Two of the focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. As business owner, it’s important think about how to create innovative products and services. Doing so will keep you at the forefront of your area and assure continued patronage. The following contributed post is entitled, Great Ways to Innovate in Business.
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When you are a small business owner, then being able to continuously innovate is something that is not easy. But if you don’t keep thinking of new ways to do things, then it can lead to diminishing results, for sure. So think about how and why you find it hard to innovate. Plus, you then need to do it over and over again, which is where the problems can lead to. So how can you make sure that you’re able to repeatedly bring new things into your business, as well as new products and services, that are going to help your customers in new ways? This kind of continuous innovation isn’t something that is easy, and it isn’t something that you can forget about. Quite simply, your business can be impacted if you don’t change and progress how you do things. So try innovating how you innovate, by trying out some of these ideas.
● Copying someone else’s idea isn’t as bad as it sounds. Simply, one of the best ways to innovate is to look at how someone has already done something, and then find a way for it to work for your business. For example, Airbnb and Uber are both businesses that have done really well recently, but they weren’t exactly reinventing the wheel when it comes to a business idea. They took something that worked and just found ways to make it better.
● Asking customers is another thing that you can do if you want to know exactly what they want. You could send out a survey to them, ask them in-store or on social media. But if you’re after some incremental innovations, then this can give you a good indicator of where to go with things. Usually, things from customers will be around how to make something cheaper, or how to make a product simpler to use. So ask them, listen to them, and make steps to change.
● Adapting a product to give it a new use is another way that you could innovate for your business and change how things are done. For example, if you click here then you will find that there are many ways to use certain products; you just need to find out why it will be of use to your business and how it can be used differently. You could quite easily find an entirely different application for an already existing product.
● Is going back in time, something that can make a difference and help? If you look back at different methods and services that have been used in your industry sector a while ago but hasn’t been used since, you could get some idea of how to refresh things or bring things back. Can you do something to bring something back but in a new and updated form? For example, it has been reported that the concept of Speed Dating was a relaunch of a Victorian dance format where, where people had cards with different appointments on for the night.
Three of the focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money, Business/Entrepreneurship and Technology. In our modern digital age, it’s highly likely a major component of your business is its information technology (IT). As such, you’re likely using or will need a Data Cabinet. The following contributed post is entitled, How To Buy A Data Cabinet.
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A data cabinet or a server rack is something which is used to store IT equipment. It is vitally important that any individual or business that has such equipment stores it properly in order to avoid any damage.
There are a whole host of different server racks and data cabinets available in stores all over the US and on the internet, which companies like Midwest Data Center make the most of. This is great because it means that there is a lot to choose from when it comes to selecting the right one for your business equipment. Nevertheless, this can also make it more difficult to actually know which one is the best option. In order to help those searching for data cabinets narrow down their search this article will help by providing some points people should be considering when looking for such goods.
The first aspect which needs to be thought about is the height of the data cabinet. Most data racks are measured in the ‘U’ measurement. For those that do not know, ‘U’ is the measurement which is usually used for all rack mount equipment and it translates to 44.45mm. This may seem like a random measurement to many. However, one U is used to display how many units the server cabinet in question can hold.
There are a vast range of different size data cabinets available today; typically shops tend to stock anything from 12U cabinets to 47U cabinets. Obviously the height of the server rack required depends on how much equipment a business is intending to store. The individual in question should sit down and come to a number of how many equipment pieces are going to be placed into the cabinets, this will give the person an idea of what they should be going for. However, it is always advisable to buy a rack with a few more added spaces, as you never know what else you may need to accommodate for and it is always better to be prepared for more.
Obviously the size of the cabinet does not just depend on the height; there is the width and depth to take into consideration as well. The size a person opts to go for obviously also depends on the equipment which needs to be stored. In general the two main options with regards to width is 800mm and 600mm and when it comes to depth the three main options are as follows; 800mm, 1000mm and 1200mm.
Remember it is also important to keep in mind the weight of the data cabinet because it needs to substantial enough to carry the equipment which is going to be stored inside of it otherwise it may cave in and thus a new cabinet will be needed altogether.
In addition to this, the price of the cabinets and racks will need to be considered by businesses as well. At the end of the day, each business is different and each business will have their own budget with regards to what they can afford. It is vital to devise a strict plan and stick to it as it can be very easy to get carried away and spend a lot more then was initially intended.
Finally, it is also extremely important to make sure that any data cabinet accessories are considered. These can include things such as; fixings and fans.
Three focuses of my blog are Current Events, Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. In modern times, traditional forms of business have been disrupted by new startups and technologies. What is the government’s role during these paradigm shifts? The following contributed post is entitled, Government in the New Age of Disruption.
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We know of how businesses are being disrupted by start-ups that manage to find a consumer need that has been ignored and neglected by large corporations for years, maybe even decades, and then offering a solution changes the whole paradigm for the entire industry. No longer are the large corporations in charge, deciding on what the consumer gets and at what price he or she can get it. The consumer is now in charge, being able to vote with their wallet who gets their business and who doesn’t.
We’ve seen it in the fall of video-rental services when the consumer decided that streaming is more convenient than the process of getting and returning a VHS cassette. We have seen it in the taxi industry where the consumer decided that hailing a taxi from their phone, have full tracking and no-fuss payment options. Or just look at the banking industry who are on notice with all the waves made by fin-tech (financial tech) start-ups that challenge the way people think about banking. No longer it’s a large organisation with branches and cheque books, it can also be something that sits on your phone and offers your smart integration.
This is all good material for trend watchers, and one might ask him or herself, what about governmental organisations? Is there any disruption going on there? Governmental organisations are the poster boy examples of inert organisations that rely on set rules and procedures to operate well. The whole idea of agility and changing business models are, in most cases, the opposite of what you might want from institutions that are depended on and need continuity. That’s not to say that government organisations are not evolving. Actually, putting the citizen, central has been core to a lot of governmental investment, trying to create better processes that make dealing with governmental institutions easier. In some cases the language changes from citizens to consumers, indicating that they are taking a page out of the for-profit playbook.
Picking up the Pieces
The real work for governmental organisations sits actually on the effects of disruptive industry. One can think about the massive protests and pressures the taxi industry has put on national and local government, citing the unfair advantages companies such as Uber and Lyft have. Or the challenges that legislators face with the pros and cons of the gig economy. You can fire up a pretty intense discussion nowadays with people on both sides of the political spectrum when it comes to zero-hours contracts. Governments are even having to deal with smart services that help you get out of a parking or speeding fine, such as a 22350 VC, beating the government at their own game.
The New Norm
As with the disrupted industries, it’s also the consumer that has organised themselves, letting their voices heard as never before. The same goes for citizens. One can be dismissive of the likes, shares and tweet-culture we are seeing nowadays, stating that in earlier decades people would take to the streets. But that’s missing the point, as the world is moving to a place where the online business is as important as the offline business, or maybe even greater, we should start weighing things up correctly and see that an online movement is the core movement.
Three of the focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money, Business/Entrepreneurship and STEM. Medical labs are critical pieces in the healthcare industry as they help doctors understand the maladies that their patients face. Just like academic and industrial labs, it’s important to still do quality science. Doing so will assure continued business. The following contributed post is entitled, How Can You Stop Your Lab From Landing Negative Results.
Medical labs are the backbone of the healthcare industry. From the development of new medications to the diagnosis of conditions; it all starts and ends in innocuous-seeming labs just like yours. As such, most of us have come to hold entrepreneurs within this industry in high esteem. Still, assuming this positive industry reputation will save your lab would be naive. Life-saving heroics aside, medical labs are as liable as any business to stumble into difficulties and even face failure.
If your lab-provider relationships keep turning negative, then, you may soon face issues. Instead of moving forward with misplaced ideas about saving the world, you need to address why things are going wrong. We understand that this can feel like a distraction from your ‘higher purpose’, but failure to get to the bottom of this will stop you from saving lives down the line.
That’s why you need to keep reading to find out how you can turn those negative results into a positive that saves your lab’s life.
Store samples properly
Collecting samples from patients can be a time-consuming and expensive process for medical professionals. If you carelessly ruin the integrity of said samples by failing to store them properly, it’s no wonder you aren’t making any friends.
It’s incredible how easy it is to contaminate or ruin results by getting this simple point of your processes wrong. What’s more, there is no one-size-fits-all standard for how you should and shouldn’t treat each test that comes your way.
Of course, there are some basic staples, such as a lab refrigerator from Rollex Group and companies like them. You should also be sure to keep vials well-sealed, and within uncontaminated areas. For some things, though, such as specific blood tests and skin samples, even more specialist storage will be necessary.
Whatever you do, never play guessing games when it comes to this. Everytime something unknown comes into your lab, do thorough research into which storage processes you should put in place. If in doubt, it’s even worth asking the healthcare professional who’s sending it your way. Better that than risk making a mistake and having to come crawling later on. Once you have some idea, make notes. That way, you’ll always be able to implement proper storage processes for repeat samples down the line.
To save costs, though, it’s tempting to hire inexperienced staff who are fresh out of the classroom. And, guess what? This could be another fatal flaw for your lab’s success. Of course, all new graduates have to start somewhere, and taking on college-leavers could even work if you leave experienced members of your team to train them.
If your team solely consists of cheap and inexperienced team members, though, you’re fast heading for trouble. In this instance, you would be far better off hiring less staff with more experience. That way, you can balance costs and still enjoy results you can trust in.
It’s also worth noting that your team needs to have decent teamwork structures in place if your lab is to see any real success. A lab team have to collaborate on everything from test times to results across the board, after all. If your employees aren’t talking, things are never going to come together, and clients will never get the results they expect.
Make sure, then, that your team understands the importance of talking to each other about what they’re doing. You could even arrange a few group team working activities to bring the point home.
Speed up your processes
Whether your lab focuses around diagnostics or research, slow processes are never going to work in your favour. If you have a healthcare professional waiting on results, delays mean that they look bad in front of patients. You can bet that they wouldn’t hesitate about turning to a more trustworthy lab as a result. Equally, excessive delays from a research perspective could see the findings you’re working on or similar being released by another lab in the interim.
We’ve already mentioned the importance of teamwork. That alone can go a long way towards making sure everyone works faster with the information they need. The correct equipment, too, can speed processes no end. And, of course, a system which sends results straight to healthcare computers could lessen lost time at the end of your research. All while ensuring results land straight into the correct inboxes in no time.
Lastly, lacking insurance policies could become significant nails in your lab coffin if you aren’t careful. The fact is that you’re dealing with lives, not just faceless samples. Everything you do (or don’t do) can create a ripple effect. And, this is what your insurance policy needs to account for.
If a doctor ends up getting sued for a misdiagnosis off the back of your test results, for example, you need to ensure that you have the correct malpractice and liability insurance in place. Mistakes happen, and results don’t always get things right. Still, this would ruin relationships anyway if a healthcare provider had to foot the bill due to your lacking insurance policies. Make sure, then, that you implement the correct insurance at all times, and keep your plans updated.
Negative results aren’t something we embrace in any lab, especially when they’re of this kind. Make sure that you’re able to turn things around as soon as possible to bring much higher levels of success to your lab door.
Two of the focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. In business, it’s not enough of run a quality operation yourself, but you also must eventually work with other quality companies. If you’re new to the business world, this might not be obvious to you at first. The following contributed post is entitled, How to Work With The Right Companies In Business.
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There are so many companies that exist out there, and some of them will be able to help you whether it’s too do with accounting for your business or supplying materials for your products. Here’s how to work with the right companies for your own business.
Why trawl through hundreds of websites and going through every single tender individually, when you could get it all in one place. There are plenty of online tenders that are grouped together on websites to help you easily navigate all the services that you may require and to help you find the best one for your location, budget, and requirements. These websites are going to make it much easier for you as a business to find someone that’s reputable and is going to be able to provide what you need. With so many listed on a daily basis, why would you want to waste your time doing all the leg work yourself? That just seems silly!
Look At Their Previous Work
When it comes to working with other businesses, whether it’s to work on your latest marketing campaign or manufacturing, it’s important to look at the company’s previous work. What have they achieved so far, and what level of results have the been? Have previous clients been satisfied? Many companies will likely want to show off any positive reviews they’ve received or testimonials from clients who’ve been impressed so if they don’t have any of these, then that should be raising a few red flags.
Discuss Your Requirements Beforehand
It’s good to know that the company you work with is going to provide you with what you’re after. It’s foolish to rush into agreeing on a contract or business deal without having discussed it in length prior. So set up a business meeting, to begin with, and figure out what you’re criteria is and whether they can meet it and how much they are going to charge you for it. This is important because you may be able to find something for a lot less but with the same quality as the company you’re discussing it with right now.
Keep Up The Conversation
When you’re discussing the business arrangements over email, then it’s very likely that progress will slow down and when you’ve got a strict timeline, that’s not something you want. So try to keep up the conversation from your end and ensure that you’re getting some sort of response from them on a daily basis. If they’re taking their time, then get in touch via phone or arrange a face-to-face meeting. The more you keep on top of them, the more efficient they’ll be in getting things done quicker. Unfortunately, it’s something that you as the requestor will need to be leading.
Working with the right companies is important to business success especially, as every mistake made can be problematic to your company. Follow these tips, and you’ll find that fewer problems are likely to occur.
“The hospitality business can be a tricky one. If you’re planning on starting some kind of hospitality business, like a restaurant or a cafe, then you need to make sure you’re cut out for the job.”
Two of the key focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. If run properly, the hospitality business can pay great dividends. There are some considerations before getting involved. The following contributed post is entitled, Things To Consider Before Entering The Hospitality Business.
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The hospitality business can be a tricky one. If you’re planning on starting some kind of hospitality business, like a restaurant or a cafe, then you need to make sure you’re cut out for the job. Not only do you need great food and drink that keeps people coming back for more, you need highly trained staff, a great theme, a unique selling point, and the perseverance to see it through no matter what. Some months might be quiet, and then other months you may feel overrun with customers. You need to be prepared for just about anything in this kind of business, from people attempting to run out without paying, to others making complaints. No two days are the same!
Let’s take a look at a few things you should consider before you enter the hospitality business:
1. Do You Have The Right Stomach For It?
As no two days are the same in the hospitality industry, you need to make sure you have the right stomach, or the right personality for the job. How will you deal with a customer that’s seriously upset because they found a hair in their food? What about one that doesn’t want to pay because of a ‘rude’ member of staff? Being able to think on your feet and deal with any situation is a must! Some customers may be within their rights to complain, while others might just try to get a freebie.
2. Do You Have The Right Skills For It?
It isn’t enough to have the right stomach. You need the skills! Do you have people skills? Customer service skills? The skills to run a business? Consider doing a few courses and workshops at the very least before you start.
3. Are You Prepared To Take Your Time Hiring The Right Team?
You’ll need the right team on your side, and you need to be prepared to take your time when hiring them. Interviews should be thorough, and you need to make sure they have the right personality. Training your team is still important, but if you take your time at this stage you’re half way there.
Are You Willing to Research the Best Suppliers?
A great hospitality team is vital, but it won’t create a successful business if you don’t also pair it with the best suppliers. In fact, you could quickly end up with a notoriously bad menu this way, never mind the quality of your chefs. In terms of food production right now, it’s especially vital to work with suppliers who prioritize sustainable production, otherwise, you could find yourself facing reputational backlash. Research is the best way to overcome this risk, and is especially important when it comes to meat distributors like Superior Farms, who prioritize sustainable practices like renewable energy, as well as farming practices that boost the nutritional value of their products, and your recipes in turn.
5. Do You Have Competition In The Area?
Extensive research on the competition is a must, and the only way to differentiate yourself in the area.
6. What Will You Do If Things Get Quiet?
Things will get quiet from time to time. You’ll need money in reserve to keep afloat – and it’s probably a good idea to hold off on hiring too many permanent staff members in the beginning.
Three of the focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money, Business/Entrepreneurship and Technology. Customer service is critical in ‘bricks and mortar’ business but its especially critical for online business. You want to stay in your customers’ good graces. The following contributed post is entitled, How To Stay On The Good Side Of Your Online Customers.
The business world has always been competitive, but none more so than now, as internet businesses are popping up all over the place.
Should you run an online business then, it is important to know that you are but a tiny dot on the internet, competing with thousands of other dots (this is probably the first time anybody has described businesses in such a way) in a bid to gain customers.
To stay ahead of the game, you need to stay on the good side of any potential or existing customers. By doing so, you will receive good word of mouth instead of bad, and you might elevate your business above the many others sharing the virtual space of the internet with you.
Here are some of the things you need to do.
#1: Deliver on your promises
Online business owners often sway potential customers with promises of fast shipping and better quality products than their rivals, as just two examples. So, if you are going to tempt customers in with promises such as these, you need to ensure that you can live up to your word.
With the examples given, you would need a steady supply of mailers in your inventory to ensure fast shipping was possible, and you would also need to work with a decent courier company that could offer speedy delivery. And in terms of your product, you would need to research what other businesses offer, and find ways to improve the quality and the functionality of what you were selling.
Having delivered on your promises, you would have very happy customers on your hands!
#2: Secure your online business
Businesses, both large and small, are in danger of hacking attempts, so never assume that your online business is safe, even if it is just you and your computer set up in your bedroom.
If you get hacked, not only will your financial information be compromised, but your customers financial and personal data might be too. Should your customers become aware of this, be that through communication from yourself or because they have become the victim of cybercrime themselves, then your reputation will plummet.
We have some tips on our website with regards to protecting your online business, so have a read and follow the advice we give you at your earliest opportunity.
#3: Treat your customers well
Customers are fickle people. If they feel mistreated in any way, they will voice their opinions on social media and business review sites.
Therefore, give them the respect that they feel they deserve by treating them well.
What does this mean in reality?
Well, we have already alluded to two ways you can do this in the previous points we made in this article. But there is more you can do. This includes offering them speedy responses when they get in touch with you. You should respond to any complaints, and do what you can to make amends to any disgruntled customers. And you should go the extra mile in your customer service, perhaps by including hand-crafted ‘thank you’ cards with your deliveries, or by offering loyal customers a discount or the occasional freebie as tokens of your appreciation.
Finally
By staying on your customers’ good side, you will retain their loyalty and benefit from new customers who have heard about your business. Follow our suggestions then, and research other ways to win over the hearts and the wallets of potential and existing customers.
Two of the focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. Understanding the difference between assets and liabilities is critical to understanding and building wealth. Likewise, simply having a job and working for ‘earned income’ versus acquiring money-generating assets is the difference between solely being an employee and one day becoming financially independent. The following contributed post is entitled, If You Don’t Own Something Your Wealthy Isn’t Real.
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We are all beholden to the economy of the nation we live in. The nation’s economy is beholden to the global economy. And round and round we go, in this daisy chain of ours. Everything is affected by everything else. Now, your biggest concern is your personal wealth; as it should be. The secret to protecting your wealth is to try and make it insular from everything else. In other words, you want to have a wealth that isn’t affected by the outside world. But, as aforementioned everything is tied to everything else. Whether you’re shopping for clothes, buying groceries or applying for a mortgage, before the price is levelled at your feet it has to go through the market. The market determines what that price will be. So two things we can conclude. There’s no way for your wealth to not be affected by the global economy and the market is how price is determined; in other words your wealth is given it’s true value. The giants that tower over everything else are assets. If you’re not holding something, owning something and backing up your monetary wealth by an asset, it’s not real.
What is an asset?
Firstly an asset is a complex entity to describe. However, for the sake of simplifying things, think of assets as something other than cold hard cash. Yet there are some people who will include their cash in ‘personal assets’. Number one, the most common asset is your home or rather property that you own. Land and structures on them home are all part and parcel of the same asset. A business is also considered an asset. A car or some kind of vehicle such as a boat is also considered an asset. Investment holdings such as stocks, insurance policies, mutual funds etc, are all considered assets. Warehouse storages, garages and equipment are all assets too.
There seems to be one running theme doesn’t there? An asset usually has the ability to convert it’s sale into cash or rather, it produces more wealth. Property prices rise year-on-year, thus you have an appreciating asset. A negative or loss-making asset has become an oxymoron as the whole point of having assets is for your wealth to increase just by ownership of said asset. Cars are a use to someone. It gets people to work, is enjoyable to drive and might be personally valuable to a collector. Stocks are a piece of the pie. A business that grows pays out to its stockholders so again, you have an asset that accumulates wealth for you.
Assets are a ‘hard wall’
Assets are usually a tangible entity. You can touch a property, you can live in the property. It provides you with a value or betterment to your life. Even if that enjoyment is subjective to the person, it still holds that value to be true. Capital assets are purely bank accounts or rather your cash wealth. Cash wealth on it’s own isn’t so confidence-inspiring. Look at it this way, if a wind came to blow your money away, how would you stop it? The simple answer is, you would protect your money with a wall and keep your capital inside. That’s exactly what assets are for. They give your capital asset worth and back it up. Nations do this for their currencies. Why should someone believe your currency is worth something, after all it’s just paper. Well, gold and other precious metals have been used to back up currencies and provide them with a solid wall of protection.
Look up the ‘Gold Standard’ the ‘Gold Standard’. For the majority of the time human beings have had complex, large and global economies, gold has been the number one material that has backed up FIAT currency. People are reassured that the paper they have in their pocket has a value which if they exchanged would allow them to buy food, water, property and live a comfortable life. This is because a precious metal is vouching for it. Assets have the exact same power for your cash wealth. If you were to go to a bank and ask for a loan, if you didn’t have a property, car, or some kind of asset, the chances of being turned away would be high. Assets, like gold jewelry you buy and sell with Gold Buyers, give you a solid foundation of trust and support personally and for your capital.
The age old asset
Since time immemorial there has been one thing we all recognize as an asset. Jewelry is valuable to us in many different ways. It’s easy to understand why it’s valuable too, even as children we already know to look after a piece of jewelry that we have been given or perhaps found. Silver, gold, platinum, rubies, emeralds, diamonds etc, are all the most sought after kinds of jewelry. Precious metals and precious stones, have an innate shine or gleam to them. These materials have taken millions and millions, sometimes billions of years to form. Since this process takes so long, they are inherently valuable to us because they are things we cannot make.
If you have gold chains, diamond rings, ruby encrusted goblets, silver necklace charms or whatever the case may be, you need to protect these assets with some kind of insurance policy. For knowledge on what kinds of jewelry insurance you should get, look at Morison Insurance Brokers and ready their article carefully. They list all the valid reasons why you would need this kind of insurance policy and for what kind of jewelry. Jewelry is such a versatile asset, that almost any kind of financial institution will accept it as collateral holding. It’s not uncommon for bank loans to be given to people with low capital but who have very valuable jewelry assets.
They age like wine
Assets are the number one priority for people who are looking to retire without relying on a state pension. It’s clear to see that owning a couple properties and renting them out would net you a constant stream of capital flowing in. The properties will need to be kept to a high standard so they retain their value for longer, but that’s easily done. Properties are quite easy to understand and maintain. There are lots of services such as roofing, plumbing, landscaping and interior designers that can repair and update your properties to keep with the times. In this sense, assets have the ability to age like fine wine if you know how to take care of them. As the saying goes, if you take care of it, it will take care of you.
Assets like rare cars also have much the same appeal in terms of longevity. One of the original Ford GT40 cars was sold for $10+ million and a Ferrari GTO for even higher. Classic cars are not just interesting to hold as an asset, but they never seem to run out of buyers. No matter how many generations have moved on since the first day they rolled out of the factories, they are still enthusiastically bought for millions of dollars. There will always be a wealthy class of people that want a rare toy in their garage. That’s why having assets is so important, because the value they return to you is always set to increase year after year.
Create your own buffer zone
If none of the previous reasons have convinced you why you need to be owning assets, here is one last attempt. This one should win you over. When an economic crash ensues, capital all across the world gets slaughtered. Stocks and bonds plummet, currency values drop substantially and any hard cash is worth much, much less than it was just yesterday. Essentially, if all your wealth is in some kind of money hedge or just a lump sum in a bank, then your wealth will be cut down dramatically when an economic crash happens. Recessions all hit the cash flow in the market the same way. Consumer confidence drops, people pull their money out of investments and they go into hibernation to wait out the storm.
Now you may be thinking that assets will also have to fall in price because people aren’t spending as much. However, assets retain a lot more of their value even when there is a recession. This is because at the end of the day, someone will have enough money to buy or utilize your asset for their needs. Crucially, that need or desire is still there no matter what is going on in the economy. People who were saving up to buy a house don’t suddenly stop wanting a house because they lost a lot of money. No, the desire is still there so you have an inherent value in assets even in hard times. In a sense, assets create a buffer zone between you and the recession, they allow you to have more authority in the eyes of banks and governments.
Do not put all your wealth under your mattress so to speak. Put your wealth in asset acquiring. Own property such as a house, land, automobiles, boats and jewelry. When you have hard tangible wealth, your paper wealth is automatically boosted in so many ways.
Two of the focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. No matter what you’re selling, you must understand how to properly price your product in order to compete. Proper price setting will give your business every chance to succeed. Improperly pricing your products will hurt your business. The following contributed post is entitled, Tips that will Help you to Price your Product Way more Effectively.
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Pricing your products can be difficult to say the least. If you set the price for your product too high, then you may find that people can’t afford to buy from you. If you set it too low then you may find that people associate your business with poor quality and low value, and this can be detrimental to your level of success. Striking the happy medium is crucial here, but if you want to get some help with that then you can find out whatever you need to know, right here.
List the True Cost of Your Product
There’s a high chance that a lot goes into making your product everything that it can be. One way for you to set a fair price for your product would be for you to take into account the cost of creation. When you do this, you have to make sure that you include the cost of all materials, regardless of how small they might be. You also need to include worker benefits, labour and your overheads too. These might not be associated with your product directly, but they are expenses nevertheless. This can include your taxes, insurance, rent and even transportation too. You also need to take into account your salary and replacement for your machinery as it ages. If you’re not careful then this can easily add up and you might run into problems. To get the best result out of your calculation, consider thinking about MAP pricing too.
The cost of running your small business will always be way higher than you think. If you have been in the business for years on end, then you may find that some of your earlier processes are clumsy and that they need reoptimizing. You should set your prices a little higher than you think to try and accommodate this, and you should also make sure that you always think about the future of your company.
Analyse your Customers
If you have the capital to hire a firm to handle your market research for you then this is great. If you don’t have access to a resource like this then you might want to think about conducting your own instead. This can be done through surveys or you could even scout out your competition instead. This will help you to find out how much your competitors are charging, and it will also help you to see how much of a demand there is for your product too.
Don’t Try and Compete Too Much
Comparing your small business to that of a corporate empire won’t get you anywhere. If you try and undercut huge companies then you will be doing yourself a disservice and you may even find that you end up losing out on money. The reason why corporate companies are able to offer such low prices is because they buy in bulk and it’s super unlikely that you will be able to beat that.
Two of the focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. Some businesses excel and thrive, while others sputter and perish. There are distinct reasons why this occurs and if you want to be in the former group there are things that you need to do. The following contributed post is entitled, Why Some Companies Stay in the Slow Lane.
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There’s no company on earth that is guaranteed success when they first get started. Sure, sometimes it’s more likely for some businesses than others, but if the number of high profile failures has told us anything, it’s that failure is always an option. But let’s not focus on those large ventures: let’s look, instead, at small companies, and specifically at why some seem to rocket up, up, up, and some stay in the comparative slow lane for the duration of their existence. There are some shared characteristics that seem to run through businesses that follow this path.
You’re not going to get very far, or anywhere at all for that matter, if you possess a small mindset. A company that sees themselves as small will find it impossible to achieve big things. It’s all about vision. There’s a big difference between a business owner that dreams big, and one that has eyes for nothing more than mere survival. Of course, it’s riskier to have a big vision, but as with most things in life, the person that dares is the one that wins.
The Wrong Players
Your company’s strength will depend on part on the need for the products and services that it provides, but you should also look at your staff; they’re the people who are driving the ship. If you’re not hiring correctly, then you will likely find that you’re not making as much progress as you would if you’d developed a robust hiring policy. It takes time, money and effort to hire any employees, but it’s worthwhile devoting that little extra effort to get the right one. If you don’t know how to hire the right employee, take a read of these useful tips.
They’re Not Wired For Success
You could have excellent ideas and a stellar team of employees, but if your business doesn’t have the right infrastructure, then success will likely be hard to come by. That’s because you won’t be working as productively as you could be, and when it comes to business success, productivity is what counts. If you’re currently managing your IT needs on your own, look at handing the responsibilities over to a company such as Tech Squared Inc. They can install the systems you need in order to work at your best, and also free up your time so that you can focus on your core business offerings.
Outdated Working Practices
The working world is changing, and, as with most advancements, it’s for the better. Studies have shown that the traditional way of working has major flaws. The new ways of working, which include more relaxed working hours and unorthodox offices, can significantly boost employee happiness and productivity.
Lack of Development
Finally, make sure you’re not standing still for too long. It’s the companies who refuse to settle, and who instead push forward with new ideas and plans, that achieve success. It’ll be in your interests to keep an eye on where your company is moving in the years to come.
