Real Best Work from Home Jobs

My objective is to show those who want to work from home how to do it without falling and to all of the failure traps that exists. The first thing that you must realize is that you will be in business. Some are under the delusion that they can participate in some Internet scheme and be making money within days or weeks or even minutes. Because of this disillusionment, they are grabbed in the snare of the Internet guru or scam artist. They end up losing hundreds and thousands of dollars.

The Guru’s Sales Funnel

Being a guru is one way to make money on the Internet if you have no scruples or morals, which they don’t. They see the greed in your eyes and they make the most of it by setting you up in a trap called the sales funnel. There is nothing wrong with having a sales funnel if you are offering legitimate products and services. It is one way to develop a customer. Here is how the gurus do it.

1. Had a guru might start out by saying, “I made $36,789.13 in only 36 hours!”

This is usually a fabrication or downright lie. However, some gurus have done just that. Gurus often work from a nest of other gurus. They share information and lists of the suckers that they have brought into their sales funnels. Here is how that would work: A guru comes up with a new product. He tells another guru about the product and partners with him to market it. The receiving guru has a list of folks that think he is God and anything that he says is true. He sends an offer to his mailing list with the new product furnished by the first guru. Of the thousands of people on his list, he sells to say 500 and instantly receives their payment through the Internet. The product cost hundred $147.15. His profit is half of that. He make his $36,789.13.

Not every guru makes a lot of money. The majority don’t. Some say they are working from the beach into Tahiti while in fact they are closeted in a room working day and night try to make a few dollars. Gurus can’t make money unless they can entice people into their trap and they do that with every lie in creation. Many are in debt from other gurus whom they are now trying to replicate in themselves. (I’m sorry I use that strange word. I mean they are trying to turn themselves into gurus so they too can make big bucks and some day go to Tahiti with their laptop and make big buck while sunning themselves on the beach drinking tropical drinks.

2. To get you going with your dream based on his phony story, the guru offers you a free gift with a promise. The promise is that the gift will make you rich. When you accept the gift, he has your name and email address and you have just entered his sales funnel. You don’t see that you are in a trap. He starts sending you emails which you read diligently. At first the emails will be very chummy. He will be cheering you on the road to riches. He will talk about his new Porsche at his home on the beach. He’ll talk about his trophy wife and brilliant children. He will tell you how rich she is and you will listen because he has become your friend and mentor.

3. Now that you are warm and his hand, he offers you a second product which will cost you about $67. This product will give you more information far beyond the original free gift product. It will surely make you rich. If you buy a the product, you will receive several other products which he will list for you. Each of these will be worth hundreds of dollars so that when you spend $67 you will actually be receiving $1497 worth of products. Wow! Value will be on your way! What he doesn’t tell you is that the products are all free somewhere on the Internet (or at least information that is in them).

4. He keeps sending you the emails. You are still poor but you still have your dream. He sends you an email perhaps labeled Important! One Time Only Offer! Tells you that you are in luck. Only certain people (those on his mailing list) will be able to participate in this offer. She is offering you a new product, the third in a series of three worthless products. He says that his partner has come out with a new product that is guaranteed to make you money. The guarantee is that he will refund your money for the product if you are not satisfied because you are not making lots of money. (Many have learned that gurus never issue refunds for the do they reply for request for refunds.) Note that they are not refunding the money that you will lose by trying to use their program to make money on the Internet which may be thousands of dollars, they are simply offering to refund the money for the product that they sold you. This third product will cost you exactly $167 but this cause you on his billing list and are such a fortunate person, he will have another list of bonuses for $1750 for you to enjoy and profit from.

5. Surprise! You have not earned one damn penny! That your guru has a solution to that problem. What you need is a mentor. By that he means (or she means) that you need someone to hold your hand and to show you the ropes step-by-step. Cost for this mentoring is only $1675. If you take advantage of this special not-to-every-one-offer, you receive more bonus gifts such as a video package or some worthless piece of software. Your guru tells you that he can only mentor a few people because of his busy schedule (of scamming others) and that you are one of the lucky ones. It may not tutor you himself. He might assign you a tutor who is full of wisdom and experience just like he is.

Don’t fall for gurus on their BS.

Have patience and getting started in business from your home. In the next segments or modules, I will help you learn how to operate a business from your home. The important thing is to remember that you will be in business. If you have no experience in running a business, you will need some help. I will tell you how to get that help free and not by paying some crook operating on the Internet.

John T. Jones, Ph.D.
Internet Business Tool Center

Start your home business with SBA.gov if you are not already familiar with running a business from home or otherwise. At SBA.gov, go to Starting and Managing. Study each topic as needed.

Starting a Business

How to Start a Business
Write Your Business Plan
Choose Your Business Structure
Choose & Register Your Business
Choose Your Business Location & Equipment
Business Licenses & Permits
Learn About Business Laws
Business Financials
Finance Your Business
Filing & Paying Taxes
Hire & Retain Employee

Managing a Business

Running a Business
Leading Your Business
Growing Your Business
Business Law & Regulations
Business Guides by Industry
Small Business Health Care
Exporting
Closing Down Your Business
Cybersecurity
Forms

I suggest that you go to these topics rather quickly. This will give you an overview of what you are in for. You can go back to the topics later as you need the information.

The SBA Learning Center

Got To the Learning Center and select the courses that interest you because of their content. I suggest that you take the 30 minutes to take the course Understanding Your Customer at the start. Fill out the course registration form. Click on each topic in the left-hand column as you go. When you are finished, request a certification that you took the course.

I suggest that you click on Transcript as you watch the videos. There’s nothing like getting a double dose of information for retention. After you have read the transcript, you will need to click on the Menu to go to the next step.

Take other courses as you see the the need for them. It might be a good idea to keep notes on your computer as you take each course.

Why I Suggest That You Start with Knowing Your Customer

The reason is that you will be looking for a niche market. You will not be selling the stuff that your customers can buy at the local grocery store or service station or hardware store. A niche market is part of a large market. You need to find people who have money to spend in your niche market.

I will be adding a module on How to Select a Niche Market.

I Have Put A Lot on Your Plate

One thing about starting a new business is that there is so much to learn before you start so that you will not fail. Businesses fail because of lack of knowledge of the operators. Prior knowledge can be a great solution when troubles arise in a business. You will know what to do to solve the problem.

Take your time, work from a schedule, and plan a lifetime of study as you start and operate your business. You don’t have to know everything at once and you don’t have to do everything at once you will need patience because the road to profit can be tedious and long. And that is the reason that entrepreneurs are so focused and work so many hours. It takes time and energy to get off the ground, but once you do, the rewards can be great.

John
Internet Business Tool Center

Start with SBA.gov

Go to SBA.gov and select Local Assistance at the top of the page. Here is what they list:

SBA Offices and Resource Partners

SBA District Offices: SBA District Offices offer counseling, training and business development specialists to help you start and grow your business.

SBA Regional Offices: SBA Regional Offices support local district offices and work to advocate economic development, growth and competitiveness within their geographic area.

Disaster Field Offices: SBA Disaster Field Offices offer counseling and financial assistance to those who are rebuilding their homes and businesses after natural disasters.

SCORE Chapters: SCORE is a nonprofit association comprised of over 13,000 volunteer business counselors, advisors, and mentors who offer free counseling and mentoring throughout the U.S. and its territories.

Small Business Development Centers: Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) are partnerships primarily between the government and colleges/universities aimed at providing educational services to small business owners.

Women's Business Centers: Women's Business Centers (WBCs) represent a national network of educational centers designed to assist women to start and grow small businesses.

U.S. Export Assistance Centers: U.S. Export Assistance Centers (USEACs) are designed to provide export assistance and make worldwide commerce achievable for your small- or medium-sized business.

Veteran's Business Outreach Centers: Veterans Business Outreach Centers (VBOCs) are designed to provide entrepreneurial development services and referrals for eligible veterans owning or considering starting a small business.

Certified Development Companies: Certified Development Companies (CDCs) are nonprofit corporations certified and regulated by the SBA which work with participating lenders to provide financing to small businesses.

Procurement Technical Assistance Centers: Procurement Technical Assistance Centers (PTACs) provide technical assistance to businesses that want to sell products and services to federal, state, and/or local governments.

Regional Innovation Clusters: Regional Innovation Clusters (RICs) connect business owners in targeted, high potential industries and sectors with the resources they need to commercialize new technologies and grow their venture.

ScaleUp America Communities: ScaleUp America Communities are grassroots, intensive entrepreneurial training programs designed to help existing high potential businesses, particularly those that are historically underserved, to scale up and create jobs.

Some Things You Can Do Locally

Visit your Chamber of Commerce: Chambers always have first hand information on starting a business. There you will learn of local opportunities of an educational nature that will get you started in a local business.

Visit your banker: Bankers know what is going on in the community. Here too, you can learn of opportunities and resources to help you get started. You like your banker, try another one. You can also talk to local accountants who have their hands in business. Don’t forget friends and family members who know such things.

Visit local business people: you’ll find that local business people are very friendly and helpful in most cases. Be brave and approach them. They’re always thinking of new things that they can do but are too busy to do. They might pass a good opportunity on to you..

Visit local clubs and associations: This is where many business people hang out. They often sponsor activities for new business owners and for those who want to start a new business.

Study the businesses in your community: It’s amazing what you can learn just by sitting in your car in the business parking lot. You can go inside the business and see what they are actually doing, what the customers are buying, and what they are not buying. Items on special sale are often “dogs” that the business owner can hardly give away. Location: Where should you place your business if it is going to be outside your home. Fast food restaurant should be near other fast food restaurants because at this where traffic is. It’s amazing how far people will drive for a good meal. If you have a good steakhouse out of the country, people will find it. Just don’t put a fast food restaurant out in the sticks.

Start Your Business Plan at SBA.gov

Go to: https://www.sba.gov/tools/business-plan/1 and start your business plan. Don’t worry about it being complete or even correct. You will always be able to modify your plan. In fact that is an important part of a business plan, to be able to modify it as needed when needed.

If you are in the course being taught by a SCORE member or other business wise instructor, he or she will help you build your plan, but it is nice if you walk in to the class with your start from SBA.gov.

John
John T. Jones, Ph.D.
Internet Business Tool Center

Introduction:

Let’s take a break for a minute. You probably expected me to show you some get-rich-scheme that you could immediately activate for little or no cost. Well, I am not a guru. I am an 84-year-old retired business executive who enjoys helping others. So I have not offered you some scheme. I am offering you a pathway to success.

Why SBA?

I have put a heavy load on your plate by having you start with SBA.gov. The reason is that this government service hires people who know what they are doing. They will start you from scratch and get you moving in the right direction. Okay, it is one hell of a lot of work to start a business and to make it successful. Just ask in a successful entrepreneur. They will tell you that it is a rocky road, that they made a lot of mistakes in the beginning, that they had to work very hard to succeed.

What is an Entrepreneur?

Simple Definition of entrepreneur: a person who starts a business and is willing to risk loss in order to make money.

Source: Merriam-Webster's Learner's Dictionary

From this definition an entrepreneur:

1. Starts a business.

2. Is willing to take risk.

My objective is to help you start a business and to reduce risk.

Failure in business comes from not being able to solve problems as they arise. To be successful in business comes from planning that will help solve problems as they come along.

For example:

l. Obtaining ample financial backing at the start can prevent failure due to lack of finances.

2. Carefully studying your potential market can help you avoid presenting the wrong products at the wrong price to your customers.

3. Realizing from the beginning that you cannot do everything by yourself, that you will need others who can contribute to the success of your business, will lead you to people who can prevent and solve problems to keep your business solvent.

Personal Traits That Can Help You in Your Business

1. Having a desire to be independent.

2. Having a desire to go into business.

3. Having a desire to learn all that you can about business.

4. Having a desire to provide services and products to help people live a better life.

5. Having deep passions and faith in others and faith in yourself.

6. Having a desire for wealth to allow you to determine your own destiny.

Identify Your Traits

You can probably list many traits that could be desirable for an entrepreneur. Now might be a good time to make an assessment of yourself. Identify what traits that you have that could hinder you in business. For example, if you are lazy and cannot stick to a task, that would be a big negative.

Also, identify those traits that you have that could help you become a success in business.

You’ll want to decide on actions to help you overcome negative traits and to use your positive traits to build your business.

Self-improvement is the key in the business world. Over the years, my very successful brother has spent several hours each morning reading self-improvement books to make him more successful in his business. Is 81 years old, but he still works every day even after having sold major parts of his business.

Identify Your Educational and Work Experiences

What have you done in the past help you in the future? List all of your experiences because you never know what will really be important.

Identify Your Passions

Our passions drive us. Copies sometimes become great businesses. Special interest creates new businesses. What do you love to do? What have you always wanted to do? What would make your dreams come true?

Mr. Pearson

I had a shop teacher when I was in junior high school. He was talking one day about an invention idea that he had that was fulfilled by others so that he did not profit. He said that someday his ship would come in and that he was going to buy a half-block-long red convertible and a box of fine Cuban cigars and that when he passed us on the street, he was going to spit in our eye.

We love that man, Mr. Pearson, he taught us more than woodworking, metalworking and electricity. He talks about life. I remember that one day during World War II, he brought a Navy pilot to the classroom. It crashed into the toning tower of the carrier and he was blind. It was a lesson in personal sacrifice.

Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill

Go to your favorite bookstore, and if you haven’t already read it over the years, grab a copy of Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill. Mr. Hill made a mint selling this book by mail order. I remember it when I was a kid. It came out in in 1937 when I was five years old. It is one of the best selling books of all times.

Here is a quotation from Napoleon Hill (memorize it):

"You can be anything you want to be, if only you believe with sufficient conviction and act in accordance with your faith; for whatever the mind can conceive and believe, the mind can achieve."

Your Sacrifice Can Bring Great Rewards

You cannot start a business without making a sacrifice. You will pay in time and in energy. Your family will suffer somewhat from a lack of attention. You will have a lot of irons in the fire and you will be juggling them to keep things moving ahead.

Over time, you’ll have more control over your life and how you spend your time. Over time, you and your family will benefit.

Let’s hear that quotation!

John
Internet Business Tool Center
Buhl, ID

Introduction:

A number of very large companies were started in a garage. Don’t take this to mean that the owners were not prepared to start a business. If you will study such business startups, you will find that the owners were well prepared to start a business. All they needed was a star to bring in the income they would need to grow the business.

Amazon is a huge company. It was started by Jeff Bezos who has an estimated personal wealth of $63 billion. It started as a book business such as I ran from my garage for a few years when we lived in Arizona. When we moved to Idaho, I did not want to bring all those books with me. I gave the business to a needy friend. If you read Jeff basil’s biography (http://www.biography.com/people/jeff-bezos-9542209#buying-the-washington-post), you will see that he was no ordinary man. He was very bright, well educated and he was experienced in business and technology.

That is true of many businesses that started in a garage. If you look at the big names in such businesses, Hewlett-Packard, Apple computer, and Collins Radio (now Rockwell Collins), that started in a garage, USC that they were founded by well educated and intelligent people who knew exactly where they were headed and what they wanted to achieve.

Don’t get the idea that because the business was started at home or in a garage that was started with someone who had no previous knowledge or supporting background required to move forward. These businesses succeeded because they were created by people who prepared before they got started.

That is a point that I have been trying to make. You need to prepare yourself for business so that you will be successful. That preparation can come in many ways, but the bottom line is that it will take some time and serious effort on your part to get started.

The Internet

Many folks who want to start a new business decided that business will be an Internet business. That is okay but don’t let the Internet be your business plan. The Internet is a method of promoting your business. First, decide what your business is, what group do you want to help by providing products and services, and how you will promote your business.

That is why I say to start with SBA.gov and local sources, not with the Internet scam artist.

One Caveat

It’s a great idea to’s study how other people got started into business. You will see what difficulties they had to overcome and what they did to gain success. So dig into the biographies of the very successful people. You will see that those who actually started out without much education became very well educated over the course of their lifetime. One way they did this was by associating with each other. For example Thomas Edison and Henry Ford hung out together just as Bill Gates and Warren Buffett do today. Make friends and associates that can help promote your success.

John
John T Jones, Ph.D.
Buhl, Idaho

. Oh my goodness!

What a line of work this Jones guy has outlined, SBA and all that stuff.

There must be an easier way!

Can I get someone to do this for me?

Well there is one way that works for many (and causes misery for others). It is called the franchise.

What is a Franchise

I would like to use this definition (from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/franchise): a : a special privilege granted to an individual or group; especially : the right to be and exercise the powers of a corporation

When my wife and I moved our kids to Ames, Iowa in 1966, the first thing we noticed was that there was no McDonald’s in town. I could see the opportunity but I was too dumb to pursue it because:

1. I decided that I could not afford to start a franchise from McDonald® on the salary of an assistant engineering professor at Iowa State University. (I was thinking only of the $50,000 franchise fee and about the other costs associated with such a franchise.)

2. I was pretty busy getting situated in Ames and at the University engineering college.

Over Thinking Can Hurt Us

Sometimes we think too much and make excuses for not getting started in business. A few years later, my neighbor opened up a McDonald’s. He also did not have the time or money. But he knew how to do things because he went down to the bank or who loaned him the money to get started. It was probably an SBA loan, but I’m not sure. All I know is that he did not sit on his hands.

Top Franchises from Entrepreneur's Franchise 500 List

Every year, on or near magazine publishes of the top 500 franchises (https://www.entrepreneur.com/franchise500). Here are some of the categories listed:

FRANCHISE CATEGORIES
Automotive
Business Services
Children's Products and Services
Education
Financial Services
Food
Health Care
Home Improvement
Hotels & Motels
Maintenance
Personal Care
Pet Businesses
Recreation
Retail
Service Businesses
Tech Businesses
Training

Top Listed Franchise

I suppose you have watched the television commercials where the old grump orders a sandwich by telephone and while he is talking the phone, the sandwich arrives at the door. That ad is posted by Jimmy John’s Sandwiches, the top franchise listing for 2016.

Here are my excuses for not starting a Jimmy John’s Sandwhiches franchise:

1. I am 84 years old.

2. The town that I live in is too small (even though there are already three majors fast food chains operating here).

3. The Initial Investment is 325,00 to $555,000.

Such thinking did not stop someone in Twin Falls (17 miles up the road) from starting a Jimmy John’s Sandwich franchise.

Here are some Entrepreneur Magazine Franchise Rankings:

MORE FRANCHISE RANKINGS

Top Low-Cost Franchises
87 franchises for under $50,000
Top Homebased/Mobile Franchises
These 100 businesses can be managed from home
Fastest-Growing Franchises
These companies have shown rapid unit expansion over the last two years
Top New Franchises
The top 75 companies that began franchising in the last five years
Top Global Franchises
200 North American franchisors seeking international franchisees

Top Listed Low-cost Franchise

The top-listed low-cost franchises for 2016 are:

Jan-Pro (commercial cleaning) $4k-149K

H & R Block (taxes) $32-140K

Cruise Planners (travel) $2-23K

Vanguard Cleaning Systems (commercial cleaning) $11-36K

Jazzercise, Inc. (Group fitness classes, conventions, apparel and accessories) $4-76K

Advantages of Purchasing a Franchise:

1. Your market will be evaluated.

2. Your business site will be selected.

3. You will be help with financing.

4. Your managers and staff will be selected and trained.

5. Everything you need to run your business will be supplied.

Disadvantages of Purchasing a Franchise

1. The franchise will take part of your profits after taking profits on the materials that you purchase.

2. The franchise may not meet your expectations and you are stuck with it.

3. If you have never run a business, you may not like it.

Things to Do before You Purchase a Franchise

1. Talk to other owners of the franchise and see if they are satisfied with the business and purchased.

2. Talk to your banker, accountant and attorney about the franchise possibility.

3. Look at the competition and competing franchises.
4. Think about the long term performance of your business.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Owning a Franchise (http://www.franchise.org/what-are-the-advantages-and-disadvantages-of-owning-a-franchise)

The following is from Leslie Anderson of Paul Davis (http://pauldavisbusiness.com/profiles/getting-to-know-leslie-anderson/)

ADVANTAGES

“Owning a franchise allows you to go into business for yourself, but not by yourself.”

“A franchise provides franchisees (an individual owner/operator) with a certain level of independence where they can operate their business.

“A franchise provides an established product or service which may already enjoy widespread brand-name recognition. This gives the franchisee the benefits of a pre-sold customer base which would ordinarily takes years to establish.

“A franchise increases your chances of business success because you are associating with proven products and methods. Franchises may offer consumers the attraction of a certain level of quality and consistency because it is mandated by the franchise agreement.

“Franchises offer important pre-opening support: site selection, design, construction, financing, training, and a grand-opening program

“Franchises offer ongoing support: training national and regional advertising operating procedures, operational assistance, ongoing supervision and management support, increased spending power, and access to bulk purchasing “

DISADVANTAGES

“The franchisee is not completely independent.

“Franchisees are required to operate their businesses according to the procedures and restrictions set forth by the franchisor in the franchisee agreement. These restrictions usually include the products or services which can be offered, pricing and geographic territory. For some people, this is the most serious disadvantage to becoming a franchisee.

“In addition to the initial franchise fee, franchisees must pay ongoing royalties and advertising fees.

“Franchisees must be careful to balance restrictions and support provided by the franchisor with their own ability to manage their business. A damaged, system-wide image can result if other franchisees are performing poorly or the franchisor runs into an unforeseen problem.

“The term (duration) of a franchise agreement is usually limited and the franchisee may have little or no say about the terms of a termination.”

Should You Purchase a Franchise?

Some folks do very well a particular franchise. Others don’t.

Some think that the franchise takes too much of their money and has too much control over their operations. Some folks just want to get away from their boss and they do not want a new boss when it is their money that they are risking.

But like I said, some feel very cozy being told what to do by a franchise because it can reduce risk and guarantee success. You have to decide whether or not purchasing a franchise is for you.

John
John T. Jones, Ph.D.
Internet Business Tool Center
Buhl, ID

Checking out Businesses in Your Area

One way to check out businesses in your area is to look at the directory of your local mall. You can find it easily on the Internet. The following is a directory of our local mall, the Magic Valley Mall in Twin Falls Idaho which is about 17 miles from my home. I suggest that you talk to the manager of your local mall. He will tell you what space is available and what he thinks is missing. You could then decide on a path that would lead to ownership of a business that you may or may not put in your local mall. Make sure you ask what businesses have failed or moved. Mall cost are high because of several factors. One is the rent is high. Another is that the Mall operator will take a chunk out of your profits. Read this article from Entrepreneur Magazine: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/76162

AAA Idaho
Aeropostale
American Eagle Outfitters
America's Best Contact & Eyeglasses
AT&T Wireless
Barnes & Noble
Barnes and Noble's Starbucks Cafe
Bath & Body Works
Bohme Boutique
Bronco Shop
Buckle
Buffalo Wild Wings Grill and Bar
Chico's
The Children's Place
Chili's
Christopher & Banks
Claire's Boutique
Complete Nutrition
Crazy 8
Customer Service Center
Fanzz
Fashion Nails
Five Guys Burgers
Footlocker
GameStop
Garibaldi's Mexican Express
General Nutrition Center
Hope Ave
Hot Topic
Idaho Army National Guard
Jamba Juice
JCPenney
JCPenney styling salon
Jensen Jewelers
Journeys
Justice
Kay Jewelers
Liquor Store
Lotus House
Macy's
Magic Valley Bank
Magic Valley Cinema 13
Magic Valley Mall Management
Magic Valley Mall Security
MasterCuts
Maurices
Mrs. Powell's
OneMain Financial
Orange Julius
Payless Shoe Source
Pretzel Maker
ProActiv
RadioShack
Rebath
River Rock Grill
Rob Green Auto Group
rue21
Sears
Sears Auto Center
Sears Hearing Clinic
Sears Optical Shop
ShopKo
ShopKo Optical
ShopKo Pharmacy
Simply Mac
Spencer Gifts
AT&T - Spring Mobile
Sprint - Evolution in Wireless
Subway
Sunglass Hut
Taco Bell
Tilt
T-Mobile
Tradehome Shoes
Tricked Out Accessories
Vanity
Verizon Wireless
Victoria’s Secret
Wells Fargo Bank
Wig N It
Zales
Zumiez

It's In the Book

Another way to look to see what businesses are in your area is to look in your telephone book. It will list companies and you can visit them. You can talk to some owners or managers. Most businesses are listed on the Internet so they are easy to find.

I am not suggesting the use of mall space for most new businesses but you can learn a lot about business by visiting a mall manager. No mall wants a business to fail. They will look at your business to make sure it fits their criteria for profit. They want you to make money and they want you to make money.

Why Businesses Move Out of Malls

Read this article: http://www.businessinsider.com/shopping-malls-are-going-extinct-2014-1 One of the main reasons a business has to move from a mall is because the mall fails. Mall failure is usually caused by the exit of one or more large anchor stores. For example, JCPenney has been closing many stores. So have some other chains. This has been disastrous to some malls.

A friend of mine moved his business from a mall where it was established. His location was not the best location in the mall, the people found it. We build a new building outside of the ball and moved lock stock and barrel. When I go into his store now, it has much more traffic than it ever did in the mall. Since the store is larger, it has a much larger line of products.

Some businesses move from a mall is to reduce costs. Once they have a clientele (which was generated because of the mall) they can take it with them and reduce costs. As long as the business doesn’t get lost in the move, things can be for the better.

Shopping malls generate traffic. TV and newspaper advertisements bring people to the mall where they find ample parking and shelter from the weather. Apple moved a story into our local mall recently. They are in what I think is a poor location but it doesn’t matter because of their reputation. In a city where there was no Apple outlet within 100 miles, the new Apple Store has enough business to survive. I have never seen more than a few people in the store. However you know that Apple sells high-end products and they don’t need as many sales as a store selling lower-cost products.

I Do Want to Get This One Thing Straight

I am not encouraging you to start up a new business in your local mall. I’m simply suggesting that you can improve your business education by visiting a mall manager and talking to store owners and managers. One thing that is missing in our mall is that there are no large restaurants, just a food court. In the East, the balls usually have several good restaurants. These restaurants attract people to the mall so they are looked in favor by the mall management. We have very few high-level restaurants in our area. They have chosen not to use a mall location. You do lose some control of your business when you move into the mall.

John
John T Jones, Ph.D.
Internet Business Tool Center
Buhl, ID

Introduction:

Each of the following methods are based on your ability to find or create products to sell on the Internet. You will need to be able to access the Internet which means that you should have a good Internet connection.

I Am Not Talking about Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate marketing is promoting other people’s products on your website, sending them to the vendor who makes the sale and ships the product and handles customer concerns, and collecting a commission for the sale.

The advantage of being an affiliate marketer is that you don’t have to have your own products. You go to an affiliate network such as CJ.com or Clickback.com or Amazon.com to find the products. The vendors that you choose will handle the sales process.

The disadvantages of an affiliate marketer are that you need a website, the vendor steals your customer and you usually don’t even know who it is, you have to generate traffic to your website which can be very time-consuming and tedious.

To learn more about affiliate marketing, go to my website http://www.internetbusinesstoolcenter.com. You will need to learn about keyword research. To do this, go to my website http://jaaxyaffiliatekeywordtool.com/

I’m Talking About Product Marketing

I’m going to cover this subject by using some examples simply based on some of my family’s businesses:

Example 1:

Two of my granddaughters were taught how to crochet and knit by my wife when they were about four years old. They use these skills to make baby clothing. They also have about 10 employees who also make their designs for them. They have their own website but that is not yet major source for their sales. They have a store provided by Etsy.com (there are many other such sites) where they display their goods. They handle all sales and shipping and customer relations. They have been doing this for some time and they are making adequate income for each of them to support their families and to provide the support their husbands need while in college. Their market is seasonal but they have to manufacture all year. That means that they must handle their cash carefully because employees must be paid and materials must be purchased.

Example 2:

One of my granddaughters has a partner. They import a special rubber material from China and manufacture diaper changing pads for babies. They recently added a 60,000 ft.² facility to store and manufacture materials and product. She tells me that she is going to start a new business very soon but she hasn’t quite decided what it is so I cannot tell you. They sell from their own website. There are some uncertainties in this business. Materials must be transported across the Pacific Ocean. Payments must be made to oversee supplies. It is an import/manufacturing business.

Example 3:

My number three son is a veterinarian. Some years back he had a business selling Irish flutes and whistles. He sold them by word-of-mouth and he had a large mailing list (email addresses). He came to me and said that he wanted to start selling on the Internet. I built him a website and he notified his email list that he had a new website. His sales quickly doubled and quadrupled and he soon had sales relationships with Irish flute and whistle makers worldwide. He would even sell you a bagpipe. He has 15 children, so the flute store was a good secondary source of income. He sold the food store last year. (http://www.irishflutestore.com)

Example 4:

My same number three son became very interested in herbs. He began lecturing on the herbs in the Western states. Now, being proficient at building his websites, he created http://www.homegrownherbalist.net. From this website he sales herbs, textures from herbs that he manufactures having one employee, his books and other books and courses that he teaches on the Internet and during travel. A couple of weeks ago, I had to go to the doctor in Murray, Utah. I am not allowed to drive, so my son and to drive me. To make up for the lost day of income and his veterinary clinic, he held a walking tour at the University of Utah’s Red Butte Garden, teaching about 20 people about herbs. He collected a fee from about 17 of these folks which more than paid for his loss of time at the clinic.

What If You Don’t Want to Create Your Own Products

I will give you some more examples:

Example 1.

My wife and I have been collecting knickknacks and such for years. Many of these we picked up for a few cents at yard sales. My wife is no longer able to participate in such activities and we would like to have others share the things that we have collected. My granddaughter set me up and it’s the store and put a number of products on the store: https://www.etsy.com/shop/MyStuffy.

My granddaughter is in Texas right now so she is not adding stuff to my store so sales havc sagged. I hope she will get back soon because I’m doing other things right now.

You can easily start such a store at Etsy or some other site that offers Internet stores by simply visiting thrift shops and yard sales. An item that might cost you ten cents will probably sell from $8-30.00. You have to ship the goods but Etsy provides the shipping label.

You can also sell such items on Ebay. If you have an email address attached to your website, folks at Ebay will follow the link to your site where they may be able to buy other items from you. My son had an email address of doc@irishflutestore.com so Ebay folks would go to the store to see more stuff. Very clever!

Example 2.

For years I purchased books at yard sales, sometimes many hundreds of books at a time. I paid as little as $.10 for a book. I sold them on Amazon.com but my main source of sales was from my store at Alibris.com. I had to ship the books.

The first book that I sold on Alibris.com was Birds of New Mexico. I paid $.50 for this book and I sold it for $150.00. I gave this business to a needy friend when I left AZ some years back. He became ill so I had him give the books to the Boy Scouts for them to sell at their annual sale.

I wrote a booklet some years back called “How to Buy Books for Pennies and Sell them for Dollars.” I still have copies if you want one. Just send me a buck or two and I’ll send you a copy. Make sure you give me your address: TJBooks, 213 3rd Ave. N., Buhl, ID 83316.

Example 3:

Some years back I began selling flagpoles and flagpole accessories. I sold these from a website that I created called AAAFlagpoles.com. I think that if you go to GoDaddy.com, you could buy the domain as I let it expire.

I obtained my flagpoles from TopFlight (Sunsetter) and they shipped them to my customers. I handled all the financials and customer complaints. This is called drop shipping and it is a common way to obtain products to sell on the Internet. I made good money with his business, but for a number of reasons (like spending a lot of time with doctors), I decided not to maintain it.

Go to my site to read about Drop Shipping: http://secret-cash.com/drop-shipping/finding-a-drop-ship-company

Traffic Is the Problem

If you have your own website, you must take the responsibility of driving traffic to that site. If you have a site on Etsy, for example, Etsy draws lots of traffic, so you don’t have the problem. I also ran a website from BizLand.com. For some reason, they delivered traffic to my site and I sold thousands of books.

SEO

SEO is search engine optimization. Search engines like Google are particular about how they give rankings to webpages. Your website must have quality, continually updated information. You can draw traffic to your site by placing pages and post on your site. You can also put articles on article sites such as e-zinearticles.com (where I have published many articles with a half- million viewers). You can also take part in other blogs and forums to provide links to your site. You can also purchase traffic which I am not going to recommend to you here. It’s not for beginners.

Social Marketing

Social Marketing is another way to attract traffic to your website. Sites such as Twitter, Facebook and Linkedin have a tremendous amount of traffic and you can spread the word about your site on those networks.

I recently put this book up on Amazon Kindle: HOW TO ATTRACT TRAFFIC TO YOUR WEBSITE Presented by InternetBusinessToolCenter.com Prepared by Kathryn Wilmot Edited by John T. Jones, Ph.D. Kindle Edition

Conclusion:

It is not difficult to start an Internet business, but as I said at some point, think of the Internet as a tool, not as a business. Create or find products that you can sell on the Internet. You can sell your books directly on Amazon.com (and some other products) or on eBay. You can have your own store at Etsy or similar site. You can have your own domain name and website with the caveat that you will need to drive traffic to that site which takes time and effort.

John
John T. Jones, Ph.D.
Internet Business Tool Center
Buhl, ID