FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What is Go Negosyo?
Go Negosyo is the advocacy of the Philippine Center for Entrepreneurship (PCE), a non-stock, non-profit organization that advocates for a change in MINDSET and ATTITUDE. PCE believes that the Filipinos can address poverty in the country by engaging in entrepreneurship and developing an optimistic, passionate, creative and innovative, resourceful, diligent and persevering character. The advocacy encourages everyone to take charge and make the most of their resources and abilities by utilizing and transforming these into viable enterprises. An entrepreneurial culture would lead to an entrepreneurial nation and, consequently, to improved economy for the country.
Through its forums/ expos, seminars, multi-media campaigns, books and other printed materials, PCE hopes to demystify entrepreneurial success and popularize entrepreneurship as an alternative to unemployment, job-seeking or migration. It is a partner in improving education, fostering an optimistic and conducive culture, and providing a marketplace of ideas, innovations, business models and best practices – overall, catalyzing the development of entrepreneurship in the country.
Hoping to generate competitive Filipino entrepreneurs, PCE seeks to be the institution that brings together all key stakeholders and enablers of different entrepreneurship programs.
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How can I join Go Negosyo?
Go Negosyo forms program partnerships with educational institutions and other agencies in the field of entrepreneurship and economic development. It hopes to promote partner institutions and create linkages among those who have chosen to become a part of its informal network in order to strengthen and amplify all efforts of promoting the entrepreneurship advocacy
While it seeks to link with different agencies and institutions from the private and public sector, one need not be a “member” of Go Negosyo in order to avail of its mentorship programs and services. You can become a part of our network by simply approaching us and expressing your interest in helping promote the advocacy.
You can help spread the advocacy by:
- Supporting our trimedia campaigns and events (i.e., Go Negosyo Bigtime TV Show , www.gonegosyo.net , Go Negosyo Caravans )
- Mentoring
- Joining our mailing list
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Do you endorse a particular business or franchise? Can you recommend a particular business for me?Go Negosyo does not endorse a particular kind of business or franchise: it advocates for entrepreneurship per se. It provides a link to its partner entrepreneurs’ businesses and links to training programs related to entrepreneurship and fund sources.
In addition to this, there is no one business that is suitable for everyone. What may be “ideal” for one person may not be the same for the next. Find inspiration by looking at your surroundings, at the current technologies available to you, and, the most apparent, your passions and interests. All business ventures require passion or an area of strong interest to you. You must also match your interests with what is in demand in the market.
Aspiring entrepreneurs must assess if their desired business opportunity:
1) will earn profit sustainably
2) is realistic and possible within the current constraints within the environment, and
3) is something that will be in line with their personal vision and belief systems and help them achieve their goals.
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How do I start a business?
A good business venture starts with a good idea; the more creative or unique it is, the better. Good ideas don’t need to be totally new, but it has to be different or better than existing product or service offering and offered at good value to make your venture competitive. This is the brand of entrepreneurship that Go Negosyo promotes; one that is innovative, relevant to consumers’ needs, affordable, and of course, profitable.
Conduct a competitive analysis of your market and industry, trends, specific consumer insights and needs, products/brands that address those needs (if at all or maybe partially), their pricing, quality, promotions, distribution, service. Be aware of the outside influences that affect your business. You must be able to clearly identify your target market, product differentiation, product positioning (or the unique selling proposition) why the market should buy your product, your projected sales volume and revenues, your distribution channels, your costings, sources of materials, labor, capital, your expected profits, and project this year-by-year. Many good ideas fail as businesses because aspiring entrepreneurs overlook the nitty-gritty of starting a business.
Having a business that truly interests you is a plus. Like having a job, having a business you’re not interested in will easily wear you out when problems arise. Make sure that you have a passion for owning a business and for the particular business you’re planning.
If you’re really interested, willing and able to start a business, but you can’t come up with a good idea, franchising is an option. Franchising is a business model where a person buys the license to do business under an existing business’ trademark and methods in exchange of a royalty fee. You can contact reputable franchising groups like the Association of Filipino Franchisers
and the Philippine Franchise Association , or visit our Franchising Section .
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What is a business plan?
A business plan serves to:
1) outline your foreseen company's finances, management team and marketing strategy
2) present plans on how your idea will be commercialized, and
3) prove your ideas’ financial viability.
If you are to avail of loans and other financing options, a business plan tells the lender why and how your business will be able to earn enough money to repay them within their terms.
Writing down your ideas and plans also takes out the guesswork. Consider the following questions:
- Which consumer need/s will your service or product address?
- Who are your potential customers and why will they purchase from you?
- How will you reach your potential customers? How will the idea be transformed into a viable product and brought to market?
- Where will you get the financial resources to start your business?
A rock-solid business plan does not only convince a lender that your idea can do well; as you develop it, even in writing, it teaches you a lot about the business you’re going to go into along the way.
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Where can I get capital for my business?
Start-up businesses can get capital by seeking loans from formal lending institutions like banks/ rural banks, cooperatives or Micro-Finance Institutions (MFI’s).
However, some budding entrepreneurs don’t access conventional financing because of fear of documentary requirements, lack of collateral, or inexperience. They end up digging into their savings, maxing out their credit cards or mortgaging their homes. In fact, home-equity loans are one of the most popular borrowing routes.
But there are other ways of getting capital funding. One is borrowing against your insurance policy -- provided it is a cash-value life insurance. It cuts the value of your insurance benefit, but if you’re relatively young, you’d still have a long time to pay it back. Interest rates typically run in single digits.
If you’re an employee, you can also access other sources of low-cost cash through your state pension funds – SSS
or GSIS
salary loans or a PAG-IBIG Fund Multi-Purpose Loan . They usually let you borrow at the prime rate, but PAG-IBIG’s interest is relatively the lowest. The Department of Trade and Industry has come up with a list of financing options for entrepreneurs (click here
to download).
Pawnshops are also viable sources of funding, and are very accessible. But starting a business is a serious venture and it’s hard to start one using a high-interest loan as capital.
Another popular non-formal way to get funding, but which is discouraged, is through five-six loans. This means for every five pesos you borrow, you pay back six pesos after just a few days. Effectively, it is said to be more than 1000% interest rate on an annual basis. So ask yourself if you want to borrow at that rate when you start a business.
Lastly, you could always try to borrow from your family or relatives, but use this only as your last resort, since there is risk of starting a family feud. Doing business with family is still doing business, so remember to put everything on paper to avoid unnecessary complications.
Keep in mind that money is not the only capital that you have. Your business skills – your capacity for marketing, people and social skills, technical expertise, even your connections – can be used as capital for your business. Sometimes, by being resourceful, you lessen the need for loans and other expenses.
Aspiring entrepreneurs should start small, but dream big. Starting small minimizes the financial exposure and the risks involved in business start-ups. In fact, many successful entrepreneurs nowadays have their inspiring stories to share as most of them started small, either from one small store or peddling operations. By learning from their mistakes and keeping true to their vision, they were able to overcome obstacles and grow their business. Because of their determination, creativity, forecasting skills, and vigilance in reinvesting their profit into the business, these icons and role models have shown that it is possible to become successful.
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Do you lend capital for entrepreneurs?
As a non-profit, non-government organization, Go Negosyo aims to be a one-stop shop for entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs who seek advice and mentorship on the how-to’s of establishing, managing and growing a business. Hence, the organization does not directly lend money to business owners. For this, the organization directs financing inquiries to microfinance institutions. To find out the MFI nearest you, visit our Financing Section .
If you’re a Globe subscriber, you can also text MICRO FIND [Province],[Town] (ex. MICRO FIND PAMPANGA, LUBAO] and send to 2973 (Php 2.50/text). You can visit the Small Business Corporation website or call them at (02) 751-1888.
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Do you give entrepreneurship seminars or training programs?
Go Negosyo conducts forums and expos in key cities around the country in the hope of instilling and inspiring an entrepreneurial mindset among the attendees in the area. Our Caravans allow for interaction via forums and mentoring sessions between participants and our Go Negosyo entrepreneurs. We also hold afternoon talks that discuss in detail topics such entrepreneurship, marketing, product development and financing.
The Go Negosyo advocacy inspires and imparts entrepreneurial know-how largely through its tri-media campaign. We produce a weekly Go Negosyo Bigtime TV Show
which keeps viewers updated with the latest entrepreneurship-related news and trends, and shares tips on how to effectively and creatively handle business ventures. Our books and publications
educate aspiring entrepreneurs by sharing how these successful negosyantes were able to overcome their obstacles and highlighting the entrepreneurship lessons that could be learned from these stories. Our weekly column in the Philippine Star AskGoNegosyo
by Joey Concepcion which discusses current developments related to entrepreneurship and dispenses advice and useful insights. Aspiring entrepreneurs also get to the chance to consult their Go Negosyo mentors by e-mailing them through our Ask A Mentor section.
There are agencies who offer detailed and specific training programs on livelihood skills and technologies, as well as business management. Should you be interested in attending these programs, you can call the following organizations or visit their websites:
You can also download the DTI-PTTC 2008 Compendium of HRD and Entrepreneurial Training Programs , which is a list of all the training and entrepreneurship development programs being offered by government agencies which seek to provide existing and potential entrepreneurs with the necessary skills and knowledge to become competitive players in the local or global market.
Some schools such as Entrepreneurs School of Asia
{tel # (02) 638-1188} offer undergraduate and graduate courses for students and aspiring entrepreneurs alike who truly want to pursue a more thorough, practical and systematic understanding of entrepreneurship.
In the future, we will be launching a How to Go Negosyo book. Packed with lessons and practical tips, How to Go Negosyo will not only equip its readers with working knowledge on entrepreneurship, management, marketing, sales, production and finance: it will also guide the reader on how to assess one's self, and how to seek, screen and seize business opportunities. For more information, visit our Books and Publications section.
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