Author: anwaryusef

Anwar Y. Dunbar is a Regulatory Scientist. Being a naturally curious person, he is also a student of all things. He earned his Ph.D. in Pharmacology from the University of Michigan and his Bachelor’s Degree in General Biology from Johnson C. Smith University (JCSU). Prior to starting the Big Words Blog Site, Anwar published and contributed to numerous research articles in competitive scientific journals reporting on his research from graduate school and postdoctoral years. After falling in love with writing, he contributed to the now defunct Examiner.com, and the Edvocate where he regularly wrote about: Education-related stories/topics, Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), Financial Literacy; as well as conducted interviews with notable individuals such as actor and author Hill Harper. Having many influences, one of his most notable heroes is author, intellectual and speaker, Malcolm Gladwell, author of books including Outliers and David and Goliath. Anwar has his hands in many, many activities. In addition to writing, Anwar actively mentors youth, works to spread awareness of STEM careers, serves on the Board of Directors of the Friends of the David M. Brown Arlington Planetarium, serves as Treasurer for the JCSU Washington, DC Alumni Chapter, and is active in the Dave Ramsey Financial Peace Ministry at the Alfred Street Baptist Church. He also tutors in the subjects of biology, chemistry and physics. Along with his multi-talented older brother Amahl Dunbar (designer of the Big Words logos, inventor and a plethora of other things), Anwar is a “Fanboy” and really enjoys Science-Fiction and Superhero movies including but not restricted to Captain America Civil War, Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice, and Prometheus. He is a proud native of Buffalo, NY.

Easy Ways To Boost Morale In Your Business

Three focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money, Business/Entrepreneurship and Organizational/Management Discussions. To ensure the continued operation of your business, you want to maintain and, in some instances, boost your staff’s morale. Strong morale in most instances will correlate with strong productivity. The following contributed post is entitled, Easy Ways To Boost Morale In Your Business.

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Your employees should be the heart of your business. Without their hard work, you can’t succeed. It’s important that your staff know you value them if you’re going to keep morale high in your company. Low morale leads to employees ae less engaged, less productive, and more likely to leave for another job. One of the best things that you can do for your businesses pay attention to the morale in your company and improve it.

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Offer Perks

A simple way to improve the way that your team feels about your company is to offer good perks for working for you. A benefits package is always attractive, and a good one can improve employee retention.

Offer something that is actually useful, such as a salary exchange scheme for a bike or electronics, vouchers for childcare, or small business health insurance.

You could also less formal perks, such as rewards at the end of a tough project, like a team lunch or after-work drinks.

Communicate

You won’t be able to keep your team happy if you don’t talk to them. An easy way to improve morale is to communicate better. Make sure you’re checking in with your employees all the time. Ask them how they’re feeling, and about the energy in their team. Discuss any challenges that they might be facing and how you can help them. Do this through regular one-to-ones, or in informal chats. Communicating will let you keep an eye on what is working and what isn’t, allowing you to spot and take on any problems before they can grow.

You also need to communicate with your employees about any upcoming changes in your business. Make sure you do this well in advance, so people can feel as though they are being kept up to date and don’t feel as though you’re springing changes on them with no warning.

Remember that your employees are people and should be treated like that. Make them feel that their opinions matter and will be listened to, and involve them in conversations that affect them.

Get Feedback

If your business is struggling to make sales, then don’t struggle with trying to come up with a solution on your own. Instead, remember that you hired your team for their expertise, and ask for feedback.

By taking this route you may discover a new way to make improvements. As an added bonus, this lets them know that their input is valuable to you.

Make Firm Business Decisions

As the owner of a business, you can’t sit on the fence. You have to be decisive. Whatever issues come up, you need to take the time to weigh up the pros and cons, and then make a decision. When you’ve made a choice, stand by it. If something then goes wrong, be honest, learn from the mistake, and move on.

Your employees need to know that they can trust their leaders to guide them in the right direction. It’s far more productive to have a post-mortem on why something didn’t work out than to fail to do anything in the first place.

What You Need To Know About Settlement Agreements

Two focuses of my blog are Organizational and Management Discussions and Workplace Discussions. Unfortunately in some instances there are issues that need to be worked out in workplaces. At the end of these disputes, there needs to be some form of resolution and this comes in the form of Settlement Agreements. The following contributed post is entitled, What You Need To Know About Settlement Agreements.

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Being called in to have a discussion about your employment can be a shock, or it can be a relief if you’ve suspected something is up. A settlement agreement might be raised with you during a disciplinary matter, a redundancy, or if you have a made a formal complaint. There are lots of reasons that your employer might open discussions with you. Here’s what you need to know about settlement agreements.

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Settlement agreement is the new name for compromise agreement

Settle agreements used to be known as compromise agreements. This name was changed to better reflect what the agreement actually is. A settlement agreement is a way for employees to agree not to bring an employment law claim in return something, usually financial compensation, from the employer. Employers might prefer to use settlement agreements as a security measure to protect their reputation.

They’re not just for dismissals

A settlement agreement doesn’t mean that your employment has to come to an end. Maybe you have raised a grievance about your employment that your employer agrees is valid, but wants to keep confidential. Your employer might want to change the terms of your employment in a way that could be a breach of contract. They may offer compensation under a settlement agreement to do this.

There’s more flexibility than a tribunal decision

Whether the discussions are a surprise or you expected them, there are advantages to negotiating a settlement agreement which you might not be able to achieve through a process server or an employment tribunal claim. For example, as part of a settlement agreement, you might get a reference from your employer which a tribunal couldn’t order.

Legal advice is essential

If your settlement agreement is going to be valid, you must take independent legal advice from a relevant independent adviser. This could be a barrister, solicitor, trade union office or worker in an advice centre if they have certified by a trade union. The adviser must have insurance covering any claim that comes from the advice they give. Your employer might offer to pay for this legal advice, so the requirements of a valid settlement agreement can be met.

Claims you don’t know about can’t be covered

Your employer might ask you to sign a settlement agreement ‘in full and final settlement’. However, if there is a claim that could not have been known about at this time, an exclusion like this isn’t like to be successful.

Discussions will be confidential

If the settlement is being talked about in the context of ongoing employment tribal proceedings, or there is a dispute between parties, any negotiations will be ‘without prejudice’, and may not be referred to before the tribunal. Discussions that are not in the connect of proceedings or a dispute between the parties, then these discussions didn’t used to be confidentially automatically. However, these discussions are now allowed to be kept confidential for unfair dismissal claims, even if there are no existing proceedings or disputes between you and your employer.

Eco-friendly Home Construction Ideas

Two focuses of my blog are Home and Living Discussions and Home and Property Discussions. There was once a time when construction didn’t take environment into consideration. In 2020, being eco-friendly is now an important consideration. The following contributed post is entitled, Eco-friendly Home Construction Ideas.

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Are you building a new property or upgrading an existing one to be more in-line with modern eco culture and practices. If you are there’s a lot to think about. What materials will you use for construction, and how will you heat your home? Are you interested in building a home for the future? If so you will need the best steel foundations and SIPs paneling. An eco-home is definitely the future so make sure you build it with the future in mind.

Choose Your Location Carefully

When building your home or commercial property you need to consider its location carefully for the best eco-results. A south-facing home is far better than a west-facing one. It captures more of the sunlight throughout the day and gives you better energy efficiency. You will also want to build in an area that is not prone to earthquakes or floods, and that has excellent public transport links. Choosing the right locations can make all the difference to the success of your eco home and modern eco-lifestyle.

Consider the Size

In general, a smaller home is more eco friendly than a larger one. It might have less floor space but it’s easier to heat and cool is more cost-effective, and easier to manage in general. Think about it, how much does it cost to heat and maintain a large property where many of the rooms aren’t used. It’s better to build a smaller place and upgrade as needed. If your family or relative wants to stay, for instance, you can build an extension and optimize the property as necessary.

Building Materials

The materials you use to construct your eco-home with are all important. The materials after all will be responsible for temperature control and resistance to environmental pressures. SIPs panels are a favorite for modern eco-construction. They are easy to put together and create an air-tight highly insulated home. Choosing the best steel products for your eco home is also advantageous since you want to build the most effective time-tested foundations. Beta steel products are excellent for this type of construction and can be conveniently delivered anywhere.

Get the Insulation Right

It’s widely held that heating and cooling a home accounts for 50% of energy inefficiency in the home. Energy is lost through windows, doors, roofs, and leaks. These inefficiencies cost you money on your annual energy bills and increase your carbon footprints. If you’re constructing a new home ensure you use the latest insulation technology. For those upgrading their homes, there are also insulation solutions. Double or triple glazed windows are effective, heavy curtains and draft excluders also work well.

Energy Efficiency

The future is all about efficiency, and there’s a lot you can do to ensure your home is as green as possible. If you’re constructing a home from scratch consider all your options for heating. Install solar panels on the roof and consider newer options like geothermal heating. Although expensive at first, these technologies will save you significant sums of money over rather long term and reduce your carbon output. Inside, ensure all your appliances operate with an Energy Star rating. This is a modern energy standard for appliances that will ensure your home is optimal.

The Key Approaches to Setting Solid Business Rules

Two focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. There’s so much more to having a business than having a good concept/idea and making money. There are also some important rules that can help your operations along. The following contributed post is entitled, The Key Approaches to Setting Solid Business Rules.

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The notion of setting rules in business is such a simple one, but an essential component of realizing two different goals. Firstly, it’s to help any industry make faster decisions, but also to make better decisions, which results in a better bottom line. Many businesses believe that setting rules are straightforward, that you have just got to go for the big guns, such as improving security measures, but there is so much more to it than that. Whatever the experience you’ve got over the years, you’ve got to make sure that the whole idea behind setting rules is a solid approach. So with this in mind what are some of the key characteristics you need to incorporate?

A Developmental Approach
Whether it’s about code enforcement to guarantee that individuals follow certain ethical and practical standards or about incorporating a more streamlined approach, having a developmental approach with the right application is essential. So it could consist of incorporating rules that embody the business plan or the domain knowledge that is best maintained by certain business people, or it could require multiple levels of reasoning. In addition to this, there could be a wide variety of roles that change frequently. When you start to incorporate these aspects, you are burrowing under the surface of your business approach.

Developing a Sound Methodology
This is when you will be able to follow an approach that delivers a rational process, as well as one that delivers the results. Regardless of the methodology, you decide to incorporate the key components that will involve documentation and developing these rules in addition to discovering new ones and maintaining them. In total, these will all highlight your incremental success.

Writing Effective Rules That Maintain a High Standard
When we write effective rules, we need to use two important components. They have to be concise, but they also have to be atomic. Ensuring that your business rules are concise means that you only mention concepts that are absolutely essential. The atomic approach to business rules means the concepts adopted by the rule are as streamlined and simplistic as possible. This makes the rules easier to follow, but it also guarantees that there is little room for misinterpretation.

Ensuring It Is in Line With the Business Rules
When business rules are written they aren’t just used, but they need to be done in conjunction with the business to guarantee that the rules are not going to have “structural issues.” Once each component is verified, the business rules can be validated and edited to ensure that they do work. The one way to do this is to provide consistent and continuous monitoring of these rules. When you start to focus on this, you are embedding a necessity for change and development as part of the company’s overall culture. You can do this by incorporating operational analytics steps, but you can also make sure that your employees begin to question rules. Rules are in many ways meant to be bent and broken. But at the same time, you need to make sure that it is in line with a business plan. Setting it in stone is one thing but making sure the stone is carved on a regular basis is just as essential.

How To Refresh Your Technology For 2021

A key focus of my blog is Technology. No matter what kind of operation you’re running, you’re going to want to make sure you’re on top of your technology in 2021. The following contributed post is entitled, How To Refresh Your Technology For 2021.

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Photo by Josh Sorenson from Pexels

Technology has done a lot to improve our lives. Its many benefits include better healthcare, improved access to information, and the ability to start a side hustle from home. Sometimes, however, you can end up in a state of “technology overload”. If this sounds familiar, then perhaps it’s time to give your technology a New Year’s refresh.

Streamline your storage

If you have files scattered across all kinds of storage media, then corral them together in two places. That’s one main offline storage location and one online storage location. These will be backups for each other. Then set up two other storage locations (one offline and one online) for your fresh files.

As you go through 2021, make a point of keeping your new storage organized. Whenever you can, go into your old storage and clean it out. Ideally, by the end of the year, you should have all the files you need and want organized over two storage locations. If you don’t get that far, that’s fine, as long as you keep making progress.

Purge your hardware

The fact that technology is getting smaller all the time makes it easier to store as well as easier to carry. That’s great for small homes and mobile lifestyles. Sadly, it also makes it easier to toss old technology in a drawer and forget about it. If your home is slowly turning into a private museum for old electronics, it’s time to do something about it.

Unearth all your hardware and everything which goes with it (e.g. cables). Then work out what equipment you really need and what you really want. Figure out what needs to stay with it to make it work (e.g. memory cards). Then get rid of everything else. Hopefully, you won’t have to bin it. Some of it may even have resale value, if not see if it can be recycled.

Update and protect the hardware you keep

In some cases, updating hardware can mean physically as well as in terms of the software. For example, you may be able to increase the memory and/or storage capacity in your main computer. Mostly, however, it tends to refer to making sure that you’re using the most recent version of your operating system and any apps you use.

If you’re on a PC with Windows 10 installed but not activated, you’ll see a prompt to activate it. Since Windows 10 is the most recent version of Windows, you may want at least to consider doing so. If, however, you’re not a Windows 10 fan, there are other ways to remove watermark.

Other operating systems and applications will tend to send occasional prompts to update. It’s generally a good idea to act on them as quickly as possible. These updates often enhance the security of your device. On that note, the end of a year is a good time to check you have the best, possible security software on each device.

Delete unused accounts and apps

In harsh terms, any account or app you use has the potential to compromise your personal data. This means that you should only keep accounts and apps where the reward justifies the risk. If you’re not using an account or an app then you’re not getting any benefit from it so close it and/or delete it.

If you’re not sure, then try deleting an account or app and see how you feel about the result. If it matters to you then you can always recreate it/reinstall it. If you have dormant or semi-dormant email addresses, try setting up a forward to an account you use regularly. Update senders with your new address as, when, and if necessary. Give it six months or so and then close the account.

As a bonus tip, be very careful about keeping valuable emails in your main email account. If you lose access to the account, then you also lose access to the email. Use the “print to PDF” function to create a couple of copies of them and store them with your other valuable files. Do this at least once a year, more often is better.

Update your passwords

Updating your passwords means more than just adding 2021 to the end of them (or updating 2020 to 2021). Cyberattacks are now a serious enough threat that you absolutely must take strong passwords seriously. In fact, you should implement two-factor authentication as much as possible.

TFA combines something you know (e.g. a password) with something you have (e.g. a one-time access-token sent to your cell). It meaningfully increases the difficulty of hacking an account. Even with TFA, however, you must still use strong passwords.

How To Make Business Resolutions For Success In 2021 That Stick

Two focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. As 2020 draws to a close, it’s important to think about business goals for 2021. The following contributed post is entitled, How To Make Business Resolutions For Success In 2021 That Stick.

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As 2020 is drawing to a close, whatever you were able to make of it, now is the time to think of some resolutions to go into 2021 with and make your business a success. Resolutions are known to be hard to keep, and we will all have met someone who tried and failed to do something new as the calendar switched from December to January.

However, if you’re serious about growing your business, now is the time to create a plan for next year. Call them resolutions if that is something that makes sense for you, or call these ideas the next steps to your business growing and thriving if that sounds better. Whatever you call them, it’s crucial to stick to them. Here’s how to do it.

Image from Pixabay

Make Smaller Resolutions

One of the reasons that resolutions, or plans, fail is that they’re just too big. Although the idea behind them might be excellent, if you start too big you’re going to have difficulty in getting anywhere. You’ll simply overwhelm yourself and set yourself up for failure.

The best way to handle this issue is to look at the overall plan, the plan you would once have thought of as one single resolution, and split it up into smaller parts. Each one of these parts can be a resolution of its own, and you can work through them one by one, getting one right before moving onto the next.

All added up, these resolutions will help you reach your ultimate goal, but you won’t get lost along the way and you won’t start to feel burned out because you’re trying to do too much.

Get More Specific

By making your resolutions smaller, you can also make them more detailed, which will help you to complete them. Vague resolutions and ideas might seem exciting at first, but once you try to follow them through and realize you don’t know where to start or what your end goal is going to be, that excitement can soon fade away.

The more specific you can be, the more likely it is you will achieve your goals and stick to your resolutions to ensure your business is more profitable next year than it is now. For example, you might know that you want an app for your business. Rather than simply having a resolution that you’ll get an app, work out how this is going to happen – will you find an expert to help with app development? What will the app do? When do you want the task completed? Do this for everything you’re planning, and although it might take time, it will be worth it when you realize how much less confusing your plans actually can be.

Write Your Resolutions Down

It might seem a little ‘old fashioned’ to suggest that you should write your resolutions down as you are creating them, but despite the ‘old school’ nature of the process, it’s one that will help you achieve what you want to achieve, so it’s worth doing.

When you write down your goals using a pen and a piece of paper (as opposed to typing them out and saving them on your hard drive where you can’t see them) helps people stay more accountable to their plans, and gives them a higher chance of getting them done. This is a well-known psychological phenomenon, and it is simple to carry out so there is no reason why you shouldn’t do it to help yourself achieve your goals.

The paper with your list of accomplishments to be achieved over the coming 12 months (or whatever timescale you have given yourself) should be left somewhere you can see it every day. The front of the fridge is a good option, or you could stick it next to the bathroom mirror. Perhaps they are even on your ceiling above your bed. Read them every day and you will do more about crossing them off that list.

Make Your Plans Public

Many business owners don’t want to make their plans, goals, resolutions, or whatever you want to call them public. They would rather keep things to themselves because of the fear of failure. Telling everyone you’re planning to do something and then finding that you couldn’t, wouldn’t, or simply didn’t do it at all is embarrassing, and most people won’t want to run that risk. It’s not just business owners either; this is something that can be said of all goals, no matter what they relate to.

Although it can be scary to let people know about your plans, there are several reasons why it’s a good idea. The most important is that you will be held accountable. Because you won’t want to embarrass yourself or let anyone down, and because people will be interested in how you are getting on with your ideas, you will be more likely to do something about your plans. They won’t just stay in your head, as there will need to be some tangible evidence for the results.

Secondly, you’ll be able to get help. If people know what you are trying to achieve, they may be able to offer advice, or perhaps even physical help. You might be able to achieve your goal much more easily because of this.

Have The Next Step Ready

We mentioned right at the start that breaking your major goal down into smaller parts was the best way to get started. It’s crucial, then, that you always know what to do next once you have achieved any particular stage. Finishing one part of your plan and ticking an entire goal off your to-do list (which you should be reading every day) is great, but if you don’t then know what to do next, you may not be able to reach your overall goal at all.

Always have the next thing ready to be started as you’re finishing your current task. You won’t then find yourself at a loss and lose momentum – if this happens it can be very hard to get it back again.

Launching A Construction Business: Key Factors To Take Into Account

Two focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. A lucrative business to start is a construction business. It’s important to take all the factors into consideration though. The following contributed post is entitled, Launching A Construction Business: Key Factors To Take Into Account.

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If you have decided that the time has come to launch your own construction-based business, then you might be wondering about what steps you need to take to make sure that your new business does as well as possible. You’re keen to see your new venture be successful, but you might not be sure about how to ensure that is the case.

While you cannot guarantee that a business will be successful, what you can do is take steps to give your business a better chance of success. The question is, of course, what steps should you be taking to give your business the very best chance of success? When you’re just starting out, it’s not easy to know how you can ensure that your business is as successful as you hoped it would be. However, by taking note of the right advice, you can give yourself a higher chance of building a profitable and prosperous company.

Photo source: Pixabay

For everything that you need to know about giving your new venture the very best chance of long-term success, have a read of the tips and ideas below!

Ensure you have adequate insurance in place

When it comes to how you run your business, it’s important that you make sure that you have adequate insurance cover in place. One of the most crucial steps that you can take is making sure that you have properly protected yourself, your business, and your customers, and in order to be able to do that, it’s vital that you make sure that you have a secure insurance policy in place. While the added cost of insurance may not be an expense that you want to have to pay, if it means that you are protected should something unfortunate happen, such as a team member getting hurt while doing work for you, then it’s worthwhile having.

Think about suppliers

Another important aspect of running a business is making sure that you have a secure and reliable network of suppliers in place. What you want to do is take the time to source a range of suppliers to work with, and rely on for key pieces of kit that you require to complete different projects. For instance, you might want to source brick suppliers and pipe plug suppliers, so that whenever you need to place an order you know where you are ordering from and don’t need to waste time sourcing new suppliers.

Invest in the right tools

A key aspect of launching your own business is making sure to invest in the right tools and pieces of equipment for your business to be successful. If you are going to build a successful construction business, you need to invest in your company to get it off to the right start. You can’t run a construction business without having all of the key pieces of kit in place, so it is essential that you take the time to think carefully about what pieces of equipment you need to make your business a success.

Launching a construction business comes with a lot of hard work, time and effort, which is why it’s not an undertaking that should be taken lightly. Of course, that being said, with the right approach you can make launching a construction business far simpler and easier, and increase your chances of success at the same time.

How To Make Music More Than A Hobby

Three focuses of my blog are Art, Career Discussions and General Education. If you’re passionate about music, there is the potential to transform your hobby into a career. Many people have dreamt of making the jump but didn’t know how. The following contributed post is entitled, How To Make Music More Than A Hobby.

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If you’re someone who has always been passionate about music and loves to play a range of instruments and sing, then you might be wondering how you can make your love of music into more than just a hobby and build a career out of it. The important thing is not to just sit around and wait for your music career to happen if you are serious about making a success out of your passion for music, then you need to make sure that you are actively taking steps to build your career in music.

Wondering what steps you can take to do that and to move your music career forward? Below are a few tips and suggestions to have a read of and take note of!

Photo credit: Pixabay

Hone your skills

If you’re going to ensure that you give yourself the very best chance of building a successful music career, then it’s a good idea to take the time to hone your skills and improve in any areas that you are struggling with. Wondering how you can do that? Simple steps like taking a few more lessons, for instance, can help to make the process of honing your skills a little easier. You could also opt to learn more complex music by looking at music such as river flows in you sheet music, for instance. The more complex the music, the more you can hone your skills.

Start a YouTube channel

When it comes to getting noticed, it’s a good idea to consider starting a YouTube channel to help raise awareness of your music and sound. If you want to give yourself the very best chance of making an impact, it’s important that you think about how you can get yourself, and your music noticed. Starting a YouTube channel and building a following around that channel is a good step to take, and one that it’s worth considering. Setting up a YouTube channel is far easier than you might think, it’s just a case of knowing what steps to take, that’s all. Once you’ve got to grips with the process, it becomes far simpler and easier.

If YouTube isn’t your thing, then try TikTok or Instagram; even Facebook can be beneficial. Just ask Joey Armstrong, whose band released their first set of songs on MySpace!

Take every opportunity

To give your music career the very best chance of success, it’s important that you take hold of every opportunity that comes your way. This means that it’s important that you don’t turn down any opportunities that come your way, whether that’s playing at a friend’s wedding or taking part in a local concert, make sure to grab every opportunity with both hands. After all, when it comes to seeing success, building awareness is crucial and taking advantage of these kinds of opportunities can help you to do that. That’s why it’s important to take as many opportunities as you are offered.

There you have it, everything that you need to know about making music more than just a hobby. Hopefully, the guide above will help you to grow your love of music into more than just a fun pastime, and make it into a career.

Extra Security Measures Your Business Should Put in Place

The focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. An important part of your business is its security. Assuring that all of your security measures are in place will increase the likelihood of your business performing and operating for a long period of time. The following contributed post is entitled, Extra Security Measures Your Business Should Put in Place.

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If your business is facing risks of various kinds, it’s important to combat them effectively with the right security measures. If you’re currently in the process of looking for better and stronger extra security measures, we’ve got some ideas to discuss with you which should help you to get to where you want to be. Each of the tips below will make your business better prepared to deal with the security threats you face.

Carry Out Regular Risk Assessments

First of all, you should try to carry out risk assessments on a regular basis. When you do this, you’ll find that you spot problems with your approach to business and see where risks are being taken unnecessarily. From there, you can start to cut out those problems and address risks better. You don’t want to wait for something to go wrong or someone to get hurt before taking action.

Train Staff on Security Threats and How to Combat Them

Everyone working for your business should be aware of the security threats the business faces. When they have that understanding, they’re able to deal with situations better and combat security threats more effectively. All of that comes from the training you offer though. If you’re not going the extra mile to offer strong training to your staff members, they won’t be able to deal with these situations.

Secure Sensitive and High-Value Items

If you have anything in your workplace that’s of a high value or that contains sensitive information, you should do more to ensure these things are properly secured and protected. A safe that you can keep in the office and lock away your items in is a good option if you want to protect your possessions while the office is closed.

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Dash Cams for Company Vehicles

If you want to make sure that your fleet of vehicles is being used in a safe and secure way when out on the road, you need to find ways of monitoring and tracking their use. That can be done in a variety of ways, such as with a dash cam fleet system. You can also use GPS tracking systems to see where your vehicles are traveling. These things will improve safety and costs, so make the most of them.

Install a Modern Alarm System

Having a modern alarm system setup inside your business’s premises is a good idea. That way, you can be alerted to any suspicious activity, no matter where you are. With these modern systems, you can get alerts sent directly to your mobile device or whatever device you want. It’ll also help deter potential burglars thinking of breaking in.

Your business has a responsibility to do more to ensure it’s fully secure and safe. As we’ve discussed, the threats out there are developing and changing rapidly. And it’s the businesses that are not up to date and not aware of those threats that are most likely to be seen as easy targets. Don’t let that be you.

5 Ideas To Attract New Clients

Two focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. An important aspect of your business is attracting new clients to assure that your pipeline is continually filled. There several important keys to your marketing strategy. The following contributed post is entitled, 5 Ideas To Attract New Clients.

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When you’re running a business, you’ve got to balance your time between retaining your current customers and working to attract new ones. To help you attract new clients today, these five tips may come in handy.

1 . Offer incentives

To attract new clients to your business, it can be useful to offer incentives. Provide discounts for your new customers; simple actions like this can work wonders. With a discount or two you can lure in those customers who wouldn’t have otherwise made a purchase. Once these customers have made a purchase with you, ensure that you make a note of the offers which drew them in. By tracking customer purchases, you can improve your marketing efforts to retain their ongoing loyalty.

2. More networking

When you’re looking to boost your brand awareness, networking is a crucial step. You should start by joining networking organizations and your trade association. You can also network online using sites like LinkedIn or apps like Shapr and One Million Cups. As an entrepreneur, it can be useful to join up to organizations such as ‘The Association For Entrepreneurship’. Here you’ll find networking opportunities, education, peer mentoring, and community involvement.

3. Improve your content marketing

To attract new clients, one of the most critical areas to focus on is your content marketing. Focus on best responding to search intent and on ensuring that your content is educational and engaging. Video marketing is one of the best ways to engage new audiences, boost your credibility, and increase conversions. To present your business as authentic, it’s helpful to focus on user-generated content. When customers can see that their peers are enjoying your products, they’ll be far more likely to convert.

4. Appeal to international markets

To attract new clients, you should aim to appeal to international markets. One of the easiest ways to do this is to cater to international client needs. Here are a few areas of focus:

● Currency Exchange: First off, make it easy for international clients to pay using their own currency.
● Worldwide Shipping: Offer worldwide shipping options so that your clients are not restricted to only one geographical location.
● Languages: Ensure that your website, your chatbots, and marketing materials cater to different languages, depending on the markets that you are targeting.
● Software Localization: Investing in a software localization service is a great way to target new markets. It refers to the procedure used to adapt your software to cater to new languages and cultural requirements.

5. Review sites

Last up, putting your business on review sites is a great way to get some glowing testimonials. When customers are looking for products, one of the first things they do is to look at reviews and testimonials. Make it easy for them to find you on review sites, and ask your existing customers to provide testimonials.

To widen your reach and keep on growing it’s important to be attracting new clients all of the time.