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.

The Solar Powered Calculator Was Just The Beginning…

April 4, 2011 · Recycling, news, office environment, office politics · Comments Off

The Solar Powered Calculator was just the beginning…

Our good friends (and renewable energy experts) at Solarlec have kindly written a guest blog for us about solar power in the 21st Century. We hope you’re as surprised and intrigued as we were when we first read it!

solar powered calculatorThe first solar powered calculator was released in 1976 by Sharp. Catchily named the EL-8026 this trailblazer featured solar panels on the back of the calculator and was considerably less efficient or indeed practical than the solar calculators we’re accustomed to today. Although cumbersome, expensive and prone to power-outage on cloudy days or at night – the EL-8026 opened the door to a huge host of sunshine fuelled devices and new applications for photovoltaics (solar panels or solar cells to you and I).

portable solar charger

Sticking with the pocket sized end of the solar powered spectrum there are now an abundance of items which allow you to harness the power of sunlight to charge small electronic devices including mobile phones, PDAs and even netbooks and laptops. A modern portable solar charger is able to convert natural light (not necessarily just direct blazing sunlight) into usable battery charge. Developments in photovoltaic technology allow you to fully charge a spent phone battery in a couple of hours- even if it’s overcast outside. As well as being incredible useful whilst camping or caught without access to mains electricity, portable solar chargers save on the cost of using electricity from the grid and are entirely without carbon consequence for each new charge.

domestic solar panels

When this concept and principle are scaled up, so are the benefits. A decent sized home solar panel installation allows you to reap the positives of the portable charger on a considerably grander scale and with a significant positive impact on your finances. An average sized domestic solar panel system is capable of producing around 1400kWh/year. To put this into context, a standard laptop computer used for 10 hours a day, 365 days a year will generally use less than 200kWh/year – allowing those who work from home to genuinely boast of carbon neutrality…and of course benefit from energy overheads in and around the zero mark. Courtesy of the UK government’s Feed in Tariff scheme, those who opt to have domestic solar panels fitted to their home will also receive money for every unit of electricity they produce (whether they use it or not) – ultimately resulting in a net profit on the outlay for the solar panels in a short period of time.

google solar panels

The cost-effective scalability of solar power extends far beyond even the realms of roof fitted domestic systems. In 2007 internet giant Google invested in one of the largest solar panel installations in the United States. Later in that year they released some statistics showing just how much power their solar panels were producing on average per day. The fascinating results showed that per day they generated enough energy through photovoltaics to run a flat screen television for 5366 hours or perform 402 dishwasher cycles.

So whether you’re simply in the market for a new calculator, looking to make a modest investment or brainstorming on how to power a vast office complex don’t neglect the solar power option!

Is it Time to Update Your Printing Equipment?

January 26, 2011 · office environment, office politics, office supplies · Comments Off

Multi-functional Inkjet Printer

In this digital age it is common knowledge that minimising the amount you print is something to aspire to. With emails replacing faxes and documents generally being created and shared without ever involving the intervention of a pen, business in general is shifting towards the paperless dream. It is however unavoidable that paper is still an integral tool in almost all office environments and that photocopies and printouts are essential in some cases.

As well striving to use as little paper and ink as possible (for both financial and environmental reasons) it is important that businesses also ensure that when they do print things out; that they do so in the most efficient manner possible. Recycled paper and the recycling of printer ink cartridges are a vital step towards sustainable and cost effective printing but it doesn’t end there: the printer itself can make a huge contribution to not only the cost of printing a document in terms of consumable usage but also in terms of energy efficiency. Although frivolous replacement of perfectly serviceable and effective equipment should be avoided – it is sometimes the case that an investment in more up to date hardware is the best way to go.

Energy Star is an initiative which serves to promote energy efficiency in electrical devices. If a device complies with Energy Star guidelines it will generally boast a blue badge to attest to this, and as well as boasting an attractive sticker – these devices reduce the amount of energy you use compared to similar machines. Energy Star is however just a guideline, a more impressive consideration is that technology has developed so quickly that many devices which are on the market today offer power savings between 20 and 30% compared to their counterparts of 2 years ago. If the printer you’ve been using is 15 years old then just consider how much less power a new device will require in order to do the same job!

In order to further reduce electricity usage by your office printing equipment it is often worth looking at multi-functional devices. As opposed to having separate scanners, printers and photocopiers plugged in all day; consider a multi-functional device. Multi-functional printers are incredibly affordable to buy, utilise modern ink efficient systems and replace 3 plugs in the wall with just one. Not only do these all-in-one printers mean you’re powering one piece of equipment rather than three – they also often use less electricity than any given one of the machines they replace.

Many modern printers don’t even require a computer in order to print. The energy consumption of even modern laptops can be expensive, investment in a printer which is able to print directly from memory cards of USB flash drives can do away with the need to turn a computer on just to print a document – and also save a great deal of time.

Modern printing equipment is leagues ahead of that produced more than 5 years ago and given the lower cost of purchase and ink replacement, these machines pay for themselves considerably faster than many realise; whilst also helping to reduce a company’s carbon footprint without compromising on practicality.

Top Tips for Small Ebay Sellers Sending Multiple Parcels a Day

December 14, 2010 · news, office politics, stationery · Comments Off

Padded Envelopes

A lot of small start up Ebay Sellers and start up Ecommerce businesses can find the daily trip to the Post Office to despatch the packages sold is a tedious and unrewarding event.  Not only do you get charged full retail prices at the counter but there is the long wait as normally queues are involved.  This gives many eBay sellers the overall feeling of being a hindrance rather than valued customer.  You can pre-pay with the Pay Pal account; but again you are paying top whack for you parcel to be dispatched and in a cut throat EBay world where delivery is given free, this can be a crucial part of your margin.  What I recommend is the following:

Contact Royal Mail directly and ask to set up an Online Business Account.  They will explain that there is a £5,000 per year minimum spend on an Online Account.  This will level out at around £20 a day.  Do not worry if you are not sending out these quantities.  Many small businesses I’ve spoken to have told me due to the sheer size of Royal Mail they rarely chase up customers not reaching this criterion.  It’s a service they provide so there is no fine or ‘Top Up’ fee involved if you fall short.  Just tell them on the phone that the £5,000 minimum is certainly something you can see yourself heading toward this financial year and they’ll have no problem setting you up.  The Online Business Account (OBA) will give the smaller Ebay seller access to business rates for the parcel traffic with no fees.  These rates are what you would normally only get from a franking machine (an online account is also a good alternative to a Franking Machine as there are no fees involved).  For example it’s over 50p cheaper for items between 700grammes and 1 kilo.

How the Online Business Account works:  They give you a Pre Payment Indicia number which you can print as a jpeg onto Avery labels.  Weigh your parcels and label them up at your place of work.  Log all the information onto your Online Billing Account and drop it off your local post office.

What are the main advantages of this? This method not only gets you away from the queues but it gives you business rates.  These rates are not shown on the parcel as it’s stored online.  Your customers will never know how much it cost to despatch the item to them (crucial for those whiners who complain as you charged them £5 for delivery but the printed label on your padded envelope showed £1.40).  All this on 30 days credit!  Their online account is constantly being improved with monthly summaries to provide good visibility on your ongoing costs.

The only downside is you’re taking valuable revenue from the local Post Office, which is probably why it is not readily advertised.  Still, if your conscience can handle that, then go for it.

VAT and Spending Explained

December 9, 2010 · news, office politics · Comments Off

Christmas Spending

It’s the second week of December and ever growing throngs of people are dipping into their savings accounts in order to stock up on Christmas gifts. This is nothing new; the ‘Christmas Rush’ has been the busiest time for all manner of retailers for decades and is the core time for high street shops and online stores to get a hefty boost to their revenue. In spite of the recession and widespread economic concerns on a global level, this year’s December spending is looking as healthy and high as ever. This isn’t however solely due to festive spirit but also heavily influenced by politics.

January 4th 2011 – V(AT) Day

On Tuesday 4th January 2011 VAT will be increased from 17.5% to 20% in the UK. Although a 2.5% increase may not sound like much, when you consider that VAT is payable on the vast majority of products and services that you purchase from stationery supplies through to online recruitment services– it all adds up. In most cases, retailers will pass on the increase to the consumer which means an extra penny or two on grocery items, all the way through to several hundred pounds more for a new car. In light of the potentially large additional costs when it comes to high value goods, many people are looking to buy larger items sooner rather than later. This rush to spend money before January 4th on top of the Christmas rush is a great short-term boost to the economy.

Potential Concerns

Aside from the obvious downside that a VAT increase impacts upon the less affluent as much as it does upon the more well off, there are other potential negative ramifications on a broader scale. For starters, the slightly higher cost of certain items may hit retailers hard – with the option of absorbing the increase themselves or passing it on to the consumer they risk either eating into their profit margins or losing business. It could also adversely affect charitable organisations – charities do not have to be VAT registered such that the maximum sum goes to the cause they represent. The flipside of this arrangement is that charities are unable to claim back the VAT they spend on items or services – as such the VAT increase could well have a noticeable impact upon the amount they ultimately raise.

The Upsides

Although 20% may sound like a high figure to many, it is in fact very much in line with the VAT levels of other European countries – on a par with Italy, Austria, Bulgaria and the Czech Republic and considerably lower than the 25% charged in Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Hungary. VAT also serves as a means of keeping income tax down, by providing a governmental revenue stream which many consumers don’t even notice.

Whether you’re for or against the forthcoming VAT rate hike in the New Year, there is nothing that can be done about it on a personal level- apart from leaving the country, and to do so for the sake of 2.5% seems a slight over-reaction!

Save Money and Save the Planet

November 18, 2010 · office politics, office supplies · Comments Off

Although it may initially seem like a paradox, particularly when considering a number of large companies who appear to sacrifice environmental ethics for profit; financial gain and environmental awareness are not necessarily mutually exclusive. Admittedly, the idea of simultaneously making money and benefitting the planet is not always a realistic aim for those who work in industries which necessarily impact upon the environment in the performance of their primary line of work- but for the vast majority of businesses it genuinely is possible.

The single biggest aspect to consider here is a very basic marketing concept which although relatively cynical in motivation is a genuinely ethical ethos if properly adhered to. Quite simply: ‘Eco Sells’. Given the increasing environmental awareness of the majority of the population, where there is no difference in price or quality, people will generally opt for a product or service which is actively eco-friendly compared to one which is not. If you are in a position to offer an environmental slant on your core line of business then it can really pay dividends. With the development of organisations who plant trees on your behalf in order to attain carbon neutrality, almost any company can quite literally buy their way into the environmentally ethical angle. Although this cost may be substantial to aircraft carriers, plastics manufacturers and other high carbon output businesses, to the majority of companies the relatively small cost is easily recouped by a cleverly targeted marketing initiative and the resultant upturn in sales.

If the step of ‘buying environmental credentials’ is a little too extreme for you then there are a multitude of smaller ways to embrace environmental friendliness and similarly keep cash in the company coffers. These simple practices essentially fall into two categories: using less and buying intelligently.

In terms of using less, common sense prevails. By turning off electrical equipment when not in use you use (hence pay for) less electricity which both saves money and reduces your impact upon the environment. The same applies to printing. Printing materials such as ink and paper can be costly and certainly play their part in depleting natural resources. A huge number of emails and documents are unnecessarily printed in large offices- bringing in codes of practice which prevent this will ultimately save money and benefit the environment.

Buying intelligently can refer to all aspects of a business, specifics depend upon the industry in which a company operates. Recycled or remanufactured office and stationery supplies and consumables for instance can now be purchased for the same price as standard items and in some cases even less. Finding ways to benefit both cash flow and the planet is a simple procedure which will ultimately pay dividends.

Resolving the ‘Christmas Gift for the Boss’ Dilemma

November 10, 2010 · a bit of fun, office politics · Comments Off

It may seem a little early to be considering these things…but preparation is key and Christmas decorations are rapidly springing up left, right and centre. Christmas gifts for friends and family aren’t generally too hard to source, provided you’ve paid attention to their subtle hints during the course of the year and have a vague understanding of their hobbies and interests. The Christmas Gift for the Boss Dilemma however is somewhat less ‘cut and dry’. If your company have a well documented ‘no gifts policy’ then you can stop reading- abiding by company policy is bound to be a sure-fire hit with the boss. Similarly, a ‘Secret Santa’ system which is inclusive of all levels of staff will get you off the hook…unless of course you end up with the boss as your gift recipient – in which case skip a paragraph.

Those of you who are still unsure as to whether you should buy a gift for your superior- it’s time to consider a few factors. Firstly, do you think they’ll expect one? This question is simple enough, and the resolution is equally straight-forward: if the answer is yes then you should most certainly get them something, if the answer is no then you should probably get them something…particularly if there is a potential pay rise or promotion on the horizon. In short, unless your boss or activity within the company has explicitly suggested that you don’t need to furnish them with a festive treat- then you’d best crack on with the shopping!

So, having established that it would probably be beneficial to get your boss a gift, it’s time to actually do the deed. With little or nothing to go on in terms of what they actually like ‘in real life’ this can be a testing challenge (think psychometric test combined with performing a cartwheel). This obstacle is however incredibly easy to overcome by simply ignoring their social life altogether and focussing on something they can use in their office. Whether that is an elegant pen- which makes them fondly recall your taste and generosity every time they sign a cheque, a digital photo frame – which allows them to cast the occasional loving gaze over snaps of the family whilst ‘pulling an all-nighter’ or simply a decent bottle of scotch- with which to celebrate your promotion with you.

If any of these suggestions fall terribly flat (or fail to live up to the idealised imagery) then please don’t hold me accountable…you just need a more appreciative boss!

The Cards Are On the Table

October 19, 2010 · office environment, office politics, stationery · Comments Off

Print Your Own Business Cards

The business card is something of an institution, as ingrained in corporate culture as the tie or briefcase. Despite an increasing shift towards a paperless business environment, the business card’s only concession to the advance of digital technology is that they now often feature an email address and website. The arrogance of this most compact of stationery items is however entirely justified. There’s no realistic alternative when it comes to a means of passing on contact details as and when required.

In addition to serving as a sleek and effortless way to impart your full array of contact numbers, addresses, web addresses and of course name and job title to anyone and everyone, the business card also represents a great deal more. As satirised in Bret Easton Ellis’ infamous novel American Psycho: the business card is on many levels something of a status and style symbol. From the choice of font, through to the thickness of the card and of course the colour and design featured on the card, there are multitudinous factors which contribute to the overall look, feel and finish of a high quality business card.

It’s fair to say that rather than just letting the card recipient know how to contact you, the business card also acts as a representative of both the individual and their brand. A well thought out and executed business card should entice contact and exude professionalism – particularly if you represent an organisation which operates in the design industry or a related field. In short, your business card speaks volumes about who you are, what you do and the finesse with which you do it.

For the most part, companies will utilise a specialist design and print company in the production of their business cards and other branded stationery. The obvious upside here is that, these professionals will be highly experienced in creating eye-catching, effective and well produced business cards. On the downside, the exercise of outsourcing the production of business cards can be a costly and time consuming process – similarly, the majority of design and print companies will stipulate minimum orders by volume…and there aren’t that many of us who require 1000+ business cards, particularly as they are rendered useless in the event of a change in phone number, company logo or role.

A much more flexible option is to invest in business card packs which allow the user to design and print their own business cards. These packs generally include both the necessary software to put together your own business card layout and sheets of high quality, pre-cut card to print onto. Obviously at least a modicum of design flair comes in handy, but with common sense and an eye for detail it is possible to create top quality business cards as and when required. Not only is this option quicker and more affordable but also reduces waste and allows you to quickly change your contact details or any other aspect whenever you need to!

The Role of the Office Supply Manager

September 14, 2010 · office politics, office supplies · Comments Off

The role of the office supply manager is vital to the successful running of any business, but one that gets overlooked and dismissed as minor more often than not. Consider however what would happen if the office supplies were not brought in and stored neatly in the supply cupboard. Even the most basic components are important. How can messages be taken without pens to write them, how can papers be held together without a stapler and staples. It might sound rather futile but actually most offices rely heavily on small stationary products. Notepads, paper clips, folders and copier paper are all used on a daily basis, but their perceived importance and monetary value means they are a commodity which is taken for granted, yet the frustration when they run out unexpectedly can be immense.

Another example is the business that does a lot of shipping work, whether the items to be posted are documents or goods, the correct packaging materials must be appropriate and plentiful. It doesn’t promote a high customer service level if items are delayed and cannot be dispatched because there are no envelopes left on the shelf, and it is not good business sense to be sending the office junior to the nearest town to purchase off the shelf, as this will cost more. For businesses that send out good, the list can grow rapidly, boxes or bags, protective packaging materials, tape and labels soon create quite a list. Just one of those products running out can lead to a temporary halt in progress, and a potentially dissatisfied customer who then chooses not to bring any return business back to the company.

For the SME the role of office supply manager is likely to fall within the remit of another job, whether the office manager or the personal assistant. The employee will have many other tasks to undertake and it is therefore not going to be practical for office supplies to take a large percentage of time. For that key business reason purchasing office supplies online makes good business sense, the ability to browse hundreds of products with a few clicks of the mouse is far simpler than having to trawl catalogues and fill out order forms. One of the benefits of online shopping is the exponential speed that goods can be dispatched to customers. Should an item run out of stock, it can normally be delivered within the next business day, certainly the day after, and because there is no actual store front to support the prices can be that bit more competitive; saving both money and the valuable time of the employee. Good supply management should form part of a top rate customer service policy. It dates right back to youth when the Guides and Scouts had the motto be prepared, how right they were. If a company is disorganised even at an office management level the service standards can easily slip, and in the current cut throat world of every business for itself poor customer care can see the competition triumph.

Office Supplies Management

July 8, 2010 · a bit of fun, office politics, office supplies · (No comments)


The best office I have ever worked in when it came to the office supplies, was many years ago when computers were in their infancy, and regularly we had to have ribbons for typewriters, Tippex and carbon paper, as well as the more common items of today such as pens, rulers, erasers and paperclips, to mention just a few.
The lady who ordered and looked after the stationery, before the advent of management software that allows you to order automatically on line, was an absolute mastermind.

Nothing ever ran out, a regular inventory was kept; only she had a key to the stationery closet, and all was signed out and carefully watched over with military precision. How she did it is anyone’s’ guess, but she did have a regular full time job at home looking after a husband and five children, so maybe managing the office supplies, compared to that, was a breeze.

Moving on, office supplies may seem mundane and pretty boring to those not involved, but try telling someone who needs a new toner cartridge that there isn’t one, or staples for the stapler, only to find there are none.

There are numerous specialist software packages available that make stock control and ordering blindingly simple and non time consuming.
Simply by being organized, having regular use items close to hand in a locked closet, and less often used items in a storage closet, and maintaining a strict checklist and ordering regime, there is absolutely no need to run short or run out of anything. Whenever something is running low, re-order before it is completely out.
Over a period, compare and review expenses, see if there is an area where items can be recycled or usage trimmed, it is easy to be wasteful when the bill is being footed by someone else.

Make your colleagues aware of cost cutting, be proactive and the savings will mount up. Check out other suppliers, internet websites and speak to your current supplier to see if you can squeeze savings from them. It is better for your supplier to have ninety percent of one hundred sales values, than one hundred percent of nothing.
See what special offers or sales are available on everyday items, and try to order or buy in bulk on everything. One large payment up front can keep costs low; and always ask for discount for cash. Forget the thirty days from invoice; that only benefits the supplier.
Better to have your money in your pocket for as long as possible.

Kindly Written for us by James Hill whilst taking time away from his websites focussing on bathroom suites and bathroom taps.

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