BUSINESS

Technology has changed the way consumers make their purchase decision. Earlier, customers walk into the stores and make their purchases.  The product was inspected, viewed, and compared right from the stores. Everything seems pretty simple. With the dawn of Internet age, consumers have access to huge amount of information regarding the product they are looking for and, Mobile devices enabled them to research, view, compare and make purchases on the go.  Even though some customers still prefer to buy from a physical store, they all do their market research online before buying. Same is the case for luxury goods like Cars. 1. Smartphone : Now the market is starting a move toward yet an additional shopping source, the networked car. Cars with unlimited data plans for a charge are the next trend, making the cars a wifi hub spot for their smartphone devices.  In-car advertising has also been introduced by manufacturers making cars a channel for advertising the...

You used to love them. They were  so easy.  Now they are in dollar amounts and percentages, sometimes with a limited maximum value.  They can be electronic or digital. Sometimes a letter is required instead. Sometimes nothing is required instead! There may be a single or annual charge for it or maybe it is free!  It's outta control... So here is your chance to catch up with everybody's favorite:  The fun and fascinating world of Bid Bonds. The Basics : These instruments accompany a contractor's proposal during the acquisition process for a new project. This is routine on public work, such as federal state and local municipal contracts.  The procedure may also be used on private projects at the contract owner's discretion. The bond guarantees that, if awarded, the bidder will sign the contract, furnish the required Performance and Payment Bond, and commence with the work - or - pay the difference between their bid and the next higher bidder (s...

If you ask a group of people what they think business development is, you would most likely get a few different answers. There is even a chance that your own view of business development and sales may be used interchangeably. Business development involves more of a strategic approach such as strategy, marketing, customer management, and partnerships; these activities encompass about 75%-80% of the approach, and sales about 20%-25%. When I get asked the question, does business development have something to do with sales? Yes, it does. Is it related to business growth? Most definitely it does. Does it have anything to do with business strategy? There is a good chance it does. Business development is a culmination of these different activities but most importantly, it's all about shifting to the point of view of the client. This will provide you with that new perspective and will have you balance your efforts across these key activities that you and your client will both ne...

What are custom reports and why are they so useful ?  Custom reports help you to document your business's progress, provide you with a way of comparing that progress over certain periods and assist you in tracking your history of growth.  While your profit margins each year, may give you an idea of how your business is progressing, the data that you can collect in reports can be far more beneficial to you when formulating your budget and making plans for the upcoming year. These reports can also give an insight as to which products or services have been the most successful, and which markets you may have overlooked.  In fact, you'll find that there are many reasons to check back to the data that you've collected as your business grows. More reasons why a business report can be helpful for your business :   Custom reports can also help you to create a paper trail of your past transactions and business history.  These can of course be stored on a co...