eBook publishing as home business

I’m thinking of publishing my own ebook. It seems ebook authors are thriving on the Net these days.

I’ve been reading a lot on ebook publishing and realized that it is the fastest, easiest and cheapest way to get my writing in print. As a business, it has a lot of promise.

Why an e-publishing business?

Self-publishing ebooks and information products has never been easier than with the many different ebook compiler software programs that are available today. Digital publishing is a good alternative in publishing materials aren’t usually accepted by traditional publishing companies.

In this internet age, ebook publishing has created a whole new era in book publishing. Even paperback authors consider eBooks a new, and different marketing channel for their literary work.

The important part of the ebook phenomenon is that any ebook can be converted easily into an audio ebook, one of the fastest growing segments on the Internet today

In addition, ebook publishing is an exciting new way to make extra income from the Internet. In fact there are many sites that will allow writers to list their ebooks for free. This is a great way for me to distribute my ebook with all of my own url codes embedded within the ebook.

Ebook publishing, however, isn’t replacing traditional publishing anytime soon. It is still nice to curl-up in bed with a paperbound book. But the cost saving potential of ebook publishing is convincing. Moreover, ebook publishing looks like fun and could be an ideal home-based online business for me.

Successful 12th ASEAN and 2nd East Asia Summits in Cebu

The Philippines successfully hosted the last ASEAN and East Asia summits in the famous island of Cebu.

Leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations approved a series of declarations on issues ranging from trade to terrorism.

Here are the main points:

* Blueprint approved for ASEAN's first legally binding charter since its founding in 1967. It would turn the 10-nation group into a European Union-style legal entity with binding rules and regulations, and end the tradition of consensus decision-making in all cases.

* Declaration approved on protecting millions of migrant workers from "grave risks of exploitation and abuse."

* Target date for establishing an ASEAN Economic Community, creating a single market of 570 million people, to be brought forward five years to 2015.

* Anti-terror convention signed to make it easier to track and extradite suspects. "Root causes" of terror should be addressed.

* Major powers urged to break the deadlock in global trade talks and move towards an early conclusion of the Doha round, to spur economic growth and alleviate poverty.

* ASEAN leaders urged international lenders to consider swapping debt for equity in projects to enable poor countries to reduce poverty.

Leaders of East Asia reaffirmed their commitment to the eradication of poverty in the region during the 2nd East Asia Summit (EAS) held at the Cebu International Convention Center (CICC).

The East Asian leaders also agreed to increase cooperation in securing energy supply in the region as an important pillar of their common effort to further promote the region’s economic growth, one of the fastest in the world.

All the agreements made during the summits were people-centered. It may as well be because countries participating represent around three-fourths of world population.

Some news sources say that the recent summits were the most productive in the history of the ASEAN. It should be because the summits lasted from December 2006 to January 2007 (just kidding!)

A large part of the success of the two summits may be attributed to the cooperation of Cebuanos and volunteers from other provinces, as well as the generally peaceful rallies. As noticed by many people, most members of militant groups who came to Cebu for the rallies were from Metro Manila. The police said that local protesters behaved better unlike their counterparts from Luzon who came here to join in mass demonstrations.

I’ve heard reports that some of these protesters were armed with steel bars wrapped in newspapers during one of the rallies. The intention of protesters from Manila was obviously not to have a peaceful protest in this island but to provoke the police here so there would be a scuffle to call attention to themselves.

Good thing that the presence of the Cebu City mayor during the rallies prevented any violent dispersal. The mayor also noticed that those who led the rallies were not from Cebu and that they did not have the support of Cebuanos.

After seeing how these groups carried themselves, more and more Cebuanos have a negative view of militants and leftists. Cebuanos would rather mind their business and work to feed their family. I'm glad to know that our locals have enough good sense to stay away from trouble.

Assets and Liabilities

”The reason why most Filipinos are languishing in poverty is because they are financially illiterate and they think with their emotions.”

That was the comment made by a foreigner friend who used to work as a stock broker. He found it shocking that some local professionals (doctors, dentists, lawyers, etc.) can’t even distinguish between assets and liabilities. Moreover, he couldn’t comprehend how these people managed to live on just one source of income considering that they are supporting not just their own families but also their siblings’ families.

According to this foreigner, assets are anything that brings money in the pocket. Liabilities are anything that takes away money from the pocket. It’s as simple as that.

Here is the interesting part ---- his own examples of liabilities: house, cars, clothes, jobless husband / wife, high spending girlfriends/ boyfriends, dependent relatives, children, credit cards.

His examples of assets are bank notes, treasury bills, dividends, royalties, bonds, intellectual property, land/ real estate

The problem with most Filipinos, he observed, is that they delude themselves into believing that a house, cars or children are assets. “Just because these things make you happy doesn’t mean they are assets. Once people accept this fact, they’ll realize the need for more than one income to support their liabilities and keep ahead of expenses.” He immediately clarified that people need not get rid of all their liabilities because that would be impossible. How about adding income sources and decreasing expenses, he suggested.

How can they get other income sources when they hardly have enough time for themselves, I asked.

He chuckled and said that income doesn’t always come from regular jobs, those that pay you for your time. “Haven’t you heard of passive income or portfolio income? Examples of passive income are rental payments, royalties from creative or information products, patents, dividends from shares holding and limited partnership in enterprise. Portfolio income include proceeds from stocks, bonds, equities and t-bills. These are revenue streams that do not require your direct personal involvement in order to keep coming in.”

He glanced at me and paused to make sure everything he said sunk in (This cold blooded bloke sure knows what he is talking about!).

"Do you want to be able to take time off whenever you want to, without worrying about what's going to happen to your current job or business, earn more and work less?”

Good. So do I, he added, that is why financial literacy is important.

“Poverty will not be solved with more money if the mindset of poor people has not changed. Just listen to those street protesters who expect government to feed them and provide them shelter”, he intoned. “Those poor people will forever be dependent on someone for their needs, living a pathetic hand-to-mouth existence. Even if you give them a lot of cash, they'll spend it all because that is how they were programmed to handle money. To them, nothing is ever enough. And look at those office workers who constantly rely on loans to cover their huge expenses and to fill the urge to buy things they don’t really need.”

” They are trapped by their own ignorance and unbridled emotions”, he said with a smirk.

”Instead of wasting time gossiping about their neighbors or blaming the government, Filipinos should be talking to stock brokers, financial analysts, tax specialists, bankers or anyone in the know about wealth building. If not, they can make productive use of their time teaching their children to be self-reliant.”

There is really a need for parents to show children how to create and handle money, my foreigner friend underscored, because financial education is usually obtained in everyday experiences not in schools... especially not in Philippine schools.

What can I say, he was right. Truth hurts though.

Sinulog Bazaar

Next week, my office will be assisting the Sinulog Bazaar at SM Cebu City Mall and the ASEAN trade fair at the Cebu International Convention Center.

The bazaar & trade fair will run until the third week of January to give savvy shoppers enough time to rummage through the shelves and discover finds.

Because of the Sinulog bazaar’s wide array of offering, the activity consistently draws market from all sectors and ages. In fact, it not only attracts retailers in search for something different, it has likewise been a favorite destination for small and medium entrepreneurs looking for suppliers.

This year, majority of the exhibitors are manufacturers of local-made products who have the capacity to supply wholesalers.

It seems that Cebu continues to be an ideal site for trade fairs and bazaars, particularly during the Sinulog Celebration.

This has been proven by the number of trade fair and trade events last year. Many of the trade fair participants in past Sinulog years were able to generate large sales.

The Sinulog side events, described by business moguls as a marketing phenomenon, attracts a staggering number of vendors and buyers (local and foreign). Huge, jaw-dropping number of small vendors swarming all over our streets is a common sight before and during the grand mardi gras.

The Sinulog trade fairs/ bazaars have also provided exhibitors the opportunity to test the local market for their products and to establish linkages with prospective clients and distributors. Retailers, on the other hand, have found suppliers and new products in these trade events.

Terminal Report on the Visayas OTOP Trade Fair 2006

I'm usually saddled with preparing the terminal reports of almost all major activities organized by my office. Here is one of those reports. I'm posting it because it comes in handy when I want to refer to it in the future. It will also give you an idea of the results of our efforts. Note that my office was only given a very short time to do the publicity for the activity -- so don't be shocked by the low sales figures.

FINDINGS

The trade fair was able to accomplish its major objectives, namely: marketing the OTOPs of municipalities in the Visayas, building awareness among the general public on the OTOPs of municipalities and encouraging LGUs to actively participate in the OTOP program.

Focus on the One Town, One Product (OTOP) program as a development and branding strategy was reinforced. In fact, products of municipalities in the three Visayas regions were given the spotlight during the trade activity.

With one-hundred-seventy exhibitors from regions 6, 7 and 8, the recently concluded Visayas OTOP Fair held in Cebu generated interest from buyers, garnering total sales of P4, 097,824.18 in cash and booked orders.

Trade exhibitors generated cash sales of P 1,329,480.18 with booked orders of
P 1,401,994.00. Total orders under negotiations reached P 1,401,994.00.

Top selling region was Central Visayas which raked-in total sales of
P 2,691,337.90.

Bannering the theme “A Feast for the Senses”, this year’s Visayas OTOP fair brought together exquisite products such as hand-woven fabrics of raffia, pina and sinamay, fashion accessories, footwear, a generous array of exotic items, home furnishings, decors and processed food.

Apart from the 66 Central Visayas micro and small enterprises displaying their crafts, the showcase also featured 28 exhibitors from Eastern Visayas and 76 from Western Visayas.

A total of 314 guests attended the trade fair including Keynote Speaker Secretary Mike Defensor, Guest Speaker and DTI Secretary Peter Favila, OTOP Program Manager and DTI Undersecretary Carissa Evangelista, SMEDSEP-GTZ Program Manager Martina Valhaus and PCCI President Donald Dee.

There were two side events during the trade fair: Go Negosyo Forum and Food Safety and Packaging Solutions Seminar. The Go Negosyo Forum featured Julie Gandionco of Julie's Bakeshop, Jay Aldeguer of Island Souvenirs, Justine Uy of Profoods, and other successful OTOP entrepreneurs from Cebu. The Food Safety and Packaging Solutions Seminar featured experts who provided an overview on food safety and one-on-one consultations for the small and medium entrepreneurs. The packaging seminar also offered food manufacturers with innovative product design ideas.



Below is a copy of the trade fair opening program and a synopsis on the speech of secretary Mike Defensor and DTI secretary Peter Favila.

OTOP Visayas Trade Fair

November 23, 2006

10:00 to 11:05 AM

SM Trade Halls, Cebu City

10:00am	Doxology and Invocation
10:05	National Anthem
10:10	Opening Remarks by Undersecretary Carissa Cruz-Evangelista DTI ROG Usec/National OTOP Program Manager
10:20	MESSAGE Secretary Peter B. Favila DTI
10:30	Introduction of Guest of Honor
10:35	SPEECH Secretary Mike Defensor
11:00	Ceremonial opening Ribbon Cutting Sec. Mike Defensor to be assisted by Sec. Peter Favila, Usec Carissa Evangelista, Amb. Dee Donald (PCCI), Mr. Francis Chua (FFCCI), Mr.Sergio Luis Ortiz (Philexport) and other VIPs Secretary Mike Defensor To signal the opening of the trade Fair by blowing a whistle to start the Mardi Gras Secretary Peter B. Favila will make the intro drumming. LGUs / VIPs will blow whistles while Ati-atihan dancing is going on
11:05	Photo opportunity with Sec. Mike Defensor

Speech of Secretary Mike Defensor (Summary)
Opening Ceremonies: 1^st OTOP Visayas Island Trade Fair
SM Trade Halls, Cebu City, 10:00 A.M., 23 November 2006

More than a thousand jobs and millions of pesos worth of product sales have already been generated through the "One Town, One Product" (OTOP) project since its inception in the country two years ago.

The OTOP, a project implemented by the Philippine government was able to engender employment opportunities and propel several locally produced products to marketing success.

If the LGUs, DTI & other cooperating agencies maintain these gains of the OTOP, better opportunities would undeniably be brought to the provinces and rural areas in the coming months.

Our government has always supported micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) through the OTOP project. In fact, the OTOP is one of the priority projects of the Arroyo administration to alleviate poverty by encouraging entrepreneurship and creating more jobs. OTOP-Philippines assists MSMEs to manufacture, offer and market distinctive products or services through the use of indigenous raw materials and local skills and talents. The program also offers a comprehensive assistance package through a convergence of services from local government agencies (NGAs) and the private sector. This includes business counseling, skills and entrepreneurial training, product design and development, appropriate technologies and marketing.

With the OTOP project, the government is setting the trend for the preparation of processors to meet international standards for a more challenging and better vista in their entrepreneurial careers.

Judging from the diversity of products in this trade fair, it is clear that a wealth of opportunities awaits our entrepreneurs in the Visayas. The choices are becoming more varied since each municipality in each province has its own unique OTOP.

I understand that products and services prioritized by our town mayors have competitive advantage over other products and services of other provinces and cities. Boracay Island, for example is a major tourist destination of the country and brings in the bulk of local and foreign tourists to Panay Island, while Cebu’s furniture has already captured the foreign market and won awards for many Cebu furniture makers.

At this point, allow me to thank and commend the LGUs of the Visayas as well as other cooperating agencies for your very active participation and support in identifying and developing OTOPs for your respective areas.

A shining illustration of a face of OTOP and of a successful convergence or inter-agency cooperation in the selection of an OTOP is the case of the Biliran Integrated Coconut Industry, Inc. This enterprise utilizes the waste products of copra production -- coco husks and shells – to produce coco fiber and coco dust. Coco fibers are made into liner sheets to produce houseware and décor items while coco dust is mixed with decay-enhancing substance and agro-waste to produce natural fertilizer. Coco shells are also cut into shapes and used as accents for handcrafted décor items. Because of abundant and reliable raw material supply and high local and global market potential for these products, the Municipal Mayor of Naval, Biliran – with the concurrence of the OTOP Task Force members -- composed of the DTI, DOST, TESDA, Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA), and Fiber Industry Development Authority (FIDA) – selected in April 2005 coco by-products processing as the OTOP of the Municipality of Naval. And this was eventually chosen as the model Provincial OTOP of Biliran. The OTOP Task Force interventions came in terms of linkage with equipment and materials supplier, business counseling, skills and entrepreneurial training, productivity training, technology assistance, product design and development, local study missions, and marketing assistance and facilitation thru local national trade fairs.

Today, the enterprise plans to expand into the export markets of Europe and China, up production by getting additional equipment, set up raw material buyer centers in all municipalities of Biliran, add another product line such as VCO, vinegar, coco charcoal and other coco-based food products, and set up production units in other municipalities.

What a remarkable and inspiring experience, don’t you think so? And this success story can be replicated many times over in many more municipalities in the Visayas to produce more success stories thru the convergence and intervention of OTOP mechanisms.

Indeed, the development of OTOPs represents an opportunity for dynamic collaboration among local LGUs, NGOs/private sector groups, the DTI and other government agencies to promote wide-based grass-roots entrepreneurship as well as the generation of investments, incomes, livelihood opportunities and direct and indirect employment.

Although the idea started in Japan, Filipinos, through their active and passionate participation, have successfully adopted the OTOP concept and made it their own.

But that should not keep us complacent. Let us continue to empower and position our people as world-class entrepreneurs, capable of competing with their international counterparts, and ready to avail of the opportunities for growth.

The Arroyo administration remains firmly committed to support the LGUs and business community of the Visayas in fortifying your region’s competitive edge and creating sustained stability and prosperity for its citizenry.

In closing, let me emphasize that much good can be expected from a united people with passion to achieve a common goal. And with our business friendly environment, we will continue to create jobs, livelihood opportunities, and incomes, and improve the quality of life of our people, particularly those in the countryside.

Message of DTI Secretary Peter B. Favila (Summary)
Opening Ceremonies: 1^st OTOP Visayas Island Trade Fair
SM Trade Halls, Cebu City, 10:00 A.M., 23 November 2006

Top-billed by Boracay, Cebu, Bohol (and Palawan), Central Philippines - as the President has recognized, attracts more than half of the foreign tourists that come in to the country. And thus, as the President said, the priority for your super region is tourism investments.

Of course, with your high tourism investment potential come the products you offer – since the other side of investments is trade. The Visayas has the good fortune of being blessed not only with magnificent natural wonders but also with abundant resources and highly skilled, creative and talented craftsmen. These factors represent a wellspring of opportunities for developing SMEs that harness the strength of each province or municipality.

The DTI has been working in partnership with your region’s local officials in identifying your regions’ priority products under the President’s One Town, One Product (OTOP) program which seeks to develop more countryside products and business activities through micro, small and medium enterprises.

From a national standpoint, the 16 regional model OTOP products in 2004 have now spawned 83 validated provincial OTOP products which in turn have: developed 3,000 new MSMEs, generated 102,423 new jobs, exported US$113.98 million, and sold P2.19 billion worth of OTOP products in the domestic market. Likewise, 130 OTOP Pasalubong Centers have been established in airports, bus terminals, sea ports, train stations, and there are currently 1,129 market outlets all over the county where OTOP products can be found.

Let me underscore that essential to the success of OTOP is the institutional support of its stakeholders. Up until the August, 459 Memoranda of Agreement have been signed with partners from the cities and regions. Recently, we have signed MOAs with the following institutions whose functions are critical to the development of OTOP:

• League of Municipalities of the Philippines to include OTOP in every town’s Municipal Development Plan, advocate OTOP in their municipalities, and make available its facilities to assist in the development of OTOP entrepreneurs;

• National Livelihood Support Fund (NLSF) to provide a special financing window for our OTOP MSMEs and other capability-building interventions through its resource development network;

• Philippine Information Authority (PIA) to assist in the creation of the OTOP Communications Plan and to actively participate in the promotion of OTOP products and MSMEs in the tri-media;

• Air Transportation Office (ATO) to make available its facilities for OTOP special settings and OTOP product counters;

• Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) to provide training for OTOP MSMEs.

• We expect more support from different organizations to partner with us in the development of OTOP. For example, later in this program, we shall witness the signing of MOAS between the DTI and the following:

• Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines (ULAP)
• Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI)
• Philippine Exporters Confederation (PHILEXPORT)
• League of Cities of the Philippines
• Philippine Center of Entrepreneurship (PCE)

To these institutions, let me say thank you very much for your willingness to support and serve as our partners in developing, implementing, and promoting the OTOP program.

I am also proud to remind you that in addition to the grand opening of this OTOP Visayas Trade Fair, we will also be launching this afternoon the Cebu City National Economic Research and Business Assistance Center. This Center will assist prospective entrepreneurs and investors in the country towards enhancing the process of business formation and entrepreneurship. The center will also facilitate the processing and documentation of all requirements in the establishment of a business in the country and link prospective entrepreneurs to credit services.

Likewise, we will open the DTI Business Technology Center, in partnership with Intel Microelectronics Philippines and Globe Telecom, in recognition of the importance of ICT in the development of one’s business. The BizTech Center serves as a one-stop IT help-desk to help MSMEs understand the benefits of technology in their business, providing access to technology tools, experiential marketing and training to allow them to operate more effectively and be more competitive using technology. It will offer training from SME counselors with modules done in coordination with Intel and with the University of the Philippines Institute of Small Scale Industries (UP ISSI) and provide computer training through the PCs in the center.

So there – a lot of good things in the offing for the Visayas SMEs.

In closing, allow me to encourage our entrepreneurs here to continue availing of DTI’s many programs for SMEs. DTI would be happy to assist SMEs in their continuing process of evolution – from the development of their products and designs, to their upgrading and modernization to suit current market trends, to acquisition of vital technology for production, to obtaining various types of financial assistance and credit thru our SULONG program and its various innovations, to market testing and promotion thru trade fairs and buyer-supplier matching activities.

RECOMMENDATIONS

It is recommended that the agency’s trade fairs be timed with the holding of fiestas in provinces such as the Sinulog of Cebu and the Sandugo of Bohol or any large, high profile events to maximize visitor traffic.




It is also recommended that trade fairs be held in shopping malls since these venues are natural attractions to buyers.



FUTURE PLANS

DTI-Central Visayas Office, together with the Regional Operations Group, plans to re-discuss relevance of trade fairs, rethink present strategies to promote local products and explore new marketing channels.


EXHIBITORS

Please see attached sheet.

BUDGET

The activity incurred a total cost of P___________.