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October 29, 2008 Issue of Your Money eZine
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w w w. y o u r m o n e y e z i n e . c o m
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Letters to the editor/credits section
Blackberry or Crackberry?
Low Marketing Budget?
Managing your human resource at low cost!
An Entrepreneur’s Life - The Born Entrepreneur
Your Money online
3 YOUR MONEY
PublishereZines Limited
Managing DirectorTyrone Wilson
Your Money ReportersAndre BlackLatoya Hutchinson
ColumnistCherryl Hanson Simpson
Design and LayoutOmar Phinn
Your Money is a Product of eZines Limited, and is distributed weekly via e-mail.To subscribe FREE log on to www.yourmoneyezine.com today or email: [email protected]
Credits
Good job on the first issue of Your Money eZine. I realize that this eZine has less news and more features which is good. The website looks good as well.David Fong, Florida
Hello, Thank you - This is very informative. How often will you be publishing ? All the best to youDr. Jacqueline Campbell, Jamaica
Your Money eZine Ja’s 1st business and financial eZine is a must read. The articles are informative, creative and intriguing. I definately enjoyed Cherryl’s article on how to become a good entrepreneur...Odene Jackson, Jamaica
Continue to send your feedback and concerns to [email protected]
Letters To The Editor
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4 YOUR MONEY w w w. y o u r m o n e y e z i n e . c o m
Blackberry or Crackberry? Users evaluate use of the smart phone
Whether it’s for web browsing, receiving emails, playing games or just showing off with friends, the Research In Motion (RIM)-produced BlackBerry smart phone is definitely a winner in the Jamaican mobile technology industry.
“Where smart phones are concerned, the BlackBerry brand has a good portion of the market locked,” says Kimberly Martin, Marketing Manager of Fone Frenzy, an authorized B-Mobile phone dealer.
Public Relations and Marketing expert, Kamal Bankay agrees with this conclusion. An owner of a BlackBerry Curve for a year now, Bankay believes its unique features make this phone a leader above others.
“The high email usability feature is an asset in my field of work. Basically I’m always reachable. For instance, I’m out of the office but there are designs that need my confirmation; someone can just send it as an email attachment, I’m able to view it, make a quick judgement and send it back,” he explains.
The other features of the BlackBerry Curve Series include email and instant messenger, camera, video recording, multimedia player, browser, Wi-Fi support and GPS capabilities.
CrackBerry Addiction?It is these alluring features that have the fingers of BlackBerry users almost glued to their phone keyboards.
“I’m constantly on my phone and my battery literally dies everyday. I conduct between 50-100 calls daily and I have over 2000 phone contacts,” says Bankay.
As for the messenger feature, which is Bankay’s favorite, he admits to at least 30 messenger conversations per day on his phone and has 200 messenger contacts.
“I’d say 80% of the people in my group own a BlackBerry. If you’re in business and don’t have one, you can be considered as backward,” he adds.
Although very popular with the business class, Kimberly Martin says there is evidence of a strong market for the BlackBerry in
almost every class of society.
“Everyone wants a Blackberry, whether it’s the Curve, Pearl or the Bold. And if they have one model, they are looking out for and desiring any upcoming model,’ she says.
Next in the line of models is the BlackBerry Series 9500, also known as the BlackBerry Storm. It comes with touch screen technology, improved multimedia features and access to social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace.
Potential CompetitionAre there any other phones that can compare to the Blackberry smart phone?
Managing Director of Gordon and Company Surveys Limited, Andre Gordon says that would be like comparing ‘chalk to cheese.’ Gordon, a commissioned land surveyor by profession has tried several smart phones and has found them all lacking. However, Kamal Bankay is looking forward to the introduction of the iPhone 3G by mobile provider Claro. “That one’s going to be hard to beat. The data feed it will be carrying, makes it similar to a walking laptop.”
BlackBerry handsets are sold within the price range of $38,000 to $55, 000. Post paid service packages are also offered along with these phones and their prices vary across networks.
by Latoya Hutchinson
Kamal Bankay on his BlackBerry Smart Phone
5 YOUR MONEY w w w. y o u r m o n e y e z i n e . c o m
Low Marketing Budget? Maximize your visibility on a low budget
Massive billboards, colorful full-page ads, catchy jingles and elaborate TV commercials are the preferred marketing tools of many big companies. Armed with ample monetary resources they can afford such expenses, but what about those with meager budgets, or those who wish to cut their marketing budget?
With new competition emerging everyday, how effective one is at marketing will determine whether your business thrives or sinks. However, this essential process can be expensive and those enterprises with less to spend are sometimes left struggling.
Your Money has come up with a few of inexpensive marketing tools that can be used to effectively compete in the marketplace:
E-mail MarketingE-mail is good way to maintain and improve customer relationships and increase sales. The major plus is that it is low-cost too. Email campaigns can be carried out much quicker than other marketing campaigns; during the period of a few days, thousands of emails can be sent to potential clients.
You can send mail as often as twice monthly, this ensures that customers are constantly aware of your product or service. Remember, only send to those persons who have agreed to receive mail from you and keep the content extremely relevant. Now, sit back and watch the response rates soar.
Establish a Public Relations campaignPublic relations can be very inexpensive if you wish. With this method, draft a compelling message, compile a list of effective media personnel and then send your message out there. It is a form of do-it-yourself job and is much cheaper than regular advertising. This method requires a lot of patience, but it is effective. It always pays to be in good relation with key members of the press.
Facebook, You Tube and other social networksWith 30 million members worldwide and over forty thousand (40,000) Jamaicans and a continuous growing member base, Facebook is the 5th most visited site in the world, according to alexa.com. This includes approximately forty thousand people from Jamaica. This fact makes Facebook a viable means of
exposing your brand, product or website.
YouTube is a video sharing website where users can upload, view and share video clips. YouTube was created in February 2005 by three former PayPal employees. It is now the 3rd most visited website in the world behind Google 2nd, and Yahoo 1st according alexa.com.
Visit www.yourmoneyezine.com for other social websites that can be used to market your organization.
Motion GraphicsMotion graphics are graphics that use video and/or animation technology to create the illusion of motion or a transforming appearance.
Nowadays, nothing attracts an audience like motion graphics. Just recall those Red Bull commercials.
Yes, motion graphics are very much like TV advertisements, they make a positive impact on memory even after the commercial has ended. Their advantage is that they are far cheaper and are easier to produce than advertisements that require a set, video camera(s), director and actors.
With the reduced cost of producing motion graphics on a computer, the discipline has seen more widespread use. With the availability of desktop programs such as Adobe After Effects, Discreet Combustion, and Apple Motion, motion graphics have become increasingly accessible.
Marketing PartnershipsForge links with other companies that target the same audience. By doing this, you not only share in the overall marketing costs but you may add significantly to your own client list from the other company’s. For instance, a maker of organic hair products could partner with a hair salon operator and market both service and product to twice as much people than one would normally do.
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Managing Your Human Resource At Low Cost!
Managing human resource is crucial to any business. It entails the methods a company chooses to use when treating its #1 resource: it’s employees. Because of their limited cashflow, owners of small businesses most times cannot afford to hire someone to take charge of these activities.
In a recent interview with Your Money, HR consultant Janet Dalrymple gave some basic guidelines small business owners can follow to efficiently manage their human resource:
1. Create PoliciesSimply put, a policy refers to a deliberate plan of action to guide decisions and achieve rational outcomes. Policy-making is not expensive and only requires putting to paper the rules of your company. Hence HR policies may include factors such as hiring, behaviour, work results and firing.
“Where hiring is concerned, whoever is running the business must ensure there are set arrangements regarding the nature of employment, probation period, payment and positions,” says Dalrymple.
All these issues should be properly communicated to the potential employee, negotiated and agreed upon.
Through behavioral policies companies advise their workers on what they expect of them. “Now, this is a must or else people will just do what they feel like and that spells chaos. Whether small, medium or big, no company does well with confusion,” says Dalrymple.
Firing someone today is not the same as firing them 20 years ago. “Persons are more exposed now and are fully aware of their rights. Putting into place a policy regarding firing in your business is essential. Let it be known the consequences under which employees can be dismissed. So if an occasion arises that warrants such action according to your policy, there are no misgivings and you are not liable to be sued,” she explained.
2. Know your staffDo not be a business owner that watches company happenings from the sidelines. Get involved, know your staff and know your company.
“Knowing your company means you know if staffing is sufficient, the potential of your workers and what promotions can be given,” Dalrymple says.
This is not an overly time-consuming process and costs you nothing.
3. Treat your staff with respect and the results will followIt does not matter what business you are running, it pays to make your staff happy. Now, that does not mean allowing yourself to be used like a doormat.
Decide on day-offs and compassionate leaves; create and maintain good working conditions and offer incentives where possible.
“Once your workers are benefiting, so will your company. Adequate motivation leads to the attainment of goals,” explains the HR consultant.
4. Educate YourselfNot being able to take on a qualified Human Resource Manager does not mean you should allow your business to be deficient in that department.
Get yourself acquainted as much as possible with HR principles or you could send an existing employee to HR seminars.
In addition, Dalrymple advises that all business operators, especially those of small and upcoming enterprises, get themselves familiarized with the laws governing labour in their countries.
Ms. Janet Dalrymple has worked in the area of Customer & Supervisory Services for Cable & Wireless Jamaica Limited for over 15 years. She holds a degree in Human Resource Management and has been an HR Management consultant for the past seven years.
by Latoya Hutchinson
HR Consultant Janet Dalrymple
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“The entrepreneur is our visionary, the creator in each of us. We’re born with that quality and it defines our lives as we respond to what we see, hear, feel, and experience.”-Michael Gerber
Are entrepreneurs born or bred? Are they gifted with fearless minds which permit them to take on certain financial risks to seek uncertain financial rewards? Or do their hearts beat with a fervent passion for creating something of their own? Could there possibly even be a special gene that differentiates them from the passive nine-to-fiver?
In his book, Instinct: Tapping Your Entrepreneurial DNA to Achieve Your Business Goals, former cell biologist Thomas Harrison argues that genetics plays a large part in business success. Through scientific studies he demonstrates that entrepreneurial traits are hereditary, but he also shows that you can develop a successful business mentality by using specific techniques.
There are many cases where the entrepreneurial spirit seems to be genetically linked. From mega-rich moguls like Donald Trump and Butch Stewart, to neighbourhood Chinese grocery store owners, we see where business success can be transferred through the generations. But is it really genetics at work, or are they just very skilled at teaching their children the attitudes and behaviours necessary to become great entrepreneurs?
The case for entrepreneurial DNA may be strengthened when we observe self-made business success stories such as Oprah Winfrey. How did a black female, born in rural Mississippi poverty, overcome childhood traumas and setbacks to become the first black woman billionaire and according to CNN, “arguably the world’s most powerful woman?” Could it be that Oprah was born with a genetic predisposition for making money?
I’m not exactly sure how I got my entrepreneurial spirit. My mother and father worked all their lives in the government service and never had the desire to earn money any other way, so I definitely wasn’t influenced by them. In fact, as many well-thinking parents do, they encouraged me to study and work hard to get a good job. Not exactly the best recipe for nurturing an entrepreneur!
I have no inspiring stories of using my business skills to wheel and deal through my early years of school. The dormant entrepreneur in
me first revealed itself while I was at university, when my natural ability to make things that people wanted led me into business by default. Leather jewelry designs created for my personal use became a hit with my friends, and instinctively I began sourcing raw material and working all night to fashion pieces for my new-found customer base.
The thrill of getting paid for something I created has stayed with me throughout the years. Although I juggled between self-employment and a standard pay cheque for over 15 years, the desire to be my own boss was always predominant. I’ve used those years to learn more about what it takes to become successful in business. Some lessons have been gained the hard way- from trial and error and hits and misses. Valuable insights have also come from observing other people’s business achievements and failures.
What I have discovered is that whether you have genes that give you an entrepreneurial head start, or you have studied all the book knowledge about business success, there are some non-negotiable attributes that you must have in order to play and win at this game. Determination, enthusiasm, perseverance, courage, vision, and a never-say-die attitude are essential to help you overcome the obstacles and keep going to the finish line.
So, are you a born entrepreneur? Take the personality test at Forbes.com: http://www.forbes.com/entrepreneurs/entremgmt/2005/11/15/entrepreneur-personality-quiz_cx_bn_1116quiz.html and find out!
For the record- my test revealed “What are you waiting for? Start raising capital!” © 2008 Cherryl Hanson SimpsonCherryl is a financial columnist, consultant and coach. See more of her work at www.financiallyfreenetwork.com and www.financiallysmartonline.com. Send questions and comments to [email protected]. Please add this address to your email address book in order to ensure you receive a response.
The Born Entrepreneur
Cherryl Hanson Simpson
w w w. y o u r m o n e y e z i n e . c o m8 YOUR MONEY Online
--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The recent collapse of several major financial institutions has left the world’s financial markets reeling, with no one knowing when the dust will settle. Many small and mid-sized brokerage houses are rapidly deteriorating or even closing due to distressed conditions. Regulatory pressure, revenue volatility, and consolidation by large clearing firms have forced many broker-dealers to seek alternatives. What does this mean to the individual investor?
“In the wake of these dark days on Wall Street, more and more financial professionals and investors are turning toward an independent brokerage model,” says Mark “Goldie” Goldwasser, CEO of National Securities, the third-fastest growing independent broker-dealer in the United States. Founded sixty years ago, National Securities manages some five hundred registered reps in sixty offices across twenty-four states and provides CNBC’s daily “Fair Value Report.”
After a very strong third quarter, Capital and Credit Financial Group Limited (CCFG) has posted solid financial results for the nine-month ended September 30, 2008, with the Group reporting Net Profit After Tax of $341.39 million, a 17 per cent increase over the corresponding period in 2007.
CCFG has cited the Group’s growth in Net Interest Income as a major catalyst for the improvement in its fortunes. Net Interest Income has grown by 75.79 per cent over the period under review to $997.47 million, up from $567.41 million at the end of the comparative period last year. In the third quarter alone, Net Interest Income grew by 66.33 per cent to $339.01 million, contributing 79.07 per cent of Total Revenue when compared to $203.81 million or 72.01 per cent earned in 2007.
‘Out of the Bank’ Thinking Pays Off for Excellent-Credit Consumers
Capital & Credit posts 17 per cent profit increase amidst global financial crisis
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