Running a small business is no mean feat, and when you couple this with raising a family with young children it can be incredibly hard work indeed. But if you’re in this position you’re not alone! Online sellers who built their ecommerce websites with Create.net have shared their top tips for achieving that all-important balance between managing a company and spending time with your family.
Most stay-at-home mums would like to generate more income, whether you’re trying to get back into the working habit, or just want some extra money coming in. If you’re looking to increase your household income, here are a few ideas that can put your back on the money-making path… Continue reading “Money-making Ideas for Stay-at-Home Mums”
One thing you’re never short of as a parent of young children is change. Young children are constantly changing and at times it feels like you’re running to keep up with their needs.
As children change they force us, as parents, to change too. But we rarely have the time to reflect on how we have been affected or what impact this may have on us in future.
It’s like trying to keep up with a runaway shopping trolley!
After my youngest started school this September, I found myself desperately wanting to get my Fast Start Up e-course finished and out there, but some days my progress was painfully slow. I knew that I’d just hit another life change and I had some work to do if I was going to get through this ‘stuck’ feeling. Continue reading “This might just get you unstuck”
Companies that rely on parcel delivery will require a speedy, reliable and efficient service to maintain the integrity of their business. This is especially important in the build up to Christmas as mail routes become exceptionally congested with millions of parcels being sent back and forth over the UK.
To help with businesses that regularly use a mail service, here are 3 top tips to help you with parcel delivery:
Prepare the Package Carefully
Perhaps the most crucial consideration for sending a parcel is to make certain the goods inside are packaged correctly. You can never be too careful when it comes to this as inadequately wrapped parcels can leave you liable for any damage incurred during transit.
Firstly, ensure that outer containers are sturdy and can easily hold the weight of the goods inside. There should be no movement inside for the item to move around, especially for delicate items such as glassware or ceramics. Fill out the container with bubble wrap or polystyrene chips to prevent movement. Seal the parcel securely and apply tape across all edges and openings, criss-crossing the whole box if possible.
When you are satisfied the package is safe to send, you also need to be meticulous with the outer labelling. Again, this is your responsibility to get right. Some companies cover their labels with transparent sheets so that wet conditions don’t affect the writing. Write a return address on the parcel also in case anything goes wrong.
Use a Dependable Courier
There are numerous professional courier services available in the UK. They will pick up items from the required address and deliver them to any location all over the world. Of course, sending packages internationally will cost a higher amount and require more preparation on your part.
The larger and heavier your parcel, the more expensive it will be to send. There are limits for sending goods in the UK however; a package cannot weigh more than 30kg and have a length of over 1.5 metres. If you are looking to send items above these measurements, then check if the courier can provide a special service for you.
Courier services are essential for many companies. They will be able to offer you an affordable service, often with same-day delivery if booked early enough. Research and compare all the different couriers online to find the best deal for your business.
Use an Insurance Policy
Courier services will be using their own insurance policy to protect themselves from unexpected circumstances. When you use one of these companies, your goods will usually fall into this policy and be insured up to the value of around £50. However, you must be certain that this is the case by reading the terms and conditions.
For expensive or fragile items, using insurance provides you with a peace of mind when the package is out of your hands. If the value of the goods is above £50 then spending that bit more on insurance guarantees protection against damage or lost items.
Insurance companies will investigate any claims thoroughly and an inadequately wrapped or labelled parcel will often nullify any claim; extra care is needed when preparing your package to make sure this doesn’t happen.
Don’t miss a thing here at Business Plus Baby Click here to get my newsletter and I’ll also send you a copy of my e-book Running a business around a family: 9 steps to success.
Whether it be Facebook, Twitter, Bebo, blogs, forums or podcasts, we all will use at least one of these social media to interact and connect with others online. While the social side of us can chat and form friendships with people all over the world using the web, we have closed the gap between continents and countries. This has proved invaluable for businesses worldwide and social media continues to prove itself one of the most useful tools available to reach customers and consumers no matter where they are. The question is, have you taken advantage of this? Consider how social media can help your business get off to the best start or start taking the lead in its field.
Free Advertising
Many users of Social Media will think nothing of creating a page to promote themselves or something of interest to them yet businesses can use a wide array of avenues to Advertise services and attract customers to their company using these services. For instance a Facebook page can be created linking your Business Website to a page where you can select a particular type of audience you desire to. As has already been mentioned, the web offers a worldwide audience so it pays off to use Social Media to attract and target many online.
Inform Your Clients and Customers
Now you can get the message to the right audience you can update them and keep them abreast of any promotion, offer and information that will be of interest to them. Let them know any latest business news or any new products or services that have become available to you. Social Media is the perfect way to do this as it will appear as a general message instead of a spam like email that can seem pushy and somewhat intrusive to potential clients. A good example of a business that has blogged successfully is The Workplace Depot.
Find out What They Want
The difficulty with any consumer service is getting the right kind of feedback. Surveys and Customer feedback forms can be a chore to complete and many consumers are reluctant to fill them in or do so quickly and hence inaccurately. Social Media is the perfect way to allow others the chance to leave their opinions and what matters most to them as a product or service. Sometimes bloggers may provide you with useful tips and pieces of information that can help you improve what you have to offer.
Get to Grips with Social Media!
So as well as using Facebook and Twitter to connect with your family and friends, why not use it to maximise your business. The more people that visit your site, “Like” your pages, blog on your blog or leave a comment on your business forum, the more successful your business will be. Be creative and plan how you will set up your business blog. Plan and target your Social Media well and without a doubt you will be on the road to success.
By continuing to use the site, you agree to the use of cookies. more information
The cookie settings on this website are set to "allow cookies" to give you the best browsing experience possible. If you continue to use this website without changing your cookie settings or you click "Accept" below then you are consenting to this.
