The Home based business industry has gone through a lot of problems in the past because of those who want to scam people on the web so people have little trust in any business. Not a day goes by that I do not get someone who is skeptical about the business. The common thing everyone wants to know from me is: Who I am and Can I help them?As a home based business entrepreneur you will have to take on this challenge as well and become open for others to see who you are as a person by branding yourself as the leader that you are or that you want to become.Understand that people do not want to follow a negative, unmotivated, and undisciplined individual that does not know what they are doing. They want to know that they can trust you and that you can teach them a thing or two about business, leadership, and personal growth. This is why branding yourself is such an important component of the 21st century home based business online.To brand yourself you must show people you are human with your photos, your family, and your accomplishments. Give people great information that you have learned over the years and do not just give them the scraps of your knowledge. Give them the steak and potatoes of what you have learned about online marketing or the home based business industry in general, then they will want to see what else you have in store for them.Dominate your personal name on Google. If you go and search Misty Hofstetter, you will find that I own at least the first 3 pages of Google with my information that I put out on the internet. Get yourself out there to show your success. If you are not successful, then it will show when people search for you, and trust me…they will search your name to see if you really are skilled in internet marketing.When branding yourself you must tell your story to the world because no one else has the same story as you do…that is what makes you, unique. People love stories and will remember you, identify with you, and like you because they can relate to what you have been through in life. This builds trust and gives you a better chance at getting them first as a lead, and then possibly as a teammate.In the end you must build trust by showing who you are, building your brand, and let them know you are real person making a living on the internet. If the people think you are fake, if they do not believe what you say, if you lie to them, then you will be found out and there is a good chance that you will not succeed in home based business.If you just blindly follow, use other peoples stuff, and don’t grow into the leader that you could be, then you have a very small chance of making it in any online business. Do not be afraid of putting yourself out there for all the world to see because in the end…it is not about you. It is about them and their internal self-talk that will say yes or no to your offer.Do not get stuck in the old way of marketing and make sure you grow into a 21st century home based business online! Become the leader you were meant to be by getting a mentor that you feel you could follow. All good leaders have a great mentor that can teach them how to do it in the first place.

The media in both Bulgaria and the UK is still raving about the phenomenal investment potential of the Bulgarian property market. This hype has lead many people to invest in the market in the hope of making a fast return. Mass publicity about rising property prices lures many people to Bulgaria, but what is the reality of the situation?Quest Bulgaria takes a look at the reality of re-sales of property in Bulgaria and how much your property might be worth.Knight Frank, one of the UK’s most respected residential and commercial property consultancies, recently published a report stating that high increases in residential property prices placed Bulgaria in second place in a world table highlighting property price increases during the second quarter of 2007. The report stated prices increased by 27.1%, so does this mean my house is now worth around £44,000 more than it was when I put it on the market at the start of the year? Should I be increasing the price in line with market trends?A report by another reputable company, real estate consultants, Colliers, reported similar trends in Bulgarian property but focussed more on the fact that it was the number of buildings constructed. The mountain resorts showed 50% increases and the Black Sea coast 39%. How easy it is to read this statement in relation to prices increasing rather than that of the rate of build and to neglect the part of Colliers report, which states that overall sales prices have “remained unchanged for the past half year as supply continues to outpace demand.”The reality of the situation is that most reports measure Bulgaria’s property market success in terms of price increases or build rates and neglect the fact that in Bulgaria, the real estate market is unregulated and the seller puts the price tag on their property. The valuation process goes something like this, “Ivan across the road has advertised his house for sale at 20,000 euro, so my house must be worth 30,000 euro because it is bigger.”Another form of valuation has resulted from towns and in particular villages adopting unofficial rates. All it takes is a professional developer to move into the area and the price they charge for their properties, usually a cost per square metre, becomes the official standard.The village of Rogachevo on the Northern Black Sea coast is a prime example. Bulgarian Land Development Plc, a newly incorporated company now listed on the AIM stock market, has started the construction of a six million euro apartment and villa complex just outside of the village. The price of the property in the development ranges from between 750 to 1,200 euro per sq.m. The conclusion amongst people wishing to resell properties in the village is, “my property is now worth at least 750 euros a square metre.” The fact that property up for resale may not have the same scenic outlook, modern facilities or luxurious design is irrelevant to the sellers. Bulgarian sellers have little experience of the property market because until a few years ago there was little demand. Consequently, they are unused to working to the laws of supply and demand. Many British sellers, who hail from a mature property market are lost without the skills of a valuer and stamp a price on their resale based on the following equation:original cost + renovation costs + local market rates +desired profit =resale priceYet, as everyone who emigrated here on the lure of cheap property and a fast buck now knows, the resale market is slow and underdeveloped. Apartment blocks are shooting up at a rapid pace giving new buyers lots of choice in both price and design. Renovated houses are two a penny and who wants to buy a renovated traditional build in the middle of nowhere, when they have so many well-designed new builds to choose? At the moment, it is safe to say, that in Bulgaria, supply far exceeds demand in terms of land and property.The picture is not one of doom and gloom, but of caution rather than crash. The market is far from a crash, if it was, you would not see UK currency speculator Joe Lewis, investing 70 million pounds in the Bulgarian property market. And he is not alone, Israeli construction and investment company BSR Europe recently bought around 80,000 sq.m of land in Bulgaria for 37 million euro. Gardens Group is investing 400 million euro in a 600,000 sq.m development Lozen, a village close to Sofia.A source from Raiffeisen real estates said that most sales over the last 2 years are from re-sale clients. Most of theses people bought land or property, sat on it for at least three years and are now re-selling for profits between 20 and 50%. This is easy to achieve when looking at properties at the low end of the market; recently Raiffeisen sold a property, which the client bought for 10,000 euro and sold for 15,000, but the demand for rural renovation projects has declined. Land re-sales are lucrative if the location is good. Apparently, there is good demand for regulated land, close to the coast. Again, patience is the key. Raiffeisen have dealt with re-sellers who bought land in 2004 at 10 euro per sq.m and sold it in October 2007 for 25 euro per sq.m.British buyers have a “rising property” mentality. They expect property to increase dramatically in value as it has done over the last seven years in the UK. In this sense, they are not in tune with the rest of Europe; most of mainland Europe look at their property as their home, whereas the British view their property as a way to make money. Their foray into the Bulgarian property market has left many disappointed, because lead on by media hype, they expected the market to earn them vast profits in a short space of time as had happened in the UK. The lack of regulation in the Bulgarian real estate market has meant that the seller is in charge of valuing their own property and often they choose an inflated sales figure rather than checking actual market rates for re-sales.Property prices have increased in the last two years. Belinda Knowles (42), a trainee solicitor from Dulwich, bought her one-bedroom apartment in Golden Sands resort off-plan for 40,000 euro. It took two years to complete the project and she has just spent her first summer enjoying the fruits of her investment. A one bed roomed apartment in her block now costs 60,000 euro – a staggering growth of 50% – if she could sell her own. “I think the market is inflated by unscrupulous real estate agents. I’m certain that if I put my apartment up for sale at this price I would be left disappointed for two reasons. Why would someone buy my apartment when they can by a brand new one for the same price and if the demand is so great, why haven’t all of the apartments been sold?” Fortunately, Belinda bought her apartment as a long-term investment. “I have two teenage children and package holidays abroad were becoming ridiculously expensive. The children are also getting to the age where they would prefer to come on holiday with their friends rather than with me. I wanted to save money in the long-term by having a place abroad that the whole family could use via the low cost airline network and I wanted to be sure that it would be a safe place for my children to stay alone with their friends. Golden Sands is ideal. We get cheap flights with Wizz and British Airways from Gatwick which means we can come over more regularly and the nightclubs here are not filled with drug-taking louts, so I have no qualms about letting my kids go out.” She also knows that by the time they have out-grown Bulgaria, the apartment will yield a good return on her investment. “In ten years time, when my children have their own lives and means of support, they may not want to spend their leisure time here. I’m sure that with the rate of investment going into the country at the moment, my apartment will sell at a higher rate than I paid for it and I will have saved money in the long run by not having to fork out for package holiday fees.”Jayne from Sofia purchased a run down country house this year for 20,000 euro. “I have been quoted a further 20,000 euro to do it up and have set aside a contingency budget of 20,000 euro. I expect to be able to sell the property within two years for 70,000 euro netting me a modest 10,000 euro profit. I think this is a reasonable gain.”Assetz International Ltd, a reputable British investment company has warned its clients that growth rates of 20 -30 % in countries like Bulgaria would not continue and a cutback to a more steady and sustainable growth rate was necessary. They still labelled Bulgaria as the best place to invest in foreign property, but as early as 2005, Assetz advised caution, when investing in emerging markets like Bulgaria, “Low prices attract purchasers who are keen for a ‘quick fix’ solution to pension shortfalls, but as many agents will admit there is no guaranteed resale market in Bulgaria and little existing benchmark for measuring price increases.” Even as far back as 2005, they recommended that their clients view Bulgaria as a long-term investment rather than hoping for instant returns, sighting the fact that for a time supply would outstrip demand.Economic indicators, as we pointed out in last months copy of Quest Bulgaria, look healthy for Bulgaria and will go a long way to increasing house prices in the market, but in the long-term. What we need right now is a realistic adjustment in market prices.The key to investing in Bulgaria is; location, location, location – be reasonable, expect good returns in the medium and long term. Choose Bulgaria because it is a great place to be and you can have a home for less than the price of a dog kennel in Britain. Bulgaria still offers incredible prices compared to the rest of Europe, which will provide you with inexpensive holidays, a low cost of living, easy access, summer beaches and skiing in the winter.TIPS AND HINTS FOR BULGARIAN PROPERTY RE-SALESSupply currently outstrips demand in many areas giving buyers a great deal of choice and the potential for good prices.Don’t over-estimate the return. Expect to make good gains in the medium to long termInvest your money wisely – don’t take risks with a property portfolio if you need to make fast profits or need the moneyLocation and the type of property you buy will determine the size of your profits. So will future developments such as infrastructure, airports, cheap flights…. Research, research, research.Set reasonable prices on your resale, don’t pick numbers out of thin air or copy what others are doing. Market the best features of your property, what makes it special.Ask people you know how much they would expect to pay for your propertySit back and enjoy your property for yourself or consider turning it into a business to take the pressure off the need to re-sell.

The recent real estate “crisis” has caused a number of beneficial effects on the property management industry. There has never been a better time to consider starting a property management business than right now.

1. Houses are not selling, therefore homeowners that need to move and/or investors are forced to rent their units out; thus increasing the rental property supply chain.
2. Houses are foreclosing by homeowners and being bought by investors that in turn rent the property out. This increases the amount of supply as well.
3. The homeowners that were foreclosed upon will now be renters. Thus increasing the rental pool and increasing demand.

The above items create a perfect storm for the Property Management Business Industry. The purpose of my article is to present and discuss the 6 categories that are paramount in developing your property management business plan:

1. Executive Summary
2. General Company Description
3. Description of Services
4. Marketing Plan
5. Operational Plan
6. Budget

1. Executive Summary – Include everything that you would cover in a five-minute interview. Who are the owners, what is their experience in this industry? Explain the fundamentals of your business. What do you think the future holds for your business and your industry? Make it enthusiastic, professional, complete, and concise.

2. General Company Description – This includes your mission, vision and company commitments, Who is your target market (higher/lower end residential, multi-family, commercial), what price range of properties will you target, what area(s) will you target, who are the prospective tenants and what’s the future of your industry? Form of ownership, what factors will make the company succeed? What strengths do you personally bring to the business? Long term: What are your plans for the future of your business? Growth? If so, at what rate and how will you achieve it?

3. Description of Services – Describe in depth your property management service structure. What will you perform on a monthly basis for your property owners? What will be your monthly fee structure? What additional services will you offer such as evictions, project management, maintenance and what will your fee structure and profit center look like?

Much of your service offering will be developed by performing a complete competitive analysis. Your offering needs to be correctly place in the marketplace to make yourself unique. You should know your competitions monthly fee structure, how many properties they manage, number of managers, etc.

4. Marketing Plan – Bottom line: Your plan for how to attract clients. How will you get your company and offer in front of your prospective property owners. How will you utilize the following: (website, SEO (search engine optimization) plan, online marketing, signs, advertisements, associations, relationships, networking, direct mail campaigns, signs, yellow pages, calling for rent by owners, etc.)

By the way, there are methods that are much more effective than others for a start up real estate management company. Be sure to do your proper research before you unnecessarily spend money.

5. Operational Plan – Explain the daily operation of your business; (its location, equipment, people, processes, and surrounding environment.) If you are starting out opening your own prop mgt business, you will want to spend the majority of your free time in marketing techniques.

6. Budget and Financials – Includes your start up expenses, capital expenses and expected monthly recurring expenses. If you are starting out a your business with 0 properties as I did, you will want to start with a minimal budget in mind. Keep your costs as low as possible. What is your expected income based on your predicted growth rate?

Conclusion: Properly developing your property management business plan is the key to your success. Starting a property management business can be very rewarding, however not having the right direction and foresight from the beginning can blind you and your business. Remember; “Failing to properly plan is properly planning to fail.”

Patrick Rogers is the owner of Rents2Riches, a Property Management Business Coaching Company that is dedicated to the phenomenal development and growth of the Property Management Industry. Patrick also develops marketing products that help existing and startup Property Managers get more clients and learn the tips and tricks in operating a Property Management Business.

Advertising, its Role and Impact

Advertising is any paid form of non-personal presentation of ideas, goods and services by an identified sponsor. In this age of machinery, new things are produced everyday. Market is created for these things through advertisement. It is done through different ways to spread the knowledge of goods and services to people. Consumers encounter advertising message as they watch TV, read magazines, listen to the radio, or surf the internet, or simply walk down the street. In large scale production, producers cannot think of pushing their sales without advertising their products. Through advertisement people begin to feel a need for even those goods of which they had never before.

Advertisement creates demand. Informative view of advertising is to inform the buyers about the qualities and benefits they would get when they purchase the product. The advertiser expects to create a favorable attitude which would lead to the desired action. Persuasive view holds that all advertisers attempt to convert the prospects into customers. Complimentary view expresses that advertising affects the demand which influence the utility of customers with the consumption of the advertised product. Advertising has constructive role when sellers can maximize profits and buyer can reduce costs with a right choice of the product available in the market.

Advertisement should be based on human psychology and targeted audience. It assists the media planner to define different groups for a creative execution of the desired message. Good ads in wrong medium are waste of money. An appropriate mean of advertisement turns into an increase in sales and ultimate progress of the business. A feedback from the customer is always valuable for any business. Testing of advertisement is as much important as sale of products because ads are for people to respond to not to win awards. Real test lies in results achieved that can be a shift in sale or a change in the attitude of intended audience. Marketing targets can only be achieved by an attractive advertisement using an appropriate mean to a rightly selected targeted audience.

Advertising is an integral part of society. It encourages the people to purchase the products and services to facilitate their lives. Enhancement in a sale of products results not only in the progress of a single business but also beneficial for economic growth. Market awareness promotes the living standard of people in their personal and professional life. It bridges the gap between nations by advertising various cultural trends. Right advertisements entertain appreciation of customers that results in building image of the product and business. It reflects creativity of business and utility to the customers.

Advertisement is the backbone of commerce and industry. No business can survive without it. To get success in business, advertisement plays a vital role as business world rotates on the pivot of advertisement. It contributes to bring about all round development of economy by increasing demand and income level of businesses and nation as a whole. To run a business without its aid is not possible in this modern age.