Singapore Consumer Interest Group

Small and mid-sized businesses in Singapore are now steering away from traditional telecom providers in record numbers, with each of them hoping to take advantage of the cost saving capabilities of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) while leveraging the calling features it provides. But with the potential for great return being this high, it has become easy to get caught up in the hype, rush into making decisions, and end up settling with a less than capable VoIP provider. To help mitigate the risk and ensure that you reap the maximum benefits of this phone service, we listed down some hiring mistakes you should avoid as you start searching for your VoIP service provider.

1. Disregarding How the Technology Works
Before you proceed in choosing a VoIP provider for your business, you should first ensure that you understand how the VoIP technology works. You don’t need to become an expert on the VoIP technology, but learning the basics – such as knowing how it functions – will certainly help you avoid the pitfalls that some providers might not disclose.

2. Failing to Learn About the Hidden Charges
Although VoIP in Singapore are inexpensive, have the initiative to go one step farther than the price you see on the provider’s website as there might be some hidden charges like its licensing, support and usage. For instance, you might notice a great price on the unlimited calling on your prospective provider’s website, but in the brochure it might state that the price doesn’t actually include calls made outside of their network. If this is case, inform your prospective VoIP provider beforehand to include both local and international calls in their unlimited call plans.

3. Hiring a Flagship VoIP Provider
If the provider that you are planning to hire is new to the VoIP industry, then it’s possible that they are using your business as a test subject. While this isn’t true to all new VoIP providers, it’s crucial that you find and hire someone who knows their craft and has been in the industry and can do super voip from Singapore for quite some time. After all, you wouldn’t want to hire someone who will disappear on the fly, or worse, leave you with a system that will cause you a lot of headaches later on. For that reason, ensure that you spend some time learning about your prospective provider as this investment will surely return to you tenfold.

4. Choosing Someone Who Won’t Consider Bandwidth and Traffic
When implementing a VoIP service in your business in Singapore, it’s crucial to remember that your phone calls will be transmitted over your internet connection. Depending on the type of connection that you have, the upload capacity of your VoIP might be limited. If you have a large amount of data and voice, you might not have enough bandwidth to effectively use your VoIP service. The end result will be an unreliable VoIP connection and issues with data transmission using your internet connection.

To keep this from happening, ensure that you provider knows and listens to your needs. It would also be a good idea to get feedbacks from the people who previously hired your prospective provider so you will have an idea as to how the service works.

5. Forgetting to Ask About any Necessary Licenses
Using a VoIP on your home computer is relatively easy – you simply choose a provider, pay your monthly fee, and download the necessary software interface. However, it doesn’t work this way when it comes to using the services for your business, as most providers use licensing to lock their clients in. These VoIP in Singapore also use great value telecom services to hide licensing, making their offer look better until you are already locked in. To keep this from happening, inquire about any possible licenses that they have before you sign on the dotted line.

6. Failing to Ask About Their Disaster Recovery Plan
One of the first questions you should be asking your prospective VoIP provider is whether or not they have a plan in place for disaster recovery. Failing to do so will likely leave you stranded in case a system failure occurs. So don’t assume that your VoIP provider will automatically provide disaster recovery services to your business. Instead, ensure beforehand if these services are actually offered or not.

7. Neglecting the Features Offered by the Provider
While some of the phone services you need for your business seems like a “no brainer”, you will be surprised at how many VoIP providers in Singapore actually leave out some basic services like call forwarding. So instead of relying that all the services you want are already provide, require your provider to perform a demonstration so you fully understand what is being offered in the plan you are planning to get. Doing this will certainly help in avoiding negative surprises that might adversely affect your business later on.

8. Forgetting to Perform a Network Test
Some VoIP in Singapore will not bother evaluating your existing network to see if it’s capable of handling the VoIP system that you need. If your prospective VoIP provider is one of those teams, simply ask them about it. If things start becoming sketchy as they answer, do yourself and your business a favour and move on the next VoIP on your list.

With the hype in the VoIP system these days, it’s quite easy to end up hiring an incompetent and inexperienced provider. To keep that from happening, ensure that you avoid committing these mistakes when choosing a VoIP provider. Make sure that you are hiring someone who’s offering a reliable technical support and system maintenance. After all, this is an area of your business you would not want to cut corners, as it could spell disaster if you do.

The best way to start the year 2017 is to live healthy. This sounds easy but actually it is not. Diet takes a lot of your time, patience and tons of your resolve. No matter what, it should be done because it is important. The good news is that many Singaporeans know that the only way to go forward is to be healthy.

There are many diet trends in the market last year. It is beneficial to know them so you will know which one to consider. However if you want the help of professionals, you can do so. Here are the most sought-after diet trends in 2016:

• Vegetarian Diet: This diet is pretty understandable without giving much explanation. This diet is actually not new but 2016 saw an increased search for more information about it. Vegetarian diet can either be moral, health and religious but regardless, those who stick to a no-meat diet have lower bad cholesterol.

• Military Diet: Military men have beautiful bodies because of their diet. This diet operates on one principle – intermittent fasting. This means that there will be only three days diet in a week but those days will consist of eating less calories. Fasting is effective in forcing the metabolism to accelerate.

• Atkins Diet: This diet is also not new because it is now on its 40 years of existence but it is one of the most sought-after because of its success. The diet is developed by Dr. Robert Atkins. This diet operates on harshly cutting back carb consumption but increasing protein intake.

• Cabbage Soup Diet: This diet is sought-after because of its fast results. Many people who are in a rush of losing weight turn to this diet. The soup is low in fat with high fibre. It will slim you down as soon as possible.

• DASH Diet: Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet is not meant to lose weight but in the past years, many people consider this to shed some weight. The diet heavily leans on dairy foods, fruits, vegetables and whole grains.

Aside from the diets mentioned above, other sought-after diet trends include the Weight Watchers Diet, Low Carb Diet, Paleo Diet, Ketogenic Diet and Mediterranean Diet. These diets have different things they focus on but are still very effective. Many celebrities attest to their effectiveness but no matter what, without exercise, you won’t be successful at all.

You have to know that exercise is also crucial in developing and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Path to healthy life is never easy but it has to be done before it is too late.

Singaporeans are now aware of the good benefits of healthy living. It is not too late to consider it. Start with a good diet plan. There are many diet plans or trends in the market these days and it is up to you which one to consider. You can even hire a dietician or nutritionist to help you with your cause. However it pays to know the most searched diet plans last year.

Here are the most-searched diets in 2016:

1. Weight Watchers Diet: This is actually the most-searched diet plan last year with celebrity endorses and the assurance to lose two pounds every week, it is hard not to notice it. Weight Watchers Diet re-launched “Beyond The Scale”.

2. Low Carb Diet: This kind of diet is self-explanatory. It is simple – limit carbohydrates (like bread, pasta and sugary foods). In fact, many studies agree that low carb diet proved weight loss thereby improving health. This is the reason why it is the second most-searched diet trends in the market.

3. Paleo Diet: Paleo diet is also known as caveman diet. It is endorsed by celebrities like Gwyneth Paltrow and Jessica Biel. This diet says that you should eat according to what nature intends you to eat – by hunting and gathering. This diet only promotes berries, buts, fruit, vegetables and meat.

4. Ketogenic Diet: Ketogenic is actually one of the oldest diets there is in the world. It is after all on its 95^th This is actually the diet of people with epilepsy. It promotes a no carb or extremely low carb diet. This diet will put the body in a state of ketosis – body will start to break down its fats and use it as energy.

5. Mediterranean Diet: There is a reason why Mediterranean people are healthy. It is because of their diet and maybe some sun? Well, mostly it is their diet. People from Greece, Spain and Italy have diets high in fat. Actually people from these places have lower chances of getting heart diseases compared to United States and Canada. The diet involves food like legumes, vegetables, fruits, olive oil and whole grains.

Do not depend on diet alone because it is not completely healthy at all. Diet should come hand in hand with exercise for it to be effective. Exercise regularly and together with good diet, you will surely live healthy. The keys here are discipline and consistency. Your will to be healthy should not only cover a period of time.

Good luck and keep it up!

We must admit that most of our days are routinary and just plain old boring. We’re busy acting as a robot all day every day at work that sometimes we forget to actually live. We forget to have fun and we tend to neglect our relationships with our loved ones. To spice up our lives once again, go-getters and some YOLO peeps from Singapore suggest the following ways.

1. Give something for free. A random act of kindness can always make you feel even more alive. You can donate to a charity, volunteer in an organization or simply just give your unused clothes to a homeless person. Even how little your effort or help may be, give it for free. This is the perfect way to feed your soul while helping others.

2. Follow a different route. Either you commute or have car, try a different route from time to time. Explore another side of the city you’re in and you might get surprised on how interesting it could be.

3. Try something new. Whatever it is that you’ve always wanted to do, try it now. You can try a new hobby or make something creative out of scrap metals or unused things. As long as it is something that you have never done then go for it.

4. Be a slacker for a day. Being well put together, responsible and busy with responsibilities can be very draining. To enlighten your life, try to be a freeloader for a day or once a month. You can avail on free trials of products at malls, go window shopping and get free OOTDs during fitting or eat free tastes at the grocery or food fairs.

5. Get a make-over. If you feel like you look older than your age, then most probably you are stressed and worn out. Fire up your confidence again and get a make-over. You can try a new hairstyle or spend a few dollars for new wardrobes.

6. Travel to new places. It’s always invigorating to travel around especially to new places you’ve never been to. Take the time off from work and make sure that you visit places that are not so crowded so that you can enjoy your trip more.

7. Watch a concert. Invite someone special or your friends to watch a concert with you. You can also check out live shows, comedy bars, open mics, etc. Stimulate your party senses and enjoy such experiences.

8. Change your morning routine a bit. When every morning is getting more and more dragging, then try to spice it up a bit. You can change your morning routine into something more fun and energizing. You can set your alarm earlier than usual, go for a walk or a jog, eat a healthy and pleasing breakfast, or you can squeeze in a few extra activities that you’d like.

There are a lot of couples these days that started as long-distance lovers. A proportion of LDRs existed due to career growth (say for example a promotion in Singapore) or the need to migrate to another country with the whole family. Nevertheless, despite the distance, a great number of LDRs are successful of making it to a happily ever after. So, it’s safe to say that being in an LDR is not so bad after all. You may be geographically single but you don’t feel alone. Don’t feel miserable for yourself that you’re in this kind of relationship. Here, let me tell you 8 things you can benefit from long-distance relationships.

1. You get to test trust. Trust is one of the essentials of a long-lasting relationship. You learn to give it and you learn to receive it at the same time. Since relationships are two way, the subjective belief of your partner’s genuineness gives credibility to the reason why you are holding on despite the distance and the fact that you don’t see each other often than the conventional.

2. You learn to be patient. You can’t always demand your partner’s time and resources. All the more, responding to demands becomes hardly possible because you two are apart. You learn to wait for his/her availability, calls, emails, and packages – the most, his/her next visit!

3. You get to know more about yourself. With LDRs, you get a lot of “me” time. This is good most especially when you are maturing. It helps you get thru it independently. You know more of your strengths and weaknesses as an individual. You even get to discover a new you.

4. You save a lot. Since you rarely meet up, you get to save a lot of money and time. Both for men and women in this kind of relationship save resources of all sorts.

5. You have more time with your friends and family. Along with some “me” time is your time to continue living in the lives of your family and friends. Also, you won’t feel secluded in your love life.

6. You become creative. Distance has never been a hindrance to spice up the romance between two virtually connected lovers. You learn to explore other means and ways to be affectionate and to make him/her feel your presence in the most possible way that you’d want them to.

7. You develop. With the luxury of time you both have, you learn new things. You even meet new people and hear new stories. You simply get to know more about life itself. In the end, you realize you’ve come to be a better person each time – both of you as you grow individually but together.

8. You fall in love some more. It’s true that absence makes the heart grow fonder. The distance itself and the commitment you put so much into it make you realize that it’s all worth it.

Dementia is common not only here in Singapore but around the world. Dementia is something that affects the patients, their caregivers and the people around them. It is important for people with dementia to learn some coping tips so they can survive and endure it all. It will not be easy but it is sure worth every effort.

Dementia is a mental processes disorder that is caused by a disease in the brain marked by personality changes, memory disorders and impaired reasoning. If you are diagnosed with dementia, your mental abilities will decline and you will feel vulnerable. The good news is that you can do things to help you handle early stages of dementia.

Here are some tips you can consider to manage the dementia in a way that will surely benefit you and the family:

Look after yourself. Your mental processes may decline but it is imperative that you look after yourself by taking care of your physical health through diet, exercise and exercise.

Never skip regular medical check-ups. Sometimes it is just easy to let the disease eat you and you wither together with it but then what about the people around you? You have to keep fighting for them so when it is your schedule for check-up, do not skip it. That is the least that you can do.

Take medications. Medications can help so it is crucial that you take some at the right moment. When doctors prescribe medications, do your best to remember by not skipping it. Do not change anything unless the doctors recommend it.

Avoid unhealthy coping mechanism. You deal with things in your life differently and that is okay but if it is unhealthy, you have to think twice. Sometimes when you learn you have this disease, you just succumb to alcohol as your coping mechanism. It will not help you. In fact, it will only make things worse. Remember that it is harmful if alcohol will interact with medications.

Join a support group. No one will really know what you are going through expect the people with the same disorder. At this point in time, you need all the support that you can get. Your family is there for you but sometimes there are things that they cannot understand. Joining support groups can let you connect with others and at the same time learn more about dementia.

Keep lines open. Sulking will make the matter worst. Do not isolate yourself. Keep your lines open especially to your family, friends and loved ones.

When you hear dementia, it usually refers to decline in memory severe enough to diminish the ability of the person to perform daily tasks. This condition is common here in Singapore for which Alzheimer’s accounts for 60-80% of the cases. Patients diagnosed with dementia experience different kinds of emotions from denial to anger, frustration and depression.

The patients feel vulnerable and it leads to irritability and coldness. If the people around them do not understand a thing about dementia, they will give up easily. In fact, the disorder can create rift or gap. As a caregiver, you have to stay strong for your loved ones with dementia.

Caring for people with dementia can be very challenging but there are tips that you can consider. Sometimes you will feel much stressed out but you should not give up. If you give up, your patients will be left to deal with dementia alone. Here are some tips for caregivers with dementia patients:

• Monitor yourself: The golden rule here is “you cannot help the person without helping yourself in the first place”. How can you care for the person if you do not feel well, right? It is crucial that as a caregiver you look after yourself too. Monitor yourself for signs of exhaustion or worse, burnout. If necessary, seek for the help of professionals.

• Research: To understand the disease, you should spend time researching it. If you can find reading materials, go and read it. If you do not understand it, you should spend time talking to the doctor. It will help you if you know what to expect and you will have some ideas on how to handle it.

• Understand: Of all people, you should understand your patient. However there are limits to this. At the end of the day, you have to understand the change in behaviour.

• Be sincere: Dealing with people enduring dementia should be sincere. The sincerity should be seen. If the patients detect that you are acting falsely, they will either retreat or reject whatever help you want to extend.

• Encourage action: As much as you want the patient to be comfortable, you need to encourage action too. Little tasks should not be kept from them. This is to retain their self-esteem. Just be there in case something happens but if you give them the chance to still do things alone, they will surely feel good about it.

• Plan activities: People with dementia are often stuck in the house with nothing left to do. That is not how you encourage them to live fully. If there is a need to plan activities with them, do it.

Practising good salon manners is something you should pay attention to if you want to be a regular customer that the salon staff would always be happy to see and willing to accommodate even during very busy periods. It may seem like a lot of trouble, but learning how to properly act in a hair salon and establishing good relationships with its staff will certainly pay out sometime in the future. With that in mind, we listed down things that’ll certainly help in polishing your hair salon etiquette.

1. Arrive on Time During Appointments

Being on time for your hair appointments is one of the hair salon etiquettes you should consider following and working on, especially if you scheduled an appointment to one of the best hair salon in Singapore. Most salons practise the “academic quart” (a leeway of 15 minutes) when scheduling their appointments, which allows their regular customers to be arrive a bit late than the designated time, but don’t abuse it to the point that your late arrivals are already disrupting their entire scheme.

2. Patiently Wait for Your Turn

Just like you, each client are given their respective times, so you shouldn’t go ballistic in case your hair salon in Far East Plaza Singapore is still attending to his or her first client upon your arrival. Instead, patiently wait for your turn in their sofa and just flip through their magazines. If you find yourself waiting longer than you expected, however, simply call the attention of the hairdresser or salon manager. You can also ask to be prioritized as you schedule your appointment if you’re really running short on time. Remember, a good hair salon manners should be practiced with a lady-like attitude and not a diva-like approach.

3. Tip the Right People

Giving the right tip is another hair salon etiquette that’s certainly worth practising. When tipping a hair stylist, give something between 15 and 20 percent of your total service cost. The tip for the shampoo person, on the other hand, can range from one to five dollars. Tipping the person who catered to your haircare needs is one way of showing your appreciation for the excellent services that they provided, so ensure that you tip them well.

4. Talk About Appropriate Things

You made it on time for your appointment in your favourite hair salon in Singapore, remembered the tipping tips but there’s still one issue that needs to be covered – what are you going to talk about while you sit in the salon chair? Well, professional hairstylists will encourage sharing some personal details, mostly to put clients at ease. If you’re not comfortable about this, do say so. Avoid gossiping, don’t reveal details that may be too intimate, and steer clear from controversial topics. Instead, share some personal facts like your profession, age and styling routine to your hairdresser so he or she can come up with the right hairstyle for you.

5. Never Pull a No-Show Act

Pulling a no-show is definitely one of the few things that you should never do after scheduling an appointment in a hair salon. Not showing up for your appointment is even worse than standing somebody up for a date since we’re talking about the financial losses of the establishment and the wasted time of the hairdresser here. So if you think you won’t be able to show up, let them know so they can reschedule, regroup, and still earn the money they would’ve lost waiting for you to show up. Remember, if you respect your stylist’s time and effort, he or she will certainly provide you with excellent service in return.

6. Pay When the Service is Completed

You hairdresser is providing you with quality service, so it’s only fair that you pay them once the hair treatment is rendered. Don’t say that you’ll be going to the bank and will just be returning with the payment. If you scheduled an appointment to the salon, then be prepared to pay at the end of your treatment session. If you’re trying out a new hair salon in Singapore, ask your stylist about the price of the service you’ll be getting, but bring some extra bucks in case you decide to add additional services while you’re there.

7. Bring Samples of the Style You Want

Bringing sample photos of the hairstyle you want to cop is one way of ensuring that your stylist understands what you want to achieve. Simply show the sample photo to your hairdresser, but be also prepared if he tells you that it’s impossible to achieve that particular style. Have him explain why your chosen style isn’t realistic or fit for your hair, then start brainstorming on other possible styles that could fit you. Just ensure that you both understand and agree on the desired outcome of your haircut or treatment.

8. Only Use Your Phone if Necessary

Even if you don’t want to talk with your hairdresser, it’s still rude to spend most of your time in the chair texting, making calls, and responding to emails. Using your phone when your stylist is trying to give you a haircut can be distracting. There’s also a good chance that it’ll interrupt the cutting and colouring process if you become more animated. This is why it’s best to leave the conversations for when you leave the hair salon.

When setting an appointment in any of the best hair salon in Singapore, ensure that you follow these etiquettes. Not only will this help you establish a good relationship with your hair stylist, it’ll also allow you to make the most out of your trip to the salon.

Doing a property management-related business in Singapore isn’t easy, that’s why it would really be helpful to get the right property manager to help you in managing your business. But, how can you possibly know that the manager that you got has the right qualifications to handle your business?

Here are some tips that can guide you in choosing the right property manager to supervise your assets:

1. Check for referrals

One way to get an idea as to who is the right property manager in Singapore for you is to get referrals from trusted people. Try talking with real estate agents or other land owners near your place and ask as to what property management companies they have hired to manage their property. Also, ask them about the experience that they had with the company or the person so that you’ll have an idea as to what kind of property manager you’ll be facing.

2. Try doing an online search

You can also try searching online for property management companies that can provide the service that you need. You should be able to answer the question: “What is the value of my estate?” There are websites online that allows you to enter the size of your property and its location in Singapore. After giving the necessary information, a list of property management companies near your area will be generated and from there, you can choose the one that best fits your needs.

It would also be ideal to check some reviews about the company beforehand so that you won’t waste your time interviewing property managers that aren’t fit for the qualifications that you’re looking for.

3. Interview your potential property manager

This is actually important to do since the property manager that you will choose will be the one that you’ll entrust your property with. Interviewing your candidates is important since you get to know who among your choices are really knowledgeable in their field and are fully aware of their responsibilities. Also, ask them about their educational background, and their experience as a property manager.

Screening your property managers can help you in quickly eliminating those who doesn’t match your standards and further test the ones that you think are capable enough to manage your property.

4. Check your property manager’s license and certification

Aside from checking the skills of your potential property manager, it would also be wise thing for you to check their license and certification since that just proves that they have completed their training program. However, you shouldn’t always base your qualifications on hiring a property manager through their certification because there are some property managers who don’t have enough money to attend certification classes but are more passionate when it comes to doing their jobs.

5. Study their management agreement

Check the management agreement of your chosen property manager. This agreement should include and state their responsibilities as a property manager and your responsibilities too, as the owner. You should also pay attention on the section of the agreement that talks about the services that will be provided, and the extra fees to be charged.

Getting a property manager would really be a good idea since property management Singapore is really stressful and messy especially if you chose the wrong one to manage your business.