Looking after the security of your business used to mean installing a burglar alarm, or maybe employing security guards depending on the nature of your business and what kind of stock you had in the building. Today, although physical security is still important, it’s the more insidious security breaches that are the ones to really worry about – internet security breaches.

Installing antivirus is an absolute priority – if you don’t have it, clear your diary for the day and make this your single must-do task for the day.  It’s easy to search online to find the different packages available. There are lots of free antivirus software programmes available to download, but if you have five computers or more at work, then you should really get a business package. These are designed to work on multiple computers and make for easier updating and management.

If your business has any Macs, then you’ll need separate Mac antivirus software – as the two platforms require different antivirus programmes.  Macs used to have a reputation for being immune to viruses, but with their increased popularity and the increase in services that are cross-platform, they are less secure than they used to be.

Finally, and just as importantly, you need to get the same protection for any mobile devices with internet access, like smartphones.

Even with antivirus products installed, your computers and phones can still be under threat.  Remember to:

• Never open files sent as attachments from unknown sources
• Enable macro protection in applications like Word and Excel
• Subscribe at the end of a free trial of antivirus as you’ll lose the protection if you don’t
• Uninstall an old antivirus programme from all computers before installing a new or different one
• Regularly update virus signatures to ensure protection is current
• Use online virus scans as a back-up to diagnose any viruses that may be on your PC

In order to get the most from your staff, you need to encourage them to perform well. One important part of improving staff performance is through good communication.  It’s important to remember that in order for the business to succeed, staff need to feel valued and motivated.

Communicating well can mean avoiding misunderstandings – this is vital to avoid mistakes being made, or perhaps sales being lost. Misunderstandings can cause problems – whether it’s a simple mistake with an order or results in someone being offended by another person’s choice of words, which may lead to the loss of a valued customer.

There are some fundamental principles to remember for good communications within a company.

An honest approach

When talking to your staff and customers, be direct and say what you mean. It’s important to be able to deliver on the promises you make.  Otherwise people will lose their trust in you. It’s far better to give a realistic deadline that you can meet than promise an earlier date and then fail to meet it.

Appraisals

Staff work better if their managers recognise the effort they have put in and acknowledge it in some way.  Arranging regular appraisals to assess how a staff member is getting on is a great idea as it gives a specific time allocated to discussing their progress, and also a time for them to air any grievances or discuss particular challenges. A good appraisal session is one where the staff member feels free to speak their mind, without fear of negative consequences.

Communications beyond

Of course, as well as working with internal communications, it’s also vital to have good communications with the outside world. Check how customers want to be contacted, and how regularly. Some customers might appreciate a regular call or update from you, others might find it too much and want less frequent communications. Treat each client as an individual and respect their way of working.

You may also have to deal with the press on occasion. Here again, an upfront approach is best. Even when his property Lightstone faced testing times, property developer David Lichtenstein was always ready to be interviewed by the media. His approach was to deal with criticism head on and give Lightstone’s point of view, which is far better than adopting a ‘no comment’ tactic.

Office work experience can often be the thing on your CV which separates you from all the other applicants with the same educational qualifications. There is no substitute for real life experience so even if you are not getting paid make sure you give it your best shot and keep your eyes and ears open at all times. Here is a list of menial tasks which you may be asked to perform on work experience. Positive attitudes go a very long way, so if you don’t want to see your CV disappearing into the office shredders do them willingly and with a smile on your face! Remember: if you can’t get these easy things done efficiently and correctly then no-one is going to ask you to do anything more interesting!!

1. Making tea and coffee. Don’t wait to be asked, put the kettle on and go round making sure everyone who wants a hot drink has got one.

2. Taking the post. Going to the post office is a great way to help out your colleagues and is an important supportive role.

3. Running errands. It might be buying sandwiches or picking up dry cleaning, these tasks are typical and not beneath you!

4. Phoning for a courier. Helping to ensure smooth delivery of products or communication with clients is essential.

5. Emptying the UK shredders. Taking out rubbish, emptying bins and processing recycling will keep the office tidy.

6. Filing. This can get quite dull if there is a lot of it but make sure you stay focussed and get it right.

7. Answering the phone. Be polite and speak clearly in your best voice! First impressions count and if you can’t help the caller offer to take a number and call back with the answer.

8. Welcoming visitors. Escorting clients to a meeting and helping them with any needs such as drinks, photocopying etc will make you a valuable asset.

If your business seems a little top heavy in terms of staff in these difficult financial times, it may be time to consider how you can reduce staff costs without damaging the integrity of the business.

One area that might be right for outsourcing to an agency rather than having in-house is your IT department. Business gurus like David Lichtenstein would agree that your business focus should be on what you do best, not the technical systems that support it.

Obviously the major appeal of having an in-house IT department is that you can call for help and within minutes someone will have popped up to your office to have a look at your PC, done something clever with it and made it work again.  Now though, with the facility of remote access, your chosen agency can log in to your computer from wherever they are, diagnose the problem and fix and repair anything that needs it, and you’re back in business.

Of course, any IT department worth its salt does more than just act as the emergency breakdown service.  They also evaluate which systems are the best for your company’s needs and can deal with setting up and ordering such systems, as they have the expertise and knowledge to know what will best meet the needs of the business.

However, meet with a couple of IT support agencies and you’ll soon see that they have the same kind of knowledge and expertise. Added to that they’ll have a host of other company clients so will have been used to dealing with a huge array of systems, and may be able to make recommendations through cross client referencing.

By paying an agency to handle your IT support you’ll make overall cost savings. These include saving on expenses such as pension contributions, holidays and sick pay for full time members of staff.

If I were to ask any business owner what their greatest asset was, I would be very disappointed if they told me it was their wife/Bentley/amazing golf swing because the answer I am always looking for is ‘my staff’. Any company is only as good as the people working within it, and that doesn’t just mean the boss at the top of the tree, that means every single person who contributes to the success of the venture at every level.

Staff should be treasured, nurtured, developed and above all made to feel valued. There are many ways to do this – and some of them are very small and cost very little or nothing at all. ‘Thank you’ is an under-utilised phrase for example, start wheeling it out a bit more often and watch the people around you blossom. Take time to fix the small things which niggle as well, it is amazing how broken paper shredders or missing light bulbs can affect the morale of a workforce. If you show you care then they will care more about the work they do for you.

One of the things which business owners tend to do a lot is to make assumptions about how people who work for them feel about things, and what it is they want from their careers. Take the time to ask those questions and where possible act on the information you have gathered. If the depth of feeling about that paper shredder has reached an alarming scale then make it a priority, you will become the resident office hero.

It doesn’t take much to make sure there is a stash of biscuits in the staff canteen, a reward scheme for excellent performance and genuine recognition of a job well done. Have a look at your business with fresh eyes right now and be honest with yourself: are your staff happy or could you be looking after them better? With Christmas fast approaching – now’s your chance!

Online marketing is the way of the future, but if you haven’t jumped on the bandwagon yet, don’t worry – you’ve still got plenty of time to do it.

You can still use traditional marketing techniques, of course, but you should be trying to cut back on them, embracing social media and emails instead in order to grow and progress your business.

Basically, you should be spreading your wings as wide as possible. If you adopt more than one marketing technique, you’ll have more opportunities to generate business, which should turn into more sales.

When you’re moving your marketing over to the cyber world, you could be left with a lot of redundant direct marketing material. The best way to get rid of this is by using a shredder.  If you’ve got mail-outs and leaflets that you’re not going to shift now, paper shredders could come in very handy. You don’t want anyone else to get hold of and use the marketing material, so this is the easiest way of disposing of it – you can recycle it afterwards as well then.

You shouldn’t entirely neglect traditional marketing methods, but you’ll need to update the material you do have so it details the social media channels you’re beginning to embrace, such as Twitter and Facebook.

There are so many different online marketing techniques out there that you can choose which you want to use depending on the budget you have in mind.

You might want to employ the help of an agency to help out with pay-per-click and search engine optimisation, or you might just want to raise your company’s profile by trying to contribute to plenty of forums and user groups.

Whatever method you choose, you’re bound to reap the rewards if you put time and effort into devising a great marketing strategy.

One of the key things online businesses need to consider is data protection. Companies within the UK have a legal obligation to do everything possible to look after the personal details and information of their clients and this is an even more difficult thing to achieve when you are running a business on the net.

It’s sensible to keep paper copies of some information for a while before you put it all online, just in case something should happen to your website – for example, it could be hacked and valuable data stolen.

Once you have transferred everything online and you are sure your site is extremely secure and protected against hacking and phishing, you can start to dispose of the paper copies of data in a sensible manner.

Using a shredder could be a great way of doing this. Paper shredders are extremely useful devices to have in the workplace as you’ll be able to get rid of important information while complying with data protection regulations. As well as this, they’re a greener way of disposing of data, so you’ll be able to recycle it easily, doing your bit to protect the environment.

Whether you’re storing clients and customers’ information online or in paper copies, you need to take good care of it to avoid being prosecuted for breaching data protection.

In the UK, the Information Commissioner’s Office has the right to impose fines upon businesses, online or otherwise, which lose key personal details or information belonging to others.

Storing paper copies of information in a secure place which is only accessible to a few people is the best way to look after it. And if your business is mainly web based, it’s crucial to ensure you have adequate anti-virus software in place to reduce the risk of attacks.

There are fans of the Sims, Scrabble, and Solitaire. But when it comes to a common denominator amongst computer users, there are two things above all that we agree on.
Whether you use your computer for work or for play, and regardless of whether you have a desktop PC or a laptop, you’ll need to back up your hard drive and protect your computer with good antivirus software.
Just like house contents insurance, antivirus programs are something that you will thank your lucky stars that you have if disaster strikes.
We never know, because the internet is a global network of computers, exactly where the files we are browsing on the internet are located. Equally, we don’t know automatically whether those files are clean or contain viruses.
Really, it’s better to be safe – even if it costs a few pounds – rather than extremely sorry some time in the future.
It only takes one virus to infect your system for everything to be at least compromised, if not outright destroyed.
If cost is really a major issue, there are a number of free antivirus programs that will do the trick in making sure that your computer remains virus-free. Even if you decide you’d rather spend a few pounds on good software, you should get a free trial first, such as Kaspersky free antivirus, to see if the program can really convince you.
Backing up your computer is something that more of us forget to do. Perhaps it’s because, a decade or so ago, backing up your hard drive meant buying 30 floppy discs and spending three or four hours to complete.
Nowadays, there are a variety of ways of making sure that your data is never lost, whether through a virus or a different kind of computer failure. You can do so onto something like an MP3 player, or a dedicated stand-alone external drive. There are also a number of online solutions – sites where you can upload all your files and then access them from any computer at any time.

Carrying goods, cargo, materials and equipment, shipping companies the world over are responsible for keeping the life blood of commerce pumping hard.  The term “shipping companies” implies that a vessel, boat or ship is involved, but in truth, it can represent the transport of any cargo by any means between Manufacturer and outlet, outlet and customer.  The body of ships that might belong to one port, industry or country is sometimes alluded to in “aggregate tonnage” and thousands of freighters criss-cross the oceans may each have a life expectancy of 25 to 30 years before having to be scrapped.

A couple of the largest Shipping companies in the world are China’s “COSCO Holdings Company Limited”, Denmark’s A.P. Moller – Maersk and Holland’s P&O Nedlloyd.  Maersk just recently decided to re-route its fifty strong fleet to avoid the pirates surrounding the Somali Coast.  Here in the UK we have our giants as well.  Anglo Pacific is an international company that deals with over twenty thousand shipping moves each year.  One of the largest Shipping Companies of all time is the British India Line.  The British India Steam Navigation Company was formed way back in 1856 and the SS Dwarka has the merit of closing the service down when it was taken away in 1982 from the company’s local trades in the Persian Gulf.

Based in Essex the Brunel Shipping is a major Ocean Freight NVOCC operator.  Their function is to sort consolidations and FCL shipments for many different clients from as far afield as China and the Far East.  Then there’s the award winning All Seas Global Logistics Shipping Company operating from Nottinghamshire, the Excess Baggage Company operating from the UK’S Airports and train stations and Clarksons of Aberdeen, who celebrate a long history of ship owning and the provision of ship’s Agency Services.

A typical system of creating online money for Web marketers is thru e-book affiliate marketing programs. In this sort of promoting, a seller first creates a digital e-book and places it on sale through a domain. The seller then sets up an affiliate marketing program thru which marketing pros can help in selling the PDF. Each time a client purchases the electronic book, the profits are split between the seller and the affiliate . Step 1 in e-book affiliate marketing programs is composed of a digital product the e-book being made.

The topic can be virtually anything so long as there’s a target audience to sell the product to. Generally the e-book will be made into a compact document format (PDF) file. This format is a standard and makes it simple for the contents of the electronic book to be distributed and read on most PCs. Once the PDF has been made, the seller wants to sell as many copies as practicable. A technique to do this is for the seller to simply sell the e-book thru an internet site.

While this strategy is probably going to result in a respectable quantity of profits, frequently only a limited audience is obtainable. For the seller to maximise money and reach a bigger audience, PDF affiliate marketing programs are typically made. Making an affiliate marketing programme is generally done thru an unrelated party internet site. The seller will place his product on an affiliate marketing programme and decide what quantity of the profits he’s happy to share with affiliates.

Associates are also called online marketers and help the seller sell his product in return for commissions on each and every sale. For instance, the seller may choose to split the profits down the middle and give associates fifty pc of each PDF sold. Once made, marketing consultants can join electronic book affiliate marketing programs. These affiliates will then receive what’s called an associate link, which can sometimes be placed anywhere on the internet.

Anytime somebody clicks on an affiliate link and buys, the seller and associate will share their destined portions of the sale. Affiliates can then sell the e-book in numerous ways, including putting it on an internet site, article promoting, or PPC advertising. This process finally benefits both the seller and affiliates . The seller is really capable of reaching audiences and makes sales that he would not typically make. Affiliates may be able to make money while not having to essentially make a product.