How to Find the Most Profitable Online Home Business

The most profitable online businesses are the top tier programs that require some entrepreneurial courage and investment but allow you to earn a significant upfront income.

Most people have the idea that the economic crisis experienced these last couple of years was the worst time ever. But in actual fact, it has been the very best time to establish a home business.

There are so many home business opportunities and schemes to make money online. Yet, it is clear that many are just a scam. It is vital then that you know what constitutes a profitable business model for you.

with the ever-increasing number of both legitimate opportunities and rip-off scams, how do you know what is a honest AND profitable online business to start up and how do you know who to believe when you are researching what is out there?

I had exactly this dilemma. I tried all kinds of schemes and trainings and tools and systems before finally finding success. Now don’t get me wrong, I learned LOTS from my past attempts at a home based business, acquired many new skills. None of it was wasted. But I also wasted LOTS – lots of time and lots of money.

Sound familiar?

This is the reason I put this article together to try to explain some of the different home business models. There are so many variables both in the business you choose and in what YOU need to bring to it. I was doing all the right things but in the wrong way and with the WRONG business model.

The penny dropped when I was on the phone with a friend from that previous MLM. I saw him go from flat broke living in his mother’s basement to become a top producer earning over $50K every month. You see, he’d found a system that works. And after just a few months, I’m on track to follow exactly in his footsteps.

Once I discovered a highly profitable business model that suits what I want to achieve, I simply applied my knowledge and skills and could be successful. The ‘system’ is simply this: a highly profitable online business model. It offers top quality internet marketing education on the front end combined with a top tier product on the back end.

Let me explain some of the terms and the different kinds of home businesses you can start.

Brick and mortar businesses

This is where you buy or let premises for the purpose of selling products or services. This may be you use part of your home or outbuildings. Examples are a personal trainers, hairdressers, dog grooming, computer repairs. The capital you need to start up will be generally high and it may take several years before you are in profit.

Franchise business

Similar to traditional brick and mortar business, but with this model you are buying into a known-brand and premises. Examples are restaurants, cleaning companies. The business is already set up and you ‘manage’ the day to day running of the place. Again, the outlay is usually high, you have employees to hire and manage, and it may take several years before you start earning profits. An online alternative:

Internet based business

This is where your ‘shop’ is a website or a blog and you retail and sell products through online tools. There are various websites and templates you can buy outright or membership, such as lead capture pages, sales letters, as well as a whole host of tools that will help you manage customers and relationships with customers, such as shopping cart tools for product listing and credit card processing, email marketing for follow up.

For the newbie, it can be a massive learning curve to understand what is needed and to do it well. Once you have your online store set up, you must learn how to research your target audience (keyword research), how to advertise (without going bust), how to market to them (psychology of buying processes, writing effective sales copy, relationship building, etc) and how to convert them into buyers. It’s not an easy game.

There are some quick in-roads, such as eBay selling or affiliate marketing (selling other people’s products and using pre-made sales templates). The profit margins are pretty low so you will have to sell hundreds or thousands to make a decent income and there is very little residual income with this model.

Network marketing business

Also know as MLM (multi-level marketing) or home party business, this often suits people who are socially outgoing and want to earn a few hundred pounds extra having fun with friends, work colleagues and family. Again you buy a stock of products and learn how to market these usually locally, but potentially to anyone anywhere. For example, you can use traditional advertising like flyers and newspaper ads and set up personal visits, open days, home parties, exhibitions, ladies evenings etc. to sell your wares.

The more stock you buy, the more ‘discount’ you get and thus, when you sell the products, the more profit you make. The company you join is important in many ways, but obviously in the type of product and the price level. Some products may suit your personal interests and knowledge more than others, e.g. household products, utility products, nutritional vitamin supplements, weight loss products. For people new to sales, it is good to go with a product you would actually use yourself and because the price levels are small, it may be easier to find customers and makes sales.

This kind of home business allows you to make two streams of income, one on products you retail (active income) and another on your ‘team’ of distributors you bring into the business and earn a percentage of commission on products they sell (passive residual income or ‘royalties’). This is called ‘leveraging’ your time, since there is a limit to how many customers one person can manage.

How much income you make depends on how good you are at sales and how many people you bring in and keep as distributors in your ‘downline’. This is the rule, the more people you recruit the more money you will make. But the disturbing statistics show that almost 90% of people who join an MLM or network marketing business never make significant income.

Top tier product marketing

This works on the same basis as network marketing, some of which can earn on 2,3,4 even 10 levels of commissions. So everyone has their ‘cut’ as reward for bringing others into the business and helping them to become successful by making sales. These businesses usually require a substantial investment in the product line, but use the ‘Get Paid Today’ or GPT business model, so you can quickly recoup your initial outlay because you earn very high commissions even on the first sales you make. There is no need to wait to build up a ‘downline’ and earn ‘royalties’ because you start making big front end commissions and residual income stream grows very fast. Commission ranges from $ 1,000 to $ 10,000 (and you can get it immediately!)

So for my own experience, it seems fairly clear cut. If you learn to market online, you can sell any product to anyone, anywhere in the world. Why on earth then would you choose to market low cost products and not top tier products and get paid today? It would be ridiculous, wouldn’t it? But so many people start a home business or online business without knowing the key differences.

Just to clarify for you then:

For brick and mortar, franchise, network marketing or online businesses…

– Your costs will often be far more than your profits in the short term at least.

– You have to keep working day and night for many years to build things up and to keep the momentum going in your business.

– Your residual income is dependent on how many people you bring into the business who are actively retailing and recruiting.

– This can take many years to develop and you will have to work hard to keep people who do just average since their expectations are rarely met.

– You have to pay transportation and handling of products and certain other charges, which includes maintenance of any advertising websites and for tracking sales and customers and team activities.

– You can add up all the different monthly fees for your individual tools, which are much higher than expected.

– Couple with the low commissions earned, you will probably not break even – ever.

In the Top Tier GPT model…

You get paid today. Your direct sales commissions are immediately paid to you and your compensation does not depend on the number of people in your downline. Because you are retailing high-end products and services, the profit is considerably higher compared with other businesses. Many top tier opportunities also reward you for referrals and pay a commission several levels deep so you can build up a residual income over time. Because you earn a good ‘active’ income, you can quit your ‘day job’ in months not years.

The Secrets Of Starting A Profitable Flower Vending Business

I have sold in the retail market, millions of fresh roses and fresh flower bouquets successfully for 32 years. I bought a retail nursery and florist across the street for one of Connecticut’s largest cemeteries, on a busy route that had several thousand vehicles pass every day. I made deals with all the flower wholesalers at first and then I proceeded to undercut the price of all the flower shops in the state. My main objective was to create a customer base that would frequently buy flowers “just because”. My customer service was created with an over friendly staff of a great combination of super personalities and knowledge of the business, which was simply liking people and helping them to satisfy a feeling. My motto to my staff was to let them know that we not only sell roses and flowers but mostly, We sell Love, we sell feelings! My obsession with quality and consumer service was so successful that it spread through out the community and the state.

Wow, I can remember Valentines week with a staff of over 50 wonderful employees wrapping and boxing roses through out the day and nights, get ready the rush of the year. I was so careful with every dozen to prepare each like it was for my mom or wife. We dethroned all the roses, cut them under water, to hydrate them according to the “Chain of Life” procedure. They re-hydrated them in solutions to further guarantee and extend their vase life. Our 4,800 Dozen roses that we sold that week were our best advertising for the rest of the year. Heck, they lasted over 10 days which pleased amazed our dedicated customer’s recipients. What a great feeling to know how many people we made happy.

Selling flowers at strategic locations has become a highly profitable retail business for many enterprising individuals. These entrepreneurs are taking advantage of a market that is, for the most part, impulsive in nature. Many people buy flowers on the spur of the moment, and the presence of a flower vendor is usually their inspiration.

Very often, men on their way to a date will see a roadside flower vendor, and suddenly find the idea of taking flowers with him quite appealing. The same holds true for many men heading home from work. If they’re married, these men will often purchase flowers from roadside vendors for their wives. The flowers are fresh, attractive, and package to sell, not as nearly as expensive as an arrangement from a florist, and the buyer doesn’t even have to get out of his car. Women are also potential customers for flower vendors. A woman will buy flowers to add color and decoration to her house or apartment, or sometimes, just to cheer up a friend. In any case, the purchase is usually made on impulse, brought about by the availability of a flower vendor.

Starting a flower vending business is not difficult. No previous experience is necessary. There’s only a minimal initial investment required, and you won’t need a lot of equipment. What you will need is an adequate supply of fresh, attractive flowers, a good location for selling, and a cheerful disposition. After all, you will be dealing directly with people, so a good disposition is a necessity. You can begin as a home-based operation with an investment of as little as $300. If you live close enough to the market you want to reach, your own garage can serve as storage space as well as your preparation area. Your operating expenses will be minimal, and you’ll have the opportunity to realize a high margin of profits.

Depending on the size of your investment (both time and money) and the size of your trade area, a flower vending business could net anywhere from $20,000 to $175,000 per year. It can be an extremely high profit business, if you choose your selling locations wisely, and offer only fresh, attractive flowers.

BUSINESS OVERVIEW

Successful operation of any small business depends on several key factors. Perhaps the most important is the ability to be a good business manager. Although no experience is necessary to start-up a flower vending business, some small business management training could give you the edge needed to insure success. Most community colleges offer night school courses in small business management and, if you are unsure about your business knowledge and or management skills, enrollment in such a course would be a good idea.

Here are other basic steps involved in the successful operation of a flower vending business:

(1) Know your market. Proper knowledge of your market will enable you to set-up at the best locations. You’ll need to know the high-traffic areas as well as the time of day traffic is at its peak in order to take advantage of a roadside operation. You’ll also need to investigate other potential locations such as restaurants, malls, local festivals and flea markets.

(2) Obtain a dependable source for fresh flowers. Your business depends on the quality of your merchandise. And since you are selling flowers, they must be fresh and attractive. You should locate a quality wholesaler and establish a sound working relationship. You should also have some knowledge of the types of flowers people are most likely to purchase from a vendor.

(3) Establish a workable preparation area. Ideally, your preparation area should be centrally located within your sales territory. The space needed should be adequate for storing flowers and materials used for the preparation of bouquets, as well as for the preparation itself.

(4) Hire the right help. Unless you plan a one person operation you’ll need to hire some dependable helpers. The people you hire should be outgoing and trustworthy with the ability to deal with customers in a professional and courteous manner. If your flower vending business is to be successful and highly profitable, you’ll probably need to have other people helping you. One example is a successful flower vendor in Washington State who employs young people, pays them minimum wages, and enjoys a brisk business at several key locations.

(5) Advertise and promote your business. Effective advertising and promotion can help generate sales and profits. Knowing how to advertise and promote your business, especially in the beginning, is a key step in the success of any business operation.

All of these steps can be taken with a relatively small initial investment, and your flower vending business can be in operation, and realizing a profit, in just a few weeks. However, prospective entrepreneurs should also be aware of, and comply with, any rules and regulations that apply to this particular business in their area.

Depending on the location(s) of your flower vending business, you may need a license to operate. If you plan to set- up a flower vending stand on a city street, or any roadside operation within city limits, you’ll most likely need to get a permit. The best thing to do is consult a trusted attorney, or contact the business-license department in the city your market covers to find out what licensing requirements you must meet.

If you plan to sell flowers in restaurants and nightclubs, it is usually not necessary to have a license. Also, if your roadside operations fall outside the city limits, you probably won’t need a license because most counties don’t issue them. Again, you should check with your attorney, or the proper licensing authorities in your area before you start selling flowers.

Another consideration for a new business owner and employer is taxes. As an operator of a business you will be responsible for collecting and sending in various state and federal taxes, as well as certain taxes you will have to pay yourself. If you are not familiar with your tax responsibilities as a business owner, consult a qualified accountant or contact your local IRS office to get the information you need.

You should also consult with an accountant as to the type and arrangement of bookkeeping and record keeping best suited for your flower vending business. Records of your business operations are, of course, helpful in the successful management of the business. These records need to be as accurate and permanent as possible in order to ascertain any tax liabilities. They should include business income, deductions, credits, and any employee information. As well as any other information required by federal, state and local regulations.

EQUIPMENT AND INVENTORY

Since a flower vending business does not require an abundance of sophisticated equipment, start-up costs can be kept to a minimum. The basic equipment necessary should not cost more than $200 and can usually be found at a wholesale florist supply house. You can also get your supplies and equipment from several firms that cater to florists. You should be able to find a complete directory of such firms at your local library. You can also contact several florists (not necessarily in your market) and obtain this information.

For the preparation of your flowers and floral arrangements, you’ll need stem cutters and a supply of cellophane or florist’s tissue. You will also need several plastic buckets to keep the flowers in water and fresh while being transported as well as on your selling sites. To prepare the flowers for selling, you will need a preparation area. This area should be cool and shady to help keep your flowers as fresh as possible. As mentioned earlier, a location central to your area of sales is most desirable. If your own garage fits that description, you won’t have the added expense of renting space.

Your preparation area will require several storage containers and a table. Some refrigerated coolers may be necessary, but since most flower vending businesses pick up their flowers on a daily basis, and sell them as quickly as possible, that sort of storage requirement should not be excessive. However, during the summer and winter months, you may need an air-conditioner and portable heater to keep your flowers in salable condition. If you don’t already have these items, you can count them as a business expense and they are tax deductible.

Your inventory will consist of flowers. You can purchase these from wholesalers found in most major cities. You can find these suppliers by looking in the Yellow Pages of your area’s metropolitan phone directory. Look under ‘Florists, Wholesale.’

Since you will probably have some flowers left over after each day’s sales, it is essential that your inventory be fresh when purchased from the wholesaler. You can check the freshness of your flowers by examining the heads of roses to see if they are tight to your touch. Also, if the blossom appears purple around the edges, the flower is probably too old. When buying carnations, look to see if they are firm and heavy-stemmed. If carnations are somewhat discolored, don’t buy them, because they probably aren’t fresh.

The largest part of your inventory will most likely be roses. Roses are the most desired flower, and they are expensive. Prices will vary with the season and area of purchase. Carnations will also make up a substantial portion of your inventory. These flowers, while very attractive and popular, are much less expensive than roses.

Other flowers you may want to add to your inventory are gardenias, tulips, daffodils, and orchids. Some of these flowers are expensive and usually appeal to an older set of customers, so don’t go overboard when dealing with your supplier. Roses and carnations will be your best sellers. Your best sales months will be during the holidays so you will have to make sure you have an adequate supply of flowers. You’ll also want to have a supply of appropriate flowers to match the specific holiday, lilies for Easter, poinsettias for Christmas and so on.

CHOOSING A LOCATION

Once you have a marketable inventory, you will need to set- up in a good location. If you choose the wrong location your business will not be successful. For flower vending, the two best selling locations are restaurants and roadsides/street corners.

Restaurants are good selling locations if they attract large lunch and dinner crowds. Especially good restaurant locations are those with specific themes. French, Italian and Mexican restaurants are usually profitable locations for flower vendors. You’ll also find successful flower vendors in upscale lounges and taverns.

In general, restaurants and lounges with a quiet and romantic ambiance, are usually conducive to flower vending. Many restaurants are attracted to the idea of flower vending at their places of business because it offers an extra ‘romantic’ touch to their service. Usually, the management of a restaurant will charge the flower vendor only a nominal fee. In some cases, the fee may simply be a few flowers to arrange and display throughout the restaurant.

For street-selling locations, freeway exits and stoplights on main streets are preferred. These areas represent the highest amount of traffic therefore, the largest number of potential customers. Ideally, your locations should be along streets, highways and exits that feature a great deal of late afternoon and/or early evening rush hour traffic. These conditions are ideal if you can find an area where the traffic must come to a stop, or at least has to slow down. Your location must be plainly visible so that oncoming drivers will be able to see you in enough time to get out of traffic and pull off the road.

It is important that you stay away from roadside locations that could limit the ability, or desire, of your customers to reach you. Never set-up at dangerous intersections, along steep hills and other areas that could be hazardous. You could lose a lot of business if potential customers don’t stop because they fear getting struck by other traffic.

When selling on city streets the most desirable locations are those that take advantage of both automobile traffic and pedestrians. You should try to find a spot in an area of heavy pedestrian traffic as well as vehicle traffic. Business will usually be better when people are on their way home. If you know which side of the street is the ‘going-home’ side, that’s where you should set-up.

Operating a flower vending business allows you more flexibility than many other businesses have. You won’t have to stay in one location, if it proves unprofitable. You can move around as often as it takes to find the locations that afford you the most success.

You may have to experiment in the beginning. Simply keep a record of the number of flowers sold at each location and the number of hours at each spot. From these records you’ll be able to determine the most satisfactory locations for your business. You will also have a better idea as to the actual inventory you need so you can cut down on the amount of excess that results in spoilage.

HIRING PERSONNEL

In order to be successful in the flower vending business, it may be necessary to hire help. If that’s the case, not just anybody will do. As the owner/manager of the business you will have to hire people who are right for the job of selling flowers. Although this may seem difficult, there are some guidelines that many flower vending businesses follow quite successfully.

Students and people seeking part-time jobs are the most likely candidates for employment in the flower vending business. Your interviews with such prospective help should be designed to ascertain if they are trustworthy and dependable. You also need salespeople who are outgoing, enjoy interacting with other people, and who are well-motivated.

In most cases, if you are selling flowers in restaurants, attractive young women are the best salespeople. Usually these women are dressed in a costume that serves to identify your business. The most basic sort of identifying costume, or dress, would be a white blouse and dark skirt. As the business ‘blossoms’ you may want to invest in more elaborate costumes depending on the image you want for your business as well as the particular restaurant theme.

Usually, an employer can find adequate part-time help simply by placing a catchy ad in the help-wanted section of the classifieds of the local newspaper. The ad should allude to making ‘good money’ for ‘enjoyable’ part-time work. Response to the ad should be such that you can be selective in hiring the help you need. You should also get excellent response with an ad in college newspapers. And you can try placing the ads on school bulletin boards to elicit even more response.

Once you begin interviewing prospective employees, it is imperative that you have them fill out an application form and supply you with at least three references. And don’t just read the references — check them out. You should know as much as you can about your help before you hire them.

Once hired, make sure all employees know exactly what their duties and responsibilities are, as well as their salaries. You should also plan to review each employee’s performance on a regular basis. These reviews, or evaluations, should be shared with your employees so they will know how they are doing and how they can improve, if warranted.

DAY-TO-DAY OPERATIONS

Operating a flower vending business does not require hours of strenuous physical labor. However, that does not mean flower vendors lead a life of leisure. With any business there are demands that require time and effort. The flower vending business is no exception. You and/or your employees will need to be well organized from the time of preparation until the day’s selling is done.

Preparing flowers for sale is an essential part of a flower vendor’s work day. In order to be salable, your flowers must appear fresh and colorful. Also, every bouquet you plan to sell must be arranged in an appealing fashion. Therefore, you should allow enough time for preparation so that the job is done right. But, don’t overdo it. If you spend too much time on flower preparation, you could be cutting into valuable selling time.

The actual preparation phase should take as little time as possible without sacrificing quality of work. To be as efficient as possible with your preparation time you should organize the process. You can do this in a step-by-step manner.

First of all, you should plan to remove many of the thorns from each rose stem. About half of the thorns, beginning at the bottom of each stem, should be removed. Then, you will need to clip a small portion from the bottom of each stem. This will allow the flowers to absorb water and retain their freshness and color. You can do the clipping with a sharpened knife.

Once you have dethroned and clipped your roses, you will need to place them in relatively warm water. The water temperature should be about 105 degrees. You can leave them in the water for up to two hours and they will be refreshed and colorful when you are ready for the day’s vending. All your other flowers must also be properly cared for and prepared so that your entire inventory is appealing to your customers.

Your preparation process should not involve much ‘decoration.’ People buying single flowers usually won’t expect frills such as ribbons or bows. However, you should have such adornments on hand at your selling location in case some customers request them. It’s also a good idea to supply your sales team with pins, if corsages and/or short-stemmed flowers are part of your inventory.

Any bouquets you sell should be wrapped in tissue or green cellophane. Not only do the flowers keep better wrapped, they also appear more attractive and are more appealing as gifts. Unwrapped bouquets do not have a particularly neat appearance, and they probably won’t stay fresh and colorful as long as they would if wrapped.

How much time should all this preparation take? Well, most successful flower vending businesses spend no more than two to three hours a day buying and preparing flowers. It will probably take a new business a couple of months to become organized and experienced enough to cut buying and preparation time down to two hours per day. That will happen once you learn how to utilize the early morning hours, after the flowers have been purchased from the wholesaler, for preparation of the flowers and organizing your salespeople.

The best times to sell cut flowers, really depends on location. Street corner and roadside vending hours are most successful during the late afternoon and early evening hours when most workers are heading home. Most people are more apt to take the time to make such a purchase as flowers on their way from work than they are on their way to work. Weekends have also proven very successful for many flower vending businesses that operate all day on Saturdays and Sundays.

If you are selling in restaurants, the most profitable time will be during dinner hours. In some cases, lunch crowds will buy flowers, but usually the evening diners will be your best customers in a restaurant. Your salespeople should plan on up to three seating’s of diners each evening in a popular restaurant.

Between seating’s, your salespeople can canvass the immediate neighborhood for other potential customers, and then return for the next seating at the restaurant. This type of selling will take some practice and experience, but a good salesperson will soon learn how to make the most of his time and inventory.

It is important that you and your sales team be as poised and as professional as possible when selling at any location, especially in restaurants. In restaurants, a low-key approach is much better than an extremely aggressive sales pitch. Be polite and friendly, and utilize flattery as an effective tool. Approach the man in a couple and in a casual and friendly manner ask if he would like to compliment his lady companion with a beautiful flower. Most men will then buy a rose for their dining companions.

ADVERTISING

A flower vending business is unlike many small and part-time businesses in that the usual forms of advertising — newspaper, radio, TV, and so on — are not really effective. Since your selling locations may change from time to time, and since buying flowers from a flower vendor is usually done on impulse, you’ll need a more immediate form of advertising. It should be something that draws attention to your business as your customers approach your selling location.

For street corner and roadside vending, signs are the best form of advertising. All that’s needed is something to let potential customers know you are there, and that you are selling flowers. Seeing your sign, many people will act on impulse and stop to see what you have to offer.

The sign(s) should be hand-made rather than professionally painted. You don’t want to appear like a big business. And a hand-made sign will give the impression of a small, family-type operation which usually means more reasonable prices.

In some cases, a new business can get publicity from a local newspaper. If you are selling flowers at a restaurant, you can try getting such publicity by alerting the local newspaper. Most local newspapers use information of this sort as fill, and it could prove valuable to your business.

If, as part of a special promotion — a grand opening, or a special day such as Valentine’s Day — you will be selling flowers at a business location, send the information to the editor of your local newspaper. You may also want to include a picture of you and/or your sales people. The paper may not decide to run the story, but there’s a good chance they will. Either way, you have nothing to lose, and a bit of publicity to gain.

SUCCESS ANALYSIS

Eight contributing factors are measured on a 1 to 10 basis (with 10 being excellent) based on analysis of this opportunity.

1. Time Investment 7 2. Start-up Costs 9 3. Gross Income Potential 8 4. Net Income Potential 8 5. Income in Relation to Investment 10 6. Stability 8 7. Overall Risk 9 8. Potential for Growth 10 Overall Potential for Success 8.63

POTENTIAL EARNINGS

The profit you can realize from a flower vending business depends on several factors:

(1) The size of your market. Obviously larger metropolitan areas supply the greatest source of potential customers, therefore profits. However, your expenses in these larger markets will probably be greater, because of larger inventory needed and a bigger sales team to cover the market adequately.

(2) Good selling locations. Even if your market has a large selection of potential customers your profits will be, at best, minimal if you are not selling in the best locations to take advantage of impulse buying. You have something that practically everyone likes, flowers. But most everyone who buys flowers from a vendor does so on impulse. To be successful, a flower vending business must locate in areas of high-traffic, increasing the possibility of impulse buying.

(3) Consistently marketable inventory. If you try to sell flowers that are too old, wilted and faded, don’t expect to do much business. Make sure your entire inventory is always flower- garden fresh and attractive. Also, price your flowers at reasonable rates. That way, both you and your customers will be happy.

(4) A professional sales approach. Whether you are running a one-person flower business, with yourself as the only salesperson or have several salespeople, a friendly, low-key sales approach is essential. After all, you are selling flowers, not used cars. Most people who buy flowers from a vendor are buying them for a special person, and a friendly, non-aggressive salesperson has a good chance of making a sale.

(5) The size of your investment. This does not just apply to the amount of money you invest in the business. Your investment also includes the time and effort you expend on making it a success. As a weekend business, or operating on a daily basis, a flower vending business will require a certain amount of your time and effort above and beyond your monetary investment. The amount of success and profits you can realize depends, in large part, on how much you are willing to put into the business. Some flower vending businesses have reported netting as much as $175,000 a year. That kind of income usually requires a sales team of half-a-dozen or more people working in a large metropolitan area.

Smaller markets should expect a net profit of $10,000 to $20,000 per year. The thing to keep in mind is that there is always a large market for a flower vending business because flowers make personal gifts year-round. Obviously, some months featuring special days such as Valentine’s Day, Easter and Christmas will be better than others, but this is not a seasonal business. You should be able to realize a healthy profit every month.

Your initial investment can be as low as $300, or as much as $1,500, depending on what you can afford and the size of your operation. It will most likely take several months until you get adequately organized, and until you discover all the best selling locations. But within a year you should be realizing a nice profit with an efficiently operated flower vending business.

SUMMARY

A flower vending business is one of the best small businesses you can get into, if you are short on investment capital. Very little equipment is needed. You can use your own garage or utility room as a preparation area and for storage. And you can sell your inventory on location, from the back of your own car, van or pickup. You may want to invest in a business management course, if you are uncertain about your management knowledge. But no practical experience is necessary to get into this business.

The biggest expenses will be in inventory, which a good month’s sales will recover, any extra personnel you decide to hire, and in any licensing fees you encounter. Advertising costs for a flower vending business are extremely low.

Since flowers have universal appeal, there will always be a sizable market for a flower vending business. If you operate professionally, offering fresh, appealing flowers, establish a good business relationship with dependable wholesalers, find the best selling locations, and hire dependable, competent help, there’s every reason to be confident that a flower vending business can be highly profitable. Remember. You must “do what you love and love what you do!” I will let in to my other secret, my profitable “Rose-Express” drive up flower shops.

Office Rental Is Profitable for Your Business

We all know that real estate rates are increasing tremendously with the development and advancement of society. Commercial property rates have always been higher than residential rates. In such a case buying an office can be a big investment especially if one has limited resources and a low budget. We all know that multinationals and large corporations have a huge commercial premise which looks quite professional and impressive. However, they have a huge turnover and can afford it conveniently. What about the small and developing companies? There are many companies in the market who are working to establish their places in the world of big industries. However, initially they have a shortage of resources and cannot invest in an office.

The best solution for this problem is office rental. Renting an office is quite convenient and affordable. It makes your business look more professional without having to invest a big amount. The saved resources can be used elsewhere which can prove to be more profitable for the business. Office space London provides you with an ample amount of space and can be easily sorted out by hiring a real estate agent. Real estate agents are middlemen who help you in searching for the right property suiting your needs and requirements. They have all the necessary market information which makes your property search much easier. They charge you some amount of commission for their services.

There are many people who run their businesses from home. But, normally these kinds of business do not succeed because they do not create an impression on their customers. If you do not have any idea about office rental and real estate you can conduct an online survey for more information. There are many websites which provide these kinds of services and help you find the right kind of office for yourself.

A developing business always expands some day or the other. In such cases a rented office proves to be much more convenient. You can always shift your business premises and move into a larger office. This is useful especially if the numbers of employees are going on increasing. Thus, it is very necessary that you plan out your resources well before investing anywhere. A monthly rental agreement is more suitable if you want to shift your office anytime in between. This will make your expansion procedure simpler and less hectic without blocking a large amount of your resources. If you are planning to purchase a property conduct a proper market survey before taking any step. It is best to invest in the locality whose real estate rates are most likely to increase in the future. This will be a profitable investment for you and you will get a good resell value if you want to sell the property and purchase a bigger property.

Renting an office also has advantages in case of taxes. A person who has rented an office is required to pay deducted amount of taxes according to the law. Thus, this was some important information on how to rent an office and the various advantages associated with it.

Profitable Ideas for Belly Dance Studio

After taking classes from other instructors, it is decided that the next step in your personal advancement is to become an instructor and start a belly dancing business.

The operation of a belly dance studio requires daily attention to students needs and desires.

In the beginning are the owner’s ideas of making money learned from previous experiences from other dance studios. There is nothing wrong with this, however; it will be temporary.

Immediate income is from students taking classes. A basic beginners course and different levels of classes to advance skills will keep students continuing the course to its completion. After the basic course students may leave.

What can you do to keep students attending and continuing an income?

  1. Specialty classes – these classes may be taught by self or hire other instructors.
  2. Props of sword, cane, tambourine, candelabra, candles, and veil. These classes may range from a couple of hours or taught as a weekend event.
  3. Zills and drumming – these are the basic percussion instruments which belly dancers use. Learning about different zill patterns and drum rhythms will help students understand the various rhythms of Middle Eastern music.
  4. Teach in-home private instruction and offer demonstrations at schools and other types of women’s organizations.
  5. Hire self out for national and international seminars as an instructor and build your brand name.
  6. Design a website page and keep it active with information. Include an application for attending classes or hiring a performer.
  7. Teach basics, techniques, and psychology of entertaining at private parties, restaurant dancing, and stage performances to students who want to become professional performers.
  8. Sell services of dancers for parties, conventions, and organizations for local, national, and international markets.
  9. Teach costume and accessories construction. These classes not only help students to have custom-made outfits for their selves, but it serves to satisfy their creative and imaginative interest for arts and crafts.
  10. Designing and assembling jewelry. Making jewelry which the dancer uses are beautiful and many dancers like their jewelry to compliment their costumes correctly.
  11. There are many other styles of this art form. In the past there were two categories of dances. Today there are nine different styles of belly dancing. It is not possible for one person to teach the nine different styles; hire other instructors. It is critical to offer variety in the dance studio; do not depend on one style.
  12. Teach or conduct workshops and seminars. Workshop classes are taught in one day. Seminars are conducted over a three-day weekend. Hire national or international instructors.
  13. Mount a display wall or a mini-shop in the studio and sell all essential costumes, accessories, jewelry, props, and musical items which dancers need or wish to own. Include consignment opportunities.
  14. Produce online videos and offer online classes.

These money-making ideas may be done one at a time or several may be incorporated

Profitable Business Idea – Manufacturing of Exclusive Curtains

Curtains are obligatory element of an interior and it will not be replaced by jalousies any similar products. Even having ordered jalousies on windows, masters of the house or apartments will not refuse from habitual curtains. The enterprises which would offer rather original and beautiful curtains simply are not present in the majority of cities, and demand for such goods is huge. It is also warmed up by a new direction of textile design which advises to change curtains depending on a season and mood. So, having opened business on tailoring of curtains, you can be assured that you will not remain without work.

By the way, sellers of jalousies and sellers of curtains are not competitors today at all, but allies. Far not everyone is ready to hang up heavy portieres in the apartment but it is necessary to be protected from light somehow. Therefore citizens will acquire a jalousie and as their kind does not associate with house cosiness, will be covered with a habitual tulle curtains. Similar cooperation will be favorable to both parties: sellers of a jalousie can propagandize their goods as the important element intended for protection of an interior, including curtains, from burning out. Sellers of curtains — can position their products as the part of interior that gives house cosiness.

Any successful business on tailoring of curtains is based on two components: salon where goods is presented, and shop where it is produced. However, in a century of information technologies, the role of an exhibition platform can play an Internet site where colorful photos of different curtains will be presented. But remember, the buyer is inclined to trust more to goods he can not only see, but also touch. Curtains salon will perfectly serve this purpose. Also it is not so necessarily to open shop on tailoring. It is possible to find home workers which have the sewing-machines.

To organize your own salon, you will need the area about 30 sq. m. You can also use your usual apartment as salon. Apartment will almost not demands repair because all walls, windows and apertures in it will be hanged up by various stylish curtains. It is necessary to present many of the stylistic variety, after your entire client does not wish to buy ready-made curtains, and prefers to sew exclusive curtains, wants something especial. As a rule, he searches not simply for pieces of a fabric which cover windows, but stylish curtains from the qualitative fabric, executed by the skilled designer on the basis of its wishes so the surroundings of your salon should represent your goods in all its magnificence.

If you have decided to open shop, it is required to you to begin with five work places for which there are enough 90 sq. meters of the area. You can acquire the sewing machine of the Chinese production for $500, overlock costs about $2000, it is desirable to have also the machine for secret seams – its price is in limits of one thousand dollars.

Basically, variants are possible, as they say. You can have shop, and not have own salon. In this case you can simply carry out orders of salons which have no own production. Advantage of the given variant – you are relieved of necessity of dialogue with whimsical clients. However in practice more often work of the enterprise for tailoring of curtains is builds under other scheme: the businessman opens own salon and incurs all creative part, and the foreign sewing shop is directly engaged in sewing. The main thing here is availability of the talented designer which can create really exclusive things. Such designer will be simultaneously both to carry out gauging, and to work as the sales manager. It is desirable to have also and the person with own transport and certain abilities which will hang up ready curtains in-home at clients. This person will also mount eaves. As a rule, these workers are involved from outside for the fixed payment.

Approximate figures on work of the salon look as follows. Different manufacturers estimate the catalogue of fabrics where the product samples are presented, in 20-1000 dollars. On one window the average needed about 6 meters. The margin constitutes not less than 50%, depending on ambitions of the designer it can be and much bigger. As a rule, one customer brings to salon from 700 to 1000 thousand dollars. As practice shows, investments of a few thousand dollars will be quite enough for that business has started to work – very good if to consider, how fast it can pay off.

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.

Secrets to Generate Profitable Business Ideas

Business if done carefully may provide you with the riches that you are dreaming of, but if you are careless about it, then you might fall into debt. Therefore, it is very important to find business ideas to increase your income. It can be a difficult process in sorting out the perfect ideas for your business, but with some efforts and spending time on the research, you may actually come up with ideas that will suit your business. Putting yourself as a customer will make you understand the needs of the people, and therefore, will provide you with better ideas for the growth of your business.

One of the most important ways to find business ideas is, understanding the customer. Customers are the main source of your business, as without them, there will be no business. Your business idea should satisfy the desire of the customer and not what you think might be important for the customers. Try to find out the need or desire of the customers. Often, the owners have a tendency to act according to their ideas, and later on, they find that their customers don’t want the products that they are offering. So spend some time in understanding your consumers, their needs or desires, and plan accordingly.

To develop a perfect business idea, passion is very important. Passion here is not being obsessed about your products. Passion means showing interest in what you are doing. If you don’t have passion in what you are doing, something which doesn’t motivate you to work, then it will be very difficult to give your time and energy to make your business successful. It is also very important to understand the type of competition you are in, to develop a perfect business idea. If you don’t have any idea about the competition, then your competitors may take the advantage. You will be investing more in the competition of pricing, instead of finding plans to grow your business. By knowing your competitors, you will be able to spend quality time in developing plans for your business.

Knowing yourself is the most important factor in developing plans for your business. You should know your strengths and weakness. You should be willing to give what it takes to achieve success. Many businessmen due to their unwillingness to spend their time, energy and money have failed in developing plans for the growth of their business, and thus, have failed in their business too. Try to avoid distraction that may cause hindrance like your personal financial situation and you will be able to focus on developing plans for the growth of your business and earn more income.

How to Create a Profitable Home Based Business Online – Home Business Opportunity

I am going to give you the steps I used to begin my online, home based business and it will take you less than an hour (being realistic). It’s so easy!

1. Find a niche market you are interested in which you know has hungry buyers. Use Google AdWords Keyword Tool to find top keywords that you can base your site content on.

2. Buy a domain name and hosting for less than $20 – I find the best value for a domain name is GoDaddy (coupons are available if you Google them) and Hostgator as a hosting provider (I recommend their ‘Baby’ package) for new home based businesses.

3. The hosting provider will email you nameservers which you will need to change in your domain account settings. This means your blog will appear when you type in your domain to the browser.

4. Create a WordPress blog which will be uploaded to your server. The reason I use WordPress is that it is incredibly flexible for getting top ranks in search engines and easy to update. They are also a great trust builder, so make sure you add some affiliate products for you to gain healthy commissions from buyers.

5. Change the nameservers in your domain account for your home based business domain.

6. For the topic which your blog relates to, you want to write articles or have them written. This really isn’t as hard as you may think as there is so much material out there already (just don’t duplicate other peoples content).

7. Submit these first to EzineArticles (EZA) as they always rank best. Once approved, you can then create variations of the articles and submit to other article directories but in the resource box, always create an anchor text link pointing back (backlinks) to your main site. As you create more articles and backlinks, your site will rank higher and traffic should flood in.

8. By now you should be making nice commissions from your home based business and people should be loving your blog, as you are feeding them with valuable information. Take advantage of this and offer a free report in exchange for their email address. You can do this by signing up to Aweber for an autoresponder. If people want your report they will opt in, submitting their name and email address. Once you build a list, you can promote other affiliate products and make even MORE money.

9. Promotion is the key to any business success but the great thing about home based businesses is that you should only need to work at most 3 hours per day! It sure does beat 9 – 5! At your own will just keep submitting articles, bookmark your content at social media sites and promote in related niche blogs and forums.

10. It really is that easy to start a home based business. Create a blog that sells affiliate products, promote the main blog page using articles and social bookmarking, then once the traffic starts to flood in, the blog will rank higher and higher, meaning more money!

The most commissions come from being extremely targeted in the market you want to approach. So if you enter the body building niche, stick with that and do not sell products on how to spice up a relationship. People search online for specific things, so keep your blog specific to what you are trying to promote.

Profitable Traffic Building – 8 Key Ways to Traffic Building

Traffic is the very air that every website breathes in order to survive. As a webmaster, it is your responsibility to drive sufficient and steady traffic to your site in order to get the exposure it needs. This exposure will eventually bring huge profits to you. Here are the best 8 ways to traffic building:

1. Search Engine Optimization. Improve the quality and volume of traffic to your site by incorporating relevant keywords to your domain name and content. You also have to pay attention to the required keyword density so your website will rank higher on major search engines.

2. Bank on your content. Nothing beats a quality, useful content. When your website is viewed as a good source of much-needed information, you will be assured of steady traffic and more link request from other webmasters.

3. Article marketing. Write quality articles that showcases your expertise on your field and submit these articles to various article submission sites. This is the easiest way to earn quality inbound links that makes your websites more popular and frequently visited.

4. Link building. Research the internet for various websites or blogs that share your topic or theme and exchange links with them. It is important that these sites or blog has higher page ranking than you, otherwise, they will not help your standing on search engines.

5. Blogging. Another great traffic generating tool that dominates the internet today is blogging. Talk about your website, products, and services on your blog and incorporate your website’s URL.

6. Social networking sites. You can also generate traffic from MySpace, Friendster, and other social networking sites by putting up an enticing profile and inviting your potential clients to network with you. You can also put your website’s URL on your profile so interested buyers can just click it to get more information.

7. Social bookmarking. Let your visitors bookmark your website to social bookmarking services like del dot icio dot us and DIGG to get the exposure it needs.

8. Build traffic through YouTube. Create an interesting video about your products and services and post it on YouTube. Embed your website’s URL anywhere on the video so viewers would know where to go to get more information.

Is Becoming an Unclaimed Property Recovery Specialist Profitable?

The answer to this question is: it depends on which unclaimed property you are recovering. Some funds are great to work; others can be difficult for a number of reasons, and offer little in the way of profit to the money finder.

The more difficult funds to work are just about any funds held by the state (in the Unclaimed Funds Division/Department). These funds are generally things like forgotten bank account, uncashed refund checks, unpaid stock dividends, etc. They are generally for small amounts (under $1000). They are regulated by state law, which limits finder’s fee caps at 5-15%, and worst of all, they are very public. Most states have a website where anyone can type in their name and see if the state is holding any funds for them.

While this makes it easy for you to find funds, it also is easy for your competition to find them. Worse yet, when you alert the owner to the fact that they have missing money, all they have to do is go to that website and find out where it is for themselves – and pay you nothing. Obviously, to be profitable, you have to find a way to be able to keep your sources secret.

Forget those funds. The best funds for an unclaimed property recovery specialist to work are real estate created overages. These are funds arising from tax sale, and sheriff’s sale, as well as from some probate cases. They aren’t held at the state level, and so through this legal loophole you can charge 30-50%. And these are big funds. $10,000, $50,000 – even more, sometimes. You do the math.

These funds urgently need to be worked, because unlike most state funds, real estate overages escheat – that is, if no one claims them, after a short period of time, the government gets to keep them. So not only do you get the benefit of a nice income for yourself, but you get to save these owners – most of whom sorely need the money – from losing money they never even knew they had in the first place.

With more and more foreclosures happening monthly, there’s never been a more profitable time to become a unclaimed property recovery specialist. The government is holding literally billions of dollars in funds that will be lost permanently without the intervention of a money finder.

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