This year, my online fashion store, Ministry of Retail (www.ministryofretail.com) turns 3. I have always loved shopping online. Even so, starting an online store was not always in the plans.

In 2009 when I was a second year NTU undergraduate, I frequently organized sprees to buy things from overseas. Even after factoring in the shipping cost, some items (ranging from clothes to daily necessities) still cost cheaper overseas.

Seeing the amount of time I spent on my spree organizing activities, my husband (then-boyfriend) Vincent suggested turning it into a business.

Why I Wanted to Start My Business From Home?
Vincent and I did not ask ourselves “why”. Instead, ours was a “why not?”

There was little opportunity cost to us then. If the business did not take off, I could always fall back on a job upon graduation.

Secondly, our business did not require much capital. We decided to take pre-orders (just like online sprees) where we would collect the orders and payment upfront before placing orders with our suppliers. To start the business, all we needed was a proper website to get the online store running. Thankfully, Vincent had experience in that area.

As Vincent had a day job, he could only find time before and after office hours to work on the website. As a result, he was often the first to reach and last to leave his office.

A few months later, Vincent and I got married, the online store was launched and sales were encouraging. The turning point came when I discovered I was pregnant.

Pregnancy: The Turning Point
I was still a student then with only one school semester left to graduation. After discussing with Vincent and my mum, I decided to apply for a semester break starting January 2010 and focus on the business.

As I had time on my hand, I read various business books, took notes and applied tips that I learnt. I could not believe my eyes – revenue went up 200% that month and I was netting an income higher than a starting graduate’s!

Beginning: The Journey
My expected due date was 5th May 2012 but my mischievious daughter couldn’t wait to see the world and decided to make Aprils’ Fool Day her birthday! That was also the month when our online store netted a 5-figure income.

The great thing about running an online business was that I could work from home and play with my daughter when she was awake.

This might sound like a fairytale ‘happily ever after’ ending but this was just the beginning.

Before this, having to juggle studies and business was difficult enough. Imagine adding a baby into the equation! Thankfully my mum was supportive. She volunteered to help out with the baby and quit her job the moment I delivered.

On the business front, things were getting busy and I could not cope alone. At one point in time, things were getting so messy that some customers received their orders twice and some customers did not receive their orders! We decided to hire help (moms and students who part-time) and worked out a process to keep track of items delivered and improve our operations.

I went back to school in August 2010 to complete my degree. Without the help of Vincent, my mom and the staff at Ministry of Retail, I could never have done it.

Challenges… Make You Stronger
In December 2010, Vincent developed a persistent cough that did not go away after many weeks. After seeing 3 doctors, given cough syrup and even stronger cough syrup, a GP recommended Vincent to get an X-ray of the chest. Vincent’s heart sank when he saw the X-ray results. The X-ray showed a bulky mass in his chest.

The GP then recommended Vincent to go for a CAT scan to determine what the mass was.

I was studying for my examinations then and did not know Vincent was going for all these scans.

One day, Vincent sat me down and broke the news to me. The CAT scan confirmed that the mass was cancerous – Vincent had cancer.

I broke down and cried. I could not believe the news. Vincent and I had just bought and moved into a new flat, had a baby daughter, and I was about to graduate… why did this happen to us?

We could only pray for the best.

Still shaken, I took my examinations the next day before visiting Vincent at the hospital. Vincent had to be hospitalised so the oncologists could perform a biopsy test on him.

Thankfully the cancer turned out to be Hodgkin’s Lymphoma! This cancer is very responsive to treatment and is in fact the first cancers to be cured by mankind.

As part of the treatment, Vincent had to go to the National Cancer Centre regularly for a 4-hour chemotherapy session. As I only needed a laptop and Internet connection to work on my online business, I could accompany Vincent to his chemotherapy sessions while work at the same time.

After numerous sessions of chemotherapy and subsequently radiotherapy, I am happy to announce that Vincent has successfully overcome his cancer!

Don’t Forget To Make Time For The Family!
When Vincent knew he had cancer, he came across this article ‘Top 5 regrets of the dying’. ‘I wish I hadn’t worked so hard’ was the top regret. Many regretted missing their children’s youth and their partner’s companionship. As a result of Vincent’s cancer episode, we decided not to work on weekends and holidays so as to have quality family time.

Any Advice For Starting A Business?
Don’t focus on the ‘HOW’. As long as you have a strong WHY (or why not), kick start the business and fine-tune along the way. Even into our third year of business, we are constantly fine-tuning our business.

Having said that, either do something you truly like or craft a niche for yourself. Don’t jump on the bandwagon of the latest trends (remember the roti mama or the luohan fish bubble?). That’s a sure way to fail. Also, rethink the business model. Is there any way you can start the business with little or no capital? Can you partner someone with a complementary product/service? Or sell other people’s products/services?

I’d like to leave a quote:
“A journey of a thousand miles begin with a single step.”
Will you take that first step? I’m glad I did.

Having laser sharp focus is crucial to your long term success. Having a good idea and sticking with it until it either succeeds of fails is actually a vital skill – A skill that many entrepreneurs unfortunately lack and fail as a result.

Results Come with Persistence, Not Singular Spurts of Effort

Entrepreneurs often feel powerful spurts of desire, of determination, of feeling like they’re willing to do whatever it takes. Feeling that way for a few days or weeks isn’t an uncommon feeling.

However, to really succeed you need to be able to stay motivated and inspired about what you’re doing for months and years at a time.

Business is not a short term game. You have wins and you have losses. It’s a matter of persisting through all the ups and downs to the final result of real success. That takes time and focus.

Improve Your Focus With Productivity Systems

Your habits play a large role in how focused you stay.

One habit that many successful business people have is planning their day at the beginning of the day. When you wake up, the first thing you do is get out a sheet of paper and write out exactly what you want to accomplish today.

Then, write out what you want to accomplish this year. Then your five year goals, your 10 year goals and your 25 year goals.

If you have inspiring goals set, this will help you stay focused on both the short term actions and the long term picture. Doing this every day will help you stay totally motivated to do what you need to do to succeed.

Be Focused, But Stay Flexible

As an entrepreneur, it’s important that you’re able to adapt to your environment and do what’s necessary to make your business succeed.

This and staying focused may sound like contradictory concepts, but they’re actually very complimentary.

Most experienced business people agree that business seldom goes as you expect. If you have one plan to generate traffic, one plan about what to sell, one plan about how your business should look and you’re not willing to change strategies, chances are you won’t make it in the long run.

However, don’t confuse flexibility in strategy with actually bouncing around completely different paths. If you bounce from trying to do PPC affiliate marketing to trying to be a top blogger to trying to trade Forex online, you are certainly destined to fail.

On the other hand, if something isn’t working then don’t bash your head against a wall trying to make it work. Instead, be willing to be flexible and adapt. Being able to hold both focus towards a goal and flexibility in the method of getting there is crucial to success.

Know your goals. Know what’s important to know. Know what you need to do on a day by day, week by week, month by month and year by year basis. Stick to your plan and stay focused.

Email marketing is one of the tactics with the most potential for profit. You’re sending messages to people who have expressed an interest in your business. However, many email marketing campaigns fall short of expectations. Here are nine strategies to increase your conversion rates in email marketing campaigns.

1. Start on the right foot – Many business owners do a great job of motivating the sign-up and then they immediately drop the ball. Email marketing is about building a relationship. As soon as someone signs up for your email list, send them a welcome email. If you can include links to valuable content and resources, you’re setting the groundwork for a great relationship. Your prospect will look forward to opening emails from you and receiving value and benefit.

2 Share your enthusiasm – In order to make an impression and have an impact, share your enthusiasm for both the information you’re sharing and the offer. When you love what you’re doing, it shows. It also shows when you don’t believe in your message.

3. Write a great headline and subject line – Learn some basic copywriting skills. Learn to write a great headline. And take the time to test various headlines to see which ones generate the best results. You want your subject line to motivate recipients to open your email. You want your headline to motivate them to read your message.

4. Proof positive - People make buying decisions based on their emotions. They reinforce these decisions based on logic. Use testimonials, data and even case studies or endorsements to offer proof. Help your prospect justify their decision to buy.

5. Can you guarantee? – A guarantee minimizes and often eliminates any risk. And if you’re hesitant to offer a guarantee, remember this… most people do not return their products even when they’re not 100% satisfied. Sure, you’ll have a few people who return it. However, the results you’ll receive in conversions will more than make up for those few returned products.

6. Ply them with gifts – Continue to build your relationship with your subscribers by giving them stuff for free. In addition to sending regular newsletters, also give them unexpected gifts. Consider sending a free e-book or report.

7. Make it professional – Make sure your email messages look professional. Create a consistent theme or format. Brand your messages. And include a signature box. It adds credibility, awareness and personality to your message. Additionally, your prospects begin to know what to expect from you. Establish a relationship with them and they will buy.

8. Call to action – Always include a call to action, even if you’re only sending valuable content without a promotional message attached. Send recipients to your website for more information. Inspire them to check out a video or blog post. Share a free resource with them. Each message you send should have a purpose and a call to action to support it.

9. Test and track - Finally, test and track your email marketing efforts. Review your analytics. Learn which messages convert higher than the others. Test subject lines, calls to action and even the design of your message.

Email marketing is too important a tactic to simply let it go to waste. Use these tips, test and track and fine-tune your email marketing strategy today. Even a small increase in conversions is worth the effort.

Home based business are on the rise. The internet makes it easy for people aspiring to transition from a traditional 9-5 or make some extra money from home. Here are some of the top ways to earn from home.

#1 Freelancing

Freelancing is simply selling a service without a long term contract. You can offer any number of services. Writing, graphic design, transcription, editing, audio creation, photography, and even voice over services can all be offered as a freelancer. Freelancing gives you the ability to pick and choose the projects you work on and whom you work with. It provides you with the freedom to set your rates and to choose when you work and when you don’t.

#2 Information Marketing

Information marketing is exactly what it sounds like, it’s making money by selling information. We’re an information hungry society and we often turn to the internet to help solve our problems. Whether you need to stop back pain, learn how to train your dog or learn how to be a parent to your teenager, we all have problems we want to solve.

Many times information marketers make their living writing books and reports. However, information marketers also create software products, or have them created for them. You can hold teleseminars or offer an online course. The key to being a successful information marketer is finding a topic you’re passionate about and researching supply and demand. There are tons of niches just waiting for a motivated entrepreneur.

#3 Affiliate marketing

Affiliate marketers earn a commission on products or services they sell. Generally, affiliate marketers create a website around a niche topic. They use content to build an audience and drive traffic to their website. In their content they promote, review, and link to the sales pages of the products or services they represent.

For example, a person could create a website around pet health and be an affiliate for companies that provide products and services that support pet health. Affiliate marketing can be a very lucrative home based business. Like information marketing the key is to find a niche you’re passionate about and to research supply and demand. You’ll also want to research affiliate products and services.

Other ways to start a home business include direct sales, selling a product, coaching and membership sites. There are a number of ways to make a living from home. Find the business model that’s right for you and enjoy!

Does writing your website content seem to take all day? Do you have time pressures to write quickly but just cannot seem to get the job done? Take advantage of these professional writing tips to speed up your writing time. Get more done in less time.

1. Create a plan or outline. Before you begin writing your content, plan it out. Decide exactly what you’re writing about. Create the structure for your piece.

For example, if you’re writing a “how to”, then outline the steps you’re going to include in your article. If you’re writing an informative article, then what information are you going to share to support your headline? Are you writing a tips article or report? If so, what tips are you going to write about? Create the structure and plan your content before you write it. Planning your content can be accomplished in a few minutes and you’ll cut your writing time in half.

2. Set a timer to keep you focused. Many times the reason it takes so long to write is because you’re distracted. From the internet to chores and other tasks, it’s easy to get sidetracked from your writing. Setting a timer helps keep you focused on a single task. Set the timer for the time you think it should take to write your content piece.

3. Work in blocks. Sometimes writing a lot of content can feel overwhelming. Instead of looking at a ten-page report or a list of twenty blog posts, break them down into smaller bites. If you have ten articles to write, then write three and take a break. Come back, write three more and then take a break. Try to write for no longer than an hour at a time without taking a break.

4. Edit later. Editing while you write slows you down dramatically. Fiction writers know that it also inhibits your flow and creativity. Simply write until it’s done. Then go back and edit for spelling, grammar and clarity. You’ll get twice as much done in half the time if you use this simple tip.

5. Write when you feel most productive. This may sound a bit strange but it’s best to write at your most energetic and focused time of the day. If you save your writing for when you’re feeling low energy, you’re going to be moving slowly. If you’re a morning person, then write first thing in the morning. If you’re a night person, then vice versa. Many people save this time of the day for their-profit generating tasks. However, content is an essential aspect of any online business. Make it a priority.

Writing fast takes practice. It also takes focus, a system, and a commitment. Try these top five tips and get more writing done in less time.