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  • Is Your Small Business Collaborative?

    Is Your Small Business Collaborative?

    Small businesses are just that – small. They usually have a small staff size and probably a small budget to operate on. They are focused on growth and productivity. That is why it is so important for small businesses to have a collaborative work culture. Here are some important reasons why you should be collaborative.

     

    1. Area of Expertise

    Collaboration allows employees to utilize their areas of expertise. This is great for small teams since someone’s weakness might be another’s strength. This also provides a chance to look at a problem, product or issue using multiple different perspectives. You can approach the problem from multiple angles in order to get the best solution.

     

    2. Better Communication

    When teams and employees collaborate with each other they build and develop better communications skill between them. Better communication means that it will be easier to share ideas and/or updates with other teams or other employees. Communication is important to any business. It reduces delays, improves work/management environment and it helps build trust with the company.

     

    3. Community

    A collaborative and communicative work culture creates a strong bond between employees and the company. Employees develop closer relations to each other and to the company, which helps to increase productivity and lower turnover rates. It also attracts the more tech-savvy generation, the millennials. They enjoy sharing their ideas and refining them with other people.

     

    Collaboration have many other great benefits for small businesses. However, collaboration is only as good as the teams that are collaborating. The key to good collaborative teams is diversity and an open mind. It is also important to foster individual thoughts and ideas. Innovative individual thoughts can lead to great things when combined with collaboration. A good team with innovative ideas that collaborates and communicates is key when growing a small business.

     

    By Ashleigh Cue

  • Happy Father’s Day

    Happy Father’s Day

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    “I cannot think of any need in childhood as strong as the need for a father’s protection.” Sigmund Freud.

     

    People have different purposes in our lives. They are there to help us grow, provide support or to share experiences with. However, it seems to be that our family is what leaves the most impactful impression on our lives. Our mothers are the caring nurturers, the hearts of the home. They help kiss the wounds and provide emotional comfort to us when we need it. Our father’s, however, often play a different role in our lives. So how would you describe a father?

     

    Provider – Fathers are often the provider of the home. There are many ways fathers are able to provide for the family: they often are the ones that bring home the money, they provide the stability in the family, and they see to any needs the family may have. They are the handyman of the family, making sure everything is working and building or fixing anything that is not.

     

    Protector – Children and spouses often look to the father for protection. They chase away are the monsters that hide underneath kids beds or in their closets. They are the ones that check the house in the middle of the night after hearing a strange noise. They are the ones people go to when they are in trouble and need someone to stick up for them. Fathers are the security for the family.

     

    Strength – Mothers might be the ones to kiss away all the boo-boos, but fathers are the ones that encourage us to keep going despite them. They help provide strength and support when we are faced with difficult challenges. They also tend to be the ones that enforce the rules, providing a structure within the family. They hold the house up.

     

    Fathers are the head of the home. We often look to them for guidance and for solutions. They are the ones we call when we are stuck on the road with a flat tire or need to be picked up from somewhere late at night. They also are the ones to help teach us responsibility, work-ethic and determining what is right from wrong. Our fathers play a big role in our lives. The dedicate countless hours towards their family, making sure the needs of the family are met. That is why we want to thank every father out there. Thank you for all the hard work you do for your family. Happy Father’s Day!

     

    “My father gave me the greatest gift anyone could give another person, he believed in me.” – Jim Valvano

     

    For all you children out there, young and old, what have you done to show your father how much you love and appreciate him? Send him something nice this Father’s Day.

     

    by Ashleigh Cue

  • Happy Mother’s Day!

    Happy Mother’s Day!

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    “Of all the rights of women, the greatest is to be a mother.” – Lin Yutang

     

    Mothers are often said to be the heart of the home, but what is a mother? Everyone has a definition of what a mother means. No mother is the same, just as no child is the same. However, here are some ways people have described mothers.

     

    Mothers are:

    • The Foundation:

    Mothers are the foundation that we build from, providing us support so that we may grow. They are what make us who we are today.

    ‘My mother is my root, my foundation. She planted the seed that I base my life on, and that is the belief that the ability to achieve starts in your mind.” – Michael Jordan

    “All that I am, or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.” – Abraham Lincoln

    • Wonderful Beings:

    Mothers are the world to their children, much like their children are the world to them. There is something about mothers that is indescribable and unimaginable.

    “My mother’s wonderful. To me, she’s perfection” – Michael Jackson

    • The Forgivers:

    Mothers have this amazing ability to forgive and forget.

    “The heart of a mother is a deep abyss at the bottom of which you will always find forgiveness.” – Honore De Balzac

    • Endless Love 

    The love a mother shares with her children has no end. They can be total monsters, but at the end of the day, they are still her beautiful babies.

    “Motherhood: All love begins and ends there.” – Robert Browning

    Mother’s are the comforters, supporters and forgivers. They dedicate their lives to their children, spending countless hours worrying about them. The sacrifice mothers put in for their children is something that can never be repaid. Unfortunately, motherhood is often underappreciated and does not get the proper thanks it deserves. We wanted to let every mother out there know that we appreciate everything they do. Thank you for all the love you give and continue to give. Happy Mother’s Day!

     

    “A mother’s love for her child is like nothing else in the world. It knows no law, no pity. It dares all things and crushes down remorselessly all that stands in its path.” – Agatha Christie



    For all you children out there, young and old, what have you done for your mother that shows how much she means to you? Send her something nice this Mother’s Day.

     

    By: Ashleigh Cue

  • What Does Summer Mean To You?

    What Does Summer Mean To You?

     

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    Summer. This usually is associated with summer break, a time of no school and hardly any responsibilities. However, this “free time” is a great time to do new things or give back. Why waste your summer lazing about a house? It is the perfect time to get out there and be productive! There are many ways you can be productive during the summer, so let us start with our top three ideas.

     

    1. Try out a new hobby that can earn you some extra cash

    There are many great hobbies out there that can let you earn a little extra cash. For instance, making jewelry. One teen managed to $100,000 dollars over the course of three years by selling jewelry on Etsy. Not interested in jewelry? There are loads of other crafts that you can try, like painting or woodwork.

     

    1. Help those who really need it by donating or volunteering

    Volunteering or donating not only helps other people, but it helps you as well. Not only do you feel great when helping out other people, but it looks good on a resume or college application. Don’t have a lot of time to volunteer at a soup kitchen? Try gathering items from neighbors, friends or local thrift shops to donate to causes like Carry The Future. If you plan on creating and selling items online for extra money, you can also include flyers to Give Back Box to encourage your customers to give back as well.

     

    1. Explore and adventure

    How often have you traveled? Whether it be the seas or across the nation, traveling lets you experience and learn new things. Fly, take a road trip, or if you want to be a little different you can hop on a train. No matter where you will go you will broaden your horizons and grow as an individual. Just remember to send souvenirs back home to friends and family!

     

    Want a productive summer?

    So, what one are you going to do? Will you create unique items to sell online, donate to charities, or go on an adventure? Well, whatever you decide to do, whether you do just one or all three, you will have an amazing and productive summer.

     

    Don’t Forget

    While you are busy being productive this summer and perhaps earning a little cash, you may find that you need to ship something somewhere, like a product to a customer or an item to a charity. We want to help you save money when shipping items. eShipNOW is free to sign-up and will give you access to discounted shipping rates from top carriers. After all, if one of your goals this summer is to make/save money, this is just one way we can help you.

     

    Have a GREAT summer!

     

    By: Ashleigh Cue

  • Let Your Loved One Know How Much You Care

    Let Your Loved One Know How Much You Care

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    Valentine’s day is a day for letting your loved ones know how much you care. It doesn’t matter how far away, the tokens of affection that are sent carry a great meaning: you are important to me. It is no wonder why this is the second largest card-sending holiday, followed only by Christmas. So how can you let the person you love know how much you love them?

     

    The typical thing most people send is a card. However, if you really want them to know you care, send them a little something extra. Chocolates are a great Valentine’s day go-to gift. Stores all over will be carrying chocolates in beautifully wrapped heart-shaped packages. However, nothing says “I love you” more than homemade chocolates. There are several great recipes you can find on the internet and many are not that complicated.  

     

    Flowers are another great gift idea. Roses are the staple flower for the holiday, but there are many great flowers that have the meaning of love. Carnations, for example, depending on the color, can mean “my heart aches for you” and “wish I could be with you.” Orchids and tulips also can represent love.

     

    If you want to go even bigger, gifts are another great choice to send. Personal gifts, gifts you chose, can show the receiver how much you know them. A well-chosen gift can bring smile and tears to their eyes. Handmade gifts can allow you to add touches of your personality and or the receiver’s personality. Personal or handmade gifts can also symbolize or represent of a memory you share. This personal touch will only make the gift that much more special and meaningful.

     

    Unfortunately, for many of us we have loved ones that are fairly far away; perhaps it is a mom out-of-state, a child off at college, or a husband currently somewhere else. Just because they are far away does not mean we can not send them our love. There are many ways to ship items and/or letters to them.

     

    If you are wanting to send them a small package, eShipNOW is a personal shipping tool that can help you save money on your shipment. You can compare carrier rates and ship at discounted prices. The best part is that the tool is completely free, no downloading required. The only thing you pay for is the shipping.

     

    Imagine the smile on their face when they receive the Valentine’s day gift you sent containing the tokens of affection you thought would express your love. Nothing can beat that loving feeling.

     

     

    By: Ashleigh Cue

  • College Students Using Entrepreneurship and Global Expansion Aid to Defray College Costs

    College Students Using Entrepreneurship and Global Expansion Aid to Defray College Costs

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    Many Americans view a college degree as the key to a rewarding, high-paying career. However, ever-escalating college costs mean more students and their families are looking for ways to fund their educations that won’t leave them deeply in debt after graduation. Some students are turning to home-based/dorm-based entrepreneurship for income to help support them through their college years.

     

    Ballooning costs of college

    The total cost of tuition and fees at a public four-year college rose 9 percent in the past five years, according to data from the College Board.[1] In 1976, one year at a public four-year college cost just $2,600. Today, tuition and fees at the same school would run nearly $10,000 per year for in-state students and nearly $25,000 for out-of-state students, the College Board reports.[2] At a private nonprofit four-year school, tuition and fees average $33,480. Additionally, room and board range from $10,000 to nearly $12,000 per year for four-year institutions.[3]

     

    Families and students fund college through multiple tactics. According to Sallie Mae’s How America Pays for College 2015, for a typical American family, parents’ income and savings pay 32 percent of the total cost of college, 30 percent comes from scholarships and grants, 16 percent from student loans, 11 percent of students’ income and savings, 6 percent from parental borrowing, and family and friends contribute 5 percent of the total cost.

     

    The impact of college costs

    Escalating college costs deeply affect families and students.

     

    At least one survey by Edward Jones financial advisers seems to indicate fear of the high costs of higher education is keeping people from even trying to attend college.[4] The survey, conducted in 2015, found 83 percent of respondents said they couldn’t afford to pay for college, and even people with incomes of $100,000 and more said college was too costly. In fact, only 37 percent of higher earners said they could afford to pay for college.

     

    Among students who take on the financial burden of paying for college, just 59 percent will graduate within six years of starting, according to data from the National Center for Education Statistics.[5] Multiple studies show costs are a significant contributing factor to the college dropout rate and are also responsible for graduation delays.

     

    Further, among the students who successfully graduate, student loan debt can linger and create financial hardship long after graduation. Student loan debt averages more than $30,000 per borrower, and seven in 10 college graduates had student loan debt in 2015, according to the Institute for College Access and Success.[6] Managing debt can be challenging at any stage of life, but many college graduates are finding student loan debt is hindering their ability to achieve financial stability in their post-college lives.

     

    Finally, high-stress levels associated with the financial challenges of paying for college can affect students’ health, relationships and academic performance.

     

    Creatively combating college costs

    Loathe to rely more heavily on borrowing, and reluctant to place additional financial burden on parents and family members, many college students are turning to a creative option for defraying college costs: entrepreneurship.

     

    Entrepreneurship is hugely attractive to millennials; 54 percent have or want to start their own business, the Huffington Post reports.[7] That streak of independence will drive more millennials to work for themselves, and software giant Intuit predicts that by 2020, 40 percent of the country’s workforce will be working independently.[8] Further facilitating millennials’ movement toward entrepreneurship is the fact that it’s no longer necessary to raise large amounts of capital to start a business, Intuit notes. Technology has made it easier to start, manage and run a small business.

     

    College students don’t have to look any farther than their favorite pieces of technology to find examples of successful businesses that were started when their founders were in college. Facebook, Google, and many other tech companies are examples.

     

    Not every student, however, has the wherewithal to found a tech giant in their dorm rooms, but there are many other routes for entrepreneurship that can help defray college costs. Entrepreneur reports on a University of Virginia student who sells jewelry on Etsy to help pay for college.[9] A group of New York students created a rideshare app that connects student passengers with student drivers.[10]

     

    Relying on entrepreneurship to defray college costs has many advantages. Students can do virtually any type of business in their spare time, from the convenience of their own dorm room or home. If the endeavor is a creative one they enjoy, the “job” can actually act as a stress-reliever as well as a moneymaker. Further, college-based entrepreneurship helps students develop skills that will be useful post-graduation. Some may even be fortunate enough to found businesses while in college that they can continue to run and grow after graduation — think Snapchat and Dell computers!

     

    Going international

    Technology, especially the Internet and social media, have also made it easy to market products internationally. A college student creating custom dog clothing in a dorm room in Kansas can easily establish a website to market his creations internationally. International exposure can increase sales and customer base. However, once students achieve international sales, they may discover shipping is problematic.

     

    Shipping product domestically and internationally presents multiple challenges. Entrepreneurs need to understand how to properly address packages and documents for international addresses. For example, a U.S. address requires a street number and name, city, state and ZIP code. However, addressing an envelope or package to India requires the addition of a specific locality within a given city, and the country name.

     

    A parcel’s dimensions also affect the cost of shipping internationally, and influences how a shipment must be prepared and processed. It’s also important to know how to properly prepare shipping labels to ensure envelopes and parcels successfully reach their destination. Poorly prepped shipping labels could result in packages that are delayed, rejected or even lost.

     

    The eShipNow solution

    Students looking to expand their college-based business internationally now have a shipping option that can do the heavy lifting for them. eShipNow is a shipping tool that allows users to easily and quickly prepare envelopes and parcels for international or domestic shipment. The tool helps students to properly preparing shipping labels to ship while helping them save money on shipping costs. Students can rate shop and ship through various carriers. eShipNOW also allows students access to eShipGlobal’s volume discount, which will help them save even more money. In addition, it is easy to use

     

    Currently, 90 percent of eShipNow’s business comes from colleges and universities. Most of the items shipped are small personal items weighing less than 150 pounds. Recently, the company has seen an increase in the shipments of handmade items from students.

     

    In the future, eShipNow hopes to evolve to also act as an order-fulfillment solution for small businesses and individuals, expanding beyond primary use in a university environment. This evolution would allow users to input product and package information into a database for quick reference. In addition, they would also like to integrate this order-fulfillment solution with systems such as Etsy. This integrated system will send a notification and the information to eShipNow so the seller can complete the order.

     

    For students turning to entrepreneurship and international business to defray college costs, eShipNow is the easy, cost-effective online tool that can help students grow their business, both domestically and internationally.

     

    By : Evelyn Pimplaskar

     

    [1] https://trends.collegeboard.org/college-pricing/figures-tables/tuition-and-fees-and-room-and-board-over-time-1976-77_2016-17-selected-years

    [2] https://trends.collegeboard.org/college-pricing/figures-tables/average-published-undergraduate-charges-sector-2016-17

    [3] https://trends.collegeboard.org/college-pricing/figures-tables/average-published-undergraduate-charges-sector-2016-17

    [4] http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/two-thirds-of-americans-still-do-not-know-what-a-529-plan-is-according-to-edward-jones-study-300082537.html

    [5] http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d13/tables/dt13_326.10.asp

    [6] http://ticas.org/posd/map-state-data

    [7] http://www.huffingtonpost.com/matt-hunckler/top-15-college-entreprene_b_9077272.html

    [8] http://http-download.intuit.com/http.intuit/CMO/intuit/futureofsmallbusiness/intuit_2020_report.pdf

    [9] https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/247609

    [10] http://www.business.com/entrepreneurship/paying-their-way-college-students-starting-businesses/

  • A Personal Touch for the Holiday Season

    A Personal Touch for the Holiday Season

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    It’s the holiday season. It is a busy time where people are going to various stores trying to find that “perfect” gift. Christmas shopping often is accompanied with the dilemma of: “What should I get so-and-so?” or one more common for college students: “What can I afford to spend on gifts?”

     

    Gifts are a way of letting people know that you care. One of the best ways to let people know you care is to give something unique, meaningful or special. Examples of these types of meaningful gifts are family heirlooms, sentimental objects from childhood or handmade gifts. Homemade or sentimental gifts also are great for people who already have everything, do not want anything particular or want stuff a little outside your price range. After all, not everyone can afford to give mom and dad a new car for Christmas.

     

    Giving sentimental or handmade gifts may be a better choice if you are on a tight budget. For instance, a necklace that costs $15 dollars in stores may only cost you $10 dollars in supplies. From the supplies, you can make a necklace and a bracelet or two necklaces. Keep in mind that not all handmade gifts are cheaper to make than to purchase in stores, but you can save money depending on the type of gift you want to create and how much the supplies cost.

     

    There are many other reasons that make handmade gifts so special. One reason is that they are one-of-a-kind. No one else will have one like it and no one else will be able to give the same gift. These gifts are also more personal. You can add touches of your personality, the receiver’s personality or of a memory you share. This personal touch will only make the gift that much more special and meaningful.

     

    Handmade gifts are crafted with love and not by a machine, the feelings and personality of the creator are imprinted into the gift. A 2015 study showed that people preferred to give handmade gifts over store-bought ones. People also believe that handmade gifts show more love. Even if you are not an artisan, there are many easy gifts you can make that will be both beautiful and meaningful.

     

    Students can also save money sending these gifts to loved ones far away or ones they will be unable to see during the holiday season. eShipNOW is an online tool that helps college students ship meaningful gifts or items to loved ones. The only cost is for the shipping, which you will get at a discounted rate just by using eShipNOW.

     

    Imagine the surprise on their face when they receive a package from you and inside is a box you personally wrapped containing a gift you handmade. Isn’t that far more memorable and special that an Amazon package with a box wrapped by who-knows-who containing a gift made by a machine? Which one do you think shows more love?

     

    By: Ashleigh Cue