Solo Entrepreneurs

I would consider a solo entrepreneur as someone who can make a business model and make it work for any number of situations and build an empire from his ideas.

My friend is a freelancer. She has all kinds of ideas with no way of building one into something that the public wants, let alone something they are willing to pay for. She can do odds and ends and make some nice cash for it, but nothing sustainable.

Entrepreneurs support families and manage health insurance and offer financial stability that freelance ‘duffers’ don’t. She is not supporting her family with her blogs, computer repairs, or computer security lock-downs, but they can buy some nice stuff with it.

but some One-person companies are earning upward of $1 million in revenue annually. How do they do it? With high-speed Internet connectivity, mobile apps, automation, and a little help from their customers?

There are situations where One can be one-person business for more than 10 years ! and then become an independent developer lifestyle ( in my field) like being part of a large organization, but continuing to work on your own creations -- just with more resources behind . "It's a lifestyle decision. Call them lifestyle business. Peopleless enterprises. Solo entrepreneurs, etc. We're seeing them everywhere -- they almost don't feel like businesses, because there's no there there -- these are people working from anywhere and in any time zone, and who are grossing from $250,000 up to $5 million or $6 million.

Workers like these are becoming increasingly common as the Internet matures, software as a service (SaaS) is more reliable, outsourcing becomes more commonplace, and customers and user communities begin to shoulder more of the work of keeping operations going.

These businesses have a number of things in common. First, all of them use the Web to leverage their limited financial and personnel resources for everything from marketing and sales to sourcing raw materials and products to customer service and support. Second, they depend on high-speed Internet connectivity and mobile applications to work from anywhere and create virtual teams and partnerships that can be either permanent or brought together on an ad hoc basis. Finally, they depend heavily on their customer bases/user communities to pitch in and help with essential operations.

What would you like to consider yourself? I found the following at http://www.successful-blog.com (by Liz Strauss) very interesting

How to Tell a Freelancer from a Solo Entrepreneur ?

In my conversations with bloggers who work alone, I found some distinct differences in the way they approach their work, in the way they talk about it, in the way that they relate to every part of it. I’ve found that two groups seem to stand out. I call the groups freelancers and solo entrepreneurs. Here’s how to tell the two groups apart.

A freelancer is about the work. An entrepreneur is about the business.
A freelancer is a doer. A freelancer knows the tactics. An entrepreneur is a negotiator, a visionary and a thinker. An entrepreneur builds strategy and is constantly testing it.

A freelancer thinks the work is the business. An enterpreneur knows the business supports the work.
A freelancer is disinterested in “business controls and necessities” — including thinking, budgets, invoices, business plans — that gets in the way of the “real” work. An entrepreneur understands that without those “business controls and necessities,” it’s not a business. It’s a job.

A freelancer might want to grow a client base. An entrepreneur knows a business either grows or decays, and is constantly looking for ways to keep the growth managed and within reasonable risk parameters.

A freelancer lives in the now with an eye to long term client relationships that might afford some security. An entreprenuer is looking to a vision of the business, now is a reflection of what the business will be.

A freelancer often doesn’t invest in his or her own equipment, training, or help. Many freelancers don’t delegate low-level skills or tasks they don’t do well, because they think “poor,” rather than think investment. An entrepreneur knows that time is money, invests in future development and the business vision. An entrepreneur will pay for skills that he or she doesn’t have knowing that it is money well spent on quality and commitment.

A freelancer works from day to day. An entrepreneur has a business plan.

Whether you work alone or in an enterprise, you probably think like one or the other. Did you find yourself in the group that you thought you would be? What is your opinion of the other? Both groups are necessary to make a business work. Looking deeper, we also need managers to bridge the gap between these two groups.

So, develop your mantra. Focus it well as Guy says, but don’t stay on the surface of his guidance or mine. Go deep. Make sure you know where you are and what you’re going for.
If you’re out on your own, or before you go there, are you a freelancer or a solo entrepreneur?

Infopreneurship - The Next Big Thing

So You Want to Be An Infopreneur? Do You know what an infopreneur is? An infopreneur is someone who is in business to gather or disseminate electronic information. To put it in simple words, he is someone who sells information online (mainly through the Internet). Infopreneurs explore the uncharted "blue oceans" of internet business to define their niche markets.

In the wider sense, an infopreneur is an entrepreneur who main media is the World Wide Web and main source of profits are information products or services. Presently, more than 1 billion people around the globe are using the Internet. Online retailing has become a booming business. On 2005, the total online sales have reached US$89 billion. The rapid growth of Internet and the vast business opportunities that comes with it, has made many successful infopreneurs. These infopreneurs are able to tap on the Internet to reach out to the mass markets.

So How Can You Become An Infopreneur?

There are basically 3 ways to start you online business to be an Infopreneur.
1.Sell Your Own Products
2.Sell Other People Products
3.Provide An Online Service

1.Sell Your Own Products

Everyone is an expert or good at something. That expertise can generate tremendous income opportunities from information products.

To be a successful infopreneur, you need to think of things that you know alot that others do not know and are dying for them. This will be your niche market that is rabid market for you information products. The information products can be on your interest/hobbies, money, investing, debts, or even internet marketing to name a few. You can also search the web for buzz or things that recently generate a huge following. To create your own information products required a lot of work. If you do not have the time or little knowledge of product creation you can outsource your creation process to others and concentrate on the selling or marketing your information products.

2.Sell Other Peoples Products

Selling other peoples products means that you have to be an affiliate to the merchants/vendors or be a direct marketer of the information products. To be an affiliate means that you have to join the merchants program and direct your prospects to their product to make the sales. To be a direct marketer, you need to purchase information products with resale or master resale rights and sell them on your own website. Sometimes it is easier to sell a proven product then to create your own. These products would usually receive some publicity, proven that they really work and results in some sales.

3.Provide An Online Service

In this Information Age, the Internet is about saving time as well as saving money. Online Services provide people the ease of accessing certain information and flexibility to do things faster or might not be possible in real life. Such services include online chat/messenger services, search engines, online banking services, online stock trading services, membership site, etc. You no need to crack your head to think of some online services. A better way is to do a search in the search engines to sell what people are looking for and try to provide a service to compliment it.

Internet is an innovation that has enabled us to do a lot of things which are not possible previously. Our lifestyle and habits have undergo tremendous changes since its invention. On average, 3 out of 4 American adults surf the web regularly. With number of Internet users reaching more than 1 billion users and increasing rapidly every year, there are a lot of untapped blue oceans in Internet for us to harvests. So, its time to start to ride the wave of the Information Age to be an Infoprenuer.

original by Jason Chew

One-Person-Enterprises -Part time self-employment-2

The great thing about becoming a "solopreneur" is that, in most cases, it doesn't require a big outlay of cash or a lot of overhead. In fact, most businesses can be started with just a computer and a telephone.

But while you don't need a lot of "stuff" to build your one-person business, there are a few must-haves if you want that business to thrive.

The top 5 of those "must-haves" include:

1. A Marketable Idea

Starting a business because it's what you want to do is fine, but just because you like doing something, doesn't make it a viable business idea. It's imperative that you do a little market research and make sure there is an audience that needs the services you plan to offer. Identify the problem you plan to solve for people, and make sure there are enough people with that problem to support your business. It's also a good idea to survey the competitive landscape and see who else is solving that same problem. With the Internet, you have an extremely valuable market research tool at your feet. Take the time before you start your business to use it.

2. A Passion for the Business

Starting and running your own solopreneur business is one of the most creative and rewarding endeavors you can undertake. However, it does require a significant investment of time and energy to get the business up and running. So be sure to start your business doing something you're passionate about; something you truly enjoy. Additionally, because solopreneurs have to wear many hats, it can be a bit draining at times. Having a passion for your business is what enables you to get through the challenges of start-up and grow a successful business.

3. A Powerful Reason Why

One of the worst reasons to start a business is to make money. That may sound like a crazy thing to say, after all, if you don't make money you really don't have a business, you have a hobby. But what I mean is that you better have some other reason you want to be a solopreneur. For me, it was because I wanted to be able have a career and spend plenty of time with my kids. When I faced challenges during the early years of my business, I knew the reason I was creating that business was so I could be there for my kids. I didn't want to have to go back to a corporate job and that was an extremely strong motivator for me.

4. A Willingness to Move Through Fear

If you want to live a safe, comfortable life, don't become a solopreneur. Choosing to become a solopreneur inevitably puts you into all kinds of situations you've never been in before. It challenges you to grow and stretch, and very often you have to do things that may scare you. It's important to recognize that being uncomfortable is just a part of your growth, and that your business can only grow to the degree that you do. Be willing to take calculated risks, try new things and step out into totally new areas and both you and your business will grow and prosper.

5. A Team

The name "solopreneur" is a bit of a misnomer. Every successful solopreneur I know is not creating that success "solo." While they may not have a staff, they have virtual or part-time support that makes it possible for them to focus their time doing only what they're good at. So while you may be the only person working directly with clients, you will want to outsource such tasks as bookkeeping (unless you are a bookkeeper), customer service, clerical and administrative tasks. Ideally, you should be spending your time on revenue-generating activities, such as serving your clients or creating new programs, and marketing, and outsource everything else. With the proliferation of virtual assistants, and ready access to inexpensive contract and freelance help through services such as Elance.com and Craigslist, there's no reason even a brand new solopreneur can't start outsourcing from the start.

By Debbie Lachusa