Self-Marketing Ideas: Search Engine Optimization

Umbrella Company Pension Schemes – What You Need to Know

Pension schemes help employees put money aside for retirement directly from their wage. The problem for self-employed professionals is that they need to manage this themselves,either by setting up a pension scheme or saving money from their income.

Fortunately,umbrella companies class contractors as employees,giving them all the benefits of employment. That includes a pension scheme,which now requires contribution from the umbrella company too. Let’s take a closer look at the statutory pension schemes available through umbrella companies.

Auto-enrolment pensions

In 2012,the UK Government decided that workers weren’t saving enough for their retirement. People were relying too much on the State Pension,which had not received adequate funding to match the continuing rise in life expectancy and an ageing population.

To combat this,they introduced automatic enrolment. The new system,rolled out from 2012 to 2018,requires employers to automatically enrol eligible employees onto a workplace pension scheme. Employers are also responsible for deducting contributions from their pre-tax income and making a minimum statutory contribution to the employee’s savings.

In October 2012,this minimum contribution was set to 1 percent for employees,which was matched by employers,rising in 2018:

• October 2012 to 5th April 2018: employers 1%,employees 1%
• 6th April 2018 to 5th April 2019: employers 2%,employees 3%
• 6th April 2019 onwards: employers 3%,employees 5%

However for anyone that doesn’t want to contribute to a pension once you’re enrolled you can still opt out.

Umbrella company pension scheme

Working through an umbrella company,contractors are classed as an employee. That means,yes,you are automatically enrolled onto the umbrella company’s pension scheme as long as you meet the following criteria:

• Your work is primarily UK-based
• You earn more than £10,000 per year
• You’re between 22 and the state pension age.

Until 5th April 2019,3% of your pre-tax salary will go directly into a pension fund,with the umbrella company contributing a further 2%. From 6th April 2019,5% of your pre-tax salary will go into the same pension fund,with your umbrella company contributing a further 3%.

The benefits of an umbrella company pension

Some contractors may worry that this will eat away at their wages. Don’t. Pension contributions are made before your wages are taxed. That means anything that goes from your wage into your pension fund is tax-free rather than being taxed at 20% or even 40%. So,instead of receiving 60% of your income,you receive 100% via a pension fund.

Let’s say you earn over £46,351 per year,which puts you in the higher rate band of income tax. Anything you earn beyond that £46,351 per year (roughly £3,863 per month) is taxed at a rate of 40%. You get just £60 for every £100 of income. Why not put the full £100 straight into the pension fund instead?

That’s why many people,especially those in the higher rate band of income tax,choose to put more than the minimum into their pension fund. And this is entirely possible. Contractors can contribute up to £40,000 to their pension scheme per year,comprising tax-free income and employer contributions. Currently,there is a lifetime allowance of £1,030,000 which can be contributed before incurring any tax.

Using your funds

With the increased earnings of contracting,it’s common for contractors to retire early. Alternatively,you might simply want to get some of the money out for a holiday,new car or home improvement. The good news is: you don’t have to wait until the state pension age to access the pension funds you’ve built up through your umbrella company pension.

Once you’re 55 or over,you can access up to 25% of your pension pot as a tax-free lump sum. Anything beyond the 25% will be taxed as an addition to the rest of your income that tax year – either 20% over £11,850,40% over £46,351 or £45% over £150,000,as things currently stand. That’s why most people choose to take their pension as regular income once they have retired,to minimise the amount of tax paid.

What about limited companies?

Contractors who operate as a limited company can still benefit from the tax relief of a pension scheme. However,as with most things relating to limited companies,this requires a lot more effort on their part. Firstly,they have to get the right balance between salary and dividend payments to increase the limit on their pension contributions.

Because employer contributions,such as pensions,count as a business expense,they are subject to tax relief. So,when you contribute to your pension scheme,as a director,the company could save money in corporation tax.

However,this has added complications because it needs to be fully compliant as an allowable expense. Any other employees,for example,should be given comparable packages to prove to HMRC that it is a genuine business expense.

On top of all that,using a limited company pension scheme means setting up and paying into the pension fund yourself. Along with all the other administrative work for limited company owners,it’s definitely worth seeking advice and assistant from a trusted accountant.

Get the right assistance

Whether you’re looking to compare umbrella companies or find the right accountant,you can make the right choice with -. Our online comparison tool lets you assess multiple companies in a matter of minutes. It couldn’t be easier to take the hassle out of contracting. Contact us today for more information.

Are you designing a personal or business website? Well,you need to use the best web design tips to help you bring more business to your site. Here are some of the top web design tips you should consider in 2019.

Black And White Palettes

Colour is one of the important parts of any website. It can be used to create a mood,unify your brand and guide users through the site’s pages since it creates visual landmarks. If you want to make an impressive statement with your website in 2019,you should consider using black and white palettes. The white areas will be clean and reserved. The black areas will create out an assertive strong impression.

Use Natural And Organic Shapes

Many web designers in the past have relied on natural shapes with smooth lines for their masterpieces. You can create a sense of stability on your site by using geometric structures such as rectangles,squares and triangles along with their sharp corners. Note that,most of the website design trends for 2019 are mostly about bringing out comfort and accessibility.

Bear in mind that because organic shapes are mostly asymmetrical and imperfect,they can provide depth to your site’s design. Therefore,the page elements will stand out accordingly. Basically,you need to make the web design feel more human by creating the illusion of movement.

Those SmallInteractions

These are events used to get the attention of the user and create inviting as well as ‘human’ elements. Every time there is an action on an app or website,there is usually a response,usually known as a micro-interaction. On your website,you could include scrolling animations,chimes and hovering icons. It’s a great way to make the audience involved in your website. That way,users can be excited about the way they navigate your site and their actions whilst using it. Even better,it’s a great way for your website to feel a little smarter.

Retro Art

Although it’s a retro design element,it’s making a huge comeback in 2019. Previously,glitch art was abandoned because of the poor internet connections available,this resulting in poor results. Now that broadband has become so pervasive,glitch art has become quite significant. It’s an amazing way to draw the audience to a part of your website that’s warped,glitch or double exposed. It brings out a psychedelic look and amplifies a feeling of disorientation,something most people love.

Use More Videos

Having video content on your website is not something new. But having it will make your page stand out. Plus,it will cater to those visitors who are in a rush and don’t have enough time to go through all the information on your page. Note that,Google has provided a platform for video content to prosper. Every search result features some video content thus a lot of websites have prioritized the use of videos to get a foot on the ladder. Don’t forget that videos are easy to share so you can count on more traffic.

Using these website design ideas for 2019 will be sure to bring you improved results!

For more information please visit rouge-media.com

As you’ll see,there are many ‘flavors’ of affiliate marketing: different approaches,different platforms,most of which can rightfully be termed “affiliate marketing”.
You probably have your own notion of what affiliate marketing looks like,what comes to mind when you think about the business of affiliate marketing – product review sites,Amazon affiliate links placed on a blog or within articles,promoting affiliate products to a mailing list,etc.

This is not intended to be an almanac of disparate affiliate marketing tactics.

Overview

1. Choose Your Niche / Topic
2. Develop Your Keyword List
3. Create Your Content
4. Build Your Website
5. Monetize Your Website
6. Drive Traffic
7. Optimize & Improve
8. Expand

Conceptually,affiliate marketing like this is fairly simple & straightforward: Choose your topic,determine which keywords & phrases are used to search in that topic,write articles optimized for those keywords,build the site using the content you created,add links to related affiliate products,then get the attention of people interested in the topic. For additional help on this affiliate marketing process:-

Visitors show up to browse the content,and some percentage click through and buy from your affiliate links,thereby generating your profits.

Here,we will break this down into a series of digestible and doable steps,building one on top of the next,until you have your business up,running,and generating revenues.

None of these steps is terribly complex or mystical; in fact,most have many ways to accomplish them,even many ‘right’ ways. But the difference between just ‘doing’ them,and doing them in a way that gets the results we’re after,while often subtle,are absolutely the difference between success & failure.

There are many ways to choose a niche,build a site,and drive traffic,but only a few will that result in strong,continuous conversions – the sales that produce your profits.

What is a niche anyway?

Your niche or topic is the basis of your website – it’s what your site will be about,it’s “Reason For Being”.

Choose the ‘wrong’ niche,and the best you can hope for is a constant struggle; more likely you’ll simply fail.

Choosing the ‘right’ niche won’t,by itself,insure success,but it is the single biggest determining factor,and what drives all subsequent steps.

If there’s anything ‘hard’ about picking your niche,it’s having to choose from so many excellent potential opportunities.

Once you know how to come up with and qualify niche ideas,the real fun begins – because as you’ll see,there are a near-infinite number of
good,lucrative niche site ideas waiting to be exploited. Your biggest problem will be deciding which to pursue

That said,I often hear from people who are just starting out that choosing a niche is difficult or frustrating – even mindboggling.

The four most common “complaints” I hear are:

1. Not knowing where to begin;
2. Not being able to come up with good ideas;
3. Not knowing if an idea will be profitable;
4. Not knowing if an idea is achievable.

One of the most important aspects of choosing your niche or topic is your “Reason For Being”.

Your Reason for Being is the reason your website exists,the justification for visitors to go there. Without a good,clear Reason for Being you’re sunk before you even begin.

Reason for Being answers the question “why would someone take the time & effort to visit your site”,shapes the approach you take,and dictates your content.

Suppose I have a passion for animals,and decide I want to create a site in the ‘pets’ niche.

After brainstorming,looking around online,thinking about my own experiences,etc.,I decide to create a site about keeping pets for apartment dwellers. Having lived in big cities and being a pet lover,I know there are unique challenges and restrictions for pet lovers in the city. Large or very active dogs,for instance,don’t typically do well living in an apartment. If it’s a walk-up,that poses additional challenges. Even tropical fish can pose problems – very large aquariums are immensely heavy and require firm,strong flooring underneath.

If I were to simply build a site without consideration of my Reason for Being,it would end up being a hodge-podge of marginally-related articles,with little cohesion or connectedness.

Looking at this example,however,I can come up with a clear,strong Reason for Being: addressing the specific challenges facing apartment dwellers who want to have a pet or pets. Now,instead of assembling a hodge-podge of articles,I can map out a strategy that will dictate my content:

• Dog breeds that adapt well to apartment living
• Desensitizing your dog to noise & activity
• Treadmills: exercising your dog when you can’t take him out

Your Reason for Being provides the reason for someone to visit your site. The clearer and more specific your Reason for Being,the better off you’ll be.An easier,obvious example is a review site. A site reviewing coffee makers would have as it’s reason for being,comparing different coffee makers in order to make a purchase decision.Improving the Reason for Being,we might instead build a review site around a narrower,more specific choice,for example “Home Espresso Makers”.

While there may be less people looking,it will be considerably easier to get and convert visitors looking to find out about and purchase a “Home Espresso Maker” than just a generic “Coffer Maker”.Taking that a step further still,”Home Espresso Makers For Price-Conscious Shoppers” is a clear,direct,and specific Reason for Being.

Someone looking for a low-priced home espresso maker will literally light up if they find a site devoted to “Home Espresso Makers For Price-Conscious Shoppers”.Examples of strong Reason for Being’s include:

Review & comparison sites

‘How To’ and tutorial sites

‘Top X’ and ‘best of’ sites

Unique solutions (i.e. ‘home remedies’,or our example above,etc)

Expertise sites

Unmet needs

‘Better mousetraps’

Whatever niche or topic you decide on,make sure you frame it with a clear,specific Reason for Being.