In Zimbabwe we have the irresistible, the famous ‘Mazowe Crush Fruit Juice’ ..how about Malawi? In Malawi it’s the World Best Rice…It’s the Malawi Rice…Kilombero Rice. If you have not eaten Malawi Rice then ‘you are still to eat rice’.

So I had heard stories of this famous rice and dismissed them. I thought folks this rice was overrated, I have eaten Thai Rice and various other types of rice. There is nothing much that distinguishes the rice’s that I had eaten.

Now after eating the famous rice from the beautiful country of Malawi, iam forced to change my stance. Malawi rice is indeed the best rice under the sun…I just got hooked to this rice and donot see myself ever wanting to eat any rice apart from Malawi Rice.

Now it makes sense why this rice is expensive in Harare, a 2kg of Malawi Rice costs $5. Normal rice costs between $2 and $3 per 2kg packet. Malawi rice is definitely not for the poor!

So what exactly makes it special? Unfortunately Iam not a food writer and will not do justice to this famous brand. All I can say is that its tasty…add to this, the sweet scent that comes from the cooked rice. You can smell from a mile away that at this home –they are eating Kilombero rice tonight!

Business Opportunities provided by Malawi Rice

More should be done to market and promote Malawi Rice. Malawi rice is a world brand and the rice should be served in all the top hotels in the world. In Zimbabwe and South Africa, few hotels prepare Malawi rice and this maybe partly due to ignorance. If advertised well the demand for this rice is unlimited.

So what is ZBIN Doing?

Do you supply Kilombero Rice? If your answer is yes, then drop your details on the comments section.

We encourage Malawians in Zimbabwe, South Africa and other countries to put their details so that potential customers can easily contact you.

Malawi Rice Recipe

Some say the trick with Malawi rice lies in the recipe, few non Malawians know how to expertly cook Kilombero rice. We are therefore inviting folks with recipes for Malawi to please post below.

As for me and my family-if its not Kilombero rice, then its technically not rice-Viva Malawi Rice!

Monday is a wrong day to talk about laziness, its still a long week hey? Anyway good morning investors  and may you allow me to talk about business advice for the lazy types amongst us. The couch potato’s who prefer sleeping or doing little activity.

Become a distributor

Becoming a distributor is the easiest business advice we can give you. No need for complex or strategic thinking skills. All you need is to sign up with an established company and distribute their goods and services. A few months ago I was in East Asia where I saw a lot of brands of various goods.

The brands that I saw were of the following products

1)Mobile phones and accessories

2)Agricultural equipment products

3)Clothes and shoes

4)Perfumes and deodorants

5)Household furniture

6)Electrical and solar products

7) Kitchenware

Dear reader, the list is endless. I did not know that there are more than hundred phone brands! I was used to Samsung, I-phones, Nokia, Black Berry etc. I did not know that the list extends to more than 100! So if you are the lazy type, get busy on the net and find out how to be a distributor of various products that are manufactured in Asia, Europe and USA.

The difficult part

Apologies for misrepresentation-there is no room in business for lazy people lol. After obtaining information about products to distribute you have to do one thing-work hard to promote the products that you would have chosen.

Bringing a new product is not as easy it sounds as you will be competing with established brands. You will have to work hard to get a share of the market. In certain cases the manufacturers may help in the marketing and distribution of their products.

Next week I will provide you with a list of manufacturers you can contact. Also take note of the fact that you may need to pay certain fees in order to obtain exclusive distributor rights.

So its back to work this week and as ZBIN we wish you the best.

So we have reached 10,000 visitors on our website? Excellent stuff, thank you very much forum members for the support getting website hits is not an easy thing especially when it’s a website that majors on business. Business by its nature is normally a hard-sell on social media forums. So getting 10,000 visitors in 18 days is an impressive record with an average of 500 visitors per day.

ZBIN Newsletter: We are currently working on designing a newsletter that will summarise all ZBIN Forum discussions, file them and distribute to all of you on a bi-monthly basis. An opportunity created for all of you interested in adverts and having business news in one place. In future do look forward to a ZBIN App that enables all members to have up to date business information at a click of a button. The App should be coming in the next 3 months.

Rabbit Week

You may have seen my advert inviting members to join the ZBIN Rabbit Group, yes we have formed a Rabbit Group and all members who registered will be added to the group by end of week. We are hoping to revive interest by Zimbos is raising rabbits on a commercial basis. One area we are going to closely work on is the market for rabbit meat. We hope to help publicise and create new markets for rabbits. We are hoping to work together as a group in creating demand and also provide supply of rabbit meat.

Mozambique Group

All is in order for the Mozambique trip in a few weeks’ time. We already have a checklist to help members in the preparation of the trip. We have 25 forum members travelling to Tete for business explorations. Thanks to Clara Mapfumo and the rest of the Moz Opportunities group. We are no longer accepting applications for space on the travelling team.

After the Tete trip we will arrange another trip to Moz and it maybe to Beira or Chimoio. All logistics for the second trip to be done after the Tete tour. The Chimoio trip might be a day trip where we leave Harare at 3:00am arriving at Forbes Border Post at 6:00am and be in Chimoio by 8/9:00am. We will spend 4/5 hours before coming back and be in Harare by 10:00pm. The aim of the trip will be for forum members to appreciate business developments in neighbouring countries, doing so with the aim of taking advantage of possible business opportunities.

Online Forex Trading

We are going to have a forum competition on dummy operations. All members are encouraged to have opened dummy accounts where we are going to have a competition and the winner will be featured on this website. The aim of the competition is to enable members to develop confidence in the operation of Meta Trader 4 App which allows members to trade online forex. Our Group policy remains that members must trade  online forex on their own. No middlemen allowed to trade on behalf of anyone.

Cape Town Group Revived

We are planning to have a meeting for all Zimbo Capetonians in mid Dacember. Registration of the members is in progress and Rodwell Maoneke is in charge with logistics for the second ZBIN meeting in the Mother City.

Upcoming Posts

1. Truck Inn Opportunities along Zimbabwe’s Highways
2. Rabbit Market
3. Source of Second hand vehicles car parts
4. Shire River Port
5. Interview with a sister based in Pemba, Mozambique
6. Sugar Beans Farming
7. Peri-Urban areas opportunities
8. Indian Start Ups
9. Tourism Opportunities
10. Import Substitution Opportunities.

ZBIN Networking Event

We are holding a ZBIN Social gathering event this Friday at Paramount in Hatfield, Harare.  No fees charged you just get in touch and we will socialise and discuss business. I will be providing you  with more details about this event during the week.

MIKE TAYLOR

Have you ever stopped to wonder why you buy some products and leave others sitting on the shelf? How do we decide between all the options we have every single day, when the majority of the time we have little to no first-hand experience with the products we’re deciding between?

What makes you finally decide to try a new restaurant, use a new toothpaste or switch to a new piece of software? The answer lies largely in the types of words used to sell the product or service.

Maybe you’ve never realized it, but words play a huge role in helping our brains decide which products to buy. There are tons of variables, but one thing has been proven time and time again — certain words sell better. They just do.

So here you go, here are 10 words customers love to hear when making a decision:

1. Free.
If you think “free” is sleazy and overused, think again. People love free, plain and simple. You can give practically anything away for free, no matter how small, and you’ll grab people’s attention.

Gregory Ciotti of Help Scout points this out using a study where the researchers asked people to choose between a Lindt truffle for $0.15 — which is a heck of a deal — or a Hershey Kiss for $0.01. An amazing 73 percent chose the Lindt truffle.

Then they asked another group to choose between a Lindt truffle for $0.14 — again, a heck of a deal) — or a Hershey Kiss for free. This time, 69 percent wanted the Hershey Kiss. Why? Because everyone loves free stuff.

2. Exclusive.
Everyone want to be in the “in” crowd. When you make your product exclusive — only available to a select group — you make people want it even more. You can exchange the word exclusive with other words or phrases — members only, invitation only, first, insider — everyone will still want in.

Related: Use These 10 Words in Conversation to Get What You Want

3. Easy.
As sad as it is, Mayberry doesn’t exist anymore, at least in most parts of the world. Life is complicated, and we also might be just a smidgen on the lazy side. So anytime we hear that something is simple or easy to do, we’re drawn to it.

I’ve helped conduct surveys where customers were asked what their top purchase factors were in buying a piece of software, and “easy-to-use” was in the top three. When in doubt, don’t flex the complexity muscle. Features are good, but not when they sacrifice simplicity.

4. Limited.
Oh, how we hate missing out. It can be as simple as bobble heads at a local minor league baseball game, and if they say the first 100 people get one free, suddenly those bobble heads are more appealing. I mean, what are you even going to do with a bobble head? Who cares. It’s a great deal, and you have to make a decision now before it’s too late, so you’re in.

5. Get.
HubSpot cites a test conducted by Encyclopedia Brittanica where they replaced a headline that was a question with a headline that started with the word “get.” Conversions doubled.

I don’t have a research-backed explanation for this, but I would say it’s because get is an action word that psychologically puts the reader in charge and prepares them for action. Get is also typically followed by a benefit. Get a flat stomach in six weeks. Get better grades with less studying. Get the freshest, cleanest haircut in town. You get the picture.

You can also use other verbs like claim, start, try, grab or give.

6. Guaranteed.
With so much fraud in the world today, authenticity is a legitimate concern your customers have. Using the right words can give them the reassurance they need to pull the trigger.

Related: 5 Four-Letter Words That Persuade Customers

You’ve likely seen this everywhere — because it works. The key, though, is to actually be able to back up your guarantee. If your product doesn’t have a guarantee, returns aren’t hassle-free, or your results aren’t proven, don’t say it. It may work in the short-term, but it’ll bite you down the road. That said, if you don’t offer a guarantee, maybe it’s time to do so.

Other words you can use to provide assurance are proven, results, no obligation, risk-free, hassle-free and secure.

7. You.
When you’re writing sales copy, or anything intended to persuade, use first-person language. It makes the reader’s, or listener’s, ears perk up a bit. And — on an unconscious level — it makes them feel special.

Using “you” makes your writing conversational, and it brings your voice down to a friendly level where you can actually make a connection.

8. Because.
This one’s interesting. Gregory Ciotti cites studies in the book Influence by Robert Cialdini by using interesting scenarios. One that sticks out is where different phrases were tested to see which one would make people most inclined to allow someone to break in line at the copy machine.

“Excuse me, I have 5 pages. May I use the Xerox machine?” — 60 percent allowed the person to cut in line.
“I have 5 pages. May I use the Xerox machine, because I am in a rush?” — 94 percent allowed the person to cut in line.
“Excuse me, I have 5 pages. May I use the Xerox machine because I have to make copies?” — 93 percent allowed the person to cut in line.

Notice that by simply hearing a “because,” followed by a reason, nearly everyone decided the person could get in front of them in line. The reasons given weren’t even legitimate reasons. Because I have to make copies? Everyone in line had to make copies — that’s why they were there.

The thing to remember is that human brains love explanations. We need to know why. Why do I need that feature? Because it will help me get ____.

Tie your product, features and the actions you want people to take in with a reason, and people will be more compelled to take action.

9. Best.
Which sounds better? “How to Change a Flat Tire” or “The Best Way the Change a Flat Tire.”

It’s a no-brainer, really. Think about how many times you’ve Googled something, only to get frustrated during the search, so you go back and add the word “best” in front of your search. Maybe it’s just me, but I have a feeling I’m not the only one.

It’s as if “best” is a sacred word that’s only awarded to the truly great, so you can count on anything labeled as the best. We all know that’s not true, but to call something the best implies that at some point there was a comparison, and this one came out on top.

Related: Want to Be Successful? Be the Best at What You Do.

But please, don’t be deceptive with this. If you’re not truly the best, or you can’t get people to call you the best without coercion, keep working to actually be the best at what you do. Don’t just slap that label on yourself without validation.

10. Compare.
With social media and as many review sites and blogs as there are today, practically everyone makes comparisons before making a decision.

Ford vs. Chevrolet
Pampers vs. Huggies
Charmin vs Cottonelle
Hubspot vs. Marketo

We want to know who the top players are, and then we want to see them side-by-side. Use that to your advantage by telling your readers to compare your quality, ease of use, price, etc., to your competitor’s. Even better, make it easy on them by doing the comparison yourself.

When you openly show them the difference between your product and your competitors, you take that work off of them, and they’ll be grateful for that.

Here is a sad story from a  sister who lost $7,000 through a dubious round table  forum. She says that in  2012 a friend invited her  to join a roundtable forum. On this forum the agreement was that one would contribute  $1000 per month with the contributions benefiting members according to a set list. All went well for the first 7 months but al hell broke out when her turn to benefit came. Members of the club disappeared into thin air…vanhu vakangonyangarika!

It took her several months to track some of the members, she located one and took her car…izvi hazvina kushanda nekuti akanzi ndokusungisa nekuti wandibira mota yangu! So at the end of it all..she lost $7,000 through this dubious round table scheme

So below are responses to this post by ZBIN Members

Langelihle V Khumalo eish shame….so true Mdala zvikuitika ini handitombodi kukandirwa last

Elias Gurure Even @ this forum there are a lot of postings on how to get rich quick and people must be very very careful of such fraudlent schemes. You may have heard of Helping hands, MMM, Club35, mypaydesk and many such pyramid and ponzi schemes. They are all there to steal your hard earned cash. So people beware, akuruma nzeve ndewako!

Mdala Wa Rue Its worse ne social media yakadai kuuya iyi..kungoti vanhu havasi kutaura havo….millions of dollars are being lost on an annual basis

Watson Musenda About 20 000 banking accounts of MMM were closed in South Africa from last year to this year,the case is still pending in courts, because according to South African Reserves bank and the banking Act,its illegal because they are not registered and neither do they pay tax or have the licence to operate. Around March a number of people lost thousands of rand with MMM.It was banned in Russia and some people are in prison,now they are in Africa,you win some and you lose big time.

Faith Mmagwe Liam Tavuyanago Is helping hands fake? Im scared now

Vimbainashe Noreen Kuyerukana Well… I’ve always found these “rounds” a bit silly.. No offense. If you can kanda $1000 every month to someone anticipating pauchakandirwa $7000 after 7 months, chingogara uchizvikandira every month wega. Save. What these ma round give u is commitment coz yakamirirwa mari iyi. Give yourself the same commitment. Kutozvipinza busy wega. Zvikandire… And with respect to the other schemes, “If something sounds too good to be true..it probably is.”

Mdala Wa Rue Tinofunga pamwe my sis

Ivy Namwera Ini kwete imbavha idzo dzarura

Mdala Wa Rue Vamwe ndivo varikujoina joina magroup umu..votenga nechikwereti…nyakutengesa oda kutevera mari…onzwa the fone u have dialed does not exist

Mdala Wa Rue After careful analysis..I think these 7 ladies havana mari yavaipana….uyu ndiye ega aibvisiswa $1000…free money for the 7 ladies…organised crime!

King Krayza Bee ya true there , their tactics like chadonha and fejafeja are being modified and modernised to keep up with time and technology

Tapiwa Rasara Shuwa ipapo uyu ndiye aitambiswa dombo nevanhu ava

King Krayza Bee pa mari hapadi zvemagrup

Thenjiwe S Ziwenga Maround handina kumbomafarira munhu chengeta mari yako

Tapiwa Rasara Ma round if it goes well ari right zvawo……i bought my first car thru round table

King Krayza Bee if you fail to keep your own money either under pillow or in bank , no individual can do it for you. Its better kunzi wakabikarwa pabreak in or kuti yakatsvira mumba or kuti bank harina cash pane kuieverenga kaviri woitambidza munhu with confidence yekuti you will reap more. I feel pity for that sister may God refill her cup.

Pamela Kavumbura So true, even if you fail by using it yourself zviri nani pane kupa umwe munhu

King Krayza Bee kutonzi haugoni kushandisa mari uchitoimwa doro its better

Eugenia Moyo There is a new kid on the block zvemarounds izvi hanzi crowd rising, someone approached me ndikaramba

Sithembie Tendai Moyo yaaa pamari ,ukapusa unotambwa nyowani pa town

ZBIN Advice: Follow your gut instinct, if it says don’t join a scheme…then don’t! Exercise caution when joining new schemes that you have no knowledge of. If you are in doubt then consult friends and relatives. ZBIN members are also available in scrutinising new business schemes. Our members are not afraid to say it as it is…if it is dubious, they will say it without fear or favour. Inbox us if you come across any dubious business money making scheme.

Apple: 10

Banana:1

Coconut shell:1

The trick is on the Bananas on the last question, are they 3 or 4…have a relook!

So congrats if you got 14!

From Inbox:

A diasporan sister has a question:
Zvirisei sei ndakabata 5000 cash ndinga deposite stand kupi mu Harare kune ma good terms.

Response from members

Noki Daniels KANA akuda ku Domboshava tell me

Faye Denise Nesee Haydon Park @$18 a square metre. Terms available up to 18 months (Haydon Park is near the new parliament so Harare west.

Anita Sibanda Madokero

Florence Matombo 400 squremeters 4500us in kwekwe

Noleen Kaseke kuchitungwiza infill $4500 pane cottage 2 rooms netoilet

Tapiwa Rasara Beware of fraudsters

Tapiwa Rasara If you manage to get one from reputable property developers like Damofalls Zimre holdings etc….avoid individuals as much as possible

Tendai Bond Cash-Baroness WeMhazi Rydale Ridge Park

Tafadzwa Mapurisa Where is this area?

Mdala Wa Rue Rydale…on yr wake to Lake Chivero…after Snake Park…Good area

Chichi Madanhi Madokero or Sandton after Westgate.

Rueben Moyo Saturday Retreat through CFI @ $4 per square metre

Mai Anashe Tagwirei Tenga ruzevha kwedu kuDema.

Florence Matombo Ku redclif dzriko and mbizo 21 ne 22 ku 9 kune dzimba

Watson Midzi Try PHD also they have stands also

Ps* This post first appeared on Zimbabwe Business Ideas and Network on August 12, 2016. Our Recommendation on buying residential stands still remain…avoid buying from individuals to reduce risk. Please refer to an article on why you should avoid buying residential stands from individuals.

Networking at Events

There are various aspects of this type of business networking, from preparation to follow up and everything in between:
Identify where you should go. All venues are not right for all people. You owe it to yourself to do your research and find the venues that make sense for your business.

Make a decision about which organizations. Decide the ones you should join and the ones you don’t have to join in order to gain value from the events. For example, does it make sense to join a local chamber of commerce, or just go to the events that sound interesting and will most likely include people you should meet?
Register for the event and schedule it like a business meeting. Many people either don’t sign up for events or sign up for them and then forget to go.

Determine how often you should be networking. How many times should you network in a given week, month or quarter? This will help you narrow down where you should be going.
Develop open-ended questions. You can use these to ignite a conversation. Try to find unique questions. Don’t ask the same old “so what do you do” question if you can help it.
Attend events with a plan. Always try to learn something new. This will keep you from talking too much about yourself and your business.
Prepare yourself physically and mentally for the event. Dress appropriately. Bring business cards. Turn your phone off or set it to vibrate. (I’m not kidding!)
Don’t forget to mingle. Are you going with someone? If so, split up once you get to the event.

Get the lay of the land. When you arrive, step to the side. Take a deep breath and scan the room. This will give you a chance to regroup and focus before you approach anyone.
Don’t sit down right away. Wait until the program begins. If there is no program, you can sit once you’ve connected with someone.
Try to sit with strangers. This is no time to stick with people you know.

Be a good Samaritan. Is there someone sitting alone? Go to them and introduce yourself. You’ll be saving their life! They are alone and nervous. You can even take them with you to mix and mingle with others.
Don’t give your business card to everyone you meet. Rather, give it to anyone who asks you for it.

Do get the business card of everyone you meet.
Have a firm (but not killer) handshake. Your handshake is a key indicator of your level of confidence. So think about what your handshake is saying to those you meet.

Be present — always. When you are talking with someone, look them in the eye and really pay attention to what they are saying. You may learn something about them that tells you whether you can help them. It’s also the only way you’ll determine whether you should continue to get to know them after the event is over.
Don’t look around the room. And don’t look over someone’s shoulder when you are talking with them. It’s rude. You are letting them know that you aren’t really interested in them.
Don’t take phone calls. If you are expecting a call or have a situation that may need your attention, let the person you are talking with know there is the possibility you’ll have to excuse yourself.

Take necessary calls in private. Leave the room and go to a quiet place. It doesn’t make you seem important if you take a call in the room. It makes you seem impolite, silly, rude, arrogant … take your pick!

Disengage politely. How do you get away from someone politely? There are a couple of tactics. You can tell them you don’t want to monopolize their time. You can tell them you see someone you need to speak with. You can excuse yourself to go to the restroom. You can tell them you’d like to continue meeting people.
Don’t follow up via email. The only exception would be if you have been expressly asked to do so.

Do at least send a note.
Don’t pitch too early. Quite frankly, don’t “pitch” at all. When you build relationships it will become apparent to you and the other person when it makes sense to do business with each other. Remember, business networking is about relationships – not selling.
Don’t sign people up for your newsletter. Be sure you get their expressed permission before you put them on any kind of list.
Don’t assume. Just because you met someone doesn’t give you license to gain a referral from them, use them as a resource, or give them your promotional and sales materials.
Do err. But make it on the side of good manners and the golden rule.

Referral Groups

Referral groups work best for growing your business when you approach them with the idea of what you can provide to the group and its members. Here are some commandments to consider:
Focus on giving. Networkers don’t get referrals until people trust them. And they aren’t trusted until they’ve been giving quality referrals for a while.

Show up regularly and on time. When you show up late and/or infrequently, you send a message to your fellow group members: you tell them that you only care about yourself because you don’t take the time to learn about their needs. You show them how you deal with business meetings and associates. Why would they trust you with their clients? How can they be sure you’ll treat them well?
Come prepared. Have a specific list of referral needs. The more specific you can be, the more referrals you’ll receive.

Always ask for what you need. You are never so busy that you don’t need more prospects in our pipeline. If you don’t ask all the time, you’ll run the risk of getting to a place where you never ask. If you think it may be a couple of weeks before you’ll be able to get to those referrals, just let the members know that. It’s okay to ask when you are forthcoming with information.

Focus on the group. Once again, be sure you are really listening to the needs of the group members. Don’t play with your phone or answer emails while others are talking. Really listen and think about how you can help them.
Meet with the members individually. Do this between meetings so you can get to know them better.
Do not prospect among group members. You’re not targeting your fellow group members when you have your one-on-one meetings with them. You’re simply trying to build connections.
Do not expect to get until you give.
Do not expect to receive right away. It takes time to build those relationships with group members so you trust them and they trust you.
Consider the other group members as resources to you and your contacts. When you know how they do business and you trust them, you can use them as resources when people mention needs those group members can solve. This can elevate you in the eyes of your contacts, prospects and clients.
Do give quality referrals and leads. I knew a man who would write up a referral and put “Do not use my name” on the sheet. That is not helpful. I’ve also seen a situation where someone gave a referral but called the referee later and said, “Don’t call that person.” That’s not helpful! Don’t give garbage. It’s better to not give at all.

Check with your clients, contacts and associates first. Are they open to you giving their names and contact information to your group members? One of the worst things that can happen is for you to refer a group member to a client, only to have the client get mad.
Follow up! If someone gives you a referral, treat it like gold. You want to be sure that you follow up on it right away. Imagine how you’ll make the other person feel if they refer you to someone and you don’t follow up in a timely manner. It won’t make them want to refer you again. It takes time to build relationships with the people in your referral group. Don’t destroy that trust by failing to take a referral seriously