​Affiliate Disclosure
Some of the links in this post may be "affiliate links." This means that if you click on the link and purchase the item to which we are linking, I may receive an affiliate commission. I want to emphasize that I do not, and never will, link to a product only for possible financial gain. Doing so does not provide real value, and is a disservice to you as a reader. I do not link to products I feel are inferior, and I am not compensated for any positive review.

Part of conducting business is the great aspect of getting paid (Yeah baby! Cha ching!) but the question then becomes how do you collect payments from your clients in order to get rewarded for your hard work? This is where Square Point of Sale comes in.
I use Square (Point of Sale) and recommend it to my clients as well. I don't want to write a book here so here are some of the things it does and what I like about it.

1. With Square POS you can pretty much take payments on the go.
2. Their app which you can download to your smartphone, iPad and other mobile devices allows taking payment on the go to be possible.
3. They send you a free card reader, which you can connect to your devices and have people swipe their cards. If for some reason you don't have a card reader on you, you can still manually enter the credit card info.​

You probably woke up this morning thinking you wouldn't see anything crazier than you normally do on the social media or inter webs. Then you're met with this question. Perhaps you don't even know who these guys are and that's fine because now you do.
So, why should you care? Well, if you're in business, you want to succeed and a lot of success depends on marketing and the right application of said marketing strategies. If you don't have your own marketing strategies then you want to listen to those who consider themselves authorities or whom others might consider authorities in that regard. Which brings us to Tai Lopez and Neil Patel. I am vaguely familiar with both myself. However, if you've read through any YouTube comments I'm sure you can agree that it can get a crazy with people's opinions.
I don't wish to create a bias in your views. So, I'll leave a link on both of these Marketers and you can watch some videos and look at their works online to form your own opinion.
Personally, I have a friend who'd probably trade in his dad for Tai Lopez and I also have a brother who might consider him a mentor. His other detractors say his marketing methods are very questionable.
As for Neil, I've had the chance to sit through one of his webinars and I have to say they were quite insightful and packed with lots of actionable materials. In the grand scheme of things none of this really matters. However, they say if you want to succeed you should follow the examples of those who have done what you want to do. Still, if you make the wrong choice on who to listen to, it could also affect your business negatively, costing you time and money. So, Tai Lopez or Neil Patel who's your cup of tea? Let us know what you think. You may cast your votes

Below are some links to sway you one way or the other.
Tai Lopez
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RH3dZTIbLxw​
www.tailopez.com

Neil Patel
https://www.neilpatel.com
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wiy8zbrp8Oc

Recently, I had the opportunity to speak with a lawyer with an outdated website. Despite all its deficiencies, he was adamant that he didn’t need a website re-design. He went as far as to say that a website is merely a fancy business card. This article is in part inspired by this misconception and ignorance about what purpose a website can serve.
The hair styling service business will be used as a reference point here. However, other forms of business can borrow and apply the same concepts touched upon. So, here are seven ways you can generate more business through your website and social media.

Online Booking
Constant technological advancements, modern marketing techniques etc. Just goes to show how much we as people want our lives to be more convenient. Having an online booking capability such as the one offered by Acuity Scheduling as used by C Street Hair Salon brings this convenience to the fingertips of your clients through their mobile devices, wherever they may be and at any time of the day of their choosing. It may not seem like a big deal but that’s you putting some control and power in their hands even if they don’t see it that way.

A bit of self-disclosure here. I'm writing with a little bit of fire in my belly which is inspired by the recent cringe-worthy exercises of "Doing it yourself" (DIY) that I've just witnessed; combined with blog deprivation. For obvious reasons, the title of this blog might be a bit misleading. We should all have goals and ideally, we should aspire to achieve them. However, from a business standpoint, it's best to be fully aware of what you're getting yourself into before getting started. Especially, if that crazy thought of doing it yourself starts eating away at you. Here are 3 reasons why you shouldn't start your next business design project just yet.

Wasting Time
They often say that the true currency of life is time. Yea, time and not money. Don't get me wrong I know the major purpose of most businesses is to make a profit and in our capitalist society, make a buck load of it as well. However, when you start off trying to do your next design project as a non-designer you can waste time doing the wrong things that might seem right initially. Consider the following scenarios I just witnessed.

If you’re like me, you probably get lots of e-mails or calls proposing to give you a website or a website re-design. If you’re like most business owners who might not be technologically savvy when it comes to these matters. Your first instinct is to think “Great another web designer trying to take my money” or “I already have a website and I don’t need their services”. The thing is you might very well be right but you could also be wrong. So, below is a checklist of things to look out for to know if you indeed do need a re-design or even a website if you haven’t got one already.

Mobile Responsiveness
Mobile responsiveness is really the ability for your website to be accessible on various devices. The importance of this is that in today’s fast paced world is that both you and your clients are doing business on the go; therefore, information should be easily accessible to both parties and shouldn’t be restricted by your device. Overall, this improves the efficiency of doing business, which is a win-win for you and your clients. If you look at the attached screenshot examples below from www.suzannecollinsbooks.com and CFR and Associates from your mobile device, you will see that both sites aren’t mobile accessible. In other words, besides the other features listed below you literally, have to pinch and expand your screen to view and read the information on those sites. www.cstreethairsalon.com designed by Uzo Design is a site that is mobile optimized. Which is more accessible from your hand-held device?

Facebook Ad: For promotions involving sales of discount or pretty much anything. A tool you can use is the Facebook ad. It allows you to select your target audience in terms of interests, profession, age and geographic education. So, if you have a dance studio in San Diego, California you can run an ad targeting people from that part of the country that meet your other requirements.  A Facebook ad can cost you as little as $5/day to, however, much you’re willing to spend. Even if Facebook is not your social media of choice. Other social media platforms have their own forms of advertising. Something that’s especially good about running a social media ad is that it reaches most of the people in your social network and the people connected to them. If you haven’t tried it before I encourage you to give it a shot. If you’re not very computer savvy, feel free to contact Uzo Design to help you with that.

Social Media Banner: In the situation of keeping you on clients’ minds or simply just celebrating the holiday spirit one way to do this is by temporarily switching the design of your social media banner to capture the holiday theme. If you’re not sure how to create the social media banner for your platform. There are tools out there on sites like canva.com or stocksnap.io that have preset templates or sizes of various social media platform where you can generate upload your own images or simply use theirs.

Pop-Up Ads: Although, people may find pop-ups annoying, it all really depends on how you set it up to function. All the same, they are a very good way to catch people’s attention with what you want to promote since they are in your face.  Alternatively, you can always use a static banner strip that can be displayed at the very top of your website. It allows people to opt-in to your offers.

App Notification: If you haven’t gone to the cool route to developing an app for your business you should seriously consider it especially if you have a huge fan base or clients who patronize you. The great thing about apps is that since everyone has their cell phones with them almost everywhere they go, they are easier to reach.  Apps allow you to send notifications that pop up on people’s phones so they can see your offers simply click on it and be taking to it.

Website Banners: You can also use a website banner that briefly displays your offer and links to the page with your promotion.
Video Ad: You can create and run a video ad as part of your social media promotion and include a call to action at the end of the video or attach a link to your social media page. Here’s a video sample from Uzo Design. Just remember to tailor your video to the season you’re using it for.
Hopefully, these pointers will help you successfully reach your next holiday goals. Are there any other tools you use to a great effect that we didn’t cover? Please, free to share.

​The holidays are upon us and for some reason, it is a time when people are more inclined to spend money for various reasons. As a business owner or organization, what is your plan to engage them using your online presence?
Here are a few suggestions of what you can do this holiday season: Boost sales, show your customers how much you appreciate them or simply staying on your clients’ minds until the next time they are in need of what you have to offer.

Boost Sales
As stated above the holidays can be a very good time to boost sales if your business is in a dull state of affair. There are several ways you can do this, depending on the nature of your business. If you’re a product based business it would mean that you may have to take a different approach compared to a service based business or an organization. All the same here are a few things you can do to boost your business sales during these holidays.
Discounted sales: you can run a sales promotion that is for a limited time period. For example, if you’re a company that sells handbags you can offer a buy one get half off or 20% off promotion. The trick is to create a certain window of opportunity for people to take advantage of this offer. You want this window to be at a duration revolving around the specific holiday. If it’s too long people may feel they have all the time in the world t act and may delay taking action. One of the best ways you can do this is through an e-mail marketing and Cloud Awards breaks down how you can use e-mail to accomplish your goals.

Contest: You can also run a contest that offers people a reward for their participation. Right now, Uzo Design is running a photography contest for Halloween offering the $25 and other prices. The goal of this contest is to generate more buzz around Uzo Design in order to engage existing clients, fans, and potential clients. The idea is for them to share their Halloween images with us on our social media pages or through our website in hopes to increase our traffic, boost our relevance on search engines and hopefully generate some new sales. Besides, it will be cool to see all the costumes ideas people have to share from their Halloween events.

Referral incentives: This is also a good time to ask people who might visit your website or Facebook or other social media pages for referral in exchange for a reward.

Call to Action: People are often in an emotional mood during the holidays. What better time than then to rally them to support a cause that your Not-For-Profit Organization is standing behind?

“Begin with the end in mind” is a quote by the late Stephen Covey that every business or organization should adapt in their design making decisions. This might sound like a no-brainer. However, in my experience with clients, a lot of them seem to forget this. In this situation “the end” is the organization’s public or target audience. Why does this matter?
​
Simply put without your customers (target audience) your business or organization will cease to exist or exist without much substance. Yeah, that’s pretty much it, end of the blog you can now go back to surfing the net. Alright, I’m kidding there’s more to it. So, let me break it down.  Your target audience determines your brand and your organization’s goals. This includes your design decision as well. However, by beginning with the end in mind you get to have a greater control in which direction your brand goes; which is what most clients who come to designers want anyway.

The simple answer to the above question is that you should use both. So, now you can stop reading. Just kidding, please continue reading. A lot of people tend to think that once they have a social media page they don't need a website and then there are others who don't see the need for a social media presence. I suppose if they uneducated about the subject then to each their own. However, the main issue I have found is people who think that their social media page(s) is doing the work of a website. In most cases the people involved don't know any better. So, here's what you need to know about the subject.
 
The most important thing to take away is that social media (which is a type of website) and your traditional website were designed for different purposes. Although, it's fair to say the similarity they both share is to engage people. So, when it comes down to the everyday use they serve different purposes. However, as a business or organization, you should use both to maximize your reach.
 
Social Media
I like to think of social media as a spokesperson for your organization at a conference or your organization's booth at a trade show or exhibition. They can engage people and show off certain aspects of your business. However, you are using them to draw people into further engaging with your organization at a later time or have a live conversation. As the name implies it is for a social interaction and depending on the nature of your entity, you might not even need a social media page.