Internet Marketing Strategy for your home business - Know Your Competition

Internet Marketing Strategy for your home business - Know Your Competition by Andy Josiah

One of the biggest challenges any new business owner will face is dealing with the threat of new competitors who want to get a piece of your market. This is something that you cannot get away from when in business so forming a powerful strategy even before you start up is very important in order for your business to be successful in the long term.

Additionally it is not only very important to know and understand your direct competition but you also need to now about indirect competitors in your market. Using the internet to spy on your competition is a very powerful marketing strategy.

Nearly all the goods that are available on the market have substitutes and compliments. An example is if someone wanted to purchase some powered detergent if she or he could not find any in the supermarket they can then probably decide to buy liquid detergent instead. This is also true for any type of industry because customers will always be able to find substitutes for services and products that they can't find. We also need to consider having a very effective distribution system that will allow you to reach targeted customers where they are located; this will greatly increase your money earning potential. It is also a very good idea to always check out the features of your competitor's products, the quality and price range that they offer.

Being aware of the weaknesses and strength of you competition and comparing it with your own will give you the opportunity to put in place strategies that will allow you to effectively compete in your marketplace. You would want to concentrate on your good points and try to take advantage of your competitor's weak points. Remember your competition would be doing the same to you, they would try to point out your weak points to your customers to try to improve there market share.

In addition to your present competition, you should also consider future competition because it is very possible that new competitors will try to enter your market in a couple of years. You can visit blogs, forums and chatrooms that are related to your particular market to keep up with new trends, technologies and potential threats to your business. Having a very strong strategy and a loyal customer base will enable your online home business to survive all these potential challenges. Most new businesses put there emphasis on a low price range and this could either be a good or a bad for your business.

An example of this is that it can be great if the product that new competition is offering has a lower price but if it is of a poor quality this will establish your product as a superior good or product. But, if they are offering better good and services at a much lower price, then you might need to get involved in a price war. Never forget that your strategy should always depend on the particular situation and perception of your market. If you would like to know more on this topic check out Dotcomology the art of making money with your home business.

About the Author
Andy The Home Biz Wiz recommends for more information subscribe to my FREE Internet Home Business tips newsletter and get hundreds of money making tips and tricks along with FREE Software delivered to your inbox. A $147 value, yours FREE: http://www.MakingMoneyFromHomeOnTheInternet.com

Source: http://www.goarticles.com/cgi-bin/showa.cgi?C=813853

Outsourcing Accounting to India - A Powerful Business Strategy

Outsourcing Accounting to India - A Powerful Business Strategy by Amitaabh Saboo


Dealing with the accounting function of any business can be laborious and time-consuming. Making sure that accounting details are accurate is no walk in the park either. It requires great care and expertise. When business owners review accounting records to check the firm's financial status, they realize how much time is spent on getting accurate details and chalking them up. In fact, doing accurate accounting can take significant time and effort.

Only qualified accountants can draw accurate conclusions from accounting details and help firms realize the actual financial picture. However, procuring the services of an accountant that is both qualified and experienced is cumbersome. In this instance, one might opt to simply hire the services of an outsourcing firm that specializes in accounting. These days, outsourcing accounting to India has become one of the most preferred options for businesses and accounting firms.

The work of an accountant never ends and it requires vigilance. If one appreciates the details that can possibly make or break a business, he would certainly want to get the most qualified accountant for the job. Outsourcing accounting to India is ideal because it ensures that only a qualified professional from a reputable firm will work on the accounting services for a business.

Now, choosing a reliable, authentic and established accounting outsourcing vendor in India can be difficult. In spite of this, one must give it time and care because once outsourcing accounting to India is accomplished, there would be no more need to worry about accounting again.

When outsourcing accounting to India, the first step is to skim through the many different firms listed in classifieds over the internet or online. Available vendors offer accounting services to both large and small businesses. Different businesses have different requirements when it comes to accounting. For this reason, it is imperative to procure the services of a firm that understands the accounting needs of the business.

When outsourcing accounting to India, business owners will need to follow a structured process to ensure its success. First you need to choose an accounting firm that has good experience in accounting outsourcing. Always choose an accounting firm that works 24x7 since efficient communication is the key to most outsourcing initiatives. Then you have to give the accounting firm accurate details regarding the firm's accounting requirements. Business owners also need to take measures to ensure only proper use of the firm's accounting data. Further, one must ensure that outsourcing service is significantly beneficial to the firm. It is, after all, the business owner's money that is at stake.


About the Author
Outsourcing Accounting to India requires great care and expertise. There are many accounting outsourcing firms in India that cater to small and medium businesses worldwide with a structured process to ensure its success.


Source: http://www.goarticles.com/cgi-bin/showa.cgi?C=807431

Business Strategy

Business Strategy by Gordon Petten

Developing a strong business strategy may be the only way to become (or stay) competitive in a global economy. Regardless of your industry, the global market you currently compete in will force you to be more efficient, more in-tune with your clients and customers, and more flexible �" or you won't survive. Developing a business strategy requires outlining the company's goals, the steps needed to achieve the goals, as well as policies and procedures that help the company adhere to the business strategy. The business strategy is usually developed by the top-level management of the company, and provides the guide by which the day-to-day decisions about the management of the company are made.

A business strategy, once it has been developed, is not a static thing. As the economy changes, as competition changes, and the global environment changes, the business strategy must also be updated. A business strategy can even be influenced by changes in technology or politics.

There are steps one must follow to successfully design a business strategy. The first step is to analyze everything. The business strategy cannot be made without knowing how the company is functioning internally, how the industry as a whole is functioning (SWOT analysis) and how the company relates to and compares to the industry, how the economy and political situation affect the business. The next step of developing a business strategy requires writing goals. The business strategy should include both long and short term goals as well as an open minded look at what obstacles might remain in the way of achieving the goals. The goals you develop will suggest a business strategy, which can then be formalized and shared with management.

There is no point in developing a business strategy if you are not going to implement it. Implementing your business strategy requires you to share your key goals (long and short term) with your management team and your employees. By having everyone on board, it will be much easier to achieve the goals outlined in your business strategy.

The final step in developing a business strategy is to determine if it was successful. You do this by conducting an evaluation. This may mean conducting another SWOT analysis to determine the changes, or it could be determining whether or not your goals were met. Requesting feedback from employees can sometimes help determine whether or not the business strategy was successful as well.

About the Author
Expense Management

Source: http://www.goarticles.com/cgi-bin/showa.cgi?C=802813

Business Strategy IS Intellectual Property Strategy

Business Strategy IS Intellectual Property Strategy by Ron Carson

by Ron Carson Regional Sales Director Innovation Asset Group, Inc.
IP assets are increasingly recognized as key business assets. The management of IP assets is no longer a discretionary function, nor solely the domain of the legal department. It has become a pillar of corporate strategy. If you are reading this, you probably already know that IP is important.

A lot has been written about both business strategy and IP strategy. In the case of business strategy there are a multitude of models, formulas and approaches that provide a framework to assist in development of the strategy. In contrast, it seems to me, most writings about IP strategy deal with why it is important, but there is little written about how to go about developing or implementing such a strategy. In fact, most writing seems to position IP strategy as a separate concept that must be aligned with a pre-existing business strategy. In my opinion business strategy and IP strategy are at the very least deeply intertwined, if not two sides of the same coin.

IP IS IMPORTANT... According to a number of recent reports by PWC and others: * Approximately 90% of worldwide corporate net worth can be attributed to intangibles and intellectual property. * Over 80% of executives believe the importance of intellectual capital to the value of their companies will increase over the next 3-5 years.

...BUT APPARENTLY MISMANAGED. * Almost 70% of executives believe IP management is too often treated as a legal, not a strategic issue. * Over 60% of executives believe current accounting practices understate the value of IP. * Over 80% of royalty agreements are under reported. * Over 60% of executives believe their companies could extract significantly more value from existing IP and IP formation if it devoted more assets and attention to relevant processes.

WHY THE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY DICHOTOMY? * Over 70% of executives believe a focus on short-term results inhibits the development of sophisticated processes for managing IP. * Intellectual property is inherently more complex than tangible assets. * Most business executives would rather not have to read the claims of a patent, let alone the claims of an entire portfolio. * It is easier to continue to have the legal department manage these assets. (In my opinion, this is why we are seeing the legal function around IP become elevated to a more strategic position in companies, just as we have seen with IT departments in the past 10-15 years. You can read a related post about Chief IP Counsels and Chief IP Officers here.)

IP Strategy can be approached in much the same way as business strategy. In some respects, they are the same.

IP STRATEGY IS BUSINESS STRATEGY I think part of the challenge executives have is the concept of mapping their IP strategy with their business strategy. IP strategy is simply a component of a business strategy. In fact, I think you could take a model such as the Balanced Scorecard or the Five Forces and insert an additional component for Intellectual Property.

In developing a business strategy, there are some common things to consider that apply equally well to the realm of intellectual property. Generally speaking, you want to consider the needs of your customer, the nature of the competition and your own capabilities. (For the sake of simplicity, I'll leave market sizing and some other topics out of this post.)

Customer Eventually, the value of the IP a company hopes to control is derived from the needs of the market. Just as a business strategy must consider the needs of customers in various segments, so too must IP strategy consider the needs of customers. Understanding these needs will drive product requirements, R&D priorities and eventually help prioritize patents to be acquired, licensed, applications to be filed or even trade secrets to be protected.

Competition In business strategy, a company cannot chart its course without understanding its competition in terms of strengths, weaknesses, distribution strategies, pricing strategies, etc. In the IP realm, companies can look at the profile of their competitors to understand the relative strengths and weaknesses of their IP portfolios, strategies and technological directions. With this information in hand, a company can patent or acquire rights to technologies to strengthen their own competitive position.

Product In business strategy, a company looks at its relative areas of expertise. What does it do better than other companies, how does it differentiate itself? Similarly in IP strategy, a company must consider its portfolio -- what does it have, and what does it need to add? On the business side, a company has to make the build vs. buy decision. In IP, a company looks out across the IP landscape with an understanding of the market requirements, competitive implications, and determines if it should invent (make) or acquire (buy) the necessary components to round out the portfolio.

Understanding what the market needs, the competition and your own capabilities are key elements of both business and IP strategy. With this information in hand, you can intelligently plot your course forward with all appropriate milestones and metrics.

Stay tuned for next-in-series posts that will get deeper into the 'how' does one go about this - at each stage of the IP Value Chain and at varying levels of IP sophistication. And please...feel free to add your insights.

About the Author
IP assets are increasingly recognized as key business assets. The management of IP assets is no longer a discretionary function, nor solely the domain of the legal department. It has become a pillar of corporate strategy. If you are reading this, you probably already know that IP is important.

Source: http://www.goarticles.com/cgi-bin/showa.cgi?C=795404

The Best Strategy For Branding and Marketing Your Home Business

Business Strategy Articles : The Best Strategy For Branding and Marketing Your Home Business by Jeff Schuman

Do you know how to use branding to build your Internet business? Many people do not know how to do this and are missing a great opportunity to build their business and their customer base.

In this article I want to talk about a specific marketing branding strategy as it pertains to using the internet to make money targeting the home business niche.

Branding is the messaging work a company does to encourage consumers to feel a certain way about their product. If you have a business that wants to attract the work at home or home business crowd you should be working at branding YOU!

You are the brand because in this niche people still want to deal with people. Especially on the internet because there are so many scams and impersonal websites online.

Most people looking for a way to make money at home just want someone to help them get started. They want someone they can trust in, and someone to tell them the truth about using the Internet to make money.

So how can you use this to your advantage? Here are 6 things you should be doing.

1. Write a free report on how a person can make money online for the first time in their lives. Let them know you are going to help them.

2. Give the report way on your website and blog.

3. Get an auto responder to deliver the report.

4. Put a sign up form front and center on your website where it will be seen. Keep it short so people will actuall fill it out. All you need is their e-mail address in their first name.

5. Add your picture to everything you do. Get a quality picture online that you can use in all of your marketing efforts.

6. Keep all pages on your site consistent. This means the same header, background color, font, etc on every page.

Spend the majority of your time talking about how you will help them. When you do this you are branding yourself as someone who is accessible and someone who is solving a problem.

The problem most people have is they want to make money on the Internet, but they either do not know how, or they have tried and never made any money. As a matter of fact, most people have spent considerably more money than they have ever made on the Internet.

If you really want to brand yourself write an easy to understand report in simple words about how someone can make $200 a month on the Internet. Let them know that you have the answer. If you do this you will have a huge market of people flocking to you.

In reality this branding strategy allows you to build a mailing list for future follow. It also allows you to spend your time marketing your report. By driving traffic to either a landing page or your website you can concentrate on getting opt in subscribers for your exciting report.

This is an excellent strategy to use to build your Internet business because branding you allows your business to market any product at any time. The product is not important, because with this marketing branding strategy the brand is YOU!

About the Author
Jeff Schuman invites to visit his make money website where he offers you a blueprint for success titled "20 Ways To Make $100 Per Day Online". Would you like to brand yourself and make more money? See how he uses JV With Jeff and Hands Off Article Marketing to help you make money by clicking here now: ===> http://www.Team-Schuman.com

Source: http://www.goarticles.com/cgi-bin/showa.cgi?C=793965

How to Define A Business Emergency Strategy Before It Is Too Late

Business Strategy Articles : How to Define A Business Emergency Strategy Before It Is Too Late by Bruce Tucker

We all remember how New Orleans, LA looked after it was ravaged by hurricane Katrina. How can anyone forget? The sites of homes flooded up to the rooftops, people sitting by the Superdome with what seemed like no hope in sight.

Take into account the many businesses that were up and running before Katrina hit, and how many have disappeared because of it.

Imagine for a moment you are building your business. You sell widgets, you are buying, selling, tracking orders, doing account, and the many other facets of tasks that go into your business`s daily operation. In a moment`s notice, your business is wiped out. Not by bad financial planning, not by some bad accountant you hired or a lost account, but because of a natural disaster.

Is your business prepared to rebuild after a disaster? Is ready to pick up where it left off, as if nothing happened? If you answered no to both those questions then you need to get an emergency plan in place.

Backup your data. Believe it or not, even in today`s high tech world, a lot of businesses do not back up data properly. Some do it once a night and then the backup is in the same location as their main data centers. This makes no sense. If your building is wiped out, all of your data and all of your backup data is in the same place. You need to separate the two. You should do a backup of your system every night. There are many services out there that offer this at a nominal cost. When compared to what the cost will be when you lose all that data, hiring a firm that specializes in data backup and recovery will be well worth it.

Team organization. Even if you are able to rebuild your data center from your backups, if you and your team, meaning your employees, are not on the same page, and have no idea what the next steps are, or what their roles in the recovery are, you and your team will look like a bunch of chickens with their heads cut off. You should have a written plan in place as to what the efforts of each team member will be after a disaster occurs. Keeping everyone involved, and informed as to what they are responsible for, will make a transition to getting your business up and running again, a smooth one. This plan must be updated periodically, especially as employees come and go.

Write it all down. Finally, get the entire plan in writing. This plan, must be a detailed outline of steps and procedures as to exactly how to get the business up and running. It should also outline what each person is responsible for, how to get the data backup and running, who handles acquiring a temporary space to run the business and so on. This document, will be the most important item of your emergency plan, because it is the actual plan. Make sure each employee has a copy, as well as a saved version on your computer system so it gets backed up with all of your other data. Since you now have a separate vendor handling backup and recovery, your plan is safe. You may want to consider using document version control software such as Documentum. This type of software versions your plan with the ability of people making the changes of checking the document in and out, just the way a library works. When someone has it checked out, no one can make changes to it until they check it back in.

Get your emergency plan in place. You never know when a natural disaster is going to hit, and for that reason, you do not want to be unprepared when it does.

About the Author
Bruce A. Tucker is the Associate Director of http://www.Indocquent.com, an online resource for individuals and businesses to post their products and services for sale and hire. You can follow Bruce on Twitter at http://twitter.com/indocquent.

Source: http://www.goarticles.com/cgi-bin/showa.cgi?C=778912

Aligning IP Strategy and Business Strategy

Business Strategy Articles : Aligning IP Strategy and Business Strategy by Roxanne Carroll, Innovation Asset Group

At Innovation Asset Group, we often use the concept of an IP Value Chain to illustrate the nature and importance of the relationships described in this post. We believe an IP Management System should be flexible enough to accommodate the different use-case scenarios described here. More importantly, it should be flexible enough to deal with new challenges that may arise in the future. For example, ask us about automatically analyzing your entire patent portfolio to ensure compliance with the 5/25 rules. (If they ever take effect!)

In previous articles we've discussed the importance of IP and that business strategy is closely intertwined with IP strategy -- whether most companies realize it or not. (We've also written a white paper on the subject.) In this article, I thought I'd discuss a couple of examples in which a good IP Management System can help companies deal with real world business-level issues.

IP is important because it accounts for somewhere between 70%-85% of the value of corporations (depending on which report you read). And the value of an intellectual property asset is determined by its relationship to other things, such as its relationship to products, other IP, people and agreements. For example, a patent may have more value if it enables a key aspect of a product of the assignee or of another company. Similarly, the patent's value can in part be derived from the licensing agreements to which it is related.

So... the value of a company is derived from the value of its intellectual property. And the value of intellectual property derived from the relationships it has with other things. Therefore, the management of intellectual property should include the management those relationships as well.

This makes sense in theory, but let's test it on a couple of scenarios:

Mergers & Acquisitions The value and importance of intellectual property assets are playing a greater role than ever before in terms of assets received through mergers, acquisitions and takeovers. These valuable assets include patents, trademarks, copyrights, know-how, trade secrets and domain names.

In the course of M&A due diligence, the acquiring party must not only assess the inventory of intellectual property included in the transaction, but to properly value the portfolio, they must also consider the network of relationships surrounding the IP portfolio. For example, the acquiring company must also evaluate the contracts & agreements that could affect their ownership or rights to the core IP assets. (There is an article on the WIPO site (PDF) that explains this in greater detail.)

M&A deals can completely fall apart and shareholder value can be lost due to mis-management of an IP portfolio. A round-table transcript (PDF) in Mergers & Acquisitions Magazine actually mentions a situation in which the acquirer backed out of a transaction because the target's IP portfolio did not have coverage where they thought it did -- the acquirer would have effectively been excluded from a number of international markets due to a lack of related international patents in the patent family. To put it another way, it was not just the inventory of assets that was important to the M&A transaction, but the relationships the assets had or did not have with other things. As you can imagine, this would have a significant negative impact on the relative value of the IP portfolio in question.

It is not the issues of docketing and cost management that define IP management, rather it is the alignment of IP strategy and business strategy. This alignment is achieved by understanding and managing the network of relationships that surround the IP portfolio.


Product Launches

We frequently hear that IP Departments are looking for ways to become more strategic to the business units of their respective companies. As such, they are looking for ways to add value to important business events such as new product launches.

Product launches are one of those events that require many different business functions to come together and operate cohesively, if only for a brief period of time. In the context of intellectual property, there are the obvious considerations such as patent protection and freedom to operate in the new markets. But there are also a number ancillary IP issues that may be less obvious.

For example, there are a number of contracts and agreements that need to be in place to execute a successful launch. These include agreements for distribution, sales & marketing, service & support and others. Each of these items need to be coordinated and require collaboration between legal, marketing, business and the local teams.

Again, it is not simply the management of intellectual property in the traditional sense that ensures a successful product launch. Rather, the coordination of a number of IP assets (patents, trademarks, products) and their related contractual obligations (distribution agreements, licensing agreements, etc) that determine how well IP is aligned with the business strategy.

If not properly in place, any one of these related pieces can lead to adverse business results. A poorly executed freedom to operate analysis can result in costly legal battles. Similarly, an missing or poorly written distribution agreement can lead to unnecessary expense or lost revenue to the company.

Other As mentioned previously: It is not the issues of docketing and cost management that define IP management, rather it is the alignment of IP strategy and business strategy. This alignment is achieved by understanding and managing the network of relationships that surround the IP portfolio.

There are other scenarios that would make good illustrative examples of the importance of managing the network of relationships around the IP portfolio. They include competitive intelligence, trademark licensing, joint ventures and others. Perhaps we'll cover some of these in future posts.

About the Author
At Innovation Asset Group, we often use the concept of an IP Value Chain to illustrate the nature and importance of the relationships described in this post.

Source: http://www.goarticles.com/cgi-bin/showa.cgi?C=775942

Creating a Competitive Advantage for your Business

Creating a Competitive Advantage for your Business Author: Linda Pollitt

The first step in defining your own place within the market place is to understand clearly what you are providing to your customers. This may sound obvious but it is surprising how often business owners remain quite hazy about what they are offering. You should be able to write out a short, clear list of the services or products you provide. If you cannot do so, it suggests that further clarification is required.

In terms of creating your competitive advantage your description should go far beyond this basic list of products/services. It must also include the way you do business, and what business benefits your customers derive from your products or services, and from doing business with you. What are you really selling?

I once heard a story about a mattress manufacturer who sought help from a respected PR man. At their first meeting, the publicist asked, "What do you sell?" The bedmaker replied "Why, I sell mattresses, of course." Shaking his head, the other retorted, "No, you don't. You sell sweet dreams and good sex."

Michael Levine, Guerrilla P.R.

Under normal circumstances competitive advantage grows in direct relation to the number of things you can offer that your competitors cannot. Good research will tell you where the opportunities are to increase your competitive advantage. Develop your business by emphasising your strengths, in terms the customer/client can appreciate.

Traditionally, in sales and marketing, this perspective is referred to as translating features into benefits. The easiest way to translate a feature into a benefit is to add the prompt 'which means that...'. For example, if a strong feature of a business is that it has 24-hour opening, this feature would translate into something like: "We're open 24 hours (the feature) which means that you can get what you need when you need it - day or night." (the benefit). Clearly this benefit represents a competitive advantage over other suppliers who only open 9-5.

The important thing is to understand your services and proposition in terms that your customer will recognise as being relevant and beneficial to them.

Most businesses have a very poor understanding of what their customers value most in the relationship, so ensure you discover this in the research stage, and reflect this in your marketing strategy.

Customers usually value the following benefits higher than all others:

- making money
-saving money
-saving time.

From the Business Team at Learning Curve ; offering a range of unique development programmes for small businesses.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/small-business-articles/creating-a-competitive-advantage-for-your-business-177662.html

About the Author:Director of Studies at Learning Curve Home Study , one of the UK's leading distance learning providers. Learning Curve offers home study courses in a range of subjects, including Business Development and Digital Marketing.