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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.
In Spotlight
Recommended articles
To get your cyber business found online, you need likeable content. The challenge is that there’s really no formula that can guarantee if your content will ever reach its ideal users or deliver on its purpose. If you need inspiration on how to start, we’ve expounded on popular statements from some of the most prominent brand gurus, bloggers, and content marketers: We’re not in the Mad Men era anymore. Expensive campaigns from advertising agencies are routinely trumped by amateur content for most impact. Seasonal campaigns won’t cut it for today’s generation. Your customers are connected 24/7, and are from all over the world. To be convincing, you have to address their unique interests, pain points, and felt needs. Going viral (the good kind) with your content is more a matter of chance than careful execution. Pulling PR stunts won’t work. People can detect what’s contrived, and they may even hijack your message. Start with a good reason for creating content. If you care enough about your message, the right people will eventually find and appreciate your content. They’re the ones who will contribute to your bottom line. When have you ever actively searched for an ad? If you’re like most […]
So, if you are confident about your products and services and you don’t want to waste your time, take these learning into consideration and market wisely.
You’ve probably noticed how SEO is getting more attention from the media. Some even say that SEO is dead, and that investing in it is like flogging a dead horse. But these statements are wrong because SEO is more alive than ever. However, people are ignoring this rich advertising possibility because of these rumors. Many statistics are saying otherwise. The truth is that SEO can help you to expand your business, improve your marketing strategy, and make a bunch of money. Here are some of the most important reasons why you should develop a proper SEO strategy. Marketing benefits If you are not interested in SEO, you’re missing a great marketing opportunity. Google algorithms are based on its principles. Surely, you want your website to rank as high as possible. People browsing the Net are not checking only one term on one website – they try different websites and modify their search terms. So, what can you do? You can offer your customers a great variety of material. This way, if they modify the term, your page will appear, again and again. Google will notice this and you will be one step closer to appearing on the first page. The rise of online customers It […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
Maybe you couldn’t get a straight answer from a client, or a team leader won’t send you a project document as promised. For all the benefits it brings to the company, there are still many people who resist sharing knowledge. At the heart of the resistance is the fear of change: what would happen if I share my knowledge – and more so, if I depend on another person’s knowledge? As Thomas Davenport notes in Ten Principles of Knowledge Management, “Sharing and using knowledge are often unnatural acts.” To make things more complicated, sometimes people won’t even admit or show resistance openly. Not wanting to share knowledge speaks a lot about the interests (sometimes conflicting and competing) of people in your company. Understandably, people have various reasons for resisting knowledge sharing as much as they have different stakes. Here are some common reasons for resisting knowledge sharing and the troubleshooting tips to address them. 1. Insecurity “I don’t want to share what I know because it may reduce my value or jeopardize my job security.” Guarantee that sharing knowledge won’t diminish anyone’s value – on the contrary, it would increase respect and trust. Your company could assign knowledge-sharing objectives to each employee’s […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
There’s this old idea in Silicon Valley that says: “hire slow, fire fast”. However, this idea doesn’t work with a startup. You would need as many good hands as possible to keep your ship from sinking. So instead of hiring less people and firing more, you need to “hire fast, fire fast”. As much as possible, retain all your good employees and weed out the bad ones, which could heavily affect productivity. Instead of firing someone, what you need to do is screen your potential employees before signing their work contract. What to look for in a potential employee In an interview, every person you shake hands with seems to be a pretty good candidate for the job. You would want to hire everyone that comes through that door (if you have the budget for it, why not?). Interviewees might have experience, but they might not have long-term commitments nor willingness to adapt to your work environment or the demands of the industry. What you need is an employee that has 5 or more of these traits to help man your startup: Drive Startups need manpower that would help the company move forward. Even if it is outside the job […]
Businesses only become sustainable when its customers are happy. But even when it happens, this stage is still very temporary. When customers sense they’re worth nothing more than their money to you, they’ll shop around and go to where they feel they’re valued the most. Customer satisfaction should be a cornerstone of your brand. With the global market today, competition is everywhere. Since the market has gone online, it’s harder to build trust between the customer and the business. With a well-developed brand, it’s easier to spot if a certain product or service being offered is reliable, or if it is a sham. Here are some tips to consider in ensuring customer satisfaction and establishing a trustworthy brand for your business: Be accessible Customers want to know the fine print about your business. Make sure to have your communication lines open – listing your social media accounts, hotline numbers, and even operating address makes a huge difference. Return the favor by assisting them and eliminating their worries. This would lead to your brand’s credibility. Be honest Being open about both your business’s strengths and weakness (or more aptly, your limitations) lets your customers know you have their best interest at […]
By using Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software, many small businesses have become more efficient and have since fast-tracked their digital transformation. A CRM for small businesses provides one-stop shop to record customer interactions, manage communications, and align internal processes for an improved customer experience. But with varying features – from business forecasting, contract management, to call center handling – how do you make sure that your investment in a CRM system is worth its buck? In terms of return on investment, G2Crowd‘s latest survey reported that it could vary from as early as 3 months to as much as two years time. If you’re a small business owner, it’s especially important to choose a system that fits your needs and hits the ground running. When deciding which CRM to choose, you can’t go wrong in prioritizing these elements: Easy to learn and use Some are put off by outdated-looking user interfaces in legacy CRM systems. Confusing UI and cluttered forms add to the steep learning curve that makes many CRM implementation fail. Per data from G2Crowd, some CRM for small businesses have adoption rates that fall below 50%. As with anything, complex is not necessarily complicated – so simplicity is […]
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 […]
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 […]
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!
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 […]
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. . […]