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Preparing Your Company for its First EmployeeA doubleshot of business news espresso with extra froth A small business blog featuring tips to help entrepreneurs succeed in the small business world. Topics include family business, human resources, marketing, money, networking, operations, ownership, startup, taxes and technology. Share Your Thoughts! The signs are fairly obvious. Most of your waking moments may be spent running the business, and time is taken from your family and friends. Maybe you’re unable to keep up with demand and are actually having to turn customers away. More or less, your stress level is beginning to climb rapidly as the papers stack up and nothing seems to get done. It’s time to get some help. Before looking at prospects, consider these things: What are you looking for? Think about what kind of manager you are in order to determine the best type of person to fit your style. If you’re the type that delegates and then does your own thing, then you will need someone who can think independently. If you get stressed occasionally, then you may want someone that works well under pressure. Next, decide exactly how you want the business to grow with the additional help. If you’re looking to take this transition slowly, then you need someone for the clerical and administrative tasks that you just can’t seem to get to, such as filing and mail. If you’re ready to plow full speed ahead, you’ll want to find someone that can handle larger areas such as sales and distribution. Once you’ve figured out exactly what you’re looking for, write out a job description. This will come in handy when you are coming up with help wanted ads and during the interview process, but it will also serve as a personal reminder of the load that will be taken off your shoulders once the right person is found. What are the legal prerequisites? • Obtain an Employer Identification Number (EIN) for tax returns. What are the business prerequisites? • Determine what your time-off policy will be, such as vacation time, sick days, maternity leave, etc. Hiring an employee can be intimidating, as it will knowingly take up precious time and resources. Make sure that your reservations don’t keep you from waiting too long. Missing the right window of opportunity may force you to hire in a hurry, resulting in the wrong person for your business. Even if your situation only seems moderately stressful, evaluate your business and whether or not even a part-time employee might make things run more smoothly. At the very least, you will be able to determine when you may need someone in the future and start planning ahead to make the transition easier. Sources: Tags: Employer Identification Number, Department of Labor, payroll software, OSHA, employee benefits, 401(k), business policies, Hiring an employee Related Buzz Posts: Finding An Employee That Matches Your Leadership Style Inspire Your Employees Protecting Your Clientèle How to Fire an Employee By Michelle Cramer Wednesday, March 10th, 2010 @ 6:00 PM CDT Human Resources | Starting a Successful eBay Business (Part 4) Share Your Thoughts!
CONTINUED SUCCESS Congratulations! Your eBay business is now up and running and bringing in the dough! You may even be ready to expand your part-time operation into a full-time adventure. Let’s examine some ways to upgrade your business and continue on this successful path. Flexibility Quality Customer Service Providing a tracking number with every shipment earns brownie points and gives the buyer peace of mind. You may also want to consider providing discount shipping to your buyers with the purchase of more than one product from you. This strategy is a must if you are selling products such as books or movies, since the shipping cost for multiple items increases minimally. This option is very popular and one of the first incentives that buyers look for. A seller who doesn’t provide a multiple item shipping discount can really turn a buyer off. Tips, Tools & Advice There are also some great tools available to help you improve your eBay business. Sellathon.com provides a 30-day free trial of ViewTracker, which provides information on potential buyers, including what search terms brought them to your listing. Seller’s Assistant Pro is eBay’s desktop sales management tool. And eBay’s free program Turbo Lister allows you to recreate your listings in bulk, without having to retype each, and without loosing that professional quality. Who You Are eBay Store eBay Store Fees Implementing these additions to your already thriving eBay business will have you well on your way to an eBay empire. Many eBay business owners see sales in the millions each year. Though some days you may have to stretch and stand on your toes to get there, success in the eBay world is well within reach.
Sources: Helpful Links: Starting a Successful eBay Business (Part 1) Starting a Successful eBay Business (Part 2) Starting a Successful eBay Business (Part 3) Outsource Your Chores and Errands By Michelle Cramer Tuesday, March 9th, 2010 @ 6:00 PM CDT Startup | Starting a Successful eBay Business (Part 3) Share Your Thoughts!
CASUAL SELLER TO POWER SELLER Now that you have a little experience under your belt, and have built up your feedback rating, it is time to transition from a casual selling hobby to an actual eBay business. First, determine what exactly it is you want to do. Will your business be a full-time or part-time commitment? Remember, you can always start out part-time and see how it goes; you may want to expand later. Will you work from home or a commercial location? Will it be a one-person or couple operation, or will you hire employees? The Product Once you have determined your products, research how many other eBayers are selling the same things. Competition can be fierce in the beginning, so you want to provide a product that will help your business to stand out as much as possible. Next, determine how you want to set up your listings. You can either sell products by the auction method, by a fixed price only, or do both. If you have multiple numbers of the same item, you may want to list some as auction and some at a fixed price. This will give you an opportunity to see which way that particular item sells better. Your Time Also, when will you make trips to the post office for mailing? Most postal carriers, including the U.S. post office, will pick-up your shipments, if postage has already been paid and you arrange for them to do so. You can pre-pay postage through eBay or by establishing an account on the carrier’s website. If that is not currently an option, determine what day or days of the week you will drop your packages off. It is also important to indicate this in your listing details, so that the buyer is aware of how long it will be before the item is shipped. The Details Supplies If you are working from home, you may want to consider setting aside a work area just for your eBay business. Not only will this make things simpler because everything is right at your fingertips, but also be able to use the space and organizational products you buy as home office tax deductions. Start slow, listing only a few products each day, so that you don’t have them all ending at once and become overwhelmed. As time progresses and your routine becomes more established, it will be easier to step it up a bit. You’re your own boss, so determine a pace that works best for you and stick with it.
Sources: Helpful Links: Starting a Successful eBay Business (Part 2) Starting a Successful eBay Business (Part 1) Starting a Successful eBay Business (Part 4) A Market in Part-Time Ownership By Michelle Cramer Monday, March 8th, 2010 @ 6:03 PM CDT Startup | |