Category: Ideas

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5 Ways To Organize and Automate Your Law Firm

Posted on by Arturo
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Automating your law firm will do wonders for your business. With the help of the latest technologies and artificial intelligence, you’ll be able to make your law firm the most efficient it’s ever been. Read on to learn where automation will benefit your law firm the most.

1. Use Mailchimp for Your Mailing List

Is your law firm taking advantage of email marketing? This inexpensive method of marketing is essential for all businesses today. If you don’t already have an email list, now is the time to put together one that is efficient and automated.

With Mailchimp, you can easily create and distribute your newsletters, announcements, updates, and any other type of campaign you’d like to send your former, current, and future clients. Mailchimp makes it simple to send out triggered or automatic emails to your clients in Tampa, Fl. Instead of sending one-off emails manually, you can use automation to tap into effortless email marketing.

2. Take Advantage of Gmail Integrations

Love Gmail but don’t use it for your business? By running your business email address through your Gmail account, you’ll be able to access all of Google’s incredible email integrations.

With Google, you can easily automate your canned responses by creating a template for quick replies. Whenever you receive a common inquiry, you can rely on Gmail to automatically shoot out any canned response. For example, whenever someone emails asking for directions, inquiring about prices, or sending out sales pitches, you’ll never have to manually respond.

3. Schedule Social Media Posts with HootSuite, CoSchedule, and Buffer

Social media is more important than ever for growing your law firm. While many businesses try to take advantage of social media marketing, they often spend far too much time trying to understand the inner workings of social media. Instead of spending hours trying to navigate your way through creating content, posting images, and responding to comments, use apps like HootSuite, CoSchedule, and Buffer to make social media managing easier.

4. Manage Cases with Rocket Matter, MyCase, or Clio

Law firms that aren’t using case management software aren’t running their practice as efficiently as they should be. To keep your cases as organized as possible, start using the latest software to manage your cases. Many law firms use the likes of Rocket Matter, MyCase, and Clio to automate their caseload. Software like this organizes the cases for your firm, making it easy for any criminal defense attorney and their clients to access pertinent information.

Additionally, this software simplifies other aspects of case management including creating invoices, managing the calendar, and accepting payments. This makes the day-to-day work of running your law firm that much simpler.

5. Schedule Meetings with Assistant.to

Scheduling meetings can be a hassle. Going back and forth between clients to see what dates work for them is an inefficient way to fill your calendar. Using an app like Assistant.to will allow you to schedule your meetings by email.

Every attorney can use Assitant.to to fill in the times and dates they are available. The app will then send an email to your clients that they will use to browse your calendar and choose a time that works for them. As more clients choose their appointments, each attorneys’ availability will update accordingly.

Embracing technology is the first step in welcoming automation into your law firm. Apply these ideas today to take your law firm to the next level.

rusty-tweed

How Your Credit Score Affects How Much House You Can Buy

Posted on by Arturo

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In today’s mortgage market, credit score has a massive impact on loan eligibility, rate, and amount. Qualifying for a mortgage loan has gotten trickier since the housing bubble collapse in 2008. Lenders have tightened their credit-score requirements. In this post-bubble era, low rates require both a good credit score and a hefty down payment. Gone are the days of “No Income No Asset loans,” which were often available to people with modest credit scores. Now banks want to see long, solid payment history and a down payment that assures them the borrower has some skin in the game.

For potential borrowers, this isn’t bad news. The lax mortgage qualification standards before the housing crash created an unprecedented bust. This colossal miscalculation cost millions of Americans their homes and millions more the equity in their homes. Many homeowners worked for years to build the equity that vanished. Today’s mortgage market looks much more stable than the 2000s. For more insight into today’s real estate and mortgage market, read the Rusty Tweed website.

Though this may be good news for the stability of the housing market, it understandably causes some trepidation amongst potential home buyers. With exotic loan products long extinct, buyers can expect to face steep interest rate increases if their credit scores are sub par. Even those with on-par credit scores see increases if they lack a substantial down payment.

How your credit score affects how much house you can buy

Loan Amounts

Credit scores affect loan amounts because lenders use the debt-to-income ratio in determining the maximum loan amount, according to Lending Tree. Debt-to-income ratio is comprised of all of the borrower’s debt compared to the borrower’s stable monthly income. For example, if a borrower’s debt payments total $2,000 per month and his or her gross income totals $4,000 per month, the debt-to-income ratio is 50 percent.

When evaluating a mortgage application, the lender adds the mortgage payment on the property to be purchased to all the applicant’s other debts. This determines the maximum purchase price the lender will allow. If the borrower wants to purchase a property that would cause their debt-to-income ratio to rise too high, the bank denies the loan request.

Interest Rates and Down Payments

Credit score matters because the interest rate the bank charges ties directly to credit score. The higher the interest rate, the higher the mortgage payment. This can drastically affect the debt-to-income ratio. A lower interest rate allows the borrower to qualify for a larger loan.

One way to overcome a low credit score is to have a large down payment. Lenders often view customers with large down payments and low credit scores as better risks than high credit score customers with little money to put down. A strong investment strategy can help your savings grow into a large down payment, as financial advisers like Rusty Tweed can attest.

Improving Your Credit Score

Before applying for a home loan, Nerd Wallet suggests taking some time to maximize your credit-score potential. The first step is reviewing your credit history and credit score. If you have a lot of room for improvement, you may want to wait on that home purchase until you can raise your score. Here’s how:

  • Make payments on time
  • Pay off credit card debt
  • Avoid opening new accounts

On-time payments are the number one factor, but your revolving balance also means a lot. Credit card debt reduces credit score, especially if it exceeds 30 percent of available credit. It also increases the debt-to-income ratio. Credit scoring formulas favor older accounts over newer accounts. If you’re close to buying a home, keep your old accounts and don’t open any new ones.

While perfecting you credit, also beef up your savings. A bigger down payment saves on interest rate and increases the price range of the homes you qualify to purchase. It also saves thousands in interest payments over the life of the loan. There are many investment options to help you grow your down payment nest egg. With some disciplined savings and a close eye on your credit profile, you can save tens of thousands on your mortgage.

To find out more about how to successfully invest in Los Angeles-area real estate, visit the Rusty Tweed website.

Terry Bandy

Terry Bandy Shares What a Data Scientist Does

Posted on by Arturo
Terry Bandy
One of the jobs with the highest demand in the workforce today is the data scientist. This job has become increasingly important to businesses due to the expanding ability of technology to keep vast stores of records at an affordable cost.

So what does this job involve? What kind of person would do well in this career? What kind of skills are required to do the job effectively and what is a typical day like in this career? These are some of the questions we’ll endeavor to answer.

What Are Some of the Things a Person Does in this Job?

Data scientists collect and analyze large amounts of data for a given enterprise or business to troubleshoot various problems. They can also use this data to boost productivity and make general improvements in other areas of the business.

The massive amounts of data some large businesses can accumulate are sometimes referred to as “big data.” The two types of data that most often make up big data are structured data and unstructured data. To keep it brief, structured data involves the hard numbers like website traffic and raw statistics about product use. Unstructured data, which is the fastest growing form of data, involves less concrete information such as social media posts, customer reviews, and email.

A company usually employs IT personnel to handle the structured data that a computer can more easily process. The job of the data scientist is to analyze and act upon information given largely by the unstructured data available.

While there are IT aspects to this work, it often involves a more business-oriented brain-storming focus. It isn’t just about the organization of data but finding creative ways to make that data useful.

What Kind of Individual Would Enjoy and Thrive in this Career?

People that thrive on problem-solving using numbers and statistics will do well in this career. Having the patience to deal with some repetition in the workplace is important. This is a job for those that enjoy working indoors and sitting at a computer rather than being outside on their feet. An individual that would do well in this type of job is one that enjoys working with new technology and feels at home working with complex software.

What Kind of Skills are Required for the Job?

A firm grasp on mathematics and statistics is essential. An understanding of business is imperative when working in applicable jobs. The best data scientists also have the creativity and logical reasoning capacity to use data in new and unexpected ways to improve business operations and solve problems.

An innate ability to use technology effectively and an aptitude for learning new programs quickly are also important skills to have. Good programming knowledge is a must in order to manipulate programs effectively and create tools to deal with unique situations.

Lastly, data scientists need to have good communication skills to help others within the company understand their analysis of the data and be able to demonstrate how to effectively use this information. They have to work well as part of a team and have the humility to accept constructive feedback from their fellow co-workers.

What a Typical Day on the Job is Like

Most people will spend their days as part of a team working together to solve problems and achieve the goals of the company they work for. But some people, such as Terry Bandy, are self-employed. He reports that his typical day involves working from his home office mining data and reporting his results to clients or preparing presentations. Terry Bandy is able to manage his own home business while maintaining a balance between family and his work.

Those that work at a corporate office and report to a manager would experience a similar workload, but with specific variations dependant on the products and goals of the business, they work for. Knowing the goals and expectations of the business is essential in creating solutions that match the company’s vision.

Why This Type of Work is Important

As technology advances, the ability to access vast amounts of data in a short period of time has become readily accessible. Having a person dedicated to the analysis of all this big data and actively finding methods to use it in ways that improve company procedure is invaluable for many different types of businesses.

This career is needed everywhere data is an important component of success. Companies that market directly to consumers, businesses that sell to other companies, and organizations that process big data for research purposes can all benefit from the employ of data scientists. As technology makes it easier and cheaper to store and process large amounts of information the role of the data scientist will only continue to grow with time.

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Ideas to Increase Donations to Animal Shelters

Posted on by Arturo

Marty Stallone gives you some things to consider:

Take stock of your nonprofit’s current strategy and gather your development team to reflect on the organization’s mission, vision and goals prior to planning any further. Analyze the current state of the nonprofit in reference to funding practices.

Try delving deeper by asking questions such as:

• How long has your nonprofit provided its current services or resources to the community?

• Does your nonprofit have documented credibility within the community or cause?

• What kind of programs do you offer? Are these programs attractive to donors?

• Does your nonprofit collaborate with any like-caused organizations, community groups or federal, state or local government?

• Who is your target donor audience? Are there organizations within the community that share this same audience or have a similar vision and mission? Do they have a secure fundraising program in place?

• What is your nonprofit’s image within the community with constituents? With current donors? With prospects?

• Has your nonprofit’s current fundraising strategy been successful? How often are elements within the strategy updated or rethought? Are donors bored with your strategy’s tactics or have they come to expect it?

More Tips And Ideas

S – Specific. Be very clear on what you are hoping to do. Use exact numbers and concise phrases. Answer the who, what, where, when, why and how to make your goals quantifiable.

M – Measurable. How will you recognize success unless you measure your efforts? Whether it in dollars raised, new donors obtained or impressions made, make your

goals measurable … and then, measure them!

A – Attainable. Don’t set your nonprofit up for failure by working toward a goal that just can’t happen. Know the resources you have to work with, and address challenges.

R – Realistic. This one goes hand-in-hand with “Attainable.” While it’s nice to dream, setting goals that aren’t realistic are not going to help your strategy or team morale.

T – Timely. Goals have a timeline—a start and an end. Not only will this aid in measurement, but the progress of your overall fundraising strategy will be based on this timeline.

As you determine your goals, think about what gap the fundraising efforts will fill. Is this an annual campaign, a capital campaign, a holiday appeal or is there a specific program that is in need of funding? Does your nonprofit hope to receive a spike in gifts, or are you seeking a series of gifts from a donor throughout his or her life-cycle? These questions will guide in determining your nonprofits fundraising goals and outlining the overall strategy.

Once goals are established, a budget and timeline should follow suit. The budget and timeline should be developed with the action plan and tactics portion of your strategy in mind. A budget should outline the anticipated expenses for covering the costs of your strategy, and from what sources these costs will be covered.

Expenses may include:

• Staff time

• Printing, photocopying, equipment and supplies

• Postage and shipping

• Telephone, fax and internet usage

• Travel (for general coordination and to meetings with donors)

• Food and entertainment (during meetings and at special events)

• Professional services or consultants (sponsorship consultants, party planners, etc.)

• Promotional material

The timeline should address what needs to happen, when it will happen, how it will happen and who is responsible for it. Also take into account holidays, staff vacations or potential conflicting community and competitor events.