The Dirty Truth - Technology is Ruling Our Life!

TECHNOLOGY – The buzz word that has influenced every alert and informed individual living in digital era!

It has a positive side about which everyone knows. As every coin has two sides, technology also has a flip side that is widely neglected. Everyone is just interested in knowing about the advantages it offers. Modern age population is glad that technology has made their lives quite simple. But at the same time we cannot neglect the bitter truth that “Technology has made us PUPPETS.”

I am not ruling out the lifestyle technology has offered us rather I am focusing on what we have lost, allowing digital era to overcome the essence of simple living.

Have you ever thought you are being surrounded by numerous digital products? You can’t even think of detaching them from your life. Smartphones, laptops, tablets etc. are such devices you would never want to live without. Why, is it so damn important? No, actually you are habitual of these gadgets and don’t want them to leave you ever.

In today’s era, you would find people saying, they can live without their friends or family. But, you will hardly find anyone saying that they can live without their smartphones or laptops. Technology inventors would never have thought that the gift they are giving to the world will make them so aggressive that people would have more attachment with the non-living objects rather than living-beings.

Social Media gets High Priority

We give social media the highest priority. Does this mean we like virtual friends and relationships rather than meeting people in real? We are connected with social networking websites 24/7 and more than 30% of the day is spent on checking the news feeds and making updates. But we don’t call it a time waste; we call it utilizing time for interacting with loved ones (but over internet).

I really pity the parents that wait for their kids to get offline so that they can start their dinner; I really pity the kids that are eagerly waiting for their dads to finish of his video conference; I pity the wives who are waiting for their husbands to finish off his work like checking mails and setting schedules on his tablets, so that they can have a conversation on important issues. God bless them!

Feelings have taken a Back Seat

Before the arrival of digital era, people had emotions and feeling of humanity. But as the world started getting advanced, these emotions got disappeared over time. Good feelings have taken shape of anger, anxiety, envy, jealousy, aggression etc. Are we the same human being that once felt others pain, tried to make others happy or did something good for others? Actually our most time is utilized in using the technology and as a result no time is left for thinking of lost emotions.

Emotions are Fading Away

Have you ever felt the time you spend over video games and internet must have been invested in nurturing the relations with the people around us? Every age group is suffering from the disease called “TECHNOLOGY ADDICTION”. Taking the serious note over it I pity the people having beautiful families and yet they cannot spend time with them. Though spending majority of the time around with the digital devices might be a part of their work, but what about the personal life? The time you start feeling your professional life is ruining your personal life, start discarding unnecessary tasks eating your majority of the valuable time like reduce the time spend over social networking website, crop the time used behind communication applications etc. Retain relations as they are the most beautiful and priceless asset that everyone does not get.

Distinct Diseases are Hitting Lives

As we all are aware, extreme use of technology will impact lives. Wives sitting or working in front of the television, is the scenario of majority of the modern houses. This affects their brains by diversifying their brains in multiple directions that leads to unfocused approach in life. Children eating in front of the TV don’t care about what and how much are they eating; can give rise to several disorders. The professionals surrounded with digital devices at work are at risk of mental distress.

With increasing mental stress arguments, disagreement etc. also increases. Avoiding such situations is the key to a happy and healthy life.

More than a habit, we are addicted to the devices and gadgets of the digital era. Imagine a life without an alarm clock (it would be hard to wake-up by your own in the morning), a coffee maker and a toaster (how will you make your morning breakfast), an iron (you will definitely not leave the house with shabby and un-ironed clothes), smartphones (how will you contact people), laptop (you won’t be able to work anywhere and anytime). I know it’s very hard, almost impossible. There are several other appliances without which we cannot survive.

Anything done within its boundary is acceptable. It’s time now to draw a line between being addictive to technology and being a smart user of technology without ruining your personal space. It’s time now for you to think where you are wrong. TECHNOLOGY has made our lives better, but limiting its use will make our lives simpler and happier.

Gamification – A New Marketing Strategy for Broader Customer Outreach

The term gamification for businesses simply means creating a gaming strategy that involves platforms/resources like websites, online community etc. for motivating target audience to engage with the brand for better business opportunities. The gamification strategy needs to be designed perfectly for boosting ROI through out of the box gaming techniques. The integrated game methodology triggers active participation of customers resulting in customer loyalty.

Perfect gamification marketing technique is the latest customer relationship management mechanism that engage and retain loyal customers. It not only engages customers but also drives behavioral changes in users and customers that directly integrate with your business goals and strategies. Let’s have an insight about the most crucial techniques and strategies that can make the gamification process the future trend of marketing strategies.

Use Social Media as Platform

Engage your customers with your brand and reward them on task completion, this is what gamification is! Social media is the biggest platform for any gaming methodology to initiate. Majority of the internet users across the globe are connected through social networking website and it is the best place to make its users fond of your brand. You can use several techniques to engage them with your business like for instance, ask for their feedback and offer them reward points on their responses. On social media platform alone you can target millions of users and let them involve in the game plan your business created to follow.

With real games and reward earning activities in businesses, businesses can know the customers through their behaviors and requirements.

Offer Reward Points to Attract Customers

No matter what plan you make to gamify your business, ultimately you have to focus on your customers. There are several corporate giants that have started implementing the latest trend of gamification. For instance, in some games there are websites that offer points and rewards you on completing daily activities like checking emails, referring the website to his/her friend etc. The points collected can also be redeemed in several forms like you get discounts on specific products, you get a chance to get promotional products at nominal price etc.

Some websites that also have mobile app version can gamify the mobile app promotion. They offer discounts or points on downloading the app. This is the tactics used by majority of the eCommerce websites to promote their shop-anywhere approach.

Better Search Visibility

There are websites that ignite the spirit of competition among the users. This not only keeps the users engaged but also invites huge traffic towards the website. Gamification also helps websites to get better ranking in popular search engines.

Top search engines crawls the websites that update their content on regular basis. This gaming technique helps business owners to know their customers better. They track their behavior and considering that they build unbeatable marketing strategies.

Design the Game Mechanism Focusing your Audience

Your target audience is the primary target for gamification. Building customer centric gamification strategies will allow businesses to acquire desired ROI. Design the gaming mechanism with an aim to motivate the players and engage them with your brand. Build and implement gamification strategies that benefit both your business and customers.

This modern age term can help organizations to broader their market outreach, if executed perfectly!

Omni-Channel Shopping – A Gift to Next Generation Buyers

“Powerful marketing strategies can attract customers,” this sentence has become outdated now. With the arrival of tech savvy shopping era, eCommerce businesses are forced to implement smart marketing techniques. Omni-channel shopping is the most advance marketing concept where customers are targeted through different channels (including online and offline marketing modes). No matter what channels customers select to get connect with the brand, they are provided with flawless customer experience irrespective of time, place and channel.

Either it’s through an official website, mobile app or social media fan page, companies can leverage every channel for marketing their products and services. Even customers can shop using Omni-channel strategy.

They can connect to the eCommerce brands through social networking websites that redirects them to the official websites. Advertising through SMS texts and mobile apps are the latest trends igniting the eCommerce market with multiple options of shopping and advertising. Top products and services can be acquired by using Omni-channel eCommerce.

Omni-channel Gains for Today’s Shoppers

• Shop anytime and anywhere. Internet connection is not a compulsion. Yes, you read it right! If shoppers want to place an order, he/she get the liberty to order the products by just a phone call or a text message too.
• Shoppers can compare the price of the product from any channel where the product is available and order from the eCommerce store with the best price offer.
• Portable devices like smartphones, wearable devices etc. are also the channels used to connect with eCommerce websites.
• Customers get consistent shopping experience and customer service through Omni-channel eCommerce solutions.

Gains for Retailers

• Consumers find it easy to connect with brands and ultimately eCommerce business owners can also serve more customers using diverse channels for customer outreach.
• Some retailers also offer in-store pickup option that reduces the transportation cost to a great extent. Only eCommerce store having a physical store too can offer this flexibility.
• Retailers can offer real time discounts when customers are in the store to increase sales and profitability.
• Rise of the mobile era has benefited both customers and seller. Customers can buy effortlessly and retailers no more have to serve the customers in long queue.

All the retailers can stay connected with your customers through different means, and the customers can shop through any channel with an assurance of consistent customer service through Omni-channel eCommerce.

If we consider the research conducted by top eCommerce companies and market researchers; more than 60% of the modern age group shopping online demands for discounts and searches for better alternatives.

Top brands can offer attractive benefits like same day delivery (with additional shipping charges), price negotiations (depending on the seller) etc. Ecommerce companies can build smart marketing strategies for fulfilling customer requirements and broaden the retailing platform. Targeting millennial (individuals born between 1980 and 2000) age group and offering them personalized and attractive deals and discounts can benefit business. It is truly a gift to millennial as they can get what they desire very easily!

The Truth Behind Selecting CRM Solution Being Important

CRM (Customer Relationship Management) is the methodology/software built for the management of company’s relation with customers effectively. Still there might be several individuals still unaware about the power of CRM solution. It has been established that businesses using CRM solution perform better as compared to the enterprises not using the CRM solution. It can be considered as a complete bouquet of business solution managing right from customer requirements to customer experiences.

Though there are several CRM solutions available in the market, it takes selecting the most befitting CRM solution to accelerate your business functioning. If you select the correct one, it will be a rewarding decision, it can make your business a nightmare.

Choosing the Right CRM Solution

It can add value to your business only when CRM users in your organization are satisfied with its performance.

Analyze the business thoroughly prior to selecting a CRM solution to avoid any further issues. The requirement list after analyzing the system will help you select the best suiting CRM solution for your business. There are CRM solutions suitable for small to huge corporate firms. Only huge enterprises invest in CRM solutions for organized businesses is just a myth. In today’s era, smart entrepreneurs are adapting technology inventions to simplify their business notably.

Factors like size of the firm, tech savvy employees, business complexities are crucial for selecting the solution. Match the objectives of the CRM solution with your requirement list, if it matches, that is the best for your enterprise.

Perfect CRM Solution is the Key to Business Success!

Well, imagine a scenario where you own a corporate business having complex processes to be carried out and you plan to invest in a CRM solution. But unluckily, this solution does not prove to be favorable. The wrong selection of CRM software jeopardizes business performance to a great extent. The reason might be either insufficient system analysis or less scalability and flexibility, or difficult integration.

Thus, it is advisable to carry out intense research prior to deciding a CRM solution and investing in it.

Why Selected CRM Solution needs to be Changed?

There might be several reasons responsible for changing CRM solution selected by the corporate business solution.

• Company is growing and the implemented CRM solution is unable to handle the changing requirements.
• New technology adaptation by the company may raise the requirement of a new CRM solution.
• CRM solution maintenance charges increased furiously that crashes company budget.
• Features offered in the selected solution seem to be insufficient for the growing enterprise.
• The change in the company policy might also affect the additional software used for simplifying company processes (CRM solution might be one of them).
• The selected CRM solution is less scalable given the company’s requirement.
• The vendor changes the maintenance policy very frequently.

It just takes a moment to select a CRM solution, but it takes huge amount of time and efforts to make that moment work well by taking right decision. Choose the solution that boost the business performance rather than a solution that reduces the profitability.

Top Challenges at Workplace While Implementing BYOD in Enterprises

Modern executive have started adapting the latest trends and culture to stay ahead in the race of modernization. Thus, organizations are getting new face by infusing the ever changing technology. The term BYOD is expected to revolutionize organizations looking forward to making workplaces highly flexible. Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) is the next generation policies that will definitely hit the company rule book in near future.

What is the Term BYOD?

Bring Your Own Device is the initiative taken to provide flexibility and convenience for work accomplishment. This policy will allow employees to stay connected with company’s system, no matter wherever they are. They might get some integration issues in the initial stage due to software and hardware variants. So, at times data and application adaptation might require high configuration and synchronization too. Empowering employees with improved and refined scalability, this future trend will serve the entire business arena.

As every coin has dual side, BYOD benefits are accompanied with challenges and risks that every enterprise is scared of. Though modern corporate business solutions are implying latest technology, they also need to consider the risks and challenges lying within the ever changing technology needs. Let us have an insight into the miscellaneous factors that need additional consideration.

Challenges in Implementing BYOD

Data Security is Biggest Challenge

Just think that you are working in an organization that has implemented BYOD policy. So, every employee brings his/her devices to work. In this scenario every device used in the company might have different software and their versions. The devices might be infected with various kinds of malicious threats like viruses, worms or Trojan horse. Preventing crucial business data from getting infected is very tough. Thus, data security in the enterprises supporting BYOD is a huge challenge for data management team.

Device Security is another Challenge

This new policy might be highly beneficial, but at the same time there may increase the complaints for lost or misplacing of personal devices used for performing business tasks. According to the a research conducted, more than 45% of the devices registered for BYOD were lost and found from public places. Organizations may lose crucial business data if the BYOD registered devices are found by any strangers.

Avoiding Attackers to Harm Data is Challenging

With the advent of this policy in the enterprises, data attackers may have a wider spectrum of data theft of crucial data. They may even sell it to third party maligning the company’s reputation. Important passwords, account details and other authentic information saved in the BYOD registered devices may be their prime target while hacking the devices. To avoid this situation, enterprises should prohibit the devices from having firewalls or anti-theft software.

Restricting Unauthentic Mobile Apps is Challenging

Employees using their smartphones and tablets may have several apps in their registered devices. The devices may be vulnerable at times as the apps may store crucial device data in their databases. Checking each and every device for malicious app and their functioning is impossible. It may even happen that an app might have received millions of downloads and have been in the list of top rated apps, but unknowingly it may save entire data of the device and send it to its database. This situation will not be less than a nightmare for enterprises. To prevent this scenario, organization implementing BYOD policy should allow only specific apps or software that are safe and disallow the rest.

Do you own an enterprise? Are you thinking to infuse a modernized approach i.e. BYOD in your enterprise? Flexibility and scalability of the business processes might be the main goal, but there might be several challenges too that can keep the company’s profitability at stake. It is advisable to play safe when huge data and security are the major concerns.

How Secure is the New WordPress Version 4.2.4 ?

Good news for all the WordPress Users: Version 4.2.4 – security and maintenance update is here! WordPress developers were recently provided with the latest version released for reliable web development solutions. Being security and maintenance specific, this update is expected to patch the security loopholes left by earlier version. It mainly focuses on 6 major issues including XXS (3 cross-site scripting vulnerabilities, SQL injection flaws and other bug fixes.

Four from the list of six new fixes allows developers to cover-up the security loopholes that may lead hackers to compromise WordPress website.

Why WordPress Released the New Version Few Days after the Earlier Version?

It is clear from the list of fixes offered with this version that the earlier WordPress version, though being a security update, was left with few issues that affected WordPress websites on the whole.

The earlier update contained 2 issues and 20 bug fixes from the previous update i.e. 4.2.2. But still developers had a great challenge to develop a WordPress websites that can keep hackers away. The safety breaches in this version were so severe that attackers can easily edit any post.

What Benefits will WP 4.2.4 Offer?

• No more SQL injection vulnerability.
• Attackers now cannot modify any posts.
• WordPress websites and CMS would be having security-first approach.
• WP users can avail excellent security and maintenance services.
• Reduced cross-site scripting vulnerability.
• Service providers can help WP engine customers by patching the update on customer websites.
• Bitnami WordPress users get automatic version update.

With WordPress 4.2.4 version update, website owners can sit back and rest as major security issues met earlier are now fixed. Professional developers can now lock the posts and avoid hackers to add or modify the WP website. So, for all WP users, it is time to update the WP version to avoid all security vulnerabilities making your website safe and secure.

Entrepreneur’s Attitude BUILD or RUIN Enterprise

Do you think it’s the business owner who is responsible for success and downfalls? Some might be thinking that not only his/her attitude but other factors too work upon that. I agree, but 90% of the result is due to an entrepreneur's attitude and dedication towards the work. Competitors might be succeeding and your business might be running at a low speed. Why is it happening? Is it because, you are lacking some qualities? Should your attitude be blamed? Is it taking your business to a dead end? Analyze yourself prior to analyzing your system and staff.

Right from the day an idea strikes an entrepreneur's’ mind, the work starts. Briefing the idea, creating strategies and gathering funds is what the initial steps should be. You can only get it right with the right attitude.

Let us see what those crucial factors are that affect the business severely!

Dissatisfaction

Dissatisfied entrepreneurs always tries to achieve great heights in their business. The dissatisfaction in the mind makes them stronger to gear up themselves towards new peaks. It is the attitude that makes their roadmap to success easy and fruitful. But if the dissatisfaction is affected by other factors like the employee behavior, workflow or any other aspect, it might even dismantle the created empire.

Dedication

“Dedication is the key to success”. This is an ancient belief that helps entrepreneurs to build and grow their business. Business owners must know their startup business needs and they must be highly dedicated to accept challenges no matter how difficult it would be. If they are not prepared for the worst case scenario, they cannot prepare themselves to defeat the competitors, which would result in a failure. A thorough analysis of the situation will give them the right envision that will help them formulate an unbeatable business solution.

Confidence

Confidence can make anything possible. It can take an enterprise to new heights. Overconfidence may block the success path. Entrepreneurs seeking success need to make mistakes, learn from the situations and gain experience. This way they could build the confidence to manage the functioning of the enterprise. The crucial decisions taken by the entrepreneurs are not 100% correct every time; it is possible that the result might be unexpected or undesirable. Confidence more than required brings disasters too.

Behavior

Every employee expects a professional yet friendly behavior from his/her boss, trust me, it’s their secret desire! The entrepreneurs need to be very smart to understand the situation and react accordingly. Taking employees’ psychology seriously, a strong and reliable company culture can be created to make the work atmosphere inspiring. If the entrepreneur behavior and attitude is unpleasant, chances are that you might lose valuable customers or your loyal employees might even transit from your enterprise.

Optimism

Optimism refers to being positive. Every entrepreneur, be it an owner of a small startup or a big company, is expected to have optimistic attitude. This will make them better entrepreneurs having thorough business insights. Practicing optimism will help the business owners to take the right decisions once they analyze the situation completely and implement it at the right time span. There might be situation where just a single small mistake would affect the business severely. Thus, an optimistic entrepreneur never differentiate any situation as weak or strong, they believe in making the solution strong that can beat the challenges with best returns.

I hope this article will help millions of entrepreneurs, who are either thinking to venture into the business or the ones who are in search of some guidance to grow their business. To all those, I would like to conclude with the sentence “It’s the attitude that can build and can terminate too!”