Every year, several thousand
people develop an interest in "going into business." Many of these
people have an idea, a product or a service they hope to promote into an income
producing business which they can operate from their homes.
If you are one of these people, here are some practical thoughts to consider
before hanging out the "Open for Business" sign.
In areas zoned "Residential Only," your proposed business could be
illegal. In many areas, zoning restrictions rule out home businesses involving
the coming and going of many customers, clients or employees. Many businesses
that sell or even store
anything for sale on the premises also fall into this category.
Be sure to check with your local zoning office to see how the ordinances in
your particular area may affect your business plans. You may need a special
permit to operate your business from your home; and you may find that making
small changes in
your plan will put you into the position of meeting zoning standards.
Many communities grant home occupation permits for businesses involve typing,
sewing, and teaching, but turn thumbs down on requests from photographers,
interior decorators and home improvement businesses to be run from the home.
And often, even
if you are permitted to use your home for a given business, there will be
restrictions that you may need to take into consideration. By all means, work
with your zoning people, and save yourself time, trouble and dollars.
73% of barcodes in Q4 2011 were 2D codes, with ID codes accounting
for the remaining 27%. Although current use of 2D barcodes by 100
independent marketers that ScanLife surveyed stands at 50%, 86% of those
marketers said they plan to use 2D barcodes in the future.
A full 8% of magazine ads in December 2011 included action codes
(including quick-response or QR codes), up from 3.6% in January. That
according to mobile technology provider Nellymoser, and reported in Adweek.
If you want your email to be memorable, possibly even to go viral,
AWeber suggests a simple trick: use a cute animal as part of the art.
"But you can’t just slap a random picture of a kitty in your design,"
the post advises. "It looks out of place, and a little desperate. The
key is to use images that work with the flow of your email."
Data
from “MarketPulse: Key Trends” indicates that 39% of shoppers reported
downloading coupons from manufacturer websites in Q4 2011, up from 37%
in Q3 and 35% in Q2. The next-most popular usage of digital media for
CPG shopping in Q4 was downloading coupons from retailer websites (37%),
followed by downloading coupons from couponing sites (35%). 27% of
shoppers reported researching products on websites, up 12.5% from 24% in
Q2, while 23% reported visiting online deal sites such as Groupon.