Category: Digital Branding

Digital Branding

5 Blogging Tips That Will Make Your Blog Successful

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For whatever reason you would opt to blog, may it for business or personal matters, the main aim is to reach a vast majority of people and ensure that you resonate with most of them. Well, most people will comfortably start a blog, pay various agencies to advertise, and then they think that’s it. No, rather, in order to successfully run a blog you need various tips that would ensure you achieve great success at blogging. Let’s dive into it.

1.    Find your passion

What drives you into blogging in the first place? Or if you already have a blog, what drove you into that specific niche? In order to achieve that top-tier status in blogging, you must love and enjoy the topic that you are handling. There is much ease and comfort writing content for content you love, rather than just trying to search on what you heard by hearsay of people that writing on a certain niche pays better. Let’s say you have passion for Yoga, or cooking for instance, it wouldn’t make sense trying too hard in a poetry blog or even a travel blog that are not in your interests.

2.    Invest in Good Gear

There are certain blogs that most of us just glance and they are off to another page. Well, why is it hard for people to stick to your blog? One major aspect is the quality of content that is offered. Some blogs are covered with gibberish and fluff while also have very poor photographs that it is a complete turn off.  Investing in the right gear has the powers of making a blog look very professional. What do we mean by gear? Well, one important aspect to consider is always a camera. Blogs that involve images, like traveling, food, product reviews, and such, it is imperative that you have a very clear DSLR camera that will deliver great content. Other than that, there is the software gear like WordPress software, email marketing software, the Adobe Suite and various plugins that you will need at the end of the day to ensure your blog looks really professional and neat.

3.    Content and consistency

In order to achieve success with your blog, you need to always have content to deliver. Content that is geared to capture the attention of your audience from the first to last bit of the blog. Then, your blogs should be consistent and within a specific time-frame. If you do on a daily, weekly, on a fortnight, or the least being a monthly basis, then you need to maintain the same consistency. This keeps your audience always eager and looking forward to the next blog.

4.    User-friendly interface

One of the appealing things a blog offers is an interface that welcomes its readers. An interface that resembles when the internet was conceived has very low chances of surviving or competing with numerous of the modern interfaces that are supported or hosted by a number of web hosting platforms. Try and look out for what suits your kind of blog, so that it would be appealing for readers to get that professional look whenever they are reading your content.

5.    Gear content to suit mobile

Lastly, as the world is busy changing, more and more people stick to their phones, and it is likely that most people that will read your content are doing it at the comfort of their phone. Well then, the content that you generate should be geared to suit mobile users. People will dash to their phones between breaks, while commuting, while cranking some miles in the treadmill, you name it, but these are still the people that will look at your blog at their best convenience.  The least is to make sure that your blog content is geared to mobile interfaces too.

 

Author Bio: Mashum is a Blogger, Entrepreneur & Online Marketing Expert. He is the co-founder and chief marketing officer at BloggerOutreach, the company that provides Blogger Outreach Services. Mashum is the founder of Viacon.

Digital Branding

10 Reasons Why to Choose an Animated Explainer Video for Your Business Promotion

Animated explainer videos became a smart way to explain the words of businesses or brands, and in the long run, such videos are now an essential part of marketing. An animated explainer video is a good advertising tool, which save both money and time of businesses. Other than that, it’s impossible to overemphasize the significance of powerful visuals in your business promotion.

Below are some of the reasons why you must use an animated explainer video for promoting your business:

Very Entertaining

More people love watching videos for the reason that they can easily understand everything in a short duration and in an entertaining way.

Explain Things Better Than Words

According to studies, it was proven that powerful video can stick to the minds of end users for a long time compared to a catchy slogan. As results, while videos can be used for promoting products or services of any businesses, such can explain what they could do for their customers better.

Creative

Animated explainer videos can tell a story in various ways. There’s no need of this kind of video to be grounded in reality. Just make sure that it goes well.

More Dynamic Compared to Texts and Images

Animated explainer videos can bring more interests in end users because of their dynamic nature in comparison to plain texts or static images. Majority of sales funnels these days include videos at some point throughout the process. Videos done well may pay for itself quickly.

Boost Conversion Rates

Aside from attracting potential visitors to your website, businesses can convert visitors to sales. That is what animated explainer videos may do for companies.

Spread Like Wild Fire

Animated explainer videos can be shared with other people easily through social media platforms. So, they may help spread positive points regarding your brand or product.

Clarifies Product’s Objective

Words may be tricky while describing products. However, through the use of explainer videos, it’s easier for businesses to get rid of the guess work. Other things are shown better in videos.

Provides Better SEO Ranking

People often search for simple and quick ways to understand about any products or services of brands. With videos, businesses may enjoy greater exposure and could bring better ranks on search engines. Besides, Google is the owner of YouTube.

Make More Customers Interested with Your Business

Based on the studies, it was proven that many visitors are curious to know the video details compared to reading blocks of texts to read messages. Thus, it can be said that videos may boost the interest of your target audience.

Audience Can Easily Retain the Details

In some studies, majority of individuals have high levels of retaining details when watching videos instead of listening from the information. With animated video for business, you can quickly capture the attention of both visual and auditory learners, which can provide you lots of benefits.

Digital Branding

The New Wave of Franchise Marketing

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Franchise marketing requires the producing of a marketing plan. A franchise is a corporation that provides individual units of business locations or websites that sell specific products in order to generate leads. Franchise opportunities are many and the buyer of that franchise has to be sure of what they want to get themselves into while knowing more about the field. Franchises need to market their business in order to get ahead and marketing existing franchise locations in their local area. If you do not already have one, developing a franchise marketing strategy should be something you plan now.

Franchise ownership offers immense flexibility with your hours as opposed to a 9-5 conventional job, even if it is a work from home job. Franchise ownership means you can work with somebody or hire somebody to work for you while that person buys an aspect of your franchise so they can start one. Franchises can stay functional because out of 20,500 business opportunities studied, 65% survived after four years.

In order to start a franchise properly, you have to research the competition. Every business has competition. Franchise marketing requires awareness of having such competition on hand. Franchising is one option on how to start a flow of significant income. Entrepreneurship thrives on knowing what your goals are and why you want to become an entrepreneur, to begin with. You have to know your goals before you find a franchise that is a good fit for you. The thing is, you cannot become an expert in everything, but you have to pick a niche that is in line with your interests. That niche doesn’t necessarily have to be something you know about but it can be something you need other people to do for you if you cannot do something on your own.

There are certain roles for a franchise owner. The first is being the owner that is not there but hires people. Second, as an example, hairdressing being a hands-on opportunity because the owner ought to be a hair stylist. However, with regard to setting up a franchise, you need to know who your direct competitors are, where other franchise locations are in relation to yours, and what marketing efforts the competition is making. You can Google what you think are your direct competitors. Marketing a franchise is about building a brand image from your idea that gets turned into a brand in the first place. Branding requires several guidelines.

You need to decide what your franchise will be about, based on your own interests. You have to make sure that you are ready to invest and to make sure it is a good investment or not. You need to model a good cash flow with your business plan since a business plan is a living document, recording the plan for success.

To start a franchise, you have to decide on an investment budget and sometimes for food service, it can be $15,000. Ultimately, you need a franchise that can generate revenue or gross sales. Choosing the right franchise is essential to your success because you need to know what the rent is, how much salary you will pay towards your employees, and, in particular, how much the utilities at your building will be. As an owner, you also have to decide how much your own salary is worth, give or take how much money you invest in the business that you can give back to yourself.

You have to decide how much you are going to invest in the business up front. Your personal goals involve either spending time with your business or staying at home a lot. Your investment budget can be less than $10,000 or upward of $1 million give or take how much you are planning on spending. You need to get equipment and inventory if you are going to start your own franchise anyway, which adds to the start-up costs. You also have to figure out how you will succeed against your competitors in a quantifiable manner.

Digital Branding

Digital Marketing Techniques to Help You Rebrand Your Business

Digital marketing has gained massive popularity in the past few decades as a tool for promoting businesses. If you are setting up a new business or if your previous business is lagging behind then digital marketing can be your savior and can help you rebrand yourself into something significant. Let us go through some important digital marketing techniques, which can essentially be life-saving for your business and can help you gain just the visibility you need to become successful.

Search Engine Marketing

The entire internet is based around massive search portals, which we refer to as Search engines. The objective is to rank higher than your competition through specific keyword research and other related factors. All these factors come under the SEO umbrella. When a strong SEO strategy is in place, your company/offerings will rank higher for keywords, which are associated with your brand, which will, in turn, bring more visibility to your business. This visibility not only offers you more clientele but can also draw in potential candidates, which can be liable for your success. With the changing global environment, SEO strategies are becoming essential for the success of any business, which either wants to establish an online presence or wants to grow exponentially. So make sure that your business joins in with the changing trends to benefit from them.

Work on your Web Design

Web Design elements are exceedingly important to make the right impression on your customers. A number of instances, poor or inefficient web design is the root cause behind a struggling online presence. We need customers to spend enough time on our web pages so that they make a comfortable purchase. Even if they do not originally intend to make a purchase, the design elements need to be attractive enough to trigger an impulsive buying reaction. It needs to be acknowledged that informed customers tend to be more critical when they visit specific websites. Any mistake can set off their mood, which will affect your conversion rate.

Hiring a Specialist

There is a probability that you are new to the domains of internet marketing. Remember that you can always hire a professional to aid you in your quest. The same goes if you have difficulty in improving your web design elements. Professionals can give you a head start and help you streamline your processes in a short period of time. Most people hesitate in hiring professional services due to the associated costs. However, what they fail to comprehend is that initial spending can help them save a lot in the longer run. Not everyone is good at everything that is a fact. So it’s best that the right resource is allocated for the right task to improve productivity.

Creating Online Press Releases

Press releases present a great platform for presenting your information to the public in a formal setting. Once you have generated enough PR, press releases allow various media bodies such as newspapers, journals, and websites to create articles based on your press releases. These generated articles will, in turn, draw attention towards your work and your business in general. Press releases also present a formal setting to inform your clients where you are moving towards with your business and your future prospects. Reliable business growth and potential will, in turn, lead to better positioning in front of the masses.

Holding Events and Contests

Online events and contests have become viable sources of marketing in the last few decades, attributed largely to the massive induction of social media platforms in our daily routines. Word of mouth spreads like wildfire these days and a satisfied customer can very well be your ticket to glory. Giving away certain samples and test offerings help majorly because when these things make a positive impression on someone with connections, people are going to know about it. Try giving a proper personality to the event or giveaway that you are hosting so that they connect well with the masses and will be easy to remember especially if it is or becomes a recurring thing. Arranging these things around public holidays and trending fads is also an effective strategy. For a live online event, remember that it is crucial that you are connected to the internet and updated round the clock to entertain your audience. Your internet connection needs to be sufficient to back you up. If you are lagging behind in this department, go through some of the Xfinity packages in your local vicinity to support your cause.

Maintaining multiple blogs

Content writing acts as building blocks for SEO strategies. Maintaining blogs is becoming more popular by the day and various major companies own and maintain blogs to connect with their niches. Considering the part blogs can play in your success, it is advisable to maintain more than one blog if possible. The best way is to make complimenting blogs, which can assist one another and your offering in an effective way. For instance, if you are into selling health care products, one of your blogs can assist people in finding cures to various diseases. A complimenting blog can help them find the best products available in the market for those diseases and so on. The right written words, presented at the right venues in just the right setting can be magical for audiences as well as the business owners. Be informed, be creative and be vigilant in updating your content so that you can be well on your way to success.

Adopt Influencer Marketing

Influencers have become quite formidable all around the globe due to the easy availability of social media channels and related media channels, which have made exposure quite readily available. Influencer marketing helps you connect with your audiences through influential personalities. For instance, if you are into selling video cameras, an influential V logger endorsing or promoting your product online you need some fast internet connection such as cox internet to help you boost your business and would, in turn, bring in more sales through their audience base. Similarly, you can target various influencers related to your niche, approach them and ask them for collaboration. Influencer marketing is also less expensive when compared to certain other marketing channels, which is an added benefit. Applying these techniques will require effort and commitment but the results, which can be obtained through their implementation, will be well worth the effort spent. Out of the box, thinking is crucial to turn around your financial numbers especially if the conventional techniques don’t work. We would highly urge you to try these digital marketing techniques and if luck has it, the results will surely be satisfying.

Author Bio

Robert James is an MIS with vast experience and research on personal and home security tech and gadgets. He also writes on Mediacom Cable Packages. He is an MMA Fighter and Technology enthusiast with a will to act. Tech Writer and Researcher with a flare to review the latest security tech and gadgets

Digital Branding

Benefits of Using Accounting Software for Bookkeeping

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Accounting and bookkeeping have changed drastically ever since the processes became automated and it changed further with the advent of cloud computing. Bookkeeping and accounting used to be so much of hard work that procrastination was rampant in accounting that hindered business growth. Business owners could not access real-time data as the accounting records were seldom updated and had to depend on guesswork to take business decisions that were often incorrect. All these are now history because even the smallest business can now use Darcy Services Bookkeeping MYOB to ensure that the bookkeeping and accounting records are up to date. Using a system for tracking income and expenses has become so easy that business owners can project future costs and revenue quite confidently.  It has greatly boosted the prospects of doing business in a better way.

Ready information in your hands

Today, no business can do without a primary business software system that has changed the ways people used to maintain accounting records. All essential information is now at your fingertips courtesy the reports generated by the system that keeps you abreast of the critical financial indicators. From accounts receivable by customers to sales and expense report as well as profit and loss by product – you are aware of everything.

Enhance the benefits of online banking

Banks are offering many benefits to its customers, and by using the accounting software, it becomes easy to harness the online benefits provided by banks. The software can coordinate with several banks and provide information so that you can quickly download transactions and reconcile the data with complete ease.

Better collection of accounts receivables

Generating sales invoice is a breeze by using accounting software that generates professional looking invoices that you can send across to customers over e-mails. The speed of sending invoices can be complemented well by requesting customers to make online payments. The payment cycle can shrink considerably depending on your ability to prevail upon customers to make timely online payments, and this can have a far-reaching effect of business profitability.  The software generates various reports and statements, and you can generate customised reports to identify customers who you consider the high risk with respect to collecting payments.

Receive payments promptly

The accounting software has provision for recording payment received via credit cards which speed up crediting the payment in your account immediately. Some software allows users to upgrade the system to synchronise it with POS (Point of Sale) system and integrate it with your cash register and credit card machine.

Bills payments made easy

By using the accounting software, you can manage your cash flow efficiently by tracking the accounts payable so that you can choose the most convenient time for paying bills. It helps to save cost as there is no fear of paying overdue interest for unpaid bills. You would be better placed to interact professionally with your vendors. Accounting software can be easily integrated with POS System.  For additional information and to Find out the best POS System for your small business.

If you are using online accounting software, you are in complete command of your financial status as you can access information any time and from anywhere.

Digital Branding

Tips to Select The Right Video Production Company For Your Marketing Requirements

As per the present state of affairs, the video holds the pinnacle when it comes to communication and marketing strategy. Full-scale marketing campaigns for all your venture needs, a simple inspirational message from the CEO, or for the memories of an event or ceremony; a videographer Jacksonville FL (or your local area) is the choice for everyone. Statistically speaking motion pictures and videos comprise about 65% of all the internet content and estimates say it will grow to a whopping 80% by the end of 2019.

But to bring your ideas to life, you need a video production company, and with so many available options it is quite difficult to make the perfect choice that will suit your requirements to the “tee.” It is a tricky path to navigate, and any possible wrong turn could lead to wastage of time and money. In the following article, our experts have compiled together a list of important considerations that you need to be aware of before investing in a video production agency.

To get more information and quotation for your specific videography needs to consult A wing visuals Denver.

Here are the vital points that you need to consider before selecting a video production service,

1. Face to face communication is important

A face to face communication is ideal while choosing a video production agency. It can be a casual catch up and exchange of ideas over a cup of coffee or proper planning with PowerPoint presentations, you and the agency needs to work as a team and find time to get together. Shop around to gather quotes; a general rule of thumb is to get quotes from 3 different video production agencies to make the ideal choice.

To cement the perfect future and plan and execute the video profile for your entre fruitfully always insist on a face-to-face meeting where ideas can be exchanged, and you can get a clear picture on how the wavelengths match between you and the video production agency.

2. Go through the portfolio for the video agency

A production company worth their salt will have a portfolio where they maintain all of their previous work in chronological order. Ask to see the prior work of the agency and don’t be afraid to be pushy about it, since you will invest your hard earned money.

Examples of previous work will give you a feel and idea of what you are getting into and what you can expect from the video production agency. Be it the variety of the work, the expertise of handling the camera equipment, logistics and post-production work; you need to take into account the entirety of the services provided for by the agency. Video production is a fast-paced and dynamic industry and the techniques of last year won’t be working for the current year. Avoid a one trick pony; instead, select an agency with a repertoire of thinking outside the box. If you are going to invest in a video, you have to make sure that it will feel fresh and maintain audience retention. The only way to achieve that is by making the perfect choice for your video production agency.

3. Perform a credential check

It is always a great idea to do a check of the credentials for the firm you are thinking about choosing. The following are some of the critical points that you should gather information on before signing the dotted line,

  • The experience of the agency
  • The equipment used by the video production agency for shooting as well as editing and other post-production work
  • Does the firm own the equipment or will they hire it and if yes how much of the rental charge will you have to bear as the principal investor
  • Does the agency have a personal studio?
  • Agency officials for camera work or hired freelance talent?
  • Handling of the post-production by the firm or outsourcing of the same from a different agency at a different location
  • Will they be able to handle animation if that is your requirement?
  • Architects and drafters who can render diagrams and business charts into the videos
  • Can they shoot is more than one format like the use of time-lapse, drone footage, hand-held documentary type or the primary tripod filming

You need to do thorough background research for the agency you will be investing in. It is essential that you do your homework as it can be a cornerstone for a long and fruitful relationship. Your agency needs to be flexible with your requirements and demands. So shop around to search for the quality of services you deserve.

4. Finding the match

A word of advice from our experts! Ideally, you should avoid an agency that offers its services for a low rate. Chances are a company quoting less than the industry norm is an amateur agency trying to increase the experience. That will result in an amateurish production for your video which will hurt your venture in the long run. The proof of a company is the final product on offer. So ask for reviews and recommendations from previous employers of the video production agency.

5. Make sure your company uses innovative ideas

You have to understand the purpose of a video when it comes to online marketing. You are looking to stand out in a crowd of thousands of competitors in the over-populated market. A professional video production agency will bring out the salient features and the unique selling points for your firm and venture. The best bet is to go with a video production agency that is known for doing unique work. Avoid practices performing routine jobs. Pitch your ideas to the agency and check their prior work for a clear view about the use of original and creative ideas by the agency personnel and crew. If your agency cannot come up with inspirational and unique ideas, it is advisable to look for a new one.

6. The quality of the production

Post production and the production quality of the video is a vital aspect for any video as a poor quality video takes the shine out of any unique selling point you might want to advertise about your venture. Check the recent works to get a clear picture of the camera and sound work. Resolution and post-production work should also be factored in.

Make sure of all of the points mentioned above never to put a foot wrong while selecting a video production agency for your venture requirements.

Digital Branding

Choosing The Perfect Website Designing Company Made Easy in 7 Steps

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Your website designing firm should essentially be your partner and have the best interests for your venture at heart. But before making that choice, it is essential that you understand the makings of a good partner. Without the adequate information you will end up making a wrong choice, and it can prove to be a monstrous waste of time and money. Do not hurt your venture by making an ill-informed decision.

Protect yourself and retain the best interests of your venture by selecting SWD Studenten Webdesign Webseite erstellen lassen. If you want to know more about the criterion your website design firm must conform to, all you need to do is read on.

1. Knowing the budget

It’s imperative that you know the company budget before making a choice. You might already be scrolling through web design agencies trying to get an idea about their work, but you need to first take into consideration whether your company or venture allows you the shoestring or the unlimited budget option.

You should put the number in writing and make sure you search for a firm within that budget range. You can quote your budget up to a 70-80% of it to the website design firm you are choosing. Discuss the matter with your firm in a detailed manner to never miss the mark with budget proportions for your business venture.

2. Get a quote from the company from you choose

Detailed information about the pricing of an agency is a must even before you select the firm. The pricing of the agency is important to make sure you are not going overboard the budget you have been provided or kept aside personally. Agencies vary their pricing according to the job at hand and the type of website design you provide as the assignment. There can be different packages on offer for you as well, but what is critical for the partnership process is that you find out what you can afford and how it can aid you in improving your business.

You need to contact the agency personally because they don’t usually publish their pricing. You need to provide all the information up front to work within a set budget and with complete transparency. Research online to find the best agencies out there!

3. About fees and charges

As stated before a website designing firm doesn’t advertise their pricing, so you need to aware and read the fine print in your contract. Make sure you go over all the details before you sign the dotted line. You need to inquire about the policy of agency regarding fees including charges for making unscheduled updates to the site, billing for the extra hours and costs for unscheduled checkups. Since there are no standards when it comes to fees for a website design agency it is essential that you are upfront with all your information along with making sure that you read the offer document carefully.

4. Check the past clients

You need to ask about the web designing agency from the previous customers and clients. This personal review will give you a clear idea about the policies, terms, and conditions in place for the firm you finally select. You can ask the firm to provide you with the contact details of previous clients, or you can check the website for client reviews and ratings. If the previous clients speak highly about the firm, you will have a better chance of success employing the website designer for your venture.

5. The fact about client retention

A professional website designing agency will be able to retain their customers better than duplicitous and non-professional practices. A client retention rate of around 60-70% is an indicator that is average for most of the professional website designer. A client retention rate around 90% means you are dealing with the best. So it is essential to ask and shop around to get the best out of your deal.

If your firm has a higher client retention rate than the competition, then you can find this fact highlighted on the website of the firm. This high client retention is borne out of partnership, professionalism, and commitment to success. Make sure you choose a firm accordingly.

6. Ask to know the person who will be dealing with your site

So now your meeting has been scheduled, and you will soon be meeting a company official who will take you through all the details and terms and conditions of the firm. But you have to make sure you get to talk personally with the official in charge of your website. Always deal in the specifics as communication is the key towards designing a novel and user-friendly website. Any undisciplined work culture will undoubtedly be the downfall of the firm as well as your venture. So it is always advisable to make sure that you select the firm of your choice after careful reviewing.

7. About customer support

Other than establishing a dedicated point of contact for your venture requirements and website designing you also need to ask about the provision of technical and customer support by the firm. It is essential to have company personnel on speed dial so that you can contact him/her at a moment’s notice when the webpage services breakdown or you need maintenance for your page. It is essential to have 24-7 support as you never know when you will require assistance. Your contact can even take leave or fall sick while the work is ongoing, so you need to ask about the deputizing personnel in such cases. You might have to wait to call up the company official, or they might be available all around the clock; either way, you have to be sure about the company policy. So it is always a great idea to ask about the protocols in place before making a choice.

Keep in mind these simple and easy to follow steps before choosing a website designing firm for your venture needs. All the very best!

Digital Branding

Numbers Are Important But No Less Important Is The Activity Level Of Instagram Followers

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Social media marketing success depends not only on the number of followers you have but also how fast the number keeps growing. When you are using Instagram, you must create strategies to ensure that the follower base keeps expanding and most importantly comprise of a high number of active Instagram followers. You just cannot afford to feel complacent even if you have a million followers because unless most of them are active on the platform and take interest to share your content, it does not add any value to the marketing campaign. The element of shareability linked to the high visibility of brands makes social media so much valuable to marketers. And sharing of content on Instagram is only possible when your followers take an active interest in your content to share it.

Building the numbers first

Nothing happens unless you can develop a sizeable number of followers on Instagram. To begin with, you must engage a full-time person experienced in Instagram to look after your account who can do all the hard work necessary to attract viewers and then convert them into your loyal followers. At this point, you must not fuss about the quality of followers too much because the numbers do matter in giving you confidence about the prospects of using the platform for your needs. When you see that many people are taking an interest in your brand, you can plan the next step to sensitize followers and use them for propagating your brand across the platform.

Build relationships

Once your brand becomes familiar to your followers, you must think about how to use them for growing the brand. Besides creating high-quality content, you must interact with followers closely to develop a more close relationship that goes beyond numbers. You must stay active on the platform and respond to what others are posting so that your online existence becomes quite convincing and authoritative that takes your marketing efforts to a new level. Your followers can discover the human face behind the brand that generates more trust and encourages them to come forward and share your content.

Activity outscores numbers

While the number of followers on Instagram might make you proud, do not forget that their activity level is perhaps more important. This brings us to the point where quality rules over quantity. After all, what sense does it make to build a crowd if only a few choose to spread the good word about your brand? Unless your followers turn into your brand ambassadors, the number of followers would only remain a vanity metric, doing little good for your marketing cause. Indeed, you must target the maximum following but also take steps to ensure that the followers stay active and help you gain an advantage in marketing.

The activity level of followers is an indicator of the extent of interest they take in your business and brand that really matters. Even if you have fewer followers who are highly active, it will translate into a better business which is the purpose of taking your business to Instagram.

Digital Branding

Reinvent Your Cloud Potential with these Top AWS Tips and Tricks

With over 100 on-demand cloud computing services under its belt, Amazon Web Services is a force that propels the Internet forward. In fact, it occupies a sizeable 34% of the whole cloud (IaaS and PaaS) space easily over competitors like IBM, Google, and Microsoft.

 

The wide service offerings of AWS include some heavy-weight cloud-computing services like elastically provisioned servers (EC2), object storage (S3), payment processing (DevPay), monitoring (CloudWatch), content delivery networks (CDN), among many others.

 

The USP of AWS lies in its on-demand availability, quick scalability and also affordability. In fact, a service like AWS is considered to be the backbone that strengthens the IT operations of modern-day organizations.

Source: Pexels

AWS helps all kinds of enterprises meet their computing needs, from startups to giant corporations. But, given the complicated spectrum of services and also the pace at which they are constantly updated, a lion’s share of AWS’s true potential is under-utilized.

 

Here are some ways how you can tap into that untapped potential that will not only improve your organizational performance but might also save you some costs.

 

Leverage the Free Elastic IP Feature

Unknown to many, and even if known, not used properly is the Free Elastic IP feature in AWS. By default, AWS provides one free Elastic IP for every running instance. This free Elastic IP in AWS assigns a static IPv4 address which helps in dynamic cloud computing services. This elastic IP address helps in covering up any software downtime or instance failure by remapping the affected instance to another instance.

 

Save Costs with Amazon Load Balancers

AWS Application Load Balances can help cut down your ELB costs by at least 90%. AWS has priced its ALBs at $0.0225 per Application Load Balancer-hour (or partial hour). AWS ALB also supports host-based routing and path based routing. Most importantly, a single ALB can replace upto 75 ELBs. The only catch is that AWS ALBs do not support TCP protocol, however, support is available for HTTP and HTTPS.

 

Configure Multiple Cloudwatch Alarms

Normally, Cloudwatch alarms are raised when instances breach a set threshold. The alarm is notified to a team which is responsible for troubleshooting and fixing the issue. However, if the same alarm is to repeat, it is not possible to alert a different team, possibly a higher authority who could fix the issue.

 

Configuring multiple Cloudwatch alarms will help notify such breach instances and take timely action. The good news is that AWS Cloudwatch has such an option to configure multiple alarms for various breach instances to alert different teams.

 

Source: Pexels

 

Use Compression at the Edge Feature in Cloudfront

AWS allows you to compress certain file types and also serve the compressed files directly to users. The compressed files sometimes are just one-fourth of the original size. Since the cost of Cloudfront data transfer is based on the total volume of data delivered to users, Compression at the Edge feature would save tons of money. Also, compressed JavaScript and CSS files will help accelerate your page loading speed thus delivering superior user experience.

 

Save Small-Sized Chunks in Glaciers

Amazon Glacier storage offers a safe and scalable way to archive data for the long-term. But, retrieving data from glaciers is a time-consuming affair. Also, it can prove to be expensive too depending on the volume of data that is being retrieved.

 

You can save time and effort in such a data retrieval process by uploading data in small-sized chunks. Organizing files into small-sized chunks will make it easy to spot the right dataset that needs to be retrieved easily and quickly. The small-sized retrieval also ensures that your data retrieval costs are contained to a bare minimum.

 

Use Versioned Object Names in Cloudfront

It takes approximately 10 to 15 minutes to complete a single invalidation request in Cloudfront. If the size of the CloudFront cache purge request is big, then the time taken would also be proportionally longer. Now imagine getting 1000 requests or so every month. It can hamper a web administrator’s productivity significantly. But, not purging CloudFront cache can lead to invalidations too. Using versioned object names is a better and faster way of handling invalidation requests.

 

In-Built Usage Monitor

As a scalable cloud-computing service, AWS is billed based on your actual usage. So, it is wise to keep a constant check on your usage, just to keep track of any spikes that you may not be aware of. Also, you can also set soft limits for specific regions to keep your AWS billing within limits. Rest assured, cost-savings could be well-planned and achieved with AWS.

Final Thoughts

AWS has achieved a cult status in the cloud computing space. Its competitors are nowhere close to matching the giant’s offerings. The fact that it was spun off from Amazon’s very own enterprise IT operations makes it flexible and scalable for all kinds of businesses.

 

These tips will help you make the most of AWS without having to break the bank. They will help you keep your cloud computing costs within limits and also take your cloud infrastructure efficiency to new heights.

 

 

Author Bio:

Pratiksha Prasad

Digital Marketer with over 7 years of experience. Passionate about the latest trends in Digital Marketing, Technology, Cloud Computing, and App Development.

Digital Branding

What Are Algorithms and Why Should We Care

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Whenever you perform a Google search, whenever you browse through the recommendations on Netflix, whenever you see the trends on Twitter or take a peek at your Facebook news feed, you see the result of their tireless work yet you don’t even spare them a thought. They are the algorithms, the unseen forces shaping our lives – especially the digital one. They are the pieces of code that recommend you related products when you buy something online, they are the ones who select the “people you may know” on social media and they are the ones compiling a playlist for you on various music streaming services. Their role is very important in everything digital so let’s take a brief look at what they are and what they are used for.

What are algorithms?

In mathematics, an algorithm describes a set of rules to be followed in calculations – and its role is similar when it comes to computers, too. The visual representation of an algorithm would look a lot like a flowchart used in programming, for example: lots of “if-then” statements with instructions for either case. Think of it as a series of people working at a fruit packaging plant putting apples in one crate if they are red, in another if they are yellow, and calling their supervisor if a pear gets mixed into the batch. They can describe something as simple as the recipe for apple pie to something as complex as AlphaGo, the artificial intelligence that beat Lee Sedol at Go, and everything in between.

Algorithms in everyday life

We don’t see the algorithms in our everyday lives but we see their “handiwork”, so to say. When you book a ticket. When you pay with your card at the grocery store. When you play your favorite game on your phone. We usually call them programs, software packages, applications, apps – depending on the environment. Even reading this article is the result of an algorithm running in your brain: you read the letters left to right, recognize the word, look for its meaning in your memory, understand it, then proceed to the next one in the text. There are many algorithms that are surprisingly complex doing things that seem like magic, like getting the most relevant result when performing a Google search, unlocking your smartphone by allowing it to read your fingerprint or finding the shortest route between your home and the supermarket on your GPS. Today’s digital world wouldn’t function without them.

Algorithms vs humans

Algorithms are becoming “smarter” and more complex as they get more and more data to work with. And, as many jobs can be broken down into simple tasks, they are getting better at them – sometimes better than humans. Take Uber, for example, replacing the dispatchers traditionally working at cab companies with an algorithm that does its job right, sending a driver to the desired address in due time, and taking care of handling the payments, too. An increasing number of companies are now experimenting with replacing part of their human personnel with computers, and the results so far seem promising. In time, algorithms will become even more complex – smarter, if you like – and will be able to do even more of the jobs that were traditionally done by humans. They will do this through a better understanding of the things they do, breaking these things down into simple tasks, and figuring out ways to automate them.

In 1964, science fiction writer Isaac Asimov predicted the following: “The world of A.D. 2014 will have few routine jobs that cannot be done better by some machine than by any human being. Mankind will therefore have become largely a race of machine tenders.” While he was off by a few years, we’re definitely getting there.