Identifying An Existing Hot Demand

Identifying an Existing Hot Demand

Every small business owner knows that competition is tough, but he or she may not be able to pinpoint exactly what changes are needed in order to get to the top. Conducting business as usual may no longer be sufficient. Investing in the technology that is now available can be a great help or a bank breaker. It seems that most small business and home based business are either starving (they don’t have enough technology) or they are obese (they have everything piece of new technology that comes down the pike).

There is, however, some fairly new technology that every small or home business owner needs. It can answer questions like; how can small businesses identify noteworthy trends, Identify an existing hot demand and make better decisions faster? Answer: business intelligence software. Business intelligence is the crystal ball of the 21st century.

Purchasing business intelligence (BI) software is one of the most strategic investments that a business can make. Using data mining, reporting and querying, BI helps businesses understand, monitor, manage and respond to specified situations. This software empowers decision-makers — and staff — to connect the dots around key business numbers in a way previously unimaginable. BI helps you figure out:

· Which customers are profitable?
· Which customers appear profitable but aren't?
· Are you close to — or far from — reaching critical milestones?
· When is the best time to launch a marketing campaign?
· What was the best performing product or service last quarter?

Business Intelligence software may be more of an investment than small businesses can bear. It can certainly be pricy. Small business or home business owners, however, can subscribe to BI services on the Internet at a fairly reasonable cost. There are several to choose from.

eBay also published a “Hot Items” list the first week of each month. It gives valuable information to eBay sellers who use drop shippers.

BONUS : Keeping Affiliates Motivated

Running affiliates programs is easier than ever with
the software and help available now. However, keeping
your affiliates motivated and selling isn't quite
as easy to do. If the success of your business rests
upon how your affiliates perform, you make want to
provide them with the right tools to get the job
done successfully.

If you are already running an affiliate program for
your products, you should know that a large number of
people who sign up for your program never to be
heard from again. You can however, reduce the number
of non productive affiliates by remaining in touch
with them constantly.

Remind them of their usernames and passwords, and
tell them where to log in to check their stats or
get creative. Always keep them informed of new
product lines or changes in policy or procedures.

The key to motivation is making sure that you stay
in touch. Always pay attention to who your top
sellers are, and make sure that you contact them
on a regular basis. Pay attention to who your worst
producers are, and make sure you stay in touch
with them constantly as well.

The main reason most affiliates don't perform that
well is because they don't possess any leadership
or guidance. This can easily be changed by writing
a marketing course, which you can even offer for
sale to non affiliates, although you should make
it available to your affiliates at no charge.

Keep your creatives and sales copy up to date. You
should also provide new material for your affiliates
to use on a regular basis. Providing them with
nothing but a text link and one banner just
doesn't generate much excitement at all.

Provide your affiliates with sales letters, reviews,
ads, banners of different shapes and sizes, and
anything else that comes to mind. Be sure that your
affiliates know the material is there for them to
use. Always listen to your affiliates, and get
the proper feedback on your material.

You should also hold virtual meetings. Set up chat
rooms where your affiliates can attend virtual
meetings on a weekly basis. Be sure to answer any
questions, have motivated speakers, and aything
else you can think of to make the meetings more
motivated.

Given your affiliates the credit they deserve is
also very important. Each month, you should give
credit to the best performers in your affiliate
newsletter. Give small bonuses to those that
perform well, and you can even set up a payment
structure that rewards higher commissions and bigger
volumes of sales.

Always make sure you do everything you can to
help your affiliates succeed and make money in
your program. If they are making money - you are
succeeding and making money as well. In reality -
their success is your success.

(word count 466)

PPPPP