Biz Screener

When you have a small business, it is very important that your business has a good reputation — that is, that you have lots of positive reviews online, or at the very least, no negative reviews.

The reason for this is that as a lesser-known small business, customers have less to go on when they hear your business name.  When they are dealing with, say, Amazon.com, there is a lot of trust there simply because they know it’s a big company that has a lot of dealings with people.  But a smaller company, on the other hand, they will need to research in order to feel safe about doing business with — and if what they find isn’t positive, they’ll take their business elsewhere.

This goes for both buying and selling.  For instance, if you have an online pawn shop, you’ll want to make sure that you are known for giving sellers a fair deal when they sell gold for cash.  This is equally as important as ensuring that buyers are happy with their purchases.

So make sure that your business has a strong reputation and no negative reviews with companies such as the Better Business Bureau, RipOffReport.com, etc.  How do you do this?  Well, for starters, by always making sure that you value every customer, and that your products and customer service are the best you can possibly make them.

Also be sure that you always make sure you resolve complaints so that the customer is happy.  I know it can be painful to give in to customers when you don’t agree, but it just isn’t worth losing who knows how much business because the customer gets mad and leaves a complaint about you with the BBB or online.

Getting a good reputation isn’t difficult, but it also doesn’t happen overnight — you have to work for it.  Tearing it down, on the other hand, can happen quite quickly, so make sure you always keep in mind how your interactions with customers could impact your business’s reputation.

Technorati Tags: BBB, Better Business Bureau, online pawn shop, sell gold for cash

Tags: BBB, Better Business Bureau, online pawn shop, sell gold for cash

A great project for this summer would be to redecorate your kids’ rooms. Children’s rooms should be changed frequently. After all, your children are growing and changing quickly. Their rooms should reflect that!

Follow these tips for redecorating a child’s room:

• Use paint. You can easily change the entire room by painting the walls a new color. Let your child pick the color. Don’t worry if you hate it. You can change the room again soon.
• Hang up favorite clothing that’s been outgrown. Kids go through clothes quickly. If they have some items that they love but they don’t fit anymore, frame them in a shadowbox and hang them on the wall. I did this for a friend with her daughter’s much loved 3 Pommes dress and they kept it up in the house for years!
• Be cheap with temporary infatuations. It’s fine that your child loves the latest Disney movie. It’s fine to get a poster or other cheap item related to that movie to hang on the wall. However, you shouldn’t invest in new sheets and curtains since this passion is probably going to quickly give way to another love.

Have fun redecorating your kids’ rooms. It’s a great place for letting your imagination run wild!

Technorati Tags: 3 pommes

Tags: 3 pommes

I used to waste a lot of time at the office every day. Whenever I would have downtime, I’d let it fritter away. Then I got smart. I realized that I could use my downtime to engage in small tasks. These tasks were often things that I used to have to do at home after leaving the office. Now that I do them at work, I don’t have to do anything when I get home. I can simply sit down and enjoy being with my family.

Some of these tasks are work-related tasks. For example, I often check my email or answer my social networking messages during downtime at work. I was doing this from home before even though the messages were mostly for business. Now I do them during the time that I get paid to be at work.

However, some of the tasks that I do during downtime are personal tasks. For example, I’m interested in going on a Canadian vacation next year so I spent some time making a list of Canada vacation ideas. I’ll still be doing the research for these ideas at home but I got the first part of the task done during work. It makes me feel good to be using my downtime this way.

Technorati Tags: canada vacation ideas

Tags: canada vacation ideas

I wish I could hire a Pittsburgh malpractice lawyer or something to sue my attorney from where I used to live in Colorado.  I know that that’s not really what they do-sue each other.  But my attorney here sure missed a lot of stuff, and it’s too hard to go back and change it in the divorce agreement now.

There should be attorneys who specialize in going back and fixing messed up settlements, or else specialize in going right after those other attorneys and getting back some of your money anyway.  They specialize in everything else; where I live now we have everything from Pittsburgh personal injury lawyers to trial lawyers, of course.  Maybe there actually IS a list somewhere of every type of lawyer, and on it is just the type of lawyer who could help me with my former divorce lawyer. 

I suppose it’s no different from any other place; my husband had to go to a high priced attorney to finally find out that his original guy was an idiot.  What I’d like to know is, where are all of those attorneys like on the old LA Law tv show who do all that pro bono work for free?

Technorati Tags: LA Law, Pittsburgh malpractice lawyer, Pittsburgh personal injury lawyers

Tags: LA Law, Pittsburgh malpractice lawyer, Pittsburgh personal injury lawyers

Working part time with my brother in law not only keeps me in good stead with my little sister, but it allows me to earn some extra money on the side. As a freelance writer, and part time landscaper, I am always looking for bigger and better money making opportunities.

On a recent writing gig, I was assigned the topic of writing about a gravel screening machine. Of course, I knew a little about the process that rock supply companies go through in order to create gravel and other landscaping materials. In essence, they do all the separation and grading of the materials and then companies like ours come along and pay them a premium for install ready supplies.

After working on this assignment, I mentioned to Mike that he might want to consider investing in a gravel screener of his own. He already has solid relationships with the same trucking company that brings in the bulk materials to the local rock supplier. With his own screening system, not only would he have his hardscape materials at below wholesale, there might be the opportunity to create a second business unit and compete with the local big guy.

Even a small piece of the business would quickly pay for the equipment costs and provide the autonomy a business owner craves.

Technorati Tags: gravel screener, gravel screening machine

Tags: gravel screener, gravel screening machine

My lovely, new wife works in the front end of a local doctor’s medical office. She’s been managing for him and others for many years, and is quite savvy when it comes to getting the best deals for her doctors. Recently, she was required to get a new disability insurance quote for one of the doctors in her office.

She was somewhat shocked when shocked when various companies returned her rates. She knew that disability insurance for a physician was not likely to be cheap, however, the price range of the quotes really taught her how important it is to do some comparing before signing on to any sort of long term deal.

In fact, after she inquired as to the last fee schedule this particular doctor had paid, she knew she was going to be his favorite office manager. Because she had not simply settle upon the first insurer that came around, the quote for his rates was almost 30% cheaper than he had previously paid.

At first she thought there was some sort of mistake, or worse, that they were going to cover less than the previous insurer. As it turned out, not only would he be covered as before, in a number of areas, he would be better protected.

Technorati Tags: Disability Insurance for Physician, Disability Insurance Quote

Tags: Disability Insurance for Physician, Disability Insurance Quote

My experience at a Florida drug treatment center has been positive. Today makes my fifth year of sobriety. I am proud of that but I also know that I had excellent help throughout the process, help I could not have gotten elsewhere. When you are facing something so life threatening, such as addiction, you need to find help but not just any help. If you surround yourself with the best treatment centers that are known for their ability to help you succeed, your chances of staying sober increase.

When I visited the Florida drug rehab center, I knew I was in a good place. The people were firm but willing to talk. They were able to tell me what would happen to me before I knew. I did a variety of counseling options while there. I spent most of my time working with a counselor that never once allowed an excuse to me. I think that is what helped me to stay positive and successful for so long.

I have not drunk anything for some time. I have not done drugs for years, too. I still visit the facility and talk with those doctors and patients that I know. The road is always difficult, but when you have a quality center by your side, the road actually leads to some place.

Technorati Tags: Florida drug rehab center, Florida drug treatment center

Tags: Florida drug rehab center, Florida drug treatment center