Just Twenty Eight Days Remain – Don’t Miss Out

February 2015

“It’s nearly impossible to get by on only
one pay cheque a month.
What are you doing for your
second pay cheque each month?”

 

Creating multiple income streams for a self employed business owner is a must have ………… and soon.

Even better if those extra ones are passive income streams.
[Passive means doing the work once and getting paid again and again]

Further, if you are employed, you too, can create extra income on a part time basis. Find five hours a week and you can be shown how to build an income on a part time basis.

The UK’s number one business in the sector has a low start up fee, and for a short period, it is just £50** instead of the usual £100.

To find out more, why not pay a visit here:

http://www.future-biz.co.uk

We can discuss the business over the phone and answer any questions arising – the website provided includes three little boxes to complete and I will give you a call.
[please enter your name, email address and phone number]

**Offer expires, 11:59pm on Saturday 28th February 2015.

 

“It’s nearly impossible to get by on only
one pay cheque a month.
What are you doing for your
second pay cheque each month?”

A big weekend ahead for the underdogs

Well I shall be heading off to watch AFC Wimbledon take on York City up North in the First Round of the FA Cup, do think about the other clubs either continuing or starting out on their adventure this season. Please read on.

The Ball is Round

The FA Cup is the oldest cup competition in the world and although it may have lost some of its shine among the top clubs in the Premier League in recent years, it still has the ability to produce magic as we saw last season across various stages of the tournament.

This weekend the First Round properly gets underway in which there are 40 ties involving League One, League Two and non-league clubs from various steps of the football pyramid. Teams like Warrington Town, AFC Fylde and East Thurrock United all get their chance to shine in what will be one of the biggest games in their club’s history.

Many of the sides which have safely advanced through the qualifying rounds are semi-professional which means there will be builders, plumbers and electricians all mixing with some of the professionals of the Football League, but for the 90 minutes of their…

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Rise and Rise of Zero Hours Contracts

Updated details here:

http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/research/briefing-papers/SN06553/zerohours-contracts

Are these contracts positive or negative in your view?

I am aware the Government proposes changes to present legislation to enable those on these contracts can take second or third jobs to ensure they earn some money.

Some already let people take extra work alongside, but not all.

Some additional points.

People on zero hours contracts, do not earn any money, unless called in to work.

As a result, a vast majority have to top up any pay with benefits already.

Also very few are earning sufficient to create any meaningful pension contributions.

Plus most, but not all, prevent people from taking a second job, to earn money.

So when they hear in the moring there is no work available that day – they are stuck.

The impact of zero hours contracts, means tax revenues are lower than expected, hence why the treasury has had to borrow extra money this year.

Great Reasons for Virtual Non-Geographic and Geographic Numbers

A virtual number is what is being referred to here is vital for some businesses, and many have lots of goodies attached.

Popular types:

0800, 0844, 0845, 0870 and 0871.

These are called Non Geographic Numbers or NGNs.

There are also a range of virtual geographic numbers too.

So my take:

1) Female working from home – you need one to provide a level of protection is this day and age.

2) Any business based at home with family – you need one to create a degree of professionalism, to stop kids answering, when you really don’t want them to.

3) Any business based at home – provides an ability to turn off from your business. I know some have garden offices or separate rooms

4) Provide flexbility – when you move, the number comes with you.

5) Provides additional features – some smart numbers can be programmed to deliver calls to lots of different locations, like a virtual switchboard.

6) Some of these numbers can be included in callers minutes, so zero charge for them to call you – the exception is 0843 numbers. Rarely included.

7) In the case of 0844, 0845, 0870 it provides a filter and ensures a better quality of call coming through. Less time wasters.

0800 numbers will come back into fashion when all mobile operaters include them in their minutes again – due to happen soon accoridng to OFCOM.

8) Virtual geographic numbers are becoming more and more popular, but the range is running out. You may find your local one has run out.

9) If you are using a phone answering service, then a virtual number is a great way of measuring the cost effectiveness of the service, since you can see how many minutes are being used.

10) Disaster recovery – just like you all do backups on your computer, this is like a backup too. For example, if you are unable to work from your premises or home for whatever reason, the number will keep working, which is why mobile phones have become very popular.

I have two case studies, where I kept businesses running after a flood and a fire respectively.

However, having just a mobile phone number could make you look a one person band. Not good when pitching for larger contracts.

And yes, I have been supplying all the above for 17 years.

To find our more, please call 0844 826 1730 or drop an email to info@combyne.co.uk

Also please visit www.go-fast.co.uk and click on For Business to see the range on offer.

Separately, if you are a regular caller to NGNs and find your costs on calls from your landline or mobile is high, please ask about our inclusive minutes deals for calls from a home landline, and equally the typical 50% reduction in call charges from a mobile, since many operators charge at 40p per minute as such a call is outside the bundle – our deal is 20p per minute.

Why do some people always struggle in being successful in business?

The subject line has been bugging me this last weekend, and I continually come back to it time and time again. I have made a few pages of notes, and tried to answer the question myself, but really have a drawn a blank.

I am aware of things like motivation being an important factor, and this includes goals, but I am now thinking there is simply something else that holds people back from success, and yes, I do accept sucess is defined differently for each person.

We have also discussed business plans to some degree too, here and on LinkedIn – a plan though as a standalone, simply doesn’t impact in such a way.

Let’s give you an example, and I am going to use the franchise model as the starting point. Some would argue this is a recipe for disaster in its own right, however, I see many people involved with franchises, who have become massively successful and financially independent, operating such a model. Even my own business is a cut down franchise, so I am writing from experience.

Person A buys a franchise, does really well. Is active in promoting it to a wider audience, attends all training provided, including sales and marketing courses, follows the system (& uses the support), and builds a successful business, and eventually buys a second and third franchise.

Whereas Person B buys the same franchise, is active in promoting it to a wider audience, attends all training provided, including sales and marketing courses, follows the system (& uses the support), and fails to build a successful business. They buy another franchise and fail again, eventually going bankrupt.

I can give you examples of a string of People A and People B – I meet them all the time in my business and at networking events. I expect to meet more next week at Business 2012. It can’t be about location, since I have seen businesses thrive in places, where I would expect them to struggle, and vice versa.

So what is the magic ingredient?

What am I missing?

Is there simply a type of person that is cut out for success and another for failure? And it can’t be about the business, since it is identical?

I am intrigued by this conundrum; is it simply because we are human, that these things happen?

So what is your view and suggestions for a solution?

Laurence

This was previously posted on Ecademy in March 2012, and now appears on Sunzu here with 30 comments.

 

 

Facebook are pulling the plug on free advertising

well not quite, but certainly has reduced the effectiveness of Pages Reach from 16% to less than 2%.

For many businesses that is quite a hammering.

Facebook being Facebook have offered a solution of paid advertising to replace this lost traffic and now many experts are suggesting businesses flood LI groups to continue their free advertising fix.

You can read more here:

http://topdogsocialmedia.com/facebook-organic-reach-dead/

I manage a number of LI groups and many are dead, a number of group owners will see this extra traffic as a boon, however, the challenge is this flood will look like a lot of spam.

I wonder how many other Group Owners and Managers are ready for this influx of unwanted traffic?

Separately, if you run a Facebook page, how will you counter this lost reach?

So what is your plan?

Blind Advertising versus Open Advertising

Blind Advertising versus Open Advertising.

Blind Advertising – no mention of company name
Open Advertising – company name is mentioned

I first started spending money on recruitment advertising in 1988, and that with a company called Encyclopaedia Britannica.

My budget was £100,000 per annum, so pretty decent amount to spend. I eventually moved to head office and my budget jumped to in excess of £2 million per annum.

One of the things I learnt were the benefits of both forms of advertising.

Open Adverts produced small numbers of responses, and the quality of the candidates were pretty fair. The number of responses though were just 10% of Blind Adverts.

Blind Adverts produced massive numbers of responses, and therefore our position became one of selection, sometimes self selection by putting people through training.

With lots of split testing, some 40 approved adverts of both types were approved, and they all created a ready stream of candidates.

I still split test today using various online media across different platforms and some work and some don’t. My lastest split test has so far produced seven responses in just under 10 minutes, at this rate, this is going to be one of my best tests for quite a while.

Zero Hours contracts – self employed without the benefits?

Mike Patterson of Berwins’ Solictors wrote the following and can be contacted by email at mikepatterson@berwin.co.uk

New figures released this week revealed that more than one million UK workers could be employed on zero-hours contracts, which is four times the number initially estimated.

This figure derives from a survey of 1,000 employers carried out by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) and has prompted renewed calls for the government to launch a full inquiry into the use of these contracts by employers.

A zero-hours contract is where a person is not contracted to work a set number of hours, and is only paid for the number of hours that they actually work. Used appropriately this type of contract can provide flexibility for employers and workers, and help to create more flexible working opportunities, by allowing employers to staff their workforce according to peaks and troughs in demand.

However, workers on a zero-hours contract are left without guaranteed hours, sick pay or holiday pay. Often they are only told how many hours they will work once the weekly or monthly rota has been confirmed, but are expected to be on call for extra work at short notice. As a result, workers are left vulnerable to sudden reductions in shift patterns and last minute shift cancellations at the discretion of managers, without any entitlement to pay.

Yesterday it emerged that the UK’s largest food chain, McDonald’s, is potentially the biggest zero-hours employer in the private sector with over 82,000 of its staff (90% of the workforce) on the controversial terms.

This follows the announcement that retailer Sports Direct employs around 20,000 of its 23,000 staff on zero-hours contracts, as well as Buckingham Palace which uses them for its 350 summer workers. These contracts are also popular with those employers in the care home, catering and leisure industries.

The CIPD has stressed that there needs to be a closer look on what is meant by a zero-hours contract, the different forms that they take, and clearer guidance on what good and bad practice in their use looks like.

What action the government takes in response, we will have to wait and see.

So my take on this subject is that Zero Hours contracts are self employment by the back door, but without the benefit of tax breaks. Now that is quite worrying.

Mike quotes a recent survey suggesting there are 1 million people on these deals, which rather confirms the suspicion of many that there are nearer 4 million unemployed in the UK presently

I also look at the situation slightly differently too, since many of these people may not have work of a day to day basis. That surely provides the opportunity to use that time effectively elsewhere for personal profit?

One idea could be to create new and additional income streams.

Here is one that I became involved in many years ago:

www.future-biz.co.uk

An award winning company with full training and support.
Lots of promotions and benefits too
Two car plans, plus lots, lots more.
Totally flexible hours too, so can be worked as and when you are available. Fits around Zero Hours.

Please take a look, you could be pleasantly surprised?

Are you looking for a job?

(with thanks to Mark Anastasi for sharing)

You might want to reconsider after reading this…

8 Shocking Facts, Quotes, & Stats about the Job Market.

#1:  A SHOCKING three-quarters of the world’s adults do NOT have a full-time job.

According to Gallup’s new “Payroll to Population” metric, only 27% of the world’s adults were employed full time for an employer in 2011 (the 2012 figure is likely to be lower and 2013 similar)

#2: The True US Unemployment Rate is 23.6% (36.7m Americans are Unemployed)

According to CNN, there are 86 Million “Invisible” Unemployed in America.

According to John Williams, an economist who runs ShadowStats.com, the true number of people currently out of work is at 23.6%. That’s a whopping 36.7 million Americans.

Whilst in the United Kingdom the figure is estimated to be 6.5 million, equating to 19.1%, which is more than double the claimed 2.52 million.

#3: “The middle class is dead. Most jobs that existed 20 years ago aren’t needed now…”

James Altucher wrote recently: “The middle class is dead. A few weeks ago I visited a friend of mine who manages a trillion dollars for one family. No joke. A trillion.

He said: “Look out the window. All the cubicles are empty. The middle class is being hollowed out. […] It’s all outsourced or technology has taken over for the paper shufflers.”

“You’ve been replaced. Technology, outsourcing, a growing temp staffing industry, productivity efficiencies, have all replaced the middle class.

Most jobs that existed 20 years ago aren’t needed now.”

#4: Technology and the Web are destroying far more jobs than they create.

“Over the past 15 years, the global economy has experienced structural changes to a degree not seen in nearly 150 years.

Put simply, the Industrial Revolution of the 1800s has given way to a post-industrial economy.

In this post-industrial economy, technology has now evolved to the point where it destroys more jobs than it creates.”

Source: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/labor-day-2012-future-work

#5: We are returning to Depression Era unemployment

Between 1929 and 1933, U.S. GDP fell around 30%, and the stock market lost almost 90% of its value.

In 1929, the unemployment rate averaged 3%. In 1933, 25% of all workers and 37% of all non-farm workers were unemployed.

#6: “The job-for-life generation told us that if we worked hard we’d end up with a great retirement.”

“If we stuck at that soul-sapping job, when we were 60 we could live fabulously, travel and have a whale of a time (assuming you make it that far).

Wait a minute… would those be with those same retirement plans that went down the tube in the crash of 2008? Where thousands upon thousands of regular people who had worked their whole life for the dream at the end were left stranded?”

That career-cage deal isn’t looking so hot now.” ―  Marianne Cantwell, ‘How To Become a Free-Range Human’

#7: “Workers over 50 are the new ‘unemployables'”  http://money.cnn.com/2013/02/26/news/economy/over-50-unemployables/index.html

#8: “Young people in bankrupt western nations […] society is going to force-feed you a rubbish sandwich. Higher taxes, more debt, fewer prospects, and a much lower standard of living await you.”

“University graduates are forced into lowly jobs such as cleaning lavatories. Youth unemployment in the Euro area stood at 22.6% in July. In Spain it rose to 52.9%.” ― Source: The Evening Standard, 20 September 2012

So, what is the solution? –> Think like an entrepreneur. Add more value.

Simon Black says: “The average Korean works 1,000 hours per year more than the average German. Here in Thailand, people who don’t have a job simply create one for themselves– selling fruit on the streets, fixing flat tires, whatever they can do to trade their skills and labor for income.”

Finally, I want to leave you with this quote from Robert Kiyosaki’s book ‘Rich Dad, Poor Dad’…

“Most people work very hard, for little money, clinging to the illusion of job security, looking forward to 3-week vacation each year and a skimpy pension after 45 years of work.

If that excites you, go for it. […] Most people never see the trap they are in. Every morning, they get up, they get ready, and hurry out to work. Do they look happy to you?

Why do they do it? Because everybody else is. […] Every day they wake up with this fear gnawing at their soul. They rush off to work, hoping that a pay cheque will kill the fear.

Money is running their lives, and they refuse to tell the truth about it…”

So if you recognise this and are based in the United Kingdom, it is worth exploring this business and creating your own future and control your cheque:

http://www.future-biz.co.uk

Telecom plus Plc delivers again through photosynthesis

One of my friends spotted this and thought I would share it too:

This has to be one of the best reports I’ve read on the company. Even a non finance guy like me can understand it! I love the quote “Telecom Plus isn’t a normal utility, it’s not even a normal growth company, its more like a robust house plant, growing through photosynthesis and the odd sprinkling of water. And neither the sun nor rain get switched off”.

http://www.sharesmagazine.co.uk/news/telecom-plus-both-weird-and-wonderful

For people looking to create new income streams, then the following is of vital interest, since it shows the potential profit for team members, which are called Independent Distributors.

“Over half of new sign-ups (55%) come in as Gold members, those taking at least four of its five services (gas, electricity, home phone, broadband, mobile), and when it gets them through the door, they tend to stick like flies to paper, churn down to just 1.2%.

What this means is that average revenue per user, or ARPU, rises on a seemingly unstoppable tide, jumping 14.5% to £1,363 last year. That’s nearly 200% up in 10 years and makes the £190 ARPU in its first year back in 1999 look laughably minuscule.”

I can write from direct knowledge, since I have been involved in the business since 1997, and the ARPU referred to above is so on the money, if you pardon the expression. :o)

And the future is looking brighter and brighter, as more people hear about the award winning services and customer care.

To find out about becoming involved in the business, this link will tell you more: www.future-biz.co.uk

If you are in London on Monday 3rd June, then there is a massive presentation taking place in the evening – details here:

http://super-cop-london.eventbrite.co.uk

Update: Tuesday 4th June – what an extraordinary evening. Over 500 people came along to the event last night. Clive Leach and Robin Brooks were in stunning form as they presented the business to the assembled numbers. It truly was standing room only and the attendees were educated and entertained by two stars in our successful business.