Archives for August 2018

3 Changes That Always Lead To Better Productivity

August 21, 2018 by Contributed Post Leave a Comment

Something that you can say for certain is that a business needs to be productive if it is to be successful. Achieving and maintaining a high level of productivity is of course always hard to do, but you will find that it is necessary in order to really make the kind of changes you want in your business. As it happens, there are a number of things you can do to ensure that you are improving the productivity of your business at every step. As long as you are focused on some of those things, you should be able to ensure that your business is going to be much more productive and get more done on the whole, and that will mean that you can expect much more from it as results as well. Let’s take a look at just three changes which always lead to better productivity.

A Cleaner Office

It is hard for most people to be truly productive if they are working in a dirty or untidy office environment. If this is true of your workplace, then you might want to make sure that you are actually keeping it as clean as possible instead of letting it get dirty and unused. The simplest way to do this is to outsource it so that you are using professional office cleaning services in order to keep it clean every day. But you should also think about trying to keep it tidy as you go along, which is something that really everyone has responsibility for. As long as you can do that, you will find that the productivity levels suddenly rise through the roof, which is exactly what you need to happen here.

Simpler Processes

In general, the more simplified you make the internal processes in the business, the more that your people will actually be able to get done. Having simpler processes like this means that you are able to actually focus on what is important, and when your employees are all doing that as well it can really make a profound difference. If you don’t know how to simplify your processes or don’t know where to begin, you might want to think about getting someone from outside to take a look. That kind of help can be invaluable, especially as they are that much more likely to know what is wrong as they are not used to seeing it every day. When you simplify your processes, you will find that you can much more effectively raise productivity levels in the organization.

Calmer Atmosphere

The atmosphere in the office is a huge determiner of how likely you are to succeed in raising productivity. The calmer it is, the easier it will be to ensure that the work is being done atr a good pace, so it’s definitely a good idea to make sure you are doing whatever you can to keep the atmosphere up. That could mean having a social gathering every now and then, or simply making sure that you yourself are happy when you work there. Hopefully that happiness will spread like wildfire.

How to Improve Your Brand Image On a Budget

August 21, 2018 by Contributed Post Leave a Comment

Your brand value will determine your reputation in your marketplace and the price you can charge for your products or services. If you haven’t yet thought about strengthening your brand image, it might be time to come up with a plan. Your branding might be ineffective if it is not based on careful market research, but there are plenty of great cost-effective methods you can use to add value to your offers and engage with your potential and current customers. If you want to develop a strong brand, but have limited budget, find a few tips below.

Excel In Customer Service

You might think that customer service has nothing to do with your brand. This couldn’t be further from the truth. How you treat your customers and the extra services you add will all build up your brand value and reputation. It is crucial that you excel in customer service and train your staff to look after your clients as well as you would do it personally. By remembering birthdays, offering loyalty discounts and exclusive deals, you can increase the perceived value delivered to your clients.

Actively Manage Your Reputation

Reputation Management

In today’s technology-enabled market, you will have to know that information travels faster than ever before, This means that if you upset a customer, it is likely to end up on Facebook or Twitter, and damage your reputation. You will have to put effective methods in place to monitor customer feedback and satisfaction and remove negative comments submitted by competitors or internet trolls. Even if the statement is not true, your brand image will suffer.

Personalize Communication

You can also provide more value to your customers by personalizing offers and communication. If you have autoresponders implemented into your sales funnel, make sure that you are personalizing every email and segmenting your list. You don’t want to be sending out the same email to a loyal customer and someone who has never bought anything from you. There are some systems that will allow you to segment your clients based on their open rate and their buying behavior.

Use Branded Packaging

If you manufacture your own products or send out branded merchandise, you will have to create a unique image about your company and display logos and messages that are easy to recognize. If your main corporate value and mission is related to green technologies and sustainability, you might want to check out the different solutions provided by Green Rush Packaging. Make sure that your packaging is easy to remember and distinguish, and conveys your main corporate messages.

Pay Attention to Your Web Design

The best way to add a professional touch to your business image is getting a unique design developed. Many website owners believe that simply having a site online is enough. Others think that they need to beat search engines to get traffic and customers. However, it is not true. You will need to make sure that every aspect of your website (design, functionality, images, marketing tools, etc.) work seamlessly together. Focusing on only one aspect will not get you the expected results.

Public Relations

If you want your brand to have positive associations and connect with people emotionally, it is important that you get involved in the life of the community. No matter if you join local organizations, support a charity, or create your own projects; it will help you connect with your local market and engage with them. Once you understand what your potential customers are looking for, you can tailor your needs to their needs. Your brand will be more visible and more commonly recognized, so you can save money on marketing activities.

Press Relations

Of course, you will have to maintain a positive relationship with the local and national press, as well. In the age of the internet, however, you will also have to seek collaboration opportunities with brand influencers. There are plenty of famous bloggers and vloggers who are recognized as a source of authority. If you get them to feature your product or services, you are likely to benefit from the endorsement for a long time. Get a professional copywriter to create a press release that will put your brand on the map.

Branding is important for companies big or small. It is important that all your communication channels show off your vision and mission, values, and professionalism. Make sure that you work on new methods to add value every day and engage with your customers and communities, as well as brand influencers.

Creating An Office At Home? Consider These Key Options

August 21, 2018 by Contributed Post Leave a Comment

Home Office Strategy

When you work from home, you’ll soon realize that working from your couch or your bedroom doesn’t quite cut it. Of course, sometimes it can be a luxury to do this. But you definitely don’t want these areas to be the only options you have when it comes to getting your work done. Instead, it’s often better to know that you have somewhere appropriate to work from! And when you do have a home business that you’re hoping to grow, what could be better than having a professional workspace somewhere around the home. While the idea of converting a spare room into a study could be appealing, you may want to go one step further and do something a little more exciting.

Consider Adding Or Extending

So first of all, you could think about adding on a space to your home, converting your garage, or even building out in the backyard. If you have the space, then this is often what can give you the amount of room that you really need for your business. Maybe you have an outbuilding or an unattached garage that you could use? Then think about bringing in some contractors to give you quotes on what the work could cost.

Think About The Areas You Need

Then, you’re going to want to make sure that you have all of the different areas that you need within the space. Not only could this be the room that you need to work in, but space for others (when you hire them) too. You may even want to get a poured in place rubber floor so that the kids can play when they’re not at school. This could work as a creche so that you can get your work done, without worrying about what your children are up to.

Bring In The Facilities You Need

You also need to be sure that you have all of the facilities that you need. Here, WiFi and electricity will be some of the most important, but you will also need running water. It can be a good idea to get a specific kitchen space and bathroom in place, so that you can feel more professional and not have to run back into the house.

Design With Motivation In Mind

Then, when it comes to the decor, make sure that it’s inspiring. There’s a lot of inspiring decor that you can look to here for inspirations. Even wall prints and slogans can help you to feel motivated to work.

Factor In Growth

Now, this final point isn’t all that easy to do. But, you should perhaps think a little about growth here. Do you see yourself becoming a bigger business within the next few years? Are you investing a lot of money into this space, only for it to become unusable in a few years time? Just make sure that you’re making this renovation cost-effective, and that you’re adding in everything that you only really need here. Then, you’ll find that creating your office really does add to your business.

Making Life Easier For Your Employees

August 21, 2018 by Contributed Post Leave a Comment

If you want to get the most out of the people who work for you, then you need to make it as easy as possible for that to happen. That entails that you need to try and find a number of ways to ensure that their job is as easy as you would want it to be if you were in their shoes. As their employer, you are not working against them, but with them, and you need to make sure this is known, and that you are happy to do whatever it takes to make it that much easier for them at all times. In this article, we are going to look at just a few things you might want to consider doing in order to make this even easier and more likely to happen. As long as you do the following, you will find that you can make things much easier for your employees without too much trouble.

Give Them Access To Data

In any job, there is a certain amount of data which the employees need to be able to utilise to their best. If you are doing this for your employees, you will find that it really does make a huge difference to how well they are able to do their job, so for that reason alone it is going to be important to make sure that they have access to all the data they are likely to need. One great way is to use a data service in your everyday workings such as Alteryx and then ensure that everyone who needs it gets the required Alteryx training to make the most of it. Do that, and your employees’ access to the data within the business will be that much greater, which will really make things a lot easier for them in their daily job.

Keep Them Safe

It is hard to know what to focus on and how to work if you don’t feel safe in your job, and for that reason you will want to ensure that your employees are kept as safe as possible while they are working. There are so many sides to achieving this that you will find it takes a lot to get them all right – but as long as you are always thinking about improving the safety in the workplace, you can be sure that this is going to be made much easier. Keep them safe, and they will be able to enjoy their work all the more, which means they will also find their jobs that much easier. That will lead to the kind of results you would hope from them anyway, so it is erfi nieyl something to think about as early on as possible.

Utilise Feedback

Finally, remember the importance of feedback. If you don’t give your employees the right level of feedback they will feel at a loss as to whether they are doing things right or not. That will only lead to confusion and dismay as they will be unlikely to be able to know what they are doing wrong or how to fix it. Instead, be vocal at all times about how they are doing and where they might need improvement. You will find that most employees prefer this greatly.

Keeping Your Staff Safe In The Workplace: How You Can Make A Difference

August 19, 2018 by Contributed Post Leave a Comment

Running a business is never going to be easy, and you may think that you have a heck of a lot of plates to spin when it comes to managing the day to day running of it. But, when your business expands to the point where you have a separate business location and staff working for you, there are extra plates that get added to the mix. I wanted to share with you some of the ways that you can ensure a happy workforce and one of the ways to do that is to keep your staff safe and secure. Here is what you could consider to ensure you can do this.

Employee Safety

Think about the security of your business location

One of the first things you may want to review when it comes to your staff is how they feel in the workplace, and one way to do that is by overall security. Things like cameras outside and even going as far as a security camera with motion sensor may help people feel more at ease when it comes to working late or after hours. Security can also be improved when it comes to general access, such as card readers, security keys and double locks. An up to date alarm system may also help encourage the business security side of things and help people feel more accountable. These things not only help your employees, but as a business owner they also protect you so they are definitely worth the investment.

Have the right health and safety policies in place

It isn;t just about making them feel secure in their surroundings, it is also about ensure that they are safe on your location of business, and this is when health and safety policies can work in your favour. Regularly evaluating the risks involved, especially when it comes to handling machinery or using technology, can help you to avoid problems in the future, but also help you to stay accountable when it comes to your staff.

Be approachable when it comes to issues in the workplace

As a person it is always better to be approachable when it comes to your staff and how they feel. They may have issues in work, perhaps with other colleagues or people who work with you, it is important that they can feel they’d an approach you with things so that they can easily be resolved. Before they turn into bigger problems.

The little things can make a big difference

Finally, the little things can often make the biggest differences when it comes to helping staff feel safe and secure in the workplace. It might be managing the temperature on a hot or cold day, access to water and cooking areas to help them feel comfortable etc. They may seem like small things, but they can make the biggest of differences to the working day and the people involved.

I hope that these ideas when you when it comes to helping your staff feel safe in the workplace.