Michael Levitt's Blog, page 17

5 Tips to Manage Your Real Estate Agency's Finances

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Running a real estate agency is no easy task; it requires a lot of time, effort, and money. Therefore, one of the most important aspects of managing a real estate agency is ensuring that its finances are in order. This blog post will discuss five tips to help you manage your real estate agency's finances effectively.

1) Keep track of all income and expenses

This may seem like a no-brainer, but keeping track of all money coming in and going out of your business is important. You should have a system in place to track income (i.e., from commissions) and expenses (i.e., advertising, office rent). Doing so will help you stay organized and on top of your finances.

2) Get a high risk merchant account

If you're not already using a high risk merchant account for your real estate agency, now is the time to get one. A high risk merchant account will help you process payments more securely and efficiently.

High risk merchant accounts come with a number of benefits that can be extremely helpful for businesses in the real estate industry. Some of these benefits include chargeback protection, fraud prevention, and lower processing fees.

Getting a high risk merchant account from HBMS is a great way to protect your business from financial risks and ensure that your finances are managed effectively.

3) Have a budget and stick to it

One of the most important things you can do for your real estate agency's finances is to create a budget and stick to it. When creating your budget, include all income and expenses so you have a clear picture of where your money is going.

Once you have your budget in place, it is important to stick to it as closely as possible. Of course, there will inevitably be times when you need to spend more or less than what is allotted in your budget, but try to keep these deviations to a minimum.

If you are able to stick to your budget, you will find that your finances will be much easier to manage.

4) Invest in accounting software 

Investing in accounting software is a great way to save time and money when it comes to managing your real estate agency's finances. Accounting software can automate many of the tasks associated with financial management, such as invoicing, tracking expenses, and preparing reports.

There are various accounting software programs available on the market, so be sure to do your research to find the one that best meets your needs.

5) Hire a professional

If you're not confident in managing your real estate agency's finances, consider hiring a professional. A professional accountant or bookkeeper can handle all of the financial tasks associated with running your business, leaving you free to focus on other aspects of the business.

While hiring a professional may cost you some money upfront, it can save you money in the long run by preventing errors and helping you make sound financial decisions.

In conclusion, following these five tips will help you manage your real estate agency's finances effectively. By tracking all income and expenses, getting a high risk merchant account, having a budget, investing in accounting software, and hiring a professional, you can ensure that your business is on sound financial footing.

How To Prevent Injuries on Your Jobsite

A single workplace accident can leave a big negative impact on your business. You will need to address medical bills, deal with productivity loss, and handle workers’ compensation. Let’s keep every employee safe while working the jobsite by following safety precautions to prevent workplace injuries and avoid fatal risks.

Implement a Safety and Wellness Plan

To create a safe working environment, you need to develop and implement an airtight safety and wellness plan. The plan acts as an effective accident prevention program. The program needs to cover all levels of employee safety and health.

Introduce the program to all new employees during the orientation process. Include seasoned workers in these seminars to refresh their memories and further emphasize the importance of this program. Encourage everyone to report hazardous practices and behavior. Your entire team needs to be on board for everything to work efficiently.

Wear Protective Gear

Personal protective equipment (PPE), including hard hats, is essential on all constructive jobsites. You need to enforce the significance of this gear during the hiring process, meetings, and spontaneous monitoring. Take the time to teach your employees how to properly use goggles, gloves, hard hats, safety shoes, and other protective gear.

Ensure everyone’s equipment is up to date and not damaged in any way. Damaged or worn-out gear might be defective and encourages accidents on the job. Try to monitor the conditions of all PPE at least twice a month. Encourage your employees to report any faulty equipment to you immediately.

Have Adequate Staffing Levels

Due to low staffing levels, you might encourage your employees to work overtime. Overtime hours are fine to implement but only in moderation. Overworked employees will suffer from exhaustion, and exhaustion can lead to a loss of focus or body aches.

You need everyone on the site to be as sharp as possible. You don’t want your employees to cut corners to meet or exceed output. Monitor these overtime hours and the quality of your employees’ work.

If you notice sluggish movements or a difference in their posture, speak with them. Consider hiring part-time or seasonal staff to help prevent accidents caused by exhaustion and overexertion.

Monitor Safety Measures

After you’ve conducted the initial training, reinforce safety measures at every opportunity. During staff meetings, supervising sessions, and education seminars, go over the safety procedures again. Try a call-and-response tactic to ensure everyone thoroughly knows the guidelines.

As an incentive, reward the employees who stayed injury-free for a specified amount of time or constantly followed the standards. You can give them special perks such as a day off where they don’t have to use their PTO.

Unfortunately, accidents can still happen at any moment, but these tips help prevent injuries on the job from frequently happening. You can have a consecutive stretch of days without workplace injuries.

3 of the Most Common Types of OFCCP Violations

Whether you’re a business that has just won a contract with the federal government or have been a federal contractor for years, it’s critical to comply with the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP). OFCCP requirements protect workers and promote diversity and inclusion.

When your business fails to meet these legal standards, the consequences can be costly or disastrous. Keep your business in good standing by knowing three of the most common types of OFCCP violations.

Not Following Affirmative Action Programs Closely

Federal contractors under the OFCCP must create affirmative action plans (AAP) annually and adhere to them. Your AAP must meet strict standards, and once it’s approved, you must train your employees on compliance. During training, it’s a good idea to clear up common misconceptions about AAPs. Namely, make sure everyone understands that AAPs are about creating equity in the workforce rather than preferential treatment.

Your business must make good faith efforts to accomplish your AAP. For example, if your business doesn’t direct work recruitment to all demographic groups, this is a violation. Federal contractors may not discriminate in employment decisions based on race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, national origin, or status as a protected veteran.

Incomplete Recordkeeping

The second most common type of OFCCP violation is incomplete or poor recordkeeping. It’s critical for contractors to keep detailed records for OFCCP audits. The types of records you must keep and the length of time you must keep them depend on how the OFCCP categorizes your business. One of the best benefits of outsourcing OFCCP compliance is getting necessary data and paperwork organized.

Depending on your business, you need to keep records of applicants, hires, interviews, promotions, compensation, and termination. You might also need to keep records of analyzing collected data, such as the number of applicants with disabilities you’ve hired. Good recordkeeping can justify your practices.

Harassment

Harassment is discrimination that can take many forms. It includes offensive statements about a person, derogatory actions directed at one person or a group of people, and unwelcome physical acts. Harassment based on a protected characteristic, such as gender identity or religion, can create a hostile work environment.

Harassment can come from anyone. An individual can be harassed by their coworkers, supervisors, people they don’t work with directly, or a client or customer. Harassment is illegal when it creates a hostile work environment or leads to negative decisions affecting someone’s employment. Monitor personnel activities to ensure there’s no discriminatory effect.

5 Reasons Your Business Should Host A Community Event

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There was once a time when companies only had to please their shareholders. There was no such thing as corporate responsibility - but things are different these days.

Today, businesses know that they play an integral part in the communities where they sell their products and services. Consumers want to feel satisfied knowing the brands they use are supporting causes or missions that are close to their hearts.

You're likely reading this article today because you feel as though your business isn't doing enough to support the local community. One way to "give back" to the local area is by hosting a community event.

However, if you're on the fence about whether it's a good idea for your business specifically, the following five reasons could help assure you:

1. It’s Great For Networking

Firstly, you should know that when your brand hosts a community event, it immediately opens itself up to an excellent networking opportunity. Why? The answer is simple: you'll encounter plenty of local business leaders, investors, potential customers, and suppliers.

It's also a good opportunity to find undiscovered local talent that might be an excellent fit for your brand, irrespective of whether you're actively seeking new people to fill roles in your business or not.

2. It’s Fun

Another reason to host a community event is how it can be a great way for you and your employees to have some fun.

For example, you might decide to host a family-oriented day filled with activities that everyone will enjoy, and your staff can also bring their families to the event that day.

Hosting a community event also gives your brand an insight into new ways that consumers could interact with your products and services, or discover new demographics.

3. It’s Straightforward To Set Up And Manage

Setting up and managing a community event is easier than you think. Aside from delegating specific tasks to your team members, you can depend on outsourced firms to provide things like food, entertainment, and shelter, where necessary.

Moreover, if your event offers children's entertainment, you could even use activity day camp registration management software to ensure all kids get accounted for and any special needs recognized.

4. Your Brand Creates Stronger Local Ties

Does your brand have a reputation as being one that feels someone disconnected from the local community? If so, hosting a community event is an excellent way to build stronger ties with the people that live and work in the local area.

People in the community will form a more positive opinion of your brand and will even attract more customers and potential employees as a result.

5. It’s An Excellent Marketing Opportunity

Finally, you should know that setting up and hosting a community event is a brilliant method to market your brand! That's because your brand name and logo will be memorable due to it being everywhere from printed media like banners and brochures.

Additionally, you could even promote or offer samples of your brand's products and services at the event.

The 5 Best Careers for Lone Wolves

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Since the pandemic, many people have been on the look for new opportunities that line up with their values. Careers, for many people, are just about what you qualified in, but about ensuring that you are dealing with the least amount of hassle possible. Some people like to operate by themselves. These “lone wolves” find themselves more inclined to certain types of roles. Some people like to be outgoing in the work environment and introverted in the office, but being a lone wolf reduces stress, increases flexibility and focus, but it also tells up with their sense of happiness. Here are a few jobs where you can work by yourself. 

Delivery Driver

Food delivery is high in demand, but a lot of people don't necessarily like the less-than lucrative pay packet that comes with it. A lot of people are now opting for CDL jobs that involve long-haul travel. A lot of people who work by themselves like to get to grips with the road because it provides a focus, but it also means that you can actually relax and enjoy the open road rather than having how to deal with a lot of traffic that comes with delivery driving. 

Market Research

Working by yourself in a physical sense is important for a lot of people, but what about those people that like to be by themselves but still want to be sociable? A market researcher is someone that can speak to others over the phone to get their opinions. It's an amazing opportunity to get to grips with so many different walks of life, and these days, as the pandemic has shown us we can work from home, it provides the ideal balance. 

Writing or Transcription

Naturally, it's one of those careers that involves being by yourself. Writing is one of those things that a lot of people may not necessarily feel they have the creative gumption for, but if you would rather get the balance right, a transcription job could be a better alternative because you can set your own schedule, and if you do it with the right companies, you can earn a decent pay package, but it all depends on how fast you type! 

Pet Sitting

Sometimes pet owners need people to watch their animals and look after them while they are away. Pet sitting is a great choice for people who don't want to work with other people, but are more than happy to work with animals. It's always in high demand, and you can work on your own schedule. For many people, this is a great side hustle because you can do other work while you are keeping an eye on the animals. 

Virtual Assistant

Similar to an office assistant, but working virtually, you can perform a variety of roles and tasks from your own home. It's also a great foundation if you want to work your way up a certain career ladder, such as in business. You could be posting on social media, sending emails, updating website content, and so much more. 

Whatever the balance, there is always a great career choice for lone wolves.

How Your Business Can Recover From a Flood

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Floods can cause catastrophic damage to businesses and homes alike. Water damage can damage buildings, destroy expensive equipment, and make other physical assets unusable. After any natural disaster, whether it’s a flood or something else, many businesses struggle to recover. At least one in four businesses never reopen after having been shut down by a business.

However, if your business can be prepared for a disaster, then it’s far more likely to recover. 

Causes of Water Damage

Water damage is incredibly common for all kinds of properties, whether they’re residential, commercial, or industrial. It may be caused by a natural disaster, like a sudden storm, a river breaking its banks, or a severe spring melt. However, water damage can also be caused by non-natural causes, such as issues with plumbing or roof damage.

If your office is located in an area that’s prone to flooding, then you should be aware of this as soon as possible so that you can take steps to mitigate this risk. However, even if it isn’t, then you should still be prepared for the risk of water damage.

Business Flood Insurance

Your business should be covered under a flood insurance plan. This provides a much-needed financial safety net in case a flood does damage your property or assets. When taking out business insurance, check the policy to ensure that it covers water damage, as well as other damage that is likely to occur. 

After the flood, contact your insurance provider as soon as possible. This will allow them to send out someone to assess the damage done to your property so that they can come up with an appropriate settlement. While it’s tempting to try to clean up and get running as quickly as possible, this could affect your settlement. 

Do what you can to prevent further damage and take photographs before and after getting rid of the water. 

Business Disaster Plan

A business disaster plan is a vital part of ensuring that your business and employees are prepared for any disaster, including a flood. Do a risk assessment to determine the most likely disasters and formulate plans to deal with these eventualities. 

Ensure that your staff is well-informed and trained so that they can act quickly and decisively in the event of an emergency. This will keep them safe, while potentially lessening the potential damage to your business assets. 

A business disaster plan should cover the disaster itself as well as the aftermath. The priority should be the safety of your employees, then your plan should determine how you can recover and get back to business as quickly as possible to mitigate the financial fallout.

Repairing the Damage

While you do want your insurance provider to see the extent of the damage for your settlement, you should do what you can to the business operating again as quickly as possible. Use an emergency flood cleanup service to repair the damage and repair your physical assets.

Warehouse Methods To Consider for Improving Efficiency

Warehouses are among the first of many big steps toward creating a business with greater autonomy. Whether your role is to support a business’s growth or provide yourself more time to spend on other tasks, having a warehouse is a huge boon to any company. However, understanding how to create a successful one requires some extra effort at the start. These are some efficient warehouse methods to consider for your business.

Prioritize Worker Retention

A warehouse has several moving parts and areas. Each employee has their role and space that they are responsible for understanding and dealing with each day. If your workers cannot sustain themselves due to the workplace conditions or level of pay, you can lose time training new workers. By keeping existing employees happy and satisfied with their work, you create fewer instances where training is necessary and instead work toward advancing their knowledge with new practices and machinery.

Incentivize Progressive Behavior

When workers can beat expectations or provide alternative strategies that end up furthering the company, you should reward them for their efforts. This acknowledgment helps to encourage other workers to go above and beyond. Employees who know management acknowledges them for positively standing out are more likely to think progressively and seek to improve their daily processes. Depending on the level of impact, bonuses or promotions should not be out of the question. Overall, as their peers see this, they believe in the promise of opportunities for themselves in the future.

Incorporate New Technology

Warehouses are large storage and shipping areas where the sales process originates. While ordinary people are plenty capable on their own, new tools and programs strengthen their abilities. By constantly looking for the newest means of organization and communication, your business shaves off wasted time and increases efficiency. Devices like radios allow access to different parts of the building and highlight the importance of communication in places like the loading dock, allowing everyone to be on the same page.

A business is only as strong as its foundations. The warehouse is the beginning of every process that happens in a sale and should be a priority. Implementing these methods for achieving an efficient warehouse makes your business more autonomous while reducing the number of tasks you need to deal with regularly.

How Could I Use a Shipping Container for My Business?

Shipping containers are becoming more and more popular for things other than shipping. People are using them for their homes and their businesses.

If you’ve ever wondered how your business could use a shipping container, we’ve got some ideas!

Temporary Office

Shipping containers make for excellent temporary and mobile offices for businesses needing extra space. They’re affordable to rent, and many container companies even offer prefabricated containers for office use, complete with windows, doors, and a comfortable interior.

Construction companies use containers when they need a temporary office for a worksite, but all types of businesses use them when they need temporary structures. It’s much easier to build with shipping containers than to construct a brand-new structure!

Pop-Up Shop

Are you looking to expand your business to new areas? Perhaps the best way to test your business’s capability in a new territory is with a pop-up shop! But you need somewhere to put your pop-up shop temporarily—enter the shipping container.

Many pop-up shops utilize shipping containers as temporary homes since they’re mobile and easy to maintain. No need to hunt for an abandoned site to rent; order a container delivered right where you want it.

Additional Storage

Almost any business, whether in the retail or food and beverage industry, accumulates clutter. Not every company has the storage capacity to declutter their space, though, which is why many utilize shipping containers.

Instead of transporting all your goods to an expensive off-site storage unit, you can have a storage unit delivered right to you. Keep your items safely secured on your property without the expense of building a brand-new structure with a container.

Trade Show

If you’ve been to a trade show or industry convention, you’ve undoubtedly seen a company using a shipping container as a booth structure, no matter what industry it is. Shipping containers catch the eye more than a simple tent, and there’s so much more you can do with them in terms of renovations and brand decorations.

Use a shipping container to make your booth stand out and become the talk of the trade show!

Extra Seating

If you own a restaurant and want to expand your outdoor seating, consider utilizing a shipping container! During COVID-19 indoor dining restrictions, many restaurants used renovated containers to offer outdoor seating.

Restaurants and customers enjoyed them so much that many chose to keep them even when restrictions were lifted. It instantly draws the eye to your place and makes it stand out!

Now you see how you could use a shipping container for your business—whether that’s construction, retail, or practically anything else. With shipping containers, there’s almost no limit to how you can put them to use!

How To Safely Handle Cleaning Chemicals at Your Workplace

Are you wondering how to handle chemicals at your workplace? Unfortunately, there may not be a guide for this sort of thing at your job. It’s possible that you may not have received training on safely handling the cleaning chemicals at your job. If this is the case, read on for some tips on keeping yourself safe.

Wear the Right Equipment

There’s a good chance you wear gloves to wash the dishes at home. When working with chemical supplies at your job, wearing gloves is just as important, if not more so. That’s not all either. Depending on the type of chemical you’re working with, you might need a full mask or at least one that covers your mouth. You might even need protective glasses to mitigate eye irritation. There are different needs for different situations, but no matter what chemical you’re handling, you should always have the proper equipment. Check around your job for these supplies, and if you can’t find them, ask your boss where they are.

What You Should Know

Speaking of employers, there should be several special precautions in the workplace in place to keep you and your coworkers safe. Your employer should make sure chemicals are stored in a properly ventilated area. Your employer should provide protective gloves, goggles, and masks for handling chemicals. There should be labels on all the containers, and if there aren’t, you shouldn’t touch them. Finally, your employer needs to train you on using dangerous chemicals. Otherwise, you could seriously hurt yourself.

What Should You Do?

Of course, there are things you can do as well. Make sure you keep cleaning solutions in their proper containers, and don’t mix them. While you may know what they do separately, mixing chemicals could create a reaction that you weren’t expecting and seriously hurt you. Make sure you understand the safety signage and “label signals” each chemical supply has. There should be company jargon centered on how dangerous a chemical is overall. For instance:

“Caution” could mean relatively safe. This could mean that all you need to do is wash your hands after use.

“Warning” could mean that the solution is of moderate toxicity.

“Danger” could mean that the solution will give you permanent damage if you handle it incorrectly or are in its vicinity when it’s open without the proper equipment—this happens a lot when you have to deal with fumes that can cause eye irritation.

This is a particularly important part of safely handling chemicals—you’ll need to understand these protocols in your workplace.

Handling chemicals at your workplace should be easy. However, it doesn’t come without its dangers. As long as you stay informed and use the tips above, you can easily avoid accidents.

The Benefits of Selling a Custom Product

Whenever a birthday or gift-giving holiday comes around, finding a thoughtful present for someone is enough to make some people scratch their heads for ideas. Such gifts have seasonal and yearly appeal, but they help add a memorable touch from the person giving them. Read on to explore the benefits of selling a custom product for customers looking for something with a personal touch.

People Want To Be Different

Expressing your individuality is part of what makes combining different clothing and accessories so fun in the fashion world. Many people do not want to fit into a trendy mold, from their shoes to their jewelry, every time they go out.

At the same time, something simple like a personally designed sneaker is all someone needs to happily let people know who they are through the things they wear. Custom products help enable that feeling of freedom by building exactly what the customer wants when they are not able to get it from traditional retail stores.

Greater Value in Personalization

People understand that there is naturally a premium when aiming to purchase something that no one else is making. With this in mind, it is important to value the time spent developing the infrastructure that allows you to create those custom goods or the effort that goes into making them.

Once you discover the proper balance between the value you believe your items are worth and the price that people are OK with purchasing them at, you can set reasonable price standards going forward.

Bringing Creativity to Life

Many people have unique designs in mind but lack the means to realize their own goals due to a lack of equipment or capability. For example, many people who enjoy customizing their computer towers take advantage of the benefits that a laser engraving service provides for their glass side panels. These types of services are not typically available to someone not involved in that area of expertise, meaning services like these thrive with customers looking for something uncommon and special.

People love the idea of owning something made just for them. From that idea comes business prospects that allow a partnership to grow and specialized fields to develop. After all, where there’s a will, there’s a way. By considering a few of the benefits of selling a custom product, you are sure to find that there is a proper niche that aims to use your service.