|
|
|
Top Five Reasons Why Now Is The Perfect Time To Start A Business
by Leah Grant
More Business Skills Articles
Published on this site: June 30th, 2009 - See
more articles from this month
Turn on the TV and all you'll hear is how the stock market still
hasn't fully recovered and how unemployment is still rising, so
you might think I'm out of my mind to suggest that now is the
perfect time to start a business. But I stand by my statement.
If we look at history, more millionaires were made during The
Great Depression than any other time in US history and during
our last recession in the early 90s many companies still thriving
today were born, like Clif Bar.
There are numerous reasons why starting a business now is
advantageous, but these are the top five.
- Increased Opportunities
Anytime the economy changes or a new technology is introduced it
creates opportunities in different fields. While some
industries are shrinking, others are exploding. For example,
while Chrysler is claiming bankruptcy because their gas-guzzling
vehicles have become irrelevant, a San Diego-based company,
Jitterbug, who produces simplistic cell phones with extra large
numbers on them designed for the elderly is hiring and growing
at breakneck speed.
- Less Competition
In the first two months of 2009 the Department of Labor reported
that over 800,000 small businesses closed. I can guarantee that
these were businesses that may have been barely making it when
the economy was flush and when the recession began they realized
they did not have the proper infrastructure, their overhead was
too high or their business model was flawed. These closures
create a lot of space for smart new business owners to open and
serve their customers.
In addition, many companies have cut their advertising budgets
to lower costs which can give the public the perception of fewer
businesses offering the same products and services as yours. The perception of less competition allows you to stand out and
strongly establish your brand.
- Decreased Trust
Let's face it, the big companies melting down faster than
Chernobyl this past year have withered the public's trust. It's
become obvious that large corporations are not looking out for
their employees and many didn't even look ahead enough to
protect themselves. Whenever the big businesses that people have
equated with security go belly up, it creates a fear-based
marketplace. First, people contract and don't buy at all. Then
they start wanting to buy, but look to do business with people
they know and trust.
People who purchased their lotions and body wash at the mall are
now more open to purchasing from their Mary Kay consultant. It
feels good to them to know that the money they spend with
someone they know helps out that family.
- Discounted Resources
With many companies cutting back, businesses want to maintain
cash flow so they are often willing to discount their services
or products or offer longer payment terms than in the past.
These options help a new business owner's startup funds go farther.
One area these discounted resources should definitely be
capitalized on is in the advertising market. Several larger
companies that ate up available ad space have lowered their ad
budgets, not only creating space for smaller companies to come
in, but creating open ad space that publications, radio and TV
stations need to sell. Many of these outlets will negotiate if
asked. One of my clients got two ads for the price of one.
These bargains allow business owners to make more of an impact
for less money and to stand out while others are fading back.
- Control of Your Future
Having a job is like putting all your eggs in one basket and
then handing it over to a clumsy kid to carry. You have no
control over whether you will get laid off, have your pay cut,
have benefits taken away, have your hours lowered, etc. You
have one line of revenue and if the powers you report to decide
to cut that off, there's nothing you can do. No matter how many
hours or how hard you work, in most cases your salary stays the
same.
None of the above has to be true if you own your own business.
You can build a business model that allows for multiple streams
of income so if one dries up, you still have the others. You
control the amount of income you make because you are in charge
of pricing and how much and how hard you work. You create your
eggs and then you carry the basket yourself.
c) 2009, Leah Grant Enterprises LLC.
Leah Grant: Will you be one of the millionaires who create their success
during this recession? You could be! The timing is right. Get
the info you need to launch a profitable venture in the New
Business Mentor Leah Grant's free success kit including a timely
special report and audio Secrets of Successful Business Owners
at http://www.leahgrant.com.
|
|