Tag Archives: business
Three Kinds of Businesses that Do Not Feel Stale
Ever wanted to be a business owner but cannot settle on one business model? Have you tried before and found that you wanted to change the direction of the company a few months in? Sometimes, the best business is not one that is permanent.
Take a look at these ideas:
Brokerage
When one entity decides to let go of a business and puts it up for sale, they may decide to put up a private or public listing. In a public sale, anyone who gets wind of the sale can put in their bid. In a private sale, however, clients of those who have a brokerage firm or broker franchise like Transworld Business Advisors Australia will be clued in on the sale, and then negotiations can begin. A business broker assists in the transfer of the business from one entity to another.
Flipping
House flipping. Yes, you already know how this works from the shows you’ve seen on TV. But what does this mean, exactly? A house flipper buys a rundown property, fixes it, and sells it with a little bit of profit. Others do it with a theme in mind; some change the layout altogether. And because more rooms can accommodate a bigger family, some flippers add a bedroom or two to increase the value of the property.
Consulting
This one is not for beginners, unfortunately, but once you’ve acquired enough experience in running companies, you can let your previous concepts go and offer your expertise for those who are less experienced. Technically, you don’t have a business, but you are the business. It is your knowledge in the industry that will make you a valuable part of everyone’s arsenal. From best practices to building connections, your unique experiences will help a floundering business find its footing in their chosen market.
Not all businesses last forever, and sometimes that’s the best part of it. This way, you get to give them the attention they deserve before you have to let go.
4 Mistakes to Avoid When Setting up Virtual Offices
This is where virtual offices come in. A virtual office allows business owners to rent space or conference rooms. However, you wouldn’t want your clients to come to a shell office, one that is not professional. For those looking for furnished offices, questworkspaces.com
Other than ensuring the services of virtual offices, there are also common mistakes you should avoid when setting up a virtual office for your company.
Micromanaging virtual employees
One of the reasons why business owners, employees, and companies opt for virtual offices is flexibility. However, business owners make one of the most common mistakes
Skimping on connectivity
Customer and team connectivity are paramount for the success of every business even if it’s operating from a virtual office. Unfortunately, some companies try to cut costs by skimping on connectivity. You need to invest in the fastest broadband connection to ensure that you remain in touch with your team and clients.
Failure to backup data
One of the sure-fire ways of destroying your business is by failing to back up your company data. The risks of losing all your data are high if you don’t backup data. The common solution would be to back up data with a cloud service or external drives.
Working without an IT plan
The other common virtual office mistake is allowing every person to come with their ideas on the technologies they want to use. The diverse ideas and passion can cause IT chaos. To avoid this, the boss or manager needs to have come up with an IT plan for all employees to follow.
When deciding to use a virtual office for your business, you still have to monitor your company’s progress and employees. Working remotely from a fixed office space has its own set of perks and disadvantage. Try to consider these avoidable mistakes before they could cost you your business.
Flyers Are Not Dead, but You Need to Make Them Count
There’s no doubt that Australia is going social. It explains why many businesses shift their marketing strategies to digital. The reality, however, more than 2.5 million Australians do not utilize the Internet. Over a million homes do not have an Internet connection. In other words, there are still thousands of people who can benefit from offline marketing strategies. These include flyer marketing.
Why Flyer Marketing Still Matters
According to Australia Post, at least 83% of household owners check their letterbox on a daily basis. Most of all, 42% of those who had gotten hold of these materials purchased something over the past year.
Catalogues and flyers beat other forms of marketing in terms of influence. More than 60% made their purchase decision because of them. Meanwhile, about 25% said email marketing attracted them to buy while 17% were influenced by social media.
Flyer marketing is especially effective for those who are into real estate. Around 3.1 million Australian renters read unaddressed mail weekly. These are also the individuals who are looking for a new home to stay.
Increase Your Conversions
Flyers are effective and cheap, but for businesses, the goal is to increase the conversion while lowering the costs. After all, these materials tend to have a conversion rate of about 1% to 2%. If a business made 2,000 flyers, it means only 20 people will become customers. Furthermore, in many cases, recipients keep them for just a few days. Some would immediately throw them into the bin.
Marketing studies have revealed flyers have more value when they’re customer-centric. They may come with coupons or discount cards. They also have strong visuals to allow them to stand out among the other flyers in the letterbox. Most of all, the message is short but precise and clear. Recipients usually allocate only a few seconds to process the information.
4 Tips on Improving Supermarket Efficiency
Even with the rise of online stores and shops, physical retail stores are still a smart investment. There is a lot of competition from a lot of other stores, however, which means that the supermarket must be managed well.
One of the ways your supermarket can get ahead of their competitors is by making processes efficient. These are four tips that will work in making things more efficient in your supermarket:
1. Get the right equipment for storage and shelving
Supermarkets must be efficient with how they use space. One way to do this is by getting the right storage and shelving equipment. For example, a stillage cage can protect your product stocks even as you stack cages vertically.
2. Be smart about shift scheduling
You need to know the peak hours of shoppers. This is so that more employees will be scheduled to work during these hours. Most people buy groceries during the late afternoon or early evening. The weekends are also a hit among customers.
3. Purchase solar panels
Supermarkets utilise a lot of power. To lower electricity bills, buy solar panels as they are energy-efficient (and eco-friendly too!).
4. Offer grocery pick-up services
You have to face the fact that people have become so busy now that they will no longer have much time to do their groceries regularly. To help out with this, the supermarket can implement a pick-up system, where the customers can just place their orders online or by phone. They can then pick up their orders at a specific time.
Efficiency in the supermarket that you work in will boost the chance of the retail store to get more profit and earnings. It can also lessen the expenses involved in the operations.
4 Surefire Ways to Fund an Expanding Business
If you have used a good business plan along with proper management, this probably has made your business thrive. Now, it is probably the right time to move further. But just like when you were still starting, you need enough funds so you can make your new plans come to life.
If funding an expanding business troubles you, then you might find the following recommendations useful.
1. Ask help from family and friends.
Maybe you have used up your savings in the past to fund your business. This time, you could use some help from family and friends. Chances are, there would be no requirements and interests. However, you may be obliged to return the money right away. An alternative is to sell some part of your business to them, but only when they are aware of the risks to avoid conflict in the end.
2. Find investors.
Angel investors are people who are willing to shell out money to fund expanding businesses. It is easy to find angel investors online or ask the chamber of commerce. Cloud funding, or the pitching of business ideas to potential investors online, is also another way to find funds for the business successfully.
3. Apply for a loan.
Many local banks offer a small business loan. You need to have good credit standing, though, to be eligible for a loan. Also, some banks require collateral.
In addition to banks, you can also apply for a loan from the Small Business Administration. You should be ready with a track record and other requirements when you apply.
4. Get help from private money lenders.
If you need money for business expansion, you can turn to private lenders such as ARF Financial. They have cash now pay later offers for every type of small business. You are likely to get approved fast because you already have a track record to show. Most of these private lenders require collateral, though. And lastly, don’t forget to compare interest rates before choosing a lender.
You managed to get through all the troubles of starting a business. Expanding it should be easier now, especially when the problem is just about funding it.
Positive Effects of Market Globalisation on Businesses
Businesses currently operate at a much faster pace compared with when they did ten years ago. While a lot of ways of how businesses handle operations can further improve, the fast-paced advancement of technology has made everything possible. In addition to secure online transactions, businesses thrive because of getting the right human resources for the best market price.
The App Team, a forward-thinking iPhone app development team in Australia, knows that with the right resources, software and people, businesses can run more smoothly even with the tight competition in the market today.
Effects of Market Globalisation
The evolution of computing has become the most powerful tool in doing business nowadays. It enabled businesses to reach far more clienteles and customers outside their localities market globalisation. In addition to selling products and services worldwide, market globalisation has also created countless jobs.
An overseas workforce has greatly helped in completing tasks locally or anywhere in the world. Developing the right software greatly helps in completing any transaction, checking out inventories, ads and promotions, as well as internal communication among workers. Establishing strategic points of service is one of the cornerstones of globalisation.
With competition becoming tougher by the day, businesses must become more aggressive, systematic yet and wise. The expansion covers not only the target market but also the medium on how to do business. So from being accessible only from desktop computers and laptops, software and apps can now be installed on mobile devices, enabling transactions even while on the go.
Getting the Right People
Establishing the right workforce from different corners of the globe enables businesses to provide support to customers 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This provides a faster turnaround for transactions, whether it is delivering goods or providing expertise over the phone among other services.
In addition, exploring different markets and restructuring will save businesses from spending too much when it comes to compensation and other stipends. With market globalisation, businesses can be closer to current and prospective customers while getting the benefit of having the right person do the same task at a lower cost.
How Chemical-Free Water Treatment Facilities Improve Business
Taking the environmentally-sound route has never been better for business and family. Especially in a fully-urban area like Fort Wayne, water treatment systems provided by firms such as superiorwaterconditioners.com are crucial in preserving cleanliness, preventing health hazards, and maintaining a community that is free of waste.
Water treatment is not a new concept. Some manufacturers in Indiana have been doing so for several decades, and while the demand for clean water in homes and businesses has not waned, some manufacturers provide these technologies in a manner that is friendlier for the environment.
Here are some ways chemical-free water treatment systems can help you, your family, and the Fort Wayne community.
Eliminates Disease-Causing Contaminants
Any water filtration manufacturer in Fort Wayne will tell you that water cleanliness does not just apply to potable water, but also to sewage. In fact, authorities strictly regulate water filtration and sewage treatment on a county level.
Quality water treatment systems will help ensure clean drinking water and prevent the spread of contaminants by safely dispersing waste materials into surrounding soil.
Saves Millions in Maintenance Costs and Ensures Safety
Corrosive minerals in untreated water can cause pipes to erode. Not only will this create unsafe working and living conditions – but maintenance costs will also ramp up very quickly and impede operations, causing a loss in revenues.
By ensuring that clean water flows within your facility, you can maintain excellent working conditions for your employees, while ensuring that your business moves smoothly and efficiently.
Helps the Environment
By installing a chemical-free water treatment system, you can ensure that you release no harmful substances into the community. This is because the procedures used ensure the meticulous decontamination of water without the use of potentially hazardous chemicals.
So consider water treatment systems for your home. Not only will you keep your home and family in shape – but you will also keep Fort Wayne healthy and environmentally sound.
3 Investments for Your Logistics Operations
Do you have a logistics business? The key to staying competitive in any business is to make sure that you make improvements or rather, investments, every year. Here are some investments you can make this year to improve your logistics operation.
Work on building relationships
Improving customer experience can increase customer satisfaction. And when your clients are happy, this can generate more customers and clients in return. Apart from delivering dependable and timely service, make sure that you are building relationships.
Remember that customers now demand customization. Investments such as dedicated mobile apps can help you logistics in personalizing your services.
Setup a better return policy
It takes effort and good runs to make up for one bad service. Unhappy customers just want to ensure that they get back their money or have the item replaced. In this sense, you need to make sure that your return policy is working and that your customers will not have a hard time in dealing with product returns.
You can say the same thing if your vendors give you products that you need to return. Invest in a return to vendor software offered by logistics firms such as ReverseLogix to make the process easier and the replacements more efficient.
Invest in better warehouse management
Storage management plays a huge role in how your logistics company performs. If you do not have good and efficient operations, you will most likely suffer from delays. So make investments in your warehouse when you can.
Consider pallet storage management for your warehouse. This is very effective if you do not want to transfer to a bigger storage facility but you want to maximize the space you already have.
Consider these tips if you are looking for upgrades that could make your logistics operations more efficient and your business thriving. And remember, keep moving forward.
A Smart Entrepreneur’s Guide to Restocking the Kitchen
You have a restaurant and it’s doing okay, but you want it to do better. Who wouldn’t? You know you can offer something more, but you just don’t know how to budget time wisely. How can you solve this dilemma?
Here are some life hacks that could come in handy:
Use Time Wisely
Some recipes take time. Work on that marinade for your chicken as early as possible, and let the meat soak in it. Get started on that broth as soon as the kitchen opens, so you get all the flavors to use for your restaurant dishes. Some even start on their broth the night before. These are the things that should take up your time. Don’t let the tricky preparation of simple sauces waste hours of precious kitchen time when you can buy hollandaise sauce in big batches anyway.
Focus on One Special Dish
Instead of having a big and overwhelming menu, trim down the choices to those you can do best. If your specialty is beef, have that as the signature dish. Let your chef master that dish and prepare it perfectly every single time. It’s better than a hit-and-miss dish because your cooks are busy learning hundreds of recipes at once. If you’re not sure which dish to offer as your special, consult your chef or ask customers for their feedback. As the people who will eat the special dish all the time, they surely have some good advice to give.
Keep Your Secret Sauces Secret
If you have a signature dish, you probably have a signature recipe or sauce for it. Even if you’re franchising, that secret should not be in the hands of just everyone. Ever wondered about KFC’s carefully guarded secret? Each successful restaurant has a secret, and it’s the key to their continued success. If anyone can just copy your dish down to the last ingredient, why would they need to eat at your restaurant?
Running a food establishment means being smart about what you do. Do away with the unnecessary time-wasters and focus on perfecting your recipes and customer service.
5 Ways to Get Started on Your Home-Based Business
Many people are choosing to go full time with their home-based businesses. While having a well-researched business plan is good, it doesn’t assure success. Don’t quit your job just yet unless your business has been showing incredible progress and a promising future. When transitioning to this set-up, there are a lot of things you must do starting with the following list.
Set up an office in your home
That means having your workspace away from your bed. You might need to consider home extensions in Perth. LA Webb Construction suggests having a dedicated space and desk to boost productivity. Never work on your bed in pyjamas. You will not deal with daily schedules anymore, but your business will take more time than a full-time job. Your business may expand, and clients may start coming to your home. So, you really need to set up a dedicated office in your home. You can try to do it yourself, but you want to focus on the core areas of your business, so leave it to the experts.
Check your finances
Before jumping into something a lot riskier than a stable 8 to 5 jobs, make sure that you can afford it. Also, check on government requirements and laws. The Australian government states that a home-based business will affect your tax deductions. So, make sure you have it figured out and projected in your financial analysis. You should also research on the financial assistance that your bank offers for new businesses. If you need additional money to fund your project, it is best to make transactions with reputable companies.
Put systems and facilities in place
Check available internet connection providers, and find the fastest and most reliable. You don’t want to spend hours just waiting for your e-mail to load. Telephones should be set up as well. And shop for necessary supplies. If needed, consider purchasing other equipment such as a printer and fax machine.
Get help
You would want to achieve and do everything on your own, partly because you want to prove yourself but mostly because you cannot afford salaries expense right now. You can’t also expect your friends to do things for you for free. The best way to go about it is to hire interns who are looking at having an experience in start-ups. Find someone who can help in areas that you are not very good at.
Strengthen your online presence
Since you are not out there in the business district, rub elbows with important people in the industry, make the most of technology and promote your business online. Create a website and set up social media accounts. Share valuable content and strategically inject the purpose of your business.
Committing to a full-time home-based job takes a lot of guts. However, make sure that you also accompany it with a lot of rational thinking and brainstorming with knowledgeable people. The transition is not going to be easy, and it takes a lot of hard work and sleepless nights. To help drive your momentum, start with this list.
