Mohit Tater's Blog, page 576

Do Businesses Actually Need a Phone number in 2019?

In this era, a
business, however small it is, needs a dedicated business phone number,
separate from that of the proprietor. Nowadays, clients prefer to call in to
make requests or get instant quotes over the phone. And so, it would be a huge
inconvenience and a massive loss in revenues not having a separate phone number
tied to your business.

Furthermore, the real benefits of having a business phone number in 2019 outweigh the mere thought of not having one. Sure, you would say that clients can simply write an email or choose to contact you via social media.

But nowadays, having a business phone number is a norm; a generally accepted one similar to owning a performance management software. Its absence of a can easily dent a business’ reputation and lose out clients to its competitors.

A phone is sure to make the business look
professional

Having a phone
number can mean the difference between getting clients and not. A business with
a dedicated line is more likely to earn the trust of a potential customer out
there, especially when the client urgently needs a product or a service. And
the customer will dial up the number and request for the goods or services
quickly.

See, in such
instances, it is the phone call that has portrayed the business as a
professional, trustworthy alternative. This reason makes more sense in those
businesses that involve intangible goods and services which can be completed
online. It also appeals to more startups whose reputation is still growing and
hasn’t amassed a significant number of customers out there.

A phone number will tell customers that you are
reliable

Someone would
say that in this age where customer support can be offered through social media
like Twitter or Live chat and similar functions, phone numbers have no
importance anymore. What they most definitely ignore is that a hotline for
customer queries is still the most effective since the response is instant and
one-on-one.

Someone calls
in, make a request or ask a question and get an answer straight away. Better
yet, in an event where nobody answers the call, most companies ensure that a
message is left and the request is handled swiftly. Many voices over IP phone
services actually have this functionality as they know that every call in a
business is essential.

Alternatives to a traditional landline phone

An ordinary
phone number is perfect, although most of today’s businesses prefer having a
mobile or computer VoIP solution instead. It allows one to schedule calls,
queue them or make conference calls, set up a ‘find me’ feature and send and
receive free text and fax messages.

However you need to make sure that you have a really robust internet connection to constantly make voice over IP calls as a business. Make sure you search for the best broadband deal to not only get the best price but a reliable connection – nothing is worse for a business than having a phone outage.

Quite frankly,
Voice over IP phone services can have a profound effect on the success of a
business. Customers will call, the business will communicate with suppliers and
business deals will be sealed without unnecessary hassles. More importantly, it
is what every medium and large business is using today!  

The business will communicate to the outside
world efficiently

As a business, you can’t write emails or send out social media messages to another company or your suppliers when you need to make an urgent request. In fact, it will appear odd and unprofessional to annoy them with long messages when a phone call would have helped.

The post Do Businesses Actually Need a Phone number in 2019? appeared first on Entrepreneurship Life.

10 Tips to Get Started with Social Media Marketing

According to Oklahoma City SEO expert, this is a new age marketing avenue which uses any of the social media channels to publicize a product, service or individual.

In most cases, a social media site will direct people to a main website or blog of a business. It can also be used as a website, with content that is aimed at promoting a service or product.

At the moment, Facebook is the most used social media platform. Other favorites include Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube.

Why You Should Use Social Media Marketing?

– Social media has managed to capture the attention of millions of people. There is a high chance that your target audience is spending a lot of time on social media so you should seek their attention

– With social media, you have the opportunity to spread your marketing message as fast as wildfire. Social media is the fastest way to go viral today

– It is influential and according to research, many are likely to buy or use something that was recommended to them on social media.

Beginners Tips for Social Media

So you have decided to get onto the bandwagon and do your marketing on Social Media. Here are 10 tips to help you get started.

Select the Most Appropriate Platform

There are a number of social media platforms, but it would be silly to try to have a presence on all of them. As a beginner, it is best to select just the most fitting one or two and then focus your energies on them.
You can borrow a leaf from your competition. See which platforms your competition is using best and probably has the most success and go ahead to select that one. In most cases, Facebook may have the best results, but make sure you do your research to see which is best suited for your kind of business.

Make Genuine Connections

This is in regards to your profile on social media. Most platforms require that you have a profile picture, ensure you use a real picture of yourself or company. Let people know they are dealing with a real person or business. The information you provide should also be genuine, for example, address – do not give a false address or try to be funny about it, people can easily be put off when they feel you are trying to hide who you really are. Previously, connecting with the influencers was indeed a difficult job. However, with the use of guest blogging, you can easily connect with the target audience within the shortest time.

Post and Share Captivating Content

You probably need to know your audience to be able to do this, or it may take a bit of trial and error. Captivating content will make people think you are relevant and they will continue to follow your posts, share your content and take your recommendations seriously as well as go to your website or blog for more interesting stuff.  Captivating content could be advice related to your business, funny pictures, informative videos even information about discounts can attract people.

Link to Your Website

People need to be able to go to your website in order for you to make that call to action. Have links from your social media page to your website. You may need to read up on how to create the link for the different platforms.

Put Share Buttons on Your Website

To complete the linking, let people be able to share interesting content they find on your website to the different social media sites. This will also help to create viral recommendation of your website as well as your platform. Guest blogging can help you grow your social media network by increasing the sharing of your content. It will boost the lead generation efforts and increase the number of followers on your profile.

Post Consistently Without Being a Bother

Learn to strike the balance, you do not want to be forgotten, but you also do not want to be the fellow that won’t shut up. You can decide to post once or twice a day and make sure it counts.

Make Friends

It is social media, so please be social. Find people in your related field and follow them. Engage with them and show that you are there to mingle. This will also help you in finding great content worth sharing. Be strategic about who you follow or make friends with, influencers will prove useful. You can also seek partnership through the community and leverage your authorship skills. The only thing you need to do is to remain active in the community, comment, share other people’s posts, and email your potential clients. If it is possible, you can invite the influencers so that they will contribute to the content you are providing on your blog.

Like, Share, and Comment

Do not keep it one-sided, if a person follows you on twitter, return the favor and follow them too, if someone likes your comment, do the same for them and share their posts too. When you submit your content to a blog where there is so much social media activity, you will see so many shares for your blog post once it gets published.

Balance the Back Scratching

This is particular to Twitter and Pinterest, you do not want to have an uneven number of followers or people you follow, that may send some red flags about you. One of the best marketing strategies which content creators can take part in is guest blogging. If you are looking for the best way of growing your brand and reaching your target audience, you need to begin contributing to other blogs in your niche. Every time you tell someone to contribute to someone’s blog, they do fail to understand any importance.

Learn the Rules and Follow Them

Do not get caught up in underhanded tactics to succeed in the game, know what is acceptable and stick to that. When in doubt, consider hiring Oklahoma City SEO expert to help your website achieve better visibility.

About Ashly William:

Ashly William is a freelance writer, with years
of experience, creating content for varied online portals. Her content is
published on many national and international publications. She has expertise in
writing about Business service and Education.

The post 10 Tips to Get Started with Social Media Marketing appeared first on Entrepreneurship Life.

How Digitization Can Help to Get Rid of Paper Clutter

Do you
prefer a clean desk or a messy one? How well maintained is your desk currently?
People often pile countless papers on their desks or shove them in file drawers
and forget about them. Hence, finding important information is quite a hassle.
Even if you have a well-maintained filing system, the amount of time it takes
to retrieve specific documents takes away from time spent on more important
tasks.  To make matters worse, paper also
has a negative impact on the environment and if there is ever is a natural
disaster, you may end up losing all your data!

What’s the
solution? Go paperless because doing so has so many benefits. Let’s talk about
them in greater detail and see how digitization can help reduce paper clutter.

Understanding the Concept of a Paperless Office

A
paperless office is exactly what the name suggests—a corporate setup in which
paper usage is completely eliminated. Not only does this help you reduce costs
but also use advanced document management systems that improve workflow
processes, productivity, collaboration and efficiency. Of course a transitory
process is involved which includes converting your existing paper based
documents to digital format. Typically the best option for this task is to
outsource to a document imaging company that has experience helping
organizations with “digital transformation”.

Why Go Paperless



Lower Carbon Footprint

This is
one of the most notable advantages of reducing your paper usage. Using paper in
lower quantities means that more trees will get to live, which reduces
pollution and preserves exotic wildlife.

Easy Access

If your digital documents are stored on a cloud platform, you can
access them from anywhere even if you aren’t at the office. Plus, the documents
can be reviewed on mobile phones and tablets, so you can quickly look up
important information. Improved
Collaboration

Internal documents
are often needed by multiple people at any given time. Digitizing documents
makes them easily accessible to a number of employees at the same time,
streaming collaboration. This also improves task management flow, making it
easier for you to track and monitor different operations and tasks.

Easier Management

Keeping
paper based documents in an organized manner can be a hassle. But document
management systems eliminate the problems associated with maintaining paper or
microfilm records. Any information that you want can be looked up quickly.
Also, all the data is backed up automatically decreasing potential risks.

Security

Digital
documents are stored on secure servers and databases that are encrypted using
advanced technology. Moreover, user access controls are often deployed, so only
authorized individuals can access data that is required for their job.

Reduced Costs

Digitizing
documents help you reduce tangible and intangible costs. Since you don’t need
to print documents, you save on paper and ink costs. You also can save storage
space because files aren’t needed anymore.

Eliminating Paper Usage

Though you may not be able to completely eliminate your paper usage, you can still reduce it significantly. The first step usually involves transferring your current paper-based documents to a suitable online location, which can either be your local network server or a cloud hosting solution. While you can do this on your own if you have a suitable scanner, it is best to utilize professional document imaging services. They’ll do a much better job than you, producing higher quality digital documents and taking less time to do so. Generally, it is best to use a document management tool to organize all the digitized documents.

When all
your documents are in a digital format, tag them so that you can find
information whenever you need to. You could also store them in different
folders to make navigation easier. Once digitization is complete, keep the
following tips in mind so that your paper usage remains minimum.

Recycle

What do
you do with all the documents that you have scanned and don’t need any longer?
Send them away for recycling – in this way, you remove the clutter, and
preserve the environment.

Opt for Email Bills

Many
services and organizations let you choose between soft and hard copies for
bills and receipts. Go with the former choice whenever you can. This way,
you’ll reduce paper arriving at your office.

And by the
way, when you start getting bills online, you can track them easily and can set
reminders for paying them. In some cases, the bills can also be paid
automatically if you select the option. 

Use a Notes App

How many
notes do you leave on your desk, the cabinet or elsewhere? Get rid of all these
notes, as well as the pen and paper that you use. Now download a notes app and
save all important points or to-do items on your phone. Look around, and you’ll
find apps that are compatible with your mobile and desktop, allowing you to
access the notes whenever needed.

Other Helpful Tips



Share all documents via email or a central online repository rather than printing them every timeKeep digital copies of your business card.Avoid paper based bank statements, and use electronic statements instead.Ask vendors to send you invoices via email.



More about Document Management Systems

Document
management systems are used for storing and retrieving digital files. These
tools are designed to help you create and maintain a proper document flow
throughout the process. An ideal system should have the following features

A powerful search function so that you
can find whatever you’re looking for quicklyA file versioning module that
maintains the latest as well as previous file versionsAccessible on mobile devices

Do you now
want to go paperless if you haven’t already? If you do, you will reap the
benefits and pave the way for organizational growth.

Author Bio:

Brandon Harris is the vice president of Smooth Solutions founded by his father Michael Harris, who has been a pioneer in document scanning industry for over 35 years. A leading Document Scanning Company in Lodi, N.J., they are experts in providing document scanning services, and affordable book scanning services and Convert Microfilm to Digital. They scan paper files, large format drawings, digitize books, convert microfilm to digital, etc. Prior to that, Brandon owned and operated a small bakery. Other than working to grow and improve his business, he enjoys spending time with his wife, daughter, and family.

The post How Digitization Can Help to Get Rid of Paper Clutter appeared first on Entrepreneurship Life.

Your Choices for the Best Business Endeavors

Clear
your mind, doing small jobs, maybe whitewashes the house, to start from a fresh
and clean physical place. The idea can come at any time, so buy a notebook and
always keep it with you.

Investigate the competition

Some
companies publish financial statements, organization charts and reports on the
Internet. You can also take a look at the competitors secretly, putting what
they offer to the test. Fancy yourself customers.

Prepare a concise but complete business plan

He must trust you and anyone who reads it. Define goals and potential for success, with figures for turnover, profits and customers. With the Dynamics Report now you can have the best deals available and that also within the budget that you have.

Determine if you are solvent

The
quick ratio is the simplest accounting data to calculate, and perhaps the most
important. It is equal to the total of the money you owe the most to those you
have in the bank, divided by the sum you owe your creditors.

Don’t forget about taxes

There
is VAT on purchases and turnover. Quarterly tax payments must be made. VAT can
strengthen or damage liquidity. And delaying the payment of taxes or
contributions you deduct from your employees’ salaries is a thoughtless choice.

Emphasize the benefits of the product, even with the
name

He
must clearly communicate what you do. Choose the colors of the brand well,
green refers to the environment, red to aggression and blue to cold. Register
the trademark at the Chamber of Commerce.

Choose direct sales

When few orders are enough to reach the goal; when the product-service is complex or tailor-made; when you operate on a local basis.

Use a distributor

In
this way you reduce the risk of finding yourself with outstanding debts. A
distributor must be paid by all customers. And when he succeeds, reward him.

Make a list

At
the end of the day, list the things you need to do the next day. But devote at
least 20% of the time to administrative matters, the disposal of requests and
the resolution of problems.

Charge the price of an extra if you have to pay extra

For
example, environmental protection laws complicate life when it comes to
packaging. If you take care of deliveries, collect the used packaging and
recycle it, or reuse it.

Choose a specialist accountant

If
you work with companies similar to yours (or the one you plan to reach), they
will have a greater sensitivity and more consistent with your real needs.

Get a commission

If
the deal you are proposing is too big to handle, let your supplier make a
direct agreement with the customer, then ask for a commission.

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Ultimate 6 Tips for Hiring the Right Employee

Hiring
the right employees might be a hard task for any company. Employee recruitment
is about managing stress in a way you will always be judged on your selection
and there is no possible outcome to please everyone in an organization.
Candidates might play double face in the interviews and show who they really
are later on, when the decision of keeping them is taken. To avoid these
situations from happening, there are a few rules you can use to hire the right
person for your business every time.

Look for someone who is committed to the career

You want
to hire someone who is committed to his or her career. Hiring employees who are
constantly switching careers or jobs, just to get higher salaries is not what
you want for your business. If an employee is not loyal to a company, hiring
that person could definitely become a problem. Check the candidate’s previous
job durations and if he or she is switching jobs constantly, this is definitely
not the right person for the position. However, it is important to understand
the candidate’s curriculum and the reasons behind the duration of her or his
stay in certain positions. Understanding and not assuming is the first step to
find a suitable person.

Compatibility

The company’s culture is something to consider at this point. You want to find an employee that fits with the way your business works. Check whether the candidate has social skills to get along with others, especially with current employees and managers. Ask the candidate how he or she is managing current business clients to judge compatibility skills. Willingness is the mandatory feature a candidate must show. If a person cannot manage to get along with his or her current clients or previous bosses, it is not such a good idea to hire that person. Once again, understand the candidate and observe his or her behavior.

Test for the excellence and analytical skills

Don’t
evaluate candidates merely on what they show on the resume. A resume can
contain lies but the behavior is harder to hide. Try to use different
methodologies to assess the learning and analytical skills of the candidate. A
candidate with confidence is great, but what is needed is a person that has the
educational requirements.

Keep improving the hiring system

Always focus on getting to know the capabilities, knowledge, skills, confidence, attitude, and potential of the candidate. Avoid the magic bullet questions or irrelevant ones. When advertising a job, make sure that all the requirements for the position are clear: responsibilities, experience, knowledge, and education. Involving other people in the recruitment will also always be a good idea since more opinions can help to find a suitable candidate. Discuss these strategies with the people you trust and keep on improving them.

Hire interns

Once your
intern is done with the traineeship, hire him or her. You already know the
strengths, weaknesses, skills, knowledge, attitudes, behaviors, confidence
levels and value of work. Picking the intern might have been hard already, so
now all you need to do is hiring him or her and motivating the person the
always progress.

Getting social with the candidates

Do you usually ask personal questions to your candidates? If so, you should immediately hold your horses. It is awkward for both parties and it will lead you nowhere. Instead of that, your human resources should make an analysis of the candidate social media profiles. This can be a good strategy, especially for tech businesses. You can find many things about the candidate on their social media presence. Make your research and avoid the personal inquiry to the candidate. Social media tell you more than he or she will do in an interview.

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Why Your Business Needs a Sick Leave Policy

All employees know that dreaded feeling of
a sniffle or a tickle in the throat. Getting sick is never fun, but when
there’s work to be done it can be challenging to pick between coming in to the
office or prioritizing one’s health. Sick leave is a form of paid or unpaid
leave that gives ill or injured employees time to heal. But how many sick leave
days an employee gets, whether they’re paid or not, and reasons for taking it
can vary across regions and companies. That’s why it’s important for businesses
to have clear sick leave policies in place.

Keep
Germs at Bay

As an employer, it can be frustrating to have fewer employees working than you expected. It’s usually in everyone’s best interest to keep sick employees at home though.   It could be a liability to have employees operating machinery while taking medications that cause drowsiness. Having sick employees around also increases the chances of the sickness spreading, which may result in more employees needing to take sick leave.

Regional
Rules

If your business spans across countries, states, provinces, or various regions it’s important to know all the local regulations and guidelines surrounding sick leave. All businesses are legally required to comply with relevant laws, so it’s a good idea to know what they are. The different government rules can be confusing for employees though, so it’s a good idea to have a company wide policy in place that clarifies and establishes the sick leave rules for your business.

Flexible
Working

These days, more businesses are realizing the traditional 9-5 work schedule in an office doesn’t work as well as it used to. Many jobs today can be done through telecommuting. If an employee is able to do their job from home, consider allowing that as an option until they are well enough to return. That way the work still gets done and the germs don’t spread.

Provide
Clarity

Most employees don’t enjoy informing their boss that they won’t be able to make it into work, no matter how sick they’re feeling. When there isn’t a clear policy in place, confusion makes this that much harder. Employers should establish a clear sick leave policy that outlines things such as how many sick days an employee gets, what they can be used for, whether or not the company will require medical notes, whether sick leave is paid or unpaid, and what happens if they use too many sick days. Just make sure to consult with your HR team to ensure all company policies surrounding sick leave comply with any government regulations!

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Understanding What You Can Deduct on Your Taxes

You’ve probably heard the terms, “You can write
that off,” or “You can deduct that,” but many people aren’t sure exactly what
that means, what tax deductions are and how they work. When it comes to your
finances, they’re incredibly important as they can save you a significant
amount of money so it’s a must to understand the ins and outs.

What is a Tax Deduction?

A tax deduction is a dollar amount that you’re allowed by the IRS to subtract from your adjusted gross income (AGI) that reduces your taxable income. The lower that amount, the less you’ll have to pay the tax man. An article in the USA Today reported that the most common tax deduction is student interest, followed by tuition and fees, but there are hundreds of ways to use deductions to lower your tax income and a lot of people don’t understand how to take advantage of them.

Claiming Tax Deductions

There are generally two ways to claim tax
deductions, either itemizing them or taking the standard deduction, but you
can’t claim both. The standard deduction is a flat rate, with the amount
qualified for depending on the filing status. If you itemize, you can take any
of the hundreds of tax deductions available out there that you’re qualified to
take. The more you can deduct, the less your tax bill will be.

To understand what you should do, you’ll want to
determine if the standard deduction is less than the sum of what your
deductions would be if you itemize. If the standard deduction is more, it’s
generally better to take that deduction and it will be much quicker to do your
taxes. If you do itemize it will probably take a significant amount of time and
you’ll have to be sure that you have proof that shows you’re entitled to all
those deductions.

How to Know What to Deduct

Because there are so many deductions, it’s best
to talk to an accountant or other tax professional as they have the expertise
to guide you as to which you can legally use. The sooner you understand which
are available to you, the easier it will be to take advantage of them. Many
people think that they’re only for the wealthy, but there are lots that are
aimed toward lower- and middle-income taxpayers.

Itemized deductions, as mentioned, are
deductions from your adjusted gross income, kind of like a receipt. They’re
things you’ve paid for that have an impact on your tax status. While there are
hundreds of possibilities, the most common are:

Job expenses that your employer doesn’t reduce like uniforms or union duesStudent loan interest that your parents pay if they don’t claim you as a dependentSelf-owned business expenses like office equipment and anything that’s necessary for performing your businessDonations to charityPersonal property taxesHome mortgage interest

Of course, there are many others, such as the expenses on Nashville townhome, and it’s important to find out any of the restrictions and limitations around them by speaking with a professional. If you deduct something you weren’t entitled to, it could cost you big down the road.

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What Type Of Person Is Best Placed To Start A Business

Starting a business can be a fulfilling way to
make a living but it is not all gravy! There are things that can make this a
real challenge and take away from other aspects of your life. Therefore it
might be a good idea to look at what sort of person is best placed to start a
business, be successful and actually enjoy doing it.

It might seem like a great idea, and it
usually is, but it’s worth fully looking into whether or not is actually for
you or not.

Does
Your Family Life Allow Time For It?

Running your own business is time-consuming,
there’s no way getting round it. This is the most common thing that business
owners say in advice to prospective new-comers – that it always takes up more
of your time and energy then you thought it would.

So it’s essential to consider your family life
as it is and if it’s going to be worth the sacrifices you are going to have to
make to ensure a business flourishes. Talk to them in advance and get them on
board for the time you’re going to have to spend away from them initially.

Are You
Sufficiently Self-Motivated

It’s one of the best things in the world to be your own boss! Who wouldn’t want that set-up? You can structure things your way and not be bound by someone else’s often conflicting methods and preferences. But there are advantages to having a boss, you’ve got someone there to make sure you are on schedule and getting things done in the right way. If you are out there on your own then you don’t have that safety net any more, and you will need to rely on self-motivation a lot more.

What
Are Your Qualifications For Running The Business

Okay, so you don’t always need a specific qualification to run all businesses unless you need a specific licence or permit. But he more knowledge you have of business then surely the better? It has been said that if you hold an MBA then your earning potential is greatly enhanced. This is because of the increased knowledge and know-how you bring with this type of qualification. Therefore it might not be a bad idea of looking at what it takes to apply for one of these before starting out.

Are You
Prepared To Give Up The Time

It’s a time-consuming line of work, the dream is that with enough hard work you will be able to oversee the business and work fewer hours. However, the truth is that only 5% of business owners work less than 30 hours per week, so it’s more likely that your time is going to be consumed by the running of the business – be ready for this.

Why Do
You Want To Do It

Why is a good question to ask, and whatever the answer is will running a business provide that, isi it money, prestige, or just achievement, these are all things a business can provide you and should be weighed up against the risks of failure when deciding if it’s right for you.

Good luck on your journey!

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New Study Shows Small Businesses prefer keep Online Marketing in-house

Marketing has always been a challenge for
small businesses. Due to budgetary constraints and a limited workforce, small
business owners are forced to make tough decisions on what marketing ventures
are worth their time. And according to a new study by HigherVisibility, many
SMBs are turning their attention online.

The study asked 1,000 small business owners with a website for their business about how they handle their website, social media, online advertising, and more. And according to the study, 88% of respondents said that they believe having an online presence is important for the success of their business.

What’s
even more interesting, however, is how small businesses approach their online
efforts. Whether it’s managing social media pages, building a website, or
advertising online, small business owners would rather keep those tasks
in-house. According to the study, 57.4% of business owners handle their own
social media pages. 58.6% of owners either used a website builder or designed
their websites themselves. And even when it comes to online advertising, 44.4%
of business owners manage their paid search campaigns.

These
statistics are notable for a variety of reasons. For starters, it shows how
many hats an entrepreneur has to wear when starting a business. Not only does
it require financial expertise while starting a business, but it also requires
marketing know-how once your business is up and running. And according to the
study by HigherVisibility, many small business owners might be lacking the
knowledge to truly succeed online.

For
example, when asked for the primary goal of their website, 38.1% of respondents
said that their site was for “general brand awareness.” Another 3.7% didn’t
even have a true goal in mind when it came to their website. With such vague
expectations, can any small business hope to find a large measure of success?

They
also seem to harbor unrealistic expectations when it comes to their online
marketing endeavors. 68.8% of SMBs would expect “significant results” to their
SEO within 1-3 months if they were planning to hire an SEO company, and yet
44.3% of respondents only budget $1-499 per month when it comes to their online
marketing efforts.

Small
businesses need to maximize their time and money in order to achieve steady
growth. And according to this study, it seems like SMBs are aware that they
need to utilize online marketing, but lack the knowledge to do so effectively.
And with competition online growing each year, small businesses who figure out
how to utilize their online presence will have an advantage in the years ahead.

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5 Things You Need to Know Before Working for a Rideshare Company

So, you want to make a little money — or maybe a lot of extra money — working for a rideshare company, do you? Well, for starters: you’re unlikely to find yourself scrambling for work for the next, oh, 20 years or so (if not much longer). That’s because Goldman Sachs expects the global rideshare industry to reach a whopping $285 billion by 2030. And Energias Market Research echoes this bullish forecast by projecting that the rideshare industry will enjoy a CAGR of 16.4% between 2018-2024.

However, before you slap that Uber or Lyft
sticker to the back of your car and start raking in the cash, there are five
things you need to know before you start working for a rideshare company:

Not all rideshare companies are the same.

Many customers may not know — or care —
about the difference between various rideshare companies, but you definitely
need to do your homework before you sign-up. Each has its own rules and
regulations, and the compensation also varies.

You’re not going to get benefits or perks.

The rideshare company (or companies) that you work for may refer to you as a partner, a team member,  and a critical part of the business collaboration and customer service puzzle. Those are nice designations. However, none of this means that you’re going to be an employee — which means, among other things, you aren’t going to get benefits and perks, and you won’t have the same legal protections offered to employees, and you’ll be responsible for paying tax on your income.

You need to change your insurance.

Your current car insurance policy won’t cover
your rideshare activities, which means that you need to upgrade your policy now
— not later. Failure to do so could make you personally liable for any
accidents or injuries incurred by your passengers or anyone else. The good news
is that more insurance companies are getting in on the rideshare action, and if
your current insurer doesn’t provide the coverage that you need (or it’s
ridiculously expensive), you can shop around for a better deal.

Rules differ from city to city.

Once you become a rideshare driver you’ll
need to become very well versed in geography, because various cities have
different rules on whether and how rideshare companies (and subsequently their
drivers) can operate. Make sure you know what you can do and where, to avoid
paying a hefty fine, and possibly getting kicked off the roster.

You need to keep your car really clean.

This may not seem like breaking news —
after all, you know that you need to keep your car clean once you become part
of the rideshare circuit. But unless you’re one of those people who lovingly
cleans your tire rims with a toothbrush, you may be (and probably are)
underestimating how much time this will take, and also how much it might cramp
your personal style. For example, those fun car rides with your ultra-shedding
dog might need to halt; or at least, you’ll need to invest in a really good
portable vacuum cleaner.

The
Bottom Line

Working for one or several rideshare companies could be profitable and enjoyable. But as with all other endeavors, you need to go in with your eyes open and make decisions based on facts; not assumptions. The more you know ahead of time, the better off you’ll be — and ultimately, the more money you’ll make. 

The post 5 Things You Need to Know Before Working for a Rideshare Company appeared first on Entrepreneurship Life.