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Invoice processing makes for more expedient payments systems

Efficiency is the watchword in business today. With times tough and cuts starting to hurt, there is no room for wasting time and money doing things in a slower or more torturous way than they need to be. The challenge with this, however, is in moving from one familiar way of working to a more effective set of procedures. Although these will result in improved productivity – and therefore a healthier bottom line – there will always be some resistance out of a desire to keep the status quo. Document management is one way in which efficiency can be improved. Its aim is to shift paper documents of all kinds into electronic form (via document processing) and then arrange and employ them in the best way. This is particularly helpful in certain areas of business, such as invoice processing and your accounts procedures.

Invoice processing is vital because the stakes here can be higher than elsewhere. For starters, you may have a high volume of payments and transactions occurring. That means a large number of invoices. The average invoice might have a dozen fields of data on it. You could be copying these manually a number of times – into your accounting systems, payment systems, and other records. Every time it is copied there is room for error to creep in. And there is lots of evidence that this frequently occurs, resulting in unnecessary payments. Properly managed, your electronic invoices can be integrated with other accounting systems, significantly reducing the time required to deal with payments and also decreasing the scope for error.

In other instances, the efficiencies of time can be just as impressive. A single paper note or document can end up on someone’s desk, buried under a pile of paper or accidentally thrown out. In electronic form, this is no longer an issue. It can be shared amongst any number of employees, placed in a central or shared folder on your network, and accessed at any time. (Of course, if you want it to remain confidential then there are ways of going about this too.)

Document management is therefore a vital strand of lifting the performance of any business. Dealing with paper documents is simply inefficient and, sometimes, risky. Too much can be left to chance, paperwork gets lost or damaged, and handling times are unnecessarily long. Document processing – and especially invoice processing – allows you to expedite certain procedures, spending your time and money on what really matters.

Please visit http://www.bottomline.co.uk/

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Bacs payments are quicker but still not universal

Bacs has been around for 45 years now. Despite this longevity, and its track record of being fast, easy and secure, bacs software has not been universally adopted by businesses and other organisations. It tends to be the smaller outfits who hold out the longest, for obvious reasons. However, instead of making bacs payments, many of these are still paying their bills with cheques or, in some cases, even with cash. This raises a number of issues and makes for inefficient and even risky practices.

Times are changing, and now the vast majority of financial transactions take place in the virtual world. The reasons for this are varied, but speed and security are common ones. It is very easy to transfer money with bacs, and because it includes several layers of safety measures it is very secure; should you – against all odds – run into a problem, you will almost certainly be insured and protected from any financial consequences, unless the issue is undeniably your fault.

Bacs transfers take a maximum of three working days to complete, but the new FPS (faster payments system) is almost instant, and costs no more. Effectively, when people talk about bacs nowadays, they are using it as a catch-all term for electronic transfers, including FPS.

All of this is important for organisations, even the smaller ones who are clinging to cheques and cash. (Although there was an outcry at the time, quite recently the banks suggested that they would be phasing out cheques within the foreseeable future – indicating the low regard in which they hold them…) No organisation, large or small, wants to have substantial quantities of cash on the premises. Furthermore, cheques are time-consuming to fill out, require counter-signing, and you have no idea when they will be cashed – which can cause cash-flow headaches.

So, if you haven’t already adopted bacs payments for your business, now is a good time. So many other outfits use bacs that it smooths the process of making payments – allowing you to budget more easily, and to devote time to other areas of your business that are more important. Everything can be automated, and bacs software can even be integrated with your accounts package, streamlining things further. Bacs is safe, secure, fast, and saves you time and money. At a time when every pound counts, this cannot be a bad thing.

Please visit http://www.bottomline.co.uk/ for further information about this topic.

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Brise soleil that compliments existing buildings

If you haven’t heard of glass louvres before just think to the beautiful city of Paris, famed for its artistic heritage and buildings such as the Louvre. This museum’s architecture is highly unique: the older edifice that stands on this site dates back to 1793, while its modern glass pyramid was officially opened in 1989. This is an unusual mixture of old and new, especially in a place such as Paris, where public space is normally conformist and conservative. For this reason many people received the pyramid with displeasure – it was a shock to the eye and to the mind. But what the naysayer forgot to bear in mind was the highly practical nature of external louvres such as this one. Eventually, most extensions and additions to existing buildings end up ageing well; architects and urban planners have long studied the effects of new developments on the surrounding cityscape and on the inhabitants that use it. brise soleil take even less work to incorporate into old edifices; they can, at their most slimline, simply act like hard-wearing awnings that fold out and retract to provide more or less shade.

The idea of an architecture that responds to the changing times of the day as well as to the seasons is a truly innovative one. What’s more, responsive architecture can help companies make huge savings on energy because they almost always find themselves keeping the heating on lower, if at all, as well as keeping the air conditioning off a lot of the time. This is something we can all be glad of: it helps decrease our collective carbon footprint. And it is just generally a respectful stance to take in relation to human use of non-renewable reserves of coal, and oil and gas.

We have yet to think about one of the biggest benefits of these developments, however. External louvres are special because they help employees to feel comfortable at work. We all know that pretty much the most important thing, with regards to deriving enjoyment from our work, is getting on with our colleagues. But after that our personal, physical comfort comes into the equation. Who has ever worked much while worrying about sweat patches, or while shivering? brise soleil can’t claim to totally fix your problems of course, but it is something, along with glass louvres, that needs more investment soon.

Please visit http://www.maplesunscreening.co.uk/ for further information about this topic.

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Sales presentations and the science of the slideshow

Powerpoint presentations are a very common way to bolster your verbal presentation and, when used properly, can give an exceptional boost to your audience’s engagement with the material. sales presentations can be hard-going at the best of times, but good Powerpoint design can provide extra details, snare the attention of listeners in danger of tuning out, and provide a critical second strand of information. Consequently, this is one skill it’s worth acquiring – or buying in from an external consultancy if you don’t have the confidence to do it well in-house.

The reason Powerpoint and other visual presentations are so worthwhile is that some people simply do not respond well to the spoken word. Each of us understands a presentation in our own unique way and, for one reason or another, we may not take on board much of the material in a talk. There is a rule that some people are auditory learners – they engage well with the spoken word – whereas others are visual (and others kinaesthetic – that is, they respond to activity, rather than seeing or hearing). Of course, each of us is a mixture of these aspects rather than employing one alone. However, the reality remains that a large proportion of us may not digest well information that is delivered orally. Backing up a spoken-word presentation with a visual one caters to these types.

Therein lies one potential problem of Powerpoint, however. It is all too easy to duplicate content on the screen – in the worst cases, merely repeating the spoken presentation verbatim with a set of slides. This is both distracting to the audience and insulting to their intelligence. A better strategy is to complement, not copy. A picture speaks a thousand words, and charts and photos can supply helpful background information that cannot concisely be given by the speaker. Moreover, information presented this way is far more accessible than written words, in that it is far richer in content.

Powerpoint design can therefore contribute a great deal to your sales presentations and other events. The catch is to do it properly, since bad Powerpoint design will actually detract from your delivery, rather than just not adding very much. Dedicated companies offer training in how to put together a convincing slideshow – one that will engage your audience and complement your speech. Alternatively, you can simply farm out this aspect of your presentation and get an expert to put it together for you.

Please visit http://www.eyefulpresentations.co.uk/ for further information about this topic.

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Bacs payments used by companies who most value their partners and staff

When we hear mention of business we often think in very narrow terms of people working in tidy office set-ups, wearing tidy clothes and making a tidy profit. But we you think just a little longer about what the term business actually means we soon realise that the category is much wider than that and can include everything from law firms to travelling circuses and more. But while it’s important to think in terms of diversity, it is also important to think what all businesses have in common: namely a need to make and receive payments of some form as part of a steady cash flow that will hopefully keep an activity afloat for as long as required. This may sound obvious but keeping on top of one’s accounts frequently proves a headache for even the simplest of enterprises. So that’s where bacs software comes in: allowing you to streamline your income and your outgoings, bacs is perfect for making regular automated payments to loyal customers. Originally standing for Bankers Automated Clearing Services, bacs payments can be used by anyone in need of a reliable service.

If you’ve decided against making automatic online transfers your habitual mode of payment you need to know that the alternative is up to scratch. And there are many good reasons for finding such an alternative. One would be the inefficiency of logging into an online account every single time you need to process a payment: just think how long that would take to do as soon as you have a body of freelance employees on your books, all in need of payment at round about the same time. Another reason to streamline your payments using bacs software could be rooted in a need to avoid human error.

Indeed, it’s crucial to remember that as a business you have just as much responsibility towards your employees as you do towards your customers. So using bacs payments for your staff is a really good idea. In our current climate of recession we need to remember that a late payment can result in an employee being out of pocket. And this is something businesses absolutely need to prevent because your staff may see late or erroneous payment as disrespectful of their hard work. Bacs and bacs software can therefore reinforce your company’s strength from within. These great payment technologies can simultaneously afford you time and peace of mind enough to look outwards and upwards to ways of growing your business.

Please visit http://www.bottomline.co.uk/ for further information about this topic.

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London kickboxing club will spice up your exercise routine

If you feel like your exercise routine needs some jazzing up, then turn to a London kickboxing club for a work out that will really keep you on your toes. The last thing you want is for your fitness to decrease because you’re not motivated to go to the local leisure centre. With plenty of London kickboxing classes on offer, there’s no excuse not to seek one out. What’s more, once you’ve done some kickboxing, London will feel a large amount safer.

Exercise should never feel like a duty. Keeping fit and healthy should be something you enjoy, not a duty. Kickboxing offers a fantastically fun and engaging way to get fit – and it’s a little bit different, meaning you’ll not be just one more middle-of-the-road jogger or one more member of that agonising legs bums n’ tums class. Kickboxing is an aerobic sport and increases co-ordination, flexibility, strength and speed – all in all, a great workout.

What’s more, kickboxing always takes place in an interactive, sociable situation. Most classes are non-contact, so don’t be daunted, but with your sparring partner right in front of you, there’s no time to think about what you’re having for dinner or watching the clock. Most importantly this is a sport that demands your concentration physically and mentally. You’ve got to be on the alert and always thinking about your next move.

These benefits are allied with another, which is the boost kickboxing can give your mental and spiritual health. The sociable, fun aspect improves your confidence, and as you acquire more skills this new-found confidence will rise and rise. The knowledge that you can defend yourself should a threatening situation arise also contributes towards this peace of mind. The supportive group-learning is geared towards making you feel supported, and at the same time, challenging you to go beyond your comfort zone. There’ll be no danger of tedium in this setting.

The defence aspect of kickboxing is an important one, because as well as improving your assertiveness, and giving you the tools to keep yourself and your property from harm, you’ll be doing two things at once! Keeping fit, and staying safe. When you live in a fast-paced city such as London, you’ll know what a windfall it is to be able to multi-task.  London kickboxing classes are available for everyone, from young children to teenagers, students and adults. All levels and standards are allowed for, and the multi-tasking can continue – as there are a great deal of classes specifically for younger children from the age of four upwards, your kids can go to their class while you go to yours. Child-minding sorted! They get instructed in discipline, respect and confidence, too – all vital life-skills. London kickboxing clubs are a fusion of Western boxing and Eastern martial arts, taking the best of both worlds to give you a sport that never feels tedious. Join a kickboxing London class today!

Please visit http://www.karmaa.co.uk/ for further information about this topic.

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Document management that does away with paperwork for good

Business reputation is everything these days. In the current climate of recession businesses are being held responsible and required to prove their worth. In such a situation it is recommended that all financial dealings are documented and filed in a highly-organised way. If ever an auditor wishes to question the investments made, expenses claimed or taxes paid by your company it is best for a business to have a transparent and comprehensible set of numbers and written procedures to hand. If this kind of paperwork is unavailable suspicions may be aroused. All of this may sound scary, especially if your company’s administration if not in the best of shape. There is no need to panic unnecessarily, however, nor rush into expensive procedures for getting on track after years of being set in bad ways. Indeed, studies have shown that businesses who take on new employees to scan and capture invoice data actually waste valuable resources: these employees doubtless have more valuable abilities than those required to manage scanners and copiers. They also inevitably make errors from time to time – as all humans do. More cost effective, then, is the option of digitising your invoice processing: accuracy and speed will be improved, much as document management and document processing systems will be if they too are left in the safe hands of specially adapted software.

All sectors whose daily practice involves making and receiving payments can gain from digitising their data. This includes pretty much every institution, small business or collective, from schools to shops to media services and manufacturing companies. The idea may seem daunting for those who have never used computers for such tasks before, preferring to do them manually. But with good training, encouragement and ongoing technical support the change from manual to digital processing will feel like a breath of fresh air. The more mature employee, for example, will doubtless remember the days where the filing cabinets took up half of the office space, even seemed to be colonising it as the years went by! Nowadays, when documents are saved and managed on computers, clutter can be properly controlled.

Furthermore, when document management, document processing and invoice processing are all achieved digitally, businesses are at far lower risk of losing data. The same data can be saved on a shared drive, for example, and thus if one computer crashes there are several other systems from which ‘lost’ information can still be retrieved. Not only is this useful for the company’s transparency, it also allows managers to monitor business success over long periods of time.

Please visit http://www.bottomline.co.uk/ for further information about this topic.

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Student Loans Come In Handy For Xmas

As the university term comes to an end, all the students struggling to make ends meet on their student loans are faced with a brand new expense: the party season is just around the corner, and whether you plan to celebrate Hanukkah, Christmas, or just a booze filled and exuberant New Year, many people are digging around for a little extra cash. It isn’t just these students who could do with a little cash advance to help them out till 2012: many of these students’ parents, as well, would like to be able to show them a good time over the seasonal holidays. That’s why many people in British families this year will be taking out unsecured loans for large and small amounts, in order to have a merrier Christmas.

Often, an unsecured loan is used to meet other debt payments such as outstanding credit card bills, rent payments, mortgage payments or bills. People like to use unsecured loans for these purposes because they offer fast cash payments (often made available within a week or a few days of application), and are easy to access. Often, these loans can be accessed by people who find it problematic otherwise to get a loan: i.e., people with very bad credit scores, those who have gone bankrupt, etc. But during Christmas time, many people who would be able to obtain credit cards or bank overdrafts choose instead to take out these types of loans, simply because when the sales are coming up, it can make all the difference to get one’s hands on cash fast!

That’s why people who can meet all their needs – for most of the year – with just their student loans, student grants or bursaries find themselves, at Christmas, needing to borrow funds in order to buy their families, friends and partner great Christmas gifts, or to travel to see their loved ones. Students are great candidates for a cash advance through unsecured loans, because the lender know that the students will be given the money to pay the debts back very soon, in their loan instalments due in January. Nothing can prevent an enrolled student receiving the student loan instalment – unlike other unpredictable sources of income, such as wages from a job the customer may be fired from, or repayments which others may fail to make. So don’t be surprised if you see the students you know with unexpected amounts of cash; there are more ways than one to make a student loan pay for itself!

Please visit http://www.cashgenieblog.co.uk/ for further information about this topic.

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Fast cash companies can offer surprising interest rates

With many people finding themselves in difficult financial situations since the crash of the money markets in 2008, unsecured loans offering quick cash are becoming more and more common. Many people are turning to the organisations which offer unsecured personal loans, requiring no collateral and handing out fast cash within a few days of taking out the loan, in order to cover holes in their personal financial schedules. Perhaps the day of the month that rent is due comes a few days before the day when the borrower’s salary comes in, or otherwise a sudden and unexpected expense – repairs to a car, home or appliance, a business opportunity too good to turn down, or the deposit for a holiday or tenancy agreement – needs to be covered with emergency cash. This is the time when borrowers start trawling the internet for cheap loans which they can use to tide them over a few crucial days or weeks, and which won’t cost the earth in interest rates.

It’s the level of the interest charged on loans that makes some people think twice about short term unsecured loans. These types of loans are always quicker and easier to arrange than secured loans, as there is no valuation of the property or ‘security’ to be done, and there’s usually a fairly uncomplicated standard contract. People who take out unsecured loans will often find the money in their bank accounts within a few days of signing the loan agreement, and some specialist ‘emergency’ lending organisations will even make the transfer within a few hours of the contracts being signed. This is great for people who are in a financial emergency. But unfortunately, borrowers can often get carried away with the speed of the loan process, and forget to check the other important factor in loan provision: the level of interest charged on the loan.

This is what people mean when they talk about ‘cheap loans.’ Very few lending firms charge a flat fee for borrowing (the exception is some Islamic financial services, as interest is prohibited under Islam), so ‘cheap’ in this field refers to the percentage of the loan charged as interest. Some unsecured loans can be very expensive, with several hundred per cent interest being charged. However, for those wise consumers who shop around, quick cash can be borrowed on a relatively low interest rate. And the quicker you repay the loan, the less time the interest will have to mount up – so if you take out a fast cash loan, paying it back equally as quickly could mean that you end up paying out very little in interest.

Please visit http://www.cashgenie.co.uk/ for further information about this topic.

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Duplicate payments can be errors consigned to yesteryear

For any business not specifically working in finance, the job of making and receiving payments effectively can be nerve-wracking to say the least. In all likelihood, employees will have been chosen because their skills match the creative aims and objectives of the business, not because they make great accountants. As such, many companies without the resources to employ an additional economically-minded member of staff can be left in the lurch; ill equipped to deal with the precisions and lengthy processes sometimes involved in carrying out successful transactions. Help is on offer, however, and the answer doesn’t have to lie in hiring more people: accounts payable audit and recovery audit software can be acquired instead so that much of the hard work involved in tracking duplicate payments, or protecting a business against fraud, for example, can actually be shouldered by a computer system using fiscal technology software.

And fear not, this is not an instance where we need worry about technology overtaking us: far from undermining the capabilities of the staff, the above kind of software actually allows employees to be more focused on the kind of challenges with which only humans can properly deal. Once financial matters are under control, businesses can focus on the kind of strategies they wish to make themselves known for; those involving press and learning work, for instance, can be developed to the highest of standards using thorough research and testing. In any case, the cost of letting the company’s payments fall by the wayside is far too great for it to be worth struggling on without the assistance now on offer from this software. Many business people fail to realise just how much money they could be saving if they just ensured that double payments, invoicing mistakes, compliance issues and supplier fraud were avoided once and for all. And beyond the matter of cost effectiveness, there is the crucial matter of business reputation to bear in mind.

Indeed, strong business reputations are arguably more important than ever in our current post-deficit financial climate: more and more now we are hearing public calls for companies to be more transparent, responsible and open. And this responsibility can begin with businesses ensuring outgoing and incoming sums are being made and received fairly. Accounts payable audit technologies will help everyone keep on top of this sort of thing while a stop can be put to duplicate payments through the use of recovery audit software.

Please visit http://www.fiscaltechnologies.com/ for further information about this topic.

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