Online Business Ideas – Drop Shipping

If you are like a lot of people in today’s economy, you are looking for ways to make extra money and are looking at the internet to help you with that. You know there’s got to be ways to make money because others are doing it, but you don’t know where to start.

Research shows that more people are turning to the internet for product research, product and store comparisons, and purchasing the item they want. Even though, for now at least, fuel prices are coming down, people still tend to use the convenience of the internet for their shopping.

Opening a store, even an online store, typically requires inventory, but most of us don’t have the capital to put up a large inventory. Face it, the reason we are wanting to open a store is to make some money. To help people in this position, companies are offering drop shipping services to entrepreneurs.

Basically, it works like this. You create your on-line store showing the products you want to sell. You can either create your own website and domain name, or for a small fee, the supplier will usually offer this service for you. You will have a professional-looking website for a nominal price. Your customer purchases from you and your order the product from your supplier to be shipped directly to your customer. It costs a little to get started, but nothing like purchasing and holding inventory.

As your store profits more, you can make the decision to stock your big sellers for faster turnaround. You can also open a kiosk at the mall with your inventory, or sell in flea markets.

For information on drop ship selling, please see the Home Online Business Guide.

How to Save Energy and Money

How would you like to cut your energy usage by about 15-20% this year? Even though oil is sliding down and, slowly, the cost of other energy, we should still be vigilant in looking for ways to save both energy and money. I offer you these tips on cutting costs and energy.

Update old appliances: Newer appliances such as refrigerators and freezers can cost you on the front-end, but in the long run pay off on your utility bills with lower energy consumption. Make sure that it is an energy star appliance as they use on average 30-40% less energy, thereby saving you money.

Change out light bulbs: Begin replacing incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs. They put out the same amount of light, but use 75% less energy. For example, if you replace a 60-watt incandescent bulb for a 15-watt fluorescent bulb, you get the same amount of light for 75% less energy used. Also, keep an eye out for new LED lighting, which uses about 90% less energy than incandescent. You don’t have to change them all at one time, but at least replace them when they start burning out.

Wash in cold: Most clothes can be washed with cold or warm water. Only wash with hot water when you need to. This will save the hot water and not force your water heater to work harder.

Check your thermostat: During the winter, try keeping your thermostat at about 70 degrees, or a little lower and wear your woolie jammies. By doing this, you will give your furnace a rest and lower the energy cost. Also, purchasing a programmable thermostat, about $25.00, can help you manage energy while you are away. Most homes are empty from about 8am – 5pm when we are at work or school. This is 45 hours that the furnace or air conditioner does not need to work as hard. In the winter, I set mine to 65 degrees from 7:30am until about 4:30pm. At 4:30, it sets to 70 degrees so it is comfortable when we arrive home. Then, at about 10:00pm until 6:00am, it sets back to 68 degrees since we are snuggled under blankets. This has saved me about $200.00 this past year.

Kill the vampires: That sounds like a bad late-night horror flick, I know. But we’re talking about energy vampires. One night, turn off everything you normally turn off and walk around the house. Every little thing you see that is glowing is using electricity. Cell phone chargers, computers, modems, TVs, DVD players, etc. These are estimated to cost the average household about $120.00 per year. Make a list of these vampires and determine what can be unplugged. Of course, you don’t want to unplug your Tivo, or your wife will get very upset when it doesn’t record her favorite show! A kilowatt meter is about $25.00 and can tell you what each appliance is using.

Create your own energy: This one is pretty radical, but if you are the determined, do-it-yourself type, you can actually take steps to create your own energy and cut down what you pay to utilities. For more information, go to Earth4Energy.

There are many ways we average people can save on our energy bills, we just have to know what to look for and take the steps.

Retirement Savings – 5 Tips to Survive

The bailout package has been passed for a week now, but the stock markets are still taking a beating. Investors are nervous, and rightly so. Those of us who have our retirement money in 401(k), plans, or any other plan that invests in stocks have seen our accounts dwindle. I personally have lost over 25% of my retirement account in the past year alone because of the stock market. Most of us are wondering if we should just switch over to a nice, save interest-bearing account until the markets stabilize. Here are some tips to help see you through.

1) DON’T PANIC! That’s a hard pill to swallow amidst the panic that is here already, but this is sound advice. By panicking, you will be quick to make a decision without thinking through the long-term consequences.

2) Talk with your financial advisor. This is important because, beside you, your financial advisor knows more about your finances than anyone else. He/she can help you redesign your portfolio to still be able to achieve your retirement goals. Together, you will be able to redistribute into some lower-risk stocks, and maybe move some to interest accounts.

3) Change your contribution level. If you are participating in an employer-sponsored 401(k) or other such pre-tax plan, consider raising the amount you are contributing. In a lot of cases, you will not see a significant difference in the amount you are bringing home because the more you contribute, the less you will pay taxes on. If you are not yet at the maximum amount for employer-match, consider raising to at least that amount. No sense in letting money stay on the table.

4) Don’t try to follow the market. The way most of these plans work is that they are constantly selling and re-buying in order to maximize shares. By changing your allocations constantly, you don’t give these plans a chance to work like they are supposed to. Be patient and refer to rule #1.

5) Don’t withdraw early. Withdrawing before you are of age without an acceptable reason will cause you to lose 30% of your money, unless you move it to another approved account within the allowed time frame. Unless it is a direct rollover, you will still be subject to 20% withholding, but some, if not all, of that may be recouped at tax time.

I am leaving my money in the stock profile it has been in because I believe the economy will bounce back like gangbusters. I fully expect the 25% loss to be replaced by a 50% gain in the next year. That is a risk that I am willing to take on advice from MY advisor.

Please seek the advice of YOUR financial advisor before making any changes to your retirement plan. This is your future and you need to be as sure as you can that it is protected.