Where to Find New Product Ideas

One way to grow your business and increase your profits is to think of new product ideas for your small business. You can offer something totally new, create derivative products from your existing ones, or branch out into something totally different.
But where do you find new product ideas?

According to the article How to Find Ideas to Improve Your Home Business, there are a number of ways you can get inspiration and ideas for your business. You can reach out and get feedback from customers, seek out like-minded entrepreneurs, check out competitors and keep yourself updated by learning and reading.
Another way to find new ideas for your business is to attend industry events, trade shows, conventions, exhibitions, art shows and the like — both in and out of your industry. These events are fertile grounds for generating fresh ideas and allow you to see new products, new concepts and upcoming trends that you can build into your business. You can even get ideas from seeing what your competitors are doing!
Take for example the wholesaler Wuu Jau Company http://www.wuujau.com/, a family business based in Oklahama founded by Ben and Margaret Lu. Started in 1984, the company offers various collector and cutlery items such as swords, daggers, crossbows, pocketknives and throwing knives. One important strategy that Wuu Jau used to grow their business is by constantly rethinking their product offerings to keep ahead of their competitors and respond to what their clients want. Ideas for their new products come from various sources, from listening to their customers’ feedback to seeing what’s out there through trade shows.
One of the best-selling products of Wuu Jau is gift box knives. Margaret Lu got the idea for the product after going to an art show and seeing little artworks placed in a gift box. She rightly thought that the idea will translate well to her own business, and this led her to adding a product line of gift box knives or collectibles.
The company also introduced samurai swords as a result of a visit to a trade show. In an interview with Wholesale Magazine, Michael Lu (the son and currently Vice President of Wuu Jau) explained how attending a trade show gave their dad the idea of offering samurai swords.

“In the late ‘80s, my dad went to a trade show, and at that time, importing from China was just starting. With cutlery like samurai swords, most of them were handmade and really high quality stuff from Japan, and my dad noticed that people really liked them, but the prices were near $1,000 each. So he thought if we imported something like this from China, and it doesn’t have to be as functional, it could be more affordable for the average person who just wants to collect and put it in a display or case. At the time, there wasn’t anybody importing three-piece samurai sword sets, and a couple of the Japanese sword makers were furious, because we were selling it for maybe ten percent of their prices.”

Wuu Jau also gets their product ideas from what the customers say, and how they perceive the products they offer, and what customers are looking for.
The company updated its Live Action Role Playing line, which are swords and axes used by fantasy fans, after analyzing the products being returned, and what condition these products are in when customers return them. They saw an opportunity to improve their products so it would better serve the needs of their target market.

“We’ve been carrying foam weapons for a while, but because people want to fight with them, we were getting returns with the weapons all busted up … We went to China to see if we could come up with a new material to make merchandise that was more durable and lightweight, and we’ve come up with this new material … so it holds up better.”

Opportunities to improve the performance of your business and increase your bottomline are everywhere — you just have to look for them!

Recommended Books on New Product Ideas: 

Grow Your Service Firm
Teach Yourself Successful Market Research in a Week
The Strategy Book: How to Think and Act Strategically to Deliver Outstanding Results (Financial Times Series)



Tags: getting products to marketCategory: Growing Isabel Isidro is the co-founder of PowerHomeBiz.com. A mom of three boys, avid vintage postcard collector, frustrated scrapbooker, she also manages WomenHomeBusiness.com and LearningfromBigBoys.com. Follow her on Twitter and connect with her on Google +
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Interesting Small Business Ideas for Women Entrepreneurs

Women control a huge percentage of total consumer spending. In many households, the moms hold the purse strings and buy for the family. Given the strong presence of female consumers, both big and small businesses continue to meet the needs of women everywhere.

We have listed some unique, interesting, even innovative businesses catering to the female consumers. Some of these businesses are truly unique and groundbreaking; while others focus on a specific niche. Some of these business ideas turn existing concepts upside down, while others improve everyday products and found success through their innovations and improvements.

Here are some unique businesses targeted to female consumers, created by women entrepreneurs themselves:

Wouldn’t it be fun to have different shoes everyday — but without creating a massive hole your wallet? Lindsay Phillips stumbled on the idea of creating flip flops with interchangeable straps and accessories, allowing women to create different looks with their footwear.

Founder of the company that carries her name and creator of Switch Flops, Phillips was just a teenager when she got the idea of switching the straps of her flip flops from a high school art project. Today, the company Lindsay Phillips has grown into a multi-million business. In addition to interchangeable flip flops, her company now offers ballet shoes, wedges, and sandals that women can accessorize differently to create different looks with just one shoe. Read more of Lindsay Phillips’ simple yet highly successful business idea.

Twins Izzy and Coco Tihanyi founded Surf Diva, the surf camp taught for girls, by girls. Founded in 1996 with only $328 in capital and using Izzy’s surfboard collection, Surf Diva has become the world’s #1 surf school for women.

Stacy Struminger and Rachel Teyssier decided to create their own line of fashionable waterproof garment for women who won’t let rain dampen their fashion cred. Called RAINRAP™, its design combines the popular style of the pashmina and wrap. It is designed as waterproof, reversible, light-weight, fast drying, easy to store (folds up to fit in your handbag and/or suitcase), and comes in four colorful combinations. Read how they started their fashionable rain gear clothing line business.

Dan Yang, after seeing her baby’s fascination with her smart phone, looked for a technology toy that will appeal to her baby like her smart phone yet will satisfy her baby’s curiosity. She wanted that would help her baby learn, enhance her play, and satisfy her curious fingers but she couldn’t find one. She saw this as an opportunity and created her own child-friendly gadget herself. Dan Yang is now CEO of Rullingnet and the inventor of their flagship product, VINCI Genius Tablet. Read more about Dan Yang and her VINCI Genuis Tablet.

With a changing body and growing belly, the question of what to wear especially on special occasions have vexed a lot of pregnant women everywhere. Marcelle Costello started RentMaternityWear.com where pregnant women can rent special occasion clothes and dresses – such as baby showers, cocktail parties, weddings, even date nights – without breaking the bank. Read more about maternity wear rentals.

Families are often looking for quality care providers in a moment’s notice. They want someone they can trust, well-recommended and vetted to care for their love ones. Shiela Lirio Marcelo started Care.com, which has grown to become one of the largest online marketplaces for caregivers — including babysitters, senior care givers, pet sitters, even housekeepers. Read how Shiela Lirio started Care.com.

The cell phone has rapidly become an ubiquitous accessory used by people not only to call. It has become a must-bring-anywhere tool, alongside their wallets, keys, credit cards and other essentials. And therein lies the challenge: carrying all the must-bring items can be cumbersome. To make it easy to carry all these essential everyday items, Jamie James created Cellfolio, a cell phone case that also serves as a wallet designed to make carrying cash, cell phone, and credit cards easier and more convenient. Instead of carrying several items in different ways, a person can have all their essentials in one case. Learn how Jamie created Cellfolio.

No related posts.

Tags: women business, women entrepreneur

Category: Business Ideas

Isabel Isidro is the co-founder of PowerHomeBiz.com. A mom of three boys, avid vintage postcard collector, frustrated scrapbooker, she also manages WomenHomeBusiness.com and LearningfromBigBoys.com. Follow her on Twitter and connect with her on Google +

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How to Write Articles

How to write articles

Article marketing is powerful and effective.

Article marketing can also take many forms. Blogging, submitting articles to other sites, email marketing and writing short reports are all article marketing.

Writing but a few articles a week can lay the foundation for a very powerful, and profitable, online business.

I can think of a dozen well-known marketers who started online exactly that way.

They began with article marketing and discovered an audience who liked them, trusted them and bought from them.

They went on to create their own products and build their online empires. These are names you would know.

If it happened for them I believe it can happen for you too.

But HOW do you write a great and helpful article if you are not a “writer”. That’s the question I get a lot. So I’m going to answer it here.

Here is the formula I use to write articles.

Before we get to the “how to” let me say that this is but one of many proven models for writing articles. I personally rotate between about five article writing models (or templates) to keep things interesting for me and for you, my readers.

Of all those models this one is the easiest to use and the most pleasant for the reader of your article.

This article writing formula helps you help people, and helping people is what article marketing is all about.

When you approach article marketing this way — with a true desire to help —reciprocity will work for you and yiou will be rewarded for your efforts without having to resort to hype or high pressure sales tactics.

Here is the step by step process.

You are going to write a “how to article” that gives the reader three or five steps to take to accomplish a task.

This is a lot like a recipe.

If you can teach your daughter to scramble eggs or teach your grandson to shoot a basketball then you can do this with no problem.

You just need a little practice. When you teach your kids how to do things you break the task down into tiny steps, baby steps, and make sure each step is clear and easy to do.

That is what you will be doing here as well.

By the way, it’s okay with me if boys scramble eggs and girls shoot baskets. I was just giving an example. 

So get in your mind something you can tell a reader to do with three or five simple actions.

If you can’t think of something now no problem. You can come back to this article when you have your idea.

In my next article I'm going to share how to generate an endless stream of ideas so no worries.

Ready? Good.

Your article is going to have the following structure. Let’s look at the structure and then I will share for a moment about each item.

This overview assumes a five point article.

• Paragraph 1 – Define the problem.
• Paragraph 2 – Review possible solutions
• Paragraph 3 – Propose your solution
• Paragraphs 4 – 8 – Your five step solution
• Paragraph 9 – Summarize your argument
• Paragraph 10 – Suggest an action step

That’s it! Simple, clean and effective.

One thing you need to remember is this. When writing for the Internet you need to keep your paragraph length short.

The best model for me is no more than three sentences per paragraph. Two sentences often works better. 

Let me give you a very brief sample.

Very soon I will write an article for you using exactly this formula so you can see it in action. The sample below are my notes, not the finished article. I’ll finish the article in a few days time and send it along for you to see.

Let’s say you want to write an article about how to get more traffic to a website.

And let’s say you are making the case that the reader should buy this super duper traffic course you are promoting.

How do you do that without high pressure selling?

Here’s how.

Remember, what you read next is NOT a finished article. Just notes about how to write an article around that topic. I will send the finished article to you via email. 

Paragraph 1 – Define the problem — We all need traffic but there is so much information out there that it becomes overwhelming and expensive. People are suffering from information overload.

Paragraph 2 – Review possible solutions — You could waste time and money experimenting and you might find something that works. Or you might lose all your money. You could just do pay per click or buy a solo ad or put an ad on Facebook. But there are risks.

Paragraph 3 – Propose your solution — A better way is to model someone who has “been there and done that”. Someone you can trust and who will help you.

Paragraphs 4 – 8 – Your five step solution – Take these steps in researching solutions.

(1) Who are the leaders in the “getting traffic” field.

(2) Can you afford to do what they teach you to do?

(3) Does what they are proposing make sense to you?

(4) Do they have a good reputation online?

(5) Will you take action on what they suggest?

Paragraph 9 – Summarize your argument – If you find someone you can trust who has a proven model for getting traffic and you can afford to use what they suggest and will take action there is every reason to believe it will work for you.

Paragraph 10 – Suggest an action step — Make a list of the different ways to get traffic to a website and choose one that interests you most. Possibly include the list in the article.

I will write THAT article in the next few days and send it along so you can see what the finished product looks like.

For now YOUR action step is this – think about things you can teach people to do in three or five short steps.

It might be getting traffic to a website or it might be baking a cake. Doesn't matter really — the process is what’s important.

Once you learn the process you will be able to write articles quickly from your own experience or from your observations or research.

You will be an article writing machine!

Google friendly and optimal article comes down to 7 things:

• - A writers skill and experience
• - A writers SEO knowledge and skill
• - The writers good use of grammar
• - Good spelling
• - Research and knowledge of the topic
• - Unique content ( make sure to use a service that copyscape tests all submitted content just like Articleteller.com does ) You never want to pay for a copied article.
• - A well written article that grabs the reader's attention.

There you have it. I have written literally over 1000 articles using this very formula. It works for me and I believe it can work for you too.

Article marketing changed my life and helped me build a strong online business that created both financial and time freedom. I want that for you too.

Because freedom is a beautiful thing indeed!

credit: Charlie Page

Knowledge Is Power – What Are You Worth?

The Power of Knowledge

Think of it this way: A man works at a major fast-food chain. He knows how to flip a burger with a spatula. ANY person on this planet can do this. Young or old. That is why he is paid a very small wage for an hour of his time. Their knowledge-base doesn’t have to be large.
Now think of the man who is balancing the budget for a large internationally-known company. The slightest error or miscalculation could cause hundreds of people to lose their jobs and send many families in to foreclosure. Can you see how much education this individual must have in order to properly do is job. He has a lot of weight on his shoulders! He has a large knowledge-base. And his paycheck, I’m sure, reflects it! He is a great leader!Knowledge is Power!

"The great Breakthrough in your life comes when you realize it that you can learn anything you need to learn to accomplish any goal that you set for yourself.This means there are no limits on what you can be,have or do."

This same scenario holds true to network marketing. The more knowledge you have about this industry, the greater your paycheck. It’s that simple. If you have a marketing campaign that 97% of everyone else in this business does NOT have – then you are WAY ahead of the game. You are then able achieve the financial goals you are looking for.

What I’m getting at here, is that knowledge is in fact power. The more you know, the more you are worth. If you understand the ins and outs of marketing, if you know how to effectively lead people, if you are great at building relationships, if you are a good motivator, and if you have an awesome mindset – then you are going to do amazing things in this type of business!

“Go to bed today knowing more than you did yesterday…”

"Knowledge is power and enthusiasm pulls the switch."

Steve Droke

Now, if you have just said to yourself “well, I have one or two of these, but not all of them”. THAT’S FINE! As long as you are willing to learn! Remember: some of the most influential people in the world were not always influential. They cam out of their mother screaming and crying as a baby, just like you! Everything they know was LEARNED! You can gain the knowledge that will bring the leader out in you. You just have to want it, first.

Credit:Brock Blohm

Working Smarter, Not Harder!

Over the coming days and weeks we're going to show you exactly how you can build your own profitable home business and start receiving some nice commission checks... It's a lot easier than you may think, so sit back and enjoy the ride!

In this first issue we're going to talk about the importance of having a plan and a system to work with - in short "working smarter, not harder!"

And we're going to introduce you to our free Easy Downlines system, and show you why this might just be the right thing for you.

There a 3 very important rules you have to follow, if you want to run a successful home business...

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1. Focus... Focus... Focus!

It's very easy to get caught in the program jumping trap, when you first get started. Every day you receive tons of emails about the latest and greatest opportunity or technique.

And the truth is that most of these programs will only ever give you part of the puzzle, they are designed so that you need to keep buying. Most newbies get stuck in this circle until they have maxed their credit card and then they leave the internet marketing scene for good.

But there is an easy way out of this vicious cycle...

You need to a plan and a core focus... This could for example mean that you focus on promoting a system like Easy Downlines, and then you pour all your online work into doing just that.

If you jump from program to program, you won't become successful with any of them! The key to success is picking something (good) and sticking with it.

But there is another major benefit from this, allow us to illustrate...

For example, say you're focused on promoting a system like Easy Downlines - you're starting to get quite a few referrals and you're earning some nice commission checks, and you have a goal of doubling that within two month

Now the next time you get an email about the "latest and greatest" strategy, you can simply ask yourself the question: "will this help me build the business I'm working on and help me reach my goal?"

If the answer is "no" it's just a distraction and a waste of money - If the answer is yes, it's probably a good investment (as long as you use it to further your current goal and don't jump ship).

Another reason you might lose focus, is that 99% of the business opportunities, programs and courses out there simply don't give you all the training you need succeed... You get stuck and have to give up and move on (only to repeat over and over again).

Does that sound familar?

Well there are good news... Easy Downlines is designed as a complete home business system that you can focus all your effort on - and see huge results from!

But it's also a complete step by step training system, that will take you by the hand and show you exactly what to do, when, how and why!

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2. Working Smarter

When you're trying to build a home business you are faced with choices, that can sometimes seem to contradict each other.

You want to promote your main income program(s) - but unfortunately a lot of the traffic resources you're going to rely on require you to build your downline there too, before they become really effective.

It becomes a chicken an egg thing - and even though your end goal is solid enough, the unfortunate result is that you're still program hopping, losing focus and becoming less effective.

But there is a smart solution to this problem... And that's using a downline builder like Easy Downlines.

With a downline builder you're only promoting one program, and all you referrals will potentially join all the programs in the downline builder under you.

In the case of Easy Downlines, this means that you can focus on promoting one thing. But you still get the benefits of getting referrals to all your income opportunities and traffic programs - without spreading yourself thin and diluting your efforts.

Another huge benefit with Easy Downlines, is that we have assembled all the tools and information in one place. You have the training, promotional tools, ad tracking, link rotators and muc more in one program - which saves you a lot of time and makes it easier to stay on track.

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3. The Money Is In The List...

Even if you've only been involved with internet marketing for a short time, you will already have heard people saying that over and over again... For one simple reason - it's true!

The absolute best way to sell anything online is to get people to sign up to your email list first. That way you can automatically follow up and "close the sale" (people very rarely buy or join something the first time they see it).

This whole process is done by advertising a lead capture page (also known as a squeeze page), and getting people to give their name and email address - usually in exchange for a freebie you are offering.

You then have a list of subscribers you can follow up with about your product or opportunity, and a list you can broadcast to over and over again.

Since this is the most effective way, it's of course also how our Easy Downlines system is set up to work for you. But we have made it really easy for you...

We realized that setting up a good list building system is out of reach for most people, due to technical barriers, lack of money, writers block etc. And even if you personally could set up the perfect system, chances are that nobody in your downline would be able to the same, and your return would be limited.

So we're going to do it all for you!

You promote your pages generating leads, and we'll automatically follow up with your leads, promoting your affiliate links forever! No fees, knowledge or writing needed - we take care of it all - generating downline members and sales for you on autopilot!

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In The Next Issue...

That concludes the first lesson of your  eCourse. In the next lesson we're going to look at the most effective way to promote your income opportunities

But if you'd like to continue your training immediately you can sign up for a free Easy Downlines membership and access the complete training steps today...

Click Here To Join Easy Downlines For Free!

How To Be Successful In Multi Level Marketing (MLM)

Recently,  Have hear people asked this questions - " Can I be successful in MLM? Do people actually are successful with online marketing? Is MLM a scam?

In the next few minutes,  Brock Blohm will be showing you how to be successful and the blog will answer all the questions going on in your mind 

Hey there! The system detects that this may be your first time here. Cool! If you have any questions: I'm here to help!

Key To Multi Level Marketing Success

You want to learn how to be successful in multi level marketing? Awesome! I want to help you. To be successful in this industry, you must learn quite a bit. You must learn your company, you must learn your market, you must learn how to market to them, and you must grow in to a well-rounded person through personal development. This is not an overnight success in general, though it has happened to some. Below, I would like to list the thoughts and concepts that you should have in mind in order to create success within your multi level marketing opportunity.

Successful In Multi Level Marketing – Right Company

When you know what you are doing, you can be successful in almost any company out there. Most of your success will come down to you, as an individual – and what you are capable of doing. But what you must realize is that your company is as strong as its weakest link – and I’m not talking about the distributors. There are may factors that contribute to making a ‘great company’. If you are in the process of choosing a company or think you may have partnered with the wrong company, you should learn what these factors are. This is step #1 to your success – if this is skipped, say goodbye to your long-term success.

 Successful In Multi Level Marketing – Join A Leader

When partnering with the company that has your interest – you can literally partner with anybody that is already part of the company. You must join through a preexisting member. But choose wisely. The majority of people in any network marketing opportunity don’t know how to make it work – that’s just fact. You can either join a leader, someone who is already succeeding, and knows how to make it work – guiding you to the success you are looking for at no additional cost. Or, you can join just anybody. Sure, your company products will be shipped to you no matter who you join, but the difference is training and motivation. They will help you get to where you are looking to go! If you haven’t already, be sure to read this article about an MLM Coach.

 Successful In Multi Level Marketing – Recruit Friends & Family

As long as you aren’t partnered with an ‘adult opportunity’, then I highly recommend sharing it with your friends and family. Not to say that you can’t share adult material with your close ones – just be selective – you don’t want to offend anyone. I always recommend sharing your opportunity with all of your friends, family, and every single person that you know. This will obviously increase your chases of success. But understand that friends and family are in a different category than the rest of the world. You need to know how to approach them in a certain way. Remember, friend are always more important than business.

“The greatest leader is the one who sponsors the most leaders…”

 Successful In Multi Level Marketing – Generating Leads

You will go on to share this with all of your friends and family. Some will join. Some will not. When you have gone through your list, then what? You must be generating more leads – people to talk to. You must constantly be on a mission to share this with more people. In order to be able to share it with more people, you must find people to share it with – or generate a lead as some of us call it. You need to be a master at generating more leads.  

Successful In Multi Level Marketing – Build/Maintain Your Downline

Once you have started to place people in your business and have people on your team, it is now time to help them. Their success is your success. You help enough people get what they want, and you will, in turn, get what you want. You need to be an active leader. Someone who takes control and connects with their downline. Someone who helps to guide them and steer them in the right direction. You need share with them the exact tips and techniques that I listed above. Why? Because a team with knowledge is a team of success. You want them to know everything about the company and the industry, and be confident when they are out sharing this with others. Leadership is critical.  Here you will learn just how to help grow your organization through others.

 Successful In Multi Level Marketing – Personal Development

There is no ‘order’ for this topic. Personal development is something that is learned over time. It is one of the most critical pieces of your business. You must learn how to listen. You must learn how to communicate. And you must learn how to learn! I once read an article that stated that around 90%+ contribute their success, not to college, but simply personal development. Learn how to become the person that you would like to become. Simple as that. Read, learn, grow!

“Keep applying the same old network marketing strategies, and keep getting what you’ve always gotten…”

By Brock Blohm

How to Make Money With Twitter Quickly

If you thought using Twitter was only for social networking, think again. People are starting to tap in to the concept of making money with their Twitter website. You can make money with Twitter, but there are certain things you have to do in order to make a profit.

Of course, you must have a Twitter account in order to make money with Twitter. Signing up for a Twitter account does not cost you anything. When you get your Twitter site set up, you will want to start posting tweets to your site. Posting tweets will help you get followers. When followers tweet posts to you, you should respond in kind.

It is not necessary to have a gigantic following in order to make money with Twitter. It's better to have followers that have the same interests than hundreds of followers that are not interested in cultivating a relationship with you on your Twitter site.

You don't want to be too quick about promoting things in the very beginning. It's better to get to know the followers on your site. You should want to establish a trust with them. They should also want to establish a trust with you. When it's time for you to make money with Twitter, it will be easier for you because the relationship has been established.

When you are ready to make money with Twitter, don't blatantly promote your products or services. Some people could think that you are trying to spam them. It's not a good idea to mention your product to your followers every time you send a tweet.

However, when the time is right, here are some ways that you can make money with Twitter:

o Product recommendation - You could write a recommendation of a product to your followers. Encourage them to check it out and take action. It's a good idea if you actually tried out the product yourself before you recommend it to them. It will make you the expert on it, and they will be more inclined to purchase.

o Affiliate marketing - If you are recommending a product on behalf of someone else, you can place your affiliate link in your tweet post.

o Your product - You can promote your own product and sell it from your sales page.

Any of these ideas are ways that you can make money from Twitter. The key to doing it is not to constantly throw it in their face every time you tweet. Your followers will be turned off because they will start thinking that your main motive for being on Twitter is to sell your product. The easier way to lead up to this is to provide quality and meaningful content to your followers.

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