Saving for retirement remains one of the most important financial goals
for both men and women. While saving for retirement is a huge endeavor
for everyone, women face a variety of unique challenges and obstacles that
should be taken into account in their long-term planning.

First of all, and perhaps most importantly, women, on average, live longer
then men. Therefore, they will simply need more money during retirement
then men. According to a July 2005 report on www.msn.com, women at age 65
are expected to live another 19.5 years, while men are expected to live
16.6 year after age 65. But according to the same MSN report the
demographers predict that many women alive today will live into their
90's. This means many women will need to be prepared financially and
emotionally for a retirement lasting, in some cases, over 30 years.

Another challenge women face is that they typically have fewer years in
the workforce. According to the Social Security Administration, the
average man retiring in 2000 had 44 years of working under his belt,
however the average woman had only 32. This is because women are more
likely than men to take time off from work to have and raise children and
sometimes interrupt their careers to care for aging parents.

Work interruptions have significant financial consequences. For instance,
women's contributions to Social Security cease when unemployed,
ultimately reducing the Social Security benefit when they
retire. According to the Social Security Administration the average
Social Security benefit check for women was $774 per month compared to
$1008 for men.

Work interruptions can also make it more difficult for women to compete
for promotions and salary raises. For that reason, and others,
women's annual salaries are, on average, approximately 75 percent of
men's. Although the wage gap has been decreasing over the last few
years, the median income for full-time working women was $30,420 per year
in 2004, compared to $40,136 for men, according to the July 2005 MSN report.

Due to lower earnings and fewer years working, women are less likely to be
saving toward their retirement then men. According to the 2005 Retirement
Confidence Survey from the Employee Benefit Research Institute, 59 percent
of women are currently saving toward retirement compared to 65 percent of
men. The same study shows that only 36 percent of women participate in
workplace retirement plans, such as a 401(k)s, as compared to 48 percent
of men.

Yet another challenge is that women tend to be more conservative investors
then men. A 2004 study called the "Financial Gender Gap" found
that women have a lower risk tolerance and therefore tend to be more
conservative with their investments. Although there is a place for
conservative investments in most portfolios, investing too conservatively
(across the board) can lead to decreased savings and diminished retirement
investments.

Here are some financial tips specifically geared towards women to help
them better prepare for their retirement:

Make saving a priority:

Some women get sidetracked when balancing many financial obligations,
caring first for their family, such as their children or aging
parents. They should remember to focus on taking care of themselves and
not let saving for their own retirement slide.

Invest more:

Women should actually consider investing more than their male counterparts
to account for their longer lifespan and smaller earnings. Women must
take into consideration both their risk tolerance and time - horizon so they
can invest appropriately toward their goals.

Contribute to Retirement Plans:

If eligible and your employer provides a retirement savings plan, such as
a 401(k), do not delay signing up. Start as soon as you are eligible and
contribute as much as you can, especially if your company has a matching
program. You may want to augment your 401(k) savings by contributing to
an Individual Retirement Accounts (IRA). An IRA is also a good option if
your company does not offer any retirement savings accounts.

Save, even if you are not working:

If you have taken or are planning to take time off from work to raise kids
or care for aging/ill family members, try to continue to save money in
your IRA accounts. Married people filing jointly are able to make a
deductible IRA contribution based on their earnings.

Delay your retirement:

If you are nearing retirement and feel that you are not financially
prepared, you may want to consider delaying your retirement. By delaying
your retirement, you continue to earn income and postpone taking withdraws
from your retirement savings which allows your assets to continue to
compound and grow. Delaying will give you more time to save and contribute
to your Social Security benefit. In fact, for each year you delay beyond
65 years old, your Social Security benefit will increase 8 percent,
according to recent financial report on www.ivillage.com.

Seek help:

Meet with a qualified financial advisor who can help you create a
personalized financial plan which includes retirement savings and options
designed specifically for your unique needs and challenges.

###

This information is provided for informational purposes only. The
information is intended to be generic in nature and should not be applied
or relied upon in any particular situation without the advice of your tax,
legal and/or your financial advisor. The views expressed may not be
suitable for every situation.

Ameriprise Financial Services, Inc., Member NASD, part of Ameriprise Financial, Inc. © 2006 Ameriprise Financial, Inc. All rights reserved.

Labels: financial planning, retirement

I have had a varied career history; from my service in the military to
various customer service jobs. I ultimately went back to school and got a
degree in computer science. After graduating, I was in that great situation
where you can't find a job without experience but you can't get experience
without a job. So, I knew I needed to make my own experience. Little did I
know that over four years later, the business would be going better than ever!

We envision ourselves going through a couple of transition periods. We
started off as a typical web development company taking on a project or two and doing all of the work ourselves. We're now going through our first transition period where we stop doing the majority of the coding work and
have contractors do it for us. We're essentially becoming project managers.
At the same time we're laying the foundation for our next two transitions.
Once we have contractors handling the bulk of our work we will publish
websites for ourselves. Most of these will be designed to be revenue
generators through advertising although some will be subscription based and
others may even be ecommerce. Once we have published these sites we will be
in our next phase where we grow our websites and only accept high margin web
development contracts. This will allow us to keep our margins high while
allowing us enough time to continue growing our own projects. We love to
work with clients but it's great to diversify and not have all of your eggs
in one basket if you can.

After graduating from high school, I had no interest in college at the time,
so I joined the US Navy. I was an arabic linguist for 4 years before
deciding to get out and try my hand in the civilian world. I had managerial
experience so I found myself in a supervisory role at an inbound call
center. This definitely laid the ground work for my customer service
experience. After a couple of years I decided to go back to school to pursue
a degree in foreign languages. I took a programming course as an elective
and fell in love with it and immediately switched my major. It took about 5
years, but I finally finished my computer science degree and the rest is
history!

Things I love: my family, travel, the outdoors, and technology. I've got two
young boys who always are up to something and definitely keep me on my toes.
My ideal weekend is a camping retreat where we hike all day, relax by the
fire at night, all in a campground with wi-fi access of course!!

Balancing work and personal life is not hard for me. I have been doing it all my life. After work, you need to relax - go for a walk on the beach and plan frequent weekend getaways. You need to learn how to relax from the stress of everyday living.

It can definitely be tricky. The great thing about working for yourself is
you can set your own schedule. The times I work span an entire day, but I am
able to go on field trips with my kids or join a soccer team myself. I have
found that you need to really make sure your family and friends understand
what you do and understand your schedule. You need to make time for them but
also make time for yourself! It really takes trial and error to figure out
the right balance for your life. I'm still trying to perfect that!

At this time in my life, I will have to say the flexibility it allows me. I
really admire my friends who are stay-at-home moms and I wish I could do
that; but I can't. So the next best thing for me is to be able to be as
active in my kids life as possible and being an entrepreneur allows me that.
From a professional angle, the most rewarding aspect is launching a client's
website and watching them realize their goals. It doesn't get much better
than that.

Stay on top of the latest technology. In my field, things change rapidly; if
you miss a week, you might as well have missed a couple of months. You need
to continue to learn and teach yourself new things. That is probably the
key.

I have always been a firm believer in "it's not what you know, but who you
know', that gets you in the door. This is true whether you are an
independent looking for a job or a business owner looking for her next
client. The Wild WE was a pretty unique idea that brought women
entrepreneurs together in one place to share stories and offer help to each
other. Plus, where else can you go to find women in similar positions as
you, business-wise, but that have a multitude of skills. I've made some
great connections at Wild WE and am excited to be part of it.

We're just really excited about how brainyminds
is growing. We are continuing to grow our Merchant account website. We have really tried to make that site a great resource people who are looking to accept credit cards either online or offline. We have new features that we are working on which will facilitate that even more! Thanks for letting me be a part of this great group of women!

Labels: wild we member of the month

Greetings to my fellow Wild Women (and Men) Entrepreneurs!

Marketing. Ahhhh, Marketing! A 4-letter-word to some; a wealth of ideas to others. No matter how you market and brand your business ventures, it comes down to this: We want customers, we want to remain in business for the long-term and we want to be paid for our time and talents.

The thing with marketing is that, at times, it can be a crap shoot. You try something in August and the customers flock to you in droves. You try something else in February and it stinks like last week's garbage. Don't let the latter get you down; indeed, take the "stinky garbage" attempts and turn them into learning experiences. Do the research, check your numbers and figure out what went wrong. Whatever you do, don't think of these attempts as failures--they're not!

One of the successes in my marketing and branding arsenal is the landing or sales page. Now, it must be said that I fully despise the "typical" sales page--you know, the ones with "Dear Friend" and today's date at the top. Or the one ones with lots of big red bullets and arrows and testimonials in table format in a yellow background. I'm not you're friend and I don't read those testimonials. The typical landing page does not appeal to me...

What does appeal to me is letting my personality and aggressiveness shine through. I want visitors to my blog and websites to immediately think to themselves, "I must talk with this person." One of the ways I've accomplished this all important goal is with Lori's version of the sales page. Read on for more....

Guppy or a Shark? You Decide...

I categorize business owners in one of two ways: Guppies or Sharks. The former let the world pass them by and show no aggression; the latter are in business for the long-term and do not allow anything or anyone to stand in their way. The result of this categorization may be viewed on this landing page, http://www.GuppyOrShark.com

Another thing I do to drive home the Guppy/Shark marketing and branding is to address my blog readers as either Sharks or Guppies. And it must be said I adore when folks contact me and tell me, "I want to achieve Sharkdom!" or "I'm a Guppy ...help me change!" or "I'm a Shark and I want to work with you." This landing page is simple and yet to the point, and it asks one very important question, "Do you want to be a Guppy or a Shark?" More important, it's yet another way I market myself and attract the types of clients with whom I want to work.

Killer Customer Care

Yet another example of Lori's version of an effective sales page! For those of you who don’t know me, you need to realize just how important awesome customer service is to my business. My team and I work virtually with clients, and goodness knows it's tough enough making business owners jump on the Virtual Assistance bandwagon. One way I accomplish this is via my Killer Customer Care sales page.

On my blog and this sales page, I make it perfectly clear that the concept of Killer Customer Care is one which me and my staff eat, live and breathe every day. I also call out those companies which either deliver it in spades or really need help in this department! Guess what else I'm finding? Even though DavisVA's rates may be a bit higher than those of other Virtual Assistance providers, clients are coming my way in large numbers because they know that I know that the Customer Care experience is THAT important. They're willing to pay a bit more because they know they'll be taken care of very well. Indeed, they receive Killer Customer Care every day they work with us.

As the title of this article states, "There Ain't No Silver Bullet When it Comes to Marketing." You know it and I know it. Take the time necessary and market and brand your company in a way which truly reflects your values and personality. Remember, don't get hung up on "failures;" instead, turn 'em around and make 'em work to your advantage!

Lori Davis is the Director of the Future and Lead Shark at Davis Virtual Assistants (DavisVA.com), a New York-based Virtual Assistance firm providing a wide array of administrative, technical and creative solutions to a broad spectrum of business owners. Lori, her team of 10 Associates and the Virtual Consultants who are members of her Referral Network, have worked with thousands of business owners, just like you, who have chosen to outsource. She is sought out as a Coach and Mentor for aspiring Virtual Assistants, as well as by established VAs who need guidance and support to move their practice to the next level. Contact Lori today and learn how Davis Virtual Assistants can partner with your team. Lori Davis, Davis Virtual Assistants, 866.611.LORI, Lori@DavisVA.com

Copyright © Lori Davis, Davis Virtual Assistants. All rights reserved worldwide.

Labels: marketing, marketing to women, motivating your customers

That excitement is the same excitement as when a community member says, "Thank you, Wild WE. I met some of my best clients and best friends at your events and on your website." It's comments like that which empower me to work 18 hour days, to ensure that the Wild WE community is thriving and learning from one another. It is comments like that which remind me daily that we are all trying to achieve success and that it is up to us individually, as well as, within the Wild WE community to mentor one another. It is up to us, individually, as well as, within the Wild WE community to reach out to more women to let them know that there is an exciting, trusting community that is theirs and is here, just waiting to help THEM achieve success.

Happy Birthday Wild WE! Remember, It's YOUR Community! YOU decide your level of Success!

Love,

Ja-Naé

Wild Women Entrepreneurs President/Founder

Labels: wild we

A lot of people talk about "business plans" and that you have to have one for any business. But what is a business plan and why is it important to your success? A business plan is a document that explains what makes your business unique and why it can succeed. By writing a business plan, you sit down and take the time to look at your new business in an objective and critical manner. And, once completed, a business plan will give you a path to follow.

A business plan lists the products or services your company will provide, your management methods, how you will market your company, how your company will keep its financial records, and your goals for the future. Your business plan will also examine the competition in the area and how you can compete against those businesses that are already up and running. Additionally, a business plan will explain the specific "niche" your small business will fill and why your business is qualified to fill that "niche".

Sitting down and writing a business plan helps you to focus your ideas and increases your chance for success and growth. A finished plan is not only a communication tool for your business, but it is also a document required by financial institutions if you are going to be applying for a loan to get your business up and running.

A business plan will explain how you expect to find potential customers and your plans for growing your business. Your business plan will also include how you are going to market your business, an analysis of your competitors, and forecasts of sales revenues.

It's not difficult to write a plan for your business. It does take some time, research and a quiet place to sit down and bring all the pieces together. Write your business plan in a style that is not only readable, but enthusiastic. This will show potential lenders that you not only know what it takes to run a successful business, but that you are excited about what you are doing. Keep your plan upbeat and positive, but don't stretch the facts and underestimate the time that it will take for your business to become profitable.

A typical business plan for a small company may run between 15-30 pages. Business plans vary, but typically include the following sections:

1. Introduction. This will include your cover page, executive summary, and table of contents. Your cover page should have all the relevant information about your business: name, location, owners, and the date the plan was prepared. Your executive summary will present a summary of the entire plan, including information about your company, your overall objectives, and your key personnel and their strengths.
   


2. Business Description. This will be more in-depth information about your business; the products and services you are selling, your service area, your potential clients, background information of key personnel, the unique features your company has to offer, and a timetable.


3. Business Organization. This section covers the legal structure of your business, how you will manage the business, how many employees you'll need, and insurance and security issues.


4. Competition. You need to have a realistic expectation of the competition in the area and how you can grab a share of the existing market. Is there more demand then supply for your product or service? Will you be filling a niche that is not being filled? What will make your company stand out from the other business in the area that are selling the same service or product?


5. Marketing Plan. No business can be successful if people do not realize you exist. A marketing plan will help you to focus on the steps you need to take to find and reach your target audience.


6. Financial Documents. Financial documents are the records used to project income and cash flow. Accurate financial records help to set the pace of your business. Include an income statement, cash flow statement, start up expenses, and projected balance sheet. Show projections for one year, three years and five years.


7. Supporting Materials. Include resumes of the owner(s) and key personnel, letters of reference, sample contracts, any legal documents about your business, and sample collateral materials.

It's important to write a plan for your business. Don't underestimate how important a business plan is to the success of your small business. Sitting down and writing a plan, forces you to look at the competition as well as your own strengths and weaknesses. A business plan helps to guide your business and makes sure that you have not forgotten any of those pesky details (marketing, bookkeeping, employees, training) that it takes to make your new business successful. Taking the time to plan before you open the doors can save you time, money, and headaches after your business is up and running.

Donna Evans is the owner if Gizmo Creations, a website design company located in Merrifield, Minnesota. Gizmo Creations specializes in designing websites for small businesses and non-profit organizations.

Labels: business plan

Rosé:

In the past this wine has been confused with white zinfandel and other blush wines, causing most people to steer clear, but in recent years this misunderstood wine has picked up in popularity. While there are sweet Rosés, the majority are semi-sweet or dry (often very dry).

The Rosé can be made from any red grape variety and is most often made using Grenache, Syrah, or Pinot Noir. Rosés are fermented in the same way that red wines are, except that the skins are removed early before the wine has absorbed the full red color and tannins. The result is a wine with the refreshing qualities of a white and some of the classic characteristics of a red.

This wine is great at a barbeque or dinner party with a group because of its versatility. Most famous as the perfect compliment to a steaming bowl of bouillabaisse, this wine pairs well with shellfish and lean fish fillets, but is equally suited to grilled lamb and beef. The Rosé is at its best when served with Mediterranean dishes. Try a Rosé with poultry, duck, or seafood in a garlic and/or tomato based sauce. Experiment with spice rubs including saffron, fragrant paprika, or course ground peppercorns. A semi-sweet Rosé is a nice compliment to spicier foods. Try the semi-sweet with curries, Jamaican jerk rubbed poultry, or whatever your favorite hot and spicy dish may be.

Why not try something a little more exotic...

Yuzu:

The Kiuchi Yuzu Wine is produced in Japan, using the Yuzu fruit. The Yuzu (Japanese citrus) is a hybrid of sour orange and citron, grown only in China, Tibet and Japan. Historically, this fruit was valued as an herbal remedy, but today is admired for its unique flavor and versatility.

Yuzu wine has flavors of lime, lemon, and grapefruit, with overtones of mandarin and orange. The wine has a tantalizing mix of sweetness and lemony sharpness. Serve a nicely chilled bottle on a hot day and you are guaranteed refreshment.

As you can imagine, the citrus flavors of this wine pair up perfectly with fish. So throw a tuna or salmon steak on the grill, or maybe some orange glazed shrimp skewers! Additionally, the acidity of Yuzu compliments more fatty fare, such as foie gras or paté. This wine may also accompany dessert. It pairs nicely with meringues, pineapple sorbet, or any other dessert that is a bit tart.

Pomegranate:

Keep an eye out for the pomegranate wines from Armenia. These wines served slightly chilled provide all the tasty flavor of the pomegranate fruit without all the messy work. The wine drinks quite well on its own and is a natural pair with many springtime foods. This wine is a perfect match for lamb (in almost any form), pork roasts, and any dish with middle-eastern flare, like kabobs and ghoreshts (Persian stews). Also try this wine alongside salads with dried berries and nuts or with a soft chevre.

Don't be afraid to try something other than the traditional grape.

Impress yourself and others with a little something unusual. Check out the selection at your favorite wine store and don't be afraid to ask the resident expert for some advice. Just make sure that whichever wine you choose, includes the fruit during fermentation as opposed to adding fruit juice for flavor at the end (no wine-coolers).

Tune in next month for tips on judging wine quality by the label.

Labels: wines