Business

When you own a company, numerous risks threaten to put you out of business or limit your ability to grow. Business managers must be smart about focusing on business risk and put in place tools, products, and strategies that minimise or eliminate risk. Some areas of business risk are obvious. Others not so much, but are just as risky.

Here are two that often get overlooked but can mean real danger for your company if not addressed.

Not Having the Right Insurance Coverage

Protecting your business is something you should take very seriously from day one. All kinds of risks can come to affect your company in unexpected ways. With a business insurance policy it is vital that you have it in place early and that the policy is comprehensive. This key word means that coverage will be provided in nearly all instances.

Too often, businesses will overlook key coverage or only get minimal coverage thinking that the risk is worth it. The truth, however, is that in the event of a catastrophe, the financial liability to your company will far outweigh whatever insurance premium costs you are paying. Carefully examine how you can make your business more successful and discuss insurance options with a reputable broker. Take that person’s advice about what your company and employees need. This process will not only get you covered properly, it will also make you feel safe and secure.

Losing Track of Expenses

Too many businesses have an incorrect idea of how they spend their money every month and rely on their bookkeeper or accounting firm to tell them long after the money has been spent. This is a recipe for waste. They certainly understand their structured items like rent, phone bills, salaries, and electricity. These bills are easy to determine because they either come to your business every month on in the case of salaries they are consistent.

But other items are not as clearly defined and often get underreported or misreported. One great example of this is expenses at your organisation. They get reported and are typically input at different times, and only when they are totalled do you realise what has been already spent. At that point there is no chance to dispute a bill or find ways to lower those costs. Without a strategy for containing these costs before they occur, you could be losing large sums of money each month.

If you have not done so, immediately implement strict company policies around expense spending. Set limits for everyone, tall them that they must utilise approved services only, which might include restaurants, hotels, airlines and rental cars where you have established discounts, and that there is a no-tolerance policy for expense mistakes.

You can decide the penalty but let everyone know there is one. Being loose with expense policies are notorious money waters. Getting control of them can mean the equivalent of finding a new income stream for your company.

Money for Things You Really Want

When you have a personal savings allowance, you put money aside for things that you really want. This might include a new car if the one you drive is constantly in the shop or even a danger to drive. It might mean attending an event that you really want to go to. It may be for a vacation that you have been dreaming of.

Or you might want to simply splurge on something because of your new good spending habits. The key is having the money in savings allows you to do something nice and special for yourself or someone else close to you.

Managing risk seems difficult, but a little focus on the topic and you will understand why it is important, and appreciate the step to dealing with it.

Although every employee would love to get a promotion, not all will. The reasons why some will move up while others will not, is most often based on their behavior and performance. Employees who get promoted do things differently. With competition being so tough, and the labor market so tight these days, business managers and owners are always looking for good employees. When they find them, they want to hold onto them and to hold on to them they will reward them. One primary reward is a job promotion which should come with a grander title, more responsibility, and a pay raise.

Here is a short list of the things they do to get promoted.

They are Punctual

When an employee comes to work on time, they are showing respect for the company and management. You may not punch a time clock or have your time in scrutinized closely, but it is something that will definitely be talked about when it is time for promotions. It might be difficult for you to get to work on time and you might think that a few minutes here and there is not a big deal but understand that a promotion means giving you more responsibility, and part of this involves being punctual. So, go to bed earlier and set your alarm clock earlier as well and get to work on time every day.

They also do all they can to keep themselves healthy so they can be at work every day. This means that they exercise, don’t drink too much alcohol on work nights and make sure that they take steps to avoid too much stress. Too much stress can cause all sorts of negative consequences on the body, resulting in days missed from work. Making sure you have proper family cover will also mean that if you do get ill, you and your family will get the treatment you need, when you need it, helping avoid too much time off.

They Act Like Owners

Acting like an owner means that they are always focusing on the little things. This means making sure that everyone is in sync when a new project, product or service is introduced. The person listens and look for others who may not have the necessary information and brings that person up to speed on how to win for the company. The person also looks for areas of waste that can be eliminated. Companies become more profitable not just from making more sales, but also by reducing wastage.

When management sees an employee concerned about areas of the company that does not concern them, and offering assistance on how to improve that area, that employee is likely to get promoted. Businesses focus on giving promotions to those employees who are conscientious, and who will constantly look for ways to improve things at the business. Their suggestions may not always be right, but the fact that they are trying goes a long way toward showing how interested they are in the success of the business.

They Always Have a Positive Attitude

Every job is challenging in some respects and there are times when we feel overwhelmed or like we will not meet our objectives. The last thing most of us want is someone with a negative attitude adding insult to injury when things don’t go our way. Companies want people who have a winning attitude moving up their ranks. This means someone who can see the bright side of things and focus on ways to turn a defeat into a win. Be that person and you will likely get promoted more.

Closing the deal is not only exciting but can be quite intimidating as well. Sometimes, you get so close that you can taste the end, and then a client backs out at the last minute, leaving you wondering what happened and what you did wrong. Closing the deal isn’t rocket science, and boils down to a few simple tips that you can follow to maximize your closing potential. Here’s how to ensure you close the deal every time.

Be Honest With Clients

People are smarter than you may think and can tell when you’re bluffing or stretching the truth. Some salespeople like to stretch the truth a bit to make products or companies sound more appealing, and clients can sense this type of behavior. If you don’t come off as a genuine, trustworthy individual, you’re already hurting your sales potential.

Being honest is the key to any successful interaction or relationship, and the relationship you share with clients is no different. Honesty can take you a lot farther than just the initial sale as well; it can help foster loyalty among clients by building trust from the get-go. Have you ever had an experience with a brand or person that claimed to have more attributes than it/they did? It’s incredibly frustrating once you learn you’ve been deceived.

The bottom line is that honesty is the best policy. Whether you’re meeting clients via web conferencing or in person, display yourself and your brand as honestly and genuinely as possible; and you’ll find that potential clients are more apt to listen to what you’re saying and consider closing a deal with you. We’ve all seen the cliches about the shady businessman; don’t be that guy.

Know the Competition

Part of your market research should include information about the competition. What are their prices like? What do their similar products have to offer? Who are their demographics? Where are they marketing? These should all be questions you perform research to answer, as knowing your competition can actually help you close the sale.

Let’s say you’re pitching your brand to a potential customer and they bring up that X brand has this feature or that feature that your brand doesn’t offer. If you know absolutely nothing about X brand, you won’t be able to point out why your brand is still superior; which can potentially cost you the sale altogether.

Don’t take the risk of not knowing. Knowledge is the ultimate tool in sales! The more you know, the better you can market your products and steer customers away from the competition.

Know Your Products/Services In and Out

What’s worse than a salesperson who knows nothing about the competition? One who doesn’t know his own brand very well! You should know your brand, products, and services in and out. Every detail about them should be in your mind and ready to pull out at a moment’s notice. Customers and potential clients will ask some of the most random questions about your brand; be prepared to answer them!

There’s no surer way to lose a potential sale than by not knowing enough about what you’re selling. Clients come to you as the expert in your field and want to be sure that you know everything there is to know about the brand and what it has to offer. Don’t disappoint them!

Watch Your Words

Putting your own foot in your mouth by saying the wrong thing can be all too easy in a sales deal. You may get nervous and say the wrong thing, or perhaps you thought the client had the same sense of humor as you (but they actually don’t have one at all). You’ll want to be personable, but retaining your professional dignity is absolutely essential.

Try to stay focused on the task at hand. Don’t blurt out jokes just for the sake of filling space; if it seems appropriate, then you may joke a bit with your clients, but tread lightly. Not everyone shares the same sense of humor, and offensive jokes are generally just considered in poor taste (avoid them altogether).

There’s a fine line between being personable and trying to be buddy-buddy with a client. They don’t know you or your brand, and they didn’t come to be your friend; they simply want to know the details of what you have to offer and how it can benefit them. Approach the information carefully and professionally, and try to refrain from joking too much.

Treat Clients With Respect and Dignity

Overall, your best tactic is to treat your clients with respect and dignity. Don’t approach the situation as if you’re speaking with just another number in the books. You’re going to talk to people, not numbers.

There are people with cares, worries, jobs, families, all of the things that you value are also valuable to them. Keep that in mind when you’re trying to close the deal; it makes for a more personable and relatable salesperson.

If you are running a business or have a blog or anything that is offering services to people in today’s world of cutthroat competition, then you would know it is no easy feat to make a mark. It is all about being noticed and having a consistent presence. It is more of a challenge to achieve this in the online world. There is too much of everything; therefore, you have to up your game and be ready for improvement all the time. It is especially essential if you wish to increase your customer base or traffic for your brand.

You cannot rely on word of mouth and conventional marketing alone to have a presence in the business world. It is especially difficult to attract more traffic towards your brand with the advent of e-commerce and social media. These are as much a challenge as a great tool to increase brand traffic. If you are thinking up of some ideas that can help you attract more audience, then read on. Below are eight ideas to attract more traffic for your brand.

Keyword Identification

When you enter your query in the search box to look for a specific product/service, you receive several search results. Do you go through all of them or a few of them? According to analytics, the first three results get the most traffic. What makes some websites rank higher than others? It is most often the addition of long-tail keywords that help websites get a hit on the search results. So, one thing you can do to increase traffic to your site/brand is to get a keyword identification tool that will help you find the keywords that get the most hits. You can use those keywords on your site to get a better search engine ranking and thus improve the chances of increased traffic.

On-Page SEO

Adding relevant keywords is only one step towards improving search engine rankings. Another way to boost your search engine ranking is to optimize your content according to current SEO practices. Work on your internal links periodically checks your site for spamming or poor-links that can cause your site to drop out of search results, and add meta description relevant to your content and brand. You can use On-Page SEO Checker to ensure that your website is optimized. In case anything is lacking or some improvements are needed, you can remedy it to improve your search engine ranking and consequently improve the chances of your site’s traffic increase.

Fast Loading Speed

If everything related to site optimization is on-point and the loading speed of your site is not up to the mark, you can bid goodbye to chances of increased traffic to your site. Search engines will demote a website that takes more than 2 seconds to load, and even if it passes all other criteria to gain traction on search engine ranking, it will not come in top results. The loading speed of the page that houses your brand must be optimized; otherwise, even the regular user engagement will drop too. You should regularly run a page loading speed test or website speed test to make sure that your brand does not plummet in search engine ranking due to a factor that can fix quickly. Once your page loading speed has is optimized, Google algorithms will put it back on the search engine ranking based on-site optimization. Once you get your site in the top results, it automatically improves traffic to your brand.

Social Media

As mentioned earlier, as much as it is a challenge, social media is also a great tool to improve your brand traffic. It is a challenge because of the intense competition. Social media is neither local nor national; it is a global phenomenon. Therefore, to be noticed and to compel the audience to interact with your brand, you have to create innovative and authentic content consistently. Social media has changed the marketing dynamics. Whoever gets the hang of social media marketing, that brand can get on top. Create a presence on all the prominent social media platforms, so that the access to your brand becomes even more accessible. Include relevant images and organize giveaways to engage the audience.

Email Marketing

Email marketing is an understated yet handy tool to increase a brand’s traffic. If you have a target audience for your brand, you can carry out a comprehensive email marketing campaign to reach your target audience throughout the world. The key to such an attack lies in not spamming a user with your marketing emails. If you keep sending out emails every other day, you harm the chances of increasing traffic to your brand. Roll out well-timed emails of compelling content or services so that the targeted user takes the time to check out the link to your brand. If you have an online book blog, then adding links in your email with an epub creator will help you to reach more people who prefer book formats over the HTML version.

Online Influencers

Another way to increase your brand traffic is to collaborate with an online influencer. Online influencers have a huge following, both on and off social media. If they post about your brand, host you on their show, or include links to your site in their marketing emails, it can add an instant boost to your brand traffic. However, to ensure that the relationship thrives, try to make it a mutually beneficial campaign.

Guest Blogging

If you appear as a guest blogger on a popular blog or news addition, it can be a golden chance to promote your brand. However, instead of marketing it overtly, try to add a reference to your brand in your guest blog subtly. Be creative and compel the reader with your words to check out your content. You can also request a prominent social figure to write for your blog as a guest blogger. As long as they can make the blog content relevant to your brand, it is an excellent way to increase traffic to your brand as people tend to pay attention to prominent figures. When it comes to blogs, it is all about engaging and comprehensive content. Therefore, if you want an increased audience, keep this fact in mind.

Customer Service Portal

AI is a great thing, and it is less strenuous to assign your customer service to an AI system, but it is in your brand’s best interest to keep it real and human. Invest time, money, and effort in making your brand’s customer service portal all about handling customer’s concerns in an understanding manner. Research has proven that customer service has a significant role in brand loyalty. Make your brand all about making connections, and it will pave the way not only for your brand’s traffic but also for its longevity.

Working remotely is quickly gaining acceptance as a means to decrease overhead and increase efficiency. Success in remote work requires more than just skills and experience, it takes the right tools to stay organized and keep track of time and tasks. Luckily there are numerous helpful tools to choose from for all of your business needs. A cloud-based storage system is a popular tool that allows all team members anytime access to crucial files and documents. Flawlessly connect with clients and colleagues with a custom Video Chat SDK. Collaborative editing and role-based permissions are some advanced features of many software applications.

Recent advances in technology have made it easier to hire employees from around the world. For essential tasks like communications, security, and file storage, choose programs that you can trust and that can be easily accessed by all members of the team, no matter where in the world they are located. Companies like Agora offer complete software suites that are designed to suit your specific needs, so everyone can dedicate more time to creating meaningful work.

Remote working cannot be effective without the appropriate tools, and off-site workers often report higher morale and productivity than when working on-site. It is important to determine what works best in your remote workspace, and which tools will make managing your workload effortless. Choose systems and software that integrate easily to decrease incompatibilities and keep productivity high. With the right technology supporting your team, you may be surprised at what can be accomplished!

Do you at times wish your business was moving along at a better clip?

If the answer is yes, how can you improve your company’s outlook as you move ahead?

From better finances to more consumers aware of you, there are things you can do for an improved outlook.

So, is it time to get going?

Where Can You Improve Things?

In your efforts to feel better about where your business is heading, keep these keys in mind:

1. Finances – The obvious area of focus for most is when it comes to their financial health. That said are you at a point now where your company’s finances could be much better? You may be in a financial pickle due to reasons outside of your control. For example, a slowing economy can make some consumers hesitant to buy. This does not mean they do not like your brand. It boils down to them being more conservative with their money. With this in mind; look to see why your revenue may have slowed down. Another area of focus with your finances is if you have too much debt hanging over your head. This can be problematic in that you will feel as if you can never get out from under it. It may boil down to where you need to go online and try a small business line of credit. Once online, you can search credit providers for small businesses such as yours. Find the one with the best deal and customer service to help your business. Finally, review the contracts you have with vendors supplying you with items. If you are paying too much for one or more items, it may be time to move along and find new vendors to work with.

2. Marketing – The amount of time and effort you put into marketing your business is key too. With this being the case, you want to be sure you are doing all you can to promote your brand. From email marketing to social media and more, make sure consumers know about you. If your marketing efforts are falling on deaf ears, how can you expect many to do business with you? It would also be wise if you have not up to now to consider letting some customers do testimonials for you. Many consumers can be swayed towards a brand if they see people like them using and benefiting from it. In return for testimonials, provide those folks with discounts on future purchases.

3. Employees – Finally, as you look to improve your business, you want to never lose focus on employees. Unless you are a one-person operation, you depend on others to help you keep your business going. As such, it is important to be sure you have the right people in the right places. That said you want to do annual reviews on your employees and the positions they are in. If you need to tweak things or even make some wholesale changes, do it. Your employees are the face of your company. With that in mind, make sure you have the best and brightest helping you improve your outlook.

When you need an improved business outlook, where will you begin?

Choosing to hire resume writers or write resumes alone is a highly subjective decision. You have to make it only after you fully understand the advantages and disadvantages of the choices you have. While there is so much that can be said about the subject, the bottom line is that it is generally a very good idea to hire resume writers whenever the following situations apply.

You Do Not Trust Your Writing Abilities

There are people that are talented and are really good at creating resumes. Simply put, many have flair and creativity so they have no problems in writing a very good CV. However, this is not something that applies to everyone. Most people do not have the necessary writing abilities and would benefit greatly from hiring professional resume writers.

You Cannot Be Objective With You

Do you have problems and cannot identify the strengths you have? If this is the case, you want to seriously consider working with the professional resume writer. He/she would have an objective look at everything and can easily pinpoint what should and what should not be included in the resume.

You Have More Time Available To Work With The Writer For The Best Result

You most likely think differently but when you hire the professional resume writer, you do not simply give him some information and he does the entire work for you. The process is actually a collaboration. You offer information and the writer does everything he can to understand motivations, your background, achievements and strengths. Something like this takes a lot of time and you need to spare that time. If you do not have enough time available to work with the professional resume writer, you have to seriously consider writing the resume alone.

You Can Afford To Pay The Resume Writer

As expected, getting a resume written by a professional writer can only be possible if you have the funds for it. We all know that job-hunting is costly as you have to do different important things, like buying clothes and new shoes. You then have to travel to interviews. All these cost money. When you do not have a budget that allows you to pay for professional essay writing services, it is obvious that you cannot afford it.

Lack Of Time To Write A Resume

There are countless moments when this applies. For instance, you might already have a job but are hunting for a new one. Different personal circumstances can apply that lead to not having enough time to actually write your resume. If time is really important and you cannot lose it, the best thing you can do is hire a professional resume writer.

Lack Of Callbacks

Last but not least, if you already wrote your own resumes and you did not get callbacks, professional help is an extremely good idea. You can always take the resume you wrote and give it to the resume writer. He/she will take a look and talk with you in order to figure out what you did wrong.

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You have the best product or service in your market, you’re innovative, great value for money, your creative agency has done a sterling job of your logo and packaging…should you really have to worry about Reputation Management?

How does Reputation Management Fit into your Business Strategy?

There’s a lot being said about Reputation Management, because now more than ever, everything that happens can be recorded. People love to write about their experiences at restaurants and hotels. They record a quick video for their Instagram or Facebook followers to show off their new car or vacuum cleaner. When customers buy they often read reviews first. So yes, your prospective customer’s perception of you is being built by what they read and see online.

Suddenly you see the point right? Your reputation while built partly through the experience you give your customers, and how you nice you make things look, is greatly affected by the reputation that is built up online by what other people say about your brand. That means, that no matter what your sales projects are, how good your R&D department is, how well priced your product is, and how effective your sales team is, your whole business strategy can be undermined by your online reputation. That’s rather scary, but that’s where we are.

But surely there’s not much you can do about what other people post or write? You’re right there’s not! However, you can change what your prospective customers read. This is where Reputation Management comes in.

Why your Company Needs a Reputation Management Strategy

You can change your online reputation. How you ask? Have a Reputation Management Strategy. What might that involve? First thing you need to do is consult an expert, as you would hire a Creative Agency to look after your graphics work, there are plenty of great Reputation Management Agencies out there who will be able to assess your current online reputation and then work strategically to turn your online reputation around so that you are best in industry.

A second strategy is to embed Reputation Management into your Customer Service team. Assess the optimum point in delivery of your product and service to ask your customer, directly or indirectly, to share their positive experience of your brand with their friends and the rest of the world. How do you get them to do that? Send them a link to a review site or ask them to use a hashtag on social media with a photo of them and your product. Run competitions to get the best photo or video of someone using your product.

The third point is to make your customer-facing employees aware of your current reputation and make it their mission to improve on that. Tie bonuses to the rating of your product or service on the most relevant review website. If your employees are concerned about your reputation, that will directly affect how they treat their customers.

It really is time to care about Reputation Management, because the companies who adopt it will reap the benefits while their competitors continue to take hits to their reputation.