Achieve Financial Freedom by Starting a Franchise

by brandyellen // March 19, 2014 // Comments off

The role of the entrepreneur is pivotal to our local, regional, and national economies, especially in these challenging times when job creation is at a premium. Apart from the natural fondness that communities have for their mom-and-pop establishments, small business owners are extremely important because of their profound impact on the success of a community. Economic studies show that companies with no more than 500 employees are credited for half of the US gross domestic product (GDP), generate more than 60% of the total number of new jobs created since 1993, and employ 50% of the private sector workforce.

Part of the larger small business population is made up of franchised businesses. For the past few years, franchised small businesses have accounted for millions of jobs in both production distribution and business format franchises. To provide a better idea of the importance of starting a franchise, its employment is almost equal to the number of jobs in durable goods manufacturing. It also surpasses the total employment of various industries including wholesale trade, real estate, finance and insurance, information, and non-durable goods manufacturing among others. If we include indirect employment in the picture, the overall output produced by franchises amounts to over a trillion dollars.

Economic challenges of the franchisee

With many countries striving for economic recovery, the proliferation of entrepreneurs remains more important than ever according to businessnewsdaily. While there have been indications of economic growth, the rate of employment leaves much to be desired. Franchise businesses consider access to capital as a primary concern. Many of the recent difficulties faced by franchise owners include anything from recurring sales-related worries to credit struggles, which worsened because of the causes of this particular economic slump.

The global recession officially ended in mid-2009, but economic activity remains plagued by continued weakness and uncertainty, specifically in the labor industry. However, economists have grown more optimistic about economic progress because of the rising demand for goods and services and higher capital spending. That being said, franchise owners still have a number of challenges that they need to overcome. For instance, they have higher expectations about sales projections and hiring, but the reality is that economic activity is beneath the target. This newer optimism must still translate into actual employment and spending activity.

Getting started

The law mandates the need for franchisees to know everything about the Franchising Code of Conduct. This Code contains the contents of the franchise agreement, as well as the obligations and rights of the franchisor – take a look at franchiselaw.net. There are more than 75 industries that utilize the franchise model and determining the most suitable one for you can be daunting if you do not know what questions to ask yourself.

First, a prospective franchisee must have a clear idea of what he or she plans to get out of having a business. The type of industry that one chooses must be in line with his or her interests and abilities, as well as the person’s personal routine. Naturally, the potential income and expenses should also be taken into consideration. If these guide points are not enough to lead you to the right direction, there are professionals like franchise consultants, lawyers, and development companies that can help you reach a decision on franchising.

Trying to Understand How to Best Use Affiliate Programs

by brandyellen // January 8, 2013 // Comments off

There are so many bloggers who bank on affiliate programs and I just want to know how to get the hang of them. I am an affiliate with so many programs that I think I did over kill, meaning there are so many that it’s difficult to focus on a few and sell those to try to earn some extra revenue on my site.

In my opinion, if I may think out loud for a moment; I believe that in order to make good money with affiliate programs it’s not about the number of programs you are part of, it’s the quality in which you can promote a few that you love. You see, almost every store you shop at has “become an affiliate” link at the very bottom of their website. Look next time you visit your favorite brand’s website, most have it down there.

It’s easy to become an affiliate for your favorite brand or place you shop often and if you are blogging about that place often, such as including it in your day to day life posts then it should be easy to promote and in turn you may earn some commissions – but how do I do it? How do I get started? I really need some tips and help on this topic because I keep researching it, I get the research but then I do a total fail. End of year I see revenue from everything except affiliate programs.

Earning Revenue Online With Affiliate Programs

by brandyellen // March 24, 2011 // Comments off

Most of you know that I make income from my blog, but most don’t really know what are some of the best ways to make money blogging. A lot of people contact me looking for ways to make some extra cash for their family, as most know times are tough and honestly the fastest way to earn a bit of revenue is through affiliate programs.

Just about every business you can think of has an affiliate program where you can sign up to earn commissions on sales and sometimes you can earn when someone simply clicks to visit that business website. Earning money from blogging is as simple as picking some keywords to link to within your blog post or maybe posting a banner on your sidebar.

To be honest, I think the best way to make money with blogging is through affiliate links used within a blog post. I have practiced different methods of earning money with affiliate links and the end result has been either a banner in my newsletter or at bottom of blog posts and at least one affiliate link within each blog post.

I am not sitting here telling you that you are going to get rich quick, because we all know it takes work to make money but what I am saying is that you can make money blogging if you start using affiliate programs!

Do you use affiliate programs? How have they paid off for you?

I Miss Doing Direct Sales

by brandyellen // May 6, 2010 // Comments off

I used to be a consultant or independent distributor for various companies online, I strictly sold online sales for companies such as Avon, candle companies and many others. I used to do great at selling and so many wanted me on their “team” because when it comes to network marketing I am the queen of social! I know how to sell products or services without being too pushy or sounding like a robot.

Do you know that most people I hear from that do any direct selling have yet to find a personal way to advertise it? You must relate, listen and be able to truly hear what others are looking for and wanting in their life to know how to sell something to them. It’s not being tricky it’s all about being compassionate. Now don’t get me wrong, being a compassionate, friendly direct selling person sometimes had it’s down falls because then I may take it personally when someone tells me off because they feel I am “just like the rest of them” but reality is direct selling can earn you some great income.

The other down fall to being a direct seller type of person means that you automatically have an expense every month and must make enough in commissions to offset the cost of being a consultant. Most companies make you prepay monies for their website, starter pack and similar. Due to most direct selling companies making you pay something in advance most will not get into this type of business thinking it’s a scam and some may be truly a scam but I have had great luck in choosing which companies to work for because I use my friend Google to search the pros and cons that others have written about different companies that offer direct selling.

Becoming a consultant for a company may cost money but it’s very similar to affiliate marketing, which is something I do here at Happily Blended with a variety of companies and earn commissions. I love making money, who doesn’t?! So just take note from me based on my personal experience YOU CAN make money with direct sales if you have the time, dedication and self motivation to get moving forward!

Questions for Thought: Do you currently do any direct sales? What companies have you loved working as a consultant for? Which companies would you say you didn’t have a great experience with?

Was So Excited

by brandyellen // October 6, 2009 // Comments off

I recently tried It Works and the ONLY reason I tested it out was because it came from a trusted source and of course I reviewed the product information prior to use!

I tried It Works wraps for your body on my tummy area and within 1 hour I had lost 4″. I was definitely shocked, because I figured hey we will give this product a try and if it works maybe I will sell it. Now I don’t have the funds to start up my own direct selling home business so I figured I would simply share this wonderful product that worked so well for me with you all.

Olivia is a long time friend and as a distributor for It Works she backed the product so much that she was willing to exchange a product for me to test prior to deciding if I would start selling. Now I may not be selling It Works wraps at this point in time, but some day I just might. In the meantime I invite you read more about what happened in my situation using only two It Works wraps for your body:

Lost 4″ in one hour.
3″ stayed off for two weeks.
I fell off the band wagon due to hubs leaving job and everything so now haven’t used second wrap.

This is certainly a product you should try long term and definitely something to use if you are having trouble with any area on your body. It Works wraps worked for me, and I do exercise often as well as eat a balanced diet (usually). My problem area is the mid section, after having my first born the skin never went back to normal on my belly and after having two more children for a total of three babies, my fear was that belly was stretched out way too far to ever come back to the semi-firm state it was prior to having children.

It Works body applicator helped me get off some extra inches and I will continue to use this product until I finally sign on the be a distributor.

Fine Print: I received this product from the distributor as a way to sample the product and get my honest review/opinion about the product. This written review was not required but offered to the distributor personally by Brandy Ellen after the results were so impressive to her.