Essay about ENT10001 Lecture 2 WT 2015

Essay about ENT10001 Lecture 2 WT 2015 Essay about ENT10001 Lecture 2 WT 2015 Introduction to Entrepreneurship ENT10001, Winter Term 2015 Lecture 2 Prepared by Susan Jones Agenda Evaluating Entrepreneurial Opportunities – sorting the ideas from the opportunities 2 Prepared by Susan Jones Spot the flaw in this â€Å"story† Priceline Webhouse club Extension of Priceline.com (name your own price for airline tickets) Applied model to groceries Customer specifies price for (say) peanut butter Webhouse negotiates with suppliers, best price for bulk purchase What could go wrong here? Prepared by Susan Jones 3 And the miscalculation in this one Webvan Online grocery, during dot.com boom Backed by $millions in venture capital Order online and have groceries delivered to you Or Dogfood.com Same model but for dog food Seems plausible – why might it not work? 4 Prepared by Susan Jones What is the difference between an idea and an opportunity? 5 Prepared by Susan Jones Idea A thought or collection of thoughts that generate in the mind. An idea is usually generated with intent, but can also be created unintentionally. Ideas often form during brainstorming sessions or through discussions. Business Dictionary.com 6 Prepared by Susan Jones Opportunity Exploitable set of circumstances with uncertain outcome requiring commitment of resources and involving exposure to risk. Business Dictionary.com 7 Prepared by Susan Jones Two main sources of opportunity Change Problems 8 Prepared by Susan Jones What is an Opportunity? = Business Concept/Model + Window of Opportunity Timmons, New Venture Creation Prepared by Susan Jones 4 elements of an Opportunity 1. It solves a significant problem or need 2. It creates significant value for the customer 3. It can be commercialised because the market has the right characteristics 4. It is a good fit for the business owner Timmons 10 Prepared by Susan Jones Characteristics of an Opportunity Prepared by Susan Jones Why evaluate? Reasons for business failures: – Lack of capital – Lack of professional advice – Lack of planning Risk – Time – $ Each screen (test) you do leads to a higher probability of success Prepared by Susan Jones Detailed evaluation: Purpose To gain a clear idea of the opportunity through research To validate your assumptions about the opportunity To shape the opportunity to be more profitable To uncover potential pitfalls To decide whether the opportunity is worth the risk? Will you implement? Prepared by Susan Jones Assumptions What assumptions have you made in building your business case Assess the consequences of incorrect assumptions How severe would the impact be How will you overcome these Make sure you declare the assumptions How can you test your assumptions – VALIDATION! Prepared by Susan Jones Marketing & Opportunity Evaluation A good entrepreneur starts with the market Market research is the cornerstone of opp eval & biz development Lean startup relies on feedback from customers 15 Prepared by Susan Jones Types of research Secondary – Published (secondhand) sources Primary – First hand information 16 Prepared by Susan Jones Talking to people- primary research Industry associations, local chambers of commerce, government departments people working in the industry, business owners who have similar businesses Potential customers – chat, survey 17 Prepared by Susan Jones Secondary research Online – – – – Australian Bureau of Statistics: www.abs.gov.au Factiva IBISworld Online forums related to your industry Industry associations online databases with

10 Tips on How to Make an Author Website (+ Bonus Checklist)

10 Tips on How to Make an Author Website (+ Bonus Checklist) 10 Tips on How to Make an Author Website (+ Bonus Checklist) In today’s competitive book market, making an author website that helps you sell more books and build your profile requires more than just a Blogspot page and a domain with your name in it. In this article, we’ve worked with experienced Reedsy web designers to whittle down ten top tips that will help you build the perfect author website.The first five tips are things that your site needs: pieces of advice that you cannot afford to ignore.Once you take those on board, we have five more tips that will make your site stand out from the crowd, helping you achieve your goals which are, if you’ve already forgotten, to sell more books and build your profile. And to finish up, we have a free checklist that you can download to make sure that your own website is up to scratch.Ready?How to Make an Author  Website 101: Five Essential Tips1. Make it easy for visitors to buy your bookâ€Å"I see so many author websites forget one of the most crucial elements: purchase links to major retailers,† says Jeremiah Tolbert, a designer who creates sites for bestselling authors like Michael Connolly. â€Å"Ostensibly, one of the driving goals behind an author website is to help sell your books, so not presenting purchase links to the major retailers in a structured, well-ordered way is costing you sales.†Liam Fitzgerald agrees. He’s a professional designer whose portfolio includes sites for Anthony Horowitz, Eoin Colfer, and Darren Shan.   He adds the caveat that you need not link to every retailer under the sun.â€Å"You should have a maximum of three retailers and allow the reader to choose the format at point of purchase. If you provide too many options, this could easily result in buyer paralysis and non-sale.†One clever hack to consider is the Universal Link from Books2Read. It’s a great (and, importantly, free) tool that directs readers to your book’s page on their preferred retailer with just a single link.2. T ell people who you are and where to find you Recommended resources:11 Author Websites That Get it Right: a post analyzing 11  famous author websites to offer some invaluable takeaways.Author Website Design Inspiration: more advice on author websites, looking at how they can turn your readers into lifetime fans.What are your favorite author websites out there? What other tips would you add to this list? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!