A successful workplace has a lot of factors to boast; it’s a place where an employee can get on with their work in a fast and productive manner, and it’s somewhere they fit in and know they can take on any challenge that comes their way.
After all, when you’ve got a whole team of people to keep on the straight and narrow, your office is going to need to be multifaceted and multi-cultural, in order to accommodate each and every person’s needs. And because of that, the modern workplace is a more successful operation than ever. There are more opportunities out there, and it’s easier to set up a small business of your own than ever before.
But if you’re in the boat of wanting to set up for success, and to lay a good foundation within your business dreams, it’s key to know just how many components there are in a successful workplace. With that in mind, we’ve detailed the most important below.
A Motivational Factor
Your employees need to stay motivated in order to succeed. When you have a fully motivated and driven workforce to make use of, your business is going to thrive, simply because the team behind it are always going to go the extra mile. It’s a simple facet to understand, and yet, it’s one that very few businesses make use of in the modern day and age. Make sure you’re not jumping on the bandwagon here!
But how do you go about including an ever present motivational factor? It’s simple – you look at your team as individuals, and provide incentives at all times. Because your team needs to be able to see the fruits of their labor, in real time. So update them on how marketing campaigns are going, or how many sales you’re making, and always be sure to reach out to the employees that have been instrumental in the current quarter’s success.
Celebrate their achievements, either in public or in private (depending on how well your team functions as a whole), and always ask if you can make an example of them or not. It’s good to have a case study to determine success in your other team members, but don’t be too harsh here.
An Emphasis on Communication
Communication is something every single workplace needs to hold near and dear, as it’s the only way you’re going to get a cohesive project lead at every turn. When your team members actually work as a team, and keep each other updated, and you as the boss never holds secrets from them, you’re going to have a much more productive unit on your hands. People feel included, and they like that, and they’re going to do much better at their desks as a result.
So open up the floor. Allow people to pitch in whenever they have an idea. Always keep your office door open, so people can come in and never feel like they’re interrupting you. At the same time, make good use of technology here, and provide more than one way for your team to keep in touch with one another. Project managing apps, team messaging apps, even just a simple, weekly scheduled Zoom call could do the trick here.
A Fully Functioning Workplace IoT
An IoT (or internet of things) is the term used to describe any and all connected devices used in your office. It’s a branching term for tablets, phones, computers, and even that smart fridge in the breakroom that all use the same wifi, and your IoT needs to be fully functioning at all times.
When you’ve got a properly working IoT, your staff members will be much happier during the day to day; they won’t have to deal with crashes, or lost signals, or even just slowly loading inboxes or web browsers. With a fully functioning IoT, the day moves a lot faster, people aren’t grumbling behind their screens or when they’re using an iPad to present in the meeting room, and you’ll be able to focus on the more important things in the here and now.
But how do you ensure your IoT is fully functioning, and will rarely go down? With a good amount of it support – if you don’t have an IT department within your company already, it’s time to outsource, and at least rely on a virtual call desk you can get in touch with whenever there’s a technological issue. And yes, even if the wifi is a bit slower than usual, it’s time to get in touch with your IT body!
A Comfortable Place to Work
It’s also essential that your workplace accommodates any and all types of workers, because you never know who you’re going to hire one day, and what they might want, need, or expect from the working environment around them. Simply put, if you want your workplace to be successful, you’re going to need to make it a comfortable place to work.
Sure, you need some soft furnishings and a fully stocked break room and toilet block, but you also need to think about accessibility as a bigger picture. Think about desk heights. Think about chair types. Think about the width and length of the walkways, and just how accessible the doors in and out of your building are. Think about the user interfaces on your apps. Think about the layout of your website.
Most of all, think about just how hard a disabled worker might find it to come to work and do their best for you, and make some changes, sooner rather than later.
Are You Running a Successful Workplace?
It’s easy to tell if you are or not. If your workers are happy, you’re on track to meet your goals, your staff are always talking and taking part, and you know you champion accessibility at all corners, you’ve got yourself a modern and successful workplace. And if you don’t meet these criteria, it’s always possible to change some things.
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No matter what your business is about, your target audience is online. People are constantly browsing the search engines and social media to find exciting brands and local businesses.
In fact, according to last year’s Local Consumer Review Survey by BrightLocal, 92% of consumers look at businesses’ websites when deciding on a business. So, the short answer to whether you need to invest in a business website is a resounding yes.
A business website will help you stay competitive, establish credibility, and take your marketing to the next level. But as you go about developing your new business website, there are some things you must ensure on your website, the four most important ones being:
Usability
First off, think of your website user’s perspective and answer these questions:
Does it load fast enough?
Do you find it intuitive to navigate?
Do you like the look-and-feel of the site?
Is the copy engaging enough?
Does it look trustworthy?
Is it mobile-friendly?
You must focus on creating a website that allows you to say “yes!” to all the questions above. That is, your website shouldn’t take more than three-to-five seconds to load.
Make sure your site’s design is easy to navigate and responsive (adapts automatically to the screen size on which it is loaded) while being aesthetically appealing. Also, ensure the content on your website is engaging and exciting.
All these factors make up the web core vitals that Google will be analyzing on your site for its much-anticipated update in 2021. Cobiro shares that sites that do not meet the requirements the search engine powerhouse are looking for will fare badly in the SERPs once this update is rolled out. So getting ahead of the curve and taking action is the best way to get your site in line with Google’s priorities and help you to ride out the changes without your traffic being affected adversely.
What’s more, your website should also be accessible. Simply put, an accessible website is one that accommodates all visitors on all devices irrespective of the physical or mental ability of the visitor.
As website accessibility is mandated by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), failing to make your website accessible makes your business vulnerable to costly lawsuits by advocacy groups. Indeed, discussions about website accessibility have increased and 2018 saw a 181% rise in Federal ADA lawsuits over 2017.
So, test your website with web accessibility evaluation tools and consider using a web accessibility software so that everyone has a great user experience on your website. You can also hire agencies like Web Integrations that build websites that are compliant with accessibility.
Ranking on the first page of Google is crucial to bringing in more business and achieving a better ROI for your website.
Search Engine Friendliness
As such, usability and search engine friendliness go hand-in-hand. Search engines like Google are quite smart. If your site delivers a great user experience, then it is already well on its way to becoming a high-ranking website.
For example, site speed, which is essential for usability, is officially a ranking factor for both mobile and desktop searches. Likewise, a poor site structure will hamper your site’s indexability by Google crawlers.
While SEO is a vast topic that needs special attention, ensure that your website is in line with these basic best practices:
Content, page titles, meta descriptions, and URLs should be keyword-optimized.
All external links must be pointing to high-quality websites, internal linking must be done properly, and there are no broken links.
All images should be compressed and have appropriate alt text.
In fact, search engine friendliness is also influenced by your website’s security…
Security
Needless to say, your website’s security is critical for both your business and your website visitors. A secure website serves as a safe environment for potential clients which in turn, helps boost sales.
So, don’t wait for cyberpunks to remind you of the significance of having a secure website. Make sure to have the following in mind when developing your new website:
Strong login credentials for better immunity against brute force attacks.
Up-to-date content management system (CMS) and plugins.
Frequent site backups, malware scans, and vulnerability tests.
Also, get an SSL certificate to secure the connection between your hosting server and your visitor’s web browser. Once an SSL certificate is in place, browsers will show a padlock sign next to your website address which indicates that all the information exchanged by the visitor on your site is safe.
In other words, an SSL certificate guards your customer’s sensitive data and is considered so important that Google uses it as a ranking factor.
So many small businesses, including SaaS startups, agency websites, blogs, and eCommerce stores fall prey to hackers every day. The last thing you want is to lose your business to a hacker, or worse, compromise your customers’ data due to a cybersecurity lapse on your part. So, prioritize security when developing a new business website.
Grammar
Yes, you read that right. If you wish to create a website that people would find credible, you can’t afford to have grammatical inaccuracies plaguing your website copy.
Sure, as a business owner, grammar may seem like a trifling matter. But make no mistake, something as simple as a spelling mistake has a big influence on your business’s credibility.
Poor grammar and frequent typos can become a major distraction for visitors, making it impossible for them to focus on the meat of the matter. It indicates a lack of professionalism and sloppiness in business practices, which would be off-putting for your site visitors and potential clients.
Therefore, see to it that every piece of content and copy on your website is grammatically flawless.
Over to You
Right off the bat, paying heed to just these four aspects of your website will most certainly result in quicker, more sustainable, and scalable business growth. And so, make sure to get them right.
About The Author
Pratik Dholakiya is the founder of Growfusely, a content marketing agency specializing in content and data-driven SEO. He regularly speaks at various conferences about SEO, Content Marketing, and Entrepreneurship. As a passionate SEO and content marketer, he shares his thoughts and knowledge in publications like Search Engine Land, Search Engine Journal, Entrepreneur Magazine, Fast Company, The Next Web, YourStory, and Inc42, to name a few. He can be reached at Twitter @DholakiyaPratik
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Asia has become well-versed in dealing with financial crises over the course of the last 50 years or so, from the oil crash of 1973 to the so-called ‘Asian Contagion’ of 1997.
The latter saw a sequence of currency devaluations and after the Thai government reversed the decisions to peg the local currency to the USD, which also triggered stock market declines and reduced import revenues.
This also sent real GDP growth tumbling to a little over 1% (1.3%)overall, which was considerably lower than during the aforementioned oil crash and the great recession of 2008 (against which Asia was relatively well-insulated).
But where will the fallout from Covid-19 rank against similar crises, and how has business been particularly impacted on the Philippines?
Comparing Crisis and the Wider Impact of Covid-19
The fallout from the Asian Contagion and stock market crash of 1997 was considerable, but the latest forecasts from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) suggests this years’ coronavirus-related decline will be even more damaging to the economy.
More specifically, growth in Asia as a whole is expected to stall at zero percent by the end of 2020, confirming the worst economic performance in nearly 60 years.
This will plunge growth levels well below the overall international average, creating an outlook that’s relatively bleak by both contemporary and historic comparisons.
That said, the forecasted slowdown in some Asian nations is slightly smaller than the expected contractions in the US and Europe, where the economies may ultimately shrink by 6% and 6.6% respectively.
Conversely, China’s growth is projected to decline by 4.9% in the year ending December 2020, tumbling from 6.1% in 2019 to just 1.2%. This is slightly better than some nations in the west, and it provides genuine hope that other nations in Asian can follow the trail blazed by China in terms of achieving better-than-expected economic performance.
Appraising the Impact on the Philippines
The Philippines entered a technical recession during Q2, after recording its worst economic growth since a major downturn in 1981.
According to the recent data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority, the nation’s GDP growth rate declined by a whopping 16.5% during the second quarter of 2020.
Overall, there’s even a risk that the Philippines could enter negative growth territory for 2020 as a whole, with minimal growth of just 3% recorded in Q1 and a further (albeit significantly smaller) contraction forecast for Q3. This contrasts starkly with the annualised performance over the course of the last five years, which has delivered average growth of around 6% during this period.
However, there’s some cause for optimism in the country, particularly after the island of Luzon (which accounts for 70% of the nation’s GDP) reopened for domestic travellers. Sure, this increases the risk of a second coronavirus spike, but it also reopens the national economy and improves the prospect for businesses and households alike.
This is also indicative of a deceptively robust economy, and one that has the potential to rebound quickly from coronavirus in the future.
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If done right, house flipping can be a great source of income. But if you’re new to the industry, you might now know how to go about it.
Don’t worry! Read on for 10 expert tips on how to get started flipping houses.
1. Hire a Quality Agent
For the best chance of getting a profit, you’ll need to team up with a quality local real estate agent. Don’t go for any old agent though, you need one with house flipping experience.
Bear in mind, when you’re flipping a house you’ve both bought and sold it in a short period of time. An agent with experience can help you determine the right price to pay for a house. They’ll also help determine the likely profit margin for when it’s done up and ready to sell on.
There are other financial aspects your agent can help with. When you start as a house flipper, you’re starting a self-employed business.
There are financial implications to understand that these agents will know about. Things like tax laws, and how you track any business expenses. Experienced agents are a wealth of industry knowledge you can’t afford to miss out on.
2. Do Thorough Research
If you want to get into house flipping, you’ll need a very quick education on the local market. Where you flip can have a bigger impact on success than your experience level.
To make a significant profit, housing market conditions need to be right. It won’t matter how good of a bargain you got on the property, or how well you remodel it. If the profit margins aren’t there, you could end up losing money instead.
House flipping is more successful in areas that have a low number of homes that are available to buy. Also, look for these areas where the home values are climbing. If you choose an area where these two things aren’t happening, it’ll be harder to make money.
3. Make Accurate Cost Estimates
When deciding if a house is a good candidate for flipping, you need to estimate how much money you’ll have to put into it. How much will the repairs and renovations cost? How much will it cost to market and hold onto it until it sells?
You’ll need to come up with an accurate timetable for the entire process. From purchasing the house to selling it on and everything between. This is where your local market knowledge will come in handy. Your hard money lender can also help put an estimate together.
When putting your cost estimate together, you can’t focus on item price tags. You need to factor in labor, tools, and other materials/equipment you’ll need. Add in taxes, insurance, mortgage payments, and marketing costs. It costs a lot to flip a house, so you need to factor in everything to find the realistic budget amount.
4. Keep Capital to Cover Unexpected Costs
When financing your flipping project, you need to ask yourself these 3 questions:
Am I buying at the correct price?
Are the needed repairs within my budget?
Am I likely to get the expected profit desired when selling?
The answers will be key to planning your first flipping venture’s financing. But, don’t get fooled into thinking it’s all the money you’ll need.
You should always account for Murphy’s Law in any flipping project. “Whatever can go wrong, will go wrong.”
The HVAC system might have conked out right before you purchased the house. A flash flood might have ruined downstairs appliances. Things happen that are out of your control, and you’ll have to fund the fixes.
Every unexpected cost will eat into your expected project and your current budget. If you become strapped for cash, you’ll be more likely to cut corners to make ends meet and reduce the quality of the job.
If this happens to you, you won’t be selling a superior house that will attract buyers. You also won’t have a secure financial position to sit and wait for the highest offer. Instead, you’ll be desperate to sell to break even with an inferior remodel.
When you’ve made your expected financial plan for the project, bump the numbers up to cover any extras. This way, if you run into complications, you’ll handle it and still bring in a tidy profit.
5. ROI-Savvy Interior Design and Repairs
Make sure to pick the best renovations that bring in the best return on investment (ROI). This is what can make or break your house flipping success. And a lot of first-time flippers forget about ROI.
A lot of beginners, inspired by glossy magazines unrealistic TV shows, treat it like a house dress up game. They make decisions based on their own tastes and what they think looks nicest. For example, these experts at victoria plum know the best tiling for your bathroom.
The experts know that to get the big dollars, it’s about designing what the market wants, not what they like. This is where your agent can help you. They’ll have knowledge of what their current market is looking for.
6. Hire a Reliable Contractor
You might have seen reports of cowboy builders ripping people off on their home repairs. It’s even a trope in movie and TV storylines, and for a good reason.
Thanks to these opportunistic cowboys, the industry now has a bit of a bad rep. They’re thought to spend more time and money than they promise to get a job done. Some even ask for the money upfront then shut down, skip town and you’ll never hear from them again.
If this happens to you on your first house flip, it’s unlikely you’ll even break even. It’s important you know how to avoid hiring cowboy builders. Never pay upfront, and look for someone local to the area with a good set of reviews.
7. Plan a Set of Different Exit Strategies
The goal of any flip and sell project is to sell fast and make a substantial profit. But there are circumstances out of your control that could move these goalposts.
The market might shift, or the economy takes a dip. This means you might not be able to sell for the price you wanted. You might go over budget, overestimated the sale price, or the project took longer to finish.
In most cases, holding onto the property and renting rather than taking a loss is a better choice. So, when looking to buy, make sure the property can cash flow and bring in money.
Ask, if you end up having to keep the house, will you still make money in the long-term? If yes, you know it’s a good property to buy. The aim here is to plan for the long-term so any losses become gains.
8. Buy the Worst House in the Best Neighborhood in Your Budget
By the worst, we mean something with the worst designed and out of date cosmetic shape and layout. Think of things like:
worn-out hardwoods that need refinishing
bold, wacky paint colors
old, stinky carpets
weird smells
outdated builder grade kitchen cabinets with a poor layout
tile or laminate countertops
grimey old toilets and sinks
What you must make sure is the foundations are good and there are no structural issues. Cosmetics are easy to fix, structural remedies not so much.
If you play your cards right, you can get a real bargain because of a house’s ugliness. So, look for houses that you get much lower than other, prettier houses in the same neighborhood.
Work out a list of the fixes and changes you need to make, and how much it should cost in total. Take this off the asking price, and that is the number you shouldn’t go over.
9. Always Have an Inspection
Never buy a property without first inspecting it. Visiting the property lets you see how much work you’ll need to put into it. It’s a vital part of the research you need to do when deciding if a property is worth flipping or not.
If you’re new, it’s also a good idea to get a professional property inspection done. If you don’t know what you’re looking for, this will help prevent any nasty structural surprises.
Online packs and pictures can only show so much. And getting a first-hand look at the rest of the neighborhood is a good idea. Speak to the neighbors and find out if there are any unresolved neighborhood issues. You don’t want any cropping up that might make the property harder to sell or reduce value.
10. Price Your Property Right
If you’re faced with a seller’s market, this might tempt you into taking advantage of it and raise the price. If this price goes above the typical asking price of the area, this isn’t a good idea. It’ll likely put off potential buyers from the start and delay the sale.
The longer you have the property, the more you have to spend on upkeep and maintenance. Not to mention marketing fees.
To get the right price, find a balance between selling for a profit you want, and being so greedy you drive people off. Greed never helped anyone, and it will lose you sales.
How to Get Started Flipping Houses Made Easy
So there you have it! Follow these expert tips on how to get started flipping houses and you’ll be soon on your way.
Knowledge and preparation are key, so partner with an experienced agent as the first thing you do. Be realistic through the entire process and have a disaster/exit plan. And remember, it’s not what you want, it’s what the market wants.
If you found this article useful, check out our other blog posts today.
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Many businesses, especially retailers, have a blended approach to their operations encompassing elements of ecommerce and brick and mortar retail. However, running a business with a physical presence brings with it a certain set of responsibilities. Like your website, your social media presence or your content marketing materials, your physical premises is an extension of your branding. Your customers and visitors will judge it accordingly. And if you plan on growing your business, you can’t afford to take a single first impression for granted. The challenge, then, is to ensure that your physical premises gives your customers or clients the right impression even before they walk through your door.
But that can be easier said than done.
No matter how hard you work to create and maintain an optimal business premises, sometimes even little things can undo everything you’ve worked so hard to build. With that in mind, let’s look at 5 ways in which your business premises can give your customers the wrong impression…
They can’t park
Your customers’ first impression can be formed long before they set foot on-site. If they have to drive around for a long time to find a parking space because your employees have taken up the best ones, this can inject a sour note into their experience that you’ll need to work much harder to erase. Optimizing your parking lot, encouraging car pooling and having clear policies on where employees can and cannot park can all be useful in creating a harmonious customer experience and a great first impression.
It’s not consistently clean or tidy
You know how important it is to keep your space clean. Especially under the current circumstances. But customers don’t just notice the broad strokes. They notice the little details, too. For instance, they’ll notice if there’s one corner that the cleaners have missed that’s dirty and grimy. They’ll notice a bathroom that’s not been cleaned to a satisfactory standard. They’ll notice if an employee’s desk is cluttered or swamped with paperwork. It’s up to you to ensure that cleanliness and tidiness are consistent in your space, and that each employee does their part to ensure a clean, tidy and pleasant workplace. Even if you have cleaning staff.
It’s too hot
It’s a scientific fact. We all hate being too hot. Even if your premises is a little on the cool side, that’s infinitely preferable to being too hot. Being too hot makes us cranky and irritable. It can make small inconveniences seem like big issues. It can escalate conflicts and at the very least make us feel sweaty and unpleasant. So it’s up to you to keep your premises cool. From ensuring that the orifice HVAC system is working to servicing air conditioning units regularly or placing filters over your windows to block excessive heat from the sunlight. There are all kinds of ways in which you can maintain a pleasant temperature.
Your employees seem stressed and irritable
Finally, even if your premises is immaculate, your employees’ actions can make things seem chaotic, poorly managed… or really unfair to them. If your employees look visibly stressed, irritable and on the verge of nervous breakdown that can send a very strong message to your customers. Of course employees have stressful days. But they need to be trained and encouraged to seek out help when they feel out of their depth and to keep stress-induced outbursts out of the eyes and ears of customers.
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The Components Of A Successful Workplace
/in Managing Your People/by StrategyDrivenA successful workplace has a lot of factors to boast; it’s a place where an employee can get on with their work in a fast and productive manner, and it’s somewhere they fit in and know they can take on any challenge that comes their way.
After all, when you’ve got a whole team of people to keep on the straight and narrow, your office is going to need to be multifaceted and multi-cultural, in order to accommodate each and every person’s needs. And because of that, the modern workplace is a more successful operation than ever. There are more opportunities out there, and it’s easier to set up a small business of your own than ever before.
But if you’re in the boat of wanting to set up for success, and to lay a good foundation within your business dreams, it’s key to know just how many components there are in a successful workplace. With that in mind, we’ve detailed the most important below.
A Motivational Factor
Your employees need to stay motivated in order to succeed. When you have a fully motivated and driven workforce to make use of, your business is going to thrive, simply because the team behind it are always going to go the extra mile. It’s a simple facet to understand, and yet, it’s one that very few businesses make use of in the modern day and age. Make sure you’re not jumping on the bandwagon here!
But how do you go about including an ever present motivational factor? It’s simple – you look at your team as individuals, and provide incentives at all times. Because your team needs to be able to see the fruits of their labor, in real time. So update them on how marketing campaigns are going, or how many sales you’re making, and always be sure to reach out to the employees that have been instrumental in the current quarter’s success.
Celebrate their achievements, either in public or in private (depending on how well your team functions as a whole), and always ask if you can make an example of them or not. It’s good to have a case study to determine success in your other team members, but don’t be too harsh here.
An Emphasis on Communication
Communication is something every single workplace needs to hold near and dear, as it’s the only way you’re going to get a cohesive project lead at every turn. When your team members actually work as a team, and keep each other updated, and you as the boss never holds secrets from them, you’re going to have a much more productive unit on your hands. People feel included, and they like that, and they’re going to do much better at their desks as a result.
So open up the floor. Allow people to pitch in whenever they have an idea. Always keep your office door open, so people can come in and never feel like they’re interrupting you. At the same time, make good use of technology here, and provide more than one way for your team to keep in touch with one another. Project managing apps, team messaging apps, even just a simple, weekly scheduled Zoom call could do the trick here.
A Fully Functioning Workplace IoT
An IoT (or internet of things) is the term used to describe any and all connected devices used in your office. It’s a branching term for tablets, phones, computers, and even that smart fridge in the breakroom that all use the same wifi, and your IoT needs to be fully functioning at all times.
When you’ve got a properly working IoT, your staff members will be much happier during the day to day; they won’t have to deal with crashes, or lost signals, or even just slowly loading inboxes or web browsers. With a fully functioning IoT, the day moves a lot faster, people aren’t grumbling behind their screens or when they’re using an iPad to present in the meeting room, and you’ll be able to focus on the more important things in the here and now.
But how do you ensure your IoT is fully functioning, and will rarely go down? With a good amount of it support – if you don’t have an IT department within your company already, it’s time to outsource, and at least rely on a virtual call desk you can get in touch with whenever there’s a technological issue. And yes, even if the wifi is a bit slower than usual, it’s time to get in touch with your IT body!
A Comfortable Place to Work
It’s also essential that your workplace accommodates any and all types of workers, because you never know who you’re going to hire one day, and what they might want, need, or expect from the working environment around them. Simply put, if you want your workplace to be successful, you’re going to need to make it a comfortable place to work.
Sure, you need some soft furnishings and a fully stocked break room and toilet block, but you also need to think about accessibility as a bigger picture. Think about desk heights. Think about chair types. Think about the width and length of the walkways, and just how accessible the doors in and out of your building are. Think about the user interfaces on your apps. Think about the layout of your website.
Most of all, think about just how hard a disabled worker might find it to come to work and do their best for you, and make some changes, sooner rather than later.
Are You Running a Successful Workplace?
It’s easy to tell if you are or not. If your workers are happy, you’re on track to meet your goals, your staff are always talking and taking part, and you know you champion accessibility at all corners, you’ve got yourself a modern and successful workplace. And if you don’t meet these criteria, it’s always possible to change some things.
Top 4 Things to Keep in Mind When Developing a New Business Website
/in Online Marketing and Website Development/by Pratik DholakiyaNo matter what your business is about, your target audience is online. People are constantly browsing the search engines and social media to find exciting brands and local businesses.
In fact, according to last year’s Local Consumer Review Survey by BrightLocal, 92% of consumers look at businesses’ websites when deciding on a business. So, the short answer to whether you need to invest in a business website is a resounding yes.
A business website will help you stay competitive, establish credibility, and take your marketing to the next level. But as you go about developing your new business website, there are some things you must ensure on your website, the four most important ones being:
Usability
First off, think of your website user’s perspective and answer these questions:
You must focus on creating a website that allows you to say “yes!” to all the questions above. That is, your website shouldn’t take more than three-to-five seconds to load.
Make sure your site’s design is easy to navigate and responsive (adapts automatically to the screen size on which it is loaded) while being aesthetically appealing. Also, ensure the content on your website is engaging and exciting.
All these factors make up the web core vitals that Google will be analyzing on your site for its much-anticipated update in 2021. Cobiro shares that sites that do not meet the requirements the search engine powerhouse are looking for will fare badly in the SERPs once this update is rolled out. So getting ahead of the curve and taking action is the best way to get your site in line with Google’s priorities and help you to ride out the changes without your traffic being affected adversely.
What’s more, your website should also be accessible. Simply put, an accessible website is one that accommodates all visitors on all devices irrespective of the physical or mental ability of the visitor.
As website accessibility is mandated by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), failing to make your website accessible makes your business vulnerable to costly lawsuits by advocacy groups. Indeed, discussions about website accessibility have increased and 2018 saw a 181% rise in Federal ADA lawsuits over 2017.
So, test your website with web accessibility evaluation tools and consider using a web accessibility software so that everyone has a great user experience on your website. You can also hire agencies like Web Integrations that build websites that are compliant with accessibility.
Ranking on the first page of Google is crucial to bringing in more business and achieving a better ROI for your website.
Search Engine Friendliness
As such, usability and search engine friendliness go hand-in-hand. Search engines like Google are quite smart. If your site delivers a great user experience, then it is already well on its way to becoming a high-ranking website.
For example, site speed, which is essential for usability, is officially a ranking factor for both mobile and desktop searches. Likewise, a poor site structure will hamper your site’s indexability by Google crawlers.
While SEO is a vast topic that needs special attention, ensure that your website is in line with these basic best practices:
In fact, search engine friendliness is also influenced by your website’s security…
Security
Needless to say, your website’s security is critical for both your business and your website visitors. A secure website serves as a safe environment for potential clients which in turn, helps boost sales.
So, don’t wait for cyberpunks to remind you of the significance of having a secure website. Make sure to have the following in mind when developing your new website:
Also, get an SSL certificate to secure the connection between your hosting server and your visitor’s web browser. Once an SSL certificate is in place, browsers will show a padlock sign next to your website address which indicates that all the information exchanged by the visitor on your site is safe.
In other words, an SSL certificate guards your customer’s sensitive data and is considered so important that Google uses it as a ranking factor.
So many small businesses, including SaaS startups, agency websites, blogs, and eCommerce stores fall prey to hackers every day. The last thing you want is to lose your business to a hacker, or worse, compromise your customers’ data due to a cybersecurity lapse on your part. So, prioritize security when developing a new business website.
Grammar
Yes, you read that right. If you wish to create a website that people would find credible, you can’t afford to have grammatical inaccuracies plaguing your website copy.
Sure, as a business owner, grammar may seem like a trifling matter. But make no mistake, something as simple as a spelling mistake has a big influence on your business’s credibility.
Poor grammar and frequent typos can become a major distraction for visitors, making it impossible for them to focus on the meat of the matter. It indicates a lack of professionalism and sloppiness in business practices, which would be off-putting for your site visitors and potential clients.
Therefore, see to it that every piece of content and copy on your website is grammatically flawless.
Over to You
Right off the bat, paying heed to just these four aspects of your website will most certainly result in quicker, more sustainable, and scalable business growth. And so, make sure to get them right.
About The Author
How covid has impacted business in the Philippines
/in StrategyDriven Editorial Perspective/by StrategyDrivenThe latter saw a sequence of currency devaluations and after the Thai government reversed the decisions to peg the local currency to the USD, which also triggered stock market declines and reduced import revenues.
This also sent real GDP growth tumbling to a little over 1% (1.3%)overall, which was considerably lower than during the aforementioned oil crash and the great recession of 2008 (against which Asia was relatively well-insulated).
But where will the fallout from Covid-19 rank against similar crises, and how has business been particularly impacted on the Philippines?
Comparing Crisis and the Wider Impact of Covid-19
The fallout from the Asian Contagion and stock market crash of 1997 was considerable, but the latest forecasts from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) suggests this years’ coronavirus-related decline will be even more damaging to the economy.
More specifically, growth in Asia as a whole is expected to stall at zero percent by the end of 2020, confirming the worst economic performance in nearly 60 years.
This will plunge growth levels well below the overall international average, creating an outlook that’s relatively bleak by both contemporary and historic comparisons.
That said, the forecasted slowdown in some Asian nations is slightly smaller than the expected contractions in the US and Europe, where the economies may ultimately shrink by 6% and 6.6% respectively.
Conversely, China’s growth is projected to decline by 4.9% in the year ending December 2020, tumbling from 6.1% in 2019 to just 1.2%. This is slightly better than some nations in the west, and it provides genuine hope that other nations in Asian can follow the trail blazed by China in terms of achieving better-than-expected economic performance.
Appraising the Impact on the Philippines
The Philippines entered a technical recession during Q2, after recording its worst economic growth since a major downturn in 1981.
According to the recent data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority, the nation’s GDP growth rate declined by a whopping 16.5% during the second quarter of 2020.
Overall, there’s even a risk that the Philippines could enter negative growth territory for 2020 as a whole, with minimal growth of just 3% recorded in Q1 and a further (albeit significantly smaller) contraction forecast for Q3. This contrasts starkly with the annualised performance over the course of the last five years, which has delivered average growth of around 6% during this period.
However, there’s some cause for optimism in the country, particularly after the island of Luzon (which accounts for 70% of the nation’s GDP) reopened for domestic travellers. Sure, this increases the risk of a second coronavirus spike, but it also reopens the national economy and improves the prospect for businesses and households alike.
The surprising resilience of the Philippines peso has also helped to prop-up economic sentiment, remaining one of the few emerging currencies to strengthen against the USD in 2020.
This is also indicative of a deceptively robust economy, and one that has the potential to rebound quickly from coronavirus in the future.
How to Get Started Flipping Houses: 10 Pieces of Expert Advice
/in Starting Your Business/by StrategyDrivenIf done right, house flipping can be a great source of income. But if you’re new to the industry, you might now know how to go about it.
Don’t worry! Read on for 10 expert tips on how to get started flipping houses.
1. Hire a Quality Agent
For the best chance of getting a profit, you’ll need to team up with a quality local real estate agent. Don’t go for any old agent though, you need one with house flipping experience.
Bear in mind, when you’re flipping a house you’ve both bought and sold it in a short period of time. An agent with experience can help you determine the right price to pay for a house. They’ll also help determine the likely profit margin for when it’s done up and ready to sell on.
There are other financial aspects your agent can help with. When you start as a house flipper, you’re starting a self-employed business.
There are financial implications to understand that these agents will know about. Things like tax laws, and how you track any business expenses. Experienced agents are a wealth of industry knowledge you can’t afford to miss out on.
2. Do Thorough Research
If you want to get into house flipping, you’ll need a very quick education on the local market. Where you flip can have a bigger impact on success than your experience level.
To make a significant profit, housing market conditions need to be right. It won’t matter how good of a bargain you got on the property, or how well you remodel it. If the profit margins aren’t there, you could end up losing money instead.
House flipping is more successful in areas that have a low number of homes that are available to buy. Also, look for these areas where the home values are climbing. If you choose an area where these two things aren’t happening, it’ll be harder to make money.
3. Make Accurate Cost Estimates
When deciding if a house is a good candidate for flipping, you need to estimate how much money you’ll have to put into it. How much will the repairs and renovations cost? How much will it cost to market and hold onto it until it sells?
You’ll need to come up with an accurate timetable for the entire process. From purchasing the house to selling it on and everything between. This is where your local market knowledge will come in handy. Your hard money lender can also help put an estimate together.
When putting your cost estimate together, you can’t focus on item price tags. You need to factor in labor, tools, and other materials/equipment you’ll need. Add in taxes, insurance, mortgage payments, and marketing costs. It costs a lot to flip a house, so you need to factor in everything to find the realistic budget amount.
4. Keep Capital to Cover Unexpected Costs
When financing your flipping project, you need to ask yourself these 3 questions:
The answers will be key to planning your first flipping venture’s financing. But, don’t get fooled into thinking it’s all the money you’ll need.
You should always account for Murphy’s Law in any flipping project. “Whatever can go wrong, will go wrong.”
The HVAC system might have conked out right before you purchased the house. A flash flood might have ruined downstairs appliances. Things happen that are out of your control, and you’ll have to fund the fixes.
Every unexpected cost will eat into your expected project and your current budget. If you become strapped for cash, you’ll be more likely to cut corners to make ends meet and reduce the quality of the job.
If this happens to you, you won’t be selling a superior house that will attract buyers. You also won’t have a secure financial position to sit and wait for the highest offer. Instead, you’ll be desperate to sell to break even with an inferior remodel.
When you’ve made your expected financial plan for the project, bump the numbers up to cover any extras. This way, if you run into complications, you’ll handle it and still bring in a tidy profit.
5. ROI-Savvy Interior Design and Repairs
Make sure to pick the best renovations that bring in the best return on investment (ROI). This is what can make or break your house flipping success. And a lot of first-time flippers forget about ROI.
A lot of beginners, inspired by glossy magazines unrealistic TV shows, treat it like a house dress up game. They make decisions based on their own tastes and what they think looks nicest. For example, these experts at victoria plum know the best tiling for your bathroom.
The experts know that to get the big dollars, it’s about designing what the market wants, not what they like. This is where your agent can help you. They’ll have knowledge of what their current market is looking for.
6. Hire a Reliable Contractor
You might have seen reports of cowboy builders ripping people off on their home repairs. It’s even a trope in movie and TV storylines, and for a good reason.
Thanks to these opportunistic cowboys, the industry now has a bit of a bad rep. They’re thought to spend more time and money than they promise to get a job done. Some even ask for the money upfront then shut down, skip town and you’ll never hear from them again.
If this happens to you on your first house flip, it’s unlikely you’ll even break even. It’s important you know how to avoid hiring cowboy builders. Never pay upfront, and look for someone local to the area with a good set of reviews.
7. Plan a Set of Different Exit Strategies
The goal of any flip and sell project is to sell fast and make a substantial profit. But there are circumstances out of your control that could move these goalposts.
The market might shift, or the economy takes a dip. This means you might not be able to sell for the price you wanted. You might go over budget, overestimated the sale price, or the project took longer to finish.
In most cases, holding onto the property and renting rather than taking a loss is a better choice. So, when looking to buy, make sure the property can cash flow and bring in money.
Ask, if you end up having to keep the house, will you still make money in the long-term? If yes, you know it’s a good property to buy. The aim here is to plan for the long-term so any losses become gains.
8. Buy the Worst House in the Best Neighborhood in Your Budget
By the worst, we mean something with the worst designed and out of date cosmetic shape and layout. Think of things like:
What you must make sure is the foundations are good and there are no structural issues. Cosmetics are easy to fix, structural remedies not so much.
If you play your cards right, you can get a real bargain because of a house’s ugliness. So, look for houses that you get much lower than other, prettier houses in the same neighborhood.
Work out a list of the fixes and changes you need to make, and how much it should cost in total. Take this off the asking price, and that is the number you shouldn’t go over.
9. Always Have an Inspection
Never buy a property without first inspecting it. Visiting the property lets you see how much work you’ll need to put into it. It’s a vital part of the research you need to do when deciding if a property is worth flipping or not.
If you’re new, it’s also a good idea to get a professional property inspection done. If you don’t know what you’re looking for, this will help prevent any nasty structural surprises.
Online packs and pictures can only show so much. And getting a first-hand look at the rest of the neighborhood is a good idea. Speak to the neighbors and find out if there are any unresolved neighborhood issues. You don’t want any cropping up that might make the property harder to sell or reduce value.
10. Price Your Property Right
If you’re faced with a seller’s market, this might tempt you into taking advantage of it and raise the price. If this price goes above the typical asking price of the area, this isn’t a good idea. It’ll likely put off potential buyers from the start and delay the sale.
The longer you have the property, the more you have to spend on upkeep and maintenance. Not to mention marketing fees.
To get the right price, find a balance between selling for a profit you want, and being so greedy you drive people off. Greed never helped anyone, and it will lose you sales.
How to Get Started Flipping Houses Made Easy
So there you have it! Follow these expert tips on how to get started flipping houses and you’ll be soon on your way.
Knowledge and preparation are key, so partner with an experienced agent as the first thing you do. Be realistic through the entire process and have a disaster/exit plan. And remember, it’s not what you want, it’s what the market wants.
If you found this article useful, check out our other blog posts today.
4 Ways Your Business Premises is Giving Your Customers The Wrong Impression
/in Customer Relationship Management/by StrategyDrivenBut that can be easier said than done.
No matter how hard you work to create and maintain an optimal business premises, sometimes even little things can undo everything you’ve worked so hard to build. With that in mind, let’s look at 5 ways in which your business premises can give your customers the wrong impression…
They can’t park
Your customers’ first impression can be formed long before they set foot on-site. If they have to drive around for a long time to find a parking space because your employees have taken up the best ones, this can inject a sour note into their experience that you’ll need to work much harder to erase. Optimizing your parking lot, encouraging car pooling and having clear policies on where employees can and cannot park can all be useful in creating a harmonious customer experience and a great first impression.
It’s not consistently clean or tidy
You know how important it is to keep your space clean. Especially under the current circumstances. But customers don’t just notice the broad strokes. They notice the little details, too. For instance, they’ll notice if there’s one corner that the cleaners have missed that’s dirty and grimy. They’ll notice a bathroom that’s not been cleaned to a satisfactory standard. They’ll notice if an employee’s desk is cluttered or swamped with paperwork. It’s up to you to ensure that cleanliness and tidiness are consistent in your space, and that each employee does their part to ensure a clean, tidy and pleasant workplace. Even if you have cleaning staff.
It’s too hot
It’s a scientific fact. We all hate being too hot. Even if your premises is a little on the cool side, that’s infinitely preferable to being too hot. Being too hot makes us cranky and irritable. It can make small inconveniences seem like big issues. It can escalate conflicts and at the very least make us feel sweaty and unpleasant. So it’s up to you to keep your premises cool. From ensuring that the orifice HVAC system is working to servicing air conditioning units regularly or placing filters over your windows to block excessive heat from the sunlight. There are all kinds of ways in which you can maintain a pleasant temperature.
Your employees seem stressed and irritable
Finally, even if your premises is immaculate, your employees’ actions can make things seem chaotic, poorly managed… or really unfair to them. If your employees look visibly stressed, irritable and on the verge of nervous breakdown that can send a very strong message to your customers. Of course employees have stressful days. But they need to be trained and encouraged to seek out help when they feel out of their depth and to keep stress-induced outbursts out of the eyes and ears of customers.