Category: Content

If you like to travel or are thinking of taking a vacation outside the United States, you will need funds. In the past, it was common for people to invest in traveler’s checks and have cash on hand to convert to the country’s currency to which they were traveling.

Today, it is much more common for travelers worldwide to use credit cards for their purchases domestically and abroad. Not every credit card company allows you to use your card internationally. Here are five credit cards you can use while traveling internationally.

1. Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card offers 2 miles for every dollar you spend or every purchase you make, plus you can get 10 miles on hotel reservations through the Hotels.com page.

After you spend $3,000 in the first three months, you can earn a bonus of 50,000 miles to open the account. When making purchases, the miles you earn can be redeemed or used to buy hotel rooms, cruises, flights, rent a car, etc. In addition to obtaining a credit card, you can receive up to $100 in credit, which you can use in airports’ Transportation Security Administration (TSA) security points. The interest on the card can vary from 17.99% to 25.24% APR.

2. Chase Sapphire Preferred

With the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card, you can earn 50,000 points after spending $ 4,000 on purchases during the first three months of opening the account. Points can be exchanged for cash, gift card, or products offered by Chase. If you want to exchange them for cash, the 50,000 points have a value of $500.

This card offers several benefits, such as the chance to earn 2 points on each purchase you make for trips. For example, you can buy plane tickets, eat in restaurants, reserve a hotel room, and receive points. Also, if you are not traveling, you can earn a point in every purchase you make.

On the other hand, you will not have to pay for transactions outside the United States with the Chase credit card. For example, if you make a $5,000 purchase abroad, you would not have to pay $150 for the transaction charges.

The credit card offers insurance for suitcases and air tickets. If your flight is canceled or you get sick, you could receive a refund of up to $10,000 per person or $20,000 per trip.

3. Wells Fargo Propel American Express

The Wells Fargo Propel American Express Card offers 30,000 additional reward points when you spend $ 3,000 on purchases in the first three months. The 30,000 points are worth $ 300 in cash. You can earn 3 points when buying meals in restaurants, gasoline, public transport, flights, hotels, etc.

The card has no annual fee, and there is no limit on the points you can get. Likewise, you can buy tickets for concerts, plays, and special events before they go on sale with the Wells Fargo Propel American Express credit card.

On the other hand, you will not have to pay fees for the conversion of foreign currency. The credit card offers protection for cell phones, as it helps protect your cell phone from damage or theft. During the first year, you will not have to pay interest, then the interest on the card can vary from 14.74% to 27.24% APR.

4. Bank of America Travel Rewards

With the Bank of America Travel Rewards credit card, you can earn 1.5 points for every dollar you spend anywhere. You will not have to pay an annual fee or charges for transactions abroad. The points you earn can be used to pay for flights, hotels, vacation packages, cruises, car rentals, or baggage charges.

If during the first 90 days of opening the account you spend at least $1,000 in purchases, you can get a bonus of 25,000 points, which can be exchanged for a credit, in the account statement, of $250 to apply for travel purchases.

The Bank of America Travel Rewards credit card offers 0% interest during the first 12 billing cycles for purchases. Then a variable interest of 17.24% will be applied to the 25.24% APR.

5. Barclaycard Arrival Plus World Elite Mastercard

By obtaining the Barclaycard Arrival Plus World Elite Mastercard credit card and spending 5,000 in the first 90 days, you can get a bonus of 70,000 miles. The miles can be exchanged for $700 for travel expenses or offers.

In the same way, you can earn 2 miles on each purchase you make. The miles you earn can be exchanged for gift cards, credit for travel and merchandise.

The card has an annual charge of $89, has no charges for transactions abroad, and you will not have to pay interest on balance transfers during the first year. According to your credit score after the first year, the interest could vary from 18.24% to 25.24% APR.

About Complete Controller® – America’s Bookkeeping Experts Complete Controller is the Nation’s Leader in virtual bookkeeping, providing service to businesses and households alike. Utilizing Complete Controller’s technology, clients gain access to a cloud-hosted desktop where their entire team and tax accountant may access the QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools in an efficient and secure environment. Complete Controller’s team of certified US-based accounting professionals provide bookkeeping, record storage, performance reporting, and controller services including training, cash-flow management, budgeting and forecasting, process and controls advisement, and bill-pay. With flat-rate service plans, Complete Controller is the most cost-effective expert accounting solution for business, family-office, trusts, and households of any size or complexity.

Choose whether you would back your new home and what amount initial installment you would make. The upside is that your installments would most likely be less, along these lines, expanding income. It is famous for some money-related masters nowadays.

It is anything but difficult to get up the creek without a paddle when purchasing a home. You think you will be alright extending your financial plan to manage the cost of a somewhat higher home loan installment, to find that that additional hundred dollars or so a month truly has any effect. And keeping in mind that the legitimate piece of you realizes that it costs more cash to warmth, calm, and keep up a bigger space, it is difficult to leave behind that additional area and the pleasant way of life it gets you.

While positive income considers a more prominent way of life and speculation openings, the drawback is that the more you finance your home, the more you pay in premium. If you are close as far as possible to your present mortgage, and you need to renegotiate for a long time, it will cost you. The other thought is the capacity to and the favorable position of securing low financing costs entering a time of rising rates.

Assess the market before downsizing

Consider the general land showcase. At the point when costs are high, it bodes well to cut back. At the point when prices are low, the turnaround is valid. It is because you will move your higher-valued home into a solid market and purchase a more affordable home in the higher demand. If you are buying a perfect home, it bodes well to move your littler home in a flimsier market and purchase a more luxurious home in that shoddy market.

Decide the size home you want

This progression truly helped me think about what measure house we would need to scale back. Make a spreadsheet or scribble down the inexact area of each room in your home. Try not to get excessively made up for a lost time in the accurate estimations. I am about 5’6″, so I gauge how frequently I could lay over the space to get a rough gauge. On the other hand, you can step it off.

In the following section, compose the size room you would enjoy. For instance, Larry’s office and our room are incredibly expansive. We need not bother with such space for these rooms, so I decreased the sizes in my gauge. 

If you do not generally require the room by any means, put a zero. Realizing this number will enable you to locate another homeless demand that suits your requirements. You should deduct this new area sum from your present area to get a thought regarding how considerably less space you will be paying to the warmth and cool!

Think about how much money you will make on the sale

You can assess a sum for a few things you would prefer not to fix before the deal; however, few things will arise as an issue in dealings. Be reasonable about how a lot of cash you will finish up with after all expenses are paid. It can impact whether it bodes well to scale down. Additionally, utilize a low gauge at the business cost you want to get. It is smarter to be wonderfully astonished than baffled.

Investigate the areas where you could happily live

Make a note of the spots you enjoy. For instance, I need to be inside 30 minutes of a decent quality supermarket, my magnificent all-encompassing chiropractor, and the congregation where I go to programs twice every week. Moving farther from the city, for the most part, brings down expenses. Yet, this rundown will enable you to limit your core interest.

We hope that this information is helpful for you when considering downsizing in real estate investment. Real estate investment is an excellent way to multiply your money, and many people believe it. It can work well in your favor with the right strategies, so make sure you do what is needed and do it right.

About Complete Controller® – America’s Bookkeeping Experts Complete Controller is the Nation’s Leader in virtual bookkeeping, providing service to businesses and households alike. Utilizing Complete Controller’s technology, clients gain access to a cloud-hosted desktop where their entire team and tax accountant may access the QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools in an efficient and secure environment. Complete Controller’s team of certified US-based accounting professionals provide bookkeeping, record storage, performance reporting, and controller services including training, cash-flow management, budgeting and forecasting, process and controls advisement, and bill-pay. With flat-rate service plans, Complete Controller is the most cost-effective expert accounting solution for business, family-office, trusts, and households of any size or complexity.

The pandemic revolutionized how businesses operate.  Many businesses turned towards online Marketing channels failing to see their efforts become profitable likely due to previously established e-Commerce and larger competitors with a well-founded online presence.  New businesses were not equipped to manage the disruption in marketing, and competition was uneven. The online presence of a company is a primary factor for success when an organization goes digital. Clients are cautious because of online scams and prefer choosing a well-recognized, trusted name.

If you want to begin marketing your product online, it is best to replicate your competition’s model rather than attempt something new. This reduces the risk of failure while simultaneously increasing your chances of success. Businesses have been struggling, and it is better to revolutionize existing trends rather than investing in radical innovation and attempting something entirely new.

Be Flexible with Online Business Policies and Follow Trends

A client should be the primary focus of any company, and policies should be equally flexible and customer-oriented. Investing in a new operating and marketing method is risky, so it is better to change policies accordingly.

Monitor Digital Marketing Trends

Online business trends develop according to the multidimensional circumstances changing per requirements. These patterns are studied worldwide on online portals.  Experts develop reports with the help of Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithms and data collected by different search engines, online stores, and social media handles. Here are some online business trends that you need to monitor and succeed during the COVID-19 crisis:

Track Social Media Influencers and Publications

Information and metadata are among the most in-demand and valuable assets for an organization. Therefore,  it is crucial to be aware of the latest information and trends. An up-to-date and well-informed organization is less likely to face an unexpected loss. Failures are inevitable, but you need to have a policy that helps generate new business ideas to market your products online. Many companies engage influencers to promote their products, but they may cost you a significant amount. However, you may also opt to publish your blogs on a popular website, which will help you gauge traffic and eventually converting those visitors into consumers.

Monitor Latest Podcasts and Videos

Following a trend does not mean copying it blindly. Information on social media and other sites often does not allow feedback, or most of the feedback is from non-professionals. That information is likely going to harm your marketing campaign. Podcasts and videos are different; most of the time, professionals themselves generate research and study to convey information in their videos and podcasts. It allows you to differentiate between a useful marketing trend and an impractical conspiracy.

Visit Top Business Blogs

Blogs are not considered trustworthy because of numerous sites posting inaccurate information on an array of topics. Conversely, there are trustworthy informational blog sites where writers post relevant, appropriate, and cross-checked data.  This information can help format policy that fits your business without making any immediate changes.

Use Your Network

Trends are not like any science or established studies because they frequently change and are difficult to understand. So it is normal to take help from someone you believe is more informed in a related topic. You can find many people within the industry and contacts that are easily going to tell you about the pros and cons of the trend, and then you can make operating decisions accordingly.

Use Analytical Tools

Everyone wants to be competitive, and the formula is to think outside the box. Take every piece of information seriously and analyze it slowly.  Then, prepare yourself to utilize this new perspective accordingly and develop your marketing strategy. The earlier you analyze a change, the sooner you can prepare and react, which gives you an edge over your competitors. 

About Complete Controller® – America’s Bookkeeping Experts Complete Controller is the Nation’s Leader in virtual bookkeeping, providing service to businesses and households alike. Utilizing Complete Controller’s technology, clients gain access to a cloud-hosted desktop where their entire team and tax accountant may access the QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools in an efficient and secure environment. Complete Controller’s team of certified US-based accounting professionals provide bookkeeping, record storage, performance reporting, and controller services including training, cash-flow management, budgeting and forecasting, process and controls advisement, and bill-pay. With flat-rate service plans, Complete Controller is the most cost-effective expert accounting solution for business, family-office, trusts, and households of any size or complexity.

The possibilities and ease of global businesses are rapidly increasing. Technology has dramatically affected international markets, business processes, and global trade through efficient communications, online money transfers, and reduced taxes.

Globalization is one of the most positive aspects of today’s world, but everything has advantages and disadvantages. The rewards and drawbacks depend on an organization’s decisions regarding international market tactics and how they will utilize their abilities to overcome hardships. Global business is fundamentally different from a domestic company. Therefore, before making any decision, you must consider your associates working domestically or internationally, international investors, foreign consumers, and numerous diverse national governments.

Before investing in any global business activity, an organization should invest time and capital to recognize and understand the prospective international market and its ways of operating. Only once this is accomplished can an organization set and pursue an appropriate business strategy and produce accurate results.

Four Types of International Business Strategies

International Strategy

International strategy is based on importing elements and resources internationally for use in your own country and similarly exporting materials and facilities internationally to other countries. Minor production industries mostly follow this strategy, especially those that are providing materials for further production to large enterprises. Moreover, this globalization tactic allows people in international business with numerous opportunities to operate, but this tactic also has numerous challenges. These challenges include obtaining manufacturing materials, exporting and importing, worldwide logistics handling, and guaranteeing obedience to overseas industrial and business rules and protocols.

Challenges are apparent, although it is the most followed tactic for internationalization. The reason is quite simple: the minor business cannot devote hefty budgets to globalization, and it is the most affordable way to begin international operations. As such, it is the most prominent strategy across the world.

Multi-domestic Strategy

Multi-domestic is one of the most effective strategies to globalize a brand but requires a significant investment to create a reliable international brand that exists globally. It can showcase goods and facilities provided to foreign consumers. However, it becomes a more difficult task when you target more countries since every country has its own tradition and culture, and you have to set an individual branding strategy for each nation. Sometimes you are required to redesign your product or service accordingly. After these expenses, it is then necessary to establish a similar structure of offices and logistics.

Global Strategy

This strategy is for large companies ready to invest heavily in accomplishing a broader global target.  This allows the organization to increase and enhance its influence over international consumers and generate an efficient profit through its homogenized goods and facilities. Organizations using a global strategy follow a similar format of operations but also have to create headquarters in every country to reduce costs and reach consumers easily.

Their nature of business is the same in every country of the world. However, they will still make some changes in menus or ingredients and languages to become prominent domestically in international markets. 

Transnational

This business strategy is a complex tactic to expand business globally. It is a blend of tactics involved in multi-domestic and global strategies. The company holds its assets and headquarters in its home country and distributes the franchise or name to multiple nations of the globe. It means offices in every country have their own operations, research, and marketing strategies that design everything accordingly.

The reasons this strategy is complicated are as follow:

• They have to recognize the premium organizational tactics for attaining buoyant profits and enhanced quality.
• They require several units operating within the company to work in several global marketplaces, and it needs a hefty investment.
• They need to deal with international legal matters, create jobs in your workplaces, build or lease a workspace and other offices.

Therefore, it is considered more complex due to the demand to reduce costs and create operations that encourage the business to enhance modifications essential for control and use in the marketplace.

Based on these challenges, larger businesses like Toyota and Suzuki Motors work from a transactional strategy. They conduct studies in each of their marketplaces and develop promotions and sales accordingly.

 

About Complete Controller® – America’s Bookkeeping Experts Complete Controller is the Nation’s Leader in virtual bookkeeping, providing service to businesses and households alike. Utilizing Complete Controller’s technology, clients gain access to a cloud-hosted desktop where their entire team and tax accountant may access the QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools in an efficient and secure environment. Complete Controller’s team of certified US-based accounting professionals provide bookkeeping, record storage, performance reporting, and controller services including training, cash-flow management, budgeting and forecasting, process and controls advisement, and bill-pay. With flat-rate service plans, Complete Controller is the most cost-effective expert accounting solution for business, family-office, trusts, and households of any size or complexity.

The comparisons are hateful. We always say that. But the truth is that everything depends on how they utilize those comparisons. Sometimes, measuring yourself with the other is the best way to grow and improve in what you do. Of course, we must be willing to recognize our mistakes. If you can swallow your ego and want to give your company a boost, this post interests you. Today we talk about benchmarking.

What is benchmarking?

Do not worry if you have never heard this term because the definition is straightforward. Benchmarking is a process of studying the highlights of a company, whether competitive or not, to adapt after our company and improve them.

Eye! The benchmarking is not snoop and copy what others do. In fact, with the global competition we face today, differentiation is key to increasing sales. Instead, this technique is about learning about the good practices of other companies to move towards excellence.

But what areas are studied? The truth is that benchmarking occurs in all types of businesses and sectors with vastly different purposes. For example, companies can apply it to the manufacture of a product to optimize it, distribute the items in a store, the shopping experience, and even the communication or advertising strategy.

The types of benchmarking

Your company, like all of them, also has excellent potential for improvement. Doing a benchmarking study will help you find new ideas, detect errors, and implement changes to be more successful.

This analysis is something that you can carry out yourself. The first thing is to know the three types of benchmarking that exist:

• Competitive benchmarking. As you can imagine, it puts the focus on the companies of your direct or latent competition. Businesses with which you are disputing customers or those of your same sector are already major reference companies.
• Internal benchmarking. Here the protagonist is within the company itself. Evaluate an area of ​​the company that is exemplary in adapting its practices to other departments. It is a type of study more focused on SMEs or large businesses with many employees.   
• Functional benchmarking. In this case, the account takes off the operation, practices, or processes carried out by other companies, regardless of their size or sector. For example, a footwear company studies the logistics of a textile company.

How benchmarking is done: phases.

Now that you know the different options, it is time to talk about the benchmarking phases. If you want to start this technique, follow the steps:

• Think about what aspects you are going to analyze. For that, you must ask yourself some questions…
• What does not work in my company?
• What goals would I like to achieve?
• What is my improvement priority?
• In what areas am I behind my competitors?

Select the reference companies. As I explained in the previous section, benchmarks are not always competitors’ companies. You must try to identify the referents in that aspect that you want to study. Stay with this phrase: learn from the best to be the best.

Determine what information you should collect. Imagine that you want to improve the communication of your company. What do you want to know about others? For example, it could be interesting to evaluate your activity in social networks, the existence or not of a blog, the newsletter, the keywords by which the position, advertise, etc.

Collect and analyze the data. To obtain the information, you will have to use the Internet help and the most traditional methods: interviews, visits to companies, customer surveys, etc. See the data on the paper as schematically as possible so that later you can quickly analyze them. When you have finished, review them, and write down the main conclusions.

About Complete Controller® – America’s Bookkeeping Experts Complete Controller is the Nation’s Leader in virtual bookkeeping, providing service to businesses and households alike. Utilizing Complete Controller’s technology, clients gain access to a cloud-hosted desktop where their entire team and tax accountant may access the QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools in an efficient and secure environment. Complete Controller’s team of certified US-based accounting professionals provide bookkeeping, record storage, performance reporting, and controller services including training, cash-flow management, budgeting and forecasting, process and controls advisement, and bill-pay. With flat-rate service plans, Complete Controller is the most cost-effective expert accounting solution for business, family-office, trusts, and households of any size or complexity.

According to the studies, more than 60 million users in the US do not understand or speak English. For businesses, it is crucial to reach out to every user and potential buyer to enhance their reach. And one of the most valuable ways of doing this is to launch a website. 

The content of your website shows everything about your business and gives a user option about the products and services you offer. Today more than half of the inline population considers visuals more engaging, and for that, you need to put videos of your products or services. If your content is in English, then it is no problem for a native speaker to understand. However, for those who do not understand a language, your video needs subtitles for interpreting the idea of the content. It would be best if you translated all the videos present according to your targeted language. 

Subtitles are the interpretation of your content and need to be appropriate to make everybody understand your offer. Hence you must hire a professional to produce video subtitles. Here we will discuss the importance of a professional to translate the video subtitles. 

What are subtitles?

Subtitles refer to the translation of what the speaker says in the video. Typically, they appear at the bottom of the video and helps a viewer understand the speaker. They are often in multiple languages, and you can specify the language according to your preference. For instance, if you look at YouTube videos, they have subtitles at the bottom, and they help a lot in understanding the content. 

Difference between caption and subtitle

You may be thinking about how you can get subtitles for your videos. An easy way to do it is to create one yourself. You can easily translate the video content if you know the targeted language and have plenty of time to spare. 

Alternatively, you can use the captions file. You can create a file using a machine translation tool. You can use these tools to create highly accurate subtitles. Remember that these tools cannot accurately translate the idioms or saying present in the English language. It is better not to rely on Artificial Intelligence but rather a professional language expert for accurate translations. 

Hiring the services of bilingual experts is the best way to get accurate translations and get the related information. Another advantage of bilingual experts is that they understand British and American English to make correct interpretations. As far as the expertise of professional translators goes, they know the way to translate well and interpret the dialogues correctly. Producing accurate translations is a skill that not everybody possesses, and only trained professionals should choose to avoid errors in your subtitles. Although their services may cost you, this is a price worthy of the effort as you will gain better engagement from the audience of the translated language. 

How do they make subtitles?

When making subtitles, the first step of a professional is to listen and watch the whole video. Then they proceed with describing the dialogue and voiceovers in written words. Some of them even translate the sounds and music present. 

There are rules of making accurate subtitles:

• Subtitles need to translate, spelled, and punctuated correctly.
• The subtitles need to show up on-screen long enough for a person to read. The display time will depend on the pace of the dialogue by the character. But if the speed is too fast, it can be a challenge for the translator. 

In addition to spell checking, translators have a responsibility to ensure that no word or line of a subtitle obscures the character’s face. Neither the subtitles should hinder any visual cues that are important to understand the scene. That is why professionals prefer placing the subtitles at the bottom of the video in one or two lines. 

Professionals can also make subtitles and translate the dialogues in foreign languages by writing the subtitles into the expression of a particular audience. Once completed, the translator usually sends these files to a mastering house where specialists transfer the final soundtrack in all required formats. 

Final word

The purpose of subtitles is to give users an understanding of the scene or the video, and for that, it needs accuracy. The importance of a professional comes into play here as they give accurate depictions of the words and dialogues to the language of your intent. This way, your visitors of another language can interpret the idea and engage accordingly.

About Complete Controller® – America’s Bookkeeping Experts Complete Controller is the Nation’s Leader in virtual bookkeeping, providing service to businesses and households alike. Utilizing Complete Controller’s technology, clients gain access to a cloud-hosted desktop where their entire team and tax accountant may access the QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools in an efficient and secure environment. Complete Controller’s team of certified US-based accounting professionals provide bookkeeping, record storage, performance reporting, and controller services including training, cash-flow management, budgeting and forecasting, process and controls advisement, and bill-pay. With flat-rate service plans, Complete Controller is the most cost-effective expert accounting solution for business, family-office, trusts, and households of any size or complexity.

In recent years, many businesses have switched to digital marketing while others remained loyal to print. It posed an enduring question: Is print marketing better than digital marketing?

Print marketing is a tried and tested method, and we know what to expect from its techniques. However, print marketing faces accusations of being an outdated and expensive version of marketing. In contrast, digital marketing is faster, more targeted, and cost-effective. But it is more tangible, and your campaign can easily get lost in the clutter of the digital world.

There are lots to consider when determining the effectiveness of each. In this mini-article, we will discuss some benefits of each and help you decide which one is better for you. 

Explaining the terms

Print marketing

Print marketing encompasses all the methods of promotion that do not utilize the internet. We have used these methods for centuries, and even though they have limited usage, their strengths remain. Standard print marketing techniques include:

• Billboards and flyers
• Coupons, mailed postcards
• Newspapers and magazine ads

We see hundreds of newspaper ads and billboards that are all part of print marketing methods. 

Digital marketing

Digital marketing, in a simple explanation, is the method of promotion through digital means such as the internet and mobile phones. Digital marketing has multiple types which SEO, SEM, PPC marketing, content marketing, etc. 

Digital marketing is effective as it reaches your targeted audience and potential customers irrespective of their location. Businesses switch to digital marketing because of its cost-effectiveness and ability for better reach without any geo-restrictions. 

Print Vs. Digital

Prominent features of print marketing

• Print marketing continues to evolve, and the myth that print techniques are outdated is a pernicious one. Print marketing has become with new technology such as Virtual and Augmented Reality (VR/AR). Also, advancements in print methods have lowered the costs involved. 
• Print marketing helps build meaningful connections by tapping into the emotions of a consumer. Consumers are likely to trust a brand that presents itself with high-quality print advertising. Prints marketing creates a meaningful and long-lasting relationship with consumers.
• Print marketing is good for local reach, especially for small businesses. Print marketing is super effective in creating local brand awareness and is an essential part of any on-the-ground marketing campaign. 

Prominent features of digital marketing

• Digital marketing has a broader reach as compared to print marketing. Advertising through digital methods can target both local and international clients for better outreach and lead generation. 
• Digital marketing offers diverse opportunities for you to engage with customers. Your audience can choose their way of engaging with your content. Online customers have a choice to go in or out of the conversation, meaning they take the initiative in seeking a brand or product.
• Digital marketing is significantly cost-effective as compared to its printing counterpart. The cost of online paid ads of Google or social media has become competitive but still cheaper than print advertising. 
• Tracking ROI using digital marketing methods is effective than print media. You have recorded data and results in analytics that you can use to make future predictions and shape the campaign accordingly. By harnessing the power of digital information, you can assess what exactly is working and what you need to improve. 
• Digital media circulates very quickly and can go viral in a matter of minutes. You have various methods to reach your digital audience and share your content very fast. By Ensuring that your content has social media links, you can increase your engagement considerably.

Which one is better?

The critical weakness of print marketing is that it does not have the interaction digital marketing offers. Digital marketing provides information to a prospect; it is up to them whether to engage or not. 

Moreover, print marketing is also very costly and has a lesser reach. Print media is not highly effective when it comes to reaching international clients. However, if you go for digital media, you lose a chance to make a lasting connection with the audience. When it comes to memorability and trustworthiness, digital cannot compete with print. 

Keeping these points in mind, the most successful advertising campaign consists of digital and print marketing. While these may seem like competitors to each other, a tech-savvy business utilizes both for maximum success. 

About Complete Controller® – America’s Bookkeeping Experts Complete Controller is the Nation’s Leader in virtual bookkeeping, providing service to businesses and households alike. Utilizing Complete Controller’s technology, clients gain access to a cloud-hosted desktop where their entire team and tax accountant may access the QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools in an efficient and secure environment. Complete Controller’s team of certified US-based accounting professionals provide bookkeeping, record storage, performance reporting, and controller services including training, cash-flow management, budgeting and forecasting, process and controls advisement, and bill-pay. With flat-rate service plans, Complete Controller is the most cost-effective expert accounting solution for business, family-office, trusts, and households of any size or complexity.

When it comes time to purchase a vehicle, you have to consider how you will purchase if you don’t have the funds to buy one in cash. You will need to get your vehicle financed, and there is more than one way to do it. Here are six ways you can finance your next vehicle.

Obtain a Personal Loan from a Financial Institution

It is the most common form of financing and is usually offered by banks, credit unions, and other lending institutions. To access these loans, you will have to show that you have good credit and that you will be able to return the money within the agreed period.

The interests and the total costs can vary greatly between the different loan providers, making the vehicle much more expensive. Keep in mind that the provider will pretend to secure the loan with one of your assets. By doing this, you may put your possessions at risk.

• Pros: you can process it quickly and dispose of the funds almost immediately.
• Cons: the risk and the interest rate can be high.

Obtain a Loan from a Friend or Relative

Another option is to get a loan from a friend, relative, or acquaintance instead of a credit institution. In this case, discussing the loan in detail and leaving everything in writing to avoid future problems is essential.

• Pros: it is unnecessary to perform any solvency analysis and has more flexibility in terms. The interest rate may be lower or even non-existent depending on your relationship with the person who lends you the money.
• Cons: You can put at risk a friendship or a family relationship.

Purchase in Installments

This installment method of financing is based on purchasing a vehicle and paying the loan in installments. It consists of signing a contract with the seller by which you agree to buy a vehicle in a certain period. You can use the vehicle while paying fixed monthly fees until paying the total price.

You will be the registered driver and responsible for insurance and vehicle maintenance, but the seller will be the legal owner until the last payment is effective. Afterward, the car will be wholly owned by you.

• Pros: sellers offer this alternative directly, and it is pretty quick and straightforward to process. Payments are flexible, and the deposit is usually small.
• Cons: You may end up paying more in the long term because the interest rate will generally be higher, which is also a drawback. Unlike flexible financing, you usually cannot change the car for another model once it is your property.

Flexible Financing

The largest car brands generally offer a flexible payment plan. It is an option similar to the purchase in installments with some differences. When you complete all the payments, you can decide to keep the car, return it without any commitment, exchange it for another model of the same brand, and pay the difference.

You could also negotiate a discount for the new model. This option is usually offered for specific models of the brand and not for all available cars.

• Pros: You can change your mind about the car you want to have at the end of the contract. You have the confidence that offers you a great brand of vehicles recognized in the market.
• Cons: Contract terms may be less flexible in negotiating than with an installment purchase.

Leasing Rather than Purchasing

If you are considering leasing a vehicle, you will have to make a monthly payment to the leasing agent to use the vehicle. The only requirement is that the mileage cannot exceed a specified limit. At the end of the contract, you will have to return the vehicle to the entity or buy it for its residual value (some dealers do not offer the purchase option).

• Pros: you will not have to worry about the vehicle’s depreciation and can easily switch to another model.
• Cons: the total costs of the operation can be high due to all the included services. A penalty may have to be paid in the case of exceeding the allowed mileage limit.

About Complete Controller® – America’s Bookkeeping Experts Complete Controller is the Nation’s Leader in virtual bookkeeping, providing service to businesses and households alike. Utilizing Complete Controller’s technology, clients gain access to a cloud-hosted desktop where their entire team and tax accountant may access the QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools in an efficient and secure environment. Complete Controller’s team of certified US-based accounting professionals provide bookkeeping, record storage, performance reporting, and controller services including training, cash-flow management, budgeting and forecasting, process and controls advisement, and bill-pay. With flat-rate service plans, Complete Controller is the most cost-effective expert accounting solution for business, family-office, trusts, and households of any size or complexity.

Not every person has a budget though every financially responsible adult should. For those that do have one, if you are not meeting that budget, you are likely overpaying for some of the bills or other items you purchase. When creating a budget, you should look for ways to lower your bills rather than cutting the sources out completely. Here are three budget items you can lower your payments on and how to do it.

Cable or Satellite Dish

Entertainment is the number one area most people overpay. Many get cable packages with hundreds of channels, and studies show that people generally regularly watch about seventeen of them. There are a few ways you can save money when it comes to cable.

Get a smaller cable package: Knowing that most people only watch a handful of channels, you should assess what channels mean the most to you and get a cable package that includes those channels and as few channels more as possible.

Use cable services you can customize: A few services will let you completely customize the included channels, so you can choose to leave out channels you never watch and keep only the ones you do.

Cut out cable altogether: Many have “cut the cable” and never regretted it. You can have multiple streaming services which generally carry many of the shows you love. If you add up the monthly subscriptions with access to hundreds of movies and shows, you can have them all and still pay far less than cable. Also, you can choose when you watch the shows.

Car Payments

Many people overpay for their car and often because car salespeople are good at what they do. You can, however, beat them at their own game with a few pro tips.

Never purchase payments: Often, when in the negotiation process, a salesperson will at some point ask you what kind of payment you can afford. Never give the maximum you can afford, and be sure they don’t come back and give you only the car payment and length of the loan. Even if the payments are comfortable, you may have agreed to pay significantly more than you should because of the length of the loan. Be sure to ask for the total cost of the car and the interest rate.

Get a Loan Yourself: Many people don’t realize that they can go to their banking institution and get a preapproved loan for a certain amount if they have decent credit. They can then look to purchase a car for that amount or lower using that preapproved loan. This is a way to get a low-interest rate and no hidden costs in the car purchase because you strictly negotiate the price.

Boost your Credit: The higher your credit score, the lower the interest. If you have a good or excellent credit score, it gives you the negotiating power to get the lowest interest rates on your car loan possible. You can sometimes save thousands on your car purchase by having a low-interest rate.

Utilities

Of course, there are so many areas of life we can save or be more frugal, but utilities are an area most of us can stop overpaying. Here are a few ways you can save on your utilities.

Cut your usage: We all have been guilty of leaving lights and electronics on when not in use, but you can also cut your usage in other ways besides remembering to turn things off. Many utility companies now offer thermostats built-in money-savers such as automatically adjusting the temperature for a few hours a day while working or less likely to need cooler or warmer air. You would be amazed at how that adds up.

Payment plans: Many utility companies have payment plans in which you pay the same amount every month at a fixed rate. This payment plan is generally an average calculated by the previous year’s usage. If you don’t use as much as you paid, you get the money back or get it as a credit on our account at the end of the year. If you overuse, you will have a balance due. Most find they will use less with this type of payment arrangement.

Conclusion

There are other areas in the budget you can cut down on, such as groceries and gas. However, these three areas of the budget are the simplest to get adjusted. While you may not be able to make significant cuts in your expenses, every little bit helps when operating on a tight budget.

About Complete Controller® – America’s Bookkeeping Experts Complete Controller is the Nation’s Leader in virtual bookkeeping, providing service to businesses and households alike. Utilizing Complete Controller’s technology, clients gain access to a cloud-hosted desktop where their entire team and tax accountant may access the QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools in an efficient and secure environment. Complete Controller’s team of certified US-based accounting professionals provide bookkeeping, record storage, performance reporting, and controller services including training, cash-flow management, budgeting and forecasting, process and controls advisement, and bill-pay. With flat-rate service plans, Complete Controller is the most cost-effective expert accounting solution for business, family-office, trusts, and households of any size or complexity.

When a couple comes together in one household, many adjustments must be made to ensure a harmonious partnership. One of the most challenging aspects to handle is the budget and joining of bank accounts. However, if you join yourselves economically, aware of the common mistakes couples make, you can avoid them. Here are five common mistakes couples make when combining their incomes.

1. One of the two takes the economic burden

Generally, when couples start planning the combined household economics, they go one of two ways. The couple will combine their incomes into one account, or they will have separate accounts and split the expenses 50/50.

When one person in the couple feels the entire economic burden on their shoulders, the uneven division of the expenses can cause tensions to arise. Unless it is agreed upon, one person should not shoulder all of the economic burdens.

How can you resolve the problem? To make an equitable distribution of the bills, the first thing is to know where the money is going. To gain this knowledge, it will be essential that, as a couple, a budget should be created. The budget will help the couple understand the economic needs of the household and will allow them to develop a fair plan for both partners.

2. Your way of spending affects your partner

Often, when we are single, we have a way of paying our bills or handling the income that works for us. However, when we come together as a couple and the income is combined, there can be vast differences in how each partner handles money and budgeting.

In some cases, this can be an issue in the relationship. If one partner is great with money and sticking to a budget and the other is frivolous, it can cause stress to the partner that is better with money. This stress can also put a strain on the relationship and, in some cases, end it. Most couples will say that they argue most about money.

How can you resolve the problem? Despite differences in how money is handled, both partners need to communicate and find common ground in handling money. It will be a compromise expected of both partners in the relationship. Like any other relationship issue, compromise is vital to a healthy relationship and positive economic status as a couple.

3. Economic contingencies

Many unforeseen issues can arise economically. There are so many economic contingencies that are not planned or folded into the budget. If you are not prepared for these contingencies as a couple, it can cause a disastrous amount of stress and worry.

How can you resolve this problem? The answer to this question is simple. You must have an emergency fund. How much you put into the fund will depend on how much you can save and what you want to be prepared to face.

Some will have the recommended $1000 emergency fund, while others prepare for more significant issues such as unemployment or other loss of income. In those cases, it is recommended that a couple save 3 to 6 months of each income. While there is no way to prepare for unexpected economic strains, having an emergency fund will give you peace of mind.

4. Wasteful Vs. Thrifty

In many cases, one person in the couple is wasteful, and the other is thrifty. This difference in handling your budget can be difficult depending on how far apart you both are on how you spend money or handle the household budget.

How can you resolve the problem? An excellent way to deal with the disparity of vision about some couples’ expenses is to establish common saving goals. These goals could be saving for a trip, buying a car, or having a baby.  No matter the mutual goals, it is crucial that you agree on the budget that will keep both partners happy and able to stick to it.

5. Talking once about money is not enough

When you come together as a couple, household economics should be discussed immediately. However, communication about money can be uncomfortable, causing one or both partners to avoid the discussion. This avoidance can cause strain on the relationship and economic stress.

How can you resolve the problem? Regular, even daily discussions of household economics can avoid economic disasters and stress over money. The most important thing is that there be regular communication about how to avoid a crisis.

About Complete Controller® – America’s Bookkeeping Experts Complete Controller is the Nation’s Leader in virtual bookkeeping, providing service to businesses and households alike. Utilizing Complete Controller’s technology, clients gain access to a cloud-hosted desktop where their entire team and tax accountant may access the QuickBooks™️ file, critical financial documents, and back-office tools in an efficient and secure environment. Complete Controller’s team of certified US-based accounting professionals provide bookkeeping, record storage, performance reporting, and controller services including training, cash-flow management, budgeting and forecasting, process and controls advisement, and bill-pay. With flat-rate service plans, Complete Controller is the most cost-effective expert accounting solution for business, family-office, trusts, and households of any size or complexity.