A  Roadmap For Recovery

Stimulus dollars are headed toward businesses that support these Recovery Act goals:

• Healthcare: Modernize the healthcare system with electronic medical records systems.
• Energy: Promote solar power, renewable energy, smart grids and develop domestic energy sources
• Green Building: Build energy-efficient homes and public buildings
• Science and Technology: Promote scientific research and innovation
• Transportation: Upgrade the transportation infrastructure with new roads, bridges, and mass transit systems
• Education: Improve public schools and job training

The Recovery Act envisions a smarter, more efficient, more productive future. If your small business plan can move the nation forward, you’re a step closer to winning Uncle Sam’s financing and support.

Ten Best Cities to Stage an Economic Revival

Location is the other piece of the stimulus puzzle. To ensure that funding reflects local priorities, the White House is leaving ground-level decisions to state and local authorities. Winning the funding game is a matter of finding the right combination of business plan and place.

The following cities are leading the economic revival in their recovery sectors:

Washington, D.C

With the highest per capita spending across all industries, Washington, D.C. offers the broadest scope of recovery-funded business opportunities. For funding in education, healthcare, construction, urban development, criminal justice, and the arts, look inside the beltway.

Boston, MA

Innovative entrepreneurs will find fertile ground for their ideas in Boston. Ranking third in Popular Science‘s list of ‘America’s Greenest Cities,’ Boston is putting its recovery money toward clean-energy initiatives. Partner with local R&D brainpower to start your own clean-energy venture. Equipment leasing and a government grant can help you secure the lab facilities and scientific talent to get the ball rolling.

Detroit, MI

With the auto industry and heavy manufacturing in decline, Detroit is using its stimulus dollars to combat soaring unemployment. Help the city’s manufacturing workforce transition to the information economy with a placement service. Your federal small business loan can fund a call center and answering service, linking local talent to employers nationwide.

Anchorage, AK

Alaska’s military funding amounts to $313 per person, twice that of the next highest recipient, Hawaii; by contrast, most states spend $20 or less per person on military contracts. Take advantage of the military spending with a civil construction company. Equipment leasing can help you gear up for construction projects on Anchorage’s two active military bases.

Charleston, South Carolina

Charleston, SC is among the nation’s funding leaders for green building ventures. ”Greening” federal buildings is a focus of the recovery effort in hurricane-prone Charleston. A green business specializing in the retrofit of federal buildings has great potential to win Uncle Sam’s support.

Providence, RI

Providence’s major hospitals make the city a hospitable environment for healthcare stimulus funding. Capture those dollars with an electronic medical records business. E-commerce solutions offer a low-cost storefront from which to launch your electronic medical records venture.

New York, NY

With the financial sector reeling, New York is counting on technological innovation to save the day. Specifically, the state is pinning its hopes on small business, with a portion of federal R&D funds “set aside for small business to develop and commercialize innovative technology.” You don’t need to be a scientist to benefit from science money. A content writing service, for example, plays a valuable support role in product development. To get started, market your services online with a SEO friendly Website design.

Cheyenne, WY

Wyoming ranks number one in per-capita stimulus funding for the arts. Set up your own art studio in Wyoming’s art capital, Cheyenne. Then expand your following with a world-class Web design. Internet Marketig tools such as pay-per-click (PPC), social media marekting can help you represent artists from Cheyenne to China.

Jersey City, NJ

New Jersey is putting its money on the state’s public infrastructure, leading the nation in per-capita funding for transportation. Win a highway repaving contract, rent equipment through a leasing program, and play your part in rebuilding the country–one mile at a time.

Jackson, MS

If your specialty is education, head to Jackson, MS. Mississippi is throwing a lifeline to its K-12 education system. Tap into funds earmarked for improving educational standards by setting up a standardized testing service for Jackson’s public schools.

The White House is looking for a few good entrepreneurs to lead the nation out of economic slump. Between expanded Small Business loan programs and Recovery Act contracts, Uncle Sam is there to help your business succeed.

Use Your Writing Talent for SEO

If you have a way with words, there are opportunities galore out there. The Internet is a vast information source, and writers are needed to contribute content to a myriad of websites. Get started by contributing content to sites that utilize freelance writers. Some will take unsolicited articles, many will give assignments to freelancers. Here’s a tip: learn about search engine optimization (SEO) techniques and use of keywords.

Sell, Sell, Sell with an E-commerce web site that has Credit Card Processing capabilities

Go through your garage, attic, storage shed, or closet to find items you don’t use that could bring in some extra cash. Cruise yard sales and pick up items that you can resell online for a quick profit. If you have specialized knowledge in areas such as antiques or rare books, so much the better. You may be able to pick up really valuable items for a fraction of their value and resell them with an E-commerce Web site. If you are good at person-to-person sales, look into a direct sales business such as Avon or Mary Kay. You can sell easily by set ting up a merchant account to accept credit card transactions online.

Use Your Time Wisely

Time is the one thing people never have enough of. If you can give people time by offering personal services to take care of time-consuming tasks and chores, they may pay you handsomely. If you are good with growing things, start a plant maintenance service to water and care for indoor plants in homes and offices. Do you like pets? Offer pet-sitting services. Good with kids? Babysitting or daycare might be your ticket. Start a concierge service running errands for busy people: dry cleaning, grocery shopping, gift buying, etc. Set up a mobile carpet cleaning or car detailing business, and use a business networking tool to network or join your local business community to spread the word about your services. The list of personal services you can provide is limited only by your imagination.

Online Solutions: Web Services are in Demand

If you have a technical background, the world is your oyster. Everybody uses a computer, but few know much about it. Offer your services for website design, IT Consulting, or Internet Marketing. Market your service to small businesses, and people with home offices. Tap into social media marketing or business networks to attract customers to your Web site.

Those Who Do Can Also Teach

If you have a specialized knowledge or skill, share it with others for money. Conduct classes in cake decorating, flower arranging, jewelry-making, gardening, automobile maintenance, carpentry, photography, or whatever your expertise happens to be. Teach a class at a local community college, or hook up with a business that can use your classes to increase sales. If you are an expert in math, history, English, or other subjects, contact local schools and offer your services as a tutor to students who need some extra help.

Whatever You Do, Make Sure You Are Legal

Here are a few things to remember, no matter what extra money-making venture you choose:

• Always follow local, state and federal laws. Get any licenses required, pay sales taxes where appropriate
• Get everything in writing. A written contract is invaluable in case you find yourself in front of Judge Judy
• Get payment up front, if possible
• Consult a tax professional. Make sure you are taking all the deductions you are entitled to
• Get referrals. The quickest way to build your business is referrals from satisfied clients
• Connect and network with business professionals online via tools such as tradeseam to expand your business

Picking the perfect second act for your career can involve trying a field that’s always interested you, helping out with a cause that you believe in, or getting a chance to run your own business.

If it’s running your own business that appeals to you, chances are you don’t want to sink a large chunk of your retirement savings into a new venture at this point. Therefore, the key is getting started with minimal investment up front. This is very possible these days, depending on how you set up your business, and what type of business you choose to go into.

Getting Started with a Shoestring Budget

To start a business with relatively little up front capital, the key is to minimize fixed costs. Variable costs–expenses of the pay-as-you-go variety–are preferable because they allow you to ramp up or scale back investment depending on how the business is going.

Here are some key tools for keeping fixed costs to a minimum:

• E-commerce Solutions. Who needs a business location when you have the Internet? The ultimate low-overhead storefront, the Internet gives you access to a world of potential customers. Utilizing e-commerce solutions is much cheaper than having a physical place of business where you receive customers. For example, it allows you to avoid the many expenses of having a retail outlet, such as rent, utilities, staffing, and insurance.
• Outsourcing Back Office Infrastructure. Rather than building a complete organization from scratch, try to outsource anything that isn’t central to the unique value proposition of your business. For example, functions such as customer support, credit card processing and human resources are only needed occasionally or periodically. Therefore, it makes more sense to utilize outsourced call center services for telemarketing or customer support or HR outsourcing for human resource activities than to try to staff it internally.
• Use Online, Social Media Strategies to Promote Your Business. Developing a full scale online social media strategy can seem overwhelming at first. But you can implement simple things by hiring interns to do the leg work such as starting a blog or using Twitter, and tracking different programs making adjustments along the way.

Low-Cost Entrepreneurial Business Ideas

If the above are some techniques for structuring a business with minimum up front investment, what are some lines of business which lend themselves to getting started with minimal capital?

One rule of thumb is that services generally require less investment than manufacturers or retailers, though with e-commerce some re-sellers can operate cheaply if they have tight supply lines and add value in the process. Focusing on services, the following are some examples of businesses that might be right for the current environment, and can be started on a shoestring.

• Business consulting. If many retiring boomers are going to be starting their own businesses, why not use your business experience to help show them how to do it?
• Green consulting. People are striving to become more energy-efficient, for economic and environmental reasons. If you have expertise in this area, consulting with businesses and homeowners on how to reduce their consumption is a natural.
• Public relations. If you have media and promotional experience, you could be in demand with the new wave of entrepreneurs starting their own businesses. In particular, bringing knowledge of modern promotional techniques such as social media strategies could be valuable to these new businesses.
• Employment counseling. Between a weak economy and an aging population, there are many people facing a career crossroads these days. Helping them find the right niche can be a good way to make use of any personnel experience you have.
• Online Lead Generation. Sales Lead Generation is growing by leaps and bounds as far as start up industries are concerned. This is a very special industry that affords flexibility and freedom that is unparalleled. And, there is even a significant demand for highly specialized lead generation consultants to help companies generate qualified sales leads and business opportunities in this market.

Running your own business may not have been your parents’ idea of retirement, but things are very different today. If you have the entrepreneurial itch, starting a venture might just give you the satisfaction and extra income to make your “golden years” more than just an expression.

More and more moms are finding a way to indulge their maternal instinct while staying in touch with their inner entrepreneur. The Center for Women’s Business Research recorded a 32 percent increase in women-owned businesses from 2002 to 2008. Revenues of those businesses grew at a rate of 48 percent and employment by 27 percent in the same period.

Clearly, moms are looking beyond the cubicle for benefits the corporate world can’t provide. Women entrepreneurs cite job perks like “being available for your child when he or she is sick, starting dinner at a regular hour, and never being worried about children at home alone after school.” Home businesses allow moms to work just as hard as they would in a corporate environment, but on their own terms.

A Little Help from E-Commerce Solutions

How do they do it? The engine of home business is the Internet. Moms can market, sell, source, and distribute products online, from the comfort of the park, the backyard sandbox, or the home office. They capitalize on low-cost marketing tools such as an e-commerce website and internet marketing campaigns. Many moms tap into online networking tools through Twitter, Facebook and Tradeseam.

Here’s a look at some creative moms and their e-commerce ventures:

1. Personal Trainer. Jennifer Hairston quit her job as a full-time physical therapist to care for her 3-year-old daughter. But she hasn’t missed a beat professionally. Hairston founded a business as a personal trainer, marketing and managing her personal training services from home. To get started, she posted ads on local message boards, advertised through social networks and generated sales leads using online marketing strategies.
2. Event Planning. Monica Moody found her path back home in an event planning venture. In 2004 she launched Spa Party Creations, which organizes on-site spa retreats for women and girls. To get the word out about her business, Moody relies on a strong e-commerce website that “provides visitors with access to great resources,” from information to event planning ideas.
3. Home Schooling. Education is at the forefront of every new mom’s mind. Some of them take the interest a step further by setting up an educational home business. Former LA Raiders cheerleader Tanya Hutchison founded a home business teaching social etiquette and performance to children. Jackie Friedman Mighdoll started the Sponge School, which offers language classes for toddlers, to help children capitalize on their ability to absorb foreign languages.
4. Personal Assistant. Beth Adams founded a personal assistant firm on the strength of her multitasking ability, honed while raising four children. Her service My Girl Friday helps moms and other clients master the minutiae of daily life, taking care of errands, cleaning out closets, etc. Home-based virtual assistants take care of errands online. As a virtual assistant, you can help busy people with:

• travel planning
• email and mail correspondence
• bills and bookkeeping
• organizing appointments and meetings

Staying at home with the kids no longer means staying out of the public sphere. Count on business services such as Website design, Search Engine Marketing, and Search Engine Optimization to help you find a virtual marketplace for your products or services. With a little creativity and vision, you can be a stay-at-home mom and an entrepreneur.