There is some surprising business wisdom for work at home business owners hidden in the songs of the musical legend known as Johnny Cash
, or the “Man in Black”.

1 – Target Marketing via “Understand Your Man”

Yep! Think of your target market as a lady in Johnny’s song “Understand Your Man”. Do you know what she needs, wants, and her driving ambitions? Is your website talking to your target audience? No? Maybe it’s time to revise your website and marketing materials before your audience is “as gone as a wild goose in winter” as well!

2 – “A Boy Named Sue”

Sue’s father said to him, “This world is rough, and if you’re gonna make it, you’ve gotta be tough”.

Just as life isn’t easy for a boy named Sue, life isn’t easy for a work at home business owner either. You will run into those dream stealing, confidence killing, fun suckers… however you choose to label them. There will be people trying to convince you that your goals are unachievable and that what you’re doing won’t work. Don’t listen and don’t let them bring you down.

What are some ways you can get tough in your business?

3 – Branding 101 as the Man In Black

Johnny Cash’s all black suit was his trademark, he wore it for a reason.

What about your brand, are you working on it? How will you stand out in a world that’s full of Elvis Presleys or Jerry Lee Lewises? Also, you and your target market don’t have to be the like each other. “Folsom Prison Blues” was created before Johnny Cash was ever put in prison and that song connected with inmates.

4 – “The Legend of Jonh Henry’s Hammer”

There is actually two pieces of business wisdom in the song:

a – You will succeed when you learn your business

John Henry’s father said, “Learn to a turn a jack, learn to lay a track, learn to pick and shovel too”.

Have you learned all you can about marketing on and off the internet to succeed in your business? Do you reinvest in education, mentoring, or coaching, and software like John Henry?

b – Technology is great, but people are still irreplaceable

Johnny showed that people are more valuable than technology when steam engines were threatening to replace people. Learn to use the technology that’s available to help your business, but remember your customers and prospects are people, so put some of yourself into your marketing.

5 – “One Piece at a Time”

“One Piece at a Time” is a ballad about a man’s decision to build a Cadillac from the parts he steals from the manufacturer’s assembly line where he worked. However, it didn’t exactly come together like he thought it might “and it didn’t cost him a dime”.

Does your marketing material and web site look as though they were pieced together? Are you happy with your web site being hosted for free with the clutter of advertisements, not willing to spend the money for a domain name and hosting?

6 – “In the Jailhouse Now”

By doing the following you are throwing you hard work out the window. It’s not worth it and you might find yourself in the jailhouse. It’s far better to “Walk the Line” and stay out of trouble.

• Copying content from other sites
• Clicking your own AdSense ads AdSense ads
• Failing to keep records and not paying your taxes
• Taking pictures and graphics from other sites
• Spamming

7 – “Ring of Fire”

June Carter Cash expresses her attraction to Johnny in this song. Both June and Johnny were in a relationship with other people. Clearly they were meant for each other and grew old together making music for 40 years!

Realize when you have made a poor choice and started a business that isn’t right for you. After you have worked hard at it and decided that it isn’t profitable, don’t be afraid to scrap it all and start over.

I hope you and your business make wonderful music together!!

A few business resourced you might like:

1. Target marketing
2. Branding
3. Working with Google AdSense

Interested in Starting Up Your Own Business?

If you are interested in starting your own enterprise we recommend you write a business plan. Most business owners dread the idea of creating a business plan. They feel it is difficult, time consuming, and stressful. For just those reasons you might consider getting outside help.

One way of getting outside assistance is to hire a professional business plan writer.

Professional Business Plan Writers

Let’s make sure you know what a professional business plan writer is. Generally, they are individuals experienced, professional writers that know business terminology and effectively understand business needs. It’s important that you realize the wording of anything written, everything from business plans to sales letters, makes the difference. The words that are chosen can determine the success or failure. For that reason many small businesses hire professional writers.

How Can a Professional Business Plan Writer Help You?

In your search for a professional business plan writer, you will learn that not all writers offer the same services. Many writers will simply take the ideas that you have already develop and present them in a more professional manner than you could.

At the other end of services offered spectrum is the professional business plan writer who teams up with you and develops your plan from your basic ideas all the way through to a finished business plan. Obviously, the writer’s fees will reflect the amount of time and energy required to take you basic ideas to a complete document.

Therefore it is important that you know what degree of support you require before you start looking for a professional writer.

Why Hire a Professional Writer?

There are many reasons for a small business owner to hire a professional business plan writer. The greatest reason may be lack of writing experience, or lack of writing confidence, and not knowing what format a business plan should take. You can easily staring at a blank page for hours if you have not written a business plan in the past.

Learning to write your own business plan may be an easy thing to do. Howerver, it will be a time consuming thing to learn. A professional writer who has the right experience can create a detailed, professional business plan much more quickly than an inexperienced small business owner to write the same plan.

Finding a Professional Writer

There are a number of options for someone interested in hiring a professional business plan writer. One way is to find a local professional writer. Local is the way to go if you want to work with them face-to-face. You can start by inquiring at your local government business support centers like SCORE, or asking other small business owners at your local Chamber of Commerce. You could also ask local writing groups (clubs) for potential business plan writers.

One problem you may have is that you are in an area that does not have any local professional business plan writers. If that is you situation you can use the internet to search for your writer. An online search for “professional business plan writer” will return a very large number of people and firms specializing in the creation and writing of business plans.

What to Consider Before Hiring a Writer

During the process of considering a professional business plan writer it is important not to choose the cheapest writer, or the first writer you contact. Your business plan is critical to you business’s success. Therefore, you have to be critical in you selection of a writer. Business plans are used for your own guidance as well as for gaining financing for your business. That is why your business plan has to be professional, readable, and detailed.

After you have selected a few promising professional writers, request samples of their past work, ask for references and testimonials of business owners who have used their services. This will reassure you that you are getting exactly what you are expecting to get from your writer and your final business plan is something you can distribute without worry.

Just like any other contract that you enter, be certain of what you are getting for the fee you will pay. Are there prvisions in the contract for free updates and revisions prior to the final version? How will you be charged, per word, per page, by the hour, and so on? Be certain you understand what the writer is going to deliver and when.

Follow these suggestions an you can decide if using a professional business plan writer is right for you and your small business. Although a professional writer may be an extra cost that you don’t think you can afford, they may be one of the best investments you can make for the long run.

Business Plan Writing Resources

The One Page Busines Plan

How to Write a Business Plan Yourself

“I have a 31-step process. I shampoo seats, do the dashboard with Q-tips, clean the trunk, dress the engine, etc. It takes 3 hours for what I do, and I charge $120. That’s detailed.”

This would be a typical response of someone who does Auto Detailing when asked what they can do for your car and how much they would charge you for it.

The age of upscale carwash is here. As we keep our cars longer (average length is 7.5 years) we take better care of them.

This is why the carwash business is booming with $8 billion in revenue, and so is auto detailing.

EXECTUIVE PARKING

Many auto detail services nest their business in executive parking lots. They get a permit from the city and from the business whose lot they use.

This is convenient for employees who otherwise may not have time to bring their cars to a shop that would take 3 hours to get detailing done.

In a mobile operation such as this, you will need a van or pickup truck and access to running water and preferably AC power.

In some cities, there are companies that convert and customize pickup trucks into mobile detail shops with its own reservoir and portable power generator.

140 MILLION CARS

Although many auto detailers will swear that a bulk of their business comes from car dealers, in reality the car dealer market is small and extremely competitive.

Most car dealers need cars detailed before a used car is offered in an auction or is displayed in the lot.

However, the biggest market of all is still on the road, individual car owners, representing all of 140 million passenger cars plus another 30 million pickup trucks on the road.

This market, with an average age of 7.5 years, is ripe for a detail job at least twice a year.

BUDGET DETAIL

The best way to build up a base in this business is to introduce a mid-priced service that offers extras that carwashes do not offer.

Detail jobs in the range of #30 to #49 will open up a new market that can provide a stream of customers. You can provide a written list of what you do and how you build up your rates from the basic price of $30 to the premium rate $49.

With 5 customers a day, at 1 hour each, you can average $200 a day.