Blog Archives

When I was about 12 I washed up in an Indian restaurant — when I was 14 I was flipping burgers in a Wimpy bar. Wages were well below minimum wage (if it existed then) but it was enough to keep me in treats.

I never have been greedy, never wanted to be a gazzillionaire (although I’ll gladly relieve the ‘i was happier when I was poor’ rich of their hard earned) — if I have enough to get what we need then I’m doing good.

When I took my driving test I didn’t tick the ‘do you want to include motorbikes?’ option because I never thought I’d ever have one.
A car I needed (at the time), a motorbike I didn’t.
A good few years later, when I had both the money and the requirement for a motorbike, I went to buy one only to be told I had to take a test — the rules had changed … obviously.

Being poor has it’s advantages.
Being poor teaches you to be resourceful.
Being poor teaches you to appreciate stuff.
Being poor forces you to justify everything you buy.
In my industry I need to justify a lot of toys devices.

Slowly but surely, over the years, ‘stuff’ has crept into the daily life.

Stuff is just stuff. Want is not need.
Stuff is just luxury overheads.
It’s what we spend our cash on when we want — not need — to better our lives?

Like assumption, consumption is the route to confusion.
In business we tend to gather stuff. A lot of stuff. We assume that we need to splash out on expensive brochures — that ultimately end up in a box at the back of the cupboard.
We assume that no-one will want to work with us unless we have a posh West End office — which ends up costing so much you need to bring in more work just to get by.
We assume that we need to wear a suit to be taken seriously — or that someone not in a suit isn’t running a proper business.

The only company that needs an all singing, all dancing, super swishy website is the company that sells all singing, all dancing, super swishy websites.

You don’t need any of that superfluous stuff, just provide a quality product that people need.
Look around you — what’s stored in your Galant file cabinet that you haven’t touched for a while?
That new tablet you got all excited about, spent a fortune on but haven’t used for months, boxes of embossed, laser cut compliment slips?

I’m not saying we need to burn all your possessions and go the way of the Zen monk. I’m not saying that we shouldn’t explore and innovate with new things.
But just to look around and think — is this the best option for me/ my business?
Can you justify all this stuff?
Is this a want or a need?

Is all this stuff just rhetorical stuff?

The traditional High Street has changed, with more and more people opting to eschew the city centre and shop online for their holiday presents.

Amazon reported that they expect December 25th 2015 to be their busiest Christmas Day in its 21-year history.
Post 2015 holidays, they reported that almost 70 percent of their customers shopped on a mobile device during the period – in the US alone, smartphone based purchases more than doubled from the previous year’s total.

In 2017 Deloitte predicted that e-commerce would outperform in-store spending during that year’s holiday season – 51% online (47% in 2016) vs 42% in store (47% in 2016).

Even before customers have landed on your site they are using smartphones and tablets to research the best bargains around. This includes when they are comfy on their sofa or even in-store.
A good proportion will also be checking if something is in stock, searching for your telephone number or mapping your address before making the journey to your store.

With all of this in mind, it seems evident that having a mobile-friendly online store is an absolute essential to ensure that your sales peak during these busy holiday periods. You don’t want users to click on to your page, only to find that the text is barely visible, images too small or navigation is clunky – or, worst of all, that email pop-up renders your site useless.

Your online store needs to work seamlessly on whatever device it’s being viewed. For it to work, you need to consider the font size you use, the resolution of images, the size of buttons, and how your site will look on a variety of different sized phones and tablets.

Importantly, you also need to ensure that mobile users don’t lose any of the features that they are able to enjoy on the desktop version of your site. There’s nothing more frustrating than visiting a mobile site, only to discover that half of the functions aren’t available – especially if it’s something that’s going to make or break a sale!

Lastly, we suggest giving users the option to switch back to the desktop version of your website whilst they’re browsing on mobile. It doesn’t matter how good your mobile site is, users like to have options and become accustomed to the way that sites are set out.

If you haven’t already, then make this the year that you go mobile.
The experienced team at Point and Stare are able to help you do just that, as well as with more general web development and design.

To find out how you can ensure your website is ready for the next holiday rush, get in touch today.

Some of us spend all our working life being told what to do.
We clock in at 9am then clock out for 30 mins lunch then back in again until 5.30pm then it’s off to sit on the sofa watching people watching TV. Monday – Friday with 2 weeks off right in the middle of school the holidays just like everyone else.

Some of us are unemployable through our pedanticness and some of us simply prefer to work for ourselves.

That goes for many industries, and, actually, setting up your own firm is fairly easy and straightforward. However, it’s very easy to get it wrong, for many causes.

For those that are dreaming of working for themselves, here are a few reasons why being the boss is the best.

Family
Little Princess is appearing as the Good Fairy in the school play. She’s practiced her 1 line over and over (in all 3 rehearsals), found her character, applied what she’s learned to ‘the method’, and the pressure is mounting.
I can almost hear Cameron Mackintosh picking up the phone to sign her up immediately.
The grand performance is on Wednesday at 11am and the tension is building.
Will you be there? Does the Pope search for WiFi in the woods?

Because you’re the boss, you can, and you had better, be there. Re-arrange meetings and take as much time out of the office as is needed.
Little Princess trumps paying clients everyday.

Toys
You need to be adaptable and accessible.
Clients expect you to answer emails 24/7, they expect you to fix problems immediately no matter where you are – after all that’s what they’re paying you for, so you need access to company files, internet access and always be a phone call away. So, invest in the right kit, buy the toys you need and research and implement processes that will make everyone’s life easier. But, also remember to not over complicate things or spend on stuff you simply don’t need.

Weather
It’s been snowing all night, and you know public transport will be a PITA.
You’re the boss so you choose to work from home. No problem, of course as you’re kitted to the hilt and you’ve put in secondary plans (see above) and besides, your duvet is warmer than your desk.
Need something from the office? Pffftt … get the intern/ freelancer on it.

Choose you
Ultimately most of us only want to do what we want to do. As the boss you can choose the jobs you like and for everything else there’s the freelancer, the intern or the employee.
Do not struggle on every aspect of the job and certainly never micro-manage but look to what you do best and do that.
If you know someone better at accounts than you – sub that job out, know nothing about internal networks, get the bloke you met at networking to sort it for you.
As a rule of thumb, work out how long it’ll take you to do the job, multiply that number by your hourly rate then see if you can get someone else to do it better and at a lower cost.

Being the boss can be the best job ever, but, it can also be a tough, demanding role.
Choose wisely and remember – Me, Family, Work – in that order.

WordPress security is a major element when we set up a new project or as part of our WordPress maintenance packages.
But, like anything else, a chain is only as strong as it’s weakest link.

By default WordPress comes with basic login security built-in, although that’s now getting better with it’s Password Strength Test which can be found in the password reset and WordPress install screens. There you are presented with a long, random, password although you can opt to use your own rubbish password if you choose.
In addition to this, WordPress have also stopped e-mailing passwords, so valid passwords aren’t going to sit in your inbox, waiting for some email hacker to gain access.

That said, regardless, hackers will still try to get in and since a few years ago, 2 step/ 2 factor authentication has been making big inroads.
By definition 2-step authentication requires 2 elements – your password AND access to a special code either texted to your phone or via an app on your phone.

Due to the big eco-system built around WordPress, there are a few plugins specifically developed around 2-step authentication. Below I talk about 3 of them.

From their own description:
Duo’s WordPress plugin enables two-factor authentication for WordPress logins, complete with inline self-service enrolment and authentication prompt.
Not only can you use Duo Security to protect your WordPress login, you can also use it on many other sources including VPNs, Web Apps, Cloud Apps, Microsoft Servers … the list goes on.

Although more a highly rated overall security plugin for WordPress, WordFence now includes 2FA functions as part of its free offering – which works with many TOTP-based apps like Google Authenticator, FreeOTP, and Authy.
Even if you don’t want to implement this feature, the $99 a year they charge for 1 site really is huge value for what you get and I strongly advise stumping up the cash if only to support the development.

Finally, you can add a second level of security with the Google Authenticator plugin which pronounces itself as A highly secure & easy to setup Two Factor Authentication (Google Authenticator) for your WordPress site.
The idea is simple, each time you want to login to your admin, you will still use your password but also add a code provided on your phone by the Authenticator app.

The big question, of course, is does 2 step authentication work? The short answer is yes, but, as mentioned right at the beginning, a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. 2 step authentication is a big brick wall for those trying to break into your WordPress based website but, if you’re on some nasty, cheap shared hosting plan then no matter what processes you put in place, you’re still at a disadvantage.

My advice – If you’re not using 2-step authentication in your general web usage, you’re strongly advised to start right here with this article from Google to see what’s missing from your overall online security.

And, of course, if you’re looking for help or advise securing your WordPress based website with 2 step authentication, get in touch with Point and Stare today.