Creating Effective Email Signatures For Interacting With Your Customers and Clients

In our line of business it is important that our emails get delivered through to our customers. Our company sends important information such as order confirmations, shipping updates, and other pertinent information in regards to orders via email. We have been asked by some customers, why in this day and age, we still use text based email formatting, rather than rich text or HTML formatted emails. The answer is plain and simple – deliverability and readability.

While we now have the ability to create fancier, graphically oriented emails that some people seem to be so fond of, the question is should we do it. In business you have to be cognizant of the fact that not every email client is going to deliver the exact same viewing experience to your customers. Emails may look one way on the Macintosh Mail app, and another on a PC in Outlook. And, they can look different on Gmail, then they do on a Blackberry, Android or iPhone.

Therefore we use text based email to make sure that the message is (1) delivered and not caught in SPAM filters, due to excessive graphics, HTML formatting, and links; and (2) is legible across the board, on all devices. Often times people will check their email from a smartphone or tablet, rather than a computer. We want to make sure the customer gets the same experience, whether checking it on the road, or from behind their desk.

One thing we have always struggled with is keeping an email engaging to read, using just plain text. One area of special interest has been our email signature line. Because we aren't including fancy graphics, or the equivalent of a pretty digital business card, we want to make sure we include pertinent information in our signature, so customers know who they are dealing with, at first glance, without having to rack their brains.

An overly long signature can make it difficult for the recipient to wade through the information to find your contact info. However, not providing enough information in your signature may leave a new client or customer wondering who you are and why you are contacting them.

Therefore, we have come up with some best email signature practices that we like to follow when our staff create their email signatures, and thought we would share them with you.

Cassida Discontinues and Replaces Two Of Their Popular Counterfeit Detector Models

On May 15, 2014, Cassida announced that it is discontinuing and replacing two of it's popular low cost counterfeit money detectors. The Cassida 3310 counterfeit detector will be replaced by the new and improved Cassida 3300 counterfeit detector, and the Cassida 2200 counterfeit detector will be replaced by the newer 2230 model of counterfeit bill detector. Each of the new models has been upgraded and is being offered at an even lower price point than their predecessors.

Cassida 3300 with Counterfeit Shield Guarantee Replaces Cassida's 3310 Counterfeit Detector

The Cassida 3300 is an excellent replacement for the 3310 because it offers all the features, including ultraviolet (UV), magnetic (MG) and infrared (IR) security mark detection. Plus, the 3300 is the market's ONLY counterfeit detector backed by the Cassida Counterfeit Shield Guarantee, which eliminates all worry that you'll take a fake bill.

The guarantee reimburses you for the full face value of the counterfeit bill should your Cassida 3300 accept one as genuine. The Cassida 3300 is the market's most reliable detector, with the ability to spot bleached bills and other sophisticated counterfeits.

How To Detect Counterfeit Money

Counterfeit bill passing costs businesses millions of dollars in lost revenue every year. Those businesses that fail to carefully examine the bills that are passed on to them are victimized daily. Don't let the counterfeiters get the best of you and your business. Learn how to spot counterfeit money and stop the thieves in their tracks.

You can help combat the threat of counterfeiters by becoming more familiar with United States currency. Examine the money your business receives. Train your employees in how to spot fake bills. Compare suspicious notes with genuine ones of the same denomination and series, paying attention to the quality of printing and paper characteristics. Don't look for similarities – instead look for differences.

There are a variety of things to look for when examining money for counterfeit bills.

Portrait
A genuine portrait on a bill appears lifelike and stands out distinctly form the background. A counterfeit portrait is usually flat and lifeless. Details merge into the background, which is often too dark or mottled.

Federal Reserve and Treasury Seals
A genuine bill will have clear saw tooth points of the Federal Reserve and Treasury seals are clear, distinct, and sharp. A counterfeit seal may have uneven, blunt, or broken saw tooth points.

Border
The fine lines in the border of a real bill are clear and unbroken. On the counterfeit, the lines in the outer margin and scrollwork may appear blurred and not distinct.

Serial Numbers
Genuine serial numbers have a distinctive style and are evenly spaced on the bill. The serial numbers are printed in the same ink color as the Treasury Seal. On counterfeits, the serial numbers may differ in shade or color of ink from the Treasury Seal. Also, the numbers may not be uniformly aligned or spaced, as they will be on a  real bill.

Paper
Genuine current paper has tiny blue and red fibers embedded into it. Often counterfeiters will try to simulate these fibers by printing tiny blue and red lines on their paper. But on close inspection, one may see that on the counterfeit notes the lines are printed on the surface, not embedded in the paper. It is illegal to reproduce the distinctive paper that is used in the manufacturing of U.S. currency.

But, if your business deals with lots of cash, it is often impossible to stay on top of the counterfeits all of the time. This is where counterfeit detectors come into the picture. Counterfeit detecting machines are specialized pieces of equipment that are used to spot fake money.

The price ranges on counterfeit detectors runs the gamut, from very cheap to very expensive. You are paying for the technology that is embedded in the machine model that you choose. Obviously, the more sophisticated machines, with several modes of detection, will cost more than a simple tabletop non-electric model.

Cassida 5700 Professional Money Counter – An Economical Bill Counting Machine with Powerful Features

Cassida Corporation announced today the introduction of the Cassida 5700 Professional Money Counter, the company's first bill counter to include the bill turner features, which gives this economical back loading money counting machine the convenience of a top loading money counter.

With the 5700, bill counting is triggered immediately when a stack of bills is placed on top of the Cassida 5700. The revolutionary design automatically pushes the bills into the back of the machine and begins counting at a speed of up to 1,300 bills per minute, making the 5700 bill counter a perfect choice for mid-size and larger businesses that process significant amounts of cash.

According to Matt Goldfain, product marketing manager for Cassida, "Cassida’s exclusive bill turning features solves a longtime challenge for the industry. Conventional back loaders are reasonably priced but they can be tricky to load and, if done improperly, it can interrupt counting. The Cassida 5700 combines the cost effectiveness of a back loader with the ease of a top loader. The result is the market’s easiest loading back loader, which is a real game changer."

Microsoft Releases Office for iPad and Expands Cloud Services

Yesterday Microsoft released the long awaited version of the Microsoft Office Suite for iPad. Many individuals and small businesses who rely on their iPad for daily use and business use are excited to hear that it has finally arrived. And, from preliminary reviews, it is actually pretty good, unlike their earlier release of Office for the iPhone.

Now Office 365 users can simply add an iPad as one of their chosen devices included in their subscription and they will be able to create and edit documents with Word for iPad, PowerPoint for iPad and Excel for iPad. The iPad apps are available as free downloads from the App Store, however they will only allow people to read and present documents, spreadsheets and presentations, until they subscribe to the Office 365 service ($9.99 per month or $99.99 per year), at which time they will also be able to edit these documents, and create new documents, on their iPads.

The Office 365 subscription not only gets you the Office for iPad apps installed on up to 5 tablets, but also 5 copies of Office for your PCs and Macs. With one subscription all of your devices are covered, allowing more freedom for people so they are not chained to their desk to be productive.

At the same time Microsoft also announced the Enterprise Mobility Suite, a set of cloud services to help businesses manage corporate data and services on the devices people use at work and at home.

“Microsoft is focused on delivering the cloud for everyone, on every device. It’s a unique approach that centers on people — enabling the devices you love, work with the services you love, and in a way that works for IT and developers,” said Satya Nadella, chief executive officer for Microsoft.

Graduation Announcement and Invitation Etiquette 101

Graduation is just around the corner and many are wondering about the proper etiquette for sending out their graduation invitations and graduation announcements. Many have questions such as when do I send my graduation announcements, or what do I put on my graduation invitations?

As far as when to send the graduation announcements or invitation out goes, it depends on which they are going to be. If they are invitations to the actual graduation ceremony itself then you want to give your guests at least 14 days, however four weeks would be better, especially if you are inviting guests that must travel long distances to attend. This gives them time to plan and respond to the invitation. Keep in mind that many schools and universities limit the number of people that may attend, due to seating constraints, so be sure to check with your school for any such limitations prior to sending our your invitations. Many people choose to only invite family and close friends to the actual graduation ceremony, and will then send announcements to others to let them know they have graduated.

If you are sending out announcements, to share your educational milestone, then you will probably want to plan them for anywhere between a month prior to and a month after the actual graduation ceremony takes place. Also be aware that while people receiving actual invitations to the graduation may assume a gift is required, announcements do not necessarily mean that a gift is expected. Still, you may want to add “No gifts, please” to the card, if you don’t want to put a feeling of obligation on the announcement recipients.