business Archives - A Million Lives

May 20, 2021 by Greg Underwood

How to File a Foreign LLC in New Jersey

Entering the world of entrepreneurship sets you up not just to establish a sole company but also to reach as many possible customers as you can and expand your business. For a first-timer, this can be an overwhelming thought but it is something possible to achieve.

If you feel that you are ready to take your business to the next level, you need to equip yourself with the necessary know-how. If for instance you have formed your business in New York and would like to expand in New Jersey, you need to know how to file a foreign LLC.

Foreign LLC

Foreign LLC happens when a business is formed in one state but registered or set up to do business in another. Contrary to what the term indicates it is not business outside of the country. It is referred to as foreign since there are different laws that exist in each state.

If for instance your business was formed in Washington but you are aiming to do business in New Jersey, then your company becomes a foreign LLC in New Jersey. This means that your business has a foreign qualification in New Jersey.

Foreign Qualification in New Jersey

To put it simply, foreign qualification is asking permission to the state, in this instance from New Jersey, to do business legally. However, there may be some questions on how “to do business” is defined since each state is governed by different laws.

Some states, like New Jersey do not have a clear definition of what “doing business” is, which can be a bit confusing and problematic. Activities relating to doing business are evaluated on a case-to-case basis.

Generally, you will need to set up a foreign LLC if you are to do activities in New Jersey that involve selling goods and services, hiring employees, establishing an office, and deriving your income within the state. These are activities that qualify as doing business in New Jersey.

Filing for a Foreign LLC in New Jersey

If the activities you will be doing falls under the definition of New Jersey’s “to do business”, then the next logical step is to file for a foreign LLC. To start the process, you would need to file a Business Registration Application with the New Jersey Department of Treasury.

The Business Registration Application is the same form used to file for all business entities, whether domestic or foreign, in New Jersey. The application will require you to input basic information regarding your business, which includes the following.

Your LLC name (and an alternate name, if the name is unavailable in New Jersey)
State and date of the LLC’s formation, along with the effective date in New Jersey
A detailed description of the business purpose in New Jersey
Principal address
The New Jersey registered agent name and address (A P.O. box address will not be accepted)
An authorized signature

The filing fee for this is $125 and you also need to include a Certificate of Good Standing from the state where the LLC was formed or referred to as the home state.

Indeed, it’s truly rewarding when your business is growing and is finally capable of expanding. For once a newbie in the business world, expansion is considered as a milestone. To avoid any problems, make sure to adhere to the state’s policies where you will be filing as a foreign LLC.

March 18, 2021 by Greg Underwood

7 Pillars of Effective Project Management

Effective project management requires knowledge, skills, and tools for successful outcomes. From having a well-thought timeline to working with the right people, it has several requirements. Keep on reading and we’ll talk about some of the most important factors that contribute to successful project management.

A Hybrid Approach

Hybrid project management combines agile and traditional approaches. It is predictive and adaptive. Managers and resources can better adapt to the changing circumstances in every step of the project. The successful execution of this approach, however, requires theoretical and practical foundations. One of the best things you can do is to enroll in university short courses online to improve competency in hybrid project management.

Robust Time Management

Completing a project within a specified timeline is one of the key indicators of its success. An effective project manager knows how to build a realistic schedule. The scope and capacities of the team members are considered in coming up with a timeline. This also involves delegating responsibilities to make sure that the project will be completed as scheduled. More so, it is important to have a contingency plan in case of disruptions to minimize delays.

The Right Technology

Effective project management also requires embracing innovation. Even if it requires significant capital, businesses must invest in state-of-the-art tools to improve project management. Among others, artificial intelligence is one of the most important. It automates repetitive tasks, improves resource allocation, and increases efficiency, among other benefits.

Sufficient Budget

Funding is another major requirement in effective project management. Make sure that you have the necessary financial resources. Also, find a way to save money without compromising outcomes. Make the most out of the budget that you have, but this does not mean that the quality of the project should suffer.

Emotional Intelligence

One of the most commonly ignored facets of project management is emotional intelligence. Social skills, empathy, and self-awareness are some of the crucial aspects of emotional intelligence that are applicable to project management. From conflict resolution to negotiation, there are many ways by which emotions will play a significant role in completing projects.

Proper Communication

Successful project implementations require proper communication. All stakeholders must communicate frequently and effectively. Information exchange is also important for evaluating the project and pointing out potential improvements. More so, it will prevent misunderstandings and will increase the chances that the project will be completed based on the timeline agreed upon.

Competent People

At the end of the day, the success of a project depends on the capabilities of the people working behind such. Having a skilled project manager is useless when other team members do not have the required acumen. It is crucial to assemble the right team, making sure that the members will have significant contributions to the project’s outcome.

In sum, effective project management requires a hybrid approach, sufficient budget, emotional intelligence, and a competent team, among other things.

January 8, 2020 by Greg Underwood

Our Guide To Boost Conversion Rates In 2020

Boosting conversions rates when running an online business is crucial, particularly if you are competing in a saturated market. Not only will you need to appeal to your chosen target audience, but you need to find new and creative ways to boost conversion rates such as the use of PPC management or an SEO service to stand out and reach your audiences. To help you get started, we will be providing you with our insider knowledge into some of the ways that you can boost your conversion rate with minimal effort.

Optimise Landing Pages

The landing page is arguably the most important part of your site and requires the most amount of care and attention. When designing the landing page, it is vital that it features relevant copy as well as designated call to actions regardless of whether it is just to download an e-book or sign up for a newsletter. With a call to action clearly placed at the top and the bottom of the homepage, you can then entice your audience to click and interact with you.

Focus On Clear And Concise Pricing Information

Another page that you should focus on if you are trying to sell online is the pricing information. This should be displayed on the pricing page in a clear format to give the users the information that they need instantly. This, in turn, will help to reduce the bounce rate for your site whilst encouraging an increase in conversions over a prolonged period of time. This can then be followed up by a call to action at the foot of the page to capture the attention of users and encourage them to complete a specific action.

Keep Content Relevant

Though it may seem tempting to push the hard sell, it is vital that you keep all content as relevant as possible when looking to boost conversion rates as this is what will keep people on your site. By creating content that captures the attention of your chosen audience from the start you are then more likely to build the trust between you and them that is needed to obtain a successful conversion in the long term. During the process of creating the content, it is crucial that it is all factorially correct as this will have an effect on the relationship that you have with your audience.

Ensure Interesting Call To Actions

When implementing call to actions, they should be short and snappy as this will capture attention much more than a long-winded sentence. With phrases such as “sign up today” and “learn more” working to entice audiences, these alongside well-implemented designs will then help to progressively boost your conversion rate over time and grow the business.

Optimise The Page Speed

The final way that you can boost conversion rates in 2020 is through the use of page speed optimisation. With over 45% of people clicking off of a website that takes between 3- 5 seconds to load, this is a massive chunk of your audience that you could be losing. By optimising the page speed, you are then homing in on user experience and increasing the reputation of your business as people are more likely to use a company that looks as professional as possible.

Though it will take time to boost your conversion rates in the new year, a well-implemented strategy will provide you with the perfect long-lasting solution needed to boost sales. This can be implemented in both big businesses and a start-up and is bound to help boost sales as well as the popularity of your business.

June 2, 2019 by Greg Underwood

Dealing With Competition

One of the main challenges of running a business is dealing with the inevitable competition. If you’ve identified a gap in the market, it’s almost inevitable that others will have as well. You need to make sure you’re ready to defend your share of customer’s revenue, and today we’re looking at the ways you can do just that, to ensure success and prosperity for your brand.

Getting the Edge

If you’re going to make decisions that lead to success for your brand, you need an edge over the competition. If you don’t have some insight into the decisions they’re likely to be taking, so you can plan around them, you might find it difficult to differentiate yourself.

If you find you’re launching a new product on the same day as your rivals, or begin an advertising push for a big sale that overlaps with their own discounts, you’re asking your customers to choose between you, and you’re undermining the distinctiveness between your two brands.

To be successful, you need to be communicating all the different ways you are distinct from your rivals (especially the ways that are most relevant to your customers), and ringfencing your time in the year to showcase your offering. This helps customers form loyalty to your brand and prevents it from being lost in the background noise of the marketplace.

Fortunately, market research agencies can do more than survey customers for you. They can also analyse the other businesses in your market and get you that vital competitive intelligence you need to make your plans around your competitors and confidently commit to new product development.

Building a Unique Business

The best way to withstand competition is to ensure your customers have plenty to recognise and latch on to with your business. Working with the same market research agency to find out what customers value about your brand, and leaning into it over time can give you a real advantage that less distinct competitors will lack.

This is the hard work of creating a brand – a personality for your business built out of dozens, if not hundreds, of tiny decisions, that lets customers have a personal relationship with your business – and the effort you put in, if you succeed, will repay you many times over.

You need to base your brand decisions on data: picking a voice for your marketing communications isn’t something that should be done lightly, and rebranding is a costly exercise that doesn’t always have the desired effect. Market research companies can use tools like Brand Trackers to make sure you’re building a brand that will stand up to the competition and appeal to customers for long term success!

March 26, 2019 by Greg Underwood

Transform Your Passion into a Business With a Loan Calculator

ithout assistance. As such, most new businesses rely on small business loans to pay for startup expenses.

Finding a small business loan, however, can be a difficult process.

How much does a business loan cost?

Which lenders offer the best terms?

Without understanding how much you can afford and how to calculate your monthly payments, you could end up taking out a loan that you can’t pay back.

Fortunately, you can use a business loan calculator to easily calculate exactly how much you’ll end up paying for your small business loan.

Here’s why Business Loan Costs May Vary

How much a business loan costs depends on a number of factors.

Are you able to make a down payment? Can you put up collateral? Do you have good business credit?

These are a few of the main factors lenders will use to evaluate how much they are willing to lend you, what your interest rate will be, and how long you have to pay back the loan. Higher down payments, valuable collateral, and good credit will significantly your chance for approval and provide you with much better offers.

The three primary factors that determine the total cost of the loan are principal, interest, and repayment term. Interest rates, in particular, can dramatically increase or reduce the total amount that you will pay over time.

These three factors are what business loan calculators use to calculate how much your loan will cost.

It’s time to get to know all the numbers with a Loan Calculator

Business loan calculators are online tools that help potential borrowers to calculate the total cost of a loan, including interest.

After deciding how much you can afford on a monthly basis, a loan calculator will help you determine whether or not any loan offers you receive fit into your budget.

The 3 Easy Steps for Using a Business Loan Calculator

Using a business loan calculator is incredibly easy. You only need three things to get started: the loan amount, loan term, and interest rate.

Loan Amount.The loan amount, or principal, is the total amount that you plan to borrow.
Loan Term. The loan term is the time it will take to pay off the loan by making the minimum monthly payments. Shorter terms will decrease the total amount of interest paid but will increase the monthly payments.
Interest (APR). Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, is the interest rate, also called the annual percentage rate (APR). Of course, lower interest rates are favorable but can be difficult to get as a new business. Your interest can add several thousands of dollars to the total long-term cost of a loan.

Using these factors, a business loan calculator can tell you the total cost of the loan, how much interest you will pay, and how much your monthly payments are.

For example, let’s say you take out a $25,000 loan with an 8% interest rate and a repayment term of 10 years.

Using a business loan calculator, you would find that your monthly payments would be $303.32 and the total interest paid would be $11,398.28.

This is an easy and quick way to determine whether or not you are able to afford a business loan. Keep in mind that your monthly payments should not exceed 80% of your business’ net profit and that the total cost of the loan should not outweigh your expected return on investment.

Don’t go into a Business Loan Blindfolded

A small business loan can be a great resource to help turn your passion into a business. However, it is important to know the total cost of a loan offer before agreeing to any terms.

Do you need help determining whether or not a small business loan would be worth the investment? If so, be sure to use a business loan calculator to calculate the total cost over time of a loan.

January 31, 2019 by Greg Underwood

The Importance Of Natural Light In Shared Space Work Environments

Natural light can really impact the appearance of a room. Open the blinds or curtains and everything is not only illuminated but it is almost as if light brightens up the room making it cheery. While the mood in the room definitely changes, light also affects how we feel and work.

At work, natural light benefits employees in a number of ways. For one, from an eco-friendly standpoint, natural light is more in tune with the natural rhythms of our bodies, which facilitates productivity. In fact, employees can function much better in rooms illuminated by natural light as opposed to electrical lighting simply because, in some cases, the intensity of electrical light is distracting. Within the shared workspace, natural light holds a few other benefits as well.

Let’s take a closer look at the various benefits of natural light in a shared workspace.

Productivity And Efficiency

One of the central benefits of natural lighting is that it promotes productivity in the workspace. Professionals in rooms that are mostly illuminated by sunlight are more aware at work. This alertness makes it possible for professionals to get more work completed but also to complete work correctly, making for a more efficient and productive workday.

Shared workspaces that are illuminated primarily by light provide the environment for maximising your workday, especially during the Australian summers when the days are a lot longer. The most comfortable atmosphere illuminated by natural light is even more incentive to go with shared spaces that provide their members with natural light. In shared spaces, professionals will find the dedicated desk is a desk of your own in a shared space with natural light and like-minded people that also promotes productivity.

Circadian Rhythm

One of the reasons that employees are so much more productive in natural lit settings is related to the circadian rhythm. These rhythms respond to light and darkness signalling when it is time to sleep and to work. Natural light is one of the main clues to the body that it is time to wake and to be productive, and while electrical lighting can illuminate a room just as effectively, nothing can replace the benefits of Vitamin D and other nutrients when emitted into a space. Within shared spaces, rooms illuminated by natural light set the tone for productivity.

Importance Of Vitamin D

Another benefit of natural lighting is that it is the number one source of Vitamin D. This particular mineral is naturally absorbed through the skin. One of its primary functions is nerve and muscle support, but it also aids the immune system.

Without a healthy immune system, our entire system is vulnerable to a number of diseases and functions, making work impossible. In the shared space, a compromised immune system does not bode well for the affected employee but also places others at risk for the conditions associated with a Vitamin D deficiency, like, for example, the common cold. In essence, natural lighting is the number one source of this vital mineral needed for the body, and it not only supports optimal health, but it promotes productivity within the workspace.

Mental Health Benefits

Finally, natural lighting also supports optimal mental health. Serotonin, the chemical associated with affecting mood, is also connected to the amount of sunlight a person is exposed to over time. Researchers believe that serotonin levels are at their highest on sunny days, and that is why so many people are affected by SAD (Seasonal Affected Disorder) during the winter months when days are shorter. In the shared spaces, the amount of sunlight professionals are exposed to can affect their mood, and thus their productivity.

Sunlight And Productivity

While the benefits of sunlight are usually associated with leisure and fun, its benefits can also be seen in the workspace. Shared space with a lot of natural lighting can do wonders for the mood and mental health of professionals working in the space. However, it has the potential to also greatly impact productivity.

January 27, 2019 by Greg Underwood

Benefits of a Los Angeles California Business Answering Service

Can you answer 1000 calls an hour and resolve everyone’s problems? What if you aren’t in the office? And most importantly, what if someone needs your support after hours?
Do you want a receptionist to answer your phone that can’t answer any questions?
What if your receptionist can’t keep up with the call volume? Do you want customers on hold all the time?

When it comes to your business, you may want to think about hiring a business answering service like you can find at this website. This can save you a lot of time and money in the long run, and provide a lot of benefits for you. Here are a few reasons why.

#1 – A Business Answering Service Can Save More Money than a Live Service

When you’re investing in a live answering service, you may be spending more for people who aren’t trained and tailored properly for your business. When it comes to a business answering service, only those who are properly trained will fit your business needs, and you won’t pay for the extra features that you may not need.
Aside from this, there are many expenses that come with hiring a secretary instead of hiring a business answering service. You are responsible for everything for that employee, from their payroll, to their insurance, and more. When you hire a business answering service, you are responsible for the flat rate you pay and that’s it.

#2 – Business Answering Services are Trained Professionals

Many answering services can give your customers and clients a smile on the phone, but at the same time while being personable, they aren’t always reliable and sound professional. When you hire a business answering service you get the benefit of having someone who is personable AND professional. They will answer the phone and not annoy or aggravate your customers by answering the phone incorrectly, and they’ll truly represent your business the right way.

#3 – Your Business Will Sound Complete

Most companies that have been established for a while have a business answering service who handles calls, and if you hire one, you’ll in fact have a higher rate of success and appear “bigger” in the shark tank.

#4 – Time is Money

This is the term for every business. It’s not personal, just the way that business works. However, with a professional business answering service, you not only save money, but you save time because you can focus on the parts of your job that you need to focus on more and let someone else handle that aspect.

You can also usually customize exactly what options you’d like (such as menus, options for urgent callers to be able to reach you after hours if necessary – or be escalated to you, and much more). You can also add and remove features of your scope of support package, like having technical support, billing, and more.

Conclusion
When hiring a remote team, you’re saving money in the long run, and as mentioned before your experience will be custom tailored to fit your business, the industry you’re in, and you will have ultimate loyalty, security, access to everything (data, records, calls, messages), and have customer support on your left hand so you can focus on what’s on the right.

December 11, 2018 by Greg Underwood

What is MRP and How it Works?

Material requirements planning (MRP) is an inventory and production planning control system. This system is primarily used to calculate the materials required to produce an item and plan its production.

The manufacturing industry heavily depends on the balance between demand and supply. To produce a particular amount of a certain product, there’s a specific amount of materials that must go into the production process to get the desired level of output. It is a push type of inventory control, meaning that firms are using forecasting methods to determine the demand for product.

MRP includes three steps:

Identifying the materials and components in stock;
Identifying the additional ones needed; and
Scheduling their production or purchase.

MRP is designed to meet the following objectives:

Ensure that materials are always available for production and products are available for delivery;
Maintain the lowest possible level of inventory; and
Plan manufacturing activities, delivery schedule and purchasing activities.

Effective inventory management is the main objective of MRP. While it is designed to help keep inventory at the lowest possible level, companies may want to hold more than necessary thereby raising the cost of inventory. Most MRP systems are software-based but it’s possible to conduct MRP by hand as well.

MRP was developed in 1964 by Joseph Orlicky after he studied the lean production methodology of the Toyota production System. According to several sources, the first computerized system was built in that same year by Black and Decker. The next generation of MRP system is known as Manufacturing Resources Planning or MRP II.

MRP is built to provide answers to these basic production questions:

What is needed?
How much is needed?
When is it needed?

Most MRP II systems are modular in nature, comprising of modules such as item master data, bill of materials, production resources data, purchasing management, shop floor control, cost control, and others.

Key Takeaways

MRP helps firms to minimize inventory levels and associated carrying costs, keep track of material requirements, determine the most economical size for orders, allocate production time and plan for future capacity needs.

However, MRP has a few setbacks also. First its accuracy depends solely on the accuracy of the information it is given. Wrong accounting will result in MRP producing inaccurate information. MRP is one of the most widely used systems in the manufacturing industry.

October 23, 2018 by Greg Underwood

4 Tips To Growing Your Business In An Efficient Fashion

Starting a business and making it profitable to a point is tough while growing as business can be equally as tough. This can take a larger personal investment or taking on investors which changes the power dynamic of a company totally in certain cases. The best thing that a company can do is to consistently provide quality products/services to retain their current clients. Client retention can really help when it comes to picking up new clients that you love to work with. Taking any client that comes through the door is not always wise as nightmare clients can tie up staff and kill margins. The following are tips to grow your business without breaking the budget in the most efficient way possible.

Content Marketing

Content marketing is extremely important when trying to grow a business as search engine rankings can make a huge difference in growth. Companies that are ranking on the 3^rd or 4^th page for their main search terms could be missing out on thousands of possible customers a month. Creating content that other industry sites and publications can link back to as a resource is a great way to do this naturally without risking a Google penalty. Content can come in various forms whether it is written, recorded in the case of a podcast, or put in video form. People like to consume content differently so do not alienate one part of the demographic simply due to laziness and not wanting to delve into another content form.

Partnering Up With Other Relevant Brands

Partnering up with other relevant brands to sell your products or while label your services can be an incredible opportunity. A great sales team at another company white labeling your services can lead to more customers without the headache of dealing directly with the customers. Partnering up with influencers in certain niches can help grow a business but not all influencers deliver a return on investment depending on the trust they have built with their followers.

Drop Shipping

Drop shipping can be a great tactic to growing an online business that has already has success. This will not involve having to ship or store any of the new products that are offered on an ecommerce site. Partnering with a wholesaler can be tough as not all companies are willing to set up a drop shipping arrangement that truly works. Other companies are more than willing to get their products in front of the most eyes possible. You need to make sure the wholesaler is reliable as being out of stock of a popular product can have negative impacts on your site.

Scour Industry Functions For New Customers

Millions of dollars are done and long term business relationships can be formed at conferences and other industry events. This is a great chance to sign new clients and having so many people in such a dense area can make it easy to meet with dozens of people over the course of a week. Building this personal rapport is important as a client is much more likely to be patient with a new vendor if they got to know them personally. Do not be a person that corners people constantly trying to sell but rather have staff discuss random industry happenings showcasing their knowledge. In most cases signing a deal or two will cover the cost of the conference so it is well worth it in the end.

September 26, 2018 by Greg Underwood

Challenges to the Modern Trade and Global Marketing

In this era of modern trade practices w.r.t various demographics, social scenarios etc. marketing has a very key role to play to get any product or services successfully placed into the consumer’s mind and to get into their practice system. Each and every brand try to highlight their products through various platforms such as social media, email marketing etc. One of the most conventional and strong ways they use is through showcasing their products and their features through expo’s and shows. Most brands use this medium to go globally and to reach out to their potential customers directly and to have their immediate responses and to cater to their expectations. This helps them to have a direct analysis of the market also and to get to the bottom of demographical needs. Thus, letting them strategize their businesses and their products also.

Every company needs a platform whether on their own or through local agencies to organize an expo and to reach out to the consumers at different locations. This is a very costly avenue for small organizations in spite of having some great cutting edge opportunities and products and for bigger giants also as they cannot reach out at many locations in spite of their great expenses.

With one such great facility, a southern Californian company namely ExpoMarketing has come up. Starting from 1991, this company which is a leader in its sector has come up with a unique facility to provide an alternate or rather I would call a great setup for all those companies and private owners, an option to showcase and be a part of a high valued exhibition at various locations by the company.

The company offers so much of customization and options starting from rental to buying a booth for an exhibition or for multiple exhibitions. The prices are decided with huge customizable options w.r.t the needs. The first step in the process is to call an Account Executive to learn about the company and the brand and to discuss the show that they are attending. The company will ask you for your wishes and requirements for the booth at that show as well as the budget parameters so that to create maximum options and recommendations possible. The dedicated team of experts will then guide the brand to make smarter decisions and ensure that the requirements align with the trade show goals.

The website ExpoMarketing is very elaborative in its own an one can easily figure out what they need through it. The user experience and awareness can be very well described through the Baldwin Fitter’s example on how they get their task done seamlessly with such a convenience. One such booth design which they confirmed through one go is below –

When you want to leverage such a great platform and to showcase your brand’s philosophy in so-called “Brand Fair”, do utilize and experience this great service. This may be the difference one brand can imagine for themselves