It was once unheard-of to be a businessman in China. Nowadays, though, it’s quite common to become your own boss. Let’s say you have an idea. Maybe you want to open an English school or sell Japanese comics. First, you need a business plan. It sets out what you’ll sell and how much everything will cost. Most businesses that fail didn’t have this. If you need to borrow money at the start, banks will ask for a detailed plan.
The best starting place for a business plan is the 4Ps: product, place, price and promotion. All these must be strong to be successful.
Product
Your product must have something unique. What makes it special compared to other similar products? If you want to start a noodle shop that has nothing new, don’t expect people to show much interest. You can research your product. For food, let people try it for free. For toys, let a few children play with them to see if they like them.
Place
There’s no point having a product that people want to buy if your shop is in an empty mall. Think about which type of person is going to buy what you sell. Where do they usually go shopping? When looking at possible places, spend the day there. See how many people pass by. Also, are there other shops nearby selling similar products? If so, how can you be better than them?
Price
Work out how much it costs to make or provide your product. As a general rule, your price will be double the cost. After all, you’re also paying for rent, staff and you need to eat too!
Promotion
How can you attract people to your shop? Advertising in newspapers and on TV is expensive. Perhaps you can get free advertising by getting a newspaper to write about your business.
1.What’s the best title for the passage?
A. How to start a business.
B. Starting a business soon.
C. Starting your own business.
D. Preparations for starting a business.
2.According to the author, the reason why most businesses fail is due to lack of ________.
A. a business plan B. a shop C. money D. successful businessmen
3.If you want to start a noodle shop, you should ________.
A. expect people to show much interest
B. research your noodles
C. let people try it at a low price
D. let children have a try
4.What does “If so” in Paragraph 4 refer to?
A. There are shops selling the goods like yours.
B. Many people pass by.
C. You should think about which type of person is going to buy what you sell.
D. You should spend the day on possible places.
5.You are selling toys to children. It costs 5 yuan to make each one. How much should you charge the children for each toy?
A. 15 yuan.B. 5 yuan.C. 10 yuan.D. 50 yuan.
It was unusually quiet in the emergency room on December 25. I didn’t think there would be any , sighing about having to work on Christmas. Just then five bodies at my desk, a pale woman and four children.
“Are you all ?” I asked. “Yes,” she said weakly and lowered her head.
But when it came to of their problems, things got a little strange. They all claimed to have headaches, but the headaches weren’t by the normal body language of holding the head or trying to keep it still.
Something was wrong. Our hospital policy, , was not to turn away any patient. I explained it might be a little while a doctor saw her. She responded immediately, even a bit “Take your time,” and then added, “It’s warm in here.”
Then, I checked their registration form out of curiosity. No address—they were .The waiting room was warm. I went back to the nurses’ station and mentioned we had a homeless in the waiting room. The nurses, complaining of on Christmas, turned to sympathy for a family just trying to get on Christmas. The team went into action, much as we do when there’s a emergency. But this was a Christmas emergency.
We were all a free meal on Christmas Day, so we took back that meal and prepared a big dinner for our .We needed presents. We from different departments candies, fruits and other things that could be presents. As seriously as we met the needs of the patients, our team worked to meet the needs of a family who just wanted to be warm on Christmas.
, as the family walked to the door to leave, the mother came back, gave me a hug and whispered, “Thanks for being our angels today.”
1.A. customers B. patients C. workers D. doctors
2.A. showed up B. took in C. came out D. looked on
3.A. tired B. hungry C. sick D. warm
4.A .descriptions B. comments C. instructions D. results
5.A. accompaniedB. adjusted C. acknowledgedD. affected
6.A. thereforeB. otherwise C. howeverD. moreover
7.A. after B. since C. before D. when
8.A. shyly B. happily C. calmly D. politely
9.A. lonely B. greedy C. clever D. homeless
10.A. family B. holiday C. woman D. Christmas
11.A. operating B. interrupting C. managing D. working
12.A. present B. warm C. relief D. approval
13.A. beneficial B. friendly C. medical D. different
14.A. rewarded B. offered C. allowed D. ordered
15.A. neighbors B. relations C. brothers D. guests
16.A. borrowed B. received C. collected D. bought
17.A. expensive B. useful C. convenient D. available
18.A. healthy B. physical C. tragic D. mental
19.A. SoonB. Later C. Next D. Gradually
20.A. to runB. run C. running D. and ran
---I am taking my driving test tomorrow!
---__________!
A. Cheers B. Good luck C. Come on D. congratulations
No matter what happens, you should keep _______. Just look on the bright side of things.
A. generous B. optimistic C. careful D. practical
The baby, ________health was ruined after taking the medicine, was only one year old.
A. which B. whose C. who D. whom
For Chinese Dream, many people dream of_______ a good chance for a better job.
A. there isB. there to be
C. there will beD. there being