tag:www.hellotrade.com,2009-05-27:/blog//1 2012-02-10T10:25:25Z Global small business information hub. Get tips on small business management, marketing, finance, legal, human resources, and other related areas. Movable Type Publishing Platform 4.01 tag:www.hellotrade.com,2012:/blog//1.633 2012-02-10T10:23:27Z 2012-02-10T10:25:25Z

Job stress is something that is faced by almost all employees. Workplace stress can cause anxiety, depression and employee dissatisfaction. It can affect the productivity, emotional and physical health of the employees. Some of the main reasons that can lead...

HelloTrade Team
Employee Attrition: The most effective way to reduce employee turnover is to pay your employees appropriate salary as per the industry standards. Paying adequate compensation to your employees can reduce the churn rate. But that is not enough. It is preferable to offer periodic holidays and competitive vacations to reduce job stress. Further, for retaining employees with high aspiration levels, the management needs to adopt recognition practices. If nothing else works, a pre-poned promotion can help you to retain best talents of your company.

Ideal Workplace Facility: Employees who are provided with good workplace facilities, such as pleasant workplace environment, periodic breaks, proper ventilation and lighting, aesthetic office interiors and other amenities, usually show higher productivity. This can motivate the employees. Increased employee motivation and satisfaction can lead to higher efficiency and output.

Employee  Absenteeism: It is believed that implementing authoritarian management style can result in high levels of absenteeism among the employees. Not providing employees with enough official leaves can force them to take unplanned leaves, which can result in higher absenteeism. Some employees do not care much after a certain point of time, even if you deduct their salaries. On being asked they will make an excuse that they were sick. So, management should provide employees with legitimate share of leaves. In case you are unable to provide them the deserved number of leaves, it is preferable to compensate it by providing extra incentives and rewards.

]]> tag:www.hellotrade.com,2012:/blog//1.632 2012-02-09T07:36:22Z 2012-02-09T07:42:10Z

An income tax is a tax that levied on the income of business organizations and individuals. Income tax can be regressive, proportional and progressive. Here are top three tax savings instruments for investors:Public Provident Fund: PPF or Public provident fund...

HelloTrade Team
Public Provident Fund: PPF or Public provident fund is a long term statutory scheme regulated by the Central Government of India. Presently, the interest rate offered by government supported small savings scheme is around 8 percent, which is compounded annually. On maturity, you need not pay any tax under Section 80C. This long term scheme has a tenure of 15 years. PPF locks your liquidity for a very long period of time. In the PPF scheme you can deposit a minimum amount of Rs.500 and a maximum of Rs. 70,000. If you want to go for short term investment plans, PPF is not for you.

Unit-linked Insurance Plans: Unit linked Insurance plans or ULIPs are eligible for Section 80C tax rebate. These insurance plans provide dual benefits, including tax savings and life cover. However, if you are solely interested in life insurance, ULIP plans are not the best option for you. Recently, insurance regulating body IRDA has introduced few corrective measures by increasing the threshold limit for ULIP plans from 3 years to 5 years of lock-in period. IRDA has also mandated a minimum guarantee of ULIP plans. Policyholders can now opt for pre-mature exit without any type of penalty.

Five Year Bank Fixed Deposits: Since, the year 2006 Bank Term Deposits which are upto Rs. 1 lakh and are of over 5 years tenure are exempted as stipulated by Section 80C of Income Tax Act, 1961. The tax relaxation is applicable only to the RBI mentioned list of Scheduled Banks. Most of these tax-saving Fixed Deposits have a fixed tenure. Pre-mature withdrawal facility is not allowed.

]]> tag:www.hellotrade.com,2012:/blog//1.631 2012-02-08T10:46:16Z 2012-02-08T10:51:59Z

There are thousands of great productivity applications available for smartphones. Some of the Android phone apps are very useful for entrepreneurs and small business owners. These useful applications can help business owners to reduce cost and manage their business in...

HelloTrade Team
Multi Courier Tracker: Do you own a home office or a factory? Are you worried about handling and tracking multiple couriers, office parcels and administrative communication?  Multi Courier Tracker application is your savior. This advanced mobile application enables you to track multiple couriers with great ease. This app currently supports six leading courier services, including Blue Dart, Aramex,  Professional, First Flight, TNT and DTDC. This app is especially beneficial for business owners who buy and sell a lot of products on Flipkart, Ebay and other online portals.

VAT Calculator: This app is beneficial for those entrepreneurs who have just started out. The VAT calculator is a savior for those business owners who do not have separate accounts departments for producing VAT figures. At present, this app operates with VAT rates of India and European countries. You can adjust your application to 2012 VAT rate figures. The calculated VAT figures will be shown in rounded and two decimal values.

India Business Resource: This is a Free app, which consists of various business tools in one package. This app is a financial calculator. It can calculate income tax, property rates and EMIs on loan amount. It also serves as an informative guide about bank branches/ATMs, business updates and business news. The application also enables you to design customized visiting cards.

City Navigators: City navigator apps, such as the Meru Cab app, Meter Down app and Delhi Metro Navigator app, are useful for those business owners who have to do extensive traveling. This app provides handy information. It can help you to cut down your traveling expenses. For instance, if you are a Delhite attending a meeting in Bangalore, you may use the Bangalore Metro Navigator. This app will provide you with all the information including fares, parking fee and route maps.



]]> tag:www.hellotrade.com,2012:/blog//1.630 2012-02-07T10:22:00Z 2012-02-07T10:25:58Z

Telecommuting is also known as telework. It is a type of work arrangement, which allows employees to enjoy relaxation in working location and hours. The employees need not commute daily to the central work place. He can work with the...

HelloTrade Team
Telecommuting eliminates the limitations due to distance. A successful telecommuting system requires a management system based on results and not on close scrutiny of employees. This type of management style is known as management by objectives in place of management by observation.

Here are few benefits of telecommuting:

Conservation of Energy: With increased energy utilization, efficient use of energy has become very important. People commute to their workplaces in buses, auto rickshaws, cars, trains and planes on a regular basis. Production, maintenance and repair of automobiles require a tremendous amount of energy. Further, a large amount of fuel resources are required to operate these vehicles. Also, employees working in an office consume office related materials and resources, such as cooling, heating and lighting of office building. Adopting telecommuting program can reduce the consumption of vehicle related resources and office related resources.

Promotes Safety: Thousands of people die and get injured due to traffic related accidents. Several accidents occur during peak traffic hours when people are rushing to get to work. These accidents also cause a substantial amount of property loss. Implementing telecommuting program can reduce traffic rush and number of traffic related accidents.

Improves Health of Employees: Telecommuters who work from home share quality time with their family members. It reduces the stress associated with traveling back and forth to the work place. Reduced levels of stress can improve the health of the employees.


]]> tag:www.hellotrade.com,2012:/blog//1.629 2012-02-06T10:10:12Z 2012-02-06T10:17:03Z

Here are top five workplace trends of 2012 to look out for:Mobile Devices: More and more people are using their iPads, iPhones and other portable electronic devices for completing their work instead of computers and laptops issued by their companies....

HelloTrade Team
Mobile Devices: More and more people are using their iPads, iPhones and other portable electronic devices for completing their work instead of computers and laptops issued by their companies. This trend is often known as 'bring your own device' or BYOD. Some corporations worry that how they will protect their confidential information. Further, they also worry about preventing their workers from spending too much time on social networking websites, such as Facebook and Twitter.

Telecommuting: Telecommuting is also known as telework. It is a type of work arrangement in which the workers enjoy flexibility in working hours and locations. Some of the employees work from home, while other work from coffee shops or other distant locations. These workers use mobile  telecommunications technology to work from different locations. Such workers are known as web commuters or nomad workers. Several corporations are offering telecommuting to employees to provide them more flexible schedules. Sometimes it is offered to compensate for not offering bigger raises and to reduce office space expenses.

Open Office Spaces: With fewer number of employees coming into offices, business organizations are reconfiguring floor plans to dedicate more space to communal areas and less to traditional walled office spaces. Some organizations have renovated entire floors to include shared workstations and group spaces for conferences or impromptu brainstorming.

Instant Communication: Email is viewed as an inefficient means of communication, which moves at a very slow pace. It is considered very slow as compared to text messages, social networking websites and other alternatives. According to Robin Richards, chairman and CEO of TweetMyJobs, more and more employees have started communicating via texting and social networks.

Web-based Software: More and more companies are following customers by using cloud computing. They are using web based software and collaboration tools in day-to-day operations. Such applications include recruiting applications that let workers share job openings with friends on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook, and web based portals where employees can check their health insurance and investments.

]]> tag:www.hellotrade.com,2012:/blog//1.628 2012-02-04T09:48:06Z 2012-02-04T09:56:31Z

Inbound marketing is a new concept. It is a result of the power that the Internet has given to people. This marketing technique focuses on getting found by prospects and customers. It involves bringing qualified sales leads in your sales...

HelloTrade Team
The Internet enables your prospects to find information and seek solutions for their business issues. They will find your product before you can tell them to buy your product. Some marketing experts recognize inbound marketing as customer oriented B2B marketing. It is known as customer centric B2B marketing because it focuses on the needs, requirements and wants of the customers. It not much about what the seller wants you to purchase. Inbound marketing is based on the concept that sales is a natural result of building a solid business relationship based on understanding the problems of the customers and solving them. It starts with creating customer rapport and ends with a long lasting business relationship. It results in increased sales volume.

Let us now understand how inbounding marketing works. Internet plays an important role in making inbound marketing more accessible and affordable than outbound marketing. You can reach large target markets as well as niche target markets with the help of Internet. Small business inbound marketing efforts can be boosted with the help of effective content marketing and social media tactics. Different types of marketing tools used for implementing inbound marketing campaign are company website, company blog, relevant and quality content, social media networks and lead nurturing.

Inbound marketing requires expertise and efforts. The content used to attract warm and qualified B2B sales leads must be relevant, informative, interesting and customer oriented. It is preferable create a blog that is relevant and informative instead of a self promoting blog that is loaded with SEO terms. If you think inbound marketing is a good option to meet your marketing needs, do some research and create an effective plan to ensure success.  
 
 
 ]]> tag:www.hellotrade.com,2012:/blog//1.627 2012-02-03T10:19:42Z 2012-02-03T10:24:16Z

HelloTrade Team
It is important to possess excellent written communication skills, which can help you to stay ahead of your competitors. Here are few tips for improving your written communication skills:

Visible Impact: You will probably agree with the fact that you learn more if you view and hear information. Think of the speeches that you have listened regarding setting goals. A well known sales trainer,  extraordinaire Zig Ziglar, points out in his book 'Secrets of Closing the Sale', the importance of using a writing pad while explaining your potential customers the benefits of your goods and services. Viewing something in writing makes it more believable and easy to recall. Apart from sales, written form of communication is suitable for noting down company goals and mission, industry trends and updates and work instructions. If you want to make a real impact on your listener, you need to write it down.

Maintain Records: Having a spoken employee handbook is not a great idea. An audio message may get twisted and manipulated throughout the chain of command. If you want your company's terms and policies to be followed word by word, you need to put them on paper.

Grievances: In case you ever get ripped off by a supplier and you want to get it settled, it is preferable to get it settled in writing. It is wise to have a documentation of the communication. Having everything in written form will allow you to avoid confusion in future.

]]> tag:www.hellotrade.com,2012:/blog//1.626 2012-02-02T12:02:14Z 2012-02-02T12:07:31Z

Several reputed tablet PC manufacturers are likely to come up with tablet devices with advanced designs and features. However, considering the increased competition, these manufacturers are expected to price their products reasonably. Here are top three upcoming tablet devices:Sony Tablet...

HelloTrade Team
Sony Tablet P: This advanced tablet PC will be available in India within next 10 to 15 days. The biggest USP of this device is its form factor. This advanced device features two screens measuring five inches. When folded this device give an appearance of a large smartphone. Further, the tablet features a dual core Nvidia Tegra 2 mobile processor, 4 GB of internal memory, 3G and WiFi connectivity. The device operates on Android Honeycomb OS. Sony Tablet P features a 0.3 megapixel front camera and a 5 megapixel back shooter. The unique design and interface of the device enable the user to use both the screens individually and combined. The high end device is expected to be priced at Rs 36,990.

Asus Transformer Prime TF201: This device is expected to be launched by the end of February, 2012. Like its earlier version Asus Transformer, this tablet PC features a keyboard docking station which converts the device into a laptop. The device boasts of a 10.1 inch touchscreen display and a quad-core Nvidia Tegra 3 mobile processor. The device will operate on Android 3.2 Honeycomb. Further, the device will be loaded with WiFi, 3G and Bluetooth.  This tablet device is expected to be priced slightly higher than its predecessor (Rs 29,999).
 
Samsung Galaxy 7.7: Another high end tablet PC that is expected to be introduced in a couple of months is Samsung Galaxy 7.7. The tablet device will feature a 7.7 inch Super Amoled Plus display with 1280x800 pixel resolution. It will also include a dual core 1.4 GHz microprocessor supported with with Mali-400MP graphics chip. This device will operate on the Android 3.2 Honeycomb operating system.  This device also includes an advanced Universal Remote Control functionality. This option will enable you to control your  home entertainment systems and television through your tablet.  The tablet device will support SIM calling. Further, it will feature 3 megapixel back shooter and 2 megapixel front camera. The advanced device will support  WiFi and  3G connectivity. It offer a storage capacity of 16 GB, 32 GB and 64 GB.  Samsung Galaxy 7.7 is expected to be priced within a price bracket of Rs 30,000. 
 ]]> tag:www.hellotrade.com,2012:/blog//1.625 2012-02-01T12:34:03Z 2012-02-01T12:40:41Z

HelloTrade Team clothing store is known for client care. It offers 24/7 friendly customer service.

Here are few tips for improving your online customer support system:

Assign a Personal Customer Service Executive: Assign a personal customer care executive to each customer. The customer care representative should be well equipped to address all the questions and resolve the doubts of your customers. Send all the correspondences to the customer with the name of the representative. Also, include the contact info of the representative. Your customers will be more than happy to know that you have assigned personal representatives for them.

Add a Human Touch: Many shoppers find it difficult to trust online merchants due to lack of in person interaction. Show several pictures of your products, services and staff members to win the trust of your customers. Also, provide the direct contact info of your manager in order to instill trust in the minds of your customers.
 
 Follow Up Customers: Follow up a client when he initiates an order but does not finish it. Call him to find out if there were any issues. Your customer will appreciate your gesture. It is likely that you will convince him and make the sale.

Same Day Shipping: Most of the online retail stores have a policy of shipping the order in one or two days after placement of the order. If possible try to ship and deliver the order the same day. The speedy and unexpected delivery will be appreciated by your client.


 ]]> tag:www.hellotrade.com,2012:/blog//1.624 2012-01-31T09:27:21Z 2012-01-31T10:05:07Z

Internet has made it possible to dissolve geographical barriers. Businesses can now contact potential customers sitting in any part of the world. Creating and maintaining a website is much cheaper than advertising your products and services through television or print...

HelloTrade Team television or print media. Promoting your products and services through Internet enables you to reach a wider audience.

However, mere creating a website is not enough. It is important to create a professional looking website, which can attract a large number of visitors. It is preferable to ask few important marketing questions while creating your company website:

How are you going to measure your ROI?

The first thing you need to do is to determine the type of website you want to create, such as educational, lead generation and sales. Next, thing you need to determine is how to evaluate your performance and measure your success. Define your success metrics and be specific. Set some targets and determine what results you expect from your website in order to consider it successful. For instance, if you are operating a sales website, determine exactly how much revenue your website needs to generate in order to meet your profit goals.

How will your site help your prospects to achieve their objectives?

Your prospects are real people. Give them a good reason to visit your website. Offer them a solution for their problem and help them to achieve their goal. Keep this in mind while designing your website. For instance, a career coaching website might include the following elements:
Offer job seekers with tips so that they get immediate benefits.
Build hopes through client success stories and positive testimonials.

Who are your competitors?

Determine who are your competitors. Review their websites from the prospective of your prospects. Identify the strengths and weaknesses of your competitors. Your website should be more helpful to the visitors as compared to your competitor's website. Create and post content on your website to highlight your company's strengths and USP.  Make your prospects understand why they should buy from you as opposed to your competitors.  ]]> tag:www.hellotrade.com,2012:/blog//1.623 2012-01-28T11:12:48Z 2012-01-28T11:17:59Z

HelloTrade Team
Here are few tips for developing a successful marketing plan:

Begin at the End: Be clear about your marketing goals for 2012. You can develop effective strategies and tactics to full fill your marketing objective only if you set clear marketing goals. Determine what exactly your looking for from your marketing efforts, such as expanding your market presence, attract new customers, generate more leads or explore new markets.

Learn From Your Past Experience: Review your marketing plans, efforts and ROI for the year 2011. Determine the areas where your marketing efforts were most effective. Identify the areas where your marketing efforts were not successful in achieving the desired results. This will enable you to learn from your past experiences and mistakes. Further, this will help you to develop an improved marketing plan.

Stop Doing What Does Not Work: It is very important to understand what worked and what did not worked for your company. Once you have identified the things that did not worked for your company, stop doing those things. For instance, stop paying for advertisements, which does not directly drive sales.

]]> tag:www.hellotrade.com,2012:/blog//1.622 2012-01-27T07:12:28Z 2012-01-27T07:21:22Z

HelloTrade Team
Here is a list of top four online marketing trends that small business owners should consider while creating their marketing plans for 2012:

Deals and Rewards: The year 2012 will be a year of bargain hunting. Customers have several price-checking tools available. Smart marketers are planning to attract shoppers with attractive deals. This strategy can help you to earn profits by generating repeat sales. Also, it is preferable to offer substantial price reductions or other attractive incentives when buyers use mobile devices to purchase your products.

Mobile Pull Marketing: This type of marketing strategy provides consumers a means to interact with your advertising through mobile devices. This will help you to pull your consumers closer to the buying decision. It is preferable to combine traditional advertising with a solid call to action.
 
Mobile Push Marketing: This type of marketing strategy includes sending promotional text messages and voice calls to prospects and customers. However, sending promotional messages in bulk can be expensive for small business owners. Small business owners on tight marketing budget can opt for email marketing. Emails are less expensive. Further, you can include unlimited content in an email.

 Three-Screen Marketing: Apart from attracting people in front of television through your advertisements, also consider two other screens smartphones and tablets. Along with television, it is preferable to involve one of these screens in your promotional efforts. You may use emails, social media tools and online videos to promote your products on tablet PCs.

 ]]> tag:www.hellotrade.com,2012:/blog//1.621 2012-01-25T11:13:34Z 2012-01-25T11:28:46Z

A business organization is also known as an enterprise or firm. A business organization is involved in the trade of products and services on a commercial scale. Business organizations are predominant in capitalist economies. This type of organizations are formed...

HelloTrade Team
There are several forms of business ownership. In this article we have discussed about two of the most common type of business ownerships:

Sole Proprietorship: This is one of the most common  and simplest form of business ownerships. In this type of business entity there is a single owner who funds and runs the business organization. In sole proprietorship there is no legal distinction between your business and you. Setting up and starting this type of business entity is relatively easy. It does not require you to full fill any legal formality. So, you need to spent much on legal procedures. You also need not disclose your finances publicly. Since, there are no shareholders, the owner keeps all the profit. No sharing of profit is required. However, this type of business entity calls for personal liability. In case you go bankrupt, creditors can claim for your personal property, such as house, car and land.

Partnerships: Partnership is another common type of business ownership. In this type of ownership the individuals partner with each other to own and operate the organization. A partnership business organization gives you access to bigger pool of funds, skills and other important resources. All the partners contribute funds, share profits, losses and responsibilities. Further, they have an equal say in the decision making process. However, if one of the partners make a fatal business mistake, without your knowledge, all the partners have to face the consequences. Before entering into a partnership business organization, it is important that you trust your potential business partners. It is preferable to enter into a legal agreement before entering into partnership.


]]> tag:www.hellotrade.com,2012:/blog//1.620 2012-01-24T10:56:15Z 2012-01-24T11:07:46Z

Several home based businesses, such as Tupperware and Avon became successful because people were buying products from their friends and acquaintances. Also, it has been observed that friendly and outgoing individuals are usually better at selling things. According to social...

HelloTrade Team
Here are few tips for influencing people for sales success:

Make Your Customers Feel Important: One of the most effective tools for sales success is to make your prospects feel important. This technique can influence your prospects emotionally. All of us want to feel important. Further, every individual likes praises and hates criticism.  Criticism makes a person feel like a loser and appreciation makes him feel valued. Here are few tips for making your clients feel valued and important:

Show genuine interest in your prospective and existing clients.
Always remember the names of your clients.
Talk in the terms of the interest of your prospects.
Show genuine respect for the opinion of your clients.
Appreciate them sincerely.

Listen More and Talk Less: It is preferable to be a good listener. You become a good listener and let your prospective clients do all the talking. Let him talk about his needs, requirements and problems. Try to look at things from his prospective and understand his view point.

Social Proof: It is another effective technique, which can help you to convince people to buy your product. People often tend to imitate the behavior of others to determine their own course of action. Human beings tend to follow the crowd, especially the leaders, when they are not certain about what to do. Position your products or services as something valued by experts. Find experts who think highly about your products or services. For instance, if you are launching a new line of bags, introduce your product to the experts. Then collect their comments and testimonials, share them with your prospects to persuade them.   ]]> tag:www.hellotrade.com,2012:/blog//1.619 2012-01-23T10:09:13Z 2012-01-23T10:12:39Z

According to the National Association for Women Business Owners, women owned businesses account for nearly 40% of all privately held businesses. Women owned enterprises employ more than 13 million employees and generate nearly $1.9 trillion in sales. However, most of...

HelloTrade Team dollar mark.

Having clear business goals can help you to map out events and achieve success in business and life. It can help you to focus in a better manner and increase your chance for success. It empowers you and gives you momentum to become more successful. Momentum plays an important part for women achieving their business goals. It motivates them to keep moving towards their ultimate business goals.   

Here are few tips for setting business goals and preparing strategies to achieve them:

Set Your Goals: To begin the process of achieving your business goals, you must plan out where you want to reach ultimately. You can do this by identifying your business objectives and setting your business goals. Your goals should be clear and specific. Further, they should be time bound and realistic.

Pursue Your Goals Actively: Think about the specific actions you need to take to achieve your business goals. Utilize your resources and skills to the fullest. Evaluate all the possible avenues that you can take to attain your business goals. Be proactive instead of being passive.

Create Goal Achieving Plans: Create a step by step plan for achieving your business objectives. The more detailed and specific plan you create, the better are your chances for successfully attaining your business goals.
 
Make a Daily To-Do List: Preparing a To-Do List on a regular basis can help you to organize your day. The list should include the things, which you need to do daily in order to achieve your business goals. At the beginning of every business day determine what you need to accomplish. Focus and direct your energies towards accomplishing those tasks.  

Evaluate Your Progress: Evaluate your progress on a regular basis. Check how far you have reached? Also, check weather you have met your expectations? How to move more efficiently towards your business goals. 
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