Office Diversion

Describing Intellectual Property in Your Business Plan

Sun, 05 Feb 2012 00:11:13 -0600

Most companies that are worthy of raising venture capital haveproprietary Intellectual Property IP. In fact, the quality ofthe IP and the management team are often the two most importantaspects of a venture capitalist's investment decision. Thechallenge that many ventures face, however, is that mostinvestors will not sign non-disclosure agreements NDAs, andNDAs are critical to maintaining the proprietary nature of theIP. This article details the appropriate strategy for addressingproprietary IP in your business plan in order to attractinvestor attention while retaining the confidentiality of yourinventions.Focus on the Benefits of and Applications of the IP: Thebusiness plan should not discuss the confidential aspects of theIP. Rather, the plan should discuss the benefits of the IP.Remember that even the most amazing of technologies will notexcite investors unless it has tangible benefits to customers.The business plan first needs to discuss the products andservice...

Starting a Jewelry Business? Home parties are a great way to

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 00:11:49 -0600

Home parties have been used successfully to sell everything fromcookware to naughty nighties; most of these small businesses arepart of a large, organized national franchise, but the homeparty concept is also a perfect way for local crafters to markettheir wares.If you'd like to try home parties, you need a plan. First, takea look at your inventory of jewelry; do you have enough pieces,in a large enough variety, to hold a party? Think about havingcoordinating pieces - necklace or pendant, earrings, rings, andbracelets, in five or six different designs. Have enough piecesof each so that you can sell the items individually or in sets.Once you've decided what you want to sell and how many items youto need to have for sale, set a timeline for yourself, based onhow long it will take you to craft the items, and then scheduleyour first party. If you have a friend, family member, orcoworker willing to host a party for you, that's great.Otherwise, put up flyers, along with copie...

Incorporating Investor Feedback into Your Business Plan

Sun, 22 Jan 2012 00:13:26 -0600

Investors, like the rest of us, have different tastes. Oneinvestor may love a concept andor business plan while the nextmay hate both. It is important to understand this as businessplans are working documents and are always undergoing iterations.Management teams must not rush to incorporate each potentialinvestor's comments. Instead, have several investors, partnersand other business colleagues review the plan and providefeedback. Then incorporate common concerns and probe othercomments to determine if they are valid.Always try to understand the rationale behind an investor'scomments. For instance, an investor may poke holes in a businessplan if it doesn't have enough funds to fully fund theopportunity. In this case, the investor's criticism is solelyfor them to save face.However, if you are hearing the same feedback from multipleinvestors, it is probably valid. In such cases, be humble. Tellinvestors that you appreciate their feedback and modify yourstrategy and plan...

Store and Maintain your Business Tools and Equipment with Self

Sun, 15 Jan 2012 00:14:09 -0600

For the small business owner, particularly for businesses whichrequire access to tools and heavy equipment, self storage can bea real boon.If you're a landscaper, carpenter, plumber, or electrician, youneed easy access to the tools of your trade. You've probablysacrificed to scrape together the money to buy all the equipmentyou need to start your own business. But once you buy it, whereare you going to put it? Maybe you live in a tiny apartment withno storage space. Or you may rent a house with inadequate space,or with a landlord who doesn't really want you storing all yourequipment on the premises. Self storage, close to your home or your primary work area, is agreat solution. It will allow you to keep your home for yourpersonal life a fact your spouse or significant other willcertainly appreciate while providing an organized space foryour professional tools and equipment.First, you need to estimate how much rental space you'll need.Figure out how much space each pi...

Top Home Based Business Ideas - Ten Of Them!

Sun, 08 Jan 2012 00:16:28 -0600

So you have decided to take the plunge a home-based business.Good for you! It will be nice to be able to wake up every day,grab a cup of coffee and walk into your office. No more rushhour, no more cubicle, and a chance to make it on your own.Sounds great doesn't it? But there is one small snag before youcan open shop. You need to know just what sort of business youshould be running. There are a myriad of opportunities for your small businessrequiring very little initial investment. If you are stumped forbusiness ideas, here are ten quick ideas for you to consider. Branch Out From Your Current Job If you are already a professional, but want to get out on yourown, this is often the best way to go. Architects, airconditioning repairmen, computer professionals, and plumbers areall in demand. You simply need to start up your own littlesection of these burgeoning fields. All it takes is the requiredtools and a willingness to put your name out there. Advertise inthe paper, o...

Your Home Office--Lengthen That Commute!

Sun, 01 Jan 2012 00:26:07 -0600

Are you self-employed and working at home? I am. And if you'relike me, you wouldn't work anywhere else. The advantages toworking at home are great--there's no commuting, you get tospend more time with family, you can tend to household choreswhen they arise, and the tax breaks can be significant. But working at home also presents unique challenges, one ofwhich is how can you be more "at work" when you need to be? Thelack of a commute can be a double-edged sword. It's wonderfulnot to have to battle traffic, bad weather and surging gasprices. But it's also tough to create the distance that'ssometimes necessary for you to focus on work while you're athome.TEMPTATIONS APLENTY When I first started working at home, Ioften asked myself, "How do I mentally and physically disconnectfrom being at home so that I actually feel like I am at work, sothat I'm not tempted to simply knock-off when it's two in theafternoon and the golf clubs are singing their siren song or thekids want m...

Unsecured Business Loans

Sun, 25 Dec 2011 00:12:02 -0600

"Unsecured Business Loans Unsecured business loans can solveyour problem of financial crunch while starting a new businessor expanding an existing one. Many loan-promoting agencies likeanycredithistory arrange unsecured business loans withoutmortgaging any security or collateral against business loan.For example, you need money for purchasing new machinery thatcan produce extra new units per month of the product thatyou sell currently. But the unavailability of funds has forcedyou to put your plan aside. In such situations, unsecuredbusiness loan is a best bet to resume stagnated businessactivity. We at anycredithistory arrange unsecured business loanfor you without securing anything. Let us give you a brief overview of unsecured business loansarranged by us. Amount and Interest Rate: We arrange loan between the range of , to , for your various businesses needs.However, amount quoted by you for loan can be manipulatedaccording to various criterion l...

Home Office Essentials Part One

Sun, 18 Dec 2011 00:11:24 -0600

So you've decided to set up your own business. You're followingthe same route taken by thousands of new entrepreneurs each day.You've settled on your business idea, designed a marketingstrategy and are looking forward to a bright future.Did you stop at any point and think about how your home officeshould be designed? What type of office setup do you need? Mostentrepreneurs have their offices at home. Do you evenhave spacefor an office at home?The purpose of the following two articles is not to give you ablow-by-blow plan of how to set up your home office but more togive you tips and advice that'll save you time, heartbreak andmoney. Your Desk Newspaper ads years ago were filled with advertsstating "start a business from your kitchen table". While intheory and in bad advertising this is fine operating yourbusiness from a kitchen tables is entirely unpractical.A good home office desk is functional, sturdy and has a clear,flat worktop. You've seen those office desks th...

Home Office Essentials Part Two

Sun, 11 Dec 2011 00:12:42 -0600

Welcome to Part Two of our series of articles on home officeessentials. The last article discussed ergonomics and officefurniture and your working environment. This next article willtake that a step further and also look at the computer aspect ofyour home office.Decorate It Some people design their home offices to be like areal world office. They take it that step too far though andstrip their home office of all character and warmth. There's noneed for your home office to be sterile and boring. In fact itshould be just the opposite.Seriously consider adding plants. They're a healthy decorationin so many ways. The colour green has a positive affect on ourthought patterns. This combined with the fact that plants filtertoxins from the air around us is another great reason for havinga "green" office.Hate those motivational posters you saw in work? Do you knowwhy? They never "spoke" to you as a person. They were justcorporate spindoctoring that meant nothing to you. Choose...

Ensuring the Legal Standard of Health & Safety in Your Business

Sun, 04 Dec 2011 00:09:37 -0600

Whether you've recently launched a new business or just takenover from a previous owner, it's likely you're flounderingamidst the multitude of regulations and requirements the lawbestows upon you. Perhaps the worst mistake of all is completeignorance - something which is hard to avoid when there areseveral hundred issues vying for your attention.So what exactly do you need to cover in your workplace? It's allvery well putting the equipment and workers you need into a roomwith some desks, but just like setting up a hamster cage - youneed to be aware of safety concerns. Luckily though, it'sunlikely you'll have to worry about your employees trying tognaw their way out...So what do you need to look into? Follow these guidelines andyou can be sure your workplace falls under governmentrequirements to ensure you do everything you can to make yourbusiness safe and healthy for workers and the environment.. Fire SafetyIt's highly likely that your local fire station will have a...