The first thing you need to think about when you want to start freelancing, besides the types of services you will be offering, is the computing device you will be using. Most of your work will be done on a computer, and so it is important to think about the type of computer you would like to buy and that will fit your use cases. When shopping for a laptop, it is common to hear the term “refurbished” or “refurb”. What are refurbished laptops, and how do they compare against new laptops?
Refurbished Laptops: An Overview
A refurbished laptop is a laptop that has been returned to a retailer or manufacturer for a variety of reasons. The retailer or manufacturer then takes these laptops apart, checks them, and ensures everything is working like it would in a new laptop. The major testing these laptops undergo before being put back on store shelves is what differentiates them from used laptops.
When Buying Refurbished is a Great Idea
One of the most common reasons why a laptop is returned to a retailer or manufacturer is cosmetic defects. This means there is nothing wrong with these laptops and after undergoing the required checks, they are often sold for a lower price than new laptops.
This means it is possible to buy refurbished laptops that are essentially new at a fraction of the price of a new laptop of the same capabilities and specifications.
As a budding freelancer, you can shop online for refurbished laptops that have the specifications you are looking for, and you might find them.
Availability
One downside of going with the refurbished option is that stock might be limited depending on the retailer and the specific model you are looking for. If you are looking for a specific laptop model, you might have to reach out to a manufacturer directly and see if they have a refurbished option.
A common solution to this is choosing a refurbished laptop that has the same specifications as the one you are looking for, even though it may not be the exact model you need.
Warranties
Another huge difference between new, used, and refurbished laptops is the warranties offered for them. With used laptops, you do not get any warranty or quality assurances, and so you have to rely on what the seller tells you.
With refurbished laptops, you usually get a limited warranty. This is typically a fraction of the period offered by a retailer or manufacturer for a new laptop. However, even with these shortened warranty periods, you can expect the laptop to last almost as long as a new laptop due to the quality checks and assurances.
New laptops come with a full warranty. This is because they have been fully tested from the factory, and thus the retailer or manufacturer is completely sure about their projected lifetimes.
If you have the money, buying a new laptop is the best option. However, refurbished laptops are a great option if you are strapped for cash. They have been checked to ensure they perform as expected and come with a warranty, even though it might be limited. It would be a bad idea to start your freelance career with a used laptop unless you have a very small budget and trust the seller completely.
Should Freelancers Buy New or Refurbished Laptops? was last modified: September 7th, 2022 by Boris Dzhingarov
Compared with traditional graphic content, short video is more intuitive. Focusing on short videos, we can implement soft advertising, flexible content, high interaction, and richer and diversified marketing methods. We must admit that short videos are the advantage of brand marketing. In the future, with the development of more products and the rise of brands, short videos will have more angles and diversified interactive features, realize a new profit model, and increase additional attributes.
Data shows that more than 42.5% of digital marketing decision makers choose celebrities, influencers, or stars to create marketing content in short video marketing. More than 70% of users have consumed because of the influence of these celebrities and influencers. So how to market your product using video? Let’s check some product video marketing ideas below.
Product Video Marketing Tips
Choose Proper Video Content
1. User-Generated Content
In order to get a more positive effect, you can put different types of videos on social networking sites for different purposes. One of the most popular video types is user-generated content. These videos are provided by real customers, and they are more authentic. Many customers are happy to share their favorite brands, so if customers are satisfied, they can easily get user-created videos with a simple request. These videos are more attractive to potential customers because they see real users.
2. Product Display Content
This is a relatively simple way to better showcase the products you sell. Of course, this type of video does not have to be very high-end, it only needs to meet user needs.
After all, one of the main reasons why many people refuse to shop online is that they can’t get in touch with real objects, and it’s inconvenient to understand product functions and operations. Using product display content can help alleviate such concerns.
3. Behind the Scenes Content
We all want to peek into the story behind the curtains, which is why people generally think the behind-the-scenes footage of the movie is interesting.
If users can understand the story behind the product, they may have unexpected brand loyalty.
4. Tutorial Content
Tutorials are usually more suitable for users with in-depth needs, and are very important for some companies. For example, when you invent a new product or provide a new service, no one (or very few people) has heard of it.
Through the tutorial, you can show how your product works and how it will change people’s lives. In this case, tutorial videos will be the best choice.
Ensure That the Video is Mobile-Friendly
The following are two important statistics:
· 65% of video views on Facebook come from mobile devices
· Smartphone users hold their phones upright 94% of the time
The video placement effect in portrait mode is not necessarily better than that in landscape mode. But, if possible, please make both vertical and horizontal videos, and then choose a more appropriate mode in the placement customization to provide customers with a full screen viewing experience.
Include a Clear Call-to-Action
After all, this is marketing. We all know that no matter which format, call to action must be used in the ad. You can put the call to action in the display copy, or you can add the call to action in the video content through the cast or subtitle text.
Brand Consistency
Elements such as colors, graphics, and music will be used in brand videos. First of all, these elements must be coordinated with each other, and secondly, these elements must always run through the entire process of brand marketing. At the same time, in order to increase the conversion rate, it is necessary to always emphasize the brand and leave a deep impression on the audience.
Make an Engaging Marketing Video
There are countless videos on YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, Vimeo, and more platforms. How to stand out from the crowd? Creating an attractive video seems an option to go. A good video can increase the exposure of the product on the Internet, thereby bringing considerable natural page views to the company or the website and increasing the visibility of the company or the website. Let’s move to the next part to learn an easy way to make a video to market your product.
How to Make a Video to Market Your Product
To make an attractive marketing video in a free and simple way, VideoProc Vlogger is recommended to help you out. Developed as a professional yet simple video editor, VideoProc Vlogger is equipped with a lot of basic as well as advanced editing features. You can easily process your videos like trimming, splitting, merging, making picture in picture video, adding music to video, adding texts & subtitles to video, changing playback speed, color grading, color correction, removing noise, adding filters & effects, and more. Just download and install this free video editing software and create an amazing marketing video now.
Add subtitles to video: Run VideoProc Vlogger on your computer and upload your videos. Drag your video to the Video Track. Choose a subtitle style and drop it to the Subtitle Track.
Changing video speed: No matter you want to speed up your video or slow down your video, VideoProc Vlogger is ready to help. You can perform a variable speed change, and you can also change the speed constantly.
Add filters & effects: VideoProc Vlogger offers more than 50 beautiful filters and effects to help you make your videos cinematic. Just import your videos and drag it to the Video Track. Then choose a filter and drag it to the Overlay Track to preview the effect.
Platforms to Promote Your Product
YouTube: If you aren’t verified on YouTube, the length of your YouTube videos can only be 15 minutes or less. If you own a verified account, you can upload YouTube videos up to 12 hours long, or as much as 128 GB.
Facebook: It supports uploading files in 1080P or less. You can upload video files up to 10GB and it must less than 240 minutes.
Twitter: You can upload a TweetVideo within 512MB, but you can upload a video longer than 2 minutes and 20 seconds. You need to trim it before using the video in your Tweet.
TikTok: TikTok first allowing users to upload 60 second clips (up from 15 seconds originally), then expanding that to 3 minutes in July 2021.
Instagram: You can upload a 60 seconds video for a regular Instagram post and videos in Instagram Stories should be no longer than 15 seconds. But videos for Instagram livestream can be up t0 60 minutes long.
How to Market Your Product Using Video was last modified: November 28th, 2021 by Zoey Fang
A bad sales month can be extremely discouraging for new businesses or any business for that matter. The reality is that sales will ebb and flow, and your business should be optimally prepared for drops in revenue and potentially have other lines of income to keep yourself fortified in a pinch.
Your slumps in sales are ultimately learning opportunities and chances for you and your team to take stock of what has worked and what hasn’t worked when it comes to pushing your sales beyond the goals you’ve set for yourself. Maybe there is a key way you can adjust your sales plan, or set your goals to be more realistic in your reach.
Running a successful business means not giving up when things are slow, and being realistic about what you can achieve and in what timeline would be appropriate for a business your size. There is no reason to aim towards goals that older, more established businesses are able to achieve. Businesses that stay in the game by being smart about their goals and sales plans will move up in their industries in no time, it’s all about being patient and realistic with yourself and your team.
Adjust Your Sales Plan
The first thing to do when you run into a bad sales month is to review your sales plan and adjust it accordingly to meet the more realistic expectations for your company. “Rebound from a bad sales month by adjusting your plan,” said Sabrina Pereira, Head of Growth Marketing at Easy Standard. “Go back to your sales plan and review it. Find what you missed from the previous month and recalculate your plan for the next month. This includes identifying the key drivers of your forecast delta and aligning testing plans to solve for that. Plus, you can distribute the shortage over a few months and bolster your sales plans for the next few months.” This is of the utmost importance and should be done as soon as possible after your sales report comes in.
Changing and adjusting your plan is also an opportunity to set more realistic goals for your company for the foreseeable future. If your goals are too high, you may find yourself feeling strained to meet unrealistic expectations. “Review your plan so you can set more realistic goals for the future. Part of being successful is setting yourself up with goals you know you can meet. Then, you can start to aim a little bit higher each month as sales flatten or increase,” said Dylan Fox, Founder and CEO of Assembly AI. Starting small is a key factor for any blossoming business. It sets you and your company up for success and will motivate your team to work towards setting higher and higher goals.
In addition to adjusting your sales plan, businesses should also take stock of what they can control and what they can’t. You can draw people in, but they make the final decision to buy in or not. “Be real and honest about the things that you can control rather than the things you can’t. For instance, you can control your brand’s outreach and marketing practices but you can’t ultimately control whether customers will choose your service. Simplify your website content and make it as easy as possible for customers to sign up for your service to increase your sales,” said Jae Pak, Founder of Jae Pak MD Medical.
Learn From Failure and Go For Smaller Deals
In the grand scope of things in business, setbacks and sales slumps should be seen more as opportunities rather than failures. “Try not to look at sales slumps as failures, they are in fact learning opportunities for the future. Many times, these slumps are due to conditions that may be vastly out of our control. Use this as an opportunity to learn more about your industry and market trends to help predict your sales in the future,” said James Ville, Chief Product Officer of GunSkins. If you can shift your perspective and see the value in scaling back your goals to meet your capability, you’ll set yourself up for a more positive approach to solving these problems.
You may find that the deals you were seeking might have been too ambitious for your company as it currently exists. Smaller deals help you build connections and expand your business network. “Sometimes a bad sales month can be an indication that you need to scale back your goals and look for smaller deals you can make to help fortify your business and set yourself up for success,” said Scott Sonneborn, Co-Founder of Tydo. “Aiming too high can result in a lower return. It’s true that the higher the risk the greater the reward is, but the opposite is also true. The fallbacks from big deals can be much larger as well.” The amount of risk you can take on depends on the age of your company and your history of success with smaller deals and goals.
Meet With Your Team
Consult your entire team as soon as possible following your low sales results. “Have team meetings immediately afterward to brainstorm ideas. Keep the meeting as upbeat as possible,” said Jean Gregoire Founder & CEO of Lovebox. “It’s best to not dwell on why your month was poor, but instead, focus on ways to improve the following month. By working as a team, you’ll have a better chance of coming up with fresh ideas that will propel you forward.” This will promote a solution-based attitude at your company rather than getting stuck in a slump after getting bad news. “You need to keep your team positive to make sure you keep your productivity up,” said CEO of Package Free Shop Lauren Singer. “Positive reinforcement is especially important during these moments when tensions may be high and emotions fragile. Focus on what went well rather than what didn’t. This will help you combat future issues.” Seeing the positive can be difficult, but it’s always going to lead your team to better results than focusing on the negatives. “It can be difficult to see the positives in a month that fell short, but being able to see what was working will help you and your team both recover and make a plan for the next month. Don’t just focus on why your sales were lower, focus on what made the sales happen that you did make,” said Kashish Gupta, Founder and CEO of Hightouch.
This also gives your team a chance to provide feedback and be honest about how they think things could improve. “Ask for feedback from your team, and encourage honesty,” said Ryan Rottman Co-Founder & CEO OSDB. “Your employees and sales team will likely have proactive and topical ideas about how to improve customer relationships and increase your rate of conversion. Don’t dwell and try to solve issues on your own, involve your team to help you come to the best solution.” This will show how valuable you find your employee’s opinions and create trust between management and the sales team that they can solve issues together.
Plan For Slow Months
Part of changing your business plan should be expecting that some months will be slow. At certain times of the year, the state of the economy and many other factors can go into sales spikes and slumps. “Any business is sure to experience highs and lows, try to see these challenges as positives, it means that you are in business and doing everything you can to stay afloat. Trust your instincts and learn from the challenges you face,” said Jared Hines, Head of Operations Acre Gold. Holiday sales spikes and post-holiday slumps are something that all businesses should be expecting as well. “Certain times of the year will yield higher sales results, such as the winter months,” said Katie Keirnan, Co-Founder of Nue Life. “People are buying more for holiday gifts and it makes sense to see a sales spike during this time.
Use these moments as opportunities to prepare for inevitable sales slumps at the start of the new year.” Your surges in sales should help to fortify you through the slower months of the year, something that businesses should be folding into their business plan. “Use your spikes and slumps as ways to predict the cash flow in your company,” said Joe Thomas of Loom. “This way, you can use additional funds from those surges to keep your business operating smoothly when things slow down.”
Rebounding from a bad sales month relies on a solution-minded team with management that can see the benefits in the ebb and flow of sales. This is ultimately an inevitability that every business faces, and how you deal with it will define how your company succeeds in the future. If you can’t be flexible and change up your plan, you will likely fall short of your competitors in the long run. Adjust your plan, meet with your team and plan for the future to ensure your success in your industry.
How to Rebound From a Bad Sales Month was last modified: June 17th, 2024 by Nikki Gabriel
A brand is everything that a customer sees and experiences when they interact with a business. A customer’s first impression includes how the staff welcomes them, what can be seen on social media websites, and what the story behind the business is. It’s basically how the customer perceives your business.
When a consistent message is conveyed, a brand is created. From the website to the logos and social media profiles, it tells the story behind the company. There should be a consistent branding strategy, regardless of how the customer is introduced to the business whether it be through the website after doing a search, or through a link shared by a friend. Using appropriate tools to generate a very unique business name does a great trick here.
You’ll find such a tool at www.biznamewiz.com. Here, you can read more about how the generator works, why it can be a great source of inspiration in the naming process, and you can learn more about the importance of a good name for your branding process. It is feasible to bring in more clients as well as develop repeat customers with good branding for a firm. However, the execution of great branding requires knowledge of what brands are important in a digital world. Stay tuned to learn more!
Brand Definition
A company’s branding must be defined before it can begin to create a consistent message across all media. They must evaluate the company’s mission, the advantages of its products or services, what customers think of them now, and what they want customers to think of the company in the future. All of this helps establish the business’s individual branding, including what colors to use on the website or in logos, how to design the website’s layout, which social networking networks to utilize, and more.
It is not easy to define a company’s branding, and it will take some time. There are so manyreasons to use agencies when trying to define your brand.
Consistency
When a company’s brand is defined, it becomes consistent. The same visuals will be used on websites, packaging, social networking sites, and everywhere else. Even if two distinct items are being advertised to clients, the packaging, colors used in the products or packaging, the purchase form on the website, and other visual elements will all be aesthetically similar and send the same message to buyers.
You want to make your online presence user-friendly, eye-pleasing, functional, and to include some relevant images to interest people. You can also replace the photos on your website with short, interactive videos – they work wonderfully. Remember to remove images from Google search that do not match your brand vision, and do nothing but build bad brand reputation.
Peculiarity
Another important brand is standing out from the rest of the flock. When people are seeking a product or service, it’s far too simple to go under the radar in today’s digital environment. Businesses can compete even if they are located on opposite sides of the globe, so finding a strategy to stand out is critical.
Standing out is an important aspect of brands because it attracts customers and makes them see reasons to stick with your brand ahead of competitors.
Why Strong Brands Are Important in a Digital World was last modified: February 28th, 2023 by Fredrick Francisco Stougaard
The UX design sphere is saturated with an embarrassment of riches in terms of resources and tools. While the variety of options is excellent, it can be challenging for designers looking for inspiration to know which options are best to look to for valuable insight.
This is especially true when it comes to UX design blogs. There are just so many out there that it would be a full-time job just getting through many of them to find which offer the most quality resources.
With that in mind, we decided to do the hard work and provide you with a nice consolidated list of the most quality UX design blogs to inspire designers worldwide.
UX Planet
They are looking for a top-down resource that includes a comprehensive collection of topics ranging from beginners’ guides to leadership articles and career advice? Then look no further than one of the standard-bearers in the UX design article blogs, UX Planet. Even non-designers can dive into the beginner section to start getting introduced to primary and intermediate design concepts.
The contributors to UX Planet include a vast array of designers, all with varying backgrounds and different routes that took them into the world of UX design. With such a diverse crew at work, there will be plenty of “real talk” from current experts who learned much in the same way, along with words of encouragement, advice, and how-to guides. It is a truly fantastic resource to leverage to kick off your UX career.
The Nielsen Norman Group
Don Norman (responsible for coining the term “user experience” back in the 90s) and Jakob Neilsen, two widely recognized and respected UX gurus, started The Nielsen Norman Group, a helpful website for those seeking introduction and education to many terms necessary for anyone getting into the UX sphere. The featured content’s quality, breadth, and depth more than make up for the lack of the blog’s flashiness. At the Nielsen Norman Group blog, you can read up on topics like web accessibility and usability, UX-based psychology, and many digestible yet comprehensive explanations about the most key UX principles, tools, and techniques.
XD Ideas
XD Ideas is a relative newcomer in the UX sphere. Backed and powered by Adobe XD, this blog may have been started with the intent to appeal to UX beginners, but it has undoubtedly outgrown that aim by becoming a resource stocked with a wide coverage area of all aspects of the UX realm. Intuitively navigable, XD Ideas include guides to assist in understanding the basic principles and concepts of UX design, as well as tips that are pivotal to anyone dipping their toes into the UX world. With a vast collection of multi-background contributors, XD Ideas benefit a wide range of opinions and viewpoints from the industry’s most experienced gurus.
UX Collective
Suppose you are familiar with the Medium content hub. In that case, you’d be interested in finding out that they host a blog publication explicitly devoted to no-nonsense UX content presented in an easily understandable and digestible manner. The UX Collective blog, founded, edited, and curated by designer Caio Braga and his award-winning design partner in the venture, Fabrico Texeira, focuses on its intuitive structure and provides readers with powerful insights from top industry designers and a focus on sharing the most valuable content.
This blog features everything from career advice, real-world UX design application, and portfolio advice to deep-dive reviews of well-known products and loads of tips that can help you improve your UX design learning experience. Those interested in the blog’s content who want to have some great content written into their email inbox can sign up for the weekly UX Collective newsletter.
Inside Design
If you have done any digging into UX design platforms, you have likely run across InVision. But did you know that InVision also hosts a superb blog, an industry leader in the field, named Inside Design? Anyone who has already started their UX education can find a ton of valuable content at Inside Design. It is an especially invaluable tool for those seeking to expand their understanding of product design and the process of UX development and those looking to optimize their UX teams and processes. If you want to stay on top of the latest UX news, this blog will always supply fresh, new material for you to learn about the latest events, tools, and trends.
The UX Blog
The Medium platform hosts another tremendous blog resource that covers UX topics spanning any realm of design, including (but not limited to) visual and design content, new views on industry standards and practices, and interviews with renowned industry experts. It even hosts its podcast, the episodes of which can be accessed right from the blog. If you are interested in keeping current with all UX aspects and value the viewpoints of leading industry experts, the UX Blog is one to keep in mind.
Awwwards
The Awwwards blog is mainly geared at UI interested readers, but it features a healthy dose of valuable, fresh UX information. The blog’s UI/UX section is stocked with unique content about everything from navigation to microcopy, enough to help pump your creative UX engines. The library of case studies alone is worth the visit for anyone looking for deep UX knowledge. One tremendous aspect of this blog is that its content is illustrated, assisting visual learners in their quest to discover and learn some invaluable UX concepts. The Awwwards blog is beneficial to those who enjoy access to an exciting mix of UX and UI concepts, principles, and news.
Muzli
Suppose you’re looking for examples of real-world applications of UX and love to read case studies, stopover at the Muzli blog. The case studies are thorough and varied, but all deeply enriched with viewpoints from various designs that illustrate how UX is levered effectively, spurring ideas and creativity for the blog’s readers. They even cover common problems encountered by UX designers, helping readers stay ahead of the UX learning curve, perfect for novices or intermediaries to the UX realm. Weekly content with great advice and tips can also help UX designers and aspiring newbies learn and be inspired by the latest UX trends and concepts.
Facebook Design
Few designer teams have nailed down the concept like Facebook has, which is why reading the Facebook Design blog is a fantastic way to learn and be inspired by the behind-the-scenes view of how Facebook designers operate in their day-to-day activities. While some of the content is specific to Facebook, that is far from the case for its overall coverage. Many important and valuable tips are provided by a talented staff of designer contributors that provide great UX concept explanations and help inform readers about undoubtedly key social responsibilities associated with UX design, an area not addressed often enough.
Final Thoughts
Regardless of your level of UX experience, interested readers from all walks of UX design dimensions can benefit from tons of valuable content available on the provided blogs above. Whether you are building your knowledge library as a novice or staying on top of current trends, this collection of blogs will provide you with tons of great content in the ever-developing and exciting UX industry.
Top 9 UX Design Blogs for Inspiration was last modified: October 29th, 2024 by Herbert Merrick
Many design trends come and go, but some have stood the test of time. Negative space is one such style, which has become all the more popular in recent years with the increased interest in minimalist design.
As any good logo design studio knows, the best logos are those that can adapt to changing markets, shifting audiences, and new product offerings while still retaining the same core idea. In this way, negative space can be helpful because it’s simplistic enough for printing purposes while also allowing interaction with the viewer.
If negative space is a new concept to you, you’ll need to understand the introductory psychology and ideas behind this trend to try it out. Read on to learn what negative space is and how to implement it effectively in your next time you use a logo maker.
Audiences will be taken in by the logo’s overall appearance and continue to be invested as they discover the hidden shapes and messages within the design, combining short-term engagement and long-term interest. If you’re looking to create such impactful logos, using a logo maker app can be a great starting point.
What is Negative Space?
Negative space is, essentially, blank sections, or the space between words and images. In a way, the margins on this page or between these paragraphs and letters are negative space. However, when negative space is used artistically or stylistically, it is transformed from separating other more essential elements into something that is, itself, an element. Because this is the opposite of the norm, it’s unexpected and, therefore, intriguing, even in its simplest form.
Negative space can be as straightforward as using lines to create an image within other elements. It could be made more complex by utilizing messages or pictures in both the filled and negative space. Some of the most well-known uses of negative space logo designs include FedEx, with its hidden arrow, and the USA TV network logo, which uses the U and A to create the S shape. The Girl Scouts logo and the ABC peacock are also great examples of hidden images.
Why Negative?
Humans’ fascination with the unknown is undeniable. There have been numerous books and movies inspired by the concept of hidden realities and worlds that can’t be seen on a surface level. We are captivated by reading between the lines and finding secret meanings and details.
But this idea isn’t just for fantasy and science fiction movies. These ideas can also be brought to artistic endeavors and graphic design to add a touch of mysticism. In this way, negative space allows consumers to have an “aha!” moment as they discover the hidden aspects of a design and find unexpected details.
The Clever Use of Negative Space
Finding ways to use negative space is simply about considering both the seen and the unseen. This is commonly done by adding layers, inverting images or colors, creating pleasing symmetry, or using other such tools. To start experimenting with negative space, you may want to consider the shapes or colors of the design and play around with the way they can be used. You can also manipulate size and orientation to find images or messages within other embodiments, an exercise similar to trying to decipher pictures out of abstract clouds.
Cookie-Cutter Rule
Simplifying designs can often be the way to go when creating negative artistic space. Not only does this create a more transparent and more pronounced image, but it can also be the key to finding hidden design opportunities. To do this, you can think of your design like a freshly rolled sheet of cookie dough. When you press the cookie cutter into the dough, it creates both a shape within the blade, which will become the cookie, and a negative form, which has been left behind in the dough from the cutter’s imprint. These are both the same shape but, if you begin to overlap cuts or manipulate those shapes, they can become something new entirely. You can even use smaller cookie cutters to carve out designs within your cookies to create more negative and positive space.
Lurking from the Shadows
You can also create negative space by looking at the shadows of an image and leaning into its dark aspects. This is similar to the cookie-cutter example, as a shadow creates both an image inside (the shadow) and an outline outside (the light). These interactions of shadows and sunlight can be used to create artistic interpretations and elicit a psychological response. People usually think of black or dark colors and shades as unfavorable, while white and light images are considered good. In designing, you can either lean into these biases or twist them to defy expectations.
Don’t Forget to Personalize
Negative space, when used well, can be incredibly intricate and engaging for audiences. Some examples are even works of art. But, most importantly, they must be functional and work with the brand’s overall identity and messaging to be successful.
How to Use Negative Space to Create Great Logo Designs was last modified: October 30th, 2024 by Herbert Merrick
For a long time, real estate investing was the game of the rich. You needed to have a lot of capital to participate. The barriers to entry were simply too high for the average investor – but not anymore!
In the past, investing in real estate required a lot of capital, time, and effort. Publicly traded stocks, bonds, and mutual funds were the only viable investment option for the middle and lower classes. They could contribute to an IRA or a 401(K) with their employer and hope to have a nice retirement. But only accredited investors or those with a lot of capital could invest in the often more stable and lucrative private real estate market.
Then in 1960, real estate investment trusts (REITs) came on the scene. REITs pool together several real estate assets into a financial instrument that can be traded like a stock in a mutual fund. For these, you don’t have to be an accredited investor, and the barrier to entry is much lower because you can participate by buying just one share.
Crowdfunded Real Estate Investing
Today, technology is democratizing real estate even further. Starting in 2012, the JOBS Act allowed real estate syndications to adopt crowdfunding strategies. Crowdfunding is raising funds from a large number of people even if they can only make small contributions. This means real estate deals no longer need to be funded by one investor or a handful of accredited investors. Instead, many small investors can pool their resources together to fund a large real estate deal.
Crowdfunding changes the real estate investing landscape for both investors and syndicators. Now, you can organize a national or even international real estate syndication that both accredited and non-accredited investors can participate in. This means investors with different risk tolerances can benefit from greater diversification, dollar-cost averaging (CA), and better returns.
Ultimately, crowdfunding opens the real estate market doors to lay investors. Some real estate crowfunding platforms include Fundrise, DiversyFund, BuyProperly, Roofstock, and Bricksave. They allow you to start investing in properties and REITS online in no time, and some for as little as $1,000.
Tokenized Real Estate Investing
When most people think of blockchain, they think of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. But blockchain is just the mechanism behind cryptocurrency. It’s a digital record-keeping technology that uses distributed ledgers in a shared network. And in 2017, entrepreneurs started seeing blockchain’s potential to streamline real estate investing transactions.
As with crowdfunding, blockchain technology can leverage fractional real estate ownership by creating tokens that represent shares in a real estate investment. It does this by turning real estate investment securities into what are called smart contracts. Smart contracts are a form of digital contract that don’t require an intermediary to verify them. They are executed automatically as soon as predetermined conditions and rules are met. This way, you can eliminate slow and costly middlemen like brokers and make transactions faster and more transparent.
Blockchain solves traditional real estate information and access bottlenecks. On the one hand, it democratizes information like rent roll, audits, compliance data, appraisals, and insurance binders. Everyone can see the information on the public ledger. On the other hand, it gives more investment opportunities to the average investor by lowering investment minimums and globalizing investment options. Overall, this leads to increased diversification, liquidity, and efficiency and turns a traditionally illiquid asset into a liquid one.
Of course, blockchain real estate investing is not without its challenges. Governments are still trying to figure out how to regulate it. Getting around the red tape of the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) is also not easy. But it’s easier with private and consortium blockchains because they are tailored to specific use cases.
Though it still has a ways to go, tokenized real estate investing is already being tried by companies like RealT, Vave, BlokHaus Real Estate, and Lofty.ai. These and other platforms have a lot of potential to disrupt real estate investing as we know it.
Final Thoughts
Real estate investing is easier than ever. Time will tell how it looks 10, 20, 30 years from now. If you don’t have a lot of capital but you want to take advantage of this hot market, now is the time to explore the crowdfunding and tokenization options out there.
In the long run, you’ll benefit from increased diversification and high returns. It’s a win-win for the small investor.
How Technology is Making it Easier to Invest in Real Estate was last modified: January 7th, 2025 by Alex Sanders
Maybe you’ve been thinking about taking up cycling and renting a bike to try it out. That’s great! Cycling is a fantastic sport that offers many benefits that we outline below.
We think once you try cycling and enjoy the advantages, you’ll want to buy your own bike soon.
Enhances Mental Health
Many clinical studies find that people who are physically active every day feel about 30% better than those who are sedentary. But, ever feel that ‘high’ after a 60-mile bike ride or 10-mile run?
Exercise improves your mood by releasing a stream of endorphins and hormones into the bloodstream, making you feel fantastic. And the benefits last for hours after your workout.
Improves Immune System
Intense physical exercise has substantial benefits for your upper respiratory system – of particular importance during the COVID-19 era. You’re also less likely to get the common cold.
Some scientists maintain that you can reduce your sick time by up to 40% by biking or running most days of the week.
Even mild daily exercise can boost your immune system by activating white blood cells and making the body produce vital proteins.
Builds Muscle
Cycling involves lower-body resistance, so it doesn’t merely burn fat – it also builds muscle! As a result, bikers tend to have well-developed glutes, calves, and quads.
People who have higher muscle mass usually burn more calories even when they are at rest.
Eat More
Most of us enjoy eating and overindulging from time to time. However, you can add a few snacks to your day when you cycle regularly.
For example, if you bike 30 minutes to and from work every day, you may burn up to 500 extra calories.
So you can feel good about having a second helping of breakfast at your desk!
Enhanced Lung Health
This might be surprising, but people who cycle may be exposed less to toxic fumes than those who go by car.
One study in the United Kingdom found that cyclists and pedestrians in central London were exposed to less pollution than drivers.
Works Out The Core
Biking also gives your abdominals and back a great workout. Keeping your body upright requires you to have a higher level of core strength as the miles pass.
Having stronger abdominals and back muscles gives support to your spine and enhances stability.
Better Heart Health
Cycling is excellent for the cardiovascular system. A recent study spent 60 months studying 1,500 physically active people. Those who engaged in exercise every day were 30% less likely to have high blood pressure.
Another study suggests that doing a strenuous daily workout can reduce hypertension as much as prescription drugs.
Lower Cancer Risk
Keeping a healthy weight, daily exercise, and a nutritious diet will reduce your chances of getting various cancers.
Not only is biking fun, but it can also help you to ward off cancer, which is a big deal.
Low Impact
Cycling is easier on your body than running, so it’s a good choice for people who want an intense activity without pounding the joints.
Biking also is perfect for those who have more stiffness and joint problems.
Boost Self-Esteem
Biking and exercise generally can raise your self-esteem. For example, when you finish a challenging 50-mile ride and beat your previous time by three minutes, it makes you feel good.
And when you feel good after a workout, you’re highly likely to do it again.
The many benefits of cycling are apparent, so you’ll be sure to want to keep doing this fantastic sport for years in the future.
Why Should You Take Up Cycling? was last modified: May 1st, 2022 by Alex Sanders
Wouldn’t it be nice if you could automate your entire life and all of your landlord duties? That dream could become a reality in the not-so-distant future, but automating your life isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.
For example, you wouldn’t want an AI bot to write your rental listings. What if your properties have distinct features? A standard rental listing won’t do those properties justice.
Property managers from Los Angeles explain thatwriting a good rental listing description begins with a captivating title and includes brief, descriptive sentences. You won’t get captivating descriptions from AI.
You Can’t Automate Being a Great Landlord
Landlords can benefit from automation, but it’s critical to maintain a balance and not get distracted by technology. Much of being a good landlord relies on maintaining a personal touch in your tenant relationships.
When a tenant has an issue, like a leaky roof, they don’t want to leave a voicemail and have a robot schedule the repair. They want to talk to their landlord live, explain the problem in detail, and work out a convenient time for repairs.
Being a great landlord requires personal interactions with your tenants. If you automate all of your landlord duties, you’ll eliminate personal interaction. Without personal interaction, you can’t build strong rapport with your tenants. Without rapport, your tenants are less likely to treat your property with care and take their lease obligations seriously.
Why Landlords Favor Automation
Most property investors prioritize profits. Automation provides an opportunity to maximize profits by reducing time spent getting involved in minutia. For landlords focused on building wealth, automation is a blessing. However, it’s also a curse.
The more landlords rely on automation, the less personal interaction they have with their tenants.
Automation Is Good for Technical Landlord Tasks
Although automating your landlord duties is mostly a bad idea, you can automate your technical tasks. For example, it’s easy to use software to collect rent online and have tenants request repairs. This streamlines your duties. However, you still need to have some personal interaction to confirm appointments and discuss issues in-depth.
There’s nothing wrong with using automation to manage paperwork and other back-end tasks. For example, it makes sense to use automated invoicing software, apps to track your expenses, and apps to manage each property’s history of repairs.
Tenants want to feel heard, and that’s not something technology can offer. They don’t want to talk to a voicemail or send a text message to a robot when they have an issue. Tenants want tocommunicate with their landlord personally.
2. Being Compassionate
When a tenant needs an extra week to pay the rent, you can show compassion by having a personal conversation. Without that personal interaction, an automated rent collection system will penalize the tenant as if their circumstances don’t matter.
While no landlord wants excuses for late rent, sometimes tenants legitimately need a break. Being compassionate will help your tenant feel less anxious and stressed about being late with the rent.
3. Revisiting and Customizing the Lease
Compromise and leniency can go a long way with a tenant. When you have a tenant who wants to adjust the lease, that requires a personal conversation. As a human being, you can extend compassion and understanding by changing the lease terms when appropriate.
Automating this task wouldn’t be possible, since robots would lack the human connection and compassion needed to compromise.
4. Reviewing Reasonable Modification Requests
The only way to automate reasonable modification request approvals is to create a form that a tenant fills out that has definite yes/no answers for each question. You can’t factor open-ended questions into the formula to create an automated decision.
Since many reasonable modification requests require an in-depth look plus a possible supporting letter from a physician, this can’t be automated.
Avoid Becoming an Automated Landlord – Keep Your Personal Touch
Technology will make your job easier as a landlord, but keep your personal touch with your tenant relationships.
Save the tech for back-end tasks. Life will be better for both you and your tenants when you make yourself personally available.
Landlords: Don’t Let Technology Distract You from What’s Important was last modified: November 21st, 2021 by Alex Sanders
Google Chrome is one of, if not the, most widely used search engines in the world. Many of us use it every day, on both our desktop and our handheld devices, to answer queries and help us navigate the real world. With all that use, you’re inevitably going to have a few errors occasionally. Fortunately, these are often minor and easy to rectify.
Today we’re taking a look at the steps you should take when Google Chrome errors occur and detailing how you can troubleshoot them. This can help you figure out what is wrong and then make changes to solve any problems. For example, if you’re wondering why a site refuses to display itself, you’d want to find out what does err_connection_reset mean and then take steps with your anti-virus, firewall, or network settings to solve it.
1. Identify The Problem
You use Google Chrome every day, or close to it, so you should know when something goes wrong. The most obvious issue is where Chrome itself crashes, where one of four things will happen:
You’ll get the ‘Aw, Snap!’ error message.
You’ll get the ‘page unresponsive’ pop-up response.
You get a hanging tab, which is where the tab just never loads in.
Your entire Chrome device crashes or freezes.
The ‘Aw, Snap!’ messages can often be fixed by reloading but, if you’re here, you may need something more comprehensive like closing all webpages, re-establishing your Internet connection, and/or restarting your device. The ‘page unresponsive’ message is much more common. These are where web pages can’t be interacted with. It is advised that you right-click on the web pages and kill them, so you can then reload. Otherwise, restarting your device is advised.
2. Ask Troubleshooting Questions
The core of troubleshooting is all about asking questions. Here’s a selection of questions you should keep in mind when something goes wrong with your computer, along with some inferences that you can draw from the answers.
Is Your Chrome Updated?
First, you should ask yourself if Chrome is properly updated. This is because outdated Chrome windows are more prone to issues. Where your Chrome application is unsupported, there’s a much higher likelihood that extensions won’t work and you won’t be able to customize your browser that much.
Can You Reproduce The Problem?
Sometimes there are minor loading issues that go away when you tab out or reload the page. If you can open another browser and get the same issue, it’s probably not something wrong with Chrome and so you’ll need to divert your troubleshooting efforts elsewhere. It may also be an issue with a certain site, in which case you can contact them.
Can You Work Properly In Incognito Mode?
If you’re able to work in incognito mode, that suggests something is in your standard Chrome that is causing the problem. This is because incognito mode strips away all extensions and cookies, and empties the cache, and so maybe something in there is problematic.
In those cases, you should disable all extensions and test each one to see if it causes the same error. Likewise, clear Chrome’s cache and delete any cookies that are lingering on your PC.
3. Get Help
If you’ve asked the common troubleshooting questions but there aren’t any obvious answers, it may be time to get some help. Not every issue can be solved by opening and closing the window or restarting your device. Your issue may be a complex one that needs to be addressed by the folks at Google HQ. Fortunately, there are ways to get help.
Fortunately, there are troubleshooting logs you can gather and send off to the relevant people. If you’re having network issues, you need to get your network log files and export them in JSON format. To do that, just open chrome://net-export/ and then select your detail level. Log to disk, save the file, recreate the problem, then stop logging in to the net-export tab.
On Chrome browsers or devices, you’ll want to get the corresponding debug logs. For the browser, this is in the Properties section where you can alter the target: line to add in –enable-logging –v=1 and then launch the browser. You may also want to report a crash, which you may be prompted to do when that happens, but you can also manually go to chrome://crashes and find IDs related to your issues, which can then be used to file a bug report.
Steps On How To Troubleshoot Google Chrome Errors was last modified: September 8th, 2022 by Holly Hicks
E-commerce is steadily growing. This is primarily due to the usability of websites. By the end of 2022, global e-commerce sales are expected to exceed $6.5 trillion, which is $1.3 trillion more than in 2021.
Business people shaking hands in a meeting room
In order for businesses in this area to remain successful, they need to learn how to use various tools that help reduce the time and financial resources for monotonous processes and pay more attention to potential customers.
In this article, we will take a look at the best SaaS tools for small e-commerce businesses, and why your business needs them.
What Are SaaS Tools and How Do They Work?
SaaS tools are cloud-based software that allows you to connect to various applications over the Internet. Users do not have to deal with maintenance issues, the provider does. For e-commerce businesses, SaaS tools are also an opportunity to optimize one or more business functions.
Advantages:
Cost reduction. Businesses don’t need to buy and install their own infrastructure;
Availability. For proper work of SaaS tools, all you need is a computer and stable Internet connection;
Scalability. When a business, due to its growth, needs to increase the number of functions, you just need to connect a new package of services;
Regular updates. This process is carried out by the service provider, while the user is not required to do any work.
SaaS tools greatly simplify business processes by reducing the amount of manual work, making it more accurate, faster, and more efficient. And to help your e-commerce business grow and keep up with the times, we offer to consider the 5 best SaaS solutions.
A business should consider using an outbound call center to proactively reach out to potential customers, enhance lead generation, and establish personalized connections, ultimately driving sales and fostering customer loyalty.
The 5 Best SaaS Tools for Small E-commerce Businesses
In this list, we present popular SaaS tools in 5 areas: marketing, collaboration, sales, analytics, personalization, and optimization.
Google AdWords for Marketing
Google AdWords services is a contextual advertising service that helps businesses increase the number of visitors to their website and get more actions from their target audience through optimized advertising.
How does it work? In the personal Google AdWords account, users can set up ads for their audience in a few steps: defining a goal, choosing where to place ads, uploading promos, and setting a budget. The service also provides other tools related to analytics, statistics, and forecasts, which all help you implement your own digital strategies.
Pricing: the budget is set by the user. And they can pay in 3 ways: “result” (pay per click), “flexible” (you can adjust the budget or suspend the campaign at any time), “limited budget” (allows the user to configure the maximum amount of costs for a certain period).
Slack for Collaboration
This cloud-based software solution will simplify communication and teamwork. Thus, businesses will be able to streamline workspace, creating a separate channel for each task. Here you can also store project files, select participants to access them, and exchange messages in chats.
How does it work? You can control Slack via the app or your browser. By the way, some have noted that the app reveals more features than the browser version of the software. Once you choose one of the options, create an account and invite employees via a unique link.
Pricing: You can try Slack for free, and if you like it, order one of the packages: Pro ($6.67 per month), Business+ ($12.50 per month), Enterprise Grid (negotiable).
Aritic PinPoint is a full-stack marketing automation software platform for marketing operations teams at small and medium businesses. It helps you to build relationships with leads, automate marketing campaigns and convert leads to paying customers easily.
It has features such as landing page builder, SEO tracking, keywords tracking, lead scoring, lead tracking, lead nurturing, email campaign management, email campaign automation, push notification campaigns, marketing campaign builder, a/b testing, website tracking features with marketing assets management.
How to get started: Sign up, activate, Import your contact, Create a list or Segment, Create a form, Setup your tracking and connect your website, Create an email campaign broadcast to your segment, Build an automation flow, Design and enable conversation widget, lastly Create website popup or onsite widget and get started!
Pricing: Aritic Starting Price from $19/month for Lite, $99/month for Professional and
$149/month for Enterprise. You can sign up for a free trial and then move on to explore more with the Paid features of Aritic PinPoint.
Hubspot for Sales
To eliminate manual sales work, you need to take a look at Hubspot. The main features of the program are integrated CRM, email automation, lead and task tracking,social media management, customer surveys, advanced reporting, scheduling, making calls from your browser, optimizing advertising campaigns, and more.
How to get started? Sign up and activate your account, invite colleagues, integrate your shopping cart, synchronize data, set up popular workflows, and automate orders.
Pricing: to get started with Hubspot, you don’t need to buy a package right away, you can take advantage of the free offer. There are also 3 packages available in the paid version: Starter (from $45/month), Professional (from $360/month), and Enterprise (from $1,200/month).
Moz as an Analytics Tool
Such software will be useful for website analytics. Its main areas are portal auditing (the software scans the resource, identifying problems), keyword queries tracking, analysis of their effectiveness, backlinks analysis, keyword research for targeting, content quality analysis, and much more. This can also be assisted by a top-quality SEO consultant.
How to get started? By signing up for the Moz PRO package, businesses have the opportunity to try out the platform for 30 days. For this period, they get a full set of tools and expert assistance.
If you’re ready to sign a contract, there are 4 packages available: STANDARD ($99 per month), MEDIUM ($179 per month), LARGE ($249 per month), PREMIUM ($599 per month). Paying for any package one year in advance will cost 20% less.
How to get started? Before you buy the full package, the BloomReach team suggests contacting a manager to request a personalized demo of the app and calculate how relevant the platform will be for your business.
Pricing: BloomReach offers 3 packages to consider: Content, Discovery, Engagement. Pricing is not specified on the site, as the cost of each option depends on the number of business customers and the size of the product catalog.
MyOperator for Sales-Support Calls
Customer calls are one of the important aspects of a business. And in the digital marketing age, it may seem like calls being a traditional aspect of a business is not an important channel anymore. But that assumption could not be far from the truth. In the age of the internet and social media, people still prefer to pick up the phone and call for any help, especially for local businesses.
Due to the personal nature of calls, it’s vital to professionally and timely manage all your sales-support calls. MyOperator is a cloud-based call management service that has been providing a complete suite for business call management and is currently used by 7000+ brands in 60+ countries.
MyOperator provides solutions like toll-free numbers, virtual phone numbers, cloud-based call centers for sales support, outbound calling solutions, and all things you can think of for call management. Every plan comes with advanced business call management features like call recording, call tracking, agent performance reporting, call logs, IVR surveys, etc. To get started with MyOperator, you can get a free 3-day trial and plans start at USD 10 per month.
As a small ecommerce business, you want to make sure that all your time is accountable. Timely is an automatic time tracking software that leverages AI. It helps companies stay connected with their workforce and report accurately on their business – for payroll, project management, team management, and capacity planning.
By automating timesheet admin, Timely frees teams for the important work that matters and helps teams know exactly where their time is going, enabling them to create a winning and accurate weekly schedule. Offering strict user-level privacy by design, it’s a tracking tool that employees actually trust; and with intuitive controls and a colorful interface, it’s simple to use as well as to implement.
Conclusion
All of the tools presented will help optimize specific operations and make the business more profitable. Therefore, by investing in them, you will see positive achievements in your company’s working process.
Best SaaS Tools for Small Ecommerce Business was last modified: November 7th, 2023 by Edward Bishop
POS or Point Of Sale is a system that is used by people working in the retail industry and also in the restaurant business. This system helps business owners to track each sale they make and their overall cash flow, making it a huge time saver. It also allows restaurant owners to monitor their food inventory, which is fundamental. Many kinds of POS systems are made available and all of these systems try to give the best experience to their users. However, when it comes to making a choice, you might find yourself feeling overwhelmed. Do not worry at all, we are here to guide you with your selection process. Here are things you should look for when choosing a POS system for your restaurant.
Choose One That Will Grow With You
When you embark on your business journey, your plans include expansion and having more branches, and growing your number of customers. Before deciding which system you will use, go over a list of restaurant computer systems and pick the one with the room for potential growth. Being able to modify your system to the current needs of your restaurant is important because when you expand your business, you will need something that provides you with the numbers you should know about your most successful dishes and the least favorite ones as well.
The system you choose should have a feature that allows you to add more terminals and connect them together. You might also want to consider one that supports multiple language options in case you would like to open a new branch of your restaurant in a different country.
User-Friendliness
The POS system will be used by your staff members, it is going to be the link between your waiters and chefs. That is why it is highly important that the interface is simple and easy to use for your employees. Managing a restaurant is hard enough on its own, do not make it harder on yourself by choosing a system that is difficult to navigate. You would not want to have delayed orders just because someone is unable to put the data correctly and things are over complicated for them.
A user-friendly POS system like POSApt will save you the time you otherwise would have spent on training your staff and making sure every one of them understood how to use it. The last thing you want is a waiter standing in front of a customer puzzled in front of a machine or someone in the kitchen unable to know what order is next.
One With Excellent Reviews
Any company that is looking to make a successful sale will only say what is good about their systems. No one is going to be straightforward about what their system is missing. It’s much better to talk to one of the customers who can provide feedback about the system you are considering. User experience is a reputable resource and will provide you with many insights. Ensure you ask users about the good and the bad about the system as well. The importance of getting both positive and negative feedback is because restaurants are different and what is good for you might not be the same for others and vice versa.
A System That Provides You With Data Quickly
No one has time to wait in front of the machine to get the data they want. Therefore, pick a system that retrieves the information efficiently and quickly. Imagine you are talking to a customer who is upset about a reservation or a to-go order and you keep them waiting beside the barista because your POS is taking longer to get the order or reservation data. This is the kind of situation that can make a restaurant lose a customer even if they like the food. The system will be used as well by waiters to take orders, again a task that does not allow for any delays or lagging.
The ability of a system to retrieve information quickly is a sign of professionalism and can get you out of many difficult situations. POS systems can also help you when it comes to payroll and calculating the number of hours your waiters have worked. Since you will depend on this system for many things that concern internal operations or customer service, it better does the job quickly.
Specialized For Restaurants
All businesses are hectic to run, but not all of them are run the same way. Opt for a system that is specifically designed for restaurants to ensure that it has all the options that will be of benefit to you. The fact that you and a grocery shop both sell food does not mean that both establishments do the same thing or can be served by the same system. Only a system made for a restaurant will enable you, for example, to make a certain coffee offer for your regular customers, or split the bill if there is a group of people eating and everyone will pay for their own meal. This will be beneficial for you and your customers as well and will impress your customers too, making their experience at your restaurant something they would like to have again. Additionally, incorporating a music streaming solution might be a helpful way to create the ideal playlist to go with the ambiance of the dining room. Whether it’s soothing background music or upbeat songs, the appropriate music selection can improve the atmosphere, and make dining more enjoyable.
Your business is like your child, you want what is the best for it and you always hope you live and see it grow and prosper. Back in the days when there was no technology, restaurant owners had to write everything down and go through tons of paperwork to get the information they needed. Thanks to technology, this job is made way easier now and can save you time and help you make more money and have more loyal customers.
When choosing a POS system using the latest technology will also make the job of your staff easier and that is one of the things that will make them want to continue working for you for years. No one wants to work in a job with a system that is difficult to use or where there is no system at all. Take your time before you decide upon a certain system, the time you invest in research is time well spent.
What You Should Look For in a Restaurant POS Systems was last modified: April 18th, 2025 by Allen Brown