* Evaluating your product’s export potential
* Determining if you are really willing to make a commitment to international markets by evaluating whether your company is “”export-ready”"
* Identifying key foreign markets for your products through market research
* Evaluating distribution and promotional options and establishing an overseas distribution system
* Determining export prices, payment terms, methods and techniques
* Familiarizing yourself with shipping methods and export documentation procedures and requirements ”

The secret of a successful courier service is providing services not available from the bigger firms like Fedex and UPS, such as local, same-day service, or finding a profitable niche, like medical specimen deliveries. What delivery services should you offer? A business plan can’t tell you that, but your customers can. Instead of wasting your time and energy coming up with an elaborate business plan, just get started. Have one of the many web-based printers (just search “printed notepads” to find them) print notepads to hand out to prospective customers in your area. One marketing tip is to offer new customers a gift certificate for one free pickup/delivery. This let’s them test your service at no cost, and makes them much more likely to call you the next time they need a same-day delivery.

You’ll quickly learn who will be your best customers, as they now have your contact information and will call you when they need packages or documents delivered locally the same day. This takes care of the biggest problem a startup business has – cash flow. Once the money is coming in from deliveries, you can prospect for more businesses in your area that are similar to the customers you now have.

Regardless of how much planning you do, it’s only a hunch – an educated guess about how well your business will do. The danger is, by spending too much time on planning, you’ll have less time and energy to try new marketing ideas to find paying customers. The secret is to test your ideas as quickly and cheaply as possible, then improve and refine them. Handing out notepads with your contact information and a catchy slogan is a great way to do that.

Here’s another “quick & cheap” way to do a simple courier business plan for your new courier service business. If you plan to borrow startup money from friends or relatives – the most common source of funding for new businesses – do an “executive summary” business plan to show them that you’ve done your homework. It should cover the business plan basics, with an overview of the business, a market analysis with a look at the competition, and an estimate of your first year’s sales. It assumes that you will not have employees to start, or buying or leasing property and equipment. Here’s a sample:

ROADRUNNER COURIER SERVICE – BUSINESS PLAN

Business Overview: Roadrunner Courier Service is a new courier service based in Bend, Oregon, specializing in local, same-day deliveries. Roadrunner can transport documents and parcels to customers within a 40 mile radius of town. Our customers are medical professionals, attorneys and local businesses who need reliable, same-day services not offered by the larger service providers, such as Fedex and UPS.

Market Analysis: The demand for reliable, cost-effective delivery services has been growing in the area for several years as the town’s population continues to grow. In addition to a growing population, there are more customers who require faster service, ranging from “stat” medical specimen deliveries to time-sensitive legal documents to “just-in-time” parts deliveries to local manufacturers. There is only one other local courier service in the area, and we believe there is ample room, due to our growing local economy, for another reliable courier service.

Marketing Strategy: The marketing strategy of Roadrunner Courier Service is to provide dependable and exceptional delivery services to businesses and professionals who have a regular need for pickup and delivery services. This will insure that Roadrunner will have a regular, steady income from repeat customers. The second part of our marketing strategy will be to gain customers who need courier services occasionally, such as last-minute parts and supplies delivered to a contractor’s job site, plans deliveries for architects and engineers and documents and materials for local government agencies.

First Year Goal: Based on the size of the local delivery market and the fact that Roadrunner will be a one person business, our sales projection for the first year is $45,000. We plan to build our customer base through direct contact with prospective customers and word-of-mouth referrals from happy customers to continue to grow our sales, focusing on the most profitable types of deliveries.

Auto transport is also known as vehicle shipping. These services move vehicles from one place to another. The source and the destination need not be standard points. This means the source of the trip need not be your home and the destination need not be your vacation spot or your new home. You can literally move your vehicle from anywhere to anywhere using auto transport service. This is however no ordinary task or service. Most car transport companies use large trucks to move a bulk of cars together. Most transport services will not list car transport as its standard feature. This is because auto transport requires special requirements and equipment. It is an industry by itself. You will get many references for auto transport anyhow.

You need to make some wise choices before you embark on hiring a car transport company. Always go for a company that has the highest reputation. This might prove a little expensive for you but this will also end up saving you irresponsible handling of your car. There are horrific stories of many car transport companies not handling the vehicles properly. The cars generally arrive at their destination with scratches and even with missing accessories. Therefore you need to make right decisions when hiring these auto transport services.

Most car transport companies would ask you book two or three months in advance. This is because the need for auto transport has reached its peak these days. With the amounts of people who are moving around, the need to move their vehicles has also increased. Also most auto transport companies will move vehicles in a bulk. Therefore you have to wait till they have enough cars to make the trip from one place to another. Of course, there are those companies that will give you the option of immediate transport. This might cost you’re a little more but you can exercise this if you have the option to.

There are many car transport companies that are in the market today. You can make a simple search on the net to get a list of such companies. Most of these companies will offer you a free quote. You can then compare the quotes from various companies and see which one works for you the best. Also read all the terms and conditions of the company that you select before you enter into any kind of agreement with them.

In the import export business, there are many factors to consider. Aside from the fact that unlike other types of businesses which just deal with the selling of products, the import and export business buys products as well. Thus, the nature of buying and selling should both be studied critically in the import export business. For those who are just starting out in this type of business, as equally important with the things that you should do, are the things that you should avoid. Thus, in order to avoid the common mistakes that other businessmen have committed, it is important to note the things that should be avoided.

First and foremost, if it can be helped, avoid third party vendors. This may sound a bit harsh, but third party vendors usually have hidden fees that will not only make your products appear more expensive, but will hinder these products from being sold. This is so because third party vendors have the tendency to insert hidden fees for them to profit more. However, if it cannot be avoided, you can employ third party vendors that are credible and reliable. There are online sites that offer the third party vendor services. In browsing through these sites though, you should be very cautious and discerning.

Second is talk directly to the producers for imported products. Beware of agents who represent importers because these will just add to the cost of the products. As much as possible, in importing products, make sure that you deal with the producers, or main suppliers of the product. This would not only eliminate unnecessary third party fees, but will also make transactions clearer and faster.

The third thing to avoid is delay in deliveries. In the import export business, time is one of the most important factors to consider. In importing products, the delivery process starts as soon as you buy the product and bring it to your warehouse or store. The time spent for these operations should be considered critically in order to avoid delays and extra expenses on the handling of these products. In the same manner, in exporting products to other countries, the delivery process starts as soon as you send the products to the receiving party. The delivery process is only concluded when the receiving party receives the products. Thus, any delay in the delivery process would mean extra handling expenses.

During overseas transportation of freight, packaging needs to comply with the essential international standards as well as the regulatory specifications. Moreover, in freight shipping, every single space is charged at premium. Unless you completely utilize the space available in a pallet, the freight charges could prove to be very high. In addition, it is advisable to make use of uniform and strong crates for the freight that is required to be shipped through crates. This helps in accomplishing the task of packaging easily and also ensures the utilization of any unoccupied space.

For cross border transportation in various countries, the shipment needs to be mentioned in a clear and correct manner. Correct markings ensure the verification of content and enable simplification of inspection process. A number of local courier service companies deal in cross border transportation of freight. Therefore, they have proper information about the manner in which parcels need to be packed. In addition, the courier service company makes sure that packaging freight meets the guidelines laid down for transportation of different kinds of goods. The invaluable assistance of these companies makes transportation process trouble-free and uncomplicated.

In general, there are a myriad of ways of packaging as well as crating the goods. However, the method of packaging depends on the mode of transportation. Quality of service provided remains the most important aspect of packaging. In the absence of good packaging, there is no guarantee whether the goods would be able to reach the destination in the perfect condition. Therefore, packaging of parcels in the appropriate manner remains an essential part of overseas freight delivery.

Various courier companies ensure that they are capable of meeting your packaging or crating requirements. However, it is advisable to measure the weight, assess the weight limits as well as properties of goods being transported. In addition, it is also necessary to mention the other general considerations that impact the safety of goods and prevent losses.

Seventy per cent of people questioned also said they did not know the correct cost of sending mail from Northern Ireland to the Republic, and more than 25 per cent were unaware of the prescribed standards for delivery times between the two. Consumer Focus Post’s Principal Policy Advocate, Chris Thirkettle, said that a well functioning postal service which could be relied upon by business and individual customers alike was essential to encourage the growing social and business links between Northern Ireland and the south.

And while existing Northern-Southern Ireland postal services complied with Europe-wide standards for their quality, he called the current standards unambitious, and said they were unable to meet Northern Irish businesses’ or individuals’ reasonable expectations. And bodies representing businesses trading with partners across the border expressed their hope that Consumer Focus Post’s report could be a catalyst to making improvements to the postal service specifically, and bring enhancements in cross-border links in general.

Any steps which could improve the reliability and speed of cross-border communications could have a substantially beneficial effect on the way business is carried out between the two countries, believes Liam Nellis, Chief Executive of InterTrade Ireland. The Federation of Small Businesses also threw its weight behind calls for improvements, and said it would urge that its recommendations be adopted in both countries.

The postal system’s wide range of services were essential for keeping communities and their businesses alive, especially in the current economic climate, William Mitchell, the FSB’s Policy Chair, William Mitchell, said.

In a computer dispatched courier service, the computer at the center would determine which vehicle would be best positioned for handling the fats delivery of the packages and would dispatch that vehicle for pickup. Using such advanced systems, the companies are able to provide efficient delivery of the goods and also the consumers get fast and reliable deliverance. Yet another thing is that the system potentially lowers delivery costs thereby giving the consumers cheap courier service. If the company is using the GPS systems, the consumers would be able to trace the delivery of the package by monitoring the GPS location of the courier on the web. The courier would also provide confirmation and date of the deliverance through web or via email updates.

Since the services and way they provide it vary with each company, it is important to find a courier service that would best fits your needs. People would generally want to send things across the country or across the state. If you are planning to move the things across a local place, it is better to find a company that specializes in your locality and would make quick delivery possible. Secondly you have to consider the cost factors. Find a courier service that can give a very close estimate citing the charges and time frame of the delivery. This is important since the cost and delivery dates make a major part of the requirements. If you wish to get email updates and also web tracking of your delivery, better go for a service which uses modern technologies in their operation. Finally it is not always good to jump into a conclusion soon after finding a company. Try to shop around and get as many estimates as possible. Different companies may have difference in delivery time, quality and costs. You would surely find a cheap courier services if you spend some time in research.

Cheaper merchandise: India is home to many cheaper products that can be imported at a fair price and sold with nice profit margins. By the same token, India may have need for products in your home country that can prove profitable. In order to get the scoop on the export-import India trade you should start with your country’s embassy within India’s borders. They will have tons of great information to get you off to a healthy start. They will also help you locate reputable suppliers with which you can establish trade.

Growing reputation in the global business community: India has one of the fastest growing economies. The cost of living is extremely low, but at the same time, many jobs are being sent to them on account of the lower wages they require. This means that as India’s economy picks up, so, too, will opportunity within your own land to establish a healthy and profitable import-export relationship.

Healthy relations with most of the world: While tensions are quite strained between a number of powerful countries in this world, India maintains a relatively jovial relationship with most everyone that it has dealings with. In fact, relations currently range from indifferent to incredibly positive. In other words, it’s a country with few (if any) enemies. That makes them a great source for the import-export trade.

Opportunity to provide unique product for your customers or clients: Indian culture is definitely “in.” That means cultural products sell extremely well in other countries. No better time than the present to capitalize!Limitless networking opportunities: As India’s business opportunities continue to grow, the networking possibilities that will result from it are undoubtedly beneficial to anyone looking to establish a healthy export-import India trade business. This can lead to greater revenue in the present and the future.

The export-import India trade is one of the most lucrative of all current global business opportunities. In addition to this, the import-export trade is one of the best ideas for any enterprising businessman looking to set out on his own. Do your homework, establish contacts, and start selling today!