Designing new products is a stressful process. How do you recreate the success of your last product? What do the customers really want out of this new product? Business owners spend endless hours in meetings with their design team trying to answer these questions when they could just ask the customer. 

The easiest way to make sure that you have a winning product is to include the customers in the design process and listen to their feedback. If you ask them what they want and then deliver it, you’re far more likely to see good sales from day one. But if you keep trying to guess what people want without asking them, there’s a strong chance that you will get it wrong and the product will be a flop. 

These are some of the best ways to include your customers in the design process for new products. 

Check Reviews Of Existing Products 

Reviews of your existing products are the best place to start when trying to come up with new ideas. You need to identify what was good about your old products and where you could have improved. So, go through as many reviews as possible and take notes on the things that people bring up often. This should give you a pretty clear idea of what makes your product special, so you can emulate this in new products. If you don’t have that many customer reviews, you should focus on an email campaign to encourage people to leave more feedback before you do anything else.

Ask Your Brand Community 

The people that share common ground based on their mutual love for your brand are your brand community, and these are the people you should ask for advice. But before you can benefit from their expertise, you need to focus on fostering a community in the first place. Read a guide to selecting a community platform and set up your own forum where customers can meet and discuss your products. These conversations will be a goldmine of information and you can interact directly with your community to ask them what they want from your next product. Don’t forget to use social media platforms to connect with people as well. 

Get People To Test Prototypes 

When you have a product idea and you are in the prototype stage, testing is incredibly important. Input from people that have never used your products is still valuable, but you should also get advice from existing customers. There are a few different ways that you can do this but trade shows are one of the easiest places to find testers. Take some early prototypes along with you and reach out to people that are already familiar with your brand. If you advertise on social media and your community platforms, letting people know that they can try an exclusive new prototype, you should get plenty of interest. 

When you think about it, it seems crazy to design products without involving the customer. These are the best ways to get their insights and create a product that you know they will love.  

This year we have seen a spike in people working from home, whether you run your own business or working remotely, you need to make sure you have a space to work comfortably and out of the way of distractions. It can be hard juggling family and work life and looking for ways to kit out your home office, so we have taken the load off you and listed below what you need for your new home office.

Atmosphere

Whether it is just the corner of the room or a whole room, make sure it is separate from the rest of your living areas. You don’t want to feel like you are still at work when you try to relax in the evening. Provide adequate lighting and if possible position it near a window so you can allow in the fresh air and plenty of natural light. You can create a positive atmosphere in your home office with things like fun pictures or even some neon signs.

Furniture

So starting on the most obvious thing you will need in your office, which is furniture. A standard desk and chair are fine, however, if you are going to be sitting in the same spot for long hours, then it might be worth investing in some ergonomic furniture. You want to protect your back and neck when sitting for long hours, so choosing the right furniture is a must. For optimal usage, choose a desk that you can raise and lower. It is always beneficial to be able to raise your desk up to a standing desk, as working at a standing desk can be good for your health, improving blood pressure, circulation, reduces back and neck pain and lowers the risk of heart disease. Alternate between sitting and standing throughout your working day. When sitting ensure you have a chair that supports your back and neck.

Technology

When kitting out your office with technology, there are many things you will need to consider. Starting with your computer, whether you are being supplied one from your employer or using your own, ensure it is set up correctly. Positioning is key to avoid creating neck pain and eye strain, ensure your computer is at eye level when sitting or using a standing desk. Also installing a blue light filter on your computer will help you not to strain your eyes. You don’t have to have the newest computer, but you do need to make sure that it is up to date with the latest software and has a sufficient level of anti-virus protection. 

Another piece of technology you will need to think about is your phone system. This can be operated through the internet or through your landline. Do your research to figure out what will work best for you. Choose a phone system that is clear and easy to use, there are many different phone systems the Telecom Industry offer, so try and find which one will work best for your business.

We hope we have helped you in your journey into kitting out your new home office. If you’re a mum looking to start your own business, then check out 10 GREAT BUSINESS IDEAS FOR MUMS.

Running a business from home has grown increasingly popular over recent years. Sure, a standard nine to five provides relative security and you still get pay when you take time off for sickness or holiday. But running your own business provides so much more freedom. You can wave goodbye to the stressful morning and evening commutes. You can decide what you want to wear each day rather than sporting a uniform or sticking to a strict (and often uncomfortable) dress code. You have much more flexibility with your working hours, which can prove perfect if you have kids to organise your day around. But perhaps the best part? You get to keep the bulk of your profits. You’re making your own money rather than making someone else’s for them! Of course, when you run a business from home, you’re going to want to protect yourself and your privacy. Here are a few steps you can take to achieve this!

Rent a Business Address

All businesses have to be registered to an address and this address is usually publicly accessible. If you don’t want people knowing your address, you can rent a business address. This will save you the cost of having to rent or run a commercial premises and allows you to operate from home while being registered to an alternative address. There are a number of companies out there that offer this service, so it’s a good idea to have a scout around and find the best for you.

Use a Mail Forwarding Service

Of course, if you’re selling goods that could be returned or will be receiving anything by post (such as invoices or business documents), you’ll need an address for people to send these things to. There are plenty of mail forwarding services you can use. These provide you with an address or a PO box for customers, clients or others to send goods or mail to. The mail will then be forwarded to your personal address.

Invest in CCTV

If you’re keeping your stock in your home, you may need to protect it with CCTV. This will act as a deterrent to potential thieves and will also ensure you have footage of anyone who does attempt to steal or damage your property. CCTV systems are great for protecting residential and commercial properties. So, have one fitted by a professional as soon as possible.

Have a Business Phone

It may be tempting to use your own phone to deal with business enquiries. But this can prevent you from creating a healthy work life balance and can also invade your privacy, as anyone will be able to access your personal number. Instead, invest in a business phone. This should have a separate number to your private phone and will create a healthy and safe divide.

These are just a few different tips and tricks that can help you to protect yourself and your privacy if you do decide to run a business from the comfort of your own home. Hopefully, they can help you out!

No matter the type of business you run, it almost always makes sense to have a website, nowadays. This platform will be your portal to the outside world, providing potential customers with information about you, while also enabling you to reach out and share your products with them. Of course, though, it’s unlikely that you’ll be making this yourself, and this means that you need to look for the right designer to help you out. To help you out with this, this post will be exploring some of the elements which your web designer needs to have.

Responsive Design

There are a lot of devices being used to access the web nowadays, and smartphones account for a huge amount of the traffic you’ll be getting. This means that your website needs to look great across each platform, while also maintaining the right features to keep your customers happy. Some designers are better at making responsive websites than others, and there are still those who only design for one platform knocking around on the market.

SEO/Marketing

SEO is one of the hardest parts of web design. It can take weeks or even months to get a website into top spots on sites like Google, and this means that you need to choose a web designer who can give you a head start. Companies like ALT Agency can help with this, building websites which are SEO-ready, while also providing a host of marketing services which will enable you to start in the right position. This can save a lot of time and pain in the future, giving you the chance to get more customers from the very beginning.

Stability/Security

A website which goes down on a regular basis isn’t going to be very good for your business. You need something stable and secure, and this makes it worth looking for designers using platforms like WordPress. Thanks to the community surrounding this platform, there are loads of guides and handy tools which can make development easier available, and the stability of the whole system is second to none.

Aftercare/Support

Finally, as the last area to consider, it’s time to think about the aftercare and support you receive from your designer. You will almost certainly want to make changes down the line, and this will be hard to do by yourself. Having proper aftercare will save you from this trauma, while also making it much easier to deal with emergencies or site outages. There are few things worse than finding yourself without a website, but only the best designers will be there to help you when this happens.

Choosing a good web designer shouldn’t be too hard, but you should always make sure that you use everything you can to make the best choice with this. Their past work and testimonials will go a long way towards helping you with this, but you may need to do some searching to find this information.

It is every entrepreneur’s goal to start a business that runs successfully. However, every new company faces numerous challenges before it can secure its foothold. Regardless of how well you prepare, multiple dangers can affect your business.

You do not know if your business can hold out for long before you start making profits or if your business can survive in a competitive market. What would you do if your business faces a reputational risk or a legal risk?

Provided you own the business, it is your responsibility to ensure that it is safe and running smoothly. But how do you go about it? Here are several steps you can take to ensure your business is safe from potential danger.

Protect your business reputation

Your business image is vital as it is how clients perceive you. Try to be careful about what you say or do by avoiding questionable actions.

You should also avoid conducting business with people that appear to be devious. If they happen to create a bad reputation in the market, your business will have links to them. Additionally, it would be best if you avoid conflicting with your employees. Your business integrity will be under threat whenever you get into a legal entanglement with your workers.

Get the services of a competent attorney

A competent attorney can provide you with legal advice on how to approach various business matters. They can help you draft contracts, represent you in a lawsuit, and help you protect your intellectual property.

Get a good lawyer that is adept in local laws. When choosing a lawyer, put your business needs first. More importantly, the attorney you select should be trustworthy.

Insure your business

It would be best if you protect your business with a liability insurance cover. You can get a general liability cover that helps to protect your business and employees from any damage to a third party resulting in a legal suit. If anything terrible happens to your business, an insurance cover can help you prevent money loss.

The type of insurance package you choose will depend on the size and nature of your business. If you have employees, you may require a worker’s compensation. You can speak to a Rhino Trade insurance agent to discuss more about the ideal cover for your business.

Secure your important documents

Any business, be it big or small, has crucial documents that it has to secure no matter what. In this digital world, cybercrime is a significant threat to businesses. Malicious people can steal sensitive information from your computer system.

However, there are several steps you can take to secure your digital data. You can choose to password-protect your essential business documents to prevent unauthorized users from accessing them. You may also create digital copies and save them in a cloud-based storage. When your computer crashes or your business faces any disasters such as fires, or break-ins, your normal operations will not be affected.

Additionally, you can create internal policies on how you should share sensitive documents in the office and how to dispose of them.

If you want your business to grow and thrive, you have to protect it from any exterior or interior forces of failure. Everybody wants their business to be successful. Among the things your business needs for success, safety is the most crucial. By implementing the steps highlighted above, your business will thrive.

Starting a successful online business is a substantial challenge. Not only do you need to charge competitive prices, but you also need a brand that differentiates you from your competitors. If you don’t, your enterprise will fall flat. 

Smart entrepreneurs, therefore, should leverage online reviews as something that sets them apart from the competition. 

Reviews are different from regular marketing. For one, you don’t have any control over them. Instead, they’re the product of your audience. And second, they’re perceived in a radically different way to conventional advertising. Customers know that reviews come from their peers which makes them more trustworthy and believable. 

Utilising reviews, however, is a challenge. While they can provide profound insights and the ability to respond to customer feedback, you need to be careful with how you use them, as the following infographic shows.

Ideally, you shouldn’t wade in the moment somebody posts a review, glean data from it and then use that to augment your operations. It is much better to wait for a “critical mass” of surveys before making any decisions. The more data you have, the more reliably and productively you can use feedback.

Big data is a vast opportunity. It gives you a chance to plumb the depths of your reviews and look for issues that continue to arise. You can then feed these data into your ROI modelling to work out whether making changes to your production processes will benefit your business overall. 

If you’re interested in the ins-and-outs of online reviews, check out the following infographic for more information. 

Infographic by University of Alabama Birmingham