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Among us are startup founders, online sellers, and freelancers. You’re also welcome as well if you’re a student or an employee thinking of setting up your own cyber business.
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Who says that you cannot have the time of your life while working from home? Working from home is undoubtedly fun! With more than six years as a cyberpreneur, I’ve had my share of ups and downs. But nevertheless, about 70% can be linked with F-U-N. True story. So yeah, here’s my list of things to do or things to think about to have the best-est days as an online entrepreneur. 1) Define fun What does “fun” mean to you? Get clear with it and work from there. We surely have various perspectives, so what might be fun for me might be different from you. I might envision fun as curling up with a nice book or you might consider heading to the beach to spell “fun”. Mull over this for 10 minutes. Right down your answer. 2) Integrate passion with fun What is it about passion that makes people tick? And how is it connected with fun? Well, passion is all about what excites you. It’s all about what keeps you up at night without complaining at every bit of it. Whatever that is, keep at it. You’ll be amazed that work, when considered your passion, becomes stress-free. Passion […]
Gone are the days when coupons are cut out from newspapers and magazines. Online businesses have digitized the tactic. For customers, coupons are a lifesaver, enabling them to purchase favorite items with huge discounts. Use coupons as a way to promote your business and enhance customer loyalty. How to maximize your coupon page For many e-commerce sites, coupons encourage customer to shop more at your website. Coupons are a win-win situation for both businesses and consumers. If you want to boost your coupon campaigns, you have to start by creating appealing coupon designs. Laying down the basics, your coupon should contain important information such as merchant logos, a brief description, and emphasis on the discount or amount off purchases. Make sure to feature good brands in your e-store, since it not only encourages more shoppers to buy from you, but also strengthens your credibility as a coupon provider. Like all things on the Web, coupons need to be regularly updated, so check for validity and promo expiration. What customers get from coupons The most important part of any coupon campaign is how much the customers get when using your merchant coupons. Shoppers love discounts, so attract them to your site […]
With the theme “Building inclusive economies, building a better world”, the 2015 APEC Summit that’s currently hosted by the Philippines puts emphasis on sustainable and resilient businesses. This extends to cyberpreneurs, who stands to benefit from APEC’s renewed push for liberalizing service industries. Gathering 21 member-economies from across borders of the Pacific Rim, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) is where almost half of the world’s total trade happen. At first glance, it may seem that APEC is all about corporations, regulatory bodies, and economic ministries. But the importance of MSMEs (micro, small, and medium enterprises) in the region cannot be discounted. As highlighted by APEC’s Small and Medium Enterprises Working Group, MSMEs comprise over 97 percent of all enterprises and employ more than half of the workforce in the region. As many MSMEs move to the digital front, how can you benefit from APEC? 1. Join APEC start-up challenges Started in 2013, the APEC Start-up Accelerator Initiative is on a mission to match tech start-ups with possible mentors and funding opportunities. It offers hands-on business consulting among start-ups engaged in key innovation areas (such as interactive learning). The initiative has since sponsored six Asia-Pacific start-ups to participate in competitions held in Silicon Valley, helping […]
The first thing your potential customer will probably do is visit your website. From that single visit, your customer will form opinions about your brand, product, or service. According to a Stanford Persuasive Tech Lab study, nearly half of all consumers (46%) said that a site’s design is the number one criteria when people are deciding whether a business is credible or not. If there is too much scrolling and clicking, or if the site is not well organized, the average consumer will navigate away after 60 seconds tops. Anyone can build a website these days, but it takes a skilled specialist to build a site that looks polished and professional. One glance could turn someone into a loyal customer, or force a person to click away. If your company is looking into the possibility of designing a new site, here are some of the ways it will help your business grow. Digital presence is everything A survey from Visible Logic found that almost 90% of respondents take a look at the website of every new product they purchase. People will turn to the Internet to research your brand and formulate their opinions – sometimes even long before they make a direct contact […]
There have been substantial changes in the global marketplace over the past decade. It has undergone a major shift, and businesses today are not limited by geographical location or borders. The only things that count are the amount of willingness and creativity in adapting to new technologies, and finding new ways for using them to your own advantage. Business owners and entrepreneurs who want to launch an eCommerce business should know something about the eCommerce industry and what it takes to achieve and maintain success in it. The eCommerce Industry There appears to be no essential limit to strong and steady business growth in the eCommerce industry. In the past decade, all vital metrics in the eCommerce field have increased, and with a broader reach and lower startup costs, more and more entrepreneurs are switching to online retail. According to facts presented by BusinessInsider, people aged 18 to 34 remain to spend more money online than any other age group, and the majority of online shoppers tend to have incomes higher than typical (above $75,000). If you have an idea for starting an online eCommerce business or launching an eCommerce branch of an existing brick-and-mortar store, the time to do it […]
You may be a programming geek, a tech enthusiast, or a millennial with a dozen social media accounts. Or maybe it’s the other way around. Are you the type who can’t figure out what a hashtag does or how to log in to a secure WiFi network? As underwhelming as this sounds, cyberpreneurship isn’t so much about what you know or what you don’t know. The playing field, rules, protocols, and whatnot may be very different and boundless compared to a brick-and-mortar store, but cyberpreneurship is still anchored onto the basic qualities of being a successful entrepreneur. Let’s start by asking yourself three basic questions: How passionate are you to learn? What are the things you’re willing to risk? Are you committed to conquer challenges ahead? But wait. If you have answered these questions pretty well, don’t jump the gun just yet. Although they’re basic questions, it wasn’t meant to be that simple. Here’s what you need to do next: Dip your fingers in Most successful entrepreneurs didn’t only start young. They started small. Entrepreneurship, like creativity, can be a strand in people’s DNA that are more dominant in some people, surprisingly turning the ordinary into an enterprising opportunity. A case […]
Could your startup idea thrive despite the market competition? You need to check if there’s opportunity to gain ground in your area. See how you’re likely to fare, based on Philippine Roadmap for Digital Startups data!
A lot of local businesses are opting to use personal profiles as their business’ main marketing account in Facebook. This is very risky and ultimately counterproductive. Here are several reasons you shouldn’t do it: Reason # 1 This is against Facebook’s terms of service. Your account might get DELETED anytime. They have already deleted many of these the past couple of years. If you’re using your account to represent something other than yourself, you could permanently lose access to your account if you don’t convert it to a Page. via Facebook Reason # 2 Friend limit is only up to 5,000. Local pages can have 10,000 fans or more. Reason # 3 There is no engagement insights in your personal profile. You won’t be able to analyze how many people see your posts, the age range or location of most of your fans, the best time to post, the best content to post, and the like. Reason #4 Advertising features are very limited in personal profiles. You won’t be able to ramp up your business exposure, if so. Reason #5 Additional tabs are only available in Facebook Pages, such as business event calendar, top fans tab, quiz tab, polls, and more. . […]
The Philippines is getting serious in promoting startups as a way to grow the economy. Through Senate Bill 2217 or the “Start-up Business Bill”, the government hopes to set a favorable business environment for budding entrepreneurs. Before you get too excited, there are some caveats to the program since it’s designed for those new in entrepreneurship. The start-up business bill was filed on May 2014 by Senator Bam Aquino and is currently awaiting passage into law. Indeed, it’s a very positive step in recognizing the contributions of startups in: Job creation Production Innovation Trade What’s a “startup”? According to the bill, “start-up enterprises” are newly registered businesses either in industry, agribusiness, and/or services. Digital startups are covered under this broad definition, which also spans offline and more traditional sectors. It includes all ownership types – from sole proprietorship, cooperatives, partnerships, to corporations. What does the bill mean for you? As a cyberpreneur, you’ll be exempt from paying taxes in your fist two years of business! It covers both national and local taxes. A tax break! How cool is that? You get to keep your earnings and reinvest it to grow your startup. It also gives you time to organize, develop, and learn what works for […]
A cog, no matter how small, is necessary for a machine to function. Similarly, in an online business, although each person’s degree of involvement may vary, everyone in your virtual team contributes to making sure that goals are reached. An online business, just like any sort of business, is dependent on people. A team is necessary for a business to take off and scale. Employing the right kind of people is half of the puzzle. Setting expectations and keeping them engaged are equally important. Here are some tips to create and sustain a dream team for your online business. Make sure they’re trustworthy Anyone can hide in the anonymity of the Internet. The concept of “stranger-danger” especially rings true when you’re not physically meeting the people you hire. How do you know if these faceless people can really be trusted? Background checks and screening can go a long way. A simple look at their accounts on various social media platforms can serve as your first impression on your potential virtual teammate. Professionally speaking, you can browse their LinkedIn profile. To ensure that you can trust their abilities as well, ask them to take a web-based test, depending on the tasks […]
Ask what an OFW wants to get after his or her return. It’s very likely to get these two big answers: their dream house and a big capital for a profitable business venture. For the latter, OFWs can save a big amount of money in a span of 10+ years, and then come back home to start their dream businesses. This is the part of the story where we stop and call it a happily-ever-after. The reality for some OFWs may be this: After investing their life savings on capital-intensive businesses (for example, a restaurant franchise or a fleet of taxis), somewhere along the line, they make a wrong turn. They might have misjudged the market demand or trusted the wrong persons. Everything crumbles and the ex-OFWs go back to the job market for another overseas opportunity. If you’re an OFW really into starting your own business and still see yourself retiring in the Philippines, cyberpreneurship can help you get started. Here are some of its advantages. It teaches you the fundamentals of running a business Why should you wait until your contract expires or that X amount of savings before you find out if running a business is for […]
The website for your online business is not just about selling. It’s also for finding the right customers, influential people, and other websites that can promote you. Your marketing team should be spot on in finding online opportunities for maximizing exposure of your products or services. But how can they do this? Here are some actionable steps from the speakers of PeepCon 2016, the Philippines’ premiere search engine optimization conference organized by GDI Online Marketing. The event featured internationally acclaimed SEO experts such as Mike King, Dan Petrovic, Jon Cooper, and Jason Acidre. UX signals search engine about the quality of your content. User experience (UX) is a big indicator for search engines if you have a high quality website that they should rank higher for related keywords to your business. If you have your own e-commerce site, build your customer journey in the most convenient way. Do you have all the information that customers need in one page, or do they have to jump to different pages just to find relevant content? They may also leave your website because it takes too long to load, which is a big consideration due to the internet speed in the Philippines. Stop […]
If you’ve been in an online business for quite a while, for sure you’ve already met “Joy”. She’s the one who would comment or message with all-caps and multiple exclamation points about how she loves what you’re selling. She would even tell you a back story on why she loves it, and then proceed on asking lots of questions. And of course, she would reserve the item enthusiastically, promising to pay next week. But she won’t. “Joy Reserver” is an online selling jargon that means a buyer who enthusiastically shows interest on an item, but will not actually buy it. As an online seller, you may have already encountered several — if not many — of these people, who don’t even qualify to be called “buyers.” Aren’t they annoying? That the customer is always right is of course a hyperbole. As classic business wisdom, it just means that we must be patient with our customers — even just the potential ones — as best as we can. Like in other aspects of life, in business, we put reason above emotion. Set a reservation period Setting a one-week reservation, for example, not only prevents Joy Reservers to delay their orders, but […]
Pokémon Go is nothing short of a worldwide craze. For the uninitiated, the game requires you to be alert to spot Pokémons and catch them with Poke Balls. There are stubborn Pokémons that can use up your Poke Balls and escape when captured. To get more balls and other helpful items (such as potions and eggs), you have to find Poke Stops. But there’s more to it than just an AR-enabled game. It’s turning out to be a business opportunity as well, especially for brick-and-mortar businesses such as restaurants. For cyberpreneurs, there are also great lessons to learn. Here are some. 1. Take more of the same to evolve A Rattata again? You may think you’re getting more of the same, and might even be tempted to pass up such leads. However, like your Pokémons, you can only evolve into something bigger and stronger if you’ve paid your dues (not necessarily with candies). For now, you may be struggling with your seventh blog post for a client about Creatine health benefits. But one day, you might have an online PR empire of your own to run. 2. Bring opportunities to where you are You can get the same opportunities without going […]
Truth be told, the thought of making a career shift – from the office cubicle to my home desk – as a freelancer/cyberpreneur has always lingered in my mind ever since I learned about the concept some years ago. I’ve felt that working from home was an ideal setup. At least for me though, a shift that’s not in the immediate future, but after x number of years. With that in mind, I had a plan – not properly drawn out, but all there nevertheless. Building the foundations For the past 3 years or so, I began to establish the foundations of that possible next career phase. I looked for writing contributions, both unpaid and (especially) paid ones. I completely overhauled my old blog, as I migrated the site to a new domain and a new hosting service. I did so, for my site to have ads for some additional revenue. Then early this year, I made the move to get myself registered with the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) as a part-time freelancer. Or as the BIR would classify freelancers, a professional. It was originally intended to fulfill the requirements of some publications that freelancers like myself should have official receipts to issue. But I was mindful at the same time that I would […]
If you have a tech startup or an online business, you’re most likely doing most of your work right in your own bedroom, on a neighborhood cafe, or just about anywhere convenient. At one point, however, you might be asked by clients where you’re operating. Or maybe you’re ready to formally register your business. Does it mean that it’s time to reconsider your setup? Don’t move out and rent just yet! A virtual office might come in handy. A virtual office is a setup where a leasing company would allow you to use their address for a fee. You can officially use their address even in your business registration and other transactions. Because there’s actually no physical office space involved, you’re just going to pay minimal fees. In effect, you’re renting yourself a mailbox. It’s a great way for getting yourself a prestigious business address that you won’t otherwise be able to afford in the meantime. Sounds great? Here’s when you should get a virtual office for your business: You’re wooing big deals From the perspective of your clients, a business address would make you more attractive to enter into contract with. Especially when you’re chasing after investment money, you […]
Every business starts with an opportunity. Your online or cyber business idea has to be rooted to a real-world problem that a group of people are dealing with. In short, you’re selling a solution. You have to think about a particular problem, and then figure out what type of business you’re in. Broadly speaking, there are 3 categories of online businesses: service-based, knowledge-based, and product-based. Here’s a video we’ve prepared to give you a short introduction: Service-based online business This is the easiest type of online business to launch. Just by being online, you can reach out to potential customers – people or other small businesses – who need your service. There are many job sites where you can get projects from. Or you can even just promote your service right on social media, maybe a friend of a friend has an urgent requirement for your skill. Writing, designing, and coding are some of the most in demand skills that you can offer via the Web. Selling your services is also a good way for building the skills and experience that you need if you plan to transition to a new career. Knowledge-based online business If you have expertise or […]
Apart from being a reputable stock trader/analyst, Marvin Germo is many things: entrepreneur, blogger, book author, newspaper columnist, and registered financial planner. All these, however, are just his ways and means of fulfilling his ultimate goal: financial freedom for every Filipino. Now, that might sound like a lofty dream (and indeed it is), but if Marvin’s life is an example, nothing is impossible. From completely ordinary beginnings, Marvin is now one of the leading finance experts in the country. He represents Registered Financial Planners (RFP) Philippines, an independent self-regulatory professional group educating and gathering financial planners in the country. He writes regular columns on stock investment for the Business Mirror and MoneySense Magazine. Marvin, who often appears in TV and radio interviews, also shares financial knowledge as a keynote speaker in various events and seminars. Here are insights on how he was able to carve his own path toward financial freedom through entrepreneurship. 1. Being an entrepreneur is a decision. Marvin wasn’t born to a particularly wealthy, business-minded, or financially-savvy family. His father, for example, was a long-time employee of a top multinational pharma company up until retirement. Marvin himself seemed destined for the same, safe path, having started out […]
In today’s vibrant online market, it’s not enough to create content for your customers and audience through your website or blog. There needs to be an interaction done to establish your brand as a thought leader and as a trustworthy creator of yummy treats. But how do you reach your audience effectively at social media? Here’s a low down of some tips that you can use: 1) Take great photos of your products. The first impression you make using your products will be the first step of convincing potential customers to buy it. This can be done by hiring a professional photographer to take art-directed shots of your food to make it appetizing on social media. For a more budget friendly approach, you can get inspiration from food photographers online and take your own shots. Many free photo editing apps are available for smartphones to help you post-process your shots in an instant. This is also convenient since you can upload it immediately upon shooting and post-processing. 2) Follow influencers, media, and potential customers who fall under your target market. Doing this can not only make these people notice your brand, it can also help you gauge what type of content they like […]
Challenging the big guys as a startup is no easy feat. Small businesses have their work cut out for them: obviously, they have limited funds and manpower to compete with conglomerates. However, there are many startup advantages that smaller businesses have over their larger counterparts. Most successful startups that were able to disrupt markets will tell you that it was their ability to listen to the market and the sheer speed of implementation that shaped their success. Ability to listen to the market You get what you focus on. When a company gets bigger, more departments are formed and more responsibilities are segmented. As a result, the larger the pie to handle, the more energy is needed to keep everything running. This leads to becoming more distant from personal contact. Jack Ma, chairman and CEO of Alibaba Group, said that whenever he goes to lecture in big companies, what he sees are concerns for numbers and KPI’s. But when he gives talks to small and medium sized companies, he sees passion and dreams. Get feedback from your customers, all the while considering what is best for the direction of the company. The next step relies on this. We are so […]