5 SEO Mistakes Doing More Harm Than Good For A Website

All website owners want to beat the competition and build their brand online as soon as possible. They will search for search engine optimization advice and tools, hoping that they will deliver more visitors and customers. However, SEO can backfire, and often does. If you keep on using methods that last worked a decade ago, you might get penalized by search engines, and lose your existing traffic. 

To help you avoid the most common SEO mistakes, we have created a list of 5 damaging errors below. 

1. Focusing On Link Numbers And Not Quality 

You might have already heard about the importance of link building, but have no idea how much the quality and diversity of links matters. If you fall for a cheap company’s promises of hundreds of links in a few days, your site might get penalized by Google and Bing, never to be found in search engines again. Search engines will notice that you gained hundreds of links in a short period of time, and if they are not relevant to your site, you will be suspected of cheating. 

2. Too Many Naked Links 

Naked links are necessary, but you should also focus on keyword-based anchor links. While publishing your link to various directories and sites can boost your ranking, you will also have to make sure that you link to the most relevant piece of content on your site or blog, instead of simply putting your landing page link into other sites’ blog posts. A variety of links is needed to get good long-term search engine rankings. Google prefers variety when it comes to building links!

3. Lack Of Meta Tag And Title Optimization, Or Overdoing It 

It is challenging to find the balance and find the optimal meta and title tag optimization that doesn’t look spammy, still attracts relevant traffic. Title and meta tags are important for your site, but if you try to jam as many keywords as possible, you will get negative results. Make your title and description relevant to your site, and inform your visitors about what your page is about. 

4. Flashy Website Equals Slow Website

Sometimes website owners focus too much on appearance, and forget to optimize the site to different displays and internet speed. As a result of too many large images and video files, flash intros, your site will be slow to load, and you will lose visitors. At the same time, a slow website generally ranks lower in search engines since site speed has always been a ranking factor. 

5. Keyword Stuffing 

If you want to get more leads from your website, you might be thinking of increasing your content’s keyword density, so your visitors find you easier. This method can also backfire, and you will face search engine penalties. Focusing on customer experience and content quality is more important today than keywords. 

SEO To Grow

Website owners looking to avoid the most common SEO mistakes that can cost them traffic and customers need to make sure that they build their sites with the customer in mind, and then start optimizing it to search engines. Avoid cheap bulk link building services, and make sure your backlinks, content, and meta titles look natural and relevant.


I hope you enjoyed this article about the SEO mistakes that can do more harm than good for the pagerank of your website.

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Here’s What Teleconference Technology Can Do for Your Business

Telepresence technologies allow people to communicate face-to-face across great distances. From allowing deployed service members to stay in touch with their families to enabling college students to help their younger siblings at home with assignments, these technologies have done much to improve connectivity in our personal lives. But did you know that teleconference technology can markedly improve your business operations, too? 

It’s true. According to the results of a case study performed by Cisco after it implemented telepresence units in offices across 123 cities around the world, telepresence solutions for business can substantially reduce or eliminate travel costs, facilitate collaboration across geographically disparate teams, and help hiring managers screen new job applicants. But they’re not just a way to increase collaboration and improve employee productivity; telepresence solutions can also improve customer satisfaction, boost sales, and help transactions get finalized faster, to increase revenues while cutting costs. 

Facilitate Collaboration While Reducing Travel 

In today’s increasingly global society, more companies than ever find themselves searching for ways to bring teams together across vast distances. Maybe you’ve got an office in New York, one in Los Angeles, one in London, and one in Bangalore – how can you bring teams from all of those locations together in one room to work on a project? 

Well, you could spend thousands of dollars on airfare, hotel rooms, rental cars, and other travel costs to physically bring your employees together. But they’ll have to spend hours, or even days, in transit, and that amounts to a lot of lost productivity; plus, they won’t be in top form when they get there, because they’ll be tired and stressed out from the trip. 

Telepresence solutions solve many of the problems inherent in working with geographically disparate teams. Using video conferencing technologies, employees in locations around the world can come together in one room to work together. They’ll be fresh and relaxed because they didn’t have to travel, and they’ll get to spend all the time they would have spent traveling working instead, so employee productivity won’t have to take a hit for the sake of the meeting. Employees may have to work odd hours on meeting days because of time zone differences, but most employees are much more willing to stay late or come in early than to get on a 20-hour flight to Australia. 

When Cisco deployed 238 telepresence endpoints worldwide, it saved 11 percent in corporate travel costs in the second quarter of 2008 alone. That amounts to an estimated $90 million in reduced costs. 

With more than 4800 multipoint meetings over a two-year period, Cisco increased employee productivity using telepresence solutions by an estimated value of $40 million. 

Recruit & Develop Your Staff 

Telepresence technologies make it easier to screen job candidates, too, many of which may not be located in your city. Video conferencing for job interviews lets candidates avoid the hassle and expense of travel, and eliminates the need for them to take time off from their current jobs to attend an interview. For many candidates, this could mean they’re able to attend an interview they wouldn’t have been able to otherwise attend. 

Employee development and performance can also improve through the wise implementation of telepresence solutions. Assessments and performance reviews require some level of trust between reviewers and employees, but videoconferencing technologies allow managers and HR staff to build that necessary rapport in order to ensure that reviews, assessments, and development seminars are productive. 

Boost Customer Satisfaction & Increase Sales 

While telepresence technology can do a lot to streamline processes within the company, it’s also a great tool for strengthening customer relationships, facilitating sales transactions, and increasing revenue. 31 percent of Cisco’s telepresence meetings between 2006 and mid-2008 were customer meetings. The quality of the video conferencing solutions allowed customers and Cisco representatives to interact more fully, overcoming the barriers of travel time and distance and providing parties on both ends with a greater degree of information and a more quality interaction thanks to the ability to build trust through body language and visual cues. 

When you implement telepresence solutions in your business, you’ll be able to meet with more customers, without the need to wait for potential clients to be in your area. You’ll be able to have more of the face-to- face meetings necessary to close valuable deals. Cisco estimates that telepresence solutions have enabled it to boost its sales closing rate by at least two percent, while reducing sales cycle time by the same amount – and those are very conservative estimates. Both of these factors can help your business bring in more revenue. 

If you’re not already using telepresence solutions in your business, it’s well past time to start. These technologies can facilitate communication and collaboration with customers and between employees, so your business can run more smoothly and, perhaps more importantly, make more money.


I hope you enjoyed this article about what teleconference technology can do for your company.

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5 Questions To Ask Before Starting A Franchise Business

There is a common misconception that franchise businesses are easy to launch and that they almost never fail. 

Yes, opening a franchise business can be simpler than launching a startup from scratch. You acquire the business model that already works and have full support from an established brand. 

Most franchisors already have an extensive customer base, numerous brand advocates, and a solid marketing strategy in place. Just look at brands like KFC, Subway, or McDonald’s. 

However, becoming a franchisee is more complex than just finding a popular franchise brand and buying into it. You need to choose the industry relevant to you and be fully prepared to launch, manage, and grow your business. 

So what type of franchise will you start? Will it be an in home healthcare franchise, a fitness center, or a restaurant? So, here are a few questions to ask yourself before you even consider starting a franchise business. 

1. Are You The Right Person For A Franchise Business? 

No matter if you are launching a business from scratch or taking up a franchise, being a business owner is stressful. So, before you even consider entering the entrepreneurial waters, you need to give yourself a nice personality test and ask yourself whether you have the personality to become a franchisee. Are you comfortable with hiring and firing people, negotiating with suppliers, managing your finances? What about making fast decisions and taking immediate steps to resolve problems? 

If you believe you will be a good franchise owner, then ask yourself what kind of franchise business you want to open. It is important to choose the niche you’re good at and choose the franchisee company that is compatible with your values and interests. 

Just like Stephen Covey taught us, you need to start with the end in mind. Do you want to run and grow your franchise business for years and then leave it as a legacy to your kids or you want to sell it fast? Understanding your short-term and long-term goals, you will be able to choose the franchise opportunity that fully supports your business idea. 

2. How Much Will It Cost? 

The costs of starting a franchise vary. Let’s take popular fast food franchises as an example. To open a Subway franchise, you need to pay $116,600- $263,150 for setting up the store, a royalty fee of 8% of your total gross sales, and a franchise fee of $15,000. The franchise cost for UPS Stores also varies. For traditional locations it is between $168,885 - $398,323, while for rural locations it is between $166,659 - $309,045. On the other hand, if this is a bit out of your budget and you are looking for an affordable franchise, you can open a Footprints floors unit for $75.000.

So, if you want to get your franchise up and running, you first need to consider all expenses, from the purchase costs and the operating costs to your net worth franchisors consider before accepting you. 

Also, you need to know how exactly you will finance your franchise business. There are many options to consider. Some franchisors will loan you the money to launch their franchise, so consider that when making decisions. Alternatively, you can always apply for a traditional bank loan or an SBA loan or even leverage crowdfunding. 

3. Is There Any Franchise Agreement You Should Sign? 

Like its mere name says, a franchise agreement is a contract provided by a franchisor. This formal document gives you legal rights to launch a franchise, as well as lists the rules and regulations you need to follow. 

A franchise agreement includes the information about payment provisions, the use of intellectual property, confidentiality, the use of supplies, the use of software, hiring processes (requirements related to employee qualifications, the number of employees, etc.). 

Signing this document is one of the most critical phases of starting a franchise, so consider consulting your lawyer to help you understand what’s expected of you. 

Keep in mind that this agreement is here to protect your rights, too. So, try to remember (or even better, note) what franchise representatives promise during your meetings and make sure that all these promises are outlined in the franchise agreement. If you notice any significant differences between their verbal promises and legal contracts, talk to them and request them to make the changes needed. 

4. Does A Franchisor Offer A Comprehensive Training Program? 

Choose a franchisor that understands you and provides you with an extensive training program and support. This is exactly what the majority of popular franchises like McDonald’s, KFC, The UPS Store, or Subway offer to their franchisees. Namely, these are all big brands that want their branches to provide exceptional user experiences and build a positive image around their brand. 

That’s why their programs are detailed and highly educational. They teach you everything, from how to market your store and manage employees to creating reports and negotiating with suppliers. Most importantly, not only do they help you get started, but also teach you how to scale your franchise business and expand it to multiple locations. 

Franchise training determines your success right from the start, so it should be one of your first considerations when choosing a franchisor. 

5. What Kind Of Support Does The Franchisor Provide? 

Running a franchise business has numerous advantages over starting a new company. One of the main benefits lies in the fact that you’re not alone. A strong, well-established brand has your back. However, not every brand takes their franchisees seriously enough. So, do your research to find out how much support you will actually get from the franchisor. It’s important to know that a franchisor is willing to provide you with the right support whenever you face a problem you cannot solve alone. 

Can they help you obtain and maintain your business equipment? Do they help out with marketing? Can they connect your with financial assistance? Find out how supportive the franchisors are.

Find Fantastic Franchises Fast

There are numerous benefits of becoming a franchisee and I’ve mentioned some of them. However, before you start looking for the right franchisor and building your business strategy, you first need to understand why you’re doing that, what you expect to get from your franchise business, what the characteristics of a good franchisor are, and what your long-term goals are. I hope that these 5 fantastic franchise tips will help you find success!


I hope you enjoyed this blog post about the major questions to ask yourself before starting a franchise business or investing in one.

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How To Boost Your Energy During A Long Workday

Long work hours are something most of us deal with daily. However, maintaining good energy levels and concentration performance hour after hour is not an easy task. So, if you need some help getting through your long workdays, here are a few tips that will raise your energy and boost your mood. 

Soak Up Some Sun 

One of the easiest and fastest ways to lift your mood and boost energy is to get plenty of sun exposure. It’s as simple as opening your office curtains or spending your break outside. Sunlight helps regulate your mood and your hormones and can help your body wake up when you feel like you’re in a slump. 

Eat Smart 

For starters, don’t skip breakfast. If you just don’t have a good appetite in the morning, at least have a tiny meal that will start your metabolism and wake you up. Later in the day, ensure to practice mindful eating and listen to what your body is telling you. If you feel hungry between meals, have a light snack, but opt for something well-balanced with equal amounts of carbs and protein to avoid sudden blood sugars drops and spikes. A good smoothie enriched with superfoods is a great solution. For instance, you can add a teaspoon of powerful Reishi extract to your smoothie and reap its anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and pain-relieving benefits. Reishi can also improve your mood and fight fatigue and depression, so adding it to your snack is a great idea. 

Have Regular Breaks 

Many people think that taking breaks will make them less productive and just waste precious time, the but human brain is just not capable of concentrating for more than an hour and a half at a time. Plus, no matter how busy you are, you can always spare a 15-minute break every 90 minutes. It will give you time to reenergize and actually boost your productivity. If your regular breaks don’t have the desired effect, try a short workout that will definitely do the trick. 

Stand Up 

If you often find yourself dozing off at your desk, try to swap it for a standing one. It will make you much more alert and energized. If you can’t afford a standing desk, try to handle some tasks standing up. For instance, you can easily make all your phone calls while strolling around your office and sort papers while on your feet. Standing is also much better for your back and neck and will even burn a few extra calories. 

Have A Power Nap 

If you have the ability to shut down your brain while at work enough for a nap, make sure to use that ability to your advantage. A short 20-minute nap can really do wonders of your mood, focus and performance. But, if you can’t fall asleep, you can get a similar effect by sitting quietly, listening to relaxing music and closing your eyes. Once you snap back to reality, you will feel energized and ready to tackle your work. 

Tidy Up Your Workspace 

Sometimes all you need to do for a nice energy boost is a bit of tidying up. Even if you love a creative mess, it can affect you on a subconscious level and have a negative impact on your energy levels and productivity. On the other hand, a tidying up your environment can bring clarity and calm to your life and even serve as a nice break from work. A few minutes of cleaning will be enough to boost your energy and mood. 

These tips will definitely help you push through your demanding workdays and keep your energy high. But, once you get home, make sure to relax, unwind and leave your work in the office. It will do wonders not only for your private life but for your work satisfaction, too!


I hope you enjoyed this blog post about how to boost your energy during a long workday at the office or job site.

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Telecom Management Defined

Different telecom service provisioning companies say, the definition of telecom has changed immensely over the past several decades. No longer do we think of telecom as wired and wireless voice communications. Today telecom means so much more, especially in an organizational environment which is why Telecom Fraud Prevention & Revenue Assurance is very important

Across industries of all kinds, telecom means communication of all types, not just voice. It includes any internal and external communication via wired and mobile platforms such as laptops, tablets, phones, and even smart appliances. 

Before the age of the internet, telecommunications referred to voice based communications only. But since the latter part of the 20th century, the way we communicate has made leaps and bounds in all sorts of directions. Telecommunications encompasses smart home technology, cell phones, smart watches, laptops, tablets, and so much more. A phone call or email no longer bind the way we communicated. It can be over text, video message, social media, voice message, etc. 

To keep up with the continually changing environment of telecom, many organizations have turned to an outside telecom management provider to deal with the complexity involved. Telecom management has become a job that's too big for an IT department to handle. IT resources are valuable and hard to replace. So many organizations prefer not to waste these resources on telecom management. For them, outsourcing TEM makes more sense. 

What Does TEM Entail? 

Telecom expense management requires a complete inventory of all telecom equipment and services provided to each member of a particular organization. This inventory is then used in conjunction with employee interviews to assess the appropriateness of goods and services based on individual needs within the capacity of their job function. 

Good telecommunications consultants, whether they are an internal asset, or contracted out, will correctly match the appropriate telecom equipment and service plans with the necessary employees. 

For example, a sales team member may work the majority of their time outside the office. They may need to present to potential clients and have a way to stay in constant contact with the organization and other vendors. A TEM representative will identify the best options to help that sales associate do the job to the best of their ability. In contrast, the billing department associate who spends most of their time working at their desk won't require the same telecom services a sales associate would need. They may not need anything more than the typical workspace telecom set up. A competent TEM representative will provide the right resources to each employee depending on their needs. 

The Need For Separation 

TEM is a dynamic, ever-changing environment requiring constant communication and negotiation with telecom vendors and providers. As services change and the nature of telecom evolves, someone who can keep up with the pace of TEM is best positioned to provide the highest quality management. 

IT, on the other hand, is an entirely different realm of duties and responsibilities that require experts specific to that area. Managing the technological infrastructure and platforms internal to an organization is most successful when IT professionals aren't burdened by the roles and responsibilities of TEM as well.


I hope you enjoyed this blog post about telecom management and major considerations in telecommunications tech today.

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5 Low Cost Ways To Have Fun When Running A Startup

There are millions of startups launching each and every year, and this is one of the major reasons why it is such a stressful endeavor. The competition is stiff and if you are going to make it within your niche, there is much to contend with. From pricing to industry innovations, there is always something eating away at the back of your mind. Why not take a break from all that so that you come back refreshed and ready to tackle whatever lies in your path? Don’t worry! Money needn’t be an issue. Here are five low-cost ways to have fun when running a startup. 

1. Take A Day Off To Go Sailing 

You don’t even need to own a boat to enjoy a day on the water. It is possible to rent boats by the hour, the afternoon or even for an entire day and once out on the waves, there are no distractions to keep you from enjoying some peace and tranquillity. If you think the startup ecosystem isn’t stressful, it’s time you looked at just how complex it truly is! 

2. Have You Tried Gaming? 

From computer games to online casinos, the gaming industry is huge and growing bigger by the day. In fact, you can even come away with a bit of money in your pocket if you’re up for a wager. Slots are fast, fun and easy and if you choose the right casino, you can even begin by playing against the house for free! How much cheaper can it get? Check out slots calendar 200 slots bonuses to find a casino that strikes your fancy. Those bonuses give you house money to play with – a really good deal when you think about it. 

3. Fly A Kite At Your Local Beach 

Can you remember when you used to go to the beach with your family to fly kites in the wind coming offshore? It’s free once you’ve bought a kite and they aren’t expensive at all. Take the kids, a date, your team or go alone if the mood strikes you, but there’s nothing quite as exhilarating as watching that kite with a colourful tail floating through the air. 

4. Do Something Totally Unexpected 

When things get inordinately stressful at work, why not do something totally unexpected? Throw an impromptu office party where you order in a few pizzas and let everyone step away from their desks for the last couple hours of a business day. The surprise of it all will lighten the spirits of your team and you just might find that the entire crew comes back the next morning refreshed and ready to tackle any new challenges ahead. 

5. Add Games To Your Staff Meetings 

If it’s monotony you are trying to break to give your staff a kick start to their day, add a game or two to a weekly staff meeting. It costs nothing except perhaps a few supplies, but you are already paying staff to attend the meeting so why not liven it up a bit for them? You can be given much advice on how to run a particularly effective staff meeting, but often an icebreaker or two will put them in a receptive mood. Try it sometime to see just how much fun it is and how your team will open up when asked to share.


I hope you enjoyed this blog post about 5 low-cost ways to have fun when starting a stressful and time-consuming lean startup.

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How Can You Trust Your Employees And Take Care Of Your Business At The Same Time?

One thing many business owners struggle with, is trusting their employees while making sure their business remains safe and secure. However, doing both at the same time is imperative to your business success! If you don’t trust your employees, they’ll likely resent you, won’t work as hard, and you’ll end up with a high employee turnover. If you’re too trusting, then you could end up with problems that could have been avoided later on down the line. 

Let’s talk about how you can trust your employees and take care of your business at the same time: 

Do The Appropriate Checks Before Hiring 

Before even hiring your employees, you should be carrying out the appropriate checks to make sure they are trustworthy people, as well as who they say they are. Once you’ve done these checks you can be confident that the person you’ve hired is suitable. This doesn’t mean they won’t ever do anything to harm your business, but it’s definitely a good start. 

Make Sure They Know The Importance Of Passwords 

Every employee should have a secure password that should be updated every year or so, for each different platform. Having a password system in place that stores all of their passwords so they can’t forget them will ensure that the business remains secure. Make it clear how strongly you feel about this. This isn’t a personal attack on them; it’s simply a business owner taking care of their business. 

Choose The People You Give Responsibility To Carefully 

There will likely come a time you have to give somebody more responsibility. Make sure you choose wisely. If you’re thinking of giving somebody the key to your business, make sure you give it to a switched on person so you don’t end up having to call a commercial locksmith company out at a silly time in the morning. The responsibility you give will be entirely dependent on your business and what it entails. 

Make sure only the most trustworthy have things like safe combinations and professionally installed locks. Make sure it’s necessary to give them away before you do too! You shouldn’t be making anybody’s job more difficult, but you should be thinking about your best interests. 

Take a look at a prime example of a business owner going the wrong way about this. Sammy, one of the owners of Amy’s Baking Company, wouldn’t even let waitresses use the till. They would have to go to him and tell him the orders one by one, and he would put them in himself, often making mistakes and doing so slowly. The whole business is a complete lesson on what not to do - check out Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares to see for yourself. 

Remain Consistent 

Consistency with your employees and the things you enforce is a must! You can't say one thing and then do another, or say different things to different people. That’s plain bad management. You need to start off strict but relax the policies slightly if they become too overbearing. 

Ask For Feedback 

How about asking for employee feedback from time to time? There are anonymous systems in business that can be used so they are more likely to tell the truth. Listen to them and make the appropriate changes! 

Final Thoughts

Putting trust in your employees is a must. If you can’t trust them, you shouldn’t have them on board. Plus you can't grow your business very large if you only work by yourself. If something happens to you without employee backup, your business is toast!


I hope you enjoyed this article about how you can train and trust your employees while you take care of the key business.

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Instagram Marketing Guide For Social Selling Success

No matter the size of your brand or business, social media marketing is an essential tool for modern businesses to be using today. And if you're going to utilize social selling Instagram needs to be a major pillar of your social strategy. There are over 1 BILLION users on Instagram, around 500 million of which are using the application every single day. With all of these users, there are over 300 million pieces of brand new content being shared on the platform each day. Instagram has left Snapchat and Twitter in the dust over the past couple years, even cannibalizing some of Facebook's own younger user base in the process. Instagram is now truly the choice of Millennials and Generation Z alike after a Snapchat plateau.

This is truly astounding and provides unique digital marketing opportunities to businesses that were previously not available. No matter who your audience is, it is likely that they are now on Instagram. 

So what's the problem with IG? 

With all of these millions of users and millions of posts, it can be quite difficult to ensure that your content is seen by your target audience. However, Instagram is one of the best places to grow your reach, engage your target audience, and most importantly convert them into paying customers. 

With a few strategic efforts and a well curated feed, your business or brand can certainly benefit from the social media platform. Read through this complete guide to get started on your Instagram marketing strategy. 

1. Who Is On Instagram & Should You Be Too? 

Before beginning your marketing strategy, you must first understand the audience that currently uses Instagram. The majority, about 65 percent, of Instagram users are female. Over 85 percent of them are under the age of 50 and 80 percent of them are outside of the US. If your target audience is young and female with disposable income, then this is precisely the marketing tool that your business should be using. 

Even if you are not targeting that exact demographic, it is still worthwhile to set up an Instagram marketing strategy in order to attract new customers from all over the world. The younger generation always leads the older generations into the latest trends, so your target population will likely end up on the platform eventually. 

2. How To Select A Username And Account Name 

While this may sound reductive in your overall marketing strategy, it is worth noting that your Instagram account profile could potentially attract customers from the web rather than the platform. Your username handle is what begins with the “@” symbol. Make your username your brand or business name for the sake of consistency.  For your listed name, however, it is better to strategically place a few keywords into the name. This will help attract users from general searches on the web, thus increasing your exposure even further. Keep the principles of SEO in mind during your account creation.

For example, if you have a flower shop in Denver, Colorado named Flowers For You, then you have an excellent opportunity to plug some keywords into your profile. Your username handle would be @flowersforyou and your profile name would be listed as “Best Flower Shop in Denver”. This is likely the exact phrase that internet users will be using to search for a flower shop in the area. By making your name the exact phrase that people are searching for, they are more likely to discover your account. 

3. How To Scale Your Instagram Account 

As soon as you create your Instagram account, spend a little bit of time researching your niche market. Look for Instagram users within your niche that have over 10,000 Instagram followers and study their content. If their Instagram followers are highly engaged with the content, that means that whatever their strategy is, it is working. 

As a new brand or business on Instagram, it is best to emulate brands that are already successful on the platform because you already know that your target audience likes it and will be ready to engage and grow your following. But also make sure to inject your own personality and ideas on how to improve on your peers' strategies.

Growing your Instagram account following is easier said than done and it shouldn't be taken for granted. It depends on a variety of factors including the momentum that the Instagram account is enjoying or avoiding. No account automatically increases their follower count unless you’re using a black / gray hat software program that adds low quality or bot accounts. There is no guarantee of any follower increase on any account, but for most healthy accounts there would most likely be a daily or weekly organic increase in followers. But an IG account that isn’t posting very often, posting poor content, or even posting too frequently could actually lose dozens of followers each day. This is especially true if some of their followers are low quality or spam accounts.

4. Optimize Your Instagram profile 

In addition to placing some quality keywords within your profile, you must also create a bio / description that will help convert viewers into followers. The description should be personal to your brand and represent exactly what your business provide to its customers. You could even include your other Instagram handles and/or other social media handles like Snapchat and Twitter. Hashtags are also able to be utilized in your profile to help your profile be found a little easier or for increased branding potential.

Your profile picture should be with your logo or mascot so that way users can immediately recognize your brand. It needs to be high resolution and fitted correctly to the circle frame available. Your link should be relevant to your current campaigns or products. It is a great place to put a link to your latest blog post, giveaway, or landing page. Use it wisely. Utilize a shortened trackable link if you'd like for additional analytics. 

5. Creating Your Content Marketing Strategy 

Before you begin posting content, you must first create a few specific marketing goals. Setting goals at the beginning of the process will help you clearly define your content strategy for the future. Some common business goals may be to get Instagram followers, build brand awareness, get more leads to your website, drive direct sales, or build brand loyalty. Though each of these overlap in some capacity, they will be guided by different strategies. Instagram is usually just a small piece of an overall social media and digital marketing strategy but for some select influencers it is their entire strategy and they can't afford to make many mistakes. 

6. Creating A Content Plan 

Now that you’ve got everything set up, it is time to create a content plan. Before you begin, however, you need to be clear on what kind of content you’d like to put out. Many brands blatantly focus on their products, but that is not necessarily the best strategy for everyone. Sometimes a more subtle approach is best. Other brands like to promote building community, in which case user-generated content may be best. Some user-generated content might be best achieved with influencer partnerships. If you are going to be utilizing Instagram Ads then you may need to modify your content calendar accordingly. Don't forget about daily or weekly stories as well, which can even end up getting more views and engagement then actual posts these days.

By understanding the goals of your Instagram account, you can better decide which type of content works well to serve that. Trial and error is always required at least to an extent but the more you research a content plan the better your results will be.

7. Finding Your Best Frequency & Timing On Instagram 

One of the easiest ways to ensure that your audience engages with your content is by posting when they are most likely to see it. You can first achieve this by posting consistently, with daily posting habits being optimal. The second way to do this is to convert your Instagram personal account to a business account (if you haven't done so already) and utilize the Insights feature within the app. This will show you the best days and times to post your content according to when your audience is most active. 

As a general rule, Mondays and Thursday tend to drive the most engagement. The best time of day to post is usually early in the morning, Eastern time (in the US). Even so, you must check in on your posts and see which posts get the most engagement. Whatever works well for you, do more of it! 

But despite some of the data available and expert articles out there declaring optimal days / hours, your social sharing schedule will really depend on your business and location. Trial and error along with data analytics is the only true way to know which time frames are most productive. 

Digital services like HootSuite and SocialOomph can be very helpful when it comes to scheduling social media posts for hours when you are busy, asleep, traveling, working, etc.

8. Tips To Help Increase Your Growth & Engagement 

The easiest and most efficient way to get Instagram followers and boost engagement is by interacting with your target audience. This includes liking, commenting, and following users within your target niche as much as possible. Because most people, business owners or otherwise, simply don’t have time to do that, an automation tool may be helpful. Growr is one such service that automatically likes and follows users within your niche market for you. This targeted engagement helps users discover your brand and become loyal Instagram followers, naturally. Also, the more accounts you follow and interact with the more accounts will engage with you on average.

9. Measuring Your Results 

Perhaps the most important tactic of all is to continuously monitor your results. Try to better understand which types of posts your target audience responds best to. This could be in the form of videos, block quotes, GIFs, user-generated content, or simple photos. Pay attention to which hashtags receive the most attention, which captions bring about the most engagement, and which filters garner the most like. Post at times that have been successful for you in the past and engage with your community regularly. 

10. Get Your Account Verified 

This is by far the most challenging suggestion on this list. Getting verified on Instagram for most individuals and businesses is much more difficult than getting verified on Facebook and Twitter. It appears that Facebook (owner of Instagram) realized that they verified too many mediocre pages, and Twitter even more so, that they wanted to keep Instagram's verified blue check a much more select seal of approval. If you are a large corporation, have a large ad budget, or have a connection that will listen to you at Facebook headquarters then you might be able to earn a verification if you're close. Other than that the only real way to get verified is to become so popular on Instagram and create so much valuable content that they won't be able to ignore you any longer. 

Start Selling More On Instagram Social Media

Social media marketing is a give and take between testing new strategies out and then adjusting your approach accordingly. If you would like to have a successful Instagram marketing campaign, you must give your target audience exactly what they are looking for. The more comfortable you get with your Instagram account in these ways, the more complex your strategy will become. For now, however, this is an excellent place to begin. Good luck and see you on the 'gram!


I hope you enjoyed this article about everything you need to know about social media marketing on Instagram.

Interested in more articles about social selling?

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Keep Cash Flow High: How To Reduce Costs At Your Small Business

Lack of cash flow can cripple a small business whether it is due to a client’s refusal to pay or mismanagement of funds. For the most part a lack of cash flow is due to lack of accurate forecasting as well as spending money in areas that do not have a high ROI. The best thing that a company can do when it comes to finances is to list out all monthly expenditures. There will be certain costs that might need to be paid monthly but rather quarterly or biannually. Expenses like these also need to be considered as forgetting to list these can lead to a company taking out high interest loans to stock inventory needed to continue business as a healthy rate. 

Reduce Shipping Costs 

Shipping can be a large expense depending on the amount of products being shipped monthly. Being able to save money on an expense daily will add up immensely as well as increase profit margins. BluePostal, a shipping company in the Bahamas notes “Many U.S. online retailers and auction site sellers do not ship purchases overseas, charge too much for international shipping, or do not accept international credit cards.” This can alienate an entire demographic of customers as shipping costs can cost more than the product depending on where you are located. With this being said, try out a new shipping company with a small order as the last thing you want is to have orders arrive late for customers that have been loyal for years. 

Allow Certain Employees To Work Remotely 

A monthly expense that can be quite high is rent for a large office space if you do not own your office building. With technology continually improving the ability to connect with people all over the globe it opens up quite a few avenues to save money. Allowing certain employees to work from home will reduce the amount of space needed to conduct business. Being able to save a few extra thousand monthly will add up over the lifetime of the business. Outsourcing certain departments or roles is also recommended as long as you find a professional that does high quality work at a reasonable price. Staffing too many departments can also impact cash flow so instead of having a high priced accounting department, use an accounting company to slash costs while still receiving the same quality of work. 

Attend Industry Events To Garner Large Clients 

Certain industries have conferences where large percentages of companies attend for educational and sales purposes. The high concentration of people can make it easy to get lost in the shuffle so it is important to stand out. The right pitch or business card can do wonders but the importance of meeting a potential client face to face is irreplaceable. Often times these conferences can be attended at a reasonable price and have a much higher ROI than advertising or marketing campaigns. Larger companies are going to want to meet with a potential contractor or business partner in person so this can allow a company to pitch multiple in a day. The other option would be to travel to each client’s location so this is a budget friendly tactic as well. 

Internship To Hire Programs Can Improve Company Hiring Processes 

One aspect of business that devastates cash flow is high employee turnover. It can take thousands of dollars and weeks of training to turn someone into a competent employee. With this investment there still is no guarantee the employee will work out or stay with the company long enough for the business to recoup the investment. Internship to hire programs can increase the quality of hire and also foster employee loyalty. Attracting top talents from universities will be easier than ever as every student dreams of having a job waiting for them after they graduate. This also allows the company to see if the intern is a culture fit and can work without constant supervision. 

Track Data On All Expenses 

Tracking the ROI on expenses needs to be done as it is possible that something like the marketing spend is not yielding results like that of advertising spend. Being able to turn the data on expenses into an actionable plan of saving money and maximizing returns will take time. A company would much rather make a decision on data than a hunch or an emotional response. Numbers do not lie so the translation of the data is what needs to be correct as well as the strategy that is formed from the data. There are a variety of tools that can help with this in nearly every aspect of business. 

Being able to reduce expenses will take a proactive approach but it can increase profits nearly immediately. Do not waste money that could be going back into the company or rewarding employees. Understand where the money is going and how to improve processes to begin saving money.


I hope you enjoyed this blog post about how to improve cash flow and to cut costs at your small business to boost profit margins.

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How Accessible Are Shopping Centres In The UK?

In 2022, the UK’s population peaked at 66 million. Reportedly, 18% of the population were aged 65 and over. With an aging population, are businesses accommodating for elderly people and their differing needs? Similarly, are these retail shops or brick and mortar stores making themselves accessible to those with disabilities? 

Introduction To UK Retail Accessibility

Despite Britain’s disabled population having a spending power of £80bn, many retail stores are inaccessible to many. Some companies are potentially losing out on their share of the weekly £420m in sales by not having wheelchair ramps and access to all floors. 

Reportedly, 18% of the 66 million person population were aged 65 and over. With an aging population, are businesses accommodating for elderly people and their differing needs? Similarly, are they making themselves accessible to those with disabilities? 

Look at the ten biggest shopping centres in the UK and how accessible they are for those with mobility restrictions. The shopping centres considered include: 

• Metrocentre, Gateshead 
• Trafford Centre, Greater Manchester 
• Westfield Stratford City, London 
• Liverpool One, Liverpool 
• Bluewater Shopping Centre, Kent 
• Westfield London, Greater London 
• Merry Hill Centre, West Midlands 
• Meadowhall, Sheffield 
• Manchester Arndale, Manchester 
• Lakeside Shopping Centre, Essex 

Parking 

The Disabled Parking Accreditation (DPA) is aimed at improving parking for disabled people and reducing incidences where non-blue badge holders misuse the designated spaces. The requirements to qualify include parking bays which meet specific dimensions, monitoring of accessible bays and easy entry to the car park. 

Amongst the ten biggest shopping centres in the UK, 40% have received the accreditation amongst which are Metrocentre in Gateshead and Bluewater Shopping Centre in Kent. On the other hand, Merry Hill Centre in the West Midlands is not. 

In fact, disabled parking on-site at many of the big shopping centres is limited. At Manchester Arndale, only 2% of spaces were dedicated to blue badge holders. Likewise, at Meadowhall Sheffield, this number stood at just under 3%. Westfield London shopping centre has 5% of their parking bays dedicated to disabled spaces, which should in theory increase the likelihood of disabled shoppers visiting the premises. 

Mobility Around The Centre 

Those with a long-term disability often bring with them their own wheelchair or walking aids. However, it’s important for shopping centres to offer the facilities to hire this equipment for elderly people who may need some relief from walking around or those who struggle walking long distances. 

All of the big shopping centres offer facilities where it is possible to hire manual or electric wheelchairs or powered scooters. The process in the shopping centres do differ however. In the Trafford Centre, users must pay and expense of £2 per hour for the use of a wheelchair yet in Bluewater Shopping Centre, this cost is £3 for four hours. Lakeside Shopping Centre offers the use of the service entirely for free, as does the Metrocentre. 

Facilities 

A big consideration for disabled people and the elderly is the availability of appropriate toilets in shopping centres. Many people will avoid going certain places with the concern that they won’t have access to the facilities that they need. 

‘Changing places’ are facilities with a large accessible toilet, an adult-size changing bench and a hoist. This avoids people having to lie on toilet floors to be changed and provides enough room for carers to assist someone with going to the toilet comfortably. Unfortunately, there are only just over 1,000 changing places in the UK — yet millions of regular toilets for non-disabled people. There has been some improvement, as there were only 140 of these facilities across the UK in 2007. Only 50 out of around 500 shopping centres have them in the UK, but what about the ten biggest shopping centres? 

Our research found that 90% of the ten biggest shopping centres offer changing places, in fact Westfield Stratford City in London have two. Meadowhall in Sheffield also has accessible shower facilities — a great facility for disabled and elderly people who may be more prone to toilet accidents. 

As well as changing places, the number of disabled toilets that are available is also important. This means that older people or those with disabilities who visit the centres will be in close proximity to a disabled toilet should they need it. It isn't easy to provide greater toilet facilities to retail shop customers because of the increased waste generation and resources needed to maintain them.

In the Metrocentre, there is one disabled toilet point per 48,600 m2 of retail space — the same distribution of regular toilets. In the Trafford Centre however, there is one disabled toilet point per 61,000 m2 of retail space and more regular toilets than disabled. Merry Hill have one per 21,666 m2 — providing disabled people with easier access to the facilities that they need. 

Final Thoughts On Shopping Centre Accessibility

As we can see, there is still work to be done when it comes to giving disabled and elderly people the equal opportunities of non-disabled people when shopping. There are many things that all shopping centres should certainly consider implementing to improve the experience of disabled and elderly shoppers — including additional disabled toilets, changing places, ramps and more. 


I hope you enjoyed this blog post about how accessible shopping centres are in the United Kingdom for customers and tourists.

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Can Businesses Achieve A Zero Waste To Landfill Target?

When dealing with and disposing of waste, waste hierarchy systems were introduced a decade ago in order to reduce the amount of waste arriving at landfill sites. These rules suggest that all organisations who deal with waste should dispose of it in an environmentally friendly way. 

Now, the linear ‘take, make, dispose’ economic model — a system relying on substantial quantities of cheap and easily accessible materials and energy — is reaching its physical limitations and deemed unsustainable. 

It appears that action is now being taken. By 2022, as part of their Zero Waste Regulations, Scotland has placed a landfill ban on municipal biodegradable waste; in the UK, this is the first ban of its kind, which could see England and Northern Ireland following suit shortly afterwards. 

Even though the UK has made efforts to cut food waste by 15% before 2022, food waste has actually risen 4.4% between 2012 and 2021. Now, the question still remains, how can the UK achieve a zero waste to landfill target? Reconomy, providers of 8 yard skip hire for commercial waste, explore whether this proposal can ever be achieved. 

How Is Zero Waste To Landfill Defined? 

To ensure that no waste arrives at a landfill site, the target stipulates that all waste is recycled. Instead, these materials may be recycled in different ways, reused or converted into energy. If recycling is the method used, the materials involved are as follows: 

• Cardboard. This is recycled in a paper mill. 
• Glass. This is melted down and then created into new glass products and containers. 
• Plastic. This is recycled and made into new packaging. 
• Food. This waste is sent to be used as compost. 
• Organic material waste 

Organic waste can be broken down through a process known as anaerobic digestion. This is the breakdown of organic material by micro-organisms when oxygen isn’t present. Such a method sees the methane-rich gas biogas being produced, which can then be used as a fuel and a digestate — a source of nutrients that can be used as a fertiliser. 

Gasification and incineration are both used as processes to help recover energy from materials that can’t be recycled. 

To ensure that all waste streams arrive at the correct recycling facility, audit trails need to be established within a business to help monitor where waste goes. If they can’t be tracked, then the zero waste to landfill label cannot be attributed to that organisation’s waste, which is why tracking is so important within this process. 

One problem with this is that tracking systems can often be costly and time consuming within a business. Also, while using a Northern Mat & Bridge Swamp Mat (link here) can make sorting out rubbish easier in a landfill, it is still an expensive and time-consuming process. This then, casts doubt on whether organisations through the UK, and the world, are able to direct all of their waste streams to recyclable solutions. 

Zero Waste To Landfill Targets: How Can businesses Benefit? 

At the standard rate, landfill tax now costs £82.60 per tonne of waste. This drives the incentive for businesses to reduce their waste sent to landfill as not only does it benefit the environment, it also saves them money. 

Between 2012 and 2022, the total amount of commercial and industrial waste that was produced in the UK was reduced by over 5 million tonnes. This suggests that taxation appears to be working, due to the fact a reduction of 15% was achieved in two years. 

Businesses could be set to gain the following benefits if they reduce their waste streams further: 

• Meeting legal requirements. Organisations need to ensure that they are contributing a percentage of their organic and chemical waste away from landfill, if they aren’t, they may not be meeting legal requirements. 

• Improved environmental performance. By ensuring that waste is recycled, organisations can become responsible for positive change by reducing the rate and speed of climate change. 

• Competitive edge. If an organisation is recycling more than their main competitors, then that organisation is at an advantage in terms of lower landfill tax rates – and public reputation. 

What Does Zero Waste To Landfill Actually Mean? 

For large-scale businesses, it is often the case that this is a philosophy to strive towards as opposed to a reality. 

The industrial processes (like those performed by Filter Vac http://filtervac.com/product/transformer-oil-solutions/ecoil-stationary-transformer-oil-regeneration-system-model-ecoil-srs/), materials, business models, regulations and public infrastructures do not yet exist for this to be workable, but if these individual aspects were to be improved, then this longer-term ambition may be realised. This is, however, a two-way solution – as businesses need to eliminate their waste that comes from suppliers – whilst making sure that waste isn’t produced during manufacturing and when products and services are passed onto customers and clients. 

What also needs to be considered is that during incineration, ash is created – which is also waste. Organizations need top tools to accurately measure these processes like those from Durham Instruments http://www.disensors.com/products.aspx?id=20. Clearly, more needs to be done to innovate these processes in the long term, so that zero waste to landfill rates can be achieved in this lifetime. 

How can circular economies help? The ‘take, make, dispose’ economic model can be counteracted with a moving circular economic policy. 

Including the creation of energy from more renewable and efficient sources, there are many benefits to a circular economy. However, in the goal to achieving zero waste to landfill figures, a circular economy will mean that waste will not exist. This is because a product’s biological and technical components will be designed with the intention of fitting within a biological and technical materials cycle. 

Improve ESG For Lower Landfill

Circular economies are beginning to change the way businesses operate, and evidence of this is starting to be seen across the globe. In the Netherlands, for example, around 16% of the new stream of products being introduced to the metal and electrical sectors were items which had either been repaired or reused. Further afield, China has been running mandatory energy saving and pollution reduction programmes nationwide since 2006. These are in place to address issues with what researchers in the country have referred to as ‘low resource efficiency’ and ‘high pollution levels’ as they try to make greater strides in 2022 and 2023 despite the obstacles we are all facing globally. 


I hope you enjoyed this blog post about how businesses can achieve a zero waste to landfill target to improve corporate sustainability.

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