Start, Run, & Grow Your Business

The Benefits of Having an 888 Number for Your Business

Whether you’re an entrepreneur or a business owner with a growing organization, an 888 number can be an invaluable asset. It gives customers a convenient way to contact your business, along with many additional benefits. Let’s take a closer look at 888 numbers to find out why you should get one for your business. What Is an 888 Number? 888 numbers are a type of toll-free number. Toll-free numbers start with a three-digit code. Along with 888, phone service providers may offer toll-free numbers that start with 800, 833, 844, 855, 866, or 877. Most people are familiar with 1-800 numbers. 800 numbers were originally released in the 1960s. The availability of toll-free numbers gradually decreased, leading the FCC to release additional toll-free area codes. 888 numbers were added to keep up with the demand for toll-free numbers. Other than the digits used, there is no …

Blavity: The Tech Company Helping Black Millennials Thrive

Blavity aims to empower Black millennials and the proceeding generations by giving them a platform where they can share authentic stories. Launching a successful tech company is not an easy feat. More than one in five startups fail during their first year. 90% fail within a decade. Millennials lag previous generations in amassing wealth. A lack of funds creates more challenges for entrepreneurs with original ideas. The US tech industry is also disproportionately white, which often leads to additional barriers for people of color. Morgan DeBaun is helping to break down those barriers and give Black millennials an online platform where they can thrive. DeBaun launched Blavity in 2014 to allow underrepresented voices to share stories and news not covered by mainstream media. Four years later, the company secured $6.5 million in its latest round of funding. Blavity is now a massive online ecosystem that reaches over 100 million …

What Makes the Best Phone Tree for Businesses?

As you start expanding your phone system to accommodate the needs of your business, you should consider implementing a phone tree. A phone tree is another name for the automated menus that many businesses use to field customer inquiries. It gives you a way to help callers reach their desired department or extension. However, the benefits of it depend on how it’s set up. In the following article, we’ll examine the main benefits of a phone tree and how to choose the right system for your business. What Is a Phone Tree? A phone tree is a type of automated telephone system that provides callers with voice menus. The menus direct callers to the necessary extension or prerecorded message. Most people have interacted with a phone tree system before. When you call a business & an automated message asks for a voice prompt or numerical prompt, you …

How to Cut Your Turnover Rate and Retain Employees

It can be difficult to find great people to work for your company, and it’s hard to hold on to them. It’s not even the fault of the person hiring an employee. Many times, it just can’t be helped for a variety of reasons that we’ll touch on here.. Though it’s not all that complicated to create a satisfying work environment, it can be tough to know what you can do on your end so that the people working on your team are happy with their jobs. As a business owner, you want to hang on to the team members you’ve got because replacing them is obviously time-consuming, costly, and stressful. Here are a few pointers you can use to make sure your people stay with you, practicing good strategy from the moment you hire them & even before then. Sometimes People Just Don’t Work Out No …

Reasons to Take a Vacation from Your Business This Summer

Attention Business Owners: You have to take a vacation sometime. The unfortunate truth is that business owners work too hard, rarely even having the thought that they will get to take a vacation. Running a business is difficult. It’s truthfully one of the most stressful jobs in existence, automatically requiring you to handle a wide variety of responsibilities. You have to do all those things very well, too, because the consequences of an error on any front can be much greater than those of a typical job. Making a mistake could mean an employee doesn’t get the correct pay, or a marketing decision results in the loss of hundreds of new sales, or the new person you just hired never even shows up for work. While everyone thinks that business owners have the greatest dream job ever, you’re toiling away every day just hoping that the company doesn’t go …

Reasons Why Your Customers Want to Text You

Did you know that over 6 billion texts are sent every day?! Like most new technology, texting did take time to take hold with the public. In 1995, the average American sent just 0.4 text messages per month, according to Mobivity, and by 2000, the number still stood at just 35 a month– or about one text a day. The average American sends about 94 of them per day. Of course, many of these texts come from businesses or bots, not real people. Still, Americans are defaulting to text as their preferred communication medium more & more often. Texting is not a uniquely American habit, either. About five billion people, or 65% of the world’s population, enjoy access to texting. Why do people everywhere love to communicate by text message? And why would a customer want to text your small business instead of calling, emailing, or contacting you through social …

How to Prevent Feeling Overwhelmed as a Business Owner

Starting your own business is incredibly exciting. When it begins, you’re likely riding the high that comes with quitting the 9-5-grind to go your own way. Then things start picking up. Where before it wasn’t hard to stay on top of your daily routine & separate the professional from the personal, now you’ve got more work than you can deal with, and things are beginning to blend together. Your work days might be bleeding into your personal time, and you catch yourself answering emails when you know you should be sleeping. While too much work as a business owner or a freelancer is a “good problem” to have, it can still add up to more than you can handle. Taking on every project that comes your way is a common mistake most business owners make when first starting out. More work is always better than less, right? Plus, what …

Why You Need a Virtual Phone Number for Your Small Business

Switching to a virtual phone system may help your business become more efficient while presenting a more professional appearance. Staying competitive requires your business to remain connected. Employees need to remain connected to clients, vendors, and each other. A dedicated phone system allows you to assign numbers to specific departments or staff and route calls or texts to different employees. Unfortunately, many small business owners lack the budget for an expensive phone system, which is one of many reasons why a virtual phone system is a smarter choice. What is a Virtual Phone? Virtual phone systems are cloud-based systems that allow users to make and receive calls from any Internet-connected device. Calls and texts are sent and received through the cloud instead of a landline. You gain access to a wide range of features and functionalities designed to support your business operations because the virtual phone number …

Comprehensive Guide of Resources to Help Real Estate Agents Thrive

Real estate agents looking to attract more clients or sell properties faster have endless resources at their disposal. However, those who are new to real estate may not know where to start. It can all be extremely overwhelming when first getting things going. To save you the hassle of scouring the Internet, we’ve compiled a list of the best tools. From digital marketing platforms to 3D virtual tours, the Internet has everything needed to move real estate quickly. With the following online resources, you’ll have no problem thriving in the most competitive real estate markets. 1. Join the Leading Real Estate Marketing Platforms Every real estate agent should obviously take advantage of marketing platforms to reach a larger audience. The top real estate marketing platforms include: Zillow Realtor.com Homes.com Adwerx Zillow and Realtor.com give agents access to an online toolkit with helpful resources, including templates for emails and newsletters. However, …

Perception vs Reality of Entrepreneurship

So why exactly would you want to be an entrepreneur? Most seasoned entrepreneurs would say it’s for one of three reasons: you’re a starry-eyed novice who sees the next Mark Zuckerburg every time you pass a mirror; you can’t wait to get the life kicked out of you by the reality of self-employment; or maybe–just maybe–you have a marketable idea you’re passionate about & the commitment to get it done right. Probably everyone toying with entrepreneurship believes they fall into the final category. But do you really? How can you be sure? It’s important to know the difference between the fantasy of starting a business and the reality of doing so before investing your money, your career, and your family’s financial future in a brand-new endeavor. So what’s the difference between the perception of entrepreneurship and its reality? Here are a few business tips for the future small business …

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