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Capturing Your Entrepreneurial Potential
Let's look at the entrepreneurial styles of three people: Jim, Barry and Tom.  Jim Sells ShoesJim has found a niche in the business in the shoe market. Jim intends to sell only luxury shoe brands. To sell shoes for hundreds of dollars per pair, Jim must create an extraordinary retailing environment. Jim hires an interior designer to create a sophisticated ambiance. There is thick carpet on the floors. There is dark paneling on the walls. There are glass, backlit shelves to highlight the footwear. There is the soft sound of classical music in the background. Jim offers each of his clients (never customers) a glass of champagne in a crystal flute as they casually browse through his carefully displayed “collection.” If Jim wants to sell expensive shoes, he must pamper his clients. He does. From the introduction to clients upon entering, to the handling of the expensive sales packaging upon leaving, everything about the store spells, C-L-A-S-S. Following each purchase, Jim will send a “Thank-You” note to the client. Not everyone is interested in spending two hundred dollars or more for a pair of shoes. But, some are. And, these some are Jim's clients. These some will pay for the extras that Jim offers. To create an extraordinary retailing atmosphere does not necessarily have to come at an extraordinary price. The classical music is free on the radio. The champagne can be inexpensive. The “crystal” flutes may be from Harry's Bargain Basement Store. The important point is that he has done something different with style and panache. If Jim's research has shown him that he is in a location where a luxury shoe store can prosper, then, he will prosper. Jim can start to build an email and snail mail list of clients. He can start to study these clients and their specific needs. He can adjust his business to accommodate the desires of his clientele. Perhaps Jim will find that his client base for luxury shoes is smaller than he expected. He can adjust. Rather than only relying on new clients to increase sales volume, Jim may find avenues to sell more merchandise to present clients. He may want to add a luxury leather goods department to his store. He might be inspired by the motto of the Gucci Family, “Quality is remembered long after the price is forgotten.” Actually, before he opened, Jim chose to use the French equivalent of his name, Jacques, for business purposes. Somehow, “Jacques' Collection” had more luxury appeal than “Jim's Shoe Store.” Jim would probably get along very well with Luciano Benetton, Founder of the Benetton chain, who said, “My business is a love story with the world.” Or, Giorgio Armani, “The difference between style and fashion is quality.” Barry Also Sells Shoes
If Jacques is operating and making money at one end of the market, Barry is also operating and making money at the other end.Barry practically sells shoes by the pound. Barry's favorite word is cheap. And, Barry wants his customers to think cheap when they come into his store. The shoes are all piled high in unmarked bins. A customer can spend hours finding two shoes that match. But, what a bargain price! Barry himself is rude. He gives a sharp insulting answer to any of the masses who dare ask him a shoe question. He smokes a smelly cigar. He allows ear-splitting disco music to be played. He does not offer bags. He does not take credit cards. And, if anyone tries to pay by check they are subject to fingerprinting and being photographed. The customers love it. Barry sells a ton of shoes, cheap. Time To Make Up Your MindHow about making your own decision to become an entrepreneur? How about Mike's Office Cleaning Company or Danielle's Secretarial Services or Danielle's Office Cleaning Company or Mike's Secretarial Services? What are your interests and where are your skills? What can you be excellent at? What motivates you? What job can you put time into that will not seem all that much like work? You can get rich young with many small business ideas. Why not start where your interests are?
Being single, with his salary, he can support himself comfortably with additional money to begin a serious real estate investment program. He owns his own condo. He owns a second investment condo in the same building. And, he has alerted other owners in his building that he might consider additional acquisitions. Tom is one smart guy. He has a top-paying job. He knows real estate is a great investment and with an insider's edge, profits handsomely. Tom has also learned that if you make the right investments, real estate management doesn't demand a lot of time. Tom has a good job. He has good investments. What else can he do? Remember, if you want something done, ask a busy person. Tom does have one problem. He loves to collect antique golf clubs and his condo is getting pretty crowded. To upgrade his collection and create room, he decides to sell some of his lesser pieces on eBay. Tom thinks like a veteran entrepreneur. He succeeds both as a waiter and as a landlord because of his attention to detail. He starts his research. Here are Tom's dozen tips based on his research:  Tom goes online and signs up for the free courses on digital photography. Tom's eBay Tip #2- Copy success. This means research and research and more research. Who is doing what you want to do? Who are your competitors? What are they offering? Study the bidding process for items similar to your products. Increase your exposure by experimenting with listings in different categories. 
Tom is disappointed when only a few items for “antique golf clubs” appear on eBay. However, he quickly learns that the correct term is “vintage golf clubs” and this search yields hundreds of results.Tom's eBay Tip #3- Learn from others' mistakes. You are in business to sell and make money. You are not in business to show the world how clever you are. Anything that slows down the page loading process is not good. This includes animation, music and color backgrounds. Tom finds eBay listings with dancing putters and spinning drivers. This is all very distracting. He also finds that these animated items tend not to sell for top dollar. Tom decides on a cool, upscale, classy look like Callaway Golf. Tom's eBay Tip #4- Copy your own success. Keep your copy clear and direct. Don't exaggerate with over-the-top superlatives. Learn and use the jargon of your industry. Your objective is to run a successful online business. When it isn't broke, don't fix it. When you have a successful sale, repeat and repeat and repeat. Likewise, if it isn't selling, drop the item until you figure out why it isn't attracting buyer interest. Tom is turned off by terms like “rare” and “great” and “super.” These words may attract the casual observer but are warning signs to serious collectors. Tom's eBay Tip #5- Study your buyers. eBay feedback profiles tell you a lot about your buyers. Build bridges. Are you dealing with a one-timer or a potential repeat customer, such as a collector? A hundred dollar item to a user might be a thousand dollar item to a collector. eBay is a gold mine of information and potential revenue. Tom starts listing all the antique golf vendors and collectors. He contacts them and informs them of his pending entrepreneurial venture. He asks them for their specific wants. He asks them if they know of other collectors of vintage golf clubs.
Tom's eBay Tip #6- As an eBay buyer, you learn how to become an effective seller. What do you like about particular listings; the look and the feel of descriptions? How do the best sellers handle communication with customers? Tom goes to Amazon and starts his reading. He knows that to be a world authority on antiques and golf, he'll need to read forty books. Tom is thirty-one. He has the time to read. Again, busy people find the time. As a waiter with dead time, it's A-B-A-B, always bring a book. Tom's eBay Tip #7- Become an expert on shipping. You'll want to be sure that your products reach their destination in tiptop shape. You'll need to study how to properly pack your items. You'll also need to investigate all shipping options, USPS, UPS, FedEx and more. You must be prepared to list realistic shipping prices and shipping times in your item descriptions. Don't get greedy and turn off buyers with prohibitive shipping costs. Tom collects his information. He learns about packaging and shipping. He will be fair to his customers with the intent to build repeat business. This means that shipping costs are a customer service expense and not a profit center. Tom's eBay Tip #8- Your listing is your ad. Spell out the quality in your title line which means including brand names and condition. When you see words and phrases that motivate you to bid, remember them and use them in your own item descriptions. Pay attention to your key words that will draw qualified buyers to your items. Tom studies the eBay antique business, but he also studies other luxury item sellers. He looks for the language that creates buyer excitement and, most importantly, results in profitable sales. Tom's eBay Tip #9- Make your items easy to buy. Offer to accept Paypal and any and all other payment options that will facilitate a sale. Tom does not limit his payment options. However, he is careful to secure payment before sending items.  In a few months, offering items that are correctly described and fairly priced, Tom starts to build a following of collectors. Tom's eBay Tip #11- Be patient. Many buyers will “snipe” or wait until the very end of an auction before bidding. Prices often increase dramatically in the last few minutes, even seconds of an auction. So, don't be too quick to end auctions early by accepting outside bids. It may take Tom a few months to find his eBay groove, but the result will be worth the patience. This is his learning and experimental period. Once he gets it right, buying and selling and adding to his own collection will be a breeze. Tom's eBay Tip #12- Build your business. Start networking and building relationships with others in your industry. Look for ways to extend your product line. Have fun and make money. Tom is making money and expanding his collection. Through eBay, he is making important industry network connections. He is finding that as his network grows, he is less and less dependent on eBay and, more often than not, can deal directly with vendors and buyers. Maybe best of all, Tom is having fun. He is doing what he loves doing. He is learning more and more. In twenty years, we know what's going to happen. Tom will be rich and retired. In his early fifties, he'll have a world class antiques collection and the knowledge and the time and the resources to keep doing more. Is that the PGA calling to organize an exhibition at the Masters?
Brick and Mortar - A physical retail outlet as opposed to an online business. Buzz Marketing - One satisfied customer telling another. Guaranteed Loan - A debt, which a third party agrees to pay if the borrower does not pay. Incentive Program- A rewards system designed to get employees to do more or better work. Net - The bottom line profit after expenses. Niche - A part of a business to which a person is best suited. Snail Mail - Slang for good, old-fashioned mail delivered by the U.S.Postal Service.
I want to open an art gallery, but the real reason to have an art gallery is so that I can have the opportunity to build a great art collection for myself, and not just sell art to other people. Does this make sense? It certainly does. Many people who are in the collectible fields make more money from their personal investments in the field than from sales to customers. Most dealers will offer substantial discounts, wholesale prices, to other industry members. As a dealer, you are an industry “insider” often with access to privileged information and pre-public offerings. You will know first hand the developing trends and upcoming talent. As your business grows, your personal collection can increase in quality and value. Your idea of working and investing in the same field is not just limited to art and antiques. If your passion is real estate, stamps, old maps, books, or cars, you can have the best of both worlds.  A wheeler-dealer can be a person who makes a living out of buying and selling businesses and assets. The wheeler-dealer could be a real estate investor who buys a six-family house and turns the building into six condominiums. The wheeler-dealer could be an art promoter who sees an interesting painting and talks the painter into doing a series of limited edition prints. The wheeler-dealer could be a beauty shop operator who buys salons, rehabs them, builds up a clientele, and then sells the businesses at a premium while financing the transaction. To be a wheeler-dealer takes extraordinary knowledge in a specific field, and often a willingness to take extraordinary risks with the anticipation of receiving extraordinary rewards. If the average investor is looking for returns of 10%-15%, the wheeler-dealer may be hoping for returns of 25% - 40%. I'm starting a painting company, and my need for a certain number of employees varies with how many jobs I get. I'd like to hire more people on a permanent basis, but I can't afford to do this now. Do you have any suggestions? If none of your current trusted employees can make suggestions, you might think about firemen and teachers who have blocks of time free from their regular jobs and who can be tapped for temporary employment. You might also try talking to the vocational education teachers at your local high school or technical school about solid student prospects. Unemployment counselors may have ideas and qualified prospects. Another idea might be to job-share with another local painting company. Perhaps when you have a big job, the other company can sub-contract for you, and vice versa.
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