Mohit Tater's Blog, page 506

7 Types of Insurance Every Small Business Owner Should have

Research has shown that at least a fifth of new startups never make it beyond the first year of operation. And, if they do, half of these businesses will fail before they celebrate their fifth milestone. Indeed, the early years of a company are quite uncertain. And, if you are a small business, it’s not always easy to compete with the big fish. You have too many odds against you. That’s why; every small business owner should have some minimum insurance cover for the business. It comes in handy to give you peace of mind as you concentrate on growing your core business. So, what type of insurance is essential for your line of business?

Life Insurance

 Small business owners carry the mantle of their business wherever they go. That’s why the sudden death of the owner may also mean the end of their business. Then, what happens when the business owner passes on. The company can go bankrupt overnight, leaving family members with lots of debts. 

But, if the entrepreneur has an active life insurance policy at his time of death, it’s a sigh of relief for his beneficiaries. Life insurance cover will pay the beneficiaries the agreed amount and relieve their financial burden due to death.

Professional Liability Insurance (PLI) 

Is your business a consultancy firm in the medical, accounting, or legal professions? Consider getting professional liability insurance, or PLI. Indeed, PLI is necessary to cushion professionals from claims arising due to their negligence, malpractice, or misrepresentation on their part. Still, this cover excludes crime-related claims or cyber liabilities. Other professionals that need PLI cover include teachers, therapists, counselors, insurance agents, and contractors. For each of the sectors, the PLI policy retails in a unique name. Plus, it includes custom clauses for particular professionals. 

Property Insurance

 Small business owners get physical assets to ease their service offerings. But, such property is subject to risks like damage from fire, theft, or floods. Then, it is prudent to take a property insurance policy for your tangible assets. Note that some risks are excluded from the property insurance policy. For example, mass-destruction dangers like terrorism and political violence. Do you operate in an area susceptible to such threats? Then, increase your premium to capture these unique risks.   

Worker’s Compensation Insurance

The worker’s compensation insurance is a mandatory policy for employers. It protects employees from damages due to injury while in their line of duty. The law requires that the employee or his beneficiaries receive compensation. Then, the worker’s comp will cater to medical expenses, funeral expenses, and long term disability costs. As a small business owner, you should note that many conditions qualify for disability. Therefore, it doesn’t matter where the employee gets a physical disability or not; you as the employer must ensure your employee is compensated.

Commercial Auto Insurance

 A small business owner must take up auto insurance for all official vehicles. This way, he cushions his employees from damages in the event of an accident. The employees or beneficiaries will receive full compensation for the loss. This compensation caters for damage to personal property, medical expenses, and funeral expenses. Often, small startups allow their employees to use their private vehicles at work. Then, such an employer must take up the hired non-owned policy to include such vehicles.  

Cyber Breach Liability 

Today’s small business owners take advantage of the internet to widen their reach. In turn, such businesses are prone to cybercrimes and fraud. In particular, identity theft, credit card fraud, and information leak is a significant threat to the small business owner. To cushion their business, the entrepreneur must take the data breach policy. It protects against losses from such risks.

Business Owner’s Insurance (BOP)

 A small business owner wants to focus on growing his business. He looks for less administrative solutions. That’s why, when it comes to insurance, it is wise to pick fewer plans that cater for all the risks. Plus, it is cheap to pay for fewer premiums and still get the same cover from many policies. Indeed, that is what the business owner’s insurance is all about. BOP consolidates most threats facing the small startup in one plan. Then, the BOP cover cushions most risks, including those related to property, motor vehicles, business interruptions, criminal liability, and professional negligence. Further, the entrepreneur can get a custom BOP cover with only those risks that are relevant to his business.  

The small business owner must always seek ways to mitigate business risks. It is the only way his business can be sustainable. Hence, the right choice of insurance covers provides that much-needed peace of mind for growing his business. Thus, once one decides on the appropriate protection, he should consult a reliable insurer and discuss his options.

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How to Effectively Manage a Remote Workforce

The days of punching a clock are over. Technological advancements and economic imperatives have quickened the transition towards decentralized organizations and remote workforces, with many employees able to complete their duties armed with nothing more than a laptop (or smartphone) and stable internet connection.

While this seismic shift has many benefits in terms of flexibility, work-life balance, reduced overheads, even air pollution, businesses must take extra care to ensure that lines of communication remain open and productivity is maintained. The erosion of the traditional office environment does present unique challenges. The question companies must ask themselves is: how can technology be harnessed to create an environment that replicates the positive aspects of a physical workplace while preserving the benefits of remote working?

Incidentally, this is not a query to be posed only by traditional, office-based businesses: established remote firms should keep abreast of the latest apps and innovations to reduce their administrative responsibilities and focus more on core operations.

Choosing the Right Software for Remote Working

There are contradictions inherent in the very concept of software introduced to inspire efficiency. Which is to say that each new piece of software a business unveils adds its own degree of complexity. Oftentimes staff – who may have worked with legacy systems for years – will have to be educated and trained to use the new program. Some employees may not be digitally-native, and if the business employs a diverse workforce, the training burden can be considerable.

Businesses must therefore be judicious when selecting tools to improve their internal systems and facilitate remote working. It is vital to use only those which provide a clear cost benefit, that can be deployed widely and quickly, and that provide genuine, long-lasting value.

In the case of remote working, there are countless tools that have hit the market in recent years, each promising to keep remote team members on the same page. Such tools can be used to host meetings and conferences, schedule projects and track progress, build and share staff rotas, manage HR, collaborate on shared files and much more.

Valuable Tools for Managing a Remote Workforce

If current events have pushed you towards running a remote workforce, or if you’re simply looking to trial some new remote-work tools, there are a few options you might want to consider.

The obvious place to start is with video-conferencing app Zoom, which recently went from 10 million to 200 million daily users. Zoom lets users record calls with full-length video, making it great for online meetings, staff training and tech support. It can also be used to create presentations – useful for when your company is pitching for new business. Up to 25 ‘panelists’ can present and screen share to invited attendees, meaning you can bid for a new contract while enabling various team members to contribute. Various price plans are available, with the top-tier packages including unlimited cloud storage, up to 500 participants and a dedicated Customer Success Manager.

Needless to say, video conferencing is one of the most competitive genres when it comes to home-working tools, and Zoom has plenty of competition from the likes of Skype, Cisco Webex, Whereby and Jitsi Meet. Webinar software ClickMeeting is especially good for product demos and marketing. Most offer free trials, so it’s worth trying a couple to find the one you prefer.

Organizing From Afar

With your video-conference app chosen, you’ve taken care of the most fundamental component: providing clear lines of communication between team members. Of course, some people prefer not to jump on video, and if that’s the case, there are several great messaging apps including Zoho Cliq and Twist. As well as letting team members communicate via messages, these platforms let you organize conversations and highlight important information for ease of retrieval. Employees spend up to 30 hours a month attending meetings – at least half of which are believed to be unnecessary. Whittle down your virtual meetings to all but the most essential and your entire team’s productivity will soar.

Businesses looking to create and manage rosters, meanwhile, should try Deputy rota software. Essentially, it lets you create staff rotas and gain an overview of who’s working and when. Managers can let team members swap shifts and request annual leave, schedule employees according to their skill set, and control costs by comparing real-time data on wages and revenue. Without rota software in place, managing a remote team can get very complex, very quickly.

Don’t Let SaaS Define Your Business

As you can see, there are countless tools at your disposal: the prospect of managing a remote team can seem daunting, but by focusing on key processes and using software that streamlines those endeavors, you’ll maximize productivity, reduce complexity and empower staff to do what they do best. Don’t let SaaS define your business; let it simplify it.

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Smart Entrepreneurs Will Use These IT Tools to Get Ahead in Business

Here’s why smart entrepreneurs will use these IT tools to help put themselves in the best possible position for business success.

A modern-day entrepreneur needs to be agile. Tech fluency is increasingly becoming a necessity for entrepreneurs. One must be able to manage time, delegate tasks, communicate, keep track of finances, and maybe even do some network housekeeping, with relative ease. What better way to do this than through smart IT tools?

IT Tools for the Most Successful Entrepreneurs

Efficiency is essential for the entrepreneur. Time and productivity can bleed out slowly, minute after minute, without the proper structure. Nowadays, with everyone working from home, there’s more downtime as homebound employees spend precious hours wrestling with unfamiliar tech. This equates to more overhead in the end.

Time and money fall through the cracks.”Leave some for the birds,” they say. I know its already spring, but no sir!

These are the computer tech tools entrepreneurs are using to get ahead in business.

Project Management

To manage people and projects is to manage time. Asana and Trello are at the top when it comes to project management. Both have a visual, super user-friendly interface that makes delegating tasks as easy as dragging and dropping. These are team-based products, but if you are a solo entrepreneur, you might use these apps when collaborating with other freelancers.

Smart Email

Perhaps you need to communicate within your organization in a way that eliminates clutter. Slack is a tool that bills itself as an ’email alternative.’ It allows you to directly with only the most relevant team members via channels, rather than a traditional email system. This can significantly reduce efficiency-eating muddle by targeting members within a conversation.

Virtually Meet

Meeting apps are having a moment, thanks to quarantining. Zoom and Join.me are two of the most popular when it comes to live-meeting and video conference software. Join.me‘s platform allows file sharing amongst a group, which makes real-time collaboration possible.

Content and Social Media Tools for Entrepreneurs

Building up your brand is essential, and several IT tools make it easy to create, manage, and share your message.

Standing out in the crowded field is mission-critical. Your product or service is unique, no doubt. But this alone cannot carry the day. You must be seen and heard. Nothing gets you the eyes and ears you need like unique content.

Creating unique content can be difficult. Where do you get ideas? We’ve all heard of writer’s block, but what about “content block”? Well, the good news is you don’t have to come up with content all by yourself.

Help From Content Pros

Bloggers were the first social media influencers. Since the dawn of internet marketing, blogging has been the beta version of that svelt athlete-model on the beach sipping on that energy drink. Words work. Getting your brand’s message in the hands of a professional blogger can, in turn, get it in front of the perfect target audience.

This is what a service like Blogdash can do. Their seasoned, professional blog writers can craft a compelling message and send it out to a directed crowd who is more likely to buy what you’re selling.

Believe it or not, your product or service is newsworthy. Did you know there are ways to get actual journalists to write about what you have to offer? Press Pass, Help AReporter, and Just Reach Out can list you as a source for journalists looking for stories. It’s a great way to get some press coverage.

Social Media Management

Once you get a handle on your content, you must be able to curate it for social media. Sniply lets you add an eye-catching call to action to the links you share. Because helping people find you once your message is out is equally important.

Buffer and Hootsuite can help you manage your multiple social media accounts. You need a way to keep track of what you sent out, and these software tools have the additional benefit of analytics. You’ll be able to see what social media campaigns are most effective.

More Tools for Entrepreneurs: From Finance to Freelance

Spending beyond your means. People do it all too often. When an entrepreneur overspends, it can be a recipe for certain doom.

Finance Software

Ask any finance guru, and expense tracking is the number one way to get a handle on finances. Expensify is a fully-integrated reporting system, complete with a pre-paid card that allows you to set firm limits on spending. It comes with additional features that work for small businesses. Concur, and Rydoo are similar services that enable real-time expenditure tracking.

Hiring Freelance Help

Most successful entrepreneurs know when to outsource. Despite all the IT software available, sometimes you just have to hire out. Fivver and Upwork are two excellent budget options. From graphic design to web content, there is no better deal out there. You can benefit from the many thousands of online gig workers hungry for jobs. But, you do get what you pay for, so buyer beware.

On the higher end of the scale is TopTal (as in “top talent”). If you need some primo software or product development or even financial analysis, this company touts that it hires out only the “top 3 percent” of talent in their field. Perfect for when you’re ready to scale up.

DIY IT for the Entrepreneur

Finally, I know as an entrepreneur, you may have to wear the “IT guy” hat every once in a while. Eventually, as your company grows, you’ll want to invest in professional help. Learn more about what major league, comprehensive IT infrastructure maintenance looks like.

In the meantime, as you DIY your way to the top, it’s good to know of some of the more involved IT software tools out there.

Cyber Cleanse

IT hygiene is essential, and tools like CC Cleaner (literally crap cleaner) can remove any bloat that may be slowing down your system. Files that are unnecessary, temporary, or just old are often the culprit dragging down your speed and inhibiting productivity. CC Cleaner can provide your drive a much-needed cyber-enema.

Protect Yourself

Malwarebytes. This alpha-dog of anti-malware can remove what most other programs can’t. On top of this, the premium version can make sure no new malware sneaks in.

Get Ready to Grow!

You are an entrepreneur who embraces the IT tools needed to succeed. Growth is inevitable. As you scale, your IT needs will grow more complex. Outsourcing your IT system may be in order sooner than you realize.

Data backup, disaster recovery, network engineering. From firewalls to your business’ wifi. As you enter the big leagues, you’ll need some big-league help. When your IT house is in order, scaling up can become a reality.

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The Difference Between Self- Employed and Freelance in Singapore

Many people think that Freelance is a freelance job as they are making less than a self-employed person in Singapore. Well, the truth is that a freelancer can earn more than a person with a job who is self-employed. And people don’t know how to go about it or how to make it work.

Who is a freelancer? This is anyone working for different companies with different sets of work. He is not employed by one specific company in which he works all the time. This person is actually not an employee in any formal way but is doing tasks based on self-employment.

In many countries, there are several freelancers working at home and at their own convenience. Actually, in Singapore, they form almost 30% of total employment. However, of interest is that if these people are not formal employees, then they must be a category of the self-employed. You will be surprised there are significant differences between these two concepts.

 Here are some of the things that you need to keep in mind when looking for a job and the things that you need to know if you are going to be a freelancer.

Your view of what you are doing

You can be called a freelancer or self-employed guy depending on how you personally take what you are doing. Many people view being self-employed as decent than freelance. This is what makes the primary difference between the two. How you view what you do. Ask yourself such questions as to whom you are doing the work for, what is your product of sale and who are you working with.

Freelancers like working alone whereas the self-employed may work alone or need to employ some people. That is because they may be inclined to build a company while freelancers are oriented towards gig creation and spending time to clear one project after another. Additionally, freelancers still work for other people as they sell their services to them for instance, working on a company’s project. Self- employed on the hand, may work on their own premises and sell their ideas, not services.

Come try out your freelancing career in Singapore and I assure you will never regret it.  Do you need to borrow? You can find outstanding deals at https://www.rafflescredit.com.sg/foreigner-loan/

Taxation difference

Like in many other countries, freelancers may choose to pay or not pay taxes. It is their sole responsibility to comply with the tax rules in the country. No one will come following them for taxes as they mostly would work from home. It is therefore upon the freelancer to check with the states’ taxes regulatory body for any of the various types of taxes he needs to comply with. These will depend on your age, ability status, and gender.  People calling themselves self-employed on the other hand must pay the local and state taxes required by the law.  For example, as you set up your business in Singapore, you must be ready to comply with the payment of taxes and do so promptly. 

Revenue amounts

Another difference between these two is that of their rewards when it comes to revenue. The amount of money earned in both is totally dependent on the type of work they are engaged in. Self- employed will even have to spend some of the revenue on paying their employees’ salaries in case they have some. It is noteworthy though that the amount of revenue for a freelancer is dependent on the company he works on a project for. Even on the same project, different companies will have various pay rates. Also, you should know that a freelancer might find it hard to attain a project if there are no companies offering them. The self-employed revenue comes from the sale of his products and is determined by how clients do their purchases. He is also sure that he will have something to sell at any particular time.

Commitment levels and extent of control

Freelance is a type of self-employment only in that you are not a full-time employee in any formal employment. How does the extent of control and commitment differ for these two? Well, both make decisions on when and how they work. The freelancer can even select the clients to work for. However, after doing so, he loses control of the project he will work on and the deadline to work towards. The self-employed enjoy a level of control as they are not pressured by anyone. They can work whenever they feel like doing so. What of commitment levels? This is also different as the freelancers will have a variety of choices of clients. They really don’t have to commit to one person since they end their contracts when the project is done. They can abandon a client for another if they don’t agree on some issues. The self-employed have a measure of commitment to meet up. Their clients are the same ones who come to purchase their goods. They want to give a good impression on them. They must be loyal to them or else they lose them to other many similar self-employed businesses in Singapore.

The job titles

How would you designate an individual who just performs any task? I guess from our definition above, a freelancer will suffice. But what of a person who owns a company, for example, a law firm, a school or a clinic? The answer is easy; there can be many titles accrued to self-employed persons. For example, you might call your law firm business, Singh law firm and everyone will know you are a lawyer and call you by that title. It is for this reason that most freelancers would want to say they are self-employed rather than using the term freelance. However, if you are a dedicated and job oriented person, do not allow the race for titles and need for a unique identification prevent you from going for what you want, freelancing! It pays very well in Singapore and no wonder 30% and more are involved in it.

The Bottom Line

We have seen that there are major differences between freelancing and being self-employed. It is necessary to identify what you want to do or already is doing. However, of importance to remember is that a freelancer is a form of self-employment. They are one and the same thing with many similarities. Freelancing is a great source of employment in many developed countries like Singapore.    

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The Best Merchant Services Account Providers for Entrepreneurs in 2020

Merchant services are becoming increasingly essential to functioning in business. Merchant services are essential for processing payments, which is increasingly becoming the norm. 

There are over 1 billion consumer credit cards in circulation in the United States alone, as of the end of 2018. That number continues to grow and expand each year.

That’s where merchant services come in. A merchant service is a bottleneck for profits, Almost every business pays the same rate for business services unless you’re processing over 82 million transactions a year. 

You strive to find the best deals for your inventory and service providers, don’t you? Why should merchant services be any different?

Businessman using payment terminal

We’re going to delve into how to find the best merchant service providers for your small business or startup. We’ll start by looking at what separates the best merchant services from the rest. Then we’ll take a look at some of the best merchant service providers operating today. 

How To Find The Best Merchant Services For Your Business

Before we begin, we’re going to define our terminology. We need to define what qualifies as the best merchant services so you know what you’re looking for. 

Merchant services do more than offer a line of credit to small businesses. Merchant services are also any business solution that processes payments from customers. 

Merchant services consist of:

Card payment processingOnline paymentsPoint Of Sale (POS) SystemsMerchant accounts

For card payments, you’ll want to find a merchant service provider that handles as many different credit cards as possible. You’ll also want to look into their payment verification services, as that’s how you’ll ensure your business is protected against fraud and bad payments. They’ll verify payments before they’re deposited into your business account. 

Merchant services also provide secure payments for online transactions. They provide all of the payment forms. This also means the infrastructure that allows you to send invoices, which is vital for many entrepreneurs. 

POS systems are one of the most important merchant services. POS systems do much more than simply process payments at the storefront. They also offer inventory tracking and payroll information, for instance. 

POS systems also keep track of special programs like gift cards or customer loyalty programs. A good POS system is essential for helping your business to be truly up-to-date and current. 

Finally, merchant services are responsible for maintaining merchant accounts. Merchant accounts are dedicated bank accounts for your business. They come in two main types: dedicated and aggregated accounts.  

For entrepreneurs, you’re probably going to want a dedicated account. This means that you’re the only one who can access your business account. Aggregated accounts are for groups of entities, making them more appropriate for Corporation-style situations. 

To find the best merchant services for your particular needs, remember to pay attention to transaction fees. You’ll want to find merchant services with low transaction fees, as they cut into every single purchase. You’ll also want to look for special services, like payment protection in case of fraud. 

Now that we have a clearer idea of what makes a good merchant service, let’s take a look at some of the more popular options in 2020. 

Square

Square is a popular all-inclusive merchant service provider. Square processes in-store payments and acts as a virtual POS system. It also handles mobile payments and online transactions. You can even send invoices straight from Square. 

Square is one of the simplest and easiest merchant services to get started with. It’s also one of the most affordable. 

Square offers straightforward fees and pricing plans. This means there are no hidden fees or unexpected costs to take you by surprise at the end of the month. 

You may have to pay to use Square’s equipment, however. There are monthly fees for chip card readers or tap card readers. There are also fees if you want to use a Square Terminal for your storefront. There’s also the flat Square iPad stand that you see in many small business storefronts, which costs a little less than renting a terminal or full register. 

Square has some of the lowest fees of the merchant service providers on our list, however. There are no monthly fees, for one thing. It also doesn’t cost anything for Annual Compliance Fees or to use a Square POS system. 

Square’s suite of management tools are some of its greatest strengths, however. It gives you everything you need to manage your inventory, as well as keep track of all of your employee and customer needs. 

All of this can be done with your smartphone, home computer, or an inexpensive iPad. 

PayPal 

PayPal is a popular merchant service provider for businesses with a heavy online presence. PayPal optimizes businesses for eCommerce in a lot of different ways. 

It increases online conversions, for one thing. Customers are much more likely to complete a transaction if they don’t have to type in their payment details. It also helps to reduce abandoned shopping carts for the same reason. 

PayPal offers flat-rate fees, so you won’t have to wonder or guess about what your payments will cost. PayPal offers the same fees through their physical swipe and chip card reader, as well, which makes accounting easy. 

PayPal does have some monthly fees for certain services, however. Features like accessing their virtual terminal has a monthly fee, for instance, which can add up over time. 

Many of PayPal’s services are free, though. It doesn’t cost anything to set up PayPal or to use their POS software. Cancellation fees are also free, which is another perk. 

PayPal’s invoicing is one of its best features. It’s painless to send invoices from PayPal’s dashboard. You can set them to be re-occurring, as well, for on-going clients and projects. 

With the PayPal Here POS app, you can manage your inventory in a lot of different ways. You can customize receipts, add return policies, and add product photos, for starters. 

PayPal’s main strengths lie in its online payments, however. The ease of adding a PayPal button to a website is reason enough, alone, to consider it as a merchant service. If you’re strictly operating online, 

Dharma

Dharma is one of the best merchant services for entrepreneurs planning on doing a large volume of business. Or for high ticket price transactions. 

Dharma offers some of the most transparent and straightforward payment for business owners doing between $10,000 and $20,000 in transactions a month. It also offers some of the lowest transaction fees, meaning Dharma could save you a lot of money if you qualify. 

Dharma also integrates easily and painlessly with a number of card readers, terminals, and POS systems. It also can be used to process online and mobile transactions, as well. 

Dharma’s management software is some of the best in the industry, as well. Every account comes with free access to MX Merchant, their business management software. It also comes with an app called MX Merchant Express for accepting mobile payments. 

Flexible funding schedules are some of the most notable features that separate Dharma from the other merchant services on our list.

For in-person credit card payments, businesses can get funds the next day. Online or mobile payments can be processed in two days or less.  

Dharma also features some of the best customer service of the merchant services included in our list. They have in-house customer support available through both phone and email during regular business hours. They also have back-end support that is available during off times. 

Dharma’s customer service has a robust online system for troubleshooting problems. The back-end feature has a thorough and detailed ticketing system for when you’re experiencing technical difficulties. Their website also features thorough documentation for common issues. 

Dharma is only available for companies that handle a lot of business. They’re well worth looking into if you qualify, however. 

Merchant services are becoming increasingly essential for flourishing, for small businesses and large corporations alike. If you’re ready to find out how they can help your business, easy merchant services are available for you. 

Want More Entrepreneurship Advice?

It’s an exciting time to be in business. Even small businesses, entrepreneurs, and startups have access to the same powerful tools as gigantic multi-national Fortune 500 companies. 

Now that you know a bit about how to find the best merchant services for your particular business needs, browse the rest of our site for even more advice and inspiration on how to grow your business and take it to the next level. 

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6 Tips for Growing Your E-Commerce Business in 2020

Focusing on generating sales via online channels is one of the best ways to grow your business. E-commerce is highly scalable and lets you tap into a far greater pool of potential customers than would be possible with even the most centrally-located and capacious brick-and-mortar premises.

But getting online is just the half of it. When building an e-commerce platform, there are certain tried-and-tested methods that you should follow if you wish to drive traffic and win sales. Here are six tips for winning at e-commerce in 2020.

Consider dropshipping

Many e-commerce businesses sell products created and dispatched in-house, but others source products from far and wide, leaving warehousing and shipping to a third party. Of all the ways to sell online, dropshipping is one of the most lucrative, eliminating the cost burden of holding and shipping stock while giving you access to an array of suppliers. If you’re in the product business, dropshipping deserves your consideration.

Advertise coupons or discount codes

Buyers like to save themselves a buck. While you don’t want to overwhelm visitors with annoying pop-ups and garish dynamic banners, it’s a good idea to tastefully advertise coupons and discount codes. These can appear on the homepage, on a product category page, or on the product page itself. Indeed, they might appear on all of the above: the important thing is not to devalue the product by suggesting that the price is plummeting due to slow sales.

Highlight the value in your sales copy but be sure to convey that the buyer is getting a good deal, perhaps by stating that the reduced price is for a limited time only. Sports nutrition website MyProtein is particularly good at emphasizing discounts throughout the buyer journey.

Display trust icons prominently

Customer testimonials, professional accreditations and certifications, ‘Verified by Visa’ and ‘Money Back Guarantee’ logos, links to your TripAdvisor page and social media profiles: all serve to assuage the doubts that new site visitors might harbor as to your authenticity and trustworthiness. Use a plugin like Feefo or Trustpilot to collect product and/or service reviews, and focus on continually providing skeptical buyers with peace of mind.

Integrate a live chat facility

How many times have you been on a website and failed to find the information you were looking for? In these instances, you might simply give up and take your business elsewhere. By integrating live chat on your website, you can make customers think twice about exiting your store: all the more so if it’s monitored by a human rather than a bot (although bots can be useful for when staff clock off). A live chat plugin can answer buyers’ queries and make product recommendations, reducing your bounce rate and increasing conversions. It can also help to build trust. Of course, it’s also a good idea to display a phone number on your website, should customers wish to get in touch that way.

Create a sense of urgency

Online shops don’t close, their websites being accessible around the clock. While this is great for the customer, it does lead visitors to ask “Do I need this now?” and essentially talk themselves out of a purchase. This is why it’s important to create a sense of urgency, whether through judicious use of promo codes, savvy sales copy, a reference to limited stock or by mentioning that customers must order before a certain time to make next-day delivery. Retail giant Amazon is great at gently but persuasively pushing customers into the sales funnel by heightening the sense of urgency.

Simplify the checkout process

According to Moosend, 69% of online carts are abandoned by users, with shipping-related issues responsible for most of them. These statistics underline the need for a simple, clean, friction-free checkout process that gets customers over the finish line. Why do you think Amazon has a One-Click Ordering option?

So here’s what to do: remove unnecessary stages from your checkout process; include trust indicators on the page (even if you’ve already done so); give an approximation of when the customer can expect to receive the product; allow guest orders; expand the payment options; display your returns policy.

By following these six steps, you’re sure to increase your conversions and grow your e-commerce business. As long as your product or service is good, providing a superior user experience on-site will ensure your shoppers come back for more.

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Turnover Turbulence: Understanding The Impact Of High Employee Turnover

If you own a small business or are just starting your enterprise, you know how important it is to manage costs. You don’t have the resources of larger and more established competitors, so you must pay special attention to where every penny goes. Although you may be focusing all of your attention on inventory or overhead, there are some problems that may be costing your company a lot of money without you being aware of them. One of the most insidious of these is employee turnover. 

A certain amount of turnover is to be expected, for one reason or another. You can’t presume every person you hire will be the perfect fit for your organization. You also can’t expect everyone to stick with you when a better career opportunity emerges. That said, there is a limit to how much change your business can endure without suffering productivity loss. 

Courtesy Of Advanced RPO

Studies have found that losing an employee can cost a company as much as nine months of that person’s annual salary. This is because of the expenditures involved in recruiting and training a replacement as well as the production lost as that person gets up to speed. Typically, a new hire requires two to three months before he or she reaches the same level of productivity as the individual he or she replaces. If more than one position is going through this transition at the same time, the domino effect on your entire operation can be overwhelming. 

There are many reasons why a workplace may experience a higher-than-normal level of churn in your roster. Some of these can be chalked up to poor management or personality clashes. In many cases, however, the fault lies with the recruitment process. Inadequate hiring practices result in people being recruited without the proper skill sets or with incompatible personalities. Combatting these issues means confronting the systemic problems in your company head-on and with a critical eye. Establishing a strong corporate culture could be a big step toward solving excessive turnover, as can outsourcing recruitment practices. 

For these and many other steps to help keep staff attrition to a minimum in your small business or startup, take a close look at the accompanying infographic. It contains some solid, actionable advice as well as more information about the effects this condition can have on your organization. You already have enough to worry about — make sure you’re not allowing turnover to hinder your efforts. 

Author bio: Pam Verhoff is President of Advanced RPO, a talent acquisition company in Chicago, IL. Verhoff has extensive experience in building RPO businesses and solutions, as well as developing growth strategy.

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Debt Relief During this Coronavirus Outbreak

Coronavirus outbreak affects a lot of aspects of our life. Speaking from the White House Rose Garden, Donald Trump declared a national emergency on March 13 because of this coronavirus outbreak. Since then, we have started our journey on a war footing against coronavirus. We will let the medical science try to handle the vaccine, treatment, or other medicines for the virus itself. For us, we only need to learn more about any fact or fiction about help in your financial condition. There might be some debt relief help from banks, politicians, credit card companies, etc.

The President and the Congress are still talking about some unprecedented steps that can be taken to keep the economy stable. Here are a few things that you need to know from this emergency.

Most likely, you are going to receive a check from the government at the end of April. This additional emergency fund can be used for any of your emergency needs for the next few weeks. Always beware of any scammers during this emergency. No one from the government or others can ask for personal information, such as current address and social security number. If anyone asks you about these personal details, they must be scammers who want to use your personal information for any unknown reasons.The interest of student debt will be suspended. However, you still need to make payments for your debt. More information about this will come in the next couple of weeks.If you rent a federally subsidized house or you have a government-backed mortgage, you will not face foreclosure and eviction in this emergency. You can also get a little help, even though you are in the traditional housing situation. Some sheriffs around the country refuse to serve eviction notices from the banks or lenders.You get an additional three months for filing and paying your tax with no interest and penalty. The tax filing day is July 15 now.According to the water and electricity providers, you can get a little help from them. If you have some difficulties in making utility payments, the flow of electricity and water will be unlikely to stop during this emergency.If you have some problems with your credit card payment every month, you can contact the credit card issuers to talk about the best solution for you.

However, you have to be careful because not everyone can get a piece of financial candy this year. You may not receive this benefit when you are unable to demonstrate the financial harm from this COVID-19 outbreak, or your company is too large for getting the financial bailout, or you made too much money last year for getting free money this year.

When will I receive the Government’s check? Answer SiLoans expert.

According to the Treasury Secretary, the White House is planning to have a $1 trillion stimulus package during this emergency. The plan is to give $1000 checks to all Americans who have a certain income level ($75,000 for single and $150,000 for couples per year). There is still a discussion among the members of Congress, to determine the right amount of the check that will be delivered to all Americans. The President wants to get the cash ready by now because all Americans need cash now. The check is predicted to be delivered around the end of April.

Do I Need to Pay Credit Card?

Coronavirus affects the whole economy system abruptly. There are some conditions that you need to know in this situation, including, job layoffs have already increased very rapidly, the application of unemployment soars. all investments are in free-fall condition, and also service-economy workers are getting hammered.

During this situation, some credit card companies are trying to create some payment-relief programs for this situation. Apple and Barclays have already contacted their customers to skip their March payment without penalty, late fee, or interest. However, not all creditors can take the same action as Apple and Barclays. Many banks and also credit card companies have certain COVID-19 relief programs, but you still need to contact them for getting this advantage. Contact your credit card company, so you can explain your situation.

What if I Cannot Pay the Mortgage?

The President has already ordered the Department of Housing and Urban Development for suspending the evictions and foreclosures this April because all Americans get the coronavirus financial tsunami. All people with FHA-backed mortgages will get some additional breathing room during this situation. The Federal Housing Financial Agency also suspends the evictions and foreclosures for all homeowners with Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae backed mortgages.

If you have a loan from other lenders, you can still take advantage of this situation by contacting your lenders. Many lenders have COVID-19 relief programs for their customers. Different companies may have their programs and procedures. You have to call them for asking about the solution to this pandemic.

What do I Need to Do About My Student Loan?

Are you going to get a break on your student loan? The answer is no. The White House decided to waive the interest charge on any federally held student loans. However, you still need to make monthly payments for paying your student loan. Every dime you pay will go to the principal because there is no interest on your student loan during this emergency. If you can continue making full regular payments, your balance is going to shrink fast. It can be the best opportunity for you to pay off your student loan very quickly.

However, you have to be careful because different lenders may have their policies. You should contact your loan providers, to let them know about your condition. Although you cannot stop your monthly payment, you can still waive the interest. Waived interest may be a good thing for you who have student loans. It can be a huge saving for you, so you can pay off all of your student debts quickly in this outbreak. 

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9 Skills Needed to Be an Efficient Entrepreneur

A successful entrepreneur is a well-rounded person capable of wearing multiple hats. Here are essential skills needed to be an entrepreneur.

As an entrepreneur, passion and a relentless spirit can push you to start your business. Yet along the way, you’ll need a few things to help get you through the journey. Success stories from around the globe show there are skills needed to be an entrepreneur. 

Steve Jobs was passionate, a risk-taker and a visionary. Other entrepreneurs also show a ton of essential entrepreneurial skills.

Ready to be dedicated to your start-up idea or growing your business? Here’s a list of skills you can nature to succeed. 

1. Good Communication Skills 

Entrepreneur ability is more than crafting the next big idea. Clarifying your expectations can inspire your team and set you as a reliable leader. Given the need for communication in business, it could be the top skill needed to be an entrepreneur.

Your efficiency as an entrepreneur increases if you’re a great communicator. You need to present your ideas and plans to your team, partners and potential investors. With more clarity in your message, you’re likely to help people understand your concepts faster.

2. Swift Strategizing Skills

Entrepreneurs need strategizing skills to take their business to the next level. Besides the idea, you need an outline of goals and objectives. You must also align your goals with your broader vision.

An entrepreneur’s execution sometimes goes as far as your strategic skills. Your business needs direction and efficiency before you can lead it to profitability. With this entrepreneurial skill, you can analyze competition and identify your target market.

Strategic thinking can also help your business to endure rapid market changes. You can predict consumer expectations and identify new opportunities. In case of anything unpredicted, you can adapt your business. 

3. Creativity and Curiosity 

Many people argue creativity isn’t a skill needed to be an entrepreneur. But productive entrepreneurship calls for a creative and curious mind. You don’t have to be the next big thing but how you run your business matters.

Most business ideas are a product of curiosity. From the trolley to a self-driving car, you can trace any innovation to curiosity. Your business started with interest. Creativity comes into to polish your idea into a marketable product or service.

As a business expands, these two entrepreneur skills define your progress. If you’re curious, you can identify new opportunities and take less time to learn competitors. As a creative, you’ll add a unique touch to your operations, and the same will reflect on your products.

4. Openness to Collaboration

Collaboration is a vital entrepreneur skill. No matter your industry, connections with other businesses can be the difference needed for success. You’ll need opinions, partnerships, resources and business tools to go to the next level. 

As an entrepreneur, building alliances is your best bet to succeed. A new list of people and partners will ensure your business continues to expand. Collaborations can also help you access better systems to increase efficiency. 

Collaborating with multiple partners can become chaotic for some entrepreneurs. Many businesses are resorting to collaboration tools such as SharePoint to streamline communication.

Even managing hundreds of partnerships is now more comfortable than ever. Use this how to guide for more information. 

5. Crafty Sales and Marketing Skills

Another skill needed to be an entrepreneur is the ability to push your products. You may have sales personnel but you can promote your products with more passion. Sales also go beyond the routine aspects of taking the product to prospects.

Sales is an instrumental skill for entrepreneurs. There’s a lot of persuasions that goes into an entrepreneur’s daily tasks. As a start-up or growing entrepreneur, you’ll need to convince investors to stream funds into your business.

Attracting new partners to the company will also need some marketing skills. 

6. Sharp Focus

Focus is having a clear vision of your business goals. It’s one of the most critical skills needed to be an entrepreneur. Without it, your business could be among the 20% that fail in the first year. 

As your business grows, new ideas will pop up and the temptation to try them out can be irresistible. Successful entrepreneurs endure all the attractions and distractions on their journey. Until your business is sustainable, you shouldn’t risk over delegating or having ‘shiny ball syndrome’. 

7. Willingness to Learn

Entrepreneurs encounter new challenges and opportunities in their daily tasks. Most of the time, opportunities that arise early on in your business overwhelm and get the best of you. As you gain more skills and experience, you can overcome many challenges.

Learning expands entrepreneurial ability. Given you’re not born perfect, acquiring new skills is necessary to grow your business. For instance, if your communication skills are not the best, you can take a class to polish them.

8. Pressing Perseverance 

For entrepreneurs, success isn’t a guarantee. Few entrepreneurs can survive the ups and downs synonymous with new businesses. Successful businesses can overcome a thousand hurdles that stand on their way.

Perseverance is a trait needed to react accordingly to business issues. It’s a skill needed to be an entrepreneur who can accept the bad and the good in business. You can’t expect to become better without picking tough lessons on the way. 

Thomas Edison, the inventor of the light bulb, failed many times before his success. While young, he dropped out of school after his teacher labeled him as stupid. Despite the many failures a young age, he never gave up. 

9. Networking and Relationship Management

Another one of the essential skills needed to be an entrepreneur is networking. When first starting, family members, friends and relatives can open up your business to more people. But in the long run this won’t be the best strategy for expansion. 

Professional networks help you to take your business across the globe. You’ll likely meet with like-minded people who can help you grow your business. With an expansive network of professionals, you can learn from real experiences. 

As an entrepreneur skill, networking is a must-have for serious entrepreneurs. Besides your local contacts, link up with entrepreneurs online. 

Build These Skills Needed to Be an Entrepreneur

You’ve got access to a list of the skills needed to be an entrepreneur. Entrepreneurship is challenging throughout but with the right entrepreneur skills, you can overcome the blocks on your way.

Commit to learn and improve yourself as your business expands. That way, you can be more prepared for the opportunities and the challenges that may come your way.

For more tips and advice, check out our blog.

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Strategies from Gaming that can be Applied in the Business World

Being successful in the business world is about consistency, determination, trial and error, failures and starting all over. There are many misconceptions that a business is about building an empire overnight and making millions in a short time. To put this in a definition, a famous businessman stated that it’s not how much money you make. It’s how much money you can save, invest and how they work for your business.

When you think about starting or managing a business, you have to be aware of your skills and experience. In other words, it is about playing one’s cards right and taking the business to the next level. Discipline, a diverse set of skills and various strategies have to be deployed on the road to success. That will later help you innovate, grow and be effective in the current business environment. When you want to transform your idea into a product, you have the potential to become a self-starter and entrepreneur. Working in related industries will help you to understand the business culture, gain experience and exceed your expectations.

When you think about running a business like an online casino website, you might get confused about the core objectives and your business goal. However, once you go through the basics, you will figure out that all businesses, including this one, operate on making revenues and profits. Today, there are many casino websites that successfully implemented the best features from both worlds, and by that we mean the online and the land-based. Among the most popular are the online slots pages that offer various choices of games by different providers. To explain this in detail, check the new online slots at SlotsWise and have a look at the setup, design experience and provider offers. In the next sections, we will go through some of the themes from gaming into applicable strategies.

Assess risk and read people’s thoughts

Of course, we do not mean this literally. Surprisingly, a lot of successful entrepreneurs have that flair and are able to know what people think and what are their real intentions. Gaining this skill will make you confident, calm and one step ahead of your opponent. Knowing how your competition works and plans the next step will always put you one before theirs. When you are building a product or a service, make sure to include and evaluate partners that will endure the journey in its ups and downs. Managing a business also requires going through a risk assessment. If we suppose that you take risks in your life, you have to spread out your efforts and resources. You must calculate your moves and be unbiased when you make your decisions. Just like poker players – they assess the risks of making the next move which could make or break your business.

Strive to be a nurturing leader

The common mistake that people make when they become managers, team leads, or CEOs is to start bossing people around. Do not neglect your team and help each other grow and maximise their true potential. A business whose philosophy is focused on self-promotion and ego will result in a toxic environment, being competitive for the wrong reasons.

Relationships you build rely on your ability to bring out the best of others and help them move forward. If your business rewards individuals over the collective effort it is very likely that you will have superficial team communication. The idea is to build strong, professional and supportive relations among all members of the organisation. Creating a welcoming and safe atmosphere relates to the fun and safe learning environment in a classroom. The teaching model creates a sense of community. In other words, an ego culture can turn the good business relationship sour.

Core soft skills to start with

Once you have the idea, resources and financials, you must possess a set of soft skills. They refer to organising, public speaking, sales and problem-solving skills. As an organisation, you have to be familiar with how to organise important company documents, forms, contracts etc. Even though you will probably hire someone for that job, being familiar with every aspect of your work makes you thorough and interested. This way, you will know your data and see how your business progressed year after year.

Final words

Using different tactics and strategies to start a business will give you plenty of options. Analysing the behaviour of most successful players will serve you as an excellent study to see which patterns to look out for. Paying attention to details and being considerate when making decisions are crucial when you start to manage a business. Make a research about which approaches, tactics and strategies you can utilise to grow your business idea.

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