Category: Financial Literacy and Money

What Every Business Owner Should Know About Product Manufacture

Two of the focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. Once you create a quality product, the next step is to figure out how to produce it – specifically the manufacture of that product. The following contributed post discusses this and is entitled, What Every Business Owner Should Know About Product Manufacture.

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You’ve come up with an amazing product design that you know has the potential to be incredible. The design aspect of things has been dealt with, as has the marketing side of things, now it’s time to focus on the actual manufacturing process of the product. This is a somewhat complex part of the process, however, it doesn’t have to be overly stressful, it’s just a case of knowing what steps you need to take, that’s all.

Bearing that in mind, below are some tips and pieces of advice about the manufacturing process.

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Create a prototype

The first thing that you want to do once the design process has been completed for your product is to create a prototype. Creating a prototype will give you a chance to see how the product functions and to start testing it, it also allows you to have something to show possible investors so they know what they are backing and if it is worth it.

Consider your manufacturing options

Before going to production with your product you will need to decide how you are going to manufacture the product. You need to know if you are going to make the products yourself or if you want to outsource. If you are looking to manufacture to order then doing it yourself would work if you have the tools to do so, but as you get bigger and sell more then you will need to look at upgrading your tools and factory space to meet demands. If you are going to be making bulk amounts of your product from the outset then outsourcing to a manufacturing machine shop will help you to meet bulk orders if you don’t have space or tools straight out the gate.

Get a quote for the price of the project

Before you are able to manufacture you will need to get quotes for the equipment, space, and materials needed to create your product. If you need to have investor backing to make this product a reality then having all the finances in black and white to say what you need from them will make it easier for them to make a decision so it is crucial to know what you need to spend. Also if you go in blind and just throw money at it you could end up spending way more than needed if you have got quotes and researched the pricing more, especially if you are outsourcing some of the work.

It is a very exciting time to have the possibility to get a new product on the market, especially if you are confident about it. Although it is exciting you need to make sure you take your time and plan it effectively to make sure it becomes successful and there are no unwanted problems along the way. If you rush in getting a product out without the correct funds and testing you can end up cutting corners which will usually end in a faulty product and the inevitable failure. If you follow the above tips you will be ready to manufacture and release your product to the world.

How To Promote Your Small Business

Two of the focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. Regardless of your product or service, unless you properly market it, no one will know about it and you likely won’t make any significant money. Thus the marketing and promoting your business are arguably it’s most important components. The following contributed post is entitled, How To Promote Your Small Business.

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So, you’ve done all of the hard stuff. You’ve set up your business, registered it, got all of your team on board, and you’ve hired the perfect office for you and your employees. However, the enquiries into your services just aren’t coming in as fast as they should be doing, and you need to market your small business to get the customers coming through the door. Whilst it can be difficult to do this sometimes, there are many ways to go about promoting your business, without spending a lot of time and money.

We’ve noted them down here for small business owners!

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Utilize social media

Social media is the perfect place to promote your small business, and it is one of those things that everybody seems to be using on a daily basis now. Of course, your ads are likely to be a little more successful if your target audience is young people, but nevertheless, the audience on social media really is a varied one. To get the utmost success out of a social media campaign, you need to make sure that your profiles are all consistently marketed and that they look professional, and you should target your ads at the group of people who are most likely to be interested in your services. Outsourcing to a social media consultancy could also be a good idea!

Invest in banners and business cards

Marketing your small business via the medium of print is also a good idea, and creating banners that you can put up in your local area (with permission, of course) is a great way to put your brand into people’s minds, especially those who are likely to use your services. Having professional business cards is also a good idea if you want potential customers to be able to get in touch with you easily, so look into companies like Crescent Printing if you need banners, brochures or business cards. These things really will market your business as a professional and respected company, so invest in some good printing!

Create ads for local radio

If you have a business that relies upon the trade from your local area, then using local radio station to market your brand could really help you to extend your reach. Not only is it beneficial because a lot of people listen to the radio on the way to, and from, work, but it also has the added benefit of being a cheaper option than television advertising. You don’t have to spend too much cash on actually making the advert, and playing it won’t cost you as much, either! If you know what your target audience is (and where they live) then look into the opportunities for local (and national) radio, and see whether this could help you.

So, if you’re a small business owner but you’re not too sure how to promote your brand, try out these simple tips, and you could see that you’re selling more, without having to spend a lot of cash to make it happen! Good luck, and happy marketing!

Great Reasons To Open A New Office This Year

Two of the focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. When running a business, it’s important to understand when to change you physical location and to open a new office. Like most things, it requires the right timing. The following contributed post is thus entitled, Great Reasons To Open A New Office This Year.

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If you are a small business owner who is working to grow their brand this year, there are so many different methods you can use to grow and expand your empire and make a success out of yourself in 2019. When it comes to working hard with your business and allowing it to grow, one of the things which can always be a good idea is to open up a new location. Whether you have an office open up in a different city or a different country, having an extra location for your brand can be a huge step up and super helpful for your brand. Here are some of the main reasons why it can be a good idea to open a new office this year.

Take advantage of exchange rates

There are a lot of big advantages to expanding your business beyond your own country, and one of the main ones which you may not have thought of is exchange rates. As we know, different countries hold different currency values and when you are looking to make a profit you can take advantage of this and gain a heavier profit by selling overseas. You can read here about offshoring and everything which it involves and it can be a big help for you if you want to grow rapidly this year.

Build a new audience

Of course, the main reason why it can be a great idea for you to grow your business and move to a new office is that you will be exposed to a whole new pool of people who you can target and sell to. When you reach a new part of the world it can always be a good thing to open up your brand and present it to new people. The more people who know about you, the more people are likely to follow you and buy from your business.

Extra income source

If you have enough money to invest in a new office for your business it is always an incredibly good idea for you to do it. The reason why it is such a good idea to do this is that with an office full of new people, you will have more people working hard day after day to get the job done and this means more workload can be covered. The domino effect of this is the fact that more products are made, more people are contacting and reached out to, and as a result more products are sold. Simply by having more people working for your business you will notice that you make a lot more profit.

Grow your influence

The main reason why companies like to expand and take over different areas of the world is to build a good reputation and in turn be able to show the world that they are to be trusted. As a business it is always going to be your prerogative to show the work what you’ve got and make a good impression. The more physical presence you have in the world, the more influence you can gain and therefore the more success you can have.

Amazing Ways to Make Your Business More Efficient Today

Two of the focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business and Entrepreneurship. No matter what kind of business you’re running, it will probably be a constant refining process. As you progress along, you want to continue to make your operations more and more efficient. The following contributed post is therefore entitled, Amazing Ways to Make Your Business More Efficient Today.

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Making a business run as effectively and efficiently as possible is one of the most important ways of achieving success. There are a lot of things that you need to make sure you get right as much as you possibly can. You have to understand that there are plenty of avenues a business needs to go down, and improving efficiency is no doubt one of the most essential.

The more efficient your business is, the more productive it will be, the easier it is to run, and the higher your chances of success are. This is why you have to make sure you think carefully about what you can do to improve the company and make things more efficient in the future. Get a load of these great ideas that will go a long way towards helping you achieve this right now.

Digitize as Much as Possible

You have to do as much as you can to digitize the business where possible. This is something that can have a profound impact on the company moving forward. If you want to make sure you modernize as much as possible, this is the best way of doing achieving that. Think about using things such as Azure hybrid cloud so that you can make your Cloud and IT services much more appealing and efficient as a result. This is something it is really important to get right as soon as you can.

Trust Your Staff

One of the best things you can do to improve your business efficiency is to trust your staff as much as you possibly can. And this means you should focus on letting them do their own thing and giving them the room they need to grow. It’s so important that you don’t micromanage your staff and that you allow them the freedom they need to grow and become better as a result. Your employees need to be trusted because this is something that helps them grow and improve your business as much as possible.

Outsource

Outsourcing needs to be your favourite business buzzword, not to mention something you are going to need to make yourself more efficient. The digital landscape has made outsourcing one of the most appealing choices for a lot of business owners. You can bring people in from outside the business and get them to do important tasks you need to have sorted out, and save yourself time and money at the same time.

Better Communication

Successful businesses in the modern world are built on communication, and this is why you have to make sure you are focused on communicating better with your employees and your clients. The business can be run much more effectively if you enhance and improve the communication, so this is definitely something to work on.

There are plenty of things you need to keep in mind when you want to run a modern business, like the unexpected costs involved. But, it is so essential to make sure you think carefully about the different aspects of the company, and what you can do to improve the efficiency of the company moving forward.

Are You Putting Your Income To Good Use?

A key focus of my blog is Financial Literacy. A key to understanding money is knowing the best ways to use what income you have, but also to eliminate waste. Incomes vary and there is less room for error the less you make. The following contributed post is thus entitled, Are You Putting Your Income To Good Use?

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With the number of expenditures most of us face on a daily basis, it’s hard to make a paycheck last for the entire month. But there might be more you could do to manage your financial situation. Are you putting your income to good use? Let’s talk about some ways in which you could spend your money wisely.

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Tidy up your monthly expenses.
The first way in which you should put your income to good use is to tidy up your monthly expenses. So many people unnecessarily waste their earnings on expenditures that they don’t need. Practicing the 30-day rule (avoiding buying a luxury until you’ve waited for 30 days) is a smart way to control your desire to splurge. Of course, even those of us who avoid luxury purchases might still struggle to cover the endless list of monthly bills. But you could save money in that sense too. You could insulate your walls and windows to reduce the energy needed to warm up your house and save money on your energy bill. You could use online vouchers to save money when shopping for food, new clothes, or anything else you need online. You could even put up a lodger to help cover some of your bills if you have a spare room in your house or flat. There are so many ways to tidy up your monthly expenses if you change your approach to spending money. Budgeting is the easiest way to track and manage your finances, of course.

Find worthwhile investment opportunities.
Finding worthwhile investment opportunities is another way to put your income to good use. As we’ll discuss in the final point, saving your money is important, but you could really improve your future financial situation by letting your wealth grow substantially through investments. Perhaps you could look at the stock market, for example. You might even want to head here for some new build houses. Investing in property is very smart because it’s a market that always has keen buyers. After all, people always need somewhere to live. Whether you buy and fix up properties to sell them for a quick profit or you buy properties to lease them out for a regular income, there’s a lot of money to be made here. Still, however you choose to invest your money, just make sure you do your research to make low-risk and high-reward decisions.

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Save on payday.
If you know that you’re prone to splurging as soon as that paycheck comes through every week or every month then you should start saving on payday. That way, you don’t have to worry about triggers urging you to spend your money when you’re out shopping or browsing online. You can immediately transfer a portion of your disposable income to your savings account and any disposable earnings that remain can be your spending money for non-essentials. It’ll mean you don’t have to feel guilty if you do treat yourself to luxuries because you’ll know that you’ve already put something into your savings for the month. This is a smart way to start putting your income to better use. You’re allowed to treat yourself in life, but you shouldn’t do so at the expense of your overall financial security in the present or the future. That’s always the crucial thing to remember.

4 Lessons You Can Learn From The Medical Industry

Two of the focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. In some ways the medical industry is a model of others and there is a lot that can be learned from it. It is constantly evolving and changing. The following contributed post is entitled, 4 Lessons You Can Learn From The Medical Industry.

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There are some things that we can learn from the medical industry that you might not have considered. For example, if you don’t take the time to look at this industry, you are not going to realize all the excellent ideas that they can give to other industries. The medical profession can inspire a few different lessons that we should all be taking notice of, and in this article, we are going to talk about a few of them.

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Improving Efficiency

Efficiency is what all business owners are striving for. Getting the best out of your business as quick as possible. For example, in the medical industry, they may require medical billing services to ensure that they are getting paid by insurance companies. There are companies who specialize in this area and provide the necessary service to ensure that this gets done. The same thing can be applied to other industries. There should be certain areas of business that are handled by specialists in order to ensure the smooth running of other departments. Without this, the entire system could end up folding in on itself, and this is not what business owners need.

Leaning On New Technology

Have you ever thought about what technology could benefit your business? If not, now is the time to start. Some business owners shy away from new technology as it can cost a lot of money, and it requires training staff to use the new equipment. However, if you look to the medical industry, you will see that they largely lean on new tech to develop their entire profession. This is something that your business should be doing too. You need to allow the change in order to propel your business forward and keep up with everyone else on the market.

Putting The Customer First

Have you ever been to the doctors and felt like they had something more important to think about than your care? No, and that is what your clients should feel like too. Your customers should be the most important thing in your business, as without them, there is no business. You need to remember this and always make sure that the client’s needs are being met before anything else.

Showing your customers that they are valuable to your business is one of the most important aspects of owning a business. You should always ensure that they are being put first, and not being left behind for some other purpose.

Expanding Income

If your business is currently struggling for cash, have you ever thought about getting sponsored from others in your industry? Medical businesses often get sponsored by pharmaceutical companies, and this is something that could benefit you. Find a person or a business who is willing to sponsor you and come to an agreement with them about the terms of the sponsorship.

We hope that you have found this article helpful, and understand these four lessons that you can learn from the medical industry. Take this advice, and your business is going to run better than ever!

What Construction Companies Should Know For Future Success

Two of the focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. The construction sector is a key aspect of the economy. It is impacted by other sectors and it impacts other sectors. The following contributed post discuss some potential things that can happen in 2019 and is entitled, What Construction Companies Should Know in 2019.

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If you’re in the construction industry, staying up to date with trends that could turn things around is a must. Many industries change year on year, so here we’re going to be talking about what construction companies should know in 2019. Let’s get right into it:

Green Technology Is Becoming More Popular Than Ever In Construction
People are beginning to realize that something has to be done about the planet. We are fast using up resources, so being as eco friendly as possible is essential, especially when the construction industry accounts for about 20% of global emissions.

You will find that more and more buildings and plans are incorporating green technology into the construction process, and this is great because green construction is a way of building projects in an environmentally responsible and resource-efficient way. A focus is being put on environmentally friendly buildings and focusing on the longevity of the building, which can only be a good thing for the future of our planet.

Sustainable construction can include the preservation of the environment, an efficient use of resources, with an eye to social progress and culture. Even making small changes and considerations, such as ensuring the natural light is able to reach the middle of the building, thereby reducing electrical costs can help.

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Better Safety Equipment
There has been a rise in standards in safety over the last few years, and careless construction working just won’t do. There are a high number of accidents and deaths associated with the construction industry, so a push for better safety equipment has been inevitable. Now, we are finally getting somewhere. There are smart work boots that can connect to Wi-Fi, send their GPS coordinates, and will even tell if users have fallen or are tired. Things like this will eventually be commonplace.

Project Management Solutions
Project management solutions are a huge trend this year. Today, you’ll find that there are many more — and better — construction software options than there were a few years ago. You are able to keep all documents related to the project in one location, which can help subcontractors and contractors get paid at the end of a project, amongst other things. You can even pay attention to the more minute details, such as how many pipe clamps you have or need.

Augmented Reality
Augmented reality is set to change many industries, including construction, for the better. Just one way it will do this is by providing more accuracy and clarity. Workers will be able to use AR to show the entire project before it even starts, saving a lot of time and money. Details will be finalized before the project has even begun, making for a more more efficient project overall.

Self-healing Concrete
Self-healing concrete being used on roads, buildings and homes could become the norm. When self healing concrete comes into contact with air and water, it then produces an outer protective layer. Overall, this will save the construction industry a lot of time and enable them to create safer and more durable buildings for us.

House Proud: Finding Ways To Love Your Home

A key focus of my blog is Financial Literacy/Money. The greatest investment, many people will ever make is their home. Once you’ve made the purchase, transforming it into the optimal space for you is a key for your wanting to stay there long-term. The following contributed post discusses this and is entitled, House Proud: Finding Ways To Love Your Home.

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With the price and scarcity of modern homes, most people don’t feel like they get the chance to live somewhere which they will love. Being forced to make compromises based on money or space, people are left looking at their home as if it is a simple tool, and this couldn’t be further from the truth. To help you out with this, this post will be exploring some of the work which can go into giving yourself a greater love for your home. With all of this in mind, anyone should be able to adapt their space into something which works better for them, even when you have a complicated lifestyle.

What Do You Do?

As you start this journey, one of the first things you will need to explore will be the hobbies and interests which you like to invest your free time into. These parts of your life are some of the most important to you, and it makes sense that your home should reflect this, with companies like SATP being able to push you towards creating a place which enables you to throw yourself into your hobbies. For example, if you really like to fish, you could look for a place which has a river on the property. This will give you the chance to spend far more time doing something you love.

How Does It Look?

Function isn’t everything when you’re trying to improve your home, and style plays a big role on the way that people feel about spaces like this. Instagram is a great place to go when you’re looking for inspiration for areas like this. Millions of people post each day, and this means that there are loads of photos to go through all the time. While changing the colour of your walls will be a little bit awkward, the work itself won’t be too hard, making it worth putting some time into doing some decorating for yourself. It will make you feel very proud inviting people into a home which you really like.

Collecting Memories

Of course, in reality, a large part of the way that a lot of people will feel about the spaces they visit will be based on their memories. When you’ve spent loads of time with your family at home, it will be easy to feel calm their, and you will constantly be reminded of the time you’ve spent together. This area is the easiest of them all, with friends and family being the perfect tools when you’re trying to build some positive memories. A camera can be helpful with this, but it will be important to make sure that you don’t miss out on real memories as a result.

With all of this in mind, you should be feeling ready to take on the challenge of making your home into something you can love. There are always loads of routes which can be taken with work like this, though a lot of people will ignore them, simply accepting their space for what it is.

The Surprising Impact Of “Finer Details” On Your Business

Two of the focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. Often times the key to running a successful business is being aware of the details. The following contributed post discusses this and is entitled, The Surprising Impact Of “Finer Details” On Your Business.

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As a business owner, your primary focus will always be on the “big picture” – which is exactly how it should be. Entrepreneurs have to think ahead, consider the future, and establish broad goals and aims for their company to achieve in order to grow and succeed, after all.

However, there is a hidden downside to focusing on the “big picture” – you can miss the finer details of your business.

What are the finer details of a business?

Whatever type of business you run, there are finer details for you to consider:

• If you own an offline retail store, you’ll have to think about which brand of point-of-sale system you use, or the material of the carrier bags you provide
• If you run a borehole drilling company, you’ll need to consider inflatable packers on https://www.aardvarkpackers.com/products-list/inflatable-packers/ and decide if they are suitable for your project, or which size of injection cone you always need to have to hand
• If you own a medical practice, the finer details might be the type of instruments that you choose to use, or which brand of surgical tape you prefer to use
• … and so on.

Simply put, the “finer details” we are referring to are not the be-all and end-all of your company; they are the small decisions, the seemingly-minor choices that have relatively little bearing on the big picture you may feel you should focus on. However, the impact these finer details may have is far mightier than you may initially believe.

Why are these finer details so important?

The reason that finer details are so important is simple: they’re not actually particularly “fine” at all.

While finding the right inflatable packers or deciding on the material of the bags you provide in your store may seem somewhat irrelevant in the grand scheme of things, it only takes a hiccup with one of these supposedly-rather-small details to cause issues for your business. Let’s say that you have decided to provide plastic bags to customers of your retail store; a seemingly-small decision that you make in an instant.

However, what if your customers have been reading the likes of https://www.onegreenplanet.org/whats-so-bad-about-plastic-bags/ and are thus concerned about the impact of plastic bags on the environment? In such a scenario, there’s a chance that that small, seemingly inconsequential decision, could actually cost you customers or harm your business’ reputation.

For every finer detail, there is a potential downside such as the example above; a scenario in which a finer detail could interrupt your business’ productivity, alter your customers’ perceptions of your company, cause a loss of efficiency, or simply make your business’ operations more difficult than they need to be.

So what can you do?

Admittedly, finding time in your schedule to focus on every fine detail in your business is going to be challenging – like most business owners, you likely already feel that you’re constantly short on time as it is.

However, what you can do is review the finer details your business relies on. Every three months, take an afternoon to review all the details of your business, asking your staff for their input in areas that you do not deal with yourself. It’s also worth surveying your customers and asking them to identify any areas of the business they dislike, or problems that they have experience.

If an issue is identified with one of the finer details of your business, you can then make a change before the impact becomes overly damaging.

In conclusion

Focusing on the big picture in business is essential, but every once in a while, it’s also worth focusing on the very small, very fine picture too.

How to Know if a Property is a Good Investment or Not

Two of the focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. Many people have gotten wealthy by investing in real estate. No matter which niche of real estate investing you get into, a crucial skill is identifying which properties are good investments and which ones are bad investments. The following contributed post is therefore entitled, How to Know if a Property is a Good Investment or Not.

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If you want to buy a property, then there are a lot of different things that you need to think about. You need to think about the location of the property, the condition of it and even the price. Only when you have been able to take all of this into consideration, can you then begin to really make sure that the property is the right one for you.

Know the Numbers

Unless something catastrophic happens between the time your offer is accepted, and when you close, there isn’t a single reason why your loan shouldn’t go through. Before you start searching online, you have to make sure that you speak with a mortgage lender. You also need to make sure that you know what you can qualify for, and even how much you are spending on a monthly basis. When you do this, you can then begin to make good decisions that won’t impact your finances too much.

Location

Sure, it’s great when you can buy a huge family home for a very affordable price. If the location isn’t right however then you shouldn’t even look into it as an option. Location is such a huge factor when you are choosing your property. Remember that you can change almost any aspect of the home, whether it involves adding an extra bedroom or even converting the loft to get extra space, but you can never pick up the home and move it somewhere else. If you can’t seem to find a great location then look into the properties that Drew Fasy has to offer.

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Extra Cost

When buyers are working hard to try and set up their budget, they remember to account for things such as insurance payments, tax and even their mortgage. You might not remember to account for things like gas, cable or even electric however and this can really impact your budget. You also need to take into account things like landscaping and property maintenance. You can minimise this cost by working hard to find a property that needs very little improvement, therefore saving you some money. That being said, some hidden costs just can’t be avoided. And while there can be aspects of a property that don’t require many changes, this gives you scope to put your stamp on it, either through exterior renovation or curb appeal alterations, or giving the outside of the property a minuscule makeover, you don’t necessarily have to invest much.

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Compromise

If finding the perfect property means going over budget, then you really do need to reconsider. This is especially the case if you can find a property that is near enough exactly what you want for a significantly lower price. Sometimes compromises need to be made because if you don’t then you may end up overspending on something that really isn’t worth that much money. By being smart with your money, you can be sure to really help yourself and you can also do your finances a favour too.

So, there are plenty of ways for you to really make the most out of your investment, and by putting in the work you can be sure to find a property that suits your needs. The internet is a fantastic place for you to start when you doing your property research, so don’t be afraid to compare neighbourhoods online.