Month: March 2017

Tips for Professionals in the Construction Industry

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Preparing a resume that is organized, succinct, and eye-catching is one of the best ways for construction professionals to launch a fruitful job search. Eye-catching resumes typically feature highly desired skill sets, relevant certifications, and impressive projects that were completed ahead of schedule and within budget. Below are ten simple resume writing tips that everyone in the construction industry should follow.

1) Tailor your resume to the type of position you are seeking. Employers are often searching for candidates with a specific set of skills. Review commonly required skills for the type of position that you are seeking and be sure to include references to your skills in those areas. Examples of specific skills that are frequently sought in the construction industry include:

Expertise in construction law
Incorporation of sustainable design strategies
Equal Employment Opportunity Employment expertise

2) Include the number of people you managed. It is particularly important to mention work experience that involved supervision of multiple teams of people or a large number of workers. Hiring managers recognize that there is usually a big difference between a candidate who has managed a team of 15 laborers and a candidate who has overseen 150 laborers.

3) Highlight relevant certifications. Industry certifications set professionally trained candidates apart from the pack and often instill confidence in recruiters and hiring managers. Examples of key certifications to consider including are as follows:

Certified Construction Manager (CCM)
Construction Safety Certification
OSHA Hazardous Waste Operations & Emergency Response (HAZWOPER)
Any CPR or First Aid related certifications

4) Highlight three or four of your most notable projects. Be sure to reference the budgets associated with each project to provide hiring executives with an idea of the magnitude of the ventures that you have overseen. You can also showcase your flexibility and breadth of experience by including a diverse collection of projects within the public, commercial, and residential construction arenas.

5) Showcase successful projects that were completed ahead of time or under budget. Continued construction labor shortages are leading to an increase in project delays and overspending. Completing projects ahead of time or under budget is more impressive now than ever, so construction professionals should not be shy about highlighting their ability to exceed client expectations.

6) Reference familiarity with special tools or software. Remaining competitive in the construction industry requires a commitment to learning the latest cutting-edge

Building Information Modeling (BIM) software
Computer-Aided Design (CAD) software
Familiarity with 3D visualization and architectural animation

7) Prepare an impressive portfolio of references. Include people who can provide feedback regarding your skills and aptitudes. Additionally, if a specific skill is required for a position you are actively pursuing, be sure to include references who can discuss your achievements in that area. For instance, if a position requires a candidate with a history of supervising 100+ workers, make sure that the references you include can speak about your ability to oversee multiple teams of workers.

8) Include your LinkedIn URL. A growing number of hiring managers and recruiters are looking at LinkedIn profiles to confirm candidates’ legitimacy and industry connections. Make sure that your profile is up to date and that there are not any consistencies between information on your LinkedIn profile and your resume.

9) Reference any awards or special recognition you have received. Awards that are relevant to the company or position for which you are applying are especially helpful. Examples of relevant awards include the following:

Associated Builders and Contractors, Inc (ABC) awards for excellence in construction
Construction Industry Safety Excellence (CISE) awards for safety improvements
Any local or state awards received for outstanding achievements in the construction industry

10) Seek the input of an expert staffing professional. Enlisting the assistance of a staffing agency is one of the best ways to ensure that your resume is professional and complete. A dedicated agency representative can also provide assistance with career coaching and other job-related activities. Ideally, the agency you choose should have decades of experience providing guidance to professionals within the construction industry.

The role of a well-organized resume should not be understated. By following the tips above, construction professionals can enhance their chances of grabbing the attention of hiring managers.

Reasons Why Using Outdoor LED Signs Is a Good Idea

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The use of LED signs outdoors is a great trend in today’s world. What you should know is that it has become a very important part of business today. The signs have actually been proven to increase awareness in the community as well as sales.

The outdoor LED signage can be applied for any kind of business, especially the medium and small sized kind of companies that don’t have a lot allotted to advertising. When a LED sign is in full color, then it promotes the business in a more effective manner regardless of the kind of business is in question. When electronic signs are compared to billboards, radio, newspapers and other traditional mediums, then they appear to be so much cheaper.

When you use the outdoor LED signs, you have in your hands a very powerful and very dynamic medium of advertising for the business. Your target audience and potential customers will definitely see it and take note.

Reasons why you should use the signs

Bright

Many people choose the signs because they are brighter than other kinds of signage. The bright signs attract attention and can be seen from a great distance, making them so attractive even in the sun.

Cost effectiveness

When purchasing the LED, it can be rather high priced. However, you will notice you save a lot in the long run. You will not spend anything when making changes to the display. The signage also consumes very little energy and you will need to do very little to maintain it.

Durable

Durability y is the other thing the outdoor LED signs are able to offer. The materials used to make them are not breakable and they do last a long time. You only need to do very few repairs as well as maintained. The LED modules come with a long lifespan.

Versatile

The LED signs are versatile. You can update them from your own computer just by a simple click. The changes can then appear immediately on the signage. You can also give scheduled messages.

Attractive

Use of visuals and graphics usually attract the attention of many and they are able to convert lots of information than would be the case if words alone were used. The aesthetic appeal of a place is also improved and this is why the signs are so widely used in airports, train stations and malls.

Less consumption of electricity

One of the main strengths of LED signage is the fact that power consumption is kept at a down low. LED sign boards consume less electricity than other signs that use incandescent bulbs and neon. It is therefore quite environmentally friendly as the carbon footprint is reduced.

Customized advertising

The use of LED signage helps one to keep pace with all the current situations like weather and so on. You can simply change the advertising message so as to customize it for the target audience. You can change the signs, text, messages and graphics at will so as to match the prevailing business goals.

Drive the Jaguar XJ and Get Swaddled In the Lap of Luxury

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Luxury doesn’t always mean expensive cars with uninspiring performance, it is more about comfort and unmatchable performance in its segment.

Beauty like a Unicorn

Mainstream automakers like Jaguar are always focused on customer satisfaction, not only for the buyers but also for the viewers or the guests on board. The compact luxury Jaguar XJ model is designed to grab eyeballs, the sleek looks with hand-crafted interiors and ambient lightings are epitome of status and class.

The XJ offers sheer driving pleasure without sacrificing on the luxury, the car sails through the imperfections in the road. The traditional British designs add zinc to its classy leather based interiors with heated and cooled massaging seats, making the XJ an automotive version of The Taj Mahal.

Herculean Power

As the name suggests, Jaguar is all about strength and adaptability, it has plenty of robust power in its segment. The Jaguar XJ has steroids running through its veins with a 5.0-liter V8 supercharged engine that cranks out 470 horsepower along with 424 pound feet of torque. The car breathtakingly shoots up to almost 60 miles an hour within 4.2 seconds. Even if you are the most aggressive of the drivers, before you stop admiring the interiors and properly steady the wheels, XJ will reach almost 100mph, of course with maximum safety!

Technological Advancements

As an automaker, Jaguar has always been on the cutting edge of the automobile technology. It’s easy to get captured by the luxury of the XJ, with features you never thought you are going to need, until you actually experience them. For instance, the seats are designed to pamper your body and adapt as per your comfort, it’s more like being hugged by a seat.

Jaguar XJ is a well connected luxury car, its state-of-the-art connectivity environment takes luxury to another level. The customizable touch screen located at the central console provides user-friendly interface with mind-blowing features. The navigation system is capable to recognize voices and learn your regular journeys, the inbuilt hard drive in the system can also store your personal data.

With so many features, Jaguar makes sure to keep the driving pleasure alive by letting you be the boss instead of allowing the technology to have all the fun. XJ has successfully balanced its technological aspects with modern day enhancements in automobile industry, where you get a room to explore what’s in the store for you every time you open the door.

Better Sleep Means Knowing These Top 5 Things About Your Bed Sheets

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Chances are we’ve all gone to bed, waking up either sweaty or miserable in the middle of the night. Most of us don’t realise that our bedding could be the culprit.

Reason why it is essential that you these 5 things in mind when purchasing your bed sheets to help you sleep better.

1. Natural, toxin-free materials:

Truth is your body breathes better with natural fibres. Be it organic cotton or hemp, there’s enough reason to buy a sheet set that does you good than any harm. Polyester and other materials not only make your body hot but are cloaked in a variety of chemicals that lead to acne, wheezing and a host of respiratory disorders including asthma among others. Volatile Organic Compounds found in petrochemical products have an adverse effect on your body.

To stay away from these, opt for GOTS certified organic cotton sheets which are well worth the small premium.

2. Colours:

If you get hot too much too often, chances are you’re sleeping on a multitude of dark colours. Opt for pastels or neutrals that leave your body calmer and your mind in peace before hitting the sack.

3. Weave:

Most people don’t understand that cotton itself is divided into a number of weaves. Weave refers to the way the threads are intertwined in crafting a sheet.

While Sateen has a luxurious feel and has a slight pearlescent sheen, percale is cool and crisp.

As a matter of fact sateen feels lovely in both warm and cold climates. However by culture, most in the western part of the world use Sateen more often than Percale while people in India by tradition use more percale.

4. Fiber properties and yarn

Did you know that sheets made of short, brittle fibers (read multi-ply sheets) feel coarse and brittle? The perfect analogy would be sandpaper. On the other hand, sheets with long-staple fibers in a single-ply yarn always, always feel heavenly because they’re smoother and longer. This also means that your sheets won’t pill unlike shorter fibres.

Do ask your retailer about whether your sheets are single-ply or multi-ply yarn.

5. Thread Count:

Don’t get fooled by this term for it most certainly means incorrect things to buyers. Thread Count is simply a measure of the number of threads weaved in a square inch and not the quality of the sheets. Most retailers inflate and put these out as 900 and 1200 TC which is nothing but a bluff.

A single-ply yarn sheet with 300 TC will feel much softer and lustrous than a fake 900 TC one.

Now that you have these handy questions to shoot to your salesperson, you’re bound to find the perfect bed.

Common Bail Bond Questions and Answers

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There is a lot to know about bail and bail bonds. Many people are very unfamiliar with the difference between the two, and the details of the industry and the services they offer. Fortunately, you have resources like these to help you understand what bail bonds are, what a bail bondsman does, and how to obtain bail in your time of need. In this article, we will cover plenty of frequently asked questions regarding the bail bonds industry, arrest warrants, getting out of jail, and more. Continue reading to learn about all of these topics, and more, when it comes to the indemnity industry.

What is Bail? What are Bail Bonds?

Bail bonds are formal documents that allow a release from jail for a person being detained on suspected charges or crimes. Bail is the amount of money or surety set by the courts. These amounts differ for everyone; depending on the crime, a person’s criminal history, and more. Once bail is set, a bail bond can be obtained so that a person can be temporarily released from jail to await their following court hearing at home.

What is a Bail Bondsman? How Much is a Bail Bond?

A bail bondsman, or bail agent, is the individual who operates a service that provides bail bonds for people who need to turn themselves into authorities, or need a release from jail. They operate by lending, or covering, the bail amount for those who cannot afford the entire fee upfront, in exchange for a non-refundable fee. Bail can be set as low as a few hundred dollars for minor infractions, and some in the high-thousands.

To get out of jail, a person has the option to pay this money as a deposit to the court, and then receives this money back when they show for their scheduled court hearing. The issue is that not everyone has this type of cash on hand, and cannot afford to pay the courts these amounts to get out of jail. This is where a bail bond agency comes in handy. They will pay the entire bail amount for you, in exchange for a fee.

These fees are regulated by the state, so bail bondsmen can only charge between 10-15% of the person’s total bail amount. So if a person’s bail is $5,000, they would pay a bail agency $500-$750 for bail. They do not get this money back. They are also obligated to sign a contractual agreement promising their return to court. If a defendant obtains a bail bond, then skips their court date, the bail bondsman does not get that money back. This is when they come for you.

Are Bail Bondsmen Bounty Hunters?

Bounty hunting is not a real vocation, and bail bondsmen are nothing of the sort. If a person skips bail, the bail bondsmen will simply track them down with the information they have, and give police a heads up on the whereabouts of a fugitive. They do this in order to get their bond money back. They will send police to your home, office, work, daycare, gym, friend’s house, and any other place they think you may be. Before they come looking for the fugitive, they will contact the person who signed for the bail contract, and pursue recompense from them. Since most individuals do not wish for their loved ones to get stuck paying thousands of dollars, most people choose to show up for court. An arrest warrant is issued for anyone who skips a court date, so police can arrest them anywhere at any time; such as routine traffic stops, the BMV, the post office, border crossing, and more.

Why Should We Hire Family Law Practice

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Family law can be defined as a practice that is closely concerned with the legal issues that have to do with family relationships like child custody, divorce and adoption. The lawyers who practice in this area usually deal with divorce, child support and so on. There are those that choose to specialize in emancipation, paternity, and adoption or any matters that relate to divorce. Formal requirements have to be reasonable and that is usually determined by the state. This includes things like legal capacity, age and same sex marriages. The state is also responsible for setting out the procedures and the rules that govern divorce as well as other matters related to family law.

Important terms to family lawyers

Emancipation: this is a process of the court whereby a person or a minor is allowed to be self-supporting. This means that he assumes the responsibilities of an adult for his welfare and won’t be under the parents.

Marital property: this is the kind of property that was acquired by a spouse while they were married and that needs to be divided when they divorce.

Alimony: this is the allowance that is given to a spouse for support when they are legally divorced or separated or when they are awaiting either of the two.

Paternity: the descent or origin from father. Establishing paternity means that you are confirming who the biological father of the child is.

Prenuptial agreement: this is an agreement that is usually made between two parties before they get married. Here, future rights to property are given in case death or divorce occurs.

Why hire a family lawyer?

Many of the family lawyers offer their services during divorce proceedings and other matters that may be related to divorce. Family law is a broad practice however, and it includes areas like reproductive rights and foster care. Some of the reasons as to why you may need a family lawyer include:

Divorce: every partner hires a lawmaker who is responsible for the creation of a settlement plan so as not to go top trail. They are usually people who can be able to divide any marital property, proposing child custody scenarios, and also calculating spousal support.

Child support/ child custody: the court orders and agreements on settlement involve support and custody and can be included in divorce cases that are larger. These can be revisited if any conditions change like the financial standing of a parent.

Paternity: sometimes a mother can file such a case as they try to secure some child support payments from the father. Also, a father can file a paternity case so as to be able to have a kind of relationship with a child. DNA testing is used for the determination.

Adoption: foster care and adoption is both complex. The process can differ and usually factors like where a child is from and state laws can affect the process. A family lawyer can be able to handle all these. A foster parent can sometimes adopt a foster child. The entire foster process sometimes doesn’t require any kind of legal representation.

Why Is the Backlink Audit Critical for SEO Success?

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So, you own a website. It’s well-optimized. The content is relevant. You’ve used website audit tools to deck it up. You are ready for a thorough Google indexing. You have nothing to fear. Right?

Not so soon!

Have you ever used backlinks? Ever used a third party SEO service? Did you entirely avoid looking at your backlink portfolio?

If you just nodded yes to any of the above mentioned three questions, snap to attention! Your website can be penalized anytime now. You need a backlink audit.

Wait! Backlinks and Penalty? How Does That Work?

A link to your website on any web page is a backlink. And it’s significant for SEO.

Some time ago, Google was focussed on the number of backlinks- the higher, the better. Cheap SEO service providers began creating a fake blog/page to link to all their clients. The resultant Private Blog Network increased backlink number for websites and Google, in its sheer innocence, believed said sites to be reliable sources of info.

Because if so many sites are linking back to your website regarding ‘Food for diabetes,’ you must be a diabetes diet expert, right?

Well, the quantity-only approach began producing spammy search results. So Google decided to refine its filters.

Now, If a genuine, reputed website links to you, your authenticity improves. If many powerful, relevant web posts link back to you, your Search Engine Results Pages rank (SERP) takes a hike.

Do you see what I’m working towards? Excellent quality and quantity of backlinks- better SERP- improved reputation- Google considers you credible.

Poor backlinking- your website sinks like the Titanic and Google slaps a fine on you.

Okay! What Happens If Google Fines/Blocks/De-Ranks You?

The backlink popularity of your website makes up for about 22% of your Google Rank.

It means any shady, irrelevant, pointless websites that link back to you will be considered by Google. And that’ll affect your index rank.

If Google finds you guilty and puts a Manual Action Penalty on you, it can demote your website, remove a few pages, or the entire site temporarily. You may suffer organic traffic, sales, leads, and conversion losses.

If, however, you get hit by the algorithmic penalty, no warning. Your traffic will deteriorate over time without any seeming explanation. You’ll need special tools to uncover the reason. By the time you know what hit you, you’d have lost too many leads and traffic.

So Think Hard- Have You Ever Practised Spammy Backlinking?

Have you ever rigged blogs’ and websites’ comment sections with your website’s URL wrapped within a crappy, almost aimless message to build backlinks?

Is it possible that the cheap SEO company you hired duped you and built a shady backlink portfolio using bad SEO techniques?

You need to analyze your backlink portfolio. Look closer. If you ever used guest blogging, news articles, genuine comments, profile shares, press releases, or social media for backlinking, you’ll probably recognize the sources.

Point out the ones you don’t. Do some research, confirm the domain metrics of suspicious entities, and separate the credible backlinks from the spammy ones. Or, just use a free backlink audit tool and get your ducks in a row.

You can also do a competitor backlink analysis. Compare a few websites on the SEO audit tool and look at how damaging their results are in contrast to yours.

Your Solution- Use a Backlink Analysis Tool and Audit Your Website’s Negative Backlinks

SEO Gurus always try to stay a step ahead of Google algorithms. And they’ll advise you as well to have a list of natural looking backlinks. Only, Google is tweaking its filters every day now. And unless your backlink portfolio is genuine, you need to perform a backlink audit.

Echo Park Real Estate: A Look at the Numbers

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From LA’s earliest days, people have wanted to live in the storied neighborhoods of NELA. In a densely populated area where residents are always in the process of coming and going, there are always homes for sale in Echo Park at any given time. Since the early 1920’s, the real estate here has been in demand and that is how it is today. Why? Let’s take a closer look and see what the numbers say.

This is an eclectic city located in Central Los Angeles about ten minutes from Downtown. At the center of the city is the renowned Echo Park Lake in Elysian Park, which is the site of special events like the Lotus Festival. It is northwest of Chinatown and Downtown, northeast of Westlake and south east of Silver Lake.

It is split in to four districts:

  • Angelino Heights – This area is known for the beautiful Victorian homes that are preserved by the city’s ordinances.
  • Elysian Heights – This area is historically known for being the home of famous counter-culture artists, filmmakers, architects and political radicals.
  • Historic Filipino town – This section is located in the southwest section.
  • Victor Heights – A lovely area scattered with Bungalows and Stucco homes that share breathtaking views of Los Angeles and the Civic Center.

Throughout the four districts, the most common types of homes are Bungalows, Cottages, Victorians and Stuccos. According to the 2000 U.S. Census there were 40,455 people in there. Spread over 2.4 square miles there were approximately 16,868 people per square mile. This makes Echo Park one of the highest density areas in Los Angeles County. The median household income was $37,708, which is low for Los Angeles County. The average household size was 3.0, which is average for the county.

This city has a high Walk Score of 83/100. This means that most errands can be accomplished on foot within the city. This city’s transit score is 62. This city has good transit and provides its residents with many public transportation options. These include the Metro Red and Metro Purple Line, numerous bus routes and ride sharing options from Relay Rides. This city received a bike score of 49 because of the steep hills and minimal bike lanes.

According to Zillow, the average home value in Echo Park is $795,100. This value has increased 14.4% since last year and Zillow estimates it will continue to rise 4.3% to $829,000 over the next year. The average price of homes that are currently listed is $742,450. The median list price per square foot is $618, which is higher than the Los Angeles average of $451. The average rental price is $2,967 a month. Zillow has given the Market Health a score of 8.2/10, which is very healthy in comparison to other markets across the country. This is based on a series of metrics including how fast the homes are selling compared to the past rate. Echo Park’s prime location and thrilling culture will be sure to keep the housing market rolling for many years to come.

Make More Sales By Being Contrary

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Here’s something I’ve been playing with, and my results have been pretty good, too.

A few months ago a friend was launching a big product with lots of cash prizes for the top affiliates. I knew there would be tons of affiliate competition, with every affiliate trying to out-do the others with bigger and better bonuses.

How to compete?

I decided not to.

Instead, I thought about what every affiliate’s bonus pages would look like: Highly polished, slick, professional, lots of graphics, videos, etc.

Odds are they would all start to look very much alike, right?

So I thought… what if I did something different?

What if my page looked like something you might get in the mail – black and white sales letter, using the Courier typewriter font, very old-school looking…

And what if, instead of a highly polished professional photo of myself, I used one where I just woke up? Or one where I just finished exercising, or just finished the yard work?

In other words, I looked like the guy next door and not some slick marketer.

Taking this thinking to the next level, I decided I didn’t want to spend time or money on creating a bonus. Everyone else was doing that, so why should I?

Instead, I would hold a live class. The homework would be to go over the program before class. Then in class we would implement, step-by-step, what was in the program. And I would record the whole thing, so people could just follow along.

In case you’re wondering – it worked beautifully. My sales were a very decent 5 figure number, and my commissions were half that plus bonuses.

And one more thing – I cheated, too. I had my virtual assistant run the class for me. She got to learn some great new skills, and I put less than 2 hours into the entire project.

The takeaway: When you have a lot of competition, it’s time to stop directly competing and find another way.

If they are using tons of graphics and slick videos, you go with a 1980’s black and white typewriter look.

If they are offering bonus packages filled with 5, 10 or 20 products, you offer no products (I offered hold-your-hand training, which in my opinion is worth far more anyway.)

You get the idea.

Do you know what would work even better than that?

MAILING the actual letter. Yup. Talk about old school. If you collect real addresses of your BUYERS, you might consider doing this on big ticket items.

I know marketers who do this. They are few and far between, and they are KILLING it. They only mail to buyers, which greatly improves their conversions. They use a service to send out the mailers for them. And they make more on one of these mailings than most successful marketers earn in 6 months.

Which brings me to my second idea… if you don’t already have the mailing addresses for your buyers, start collecting those now.

When you have a sizable portion of them (at least 200, preferably 500) approach a marketer with a product your list would love. Make sure there is plenty of profit in that product. Take the sales letter, adapt it to a black and white mailer (cheap to produce) and send it to your buyers.

See what happens. Tweak, rinse and repeat.

You can easily DOUBLE your income using this method.

Know why? Again, because it’s contrary. It’s different. Almost no one is doing it.

Your customer gets maybe a half dozen pieces of mail in a day. Two are bills. Two are sales flyers from local businesses. One is a catalog.

And then there’s that mysterious white envelope. Yeah, it’s going to get opened. Yes, it’s going to get read.