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Smoke and Mirrors – 5 Secrets to Making Your Small Business Look Great

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Photo by William Iven on Unsplash

Every business has to start somewhere. Even with a limited budget you still need to make your business appealing to customers. Without a façade that screams “I’m successful,” you risk appearing unprofessional and inexperienced. Here are five secrets to making your small business look the part even as you’re finding your feet in your chosen market:

Think Smart with Offices

Where you work can make a difference to the appeal of your business. Therefore, there’s every reason to consider serviced offices or virtual offices when you’re looking for suitable premises. A serviced office in a premium location can offer a sense of professionalism while still being affordable. The best part about a serviced office is you can utilize WiFi, reception services, office furniture and more, all built into one convenient weekly or monthly cost.

Virtual offices, on the other hand, are perfect for small businesses operating from home. You can benefit from an official business address and phone number, with forwarding services directing it to your home. No one need ever know you don’t work in a premium location.

Go Professional with Design

The worst thing you can do when you’re trying to launch a business is skimp on design. As IBM president Thomas Watson Jr. once said, good design is good business. If you create a logo on your own, you risk plastering your business with an unprofessional image that you can’t shake. The result? Wariness from potential customers who may otherwise have purchased your products if your image appeared more appealing.

Get Creative with Marketing

When you launch a new business, it can be challenging to get the word out. While you may have hoped that by merely by opening your doors the customers will come flocking, that’s often not the case. To put your business in a league of its own, you need to get creative with marketing. Offer your customers a solution to their problems in an “out of the box” way and ensure your business branding is everywhere.

To do so professionally, you may need to call upon the expertise of a marketing consultant. They can help you to understand where you need to market yourself, how best to approach your audience, as well as whom you should target. Hitting the bullseye with a killer campaign can be all it takes to get customers rolling through your doors.

Know Your Competition

There is a high chance that you are entering the world of business with a fair amount of competition. For example, if you’ve opened a new restaurant, there’s a good chance there will be at least a handful of restaurants nearby. Therefore, when you hit the market, you need to watch your competition like a hawk.

Find out what they are doing successfully and where they’re weak. By doing so, you can establish your business model with a competitive edge. Do it differently, do it better and your business is going to look far more successful to the general public.

Encourage Online Reviews

More and more people are turning to online reviews as their primary source of information about a new business. The more positive reviews your venture has, the better it is for your image. As a trickle of customers slowly comes through, encourage them to review the service you provided. You can even offer incentives for them to do so – such as discounts on their next purchase.

Your business isn’t going to look the part without a little effort and planning. While you might have a limited budget, there are so many things you can do to present your business to the public in a favorable light without breaking the bank.

Is Genesis Studiopress Websites a good choice for small business

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When you have 20 + websites that you manage for yourself, you end up learning a lot about web design, wordpress themes, installing and fixing websites and practising SEO.

studiopress + genesis framework

Today I am reviewing an awesome wordpress theme provider. I signed up with them, earlier on last year and since then, I have used their themes on five of my new and existing websites.

Yup I actually removed the old wordpress theme and installed the Studiopress – Genesis themes. Why because I noticed a good change (increase) in traffic and speed after swapping the old theme with the new studiopress theme on one of my websites.

I will even show you an example of one of my sites – check it out

I used to use  solostream wordpress theme for my  blog website and also continue to use elegant themes on some other websites, but I can tell you that studiopress is my new go to for the professional looking wordpress design and inbuilt SEO.

 

Why studiopress themes for WordPress?

I can sum it up in just one word, because they are “Awesome”, but I am sure you would want more than that fi you are also looking to change to something better – so here is a list of what I liked.

Professional looking design

All thier themes look slick and professional to the eye. The theme/template design potrays a website with quality and professionalism.

Mai Lifestyle Pro Theme by genesis

Maipro Lifestyle and wellness theme by studiopress

 

Multiple themes available

I purchased the lifetime membership which is the best value in my humble opinion. You get access to many different kind of themes, recipe theme, agency theme, portfolio theme, news theme, fashion blog theme and many more.

The themes are provided by studiopress themselves and many themes are now also by approved third party theme makers.

 

Quality and speed

A well coded theme means quality and speed and that is what studiopress gives you. Thier WP themes have been coded by the best programmers specifically focussing on speed and clean certified code without any errors. This also ensures that your website theme does not slow down your hosting servers.

 

Modern html markup

The theme structure is streamlined and the design uses php and also the latest html 5 to bring out the best in design quality.

 

WordPress plugins support

When you purchase a theme from them, you automatically get free custom plugins to support and further enhance your theme design with sliders, featured posts and more.

They also have some custom paid plugins if you need to do in-depth customization of your templates.

Genesis framework and child themes

If you dont know much about the concept of child themes, then this is how it works – You have the main theme which is the base theme or framework (Genesis) in this case and then you have the child theme – the studiopress wp theme templates.

The base theme or genesis framework holds the basic information/structure of the website and so even if you change design/templates you dont lose much information due to your themes being the child theme for the framework.

In simple terms you get a robust base framework and less chances of losing data with change in templates/themes.

 

Modern and responsive

All the themes provided are fully responsive and work well on desktops, tablets and mobile. The designs are made using modern concepts and trends to display fluid design and flow.

 

Inbuilt seo

seo settings genesis2 reduced

Who doesnt like a template with good inbuilt seo. I have been using these themes for a while now and I do know you can rank websites based solely with the inbuilt seo functions, with no need for third party SEO plugins. This one is a prime example of this. This framework reduces your load of work for onpage seo.

Genesis isn’t cluttered with unnecessary options either, which can often cause slow load times with other standard wordpress themes.

To get their lifetime pro plus package, which is what I recommend even though its a bit pricey – Its worth it . Check out the deal here

If you are on a budget then you could just  go with the single theme that costs anywhere from $99 to 129

 

Frequently asked Questions about Genesis Themes

 

Is it easy to download and customize studio press themes?

It is easy to download and upload a theme to your wordpress blog. For customising your theme they provide you detailed setup guides to make your website just like the demo theme. They also provide extensive code snippets guides with code samples which you can copy and paste to further customise certain sections of your website. In certain cases you might need a coder to change things, but you can always contact their support in the first instance.

Can I use the purchased theme on multiple websites?

You can use any theme package you purchase as many times as you’d like, on as many websites as you desire. The purchase of theme packages allows you lifetime use of the themes and lifetime support for the original purchaser. In other words, they do not restrict your use to a specific number of sites, or a specific period of time in which they can be used.

 

Do I have to repurchase genesis framework for buying second theme?

The genesis framework theme is a onetime purchase if you purchase it by itself. You get this free anyway if you purchase a studiopress child theme. Once you have it, you are free to use it with any third party compatible theme.

 

Studiopress genesis launches hosting with wordpress

Now you can get the best of both wordpress themes and webhosting with genesis studiopress entering the hosting business. The first bonus that caught my eye had to be the free lets encrpyt (https) and the free migration of your website, but they do have more bonuses. Studiopress Genesis themes have long been known for thier robust fast loading and superior quality wp themes. That is also the reason why you pay more for them.

the 24 a month plan with studiopress

Their budget hosting plan starts at$24 a month (with bonus 24 studiopress premium themes included)

With thier new hosting plans, you can get both the theme and website at the same place, and get your website started quickly and easily.These plans are best suited for serious bloggers, affiliate marketersand people starting new small business websites.

 

You could try studiopress by purchasing a single theme (anywhere between $99 to $129 with genesis framework) or get the plus package including all the themes. But, there’s something to be said about buying the Pro Plus All Theme Package because you don’t have to pay again. Ever.

Summary

The best thing I like about the themes is you can just download a theme in minutes, upload it to your server in a flash and get it all set up in half an hour with thier free set up tutorials and plugins. Now all you need to do is focus on writing content for your good looking website. This is a real time saver possibly not only for developers who do this regularly, but also for bloggers like me.

 

get wp themes with hosting

 

Review  by Jeff for http://www.wordpressaustralia.com.au/blog/

How to Use Business Debt to Your Advantage

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Image: http://9928-presscdn-0-75.pagely.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/debt-consolidation.jpg

Debt is good. While this idea seems to go against common financial wisdom, in some cases, debt can be advantageous. The most nightmarish stories involve would-be entrepreneurs trying to establish their start-up in a market only to find themselves drowning in debt, whether the business is a good idea or not.

Using debt does not have to end with your business going under or you incurring a ridiculous amount of unmanageable debt. With a strategic plan that has a manageable budget, business owners can find incurring debt can work to their advantage. Whether standing on solid financial ground or trying to navigate the sometimes tricky business landscape, certain types of debt can be used in positive ways to save you money.

For ways to use debt to your advantage, keep reading below.

More Freedom

While in the midst of financial misery, debt consolidation loans from Latitude and other loan programs offer businesses teetering on the verge of collapse more autonomy. Typically, the ideal loan would allow a person low monthly payments with a low interest rate, something many consolidations loans offer their clients. More importantly, though, consolidation loan programs offer business owners a little more autonomy.

The alternative for business owners would be to seek funding from angel investors or others, but that would reduce the amount of control you have over your business. In situations where your business finances have been overextended, a consolidation loan provides you with a little more control over the everyday operations of your company, and more significantly, you retain full ownership of the business.

Certain industries like manufacturing and retail also benefit in terms of taking on financing. By virtue of the fact that materials have to be purchased to make products, financing these costs allows business owners a little more autonomy. In fact, when demand increases, financing is a realistic solution.

Tax Advantages

One of the major ways debt can be used to your advantage is in terms of offsetting tax liability. Lucky for you, the Australian government offers business owners the advantage of writing off several types of finance-related charges. Some debts that can be deducted include bad debts, credit card charges, and banking fees and charges. You can even deduct the amount paid from leasing an office for the purpose of running your business. In just tax deductions alone, businesses owners save thousands of dollars at the end of the year.

Lower Interest Rate

After completing your taxes, compare the percentage you paid in taxes with the percentage of interest you paid to the bank. Incidentally, this is a lot easier to figure with one loan as opposed to trying to figure out a percentage for multiple loans.

However, depending on the rate of your loan, you can find that debt works to your advantage in terms of the impact your tax deductions have on your interest rate or rates. At the end of the year, if the percentage of your business income you pay is less than or equal to the percentage of income your business pays in taxes, this is one way debt will have worked to your advantage.

Predictability

One of the best ways to use debt to your advantage debt is to use the fact that most loan terms are predictable. This predictability allows you to plan for the future, whether you plan to relocate or expand. Most financial institutions provide business owners with financing solutions that allow them to plan for long-, mid-, to short-term goals.

Using a Disadvantage to Your Advantage

Common financial wisdom dictates that debt-free is the ideal goal most businesses should achieve. However, if you are just starting your business or find yourself in a place where financing is mandatory for growth, debt becomes a necessary evil, maybe. Ultimately, debt can be used in some cases to offset tax liability while in the long run giving your business the autonomy it needs to thrive.

Smart Tips to Foster a Promising Relationship with Your Channel Partners

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customer service 2017

Your channel partners play a key role in how your products perform in the retail markets. Since most channel partners sell multiple products including your competitors’, in the general consumer markets, you cannot take them for granted at all. Channel partners can literally make or break your sales.

If you want to meet your sales goals and increase profits, you need to have a sound relationship with your channel partners. Here are some essential tips to improve channel partner relationship and uplift your profits and sales.

  • Let Them Decide on the Margins

Business relationships with your channel partners are all about preserving your business interests and profit goals. Establishing a strategic relationship with your channel partners requires extensive working to settle on agreed terms that reap mutually beneficial benefits.

Channel partners seek to establish partnerships with businesses that offer flexibility, convenience as well as optimal profitability. Businesses on the other hand demand smooth and efficient distribution of their products and the accomplishment of targeted sales objectives. A better idea is to let the channel partners decide on the profit margins and discount strategies that also complement your business objectives.

  • Get Them On Board in Campaigns

solutions for your company channels

Involving your channel partners in designing sales-oriented promotional campaigns is a good strategy to boost your sales. Channel partners being the intermediaries between the business and retail markets have a better understanding of consumer’s preferences and the factors that influence their purchase decisions.

Getting them on board to devise short-term strategies to increase sales is a good approach to create on-point promotion campaigns that hit just the right notes and accomplish the goals. This will also instil confidence and trust between you and your channel partners.

  • Ensure Instant Resolution of Errors and Conflicts

Errors, setbacks, and conflicts are the common occupational hazards that come along with the advantages of a business partnership. Make it a point to keep a regular check on the scheme of things and regular operations. This will help you identify any issue or conflict related to price or distribution mechanism and makes it convenient for you to troubleshoot in a timely manner.

  • Conduct Periodic Consultation

In order to foster a profitable and lasting relationship with your channel partners, you need to have an insight into your channel partner’s opinions, concerns, and perception about your business. Conduct regular meetings, and ask them for their opinion on how they think the relationship can be improved.

Devise a comprehensive channel partner program and offer incentives, recognition, and rewards. Certain automated, cloud-based programs such as Power2Motivate make it convenient for you to establish a platform to improve your relationship with channel partners and seek an accelerated business sales.

  • Seek Lasting Relationships

Switching between the various vendors, distributors and channel partners will only bring you a bad repute in the market. It will negatively affect your credibility and revoke the top vendors and distributors from establishing a partnership with your business.

Do a thorough research and analyse your option before establishing a sales partnership. Once you have made the deal, you must focus on how you can sustain it for long term prospects.

Small Business

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You can choose to set up a customised bookkeeping system manually using accounting books cds , electronically via spreadsheets and cloud  or use simple  accounting software

Here is a list of Accounting software for Small businesses  to be compliant with ATO accounting methods according to ato website.

accounting software reviews australia

There are many software packages on the market that allow small business  to successfully control accounts and records without an accounting qualification.

Below accounting software is intended to be developed , keeping in mind the ato accounting guidelines.

accounting software australia calculator

Building and construction industry

As part of the 2011-12 Federal Budget, the government announced the introduction of taxable payments reporting for businesses in the building and construction industry.

The Taxable payments annual report will be required to be submitted by those businesses in the building and construction industry that have paid contractors for building and construction services

From 1 July 2012, businesses in the building and construction industry need to report the total payments they make to each contractor for building and construction services each year. You need to report these payments to us on the Taxable payments annual report.

A list of those developers who have registered their intent supporting the new Taxable payments annual report in their products for the 2012-13 financial year below

Small business accounting software

Accentis Enterprise

Web Address
http://www.accentis.com.au

Description

Accentis Enterprise is a fully-integrated accounting, business management and manufacturing system (ERP/MRP) suitable for businesses having between 2 and 100+ users. Designed for small to medium-sized businesses who have outgrown their off-the-shelf system, Accentis Enterprise is fully designed, manufactured and supported in Australia and has been tailored to suit Australian business who need an affordable, feature-rich and flexible business management solution.

All modules are designed as part of Accentis Enterprise, not third-party add-ons, and include:

– General ledger & financials
– Customers, receivables and Customer Relationship management (CRM)
– Suppliers, payables and Supply Chain Management (SCM)
– Inventory management & warehousing
– Job costing
– Manufacturing (kitting, BOMs, MRP)
– Payroll & Human Resources
– Fixed Assets
– Reporting (over 500 standard reports, all customisable)

MYOB AccountRight Enterprise

Description

Business intelligence and accounting software.
Like AccountRight Premier only more advanced. Use MYOB AccountRight Enterprise (formerly MYOB Premier Enterprise) to drill down to your accounts, payroll and warehouses from wherever you are using Terminal Services. It really does take your numbers to the big stage. It also comes with a 12 month membership to MYOB Cover.

 Xero.com

join for free trail 1

If you want  you can also Try the Demo Company (AU)  and have a play, try out new features and get familiar with Xero, before actually buying – but i would suggest just  getting the free trial first is better which can be done in a few steps (takes 5 minutes) as shown above and giving it a go.

 

 

 

Accrivia

Web Address
http://www.accrivia.com.au

Description

The Accrivia software package offers a range of accounting and operational modules software  (including General Ledger, Cashbook, Payroll, Debtors, Creditors, Jobs / Projects, Inventory and Web Interfacing) and caters for small and medium businesses that require more than an ‘off the shelf’ accounting package.

QuickBooks 2012-13

Web Address
http://www.reckon.com.au

Description

QuickBooks 2012-13 allows access for up to 30 users simultaneously (depending on version used) and includes a comprehensive payroll module, industry specific editions, accounting reports and multi-user capability. QuickBooks 2012-13 also includes the ability to submit your BAS return via the Standard Business Reporting online system.

Classic Software

Web Address
http://classicinfo.com.au

Description

ERP Software for the Mining, Exploration and Oil & Gas Industries

ClearAccounts

Web Address
http://www.clearsoftware.com.au

Description

ClearAccounts is a complete windows based multi-user accounting system designed with flexibility for medium to large size companies, compliant with ATO regulations. The core modules include Debtors, Inventory, Creditors (Cashbook), and General Ledger and can include Purchase Orders, Sales Orders, Payroll, Job Costing, Bill of Materials (Kits), Fixed Assets, Sales Quotes, Foreign Shipping, Overseas Creditors, Colour Selections (Tiles), Point of Sale and Masterviews & Charts, fully integrated. ClearAccounts includes electronic creditors payments bank file creation, electronic filing of BAS, bulk emailing facilities and can have custom modifications to meet specific company requirements

Arrow Financials

Web Address
http://www.arrow.net.au

Description

Arrow Financials delivers to businesses timely and accurate information, smart drill downs menus, extensive audit trails, real time interactivity for immediate data update and response. Arrow Financials is modular in its design, which enables you to select the modules in a combination that best meets your individual business requirements. Available modules include Arrow Financials include: Cashbook, Debtors, Creditors, General Ledger, Job/Time Costing, Fixed Assets, Payroll, Purchase Orders, Sales Orders, Stock, Bill of Materials, Foreign Currency, Multi-Company, Security Matrix, Special Pricing Matrix, Front Counter, Serial Batch Tracking, Advanced Sales Analysis.

Tax Assistant

Web Address
http://www.softassist.com.au

Description

Preparation and electronic lodgement of all tax forms 2001 to 2013.
Tax Assistant integ

Attaché Accounts

Web Address
http://attachesoftware.com

Description

Attaché Accounts software is aimed at small to medium businesses that have outgrown off-the-shelf packages and require better network performance, customisation and control. Operational benefits include faster order processing, more flexible pricing, improved stock control and warehouse management, faster debtor payment and advanced reporting. In addition, Attaché Accounts provides specialist solutions such as CRM, Job Costing, Manufacturing and electronic document delivery. Attaché Accounts has no large upfront software payment, just a low monthly amount, and you can scale the software (up to 100 users) to match your growth

Interactive Accounts Manager [IAM]

Web Address
http://iam-online.com.au

Description

Web based online accounting software produces standard reports & SBR reports. The user can interact with their accounting professional well within the software.
This is an ideal software for ABN contractors, Sole traders and micro & small businesses.

E-record replacement

Software to replace E-record software  download is  over here

More information here http://www.ato.gov.au/businesses/paymentsreporting

Important factors to consider before buying a Hosted PBX phone system

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EPABX Telecom System

With global internet speeds increasing & dependability on communications so prevalent, many organizations are considering making the move to a VoIP phone system. Hosted PBX is a type of VoIP system that allows a business to eliminate expensive, on-site phone system hardware and utilize cloud PBX infrastructure to run their phone system. Moving to this type of service has many benefits along with its associated risks. When implemented correctly, a Hosted PBX phone system can significantly improve the way an organization communicates & reduce expenditure by up to 50%.

Below are 5 key questions to ask your supplier when you are evaluating the transition to a Hosted PBX phone system.

 

  1. How secure is the VoIP system?

As Hosted PBX phone systems are located on servers on the internet, they can be prime targets for hackers. If the system is not properly protected, an intruder is able to make calls from your phone system and run up massive costs in a very short period of time by calling international premium phone numbers. If you are considering a Hosted PBX solution, it is essential to make sure the security measures of your VoIP provider are up-to-date and that they have state-of-the art hardware and software firewalls in place to protect your system from unwanted intruders.

 

  1. Are your current phone requirements supported?

Even though VoIP phones have more features that traditional phones, sometimes the VoIP phones will not support simply functions that you use on your current PABX phone system. Ask your supplier if their Hosted PBX platform supports functionality such as call parking, BLF (Busy Lamp Field) indicators on phones, intercom functionality and call queuing. These are basic functions that 20-year-old PABX phone systems can support, yet some Hosted systems cannot replicate. Request a demo of the proposed phone system so you can try before you buy.

 

  1. Is faxing supported on VoIP?

Sending & receiving faxes over VoIP technology can be both challenging and erratic. Fax technology was only designed with analog networks in mind. If faxing is essential in your business make sure you have a fax service that will work over VoIP and work the way you need it to. Some suppliers provide an ATA (analogue telephone adapter) that works with your existing fax machine while others provide full cloud fax solutions. Understand how faxes work over VoIP with your provider prior to switching.

  1. What happens if the system goes down?

If the Hosted PBX provider’s system is not available, your phones will not be able to access the system at all. This means you will not be able to make or receive calls. Missed calls can cost an organization millions of dollars of lost revenue depending on how long the system may be down. However, in the event of a system outage Hosted PBX systems have unique & flexible abilities to automatically forward calls to another network, such as a mobile phone or backup PSTN service. It is important to find out what backup measures are offered by your provider for in the event of an outage. A total internet network outage maybe be when there is a local power failure, or a physical on-site hardware fails or potentially when the provider’s system/server goes down. Automatic failovers are essential for continued operations when running a Hosted PBX.

 

  1. Can the system be scaled or upgraded?

One huge benefit of a Hosted PBX system is that there are often no restrictions to how big or small your system can scale to. Providers will structure their plans and infrastructure differently so ask them what restrictions there are on extensions & simultaneous calls. Make sure you think ahead because how you communicate today is completely different to how you communicated 3 years ago, and it will be completely different in another 3 years’ time.

Setting up an office in Australia and what you need

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finding office space in australia

Looking to start your own office, but don’t know where to go. Luckily there are office solutions that exist that can help you in this area and find you the right office space for your business. Australia is a growing economy with companies in many sectors like oil and gas, mining, start up and tech companies emerging every day. The bustling economy is supported by the rapid pace of its growing population.

With the rapid growth comes the needs for more space for small offices, big offices and also serviced or executive offices where a business does not have to do much but just find or rent out a fully equipped office.

Finding the right office space can be a tedious job, because different kind of offices has different kind of requirements, a clinic office would have different requirements to a start-up technology office or an offshore oil and gas setting up a local office in your country. Different factors need to be taken into account like locations of the office, transport to office, parking availability, disabled access, security etc.

Office spaces can often also vary in prices with its proximity to the capital CBD or if it is then based in the suburbs. CBD office spaces normally tend to be higher in rent compared to office space in the suburbs. Real estate brokers or custom agents for office space would be able to give you an idea of what is most suitable to your budget and find you the right listings to choose from.

Modern office agents not only find the right space for you knew office but also manage/organise the leasing and finance to get your new office started up quickly. Top commercial office agents like CBRE, Knight Frank and Collier International often provide office space for sale or on an auction , but are not focussed on setting up an executive office as per your needs or then a serviced office for a small or medium business.

They are different commercial websites that provide listing of office space available in auction and for sale. But what do you do if you want a serviced office or then a fully functional executive office where you can just move in. This is where www.officespace.com.au comes in, they are a Australian company that can provide arrange of offices from executive offices in Sydney, serviced office space in Perth, a sophisticated location in Melbourne, furnished space in Brisbane or Adelaide or service pretty much all of Australia.

They do the work of finding the right location for you, setting up a lease with the most appropriate term suitable to you if long or short term and also doing all the paperwork – making it easy for you to just move in and start work.

If you are looking for office space in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane or Perth in Australia, you can check out the office space website to find a suitable space for your new office.

Benefits Of Hiring A Professional Locksmith Rather Than Attempting The Job On Your Own

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locksmith in brisbane

Being locked out can completely ruin your day and can make getting things done impossible. If you are locked out of your home after a long day, all you want to do is get inside and relax, and being locked out makes it impossible. If you are locked out of your car, getting where you need to go is impossible. If you are locked out of your office, your work day cannot start until you get in. Even being locked out of a safe can make things difficult. If you find yourself in any of these situations, your first instinct might be to try to break in on your own. This can be a mistake. The best thing that you can do if you are in a lockout situation is to hire Brisbane Locksmiths. There are several reasons that you should leave the job to a professional.

Knowledge of Locks

Not many people have the ability to pick a lock. It may look simple on television and in the movies, however, it is not as simple as it looks. It can take several tries to get the door open, and in most cases, you won’t be able to do it. When you hire a professional locksmith, you will have someone with the knowledge and experience to get the door unlocked quickly.

Avoid the Risk of Physical Injury or Damage to the Lock or Door

Trying to get into a home or office can be physically dangerous. Many people will try to go through a window to gain access, which can be dangerous. If you are trying to get into a second floor window, it can lead to a dangerous fall. If you are trying to get into a first floor window, you can end up causing damage to the window or the screen. Trying to pick a lock can also cause damage. If you don’t know what you are doing, you can end up causing damage to the lock, making it more difficult for the locksmith to get in after you have failed. If you are trying to gain access to a car, you can scratch the paint or break the window. If you are trying to gain access to a safe, you can end up doing irreparable damage to the lock. A locksmith has the knowledge to open a lock without causing any damage.

Alarm Issues

If you are trying to get in after being locked out, and you have an alarm, you risk setting it off by trying to break in by yourself. This will lead to the police being called, and this can be a hassle in itself. When you hire a professional locksmith, they will be able to get you in without setting off any alarms.

Quick Service

When you are locked out and try to get in on your own, it can take a great deal of time and energy. Often times, you won’t be able to get in at all. When you hire a locksmith in Brisbane, someone will be out to meet you very quickly and can get the lock opened in minutes.

If you find yourself locked out of anywhere, you should contact Mobile Locksmiths Brisbane. They can take care of any type of lockout, and can have you in within minutes. They understand that lockouts can occur at the most inconvenient times, therefore, they offer 24 hour a day, 7 days a week service. They can take care of your lockout problem quickly and safely.

3 Things You Can Do To Get the Best Possible Fencing Quote

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clip_image002

Before you install a fence, there’s essential considerations you need to make first. Planning a large scape fencing project goes well beyond the colour and material choice you desire – you’ll want to think like a professional contractor to understand exactly how they’re going to quote the job.

Budget is everything when it comes to any renovation project and large scale fencing projects are no different. Whilst the overall cost will ultimately be determined by factors like colour, materials and area size, you can meet even the strictest of budgets by obtaining the best possible fencing quote. But to do that you need to ask the right questions and provide the right information. Here’s how to put yourself in your fencing contractor’s shoes and get the ultimate quote for your project needs.

1. Provide Project Plans and Drawings

The more information you can provide your fencing contractor, the better your quote will be. Don’t assume they’ll read between the lines. Instead, offer any project drawings and plans you have and all the right measurements and layout of the area you want to fence. Most fencing companies will offer to come out and measure the space free of charge if they are quoting you for the job, but the more details you can provide them the better.

Not only will your fencing plans help to determine the most accurate quote for the construction project, but they will give the contractors a better fell for the project before asking you all the questions. This tends to make for a quicker turnaround time so is especially helpful if you’re on a short timeline.

 

2. Determine Whether You Want ‘Supply Only’ Fencing or Installation Included

Are you sitting on the fence about whether you want your fencing project to be DIY or not? Opting for ‘supply only’ fencing can cut back on costs significantly so for many handy people, this can be a wise option. Because fencing contractors buy their materials in bulk, they get them for a much lower process than you would be able to. These savings can be passed down to you as the customer for a DIY alternative.

Because the fencing company won’t have to compensate for travel and time on the job, this ‘supply only’ option can be super cost-effective. But erecting a fence isn’t as easy as you think – so before you finalise your decision it’s best to be sure it’s a DIY project you can tackle.

If you do decide you want installation included these costs will need to be worked into your fencing quote. Many fencing contractors charge by the hour with extremely varied prices, so it’s best to get them to come out and look at the job to measure everything up. This is normally done for free for them to quote the project accordingly. Make sure you compare at least 3 quotes from different fencing contractors to ensure you get the best possible price.

3. What’s Your Top Priority for the Fencing Project?

Everyone needs for erecting a fence are different. Maybe you want better privacy around your building or you want to keep intruders out. Perhaps you’re just boosting kerb appeal and security isn’t an issue or your new pool is needing some stylish attire. Whatever the reasons for the project, it’s imperative you determine your top priority.

Most people will say budget straight up whilst others will want a certain material choice or colour. When you give the fencing company your project plans, budget and desired timeline let them know your main priority. If they need to stick under an amount – they need to know, if a decorative fence is what you’re after – they’ll be able to make some design suggestions to complement your existing construction project and really give the project that ‘wow’ factor.

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By understanding what a fencing company needs information wise, you’ll be on your way to getting the best possible quote for the project – faster, more cost-effectively and efficiently.

Author Bio

This article is written by Jayde Ferguson, who writes for Fencemakers – Perth, Western Australia’s complete range of quality fencing and gates that can be installed by a professional fencing contractor or as a ‘supply only’. Catch Jayde on Google+.

Simple modifications that will transform your café

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You’ve got a cool café concept, it’s doing pretty well, but you’re looking to move your business onto the next stage by adding a bit of pizazz without spending a fortune?

Relax, the good news is that today’s customers are looking for unique, quirky and niche alternatives to the ubiquitous coffee shop and restaurant chains they see everywhere. This means that neighbourhood cafes and bars are ideally placed to capitalise on local trade. So, why not revamp your venue using some of these cool, chic and cost-effective ideas and modifications:

Signage

Clearly marking out your café’s different areas – and also the facilities available – makes the space so much more user-friendly and inviting. Where should people pay? Is there wifi? Are there books and magazines to read? What’s on the menu?

Check out reclamation yards for vintage memorabilia. You’ll find some great items ranging from ‘toilet’ and ‘cash’ signs to old tin and ceramic advertisements for chocolate and other food items, which will create a great vibe.

Chances are there are many abandoned wooden pallets lying around at your local recycling centre too. Screw a whole one onto a wall to make a great notice or menu board. Or, chop the pallet up into appropriately sized pieces and use stencils and spray paint to create your own signs. These can then be either attached to the wall or hung from pieces of wire or chains from the ceiling. The possibilities are endless.

Blinds

If your venue has an outside seating space, why not think about extending the period of time you can use it by adding some robust but stylish all-weather café blinds? These come in both tinted and see-through PVC, so the beauty of them is that it can be used without obscuring any views you might have, or your on-street visibility to customers.

Storage and display

These are essential to any café. They ensure you can store essential items whilst at the same time showcasing the fantastic products and produce you have for sale in their full glory. And, once again your recycling depot could be your friend:

· Use old upended wooden fruit boxes to display plates of mouth-watering cakes and cookies. Or, turn them on their sides and fill it to the brim with delicious loaves of bread, baskets of apples, etc.

· Pallet wood can upcycled to create a rustic serving counter, window bar or shelves.

· Nail the lids of jam jars to the bottom of shelves and then use the glass jars that screw back on to them to store coffee beans, sweets, different kinds of tea bags and much more.

· Simple, small metal buckets are a great way to both contain and display packets of biscuits, fruit, toys and anything else that could create clutter.

Furniture

We all know that furniture is usually one of the most expensive factors in any revamp. Why not check out the local papers and online sites like Gumtree for any office or home clearance sales coming up? You might find some great leather armchairs and retro filing cabinets, coat stands and much more.

Lighting and power

Definitely one of the most important parts of any design scheme, yet lighting is often neglected in redecoration projects. It’s a good idea to analyse how well the lighting is currently and think about how it could be improved.

Are there any dingy areas that could do with better illumination? Consider how your customers use the space – if you have an area where individuals tend to come and work on their laptops, consider installing some extra power points and lighting nearby. If there are areas where people go to sit and read a book or the paper, it may be wise to add a floor lamp or a couple of anglepoise lights to make it as comfortable as possible.

Pay special attention to the areas where you position things you aim to sell. If you are installing some shelving to promote sales, think about getting some with in-built lighting – or install some strategically placed spotlights.

With a little thought and some imagination, a few key modifications could transform your café into the cool, ‘new’ place to hang out.