by dorraadmin | Nov 29, 2022 | Blog
Many owners of small businesses believe that they are less vulnerable to attack than larger corporations. However, criminals often go after smaller companies because they are not as well protected. Here are some strategies that can help you prevent this by increasing your business security.
Case Your Building
Before you start work and after you finish, check your building. This will allow you not only to find possible business security hazards, but also detect maintenance and repair issues. Let your employees know that they should also be constantly on the alert for anything suspicious.
Reinforce Entry Points
To prevent break-ins, invest in commercial-grade locks and reinforced doors. Keep doors and windows locked whenever the affected areas are not in use.
Restrict Ingress
To protect equipment and data, regulate who has access to these valuable items. Give keys to sensitive areas only to those who absolutely need them, and have employees return the keys when they exit the building. If these keys are lost, change the locks.
Safely Dispose of Documents
To prevent the possibility of sensitive information leaving your company, always shred your documents before you recycle the paper. Otherwise, anyone could go through dumpsters and access your communications, invoices, and client information.
Prevent Cyber Attacks
Small business security should prioritize the prevention of cyber attacks. Precautions include antivirus software, firewall protection, intricate passwords, and strong data encryption. Limit the amount of personnel who can enter your network, and block access to former employees. Regularly back up important data, and lock company computer equipment in a secure area at night.
Prepare Protocols for Response
Have a response plan ready in case your business security is compromised. Your employees should know what to do in the event of a cyber breach or break-in.
For more advice on methods of business security, you can implement to protect your company, get in touch with Dorra Financial Group.
by dorraadmin | Nov 15, 2022 | Blog- Financial
When you’re launching a business, it’s never too soon to look for opportunities to save money. Entrepreneurs can improve their bottom line by adhering to the following money-saving tips.
Keep Utility Bills Down
Utility bills are an expense virtually every business faces. Luckily, there are many ways to reduce utility costs, including embracing LED bulbs and training your employees to shut down equipment and turn off lights when they’re not needed. An energy audit may reveal even more ways to save.
Use Free or Cheap Software
Before you buy software, do some brief research to determine if a free or lower-cost version will do the job. If the software is involved in a core business competency, then you may need to splurge to the top-of-the-line option, but otherwise, there’s likely a cheaper solution that will suffice.
Focus on Retention
While many money-saving tips prioritize getting rid of unnecessary expenditures, this one focuses on keeping an invaluable resource: your best employees. From the start, continually identify the employees who help your business thrive and do what you can to keep them happy and on board. Turnover is quite expensive, after all.
Look into Contracting
If your business has an occasional or one-time need for certain skillsets, contractors may be the way to go. For instance, if your fledgling company needs a marketing expert to launch its initial advertising push, hiring a skilled marketing contractor may deliver good results while limiting long-term expenses.
Prioritize Remote Work
No list of money-saving tips for startups would be complete without a mention of remote work, especially given soaring real estate prices. Letting as many employees as possible work remotely may allow you to lease a smaller, cheaper business space — or forgo one entirely.
Dorra Financial Group Is Eager to Talk
Even the most frugal entrepreneur can gain a lot by finding the right financial partner. To see if Dorra Financial Group’s services are a good fit for your business, drop us a line.
by dorraadmin | Nov 11, 2022 | Blog- Marketing
Content marketing is one of the smartest investments you can make in your business. While this is true, far too many businesses aren’t doing it right. The content becomes too salesy, or the creator ignores SEO best practices completely. Get to know the most common mistakes you should avoid with content marketing to ensure your efforts are successful.
Not Relying on Data to Create Your Content Marketing Strategy
Some companies create their editorial calendar by “brainstorming” a blog topic idea that they believe would be a good fit. This is the “see what sticks” method. People write down all the different topics they can think of and then add each one to the editorial calendar for the coming year. At this point, they begin publishing content. While some ideas may be great, others are going to flop. Because of this, it’s not a good strategy.
Instead, rely on data from knowing your audience and analyzing your competition. This information will help you create effective, quality blog posts.
Failing to Define Your Reader
Every blow you create should begin with a clear definition of who your target market is. When you answer these questions, you can better understand how to position the article. For example, if your article targets a C-suite executive, it won’t need as many in-depth details as one that’s written for a technical specialist.
Once you know who will benefit the most from the chosen topic and what you want to include in the article, make sure you circle back to ensure the reader provides value to your business.
Failing to Determine the Goal of Every Content Marketing Topic
Unless you sell packs of gum or any other item with a smaller price tag, most of your customers won’t be ready to hand you their wallet the first time they hear about what you offer. Customers will go through a process before they decide to buy anything. The process involves three stages, awareness, consideration, and decision. You have to decide what stage your content is targeted to when writing it. This is going to help you make it more effective and compelling.
Creating an effective content marketing strategy can be challenging; however, with the right plan, you can be successful. Use the tips and information above to help get the desired results with your content marketing efforts. Doing this will pay off and ensure you achieve the desired results.
by dorraadmin | Nov 8, 2022 | Blog- Financial
If you’re an entrepreneur, you likely already have an idea of how important it is to track business expenses. However, there’s a key layer to this task. you should be aware of as well: the difference between direct and indirect costs.
Direct Costs
Direct costs are expenses that are relatively easy to tie to a specific product or outcome. For instance, if you pay a graphic-design contractor $1,000 to design a new logo for your business, that expense is a direct cost.
Indirect Costs
Indirect costs are more nebulous but equally important to track. These are expenditures not tied to any single product or outcome, yet they can have ripple effects across many parts of your business. As an example, your business might spend $10,000 on computers that will be in service for many years and across many projects.
Fixed vs. Variable Costs
Both direct and indirect costs can be fixed or variable. Fixed costs remain stable, while variable ones can change. Typically, direct costs are variable; for instance, materials may go up or down in price. But direct costs can sometimes remain fixed, with an example being labor costs that do not change regularly.
As for indirect costs, rent is an example of a fixed cost, as it will not increase or decrease for the duration of a lease. The cost of repeat purchases like office supplies, however, is variable.
Why Does It Matter?
Knowing the difference between direct and indirect costs may be critical when it comes to applying for grants or other types of funding, as eligibility is often tied to spending the money on one type of cost but not the other. Some tax breaks, too, are triggered by indirect or direct costs only.
Need Funding? Contact Dorra Financial Group
Regardless of how tightly you control costs, your business may still benefit from outside funding. To discuss your business’s financial options with an expert, just reach out to Dorra Financial Group.
by dorraadmin | Nov 1, 2022 | Blog
The real estate industry is considered a solid investment for investors who want to secure their financial future. Not only does it provide a steady income stream via rental properties, but it also appreciates with time. Below is a list of top reasons why real estate investment is suitable.
Tax Benefits
Various tax benefits follow after buying real estate. You can subtract expenses related to owning a property, such as your property taxes, mortgage interest, ongoing maintenance costs, property insurance, and the money you pay to promote the property to prospective renters. If you sell the property, the amount obtained is not taxed as income but is considered capital gains, which come with lower tax rates.
You Can Leverage Funds
Buying real estate properties in full is sometimes demanding. Leveraging real estate funds helps you use other people’s funds to purchase properties. Investors often seek money from banks such as loans and mortgage lenders and pay the finances back over time. The approach allows you to add your real estate holdings without necessarily investing the total amount you would need to purchase them on your own.
Diversification
Buying a real estate property and adding it to your investments helps boost your diversification. The approach saves you in tough economic times compared to stocks which may be down due to an economic downturn. The real estate investments you make may still increase in value during such times, which protects you from losses experienced by your other investments.
Steady Cash Flow
Buying real estate properties is an excellent way to boost your monthly income. Real estate developers can rent out their space to tenants regardless of whether their investment is residential or commercial. The approach helps you receive a monthly income in the form of rent, which is helpful when you are facing a major financial crisis, such as losing your job.
Passive Income
There is no single investor who does not want to earn a passive income. Buying real estate properties helps bring a steady flow of passive income, which an investor does not have to work for daily. You can, for instance, rent your property to a single-family and as a multifamily property. The rent obtained each month is considered a passive income.
Long Term Security
An investment in real estate is considered long-term, meaning that investors can hold their properties for several years as they wait for them to appreciate. You can also rent your real estate property to earn a monthly income as you wait for your property value to increase.
Investing in real estate is an excellent way to diversify your portfolio. Investing in the right property allows you to enjoy the benefits listed above. Make sure you get expert advice by contacting Dorra Financial Group to ensure your investment is worth it.
