By Cheryl E. Cook
ClipboardsWhen I think of
Clipboards I am immediately taken back to my childhood when we used to go on fabulous school trips. One in particular that springs to mind is our Year 6 residential to the Dartmoor training centre. Surrounded by miles of woodland and countryside the place was idyllic. While staying there we undertook a range of physical challenges. Amongst this we went orienteering, we were split into groups of six and packed off for the day clutching our
Clipboards with our maps attached and our compasses swinging from our necks. It is a sad state of affairs that we would not be able to do that now because of risk assessments and stricter guidelines. I remember that not only did our
Clipboards provide us with a handy tool to keep our maps folded correctly but they were also made a very handy waaterproof seat as well! Unfortunately now that I am an adult living in the city the only associations with
Clipboards I have now are the ones being waved in my face by annoying street sales reps trying to persuade me to purchase a time share or take part in some ridiculous survey!
What does your invoice say?
Does your invoice simply list the products or services and the invoice amount? What about the application fee you waive? ...or the extra hours you don`t bill your client? My invoice used to simply list the products and services billed to my client and the rate. But, since I revamped my billing system, I`ve added the various products and services that I normally provide my client without charge. I list the retail rate and note "no charge" next to the rate. My client might have no idea I was providing products and services others would normally charge for unless I specifically list the various items. Just to give you a few ideas... We have an application fee others would charge anywhere from $20 to $50. We choose not to pass this fee on to our clients, but instead note it as "no charge." If you process credit cards at your retail location, a backup imprinter (aka a `knuckle buster`) is an item that some businesses may charge anywhere from $45 to $75. We simply provide this to our clients, listing it on the invoice as "no charge." If you provide a professional service, you may have made a conscious decision not to nickel and dime your client with lots of little fees. But unless you list those phone calls, or mailings, or extra hours you provided at no cost, your client won`t have a true picture of the real value you pro
Print West LondonThere are lots of local newspapers in West London and my friend who works for the local council is trying to organise a ?walking bus` to her local school. She is very keen on protecting the environment and believes that if more people walked their children to their local schools, that less damage would be done to the ozone layer. As she had canvassed some mothers outside the school gates and received a positive response to her walking bus project, she decided to publicise it further and try to get the event into
Print West London. She phoned the local newspapers up and had interviews with them to explain what the project was about. She also decided to get some flyers printed and looked around for suitable companies who
Print West London. She really got the local school behind the campaign as well and they kindly offered to donate some money to help with the cost of the
Print West London. Finally, the day for the walking bus came and, thanks to all of her efforts, the turnout was huge. The local newspapers were there and reported it and now she is going to organise one a week.
