This blog has posts going back to February 2006 and contains many posts that are useful to you because most contain real world experience and actionable resources that will help you get started or expand your international business - be sure to visit the archived posts listed by Month/Year on the lower right side area of this blog and bookmark so you may easily return later.
First some Import Export Business News -
In the first eight months of fiscal year 2011, the Export-Import Bank approved $20.3 billion in financing for businesses of all sizes, which is a figure that is up from $16.3 billion over the same period last fiscal year. It also states that the US Export-Import Bank is on pace to back 5,000 new small-businesses exporters by 2015.
So I have to ask anyone reading this blog and hesitating on getting started in international trade, what is holding you back? International trade has been going on since the beginning of time and will continue to go on until the end of man's time on this Earth.
If you have been considering it, do yourself a favor, make a decision to get started or stop wasting your time and thought processes and move on. Really, what kind of kick in the ass does it take to get you to take action?? Anyway, here is the link to the article:
More Small Firms Exporting
Now onto some import export business views.
Many people email or call me about getting started in the import and export business. Most are just curiosity seekers who have nothing better to do with their time but ask the same questions over and over again that have been answered in this blog in the past 5 1/2 years.
Some get kinda pissed off when I tell them to go read the blog and the archived posts and then, if they have a question(s) that are not answered there to feel free to call or email me. Most are never heard from again?
Bottom line is this, most people are not cut out to be in this business or any business and if this blog or my attitude saves them from investing in a training course from us or other company, then my attitude and my blog has saved them a lot of money and wasted time. Right?
Let me share two recent examples.
One was from an African country that is known for being the biggest source of fraud in the world, most of you know which country without me naming it. Most inquiries I get have the sender's IP address included which allows me to see what country they sent it from and in most instances I delete these emails without bothering to respond (time is to valuable, sorry).
Anyway, this one in particular was well thought out, the English was very good and understandable so I decided to read and reply.
He basically asked about what the price was on our Import Export Training course and for me to send him a link to the 2nd free training lesson that is referenced on the web page about the course and he asked how he would receive the course materials once he purchased.
Here was my reply:
Dear Sir,
Please note that attention to detail is one of the most important aspects of
doing business internationally - you apparently have not read the entire web
page describing our course or you would have found both a link to the 2nd
lesson/resource and the price - suggest you revisit the web page and
read it in it's entirety - Start An Import Export Business
Course materials are made available via a password/userid member site.
His reply was such that he seemed a bit upset and asked if I was insinuating that he does not 'pay attention to detail'. I basically replied that he should take my email for what I have stated. Although his closing remarks were a bit more conciliatory, I knew that he would never order the course and quite frankly if he does not pay attention to the detail of a web page, then he most likely will not pay attention to the need to know information within the course.
The last example was a man who had called me many times over the course of the last year. Finally, in March or April of this year he called and wanted to order the training course.
I began to fill out an order form and the last thing on the form is the method of payment. He only had a Discover card. Now granted, our web page cited above does not have the types of cards accepted, our online order forms do so after nearly a year of inquiries you would think he would have looked at that but I will give him the benefit of the doubt and take some blame for not having it on the web page.
Now International trade requires that you be able to adapt and although he could not order at that time, he surely could have used his discover card to get a money order or cashier's check, if he were really ready for prime time, that is.
Here again was someone who was saved from ordering a course that he most likely would never have either read or followed through with had he read it. If that person is reading this, well that is simply how after 23 years of dealing with people internationally, I know who is ready for prime time and who isn't. If one small matter is going to throw you off your game like not having an acceptable credit card, well then what do you think would happen when you are dealing with a multi-million dollar or higher business?
So bottom line, ARE YOU READY FOR PRIME TIME? Attention to details and not letting the little stuff throw you off your game are extremely important for success in this business or any business!
The International Business Times is the leading provider of international business news online.
Showing posts with label export business. Show all posts
Showing posts with label export business. Show all posts
Import Export Business - Happy New Year 2011
Happy New Year 2011 to One and All!
I wrote quite an extensive "tell all" post last year on New Years day and would like to suggest that you take time to read it now even if you have read it before, if you have allowed the entire year of 2010 to pass you by without taking action, you especially need to read and heed what I took a lot of time and thought in posting there -
http://importexportbusiness.blogspot.com/2010_01_01_archive.html
In addition to it being New Years Day 2011, I wanted to address a couple of recurring factors that seem to hold people back from making life decisions. Call this my 2011 KICK IN THE ASS POST!
It is NOW 2011, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?
Stop thinking that someone or some organization like the government is going to help you get to where you want to be in life.
Do you really think that either political party gives a DAMN about you and your family?
You have to take the steps necessary to survive and prosper in this life or forever label yourself as a victim of circumstances out of your control.
YOU ARE IN CONTROL and YOU MUST TAKE ACTION, SO WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?
A comment that was left on this blog a few days ago helped to prompt this post as well.
The comment stated about how tn start without much funds and also stated "I need a mentor".
So let me address those two facts about your success or failure first.
Funds - If you follow the course that we recommend and my personal bonus information provided when you purchase that course, you will need little or no money to start or operate your business (NOTE: I am referring primarily to the exporting part of the business).
My first recommendation is this - if you are short of funds enough that the price of the course is going to affect how you live for the next few months, i.e., pay your rent, buy your groceries, put gas in your car, then DO NOT BUY OUR COURSE OR ANYONE'S COURSE.
You need to either get a job or second job if necessary, get your finances in good shape and then, and only then, get our recommended course and bonus resources.
No one offering any of the other courses is going to tell you that because they simply do not care about anything but getting your credit card number and putting you into an even worst financial position than you are now.
Despite all the hype that is out there about how "easy" it is to just buy their "program" or their "mentorship" and you will be guaranteed of success. WAKE UP and smell the coffee - it AIN'T GOING TO HAPPEN, you are just going to be separated from your money at a time when you need it the most.
Which brings me to the subject of "mentorship" which has become a very sore spot for me.
Many people call me, every week, asking about the import export business, they want my help, they want my advice, they are seeking it, but when I give it to them, they never follow through.
Some people have told me that the SBA (Small Business Administration) volunteers really did not or want to provide the type of support they were seeking (for free, of course). I do not know if this is true since the SBA has always been touted as being the best place to go for free assistance in getting started in your own business.
My growing belief is more on the side of the people who make the above complaint being not ready to be in business for themselves and the SBA volunteers recognizing this. Also, I believe these same complainers are people like a lady who called me from Canada a few years ago asking for an import export business that was already set up and running and profitable that she could simply buy into for a few hundred dollars.
IT AIN'T GOING TO HAPPEN!
The volunteers teach or guide people how to get started and become successful but what most people lack is the initiative to actually take any action.
There is a WEALTH of FREE advice and guidance within the posts of this blog. REAL WORLD EXPERIENCE has gone into these posts.
HAVE YOU READ ALL OF THEM? Have you taken action to implement any of them, even ONE!
IF NOT, forget going into ANY business for yourself, because you need a BOSS, not a mentor, not a coach, a BOSS!
My advice to you before ever spending a single penny is to READ each of the posts within this blog. There are also some good posts within our Importers and Exporters trade leads blog spread out among the trade lead posts, read them too.
If there are suggested actions within those post, TAKE THEM, TAKING ACTION, even little ones will help you to realize YOU ARE IN CONTROL OF YOUR DESTINY and will help you get over the victim mentality or the I need a mentor, helper, coach before I can succeed thought process.
Realize that NO ONE ELSE is going to care as much about YOUR FUTURE, YOUR FAMILY'S FUTURE, YOUR SUCCESS as you will and if you don't care enough to take positive actions to change things why do you think anyone else should?
Some might think me to be arrogant. So be it but let me tell you where I came from.
My parents, both depression era children, worked for the railroad as a laborer and in various sewing factories as a seamstress.
I had two brothers and when my mother would buy a bag of M&M candies she would count the candies out so each of us got an equal amount.
I had to use an outhouse for a bathroom until I was about 10 years old (gets damn cold here in Pennsylvania December through March, let me tell you). We did not consider ourselves poor at the time and I know that both of my parents did their best to give us the best life possible.
I worked for several years in a warehouse loading and unloading trucks and have a bad back to this day because of it.
At one point in my life, I made a job decision that some would say (and did say) was a bad one and it almost left us destitute so much that I had to take a job shoveling horse ship cleaning out horse stables and planting trees at a minimum wage with no benefits.
Jump to today. I owe NO ONE. My only bills are those we all have, electric, heat, real estate taxes etc. and I do not state this to brag, but simply show you from where I came to where I am there were a lot of BAD decisions and GOOD ones but I really cannot look back on any of them and BLAME or TAKE CREDIT for other than myself.
I did not wait for a new president to be elected, or congress person or senator, they are only in the business of helping themselves keep their jobs every 2, 4 or 6 years. I took the negatives and turned them into positives, basically, I focused on what I wanted to do and took positive steps to achieve success in that area.
Did I continue to make mistakes to this day, absolutely! But without taking those steps I may still be working in some type of hard labor type of job for a subsistence style of living.
NO ONE CARES MORE ABOUT YOU AND YOUR FAMILY'S FUTURE THAN YOU DO!
For those of you who want my advice, then don't act on it, forget this business, forget any business for that fact, get the best job you can find and stick with it.
Seriously, because you need a BOSS or SUPERVISOR who will tell you what you need to do next and who will ALWAYS be sure you are one step below what they are in the corporate structure.
If you are a DECISION MAKER and ready to TAKE ACTION on starting an Import Export business, then my advice is (and always has been) read through my blogs first, take notes, take action, review the DUE-DILIGENCE resources on our company page and THEN purchase our recommended course, study it, take notes and TAKE ACTION.
The calendar has changed again. Are you still where you were a year ago? Either get off of it and take action or forget about it. Your CHOICE, not mine or anyone else's.
With that said, WELCOME TO 2011!
I wrote quite an extensive "tell all" post last year on New Years day and would like to suggest that you take time to read it now even if you have read it before, if you have allowed the entire year of 2010 to pass you by without taking action, you especially need to read and heed what I took a lot of time and thought in posting there -
http://importexportbusiness.blogspot.com/2010_01_01_archive.html
In addition to it being New Years Day 2011, I wanted to address a couple of recurring factors that seem to hold people back from making life decisions. Call this my 2011 KICK IN THE ASS POST!
It is NOW 2011, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?
Stop thinking that someone or some organization like the government is going to help you get to where you want to be in life.
Do you really think that either political party gives a DAMN about you and your family?
You have to take the steps necessary to survive and prosper in this life or forever label yourself as a victim of circumstances out of your control.
YOU ARE IN CONTROL and YOU MUST TAKE ACTION, SO WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?
A comment that was left on this blog a few days ago helped to prompt this post as well.
The comment stated about how tn start without much funds and also stated "I need a mentor".
So let me address those two facts about your success or failure first.
Funds - If you follow the course that we recommend and my personal bonus information provided when you purchase that course, you will need little or no money to start or operate your business (NOTE: I am referring primarily to the exporting part of the business).
My first recommendation is this - if you are short of funds enough that the price of the course is going to affect how you live for the next few months, i.e., pay your rent, buy your groceries, put gas in your car, then DO NOT BUY OUR COURSE OR ANYONE'S COURSE.
You need to either get a job or second job if necessary, get your finances in good shape and then, and only then, get our recommended course and bonus resources.
No one offering any of the other courses is going to tell you that because they simply do not care about anything but getting your credit card number and putting you into an even worst financial position than you are now.
Despite all the hype that is out there about how "easy" it is to just buy their "program" or their "mentorship" and you will be guaranteed of success. WAKE UP and smell the coffee - it AIN'T GOING TO HAPPEN, you are just going to be separated from your money at a time when you need it the most.
Which brings me to the subject of "mentorship" which has become a very sore spot for me.
Many people call me, every week, asking about the import export business, they want my help, they want my advice, they are seeking it, but when I give it to them, they never follow through.
Some people have told me that the SBA (Small Business Administration) volunteers really did not or want to provide the type of support they were seeking (for free, of course). I do not know if this is true since the SBA has always been touted as being the best place to go for free assistance in getting started in your own business.
My growing belief is more on the side of the people who make the above complaint being not ready to be in business for themselves and the SBA volunteers recognizing this. Also, I believe these same complainers are people like a lady who called me from Canada a few years ago asking for an import export business that was already set up and running and profitable that she could simply buy into for a few hundred dollars.
IT AIN'T GOING TO HAPPEN!
The volunteers teach or guide people how to get started and become successful but what most people lack is the initiative to actually take any action.
There is a WEALTH of FREE advice and guidance within the posts of this blog. REAL WORLD EXPERIENCE has gone into these posts.
HAVE YOU READ ALL OF THEM? Have you taken action to implement any of them, even ONE!
IF NOT, forget going into ANY business for yourself, because you need a BOSS, not a mentor, not a coach, a BOSS!
My advice to you before ever spending a single penny is to READ each of the posts within this blog. There are also some good posts within our Importers and Exporters trade leads blog spread out among the trade lead posts, read them too.
If there are suggested actions within those post, TAKE THEM, TAKING ACTION, even little ones will help you to realize YOU ARE IN CONTROL OF YOUR DESTINY and will help you get over the victim mentality or the I need a mentor, helper, coach before I can succeed thought process.
Realize that NO ONE ELSE is going to care as much about YOUR FUTURE, YOUR FAMILY'S FUTURE, YOUR SUCCESS as you will and if you don't care enough to take positive actions to change things why do you think anyone else should?
Some might think me to be arrogant. So be it but let me tell you where I came from.
My parents, both depression era children, worked for the railroad as a laborer and in various sewing factories as a seamstress.
I had two brothers and when my mother would buy a bag of M&M candies she would count the candies out so each of us got an equal amount.
I had to use an outhouse for a bathroom until I was about 10 years old (gets damn cold here in Pennsylvania December through March, let me tell you). We did not consider ourselves poor at the time and I know that both of my parents did their best to give us the best life possible.
I worked for several years in a warehouse loading and unloading trucks and have a bad back to this day because of it.
At one point in my life, I made a job decision that some would say (and did say) was a bad one and it almost left us destitute so much that I had to take a job shoveling horse ship cleaning out horse stables and planting trees at a minimum wage with no benefits.
Jump to today. I owe NO ONE. My only bills are those we all have, electric, heat, real estate taxes etc. and I do not state this to brag, but simply show you from where I came to where I am there were a lot of BAD decisions and GOOD ones but I really cannot look back on any of them and BLAME or TAKE CREDIT for other than myself.
I did not wait for a new president to be elected, or congress person or senator, they are only in the business of helping themselves keep their jobs every 2, 4 or 6 years. I took the negatives and turned them into positives, basically, I focused on what I wanted to do and took positive steps to achieve success in that area.
Did I continue to make mistakes to this day, absolutely! But without taking those steps I may still be working in some type of hard labor type of job for a subsistence style of living.
NO ONE CARES MORE ABOUT YOU AND YOUR FAMILY'S FUTURE THAN YOU DO!
For those of you who want my advice, then don't act on it, forget this business, forget any business for that fact, get the best job you can find and stick with it.
Seriously, because you need a BOSS or SUPERVISOR who will tell you what you need to do next and who will ALWAYS be sure you are one step below what they are in the corporate structure.
If you are a DECISION MAKER and ready to TAKE ACTION on starting an Import Export business, then my advice is (and always has been) read through my blogs first, take notes, take action, review the DUE-DILIGENCE resources on our company page and THEN purchase our recommended course, study it, take notes and TAKE ACTION.
The calendar has changed again. Are you still where you were a year ago? Either get off of it and take action or forget about it. Your CHOICE, not mine or anyone else's.
With that said, WELCOME TO 2011!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)