8 reasons why Liverpool might be the best location for your business

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As the capital of the United Kingdom, London is a busy place. It’s overcrowded with all the big corporations and the other companies competing with each other. If you are considering opening up a new business, London may be the first place you consider but it may not be the best place you could choose. Many new and expanding businesses are now moving to the northern cities, and Liverpool especially is positioning itself as the new place to be. Liverpool and Merseyside offer many benefits including:

Cost

The cost of renting an office building, industrial units or retail shops in Liverpool is cheaper compared to London. In general, the cost of living is much more affordable in the north of England. The housing, food, and transport are also cheaper than in London and many other cities. By choosing Liverpool as the location for your business, you will be able to keep your business costs down allowing you to maximise your profits.

Location and transport links

Liverpool is a fantastic location for doing national and international business.

From the Central Station, you can go anywhere in the UK. It only takes two hours to get to Euston and 30 minutes to get to Manchester. It is very easy to get around Liverpool. There are very good transport networks in this city. You can get around the city using the train, bus routes and even the ferries. The Merseyrail runs very often throughout the day making everyday commuting very easy.

Liverpool is also a great location for distributing goods worldwide as it has excellent access to major motorways going north and south, as well as seaports and the Liverpool John Lennon airport.

Skilled employees

Liverpool University and Liverpool John Moores University are renowned for their achievements, especially relating to Biosciences and Engineering. Liverpool Hope and Liverpool St Johns are also great universities and you can find outstanding talent graduating from these universities. Each year, they attract many international students. As the living cost of living in Liverpool is low and many businesses are now shifting their operations here, the graduates tend to stay here and seek employment, so you have a good opportunity to hire skilled employees for your business. About two million people live within one hour distance of Liverpool so you can find a wide range of talent for your business. (more…)

7 Tips to Hire Floor Sander in London

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Your floorboards get old and lose its smoothness over time. When you stand on the floor, you may not feel that comfortable as you used to feel years back. When you feel that something needs to be changed on your hardwood floor, you should sand your floor. Sanding makes your floor smooth and brings back the sparkle it has lost over the years. Many people tend to take up a DIY project for floor sanding. However, it is always better to hire the experts. You will find many ‘floor sander hire’ signs on the streets in your area, but you should choose the right people for the job so that your money is not wasted. Here are some tips to hire floor sander in London.

Do a thorough research

The Internet is a good source for finding a floor sander provider. You can search for an expert in your area. You can also look up the yellow pages to find such businesses in your area. Come up with a number of companies and then shortlist them.

Get recommendations

You should get recommendations from your friends, family members and colleagues. They can suggest you some good floor sanders. They might have hired one for doing their own work and if their work was satisfactory, you might hire that floor sander as well.

Read reviews

You will find many reviews online regarding floor sanders. Read those and choose one that has a very positive review and received a very good rating.

Years of experience

You should hire someone who has years of experience in the field. Floor sanding is a tough job; it requires special skill and experience to sand floors of various kinds. So, you should hire someone experienced.

Previous works

You should look at the previous works the floor sander has done. If they have done a work recently near your home then it’s worth visiting the place and see how good their work was.

Price

You should compare the prices different floor sanders are offering. It is not wise to choose the provider who is offering the cheapest price straight away. You should look at the experience and previous works of the floor sander in making the decision. You must remember that quality is more important than price.

Equipment

Different equipment is needed to perform the job. You should ensure that the floor sander has modern equipment to do the job. A good equipment can perform the job faster and the end result will also be good.

By hiring a good floor sander, you will be able to enjoy beautiful polished floor for many years. A good floor sander can give you good value for your money. You should invest your time in finding an expert floor sander so that you don’t have to worry about your floorboard for a very long time.

6 ways to grow your business with video marketing

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Video marketing is now the coolest tool available to grow your business. You will be surprised to know that every day about 8 billion viewers open videos on Facebook. Including videos on your website or advertising material can boost your number of viewers and eventually sales.

In case of your business though, you cannot use raw videos like people upload on their social networking pages. The videos must be professional and compelling. Many companies provide video production services. You can hire one of them for your web video production. Video marketing is now essential for your business to move forward and grow for the following reasons.

Helps in explaining features of products or how they work

Our brain can process visual contents much faster than texts. So, including a video that explains the features of your products or services will be much compelling. If you want to explain how your product works or how it can be useful then creating interesting videos is the best way to go about it. There is higher chance that a person will buy your product after seeing the video.

Helps in brand recognition

The competition in the market for a particular product or service is huge now. You should come up with something different so that the audience remembers your brand. An interesting and compelling video can improve your brand image. It can create a lasting image on your prospective consumers’ mind.

Helps in explaining your company vision and goals

Sometimes, words won’t be able to explain clearly where your company is heading. A good video can explain your company mission, vision, and goals. This will help in raising funds for your business to grow. The investors can have a clear idea about your business strategies and future goals.

Helps in decision making

When the consumers are searching for products they try to find good value. You can create a video showcasing the values that your product or service will provide. You can show the consumers what they will experience with the product and they can visualize the benefits. So, videos can actually help them in decision making.

Gets your site higher on the search engine ranking

According to a study, you have 50% more chance of getting into the first page of the search engine if you include video in your website. Visitors will be more willing to watch videos than reading contents. So, videos will increase the number of visitors to your site.

Increase customer participation in an upcoming event

If you have a new product to launch or an exciting contest for the customers, then you can attract customers with a nice video about the event. An appealing video invitation will motivate customers to take part in the event. When you are offering discounts or special promotions, videos can help to increase the number of participants in such events.

If you don’t have videos as part of your marketing strategy yet, then you will remain behind your competitors. It is the next big thing in the marketing field that will help to grow businesses in the coming years.

Turning ideas into profit

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The AMA defines the term marketing as “the process for developing, communicating, delivering and trading offers that have value for clients, their partners and the general public.” This, in fact, holds very true: it is the biggest outsourcing of branding a product, service or business. Unfortunately, this strategy can be a gamble for many smaller businesses. It’s impossible to be successful without a stellar SEO marketing plan to win the hearts of future clientele. If a business can target a customer, interest the customer and sell to the customer, then that specific strategy has worked. Still, their work is not over; a business (or individual) also has to find a way to keep that client. If you are a new entrant to the market, small business marketing advice is usually given by company registration agents. They can also refer several business resources for your startup company. For employees, you can post job listings in specialised directories.

To develop a marketing strategy that will help poor product/service sales and help boost business, one must let consumers know all the exceptional things their company has to offer and how it can drastically make the client’s life easier. After all, that is the purpose of a service or product- aiding others so that they can save time and money. Persuading consumers to take a close look at what is offered and how is what takes the win. From there, it is easier to draw them in. A simple way to show the products businesses have on offer is through commercial photography. Sometimes just a high-quality image can sell the product, as it is visually appealing. The consumers want to know exactly what they are buying, and a crisp photograph will do that easily.

Having to fight off other competition and stay ahead is normal for successful businesses. Sometimes a rivalry can generate more business towards a company, surprisingly. This is not recommended; however, because all companies should maintain a professional approach. To fight off competition thrown by others involves the strategy of an individual within the company. One way you can create interaction between your business and consumers, and stay ahead of the competition is by using a virtual tour company. If you own a property or venue, whether it’s a sporting facility, wedding venue or a shop, professional photographers can create a 360 virtual tour of your business where potential clients can see exactly what your company offers. Interaction with customers is essential. When they are indecisive and want to postpone meetings, sales calls or purchase, it is the job of the business owner to persuade them and let them know why they may better than the adversary. Learning how to close sales is of superior importance for business survival.

Hiring a SEM company means good business, in most cases. These are the people that are going to personally brand the product or service, make sure the business website is ranked at the highest level on a SERP (search engine result page) and attract customers for the client. These companies also work to help turn around a strategy, if the current one happens to be feeble. SEM companies create new, exciting content for websites that will take them further than expected.

How to Start Your Own Catering Business

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Are you planning on starting a food business? Before you start ordering your wholesale catering supplies and costing your menu, here are some important things you need to consider first.

Register Your Premises

When starting your own restaurant, the first step should be registering your premises with the environmental health services. Your local authority will be able to instruct you on how to do this. If your premises requires any building work, you should also notify the environmental health services and local authority. Consider whether you need to register as self-employed and for VAT. These processes will require a different form to registering your premises. It is important that you have the licenses needed for your business and abide by premise regulations.

Food Safety Management

It is crucial that you have food safety management procedures for your business, this involves deciding how the food is produced to ensure that it is safe for your customers to eat. The Food Standards Agency have information available to help you put these systems together. The staff you hire are responsible for maintaining your food safety management procedures, so it is important that you train members of staff who handle food in your business. Choosing a good supplier is also essential for your business as these a responsible for the handling, safety and quality of your food supply. Keep all documentation of suppliers, for example, their contact details, product information and receipts. This is key for your business especially if there is a product recall. (more…)

Are You Marketing Your Business Properly?

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All businesses need some form of marketing to survive and continue growing. You might think that you already carry out successful marketing on all the most relevant channels. But how do you really know you’re not missing out on opportunities?

It’s worth considering the options available and making sure you are using every idea you can get to spread the word about your business. Some channels may be more appropriate than others, but you’ll need to consider all avenues before committing to a marketing plan.

In 2017, these are the most relevant channels for most businesses. Are you using all of them yet?

1) Basic online presence

Firstly, there are almost no businesses that shouldn’t have an online presence. The vast majority of local and national businesses do have their own websites now, but if you don’t, it really is about time you caught up. A website that represents your company doesn’t have to be complex or expensive, but it does have to be professional and relevant to your audience.

2) Social media marketing

Businesses now use social media marketing to spread the word about their brands, although this was never the intention of the channels’ creators. Places like Twitter and Facebook are a hive of activity, and customers assume they will be able to reach you via these platforms, regardless of your niche. In order to stay in touch with your potential customers and control your public image online, setting up social profiles for your brand and updating these regularly really is essential.

3) Search engine optimisation

Optimising the content of your website so that people can easily find you through organic search engines has been a vital strategy for almost two decades now. If you’re still failing to do this, despite the huge popularity of search engines like Google, you can expect a lot of your marketing efforts to be less cost-effective. The technical process behind getting higher positions on search results can be difficult, so we would recommend consulting the professionals or hiring in-house experts.

4) Video content

Video is huge online, but it can also be fantastic for larger businesses who are able to advertise on television or through other channels. Creating exciting visual advertisements in video form is key, so you need to think about ways you can deliver unique messages that your customers will find value in.

5) Offline marketing

Who says print media is dead? Depending on your niche, you might find that local printed publications are a great way to get the word out about your business to the people who matter. Alternatively you might generate local interest by paying for billboards or posters in relevant areas. These ideas are particularly great for raising awareness of exciting local businesses quickly.

Maximising Space In A Small Office

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Physical space is almost always a limiting factor for businesses. Even if you conduct most of your business online and you don’t need space for manufacturing products and so on, almost all companies at least need enough space to work comfortably and flexibility for meetings with staff and clients.

With this in mind, there are many things you can do to get the most value out of a small space. Consider a few of the following options.

Use folding tables and chairs

Space-saving furnishings that can be folded flat when not in use are a fantastic solution for many offices. Replace a bulky traditional desk or meeting table with a convenient folding table that you can move around or pack up easily. You can use folding chairs for the same reason if you occasionally need to accommodate more attendees than usual.

Go paperless

Storing paper records and files takes up an alarming amount of space after just a short time, and usually fills up heavy filing cabinets that get in the way and can’t be moved around easily. By switching to digital for as many systems as possible, you’re saving space as well as the environment. (more…)

Does Your Business Require Calibrated Equipment?

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Calibration is a service that many businesses may never have considered until they get further down the line. It’s not typically a number one priority for start-ups to consider. However, in relevant industries, it’s absolutely essential to provide products and services which are up to the required standard and fit for their intended purpose.

Getting help with this topic is a common requirement for businesses, as it can be highly technical and require expertise in a specific field to get it right. The United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) provides information for companies regarding this matter. UKAS calibration services can be offered by British companies if they work to a high enough standard. Mechanical and electrical calibration in Ireland may differ in terms of the accreditations and regulations required, and this is also the case for other countries in Europe and beyond.

In general, however, it is important to understand the basic concepts of calibration as far as they are relevant to your niche. You need to be confident that whatever goods or services you provide to your clients, you are basing your methods on measurements that are as accurate as physically possible. Properly calibrating equipment is essential for taking these measurements to a reliable degree.

The benefits of taking steps to ensure this happens can include the following:

  • Competitive advantage over rivals who are not recognised as completing their work to such a high standard
  • Reduced chance of either your own equipment or your end products failing, which can be extremely costly on many levels
  • Make informed and rational decisions based on accurate data, giving you greater control over risk management within your business
  • The backing of internationally recognised organisations who support the certifications and accreditations your business is awarded
  • Protection in the event of any possible legal action that could bring your level of responsibility into question

Evidently, there are many benefits to ensuring that any necessary accreditations and certifications are achieved by your business. Calibration is a vital aspect of this, so we would strongly advise all businesses to conduct thorough research and find out if they could be doing any more in this area.

Why Metal Fencing is a Great Low Cost Security Option

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These days, businesses looking to bolster security tend to turn instinctively to technology. Which can of course do a great job in enhancing security, but quite often there’s a much simpler, perhaps even more effective option right there in front of you.

Quite simply, very little comes close to quality metal gates and fencing in terms of both physical protection and as an effective deterrent. Even when compared to the most advanced technology out there, the benefits of metal fencing are extensive and undeniable.

Durability

For example, the durability of metal fencing goes over and above any other fencing made using alternative materials. It is incredibly resistant, goes the distance long-term and can be relied upon to retain its strength.

Affordability

These days, outstanding-quality metal fencing can be extremely affordable – particularly when considering long-term value for money.

Scalability

Metal fencing makes a great long-term security solution as it is modular in nature. Or on other words, the layout of the fencing system can be changed or added to at any time, in order to suit the needs of the business. (more…)

Maintaining Electrical Safety In The Workplace

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When it comes to the workplace, taking chances with health and safety simply isn’t an option. Rather than waiting for disaster to strike before calling out an electrician, it’s vital to instead take a proactive approach.

Having an electrical safety plan in place at work is of critical importance, both for documenting the company’s approach to electrical safety and for looking after the best interests of the workforce. Without a safety plan, you leave yourself wide open to any number of negative scenarios.

Many electricians offer an electrical maintenance plan, these plans often cover a variety of services such as PAT testing and the installation of fire safety equipment, security systems and heating & ventilation.

Portable Electrical Equipment

HooverPortable electrical equipment refers to any electrical item that can be moved around the workplace. Examples include all IT equipment, Hoovers, kettles, fans and so on. It is a requirement that all such equipment be kept in a safe working order at all times – the national standard for doing so being through PAT testing.

Short for ‘portable appliance testing’, the term refers to a process whereby professionals assess the safety and working order of electrical devices, before declaring them safe or unsafe for use. It is the responsibility of the employer to ensure that these tests are carried out regularly enough to ensure that all appliances are always kept in a safe working condition.

While it’s the legal duty of the employer to manage electrical safety, the law does not specifically state that PAT testing must be carried out annually. It all depends on the type of appliance, its age, how often it is used and so on. This again is something that must be determined by the employer and outlined in the electrical safety plan, under the advisement of an expert. (more…)