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Here are the top 5 tips for conducting a good interview:

1. Plan the interview

Having a plan is vital, create a structure to the interview, having an opening, middle and end is important for yourself and the candidate. This will help the conversation flow and for the candidate to best respond to questions in a natural fashion. If there is more than one person conducting the interview make sure you both understand the structure and who is asking what questions.

2. Know your candidate

Make sure you prepare and read the candidates CV and cover letter. Get to know their name and location along with key information such as past roles, skills and any other points that may stick out from the CV. Knowing the candidate may then give rise to other questions which you can prepare before the interview takes place.

3. Appearances are important

Make sure you look your best when you conduct your interviews, no late nights before the day and having your best outfit ready will give your candidate a very good impression of your company. Remember the candidate may have other options and you are not just choosing the candidate, they are choosing you, which many people overlook until the job offer is overlooked. Marinating eye contact, smiling at appropriate places during the interview, being polite and most importantly listening to what they have to say. It sounds so simple, but one or more of these are often overlooked by interviewees.

4. Take notes

This is one of the most overlooked parts, taking a notepad in the interview can really help you remember key parts of the conversation when reviewing the day`s candidates. If you have lots of candidates make sure your notes are clear and well structured. Taking notes on the conversation and answers the candidates give to your structured questions are vital.

5. Be quick offering the role

Many employers again overlook this, however good candidates do not stay on the market long. A candidate may often have a block of interviews lined up and the very best may get multiple offers. If you find the candidate that is the right one for the position it is best to offer them the role with a few days as every day that passes increases the chance that they will not accept the offer due to external factors.If you found this blog helpful, you can find more helpful hints and tips in our advice section of our blog. Please favourite our business blog.This was brought to by Your Virtual Office London, leaders in company formation, virtual office services and professional services.

It has been reported that 7 out of 10 regions across the UK have recorded house price falls in June reported by the Land Registry.In comparison house prices are still 6.4% higher when compared to the same period in June 2013. The average price of a home is currently at £172,011.The Land Registry report does show that the largest rise was in the West Midlands in June, up 1.9% and the largest fall was in Yorkshire which feel by 1.3%.Of course the largest rise was in London, the year on year figure was up a staggering 16.4%, the slowest yearly rise was in the North East area of England, with a slow 0.8% increase.Many forecasters are suggesting that the UK house prices will start to slow over the summer period, house prices typically rise in Spring and then slow over the summer holiday period.One commentator suggested that the talk of an interest rate rise was starting to affect house buyers confidence, but people are still keen to buy property.If you found this economy blog interesting you can find more informative blog posts in our economy blog section here.

If you have been selected for a job interview you will need to prepare. Failing to prepare is preparing to fail. Our hints are for your benefit and come out of experience. You want to give a good impression and our hints will really help you impress.

Research your employer

Find out who your employer is, what they do, and key facts such as locations, services provided, prices they charge, and even who the competition are. Prepare to be asked questions about the company, look up fact`s such as last year`s profits and any news in social media or the company blog. Researching the industry they are in and any developments can really impress your clients and make you look professional.

Prepare and practice

There is no right or wrong format for the interview, however there are some questions that should always be prepared for. Questions such as what you are weaknesses will always crop up, being prepared for this question will put you in good stead, addressing weaknesses in the interview will give your prospective employer trust in your honesty. You should also practice explaining why you are the best person for the job, go into past experience in work and personal life.

Dress Smart

No matter what people say appearances are important, your prospective employer will judge you and how you look, the smarter you look the better. Simple things such as well fitted clothes and clean shoes sounds obvious but many people can overlook this.

Ask Questions

Be proactive, ask the prospective employer questions, this will show your interest in the company and the position that you are applying for. We recommend preparing at least 4 questions, questions about the company`s future, culture and what goals they are expecting from you and the company as a whole.

Stay Calm

Staying calm is very important, being in control of yourself and your answers will really boost your chances of becoming the person they choose for the position. Prepare for the interview, write down your questions and answers, get your outfit out ready the night before. Smiling is important, a firm handshake can also work well, stay calm, the interviewers are also just normal people like yourself.If you found this blog helpful, you can read more on our business and economy blog here. Your Virtual Office London providing professional business services for small companies.

It is reported that personal bankruptcy has increased massively over the last five years.The latest figures from the government show that 27,029 people have become insolvent between April and June. This is a large increase, 5.1% when compared to the same period in 2013.Insolvency figures in Scotland has actually fallen to it lowest figure since 2005.The figure is said to be increased due to the large number of IVA`s (individual voluntary arrangements). IVA`s were created in 1987 to help people avoid being declared bankrupt. The number of people taking out IVA`s rose to 14,571 in the last quarter.The actual number of people declaring themselves bankrupt (insolvent) has increased for the first time since 2010, 0.2% of the adult population has declared themselves bankrupt.The number of bankruptcies hit an all-time high in 2009 with over 35,000 and has been on a gradual decline since 2009.This is stark contrast to business insolvency which has been on a continual downwards path. Companies going into administration have fallen by over 35%, which is the lowest figure for over 9 years.If you would like professional advice on Company Formation, administration or any of the supplementary services Your Virtual Office London provides, please do get in contact.We provide registered office address services in London for Limited companies which can help make your business appear more professional, helping you to increase your profits.If you found this blog interesting you can read more on our business blog here.

Our professional call answering service can be used by many different types of customer. Small businesses can really benefit from our telephone answering service. We provide a London telephone which is answered by your own PA, giving the impression to your clients that you have your own professional staff taking your calls.It is very important in business that you portray an efficient image, customers are very wary of small outfits especially when large amounts of money are in involved. Customers will tend to shy away of one man bands, our telephone answering service can really help boost your businesses image and give the right impression to your prospective clients.

How do you handle the calls?

Our telephone answering service is simple and effective. We provide you with a London telephone number which is solely yours. You then inform us how you would like the staff to answer your calls, a greeting such as “Hello, you are through to ABCD Limited, how can I help”. You can then decide if you would like us to take a message or you, or transfer the call live to your phone. If you prefer us to take a message, we can then reply with a message such as “The director is busy at present, would you like me to take a message?”.

Call Transfer Features

Once your client has been greeted on the phone by our trained professional PA`s, we can then transfer the call live to your phone, either mobile or landline. This gives the impression that you are in the same office and that the call is being transferred to your desk, again this gives the impression of professionalism and efficiency. There is an extra charge for call forwarding, as this is classed as an outbound phone call which is charged at the current rates.

What happens to out of hours calls

For clients who call your number when the office is closed, the call will be diverted to your personalised voicemail. You can customise your greeting, or for an extra fee we are able to get a professional presenter to pre-record you a voicemail message. The voicemail box is pin protected for added security.

Some Features of the call answering service

Unlimited Volume of CallsPrivate & ConfidentialNative English SpeakersPrivate Pin Protected MessagesReal London based team – no outsourcingYou can read more on our Call answering service with London number here. If you found this blog helpful you can read more on our business blog.Your Virtual Office London is a leading force in company formation and virtual office services. If you have any questions please do get in contact with us, our trained team are on hand ready to take your call.

The amount of products sold in the UK`s shops is continuing to increase according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). UK Retail Sales have increased by 0.1% in June, meaning they are 3.6% higher when compared to one year ago.The sales increased by 1.6% in the second quarter, this was by far the largest increase for at least 10 years.UK retail sales have been increasing steadily since the end of the recession in 2009. The sales figures have been very strong in 2013 and are continuing to get better.This is attributed to the economic growth in the UK, unemployment lowering and an increase in the population and the amount of people actually working.If you found this economy post interesting you can read more economic and business news in our business blog.Your Virtual Office London, leaders in professional business services.

Our mail forwarding address can be used by a personal customer for private use. If you are a personal customer who wishes to use our service, that is fine, we do not restrict our mail forwarding service to just business customers.

Why would I want to use your mail forwarding address?

There are many good reasons why you would want to use the address for personal use. Many of our personal customers use the London mailing address when they move home. If you move home you may want to have another address you can use to have mail redirected too. Our mail box allows all of your personal post to be redirected to our prestigious address.If you rent a property and it is on a short term basis then you may want more security when it comes to your mail. Our mail box service provides excellent security for your mail and you are able to collect your post from our office premises in London. You can also choose to have the mail forwarded to any location worldwide.Travellers also use our services, if you are travelling the globe you may want to have some post forwarded to you at one of your foreign destinations. Our mail forwarding service will collect your post and then forward this to an address of your choice. This is very important for some customers so that they don`t miss any important bills or letters that may be of up most importance to them.

A few advantages of our mail forwarding service:

• Affordable
• Prestigious London Address
• Mail Forwarded Worldwide
• Private, Confidential & Secure
• Cheaper than Royal Mail
• Collect mail from our offices
• 3, 6 and 12 month contract options available
• Parcels & Signed For post accepted
• Instant Activation

I`m interested in your mail forwarding service, what next?

If you would like to proceed with our London mail forwarding service you are able to purchase online via our website. You may find it beneficial to speak to one of our staff first who can help explain the product in greater details and talk through the process. Please do not hesitate to get in touch with us, we are always happy to help.Your Virtual Office London is a leading virtual office provider, if you found this product post helpful you can read more in our business blog.

A director's service address can be purchased at any time before, during or after you have formed a company. A director is required to add an address at Companies House, this is a legal requirement. Statuary mail from HMRC or Companies House would then be sent to this address.We would recommend that you purchase the directors service address before you form a company for some very good reasons.If you want to use a director`s service address to protect your residential address and you have already formed a Limited Company at Companies House, the address already used will be permanently on record. So for example you have just formed a Limited Company using your residential address as the directors address any changes to this will still show the original address and the date of the change, as well as showing the new address.

Who can access my address?

Your Limited Companies information is stored on the company register and this is a public record. A public record can be accessed by anyone, most people these days will access the record via the web check service provided by companies house. This will show information such as the Company Name, Number, Date of Incorporation, Directors Details, and even financial information.We strongly recommend using our directors service address in conjunction with our registered office address to help protect your residential address from public view.

Benefits of using our Director's Service Address

• All mail from HMRC and Companies House forwarded free of charge to any location worldwide
• Mail can also be collected from our London office
• Our service offers complete anonymity to all clients
• Having a London address in a prestigious area adds real credibility to your business operation

If you would like to discuss any of the points raised in this blog post, please feel free to get in contact with us. We provide leading services such as mail forwarding addresses in London, registered office address, company formation and accounting.If you would like to read more on our service, why not try our business blog? It`s informative and an excellent resource for start-up businesses.

When do I buy a registered office address for my company?

A registered office address can be purchased at any time during your Limited Companies life time. However we always recommend that if you are forming a Limited Company yourself, that you register your company address with our London office service in advance.There is good reason why we recommend purchasing the registered office before forming a company at Companies House for good reason; it will save you time and keep any private addresses of public record.When you register a company for the first time at Companies House, they legally require you to state where your companies registered office is located. If you don`t have a registered office address service, then you will normally place your residential address in this section. This information will be stored permanently on public record which can be searched at any time by anyone via Companies House web check system. Even if you decide to change your registered office address at a later date, the search will still show the change of address and will list your original address on record.Many of our clients use our registered office address service to keep their residential address private and off searchable records, so its thoroughly recommend that you purchase our service before forming a Limited Company.

Benefits of using our registered office address.

1. All statutory mail is forwarded to any location worldwide for free
2. Receive HMRC post at this address
3. Mail can be collected from our offices
4. Completely private and confidential
5. Prestigious London address available
6. Instant creditability for your prospective clients

Why you wouldn`t want to use your residential address

1. Unwanted callers could turn up
2. Junk Mail
3. Legal action aimed at you residential address

Your Virtual Office London is leading expert in company formations and supplementary services for both Limited Companies and Limited Liability Partnerships. If you would like further advice on our registered office address services please do get in contact with us.If you found this post interesting, you can read more in our business blog.

This comes from Which? Who suggest British people are getting an unfair deal when compared to products in the US, which are a lot cheaper. UK customers are paying literally hundreds of pounds more for an electronic gadget, when compared to US customers.The report by Which? Compared prices from various products such as computer software, televisions and other electronics. It concluded that the UK consumer was over paying for many of these products. In once instance Which? has shown that consumers where paying over £400 more for one television from a popular brand. A MacBook was found to be £194 more in the UK when compared to the price in the US.Which? have said that this is down to the manufactures and that they should play fair and explain exactly which some cost more in other countries. Another issue is the current threshold on import duty, its recommend it should be brought inline with good that`s are purchased online and then brought back into the UK. The threshold at the moment is £135 for electronics purchase online from a country outside the EU however if you travel you can bring in goods with a value of up to £390 without paying any duty.If you found this Your Virtual Office London blog interesting, you can read more business and economy posts in our informative blog.