How to Survive Your First Year of Entrepreneurship

The first year of entrepreneurship is the crucial one. It’s where your company will either grow at an incredible rate or immediately stagnate. It’s true that most entrepreneurs give up in the first year,according to a number of studies. This is not difficult to understand why because it’s notoriously difficult to thrive in one of the most competitive areas of business.

But this doesn’t have to convince you that this is a bad idea. You can start your own business and you can succeed. This guide is going to show you how you can go about surviving your first year of entrepreneurship.

Have a Goal

The only way you are going to make your strategy succeed is through having an actual goal. A common mistake is that people have no real idea what they want to accomplish or why they are doing this. It leads to them doing something without any meaning or purpose in mind.

If you can’t articulate your goal, you are never going to make it through the hard times. A good goal is something that you believe in and that you are doing for the greater good. Yes, you can make money and get rich, but a good goal embraces something more than that.

The Right Work Ethic

It’s easy as an entrepreneur to take the slightest hint of success and turn it into something that it isn’t. For example, it’s easy to see an increase in sales and then to relax and soak it all in. There’s nothing wrong with reflecting sometimes, but if you are compromising your work ethic in order to do this it’s a mistake.

The best entrepreneurs are passionate people with a big work ethic. They are so passionate that they never stop working. If they have to work 18-hour days, they relish it because they believe in what they are doing and they are passionate about what they are doing.

Remember, entrepreneurship is primarily about hard work.

Be Willing to Delegate

It’s easy to try to take on all the responsibility alone. This may work for a time, but it’s quickly going to lead to burnout. The chances are you are also not going to do the job as well as you could have. Be willing to delegate different tasks to people with more expertise than you.

It may require an outlay to begin with, but you are going to make your money back because the job will be done right.

Love Risk

Entrepreneurs can never afford to be conservative. The nature of the business means that they have to go further than others in order to achieve success. In other words, they have to bring something to the table that has never been seen before. And with that comes risk.

The problem with a lot of entrepreneurs is that they come from conservative backgrounds. They may have worked in a large company where taking unnecessary risks was actively discouraged. As an entrepreneur, you can’t afford not to take risks because otherwise you are never going to discover something new.

You can never guarantee that it will come off well, but the point is you are trying new things. You are always going to miss the shots you never take, as the saying goes.

But how do you take risks without putting your whole business in jeopardy?

This is quite simply because the idea is to not take these risks. The daring acts that many businesspeople take may look crazy from an outsider’s point of view, but in reality, they are incredibly calculated. They have weighed up the pros and cons and they know that they have a reasonable chance of success.

Be Content with Living Cheap and Uncomfortable

The life of an entrepreneur is rarely glamorous. There are many entrepreneurs who have been homeless while running their businesses. They have worked minimum wage jobs and they know the meaning of hard work. There are no shortcuts to success and very few people are lucky enough to come up with a great product that goes viral.

Many entrepreneurs simply can’t stomach the idea of living lean and living with a constant jittery feeling that they are going to fail. Comfort is not something you are going to experience often in this line of work.

The End Goal: a Happier You

But you’ll be happy to know that it all pays off in the end. Many entrepreneurs report being happier than they have ever been, despite the stress and discomfort that comes with being an entrepreneur.

Is the life of an entrepreneur for you?

 Source: http://bit.ly/20Bg2P1

5 of the Biggest Obstacles Facing Entrepreneurs

When you first decide to make the big leap and become an entrepreneur, you will face many hurdles along the way. However, if you know what these hurdles will be, then you can begin to take steps to overcome them. Here are five major issues that you will face once you have decided to become an entrepreneur and start your own business.

Financing Your Business

This is probably the greatest hurdle you will face. The great thing about this is that once you overcome this problem, everything else will be much easier. Some of the obvious solutions for this problem would be small business loans and crowdfunding campaigns; however, you can also get funds from friends and family. It is also important to realize that there are many other ways to get funding, including various business competitions and government grants.

Building a Customer Base

Once your business is up and running, you will need to attract customers. Social media is the first solution that you should start using right away because it is free. This tool also allows you to perform valuable research about individuals who need your products and services. In addition, you can promote your business with various marketing campaigns, such as topbargains.com.au offering online coupon codes and deals once you have a strong enough web presence. However, if your business is a local brick and mortar organization, then you also have other options, including flyers, word of mouth, phone calls, and door to door solicitation.

Quitting Your Day Job

This is a major factor to consider when you are thinking about becoming an entrepreneur. You need to make sure that you can pay your bills while you are starting your journey. The best solution is to have a nest egg tucked away that will give you the freedom to pursue your dream. However, if you can get financing rather quickly, then you might be able to deal with this problem a little more easily.

Building Your Team

This is one the most important issues you will face when starting your own business. You need to locate and hire quality employees that will be highly dependable and able to quickly adapt to any situation rather quickly. It is also important that your very first employees remain loyal to you because in the beginning stages of your operations, replacing them will be extremely difficult.

Creating Your Network

You need to begin building relationships with suppliers, sellers, and all of the other various entities that you will need to associate with in order for your business to function properly. You will probably have many choices, so you need to be well informed about the prices and the quality of the goods and services that they offer.

In Conclusion

When dealing with many of the troublesome situations that you may encounter, one of the best things you can do is examine your competitors and see how they overcame these problems. You can also look to other similar businesses and find out what they did or didn’t do in order to deal with any of the obstacles you might be facing in the near future.

Source : http://bit.ly/1YHfczt

3 Social Media Trends to Look for in 2016

It seems as if social media trends change daily. In 2015, we saw major changes to the Facebook newsfeed, the dawn of live-streaming applications, and a whole bunch of content everywhere. To me, it seems clear: businesses have an issue with content. Your clients might be saying, “Wait a minute; we’re creating content just fine,” but here’s an alarming statistic: 69 percent of business-to-consumer marketers created more content in 2015, and 70 percent of business-to-business marketers also created more content.

The alarming word here is “more.” In an effort to battle 0% organic reach on platforms like Facebook, the ongoing strategy has been to create more content to cut through the clutter. But is this really the right path forward in 2016?

My answer to this is simple: quality over quantity. A brand that is too focused on the brand message as opposed to communicating with its consumer is a brand that will fail on social media in 2016. It’s time we really start to understand our consumers, because 2016 will provide brands a real opportunity to harness the power of consumer-driven content and brand affinity.

Here are three big trends I see really taking off in 2016:

1. Channel building.

Simply put, many brands are on multiple channels, but the content strategy isn’t working. Instead of cross-promoting the same content on all channels using the copy-paste model, brands will need to make the switch to a model that speaks specifically to the audience on each channel. Work to build specific audiences on the different channels—because they’re all so different.

We know that the LinkedIn audience is comprised of mostly C-level executives, so let’s help our clients understand that there is a better channel suited for community events, contests, etc. In the same vein, branded content will not generate any organic reach on Facebook unless you’re providing an awesome incentive to engage, so make sure you’re working paid budgets into the 2016 mix.

If a message is important and you want people to see it, be prepared to invest $2 in promotions for every $1 spent creating a piece of content. Don’t just drop a piece of content on a social network and hope it sticks, give each piece of content a runway to succeed.

2. Live streaming.

Content on social media that contains video is proven to be more engaging. Brands are beginning to use videos for customer service outreach and to show personality. In 2016, new applications like Periscope and Facebook’s new “Live” option will allow brands the opportunity to engage on a new level. Attending a trade show? CEO giving a keynote? Hosting a grand opening? Stream it live and give consumers a real look into your client’s brand and “who” they’re all about.

Notice I said “who” and not “what” – the sooner our clients can differentiate between the two, the faster they’ll see success on social media. It’s not about what a brand has; it’s about who they are and how consumers will identify with them. Many marketers think consumers are too busy to consume their content, but if content is relevant, the audience will consume it. Relevancy creates time.

3. Influencer marketing.

About 25 percent of all branded search results is user-generated content. That means a quarter of the content about your client’s brand is not developed by your marketing team. Yikes! Influencers, brand advocates, and even employees are talking about your brand online.

Remember the phrase: “word of mouth?” It’s happening on a massive scale, but your brand can weigh in. Businesses are making more than $6 on each $1 spent on influencer marketing.

Source : http://bit.ly/1No8V81

Don’t Say This to a Designer!

I have worked with numerous designers, developers, managers and other team members of all shapes and sizes. With some I’ve developed lasting friendships, with a few I have developed lasting white hairs. But we were all trying to do only one thing: make the product better. Unfortunately, good intentions don’t always translate to helpful comments. Here’s some things you’re better off not saying to your designer and what you can do instead.

“Can you make that bold?”

“Like designers, if you give a programmer a problem with parameters, they’ll apply every bit of genius they have to solve it in the best possible way. If you tell them how to do it, you’ll suffer the wrath of an angry God.” — Derek Powazek

But unlike programming, design is a collaborative process that benefits from constructive feedback.

So do tell your designer what you honestly feel. Raise questions about the interactions, talk about scenarios they may not have thought of, point out inconsistencies they might have compromised on, comment on the feel and the style if it doesn’t feel right. Your feedback can bring in a new perspective and help a lot. What doesn’t help however, is when somebody tries to micro-manage instead of explaining the problem.

Example time:

You are looking at a new design and it looks great but it is painfully obvious to you that that heading will look better if it is bold. So you tell your designer to “make that bold”.

What you don’t know is the context. Are the headings like this on all other screens and will making it bold here break the consistency? Are there complex visual hierarchies the designer has maintained? Will the clarity of some other element be sacrificed if she makes it bold? Did she already try it in bold and decided regular was the best balance? Is she already aware of the problem you are trying to solve but made a conscious trade-off for some reason?

Now, in most cases she will ask you why you think it should be bold and if the problem is legit, suggest a solution that fits best. But if you do this too many times (especially if you’re in a managerial position), she will start picking her battles and give you the smaller changes. This sucks for everyone because it sucks for the product.

So what should you do? Just frame the feedback better, that’s really all. Instead of telling her to “make that bold”, tell her that you don’t think the title has enough emphasis, or that the headings don’t stand out enough and then let her decide what to do about the problem. Also be ready to support all your feedback with arguments and examples.

“There were some problems with the design; don’t worry I fixed them.”

Never ever make design changes in the final product without consulting the designer. This is the worst thing you can do and you’ll instantly earn your designer’s absolute distrust. It is as if a designer took your production-ready code and made some changes because things didn’t feel right. The small changes you make on the fly might seem small but they will accumulate. If you’re not satisfied with a design, talk to the designer. Give them honest, constructive feedback and trust them to do their job well.

Side note for managers:

If you’re in a managerial position and find yourself making changes at the final stage without consulting the designer, that’s a symptom of a larger problem. If you have been giving your designer constructive feedback but still aren’t satisfied with the final designs, you need to either have an honest conversation with them or find a designer you can trust. You are paying them to do a job and if you have to do it instead, there’s no point keeping them around. If you don’t have the time to provide feedback and go through the iterations, you are about to lose even more time fixing the haphazard fixes later (these can accumulate really quickly, trust me), plus you will end up iterating in product cycles instead of at the design level
.

“Will moving that button 5 px to the left really make a difference?”

It’s our job to sweat the details. Mis-aligned UI elements is the stuff of our nightmares. But that’s not why you should care about those 5 pixels; you should care because every one of those 5 pixels strewn around the product accumulates and reflects on the final feel. Can you tell the difference between the millions of shitty-looking apps in the stores and the few high-quality, well-designed ones? Well, each of those painfully 5-pixel-aligned buttons contributes to making those high-quality apps look that way.

“Nope, can’t be done.”

Say that it will take too much time, more than the deadline permits. Say that it will lead to compromises in the code. Say that it’s not a priority. Say that you don’t think it’s worth the time to figure out how to do it. All of which can lead to a conversation rather than shut it down.

There’s nothing more frustrating than repeatedly hearing “That’s not possible” every time you want to try something new. We all want to enthusiastically build the best product. That involves going to 100% polished not just 70% functional. I realise that too much AfterEffects and Photoshop can sometimes keep designers out of touch with real-life constraints. If that is the case, please remind us of the limitations of the platform or framework. As designers we can dream up wonderful things, but we rely on your brilliance to help make these dreams a reality.

Source : http://bit.ly/1GHFInE

10 ways to combine SEO and content marketing

Gone are the days when search engine optimization was enough to land your website onto Google's good graces.

Now you must to add content marketing to your arsenal of digital marketing tool if you want to gain search engines’ approval and ultimately win the heart of online users.

Given the important role content marketing now plays in the success of online business, it's time that SEO ties the knot with content marketing.

The two digital marketing tools that were once viewed as separate entities are now an inseparable couple, promising to inch businesses closer to the proverbial “overnight success. ”The amazing duo can greatly help your online business reach the pinnacle of success and outwit your competitors.

Here are 10 ways you can ensure that the two digital marketing tools work in harmony:

1. Set common goals.

Setting common goals is the first step to make SEO and content marketing work together to bring additional revenues.

Ask yourself what activities overlap between the two digital marketing techniques. Is it increased online traffic, rankings or links? How can you align the activities to achieve common goals?

The answers to these and other similar questions will give you a starting point in creating an integrated SEO and content marketing strategy with clear and focused goals and strong communication.

2. Establish key performance indicators.

Another way to optimize synergy between SEO and Content Marketing is to establish key KPIs that will track performance, and ensure that it is on track for achieving common goals.

These KPIs include content sharing, links to content, online user engagement, call-to-action conversion rates and several others. 

3. Understand your target audience.

Understanding your audience is the key part of an SEO and content marketing strategy. Create personas of the target audience and develop a unique digital marketing strategy for each group. The personas can be based on age, location, gender, hobbies or interests.

Don’t undertake any digital marketing activity without considering what your audience wants, and also what you want them to do in return of fulfilling their demand.

4. Create SEO-optimized content.

Google places great emphasis on quality content. You can make the content more relevant for the search engine by incorporating high-impression keywords. Optimizing the content in this way will allow your Web pages to become visible to online users by appearing on the search results.

Avoid overstuffing keywords into website content. In order to play it safe, limit the keyword density to 1 percent or less. This will ensure that your site doesn't get penalized by the search engine, decreasing online traffic.

5. Research high-impression and relevant keywords.

Include high impression and relevant keywords in the website. Each keyword that you select should be researched properly using online tools such as Google Planner, Google Trend, Word Stream and other similar tools.

Optimizing your content in this way will ensure that your online content is able to attract maximum number of online users.

6. Attract online consumers through link building.

Another way you can make SEO and content marketing work together is through link building. Link building is a pure SEO strategy that results in distribution of online content to a large number of targeted, qualified audiences. You can greatly increase your content’s effectiveness through these efforts.

The links pointing to the published online content is placed on various high authority and high page ranked sites. These sites attract thousands of online visitors that can be diverted to your site by placing targeted links on the site they first visited.

Enlist SEO professionals to enhance your link building strategy. Here are some reputed SEO companies, based on user reviews:

TIS India

SE Media Online

Anpee Media

7. Focus on internal link building.

Internal link building works wonders in increasing your website’s ranking along with your published content. Moreover, creating internal links will also result in improved user experience due to easy navigation around the site.

Internal link building is simple to implement, and should be part of your digital marketing arsenal. This will help to improve your ranking and guide users with the content that is relevant to them.

8. Optimize your website content’s title and headings.

Your website content’s title and headings should also be optimized using relevant keywords and phrases.

The title is displayed on top bar of the browser, and headings are included inside the content. Your title should be descriptive, persuading users to click. Headings should be catchy enough to make the content readable.

Both must also be SEO-optimized to make your content more visible in the search results page.

9. Measure your results.

Make use of various online tools to measure the outcome of your combined SEO and content marketing efforts. Google Analytics can track changes in search volume over time. You will also know which pages and content attracts the most visitors, and the keywords they type to enter the website. The information gathered can help you fine-tune your content.

10.Keep your efforts going.

Combining SEO and content marketing must be an on going effort that should not stop at any time.

Make the most of the opportunity and watch the extraordinary combination of SEO and content marketing work wonders for your organization or client. It will position you perfectly on the fast track to success.

Source : http://bit.ly/1hIC8xr

10 ways to combine SEO and content marketing

Gone are the days when search engine optimization was enough to land your website onto Google's good graces.Now you must to add content marketing to your arsenal of digital marketing tool if you want to gain search engines’ approval and ultimately win the heart of online users.

Given the important role content marketing now plays in the success of online business, it's time that SEO ties the knot with content marketing.

The two digital marketing tools that were once viewed as separate entities are now an inseparable couple, promising to inch businesses closer to the proverbial “overnight success. ”The amazing duo can greatly help your online business reach the pinnacle of success and outwit your competitors.

Here are 10 ways you can ensure that the two digital marketing tools work in harmony:

1. Set common goals.

Setting common goals is the first step to make SEO and content marketing work together to bring additional revenues.

Ask yourself what activities overlap between the two digital marketing techniques. Is it increased online traffic, rankings or links? How can you align the activities to achieve common goals?

The answers to these and other similar questions will give you a starting point in creating an integrated SEO and content marketing strategy with clear and focused goals and strong communication.

2. Establish key performance indicators.

Another way to optimize synergy between SEO and Content Marketing is to establish key KPIs that will track performance, and ensure that it is on track for achieving common goals.

These KPIs include content sharing, links to content, online user engagement, call-to-action conversion rates and several others.

3. Understand your target audience.

Understanding your audience is the key part of an SEO and content marketing strategy. Create personas of the target audience and develop a unique digital marketing strategy for each group. The personas can be based on age, location, gender, hobbies or interests.

Don’t undertake any digital marketing activity without considering what your audience wants, and also what you want them to do in return of fulfilling their demand.

4. Create SEO-optimized content.

Google places great emphasis on quality content. You can make the content more relevant for the search engine by incorporating high-impression keywords. Optimizing the content in this way will allow your Web pages to become visible to online users by appearing on the search results.

Avoid overstuffing keywords into website content. In order to play it safe, limit the keyword density to 1 percent or less. This will ensure that your site doesn't get penalized by the search engine, decreasing online traffic.

5. Research high-impression and relevant keywords.

Include high impression and relevant keywords in the website. Each keyword that you select should be researched properly using online tools such as Google Planner, Google Trend, Word Stream and other similar tools.

Optimizing your content in this way will ensure that your online content is able to attract maximum number of online users.

6. Attract online consumers through link building.

Another way you can make SEO and content marketing work together is through link building. Link building is a pure SEO strategy that results in distribution of online content to a large number of targeted, qualified audiences. You can greatly increase your content’s effectiveness through these efforts.

The links pointing to the published online content is placed on various high authority and high page ranked sites. These sites attract thousands of online visitors that can be diverted to your site by placing targeted links on the site they first visited.

Enlist SEO professionals to enhance your link building strategy. Here are some reputed SEO companies, based on user reviews:

TIS India

SE Media Online

Anpee Media

7. Focus on internal link building.

Internal link building works wonders in increasing your website’s ranking along with your published content. Moreover, creating internal links will also result in improved user experience due to easy navigation around the site.

Internal link building is simple to implement, and should be part of your digital marketing arsenal. This will help to improve your ranking and guide users with the content that is relevant to them.

8. Optimize your website content’s title and headings.

Your website content’s title and headings should also be optimized using relevant keywords and phrases.

The title is displayed on top bar of the browser, and headings are included inside the content. Your title should be descriptive, persuading users to click. Headings should be catchy enough to make the content readable.

Both must also be SEO-optimized to make your content more visible in the search results page.

9. Measure your results.

Make use of various online tools to measure the outcome of your combined SEO and content marketing efforts. Google Analytics can track changes in search volume over time. You will also know which pages and content attracts the most visitors, and the keywords they type to enter the website. The information gathered can help you fine-tune your content.

10.Keep your efforts going.

Combining SEO and content marketing must be an on going effort that should not stop at any time.

Make the most of the opportunity and watch the extraordinary combination of SEO and content marketing work wonders for your organization or client. It will position you perfectly on the fast track to success.

Source : http://bit.ly/1N6CI3x