Getting Your Business Online – Is It In Your Best Interests?

February 9, 2012 · office environment, office politics · Comments Off

An online presence can serve as a shop window, a sales force and a checkout – with seamless transition from one stage to the next. As such a large number of companies have made the transition from purely offline to an amalgamation of offline and online or indeed a purely online business.

Once a functional and effective website is in place it can almost automatically convert leads into prospects and prospects into sales without the need for much (if any) human intervention on the part of the company.

Establishing Viability

Before jumping headfirst into website creation it is essential to thoroughly consider the reasons why you’re building an online presence and what you intend to gain from it.

Establish Aims

If you’re a retailer then your primary aim will likely be revenue generation through e-commerce sales – for some industries however, the goals are not quite so clear-cut. Those who operate in the B2B arena dealing with office furniture sales for example, may wish to build a website which serves as a sales brochure to elicit enquiries from prospective clients, whilst other organisations could well create a website purely for increased brand exposure.

Specific goals and aims must be established before anything else is done to ensure that all aspects of your website and online marketing are tailored to best serve the business and achieve your stipulated goals.

Establish Market

With goals and aims freshly established there remains the vital task of assessing whether the market exists for you to achieve a high enough volume of conversion (completions of established aims) to justify the cost of entering the online arena. Examination of competitor websites and use of tools such as the Google Adwords Keyword Research tool will help you to understand the demand for your product, service or offering. Essentially, the more people using search engines to search for terms (referred to as ‘keywords’) which are relevant to your industry: the more of a pre-existing market there is.

If there does not appear to be a significant pre-existing market, then you will have to be especially ruthless during the course of the next stage.

Establish Budgets, ROI + KPIs

Unless you have web design, web development and web marketing specialists in-house (in which case this whole series of blogs is unlikely to be of much use!) the creation and development of a website and the subsequent digital marketing services will require capital. How much capital is dependent upon a vast number of variables; not to mention your available budget. At this stage the services of a digital marketing agency are likely to be incredibly useful. Digital marketing specialists are able to outline the website functionality you’ll require to achieve your goals, the cost of website design, development and maintenance and the cost of SEO and other online marketing services to ensure success.

By consulting closely with a digital marketing agency – or indeed utilising your own experience you will be able to establish two vital acronyms: ROI and KPIs. The Return On Investment is essential – if you can’t foresee an ROI which offers definite benefit to your company then it may be necessary to re-think your aims and market. Key Performance Indicators serve as benchmarks – basically a series of targets which demonstrate that you are on course to achieve (or better) your desired ROI. Any digital marketing company worth their salt should be able to assist you in formulating and ultimately facilitate the attainment of KPIs spanning from website development through to 12 months from launch.

If the figures add up so far then it’s time to move on to the next step – Getting Online.

Bathroom Style – On the Cheap!

October 13, 2011 · office environment · Comments Off

Since a whole host of home improvement and interior design focussed television programmes burst onto our screens more than a decade ago the art of home beautification has become increasingly popular. With celebrity gurus sharing tips on living room revitalisation on a budget and the most fashionable styles of contemporary kitchen; no room in the fashion conscious homeowner’s house is likely to have been left un-accessorised…except perhaps the bathroom. This is even more likely to be the case in the office environment. The office bathroom is often entirely without flair and purely there for functional ends – with the various fixtures regarded much like all of the other office furniture.

The bathroom is however a truly unique space – it can serve as a short-term relaxation haven whilst also being on hand to answer calls of nature and facilitate speedy beautification or make-up adjuetment. Given the strains the bathroom faces on a daily basis and varied roles served: it only seems fair to lavish some care and attention upon this often overlooked room. With this in mind here are some quick and simple ways to give your bathroom a new lease of life without spending a fortune.

Invest in New Brassware

Long gone are the days of dull taps with plastic handles which drain any sense of style from the basin area of the bathroom. There are a vast array of innovative bathroom fixture manufacturers out there such as Sagittarius taps who create exciting, eye catching and practical bathroom taps to suit all tastes. Whether your style leans towards minimalism, traditional styling or indeed anywhere in between there are certain to be attractive and appropriate tap options out there for you to add some functional bling to your bathroom.

Co-ordinate the Bath Linen

As with pretty much every other room in the house, well co-ordinated accessories can totally revitalise the bathroom. As opposed to investing in knick-knacks or trinkets for your bathroom suite however, a great course of action is to splash out on co-ordinated luxury towels and bath linen. As well as bringing cohesion to the look of your bathroom, high quality towels also bring obvious practicality and day to day comfort benefits.

Add Floral Flourishes

A vase of fresh flowers or indeed well positioned dried flowers or potpourri brings not only a welcome fragrance to the bathroom but also serves as attractive and homely visual features. Contemporary styled bathrooms in particular can be a little stark and clinical; the introduction of some natural beauty can lift the entire room and make the bathroom into a totally different space.

A complete overhaul of the family bathroom, work bathroom or an en suite bathroom can be an incredibly costly endeavour. Provided your fixtures and sanitary ware are functional and presentable, these small changes could make a major difference with minimal outlay.

Which Working Environment is more Productive?

August 17, 2011 · a bit of fun, office environment, office supplies · Comments Off

The famous debate of whether working from home is more productive

A common on-going argument is whether the home is more productive than the office. Employees nod their heads vigorously when asked the question whilst managers shudder at the thought of their workforce switching office tasks for This Morning. There are many aspects of working at home and in the office which divide managers and their employees’ opinions.

Travel

A common argument of working in the office is the time spent commuting. Many people argue their time spent travelling to the office could be used as working time instead. Bosses argue they know their workers too well to trust them with such a responsibility.

Home: The 2 hour commute to the office can be switched for valuable working/TV time.

Office: The fact workers have to travel to the office means they have to get out of bed. It’s up to you to decide whether this is a pro or a con…

Distractions

Many bosses believe there will be too many distractions if working from home that effect productivity, resulting in less work being completed. What they don’t realise is that there are probably even more distractions in the workplace.

Home: Screaming children will actually drive a worker into their home office, instructing their partner to tame their offspring as they “have work to do”.

Office: Water coolers prove more of a gossip meeting point rather than providing a thirst for knowledge.

Stationery

Working from home means employees have to be responsible for their own office supplies, in the workplace everything is provided, generally in one cupboard. There is the other factor that supplies within the office tend to go missing.

Home: All stationery is one tidy place and home workers generally know where this is in their own office. Stationery supplies can also make excellent weapons, convenient for attacking intruders or annoying partners.

Office: If an employee is running low on supplies there are many other workers they can steal their much needed stationery from.

Facilities

Home comforts are much more appealing than the communal facilities that are on offer in the workplace. Sharing a fridge with the rest of the workforce generally results in some thieves being named and shamed.

Home: Having a fully functioning kitchen within the building means the ready meal diet can be ditched.

Office: Communal toilets means listening to co-workers perform their daily bathroom businesses which can be a great source of entertainment.

Although there are pros and cons to working at home and in the office it generally depends on the person. Some people are more productive in the home whereas others prefer to leave the house and have a change of scenery. Bosses should assess the person on their productivity in the office in order to decide whether they are better working at home or in the office.

Company Data – Are You Putting Your Work at Risk?

June 8, 2011 · news, office environment · Comments Off

Technology is developing at such fast rates that companies and their workers’ aren’t realising how much they are putting their important documents and data at risk from being accessed by third parties. The increased use of mobile devices and file sharing has resulted in private information being more easily accessible to hackers.

A survey of 1000 British office workers revealed that a shocking 37% of employees have put their companies’ data at risk at least once. Losing mobile phones on public transport; leaving laptops unattended in cafes and bars and misplacing USB sticks are among the common data sins. Amid the 1000 questioned, 150 employees admit they knowingly lost data.

Many office staff continue their work at home, often storing data on their personal PC. A quarter of the workers surveyed admit they put their firm’s files at risk by storing work documents on their computers at home. Common methods for file transferring between home and work PCs include USB devices, which 25% of workers surveyed said they used. Not only are USB sticks easily lost, they also have the ability to easily spread viruses between different computers, exposing their office network to dangerous malware and viruses that can originate from personal devices.

Numerous office workers fail to back-up important files and documents. A staggering 1 in 5 employees confess they have forgotten to back-up vital data; resulting in 10% of workers losing crucial documents following system or hard drive failure. However, when the employees were asked if they had been advised on how to protect data 1 in 10 said they received no software or guidance from their employers.

By backing up files onto encrypted networks as well as storing files in a password protected folder on a hard drive can help improve a business’s security. Employees should also enquire to their manager for advice on the best way to transfer their files, should they need to access them from a personal device.

A combination of bad habits, poor organisation and lack of risk knowledge are putting many companies’ confidential data in danger. Employers should enforce the importance of data protection to employees and offer them advice and software so their work is safely accessible at home and in the workplace. Employees should also be advised of the risks involving using USB devices and leaving laptops unattended in public places. Any important documents that require printing should be filed away in a safe place to reduce the risk of papers getting lost by generally being unorganised.

10 Step Guide to Eliminating Office Bullying

June 1, 2011 · office environment · Comments Off

Many people believe bullying is only a problem for school children. Unfortunately, people who believe bullying only exists in the playground are very much mistaken. Making jibes and insults towards colleagues may be the regular office mockery but how do you know when one person’s friendly joke has turned into another person’s misery? The remarks and behaviour may be acceptable to the bully but the victim may suffer loss of confidence and dread coming to work. So how do you differentiate between taking a joke and being the victim of a malicious bully?

Diagnosis

Friendly Banter or Vicious Name Calling?

1. Loss of confidence

If the remarks are making you paranoid or insecure, the joking has gone too far. No one should be forced to feel inadequate or less valuable than their colleagues, and if this is how a co-worker has made you feel then you are a victim of bullying.

2. Dreading work

If a colleague is making you either scared or not wanting to attend work because of their behaviour, then you are being victimised. In particular, managers can often cause of an employee to fear to attending work. Indicators that a manager is bullying you can include the manager: regular shouting at you to intimidate; purposely humiliating you whilst around colleagues; setting impossible tasks you are guaranteed to fail; undermining your abilities by giving you tedious and belittling office tasks and excessively supervising you so you feel uncomfortable.

3. Stress related illness and depression

If your working situation is leaving you feeling depressed or stressed, it’s time to communicate with your boss. It is illegal for an employer to continually allow a colleague to suffer from work related stress and depression, under the Healthy and Safety at Work Act 1974. Many people don’t realise how stress and depression can carry symptoms of physical illness such as: anxiety, nausea, headaches, insomnia, irritable bowel syndrome and high blood pressure. Work should never compromise an employee’s health, so any illness you believe is a result of your work situation should be reported.

Resolution

What can I do to stop the bullying?

4. Confront their fear

Bullies continue to single victims out because they believe them to be an easy target and are getting away with torturing the victim. A bully’s worst fear is someone standing up to them. Confront the bully in a calm and civilised manner and in some cases, the harassment will stop immediately. In addition, people sometimes don’t realise their words are hurting your feelings, so letting them know their behaviour is causing you a problem them could result in you being treated with more respect and sensitivity.

5. Confide in a friend

Confiding your feelings in a friend or colleague you trust can take some of the weigh off your shoulders and they can offer you support. Also, you may not be alone in your situation as other colleagues could be being victimised without you knowing.

6. Notify your union representative

This should be done regardless of if the union operates at your office. Legal support and advice can be offered, or the union rep could speak to the bully on your behalf. If you don’t already have a union representative then get one! Everyone is entitled to join a union and it is illegal for an employer to dismiss a worker for joining a union.

7. Build yourself a case file

This may sound dramatic but the bullying is obviously ruining a significant part of your life. Be sure to record all instances of bullying that takes place and names of any witnesses so a union rep or manager can see a pattern in the bully’s behaviour. It may be worth recording these in a personal organizer or diary so you can easily refer back to the date and incident.

8. Inform your manager

If it’s your manager that’s abusing you then contact a higher authority or different manager within the company. It is their duty of care to eliminate bullying from the workplace and will most likely be disappointed if you were continually absent due to work related stress. If they do not believe you, show them your case file and ask them to observe and assess the bully’s behaviour towards you.

9. Make a formal complaint

This is a last resort, but if your cries fall on deaf ears then follow the company’s grievance procedure. Bullying at work is unacceptable and should not be an ongoing misery.

Prevention

The bullying has stopped, but how do I know it won’t happen again?

10. Assert your authority

Whether you resolved the situation at your office or decided to take a new job, the last thing you want is for it to be a recurring issue. Treat your co-workers with respect and expect respect in return. Report any bullying you notice whether it is happening to you or someone else at the early stages to avoid a miserable situation and maintain harmony within the office environment.

How To Stay Fit And Healthy In The Office

May 12, 2011 · office environment, office furniture, office supplies · Comments Off

How To Stay Fit & Healthy At The Computer Screen

Working in an office can often entail high pressure, time consuming projects. In this time, office workers can often let their health take a back seat in order to focus on being successful. Instead of neglecting their health they should ensure; a comfortable working environment, balanced diet and exercise are all incorporated into their life along with their employment.

Office work tends to involve lots of sitting and staring at a computer monitor with minimal movement and human interaction. This can cause office workers to become unsociable, unfit and unhealthy leading to stress and even depression. It’s important for office workers to remain active and maintain their health, as the effects of sitting at a computer all day can be worse than labouring on a construction site.

Working in an office can have negatives effects on the body’s health, many workers let their health and fitness slide by the wayside, resulting in health problems later in life. Others sacrifice human interaction in exchange for emailing and instant messaging; this can have a tiring effect on the mind, as people require human interaction to maintain happiness.

Eating habits can deteriorate whilst working in an office. Boredom and frustration can lead to comfort eating. Others skip meals in order to meet deadlines and attend meetings. Both have negative effects on the body, causing weight gain which could lead to obesity. Unhealthy snacks should be substituted with fruit, nuts or low fat yogurts. Healthy, nutritious snacks containing low fat and high protein can help prevent hunger pangs and further snacking.

Comfort is paramount in the workplace. Ensuring workers have the correct office furniture to cater for their height and weight can prevent muscle strains. Computer chairs should be height adjustable so workers can comfortable reach the keyboard, mouse and floor. Computer monitors should also be at eye level to prevent neck pains. To prevent pains in the wrist and hand whilst using a computer, special mouse mats the have a hand rest can be purchased. When purchasing office supplies, it is equally important to purchase the correct furniture to suit each individual.

One of the most aggravating factors of office life is the lack of exercise workers engage in during the day. This makes it even more important to put time aside for exercise after or before work. Many people believe exercising only refers to cardiovascular activities which increase the heartbeat. When in actual fact, exercise can refer to 30 minutes walking the dog at a brisk pace. For those who don’t have much spare time on their hands yoga is a great form of exercise. Even a 10-20 minute yoga session daily can improve fitness, relieve stress and reduce muscle tension.

Maintaining health whilst being an office worker is the key to a healthy lifestyle and happiness. Even minimal changes to lifestyle including; gentle exercise, improvement of diet and ensuring suitable office equipment is available can improve health, fitness and happiness. This in turn, should improve work performance!

Top 10 Ways to Annoy Your Colleagues

May 9, 2011 · a bit of fun, office environment, stationery · Comments Off

Typical to any office, there’s always one colleague that bugs you beyond the point of your head exploding. Instead of allowing them to drive you to insanity take a leaf out of Tim’s book (The Office UK) and get that stapler in the jelly!

1. Tapping in time to music

Not only does the tapping rhythm drive your colleagues insane because of its audio qualities, but the kinetic energy that surges through the floor, causing your colleague’s desk to wobble viciously will surely rattle their cage.

2. Unleashing Your Smelly Feet

This is an excellent irritant technique. Your colleague will deal with a parmesan-like stench filling the air and they will probably feel too bad to address you about it, meaning the office can smell like a piece of Stinking Bishop week-in week-out.

3. Oops, butter fingers…

Tipping too much sugar in someone’s brew and not telling them is a method to use if your aim is to watch your colleague’s face physically crumble. This is particularly effective if your colleague is attempting a diet or if you are tired of being the “designated brewer”.

4. Eating their favourite food

If your colleague rambles on about a particular cuisine they have brought in for lunch that they “can’t wait for”, then this is the perfect time to raid the refrigerator and eat it before them. This must be carried out with the utmost care and caution as being reported for theft could hinder your chances of returning to steal more bewildered co-workers lunches.

5. Chewing incredibly loudly

This is a classic tool for annoyance and is great in any situation, so you don’t have to be in the office to annoy people. Simply bring a bag of midget gems in to munch on throughout the course of the day, they are ultra-sticky and will physically force you to chew loud and disgustingly in order to free your teeth.

6. Shift your mess

Onto someone else’s desk! Yes, leaving your crisp packets and chocolate wrappers on your colleague’s desk will really begin to irritate, particularly when their stationery items begin to resemble a confectionary store.

7. Yet more theft

If stealing their lunch doesn’t quite give you full satisfaction it’s time to steal some stationery and desk objects. Particularly interesting items to steal are: planners containing all their important meetings and appointments and their entire pen collection.

Note: the theft of the pen collection should be staggered so they gradually run out of pens.

8. Constantly peer over their shoulder

Standing behind your colleague and peering over their shoulder whilst they work is an idea that should be used more often. By pretending to show an interest in their work you are secretly putting them under pressure by watching from behind, causing them to make errors.

9. Releasing bad smells

This relates to the passing of bodily gases in order to create a bad smell for your colleagues’ to slowly die in. This is particularly effective prior to swiftly exiting the room, causing the odour to spread and allowing you some time to laugh to yourself.

10. The Almighty “Frape”

Yes, I saved the best until last. This could be a one-off opportunity in which your colleague has to leave the room without a chance to log out of their social media account. This is where the fun begins, when you start updating their status to various silly things. In order for it to have comedy value it must be somewhat believable, so think imaginatively!

Please note: I cannot be held responsible for any disciplinary action, hatred or revenge cast upon you as a consequence to you attempting various points referred to in this article. Proceed with caution, determination and guts.

Lower Your Stress – Ditch Your Mess

May 3, 2011 · office environment, office furniture, office supplies, stationery · Comments Off

Organisation is essential in the office. Different projects that cross-over, combined with personal and legal documents can wreak havoc on a worker’s desk. Clutter can cause hard work to get lost in the midst of newspapers and useless printouts. If you look around in your office and see stacks of miss-matched paperwork, broken/chewed stationery all mixed in with lettuce off yesterday’s sandwich it could be time to invest in some equipment to bring a considerable amount of organisation back to your desk.

Lack of organisation is common in office workers. Although organising your possessions may seem like a tedious task, it could save you heaps of valuable time. Being organised is all about maintaining desk tidiness and ensuring it’s a work friendly surface, as opposed to one big clear up when you realise you’ve lost half of your paperwork. If you are organised from your first day of work it will save you so much time in the long run (however, if your desk is already resembling Aladdin’s Cave all is not lost).

Some particular office stationery and furniture can really change your organisational skills with minimal effort:

Ring binders and lever arch files are perfect for storing paperwork, whose sole purpose has become a coaster for your coffee cups. Keeping documents in a safe place is paramount to being a successful office worker, workers who have an untidy desk are less likely to feel at ease and work effectively. Buying packs of folders is the perfect solution so you have different categories which are easily accessible and know exactly where your documents are at all times.

Note: Don’t forget you will also need to invest in a hole punch if using ringbinders, so there’s no excuse for ripped papers.

Once folders start getting filled with paper work it’s definitely time to purchase some dividers. Sub-categorising really speeds up the process of locating a piece of paperwork so it’s worth separating them into sections by topic or date.

Many people use their desk top only, rather than the drawers a desk often possesses. All stationery should be stored in a drawer rather than scattered on the desk. As well as keeping the desk tidy, there’s no excuse for your pens “accidentally” appearing on your colleague’s desk…

Note: It’s definitely worth designating one of your drawers for personal possessions. That way there’s less chance of them getting lost, stolen or mixed up with work equipment.

These small, seemingly tedious tasks can really help the organisation and tidiness of your working environment. Ordering your paperwork can save time and ink by requiring less reprints of lost documents. By making a few subtle changes and maintaining your tidiness you can really kick bad organisation habits. Remember mess = stress!

Going Green in the Office Whilst Staying in the Black

April 19, 2011 · Recycling, office environment, office supplies · Comments Off

I was fortunate enough to be able to write this guest post on Eco-Office Gals website.

With Global Warming having shocking effects around the globe, do your bit to help the environment by keeping your workplace green.

When it comes to wastage, offices can be one of the main culprits. With such busy schedules and deadlines to meet, saving the environment can be one of the last things on a worker’s mind. Simple tasks such as reprinting documents unnecessarily and repetitively boiling the kettle all have their negative effect on the big wide world. Typical thoughts can be “it won’t make a difference if I do it just this once” but what about the thousands of other like-minded people? What happens when they leave the light on “just this once”?

The colour green symbolises many things, one being nature and eco-friendliness and another being wealth and money. By following the advice on this page you can be green in both senses, by saving the environment whilst being cost effective. Of course there are obvious, everyday tasks which can reduce costs, here are just a few.

Energy saving light bulbs – these can fit into the majority of light fixtures and give out as much light as a regular bulb, whilst lasting longer and using only 20-35% of the electricity of an equivalent regular bulb.
Switch off electronic equipment which isn’t in use. Computers and the like tend to get left on in offices, costing the earth – in both senses.
Where possible, print on both sides of the paper. This will half the amount of paper going through your printer, saving money on paper as opposed to wasting a perfectly good side of paper.

In addition to energy saving tasks, there are also office products and stationery which can be purchased to make your office more eco-friendly. When purchasing new products look out for if they are recycled/recyclable. There an array of recycled items, some less commonly used such as:

Fire extinguishers – although you wouldn’t think it some of these can be recycled. Just make sure you put the fire out before recycling…
Recycled calculators – these are particularly interesting as not only do they run off solar power, they are also made from recycled materials making them incredibly sustainable gadget.
Recycling wall chart – keep everyone aware of the amount of recycling that takes place in the office and raise awareness for people to suggest more eco-friendly initiatives. Make sure the wall chart is also recyclable!

Yes, going green is that easy. No need to forget those all-important deadlines whilst reducing your carbon footprint. So before you leave the light on in a hurry to get home, take a step back and think “just this once, I can make a difference”.

Spring Cleaning in the Office

April 19, 2011 · office environment, office supplies · Comments Off

Spring is all about turning over a new leaf. Why not change your work ethic by giving the office a spring clean?

Dust, clutter and grime. All of these are common in the office, and all of these make for a chaotic mind. You may not think having papers strewn haphazardly over the desk amongst numerous cups containing week-old coffee would affect the way you work, but all these factors are piling on to the stress of your work load. Furthermore, following certain hygiene practices such as sanitizing telephones and door handles, washing kitchen equipment and keeping the toilets clean can reduce the number of viruses and bugs being passed on from person to person.

It’s not just the kitchen and toilets that need to be cleaned. All areas require hygiene maintenance, a cleaner will usually do the basics but keeping things extra clean and tidy will ensure a pleasant working experience.

Hygiene and cleanliness are vital within the work place and some cleaning products could prevent viruses, odours and filth developing. Eating food in the office can create some unpleasant odours which tend to linger, prevent this from happening by placing an air freshener on your desk to keep the air fragrant. Also, plates and mugs have a habit of sitting on workers’ desks for weeks unnecessarily. Purchase some washing up liquid so there’s no excuse for dirty dishes cluttering desks and ruining paperwork. Alcohol hand gel is becoming an increasingly popular product within the work place, especially with the scorching temperatures in the summer, as the heat allows bacteria to breed at a higher rate. The hand gel can be used at any time to sanitize the hands and prevent bacteria and germs being spread throughout the workforce.

Create some order in the office! Keep desks tidy – with a desk tidy. These are perfect for storing relatively small stationery items such as pens, paperclips and scissors which have a habit of getting lost. Storage units such as filing cabinets can be used for larger items, leaving plenty of desk space for equipment and documents that are currently being used. A common office pain is the amount of paperwork that goes missing, often to be found in combination with a colleague’s possessions months later. Avoid mixing business with pleasure by investing in a magazine rack, so important documents don’t become a bookmark in the latest gossip magazine…

Watch your fellow workers spring into action whilst the sweet smells and fresh aromas tantalize their nostrils. However, the key point to remember is – continue the cleanliness! Having a clean, tidy work space will make for a clear, relaxed mind.

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