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Diaspora Matters

Diaspora Matters

Excellent News for Auto Mechanics

Automan

Are you a car mechanic? Do you want to have more clients than you currently have? Then here is excellent news for you this year, do register with us for free. We have already added 500 mechanics to our database and would like to add an additional 500 to the list.

Our database will be available to the country free of charge so that anyone interested in your services can easily get in touch you. Registration is free. Send us your details and location and wait for the next client through our platforms. Our whatsapp contact number is +263774081808.

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Diaspora Matters

5 Zimbabwe Digital Marketing Champions

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The Zimbabwe digital marketing landscape is made up of 1 million locals on Facebook, over 5 million with access to internet and an estimated 4 million connected to Whatsapp. The figures do not include diasporans where an estimated 3 million are based. Many companies are not aware of the huge numbers that exist on the platform and this is an advantage to those that grab a market share before saturation.

So who has been doing well on digital platforms?

  1. Nash Paints
  2. Marrilier Properties
  3. Kubatana.net
  4. President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s Page
  5. Seedco

The battle is between Nash Paints and Marrilier Properties and whoever is helping in designing their digital marketing campaigns need a half year bonus! Students of digital marketing need to analyse the above top 5 champions and get hints on what works on the Zimbabwean digital landscape.

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Diaspora Matters

6 fastest ways to lose money when buying residential stands in Harare

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Raising money to buy residential properties in Zimbabwe is not easy. Some take several years saving money, some get bank loans or mortgages and some use pension savings. Losing all of this investment to scammers can be heartbreaking! So make sure you do everything right from the start.

So how can you lose money in Harare when buying residential stands?

  1. Buy residential stands from individuals
  2. Buy Infill residential stands
  3. Buy from unverified real estate agents
  4. Buy from people who are not resident in the area where the stand is
  5. Buy residential stands which are still under development
  6. Residential property sold for cash

If you are buying a residential stand and you manage to tick 3 or so of the above factors then you sure are on your way to losing your money.

Individuals: Buying from individuals always pose a risk. They may not have a reputation to protect and can disappear without trace! A reputable institution such as Old Mutual, First Mutual, Way Mark or FBC cannot afford to drag their reputation onto the mud buy being involved in dubious land deals. There are no reported cases of anyone who has taken large institutions to the court over dubious land sales.

Infill Stands? Our estimate is over $3m has been lost in fake infill stands sales. Any sale of land in established residential areas like Mabelreign, Marlborough, Sentosa, Warren Park, Kambuzuma, Hillside should immediately raise an alarm. The word ‘infill stand’ goes hand in glove with the word ‘scammers’. A lot of undeveloped residential stands are being sold to unsuspecting members of the public. You will be shown everything…title deeds and in some cases you can even verify with authorities and finding everything in place.

Non Residents: If a person selling a residential stand does not stay in the same city as you then raise a red flag! If you are being asked to go and complete the deal in say Bulawayo or Beitbridge then raise the alarm bell. The modus operandi used by scammers is to sell stands in areas they do not stay. After selling dubious residential stands the next thing in their mind is to flee from the crime scene.

Cash Sale: If it is a cash sale then the risk level rises to 99%. A residential stand in area still to be developed poses many risks as well.

So before buying a residential stand make sure you acquaint yourself with how a lot of people lose money to fraudsters. Check the latest trends fraudsters are using and take your time in verifying the authenticity of the real estate agent you are dealing with. Verification with the Title Deeds Office does not guarantee you anything, a lot have viewed their title deeds only to go back and find them missing. Using a lawyer does not guarantee safety as some lawyers have also been duped by highly organised fraudsters.

We covered more risk on Harare Scammers in our Book ‘Business Opportunities for Zimbabweans’ visit our online shop and grab a copy.

 

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Diaspora Matters

Rural District Council Opportunities

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When considering investment in Zimbabwe make sure that you do not forget rural district councils. There are a lot of opportunities that range from tourism, agro processing and mining. When looking at Harare, you may need to consider inquiring about opportunities from Zvimba Rural District Council which has residential stands in the low density area of Sandton which is adjacent to Westgate. Goromonzi Rural District also has a number of interesting commercial stands near the capital city.

The only challenge with rural district councils is accessibility with a good number of them with no presence on digital platforms. The Zimbabwe Business Ideas is therefore assisting our members by featuring contact details of selected rural district councils. We feature four of them below:

Hurungwe Rural District Council

Mobile Phone :0712347918

Email Address:hurungwerdc@gmail.com

Chimanimani Rural District Council

Mobile Phone:0773222016/0735214094

Email: chimanimanirdc@gmail.com

Chivi Rural District Council

Phone:0337 691/286/787/792

Email:chivirdc@gmail.com

Website: chivirdc.net

Kusile Rural District Council

Mobile :0774007829/0717743221

Email: kusileruraldistrictcouncil@gmail.com

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Diaspora Matters

Business Ideas for 2018 College Graduates

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Are you completing college this year? If yes then congratulations in advance from the Zim Business Ideas and Network. In this post we look at possible entrepreneurship opportunities which you can pursue.

Job Prospects
Beef up your resume with voluntary work experience working for organisations in your community..small businesses, preschools, churches etc. When you finish college, your greatest disadvantage is that you do not have work experience. So beef this up with a lot of voluntary work which you can do on a part-time basis. You can even talk to your pastor and come up with a small income generating project that gives you and other youngsters practical work experience.

Spruce up your curriculum vitae,writing old fashioned curriculum vitaes  where you have four pages of your academic transcript is medieval! Talk to your guardian and approach Human Resources Practitioners in your area and get skills on writing winning cvs and interview techniques. Cv writing is forever changing and the best way for fresh graduates is to get professional help. Less than 1% of college graduates do this, so gain a competitive advantage by working with professionals. 

A recruiting manager usually has less than 5 seconds to make a decision whether to shortlist your cv or not. The cv above 2/10 and the one below 4/10. Know how to get 6/10 and you are on your way to improving your chances of landing an interview.

Know all the sources of job postings and join. In Zimbabwe The Kubatana.net online newsletter has a number of intern jobs coming out on a weekly basis.

Entrepreneurship Route
It is best to keep in your field of study for the first few years after college. We recommend this because you need to beef up your cv with relevant experience. If you studied Marketing then doing Digital Marketing …helping SMEs, Churches or NGOs with Digital Marketing work means you can put work done on your cv. With the Digital Marketing field expanding, you may not even need to look for work again!

If you study accounting and you get no job, then consider registration of companies (very easy), developing business plans, setting up online stores, developing websites, helping the SME sector with bookkeeping or accounting services. You beef up your cv and also earn extra income.Set up your own registered accounting services company and slowly develop it. Imagine applying for a job with your peers and during the interview.

If you studied Human Resources Management, set up your own HR Consultancy firm. Business is not going to come easily but if you master digital marketing then only the sky is the limit. Think of small companies in need of HR services?

If you studied law but got no job, think of areas that are expanding…business! We have few legal minds entering the corporate law field.Enrol for ACCA, consider CISA, Fraud Examination courses. If you can learn app development then you will get ahead of everyone especially with online legal services being the next big thing. Closely look at areas you did not study enough at college…look at the needs of society and fill the gap. Digital Marketing is not part of the law degree and a good number of legal firms would be needing these services in the not too distant future.

Extra Skills for Graduates

1. Website development: You can learn on your own by researching on Youtube. I developed Zimbabwe’s best followed small business website in 6 hours! No prior knowledge of website development and noone to direct me how it is done. Look at the number of companies or NGOs with no websites or those with no up to date information on their websites. If you cannot learn on your own then enrol for a formal course. Certification is a big plus on your resume!

2. Graphic Design: It is closely related to Digital Marketing, learn how to do graphic designs and charge a minimum of $20 for small company logos

3. Online Store Setups: E-commerce is the next big thing in town, help clients to set up and earn between $300-$500 per client. Also set up online shops for many products and services

4. Dial a Service: Did you read our article on ‘convenience and competitive advantage?’ Dial a Service is gaining momentum especially in the leafy suburbs. Dial a beer, dial a meal…we comprehensively covered this area in our book on opportunities for Zimbabweans.

Last but not least, Learn Arts and Crafts with the regional market in mind. Huge potential in regional cities such as Durban and Cape Town for art and crafts. You can also try  Tapestry which our organisation launched regionally with huge success. Tapestry or shaggy rug making is providing extra incomes for those making carpets or teaching others. You can also make money through the selling of carpet making material such as tapestry mats or knitting yarn. Great demand in South Africa where many of our trainees have made a lot especially in Cape Town, Limpopo, KZN and Gauteng.

 

So build up experience in your relevant field and do other side hustles such as vending, baking cakes, bead making, mabhero, car selling. Do not lose money on Online Forex Trading, Bitcoins or other ponzi schemes.

Taken and edited from the book ‘Business Opportunities for South Africans’.

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Diaspora Matters

Spending Patterns in South Africa

shopizo

An entrepreneur should know all the sources of income in your country, province and district. How do people in your area get money? Where does it flow from? You also need to be knowledgeable of spending patterns and habits. What are the top areas the government is prioritizing in terms of expenditure? What are the top priorities of NGOs or NPOs in your area? What are companies prioritizing in your area. This is a simply study which helps you to effectively plan and strategically place your business. You cannot be expanding or borrowing funds to invest in an area where the major source of income such as a mine is  planning to close down. At the same time if the government intends to open up new projects in your area, then green light for you to follow the money and be the first one to establish business before others.

We are compiling our second book and we believe this will be one of the best entrepreneurship book for South Africans. The book has a lot of interesting analysis and key insights and also provide a good number of opportunities and resources which will help entrepreneurs in Mzantsi.

One of the areas we have covered is ‘Opportunity Identification Skills for South Africans’ . An entrepreneur need to have more than 10 universal skills for identifying opportunities and one of the skills is ‘following the money‘ or following the spending habits of people in your area. You need to check how priorities are changing and what is causing the change. You reduce your risk of failure by investing in top priorities for most consumers. Information comes courtesy of Statistics South Africa and is for the last survey carried out in 2016.

 

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Diaspora Matters

Mutasa Rural District Council Opportunities

zalo

When it comes to investment in Zimbabwe, rural district council opportunities are the most underrated! What make investment difficult with rural district councils is the absence of online presence. A lot of them have a lot of commercial and residential stands which are available but finding no buyers! Our rural district councils are not ‘Open for Business‘ despite having plenty of opportunities available. ZBIN is playing a small role to bring you a few opportunities and the hope is that in future someone will create a platform that helps to showcase investment opportunities that abound in our rural areas.

Below we feature investment opportunities from Mutasa Rural District Council which has the following:

Investment in sustainable tourism enterprises

Mining of precious stones

Investment in gravity fed irrigation schemes

Investment in wind and solar energy projects

Investment in agro-processing industries

investment in value addition and beneficiation initiatives

For inquiries contact the council on the following details:

Telephone : 0772 136925/0772136926

Email:info@mutasardc.org.zw

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Diaspora Matters

Paint Making Business Idea

uyor

Did you know that you can actually make your own paint for sale to local hardware shops? Paint production is a profitable business venture you should consider as an option. You just need to look at the demand for real estate or the number of new buildings or homes coming up. So how does one start a paint making business? Read more about this business below from the information we found from Nigeria where Paint Making is BIG BUSINESS:

Paint product is in three major category: We have emulsion, Textcoat and Satin (Nylon paint).You can start your home-based paint production with as little as $600. The raw materials are readily available in the local market. You don’t need any expensive equipment to produce paint; you only need some buckets and your two hands to do the mixing.What is left for you to do is to penetrate and capture the market by producing good quality paints and marketing it very well.

Hence, for a small scale business, it might require you to have at least a half plot of land for the production environment after a successful registration of your business name and the approvals from Standard Boards. With a minimum number of five employees you can fairly begin the production.Though, with just two people paint production can be done based on the scale of production within a room space environment especially for a very small beginner.

In order to survive the choking dominance of the market leaders in the industry, new start-ups can map out their self-sustaining marketing strategy. While some could afford to distribute in the open markets to compete amongst others, some may solely depend on personal contacts and placing of orders before embarking on production.

Here are some of the essential chemicals that must be in place to achieve a desired high quality paint:
1. Water
2. Titherni (used only for the production of white paint)
3. Calcium carbonate (calcium)
4. Colourite
5. P.V.A
6. Formalin
7. Nitrosol
8. Ammonia
9. Hydrosol
10. Marble dust
11.Geniple
12.Bama cork
13. Buffa Solution

Steps to making Emulsion Paints
Emulsions are those ordinary paints that are not roughened with sand-like objects but plain. It could come out in different beautiful colours.

Step 1.
Mix Calcuim Carbonate in water for one bucket production (hence we shall be referring to bucket i.e. normal — 20 litres of paint as drum), pour water in the bucket up to half (10 litres of water) you can always increase the volume of water at any stage if necessary. Add less than half bag of Calcuim (add until the mixture rises to about 17 liters in the bucket) by now the drum will be quarter empty.
NOTE: if you are producing white paint, you will mix titherni in water before adding calcium. Few spoons of titherni are enough. Mix very well.

Step 2:
Add your colour. It is assumed that by now you must have diluted the colours as required with water if they are oxide. Now put colour in small rations and keep turning until you get your desired result. You can always add more if you like. Suppose you added more yellow for example, than you need, you can correct it by adding more calcium (but not after this stage) Bear in mind that the colour may be deeper when wet and lighter when the paint is dried.

Step 3
Add 1kg of P.V.A to the mixture. After turning, add half glass cup of nitrosol. Nitrosol is always in powdery form so you must dilute it in small water before adding it to your mixture.
Next in the process is to add about 10 centilitre of formalin and about same volume for ammonia and hydrosol sequentially. Turn very well at any addition of a new chemical.

Final step

When you have completed the above steps, make sure you turn the above mixture very well. As you are turning it you might be a little fidgeted that you have wasted your resources. You don’t need to be afraid. Just add acrytext to the mixture and turn. Add it in small quantity until you get the thickness you desire. However if you add excess you might spoil your mixture. When you finally arrived at the desired thickness, then, the adventure has come to an end and a product called Emulsion paint is produced and ready to be used.
Warning: Please the chemicals must be added in the order it`s stated above. If not, you may have problem; for example, if you put ammonia before Nitrosol, the paint will get blocked or coagulate. And if ammonia drops in Nitrosol, the Nitrosol will get blocked as well. More so, when formalin is poured into ammonia it will explode. The only time you can add ammonia before Nitrosol is when you are turning on machine speed. Just be careful.

Production of Textcoat
Step 1:
Pour about 10 liters of water into the bucket, add 1 bag of Calcuim (or less) then add your colours as it is supposed to be.
Step 2:
After turning the mixture above, you will need to add marble dust. You will notice that some textcoat paints have a kind of lining and some have only rough surface. And there are those that are called designer textcoat, such are the ones that are used with the aid of a special roller to design houses so that its end effect will be something like flowers or blocks made of paint in houses. It is called artwork in the painting industry. All these are textcoat but it is the mode of application of this chemical that brings out the artwork variation.
For rough textcoats, use only rough marble dust in your production. For lining textcoats, use a combination of rough and smooth marble dust in equal ratio. For artwork textcoats, use only smooth marble dust in production.
In adding the marble dust, you will notice that the volume of your mixture is increasing. Just add according to your own discretion because there is no specific measurement. If you are confused on the quantity to add, just keep adding until the drum is half empty. Use your initiative. Please do not use only smooth marble dust for production unless you are producing artwork that needs a designer roller.
Step 3: When you are through with turning of this mixture (turn very well), you will now add your P.V.A. and other chemicals like we said in emulsion. However, you will need to increase their volume a little. For example you will need full glass cup of Nitrosol and increase the volume of other chemicals a little. When you have finished adding all the other chemicals up to Hydrosol, you may need the gym in order to activate your muscle for turning the paint as you add Acrytext. On the addition of acrytext the paint will become strong.
Now to know if the Acrytext you added is enough, take a small portion of the paint and paste it on the wall. If the teething is not falling, congratulations but if it is falling, add more. The journey to this end could deliver to you a ready- to- be –used Textcoat paint.
Satin (nylon paint)
This is called nylon paint because it is washable (Water can be used to wash it off when it`s dirty). Use About 10litres of water. Add calcium in a small quantity to make the paint light. What I mean is that the thickness of the paint at this stage will be less than the thickness it has when we are producing emulsion.

Now add your favorite colour.
You do NOT use P.V.A.
Add 1kg of buffa solution and 1kg of Nitro sol (just enough to make the paint thicker and drawing)
Add ammonia and formalin as usual and finally add1kg of hydrosol. With this simple process, you are sure to have a satin paint occupying a market space.


Do not miss out our Business Opportunities for South Africans book which is coming out in two weeks time.

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Diaspora Matters

Checklist for business startups

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We are now polishing the ‘2018 Opportunities for South Africans Book’  which is going to be published by end of month. No doubt one of the best ever about small business opportunities for South Africans. The book features an analysis of the South African economies, key sectors for growth and opportunities for small businesses. How to start a business in South Africa and where to get help on registration, business plans and funding. How to invest through various mechanisms such as bank loans, available government grants, pooling of resources, franchises and partnerships.

The book in detail covers how to identify opportunities and the skills you need to be able to differentiate the forest from the trees. Opportunities covered include Agriculture, Retail, Education, Construction, Tourism, E-commerce, Women and Youths owned businesses and a bonus chapter on Digital Marketing.

 

There is a lot more information that has never been covered before and should be the best resource guide for entrepreneurs in South Africa. The book revolutionaries the way entrepreneurship is covered in Mzantsi.

Below we feature one of the areas in the book which is a checklist important before you start a business. Many start-ups simply prepare business plans for funding and after that no follow ups on issues covered in the plan. This checklist is an important step in getting the big idea of what you intend to do and ensuring that nothing falls through the cracks. Information comes courtesy of  www.bplans.com


Starting your own business may sound like an undertaking of epic proportions. The truth is, with our Business Startup Checklist, it doesn’t have to be.

Yes, you’re going to have to work hard, and commit to working on it at all hours of the day, but actually getting set up is simply down to making sure you’ve “checked all the boxes,” which is exactly what this business startup checklist aims to help you do.

We’ve broken the tasks down into manageable categories and included links that will help you complete each stage of getting started. If you’d like to put yourself through a fast-paced version of the Business Startup Checklist.

You can read the steps within the checklist below, and you can download it for free by submitting the form on the right side of this page.

Steps in the Business Startup Checklist:

Every one of the tasks in our business startup checklist belongs to one of the following overarching steps:

  1. Find a good business idea
  2. Test your business idea and do market research
  3. Write a formal business plan (if you’re seeking funding)
  4. Brand your business
  5. Make it legal
  6. Get funded (only if you need it)
  7. Set up shop
  8. Market and launch your business
  9. Find a good business idea

A good business idea isn’t just one that turns a profit. It’s one that’s a good fit for you personally, for your target market, and for your location. You’re going to be in business for the long haul, so you really should pick something you can live and breathe.

  1. Test your business idea and do market research*

The adage goes, “ideas are a dime a dozen”—but what about good ideas? How do you really know you’ve hit upon something that’s going to work on all levels?

We use the lean planning methodology to figure this out. Of course, you may also want to start by getting out and talking to real people—do they reallywant a fancy Basque restaurant in their neighborhood or is another donut shop going to be more to their taste?

* While we advise students and new entrepreneurs to do market research before they start, we’d like to clarify that you should not let “doing market research” hold you up if you already know your market. The reality is, the vast majority of real startups are driven by people who know their market from experience and who are ready to bet the farm on it! Market research does not have to be a part of the business planning process. According to Tim Berry“If you know your market, move on!”

  1. If you’re seeking funding, you may need a formal business plan

While you don’t need a 40-page business plan in order to get your business up and running, if you’re seeking funding, institutions like banks may ask for one.

In this case, you can ask if a “one-page pitch” (also known as a one-page business plan) will suffice, or if they’d like a traditional business plan with a detailed financial section (this is the part they pay most attention to).

Complete each of the plan’s sections, as listed below:

If you need a jump start on your plan, you can download our free business plan template or check out our library of business plan examples.

  1. Brand your business

A strong brand is the key to customer loyalty and higher sales. If you think it’s just for big business, think again; a brand is critical for businesses of all shapes and sizes.

This is where all the hard work pays off. Now you know a bit more about your target audience, you’ve got the opportunity—through your brand—to grab their attention. And of course, to have fun doing it!

  1. Make it legal

Before you can open shop and comfortably start doing business, you’ve got to make sure you’ve checked all the necessary boxes. Have you registered your business name? Applied for local and state licenses? Obtained an Employer Identification Number? You are going to have to do some things “by the book.”

  1. Get financed (only if you need it)*

While not every startup needs outside funding, most businesses do require some help, at least at the beginning. If you’ve worked through your business plan and have a sound handle on your financials, pitching for funding should be a breeze, whether it’s to a banker, a VC, or your family.

* It’s worth noting at the point that not all startups need financing. The vast majority of service startups can use planning to stay on track, but don’t really need funding. If you’re a freelance writer, a designer, a management consultant, a business plan writer, or anyone else making use of a skill that doesn’t need a lot of money behind it, just get started.

  1. Set up shop

You’re almost ready to go; just a few more details to work though. Once you’ve found your business location, or set up an office, and set the hiring motions in process, you’ll be ready to begin marketing.

  1. Market and launch your business

It’s time to start getting people hyped up about your opening day. This is your opportunity to get things going with a bang! If you give yourself enough time, the press may ask to run a story on you, and of course, you’ll be able to spread the word yourself, as well as ask others to do their bit getting word out.

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Diaspora Matters

Forex Parallel Market Rates take a plunge

beg

A week ago the parallel market rates for the USD against the Bond Transfer rate was 1:43-45. The highest rate was 1:48 but a week later rates have taken the biggest downfall to date of 1:30 up to 1:35. Our forum has been trying to analyse the sudden drop and we got the following facts:

1.Easter Holiday and the returning Diaspora impact

2. Tobacco selling season means that more forex  coming into the country

3. Increased local production and exports

4. Government efforts on externalisation

We do not have scientific evidence to back up the sudden plunge in rates but we believe this is good for the economy and hoping that the downward trend continues.

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