How to Find Wholesale Sources

In my last article "How to Open a Business," I wanted you to answer questions that needed to be answered before opening your business. Everyone at one time or another has said to them "I want my own business." But is it enough just to want your own business? 

Your answers to the questions should give you an idea if you are the type of person that can handle the stress of owning your own business.

Since you have decided to open your own business, "NOW WHAT?"

Let's say that you decide to open a dollar store – where everything is a dollar. You have found what you believe is the perfect location. You have talked with the landlord and are working out a lease. You have gone to your county and bought a business license. And you have applied for a tax id in your state. 

Now the next big question is "where do I buy my items wholesale?"

This morning I googled the term "wholesale" and there were 231,000,000 sites listed. Look at that number again - 231 million sites listed for "wholesale." How does one begin to search through that many sites to find what they want to sell? And how do you know that the companies that are listed are reputable.

I have owned several businesses – some successful and some not so successful. And one of the biggest problems that I faced was finding good wholesale sources at a good price. I now sell on eBay and finding wholesale sources that were cheap enough to make a profit and compete with others selling the same things was difficult. 

Most business owners know that to make a profit, you have to find items at great wholesale prices. I have always been told "you make your money when you buy the items, not when you sell them."

Some of the so-called "wholesale sources" prices that I have found were more than I could have bought the same item for on eBay - including shipping. If you have ever tried to find wholesale sources, it can be a daunting task. So where to begin is the biggest question.

One of the ways that you can check and see if a company is reputable is by checking a website called alexa.com. This site lets customers review other sites. Some of the sites may not have any reviews about them, but some of them may. And just because someone else didn't like the company does not mean that it is a bad company.

You can also check the page rank at Google; however, if a site is relatively new, it will probably have a 0 page rank. This rank is a rating that tells how important Google thinks that a website is. However, many of the most visited websites on the web only rank a 0 or 1 or 2.

Finding wholesale sources is easy. Finding "good" wholesale sources takes a lot of work and patience. 

Another question to research is the shipping costs. I found one wholesale source that had very good prices, but the shipping costs were too high. I think that this company was trying to make their profit on the shipping. Most of the reputable companies will cap the shipping costs with a minimum purchase. Many of the ones I have dealt with cap the shipping costs at 10% with a $1000 minimum order. However, with gas prices rising and shipping rates rising, companies may have to raise the minimum requirements in order to cap the shipping costs.

Educate yourself about what items are available. Many of the name brand companies will not sell to small business. They already have their distribution channels set up and if you want to sell these brands, you may have to find a middleman that will sell them to you. You may have to pay a little more for the items, but if it is important to you to have name brands, it just might be worth it.

Another way to find good wholesale sources is to go to the merchandise shows. These shows have thousands of wholesalers at one place and you can browse all the booths until you find what you are interested in. Some of the biggest wholesale merchandise shows are located in the larger cities such as: New York, Las Vegas, Chicago, and Atlanta.

Traveling to these wholesale merchandise shows is time consuming and can be expensive. However, usually the wholesale shows have special rates arranged with hotels.

Well, that is all for now. Visit website: www.wholesalemap.com for more information about finding "good" wholesale sources. It is free. Also, I have just begun a blog and if you have any ideas or wholesale sites that I need to review, let me know. 

Avoid These Resume Mistakes!

It is a mistake to think of your resume as a history of your past, as a personal statement or as some sort of self expression. Sure, most of the content of any resume is focused on your job history. But write from the intention to create interest, to persuade the employer to call you. If you write with that goal, your final product will be very different than if you write to inform or catalog your job history.

Most people write a resume because everyone knows that you have to have one to get a job. They write their resume grudgingly, to fulfill this obligation. Writing the resume is only slightly above filling out income tax forms in the hierarchy of worldly delights. If you realize that a great resume can be your ticket to getting exactly the job you want, you may be able to muster some genuine enthusiasm for creating a real masterpiece, rather than the feeble products most people turn out.

The good news is that, with a little extra effort, you can create a resume that makes you really stand out as a superior candidate for a job you are seeking. Not one resume in a hundred follows the principles that stir the interest of prospective employers. So, even if you face fierce competition, with a well written resume you should be invited to interview more often than many people more qualified than you.

Set aside at least three hours (that's an average length of time to complete a resume if all goes smoothly). Before you start, print out the following set of notes and tape it to your computer, on the wall next to your desk, or someplace where you'll see it throughout the process.

Resume Tips:
Your resume is about your future; NOT your past.

It is not a confessional. In other words, you don't have to tell all. Stick to what's relevant and marketable.

Don't write a list of job descriptions. Write achievements!

Promote only skills you enjoy using. Never write about things you don't want to repeat.

Be honest. You can be creative, but don't lie. 

Should You Hire a Professional Organizer or Do It Yourself?

A lot of people ask me if it's really worth hiring a professional organizer or if you're better off doing it yourself.

Both are valuable options, but either way you should understand the specific steps and strategies to having a more organized home, making little changes gradually to simplify life at home.

Well at first glance having someone do things for you can certainly seem better than doing it yourself. But there are some big IF's that need to be considered.

Remember, you are typically going to pay by the hour (the going rate for a professional organizer can range anywhere from $35 to $250 an hour. So you have to be selective in which small part of the process they'll help you with.

Just a few weeks ago I got an email from a customer of mine who recently hired a professional organizer and paid her for a full day.

And all she did was hang pictures for 8 hours!

Which brings me to another point ... how do you know, once the service is complete, you are going to be satisfied or if you are even going to be able to maintain organization beyond a week, a month or a year from now?

Now here's the thing. 

If you really, really want to make changes to the way you live in your home, you need to start living your life a little differently.

You should be able to manage your "stuff" and understand what it really takes to start enjoying the benefits of home organization.

Learn what it takes to get organized from the inside-out and discover the basic and simple rules of home organization so you can enjoy more time, more space and a better, happier life at home.

Then, even if later down the road you decide to hire someone to help you, you will be more knowledgeable, you will understand the process more and -- combined with a few changes -- you will be living in an organized home before you know it.

Innovative Advertising Places for New Economy

Advertising is becoming more and more innovating in today’s knowledge driven new Business world. Advertising companies finding new locations, new innovative Ideas to sell their customers products and Services through Advertising. Here we will discuss some more Places to Advertising your products and services.

Online Internet Advertising Market Places

1. Internet is the best market place to advertise your products in more than 200 countries targeted buyers or customer’s worldwide community.

2. Make your website for mobile users so that mobile users can access your products catalog on mobile or other PDA devices.

3. Translate your website into various International Languages so that your products and services can be reach world's local

places.

4. Submit your website into various Businesses to business (b2b) trade directories so that your customers can buy your products

through b2b exchange.

5. Make a blog or forums for your customer’s feedback.

6. Submit your website in various search engines to improve your back links so that your web rank or page rank will increase and

your website can be come into first ranking in various search engines and your customers, buyers list will increase.

Offline Advertising Market Places

Offline advertising is becoming more competitive in today’s new knowledge economy. Companies doing advertising in TV channels, in newspapers, Hoardings and many many new other advertising marketplaces. Here we will discuss about Apparel advertisings

opportunity.

Advertising companies having huge opportunity in T-shirt, Shirts, and many other types of Apparel. These Apparels are good marketplace to advertise your products and services in more than 200 countries worldwide.

How T-shirts can do advertising?

Apparel companies always finding new designs for apparel Manufacturing Business. Advertising companies can provide huge Royalty free Designs to these Apparel companies so that fashion designers can choose these designs to manufacture their T-shirts apparels.

T-shirts are always popular in all types of peoples in more than 200 countries so that companies provide good designs with their small logo then various companies can choose these designs from various countries and companies will get benefits to do advertising in various locations.

Advertisings Companies needs to offer Royalty free attractive designs only, because various companies already distributing T-shirts and many types of apparels as a advertising promotions.

What Is Your Definition Of Success?

"Success isn't a result of spontaneous combustion. You must set yourself on fire."
~Arnold H. Glasow

this really is a great quote. Not only is it interesting but also inspiring.

One of the truths that I find most frustrating as a teacher and a coach is that many people believe that success, in whatever field of endeavor they are currently striving, is rather like winning the lottery. In fact, it certainly seems from the evidence that they in fact believe that success is even more random because they aren't even buying a ticket. They are simply passively waiting.

If you listen to people talk you won't hear many people voicing this opinion of success but look around you and watch what people are actually doing--or rather not doing--and you will quickly see what I mean.

Many people want things--they want to be rich, they want to be at the top of their profession, they want a successful marriage, they want to raise great kids, they want to be respected in their community, and so on. But what do they do to achieve this success? Are they working both hard and smart toward their financial and living frugally while they do so? Are they constantly learning and striving at their job? Are they showing their spouse love, consideration, understanding, and generosity? Are they spending time with their children both modeling how to be a good person and being generous with their love and understanding? Are they regularly proving themselves an asset within their community by being a good neighbor in every sense of the word?

We all know that we must accomplish these tasks as I set them out to achieve success in these areas. Probably I missed something as well. I am hardly a model of success in every area. I would in fact describe myself as fair to middling. I am certainly not rich but the bills get paid and our basics and then some are covered without too much stress. My boss peers, and subordinates think I am doing a pretty good job as well as those that I serve professionally. While my marriage is in fairly good shape I know I could certainly put more into it. I think I have a great kid but know well my failings as a mother. I contribute to my community but nowhere near the level that I could or should.

How do you define success?

Is it money, career, love, marriage, family, friendship, respect, community?

For me, success is primarily about love. How many lives do I touch with mine? How many hearts? Who has been changed by my existence in a positive way? I hope that people judge me as a good person and that if I died tomorrow that there would be great mourning.

If we really want this success then we will set ourselves on fire. We won't wait for spontaneous combustion.