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So I'm a generation X business traveller  

Does this mean I'm not allowed any fancy new luggage. Will it comprise components, styling or functionality that will baffle my poor old middle-aged brain?

Is it official, I'm no longer allowed any fun on a business trip? Not even sneaking into McDonald's for a naughty breakfast?

After being away, then the inevitable catchup, I looked at my inbox and despaired, 600+ emails.

99% of them rubbish or unimportant. After clearing out my inbox I then had to catchup on a new project I've been working on, but the emails still pour through.

So for the next week I put another out of office simply saying I'm busy, if it's urgent please contact our customer services, or if it's critical, please phone me. Otherwise I'll respond as and when I get a chance over the coming weeks.

Over that week I think I got 2 phone calls, proving nothing much was particularly urgent and left me to concentrate on some work.

I'm now tempted to scrap email altogether, or just leave a sorry I'm busy message. As a business tool, I think email has now lost it's way and is actually counter productive.

I saw one online made by Versesolutions. Does anyone have experience with this? just so I can get information on how it is being used? or feedback on how it is? ”
 

I'd steer clear of them. Anyone where you have to call them for pricing means expensive and out of reach for your minimal budget. 

Small CRM system as already suggested is the way forward. Work out your budget and then google CRM. Most will give you a trial, most will do the job, functionality and presentation will be down to your local requirements and preference.

I think a lot of it is dependant on the industry.

Someone starting a business tends to be a bunny caught in the headlamps. Within 3 months of trading they will have been bombarded to death with every type of product and service essential for their business survival as their details are circulated as hot new prey for the circling sales sharks 

If I get one more PAT tester telling me it's a legal requirement to make sure our kettle has been checked, I'll shove it and the taped up worn flex and broken plug where the sun doesn't shine.

Maybe its your approach that needs a rethink? Tell me I need to pay £40 each for a manual handlers course for my 5 plumbers along with everything else I need to do, and you'll get little attention.

But educate me that claims from employees due to problems with bad backs average around £20k with court costs, as well as loss of an employee, recruitment costs, business disruption etc, then £40 sounds like a bargain.

It's all in the pitch 

Scams 9th March 2017 4:52 PM

These scams just won't go away. The MS support ones rumble on, but too many people still sadly fall for it

Another variation we had recently was the hotmail scam

Commonsense is still the best form of defence for 99% of these scams and educating people to never agree to anything from a cold call. Hang up, do 5 minutes research, then if looks ok, contact them back. If you can't, then close escape 

I used to think it was the elderly and vulnerable that were the primary victims, but you see on the media and hear about lots of younger or middle-aged victims. I suspect some of it is the Jeremy Kyle audience...

Becoming a Non Smoker 9th March 2017 4:28 PM
Well 5 years and 8 days ago, I quit smoking and this thread was born.... The good news, I am still smoke free. I don't vape either...

 

Inspirational Ray, but we need to work on someone. A certain forum admin who quit but has fell off the wagon....

Not mentioning any names Rachael  Tell her Ray, filthy smoker!

Storm Doris 9th March 2017 4:24 PM

Just catching up in forum land.

Guess where I was in the middle of Storm Doris 

Me to London Eye man: "So assuming you won't be running this morning?"

London Eye man: "why?"

As we battled to stand upright with the winds threatening to send my 5 year old to Oz... Makes you proud to be British

Kids thought it was great, I was getting sea sick, and yes it really does wobble in gale force winds!

New Zealand 9th March 2017 4:13 PM

Blimey, that's a long trip for 5 days!

Not managed to get there yet, got as far as Oz. Will no doubt have to wait until the kids have been evicted or are at borstal/uni before we get the chance 

Huzzah!!  

So you have turned to the darkside...

But, since the upgrade we are now automatically logged out rather than staying logged in... is this for a reason? Its not really important just a query really....
 

I can't remember what the time out is, but your browser session is auto set to log you out, always was, even with the old site. But with windows browsers you normally have the option to "save password" so in effect you remain permanently logged in if the browser has saved your username and password.

No idea how it works in the land of apple, I know I deliberately don't save any passwords on my iphone in case I Iose it. But I imagine you can save passwords on Apple browsers. 

StumbleUpon - traffic generator? 9th March 2017 4:03 PM
didn't get much from it either, i tried using for i think 3 months. after that i stopped using it because i don't see any significant interaction.”
 

Thanks for the feedback paverknot