Mar 24 2009
As an online retailer, one of your hardest jobs is locating quality product suppliers. There are many wholesale suppliers and distributors who will not do business with the online only retailer. Continue Reading »
Mar 23 2009
As a small business owner, you need to have every competitive advantage that is available to you. An easy way to gain an upper hand over competition of any size is by making use of a virtual small PBX solution. Such a service can make a small business seem bigger than it really is through the use of certain very innovative features. Continue Reading »
Mar 17 2009
Every small business should have a unique corporate identity, which is defined as corporate design, corporate communication and corporate behavior. A company logo fits into the corporate design aspect of corporate identity and is important, as it visually represents your business. Continue Reading »
Mar 15 2009
Drop shipping is an easy way to be an online retailer, because of the countless benefits to not keeping a stock of products. You do need to do some research to ensure you are using the best dropship company that is available. There a few characteristics you need to look for in a dropshipper. Continue Reading »
Feb 16 2009
If you work in an office or have a home office, you know how clutter can hurt your productivity. The key to keeping your workspace free of distractions is to have a plan. When you make a concerted effort to organize your office space, you’ll likely notice a big difference in your ability to handle your workload.
1. Start by looking at the surface of your desk. Chances are that you have a lot of things on your desk that you don’t actually need there. Mail, notepads, and extraneous paperwork can really take away from your productivity while you’re sitting at your desk. You should try to remove as much from the surface of your desk as possible so that you can focus on your work.
2. If you don’t have an organized filing system in place, your paperwork is going to be a major contributor to your clutter. Start by dedicating certain folders to different types of paperwork. You’ll need separate files for different accounts or different bills. Having a specific place for everything will help you fend off clutter ahead of time.
3. Place all the paperwork on your desk in the right spot. When you receive new paperwork, handle it only once. Try not to just open a letter and let it sit on a pile on your desktop. Put it in the file it belongs in, whether that file is for permanent storage for a client’s account or it’s an action file for bills that need to be paid. If you stick to the rule of immediately filing paperwork, you won’t have it build up on your desk. Consider a desk-letter organizer if you have paperwork that you need to access each day. This way the paperwork that you need will always be handy, but it won’t waste a lot of space on your desk.
4. Declutter your desk at the close of each workday. Don’t leave files out on your desk. This is a surefire recipe for starting a pile of paperwork on your desk. Clean up after yourself and you’ll never let your paperwork get out of control again.
5. Another place in your workspace that gets cluttered quickly is the top drawer of your desk. This often becomes a catch-all for everything that you want to hide from the surface of your desk. Make sure you have a top-drawer organizer which will keep your paperclips, pens, post it notes and other desk accessories organized. Don’t put anything in the top drawer that you don’t actually need. If it hasn’t been used in about 6 months or so, toss it out so you have more room on your desk for those things you do need. If you need to purchase any filing systems, check for office supply coupons online before you buy.
As long as you have your organizational systems in place, it should be fairly easy to keep your workspace clutter-free. Stay on top of the clutter by putting office supplies and other items away each day. It will be a lot easier to take control of your clutter if you manage it in small increments, instead of waiting for it to take over your desk.
Dec 31 2008
Good Ways to Make Money in a Lousy Economy.
The general opinion seems to be that everyone is looking forward to 2009, with the hope that it will be a better year than what we have just experienced; I know I am, because 2008 could be summed up as an unmitigated disaster.
Christmas was a few days away and the family excited. The year was just about over, nothing else could possibly go wrong now… How wrong we were! Just to give us a final kick in the ribs, my daughter was admitted to hospital with suspected appendicitis! Luckily it turned out to be a false alarm, but it left us flat and wondering what else the gods could chuck at us before the year was out!
