Online Business Blog

There are two things that mean a lot to an employer: dedication and innovation. If you can show these traits when applying for a job, then it will work to your advantage. The problem is that if the only opportunities you have are in an interview, where the employer is asking the questions, and an application form or CV, then you’re limited in what you can show off.

The answer is surprisingly simple, and surprisingly effective: make your own opportunities.

Over the years, a number of strange approaches have been tried and met with success, even when dealing with international recruitment. There’s no reason that anybody couldn’t try one of these tactics, or even come up with something new.

Meeting the Employer

If an employer has met you outside an interview, and you’ve demonstrated your strengths in a more casual and friendly environment, then you’ve already got a lead on other candidates.

Seizing the initiative if you run into a potential employer on a train, waiting at a bus stop, or anywhere that you could conceivably spark up a conversation can be a great tactic. It shows off your dedication to getting the job. You might also learn some useful information that you can use in a more formal interview, or find out about another opportunity that the employer thinks you’d be perfect for.

Meeting the Staff

Find out where the staff of an organisation during their lunch breaks or after hours. Listen out for opportunities, get to know them, let them know you’re looking for work, and they could pass on a positive word to their employer.

This has the double advantage of alerting you to new opportunities (you might be chatting to lawyers and hear about accountant jobs) and showing your dedication. It’s also a rather innovative approach, which will bear weight with employers.

Put Yourself Out There

Try and make opportunities for yourself. If you can convince somebody that you’d be an asset to their company, even if they hadn’t considered employing at the time, then you’re in with a chance. Show what new ideas you’d bring in.

Even if they don’t take it further at that time, they could be in contact later. Once again, this shows a level of dedication and innovation that few will match.

The Ultimate in Dedication

Work for nothing. If you can show that you really want the job, and then demonstrate that you’re good at it, employers will be very impressed. Offering to work unpaid is one way of doing this, but of course you must be sure you don’t get taken advantage of.

Be Truly Innovative

We’ve given you some ideas, but if you truly wish to innovate, then you’ll have to come up with something even fresher. Be bold. Show that you are the best candidate for the job, whatever it takes.

Most people will spend time preparing answers to common questions you will be asked during and interview, but what questions should you ask the interviewer. These will not only impress and show you are keen but will also help you understand the job role better and if it is in fact a career move you want to make.

Questions you should ask

What responsibilities does the role have?

What would the typical working day consist of?

Would I be working alone or part of a team?

How many people work in the company/office?

What is the management style of the department/company?

Does the role require travel?

What are the typical hours?

Is overtime expected of me?

What are the benefits of working here?

What would you change about the company if you could?

Would you like any references?

What is the start date of the role?

Are there any other questions I can answer?

Questions you shouldn’t ask

So what do you guys actually do? (this will put them right off as you should have done some research before the interview)

How many cigarette breaks do I get?

So what are maternity packages like? (This will make it sound like you are planning to start a family soon and may put them off you)

Are there any bonuses involved?

How much holiday will I get? (This is a valid question but will not promote the right impression)

What is your sickness policy? (This will make it seem like you are fond of making sickies)

So if you are heading to an important interview for an accountancy job or a banking job, why not ask some of these questions when you get the chance.

We have written a great guide on job interview techniques and preparation over at squidoo. We think you should check it out as it has some handy advice, a video and some relating pics. We will be posting more of our squidoo content for you to check out soon so stay tuned.

When your investment in your pension plan reaches maturity, you’ll need to transfer its accumulated value into a regular income for the remainder of your retirement. This can be achieved by purchasing a pension annuity - a simple and straight forward transaction that exchanges the value of your pension fund into which you have been paying a regular income.

While the principle of a pension annuity is seemingly very straight forward, however, things are rarely quite as simple as they seem.

The most critical aspect of buying a pension annuity is that it is a long-term, one-off commitment. You only have one shot at it, as there is no going back and asking for a refund of all of the capital simply because you have found a better deal elsewhere. Therefore, it is very important that you make the right choice.

Making the right choice is made harder due to the fact that a host of different annuities all offer a host of different annuity rates - i.e. will offer same amount of pension investment  for a different level of income.

For more Independent Pension Advice visit Source IFA.

In this current financial climate finding tenants for rental property is not as easy as it used to be. Let alone ones that will respect your property and pay on time. Luckily there are a large variety of ways that you can attract the kind of tenant you are after using a successful advertising campaign.

Property Advertising doesn’t have to be a problem if you get the right people to do the work for you. Information is available online about how you can attract people into renting your property. If you have the money then it is advised that you get in contact with a professional company who will be able to advertise your property to its optimum capability.

A professional company will use different types of media in which to advertise your property they are as follows:

· Newspapers – Generally where people look first for property advertising be it for sale or rental. Placing an ad in a paper can be expensive but this depends on how long you run the advert for (1 day, 1 week or longer?) The type of paper (tabloid, broadsheet or local) and how big the advert is (1 sq inch, half a page, whole page) The best idea is to generally allow the advert to run for 3-4 weeks so that you can get in the best possible tenant for your property and not just the first one to call! You will also want to find out if you can advertise on the newspapers website as well.

· Online Advertising – A lot of people that look for property advertising may not be local and will possibly be from the other end of the country or maybe even a different continent! Online Advertising allows you to show off your property to a larger audience, the charge is usually cheap or even free and allow a lot more information to be passed on to the possible tenant.

· Apartment Guides – A cheap way of advertising your property is through apartment guides. Allowing a lot more information space than a newspaper and are free which means that people will pick them up on a whim or specifically for renting/purchasing a property.

· Rental signs – An easy, effective and obvious way to advertise your property. All you need to do is put the sign up outside your property with details on who to contact and where to go. The only negative is the sign only attracts possible tenants from a specific area.

These things can all be done yourself but to attract the correct tenant for you it would be advised to talk to a professional company for your property advertising needs.

If you are a company looking to recruit some of the finest people in your sector then you need to make sure that you advertise your job role effectively. You can either do this yourself or if you’ve got the money (and sense!) then you will go with a professional company do help you with your advertising needs. Here are some of the things that you will expect to see from a top recruitment advertising company.

1. Make an advert that catches attention and is easy to read – Stats and research show that people remember red, read black and white and see yellow. Upper and lower cased serif typefaces are generally read easier (this is what newspapers use!). If possible don’t use capitals or “creative” typefaces, basically anything that will make it hard to read or remember your advert.
2. Describe the job role properly – The possible applicants need to know what they need to do to apply for the role. What skills, experience and background is needed. Avoid filler and make sure you get your point across. The best recruitment advert is one that attracts the right applicant.
3. State who you are and what you do – What you need here is a couple of brief sentences about the company and what it does. If you don’t discuss these points the possible candidate may get suspicious and not apply for the role.
4. Give a phone number and email address – Conduct a phone interview with each of the applicants and you should soon find who is deserving of a face to face interview. If you expect a lot of people to call then maybe place an answering machine on that line and you can call back when you have the time.
5. Don’t offer an interview to every applicant – Similar to the point above, make sure that your interviews test the applicant with tests on knowledge and skills. Be sure to ask 3-4 questions in the phone interview so that you can create a list of strong candidates.

In conclusion finding the right candidate can be a tricky and expensive process, and that’s when it’s successful! Planning and writing a decent advert can be difficult and time consuming, so my advice would be to make sure to contact a professional in the recruitment advertising sector who will be able to help with all your needs.

Although the banks are ignoring any current claims until the High Court has sorted through the battle, soon enough people in the UK may be able to begin requesting the refund of bank charges applied to their bank accounts, debits cards and credit cards. If this does go through the Courts, people that claim their refunds may be needing to find a new bank as banks are threatening to close the accounts of any of their customers that file for these charges to be refunded to them. If the banks lose this in the Court system, they could be facing refund claims from their customers from as far back as six years, except in Scotland where they can only go back five years. If someone is interested in filing one of these claims but does not have time there are many companies such as Easiest Claim that offer this service for a percentage of the refund. You might want to go ahead and set up a new bank account before you file or claim, just in case.

Bored with the run of the mill accountant jobs and banking Jobs and want to get a promotion to something more exciting, take a look at our handy tips to help you on your way.

1. Adapt to your situation

If you are flexible about your career path and flexible about your next step, your chances of being promoted are much higher.

2. Go the extra mile

Bosses will look to promote people who are doing a good job, but they will also be looking for people who take initiative and taken on tasks outside of their current job description.

3. Show no fear

Bosses tend to promote people who lead, because these leaders usually have strong opinions and know how to express them even if it means upsetting a few people along the way.

4. Learn new skills

Picking up a new skill could be more beneficial to you than a small pay rise. You should ask to work on innovative projects which will require extra training meaning you will gain more skills and make you more valuable.

5. Believe in yourself

If you don’t believe in yourself, you will find it hard to climb up the ladder. Make sure you believe you are good at what you do and people will be able to detect this.

Are you tired of the 9 to 5 slog that is affectionately known as your job? This post aims to give you some advice on how to make it in the big bad world of business on your own.

Most men dream of setting their own rules and not answering to anybody, but government statistics show that one in ten new businesses fold after a year. So here are some tips for taking the plunge into being your own boss.

Writing a business plan

This may be fairly obvious, but you need to make a thorough plan on where you need to spend your time. Putting your goals onto paper lets organise your thoughts and allows you to come back and refer to it. Thankfully people have helped this process by developing software; Paloalto (paloato.co.uk) is one of the leading pieces of business software in the UK.

Getting your timing right

Business is all about timing, you need to be aware of current trends and capitalize on opportunities in your desired industry. Once you have detected a gap in the market start planning away.

Make sure you are secure

Before you quit your job and go on your own, you should save up some funds, around six months of your salary should be sufficient. You should also start building a potential user base, which will help you when you start the business and will look good to investors.

Acquiring funds

You should have established how much money you need from investors or a grant in your business plan. The general advice seems obvious, the more the better. Sites like bussinesslink.gov.uk can provide ideas on additional sources for getting funds.

Naming your business

Once you have sorted out your funds from investors, its time to name your business and register it with Inland Revenue. You need to think long and hard about the business name as it will affect marketing your company. Bussinesslink.gov.uk will give advice on the areas surrounding registering your business.

Location, Location, Location

You may decide to work from home while your business is small, but if you are going to rent somewhere to work from, you should start looking for locations as soon as possible. A location can make or break businesses, but usually more important if you are a retail business. You should still consider the location of your business when thinking about image and costs.

Taking the final step

Ideally you should hand in your letter of resignation about a month before you decide to leave. Then you should try and get worked booked up for when you start and if possible, get some of the money paid upfront as cash is extremely important for any business. When you start out, you want to make sure you have more cash coming in than going out.

If any of this sounds like a lot of work but you still want to be your own boss, why not consider a franchise opportunity. There are some great opportunities if you decide to take up a lettings franchise.