Caribbean Countries where its easiest to start a business

According to the 2014 world bank doing business report, St Lucia tops the list of Caribbean Countries in terms of ease of doing business. However as it relates to starting a business, Its easiest to start a business in Jamaica. Here is an info-graphic that shows the top 10 Caribbean countries where its easiest to start a business.

1.       Jamaica: World Bank 2014 ease of starting a business ranking - 23

·         Days to register a firm- 6

·         Deposit in bank- 0% of national income

·         Conduct name search and prepare incorporation documents- 1 days

·         Register with commercial registry- 1 days

·         Cost (% of national income)- 6.4

2.       Dominica: World Bank 2014 ease of starting a business ranking -  51

·         Days to register a firm- 12

·         Deposit in bank- 0% of national income

·         Conduct name search and prepare incorporation documents- 1 days

·         Register with commercial registry- 2 days

·         Cost (% of national income)- 16.5

3.       St Lucia: World Bank 2014 ease of starting a business ranking -  57

·         Days to register a firm- 15

·         Deposit in bank- 0% of national income

·         Conduct name search and prepare incorporation documents- 2 days

·         Register with commercial registry- 6 days

·         Make Company seal-  7 days

4.       Trinidad and Tobago: World Bank 2014 ease of starting a business ranking -  67

·         Days to register a firm- 37.5

·         Deposit in bank- 0% of national income

·         Conduct name search and prepare incorporation documents- 1 day

·         Register with commercial registry- 4 days

·         Make Company seal-  2 days

5.       St Vincent: World Bank 2014 ease of starting a business ranking -  68

·         Days to register a firm- 10

·         Deposit in bank- 0% of national income

·         Conduct name search and prepare incorporation documents- 2 days

·         Register with commercial registry- 2 days

·         Cost (% of national income)- 17.2

6.       Grenada: World Bank 2014 ease of starting a business ranking -  72

·         Days to register a firm- 15

·         Deposit in bank- 0% of national income

·         Conduct name search and prepare incorporation documents- 5 days

·         Register with commercial registry- 5 days

·         Make Company seal-  2 days

·         Cost (% of national income)- 19.7

7.       St Kitts: World Bank 2014 ease of starting a business ranking -  73

·         Days to register a firm- 18.5

·         Deposit in bank- 0% of national income

·         Conduct name search and prepare incorporation documents- 2 days

·         Register with commercial registry- 3 days

·         Make Company seal-  5 days

·         Cost (% of national income)- 8.7

8.       Barbados: World Bank 2014 ease of starting a business ranking -  77

·         Days to register a firm- 18

·         Deposit in bank- 0% of national income

·         Conduct name search and prepare incorporation documents- 4 days

·         Register with commercial registry- 2 days

·         Make Company seal-  1 days

·         Cost (% of national income)- 7.2

9.       Bahamas: World Bank 2014 ease of starting a business ranking -  83

·         Days to register a firm- 23.5

·         Deposit in bank- 0% of national income

·         Conduct name search and prepare incorporation documents- 2 days

·         Register with commercial registry- 10 days

·         Make Company seal-  3 days

·         Cost (% of national income)- 10.4

10.   Antigua and Barbuda: World Bank 2014 ease of starting a business ranking -  92

·         Days to register a firm- 21

·         Deposit in bank- 0% of national income

·         Conduct name search and prepare incorporation documents- 4 days

·         Register with commercial registry- 10 days

·         Make Company seal-  5 days

·         Cost (% of national income)- 10.5

E- Commerce- The Future is Now

The playing field has changed a lot in business and entrepreneurship over the past decades. Business as it was done in the past will remain a thing of the past. Today many of the new age millionaires are entrepreneurs who have been able to embrace the technological revolution and live in the information age comfortably. The information age presents entrepreneurs today with many opportunities for success. Today, any business that is not online is missing a huge opportunity. I have come across many entrepreneurs who said that their business is brick and mortar, it found success as a brick-and-mortar business and it will remain this way. I always say to these people who it will be only a matter of time before they realize they are fooling themselves.

I had a conversation with an entrepreneur about utilizing social media and other online tools to promote his business. He said to me that his business has been operating in that area for the past 30 years and everyone knows him there. I then went on to ask him if the people living around him are the same people who has been there for the past 30 years. As entrepreneurs, we need to understand that people change over time, and so do their preferences for doing business.

Social media has revolutionize the way we do business over the past years; social media allows businesses to have a conversation with their customers and not just a one-way flow of information like traditional media allowed. Social media can, however, make or break a business and it needs to be used with care.

E-commerce is one of the biggest trends in business around the world. Consumers are finding it much more convenient to go online and make their purchases through an online store. Many businesses have their e-commerce store and in the absence of one, apps such as Shopify will allow you to build an online store to sell your products. Even Facebook is allowing its users to build their own online store to do business.

Some of the biggest trends to watch out for in 2014 as it relates to e-commerce include:

1. Enhance customer experience: Many companies will need to enhance the experience for their customers shopping online. People will need to have a positive and engaging experience with your brand beyond just the purchase.

2. Mobile: Very soon people will use their mobile devices to do everything, much of the purchases being made today are from a mobile device and this will only continue to grow. Every website will need to be mobile friendly and mobile optimized.

3. Content marketing: Many businesses will get involved in writing blog post and creating content that will be engaging to customers and lead them back to their websites.

4. Online branding: This involves business and personal branding. Your brand is not what you say you are, it's what your customers say you are. You don't determine your brand you only manage it, and this is what will get most of these businesses more serious about their online branding efforts in 2014.

5. Delivery: Having customers purchase something online and having to wait long periods for it will become a thing of the past, many companies are starting to perfect same-day delivery and in 2014 we will see much more of that.

We know of many e-commerce companies, such as Amazon, eBay, and others, are very popular around the world originating from North America. One company that has been able to make e-commerce work for them in an impressive manner is https://www.jumia.com.eg/ JUMIA is Africa's leading online shopping destination. Customers across the continent can shop amongst the widest assortment of high-quality products at affordable prices -- offering everything from fashion, consumer electronics, home appliances to beauty products. What I am very impressed about with Jumia is that it's located in Africa. Though it is really a venture of the German firm Rocket Internet, it has shown that it's truly possible to stay local and reach global, and proves that Africa is not getting left behind where e-commerce is concerned.

The Internet will provide businesses today with the necessary competitive advantage they need to be successful in today's business climate. Failure to embrace the Internet and everything that comes with it could lead to complete business failure.

Extracted from huffingtonpost.com written by Kimron Corion

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/nelson-kimron-corion/ecommerce-the-future-is-now_b_5416844.html

Take Control of your life- Start a Business

Think Big Work Smart,Hustle Hard: Business Start-Up Series

Job security is a word that is quickly becoming obsolete, in the past person could have boasted of their job security and having a secure future. In today’s world of uncertainty, depending on others to provide some sort of job security for you may be one of the biggest mistakes you can make. Individuals will need to be able to create their own job stability and own opportunities for having a secure future. One of the ways this can be done is through entrepreneurship. Individuals can start their own business and take control of their lives and not depend on others.

There are some frightening statistics that shows that a huge percentage of businesses fail within their first year of operation. This is one of the reasons that many persons decide to not venture into entrepreneurship and starting their own business. One of the reasons for this failure is a lack of knowledge as it relates to Business Start-Up. The internet has become an information hub for entrepreneurs thinking of starting a business. The internet has also made it very easy for entrepreneurs to start and grow business.

In an effort to help with this problem, I have decided to start a Business Start-Up series. Here entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs can ensure that they are well knowledgeable as to what it takes to start a business, starting from deciding what type of entrepreneur you are to the actual business launch. This business Start-Up series is presented on www.kimroncorion.com and individuals can subscribe to the Business Start-Up series Newsletter to receive important and timely business start-up information.

It’s important to note that knowledge by itself is not power, the correct application of knowledge is power. And the knowledge that one will gain through this business start-up series, if properly applied can be very powerful.

Think Big Work Smart Hustle Hard: Business Start-Up Series Part 1

What Type of Entrepreneur are you?

I have been an advocate for entrepreneurship for many years, I believe in the opportunities that entrepreneurship can offer, however I also know that not everyone can be an entrepreneur. I have also come to  the realization that there are different types of entrepreneurs, while someone may succeed as an entrepreneur in one field, that person may not do so in another field due to the fact that it may not be his entrepreneurial type.  I believe the first thing one needs to do is to determine whether or not they are an entrepreneur or have what it takes to become an entrepreneur.

Many individuals decide to get into entrepreneurship without much preparation. They come from different walks of life and decide to go full steam into becoming an entrepreneur without really taking stock of one self.  The fact that you may be able to become an entrepreneur doesn't mean it is the right time for you.

It is very important for someone to understand their strengths and weaknesses when deciding to become entrepreneurs, it is important to understand that:

·        - Proper work ethic and discipline needs to be developed, time needs to be spent working on your business and not slacking

·       -  Control your spending, in deciding to become an entrepreneur, it’s important to know how and when to spend money.

·        - Have a strong urgency of now. You need to understand that things need to be done in order to get your business off the ground and procrastination is the greatest hindrance to entrepreneurial success.

·        -  Reinventing the wheel is overrated. When deciding to get into entrepreneurship, many individuals try to do something that has never done before. That’s overrated, as an entrepreneur you can look at what already exist and try to make it better, or execute it differently and become successful.

·         -Your wellbeing is very important, your health is your wealth, according to Arianna Huffington, wellbeing is the third metric of success, taking care of your body to avoid burnouts that could lead to health problems. Ensure you balance work and play

·      -   Keep people around that can guide you, having a mentor can be an indispensable part of entrepreneurial success

Many writers may tell you that to become an entrepreneur you need to

1.       Be a risk taker

2.       Excellent at sales

3.       Willing to work 24/7

4.       Outgoing

5.       You need to have a killer idea

While all this is really nice I do believe that every entrepreneur I know violates at least one of these and many more not listed there. I believe that what aspiring entrepreneurs need to do is take a look at themselves and figure out what type of entrepreneur they can be or need to be. I believe Rhonda Abrams hit the nail on the head when she broke down your entrepreneurial type into 9 categories, once this is understood, we can all have more entrepreneurial success.

A.      First there is the Advisor/Counsellor, these are the individuals who gets paid for giving their opinion.  They have a great deal of knowledge and experience that people are willing to pay for. It takes time to build credibility here, but it’s worth it

B.      There is the Builder/Creator; these people excel at making things, whether it’s a cake or building a house or just painting. It’s for people who have the desire to create stuff.

C.      The Caregiver/Maintainer is the person that provides consistent and reliable nurturing to others. Society has a need for maintenance, be it for peoples, plants, animals or things. If that’s you then you can look towards this route for entrepreneurship.

D.      This is one of my favorites, the Communicator/Trainer, these individuals are exceptionally good with words, written or verbal and does very well with communicating complex ideas to others. The number of communication channels has increased in recent years and so has the need for communicators and trainers.

E.       There is the Entertainer/Host, these people love parties and love to be the life of the party, they thrive on being with people or in front of people, outgoing and enjoy the spotlight. They can command attention and love making others happy.

F.       The Investor/Owner is good with numbers, and loves to take calculated risk and have money available to them (or is able to raise the money) to make investments).

G.     The Organizer/Administrator is the one that keep things running daily. They excel at managing multiple task, details and deadlines. They are not the star of the show but without them there is no show. They are detail oriented, making sure all details get attended to.

H.      The Seller/Broker are true hustlers, everyone needs good sales people. If you can sell then you’ll always be in demand since there are opportunities to sell anything. Sales are great for self-employment.

I.        Then there is the Technologist/Engineer, these people designs, makes, sells or service all those technology gadgets that we all need. They liked figuring out computers, cars, engines when they were only kids. If you can do this you can build a business around it.

Once you understand the type of person you are, it becomes easier to fully understand what kind of entrepreneur you can become. Not everyone can become an entrepreneur, some persons are better at working for entrepreneurs and that’s OK. Not everyone can handle the pressures of entrepreneurship, however everyone is capable of becoming an entrepreneur if he so desires. Look out for more articles and videos in this series that will help you launch you into the path of entrepreneurship.

Business Plan- A must have if you're going into Business

Planning is an indispensable part of doing business. Having a business plan is crucial because it allows you to map out where you are and where you want to be. You can always refer to your business plan in the future to see whether or not your business is going in the direction you intended for it to go. If you were to build a house without a house plan this will lead to chaos. The same principle apply's to your business. This doesn't have to be a 20 page elaborate plan, but having that business plan is one of your critical success factors.

Who’s really stealing your money and some of the ways to catch the thief

Many persons are finding money disappearing from their bank accounts, pockets, even from their hands and they keep asking themselves, where this money is going? Many people blame the government for the aforementioned disappearances; claiming that the government is stealing their money through taxes. Some others blame their banks or Credit Unions, claiming that the institutions are stealing their monies.

I have been looking into this phenomenon and I realized that the real thief may really be closer to us than we think.

I have identified one of the biggest thieves and I felt it was my duty to expose him. I will also show five (5) ways how he robs us blind and what we can do to stop him.

The thief surname is “Habbit”, first name “Financial” and I know many of us know him, because we all have him as our friend. He can be a good friend, or a bad friend. When he is being a bad friend we need to get rid of him, however many of us prefer to have him around especially when he is being a very bad friend and robbing us blind. The following are five (5) ways he robs us and what we can do to stop him:

1-      Through Cable (TV)- It seems to be a normal thing for persons to spend over $100.00 on cable every month. Is this a need? No!!!  It’s a want.  How about cutting back on our TV habits a bit? I am not saying to not have cable if you feel like you can’t do without it, maybe it’s best to just have the basic package and leave these premium expensive channels alone.

2-      ATM fees- Do you have any idea how much money you are wasting by hitting up the ATM every time you need to make a small withdrawal. Especially if you are using the ATM of a bank that is not your bank. You pay fees to your bank and you pay fees to the bank whose ATM you are using.  Try setting a (weekly or fortnightly) budget and take out enough money from your pay to last you until the next week or two if possible to avoid too much frequent visit to the ATM. If you are using your bank and not paying fees, then kudos to you.

3-      Impulse buying- You go to the supermarket to get milk, however while standing in the line to pay you grab a pack of gum. You walk past a hotdog stand and smell the hotdog and think you must get one, coffee on the way to work. If you get rid of these small indulgences, you’ll be surprised at how much you’ll be saving. If you don’t need it don’t buy it, if you can’t afford it put it down.

4-      Brand Name- I guess this is about making a fashion statement. But do you really need to pay a whole lot of money to advertise a brand for a company. Shouldn’t they be paying you to advertise for them? I will never tell people to stop wearing brand name, but if this is getting in the way of you achieving financial freedom, then you have a choice to make. Decide what’s important in your life and move on from there.

5-      Loans to buy liabilities- I will define a liability using Robert Kiyosaki definition which is anything that takes money out of your pocket. An asset by contrast is anything that put money in your pocket. Many people apply for loans to purchase personal vehicles, a car for instance. They apply for the loan; they have to pay back the loan with interest every month. Then ever so often you have to buy tires for the car, brakes, clutch, filters, insurance, oil, repair minor damages, gas and a whole host of other things, again I am not saying don’t purchase a car, however ask yourself, is it necessary. All this car may be doing is robbing you of your hard earned money.

It is about time to STOP PICKING OUR OWN POCKET. Review your financial habits, take time to develop good financial habits, have a family budget and stick to it. If you feel that you can’t live within your means, then that’s no problem, you just need to EXPAND your means. Consider entrepreneurship or a second job, just don’t rob yourself.