Be determined and stay focused. You probably have invested all or a substantial amount of your money in your business. It can be very difficult owning your own business initially, but it's worth it. You realize you have to work more, you worry more and you push yourself harder. It's really very challenging.

Things can get really stressful sometimes that you almost want to give up. You start regretting leaving your employed job. Your determination has to come in here. No one can guarantee your success in business, except you, but utilizing advice in this book would go a long way in making things much easier for you.

Like I earlier mentioned, it helps if you love business you are into. You generally have an easier time getting through your initial start-up problems when you enjoy what you do. Be motivated. You can make it. One very important step in improving your business is your reading this business enhancement book. Information is power!

Your business should have an effective accounting and record keeping plan. Have a well-planned book keeping system. Keep sales records, proper employee records, tax records, business agreement records etc. There are several good accounting software available in market for those with computers. Otherwise, get an accountant to review your records from time to time.

Think of kind of customer your product(s) will appeal to, and focus on that customer base. Target your customer base with your sales message. It's very important that you know who your typical customer is. You get to increase your sales by providing this customer group with other products or services.

Advertising/Marketing is very important to your business. Potential customers have to know you exist. They have to be able to reach you. To be successful in business . . . you must do some form of advertising or marketing. Put aside money for advertisement.

Monitor how effective or ineffective your adverts are. Don't waste money and time running an advert that doesn't work. Your business needs an efficient customer service plan. You will lose your customers if you don't treat them right.

They might even tell others not to do business with you. It's very difficult to repair a damaged image. With all competition out there, word of mouth still remains most powerful form of advertisement . . . so don't spoil your reputation.

Treat every customer like your most important customer, and they will not only come back, they will recommend you to others. Get your staff to be polite and friendly. I don't shop at certain shops because of how rude and unhelpful their staff are. I am quite sure others feel same way too.

Forget idea of some people being "born with great sales skills." We all have this talent. Every society is built on selling. Just think about it . . . we all do some form of selling(marketing) every time. We do this when we try to be close friends with others, when we try convincing people to see things our way. We're all sales people in one way or another.

A wise man once said "Anyone can sell anything to anybody. We could correctly say that some things are easier to sell than others, and some people work harder at selling than others. But regardless of what you're selling, or even how you're attempting to sell it, odds are in your favor.

If you make your presentation to enough people, you'll find a buyer. The problem with most people seems to be in making contact - getting their sales presentation seen by, read by, or heard by enough people. Selling is challenging.

It demands utmost of your creativity and innovative thinking. The more success you want, and more dedicated you are to achieving your goals, more you'll sell." Patience must be applied here.

In selling, we all begin at same point, and have same finish line as goal . . . a successful sale.

Someone once said that business is only about two things; satisfying customers and making a profit. This is a true statement. So organize your business! Keep at it and try out ideas in this book. Remember, "You cannot fail . . . unless you quit!"

******************************************************************** Nelson B. Babs is an Expert IT and Business Consultant with lots of clients worldwide. Get his powerful, FREE business enhancement book: "How to Dramatically Increase your Sales, Profit & Customer/Client base in 2 weeks!" at: http://continue.to/makemoremoney

Take time to set up a good business accounting system like Quick Books Pro or Quicken. When you are using this or any other software system, pretend at all times that someone else must see what you are doing and understand it. Do not use abbreviations or acronyms without explaining what they mean, since whoever takes over this system might not have any idea what you were saying. When faced with doing something very quickly or taking extra moment to document transaction with a note of some sort, take that opportunity to leave a trail for anyone who might take on this duty for you later.

Set up a “creative” system as well, for any design or branding information. It could be a directory on your hard drive that is backed up regularly, or a folder in your drawer – as long as its all together. Save everything that has to do with image and marketing of your business in one place – original logo, artwork, ads you have run, fonts, and colors that are used for a consistent identity. Having this information organized will not only give you ability to quickly market your business with a consistent brand, but will also provide beginnings of a corporate identity program that can be shared with future employees and vendors.

It is critical to any business that you do regular backups, have a disaster recovery plan, and have assessed any threats to your business information and that of your clients. As you set up these systems, do it in a way that also adds a sense of history. For example, if you back up weekly, store all of these backups somewhere with dates and specifics written on them, in case you ever need to return to that time period for any reason.

When time comes to consider growing your business beyond yourself, review documents you’ve developed, and make a list of tasks you could probably delegate to someone else. There are many ways you can test waters of growth. You might want to try hiring a temporary assistant or a part time virtual assistant. You should also consider what you can best bring to business, and which areas you might want someone else to handle. Then consider outsourcing aspects of your business to another independent professional. In whatever direction you decide to grow, you will have already created a strong foundation on which to build.

Eileen 'Turtle' Parzek (c) 2003 All Rights Reserved

Eileen 'Turtle' Parzek is a veteran web designer and an online marketing & communications consultant who has been working from home and virtually since 1995. Her business, SOHO It Goes! (www.soho-it-goes.com) functions as an online design marketing department for small businesses and organizations.