Countless marketers have discovered nothing as effective as outdoor marketing for promoting their businesses, driving traffic, and boosting conversions. One of the most highly-visible, affordable, and effective methods of outdoor advertising is flags. They are very good at grabbing the attention of potential customers, increasing footfalls, and also building brand awareness. However, for your advertising flags to work well, you need to design them correctly. Some of the most important advertising flag design principles, marketers will do well to keep in mind:

Stay True to Your Brand

You need to retain your brand identity when evolving the flag design. You must keep in mind the color palette used in your brand or business logo and build on it in the flag. It will ensure that people seeing your flag will instantly recognize the association with your brand. You should try to build design elements of your brand into the flag without going into complications. It can be as simple as sticking to the same design philosophy, typography, or graphic design.

Keep the Design Simple

Most custom flag designs are simple for one reason – they communicate better with their audiences. Adopt a simple color scheme, with a maximum of two or three colors, preferably inspired by your business logo, and keep the text short and crisp. Remember, people see the flags from a distance, and it can be difficult for them to read the content, especially when they’re fluttering in the wind. Most people tend to ignore flags crammed with text or a complicated design as it takes too long to understand what they are saying.

Optimize the Flag Size and Shape 

You will need to decide on the size and shape of the flag, keeping in mind the limitations of the space available. If you want the flags on the sidewalk outside your store or inside the store, you may want a vertical flag with a small footprint like a feather banner. However, you have plenty of space; there is nothing better than a rectangular banner. Your selection of the size and shape will also influence how much content you can have on the flag. According to Article Realm, teardrop flags have a small footprint, but the impact is large.

Prioritize the Content

At the end of the day, even the largest of flags have only so much space for you to get your advertising message across. Further, with people on the move and facing countless distractions, it can be difficult for them to read and understand your message in the few seconds they spare to look at your flags. It is, therefore, vital, that you focus on using visual content to get your point across, not text. If you must use text, limit it to just a few words to ensure faster comprehension.

Conclusion 

Even if they lack the glamour of TV, print, and digital advertising, flags more than make-up for their effectiveness and superior performance in enhancing brand awareness and driving footfalls. Retail businesses and event managers rely on flags to create a buzz around their brands in a highly affordable and impactful manner.

 

When you own a business, the safety and security of both your products and your employees are your responsibility. Knowing this, one of your main priorities and concerns should be ensuring that every employee you have feels safe and protected when they’re on the clock with you.

To help ensure that this is the case for your organization, here are three ways to ensure that your employees work in a safe environment.

Get Your Employees Involved

Within some businesses, the owner of the company may not actually be down working with the employees much. As a result, you may not know what the conditions really are like for them. So to help you have the full picture here, it’s wise to get your employees involved with ensuring the work environment is safe.

To do this, you may want to start some kind of committee where employees can meet to discuss any workplace safety issues that they might have. This way, any complaints will be heard and you’ll get more direction as to how these problems should be addressed. Additionally, getting your employees more involved in the safety of the workplace may also help them feel more responsibility for keeping the environment safe and secure, which can go a long way toward having an overall safe workplace.

Bring In Extra Help

While it can be helpful to get suggestions from your employees on what will help make them feel safe at work, sometimes, what you really need is a professional and outside opinion on safety.

When this is the case, bringing in someone like a fire marshal or a security consultant could be a great way to uncover where your real vulnerabilities lie and what you can do to fix them. And since these people will have a lot of experience working with businesses just like yours, they may also be able to come up with better solutions than you could have on your own.

Hold Regular Safety Trainings

Your employees really are your most valuable asset when it comes to keeping people safe on the job. With this in mind, you may want to start holding more regular safety training sessions so that each and every employee you have knows how to prioritize their safety and keep others safe in the process.

Whether you’re working with heavy machinery that could cause some real damage to people or simply want people to be more aware of what inconspicuous dangers could be lying in wait for them in your work environment, there are always things you can do and teach that can help people better protect themselves from injury or danger.

If you want to reduce your risk and keep your workers safe, consider using the tips mentioned above to cultivate a safer work environment at your place of business.

 

Starting up a new business from scratch can be very exciting, but it can also present many challenges. Of course, one of your huge challenges is being able to compete with rivals that are already established, and this is why effective marketing is so important. Fortunately, there are far more options these days when it comes to marketing your business than there were in years gone by.

One type of marketing that has become crucial for any start-up business is digital marketing. By finding a digital marketing company for small businesses, you can make a huge difference when it comes to raising the profile of your brand and increasing awareness of your goods and services. This then means that you can compete with far greater ease, and you can boost the chances of success. In this article, we will look at why start-ups need to ensure they use digital marketing.

Why it Is So Vital

So, why has digital marketing become so vital for start-ups these days? Well, there are lots of reasons behind this, some of which are:

Ideal for Limited Budgets

One of the reasons why digital marketing is so vital for start-up businesses is because it is ideal for limited budgets. The affordability of this type of marketing means that even start-ups that have very little money to spend on marketing can still effectively promote their business without needing a huge marketing budget. Many other methods of marketing can be out of the financial reach of start-ups such as TV, radio, and print media advertising. However, digital marketing is a solution that is affordable to all.

Levels the Playing Ground

When you have to compete against bigger, more established rivals within your industry, it can be very difficult to achieve success. However, effective marketing can help to overcome this issue. This could still be a problem in the past because start-ups could not afford the same marketing budget as their bigger rivals. However, digital marketing helps to level the playing ground and means that start-ups have a much better chance of being able to compete with other businesses that have bigger budgets. This makes digital marketing a crucial addition to the marketing strategy of any new business.

Simple Solutions

Another of the key reasons why digital marketing is so vital to start-up businesses is that it offers total simplicity and convenience. When you are in the throes of setting up a new business, you will have enough to deal with without having to invest huge amounts of time trying to market your venture. In addition, chances are your resources will be very limited. With digital marketing, you can promote your business without needing lots of time and resources to invest.

A Modern Solution for Start-Ups

Digital marketing offers a modern solution for start-up businesses that want to achieve success and compete effectively. This can be further enhanced by getting experts to help with all aspects of digital marketing to achieve the best results.

 

America is a country behind bars. There are more than 65,000 bars and lounges in the United States.

Each bar tries to make itself distinct. They may choose a unique selection of drinks or interesting decorations. But little decisions like choosing the right bar stool height can go a long way.

What are some bar stool height tips you can follow? What is the standard bar stool height? How do the stylistic qualities of bar stools impact their height?

Answer these questions and you can find the perfect bar stool height for your bar today. Here is your quick guide.

Counters and Tables

You should have a stool that is close in height to your counter. It should not be less than 10 inches shorter than your counter.

But it should not be within three inches of your counter. This will give enough room for your customer to sit on their stool and slide themselves into place.

Body Proportions

A stool should allow your customer to plant their feet on the ground. A stool that is too low will cause your customer to scrunch up. A stool that is too high may make it hard for the customer to get out of their seat.

It is okay for your stools to have footrests. But your customer should not have to jump down in order to reach the floor. The footrests should be within six inches of the ground.

Keep in mind the average height and weight of your customer. Try to find a few stools that will match their proportions. When in doubt, have shorter and taller stools at your disposal.

Styles

The style of your stool can impact its height. Modern stools tend to be shorter than traditional ones. They have smaller and shorter backs, making them ideal for shorter customers.

If you have a low counter, you can go with a backless stool. You can slide your stools underneath your table for easy storage. Yet they can be uncomfortable because they do not offer back support.

A way to offer support without compromising on height is to include arms on your stool. Your customers can rest their arms when they are not drinking. You can also add cushions to your stools, though this may make your stools too tall.

Visit different websites for bar stool height advice and options. You can look at https://www.northeastfactorydirect.com/browse/dining-room/bar-stools/48 and then examine a competitor.

Function

Most people will use your stools to sit on. They should be able to sit on them for long periods of time without having to adjust them.

But a person may use their stool to put their bag or coat in a convenient location. This means that your stools should not be too wide or have awkward shapes. It should not be too tall so your customers cannot reach across to them easily.

How to Find the Right Bar Stool Height

The perfect bar stool height comes down to a few factors. You should keep your stools within a few inches of your counters. You want to provide room to slide in and out without difficulty.

Stools should associate well with the proportions of your customers. You can select many styles of stools, yet ones with backs and cushions may be too tall. You should also bear in mind how your customers may need your stools for their belongings.

Bar stools are just one thing you need to think about for bars. Figure out the rest by following our coverage.

 

 

 

You’ve spent a lot of late nights and money bringing your business to where it is. And now, your hard work has paid off to the point where you’re steadily bringing in consistent profits. However, along with all the perks of this influx of money and improvement to your company finances, you’ve been thinking very seriously about your tax planning.

Do you need to hire a tax planning service? Does tax planning even matter to your company finances? Keep reading to find out why tax planning just might be the best decision you can make for your business.

1. It Can Improve Your Overall Financial Management

Whether you’re working for yourself or you’re building an enterprise, the reality of being in business is that your money isn’t your money until the IRS has been paid. And with businesses getting assessed $5 billion in civil penalties during 2020, it’s clear that the U.S. government does not play when it comes to tax revenues.

Tax planning can help you avoid paying more than necessary during tax season. And the benefits to your business finances include:

The ability to reinvest money that might have been otherwise held back for taxes

The ability to find tax-saving opportunities early in the year

A better understanding of what you may be owing at the end of each fiscal period

And if you find a tax planning company that offers additional help for business services, you may be able to save even more money while securing the support you need to reach the next level.

2. It Can Help You Make More Tax-Friendly Decisions

Tax planning is a classic example of operant conditioning in practice. Once you learn a little bit about how you can actively lower your taxable income, you’ll be looking for more opportunities to keep the savings coming.

So for instance, if donations are able to save you money, it might not be a bad thing to help the less fortunate while generating some good PR. And when you’re able to look at the next four quarters while asking yourself, “How will this affect my taxes?”, it becomes a heck of a lot easier to keep saving money as the year goes on.

3. It Can Help You Reach Your Financial Goals

Most entrepreneurs go into business with the intention of making as much money as possible. However, when you’ve got tax liabilities on the one hand and ongoing expenses on the other, it’s not always easy to figure out if your business model is actually working for you.

Could you save money by changing suppliers? Is your remote workforce causing your tax bill to skyrocket? When you’re reviewing your taxes regularly, this type of financial analysis becomes a lot more straightforward.

Protect Your Business With Professional Tax Planning

Tax planning is one of those tasks that seems like a lot of work upfront. But between the ease of financial forecasting and the improved month-to-month cash flow it can provide, hiring a tax planning service makes it easier for you to invest in your company’s future.

Are you looking for more content on business financing? Check out the rest of our site for more posts like this!

 

 

 

57% of businesses claim that effective supply chain management gives them a sustainable competitive advantage.

And these companies are right; to build a successful company must know how to handle the supply chain. So, your company must take proactive action on how to manage this function. You want to know what you can do to give your enterprise an edge.

Here are five common supply chain issues and how to resolve them.

1. Shortage Deductions

Shortage deductions are one of the biggest supply chain problems that companies face. These deductions lower your revenues and profits. So, if you fail to act quickly, these deductions may lead to the downfall of your business.

That’s why you need to be proactive and research the root of shortage deductions. Besides, find experts who’ll educate you on how to manage shortage deductions. You want to take action that helps you cut losses and increase the efficiency of your supply chain.

2. Poor Supplier Relationships

Many companies tend to neglect the need to build good relationships with suppliers. They see it as an unnecessary expense that should be avoided. Yet, these companies are mistaken as having terrible supplier relationships that hurt the supply chain.

They struggle with inventory management as they work with unreliable suppliers. So, your company should focus on developing great relationships with suppliers. These relationships will help you get timely deliveries and reduce the lead time.

3. Ignoring Risk Management

Many businesses tend to ignore the need for risk management and see it as an unnecessary cost. That’s why these companies aren’t prepared for handling delivery shortages and other challenges. Due to this, these businesses suffer losses when unexpected things happen.

That’s why your business should do things differently by investing in risk management. You want to highly all supply chain risks and take action to curb them.

4. Quality Control Challenges

Quality control is the other big issue that many supply chains struggle to handle. Companies don’t know how to monitor quality throughout the entire supply chain. That’s why most businesses have high levels of defective products.

To address this issue, consider hiring professional quality control experts. These professionals will guide you to develop effective quality control policies.

5. Accountability and Compliance Issues

When managing a supply chain, you must adhere to different regulatory requirements. Besides, you need to enhance accountability throughout the entire chain, which sometimes is a problem. So, find experts who’ll guide you on enhancing compliance and accountability in your supply chain.

Give Your Business an Edge by Overcoming Common Supply Chain Issues

To give your business a competitive advantage, you need to address the above supply chain issues. These are things that lead to inefficiencies and revenue losses. So, by resolving them, you streamline your supply chain and boost returns.

Enjoy more amazing practical Business management tips by checking out our other blog posts.

Do you have a business or brand that you’re trying to help achieve success? If so, you’ll need to take advantage of all the tools you have at your disposal.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, half of all businesses fail within five years. After ten years, two out of three companies fail. To say that the odds are stacked against you is an understatement.

Many people have heard about search engine optimization but don’t know much about it. The truth is, however, that the benefits of SEO can help your business thrive. It may even be the secret ingredient to your company’s success.

Read on to learn more.

1. SEO Uses Inbound Marketing

One of the problems with traditional marketing tactics is that they rely on outbound marketing. This is when everyone sees your ads, including people who may not be interested in your product.

However, SEO relies on inbound marketing, which is when people exploring your industry, products, or service stumble across your content. Because they know what they’re looking for, SEO will help increase your chances of getting your target audience to your site.

2. No Ad Costs

Unlike different ad programs, SEO is free. You don’t have to worry about spending thousands of dollars to drive traffic to your site—all you need to do is focus on choosing keywords and improving your rankings.

That said, working with an SEO expert can be a worthwhile investment. If you’re in New York, we recommend working with this company: https://www.thehoth.com/locations/new-york-seo-company/.

3. It Lets You Become a Knowledgeable Voice

When people have a question, they often turn to Google to get their answers. You want your site to be one of the first that comes up. SEO helps allow that to happen.

Over time, people (including other individuals and companies in your industry) will begin to see your brand as a knowledgable voice. They’ll know that you have the authority and experience to answer questions and help people out.

4. Squeeze Out the Competition

Of course, as SEO allows you to climb to the tops of search engines, it also allows you to outpace the competition. In a world where so many businesses, startups, and brands fail, having that extra push is invaluable.

By creating valuable, worthwhile content and ranking for the right keywords, you can ensure that your company sticks around well into the future.

Take Advantage of All the Benefits of SEO

When you have a small business, you need to do everything in your power to get it up and running. One of the best ways to do that is with SEO.

As this guide explains, there are many great benefits of SEO. Consider working with an SEO expert today to enjoy all that search engine optimization has to offer!

Are you looking to learn more about the importance of SEO? If you are, make sure to check out the rest of our site for more great content.

 

The United States of America is known as the “Land of Opportunities” because of its abundant opportunities in terms of employment. Based on statistics, most people have to work in the U.S. to enter and eventually settle. To do such, an aspiring immigrant must first look for an appropriate job, a company willing to sponsor you, and apply for the appropriate type of visa (usually the H1B visa application).

Searching for that opportunity is like winning the lottery due to possible competitors around the globe. It typically takes years to be part of the workforce of the United States. However, a different story is given if you are an academician, allied health professionals, or any professions that are currently in high demand in the U.S.

Your chances also depend on your country of origin. It helps if your home country has signed a free trade agreement with the United States.

However, in the overwhelming changes in the employment and economic status in the country, everybody has an opportunity to fulfill that “American Dream.” With the right guidance of an immigration lawyer and a dose of perseverance, you can successfully get into the country. Let us try to review the best jobs to immigrate to the United States today.

Academics

Ranked as the most in-demand job these days in America, the overall employment of postsecondary teachers is expected to rise from 2019 to 2029 by 9 percent. It’s recorded to be the fastest among all occupations. The median annual wage for postsecondary teachers was $80,790.00 as of May 2020.

Allied Medicine

With the same trend as teachers, allied medical professions such as nurses and physical therapists also present as in-demand professions in the United States today.

According to the American Nurse Association, more registered nurse jobs will be available than any other profession by 2022 at more than 100,000 per year. The median annual wage for registered nurses was $75,330.00 as of May 2020.

According to the Bureau of Labor, physical therapy is one of the fastest-growing in healthcare in the U.S., which is expected to grow 36 percent (for registered physical therapists) and 41 percent (for physical therapy assistants and aides) through 2022 Statistics. Physical therapists earned an average of $91,010.00 annually in 2020.

Arts and Sports

Another vital profession in the U.S. that is in the rise of demand today is artists and athletes. However, having a renowned name in the field requires fulfilling a list of criteria that will certify your talents or skills in your field. The median annual wages for fine artists and athletes were $49,120.00 and $50,850.00 as of May 2020, respectively.

To achieve your dream to be part of American society, it is ideal to plan ahead by choosing the most ideal profession that is trendy and fits your passion and capabilities. Seek a knowledgeable immigration lawyer to plot your aspirations accordingly.

For more information, you may ask or consult with Houston immigration lawyers.

 

Josh Melick was the Co-Founder and CEO of Broadly.com, a local small company mobile CRM and messaging platform. Josh grew Broadly from zero to over 10,000 paying SMBs while raising approximately $30 million in venture finance. Before joining Broadly, Josh had product leadership positions at three different firms.

Josh spoke to us about his experience as a startup founder and entrepreneur and how he came up with the ideas for his businesses.

How did you come up with the idea for Broadly? What motivated you to get started?

Basically, it was a combination of two things. First, I had been in the marketing tech business for a long time and saw all these problems around local advertising and how local businesses market to their customers. But, at the same time, I noticed that all these SMB marketing products were complicated to use.

So, the combination of that left me thinking there’s a massive opportunity for a product in the space that brings technology to market in a way where it’s actually usable by small businesses but also has enterprise features…

I didn’t have any technical background; I just had a lot of experience in the marketing business. So that made me think that there was an opportunity to build something that could really change how small businesses market themselves at scale using technology.

Josh, what are some common mistakes you see entrepreneurs make when trying to find their idea?

Well, this is probably not a surprise to anybody in the room, but it’s going back to what you already know. I think that entrepreneurs are looking for an idea that is so new and so different than anything else out there, when actually they would be better served by evaluating their own experiences and thinking about what needs they see in the world every day…

I think all the data supports that you’re better off thinking about things from a vantage point of what I know and who I know, rather than trying to find something utterly foreign to me.

How did you validate your idea? Did you always have a great team in place? How did you grow it?

Well, we didn’t have a great team in place when we started. In the early days, especially in the tech business, you can get by with just having technology. But when sales are involved, it’s really how many customers you have and if your product works for them.

I don’t think anybody gets to scale without a great sales organization. Having said that, the first couple of salespeople we had were friends of mine, and they’re still our top performers. It comes down to finding somebody who believes in the vision and has a passion for it, and just being good.

How do you think about pricing? And also, tie that into how you got your first customers.

As far as how we did pricing, I think that it’s really about the value and reselling to your customers at the end of the day. So we thought about our pricing regarding what people were willing to pay for this product and what value looked like to them. In our case – it was a CRM, so it was helping drive sales.

We didn’t do a lot of discounting early on because we believed in our product and thought that offering discounts diluted the value proposition… So I guess you never want to start with discounts, and I think if you do, your unit economics aren’t going to work.

Employee theft is something that most small business owners and employers would probably not want to think about, but maybe should. What would you do if a trusted team member stole from your business? What would be the right course of action to take? Considering how substantial the losses from employee theft can be for small and midsize companies—a median loss of nearly $290,000 in 2016—you may want to take immediate action if you think an employee is stealing from your organization. However, missteps and hasty actions in response to theft accusations can be disruptive to your workplace and potentially lead to lawsuits, aggravating an already challenging situation. If you suspect an employee of theft, take a deep breath, compile evidence that can back up your claims, and follow the tips listed below.

Look for telltale signs and evidence of employee theft.

Detecting and proving workplace theft can be difficult, but being aware of common signs of these acts can help you determine if there’s merit to your suspicions. Missing inventory, disappearing equipment, payroll and expense inconsistencies, depleted cash, undue travel expenses, and a mysterious drop in your profits could indicate theft. Suspicious employee behaviors may include working late and putting in extra hours but never taking time off from work. While you may think employees who are always in are ideal compared to someone who always calls out, these individuals could be perpetrators of employee theft.

If you’ve equipped your workplace with surveillance cameras or other security systems, you could have security personnel review any recordings and surveillance videos. Security cameras have features that make them capable of seeing what guards and staff may be unable to see. For instance, a high-tech dome camera has a vari-focal camera lens that monitors at wide angles, allowing the camera to record your premises at various angles and considerable distances. This security camera has a night vision feature that makes it practical for indoor and outdoor use. Ultimately, this vandal-resistant security camera can produce high-resolution video, providing you with evidence of unusual events if they happen.

Assess and investigate the situation in the workplace.

Jumping to conclusions about who may be responsible for employee theft and making false accusations could be grounds for a defamation suit. If you firmly believe an employee stole from your organization, a thorough investigation in which you gather evidence for proving your case can be necessary. In such situations, it’s crucial to consult an attorney for legal guidance.

Establish any necessary consequences and implement prevention measures.

Suppose your suspicions are correct and you identify the wrongdoer. In that case, it’s up to you to determine a fitting punishment and present it and the evidence to the employee in a confidential meeting. For instance, termination may be the only option for employees who committed theft or other fraudulent acts with high dollar values. In contrast, written warnings, probations, or restitution may suffice for more minor incidents. Whether you choose to also report the situation to law enforcement and press charges against your employee, it’s crucial to follow fair employee dismissal policies if you decide on termination.

The ordeal of suspecting an employee of theft may prompt you to take measures of preventing workplace theft and misconduct more seriously. You can avoid employee theft by creating procedures and policies related to fraud, training employees on these policies, and using more caution in the recruiting process. When recruiting, require and validate references for applicants and ask them to complete background checks. In some cases, traditional methods of background reports may not produce complete information. A reputable online people search tool can help you uncover accurate, unbiased information about people that typical background checkers may not report. Online people searches can benefit you professionally and personally, providing you with a person’s first name, last name, and contact information such as email addresses and cell phone numbers. A people search with the right online resource can take it a step further, giving you information regarding an individual’s public records, court records, criminal records, criminal history, and more.

Ultimately, implementing an informed yet fair vetting process can help you avoid making a poor hiring decision that could contribute to employee theft.