Hiring a Virtual Receptionist – Is It a Wise Move?

The economy was severely affected by the crash of 2008; thousands of businesses all over the globe went into liquidation, and millions of people ended up without jobs within the space of a few months. Many of those who found themselves without a job instead decided to launch their own businesses. However, succeeding at running a small business is much easier said than done.

Small business owners face a lot of difficult challenges in the first couple of years of their creation. Maintaining a work-life balance often becomes difficult, since there are just so many issues that an entrepreneur has to face.…

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Cloud-Based Knowledge Management Systems: Benefits and Risks

As constant investment in learning always results in immediate improvement, business across the world have searched long and hard to find a way of managing obtained knowledge. And with a revolution of fresh IT solutions, it seems that cloud computing is a foolproof system for doing so. With increased popularity of cloud-based knowledge management systems, we now have enough experience to discern the benefits of cloud usage from its potential risks.

Knowledge management system in the cloud

The Importance of Learning and Perks of Knowledge Management

As obvious as it may sound, knowledge is a supporting system of any prolific business. Those striving toward continual learning consequently never fall short on their assets, which grants them a position of competitive advantage and continual success.…

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Popular Online Services That Help Businesses with Limited Resources

Is your business struggling because it lacks essential resources? If so, you’re not alone because thousands of other business owners are in the same position as you. However, the internet provides most of the solutions you require to address this problem.

Outsourcing

Below are some of the most popular online services that help businesses with limited resources.

Product Packaging Services

First impressions last, so it’s important to package your products in a professional manner. However, designing and creating your own packaging materials can be time consuming, costly and in most cases difficult to do because you probably don’t have the expertise available.…

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How to Optimize Safety Stock to Improve Supply Chain Performance

Business developments can be hard to predict; for instance, a customer could place an unexpectedly large order for one of your products. That should be great news for you–but only if you’re prepared to fill the order on time. That’s where safety stock comes in.

Warehouse worker managing safety stock

Forecasting precisely how much inventory you’ll need is always a difficult proposition; safety stock, by acting as “buffer inventory,” allows businesses to build up some margin for error. The downside, of course, is that holding inventory–let alone extra inventory–is expensive.

Some studies have pegged it at 20–40 percent of the cost of stocked merchandise. Making matters worse: That’s an ongoing, recurring cost, not a one-off purchase.…

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5 Factors Every Business Website Owner Should Consider

Is your business website producing the results you want? You may be losing website visitors, business leads and potential shoppers and customers simply because you haven’t taken some simple actions. Below are five of the main factors every business website owner should consider.

Business website

SEO

Search Engine Optimization has the potential to send huge numbers of website visitors and shoppers to a business website for many years to come. However, if you don’t do the groundwork when your website is being developed, it becomes much more difficult for search engines like Google, Yahoo! and Bing to find your website.

One more thing: You should consider focusing on local SEO.…

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Why Investors Don’t Love Your Hardware Startup and What You Can do About It

Hardware-focused entrepreneurs know that starting and scaling a hardware startup is a monumental task. Between product creation, manufacturing, supply chain, sales and branding, it takes focus and stamina. Not surprisingly, nearly 90% of new startups are software focused.

Hardware startup founder

According to PWC and the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA), of the companies receiving venture funding for the first time in Q4 2015, software companies received the largest share, accounting for 37% of the dollars and 39% of the deals. Investment in hardware was less than a quarter of the amount invested in software. So why are VC’s hesitant to invest in hardware companies and how can you finance yourself without their funding?…

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What to Do When an Employee Has a Health Issue at Work

Emergencies are not predictable. That’s their nature. They happen when least expected, and they wreck havoc on everything they come into contact with. If you’re the owner of a small business or you’re a manager, emergencies are your least favorite kind of surprise. They set you back, they lose you employees, they lose you time, and they lose you money.

Employee sickness funny cartoon

If you’re managing a small business and you have employees who are having health issues that either happen at work or interfere with work being able to get done, here are things you can do:

Encourage Time Off

Health issues arise when somebody is stressed.…

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5 Proven Ways to Leverage The Power of Print Marketing

Although the days of the print industry appear to be in jeopardy at the hands of a digital age, the effectiveness and power of physical media is far from gone. While the continuing uprise of the online world has created a marketing platform larger than marketing strategies can keep up with, this country has shown the age of physical promotion isn’t in fear of being at an end.

Woman reading newspaper

Billboards to brochures that draw the eye have been seen supporting businesses worldwide for decades, defining a company’s voice to connect with passers by and prospective buyers alike.

Appeal to your demographic

Considering where your promotions will be and who you are hoping to engage with is the first step toward success in print media.…

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Sole Trader, Limited Company, Partnership or LLP – Which Business Structure is Best?

You’ve got your business idea all sorted. You’ve got a great name ready to register. Now what? You need to decide which legal structure will suit you and your business best.

Limited company

The four most popular ones are sole trader, limited company, general partnership and limited liability partnership (LLP). The decision is actually pretty straightforward when you understand the basic features and benefits of each structure, so we’ll take a look at each one in turn to help you make the right choice for your exciting new venture.

Sole trader

A sole trader is a self-employed person who owns and manages a business as an individual, but they have the option to employ people to work for them.…

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What Impact Will Mayor Khan Have on London’s Business Rates?

Two months after he was voted in as the Labour Party’s candidate for Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan tweeted about his intentions regarding the capital’s impossibly high business rates:

Sadiq Khan tweet

Sadiq Khan set out his stall on London’s businesses early, and his pledge to be “the most pro-business Mayor London has ever had” was a cornerstone of his campaign. He spoke out about business rates and stated that, as “small businesses are the lifeblood of London’s economy…it is vital that control of business rates is devolved…in such a way that it doesn’t simply result in more cuts for London [over other parts of the UK].”…

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