Category: Legal Branding

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How to Improve the Visitor Experience in Your Retail Store

If you run a retail store, your sole goal will be to provide customers with the best experience possible while shopping. Turning potential customers into regular visitors can be a great way to expand your brand and increase revenue. After all, consumers are not going to shop in stores they don’t feel welcome in. 

Whether you’ve recently launched your store, or you’ve noticed a decline in foot traffic, here are some of the best methods to improve the visitor experience in your retail store.

Offer a Unique Experience

No matter what kind of retail store you run, there will be many others who sell similar products to your own. If you operate in a city, your store needs to stand out for all the right reasons over competitors. Researching the typical shopping process customers go through can help you create a unique experience for your store. Whether it’s engaging with your products in an unexpected way, playing different music, or investing in modern lighting, how your retail store looks can say a lot about your brand and whether consumers want to use your services.

Begin with Your Team

For your retail store to thrive, you need to deliver excellent customer service to everyone who walks through your door. If your team isn’t going above and beyond their duties, customers may not feel valued and appreciated. It’s your job to hold regular training for your employees, which can be a great way to keep them in the know of the latest developments in your business, as well as new tactics to bring in new customers. Regular training can be a great way to identify your employee’s strengths and weaknesses, and what changes need to be made.

Create a Child-Friendly Atmosphere

Many shoppers bring along their children for convenience. If you’re a parent, you will know how stressful the experience can be. So, making your retail store child-friendly by adding things for children will mean they stay entertained, as well as not throw a tantrum out of boredom. A television, a train set, or a chalkboard will keep kids occupied, meaning the parents will spend more time in your store and purchase products. Also, having staff who know how to interact well with children can help you build a reputable brand.

Make Your Store COVID-19 Secure

In unprecedented times we find ourselves in, the coronavirus pandemic has transformed the way retail stores operate. If you have stayed open, you need to make sure that you’re following government guidelines to keep customers safe and protected. Whether it’s by having hand sanitizer stations, reducing capacity, or installing glass shields, customers will appreciate the measures you’ve taken to reduce the risk of contracting the coronavirus. 

Your customers are the people who keep your retail store afloat. When shoppers step through the entrance, you want them to feel relaxed and enjoy the whole experience. So, using the right methods can transform how your retail store operates, helping to build a loyal audience who will stick with your brand.

Legal Branding

7 Tips to Get Money Fast for Your Business

Over 7,000 businesses file for bankruptcy each year in Canada. Bad luck, a slump in business, slow times of the year, or some other factor might be causing you a lack of cash flow. This can put you in a hard spot when you can’t meet financial obligations to your employees or your partners. 

These 7 tips to get money fast will have you back on your feet in no time. Read on to get back on track and out of the dumps. 

1. Make Cuts

One of the easiest ways to get some more cash in your business’s wallet is to cut back on costs. It might be time to take a look at where your money is going and if it’s truly needed. 

In theory, this is an easy one. However, when it comes to cutting jobs and resources your employees might take it hard. Be careful not to destroy relationships but you have to look out for what is best for business. 

2. Cash Loans

For smaller loans to get a quick boost, you could look into cash loans. This is a very quick way to get a little cash flow to get you through whatever financial crisis you may be facing.  There are plenty of brokerages near you that offer same day loans. 

3. Crowdfunding

With the internet booming, online crowdfunding has become a popular way to raise money for businesses. This is a way to get money quickly from individual investors that you don’t have to pay back. 

New projects, financial crisis, startups, and other situations are perfect for this way of raising money. If you know that you have committed customers, it will likely come very easily. 

4. Line of Credits

Similar to a credit card, you can obtain a business line of credit. Unlike a loan, this is not a  lump sum of money. You will only be responsible for what you spend. 

Similar to a credit card, you can pay off what you have spent and used that money again. This option can help you build better credit and make sure your cash flow is a bit more even. 

5. Vendor Credits

When it comes to how to get money fast, you should look again at your costs. Paying vendors and suppliers upfront might be costing you more than you can handle. As long as you have a  good and well-established relationship, ask for vendor credit. As you earn your money, you can pay them back for expenses. 

6. Factor Invoices

You might experience large invoices that are being paid back way too slowly. Factoring invoices isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. However, you’ll get your full invoice amount, minus the factoring fee, quickly. 

7. Sales and Discounts

Customers can provide quick bursts of cash flow as well. It’s one of the most basic ways to  get money fast. Marketing is there as a tool for you to entice people to spend their money  with your business. 

If you are suffering a rough patch, offer incentives to get the business going again. This option isn’t only there for retail either.  

Survive the Rut and Get Money Fast

When you find yourself asking “how can I get money fast?”, don’t be worried. There are  many businesses that go through slow patches. With these 7 tips, you’re on the way to not  only surviving but coming out on top and building bigger. 

If you found this article helpful, check out our other content that will help you reach your  brand goals!

Legal Branding

The Guide To Property Investing In 2020

The Lost Contracts, a Relative Recovery in Denver, CO – My New Era

There is no denying the pandemic shutdown resulted in many lost home sales. Some sellers and buyers scrapped their plans altogether, while others put them on hold. Can these “lost” home sales be found again? The strength of the recovery will largely depend on price point.

Despite a quick rebound in traffic once showings resumed, the Denver metro sold count was down around 24% year-over-year between March and June. For this same period, there were 4,820 fewer closings than in 2019.

One encouraging detail is that more contracts have been written since showings resumed than had been written in the same timeframe last year. This suggests the market will recover at least some of the lost sales from the spring as these contracts finalize.

The recovered home sales have not affected each price point proportionately. Of the new contracts aforementioned, around 49% of them fall into the $0-300K and $300-500K price segments, despite these segments having together made up around 67% of the overall market share back in 2019.

 

Benefits Of Investing In Commercial Real Estate – Ideas Plus Business

There are lots of benefits of investing in commercial properties. They include:

1. High returns
As the popular saying goes, the higher the risk, the higher the reward.

Commercial property returns and far more attractive than those of residential properties.

A research study conducted by the National Council of Real Estate Investment Fiduciaries found out that commercial real estate investments have an average return of 12.7 percent annually compared to residential properties which have an average of 8.8 percent.

More space attracts more tenants which results in more money in your bank account. This is one of the best choices for an investor who wants to diversify his or her portfolio.

2. Good tenants
It can be hard for investors with residential properties to find tenants who will look after the property like their own. On the other hand, commercial properties attract corporations and businesses.

Since the tenants are backed by their organizations, they are more likely to take good care of the property. Good tenants will make your life easy.

3. Long-term leases
Commercial leases are usually longer than that of residential properties. They normally start from six to twelve months.

If you ask around, you’ll find out that most properties have been leased anywhere from five to ten years. For the investor, this means lower vacancy rates and turnover costs.

Long term leases are linked to reliability and positive cash flow. Commercial investors can end up dealing with undesirable tenants for a long time.

However, they can avoid this by following the law and appropriate application processes.

4. Easy to increase value
One of the major differences between commercial and residential properties is how the property values are determined.

Residential real estate is greatly influenced by other similar properties while commercial properties are impacted by how much revenue they generate.

In short, the higher the revenue a commercial property generates, the higher the property will be valued. With qualified tenants, commercial investors will witness an increase in value faster than residential properties.

5. Triple net leases
Triple net leases vary depending on the situation. However, they are extremely important for investors with commercial properties.

A triple net lease ensures that the tenant handles all property expenses including taxes. All the investor has to pay is the mortgage.

Big organizations such as Walmart and Starbucks sign this lease to maintain the look and feel that goes hand in hand with their branding strategy. The tenants manage all other costs while the investor pays maintenance costs only.

There are different types of leases that you can adopt. However, a triple net lease will accelerate your progress.

Six Fresh Trends Shaping the Face of the Real Estate Industry – Digitized House

Trends are an ever-changing phenomena, whether it’s the fashion industry, music, business, technology, or real estate market. These shifts, however, may not always be positive for the respective genre. But in the case of real estate, things are looking up. As 2019 winds down and we head toward 2020, there’s a strong movement toward real estate technology, known as PropTech. Let’s take a look at PropTech and other fresh trends that are shaping the real estate industry.

  1. Tech Companies Entering the Real Estate Sector
  2. Increased Investment in PropTech
  3. Green Is hot
  4. Alternative Forms of Housing
  5. New Technologies Are on the Rise
  6. Increasing Social Impact on Investment
Concept house - 70

How to Sell A Multifamily Property Fast for Cash – Highest Cash Offer

 

Review All Leases & Tenant Rights

It’s absolutely critical to review all the leases and occupancy for each unit in your multifamily home before you put the property on the market. If you plan on selling the home with tenants remaining in the property, potential buyers will have several questions for you regarding leases and occupancy. These questions include what are the terms of any remaining leases, the rent amount and what it includes for each unit and are there any security deposits being held.

You also need to be cognizant of the rights of your tenants, which are different from state-to-state. Be sure to review your local tenant rights before putting the home up for sale.

Selling a multifamily home with tenants on extended leases can be an extremely difficult process. Your chances of a sale will improve dramatically if the home is empty.

Prepare the Property for Prospective Buyers

No matter the type of property you plan on selling, you must make sure it’s prepared for prospective buyers to view. In most cases, multifamily homes are viewed as investments, so a buyer isn’t going to want to invest in a home they believe needs a lot of work.

When preparing the home to be viewed, ensure all the doors and locks on the property are working properly. Few things look worse to a potential buyer than struggling with a troublesome door or fidgeting with a faulty lock.

If there are designated parking areas on the premises, ensure they are clearly defined and in presentable condition.

If there any common areas on site, be sure to tidy them up before any showing.

Finally, don’t forget about curb appeal. Simply dressing up the front door, sweeping sidewalks or walkways and trimming bushes or flower beds can help make a great first impression.

Key trends impacting the Tampa Bay market in 2020 – TBBWMAG

While there are many factors that could put the U.S. economy at risk, from trade issues to record-high stock values that simply can’t keep increasing forever, there are also many reasons to feel confident about the economy in 2020 and Tampa Bay’s outlook.

For example, the U.S. cranked out an average of 180,000 jobs a month in 2019, leading to an unemployment rate of 3.5 percent in December – the lowest in 50 years. Job openings were at an all-time high at the end of the year and wage growth finally began to accelerate. One of the most telling stats is the quit rate, or a number of people who leave a job willingly, which is currently at a record high nationally. This means the average worker is confident they can leave a job’ and find a new one, which wouldn’t be the case if there was widespread economic uncertainty on the horizon.

At the local level the Tampa Bay economy is still in great shape, Thorpe said. The market ranks no. 13 in the country for job growth and the 3.1 percent unemployment rate was well below the national average.

 

Home Selling 101 For 2020 – Tre Pryor

Real estate isn’t just a matter of training how to “talk” to people and convincing them to buy your property. A huge part of it is ensuring you’re providing them with the kind of product that they’ll surely buy – not just because they want it, but because it’s the best option for them. Home selling 101 is putting your home’s best foot forward. From the elements of the property itself to the updates to the presentation—making sure everything is in tip-top shape. Below are four keys to focus on that will make your house sell quickly for the highest possible price.

  1. Aesthetics Seal the Deal
  2. Repairs and Updates Can Improve Your Price
  3. Sometimes, It’s Location, Location, Location
  4. Documentation Matters

Home selling 101 means tackling all the important things. When it comes to a successful real estate transaction, it’s not just about a slick salesman. It more about what you are offering. Nothing makes a home sale better than actually showing off a good home.

With the above considerations in mind, you’ll have a good set of things you may want to ensure you have before you proceed with your home sale. And if you don’t have these elements in check, you might want to revisit the drawing board and plan your house sale accordingly.

ARE YOU AWARE OF US HOMEOWNER TAX CHANGES? – ACME Real Estate

Mortgage Interest Deduction

The current mortgage interest deduction covers debt up to $750,000 and was created as a way to make homeownership more affordable for buyers. This was scaled back from $1 million beginning in 2018. What it does is cuts the federal income tax that a qualifying homeowner pays by reducing their taxable income by how much mortgage interest they pay.

There is an exception to the law for buyers who were under contract by December 15, 2017, and closed by January 1, 2018. Another exception involved refinances, where the law treats the new loan as if it originated on the original loan date, meaning the $1 million would apply.

Property Tax Deduction

In the past, homeowners were able to reduce their taxable income by the total amount of property taxes paid. However, this has now been reduced to a total of $10,000 for the cost of property taxes along with state and local income taxes or sales taxes.

Home Equity Funds

Homeowners used to be able to borrow against their home “for reasons other than to buy, build or substantially improved (their) home,” meaning an owner could have borrowed from a home equity line of credit to help pay for a child’s college tuition and used this as a tax deduction. However, this too changed in 2018.

Now, interest paid on home equity debt can only be deducted if the money was used “to buy, build, or substantially improve the taxpayer’s home that secures the loan.”

Mortgage Interest Deduction Changed for Second Homes

Homeowners can continue deducting interest on mortgage debt for both their primary and second homes, but the $750,000 limit of eligible mortgage debt does apply as discussed above.

 

Expert home seller advice by a top Real Estate Broker

In this article: How to sell your house without paying for updates. Learn how to get your property ready for the market and protect your money. If you’re like me you’d want to get the absolute highest and best price selling your house. Obviously, if my house needs a bit of TLC it won’t be winning any awards or grab the same price as the house down the street featured in Curbed that just sold. That house is in better condition and has a view of DTLA.

If you live in reality and follow this advice you’ll earn more money in the sale of your home every single time.

Getting your home ready to be offered for sale on the MLS represented by a local Realtor.

Side note – You could offer your house for sale “off-market” or “pre-MLS” to test the waters for a higher price. When a house is offered as a “quiet sale” it appears to be more desirable or special to the general public. If it doesn’t fetch the price you want either adjust your selling price expectations or there are a few other strategies listed below to get top dollar.

WHY REAL ESTATE IS LIKE DATING? – Break Up With Your Rental

Imagine the hunt for Prince/Princess Charming sans crappy one-night stands, catfishing, lies, and the “not ready for commitment” factor. The Multiple Listing Service (or MLS—a large online database of homes for sale) is like Tinder or Bumble, but instead of swiping right for your next potential date or possibly the man of your dreams, you are hunting for a prime investment to build your personal wealth—and this fish wants to be caught! The outcome? You’re the one who owns the castle and all the equity that goes along with it. 

Looks can be deceiving

I’m going to break down and demystify the whole property buying process for you, so whether you’re ready to take the leap to buy something now or two to five years from now, you will have a plan of action.

The past does not determine your present

I’m encouraging you to start thinking of real estate not as the conclusion to a love story, but as the building block to your financial future.

Why aren’t you married yet?

The most annoying question of all time. Learn how real estate can turn you from a bystander into the star of your own life.

 

HOW TO SELL AN EMPTY PROPERTY? – Beat Color

 

Exteriors renewing

Selling empty properties means that interiors photos will not be quite as appealing as they would be for a furnished property, so it is vital that the exterior photos are exceptional. So how to make the exteriors be stunning? Don’t think it is a big problem. Take it easy and write down basic things which need to be done. For example, repainting the wall and the fence, mowing lawn, sweeping out all the dead leaves, collecting litter or removing broken objects are necessary to be listed… After finishing these things, your exteriors will look like new again. If possible, you can make use of empty land to plant some flowers or tiny trees. Try to make the exteriors stand out, because customers prefer to see something in those photos that will make them want to arrange a viewing.

Interiors preparation

Even though interiors is empty, it still needs some touching up because empty rooms can reveal many little flaws, scuffs, nail holes and cracks which you may have never noticed. However, these problems can be fixed by putting a fresh coat of paint on the wall. Painting rooms not only gives you the opportunity to neutralize the colors if your chosen hues were on the bold side, but also helps to convey subtly a sense of newness. Floor is another part you should keep an eye on if removing your furniture reveals worn-off wood finishes, dingy carpets, or blackened grout in high-traffic areas. Damaged sections of flooring will make the house look like abandoned, so if your budget allows consider getting them repaired. If this is not feasible then hire a good floor cleaning machine and tidy them up as best you can.

Staging the empty house

Empty rooms can be difficult for buyers to get a clear sense of how big the rooms. Empty dining rooms or bedrooms may actually appear smaller than they are, making buyers nervous about whether their furniture will fit. However, this problem can be fixed by adding a few tasteful items that can anchor the eye and show the relative spaciousness that your home offers. A neatly-made bed in the master bedroom can work well, or a painting hung near an accent chair in the living room. If you haven’t got the furniture to spare, you can use virtual staging service which doesn’t cost much. Using this service, you can stage your house with computer-generated items and your house will look like fulfilled and stunning as a furnished house.

Somewhere Only We Know

Easy ways to sell a property to a buyer even when you don’t speak their language – Kyero

One of the useful functions of Kyero we often talk about is the ability to translate your listings into 13 different languages. But some agents we speak to are reticent about using this to market themselves to international buyers because they’re worried they won’t be able to speak to them in their own language if they make an enquiry. To give you a little bit of extra encouragement we’ve come up with a few ways you could overcome the language barrier and make those international sales.

  1. Establish if there’s a common language
  2. Use Google translate
  3. Use a translator
  4. Let the property do the talking If you really can’t find a suitable way to communicate that works for both parties, there is another option – you can let the property speak for itself.If you provide the right information on your Kyero listings, provide attractive and honest photographs and use the Kyero translate function, your buyer will already have got a very good idea about the details of the property and whether they’re interested. The viewing should then become a formality.In which case you can guide the buyer to the property, point out the things that make it particularly special and let them make up their own mind.
  5. Establish key features to find the right propertyIf you receive a request for help from a potential customer with whom you can’t find a common language, it may be a good idea to aim to narrow down their search criteria so that you can focus on finding a property that meets their needs. Try using one of the methods above with the intention of establishing exactly what the enquirer is looking for. You’ll then be able to scour your portfolio for the right thing and avoid wasted time and frustration on both sides.Whichever method you choose, there’s no need for language to be a barrier to a successful sale.
Windows

 

Hire Property Management Agency! – Morris Invest

If your goal is to maximize your profits and expand your portfolio, then managing your own investment properties wouldn’t be very practical, even if you feel you’re capable of pulling off the job. This is where a property management company comes in. They can successfully manage your real estate investments and ultimately funnel more money into your bank account! Here are reasons why:

  1. Avoid Financially Draining Vacancies with Proper Marketing Strategies
  2. Escape Financial Risks by Weeding Out Bad Tenants
  3. Efficient Rent Collection Ensures a Consistent Cash Flow
  4. Boost Your Revenue by Achieving Higher Tenant Retention Rates
  5. Save Thousands by Letting a Management Company Handle Property Repairs
  6. Build Great Wealth by Investing in the Best Rental Markets
  7. Grow Your Portfolio by Seeking Out Other Profitable Real Estate Investments
Legal Branding

Annual Compliance For Hong Kong Private Companies

During the lifetime of incorporation in Hong Kong, your private limited company in Hong Kong must comply with some obligations regulated by the government. The main obligations comprise general and filing requirements.

1. General requirements

These obligations mainly relate to the maintenance of your company in Hong Kong:

1.1. Maintenance of company secretary and registered address

In order to be set up and put into operation, your company in Hong Kong is required to have at least one director, one local company secretary and a registered office address. These must be maintained throughout the lifetime of incorporation of your company.

Since all directors in Hong Kong can be foreigners, you can take on this position and need not hire any nominee director.

If you do not have any local company secretary to register for your company, you need to appoint one (using outsourcing service) and each year, you need to pay a fee to retain this position in your company. Similar to the address of the company, you need to pay a fee for renewal to remain the address each year.

1.2. Accounting and auditing

Under Companies Ordinance, your Hong-Kong-registered companies is required to prepare and maintain financial records and have the financial statements audited.
If your company is short of resources to perform such accounting and auditing tasks, you can look for a qualified accounting firm.

1.3. Renewal of Hong Kong business registration

You need to make a payment for the renewal for your business registration on an annual basis or once every three years basing on the business registration certificate of your company is valid for one or three years.

A notification for business registration renewal will be sent to your company by a related government agency a few weeks before the starting month of the renewal business registration certificate.

1.4. Maintenance of company’s internal records

It is advisable for your company to maintain the following documents:

o Certificate of Incorporation (CI)
o Certificate of Business Registration (BR)
o Articles of Association (AA)
o Records of resolutions, minutes of all meetings
o Updates of financial records (retained for seven years from the transaction date to avoid penalties)
o Company seal
o Share certificates
o Registers of members and directors
o Business licenses (if any).

Documents containing information about members, resolutions and meetings need to be kept for no less than 10 years.

Note: Your company must notify the Companies Registry, normally within 15 days, any changes of the following information:

o Registered office address
o The status of the company secretary and directors
o Information about the secretary and directors
o Company name
o The allotment or issuance of new share

1.5. Annual general meeting (AGM)

Your company must hold the first annual general meeting within 18 months from the date of incorporation. For each subsequent year, your company has to organize an annual general meeting. Remember: the time period between holding an AGM and the next one must not exceed 15 months.

At such meetings, the company must present the director’s report along with the company’s financial accounts to its shareholders. These documents must be prepared in compliance with the Financial Reporting Standards framework in Hong Kong.

2. Filing requirements

The filing requirements mainly include filing annual returns with the Companies Registry (CR) and filing annual tax returns with the Inland Revenue Department (IRD).

2.1. Filing annual returns with CR

An annual return must be submitted, online or offline, to CR containing main information about your company, such as registered address, directors, shareholders and company secretary. The timeframe to file an annual return is 42 days from the anniversary date of incorporation. Your company may be subject to a severe fine if it fails to comply with such a filing requirement.

2.2. Filing annual tax returns with IRD

Your company must submit an annual tax return, online or offline, to IRD within one month after receiving the notification sent by this agency. Along with a tax return, the following supporting documents need also be sent:

o Company’s balance sheet;
o Auditor’s report;
o Profit and Loss account of the basis period;
o A tax computation illustrating how assessable profits or adjusted losses have been calculated.

The above are the overall requirements that your private limited company must comply with when incorporating in Hong Kong. In order to save time and your resources, you can opt for outsourcing services from a reliable provider to help your company stay compliant.

Digital BrandingLegal BrandingLocal BrandingPersonal Branding

17 Tips for Starting and Succeeding in Your Own Offline Marketing Business 

How to start your own business in offline marketing when online is dominating?  You have to show potential customers the benefits of using offline tools. According to Statista, almost 40% of marketers worldwide consider offline campaigns important. 

Here are 17 tips for starting your own business in offline marketing. Besides offline, start-ups, the hints can help marketing specialists to promote a brand beyond the online realm.

1. Newspaper Ads

Newspaper ads are rather cost-effective. Many people are still buying them. For example, universities and schools always have some. You can post an ad there if it’s the place where your target audience exists. All in all, it’s a good advertising tool when starting a business.

2. Media Giveaways

The media is always eager to take some free products or gift certificates as prizes. TV shows and radio regularly host competitions. They will distribute your samples or gift certificates as prizes. In return, customers will have a chance to try a product or service.

3. Free Publicity

Some media are looking for stories to write. You can use this to promote a brand if you are starting a business with no money. All you have to do is to find relevant media and share your story with them. 

4. Free Samples

Giveaways are always a good idea. It’s a working way to attract customers, promote brand awareness, and let potential clients try out your product or service. You can give samples for free or launch a competition and reward the winners.

5. Networking

Connections matter. Especially if you are looking for ways to minimize costs. Joining local clubs, business communities, etc., opens new horizons. You can learn valuable insights and acquire new connections. All this will help to run the business cheaper.

6. Educational Workshops

We live in an era of meaningful connections. Customers look for value. They want to see more than just a product to use. That’s why educational workshops are an excellent idea to attract such an audience. By the way, sharing knowledge is probably the cheapest business to start.

7. Handouts

Who hasn’t heard about flyers, coupons, and handouts? It’s an ever-working cheap marketing tool. All you have to do is to print a lot of flyers and hand them out in a crowded place. Keep in mind: you should distribute them within an area where your target audience exists. Online companies like Lasting Trend agency can work to a wide audience. But in offline marketing, this is not permissible.

8. Trade Shows

Trade shows help to promote your brand in a niche. Usually, it’s a narrow-filed event, where you will find predominantly your target audience. Although usually participation is paid, the fee isn’t high. Especially if we are speaking about local events.

9. Direct Mail

Direct mail allows businesses to target specific geographic markets. It’s cost-effective: you may pay about 50 cents per piece only. Moreover, it’s an amazing way to stand out in the era of digital.

10. Banners

Banners are an ever-lasting offline marketing tool that keeps proving its efficiency. Many companies like Fortunavisual considered them as the basis when starting offline marketing business campaign. However, it requires a specific approach and professional equipment.

11. Cross Promotions

Although cross-promotions are widespread in retail, you can turn to them regarding the industry. Basically, it’s a situation when companies with related services or products promote each other. This is usually done for free, considering a mutually-beneficial effect.

12. Business Cards

Business cards are an element of branding. They are compact yet comprise all the main data. Therefore, they are ideal for cheap offline marketing strategies. Distribute them everywhere your potential clients may be.

13. Gift Certificates

Offer your potential and existing clients gift certificates. If a person doesn’t know you, it’s a way to let him try you out. If he deals with you, it’ll enhance his loyalty.

14. Cold Calls

To create a business plan, you need to think through ways how to attract clients. One of the traditional ways is cold calls. You will have to cover relatively small costs.

15. Host a Party

Who doesn’t like parties? You can host one devoted to your grand opening or anniversary. Many people are likely to come if you offer an entertaining program.

16. Sponsorship

You can become a sponsor of a local event or a sports team. In return, you will gain access to all the visitors or fans. It’s a good way to make the world hear your name.

17. Interviews

Interviews in local magazines or newspapers are a working tool for promoting an offline business. Radio and TV shows are also a good opportunity to increase your brand awareness among existing and potential customers. Just stay honest and open.

Here are 17 ideas for offline marketing. Do you consider offline ads performing? Please, share your opinion with us!

Legal BrandingLocal BrandingPersonal Branding

How to Throw a Memorable Corporate Event 

From organizing a Christmas party for your investors to sharing a milestone with your business partners – throwing a memorable corporate event is always a must. This will make you look more professional, but also more friendly and outgoing than most people knew you are. Turning your corporate events into memorable moments you’re going to cherish forever might not be easy, but it’s the only way to make all your plans come true. If you’re planning to do that soon as well, here are a few tips that might help you quite a lot.

Create a guest list

This should be the first item on your list regardless of what sort of happening you’re planning. You need to know what to consider when planning an event. From a simple birthday party to a massive corporate event – knowing who’s supposed to come and who’s not is essential. Creating a guest list might not look like the easiest thing in the world, but it’s actually not that hard either. 

It’s all about using simple yet effective tricks that go a long way – including all your important business partners and potential investors, organizing all your guests in certain categories, updating your database regularly, and making sure everyone has confirmed they’re coming to your event. Doing that will help you come up with the best guest list in the world without spending too much time, money, or energy.

Define your budget

Speaking of money, this is another crucial issue you should look into as soon as possible. Spending a ton of money doesn’t mean your corporate event is going to be a major success, and vice versa. Still, you need to define your budget and take every single detail of the event in it. 

From your catering to your open bar – everything has to be perfect unless you want your event to turn into a complete failure. In case you realize you don’t have enough money after all, you should consider canceling your event instead of throwing a party that’s going to embarrass you and your company. You may not be aware of the things that look cheap, but your guests definitely will, and that’s not something they’re going to appreciate, so either be bold and go all in or don’t throw a party at all.

Celebrate a milestone

From time to time, simple corporate events turn into something else and deserve more attention than you’ve planned. When you’re celebrating a milestone, you have to try extra hard to organize an event that’s going to be memorable. Milestones mark an end of one era and the beginning of the next, but they’re also a sign that you’re doing something right with your company, so they deserve your full attention.

So, when celebrating a milestone, you have to do things you wouldn’t do for your ordinary corporate events. Booking a special guest speaking, looking into those professional audio video rentals and hire that will help you bring everything to a whole new level, and finding an amazing venue everyone will love are just some of the ways to do that. Keep in mind that milestones come and go, but the way you treat them shows the world what kind of person you are, and that has always been vital in the world of business.

Hire a planner

Doing everything on your own and trying to turn your corporate event into a night you’ll remember is quite all right, but there’s one huge problem in this plan – you’re not a professional planner, are you? Just because you’re a successful business person and are great at what you do doesn’t mean you’ll be a successful event planner as well. 

Luckily, there are people who do this for a living, and they’re the ones you need to contact. Hiring a professional planner might seem obsolete and unnecessary at first, but once you start discovering how many things need to be done – you’ll be happy to pay them whatever they’re asking for. Doing this comes with a number of benefits, so be sure to take this idea into consideration before it’s too late!

Throwing a memorable corporate event doesn’t have to be too hard, as long as you follow these simple steps. Take your time and look into these tips, and you’ll surely be able to throw the most amazing corporate event in the history of your company! 

Legal Branding

Stay Safe- Long-Term Legal Protection Strategy For Your Brand

Running a business is nothing short of climbing a mountain- you have to play multiple roles as an entrepreneur, accountant, salesperson, and more. Things get even tougher if your small company grows into a successful brand as you have a reputation to protect. The last thing you would want is lawsuits but they are more common than you may believe. Time and again, you may face one from customers, employees, partners, or third-parties due to various reasons. What’s more, you may not be guilty in a majority of cases.

Obviously, it makes sense to have a legal protection strategy in place to safeguard your brand, whether you are at fault or not. Although there is no one-size-fits-all formula to stay safe, you can take some measures for adequate protection according to your needs and situation. While these measures may vary from business to business, here are some common ones that you can depend on.

Know your regulations

First things first, it is vital to know the regulations that your business needs to comply with. These may vary according to your business niche, legal structure, and corporate governance. From taxes to data privacy and environmental regulations, there is a lot more to deal with. You may also come across special regulations like the ones applicable in the COVID era. Ideally, you must do extensive research to understand the norms that apply to your business. Taking legal guidance from an expert is a better approach. The implications for non-compliance can be serious, so you must go the extra mile for knowing all the laws and policies and adhering to them.

Keep your paperwork strong

The biggest concern for relatively new brands is that they tend to go slack with the paperwork, which often lands them in deep trouble. Whether you are a newbie or an established brand, keep your paperwork strong. Every time you start a new relationship with another party, whether a client, supplier, or partner, you should have a well-documented written contract. It is vital to ensure trust and manage disputes if they arise at any point in time. Not just having agreements is important, make sure that you update them regularly if they expire or there is a change in clauses.

Prioritize safety for employees and consumers

One of the most common legal pitfalls for brands is personal injuries of employees and customers. You may come across personal injury litigation once or more, with reasons varying from workplace injuries, slip and fall accidents, product liability cases and business vehicle accidents. Mishaps with business vehicles can be the most complicated because they can involve injuries of an employee, customers or third parties. The victims will probably hire the best car accident attorneys with years of experience to file a compensation claim costing a fortune. Having a safe work culture can prevent such incidents in the first place. Further, you will need an expert to defend your brand in case of a lawsuit.

Learn about labor laws

Since you will probably have a team of employees working for you, there is a need to understand your legal responsibilities and obligations as an employer. Understanding employment laws is the key to preventing labor disputes that can be expensive in terms of time, money, and reputational implications. Moreover, you may end up losing good talent in the market because no one wants to work for a brand that is negative in terms of workforce wellness and culture.

Get familiar with intellectual property

One of the tricky subjects for brands is intellectual property but it deserves attention because it also happens to be a common cause of lawsuits. To make things worse, infringement of intellectual property can cost you millions of dollars in damages. So it is valuable to know all about IP laws and make sure that you are not using the registered intellectual property for your branding initiative at any stage. Extensive market research plays a significant role when it comes to steering clear of copyright issues.

When your brand faces a lawsuit in the course of business, you will need a lawyer to defend your case. But it would be a smart move to have a legal expert in your team on a regular basis. They can save you from a lot of trouble with relevant advice and quick action if a lawsuit appears to be around the corner at any point in time. Look for a lawyer or law firm with a good reputation in the corporate landscape and check their expertise and experience as well.

Legal BrandingLocal BrandingPersonal Branding

How Data Analysis Helps in Making Smart Marketing Decisions

Today, companies have a big quantity of data at their disposal. If utilized effectively and correctly, such data can be of top-notch help for making correct decisions and avoiding terrible mistakes in marketing and branding domains. Some approaches an enterprise can follow to use the information to gain a competitive edge in the market are listed below:

Investment of Funds

The success and failure of campaigns enable organizations to understand whether or not it is an effective investing budget in similar activities. For example, an event may do wonders if it’s attended by the right audience. When a product is promoted to uninterested people, the campaign will be a failure, irrespective of the exceptional attributes of the product. The information on the profile of site visitors and the corresponding conversions will throw light on whether the company should invest assets in similar campaigns and activities or not.

Product Launching Strategy

There are several methods of launching a new product in the marketplace. The company may prepare a massive event, get the endorsements done by celebrities, or conduct a press conference. By studying the information of previous campaigns, one might also decide the best way of communicating the benefits and advantages of the product to the target audiences and reporters.

Budgeting

The various tools for advertising include PR, social media, paid advertising, and many more. With the help of the information about the number of clicks, the number of shares, likes, & followers on social media websites, internet visitors, and subsequent conversions one may effectively find out the most feasible channel for accomplishing advertising and marketing activities, and accordingly set a budget for each of the channels. The company may additionally increase or decrease the finances based on the overall performance of the various mediums of advertising and marketing.

Deciding the spokesperson of the company

The spokesperson serves as the face and the voice of a business enterprise. While in maximum instances, the CEO speaks on behalf of the company at primary activities, Sometimes, other technical or product managers may also play the role of the company representative. The decision of selecting the proper spokesperson may additionally rely on the anticipated questions of the media outlets. If the data indicates that the media aims to cover the financial scenario of the organization, then the CEO would be the best person for the process.

Understanding of the Customer’s Needs

Data Analysis enables the organizations to gain insight into how much progression or regression their overall performance is showing. Data visualization is a great way to make sense of the data you acquire and analyze it. It additionally facilitates a higher understanding of the customer’s needs and requirements. Learning about customers’ necessities and behavior will open new doors for effective marketing. Companies can come up with innovations by keeping in mind their customers’ viewpoints. Data Analysis will help the company to gain insights properly and thus effectively lower the risk of business.

Companies that keep aside a huge amount of budget for advertising purposes must ensure that they take the effective and efficient strategies. In such instances, it becomes imperative for organizations to take the help of PR firms to decide the most feasible solution by analyzing data.

Digital BrandingLegal BrandingLocal BrandingPersonal Branding

The Only Way Ahead: E-Commerce Business

Many entrepreneurs have consistently emphasized the importance of E-Commerce tools to grow any kind of business in order to succeed in this cut-throat competition. The fascinating part of the whole plot is that the spread of the virus has led people to believe the fact that taking your business ahead digitally is not an option anymore. If you want to survive, you ought to have a digital presence alongside your traditional ways of running a business.

The pandemic situation has urged the requirement to the next level as people have no option but to buy everything online. This signifies the value of the E-Commerce business market that was not taken seriously before. The way that the stocks of E-Commerce retailers and businesses have had a huge increase in the last few months is the perfect evidence of its position in the business world. For example, LivePerson and Pitney Bowes are the companies that develop AI software that is used by companies to build their presence online on different digital platforms. These are one of the topmost companies when it comes to a rise in the stock prices during the pandemic. Evidence and data suggest that such companies have flourished on every level because people have totally shifted towards online platforms for their business to survive and thrive.

On a local level, public speakers, gym instructors, dieticians, etc., have started YouTube channels, social media pages on apps like Facebook and Instagram, and have persistently been trying to know what it takes to grow their presence using SEO (Search Engine Optimization). Alongside being safe, people need to earn to survive this harsh reality that is currently going on. There are so many sites that support all kinds of business ventures with easy accessibility online so that people do not feel alien to the digital side of their own business.

People are looking at the biggest stock gainers today with keen interest. Certain businesses are really growing in pandemic times. Many investors want to know what stocks are growing and what ones are staying behind.

The worst part of the current scenario in the world is that so many businesses have been closed down all over the world, impacting millions of people as they have nothing to do. A food vendor on a street who is not registered with an app that supports delivery to people who can order food online or some other technological gadget goes out of business because there are no people on the streets at this point in time. The amount of cash flow that is required to continue the business is not an easy thing to maintain as most of the business owners already know. There are other factors that restrict your business to grow if you don’t have a website or an app or a collaboration with some of the top-tier companies that help you grow your business:

  1. Mobility
  2. Pre-existing loans
  3. Production waste
  4. Shortage of capital

Just after a month or so into the lockdown, America witnessed a rapid growth in online grocery shopping as people needed groceries to cook at home. Sale and revenue numbers were huge as in just seven days, the industry observed a 79% rise in the total consumers buying online groceries. The downside of this was felt in the tourism industry as well as the rental car industry, not to forget the airline industry that has suffered the highest losses. The best industry to measure the difference in sales within that same industry is the food business. Sale of restaurants and fast-food chains that don’t have an online presence and delivery system or collabs with famous delivery companies have suffered heavy losses while at the same time, those who have met all the above-mentioned requirements have succeeded and made good profits even during such adverse times which again highlights the crucial role of E-Commerce if we consider situations like the current scenario.

The way experts see it and through conclusive evidence which made the truth even more visible to the larger audience during these tough times, it is feasible to understand that the E-Commerce business model is the only way to go ahead irrespective of what scenario we might face. Emphasis should be laid on this practice because that is how businesses will survive and prosper. Believing that only traditional practices will work is vague and illogical.

Legal BrandingLocal BrandingPersonal Branding

The Case for Hiring Outside Consultants

In the world of business management, few words draw as much debate and discussion as “consultant.” For some, hiring an outside consultant is a chance to take an honest look inward, one that serves to benefit the company. For others, consultants are a waste of time and money, providing businesses as much useful information as would a carnival flimflammer or snake oil salesman.

Like all trades and industries, consulting is not without its share of so-called experts whether its legal, financial, or anything in-between. However, a few bad apples shouldn’t spoil the bunch. The truth is there is value in seeking business consultants for a variety of reasons.

The following represent the most common ways companies benefit from hiring outside consultants:

Improve their image

Many companies find themselves in a situation where their brand or their image (or both) have strayed from their intention. Whether through their business practices or plain bad luck, companies in this situation often seek the services of a marketing or public relations consultant. This consultant typically works in tandem with an ad agency or PR firm to devise ways in which the client can successfully reconfigure their image, elevate their brand, and improve their reputation.

Save money

If asked, most managers will likely say the number one reason they’d get an outside consulting service is to find new ways to lower costs and save money. For instance, shipping consulting software gets designed to help volume shippers get better rates from carriers. In other industries, identifying redundancies and waste are the primary drivers of savings thanks to outside consultants.

Streamline service

The brothers who opened the first McDonald’s restaurant didn’t make their first fortune by selling franchise opportunities. That didn’t happen until Ray Kroc entered the picture. Before his arrival, the McDonalds brothers were earning a lucrative living by selling their streamlined system to other quick-service restauranteurs, including the men who went on start Burger King and Taco Bell. In this sense, they were acting as the world’s first fast-food consultants by showing other companies how to operate faster and more reliably. It goes to show what businesses can learn from outside consulting services.

Get insights

Doing business in a given trade doesn’t automatically entitle one to trade secrets. It’s possible to be operating for years without knowing the best ways to do certain things, while competitors do. Outside consultants can outline these insights and improve operations overnight on things you can’t and won’t ever know about from tax codes to trademarks. 

Gain an edge

The improvements, the insights, and the savings that come from hiring a consultant all add up to gaining an edge over the competition. At least, that’s the hope. As mentioned at the start, the key is finding a consultant or consulting service with the expertise and experience to provide the information needed for companies to do better. In doing so, businesses will have a gameplan going forward they can use to catch up to, or even surpass, their business rivals.

Business consultants get looked upon as saviors to some, charlatans to others. The vast majority fall somewhere in between. If a company finds consulting services in the range leaning towards the former, they’ll succeed in reaping the benefits of hiring a business consultant.