Hot to Buy/Hot to Sell New products for small and homebased businesses.

New products for small and homebased businesses.

A File By Any Other Name

How many times have you sat at your computer, racking yourbrain, trying to remember the cryptic, eight-lettered file name youcame up with for that important document you so desperately neededto have in your hands 20 minutes ago? Most likely, too manytimes.

Now you can free up your brain for more important matters withLong File Names for Windows 95 and Windows 3.1. This program,compatible with most best-selling applications such as WordPerfect,AutoCad and QuarkXPress, makes it possible for you to label yourfiles with exact descriptions--word for word--of up to 255characters.

Long File Names for Windows 95 and Windows 3.1 is available for$29.95, plus S&H. From View Software, Palo Alto, CA. To order,call (800) 536-8439.

Technology On The Go

Tired of precariously juggling your cellular phone, notebookcomputer, important paperwork and cup of coffee on the way out thedoor in the morning? If so, Targus Inc. has the perfectsolution.

The Targus Notepac Plus, a lightweight polyester-nylon carryingcase, includes a padded compartment with an adjustable divider thatenables you to separate your notebook computer from itsaccessories. A padded shoulder-strap provides a comfortable andreliable way to carry your notebook computer.

The zip-down workstation section includes pockets for such keybusiness essentials as a cellular phone, calculator, diskettes, PCcards and pens, as well as an expanding file section that helps youkeep your important business papers organized.

The Notepac Plus comes with the Targus Lifetime Warranty.Exterior dimensions of the Notepac Plus are 16 by 12 by 5 inches.Computer-compatibility dimensions are 15 by 10.6 by 2.8 inches.

The Notepac Plus, $59, plus S&H. From Targus Inc., Cerritos,CA. To order, call (800) 390-4622.

Tableside Fun

Get a jump on spring sales with a creative seating solution thatwill put your customers in the shade and keep the sand and dirt outof their food and drinks.

The Beach Table, a handmade and easily portable table with aholder for an umbrella, comes in a variety of ocean-themed designs.It is made of lightweight, durable birch, and weighs between fourand seven pounds.

The Beach Umbrella, a multi-colored, standard-sized umbrellaweighing approximately 6 pounds, fits snugly with the tables and isalso available through Beach Table Inc.

Wholesale price for the Beach Table: from $15 to $25, dependingon the design ordered. Suggested retail price: from $29.95 to$49.95. Wholesale price for the Beach Umbrella: $15. Suggestedretail price: $29.95.

From Beach Table Inc., Smithfield, VA. To order, call (800)275-0083.

Springtime Flowers

The cows haven't come home yet--at least as far as JimHanaway of Join the "Cow Pie" Moovement! isconcerned.

This Madison, Wisconsin businessman came up with the quirky ideaof selling a pile of dirt and straw that produces a burst of annualand perennial flowers. Now you can make this item your nextbig seller.

Each Wisconsin Flowering Cow Pie is made up of fertilizer,potting soil, sawdust, peat, and an organic binder that turns sweetwith a mixture of Wisconsin wildflowers. Just place the FloweringCow Pie in a dish and set it in a warm and sunny location. Oncesprouting occurs, the cow pie can be transplanted to a pot oroutdoor planter. And you can reassure customers that, although theproduct looks like a real cow pie, it won't smell like one.

Wholesale price: $1.99 each. Suggested retail price: $3.50.Minimum order: 1 package of 24 units.

From Join the "Cow Pie" Moo-vement!, Madison, WI. Toorder, call (608) 241-4949.

Signed, Sealed & Undelivered

By Karin Moeller

March is here already and, if you're like most people whohaven't yet filed their income tax returns, you're likelystarting to feel the anticipatory pangs of the impending April 15thdeadline. The current bulk of your tax preparation time-for bothyour personal and business returns-is probably being consumedcompiling receipts, totaling expenses, and itemizing deductions.But when the big moment arrives to finalize your tax returns, besure you don't forget these three simple, but often overlooked,tax-filing basics:

1. Be sure your name and address are correct. The IRSestimates that more than 96,000 taxpayers have yet to receive their1995 refund checks. Due to returns filed with incorrect names andaddresses, the post office was unable to deliver refund checkstotaling more than $62 million.

Make sure that your income tax refund doesn't end up in thelong and lonely line of homeless checks. If the address labelincluded in your tax return package displays incorrect information,make your corrections directly on the label. If you've changedyour name, make sure to notify your Social Security Administration(SSA) office so the name on your tax return matches the name in theSSA's records. If you change your address after you submit yourreturn, be sure to file Form 8822, Change of Address.

2. Be sure your Social Security Number (SSN) is correct.The IRS can no longer accept temporary numbers, "appliedfor," or any other designations in lieu of the requirednumbers. If a tax return has a missing or incorrect identificationnumber, the IRS may disallow the related item(s).

If you need to get a SSN, go to any SSA office to file FormSS-5; nonresident and resident aliens who are not eligible for SSNsmay use Form W-7 to request Individual Taxpayer IdentificationNumbers (ITINs) from the IRS.

3. Sign your return. Finally, don't forget theeasiest of all your tax preparation tasks: putting your signatureon your return. If you're due a refund, it cannot be issuedunless the return is signed.

Business Bliss

When author Azriela Jaffe's husband quit his job to starthis own business, the Jaffes quickly discovered that balancingromance and work was not as easy as it sounded. After a stressfulyear of "financial worries, lack of sleep, and limitedintimate time with her husband," Jaffe learned that planningwas the key to keeping both marriage and business intact. With herpersonal experiences in mind, Honey, I Want to Start My OwnBusiness (HarperBusiness, $23, 800-236-7323) was born.

Written for couples, this book looks at how starting a business,alone or with a spouse, can affect a marriage. By helping them tobetter define goals and personality traits, it helps couples to"look before they leap" into a business venture.According to Jaffe, this book is for couples "unwilling tosacrifice their marriage or personal well-being to achieve businesssuccess."

In Honey, I Want to Start My Own Business, Jaffe sharesher wisdom on topics such as "Keeping the Romance Alive,""Win/Win Conflict Resolution," and "Financial andFamily Planning." Also included are more than 40 quizzes andexercises designed to clarify goals and encourage discussionbetween spouses. Finally, there are excerpts from interviews withmore than 125 successful BIZ Experiencesial couples. What thesecouples, and Jaffe herself, recommend most is planning ahead: Thisforethought is crucial to keeping love alive amidst the stresses ofentrepreneurship.-Amy E. Lewis

Not Just Child's Play

Kids today: For many, local newspaper routes and baby-sittingjobs are no longer the only ways to earn extra spending cash. Infact, record numbers of young Americans are being drawn to theinfectious lure of BIZ Experiencesship and are starting their ownbusinesses.

To help direct these up-and-coming enterprisers, The KidsWayFoundation publishes "Young BIZ Experiences," a bimonthlynewsletter aimed at helping youths discover innovative incomesources. Each issue features a host of ideas about how kids can"earn a buck" after school, on weekends, and during thelong dog days of summer.

To request a free copy of "Young BIZ Experiences," writeto The KidsWay Foundation at 5585 Peachtree Rd., Chamblee, GA30341, or call (888) KIDS-WAY.

Q & A

Answers to your small-business questions

Q: I'm trying to locate a product called Omniglow.It's a glow-in-the-dark, flexible tube sold at carnivals andfairs. Its ends can be connected to form a necklace. I havesearched many business start-up magazines and mail order catalogswith no success-although I remember seeing them somewhere!Any assistance you can provide will be greatly appreciated.

Chris Baker

Fall River, Massachusetts

A:Provided by Rich Herlich, director of marketing forOmniglow Corp.:

Lite Rope Glow necklaces from Omniglow Corp. are fun and safenovelties for any occasion. Retailers can purchase them directlyfrom novelty distributors. They are packaged in groups of 50 tubesand are available in green, blue, red, hot pink, tri-color(red-blue-green) and five-color (red-blue-green-pink-aqua).

Omniglow Corp. also manufactures a wide variety of other glowingnovelties, as well as glow-in-the-dark safety products for thehome, car and boat. For more information, or for the name of yournearest distributor, call (800) 762-7548, or write to OmniglowCorp. at 96 Windsor St., W. Springfield, MA 01089, Attn.: CustomerService Dept.

Q: I have a fairly new mail order business that I havebeen trying to get off the ground. I have two Web pages and so farneither one of them has done anything. I got a few requests forcatalogs from the first Web page, but no orders have come in. Canyou give me any advice?

Judy Stiffler

via America Online

A:Provided by Herschell Gordon Lewis, co-authorofSelling on the Net(NTC Publishing Group,$39.95, 800-323-4900) and chairman of Communicomp, a full-service,direct-marketing advertising agency in Fort Lauderdale,Florida:

The World Wide Web, Ms. Stiffler, is a giant embryo thathasn't yet hatched as a major marketing medium. The typicalInternet surfer enters the Web with a short attention span-fingerpoised on the mouse: "Gotta go! Gotta go!"

Therefore, the first rule of successful Internet marketing is:Stop the surfer in his or her tracks.

Having a presence on the Internet is a means, not an end.Surfers won't land on your site-even accidentally-unless youtake these three quick steps:

1. Promote your Web site in other media. Ads in mediaaimed directly at your primary buyers will help bring surfers toyour site. Find out which magazines, newspapers or televisionprograms your customers read or watch and advertise your sitethere.

2. Establish "links" with similar businesses.This means their site will refer to yours and your site will referto theirs. Don't worry about the competitive nature of links;the operative term here is synergy, as both sites willprofit from the links. You might also buy " advertisingbanners"-these are strips (about an inch high and four or fiveinches wide) with powerful "teaser" copy that run at thetop or bottom of a Web page. When a consumer clicks on one of thesebanners, they will automatically go to your Web site.

3. Offer a "special." Be sure your Web siteoffers at least one sensational bargain or deal that is not offeredon any of your other advertising materials. Everyday businessoffers or standard catalog descriptions are too bland to attractbusiness from surfers flitting from one Web site to another. Also,to ensure that your visitors return, change your "teasercopy" and special offer-and be sure to advertise that your"special" changes every week.

Unfortunately, in the very competitive world of online sales andmarketing, even a professional-looking Web site, if isolated, is amarketing orphan that will probably starve. Follow these tips tomake sure yours flourishes.

Correction

Our January 1997 feature, "Licensing Your Product" (p.50), erroneously listed the Web site address of the BusinessResource Center. The correct address is(http://www.kciLink.com/brc/).

Address your small-business questions to: Q&A,Business Start-Ups, 2392 Morse Ave., Irvine, CA 92614, ore-mail them to 76711,1724@compuserve.com or BSUMag@AOL.COM. Due tolimited space, time and resources, we can answer only those Q&Aletters chosen for publication. Questions may be edited forclarity.