Data-driven decision making has changed the way businesses operate. Today’s enterprises have access to large volumes of data, which, if mined effectively, can give useful insights. However, as businesses grow, existing enterprise data warehouses face the challenge of storing and processing the increasing volume of data. Legacy platforms lack flexibility and scalability, and due to fragmented data stored across multiple repositories, enterprises find it difficult to analyze data across sources to make accurate and timely business decisions.

As traditional data warehouses fall short of today’s business requirements, enterprises are shifting to the cloud – on-premise, or hybrid big data warehouse environment. The need for Enterprise 360 has never been greater to eliminate the data silos and bring together enterprise-wide data to create a single source of truth across the business.

What is a single source of truth?

Single source of truth is a centralized repository that contains a single authoritative copy of all critical data. It is the principle of storing every data element only once and sourcing it from one single place. A single source of truth ensures greater data transparency, traceability, ownership, and cost effectiveness. While siloed data residing in different sources and different data formats makes it impossible to trust a data record, a single source of truth ensures a fully trusted data source that enables everyone in an organization to speak the same data language. Most importantly, it provides a clear direction to organizations and helps drive a higher ROI by providing an aligned view of performance from a data perspective.

‘Single source of truth’ can also be understood as technology accelerators available to enable enterprises achieve a higher of efficiency and performance. These accelerators transform traditional systems like Teradata, Netezza, Oracles, Ab Initio ETL workloads, etc. to a Hadoop-based big data architecture where enterprises can perform various tasks like:

1. Perform real-time streaming analytics with full Data360 coverage.
2. Apply various data science techniques (machine learning , deep learning, AI, etc.) to derive valuable insights for informed decision making.
3. Consume and visualize the data effectively for BI and reporting purposes.

Importance of having a single source of truth for enterprise data

Inconsistent data erodes trust in the numbers and impedes the ability of an organization to make informed decisions. To avoid the risk of making costly errors, enterprises must speak the same data language across functions and business units.

Some reasons why organizations today need a single source of truth are detailed below:

Impaired decision-making

Siloed and fragmented data make it challenging to provide access to a single point of data-based truth for all members of the enterprise. Different teams and business functions may rely on different data sources and assume their version as the ultimate truth. Acting on different data between departments can cause confusion, loss of productivity, and ultimately impair the overall decision-making process.

Loss of productivity

Multiple versions of data with no single trustable repository slow down day-to-day operations since validating and cross-checking every available dataset takes time. This often requires long waiting times for users, which may slow them down by hours or days in their primary task.

Lack of resource optimization

Data-related tasks done manually are barriers to business, both from a cost and resource standpoint. These tasks too often put firms at a disadvantage, affecting operational efficiency, preventing timely decisions, and adopting innovations.

Challenges to achieving a single source of truth

While organizations realize the importance of breaking out of the siloed data environment, having a unified data model is not easy. Some challenges that organizations face to achieve a single source of truth are as follows:

Data losing its context

Extracting data from its correct context can render it meaningless. Organizations using data without knowing enough about it will lose out on critical customer insights and end up in a situation where the data will be inadequate to guide future business decisions.

Investments in legacy technology

The burden of legacy processes is hard to abandon, even for the most aggressive change agents. While the insecurities of a traditional workforce play a significant role, there has also been a historical fear of potential disruption to the business, and discomfort in moving to an advanced platform.

Disparate notions of data quality

The assessment of the quality of a data source is context dependent. The concepts of ‘good’ or ‘poor’ data are directly connected to the context in which the data is produced.

Consumption seems unviable

Most organizations are comfortable in their legacy systems and see a transformation as burdensome and disruptive. They envision new systems as unsustainable, impractical and difficult to use. A change needs them to leave this comfort zone, revamp their business model, and proceed towards more efficient business processes.

The stakes are high for today’s enterprises when it comes to decision making. Businesses relying on disparate data sources to arrive at big decisions may be risking costly errors and missing key opportunities. Trusting a single, authoritative data repository and speaking the same data language across teams and functions is imperative. However, the road to a single source of truth is filled with challenges, and businesses must start their journey towards Enterprise 360 transformation with a trusted partner and a holistic strategy.

The post Enterprise 360: Creating a single source of truth for the enterprise appeared first on TGDaily.

Source: TG Daily – Enterprise 360: Creating a single source of truth for the enterprise

Whether you own a personal blog or online business, it’s important to maintain a good presence. And how do you do this? Through keeping in touch with your loyal subscribers and customers, with email and newsletters being one of the most popular ways to do so. The first step you have to do when creating the proper email list to know who you should contact.But what’s interesting is that not a lot of bloggers and businesses know how to build email lists!

You’ll be surprised that building an email list before sending out newsletters provides a host of benefits that will have you accomplish your long-term goals. How exactly? Read on as I show you the reasons why you should start building an email list right now! We see many programs like the Postcards Free Email Builder that can help us create proper templates for our audiences. However, programs like these won’t be able to work if you don’t have the organized email list, which consists of names and emails of those who give you permission to send them promos and updates on your website.Here are the specific reasons why:

1. Email Is Personal

This is a benefit for two reasons:

Email is very personal, with people receiving your email straight to their inboxes to read. The only ranking system is the time they receive the meal, making it direct and personal to both you and the reader.

Also, because emails are very personal, no one wants to receive random emails from strangers, or businesses, they aren’t interested in. Having a specific email list avoids infuriating people who never subscribed to your newsletters in the first place. But, it will be sent to those who are actually interested and willing to read what you have to offer.

2. It’s Purposeful For People

The email list you have come from extremely interested people who are willing to subscribe and learn about what your business or blog has to offer.After all, if they went through filling out all the contact details to subscribe to you, you know they want to know more and stay updated.

Because of this, they are more receptive to what you email them and are more likely to take action. This is compared to sending random emails or social media campaigns to a large group of people who may not be as interested.

3. Your Emails Are Targeted

As mentioned earlier, the people who are a part of your email list are curious to know more about your business. They subscribed for the purpose of staying updated with promos, offers, and the latest news! Because you already know what these subscribers want and why they subscribed in the first place, you know what kind of emails to send.

You’re able to deliver the relevant offers and updates according to your subscribers’ info so you get even better results. This is done through segmentation or organizing your email list according to their individual demographics, interests, and other particular factors.

4. You Own The Email List

We don’t own different social media platforms, only our own accounts. Because of this, we don’t have any control over such platforms policies and rules. How you adjust your social media campaigns to accomplish goals, is dependent on their algorithms.

However, you do own your email list, which will NOT be influenced by decisions other platforms, or businesses, make for their own good. You have the full control on what to send, who to send it to, and can tweak it according to what you want to accomplish or based on the results you received.

5. It’s One-on-One

As mentioned before, an email is a very personal thing that many people do not share lightly. It’s all about privacy, and an email is something private that isn’t found on timelines, news feeds, or on most people’s online biographies.

With that being said, you and your subscribers have the privacy within inbox so you can exchange messages with confidence. This can help build a connection and more trust on the subscribers’ sides, helping your business grow.

6. Email Is More Powerful

Sure, Facebook and Twitter have millions of active users. However, I am sure the number of people who use emails is more. There are billions of ACTIVE email accounts today, something like half of the world’s population uses email!

That’s the main reason why your business needs an email list.Instead of spending thousands of dollars on social media campaigns, encourage people to sign up for your email list. You can do so by having free vouchers or exclusive offers, which pay off in the long run.

7. It’s Easy to Do

Email lists are extremely beneficial and very easy to set up. Most blogging platforms, like WordPress, offer themes and plug-ins that do the job for you. Such a plug-in can prompt interested viewers to subscribe to your newsletters, giving you the email you need.

Instead of having to purchase email lists or randomly send your newsletters to uninterested receivers, you can now have subscribers who are genuinely interested without spending too much. Several studies show using email lists offer a better return on investment for businesses!

Wrapping It Up

What’s great about having an email list is that it’s so easy to do. It’s hassle-free to set up without the need to design or program anything at all.

Once you have your email list organized and ready, the next thing to do is to start creating the proper emails suited for your contacts. Regardless of the business or blog that you have, this is an effective way of connecting with your audience.I hope that this article has helped you out. So don’t wait any longer and start building an email list today.

The post Good Reasons to Start Building an Email List Right Now appeared first on TGDaily.

Source: TG Daily – Good Reasons to Start Building an Email List Right Now

No matter what corner of the world you live in, your credit will play an important role in your life. From taking out mortgages to buying cars and taking out credit cards, credit scores will determine how much you can borrow – if at all.

In Canada, like most other countries, the higher your credit score is, the greater the chances of being approved. Those with good credit can typically take advantage of a lower interest rate.

Thanks to technology and the growing adoption of artificial intelligence (AI), we’re seeing changes to how Canadians deal with their credit. AI and other technologies are playing a role in how credit scores are computed, how loans are approved, and how payments are made on those loans.

What is Considered Good Credit in Canada?

Canadian credit scores range from 300-900. The higher your score, the more likely you are to be approved by lenders. A high credit score also means that you’re more likely to have a lower interest rate compared to borrowers with lower credit scores.

There are two primary credit reporting agencies in Canada: Equifax and TransUnion. Lenders report credit-related transactions to these bureaus. Credit scores fluctuate depending on how positive or negative the transaction is.

According to TransUnion, Canadians should aim for a credit score of 650 or higher if they want to be approved for personal loans with good interest rates.

Canadian credit scores are based on the following factors:

• Payment history (35%)
• Debt owed (30%)
• Length of credit history (15%)
• New credit (15%)
• Product variety (10%)

All of these factors help determine your credit score. But thanks to new technology, other factors may also come into play.

How Technology is Changing the Credit World

Credit card technology is changing at a rapid pace. Barclaycard is developing a wearable credit card. Mastercard is also developing a card with a fingerprint sensor to authorize payment instead of a signature.

Credit card companies are also creating chip cards that have mini screens on the back. The screens would display the three-digit security code and could be changed as often as 72 times per day to prevent fraud.

But on the consumer end, technology is affecting how banks collect debt and credit in general is managed. From debt collection to machine learning and artificial intelligence, consumers and lenders now have more ways to manage their accounts.

Smarter Debt Collection

One of the biggest issues with debt collection is that collection agencies harass consumers and often try to collect on debt that is not owed. Technology can change the debt collection process.

Chatbots, artificial intelligence and self-service technology allow lenders to reach out to borrowers at the times and through the channels they prefer. These technologies can help borrowers negotiate their debt and lenders receive higher repayments.

For example, AI systems can tell lenders:

• Which borrowers are past due
• Who is most likely to pay
• The best time to reach borrowers

Big data and machine learning drive these AI solutions.

Artificial Intelligence to Approve Credit

AI and machine learning can help lenders approve borrowers they may have otherwise missed.

Lenders typically reject borrowers with little or no credit history. These borrowers are considered high risk. However, through the use of AI and machine learning, lenders can use public data on borrowers to better gauge the risk. Rather than just relying on the usual 50 data points in credit-score systems, lenders can search through thousands of pieces of data to predict a person’s creditworthiness.

Machine Learning to Make Payments Easier

Machine learning plays an important role in AI, and it can be used to make it easier for consumers to make payments.

For example, machine learning can now be used to automate car loan payments and help borrowers get out of debt faster. Making payments on credit cards and loans is one of the most effective ways to improve credit scores. Automation can help by automatically withdrawing money from the borrower’s checking account to pay loans.

Machine learning, AI and other technologies will continue to change and shape the credit industry. Thanks to the rise in big data, lenders now have access to more information on borrowers. That information can be used to help overlooked borrowers get approved for loans or existing borrowers to make payments on time.

The post How Technology is Changing the Way Canadians Deal with Credit appeared first on TGDaily.

Source: TG Daily – How Technology is Changing the Way Canadians Deal with Credit

The ecommerce industry is booming and will continue to boom, as purchasing items online saves time as well as money. More and more people are getting involved with selling online with drop shipping stores and platforms like eBay and Amazon. Pricing products can make the difference between an extremely profitable month and one considered subpar. There are plenty of repricing solutions on the market but they are by no means created equal. Seller Republic is a great option for those that do not want to spend a large amount of money for an incredible tool on Amazon or Ebay. Repricing Optimisation makes pricing far easier, as you can set your minimums as well as maximums. The following are ways repricing solutions can improve your online business immediately.

Save Valuable Time

The one thing that you do not want to be doing as an online seller is constantly checking prices of competitors, in order to set your own prices. By letting this task run automatically, it save you copious amounts of time. Online sellers can have tens, hundreds or thousands of products so staying on top of of these is nearly impossible.

The ROI Delivered Can Be Immense

There are cheaper solutions while others can cost thousands of dollars per year. When investing money into a business you want to have the best ROI possible to help improve profit margins. You might be setting prices a little too high so lowering the price will lead to more sales or vice versa. If you need to price a product higher these solutions can help with that as well, so keep this in mind as some sellers think repricers only drop prices.

Boost Sales

At the end of the day anyone selling online just wants to sell more products. But, also to increase profits without having to put in too much extra work in. Algorithms are used that make change prices based on data rather than what you input, this helps to increase your bottom line rather than just sales.

Stay Competitive

You are going to have quite a few competitors depending on the amount and variety of items that you are listing. Repricing solutions can help you identify your competition which is invaluable in a variety of ways. You can take a look at how the competitor is handling digital marketing to gain an advantage over the course of time. Real time algorithms that are used will help make price changes on real statistics rather than a guess made by a seller trying to outsell their closest competitors.

Increase The Likelihood Of Winning The Buy Box

The Buy Box refers to the white box on the right side of an Amazon page where you can add items directly into your cart. You are going to have to be a great seller with prices that are reasonable, good reviews, and an above average shipping record to control this box. This can generate quite a few sales to say the least so repricers can help sales in a myriad of ways and are especially useful in controlling the Buy Box.

If you are selling online and not using a repricing solution you are selling your business short.

The post How A Repricing Solution Can Improve Your Online Business appeared first on TGDaily.

Source: TG Daily – How A Repricing Solution Can Improve Your Online Business

This week IBM announced significant progress toward their Quantum Computing endgame where this technology is deployed widely and solves massively complex mathematical problems at unbelievable speeds. IBM has the largest public Quantum effort and arguably has the lead in Quantum Computing development though companies like Alphabet, Intel, and Microsoft are accelerating their own efforts in this area.

Their latest advance is the IBM Q Experience and it promised to significantly ramp the number of people able to program and create solutions on this emerging platform. However, I think there is another huge step coming they aren’t talking about yet and it involves Watson’s Deep Learning platform, and this could be another huge game changer.

Let’s talk about IBM’s announcement and the coming future of the blended AI Quantum solution I’m anticipating.

The Phases Of Quantum

IBM lists the phases of Quantum Computing development as follows. Quantum Science which is mostly owned by scientists and theoreticians which focused on Quantum Theory and created the foundation for a future of Quantum computing which has been ongoing for years. Quantum Ready which is where we are now where we can demonstrate the potential for Quantum Computing more accurately and begin to create hardware and simulations that can be used for both experimentation and training in Quantum computing. And, finally, Quantum Advantage where we can begin to apply the massively parallel power of Quantum Computing to real world problems that can’t be solved by conventional computers timely if at all.

Recent progress in this effort has been impressively fast given what appeared to be a very slow start over the prior decade or so. In 2016 IBM was able to bring out the very first Quantum systems and make them available to clients and the public. Subsequent to that they released the open specification for Quantum Cloud APIs which have been downloaded a massive 190K times (recall we are still some time away from a true production ready solution). There have been over 150 research papers on the effort using the IBM Q Experience cloud platform testing the fundamentals of Quantum science using IBM’s Q tools. The hardware has improved so much that users are now seeing significant advantages to using actual Quantum systems over simulations across the 10 million experiments which have been run in the IBM Q Experience (impressive for a program that is still in Beta).

In short, this will be one of the few, if not only, time that the developer community may be fully up to speed before the first production ready Quantum computer is released. This suggests we are within a 10-year window for actual deployment. And there is an increasing chance we are within a 5 or less year window if progress continues to accelerate in a non-linier fashion.

Wrapping Up:The Future A Blended Deep Learning Quantum Solution

IBM presented a powerful solution towards the need to have a pre-existing ecosystem of trained users before the first production ready Quantum computer came to market and to have these user help define the tools that would eventually define this future mature market. But, as I watched, it occurred to me that IBM had another huge advantage that they had yet to explore. Their powerful Watson AI platform.As IBM took me through a demonstration of how you could use their Q Experience platform to both learn how to program, using Python, a Quantum circuit and how to then build a Quantum experiment it became clear to me that a Deep Learning AI front end to this process would be massively helpful. IBM has this platform in Watson and the result could be a solution that would help refine a problem so that it could be programmed effectively on a Quantum computer but using a Deep Learning computer as an enabling platform. Watson could assure that the problem be properly routed to the appropriate resource whether that be a more traditional computer, a Quantum Computer, or even a blend of the two, and it could help validate the result comparing it back to the goals originally set by the user. This would both significantly reduce the time to completion of the project and assure the quality of the result.

Such a blended system would significantly accelerate not only the true value of the coming Quantum computers but also improve the comparative advantage of using this resource, by making sure only appropriate projects were run on the problem.

And that is just putting Watson at the front end, now imagine we backed Watson up with a Quantum Computing integrated resource. The result would give Watson an effective superpower with regard to problems that no AI can even come close to addressing now.

IBM’s true competitive advantage will therefore lie with a blend of Watson and Quantum Computing and I don’t know of any other company that is within 5 years of where IBM appears to be right now.Just another example that we live in amazing times.

The post Anticipating The Next IBM Quantum Computing Breakthrough appeared first on TGDaily.

Source: TG Daily – Anticipating The Next IBM Quantum Computing Breakthrough

What do video games represent for you? For many gamers, they represent an escape from the complexities of a less than ideal life. For others, they represent an activity that brings fun to an otherwise dull day. There are some that have even managed to make video games a source of income such as streamers and professional eSports athletes.

Whatever the purpose it may have in your life, many of us cannot afford the luxury of spending extended periods on an activity that does not add value to other important aspects of our lives. Whether you are a casual gamer or a top talent in a game such as Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Dota 2, League of Legends (LoL), Starcraft, Call of Duty, or Fortnite, video games need to serve a purpose that transcends getting a win in a competitive match. This holds true even if you are at the level where you play in tournaments for the entertainment of legions of fans.

Does the practice of video gaming develop any skills that are beneficial in the real world? It does, and you’re about to learn how.

Establishment of Relationships

Most multiplayer games today are played online. This eliminates geographical restrictions in gameplay but also encourages the forming of relationships. This act of forming virtual relationships, while frowned upon by some, has two distinct benefits. These are:

• A sense of belonging – The reality for many gamers is that they don’t feel like they belong in their educational or professional environments. The forming of online relationships with people who share their interests allows for that sense of belonging, which is a basic human need.
• Communication skill development – Many people, particularly introverts, find it easier to strike up a conversation through a keyboard or over a microphone. The more this is done, however, the more these persons develop the communication skills necessary for face to face conversation. This is because the proximity element is the only difference between both types of communication. So, it becomes a case of repetition with the added benefit of non-verbal communication methods.

Team Building

Some of the most popular games today such as Apex Legends and Payday demand team-based play as opposed to requiring it. There is no single player mode in these titles. This helps players to develop many essential team building skills such as role assignments, role performance, communication, dependence, trust, etc. When players take the time to play these games, they are indirectly taking the time to invest in strengthening these skills.

This helps to slowly remove the mental block that many persons experience at the first sign of a need for teamwork. Almost every worthwhile career path requires a bit of teamwork from time to time and gamers sharpen the necessary skills every time they engage in team-based gameplay.

Resource Management

As unlikely as it may seem, video games can help to teach the skills of resource management. This is especially true in video games such as Don’t Starve that present detrimental consequences if this is done wrong. In a CS:GO tournament, teams that manage their in-game currency poorly are less likely to win than teams that do not.

As controversial as the Grand Theft Auto series is, there are lessons to be learned from it in business management, investment, and saving. Such games are modelled based on reality and many of the in-game traits required for success can also be applied in real life.

Gambling

If you are into eSports betting or you plan to get into it, there are quite a few games that can teach you some valuable insights where the placing of bets is concerned. The Pokémon franchise is a prime example of this as it fosters strategic thinking when using one of the many iterations of the Game Corner, which is the in-game casino. There are various games to bet on with various odds of winning. Players are also required to spend wisely as overspending on unsuccessful attempts can mean an inability to purchase necessities such as potions that are needed to survive battles in the games.

Many of these principles can be applied to your real-life gambling exploits. Isn’t it ironic that you can sharpen your ability to bet on video games by playing them?

Critical Thinking

This is one of the most basic and most important life skills for everyone. While humans are not all born with the innate ability to apply logic to decisions in an ideal way, it is a skill that everyone can develop. There are courses available to help with this but not many of them can rival the way video games do it.

Many people need to feel engaged to learn. Fun engages everyone, and so video games have an advantage here as their premise is to be fun. The Legend of Zelda is an example of a franchise that is notorious for encouraging players to think in order to progress through its puzzle-based adventure.

While many people may view this as a game mechanic, there is a certain thought process that must be developed to progress through the game. Note that you are forgiven if you had to get assistance to progress through The Water Temple in Ocarina of Time as that level was rough.

In any case, gamers are constantly thinking. Whether it’s solving single player game puzzles or strategizing to outsmart other teams in Dota 2, video games provide a great way to adjust your thought pattern.

Conclusion

Video gaming mustn’t be viewed as a wasteful activity as it is by many persons. Thankfully, the current generation appreciates the artistic value behind video games and have benefitted from the real-life application of concepts that were learned as a result of playing them. Continue playing them and continue developing as a person.

Did you notice video games were doing all of this for you? Is there anything else video games help with in the real world that isn’t covered here? Thanks for reading and don’t forget to like, share, and repost.

The post eSports – Training Your Real Life Skills appeared first on TGDaily.

Source: TG Daily – eSports – Training Your Real Life Skills

“Texting is a part of modern world.”

It is why everyone, old, middle-aged and young people are always glued to their phone and texting; be it for a business or personal reason. Now, SMS marketing is becoming more popular as it helps in the growth of businesses. Hence, one should know about the different texting apps that helps an individual to text another person for free.

A messaging app is an application that a person can access from any web browser. It allows users to send free texts to anyone. However, there is a catch! It lets the users text but not from his/her number. It provides a random number through which messages are sent. This app doesn’t charge anything for SMS but do charge people if they use this service for calling purpose. Also, one should keep in mind that there are in app purchases which are mostly for stickers and emojis.

1. AirDroid

If a person is looking to text from his or her PC then this is quite popular. Sending messages using this app is quite easy for all and even non-tech savvy people can easily set this up. Apart from texting, it offers numerous features involving backing up and sync, file transfer, contact management, recording screenshots, etc. It is a remarkable app; however, for the premium version one would have to pay a subscription fee which has different tariffs from monthly to yearly basis.

2. way2sms

This is another app which is quite handy and popular among the people. With way2sms free login services one can enjoy sending texts to anyone he/she would like. From business to personal use all texting requirement can be fulfilled with this SMS service. One can simply create an account using any browser from PC, smartphones or tablets. Its free service of SMS for a long period serves people excellently. What’s more interesting is through this service one can send voice messages too if required.

3. Join

It is one of the newer apps through which one can send texts from PC. This app needs to be installed first and then an extension has to be installed on the browser. This allows one to directly text from the browser instead of the device. It also sends notification between various devices, share clipboards, send files, access Google Assistant and Tasker, setting wallpaper, taking screenshots and share location if one desires to. The first 30 day trial is free. Succeeding usage after the trial period will be charged.

4. Pulse SMS

This one is another new app which is available on the market that allows users to send texts from a PC. It is a free SMS application which allows people browser extension and can be used on multiple devices. All basic features are available including replying to texts, MMS, and more. Also, one can block numbers archive conversations, schedule messages, etc.

These are the most demanding and popular SMS apps which people prefer to use.

The post Types of Messaging Applications for Sending Free Texts appeared first on TGDaily.

Source: TG Daily – Types of Messaging Applications for Sending Free Texts

As more people continue to turn to the internet thanks to its convenience, ease of use and a wide array of products, online markets have become increasingly competitive. Sure, creating a colorful website is an easy way of attracting customers, but it can also sabotage sales. For instance, having too many website decorations and product images can potentially overwhelm the site visitors. Website owners only have a few moments to grab the attention of potential customers and convert traffic into sales. Thus, entrepreneurs need to take time organizing a perfect online display. Here are some few ideas for making an e-commerce product display more effective.

Providing Relevant Information

Potential customers always want to know the basics regarding their prospective products before buying. For instance, when homeowners are scouting for tiles, they will want to know what material it’s made of, the dimensions and whether they’re the latest trends. Therefore, it’s the job of the website owner to provide their site visitors with pertinent information before they overthink their purchase.

Website owners should also provide accurate details regarding shipping and delivery prices. While at it, they may even go the extra mile of suggesting similar products to the item a prospective customer is looking to buy. For instance, when people are searching for backsplash tiles, they should also find information on countertops whose materials and color complement their purchase. Recommending these products offers a great way of promoting and cross-selling other products.

Providing great Imaging

When displaying products online, providing brilliant visuals is an excellent way of capturing the interests of potential buyers. Therefore, online vendors need to get clear snapshots of the items they intend to sell. These photos should highlight the essential features that set the product apart from its rivals. For instance, when selling tiles, a vendor should ensure that they capture the most delicate attributes like patterns, texture and color. These details give customers the power to decide whether the products are worth buying. Providing a zoom option is a point plus as it allows customers to view the products at a closer range.

Using the Divide and Conquer Tactic

An e-commerce website may have the best products in the market but still manage to scare off potential customers, which is particularly true if it’s not well organized. If supermarkets didn’t have isles grouping different products, shopping would be a real headache. The same rule applies to online stores; shopping should be easy, and the simplest ways of winning over tons of customers is creating a well-organized e-commerce website. Online vendors should never give their customers a runaround when searching for goods. They should categorize their products to ensure that customers can easily find them. For instance, if a particular site is selling tiles, the owner should classify products with distinct titles like bathroom tiles, kitchen tiles or bar tiles, and also provide different subcategories for these products.

Providing Customer Testimonials

Customers prefer buying products from websites they can trust. An excellent way of getting customers to trust a product site is to let them hear and read what previous users have to say. Hence, sellers need to provide customer testimonials below every product or dedicate an entire page for client reviews. To build trust and confidence, online vendors shouldn’t provide positive reviews only. Instead, they should afford potential customers access to bad feedback as well. Besides building trust, offering both good and bad reviews help customers make an informed decision when purchasing a product. The testimonials need not be purely in written form; they may also be in the form of videos.

Providing Fast Loading Pages

When customers see a product they like, they tend to click on it to view it closely. They can, however, become very frustrated and annoyed when they click on a product and it takes ages before the page loads. Therefore, online vendors need to provide sites that respond quickly. This has to be done even when it means cutting down on the design elements. Customers are more interested in expedient access to the products details, and thus they shouldn’t have to wait.

Creating a Minimalistic Layout

While using brand colors on a website is essential in attracting customers, the site shouldn’t be splashed with too much color. Also, overcrowding site pages with too many designs and images can potentially distract the viewer. Preferably, a page shouldn’t have more than three colors, and every display page shouldn’t be flooded with pictures of the products. Instead, it should have 3 or 4 items in a row. For product-specific pages, the design should be kept on the minimum. This enables the viewer to focus more on the item that interests them.

When people are shopping, they feel the fabric, kick the tires, turn the cabbage over in their hands, inspect the colors, and try on clothing. Since these shopping tactics aren’t possible with e-commerce markets, online vendors need to provide as much detail as possible in their websites. They need to display products while paying meticulous attention to details and also minimize distractions. In doing this, they will help customers make good judgment when buying products, which ultimately translates to more sales in the future.

The post Best Ways To Showcase Your Product on E-commerce Store appeared first on TGDaily.

Source: TG Daily – Best Ways To Showcase Your Product on E-commerce Store

If you are aware of different business and promotional tactics, you must have heard about outdoor feather flags and how they are a massive selling point in advertisement campaigns. Outdoor flags are a popular way of attracting more attention and crowd towards your products, services, or any event that you’re hosting. Similar to any other form of advertisement, you will need to choose the right tool to succeed. In this case, the right tool would be choosing the type of flag for advertisement. There are many different types of flags to choose from with single sided and double sided ones used most prominently. Each one of them has its advantages and disadvantages.

Single sided vs. double sided flags

Single sided flags are the type of flags printed on just one side with a reverse image on the back. The logo or text on the flag will still be readable/viewable from the back but it will be mirrored. This will work best on the flags having darker colors as they will bleed better onto the other side. If the colors are too light, they won’t bleed as well, so the back of your flag might appear faded.

Double sided flags, on the other hand, are actually two flags stitched together. This will allow both the front as well as the back of the flag to be vibrant and readable. When you’re designing a double sided flag, you can choose to have different designs on both sides or even use the same image on both sides. However, double sided feather flags cost slightly higher than single sided flags given the extra work that goes into their production.

Both the single sided and double sided outdoor feather flags are great for indoor and outdoor advertising. Double-sided outdoor feather flags are considered more popular for advertising as both the sides are noticeable and come with extra printed area.

Points to keep in mind when buying a single sided flag

· Single sided flags are commonly made because they are cheaper to produce and they don’t use as much material.

· Only one of the sides is printed and sewn making them a better option if you are on a low budget for outdoor feather flags.

· They are much lighter than double sided flags and they don’t need much wind to move them.

Points to keep in mind when buying a double sided flag

· Double sided flags are much more expensive than single sided ones as you need more color and material to print them.

· Their weight is twice as heavy as the single sided flags and they’ll require more wind to move them.

· The lifetime of these flags depends on the material used and the weather conditions to which they are exposed. Because of the heaviness of the fabric, the flags will flap less and will likely suffer less wear and tear as compared to the single sided flags.

· Double sided flags aren’t as common as single sided ones and therefore aren’t as cost effective.

The post Double sided vs. Single sided outdoor Feather Flags: Which option to choose? appeared first on TGDaily.

Source: TG Daily – Double sided vs. Single sided outdoor Feather Flags: Which option to choose?

Over recent years, the world is becoming digital; individuals as well as businesses, have embraced the use of various social platforms to convey their messages to their target parties. One thing that has come into play is the rising use of acronyms as well as abbreviations. This is especially the case for any person looking to reduce time spent on communication thus concentrating on more constructive things. While the use of acronyms in communication has been widely accepted, failing to use these keywords properly can leave your work quite complicated and it may not be suitable for just any reader unless they have an understanding of the acronyms in use.

One of the main aspects of content marketing is the use of proper and understandable language by your target audience. Failure to do this, your content will not be effective in any way. As the years go buy there are more acronyms that are being created and before you can use them in your content marketing, you need to know the rules of proper use of the acronyms as well as abbreviations. There are various lists sources, such as Sap Acronym list, that you can use to better your content marketing. The following are some of the things that you will need to keep in mind when using acronyms in your writing.

Try to shorten the names of reoccurring titles. It is allowed.

Sometimes, writing a business name or title may become redundant and it may be taking too much of your space especially if it requires you to keep on repeating it throughout the article. In your content marketing, it is allowed to use abbreviations or acronyms for business titles but you need to ensure that it is easy for your target audience to easily follow. If you are to use formal documents in your content marketing, it is necessary to note down that a certain title will be abbreviated from a certain point. By doing so, you can rest assured that you not only save on space, but any person that comes across your writing will not have a hard time understanding it and also improve the conversion rates.

You need always avoid tweeting like a teen.

While this is a number one thing that should be avoided in content marketing, there are exceptions if you are doing so as a marketing strategy that is meant to target the younger generation. If this is not the case, your posts should not read like those of a teenager on the social media platforms. When you reduce all phrases to a few letters, it becomes quite hard for any person to understand what your posts really mean.

When creating content especially on the social media platform, you should always have it in mind that the content will be viewed by people from different demographics. It is recommended that the acronyms that you use for your business are well known.

Avoid using acronyms in longer content

Acronyms and abbreviations should not be included in any of your business long content such as blogs, newsletter, website page contents, etc. Your web visitors should not have any reason to think that you are unqualified or you are not good at communication. In some instances, the visitors may think that you are too lazy to type the whole phrases.

Also, you should never assume that your readers know the meaning of the acronyms that you are using. In the end, they may feel annoyed since they are struggling to understand the meaning of a certain acronym that you have used. In order to have effective and proper content marketing, it is recommended that you should always keep it simple.

The post Effective use of acronyms in content marketing appeared first on TGDaily.

Source: TG Daily – Effective use of acronyms in content marketing

It’s an ongoing joke now. The customer asks “Can you fax that to me?” and the associate says “No, because we’re in the 21st century.” Everyone laughs.

But the truth is that businesses are still faxing in 2019. Faxing has substantial benefits over getting documents and other files emailed. Looking at some of those benefits can help companies decide whether or not faxing is what should be located in their office.

Reliable

Faxing as a technology has existed for years. For a while, faxing was frustrating; it involved long rolls of shiny, heat transfer paper that were sometimes difficult to read. You couldn’t be sure that the person had gotten your fax, so you had to call and confirm that it had been received. But as faxing grew to be more popular, the technology became more reliable.

Some offices have dedicated fax machines, while others have faxing capabilities built into their copiers. Both the sender and the recipient can get confirmation that their fax has gone through and been received. And companies have learned to trust faxes. Documents can be faxed from one office, signed, and returned. Simple and straightforward.

Fast Transmission

Faxes are transmitted much more quickly now than they were in years past. This is in part due to how much faster printers work. Data is received quickly, and your printer is able to quickly translate the data into the printed material; pages arrive rapidly, and you can get exactly what you need. Faxes send quickly as well; there’s no need to baby-sit the machine and wait for documents to transmit.

For some companies, e-faxing is also an option. This is convenient for small businesses or companies that may not have need for a dedicated fax machine, but still need to fax from a computer from time to time. You can e-fax documents to a company’s fax machine so that they are received in the appropriate manner.

No Viruses

The transmission of viruses and malware is a huge problem in email attachments. Different types of files have different risks attached, but with faxing, there is no possibility for virus or malware transmission. By accepting documents through these methods, especially from individual customers and new vendors, companies open themselves to cyber-attacks. Businesses are particularly vulnerable because many users don’t understand the dangers of opening attachments from unknown parties, or even from friends or coworkers that don’t seem quite right.

When cybersecurity experts have looked at email opening trends, they have found that even workers educated about the dangers of email attachments will still open suspicious files if they are marked something like “Company salaries” or “Guess who got a raise??” Faxing eliminates these dangers by avoiding the attachment problem entirely.

Sensitive Information

For some companies or government offices that handle sensitive information, email isn’t permitted. This is because of the virus risk, but also because the possibility that information could be intercepted and copied between the sender and the recipient. Even if the recipient company has the best cybersecurity imaginable, it’s still possible that the sender could have malware on their end that could cause information breaches.

Familiarity

While much of the workforce is now made up of Millennials – remember that the oldest Millennials are now nearing their forties – there are still plenty of people who aren’t familiar with computer technology. Not all Millennials are digital natives, and some Gen X and Baby Boomer employees may simply not feel comfortable with the kind of tech that goes into sending documents in other ways.

Faxing, however, has been around long enough that it’s familiar to everyone. While you might have to show someone the details of your specific fax machine, the concept is approachable to all of your employees.

Archiving Documents

The most up to date fax machines include options to scan and archive documents as they arrive. This can be helpful for items like invoices, proposals, contracts, and much more. These archival features can make it possible for items to be accessed on the go. They also mean that even if a machine is out of paper or toner, it can continue to receive faxes until these supply issues are resolved. Modern machines will simply print out the logged faxes when it’s possible.

Although fax machines may seem dated to the untrained eye, they continue to serve an important function in the modern office. From protecting your company from cyberattacks by eliminating transmissions of malware containing files to archiving documents for easy reference off-site or later in time, fax machines are incredibly important.

Companies that have decided to phase out faxes in their offices should take a serious look at the benefits of fax machines and consider keeping this technology. Small companies that use co-working spaces should make sure that fax numbers are available. And customers shouldn’t mock companies that continue to use a fax machine; they are more private, more safe, and often more efficient than emailed documents.

The post Why Businesses Are Still Faxing in 2019 appeared first on TGDaily.

Source: TG Daily – Why Businesses Are Still Faxing in 2019

Like many of you I’m concerned about a variety of things that could end life on the planet. This is why, when I heard about the Lifeboat Foundation, I agreed to be on one of their advisory boards. I’m far from the most active though and had a chance to chat with the founder Eric Klien for an update and figured that it would provide a good overview of the organization.

The Atlantis Project

Klien has been involved in a number of companies mostly revolving around analytics. These included Time Trend (stock market investment tool), Match.com (online dating), and the web hosting company Colossus.

The most interesting past project was the Atlantis Project and effort with Libertarian roots to create a new country out in the Caribbean Sea named Oceania. This city was to be independent of the limitations of present-day governments. Sadly, god, apparently, didn’t care for this concept (extreme weather events kept sinking the initial efforts). By the way, there is a new Atlantis Project that looks even more interesting given is surrounds the concept of a Space-scraper.

9/11 A Birth In Tragedy

Lifeboat was founded shortly after the 9/11 attack and upon the realization that the world was approaching a time when a small group of people could create world ending event. The range of methods for a world ending event was increasing as well extending from nuclear power and bioweapons, to colliders, artificial intelligence, and Nano-machines. Of these Klien believes the greatest threat revolves around self-replicating threats, weapons that can have babies, like viruses and Nano-machines which can also mutate as they replicate to breach or overcome containment.

His biggest concern was that governments just don’t take the related potential threats seriously enough to mitigate them and began to realize that an organization laser focused on threats might be able to prevent related catastrophic and existential outcomes more successfully. In effect he was motivated to prevent preventable world ending events.

One other big concern was that government led by despots, think North Korea in particular, might create doomsday weapons that would attempt to assure, through assured destruction, assassination. This class of weapon could breach containment, could be triggered by any death of the despot, and, without knowing the nature of the weapon, developing a targeted defense isn’t viable. He used as an example how effective the Black Plague was at effectively ending the 1st World War given more were dying from the Plague than in the war itself putting substantial additional pressure on the combatants to end the war. The potential to create a plague like this has existed for decades and there are even government sponsored sites that explain how to create such a weapon. He felt that, rather than mitigating these massive threats, governments were instead inadvertently making them more likely.

Lifeboat Foundation

Lifeboat Foundation was created to address these growing existential threats and they have a number of focused working groups targeted at each of the Foundation’s many threat categories. I’ll talk about a few of them below:

AI Shield: This anticipates a hostile AI and collects information on how to prevent and mitigate such a thing. Realize a hostile AI might not be one that was designed to hurt people, but could be an AI that was poorly programed and in the course of its programmed duties killed or hurt humans as part of the programmed process.

Bio Shield: This focuses on biological viruses, manufactured or naturally created, that could devastate the human race if they were put into the wild. Again, this service is focused on both prevention and mitigation of this potentially race ending technology.

Nano Shield: This is mostly focused on the coming wave of microscopic self-replicating machines. Like a virus these things most likely won’t have the intelligence to care about humans if they simply could harvest the materials that would allow them to replicate, they could wipe out life on the planet simply by converting all those materials to Nano Bots at scale.

Particle Accelerator Shield: This caught my eye after I read that the analysis of the risk that the Hadron Collider would create a world ending black hole was off the wrong way by at least two magnitudes. Still remote but we, as yet, aren’t able to leave this planet quickly if we blow it up.

Alien Shield: This anticipates that are calls out to space asking for space aliens to visit might end really badly. Mostly this just recommends we work really hard to make the visiting Aliens happy. This is because their idea of a bad Yelp Review might otherwise be a hole where the earth used to be. But this includes First Contact Protocol, languages, and other unique methods to establish communication.

(Another to check out is PersonalityPreserver or immortality. This is a relatively new site but it includes the use of Time Travel).

Wrapping Up:

I’m a big believer in an existential threat mitigating service outside of the government. This is because governments seldom take things like this seriously until the related catastrophic disaster has occurred. The Nano Shield is probably the most interesting service because the government appears to be the least concerned about this category which could potentially consume the planet were these machines fully self-replicating. Fortunately, this potential is in our future but it’s nice to know there is an organization like Lifeboat already on the case.

The post Lifeboat Foundation: Saving The World From Itself appeared first on TGDaily.

Source: TG Daily – Lifeboat Foundation: Saving The World From Itself

While a home equity line of credit (HELOC) might have been the loan of choice pre-2008, the housing market slump took its toll on home equity. Currently, around two-thirds of the participants in a recent survey by marketing research company J.D. Power revealed that they would opt for alternatives to a HELOC instead, which indicates how the perception of the product has deteriorated. Now that the market is once again flourishing, it won’t take much to revive HELOCs, as home equity is on the rise again. For those who wish to remortgage their homes, this is certainly a time to consider the advantages of HELOCs.

Freddie Mac Chief Economist Says Recession Is To Blame

While home equity typically offers a safe avenue for homeowners, it’s hard to understand why consumers will opt for other finance options that are more expensive and can potentially become a cash flow burden. According to Freddie Mac Chief Economist, Sam Khater, the recession is to blame for the reluctance to tap into home equity. Credit cards and personal loans seem to still be the loans of choice despite the increase in home equity over the last decade. For homeowners, tapping into a HELOC (home equity line of credit) means that there is cheap credit available for when they need it. If they don’t use the line of credit, they don’t pay for it.

Opting For Low Interest, Secured Finance

One of the greatest advantages of using a home equity line instead of unsecured credit is the savings in terms of interest rates. This is because HELOCs and other home equity finance options provide the financial institutions with the reassurance that there is a form of security by means of the property. Unsecured debt, however, relies purely on the applicant’s willingness and ability to repay the loan. This places additional risk on the bank, which means that the cost of credit is higher. For homeowners, while the alternative forms of credit might be faster to come by, that extra bit of waiting time can save a tremendous amount in repayments down the line, thanks to the much lower interest rate.

A Flexible Type Of Finance

One of the most frustrating things about taking out a personal loan, is that financial institutions often place restrictions on the repayments should borrowers wish to pay the loans back before the due date. This could result in additional costs being incurred. A HELOC is a revolving type of credit which works much like a credit card, which means that the borrower only pays for the portion they use, and if they don’t need to full amount straight away, they don’t have to take it all. It also means that the sooner they pay back the loan, the cheaper the finance is for them as there are no penalties or additional costs to consider.

Now that home equity levels have evened out after the recession, it’s time to consider different types of finance. For those who have the option to choose between refinancing their property or option for fast and convenient credit, the costs need to be explored.

The post Now Is The Time To Consider a Home Equity Line of Credit appeared first on TGDaily.

Source: TG Daily – Now Is The Time To Consider a Home Equity Line of Credit

Spending hours on Google and reading success stories of people who found success in their online ventures may seem helpful. The problem, however, is that these stories often fail to teach you the exact steps to take if you want to experience the same level of success. And if you dig deeper in the search results pages, all you’ll find is regurgitated information about how to set up a blog, what your monetization options are, and where to get traffic. More often than not, blogs that share this information make things simpler than they actually are.

In the digital marketing world, you should come as prepared as you can be. It’s easy enough to create your own blog and hope for success. But keep in mind this industry has virtually no limits and it is constantly changing. Anyone can do the same thing you’re doing (and better too), so you must equip yourself with the right knowledge to get a competitive advantage. But where does this knowledge come from?

Hafiz Muhammad Ali found himself asking this same question a decade ago. Now, he’s a digital marketing mentor, author, writer, and owner of five successful companies. His journey started on one fateful night in 2009 when he borrowed $90 from a friend so he could purchase and host his first company domain. He wasn’t an expert in anything during that time, but he knew a career in digital marketing was the right path for him.

Fast forward to 2019. Hafiz now mentors aspiring entrepreneurs and company leaders alike, guiding them as they formulate the most effective strategies for boosting their online presence. We feel honored for the time Hafiz had shared with us to learn more about his story and how this can help you with your digital marketing journey.

1) First of all, thank you for sitting down with us today. Can you share a bit about how you started your first company?

In 2009, a friend of mine loaned me $90 to pay for hosting a website and for the company domain. This became SEO Compass. It started out as a search and SEO company and has since adapted with the changes in the online world and evolved into what is now a full-service digital marketing agency, Omnicore.

2) Looking back, that $90 loan must have generated an enormous return on your investment. What was the key to growing your company despite not having a lot of experience back then?

Digital marketing has become very sophisticated now and there are different facets of it, each with its own advantage e.g. creating funnels, running YouTube and Facebook Ads, conversion optimization and more.

When we started back in 2009, SEO was the bread and butter other than Google Adwords and being a bootstrapped company, we decided to master one specific skill that has helped us not only grow but also sustain in tough times.

In 10 years, Google has instituted changes that have significantly differentiated themselves from their competition. During the transition, a lot of digital marketers lost their advantages and had to change their strategies to adapt to Google’s algorithms.

The key to our growth was that we invested a lot of time working on side-projects of our own where we had the liberty to experiment different strategies and learn. By getting our hands dirty and going in the trenches, we were able to master specific skills that has helped adapt to constant changes in the industry.

Along the way, I have continued my formal education with an MSc in Digital Marketing Leadership from the University of Aberdeen, a Life Coach Certification from the University of Cambridge, and other certifications and training from the Digital Marketing Institute, Google, and Market Motive.

I believe education is the key to moving forward. I wanted to learn about digital marketing, especially the aspects that make success in this industry possible. It took me a while to find the resources needed to advance in this field. Now I am sharing that information with others who want to succeed in digital marketing.

3) Most digital marketing mentors or coaches end up pitching a product to their students. What approach do you take to set yourself apart and ensure that you’re offering real value to those interested in starting a digital marketing career?

Firstly, there are several things I’d want my students to know about my work and that includes my experiences and the direction I am taking. I believe true leadership is about helping others. I happily mentor people; this is something I have spent several years doing.

To offer real value, set myself apart, and help new and old digital marketers, I have created a psychometric test for the industry and published a book.

My book, Digital Passport, covers everything there is to know about digital marketing and is based on my own personal experience in the industry. The book will help the reader choose in which digital marketing area to specialize as I cover all the diverse opportunities there are in this field. By reading my book, digital marketers can more easily their footing and navigate through all the available information. This sets the person on the right path more quickly than spending numerous hours on research and old-school marketing tactics. Brands, after all, are looking for marketers who understand the digital world as this is the path of future marketing.

The psychometric test is the first of its kind and aims to help users determine which digital marketing field would be best for them, but more about this later.

4) Digital Passport remains one of the best books for beginners in digital marketing. What’s in the book that still makes it relevant today?

Digital Passport was designed to specifically help people who are new to digital marketing. It details the information that is necessary to start a career in digital marketing. While it covers everything there is to know, more importantly, it exposes the reader to the different sectors of digital marketing. In this way, the new user is not overwhelmed by the information presented in the book.

The book is also an evergreen resource because, although digital marketing resources, techniques, methods, and strategies change constantly, the book teaches the beginner where to start. Early on, it also helps the new digital marketer choose a specific area and this can be further assisted by doing my psychometric test. Having a digital marketing segment on which to focus provides both a start and the direction going forward.

5) The Digital Ladder is one of your latest projects. The first-ever psychometric test for digital marketers is revolutionary, to say the least. Can you tell us how you came up with this idea and what its applications are?

My inspiration for the Digital Ladder came from my own experiences and challenges in the digital marketing industry. Two key problems for an aspiring digital marketer is one, the too wide a range of fields within digital like SEO, Content Marketing, Paid Advertisement, etc and two, needing to study everything about digital marketing to see where and how everything fits together as you start out and gain experience.

So, one of the underlying ideas behind the psychometric test is that a person who likes what they are doing will not treat it as work, which will help them save time and frustration and feel more fulfilled. I have learned that not every digital marketing field is right for every person; that’s where the Digital Ladder comes in.

When a person does the psychometric test, an in-demand digital marketing specialization is matched to them based on a mix of their personality, characteristics, and aptitude. For example, someone who is very analytical would be best matched to Web Analytics and SEO, while someone who is more a creative type would be better matched to Social Media or Content Marketing.

The match will be a digital marketing method they should be very comfortable with as it fits who they are innately. And when they are comfortable in what they do, their confidence to implement the strategy will grow because their work fits their talents. So, as a result, they are more likely to progress faster, earn more, and be successful in their career.

6) Many aspiring entrepreneurs and digital marketers are looking up to you. Do you have a message for them?

There are several things I learned while building Omnicore to its current state. The first thing is that digital marketing continuously changes. To keep up, study or research the next big method. Digital marketers who use yesterday’s methods will be left behind. Adapting to these changes is necessary to survive in this business.

Hafiz Muhammad Ali is the epitome of what motivation, hard work, and relentlessness can do. He has found immense success in his chosen field, all thanks to his perseverance in mastering the different aspects of digital marketing. Once again, special thanks to Mr. Hafiz for this interview.

The post Interview with Hafiz Muhammad Ali, Self-made Digital Marketing Powerhouse appeared first on TGDaily.

Source: TG Daily – Interview with Hafiz Muhammad Ali, Self-made Digital Marketing Powerhouse

Corporate training has witnessed a paradigm shift from those days when employees were literally airlifted to a specific location for some cumbersome classroom sessions. Training in companies has shifted to online and in-time learning mode. Technology is energizing corporate training, bringing ideas such as mobile learning, social media and gamification into the world of corporate training.

A multinational taskforce is a common feature in today’s corporate workplace. The conventional classroom training is ill-equipped to deal with colossal and geographically dispersed workforces, and the problem is further accentuated by differences in language, time zones and skill sets. Moreover, as astounding 40% of classroom training costs are spent on travel and lodging alone. This is where technology comes to the rescue. Technological solutions ensure standardized training across an organization and maximize the benefits of corporate training.

Mobile Learning

Organizations are embracing mobile learning solutions, given the extensive penetration of mobile phones across the world. Mobile learning is transforming the ways in which organizations and learners work, interact and collaborate with each other. Mobile devices are also facilitating contextual learning. Mobile training games make learning more engaging and induce behavioral changes in real-time by prodding the learners to act out the learning scenarios.

Social Learning

Social media such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram have become an indispensible part of human life in contemporary society. Social media has thus become inevitable in corporate training. Companies are investing in social collaboration tools to connect with the employees and foster a learning culture within the organization.

Simulation-Based Training

Simulation has been a part of the aviation industry since times immemorial. Companies are recognizing and adopting technology-based simulation to lead the learners into a practical experience of theoretical learning, thereby transforming learning into an engaging and enjoyable exercise. In a related learning methodology, Virtual Classrooms equipped with online video conferencing tools are making it possible for learners to participate in live training sessions.

Online Assessments

Online assessments are gauging the learning performance, so as to render the learning process faster, more efficient and cost-effective. Learning Analytics is paving the way for organizations to roll out training programs that yield results. Immediate response systems act as two-way mechanisms; allowing the trainers to provide real-time feedback to the learners about what went right and what could have been done better; and let the learners to share their feedback with the company. The data gathered through such response systems, such as Java interview questions, can be later analyzed to reshape corporate training programs and make the learning environment agile and future-ready.

Gamification

Gamification is gaining immense popularity in these times. Gameplay contributes to qualitative learning, better retention and improved on-the-job outcomes by incorporating engaging milestones into the learning process. Corporate training games are being shared on a variety of devices, ranging from the all-pervasive smart phones to next-gen AR wearables.

Technology-driven corporate training is a boon for all the stakeholders; companies can rest assured that learning has been timely and effective, while the employees can savor the joy of learning in a hands-on environment.

The post Use of Technology in Corporate Training appeared first on TGDaily.

Source: TG Daily – Use of Technology in Corporate Training

As a website owner, you know how much traffic means to you. You want to go out of your way to ensure that you get as much traffic as possible. There are many businesses paying search engines to ensure that they are ranked on the first or second page of the search results. While looking to have as much traffic as possible, it is important to note that you are likely to have spammers and bots on your website. This can be risky in not only infecting your website with malware and other viruses but the information about the business and your clients are likely to be used by a third party.

With such risks, it is important that you should take excellent care to protect your website as much as possible. Having a secured website helps you to gain trust from the visitors and they are likely to do business with you.

How do you protect your websites from spammer bots?

One of the key factors that influence how much traffic you get on your website is the ease of using the website as well as how fast the site responds. In pursuit of protecting your website, the last thing you would want is to have visitors leave because the site requires them to log in and enter password especially if all they want is to get some information regarding the industry. You do not need to create passwords that may turn off visitors, one of the best ways to prevent bots from accessing your website is the use of CAPTCHA services.

CAPTCHA is an acronym for “Completely Automated Public Test to tell Computers and Humans Apart” The meaning of these words explains the specific purpose of preventing bots from accessing your website while allowing real humans to access it.

CAPTCHA does this by creating easy challenges such as matching pictures or simple additions or subtractions. This is just to ensure that a real human is accessing the website. Mtcaptcha, a leading CAPTCHA service provider, advises on some of the best ways that CAPTCHA can benefit you, as a website owner. Some of these ways are:

Blocking spam emails. It can be quite irritating to open an email only to find that it is spam especially when the email seemed to be important. There are no specific measures to prevent the pesky emails unless you use CAPTCHA services at the end of your contact page. It is a great way of lowering junk emails that would have ended up in your spam folder.

Prevention of spam comments. As a website administrator, one of the most tedious works to do is dealing with spam comments. While there are anti-spam plug-ins that can be used to capture the spam comments, this plug-ins only takes these comments to the spam folder but can’t stop them. Using a CAPTCHA form in your comment section, this may be a bit tedious for the commenter’s but as a website owner, it can save you from too much spam comments thus spending your time on more productive things that will better the website.

The privacy of information is guaranteed. While this is a benefit for the use of CAPTCHA service, you cannot get this service from some of the free CAPTCHA service providers. In other cases, you can prevent the spam comments and emails but your privacy is at risk. It is recommended that you should get reputable CAPTCHA service from a provider that will guarantee you of the privacy of your data.

The post Reasons why you need to use CAPTCHA on your website appeared first on TGDaily.

Source: TG Daily – Reasons why you need to use CAPTCHA on your website

If you purchased a good quality AC unit it should give you great service for more than a decade. If not there might be good reasons that it is not other than a faulty unit. Here are some reasons why your unit might not be functioning at its highest performance level lately. And what you can do to correct things.

Have it Serviced Regularly

Your home air conditioning system is a finely tuned unit that needs regular service to ensure it is running at peak performance. Your AC manufacturer should have provided you with a written maintenance schedule that require a technician to come and replace any worn out parts and check everything from the condenser and AC, units to the ducting and vents of your unit. When you don’t have your unit regularly serviced there can be small problems that occur that can easily turn into big ones.

You should also call for service any time there is something unusual going on with your AC. Has its performance diminished recently? Has it been making any strange sounds, or bad smells? Have you seen water collecting anywhere? Has the unit been turning off on its own or not responding well? All of these and any other unusual issues with your AC unit means you should call for service immediately. Check your maintenance schedule and make sure that you are not overdue. If so or if any issues are developing call a technician immediately.

Make Sure You Are Leak Free

Sometimes your AC is working perfectly however you have a window or door open or there are leaks in the room where the AC is, causing it to not be able to cool the room well. Check your room for any drafts, open windows or leaks and when you find them make sure that you close open windows and repair drafts. These cause your AC unit to work harder and not as effectively. This will also cause you to need to service the unit more frequently and may even impact the lifespan of the unit. So got to this immediately and stop those leaks!

Replace Older AC Units

One thing to keep in mind as you work on trying to get your AC up to top working conditions is that ACs like all electronic appliances become less efficient over time. What this means is that you will get lower quality service and cooling from your AC unit over time and it will cost you more in electric bills as well. Air conditioners more than 12 years old are likely to be running well below their top efficiency and will not be able to regain their nest quality no matter how much maintenance they receive. For this reason it is best to replace you old unit with a newer high efficiency one.

In addition to you getting better air quality and a better functioning unit, newer high-quality AC units are much more efficient than older units resulting in sometimes up to 20% savings on your electric costs each month. In addition, newer units have great new features including remote operation from your cell phone, electronic thermostats that allow you to get more precise cooling, variable motors that are much more efficient, fast cooling, and auto-cleaning functions. As a result, you end up with a better unit that also saves you money.

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Source: TG Daily – How to Improve the Performance of my Home Air Conditioning System

Units that cool and heat your home and automobiles have a lot in common and some major differences as well. Here is a list of what is similar and different between HVACs, home air conditioners and car air conditioners.

HVAC

HVAC is an acronym that stands for Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning. These units are typically used for businesses and are generally very robust and durable. The reason that are used as commercial air conditioning is because HVACs have an ability to provide all of the needs a business would have in terms of their required air comfort. These units are typically connected to a ducted system and delivers air through vents in the rooms and areas targeted. They also have the highest level of power.

An HVAC unit has advanced technology to provide the following:

Heating – The unit will provide the highest levels of heating to your business. One of the best reasons companies buy these units is because they provide a consistent level of high quality heat fast.

Ventilation – One of the areas where a quality HVAC unit will excel is in ventilation. Ventilation is the process of improving the air quality inside your business. This process involves temperature control and dehumidification or moisture removal. An HVAC unit will proficiently circulate fresh air throughout the spaces, while removing and keeping out dirty air. Outside air is very important because if only inside air is circulated pollutants can begin to amass and cause problems. A lack of ventilation in the home will make the room stuffy, moisture accumulates easily, and mold and mildew will often appear.

Air Conditioning – HVAC units also provide air conditioning which is simply providing cooling to your business.

An HVAC unit is composed of separate parts including a furnace or boiler for heating, forced or natural air ventilation, and central air conditioning. There are some HVAC units that use a ductless system but these are not very popular.

So an HVAC unit provides all the air circulation needs for business.

Home Air Conditioner

As mentioned, an air conditioner is a unit that provides cool air throughout a home. The best AC units do also provide some ventilation and filtering of air into the space, but not as robustly as a good HVAC unit.

Home air conditioners come in two types: ducted which uses a series of ducts and vents to deliver cooling throughout the home and ductless which has two units; an AC unit that sits in a room or area of the home and provides cool air directly from the unit and a compressor unit that sits outside the home delivers pressurized and filtered air to the AC unit.

Within these two categories, there are many different types of ACs that homeowners purchase based on their specific needs.

Car AC

Your Car AC is the unit that provides cooling inside your automobile and this same unit also provides heat. However it works differently than a business HVAC. The air conditioning system in your car causes cooling because of a rapid expansion of compressed gas. Freon is compressed in the compressor of your car’s AC system and then turns into a hot gas. In the AC’s condenser, the Freon gas is cooled to a liquid state and travels to an expansion valve. As the gas through an expansion valve it degrades to a low-pressure gas and rapidly cools in the evaporator. A fan then blows over the evaporator and cools the air that eventually blows out your vents and you receive cool air. The system is simple yet very effective and causes quick cooling which is badly needed on hot summer days in the confined space of your auto.

Although each unit provides cooling to your car, home or business, they operate differently and provide different levels of cooling.

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Source: TG Daily – What’s the difference between HVAC, car AC and home AC?