressively. Eventually the H. W. Lay Company purchased the Frito Company of San Antonio, Texas. Frito had perfected the production of a corn chip which we eat in huge quantities to this day. The combined Frito Lay Company became the strongest national salted snack producer.

Frito Lay and a number of regional brands dominated the salted snack category through the post-war years. The simple potato chip was basically unchanged in appearance, flavor and consistency, except for adding new tastes such as garlic, green onion and bar-b-cue. The industry seemed to have settled into a maturing, slow growth category, with limited entrepreneurial opportunities for new offerings. However, the most entrepreneurial consumer product Company in the world, Cincinnati’s Procter & Gamble (P&G), is always seeking to cultivate and grow new product niches. They had their corporate eye on the snack industry and, in particular, the P&G management felt they had identified a chink in the armor of the potato chip producers.

That chink was in packaging. Potato chips had been sold since the late 1930’s in flexible, pliable bags. While this insured freshness, it made breakage an issue. Consumers taking part in focus groups had told P&G that they did not like the small, cracked, broken pieces of chips that settled in the bottom of the bags. Research and Development at P&G began to work on an answer to the problem.

P&G is famous for its creation of Brand Management. Brand Management enables the responsible team assigned to each specific product to treat the brand as a stand- alone business and profit center for the Company. The success of this management style is legendary and has been studied in Business Schools and adopted by many other businesses. The Brand Management system encourages each team to pursue aggressively new product adaptations and inventiveness.

P&G Research and Development for the Company’s food group worked on the potato chip project throughout the 1960’s. Their answer to the problem created a wonderful example of how an entrepreneurial firm, or individual, can profit immensely from a convergent product innovation. The innovation that became a billion dollar brand, and revolutionized snack food marketing, was the introduction of Pringles.

P&G obviously did not invent potato chips or salty snack foods. However, by adapting the classic potato chip in form, taste and presentation they created a novel, blockbuster brand that is sold to millions of consumer around the world every day.

Pringles are 42% potato. They are formed by mixing potato flakes with liquid slurry and then dried to form each chip into an almost perfectly identical curved oval crisp. The genius of Pringle’s lies in the cylindrical cardboard tube invented for P&G by Fredric Baur. The Pringle crisps are stacked inside the tube so there is virtually no breakage of the individual chips. The tube closure is a snap on plastic lid. Pringles was test marketed in 1968 and consumers were enthusiastic. The product has been constantly improved and over 40 flavors have been added to the original style. Many of these flavors are sold in specific countries or regions to suit prevailing taste preferences, such as jalapeno in Mexico and Cajun in Louisiana.

Entrepreneurs are driven to seek and create “divergent products”. The invention of disruptive “divergent products” such as the light bulb, the cotton gin or the internal combustion engine is the “Holy Grail” that these visionaries seek to perfect and leverage to fame and fortune. However, the most often realized and realistic road to success is to create a niche product improvement. Explore existing products and technologies and identify needs that are not being addressed by these products. The creation of novel “convergent products” that simply add incremental benefits and small performance enhancements can result in huge profit.

Procter & Gamble has built the largest consumer product Company in the world and one of the most admired innovation factories by seeking both “divergent” and “convergent” opportunities. Pringles is an example of a huge “convergent product” innovative success. The history of P&G is rife with examples of new “convergent product” successes. The “divergent product” innovations are fewer and harder to discover and bring to market. This is a great Company that looks for opportunity anywhere it can find it.

Entrepreneurs should take note of this process. Frito Lay is today owned by PepsiCo. The evolution of this great brand owes much to the simple drive and vision of H. W. Lay. He took a simple product that suffered a poor distribution model and turned the opportunity into immense wealth. P&G took the breakage problem inherent in bagged potato chips and through innovation in recipe and packaging created a huge worldwide success with the introduction of Pringles. P&G and H. W. Lay are examples of the elegance of simple ideas. Remember the old axiom: KISS = Keep it Simple Stupid! The best ideas are often the most obvious.

Teaching Our Next Generation Of Entrepreneurs

The perception of entrepreneurial opportunities and the capacity to exploit them are strongly associated with social norms that encourage venturing, such as the availability of risk capital, access to developing technologies, a quality diverse entrepreneurship education system and a sound professional infrastructure. This has considerable implications for the UK entrepreneurial economy.

Entrepreneurship education, at all levels, could very effectively prepare and train students to start and manage new businesses. This type of education is strong and getting stronger in business schools across the country, but it needs to proliferate outside of the business domain. Very few students undertake business subjects, and not every business school student is required to or chooses to take up an entrepreneurship course. Thus the number of people exposed to higher-level entrepreneurship education is relatively small in the UK. It is critical therefore that entrepreneurship education is expanded.

Engineering and other technology graduates have the capability to generate innovations that may be the basis for high-growth companies. They need to learn techniques for discerning whether or not such innovations have commercial potential. As such, universities need to encourage the integration of their degree requirements between entrepreneurship/management and engineering/technology.

There are often many hurdles to such collaboration, however, including issues of funding; credit allocations; faculty teaching loads; scheduling conflicts, and the lack of available facilities. While a handful of schools are facing and overcoming these issues, there is a real need to see more active collaboration on university campuses.

There also needs to be a more concentrated effort to introduce entrepreneurship and basic economic principles at the primary and secondary levels. At the primary level, these concepts could be integrated throughout the curriculum. At the secondary level, entrepreneurship skills and basic economic principles could be offered as stand-alone courses. Many people enter the workforce without a college education and have no responsibility for exposure to entrepreneurship training.

While not every school graduate has the capacity or desire for higher education, almost everybody has the potential to start a new business. The average high school graduate may not start a fast-growth, high-technology company, but he or she can start a landscaping business, a retail business or some other venture that will employ other people and contribute to economic adaptation. As such, it is critical to provide at least the basic instruction to ensure that these future entrepreneurs have the understanding of and a certain level of proficiency in the skills necessary to implement and manage a business.

To avoid problems of duplication, various national experts recommend the establishment of a ‘clearinghouse’ for government programmes. A clearinghouse, perhaps web-based, could provide an efficient means for entrepreneurs to gain knowledge of specific programmes and to access those programmes.

In addition, there is also the need to simplify compliance pressures on entrepreneurial firms. Simplifying compliance requirements would improve entrepreneurial efficiency at the most critical times in the venture’s life. Many new ventures report having a difficult time staying on top of all the reporting requirements. Furthermore, reducing the required paperwork would reduce manpower constraints on new ventures, thereby increasing their chances of surviving the early years.

There is also a reported ‘Gap’ in Seed Stage Financing. If the gap exists, it may be more pronounced in different industries, different geographic regions, or for distinct groups of entrepreneurs. The substantial amount of funding provided through informal channels, orders of magnitude greater than that provided by formal venture capital investments and hitherto unknown and unappreciated, suggests some mechanisms for filling the gap may have developed without recognition.

There may not be a gap in the availability of such capital but, rather, in the entrepreneur’s knowledge of where it resides and how to tap it. Experts may be split over whether a gap exists in seed capital because of the fact that many entrepreneurs choose not to endure the time, cost and bureaucracy involved in the search and seizure of such capital.

Increasing the visibility of entrepreneurs by highlighting their story could prove to be an attractive method of encouraging others to pursue their own entrepreneurial opportunities. It reflects widespread acceptance of entrepreneurship as a career option in the UK.

In the absence of a more comprehensive, long-term research programme on the entrepreneurial process, government policies in the UK regarding new and growth companies will continue to fluctuate in reaction to political whims and pressures from special interest groups. It is essential, therefore, that an increased understanding of the principles underlying entrepreneurship is secured in order to ensure that a sustained growth in the entrepreneurial sector is secured.

New Creative Business Ideas for Interested Entrepreneurs

Young and interested wannabe entrepreneurs are looking for new creative business ideas to help them create a successful business. There are millions of businesses out there and if you’re planning to start your own, you better come up with something new and unique. Being creative in this competitive market is a must. You can only survive if you are spirited enough to stand out and be different from the rest of your competitors. There’s a huge market out there, that’s true. But the problem is how can you attract all those customers and create a profitable business?

New creative business ideas are just around the corner. You only need to be unique and go beyond simple ideas. A lot of people desire to make money from their own homes and look for ways to use their abilities in developing a business with a good earning potential.

For example, in a burger stand business, instead of serving common burgers, you need to come up with something people have not tried before. You need to make calculated risk to be unique and be remembered by your clients, in other words, you have to find your niche. Once you find it then that is the time you can focus on creating ground-breaking ideas for your business to succeed. You need to be creative as far as business branding and marketing is concerned. People are thirsty for fresh ideas and extraordinary things. Creativity makes brands and profiles stand out in the crowd.

Consumers are different today. They not only buy what they need, they patronize things that they can leave without. Businesses nowadays, are not only offering the basic necessities of the consumers. For your business to succeed, you have to make your target market think that they need your products and services. Have you heard about the guy who made money out of video game coaching? How about the website that was created to come up with the best excuses for being absent at work? Yes, these ideas are out of this world. You may even think you don’t need services like these but because of the creative minds behind these businesses, people are using these services.

New creative business ideas are essential in developing a successful business. Think out of the box, as they say. Creativity is important in making sure that you are a different and that you stand out above everyone else. There’s nothing wrong with being typical. But if you are talking about making money and establishing a well-recognized brand, you need to have new creative business ideas to be successful.

Success Tips For The Entrepreneurs Profitable Home Business

In today’s financial upheaval where gas prices are on the rise, more people than ever are looking for ways to create a home based business. The Internet is abound with endless opportunities but a person needs to beware of what they get them selves into. I myself found it necessary to create a profitable home business.

There are some things to consider though before you jump right in lock stock and barrel, such as how much cash you need to put up to get started. You need to figure out how much time and work you are going to have to put into it as well. And don’t let anybody tell you different, your time, your money are required to become successful along with a fair amount of work.

In my own business the costs are considered low and the business is not to difficult to promote or to maintain. A business like that tends to have appeal to a larger group of people than one that is very expensive. I suggest in your own research you consider the expense factors involved and how hard it will be to run it. Some people may have the money but not the time to tackle huge learning curves to launch and run a complicated business. Especially if they are going it alone.

Most adults these days with access to the Internet can become an online entrepreneur and start a home based business. The Internet can give reach to potential customers and members from all over the world. 2 or 3 decades ago it would not have been possible to reach out to millions of people world wide in such an easy manner.

You may be thinking that starting your own business means going into business by yourself. This doesn’t have to be the case if you do not want it to be. There are plenty of business opportunities where you can get a lot of support from people who have a financial stake in your success. This is true in a lot of Multi-level Marketing opportunities. If you are concerned about going it a lone, then you might want to look into Network Marketing. It is still a thriving industry and has increased in popularity with the advent of the Internet.

You need to understand also that the people who are promoting their opportunities who have achieved the level of success who you are desiring, have worked hard to get there. You will not start out being all knowing to become a successful entrepreneur. Like others before you a lot of your knowledge will come through trial and error and learn as you go.

And speaking of acquiring the needed knowledge, you should consider is whether a potential business opportunity has training if you require specialized knowledge. Some businesses just assume that task to yourself and do not provide it for their representatives or members. This is true in a lot of affiliate marketing situations. Just be willing to work towards success as you learn and go and do not let the pitfalls or mountains you have to climb deter you.

You have probably heard of the law of attraction and may have watched that popular movie The Secret, well basically that just means you keep a positive mind and a strong belief that you will succeed, Don’t think of your problems as being a negative thing, but more of a positive thing in that you are acquiring the needed knowledge that will help you to your success. If you get up every morning determined to make progress in your business towards the goal of becoming financially better off, then the universe will magnetize you in cohesiveness with what you need to come to you to succeed.

One other thing in examining a potential is you need to look at who your market will be and how you will contact them. You need to study this market as well to determine if you will be able to successfully compete in it. Some markets are just to popular for the average person to compete with unless he has a tremendous amount of resources at his disposal to try and win in that market.

I hope you found these tips helpful. I myself went through just a process before I launched into my own successful home based business.

The Entrepreneur’s Source Review

The Entrepreneur’s Source is a franchise opportunity that provides business coaching services. Founded in 1984 by Terry Powell, and franchising since 1997, franchisees are trained to be business coaches who help small business owners and entrepreneurs create ways to increase revenue and profits. The training involves helping the client overcome the challenges in five core areas of business ownership, which are:

-Business Planning

-Sales and Marketing

-Financial Management

-Human Capital Support

-Leadership and Communications

The Entrepreneur’s Source is the North America’s largest business coaching organization, and comes with a fairly hefty financial commitment to boot. Prospective franchisees must make a minimum investment of $45,000 for the franchise fee alone, have cash liquidity of at least 85k, with some literature stating the need for a total net worth anywhere from 150k-250k. Then there is the 5-25% royalty fee attached to a ten-year commitment. As far as home-based business franchises are concerned, this is considered to be in the medium to large size. Oh, and by-the-way, there is no in-house financing. If the prospective business consultant does need financial assistance, it must come from a third party.

If, and when, one decides to make this financial commitment, they will spend 8 days at corporate headquarters to be trained as a business consultant. They will learn how to match clients to franchise opportunities by conducting interviews, filling out profiles and assessing a client’s goals, needs and expectations. The Clients pay nothing for their consultation. The Entrepreneur’s Source earns its income from the franchisers it recommends: in essence, a referral fee.

While The Entrepreneur’s Source is touted as a home-based business opportunity, this author suggests you first, invest a little time and money into yourself to learn the ways of effective marketing online. Let’s face it, this is a NEW age of home-based business entrepreneurship. There IS a new model for success in Business ownership that has emerged, creating massive success for individuals every day. Learn more about the power behind this business model by visiting http://www.Intermax2010.com

Successful Women Entrepreneurs Today In A Competitive World

The successful female operated businesses know the meaning of a true business owner, “One who carries out to conduct a business assuming complete control and danger,” is not gender specific, it is not surprising that most entrepreneurs are men.

Lots of women merely do not have the time to start a company due to the fact that women tend to undertake the greater share of raising kids and keeping the house together!

I had the chance to interview a few who attended the woman’s conference and take a close take a look at the issues that successful women entrepreneurs deal with.

At a current international women entrepreneur’s conference in Glasgow, the Bank of Scotland presented a few of its research studies.

In accordance with the bank, even successful women entrepreneurs tend to: under-capitalize their organizations at startup; have a disinclination to use financial obligation financing and to be more danger averse than their male equivalents,

And they utilize a greater percentage of their individual savings within their service, both at startup and advancement.

They are less aggressive than guys about their understanding and understanding of financial products and services, all which can influence on funding and growing their businesses.

This might be exacerbated by the banks’ historic hesitation to treat their women in business clients in the very same manner as male customers.

Females owned businesses have the tendency to be more service oriented.

Yes, and therefore have less equity than male owned services– another factor banks can be hesitant.

Financing is vital to all commerce and of course the female owned businesses, and possibly managing money is most crucial amongst small businesses, whether at the start or when expanding.

The struggle to keep appropriate cash and financial freedom alive is consistent among business owners.

Is it any surprise then, that monetary concern is the most widespread cause of stress and insomnia!

With female owned businesses producing over thirty nine percent of new start-ups, and just over a third of self-employed proprietorships in Canada owned or led by females, female entrepreneurs have increased by just over more two hundred per cent in the last twenty years.

As an outcome, more black female business entrepreneurs are seeking more opportunities to grow their network and boost their support systems.

The Women Entrepreneurs of North America in Canada was established in Toronto in 1992, as a support, opportunity and resource network for female entrepreneurs.

I found that WEC promotes and fosters the young women entrepreneurs, too, in Canada and assists them to accomplish and define success on their own terms.

It’s important to help promote the interests of successful women entrepreneurs and women in business getting started, and business owners in the larger service neighborhood.

It assists in the transfer of appropriate knowledge that is appropriate to WEC members; and partners with companies both in Canada and abroad, such as the National Association of Women Business Owners in the USA.

And the global groups like Femmes Chefs d’Enterprises Mondiales and the Italian Associazione Imprenditrici e Donne Dirigenti D’Azienda, to bring finest chances, resources and practices to its members here.

This is an organization where women can fulfill their life dreams and blend with other female owned businesses, who deal with similar issues in starting, running, and growing their services.

WEC is a resource that offers a unified voice to federal government and the public, pressing the issues of women in business to a right-minded leading edge.

It is suggested that increased young women entrepreneurs research and study to produce more chances for black female business owners, while bringing exactly what is learnt about women’s organizations updated.

And relating to maternity leave– as female owned businesses are working to do the exact same benefits as for their staff members as they ‘d like to be treated.

There’s the “what might be done” to level the playing field and extend that advantage to all as, for example, it is in Finland?

It’s like the Course in Miracles teaches, “True extension of Self and one’s true free will brings on an awakening worldwide.

There are many organizations that help female owned businesses to interact a confident and refreshingly positive message about the future potential customers for females, and it is gratifying that the message is being heard.

I urge any woman in business, especially young women entrepreneurs to discover more about self-confidence as an entreprneur.

This takes us to wonderful tips for female owned businesses, and encouraging young women entrepreneurs.

Many aspiring female owned businesses, business supervisors and other professionals typically forget that they really have 2 tasks– the very first is to do exactly what they make money for (and do it much better than males).

The other is to proactively handle their profession path and do exactly what is required to guarantee their upward mobility isn’t really based on others– particularly those who notoriously subscribe to the “Old Boys Club” mentality who might or may not be working in her benefit.

The following “secrets”, amassed through my substantial background as both a business entrepreneur and organization experts lending me advice, will help female professionals better handle their success course:

Understand the “circle of successful women entrepreneurs”

A typical piece of suggestions provided to female owned businesses is for them to spend a good deal of time being familiar with, and working side-by-side, with their personnel to make sure each employee has what (s) he needs to be productive.

While that concept is well intentioned, it’s does not offer maximum advantage to all included.

Rather, it is more vital that female managers hang around helping their employer look proficient at every opportunity.

When (s) he understands that you have the ability to assist her/him prosper, you and your group will get more time, attention and resources assisting in optimum productivity.

Many female owned businesses cite male stereotyping and prejudgments of female “appropriate” roles and abilities as a leading barrier to their development.

It’s crucial for women to assess where a male employer stands relative to female specialists.

Previously I discussed women’s insecurity issues can be healed fast and to be a confident woman.

This can be done by analyzing his promotion track record of males vs. females, his balance, or lack, of interactions with female vs. male staffers, and if his interactions with female staffers is strictly expert rather than just inane or flirty little talk exclusively about her household.

How we sound (i.e., one’s unique attributes of the voice such as pitch, volume, and tone) play a crucial role in how females are viewed.

In addition, lots of women tend to mention their opinions, objections or recommendations as a question as opposed to affirmatively and confidently making their point as a declaration.

In a work context, females should command the flooring lest their fantastic ideas fall by the wayside.

Since numerous of us still associate one’s temperament, speaking and appearance capability with their general ability, this stays a powerful challenge for those women who have other or physical stereotype-based characteristics that are tough.

But as humans like the Course in Miracles teaches us, “The ego is aware on how to creep in the back door on us and begin projecting judgment based on fear and self-doubt.”

That said, it might be impossible to change, such as height or weight, blonde hair color, or merely a high pitched voice.

This subjectivity is even worse for young women entrepreneurs as society is generally more able to accept males with what’s considered to be shortfalls more than ladies.

Regardless of these barriers, condition yourself to bring yourself with best posture, speak and gesture in a reliable and confident way, and wear clothes that imparts your female owned businesses success.

To actually stand out from the others and get the crucial promotion, young women entrepreneurs from off site, or in house women execs, ought to guarantee they are in the workplace whenever her employer is in the office.

If (s) he has actually decided that it’s essential to be there after hours, on weekends, or early in the morning, it is entirely to your advantage to be there at the very same time.

Even in this day in age of so-called gender equality, females need to take benefit of all chances to differentiate themselves in the work environment.

It is essential that those who are in the position to benefit a woman’s career in any method know who she is and exactly what she has accomplished.

Effective service people understand the importance of letting others understand about their successes, and go about it in the suitable method.

Ladies need to not wait to get discovered while they toil away at the job at hand, but rather develop the ability of how to tactically talk about her achievements in the work environment.

Far too numerous employees throughout our world are bored and disinterested, which is adversely affecting their performance and creativity.

It’s time for the globe’s corporate leaders to re-engage and invest more time acting as leaders rather than bureaucrats.

The female owned businesses need to exploit this innate capability whenever possible, since such right-minded management ensures that everybody is focused on, and vested in, getting to the goal lines.

(I always suggest searching the web for related information that is a discussion on being a self-assured woman today filled with female confidence. A good conversation might be, should you have a life coach, yes or no?)

To your success in life!

Reasons For the Slow Growth of Entrepreneurs in India

The definition says, Entrepreneurs assemble and allocate resources including innovations, finance and business acumen in an effort to transform innovations into economic goods. The saying goes like “Take the plunge and lead the way”. An entrepreneur is definitely not afraid to take the plunge.

Why is the Indian entrepreneurship scene so grim?

There are many obstructions that ail a budding entrepreneur in India. That’s not to say that there aren’t any entrepreneurs in India. It is just that the number is of entrepreneurs springing up is not that encouraging a figure.

Let us look into some of the reasons.

1. Lack of family support: This is an issue that’s plaguing entrepreneurs worldwide more so in India because of the stronger family ties that we Indians have. Family support is always absent in cases. Parents always prefer their progenies to take up a standard 9-5 job rather than take up a risky business venture where there is absolutely no guarantee that the venture will work out and there is always a very high level of risk involved.

2. Government regulations: The few ventures that break free from the shackles of the usual problems get entangled in the antiquated policies of our government. The very fabric our administrative system hinders the organic development of entrepreneurial ventures.

3. Lack of Internet penetration in India: World over the majority of the innovations occur in the internet space. In India the internet usage percentage stands at a meager 5% and this is number makes it really difficult to bring in money and the few entrepreneurial ventures that actually get graced by venture capitalists run in to problem later on during the course of operation.

4. Indian education system: The main reason there is very low innovation in this field is because of our educational system. Right from its inception our educational system has hardly had any focus on innovation. It is like we have been trained in rote learning rather than apply our minds. Without a killer innovative idea there is no way an entrepreneurial venture can sustain itself beyond the initial stages.

There are basically two types of the entrepreneurs

1. Those who come out with a completely new idea

2. Those who bring in a new idea and tweak it for the targeted market.

India being a developing nation hasn’t made much progress in the innovative direction. Since the technology in India is basically playing catch up to the developed countries, there is not much we have achieved in terms of the new ideas.

The most basic way Indian entrepreneurs can succeed is by trying to adopt methods and models that are already successful abroad and adapt it for the Indian market. This will definitely mean a low initial cost. If done well this can definitely lead to really good returns.

Most of all what we really need is to mold young minds and encourage them to think differently. They should be encouraged to let go of their inhibitions and actually take the plunge and tread a path that’s not yet been explored. This has been made possible by the starting of Entrepreneurship courses that are being taken up by colleges at the graduate and post graduate level.

Purnima – The Story of India’s Self Made Women Entrepreneurs

Woman? W-itemized? Weak? Well not any longer!

India, the country where the very essence of being a woman meant living in the shadows of men, the man being their father, brother or husband. However now, the scenario is different and better; ways have been paved for women in the field of science, technology and entrepreneurship, by women themselves.

New chapters are being written by them, each better than the last. We’re no longer the submissive ladies chained in patriarchal customs, we’re busy developing ourselves, becoming masters in whatever we do.

‘Purnima’, I’d like to call these women. Purnima in Hindi means the full moon and a full moon describes beauty, grace and gorgeousness that flows after completing a full circle. Over the years we’ve conquered our fears and overpowered the traditions that said we were meant to stay back home and cook. It’s time for a reality check and also time for you to excavate into details of ‘India’s Self-made Purnimas’. These three women, mentioned below, are the ones who understood that being a woman is a sign of strength and they chose to outshine men, thus being called India’s best self made entrepreneurs.

Richa Kar – Comfortable yet sensuous lingerie wouldn’t have been available online in India had Richa not thought of this great idea to sell lingerie online. Her store, Zivame, is one of the best online lingerie stores, making her India’s best known and self made entrepreneur. She understands that the thing women need is a comfortable and sensuous and she has all her focus set in the direction. Without a quirk of doubt, Richa is India’s greatest Purnima, shining her way out.

Falguni Nayar – Nykaa’s CEO, Falguni Nayar, is the incredible woman behind India’s makeup sensation. A store that sells makeup accessories from tip to toe, Nykaa is her endeavor to provide a beautiful outlook to women, a sensation in itself. Falguni Nayar recognized the makeup needs of women, and provided everything under one name. She’s definitely a star and we need to applaud her for her incredible work.

Suchi Mukherjee – A fashion freak, Suchi chose to provide women with a fabulous collection of clothing that have been streamlined for the sober and glamorous occasions. Presenting a fantabulous line of clothing under the name Limeroad, this woman has given the finest collection to Indian women who have a special affinity for fashion.

All of these women, including a few more are creating milestones in their respective fields and their success is a reminder for all those who’re still struggling that there is nothing that can hold you back if you’re working to be successful and independent.

I’m reminded of another amazing woman, Indra Nooyi, the lady who said, “We have been in this revolution for decades. First it was just getting entry into this boy’s club… We clawed our way into this revolution at workplace, then we needed parity at pay. Not yet there, we are still fighting for that. We have to have equal treatment. We need to be treated as equals. I hate to be called ‘honey’ and ‘sweetie’ and ‘babe’. That has to change.”

Are we bringing about any change? Well certainly!