Business Questions and Answers that Affect Your Family's Finances

Why New Stadiums Are Ruining Baseball And Taxpayers Are Paying For It

New sports stadiums and arenas are popping up all over the country. And, they are ruining baseball. New stadiums are causing higher ticket prices and higher taxes as a result. The owners are adding to their profits through subsidies provided by local governments at a detriment to both sports fans and tax payers alike.

Are New Stadiums Ruining Baseball?

While most politicians and sports franchise owners will want fans to believe that a new stadium is in their best interest, will bring jobs to their area, will increase their stature, and a host of other promises, the reality is far from those promises. The truth of the matter is that new stadiums are rarely a good deal for citizens and fans in most cases.

In this episode of the Money Q&A podcast, “Your Money: Your Choices“, I interview Neil deMause who is an expert in the area of new sports stadium construction, their costs, and their lasting affects on the game and its citizens. He is also the author of the book, “Field of Schemes – How the Great Stadium Swindle Turns Public Money into Private Profit“.

On the podcast we not only talk about my favorite team in baseball, the Atlanta Braves, and their recent new stadium announcement, but we also talk about a host of other affects to teams building new stadiums. How much do government subsidies play into attracting new stadiums to an area? Is the skybox or the suite the cause of all this turmoil? Are professional athletes and their exorbitantly high priced salaries to blame?

You may be surprised to hear what Neil has to say. But, more importantly, why should you care? In fact, you may also be surprised to learn just how much it will impact you, what you buy, the cost of sports tickets, salaries, new jobs, and the like. You won’t want to miss this very interesting conversation with such a national expert in the field.

Are Higher Ticket Prices In Our Future?

Politicians and sports franchise owners how would have much fans believe that new stadiums, the new arenas are a good thing. But, is that always the case? It seems like there’s two things in the future for Braves fans and residents of Cobb County. It’s going to be higher ticket prices and higher taxes for those poor souls in Cobb County.

So, I asked Neil deMause just that question. Here’s what he told me…

“You absolutely, generally wind up paying twice for new stadiums, once at tax day and once at the ticket office. Ticket prices invariable go up at new stadiums because that’s the whole point of them, is to sell more expensive tickets and in particular, you know, this is part of the trend of building smaller stadiums that you see in baseball,” said deMause.

“It’s not that they want a new place because the old… you know, traditionally in baseball especially, but in any sport, the idea was, ‘Oh, we’ve gotten really popular, we can’t fit people in our stadium anymore. We want more seats.’ That’s not what this latest round of stadiums is about. It has been about where, say we have too many seats, and it’s too easy to get tickets. What we want is to make it a scarcer commodity so that we can charge through the nose for them and have people lining up, you know in January, to buy tickets when they go on sale.

Exploring The Resources Necessary To Manage Your Company’s Finances

by Guest Contributor

Managing your company’s finances should always be a top priority that is handled efficiently throughout the year. This is one of the most important things that you can do in order to keep your company afloat, especially since the cornerstone and foundation of your business is your cash flow. The mismanagement and mishandling of your revenue and expenses can quickly spell disaster for your company, which is why it is imperative that you take full advantage of several key resources that are available to you. Invest in Quality Accounting Software There are quite a few software choices that are available within an expanding catalog of options that are used by business in different industries today. Finding the perfect one to … Read more

Four Ways Small Business Owners Talk Themselves Out Of Success

by Hank Coleman

I’ve been reading “The Art of War” the new book by Steven Pressfield, and it is incredible. As a writer, it has made a huge impact in my life. If you are a writer, artist, or small business owner, you need to read this book. And, if you are thinking about becoming one of those or have always wanted to become a small business owner, you should definitely check out this book. It is that good!

The book talks about resistance. What keeps us from doing the things that we were meant to do? Did you always want to write the great American novel? Have you always wanted to start your own business? It is resistance keeping you from your goals. Pressfield goes into great depths in this quick and easy read about how resistance holds us down. You can achieve small business owner success.

Here are four ways that small business owners success is stifled by the resistance that we perceive and the resistance that we place on ourselves. Don’t be a victim to resistance! You can use “The Art of War” by Steven Pressfield to be a small business owners success.

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Small Business Owners Success We Talk Ourselves Out Of

Let Our Family Talk Us Out Of It

You cannot take no for an answer if you want to be a small business owner. Gary Vaynerchuk told me in my interview with him that you are most likely not made into an entrepreneur. You are born to be one. You cannot let your family hold you back. They love you. They are worried.

But, you cannot let them stop you from exerting your God given talent. You were born to be a small business owner. Your family may be the resistance that Pressfield is talking about. Don’t give in!

Not Show Up Every Day

Are you a professional or an amateur? That’s the heart of Steven Pressfield’s book, “The Art of War”. You have the show up to work every day to be a professional. Whether you are a writer, artist, small business owner, or other creative people, you have to put in the hard work. You have to show up. You have to try. You can’t wait until tomorrow. That’s the essence of beating resistance.

Things To Remember When Setting Up Your Business

by Guest Contributor

The job market in the UK is improving but more and more people are choosing to set up their own businesses, both creating jobs and helping with the recovery of the economy. Coming up with a feasible business idea and strategy is the hard part, and once you have decide what you want to achieve you can set about doing all the necessary paperwork and sorting out the logistics of setting up your company. There are a few important things to remember when setting up your business. Some of the main ones are listed below.

Business Bank Account

You should consider opening a business bank account from the very start. If you are setting up as a limited company or a partnership you are required by law to have a separate account for your business finances. If you are setting up as a sole trader or self-employed there is no legal requirement to have a separate business bank account, but it can be useful if you want to keep track of your incomings and outgoings quickly and easily, and for tax purposes.

The government is very keen to encourage start ups and new businesses and has made sure there is a provision in high street banks for those wanting to set up their own business. Most big name high street banks have specific accounts designed especially for start up businesses.

Business insurance

You should look to take out relevant insurances to your business from the offset. Seek advice to find out exactly what you need to be covered for. If you are going to be employing one or more members of staff you are legally required to have employers’ liability insurance. This covers you in case anyone working for you falls ill or is injured as a result of their job. The other big thing to remember when setting up your business is public liability insurance.

This is important for any businesses that are visited by customers, contractors or visit other companies. The insurance protects you should an accident occur that injures a third party or their property on your premises, or if you cause any damage whilst on theirs. You can find out more about liability insurance online or by speaking to a business insurance provider.

How To Increase Your Online Conversion Rates

by Guest Contributor

There are ways that you can improve conversion rates with online ecommerce. Your website’s conversion rate is a measure that business owners can measure how many of their online visitors convert to a customer. Many businesses focus on the number of visitors, the amount of clicks on an ad or product link, and how many of those clicks result in a sale of the product or service.

Here are three of the most popular ways to improve conversion rates and get the most from your website, what you sell, and to give your customers the most value.

Best Ways To Increase Your Online Conversion Rates

1. Be Memorable – You should strive to be remembered. That is one of the best ways that you can increase your online conversion rates. I will often not click on a link that I receive over email right away.

I often think about it or save the email for even days at a time. But, customers remember great content or products or pitches and go back to them. If you are memorable, you can have great online conversion rates for your products and services.

Interview With Gary Vaynerchuk for Your Money Your Choices Podcast

by Hank Coleman

I am completely stoked to interview Gary Vaynerchuk in this week’s episode for Your Money Your Choices. You don’t have to follow me for very long to know that I’m a huge fan of this incredible entrepreneur. Gary Vaynerchuk is a social media advocate and guru, author, video blogger with his very popular show, “Wine Library TV“, keynote speaker, and much more.

I think that I was first introduced to Gary when I saw the keynote speech that he gave in September 2008 at the Web 2.0 NY conference on YouTube. I don’t remember how I found it, but watching this 15 minute video is incredible. It will pump you up. His book, “Crush It“, is the same. It gets you going. It oozes passion and fire that comes straight from Gary’s heart. You can see it in everything that he does.

If you’ve never seen the Web 2.0 speech, it is an incredible talk and well worth the 15 minutes to watch it (Note – It contains a few cuss words though.). Gary Vaynerchuk’s Web 2.0 NY Keynote Speech – September 2008.

Gary Vaynerchuk took over his parents’ liquor store and turned it into a $50 million company. He parlayed that success into Wine Library TV, early investment in social media sites like Twitter and others, signed a multi-million dollar book deal for 10 books (#3 comes out this November), and now he runs VaynerMedia with his brother. VaynerMedia is a consulting firm that helps Fortune 500 companies like GE, PepsiCo, the NY Jets, and others with their social media and building digital brands.

What It Takes To Get Through Burning Out

In this episode of Your Money Your Choices, I interview Gary Vaynerchuk who is one of the preeminent entrepreneurs, authors, video bloggers, and business owners in America. In our interview, I asked Gary about taking back control of your finances with side hustles in addition to your day job. When I interview Gary Vaynerchuk, I asked him about using a side hustle and entrepreneurship as a way to start living the life that you ultimately want which he talks about in the Web 2.0 speech and his books like Crush It.

I also pick his brain about hitting the preverbal wall and burning out. Gary discussed with me what it takes to get through burning out and how to break through the preverbal wall when you hit it. You’ll definitely want to check out this great interview on the podcast this week as we talk about why it is still important to hustle today, the social media platforms that you should be on, and why 7 pm to 2 am can be the most productive time of your life as an entrepreneur.

As a nationally recognized speaker and author about taking social media and business to the next level, Gary Vaynerchuk has written the books: “Crush It“, “The Thank You Economy”, and his most recent book, “Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook“, is due out this November. You won’t want to miss this great conversation with my biggest interview yet.

Interview With Phil Orbanes Author of “Monopoly, Money, and You”

Additionally, I talk to Phil Orbanes who is a former Senior Vice President of research and development at Parker Brothers and has written the book, “Monopoly, Money, and You: How To Profit from the Game’s Secrets of Success“.

Have you ever wanted to learn how to win your favorite board game from childhood? Have you ever been curious about the life and financial lessons that the game teaches us at a young age? If you’re a Monopoly fan like me, you’ll love the conversation that I have with Phil Orbanes about the game, his book, and the financial lessons we can all pull out of them.