Real World Business — Running An Internet Cafe — Part 5
Table of contents for Running an Internet cafe
- Real World Business — Running An Internet Cafe — Part 1
- Real World Business — Running An Internet Cafe — Part 2
- Real World Business — Running An Internet Cafe — Part 3
- Real World Business — Running An Internet Cafe — Part 4
- Real World Business — Running An Internet Cafe — Part 5
Top 5 things to consider when starting your own Internet café:
Pricing and promotions:
Know how much you’ll charge for your services. Studying the market will play a great role here. If the price is right then people will avail of your services. Some owners often use pricing as a tool to have an edge over other competitors. They lower their rates, especially when their expenses won’t be that much, to attract more clients. In some areas, however, they have the so-called “Internet café owners’ association” who implements rules and regulations regarding different concerns of the Internet café industry. Some have rules regarding pricing, what price floor would be set, what punishments would be imposed to those who wouldn’t follow, etc. Their main objective is to promote a healthy competition among Internet shops.
Now, let’s say there’s a price floor that has to be observed. Smart owners would now think of ways of how to be ahead of the competition. That’s where Promotions come in. People love promos. This is a great way of having your own following, having your “mga suki” or your frequent customers. Promos come in different forms. For example:
- For every 3 hours another hour would be free
- Or P50 for every 3 hours
- Discounts for frequent users
- Giveaways
- Even have contests for gamers with cash prizes…something like that.
*Be sure to apply for the necessary documents needed if you wanna start your own Internet café, such as Barangay Clearance, Mayor’s Permit, DTI permit, etc. Just so your business would be legalized.
That wind’s up this weeks Internet cafe’ series. If you want more articles like this, or you would like us to cover a different topic, be sure to leave a comment. And thanks and a big “tip of the blog hat” to Arvin for his work on making this series a success.
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this ia a really helpful article. many thanks.
Thnaks for your comment, catarinq. If you decide to pursue anyhting along these busiens slines, keep us posted. I get tons of saearches and queries evry day about the Internet cafe business, but ever since my guest author, ASrvin got out of the business, very little current information. We can always use real worlsd reports, great news or not so great news.
I need help on what specs to get ( the least just to get by without sacrificing quality of service ) for gaming and chatting and for surfing stations. I have limited funds. Is there any way you could email me with specs for gaming, chatting, and surfing. Thanks a lot.
Hi Caesar, thanks for dropping by an for commenting. really, though, I don’t know how I can help. Your question is like asking “how long is a piece of string”. Well, answer is, as long as it needs to be. How many comoputers, how much space for each client, what else will be in the facility (copy machines, printers, food sales, bathrooms, etc.? I have no way of knowing what you want, so I have no way of knowing what size space you need.
Have you read most of my “computer shop” advice? To sum up, don’t get into this business, it’s a loser in the year 2009 and beyond.
Interesting read. If Internet cafes don’t work, are there any businesses that expats could run that do work? (Hey, there’s an idea for a new series of articles!) I think it is problematic if you want to live in the Philippines, need to make money, and are hoping to do so by providing services to the local community.
Hi Tom, Hmmm ciould have sworn I’d written dozens of articles on that subject. Two pertinent observations. About 90% of the people who ask that question don’t run a business now and have no clue what it means to be inb buisness for themselevs. If you aren’t already in business, successfully in the benign environment of the US, you have little chnace starting one here.
The others, like yourself, already _do_ have abusienss and know ‘how to drive’, so my answer back to them is, why wouyld you change. In, say, the wring/publishing business … what works inb the USD works here … your ausience/customers will be the same ones you currently attract, or if you change your target you’ll have your old marklet as well as a new one.
The key thing to remebe ris, with the internet where you live need not have anyhting to do with where you earn your living.
You certainly have written many articles on the topic. I was giving a little push in your direction!
I think you have hit on an important point: It takes more than money to be in business. There is skill involved. Now, this skill does not have to be yours, but it does have to be present. If a Kano married a Filipina who had the skills, then it might work out just fine. Or not. Business is weird.
It doesn’t make much sense for someone like me to try to sell fish in the Philippines. Beyond the fact that I know nothing about fish, I couldn’t hope to live on the profit from selling fish. As you, I am not much of a pioneer! Better for me to sell a book to an American. That’s what I know.
I keep hearing that foreigners cannot work in PI. I have always assumed that means you can’t get a job in PI, but a foreigner can open a business and be self employed.
Am I correct?
Thanks in advance, Tim, Kent WA
Tim,
Sorry, your comment was held up in the queue and I didn’t check frequently enough. better late than never.
Well the answer tothat is a definite yes, no or maybe.
In general a foreigner can not own a business which does business in the Philippines. In most (but not all) cases the business must be at least 60% Filipino-owned.
Of course the foreigner’s Filipino spouse may own a business, so if you have one of those, you can be part of thebusiness with no problem (note to the eagl-minded) unlike in the US where husband and wife can own property separately, onder the Philippine Family Code, what one spuse owns the other spuse owns too, so you usuallycan’t do tricky things like lease from the spouse, etc. Theer may be exceptions here too.
But the thrust of what I am talking about is, why do you need to earn a living ‘in’ the Philippines just becuase you want to live in the Philippines. Where you live does not have to be the same place as here you earn.
Easiest example is a US citizen regsters a small business in the US. “WeTeach LLC”. Then the company recruits people (of any citizenship in any country who want to teach English … on line … and clients, in any country who wnat to learn on line. The clients pay the US corp via PayPal, the instructors teach via services like Skype and they get paid by the LLC via their own PayPal accounts. The owner is living in the Philippines, but he’s not operating a business 8n the Philippines … his business is in the US, or in Australia or in the UK or wherever it makes sense. I’ve written a number of articles on this theme in just the past few months, suggest you dig a few of them out.
Also if you don’t want to be an entrepreneur, how many conventional jobs being done today could be done by telecommuting? The answer is a lot.