In this day and age, for a courier company to successfully take on as many courier jobs as it can handle, being able to offer high-tech service features in conjunction with their core business is of maximum importance. More and more customers demand convenience and real-time access to information concerning their consignment, and the companies that are able to meet such demands are the ones that excel in the industry. The following are just some of the leading technologies on which a number of advanced services are based.

Global Positioning System

Global positioning system, or GPS, enables organizations that take on courier jobs to know the whereabouts of their drivers or delivery vehicles at all times. Typically, a GPS system is installed in every company vehicle so that the manager or the command center knows where the vehicle is at all times; This is important not only to ensure the efficiency of the work done or the absolute compliance of the vehicle drivers to safety and work procedures, but also to enable the company to gather vital data in order to further fine-tune their operations.

Real-time Tracking

Real-time tracking enables the company to ensure the fully efficient accomplishment of the courier jobs it takes on. Up until a few years ago, real-time tracking was accomplished using a special digital digital assistant (PDA) with Wi-Fi and GPS capabilities-even today, some small delivery companies still use these bulky contraptions. More recently, however, the growing use and decreasing prices of fancy smart phones that run on Android have largely replaced the said PDAs-you only have to purchase and download the right special apps for tracking purposes, along with other cool high-tech features that a typical modern smart phone is capable of.

Online Interface

As experienced by many of today's delivery workers, courier jobs come to those companies or individuals who make the customer feel in control of their goods. Gone are the days when customers deposit their goods at the dispatch office and hope for the best. These days, upon entrusting the parcel for delivery to some other part of the world, the customer can actually "watch" what is happening with their item through a website: where the item currently is, and stops it's making, and any problem that may arise during its transport toward its intended destination. The opportunity to know what is happening with their cherished cargo reassures the customer about the delivery driver's (or company's) efficiency, thereby creating trust. Customers like to be informed about their item and this intangible fulfillment often serves as the deciding factor for a customer to stay loyal to their chosen company or driver. The online interface also serves both the company and the customer: it provides a convenient means for both sides to check if everything is in order, as well as ensuring the management can quickly troubleshoot any irregularity.

Source by Norman Dulwich

Join group policies

The best way to save money on dental insurance is to join a group policy. You could get together with your friends or collections and buy such a plan. Premiums for group plans are lower. However, you need to be sure about the group benefits and all applicable terms and conditions because these plans can be harder to get your head around as compared to conventional plans.

Choose employer sponsored policies

Certain employers sponsor dental policies in addition to general health policies. If your employer offers this facility, make use of it and save money.

Check for interest free dental plans

Some dentists and dental clinics offer interest free plans. These are slightly different from regular insurance. Usually, they are like prepaid policies. Check out the options in this category. They often turn out to be more cost effective than regular plans.

Talk to reliable insurance agents about the cheapest dental insurance

Independent brokers can be a source of lots of useful information. They can even negotiate with different insurers and get you a comprehensive but cheap dental insurance policy.

Choose yearly policies

Policies that charge annual premiums instead of monthly payments turn out to be cheaper. Although you will have to make a bulk payment, you are free of the responsibility throughout the rest of the year.

Choose policies with the widest dentist network

Several insurance plans offer full coverage only if you visit dentists within their network. Before you buy a policy, check out the list of networks and make sure that your policy has a good spread so that you can avoid out of pocket expenses.

Talk to friends

You could talk about dental policies to friends who have this insurance. The advantage is that in addition to obtaining truthful information about policies, you also get a firsthand feedback on the company's service.

Understand the UCR fee

UCR stands for Usual, Customary and Reasonable fee guide. Usual fee reimburss to the base fee charged by a dentist for a specific treatment. Customary fee reimburss to the actual fee that you pay for a particular procedure. This is decided based on the Usual fee. Benefits you receive from the insurance depend on the custom fee structure. Reasonable fee is the actual fee charged by the dentist if a dental procedure is modified because of complications or other circumstances. The benefits you receive vary based on these costs. You need to understand the cost categories of different insurers and dentists before buying a policy.

Check out options advertised at your dentist's office

Check out the leaflets or brochures that dental insurance companies leave at doctors' offices. You can find good offers at discounts through these sources.

Spend some time online

Online policies are cheaper when compared to other options. However, reliability could be an issue. Make it a point to confirm the genuineness of the firm before you purchase from online companies.

With a bit of effort and time, you can find the cheapest dental insurance which is also reliable when it comes to making a claim.

Source by Steve Sanborn

The 2010 incoterms of the ICC (International Chamber of Commerce) came into effect on January 1, 2011 and replace the former incoterms 2000.

The following is a summary of changes introduced with the new Incoterms 2010.

With the new Incoterms® 2010 the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) has made an effort to improve their utilization. We can also observe in this new edition an important simplification effort. Four Incoterms have been eliminated and two new ones have been created instead.

Let us see these changes in the table below, where we can see in bold the Incoterms that have disappeared. There were thirteen Incoterms 2000, among which the International Chamber of Commerce distinguished between maritime Incoterms and polyvalent ones, but all thirteen Incoterms featured in a single list.

INCOTERMS 2000

EXW Ex works (polyvalent)
FAS Free alongside ship (maritime)
FOB Free on board (maritime)
FCA Free carrier (polyvalent)
CPT Carriage paid to (polyvalent)
CFR Cost and Freight (maritime)
CIP Carriage and insurance paid to (polyvalent)
CIF Cost, insurance and freight (maritime)
DES Delivered ex-ship (maritime)
DEQ Delivered ex-quay, duty paid (maritime)
DAF Delivered at frontier (polyvalent)
DDU Delivered duty unpaid (polyvalent)
DDP Delivered duty paid (polyvalent)

With regard to the 2010 Incoterms, we can see that the International Chamber of Commerce has created two categories of Incoterms, one which can be used with any mode or modes of transport – therefore including road, train, air, sea, river and any combination of these; and a second category that reflects only to those Incoterms that can be used for sea or river transport.

INCOTERMS® 2010

For any transport mode:

EXW Ex works
FCA Free carrier
CPT Carriage paid to
CIP Carriage and insurance paid to
DAT Delivered at terminal
DAP Delivered at place
DDP Delivered duty paid

For maritime and inland waterways transport only:

FAS Free alongside ship
FOB Free on board
CFR Cost and Freight
CIF Cost, insurance and freight

Pay attention to the following, it is a "stock cube", it needs reflexion to be able to dissolve and assimilate the whole content:

THE 2010 INCOTERMS OF RULES FOR TRANSPORT BY SEA AND NAVIGABLE INLAND WATERWAYS, CAN ONLY BE USED WHEN WE ARE ABLE TO FILL UP FULL VESSELS (BULK SHIPS, TANKERS, ETC) OR TO RENT OUT SPACE IN THE CARGO HOLD. NOT FOR CONTAINERS.

So, if our company does not fill up whole ships or do not hire space in the hold as it would happen with general cargo, and normally uses containers for sea transport, lorries and other means of transportation, we should not use Incoterms intended for maritime and inland waterways transport.

The good news is that, as from the thirteen Incoterms 2000 four are gone, two new have been created and companies that do not use marine Incoterms do not have to deal with four out of eleven:

13-4 + 2-4 = 7

We have gone from thirteen Incoterms to seven: that's what I call simplification.

Source by Remigi Palmes

Most of the sales are done based on weight. Bench scales, pocket scales, jewelry scales, industrial scales, laboratory scales, bathroom scales, and baby scales are some of the common types of scales. Lab balances are used in the measurement of small weights ranging from micrograms to a few kilograms. Laboratory balances are mostly used in food research laboratories, chemical research laboratories, manufacturing research laboratories, pharmaceutical research laboratories and other research laboratories.

The different types of balances typically ultra micro analytical and micro analytical can weigh objects upto 3 grams. Semi micro analytical has a maximum capacity of 30 grams. Macro analytical has a maximum capacity of 160 grams, but precision can weigh objects between 160g-60 kg. These can measure tiny objects such as dust and lint. Floor scales can be used for both industrial and household purposes. Big industries use floor scale to measure the weight of their metals and other heavy objects. Bathroom weighing scale is mostly used at homes.

Bathroom scales can also be used in fitness centers and health clubs. Bathroom scales are used to measure the body fat. Large floor scales have capacities from 2500 lb to more than 30,000 lb. Drum scales can weigh from 500 lb to 800 lb. Bench scales have certain features like battery operator, adapter, auto shutoff, battery indicator etc. some of the bench scales are quad spring, A & D model FG series, A & D model HV-G-HW-G series, titan stainless steel series, and GSE model 4400. Bench scales can weigh upto 100 lb. Truck scale weighing scale is used to measure the weight when the object is loaded in the truck. Once the scale is installed, it is difficult to move around. In United Kingdom they are called as weighbridges. Truck scales are mostly used in mines or quarries, recycling and bulk liquid and powder movement. Truck scales can be used by selling or charging by weight over the bridge and check weighing both axle weights and gross vehicle weights.

Economic digital scale is used to calculate small amounts in the kitchen. Make sure that the economic digital scale will give you accurate measurement. For smaller recipes if there is smaller difference between 1 gram and 15 grams of cinnamon will make a huge difference in the final product. Pocket scales can be transported in pockets. These are mostly used in military, hunting, and building construction applications. These can weigh items upto 500 grams. Industrial scales are mostly used in automotive and trucking, food service, processing, retail, hospitality, agriculture, railroad, engineering and construction. Jewelry scales are used to weigh pearl, silver, semi precious and precious stones, diamond, and gold. Spring scales are used in many industries. Those with high load capacities are frequently suspended from crane hooks and are known as crane scales. Small scales are household purpose are called as fish scales. Steel Coil scales have capacities from 20,000 lbs to 80,000 lbs. Heavy capacity scale has capacities from 10,000 lbs to 100,000 lbs. Scales are used for both household and industrial purpose.

Source by Jacob Christopher

Market Overview

The car rental industry is a multi-billion dollar sector of the US economy. The US segment of the industry averages about $18.5 billion in revenue a year. Today, there are approximately 1.9 million rental vehicles that service the US segment of the market. In addition, there are many rental agencies besides the industry leaders that subdivide the total revenue, namely Dollar Thrifty, Budget and Vanguard. Unlike other mature service industries, the rental car industry is highly consolidated which naturally puts potential new comers at a cost-disadvantage since they face high input costs with reduced possibility of economies of scale. Moreover, most of the profit is generated by a few firms including Enterprise, Hertz and Avis. For the fiscal year of 2004, Enterprise generated $7.4 billion in total revenue. Hertz came in second position with about $5.2 billion and Avis with $2.97 in revenue.

Level of Integration

The rental car industry faces a completely different environment than it did five years ago. According to Business Travel News, vehicles are being rented until they have accumulated 20,000 to 30,000 miles until they are relegated to the used car industry whereas the turn-around mileage was 12,000 to 15,000 miles five years ago. Because of slow industry growth and narrow profit margin, there is no imminent threat to backward integration within the industry. In fact, among the industry players only Hertz is vertically integrated through Ford.

Scope of Competition

There are many factors that shape the competitive landscape of the car rental industry. Competition comes from two main sources throughout the chain. On the vacation consumer’s end of the spectrum, competition is fierce not only because the market is saturated and well guarded by industry leader Enterprise, but competitors operate at a cost disadvantage along with smaller market shares since Enterprise has established a network of dealers over 90 percent the leisure segment. On the corporate segment, on the other hand, competition is very strong at the airports since that segment is under tight supervision by Hertz. Because the industry underwent a massive economic downfall in recent years, it has upgraded the scale of competition within most of the companies that survived. Competitively speaking, the rental car industry is a war-zone as most rental agencies including Enterprise, Hertz and Avis among the major players engage in a battle of the fittest.

Growth

Over the past five years, most firms have been working towards enhancing their fleet sizes and increasing the level of profitability. Enterprise currently the company with the largest fleet in the US has added 75,000 vehicles to its fleet since 2002 which help increase its number of facilities to 170 at the airports. Hertz, on the other hand, has added 25,000 vehicles and broadened its international presence in 150 counties as opposed to 140 in 2002. In addition, Avis has increased its fleet from 210,000 in 2002 to 220,000 despite recent economic adversities. Over the years following the economic downturn, although most companies throughout the industry were struggling, Enterprise among the industry leaders had been growing steadily. For example, annual sales reached $6.3 in 2001, $6.5 in 2002, $6.9 in 2003 and $7.4 billion in 2004 which translated into a growth rate of 7.2 percent a year for the past four years. Since 2002, the industry has started to regain its footing in the sector as overall sales grew from $17.9 billion to $18.2 billion in 2003. According to industry analysts, the better days of the rental car industry have yet to come. Over the course of the next several years, the industry is expected to experience accelerated growth valued at $20.89 billion each year following 2008 “which equates to a CAGR of 2.7 % [increase] in the 2003-2008 period.”

Distribution

Over the past few years the rental car industry has made a great deal of progress to facilitate it distribution processes. Today, there are approximately 19,000 rental locations yielding about 1.9 million rental cars in the US. Because of the increasingly abundant number of car rental locations in the US, strategic and tactical approaches are taken into account in order to insure proper distribution throughout the industry. Distribution takes place within two interrelated segments. On the corporate market, the cars are distributed to airports and hotel surroundings. On the leisure segment, on the other hand, cars are distributed to agency owned facilities that are conveniently located within most major roads and metropolitan areas.

In the past, managers of rental car companies used to rely on gut-feelings or intuitive guesses to make decisions about how many cars to have in a particular fleet or the utilization level and performance standards of keeping certain cars in one fleet. With that methodology, it was very difficult to maintain a level of balance that would satisfy consumer demand and the desired level of profitability. The distribution process is fairly simple throughout the industry. To begin with, managers must determine the number of cars that must be on inventory on a daily basis. Because a very noticeable problem arises when too many or not enough cars are available, most car rental companies including Hertz, Enterprise and Avis, use a “pool” which is a group of independent rental facilities that share a fleet of vehicles. Basically, with the pools in place, rental locations operate more efficiently since they reduce the risk of low inventory if not eliminate rental car shortages.

Market Segmentation

Most companies throughout the chain make a profit based of the type of cars that are rented. The rental cars are categorized into economy, compact, intermediate, premium and luxury. Among the five categories, the economy sector yields the most profit. For instance, the economy segment by itself is responsible for 37.7 percent of the total market revenue in 2004. In addition, the compact segment accounted for 32.3 percent of overall revenue. The rest of the other categories covers the remaining 30 percent for the US segment.

Historical Levels of Profitability

The overall profitability of the car rental industry has been shrinking in recent years. Over the past five years, the industry has been struggling just like the rest of the travel industry. In fact, between the years 2001 and 2003 the US market has experienced a moderate reduction in the level of profitability. Specifically, revenue fell from $19.4 billion in 2000 to $18.2 billion in 2001. Subsequently, the overall industry revenue eroded further to $17.9 billion in 2002; an amount that is minimally higher than $17.7 billion which is the overall revenue for the year 1999. In 2003, the industry experienced a barely noticeable increase which brought profit to $18.2 billion. As a result of the economic downturn in recent years, some of the smaller players that were highly dependent on the airline industry have done a great deal of strategy realignments as a way of preparing their companies to cope with eventual economic adversities that may surround the industry. For the year 2004, on the other hand, the economic situation of most firms have gradually improved throughout the industry since most rental agencies have returned far greater profits relative to the anterior years. For instance, Enterprise realized revenues of $7.4 billion; Hertz returned revenues of $5.2 billion and Avis with $2.9 billion in revenue for the fiscal year of 2004. According to industry analysts, the rental car industry is expected to experience steady growth of 2.6 percent in revenue over the next several years which translates into an increase in profit.

Competitive Rivalry Among Sellers

There are many factors that drive competition within the car rental industry. Over the past few years, broadening fleet sizes and increasing profitability has been the focus of most companies within the car rental industry. Enterprise, Hertz and Avis among the leaders have been growing both in sales and fleet sizes. In addition, competition intensifies as firms are constantly trying to improve their current conditions and offer more to consumers. Enterprise has nearly doubled its fleet size since 1993 to approximately 600,000 cars today. Because the industry operates on such narrow profit margins, price competition is not a factor; however, most companies are actively involved in creating values and providing a range of amenities from technological gadgets to even free rental to satisfy customers. Hertz, for example, integrates its Never-Lost GPS system within its cars. Enterprise, on the other hand, uses sophisticated yield management software to manage its fleets.

Finally, Avis uses its OnStar and Skynet system to better serve the consumer base and offers free weekend rental if a customer rents a car for five consecutive days Moreover, the consumer base of the rental car industry has relatively low to no switching cost. Conversely, rental agencies face high fixed operating costs including property rental, insurance and maintenance. Consequently, rental agencies are sensitively pricing there rental cars just to recover operating costs and adequately meet their customers demands. Furthermore, because the industry experienced slow growth in recent years due to economic stagnation that resulted in a massive decline in both corporate travel and the leisure sector, most companies including the industry leaders are aggressively trying to reposition their firms by gradually lessening the dependency level on the airline industry and regaining their footing in the leisure competitive arena.

The Potential Entry of new Competitors

Entering the car rental industry puts new comers at a serious disadvantage. Over the past few years following the economic downturn of 2001, most major rental companies have started increasing their market shares in the vacation sector of the industry as a way of insuring stability and lowering the level of dependency between the airline and the car rental industry. While this trend has engendered long term success for the existing firms, it has heightened the competitive landscape for new comers. Because of the severity of competition, existing firms such as Enterprise, Hertz and Avis carefully monitor their competitive radars to anticipate Sharpe retaliatory strikes against new entrants. Another barrier to entry is created because of the saturation level of the industry.

For example, Enterprise has taken the first mover advantage with its 6000 facilities by saturating the leisure segment thereby placing not only high restrictions on the most common distribution channels, but also high resource requirements for new firms. Today, Enterprise has a rental location within 15 miles of 90 percent of the US population. Because of the network of dealers Enterprise has established around the nation, it has become relatively stable, more recession proof and most importantly, less reliant on the airline industry compared to its competitors. Hertz, on the other hand, is utilizing the full spectrum of its 7200 stores to secure its position in the marketplace. Basically, the emergence of most of the industry leaders into the leisure market not only drives rivalry, but also it varies directly with the level of complexity of entering the car rental industry.

The Threat of Substitute

There are many substitutes available for the car rental industry. From a technological standpoint, renting a car to go the distance for a meeting is a less attractive alternative as opposed to video conferencing, virtual teams and collaboration software with which a company can immediately setup a meeting with its employees from anywhere around the world at a cheaper cost. In addition, there are other alternatives including taking a cab which is a satisfactory substitute relative to quality and switching cost, but it may not be as attractively priced as a rental car for the course of a day or more. While public transportation is the most cost efficient of the alternatives, it is more costly in terms of the process and time it takes to reach one’s destination. Finally, because flying offers convenience, speed and performance, it is a very enticing substitute; however, it is an unattractive alternative in terms of price relative to renting a car. On the business segment, car rental agencies have more protection against substitutes since many companies have implemented travel policies that establish the parameters of when renting a car or using a substitute is the best course of action.

According to Tracy Esch, an Advantage director of marketing operations, her company rents cars up to a 200-mile trip before considering an alternative. Basically, the threat of substitute is reasonably low in the car rental industry since the effects the substitute products have do not pose a significant threat of profit erosion throughout the industry.

The Bargaining Power of Suppliers

Supplier power is low in the car rental industry. Because of the availability of substitutes and the level of competition, suppliers do not have a great deal of influence in the terms and conditions of supplying the rental cars. Because the rental cars are usually purchased in bulk, rental car agents have significant influence over the terms of the sale since they possess the ability to play one supplier against another to lower the sales price. Another factor that reduces supplier power is the absence of switching cost. That is, buyers are not affected from purchasing from one supplier over another and most importantly, changing to different supplier’s products is barely noticeable and does not affect consumer’s rental choices.

The Bargaining Power of Buyers

While the leisure sector has little or no power, the business segment possesses a significant amount of influence in the car rental industry. An interesting trend that is currently underway throughout the industry is forcing car rental companies to adapt to the needs of corporate travelers. This trend significantly reduces supplier power or the rental firms’ power and increases corporate buyer power since the business segment is excruciatingly price sensitive, well informed about the industry’s price structure, purchase in larger quantities and they use the internet to force lower prices. Vacation buyers, on the other hand, have less influence over the rental terms. Because vacationers are usually less price sensitive, purchase in lesser amounts or purchase more infrequently, they have weak bargaining power.

Five Forces

Today the car rental industry is facing a completely different environment than it did five years ago. Competitively speaking, the revolution of the five forces around the car rental industry exerts some strong economic pressure that has significantly tarnished the competitive attractiveness of the industry. As a result of the economic downturn in recent years, many companies went under namely Budget and the Vanguard Group because their business infrastructure succumbed to the untenability of the competitive environment. Today, very few firms including Enterprise, Hertz and Avis return a slightly above-average revenue compared to the rest of the industry. Realistically speaking, the car rental sector is not a very attractive industry because of the level of competition, the barriers to entry and the competitive pressure from the substitute firms.

Strategic Group Mapping

As a moderately concentrated sector, there is a clear hierarchy in the car rental industry. From an economic standpoint, disparities exist from a number of dimensions including revenue, fleet size and the market size each firm holds in the market place. For instance, Enterprise dominates the industry with a fleet size of approximately 600,000 vehicles along with its market size and its level of profitability. Hertz comes in second position with its number of market shares and fleet volume. In addition, Avis ranks third on the map. Avis is among one of the companies that is having issues recovering its revenue margins from prior to the economic downturn. For instance, in 2000 Avis returned revenues of approximately $4.23 billion. Over the course of the next several years following 2000, the revenue of Avis has been significantly lower than that of 2000. As a way of reducing uncertainty most companies are gradually lessening the level of dependency on the airline industry and emerging the leisure market. This trend may not be in the best interest of Hertz since its business strategy is intricately linked to the airports.

Key Success Factors

There are many key success factors that drive profitability throughout the car rental industry. Capacity utilization is one of the factors that determines success in the industry. Because rental firms experience loss of revenue when there are either too few or too many cars sitting in their lots, it is of paramount importance to efficiently manage the fleets. This success factor represents a big strength for the industry since it lowers if not completely eliminates the possibly of running short on rental cars. Efficient distribution is another factor that keeps the industry profitable. Despite the positive relationship between fleet sizes and the level of profitability, firms are constantly growing their fleet sizes because of the competitive forces that surround the industry. In addition, convenience is one of the crucial attributes by which consumers select rental firms. That is, car rental consumers are more prone to renting cars from firms that have convenient rental and drop off locations. Another key success factor that is common among competing firms is the integration of technology in their business processes. Through technology, for instance, the car rental companies create ways to meet consumer demand by making renting a car a very agreeable ordeal by adding the convenience of online rental among other alternatives. Furthermore, firms have integrated navigation systems along with roadside assistance to offer customers the piece of mind when renting cars.

Industry Attractiveness

There are many factors that impact the attractiveness of the car rental industry. Because the industry is moderately concentrated, it puts new market entrants at a disadvantage. That is, its low concentration represents a natural barrier to entering the industry as it allows existing firm to anticipate sharp retaliations against new entrants. Because of the risks associated with entering the industry among other factors, it is not a very attractive sector of the marketplace. From a competitive standpoint, the leisure market is 90 percent saturated because of the active efforts of Enterprise to dominate this sector of the market. On the other hand, the airport terminals are heavily guarded by Hertz. Realistically speaking, entry in the industry offers low profitability relative to the costs and risks associated. For most consumers, the main determining factors of choosing one company over another are price and convenience. Because of this reason, rental firms are very circumspect about setting their rates and that generally force even the industry major players in the position of offering more to the consumers for less just to remain competitive. Hertz, for example, offers wireless internet to its customers just to add more convenience to their travel plans. Avis on the other hand, offers free weekend specials if a customer rents a car for five consecutive weekdays. Based on the impact of the five forces, the car rental sector is not a very attractive industry to potential new market entrants.

Conclusion

The rental car industry is in a state of recovery. Although it may seem like the industry is performing well financially, it is nonetheless gradually regaining its footing relative to its actual economic position within the last five years. As a way of insuring profitability, besides seeking market shares and stability, most companies throughout the chain have a common goal that deals with lowering the level of dependency on the airline industry and moving toward the leisure segment. This state of motion has engendered some fierce competition among industry competitors as they attempt to defend their market shares. From a futuristic perspective, the better days of the car rental industry have yet to come. As the level of profitability increases, I believe that most of the industry leaders including Enterprise, Hertz and Avis will be bounded by the economic and competitive barriers of mobility of their strategic groups and new comers will have a better chance of infiltrating and realizing success in the car rental industry.

Sources

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“Car rental market leaders make rebound.” Business Travel News. May. 2002 . Gale. 14 March 2005. http://search.rdsinc.com.ucfproxy.fcla.edu.

“Ovation Travel.” Wall Street Transcript. May. 2002 . LexisNexis. 14 March 2004. http://www.lexisnexis.com.ucfproxy.fcla.edu/cis.

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Source by Rodrigue Monestime

The bigger the memory of your iPhone, the more it becomes useful for you.

If you are using your iPhone for your business and other important things, it becomes more personal and dearer to you. That’s the time when you don’t want others using it especially when you are starting to store personal data such as passwords, email addresses and business-related information. I for myself am guilty of this; my iPhone is alternative to my notebook that it holds all the passwords to my email accounts, blogs and even PayPal. That is why I simply leave it at home and bring my other phone whenever I go to party and other personal gimmicks; this is to ensure that I cannot misplace it.

The Importance of Erasing iPhone Data

When you are planning on giving, selling or sending out your iPhone for repair, it is of great importance that you erase all your personal or classified data to prevent any security threats. Needless to say, it is better to empty your iPhone’s memory completely before letting it out of your hands. If you are being careless, any of the following can happen to you;

1. Someone may be able to get into your emails – it is always possible especially if you are keeping records of your passwords and login information.

2. Someone may know your password – we oftentimes make it a point to use one password for multiple accounts so that we can easily remember it.

3. You can easily be hacked – if somebody knows a lot of personal information about you, it could be that you can be hacked easily. So much so, that if you continue being careless with all those personal stuffs, you will end up with nothing without even knowing about it.

How to Sync iPhone with iTunes

Just before anything else, you need to back your data up or sync your iPhone with iTunes. I believe everybody knows how to sync. But here’s the run down for those who are unsure…

1. Connect your iPhone to your computer, then launch iTunes.

2. Select iPhone Option.

3. Now, check the boxes you want to sync with.

4. Click on ‘Apply’ button to proceed.

Syncing will take only a minute or two, just wait for a bit and you are good to proceed.

How to Reset iPhone Settings and Erase iPhone Data

If you’ve used iPhone for quite some time, then you know how important it is to back up your data such contacts, SMS, etc. With this, you will be at peace doing what you need to do with your iPhone. For new iPhone users, you have to take time syncing your iPhone before you proceed. Whenever you are ready, follow the steps below to reset or erase all the data in your iPhone.

1. From the Springboard, launch ‘Settings’ and look for ‘General’.

2. Tap ‘General’ to proceed. Scroll down a bit and try to find ‘Reset’.

3. Tap ‘Reset’ and you will be prompted with plenty of options you can choose from. If you choose ‘Reset All Settings’ your iPhone will be restored to its factory settings, however it does not empty its memory or delete all your data. To do this, you have to tap on ‘Erase All Content and Settings’.

4. Whichever option you’ll choose, you have to confirm your action. So, if you are sure enough to continue, simply tap on the confirmation button, in this case its ‘Erase iPhone’.

Right after doing those simple steps above you will have an iPhone with either all new settings or bare/empty memory. You can now give or sell it to anyone or even send it for repair.

There will always come a time wherein you need to reset your iPhone or delete all the data within it. I hope this post can help you.

Technology evolves everyday and if you do not want to be left behind, you have to be updated of what’s the latest gadgets or technological innovations are out there. More often, you can get these updates from Technology News which you can get from any News Community online.

Source by Harold Hisona

To make more money with what you are already offering, consider different strategies to make it easier for people to purchase your services / products. Restructuring your pricing and packaging creates more options for your customers.

Here are some examples:

1) Bundle 'em. Offer your services in monthly increments. Instead of working with people on a session-by-session basis, offer a bundle of services. For instance, a personal trainer can offer sets of workouts for 3 months, 6 months, or a year. Add value by including a workbook to chart workout progress. You can also create levels of advancement to create more options for clients. Consider a silver, gold, and platinum program. Each level is a higher price and offers more value to your clients.

If you offer products, consider other ways to bundle things. For instance, a garden shop can put together a spring garden package that includes flower bulbs, a trowel, wildflower seeds, and gardeners' gloves. A restaurant could start packaging their sauces and selling them to customers to take home. A life coach could put together a notebook and CD set to sell online.

2) Change product usage. Railroad ties are now used as decorative items for landscaping. I've also noticed that antique stores are offering faucets as coat hangers. And how about those stretchy bands that people use for workouts?

Arm & Hammer Baking Soda has this strategy dialed in. The product was originally for baking. On their website, the company also recommends you use baking soda for brushing your teeth, deodorizing your dog, extinguishing fires, cleansing your hands, rinsing your mouth, and for children's crafts. As a result, a simple product that might only be purchased once in a while has been transformed into a must-have product.

3) Change your pricing options. Offer your customers an option of paying in installments. Give a discount if customers buy a service early or in bulk. Offer a credit card option or allow people to buy online. Give people coupons, discounts, frequent-buyer rewards, or loyal-customer rebates.

4) Offer it in a new way. A book or a workshop can be turned into a CD program. Certain pros may not have time to read a book or attend a workshop; but with your new packaging option, they can listen to your program during their commute or at the gym on their mp3 player. A used furniture store could paint some of its chairs or old frames in creative colors and sell them as functional art.

5) "Plus" it. There is a term called "plussing" that comes from Walt Disney's constant efforts to continuously make a good idea even better. An example of this is adding a scavenger hunt game to the waiting area of ​​the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland Park – now even the pre-ride portion is fun. Hallmark Cards also uses the concept of plussing. When their creative team develops a new product idea, they invite all of their other divisions to follow the concept and spin off additional new products.

ACTION STEP: Take a look at your packaging and pricing. What works well right now but can be plussed or made better? How can your services or products be bundled? What pricing options can you add? How can your products / services be made to be even more remarkable? By providing a variety of options to customers, you will make more sales.

Source by Wendy Maynard

Mobile apps have become popular amongst mobile device users. Apart from giving developers a chance to make some real good money creating them, they also offer an easy way for businesses to keep in contact with customers and to ensure they are updated on the latest and have an easy time making purchases on the go. If you take your business seriously, then you might want to consider having a mobile app developed for your mobile device users for the many benefits that your business will enjoy.

1. You will enjoy real time rich data capture. A mobile app saves you from the slow process of collecting data and manually uploading it onto your business system. It will give you an easier time capturing photos, GPS locations, signatures, number and texts. It offers greater efficiency in handling your data and making it visible for decision making without having to go to the files to do so.

2. A mobile app helps you and your users work offline. It will automatically synchronize the background data and store it on the devices giving your users an easy time accessing it even without connectivity. The data is also cloud stored to make sure that no data gets lost.

3. You will enjoy reduced time solving problems that arise. This is because mobile device support is always available and there is real time communication between you and the users. Apart from helping your users resolve issues fast, you will also give your remote field workers an easy time getting guidance from experts to resolve problems they could be facing. Business is more efficient where there are no delays in dealing with problems.

4. A good mobile app gives you the freedom to work according to your lifestyle. The one reason why more people are adopting mobile apps is because they make it possible to strike a balance in everyday affairs. You can develop an effective path for running your business and remaining in touch with everyone that matters to it without having to be stuck in the office all day long.

5. You will enjoy custom branding when you have a mobile app developed. The mobile app will be designed to suit your unique business requirements, making sure that you maintain consistency with your branding. The professionalism you show will increase trust and recognition by your targeted audiences through the company logo and name and how the content is molded into the mobile app. Nothing can be more dependable than a brand that earns the trust of your users and the custom branding advantage gives you a chance to stand out from your competitors.

6. You also enjoy instant enrollment of users which can be as simple as using an SMS link or barcode. Considering that millions of people rely on their mobile devices for everyday running, you can enjoy a huge amount of user enrollment to the app every single day and this is advantageous to any business.

Source by Jovia D’Souza

The $ 1000 free gift cards is definitely a special offer that you can only found it on the web. This is something that many companies are using nowadays to get more clients.

It works like this:

Just like many people do, when I heard receiving $ 1000 to visit Best Buy and shop that amount for free, I thought it was a joke. For what reason would they give me a free card? Once I completed the survey I was instructed to use for a totally free trial of any product that I wanted. I wait one week and I received my $ 1000 Best Buy card.

These kind of companies provide free cards and products to exchange for data that only customers can provide. It's cheaper for companies to give out gifts on the web than spending thousands of dollars on Television advertisements.

When the survey is completed, you will probably be asked to sign up for any product that provides you a free trial. You do not have to buy the products, just choose the one that interests you.

Actually the free gift cards is not something you receive for free. You are giving them information they need and that the customer is the only one that can provide it, and also trying out products to obtain the free card. This data you are providing them is helpful to the market analysis companies.

These are the steps you have to follow in order to obtain a Free Gift Card.

Source by Stefano Zidane

The manufacturers in the smartphone domain face the temptation to pack their products with all the latest technology, their most powerful processors, and their largest displays. The mobile phone market is invaded by over four inch wide displays and quad-core processors that could power a PC.

It is easy to understand the strategy because any company needs a bigger profit so they give people what they think is best. After the regular client sees an advertisement that induces the idea that "bigger is better", the client will automatically want the fastest, largest, best packed with features smartphone of them all.

What they usually forget or simply ignore is the fact that the latest, most powerful set of features and hardware also cost more than a regular, not so heavily promoted device.

When looking for the perfect smartphone, the possible buyer should not go for the first product that is presented to him. The best advertised product is not necessarily the best choice. A smart possible client will always look for alternative solutions because you can never know what you can find until you have a glance. Maybe the right product is just a click away and is waiting to be discovered.

The producing companies in this domain and in many others have the habit to promote their most expensive devices because these are the ones that will probably bring them their largest amount of profit. The cheaper alternatives in the smartphone domain are probably only promoted by the carriers when they are trying to get a contract signed.

The point of this article is to bring to the surface a certain fact that is probably ignored by most of the people interested in this kind of device. The high-end, latest technology smartphones that we all see all over the internet and TV will usually cost more than five hundred dollars and this is why it is very important to know that those devices are not the only ones on the market.

There are devices that will do every regular smartphone chore that the super expensive devices claim they can do, but in some cases for even only a quarter of the price. The only difference between these two categories of products will be a couple of seconds in the processing speed and less than an inch on the display's width.

People should think about this and decide if those highly advertised products are worth the money or not. The hardware inside a decent smartphone that will work properly does not have to be able to do 3D Hollywood special effects programming. A processor with a frequency of 800MHz will work just fine with any smartphone applications. Those applications that are made for smartphone operating systems are designed to work on the most poorly equipped smartphone so that every user can run it. A smartphone also does not need 16 or 32 GB of free space because almost anyone owns a PC at home that will be better at storing the files. The display can be more than enough even at 3.0 inches wide.

There are many low budget smartphones that will do their job perfectly for a fraction of a Galaxy SIII's price, but people simply need to look for those devices, not just say yes to the first offer.

Source by Radu I Costin