Truthfully, despite advancements having been made, women in the workplace are still not taken as seriously as their male counterparts. Most of the time, this is simply due to internalised misogyny, and unfortunately, the culprits might not even be aware that they are doing this. If you want to command more of a presence in the workplace and be taken a little more seriously, then all you really need to do is to cultivate a few good habits. Read on to learn more.
You Need To Look The Part
While it doesn’t exactly feel fair, women are still judged on their looks first and foremost. This means that if you want to be taken seriously, you need to look the part. Even if you work from home, if you jump on and off Zoom calls or Teams meetings throughout the day, then you should be dressed professionally – if only from the waist up. You need to always adhere to the dress code and put your most professional face forward.
Communication Is Key
If you want to be taken seriously, you need to be able to express yourself well. It is imperative that you know your stuff in order to cement yourself as an expert in their mind. Oftentimes, as a woman, the instinct is simply to be agreeable and not make waves, but this is not an effective leadership style, obviously. Communicating effectively is deeply important; while you can – and should – certainly acknowledge other points of view and ideas, in the end, if you are in charge, you need to act as such, which means encouraging contributions but ultimately retaining control.
Continually Make An Effort To Learn
Stagnating in terms of knowledge will ensure that you are not taken seriously. You need to make an effort to stay abreast of all industry developments and relevant business news. This not only helps to ensure that your colleagues will take you more seriously, but it also makes sense for the business too. Practically speaking, keeping up with industry developments won’t always be enough. Conducting research is also key before you make any big business decisions. For example, if you are creating a new marketing campaign, you should do some research on how best to reach your audience, whether this means website banners on sites your demographic is likely to frequent or choosing to advertise on a bus using a business like Monster Outdoor. Having evidence behind your choices allows you to prove yourself and your methods.
Connect With Other Women In Business
Having a support network is vital, and who else can better understand the trials and tribulations of being a woman in business than other women in business? Empowering and supporting each other is incredibly important. You could build your own support network through your business contacts, or you could choose to join an existing network or group already available. Finding a community can be a lifeline.
The Bottom Line
It is 2023, and you would hope that women command a lot more respect in the professional sphere. While there have certainly been improvements, there is still a long way to go. Unfortunately, as a woman, you are not likely to be taken as seriously as your male counterparts despite being just as competent and qualified. This is why it is necessary to take proper steps to ensure that you are putting your best face forward, professionally speaking.
In an ever-changing and highly competitive post-pandemic market, many businesses are putting more emphasis on their e-commerce offering, especially as up to three quarters of consumers deviated from their usual online store to a new service, store or product offering during Covid-19.
This shift in consumer habits has encouraged businesses to focus more on their approach to e-commerce in order to stay competitive, increase conversions and revenue and ultimately build a successful e-commerce business.
Here are 8 essential tips to consider when building your e-commerce business:
1. Implement an effective e-commerce strategy
An e-commerce strategy is one of the most important steps to ensuring your business is a success online. Once you fully understand the marketplace in which you operate, your competitors and your prospective consumers, an effective e-commerce strategy can then act as a roadmap to every single marketing technique that you will implement in order to achieve your business goals. This can include analyzing the personas of your customers and mapping out their buying experience, while using this information to optimize your marketing efforts.
2. Focus on building a positive brand identity
The lasting impression that customers have of your brand, whether that be a thought or feeling evoked from your logo, a positive or negative experience due to your customer support or a perception of your business from your marketing campaigns, will determine your brand identity and ultimately whether a consumer uses your business.
By spending time focusing on your brand identity and how you want your ecommerce business to be perceived in the marketplace, will help you to build a successful ecommerce business from the outset.
3. Ensure that your e-commerce website is conversion optimized
As an online business, your website is arguably the most important attribute in ensuring your e-commerce business is a success. Building a stunning ecommerce website isn’t just about creating a visually pleasing design, your website will need to be conversion optimized in order to drive sales and increase revenue.
In order to ensure that your website is conversion focused, you could consider:
Intuitive and user friendly pathflows
Responsive and mobile friendly design to ensure a user friendly experience
Integrating online reviews
Integrating a status tracker at checkout to reduce “cart abandonment”
4. Offer several customer support channels
Focusing on customer experience is crucial when building a successful ecommerce business. By offering omnichannel customer service, your customer support will be much more accessible to consumers and more practical and convenient, enhancing their user experience. You can consider many options when it comes to customer support, whether that be via live chat, social media, email or dedicated customer service telephone lines.
5. Encourage customer feedback and reviews
By incorporating methods to increase the number of customer reviews will be beneficial to your business, especially as 93% of consumers read online reviews before making a purchase. Emailing your customers and inviting them to leave feedback is a really simple method to encourage reviews.
6. Focus on Search Engine Optimization (SEO) to increase your rankings
Search engine optimization is absolutely crucial in ensuring your website receives traffic, aside from paid ads. Search engines take into consideration many factors when deciding a website’s rankings and it could be beneficial to hire an SEO expert to assist you.
However, there are loads of simple steps that you can implement which will help you to contend with your competitors:
Ensure that your website is accessible; Search engines take into consideration accessibility when it comes to SEO. Ensuring that your website is responsive on mobile devices, including alt-tags to images and correctly using headings are all easy ways to make your website more accessible
Ensure that your content is optimised with keywords; You should be mindful of the written content on your website and ensure that you use keywords within your text
Website speed; a quick website that is responsive and receptive will help to boost your rankings in search engines
Incoming links to your website; Encouraging new visitors to your website from external sources that link back to your website is a great way to compete in search engines
7. Consider targeted paid advertising to increase site traffic
In today’s competitive market, you might want to consider implementing a paid advertising strategy in order to increase traffic to your website. Social media platforms, such as LinkedIn or Instagram, offer easy to use paid advertising which can be targeted at specific audiences. Google ads are also a beneficial way to help with your website rankings. However, it’s important to remember that ads are costly and many companies spend thousands of pounds on adverts with sometimes little return.
8. Incorporate cart abandonment reduction within your marketing strategy
You’ve done the leg work to ensure customers reach your website and even start adding products to their shopping cart, but like many of us, customers can change their mind and navigate away from the page before completing their purchase.
Oftentimes, cart abandonment occurs when a customer feels like the checkout process is too much hassle or is taking too much time. By focusing on your cart abandonment strategy, customers are more likely to complete their purchase and ultimately your ecommerce business will generate more revenue. You might want to consider:
Adding thumbnails next to items at checkout to remind customers of the items they are purchasing (and why they liked them!)
Allowing customers to checkout as a guest rather than creating an account
Incorporating several payment options so that guests can pick the most convenient option to suit them
To conclude…
Building a successful e-commerce business takes time and a lot of planning. There are many approaches that you can take but ultimately the goal is the same; to boost sales and consequently increase revenue. By focusing on the fundamentals, your e-commerce business will have a strong foundation in order to compete in a highly competitive and unpredictable market.
To minimise the risks of investments and maximise returns, potential tax reliefs have often been at the forefront of experienced investors’ minds when they’re choosing their next venture. As we’re looking at high inflations and low-interest rates across the country, now more than ever, it is vital that you consider the right investments and how they can provide you with tax relief to boost your profits.
Each investor has their own style of investing and the level of risk they’re comfortable with, which is why there are many different routes you can take when looking for innovative investment options that also offer tax relief. Here, we cover the top investments you can choose from and how you can make the most of them to generate the best returns on your investments.
Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs)
You will likely have heard of ISAs before, but you may not have realised how beneficial they are to investors looking to make the most of their money through tax relief schemes. This type of savings account was introduced in the UK in 1999 and was a scheme that was designed to encourage people to save and invest their money. Now, many ISAs are designed with families in mind, as they’re an excellent way to invest your savings for the future.
Products you can expect to see on the market for ISAs include cash ISA, lifetime ISA, stocks and shares ISA, and innovative finance ISA. Each ISA product has different parameters for risk and rewards, and the one you choose will depend on your own personal preferences. For instance, the cash ISA is popular with people looking for low-risk savings schemes, whereas the innovative finance ISA is a more high-risk venture that includes a range of assets such as debt-based securities and peer-to-peer loans. However, whichever one you choose to invest in will benefit from a tax (CGT)-free environment that allows your funds to grow over time.
Venture Capital Schemes
For more experienced investors, venture capital schemes are an excellent way to grow your capital and enjoy various tax reliefs. Venture capital schemes are typically designed to provide investment opportunities for individuals to invest their funds in startups or early-stage businesses in order to promote growth across the UK’s enterprises.
Within the venture capital schemes, there are three products you should know more about: Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS), Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS), and Venture Capital Trusts (VCTs).
Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS): The direct successor to the Business Expansion Scheme, the EIS was introduced in 1994. Its primary goal is to encourage business growth throughout the UK by allowing private investors to invest in early-stage businesses (trading for at least seven years) with generous EIS tax relief options like 30% income tax relief, tax-free gains, and CGT deferral. If you’re interested in investing in EIS schemes, head over to Oxford Capital and learn more about the scheme and its benefits.
Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS): A younger version of the EIS, the seed enterprise investment scheme was designed to motivate investors to invest in the youngest strata startups that have been trading for at least two years with no more than 25 employees. However, to offset the added risk of investing in such young businesses, the SEIS has a range of tax incentives that are even more generous than its sister scheme, such as up to 50% income tax relief on earnings, CGT reinvestment relief, CGT disposal relief, and loss relief.
Venture Capital Trusts (VCTs): While the tax reliefs you can get with venture capital trusts are similar to EIS and SEIS, the structure of this investment is slightly different as it focuses on multiple companies and involves a fund manager. A VCT is a listed company that manages a portfolio of other companies, from early-stage to AIM-listed businesses. When investing through a VCT, a fund manager will work with you and invest your funds into the companies that fit your personal preferences and risk levels.
National Savings And Investments (NS&I)
An NS&I is the only bank backed by the HM Treasury and provides a wide range of savings and investment products that you can choose from for a variety of benefits. Some of the products you can expect to see can include:
Income Bonds.
Premium Bonds.
Cash ISA.
Guaranteed Equity Bonds.
Direct Saver.
Investment account.
Guaranteed Growth Bonds.
Guaranteed Income Bonds.
Junior ISAs.
Depending on the product you choose, you may be paid back in interest, stock market returns, inflation-linked returns, or tax-free savings, returns, and prizes. For instance, the premium bonds product not only provides you with tax-free interest but investors are also incentivised with the chance to win monthly tax-free prizes ranging from £25 up to £1 million.
Looking for a new job is never easy, which is why a good job advert can help you find what it is you are after. You don’t want to waste time unnecessarily, after all. That is why this article will explore the criteria that every good job advert should include.
Salary
One of the main reasons why people look to change careers is because they feel that they can earn more money for their job skills elsewhere. Salary expectations are usually posted directly after the job title in a standard job advert. This figure can be listed as a salary per annum or as an hourly rate.
While this initial figure may appear to be more impressive than your current salary, there are some other factors that can affect this number. These details should also appear somewhere in the job advert.
Advancement Opportunities
Not every job role allows applicants to apply from outside the company. That is why it is important to look for roles that offer advancement opportunities. These may not be listed in detail on the job advert but just knowing that there are ways to move up the ladder when you have the necessary job skills for transportation and logistics or are aware of the transport and logistics responsibilities.
If you are unaware of what transport and logistics professionals do, you can always head to the Hiring People site and look atjob description examples for transport and logistics. It is always good to know what to look for.
Duties
A list of duties is also expected to appear in a job advert, and these details should also appear on your employment contract. As you can imagine, this list of duties can drastically affect how impressive that initial salary figure appears. You don’t want to end up doing a lot more in a standard workday for the same salary, after all. Just look at some job description examples for transport and logistics for proof of this.
What’s more, you may find that some of the duties for a similar role may not match your current job skills. Read carefully to ensure you find the correct role for you. Sometimes, you may have to do some research like looking for the exact experience required for transport and logistics.
Location
The location of a job role should appear in the initial job search criteria, but it should also appear in the job advert. Again, this location is important for deciphering whether the initial salary information affects you as much as you think. You don’t want to spend most of your earnings on a long commute, after all, when you already have a steady job within a reasonable distance.
Conclusion
You should now know what the standard job advert should look like even if you do not have job skills in transport and logistics. There are other things that should be included in a standard job ad, but these are the most important. As always, it is a great idea to look for examples online.
If you’re looking to improve the user experience (UX) of your e-commerce store, incorporating the help of an e-commerce web design agency can be a great way to achieve your goals. With their expertise in design, user research, and development, a web design agency can help you create a seamless and intuitive online shopping experience that keeps customers engaged and coming back for more. By following some simple tips and working closely with a reputable web design agency, you can take your e-commerce store to the next level and increase conversions and customer satisfaction. This article will cover some tips for enhancing the UX of your e-commerce site.
Make Navigation Simple And Intuitive
You will need to make sure that your website’s navigation is simple, clear, and intuitive. Use descriptive labels and organised categories to help users find what they’re looking for quickly, if it is too difficult it might become hard for people to use.
Provide Product Descriptions And Images
Product descriptions and images are crucial elements of an e-commerce website. They should be clear, concise, and complete, providing customers with all the information they need to make an informed purchasing decision on what they are getting.
Offer Filter And Sorting Options
Providing users with filtering and sorting options to help them find the products they’re interested in much easier. Offer options such as price, brand, and colour to help users narrow down their choices. If you’re unsure how to incorporate these elements into your eCommerce journey, you should look to work with a relevant eCommerce web design agency. It may depend on your location in some cases. WeAreWeb is an eCommerce web design agency in Liverpool that can help convert visitors to your site into sales. They can explain some of these tips to you more relevantly.
Make The Checkout Process Easy And Secure
The checkout process should be simple, fast, and secure for people to use. Make sure to clearly display the total cost of the order, including any shipping and tax fees, before asking for payment information as it can cause complications.
Offer Various Payment Options
Provide users with multiple payment options, such as credit card, PayPal, and Apple Pay, to make the checkout process as seamless as possible, this is very important and many different people use online payments differently so it’s good to have many options for them to use.
Optimise For Mobile Devices
With the increasing number of people shopping on their mobile devices, it’s crucial to ensure that your e-commerce store is optimised for mobile. This includes having a responsive design that adjusts to different screen sizes, and fast load times, if it’s only available to computers or laptops it can make it more difficult for people to access.
Provide Customer Support
Make sure that customers can easily reach out to you with questions or concerns. Offer a variety of support options, such as email, phone, and live chat, to provide the best possible customer experience, having this option for users is very crucial as if they have any questions on your products or site they can be answered straight away.
Continuously Improve The UX
Regularly evaluate and improve the UX of your e-commerce store based on customer feedback and website analytics. Continuously make changes to provide the best possible user experience, this is very important to do as only the consumer knows how to judge your site properly. If it’s not accessible or difficult to use people might leave a bad revive which can impact your store.
Having good customer service can greatly enhance the customer experience and increase customer satisfaction. Customers are more likely to return to your store and make additional purchases if they feel that their questions and concerns are being addressed promptly and effectively. This is important as you will make more profits if they are leaving good revives on your store. Also providing excellent customer service can help build customer loyalty. Customers are more likely to stick with your brand and recommend your store to others if they feel that you value their business and go above and beyond to meet their needs.
By offering a range of products, you can cater to the needs and preferences of a wider audience. This can help increase the number of visitors to your site and increase the chances of making a sale by a large percentage. Offering a variety of products can help attract repeat customers. Customers are more likely to return to your site if they know you offer a range of products that they can purchase again in the future, this is important as your products need to suit a variety of different people of ages and cultures, and having this will improve your prophets and store.
Achieving success in your career is an important goal for many women. Unlocking your professional potential means more than just working hard every day. To truly advance your career, you need to be strategic and intentional about how you build your professional skills and experience. Whether you’re looking for a promotion, a raise, or a new job, the right strategies can help you get there. These strategies will help you make smart decisions about your career and give you the tools you need to stand out and excel in the workplace. With the right approach, you can unlock your professional potential and take your career to the next level.
Set SMART Goals
The first step to unlocking your professional potential is to set SMART goals.
SMART stands for:
Specific
Measurable.
Achievable.
Relevant.
Time-bound.
Setting SMART goals helps you focus on the tasks and objectives that will help you reach your career goals. Start by setting short-term goals that you can realistically achieve in the near future. Afterwards, develop long-term objectives that will assist you in accomplishing your overall career aspirations in the long run. Make sure to break down your long-term goals into smaller, manageable steps. Having a clear plan of action will help you stay motivated and make progress towards your goals.
Learn New Skills With eLearning Courses
One of the best ways to unlock your professional potential is to invest in yourself by learning new skills. With the rise of technology, there are now more opportunities than ever to learn online. Investing in eLearning courses is an excellent way to build your skills and knowledge without taking time away from your job or having to take a class in person. When choosing an eLearning course, look for one that is tailored to your goals and interests. Many eLearning courses on iHASCO offer a range of topics and levels, so you can find one that fits your needs.
Seek Out A Mentor
Having a mentor is a great way to advance your career. A mentor can help you navigate the professional world and provide advice and guidance. They can also introduce you to new opportunities and help you build your network. Finding a mentor can be a challenge, but it’s important to put in the effort. Start by reaching out to people in your industry and asking if they would be willing to mentor you. You can also look for mentorship programs in your area. These programs are often run by professional organisations and can be a great way to find a mentor.
Stay Confident And Self-Advocate
Finally, it’s important to stay confident and self-advocate in order to unlock your professional potential. Women are often undervalued and overlooked in the workplace, and it’s important to make sure that your work and accomplishments are appreciated. Make sure that you speak up and advocate for yourself. This will help you build confidence and ensure that you are seen and heard.
Bottom Line
Unlocking your professional potential is an important goal for many women. To truly advance your career, you need to be strategic and intentional about how you build your professional skills and experience. By setting SMART goals, taking eLearning courses, seeking out a mentor, staying confident, and self-advocating, you can unlock your professional potential and take your career to the next level.
Imagine you are lying face down on a treatment table, you can feel small movements being applied to your body. The sensations that you are aware of involve very little pressure, and are gentle, but these areas become warmer and sometimes you feel like the therapist’s hands are still in place although she has now left the room.
The weirdest part of Bowen therapy are the “breaks” which are inserted into the treatment, and the fact that the therapist is not constantly in contact with your body.
After an interval of several minutes, the therapist returns and carries on working; the areas of the body being worked on seem random, and the contact continues to be minimal but there is definitely a pattern. The moves over the body are best described as stretching sensations that feel like somebody is gently rolling your skin and testing the elasticity, not unlike a rubber band being gradually stretched and then released.
No element of this treatment is painful but it is nonetheless causing a series of reactions. Sometimes you are aware that heat has blossomed in your back and this seems to be accompanied by a light tingling sensation and a feeling of lightness in your body.
This therapy is definitely relaxing, and you are tempted to doze as the therapist works and after a while you are asked to turn over and lie supine. The pattern then resumes.
Welcome to Bowen therapy
Bowen is the “new kid on the block” of complementary therapies, although it has been around for more than 30 years. It is defined by light moves over the entire body, ( a better description of exactly how much pressure is used is explained by using the analogy of “eyeball pressure”- to define this – any pressure exerted on the body is never greater than would be comfortable if you pressed your finger to your closed eye.
Bowen is one of the few therapies that targets the whole body, no matter where the pain feels like it originated.
Bowen has the potential to create change in the body without manipulation, cracking of bones, or application of oils, and light clothing can be worn when receiving treatment. It encourages the body to rebalance and realign without putting it under undue pressure or forcing a reaction. Our bodies are hard-wired to register many kinds of touch and there is no proof whatsoever that our bodies need manipulation or extreme pressure to recover from pain or illness, in fact, quite the opposite. Bowen allows the body to reset itself, and rebalance.
Nobody actually knows exactly why Tom Bowen decided to include “the signature breaks” in the technique that carries his name, but they are crucial and integral.
Tom Bowen devised his therapy without much theoretical knowledge but by the time he died he had treated many thousands of people in his local area of Geelong in Australia, and today Bowen is one of the best-known therapies in modern-day Australia, and the rest of the world is waking up to exactly how beneficial it can be.
It is unlike any other therapy that is currently available.
It is suitable for people of all ages; safe enough for young babies and equally ideal for older people with degenerative problems; and people with chronic illnesses can receive Bowen safely and without side effects.
Many diverse problems are being treated with Bowen, from bad backs and frozen shoulders (the most common reason for people to seek Bowen) to chronic problems like IBS. Arthritis and asthma sufferers also benefit from the gentle Bowen moves, resulting in increased energy and the feeling of well-being.
Changes can take time depending on the tensions throughout the body. If you are tempted to try Bowen having read this short article have patience and have at least 3 sessions, especially if you have a long-standing health problem because change takes time, but relieving stress on the body and mind is never a waste of time.
Investing in property is a great way to build your real estate portfolio. When it comes to diversifying your portfolio, you may consider looking for property in different locations. Cardiff has become a popular spot for real estate developers, as the big city means there are lots of people looking for places to live. If you are considering branching out and buying property in Cardiff, then there are a few things you need to consider beforehand. Keep on reading to find out more.
Establish A Budget
Before you start browsing the properties available, you must first establish a budget. As someone who is looking to expand their real estate portfolio, you should know how important a budget can be when it comes to finding the perfect property. Having the budget in place will allow you to narrow your property search and it will mean you can find the right property in a shorter amount of time. When putting together a budget, you should also ensure that you put some money aside for any work or refurbishment that will need to be done on the property.
Research The Area
Researching the area is an important thing you must consider before you buy property in Cardiff. If you are not from Cardiff, then it is essential that you know enough about the area, so that you can choose the best area to invest in. Property in the city centre will likely be very expensive, so it could be better to look at the outskirts of Cardiff instead, as the property price will be a lot more reasonable. Getting in contact with local estate agents will be a good way of gaining some insight into the area and it will help you find the perfect property.
Include Sustainability Features
Once you have found a property that you would like to purchase, you should start thinking about what features you can add to the home. Sustainability has slowly started to make its way into the real estate industry. When people are looking to invest in property, they are trying to find ways to make the home more sustainable. More people are beginning to understand the importance of sustainability and they want to start living an eco-friendly lifestyle. Consider completing a sustainable real estatecourse online. This will give you a detailed insight into the changes you can make.
Understand Your Intentions For The Property
When it comes to building and diversifying your real estate portfolio, most people choose to invest in properties for different reasons. Buying a house with the intention of refurbishing and selling it is just one way to build a portfolio, but you could also choose to rent out the property instead. When you are looking for a property in Cardiff, you should understand your intentions for the property beforehand, as this will help you find the right investment. Buying and renting the property could be a good option as you know there will be lots of working people in the area who are looking for somewhere to live. Not everyone can afford to buy a house, so leasing the property out could be your best option.
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Establish A Budget
