5 of the Best Features to Look for in Your SME’s Email Marketing Software

An effective email marketing campaign has the potential to represent one of your business’s most valuable assets. They represent a significant opportunity for ROI, clicks, ensuring new and existing customers remain engaged with your brand, and, of course, driving traffic to your site.

Why Your Campaign Needs Email Marketing Software

Email marketing can quickly become an indispensable string to your proverbial bow, but without the right platform from which to launch your campaign, it risks remaining painfully underutilised.

The role any reliable email marketing service provider seeks to fulfil is incredibly multifaceted. There are plenty on the market – many of which offer a comprehensive toolset with which to simplify, streamline, and automate many of the most time-consuming aspects of email marketing.

Email is frequently touted by marketing experts as one of the most lucrative mediums with which to access your growing customer base, both in terms of cost and time. Without the right software to take on the majority of the work on your behalf, however, the efficiency and strong payoff of email marketing is liable to be lost – and the campaign, underutilised.

With that in mind, here are five of the most important features to look for, learn, and use in your email marketing software.

Automation

Not only will automating many of the existing steps in your email marketing campaign enable you to free up hours each week, the ability to do so will also help you to grow your efforts, without needing to invest much more time into its execution.

From social media and CRM integrations to ensuring that emails are issued according to time zone, automation ensures that you spend as little time as possible on the more tedious aspects of your campaign.

Responsive Designs

The vast majority of us open emails on both our smartphones, and our computers. Unless your software is capable of managing device adaptability, email templates that are suited only to one platform risk being virtually unreadable on others.

Let’s say you send out an email formatted only for PC browsers; considering the fact that so many of us regularly open our emails on our cell phones, your efforts will prove largely futile.

Software that features templates with responsive designs will ensure that your emails are capable of arriving on any device, without any issues arising in the translation from PC to mobile to tablet.

Issue Surveys and Questionnaires, and Segment Data

Your customer base is considerably diverse, both in terms of their interests and preferences, and, in a much broader sense, their age, gender, and location. Of course, the more you know about them, the better, and choosing a software provider with the ability to issue effective surveys – and, more importantly, organize and put the results to use – will enable you to create a more targeted campaign.

Detailed Reporting

Rather than allowing your emails to slip off into the void, utilizing a provider capable of issuing regular engagement reports will much it much easier – and quicker – to understand how your customers are responding to your outreach.

Look for a software that offers a real-time breakdown of your readership’s activities, such as opens, clicks, flagging, and those who have unsubscribed.

Support

If you have been managing your campaign manually until now, or using a more limited software, then getting to grips with the new features may well come as a challenge at first. To avoid setbacks or frustration, choose a provider that actively caters to first-time users; up to date guides and responsive customer service will prove invaluable if you encounter any stumbling blocks.

Final Thoughts

There are many more features a good email marketing software provider should bring to the table. Affordability, security, and spam testing, for instance, are all integral to your ability to optimize your campaign and ensure that you are getting the highest ROI possible.

When it comes to marketing, streamlining every element that goes into your email campaign is one of the best ways of improving small business productivity, and facilitating further growth, development, and customer retention as you move forward.

How to Keep Your Internet Connection Stable When Traveling to a Harsh Environment

Today, many of us cannot imagine our lives without the internet. It has become the most reliable source of communication between individuals. It is available everywhere and well-secured, which helps people transfer sensitive information without the fear of being intercepted. However, in some places, the connection can become unstable, which makes it harder to send and receive data. Nowadays, engineers are developing new ways and tips to stabilize and speed up the process.

Use a VPN

It was once believed that using a virtual private network would slow down your internet. On the contrary, the speed gets boosted when you switch to a closed system. It encrypts the traffic, so the internet service provider won’t be able to determine the heaviness of the data being transferred. You will also have a safer platform to share content without it being traced back to you.

Use Multiple Connections

If all connections are unbearably slow and frequently get disconnected, connecting to all of them at once may help a little bit. When you do that, every network will compensate for the one that stops working so you will barely sense any disturbance. Some applications allow you to combine any kind of connection, whether it’s 4G, wireless, or wired. You just have to download them before traveling. 

Back to Ethernet

Old is gold. No matter how wireless connections get more accessible, ethernet still surpasses them in reliability. Wi-Fi signals are interfered with by radio waves, microwaves, and remote controls. In some businesses, consistency is what differentiates between one company and another. So, while going abroad for work, if there is any chance to connect your device to a wire, you will get fewer breaches and interference. 

Data sequencing

Engineers have been trying to enhance communication between people in need. For instance, military troops always require a connection to stay in touch with their base. Some upgraded platforms have started to use algorithms as data sequencing and frequency hopping to increase security by decreasing the electromagnetic field around the source. Open architecture is being implemented in advanced Data Link systems, which allows for a duplex wideband that covers more extensive areas. Moreover, they automatically correct errors that are responsible for the unsteady connection. 

The Internet of Things

Technology is advancing at an exciting rate. The internet of things is one of the latest evolutions that has been introduced to the market. It is used in various aspects of our lives. Recently, internet gurus are implementing it in sensors and spreading them across countries to speed up the transfer of data. IoT also helps in stabilizing the signals. It is still under development because there are some privacy downsides. Probably, in the next couple of years, we will witness more of its benefits. 

Switch to Mobile Versions

Sometimes, you need to compromise an aspect to be able to achieve efficiency. While surfing the internet or sending an e-mail, use the mobile versions instead of the desktop ones. They are usually lighter and more accessible. Moreover, compress the photos and files before attempting to send them to use up less space. 

Cell Phone Signal Amplifier

Sometimes, the problem lies in the availability of signals. To fix that, you can get a cell phone signal amplifier that is made of an external and internal antenna and amplifier. The outside antenna is used to receive a signal from the nearest tower. Then it gets amplified and sent back to the interior one. By strengthening the cell phone’s reception, the internet becomes more robust and stable. 

Portable Travel Router

If you are going to a place with a connection, but you’re unsure of its strength, getting a portable travel router may be an excellent option. It is nothing fancy, but it boosts the signals of any available network. You just need to leave it close to the source and enjoy the speed.

Go Offline

If the internet is not getting any steadier, your last resort would be working offline. You can adjust the settings of your browser and e-mails before going on a plan. You may write your notes and prepare data so they would get automatically sent when your device receives any connection. 

You should be well-prepared before deciding to travel to a foreign environment, especially if you will need the internet. You can never know the extent of the harsh conditions over there. So, it is better to do thorough research on all the methods that will help you stabilize and strengthen any connection. We gave you a couple of options and tricks that you can use in the time of need. 

Common Problems with Smart Phones and How to Fix Them

We can confidently say the majority of the world’s population now own smartphones. With the rising number of these smartphones, you will get the high end, the midrange, and the low-end quality phones from different brands, make, and prices. 

Unfortunately, all these types get problems once in a while, making you stranded on how to solve them. In this write-up, we will examine some of the major issues that happen to these smartphones and ways to fix them. Check the list below.

Overheating

Due to constant use, most smartphones end up overheating. Sometimes, the heating becomes too much in that you can’t use your phone comfortably. Overheating on different types of smartphones can damage its interiors, battery, and screen, requiring immediate action to avoid such. You can quickly solve this problem, depending on the cause. If it’s too much sunlight, then keep your phone away from direct sunlight. If it’s from use, close all the apps and leave it for a while. If heating is caused by charging, switch off, and leave your phone to charge fully.

Screen Cracked

Glass is a breakable material for screens of the iPhone. If in case, it is accidentally dropped, the force upon impact could cause the glass to crack or shatter. If the iPhone is subjected to much pressure like if it’s sat or stepped on, then the screen can crack or even shatter. When an iPhone gets wet, the water that enters can cause great damage to the internal working parts of the phone including the screen. Any exposure of an iPhone screen to extreme temperatures for instance hot summer afternoons as well as freezing winter nights too can damage it beyond repair. In extremely rare scenarios, manufacturing malfunctions may cause the screens of iPhones to break. You may need to find a specialist to help with iphone screen repair.

Much Trash

Most high-end smartphones nowadays come with a self-trash-cleaning technique. But if you are using an old model, even some new ones, you need to solve it since it affects your phone performance. According to netchimp.co.uk, almost a third of smartphone users complain of their phones lagging and becoming slower day by day. You can solve this problem by cleaning trash, cache, and uninstalling unnecessary apps. You can also download trash-cleaning apps from the phone’s app store and remove that trash to create some space. If it doesn’t change anything, visit a technician for troubleshooting or get a new phone.

Slow Speeds When Online

Have you ever browsed online and waited for long for a page to load or open? You aren’t alone. According to starzsoft.com, slow online speeds are a nuisance to everyone who uses the internet, whether on a computer, laptop, tablet, or smartphone. Sometimes the issue does not get caused by the smartphone, but by the network provider. What if all other devices, using the same network, are working okay? You can try to troubleshoot your smartphone. Before then, you need to check your system by having your device use different types of networks before coming to a conclusion of seeking other advanced means.

Not Enough Storage Space

Sometimes our phones get filled either by the media we feed them, apps, or even cache. The problem is rampant nowadays since people are obsessed with their smartphones and are online every time. They are either downloading their favorite images, browsing or taking photos and uploading them to their social media sites such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Whatsapp. You can fix this problem by yourself. First, you need to recognize what’s filling the space by checking your phone memory. If it’s photos, you can transfer them to a new SD card or move the media into cloud-based storage. If it’s in a cache, you can clean it, thus freeing some storage. One more tip, always buy a smartphone with more storage space.

Phone Crashing

Have you ever opened an app and it crashed? The feeling you get from such is minimal as compared to when your phone crashes. Imagine waking up to a blank phone with nothing to display? This issue happens mostly on mid-range smartphones when their software fails to launch. How do you solve this? Mostly, that’s a technical issue. 

If your phone is at a warranty, you can get it back to your dealer and get it repaired or exchanged with a new one. Another better option is restarting your phone and checking if the problem clears. But if it’s a recurring problem, do not get it twisted but rush to the dealer.

Slow Response Time

Before introducing high-end phones, the first smartphones were a form of stress, but we didn’t have a choice. You could wait for a long time to load an app or operate more conveniently. Nowadays, a small percentage of such phones do exist. To solve this, cut off media, apps, and also widgets as you check its performance. Do not load it with more apps than it can accommodate.

Other malfunctions include the battery draining fast and hardware issues, which you can quickly fix. We have provided the best tips in this article which you can share with your friends and save the agony of buying new phones which might cost you a fortune.

How Modern Technology Helps Us Avoid Procrastination

Too tired and lazy to get up? Have tons of research papers, essays, assignments, a difficult article, and various tasks to submit yet can’t get the energy to start working? As college students, we have all been here. With such a huge amount of work and so many pending assignments, part-time jobs, family and friends, it can get hard to manage everything so we end up procrastinating.

Procrastination is like a disease that is treatable if you stay on top of it. With the help of proper measures, you can easily stay on the top of your game and say goodbye to procrastination! We can see that technology has touched all the aspects of our lives and has made it better in one way or another.

From better communications systems to better educational facilities, technology has helped us everywhere. Similarly, when it comes to procrastination, technology plays the role of a knight in shining armor there as well!

With the help of various applications, reminders, etc. so can easily kick procrastination to the curb! The good news is: you can do it right from your phone or laptop.

There are several applications that have been designed specifically to keep your slacking off. Let’s see how you can use technological gadgets to help you avoid procrastination.

Track Your Activities

As the adage goes, “if you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it”. When it comes to managing time, nothing is truer than this. The first thing that you need to do is to track you activities, and yes, you need to track all of them.

Getting late every single morning? You need to track how long it takes for you to shower, have breakfast, get ready and out of the home. Due to the act of delaying tasks , even if it is a simple one, we fall behind in our daily activities. With this application, you will be able to see where it is that you are spending more time and what you can do to utilize your time in a better way.

Zero Willpower

Toggling over to your social media apps every 30 seconds? No technological advancement is going to help you if you don’t put a stop to that. With the help of this website blocking app, you can cut your interaction with apps like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Reddit, and a lot more.

It is very hard for anyone to stay focused and give attention to a single task at hand. You can set timers and limit the social media freeze to a few minutes, few hours, as per your liking. No more wasting your hours scrolling through Facebook, people! Here are a few different methods of remaining motivated and productive.

Focus At Will

You know what puts the human brain in a full productivity mode? Yes, you guessed it right: Music. Music helps you improve your focus and you get your assignments done very quickly. In case you work in an open-plan office with lots of noise, it is very likely that you are going to be disturbed.  With the help of this application, you can listen to calming, soothing music that will help you focus and will stop you from getting distracted.

1-3-5 List

You start working, see the huge list of pending assignments, and you instantly get overwhelmed and stop working. What you need to do in such a situation, is to prioritize things. Start from easy assignments, then move on to slightly difficult ones, and then move on to the really difficult ones.

A lot of stress can be bad for your health, and we all know that if we are not organized and a lot of assignments are pending, as students we tend to go into a depressive phase. With the help of this application, you can choose things that you need to accomplish in one day and then check them one by one as you complete them!

Evernote

We think that a group project would make you want to work harder and motivate you. However, it turns out that we tend to procrastinate things even more when we are working with others. Don’t worry; we have your back with Evernote. With the help of this app, you can set reminders for all the members of your teams, save notes that are available across all the devices, create a to-do list, keep an eye on the progress of people, etc.

Final Word

With the right use of technological gadgets, you can save yourself a ton of pain and worry and move from being a procrastinator to a well-organized person. Use the various applications in the form of timers, calendars, etc. that technological gadgets offer you, set everything in your life right, and say goodbye to procrastination!

Here’s to a well-organized, punctual you!

Transforming Your Business’ Productivity Through Employee Well-being And Workflow Management

According to Gallup, employee engagement has been at an all time high of 33% in recent years. This is likely the result of the well-being revolution occurring in businesses across the nation. As a small business owner or manager, understanding the importance of employee well-being and how it relates to productivity is crucial to long term success.

Work Smart

As a small business owner, if you’re leading or managing a team, then get to know them. Understanding what your employees excel at and delegating tasks based on this knowledge will greatly improve your business’ productivity. Many employees lack a clear picture of all the tasks they need to accomplish. Rather than prioritizing tasks based on importance, they spend time switching between them as they come to mind. Focus on employee engagement, having your workforce attend productivity training and giving them the tools to improve their workflow will significantly increase your business’ productivity.

Understand that while multitasking sounds like a good idea, in reality it is entirely counterproductive. Research by John Medina revealed that multitasking can increase the completion time of a task by as much as 50% and even worse, quadruples the likelihood of mistakes. Instead, focus your energy on one task at a time, and work through a list of priorities for the day. Time tracking experts Journyx highlight the importance of cloud-based tools for project management. Enabling employees to access schedules and tools anywhere can simplify your company’s workflow immensely, boosting productivity as a result.

Unlimited Time Off

Over the last few years, large businesses have begun to understand the importance of employee well-being and satisfaction. Research has overwhelmingly demonstrated the benefits of flexible work hour policies and a focus on mental health. Happier, healthier employees produce better quality work. Unlimited vacation time policies are a result of this new approach to employment. While on its face, the concept may sound ridiculous, in practice it makes total sense. Why work harder or faster when it changes nothing? If you can’t leave until 5pm, why expend the extra effort? The traditional nine-to-five removes an employee’s sense of ownership over their time, and puts the focus on running out the clock. As a result, employees might sit at their desk for hours doing the bare minimum until they can leave for home. In contrast, unlimited vacation time produces a results-driven workplace culture where employees understand that as long as they produce satisfactory results, they can leave as late or early as they want. Giving employees power over their time like this is a powerful motivator, increasing morale and the quality of the work done. 

Productivity is as much about psychology as it is business management. Understanding the strengths, needs and wants of your employees is the key to boosting the productivity of your organization. This is especially important for small businesses, where profit margins are often tight and any boost to output will have significant results. Luckily the research is quite clear, providing a multitude of methods and approaches that can transform your business overnight.

Business Writing: 3 Reasons To Boost Your Small Business Productivity

The global workplace requires that businesses continuously improve their communication skills. Business communication is categorized into three essentials – verbal, nonverbal and written. 

If you are running a small business, one way of ensuring productivity is through excellent content. Written communication plays a significant role in this, especially when communicating with your clients.

When your business continues to produce documents prone to error, you are likely to spend more and lose significant goodwill. Focusing on improving your business writing skills is essential due to the following reasons.

Excellent Writing Drives Sales

Writing is the leading way your small business can thrive in the collaborative world. When correctly done, people see your business as competent and professional in its services. 

Creating a good first impression for your business is essential in ensuring that you appear capable and smart. As a result, you will be able to generate more leads and more sales. Proper business writing is also an essential aspect of quality management. 

The first way that people experience your business is through your written correspondence. This can be through your social media profile, website or email. Improving the quality of your writing makes a huge difference in the way people interact with you.

When business managers communicate effectively, they create a collaborative atmosphere that facilitates more positive results. Quality written communication promotes proper management. As employees boost their business writing skills, they quickly rise within the organization. 

As a result, your internal talent pipeline gets more strengthened, and the percentage of retention goes high. Happy employees will automatically perform better in their roles, resulting in more productivity.

You can also go for some ideas by accessing Eduzaurus. It’s a free resource for students that offers free essay samples on various topics. The writing is high-quality and it can benefit you as well, whether you are a student entrepreneur or just looking for some additional knowledge.

Business Writing Makes You More Influential

Proper business writing comes with excellent persuasion skills that you can use to achieve your business goals. As a small business or individual paper writer, you must be able to write persuasive proposals, promotional content, and bids to convince potential clients of your capability.

If you intend to come up with taglines for your business, you need to understand how you can do this to encourage people to take action. You must sound convincing. 

Acquiring the necessary skills requires that you do a bit of reading. If you are weak at doing this, you can find some of the best books on learning to read. These will guide you on how to acquire the right skills through reading.

If your business is web-based, how you convey your content will determine if potential customers will give you any attention. When it comes to thriving online, quality content is critical. If you do not present your business the right way, your competitors will always stay ahead of you.

Business Writing Makes You Credible

People who are excellent at written communication are seen to be more trustworthy and reliable. If you send out an email campaign full of grammatical errors, the recipients will get an impression of an unprofessional business.

For your business to be perceived as credible, you will need to be mindful of your written content. As people trust you, they will assign you more responsibility and choose you each time they need your services. 

Your written interaction should have a tone and attention similar to what is contained in face to face communication. By reading your communication, the recipient can quickly tell if you have respect for them and the brand that you represent. 

Consider adding some etiquette and sound formatting in your communication. As people read the tone and get the logic behind your content, they are likely to turn to you for partnership.

Improving the writing skills of your employees means that most of their work will be completed more effectively. It ensures that there is no miscommunication in your documents and that none of your communication is misinterpreted. 

Conclusion

Business writing skills are essential for every small business. You can acquire these through training. The more your business grasps these skills, the more productive you become. Poor writing means that you will spend a lot of time making unnecessary edits. This will result in more expenses, translating to less productivity. When it comes to the work environment, clear written communication is an essential rule for business etiquette. 

10 Ways How To Boost Your SEO With Website Translation

Localization also includes analysis of all socio-cultural elements, adjustment of translated content to the GUI requirements, and detailed SEO customization. Since it is a time-consuming and challenging task, it is recommended to read about top online translation companies to find out their basic requirements and a way to achieve the best results.

When a large corporation or a small developer decides to create a multilingual website, it is mostly seen as a way to deliver a strong message towards global markets. Since it includes professional localization, such translation work goes beyond the typical aspects of text interpreting.

If you need to boost your SEO or test new business ideas, website translation will always analyze original content by eventually adjusting it.

10 Ways To Boost Your SEO With Website Translation

  • Professional web localization includes preliminary analysis. Once your content is researched by various specialists, it is always adjusted to the legal, cultural, and social demands of the country, which will consider international ethical standards and will help your website to avoid any disputes or getting in any cultural trouble.
  • Translators explore the most popular keywords to incorporate them into your content. Since such experts are always native speakers, they will know the correct phrasing that will help you customize every SEO-critical element to meet the most popular search requests on the subject.
  • Social Media elements in a foreign language increase your online visibility. You can have a look at this site to find out about how social media content presented in another language marks a major increase in your online presence. Providing country-specific posts is a great way to keep your information fresh and inspiring!
  • Multilingual translation covers a wider target audience. Providing more than two languages, the company gains access to a greater user base. The trick is to provide specific language content that meets your ideal customer image. Once you have enough information with relevant keywords, you can track and see the methods that work best.
  • New blogging opportunities. Create blog posts in another language, discuss events in the country, important holidays, political issues to show that your company or you as an individual do care. Become a part of the vital processes by including hot topics in your SEO web structure.
  • Your content has more chances to get mentioned in a foreign press. When you have professionally translated content that describes your business vision or product advantages, the foreign press can use it for publications and greater press coverage.
  • Product descriptions that are translated by professionals generate more traffic. If your company deals with Healthcare, Food Industry, or manufacturing of any kind, accurate descriptions in another language always generate more traffic as such content is mostly unique.
  • Certified translations guarantee legal safety in a foreign country. Remember that all official documents or user agreements must be translated only by certified translations service. Since it is a content that has the legal power, it is an obligatory requirement for every company’s document that you provide in another language.
  • Working with professional SEO interpreters you can alternate various keywords. Good SEO practice must be flexible as it is never done in one take. See what works, analyze traffic increase, study popular keywords, and try various approaches.
  • More international partnership opportunities. Every translated content is a way towards partnership and cooperation in a foreign country. Do not underestimate this idea as a professionally translated website will show the investors and the locals that you are a reliable foreign partner.

Avoiding Unintentional Translation Mistakes

Even the large companies suffer from minor omissions that result in unfortunate issues or things lost in translation. Remember that slogans, mottos, or simple phrases that may sound natural in English do not always translate well to another language. Take time to discuss this aspect with your localization specialist. Always ask for a literal translation of every phrase, and choose safe, socially-acceptable marketing ideas. 

10 Tips For Effective SEO Localization

When an average person hears about a necessity to start with the SEO localization, it brings up the images of programmers working with the code and the high costs of such services. The trick is to prepare your original source text for translation by following academic writing and editing rules and providing every single detail that matters in terms of a foreign target audience. The term “localization” stands for more than a basic text interpretation because it already includes the background for the various SEO practices and consideration of the cultural aspects of a country.

10 Tips to Make Your SEO Localization Effective

  • Research keyword density. The good SEO ranking usually requires keeping it below at least 2.3% because an increase in the use of keywords may lead to overfilling risks. Discuss this matter with your SEO localization specialist because some languages like Spanish or German usually require more than one word for the English equivalent.
  • Study the foreign-language source to adjust the code. It is recommended to create a table of English (or any other) original keywords, so a translator can see which options to choose. Be it product description equivalents in Chinese or unique brand keywords, the trick is to characterize your company or products with the call to action phrases.
  • Study the social context. Working with the Middle East, as an example, you may have to add new paragraphs of texts or explanations that will help your keywords fit within the context. The creation of a carbon copy content is not the right way because every foreign audience has a different perception of things. 
  • Additionally, the use of website localization allows you to make the necessary changes to your content and customize it for each target market. This will help you avoid misunderstandings and cultural clashes.
  • Multidimensional keyword research. Since the majority of localization specialists are native speakers with a technical background, always mention a necessity of related keywords that should be included. Some of them may include different spellings or, rather, misspellings, which ensures that your website will still show up.
  • Translation of official documents. If you are dealing with legal agreements, quality proofs, cooperation rules, or business proposals, always approach professional document translation services. Such kind of work must be done only by certified experts to help you include correct legal terms for every target audience.
  • Consider tools like ClickStream to research the popularity of keywords in a country and check it along with your localization expert. Sometimes such methods can help to find the right balance and use a mixture of good grammar and slang keywords.
  • Readable text matters more. When inserting SEO keywords, ask localization specialists to focus on readability by pairing chosen terms with the inspiring content. After all, overfilling something with the search engine triggers in a language like Chinese can easily ruin even the best website.
  • Ask for CAT tools implementation. All these computer-aided technologies are not only good for the correction of various technical terms but also SEO stability and accuracy of code. You can click here and read about the reasons why the use of a termbase helps to avoid translation or spelling mistakes.
  • Proofreading Issues. As a rule, SEO work is quite challenging and includes a constant removal and addition of keywords, special phrasing, key terms, and more all over the text. It is one of the reasons why it is crucial to proofread each text twice by the native speaker to eliminate repetitions or odd phrasing.
  • Joint SEO Tune-Up. When all the work is done, the best approach is to tune up the website together with the GUI designer, programmer, translation expert, and marketing specialist who will make comments and see whether their part of a website’s success meets the expectations.

What You Can Do To Help

Remember to check personal brand names, contact information, phone numbers, emails, and numbers. Since such things are not a part of the common dictionary, your valuable input will help to keep things accurate. Even if you do not know a foreign language, such a contribution will help to eliminate any misspellings of crucial data during the SEO integration!

5 Tips & Tricks That Will Make You Actually Enjoy Writing

You get the assignment, read it a couple of times, open a word document on your laptop, and… nothing happens. Sounds familiar? The truth is that academic writing can be quite exhausting, especially when you lack time, energy, or interest.

As a student, you’ll have to write thousands and thousands of words, and there’s no escaping this. If you feel joy only after you submit your paper and never in the process, you might need to end your misery and learn to enjoy writing all the way through.

In this article, you’ll find advice on how to relish the process of writing, instead of feeling like someone is hitting you with the Cruciatus Curse.

Find Something That Interests You

If there is an opportunity to choose a topic yourself, be sure to choose the one that sparks your curiosity. Why spend endless hours writing something that you yourself don’t find interesting enough?

In case there are no options to choose from, you should still try to write about something that surprises or intrigues you within a given subject. This way, you’ll be able to stay engaged during the whole time. You’ll learn more and cover a topic in the best possible way.

Don’t worry if you can’t think of any exciting topic to write about. You can always turn to an academic writing service like WritePaper and let them help you. As some subjects are less engaging than others, it’s normal if you feel a lack of curiosity or motivation. Just switch to a more interesting assignment while professionals take care of the boring stuff.

Do Your Research

Thorough research is not only a prerequisite for a high-quality paper but also a guarantee that you’ll enjoy the process of writing even if you ask a paper writing service. It’s also a good way to prove your expertise in a subject matter, which your readers will feel and appreciate.

While researching, you’ll find different perspectives that will provoke your interest and thinking. You might also discover opposite views and ideas as well as ethical problems. Such findings will contribute to your writing by making your argument more vivid. They will also make the whole process more engaging and interesting.

To conduct research in a proper manner, make sure that you’re using effective reading techniques. There’s no need to read books from cover to cover. Instead, look for relevant keywords and search for summaries of the main arguments. This way, you’ll get a sense of what’s important without getting bored, overwhelmed, or lost.

Try Freewriting

Freewriting is a sort of a warm-up exercise for your brain that lets you overcome the fear of blank page and helps to start writing. Also, it might help you get some good ideas for your written assignment, as you’ll tap the subconscious mind.

To freewrite, decide for how long you want to continue this exercise, set the PC timer app, and get down to work. Write down whatever comes to your mind in relation to the topic at hand without stopping, editing, or erasing.

Freewriting is helpful because when you write in the state of flow, you don’t judge your own thoughts and emotions. This way, you might get to some surprising and interesting ideas that exist in your head without you even realizing it. Besides, this practice is very enjoyable, as it doesn’t put you under any sort of pressure.

Let Go Of Perfectionism

You might be shooting yourself in the foot if you want your term paper to be your magnum opus. Striving for perfection might sound good in theory, but really it’s just about turning what is already a difficult task into a monumental one.

By intending to write a perfect paper, you’re saddling yourself with a tedious work that might provoke writer’s block. As a result, you might find yourself procrastinating in a useless effort to write the perfect first sentence. This way, you’re not only losing your time but also depriving yourself of a chance to get the assignment done and move forward.

Remember, “Perfectionism spells paralysis.” Being truly engaged with the topic and diligent when reading and writing is more than enough to produce a high-quality paper. At the end of the day, the process is ultimately more important and valuable than the result.

Arrange Your Writing Environment

To boost your creativity and enjoy the process of writing, it’s important to think about such an environment that suits your tastes and needs. It’s a matter of preference, so you can come up with anything that makes you feel comfortable and productive. It might be a university library, a noisy cafe, or your room.

Then decide whether you need background music or if you can focus only in silence. If you prefer something to play in the background, then think about the music that helps you concentrate and sets the right mood.

Finally, treat yourself to some healthy snacks and your favorite drink, like coffee, tea, or juice. You’ll most definitely need some fuel, so please don’t starve yourself to death to finish the paper as soon as possible. And don’t forget to take breaks!

Wrapping Up

Once in awhile, any student gets overwhelmed by a written assignment, be it an essay or a term paper. Writing is a demanding and time-consuming process, but with the right attitude and preparation, you might actually enjoy it.

Choose a topic that you find interesting and thought-provoking and research it well. Do some freewriting to warm-up, and don’t forget to silence your inner perfectionist. Then, get down to writing in an environment that makes you feel good and helps work better.

Enjoy the process!

The Best NAS Storage Devices on the Market

Entrepreneurship is on the rise, and in the current global market-space, small businesses and home-business are becoming ever-more-popular. With this comes bigger size, for the business, the demand, and in the background, a bigger need for storage solutions on your home devices. Here are some storage solutions you don’t need to pass around the office because they’re all connected! That’s the greatest benefit of what we call a NAS device (Network Attached Storage). Here, we’ve collected a bunch of top models to find out which is the best for you, but first, let’s learn what they are.

Don’t Compromise on File Access

This is surely the selling point of NAS storage, that you can forget about the days of worrying how much space your device has left, or better yet, those times where you have to delete some files you want, in order to make the space for the files that you need. Instead of this, a good NAS storage device that can connect to your device can connect your files to you from further away, without the compromise. You don’t even have to plug it into the drive, just plug-and-play from the comfort of, well, wherever the internet reaches!

What Can I Even do on This?

Well, that’s what you need to decide! I wouldn’t suggest buying one before you know exactly what you want to use for it. Most commonly, people just want to store their immense collection of word files, but there are different specialized NAS devices for each use. Simple office file sharing is easy work on near all NAS devices as a minimum, so you shouldn’t worry about shopping around too much. You only really have to worry about the small details when doing more demanding work, like HD video-sharing to multiple devices, and other more immense work-load demands. If you get to this point, it’s better to explore NAS devices with higher market specifications for memory, storage, processing, and network power. Price is usually equivalent to stronger components, so these might be more costly than the average device.

NAS Devices are built to accommodate needs, so can make it more customizable, but a little more difficult, to find the one that’s just right for you.

Basic Buying Tips

The reason any person decides to buy a storage device is for just that reason, storage. In a NAS device, the storage cards are held in bays, small drawers that the storage plugs into so that the box it’s plugged into can connect to the internet for you. For the home and small-business users, a NAS device will have about one or two bays. However, if you’re thinking of going into the big leagues, or ARE already working a large-scale operation, bigger offices commonly use a four-bay or more system for their needs!

Back to the basics though, a single bay storage device isn’t recommended, unless you’re using the device simply to backup your work which is also on your work-devices. This is just because of the lack of extra possibilities in the future. You don’t want to limit yourself the second you buy one, especially considering the price of a 2-bay can be found similarly to the 1-bay! One-bays can sometimes allow you to expand more outside of the box too, but it can become a hassle.

A two-bay NAS seems the smart choice for a home user who wants a basic ‘do-it-all’ drive. If you want to mirror your files, bigger drive sizes could be a favored choice, but for bay-sizes, two slots can make the world’s difference. Also, buy on the side of caution. You may think storage is expensive, but if you buy a bigger setup now, you won’t have to resync your data on new drives when it comes to needing more storage. If you set-up for the long run, you’ll be better off. They are reliable and Synology data recovery is more reliable.

Do I go ‘Diskless’ Or ‘Populated’?

So I have to presume that you’re exploring different NAS drives, and you come across the fine detail of ‘diskless’ or ‘populated’. What do they mean? Well, you can buy ‘populated’ NAS devices that come -pre-built with their complimentary storage drives. They’re often usually already configured and must be dedicated to the drives they come in. Often Storage manufacturers who make drives favor pre-inserting their storage. Other manufacturers may tend to sell diskless-NAS devices. These can be some-what cheaper, but you’ll have to buy your own insertable storage. You just have to do a little extra research on what to look for! In this respect, this is a head’s up on the differences between the two, but we won’t take sides on which is better, that’s your decision!

I chose ‘Diskless’: A little extra help on disk-choice?

If you’ve got a little idea that you want to go diskless, here’s the part where you have to think about disks. NAS manufacturers tend to recommend their own proprietary disks or have a favored disk-manufacturer to recommend you to (usually a list of ones they’ve tested and KNOW work with the device well). You can find these compatibility lists online before you buy them. It isn’t 100% required, but we 100% recommend it to be sure, as you’ll get the most optimized functionality out of the device.

Some of the big names in disk-manufacturing, like Seagate, WD, Toshiba, and more have specialized drives that are optimized for NAS storage, so are often the best bet. On top of this, the big names often compete in pricing, so you can get very good prices for the drives on offer. These drives are assured to run near constantly and can be very durable. We recommend you look at NAS-verified drives as your best choice on the market.

The names you want to look out for are listed here. Seagate and Western Digital are the big guns, with Seagate’s ‘IronWolf’ and ‘IronWolf Pro’ being NAS specific, and WD’s ‘WD Red’ line coming up as their NAS choice. Toshiba is also a great choice, with the ‘N’ series of disks. All three of these lines are built to perform heavy and durable and come in a great variety of sizes.

Halfway House: Redundancy and Safe Storing

We’re halfway through the round-up but there’s more to go. We’ll cover the storage choice and their pros and cons, Media-streaming (if you so choose to have it), The physical plugging in choices, and ratings on the markets biggest, to give you that last push in deciding what you need.

So, Storage choice On-board. NAS devices that have more than one drive have a choice of mirroring your files, which in short saves the one file onto both drives. That way, if something happens with one, the other is still up and accessible. After all, who wouldn’t have two parachutes instead of one! The only issue is that you half your storage choice right down. This is usually the base-setup, so if you DON’T want this, delve into your user manual for ways of turning this off.

However, in turning it off, there are two separate ways of saving your files in basic, single-copy formats. There’s ‘striping’ and there’s ‘JBOD’. What striping does, in the easiest terms possible, stretch the file across both drives, as it saves half on one drive and a half in the other, all chopped up. This still means the files functional, and often means that it can write and read faster, with the compromise that both drives cannot be used separately, and won’t work if they’re taken out separately. For this reason, for people who need to carry their drives around for plug and play, you may want to consider the JBOD setting where you can. This setting, meaning ‘Just a Bunch of Disks’, files are saved completely onto a drive in whole, not fragmented, so that you can plug-in and plug-out your drives and the files will be complete. This can be considered safer too as if one of the drives goes turn off at any point, you can still access entire files for the half that’s still available.

            Lastly, for those of you who know something about NAS already, there IS the ability to mirror AND stripe across three or more drives for the added security and speed of data. The NAS could copy data across entire arrays of drives so that the failure of one drive can be patched by another complimentary striping on another drive by reconstruction. This would be for those big businesses maximizing on speed, security and redundancy measures, but can be a bit overkill for the average home user. It’s useful to have the option though!

Movies and Media without the Mayhem

NAS devices often come pre-configured, and for this reason, you need to consider what one you’re buying if you’re going to buy it as a memory bank for your favorite streaming service, or for your home movies. Only certain devices can play certain types of files, so you have to do quite a bit of research for your rig if you’re planning on a home-theatre device of the like. Think for example, that some ‘.avi’ files can’t work in MP4 players. The same can be said for NAS Units. Typically, NAS come complimentary to PC rigs, you can get a plethora of software that plays different formats like a piece of cake. You can further shop around for the NAS devices on the market that can seamlessly connect to smart-boxes, like Apple TV, Chromecast, and so on, for quick on-demand streaming. It can be hard to find the right one, prompting the reason you have to do some ‘rig research’. Look at the specifications of devices closely to ensure it does what you need it to do. At a premium, even 4K streaming NAS devices are on the market, but you’ll pay a few pretty pennies on it, as the processor within the NAS device needs to be able to accommodate such needs.

Control, Connections, and Caveats

When shopping around for different devices, there isn’t much of a casual consensus among the multiple brands on different ports on the device, beyond the commonality on many of a USB 3.0 port, the market standard at the moment. Most NAS Drives carry 2 USB ports for other devices, usually the home printer and a PC wire at most, or whatever other devices with a USB you like! They’re pretty much plug-and-play easy, and once into the NAS, they’re shared among all users on the network. A printer is a great choice for this. If it has a USB 2.0 and 3.0 port, the 2.0 port is plenty enough for a printer. 3.0 ports, the faster ones, should be saved for when you really need them.

If you want real ease of access, some NAS units on the market have buttons on the front for replication. Imagine you have a USB stick with a paper on it and need it in the network quick and easy. Plug it into the NAS, press copy, and it’ll be on the network, literally at the press of a button. Every NAS device can have its own features to alleviate the work from the workplace, so you need to shop around for what you think you’ll need!

If you want a media player, look for the devices that come with an HDMI port, in order for use with your TV-streaming devices, or directly into the back of your device. And lastly, the ethernet port, for a necessary direct connection to your internet. That’s what puts the Network into the NAS.

(Probably) The Reason You’re Here: No Wires.

Most NAS drives enable you to share files from the cloud. This can sound like common sense, considering they’re connected by a network, but it’s a particularity you have to check, for it to be present. NAS manufacturers are proud to share if they have this feature and can be a great selling point. It saves the hassle of downloading from the NAS to device in order to share it. Also, from this, you can access the NAS from any internet connection, not only your local network, meaning you can access it pretty much anywhere there IS internet access if you can log into a cloud service, like dropbox, google drive, etc. A lot of people, including us, believe that there’s no point in getting a NAS without this feature because… well, think about it. You can have a memory bank in your house only, or one you can access anywhere with the internet, altogether. Make sure you do the research on this, too! It’s a no-brainer.

Our Handful Plucked from the Bunch: A Comprehensive Round-Up

So, there’s been quite a large handful of credentials to get our head’s around, and you might want us to spell it out just a bit more clearly, rather than dancing around. Let’s separate ‘wheat from the chaff’ and give up our top picks for each scenario, and their pro’s and cons, for the ‘Home-user’, the ‘aspiring small-business’, the ‘Business Box’, and the ‘Device-Streamers’ out there, below.

The Home User

Credentials: For a home-user, you’ll probably be looking for a box with decent storage that can cover your back for months, or even years, to come. It’ll be useful to have the plug-and-play capability, a decent price, and something that seems to just work. Its own software can be helpful to take you along and not be too confusing.

Our Pick: The Promise Apollo. Looking easy on the eyes, this can fit right onto any desk in your house and look like it could belong. Coming with 4TB right out of the box, you don’t have to worry about buying anything extra.

The Pros: This little box is so easy to set-up that you don’t have to spend any extra time worrying about your externals. You can access it simply, and share files remotely. On top of this, your phone camera roll can auto-upload if you want it to. Such a user-friendly device can’t be commended enough.

The Cons: This device can seem sluggish in demanding workloads, and you need applications in order to access certain storage. In being friendly with home-users, it loses the tech-crowd who need all-access at all times. It’s your choice on this one.

The Aspiring Small-Business

Credentials: A growing business is going to want a little bit more space, and perhaps would be a bit more comfortable delving into the tech-space for something a bit more specific. File-sharing should be a doddle, and the capability for easy expansion is going to be a bit more your style. Here’s our pick.

Our Pick: Asustor AS5304T. This box helps out with a bigger workload, a solid operation, and the similar easy-setup, and that choice for wider expansion.

The Pros: This NAS provides a solid and reliable performance. It runs quieter than many of the other ones in this category, which is a small bonus for the office-space. It has dual 2.5GbE ports, and a toolless set-up (which we love to see). It also comes with apps out of the box, making it easy to navigate and use.

The Cons: Sadly, this box doesn’t come with any drives pre-built. They Do provide a list of recommended drives to go in, however, and it allows for you to buy some off-the-bat, and the rest when you need them. Also, It’s an expensive device, so you need to decide on whether it’s a good company expense or not.

The Business Box

Credentials: We’re in the big leagues. If you’re the team’s tech guru, you’re not going to shy away from a challenge. You want monstrous speed, the capability for large file-size caches, and the ability for mirroring and redundancy support. This sounds like the thing for you.

Our Pick: The Synology DiskStation DS1019+. A big machine, with a huge capability. This machine is definitely worth the money, but it IS still a lot of money.

The Pros: This NAS device is fast, it runs with impressively speedy performance. It’s a very easy device to install and set-up, which you don’t usually get with bigger devices. There’s a generous selection of built-in applications to help the user and a lot of storage options. It’s user-friendly, and runs quietly, a MUST for business. It holds five bays, an expansion unit, AND dual native SSD slots. Some eye-watering storage capabilities here. We’re talking 160TB Maximum.

The Cons: This is very pricy, and it shows. We don’t have really any other cons, other than storage, which you would have to buy. Very inconvenient, but also allows you to personalize the storage size, and for an office, that’s all the more important.

The Device-Streamer

Credentials: This is a bit of a niche, but NAS can support it really well. If you get the right NAS, it can feel like a breeze to jump on the sofa, touch a few buttons, and you’re watching your favorite movies again. You’ll want HD, and even 4K capability for a great image at uncompromising speed, a strong processor to keep up the foot-work, and a good amount of storage to host your impressive movie library. A MUST is a comprehensive support for applications.

Our Pick: Asustor AS5202T. With up to 5GbE Speed, a tool-less set-up, great out of the box applications and that 4K video-decoding we were looking for, this offers a great at-home experience for the average user.

The Pros: 4K Video-Encoding, out-of-the-box applications to help you on your way, tool-less set-up for the home user, 5GbE speeds and link aggregation, and a solid and reliable file-transfer performance. 2 Drives for your mirroring or JBOD choice (JBOD can create a great library size).

The Cons: This one can seem a little pricey. It’s understandable why, with its great hardware and software supply, but still, the price is a downfall. On top of this, it comes diskless, so the price of getting disks can be a headache! Picking up 2x1TB drives can get your on your way at the lowest price per decent storage, but enthusiasts may need a little more. There’s a lot of choices here, but choosing when it comes to home appliances like these is a good thing to have. We hoped we helped you in the right direction for your next big storage solution, and helped you understand exactly what you’re looking for. Good luck on your search!

5 Common Password Security Mistakes You Should Avoid

Everyone knows how important it is to keep their personal or business networks secure. With the number of cyber attacks steadily rising each year, cybersecurity is in high demand. Using services such as IT consulting by Bulletproof or other outside companies is a great way to ensure your business network is secure. Nevertheless, try to evaluate which areas need improvement; it may turn out there are necessary safety measures you can implement relatively fast.

Surprisingly, secure passwords can be problematic to both businesses and ordinary users. Nowadays, you need a password to almost anything. As such, you may want to focus not on security, but on the need to gain access fast. In this article, you’ll learn about 5 most common password mistakes you can easily avoid. Here’s everything you need to know:

Creating Weak Passwords

One of the most popular password mistakes is to use a short, predictable phrase that contains your personal information or an obvious sequence of numbers and letters. Don’t use a password that’s easy to guess – you’d be surprised how many people think that “password,” “admin,” or “12345” are good enough to protect their accounts and devices.

If you want to avoid data breach incidents, create a strong password that is at least 10 characters long and contains special characters, numbers, and lower-case and upper-case letters. Avoid using predictable keyboard patterns and consider picking a passphrase rather than a password. This way, you’ll protect your accounts more effectively.

Recycling Passwords

It’s more than likely that you have multiple accounts on various platforms, including social media, banking, and email. Like many people, you probably don’t want to come up with a new password every time you create an account. Therefore, you might be tempted to reuse the same password across multiple websites and devices.

It’s a common password mistake that can lead to serious consequences. As such, consider creating unique passwords for every account you might have. Don’t make them similar and avoid sharing passwords. Otherwise, your accounts can be easily hacked and sensitive data stolen.

Saving Passwords

We bet you often see the notification encouraging you to use the “save” or “remember me” option. Regardless of how many sites you’re visiting, don’t take up that offer! If you’re using a public computer, the next person can access your account with little to no effort.

You may be tired of entering your login credentials over and over again. However, it’s necessary to keep your accounts secure and avoid potential data breaches.

Changing Passwords Periodically

You may think that if you change your passwords frequently, you’ll keep your accounts more secure. Some companies even have a policy that forces all employees to come up with new passwords every two or three months “for security reasons.” However, mandatory password changes may not be as effective as the higher-ups might think.

According to computer science experts, research shows that people don’t put much effort into creating new passwords if they’re forced to change them regularly. Usually, they’ll just follow a predictable pattern and make minor transformations, such as adding or deleting a special character, changing the number to a higher one (for example changing 4 to 5), replacing a letter with a similar-looking symbol (like A to @), or switching the order of special characters or digits. Such changes won’t help protect your devices or accounts from cyber attacks; once hackers learn one password, they can easily guess the next one if you follow a predictable pattern. As such, it’s better to change your passwords by coming up with completely new solutions and doing it from time to time, but not within a fixed time frame.

Incorrect Password Storage

You may be tempted to write down all your passwords, especially if you have many different accounts and devices. It’s a mistake that takes the two most common forms. First, if you work in an office and your passwords are not so easy to remember, you may want to write them down on sticky notes and keep them glued to your desk or a monitor in plain sight. Second, you can save them in text documents or spreadsheets on your smartphone or computer. Now imagine your device gets hacked or compromised by malware. Whoever gains access to it, can easily find sensitive data, including your passwords. Why put your important information at risk if you can easily prevent that from happening?

Your passwords should be stored in a place safe from prying eyes, preferably not in a digital form.

Consider using a password manager or master password to keep them secure, and if you find them difficult to remember, feel free to write them down in a notebook or a calendar you’re carrying around with you.

The Bottom Line

These are the 5 most common mistakes. Are you guilty of making some of them? If yes, it’s time to change your password strategy. You can also consider using two-factor authentication and password managers for added security. Ultimately, if you want to create a safe network for your business and personal use, feel free to reach out to IT professionals.

What To Know About Payroll Taxes

There has been a lot of discussion recently about payroll taxes and the ways that they affect business owners.

The President recently announced executive action suspending payroll taxes through the end of the year in response to coronavirus and the shutdowns it led to. For businesses, this is one of the ways the government has stepped in to offer aid to struggling businesses.

It’s been much-needed relief, particularly as a lot of employers discovered their business interruption insurance policies had little coverage for a situation like a pandemic.

The following are some of the things employers should know about payroll taxes, particularly in the situation we’re in right now.

What Are Payroll Taxes?

Payroll taxes are paid to the federal government on wages, and the money is then primarily used to fund social insurance benefits, including Social Security and Medicare. Some of the federal income taxes also pay for security and defense.

Employers are required to report taxes on a quarterly basis in most cases, and to deposit their employment taxes.

Employment taxes are withholdings from employees’ checks. They cover not only federal income tax, but also in some cases, state and local tax and the employers’ Social Security and Medicare taxes (FICA). They also include the portion of FICA paid by the employer and federal and state unemployment taxes.

There are things that employers are required to do as it pertains to payroll taxes, including figuring withholdings, depositing employment taxes on a set schedule, and reporting quarterly about employment taxes.

If an employer doesn’t handle payroll taxes properly, they can be penalized.

In 2020, the Social Security tax rate is 6.2% on the first $137,700 of wages paid. The Medicare rate is 1.45% on the first 200,000 of wages, plus 0.9% on wages above $200,000.

Nine states don’t have an income tax on wages currently. These are Alaska, Florida, Nevada, South Dakota, Texas, Washington, and Wyoming. There isn’t a tax on wages in New Hampshire and Tennessee but there are taxes on interest and dividends in some situations. You can start your own business by getting an LLC in Florida.

There are voluntary payroll deductions that may be withheld from employee checks, too, only if the employee agrees. These can include 250K life insurance premiums, health insurance premiums, and retirement plan contributions.

Penalties

If you don’t pay payroll taxes or they’re late, then as an employer, you may face penalties, and there is going to be an accrual of interest.

As an employer, it’s your responsibility to ensure deposits are timely, the deposits are made in the right amount and that the deposit is made in the correct way. If you don’t do any of these, you may be subject to what’s called an FTD penalty, which stands for Failure to Deposit.

There is a penalty system that is four tiers if you make incorrect or late deposits.

The rate you have to pay is based on how many calendar days you are late.

There is a 2% rate for deposits that are 1 to 5 days late. Then it’s 5% for deposits that are 6 to 15 days late and 10% for deposits more than 15 days late.

There is a 10% rate for deposits not paid by EFT.

There’s a 15% rate for all amounts that are unpaid more than ten days after the date of the first notice requesting payment.

COVID-19 Changes

Under the CARES Act, passed in response to the pandemic in spring, there were measures intended to relieve some of the financial pressure on small businesses. For example, there was something called the Employee Retention Credit, and there was also a modification of net operating losses and a write-off for property improvements.

What Does The Payroll Tax Deferral Mean for Employers and Employees?

In August, the president announced he would be taking executive action regarding payroll taxes after Congressional negotiations failed to yield results.

When announcing the order, the president said it was a way to put money in the pockets of American workers and create incentives for employment and work.

Under the order, the employee’s obligation to pay a 6.2% Social Security tax per check is deferred. It applies to people who make less than $4,000 every two weeks, which would mean an annual salary of around $104,000.

The Treasury Department, under the order, has been instructed to see how the government might be able to forgive the deferral of the payments, but right now that’s not in place.

In 2018, the median household income was just over $63,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. If a worker made $64,000 before taxes, that would mean being paid on a biweekly basis would come out to around $2,400 before taxes. Then, based on a rate of 6.2%, the taxes for Social Security out of that check would be around $152.

That would mean a deferred amount of $1,220 from September through the end of the year. It would be similar to the amount that was sent out in stimulus checks earlier in the year.

Some are describing is at an interest-free government loan, however.

Unless something happens that changes the situation, businesses will still have the taxes due at the start of 2021.

It may be that employers don’t necessarily pass the deferrals to their employees, because they’ll be worried about how to get the money back when they eventually make their payments.

What this all means, at least for now, is that there’s a potential for workers to take home more money through the end of the year, but that’s not a certainty under the executive order.

There are concerns that the move doesn’t help the people who most need it either, since there are around 17 million Americans unemployed. The executive orders issued by the President did address unemployment payments, with a $400 bonus.

For employers, it’s important to understand the full implications of a payroll tax holiday, and also what they’ll do when the deferral period is over if there aren’t any changes that address it before then.

Best Apps To Craft A Business Plan For iOS

To be a successful entrepreneur, you not only need to start a business but also make sure it has a working plan. The entire process of starting a business begins from when you get a million-dollar idea for your startup, all the way to the planning phase: many people however fail to give enough attention to the planning phase. Effective planning will help a lot when you need to find startup investors

Since writing a business plan may be challenging and tedious, there are apps for your iOS you can use to help you come up with one. With just a phone application, you can get an investor or bank-ready written plan that you can use to source for funding.

Top iOS Apps To Create A Business Plan

In today’s tech-driven world, nobody wants to tire doing something technology can do in seconds. If you can sync business contacts and data digitally, why on earth would you do so manually.

Same case goes for proposals. Do you need a business plan to source funding for your business proposal? Why not have an App write one for you? Why?

Here is a list of top iOS apps that will help you out.

1. Upmetrics

This software comes with 200+ industry-specific sample business plans to give you a customized planning experience. Moreover, you can add or delete several elements like charts, timelines, analyses tables, and many more to make your plan look more interactive.

The software also comes with financial forecasting to predict your finances within a short span and automatically, a pitch deck creator that helps you create impressive and convincing business pitched and multiple business model canvas to make brainstorming and sharing feedback easier and faster. The best part is that it has three different pricing plans and you can choose the one that fits your needs the best.

2. Enloop

It will cost you $10 to $40 per month to enjoy all the premium features of Enloop. This might sound like a lot of money, but considering how helpful this app is, it is a very small price to pay. The program will ask you for all the relevant information then help you generate an actual outline for your investment.

Enloop generates all the data you need to convince financiers to invest in your idea: from cash flow to balance sheet projections. You can always recover deleted files, unless of course, you decided to go the old way and draft the proposal yourself.

Enloop also generates the text for all the sections in the business plan and gives you a chance to customize them. You can get this app for free, but you have to pay to enjoy premium services.

3. Liveplan

With this app on your iPhone or iPad, you don’t need to go through a long process of drafting a business plan. Liveplan makes it as easy as possible since all you have to do is answer some questions about your business idea and leave the rest to the app.

Once you have answered the questions, you get a lot of sample proposals that you can modify or use as they are. Countless Live Plan reviews have claimed it is the easiest app to work with. To some extent, I agree with them: it cannot get any easier than this.

4. Business Plan & Start Startup

With this application, you can choose to seek help writing your business plan from the entrepreneur community or do so as an individual. What is even more interesting and unique is that you can download the plan into your email free of charge. It gives you a platform to interact with other entrepreneurs and seek different perceptions.

It is one of the most popular mobile apps for creating a business outline. It has a lot of video resources and tutorials on how to approach the planning phase       of the dealing. Hardly will you feel the stress involved in coming up with a realistic scheme of action.

5. GoCanvas

This application takes you through the step-by-step process of creating a professional outline to make sure you do it right. The most exciting thing about the software is that you get to save everything on the cloud and synchronize data on all your devices. This way, you can edit it as your trade continues to grow and progress.

As an individual, you can enjoy this application free of charge: but for an enterprise, you will have to pay between $45 and $62 to enjoy the premium services it has to offer. As a small startup seeking to scale up the trade, this is the best app to update your investment scheme.

In a Nutshell…

If you want your idea to work, you better start by taking your time to plan on its execution perfectly. Once you have a proper business plan, you can then go ahead and start on the implementation and realization. If you fail to properly put things in order prior, there is a huge probability that the startup will not last longer than 5 years. It will be a short-term thing.

It shall too be short-lived.

According to statistics, up to 50% of all startups fail before four years. If you want to make it past these 4 years and after, you just need a proper plan. Just get any of these apps and you are good to go. Don’t stress yourself out.

How to Record High-Quality Videos for YouTube

YouTube is an essential service form marketing your business to customers who may not be able to come in to your place of business.  A well produced video can demonstrate your product, explain the benefits and demonstrate the solution that gains you a lifetime customer.

Creating videos is not as easy as it seems at first. After all, what’s so difficult about shooting videos about something you’re knowledgeable about? There are a lot of factors that go into launching a successful channel for business marketing on YouTube.

If you’re serious about taking a shot at making it on YouTube, you need to know that aside from the subject of your videos, you will have to take into account your target audience, video formats, as well as the technical aspects of the job. It is not enough to know what you want to record – you should also be familiar with how to record YouTube videos that will draw audiences in, en masse.

A good way to break down each and every aspect of a quality clip is to download a couple of successful videos using Bitdownloader or other platforms that allow you to save content from streaming services, and analyze them to see exactly what it is that makes certain types of videos pop. Keep reading to learn about just a couple of tips on how to make a high-quality YouTube clip.

Image Quality

There is no need for an in-depth introduction to this particular aspect of film-making. Sure, shooting a catchy clip with a smartphone might just be enough for it to go viral, but in order to transform this individual success into a long-standing channel with millions of subscribers, you will most definitely need to invest in durable and proven equipment.

Having a high-quality digital camera to produce your content can directly influence the number of views on, as well as encourage YouTube algorithms to promote your videos. Additionally, enabling viewers to watch your stuff with the highest quality setting is a nice touch that shows people that you take your job seriously.

Apart from the camera, as you get started, you should also purchase a tripod. Few things are worse than having to sit through a shaky, unprofessional video, and many people will move on to better things before giving your content a chance, no matter how captivating of a script you’ve written.

Clever Editing

In 2020, where just about everyone and their mother has launched at least one YouTube channel, it isn’t enough to have good editing skills. They need to be impeccable. You have to be able to tell a story through the cuts and transitions just as well as you can tell it with your words. It might not be the most grateful task in the world, since not a lot of viewers can appreciate, or even notice the editing work that was put into an engaging video, but once you take it away, the clip’s appeal can evaporate in a matter of seconds.

Unless it’s a part of your video’s concept, like one-shot rap clips, for example, there is absolutely no excuse for publishing an uncut, raw video in hopes of captivating and growing your subscriber base. Regardless of the niche you’re trying to make yourself comfortable in, no audience is generous enough to be passionate about a half-assed product.

Captivating Script

Script-writing for YouTube is much different than writing for movies or TV. Some people find it more difficult, whereas, for others, it comes naturally. No matter the extent of your prior experience in script-writing, you’ll need to understand how to compose and plan out a video that will be not only entertaining but also well-structured and coherent.

Many YouTubers fall into the trap of putting inadequate effort into their scripts, or simply forgoing the practice of writing them altogether. This usually results in a significant drop in the quality of their content, as they go off tangents on various topics and start ranting incoherently to the camera. Not only does this make you look and sound ridiculous, but it also prevents you from using some of the ideas you’ve come across during that lengthy, unstructured clip in future videos.

Good YouTube scripts tend to be written with an end goal in mind. A good practice you should follow in the beginning is outlining the whole video before you even start drafting the actual sentences you’ll be saying in it. That way, you know what things you absolutely need to touch upon, as well as the general trajectory of your clip. Stream of consciousness writing, although fascinating from a literary perspective, does not seem to fly so well.

The Bottom Line

There are many different paths to success when it comes to marketing on YouTube. Keep in mind, though, that there are just as many, if not more, ways to fail. Don’t take the advice listed above as the be-all, end-all of video-making, but rather as a general set of guidelines that are meant to help beginners take their first steps and keep them from sabotaging their own careers before they even start.

Best Video Editing Software To Give Professional Editing Feel In Minutes

Let us face it: creative storytelling in videos comes from the post-production stage. How many times have you shot a video only to realize that you could have made it more interesting? After all, creating the perfect video requires multiple iterations and editing. 

Sometimes the lighting isn’t good, the content isn’t right, or speakers forget their line in-between; there can be several bloopers while producing a video. That is why using a cool video editing software is necessary to take care of these “behind the scenes” moments. And did we mention, working with video editing solutions can allow you to add effects, filters, and even sounds to further enhance your final video.

But how do you choose the perfect solution for your business? With a dime, a dozen video editing solutions available online, selecting the right tool can be a tough decision. That is why we have come up with a list of six video editing platforms that you can use to edit and create high-impact videos in minutes like a pro.

1. iMovies

Perhaps the easiest video editor, iMovies is ideal for beginners. The software supports multiple templates as well as transition and animated titles for quickly editing projects. It can also make video trimming and merging very simple. 

iMovies is a match made in heaven for marketers who require basic fades and cuts for social media videos. If you are starting with AI video editing, this tool can help you with its library of templates. However, since iMovies is popular among general consumers, we would advise you to steer clear of it when making critical sales videos. 

Pros

  • Good software if you are new to video editing
  • An easy-to-use tool with a simple drag-and-drop interface

Cons

  • Limited features
  • Works only on Mac or iPhones
  • Does not allow the transfer of project files

2. Blender

Blender is an advanced video editing platform that works on both Mac and Windows. It is an open-source tool and has some useful features such as live preview, chroma vectorscope, luma waveform, waveform visualization, audio mixing, syncing, scrubbing, and histogram displays. Blender only has 32 slots for adding videos, images, audio, and other effects such as a 3D animation suite.

Blender is a great tool to add variety to your videos, whether you are making 3D renders for a real-estate project or working with an animated character for an explainer video. That’s not all, since it is an open-source tool, there are several websites such as Turbosquid to assist you while creating the perfect video. You can also become a pro in no time by perusing tutorials and online support material.

All in all, this software is perfect if you are starting with 3D editing!

Pros

Good professional feel about the videos

Cons

A steep learning curve, but reading material and tutorials can make it easy 

3. Promo

Promo video maker is liked by marketers for several reasons. With all the tools required to make an engaging marketing video, Promo claims itself to be the #1 video maker. Let’s look at some of the tools you can use for video editing. 

To begin with, Promo allows users to add and manipulate the text’s size, font, and color, including a range of pastel colors. Users can also include images, sounds, and other visual effects to appear perfectly on social media platforms. The software also comes loaded with around 2,500 in-built templates, stock images from Shutterstock and Getty, and more than 15 million premium HD videos. 

Pros

  • Online and easy-to-use solution
  • Free trial available

Cons

Limited functionality

4. Invideo

InVideo is a great online video editor with several useful functionalities. The tool is easy-to-use, making it an ideal solution for beginners or marketers that work with deadlines to create video content for social media marketing. Invideo supports more than 1,500 design templates that help users create great video content quickly.

The platform also allows users to export videos in HD and use the text-to-speech feature to convert text-based content into engaging videos. Users can also access Pexels, Pixabay, Unsplash, for images, and royalty-free content.

Pros

  • Online, easy-to-use for beginners
  • A free plan that allows you to create a maximum of 60 videos a month

Cons

  • Video editor falls short of finer video details due to limited features
  • Videos exported by using the free plan has a watermark

5. Biteable

Biteable is a web-based video maker that delivers high-quality results in minutes. Super easy to use and packed with video editing tools designed to make video creation more easily for beginners! Biteable has hundreds of templates to choose from, ranging from sales videos, explainers, advertisements, infographics, internal videos, and more. Each and every one designed by a team of copywriters and editors who know how to make effective videos for businesses. Pick a template that does the trick, tweak the text, change the colors to suit your business, add your logo, and you’re done.

Biteable’s packed browser-based software is just the beginning — even the basic membership gives you access to 1.8 million stock images and clips to make each video your own. It doesn’t stop there: Biteable has a library of fully customizable professional animations created by an in-house team that will make your videos drop jaws.

6. GoPro QuikStories

Exclusively for mobile apps, this video-editing app lets you edit videos on the go. The tool is user-friendly, with a simple interface and several useful features. It is most commonly used to edit videos shot on the camera of a smartphone. 

As a name suggests, the app can directly interface with a GoPro camera and allows users to edit the video without exporting it on PCs. However, you can also use it to edit various other types of videos. The app has several automatic features and presets that can make video editing extremely quick and easy.

The verdict: the app is best suited for beginners as it doesn’t offer a lot of advanced features for professionals.

Pros

  • Several options and presets to try
  • App-based, making it easy for users to edit and publish on social media channels on the go

Cons

Not suitable for professionals as it does not have many advanced features or control for users

7. OpenShot

Like Blender, OpenShot is also an open-source, free video editing platform that has numerous useful features. The intuitive and simple-to-use drag and drop features make it suitable for even beginners trying to learn the basics of video editing. It also supports some critical advanced features such as video-transitions with real-time previews, unlimited layers, etc. 

Openshot also comes with other options such as video effect, animations, and keyframe. It makes video trimming a breeze, allowing users to shorten the video length for making it appropriate for social media channels.

Pros

  • Easy-to-use interface
  • Unlimited layers

Cons

The software sometimes lags 

Final Word

These were our top six video editing tools that can help you create up-vote worthy video content in minutes. Whether you are a beginner or a video editing wizard, these software solutions have something for everyone to make their job easier.

Tips To Prevent Sexism And Ageism Among Your Workers

IIn the twenty-first century, sexism and ageism at the workplace seem like old and ridiculous practices, but sometimes people just can’t give up the stereotypes that have haunted them for many years. We can’t always recognize our wrong actions instantly and stop doing what we do, but mostly we all need a gentle way to be stopped. Some people compare sexism and ageism with terrorism, they say that sometimes it can make really massive psychological harm. Read more on https://lawaspect.com/terrorism-law-essays/. Let’s see what we can do to prevent sexism and ageism and develop a more modern and healthy attitude to the working process.

Focus On The Goal, Not On Personalities

We come to work to do work, that’s the main point. Socializing and team activities are nothing more than pleasant bonuses. Mostly, sex and age can’t prevent people from performing tasks (unless these are very special tasks that may be risky for the health of a particular group). When you feel that something isn’t right, ask yourself particular questions. Does the sex or age of the worker have something to do with the task they should be given? Can they lift the weight they are asked to? Maybe, after a certain age, it’s really not a good idea. If you see a real medical reason for something related to sex or age, it’s not sexism or ageism. But if you believe in a psychological difference like “female brain” or “male brain” or, possibly, more rigid thinking of older people – it might be a form of sexism or ageism. How this harm impacts women you can read on https://newyorkessays.com/examples/woman-suffrage/.

If the goal doesn’t have anything to do with sex or age (e.g. breastfeeding experience is unique for women, so sex does matter for this), there is no reason to prefer people of certain sex or age. There is also no reason to focus on the external aspects of the working process, such as demands for women to look good or not expecting the knowledge of modern technologies from older people. The people are ready to do the job until they haven’t proven the opposite. Focus on the goal and reward the workers according to the work they do and the results they get. It is one of the best ways to prevent sexism, ageism and other -isms at the workplace.

Don’t Assume, Ask

People can have their reasons to do or not do something. They may be good at some things and activities and not so good at others. Assuming that some skills are passed with X or Y chromosomes or miraculously appear with age is also sexism and ageism. However, almost all of us are prone to it to some extent. But we should re,e,ber that women aren’t more empathetic and emotional, and men aren’t more reasonable by default. Older people aren’t always more conservative and slower to accept radical changes. Family expectations are another topic that can be speculated on and become the source of sexism.

If you feel that something personal or psychological may influence the working process, don’t be shy to ask. A polite question has nothing to do with sexism. There is nothing wrong with asking who in the couple will take sick leave because their kid is ill. It is fine to ask if the pace of changes is comfortable for everyone. When everyone is asked the same things, it isn’t a manifestation of sexism in any way. By the way, applying the “gender mirror” and “age mirror” is a great way to fight sexism. If you can ask any of your colleagues the same question, then it’s not sexism or ageism. If the question looks inappropriate when you ask people of different sex or age, then you should think about it a bit more.

Be Aware

Knowing how you are acting around others is the best way to prevent any discrimination. We don’t urge you to control each of your actions all the time and develop anxiety, but if you feel inappropriate about something done towards you, it is also a good time to think if you did something similar by yourself. Humans naturally don’t think about discrimination and empathize too much until they feel that discrimination by themselves. It is the way our brain is hardwired.

If someone tells you that the situation is bad for them, try to imagine yourself in a similar situation. Will you feel comfortable? Can you imagine yourself in such a situation at all? Maybe that person exaggerates things a bit? Mirroring situations helps you to stay aware of your actions and the actions of others towards you. It lets you both not to discriminate and not to become a discriminated one.

Sexism and ageism are still way too prevalent, unfortunately. Social stereotypes are rigid and can still be seen everywhere, influencing our subconscious processes. But getting rid of sexist and ageist assumptions is possible and totally within our possibilities. Like any bad habit, it can be controlled by our mind and eliminated completely, giving way to a completely new, healthier lifestyle.