Category Archives: B2b

APIs, Apps, B2b, Internet, ISPs, Software, Web, Web 2.0

Business iPad App Of The Year Award

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Business iPad Apps are in high demand fueling the future of American businesses. Now BiziPadapps.com has brought you a contest to see which Business iPad apps are the best for 2011. Vote today for your chance to be the winner for Business iPad App of the Year Award. Voting stops Jan 15th 2011. Winner will be announced Jan 31st 2012.

Much like the crunchies award but we are focused on just businesses that are leading the way into the future using the Apple iPad apps which can help businesses excel into the future. Apple iPad Apps like Drop Box, Docusign, Square and others are among the few that were nominated.

List of iPad Business Apps of the year Nominees that made it to the TOP TEN BUSINESS APPS OF THE YEAR:

In alpha order:

DocuSign
Drop Box
GoCal for Google Calendar
Highrise HQ
iTookOff Paid Leave Tracker
Revel Systems iPad POS
Mint for iPad
Instapaper
SpeakEasy Voice Recorder
Square Payment

With over 500,000 thousand votes so far find out who the winners are for this years contest of Business iPad App of the Year Award. Criteria for this year: which iPad app contributes to businesses and helps them excel.

Via EPR Network
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Struggling Jobs Market Doesn’t Stop Entrepreneurs

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Despite the challenging economic times entrepreneurs are helping to guide the UK economy through these difficult times, as both freelancers fight back against the high unemployment rates and new start up business look set to boost the national GDP significantly.

As a result of unemployment in the UK steadily increasing, as well as the number of unemployed people currently being the highest since 1994, research has shown that a significant amount of people are turning to freelance work, in an attempt to earn money – an increase of 12% since 2008. With the number of freelancers and new business owners on the rise, amidst a struggling jobs market, the strong business spirit is helping us all to avoid a future recession, and to make the very best of a bad situation.

In the current challenging economic environment, businesses are keen to reduce fixed costs costs, often by reducing the number of fixed staff they employ, and are instead employing freelancers. With freelancers working on flexible, short-term contracts, they are paid on a per work basis and are therefore not paid for the times when they aren’t needed, helping to minimise overheads.

This has of course shaken up the freelance industry, with a large amount of work available from many different companies. Whether it be a large retail company looking for a web designer to design and host their website, or an office based company needing a professional to undertake some administrative duties, it seems that outsourcing is the way to go about it, with more outsourcing websites setting up each month.

With many of the websites offering payment and project management platforms, as well as a whole host of other support, it’s a hassle-free way for those with the right skills to earn a sole income, or to supplement their income.

Many people who have been made redundant now seek work through outsourcing websites, in order to continue earning money during a challenging economic time. The amount of people freelancing in this way shows that they’re actively fighting the economic environment, and boosting the UK economy at the same time.

Furthermore, a recent survey has suggested that Britain’s newest start-up businesses are set to add hundreds of millions of pounds to the national economy next year, with outsourcing being the concept that looks set to continue leading the way. The survey, commissioned by T-Mobile and carried out by the Henley Business School, estimated that technologically-focused small businesses launched in 2011 could generated a combined £360m for the UK economy in 2012, generating somewhere in the region of 70,000 jobs.

Outsourcing websites have made it easy for freelancers, from freelance web designers to freelance graphic designers, to find work, whilst also providing businesses with a cheaper alternative in getting their workload and business functions completed. Loren Holland, Managing Director of OutsourceMyProject said: “OutsourceMyProject provides a useful service to freelancers and UK businesses. Our website connects freelance professionals with businesses looking to outsource their workload, and provides them with a platform to manage and complete their jobs. We’ve noticed that sign-ups to the site have increased rapidly over the past 12 months, which is undoubtedly a sign of strengthening freelance marketplace.”

Via EPR Network
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Private Firms Should Follow The Lead Of The Public Sector, Says OutsourceMyProject

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Businesses in the private sector should follow the example set by an increasing number of public sector bodies and consider outsourcing.

That’s according to one of the UK’s leading outsourcing marketplaces, OutsourceMyProject.com, which says the number of organisations now looking at outsourcing in a bid to reduce their cost base is proof that bringing in the right external specialists can make a big difference.

IT services, finance, HR, payroll and logistics are all areas that are being outsourced by public sector organisations.

Loren Holland, managing director of OutsourceMyProject, said: “The large number of local councils and public organisations including police forces and fire services that have started outsourcing in recent months in a bid to reduce costs in the face of budget cuts shows how much of a difference the right professional services provider can make.

“At OutsourceMyProject.com we see first-hand how much companies are saving by enlisting the help of specialists. The fact that councils and other public bodies are making the same business decisions is further evidence of the crucial and growing role that specialists such as freelance web designers and freelance content writers play in helping businesses to remain competitive across a huge variety of sectors.”

The tender process for public contracts can often be extensive, with organisations spending many months ensuring they enter into a deal with the right partner. Loren said it is just as important for private businesses to make the right decision when it comes to choosing a professional services provider.

He said: “While most firms will not be dealing with 10-year contracts worth millions of pounds, it is still vital for the good of the company to ensure that the external specialist charged with completing a project is reliable and will finish everything on time and to the required standard. Posting a job through OutsourceMyProject ensures that you are always connected to the best freelancers in the business.

Via EPR Network
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OutsourceMyProject Breaks The £1million Barrier

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OutsourceMyProject, a UK web based marketplace which allows businesses to outsource work and business functions to freelancers and professionals in the UK and aboard, has just broken a major barrier after having £1 million worth of projects posted on the website since its launch.

OutsourceMyProject launched at the start of 2011 and has already helped hundreds of entrepreneurs and small businesses find a freelancer in service categories such as web design, e-commerce, graphic design, copywriting and administrative support.

OutsourceMyProject is a marketplace which connects skilled professional freelancers and professional service providers with UK businesses seeking to use their services. The website can be used to find and work with a variety of experts from web designers to translators, graphic designers to accountants.

Customers simply post their job on the OutsourceMyProject website, which is completely free of charge, and then receive proposals from experts within hours. The site provides the platform to evaluate and manage service providers with concerns over ability and experience of providers being mitigated by the websites comprehensive feedback and rating system. Furthermore, OutsourceMyProject.com also provides a range of web-based tools to ensure confidence in the execution of your project. These include an online payment platform, project management facility and messaging system to ensure open and clear communication between both parties, all within the safety of the OutsourceMyProject.com website.

Loren Holland, Managing Director OutsourceMyProject said: “Breaking the £1 million barrier within a year of launching the website is a major achievement and one we are all very proud of. This achievement is testament to the value proposition OutsourceMyProject offers small and SME businesses and the strength of the UK freelancing and outsourcing markets at the present time.”

The concept of outsourcing and the use of freelancers to provide essential business services have proved to be a lifeline for many companies over recent years, and this looks set to continue as we face a double dip recession. These difficult economic times have made it more important than ever for companies to tighten their purse strings and streamline their operations. Rather than employ new staff on a full-time basis, specific projects can be completed by freelancers, with exactly the right skills and experience, on flexible contracts.

The number of freelancers registering with OutsourceMyProject has tripled over the past six months. The website attracts everyone from unemployed skilled professionals looking to earn a primary source of income to retired workers and students looking to supplement their income. The website is becoming an essential platform for the UK freelance market, helping them connect with businesses seeking their skills and expertise.

One early customer looking to find a freelance web designer on OutsourceMyProject was Manchester based Edge Worldwide Logistics. Director Philip Edge said: “We posted our job on OutsourceMyProject and received over 20 offers to redevelop our company website from specialists in the UK, India and other offshore locations, all at a significantly lower price than I had budgeted for.”

Via EPR Network
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How To Survive A Double Dip Recession

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With a double dip recession looking likely, businesses are streamlining themselves more than ever before, in an attempt to ensure the struggling economy doesn’t cause the closure of their business.

Cutting everything from staff head counts to workloads, businesses are keen to reduce costs by re-thinking their everyday operations and processes. One example of the type of change being made by businesses is that they are reducing the number of fixed staff they employ, and are instead working with freelancers. With freelancers working on flexible, short-term contracts, they are paid on a per work basis and are therefore not paid for the times when they aren’t needed, helping to minimise overheads.

Delegating work to freelancers in this way is called outsourcing, whereby an outsider is used to provide the product or service needed by the company in question. There are many different business functions that can be outsourced to freelancers, including everything from a company’s finance and account functions, to web design and other IT functions. Outsourcing work enables companies to cut their fixed overheads, by replacing in-house teams with third party organisations and/or freelancers.

The recent economic climate has resulted in potentially the strongest freelance market ever, with many professionals offering their services on flexible contracts, as these skilled individuals look to gain or supplement their income after losing their permanent job, or having their income reduced during these difficult financial times. With today’s society facing such economic uncertainty, freelance work can provide both greater stability and flexibility than a full-time job can offer, which is just one of many reasons working in this way is as popular as it is.

OutsourceMyProject is an ideal site to find freelancers and professional service providers who are capable of undertaking projects and business functions. Furthermore, the site provides a platform to not only find, but also evaluate and manage service providers and projects. Concerns over ability and experience of providers are mitigated by the websites comprehensive feedback and rating system. OutsourceMyProject also provides users with a safe payment escrow service to provide maximum protection to its users.

Loren Holland, Managing Director of OutsourceMyProject said: “Outsourcing is an increasingly popular concept and the benefits have the capability to protect a business during the potential double dip recession. It is essential to operate a streamline business in the current economic environment whilst also maintaining access to skilled professionals who can sustain a business’s front and back office functions. ”

He went on to say: “OutsourceMyProject is a website that connects businesses with freelancers and professional companies looking to offer their services. Customers post their jobs free of charge and receive offers from experts within hours. If you need a freelance web designer or freelance copywriter, to name just a few specialist categories, then we have hundreds of experts waiting to provide their services through OutsourceMyProject, at the most competitive rates. Best of all, posting a job to find a freelancer to complete work is completely free with no hidden costs.”

One recent customer of OutsourceMyProject was Midlands based firm Stephen Gaskets Ltd, who posted their search engine optimization (SEO) project. Rex Baynton the Managing Director of Stephens Gaskets Ltd, said: “We posted our project on OutsourceMyProject and within a few days had received over 20 offers and had appointed a freelance SEO expert. After just a matter of weeks we witnessed a drastic increase in orders via Google, as a result of the excellent work completed by the freelancer we appointed.”

Via EPR Network
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Fasthosts Reveals 1 In 3 Consumers Has Posted A Negative Review Of A Firm Online

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Fasthosts, a leading UK web hosting provider, has revealed that one third of British consumers has posted negative material online relating to a company or product.

The survey of 1300 UK consumers* commissioned by the web hosting company found that it is now common place for Britons to express their gripes openly online, most commonly on social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter, as well as online forums. Over half of young adults have published negative online reviews. Encouragingly for firms, the vast majority of consumers are willing to give a company a second chance if it responds well to their online complaints.

Whilst willingness to share frustrations online is equal across both genders, the issue ranges in frequency according to age. Younger Britons are far more likely to publish their grievances. Some 52 per cent of under 24 year olds have turned to the web in this way. 39 per cent aged 25-34, and 38 per cent of adults aged between 45-54 years have done so. 1 in 4 of those older (28 per cent) vented their concerns online. Geographical location also appears to be a driver, with the issue most common in the south east (38 per cent) and far north of England, such as North East (37 per cent).

However, some 84 per cent of consumers would forgive a company for mistakes and be willing to use it again if the firm engaged with their negative online review and discussed the issues with them.

It appears that few British companies are seeing the benefits of getting to grips with the issue of negative online material. Data from 400 UK small businesses** reveals that few UK companies choose to interact with customers who publish negative material about them. Despite the prevalence of online complaints, only 12 per cent of small firms have ever engaged with an online complaint.

Stephen Holford, Marketing Director, Fasthosts Internet, commented: “It is understandable that many business owners’ first instinct may be to shy away from their customers’ online complaints. However, addressing negative online material enables a company to learn about their customer experience as well as improve their customer retention and online reputation.”

Graham Jones, Internet Psychologist, added: “People who want to complain about a company are getting a sense of freedom and power as a result of social networks and feel encouraged to make such complaints. As a result, this is a growing problem for companies and is something they must do as a matter of routine. Interestingly, several studies show that when people have their complaints positively responded to they are more supportive of the business than they were before the complaint was made. Psychological research shows this is linked to the fact that when the complaint is responded to well, people feel as though they are being cared for, which produces positive emotional responses.”

Via EPR Network
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SEO-Peace.com Celebrates Christmas with $99 Link Building Packages

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Christmas is an expensive time, and the team at SEO-Peace play Santa, by giving the gift of savings back to their clients. The company have announced a host of very attractive Christmas offers, including link building packages for just $99.

Understanding the need for business to continue in the midst of an expensive upcoming Christmas season, Search Engine Optimization experts, SEO-Peace.com, have launched a very merry range of heavily discounted Christmas SEO packages.

Priced at just $99 a piece, there’s a range of useful services on offer to boost any business to the top of Google – with packages ranging from articles, blog posts and linkwheel – right through to high quality niche contextual posts.

To make the packages even more festive, each comes with a free link building gift – ranging from a free Squidoo to free articles and hubs. Of course, being priced so low, there’s more money left in the bank for any business owner to spend on Christmas.

Sunita Biddu, SEO-Peace’s CEO, explains why the company felt it was important to open such a generous offering:

“Christmas is an expensive time for even the most wealthy of business owners, and ironically it is also a time where business can be a little quiet- meaning less money is flowing into the bank” she says. Miss Biddu continues “So, we have created a series of SEO packages that are affordable, and heavily discounted. Our hope is that they will be gentle on the cash flow, and position businesses in a healthy ranking for the start of a busy 2012 season”.

SEO Peace is regarded around the world as experts in their field. The long-established company places a very special focus on fast-turnaround, value for money and unparalleled, solid customer service.

“We don’t want to be a company without a human face. Therefore, we choose to listen to each of our clients and treat them as friends. We find we can do better business this way, and provide a more useful service to them” adds Sunita.

The discounted link building services are sure to be popular, so ensure to book while spaces are still available.

More information about this offer and all of the company’s services can be found athttp://www.seo-peace.com/currentspecialoffers.html.

Via EPR Network
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Namesco Urges Customers To Switch To Annual Packages

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Leading Internet solutions company, Namesco, are urging customers to switch to annual payment packages on web hosting tools, as recent findings have shown consumers are generally paying too much for windows hosting packages on the open market.

A recent study, conducted by Namesco themselves, suggests that whilst monthly payment plans on web hosting products may seem cheaper, in reality users are ultimately paying more.

The company claims they could save their customers two months worth of monthly payments if they simply switched to their annual payment scheme- when upgrading their web hosting tools.

The study also showed that most Internet sites, selling web hosting products to consumers, displayed the price of their packages at a monthly rate, effecting purchasing behavior.

“It’s just a form of psychological pricing really.” said a spokesperson for Namesco, commenting on the findings. “Web hosting packages often seem cheap because the payment rates are shown ‘per month’ instead of ‘per year’. Of course, if consumers changed the price to ‘per year’ the price would seem a lot higher.”

“However, if consumers just did the calculations, they’d find that they’re in fact paying more when opting to pay on a monthly basis. We’re urging all our customers to switch from their monthly hosting plans to annual payments when they upgrade their web packages- they’ll get the equivalent of two months payment free.”

Customers, who currently own a registered Namesco account, can easily upgrade their web hosting package by logging-on to the company’s website.

Via EPR Network
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OutsourceMyProject Continues To Provide Freelancers With Work

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Several months after first launching, the outsourcing website, OutsourceMyProject, is continuing to provide freelancers with work. Enabling many different businesses to have their work completed by skilled individuals, the work costs significantly less than it would do when sourced from a high street company, which is why the concept has really taken off.

Loren Holland, Managing Director of OutsourceMyProject said: “My business partner and I launched OutsourceMyProject with an aim of providing a platform for UK businesses to engage with the UK freelance workforce, whilst also providing UK businesses with the opportunity to outsource their workload to freelancers abroad.”

He went on to say: “With more freelancers signing up to the website every day, whilst an increasing number of businesses are also posting jobs onto the site, it’s thankfully going from strength to strength. At a time where unemployment rates are continually rising, OutsourceMyProject is the ideal marketplace for unemployed UK workers to not only offer their services, but to be able to put their skills to use and be paid for it too.”

With shocking figures released today by the BBC, a record 1 in 5 people under the age of 24 are currently unemployed. Clearly backing the concept of outsourcing, and more specifically backing the purpose of outsourcing websites such as OutsourceMyProject, now is a great time for people out of work to be able to make money from home.

With a jobless rate of 8.3%, and a figure from October 2011 announcing that 1.6 million people are now claiming jobseeker’s allowance, the unemployment rate is the highest since 1996, whilst the total number of those who are unemployed is the highest since 1994.

To date, the concept of outsourcing professional services has been limited to large companies and organisations. However, OutsourceMyProject is a website that enables small and medium sized businesses, as well as entrepreneurs and individuals to be able to successfully find a freelancer and outsource business abroad.

Helping businesses to work within their ever-tightening budgets, OutsourceMyProject is a concept whereby significant cost savings are generated. This is most commonly through the outsourcing of work to low cost economies that have a highly talented skill base, such as various information technology roles and back office support roles to countries like India.

Freelancers firstly sign up to OutsourceMyProject, upon which they are then able to create a freelance profile and use the fair and transparent bidding process to secure the work that appeals to them, such as opportunities to become a freelance logo designer or as freelance graphic designers. With companies able to cherry pick the exact talent they’re looking for, and consequently choosing the freelancer they feel can carry out the job to the required standard, it’s a great way to build up strong working relationships, and is a concept that encourages competitive bidding from both UK and global providers.

With any cost saving method being essential in combating the ever-struggling economic climate in today’s society, it seems that outsourcing is an ideal concept not only for thriving businesses facing budget cuts, but also for companies who simply wouldn’t be able to survive without these savings in place.

OutsourceMyProject provides a sought-after service that helps UK businesses to cut fixed employment overheads whilst also cutting the costs of service providers too. For example, sourcing a competent web designer on OutsourceMyProject is considerably cheaper than sourcing someone at the same level from a high street company.

Thanks to the concept of outsourcing, the freelance jobs workforce is growing, with the possibility of working from home and making a living for yourself being much more of a reality today than it has ever been before. With the digital world growing too, as well as the increasing capabilities of technology continuing to pleasantly surprise us, perhaps this is the way of the future and something we will see a lot more of over the next year or so.

Via EPR Network
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OutsourceMyProject Gives Its Backing To National Freelancers Day

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OutsourceMyProject.com, the UK’s leading outsourcing marketplace, has given its support to National Freelancers Day which takes place tomorrow (23).

The event, which is being held for the third year running, is designed to celebrate the strength of the freelance sector in the UK and promote the use of freelancers by companies of all sizes, specifically with regard to how they can help businesses through the current tough financial environment.

National Freelancers Day has been organised by PCG, a group which champions freelancers, contractors and consultants across Britain. To celebrate the event, PCG has organised for a number of webinars to take place throughout the day aimed at helping experienced and novice freelancers alike. Setting up an effective business framework, finding and winning work, self-promotion and understanding opportunities and threats are all topics that will come under the microscope.

Loren Holland, managing director of OutsourceMyProject, said: “Highlighting the role that independent workers play within the UK economy is a great thing and the more that can be done to promote the work of specialists such as freelance web designers the better.

“Experience running OutsourceMyProject has shown us that more and more companies are recognising the benefits of working with freelancers, especially in the current financial climate when having access a wide range of skill sets without having to shoulder the cost of employing specialists on a full-time basis can really make a huge difference.”

Events are being organised to celebrate the day and promote freelancing around the UK and OutsourceMyProject has called on those working independently to get involved, share their experiences of freelancing and help to make the community stronger.

Loren added: “We’d urge all freelancers, whether they’ve been involved in the sector for five minutes or 50 years to take part in National Freelancers Day and if possible, attend an event in their area.”

Via EPR Network
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Findmypast.ie Launches Family Tree Builder

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findmypast.ie has become the first Irish family history website to offer its users family tree builder software, greatly enhancing its offering to Irish family history enthusiasts.

One of the most important elements in researching family history is the ability to form a visual representation of the years of hard work and research. Findmypast.ie’s free online application allows users to easily create a family tree from scratch and add some of 10 million records now available on findmypast.ie to their existing research.

When compared to using traditional software, findmypast.ie’s web-based program presents many advantages such as allowing users to access the latest version of their family tree from any computer and share their family tree with invited members of their family or fellow researchers. Some of the main features of the software include:
– Add, edit, update and delete relations
– Add partners, parents and children
– Members can view their immediate family, ancestors, descendants or whole family tree

This is merely the first step in findmypast.ie’s development of a fully integrated family tree program on which users will be able to store photos and historical references, helping to preserve the story of their ancestors. Future features will also include greatly enhanced social functionality, such as the ability to search other users’ trees and inviting other users to collaborate on a tree.

Cliona Weldon, General Manager of findmypast.ie, comments: “Our family tree building software is equally adept at helping the novice family historian and experienced genealogist alike to store all the names on their family tree in one place. We’ve made the web based program as easy to use as possible and most importantly it’s free.”

Via EPR Network
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Clickwork Media Has Search Visibility Covered For The Fitted Wardrobe Company

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The Fitted Wardrobe Company, a leading provider of custom fitted wardrobes, has today announced it has selected Clickwork Media, an SEO Agency based in Manchester specialising in providing tailored SEO training and link building services, to spearhead its SEO Campaign.

The Fitted Wardrobe Company, led by CEO Mark Assani, has a careful focus on not only providing bespoke fitted Wardrobes which integrate perfectly into their customers rooms, but also their lifestyles, too.

They offer functional solutions to customers in London and set themselves aside in the marketplace by offering a professional standard of service every step along the way, a service which is tailored precisely to the needs and wants of their customers.

“We chose Clickwork Media because we have become increasingly aware and fine tuned to the fact that our customers are searching for our services online – we know the customer-base is there, and we know that with the help of Gareth and the team at Clickwork Media, we will be better positioned to tap into the online market and generate more sales through our web presence.”

The Fitted Wardrobe Company is a brand with a careful emphasis on customer satisfaction – they provide customers with the ultimate storage solution, and one that is carefully crafted to meet their exact lifestyle and aesthetic requirements.

“We were delighted when Mark got in touch, simply because we have experience working in similar industries in the past, and we are very confident that we can help Mark and the team increase the visibility of TheFittedWardrobe.com in search and ultimately, make their website more profitable”, said Gareth Mailer, an SEO Professional at Clickwork Media.

“We know and understand the challenges which are presented in-front of us in this niche and we look forward to ultimately devising a strategy which will position TheFittedWardrobe.com not only ahead of the competition, but in a position to drive more sales. That, after all, is the ultimate aim for any SEO Campaign”.

Via EPR Network
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idott Choose Clickwork Media to Boost Online Visibility

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idott, a leading IT support company based in Manchester, has today announced that it has tasked Clickwork Media, an SEO agency based in Manchester specialising in link building services and Search Engine Optimisation Training, with its visibility in search.

idott specialises in providing a range of IT support services to clients based in Manchester– these services includes the provision of small business servers, cloud services and security services. Idott has set itself aside in a crowded marketplace by always putting the customer at the heart of IT support, and crafting it solutions according to customer demands and needs. It has tasked Clickwork Media with cultivating and expanding its already powerful offline reputation into the online space.

“The decision to choose Clickwork Media was a simple one – we have seen the results Gareth and the team has achieved for their clients, and we want to share in that success”, said Lee Wrall, CEO of idott.co.uk. “We know that our industry is a very crowded marketplace online, and more than anything else we were drawn by Gareth’s sensible and sales-focussed approach of targeting the granular level of search”.

idott.co.uk is a relatively new web presence but has been set-up with everything in place to maximise the potential of an SEO Campaign. “We are delighted to have Lee on-board. Above all else we appreciate the vision he has for idott.co.uk online, and we know that with the right strategy in place, he and the rest of the team at idott.co.uk can achieve the visibility they deserve from their web presence” Said Gareth Mailer, an SEO professional at Clickwork Media.

“It’s never easy starting with a brand new website in such a congested marketplace, however with Lee’s standard of service and his enthusiasm for developing the visibility of idott.co.uk online, we are really looking forward to making the campaign a massive success and developing a long-term relationship with the idott.co.uk team”.

Via EPR Network
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Warren Phillips Web Design Chooses Clickwork Media to Manage Online Visibility

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Warren Phillips Web Design, a leading web design company in Manchester, has announced today that it has chosen Clickwork Media, an SEO training and link building Company based in Chorlton, Manchester, to manage its visibility in search.

WarrenPhillipsWebDesign.co.uk has already established some visibility around some of its main target terms in search e.g. “web design Manchester”, however the decision to choose Clickwork Media was borne out of a desire to build upon this and really ramp up the effort to increase visibility around a wider range of terms.

“We decided to choose Clickwork Media for a number of reasons – we have worked with other SEO Companies in the past, but in this instance the decision was made not just on the quality of the link building packages, but also on the training element”, said Warren Phillips, CEO of WarrenPhillipsWebDesign.co.uk.

“We had seen Gareth and the team at Clickwork Media before, they came up for quite a few search terms when we were last in the market for an SEO Company – the decision was made after we got in touch, and we’re looking forward to starting what we’re sure will be a successful and mutually profitable SEO Campaign”.

WarrenPhillipsWebDesign.co.uk has undergone redevelopment over the last few weeks, and in particular the marketing strategy has been expanded with a revised focus on both Search Engine Optimisation and Social Media.

“We were delighted to hear from Warren and the team at Warren Phillips Web Design. One of the main things which made Warren stand out is that he got the “process” from the very beginning and he understands what needs to be done to launch and maintain a successful SEO Campaign”, said Gareth Mailer, Head of SEO at Clickwork Media.

“We are really enthusiastic about getting the campaign up and running and watching as the results unfold over the coming months of the campaign”.

Via EPR Network
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Findmypast.co.uk Reveals Unusual Discoveries From Cheshire ‘s Local Records

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Findmypast.co.uk has announced several unique discoveries found in the newly available local records from Cheshire. Workhouse records, parish registers, bishop’s transcripts and electoral registers from Cheshire went online for the first time ever recently in what findmypast.co.uk has titled ‘The Cheshire Collection.’ The collection is a series of over 10 million historic records provided by Cheshire Archives and Local Studies, covering over 350 years of history.

Some of the most interesting findings contained within The Cheshire Collection include:

– Lewis Carroll’s baptism was in Daresbury on11 July 1832
– An earthquake hit Cheshire on 18 March 1612
– Ancestors of James Bond actor Daniel Craig sold coal and were iron moulders

An unusual occurrence revealed in the records was the ‘peculiar marriage’ between Daniel Broadbent and Martha Cheetham in Mottram-in-Longdendale on 9 March 1780. Daniel was 23 and Martha was 83 years old. However, fate soon intervened to part this unlikely couple with the Mottram registers for the following year showing that Daniel Broadbent of Hattersley was buried on 30 May 1781. Furthermore, on 6 May 1776, 105 year-old George Harding married Jane Darlington, 75, at St Oswald, Chester.

These unusual marriage records show that, in the 18th century, one could find love at any age. However, the records also reveal a darker side of Cheshire’s past, telling several tales of death from the plague.

In 1625 the UK was hit by an outbreak of the plague which killed 35,000 people. Malpas in Cheshire was badly affected and the online records reveal harrowing accounts of those who were killed by the disease. One such example is that of Richard Dawson of Bradley, whose story, found among The Cheshire Collection, goes as follows:

“…being sick of the plague and perceiving that he must die at that time arose out of his bed and made his grave and caused his nephew to cast straw into the grave… and went and lay him down in the said grave, and caused clothes to be laid upon and so departed out of this world… he died about 28th august, this much I was credibly told.”

Family history records from the ancestors of Daniel Craig and the discovery of the Cheshire earthquake surprised Debra Chatfield, marketing manager at findmypast.co.uk. She commented: “These records make it possible for family historians and local history researchers to delve as far back as 1538, unearthing all sorts of unusual finds quickly and easily at their fingertips. Who would have known that Cheshire was hit by an earthquake in 1612 or that James Bond’s ancestors sold lumps of coal?”

Via EPR Network
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Freelance Workers Are On The Increase

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With an increasing number of companies struggling and having to make staff redundant and put recruitment on hold, it’s no surprise that more people are choosing to become freelancers, and that outsourcing the services they offer are in demand now more than ever before.

Simon DeGale is a freelance web designer who uses outsourcing marketplaces to source work. After leaving his full-time job in London to become a freelance web designer, Simon has never looked back. Not only does he now have an ideal work/life balance, but he also gets to spend time with his two young daughters; something he wasn’t able to do as much whilst working in London. Working in the freelance industry has also allowed him to take charge of his own workload and to secure exactly the type of work he wants to be doing.

One particular website Simon DeGale uses is OutsourceMyProject, a UK based platform that offers various different professional services within a freelance marketplace. To date the concept of outsourcing professional services has been limited to large companies and organisations, but OutsourceMyProject enables both small and medium businesses, as well as entrepreneurs and individuals to successfully outsource business both home and abroad.

OutsourceMyProject helps businesses decrease their costs significantly, through outsourcing work to freelancers and/or low cost economies that have highly talented skill bases. OutsourceMyProject works by offering both a transparent and competitive bidding process on each project, which results in competitive bidding from UK and global service providers.

With any savings that can be made being a lifeline for many companies at the moment, outsourcing is the ideal concept to use to make such savings. Companies and individuals that use OutsourceMyProject can perform their due diligence on each service provider by viewing each their unique profile and portfolio, along with analysing their ratings and feedback for past projects. With complete freedom and flexibility in customers appointing their preferred professionals, both parties are able to work on agreed terms.

With improved communication and technology making this type of work arrangement possible, freelancers are able to improve their offering. Last month’s employer survey by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC), JobsOutlook, revealed that the UK economy has discouraged permanent employment, leading more business owners to seek freelance, contract and temporary workers instead.

According to the report, 83% of employers said that their use of temporary workers will rise or remain the same during the next year, whilst four out of five of them said this will happen within the next three months. Only 49% said they expect to add to their permanent workforce within the next 12 months, and this is compared to 66% in the previous month. However, short-term permanent recruitment expectations currently stand at 67%, compared to 74% previously.

Loren Holland, Managing Director of OutsourceMyProject said: “These figures show that employers are waking up to the wealth of flexible human resources available to them. Rather than take on new staff on a long-term or full-time basis, specific projects can be completed by sourcing people with exactly the right skills and experience for each task. Whether a business is large or small, or even if someone working alone is looking for one-off assistance with a particular project, it’s possible to find a freelancer to offer invaluable support.”

A report published at the end of 2009 by Enterprise Nation, in association with British Telecom, found there were more than 2.8 million businesses operating full time from home in the UK, which represents a 16% increase from the prior year. Furthermore, home businesses contribute around £284 billion to the annual UK economy. Technology was cited as a key factor in enabling people to start and grow a business from home, with 81% of the Enterprise Nation survey respondents stating that technology is critical to the success of their home business.

These improvements in internet access have lead to a dramatic increase in the number of company employees working from home. Businesses are more flexible to staff working from home given the improvements in technology and business tools which give staff full access to servers and files from their home, such as cloud computing and drop box application.

Via EPR Network
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Invest In A Mobile App And See Your Company Grow

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With recent research conducted by Acquity Group showing that one in four retailers now have a mobile app, it seems that businesses are keen to reach a new mobile audience.

There are many benefits to be reaped by companies with mobile apps, mainly due to the fact that almost everyone owns a mobile phone these days. With companies increasingly using mobile apps and processes in their everyday working lives, time is saved whilst performance is improved too. Other benefits include increased efficiency in terms of communication; the ability to download the same everyday applications that are on desktop PC’s; constant internet access; and quick completion of tasks.

Mobile phones have made it possible to talk, text, email, watch television, watch films, and listen to music, no matter where in the world we are. Through businesses investing in mobile apps, work can therefore be conducted wherever we are, with there being no need to be in the office to carry out a simple task, such as reading emails.

Today we are hearing of more and more businesses that have developed apps. Giving employees the opportunity to access any of their work regardless of where they are, companies are therefore increasing their employees’ productivity as a result.

With some companies developing a mobile app, or in some cases paying for a mobile app to be developed, they are most commonly either an app of the actual business, or an app that will help the business to grow and be successful. As a great way to promote a company, mobile apps will only get better, as in months to come it may be possible for additional services to be sold through them.

A company that’s recently invested in a mobile app is the financial services firm Prudential. After launching new mobile tools in a bid to make it simpler for clients and business partners to access the company’s products and services, Prudential is definitely tapping into the previously unknown world of mobile apps. Not only that but Prudential Retirement, part of the Prudential Financial group, has unveiled a new website optimised for mobiles, which will allow account access to 2.5 million of its retirement plan participants whilst they’re on the move. In addition to this, the company has also invested in a retirement income calculator app for smartphones, which has been designed to allow users to calculate their estimated monthly retirement income, as well as their estimated monthly retirement income need.

The fact that mobile app development is becoming popular all over the world makes it easy for mobile app freelancers to secure work. Not only is app development a task that requires the knowledge of someone highly skilled within that particular area of development, but it’s also a task that’s costly and therefore needs to be completed correctly first time around. The opportunity for a mobile app developer to pick up work is great for those working in the freelance industry; with many freelancers often signed up to various different outsourcing websites in order to secure such work, as well as to ensure they’re contacted by those who want to make use of their skills.

OutsourceMyProject is an example of an outsourcing website that has many skilled people signed up to it, from freelance web designers to freelancer programmers. As a UK based platform that’s been created to open up the global market place for professional services across a wide range of sectors, OutsourceMyProject helps businesses and those in the self employed industry to decrease their costs significantly. A freelance mobile app developer, for example, can be found to complete work within a specified budget, without the need for companies having to compromise on the quality of work delivered.

Via EPR Network
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findmypast.ie Aims To Help The Diaspora Discover Their Irish Roots

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Findmypast.ie, the world’s newest family history site, is aiming to provide the 80 million people that are part of the Irish Diaspora with the easiest possible way of researching their Irish roots.

Findmypast.ie is a joint venture between brightsolid, the Scottish based experts in the digitisation of precious records who own and/or operate a family of sites including findmypast.co.uk, ScotlandsPeople.gov.uk as well as the Friends Reunited Group, and Eneclann, an award-winning Trinity College Campus Company based in Dublin. In 2009 Eneclann made it their objective to digitise what they felt was the greatest untapped Irish genealogical resource, The Landed Estate Court Rentals. They approached brightsolid online publishing with their proposal and from this, findmypast.ie was born.

Launched in Dublin in May by the Irish Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht Jimmy Deenihan, the new site aims to increase its current collection of records from almost 10 million to over 50 million within the next 12 months, making it the world’s most comprehensive online database for Irish family history research.

At the launch Brian Donovan, Director of findmypast Ireland, commented: “This is a major achievement. By teaming up with findmypast.co.uk and brightsolid, we are bringing Irish history to life for millions. These remarkable records are available online to researchers and family historians all over the world for future generations. We are committed to publishing family history records which provide more than simply names and dates, instead describing what your ancestors did and how they lived.”

One of the most significant set of records available on findmypast.ie is the Landed Estate Court Rentals records. Up until now, the biggest problem with the Landed Estate Court rentals has been access. Although used by professional Irish genealogists, the microfilm records stored at the National Archive of Ireland were difficult to use unless the name of an ancestor’s landowner was known.

With the permission of the National Archives and an agreement to allow free access to the digitised images in five years’ time, the 100,000 microfilm images were taken, digitised, indexed and placed online at findmypast.ie.

The critical information contained in these catalogues are the rentals, especially the lot descriptions. The details often include:

– Names of tenants
– Map reference
– Yearly rent in pounds, shillings and pence
– Day rent is due: labelled as “Gale days”
– Size of plot: in acres, roods and perches
– Length of tenure
– Observations

Previously, the amateur family historian would have been content to discover names and dates associated with their ancestors, but genealogists have now found new windows into the past. The Landed Estate Court records are an example of this as they provide not only names and dates but key facts about ancestors’ lives. These land and estate records include information on where they lived, who they lived with, what their lodgings were like and what the area in which they lived was like.

Via EPR Network
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findmypast.ie Publishes Irish Prison Registers Online

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findmypast.ie has launched the Irish Prison Registers 1790-1920 online for the first time, an untapped resource for those tracing their Irish roots.

The original Prison Registers, held at the National Archives of Ireland, cover all types of custodial institutions, from bridewells, to county prisons, to sanatoriums for alcoholics. They contain over 3.5 million entries, spread over 130,000 pages, with most records giving comprehensive details of the prisoner, including the name, address, place of birth, occupation, religion, education, age, physical description, name and address of next of kin, the crime committed, the sentence, dates of committal and release/decease.

The registers offer a real insight into 18th – 19th century Ireland and present evidence of a society of rebellion and social confrontation, where rioting and assault of police officers were everyday occurrences. They also reveal the rampant poverty and destitution that many faced, with the theft of everything from handkerchiefs to turnips.

The reasons for incarceration cover all types of crime but the most common offence was drunkenness, which accounted for over 30% of all crimes reported and over 25% of incarcerations. The top five offences recorded in the registers are:

– Drunkenness – 25%
– Theft – 16%
– Assault – 12%
– Vagrancy – 8%
– Rioting – 4%

The nature of these crimes was significantly different from those in England. Figures show that the rate of conviction for drunkenness and tax evasion was 3 times greater, and the rate of both destruction of property and prostitution were double what they were for the same time period in England.

The records are full of individuals who were arrested for very minor offences. For example, a record from the Cork City Gaol Court Book lists an arrest for Giles O’Sullivan (26), with no education and no previous convictions, on the 30th of March 1848 for being “a dangerous and suspicious character”. Other examples of the heavy hand of the law can be seen in the case of John Cunningham from Finglas (21) who was arrested for “Washing a car on a thoroughfare” and young Christopher Doyle (14) arrested “for being an idle, disorderly rogue and vagabond”.

With the Irish population averaging 4.08 million each year for this time period and over 3.5 million names in the records, it would suffice to say that almost every family in Ireland was touched by these records, as offenders, their relatives or victims of crime.

Brian Donovan, Director of findmypast Ireland, commented: “These records provide an invaluable resource for anyone tracing their Irish ancestors as during the period covered almost every household in Ireland had a convict in their family. These records provide such a wealth of information that they are sure to shock and surprise almost anyone looking for the missing links in their Irish family tree.”

Via EPR Network
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Facebook Could Soon Have a ‘Dislike’ Button

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Following recent speculation in the online industry, QueryClick comment on the news that Facebook have made a few changes to their Open Graph that could let users have the much wanted, ‘Dislike Button’.

At the recent F8 conference in September, a lot of publicity surrounded the announcements of some of Facebook’s biggest changes to date, such as Facebook’s new Timeline feature. However, this was not the only change to that users could experience, as developments have led to as a change in the Open Graph has opened up a whole lot of opportunities for users to express their opinions one their friends’ posts, say QueryClick.

Christopher Liversidge, QueryClick‘s Managing Director comments: “For a very long time, Facebook users have been able to ‘like’ their Facebook friends’ posts – this means that they could show their appreciation for something that a friend had posted on Facebook by hitting a ‘like’ button. But for as long as the like button has existed, users have been asking for a ‘dislike’ button, where they can show their disapproval or simply their negative feelings towards something they’ve posted. These recent changes to Facebook’s Open Graph have actually made it more possible for users to do this, thanks to Facebook’s new ‘Gestures’ feature, which follows their popular ‘verb any noun’ feature.

The ‘verb any noun’ feature gives users the chance to create their own actions, such as saying that they have ‘watched’ a particular movie, ‘listened’ to a song or alum or even ‘read’ a specific article online. While this may seem very different from ‘like’ and even ‘dislike’, this where ‘Gestures’ comes in because it gives the developers the power to create their own actions, such as ‘challenge’ and ‘cheer’, which means that a ‘dislike’ button may not seem that far away after all, say QueryClick.

Chris continues: “The ‘Gestures’ feature could really transform Facebook for users and developers, as it could open up so many possibilities for communicating with loved ones on the site. It would seem pretty logical that if developers can create buttons for specific actions, that a ‘dislike’ button could be within reach. While Facebook have yet to confirm that the ‘dislike’ button is to be added to the site, the ‘Gestures’ feature could lead to a new and different way of sharing information online, which is just fantastic.”

Via EPR Network
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