If you’re a single parent, you face a variety of difficult challenges in everyday life. Not the least of which is making sure that you are able to provide a good home for you and your child. Unfortunately, in times of economic uncertainty such as that which we currently experience, steady jobs are in short supply, which can make things difficult. Home based business offers single parents an alternative option; they are able to work part time from home and build a financially secure future for themselves far superior to that which they could achieve otherwise. Here are some of the major advantages of owning home based businesses, which finding a way to work part time from home can help you achieve:• Flexible Scheduling – When you work part time from home, or own a home based business, you have the most flexible scheduling available on Earth, which can really help when it comes time to accommodate the kids. When you add in commute times as well as all the other time you will save as well, you end up having dozens of extra hours a week to spend with your family.• Save More Spend Less – Having a home business really enables you to spend less money and save more at the same time. When you work part time from home, you don’t need to pay for as much child care, transportation, sitting, or any of the other major expenses associated with working outside the home.• More Freedom – Perhaps the most important benefit of owning a home based business is the increased freedom that it brings you. Instead of wasting away a third of your life on mundane tasks at some dead end job, you can work part time from home instead on something you really love, and earn a better income in the process.So if you are a single parent and have been considering some alternative work arrangements, you should definitely consider looking into the benefits that doing work part time from home can bring to your life. If you are able to build a successful home based business, you will be in a great situation financially, and likely enjoy your own day to day life more as well. Between the financial incentives, the extra time, and the benefits of being truly free, it is hard to understand why everyone isn’t looking into their own home based business.
Five Tips for Selling at Live Auctions
Ah, the old-fashioned country auction! The idea of a country auction conjures up certain images for people. The image of a fast-talking auctioneer offering up an antique table or chair is a popular example.
People who are buying household goods or collectibles are looking to get their items at the lowest price possible. However, the people who are selling their items at auction are hoping for the highest price!
Unless a person is in the business of buying and selling antiques or other items, not a lot of thought goes into how goods are prepared for sale via the auction process. However, if you are one of the growing number of people using auction venues to sell your collectibles or other inventory, there are a few things to learn first about how to sell at auction before you bring a truckload of stuff over to the next event.
Tip 1: Make sure the things you want to sell are a good “fit” for the auction house you’ll be using.
Never bring a load to an auction house without actually having been to one of the previous auctions. It’s important to get a feel for the type of goods that the house sells. For example, at one very rural country auction it was common for the owners to sell live chickens, pots and pans, car parts, and farm equipment.
After close investigation, this would not be the right venue for selling your daughter’s “Hello Kitty” collection. On the other hand, the spare John Deere parts that you bought at last week’s yard sale might be just the right thing for the buying crowd at this auction.
Tip 2: Be sure you clearly understand the terms and policies of the auction house.
Visit with the auctioneer ahead of time. Call to find out what the best days and times are to visit. One of the worst possible times to drop in for an informational visit with an auctioneer is the day of the auction. Call ahead and ask. While you’re at it, find out what are the best days and times to drop your stuff off.
Once you have a little time with the auctioneer, you’ll be able to find out what type of commission he or she takes from consigners (which is you), and what type of paperwork might be needed. Some auction houses send out Form 1099 tax forms at the end of the year. An auctioneer may need to see your identification and have you fill out a W-9. Be prepared.
Find out what happens to your items if they don’t sell. For example, some auctioneers may have a minimum starting bid. If, for some reason, one of your items does not sell, it may be grouped with another one of your pieces. Know the auctioneer’s strategy beforehand so that you aren’t surprised on pay day.
Tip 3: Make sure the auctioneer knows what you’re selling.
It might be perfectly obvious to you that the signed print you are consigning is a rare and valuable piece of art. However, the auctioneer may not know this particular artist. Make a note of anything particularly special about your items, and leave the note with the piece. Be sure to tell the auctioneer about it as well. He or she might determine that this is something to highlight on the company website or in the newspaper listing.
Tip 4: Present your items neatly.
No one likes to have to dig through a box full of grimy and greasy car parts to see what treasures might be in there. Separate the parts and lay them out on a flat, or use more than one box to de-clutter the lot.
There is no need to buy fancy display boxes. It’s easy enough to go to the local convenience store or supermarket and ask if you can have the emptied boxes or flats that they are discarding.
While it’s good to present clean items, take care not to ruin the value of anything by over cleaning. For example, if you find some old cast iron cookware, clean the obvious dirt and grime, but don’t scrub it to its original finish. For many people, this ruins the value of the item. So, clean and tidy and organized is the key here.
Tip 5: Don’t complain to the auctioneer if your stuff doesn’t sell for as much as you’d like.
The phrase to remember here is, “You win some; you lose some.” That’s just the way it is. There are some days where an auction house is loaded with people who all seem to want what you’re selling. There will be other days where the crowd is sparse, and the bidding is simply not competitive.
Remember that it’s in the auctioneer’s best interest to sell your things for the highest possible hammer price. But sometimes, it’s just not going to be a stellar sale. The auctioneer is only human, and is also disappointed if a sale doesn’t go as well as planned.
If you notice that every time you bring a bunch of goods to sell that you’re not realizing as much as you think you honestly should, try another auction venue and compare apples to apples. That is, bring the same types of items to the new auctioneer and compare the results.
Unless the auctioneer is particularly disagreeable or inconsiderate to you or buyers, there is no reason to confront him or her about a sale. If you find you just don’t care for an auctioneer’s style or methods, find another one. Believe me, there are plenty of them out there!
The primary thing to remember as you learn how to sell at auction is that the business is unpredictable at best. You will have good days, some not-so-good days, some great days. The more you sell, the more experience you will gain, and the more enjoyable the business will be.
5 Great Tips For Those In Internet Marketing Or Network Marketing
What would I do if I were just starting out in Internet Marketing and/or Network Marketing? Here my 5 best Internet Marketing Tips to help you get started right!
My 5 Best Internet Marketing and/or Network Marketing Tips
The key thing to remember as a Internet Marketer or Network Marketer is it’s all about 3 main things: 1) Providing Massive Value 2) Building Relationships 3) Developing Great Marketing Systems
How Would I Start If I Was Brand-New To Internet Marketing and/or Network Marketing?
My goal is to encourage you to apply them… And be massively successful!
1. Get A MENTOR!!! I tried to do Internet marketing on my own for several years and probably averaged about $20 for every hundred hours I put into it. I had discovered an exciting and challenging way to make 20¢ an hour! LOL!!! When I finally got a Great MENTOR… I started making real money within the first 30 days… And now I make amazing money virtually on autopilot! READER WARNING! Don’t be as Stupid as I was… Get a Mentor right away! Having a Mentor will take years off your learning curve and will save you a ton of expense, frustration and aggravation. It is so much easier to have somebody show you something and hand you the tools than to try to create it from scratch by yourself. (98.4% of People who try to Learn Internet Marketing / Network Marketing on their own… FAIL!)
2. Focus on setting up your Internet / Network Marketing Systems and doing the work. The best advice anyone can give you is to follow your Mentor’s instructions and take MASSIVE action for the first 90 days. We call this “Priming The Pump!” – When you first start out using Internet Marketing Strategies, you will start putting content and value out into the “Internet Universe” and typically little or nothing will happen in the first 30 days. At this point, many think they are failing… But in the next 30-60 days… You will start to see people signing up to your email list… Signing up under you in your Network Marketing Business… and start seeing sales of your affiliate products. It is in the 35+ day period that you really start to see the benefits of your hard work. This is why we call it “Priming The Pump”… What happens when you prime a pump? At first, you keep pumping and pumping… And nothing comes out! Then all the sudden, right when you are ready to give up and quit, you start to see a small stream of water… You keep pumping more… And all the sudden, water (Money $$$) comes gushing out! NEVER forget that this is how the system works! (“Don’t Quit Before The Miracle Happens!”)
3. Study a little bit every day about Internet Marketing and Network Marketing. One way to meet this goal, with no time lost, is to keep audio trainings with you on a cell phone, MP3 player or CD that you can play in your car while you are driving around. If you listen to Training Audios just when you are driving around in the car it will equal about 200 or more hours per year of training… That is 5 Full 40-hour weeks of training per year… WOW! THIS is how you become a ‘Genuis’ at Marketing Fast!
4. Use strong Internet Marketing Tool Suites like MLSP. Now it doesn’t have to be My Lead System Pro, but something like it that has great training on Lead Generation and done for you squeeze pages so that you have a way to make money with your blog or website. Being part of also give you way to make money even if they don’t buy your primary Network Marketing opportunity. MLSP will provide you with all the primary marketing tools you need to be successful at Internet Marketing with far less effort and look really professional. They also have an amazing amount of training on the MLSP website that will take years off your learning curve and help you generate more traffic, sales and profit. When I started making real money doing Internet marketing… MLSP was the first program I signed up with. MLSP gave me tons of training and quick cash to bootstrap my Internet / Network Marketing Business.
5. Set up a Daily Routine. I actually use a daily Internet / Network Marketing To-Do-List where the main things I (or my team) must accomplish each day… And try to get those things done before I move on to anything else. By the end of the day, this list is always done! This is one of the major keys to success… And I probably wouldn’t have made it without! It is the simple things that you repeat every day that will make you massively successful through persistence and pure accumulation!