Why Is Having a Construction Project Manager Essential?

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All construction projects, whether small or large, require the efforts of both skilled and unskilled workers. These workers handle lots of specific tasks. What’s more, successful projects require the efforts of a competent and experienced construction project manager. Without the construction project manager, you would expect the team to fail due to poor coordination.

Here are six reasons why having a construction project manager is paramount in real estate development.

Effective Planning

From the onset of the project, it is the sole duty of a professional within construction project management services to oversee the project. This person will also streamline the process by reducing costs, minimizing risk, and shortening deadline schedules.

The professionals within this industry, such as those at Gilliland Construction Management, will help execute the project from concept to completion.

Risk Management

Construction projects require effective management skills. This is chiefly because risks are inevitable in the project management world. In other words, things often go wrong.

For instance, the water supply system could get damaged during the construction work. Naturally, this generally happens at the most inopportune time. This could lead to water damage that would weaken the structure under construction.

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When this happens, a project manager is likely to call for emergency plumbing services. He or she would strive to have the problem fixed within the shortest possible time. Clearly, if your construction project manager has risk management skills, your project will recover sooner than it would in less capable hands.

Organization of Workers

The construction project manager is highly knowledgeable, skilled, and experienced. He or she knows how to find the right workforce for a successful project. Accordingly, it is the responsibility of the construction manager to recruit a team and assign duties.

The construction manager’s responsibilities may also include identifying reliable contractors. This person will know how to hire those who can be trusted to complete the work efficiently and on time. In short, the right manager will know who to bring in and at what phase of the project.

Effective Resource Allocation

Every construction project requires a combination of materials ranging from lumber and bricks to cement and sand.

Moreover, every project needs lots of equipment. However, an average individual wouldn’t know how to determine the quality and quantities the project will require. What’s more, only a skilled construction project manager will understand how to acquire materials and equipment economically in phases.

An experienced construction project manager has the capacity to ensure that all the project’s resources are used properly. The manager also helps avoid overestimating or underestimating construction materials.

Therefore, your project will have the proper materials, thanks to your construction manager. Moreover, your team will use these materials in the right quantities throughout the project.

Budget Management

Financial planning during a project is one of the most essential tasks. To that end, your project manager will evaluate your proposed project and determine if it fits your budget.

He or she will help to maintain neutrality. Therefore, your project will remain realistic and stay within your budget.

Based on a depth of experience with similar projects in the past, your project manager can help you make critical financial changes. These changes are part and parcel of any real estate development project. That’s because unplanned construction activities or expenses are common.

Monitoring

For all of these reasons and more, you need a professional on the ground. You need someone who will continuously monitor your staff as the project progresses. This continuous monitoring increases the chances of completing the project within the stipulated timeline.

Moreover, if any personality conflicts should arise within the team, the project manager is well-equipped to handle them.

Be Sure to Hire a Skilled Construction Project Manager

The success of your construction project depends on your having a skilled construction project manager. When you do, you can look forward to the successful completion of your real estate development project.

The post Why Is Having a Construction Project Manager Essential? appeared first on Business Opportunities.

source http://www.business-opportunities.biz/2019/02/28/construction-project-manager/

Industries That Thrive Even When the Economy Falters

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Recent history has shown that economic bubbles burst and cash booms go bust. Though the economy is doing well right now, it is helpful to look toward the future.

For those interested in opening up a new business, here are a few safe bets in the event of an economic downturn.

Law Firms

During the last recession, firms that specialized in bankruptcy, foreclosures, and debt collection were in high demand. What’s more, even a commercial real estate lawyer can find plenty of work when the economy sours.

This is because, generally speaking, people don’t hire lawyers when times are good. They tend to seek legal counsel during the less-than-ideal chapters of their lives. While it may seem vulturous to count on this as a source of income, lawyers provide a vital service to the community.

Therefore, so long as you’re doing your absolute best to represent your clients, there’s nothing wrong with viewing the practice of law as a recession-proof way to earn a good living.

Accounting Firms

No matter how hard hit the economy gets, the government will always collect taxes. For this reason, certified public accountants, whether self-employed or part of a firm, will always have to field tax questions. Clients will continue to turn to them to stay updated on guidelines and changes.

Additionally, accountants are a vital part of any internal audit. During a recession, the need for audits spike. That’s because companies try during these times to assess their waste and create leaner budgets.

Lastly, accountants can help determine financial risk. This becomes especially important in times of economic stagnation. It’s no surprise that accounting practices for sale tend to get bought up rather fast.

Education

During the last recession, the number of people returning to school increased. Young people decided to apply to graduate school or extend their undergraduate studies until the job market rebounded. Workers needed to brush up on new skills or change careers entirely.

Some funds for education tended to dip because of changes in property value and budget cuts. However, institutions of higher education did well during the recession. The government continued to guarantee student loans and financial aid. Displaced workers and the institutions that served them were given access to grants and other funds.

Given the fact people seek higher education when times are good as well, it’s safe to say that for-profit colleges are a secure business. This is especially the case considering the cost-effectiveness of online education options, which have become incredibly popular in recent years.

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Health Care

Regardless of the economy, people get sick. Though no job is recession-proof, nurses and other highly skilled medical professionals are always needed.

With this in mind, those who wish to start a business may want to seriously consider the medical field. Urgent care clinics, specialist medicine, and the countless products and services needed in the healthcare industry offer plenty of business opportunities for those with an entrepreneurial streak.

Choose an Industry That Will Stay Strong in Any Economy

We’re all hoping the economy stays strong. But what goes up is sure to come down. Given the inevitability of a recession at some point in the future, those who wish to start a business would be wise to focus on an industry that remains in demand in good times and bad.

The post Industries That Thrive Even When the Economy Falters appeared first on Business Opportunities.

source http://www.business-opportunities.biz/2019/02/28/industries-thrive-economy-falters/

Predictive Dialers: 5 Benefits You Can’t Afford to Ignore

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Thanks to the technology of predictive dialers, the job of a customer service representative has become more efficient and practical.

In a typical cold-call setting, an agent will have to physically punch in every number before making a call.

However, processes and services are becoming more and more automated. Surely there’s a more productive way for a customer service representative to make calls.

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Furthermore, there is always the possibility that an agent will accidentally key in the wrong number. This can lead to a wasted lead because the agent has called the wrong person. Moreover, the process itself can be time-consuming.

To make matters worse, the phone call might not go through even if the agent dials it correctly. Or an agent could get an answering machine instead of a live person.

This is where predictive dialers come in. A predictive dialer is software or a hardware device that automatically places calls. It connects agents upon live answer, and it can dial two or more numbers simultaneously.

Here are five benefits of predictive dialers you can’t afford to ignore.

Predictive Dialers Improve Agent Efficiency

Predictive dialers save agents time by eliminating manual dialing. Not only that, but agents no longer have to look up phone numbers.

This technology also connects calls to agents when a live person answers a call. What this means is that an agent no longer has to place calls and hit potential customers’ voicemails over and over again.

In short, during an age in which business owners value productivity, predictive dialers are making customer service representatives more efficient.

They Accelerate Sales

Because an agent doesn’t have to look up a list of phone numbers and manually type in each number, predictive dialers can accelerate the sales process. In theory, an agent will spend more time talking to real customers. Contrast this with an agent being idle while making phone calls and waiting for leads to answer.

Also, predictive dialers can predict how long an agent will be on a call. This is important because this technology can determine when to make the next call for the agent in question.

Moreover, predictive dialers use answering machine detection technology. This detects whether a call is being answered by a live person or an answering machine. Due to this feature, predictive dialers can lead to accelerated sales. That’s because an agent is linked up with a live caller, not his or her answering machine.

They Provide Cost Benefits 

Predictive dialers can save a company money in a number of ways.

For example, a company will need fewer outbound calls and therefore fewer agents. That’s because the software makes the calls as opposed to an agent dialing a list of numbers that may or may not reach a live person.

With this technology agents will spend more time on the phone with real customers. This means they’re talking to more leads that could become sales. What’s more, they’re also spending less time in idle mode. That’s because the software is constantly feeding them calls as opposed to the agents making calls manually.

In other words, more work, with possibly fewer employees, is getting done more efficiently.

They Ensure Your Company Stays in Compliance

An agent has to juggle a lot. Plus, it’s not easy to know when it’s legal to make a phone call. However, this technology ensures that your business makes calls within the mandated time window for each time zone. This supports the calling hours requirements for each US state.

Therefore, staying in compliance becomes second nature. It’s not something an agent has to worry about because the software takes care of it completely.

They Make for Overall Stronger Customer Service

Predictive dialers ensure you’re staying in compliance and meet mandatory calling hours. This ensures that agents contact customers at convenient times. That, of course, can have a positive effect on customer service.

Conclusion

Predictive dialers have many benefits that you really can’t afford to ignore. And the five benefits here are only the beginning.

The post Predictive Dialers: 5 Benefits You Can’t Afford to Ignore appeared first on Business Opportunities.

source http://www.business-opportunities.biz/2019/02/27/benefits-predictive-dialers/

Make Use of These 5 Tips to Keep Your Employees Happy

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In the current economic environment, it’s more important than ever for employers to keep their employees motivated and content. More and more people will hop from one job to another if they see something better on the horizon. Therefore, it’s important to know how to keep employees happy if you want to keep them at all.

Keep Employees Happy by Treating Them to Lunch

Treating employees to lunch will keep employees happy in two ways. First, it’s a good idea to treat them to a free lunch once a month to show that you value all that they put into the company.

It is also a perk that can improve productivity. For example, if your employees reach individual or team goals for the month, offer a second free lunch. Alternatively, award things like gift cards.

In any case, make sure that you hire a quality lunch catering service. In other words, when you’re offering a free lunch make sure your caterer will provide excellent food. After all, your employees have earned it. Plus, a tasty free lunch will make everyone happy.

Provide Great Benefits

A good benefits package will cost you extra, but it will be worth the cost when you’re able to retain employees for longer periods of time.

Perhaps you already give paid sick leave or vacation time. In addition, consider also offering 401(k)s and retirement classes. Even better, give a salary raise that’s tied to seniority.

Whatever benefits you offer, these perks will keep your employees happy and motivated. Moreover, they will be aware that you care for their well-being.

Over time, you’ll discover that great benefits lead to more productivity. That’s chiefly because you’ll spend less time and money on constantly training new hires.

Allow Flexibility

Although your employees should still put in at least 40 hours of work a week, it should no longer be a requirement that they do so at a nine-to-five desk job.

Instead, modern employers embrace the flexible schedules that technology can bring. Therefore, if your employees wish to telecommute, let them do so.

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Especially if they’ve shown that they’re consistent on the job, you can even allow them to set their own schedules. For example, a Georgetown University study from 2010 shows that workers who take advantage of flex time feel that their work-life balance has improved.

Other studies have also shown increased productivity when flexibility is implemented. In short, employees whose employers trust them with flexible schedules are happy employees.

Be Strong but Fair

You should always be ready to make a decision even if it may not be popular with your employees. For instance, if an employee seems to be less productive, you’ll have to take steps to correct the problem before it grows.

On the other hand, you also need to be able to trust your employees to do the right thing. Ask for their input or their ideas on a regular basis. Get to know them on a personal level while maintaining a professional tone.

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What’s more, when you have to be stern or punish someone, don’t be unreasonably harsh in your actions.

Set Clear and Reasonable Goals

Merely making vague statements about moving forward doesn’t help to improve morale. You need to give your employees actual goals. Moreover, they need to feel that they can accomplish these goals in a reasonable amount of time.

Clear and reasonable goals will give your workers a sense of purpose. Additionally, these goals will increase productivity and bring about significant reductions in turnover and absenteeism.

Finally, your employees will have an idea of their progress. They will also have an understanding of the resources they’ll need to invest to get the latest project completed.

Conclusion

So provide your employees with perks and benefits. Offer them flexible ways of working and strive to keep them motivated. When you do, your employees will be loyal to you. That’s because you will have found ways to keep your employees happy.

The post Make Use of These 5 Tips to Keep Your Employees Happy appeared first on Business Opportunities.

source http://www.business-opportunities.biz/2019/02/27/keep-employees-happy/

Prototype Machining: How Is It Used in the Automotive Industry?

8 Tips to Organize a Successful Trade Show on a Budget

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Trade shows are a phenomenal opportunity for businesses. For example, they give companies a chance to educate attendees about their business and industry. However, we don’t all have millions of dollars in our budgets to organize a successful trade show. Here are eight tips that will help you stretch every dollar of your budget. Moreover, you won’t have to sacrifice quality.

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1. Concept

Areas that you should freely discuss with your team include design, collaboration, and how you’ll use technology. For example, designing a concept that will blow prospects’ minds, like Steve Jobs did, is one of the most cost-effective things you can do to have a successful trade show experience.

2. Booth Space

Clutter is never a good sign, either in real life or in business. Therefore, use floor space optimally. The goal here is to ration space for exhibitions, whether you have a trade show booth rental or your own booth.

3. Frame Your Audience

Every business has its ideal audience, its “perfect customer.” Therefore, go after an audience in your niche by developing specific interest points. Moreover, learn to ignore other audience types. Your business is not for them. As a matter of fact, doing this can actually make it easier on your budget, depending on your ideal customer.

4. Solicit Vendors

How does participating with you benefit vendors? Show them. For instance, locate vendors who are specific to your niche. Share with them the theme of your event, your floor plan layouts, and more. Vendors who are interested in what you have to offer will be more inclined to jump on board with you.

5. Marketing Budget

No business owner enjoys wasting much-needed resources on promotion and advertising if all it does is amount to a loss of potential revenue.

Therefore, find out if your audience’s chief influencers are on social media. And if they are, forget advertising in the newspaper, or on radio and in trade publications.

6. Partnerships

Find out how many beverage suppliers are in your area. Your research can be as simple as hitting up the search engines and learning about relevant businesses in your area. Also, be sure to contact design students. Give one or more of them the opportunity to expand their professional portfolio. That is, ask them to create marketing materials and other promotions to help you have a more successful trade show.

7. The Right Venue

Not every trade show under the sun needs to be held at a convention center. Plus, such shows might be severely out of reach for your budget. Moreover, they might not match with your company’s mission.

Instead, look to banquet halls, hotel ballrooms, or other rooms that are available for rent by the public. As a matter of fact, you’ll find a variety of venues that you can participate in. Consider the correct ones where your brand can have a successful trade show. What’s more, be sure to book your space months in advance, if possible.

8. Free Media Coverage

One of the authors of The Art of Barter used to host a radio station. In the book, the authors tell about how they got to stay at an expensive hotel—for free.

How they did it was they offered the hotel an advertising spot on the radio station in exchange for a room for the night. The hotel manager agreed to the deal. Therefore, both parties profited from the principle of bartering.

You can use the same principle with local publications, social media outlets, and other forms of media. For example, perhaps you could offer the trade show organizer a discount for your services or products in exchange for free access to the trade show.

Follow These Tips for a Successful Trade Show Experience

Organizing a successful trade show on a budget is about more than looking for areas where you can cut corners. Instead, it’s about making your attendees and visitors feel as comfortable and enthusiastic as possible. As a matter of fact, this should be your main goal.

Therefore, aim to entice people. Create a spectacle. Have the guts to be memorable and yours will definitely be a successful trade show experience.

The post 8 Tips to Organize a Successful Trade Show on a Budget appeared first on Business Opportunities.

source http://www.business-opportunities.biz/2019/02/27/successful-trade-show-budget/

Your Guide to Running a Remote Company Successfully

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There is more to running a successful business than you might imagine. For example, perhaps you are now managing a brick-and-mortar office space. However, have you ever considered making yours a remote company as well?

Many in the world have not yet wrapped their heads around the fact that it is possible to run an entire company successfully from the comfort of one’s own home.

Are you one of these people? And are you now grappling with the idea of successfully running a remote company? Then read on.

Look No Further Than the Internet

Technology today gives us all the gateways we need to make money. This is true whether we’re working on our own or along with a team of people with distributed responsibilities, all from our homes. Those of us who work this way understand that we can be sitting in our pajamas while being on an international business call. However, we also understand what it takes to make this way of living and working a possibility.

In the next few minutes of your time, you will learn that the first steps of starting or running a business might not be buying or renting an office space anymore. Rather, what matters more is the availability of a reliable Internet connection and your own willingness to do the work.

So, let’s look at what you would need to do on a regular basis to ensure the best for your remote company.

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Hire the Right Team

One of the biggest advantages of running a remote business with a remote team is that there are no limitations over your choice of employees. In other words, you can select people from any part of the world who fit best with your company’s values.

However, just because you can hire people from anywhere does not mean that you can hire just anyone. The simplest argument here is that not everyone is a good fit for a remote work environment. Of course, many people can grow into working with a remote company. However, you have to carefully assess your requirements first.

For example, people who are self-motivated and disciplined are the best fit for a remote working situation.

Require Check-ins Every Day

When you run a remote company, this implies that all or part of your staff is working remotely. The biggest challenge this raises is that it becomes difficult to stay in touch with the progress and daily activities of your remote team.

This does not mean that you must micro-manage them. However, it does mean that it is important for the growth of your company to know that its human resources are being optimally utilized.

The simplest solution to this problem could be to have a digital platform in place for a daily target update. This can be over chat, emails, or virtual whiteboard software. This latter is advanced software that is great for collaborative working.

Therefore, be sure that your team knows that you expect them to send daily work reports.

Keep a Log of Everything

Many business owners and entrepreneurs make the mistake of thinking that they have to everything. Obviously, this is humanly impossible. Moreover, this way of thinking can also have a negative impact on your business. The best way to work is to delegate and then keep a track of the distributed tasks.

Furthermore, in remote work settings, it is even more important to keep everything documented and within a set process. Do this by simplifying communications over remote channels. When everyone follows the same set of processes, managing a team remotely becomes a cakewalk.

Leave It to Technology

The idea of remote work has successfully taken off. That’s because technology intervened in our lives, making it possible to work from anywhere and at anytime. As a result, technology now makes it possible for us to work interactively and collaboratively from remote places.

Therefore, if you’re planning to run a successful business from home, rely on that same technology. Turn to task management and team management tools. Moreover, take advantage of online whiteboards. These give a channel to coworkers for holding virtual meetings and informal discussions. Best of all, they allow team members to simply work together, no matter where they might be in the world.

Make these tools available to your remote teams for enhanced overall productivity.

Yes, You Can Successfully Run a Remote Company 

Starting or managing a remote company can seem overwhelming in the beginning. That’s only natural. After all, there are so many things to take care of when you’re starting any business, remote or otherwise.

However, a successful remote company is as much a possibility as is success for a single freelancer working remotely. In the end, your success will depend upon you and your skills. Just be sure to take advantage of the amazing technology at your fingertips.

The post Your Guide to Running a Remote Company Successfully appeared first on Business Opportunities.

source http://www.business-opportunities.biz/2019/02/27/running-remote-company-successfully/

Make Your Company More Efficient by Implementing Kanban

Businesses should always be looking for ways to implement new processes that create a standard operating procedure. Alternatively, they should be trying to optimize the procedures they have to make them more efficient. Unfortunately, change management can be a beast. Moreover, many organizations don’t know how to start making a procedural shift. Kanban provides answers to this dilemma.

Kanban is a process that development teams can use to continuously put out new data at an efficient-yet-sustainable rate. This gives their companies the best possible returns. Here’s how to implement Kanban in your company.

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Understanding Kanban

Kanban is a project management process targeted at developers. However, the philosophy can be applied to any business that requires project management protocols. The key philosophies can be summed up as visualization, limitation, and enhancement.

First, you must visualize the current workflow. Look to see how the various steps and components relate contextually to one another. What makes sense? What doesn’t?

Next, put limitations in place surrounding the work in progress (also known as “WIP”). Your aim should be to find a balanced workload that produces continuous work without becoming overbearing.

Finally, incorporate enhancements by implementing strict policies and procedures. Additionally, optimize to create a streamlined workflow, making changes as needed. Also, use kanban metrics and analytics to assess the effectiveness of the process. This will help you to make strategic decisions and alterations.

Take Baby Steps

The best way to fail at implementing Kanban is to try to make all of the related changes at once. This massive shift in procedures can be extremely stressful for all involved. Moreover, it will result in poor quality work and turnover, stalling production.

Instead, your goal when implementing Kanban should be to shift your business to work with the new protocol. This means that Kanban must meet the business where it currently is. This will make for an smoother transition.

To take baby steps in implementing Kanban, consider what aspects of the philosophies and transition you’d like to start. At the same time, educate your people about the upcoming change.

Take a positive angle and tell people how it will help them. This will make the transition easier for them to accept and even welcome. For example, you could select a few small projects to start implementing Kanban. Thereafter, slowly transition projects as they arise, leaving legacy projects as they are.

Complicate the Visual Process

The idea of complicating anything sounds counterintuitive. However, in a Kanban transition, it makes sense. Being able to visualize and assess a workflow is essential for helping a team learn the new way things are being done. As a result, it’s important not to overly compress and streamline the project management or Kanban board.

For example, a project management board on Trello might have three columns: to-do, in progress, and complete. This is a clean way to keep track of things. However, it doesn’t show all of the work that went on behind the scenes to move an item from one column to the next.

With the Kanban process, you need to see all of those steps broken out and visualized. When you do, every team member knows what their peers are working on. This improves efficiency. Also, it helps bolster team collaboration.

Stress the Importance of WIP Limits

WIP limitations are put in place for a reason. The philosophy behind this is that your team should only take on as much as they can do well. In other words, they should stop before they reach the threshold of diminishing returns.

A comparable analogy would be competitive weightlifting. It doesn’t matter how much weight you can put on your back if your form is unacceptable and you can’t complete the lift. Teach your team to respect the WIP limits from day one. In this way, you’ll set them up for long-term success.

Always Be Optimizing

Kanban isn’t a one-and-done implementation process. You should always be using the tools available to you to read the metrics and analytics. As you do, you will be able to make strategic adjustments to your workflow.

Therefore, treat every adjustment like a science experiment. What do you think will happen if you adjust this part of the process? Are there variables that could affect your success? What effect did the shift have?

Stress the importance of limitations and relying on your data. Then you’ll be able to change the face of your business through the implementation of Kanban.

The post Make Your Company More Efficient by Implementing Kanban appeared first on Business Opportunities.

source http://www.business-opportunities.biz/2019/02/25/implement-kanban-company/

How to Prime Your Home-Based Office Space for Productivity

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How to Improve Productivity in Logistics Businesses

All businesses take a lot of work, and it’s no different for logistics businesses.

Moreover, it is necessary to have clear vision to keep the orders coming in and the shipments going out on time. What’s more, since logistics is one of the fastest-growing markets in terms of demand, one can only be certain that competition is not going to diminish anytime soon.

Therefore, here are a few ways in which you can make your logistics business more productive and profitable.

RELATED ARTICLE: 5 THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING YOUR LOGISTICS PARTNER

1. Get a Great Fleet—Not Necessarily a New One

First, you need to decide which vehicles will help you rule the industry. Among transportation and logistics businesses, there are several niches. In other words, individual companies cater to various groups of customers according to their needs. For example, some customers will be shipping exhibition materials to international trade shows. Others could be moving product from warehouse to retail outlet.

Therefore, choosing the right vehicle will help you get the upper hand in your business. Take a look at these Renault trucks from France, for example. These are appropriate for bulky packages that need transportation over long distances.

2. Manage Your Back Office Responsibly

Your back office should be on point. That’s because this is the part of your organization where all the filing, packaging, and other crucial work gets done.

First off, you will need a good back office manager. This person must be able to work efficiently under stress. That’s because mistakes that logistics workers make in the back office can tarnish the company’s image. Therefore, mistakes must be avoided at all costs.

3. Provide Exemplary Customer Service

Word-of-mouth marketing will take your company far. However, the only way this can be true is if you maintain an excellent record of on-time deliveries.

Additionally, ensure that you have the capacity to respond to customer requests. Even better, try to add those extra touches to your service. Other strategies you can employ include expanding your contacts by approaching vendors. Also, work to have lower rates than your competitors by focusing on gradually increasing your profits.

Moreover, when you receive feedback, use it appropriately to better your services.

Maintain Your Schedule Diligently and Avoid Delays

Delays are not good for logistics businesses. Therefore, to avoid the risk of running into them, set delivery times that allow for the latest possible delays.

This strategy will ensure that even if things go wrong, customers might not even know the difference. This is especially true if their order arrives by the time they’re expecting it.

Keeping things on schedule might seem like back office work. However, there are other factors involved as well. Even if things don’t go as planned on your end, attempt to expedite the process for a smooth and timely delivery to your customer.

5. Have a Small, Skilled Team on the Job

Having a lot of workers reduces efficiency in logistics businesses. Therefore, you need to handpick your team well.

Moreover, the people you hire should be able to serve the company even when the situation is stressful. They should be people who will attempt to complete the process with diligence.

Additionally, automate your system wherever possible. Also, boost workers’ skills by requiring training. Insist on refresher courses for the people who are already on the job.

What’s more, it can be very effective to introduce a system of incentives. Researches conducted in 2016 showed that it is the effect of gifts that make kids productive in their work. The case is the same with studies conducted with employees. A personal touch and a token of gratitude can come back to you in a surprisingly beneficial way.

Moreover, reduce the time it takes to process shipments and send them to their destinations quickly. This is crucial. It not only makes your entire system of product handling more efficient but increases the number of packages that your unit can work on. This can only result in higher revenue.

Logistics Businesses Need to Be Well-Run

Maintaining records properly, recruiting a skilled group of people, and keeping the team well-informed are all key to achieving success. Be innovative with your work and give it your best effort. Slowly but surely, your company will emerge as one of the successful logistics businesses.

The post How to Improve Productivity in Logistics Businesses appeared first on Business Opportunities.

source http://www.business-opportunities.biz/2019/02/20/productivity-logistics-businesses/

Getting Married? 6 Best Tips to Cut Wedding Costs

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If you’re running a business and trying to plan your wedding at the same time, it probably goes without saying that you’re trying to cut wedding costs.

However, it often happens that wedding costs go higher than anyone expected. That’s because we usually stretch our spending limits to throw a lavish party and look our best. But it doesn’t have to be this way.

Spending wisely is the key here. You can still amaze your guests by planning a budget and cutting the costs of every little thing that comes along with a wedding. For example, you can opt for e-invitations, less expensive wedding dresses, putting a limit on booze, and the like. In this way, you’ll avoid spending more than you should.

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Below are some tips for trimming your wedding costs.

1. Send Digital Wedding Invitations

Digital invitations are one of the best ways to cut your wedding costs. Therefore, instead of selecting print invitation cards, send invitations digitally to your contacts.

This not only saves money but also saves time. That’s because you can email the invitations instead of addressing, stamping, and mailing them by hand. Therefore, you’ll have more time for the other activities that are clamoring for your attention.

You can also build up your website for the big day. There, you can upload details regarding venue, theme, dress code, and directions to the venue.

Consider Buying a Less Expensive Wedding Dress

There are many dresses available on the market. What’s more, many of them offer quality and design similar to dresses by high-end designers. For example, you might have your sights set on a designer dress. However, what if you could find the same designs and colors at discount prices?

For example, websites such as JJ’s House offer a variety of beautiful wedding dresses at affordable rates. You just need to explore a bit and do your research properly before purchasing your wedding dress. Above all, don’t purchase the dress for your big day in a hurry.

3. Use a Credit Card

Using a credit card will ensure that you do not spend more than you should on anything. That’s because the spending limit on your credit card will not allow you to spend too much and break the bank.

Moreover, you can use a credit card in purchasing cheap wedding dresses, booking the venue, booking a limousine, and even hiring an event planner.

4. Control Wedding Costs by Making Your Wedding an Intimate Affair

It’s not mandatory to invite everyone you know to your wedding. Instead, plan to have an intimate wedding and keep your guest list minimal. In other words, restrict it to only close friends and family. This can dramatically cut your wedding costs. What’s more, this tactic will also serve to keep your stress to a minimum, too. 

5. Cut Down on the Booze

Instead of offering your guests an entire bar with lots of wine, beer, and other alcoholic options, give them a signature drink or limited servings of beer. This will save you a lot of money. That’s because the prices of offering a bar are quite high.

Another idea to keep wedding costs down is to use smaller glasses and only serve wine.

6. Consider Second-Hand or Rented Dresses to Keep Wedding Costs Low

Renting dresses or even buying second-hand ones can keep wedding costs lower.

For example, there are department stores and websites that sell gently used dresses. These dresses have been used only once and are of good quality.

Therefore, if you are comfortable wearing a second-hand designer dress, this is one of your options. You will find a wide variety of such dresses at JJ’s house. Do check them out.

The post Getting Married? 6 Best Tips to Cut Wedding Costs appeared first on Business Opportunities.

source http://www.business-opportunities.biz/2019/02/20/tips-cut-wedding-costs/

Creative Minds: Hire Them to Expand the Horizons of Your Tech Business

Image Source: PublicDomainPictures on Pixabay

The market for tech brands is intense and competitive. Every entrepreneur struggles to grab the best talent. Fortunately, there is a large pool of candidates. However, hiring professionals on the basis of their technical skills alone is not enough. It’s a common myth that technology has no room for creativity. But that’s just wrong. Techies with creative chops can move mountains. To put it bluntly, creative minds can take your tech business to a whole other level.

However, if you want to cultivate a comprehensive and healthy work culture at your organization, you need to look for professionals with creative minds that balance out their technical education.

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Remember That It’s About More Than Just Coding

Tech entrepreneurs have to understand that it’s not all about coding and programming. On the contrary, great intuitive solutions require employees who think creatively and critically. That’s because these are the qualities that allow them to empathize with users and address their real pain points.

Therefore, when hiring for your tech business, make sure to look for professionals with a creative background. Cherry pick professionals who have a well-rounded education. That is, look for elements of art, history, psychology, and the like. People who have such aspects in their background will bring with them innovative ideas. They will have the passion required to breach convention and bring about change.

However, employing rock stars with creative minds isn’t a cakewalk. This is especially true if yours is a science-based organization and you want to hire people whose minds are synced equally between art and technology.

What’s more, when candidates with diverse backgrounds are applying for jobs you’ll need to trust your own instincts. Only is this way will you be able to choose those who can easily balance both sides of their brains.

Use These Three Tips

Therefore, let’s explore three major tips. Use these suggestions to attract creative minds to join your tech venture. Before long, you’ll be gratified to watch as they become the guiding angels for your company’s expansion.

1. Look for Talented Professionals Who View Problems from Different Perspectives

It’s obvious that a tech company sifting through engineering resumes will require experts with skills such as programming, coding, web designing, and designing. However, it’s a good idea to modify your approach slightly. In other words, open the doors and welcome different shades of the same talent.

For example, when hiring web designers, consider the visualization and imagination skills of a candidate. These skills can lend a lot of added strength to your team in the long term. Moreover, illustration skills can provide your team with amazing insights.

Similarly, when looking to hire a software developer, review not just his or her coding skills, but also examine the person’s perception of prototyping. That’s because, in order to build an amazing end product, it’s essential to visualize it first. Only then can your team create an interactive and functional mock-up, the preliminary sample of your final product.

Therefore, keep an open mind and evaluate diverse applicants. This will help you to build a unique team that is broad and unconstrained.

2. Consider Hobbies and Interests When Hiring Techies

Naturally, you need to develop a habit of screening and interviewing every promising candidate. However, remember to go beyond simply evaluating their grades, experience, and education. Let your recruiters do that level of screening for you.

You, on the other hand, should incorporate a different approach. Inquire about their hobbies and interests. Ask them questions about what they like to do in their leisure time. Or, ask what they do to relax at the end of a hectic day.

These insights will allow you to understand the candidate as a whole. Moreover, you’ll soon find that versatile professionals are more productive and efficient at work.

In addition, try to dig into the kinds of dreams they have for their lives. This will give you get an idea of their imaginative skills. Also, it’s not inappropriate to judge their spontaneity and presence of mind. These qualities can be great assets in solving complex problems.

3. Cultivate an Environment Where Creative Minds Can Thrive

Have you ever wondered why giants like Google have a culture that features intriguing structural design and a visually appealing setting? It’s not only because all of this looks cool. On the contrary, nurturing a creative culture automatically attracts people with creative chops.

Therefore, paint your organization’s walls with bright colors. Perhaps even incorporate the innovative and imaginative thoughts of your employees. In short, try to ditch the trappings of the traditional work setting, and experiment with more artistic details. These features will provide a strong signal for creative minds that your company respects their ability to think differently. It will let them know that they will be free to perform tasks with unfettered minds.

Open Your Own Mind and Hire Creative Minds

Finally, ditch the narrow mind set when hiring employees for your tech business. Instead, look beyond candidates’ resumes. That’s because people with creative minds will connect the dots and send your brand soaring high.

The post Creative Minds: Hire Them to Expand the Horizons of Your Tech Business appeared first on Business Opportunities.

source http://www.business-opportunities.biz/2019/02/20/creative-minds-tech-business/

How to Start a Business While You’re Still a Student

As a student you might have an idea for a great business. But what, if anything, should you do about it?

Certainly, there are many amazing types of businesses to start. What’s more, working for yourself has heaps of awesome advantages. One of these is flexibility and being your own boss. No longer will you have to report to someone who doesn’t have the same vision you have.

Starting a new business can be a bit scary for student entrepreneurs, though. That’s because in the real world, we’ve all heard about those businesses that were started with much enthusiasm but failed in their first year.

How Will You Earn Money While You Build Your Business Up?

Also, while your business is building up, you have to think about how you’ll be earning money for your living expenses. That’s because while you’re building up your client base, you might not be making much money.

Therefore, write up your business plans. Doing so will get you to think about your vision for the company you want to start. In other words, what do you want to achieve with your business?

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Your written business plan doesn’t have to be complicated. However, it will need to answer a few questions. For example:

• Who will your customers be?
• What problems do your potential customers have that your products or services will solve?
• How much money are you likely to make each month and in the next year, or in the next five years?

Market Research Is Imperative

Decide whether you’ll have a land-based business or an online business. Further, decide whether you intend to work from home or if you’ll rent office or warehouse space elsewhere. Compare costs for your possible options.

New business owners sometimes price their products lower than they should. This can lead to a host of problems. You can avoid this entire quandary by doing some market research before you begin. Doing this research will help you to work out your pricing. Additionally, it will help you to assess whether, in fact, your business idea will make money in the long term.

Moreover, look to the future and do a cost analysis that includes the possibility that eventually you’ll be spending some of your business earnings on salaries. This will force you to ask such questions as, “Are five people really necessary when two people can do the job?”

Know the Difference Between Variable and Fixed Costs

Eventually you’ll need to break down your costs into variable and fixed costs. For example, expenses such as rent, electricity, business insurance, and salaries are fixed costs. These are costs you have to pay every month. On the other hand, fuel and stationery are costs that you might have some flexibility with.

All of this analysis will give you a good idea of how much capital you’re going to need to launch your business. This can help you to understand whether you’ll need to apply for bank loans or other kinds of funding.

Keep Your Day Job for Now

One tip that can stand a student in good stead is to start up your business on the side while continuing in your current job. You’ll only need to do this while you get things up and running and establish some clients.

By holding onto your job awhile longer, you will spare yourself some serious stress. You’ll also give yourself the opportunity to start putting some of your business ideas into action. And even with all the teething problems that come with starting a new business, you’ll still be able to cover your monthly bills.

Save a Bit Before You Take the Leap

As a student, perhaps you have a side job such as being a waiter, working in a grocery store on the weekends, or looking after people’s pets when they’re away. Therefore, before you take the final leap into your new business, be sure to save some money. Your nest egg can help you to ride out those lean months that every new business experiences.

Starting a new business and being an entrepreneur is not for sissies. It’s a risk you’re taking, albeit an exciting one. It’s true that mixing student responsibilities with a new business is daunting. Moreover, completing all your assignments on time will be time-consuming. However, you needn’t despair.

Instead, take a look at RapidEssay. This is a writing service that will ensure you get all the help you need with composing and reviewing your assignments. This can free up your time so that you can concentrate on getting your business dream up and running.

Start Your Business Now While You’re Still a Student

So don’t succumb to the belief that because you’re a student you don’t have time to make your dreams come true. After all, you’re young enough and adventurous enough to turn your ideas into a full-time reality.

The post How to Start a Business While You’re Still a Student appeared first on Business Opportunities.

source http://www.business-opportunities.biz/2019/02/19/start-business-student/

New US Regulations Usher in Changes to Online Sports Betting

Like many other business owners, perhaps you enjoy sports betting on occasion. If so, the following article could be of interest to you.

All eyes of those in the online casino and sports book industry are currently pointed squarely at the US. Thanks to a change in legislation, the federal government no longer has the authority to rule on the matter of online sports betting. This presents huge opportunities for just about everyone working in connection with online gambling.

For example, those operating sports books around the world are hoping to set up shop stateside and tap that potential multi-billion-dollar emerging market. Meanwhile, players themselves will finally be able to take a punt of their favorite sports teams once again. Perhaps the most often overlooked group hoping to profit from such a legislative change, however, is the casino affiliate.

States Can Now Decide Whether to Offer Sports Betting Services

Earlier this year, the US Supreme Court amended existing legislation governing the operation of sports books. The 1992 Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) had previously stated that the federal government should decide on the matter of sports betting.

However, in May the Court found this to be unconstitutional. Consequently, PASPA has since been repealed. Several states, including New Jersey and Delaware, have already been busy drafting their own legislation. These new laws will allow residents to place wagers on sporting events. Moreover, as many as 32 other states are expected to follow suit over the next five years. Naturally, this presents a huge opportunity for many firms and individuals working in the industry.

Casino Affiliates Can Cash in on PASPA Repeal

Along with sports book operators, casino affiliates such as www.nodepositrewards.com are eyeing the new markets with optimism. Moreover, in such a competitive industry, advertising is all important.

Casino affiliates therefore provide a much-needed service to the sports betting and casino industry. They create carefully back-linked reviews, guides, and other relevant articles. Therefore, they can make or break both new and established sites. In turn, they receive a percentage of the deposits from players who sign up through one of the links they host.

European Affiliates Stand at a Competitive Advantage

Most of Europe is more than a little welcoming to sports betting. Therefore, many casino affiliates there have managed to hone their craft over the years. In short, they already provide ruthlessly efficient affiliate services. Moreover, they have cut their teeth in European markets. Consequently, they have all the necessary know-how to seriously milk the emerging US market as it slowly becomes regulated. A look at some facts and figures shows just how effective some already are at advertising the services of gambling operators.

One Russian Affiliate Is Already in Full Swing

One affiliate targeting the European market from Russia claims to be able to generate as much $2 million each year. Paruyr Shahbazyan operates a vast network of affiliate sites. His main site is called Bookmaker Ratings. It has pages facing Russia, Ukraine, Armenia, and the UK.

Of course, running such an empire isn’t cheap. For example, Shahbazyan estimates that his collection of affiliate pages has overheads of around $700,000. Such a figure might sound crazy for running a few websites. However, when you consider it versus his overall takings, he’s left with a tidy $1.3 million in profits!

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The markets that are open to Shahbazyan at present are estimated to be worth a huge $6.9 billion by 2020. If the Russian entrepreneur decides to target the US, he’ll be able to access a market that’s expected to be worth a staggering $67 billion eventually.

Well-Run Affiliate Networks Will Be Winners in This Game

Meanwhile, another affiliate claims his poker website empire rakes in as much as $500,000 each month. It is difficult to assess just how much of this is profit or if the claims have been embellished for dramatic effect. However, we have no doubt that a professionally run affiliate network can seriously rake in the cash.

With such established players in the sports book and casino affiliate game already, it will be difficult for US-based affiliates to compete. For example, Shahbazyan and other like him have immense capital at their disposal. Moreover, they also have a firm grasp on what works and what doesn’t in terms of creating advertorials for various gambling operators.

Such experience, combined with the cash flow needed to rapidly expand into the US market, will make it tough for any affiliate hoping to tap the massive expected market alongside the big names.

European Affiliates Already Adept at Targeting Different Legislative Approaches to Online Sports Betting

One thing that the PASPA repeal means is that each state will have to carve its own approach to casino regulation. This means that there are potentially 50 different sets of rules that affiliates will need to be familiar with. Fortunately for those affiliates already targeting the European market, such a diverse legal landscape is nothing new.

There just so happen to be 50 European countries. It’s true that they share some legislation handed down from the EU. However, in terms of specific gambling rules, each is different. In fact, once up-to-speed with the varying US regulations, the European casino affiliates will likely find it even easier to get a competitive foothold in the US market. This is because every state in the US speaks English. Compare this to Europe where there are around 25 different languages. To successfully target the entire European continent requires as many as 24 different writers and content creators. Meanwhile, to target the potentially larger US market, it could be possible to do it with just one.

A Final Word

The above factors combined mean that European affiliate service providers are hungrily eyeing the developments of each state legislature in terms of their approaches towards the PASPA repeal. After all, the opportunity to access a multi-billion-dollar market doesn’t come around often. And it is certainly not to be sniffed at!

The post New US Regulations Usher in Changes to Online Sports Betting appeared first on Business Opportunities.

source http://www.business-opportunities.biz/2019/02/19/regulations-online-sports-betting/

5 Reasons You Should Use Instagram to Promote Your Brand

Photo by freestocks.org from Pexels

Nine years ago, who would have thought we would come to use Instagram the way we do today?

Back then, many thought of Instagram as just another social media platform. Back then, people just used it to connect with friends, share selfies, and enlighten followers about their personal day-to-day endeavors.

Today, however, many brands, both large and small, use the platform to promote their products and services.

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Instagram has become a leading social media platform. That’s because it helps brands to form more personal connections with their customers. By educating themselves about consumer behaviors, businesses can use Instagram to connect with their target audience.

In short, smart business owners connect with both potential and existing customers on Instagram. Moreover, when they understand what tone to use, what kinds of visual representations to share, when to post on Instagram, and what hashtags best represent their brand, they achieve great results.

Here are some of the reasons why you, too, should use Instagram to promote your brand.

1. Connecting with Clients

Whether you are a new business looking to get recognition or an already existing brand looking to increase sales, Instagram should be one of your go-to avenues.

Statistics show that as of June 2018, the platform had more than one billion active users every month. Moreover, it has more than half a million active users on a daily basis. Of the total active users, an average of 70% are actively looking for a brand.

This gives your brand an opportunity to interact with potential and already existing clients through the Instagram news feed, ads, and stories. Moreover, since Instagram now receives ten times more engagement than Facebook, you can use Instagram to learn how your clients think and feel about your brand.

2. Generating Sales

What’s more, Instagram does more nowadays than just generate engagement and interaction with customers. It generates sales.

You’ll need accurate and captivating scripts as well as creatively displayed images when you use this platform. However, by using those scripts and images, you can run a promotional ad or lead generation campaign that targets a specific audience. This is sure to drive traffic to your website, leading to an increase in sales.

3. Tapping into New Markets

With hashtags, Instagram makes it easy for your business to reach new audiences and like-minded parties. A well-chosen hashtag will allow you to track people who are sharing content using that same hashtag. This gives you a ready-made audience of people who have similar interests. From there, you can create ads that are targeted to that specific audience.

In short, hashtags give you one of the best ways to find potential customers or clients not only in your own locale, but also worldwide. Therefore, they are a cost-effective avenue for growing your business.

4. Staying Informed About Consumer Trends

When you’re running a business and building a brand, one of the most important things to learn is that consumer behaviors change rapidly. Moreover, consumers are highly influenced by day-to-day trends.

With Instagram, however, you can easily track your customers’ trends. What’s more, you can get to know their preferences as well as what influences their purchasing decisions. Learn what sparks their interest and what they are most responsive to.

When you know the current trends, you can adjust your day-to-day marketing strategy. Additionally, you can change the content you share on the platform to reflect the trends of the day.

5. Keeping Track of Competitors

To stay on top of the marketing and advertising game, you need a daily update on your competitors.

That’s why it’s good to know that when brands are running campaigns on Instagram, they generally use hashtags. This provides them with a sense of trend ownership and identity. As a matter of fact, seven out of ten hashtags trending on Instagram are brand hashtags.

By watching a competitor’s hashtag, you can track what your competitor is doing. Moreover, you’ll even be able to see how well their strategy is working. This can be helpful during your own decision-making process.

You’ll also be able to track what a competitor’s audience is saying about the brand. Their sentiments can guide you to create a better selling and advertising angle with your targeted ads to the same audience. 

Use Instagram to Reach Your Target Audience

If you’re looking for an effective way to reach your target audience, you won’t go wrong if you use Instagram.

The post 5 Reasons You Should Use Instagram to Promote Your Brand appeared first on Business Opportunities.

source http://www.business-opportunities.biz/2019/02/17/use-instagram-promote-brand/

7 Reasons Why a Personalized T-Shirt Is Good for Your Business

Photo by rawpixel.com from Pexels

There comes a time in every business owner’s life when it’s time to think outside the box. A personalized t-shirt can be one way of coming up with something new. Here are several reasons why you want to have a personalized t-shirt for your business.

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1. You Can Share Ideas

The sharing of ideas is the currency of the 21st century, period. We, as people, love to exchange ideas with each other, whether they’re our own or somebody else’s.

What’s more, any product that can be personalized can be fitted with an idea. This makes for a marvelous time for the creative use of your ideas. To that end, use a personalized t-shirt to promote that idea.

There is an unending stream of stencils, printing areas, and colors that you can use. In other words, you can make each printed t-shirt wholly unique.

2. Display Your Core Message and Mission

If you’re in the business of social justice and conscious change in your community, then you definitely have a mission behind the founding of your company. Businesses that make a practice of participating in awareness raising in their community will love personalized t-shirts.

For example, does your company participate in marathons, telethons or sponsorships? If so, a personalized t-shirt is a must for your company.

You can design custom t-shirts however you want. Then you can use them to declare your support for an important cause.

3. A Personalized T-Shirt Won’t Cost Much

Can you think of a relatively low-cost way of informing people about your business? Marketing campaigns, when executed improperly, can end up costing you a lot of money. However, a personalized t-shirt will be less expensive than other options of localized marketing and advertising.

4. Use Them to Promote Your Brand

Customizing your t-shirts is a great way to promote your business. Moreover, doing so will build the awareness of your brand in people’s minds.

To build awareness around your brand means displaying the meaning behind your logo, your slogan, and so on. Your brand gives you an opportunity to show and tell people what your business is all about.

Here are a few reasons why boosting your brand will increase your bottom line:

• Lowers the cost of acquiring customers
• Increases current customers’ loyalty
• Re-captures leads you might have thought were lost

5. Market Your Personalized T-Shirt Online

Celebrities, even YouTubers, are coming out with clothing lines of their own these days. Even a lot of brands that don’t have anything remotely relatable to fashion come out with their own clothing lines.

One big reason is that clothing lines are an effective marketing tool. With a personalized t-shirt, you can market your brand to more people.

6. Customize a Personalized T-Shirt for Valued Customers

Here’s an idea: Customize a personalized t-shirt for your valued customers. This will make them feel special, which in turn will inspire them to continue doing business with you.

You could also hold monthly competitions for your customers to send in designs for t-shirts. Whoever sends in the best design, as chosen by your staff, wins a prize.

7. Boost Team Morale

You know that when a team works together to get things done, a business runs smoothly. This is why team-building exercises are such a big hit. Bonding experiences, which give us a chance to know each other on a deeper level, strengthen relationships.

There is no denying that the “awesome factor” helps bring people together. The importance of morale in the workplace cannot be understated.

Conclusion

These are just a few of the benefits that come from designing and ordering a personalized t-shirt. As always, you will never know what happens until you take action. Never forget to look for interesting ways to engage with your customer base. And remember that stylish fashion will always be one way to do so.

The post 7 Reasons Why a Personalized T-Shirt Is Good for Your Business appeared first on Business Opportunities.

source http://www.business-opportunities.biz/2019/02/17/personalized-t-shirt/

Your Business Should Invest in Video Content: Here’s Why

Photo by Artem Bali on Unsplash

In 2019, we’ve moved into a digital world. If you have not already begun to integrate digital marketing into your business, you run the risk of falling behind. Moreover, implementing video content in your marketing will help you stay ahead of the competition and reach new customers in ways that other marketing just can’t.

There are many reasons why businesses shy away from video. Some companies may feel they don’t have the proper budget, time, or equipment. Others just don’t know what content they’d like to produce. In 2019, these reasons no longer have to be a hindrance. Creating high-quality video marketing content is easier and cheaper than ever. It’s no longer reserved for large corporations. Here are a few good reasons why you need to invest in video content.

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You Need to Use Video. Here’s Why

1. Video Content Builds Trust

According to recent studies, 79% of consumers would rather watch a video than read content. A full 84% of consumers are likely to make a purchase after watching a video. In short, video reaches customers more effectively and tells your story in an interactive way.

2. It Helps Customers Understand Your Offering

Using video to explain a product, service, or concept adds a level of personalization that you normally do not achieve with more traditional marketing efforts.

3. You Will Reach a Broader Audience

Video content is more universal. Moreover, it does not have to be specifically tailored to reach individual groups. Video content is sticky and tends to withstand the test of time more than traditional marketing efforts do.

4. Your Site Will Rank Higher

Video marketing helps your content rank higher, and for more unique keywords than non-video content. By making your videos shareable, the likelihood that the video will go viral increases. Just including one whiteboard animation on your site, for example, will improve traffic and boost your rankings. To put it bluntly, Google ranks video content higher.

5. It Will Increase Conversions and Sales

Knowing that customers are nearly twice as likely to purchase from you after watching a video should be enough reason to convince you of the benefits of video. Users are also far more likely to share a video they enjoyed. What’s more, they are more likely to remember that video.

6. Video Content Improves Staying Power

It has been reported that more than 80% of people remember what they see online. Video is a powerful method to cut through the noise and make your content stand out.

7. Video Content Appeals to Users’ Emotions

Video is an excellent way to appeal to someone’s emotions. A happy video may put them in a good mood, whereas a more melancholy one may evoke strong feelings of sadness or nostalgia.

8. It Helps You to Connect with Mobile Users

Desktop users have a short attention span, typically only sticking with content for two minutes or less. The attention span of mobile users is more than double that, with many devoting up to five minutes to watching a single video, depending on the device they are using.

Take Advantage of the Many Benefits of Using Video Content

These reasons illustrate the many benefits of investing in video content. If your business hasn’t started implementing video into your marketing strategy, what are you waiting for? Start engaging more users now.

The post Your Business Should Invest in Video Content: Here’s Why appeared first on Business Opportunities.

source http://www.business-opportunities.biz/2019/02/17/invest-video-content-marketing/

Is Your Site SEO-Friendly? Make Sure It Has These 5 Things

Thanks to kalhh on Pixabay for the image

Maximizing the potential of your website is going to take some planning. Fortunately, if you focus on making it SEO-friendly, you will be a step ahead others.

Implement good SEO practices and use that to bolster other elements present on your website. Your site will then make an everlasting impression on visitors. Plus, it will keep them coming back for more.

If you want to enhance website performance, get more conversions, and boost engagement, include the following elements on your SEO-friendly website. Before long, you’ll be happy to notice that your site ranks higher, too.

1. About Us and Contact Us Pages

Well-made websites that rank high always have two things: an “about us” page and a “contact us” pages.

The moment you have visitors coming to your website, you need a way for them to pick your face out of the crowd. That is, you want them to be able to connect with you beyond the website.

When you have an about us page, you can tell visitors a little about you. What’s more, you can describe your mission and let your audience know what your the website is going to do for them. Also, it gives you another chance to use keywords and phrases that capture the attention of both humans and algorithms.

Similarly, a contact us page improves the user’s experience, which is another thing that algorithms favor.

2. Subscription Calls-to-Action

While the button itself is not going to get you any brownie points in SEO, a well-placed, well-promoted call-to-action, or CTA, will help to increase traffic and improve your reputation. Use CTAs in emails, newsletters, landing pages, and throughout your website. Used well, CTAs will help you to build domain authority and cultivate a subscribers’ list.

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3. Mobile Experience

In 2018, the number of global mobile phone users was a whopping 4.68 billion. Moreover, according to Smart Insights, more Google searches took place on mobile devices in 2018 than on any other device. These searches took place in 10 countries, including the United States and Japan.

To top it off, in 2017, 50.3% of all web traffic was generated by mobile accounts. This means that if you don’t yet have a mobile version of your website, you’re stuck in the Stone Age. Therefore, instead of weakening your ranking and compatibility, prioritize making that mobile site look stellar.

4. Appropriate Tags and Headings

Search engine optimization is more than keyword stuffing, as most specialists will tell you. SEO is also formatting your content correctly. Fill out the alt-text fields for images. Also, add tags to blogs and meta tags to descriptions. Moreover, use your H1 and H2 headers effectively.

All of this helps algorithms comprehend the content on your website. In short, this means faster indexing and higher ranks for you.

Another reason alt-text and tags are important is for users with handicaps or those with poor Internet connections. In the event that they can’t see images or other multimedia for some reason, alt-text can help deliver your message.

5. Testimonials

Even if you only have a single testimonial, use it proudly.

With an SEO-friendly site, you’ll be more likely to get the attention you need. However, having something to back up that attention is going to make SEO work better for you. What’s more, it will also increase the return on your investment, or your ROI.

In short, reviews and referrals drive traffic. They provide proof that you’re a legitimate entity.

Additionally, be sure to use Google My Business if you have a physical location so people can leave reviews there, too. You’ll gain more local visibility when you do.

Make Your Site More SEO-Friendly and Watch Its Performance Improve

SEO and web design are interlaced. What this means is that the content and elements on your site need to be blended with SEO. All of this will make your website more visible and more enjoyable.

Remember these five things that every SEO-friendly site should have, and your site’s performance will improve in no time.  

The post Is Your Site SEO-Friendly? Make Sure It Has These 5 Things appeared first on Business Opportunities.

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