By Igor Polyakov

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By Alena Lazareva

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By Alena Lazareva

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The majority of architect, engineer, and environmental consulting firms are looking closely at their overhead with the intent of cutting costs. After rent, payroll, and health insurance, professional liability insurance premiums as well as the variable costs included with deductible obligations (post loss) are the larger single line items.

To a great extent, the costs associated with your PL insurance are influenced by the manner in which you present or portray yourself and your firm during the PL application process. I recognize that the 8-12 page annual application process is akin to a “root canal” for most CFOs, principals, and office managers.

It is vital to realize that subtle clarifications or changes can significantly affect costs.

A few points we use to help our clients better describe themselves to underwriters during the professional liability application process are listed below:

1. Outline what you do with appropriate percentages. This may appear simple on the surface, but let me better illustrate my point with two examples:

Architect- To you (the architect), it may seem accurate to describe yourself as 100% architectural. But in reality, I can virtually guarantee that you provide specifications of interior fixtures, finishes, or non-structural details. I would classify these services as Interior Design- a much-lower rated service type yielding much lower costs. Owners’ representatives, client advocacy services, public advocacy, testimony and reports before zoning/planning boards are all services provided by an architect that, in themselves, do not involve architectural design per se. (There are too many other similar examples to list here.)

Engineer- Let’s say that you are a civil/structural engineer engaged in bridge design/inspection. “Bridge Design” is viewed as a high-rated service type (in fact one of the highest). Are you really doing ALL bridge design? Or, are you engaged in the design of the approaches as well? Can some of those services be described as “highway design?” What about inspections? Certainly those are considered “reports/opinions.” (highway design and reports/opinions receive a much lower rate factor than does bridge design.)

2. Clearly identifying your direct reimbursibles can also help trim costs down substantially. Travel and mileage costs, per diem, reproduction costs, and more are classified as direct reimbursibles (DRs). The industry standard for DRs is 3% to 6%, but some engineers that are working with the Department of Transportation can see their DRs higher than 10%. Showing these costs will of course reduce your ratable base and your premiums by the same percentage. If you do not wish to track these costs to avoid making clients feel that they are being “nickel and dimed”, then you can still include a “best guess estimate” of what the direct reimbursibles will be as a percentage of your gross.

3. Make sure to identify your abandoned projects; most architect and engineering firms over the past year and a half have provided design services for projects that will never be completed. Loss of funding, changes in plans, sale of undeveloped property, and bankruptcy can all cause projects to be abandoned. There are insurance carriers out there that will require their clients to list abandoned projects and exclude coverage for claims related to them. I would warn against this because it is still possible for a law suit to occur even if the project does not go forward. Other insurance carriers will give you the opportunity to identify the revenue associated with your abandoned projects and remove them from your “ratable revenue” to yield lower costs.

Timothy Esler, CPCU, is a Principal with Fenner & Esler Insurance Agency, a boutique insurance brokerage and risk management organization representing architects and engineers countrywide. Tim’s complete original articles are published in The Zweig Letter.

I have been active in the Motorcycle Community for many years. I’ve stood up for Biker’s Rights. As a freelance writer, I’ve written about Clubs, the Community, and the Brotherhood of the Biker World. I’ve also been involved in many Biker related events either as a DJ or MC.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve wanted to combine all of this into a Biker Style Radio Show. A show where I could present and discuss topics that are important to Bikers as well as educate the outside world about the Biker Lifestyle and what it means to be a part of the Biker Community.

I knew it was going to be tough. I spoke with some local radio stations about my idea but, they either wanted a lot of money or they weren’t interested. They claim that the “Biker Market” is a niche market and Radio Stations want shows that appeal to everyone.

In the summer of 2008, a guy from Florida called the Paisan, sent me an email stating he had read some of my articles and would like to interview me on his internet radio show, Sunday’s Sauce Pot. I gave him a call and after speaking to him, I agreed to be on the show.

I did the show with Paisan and his partner Danny Dawg. It was an unforgettable show and I had a great time. I kept in touch with them and we soon became friends. I told them how I had been thinking about doing my own show. They were only too happy to explain to me how I could have my own internet radio show.

Since the show would be broadcast over the internet, I was a little skeptical. After doing some research, I realized that Internet Radio is an up and coming medium. Even now, some radio manufactures are making radios devoted to broadcasting Internet Radio.

I quickly realized that Internet Radio is more suited to what I wanted to present than traditional Radio due to the fact that I could broadcast my show to all over the world instead of being limited like I would be if I broadcast out of a local station.

The other thing that appealed to me was the fact that people could listen to my show any time they wanted to. Bikers like to travel. With Internet Radio, it doesn’t matter where you are as long as you have access to an Internet Radio or Computer and WI-FI or broadband, you can catch the show. The fact that you didn’t need a lot of money to start up was also very appealing. With a little help from my friends, I went to work. Finally, after 10 years of dreaming, I was On the Air. The Biker Lowdown Show was born.

The road to success was a little bumpy at first. With the addition of Chuck (Alphabiker.com) as my co-host, the road got a little smoother. With both of us researching information, we are able to share much more with our ever increasing audience. The addition of a website to compliment the show adds to the experience. The hard work of my webmaster Bjorn has resulted in a website that offers Articles, Video’s, a Motorcycle Forum, and more.

I am sometimes amazed by the success of the show. Our Audience continues to increase each week. The Biker Lowdown Chat Room gets busier each week, letting listeners know they are really part of the show. Although we’ve come a long way, we’re still working hard at making the show even more entertaining and informative for all those who ride or dream of riding. We plan on hitting the road so that we can meet and talk with people and reward our listeners with T-Shirts, Bumper Stickers, and more.

Of course we couldn’t do it without the support of our listeners and sponsors whose donations make the show possible. To them, THANK YOU!

I invite everyone to check out the show at www.bikerlowdown.com, and let me know what you think and what topics you’d like to hear discussed.

I am your Bro, LJ James AmericanBikerx.com

LJ James does a online Motorcycle Show each Wednesday LJ James loves to help show the truth about the Biker Brotherhood and series like Sons of Anarchy

A business card is an amazing tool for marketing programs. Business cards include the name of a person and about his business activities in small space. swapping of business cards take place when people meet during official meetings. It gives information of offerings of a person if the card owner decides to do so. That is how skill in a particular field is advertised in a delicate manner.

Business cards help to remember people and services. company owners use this fantastic material to promote their businesses to customers at various places. It serves the dual purpose of visiting cards as well as company information cards. The delicate approach of business card is admired by most of the business owners due to its high performing ability.

Business officials, builders, salesmen, candlestick makers, all of them use this business card to attract potential customers for their advantage. This is the best way to be in touch with each other and especially with customers. With the development in the many variations of printing techniques, the business card has reached sophistication in their production.

Attractive and well created business cards are found in the market which draws attention of public. Many reputed printing houses have taken up the manufacture of business cards in many ways to create high quality business cards for company owners as well as for the public. Different varieties of business cards are available in the market.

advanced introductions include digital business cards, magnetic business cards and some metal business cards are there to name a few of them. The method of business card printing constitutes an extremely professional activity of online printing services. Particular professional skill is required to manufacture good materials. It is best designed so that they’re easily read without making the little space over crowded together with words.

Only competent printing houses are capable to produce effective business cards. Manufacture of a good quality business card is limited to relevant information about your business in a befitting manner to make your clients confident about you in time of need. You are going to find your sales figure increasing with the use of efficient business cards produced by a reliable printing house.

If you would like more details and prices on Birmingham Printing you will find a whole host of friendly details and prices here Print Creative

When you are a small company needing state of the art website design, along with top rankings in the major search engines: Google, Yahoo, MSN, Alta Vista, Ask.com, at cost effective prices, The Web Leaders are for you. I have personally seen many businesses excel with the help of The Web Leaders, while they are gaining online momentum, and sales increasing for the new year ahead. Whether you need a brochure website, shopping cart, E-Commerce data base development website, and Search Engine Optimization up to 50% its retail pricing structure, you won’t be disappointed when you see the results you achieve during the first quarter of 2010.

The Web Leaders is a website design and search engine marketing firm that achieves top search engine results for various companies in many different professions. Getting a business ranked in Google, Yahoo, MSN and other search engines is not an easy task. TWL offers website design, e-commerce shopping carts and brochure websites.

Online marketing has proven to be the most cost-effective way to advertise your business. The Web Leaders is offering search engine optimization packages for as low as $299.99 and is guaranteeing that you will achieve top search engine placement for related keywords by using their exclusive search engine optimization system “Extreme Ranking Power”. Wow, if guaranteed web rankings isn’t a way to prove your dedication to small businesses and their growth, then I am not sure how to attempt to stand behind The Web Leaders and their movement.

In New York City, Long Island and other cities throughout the country, industries that have benefited from The Web Leaders’ the past seven years are lawyers, the automotive industry, jewelers, limousine services and other small businesses and their effective web presence can be found any time you search for them. Companies like www.ranshaw.com, www.bungersayville.com, www.fortunelimo.com and www.cash4jewelrynow.com have had online marketing designed, developed and provided just for them.

With retail stores feeling the hit from the way the economy has been of late, they are looking for ways to market their companies online. For example, Spa Therapy & Massage of Long Island has been bogged down trying to market themselves, and after months of searching for an affordable, professional company, they contacted The Web Leaders. After hiring them in the final week of October, their website www.spatherapyli.com was launched on November 9th, 2009.

The Web Leaders not only builds your website and implements a search engine marketing campaign; they develop a system with tracking and reporting that will help you determine the best way to market your company online. Utilizing search engine optimization, internet marketing, press releases, text advertising online, e-mail marketing, search engine submissions, Google and Yahoo maps, along with multiple online groups and directories, ensures that a small business will get the visibility that will grow a company online.

The Web Leaders New York Web Design helps your company’s online presence with Long Island SEO

Do not be scared of starting a catering company as long as you come up with the menu selections. When your feet are on the ground, you want them ready to run. You do this through planning.

The wider you can make your menu offerings the more you will be able to reach the market. While some catering services do very well offering just one style of cuisine that they specialize in, these businesses stand a good chance of failure. While there is something very special about these caterers that focus on one style of cuisine, there is more demand for variety than there are for singular food origins.

If you want to set up a specialized service, don’t forget that you are likely to need suitable local. If you want to enter into a specialty cuisine you will have to have a large base of ethnically related homes and industries in your locality. Thus, a successful South Asian catering service will need a sizable local South Asian community to guarantee its success.

Not many folks will go to a catering provider based solely on price. You will have to be able to offer products that cater to everyones needs, like options for people with common allergies. This can be a relatively tall order for individuals who are looking to start their own event catering business.

It doesn’t matter which area of catering you go into, starting a catering firm is like starting up a labor love. You have to not only sell yourself but you also have to promote your food.

A great catering service will get off the ground without a lot of expensive advertising as long as they are well priced, deliver a quality menu, and appear professional at all times.

If you work toward featuring a wide selection of foods that everyone enjoys and offer them in new and interesting ways, you will probably be able to get your business started quickly and with great success. Get word out with promotions and a small amount of advertising and before you know it you will be getting a great amount of referrals from your satisfied customers and others who have enjoyed your food.

For our next report on Funding Options for a Catering Business and for others relating to the catering industry visit – Start a Catering Business

Bridal showers can be the most fun and exciting part of the pre-wedding activities. They are a chance for the bride and her acquaintances to share special moments together prior to her moving on to her new life with her husband to be. These guidelines will assist you in planning a bridal shower to remember…

1) Start planning early. To reduce the stress involved, start making arrangements as early as possible. Do not have the mindset that you will be able to do everything in a few days. It should start to take shape at least a month before so that you can be sure that you can get everything you need and that all of your desired guests will be available.

2) Keep it simple. Do not go over the top and have so much going on that the attention is drawn away from the future bride. Use decorations and activities / games reasonably so as to maintain a sense of the event being classy and elegant.

3) Opt for an indoor venue. Although the outside can be a nice touch, you are putting yourself at the mercy of the weather and it is not something that you want to rely on for such an important event. It is best to use yours or your friends home or rent somewhere, such as a restaurant or bar.

4) Pick a theme. Decide on a theme, such as commitment or love, and center the activities, decorations, and possibly even the catering, around that theme. Choosing a special color as a theme can also add to the occasion and result in the photos being that bit more special.

5) Use a catering service. Making use of such a service frees you up for other preparations on the big day. Additionally, opt for a variety of types of food so that the tastes of all of the invitees will be met.

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