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In this article:\nWhat space do you need?\nWhat do you want?\nBudget, size, and other necessities\nA large part of starting a new business, or expanding your current business, is finding the perfect location. You may start out working from home, and eventually need to find office space. As you are looking for a new business space, several factors come into play and will affect what may or may not work for your company. \nTake some time to do your research and learn more about what you need for your business and what kind of commercial rental will work best. This article will go over several things that you should consider when renting your first business space. \nDo you really \nneed\n a rental space?\nFirst, determine if a rental space is even a necessity. You may think that you need to have a separate space for your business, but if you only meet customers off-site and don’t have any additional employees, do you actually need to pay for a commercial lease?\nAsk yourself these questions to help determine if a rental space is necessary for your business:\nIs running your business from a home office an option?\nDo customers need to visit you at your place of business?\nDo you have employees who need an office to work from or can they work remotely?\nHow much of your business is handled off-site versus on-location?\nIf you’ve determined that you do need a rental space, then continue down this list to learn what you should be thinking about as you engage in this endeavor. \nWhat features and space does your business need? What do you want?\nMake a list of the things that you need for your business and a list of things that you want. The necessities might include things like:\nParking for employees (if you have any)\nRestrooms\nGood security\nSize specifications\nEasy access for customers\nBreak room\nKitchen\nThese are the features that you are not willing to compromise on, so you should make sure each space you look at has these if you are considering them. \nThings that you want for your rental space might include:\nOpen floor plan\nGround-level entrance\nSkylight\nLots of windows\nIndividual offices for employees\nOther unique features\nThese are the things that you may need to compromise on when looking for the perfect space to rent. Make a list of both and keep these in mind as you begin your search. \nLocation\nLocation is critical, especially for retail, restaurant, or other business types that rely on foot traffic. A good business location can help you acquire new customers and make it easier for your current customers to find you. \nLet’s say for example you have a retail business. You’d want that to be in a central location that gets a lot of foot traffic and will catch drivers’ attention as they are passing by. This will help you get more walk-in traffic and will help with marketing. \nBut if you choose a location that is out of the way where people rarely visit, you may have a hard time drumming up new business without a really solid marketing plan and a truly unique set of products and services that will motivate people to go out of their way.\nThink about your ideal customers, where they spend their time, and what their needs might be for finding your business. Use that information as you look for the right location. \nbusy street with traffic for commercial space for rent\nAccessibility\nYour business space should be accessible in every sense of the word. If you have customers that come to your space, it needs to be easily accessible from the street, including a place to park and an entrance that is easy to locate. \nOn the other side of that, if you have a lot of walk-in traffic or employees with disabilities, your space should be accessible in that sense too. Is it easy for wheelchairs to access? Can people who are less mobile access your location? \nCheck your local ordinances to ensure you are compliant with any accessibility requirements, and if not, be sure to work with your landlord to bring things up to code before you sign your lease.\nSize\nSpace is a definite necessity. You should already be thinking about the size of the space that you need for your business. How many employees do you have? What is the customer capacity that you want? Do you have large equipment or inventory that needs to be stored on-site?\nAlong with these things, you also need to think about the growth of your business. How quickly do you plan to grow? Are you going to be in this space for a while and will you need to bring in more employees? The answers to these questions will largely impact the size of the space that you should consider. \nAmenities\nConsider the amenities that the building itself has and that the general location offers. What features of the rental space are going to benefit your business, your customers, and your employee?\nWhat amenities are located near your business? Is there a mall, a movie theater, a park, medical offices, playgrounds, or other customer-friendly venues? \nThink about your target customers and how they spend their day and whether or not these nearby amenities make your location more appealing and convenient to access. \nBudget\nObviously, you need to determine what your budget is for a rental space. You can’t rent a space that isn’t going to make sense for your business financially. \nGo over the numbers carefully before you begin your search and then strictly stick to your budget allowance for a rental space. Don’t rent anything that is outside of your budget, no matter how appealing it may seem. \nBut, that doesn’t mean not to \nlook\n outside of your budget (within reason). Landlords may be willing to negotiate on prices, especially if they have a lot of vacancies in their building. So don’t be afraid to reach out and see if you can negotiation a lease that fits your business plan and finances. \nAdditional expenses\nThink about any additional expenses that may arise related to your office space. These should be included in your total rental budget as well. \nCommon regular expenses include:\nInternet and phones\nParking permits\nSecurity deposit\nSecurity features (cameras, new locks, etc.)\nFurniture to fill the space\nNOTE: many landlords will also charge you for common area maintenance (CAM), your portion of the insurance on your space, and possibly a percentage of your profits, depending on location and your revenue. Be sure to get it all in black and white and discuss it with your broker or realtor.\nRead more: \nHow much does it cost to rent space for a small business?\nThink about the duration of your lease\nYou don’t want to get locked into something for a longer period of time than you plan on being there. \nThink about your five-year plan and how to plan to grow and expand your business. How long can you realistically remain in this first rental space?\nConsider how long you want to be in the space and find a lease agreement based upon that. Find a landlord that will work with you on this arrangement. Don’t settle yourself into something long-term if you don’t have a pretty good idea what the future looks like. \nConsider your market\nIt is important to educate yourself about your market. If you’re looking for a rental space for your business, you’ve likely done your market research and are familiar with what the market looks like for your industry in your particular location. \nYour market can widely influence what will make a location good for your business. Consider your target customer, where competitors are located, use what you know about your market to find a suitable location for your business space. \nInvestigate your landlord\nDon’t get yourself into an agreement with a company or individual that you know nothing about. Do your research on them to make sure that this is going to be a worthwhile arrangement for your business and that there aren’t going to be any surprises along the way. \nSome things to ask about your landlord:\nWhat do current renters think of them? (Ask for references)\nWhat’s their BBB rating?\nWhat is their credit like?\nSet up a time to meet with your landlord and ask them your questions to get to know them better and determine if they are someone you could easily work with. \nIf you plan on being in your rental space long-term, this will be a beneficial relationship to maintain. \nUnderstand your commercial lease\nBefore ever signing any kind of lease agreement, you need to fully understand what it says. You need to know what your responsibilities as the renter will be and what the landlord will be responsible for. \ncouple carefully studying commercial rent agreement\nPay attention to the lease terms and make sure you know what is required of you. The last thing you need is to get evicted from the building because you neglected something of import in the agreement. \nHere are some questions you should ask and understand within your lease agreement:\nHow long is the lease? \nHow much is rent? Will there be any changes in rent for the duration of the lease?\nHow much will rent increase when the lease is up?\nCan you sublease?\nIs there a penalty for vacating the space?\nCan I pay up front and get a discount?\nIs renewing your lease an option?\nWho is responsible for what? (i.e. repairs, insurance, utilities, etc.)\nWhat building services do you get? (janitorial, utilities, wifi, HVAC, etc.)\nWhat changes are you allowed to make to the space? \nAll of these items should be made explicitly clear within the lease agreement so you know exactly what your responsibilities are as a lessee. \nSecurity of your commercial space\nWhat is the building’s security like? Are there security cameras on site? Have the locks to your doors been changed since the last tenant? How often do police patrol the area? Is there any after-hours security? Is there an alarm system?\nFind out what kind of security is available so you can cover your bases by ensuring the best security for your assets and employees. \nLayout of the office\nAs you are looking at commercial spaces to rent, consider how you will fill the space. How will you lay out your office?\nSome questions to ask as you consider the layout:\nWhere will your employees work?\nWill you have your own office?\nWhere will customers be allowed?\nWill any space be off-limits to customers?\nWhere can employees take their breaks?\nWill you need a conference or meeting room for customers or business partners? Where will that be?\nThe condition of the building\nYou should have an agreement about the condition of the building when you move in. If there is a current tenant in that space prior to your arrival, how will the space be left for you? Will it need any renovations or repairs? Will you be responsible for that?\nIf you want a move-in ready space, be sure that it is detailed within your lease agreement. \nParking\nDo not neglect the need for parking. Whether you will only have employees working from your rental space or you want customers to come into your space on a regular basis, you need to know what the parking situation will be like. \nIs parking included as part of the arrangement for the rental? Does your space have its own parking lot? Do you get an allocated number of parking spots or an entire lot? Is there public parking? Will there be enough space for your employees and customers? Are you responsible for maintenance costs, snow plowing if applicable, etc?\nKnow what your needs will be for parking and be sure that the rental you get can fill those needs. \nOutside perception and appearance of your rental space\nThis is your place of business, and if you plan on inviting customers in for meetings or are providing a service or product in this space, it needs to be presentable. How will your customers perceive this rental space?\nIs the building well-kept and comfortable? Are there potentially strong/weird smells from nearby restaurants?\nYour space will send a message about your business to all who come into contact with it. Whether they are just looking at it from the outside or have the opportunity to visit with you inside, people will form opinions about your business based on your location. \nThe right rental space can enhance your small business marketing\nThink about how your rental space will enhance your marketing capabilities. Is it in a location where it gets a lot of walk-in traffic and can market for you in that way?\nWhat features of your location can you use to help market it to customers? Are there nearby amenities that compliment your services or products? How close are you to other regular shopping venues?\nMarketing is a huge part of growing your business so be sure to consider this as you are looking for your rental. 

Top things to consider when renting your first business space

In this article:\n5 advantages for your hair and nail salon of paying vendors and suppliers with a credit card\nBelieve it or not, business-to-business credit card payments are still in the stone age, for the most part. In fact most businesses still pay at least half of their bills using paper checks. Smaller businesses like local hair and nail salons including one-person shops and freelancers typically pay even more of their bills with paper, or the cumbersome “online bill pay” method where you have to have a different login for each vendor or business you have to pay.\n \n\n\nCredit card processors\n and \nthird-party payments facilitators\n usually charge between 2% and 5% to businesses that accept these payments, and for some vendors, these fees can eat up a significant portion of their profit—or all of it. \nSo small suppliers or local vendors may not be set up to accept your credit card payments for their services.\nWhy should you care? Because there are quite a few advantages for you to paying all of your vendors, suppliers, rent, utilities, etc. with a credit card.\nLet’s go over a few perks you can benefit from when you pay your salon’s bills with a credit card, and then we’ll talk about ways you can pay everyone using a credit card—even if they don’t accept credit card payments (nope, we’re not kidding!).\nYou may also like: \nWhat’s the cheapest way to accept credit cards?\n \nAdvantages to your salon of paying vendors and suppliers via credit card rather than by check or online bill pay\nNow let’s talk about some of the benefits to salons who pay vendors, utilities, suppliers, and everyone else, using a credit card, rather than sending paper checks.\n1. Credit card payments save time and improve cash flow for businesses\nSending a check can take quite a few days or even weeks to complete the process and clear a bank. When you pay vendors using a credit card, you speed up the process and free up cash for other business expenses.\n2. Increased purchasing power and business credit\nSince you don’t have to pay off your card balance for at least 21 days (and often longer, if your account is in good standing), you can effectively borrow business funding at 0% (plus you get perks and rewards) to pay vendors and suppliers. \nIf you need to spend a little more than you currently have in your bank account to order salon supplies or make improvements, a business credit card with an appropriate limit can make that easy. (Just be sure to pay it off quickly once you have what you need.)\nIn addition, as you regularly pay your credit card statement on time and use much of your available credit, you can increase the credit limit available to your business and improve your business credit rating, which can lower your interest rate for business loans and other expenses.\n3. Perks, miles, rewards, cashback, discounts\nNearly all credit cards offer perks and advantages to members, and for local, small like hair and nail salons this can be a huge asset. You might get a price break or increased cashback for using your business card to pay vendors and suppliers.\nSalon owners who rack up lots of airline miles using one of these cards can pay for a significant portion or even all of their business travel expenses, get discounts for small business expos, enjoy free concierge service, get free car rental insurance and discounts, and much, much more.\nSome salons use their cashback bonuses to improve their facilities, buy equipment or supplies, pay for employee team-building events, pay for salon maintenance, or even pay rent and utilities. The uses for rewards points/cashback bonuses are almost limitless. This is assuming the card you choose allows you to spend your cashback bonus how you choose.\n(Image)\n\n4. Paying all your salon’s vendors, suppliers, and bills with one card vastly streamlines your accounting process\nWhen you have to keep track of expenses and bills for your hair or nail salon, the simpler the better. If you can move all of your monthly business expenses and vendor payments to a single card, it’s much easier to keep track of, plus you get the benefit of your credit card statement to help you keep things accurate.\n5. It’s more secure than writing a check\nWhen you pay with a credit card, your issuer and processor help absorb the risk of fraud. (This is one reason they charge fees for the service.) When you mail someone a check, you are giving them your bank account (via the routing number and account number) and your signature. 

Why you should pay your hair or nail salon’s bills with a credit card

In this article:\nBuilding your own website from scratch using Squarespace\nThings to consider before you get started\nTutorial: 11 steps to build your business site\nBuilding your own business website can seem like a daunting task, but there are several great website builders out there that allow you to seamlessly integrate your brand and business into a professional-looking website. \nIn this article, we’ll walk you through the steps to create your own website on \nSquarespace\n. \nOne thing to keep in mind as you start building your Squarespace website: this isn’t a free solution. Squarespace has several different subscription plans currently ranging from $14/month to $49/month. Each plan has varying features and levels of support. (We’ll provide more information on this later on, too.) \nNote: pricing and details are subject to change.\nBefore you get started building your small business website\nBefore you jump in and start putting together your website on any DIY platform, it’s important to first map out a plan for your website. \nThis includes:\nDetermine the main pages that you want on your site (home/landing page, about us, services, products, FAQ, contact, shopping cart, etc.)\nDetermine which pages you want to be in the main navigation of your site (this is the main menu along the top of your site to help visitors find the information they need)\nWrite (or hire out) any content that you want featured on your website (we strongly urge you to write your own content and not to copy and paste from another website, as this can hurt your online visibility and may be illegal in some cases)\nDecide what content you will want on your home page\nGather other assets that you’ll need on the site (logo, images, videos, graphics, etc.)\nHave a few ideas for your domain name (your exact choice may not be available)\nOnce you have your plan in place, then you can jump in and get started. \nStep-by-step tutorial: how to build a basic website for your business\nAs we mentioned, we’ll be walking you through how to build a website on Squarespace, but most of these steps will be similar to other DIY website builders (Wix, Weebly, etc.) And no matter which site you start from, you’ll need to create an account before you can move forward with launching your new site. \nWe’ll go over the following steps:\nGet started and pick a template\nCreate your account\nStart building your site\nEditing your pages\nEditing images\nAdding a new section\nCreating a new page\nEditing the main navigation\nEditing you header\nPublish your site\nRegister your domain\nStep 1: Get started and pick a template\nOn Squarespace you don’t have to have an account in place before you are able to look at the various templates they have available. \nSo if you prefer to check out your options before signing up, let’s start here. Click “Get Started”\n(Image)\n\nFrom the next page, you can describe your business or website with the buttons or text field provided. This will help Squarespace show you the templates that are a good fit for your industry. Alternatively, you can click “I’m just browsing” in the top right corner to look through all of their template options. \n(Image)\n\nNext, you get to pick your template. You’ll have tons of options to choose from, and if you need help narrowing it down, you can browse by category (see the left side of the screen). \n(Image)\n\nWhen you hover over one of the template options, you can choose to start building your website on that template, or you can preview it first. We suggest looking at the preview so you can get a feel for that template and all of its pages before you start. \n(Image)\n\nWhen you preview the site first, you can see what it looks like on desktop, tablets, and phones so you get an idea of how the experience may vary across different devices. Click through each of these options and the different pages on the site to make sure you like it. \n(Image)\n\nWhen you find the template you want, click “Start with this design” in the top right corner. \nStep 2: Create your account\nIf you haven’t created an account yet, this is where Squarespace will prompt you to do so. You can use a Google, Apple, or Facebook account or continue creating an account with your email. We recommend using the email or Google account that is associated with your business. \nOnce you’ve selected your option, click “Log in” in the top right corner to log in and get started. \n(Image)\n\nStep 3: Start building your site\nOn the next page, Squarespace will provide a mini-tutorial/welcome message to help you get started. You can choose to skip this if you want, but it’s helpful information. \nOn the first page of this tutorial, title your site. \n(Image)\n\nThe next couple of pages will just be brief tips on how to edit, create, and style pages. \nClick “Get Started” on the last page. \nAs you get started, your page will look similar to this:\n(Image)\n\nClick “Edit” at the top left of the website template to start putting your site together. \nStep 4: Editing your pages\nYou’ll notice that as you hover over different elements (Squarespace calls these “content blocks”) on any page of the website, you can edit the text and images. \n(Image)\n\nClick in the box to rewrite the text and style it how you want it:\n(Image)\n\nYou can also choose to remove any content block by hovering over it and clicking the little red trash can icon:\n(Image)\n\nIf you want to add additional content blocks, you can hover over the left above or below the current elements and you’ll see a gray teardrop that you can click on to add something in that spot. \n(Image)\n\nYou can scroll through the different options to see what kind of content you can add.\n\n\nAs you can see here, we chose to add a line to help separate the text. \n(Image)\n\nTo update the size, content block alignment, and colors of any section on the site, just hover over the larger section and click the edit icon.   \n(Image)\n\nUnder “Format,” you can adjust the height of that section, the content width (how wide it stretches across the screen), and the content alignment. \n\n\nYou can easily change the look and feel of the site with just the click of a few buttons. \n(Image)\n\nUnder “Background,” you can choose what you want the background to look like: if you want an image, video, solid color, overlay, or for the background to stretch across the screen or have some white space around it. \n\n\n \n(Image)\n\nUnder “Colors,” you can select a color theme that you want for each section. If you don’t love the color choices available, then you can click the edit icon on the theme that is closest to what you want and customize the colors yourself. \n\n\nYou’ll be able to look through every possible element and choose the color that it should be. There are a lot, so this can feel overwhelming. We recommend sticking to one or two main colors for headings, links, borders, and backgrounds, and using one or two neutral colors (black, white, gray, tan, brown) for the rest. Choose colors that coordinate with your brand’s aesthetic. \n\n\n \n(Image)\n\nIf you want to rearrange the sections on any page, you can hover over it and click the up and down arrows to move the entire section. \n(Image)\n\nIf you just want to rearrange the content blocks within a section you can drag and drop them. \nStep 5: Editing images\nSquarespace is helpful in that it has tons of free and premium stock photos for you to choose from, and it has an image editor built into the site so you can easily adjust colors and the cropping of the image within the engine.\nTo edit the image in any section you can hover over the image you want to change and click the edit icon. \n(Image)\n\nFrom the content tab in the new window that pops up, you can change the image that is being used. You just need to delete the current image and upload a new one or search through the images that Squarespace has available. (They pull their free images from Unsplash.com.) \n\n\n\n\nIf you click “image editor” below the picture you just uploaded, you can make the following edits to your image if you need to:\nBrightness\nContrast\nSaturation\nSharpness\nBlur\nHighlights\nShadows\nCrop\nRotate\nFlip\nAdd filters\n\n\n(Image)\n \n(Image)\n\n\n(Image)\nClick “Save” in the top left corner when you are finished editing your image. \nYou’ll then be redirected back to your website. In the image window, there are a couple other adjustments you can make to your image to help style it the way that you want. \nUnder the “Design” tab, you can choose where the text resides in relation to the image (if there is any) and you can add a link to your image if you need to. The link can be a button on or next to the image or it can be in the image itself. \n\n\n\n\n(Image)\nUnder the “Animations” tab, you can choose if you want the image to have an animation when it loads onto the page. Play with these and test them out to see if any fit the tone you are going for on your website. If you have multiple images on one page, we recommend using no animations or the same animation for all of them. Too many different animations can make the site feel overwhelming or busy. \n\nStep 6: Adding a new section\nSimilar to adding new content blocks, you can add new section to any page for different types of content that you have. Just click the plus icon above or below any section to add a new one. \n(Image)\n\nThen you’ll get a popup window with all of your options. Click through the menu on the left to see what each of these items looks like and scroll through the different configurations available. \nAnd remember, you can always adjust the colors, images, and layouts once the section is on your page. \n(Image)\n\n \n(Image)\n\n \nWe added a contact section with a form to our example home page. \n(Image)\n\n \nStep 7: Creating a new page\nNext let’s create your pages! When you’re ready to make a new page, you can click “Done” in the top right corner to return to the main menu. \n(Image)\n\nFrom there, you’ll click “Pages” to edit or delete the current pages and create new ones. \n(Image)\n\nThe next menu will look something like this. If you want your new page to be linked up in the main navigation, you can click the plus icon next to “main navigation” and create a new page from there. You can choose between a blank page and start from scratch, or you can choose a prebuilt page layout to start from. \n\n\n\n\nIf you choose a page layout, you’ll have several options to choose from, depending on the kind of content that will reside on that page. You can also select “Add Blank” from here if you choose not to use a page layout. \n(Image)\n\nOnce you pick which option you’ll use for your new page, you’ll need to title it. \n\n\nIf you click the little gear icon next to your new page, you’ll have several settings that you can adjust, including SEO options, the featured image for social media, and other advanced page settings. \n\n\n(Image)\n\nYou can also use the general settings on any page to duplicate that page if you want the same layout for other pages (for example on services or products pages).\n(Image)\n\nJust make sure that whatever changes you make, you click “Save” in the top left corner when you are done. \nIf you added the page into your main navigation, you’ll be able to see it linked up there once you’ve created it. \n(Image)\n\nFollow the instructions for editing a page and editing images above to design your new page. \nStep 8: Editing your main navigation\nEditing the main navigation is super quick and easy. \nWhen you are under the “Pages” menu from the last step, you can click and drag your pages to wherever you want them in your main navigation. If you created any pages in the “Not Linked” section, you can also drag those up to the main navigation. \nWe recommend not adding more than 5-6 items here because it can start to get busy and wrap weirdly if there are too many items. \n\n\n\n\nStep 9: Editing your header\nWhen you are editing your website, you can hover over the header (from any page) and click “Edit site header.”\n(Image)\n\nFrom here, you’ll have the option to change the layout of the header, update the site title and logo, add different elements to the header, change the colors, and adjust the style. \n\n\nAt the very least, we recommend adding your logo and scrolling through the header layouts to see if there’s another layout you might like beyond the default. \n\n\n(Image)\n\n\nStep 10: Publish your website\nWhen you are finished building your website, adding all of your pages and organizing it the way you want, then it’s time to publish!\nUnder “Done” in the top right corner, make sure you save your changes, and then click “Done.”\n\n\nWe recommend taking advantage of this “Assistant” that Squarespace provides. If you scroll down to the bottom of the window, you’ll see a “Launch Your Site” option with a checklist. \n\n\nClick “See the checklist” to review final recommendations for publishing a complete and professional-looking website. \n\n\nOnce you’ve reviewed the checklist and are satisfied with all of your final touches, go to your assistant or the bottom of the page and click “Subscribe.”\n(Image)\n\nFrom here, you can select the plan that you want from Squarespace. They lay out all of the different features that each plan comes with and you have the option to pay annually or monthly (there is a discount when you pay annually). \nOnce you select your plan you will need to enter your payment information. \n\n\nJust one more step. You’re almost there!\nStep 11: Register your domain\nWith all annual plans on Squarespace, you get one custom domain free for the first year. You can choose to purchase your domain through Squarespace, or if you already have your domain from a third-party domain registrar, you can follow \nthese instructions \nto get it registered with your Squarespace site. \nTo find a domain through Squarespace, go to \nsquarespace.com/domain-name-search\n. Type in your desired domain name right on this page to search for the right domain for your website. \n(Image)\n\n \n(Image)\n\nYou can find instructions \nhere for registering your free Squarespace domain\n. \nOnce your domain is registered and you’ve purchased your plan, you can launch your site and start sharing it on your social media accounts, business cards, and other marketing platforms. \nGet your site out there so that it can start working for you and bringing in new customers. 

How to build your own business website (step-by-step walkthrough)

Getting a bad review on Yelp can feel like a punch to the gut for small business owners, especially if it was unwarranted. It’s frustrating and sometimes it seems like there’s nothing you can do about it. But wait! There might might be. If you’re hoping to remove a Yelp review, you’ve come to the right place.\nBefore we explore how to remove a review from your Yelp page, let’s back up. How often do bad reviews happen and what does a bad review mean for your small business? \nHow often do bad reviews happen on Yelp?\nIf you’re distressed about getting a bad review on Yelp, don’t worry, it happens all the time. According to Yelp’s Factsheet, there are over 171 million reviews on the platform and given that 16% of those are 1 star reviews, that’s roughly 27,360,000 awful reviews on Yelp. So if you get a scorcher, it’s okay. It’s part of the program.\n(Image)\n\nBut what if it’s a completely groundless review? Let’s see what we can do about getting it removed.\nIs it possible to remove a Yelp review?\nYes, it is possible for a Yelp review to be removed. However, business owners cannot directly remove them (reviewers can delete their own reviews). \nOnly Yelp can eliminate reviews from its platform. Never work with an individual or a consultancy that claims they can bypass Yelp’s platform to remove a Yelp remove, or a reputation management company that purchases fake reviews to boost your star rating. Short of requesting the removal of a definitively bogus or defamatory reviews, legitimate reviews from actual customers should be your only recourse in improving your star rating on Yelp and other review sites. \nWhile Yelp takes a somewhat “laissez faire” approach—they keep discretion mostly in the hands of Yelpers— there are reasons the Yelp moderators or recommendation software may remove a review. Keep in mind that one or more of these reasons will have to be true for your case in order to get a review removed from your page. Otherwise, the review—good or bad—will remain.\nPlus, research shows that negative online business reviews aren’t necessarily as harmful as you might think. Businesses with between 10 and 25% negative reviews make the most money!\n5 instances that justify the removal of a Yelp Review \nYou can have a Yelp review removed if you can prove that an undesired review is “questionable” by demonstrating to the Yelp team one of the following things.\nThe review is fake. Similar to \nhow Google detects and removes reviews\n, Yelp will dismiss any spam reviews (content posted multiple times from different accounts or many reviews from one IP address), conflicts of interest (reviewing your own business), and impersonations (representing the views of someone other than yourself).\nThe review violates \nYelp’s content guidelines\n. Yelp prohibits inappropriate, promotional, irrelevant content, and violations of people’s privacy, intellectual property.\nThe review is “not recommended.”\n Yelp’s recommendation software automatically filters out reviews based on dozens of signals, including lack of quality, unreliability, and questionable user activity. According to Yelp, 25% of reviews are not recommended. They’re filtered out and not displayed (and don’t affect anything) on your business’s profile. \nThe author deletes the review. The only other party besides Yelp that has the power to remove a user’s review is the user himself/herself. To remove a Yelp review, a user simply navigates to their account, opens their Reviews, selects the review they’d like to remove, and taps “Remove” (the trash can icon).\nLegal process proves the review is defamatory. According to Yelp, if a questionable or fraudulent review is NOT removed by Yelp’s moderators or recommendation software,  \n“you or your lawyer can obtain a final adjudication from a court of competent jurisdiction indicating that the review is defamatory”\n and \ncontact Yelp’s Support team\n.\nHow to flag and remove Yelp reviews that violate the terms of service\nIf the Yelp review you’re hoping to remove falls under one of the above criteria, you may have a chance of having it taken down. Here’s how to flag and report a review (keep in mind that reporting doesn’t guarantee a review will be taken down).\nNote: Before reporting a Yelp review, read this helpful article from Yelp  first: \n“When should I report a review?”\nLog in to your Yelp account (the “Report review” button won’t show up if you’re not logged in).\nFind the review you’d like to report. \nOn desktop, select the “Report review” button that looks like a flag.\n\nNote: if you’re on mobile, the “Report review” function is located in the “three dot” menu.\n\nAfter you report the review, Yelp will assess and analyze the best decision based on its content guidelines, which may take several days. \nFortunately, Yelp will email you regardless of their decision to remove or keep the review. Either way, you’ll hear back. \nWhat if I can’t get a Yelp review removed? \nAlas, if you’ve exhausted all possible options and you’ve found the negative review cannot be justified for removal and it must remain, there are some things you can do that will lessen its pejorative impact.\nMessage the reviewer privately and try to work things out. Without being a jerk, see if you can make amends, solve the problem, or redress the situation. The best case scenario is they edit, update, or remove their own review.\nRespond publicly and diplomatically. If the reviewer still won’t take down their review, respond to the review with professionalism and objective problem solving. Keep in mind that hundreds or even thousands of potential customers may see your response, so use this as an opportunity to bring in more business, not to shoot your business in the foot with an overly-defensive or emotional retort.\n

How to remove Yelp reviews

In this article:\nWhen should I get a loan for my small business?\nQuestions to ask before getting a business loan\nSmall business loan requirements\nTypes of small business loans available\nHow to get a small business loan\nGetting a business loan is a common process for many small businesses as they are starting up or looking to grow. Sometimes you just don’t have the capital to take your business to the next level, so you need a little help along the way. \nBefore getting a loan for your small business, make sure that your plan for return is solid and that you will be able to pay back the loan and keep your business going strong. \nWhen should I get a loan for my small business?\nTo determine when you should get a loan for your business, you need to understand the different types of loans that are available and have a purpose for your loan. \nGenerally, you want to acquire a business loan \nbefore\n you are in dire need of one, but close to the time that you are actually ready to spend the money. \nYou shouldn’t ever get a business loan as a last-ditch effort to save your company or on an impulse. It needs to be well-thought-out and serve a purpose to help grow your business. \nWe’ll guide you through some questions to ask before getting a loan, the basic loan requirements you’ll need, the types of loans available to you, and, when you’re ready, how to get your small business loan. \nQuestions to ask before applying for a business loan\nBefore you get a small business loan, there are several questions you should ask yourself to determine what your goals are for the loan and whether or not a loan is the best decision for your business right now. \nWhat do I need the money for?\nHow much money do I need?\nWhat does my credit history look like?\nHow soon do I need the funds?\nYou should also come up with a list of questions to ask the lender so that you know exactly what is required of you when it comes to acquiring the loan and paying it back. Some questions to get you started:\nWill you lend to businesses in my industry?\nWhat are the interest rates of the loan?\nAre there any other fees associated with the loan?\nHow long does the loan application process take?\nWhat will my payment schedule be?\nWhen is my first payment due?\nHow do I make payments for my loan?\nAre you rated well with the BBB? What is your rating?\nCan I speak to some of your past and current customers?\nDo you report payment history to the appropriate credit bureaus?\nAre there any penalties for early loan payoff?\nThese questions will get you started in determining whether or not you need a loan and will be able to qualify for one, as well as help you find the best possible lender for your situation.\n\nSmall business loan requirements\nIt will help you out immensely to know what the requirements of a business loan are before you apply for one. Set yourself up for success by making sure that you can qualify for a small business loan. \nHere are some of the basic requirements for business loans. Keep in mind that certain lenders may have different requirements and these are just a general guide. \nThe amount you want to borrow\nThe purpose of the loan\nPersonal credit score\nBusiness credit score\nHow long your business has been in operation\nA solid business plan\nYour industry\nType of business\nLicenses and permits that authenticate your business\nEmployer identification number\nCopy of your commercial license\nProof of collateral you wish to use\nAnnual revenue and profits for your business\nBank statements\nBalance sheet\nPersonal tax returns\nBusiness tax returns\nDisclosure of all debts\nAccounts payable and accounts receivable aging reports\nOwnership and affiliations of the business\nLegal contracts and agreements of the business\nNot all lenders will require every piece of information that we’ve listed here and some may have a few more items, but this will give you a good start to be prepared for the information that your lenders may ask for. \nBest types of small business loans: how to choose\nThere are several different types of small business loans. Carefully considering the questions we listed above and understanding the purpose of your loan will help you to determine the best type of loan for your business. \nHere are some of the most common types of loans that small businesses use. \nLines of credit\nBusiness lines of credits are very similar to credit cards in that they are open-ended and have specific limits. With a line of credit, you can withdraw funds, repay them, and then pull out more funds later as needed. \nCommon reasons for business lines of credit include managing cash flow gaps, increasing working capital, and purchasing inventory. \nThe best part about lines of credit is that you only pay interest on the money that you spend. Even if you are approved for a large amount, you only pay interest on the portion that you actually use. \nTerm loans\nTerm loans are the type of loan that most borrowers think of when they hear the term “business loan.” You are given a sum of money which you need to pay back, with interest, at regular intervals over a given period of time. \nThe thing to be aware of with term loans is that they need to be repaid promptly, so they aren’t a good choice if you need working capital. Term loans are best when you have a large purchase coming up (real estate or equipment) and you’re going to use all of the loaned funds towards that business expense right away. \nEquipment financing\nAs you can imagine, equipment financing is used to purchase business equipment like machinery or vehicles. The equipment you purchase with the loan is used to help secure the loan. \nsmall business owner with coffee roasting equipment\nEquipment loans generally have low interest rates and most allow you to finance between 80% and 100% of the cost. \nInvoice factoring\nInvoice factoring is the process by which businesses sell their unpaid invoices to “factoring” companies. These companies will give a cash advance that is generally between 70% and 100% of the invoice, and then will collect their payment when the customer pays the invoice. \nIf you have a lot of unpaid invoices that are hurting cash flow, this type of financing can be helpful. \nMerchant cash advance\nA merchant cash advance provides business owners with funds in exchange for a percentage of their income over a certain period of time. Payments are made daily as a percentage of the customer transactions that day. \nThese types of loans typically have high interest rates since they take a percentage of your sales, so we only recommend using these as a last resort. \nHow to get a small business loan\nNow that you’ve determined how much you need to borrow and learned what types of loan may be the most beneficial to your business, it’s time to put your plan into action. \nFollow these steps to acquire your small business loan. \nDetermine which type of loan you need\nBefore you can apply for a loan, you need to determine what type of loan your business needs. Do your research to figure out which types of loans suit the needs of your business best and then find a lender that can deliver. \nFind the best lender for your business\nThere are several different types of lenders out there who want to help your business succeed (and make some money in the process). Determine the type of loan you want will help you narrow down your list of lenders that you can choose from. \nCommon types of lenders that small businesses go to:\nCommercial banks\nLocal community banks\nDirect online lenders\nPeer-to-peer lending sites\nBank lenders with SBA guarantees\nafrican american couple meeting with banker for small business loan\nDetermine if you are eligible for a small business loan\nCarefully examine your personal and business credit history, revenue history, assets, and total debts. Lenders make judgments based on all of these things and how high of a risk it will be to give you a loan. \nAnswering some of these questions can help you to decide if a lender will make the judgment call that you want to hear:\nDo you make payments on loans on time?\nDo you have any outstanding debts that haven’t been paid?\nDo you have valuable assets that can stand as collateral?\nHow long have you been in business?\nDo you have any venture capital investors, strategic investors, or angel investors? (Having investors looks good to lenders)\nAre your financial statements in order?\nGet your financial statements together\nLeading on that last question, you should definitely get your financial statements in order before applying for a small business loan. Your lender will ask for these, so it’s vital to prepare yourself ahead of time and be well aware of how your finances look. \nLenders will carefully review your statements to analyze your cash flow, margins, accounts payable and receivable, and more. Be prepared for questions about your records, and keep your accountant involved in the process. \nGather detailed information and documentation for your loan application\nWe mentioned a list earlier of basic requirements that you should have prepared before applying for a business loan. Make sure you have all of those details together in order to make the application process go as smoothly as possible. \nResearch your lender and loan type beforehand as well to see if there are any additional, non-typical requirements by the lender. \nIt takes time to get statements and records together, so give yourself the time you need and don’t postpone the application process by delaying this key step. \nKnow how much you want to borrow\nYou can’t ask for a loan without knowing how much you need to borrow. The lender will want to know the amount you wish to borrow and how you plan to use the funds. \nIt can be good to ask for a little more than you initially planned for just in case you hit any hurdles while spending the funds.  \nDetermine the security options for the loan\nLenders just want to make sure they are going to get their money back (with interest), so they will have different security options to improve the odds of that happening. \nThis is often coined as “collateral” but may simply be a security interest to the lender on company assets. \nAnother thing that lenders will do to ensure this security on their funds is to get a personal guarantee from the business owner. It’s usually a good idea to avoid this when possible because this puts the owner’s \npersonal\n assets at risk as well as the business’s assets. \nmale hands signing personal guarantee for small business loan\nAnalyze the terms of the loan\nDon’t just blindly accept any loan because you need the money. You need to make sure the terms of the loan make sense for your business and that you can actually deliver on them.\nKey terms you should review with your lender and accountant:\nWhat is the interest rate on the loan and can it vary over time?\nHow often can you pay the interest?\nWhen is the principal interest due or is it spread over the lifetime of the loan?\nWhat’s the loan origination fee?\nAre there any other costs or fees associated with the loan?\nAre there limits on how the funds can be spent?\nAre there any security requirements?\nCan the loan be paid off early? Is there a penalty for that?\nReview your online presence\nLenders are going to perform their due diligence to ensure that your business is going to be a valuable investment for them. To ensure that your business is reputable and professional, they will likely check to see what your online presence is like. \nThis will include your website, social profiles, any online reviews your business has, and even the business owner’s personal accounts and social posts. \nIf there’s anything that you think might prevent you from getting a loan, make improvements and updates before you apply.\nApply for the loan\nOnce you are familiar with the process and know what type of loan you want, it’s time to put in your application. Depending on the type of loan you are getting, the waiting period for a business loan can be anywhere from 24 hours to 6 months (this time frame should be disclosed to you when you talk to the lender). 

Guide to small business loans: How to apply, best types, and tips

In this article:\nReasons to use online ordering/delivery for your restaurant\nThird-party services to try\nIn today’s fast-paced world, consumers want the convenience of being able to order their food online and even having it delivered to their home or workplace. \nWe’ve outlined several reasons why your restaurant should consider online ordering and how your business can benefit from offering this service, even for super-small, one-person restaurants, food carts, and pop-ups. \n1. Consumers expect online ordering for restaurants\nServices like Grubhub, Uber Eats, and DoorDash have changed the restaurant experience. Consumers have become accustomed to their favorite restaurants offering online ordering and delivery services, whether through third parties or directly through the business itself. \nIf you’re not offering online ordering and delivery from your restaurant, you are falling behind and letting the competition capture these customers who expect these services. \n2. More opportunities for new restaurant customers\nBecause more people expect and want the convenience of being able to order online and/or have their food delivered, you can gain many more opportunities to gain new customers with an online ordering system. \nProvide your restaurant with every chance to succeed and grow by capturing every opportunity you can to gain new customers. \n3. Increased revenue\nMore customer opportunities means more revenue for your restaurant. When customers are choosing your restaurant over competitors because you have online ordering capabilities, you are getting the profits. \nAll of the reasons listed previously and after this point also contribute to more revenue for your business. (However, pay close attention to the service fees from places like Grubhub and DoorDash. See our important caveats below.) \n4. Online restaurant ordering saves time for employees\nBy allowing your customers to order for themselves, you can save more time for your employees. This means they can spend more time preparing orders and getting them out quicker, keeping your customers satisfied and serving more customers at a quicker pace. \nOnline ordering keeps your employees off the phones and business moving. Also, if you partner with a delivery service like Grubhub or Uber Eats, your employees aren’t spending their time making deliveries to your customers. This allows them to pump out more orders and increase your profits. \nonline restaurant ordering\n\n5. Enhance your restaurant marketing\nOnline ordering systems can greatly enhance your restaurant’s marketing. You can offer online-only deals that compel consumers to purchase online. You can display fun promotions on your website and in your online ordering system that would be difficult to display on your in-store menu. \nEveryone loves a deal, and online ordering is a great way to give it to them. \nOnline ordering is also a great way to capture customer emails, and then you can remarket to these customers to bring them back to your restaurant the next time they are in a rush and want to order a convenient meal. \nGo deeper:\n20 free advertising ideas for your restaurant\n6. Keep up with (or get ahead of) the competition\nIf you don’t have online ordering capabilities and you aren’t using a delivery service, you are falling behind. \nThe restaurant industry is not slowing down—it’s only getting busier and more competitive. Gain every new customer opportunity that you can by providing your customers with online ordering and delivery. \nMany restaurants are still stuck in the dark ages and don’t want to adopt new technologies because they don’t like change. But change is necessary in this world of technological advances, so it’s time to get with it. \n7. More accurate restaurant orders\nOrdering through a drive-through window or over the phone usually comes with loud background noise, and it can be difficult for your employees to tell what a customer is saying, leading to dissatisfied customers when their order is wrong. \nWhen customers are putting in their own orders, the accuracy rates of those orders improves dramatically and your customer retention rate will improve with it.  \nonline food order and delivery\n\n8. Keep better track of customer data\nWith online orders, you get more customer data than you would with over the phone or in-store orders. Customers provide their own contact information and you can keep track of their orders and see what items on your menu get ordered the most.\nThis can help you to constantly improve your menu and make sure revenue is always increasing as you see which items perform better and which items are costing you more money. \n9. Expand your customer base\nOnline ordering and delivery services all you to expand your customer base. For most of the reasons we’ve mentioned above, you can gain new customers easily when they see that your restaurant offers these services. \nBecause of increased order accuracy and the convenience online ordering and delivery offer, your customer retention rate can go through the roof, too. \nOnline ordering becomes a habit for consumers, so once they’ve found a favorite item and have the convenience of their order being saved and ordering with the click of a button, you may have just gained the customer for life. \nOnline ordering systems to consider, and some caveats\nIf we’ve convinced you that online ordering is definitely the next step of advancing your restaurant to the modern age, and you don’t want to mess with trying to manage an online ordering and delivery operation yourself, then here are a few solutions you can try to get you there. \nGrubhub\nUber Eats\nDoorDash\nThe perks of these third-party services is that they are becoming very well-known, so customers will trust using them at your restaurant. Each of these services can offer sweet discounts and perks and contribute to all of the reasons your restaurant should have an online ordering system. \nThey integrate easily with your website and provide a user-friendly way for customers to order their food and have it delivered. \nHowever, be aware that these third-party order and delivery platforms are not cheap.\n With the commission, delivery charges, transaction fees, etc. often adding up to 25% and sometimes even 40% of the total cost of the meal. If you’re not careful, you could actually end up paying your customers to eat your food.\nthird party restaurant delivery cost\n\nThis could be absorbed as part of an initial marketing strategy to gain market share, but is potentially not scalable over the long haul, depending on your restaurant’s particular offerings.\nLocal restaurants often run on very thin margins, and while embracing online ordering and delivery can bring you new business, if you’re not fully aware of the costs you can quickly get in over your head.\nBut online ordering is definitely the way of the future, and any strides you can take will be well appreciated by today’s tech-savvy customers. As competition grows, costs will likely stabilize and there will be other platforms that may give you the marketing and sales boost you need without taking too much of a cut. 

74 articles found in “Operations”

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How to remove Yelp reviews

Guide to small business loans: How to apply, best types, and tips

9 reasons why your restaurant needs online ordering and delivery services

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