Our friends at the Shiawassee Community Foundation asked us to put together for them a minute long Public Service Announcement sharing how 17 different non-profits in Shiawassee county are banding together to raise up the giving for Giving Tuesday.
For more on the Shiawassee Community Foundation: https://www.shiacf.org/
For more on #RaiseUpShiawassee: https://www.shiacf.org/announcements/our-givingtuesday-project/
In today’s increasingly competitive business world, establishing and maintaining a good relationship with business partners and clients are the key to success. But while the internet and mobile technology have definitely made it easier for companies to find potential business partners and stay engaged with their affiliates, nothing beats the old style of networking face-to-face.
That is why despite the presence of social networking platforms such as LinkedIn and accessibility of video calling and chat apps, many companies these days still prefer sending a representative to conduct their corporate affairs. In fact, a recent survey states that the business travel spend growth is set to rise above 6% in 2018, indicating that there is an increase in organizations that think traveling for business is still an investment-worthy endeavor nowadays.
But while traveling for business is not all new, many novices and even seasoned travelers still fall for some costly mistakes which not only compromise the overall result of their trip but their own safety and well-being as well.
If you are about to embark on a business trip soon, then you need to know the common pitfalls you need to avoid to ensure the overall success of your journey. To learn these mistakes, here are the key takeaways of the infographic from Hyryde.
To learn more about the top five business travel mistakes and ways to avoid them, check out the infographic below.
Reza Choudhury runs an international chauffeur company that helps facilities managers, travel managers, event managers, executives assistants, c-level executives and office managers, arrive at their destination on-time and stress-free. He does this by providing an app & online platform that allows users to schedule multiple bookings while watching chauffeur’s arrive in real-time. His passion is spending time with his family and playing table tennis. Visit HYRYDE to know him more.
Running a business is no easy feat. From managing manpower, maintaining a budget, dealing with deadlines, and everything else that comes with running a business, things can easily become overwhelming. That’s why it’s important for businesses to take advantage of any tool that will streamline their business processes and increase opportunities.
The Top Tools for Today’s Businesses
The business world of today is all about tech. If your business isn’t making use of the top software and apps, you’re losing time and money. Take a look at the following 10 tools that your business should start using right away.
1. Google Analytics
With Google Analytics, business can determine where their traffic is coming from, the demographics of your audience, as well as other important metrics you need to calculate. Use this tool to see statistics on your key numbers, traffic drivers, and other analytic broken down by day, week, month, and year.
2. Dynamic Inventory
Businesses that find themselves wasting time trying to keep track of their inventory are in need of an inventory management system. Dynamic Inventory is an inventory software that allows businesses to flexibly and simply manage their inventory.With this software, companies have an affordable solution for managing products, purchases, sales, inventory, and vendors.
3. Odesk
Now more than ever, businesses are turning to freelancers to meet their business needs. With Odesk and hire a freelancer for a project or you can hire someone on for a long time role working as a contractor. Odesk has professional freelancers that have experience in every industry. With Odesk, businesses have the ease of outsourcing their business needs from the comfort of their own office. Similarly, Odesk makes it simple to pay freelancers, eliminating the hassle of regular payroll or any bank paperwork.
4. OmniFocus
Many startups and small businesses face the challenging aspect of organizing their business so it runs smoothly. OmniFocus is designed to help businesses create a better work/life balance. OmniFocus collects your data like to do lists, notes, and any impending projects. The software then starts to organize the best information, helping you reach your goals in a more timely and focused fashion. With OmniFocus, date will be saved on their cloud server, allowing you to access it at any point in time from any location.
5. MailChimp
MailChimp is an integral tool for businesses to spread the word about updates, new product launches, or to reach out to customers for their thoughts. With MailChimp, businesses can create email newsletters that will then be distributed to their current list of contacts. With it’s easy to use interface, businesses can create simple yet aesthetically pleasing E-blasts. These E-blasts play a significant role in sending large amounts of traffic to business’ sites, social media, and brick-and-mortar storefronts.
6. Square
The small credit card reader that is Square attaches to any tablet or smartphone and is great for handling transactions on the go. Small businesses and entrepreneurs that are based online benefit the most from Square. Instead of missing out on business due to a lack of a credit card machine, Square allows tech-savvy businesses the ability to cash in.
7. HootSuite
Businesses that are looking to improve their presence on social media are turning to HootSuite to stay on track. Instead of juggling these platforms and content creation by themselves, businesses use HootSuite to streamline every social media platform they use. With Hootsuite, business owners can schedule all of
their posts between every platform, allowing them to effectively plan their social media campaign within one app.
8. Unitrends
Disasters happen, especially in this digital age. Instead of falling prey to a ransomware attack, deleted files or the havoc a natural disaster may cause, businesses should turn to ensure their business and data are safe. Unitrends offers sophisticated data recovery software and business continuity solutions that allow companies to put together an effective disaster recovery plan.
9. LastPass
LastPass is this generation’s solution to the problem of confidentially storing and sharing passwords. With all of the security breaches and information hacks, businesses must make confidentiality a priority. That’s where LastPass comes in. With LastPass, businesses can enjoy a seamless Internet experience by syncing all of their passwords to their LastPass password. Once logged into LastPass, you’ll have access to your emails, servers, websites, and more.
10. WordPress
While many people may debate the popularity of blogging in today’s world, businesses looking to drive traffic to their sites know how important blogging is. With WordPress, businesses can easily tie their blog to their website or make their blog their main site. Offering millions of templates, personalized plugins, and visual flexibility, WordPress is a leader in the blogging world for a reason.
Frequent blogging is a huge benefit to businesses. With well-written articles, businesses can establish themselves as an authority in their industry. Moreover, with blog posts designed for SEO, businesses can drive users using search engines to their websites.
Whether you have a small business or a successful company, it pays to use some of the best business tools on the market today. Be sure to try a few of these suggestions if you’re looking for ways to reach more people, boost your productivity or build a better business overall.
Susan Ranford is an expert on career coaching, business advice, and workplace rights. She has written for New York Jobs, IAmWire, and ZipJob. In her blogging and writing, she seeks to shed light on issues related to employment, business, and finance to help others understand different industries and find the right job fit for them – Strategics360.com
The Michigan Coalition Against Homelessness has developed a Speakers Bureau to train those who have gone through homelessness to share their story in public.
This was an impromptu project that MICAH knew that video would help tell about this important brand new program. They didn’t have a budget set aside, so we worked with them on the cost to keep it within their reach.
For more on the Speaker’s Bureau: http://mihomelessvoice.org/
ICYMI- There were several new videos launched in October: We have videos from the Arts Council of Greater Lansing, Elder Law of Michigan, The Dolinski Group and Check in Michigan
All talking about anything from grants to new homes to internships. Check it out search out those videos on our UnoDeuce YouTube channel: http://bit.ly/2jklgle
In this segment, CJ Talks about how Living Water Ministries talks the talk and walks the walk as well as gives leadership over to the staff.
This is the draw for working in his organization.
To watch the whole conversation: https://wp.me/p8q8pr-1Dh
For more on Living Water Ministries: www.elcalivingwater.com
In part 3 of a 5 part series on local control of short term rentals, Mike, a Bed and Breakfast owner in Jonesville, MI, talks about how the current law doesn’t really help the local community.
For more on this subject: www.airbnbwatch.org/michigan
For more on Check In Michigan: https://www.checkinmichigan.org/
In this segment, Paul and CJ talk comic books and CJ explain why his favorite character is Logan, better known as the Wolverine.
For the whole conversation: https://wp.me/p8q8pr-1Dh
Recognizing small wins is one of the key drivers to motivate employees at the office. According to the Globoforce, 78% of employees say how they would work harder if they were better recognized. However, finding ways to reward and retain employees is one of the most difficult tasks nowadays.
Millennials have become one of the largest generations in the global workforce and most of them expect numerous recognition programs and built-our rewards from their employers. Besides financial compensation, they also want frequent praises, volunteer opportunities, and recognition at the office. Here are a couple of tips on how to reward your employees and boost their productivity levels at work.
Regular feedback is one of the most important motivation tools and it also increases productivity at the office. The best approach is to sit down with your employees once a week to discuss their productivity and provide feedback. Of course, it is always better to focus on the positive things, since recognizing your employee’s achievements boosts their morale.
It is important for companies and big businesses to reward things that actually matter to the overall objective of the business. For example, instead of focusing only on big wins, organizations and companies should also reward their employees for smaller achievements. To prevent your team from feeling unsatisfied at work, make sure that these celebrations are frequent and consistent.
3 Becoming a Team PlayerEmployees who perform well as team players should get recognized and rewarded on a regular basis. Celebrating their achievements can benefit the profitability of your company. Recognizing the wins of team players also preserves a healthy work culture and encourages other workers to become good team players.
The truth is that many employees work from 9 to 5 from Monday to Friday and a break from that daily routine might do them good. Traveling for business purposes or going on a 3-day team building event is the best way to combine leisure activities and work. You can take your employees on a business conference to another city or send them on a scavenger hunt game. This experience will make them feel more appreciated, which is always good for business.
Everyone knows that unhappy workers are usually less productive. To keep your employees satisfied, it is important to create social opportunities and increase happiness in your company. Although competitive pay and benefits are important, employees also need to have good working conditions, career progression, and flexible working.
I’ve already mentioned that the work environment is dominated by young employees nowadays and most of them expect to be rewarded in different ways for their work. There are many jobs available on the market and young employees are always looking for office jobs that come with different perks and reward programs. Perks like tickets to business conferences, free training courses, and events that build connection among workers are known to boost productivity and expand knowledge.
Ordering snacks to the office after small wins may be a good idea. By doing this, you will show your employees that you appreciate their effort to complete the assignments and finish the project on time.
To sum it all up, rewarding and recognizing your employees comes with many benefits and advantages. Celebrating small wins also increases productivity and creates a healthy work environment at the office.
Rachel is a mother of 2 beautiful boys. She loves to hike and write about travelling, education and business. She is a Senior Content Manager at Populationof an online resource with information about demographic statistics of world population.
Earlier this summer, we journeyed to meet Pete and Ellyn as they talked about buying their first home with the help of Alex Craig of the Dolinski Group. They were moving back from out of state and were very pleased with the welcoming help that Craig had given them when coming to a new community. Plus, their children are just ecstatic that Alex was born to sell them this house.
For more on The Dolinski Group: http://www.dolinskigroup.com