Telecoms for Business

Any business relies on technology to operate. With fast and reliable internet connections, strong mobile signals and advanced telecoms systems, it is possible to effectively communicate with customers and collectors, suppliers and partners in a variety of ways. Any business that does not have access to the latest technology is put at a disadvantage.

The accelerated rate at which digital technology has grown in recent years and our reliance on it has put great pressure on the capacity of copper based networks. The wide scale deployment of fiber (often referred to as Fiber to the Premises or FTTP) networks is being seen as the only way to address this and equip homes and businesses with what they need.

A recently released 'Building Gigabit Britain Report' compiled by leading UK businesses highlights the importance of a wide spread fiber network to the long term prospects of British business and the wider economy. As the population embracements advances in digital communications, wireless devices, remote working and competition in global markets, the need for fiber is obvious.

The Report highlights a number of ways in which the Government could, and in opinion of the authors should, support the roll out of a new fiber infrastructure. These include investing in a clear strategy that commits to 80% of the population having access to fast fiber broadband by 2026, with near universal coverage by 2030.

In regards to the regulations which currently govern the industry, it is noted that whilst some regulations help to protect customers, others are more of a hindrance to progress. It suggests that some of the financial barriers are removed and that current regulations are reworked in order to encourage both competition and collaboration from telecoms companies. This is seen as vital for innovation in communications and private investment in rolling out the fiber networks.

The report also raises the importance of advertising guidelines being enforced, so that clear and transparent information is available to the public. The success of many local economies could depend on the timely roll out of fiber and how the process is communicated and managed by local councils and telecoms companies.

Fast and Reliable Broadband

So, if fast and reliable broadband and embracing digital technology is so essential to the future of the British economy, how does it affect your business? Did broadband speed influence your decision on where locate your business? Are you reliant on the roll out of fiber in order to realize the goals in your business plan?

Has fast reliable broadband enabled you to make the most of the latest business telecoms systems? If so, your employees could be as easy to contact (by you and your customers) whether they are at their desk, out at a business event, or working remotely. You could be saving time and money by conference calling partners and clients, rather than meeting in person. You can avoid missing that important call with voice mail and printed transcripts of the message.

Many companies have not upgraded their business telecoms in recent years, it simply has not seemed like the top priority, but much like your IT, there can be significant benefits from streamlining procedures, increasing productivity and integrating one system with another.

Business Telecoms Systems

Your company may have to wait several years before fast and reliable fiber systems are in place, but you can give your operations an advantage by investing in the latest business telecoms systems. If your team are finding it increasingly difficult to manage the increasing volume of calls, or seasonal peaks, then this could be a sign that an upgrade is due.

Other indicators include issues with resolving problems with the system and the prohibitive challenges associated with adding new lines or integrating the phones with other technology. Whilst many Company Directors have concerns about the cost of an upgrade, the reality is that the latest business telecoms are often far more cost effective that older systems and can lead to considerable savings in the long term.

Five Common Mistakes on Tax Returns

It is now quite possible to complete simple tax returns online and many people still use paper returns. However, it is easy to make mistakes or omissions that could result in an HMRC tax investigation or cost you money by paying too much tax unnecessarily. Listed below are some of the most common errors we come across in the course of the hundreds of clients we see each year together with some advice on how to avoid problems.

1. General - Incorrect Dates

It is so easy to report dates that do not fit within the tax year you are reporting on. If you do that then the tax return will be returned. Remember that if you are self employed you have to find an accounting year ending in the tax year in question to report on. If you are reporting savings interest or share dividends, they need to have a tax date before 5th April in the relevant year. Simple mistakes here can use problems.

2. Employment - Reimbursed Expenses Not Claimed

When you receive reimbursements for work expenses, these will be reported on the form P11D which will be issued to you when the tax year is over. This is then recorded as a benefit in kind on the Employment pages of your tax return. All too often, that is where taxpayers stop; and they are then charged tax on the reimbursed expenses! You have to remember to also record the expenses as an expense as well as a benefit. Then the two cancel each other out in the calculation and you do not have any additional tax to pay.

3. Self Employment - A Large Claim for 'Other' Expenses

Probably the most common error we see when prospective clients bring in a tax return they filed themselves that is being investigated is a large proportion of self employed expenses recorded simple as other. So we see income as, say £ 40,000 and total expenses of £ 8,000 of which £ 6,000 is recorded as 'Other'. It immediately begs the question as to what these expenses are that can not be put into the specific categories on the tax return and make provoke an investigation into whether they are legitimate.

4. Residence - Making Sure You Make a Domicile Claim

If you are resident in the UK but not domiciled here you may be entitled to claim the remittance basis for overseas earnings. In other words, this non-UK income is only taxed in the UK if it is transferred into the UK. But you must make the claim to be non-domiciled in the tax return for the remittance basis to apply. It can be an expensive omission if you fail to do this.

5. Capital Gains - Failing to Claim Losses

Capital losses must be claimed on your tax return within a specified number of years if they are to offset in the future against capital gains. Once you have made the claim you can offset the losses against a gain at any time in the future. But if you fail to make the claim for losses, you do ever lose the benefit so do it straight away in the year the losses occur.

A little care can save unnecessary trouble and expense so complete your tax return carefully. If in doubt about what to do, you should consult a professional advisor.

What You Have Been Looking For

Have you ever taken the time to find out who owns a telephone number? In other words, have you ever tried to find out information on a person by searching their ten digit number? If you have not you do not know what you've been missing! A reverse phone lookup is an easy online search tool that can help you find what you've been looking for - answers to your questions about unknown numbers and callers.

Until now you may have never given much thought to missed calls, wrong number callers, or any other communications you've received that are of a mysterious nature. This is not uncommon among those who do not know that the fabulous reverse number lookup resource exists. However, now that you are aware of its existence, is not it great that you can actually find out who a caller is, or discover their address, simply by entering 10 digits into a search box?

All I have to do is lookup a 10-digit-number? That's right. It's only a matter of choosing a reverse phone search on the Internet, entering the numerical code and clicking the designated searching button. This is one of the main reasons that makes this lookup so great. You do not have to worry about any fuss. There is no name spelling or dates to remember, just a straightforward number.

Is it really beneficial to use a telephone lookup? Absolutely! There are many circumstances when knowing who owns a phone number is important. A prime example is when you are encountering calls of a harassment nature. There is no need for you to have to put up with this insult and invasion of privacy when you can help level the playing field by finding out the person's identity.

However, what if the number I want to lookup belong to a cell phone? It does not matter, you can still find out who owns a phone number , the only difference is you'll be required to fork over a small fee to gain entrance to this database. This is because there is no free directory for cellphones as there is for traditional wire lines. Neverheless, you still have an opportunity to find what you are looking for.

12 Ways to Keep Your Data & Identity Safe Online

How to Boost Your Digital Security for Peace of Mind

From the recent Facebook data break to compromised customer data at huge companies like FedEx and Delta, personal security is more relevant than ever.

In fact, it might even seem that our data is under attack!

While you can not always prevent data security issues, here are 12 ways to help you protect yourself in this fast-moving digital age:

1. Stop sending sensitive information digitally.

This may seem like a no-brainer, but many people email tax documents to their accountant, or text a password to a family member in a pinch.

2. Beware of public Wi-Fi.

Anything you send in a coffee shop or airport can be intercepted by someone on the same network. Consider using a VPN (Virtual Private Network) when you're out and about.

3. Secure your texts.

Whether you use a free app like WhatsApp or a paid Android or iOS solution, there are lots of end-to-end encryption options, ensuring only you and the recipient see messages.

4. Stay up to date.

If you do not, you could be at risk for malware, viruses and cybercrime attacks. Make sure your operating system and software are updated - many devices do this automatically.

5. Worry less about wireless.

Secure your wireless network with a password so nobody can jump onto your Wi-Fi network and steal info.

6. Be cautious of clever email scammers.

Today's phishing emails can have links that lead to realistic-looking websites. Never give out passwords or other sensitive info by email, text or phone unless you're sure that you're talking to the actual organization.

7. Lock down your laptop.

Make sure your laptop requires a password when it boots up. That way, if it gets stolen or prying eyes try to access your device, they'll be stopped before they start.

8. Wipe out data .

If it's time for a new laptop or smartphone, make sure your data is not hanging around. Once you've backed up any data you need, use a software program to permanently erase your hard drive.

9. Choose security questions wisely.

Avoid using common words in your passwords. Period. Google estimated someone would have a 19.7% success rate answering "pizza" to "What's your favorite food? Customize questions or pick harder ones to guess.

10. Avoid sites that are not https.

Https stands for "hypertext transfer protocol with secure socket layer" (other known as having a SSL certificate.) Sites without an "s" on the end are not secure if you are being asked to make a purchase or submit private / sensitive data that could get intercepted.

11. Pay attention to privacy settings.

Choose who can see the content you post on sites like Facebook and Instagram, and who can view your profile.

Opt for the highest level of privacy possible but be aware that some settings will prevent potential clients from seeing your posts, so find a happy balance that will not sacrifice your social media marketing efforts!

12. Back up your data.

If your device gets stolen or compromised, what happens to that work report or your niece's baby photos? Schedule automatic backups through your operating system or a cloud service.

While even the largest and brightest companies can be hacked or otherwise attacked, these online security tips can help you reduce some of the risks.

Also, if you're hiring a web professional developer to help with your business, make sure they're well-aware of current security issues. We build websites with our clients' safety in mind and perform regular security updates for ongoing peace of mind.

Advanced Mobile SEO TIPS For Mobile Marketing

In 2016, Google introduced the mobile-first index system to provide the best user experience for their mobile users by prioritizing mobile-friendly websites. This new indexing system will first look into the mobile version of your website to determine the ranking. Websites without a mobile version or poorly optimized mobile websites will drop out even further in search engine results pages (SERPs). But, the good news is this Mobile SEO is simple and easy to do yourself tasks.

Advanced Mobile SEO Tips for Mobile Marketers:

Mobile SEO is nothing than a conventional SEO, creating content and tagging to make it stand out online. These white-hat mobile SEO tips will help you to avoid search engine penalties and maintain better online visibility.

1. Google My Business: mobile online marketing.

One of the most important and effective mobile marketing move that business owners can do is signing up for Google My Business account. It is free and simple, by filling the information to the best of your ability and add more possible pictures of your business. When people searching for the keyword that is related to your business, there is more likely to visible your 2nd information first. So, think of using it for mobile marketing.

2. Using social media:

According to reports, average mobile users spending their 80% of the time on social media of the total times they are spending on the mobile. These social media sites bring a huge amount of traffic to your website. So, to improve visibility to mobile users, priorities your social media marketing strategy. The frequency of posting, Quality of content and optimized social media campaign will help your brand stands out. Also, read our Content Marketing Guide.

3. Take advantage of plug-ins for mobile SEO:

If your website uses WordPress or another content management system (CMS). you can use various plug-ins to improve your mobile site more user-friendly. One of the popular CMS, WordPress offers a large number of plug-ins to optimize images, improve speed and take care of other important mobile SEO factors.

WPtouch is the popular universal WordPress plug-in that will create a Google-approved mobile version of your website. If you can't afford a professional to update and optimize your website, try these plug-ins to build a mobile-friendly website and improve visibilities.

4. Use keywords for mobile users:

It is proven that mobile users search differently than other desktop users. Optimize your content for mobile keyword search phrases to show up your content to the right people. Find the right tools to find the right keywords for your content, you can find keyword comparisons by the device in Google's Search Console.

5. Improve page loading time:

When it comes to mobile SEO, page loading time is the most important issue. There are many factors that define the page loading time. Gzip compression, Image optimization and using Google AMP (Accelerated Mobile Pages), there are some tools and plug-ins to perform this tasks and improve the faster loading of mobile web pages.

Final Words:

Digital marketing trend changed the whole scenario of marketing. Mobile SEO is becoming a most essential task for all bloggers and webmasters for mobile marketing.

Paper Thin Skin - How to Thicken Your Skin and Bring Back Its Youthful Strength and Flexibility

Paper thin skin is a real thing.

It isn't just your imagination: After years of aging and lack of the right nutrients, your skin really does get thinner and thinner. The fat under the skin is lost. Much worse, you lose collagen, elastin, and hyaluronic acid, all essential to a healthy complexion. Oxidation damages and ages your skin.

Here is an explanation of how it happens, and how you can thicken and rebuild paper thin skin.

What you notice first

If you have been saying, "My skin is paper thin," you have probably had a series of bumps, bruises and scrapes. Your skin bruises at every little bump that most people would hardly notice. (Sometimes you can't even recall getting a bump, but you have a nasty bruise anyway.) If you scrape your knee even a little, your skin peels away as if you had a major accident.

This isn't just a problem of appearance. When your skin is this delicate, it is also easily infected, and takes much longer to heal. You may well need medical care for a wound that would hardly bother someone with healthy skin.

What causes the problem

The problem is skin aging. That does NOT mean simply getting older. Some people get super-thin, easily wounded skin long before middle age. Often this is because of long-term use of medical steroids. Generally these drugs are given because of a chronic health condition.

Regardless of the contributing factors, aging skin has specific causes -- and passing time is not one of them! Fortunately, all the most important causes of aging skin can be reversed.

Supplements can help your skin and your overall health, too.

Look for a supplement that contains at least 30 mg of SAMe (S-Adenosyl-Methionine) and at least 50 mg of Carnosine. SAMe is a wonderful nutrient involved in a key process called methylation; Carnosine stops glycation, which destroys healthy proteins, including collagen and elastin; Carnosine also has the unique ability to halt glycation which has already begun.

The other supplement that has a powerful record for skin health and repair is omega 3 fish oil. A just-introduced omega 3 fish oil contains the antioxidant astaxanthin, and a lycopene extract. The lycopene complex in this oil has been shown in clinical trials to actually thicken skin, add density, and dramatically reduce scaling and roughness -- both very common in aging skin.

Skin care lotion or cream

Several ingredients in skin care lotion or cream have a proven clinical record of reversing the causes of aging skin. They can thicken and toughen skin and renew its flexibility, month after month. Here are some of the best:

-- Cynergy TK stimulates the skin's own natural production of collagen and elastin. It increased new skin cell production by 160 percent and improved skin elasticity by 42 percent in trials with human volunteers. It also reduced inflammation and had powerful antioxidant qualities.

-- A seaweed extract called Phytessence Wakame allowed the skin to rebuild its hyaluronic acid levels. In trials, it did this by blocking 52 percent of the action of an enzme that degrades hyaluronic acid.

-- If the product contains Coenzyme Q10 in tiny particles, often called a "nano-emulsion," it can penetrate the skin deeply. In general, other forms of CoQ10 are not well absorbed. With natural vitamin E, CoQ10 makes perhaps the most powerful antioxidant combination in healthy skin.

See my website for more on toughening and thickening paper thin skin.

Four Types of Pre Employment Checks Typically Carried Out By Financial Institutions

There are four types of pre employment checks typically carried out by financial institutions on their prospective employees. The necessity to carry out these intensive checks is in the fact that the employees historically hired by the financial institutions end up being put in charge of other people's money. Yet it is recognized that only a person of very high integrity would take care of another person's money, without getting tempted to get his or her hands into the till. That is especially the case keeping in mind the fact that the sums of money handled in some situations can be very mouthwatering.

In the final analysis, there are (as indicated earlier) four types of employment checks typically carried out by financial institutions in a bid to ensure that they only hire trustworthy people of high moral standing. Those include:

1. Criminal record checks. The idea is to ensure that criminals do not find their way into financial institutions. Government's law enforcement agencies are therefore requested to provide the hiring financial institutions with a list of previous criminal charges against the applicants, as well as the cases of the trials (if the issues were historically for trial). Take note that in some cases, an indictment may be enough to deny you employment, even if you were not ever convicted. The idea is to ensure that the highest standards are upheld. In most cases, it is only the people with totally untarnished names who stand any chance of getting hired.

2. Educational record checks. The idea is to ensure that only people with proper qualifications get hired. But in the process, a moral angle comes up: because if it emerges that one cave false information on educational qualifications (in the course of independent verification for educational records), then it would be evident that that is not a person of integrity. Indeed, a person like that would have apt to falsify clients' financial records for personal gain when opportunity arises. It is widely appreciated that not all criminals have criminal records (seeing that some are 'too clever' to be taken or suspected), because the need for counter-checks which may still reveal people with criminal tendencies. And anyone who can forge or otherwise falsify an educational certificate is definitely a criminal who has no business whatever working in the financial system.

3. Credit checks. The idea here is to check a person's financial proprietary. Several factors inform the need for this sort of checks. First of all, it is appreciated that if you put a person with major financial problems in charge of other people's money, he or she may be tempted to steal. Secondly, if you put a financially irresponsible person in charge of other peoples' money, he or she is not likely to take proper care of it. For these reasons, credit checks are carried out on almost all people seeking to work in financial institutions.

4. Previous employment checks. The objective here is to avoid having irresponsible workers. But in the process, other issues may be unearthed. It is to be appreciated that out of fear for bad publicity, many financial institutions do not report in-house frauds, especially where the people involved show willingness to make reparations. But they usually fire the people involved, and show willingness to (confidently) share what they know about such people with future employers who may show interest in the same. It is out of appreciation for these factors we see many financial institutions seeking confidential references from previous employers, as part of their pre employment checks, before hiring 'experienced bankers.'