Posts Tagged ‘Nigeria’

10 Tips For Better Business Opportunity Selection

Monday, March 22nd, 2010

This post, 10 Tips For Better Business Opportunity Selection was inspired by a comment made by a fellow Nigerian entrepreneur. The present economic climate in Nigeria is causing a lot of small business owners to loose sleep. Business opportunities are now viewed with skepticism due to several woeful tales of business failures. Unpredictable sudden changes in government policies has not helped matters.  Too many entrepreneurs, are now finding it much more difficult to make a choice among different business opportunities available in the present economy.

It is an established fact that the success of a small business often depend on the ability of the business owner, i.e. the entrepreneur, to make the right decision especially, when such decision is considered critical to the survival or growth of the business. One of such senarios is choosing a business opportunity among several available options. Even if the entrpreneur has a team of staff he brainstorms with, as the CEO, the responsibility to make a critical choice among available business opportunities will eventually rest on him.

In as much as you may wish to shift such responsibility to one of your employee, common sense dictates that it is better to take such business decision than delegate it to another, knowing fully well that you are accountable for the success or failure of your business.

Despite the harsh economic reality we are currently facing in Nigeria, as an entrepreneur, you can reduce to the barest minimum the risk of making mistake when choosing between business opportunities by following some old and tried principles. I’ll share with you 10 Tips For Better Business Opportunity Selection:

1. Never reject a business opportunity because you see a flaw in it. That it has a flaw doesn’t mean it can ‘t succeed. Ask how the flaw can be corrected.

2. Never reject a business opportunity because you won’t get the credit. It is the impact of the success on your overall business that really matter, not who gets the credit for proposing the idea.

3. Never reject a business opportunity because it looks impossible. Go ask the Wright brothers, nobody thought it was possible to fly 😉

4. Never reject a business opportunity because your mind is already made up on other possibilities. It won’t hurt if you have an open mind and consider all options on their individual merit before settling for one.

5. Never reject a business opportunity because you think it is illegal. Get expert legal opinion before trashing the idea.

6. Never reject a business opportunity because you don’t have the money, manpower, muscle or resources  required. Whatever happened to partnership, joint ventures etc. You must not insist on getting 100% returns and eating it all alone. Also, 10 return from a $1,000,000 joint venture deal is better than 100% return from a $1,000 deal you did all alone. Look at the big picture before making your choice.

7. Never reject a business opportunity because it will create conflict. If you’re not ready for conflict, then you’re not ready for success.

8. Never reject a business opportunity because it is not your way of doing things. You can learn to do better than you’re already doing. Be an avid learner.

9. Never reject a business opportunity because it might fail. Life is all about taking risk. It is actually risky not to take risk.

10. Never reject a business opportunity because of your personal emotions. Human feelings are quite unstable. It doesn’t take much for emotions to change. So, never bring your emotions into business decisions.

If you follow those ten don’ts whenever you are making your selection, you would have gone a step closer to making good business choice. Wishing you all the best. Cheers.

2009 Is Not Over Yet!

Tuesday, December 1st, 2009

2009 Business Year Is Not Over Yet!

The year 2009 is not over yet, even though it is natural to feel like given up the dreams you have for your business at the beginning of this year, I want to encourage you to stay in there and do the best you can. Your success as a business person is not determine by the fatness of your bank balances nor your turnover figure, rather is is the  inner satisfaction that you have put in your best as an entrepreneur to achieve the goals you set out to achieve during this year. Since there are still 30days more to go, don’t ever think of giving up. What you were not able to achieve in the past months can still be achieve in these remaining days if only you can belief and persist. Even if that is not feasible, you can at least improve on your present position. 😉

Coping With Adverse Economic Realities in Nigeria

For Nigerian businessmen, especially the small scale entrepreneurs, the year 2009 has been a tough one. There has been several challenges threatening to wipe out businesses. It all started with the global economic crisis which was carried over from last year. Unlike in other developing nations where entrepreneurs were being informed on the effect and likely impact the economic recession will have on their local businesses, Nigerian entrepreneurs were lied to!
Our so called financial experts predicted that the global economic crisis will have zero impact on local businesses. Of course I knew as at then that they were being economical with the truth. How can Nigeria which operates a consumer based economy be dreaming of staying stable while those countries she buys products from are badly affected?
Well, the truth is out now. Nigeria did not only suffer from the global economic crisis, she also was badly affected by home grown economic crisis. The financial institutions in the country gave everyone a bad jolt when it was discovered that their management have been playing with depositors and investors fund. Too bad.

Well all that is stale news now. The important thing is what you do with the situation at hand. While going over my goals for the year at first I was depressed to note that the overall performance has been really poor due to adverse operating environment. But then on a second thought, I realized that I’ve learnt a lot of lessons which I won’t have had the opportunity to learn if things have worked the way I wanted. What I really need to do is to find a way of making those lessons pay dividend as the nations economy recovers!

So while the year 2009 may be reflecting in your statements of accounts as a year of poor turnover, I want you to realize that the hard lessons learnt will eventually pay huge dividend in time to come. Instead of  complaining and getting depressed, look out for opportunities to make some additions to the income you’ve already generated so far.  That is the entrepreneurship spirit. Tell yourself, 2009 is not over yet!

5 Tips For Business Growth

Wednesday, November 4th, 2009

How Can I Achieve Steady Business Growth?

Sustaining business growth in a down economy is not a simple feat to achieve. But believe it or not, that is exactly what some businessmen in Nigeria are doing. While some Nigerian businessmen are busy lamenting the poor manner the government is handling the current economic crisis (they do have a valid point though), some wise entrepreneurs are making steady business progress and getting fantastic returns on their various investment in the different sector sof the economy.

Truly, one man’s misfortune can be another’s fortune. If you doubt ask the undertaker, the more people die as a result of epidemic or natural disaster, the more his business booms. So, it is actually possible to be celebrating while others are lamenting, it simply depends on where you position yourself.

Every entrepreneur desire that his or her business should grow. Nobody wants to have the same turnover at the end of each financial year. However, just like most things in life, it is not about wishing for result, it is about taking the right steps to achieve the desired result. So how can an entrepreneur sustain business growth during an economic crisis? I’ll share with you five proven tips for steady business growth.

5 Proven Tips For Business Growth

1. Keep Your Current Customers Happy – A bird in hand is worth more than 1million that you are dreaming of getting with your marketing gimmicks. Keep your current customers. Do everything feasible to keep them happy and loyal to you. Don’t neglect complains or ignore their suggestion. If you’ve not been doing that, it is time to overhaul your customer care service such that it truly portray that you believe that the customer is king.

Get creative and devise ways to make it seem difficult and uneconomical for your customers to switch to  your competitors. Add value to your products and services at no extra cost to your customers. Some of those addons can actually be done without you eating into your profit. It just require a little brainstorming with your team to bring out ideas you never thought possible.

Give personalized services to each customer making him or her feel that he or she is the most important client you’ve got. Everyone appreciate being treated as a VIP. Give your customers that special touch of royalty. It won’t cost a dime to insist that your staff should treat each customer like a king. Just remind your team that it is the customer that pays the bills.

2. Increase Your Market Share –  There is an adage that the best form of defense is attack. Go after the customers of your competitors. Woo them with better offers and customized packages. Give them sufficient reason to consider ditching your rival and pitching their tent with you.

It is business war out there, so map out strategies on how you will gain more market share at the expense of your competitors. Go brainstorming with your team on how to provide higher quality product/service at the same price or lower than your competitors.

Don’t say it can’t be done. Keep working at it and soon, you and your team will figure a way out. Then you can go full swing into raiding your competitors of their loyal customers. Be tactical though, especially when dealing with competitors that have financial muscle.  If they get wind of your strategy, they may launch a counter-attack that you are not prepared for.

3. Be Proactive, Keep Current on Market Events –  Knowledge is power. It is your business to know what is happening and what is likely to happen soon in the market you belong. You need to keep tap on developments in the market that can affect your position.

Your ability to spot opportunities before competitors will give you an added advantage. Don’t wait until the news is spread on the print or electronic media before taking action. Successful businessmen sniff out information before it is made public. You need to watch industry shifts, changes in buying trends, seasonal changes, technological changes etc. The world is dynamic, what worked yesterday, may be obsolete today, so keep yourself up to date on market trends.

4. Strive to Enter New Markets – Don’t be a local champion in your present market. Look for opportunity to make profitable entry into other markets. Study markets that have potential for your business and plan how you will enter without loosing money to fierce competition in such market. Identify areas where you have an advantage over an existing competitor and ensure you can match the standards of quality and value being provided.

5. Diversify Your Business – Never put all your egg in one basket. Study businesses that are related to yours. Plan on diversifying into some of the simple ones such that you are not tied to a particular channel of income. Dangote Group is a good example of a Nigerian Business that has diversified successfully.

Business Growth don’t just happen. Successful Businessmen set goals, plan and work towards realizing their dream of steady business growth. If you don’t work it out, it won’t happen by accident. So, quit complaining and whining about the poor state of the nation’s economy. It is time to take advantage of the opportunities that have been made available by the economic crises. If you’re determined to experience Business Growth, nobody can stop you, because nobody have a blueprint for stopping you. Cheers 😉

Online Forex Trading

Wednesday, March 25th, 2009

Online Forex Trading

Why the sudden upsurge in the request for Online Forex Trading Resources? Is it the way out of the Global Economic Crash for Nigerian Online Entrepreneurs? I don’t think so. While Forex Trading is a genuine and legitimate way to make money online, it is not for the unskilled and lazy. It is not a quick exit option from the rat race. Neither is it the best protection from the heat been generated by the global economic crash.

Anyone promising you a get rich quick package via Online Forex Trading is only doing so to rob you of your hard earned money. I made a post on this before, Forex Trading In Nigeria, Who is making the Money. Think about it for a second, the recent Global Economy Crash has made nonsense of the theories that were held in high esteem by many experts for decades. The academicians and the business experts are spending sleepless nights trying to figure out what went wrong and how to get the global economy back on its feet. I am referring to the committed economic and business experts in the developed worlds. (One of the disadvantage of living in a Global Village is now being witnessed by all. What happens in Japan or America can have instant effect on Nigeria within 24hours).

If that is the case, what makes you think that a fellow Naija brother who cannot boast of 24/7 electricity to power his laptop has a magic software that will help you get rich overnight through Automatic Forex Trading? Well, the choice is yours. But please stop requesting for my help on Forex Trading.

Presently, I don’t Trade Forex Online. Not because it is illegal, here are my reasons:

  1. It is an online business with very high risk.
  2. The high risk is worsened by the lack of infrastructure in Nigeria. Can you imagine PHCN striking while you’re trying to make a sale or a buy? Which ISP can guarantee you constant internet connection. (Since January this year, my ISP has been offering epileptic service even after increasing their subscription charges. They gave the Global Economic Crunch, as excuse for the increase).
  3. I am not ready to pay the price of time and resources required for Trading Forex.
  4. I  have heard too many scary news from friends that loss some good fortune within minutes of Trading Forex with live accounts.It is quite unfortunate that too many Naija Forex Trading Newbies assume that their performance with Demo Forex Trading Account is an indication of what real live trading will be. Please don’t be deceived. The result is not the same.

Well, I could be totally wrong. I never said I knew it all anyway. So, you have to make your choice. However, please, don’t send me emails asking for Forex Brokers, Forex Softwares and Forex Resources. I am not trying to discourage you, just that I am begining to get upset with the number of emails asking me about Forex Trading. After all my blog is not solely about Forex Trading. If I ever come across any material I consider useful for my readers, I will simply post it for free in an article. I don’t have time for sending such materials to individuals via emails. 😉

Ok, after all said and done, since I am committed to my readers, I will try to get more information on blogs and websites where you can get reliable information and tutorials on Online Forex Trading. But until then, lets devote attention to talking about other online business ventures that any entrepreneur can invest in without burning the fingers.

Here is what I am currently doing. I am reading about Blog Farming (it is a long term investment strategy) am also working on my Website Traffic too.  I want a shift from Social Media (it requires constant participation) to Search Engine generated traffic (it is much more reliable and less demanding) .  I’m getting better with my Google Adsense skill and improving my earnings via affiliate marketing too. I will be sharing about these in my future posts. You can subscribe to Nigerian Entrepreneur RSS Feed so that you won’t miss future update to this post  Online Forex Trading. Until then, stay cool. Cheers.

Traders Criticize Demolition Of Oshodi Market

Thursday, January 8th, 2009

Retail Traders Decry Demolition of Oshodi Market

Several Small Retail Traders in Lagos, who operates their businesses in the popular Oshodi Market, returned from the holidays to face their worst nightmare in the New Year 2009. They have been rendered jobless! I guess they never imagined that the Lagos State Government will demolish their places of businesses without providing alternative location. Well, that is what the Lagos State Government did on the 4th of January, 2009.

oshodi_market_nigeria

Oshodi Market Nigeria

Government and Elites Argument In Favor of Market Demolition

Governor Fashola wants to transform Lagos from a “garbage and lawless” city to (more…)