I hope you find my writing and business tips and observations useful. My business and blog are dedicated to helping businesses communicate clearly and reach their potential.
Read, and enjoy!Tash
Intranet content
A few years ago, companies created a section of their website as an intranet for staff communications. Now, they can run an intranet as part of a website still or have it on a blog, a wiki, online document sharing software, or even communicate via Tweeter platforms.
But if you need to set up an intranet for your business or workplace, the same basics apply. An intranet aims to make life easier for all staff by having relevant and current information stored in one place.
Having run a and set up a few intranet services, here’s my top list of things to include on the site:
- contact lists – the more staff in the business, the more this is necessary
- document registers
- soft copy letterhead, cover sheets, forms, etc that staff use frequently
- human resources forms (leave, change of bank account, etc)
- graphics files (e.g. logo, advertising banners) although some companies limit access to certain staff
- style rules and guidelines (often in the form of a style guide)
- standard text
- policies and procedures, especially relating to staffing
Some other things that suit in many businesses are:
- photos of events
- links to online reviews of the business/product
- archive of old documents in case people ring with queries based on old versions
- staff newsletter
- archive of old business newsletters and promotions
- organisation charts
- lists of ‘who to contact for…’ (such as Mary to order business cards, John for building maintenance and Jill to book company car)
What else would you like to see in an intranet? Is that something you’ve made use of before or just know from experience?
A step forward
Have you ever had to deal with something unpleasant, and then experienced the relief when it is resolved in some way, especially in a positive way?
Last week, I went to a VCAT hearing about outstanding payments from an ex-client.
Background story: A client I thought was trustworthy requested various writing projects over a period of time but hasn’t paid me for them. This client has never indicated a problem with the invoices, but just hasn’t bothered paying – or asking for any extension or payment terms. Late last year, I sent statements with the message that although interest hadn’t been charged it would apply from January and further action would be taken if she didn’t respond by that time. She chose not to respond so I filed an application resulting in today’s hearing.
Outcome: There is now a court order against her to pay me – and it is binding even if she goes into liquidation. I wonder if she knows the courts can go as far as repossessions if she ignores the order? Personally I think it is for the general good that an order can go on public record so others an see her reputation and be protected from her.
Of course, I would have much preferred to not go down this path and have been paid when I presented the invoice. It is an unfortunate risk in business that not everyone is honourable; fortunately, I have not had a lot of problems with payments and this client is certainly the worst in my seven years of running a business.
There is a great sense of relief however to have the hearing over and know that she is liable to pay me now.
Naming publicly
The naming and shaming will probably prove to be the greatest punishment. Chris Jackson
…we will name their names and shame them as they deserve to be shamed. Bob Dole
The above quotes got me thinking – is being named publicly for some wrong doing a bigger punishment than something like a fine or restriction? Do people who do the wrong thing actually deserve to be identified?
I don’t know that they deserve to be named and possibly humiliated by that naming, but I can see that naming them may protect others. For example, someone convicted of fraud isn’t someone I want to hire as an accountant or financial advisor, and having people who don’t pay for services they request listed may protect other businesses from being mistreated.
Some wrong doers appear to feel no shame and repeat their “crime” over and over; these are the ones people most need protecting from so making their names public seems somewhat just. With the internet, it is obviously mush easier to get names in front of a LOT of people instead of a smaller audience. For example, you can contact any magistrates court and ask for finding of any case which limits the access, but you can now also visit a website and see the outcomes for yourself.
What do you think – should wrong doers be publicly named as a punishment, to protect others, or not at all?
Part 2 in a couple of days…
Free ads can still cost…
In my recent post about saving money in business, I noted that ineffective free ads could be too expensive to run.
While that may seem strange (a free ad costs nothing, right?) it is true.
By free ad I mean any advertising you do that doesn’t directly cost you anything so it may be a free directory listing, adding an email signature, using social media or having a banner in someone else’s newsletter. Free advertising is great for cashflow obviously, and has a number of advantages, but it isn’t always good for business or truly free.
So even free ads need to be reviewed and considered for their value. Consider these examples of how free ads can be much more costly than they first appear…
- social media is certainly free in that you don’t pay any fees to join or use those sites. However, you may pay for supporting software and you do pay in time – and the smaller expense of electricity, computer wear and tear, etc. If you are spending hours tweeting every week (and have done for months) and have never had a sale through Twitter, it is becoming an expensive, ineffective exercise
- directories that need regular updating but return nothing are probably not worth the effort, especially as many are only viewed by other business people updating their listings!
- notice what response the ad is generating – an ad that brings in a lot of queries but no sales is probably in the wrong place or missing the target. In this case the free ad is costing you in time to answer queries rather than giving you time for genuine customers. Try tweaking to ad or just stop using that free option
- ads in disreputable places may also not have a price to add them or take time to maintain, but if they are giving your business a bad image they are very expensive ads. Negative associations are hard to measure as you can’t see which people consciously didn’t come to your website. Just be careful where you are listed, and review sites every so often as they may change over time
Chain reactions…
I came across a blog post about the domino effect and it got me thinking.
Obviously, one little thing left undone can cause another little thing to happen and so on until there is a problem – for example, miss one weeks back up of your computer doesn’t seem like a big deal until you have missed many weeks back ups and then your hard drive fails…
This is where contingency plansand attention to detail are important. Sometimes we get busy and it is easy to leave things until later (and the reality is that with only 24 hours in a day, some things have to be left until later) but we need to watch out for the important things not being forgotten. Maybe a set time each week to review important things could be a valuable use of time.
Here are five things I think should be regularly checked before they become a problem:
- overall safety – broken chairs, loose power cords, overloaded power points, faulty machinery can cause serious damage if left to get worse
- back up systems of data and software
- suppliers – little issues may build up until you are left unable to fulfill client needs so check suppliers are on track before it gets critical
- customer service – if you have staff, are they treating customers the way you want? are you keeping your word on things like sending out newsletters? how long does it take to reply to emails?
- accounts – is data processed with some regularity? do you pay invoices on time every time? are you aware of those customers who are slow payers?
Of course, not all domino effects are negative, so I’ll post about that tomorrow!
Paying what you owe
Pay what you owe, and you’ll know what’s your own. Benjamin Franklin
Nothing so cements and holds together all the parts of a society as faith or credit, which can never be kept up unless men are under some force or necessity of honestly paying what they owe to one another. Marcus Tallius Cicero
Do you agree that paying your way, and staying away from debt is good business practice?
I believe it affects your reputation, credibility and self-respect. Knowing that clients will pay is what gives a business faith to continue, builds trust in a community and allows a business to plan ahead.
Personally, if I don’t have the cashflow available, I don’t order a product or service, and always pay invoices I recieve. And I believe this is how most people run their businesses; it is sad to think we need systems to force some people to pay up, though, isn’t it?
What contact details to give?
If you are looking for something online, what form of contact details do you like to see? What difference does it make to you if it isn’t there?
I have often read about offering a range of contact methods to give clients options and their preferred choice. I believe in the value of certain options being offered, too. So it was very interesting to read Danielle Keister’s view on contact details.
Her argument is that someone who really wants your services will use the contact details your provide; if they won’t follow your system (in her case, completiong of a specific form to get a quote, etc) then this forms a process fo weeding out clients you didn’t really want in the first place.
I like the concept – it is impossible to please everyone so I can make my business run the way that best suits me. My contact pagedoesn’t include my mobile because I don’t think anyone’s writing project is so important I need to be contactable all the time, and it doesn’t include my email address to avoid spam. On the other hand, it does encourage an email contact form as the preferred means of contacting me.
I could delete my phone number from the site altogether, but I think there is a certain credibility attached to having a phone number available. Please tell me if you disagree!
My postal address is rarely used by anyone I don’t have an existing business relationship with, but I include it because it helps identify my location – I know I hate not knowing where a business is located if it isn’t clear (my .au domain and about us page do make it clear I am in Australia, and my exact location isn’t very relevant to clients so the contact page is less critical for me).
Away from my website, I generally use my URL and email address for contact information.
And I guess it works as the majority of clients and prospects do contact me by email – at times I wonder why I have a business phone at all!
Do you offer all your contact details or do you tailor it to your business preferences? How does that work for your business?
Website hosting security
After getting hacked earlier this week, I thought it might be timely to cover some things to look at for security through your web host – and as I am not a technical expert, I’d love to hear your tips too so we can all have the best chance of avoiding these time wasters.
So here are some tips from me…
- who are you sharing a server with? Dedicated server hosting is the most secure option but also a lot more expensive. My host has servers just for their clients which I see as the next best thing as at least I am not sharing with just anybody and my host has put some precautions in place (such as minimum 70 strength passwords)
- does your host/server have a SSL certificate? This may be shared with everyone on the sever but it certainly beats no certificate at all!
- where are the servers located? The recent flooding in Victoria shows the value of storing servers somewhere high (on top of a mountain isn’t quite what I mean though! Off the floor and preferably in a room protected against flooding to some extent). Are they protected from other physical dangers too?
- what physical security applies to the servers? Are they in locked cupboards in secure buildings? Is there 24 hour security (guards, cameras, sensors) turned on?
- what routines and programs does your host use to monitor the servers for attacks and errors? For example, my host now constantly runs a security scan and a program that detects prohibited activity
- does your host offer suitable privacy protection? Your information and your payment details should be kept private and safe
- who can access the server shells? This is the core of the operation and is where real damage can be done to websites – ideally very few people even within the host company can access this
- what back ups does the host do? where do they store these back ups (on site or remotely)? I’m glad to say my host does daily and weekly back ups so were able to reinstall everything from a back up after Tuesday’s attack – and they did a more recent back up of the databases, too. I would not have wanted to replace all that work and data myself or have lost it completely.
I have discovered that not many hosts cover this information on their website so I suggest you ask them questions. It is easy to just trust them and even to take the cheapest option but think about the consequences of loosing your website (for an hour, a day, a week…) or of having your website damaged and perhaps clients’ information breached. Makes asking a few questions a small but critical task doesn’t it?
According to WAtoday, the threat of an attack on a medium sized business has grown by 54% in the last year. That makes it a pretty big risk and something to be aware of in business budgeting, planning and contingency. I hope it never happens to you.
What steps have you taken to secure your website hosting?
Not fun being hacked…
Yesterday, my site was one of many attacked by a well known hacker (called the Turkish Hacker or Iskorpitx according to the messages left behind). Over a period of about 5 days he apparently hacked over 30,000 sites, mostly by getting into host servers (as happened in my case).
So my first message today is sorry if you tried to visit my site or send me emails yesterday. Although I did rectify my site reasonably quickly once I knew, my host later took down all their sites and reinstalled their servers so my site was offline.
I won’t make my second message what I think of people who have nothing better to do with their time than annoy people around the world just because they can.
Here are my top tips to minimise the hassles of being hacked…
- have a great password – your surname, business name or kids’ initials really aren’t good enough
- back up your site regularly so it’s easier to replace it as needed – or even move to another host
- choose your host carefully – look for their security, how they will deal with issues and how much they will help you
- if you need to give a password to someone else (eg a web designer) be careful how you tell them – certainly don’t put it in an email with the subject “website password”
- remove anything from your site that isn’t needed if it is sensitive in any way
- use the most recent version of any software on your site (e.g. the software to run a blog) as it will have recent security developments included and probably has fewer successful hacks set up
Do you have any additional tips?
Recent Comments