Preachings

The Importance of Awarding Employees

by Melvin · Feb 16, 2019

This is a guest post by Amanda Green.

How do you motivate your employees to be more productive? In every organization, there are employees who will do everything to ensure that work is done. They will arrive early and stay long after everyone has left. These are the workers who want to see the company grow even when they do not benefit directly. If you want to get the best out of such people, you have to find a way to award them. You need to show them that you recognize their hard work by appreciating everything that they do, such as giving Crystal Awards. There are many ways through which you can appreciate such employees. Let us look at some of them.

Introducing regular awards

You can introduce an employee of the month award to recognize those workers who perform the best every month. Make sure that you monitor every employee to find out how they perform. For example, you may want to know the volume of work that they accomplish every day. You may also want to know the employees that arrive early and those that work extra hours. Sometimes, you may want to know how much they help their colleagues to do their work. When you do this, you will notice that every worker wants to be more productive, and that is how you increase your company’s earnings.

Recognition in front of other employees

Sometimes, recognizing your employees in front of their colleagues works magic. You may want to mention their achievements during a company meeting. You may also want to talk about the exemplary things that they did during a lunch break or after work. This motivates them to work even more. You will notice that when you recognize them in front of their peers, they gain more confidence and therefore, they will want to work even more. It also makes the other employees want to follow suit because they too want to be recognized just like their colleagues.

Lunch with the boss

You can also award your employees by inviting them to lunch. Find out the workers that have been most productive for the month and invite them to lunch or dinner. Nothing motivates an employee more than a chat with the boss. Use this opportunity to let them know that you are impressed with their performance and so you would like to spend some time with them. It can be lunch prepared in the office or at your favorite restaurant. A drink will also make them happy and, as you will find out, they will want to work even more so that they can get another chance to dine with the boss.

Certificate of recognition

A written award can also motivate your employees to work more. When you issue them with a certificate, they will keep it and they will always look at it and remember how you rewarded then. Such certificates can also serve as testimonials so that whenever they are asked about their achievements, they can produce them. Certificates can be more fulfilling than other awards such as lunch or days off. For instance, long after the award, the employees may forget about the lunch, but they will always have the certificates to show for their hard work.

Shopping vouchers

If you have enough funds, you can award your employees by giving them shopping vouchers. Let them choose anything that they want to purchase as long as it fits in the price range that you have decided upon. You can also add other incentives, such as allowing them an afternoon off duty to go shopping. It may only be a small amount of money, but the motivation that it instills in your workers will be huge. At the end of the day, you will notice that they work harder and, therefore, the amount of money that you spent on the voucher will be recovered in no time. There are many other ways through which you can reward your employees. You may want to find out the things that fascinate them most before choosing an award. People like different things and you should know your employees well before choosing anything for them. You can easily identify the right way to award them by carrying out a small survey. You will be baffled to find out that what you thought was the best for them is nowhere close to what they prefer. Ultimately, the awards should serve as a motivator so that they work even more.

Food Posts & Dining Experiences

by Melvin · Apr 12, 2015

Going in line with me doing more casual posts in this blog plus the fact that I’ve been having this fascination with cooking for about a year now, I decided that it won’t be too out of ordinary to start writing food blog posts which are basically about my dining experiences, etc. Plus this also helps me build my local audience more as discussed in the previous blog post. 🙂

Merry Christmas to Everyone

by Melvin · Dec 24, 2013

I have not really written here for a long while now but I wanted to take this time and greet everyone a merry merry Christmas (or Happy Hanukkah if you’re a Jew). Be sure to enjoy the holidays but at the same time don’t consume too much alcohol and unhealthy foods. :p

I have been meaning to write another post soon where I would disclose more about what I do these days but for the sake of brevity, I have sort of settled for a more normal life (as some of you probably know already). I took a job in mid 2010 and I still am working for the same company as of this writing. Whether that’s good or bad remains to be seen. 🙂

As for online stuff, I have mostly been helping out some friends with their basic SEO stuff and have been dabbling with some freelance work (fyi I have been since 2009). And finally, the only personal project that I have been working on sort of is my Headphone Philippines website. The progress is going quite well since I started putting in more time on it during the middle of this year. Nonetheless, I’m quite excited for the potential of this even though I’m not really on it for money.

So that’s it! Again have a merry and fruitful Christmas and a happy new year!

When Are You Going to Launch Your Kickstarter?

by Melvin · Jul 18, 2013

This is a guest post by Amanda Green.

So you’re a content creator, right? You’re a blogger, an internet marketer, a writer and trendsetter and brand expert.

Tell me about your Kickstarter.

Yes, like it or not, Kickstarter has become the new must-have brand accessory. Although it’s very difficult to make a profit from a Kickstarter (for reasons to be explained below), it’s also now difficult to be taken seriously as a content creator unless you’ve passed through the crucible of crowdfunding. And, because of market dominance and name recognition, Kickstarter is the only way to successfully get crowdfunded; other crowdfunding sites, like IndieGoGo or Quirky, are seen as sites for people who can’t hack it on Kickstarter.

With that in mind: when are you going to launch yours? Here’s what you need to know to get started:

You need a compelling project OR compelled fans

There are two ways to be successful at Kickstarter. First, create something that a lot of people want, like the Pebble Watch. Pebble–after designing and Kickstarting a watch that syncs with your smartphone to show text messages and emails on your wrist–is now a hugely successful company.

However, most bloggers and internet marketers are unlikely to have a Pebble-sized idea in their back pocket. Instead, you’re going to be Kickstarting a content-based project: a book of marketing techniques, a business course for new bloggers or a series of interviews with the best brand creators in the country. For this, you need fans. You need regular interaction with blog commenters and Twitter followers so you have a group of people who will mobilize and fund your project.

Perhaps ironically, the point of a content-based Kickstarter isn’t to make money (you won’t, and we’ll get to why). Nor is it necessarily to sell a brilliant product – that book of marketing techniques is likely to be culled from old blog posts, after all. It’s to announce your ascendance to the next level.

Having a successful Kickstarter shows the world that you have enough authority that people are willing to pay for your content.

This is a key step for content creators and internet marketers. Once you have that Kickstarter badge on your website, everyone will know that you’ve been accepted and supported by “the crowd.” You’ll be able to leverage this into further opportunities, including interviews, guest blog posts and – the ultimate goal – book deals.

You aren’t going to make money

Here’s the bad news. You aren’t going to make any money on your Kickstarter. Not even if you pad your budget with contingency funds or go 100% over your project goal.

This is why: In addition to your Kickstarter’s primary goal (“my new book, Everything I Know About Internet Marketing“), you also need to create tiered rewards. Every person who donates is entitled to a project reward commensurate to the level of the donation. This means you’re going to need to create, produce and ship multiple types of rewards.

Even if some of the rewards are low- or no-cost (like a PDF of MelvinBlog’s Blog Marketing Guide), you’re still going to need to create tangible products for high-level donors. Even a modest product like a “page-a-day marketing idea calendar” is going to cost you far more than you anticipate: in addition to writing 365 individual marketing ideas, you need to design the calendar layout, have the calendars printed, and pay to ship them across the country and overseas.

And that’s just the basic requirements for production and shipping. Smart marketers are going to add extra touches, like branded custom printed shipping boxes. They’re going to create stretch goals (so they can say “My Kickstarter funded at 100% over goal and then hit two additional stretch goals”) which require even more product design, development and shipping.

All of these expenses are on top of the cut that Kickstarter takes, the cut that Amazon Payments takes and the cut that goes to the tax man. (Yes, you have to pay taxes on Kickstarter funds.)

In short: don’t go into your Kickstarter expecting to make money. In fact, most content creators report paying out of pocket to create and ship their Kickstarter rewards.

If it’s a lot of work and you aren’t going to make any money, why bother with crowdfunding? At this point, it’s the equivalent of hosting a YouTube channel or creating your first ebook. If you don’t have one, people are going to wonder why. To maintain authority in the information economy, you need proof that your ideas are supported by large numbers of people. The way to do that, at least for the next year or so, is to Kickstart a project.

So: when are you going to launch your Kickstarter?

Keep Your Business Running Smoothly

by Melvin · May 16, 2013

This is a guest post by Amanda Green.

Running a business consists of a ton of details that you may not be prepared for until the situation arises. There are simple things you can do to ensure that your business is functional and productive. Having a solid plan and goal is the first step to achieving success.

Communication is key. Communication is important to making any aspect of your life run smoothly and your business is not an exception. Holding regular meetings that include your key staff is important. Let them know any changes happening internally as well as the direction you are headed. As your business grows your needs are going to change. As you become aware of a new direction you will need to inform your staff.

Just as you will be communicating with key staff, they need to be communicating with those who report to them. Making mandatory meetings within each department will ensure that everyone is well informed. Not just those who report to you directly.

Organize your schedule and stick to it. I recommend doing this every Friday. If your business is closed on weekends or you are off on weekends, you will want to plan out the next week in advance. Monday morning is tough enough, even more so if you don’t have a plan of what you need to get done. Do the same for your employees; emphasize the importance of scheduling their days according to their needs. Of course there will be moments that something comes up that changes that schedule, but if you are organized it will be easy to fit in the things that come up unexpectedly.

Stay on top of your stock. One of the more minor details that can cause major problems is supplies and inventory of those supplies. This can be a tedious job, but it is essential to keep your work moving forward and not getting stuck on a project. Running out of ink in the middle of printing important documents is frustrating, but not nearly as frustrating as going to the supply closet and realizing you are completely out of HP toner cartridges. This will result in either you or another employee headed to an office supply store and your documents are now put on hold.

This should be a job that you take on at the start of your business, just so you are aware of your needs. However, once you have an understanding of what supplies are needed, you should delegate this to someone else. This can be time consuming and there are more important things that need your attention.

Take a break. Give yourself some time to recoup. Running a business comes with a lot of responsibility. It is easy to indulge yourself in your work, but without a break you are risking getting burned out. By scheduling your days off and sticking to it, you will have a fresh positive approach when you are in the office.

Running a successful and smooth business comes with a lot of hard work, organization and dedication, not to mention a good staff. These tidbits touch the surface. It is common for a business owner to be so consumed by the things below the surface that they forget the things that help the day to day operations. Paying attention to these details will help you to take care of all operations more efficiently.

What are some tips for running your business smoothly?

Are New Businesses Really Doomed to Fail?

by Melvin · Apr 6, 2013

This is a guest post by Amanda Green.

Starting your own business can be an extremely rewarding profitable adventure, but only if you do it efficiently. Unfortunately, many businesses are doomed to fail within the first six months because those running the companies fell into some of the common ruts that many entrepreneurs run into and didn’t know how to get out of them. Coming into building your own business prepared and knowing what dangers to avoid will definitely help you get over these humps and get you on your way to having a successful company in the long run.

Sometimes outlining something is more work than the actual project and quite unnecessary. When it comes to starting your own business, this is simply not the case; the outline is crucial to success. You have to go into your own business with a very clear road map ahead of you – something that encompasses the plan start to finish even if it starts with something as simple as registering a website. Failing to do this step, however long it might take, will only set your business up to veer off track in the first six months if not earlier. Unless you have a clear vision of where you’re taking your company and how you plan to get there, you’re bound to lose sight and ultimately it will fall apart.

Pick a specialty and stick with it. Many businesses fail early on because they chose a scope of field that is much too general. Don’t market yourself as an artist – make sure people realize that you’re a graphic designer versed in business logos. While this might seem counterproductive to gaining customers as it narrows your playing field, the fact of the matter is that choosing such a general term will only serve to get you hidden under the sea of other “artists.” And the chances are they’ve been in the business much longer than you, meaning you’ll never get noticed.

Learn what will make your job easier in the long run. When you’re finished outlining your business and choosing a niche, it’s time to start looking at how to run your business effectively. For most businesses, there is nothing more valuable than a software that will help you with your contract management. Once your customer base starts picking up, you’re going to get swarmed with various documents and considering you’re only human, you’ll probably end up getting confused and possibly making mistakes. And when it comes to owning your own business, those mistakes could cost you a fortune.

No matter what you do, don’t give up. A lot of business owners expect immediate results, which leads them to being discouraged when they realize it will take more than just two months to start seeing their investments pay off and suddenly they’ve done all that work for nothing. Keep in mind that it’s a competition and you need to work your way to the top. If you start a new marketing strategy, you need to keep with it. By dropping it haphazardly, not only are you doing your business a huge disservice, but the people who did notice your business’s name will now think you’re a fly by night operation. That means if you try to pick up your marketing game again, you’re much less likely to attract any customers at all.

There are quite a few common mistakes that business owners fall into when they first start their own operation, which is why it’s important to be prepared when you’re finally beginning the plans for your business. Realizing these pitfalls early on will keep you from getting stuck in them six months down the road.

Cost-Effective Ways to Market Your Online Business Offline

by Melvin · Feb 27, 2013

A lot of people these days are so focused on marketing their businesses online that they tend to neglect the offline part. Sure, promoting online is much easier, gives us wider reach and most of the time, is cheaper as well. However, this doesn’t mean doing offline promotions is not worth it.

In this blog post, I will list down some cost effective ways to market your online business offline. These offline marketing techniques should just complement your current online strategies and should still allow you to reach more people without spending too much money.

1. Giveaway items

There’s already plenty to choose from here however you don’t really need to spend too much. A simple BIC stic pen with your web address in it can easily promote your website. And these pens don’t cost too much at all so you are literally getting more bang for your buck already.

You can also give away more expensive items like T-Shirts, mugs, mouse pads, even a discount coupon for what your business is offering. The key here is to gauge people’s interest and make them curious enough about your business that they would check out your website no matter what.

2.Flyers and brochures

There’s a reason why so many businesses are still doing this and its due to it being still effective. Here you just need to have flyers and brochures made and those simply need to have information about your business what it is all about. You can even go into as specific as listing down the different products or services that you’re selling and the corresponding prices for each of them. You can also combine this with the first method which should entice people more since you’re giving away something.

The key here is targeting the location carefully. If your business provides services that are related to university students, then it totally makes sense to give flyers near the universities. Or if you’re someone who’s providing freelance services, then go to places where small business are located. Overall, you want to target as many qualified prospects as possible so it’s not entirely about the quantity.

3. Yourself and your resources as a marketing vehicle.

Are you traveling daily to places that are crowded? Or do you drive for more than an hour a day? If yes, then you can make use of yourself in promoting your business.

For example, if you’re commuting and riding trains, you can wear a shirt or anything that mentions your business. That can easily be seen by hundreds, if not thousands of people per day. If you have a car on the other hand, you can put out signs or even have decals on it and make it look like as if it’s a moving billboard. This will reach a lot of people especially during rush hours.

Those are just two examples and as I said, the sky is the limit here. Why not take a look of what you have and start from there?

4. Sponsor events and competitions

If you want to take your offline marketing efforts to the next level, then you must consider taking part into events and competitions as a sponsor. With events, you can easily make use of all the three things that I just discussed. The good thing with sponsoring events is that you are given some good exposure as well since the MC’s mention the sponsors frequently throughout the event. A lot of times (and depending on the sponsorship package that you would avail) they also give you time to talk and promote your business. And this is best time to not just tell participants about your business, but also give good valuable information that would make them interested enough to learn more about you.

Sponsoring events is the most expensive among all however if done right, it can easily yield better and quicker results. Just make sure to plan carefully here as the risk is definitely much higher. Don’t forget to consider the audience of the event too. If the target age of your business is 40 years old and above, then it might not be wise for you to sponsor a university event.

Offline marketing can be as powerful and cost-effective as online marketing if done correctly. Its important here to do your homework first, plan things carefully and then execute that plan to perfection. Then simply just rinse and repeat.

Do you have any other cost-effective offline marketing techniques that you want to share? Feel free to let me know through the comment form.