Among all kinds of businesses available to choose from, home based business ventures are the most convenient. Imagine being able to manage your income and your resources all in the comfort of your home. Who would not want that? However, business is still business. There might be advantages in having your business established at home, but there are also a lot of disadvantages hanging on the balance.Many people who are quite new in the field of business deals and further financial negotiations rely on the easy-to-understand terms of certain businesses. For example, through online business ventures, people get to earn cash only by following a few steps. They don’t necessarily need to have in depth knowledge about the things they are doing.But if you look at this from another point of view, you might see that people who engage in such ventures could become a victim. If they do not fully understand the nature of the work that they do, they might as well be involved in some illegal activity without being aware. Or their services could already have been taken advantage of the people they work with.So before you yourself plan to engage in doing a home based business, make sure that you completely understand the operations of what you will be doing. Otherwise, like I said, you might become a victim. Here are a few things that you can do in order to prevent this from happening.First, research about how you can establish your home based business of choice. If you can, gather firsthand opinions and pieces of information about people who have already tried it. From there, try to see if there are similar options that you can select as forms of alternatives. Who knows, maybe you might even earn more by other means, right? And then, if you are sure about the efficacy of your business choice, then do the necessary steps to establish it.Engaging in online home based business ventures is probably the riskiest of all. Because for one, you will not be able to negotiate with real people, you will solely rely on electronic communication. For another, even though the market for online home based business ventures is very wide, the presence of competitions is very tight as well. So you must have a certain pack of techniques with you in order for you to succeed in the field that you choose.

Fundraising Auction Tip: You should always provide potential bidders with a printed Auction Listing of both your Live and Silent Auction items at any Fundraising Auction. A printed Auction Listing is vital for several reasons:

An Auction Listing informs bidders of the order of sale, and what is coming up next. If you keep your bidders guessing, they will simply not bid.

If bidders are not 100% certain of what they are bidding on, they will not bid. A printed Auction Listing should answer any and all questions about what is being sold in order to encourage bidders to bid as much as possible.

Bidders often need time to plan their bidding strategies, especially on multiple and/or larger value items. A printed Auction Listing helps them to do that.

Couples often need time to consult with each other about what they are willing to spend on something. A printed Auction Listing helps them to do that.

Potential bidders need to know the specifics, the benefits, and the restrictions on any item they are going to bid on, especially on travel and/or other higher value items. A printed Auction Listing should answer all of their questions, in writing.

After bidders see that they have lost an item to another bidder, a printed Auction Listing makes it easier for them to re-strategize on what else they can bid on.
Printed Auction Listings generally come in 3 forms:

Printed in the Event Program or Auction Catalog.

Printed on loose sheets of paper and hand-inserted into the Event Program or Auction Catalog.

Printed on loose sheets of paper and hand-delivered to all attendees, or left on each dinner table in the room.
Auction Listings cost practically nothing to produce and they can make the difference between the success and failure of a Live and Silent Auction. You should never conduct a Fundraising Auction without one.

A Case Study

Let me share a real-life experience with you. Once I was hired to conduct a Fundraising Auction for a nationally renowned organization. The event was held in a major hotel, in one of the country’s largest cities, with several hundred “black tie” participants attending. It was an extremely professional event, with the music, singing, lighting, speeches, and awards all perfectly timed and choreographed. Everything was done to perfection… exception the Fundraising Auction.

Although I had signed an agreement to serve as their Auctioneer nearly one year in advance of the event, no one bothered to contact me for any advice or help. Approximately one week prior to the Auction date, I contacted the group to see if they had replaced me with another Auctioneer. But they said that I was still their man.

Upon arriving at the event I asked for a copy of the Auction Listing. I was told that there were none. I’m not sure whether they felt that the Auction Listing wasn’t necessary, or whether someone forgot to have them printed. This was never made clear. When I asked what I was to use at the podium, I was told to copy the list of Live Auction items from a committee member’s computer. It took me about 30 minutes to copy three pages of hand-written notes in order to prepare for my role as their Auctioneer.

I knew that they had created a PowerPoint program showing the various Live Auction items. When I asked whether the PowerPoint slide order corresponded to the order of sale I had copied from the committee member’s computer, I was met with a blank stare. The committee member left to check the slide order, and returned to let me know that the slide order did not correspond my notes, and he provided me with the correct slide order… hand-written on a paper napkin. This forced me to re-arrange my three pages of hand-written notes before taking the podium.

There was a Live Auction Table with descriptions of the Live Auction items that were to be sold, but the table was not clearly marked, and it received significantly less attention than the Silent Auction Tables, which were clearly identified. Since the Live Auction Table was located adjacent to the “Raffle Table”, it appeared that most people thought it was part of the raffle and therefore paid very little attention to it.

According to the event program (which did not include an Auction Listing), I knew approximately when I was to begin the Live Auction. At the designated time the Master of Ceremonies announced the start of the Live Auction to the several hundred people in attendance, and introduced me as Auctioneer. As I approached the podium I realized that photographs of award winners were still being taken… directly in front of the podium where I was to stand… which required me to stand aside for several minutes until the photographers were done. Can we say “awkward moment”?

As the photographers cleared, I approached the podium and began my Live Auction introduction. Approximately one minute into my introduction, the “Raffle Committee” approached the podium and stopped my Live Auction Introduction in order to pull the 8 or 9 Raffle Winners. These drawings lasted about 5 minutes. Upon it’s conclusion I was allowed to resume the start of the Live Auction.

When standing at the podium two intense and extremely bright spotlights were pointed directly at the podium. The lights were so bright that I literally could not see the center 1/3 of the room. I could see the tables on the right, and on the left, but was totally blinded when looking straight ahead. It took perhaps five minutes before the spotlights were turned off.

While at the podium and describing Lot #1, I had to ask someone to start the Lot #1 PowerPoint Slide… because apparently no one was assigned that job.

So with only the Auctioneer’s verbal description, and a PowerPoint slide, it appeared that few people in the room had any idea about what we were selling… or when we were selling it… until it was announced by the Auctioneer. As a result, bidding was extremely light and the final results fell several thousands of dollars short of where they should have been
The learning experience is this:

The Live Auction is where you place your better items, and where the real money should be made at any Fundraising Auction. Let bidders know as far in advance as possible what you will be selling, and the order of sale, so they can get excited about the Auction, and plan their bidding strategy accordingly.

Auction Listings are absolutely vital to the success of both Live & Silent Auctions. In my opinion, revenues at this Auction fell thousands of dollars short of where they should have been, because no Auction Listing was provided to the guests.

If bidders are not perfectly clear on what is being sold, including both the item’s specifics, benefits, and restrictions, they will not bid.

When you have a committee of volunteers, especially volunteers having full time jobs and/or very busy schedules, the services of a professional Fundraising Auctioneer can help to keep the committee on track.

And once you retain the services of a professional Fundraising Auctioneer… use the services that you are paying for.

Many types of businesses can operate out of the home, but finding one that works for you can be a challenge. Most find that starting a home-based business solves and relieves many of the problems presented with a traditional career. This article explores the benefits of working from home, and why you should consider starting a home-based business.With the state of the economy, more people are looking for cheaper solutions to cover their needs. Many of these needs are met by home based businesses. With lowered expenses, and increased tax benefits, most home businesses are able to provide their service for a low cost, while still making a suitable profit. This is often why consumers choose low-key private operations, such as these, over large corporations. The demand alone is evidence that these businesses are becoming more popular, and a great reason why you should consider starting a home-based business.Another point to consider is the freedom that comes with a home-based business. With parents having to work to support their families they are left with less time to actually spend with their children. Working from home allows you to completely cut out driving, which saves time, money, and in the long run, leaves more time for your family – not to mention that you can choose when, where, and how you want to work. That’s right, no more missed ballet recitals or soccer games – working at home allows you to be the parent that a traditional job would otherwise prevent. A home-based business means that you get to make all the rules, and no more being forced into pointless meetings to having to work late. These aspects amongst other are why you should consider starting a home-based business.A Chinese proverb says “What you desire is always possible. It will come to you.” This outlook on life is similar to that of someone who operates a home business. Perhaps the best reason why you should consider starting a home-based business is that you are in control of how much money you make, once you find your selling niche you can choose how hard and how long you work. In other words, you choose how much money you make. Whether you just want to be able to pay all your bills, or be able to live a bit lavishly, you can choose how much income you need to feel comfortable.In conclusion, these are just a few examples of why you should consider starting a home-based business. The time is now: demand has never been higher and getting started has never been easier. The freedom and room for profit alone are indicators that this business is for you! With some simple planning you could be up and running in no time; the possibilities are endless! Good luck!