Its difficult to tell by watching the mainstream media, but the sales of Black Friday and the Christmas season turned in some dismal numbers in November. Sure, there was lots of pushing, shoving, stomping, and trash talking going on between customers clamouring to get into the stores on Black Friday, but its only due to the massive discounts. The urge to shop seems to be a waning affair, which is a bellwether for retail giants that consumers now need a good excuse to go out and spend their money on their wares. However, the small business owner is optimistic, and is already flexing its muscles to lead the way out of this retail abstention.
The Haunting Retail Numbers for Big Business
The numbers are in, and they’re…well…meh.
Retail sales as measured by the Commerce Department turned in what they are calling a disappointing November. The number rose a meagre 0.2%, and that included the insanity affectionally called Black Friday. The expert consensus was counting on an increase 3 times as big. Whoops.
If this isn’t depressing enough for retailers, it looks as though its not going to get any better next month. Nearly 40% of Americans say that they’re already done with Christmas shopping this year, and that same number was only 29% this time last year. Looking further into the details of the report, we can see that shoppers are visiting fewer stores and buying fewer gifts.
This trend is overtly obvious…people are making less money this year and have less to spend on themselves, let alone other people.
This is forcing a major margin squeeze on big business, and its getting tighter than an old fashioned finger trap.
The Numbers for Small Business
On the other hand, small business owners are feeling a bit better about the whole situation.
The Optimism Index put out by the National Federation of Independent Business has moved up in November for the third straight month. Currently, the number sits on the high end of the post 2007 range, which is encouraging but still well below its historical trend.
However, over the next 3 months a seasonally adjusted 7% of owners are planning to create new jobs, which is the strongest reading in 38 months. In a decent expansion, this indicator will be in double digits.
So although the overall trend of sales is down, its clear that small business is ready to lead the way out of this glut as they always do in a recessionary period. When you don’t have costly expenses like buildings, employees, and large scale inventory, you can start to compete at a whole new level.
How Do You get Started
One of the most difficult decisions is what are you going to provide of value to people that will make them shop with you?
The good news is that there are “ready made” businesses you can simply choose from and plug into in the industry of network marketing.
Network marketing thrives on the model of a plug and play business, where the end product ends up on your doorstep by virtue of someone else’s efforts to put it altogether. All you have to do is figure out how to market it to enough people so that you can squeeze some extra income into your bank account.
In fact, if you want to really go nuts on a global scale you can can use online marketing methods and market to millions with your business, without all the time and money consuming travel. Different online strategies and techniques allow small business owners to move ahead quickly while the retail giants like Best Buy lick their wounds and ride out the storm while they try to figure out who to fire.
If you want in on the trend, and minimize your risk at the same time, a small home based business in the industry of network marketing is one of your best options.
If you would like to learn more about operating a small business, please visit http://homebasedcoffeebusiness.net.