Posted by tigertom on Nov 3, 2009 in
business Starting a franchise is similar to trying to ride a bicycle with assistance. Starting an independent business is like doing the same except without assistance. Buying into a franchise is an easier means to becoming an entrepreneur without suffering from the majority of risks other entrepreneurs experience.
Seek assistance from business bureaus to find out more about the franchisor. In the USA, the Better Business Bureau, in The U.K. you can check with the Office of Fair Trading. They can inform you if your franchise is a scam or hoax and if any complaints have been filed against that seller. Carry out a background credit check on the corporate officers of the company.
Statistics: Have you been informed of the success rates of existing franchise buyers, and will the franchise seller provide you with their names and areas ? Will you be given hard data on forecasted, actual or average profits, sales or earnings ? If the franchisor is less than forthcoming about this, it’s a red flag.
Diverse Benefits. Different franchisors provide different benefits to their people. Discover these benefits and discounts, as any of these outfits ought to be eager to discuss them with their potential franchise purchasers.
A concession is basically an agreement between the franchisor and the franchise purchaser that permits the franchisee to use the rights of the trade marks and logos of the franchise seller in running the enterprise. The franchise purchaser is also permitted to sell the products of the franchise seller by keeping to a legal agreement that protects the interests of both. There is usually an initial concession fee, and ongoing royalty payments.
Advertising costs have to be taken into account when purchasing a franchise. You have to pay advertising expenses for national advertising and to draw in new concession owners, not just for advertising your own venture.
Competition. The threat of competition to a company is all too real. The competition can knock your venture out of the running before it even begins. A franchise business in an area with tough competition has the capacity to succeed more easily due to the name-recognition factor. Individuals will readily identify with a popular venture even if there are other alternatives.
Cost. Cost is a critical factor not only in founding a company but in almost all else in life. When it comes to the expense of buying a franchise enterprise it may appear a little bit too expensive compared to setting up your own business from nothing but you have to take into account not only the short-term costs but the long-term ones as well. If you think you can foot the bill and you can benefit more from the opportunities a franchise venture has to offer then it is advisable to go the way of buying one, otherwise you kick off your own company from scratch.
Ask other entrepreneurs about the pros and cons of joining a certain franchise before putting in time and money. Even ‘though you will have help and support and a plan if you commit to a franchise, there will still be hard work. Research about each franchise as they will present different pros and cons and assess each one and find a franchise that gives you a good package and has an operating system in situ and make sure they’ll train and guide you.
Backup and Training. All enterprises require some type of support and a franchise venture is much more likely to gain the necessary support from a franchisor. A company starting from nothing could have to depend on support that is paid for and which could not in reality be relevant to the particular situation at hand.
Competition. The threat of competition to an enterprise is all too real. The competition can knock your business out of contention before it even begins. A franchise company in an area with tough competition has the potential to succeed better due to the name-recognition factor. People will readily identify with a popular business even if there are other alternatives.
When you purchase a franchise, remember that the franchise vendor usually controls the operation of the business to ensure uniformity in all the outlets. With these controls, you could find it hard to restrict your exercising your own judgment and ideas.
Once you buy a franchise, you market services or goods that are already reputable and are offered training and support that helps you succeed in your enterprise. However, not all concessions can be a guaranteed success. Purchasing a franchise allows you to operate a company and on paying a franchise fee of a few grand, you keep to a format decided by the franchisor and not your own.
Look for discounts that many franchisors have acquired and look for additional benefits. Starting a franchise has the benefit of not starting from nothing because five percent of regular enterprises succeed in the first five years while 75 percent of franchises succeed in their first five years.
Posted by tigertom on Jul 29, 2009 in
finance Here are beginner pointers on setting up worthwhile online forex trading:
- Purchase or get free forex ebooks. Take part in a forex training course. Forex trading sites offer you the chance to take part in demo scenarios where you are given a opportunity to test your strategy. If you’re making some lolly in the demo scenarios you can then try out genuine money.
- There is always a broker ready to quote on a currency. After you select what currencies you want to commit in you purchase on the net either through a dealer or via your own currency trading account.
- With a mini forex trading a small stake you get a free trading platform and the benefits that regular forex traders get to enjoy. These would include graphs, state-of-the art trading software and resources.
- Read a good book or two. Maybe get hold of a web course. Some brokers will even give you a free tutorial when you open an account. After all, it is in their interest that you use their services. You won’t remain with them if you lose money every time you make a trade, so it’s in their interest to give you some assistance.
- Managed forex accounts hold numerous advantages. First of all, it allows for the investor to accomplish a good rate of growth without having to research and spend time themselves. Secondly, they’ve the flexibility when it comes to withdrawing funds. This is due to the very liquid nature of the marketplace. This allows the manager of the investors account more chance to step up his revenues. They are able to do this through assorted agreements, in essence a limited power of attorney that allows them trade in that money in that account for you.
- An effective rule for either a mini-account or a standard account is to limit your margin usage for each trade to 5% – 10% of your usable margin. The smaller trade size allows traders to trade live but with less jeopardy. It’s useful also for those with smaller capital, who are risk-averse or for beginners who are not yet surefooted in their abilities. A trader can also become acquainted with the processes and the environment of the Forex trading system. The software used for the mini-account is similar to the regular account and has the same functions.
- Continue educating yourself; it steps up your chances of delivering the goods. And you can do it from the comfort of your own residence.
- Study historical trends to get ‘the big picture’.
- You need to know current affairs. Read newspapers and look at the TV news channels to keep updated on currency status, as well as factors that influence currency value, such as politics. Also keep a record of the rise and fall of interest-rates, political and economical factors, bank activities and import and export policies.
- Forex trading is also called currency trading. Pick out a currency trading tutorial; one that exposes you practically to the real currency trading environment or at minimum something near to it.
I hope these few simple suggestions will be of some use to you in setting up worthwhile forex trading online.
J. Reilly is an author for Forex Online Trading and Forex Day Trading web sites in London, UK.
Posted by tigertom on Mar 17, 2009 in
internet Here are a few ideas for those checking out effective web design:
- - Use Freelances For Jobs You Lack The Skills For. Is your budget tight? Try scriptlance.com or rentacoder.com. The key to acquiring the best work is to a) be as clear as possible as to what you require and b) write your specification in simple, concise terms. Your project will likely be done by somebody who’s native language is not English. Most clients give an inexact specification and get work they’re unhappy with. Pick somebody who’s had a lot of positive reviews recently. Pay in stages. Use the freelance site’s escrow facility. Don’t expect to get more than you coughed up for, and don’t be a cheapskate; if somebody does a good job, they deserve a bonus, not carping.
- - Automate, Automate, Automate! The work involved in web design can be soul destroying. Before you get involved in some long design, submission or promotion process, consider whether you could get a software or a freelancer to do it for you. Or whether it ought to be done that way at all.
- - Install A Blogging Software Easily. Wordpress can be installed in minutes from the Fantastico section of Cpanel. It allows an amateur to put their ideas on the internet easily. You should get a search engine optimised theme for it; this will make Google index it properly. Such softwares are free; you needn’t pay money for them.
best web design | cheap web design | professional web design | affordable web design
- - Handy Software: 1. Easy Text To HTML Converter. This software can batch convert text files to HTML. See also: dirHtml. WordCleaner can convert Microsoft Word documents to HTML. 2. WinSCP. This is a very nifty piece of FTP software. 3. Putty Telnet/SSH Client. A simple-looking, but sophisticated, freeware telnet and SSH client. 4. CGI-Telnet. A cgi script that allows you to run commands on your server, even if your internet host won’t give you telnet access. 5. AXS Visitor Tracking System. A very fine hit counter. 6. Port 2096. If you have CPanel on your webhost, yourdomain.com:2096 is the internet address of your email accounts. 7. GetColor! This is a small, simple program to find out the colour code of any page or software on your desktop. 8. Arctan Bulk Replacer. This is an unusual thing, a search and replace program for the Windows desktop. 9. ‘1-4a Rename’. A batch file renamer. 10. Netscape Communicator 4.8. This has a very good email client (Netscape Messenger) and a handy WYSIWYG HTML editor (Netscape Composer) in it.
- - A Super-Simple Site: Use a text-to-html generator to create web pages from text files. Then use an index generator to make an index HTML page of these files. Tart these pages up in a WYSIWYG web page editor. Then FTP upload them to your webhosting account. Voila! A super-simple web site. Want something fancier? Get a web hosting account with Cpanel and Fantastico. Look for the ‘Wordpress’ option in Fantastico, and install it. Then get a search-engine optimized theme for your blog; the default install isn’t search engine friendly.
- - Use A Popular, Inexpensive Web Host. Here are a few winnowing criteria: Google PageRank of at least 5. Send them an email or two. See how long it takes to get a response. They ought to have a forum (another indication of popularity and customer support). Oodles of features offered (MySQL databases, Cpanel, Fantastico). Recent positive reviews in webmaster discussion boards. Offers Linux servers (Windows costs more, and offers less). Fee per month can be as low as $10, and still have all the features above.
- - Beware Of The Guru! There are hordes of semi-famous marketers and their fans out there selling courses, books and videos on how to earn lolly in internet marketing. They’re marketing tips on how to do marketing! Nice work if you can get it. The best advice you can get about internet marketing is on marketing forums. Even then, you have to use your own personal b.s. detector to sniff out the gems from the trash.
- - Web Host Technical Support. Technical support is as important as the software features a web host supplies. Some web hosts charge $10 per month and reply to backup tickets in twenty minutes. Some charge $40 per month and reply next day. As long as the question gets answered, this may may be acceptable. If the quality of the back-up goes down, however, it isn’t. One day you’ll need a quick answer to a very urgent problem. You will thank the gods you took pains to find, and pay for, a responsive internet host.
- - Webhost Features. Most geeks favour Unix. It’s been around longer, and is more stable. Web hosts offering Unix variants like Linux have always been less expensive. They also seem to offer a good deal more of toys. I need SSI (Server Side Includes), SSH (secure Telnet), 10 MySQL databases, Cpanel, PHPMyAdmin and a UK IP number. And you can acquire this for $15 a month. Things like MySQL databases, Cpanel and SSH access are real stumbling points for a lot of web hosts. If they’re generous with these, you’ve found a rare jewel.
- - Useful Freeware: 1. NVU Web Editor. This is a pretty good freeware web page editor. 2. GIMP Image Editor. This is a good image and photo manipulation package. 3. OpenOffice, an alternative to the Microsoft office suite. This can save you thousands if you need to buy multiple licences. 4. SimplyMepis. This a Linux operating system package. Like Damn Small Linux, it can be operated from a CD; handy in emergencies.
- - Selling Something Direct? Use A Simple Means Of Purchase. An intermediary service like PayPal is quite good to start with. If you have just a small number of products, their HTML buttons are a good way to test demand. When you bring in over $1000 a month, get a merchant account of your own.
- - Come Up For Air Occasionally. It’s very easy to get mired in the minutiae of this or that web project. There are folks whose _lives_ revolve around tweaking addons to open-source software. You should keep your eyes on the prize; what do you desire and what’s the most direct, legal way of acquiring it?
I hope these few simple suggestions will help you in getting handy web design and marketing done efficiently.
Niccolo Svengali is an author for
web site designer and
UK personal loans internet sites in London in the UK.
Posted by tigertom on Mar 17, 2009 in
dating Here are beginner pointers on checking out dating online and offline:
- - You should be very discriminating on free internet dating sites. Do you want to hook up with cheapskates? Criminals and weirdoes are more common on them too. Some people want to get hitched to get a passport. Some want to get you to send them money for airfare or their sick mother; these are scams. Some women are searching for ’sugar daddies’; a man to leech off of. Some are looking for someone who’ll put up with their intolerable behaviour; the very opposite of a loving relationship, where both parties look for ways to make the _other_ person happier. Conversely, if somebody has had to cough up some cash to join a dating site it means they are a bit more earnest and they’ve got a credit or debit card; a bit more comforting, but you can still easily land a wacko.
- - In any correspondence (email or paper or discussion boards or chat rooms), obey the following rules: Be polite and conventional to begin with. Do not assume familiarity with an absolute stranger. Do not utilize lecherous words or swear-words or blather about violent or cruel acts. Women hate this kind of thing, and it makes them fearful; “uh-oh, another net weirdie!” Don’t boast. Play Up your nicest qualities and your status in the course of the correspondence, but don’t brag. Listen to what she has to say, and talk about HER and her pursuits. Don’t badger her. If she doesn’t want to talk, or doesn’t reply, don’t bug her. Silence is an answer in itself. She may be occupied, she may have received mail from other guys initially, or she just ain’t interested. Again, you don’t want to be seen as a pest-weirdo-stalker. For your own sake, you should try to get a photograph of her as soon as is polite. A photo speaks a thousand words, and you may save yourself a lot of exertion. Even then, photographs can be old or faked or photoshopped, so ask for photographs from her recent holiday, or the like.
- - Paid internet dating sites are a better bet. Better yet is a specialist one. You reckon you’re open to all offers. In fact, in the back of your mind, you have a very specific set of criteria. Bring them to the foreground. Do you like slim or plump, tall or short, blonde or brunette, college-educated or not, extrovert or introverted? It’s smart also to go for people who are of the same faith as you. You might think it’s not crucial now, but when her kinfolk start getting engaged in your kid’s upbringing, it will matter a very great deal.
- - Race, religion and nationality are consequential. Carefree twenty-somethings think they aren’t. Married thirty-somethings find they are, to their regret. When you marry person, you link up two families. Someplace down the line race, religion or nationality will become _very_ consequential. Of these three, I think religion is the most important; it affects rudimentary beliefs about the nature of the cosmos and your position in it. In Catholicism, for example, the Catholic in a mixed marriage has to give an undertaking to rear any children as Catholics. If you don’t cover that issue before getting married, you have set the timer on a bomb which could damage or break-up your marriage. A non-religious Muslim may re-discover his faith in his 40’s; this could be a big problem for his non-Muslim wife. If your in-laws are of a different religion and you require their assistance or they start interfering in your marriage… forget Hollywood; it produces lies and fantasy. You don’t live in an urban, disconnected bubble when you get married, unlike young singles who ’shack up’ together. This is why Catholics have a six-month lead-in period to marriage; if their priest is a conservative and thoroughgoing, they will be asked some searching questions before they can walk down the aisle. And a good thing too! The world doesn’t need any more divorces and fatherless children, and the wretchedness such things cause.
- - Find someone who lives or works near you. A twenty-mile radius is about the limit; five-to-ten would be better. If you can’t get together easily you don’t have a relationship; it’s harder to go to a pub or a cafe or just go for a walk together spontaneously. Long-distance relationships only work for married people, for a short time; even then, soldiers still get divorced or the missus commits adultery or he does.
- - You have to give the impression that you are confident, moneyed, powerful, (and tender in private with her). If you don’t have these qualities, fake them. Women need to see potential, and the origin of the word potential is the Latin ‘potentia’, meaning power.
Got a real-life date? Great! Here are a few more tips …
- - Grooming: A man should be clean, fresh smelling, have well-cared for hands and feet, have clean socks, underwear and clothes, have ironed clothes, have a face that is clean shaven, or with a well-kept beard.
- - While you first make eye contact, smile. If she smiles back, you’re in. Then go up, and say hello. After that, take your cue from her. She likes you, so you don’t have to jabber. You can say the most trite things; it’s your appearance, and the sound of your voice, that’re doing most of the work. If you’re uneasy, just tell yourself: “plenty more fish in the sea if I mess this up”. Which is true!
- - Most crucial: Avoid embarrassing your date in public. Women hate to be the centre of attention for the wrong reasons. If you’re behaving like a little boy or an obnoxious brute you’re using up your credit every second that ticks by.
- - Social skills: A man should ideally be gregarious, with a coterie of jovial friends. He ought be able to hold knowledgeable discussions on an extensive variety of subjects. A man should be observant. He ought to acknowledge when a woman has changed her appearance. He ought to notice when she is unhappy. When necessitated he should not stay silent, but offer compliments or understanding. He should, however, also know that no knight ever won a fair lady by being meek and mild. You’re not obliged to put up with narcissistic behaviour. Don’t take women’s ‘crises’ too seriously. They certainly don’t. One day all is lost, the next day all is well. A strong man holds it all in. A strong woman (or a nutcase!) explodes. Regularly.
- - Some women hanker for a man who is ‘macho’, tyrannical, even a little bit cruel. Emphasis on the little bit. You keep her attention by seeming to be complex and unpredictable. You may act tyrannical, dominating, even a little sadistic. Check her responses closely when you do. If she takes pleasure in submitting to you, a spark in her eye, a suddenly more positive response to you; you may be dealing with a woman who has a masochistic motive to be mistreated and controlled. If such conduct comes easily to you, it can be very efficacious with such a woman. One caveat; masochists like their pain on THEIR terms ultimately. You’ll need to take your cue from her, not just shove her about haphazardly. Moderation is key here.
- - A bad habit: smoking. If you smoke, you’re cutting yourself off from the company of legions of women. I know the weed is diabolically difficult to kick. The brain craves it. But many women won’t go out with you if you smoke. Apart from the outcome on your health, it makes your hair and clothes to smell terrible, and your mouth to savour of an ashtray. Give the grubby habit up, and spend the cash you save turning yourself out nicely.
- - Smiling and touching: A smile shows that you are well disposed towards somebody. Ensure you stand the correct distance away. Near, but not ‘in her face’. You are focusing on her, and her alone; with your soft-spoken jests and earnest interest in what she is saying, you draw her nearer. Nod, smile, chuckle, tease her. Touch her arm while speaking to her. A slightly prurient remark may be fitting, to test how far you can go. You need to drive out the idea that you might be ‘just being chummy’.
- - A snazzy car is an important plus in your search for l’amour. Second-hand sports or classic autos can cost just as much as a new ’sensible’ car, and are a lot more fun. Screw the fuel consumption and the insurance! Women say they disapprove of big muscles in men and their big autos. What they really mean is they dislike men who are obsessed with or who are nothing more than their big muscles or their big cars. If you have both, and can project sensitiveness and authority, you’re three-quarters’ way home. Failing this, get an auto with character like a Morris Minor or a VW Beetle. What you’re targeting is the kind of auto a lady would like to be be found in. If it’s fashion models you want, you need a flash auto. If it’s arty-crafty types, get a ‘character’ car. It depends on your social milieu, and your own persona i.e. a student in a liberal arts faculty would look odd with a BMW, but upon reflection I think he’d be quite popular! Even the fact that you have any kind of car at all will be a bonus; ladies like to be chauffeured, and it opens up many more romantic possibilities. Just keep in mind it’s only a prop in your ‘act’.
- - You’ll have a great deal more self-assurance if you’ve got some cash in the bank, a flat and a motorcar of your own; these ought to be a priority. You ought to also dress well. Dressing well means your appearance oozes power: you’re in control of your destiny. Women like to be looked after; project that you can do that, and you’re half-way home. Your personal circumstances likewise affect how you behave: a man who is actually well-to-do will project that unconsciously, and be more successful with women.
- - Romance: Champagne, moonlight, soft words eloquently uttered, and flowers are arousing to most women. Those who try to get on with women, and talk easily about their pre-occupations, are more successful with women, than less thoughtful types.
- - Women want you to like and look up to and care for them. Casanova was successful with women not because he was good-looking (he was rather plain), but because he truly appreciated them. The archetypical latin lover is very solicitous and complimentary to his quarry, and treats her like a princess, a donna. He says she is the most exquisite woman in the world, and means it. Oh, she laughs at this, but see how she glows too. Most men treat women like an alien specie, or objects to be acquired, as s-x toys, or as cranky incoherent nuisances. A man that accepts a woman precisely as she is, with genuine admiration, can have any woman he wants.
- - Conspicuous consumption shows that you are not stingy with your cash. Demonstrate this by spending some on her, or giving her some! Don’t be a tomfool, however; if the interpersonal chemistry ain’t there, on BOTH sides, move on. You can’t pester or bribe a woman into loving you, ‘though they may be loath to turn away a ’sugar daddy’ entirely. When true love strikes, you’ll both know it; accept no alternative!
- - Examine your responses to women objectively. You’ll find that a favourite type emerges: slim or plump, brunette or fair, extrovert or introvert. There’s a pop or movie star that you can’t help but gawp at when she’s on the screen. There’s a type that causes your head to swivel when you’re walking down the street. That’s the type you should go for; the one that arouses an automatic, positive response. You’ll find it easier to talk to this kind of girl. If you have found your true love she’ll feel the same way about you. You have genes that’ll help her make a better baby; she does the same for you.
- - Don’t over-think it. We are pulled to a certain type, with whom we can make a better baby; more robust, fitter, brighter, better accommodated to its environs. Other types just don’t click with us, ‘though we can acknowledge intellectually they are attractive. It’s a heart thing, a guts thing, and parts lower down. The head merely gives its acquiescence to a decision already made.
I hope these few beginner pointers will assist you in finding a nice girl through online and offline dating.
Nick Svengali is an author for
free online dating service and
self improvement web sites in London, UK.