Week 11: Writing an elevator pitch

In order to write a good elevator pitch, there are a few things you need to include. The first thing you should include is a short sentence describing your business. This should also have a hook to get the listeners attention. You also want to explain early on what makes your business different from the other companies. An important thing to note is that an elevator pitch should be short and easy to follow. Also remember that you are selling your business, not your product or service.

Works Cited

"7 Tips for Writing a Powerful Elevator Pitch." About. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Nov. 2014.

"How to Write an Elevator Speech." How To Write an Elevator Speech. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Nov. 2014.

Week 10: Analyzing Advertising Trends

 

Advertising has changed drastically in the last 30 years. Traditional ads like radio and and television are being replaced by more modern ads like web ads and other digital media from sites like YouTube and Twitter. Video advertisements that pre-roll on videos on YouTube and other sources are a new great way to get customers attention. The total spending on video ads totaled more than $4 billion last year, and will go up to $12 billion in 2018. Mobile ad spending is also on the rise. 30% of web traffic comes from mobile, so spending on mobile web ads will continue to rise. Social Media is also a rising advertising method that is cheap and easy to use. Companies use Twitter to promote things, and their followers can retweet it to spread the word.

Works Cited

Taube, Aaron. "The 8 Digital Trends That Will Change The Future Of Advertising." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 14 Mar. 2014. Web. 30 Oct. 2014.

"US Ad Spending in 2013: Trends by Medium, Advertiser Size." MarketingCharts. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Oct. 2014.

Week 7: Marketing

Marketing to your customers in essential to a successful business. Getting your brand out to the public will make your business profitable. There are many approaches to marketing. Promotion of your business can be via Internet, television, newspapers, or other print articles. Deciding which one to use depends on your audience. Knowing how to reach your demographic is the most important step in marketing. Talking to your clients is a great way find out what strategy will work best.
After you have decided which method of marketing you will use to reach customers, you will next have to creatively present your business. People see advertisements all day, so making yours stand out is key. Also, having a PR manger would help to make sure your companies image remains favorable. E-mail marketing is also a great way to advertise, as long as you don't spam or harass anyone who doesn't want emails.
 The most important thing to remember is to always put your target customers first.

Works Cited

"5 Cheap Ways on How to Market Your Business." Entrepreneur. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Oct. 2014.

"First Rule Of Marketing: Focus On Your Audience." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, n.d. Web. 15 Oct. 2014.

Week 6: Keeping your customers

 

Loyal customers is what keeps businesses successful. In order to keep customers from leaving you from a competitor, you need to know why your customers would leave you. The biggest reason is dissatisfaction. This could be from bad customer service, or a product that did not meet your customers needs. You should always make sure you have a quality product at an appropriate price, otherwise your customers will look elsewhere. Also, having more features with your product will help make your product stand out. Keeping your current customers is very important as loyal customers will be your best source of profit. Statistics show that it is up to 7x more expensive to get a new customer than to maintain a loyal one. So making sure your customers are happy is a priority.

Works Cited

James, Geoffrey. "How to Keep Your Customers Loyal." Inc.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Sept. 2014.

Krotz, Joanna. "Keep Your Customers Happy and Coming Back for More." Keep Your Customers Happy and Coming Back for More. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Sept. 2014.

Week 4: Knowing your market

When you identify your market, you have to think about who wants your product. To find that out, research your competitor's market. Don't just use your competitor's audience, try to find places where your competitors may have missed. After getting a good idea of who your market is, you need to find out where they are. Do they spend time watching TV, reading magazines, using the internet, etc? What do they watch? Knowing these things can help you reach your audience. If you have a current group of customers, look at their characteristics to see who brings in the most business. Your market should be very specific, but it shouldn't exclude those not in that specific group. You should focus advertising on the specific group that gets the most revenue.

Works Cited

"5 Critical Tips For Identifying Your Target Audience." Technori. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Sept. 2014.

"How to Define Your Target Market." Inc.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Sept. 2014.

Week 3: Making a good business plan

 Writing a business plan is essential for entrepreneurs. Some rules to follow are to keep it short, know your audience, and don't be intimidated by the task of creating a business. There are 9 parts to a good business plan:

• The executive summary - This is an overview of your business and should clearly state your plans and what you want.
• A description of the business - a description of the industry you are entering and current and future outlooks on that market. If the company already exists, you should also include your companies' history.
• Products and Services - This should explain the product or service you provide and how it solves a problem or need in your market.
• Target market - Outline who you are selling to. Should include a very detailed analysis of audience and strategies to sell to them.
• Marketing plan - Explain how you will reach your audience. Show strategies that you can use to get sales.
• Analysis of competitors - Examine weaknesses as well as strengths of other companies in your field. Develop a plan that will give you an advantage over your competition.
• Management plan - Explain how your business will operate on a daily basis. Include who you need to hire.
• Financial plan - Show your financial records and how you plan to make profit.
• An appendix - This section is for additional information not covered in another section

 By including these steps within your own business plan, you can more easily achieve your goals and create a successful business.

Works cited

"How to Write a Business Plan - Bplans Blog." Bplans Blog How to Write a Business Plan Comments. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Sept. 2014.
"How To Write A Business Plan." Entrepreneur. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Sept. 2014.

RE: How to become a millionaire by age 30

• Watch the video at the top of the article, sorry about the ad.
• Read the article
• In Word, we will transfer this to our blogs later, summarize the video/article's key points.
• What is this all about?
• What are your personal thoughts? Is this possible? 
• What do you personally have to do starting today, according to this one person's opinion, to become a millionaire?
• What is the best tip? What is the worst

In the article,  Grant explains some key rules you should follow to become a millionaire. He explains that it is entirely possible, and even guarantees it in the video. Its pretty obvious that it is not guaranteed, but the steps would probably make it more achievable. I think it is definitely possible to become a millionaire by 30 as long as you are diligent with money and make correct financial decisions. One thing Grant said we should do that I could start today is observing how millionaires made their fortune. This is fairly easy to do and could help set you on the right path. I think his best tip was to avoid debts that will not benefit you in the long run. This is important, especially considering I will be going into debt for college. The worst tip he gave was to make money your priority, which he describes as "treating it like a jealous lover." I think this tip is the worst because if you make money a priority you wont be able to enjoy other aspects of life.