Author: Full Editorial (Page 3 of 3)

How to Implement Data Enrichment

August 5, 2022 / Full Editorial

In this day in age, data has proven its worth time and time again. Most companies are collecting data every day. However, many companies are not exactly sure how to make the most use of the data they are collecting. They also aren’t sure if they are ordering the right data or even enough data. It’s one thing to collect data, and it’s another thing to use that data to make crucial business decisions to further the company. This is why companies are beginning to look into data enrichment and how it can give businesses a competitive advantage. Taking steps to implement data enrichment into your business can turn your data insights into actions and better-informed decisions overall.

Data Enrichment At Its Core

Understanding what data enrichment can do for your company is crucial. Most companies are familiar with CRM platforms containing basic customer and client information. Information like name, email, phone number, and address are common fields in SaaS tools. However, data enrichment takes it one step further. Data enrichment is the process of enhancing data with more information from other sources. When you gain more information on a customer and enrich the data you have, you now can see even more about a customer and make better-informed decisions. The data enrichment process can also give more accurate views of a customer or client, improving customer experience.

Here’s why data enrichment is essential. In most companies, data is collected through different sources and then funneled into a cloud data platform. When the data is in the warehouse, it’s only understandable for data teams and other technical users that understand SQL. Reports can be made for business stakeholders, but reports are only a general perspective of what is actually going on with individual consumers. Without knowing what is going on with individual consumers, data collection is kind of a waste. Your teams, like sales, finance, support, marketing, and product, have no way of accessing this information and using it to make better decisions about users and create a better customer experience. Data enrichment democratizes this key information to everyone instead of just the users who understand SQL. With more customer data available, your teams can make actionable decisions based on all the information at hand instead of just a general report. Now everyone has access to the same information across the company, making uniform decisions that contribute to the company’s goals.

Data Enrichment Types

There are a few different types of data enrichment. These types can help focus on information related to the consumer. These types are:

Behavioral data enrichment: Looks to add behavioral patterns to user profiles.
Demographic data enrichment: studies the customer in depth.
Geographic data enrichment: gathers information surrounding the customer.

With more access to data, a business will want to gain as much information about a consumer as they can. This way a company can decide the ideal behavioral attributes for customers, and make decisions based off of the specific data they collected. To take data enrichment further, there are data subsets that can provide much value to a company:

Product data: information about a customer that comes from them using a product such as sign up date, messages sent, and number of users.
Sales data: information about a customer that comes from the sales process such as first meeting, free trials, and product demos.
Marketing data: information about a customer from their overall journey such as web pages viewed, link clicks, and resources downloaded.
Finance data: information about a customer that comes from the payment process such as contract size, subscription type, and annual recurring revenue.

Implementing Data Enrichment

Now that you understand what data enrichment is and ways to get more data, you can learn how to implement it into your business. There are some data enrichment tools that can help give your teams access to crucial information. Some examples are:

CDPs: users can consolidate all of their customer data into one platform and can be sent to different places. They can easily integrate with other third party APIs and push data into preferred tools.
iPaaS: platforms that easily move data from point A to point B, and can build intuitive workflows for simple use cases.
Reverse ETL: integrates with the data warehouse so users can sync data to their end destination. Users just need to define the data and send it to the necessary columns and fields.

Leverage Your Data

With companies using data enrichment to leverage their data, business teams can all access the same information to make better business decisions. This creates better customer experiences and more informed decisions that line up with the direction a company wants to go. Data enrichment leads to a 360-degree view of a customer that is accessible to your sales, marketing, finance, support, and product teams. With data enrichment, your company goes from accessible data, to actionable data. This can drive outcomes and improve the effectiveness of a company overall.

How To Get A Therapists License In Another State

April 4, 2022 / Full Editorial

Most therapists or licensed professional counselors (LPCs) are only licensed and thus work in just one state. But as telehealth continues to grow more popular thanks to the pandemic, the idea of being licensed in another state, otherwise known as “license by endorsement” becomes more popular. If your client moves from California to Florida, you can still work with him if you obtain a Florida license. Furthermore, those living on the border of a state may want to get the license of the other, nearby state to attract further business.

The good news is that you do not necessarily have to live in another state to obtain that state’s license. By following the right procedures, you can get another license instead of transferring your LPC license and start practicing within other states either physically or online. While every state is somewhat different, here are some of the key factors to consider.

Why?

As noted above, people have different reasons for wanting to get an out-of-state license. Different reasons should have different approaches.

First, keep in mind that it can take months to get a license from another state. Consequently, you should realize that you may not be able to retain a client if they or you move to another state. If you still want such a thing to be done, you should start the licensing process well before the move. There are also costs such as filing fees or continued education which you may have to complete.

It should be noted that getting new licenses has become somewhat easier over the past year, as some states have loosened medical regulations as part of a COVID response. But by knowing why you need an out-of-state license, you can figure out what exact approach you need to take.

Different States, Different Rules

Unfortunately, every state’s “license by endorsement” policy is somewhat different. But there are a few simple commonalities.

First, you will need to fill out an application, which can usually be found in your state’s department of health website (here is the one from my state of Virginia.) The application will require various documents such as your transcripts and license verification. For this reason, even if you do not plan on getting a license soon, you should always keep such documents on hand. You may also try to reach out to past professors or supervisors for written endorsements.

After that, you may have to take specific courses relating to your state, and then finish filling and notarizing the paperwork. Once that is completed, you will wait. Delays may be possible, and you may have to submit additional information. The only thing you can do after applying is be patient.

Getting that out-of-state license is usually more accessible than your first one, but it still can be difficult and is not for everyone. For example, it may be less suitable for those less willing to telework. But it also can represent a major chance to expand your counseling career, and so should be strongly considered.

How To Go Shopping With Babies

March 29, 2022 / Full Editorial

There are so many simple tasks that suddenly become daunting once you become a mom. Take shopping: there are so many ways that putting a baby in a grocery cart can go wrong! So here are some simple tips on how to go shopping with babies.

Put The Baby’s Car Seat in the Shopping Cart

This is a very tempting option, but it does come with significant downsides. Studies show that an average of 24,000 babies a year are involved in some kind of mishap as a result of being in a car seat on a shopping cart.

As inviting as this option is, car seats are not built to fit into shopping carts. Because they are such a poor fit, it makes it highly likely that your baby will be involved in some kind of mishap. Mishaps can be as extreme as a fractured skull, a concussion and even death.

If you have to use a shopping cart, check to see if it has a safe dock feature that allows you to safely dock the car seat on the shopping cart.

Wearable Babies!

A safer way to shop with your baby is to wear your baby. Strap your baby onto you using a baby carrier. It’s a great way to bond with your child, and keep them feeling warm and safe. Moreover, it’s not only safe, it’s convenient.

Use a Baby Shopping Hammock

Many people haven’t tried this before, but it’s a great way to shop with your baby and it’s good for your back too!

Baby shopping hammocks have passed the most stringent safety tests and been certified as complying with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) standards.

They are designed so that your baby stays inside the hammock throughout your shopping trip, thanks to the seat harness and baby carrier strap.

The hammock is really light, so you can put it in your diaper bag or purse.

Use a Stroller

Using a Silver Cross Wave stroller is a very safe way to shop with your baby if you are going to the store with your partner or a friend. It’s safe, and it’s comfortable for your baby. It’s also a viable solution for you even if you’re shopping alone with your baby.

There are a number of ways that you can shop with a stroller:

Push the stroller as you pull the cart. You shouldn’t do this if you can’t balance your attention between the stroller and the cart.
Remove the infant seat and place it in the cart. As with the car seat, you will have to make sure that there is a safe dock feature so that this is done safely. You can put your groceries around the baby seat. This is best done if you are not buying a lot of things.
Get a Baby Carrier and Use it with the Stroller. Many parents use a stroller to put their goods in, and then carry their babies while shopping.
Put your groceries under the stroller. Another solution is to place your groceries under your stroller and forego the cart altogether.

The Era Of The Smart Home Draws Near

March 24, 2022 / Full Editorial

Artificial intelligence is eating the world, one industry at a time and it’s eating the housing industry. We are on the verge of a new era of the “smart home”. Home automation brings the home alive. In the smart home, a home’s attributes, such as lighting, entertainment systems, climate and appliances can be monitored and/or controlled. This can also extend to home security, with automation of alarm systems and access control. Home devices that are connected to the internet form part of the Internet of Things (IoT). The possibilities of the smart home are many and as more and more homes become automated, we are getting to a tipping point before mass adoption.

Why Does the Smart Home Matter?

Home automation promises to bring all the key features of your home as well as any gadgets under one seamless central smart home hub (or “gateway”). In a smart home, you will be able to control everything in your home with voice commands, saving you time, making your home more convenient, as well as saving on energy use and costs.

How Are Smart Homes Set Up?

This is a massive evolution in the nature of the home and it’s a future that you can literally help build. The technology behind the smart home is designed to be installable by its users. Firms such as ADT believe that the DIY nature of smart homes will make them more attractive to homeowners. The company’s DIY smart home security system is an example of this. It is an intelligent system for the protection of your household goods, from your Creative Cabinets to pot plants, and it is powered by AI and controlled and installed by the consumer.

At present, most DIY systems do take some tech savvy, but engineers are moving toward DIY solutions, but at present, consumers have to settle for “Do It For Me” or DIFM solutions. This entails having a professional install the system for you, and working to reduce the number of apps, hardware devices and switches that are needed to control the system.

Can I Use Different Smart Home Devices Together?

Interoperability is not an inherent feature of the internet. This is also true of IoT devices. However, a new industry standard, Matter, promises to bring missing interoperability to the smart home industry.

Matter is the product of the Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA), under whom device makers have promised to use Matter as the industry standard for future products. Consumers shopping for smart home devices will be able to operate all of them within the same gateway, so long as they carry the Matter logo. Matter will become the industry standard in 2023.

The CSA is composed of tech giants such as Google, Amazon, and Apple, so there is some serious backing behind the standard. Experts believe that it will be in wide use by 2024 or 2025.

Matter will ensure that not only are smart home devices connected to the internet, but that their devices can talk to each other and co-exist in a safe and sustainable way.

How Vintage Furniture Is The New Design Trend

November 22, 2021 / Full Editorial

In 2020, people spent more time at home than they had spent in any other period in recent history. Spending so much time at home made people more aware of their household furnishings and more eager to transform them so that they fit their vision of where they wanted to live and work. With remote and hybrid models of work likely to be an important part of our lives for the foreseeable future, people will continue to invest in their households at higher levels than in past years. One area where people have invested heavily is in furniture. According to a new report, in 2020, spending on furniture and appliances rose from $373 billion to $405 billion year-over-year. The shift to working from home and shopping online drove growth in ecommerce, and one of the fastest growing segments in ecommerce was the vintage and consignment market. Vintage furniture became and has remained the most important design trend of our times.

Chairish, the vintage furniture ecommerce platform, enjoyed a 60% growth in sales. 1stDibs, an ecommerce company that sells luxury items such as furniture, earned a 23% increase in its revenue. Kaiyo, a platform for buying and selling used furniture, has experienced triple-digit growth, month-over-month.

An obvious answer is that second-hand furniture is affordable, and in a time of economic distress, people would shift their purchases towards cheaper alternatives to goods that they need. However, collectible and heritage items performed strongly during that period too. For instance, 1stDIbs sold out its stock of Ray and Chalres Eames’ Lounge Chair, the Ultrafragola mirror and Mario Bellini’s Camaleonda Sofa. Users of the Chairish platform have turned a profit on items such as Michel Ducaroy’s Toga sofa. According to its annual report, Kaiyo sold the DDC On the Rocks sofa at a staggering $18,346 price. This really shows the strength of the collectibles and heritage segment.

Experts predict that the vintage and second hand furniture market will be even stronger in the coming years. According to Statista, the furniture resale market will grow 3.5 times faster than traditional retail, by 2025, appreciating by 54% between 2021 and 2025.

An important reason for the growth in the sector is the change in attitudes toward secondhand goods. This change in attitude has come at a time when platforms such as Depop, TheRealReal, and ands, have allowed millenials and Gen Z shoppers to buy used clothes. The change in attitudes extended to furniture. According to Chairish, 31% of millenials and Gen Z shoppers had a greater demand for second hand, vintage or antique furniture over the last year.
ANother factor is that mass-produced goods have started to lose their sheen. People feel increasingly disconnected from modern consumerist society and vintage furniture arouses more nostalgic emotions, and feels less embedded in consumerism. Modern designs often seem to go out of style as quickly as they get into style, whereas vintage furniture has a more enduring appeal. Younger consumers are looking for goods that express their individuality, rather than embed them in mass-consumerism, and this makes vintage furniture, and classic designs such as leather recliners Made in USA, so appealing.

How To Compete In The Leather Upholstery Market

November 18, 2021 / Full Editorial

Demand for leather furniture has been steadily growing for many years. Expects estimate that the market will grow at a rate of 3.9% compounded over the 2020 to 2027 period. More optimistic reports suggest that the industry will grow at a rate of 5.9% compounded over the 2021 to 2028 period, achieving a value of some $626 billion by 2028. Millenials and the emerging cohort of Gen Z buyers, have developed an affinity for leather furniture, and the quality of the product has many things in its favour. Leather is one of the most durable materials out there, and that, coupled with its texture and looks, means that when it comes to conserving value, there is no better product out there on the market. A key driver of growth is that over the forecast period, consumers are expected to enjoy rising disposable income, allowing them to take advantage of the benefits of owning leather furniture. With growth predicted to continue for the next few years, it is no surprise that many entrepreneurs have entered the market to compete for their slice of the market. Increased competition in the market is not the only problem that manufacturers face. We are living in an age of supply chain disruptions, labor shortages, and a consumer that is more price conscious than ever. Competing in this industry is one of the big questions facing upholsters and a question that I will try to answer in this article.

Manufacturers will have to embrace a new way of doing business. A decade ago, venture capitalist Marc Andressedn declared that, “software is eating the world”, and since then, his declaration has proved prophetic, with industry after industry increasingly mediated by software. The leather furniture industry is not outside of this movement. Manufacturers have to realise that they have to embrace the use of digital technology to generate efficiencies, improve the customer experience, unearth insights to improve their product quality, and ultimately, to earn higher economic profits. With 30% of consumers who purchase leather furniture being between 25 and 34 years of age, there is certainly a massive opportunity to capture consumers who will be on the market for decades to come.

Process optimization and automation are two of the most powerful ways that manufacturers can use to improve their profitability. For instance, the Lectra Versalis 4.0-ready digital cutting solutions enables manufacturers to improve their competitiveness through four improvements:

Increased product quality
Higher yield, reducing costs and optimising pricing
Greater productivity at a time of labor shortages and where time-to-market has to be slashed
More efficient processes thanks to data leveraging

Manufacturers need to leverage such solutions, as well as work with innovators who can provide them with adequate support and guidance to deliver the efficiencies that technology promises. The result of an approach that is open to innovation can be seen in products such as the Bradington Young recliner, which is made in the most efficient way possible, while delivering value to the customer.

Why Dentistry Lacks In Quality Management

November 16, 2021 / Full Editorial

Most people do not realise this, but your oral health is a window to your overall health.According to the Institute of Medicine of the national Academies, which in 2011 published the definitive report on the subject, a close oral exam can detect signs of health problems such as systemic diseases, nutritional deficiencies, microbial infections, injuries, immune disorders and even some cancers. Periodontal disease is associated with respiratory disease, pregnancy outcomes, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and coronary heart disease. The link between the two is why a person’s oral health care will be increasingly integrated into their overall health care. As this happens, dentistry will have to embrace standardized quality and outcome measures, areas which the industry has been relatively lacking compared to the rest of the economy. The reasons wny dentistry has been lacking are varied and the subject of this article.

Dentists Don’t Capture a Lot of Information

At present, dentists generally operate according to a fee-for-service structure in which relatively little data is collected about patient outcomes. This means that the typical dentist does not have enough data to be able to make the necessary insightful inferences to improve quality outcomes. Microsoft founder, Bill Gates, has spoken about the importance of measurement to enhanced performance. Measuring stuff allows us to see if the changes we make actually work. Measurement provides the necessary feedback to enable fertile innovation. Without measurement, innovation is doomed to be erratic and rare. It’s for this reason that the fee-for-service model proves to be an impediment. Dentists simply are not measuring enough stuff and so, quality outcomes are reduced and standards of care are not as high as they could be. In order for the coming integration with overall healthcare to work, dentists will have to adopt more evidence-based methods, methods teeming in the kind of measurements that dentists don’t as-yet typically collect.

Dentists do not have broadly accepted definitions and ways of quantifying quality. The first reason for this is that diagnostic codes are not widely used. So, we do not have a sense of the rationale behind why dentists make the decision they make and arrive at the diagnosis they do. So, it is impossible to know, measure and understand if treatments are truly effective.

Secondly, dentists are trained on the technical aspects of their job. Yet, there is a difference between being good at the mechanical side of the job and making the right decisions for the long-term care of the patient. Yet, dentists do not evaluate long-term effects of their care on their patients.

Reimbursement is another issue. Incentives are a powerful force in shaping human behaviour. Quality metrics were institutionalised by the federal government as part of the establishment of Medicare and Medicaid in 1965. Dentistry did not go through a similar process and so reimbursement is not tied to quality metrics. Your dentist is usually well trained and very good at their job. But typically dental practices are small affairs, they have not undergone the scaling and consolidation that other industries have. As dental practices consolidate, they are increasingly embracing quality metrics to drive better patient outcomes.

A Massive Shortage of Home Care Workers Threatens the industry

August 19, 2021 / Full Editorial

As more and more older adults report a desire to spend their twilight years at home, there has been a boom in home-based care. The trouble is, the home care industry has been plagued by staffing shortages for many years. This makes it difficult for the families of older adults and the older adults themselves, to give older adults what they sorely desire. Often, family members have to become makeshift caregivers, forced to get time off from work, or sometimes even work part-time, use adult day care facilities, or retire early, just so they can give older adults the home care that they need. Getting home care is even harder today, because the risks of having hired help or volunteers in the house often outweigh the benefits. This puts additional pressure on family members to take care of older adults. It’s this crisis that is the subject of a fascinating piece in the New York Times.

As the New York Times shows, it can be hard to find help, either through word-of-mouth, local agencies or other means. Often, local agencies will charge fees only to tell you that they don’t have any home caregivers for you. Eventually, some families are forced to place their older adults in facilities, often at incredibly steep rates. The economic consequences of the staffing shortages in home care are massive.

The homecare industry is made up of a hodgepodge of nonprofit programs, publicly funded care, and for-profit businesses and chains, all of whom operate under federal and state regulations. There is also a gray market that caters to clients who want to avoid regulation and so hire privately.

Vicki Hoaqk, the Home Care Association of America’s executive director, says this is the most frustrating period in her 20-year career in the industry. It has never been so hard to find workers. The association is made up of 4,000 agencies and 500,000 people and yet, even then there is a struggle to help people get the workers they need.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the direct day care workforce shrunk by 342,000 workers in the last year. This includes nursing homes, as well as other home care and residential care staff. This reverses a long-held pattern in which employment rose in each category every year. The reason for the contraction in the labor force is that many workers were laid off, or workers resigned because of Covid-19 related fears or health problems, child care issues, and other issues.

Thankfully, employment in the home care industry rebounded toward the end of last year and is now just 3% off from its pre-pandemic levels. However, this rebound occurs at a time when there has been an explosion in demand for home care workers. Other healthcare categories, such as nursing home occupancy and assisted living, are in decline, whereas home care is on the rise. At present, there are over 800,000 older adults and disabled people, all eligible for Medicaid, and all on state waiting lists to receive home care. Those clients who are paying with private schemes or their own funds are being turned away by agencies. With the nightmare of Covid-19 receding, many people have taken the lesson that congregate care settings are less healthy and safe than home care. Resolving this crisis is one of the great challenges the country faces moving forward.

Beauty Tech Is Revolutionising the Cosmetics Industry

July 7, 2021 / Full Editorial

When people think of technology, they seldom associate it with cosmetics. Though the cosmetics industry can represent the art of the future and the possibilities of tomorrow, its use of science, technology, and research and development, including insurance for aesthetics, is often hidden from the public view. As technology has evolved, so too has cosmetics. The cosmetics industry has embraced the new wave of technology that is sweeping the world. “Beauty tech” is becoming an increasingly important part of how the cosmetics industry conducts research and development, delivers products to its customers, and tries to enrich the customer experience. As Know Techie reports, new technologies are set to revolutionize cosmetics.

One of the most important developments in recent years has been the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) and augmented reality (AR). These technologies assumed an even greater importance during the pandemic. As shoppers were forced to stay at home, cosmetics businesses had to adapt to deliver their products to their customers and find ways to recreate the magic of the in-store experience at a time when shoppers could not go to stores. AI and AR came to the rescue. AI uses data to find patterns and draw insights from those patterns and thereafter, perform some task. So, for instance, when you browse through a cosmetics firm’s website, it can recommend products based on your search and browsing history, purchases you have made and other data. AR, on the other hand, overlays actual reality with digital information. So, for instance, while shopping for lipstick, an AR program can take an image of you and apply lipstick on that image so you can see what you would look like if you wore that lipstick. Sephora’s 3-D augmented reality mirror allows customers to try Sephora’s makeup products in such a way, avoiding the need for actual physical contact with the product. A clear advantage of AR is that not only can brands deliver the in-store experience of trying products out, AR is much more sanitary at a time when the pandemic has made us so aware of the dangers of physical contact. AR is also much more cost-effective than maintaining an actual store. Customers can try products from anywhere on the planet using the brand’s app, and order what they like, without ever having to go to a physical store.

When you talk about skincare, most people think of moisturisers, cleansers and things like that. Brands will often promote these products as important elements of skincare, which they are. However, these products are not the be-all and end-all of skincare. Technologies and apps are becoming a very important part of skincare routines. These technologies can be used to analyse your skin and monitor UV exposure. SkinScanner is an example of a product that you connect to your smartphone. SkinScanner scans your skin and helps you find irregularities there. FaceGenius and Clinical reality are other examples of skin scanners that are now widely used. These technologies won’t do your eyebrow microblading for you, but they do allow you to intelligently scan your skin and ensure that it is at its healthiest.

How To Streamline Your App Development Workflow

June 11, 2021 / Full Editorial

As the shift to digital accelerates, the demand for new apps has surged. App developers face various challenges in meeting the market’s demands. There are funding constraints, a need to establish quality control systems, and other issues. The most immediate concern for app developers though, is how to work in an efficient and effective way. In this article, we will discuss how you can streamline your app development workflow in order to reduce development costs and speed up turn around times in your quest to build the next great app.

Start By Building a Code Library

Writing the actual code that will run your app is a vital part of your process, but it is a part of your process that takes up a big chunk of your time. For many app developers, they will be working from scratch, with very limited resources. Finding ways to write code efficiently is, then, very important.

So what you need to do is to catalog any existing code in a library. This will improve your productivity by reducing the amount of time that developers will need to write and test new code. All that will need to be done is to retrieve code from the library and use it where needed in future app development projects. Consequently, your turnaround times will dramatically improve.

Reduce your Data Storage Infrastructure

This sounds counterintuitive, because you often assume that the bigger your infrastructure, the better off you are. Yet having multiple databases only serves to increase the number of steps that your team has to go through to achieve their goals.

Duplication is a likely result of having multiple databases. Often, teams find that they have databases that they do not need or even use, all the while increasing your security risks. Using a single database to store resources is much wiser from a workflow as well as a security aspect. Students in the best STEAM and STEM programs will be familiar with the importance of optimization. Having more than one database is not the best way to achieve optimization.

Use Layouts of Pre-Existing Apps

Using templates seems to be an admission of some kind of defeat for many developers. Yet, as the great scientist Isaac Newton noted, in order to see far, you should stand on the shoulders of giants. Take advantage of app templates in order to make a better product and work even faster. Using what came before you and worked well will help with your workflow in ways that are often underestimated.

Layouts will come with source code, which means that you will be able to skip a developmental stage by simply using that source code instead of writing it from scratch. There’s no need to consider things like UI/UX design, because someone else has already worked through those problems for you and come up with a solution you clearly like.

Test! Test! Test!

Many apps fail because they are not rigorously tested. Developers kind of assume that their apps work well or that a few tests are enough to get an idea of the capabilities of the app. If you can test your app under the most extreme conditions, even if it seems unlikely that they will occur, you will be able to build a robust app that consumers will like.
Running continuous tests is a great way to ensure that problems are dealt with as they arise and you receive almost immediate feedback at each stage of development.

How To Deal With A Foreign Workforce Post-Pandemic

May 12, 2021 / Full Editorial

The COVID-19 pandemic has hit the world, and more than a year from its start date, we’re still trying to cope with the fallout. Workforces have evolved significantly since the start of the outbreak. With businesses forced to close thanks to rolling lockdown situations, they had to get creative about hiring and maintaining their workers. CNBC notes that many people started seeing working from home part-time as the norm during the pandemic. Even so many businesses opted to furlough employees. These workers would be kept in reserve for when lockdowns eased, and businesses were once again allowed to open. Other companies opted for hiring remote freelancers to replace those they lost because of the pandemic. In a post-pandemic world, however, how does a business deal with an ever-increasing international workforce?

An International Worker Crisis

While many people would be acutely aware of North America’s situation, we tend to lose focus on the fact that the pandemic was a worldwide event. From Indonesia to Argentina, the world has seen workers lose their jobs because of dwindling business income and finding reskilling necessary. McKinsey even suggests that businesses should look into reskilling their existing workforce if they are to survive the pandemic. In places that are already low on population, such as Japan and Canada, the need for new migrants to build out the workforce becomes even more critical. With several less economically developed countries facing the pinch of a contracting economy, there’s likely to be a wave of incoming immigration to more economically developed countries.

The Freelancer Equation

Due notes that many big businesses much prefer to hire freelancers because it helps them to manage their costs more effectively. Over the last year, we’ve seen several more people enter the so-called ‘gig economy” to make ends meet. Even so, established freelancers exist in several countries. In 2018, Payoneer, an international payment processor popular with freelancers, surveyed 21,000 workers from over 170 countries globally. Inc. mentions that from this survey, they discovered that 80% of freelancers have between one to three projects going on at the same time.

Freelancers fill a void, and businesses will rely on them more often as they start paring down their in-person workforce. Hiring internationally can still be a headache, especially when local tax regulations may not conform with the employer’s home country. Freelancers work around this issue by allowing them to operate as independent contractors. The business doesn’t keep them as an employee. Instead, they are a separate entity responsible for their own tax filing and details to their local authorities. This simplification makes it much easier (and less stressful) to manage a freelance workforce than one that’s made up of salaried workers. Overseas, the operation cost may be much lower, as may the amount needed to fund staff. However, running afoul of local legislation may be more trouble than it’s worth. If a company intends to go the freelancer route, they may pay more per job but wouldn’t need to keep an eye on the changing local labor legislation. For many, this is an acceptable trade-off.

International Expansion and Acquiring Workers

For businesses intending to expand internationally, locating a local workforce is a challenge. Compliance is always a concern when it comes to international hires. Companies used to how North America does things may have a rude awakening if they move to countries like those in South America where strict labor law is imposed upon businesses intending to operate there, especially if they’re looking to operate in the world of Legacy Countertops and laser treatments. There are solutions that companies may choose to employ, such as executive search firms, the “executive search” process, the freelancer hiring methodology mentioned above, or alternatively, a business could opt for the Employer of Record solution instead.

What is an Employer of Record?

An Employer of Record is a solution that enables international companies to access a local workforce through a proxy. The proxy could be an employment agency or a contact on the ground responsible for recruitment and interviewing. Once the candidate has made it through the interview process and is hired, the Employer of Record takes over the relationship as the primary contact. Once they do this, the Employer of Record is responsible for HR, employment benefits, etc., and the end-client company only needs to deal with day-to-day operations. Employer of Record solutions are useful for several reasons:

§ More Rapid Expansion into New Markets: If a business wants to enter a new market rapidly, using the Employer of Record method allows them to get their business up and running faster. There’s no need to go through the lengthy process of registering a local imprint of the company and the bureaucracy associated with that process. The EOR allows for compliance in that particular local market and doesn’t take excess time to set up.

§ Expansion Costs are Reduced: Businesses entering new international markets usually have to deal with paying fees for registration, rentals, offices, etc. The money allocated to a global expansion may be significant, but if the business doesn’t need to throw that money into these areas, it could be used to do more. EOR solutions enable an enterprise to reduce the cost of entry into a new market since they just need to establish contact with the client company on the ground and build a relationship. The client company handles all the local expenses while the parent company keeps their funding for more viable purposes.

§ Compliance With Local Laws: As mentioned before, compliance is one of the hardest things to guarantee when a business expands into an international market. Local legislation is fluid, and where a market suffers from protectionist measures, they may be draconian. It would be easier for a local company to set up than an international business to get a foothold. EOR solutions ensure that the parent company can still operate within the country without dealing with the red tape associated with the company’s legal status. All employees would similarly be compliant since they would function under the client-end business registered within the country.

§ Allows For Non-Core Functionality Outsourcing: Typically, a business has certain core functionalities. When it expands into international markets, outsourcing non-core functionalities helps them keep the essential parts of the business in-house, where they can focus on perfecting those processes. Outsourcing also enables the business to operate with less risk in some jurisdictions. There’s no need for the company to ensure compliance with local payroll requirements or submit to labor laws within the country. They can focus their home office on core functionalities and outsource to the end-client business in the international locale.

A Changing Employment World

To say that the world has shifted its focus from traditional employment would be an understatement. Between freelancing and international EOR companies, there is a significant amount of work being done overseas for local businesses. For some people, this is seen as a negative. It results in an outflow of funds from the country, potentially impacting the local economy. However, as the world becomes more globalized, this is less of a concern. If international workers have the skills, then businesses shouldn’t hesitate to take them up on their offers. Establishing these relationships with international workers may become even more of a vital function as time goes on.

How Does Local SEO Work?

May 4, 2021 / Full Editorial

The internet has widely been seen as a way for businesses to reach a global audience. What is often ignored is that it is also a way for businesses to more effectively reach potential consumers within their vicinity. Local search engine optimization (SEO) is a powerful tool that is neglected as businesses chase far-flung consumers. Yet, mobile searches qualified by the phrase, “near me” have grown by 900%. Consumers are hungry for information about goods and services near them. That’s an opportunity that you cannot afford to miss.

Explaining Local SEO

Local SEO refers to the optimization of a website for local search results. The web content, the link building and the on-page optimization are enriched with locally relevant content. This is particularly powerful if your business is naturally focused on serving your immediate community.

SEO itself refers to optimization of your website so that your page ranks improves. Local SEO is more granular. Rather than optimizing your content against the universe of service providers in your industry, you optimize based on your location.

How Local SEO Works

Optimizing your website with locally relevant content, links and on-page optimizations sends Google a signal that you want to attract people who are interested in receiving a service within a certain locale. Aside from this, local SEO is similar to “normal” SEO. So, when a person searches for goods and services with a qualifier “near me”, Google scans its page index for the best results and spits out pages based on its page ranking. The better optimize your content, the higher up the search results you will feature.

Google uses various criteria to help it give the user the right results. It looks at NAP citations; the number of times users have “checked in” to a locale; the Google Maps ratings of businesses; the Google My Business keywords; online reviews and keywords; the amount of content shared on social media; and if your business has a Google My Business listing.

Presence of your Google My Business listing

Google and other search engines also view the technical part of your website pages. They look through your LocalBusiness Schema Markup. This element makes it clear to Google that you’re a local business aiming for the areas you serve.

Why Local SEO Is Important

The best search engine optimization services will help you do well and rank highly on search results based on the above metrics. This means you will be able to capture more clients interested in goods and services in a particular location. Often, when people want to get goods and services in a particular location, they also want to get other goods and services there. In other words, they will have many reasons to be in that location. So you just may have a repeat customer on your hands. And, that person is likely to know other people in that area, meaning leads for you.

You should pay more attention to customers who want to buy in your vicinity. These are low hanging fruits that you cannot afford to ignore. ALl kinds of businesses can increase sales by tapping into local SEO. A whopping 88% of consumers who use location qualifiers in their searches make related searches within a week.

How To End Your Business Legally

May 3, 2021 / Full Editorial

When your business has come to the end of its active life, you need to close off its operations legally. The Houston Chronicle tells us that the term for this process is known as “Dissolving”. Dissolving a company is a simple process for a sole proprietorship. However, as a business’s structure gets more complicated, it takes some more effort to ensure that a business stops existing as a legal entity. When dissolving your company, there are the legal steps you need to take:

LLC/Corporation Action

The board of directors would draft and then approve the resolution to dissolve the corporation. When the resolution is tabled, the shareholders will vote on it. The results of the voting should be entered into the corporate record book. WHile not strictly necessary, documenting the overall decision and the attitude of members to the dissolution is recommended.

Filing the Paperwork

Once the resolution for dissolution has passed, the company must file the documents to dissolve the company in the state where the business was initially incorporated. If the company operates across state borders, then each jurisdiction that the company is present in must also be advised of its dissolution. The requirements for the articles of dissolution vary from state to state. In some cases, a state legislature will require the business to settle claims and notify creditors before it files for dissolution.

In other cases, these steps can come after the dissolution filing has already been submitted. Some states need the company to have tax clearance before they can file for dissolution. If the company owes taxes to the state, these must first be dealt with before it can file for dissolution.

It is of course preferable to sell the business instead of dissolving it, as this benefits all of the owners by providing some profit according to business broker and advisers at ExitAdviser. Having the proper documents needed for selling a business are just as crucial as if you were to dissolve it.

Formalizing Business Closure at the Federal level

Even though the business is no longer in operation, its tax obligations don’t immediately stop. You need to formalize the closing with the IRS and with taxation officials at the state level. The IRS itself has provided a checklist for closing a business that allows you to check off each action as you complete it. Payroll reporting obligations will apply if you have workers that are registered under the company.

Most IRS forms will come with a checkbox that you can utilize if this is your last year in operation. You’re also required to make a note of the property you dispose of (and who it went to) as well as any like-kind exchanges that you’re undertaking on behalf of the business.

Another point to remember is that your EIN remains valid, even though the business is shut down. The IRS does not recycle EIN numbers, and once you get one, that number remains associated with your business, even if that business is no longer in operation. Even if you stop using the EIN for tax filings, and no revenue is received from the business that the EIN is registered to, the IRS will never reassign the EIN to another company. Each newly filed company gets an EIN of their very own, and the number is a permanent record of their tax payments. If the business reincorporates at a later date, the EIN may be reused for tax payments.

Notify Creditors of Closure

In all states, you are required to inform your creditors by mail about the business’s closure. The letter you send should state that the company intends to dissolve, a mailing address to send their claims to, all information included in a request, and the deadline for submitting the claim. Furthermore, the letter should state that claims not received by the deadline (usually 120 days after closure) will not be entertained. Some states require businesses that are closing to declare their intention to close in the local paper.

There are situations where your state may allow claims from creditors that your business isn’t aware of at the time of closure. In these cases, you may be required to place an advertisement in the local paper to let everyone know about the closure of the business. If you’re unsure about if your state allows for this situation, consult a local lawyer for insight into whether you need to advertise the closure.

Settling Claims from Creditors

When the business has ceased operations, creditors may make claims on the business’s assets. Based on the level of debt that the company has to the creditor, he or she may be entitled to some of the business’s holdings’ best corporate meeting spaces. If you have to reject creditor claims, you must write to the creditor and outline why you had to reject their requests.

You don’t need to accept all of a creditor’s claims either. If a creditor has a claim, he or she may decide to settle for less of the claim, or a transfer of assets in lieu of any monetary payments owed to him or her. In most cases, a business can discuss the situation with the creditor and work out a settlement. In many cases, the settlement is likely to be in favor of the business.

Distribution of Assets

When all of the creditors’ claims are settled, the business can distribute assets to company owners based on the share of their ownership. If a particular owner holds 80% of the company’s stock, for example, he or she is entitled to 80% of the assets left over after the dissolution of the company and payments to creditors have been settled.

All of a business’s asset distribution must be reported to the IRS as we noted above. If your business has multiple classes of stock, then the company bylaws will usually help determine how the remaining assets are to be distributed to the shareholders.

Closing Up Shop

Sometimes, you need to shut down your business for any number of reasons. It happens to some owners from time to time. Protecting your personal assets from creditors is a crucial part of being a smart business owner. Don’t be discouraged. With time, you may chance upon a new idea that will be even better than the unsustainable one.

What You Can Use Email Software For

November 30, 2020 / Full Editorial

Email software is about more than just sending and receiving messages from coworkers, friends, and brands. Many email platforms actually help streamline your experience so you can spend less time trudging through your inbox and more time getting work done. Today, we’ll walk you through some of the features you can take advantage of by using email clients.

Save time with automated messages and templates.

Email correspondences often involve sending out the same or very similar messages to many different people. Instead of spending time typing out each and every one, email clients let you create and use templates for these kinds of emails, which you can set up to be sent automatically in certain situations. For example, automated confirmations or out-of-office messages. You can also schedule individual emails to be sent out at a specific time.

This technology makes things like email campaigns especially easy to set up, as you simply have to create a template and the system will auto-fill necessary information for each person the message is sent to.

Similarly, some email marketing software will allow you to instantly schedule meetings by sending someone a calendar with possible meeting times. They just click on the date and time that works for them and the meeting is scheduled. This eliminates the hassle of going back and forth with your contact for several messages as you negotiate a good time for an event. It all happens with just a few clicks.

Keep track of your conversations.

Email tracking software allows you to see when the recipient has read your message or interacted with any links or downloaded any attachments in the email. Based on this information, the email client can also provide statistics like clickthrough and reply rates for the emails you’ve sent. These make it easy to see how successful an email campaign is at attracting potential contacts or, for individual messages, helps you determine if you should send a follow-up message or not.

On that topic, email clients also give you the ability to set follow-up reminders. If you received an email that you need to reply to but don’t have time to do so right at that moment, you can tell the platform to remind you to reply at a time that’s more convenient for you.

Manage emails without Internet access.

Many email clients are apps that you install directly onto your computer. They download the emails onto your device, so you don’t need to be connected to the Internet to be able to read, organize, and in some cases, even respond to them. This can be especially useful for people who are on the go a lot, or if your Internet connection isn’t very reliable. You can still be sure you have access to important information, and because the emails are saved directly on your device, you can access them anytime.

Easily get rid of spam emails.

Instead of having all of your emails go into the same inbox, email clients will often automatically sort suspicious-looking emails into separate folders, such as a spam folder. But if those emails still manage to get through, they’ll let you easily unsubscribe from newsletters or mailing lists with one click. If you’re getting tired of dealing with a cluttered inbox due to all the spam, this is a great tool to help you.

All in all, email clients are incredibly useful pieces of software that will help make your online life a little less chaotic. Instead of having to slog through a lot of emails every day, you’ll be able to quickly find the ones that are actually important and get to work a lot faster.

How effective is online tutoring

November 26, 2020 / Full Editorial

Not everyone can be the smartest person in any class. Some of you might have difficulty in a certain subject. That doesnt mean youre dumb, it just means you need a little extra help is all. Never let anyone make you feel like you’re not smart. There are many students that at one point or another need that extra help in a certain subject. This is what tutors are for. If tutors were not necessary there wouldn’t be entire companies dedicated solely to teaching and tutoring. Tutors are a great resource to have. Although it is different now than in the past due to the pandemic we are currently facing, you now have to have access to online tutors. How effective is online tutoring though? I’m sure it’s not the same as physically having someone in front of you but online tutoring is something you really need to adapt to if you really need it.

Tutoring, if done right however, offers highly effective results. Parents pay a lot of money for tutoring for their kids. It’s important that parents match the right tutor with their kids. Online tutoring and education options are often more reasonably priced than their in-person counterparts. So there is one plus about online tutoring. Part of what makes tutoring and one-on-one teaching especially effective is knowledge: knowledge of common misconceptions, common weak areas, understanding how to diagnose what’s holding a student back, and knowing strategies to address those misconceptions.

Due to Covid and the closure of most schools, a lot of kids are falling behind in their learning. This is why parents now more than ever are seeking out online tutors. Parents want to help their kids stay up to date with all of their studies. So they hire tutors and because of Covid everything has to be done online. Although not as effective as face to face tutoring, Online tutoring will have to do for now.

Online tutors are very easy to find. All you have to do is search on the internet and you will be surprised at how many online tutors you’ll actually find. With the right online tutor, learning could be as effective as face to face tutoring. Like with everything else, the student must be open about it and really want to learn. Online tutoring can be extremely effective. There is no need to stress over the fact that you can meet with your tutor face to face. You need to learn to adapt to the current situations the world throws at us. As with everything else you have to do what you have to do in order to survive. If you have to meet your tutor online just make the best of it and accept the fact that this is the way it has to be now

No one likes change but sometimes it’s necessary for your growth. You will need to adapt to many things during your lifetime. Having an online tutor is not bad and can be as effective as face to face tutoring. You have to be open to the fact that times change and you have to change along with it. If someone wants to learn they are going to learn. It doesn’t matter if it is with an online tutor. Teach your kids that sometimes things aren’t how we would want them to be. This is a way of teaching your kids that in life you don’t always get what you want and need to adjust and make the best out of every situation you face. You’re lucky there is online tutoring. It is better than not having access to tutoring at all. Take advantage of the resources you do have. You never know, your kids might enjoy online tutoring better. Happy learning. God bless!

How to Give Your Child a Future

October 21, 2020 / Full Editorial

Your efforts to give your child a future start from the moment you welcome him or her to this world. Among those efforts, education is always at the top of the list. Every age brings its own educational challenges. But teen years are an excellent time to develop new skills that will serve them to enjoy a great future.

Some of the best skills they can obtain come from coding classes for teens. These types of courses contain coding fundamentals arranged according to a fair level of difficulty for their age and experience. They can progress and reach college-level coding even before entering college.

Why should your child learn to code?

Many refer to coding as the career of the future. However, it seems that the future is already here because coders are in high demand. Besides developing programs and apps, the emerging of Artificial Intelligence and machine learning increased the need for these professionals. As a result, the salaries, job opportunities, and other benefits are also higher than they are in other fields.

Benefits of coding classes for teens

Teenagers can obtain multiple benefits that may be personal or academic. These types of benefits can mold their future, depending on how skillful they become with the resources. Some of those benefits include the following:

Expand the perception of the world: Despite the fact that we are always surrounded by technology, it is also true that we are not aware of what is behind that. With coding classes, teens will be able to go deeper into the origin of the technology.

Improve self-confidence: Learning a new skill will boost the self-confidence of any teenager. And, since coding skills are highly on-demand, it will do it even more.

Improve problem-solving skills for life: Although problem-solving skills are initially thought of for coding issues, those abilities can also be applied for real-life situations. Hence, teenagers who learn how to code will add extra skills for their entire life.

Coding improves interpersonal skills: Some people might think that coding is only about to sit down in front of a computer and work alone. But that is not true at all. In fact, is quite the opposite. Although it requires working with a computer, coders need to develop collaboration, communication, and other ways to relate with their peers.

Improve creativity: By learning to code, teenagers learn to explore what they can do with it. The results are aligned with creating new apps, games, and many other resources that will require them to expand their creativity.
Increase chances to get admitted to universities: By acquiring the ability to code with all its benefits, they also increase their chances to get admitted to the college for the career they select. Certainly, coding skills are a desirable skill for any university.

Your children might get a lot of benefits if they learn to code. With all these benefits in mind, it is easy to conclude that they are getting the keys to their future.

Exploring other tech resources for teens

Coding is a skill that is applied by itself. However, it is also a base of knowledge for other tech-related activities such as video, audio, and many other management tasks. As a result, if your children realize that they do not want to code, they will still be able to leverage their skills for other activities. Moreover, they can apply them at a personal level to solve their problems in daily situations.

Final words

As the world advances, technology also advances. To keep the pace of such developments, including coding skills, is a major addition that is worthy of exploring. Although your teens don´t want to dedicate all their efforts to develop a career as coders, having the ability to do it will improve their opportunities to succeed in any other field.

What Is the Most Effective Work Email Product?

October 14, 2020 / Full Editorial

Too busy? Can’t handle your emails? Use the best work email product. Yet, to keep your vendors drawn in, you’ll need substantially more than that. In a perfect world, your emails will be something that they anticipate pursuing, so they’ll remember your business in any event, when they’re not yet prepared to purchase.

These emails’ objective is more for marking and narrating, as opposed to straightforwardly making a deal. Their motivation is to keep endorsers intrigued and drawn in with the brand, in any event, when they aren’t in a purchasing temperament.

Clients can likewise set updates for when to catch up on an email and timetable when they need their messages to send, if not right away. The application additionally holds messages quickly with the goal that clients can “undo send”.

Features of the best email work product:

Email Tracking

Email tracking implies checking opens and snaps of emails to catch up with drives, work candidates, and accomplices. It might then be alluded to as checking the measurements of your email marketing efforts to improve their quality and proficiency.

You could utilize this tool for enrollment and third party referencing to spare time and realize when to develop with more emails if the beneficiary opened the email, however, never replied. They might have neglected to answer, or something might have upset their consideration.

Email Management

Email management is a particular field of interchange management for overseeing high volumes of inbound electronic mail received by associations. Today, email management is a fundamental segment of client assistance management. Client assistance call focuses on utilizing email reaction management specialists alongside phone uphold operators and ordinarily use programming answers for overseeing emails.

One of the key errands performed by email management frameworks is to assign reference numbers to every single approaching email. This cycle is known as tagging. All resulting emails identifying with one issue would then be able to be gathered under a similar reference. This permits clients to follow their correspondence in an additional time successful and profitable way.

Adds labels to each email for additional handling and may incorporate the capacity to associate with far-off information bases and recover explicit data about the email creator and his/her exchanges with the association.

Meeting Management

The target of these emails is more for checking and describing, instead of direct creation and arrangement. Their inspiration is to keep endorsers fascinated and attracted by the brand, regardless, when they aren’t in a buying demeanor.

You and the beneficiary can allude to the email later for insights regarding the meeting, for example, area, time, place, contact data or the purpose behind the meeting.
You and the beneficiary can quickly move the subtleties of the meeting to a schedule or sorting application with only a couple clicks.
An email can contain connections to RSVPs and headings.
An email permits you to control the precision of the time, spot and date of the meeting. At the point when you verbally arrange a gathering, there is an opportunity of blunder in note-taking.

Task Management

Task management is the way toward dealing with an undertaking through its life cycle. It includes arranging, testing, tracking, and detailing. Task management can enable either individual to accomplish objectives or gatherings of people work together and share information to achieve aggregate objectives.

Viable task management requires dealing with all parts of an undertaking, including its status, need, time, human and money related assets tasks, repeat, reliance, notices, etc. These can be lumped together extensively into the fundamental exercises of assignment management.

Now, you don’t have to work for yourself by using the best email product to get your tasks done.