Issue #23 - It's a wrap! 🎁
It's the final issue of the year, so we're going to take a look at some of the best tips and biggest business stories of 2021. We've also got two absolutely mega festive playlists. Feliz Navidad! 🎅
🦾 G O
How was 2021 for you?
2021 was another crazy year - Brexit, lockdowns, empty supermarket shelves, an energy crisis, rising inflation, and a new Covid variant to finish things off.
It was also the year we kicked off The Backbone, with Issue #1 hitting inboxes on February 5. For this final issue of the year, we’ve decided to throw some of the best bits into a bumper business newsletter.
Thanks to everyone that has read, subscribed, and shared The Backbone in 2021 - we hope business is booming over Christmas and New Year (and that you find the time to kick back and take some time out).
Now let’s get on with Issue #23 of The Backbone - the fortnightly business newsletter from Bionic.
📰 N E W S
Should people who work from home be paid less? 💸
Remember the huge panic at the start of the pandemic, when none of us could leave our homes but somehow had to keep on working?
Those who could work from home were urged to do so, and have continued to do so as we slowly crawl out of lockdown. Even if it’s meant spending almost every waking hour in a box room, employees up and down the country have continued to work from home/live at work*
But it seems the honeymoon is over, as an ‘unnamed’ government minister (they’re always unnamed) is putting out the feelers for an idea to cut the pay of civil servants who work from home.
Read more in Issue #14
🙏 W E L L N E S S
Time to give up the mid-morning brew? ☕
If you love a strong cup of coffee in the morning, did you know that a quarter of that caffeine will still be having an effect on your body 12 hours later?
That means having a mid-morning brew could stop you from getting a good night’s sleep. Here’s why it could be time to give up (or at least cut down) the caffeine.
Head to Issue #14 to out how caffeine affects your body and why it could be time to curb the coffee.
📰 N E W S
Fake Google reviews are hitting local business owners
If you’re a small business owner, then getting good reviews on Google could be key to getting new customers through the door. This is because good reviews will help boost your local listings and push them higher up the rankings than similar businesses in your area.
The trouble is, a new study from Which? - the consumer magazine - has found a growing number of businesses are gaming the system and getting fake reviews to boost their presence on Google.
And it seems fake Google reviews is a growing industry, a bit like ‘buying backlinks’ was in the early days of SEO.
Which? went undercover in January this year and signed up with some firms offering fake five-star reviews. You can read all about what they found, here.
Check back to Issue #3 for some simple ways to improve your local ranking on Google.
🤝🏻 T I P S
How you frame your message can make all the difference.
Sometimes perception is everything. Even in the case of giving to charity, according to the findings of a French study on donation habits. It found that the size of donations to children’s charity moneyboxes placed in French bakeries was influenced by the shape of the box:
🔵 For a round box, the average donation per day and per bakery was €0.57
🟦 For a square box, the average donation per day and per bakery was €0.59
💙 Donations doubled to €1.19 for a heart-shaped box
If you’re looking to build your brand or simply promote your small business, the framing of your message can make all the difference.
📰 N E W S
End of the line 📞
It’s hardly new news, but it might have slipped under your radar - the traditional landline will be no more from 2025.
This means that all UK landlines - both home and business - will be switched from the old analogue public switched telephone network (PSTN) to a fully digital network.
If your business uses ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network), this will be getting switched too.
It also means that any non-voice services connected to your phone line will be switched as well, including alarms, EPOS machines, door entry systems, CCTV, and fax machines (does anyone still send faxes?).
You’ll need to switch to VoIP to keep your landline - find out more, check out the Bionic VoIP for business page.
Read the rest of this story in Issue #7
🤝🏻 T I P S
Take control of your to-do list
Running a business can take up every waking hour (and more than a few sleeping hours too). If you’re feeling overwhelmed with everything, making a to-do list can help you prioritise and take a bit of pressure off.
But what if that to-do list then takes on a life of its own? Things can get even more stressful as the list grows - your productivity can suffer and you still don’t know where to start.
Check out Issue #8 for tips to help you stop thinking and start doing.
📰 N E W S
Are you languishing? 😐
Have you recently felt like you’re not quite all there? Like things are getting on top of you, but you can’t do anything about it because your focus and motivation have gone?
It’s not quite burnout and it’s not quite depression, but everything feels all a bit aimless and pointless?
Then you could be languishing. Find out more in Issue #9
Coffee shop owners at closing time on Christmas Eve 👇
🤝🏻 T I P S
Protect your business from complaining customers 🤬
Unfortunately dealing with a “Karen” or just a bog-standard complainer is never a particularly pleasant experience for either party. But there are ways to quell the quibbles and alleviate the abrasion between yourself, as a small business owner, and an irate customer.
Keep calm and keep your head
Focus on solutions
Stick to the facts, don’t get emotional
Keep records and protect yourself
Know your rights
Get more detailed info in Issue #14
🎧 L I S T E N
Playlist
Two festive playlists this week, both chosen by Glyn, chief customer officer at Bionic. First up is Glyn’s Cool Christmas Shortlist (or Sad Indieboy Christmas) - a break from the usual #Whamageddon featuring Eels, The Shins, Teenage Fanclub, and loads more, along with the low-key classic (that was robbed of being Christmas number 1) Caravan of Love by The Housemartins.
Next up is The Addictive Soulful Christmas Playlist - 15 years in the making and 360 songs long (that’s pretty much a full day of listening), it’s got Amy Winehouse, Macy Gray, John Legend, Calvin Harris, James Brown, John Coltrane, The Temptations and LOADS more.
📊 B U S I N E S S
Get your business costs sorted 💷
Our tech-enabled team will answer all your questions in simple terms, and help you find the best deal on business energy, insurance, phone, broadband, or finance. No jargon. No-fuss. #BeABionicBusiness 🦾
Check out more ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Trustpilot reviews
📩 J O I N
We want to hear about you and your business 🗣
💡 How did you end up running your own business?
😟 As a business owner, what keeps you awake at night?
🤩 What’s your proudest achievement as a business owner?
🤔 What advice would you give to someone starting their own business?
Leave a comment to get involved 👇
🔥 H A S H T A G
If you want to hear more from us, check out our Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn feeds.
Get involved by using the hashtags #BeABionicBusiness and #BionicBusinessStory.
🏡 H O U S E K E E P I N G
Check your folders 📁
If The Backbone isn’t landing in your inbox every other Friday, please mark this address as ‘not spam.’ If it isn’t in your spam folder, it may have been moved to another folder, like ‘Promotions’ or ‘Social’.
🚫 S T O P
Feliz Navidad 🎄
Thanks for making it to the end of another Bionic bulletin 🤝🏻
Please leave a comment and let us know if there’s anything else we should be featuring.
And don’t forget to send this link to all your friends and get them to subscribe ✌🏻
Have a great Christmas and New Year, and we’ll see you in 2022 🎇