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January 29, 2014

5 Business Expenses You’re Wasting Money On

Filed under: Business Marketing Ideas — PDWriter @ 8:00 am

Renaissance Standard Certificate Paper by PaperDirectAs the New Year gets going, you might be looking for ways to reduce your business’ expenses to help improve your bottom line. Getting your business’ budget in order can be tough, especially in leaner times. For starters, try cutting these business expenses you’re wasting money on.

Unhappy, Unproductive Employees

Learning how to keep employees happy is part of running a small business successfully. Small perks such as reward certificates and appreciation days don’t have to drain your budget. But, unhappy, unproductive and unsuccessful employees are a major money-waster. Hire employees on a trial basis. If they aren’t able to perform the job well after a period of 8 weeks or so, politely part ways and start again.

Stocking Up Too MuchTriumph Foil-Stamped MiniAwards by PaperDirect

Investing too much in inventory can seriously deplete your business’ cash on hand, and can be a major waste of money if the product you’ve invested in ends up not selling well. You might have to discount it greatly, reducing your profit or even losing money in the end. Start with a modest order of stock to see how an item sells. If it does well, you can order more. If it doesn’t, you haven’t spent all of your money on a dud.

Fancy Equipment and Furniture

Your office doesn’t need to have the best of the best when it comes to computer equipment and furniture. Cut costs by choosing moderately priced equipment or by making use of what you already have. If you need to buy more furniture to accommodate new hires, check out resource exchange shops or budget-priced stores. You can also have employees work from home to reduce your office expenses even further.

Too Much Energy

Take a look at your company’s utilities bills and energy use. If the electric bill is sky high and everyone leaves their computers and printers on 24/7, consider making an adjustment to cut costs. Have employees power down their workstations at the end of the day and ask them to switch off lights when they leave a room. The next time you need to buy new equipment, look for energy efficient models to save money over time.

Marketing

Examine your marketing and advertising budget closely to see which outlets are providing a return on your investment and which aren’t. Stop paying for the outlets that don’t result in customers. You might find that you no longer need to pay for print ads in the newspaper, for example, if all of your new clients are coming to you through your social media profiles.

Once you’ve trimmed wasteful expenses from your budget, check out PaperDirect for ways to promote your business and celebrate your employees.

January 28, 2014

10 Award Ideas for Tech and IT Employees

Filed under: Employee Recognition Ideas — Tags: , , , — PDWriter @ 8:43 am
Impressions Certificate Paper by PaperDirect

The tech and IT team at your business works hard to make sure your computers stay functional and your company stays online. Since what your tech and IT employees do remains mysterious to many, their hard work and commitment should be recognized and rewarded. After, all without them, your business might be in the dark. Let your IT team know how much you appreciate them with these award ideas for employees.

Gift Certificate to a Tech Store

A simple way to thank your team is to distribute gift cards to a local or national computer store. You can give each employee the same amount or pick an Employee of the Month and award him or her a larger sum.

Video Game Hour

Let your IT team relax, on the company’s dime, by giving them a “video game hour” every month or so. Set aside an hour in the middle or near the end of the day for them to play their favorite video or computer games together.

Tech-Themed Reward Certificates
Grand Certificates by PaperDirect

Hold an award ceremony for your IT staff and give each member of the team a reward recognizing his or her achievements. Print out certificates that describe what the person is being recognized for. You can make the rewards goofy, such as “Certificate of Excellence for Untangling the Most Cat-5 Cables” or go the more serious route.

Gift Cards to the App Store of Choice

Let your tech team get their hands on the latest apps for their device by giving them a small gift card to GooglePlay for Android users or to the app store on iTunes for Apples users.

Funny T-shirts

Reward your staff and celebrate inside jokes by printing up T-shirts with a funny slogan or saying on them. For example, you can print shirts that have a quote from a favorite tech-related TV show, such as “The IT Crowd.”

Coffee or Energy Drink Supply

travel tumbler recognition gift

Fill the staff refrigerator in the tech department with quality gourmet coffee or your staff’s preferred energy drinks, so that they have enough caffeine to fuel them through long nights of coding or troubleshooting.

Books

Pick up a book covering the latest development in the tech field for your employees. You can also give your IT team gift cards so that they can pick out their own books to read for work or for fun.

Action Figurines

Say thanks to your tech team and help them decorate their desks by giving each person an action figurine, from a popular series such “Doctor Who” or “Star Trek,” for example.

Certification Course

Another way to recognize your team members’ efforts, and benefit the company, is to pay for staff to take a certification course. They’ll gain new skills and you’ll gain more highly trained employees.

Equipment Upgrade

Here’s another award ideas that benefits everyone. Invest in an equipment upgrade for your tech team. They’ll be happy to be able to use the latest software and hardware, and your business might see a boost in productivity and efficiency with the upgrade.

Saying thanks to your team for a job well done doesn’t have to be expensive, but it should be fun. PaperDirect has what you need to recognize and award your IT staff and other employees.

January 24, 2014

Tips for Creating a Professional Certificate

Filed under: How to Design Certificates — Tags: , , , , — PDWriter @ 10:00 am
Sienna Specialty Certificates by PaperDirect

Creating professional certificate templates for use in workplace award ceremonies is a great way to let your employees know you appreciate them without having to spend a fortune on expensive prizes. Here are a few tips to help you create certificates that people will display proudly.

Pick the Right Paper Stock

A lot depends on the kind of paper that you use when creating a professional certificate. Lightweight paper feels flimsy and can therefore give the impression that your recipient isn’t very valued. Heavier paper stock, on the other hand, feels a lot more substantial and can have a more positive psychological effect.

Delicate Standard Certificates by PaperDirect

Choose an Appropriate Color Scheme

There is no one size fits all method of creating professional workplace certificates, but one thing you definitely want to pay attention to is your use of color. Some colors, like neons and pastels, look great but bring across a more lighthearted feel than others. If you’re creating an official workplace certificate, stay away from loud colors and stick to a more conservative color, like black, gray, and blue on white paper. If you’re giving away a series of slightly more goofy awards for things like “Funniest Person in the Office” or “Best Boss Ever,” feel free to experiment.

Don’t Clutter the Layout

When you’re making your own business certificate, you only have so much room to work with. Instead of trying to fit as much information as possible onto it, be sparing and make sure to leave plenty of white space between words. Otherwise, you run the risk of creating something that looks unprofessional.

Intricate Scroll Standard Certificates by PaperDirect

Use Several Fonts, but not Too Many

The use of different type fonts and sizes in certificates is commonplace – but the one thing you absolutely want to avoid is overdoing it. How many is too many? Set yourself a three font rule and stick to it just to be on the safe side. Going crazy with fonts can make a certificate look unprofessional, cluttered, and impossible to read.

Spell the Recipient’s Name Correctly

Few things in life are as disappointing as receiving a certificate so badly spelled it looks like it belongs to someone else. When presenting an employee or close business partner with an official certificate, take great care to ensure their name is spelled accurately. Leave no room for doubt. If there’s any question, ask the individual to write down their name for you.

If you need help creating certificates or just want to explore your options, pay a visit to Paper Direct and check out our variety of custom and standard certificates available today.

January 22, 2014

How to Improve Your Business Communication Skills in 30 Days

Filed under: Designing Your Business Communication — Tags: — PDWriter @ 9:46 am

Business communication is tricky. Whether it is B2B or B2 community, effective communication enables a small business to build trust and earn respect; it creates a productive work environment where creativity and problem solving can flourish. But here is the thing: despite the fact you are conducting business in the information age, an age where messages are sent, received, and processed at the speed of light, much of what you try to communicate to others is misunderstood. If you want to better connect with clients and businesses, you need to learn how to improve business communication skills.

1. Text messages, emoticons, and “likes” –in the age of instant communication and 140-character tweets, formal writing is falling by the wayside. Formal writing, however, is key to good business communication. Whether you are writing an article, preparing a report or giving a presentation, good vocabulary, grammar, and word context will enable you to get your message across.

2. Business isn’t just what product or service you are selling; it is the presentation of that product or service. There is a visual aspect to communication that should not be taken for granted. If you want clients and businesses to pay attention to your brand, then you need the right displays, boards, flyers, and mailers. Envelopes and letterheads say a great deal about your business, so make a good first impression when it comes to formal communications.

3. Yes, the bottom line is important. However, forging positive and meaningful relationships with clients and companies is the heart of good business. So how do you forge those relationships? You listen. Communication is a two-way street, and in order for it to be effective, you need to understand and empathize with what the other party is telling you.

4. There are numerous online communication tools at your fingertips. For example, Hootsuite enables you to manage your social media campaign by scheduling daily posts, tweets, and messages. Do you need to streamline your email marketing system? MailChimp makes it easier to create, edit, and manage email campaigns and newsletters. Finally, a conferencing tool like Skype is perfect for new contacts or conducting international business.

To discover other ways to improve your business communication skills, visit PaperDirect.

January 20, 2014

How to Motivate Employees without Money

Filed under: Employee Recognition Ideas — PDWriter @ 9:56 am

Perpetual Award Plaque by PaperDirectIt’s no secret that one of the best ways to motivate employees is by using some sort of incentive. For many employers, this incentive is some sort of monetary amount. After all, nothing quite lights the fire in an employee like knowing that he or she has the potential to add to their earnings.

But let’s face it – times are still tough and there might not be any wiggle room left in the annual budget to allocate these additional bonus dollars for deserving employees. So what can you do to show employees that you appreciate their hard work, yet not have your efforts be scoffed at by the hard working people that are helping you run your business?

Here’s a look at some ways on how to motivate employees without money:

  • Award certificates: A certificate is a valuable keepsake that can really show an Tracery Gold Certificate by PaperDirectemployee how much you care. Consider awarding such certificates for employee of the month, perfect attendance and more. You might even consider framing the certificate for the employee to help dress it up and make it an even more valuable keepsake.
  • Verbal praise: Sometimes the greatest motivator is as simple as praising the employee, whether it be in front of their peers at a weekly or monthly staff meeting or in an e-mail newsletter that goes out to the whole company. Being praised shows an employee how much they are appreciated.
  • Take an employee out to lunch: Another cost-effective way to show an employee how much they’re appreciated is simply to take that worker out to lunch, unexpectedly. Sometimes it’s the little things that make the biggest difference.
  • Bonus vacation days: If money isn’t a viable option for rewarding employees, other things that don’t necessarily factor into the bottom line quite as much might be – like bonus vacation days. So don’t be afraid to dish out another personal day or two to a qualified employee in lieu of a bonus. To many employees, more time off is just about as good as a pay bonus.
  • Premium parking spot: In every office lot, there’s always those spots that are closest to the door or in a covered garage. These spots are typically cherished, as they’re close to the door and offer more protection from any weather elements compared to other spots in the lot. Offer special parking privileges in these spots to employees that qualify.

January 17, 2014

ASAP, FYI, IDK: Which Acronyms are Safe to Use in Business — and When!

Filed under: Marketing & Sales Promotion Techniques — Tags: , , , , — PDWriter @ 3:01 pm
how to use acronyms in business

There are some acronyms that are safe to use in business communication and some that are not safe. Knowing which ones you can use in your business communications will reassure you and your employees when you go to draft an official email or letter. Here are a few hard and fast rules to follow when using three of the most frequently used acronyms in business: ASAP, FYI and IDK.

ASAP –

This is one of those acronyms that has been around so long it’s actually worked its way into every day, conversational language. Sometimes, it’s even pronounced as its own word: “Aysap.”

Whether you spell it out or speak it phonetically, the shortened version of “As soon as possible” is one that is perfectly acceptable when composing interoffice messages. However, if you’re dealing directly with a client and you want to put your best foot forward with them, consider going to the trouble of actually typing out the words. Conveying to someone that you will contact them “as soon as possible” simply sounds more professional.

FYI –

The English language shorthand way of saying “for your information,” FYI is one of those phrases that’s so firmly entrenched in our culture that you might not think twice about using it in business communication. People hear FYI and don’t even have to think about what they’re being told. However, using it in a sentence can be tricky because no matter how you frame it, it looks and sounds informal.

Before you weave it into a sentence, consider your audience. If you’re composing an email to a co-worker or an interoffice newsletter, using FYI is entirely appropriate. In an official communication to a client? Not so much.

IDK –

There are acronyms that are safe to use in business, and acronyms that are just bad taste. IDK falls into the latter category for two distinct reasons. First, it’s shorthand for “I don’t know” – three words you never want to use when discussing business matters with another party. Second, it’s a slang phrase that’s right up there with LOL and OMG in the lexicon of frequent phone texters. Just as you’d never consider including abbreviations like B4 (before), JK (just kidding) or L8R (later) in a professional communication, IDK should be strictly reserved for after-hours text chat with your BFFs.

Now you’ve got that down pat, visit Paper Direct for all your business stationery needs including business cards, brochures, custom envelopes, and lots more.

January 15, 2014

10 Cutting Edge Hair Salon Marketing Ideas

Filed under: Business Marketing Ideas — Tags: — PDWriter @ 10:27 am

Blunt Hairstyle Vinyl Banners by PaperDirectRunning a successful hair salon requires a lot more than the ability to know a good haircut from a bad one. Anyone who’s been in the business longer than a week can tell you that marketing plays a huge part in the ability of a salon to remain in business. To help boost your efforts, here are 10 of the most effective hair salon marketing ideas.

Embrace social media. Take advantage by creating a Facebook page for your salon, regularly posting news about price specials and posting photos of your clients’ new do’s.

Offer discounts to Pilates, yoga or dance studios. Many members of these organizations get frequent haircuts and services. Ask the studio owner if you can put up aWoman Red Lipstick Business Cards by PaperDirect flyer or leave business cards. Offer 50% off your first service if they were referred.

Hold contests that leverage your social media presence. Ask your social media followers to share a photo you’ve posted and keep track of who’s participated. In exchange, hold a random drawing from participants for a free service or product.

Run regular discounts on goods and services. Use your social media profiles to let your followers know about them. Posting discount information with a photo helps ensure your post is more likely to be seen.

Participate in fashion shows. This is a great opportunity to show what you can do. Choose a boutique that caters to a similar clientele and work with them to develop seasonal shows.

Beauty Mirror Woman Postcards by PaperDirectOffer private parties and include hair or makeup services. This can be quite profitable, especially as word of mouth spreads. You can even let your customers bring their own food and music to make it a completely personal experience.

Reward referrals. Offering discounts or free services to people who bring in other clients can foster a great sense of loyalty among your clientele.

Start a blog and update it regularly. Not sure what to write about? You can blog about fashion, trends, events, new products, and anything else you can think of that’s remotely associated with your business. Blogging is a great way for potential customers to get to know you and your style. It’s also a great way for you to reach new customers.

Carry business cards. Always. Make it a habit to grab your business cards every time you go anyplace – and if the topic of your salon comes up in conversation, pass on the card. Design your very own business card today!

Stay up to date on fashion trends if you don’t want to lose customers. Do research, attend classes, and watch the latest movies and TV shows to stay up to date on what people like – and what they want to look like.

As a bonus tip, use custom stationery for all of your business cards, newsletters, and marketing postcards. Visit Paper Direct today to learn more.

January 13, 2014

5 Important Things to Include on Your Brochure

Filed under: Designing Your Business Communication — Tags: — PDWriter @ 8:46 am
Green Medallion Foil 3 Panel Brochures by PaperDirect

A brochure can help your company or school attract new customers or students, or draw attention to an upcoming event your business is organizing. Your brochure is only as good as the content inside of it. People won’t feel compelled to work with your business or school, or seek you out, if you don’t give them reason to. Remember these five things to include on your brochure:

Compelling Image

Your brochure needs something to grab someone’s attention, and an image is often what does the trick. Choose pictures that give a person a clear idea of what your business, school, clinic, or center is offering. Pick a photo or image that’s clear and good quality.

The Purpose of the Brochure
Escape 3 Panel Brochures by PaperDirect

A brochure shouldn’t present a person with a mystery. They should be able to figure out what its purpose is, and what your company’s or school’s purpose is, right away. Decide what you want from the brochure before you start designing it. For example, are you letting people know about an upcoming event or are you trying to convince people to switch schools pick your school instead? Highlight what makes your business or school stand out from the rest.

Contact Information

Include every possible way to contact your school, clinic, center, or business on the brochure. For example, list your phone number, email address, and street address. Don’t forget to include your social media profile information, such as your Twitter handle or Facebook page. You want to make it as easy as possible for people to reach out to you.

Time and Date

Let people know when the specific event is or when your school or business is open. If you’re strictly online, note that, so that people feel comfortable visiting your website at all hours. Include the year on the brochure or pamphlet, too, if you’re creating one for an upcoming event. You don’t want a person finding your brochure a year later and getting confused.

Call to Action

Put a call to action somewhere in the brochure so that people feel compelled to do something. Examples of a call to action include, “call us today” or “send in the coupon below for a free consultation.” Make the call clear and convey to the reader what will happen if they act.

When designing your brochure, make it as readable as possible, using easy-to-see fonts and big print sizes. Put the most important information, such as date and time of the event, right on the front of the brochure. When in doubt, keep the content short, sweet and to the point.

Double-sided Golf themed brochure

Ready to design an eye-catching brochure for your school or business?  Visit PaperDirect for all of your brochure printing needs.

January 10, 2014

How to Easily Create a Plaque for Your Small Business

Filed under: Recognition & Motivation Ideas — PDWriter @ 11:56 am

Piano Wood Custom Engraved Plaque Creating a plaque is a great way to recognize your employees and add some new life to your small business. You can make a plaque for any number of reasons, whether it be for an Employee of the Month contest or to acknowledge a sales goal in the previous month. The best part is, you can make the plaque any way you want and customize it specifically to your company’s needs.

How to Create a Plaque

PaperDirect offers a wide variety of plaques, certificates and awards that will be sure to boost morale and encourage your employees. You can choose a basic certificate holder plaque, or you can go with a standalone design featuring a medallion. You can even get a plaque with multiple name slots, allowing you to recognize multiple achievements.

When you select the perfect plaque for your organization, you’ll be asked to customize 5 Star Certificate Plaque by PaperDirectyour new plaque. Depending on which plaque you order, you may be able to customize multiple areas of the plaque. You can select the color of the frame on certificate plaques and the font you’d like to use for engravings. The Specifications section on the plaque’s page will show you exactly how much room you have to compose your message.

While you can write any message you want, and you can (and should!) have a little fun with what you write, be sure that your text is typo-free.

Once you finish customizing your plaque, add it to your cart. Before you check out, you’ll be able to see when your plaque will ship and how much shipping will cost. From there, you can either add more plaques to your order or simply check out.

Star Medallion Star Plaque by PaperDirectWhy PaperDirect?

At PaperDirect, creating a plaque is fun and easy! PaperDirect is one of the Web’s leading plaque retailers, allowing full customization of plaques for any occasion. We encourage customers to submit reviews on our site so that future customers can be assured of our commitment to quality. For more information, visit https://www.paperdirect.com.

January 8, 2014

5 Punctuation Rules that are Made to be Broken

Filed under: Designing Your Business Communication — Tags: — PDWriter @ 11:43 am

Stardust 3-Panel Brochures The only people who do not find punctuation sticklers to be, well, just plain annoying, are the nitpickers themselves. Although we do need punctuation rules simply because misplacing a comma or period can create serious miscommunication issues, some punctuation rules are made to be broken. Here are five of them:

1. Comma dilemma over whether to use a comma after an introductory clause or phrase. For example, punctuation fanatics insist that this sentence is correct: The play was over, but everyone wanted an encore. What makes the difference if a comma is placed after the word “over?” The sentence implies the same idea without the comma and it is one less thing for the writer to worry about when writing items like brochures or award certificates that need to be informative and meaningful. Break this rule!

2. Oxford commas, or putting an unnecessary comma (again) in a sentence because Oxford University says to do it. This only applies to sentences listing least three items, i.e., She detests broccoli, spinach, and peas. Notice the “Oxford” comma after the word “spinach”. However, omit the comma and the sentence reads the same. Break this rule!

3. Are semicolons really necessary? Do two independent clauses really need connected by a funny-looking dot with a tail? Why not just put a simple period in between independent clauses like this: Sharon worked hard to finish the essay on time. Consequently, she missed her favorite television show. Break the rule!

4. Punctuation police hype the hyphen as a necessary evil that should join two words serving as one adjective. However, does anyone care if there is a hyphen between “chocolate” and “covered” when describing raisins? Ask anyone if “chocolate covered raisins” and “chocolate-covered raisins” mean the same thing and you will get an across the board answer–yes Break the rule!Pristine Invitation Papers by PaperDirect

5. Last punctuation rule everyone should break deals with the number of spaces expected to separate a period, exclamation point, question mark or colon–two. Why? When you need extra space for inclusion of more important words (information on business cards or invitations, for example)–break that rule!

Want sensible advice on punctuation etiquette for printed paper communications that can contribute to establishing your company’s brand name? Get it and more by visiting PaperDirect for all your designed paper needs.

January 6, 2014

5 Small Business Valentine’s Day Promotion Ideas

Filed under: Marketing & Sales Promotion Techniques — PDWriter @ 8:26 am

Flawless Valentines Border Papers by PaperDirectCupid is known for promoting love on Valentine’s Day, but the winged cherub is also a savvy and skilled business marketer. Valentine’s Day is second only to Christmas in terms of retail gift giving, with consumers spending 16.6 billion on greeting cards, flowers, candy, and jewelry in 2013. As a small business owner, it is time to borrow Cupid’s bow and arrow and take aim at promoting your industry. Consider these 5 small business Valentine’s Day promotion ideas.

1. “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?” There is nothing more romantic on Valentine’s Day than poetry, so team up with another business and host a poetry reading/contest. Present the winner with 30% off coupons at both participating businesses, or give them a gift certificate for a local restaurant. That is called paying the love forward, B2B style.

2. Did you know that roughly 196 million roses are produced for Valentine’s Day? While you can’t send roses to everyone on your mailing list, holidays are the perfect time to ramp up your direct mail campaign. Customers and businesses alike will enjoy receiving a personalized, hand-written notes on Valentine’s Day inspired stationary.

3. Valentine’s Day is about love, right? Partner up with another business and donate to
Sweet Surrender Valentines Border Papers by PaperDirectyour favorite charity. Creating a good reputation for your brand is important, and the meaning behind Valentine’s Day has become lost in sea of Godiva chocolates and overpriced roses. The average consumer spent a whopping $130.97 on Valentine’s Day gifts in 2013. It is time to promote your business by giving a little of that back.

4. The word “free” makes people all warm and giddy inside, just like Valentine’s Day is supposed to do. The February holiday is the perfect occasion to give small promotional items as thank-you gifts. Pens, magnets, calendars, tote bags, t-shirts -give these tokens of appreciation to all your customers and the companies you do business with on a daily basis.

5. Show some love for social media. Use Facebook and Twitter to send 29 messages (one for every day in February) to customers and businesses. Whether it is a customer service promise or just a quick measure of affection to the people you do business with, a 140-character tweet is the modern equivalent of sending a Valentine.

To find more inspiration for small business Valentine’s Day promotion ideas, check out PaperDirect.

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