• What does http mean? http (HyperText Transfer Protocol) is basically the protocol computers use to transfer information that form a website.
• What does https mean? Https in simple terms is the secure version of http, the ‘S’ standing for secure. It means that all the communications between your browser and the website are encrypted. This is especially important when dealing with ecommerce or submitting contact forms for example.
• July 2018 is when Google Chrome will start warning users when they visit a site that is not secure (http). It is estimated that around 50% of internet users have Chrome as their browser so the effect of these messages could be massive.
• How will this affect your business? If you don’t change your website protocol to https your business could suffer as a result.  Visitors could be put off by a security message popping up when they visit your website and this could in turn lead to reduced site traffic, a fall in online sales, reduced number of enquiries etc.
• Why does Google want businesses to change to https? https will protect your site and it’s users and uphold the integrity of your website. Google are working hard to ensure everyone has a safer online experience.
• Do you need to upgrade your site to https? It makes sense to think about upgrading to https if your site is currently http especially If you have a contact form or any data is transmitted through your website. Google Chrome can start to have an impact on your website and business from July.

Whether you choose to change your site to https is obviously a decision for you and your business. Ultimately Google set the rules and want to help us be more secure in our online activities. In the long run it will pay dividend to follow these rules to get the best results for your business. And given that such large number of users will be accessing your site via Google Chrome.

If your website is hosted by Creative Remedy on a CMS system, be sure to contact Sara for a chat about making your website secure.

Through discussions on business development at the local Jelly networking/ co-working event recently in Peterborough, the conversation turned to blogs and what would make great reading topics for the following months.  ​

I am a fairly private person and it was felt I could share some knowledge about myself… a sort of ‘Meet Your Consultant’. So here are a three and a few more things you may not know about me…

1. Vrruuuummm vrummm….
I ride a 600cc motorbike. About two years ago I passed my motorcycle test with a clean sheet. I do enjoy finding any reason to nip out for some milk! I have come a long way… thinking back to about 20 years ago when it took me three tries at passing my car driving test. With 28 minor faults on my first test, I remember clearly trying to do a hill start in neutral… I was that nervous.

2. Self Defence and Yoga
I am a 2nd degree Black belt in Tae Kwon Do and training for my 3rd Dan. I have been training for 16 years and attend 1-2 sessions a week. I help out at interclub competitions and teach at my local club. I officiate at two competition a year, one local and one national and attend black belt sessions across the UK. I am first aid qualified. This is my club: Annabel Murcott Schools of Tae Kwon Do

I attend Yoga about once a week, Hatha yoga is the style I practice, I have been doing this for about 4 years now. My instructor is Helen who adds a balanced mix of mind, body, theory and humour. Yoga gives me space to think, breath, time to focus on me and not take life too seriously. It has significantly changed my wellbeing over the years. The classes I attend are here: Equilibrium Yoga & Well-Being Centre 

3. Family life
Ben is my partner of 14 years, we have two girls of pre-school age who completed our family through adoption. We jointly share the care of our children which means we can both continue to work and pursue our interests.

And a few more things...

• Favourite drink: Ben tells me that he wouldn’t be confident ordering me a drink at the bar because I always choose something different dependent upon my mood!
• Likes: Snowboarding but not any good at it.
• I need: 8 hours sleep to function properly
• TV Programmes: The Mentalist, Six Feet Under, Dexter, Game of Thrones
• Music: Pink, Sia, Alanis Morrisette, Lissie, Celine Dion, Shakira, Lana Del Rey, Beth Orton
• Favourite food: Thai food
• Love: Technology and gadgets
• Jobs while studying: Nut sorter, melon grader, gala pork pie creator, flower wrapper
• 5 mins of fame: Songs of Praise and Trisha (in the audience)!
• Last book I read: And Then There Were Four by Emma Sutton
• Dislikes: Creatures (insects), kidney beans
• Best achievement: Tandem skydive for a charity
• Worst job: Phone box cleaner
• Pets: One beautiful Weimaraner called Kia
• Countries I’ve visited: Prague, Austria, Ireland, Poland, France, Spain, Italy, Tunisia
• What makes me laugh: Random things, Sarah Millican, the dog
• My friends know me for: My plinky plonky music
• Who inspires me: My children… observing their view and understanding of the world.
• Places I’d like to visit: Canada, Norway, Greenland, Korea, New Zealand
• Favourite colour: Purple, Pantone ref: Ultra Violet 18-3838
• Favourite films: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Lord of The Rings Trilogy
• Aspiration: To write a book

What does GDPR stand for?
General Data Protection Regulation (Previously Data Protection Act 1998).

What is the Purpose of the General Data Protection Regulation?
The purpose of the General Data Protection Regulation is to make companies large and small responsible and accountable for all data stored within your business. That means every single piece - including that stored on paper and electronic data.

What Businesses are Affected by GDPR?
If you answer yes to the following questions, GDPR affects you and your business:

• Do you store your customers’ contact information?
• Do you manage personal data on behalf of customer(s)?
• Do you create invoices with customers’ details?
• Do you send email marketing campaigns to your customers?
• Do you have a website with a contact form or newsletter sign-up form?
• Do you have an existing data policy? Is it up-to-date?

How Do I Get Compliant?
There is a very short time to get compliant - between now and 25th May 2018 (even though the new policy was released two years ago!). The consensus is that if you already have a data policy, as long as you are making steps to upgrade it to the new regulation you won’t have ICO knocking at your door. Similarly, if you don’t have a data policy in place, start work on it now. You need to show that you have made a good start by 25th May 2018.

Brief Guidelines For Creating Your first Data Policy?
If you are a small business, you need to create your own data policy document that describes:

• The types of data you hold
• The volume of data
• Whether it is sensitive, high or low risk data
• How you obtained your data
• Why you obtained it
• How long you plan to retain it for
• Where you store it e.g. what software and what hardware you use

You need to show you understand how to keep your data safe and the risks your business administers by holding the data. You also need to show that you know how to report any data loss if you have a data breech.

Support for GDPR:
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has many resources to help get you GDPR ready.

• GDPR: 12 steps to take now
• Guide to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)

1. Social Media
Pick a new social platform that you have never tried and make it your new year goal to become a digital guru for that network and add another string to your bow.

2. Video
If a picture paints 1000 words what does a moving image do? Create one piece of moving digital media to promote your business. It could be a slideshow, animation, interview, or panoramic video. This can be delivered on your website or shared on social media. Don’t forget to measure the response.

3. Landing Pages
We are all knowledgeable about your products or services, give away some FREE information via a landing page which asks for a potential customers details in exchange for this FREE helpful information.

4. Email Marketing
Be brave and try something you have never done before. Add that video you created, start a referral program, run a competition or celebrate a milestone. Contacting potential customers even once a month may just be enough put you in the forefront of their mind.

5. Existing Customers
We all know it’s easier to get more business from an existing customer rather than finding a new customer. Go through your contact list and find one reason to contact each customer, nothing sales based… ask them how your existing service is working for them, or maybe just to see how their Christmas and new year went and see where the conversation leads.

Permission
There are two kinds of permission. Implied permission and express permission. Implied permission is a little loose and covers anybody who you have an existing business relationship with. Express permission is everyone who has directly given you permission by opting in or subscribing either online or in-store.

Address
You must clearly include a valid postal address for your business in your email campaigns. This can be your street address, a postbox or a registered commercial mail-receiving company that your business uses.

Frequency
There are no legal rules of engagement, this comes down to common courtesy. Think how often you like to receive emails from a company and what type of business they run. For example… a supermarket marketing email can acts a weekly reminder to do your online shopping but another business thanking you for your visit then promoting their products on day 1, day 3 and day 5 may become a bit much.

Opt-Out
Let recipients opt-out easily. You should provide a link somewhere in the email for users to opt-out easily.

Identify
Clearly identify that your message is an advertisement. E.g. if there is an offer state what the offer is.

Misleading
Don’t use misleading header information. This specifically applies to: From name, subject line and reply-to address. Email marketing laws stipulate that you must not include incorrect or misleading information in these fields to try to trick people into opening your email campaigns.

New law
New legislation from the General Data Protection Regulation will come in to force from 25th May 2018. It will require your business to take extra measures to ensure customer data is kept safe and used properly. More info >

More guidance

• .Gov on the law in terms of advertising and marketing: Direct Marketing > 
• Electronic Email marketing: ICO on Email Marketing >
• Your email marketing and anti-spam law: Law Donut on Email Marketing >​