If you’re a regular reader of our blog, you’ve noticed that we’ve been working to give members like you a variety of lessons and hints on how to run a business. Club Asteria’s goal is to help every one of our members achieve financial freedom.

We hope that these entries have helped, and this time we’re going to dig a little deeper into an area of business that sometimes gets forgotten: your audience. By definition, your audience is the group of people whom you direct your sales and marketing message towards in hopes of enticing them into buying your product or service.

In the past, most audiences were local and patronized the businesses that they could reach via a short trip – whether it was walking or riding!

Today, with the explosion of the Internet, smartphones, laptops and tablets, most entrepreneurs are no longer limited by geography. As long as you can ship your product, or perform your service from your office or home, the world is yours!

As with everything else, there’s a downside to this phenomenon, and that’s not knowing whom you’re selling to – and this could translate into wasting valuable time and advertising dollars.

Defining your audience when you have limited finances and time can be challenging, but it’s not impossible. Here are some tips:

1-  Search out your competition – visit their website, notice how their information is presented and ask, “Who would buy this product or service?” Remember to look at how they pitch their products.
2-  Put yourself in your audience’s shoes – ask tough questions about your product, like “Is it useful to this particular group of people?” “Can they get it somewhere close that’s less expensive?” “Is the price fair, or is it a deterrent?”
3-  Talk to your current customers – this is a great way to provide customer service and help guarantee return sales, and you’ll receive first-hand information from people who paid money for your product or service. A five-minute conversation yields valuable information.
4-  Surveys are cheap – depending upon your website’s design and how much control you have over it you can post a quick survey whenever a person reaches your page. Keep it short and simple, and use a free giveaway as an enticement.
5-  Collect information – when you send out a marketing or sales email, or any other kind of marketing effort, track the response and build a profile of your most common buyer. This takes extra time and effort, but the pay will be worth it.

Defining an audience is an exercise that never truly ends. Your customer base will change as you grow – and as demand changes. Don’t get discouraged; remember that everyone faces the same challenges.

As the founder of Club Asteria, I have traveled around the world and I have seen the very best, and the very worst, of many different countries.

One of the themes that I saw in my travels is that the smallest, most common items could make the biggest difference in a village or a small town.

Another surprising fact was that these items weren’t gigantic buildings full of computers and machines, or hydroelectric dams that pushed out millions of kilowatts of energy every day – they were simple objects like bicycles and carts and horses and cows.

Take for example, a bicycle. In America and other nations, bicycles are given to children when they’re still too young to ride them without training wheels. On any given day you can ride through a neighborhood and see bicycles laying in the yard or on the sidewalk – their owners rarely give them a second thought.

But take that same simple machine and place it in an impoverished country and the meaning, and value, changes. It’s no longer a toy for kids, it’s a life-changing tool that benefits everyone.

When you give a bicycle to a person in an underdeveloped area, you’ve given him the means to transport goods and sell them at different markets. A bicycle can be used by service providers to expand their area of coverage. A bicycle can transport people to the hospital or medical clinic.

It’s amazing what two round pieces of rubber and some metal tubing can do!

The simple machines and tools that we take for granted could change the lives of millions of people, which is why Club Asteria’s micro-loan and micro-funding programs are so vital to the success of our mission.

The funds that we earn, and then loan to individuals are like water on seeds – as they grow and multiply, the fruit they produce can benefit many people. And the seeds from that fruit can be planted to benefit many, many people.

Your participation in Club Asteria allows everyone to benefit from the simple things that make their lives easier to live, and more profitable.

Whenever you encourage your friends or family members to join our organization, or purchase services and products, you’re helping Club Asteria’s micro-funding and micro- financing initiatives.

But you’re not only helping out thousands of people around the world, you’re helping yourself by making an investment in products and services that enable your business to grow and flourish!

Every culture has a phrase that urges the listener to prepare today so they can be ready for any trouble that surfaces tomorrow.

The English version of this saying is, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” This quote is often attributed to Benjamin Franklin, and it’s no surprise, since he’s regarded as one of the most forward thinkers of his time.

What Mr. Franklin was saying that by planning, you’ll be ready to weather tougher times – and not be caught by surprise when an emergency occurs. If you’re going to be a successful entrepreneur, preparation is vital to success!

Being prepared doesn’t have to cost you a lot of money in the form of insurance, there are simple strategies and tactics you can follow, and gain that pound of cure without going bankrupt!

*  Calendar – this simple tool helps you plan your year, and anticipate busy times and slow times.     Divide each year into four quarters, and review each quarter separately. Write down ideas for advertising, marketing and projected sales.

*  Journal – another investment, this simple notebook is a place where you can record daily and weekly happenings with your business. You don’t have to write lengthy entries, just accurate snapshots of cash flow, sales, advertising that worked, etc. When you’re planning the next year, this journal will be incredibly valuable.

*  Savings – if you’re eventually going to have an emergency fund, you have to start one at some point in time! It doesn’t have to be a lot, but setting aside a small sum each week gets you into the habit, and after a year you’ll be amazed at what you’ve saved.

*  Idea File – whenever you receive a mailer or email advertisement that you like, put it in this file. When you’re ready to start your own campaign, you won’t be starting from scratch. Samples from other businesses are excellent ways to get your creative energy revved up – and it saves you time.

*  Relationship building – your network of contacts is vital to building a business, and when you’re in need of a service or product quickly, knowing someone who can provide it will greatly reduce your downtime in the event of unseen circumstances, like a power outage or machinery breakdown.

Preparing your business for future challenges isn’t a futile exercise, it’s what smart entrepreneurs do. When an emergency occurs, or you’re facing a sudden change, you’ll feel more confident because you’re prepared – and because you’re ready, you won’t waste time or money.

There are so many ways to improve yourself in the world, but one of the most rewarding, and highly accessible, is education through Club Asteria.

We’ve asked some of the world’s most dedicated and knowledgeable thought leaders to help out our members by contributing their time, resources and writings.

This information is posted to our website so every Club Asteria member can take advantage of this wealth of knowledge.

Thanks to the growing popularity of smart phones and web-enabled mobile phones, it’s easy to turn your lunch break into a learning break!

The educational aspect of Club Asteria is led by an amazing team of entrepreneurs, who have diversified, domestic and international knowledge and expertise in a variety of environments developing strategies and implementation methods.

When you access the educational page, you’ll immediately see the button that takes you to a page, which lists more than 25 different thought leaders. Review each leader’s bio to discover the ones whose thoughts best fit your life direction.

The main page also organizes the articles by four different subjects: business, personal development, inspirational and personal.

These groupings were designed to help our members quickly identify the area where they needed help, and then directly access articles that were full of guidance and knowledge.

In the event that you don’t have enough time to read an entire article, there are also several videos available on the website, discussing topics and ideas that will not only stimulate your brain, but provide you with clear direction for improving your life and your business.

The educational section includes the Club Asteria Twitter feed, which contains handy nuggets of information and website links that are designed to broaden the choices you have for collecting information.

Our Twitter feed is a great place to find other like-minded individuals and follow them, so you’re constantly learning something new, whenever you log on to the Internet!

Education is the key to broadening your horizons, and by providing a resource rich website that can be accessed by any member, Club Asteria continues to show our dedication to our members.

Take advantage of these articles and videos, and share the knowledge with your friends, family, employees and business partners.

In the end, you’ll be helping yourself!

Club Asteria’s success depends on the participation and hard work of every member. When we all work together, the chances of receiving more money at the end of each month increase for everyone.

However, when everyone is waiting for the next person to step up, and no one does, then the opposite of growth occurs: stagnation. That’s certainly not the reason we all joined this organization!

So how can each of us take one step this month to increase everyone’s good fortune and increase their chances of helping themselves, their friends, and families?

Before the next week is over, dedicate yourself to telling at least 10 people about Club Asteria, and once you’ve had the conversation with them, follow up with an email inviting them to check out our website!

Of those 10, maybe half will take you up on it, and of those 5, it’s a good bet that 3 will visit the website, see all of the wonderful resources and tools, and join. At least 1 of those people will become a Gold Member, adding to your revenue stream.

So that’s 1 person signing up for every 10 people each Club Asteria member contacts. There are more than 350,000 members – so even if 1 out of every 10 members had this kind of success, we would add 35,000 new members this month!

All of these new members would then go out and share their impressions of the organization, and what started out as a few rain drops would collect into a puddle, and then form a stream, which would grow into a river, and empty into an ocean of new members!

So what could you tell your friends about Club Asteria? Here are a few ideas:

• Send them a link to the site, and ask them to visit the Membership page.
• Explain the tools and resources you’ve used and how they have made your life easier and more profitable.
• Ask them to check out our Facebook page, and they’ll immediately see how vibrant our community is.
• Email a link to this month’s Empower Now, and let the power of this online publication do the work for you!
• Allow them to see the educational opportunities waiting for them!

Talking to your network of friends and family about Club Asteria is what helps us grow, and in turn provide the kind of support in the form of micro loans and micro funding, that enable the less fortunate in our world the ability to succeed.

Remember, the trip to the ocean starts with a single drop of rain!

Cambodia is a place of great beauty and historic significance, and also home to thousands of unexploded land mines that cause untold damage, decades after the war in Southeast Asia.

When you cross over by land from Thailand into Cambodia, you see a row of people with missing limbs, sitting in the dirt. Those that still have hands reach out to you spare change. Those that don’t, simply sit with a bowl in front of them.

Every one has been a victim of land mines. Perhaps they went out into the jungle to pick fruit, or hunt to feed their families. One small step and a life changes forever. There is no rehabilitation, no social safety net. There is no opportunity for prosthetics, and no check from the government. There is just sitting along the border with a bowl in front of them.

A strange thing about the culture of those limbless beggars is that those who have lost the most limbs have more status. A more visible shock engenders a greater amount of spare change.

In addition to the wounded beggars at the border, homeless children roam the streets in Poipet, begging for food and money or picking up the occasional odd job. Often they fall victim to unscrupulous people who take advantage of them. There was one young boy who used black humor to get enough food for him and his friends when I was there.

He came up to me, his arm obviously withdrawn under his shirt to make it look like he had a missing limb. Smiling and in broken English, he said to me, “Please Missus, may I have some money for food? Look at me, I don’t have an arm!” Then his friend came over and pulled his arm out of his shirt playfully, and said, “No, no! Look, he has arm! Give me money instead!”

We all laughed and continued on with this strange game and I rewarded them both with some coins, and then they ran off to the satay vendor down the path for something to eat.

It doesn’t take much to turn the corner in a place like this. With a small amount of money—at least what is a small amount to us—those who would be homeless could make a living for themselves.

I saw rays of hope in the desperation that day. I met women at the bazaar who sold clothing and home-made crafts. I met young men who had purchased motorbikes and offered short-distance rides and delivery services for people in town.

I was able to strike up a conversation with a young lady running a small booth at the bazaar. She was selling handcrafted items carved out of coconut shells, and I looked over and saw her husband doing the carving. Both of his legs were missing and he sat on a small wooden platform. “He used to sit at the border,” she told me, “after the land mine accident.”

These are the people that Club Asteria can help.  A microloan of a few hundred dollars gave her enough capital to rent the booth and acquire initial stock, and soon after, her husband discovered his own talent for carving these delightful items.

Their new micro-loan-funded business had made all the difference—and today they have a clean home, and she confided in me that she plans to surprise her husband with a store-bought wheelchair that will allow them to get around more easily.

Club Asteria supports micro-credit programs to make success stories like this all over the world. It doesn’t take a lot of money to make a huge difference in somebody’s life, and we encourage you to support our efforts to help people like the folks I met in Cambodia have the lives they deserve.

Club Asteria’s founders realized that by providing people with the head start they needed, the world could be changed in a positive way. Micro loans and micro financing programs are like water for seeds – just the right amount and the seed will grow and bloom into a beautiful flower.

The growth process takes time, effort and patience – and being an entrepreneur can be rewarding, challenging and exhausting!

Every entrepreneur takes a different path to success. That path is determined by thousands of different factors, some of which are dictated by the industry you’ve chosen and others by your local community and business environment.

Despite the many different factors, there are some constants that every entrepreneur faces during their path to success. Remember the “rules” below aren’t going to apply to every situation and every person, so don’t treat them like a checklist – think of them as directions to success!

Rule #1 – Every Day is Different. Simply put, each day is going to present a new set of challenges, changes and developments that are going to carry with them positives and negatives. Sure, it’s going to feel like a roller coaster, but when you’re prepared for the dips and the dives, they’re easier to handle.

Rule #2 – Be Like Water. When you pour water out onto a surface, it goes everywhere, and finds ways to move around objects and makes its way past nooks and crannies. Entrepreneurs need to flow also – as challenges arise and pitfalls open up, remaining fluid will present you with options that might not appear immediately.

Rule #3 – Sure is Slow. As you build your business, you’ll notice that some days are packed with activities, tasks and “to do” lists. And then one day things will be slow. Don’t panic! This is life as an entrepreneur – the best antidote is to have a master list of tasks that need to be done constantly, the ones that you forget about. When a slow day arrives, check this list, you’ll have things to do and you won’t feel that you’ve accomplished nothing.

Rule #4 – Get a Map. You need to know where you’re going, and how to get there. Map it out via a business plan. No need to be complicated, make it complete with room to expand and change course – because that’s what will happen as you continue your journey. A map also allows you to measure your growth and see where you’ve been.

Rule #5 – Enjoy the Ride. There’s a saying: “It’s not the destination, it’s the journey.” Entrepreneurship is a long journey, full of challenges and rewards – but as you’re going through your busy day, be sure to take a moment to enjoy the people you meet, the places you go and the goals you accomplish.

Club Asteria believes that by providing hopeful entrepreneurs with micro loans, micro financing and various services and products, we’ll be able to help members benefit financially. Small businesses generate more business in any community, and once the infrastructure is established, everyone begins to share in the success.

Find out more about the resources and information available to our members, join Club Asteria today!