When considering whether to franchise your business, one of the initial questions is, could a model of your business be offered to people already in your industry who are looking for a better system? This is a tough question to answer in most cases because each existing business has a unique set of circumstances, variables, personality traits and other elements that can drastically affect the way your franchise system will be owned and operated.

I have worked with a number of franchise systems that have great models for conversion franchising. The Weave Shop is an African American hair care business that has opened 16 locations over the course of the last 18 months. The concept is fresh, new and cutting edge. This is a good example of a business system that could work for an existing salon in converting their business to a franchise. Also included would be the Restoration 1 franchise model – here, the franchise model basically consists of a marketing system used to generate leads for the restoration business. In some cases, existing restoration businesses make ideal candidates as Restoration 1 franchise partners. There are many more examples of franchise models that also could fit into the conversion franchise model.

To begin, what is a conversion franchise opportunity? It is quite simply when an existing, operating business converts it’s operating system and trade name to that of a franchise system. The brand, operating procedures and business model converts to what is in compliance with the accepted franchise relationship. The benefits to this franchise model are that the operator shouldn’t need much training and support because they already get the business model. There also will be less of a “ramp up” time because the business is already generating cash flow in most cases. The downside to this model is that the operator is in most cases already “set in their ways” meaning that it can be difficult to change the way they think and operate. It also can be difficult to convince a conversion franchisee to pay an upfront fee and “buy in” to a franchise system when they are already operating the business you are selling to them.

In my experience, conversion franchises are not the typical franchise transaction. Over the past two years, I have been part of over 150 different franchise transactions and only two of them would be considered conversion franchises. That doesn’t mean that it isn’t a valid franchise strategy, after all, Ace Hardware has used the concept of conversion franchises for years with great success. My advice, don’t plan on the conversion franchise, but also don’t rule it out as a potential partner opportunity. As they say in marriage though, “don’t plan on your partner to change just because you married them”.

Cloud computing is an internet technology that utilizes both central remote servers and internet to manage the data and applications. This technology allows many businesses and users to use the data and application without an installation. Users and businesses can access the information and files at any computer system having an internet connection. Cloud computing provides much more effective computing by centralized memory, processing, storage and bandwidth.

Description
The most simple and understandable example of cloud application are gmail and yahoo application. You do not need to have a software and server to access these applications. All you need to have an internet connection and can start browsing web pages and sending emails. E-mail management software and the server are basically on the internet (cloud) and completely maintained by various internet service providers. The user can use the application alone and can enjoy its benefits.

The concept of all cloud computing applications is based on the analogy-’If you need milk, would you buy a cow’. If a user gets the benefits (milk), why would a he buy a software (cow) or hardware? The process of this technology is broken down into three segments. Platform, Applications and Infrastructure are three segments of this technology. Each part serves many functions and provides applications for both individuals and businesses all around the world. According to a research in June 2009, 41 % of the senior Information Technology professionals don’t even know what actually cloud computing is and its benefits.

Segments

Applications- On Demand
As far as I am concerned, application segment is the only part of internet technology that has been proved as a useful business model. By accessing many business and individual applications all over the cloud from the central server, most of the businesses can cut some very serious costs. On the other side, on demand applications come in dissimilar varieties of pricing schemes and how the internet applications are delivered to the customers.

Infrastructure
Infrastructure is the backbone of the whole concept of this technology. All infrastructure vendors allow users to make their own cloud applications. Amazon’s S3 is considered as a segment of the infrastructure segment.

Platform
Most of the companies, who are providing several on demand services and applications, have been developed three platform services. These are Infrastructure As a Service, Platform As a Service and Software As a Service.

All these characteristics and benefits of this technology are the need for the businesses and individuals who are looking for dropping the cost.

If you’re planning to sell goods or services online, you’ll need an ecommerce website. As this will be your shopfront, your showroom, your salesman and your cashier, you’ll appreciate how important it is. Essentially, the success of you ecommerce website depends on getting three factors right – design, usability and search engine optimization.

First, let’s look at design. Design is important as it influences the impression your visitor gets of you and your business. Your website should be attractive and solidly professional. This assures the first time visitor that you are the right company to do business with. In addition, your website should reflect your brand and mission statement.

Next there’s the matter of usability. This determines how easily your visitor can navigate your site. The first thing you have to consider is the mechanics of your business model. You have to decide what you want your visitor to do and then give him clear means to do it.

One factor that promotes clear navigation is making sure all links are well labelled. For example, ‘Click here for more details on our refrigerators’ is much more useful that just ‘click here’ or ‘more information’. And your visitor should always know his location and how to return to your home page. Remember if your visitor gets lost on your website, he’ll just click away, probably never to return.

The next factor in usability is the mechanics of your ecommerce model. If you’re selling online, you’ll need a payment processor and an online shopping cart. Here you have a host of commercial offerings to choose from. Or you can go for the open source shopping cart system, Zen Cart, a favourite of developers and shoppers alike.

Ultimately, your beautiful and usable site will do you no good unless you get visitors. For this, you have to get search engine optimization right. Your site needs to be optimized so that when searchers enter relevant queries in the search engines, your website appears high in the results. For this you need relevant text optimised for the keywords that searchers use. Achieving this requires expert keyword research and specialized writing skills. Your text must be not only readable and informative, but also indexed by the search engines for the right words and phrases.

When looking for a firm to handle your ecommerce needs, choose one which can handle the whole project. Otherwise, there’ll surely be coordination problems. So look for one firm that has both the artistic skill to design engaging and user-friendly website as well as the technical skills to handle the SEO requirements that will get you listed high in the search engines.

Contrary to popular opinion Cloud Computing is NOT just a new computer architecture – it’s much more than that.

It is a new computer architecture and a new business model. It is the combination of the 2 that allows you easy access to computer resources when you need them, paying only for what you use.

Cloud Computing Is Akin to the Development of Electric Utilities

An analogy that is sometimes drawn is with the development of electricity. In the early days of electricity there were no electrical utility companies. There was no concept of the electrical grid with a third party generating the electricity and then selling it on to a large number of clients. If you wanted electricity you had to make it yourself. Factories requiring electricity had to install and operate their own electrical generators. This required significant amounts of capital and operating expertise. Then people started to build generators big enough to serve multiple factories and start to sell it. All the factory owner had to do was plug into the service and pay for what they used.

Reduced Capital Requirements And Lower Fixed Costs

The factories reduced their capital requirements and no longer had the high fixed cost of retaining the expertise to run their own generators. Cloud computing is a bit like that – plug in via the internet and get all the computing power and resources that you need, but only pay for what you use.

Cloud Computing – A Definition

The Cloud is that collection of computing resource (applications, servers, data, etc.) held out there “on the internet,” accessed via your broadband connection with a pay-as-you go business model wrapped around it. It’s a great concept: one that will make computing easier, cheaper and more available for all businesses particularly small to medium sized businesses.

No Need For A Server In The Office With Cloud Computing

With Cloud Computing you won’t buy expensive servers and install them in your office. Instead the server(s) and application(s) that you use will be out in the Cloud. You won’t necessarily own them, just as you don’t own the electrical generating plant that supplies your electricity. You will just plug in and pay for what you use. Without the need to purchase a server or your applications your up-front Capital Cost will be much lower, or perhaps even zero. Instead you will pay a monthly fee for the use of server resource, applications and their IT Support.

But The Biggest Benefit Of Cloud Computing Is Agility
Lower capital requirements and lower fixed costs is all that it will take to “sell” Cloud Computing to most companies. However the main benefit will really be agility – the ability to rapidly scale computing resource to fit the business need – more, or less, servers and workstations within days. No longer will business plans be held back (to the same degree) by the ability to implement IT infrastructure projects. Those companies that really succeed with Cloud Computing will certainly take the savings but make real use of the business agility that it delivers.

Franchise systems are highly unique businesses that allow individual entrepreneurs to capitalize on the brand name and business systems developed by a third party. If you are new to entrepreneurship then starting a franchise or purchasing an existing one may be in your best benefit. Within this article, we are going to discuss both the benefits and the drawbacks of working with this type of business model.

One of the best benefits to buying a franchise is that many of the complex issues regarding accounting, business development, product development, and marketing are handled by the company that issues you the license to do business under their name. As such, you are primarily responsible for the day to day management of your individual location. An additional benefit to working within the confines of this system is that many companies encourage entrepreneurs to establish or acquire subsequent locations. There are many extremely successful business people that have built their fortunes by working exclusively with franchised businesses. Additionally, among well known businesses, the failure rates of franchises are extremely low compared to new business ventures.

However, one of the primary drawbacks to buying a franchise is that you will have very little control over your business. You are going to be required to sign a number of contracts that guide exactly how you will operate your franchised location. This contract is typically known as the Uniform Franchise Offering Circular. This document must be provided to you if you are considering developing a business with the assistance of a third party company. One of the other drawbacks to working with this type of business model is that you will not have very much control in regards to being able to establish new marketing campaigns without approval from the parent company.

You should be immediately aware of the relatively high fees that are associated with a franchised business. Typically, you will be required to pay an upfront licensing fee coupled with a recurring payment that is based on the revenues that you generate. These recurring fees are equal to 4% to 8% of the aggregate amount of revenue that your individual franchise generates. The parent company, from time to time, may audit your financial statements to ensure that they have received their contractually obligated payments.

As it relates to the financing of your franchise, banks and financial institutions are very happy to provide capital to these businesses. This is primarily due to the fact that establishing a new franchise or acquiring an existing one carries far fewer risks that creating a new business that does not have an existing market presence. Additionally, many franchise parent companies are able to assist with the financing process provided that you have the appropriate down payment that would be required by a third party lender.

In conclusion, if you are new to entrepreneurship then owning a franchise may be the best way for you to own a business. We strongly recommend that you seek the counsel of your certified public accountant or business adviser before entering into any binding agreement as it pertains to starting or acquiring this type of venture.