Tag Archives: marketing

Business Lessons from Ben’ Down Market

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Recently, I travelled west to the parish of Trelawny, to find out more about the income-generating opportunities present in its capital town. A friend had told me of her success in selling some goods in a popular Wednesday sales venue in Falmouth, and I wanted to test the viability of a new product in the famed Ben’ Down Market.

As a resident of Kingston, I am sometimes guilty of thinking that the best economic activities take place in the first city. The reality is that there are many enterprising persons all across Jamaica who are creating wealth in a variety of ways. To learn more about what people were doing to make money in that side of the island, I decided to share market space with my colleague.

My adventure started off very early in the morning, as I was told that to secure a good spot we needed to be at the location by 5:00 am. The sun had not yet made an appearance when we arrived, but already there were dozens of persons working industriously in the bustling environs of the marketplace. Continue reading Business Lessons from Ben’ Down Market →

Your Money and Your Time

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The old saying ‘Time is money’ came to mind recently as I sat in a recording session that had to be paid for by the hour. As the taping extended beyond the planned schedule, I began to watch the steady progress of the clock’s minute hand, and mentally calculated the cost of each tick of time.

Time is really the only resource that’s in limited supply, as we only get 24 hours, or 1440 minutes, or 86,400 seconds in a day. Oftentimes, we forget the important connection between time and money, as there are many ways that we squander time that will negatively impact our money.

Here are some considerations about time and money: Continue reading Your Money and Your Time →

How To Optimise Your Operations

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Over the past two weeks, we have been focusing on strategies that small business owners can implement to counter the negative effects of the global economic downturn. If the going is getting tough for your business, it’s time for you to get innovative in meeting your customers’ needs and publicising your products and services.

To ensure that your business can survive and even succeed in challenging financial times, you have to focus on the efficiency of your operations. Under normal circumstances, small businesses falter and fail from using improper procedures and expensive processes. In this period of economic uncertainty it is vital for your business to become a lean, cost-effective machine.

One of the most pressing concerns for small businesses is maintaining a positive cash flow. As the saying goes, ‘Cash is king,’ and to survive a financial downturn, entrepreneurs must have a good handle on incoming and outgoing cash. Even a minor reduction in sales can trigger off the inability to meet bills, source raw materials and generally stay afloat. Continue reading How To Optimise Your Operations →

How To Maximise Your Marketing

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As the reports of company shutdowns and employee layoffs continue to dominate the financial news worldwide, it would be understandable for small business owners to feel slightly panicked about their future. How can they possibly survive, much less succeed, in the middle of a global recession?

Last week we explained that entrepreneurs can weather the economic storms by adjusting their offerings to meet changing customer needs. In fact, small businesses can be more flexible at creating innovative products or services to take advantage of new opportunities, unlike many large enterprises.

Once your product or service is designed to meet the current needs of your customers, the next step is to maximise your marketing. Many organisations look to cut costs by reducing their marketing budgets, but to outlast the tough times, you actually have to increase your promotional efforts. Continue reading How To Maximise Your Marketing →

Lessons for the Self-Employed

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“I read your article last week outlining all the institutions that self-employed persons need to visit when starting out. I’m trying to decide if I should leave my job and start my own business with an idea that I’m convinced will work. What advice can you give someone who is thinking about becoming self-employed?”

The decision to become your own boss is not always an easy one. If you’re thinking of leaving your regular nine-to-five job to strike out on your own, you’ll be faced with feelings of uncertainty about your plan of action, and fear about an unknown financial future.

After changing my job situation from employee to ‘self-generated-income earner’ last year, I have learnt many lessons about becoming an entrepreneur. Some have come the hard way by learning from my mistakes, but valuable knowledge has also been gained by observing and mirroring the practices of profitable business owners.

Here are some of priceless tips I’ve learned about successful self-employment: Continue reading Lessons for the Self-Employed →