Seniors Enters

Foam Suppliers Partner with Small Businesses to Develop New Products

admin — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 08:44:19 +0000

Product development isn’t just for big business. Leading U.K-based foam suppliers, Technical Foam Services, run a dedicated innovations department aimed at promoting small business product development, testing and marketing.

What Do They Do?

Technical Foam Services run a design to delivery chain that assists entrepreneurs and folks with good old bright ideas in making their concept a reality. Already an established foam manufacturer, Technical Foam Services use their industry knowledge and impeccable product development credentials to offer a free of charge product development service to small business and sole trader clients. The process is designed to encourage all kinds of prospective clients to attempt to see their idea through to its real world fruition.

Design

Technical Foam Services maintains teams of foam engineering experts to assist clients in product development. Perhaps the client simply needs a little material advice, or perhaps they’re after an entire conceptual critique of their product. Technical Foam Services’ teams are on hand to work alongside clients from the design board stage. Quality control is a huge element of what Technical Foam Services product development teams offer, including international safety standards etc.

Development and Marketing

Everything from packaging to logistics falls under the product development banner at Technical Foam Services. Their expert teams can advise and assist on every aspect of the design, production and marketing chain, utilising industry contacts and more than two decades of experience to help countless clients see their product hit the shelves.

Small Business Ideas – Profitable Small Business Concepts in 2009

admin — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 00:00:00 +0000

Are you leaning towards starting your very own small business? Then, consider these business ideas:

1. Online jobs. If you want to make money at the comforts of your own home, I recommend that you find business that you can operate online. Depending on your skills and expertise, you can offer SEO, ghostwriting, link building, and website creation services. You really don’t need much to get started in this endeavor. All you need aside from the required know-how is a reliable computer and internet connection.

2. Specialty store. You may also opt to set up your own specialty store. When deciding on the items to sell, I recommend that you consider the things that you do best or your hobbies. If you are into water sports, you can sell snorkeling gears, scuba diving tools and equipments, and swimming lessons. It’s important that your business is aligned to your areas of interest so you will wake up each morning excited to go to work.

3. Franchising opportunities. If you don’t want to spend time and energy on thinking about products that will sell like hotcakes and if you don’t want to struggle building customer base, franchising is perfect for you.

4. Massage parlor and spa. More and more people are now rewarding themselves with spa and massage after a long day at work. You can take advantage of this demand by setting up your own massage parlor and spa. Just make sure that you offer something different to easily get ahead of your competitors like home service or week day promos.

Online Business – Adding That Personal Touch to Customer Service

admin — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 00:00:00 +0000

With so many online businesses vying for customers in today’s fragile economy, an important, yet overlooked area of improvement is in their customer service. So many businesses, whether they are large corporations or small online business, neglect to add a personal touch to their customer service. A little extra effort and personal interaction can increase the rate at which a customer will return to that business to make another purchase, or better yet, recommend it to a friend. This can be especially helpful for the little guy trying to make an impression in the online business world.

We are all consumers. Most of us have now used the internet to purchase some kind of good or service. Can you remember the last time you received a personal thank you for your purchase? Or was it just an auto response, blanket email, generic letter or recorded phone call? I can remember one time that I got a personal response, ONE, and I am an avid online shopper. I became a repeat customer there, for that sole reason.

This got me thinking and I have now implemented in my own business ways to personally thank my customers. It just takes the willingness to have personal contact and maybe a little extra effort. I am not saying you should use these methods as a means to bully your customers into more purchases. A personal email, letter or phone call is just a nice gesture to say thank you for their purchase of your product or service, wish them well, and give them your contact information, so that if they have questions or comments they can easily voice them. Make sure you have your email, phone number and website for easy reference. State your return policy and be willing to help and answer the questions when they come.

To make the personal touches authentic, you have to put a little effort into them. I know in this world of instant gratification people want to take the easiest route possible to get the end result. In business this is usually getting lots of customers and getting them now, but will those customers stay loyal? If you take the extra time and effort they just might chose you over your competitor. In the long run, this will produce a better result with repeat buyers and their personal referrals.

Just think of it like a small town hardware store. There are no big companies here, just Joe’s Hardware down the street, and he knows everyone in town. You can go there knowing he is willing to take the time to explain to you how to use that new drill you are going to buy and you know that if you have problems you can go back and he will still be there to explain it again. This is the personal service you strive for.

Personal touches in customer service make your customers feel comfortable and are a way to establish a working, trusting relationship with them. It makes them feel important and valued. It is a way to get back what has been lost in business today.