When you run your own business, you know that in an extremely competitive market where customers are increasingly capricious, your reputation is everything. Your reputation is what tells repeat customers and new leads alike what they can expect from your business. It bolsters your brand by imbuing it with a set of standards to which you as an entrepreneur and all of your employees hold yourselves. As such, when someone levels a false allegation against you, your business or one of your employees, your reputation is in danger of being seriously and irrevocably tarnished. You’ve worked too long and for too hard on your business to let its good name be dragged through the mud. Don’t let false allegations mire the reputation of your business. You need to take quick and decisive action to restore public faith in your brand and mitigate any fiscal damage that might be wrought.
If allegations have been made about one of your employees rather than the business itself, decisive action must be taken to ensure that your name is not dragged into disrepute. The employee in question must be suspended while you carry out a full and thorough investigation. If your employee has been found to be blameless and the accusations proved to be false, you can proceed with defending yourself without the risk of getting egg on your face. Plus, showing your employees that you have your back not only boosts workplace morale but adds PR value to your brand.
Lawyer up
If you or your business has been accused of malpractice that is criminal in nature, unless your business has its own legal team it behoves you to find a criminal defense lawyer. Look for an attorney with experience in defamation suits. Not only will they be able to help you defend your name, they will also help you to prove a case for defamation which can be notoriously difficult.
As states law vary somewhat a lawyer will be able to help you determine whether the allegation was made against you or your business and determine whether the accusation made was slanderous (spoken) or in print (libel) and how you will build a case in front of a judge. Only with expert legal counsel will you be able to protect your reputation and sue for damages against your accuser.
Fight bad publicity with good publicity
There may be circumstances under which a court case would be a lengthy, expensive and unprofitable undertaking. In these instances, your best bet may actually be to frown out the negative publicity with good publicity. You’d hardly be the first company to do so. Many businesses have reversed their fortunes and turned PR nightmares into PR wins. In order to do this, you must lay a foundation to ensure that your business is ethically and morally unimpeachable.
Giving back to your community or the planet by making charitable donations, investing in greener working practices or demonstrating that you are a bastion of employee care are all great ways to positively boost your business’ PR.
Running a business isn’t all about focusing on personal gain. Giving something back to your community can have its own benefits, including boosting employee morale and customer trust. There are lots of ways in which you can integrate social responsibility into your business model. Here are just five ways in which you can give back as a business.
Donate money to charity
Giving money to charity is the most obvious way of giving back. There are lots of ways to donate money to charity. You could accept donations from customers using services as found at globalfacesdirect.com or you could get employees to donate money. This could involve organising a fundraising event or collecting money in a donation jar. You could even donate a percentage of your profits on a weekly or monthly basis. It’s important to find a cause that personally appeals to you – you could work with an existing charity or create your very own charity in which you have more control over where your money ends up.
Go green
Another way of giving back could be to embrace a few eco-friendly ideas. By going paperless or using solar power instead of fossil fuels, you could help to give back to the environment. Going green can also save you money in many cases, whether its cutting out the cost of buying paper or preventing you from ever having to pay an energy bill again. It’s also good for your public reputation – many modern consumers are environmentally conscious and respect companies that take steps to save the planet. You can discoversways to make your business green by reading blogs online.
Share your expertise
Sharing your expertise could be another way of giving back. This could include organising a seminar to help teach skills to fellow budding professionals. You could also share your expertise through blog posts or through Youtube videos. Sharing your knowledge can be great for your credibility, helping to gain trust from customers. Companies likeindieshopography.com offer more advice on how to share your expertise.
Support your local community
You may also be able to give back by supporting projects and causes in your local community. There may be startups that could use your funding or construction projects that need financial backing. You may also be able to use your influence to promote events and projects in your neighbourhood that you think deserve the attention.
Reward your employees
Rewarding your employees could be another way of giving back to society. Beyond offering good wages, there could be incentives you could offer to improve your employees’ quality of life such as gym discounts, free meals or even a company car. Such rewards can encourage employees to stay within your company as well as motivating them to be more productive.
It has been said that over 90% of businesses now use the power of the cloud in one way or another. Whether it’s to speed up the efficiency of working practices or to cut costs, the advantages of the cloud now outweigh the alternatives in any pros and cons list. In this article, we will consider 3 of the many benefits that cloud computing can offer your business.
Cloud computing promotes improved collaboration
Many business leaders are seeking to improve the work-life balance of their employees, and cloud computing has allowed them to take steps to make this achievable. Teams can now work on the same project, regardless of location, and can make changes and updates in real time. From cloud-based software such as Google Docs to any number of tablet and smartphone apps, documents and information can be shared across the board. As an example of the options available to your business, check out the way BCI Worldwide have fully explored the advantages of being in the cloud – for both team and customer collaboration. Could your business offer the same? It makes life so much easier, and it cuts out the need for time-wasting business meetings, phone calls, and those daily trips to and from the office.
Cloud computing offers added security
In 2008, the British Home Office came under fire when one of their employees lost confidential data on over 40,000 criminal cases. The reason? All of that information was stored on a humble memory stick that subsequently went missing. Imagine being the person responsible! However, this was in the days before cloud computing became popular. The days when you were forced to make paper copies of everything or risk the loss of a memory stick by using these portable hard drives. By living in the cloud, you don’t need to store sensitive data in what is now an archaic tradition. With data stored in the cloud, you have much greater security. If your computer malfunctions, you can access the information you need on another device. If you accidentally delete something, you no longer have the panic in thinking it’s gone forever. In short, the cloud is a lifesaver, and you won’t face the indignity and loss of respect that the British Home Office did a decade ago.
Cloud computing is environmentally friendly
We are living in an age when businesses are coming under fire for their lack of eco-friendliness. In 2017, Amazon came under fire from Greenpeace, who slammed the multi-billion dollar company’s poor environmental practices. Smaller businesses are guilty too, whether they add to the landfill with paper waste, or add to pollution with the amount of traffic they put on the road. Cloud computing reduces the carbon footprint, with less need for a paper-based office and road traffic, and due to data being stored on cloud servers, less energy is used through power-intensive hardware. Saving the world should be something close to all of our hearts, but when your business reputation lives or dies through customer and media opinion, showing respect to the earth will stand you in better stead against your competition.
Final word
Improved collaboration, added security, and eco-friendliness. Three excellent reasons why your business head needs to get in the cloud. So, if your business practices are stuck firmly on terra firma, perhaps now is the time to make the move. You know it makes sense!
When you start up your own commercial business, your thoughts tend to be largely focused on your brand and what it is going to provide. This is logical. You really do need to spend a whole lot of time developing product concepts, getting things into production, developing a brand image and getting everything together in order to have products and a brand image that will encourage customers to spend their money with you. While this is hard work, this is still the more fun and creative part of business ownership. Sadly, there are a few more paperwork based formalities that you need to complete before you really can get things up and running. So, let’s talk commercial business contracts. Here are a few that you really do need to consider and have sorted out as soon as possible!
First things first, you need to secure yourself a place to operate your business from. Nowadays, more viable options than ever are popping up in brilliant locations. Why? Well, many companies are taking to operating solely online. While their reasoning is logical (operating online means they have fewer outgoings, require fewer staff members, and also allows them to offer lower prices as a result), there’s still plenty of profit to be made from brick and mortar stores. If anything, now is a better time than ever as there is less competition on the high street without reduced demand. Now, when you have settled on a commercial property to rent, in particular, chances are that the individual leasing it to you will draw up a contract and request that you sign it. This may be the easiest and fastest way to go about things, as all of the hard work is taken out of your hands. But remember that this also means that control has been taken from your hands too. If you haven’t played any role in drawing up the contract, you haven’t had a say in it, and it’s extremely likely that things have been swung in favour of those letting it to you. It’s highly recommended that you draw in legal help when securing a commercial property. Small businesses and startups, in particular, tend to think that the expense isn’t worth what they receive. But they couldn’t be more wrong! In the long run, numerous problems and expenses can be avoided by taking a little more time in this process from the start. Some of the things that should be considered when drawing up a contract include payments, fees, fines, terms and conditions. You may not be able to negotiate all of these well without a neutral third party intervening. Employing legal advice also means that you have a professional on hand to decode anything that you might be signing or encouraged to agree to. The simplest things can be made incomprehensive with a good dose of legal and technical jargon and what’s the point in having documents that you don’t understand? Legal advice will support you and ensure that you are clear on absolutely everything! This prevents you from being taken by surprise with charges and fines down the line.
Every brick and mortar commercial space, no matter its purpose, will need energy in order to function. Many new businesses make the mistake of thinking that they simply take out a policy the same as they do for their own home. However, when you consider the sheer volume of energy that a commercial property will use in comparison to the standard household, you should start thinking a bit more about your energy usage. Effective energy management is absolutely essential for any business, whether large or small. It can save you a lot of money, reduce your company’s exposure to future changes or fluctuations in energy price, improve your brand’s productivity, reduce your company’s greenhouse gas emissions, reduce maintenance, and improve your brand image and the public’s perception of your company. Here are a few simple steps to achieve this!
Taking Out a Commercial Energy Contract
Avoid the temptation to take up the first contract that presents itself to you for the sake of convenience. You should take a look at exactly what the energy company you choose will provide you with. There are so many different things that you need to take into account: cost, procurement, network service charges, and metering and billing costs. All of these things can mount up, greatly altering the estimated costs that energy providers may initially give to you as examples. Once you have taken all of these factors into account, you can draw up a more reliable image of how much you will be forking out on energy expenses each month.
Considering Eco-Friendly Providers
Once you’ve worked out the projected costs of your intended energy bills, you should also take environmental obligations into account, considering the most environmentally responsible and friendly energy options out there. Perhaps you could engage with a more environmentally friendly provider. This may be at a slightly higher cost, dipping into your profits, it could boost your public image and prove more profitable in that way.
Finding a Reliable Electric Service Provider
You will need to find an electrician or service provider. However, to find the right individual or agency you need to do your research! While some options will present themselves as being capable of carrying out whatever work you provide, you need to ensure that they are accredited to do so. This will guarantee that they have received the necessary training and qualifications to carry out the work you require to the highest standard. Generally speaking, you will need a Level 2 Service provider, as they will be able to meet the needs of medium to large scale projects. The individuals working for these types of providers will be able to provide services such as power supply upgrades, underground mains and sub mains, authority metering installation, and the installation of distribution switchboards.
As you can see, a lot of hard work is going to be required during the setup of your commercial business. You’re going to have to set up a lot of contracts, perhaps a larger number that you initially intended. But believe us when we say that putting this effort in now will help things to run much more smoothly and will also prevent larger problems from developing later down the line. So, make sure to be thorough with your research and secure your contracts before you begin operation!
Most company bosses would agree that they would love to increase their profits without investing more money. In most instances, people think that idea is impossible to achieve. However, there are lots of strategies entrepreneurs could use to ensure they scrape the most money possible from their efforts. Considering that, you should take the time to read some of the tips below before putting them into action. This advice will apply to most companies, regardless of the inner working of the operation. You just have to tailor the information, so it suits your brand.
Firstly, it’s important to note that real-world advertising techniques like TV and radio ads are expensive. Sure, they might help you to reach thousands of customers, but you will get much better outcomes if you spend that money online. Social media and PPC marketing are the most cost-effective strategies available to you at the moment. So, stop wasting your money on traditional methods and put that cash into your internet promotional budget. The benefits will become apparent within a matter of hours, and you’ll wonder why you didn’t make a move sooner! So, invest your time and money in:
Social media sites like Facebook
PPC advertising tools like Adwords
Recycle anything you possibly can
It’s vital that all business owners make the best use of their produce. So, be sure to think about recycling whenever you encounter waste? Is there something you could do with that material rather than throwing it in the trash? In the food industry, many companies use fish by-products processing tools to ensure they never throw a single scale or fin away. In the manufacturing industry, business owners melt metal down and forge it into new shapes and items they can use to increase their profits. You get the idea, right? The next time you think you have some waste – think again!
There are lots of processes within the average business that entrepreneurs should aim to automate. That might include:
Parts of the manufacturing process
Inventory and stock control
Accounting and financial reporting
You just need to conduct some online research and check out some of the tools and methods used by your competitors. In most situations, automating different jobs within your operation will mean you have more time to work on growth, and your production costs should decrease. That means your profits increase!
Now you know about some basic ideas that should assist you in boosting your income this year, it’s time to put all those concepts into action. Most entrepreneurs will want to begin planning their budgets for next year in a couple of months, and so it makes sense to leave no stone unturned as you research this subject further. When all’s said and done, you didn’t become involved in the business world because you liked the idea of owning a company. You did it to improve your quality of life and become rich. So, use the information from this article to take a step closer to turning that dream into a reality.
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