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Archive for the ‘Interest Rates’ Category

(PRWEB UK) 11 May 2012

Leading UK banjo retailer and manufacturer Banjos Direct has reported increased web visits and customer conversion since embracing the trend for online independent customer feedback systems.

Banjos Direct, which was launched in December 2011 and has grown rapidly to be a leader in the British banjo market place, installed the customer feedback system provided by German company Ekomi in April, but has already received numerous positive and detailed reviews from customers. The company is the only banjo specialist to publish independent customer feedback on its website.

Founder and CEO of Banjos Direct, Simon Middleton, explained: “We set up our banjo shop with a complete focus on providing class-leading customer service. For the first few months we relied on contacting our customers personally to request their feedback.”

“We discovered that customers like to give feedback, but our research showed that they are even happier about doing it when they can see that the feedback is moderated by an independent organisation. That way they can be sure that their reviews are not ‘whitewashed’ in any way.”

Middleton added: “Of course there’s an added benefit of new customers being able to trust the feedback they see because they know it is independently gathered and published. As Britain’s leading specialist banjo retailer we therefore have to make sure that our customer service is absolutely impeccable.”

The online banjo shop, which has also recently become the only British company to actually manufacture banjos in the UK, says it has consistently received five star reviews since launching the Ekomi system.

Customers visiting the online banjo shop can read reviews on the site, which are updated with every new review. When a customer decides to buy a banjo or any of the shop’s banjo accessories they are sent an order confirmation, followed a few days later by an invitation to give their feedback.

The feedback system allows them to give a star rating out of five, to state whether they would recommend the banjo shop to other customers, and encourages them to make further comments.

Simon Middleton said: “We are delighted with the Banjos Direct customer feedback system from Ekomi. It keeps us on our toes, which helps us to constantly improve our service, and of course it reassures potential customers that they can trust Banjos Direct.”

COMPANY INFORMATION

Banjos Direct is the UK’s fastest-growing specialist banjo retailer and manufacturer, leading the renaissance of interest in the banjo amongst players of every age and background. The Norwich-based company is the UK’s leading stockist of USA banjo brands GoldTone and Nechville, and also stocks instruments by Barnes & Mullins, Pilgrim and Tanglewood. It has recently announced its move into banjo manufacturing with the launch of the all-British made Islander OB-01.

Founder and CEO of Banjos Direct, Simon Middleton, is also frontman of English-Americana band The Proposition, whose debut album King Snake, Devil Shake was released in March this year. Middleton is the author of several books on branding and marketing, including ‘Build A Brand In 30 Days’ and the new guide to personal branding ‘Brand New You’.

Find Banjos Direct at http://www.banjosdirect.co.uk.

Email: info(at)banjosdirect(dot)co(dot)uk

Phone: +44 (0) 1603 305800

Related Interest Rates Press Releases

Some cool Credit Card Rates images:

U.S. House Bailout Hearing


Image by Public Citizen
(Photo by Alyssa Wolice)

Public Citizen and Consumer Watchdog called on Congress Wednesday to incorporate consumer safeguards in any financial bailout plan, including a cap on credit card and mortgage interest rates.

Public Citizen President Joan Claybrook and Consumer Watchdog founder Harvey Rosenfield address reporters.

Learn more at Citizen Vox.

by Ravi Karandeekar

Article by Debbie Dragon

Interest rates are calculated differently based on the type of debt that you have. When trying to determine interest rates on credit cards, it’s important to understand what provisions the lender may have for raising your interest rate if you make a late payment. Keep in mind that most credit cards can raise your interest rates even if the payment you made late was on a different credit card!

Understanding interest rates involves understanding a wide range of terms pertaining to interest rates, including:

APR: the annual percentage rate, which is the same rate charged when you borrow the money or charge the purchase on a credit card.

Prime Rate: The prime rate is used to calculate interest rates that are charged to the general public on credit cards and loans. The largest banks set the prime rate and give that rate to the customers who have the strongest credit ratings and the best ability to repay the loans. Some credit card lenders set their interest rates as “prime plus 8 percent”, so if the prime rate was 7.5 percent, then the interest rate charged would be 15.5 percent. If the prime rate changes, the rate charged to the customer changes.

Fixed Rate: interest rates that are considered “fixed” do not change, although they can be increased if you negate on your agreement to make payments on time.

Penalty Rate: Typically, a contract will indicate how much the penalty rate is. A penalty rate is the amount that can be raised in the event that you are late with your payments. Even if you have made all payments on time with a lender, you can still be subject to a penalty rate if the contract indicates a “universal default”. A universal default allows one lender to raise the interest rate when you are late with any other lenders. In some cases, a credit card lender might use the universal default clause to raise your interest rates just because you have excessive debt (even if you’ve been paying on it regularly) or you’ve defaulted on a loan.

Variable APR/Variable Rate: interest rates that are considered variable can change, depending on the economy or the fluctuations in the prime rate.

Revolving Debt vs Installment Debt

In addition to understanding the various terms related to interest rates, it’s also helpful to understand the difference between revolving debt and installment debt. Credit cards are considered revolving debt. While there is a maximum limit that you are allowed to borrow, each time you make payments on your credit card, you can “reuse’ that portion of your balance. So if you’ve got a credit card with a $ 5,000 balance, and you spend $ 2000, you have $ 3000 available. When you make a payment of $ 1000, your available credit now includes the $ 1000 that you just paid off, and you could use the card for purchases up to $ 4000 at that time. The available balance revolves as you pay your statements. (This is an oversimplified example that doesn’t take into account the portion of a payment that is applied to interest). Revolving accounts charge the most interest.

Installment debts are loans like mortgages or vehicle loans, as well as personal loans that you may take from a bank. An installment loan is a fixed amount of money that is borrowed over a specific period of time. Your payments each month don’t change (unless you happen to have an installment loan with a variable interest rate). Installment debt is easier to budget for, as your monthly payments remain constant.