Top Home-Based Business Trends in 2007
Monday, October 09, 2006
Homestead Technologies commissioned the findings researched by Darrell Zahorsky, small business expert for About.com and author of upcoming book, "1001 Small Innovations," to encourage the growing numbers of workers seeking greater work-life balance and wealth-building opportunities in recognition of "Home-Based Business Week"
Here is the list of the top ten home based businesses for 2007:
Scrap Booking: In today's easy to save and store digital age, opportunities abound for the home-based scrapbook artist, workshop teacher, or a direct sales rep.
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Here is the list of the top ten home based businesses for 2007:
- E-Learning: With advances in new web application tools such as podcasts and video blogs, development costs will decrease.
- E-Bay Aftermarket: Helping companies conduct market research, pricing strategies, shipping, and competitive analysis is a great niche business.
- Children Arts Education: There is a major market for teachers of right-brained education who are thought to help foster the development of future innovators.
- Garage Organizers: Just as organizing closets was the next big thing in the 80's, the messy garage is the final space to clean up.
- Background Checks: Small businesses with limited resources are turning to background check companies to handle investigation and due diligence.
- Pet Sitting: An ideal home-based business where you get paid to walk and enjoy the companionship of pets.
- Specialized Coaching: The coaching market has boomed in the recent years including specialized areas such as life, spiritual, corporate, relationship and business.
- Home-based Debt Collection: Debt has become a way of life for many Americans. Operating a low overhead home-based collection service can serve the niche sections of this market.
- Specialized Outsourcing: The small business market has limited resources and a focus on core competencies. Specialized outsourcing from home to small business will have a solid position market position for years to come.
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Labels: home business, small business, trends
8 Reasons to Consider Blogging A Marketing Weapon
Thursday, October 05, 2006
7CMarketing on Blogging as a marketing tool for small businesses:Business blogging provides a way for companies and readers to meet on common ground and discuss ideas, products and services in the hopes of building an audience that can become customers. A business blog provides a cost-effective alternative to having a website. For small and medium sized business entrepreneurs without the time and the means to set up a website, business blogging offers an inexpensive tool to herald the company's presence on the powerful Internet.And more:
- Business blogs provide SMBs with an avenue to share their expertise and knowledge with a bigger audience.
- An effective business blog can help give a human face to a business.
- A business blog if used productively can improve customer service
- A business blog keeps an archive of older posts organized by date and categorized by topic.
- A business blog can increase the chances of prospective clients to visit a company's website.
- Regularly posting valuable content on a business blog builds company credibility and creates sound business reputation.
- A business blog can be an avenue to introduce company products or services
- However, a business blog is not urgent but important for small and medium sized businesses. A business blog alone is not enough to market a company product or service.
Labels: blogging, marketing, small business, trends
Small Business Global Trends
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
Top Ten Trends according to McKinsey:
1. Centers of economic activity will shift profoundly, not just globally, but also regionally - Asia will overtake Europe economically, although the U.S. will have the largest economic growth for the next 20 years.
2. Public-sector activities will balloon, making productivity gains essential - Aging populations are creating demand for public services, which in turn will increase taxes.
3. The consumer landscape will change and expand significantly - Consumer spending power in emerging economies is growing. Here in the U.S., the Hispanic consumer is growing.
4. Technological connectivity will transform the way people live and interact - The article notes, “For perhaps the first time in history, geography is not the primary constraint on the limits of social and economic organization.”
5. The battlefield for talent will shift - A global labor market is opening up.
6. The role and behavior of big business will come under increasingly sharp scrutiny.
7. Demand for natural resources will grow, as will the strain on the environment.
8. New global industry structures are emerging - According to the article, “In many industries, a barbell-like structure is appearing, with a few giants on top, a narrow middle, and then a flourish of smaller, fast-moving players on the bottom. ”
9. Management will go from art to science. Gut instinct management is dead, the authors say. I say, “maybe.”
10. Ubiquitous access to information is changing the economics of knowledge - Think open-source knowledge creation.
Read the whole article at the McKinsey Quarterly (requires free registration)
1. Centers of economic activity will shift profoundly, not just globally, but also regionally - Asia will overtake Europe economically, although the U.S. will have the largest economic growth for the next 20 years.
2. Public-sector activities will balloon, making productivity gains essential - Aging populations are creating demand for public services, which in turn will increase taxes.
3. The consumer landscape will change and expand significantly - Consumer spending power in emerging economies is growing. Here in the U.S., the Hispanic consumer is growing.
4. Technological connectivity will transform the way people live and interact - The article notes, “For perhaps the first time in history, geography is not the primary constraint on the limits of social and economic organization.”
5. The battlefield for talent will shift - A global labor market is opening up.
6. The role and behavior of big business will come under increasingly sharp scrutiny.
7. Demand for natural resources will grow, as will the strain on the environment.
8. New global industry structures are emerging - According to the article, “In many industries, a barbell-like structure is appearing, with a few giants on top, a narrow middle, and then a flourish of smaller, fast-moving players on the bottom. ”
9. Management will go from art to science. Gut instinct management is dead, the authors say. I say, “maybe.”
10. Ubiquitous access to information is changing the economics of knowledge - Think open-source knowledge creation.
Read the whole article at the McKinsey Quarterly (requires free registration)
Labels: small business, trends
