Building a successful home-based business - includes resources for the home-based business owner

Black Enterprise, Sept, 1997 by Wendy M. Beech

Meeting planning is a high-pressure business. To be successful, you must be able to work under tight deadlines. You must also be creative, have an eye for detail, have excellent presentation and communication skills and be very organized. "It requires the ability to juggle five to 10 things at one time without losing sight of any small issue because one minor detail falling through the crack could result in major disaster," says Jackson.

Most meeting planners charge by the hour, day or project. The average hourly rate is $40-$60, and the daily fee is $400-$500. Planners of large events tend to charge 15%-20% of the project's entire budget. "The range of my services is from $20,000-$150,000 per event," says Jackson, who coordinates an event every 45-60 days. Since inception, her company has earned $500,000 in revenues. Typical revenues for a home-based meeting planning company range from $25,000-$100,000 per year.

For more information about a home-based meeting planning business, contact: Meeting Professionals International, 4455 LBJ Freeway, Suite 1200, Dallas, TX 75244; 972-7023000.

FEEL LIKE GOING GLOBAL? TRY INTERNATIONAL TRADE

How many times have you heard the words "going global" and wondered how to get involved? While larger corporations are leading the pack when it comes to international trade, many home-based businesses are catching up and cashing in on the $1.3 trillion import/export business. Increased technology has made this type of business perfect for the home. "It's excellent because you really don't have people coming in and out of your office every day," says Brower, also regional director for the National Association of Home-Based Businesses (NAHBB) in Owings Mills, Maryland. "Most of your work is done over the phone and via fax."

To successfully trade internationally, you must research the country you wish to import from or export to and identify manufacturers, wholesalers and distributors who will supply and deliver your products to specific destinations. You must also be familiar with government regulations concerning customs, shipping, tariffs and pricing (see "How To Build A Thriving Import/Export Business," May 1997). Knowledge of a foreign language is helpful but not necessary since English is recognized as the international language for doing business.

One of the first steps to trading is deciding whether there is a market for your product. grower, 47, realized a niche market for ethnic eyeglass frames after talking with a black optometrist about the workmanship of European-fitted frames. She found that African Americans have wider bridges, rounder faces and longer temples but that most frames are made for people with narrow bridges and shorter temples. "That's why the frame slides down the nose, leaves deep marks on the side and hurts behind the ears," says grower.

With assistance from Andecker International, an import/export management company in Baltimore, Brower identified four foreign manufacturers of ethnic-fitted frames. She began importing $1,000 worth of eyeglass wear and selling through four U.S. wholesalers and distributors. Cost ranges from $75-$125 per pair. She is also working with an American manufacturer to export ethnic fitted sunglasses overseas. (Atlantic Optical Framewear; (410) 654-4469)