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Three Things Every Legal Firm Should Outsource

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StrategyDriven Managing Your Business Article |Outsourcing for Legal Firms|Three Things Every Legal Firm Should OutsourceTime is the most valuable resource for modern business but launching and running a new legal business means a lot of demands on that time. The best way to make success more likely is to use the time that you have to work on the business aspects that have the most ROI. Unfortunately, there are a lot of time-wasting tasks that we can get stuck doing. That’s where outsourcing comes in. You can’t do everything yourself, and by using professionals to handle some of the more challenging and time-consuming tasks, you free up your own time to help your venture grow. Here are the top three options for outsourcing that you should make a priority.

Your Taxes

All businesses will have to deal with their tax obligations, but there’s nothing quite so laborious or as time-consuming as working out how much you owe, finding ways to cut what you owe, or ensuring that you don’t fall foul of fines. Hiring the assistance of a certified public accountant (CPA) can save you a lot of time in the long run but might also make your business more profitable as well. A CPA can identify tax breaks that you’re entitled to, and when those can change any time, it’s simply smart business sense to outsource your taxation requirements to ensure that you always stay up to date on the wiggle room that taxes often allow for.

Payroll Tasks

Even if you only have a single employee, payroll services are worth a lot more than how much they cost. Payroll services are an absolute money and time saver in the digital age, and no legal firm should consider hiring staff if they are still planning to do payrolls themselves. It’s easy to make a mistake with your payroll obligations, especially if this is your first business. When payroll mistakes happen, they can bring financial costs as much as a fresh headache, so it’s always worth looking closer at the benefits of outsourcing your payroll. Whether you’re paying your team once a week or once a month, you can save hours of work and masses of stress.

Legal Outsourcing

If you have a business that works in the law sector, then you may not have considered outsourcing your legal needs. It might seem counterintuitive, but you’ll find that getting rid of the stress of your own legal obligations frees up a lot more time to work on helping your clients. Don’t underestimate the high ROI you’ll benefit from when you acquire professional legal outsourcing for your legal firm. From back office support to case management or even basic legal research, you might be amazed by how much time and money you can save by outsourcing those very manual legal tasks.

Law firms can benefit a lot by adopting a more modern approach to their business needs. It’s easy to get stuck in ways of doing things. Still, a combination of the latest automation technologies with the most useful options for outsourcing, your law firm can benefit from being a lot more cutting edge in its approach to time management. If you want to ensure that your law firm is as lean, streamlined, and as profitable as possible, then outsourcing is an option that you can no longer ignore.

9 Reasons to Hire a Design Agency

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StrategyDriven Marketing and Sales Article |Design Agency |9 Reasons to Hire a Design AgencyYou have seven seconds to make a good first impression.

As a business, you must have a strong brand identity so consumers know about your product and whether your business’s ethos appeals to them.

A fantastic way to do this is by hiring a design agency that can help your branding. Not sure whether to hire one? Don’t worry, you’ve come to the right place.

Here are nine reasons to hire a design agency.

What Is a Design Agency?

A creative design agency offers a mixture of design, technology, and advertising to help clients with branding.

Another term that’s popping up is DesignOps. “What is Design Ops?” You ask.

Known as a design operation team, DesignOps optimizes design teams by improving workflow and streamlining many processes like recruiting. This means designers can focus on their job instead.

The 9 Reasons to Hire a Design Agency

Before you Google “design agencies near me”, it’s important to understand the advantages of hiring a graphic design agency.
Many can help establish a strong brand identity and give essential advice. Consider these reasons, for example:

1. Branding Is Different From Marketing

You must hire a brand design agency as it’s completely different from marketing. Branding helps you design your business and product while marketing lets you reach your desired audience.

Branding plays a major role in every business as it builds business recognition, boosts business value, and generates new customers. According to the experts associated with this company, the style and functionality of the design can ensure success for all your branding plans.

Further, branding makes you ask fundamental questions about your business regarding your vision, target audience, and how to stand out.
Once you have these questions, you can roll out your marketing campaign.

2. Fresh Perspective

It’s difficult to ask your internal marketing team to be objective about branding as they’re exposed to your company’s aesthetic every day.

But when you hire a logo design agency, they give you a big-picture analysis of your business from an objective stance. As a result, they can brainstorm innovative ways to bring your brand to life.

3. Cross-Industry Experience

Agencies have worked across a wide range of industries which gives them a broader perspective and skillset.

Because of this, agencies can bring new ideas to your industry to help differentiate your business from competitors.

Don’t be turned off if a creative agency hasn’t worked in your industry. Instead, look at their portfolio and see whether they’ve successfully solved challenges across a range of industries.

4. The Right Expertise

Branding agencies are unique because they’re experts in researching, the lifeblood of branding.

When you hire a creative agency, you access a design team that creates unique branding based on strategy and research. This is because the agency has had the experience with an array of projects so you end up with a strong brand identity that eclipses your competitors’.
Once the agency has created your brand, they’ll post the end result on their blog and social media channels so it’s free advertising for you.

5. Adds Consistency

A consistent presentation of a brand has increased revenue by 33% and creative agencies know this.

It’s crucial that your business’s marketing material is consistent from the typeface to the color palette. A creative design agency ensures your ideas are coordinated and consistent as it’s the foundation of a successful business.

6. Alleviates Training Costs

If you want your marketing team to expand to branding, it’ll require extra courses and another employee to train them. Not only is this expensive, but you’ll lose a large chunk of time which isn’t ideal for a business.

And there’s a chance your employees won’t have good chemistry working with each other which means there’s less chance of producing outstanding branding.

Instead, hire a creative agency for your branding as they’re guaranteed to produce high-quality results.

7. Helps You Stand Out From Competitors

Creative design agencies help you differentiate your brand so you stand apart from the rest. Branding lets you highlight the products you offer that are unique compared to what’s currently on the market.

When you outsource your branding to an agency, you’ll have a new voice, style, and feel. Because of this, you’ll get new opportunities which will bring in more revenue, making it a fantastic return on investment.

8. Lets You Connect With New Audiences

When you hire a creative design agency, you’ll reach new customers. But this can only happen thanks to the agency’s strategy and fresh perspective.

Once your new branding is established across all platforms, you’ll reap the benefits. Plus, design agencies ensure their work like logos is ahead of the curve so customers are attracted to your brand.

Further, your business can increase your network by working with a reputable design agency. And because the agency has worked with companies across a variety of industries, they know how to create a strong brand campaign.

9. Follows the Latest Trends and Technology

When you hire a design agency, they stay atop the latest trends and use technology to do so. This saves you money as you don’t have to invest in purchasing new technology or software.

No business wants to be outdated so use the agency’s expertise so this doesn’t happen.

That’s Why You Should Work With a Design Agency

Those are the nine main reasons you should work with a creative design agency.

Their team has the expertise and ability to bring a fresh perspective so your business can stand out from competitors. Hiring a creative design agency also saves you time, money, while producing fantastic results. Happy hiring!

Did you find this article helpful? If so, check out our other finance-related posts.

10 Tips to Get Others to Take You Seriously

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StrategyDriven Professional Development Article |Get Others to Take you Seriously|10 Tips to Get Others to Take You SeriouslyWe all know those people who command a room the moment they walk through the door. How do they signal that they have what it takes?

Recent research identified three qualities as key for commanding the respect of others — gravitas, communication and appearance. Gravitas, as in serious and impressive, mattered most, with 67 percent considering it crucial if you want to be taken seriously.

Use these 10 tips to establish your gravitas.

1. Prepare thoroughly. If you want others to take you seriously, bring your A-game. The biggest challenge to preparing is that we put it off because we’re nervous. The answer? Embrace technology and use voice notes on your phone to record your pitch or your presentation. Practice saying it out loud and listen back. The recording let you know when you’re ready to “go live.”

2. Be concise. To draw attention, be concise. Drill down to your elevator pitch — what you’d say to pitch your business in the time it takes to travel between floors. Think like a news reporter. Introduce your topic, offer up two or three supporting points, then conclude with an impactful statement. Keep it simple and punchy and you’ll earn respect as a clear thinker.

3. Banish Powerpoint overkill. Hiding behind your slides is a good way to lose the respect of an audience. You are the expert, so step away from the slides and distill your content down to a few bullet points. Make your argument compelling with powerful examples and stories. Take the audience on a journey. Bring your ideas alive in the way that only you can.

4. Change gear. Choosing the right tone for the situation is key to earning respect. When preparing for a meeting, ask yourself what approach is required here? Crisp and formal and focused on the task? Or smiling and conversational and focused on relationship-building? If you need to change gear fast, a palms down gesture is good for credibility. A palms up gesture and a warm smile will up your approachability.

5. Use your breath. Actors will tell you that giving a powerful performance relies on maintaining a relaxed breathing pattern. Why? It signals that you’re in control. If you can stay calm when the pressure hits, you earn respect. Controlling your breathing is the key to getting out of the nervous system’s panic room and into a space where you can think. Notice the butterflies, then breathe down into them, relaxing your shoulders. Notice the feeling of relief. Your breath gives you a quick way to settle down the nerves.

6. Practice active listening. The best speakers are always the best listeners. To show gravitas, don’t commit the cardinal sin of repeating what’s already been said. People take you seriously when you respond with something relevant that shows you’ve been paying attention. The key to owning any encounter is to turn up, listen, speak your truth and don’t be too attached to an outcome.

7. “Talk low, talk slow, don’t say too much.” John Wayne offered this advice. Researchers have found that voters tend to prefer political candidates with a lower voice. A low voice shows that you’re relaxed and in charge.

8. Put the brakes on. If nerves speed you up, consciously put the brakes on. Speak in short sentences, with a full stop between each one. One thought, one sentence. Take a relaxed breath in between (think of breathing in a lovely smell). By slowing down, you can take your audience with you. Natural pauses raise the audience’s perception of the speaker’s intelligence.

9. Show teeth. If you want gravitas, you need to be able to do what’s called “showing teeth.” No, it doesn’t mean showing off your pearly whites. Instead, it means that you can push back when required. The best way to approach an opposing viewpoint is to remember why you’re there. Think: “Who am I? Who are we? What’s our common purpose?” Then you can stand up for your beliefs in a way that works for the group.

10. Stand firm. Gravity is intrinsic to having gravitas. The Sanskrit word “guru” means “weighty one.” Staying grounded signals to your audience that you’re not a pushover. Find the points of support between your body and the earth. Focus on the feeling of your feet on the floor (or, if sitting, your bottom on the chair), moving your mind away from anxious thoughts. Try it — it has real power. It brings you “down to earth” when under pressure and communicates presence and calm to others.

About the Author

StrategyDriven Expert Contributor | Caroline GoyderCaroline Goyder has an international reputation as an expert speaker and trainer with senior management within organizations as well as private individuals. She worked for many years at London’s Royal Central School of Speech and Drama as a voice coach before launching her own company. She is regularly sought out by the media, and her extremely successful Ted Talk has had over 7.5 million viewers. Her new book is Find Your Voice: The Secret to Talking with Confidence in Any Situation (Penguin Random House UK, Jan. 30, 2020), along with previous books Gravitas: Communicate with Confidence, Influence and Authority and The Star Qualities: How to Sparkle with Confidence in All Aspects of Your Life. Visit www.carolinegoyder.com, or find her across social media: @Carolinegoyder.

Going Paperless With Your Finances: Why It Makes Sense

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StrategyDriven Managing Your Finances Article |going paperless |Going Paperless With Your Finances: Why It Makes SenseNo matter how complicated your finances are, you need a way to keep track of invoices, payments, tax details, and all other relevant information.

For most people, this means using paper files and dealing with the hassle of storing hundreds of pieces of paper in an overcrowded filing cabinet.

Believe it or not, paper waste is responsible for about 40 percent of the waste that ends up in landfills in the United States. Just think of the number of times you have to take out the trash when you’re cleaning out your filing cabinet! The sooner you can ditch your paper filing system, the better off you’ll be.

Going paperless can feel like a big deal. Here’s why it’s more than worth the effort.

Going Paperless Saves You Time

If you’ve ever relied on paper files for your business finances, you know that searching for a single page out of hundreds can take time. That’s time you could better put to use running your company and making sure your clients and customers are happy.
Things get misplaced and tracking them down when the files are out of order is time-consuming at best.

When you go paperless, you’ll save yourself time anytime you need to access information. Instead of having to flip through file after file, you’ll be able to search for the exact information you need on your computer. All it takes is a few keystrokes and the information will be at your fingertips in a matter of seconds.

Once you’re done, all you have to do is close the webpage window. You won’t have to make sure the paper gets filed in the proper folder in the right order!

You’ll Stay More Organized

It’s rare for a filing cabinet to stay organized all the time. When you add new documents, the system gets crowded and when you pull out a file, things often get misplaced.

This makes it hard for you to keep things organized so all information is available when you need it.

When you take your finances into the digital space, you’ll be able to improve your organization methods immediately. The physical filing cabinet will get replaced with digital files that never get shuffled around.

The more organized you can keep your finances, the easier it will be to stay on top of things.

Just make sure to invest in the right equipment to make going digital easy. Start researching your options and look for ways to save a PDF as a JPEG to further improve your organization methods.

It’s Eco-Friendly

Paper doesn’t just clutter up landfills. It also uses up tons of water. In fact, it takes over 3 gallons of water to produce a single sheet of paper.

By cutting out paper files and documents from your life, you’ll dramatically decrease your carbon footprint each day.

You can even advertise your business as an eco-conscious company. If you combine your paperless initiative with other environmentally friendly improvements, you may be able to attract new customers that otherwise wouldn’t have approached your business.

Paperless Files Save You Money

Believe it or not, ditching your paper filing system in favor of a digital system can save you serious money each month. Anytime you print a document, you’re using up paper, electricity, and toner. Over the course of the month, the amount you spend on those items can really add up.

By ditching paper, you’ll decrease the amount of money you have to spend on those costly office supplies. Your electricity bill may even go down slightly since you won’t have to send power to the printer often.

Remember, you’re already relying on your computers each day. Using them to manage digital files won’t add to your expenses.

It Improves Information Security

Paper files go missing all the time even when you and your team are incredibly careful. Unfortunately, even a single missing file can be a huge security risk for both business owners and individuals.

Clients and customers expect business owners to keep their information safe at all times. Misplacing files means their sensitive information is at risk and could get intercepted by identity thieves.

Going digital actually improves security for you whether you’re a business owner or taking control of your personal finances. You can add password protection to the files and control who has access to the information at all times.

You don’t even have to store the information on-site. Instead, you can use cloud-based data hosting services to keep your sensitive files safe at all times. These companies have the right protocols in place to keep your files secure against the most common cyber threats.

You’ll Be Less Stressed During Tax Season

Businesses and individuals alike have to deal with the uncomfortable task of filing taxes each year. To get the most out of your tax return, you need access to your financial documents, accounting records, and receipts to claim the largest deductions possible.

If you lose track of those files and records, it will only delay your tax return and increase the stress you feel when you’re trying to file by the deadline.

By scanning your documents onto your computer or storing them in the cloud, you’ll never have to worry about misplacing critical information. If you can’t find the document you’re looking for, all you have to do is search for it.

This can dramatically reduce the amount of stress you feel during tax season.

See the Benefits of Going Paperless for Yourself

If you’re considering going paperless, don’t wait. The sooner you do, the sooner you’ll be able to experience these benefits for yourself.

Don’t worry about rushing the process, though. Take your time, go through your existing files, and get rid of ones that you no longer need. This way, you won’t have to deal with an overcrowded hard drive.

Going paperless isn’t the only way to improve your business or personal finances. You just need to know where to start. Check out our latest posts for more tips and tricks to help you take control of your finances once and for all.

4 Types of Insurance for Cannabis Companies: Do You Know the Hidden Traps of the Industry?

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StrategyDriven Risk Management Article |Insurance for Cannabis Companies|4 Types of Insurance for Cannabis Companies: Do You Know the Hidden Traps of the Industry?The marijuana industry is coming of age. Recreational use is legal in 12 states, while some medicinal form of cannabis is legal in 33 states plus the District of Columbia. From growing the plants to packaging the final product, there are many steps along the way where things can go wrong. Every business owner needs an emergency plan. An excellent way to start is by having the right types of insurance for their company. And a marijuana entrepreneur is no exception. There are four types of insurance necessary to protect the hefty investment in cannabis operations when problems crop up. These are product liability, general liability, crop, and cyber insurance.

How Easy Is It To Find Marijuana Insurance?

Not all insurance companies sell policies to marijuana dispensaries, retail stores, and landlords who house marijuana-related businesses or grow operations. Many insurance for cannabis companies find it too risky since marijuana remains illegal at the federal level. Coverage limits are often low since reinsurers are challenging to find. Carriers typically prefer to work with agencies well-schooled in the laws and operations used within the rapidly growing cannabis businesses.

However, the industry is rapidly growing. With $8 billion in legal sales in 2017 and an estimated $42 billion in illegal sales that same year, insurance companies expect continued increases in the legal market as more states change their laws. The market demands coverage and more insurance companies interested in entering the market. To sum up, it is possible to find insurance policies, but the agency selling the insurance should be well-versed in the unique needs of marijuana businesses and ready to do a proper assessment.

Marijuana Product Liability Insurance

A business must make sure that the product they sell or manufacture is safe for consumers. Unfortunately, even in the best-run system, faulty merchandise may be sold. If a customer is injured by any of the products sold or dispensed, it may be held responsible for that injury. This type of insurance protects the business from potentially ruinous costs. It is particularly crucial if edible products are made onsite and sold. Food poisoning is a potential claim.

Remember that product liability insurance will not cover any work-related injuries suffered by employees involved in the sale or manufacture of goods. It’s important to note that any labels affixed to marijuana or related products must list any warnings. Failing to appropriately label can lead to a claim if an injury happened because the information was not available. Keep in mind that most complaints are made against the manufacturer, but some target the retailer.

Marijuana General Liability Insurance

General liability insurance protects businesses in a variety of ways. If someone slipped and fell, that injury would be covered. Claims against small businesses are more common than many might expect. Most company’s deal with at least one claim every ten years. While that may not seem like much, the average cost of a claim is $35,000. Without coverage, those dollars would have to be paid directly out of company funds. Claims also cover advertising and third-party damages. Legal fees are covered by this insurance, as is any settlement.

General liability insurance for a marijuana business is not much different from the standard policy issued to other companies. However, a knowledgeable broker should be consulted to ensure that no special types of liability can be assigned due to the nature of the business. Since it covers the operational end, it is vital that all safety standards be in place within the workplace. Workers must be trained in safety measures to stay in compliance. Since many growers add additional labor during harvest, these policies can often be expanded to cover their work time.

Marijuana Crop Insurance

Growers may find crop insurance tough to purchase. The crop insurance typically bought by farmers is subsidized by the federal government. Since cannabis remains illegal at the national level, this type of subsidy is not available to grow operations. It shields growers from plant loss due to weather events, such as floods, hail, or drought. Drops in crop yield or a sudden decrease in price may be protected with these policies. The cost of the insurance coverage for greenhouses will depend upon the volume grown and if the crop was planted in the open air or within a greenhouse.

Marijuana growers can cover their seeds, seedlings, and fully mature plants ready for harvest. It also includes the curing process, the time spent hanging to dry, and the product that is ready to ship. In many areas of the nation, fires have become severe. These fires have affected marijuana grow sites. It is especially important to carry crop insurance when growing in regions with massive wildfires.

Cyber Insurance

Cybercrime is on the rise all over the world, and businesses must protect their private information as well as protected information received from customers. Customers share their personal credit card information and may share their medical information at dispensaries. Cyber insurance for marijuana-based industries can be cumbersome to obtain since very few carriers offer cyber insurance policies. That’s because the situation is so volatile when it comes to hackers that the risks have not yet been properly assessed.

Evaluating an individual business requires that essential questions be asked. Is it a cash-only business? If this is the case, customer credit card information will not be collected. Is medical information collected? Is sensitive employee data stored online? To get a better rate, a solid plan of protection such as a firewall to protect data stored on computers should be installed. If a business is hacked, the ensuing expenses will be covered by the policy.

The marijuana business has grown. There is no doubt about that. And its infrastructure is expensive. Without insurance, owners place themselves in a position of losing everything if an accident occurs or a freak of nature leaves them without any product. Having product liability, general liability, crop, and cyber insurance is a good starting point to fully protect growers, retailers, landlords, and dispensaries. In the past, insurance was not available. However, with marijuana industry growth, more and better coverage can be had.