Trusted Saskatoon Blog | Trusted Tips

Trusted Saskatoon community welcomes Aurora Workplace Solutions to the Saskatoon Insurance Category

1. Feb 2021 Admin Saskatoon Insurance, Trusted Brag Blogs, Trusted Tips

The Trusted Saskatoon team is thrilled to welcome Aurora Workplace Solutions Inc. to the Trusted Saskatoon community. They have joined the Trusted Saskatoon insurance category, and offer insurance products, group benefits, retirement plans, seminars, and training. Aurora Workplace Solutions Trusted Saskatoon Group Benefits and Insurance Professionals!

Have You Heard of Aurora Workplace Solutions?

Aurora Workplace Solutions has over 50 years of combined experience in the industry. They have a reputation for working hard to provide new and improved ideas to serve their clients, and they are always looking to offer an outstanding level of care and professionalism.

Small and large business owners alike are generally spinning lots of plates. They are busy working on and in their business, and they often rely on Trusted 3rd party advisors to assist them with major financial decisions. The categories most need assistance with are insurance, accounting, legal, HR, and group benefits. Aurora Workplace is a wonderful choice to assist with several of these areas, and they can be counted on to provide the best possible advice and recommendations for each client and their unique needs.

Collin Willms is well known in Saskatoon, pre-covid he was a regular attendee at networking events, and consistently stepped up to volunteer his time for various local organizations and charitable events and causes. Collin has great personal style and an easy friendly smile, so it is no surprise that he came highly recommend to the Trusted team by his clients. Collin heads up a stellar team of advisors from across Saskatchewan, as Aurora has offices in Saskatoon, Tisdale, and most recently Regina.

The insurance and group benefits industry is full of confusing acronyms, and there are so many options to consider; getting the right advice is key! It is great to have a trusted local team focused on finding the right options for their client's individual circumstances. Aurora takes the time to explain the why and the how, they are not the kind of company that you just hear from once a year at renewal time. When we spoke to Auroras clients we heard repeatedly how they considered Aurora to be a part of their team.

Also, it was noted several times that they go out of their way to get to know their client's businesses really well, this means they can recommend them to their other clients and networks. Collin even went as far as signing up for challenging cross-fit classes with one of his clients Chad, Owner of Synergy Strength and Conditioning, and now he is a committed cross-fitter who regularly brings guests along, including other clients. When it comes down to it, the Aurora team are great relationship builders and that is a real strength in the financial industry.

Don't just take it from us, read the real words from Aurora clients that Trusted representatives gathered. We call and survey the clients of businesses that apply to be a part of Trusted. This is just part of our in-depth Trusted Verification Process and it is a pass or a fail. We are happy to share that Aurora Workplace Solutions were rated highly by every single client we spoke to, and they passed all of our tests and checks with flying colours.

"Collin Willms and the team at Aurora Workplace Solutions have been easy, straight forward, and helpful, throughout all our business requirements. They are quick to respond to questions and offer solutions. We at CJ Karz auto service are very satisfied with our business with Colin and Aurora Workplace solutions.”- Matt Jamieson and Angela downing at CJ Karz Auto service.

"We've been working with Collin from Aurora Workplace Solutions for a few years now and appreciate their great service and knowledge base. I definitely rate them a 10 out of 10 and would highly recommend them to other business owners looking for workplace benefits for themselves and their employees." Dave T

Aurora Workplace Solutions are well equipped to serve any client. If you need help growing your business. Check out their listing in the Saskatoon Insurance Category!

If you are ready to set up a group benefit or retirement plan, or just want to learn more about their services, just Click Here For A Quote

'Creating Brilliant Futures'

Aurora Workplace Solutions Is A Trusted Saskatoon Group Benefits and Insurance Professional!

Trusted Saskatoon Team Brags About Saskatoon Bag & Case, Your Trusted Saskatoon Speciality Bag & Case Store!

20. Jan 2021 Admin Saskatoon Retail, Trusted Brag Blogs, Trusted Tips

The Trusted Saskatoon team is thrilled to welcome Saskatoon Bag & Case to the Trusted Saskatoon community. They have joined our Saskatoon specialty retail category, and specialize in custom designs of high-quality and durable bag and case products. They work with any industry, including sports teams, work crews, company promotions, and music and audiovisuals. Saskatoon Bag & Case are your Trusted Saskatoon Custom Bag & Case Experts!

Have You Heard of Saskatoon Bag & Case?

If not we have some news for you! Did you know that Saskatoon Bag and Case is one of the very few case facilities in Canada that offer such a wide variety of cases and bags under a single roof? And this local, family-owned business has been providing its huge selection of products combined with exceptional service since 1984!

Saskatoon Bag and Case carry a huge selection of Pelican branded products as well as standard cases and bags, but their specialty is designing custom, one-of-a-kind cases and bags of any shape and size, designed to meet your exact specifications. Whether it be high-quality, durable bags for sports teams, work crews, musicians or company promotions they are the experts in this industry in Canada.

Even if you have your own case, Trevor Sonstelie, the owner will design custom foam inserts to protect your valuable equipment or musical instruments. Many of Trevor’s customers regularly ask for custom embroidery and screen printing for company logos or team names, and we are happy to share that yes, SBC will do that as well.

You can check out their website to see all they offer https://sbccase.com or visit their showroom on Faithfull Avenue in Saskatoon. Go and talk to Trevor in person about what it is you’re looking for, he is happy to help you navigate through the options to find the one best suited to you! There is no better place to buy personal or business cases and bags in Saskatchewan than Saskatoon Bag & Case. Their service is exceptional and their products are the best!

Don’t take it from us - when surveying Trevor’s customers as part of the Unique Trusted verification process, we consistently heard great things. Read some of their first-hand experiences below.

"Saskatoon Bag & Case has provided Team Power Solutions with custom cases for sensitive test equipment. They are very responsive to design cases that protect our equipment and stand up to the field use and shipping requirements." - Allen, Team Power Solutions

"Trevor at Saskatoon Bag & Case is very willing to help and open minded for any project. He has been a big plus to our team and product at Guardian Angel Auto Flagger Mfg." - Kim, Watrous SK

You can read more glowing client testimonials and see all Saskatoon Bag & Case offers by checking out their listing in the Saskatoon Specialty Retail Category.

“If you Need It Covered...They’ve Got It Cased!”

Saskatoon Bag & Case Is Your Trusted Saskatoon Speciality Bag & Case Store!

Trusted Saskatoon IT Pro’s at Burnt Orange Solutions Owner Shares 5 Tips To Secure Data

16. Dec 2020 Admin Saskatoon Computers & Web design, Trusted Tips

Gareth McKee and his Trusted Saskatoon IT team at Burnt Orange, promise to have a one-hour response time for all your IT support needs. Honesty and respect are important to them. They pride themselves on ensuring their clients understand IT concerns by providing a straightforward and reliable solution with exceptional service. Burnt Orange Solutions are your Trusted Saskatoon IT Experts and in their latest Saskatoon IT tip, Gareth provides 5 tips on how to safely secure data at your company.

GARETH'S 5 TIPS TO SECURE DATA AT YOUR COMPANY

Secure Data with Gareth’s 5 Tips for Your Company

Owner of Burnt Orange IT Solutions, Gareth McKee, provides his top 5 tips on how to secure data safely and improve the security of your data at your company. Watch the video below or read on.

1. Secure Data with the Use of Strong Passwords

According to Forbes, in the last 6 months of 2019 over 4 billion records were exposed by data breaches. Included in these records were over 1 billion passwords retrieved.
The top 5 easiest passwords to hack are:
#1 – 12345
#2 – 123456
#3 – 123456789
#4 – Test1
#5 – Password
But they are not always the easy ones to crack by hackers, as shown here:
#21 – princess
#30 – monkey
#48 – chocolate
#97 – babygirl
So, what do we learn from this? There are ‘bots’ and phishing scams active every day on the internet, looking to gain access to your network, steal your data or encrypt it to extort money from you.

What Does a Strong Password Look Like?

Strong passwords need 2 things: length and complexity. Both are really easy to achieve with a little imagination. Let’s firstly achieve the length. Rather than think of a passWORD, think of passwords (plural) or a passPHRASE.
One solution is to think of 4 unrelated words such as:
#Potato plastiC either strong!
The above is 30 characters and notice I have added the # and ! to make it a little more complex.
Or, you can use a phrase such as:
!Theres a m00se 0n the 100se#
The above is 29 characters. Replacing letters with numbers can be a good way to achieve complexity (for example, changing O’s to zero’s).
The best solution is to use a password manager, which is a secure app that remembers all your complex and long passwords for you so all you have to remember is the 1 password to the manager.

2. Secure Data by Locking Your Computer

How easy would it be for someone to walk past an office, walk-in and steal data from an unlocked PC? This happens more often than you think, and whether it is a disgruntled employee or a stranger who has walked into your building, it is so easy to steal data in this way.
The solution is to have your PC lock itself after a certain amount of inactivity. This is easy to achieve, simply decide the length of inactivity before allowing your PC to lock. I recommend 5 minutes.
Looking after a network properly can be a difficult and time-consuming job so to make your life easy, engage with a local, professional IT Security company such as Burnt Orange IT Solutions. You will find that the money spent on network security is easily recovered by staff efficiencies.

3. Receive a Suspicious Email? Call the Sender Before You Click

Email spoofing costs businesses millions of dollars every year. I am sure you can remember Saskatoon City Council being duped in 2019 to the price of $1 million.
If even a known client emails you asking to transfer money, providing you with new banking details, large orders, or asking you to click anywhere, call the client to ensure the information has come from them directly. A quick phone call can save a lot of money, embarrassment, and is a way to secure data. This should be a standard practice in your office. If you don’t have an Acceptable Use Policy or User Best Practice Policy in your organization, contact your best local IT company. They can help you achieve the best practices in your business.

4. Take a Breath

We all have 10 hours of work to complete in an 8 hour day, but just by taking 1 second to look at an email can save a lot of heartache. Hovering over an email address or a web link can show you where it is actually directing the click. Just because the link reads www.rbc.com, this does not mean it will direct you there.
Also, hackers often send a link which looks real, but is slightly misspelt, for example:
https://www.saskatoononliinetrucks.com/saskatoon/cheapestdeals/buytoday
if you look closely there are two ‘i’s in online. In a busy day that may be easy to miss, you navigate to a website with a virus, allowing it to download, the virus waits a day and ultimately encrypts all the data on your server. Not a good day for you or your company.
The accepted solution here is to put DNS protection in place. This service scours the internet all day, looking for dangerous websites, whether they are legit or not, and if a dangerous website is found, the service will stop you from accessing the website. If you can’t access the website, you cannot download the virus. Simple as that! Professional IT companies offer this service for a fraction of the cost of the downtime experienced should a virus be download by accident. Contact your local IT company for help.

5. Back Up Your Data

Even in a small office where there is no ‘real’ server, it is always a good idea to treat one of the PCs as a file server. Have all the data held there, back up that PC, and only that PC. This makes the backup and recovery activity simple and easy. Impose a rule that all data must be held on that PC. Configure each PC to share to that PC. Complete this task and you have just saved yourself days of non-productivity in a recovery situation.
The best backup solutions today backup to the cloud. They will:
Encrypt your data before it leaves your PC,
Be password protected,
Be automated,
and YOU will test it, at least once per month to ensure the data can be recovered.

A backup that does not work when you need it is as much use as a chocolate fireguard. Test it before you need it. As with all the problems discussed, your local professional IT security firm can help you with all these tasks, and for much less than you think.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to Burnt Orange IT Solutions.
We hope this article gave you some insight. If you want to ensure your business’s IT security, contact the Trusted Saskatoon IT professionals at Burnt Orange Solutions and we can take IT worries off your plate.
Burnt Orange IT Solutions Products & Services:
Managed Networks
Backup and Recovery
Data and Network Security
Hosted Services
Telephone Systems
Secure WiFi Networks
"IT Support You Can Trust and Understand"
Burnt Orange Solutions are your Trusted Saskatoon IT Experts

Trusted Saskatoon Realtor Marla Janzen Mystery Shop!

9. Oct 2020 Admin Saskatoon Real Estate, Trusted Tips

Being a Trusted Business on the Trusted Saskatoon Directory of Excellence comes with a lot of responsibility - no other directory, advertising medium, or 'watchdog organization' puts businesses through the process we do before we promote and endorse them.

Why Choose a Business On the Trusted Saskatoon Directory?

All of the Trusted Saskatoon partners have to pass a unique verification process, they are then annually contracted to uphold our 5 Trusted Guarantees. The partners then become part of a local community of Saskatoon and area businesses that we promote with a strong local marketing campaign. We also have a Trusted MYSTERY SHOPPER PROGRAM. This is where we find and engage with normal everyday people, just like you, who are looking for products and services in Saskatoon and area. We approach individuals we can see are looking for a local business and we ask them to mystery shop Trusted Saskatoon Partners. Those that agree to be Trusted mystery shoppers go about their usual business, except at the end they fill out a report to tell us about the experience. We then share it with you! The Trusted Saskatoon Team is thrilled to share our latest mystery shop report about Marla Janzen Real Estate!

Mystery Shop - Marla Janzen Real Estate

Name of Shopper: Janice G.

1. How was the greeting/welcome/call answered?

Warm, professional, and prompt.

2. Product/industry knowledge of staff?

I felt very confident in her knowledge.

3. Overall experience 1-10

4. Would you recommend them to a close friend?

Yes, absolutely! I already have should they ever need her services.

Please share any other comments relating to your experience with the company.

Marla, although extremely busy, was very communicative, supportive, and engaging as a professional. Her efforts in research, showings, and the real estate transaction itself were exemplary. Her experience and knowledge are a great asset to her clients.

CONGRATULATIONS on a successful mystery shop Marla! We are thrilled to have such amazing Realtors like you on our Saskatoon's directory of excellence!

Marla guarantees to provide you with a stress-free, hassle-free, wonderful experience and we are sure once you have met her that you will not contact anyone else!

Marla Janzen is a Trusted Saskatoon Realtor®

Trusted Saskatoon Realtor Clark Dziadyk’s Home-Buying Checklist for Newcomers

26. Aug 2020 Admin Saskatoon Real Estate, Trusted Tips

Whether you’re buying a house for the first time, the second or the seventh time, it’s still one of the biggest decisions you ever have to make. In order to ensure sheer success, you need Trusted Saskatoon Realtor Clark Dziadyk! Clark will ease your mind by taking the pressure off of you to find your dream home! Be assured Saskatoon Real Estate Agent Clark Dziadyk puts 100% effort into everything he does. He shares regular Saskatoon Real Estate Expert Tips with us and in his latest tip he shares RBC’s home-buying checklist for newcomers to Saskatoon.

Buying Your First Home in Canada Checklist

Home-Buying Checklist for Newcomers

1. Figure out what you can afford.

Before you start looking for a home, get a general idea of how much you may be able to afford and what your mortgage payments would be. This will help you set a realistic price range so you can balance home ownership with your lifestyle needs.

2. Save for your down payment (if applicable).

Considering the high cost of homeownership in Canada, most newcomers (and most Canadians) don’t pay the full price of their homes all at once. Typically, buyers make a down payment on a home using money they've saved and then borrow the rest (through a mortgage) from a lender.

3. Understand your mortgage options.

There are a lot of mortgage features to choose from in Canada, and Saskatoon. Talking to a mortgage specialist is one of the best ways to make sense of all the options, and to help you save money over the lifetime of your mortgage.

4. Get a mortgage pre-approval.

Once you’re ready to buy a home, be sure to get a mortgage pre-approval. A pre-approved mortgage means the bank has made a commitment (subject to conditions such as a property valuation) to loan you the money for your home.

- You’ll know how much you can afford to borrow for your new home.

- You’ll be in a better position to negotiate with sellers once you have found a home.

- You’ll also know your interest rate.

5. Find a Trusted Saskatoon Real Estate Agent.

Hire a reputable local real estate agent Clark Dziadyk! Your agent, like your mortgage specialist, can be an invaluable resource for you throughout the entire home-buying experience.

6. Start your home search!

As you start looking at homes, don’t just think about the type of home you want—also think about your lifestyle and how close you want to live near amenities such as schools, highways, medical services, shopping, restaurants and recreation.

f you are in the market to sell or buy a home, check out the links below!