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10 Benefits of Video Marketing for Small Businesses

Last Updated on May 26, 2022 By Ifama Leave a Comment

Video marketing is no longer a novel concept, and many small businesses seem to have a hold on this type of marketing. With the gradual decrease in the price of video equipment and software, it has become much easier for any small business to foray into video marketing. If you are new to video marketing, you need not worry about it being an expensive and complex affair.

Some initial planning and a dose of original creativity are all it takes to create videos that appeal to viewers. Undoubtedly, video marketing is here to stay. With businesses of all shapes and sizes jumping onto the video marketing bandwagon, the quality of your videos plays a huge role in attracting and retaining viewers. In this blog, we list out some of the benefits of video marketing for small businesses:

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10 Benefits of Video Marketing for Small Businesses

1. Higher Ranking on SERP

YouTube is the second most visited website after Google and can be termed the second most popular search engine. There are close to 2 billion users on this free video platform. Little wonder then that YouTube is a sought-after video platform by marketers. To put things in perspective, YouTube has the potential for unmatched reach to a broad global audience that directly translates to potential buyers searching for your product or “solution.”

It is an established fact that most search engine users never go past the first page on SERP. To increase your chances of landing on the first page of Google results, it is a good idea to add video content on YouTube. This increases your probability of being discovered by new users as search engines are known to prioritize video content on the SERP.

2. Increased Brand Awareness

One of the best ways to increase brand awareness through video marketing is to upload videos on YouTube. With close to 2 billion users and a watch time of 250 million hours every day, the power of video marketing on the free video platform is unmatched.

Once your content gains traction on the platform, it can do wonders for your brand awareness and sales thereafter. Such videos can be easily made with an online video maker that comes with an interactive and beginner-friendly interface.

3. Best Medium to Acquire Information

Today, people are completely involved in their fast-paced lifestyle and do not have the luxury of time. This has resulted in diminishing attention spans, where people are averse to written content and are more inclined to watch videos.

Regardless of the complexity of the subject, a combination of audio and video provides an immersive experience that provides much better knowledge retention than any other medium. This makes it the best medium to disseminate information and provides better insight and a refined view of the product. The best way to make such impactful videos is through an online video maker with good UI and UX.

4. Improves Digital Presence

Currently, it is tough for a small business to survive without an online presence. With the help of video marketing, a small business stands a much better chance of being seen and heard by the audience. Video not only improves brand recall but can also prompt viewers to take action after they view the entire video, often even before the video ends. There are options to prompt viewers to share the video link of the content, vastly increasing the digital presence of the brand and the associated product.

5. Increases the Click-through Rate

It could seem tempting to attach the video content to your email campaign. However, the increased size of the email would get it filtered into the spam folder. Instead, create a thumbnail of the video and redirect the customers to the source of the video, which could be your website or landing page. This is one of the best ways to increase click-through rates.

6. Improves Social Engagement

In recent times, it has become increasingly pertinent for the brand to have a social presence. The bigger the presence, the better the brand awareness. To increase social media presence, it is prudent to create videos for different video platforms to enable the customer to connect directly with the brand and product. Furthermore, if they like the product, there is always the prospect of the brand’s word spreading far and wide. In case you are wondering how to make such videos, they can be easily made with an online video maker available from several new companies.

7. Promotes Trust

The great advantage of video marketing is that it can directly appeal to the audience’s emotions. This is vital for a small business to create that all-important connection with the audience. Such connections can reinforce trust in the brand and create loyally and repeat customers. There are numerous ways to cement this trust, including testimonials, behind-the-scenes perspectives, etc.

8. Improves Understanding of the Product

There are many concepts or products that cannot be explained well with a text or any other medium. With such products, it is always a safe bet to create videos, specifically product demo videos. This gives the audience a chance to better understand the product before they make the purchase decision.

Another way of doing this is through explainer videos where you explain how your product solves the problem and fits into the overall picture. Increased understanding will naturally translate to improved sales.

9. Increases Sales

There are validated figures that point to the fact that companies that carry out video marketing outshine the companies that don’t. Video content has the potential to convert a cold audience through landing pages, email campaigns, or social media presence. Although the initial capital investment tends to be high in some cases, the company can easily recoup the amount once they have the video marketing in motion.

10. Video can Provide Critical Metrics

Having created your video marketing campaigns, it’s natural that you would be eager to measure its performance and impact. All video platforms come with analytics that allows you to delve into the performance of the video in close detail. Such data points will allow you to fine-tune and refine your future strategy and give insights into the target audience.

Final Thoughts

Video marketing is a strategy that is not going away anytime soon. So, if you are a small business, do not wait to start with video marketing. Else, there is a good chance of your competition doing it better and grabbing the lion’s share of the market. That being said, it is also pertinent for marketers to think originally and come up with concepts that leave a mark and strike a chord with the audience without which it is hard to succeed with video marketing.

Instagram Marketing: Note These Principles Down Before Starting

Last Updated on May 26, 2022 By Ifama Leave a Comment

Business and marketing go hand in hand. These days, the best platforms to market products or services are social media platforms. Particularly, Instagram has risen to be a great app for all things business, advertising, and brand awareness. And if you know how to maximize the platform, you will get plenty of conversion benefits.

Instagram marketing is all about promoting your brand on Instagram to increase awareness and improve sales. It is the strategy by which businesses can reach their target audience.

Understanding how Instagram works will put you in a better position to run and market your small business successfully on the platform. Before you start your business on Instagram, you should acquaint yourself with some principles.

These principles will steer you in the right direction.

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Instagram Marketing Principles To Note Before Starting Your Business

1. Research

It’s a jungle out there on the streets of Instagram and only the informed survive. Thankfully, all the information you need about your potential clients is readily available. You just have to do some research to find them out and channel them for your brand growth on Instagram.

Start by studying your industry, and then learn about your target audience. Figure out what people want from your brand. Running surveys is a good tactic to do this.

Ideally, you want your products and services to proffers solutions to the problems your customers face. But the only way to find out about your customers’ problems is by researching. Study the demographics that suit your brand. Also, the age range of your target audience, their gender, and their location matter, especially when you’re about to run targeted ads.

Another important tactic is to find out about your competitors and see the things they do differently. Make notes about the mistakes and positive actions taken by top brands. And make sure to use them while designing your own Instagram marketing campaigns.

2. Listen

After proper research and survey, you need to listen to your target audience. It’s useless to research only to ignore all your findings, especially those you can use to help your audience. Remember that you are there for your followers, not just for yourself or your personal gain.

From the notes, you make while researching, see how you can implement steps to cater to your audience. For example, if people complain about poor customer service, then you should make sure your brand provides a quick and helpful response to customers.

2. Participate or Interact

Instagram accommodates communication and interaction between users. Before the social media era, there was a limitation to brand-customer interaction. You either had to send an email or make a long inconvenient call to a customer care service. However, things have changed and it’s way easier to reach brands via their DMs and get quick replies.

To successfully run a business on Instagram, you must interact with your audience. Comments and DMs shouldn’t go without a fast reply from you. Like, share, and comment on your follower’s posts especially if they relate to your brand. Your captions should encourage your audience to participate or give their opinions in the comment section.

Customers want brands that they can reach out to or connect with. So to become that brand, you must increase participation and interaction with your audience.

3. Build

This principle is not mandating a brick-and-mortar location. Nope! It simply means that you should build a community for your brand. Your business needs a loyal customer base, also called a community, that will support your business.

A brand community will help you gain more awareness. Imagine you have an amazing following that shares your posts or tags friends to follow you, your growth will be explosive! This is why some users buy Instagram followers and likes. It increases their community and also their engagements and gets them the favor of the algorithm.

4. Reward

Rewarding your consistent customers or loyal followers can give you headway. People have the motivation to interact or make purchases when there is something more to gain. Giveaways and discounts are excellent marketing strategies. They bring practical results as you will see in follower counts, engagement rates, and sales.

Occasionally, make giveaway posts to encourage your audience’s participation. Ask your followers to tag their friends and follow you. Give discounts on products and services. You will find that more people will make purchases because an item has a 20% discount.

5. Measurements and Analytics

Businesses, regardless of their mode of operation, always need to analyze their performance. Measuring your progress will guide you in designing future strategies. From analytics, you get to see what works best and what doesn’t.

You should evaluate how well your content on Instagram reaches the right audience. All these will help you see how you can turn visitors into customers. The task of analysis will be easy if you work with an analytics platform or software. Already, Instagram has the insight feature that is an asset in this area.

6. Empower

As your business grows on Instagram, it may become tedious to run it all by yourself. As such, you should consider hiring people with social media management skills. Empower your business with the necessary skill sets.

Since Instagram is a visual platform, you can invest in a camera, a professional photographer, and a graphic designer. As you grow, make your Instagram posts better.

Not every business can afford to employ a social media manager or designer. If your business is a small one with a little budget, don’t worry. There are other things you can do to improve your Instagram page. Here are some helpful tips:

Look out for Instagram updates so that you can use the latest business features.
Bring into play editing apps and software like VSCO, Snapseed, Lightroom, etc.
Graphic design apps like Canva can be beneficial.

6. Collaborate and Partner

To thrive on Instagram, you must consider partnerships with other brands and creators. This is where influencers can help. Instagram influencers can help you make sales and increase the reach of your brand.

By venturing into a partnership, you are opening doors for more followers and engagement. Even as a small business, you can partner with nano-influencers. Do Instagram stories takeover, collab posts, paid partnerships, etc.

7. Share and Promote

Your brand needs recognition and awareness to generate leads and make conversions. Sharing and promoting your brand in any way possible can bring the awareness you desire. Let people know that you have a business. Below are two tips to help you with business promotion:

Run Instagram ads or campaigns: ads are well targeted to ensure that the right demographics see your sponsored posts. Examples of Instagram ads are image ads, carousel ads, video ads, stories ads, and shoppable or collection ads. Choose an ad type based on your ad objective. If you wish to boost sales, try out shoppable or collection ads.

Promote your Instagram page on other social media sites, blogs, and websites: On your Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest profiles, you can put in your Instagram profile URL. Users on these platforms can connect with you on Instagram using your link. If you have a blog or website, you can also embed an Instagram post in your blog content.

In Conclusion

Your marketing strategy can make or mar your business on Instagram. For this reason, you need to employ the best methods and approach.

Listen, engage, partner, analyze and share. Also, be open to new updates and trends from Instagram and see how to use them. As you start your Instagram business, make sure you tick all principles we have highlighted.

7 Tips for New Truck Drivers

Last Updated on May 26, 2022 By Ayesha Saeed Leave a Comment

Being a newbie in any field can be challenging, and it can get hard to find your best way to proceed with the role assigned. But it can get a lot easier when you have pros and seniors there to advise you for every step you take in service. Hence to make your truck driving job easy, here are some tips for new truck drivers. These tips will work best for you in different jobs, also the ones listed in CDL jobs.

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Tips from Pros to the New Truck Drivers

1. You will Never Get it Perfect Right Away

Like everything else you do in life, it will be impossible to be 100% perfect on your first day at work. You won’t know everything about this role when you become one of those pro haulers. You will be learning many things with time and by giving your hundreds and thousands of hours on the wheel. And after that, you will be one of the pros and will be able to ace your job.

2. You will go through a Lot of Mental Pressure

People who come to this industry may think that they will be sitting for hours in one place and simply be shifting the pedals. But this isn’t even the tip of the iceberg. Instead, the insiders claim that there are mental hurdles such as loneliness, stress, and a lot bigger challenges at your door to challenge with. By facing all of these, you will be able to become a great asset to the trucking industry.

3. Know what you want

A few truckers come to this business without any particular goal for what they want from this field. It will help you have some specific goals in your mind before you search for truck driving jobs in CDL jobs.

4. Be Organized

While someone who hasn’t started their work may not think about this, there is a lot to keep track of when you are hitting the road. Even after the EDL revolution happened in the industry, truckers need to document all aspects of their activity, such as saving receipts. This will help have a system in place, and it will also keep your cab as neat as possible.

5. Don’t put Blind Trust in your GPS

GPS devices surely have made the lives of many truckers a lot easier, but helping them plot the best routes, these maps are still a step behind. There are many stories where experienced drivers get guided down the roads when they have no idea where they are headed.

6. Build a Strong Relationship with the Dispatcher

The new truckers mostly have a low man over the totem pole kind of treatment. This is natural for all businesses. If you build a rapport with a strong relationship with the dispatcher, they will most likely be willing to assist you as you are devoting yourself to this industry.

7. Build Plans Always to Stay Healthy

Health is wealth is mostly believed by people who aren’t healthy. People with no illnesses take their health for granted, and hence if you step into this field, make sure you have a proper plan for remaining healthy. It can be a physical toll on your body with time, and hence you will have to make the most suitable plan for you.

These are truck drivers’ tips that you should know about and make sure you are keeping yourself and the people around you safe. You can get your job hunt started from CDL jobs and will surely secure a strong position.

What is Microsoft Azure Administrator Certification, and How can it Benefit You?

Last Updated on May 25, 2022 By hamza Leave a Comment

Microsoft Azure is a popular cloud-computing platform designed by Microsoft to provide services like storing files and data online, conducting meetings online, etc. A potential issue that some may encounter with Azure is its fee structure, which has been criticized by numerous analysts in the past year. In some programming languages, the cost of running the program alone can be more than the original cost in monetary terms. This article discusses how Azure Administrator Certification could be of good use for professionals and tech enthusiasts who are striving to maximize their knowledge of software like Microsoft Azure.

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What is the Microsoft Azure Administrator Certification?

If you are looking for a way to improve your technical skills, consider taking the Microsoft Azure Administrator course. This certification offers leaders, managers, and technical professionals the ability to help manage Azure clouds, services, and applications.

The Azure Administrator Certification is a globally respected certification for those who want to know how to design, deploy, operate, monitor, and manage Azure clouds and services. The certification provides you with the foundation you need to succeed in a role managing Azure deployments.

The Microsoft Azure Administrator Certification is available in three levels: basic, intermediate, and advanced. Level One provides the fundamental knowledge needed to administer Azure Clouds and Services. Level Two builds on this knowledge with more comprehensive coverage of features such as Active Directory authentication, role-based authentication, performance, and scaling best practices. Level Three delivers expert-level knowledge by covering advanced topics such as secure access control lists (ACLs), Windows Server deployment in Azure, and disaster recovery planning for Office 365.

Benefits of the Course

The Microsoft Azure Administrator Certification has many benefits. These benefits include increasing your career opportunities, increasing your salary, and earning accreditation from Microsoft. This course will help you become familiar with Azure and, most importantly, will prepare you for the SY0-401 certification exam. The SY0-401 Exam covers core topics in Azure, such as deploying an on-premises server to Azure, managing user permissions, and creating a storage account. Passing the exam will validate your knowledge of Azure and allow you to pursue the certifications such as MCSE: Cloud Platform and Enterprise Administrator (MCSA: Citrix XenApp 6.5), which could lead to a higher salary.

Additionally, the Azure Administrator Certification validates your skill set for working with cloud-based solutions such as Office 365, Skype for Business, Dynamics CRM Online, Intune, and Azure AD. As a result, it can help you attract potential employers who are searching for individuals with experience managing cloud-based solutions.

The benefits of taking the course are clear. However, if you are looking to become certified and further increase your earning potential, be sure to consider our Microsoft Azure Administrator Certification Course!

Microsoft AZ 80 Certification Exam

The Microsoft Azure Administrator Certification is a certification that proves that you have the skills needed to administer Microsoft Azure. These skills include understanding how Azure works, setting up and managing various aspects of Azure, and disaster recovery planning.

The certification is valid for both cloud-based and on-premises deployments of Microsoft Azure. It can also be helpful if you want to work in a company that uses Microsoft Azure services. The certification also has benefits outside of the IT world. For example, it can help you when you are searching for a new job.

Microsoft AZ certification exams are available in two formats: online and live. The online exams are offered at no cost and take about two hours to complete. The live exams are offered at a fee and involve attending an event or class. They usually last for around three days.

Benefits of Microsoft AZ 80 Certification (Course Training)

If you’re interested in developing cloud-based applications, then you’ll want to get a Microsoft Azure Administrator certificate. This certification will teach you all about the basics of working with Microsoft Azure and will give you the skills you need to manage and maintain cloud-based applications.

With a Microsoft AZ certification, you’ll be able to:

-Manage multiple cloud services from a single location.

-Debug and troubleshoot cloud-based applications.

-Easily create reliable, scalable cloud-based applications.

There are many benefits to getting a Microsoft AZ certification. For example, it will give you the skills you need to work in the IT field. It will also help you build successful businesses by giving you the knowledge and techniques needed to manage cloud-based applications. So if you’re interested in learning more about Microsoft Azure, or if you just want to gain some practical skills for working with cloud-based applications, then a Microsoft Azure Administrator certification is the perfect choice for you.

The Importance of this Certificate

The Azure administrator certification is becoming a must-have credential for anyone looking to become involved in cloud computing. The certification provides an understanding of Azure, the company’s prescriptive enterprise cloud platform, as well as the ability to manage and maintain a cloud environment.

Microsoft offers three levels of Azure administrator certification: Foundation Level, Applied Level, and Expert Level. The Foundation Level is the entry-level certification, and it requires passing 100 online tests covering topics such as creating cloud services, using storage resources, monitoring, and managing clouds, networking in Azure, and creating custom apps. Passing the Foundation Level will qualify you to take the Applied Level examination.

The Applied Level exam covers more comprehensive topics such as deployment models, security in Azure, service components and management controls, data governance, performance optimization tools in Azure, managing resources with Visual Studio Code, and leveraging Microsoft Edge abilities in Azure. The Expert Level is the highest certification level offered by Microsoft, and it requires passing both the Applied Level exam and a written exam. A person who has obtained an Azuriadministrator certificate can be considered an expert on Azure cloud computing. This designation allows the individual to participate in industry discussion forums and social media groups.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Standardization

Last Updated on May 25, 2022 By Methew Harbor Leave a Comment

Standardization is an excellent process to make sure that your consumers get the same product every time. It builds their trust in your product or service. Standardization also allows you to build a loyal customer base by providing them with the same product they use the first time. If a product is not standardized, it might not gain the same kind of popularity. Customers believe that a company that puts effort into standardization cares about them. Standardization also has a few demerits for business owners. Let’s tell you about the advantages and disadvantages of standardization in detail.

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What is Standardization?

Standardization in an industry refers to maintaining consistency among the services and products offered by a company. The services in all aspects must offer the same core values. Similarly, the products must have the same quality throughout. If any changes are made, they must not affect the characteristics of the goods.

A company follows a particular set of protocols to ensure that the product or service is consistent. They devise the strategies once and make sure to adhere to them. Mostly these guidelines are per the national standards. However, you must follow international regulations when producing goods for the international market.

Standardizing a product or service is based on following the safety protocols and considering the needs of the consumers. It requires adapting the same technology for producing that product and checking product quality on the same parameters. Every product or service has particular standards to ensure consistency and uniformity.

Advantages of Standardization

Improved Production Efficiency

The production efficiency improves when the technology and manufacturing methods are designed per a specific product. When you produce a product according to the same standards, you do not have to worry about innovation. Establishing production rules and manufacturing goods on predetermined standards reduces time and enhances manufacturing efficiency.

Cost Reduction

Better production efficiency also means reduced cost. When the production facility is designed to produce one kind of product only, buying the raw material in bulk brings down the cost. You do not have to spend more money adjusting the machinery to different products or variations of the product. It also saves the added cost of varying raw materials and maintenance. Producing products according to a standard without any changes lessens the cost.

Quality Assurance

Standardization of a service or product ensures that all pieces of a particular product are of the same quality. Having a standard quality standard for all enables you to detect issues with the product. The quality checkers and assurance officers make sure to check the products before packing. The quality of the product and packaging gives the customers a sense of satisfaction with a high-quality product.

Adaption Cost Reduction

Having a standardized process avoids the cost of adaptation. It is more expensive to devise a particular service or good for a specific consumer base. Customizing a product requires gathering data, extensive searching, and looking for various marketing techniques to attract customers. Standardizing a product helps you save the cost of customizing the product. The saved cost depends on the company’s manufacturing.

International Opportunities

Reaching the international market has enabled companies to make more profit by catering to a wider customer base. Today, globalization has caused an increase in the need for similar products of the best quality. People are looking to buy products from different countries. Catering to international markets requires you to make sure each product is uniform. By producing standardized products, you can sell your products beyond borders.

Consumer Benefits

Standardization of a product reduces confusion among consumers. When consumers are aware of the quality standards of a product, they do not look for other options. On the contrary, if the product is not uniform and does not meet the standard of the consumers, they avoid it. Product standardization provides safe, better-quality products to the customers.

Disadvantages of Standardization

Equipment Differences

Standardizing products is not feasible when the product is manufactured in multiple production facilities. Various countries have specific systems and equipment that may differ from other locations. Sometimes, the equipment might not have the same specifications either. Thus, you will need to adjust the equipment per need.

Failure to Adapt

Today, consumers want to get the most according to the changing trends. Many consumers purchase the same standardized products, while others like innovation in the products. Focusing on providing the same features in a product over the years might push the customers to another company. Standardization halts you from catering to the needs of such customers.

Cultural Differences

Product or service standardization is not the best choice sometimes. It may not prove feasible when catering to people from different backgrounds. For example, some tea containing alcohol components is not the right choice for some cultures. It is not labeled halal and is unsuitable for selling globally in Muslim countries. It is better to customize products depending on the customer’s needs.

The Bottom Line

Standardization helps provide uniform and consistent quality products to the customers. It enables them to trust your brand and becomes loyal customers. However, it also hinders adaptation to the modern needs of the consumers. Standardization and customization must work according to the regional and individual consumer requirements.

Most Reputable Survey Company: Survey Junkie

Last Updated on May 23, 2022 By Ifama Leave a Comment

Online survey taking is a great option to earn a little extra money on the side. It may also be a perfect way to gather feedback for businesses and organizations.

However, not all online survey companies are created equal. Some are scams, others are illegitimate, and still, others are simply not worth your time. So how to know which online survey company is the best?

This article will provide an overview of the most reputable online survey company, Survey Junkie.

So, keep reading for more valuable information!

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What is Survey Junkie?

Survey Junkie is a popular and trustworthy online survey company with over 20 million active members worldwide.

The company provides a platform for companies and organizations to collect feedback from consumers through online surveys. This data is then used to help organizations and businesses make informed decisions.

Survey Junkie is a legitimate company that has been accredited by the Better Business Bureau (BBB) with an A+ rating.

The company is also a member of the Council of American Survey Research Organizations (CASRO), which is the leading professional association for the survey research industry.

In terms of privacy, Survey Junkie is committed to protecting the privacy of its members. It has a strict privacy policy in place that outlines how personal information is collected and used.

How to Become a Member of Survey Junkie?

To start taking surveys and earning rewards with Survey Junkie, it is necessary to follow these simple steps:

1. Sign Up for an Account

The first step is to sign up for a free account on Survey Junkie. This can be done by providing an email address and creating a password.

2. Complete Profile Surveys

Once an account has been successfully created, the next step is to complete profile surveys. These surveys help Survey Junkie understand its members’ interests, demographics, and lifestyles to match them with appropriate surveys.

3. Start taking Surveys and earning Rewards

After completing profile surveys, members can start taking paid trusted surveys and earning rewards. Survey Junkie will notify members via email when a new survey is available that they may be qualified for.

4. Redeem Rewards

Once a member has accumulated enough points, she/he can redeem those points for cash via PayPal or e-gift cards from popular retailers such as Amazon, Walmart, and Target.

5 Tips to Earn the Most Money with Survey Junkie

There are some tips members can do to increase their chances of qualifying for and completing more surveys which in turn will lead to earning more money. Here are 5 of the most effective tips:

1. Complete Profile Surveys

As mentioned earlier, it is important to complete profile surveys, so Survey Junkie can match members with appropriate surveys. The more accurate the information provided in the profile surveys, the better matched a member will be with available surveys.

2. Check E-mail Regularly

Survey Junkie will send notifications to members via email when new surveys are available. Therefore, it is important to check email regularly so as not to miss any opportunities to take surveys and earn rewards.

3. Be Honest

When taking a survey, it is important, to be honest in order to get accurate results that can help businesses make informed decisions. In addition, members who provide honest and accurate responses are more likely to be invited to participate in future surveys.

4. Complete Surveys Quickly

It is also important to complete surveys as soon as possible after receiving the invitation. This is because the number of available spots for each survey is limited and goes on a first-come, first-serve basis.

5. Refer Friends

Survey Junkie also has a referral program that allows members to earn points by referring friends. For each friend that signs up with Survey Junkie and completes at least one survey, the member will earn a certain amount of points.

Sign up with Survey Junkie and Start Earning Rewards

Survey Junkie is a highly reputable online survey company that has been around for many years and is well-known for delivering high-quality surveys.

Survey Junkie has a large database of surveys and offers a wide variety of ways to earn rewards, which makes it a great choice for those looking to make some extra money.

Most importantly, Survey Junkie is a legitimate company that pays its members on time and has a good privacy policy in place to protect member information.

Online Tools You’ll Need When Working Abroad

Last Updated on May 23, 2022 By Ayesha Saeed Leave a Comment

There are many reasons why people might decide to work abroad. Maybe they want to experience a new culture or learn a new language. Or perhaps they want to save money and see the world simultaneously. Whatever the reason, working abroad might be the option they want.

However, it doesn’t mean there won’t be difficulties. Fortunately, online tools can help make working abroad a little easier. Whether communicating with your loved ones or handling your finances, you can accomplish a lot with your mobile phone and the internet. Here are a few tools you will need when thriving in a new environment.

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Communication Tools

If you’re working abroad, you’ll need a way to keep in touch with your family and friends back home. There are a few different ways to do this, but the most popular option is to use a VoIP (Voice over IP) service like Skype or WhatsApp. You can make video and voice calls with these services and send texts and images. They are also relatively inexpensive, so you won’t have to worry about breaking the bank when staying in touch with your loved ones.

Working abroad can be an enriching experience, but it can also be quite isolating. It’s essential to stay in touch with your loved ones back home to ensure you’re not feeling too alone. VoIP services like Skype and WhatsApp are a great way to do this, as they allow you to call and text for free. So make sure to use these services regularly to keep in touch with your friends and family.

Social media has made communication from all over the world more accessible. It has allowed people to connect with others in a way that wasn’t possible before. It is especially true when it comes to working abroad. With social media, people can easily stay in touch with their loved ones no matter where they are. You can do this through video calls, text messages, and images.

Social media has also made it easier for people to find work abroad. Many websites and social media platforms allow people to post job opportunities and find potential employees. It has made finding a job abroad much easier than it used to be.

So overall, social media has had a significant impact on communication and working abroad. It has made it easier for people to connect and find work in a new country.

Mobile Banking

Another essential tool you’ll need when working abroad is a mobile banking app. It will allow you to transfer money between your home bank account and your foreign bank account without fees. It’s also a convenient way to keep track of your spending while you’re away.

There are many different mobile banking apps available, so make sure to research the best one. Once you’ve found the right app, set up a secure PIN code to protect your accounts.

When working abroad, it’s important to send money back to your hometown to support your family. It can be a challenge, as transferring money internationally often comes with high fees. However, online remittance services can help make this process easier and more affordable.

These services allow you to transfer money to your loved ones in your hometown quickly and easily. They also offer low fees, making it more affordable than traditional money transfer methods. So if you’re looking for a way to send money home, be sure to check out the online remittance services available.

Language Translation Apps

If you’re working in a country where English is not the primary language, you’ll need a way to communicate with your colleagues and customers. Many different language translation apps are available that can help you with this.

Some of the most popular options include Google Translate, Microsoft Translator, and Yandex Translate. These apps allow you to translate text, voice, and images into various languages. They also have features like conversation mode, making it easy to have a conversation in another language.

So if you’re looking for a way to communicate in another language, check out the various translation apps available.

VPN

When working abroad, it’s essential to keep your data safe and secure. A virtual private network (VPN) can help by encrypting your data and hiding your IP address. It makes it difficult for hackers to steal your personal information or track your online activity.

There are many different VPNs available, so make sure to research the best one for you. Once you’ve found the right VPN, set up a secure connection to protect your data.

A VPN is an essential tool for anyone working abroad. It helps to keep your data safe and secure by encrypting it and hiding your IP address. So if you’re looking for a way to protect your online privacy, be sure to check out a VPN.

These are just a few of the essential online tools you’ll need when working abroad. To find the best option for your needs, research each one. And don’t forget to stay in touch with your loved ones back home.

Characteristics of the Cottage Industry

Last Updated on May 23, 2022 By Methew Harbor Leave a Comment

Cottage industries enable families to run their small businesses without a huge capital. They provide a space for good manufacturing at a small scale. They are more common in rural areas than in small-scale industries found in urban sites. While it may not seem apparent, cottage industries are an essential part of any country’s economy. India has the largest number of cottage industries globally. Small scale and cottage industries account for around 40% of the total industrial output in India.

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What is Cottage Industry?

Cottage industries are small-sized businesses, often built-in homes instead of offices or production facilities. Manufacturing such facilities do not have advanced technologies and mainly relies on traditional methods. The income generated through cottage industries typically goes into managing household expenses. The cost of labor is usually zero as members of a family work themselves to produce goods. Besides India, cottage industries are also quite popular in Italy, Germany, and Japan.

What are the Characteristics of Cottage Industries?

Cottage industries differ from small-scale and large-scale as they do not involve labor. The manufacturing units are small and do not require a large capital. These industries produce daily-use items without using extensive machinery that may sometimes be exported to other countries.

No Labor Involved

Labor is not involved in cottage industries. As the members of the family work in cottage industries within their homes, they do not employ others. This reduces the cost of technicians and labor. Sometimes they may employ distant relatives to do the jobs.

Smallest Manufacturing Unit

Cottage industries are the smallest manufacturing unit in any country. They do not involve huge machinery or advanced technologies. Cottage industries use traditional or small equipment that can be easily used within the house’s premises. These units manufacture goods that may be used locally or sent to other regions. Despite being the smallest manufacturing unit, they hold significant importance in a country’s economy.

Less Capital

As cottage industries do not utilize high-scale technologies and machinery, they do not require a lot of capital. They usually invest their family capital in the business for a kick start. The money eventually multiplies, giving them enough to run the household and buy raw materials. Less capital investment also means that a large quantity of goods is not produced. The produced goods are mostly used by neighboring areas.

Local Raw Material

To reduce the cost of the product, cottage industries use the raw material to manufacture products. It helps locals sell their materials and make money while the cottage industry owners use it to generate income. Using local raw materials is better for the seller and the buyer both. Sellers can sell their goods quickly as the buyers are around the corners. Similarly, cottage industry owners do not have to travel to faraway places to get raw materials. It decreases the cost of production as well.

Simple Tools

Cottage industries do not utilize huge machinery, as mentioned above. Mostly all work is done by hand, or sometimes simple tools are used. People running cottage industries sometimes manufacture simple machines by themselves to facilitate production. These machines are just a helping hand and cannot be used for large-scale production.

Daily-use Item Production

The goods produced in cottage industries are usually utilized in daily life that requires manforce only. These industries manufacture carpets, fabrics, ceramics, cane furniture, food processing, and leather and metal handicrafts. Other items include papads and local textile.

Exported Rarely

While the products of cottage industries are distributed and sold locally after production, some items may also be exported. Exported cottage industry items include papads, traditional jewelry, handicraft items, clothes, and metalwork articles. It is usually done by a third party that gathers orders for the family to increase their income.

The Bottom Line

Cottage industries are small in size but play a major role in a country’s economy. India has the largest cottage industry network. Cottage and small-scale industries combined contribute to around 40% of the total economic output in India. These industries are run and managed by family members without the need for external help. Cottage industries do not employ labor, use less capital and produce goods for local use. Sometimes the products are also exported to other countries.

Management vs Supervision

Last Updated on May 23, 2022 By Methew Harbor Leave a Comment

Manager and supervisor are often used interchangeably in conversations. While organizations have a different hierarchy of roles and designations, management and supervision are quite different. People who supervise employees are called supervisors, whereas those who manage tasks within a department are known as managers.

Now, you may wonder; that sounds the same!

Yes, that does sound the same. Managers and supervisors both have leadership roles within the company. But, they are not identical in terms of responsibility and authority. Let’s take you through the differences between management and supervision for a detailed understanding.

What is a Manager?

The primary function of a manager is to manage how things take place in a department. Managers typically make decisions about a business in a particular domain or various areas of business operation. They are involved in recruiting new people, identifying jobs of other employees working under them, and ensuring the completion of tasks on time. They also determine the resources utilized by their department to execute specific tasks. For example, a quality control manager is responsible for ensuring that all the processes are aligned, and the products are of standard quality. Yet, he might not go to the processing facility all the time to access work.

Roles of Management

The four major roles include planning, organizing, leading, and controlling. Management plans the timelines for the department and organizes pathways to achieve the timelines and goals. They make sure to be the leaders in situations employees need their assistance to perform better. Other roles of management include:

Dealing with the issues within the workplace when brought to them by the supervisors.
Make sure that the supervisors are kind and fair to the workers.
Evaluating the performance and competency of employees and finding the reason for poor performance.
Managers also assist the HR professionals in HR functions including hiring and staffing to ensure they find the best fit for their department.
Making decisions for the designated responsibilities for the best benefit of the company and the employees.
Controlling and monitoring expenses, and managing them within the budget.
Setting goals for the future and encouraging other teammates to perform their best.

What is a Supervisor?

Supervisors also have a leadership role in the company. But, they work under the manager. Supervision mainly includes keeping an eye on the employees’ day-to-day activities in the department. They ensure that the tasks are completed in time by the works, and the goals are achieved per the manager’s instructions and timeline. They also act as a bridge between employees and the upper hierarchy. Supervisors usually have an informal relationship with their workers to encourage them to do better. They initially study a situation to assess if it needs the manager’s attention.

Roles of Supervision

As manager leads the supervisors, they lead other workers under them. Major roles of supervision in a company are:

While the manager contributes to hiring new talent, supervisors train them to gel in the environment.
Reporting to seniors and HR professionals when needed.
Accessing the performance of the workers and reporting their evaluation to the managers.
Acting as a connector between the manager and the employees.
Resolving conflicts between employees if they are not significant enough to be forwarded to the manager.
Managing schedules and keeping everyone on track to ensure that all goals are achieved in time.

Supervisor

Supervisors are not involved in the hiring process. Instead, they are responsible for training the new hires and accustoming them to the company.

The Bottom Line

Management and supervision are both essential parts for a company to function properly. It is difficult for the manager to monitor every employee’s performance. That is why supervisors are assigned over a group of employees. Managers hire new people with HR, manage the budget, and deal with the issues between supervisors and employees. Conversely, supervisors train new employees, evaluate their performance, make decisions, and set goals for the future.

Qualities of a Good Brand Name

Last Updated on May 23, 2022 By Methew Harbor Leave a Comment

A brand name is the face of your brand that represents the first image of your brand. The logo also plays a major role. But, if someone hears about your brand from another person, they cannot see the logo initially. It makes the brand name the most crucial part of marketing your brand.

A good brand name is a critical element of any business. It allows your customers to remember your brand and make a place in their minds. Brand names must be attractive and functional. Let’s tell you all the qualities of a good brand name.

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What is a Brand Name?

A brand name refers to a distinct name given to a product, service, or concept. The brand name gives your product or service a unique identity and enables people to remember you. Mostly, people associate a brand’s name with the product’s function. That is why choosing an appropriate brand name is vital.

Brand names are of different types and decided based on your intention behind the name. Some names are descriptive, while others are acronyms. A few brands prefer abstract and emotive names, while some choose names based on origin. Each brand name is specific and stands for the product or service offered. Besides being attractive, a brand name should tell your customers everything about your brand in just a few letters.

Qualities of a Good Brand Name

Choosing a brand name can be challenging, especially when many are already taken. Yet, it is also relatively easy. Why?

Brand names are unique to the brand’s product, service, origin, and theme.

You can draft an entirely unknown name and still convey to people what your brand is about. Here are all the qualities you must consider while choosing a brand name for your product, service, or concept.

Unique

With many other businesses in the marketplace offering the same services as you, it is important to have a unique identity that distinguishes you from others. Brand names should be specific to your service, product, and the company’s theme. You might not want to go overboard with it. However, a little bit of personalization can make it easy to associate with you and remember. It is one of the important parts of brand positioning.

Easy to Pronounce

While you may want to have a unique name, the best brand names are easy to pronounce. An easy-to-pronounce and identifiable name are convenient for people of all ages. As a brand, you want people to remember your name without reminding them repeatedly. And isn’t that we all want?

Should Portray the Product

One of the essential characteristics of a good brand name is how well it tells people what your brand is all about. Let’s say you choose a fancy brand name that is easy to pronounce, depicts your origin, and is attractive. But, it’s not a great brand name if it does not clearly indicate what your product is about. For example, you name a cleaning company, crystal. The first thought that would come to people’s minds is that it is a crystal or gem company.

Attractive

Sometimes brand names can be unique and easy to pronounce but not attractive. In today’s time, it is all about learning to sell your product wisely because of rising competition. The first step to selling your products or services is selling your brand name. And a boring brand name is less likely to be remembered and preferred by young buyers. Think of a compelling name that also expresses the qualities of your product.

Adaptable and Extendable

You do not want to choose a brand name that suits one product only and restricts you. A brand name must be versatile, adaptable, and extendable. It would merge well with other products you wish to introduce in the future. Suppose you introduce a new beverage line of cold drinks and name it COOL. After a few years, you expand your business and plan to add hot beverages to the line.

But, hot drinks from a company named Cool? Ironic, wouldn’t it be!

Positive Meaning

You may be surprised to know that sometimes brand names can backfire and leave a bad image of your organization. When choosing a name, make sure that it has a positive meaning and may not hurt anyone’s sentiments. The brand name should be politically correct.

Appropriate

Besides having a positive meaning, it should be appropriate for the product line and region and carry an appropriate meaning in all languages. At times, you may opt for a brand name that seems fine in your home country. But, it may not be appropriate when sold in other parts of the world. Make sure to do thorough research and avoid inappropriate names.

Legally Protected

Do you spend a lot of time deciding the perfect name for your brand, and another business pops up with the same name? It is terrible!

We understand that deciding on a brand name is not easy, and it requires lots of brainstorming, consuming quite a lot of time.

After deciding on a name, it is a must to get it registered. If you do not get your brand name registered, you cannot stop anyone else from using it. And you will lose the unique identity of your brand.

The Bottom Line

The brand name is your primary identity and leaves a long-lasting impression on the customers. Branding is important in today’s competitive market. Make sure to choose it for decades. A good brand name must be easy to read, attractive, unique, adaptable, and extendable. It should also depict the qualities of your product, so more prefer your products over others. Make sure to trademark your brand name after you have chosen one to make sure no one steals it.

FAQs

How to choose the right brand name?

Choosing the right name for your brand can be an effort-taking process. Yet, it is crucial to find the best name. Brainstorming ideas is the first step in choosing a brand name. Pick a few concepts, use clear words, add unique elements and pick the one that resonates with your brand the most.

What are meaningless brand names?

Meaningless brand names do not typically have a proper meaning in any language. You may also say that they are improper words. But, sometimes, they are used as brand names to depict uniqueness. Lululemon is an example that does not have a meaning and is intentionally difficult to pronounce.

What are some great brand names?

Gap, Pepsi, and IKEA are among the most popular brand names. Gap gets its name from the style gap between young people and the older generation. Pepsi originated from “dyspepsia,” which means indigestion. Whereas, IKEA is a combination of the initials of the founder’s name, his farm’s name, and his village’s.