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How Your Business Startup Can Take Advantage of the Holiday Spending Peak

The holidays are here, and your business startup needs to make the most of this selling opportunity. With holiday shopping expected to break $100 billion in online sales, according to a prediction by CMO, your business can take advantage of the holiday season by putting on its best face and generating additional revenue with these holiday promotional tips.

Find your special holiday niche

Start by taking a look at what your business startup offers that ties in with the holiday spirit, so you can maximize your sales with customers looking for that perfect holiday gift or treat. Think about the niche that your products and services serve and increase the hype with some added holiday cheer. Gear your products specifically as Christmas gifts and offer special services that can be gifted to friends and families. Customers will seize the opportunity for a new and creative gift idea that can bring that unexpected surprise come Christmas morning.

Engage with your customers

Now is the perfect time to divulge deeper into the relationship you have established with your customers. Engage with them in a fun way and help get them ready for the holidays by offering an interactive opportunity with your business startup. Maybe its picture with Santa, a customer appreciation party or just an offering of a holiday snack as they shop. The more you focus in on your client base and treat them special during the holiday time the more they will be apt to visit you after the long break.

Be merry and spread cheer on social media

Use the holidays as a time to show your business startup’s holiday cheer on social media. Be creative in your social media campaigns and include a holiday twist with each post that you make. Tie it into your products and services, and you have a holiday recipe for added shares, likes, and follows. This can increase your fan base and drive customers to your website in a flurry, allowing for more interaction with your offerings during the holiday season to help reach the ultimate in sales revenue.

Bring on the sales and giveaways

Customers love a deal, and they especially love one during the holiday season. With a large number of people to buy for on gift-giving lists, having the potential to save on a present can create some appreciation with your customers. Generate a buzz about your business startup by offering a generous sale or have a giveaway for a coveted product. This will drive traffic to your website as well as your brick and mortar location as your customers look to get in on the action.

Overhaul your website with a holiday motif

Remind your customers that the holidays are here and they need to get those last-minute purchases done by creating a website that has a festive look to it. With a simple design motif, you can evoke the holidays on your website and entice customers to buy gifts from your website even more.

Creating holiday packaging and promotions

Take the holidays to a new level by creating special packaging for your products that signifies the holidays are here. This will attract buyers and help them envision your offerings as the ideal holiday gift. Package multiple products together for a themed gift package or provide gift wrapping services to make it even easier for a customer to get their holiday to-do list done by buying from your business.

Make it easy to buy from your business startup

With the majority of transactions for the holidays happening online, you need to ensure your business startup is ready to handle the volume and the use of mobile devices. Ensure your website is optimized for the additional mobile device shopping you will see during the holidays and make sure it can handle the added load of transactions to occur through your website. Have plenty of inventory in stock as nothing disappoints a customer more than finding the perfect gift and then realizing it is out of stock. This can create a bad taste in the mouth of customers that want to make their Christmas shopping as easy as possible.

Don’t forget the kids

Many of your customers are parents that bring their kids in tow when they visit and shop with your business. Even if your business startup isn’t geared towards kids, you can create a special event that helps to entertain them during the holiday time. Provide goody bags to the kids or have a day that is dedicated just to children with activities designed around them. Parents will be thankful for the opportunity to shop at your business while their kids are entertained by your friendly staff of elves.

Appreciate the business you had all year long

Make the holiday a time for appreciating the customers that have been loyal to your business by sending them a personalized holiday card. This will show your customers that their business matters and you couldn’t have gone through the year without it. By taking the time to send a holiday card that is handwritten, your customers will know that you put some thought and effort into the idea. Add a coupon or special discount savings to ensure these customers come visit you again after the holidays when business starts to slow.

Make time to give back

Your community is no doubt a big supporter of your business startup, and you need to do your part to give back. Use the holidays to donate to a local charity by holding a holiday fundraising event. Donate a portion of all sales made throughout the day or match your customers’ donations dollar for dollar. This is an ideal way to increase traffic to your business while also showing you are thankful to the community for their support all year long.

Keeping these holiday promotional tips in mind, you can take advantage of the increase in purchases made this time of year. You will be able to show off your business’ holiday pride while enticing customers to buy your products and services as the perfect gift idea.

 

More detailed information and useful advice can be found at Funded.com If you need to access our network of angel investors or a business plan for start-up funding visit Funded.com

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4 Reasons Why Your Angel Investor Says, “NO” To Your Business Startup

It’s no secret that angel investors prefer a sure thing when it comes investing in a business startup. But, that doesn’t always mean they won’t take risks when it comes to funding a business that shows great promise. If you your business startup has all the makings of a successful operation, but you keep striking out when it comes to getting the nod from a seed investor you need to consider the reasons they keep saying “no” to you.

Here are four reasons why an angel funder may be hesitant to fund your business startup. 

You Need A Business Plan That Works

 It is imperative to have a business plan in place when you seek out funding from a private investor. An undetailed business plan can raise eyebrows and have seed investors cooling off to your ideas. Take the time to develop your business plan, marketing plan, and short- and long-term goals for the business before you approach an angel investor for business funding as they will be more receptive to your proposal and help you avoid that resounding “no” for no good reason.

It Needs To Be The Right Time And Place

They say that timing is everything in business. It may be true of your angel investor as well. While you may have a stellar idea, sales coming in already, and a strong business plan to back you up, if your investor isn’t ready to make the leap, the chances of you getting funding may soon walk out the door. Don’t take these rejections personally. Realize that when the time comes, and an angel investor is ready, you’ll reap the rewards of waiting until the time was right.

They Don’t Understand The Market

Some markets require a steep learning curve to understand and recognize who the competition is. Your private investor may not be able to grasp who your target customer is and what your business brings that is new. Finding an investor that sees your vision is imperative as you look to propel your business forward. You want an investor that backs you and without a clear understanding of the market, you may face rejection from an angel investor that wasn’t right, to begin with.

They Are Just Not The Right Investor

Sometimes hearing a “no” from a business investor is a blessing in disguise. They may not have complimented your business in the way that you needed them to or they may not have given you the support you needed to soldier on. Finding the right angel partner can help your business to thrive, but waiting for them to come along can be a challenge. With a little patience, you won’t be disappointed.

 

Access our network of Angel Investors, Venture Capital or get instantly matched with a Lender. Create a crowd funding campaign or get a business plan by visiting us Funded.com

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Need Funds? 6 Steps In Applying For A Venture Capital

If you are planning to establish your own startup, one of the first things that you have to do is to secure financial support. One way to do it is to apply for a bank loan. Another – and the more popular one – is to seek support from venture capitalists.

Because of the competition, getting an approval from a VCs is not that easy. However, with the amount of available funds out there, it’s never impossible to get one – if you know what to do.

Everyone agrees that in the process of getting financial support from VCs, the most important moment is the time when you make your pitch to your potential investors. And while you have to pay a lot of attention to this particular occasion, you must also keep in mind that most of your time will not be spent on the actual pitching – it will be on the preparation.

Like baseball pitchers, entrepreneurs who want to secure investments should spend more time preparing for the pitch than the actual pitch itself. Following is a step-by-step preparation process that aims to assist entrepreneurs who seek funding from venture capitalists:

Step 1: Look for Specific Partners

Instead of just looking for investment firms, entrepreneurs should focus their time identifying specific venture partners. Despite working at the same investment firm, partners usually differ in terms of operations, capabilities, and expertise. Some investors, for instance, prefer startups focusing on electronics or health-related services, among others. Knowing this will save you a lot of time.

One way to help you in your research is to speak with other entrepreneurs who recently closed investment rounds. They can give you information regarding not just the firms but also the specific venture partners.

Step 2: Get to Know Your Potential Investors

After identifying a number of potential investors, learn how they operate. It is not advisable to immediately approach them and ask for funds – it’s a one way ticket to rejection. What you must first do is to get to know them and, if possible, get them to know you.

You can connect with them through social media accounts. Follow them on Twitter and check their Facebook presence. You can get their attention by providing insightful and interesting comments on some of their posts. Keep in mind, however, that you have to do this moderately. Otherwise, you’ll be tagged a stalker with a vested interest.

Step 3: Secure Meaningful Referrals

Establishing a social media network with your potential investor is not enough to get their approval. More than that, you should get their attention by securing referrals from people they trust.

Recommendations from accountants and lawyer, while not entirely worthless, would not usually secure an investment. What you must have is a referral from an entrepreneur who is already on the portfolio of your potential venture capitalist. Getting one is difficult, but it might spell the difference between an approval and a rejection.

Step 4: Preview Your Venture First

Like what was previously stated, immediately asking for money is not a very effective move. Thus, when you get the opportunity, schedule a meeting with your potential investors and tell them that you want to preview your venture and get their insights. This will pique their interest and will assure positive reception to future meetings.

Step 5: Provide Updates and Follow-ups

Following the preview meeting, do not forget to send your potential investors with updates and follow-ups. Giving them information about the improving status of your startup will act as a signal that will entice them to forge a partnership with you.

Step 6: Initiate Fundraising

Finally, when you have finished the first five steps, coordinate with your potential venture capitalists and ask them for possible investments. This step should not be very difficult especially with all the information and recommendations that you have previously gathered.

Following the six steps would take a lot of time. But it will assure you that when you return to running your business, you have secured that elusive investment that you really need.

More detailed information and useful advice can be found at www.funded.com Created by Mark Favre, it offers expertise and assistance with developing and funding your concept, including a private forum for queries and discussions. If you need access to investors and funding providers, please do check our website.