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Archives for May 2018

Capturing Efficiency With These Five Business Hacks

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Running a business is not for someone who falls at the first scary hurdle. You need to have an iron grit and be able to juggle a lot of tasks at the same time. You’ve got staff to manage, taxes to file, personal and confidential data to keep safe and you’ve got to try and do this in a few hours of the day without working yourself to the bone. It’s not easy and it’s going to be enough to drive anyone up the wall.

Being a small business, you need to make a lot of effort to be better than the bigger companies in your industry. There are a lot of ways to maintain a balance between family and your business venture, but the main issue is trying to keep your company as efficient as possible so that you don’t fall behind. Below, you’ll find five solutions to be able to make your small company more efficient, which will help you to maintain productivity.

Delegate and Outsource

  1. Delegate & Outsource. As a small business, you need to be in charge as much as possible, which means letting go of some of the activities that you would normally balance. Giving your IT to a company like www.xbase.com and outsourcing your sales team can save you a lot of time and cash. It also prevents you from micromanaging a situation that you could be letting go instead.
  2. Automate Everything. Where you can, from emails to social media posts, you should rely on automation tools. It’s easy to get stuck doing things on repeat, so why should you? You can free up staff from menial jobs by automating things. Check on the automation schedules regularly and you won’t miss anything.
  3. Schedule Tasks. Not quite automation, but you need to stop doing fifty things at once. Create a timetable that is visual and easy to follow, then follow it. Focus on tasks per day if necessary, and you will be able to work efficiently through everything that you have on your very busy plate.
  4. Accept Changes. Business changes every single day and you need to avoid being a stick in the mud and embrace that change. There is no reason that you should be stoic and stubborn if there are changes that can be made to improve the way that you do things. Be willing to make changes as you want to, and you will thrive far better.
  5. Technology Upgrades. There are so many advances in technology and advantages to those advances, that you need to consider how technology can make your business more efficient. There are plenty of software programs out there that can help you to streamline your company processes, such as this one for hiring staff.

Being successful with your small business is imperative if you want to be a force of nature in your industry. Improving the productivity of your company by remaining totally focused on the task at hand is going to change the way that you do things at work.

The Right Way to Introduce Telecommuting To Your Company

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The working world is changing. In the old days, it was all about a traditional office and a 9 -5 routine. Not so anymore. Now, more and more companies are embracing a more progressive line of thinking, moving to flexible hours and, even more so, telecommuting. The internet has changed a lot about the world, and with there no longer a need for people to be in the same room to work together, telecommuting has become increasingly popular. And the good news? It can boost employee productivity. Below, we take a look at how to gently ease in this way of working to your company.

Telecommuting

Start Slowly

There are benefits to having your workers work from home, but only if it’s handled correctly. Don’t jump all in at once; if you just ask your workers to stay at home tomorrow, then your company is going to quickly be in chaos! Instead, start slowly. Have the employees who you know don’t need to be on site work at home one day a week, and see how it goes. Once you’re getting into the rhythm, then you’ll be able to have more employees working from home, for more days in the week.

Have the Right Infrastructure

The internet enables you to have telecommuting options for your employees, but it’ll only work if you have the right infrastructure in place. You may need to integrate VoIP solutions, video conference call software, and cloud storage into your business, in order to communicate effectively. If you have all the right pieces in place, then you’ll be able to create a fluid working environment – regardless of where your workers are completing their tasks.

Connecting with Employees

Your workers may produce better work if they work at home, but a company relies on more than just the effectiveness of its workers; to reach its highest level, there needs to be a “team” dynamic. As such, you’ll want to spend time connecting with your workers, even if they conduct most of their work out of the office. Have them work onsite at least once a week, and also hold meetings face to face. There can be benefits to getting all your workers together for social drinks, too – people much prefer to work at companies where it feels like they have friends. If none of your workers ever see each other, then this won’t be able to happen!

Trust Your Workers

Some bosses are hesitant when it comes to telecommuting. They think that their workers are just going to sit around! If you’ve hired correctly, then you should trust your workers. And that’s the beginning and end of it.

Review and Update

Telecommuting can be great for your business, but it’s not going to be perfect from day one. You’ll need to review and tweak the system if it’s going to bring the boosts that it’s capable of delivering. Keep an eye on how it’s working, and then make the changes as and when needed. It’ll work in the long run!

Keeping Your Fleet On A Leash

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Fleet Management

In the modern world, convenience is quickly becoming one of the most important features for a business to offer. Even when it comes to going out, a lot of customers are only willing to use the companies which do the most for them, and this has lead to a steep rise in professional drivers on the road. Whether you’re a retail company or you sell computer repairs, having a team which can travel freely is a powerful thing. Of course, though, it can also be present some challenges which you wouldn’t usually have to face. To help you out with this, this post will be exploring some of the easiest ways to keep your fleet on a leash, enabling you to monitor them and control their work.

Location Monitoring: Over the last few years, GPS systems have become a lot more sophisticated, and most people have a very powerful example sitting in their pocket. Most mobile phones have the power to send this sort of information with very little cost. Using a simple system which can be built by a web developer, you can track the movements of your employees to make sure that they are always on the right path. Of course, you will have to get in contact with them if they seem to be heading in the wrong direction, bringing this post onto the next section.

The Law: The rules of the road are very easy to understand in most places, and there is never an excuse for a professional driver to be breaking them. A big part of your role in this comes with the training you give to the people working for you. Driving skills can be covered, giving you the chance to stress the importance of speed limits, seat belts, and other legal concerns on the road. Mobile phones can be very dangerous while driving. To help your employees to overcome with, wireless headsets can give them the power to talk without being distracted or causing hazards for other drivers.

Fueling Them Up: Keeping a fleet of vehicles on the road can be an expensive and complicated ordeal. Having employees in charge of filling their own transport is a great way to handle it, but will be hard to work out if you’re using receipts to pay your employees back at the end. To solve this issue, companies like watchcard.com can provide a payment card which your company is in complete control of. You will see how much money is being spent, where it is happening, and each purchase will be limited to fuel only, keeping money from going on other things.

Maintaining The Motors: Like any piece of machinery, the more a car is driven, the quicker it will need to have parts replaced and repaired. This become very apparent when they are being used for business, as you will have to cover loads of distance in this sort of role. To make this cheaper and easier, working out a partnership with a garage or mechanic when you are first starting out can be a great approach to take. You will always be able to find professionals like this, even if you live somewhere very remote.

Documentation: There are very few places in the world which will allow drivers to use their car without insurance. As a business vehicle, the sort of cover you have to get for your car will be different to the personal options available, and you have to think about this when you’re buying it. Along with this, some places will also expect you to pay road tax for company cars. To help you with this part of the job, companies like justlanded.co.uk can give you an insight into these sorts of costs. There may be other documentation which needs to be acquired in this situation, and you will have to make sure you have it covered.

Security: As an employer, you have a responsibility to keep your employees safe, while also being in charge of keeping the fleet nin good condition. Dash cams can be a great way to achieve a goal like this. Capturing their driving in real time, this sort of device will make it hard for your workers to drive badly. Along with this, though, a lot of companies have also started to use black boxes in their cars, giving them the power to monitor things like breaking, speed, and the other aspects which impact car safety.

Hopefully, this post will give you everything you need to get started in the world of business transport. Even when you only have a couple of drivers, it will be important to make sure that you have them under control. Driving can be dangerous, and will need to be handled correctly, or you could find yourself in a lot of trouble.

Cut Down on Crossed Wires: Communicate Effectively with Partners

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CrOutsourcing CommunicationWorking with outsourcers and various business services has a number of benefits for your company. You can save time and money, and you can improve efficiency and productivity by choosing the right services. However, making the relationship work can be tough, whether your outsourcer is in the same town as you or on the other side of the world. They’re not part of your company, which can often make communication more difficult. Fortunately, you should be able to make things work if both sides are willing to put some effort into maintaining clear lines of communication. Here’s how you can make it work.

Choose Services with Great Track Records

The first thing you need to do if you want to communicate well with your outsourcing partners is to choose the right ones. You should check out reviews and ratings, as well as what they have to say about their own services. Check out how at http://www.myit.com/, they make a point to highlight their response times and their proven record of excellence. Many services will have testimonials from current and past clients, which will help you to see what customer satisfaction levels are like. You can also judge communication during your first instances of connecting with a brand before you start working with them.

Communication

Set Out Communication Parameters

It’s a good idea to set some rules and expectations so that both you and your outsourcing partner know what’s expected. You might start by looking at times when it’s acceptable or expected to be available, especially if you’re working with people in different time zones. Next, consider how you want to communicate with each other and when certain methods are most appropriate. For example, you might mostly use email, but agree that phone calls are necessary for urgent matters. You can use various tools, including apps like Slack or task management and workflow apps that keep everyone updated on who is doing what.

Document and Keep Records

Keeping track of your communication is helpful so that you always know what you have agreed between you. If you keep records of your communication, you can always refer to something when you need to. For example, if you agreed to have something completed within a certain timeframe, it’s easier to find the email where confirmation was provided than to insist that you agreed over the phone without any evidence. Just make sure you have permission to keep anything that you need.

Communication in Business

Evaluate Your Communication Process

You might set up an effective communication process initially, but that doesn’t mean that it will remain effective. It’s important to assess how things are going at regular intervals to make sure that your business relationship is working well. Ask your outsourcing partners for feedback on whether they feel that you are communicating effectively and what they feel that you could do better. You can also make sure you request any changes that you might want from them.

If you want to communicate effectively with a business partner, you need to plan how to communicate. Develop an effective strategy that you can adjust as time goes on.

Running a Successful Coffee Shop [Infographic]

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In the age of #instacoffee, it’s more important than ever for coffee shop owners to stay on top of their social media game. The new norm for today’s social media savvy coffee drinkers is to snap, share and tweet their cuppa before even taking their first sip. This handy infographic from Espresso Works outlines the ways in which you can use social media to get more feet in the door.

When it comes to social media, the most important things are consistency and creativity. Due to the way social algorithms operate, posting regularly is key to remaining visible on your fans’ timelines. It is also crucial to make sure that the content you’re posting is unique, polished and expresses the personality of the café itself. Whether you are posting pretty coffee froth designs or you are showing off your new coffee grinder brush, you can craft your posts to be well received on social media. The more you can show off how pretty your coffees are, the more your customers will want to get involved. You’ll want to share posts, images and videos that reflect your coffee shop’s unique atmosphere and delicious brews.

In-store promotions are another great way to drive footfall, however you need to take care to be deliberate in how you run them. Don’t offer promotions that will completely erode your margins as in the long-run this could kill your business.

Be sure to tie your social activity in with in-store promotions in order to encourage customers to call in. Leverage your social media platforms to highlight current offers, you could even create online-only offers to further incentivize customers to follow you online. The below infographic will show you how to join the dots between your social media output and your promotional campaigns.

With more and more coffee shops popping up on every street, it can be hard to stand out from the crowd. Read the full infographic now and learn how you can use social media to stand out from the crowd.

Coffee Shop Social Media Strategy

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