Category: Business 10

This week in Business class, Mr. Emmons went over four different small business ideas that are viable for students.  All four opportunities looked very interesting, but the one that piqued my interest the most was book publishing.  In this essay, I am going to talk about why this opportunity appealed to me the most.

Before I talk about the business opportunity, I would like to quickly discuss my own business idea first.  If you have been reading my business essays for a while, you may already know that my small business idea is to write and publish my own e-book on Amazon Kindle. 

Naturally, I was very curious about this business opportunity when I clicked on the lesson.  Mr. Emmons talked about how I can help other authors who do not want to go to a traditional publishing company, or do not want to deal with the hassle of publishing their books. 

During the lesson, Mr. Emmons said something that made me think that this business opportunity can be very good for me after I publish my own book.  Mr. Emmons said that if you have already published other people’s books, then your new customers will trust you more.  But if I have already published my own book, new customers will feel confident in my abilities, especially if I start as a teenager.

As you can see, book publishing is a business opportunity that ties into my own business idea.  At the moment, I am only certain that I want to publish my e-book as my business and nothing else.  But it is good to know that I have other business opportunities if I ever want/need them.

This week in Business, I learned about the pros and cons of having a franchise and having an independent business.  In this essay, I am going to be comparing these two types of businesses.

Franchise

One of the best examples of franchise businesses are big fast food chains like McDonald’s or Chick-fil-A. 

Franchises offer less risks, but can also present less rewards.  They are easier to start compared to independent businesses since the franchisor will provide you with the supplies you will need and educate you on how to run the businesses.   However, the franchisor also gets to share your profits and they are in control of all of your advertisements and campaigns.

Independent

An example of an independent business is the small lemonade stands children set up in the summer.  They are the independent “owners” of their business.

Independent businesses have more risks than a franchise does, but if your business kicks off, you could get bigger rewards than a franchise.  An independent business can be harder to start, since you begin with zero reputation.  However, starting an independent business means you are the sole owner and you can keep 100% of the profits and have full control over campaigns, advertisements, etc.  As Mr. Emmons pointed out in the lessons this week, not many independent businesses survive very long, but if they do, they usually attain great success.

Conclusion

As you can see, independent and franchises both have their advantages and disadvantages.  For the purpose of my business (selling books I write through Kindle), I will obviously go with the independent business model.

Thanks for reading!

This week in Business class I learned about the different structures of a business, and the three main functions within the business. In this essay, I am going to be using my acting school as a demonstration of these three functions.

The three functions of a business are Sales and Marketing, Operations, and Finance and Administration. 

Sales and Marketing is advertisement/promotion.  Operations is how the product is produced and sold to consumers.  Finance and Administration is how the business uses their income.  Typically, a CEO oversees all three of the functions, making sure they run smoothly and efficiently.

Sales and Marketing

My school has quite a few different marketing strategies.  Before COVID-19, my school would go to hospitals to sing for the patients.  They also require students to wear a uniform which consists of a shirt with the school logo and leggings (or shorts).  Many of the students commute wearing the uniform since it is casual and convenient.  Before classes, there will be tons of children walking around the nearby malls or travelling on the train wearing the school logo. 

This is a subtle, yet effective way of getting their name out.

Operations

Operations is how the product of the business is produced and sold to consumers.  In this case, the “product” are the classes my school offers to students.  These classes are taught by teachers who are involved in the local theatre scene and have theatre experience.

For example, one of the teachers at my school is a graduate of LaSalle, an acting college in Singapore.

Finance and Administration

The school uses consumers’ dollars to pay the rent for their location and to give the students better sets and props.

For example, this semester we are doing Into the Woods Jr for our semester show.  For our show, the school is building a legitimate set for us to perform on, which is quite costly to do in the location they are currently in.

Administration also includes insuring compliance with regulations and laws, filing and paying taxes on time, and supporting Sales and Operations people.

Conclusion

As you can see, every business relies on these three main functions.  Even schools operate using these functions.  Think of any business like Walmart, or even your local grocery store, I bet you can identify each of their three functions fairly easily.

Thanks for reading!