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Support for the hospitality industry – Ashleigh’s story
I love it when women contact me to tell me about their businesses. Today I am delighted to share Ashleigh’s powerful story about the business she runs with her husband offering support for the hospitality industry. Let’s get to know more about the woman behind Halo Business Consultancy. Tell us a little about your childhood and teenager years I grew up in Newcastle upon Tyne with plenty of time spent in the great outdoors of Northumberland. We had so much freedom as children (or maybe my parents did!) and would make the most of building dens in the woods, braving swimming the North Sea and have camp fires with friends.…
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How to develop an Instagram strategy
In June 2018, the number of active monthly users on Instagram hit one billion. That’s a huge number of people, and a good percentage of them may be your target audience. Whether you’re a part-time blogger or a full-time social media manager, you can’t afford to be ignoring Insta. But with so many users and even more posts each day, how can you cut through the noise and get yourself heard? Amy Stenson, Social Media Manager at digital marketing agency, The Audit Lab, shares her secrets on how to develop an Instagram strategy for your business or blog. Get back to the basics And by basics we mean your profile.…
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Top Tips for Using Branded Merchandise to Promote Your Business
Branded merchandise can help your business to attract new customers and increase sales. Business cards and flyers are an essential part of networking and marketing your brand, but taking your promotional merchandise one step further can really help to build brand awareness and achieve returning customers. If your company is planning to host a stand at an exhibition, be sure to take along some freebies for your visitors. You will find that your stand is far more popular if you are giving away free gifts. When deciding what promotional merchandise to use at the exhibition, it is important to consider how useful your gifts will be to the user. For…
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How Can Signage Help My Business?
A well-designed sign can help your business in many ways. Not only can signage help people to locate your premises, but it can also provide marketing for your brand, by attracting the attention of prospective customers. If you are considering new signage for your business, here is some useful information from the UK’s leading provider of high quality signage… In order to make a good first impression and attract new customers, your sign needs to stand out from the crowd and effectively represent your brand, products and services. When designing your sign it is important to include both your business name and logo. This will help you to achieve the…
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Professionals Who Can Boost Your Business Success
Learning to accept help to boost business success can be difficult for entrepreneurs. People are often attracted to the challenge of starting their own business because it allows them to be independent, not waiting on others for support or approval. If you’re a freshly minted founder, going to others for help or advice can feel like getting drawn back into those restrictive practices, so it’s vital to develop your understanding of just when going to outside experts can be a really valuable source of help or insight that you simply don’t have access to with the skillsets in your new business. Data and Research One of the main resources that…
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Books subscription service to inspire strong women
I love the idea of women getting a little treat every month or so. Subscription boxes are a great investment in yourself and also make a great gift for those you care about. As they arrive, they are a little reminder that you exist and that you matter. It is easy to lose sight of that as we juggle increasingly busy lives. I try to be a champion for women’s voices via this blog. So I am delighted to share an interview with Rachel from the Rare Birds Book Club so we hear more about her books subscription service. Tell us a little about your childhood and teenage years I…
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Happy Tokens tool for powerful parenting
As part of my series where I talk to inspirational business women, I am delighted to share an interview with Michelle founder of Happy Tokens which many parents find help their children set and achieve goals whilst maintaining great mental health. Who are you and what do you do? My name is Michelle Westgarth-Graham 45, married to Mark Westgarth-Graham and mum of five smiley faced rascals! There is quite an age range (7 – 20) so they all keep me on my toes and life interesting. I am a champion of Child Mental Health and I do a lot of voluntary work in the local community around child mental health.…
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5 Ways to Save Money on Your Business Energy Bills
When you own a business, you want to save money where you can. One foolproof way to do this is by using energy carefully and finding the best deals on your business energy bills. With a few small changes, you can make a big change to your energy bill over time; here’s how. Insulation Insulation doesn’t need to be expensive and can make a massive difference when warming a room. This is especially the case if you work in an office where you are sat using a computer and not doing much. This is one sure-fire way to run up your energy bill as you are more likely to run…
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Wake Up Kick Ass and be inspired!
Many years ago at a student women’s dinner that I hosted a friend told me she loved how I would kick ass to help other women. Along the way and to my regret I stopped doing that.. Increasingly I want to get back to fighting for women’s rights and celebrating the great individuals we are and the contributions we make to the world. Today I am sharing an interview with the founder of Wake Up Kick Ass (WUKA) the pants for when you have your period. She has a powerful story to share and I hope you will be inspired to take any disadvantages in your life and turn them…
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Why your business needs a blog to succeed
We live in a digital age with companies like Pushgroup SEO London helping businesses to make the most of the opportunities presented by the Internet. People are buying online more than they ever did so every business needs a good online presence. Most have websites now and some have caught on to the benefits of social media networking. Today I am going to explain why I think your business needs a blog. Blogs attract customers so your business needs a blog It is estimated that perhaps as many as 80% of companies now use blogging as part of their marketing strategy. Blogging can give a human face to a company…
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Protecting your business from crime
When you set up a business, you are often making a long-held dream into a reality. Often this involves a big commitment of time, perhaps risks to your own home and the investment of lots of your hard-earned cash. The last thing you need at any time but particularly in the first years of your business is for it to fall victim to crime. Protecting your business from crime is important and here are some tips to do so. Protecting your business from crime You need to ensure your premises are not burgled. Look out for vulnerable access points and think if you need special equipment from somewhere like Barriers…
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Tech frustrations and what to do about them
It’s safe to safe that we love our technology. Computers, smartphones, tablets, you name it! Technology has shaped the way we live our lives in ways we never could have imagined even five years ago. We’re more connected and plugged in than ever before. And for the most part, the ways technology has gotten into our lives have been good. For the most part. Sometimes, however, technology decides to turn against us. In a betrayal more heartbreaking than the worst break-up, our tech can break, freeze or collapse entirely. Here are just a few of the most infuriating tech frustrations that we all know far too well. Tech frustrations include…
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How to choose an office for your business
Many start-up businesses begin life from the kitchen table or even the bedroom. If the business begins to succeed, it usually makes sense to find dedicated office space at somewhere like Click Offices Dublin for your business. Initially you will not want to buy premises probably and renting is a good option. There are many offices available to rent so how do you choose an office for your business that meets the needs of any staff and creates a strong image for your brand? Location Do you need the office to be near where you live? This may be a consideration particularly if you are juggling business with childcare responsibilities.…
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What Is Customer Relationship Management?
Customer relationship management (CRM) is an important part of any business, and these days you can get software that helps you keep on top of it and make the most of it. Customer relationship management essentially consists of monitoring communications with customers in order to gather information, and using this to improve customer experience, lead generation, and customer retention. Storing and Monitoring Customer relationship management software gathers and stores customer information, which is really useful for all businesses. If you sync the apps you use for your business such as marketing, customer relationship management, sales and email apps, they can all access this information and use it to better your…
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How to create a great home office
How to create a great home office is on my mind right now. Having made the generous decision to give a spare room to my husband as an office several months ago, I now crave a good working area with luxury office furniture for myself. Currently I work in the lounge right in the centre of our home. This means I often feel that someone is coming at me every five minutes wanting me to stop what I am doing. So if you feel like I do, here are five tips on how to create a great home office where you can enjoy a little peace and quiet. Set a realistic…
