How to Control Your Affiliate Marketing Campaigns on Social Media

Posted on by Pete Brown
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If you want to make money quickly and easily online, you should try social media for affiliate marketing. Affiliate marketing happens when there’s a partnership between a company and an external website. The third-party (external website) promotes product (s). The company/business pays the third party a commission for each click that transforms into a sale. If you’re a company, this helps to promote a business to a broader audience and increases your sales revenue. Social media is free and user-friendly, which makes it one of the best tools for affiliate marketing. In this guide, we’re going to dig deeper and cover some of the ways to help manage your affiliate marketing campaigns on social media.

1. Set Your Goals

Any successful affiliate marketing program is created from a steady blend of affiliate partners. This is why you should set transparent goals by using affiliate marketing software to help manage your campaigns. According to affiliate marketing experts from Voluum, setting clear and transparent goals enables you to identify the specific affiliates and types of affiliates you wish to recruit. It will help if you classify your goals as either short-term or long-term. For instance, you might be looking to expand your reach to other locations; this means you may need to partner with sites where shoppers look for reviews, advice, and ideas, which is a worthy long-term goal.

2. Convey Quality Content First

The best way to start promoting affiliate marketing offers is by creating quality and professional content. We would highly advise against the habit of continually promoting services and products without first understanding your audience. Instead, it would be best if you start by creating and sharing quality content that resonates with your audience. If you want good results, you should focus on delivering quality content, followed by promoting your affiliate link at the end of your content. Your content could be in various forms like a YouTube video, podcast, blog post, or an Instagram post. Additionally, if you’re promoting a particular product, ensure that you buy and use it. This helps to win your audience when you’re recommending the affiliate link.

3. Employ the Use of Photos in Your Campaigns

As the adage says, an image is worth a thousand words. In the new age of social media use, images help increase attention to your social media posts. It would be best to ask yourself this question: what kind of photos am I drawn to when scrolling through social media? Asking yourself this question helps to visualize your idea from a reader’s perspective. Using product photos to blend along with your affiliate marketing campaigns will help draw a user’s attention. Social media platforms like Instagram will help to accelerate the growth of your affiliate marketing campaigns. Finally, remember that quality matters over quantity, so ensure your photos have a satisfactory resolution.

4. Are You Using the Right Platform?

If you’re not careful, your affiliate marketing campaigns might fail if you’re not using the right social media platform. You should assess the best platform, which will help meet your affiliate marketing goals. You can start using popular platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, and the latest addition, TikTok. However, don’t forget about topic-oriented platforms like Reddit or Pinterest. This also means that you should consider particular factors such as your ad type, sales process, and intended audience. If your target audience is active on a specific platform, it would be best to draw your efforts to the particular forum.

5. Understand Your Audience

This comes as a no-brainer. If you want to be successful in affiliate marketing, you should understand your audience. Any useful affiliate marker should aim to serve people; this means looking for exciting products that people like and explaining their benefits. However, you cannot do this if you don’t understand your audience. While we are not encouraging you to stalk your readers, there are plenty of ways through which you can learn about your audience that are more elegant.

6. The Reward System

You should assess which sites play the most influential role in influencing the purchase decision. Additionally, it would help decide whether these sites should be offered a more significant incentive to reward them. In many cases, affiliate fees vary a lot. Some industries pay more compared to others. For example, Amazon pays more if you sell more products.

7. Stay Active

If you remain active on your platforms, this helps to keep your audience in touch. This means that you should be keen to communicate back to your audience regularly. We would highly recommend working with a few social media platforms where you can easily manage the audience. Juggling across many social media platforms might mean neglecting a segment of your audience. You can start by working with two social media platforms. With time, you can shift to another platform when you’re sure that you can comfortably communicate and post actively on both platforms. Formulate a routine where you dedicate a few hours daily to each social media platform.

8. Perfect Your Program

We live in a past-faced world where technology evolves daily. Social media is not left out since the trends are also changing fast. Once your program is operational, ensure that you assess your social media promotions continually. One of the best ways is to update product information; this includes advertising and sale details. Additionally, you can seek out new affiliates and opportunities on a different platform. Finally, you should research new ways to help boost the growth of your affiliate program.

9. Work with Different Affiliate Marketers

You can work and connect with other affiliate marketers out there. Connecting with them helps you understand their success stories in using social media for affiliate marketing. Since social media means social, teaming up with other affiliate marketers can help increase your followers and help to get your link to a larger audience. While you may view other affiliate marketers as competitors, working with them might benefit both parties in ways you hadn’t realized before.

Social media is one of the best ideas you can use for marketing in the new digital era. Using social media for affiliate marketing is a helpful tool that you require to survive in the affiliate marketing world. Using a combination of one or all the tricks we have discussed above will help you navigate the world of social media for affiliate marketing.

Expert Tips for Creating a Successful Digital Marketing Strategy

Posted on by Charlene Brown
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Running a business during the times of the pandemic and long after it, is a completely different ball game altogether. It’s important to adapt to the ever-morphing marketing trends if you want to even have a shot at staying on top of the game.

Identify the Goal

Just as with any marketing plan, it is imperative to start off with defining clearly what the goal of your digital campaign is. This needs to be a detailed culmination of all the points you want to hit when creating your strategy. First and foremost, how you will get your brand out in the most effective way into the digital platforms that you plan on infiltrating, the kind of people you want to target, and what your sales plan is. After that, start tracking those goals through goal tracking.

Now more than ever, digital marketing is at the forefront in the world of business, and it’s important that you create an efficient marketing strategy that is aimed at digital avenues. This is why we’ve collected some expert tips that will help you create a successful marketing strategy.

Get Professional Guidance

You may or may not have been in the market with your business for quite a while, but the point is, digital marketing is different. It wouldn’t be wise to work off your own assumptions and research alone because there are many factors in play that you may not be aware of. This is why it’s always advisable to hire a professional company that specializes in digital marketing. Look up the best online marketing gurus and utilize their services to get yourself a detailed plan underway. These companies understand the digital market well and will advise you on what possible moves you have as options, and working together, you’ll be able to come up with the best plan moving forward.

Solidify the Digital Sales Funnel

Generally, it’s important for you to understand the Digital Sales Funnel, and to do so you need to have the basics clarified. The funnel includes 4 major points that you must address, and includes:

  1. Investigation and research: Learning more about the market in question and finding out more about the necessary details within the digital market. 
  2. Methods of Discovery: Finding out how to best have your clients and potential clients discover your services in the most effective way possible.
  3. Retail: The process of providing you services and products.
  4. Customer Loyalty: How to keep the clients loyal to your company. 

Mastering the digital sales funnel is key to ensuring that your strategy is bulletproof and that you’re ahead of the game when it comes to problem-solving any possible issues that may come up during the marketing process. 

Specialize in a Demographic

It’s easy to get greedy and aim to infiltrate a wide demographic, but it’s certainly not wise at all. The smart thing to do is to see what your services and products provide, which demographic would suit best, and focus your digital marketing plan to appeal to these very people. Once you have covered this demographic and solidified it, only then can you start to think about appealing to another demographic.

Analytics Are Essential

Nothing is going to be fruitful in all this planning and plotting if you don’t have real statistics to work off of. The beauty of marketing in the digital world is that it is much easier to analyze the statistics and response rates because everything is online and therefore, on the record. You need to hire people that specialize in analytics so that you’re getting accurate information and reports that will ultimately guide you in the right direction of what you need to do next.

Creating a successful digital marketing strategy takes planning, effort and sometimes the help of experts. The world of digital marketing is different in many ways, and this is why you need to heed expert advice such as the points mentioned here. You may have a successful business or even a winning business plan, but all that will amount to nothing if your marketing is not on point.

The fact of the matter is, we now live in the digital age, where the bulk of business potential lies in the online world. This is why it is imperative that you not only educate yourself about digital marketing and the variety of platforms available, but you must also utilize the help of professionals who have been doing this for a while. These people understand analytics and the market as a whole, and will be able to provide you with accurate reports and ideas on what you need to do in order to infiltrate the digital world of marketing for your business to be successful. 

Want to Optimize Your Website’s Speed? Here’s How

Posted on by Wayland Bruns
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People tend to spend more time online these days. With almost everything we need are provided on the internet, it has become more of a necessity than just a pastime or leisure. Along with this, the amount of websites and online businesses on the web has risen too, and this caused major traffic and slowing on other sites. Fortunately, today’s internet speed has coped with this, and it’s still improving up to this day.

Studies show that in 2019, an average person spends almost 6 hours and 42 minutes on the internet. This is almost half of the time that we are awake, assuming that we are getting 8 hours of sleep. Because of this, one of the problems that remained is the speed of the websites themselves. Due to faster internet connectivity, people have become less patient while waiting for a page to load. 

To avoid such a dilemma, it’s necessary to know how to optimize your website to handle traffic and gain more enjoyable visits. 

Basic Things About Website Speed

How Fast Should a Website Be?

The recommended website speed by Google is under 2 seconds, at least for most eCommerce sites. Webpages load piece by piece and it differs for every site. There is a high probability that users will leave a page if it loads for more than 3 seconds

In the U.S., the average loading time is 15 seconds. It is even slower than the recommended time but still does the job. Having a website load slower than that can cause less traffic, and users won’t have the time for the page to load. This may result in a drop in ranking and other competitors will take this chance to take your spot and push you lower in the search list. Many companies use page speed boosters make increase the speed of the page load.

What Affects Website Speed

Every element affects the speed of a website. The website size, which usually includes a lot of unique characters, may result in slower loading time. It is the same case for large files. They tend to be slower to download, and therefore may contribute to the occurrence of a problem in the process.

Sometimes, the problem is not the website, but your device’s internet speed. Still, a good website can withstand such circumstances and can still load despite the said issues.

How to Assess Website Speed

There aren’t many ways on how to determine the speed of your web pages other than using website speed evaluators (aside from the slow responsiveness whenever you try to load it). Here are some of the best tools to help you determine the improvements needed in your website’s speed:

Pingdom

This is a great tool for analyzing web speed. It determines the history of a website, makes directions on the optimization, and releases easy to understand reports. It is free to use, and they also have apps that you can use on your Android and iOS mobile phones.

GTmetrix

GTmetrix determines the elements that make your website slow, which is a good thing because you will know what you can do to improve the situation right away. It also provides accurate data results. You can even set alerts that will automatically inform you if your website begins to work slower.

YSlow

YSlow also summarizes every component of your site and gives you a report that includes recommendations on how you can improve its state. 

Sitechecker

This is an all-in-one SEO platform for performing high-quality SEO audits and constant monitoring of your website. Using Web Speed Test by Sitechecker you will be able to analyze the loading speed of your website or a specific page and get a detailed report on all the problems that affect the loading speed.

How to Improve Website Speed

Here are some of the ways you can do to improve the speed of your website:

Shrink Images

Images, especially the ones in larger sizes, can be a very heavy component for a web page to load. This often results in others not being able to view the pictures depending on the device and internet speed they have. You can still show pictures in HD but in lower sizes. This way, it will be easier to load and it won’t take that much for it to be seen by your visitors. 

Delete Cache

Caches are prearranged storage that stores temporary details to help websites, apps, and browsers to load at a faster rate. You will encounter it in almost every software. It expires after a certain amount of time and does not add to the loading process of a page. If it ever reaches beyond the recommended data, which can happen at some point, you can delete it without any consequences and make browsing at a faster rate.

Create an Intuitive Web Page Design

Yes, an excellent web design also helps in optimizing the speed of a website. For example, choosing the right font to use on the interface helps a page to load faster. In this case, Open Sans loads the fastest. According to the folks at somethingdesign.com, intuitive web design determines the visitor’s experience on the page. It also contributes to the increase in traffic and the speed of the page. 

Quality of an Intuitive Web Design

Responsive

A great web design responds to the user’s preferences. Whether it is the flexibility in terms of the orientation of the device or the screen size like in mobiles, it must be adaptable. The elements need to shrink or grow depending on what the situation is asking for. A great web design is versatile and can accommodate various users and visitors.

Consistent

Harmony is pleasing to the eyes. Consistency creates a distinct character in a website that the users will remember. It is the brand that will linger in most people’s minds after they visit the site. The limitation of the design to one common set also helps in a faster loading process. The less unique individual designs, the faster a page can process data.

Easy to Use

Complex web design is not attractive to users at all. It only creates confusion and this usually results in them not coming back to the website. This also means less traffic, fewer sales (for eCommerce websites), and less reliability for people seeking immediate results. 

Engaging

People have different preferences when it comes to the structure and design of a web page. Some like it more to be minimalistic, while some appreciate patterns and loud colors. Whatever design you choose, it is important to consider what is pleasing to the eyes of most users. Be creative and try something new. 

No one likes waiting, and that applies to websites as well. Every single second is important to keep your page in demand to visitors. Even if your website is informative and engaging, if it is slow and takes too much time to load, it will not attract many users. Keeping your page at a stable speed will not only be accessible and fun to visit for most people, but it will also increase the traffic that you need to be successful.

Are All PCs Good for 3D Modeling?

Posted on by Charlene Brown
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All tools that are used for 3D modeling are intensive, to say the least. Some examples of those tools are Maya, 3D Max, AutoCAD, and Revit. A good CPU is required when working with these programs. The reason is that these tools can make a significant workload on your RAM and CPU that needs to be brought to a minimum. It is also required for that very reason to have large storage and a high RAM. 

The best would be the computer that has a relatively large screen size and a higher resolution. Gaming laptops usually have great performance and graphics that will suit your 3D modeling needs. All that being said, the question arises, are all computers good for 3D modeling? If you were pondering over and seeking answers for such a puzzle, then this article is for you. 

PC Multiple-Core or CPU Highest Clock Speed?

3D modeling will require you to be in front of your computer and to sit patiently and manipulate the 3D software. The software you are interacting with uses the hardware that is running on differently. Meaning, the calculations processing of the PC is different than on the CPU core. 

To elaborate, the computer not being able to offload other cores, which leads to having a multiple-core PC will not improve the speed of processing. It would be wise not to focus on a PC or laptop that has multiple cores but to search the one with a CPU that possesses the highest clock speed. 

What is Needed for Faster Performance?

The CPU performance with the multiple cores does have the highest speed score, however, the heat limits and power consumption could affect the overall workload. The more cores the CPU has, the laptop or PC is more power-hungry as a result. 

More heat is produced, which could be affecting the efficiency as well. For that reason, it would be wise not to go overboard. Because the more cores the CPU has, the lower the clock speed is, while fewer of them make the process much faster. 

How to Choose a Machine for 3D Modeling?

There are two choices as far as building your workstation. The first would be to build your own PC. The second is to purchase a machine with all specs already built-in. No matter if you are looking for the best laptop for 3d modeling or the best PC, both options have their pros and cons. For instance, building your PC will let you customize the hardware while at the same time, the price might be a bit high. So if you have a budget, you could try out this option. In case you would like to save up some money, there are few things to focus on when looking for already built-in laptops or PCs. Look for appropriate RAM, CPU, and graphics card. 

Graphics Card

Graphic cards would process the visuals and the outputs of the monitor. While some CPUs do not have their graphics chip built-in, some do. The computer, which is good for 3D modeling, does not need an additional GPU attached to the monitor. In case your processor has graphics that are integrated, the output goes from the display adapter to the motherboard. 

If you are planning to do video rendering, graphic design on your computer or to conduct 3D rendering, machines with discrete GPU are the best. Have in mind that a discreet CPU is not integrated into the CPU and that it comes with its circuit board, which needs to be plugged into the motherboard of the PC express slot. 

Assembling a “Perfect” PC

In some cases, building up your own PC can be less expensive than buying an already pre-built system. Although rare, it is still possible. The advantage is that it will give you more freedom when it comes to the parts you want to get according to their performance and price. 

Assembling a PC can be quite an intimidating experience if you are doing it on your own, although there are many tutorials online that can help with such a task. Before deciding to build up your own PC, it would be wise to do the research first. Here are some of the components you might need in case you are considering to find everything on your own:

  • Computer case
  • Cooling
  • CPU 
  • Graphics card
  • Input devices like keyboard and mouse
  • Memory
  • Monitor
  • Motherboard
  • Operating system
  • OS
  • Power supply unit
  • PSU
  • RAM

Many PCs and laptops are at your disposal, and many of them can handle your 3D modeling experience. If you are searching for one, it would be wise to dwell on this information and according to it, make the best possible decision. After doing some educated research, you will surely be able to obtain the machine that will be able to sustain anything you throw at it. 

How to Save Money using Power from Renewable Energy Sources

Posted on by Pete Brown
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More and more people are delving into the use of renewable energy sources because of the various benefits that it yields. For one, you will be able to reduce your carbon footprint and help the earth heal. But perhaps, the most notable advantage of using renewable energy sources is the significant amount of sum that you can save. This article tackles the ways on how you will be able to save money using power from renewable energy sources.

Reduced Energy Bills

One of the primary ways for you to save money using power from renewable energy sources is by reducing your energy bills. In this case, you can use a solar panel savings calculator to have a good idea of how much you can save on your monthly electric bill if you use solar panels instead of connecting to the grid. While it is true that you need to shell out a significant upfront cost to acquire solar panels, the amount that you will save when you no longer have to pay a hefty amount for your monthly electric bills will prove to be worth it.

The reason behind this is that solar panels are durable, with a typical lifespan of 20 years. Thus, for sure, you will be able to earn back the amount that you used to purchase the panels in the 20 years that you no longer have to pay for any monthly electric bill.

Protection from Price Fluctuations

Another way for you to save money using power from renewable energy sources is by being protected from price fluctuations. Like with other consumer commodities in the market, the price of electricity can also be affected by inflation, which means that you may have to pay more for the same kilowatt-hour consumption in the future. As a result, you need to shell out a bigger sum.

With the use of a renewable energy source such as solar panels, you are protected from these price fluctuations because you no longer depend on the grid for your electricity needs. Rather, you only need to leverage the energy from the sun, which is free.

Eligibility for Green Energy Incentives

To encourage more and more people to switch to the use of renewable energy sources, many governments are providing tax incentives to their people who will go about this route. Thus, if you decide to leverage renewable energy sources, you may be eligible for certain tax incentives or write-offs. These can drastically reduce the number of tax dues you need to settle later on

Perhaps this is the best time for you to delve into the use of renewable energy sources for your home, as well as for your business. Apart from being able to reduce your energy bills, you are also protected from price fluctuations. You even have the opportunity to earn decent revenue from the use of renewable energy sources, as well as be eligible to receive green energy incentives. Make sure to take advantage of all these perks by switching to the use of renewable energy sources.

Guide To Customer Communication While You Work From Home

Posted on by Roy Emmerson
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Here we consider the best approaches and proven tactics that will help organizations improve customer communications when working remotely.

Working from home is the reality many of us have been dreaming about while others have been afraid of it. However, the coronavirus pandemic forced almost everyone to get used to remote work. It has exposed us to challenges that pushed us out of our comfort zone. One of them is a remote customer communication process. It has also become a big reason for businesses to love the Internet even more than before.

Communication is essential for project success, as it helps set trust-based relationships and mutual understanding between stakeholders. It provides  smooth collaboration and results in business success. When most countries are locked at homes again, we need to rethink a customer communication strategy and adjust it to remote teamwork. 

How to Approach Customer Communication in The New Normal

McKinsey & Company defines three pillars of clear messaging to customers during the pandemic: transparency, customer protection, and customer outreach. 

Transparency means giving customers the behind-the-scenes views of the options you consider for them and perspectives that may come true for your business in the post-coronavirus world. Better to share honest predictions without sugar-coating, as it will help your company build trust with customers. 

Customer protection implies that you need to add more compassion to customer communication procedures and inform people about measures taken to ensure a safe and convenient experience with a brand for them. “Now” requires us to keep in mind the overall social mood affected by global critical events. Thus, support teams should be even more empathic when communicating with customers.  

Customer outreach means you should constantly keep the conversation with your customers across different channels. Talk to them, update them, and repeat the important information about the changes in your processes once again to ensure that it’s delivered successfully to everyone in your community. 

Customer Communication Channels & Tactics You Should Know

Considering “psychological” approaches to customer service, it’s also essential to take a closer look at digital channels making communication with consumers more effective when you work from home. Many companies have started using VoIP phone systems as alternative solutions in times of uncertainty.

Other businesses have considered unified communications as the best option for improved workflow and customer relations. However, customer communication options aren’t limited to those mentioned above. Here we present proven tactics that will help businesses empower customer service. 

Interact on Social Media

The first rule for digital business success is to be where your customers are. To be more specific, it’s on social media. Social networks are one of the most popular online communication channels. Imagine 74% of users log into Facebook at least once a day, with 51% of them logging in more than once a day. 

Social media is the first place modern customers expect brands to interact with them the most quickly. Consider that 40% of customers who send complaints on social media expect the company’s reply within one hour.

With tools like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, businesses can answer customer queries almost instantly. Many organizations consider them as the most effective medium for customer service and create separate brand profiles entirely dedicated to customer support.  

Incorporate a Live Chat

Live chat is a technology incorporated into a website that allows customers to stay in touch with their favorite brands round the clock. This customer service tactic has been widely used before and gained even more popularity today when most teams work remotely. With tools like HelpCrunch live chat, you can increase customer satisfaction and loyalty since your brand is always easily accessible online anytime.

Communicate via Email

Email communication might seem a traditional and very obvious practice. Probably, yes. However, it doesn’t also mean it’s inefficient. Emails are another way to stay in touch with customers while working remotely. According to research by Epsilon PeopleCloud Messaging, email is the most critical communication channel between companies and consumers because it’s personal, reliable, relevant, and targeted. Businesses can use email marketing to update customers about the changes in processes during the pandemic. 

Use Video Conferencing

Another actionable tactic to get in touch with customers is by using video conferencing tools and apps like Skype. Along with the top productivity apps, they help improve the overall team collaboration and performance when you work from home. Although it might be challenging to apply to customer communication in B2C companies it is particularly efficient for the B2B world. When organizing real-life meetings has become unsafe and almost impossible due to travel restrictions, video calls have become even more important. 

B2B customers may want to schedule a video call with the company to discuss their purchases or collaboration details. Thus, video conferencing tools are gaining popularity quickly, especially during the lockdown.

Engage Through The Content

However, all of these channels enable companies to set a direct and effective dialog with customers when teams work remotely, there is one more way to communicate with customers. It’s through the content. It’s recommended for businesses to reimagine their content strategies from the customer service perspective. 

For example, your brand can assist customers remotely by publishing how-to articles, guides, tutorials, or explainer videos to enable people to provide self-service. You can also store the “help” content in special online knowledge libraries or the FAQ section on a website.

It’s crucial today since many people feel anxious regarding the challenges and innovations encountered during the coronavirus. While you might have heard tips about diversifying your content earlier, it’s now recommended to prioritize the content informativeness even if it requires sacrificing content diversity.  

To Wrap It Up

Whether you are a B2B or B2C company, this guide to customer communication might be helpful. These actionable yet straightforward strategies will empower brands to cater to the target audience’s needs and increase loyalty. Hopefully, they have also inspired you to and will help you improve support service and bring customer relationships to the next level regardless of the coronavirus recession and pandemic.


[Infographic] Why Companies Need to Rethink Their Communication Strategy for Remote Teams by Team Communication App

Everything VPN newbies should know about enhancing online safety

Posted on by Stephen Marshall
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Do you know how safe you are online? Do you know what the most widespread cybersecurity threats are? And, most importantly, do you know how VPNs can help you prevent cybersecurity attacks? Find the answers to all these questions by reading below!  

Lately, everybody is talking about cybersecurity threats and how they are becoming more common than ever before. Now, this is no surprise, considering that technology is becoming more integrated into our lives by the day. We use technology on a daily basis for pretty much everything we do, from getting entertainment to ordering food, purchasing goods online, and working. So, now, it is more important than ever to consider your online security and safety when surfing the web, go through your emails, share photos on social media, or purchase goods on e-commerce sites. 

Cybersecurity threats are a real thing, and they can cause you a lot of harm, from stealing your identity to stealing your financial details and empty your account. But, before we move forward to how virtual private networks can help you prevent this from happening, let’s dig deeper into the most common online safety threats you need to protect yourself from. 

Common online safety threats

Not sure what kind of threats should you pay attention to? Here are the most common online safety threats that can put your security in danger. 

Computer virus

The most common and widespread cybersecurity threat is the computer virus. It can literally affect anyone who uses a computer. What do computer viruses do? They alter the way your device operates and can cause a lot of damage, such as deleting your data or giving access to hackers to your important and private data. 

Spyware threats

Spyware threats are another widespread threat, and some people would say the worst. This program basically monitors users’ online activity and provides hackers the opportunity to enter a users’ device without their content to steal personal information. 

Phishing

Fake companies, businesses, or individuals practice phishing to steal personal and financial information. They pretend to be something they are not to convince their victims to provide them with their personal and financial information. They use fraudulent emails and messages to do it. 

Hackers

It may seem like being a hacker is a well-paid job as there are more hackers out there than ever before. What do they do for a living? They create viruses, spyware, malware, and all the other cybersecurity threats that we’re telling you to protect yourself from. 

What VPNs are?

Now you know what threats are out there in the digital world. But the real question is, how do you prevent them and stay safe online? Our answer is: by using a VPN. You can find a directory and rating of VPN and proxy services at proxy.info.

You’ve likely heard about VPNs before as they have been growing in popularity lately. 

But what VPNs are? VPN stands for Virtual Private Network. It creates a private network when you use the internet from a public connection by establishing secure and encrypted connections to provide greater privacy. A VPN can keep your browsing history private, change your real location, and keep your internet activities anonymous. 

Benefits of VPNs

Why should you use a VPN? Virtual Private Networks provide plenty of benefits to users, including:

  • Remain anonymous online 
  • Access to geo-restricted entertainment content
  • Access to geo-restricted news and content sites 
  • Hide web browsing from the government 
  • Access to torrent sites and other restricted download sites 

The top benefits people use VPNs are because it allows them to access geo-blocked entertainment content from video streaming services such as Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon. It allows them to surf the web using public internet connections in a secure way. 

WireGuard- an extra layer of protection

When you’re not feeling safe enough online, WireGuard can add an extra layer of protection. 

WireGuard is a new technology related to VPN that has grown a lot in popularity lately among tech enthusiasts. WireGuard provides some really strong benefits such as speed and security features. 

It is an open-source VPN technology that ensures improved security online using cryptography, a method of protecting data and information by using codes. It creates a faster and simpler use of the VPN, which is why it is an excellent online security tool for VPN newbies. For improved security, WireGuard can work with other VPN technologies. In this article you can see the best VPNs for Wireguard if you are interested in ensuring that your online activity is private and your security is top-notch. 

Other things you can do to stay safe online

  • Use strong and complex passwords. Use different passwords for each of your accounts. 
  • Keep your antivirus and security software up to date.
  • Consider using proxies to secure your online connection, there are plenty of cheap proxies available 
  • Do not open links sent to you by brands or people you don’t know or trust. 

Top 10 Apps That Increase Your Business Productivity

Posted on by Genia Genia
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When choosing a mobile application for solving some business issues, users often focus on all sorts of priority apps, taking the choice of specialists who know the market. The problem is that there are a lot of such ratings. To make the full picture of the situation, we have to study a huge number of sources offering business apps.

Many business tasks can be simplified with top business apps. These range from service or tracking apps, to development and web page building apps. The top business solutions are readily available and at your fingertips.

Their assortment on the market today is impressive. It should be noted that some of the listed developments function and apps like Edubirdie works only on laptops and desktops. But most of the applications are also adapted for mobile devices.

Bynder

Good brand management makes your business instantly recognizable and trusted, like a delicious restaurant people love. It brings in new customers, makes them happy with your quality and service, and sparks excitement about what you offer. Invest in your brand, and watch your business flourish!

Evernote Scannable

This top business app is created for both OS Android and iOS. Evernote is an application developed by the creators of one of the most convenient note-taking programs. It helps to quickly and accurately scan documents and other necessary things. For example, contracts, invoices, a check from a store, or a business card of a partner. Unlike a regular photo taken with a phone camera, Evernote Scannable automatically detects the document, its location, and immediately makes a scan.

Wunderlist

This is another business time management app. The Wunderlist has different functionality. This business app helps you create shared task lists with your partners, employees, or family. A perfect business application like best EMR for urgent care can be synchronized with several gadgets and opened from a tablet, smartphone, computer, or smart watch.

Keynote

If you have to make frequent presentations, choose one of the top business apps. Keynote is what you need. You can control presentations from your smartphone, iPad, or Apple Watch. In other words, Keynote turns a gadget into a remote because it functions in a similar way. Please note that the developers of the app didn’t care about the Android owners. Therefore, Keynote only works on iOS.

WhatsApp Business

This app is different from the regular WhatsApp messenger and is specially designed for entrepreneurs. Among business applications, this is a simple and practical option. Here you can add your account information, work email address, or store address. To communicate with customers, you can write a greeting or goodbye which will appear in the dialogue.

Do not confuse this application with another messenger from WhatsApp Business API. Unlike the usual WhatsApp Business, this business app is paid and used in large companies. Includes features such as sending bulk messages, manage multiple WhatsApp business accounts, automating messages and more. While the application is available only to Android owners, the developers have already announced its release for iOS.

TINYpulse

When it comes to decent business apps, TINYpulse is another top choice. The app collects feedback from employees. If you feel that not everyone on your team is happy with the way things are, send out a simple survey to employees. Employees will be able to anonymously share what they do not like, what they would like to change, and how they feel in the team. You will receive valuable information and get to know better how subordinates live.

QuickBooks

Whether you are in business or freelancing, keeping track of your finances is always very important. QuickBooks has a version applied on a computer and a smartphone. With the help of such business apps, it is convenient to maintain records, calculate income and expenses, or send invoices to customers. You can see the current sales figures or check the latest payments directly from your phone.

Things 3

The developers of Things 3 believe that a productive person should not bear all their tasks in mind. It is much more rational to concentrate on solving them one by one. The recommended business app fully meets this theory. Things 3 helps to create tasks and subtasks, categorize them by importance and due date. The following application saves time. But most importantly, the list of all tasks is always at hand.

HootSuite

If your brand has many followers on different social networks, it can be inconvenient to control everything at once. In order to make multiple posts on Instagram and Facebook, you have to constantly switch between applications. HootSuite developers have solved this problem.

With the HootSuite business app, you can manage all your accounts, publish content, reply to all emails and comments with a few clicks. You will also find many HootSuite Alternatives with more extensive features and lower pricing.

Spark

This is one of the in-demand business apps that somewhat resembles HootSuite. If you have multiple personal and work addresses on different services, Spark can help you combine them. You will get a handy list of all emails and many other functions. The available function of team discussion is the general chat between employees. Previously, the application was only available to iOS owners, but a few days ago it was released on Android.

Bookmate

All entrepreneurs know how important it is to constantly learn new things. But not everyone has enough time for this. The Bookmate app allows you to listen to audiobooks while on work travel or while driving. Audiobooks are far from revolutionary but they are still a great way to gain new knowledge.

Business apps remind the user of an important meeting, the deadline of a project, keep notes, connect with colleagues hundreds of miles away. However, when there are too many applications, the convenience and safety of their use become questionable. The optimal solution may be the introduction of a corporate social network as an integrative system that works on the principle of “all-in-one”.

The list above was composed with direct help from Kyle Drummond, a financial advisor from DirectLoanTransfer, which is specializes in quick payday loans,

What You Need to Know About AI Marketing

Posted on by Pete Brown
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There are many ways of describing marketing, one of which is by advertising, flyers, or even just printing ads. This activity attracts and encourages individuals to endorse a brand or products and services of a business. The distinction between the old way and the industry’s new approach is noticeable. Using Artificial Intelligence (AI), various companies are depending on their reliable efficiency to grow their business.

The question is, what are the things you need to know about AI Marketing, and how does it affect your company? We’ve gathered some helpful guides for digging deep into AI Marketing in this post.

What is AI Marketing?

AI stands for Artificial Intelligence, a software built in a machine that can think on its own without any human intervention. The primary role of AI is to see patterns routinely made by humans and have their way of solving a problem. On the other hand, Marketing is the process where the company uses to lure the public to use their products or services. With the two being combined, it creates endless possibilities in making a new wave of processes that can help businesses grow instantly.

Experts believe that about half of the manual tasks will be automated over the next 10 to 20 years. For others, it can both be an advantage and a drawback. Why? Let’s say an entrepreneur has an online company and has recruited a few workers to respond to customer inquiries or concerns, but if you add a chatbot to your online platform, it will be able to respond to you with fewer numbers of employees that will save you a lot of money.

Predictive Analytics

This amazing capability of AI Marketing comes in handy for predicting future outcomes from the company’s data or also called Data analysis. According to experts, it can easily pre-determined what will be the next step or the right move to take and helps to answer the company’s business questions such as below. 

  • How many percentages does a customer buy the product?
  • How many customers will stop supporting them to buy products?
  • What is the rate of customers who are likely to buy annually?
  • What are the traits of each of my customers?

Predictive analytics can answer them in real-time and saves a lot of time and effort in analyzing them manually. It creates a better customer experience as it targets the exact wants and needs of each individual. Not only will you predict the result but also the chase to obtain loyal customers as well.

Clustering and Customization

This is a combination of supervised and unsupervised learning. It is a process where each customer is being categorized according to what are their usual activities on the site. For instance, customer A usually searches and buys boho-inspired home furniture, while customer B likely to lean more toward minimalist designs. All customers that have the same taste will go together under each category. According to the digital marketing experts at smartboost.com, making segments will fasten the process of knowing how many percentages the outcome may be. It can make your company grow and build its reputation by making the customer experience personalized.

Recommendation Engines

The method used by advertisers before that is the if-and-then method, posing the question, what if? To distinguish cause or scenario in running a company. It looks for patterns based on the metrics collected data, can detect or predict potential problems with the aid of AI technology. It advises or suggests a necessary behavior after analysis. It is an essential way to avoid bumping into major issues in the future.

Natural Language Processing

One of the most important parts of AI Marketing is Natural Language Processing; it indicates how the customer feels, what they say about the product, or how much they like using it. Simple as it may sound, but it helps to know the feedback of each customer to be able to adapt and grow from it.

Psychographic

It is where the personality, interests, attitude, and behavior of customers have. Uncovering who they are and why they buy the product or avail the services. It is also a crucial factor to build a strong structure in AI Marketing. 

With the aid of technology that paves the way to speed up long hours of work in a minute or two, marketing has grown tremendously. AI Marketing has a lot to offer, from gaining a better understanding of your customer, knowing more about their needs, and to have an improved customer experience for everyone.

How to Map Your Sales Territory Effectively

Posted on by John Brooks
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Businesses spend a lot of time and money to create the perfect products and services to sell to clients. However, it can be difficult to determine if the business is thriving without the use of a sales territory map. We will be discussing the benefits of using a sales territory map and how to create one.

What is a Sales Territory Map?

This type of map is a way for your employees to assign sales based on the area. It gives the sales team a plan of action in regard to where they will be focusing their efforts, and which areas still require claiming. This will make it easier to determine where your team is at all times and to ensure that sales reps are not overlapping each other while they work. Your team members will also appreciate the use of a sales territory map because they will be receiving new leads at a consistent pace. This gives them more opportunity to collect bonuses and earn promotions. The benefits of using a sales territory map include increased sales, rising above the competition, identifying new customers, and better serving existing customers.

Using Mapping Software

Mapping your sales territory can be done with the use of mapping software Maptive.com, powered by Google Maps, is a good example of mapping software that can help you achieve data leads and improve your sales numbers. There are a few different steps that should be followed in order to achieve your ultimate sales territory map.

Step 1: Create a Custom Map

Creating a custom map is simple, as all you have to do is enter your location data into the software. When creating a sales strategy, the data will usually include information about the item or service purchased and the area where the customer lives as a minimum. This data can be manually entered or imported from a spreadsheet.

Once the data is uploaded, you can customize your map. For example, you can use the filters to show certain data types and hide outliers to analyze the numbers accurately. You can also use tools to help you organize and analyze your data to suit your needs.

Step 2: Use the Boundary Tool

Maptive offers users a boundary tool, which makes it easier to divvy up the information. You can create boundaries based on zip/postal codes, cities, states, or countries. If these options don’t work for you, you can create custom boundaries and draw them in yourself. This is a good method for sales teams who have previously worked within certain areas that are not contained in established boundaries.

At this point, you can incorporate demographic data into your selected regions. This data includes statistics about the population’s: race, age, education, gender, median family income, and others. By examining this data, your sales team can determine who their customers are, and how they can adjust their advertising to appeal to potential new clientele.

Step 3: Use the Heat Mapping Tool

Heating mapping is another tool that you can try out. This tool allows you to plot your sales on the map so you can see which areas are generating more revenue for your company. The data is coded with colored circles, indicating how dense the sales are in that area. When the sales density increases, the circle changes to red. Any areas on the map that are not red are opportunities for you to expand your marketing campaigns.

Step 4: Use the Route Optimization Tool

After using the boundaries and heat mapping tools, you will better understand which areas are doing well and which ones could use some more attention from your company. This is when you can use the route optimization tool to your greatest advantage. This tool will allow your sales representatives to plan the best route that they can take between client meetings. On a typical day, the sales rep might be attending meetings all over town. This tool will cut their commute time in half, giving them more time to spend with potential clients. You will be able to plan the shortest route to get to multiple locations, and you can also check the projected ETA to ensure that it is the most efficient use of time.

The 3 Best VPNs Reddit Users Recommended in 2020

Posted on by Pete Brown
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The emergence of the digital world paved the way for various information to be made available online. For this reason, more and more people are resorting to the internet to find any information, product, or service that they need. However, there are instances wherein some of the sites that you need may be restricted because of your location. This is where a reliable VPN connection comes in.

But What Is a VPN?

VPN stands for Virtual Private Network, and based on its name, the service provides you with anonymity and privacy when you browse online. This is because the network masks your internet protocol (IP) address, which means that your online activities are rendered untraceable. For this reason, you are also allowed to access sites that are otherwise restricted in your location because the site is tricked into thinking that you are located somewhere else.

Top VPN for Reddit Users

Reddit is an online forum where you will be able to find valuable information about anything under the sun. All you need to do is to enter a forum where the specific topic that you have in mind is being discussed. When it comes to looking for the best VPN service that you can engage in, below are the top providers recommended by frequent Reddit users.

NordVPN

NordVPN is known to have more than 5000 servers across 59 countries, which makes it one of the fastest and most stable VPN providers available. For this reason, this is considered the top VPN on Reddit recommended by various users. This VPN service provider also boasts of military-grade encryption, as well as a cybersec technology. This ensures that your online browsing is private and secure.

NordVPN also implements a no-logs policy to ensure that your online activities are untraceable once you connect to their network. The great part is that this VPN service provider even blocks annoying advertisements that may otherwise pop up as you are streaming videos and shows. When you subscribe to this VPN service, you will also be eligible for a 30-day money-back guarantee, which means that in case you are not satisfied with their service, you can terminate your subscription within a month and have your money back.

ExpressVPN

The second place on the list is occupied by ExpressVPN, which is also one of the fastest networks available for various subscribers. The reason behind this is that they have a vast number of servers that span over 90 countries worldwide. This service is also compatible with a wide number of browsers, which means that your browsing activities will not be limited to the use of a particular browser.

ExpressVPN is running on trusted server technology, and they do have reliable customer service support, which is available any time of the day, any day of the week. Like with NordVPN, ExpressVPN also offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, which helps their new subscribers assess their comfort in using the network before they fully utilize its services. The best part is that this service works well with various on-demand streaming services, including Netflix, BBC iPlayer, and Amazon Video, to name a few.

Surfshark

If you have some budget constraints, then you should go for Surfshark, which rounds up the top three VPN services that are widely recommended by several Reddit users. Even if it is comparably cheaper than the first two VPN services mentioned above, it still boasts of a fast service because it has almost two thousand servers running in more than 60 countries worldwide. Like with ExpressVPN, it also works with a lot of on-demand streaming services, paving the way for users to view various geo-blocked content.

Like with NordVPN, Surfshark also has a stringent no-log policy, as well as an automatic kill switch, which ensures that your account is not compromised. It also features military-grade encryption and a CleanWeb functionality, making it one of the most secure VPN services available too. Like with the two VPN services mentioned beforehand, Surfshark also offers its new subscribers a 30-day money-back guarantee.

In this modern-day and age, there no longer seems to be a limit on what you can accomplish online. Just keep in mind to prioritize your safety as you browse through the internet because the digital world is still filled with those having malicious intentions. In this case, choose between one of the top VPNs listed above, and not only will your surfing prove to be more secure, but you will even get to access sites that are otherwise restricted on your location.

Energize your Storefront with Attractive Textile Frames

Posted on by Marunis Nutma
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Attractive textile frames can feature your products and bring in new customers. You can change them easily, making eye catching displays that draw people to your business. Drukbedrijf has recently expanded its range of textile frames. In addition to free-standing and wall frames, you can now also choose LED and ceiling frames. This way you can provide every place in your store, showroom, store window, office or other space with a beautiful visual design.

Change your Advertisements in Minutes

The advantage of a textile frame with a canvas is that the cloth us super easy to change. This way you can change prints every action, promotion or every season. On the textile frame there is a mechanism that allows you to easily tension the fabric into the frame. So a textile frame is ideal as a temporary advertising tool!

Eyecatcher: Textile frame with LED

Are you in retail and would you like to have your shop window to light up the evening? Then opt for a textile frame with LED lighting! With the help of the uniformly distributed lighting, the colors of your fabric come to life. Even in the dark! A textile frame with lighting is available as a free-standing textile frame and as a wall frame.

Advantages of a free-standing textile frame

You can use a freestanding textile frame as a display for in a store or store window. Another way to use the frame freestanding is as a partition. Ideal to create more privacy or divide up a space.

Textile frame with photo

And textile frame is not only ideal for business use. You can also use it to freshen up a room at home! Printing on a textile cloth gives a sleek and razor-sharp end result. A textile frame is ideal if you quickly get bored of an interior piece, because you can change your image or design regularly. The textile cloths with tendon can be ordered separately.

In addition to various textile frames, you can also contact Drukbedrijf for all your other printing work. For example, you can have the super popular tissue paper (translation: vloeipapier) printed with your own design. This relatively new product is popular because it gives your packaging a more luxurious look in no time. Because the online print shop excels with challenge. Contact them for special customization. No challenge is avoided!

How a Website Downtime Can Affect Your Business (and How to Prevent It)

Posted on by Charlene Brown
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When it comes to owning a website, it’s vital that you do everything on your end in order to ensure that your website is fully functional and hence doesn’t suffer from any regular bouts of downtime. Downtime leads to many drawbacks that are ultimately going to affect your SEO, increase the bounce rates, as well as tarnish your companies credibility and sometimes even lose your loyal customers. All of this is going to cost you sales and revenue, which is something that you definitely want to prevent.

All of that being said though, what are the main causes of downtime, and what can you do exactly in order to prevent it? 

In this article, we are going to discuss the most prominent reasons why websites go down, as well as how can you ensure that you minimize the possibility of that happening.

What’s dangerous about websites being down?

As we have previously mentioned, website downtime is pretty much synonymous with profit loss. The exact amount of money that a business will lose as a result of downtime varies from website to website. 

One of the more extreme examples is when one minute of website downtime in 2018 caused Amazon.com to lose around $1.57 million every minute. Now, surely, most sites aren’t going to see such a drastic loss as Amazon did, but even though that is the case, no company can really afford to just throw away profits like that, especially since they could easily be saved – considering proper planning and failsafes aren’t being overlooked.

What circumstances cause website downtime?

Website downtime is, in most cases, curated by similar factors. Once you get to understand them, you can take all the necessary measures in order to minimize the possibility of the website downtime happening for longer than a couple of minutes, even seconds. 

The most prominent factors that result in a website downtime include planned downtime due to different upgrades or tweaks, hardware or software malfunctions, malicious attacks from a third party, as well as different issues caused by your hosting providers. It’s crucial that you keep these issues in mind, as well as that you take time to understand why and how do they happen in order to be able to begin to develop a plan that’s going to minimize your website’s downtime, or so that you can improve a plan that for dealing with such scenarios if you already have one.

Make sure that you have a plan for these scenarios

It is vital that you remember the fact that your website’s uptime isn’t something that should solely be ascribed as the responsibility of your hosting provider. As experts on this topic from magento maintenance services explain, planning on how to minimize website downtime starts as early as website design. Basically, a proper website designer is going to make sure that all the necessary precautions and measures on their end have been made even before the website has actually launched.

Another important precaution regarding planning is to partner with a quality website monitoring service. Basically, they are going to be able to will notify you the very moment that your website downtime has occurred in order for you to be able to immediately go to work so that you can fix the issue or perhaps put a failsafe plan into place if the issue has happened to be a result of your hosting service. Magento as an ecommerce platform can be used to specifically cater to you and your business and customer needs.

Take time to look for quality providers

It’s vital to note that quality providers aren’t only going to notify you of a total website failure, but they are also going to ensure that you are notified of any existent trends that could indicate that your site is going to go down. They are also going to notify you of any performance issues, and the best of providers will even allow you to put failsafes into place automatically.

Communication is vital

Make sure that you remember that you alone are able to put the above-mentioned failsafes and precautions into action and still happen to encounter unexpected downtime in addition to already planned downtime that your site encounters. So, what’s the best way to handle these issues? Basically, it all boils down to communication. 

Make sure that you utilize social media platforms in order to communicate any issues regarding both planned and unplanned downtime with people that visit your website. When it comes to unplanned downtime, it’s best that you maintain transparency throughout the incident. It’s crucial that you provide updates regarding how the issue is being handled as well as when the site can be expected to be up again. 

In case of planned downtime, you should post a notice to the pages of your site days prior to it happening in addition to doing so on social media. The more you communicate with your audience, the higher the chance that they are going to be forgiving when the downtime occurs.

To wrap things up

In the end, it all comes down to taking time to do all the research necessary in order to be well informed about both the reasons and the results of these scenarios. Doing so is going to enable you to plan in advance, hence making the possibility of downtime affecting your company way lower.

4 of the Top Reasons Why Businesses Use SMS

Posted on by Alex Sanders
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When it comes to communicating ideas quickly, there’s nothing better than text messaging. Yet despite using it frequently in their everyday lives, many business owners fail to consider the value SMS could bring to their companies. Could it be a good fit for you?

Top Ways SMS is Used for Business

As you know from your own life, SMS is versatile and convenient. And though businesses can find applications in nearly every aspect of their organizations, three specific opportunities tend to garner most of the focus:

  • Internal communications. One of the top use cases for SMS is as a tool for internal communications. With the right SMS software in place, it’s possible to leverage text messaging for sending out company updates and event reminders, coordinating work schedules, notifying staff of weather-related emergencies and closures, educating employees on HR policies, and even gathering internal feedback. 
  • Marketing. SMS is one of the most efficient and direct marketing channels. While it does require some effort to collect phone numbers and make sure you’re following SMS rules and regulations, the results are excellent. You basically have direct access to your customers whenever you need to reach them. 
  • Customer service. In certain industries, SMS provides a simple and straightforward customer service option that’s faster than email, less intrusive than a phone call, and incredibly cost-effective. 

Businesses typically start with one of these applications and then eventually add other ones into the mix. It’s up to you to determine when and where you’ll integrate SMS text marketing company into your business.

4 Reasons SMS is a Wise Investment

There are ample reasons to use SMS. If you speak with leaders in organizations that have begun implementation, you’ll discover benefits such as:

1. Increased Productivity

An employee always has their phone with them. Research shows that 97 percent of text messages are opened within 15 minutes of delivery, with a whopping 99 percent opened all together. Thus, an investment in SMS is basically a guarantee that your message is going to be opened, which subsequently drives productivity through the roof.

Whether you’re sending a link or a notification, this speed makes it easier to get more done in less time. And that’s pretty much the definition of what it means to be productive.

2. Improved Speed of Communication

When you want an employee to do something quickly, you want the most efficient form of communication possible – the option that will get the message to them in the least amount of time. And while email might be better than snail mail, it’s certainly not the fastest choice. 

SMS is far superior to email, and you can use texting alternatives on many occasions. There are many similarities between SMS and Email. Both can be automated. Both can carry your corporate messaging. But customers are more likely to respond to SMS.

This has less to do with the actual speed of delivery (an email can be delivered in seconds, too) and more to do with the fact that people are more likely to see an SMS notification before an email notification. (The majority of people will see it within three minutes.)

Even if it’s just a few minutes, saving time in communication can mean the difference between making a massive, costly mistake and executing with poise and precision.

3. More Convenience

Is there anything more convenient than being able to shoot a quick message with a link? Unlike email, where you have to spend a lot of time thinking up what to write, recipients of a text message have an expectation that the message will be short and to the point. This makes it much easier on the brand. No long platitudes or lead-in; just deliver the offer and be on your way. 

4. Highly Profitable

From a marketing perspective, SMS is a very profitable investment. It costs just pennies to send a message, and with open rates and engagement that’s many times larger than other mediums, it’s a very worthwhile investment. Many business owners fail to consider the value that sending bulk SMS text messages could bring to their companies.

Some companies report ROI of 500 percent or more, with some brands claiming returns of 30X. It obviously depends on how you use it, but it’s good to know that gains like these exist. 

Give SMS a Try

SMS has the power to take your communications, marketing, and efficiency to the next level. Make 2021 the year that you elevate your business and soar to new heights, all while lowering costs and streamlining complex processes. 

What To Know About Affiliate Marketing And Its Business Advantages

Posted on by Charlene Brown
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There are plenty of ways for people to take advantage of new capabilities in the business world. Before it used to be confined to the office setting, but now that business has moved into the digital sphere. There is a lot more potential to grow and create something special.

One of the most promising areas of business possibilities is in affiliate marketing. Affiliate marketing is allowing individuals and businesses to expand their reach of influence. Affiliate marketing has been blowing up in terms of interest, and it is only right for you to learn more to take advantage of it, and here are some of the advantages it poses from a business perspective.

Work From Anywhere

This one works for businesses and individuals getting into the world of affiliate marketing alike. One of the main reasons why affiliate marketing is making people so interested in its potential is because of the fact that it can be done anywhere. Affiliate marketing is not tied to a fixed location which makes it flexible. If you have a cellular data connection or WiFi, you can make money and expand a brand from a phone or computer from anywhere in the world.

Plenty of Resources to Learn From

Affiliate marketing is not a new trend, it has been practiced for a long time which means there are bonafide experts in this field of business. Being able to find a detailed book or website to learn from is easier than ever, and the resources are getting better and better as we speak. Being able to learn for free or at least for very little makes it lucrative for frugal people. Obviously, if you want to actually learn you need to spend money to make money, but the breadth of information out there to help you get started is immensely satisfying.

Low Overhead Costs

This one is something that is going to pique the interest of business owners looking to expand into the arena of affiliate marketing. The number of overhead costs for a business can be frustrating. Paying for services can really creep up and leave you experiencing a desire to cut down on expenses, and affiliate marketing may be the solution. The costs of ads and digital services are exponentially cheaper when you cost-average for long term solutions. This makes it incredibly easy to reduce costs without losing out on business potential.

Scalability

Being able to scale a business to meet the ongoing needs of the market is the difference between living and dying for operations. Scalability is hard for a lot of businesses, especially individual entrepreneurs of businesses that need some serious support but lack the funds. Affiliate marketing helps meet that need without sacrificing quality. Scaling a business is not easy, but taking full advantage of digital marketing capabilities and using third-party services to help improve functional capabilities is making that barrier for businesses much easier to hurdle.

Nearly Recession Proof

On a very difficult note, this year has been hard for just about everyone. The world has been hit with some troubling issues due to the pandemic which has shown how unstable many economies are, especially for business owners. Finding a solution that is recession-proof or crisis-proof is not easy, but the digital world is able to fill this need with useful solutions in affiliate marketing. A business survives on its clientele and products, and thankfully affiliate marketing is an example of a recession-proof way to keep operating and still maintain business integrity, even during the toughest of times, which makes it an incredibly valuable area of focus to learn and implement into a business ecosystem.

Good Potential Source of Income

This one will intrigue those that need to find ways to supplement their income. Affiliate marketing is not easy, but it is incredibly easy to make money from it when you put in the time and effort to learn the in’s and out’s. Like other business ventures, it requires focus but it can be a good way to create another source of income outside of your main source or be a life raft for those seeking a skill-based industry to help them learn on the go while also earning money. This can lead to a better appreciation of business as a whole and improve your skill set.

Affiliate marketing is an intriguing side of the business world that is making people see that they can learn skills at their own pace while applying them in real-time to make money, but most importantly, develop a much stronger business acumen.

If you want to learn more about affiliate marketing and learn the new skills you need in this field, visit this course page.

Could You Be a Victim of Identity Theft Without Even Knowing? Software and Tools to Protect Yourself

Posted on by Claire Ward
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There are plenty of people who want to do malicious things with your data. Criminal organizations will go to great lengths to get your hands on your personal information, such as your bank accounts, date of birth, and credit card numbers. There are many tools and signs you should be aware of to prevent identity theft in the future.

Useful Tools you can Use to Protect Yourself

Identity theft can strike when you least expect it, so it’s essential you stay ahead of hackers by being prepared. You can use powerful identity theft protection software, like Identity Guard, to keep an eye on your statements, so you can notice small data breaches before they become severe. Here are some other ways you can protect yourself:

  • Make sure all of your software and apps are updated
  • Only download apps from reputable companies
  • Avoid jailbreaking your phone and other cracking risks
  • Lock your SIM card and your phone with a passcode
  • If your phone is breached, use its integrated kill switch
  • If you lose your phone, contact your phone company
  • Keep copies of important files off of your smartphone
  • Use a VPN on unsecured WiFi or avoid them altogether.
  • Check security settings on all websites (must have an SSL)
  • Don’t click on random links unless it’s from a trusted source

Common Signs of Identity Theft

It’s possible you’re already a victim of identity theft. Any intelligent criminal won’t just steal all of your money at once – that’s too obvious. Instead, they will make small security breaches that will go unnoticed until it’s too late. Check for these signs your information is compromised.

You Receive Odd Collection Calls

If you already have a credit card in collections, this won’t be a cause of alarm. However, if the collection agency asks about a card you didn’t open, that’s a telltale sign of identity theft. Let the collection agency know the card isn’t yours, so they stop contacting you, then immediately place a fraud alert on your card to prevent this in the future.

You’re Denied for a Loan or Credit Card

Bad credit means you’ll have fewer options for loans, but if you are positive you have good credit, this will come as a surprise. Lenders need to tell you if you’re denied due to your credit report, but you’ll be entitled to a free credit report once you’re rejected. Take advantage of this to see if you’re a victim of identity theft.

Your Credit Report has an Extra Card

Always look at your credit report every month to determine if all of your credit cards are accounted for. An extra card on your report is an obvious sign of identity theft. Take action immediately by initiating a credit report dispute to get the account removed from the report. Call the company and report that fraud occurred.

You’re Getting Unfamiliar Hard Inquiries 

Credit reports will contain soft and hard inquiries where hard inquiries result from an application either you or a fraudster filled out. Unfamiliar hard inquiries that someone applied for a credit card in your name is a sure sign of fraud. Be sure to put a fraud alert on your credit report to warn businesses they should provide credit products from you until further notice.

You Stop Receiving Your Credit Card Bills

Fraudsters will reroute your credit card bills to another address. While this is another clear sign of identity theft, it could also mean a porch pirate is taking your mail out of your mailbox. To prevent this from happening in the future, ensure that your mailbox is secure. You can prevent this from happening entirely by rerouting your mail to a post office.