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How Blockchain Stops Bank Fraud - Howard & Howard Attorneys PLLC. 4 Insurance Plans Every Small Business Should Carry - Small Business Trends. Today’s business owners face an ever-evolving set of challenges. Those challenges could lead you to seek out additional insurance policies so you’re covered in case those issues impact your bottom line. Traditional business insurance policies only cover the basics like basic liability and property damage due to theft or certain natural disasters. However, you may want to evaluate the other risks that your business faces so you can be sure you’re covered.

Especially in today’s changing business environment, there are a few additional policies that you might find interesting and helpful. Here are a few of them to consider. Cybersecurity Insurance The number of cybersecurity breaches in the U.S. has grown rapidly in recent years. These policies have evolved a bit over the years as the online landscape has changed. Sexual Harassment Insurance Towell says, “Even with best efforts at prevention, sexual harassment claims are always a possibility. Flood Insurance Umbrella Insurance. 9 Tips for Starting a Business in a Crowded Digital Marketplace. Get More Work Done: Eight Ways to Avoid the 'Halfway Zone' More often than I’d like to admit, I find myself working on a task, but not really working on the task.

For instance, I’ll start a writing project on my computer, but I’ll have my Twitter feed open in a separate tab. I’ll write a bit, check Twitter, write a bit, read another tweet, write, then see an update that I absolutely have to read, and jump back to my feed. It’s not that either activity I’m engaging in is bad — it’s just that they’re bad when mixed. I’m not being very productive with my work, and I’m not getting maximum enjoyment out of casually reading through Twitter (which is possibly my favorite leisure activity). I call this getting stuck in the halfway zone.

It’s like trying to think through a complex math problem while doing a challenging yoga pose. Like most people, I find I’m at my most productive when I’m “all in,” meaning laser-focused on the task at hand. Use the Pomodoro Technique Related: Productivity Apps Are No Match for a Simple Timer Practice Deep Work Be Realistic. How to Prevent Your Business Website from Being Flagged by Google Chrome - Small Business Trends. Starting this month, visitors to your small business website might see a notification near your address that says your site isn’t secure.

Google Chrome is behind the move that’s flagging the HTTP format in your URL in favor of the more secure HTTPS version. Small Business Trends spoke with Stefan Schulz, Chief Operating Officer of Orpical Group on how to prevent your site from being negatively affected by the update. He started the conversation by saying the URLs starting with HTTP had been on Google’s radar for quite some time. His company focuses on this niche migration. “It had been a ranking signal since 2014,” he said, “but there was an article published on the Google Webmasters blog in 2017 that announced they were going to start making the shift by marking all the http pages that collected sensitive information.” Chrome Not Secure Notifications Coming Soon That was then and this is now. Web Migration Is What’s Needed, But Wait… Chrome Has Too Large a Share of Search to Ignore. 5 Business Ideas You Can Launch from Your Living Room. I Co-Founded a Startup With My Best Friend: How to Balance Friendship and Business.

4 Over-Hyped Tactics That Don't Grow Your Business but Do Waste Your Time. Best-language-learning-software-small-business.

Maintaining Commercial Properties

Five Ways To Get A Business Loan For Your CPA Firm - CPA Exam Hub. Picture it – you just aced the CPA exam, you’ve got a team of like-minded professionals who have your back, and you’re ready to embark on that can-do American entrepreneurial spirit and open your very own accounting firm. Sounds great, right? Not to rain on anyone’s parade, but there’s one big question you need to ask yourself before you get started – where are you going to get the money from? It doesn’t take an accounting genius to know that operating your own small business in America requires a lot of money to get started, and nearly as much money to keep it open. Luckily, these days you’ve got more options than ever before to get the financing you need for your business, whether you’re looking to start from the ground up or just need a quick injection of cash to get you through the busy season until tax time comes around again.

Take a look at these five ways to get a CPA business loan, and get down to business: What You Need to Create Your First Business Budget | InCredibly. The Pros and Cons of Owning a Cash-Only Business | InCredibly. How do you prepare to be creative? - Workspring. How do you prepare to be creative? In my role at Steelcase, I design businesses and tackle non traditional growth opportunities. This means I need to be strong in both analytical and logical thinking as well as innovation and creativity. I spend half of my time analyzing the market and business results, what I call working “IN the business”. And the other half looking for opportunities to differentiate and innovate to design a better business model; what I call working “ON the business”. It can be difficult to turn on and turn off creativity especially in back to back meetings that require a switch from one way of thinking to another. It caused me to wonder what tools or practices I seem to gravitate toward to assist me, which I found to be pretty basic.

It made me want to ask if there are other tools or practices I can glean from others, like yourself. The top 5 tools and practices I often employ: Steal like an artist! 7 Ways to Manage and Increase Your Small Business Cash Flow | InCredibly. 5 Businesses That Require Less Than $10,000 To Launch | InCredibly. Applying for a Business Loan? Avoid These 5 Mistakes | InCredibly. Commercial Mortgages: Commercial real estate values are peaking | Learning Center. Much like one of Tennessee's state songs “Rocky Top,” commercial real estate values are peaking and it is a little rocky at the top.

It is not uncommon to read a headline reporting surging stock, gold or bond prices while simultaneously reading about investors’ fear that a great drop off is imminent. The same is true of commercial real estate. The more values surge, somehow, there is greater fear that a cliff is right around the corner. This paradox undoubtedly relates to scars from the last downturn which, for most investors, are indelibly etched in their mind. Some of the fear seems warranted and, by several benchmarks, commercial real estate prices are peaking. According to the Moody’s/RCA Commercial Property Price Index, prices again set a new high in April, the latest month published.

Overall, the index is up about 23 percent from its pre-crisis level. The index shows, however, that not all property types are created equal. So why is this time different? John B. New to commercial real estate investing? 6 tips for getting started - Insider Louisville. While there are countless reality TV shows and publications touting the payoff of flipping houses, it’s commercial property that can really take a savvy investor to the next level.

Investing in commercial real estate can be an excellent strategy to generate a reliable income stream for not only you today, but also for the benefit of future generations. “The conventional investment community considers real estate to be an alternative investment, which is the same classification as art or wine collections,” said Lee Weyland, CCIM, partner with Weyland Ventures. “I believe real estate should be a core part of any individual’s asset allocation strategy for long-term wealth generation.” Commercial real estate is a unique industry that requires specialized expertise, so don’t jump in without a plan. Do Your Homework When considering whether to purchase a piece of commercial property, it is imperative to do your homework, said Weyland. Location, Location, Location Know Your Numbers. How Bridge Lenders Review Apartment Underwriting Opportunities - Bloomfield Capital.

Inspire Employee Engagement with Work Café Design | Coalesse. What happens when workers are highly satisfied with their workplace? They become more highly engaged, according to the 2016 Steelcase Global Report on employee engagement. That finding isn’t too surprising, but this stat might be: Only 13 percent of global workers are highly engaged and highly satisfied with their workplace. Conversely, 11 percent of global workers report being highly dissatisfied and disengaged. Because employee engagement has a direct impact on productivity, employee loyalty and retention, and corporate profits, it’s a key issue for companies to tackle. While there are many ways to boost employee engagement, fostering social connection and friendship is an essential piece of the puzzle. In addition, Gallup reports, “when employees have a deep sense of affiliation with their team members, they take positive actions that benefit the business—actions they might not have taken if they did not have strong relationships” at work. 1. 2. 3. 4.

Looking for more ideas? The Rising Role of Social Connection & Creativity in Workplace Design | Coalesse. As companies prioritize innovation among today’s employees, the demand for spaces that inspire ideas and encourage interaction is accelerating. In this month’s design news aggregate, we explore the rising role of creativity and social connection in the office and the resulting impact on workplace design. The Social Component The benefits of socializing at work are evident in recent research, and as a result, modern organizations are offering settings that foster conversation and informal gatherings.

Entrepreneur highlights the Diageo office, in which people meet at the on-site bar for creative collaboration. For workplaces without a café or bar, New York Magazine discusses offering elevated seated desks or standing height alternatives that situate people at the eye level of colleagues walking past. Coalesse introduced the Potrero415 Table in a standing height to accommodate this need and enhance opportunities for connection and collaboration. Promoting Creativity & Innovation. 6 Startup Costs You Should Never Cut. Running a startup on a limited budget is problematic. You need to cut costs and exist on minimal funds.

That doesn’t mean you should make cuts everywhere, however. You must be able to make cuts in the right places, otherwise you could cause a lot of damage to your business. These are just some of the startup costs you should never try to cut. 1. Your product is your main offering. That doesn’t mean you should make stupid spending decisions, but it does mean that your product, and the prototype, should get the absolute best money can buy. 2. Now that you have a great product, you need to test it out. Invest in product testing and leave yourself some funds to go back to the drawing board if things don’t work how you intended. 3. These days you can’t succeed without digital skills. Your website must be user-friendly and, above all, your website must be mobile friendly. 4. These days, social media is very much a pay-to-play platform. 5. But if that same company has a plan things change. 6. Workplace trend: making work feel less like work. | Coalesse.

One of the workplace trends that has come into its own this year is a desire among office workers for work to feel less like work—or more precisely, for the work environment to feel less like an office and more like a home. People today find the drab, uniform office spaces of past decades dull and lifeless—an “uninspiring sea of sameness.” While those utilitarian spaces may have been in sync with the business philosophy of the time—with its focus on efficiency—today’s office workers are looking for comfortable spaces that appeal to our creativity and individuality as human beings. Looking for home People want work environments that are relaxed, personal and more conducive to imagination and creative collaboration. It only makes sense that we would feel more like ourselves, more at ease, more open to inspiration in a more homelike environment.

Porous borders Scroll down for a few examples of this trend, and let us know how it’s showing up in your work. 10 Types of People Who Will Help Your Business Succeed. You may be running the show, but the people on your team have just as much of an impact on your company's success as you do. Smart entrepreneurs surround themselves with positive people, especially when business is bad. Positive people come in many forms, but their can-do, feel-good attitudes are universally contagious. A 20-year study published in 2008 shows that having just one happy friend increases your chances of becoming happy by 15 percent.

Related: 7 Essential Habits of Happier People Wise entrepreneurs also find those who have strengths they lack and encourage them to spread their gifts. If your business is in trouble, look around. 1. Lightning rods attract attention. At first glance, you might mistakenly label a lightning rod as arrogant or rude. In business, lightning rods add incredible value to any sales and marketing team. 2. Whereas the lightning rod attracts attention, the golden goose attracts money. Related: Are You Emotionally Intelligent? 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. Five Ways to Access Extra Capital for Your Small Business. 14 Persuasive Writing Techniques That Trigger A Response. Here are fourteen persuasive writing techniques that will trigger a response from your visitors.

Have you ever wondered why nobody is responding to your offers? Why do people read your landing pages and then leave? Why do people see your ads and keep scrolling? You have a great product. The answer boils down to psychology. Today, we’re giving you a handful of tools that marketers and advertisers have been using for decades to captivate audiences and compel a response. 1. Everyone has problems, and your product or service is designed to help people solve one or more of those problems. A lot of businesses simply dive into explaining their solutions. Another word for this is “empathy”. US President Barack Obama once said this about empathy: “You know, there’s a lot of talk in this country about the federal deficit.

That’s how empathy works. Here’s a great example: Of course, in order to legitimately resonate with your audience’s pain points, you have to first understand your audience. 2. 3. 4. 5. To Lease or Own Business Space: 7 Things SMBs Need to Consider. How Leadership Won the World Series for the Chicago Cubs - Steelcase. How to Think About Hustle. 4 Simple Businesses You Can Run From Home - Business Opportunities. 4 Simple Businesses You Can Run From Home There are many compelling reasons to want to work from home. Perhaps you have small children at home or you can’t stand office politics. Or, maybe you just cannot take the one hour commute to work every day – each way. Whatever your reason, I’m sure it’s a good one. For me, I just like waking up a bit later, working in my pajamas if I want to and never listening to a boss I find to be a complete imbecile.

The good news is, as technology progresses, working from home (or telecommuting) is becoming much more accessible. Here are few suggestions we have for you: 1. Online marketplaces such as Ebay and Amazon have made it very easy to set up a business selling goods online. If you need help selecting a product, check out sites like Alibaba where you can find almost any type of product imaginable. 2. If you have a talent, this can be a great business for you. 3. This one is not for the faint of heart as it certainly comes with a lot of risk. 4. 3 Ways to Keep Your Employees Happy and Hardworking - InCredibly. Author: Keri Lunt Stevens While money doesn’t buy happiness, it certainly helps. But before you think all that your employees want is more money, think again. Beyond perks, employees need a sense of purpose and belonging if they’re going to commit to your company.

If you’re looking for long-lasting ways to get your employees engaged, consider implementing these ideas into your company’s culture. Employee distrust runs rampant in the U.S. workforce. To increase job satisfaction, build trust and retain talent, be truthful with your employees about the state of the company. Read More at smallbusinessbonfire.com Related. 4 marketing trends you need to follow to sell to millennials. ReportChef – Stay on Track with Your Team. How to Start a Snapchat Account for Your Business. Understanding Marketing vs. Branding. Investing in a Franchise? Do These 4 Things First. Four Creative Ways to Compensate Your Workforce. Train Your Brain to Work in Brand Mode. 3 business ideas with huge potential. Philadelphia's Winning Formula for Small-Business Growth.

How To Choose The Best Digital Marketing Analytics Software. Canadian companies flock to Arizona — here's why.

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