Sempal-Bel Business Blog

Archive for the ‘Investing’ Category

The look of your business-and a great design concept-can make a powerful impact on customers and help generate revenue. That’s the word from Susie Mendíve, a graphic designer who has spent years helping brands-from nonprofit organizations to large beauty companies- create their own unique image.

Mendíve believes it is important to create an image that is consistent throughout-from Web site to letterhead to the storefront window. The image should clearly communicate what it is your company does.

Here are her five tips to step up your business style:

• Observe, observe, observe. Consider your favorite clothing designers, boutique hotels you love and your must-have magazines. Each of these can provide clues to how they created their business style through hangtags, labels, menus, drink napkins, font choices, color schemes and Web sites.

• Get organized. Every small business has a similar list of tools, including a logo or specialized version of their company name, letterhead, stationery, business cards and a Web site that shows current and potential customers that it is in business. Take time to think about your customers and what they need from you and your business.

• Go digital and save money. Forrester Research recently found that 42 percent of small businesses are marketing or advertising their business online. A Web site and e-mail address are musts.

• Find the right partners. It can save time and money to have an outside expert help with the process. For example, a company such as Network Solutions can help you create a Web site, design a logo and even drive traffic to your business. You can even design your Web site yourself with their Do-It-Myself easy-to-use Web templates, or have one of their Web designers create a site for you.

• Style equals advertising. Make sure your style is consistent across all elements of your business. This conveys a sense of attention to detail and helps build consumer confidence. It’s also important to use that style wherever you can-a branded envelope may be seen by more than just the recipient of your invoice.

Many private investors do not have a large amount of capital at their disposal to invest in stocks. Some take the route of Penny Stocks to generate high returns but some people find these too risky. Indeed, Penny Stocks ARE risky – if you do not know how to carry out research.

There are many other ways to invest. I’m going to tell you about one investment opportunity that gives high returns with little research. Anyone can do it. I am talking about Offshore Investments, also known as High Yield Investment Programs (HYIP).

Firstly, there are two types of High Yield Investment Programs. These are “Autosurfs” and Private HYIPs. Both are accessible to the general public and give high returns – usually with a minimum deposit as low as $5. The returns that I’m talking about are in the region of 30% every month, for no work at all. The only difference is the risk factors involved.

An Autosurf is a program that pays you for surfing the internet. The return you will receive depends on the amount you invest. Generally, Autosurfs are regarded as a higher risk than HYIPs. This is because Autosurfs, generally, do not have a viable means of alternative income.

Private HYIPs are a far safer option for small investors. Not many people know about them and they tend to last longer than Autosurfs. Many of them have exceeded 3 years, thereby giving you more than 10 times your intial investment. Their income usually comes from using investor’s cash to trade stock markets.

Finding private HYIPs is not as hard as it used to be. A simple search will reveal some good investments. Reading people’s comments and opinions on them will help you form your own opinion and tell you if you should invest or not. Choose wisely.

For small investors, private HYIPs are like a dream come true. We can now create passive income with as little as $100.

Getting started in the business of investing is much easier than it used to be. So is improving your returns if you already invest. No longer is the field restricted to the wealthy or large financial institutions. More and more these days every day people like mums, dads, students and even children are trying their hand at what used to be the exclusive playground of the rich.

However before delving into what is a very exciting and potentially financially rewarding world you should assess what type of investor you actually want to be. In the thirty years that I have been investing I have seen people who haven’t answered this question come and go and lately I’ve seen it happen with alarming frequency.

Think about it for a second…. have you really thought about what you need to do to start creating wealth for you and your family. If not you need to seriously consider what type of investment style would be best for your position.

Types of investors

The buy and holders of the community put their money into shares that they feel are good value and hold them for expanses of anywhere between 1 and 50 years. This investment style is most suited to people who are long term orientated by nature, not looking for a quick profit and have an eye for good companies. The most famous proponent of such an approach is the world’s second richest man, Warren Buffet, so you could say that it isn’t such a bad style.

Day trading is the complete opposite of the buy and hold approach and involves individuals who buy and sell shares in a very short period generally within the same day. If you have a lot of time and are prepared to watch market movements very closely then this approach may be for you.

The next thing you need to look at is what sort of analysis you want to conduct on the shares that you are considering. Generally there are two schools of thought, one being fundamental and the other technical. You will always find people pushing one or the other but it makes more sense to incorporate a blend both.

Fundamentalists tend to look at company profits, management direction, future plans/growth prospects, the economy as a whole and such like company and economic factors.

While those with a mathematical or scientific background might look at share price charts employing various technical analysis techniques, ratios, indicators and trends in order to identify which shares they want to look at further.

You should realise that relying wholly on one or the other is not the wisest thing to do. For example a chart that has all the indications that a share is going to be a good choice for the future is useless if the company is going to file for bankruptcy. As I mentioned earlier a blend of the two should be considered.

When you are deciding what type of investor you want to be, one of the most important considerations is your risk threshold. In other words how much you are willing to loose. This again will have an impact on the investment style that you choose and will also have a relationship to the level of returns that you may be seeking.

Investors come in many forms and there is no right or wrong way. Different things work for different people. It is vital that you decide which method best suits you and that you stick to this method.