Author Archive for Jenny Wadlow

Jenny Wadlow, author of today’s guest post, works as a freelance blogger. Her hobbies include reading and swimming. She is an avid blogger and whenever she isn’t busy, she enjoys sketching and practicing her designing skills. You can catch up with her on Twitter @JennyWadlow.

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Is Your Company Moving Premises? Here’s How to Manage It

February 26, 20140 Comments
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As your business grows and expands, you may well find that you outgrow the premises that you currently inhabit. Sooner or later it will be time to start thinking about either expanding your existing premises or relocating to a bigger site. Relocation is the best decision for your business if you need more space and it will help you make more money and be even more efficient in the long run. However, relocation is also chaotic and disruptive and it needs to be managed very carefully in order to make sure that it has minimal impact on your long term success. In this article we are going to tell you how to go about your relocation in the best possible way – read on to find out more.

Find the Premises

Your first job is to find your new premises, and this means making a list of all of the things that you simply cannot compromise on. Have a separate list for things that you would like if at all possible and bear all of these things in mind when viewing new premises. Organize site visits of any premises that look appealing and take a couple of your senior management with you to get a clear idea of whether it could be right for you. Take plenty of pictures and make notes along the way, and then organize a meeting with your management afterwards to discuss the pros and cons of each one. When you have found one that you are all happy with then it is time to instruct your solicitors and get the ball moving.

 

 

Your Old Premises

It may be that you are keeping your old premises on in order to have two bases, but if not then you will need to think about what to do with the old premises. Most of the time the site is leased so it is just a matter of terminating the contract, but this can come with complications so it’s best to speak to your legal team about how best to do this.

 

Plan the Move

The move itself will take careful planning if you want it to cause the minimum amount of disruption to your business. Have a task team that are in charge of plotting every detail, and employ the services of a removals company and also a machinery moving service so that you have all the professionals booked a long time before the move itself. Make sure that the business can still operate in the interim by relocating the office first – that way the paperwork and legalities can still be worked on as the bigger items are being moved.

Moving to bigger premises is a very exciting step in your business’s progress and it is vital that it is managed in the best possible way. It will feel slightly chaotic for a while but once you are settled you will find that productivity and staff morale go through the roof. Then it’s time to start thinking about the next big step that you want to take!

 

Author Bio

This post is authored by Jenny Wadlow, who is a freelance writer and works with a host of clients from various industries. She is currently working with Halbert Brothers Inc. and is helping them reach out to online audiences via blogging.

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Tips For Enhancing The Exterior Of Your Company’s Building To Attract More Customers

September 11, 20130 Comments
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No matter what type of business you operate, you need to draw in your customers who are walking and driving by your building. If you own your own building, you have a lot of options when it comes to really customising it and making it your very own place; both inside and outside. And with the right design elements, you can really enhance the exterior appearance of your business, which is the first part of your company that customers will see, so that you can entice them to come inside and see what you’re all about.

If you’re ready to invest some of your business’s funds into creating an exterior that will lure more customers into your company’s home base, continue reading for some important tips that will help you get started.

The Right Sign and Maybe Symbol

The right sign outside your business is the perfect way to get people’s attention. Bigger doesn’t always translate to better, though, so be careful about how you go about designing and having your sign constructed. For example, are you hoping to incorporate bold colours that match your business’s overall colour scheme, or would you rather go with a large metal sign that’s clean, sleek and professional looking?

Your sign will ultimately depend upon the type of business that you operate because you want to cater it to your customer base and what they would be attracted. Therefore, keep customers in mind as you work through the design process. Once you have your design in place, hiring the right sign company will ensure that you get a high quality product that will last.

If you can, add a large symbol to the exterior of your building as well. For example, if you own a café that’s called the “Rocket Café,” put a large metal rocket outside alongside your sign, or incorporate it into the design of your sign to really get people’s attention and pique their curiosity.

Use Artwork

Hiring a local artist to paint a mural on the side of your building is one way to get people’s attention. Large, beautiful pieces of artwork are foolproof ways to make your building stand out. You can even get a piece of metal art or a sculpture that you can place outside your building, especially if you have a little garden area or a large wall on which you can hang or place something unique.

Use Bright, Bold Coloured Paint

If you can paint the exterior of your building, take advantage of the option by incorporating your business’s colours on the outside, as well as the inside, of your space. Flashy colours will attract people who are passing by that otherwise would have ignored your drab building that blended in with all of the others around it. Make your building stand out in order to grab the attention of customers before they leave you behind.

When it comes to defining your business’s exterior, use bright colours and artwork to draw people’s attention to your place of business. Once you have their attention, they’ll see your large sign and logo and be curious to find out more about you.

Featured images:

The author of this post, Jenny Wadlow, is a part of the team at Lump Sculpture Studio, a company specializing in urban art projects. She is a voracious reader and she enjoys catching up on her favorite novels during her leisure time. You can follow her on Twitter @JennyWadlow.

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What Your Website Says About You

August 17, 20130 Comments
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If you have to make your business thrive in the digital space, or even otherwise, it is imperative that you back it up with a well-designed professional website. Your business website offers prospective clients a peek into who you are, what you do and how good you are at your job. In short, your website creates precious “first impressions” which can either motivate the visitor to contact you for business or bore them enough to hop over to another website. So, if you are out to create a (positive) digital identity for yourself, here are a few things you should keep in mind.

Content

Picture yourself landing on a website that is full of gibberish, or worse, bad grammar. Would you consider doing business with that individual or company? Likely not. Poor quality content reflects upon the unprofessional attitude of the owner and tells a prospective client that you couldn’t care less. Fix this aspect by drafting relevant, well-written content that is interesting and easy to read. If you aren’t confident about doing it yourself, considering hiring a professional writer for the job. Quality content not only projects your business in a positive light, it also helps you communicate better and build a connection with your clients.

Navigability

Nothing annoys visitors more than a cluttered and unorganized website. If visitors cannot find what they are looking for within the first few seconds, they wouldn’t take the pain of shuffling through pages and links. Make sure you have all the essential elements such as your introduction, services and contact details right there on the landing page. Also, plan the layout of your website such that it is easy to navigate – sorting your content under relevant tabs and pages can help you achieve this. The general guideline is to have separate “about”, “services”, “portfolio” and “contact” pages. In short, a fleeting look at the landing page of the website should tell the visitor what your business is all about.

Design

Going over the top with design is the most common mistake made by website owners. By all means a website should be visually appealing but that does not translate into stuffing it with all design elements that have ever existed. A simple, clean design with the basic elements will be far more effective than a jazzy flash website that takes hours to load. An “over-designed” website is distracting to the eye and takes the attention away from the real content, thus defeating the whole purpose of having a website in the first place.

Brand Identity

Right from the color scheme, to the pictures and fonts, every aspect of your website design should reflect the essence of your business. For example, you could use creative and fun designs if you are an artist or a photographer, and more elegant themes for a lawyer’s or doctor’s website. A professional web developer will be able to advise you on the best design for your needs. You may also want to create a business logo to establish brand identity.

Featured images:
  • License: Creative Commons image source
  • License: Creative Commons image source
  • License: Creative Commons image source
  • License: Royalty Free or iStock source: http://pixabay.com/en/new-internet-open-web-website-tab-38743/

Jenny Wadlow is a part of the team at Motto, which is a graphic design agency. She is an avid blogger and whenever she isn’t busy, she enjoys sketching and practicing her designing skills. You can catch up with her on Twitter @JennyWadlow.

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Run Your Own Business? Work From Home And Save Loads Of Cash!

July 9, 20132 Comments
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If you run a business and you rent premises, you could be missing a trick. Obviously if it is the sort of business that requires a lot of staff and machinery then you need dedicated space, but if it’s a small office that you run, then you could be saving yourself a lot more money. Think about how much rent you pay, and then imagine having all of that spare every month to reinvest into the business or spend on a well-earned holiday. All it takes is a little initial investment to get the ball rolling. How do we suggest you do this? Build an extension on your house so your office is at home!

The Benefits

Having an office at home brings loads of benefits, but high on the list must be the lack of a daily commute. Every day workers waste valuable time sitting in traffic queues and driving to work, or sat on a packed train full of other commuters. This is time that you could be clawing back. Working from home means you can be close to your family and home in time for tea with your kids. There’ll be no premises rent to pay – once you have your office set up your overheads will be minimal. More and more people are choosing this as an option when it comes to thinking about where they work from.

How to Go About It

Some people have a spare room in their house that they can convert into an office. However this can cause trouble, as you will be too close to all the hustle and bustle of family life. A much better plan is to build an extension on the side of your house which has separate access so you can shut yourself away. You’ll need planning permission obviously – even if you are using an existing footprint such as a garage you will still need to state the change of use. Then it’s just a question of drawing up the plans and getting a trusted builder in to realise your dreams!

The Finer Details

It’s important that your work space feels professional – and not just an extension of your home. Keep the furniture and decor office-like and if there is room in the budget then put in a little toilet and kitchen so that you don’t have to keep wandering in and out of the main house. This will also look more professional when you have clients over for meetings etc. Make sure there is a nice big window in the plans so that you get lots of natural light, and build in plenty of storage options for your files and paperwork.

Working from home is most people’s dream – you’ll be less tired, more productive and you will see loads more of your family. A dedicated office space within the boundaries of your own home is the perfect answer and more and more people are choosing this as a viable option. The only thing that remains to be decided is what you are going to do with all those extra hours and all that extra cash?!

Featured images:

This guest post is authored by Jenny Wadlow. She has a lot of interest in the field of house designing and construction. She is a freelance blogger and likes to write on topics such as home renovation and improvement.

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How To Use Memorable Branded Corporate Free Gifts And Merchandise To Boost Your Brand Identity

June 5, 20134 Comments
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Branding is hugely important for businesses of all sizes, but it can also be an area of running your own company where you get to have some fun and be creative. As well as impressing your brand on things like your website, Facebook page, Twitter identity and any physical sites you run, you can also encourage people to develop a positive relationship with your brand in their minds by giving away some useful, interesting or fun branded items.

Here are some ideas about how to do this:

Where and When to Give Away Corporate Gifts

Corporate merchandise can be given away at any time when you connect with customers or potential customers, in theory. Bear in mind that these are not things you are going to sell, but things that add value to an existing purchase, or are just given away as free gifts that people will take home and use or see, reminding them of your company.

It can be a good idea to put together bags of corporate gifts that you give to people who visit you at trade fairs, or give them to people who visit your offices. If you run an online only business, you can give away free digital products, such as apps or eBook reports, or you can include a small token physical gift with purchases you send out. The idea is to give the customer the impression of additional value, as well as impressing your brand on them in a subtle way.

What to Give Away

Obviously there are some cost concerns when it comes to giving away anything for free. You have to consider the cost of your corporate gifts as part of your marketing, and include them in any calculations you do around the cost of acquiring new customers. How much you spend should be proportional to how much you expect the average customer to spend. If you are selling fairly low cost items, then look out for items that are very cheap to order in bulk. Classic options are things like key-rings, magnets, mugs, pens, mouse mats, and small children’s toys (if you sell something family orientated).

However, if you sell something more expensive, for example if you are an IT solutions company expecting the average client to spend thousands, you can go for something with more implied value. Things like leather document cases, high end pens, and branded memory drives are good if you are selling to corporate clients who can put these things to use at work. Whereas consumer clients can enjoy things like t-shirts, bags, kitchen utensils, beach towels, sports equipment – in fact anything that goes well with what your company does and works with a logo on it!

Brainstorm some ideas of good corporate gifts that may fit in with your budget and branding, and investigate companies who may be able to design and make them for you. For some items, a standard design in your colour scheme with your logo will work, whereas for others you may need to invest in having a professional design specifically for your item. You may also be able to use design assets you already have to create some things, like fridge magnets, mouse mats and t-shirts.

Attached Images:
  •  License: Royalty Free or iStock source: http://pixabay.com/en/christmas-bag-santa-claus-17159/
  •  License: Creative Commons image source 

 Today’s guest author, Jenny Wadlow, is a freelance writer and usually writes for Liquid Creativity, a firm that provides brand consultants based in Australia. Apart from writing, she enjoys reading and dancing for leisure.

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Office Design – How To Really Make Your Office Space Reflect Your Brand

June 5, 20130 Comments
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So, you have started a business, and you have found some space to use as an office. Whether your company has two or two hundred employees, you are going to want to make that office not only a comfortable place to work, but also somewhere that really sets the tone for what you want your company to be like. This means making your office space truly reflect your brand identity and values.

If you have a rented office space, you may not feel you are able to change and customise it too much, however there is still a lot you can put in place to give your office the right look and feel without having to change anything permanent that the landlords or building management may not allow. Even if your budget is very low, you can take some simple steps to really brand your office.

Colour Schemes and Accents

One of the most important parts of your brand image is going to be the colour palette you have chosen to work with. This isn’t just the one or two colours that appear in your logo, but the entire scheme you will have chosen to use on things like your website and stationery. If you haven’t got this far with your branding yet, and only have a basic colour scheme based around your logo or other key brand elements, then you should take a look online – there are plenty of tools that can suggest appropriate palettes based around colours that compliment or contrast with your key colours.

You may not be able to change things like the colours of carpeting and walls, and some things like your computer hardware are likely to be in neutral colours, but you should use your palette for everything else. Any art work you hang on the walls, any signs you have (not just signs on the exterior, but things like signs identifying meeting rooms), vases and other decorative objects and if possible, couches and other furniture (beyond generic office chairs at peoples’ work stations) should fit your brand’s palettes, and be used in the right proportions. This means if your key colour is bright blue, but you have bright orange as an accent colour, then you should have a lot of blue and a striking splash of orange here and there, rather than the other way around.

Match Your Company’s Mood

Whether you have a literal mission statement or just a concept in your head of how you want your company to be perceived, your office should match it. If you want your company to feel traditional and friendly, then you aren’t going to want ultra modern sculptures and loads of cold chrome everywhere. If your business is slick, hip and minimalist, you won’t want notice boards with stuff about bake sales and fun runs pinned up on them all over the place and collections of toys and memorabilia on your front desk.

Do you want that trendy, work hard play hard look? Put in a pool table, table football game or some other fun recreational stuff your team can use. Want your office to look traditional and classy? Think fresh cut flowers and luxurious name plates on doors and desks. Prefer people to think you are innovative and cool? Look for bold modern art and unusual furnishings.

By matching both the colouring and the objects you use to your concept, you can actually create a very powerful sense of brand without having to do too much!

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Jenny Wadlow, author of today’s guest post, works as a freelance blogger with Sassysigns which is a leading provider of house signs. Her hobbies include reading and swimming.

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