4 Laundry Tips

Why Branding is Important

Branding is just as important for small businesses as it is for big names. Indeed, many corporate brands are trying to look more like small firms in order to appeal to consumers that prefer to support independent brands. I would share my knowledge to help you develop your own brand identity.

Many small business owners I talk to already understand that branding is essential to their business, but a surprisingly high number of them don't really know why.

They recognize the link between successful businesses and strong branding and aspire to build a brand that emulates similar success for themselves. And they understand that branding is not just a logo or how their business is perceived externally. But few realize that successful brands have this branding at the heart of the business. So much so that in many ways you could almost substitute the word brand for business.

Branding is a way of defining your business, both to yourself and your team and also to your external audiences. It could be called the business’s “identity”, but only on the understanding that the identity embodies the core of what the business is and its values, not just what it looks and sounds like. Customers of all sorts of businesses are so savvy today that they can see through most attempts by companies to gloss, spin or charm their way to sales.

The benefits that a strategically defined brand can bring are the same as when people fall in love with each other. When customers connect emotively — because they share the same values and beliefs of a brand — it obviously leads to higher sales and better brand differentiation. It also leads to loyalty, advocacy and can even protect your price in times when competitors rely on promotional discounts to drive sales.

Just like with people when the relationship is strong, they often decide to start a family. Once customers are emotively connected with your brand it gives you the ideal platform from which to extend your offering or range.

Here are the ten tips on how to successfully implement branding for your business.

1.   Start by defining your brand. Review the product or service your business offers, pinpoint the space in the market it occupies and research the emotive and rational needs and concerns of your customers. Your brand character should promote your business, connect with your customer base and differentiate you in the market.

2.   When building your brand, think of it as a person. Every one of us is an individual whose character is made up of stories, beliefs, values and purposes that define who we are and who we connect with. Our personality determines how we behave in different situations, how we dress and what we say. Of course for people it's intuitive and it's rare that you even consider what your own character is, but when you're building a brand it's vital to have that understanding.

3.   Consider what is driving your business.

What does it believe in, what is its purpose and who are its brand heroes. These things can help establish your emotive brand positioning and inform the identity and character for brand communications.

4.   One of your branding goals should be to build long-term relationships with your customers. Don’t dress up your offering and raise expectations that result in broken promises, create trust with honest branding — be clear who your company is and be true to the values that drive it every day.

5.   Your brand should always speak to your customers with a consistent tone of voice.It will help reinforce the business’s character and clarify its offering so customers are aware exactly what to expect from the product or service.

6.   However, don't be obsessed with consistency, repeating the same message in the same way over and over again. Alternatively, aim to make your key messages work together to build a coherent identity.

7.   If you are a small business, don’t try to mimic the look of chains or big brands. Try and carve out your own distinctive identity. There is a big consumer trend towards independent establishments, and several chains are in fact trying to mimic an independent feel to capture some of that market. Truly independent operators can leverage their status to attract customers who are looking for something more original and authentic, that aligns with how feel about themselves.

8.   Be innovative, bold and daring – stand for something you believe in. Big brands are encumbered by large layers of bureaucracy, preventing them from being flexible and reacting to the ever-changing needs of their customers. Those layers of decision-makers can make it hard for them to be daring with their branding.

9.   Always consider your branding when communicating to your customer base, especially when doing offers. Don't lose your pride or dilute your brand positioning with indiscriminate discounting. Try offering more, rather than slashing prices. Promotions are an opportunity to reinforce your brand mission.

10.The old way of doing things was to simply stamp your logo on everything that sits still long enough.

The future of branding is fluid and engaging — respect your customers' intelligence by not giving everything away up front. Generate some intrigue and allow them to unearth more about your brand for themselves. This is the way to foster ambassadors who revel in telling other people what they have discovered.

Sales Invoice VS Official Receipts

Today's article is about the difference between invoice and official receipt (OR). Probably most of us are still confused between the two receipts. With the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) implementing a new ruling on the receipts, it signals that they are becoming strict with their collection and taxation.

So, what is the difference between an invoice and an official receipt? Invoices, more specifically, Sales Invoices, are used for sales of goods while OR’s are used for sales of services. Sounds easy enough, right?

Here are some examples to show the difference.

Example 1: Food

• When you dine in a restaurant. They will give you an OR, because they sell the whole experience. It is not the food that you are paying for. Official Receipts are for services.
• When you buy your groceries and you ask for a receipt, they will give you a sales invoice.

Example 2: Construction

• When you buy at your local hardware. They will give you a sales invoice.
• But, if you have your house built by a construction firm, upon payment, you will receive an OR.

In both examples, there are different scenarios given but you receive different kinds of receipts. To reiterate, ORs are for sales of services, while Sales Invoices are for sales of goods.

There are also other types of receipts, called supplementary receipts as what the Tax Law says. Examples of these supplementary receipts are billing invoices, delivery receipts, etc. These are what we were accustomed to referring as “invoice”. So when we want our clients to pay us, we ought to give them billing invoice or service invoice – not an invoice or a sales invoice.

Holiday Season Business Ideas

Do you smell Christmas in the air? The “ber” months begins! The Philippines must be the only country that starts the holiday season once September kicks in. It is also my favorite time of the year since this season is the busiest time in any business. Today I want to share with you some business ideas for the holiday season.

Here are some great holiday business ideas that you might try this season:

1. Party Planner

The Holiday season is the season for parties. However, many people are simply too busy or otherwise not inclined to plan their own affairs. The Holiday season is the perfect time for starting a party planning business. You may need to enlist the assistance of a few friends and family members, or even hire contract wait staff, but you will likely find many people who would be glad to pay for the convenience of a party planner this season. Remember, most businesses have some type of holiday party for employees and even customers. Market your new venture to local businesses, too.

2. Outdoor Lighting and Decoration Service

Many people would love to see the outside of their home festively decorated for the Holidays, but the task is just too much effort for most. Start a business that will decorate yards and homes with lights and outdoor decor. Don’t forget to offer tacking down the decorations for an additional fee!

3. Holiday Interior Decorator

Most families are tasked to the limit during the Holiday season. One service most households could use is a seasonal interior decorator to make their home a winter wonderland without the hours and hours of effort. Offer to set up and decorate the Christmas tree, apply all decorations and make each home a Holiday fantasy. If you create your own decorations and crafts, you could incorporate these into your decor, too.

4. Personal Shopper

So many people consider holiday shopping a chore that the season is a great time for starting a Personal Shopper service. Consider charging an hourly rate for your service and you may find that you have more business than you can manage. You may even need to hire a helper or two.

5. Gift Wrapper

Each year, we suddenly remember just how time consuming the task of gift wrapping really can be, especially if you like for your gifts to have a special touch. This Holiday season, try starting a gift wrapping business. This is another business that may just take off so much that you need assistance from a helper or two. You can offer to come to the homes of clients to wrap their gifts. Charge an hourly fee with an extra charge if you supply the wrapping materials. You may even ask local retail outlets if you could set up a table in an area of high traffic to offer your services.

6. Hand-Made Crafter

During the Holiday season, everyone wants those special, little hand-made items, such as cute wreaths, baskets and little Christmas towns. If you have a penchant for creating hand-made crafts, consider selling your crafts. Offer your wares at craft shows, flea markets and community centers.

7. Holi-Daycare

A great time to open a daycare or babysitting service is around the Holidays. As parents need to shop for their children, they need a safe place where the children will be well cared for during the shopping excursion. Offer holi-daycare for parents who need some time to shop or even those who just need to get out for a while or attend that Holiday party. 

8. Personalized Gift Basket Service

Gift baskets are a popular gift idea for just about anyone. You can offer to create personalized gift baskets based on the recipient hobbies, profession and personal preferences. A personalized gift basket is simple to create once you have an idea of what the recipient likes. Start a business creating personalized gift baskets for your customers to give those on their lists. You can express your creativity and make some holiday cash at the same time.

9. Personalized Holiday Cards

If you have any graphic design skills this one may be for you. Imagine meeting with a family that wants to send our unique cards to their family and friends. You can discover exactly what they want and offer three separate design concepts. Your customer chooses the one they want and you have the cards printed by your local printer.  People will pay for a service like this because it’s one less thing they need to be concerned about. If you implement this idea don’t forget to triple check for typos and have your customer sign off on the design before you send it to the printer. You don’t want to be stuck with cost of a reprint!

10. Sweets and Baked Goods

If you have the passion for baking cookies and pastries you can turn that passion into a profitable business this holiday season. I love to cook a lot and whenever I have extra time during the holidays I make puto, brownies, cup cakes and leche plan and had them posted online for sale.

11. Christmas Decors

You can sell christmas tree and decors online like what i did every holiday season. I posted them online and I offer delivery service right at their door steps. 

This sounds like fun, doesn’t it? I hope these ideas inspire you get started on your holiday business today. I wish you and yours a wonderful and prosperous holiday season.

Persian Kebab by Chef Emz

I love travelling and eating different cuisines and one of these favorites of mine are Korean food since their food is so flavorful. Today's article is about the Persian Food Kebab which is popular here in the Philippines. I have tried a few Kebab and Pita wraps here in Manila yet I was never satisfied with the taste. Yesterday despite our busy schedule from the office my husband and I decided to visit a former client of ours who manage a Kebab Food Kiosk located in Starmall Food Court Shaw Boulevard Mandaluyong City.

 I ordered my favorite Beef Pita Wrap it was truly flavorful and delicious compared to other kebabs, not only that it's also affordable. If you are craving for something new better try this and you won't regret it! Believe me it was soooo delicious.

Beef Pita Wrap by Chef Emz of Persian Kebab

Beef Keema with Rice by Chef Emz of Persian Kebab

For orders you may call 0915.532.3687

Home Based Business Ideas for Stay at Home Moms

Being a stay-at-home mom or full time housewife is no longer fashionable in this present age. The reason is because the economy is getting tougher. Nowadays both parents needs to work to sustain the needs of their growing family. But who should look after the kids? As a mother of four it was too difficult balancing my time for my family and business since we are having a hard time getting a reliable baby sitter. I was just lucky to have a supportive husband not just as a partner in raising our kids but in managing our business as well. 

"Two are better than one, for they may well enioy the profit of their labour." Ecclesiastes, 4:9,

Having been through a lot of hardship, "I realized that when there is extreme difficulty it also comes with extreme opportunity." So now let me show you some business ideas that are suitable for moms who want to spend more time with their family while working.

1.  Start a daycare center

A daycare center is one of the best businesses you can start from home, especially if you love being around children. Operating a day care center allows you to spend a great deal of time with your own children while taking care of other people’s children as well. This business is a good choice for moms and women who are already experienced in caring for children.

2.   Start making novelty gifts and party favors from home

If you are a creative individual, and you have an eye for good art designs; then you can start making party favors from home. With proper marketing, you are sure to make a lot of money on Christmas, Baptismal, Wedding, Birthday, etc.

3.  Start selling home baked goods

If you are skilled in baking and making snacks, you can as well consider going into the business of selling home baked snacks. This business is lucrative especially when you become a known brand within your neighborhood. You can start by baking cupcakes, pies, cookies, homemade bread, etc.

4.  Become a freelance contractor

Doing freelance jobs is another great way to earn money from home. In fact, this business is very profitable. If you reside in countries such as Philippines, Nigeria, Ghana, China, India, etc; then this is an opportunity for you to earn an extra income because jobs are now been shipped out of the U.S. Example of jobs you can do online from home include writing, typing, editing, script writing, animated video production, etc.

5.  Offline and Online Tutoring

This field no longer only caters to struggling children or those people with learning disabilities. Rather, parents are now flocking to tutors to help their children get ahead and learn much faster. Times are changing indeed. Another tactical approach to this business is to take your teaching skills online. Do you know that there are a lot of people online willing to pay to learn English language? Do you know that the educational trend is now moving towards online learning? Well, I leave you to your thoughts.

6.  Start a business coaching service

Do you have administrative or management experience? Have you been through trying times and overcame? Then you can become a business coach. When the economy gets tough, business owners need all the help they can get to move ahead. As a business coach, your duty is to empower these business owners and managers, and help them improve their work performance; through personal development and change.

7.  Start an elderly care service

A growing population of elderly citizens means big opportunity for non-medical home care service providers. Your task in this business is to help the elderly people go through their daily lives. Examples of services you can offer include house cleaning, transportation, dietary assistance, bathing, etc.

8. Start a web designing business

In today’s technology driven world, business owners are realizing the importance of having their businesses on the internet. In fact, running a web based business is a trend that has come to stay. So, if you have got the technical know-how and the skills, you can build a career as a web designer right out of your closet.

9. Start a candle and craft production

Making and selling these handicrafts is a great way to make good money. If you are good at making attractive crafts, you can have your children help you create these items while you market them easily from your home. You can also venture into small scale candle production as candles are always in demand throughout the year.

10.  Start a catering service

Catering can be a good idea for that mom who loves cooking and entertainment. Most of the work can be done in your home while looking after your children. You don’t need to rent a space and you can only spend a minimal time out of the house; that is if you plan adequately and have a competent staff.

11.  Start offering nanny services

Another business you can do from home is a babysitting business. You can fulfill your dream of working from home by rendering nanny services to busy mothers who do not have enough time for their babies, as a result of their job or other things.

12. Publish your own book

Yes. You can become a publish author without even leaving your home. Instead of spending your free time gossiping with other jobless housewives or chatting online, why not write a book. You can either publish through a traditional publishing company or you can self publish online through Amazon and Kindle. J. K. Rowling, author of Harry Potter series became a billionaire right from home. If she can do it, you too can.

13.  Start an event planning business

Do you possess good organizational skills? Do you thrive under pressure? Do you have a flair for putting together beautiful events? If yes, then you will succeed as a event planner. You can even take your business further by putting it on the web.

14.  Start a carpet cleaning business

Only but a few people are willing to let their carpets get dirty but unfortunately, they don’t have time to clean their carpet. This is where you come in. You can help people clean their carpet and you get paid for the service that you have rendered.

15. Start a housekeeping service

Housekeeping services is all about helping people maintain and keep their houses in order. You can start around your neighborhood and with time, you will get to extend your services to other areas. Extra services you can do alongside your housekeeping service include housecleaning, lawn care, etc.

16. Start a buy and sell business

You can start your buy and sell business by selling the stuffs you don’t need found in your home. I used to sell unused items and turn it to cash then used this to purchase an item which is in demand. “All i do is supply a demand” like diapers which will i buy in bulk then unsold items can be used by my kids, detergents soaps, big bikes which my husband trade for cash, furniture, gadgets and more.

16. Start a laundry business at home

You can start your laundry business at home. I started my own laundry shop from home with a little capital because everything i needed to run this business was found in my own laundry room. Starting a home laundry service is a great way to make money without having to sacrifice a lot of your time. 

Raspberry Laundry Capri Oasis Renovation

From the typical blue and white interior paint now Raspberry Laundry in Capri Oasis has its new look.

We paint the walls in ocean blue, rose pink and green semi-gloss finish. 

                                          
  We retain the counter in blue and white laminated finish with blue cove lighting.

 The laundry cabinet is painted in white ducco finish.