Business Apps & Software – BusinessCollective https://businesscollective.com Entrepreneurship advice and mentorship from the most successful young entrepreneurs. Mon, 04 Jun 2018 15:00:39 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=4.9.5 9 Best Practices for Hosting a Glitch-Free Webinar https://businesscollective.com/9-best-practices-for-hosting-a-glitch-free-webinar/ Tue, 24 Apr 2018 15:00:05 +0000 https://businesscollective.com?p=53612&preview=true&preview_id=53612 Question: What is one best practice for hosting a glitch-free web conference or webinar virtually?

Prepare for the Worst

"While you may not know there will be a blackout or fire alarm in the middle of your web conference, make a list of the potential worst case scenarios and then determine how you can address them should they arise. Prepare for the worst so your audience is impressed that you managed to keep the conference going against all odds. Even if the unexpected doesn't happen, you heave peace of mind."


Test Before Hosting

"Even if you have heard great things about a web conference platform, you don't want to just assume it will work. Instead, run a test first to make sure everything works, such as whether your presentation will load and how the meeting works with the web conference tools that are included with that platform."


Find the Right Platform

"Scout out a platform that's easy for participants to register and join. Your target audience might not register if they have to create an account or jump through other hoops just to join. Also, make sure your platform works well on a variety of devices because not everyone will be joining from a computer. Find one that includes a mobile app or can be connected to via phone."


Have a Moderator

"You need to test and have a moderator who is actively assisting. The speakers should be concentrating only on their presentations and not having to worry about the technology. This moderator can also handle any emails, IM, social media pings and calls with issues. Think of contingencies in case of computer crashes, internet outages, clients unable to connect and so forth."


Ask Participants to Help

"No matter the webinar software platform or the number of times you practice and run through the presentation, technical difficulties are bound to happen while live. To reduce the technical errors, begin your webinar/conference by checking the audio and slides/screen. Simply ask people to locate the chat box and type "yes" if the sound/screen is working. Bonus: This kickstarts engagement."


Use a Reliable System

"One of the best ways to deter customers and annoy them is to make them download software to see your presentation or webinar. So one best practice for hosting would be to have an easy to use, reliable system (at EVENTup we use join.me) that does not require the viewer to do anything further than tune in, which makes the whole operation run much smoother. "


Invest in a Quality Microphone

"Invest in a quality microphone. There's a reason your favorite radio host, podcasters and DJs use them. Copy what the pros do and sound like a pro. You don't need to go crazy — a $100 to $200 one will have you sounding awesome instantly."


Rent a Private Office at a Co-Working Space

"When I'm traveling I don't like to take risks hosting webinars or virtual events, so I will often research a co-working space that will rent me a private, soundproof office with a dedicated Internet line. Many cities have these options now and I have found these spaces to be more reliable options than hotel Wi-Fi."


Expect Problems

"In five years I don't think I've run or attended a single error-free live event -- the technology is just too unpredictable! So we stand ready with a team to engage attendees, answer questions, and send an email if plans change. It can't be perfect, so consider what could go wrong and know how you're going to communicate with your audience."


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How Emerging Technologies Are Impacting the Social Good Space https://businesscollective.com/how-emerging-technologies-are-impacting-the-social-good-space/ Tue, 13 Mar 2018 12:00:06 +0000 https://businesscollective.com?p=53303&preview=true&preview_id=53303 It’s a year of promise and opportunity for nonprofits around the globe. Chock-full of new technology and exciting advancements, I am excited to see the ways in which emerging technologies start to find themselves in the social good space.

Here are a few trends to watch for as the year progresses.

1. Virtual and Augmented Reality

In recent years, virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) have emerged as sought-after technologies with the power to impact virtually every vertical, including social good.

When it comes to social good organizations, VR can have significant impacts. Facebook currently owns a company called Oculus, which recently debuted a “VR for Good” program which has seen a lot of success. This program joined a handful of nonprofits and filmmakers to create material for various virtual reality experiences, which premieres at the Sundance Film Festival in late January 2018.

Much of what we’re seeing now is 360 video rather than true interactive experiences, but it’s a start. Charity Water recently launched a VR experience called “The Source.” According to Adweek, the experience helped them raise over $2.4 million, reporting that one donor originally committed $60,000 but after seeing the video donated $400,000.

VR is unique in that it can create connections across borders and oceans. It has real and tangible implications for the social good atmosphere. Don’t get me wrong, the space has a ways to go before it is widely adopted but, in my opinion, we have hit a tipping point and we’ll start to see exponential growth in terms of development and usage in the coming decade.

2. Mobile First

With the rise of mobile devices, more people are accessing the internet from their phones instead of their desktops. In light of this, websites must offer a mobile-friendly experience. If they don’t, your organization could miss capturing critical audiences.

Mobile-friendly sites feature things like responsive design, “hamburger” menus, high-resolution images and no default zoom. As someone who spends most of their day in front of a desktop computer, it is easy to forget that a fair number of people access the web mainly from their mobile device.

3. Impact Investing

Impact investing is an investment made to a company or organization with the distinct purpose of creating a measurable social or environmental impact, as well as a financial return. Impact investing has been on the rise in recent years, and will continue to balloon in popularity throughout 2018. We’re seeing more companies incorporate a triple bottom line — aiming to turn a profit but also make a positive impact. And the Case Foundation, a client of ours, is among players bringing transparency to impact investing data with its Impact Investing Network Map.

This presents a great opportunity for social good organizations. In 2017, investors committed upwards of $22.1 billion to impact investments, and that number is only projected to rise this year.

4. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)

We are seeing private corporations double down on their corporate social responsibility programs. Whether it’s baking this into their core business model (TOMS) or launching a separate division dedicated to CSR (Dove’s self-esteem project), this movement is on the rise.

While this is good for society overall, it is also creating more competition. CSR programs are typically well-funded and backed by very savvy marketers and technologists. Remember, your supporters have limited time and money, and these CSR programs provide new competition for traditional nonprofits.

5. Artificial Intelligence (AI)

As AI advances, nonprofits can expect to see AI integration across the board. At Creative Science Labs, we have used tools like Crystal, which determine a person’s DISC (dominance, influence, steadiness, compliance) profile and recommend communication tactics. These tools are becoming more popular and are ideal for any nonprofit that wants to personalize its message to individual supporters.

More nonprofits will also be using chatbots in coming years. Not only are these a streamlined way to communicate with and capture potential donors, but they’re also a great way to engage supporters and donors without having to staff the conversation on the back end.

As 2018 progresses, the nonprofits around you will be taking advantage of advancements such as artificial intelligence, mobile-first web design and chatbots. The only question now is, will you be prepared to follow suit?

A version of this post originally appeared here.

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How to Use Augmented Reality in Your 2018 Marketing Strategy https://businesscollective.com/how-to-use-augmented-reality-in-your-2018-marketing-strategy/ Wed, 07 Mar 2018 13:00:02 +0000 https://businesscollective.com?p=53226&preview=true&preview_id=53226 This is one of the most exciting times to be part of marketing. New technologies are changing how we approach our target audiences and existing customers. While challenging to a certain extent in terms of understanding what this technology is capable of doing for our marketing objectives (with many technologies still evolving), there are many ways you can start benefiting from what already exists.

Exploring Augmented Reality

Augmented reality is defined by Live Science as a technology that adds another dimension to how we view the world by layering information onto what we currently experience in the form of visuals, sounds and other sensory experiences. As opposed to virtual reality, augmented reality changes your reality to a certain degree but does not immerse you in a different world.

Companies such as Google Glass have developed devices to incorporate augmented reality into their product. Now, they are seeking additional ways to create new experiences for their customers and prospects with this technology. While you may not be at the point where you can develop the technology, you can think of ways to use what’s already out there in your own marketing strategy. Here are some ideas.

Content Marketing

Think of augmented reality as adding another dimension to what you are already implementing with your content. It allows your audience to upgrade the content they are interacting with by adding or subtracting filters or visual stickers you can create and provide. Empower them to customize the content how they like before sharing it with others.

Both you and your audience help create that dimension. For example, you can use it in your product catalog. Allow the user to lay a product over a certain environment to see how it would fit or work for them. Consider how augmented reality can provide that “try before you buy” feeling so buyers can experience more realistic online purchases. In this way, augmented reality content could be the solution for a challenge that has plagued industries related to selling furniture, makeup and clothing online. Focus on the fun, accessibility and visualization aspects within your augmented reality content, keeping in mind what your audience wants to see and how it will help them.

Advertising

This strategy in content and messaging doesn’t have to uniquely apply to your website. You can incorporate the “try before you buy” approach into advertising campaigns. Think about taking gamification in advertising. Enhance interaction and immersion using augmented reality. Give the user more control of what direction your advertising will take them without losing the ability to get your message across. Make the user feel empowered and less like they are being sold to.

You can incorporate virtual tours and case studies that the user manipulates to navigate to the offer that is of the greatest value to them. That also helps enhance the personalization aspect of what you are trying to achieve.

App Development

If your budget and technology talent can accommodate it, the next step in leveraging augmented reality within your company is developing your own apps that allow your audience to interact with your brand more directly.

Using this strategy, some brands have already found that they can convince users that their app provides superior interaction features over existing social media platforms. As a result, others have joined users on these apps and created a social-media based community around that brand. Encourage users to share their augmented reality experiences in terms of how they are using the app and what it can do for them.

Things to Ponder Before Adding Augmented Reality

Like any marketing technology or social media platform, you shouldn’t toss augmented reality into your marketing strategy because it seems like the thing to do or because everyone else is doing it. This type of technology may not yet be ready or relevant to every industry. Make sure you can effectively use augmented reality in one or more of the aforementioned ways. 

Before launching any use of augmented reality, test it again and again until you know it offers a truly unique, engaging experience for your audience. This may mean investing in user testing, which is well worth the return to ensure you get it right. If you can get the audience excited from the start, the virtual enthusiasm will rise incrementally. That will give you something to build on with your other marketing efforts and potentially increase the number of shares and likes you receive through social media.

Take it slow. Stay attuned to further developments in augmented reality so you can add the technological innovations as you continue using it throughout your marketing strategy and beyond.

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5 Pages Every Business Should Include on Their Website https://businesscollective.com/5-pages-every-business-should-include-on-their-website/ Tue, 27 Feb 2018 13:00:57 +0000 https://businesscollective.com?p=53177&preview=true&preview_id=53177 When creating a website for your business, you want to ensure it’s an accurate representation of your company. In today’s digital world, the initial impression you give to future clients is likely coming from your site. It’s important to make sure that you’re putting your best virtual foot forward.

After years of working in web design and successfully managing more than 1,000 projects, I’ve discovered one truth: Your website requires certain pages to be successful. These are the five key pages that are the most visited and most important for a typical service-based business:

“Services”

Content is the driving factor behind search results. If you have no content, it’s hard for search engines to find and index your pages, which means you show up less often in search results – not ideal.

One of the most effective ways to increase your footprint on the web is by creating detailed services pages. Be sure not to list your services on just one page; break down your services into specific pages and categories. Go even deeper and write subpages on those specific categories. The more detailed content you can provide, the better.

Moreover, you should tie your services pages to your blog and resources. Whenever you write a new article, and it’s categorized as a specific service, it should automatically appear on your services page as related content.

“Why Choose Us”

Your “Why Choose Us” page should be a clear explanation of your unique selling proposition and value to your client. Why should they choose you? Do you have three key reasons? Five? Seven? More? Make a list and create a detailed page out of it. You can even incorporate that content into various parts of your services page.

“About Us”

It’s no secret that people are coming to your website because they want to know more about you and what you do. Therefore, an “About Us” page is a must. The name of the page can change based on your industry and business. You could call it “Our Team,” “Company,” “About Us” or something of the like.

When writing copy for this page, be concise but thorough: Why did you start your business? What are you offering clients? What makes your services special and different? Including a mission statement that people can rally behind is always a plus, too.

Think of this page as your personal introduction to every client who may walk through your door. What do you want to leave them with? Decide, then write it down.

“Testimonials/Case Studies”

Nothing speaks to your skills and abilities quite like the words of satisfied customers. Showcasing a few five-star reviews is an effective way to let new visitors know that you’ve got what it takes to deliver great results. Testimonials go a long way in earning trust. Give potential clients peace of mind and showcase just how happy your former clients are on a separate page or as a design element throughout your website.

Sometimes, websites include testimonials on every page. If that is the case, it may be redundant to have a testimonials page listing them all. Instead, focus on a few key clients and write specific case studies on how you helped them. Include their logo, bio, what their core issues were, and how you helped resolve them. If you want to get even more detailed, include charts, graphics and illustrations of your process.

“Contact Us”

A website would pretty much be useless without a contact page. After all, how else would potential clients let you know they’re interested in learning more or becoming a client? It’s important that this page is clear and accessible. Your contact page isn’t the place to experiment with fancy fonts and strange colors. Whether you choose to have a full contact form or just list the important things (phone, e-mail, mailing address), make sure the information is simple and clear.

You might even consider listing your hours of operation and social media accounts on your contact page, too. The more ways to connect, the merrier. Don’t leave people in the dark about how they can find you.

Your Website Is a Living Document

Whether you’re in the middle of a redesign, creating a completely new website or thinking about a new internet marketing approach, understand that your website is never complete. It grows and changes as your business does. There’s nothing wrong with starting small, but remember, these five pages are the backbone of your website.

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9 Basic Steps You Can Take to Improve Your Business’s Digital Privacy https://businesscollective.com/9-basic-steps-you-can-take-to-improve-your-businesss-digital-privacy/ Fri, 09 Feb 2018 16:00:28 +0000 https://businesscollective.com?p=52991&preview=true&preview_id=52991 Question: What is one basic step you've taken in your business to improve digital privacy (e.g. password software)?

Offline Backups

"A friend of mine's e-commerce site was recently hit with a bad round of ransomware. Due to a software mismatch, she lost everything before she could update her server. This vindicated my obsession with having offline backups of everything in the cloud. Apart from that, all my employees only use one password to access all of their tools. Everyone has a Dashlane account and is logged in automatically."


Penetration Testing

"One basic step we've taken this year to improve digital security is having our website and office network penetration tested. We know our website and networks come with security features and we enable them, but we never really take the time to test them. Having an IT person come in and intentionally try to hack your business to find and fix any flaws will ensure that your data is 100 percent secure."


Employee Education

"In my business, data privacy is all important. Most of the people who work for me are technical experts who understand the value of secure passwords, encryption and best practices. But I train to make sure administrative staff -- assistants, office managers, etc. -- understand the risks of security issues like phishing. Every employee needs to have a basic grasp of data security and privacy."


Hotspot Shield VPN Protection

"To protect ourselves when traveling abroad, connecting in airports, coffee shops and making online transactions, we use Hotspot Shield. This keeps our information more secure and always allows us to connect with a North American IP address. It also gives us access to all the apps and websites that require a USA IP address."


LastPass

"LastPass is an awesome way to organize passwords and keep them safe. Not only is it difficult to breach, but it has a lot of flexibility. You can use it on a personal or enterprise level, even giving different employees access to different passwords. Each password can be selected for different access limitations. We really like it."


Dashlane

"Dashlane is excellent for personal and professional password management. I've used a variety of apps before, but Dashlane has stood out amongst its peers and has worked flawlessly across devices. It increases productivity while keeping our business's privacy on lockdown. From a privacy perspective, a solid password solution is one of lowest-hanging fruits (in addition to encrypted backups)."


RoboForm

"We moved everyone in the company to using RoboForm. All passwords are generated through RoboForm and are virtually unhackable. The data is synced so that all users have access to the updated passwords on their browser. We've also made the switch to https."


Training On Phishing Emails and Other Scams

"Our VP of Finance received an email that looked like it came from me, using my photo and signature asking that I urgently wire funds to a vendor. Naturally, he was suspicious so he spoke to me directly to avoid a costly mistake. Because the email was so convincing, we ran a training on the experience. Make training memorable by using real-world examples to emphasize the seriousness of the topic."


Bitium

"At SOCi, we’ve started using Bitium, which is a great tool to protect your accounts while simplifying password management. It has definitely improved our digital security while also reducing the time needed to manage passwords and logins."


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A Beginner’s Guide to Understanding Bitcoin https://businesscollective.com/a-beginners-guide-to-understanding-bitcoin/ Tue, 09 Jan 2018 16:00:25 +0000 https://businesscollective.com?p=52786&preview=true&preview_id=52786 A lot of guides have been written to describe the basics of bitcoin. They usually start with an analogy around gold and mining, and something called the blockchain. These guides are great, but they often get into the technical weeds and don’t explain why people are investing in bitcoin or why it can change the future of money. In this guide, you’ll learn what bitcoin is, its pros and cons, and what it means for the future of cryptocurrencies.

What is It?

Bitcoin is a currency. It can be sent digitally. It can also be stored securely, either digitally or on paper. Unlike traditional money, it can’t be easily forged. Unlike traditional currency, bitcoin transactions are both public and largely anonymous.

Why is Bitcoin Valuable?

Bitcoin does a number of things that traditional money, gold, credit cards and checks do, but it does it without a central bank. Bitcoin also does it digitally and in a way that is very difficult and arguably impossible to forge. These characteristics are so desirable that many people are trading traditional currencies for bitcoin. In fact, so much of this is happening that it’s causing the price of bitcoin relative to traditional currencies to skyrocket, creating an investment opportunity for many people coming into the currency.

Like other currencies, bitcoin’s value is driven by supply and demand. Bitcoin has a limited supply (today there are only 16 million bitcoins and the currency will only ever have 21 million coins). This is a limited global supply but an in increasing global demand. Bitcoin is becoming more widely accepted and easily transferable. It’s now possible to send money from person to person and country to country, without it going through a bank.

While this may seem basic (that’s the point), it’s transformative. It’s was previously impractical for people to be their own bank. You could store money in a vault or under your mattress but it was difficult and impractical to do so because ease of transfer and portability are important. This is why centralized digital payment companies like credit cards, PayPal and Venmo took off. They made payment easy and portable. But these methods are centralized. Anyone who has had their credit card stolen or had their PayPal account locked up knows how crippling this can be. The differentiator of bitcoin is that it’s decentralized.

Why Does Society Think Bitcoin is Valuable?

  • It can store your money.
  • It can protect against forgery.
  • It can be used to pay people securely.
  • It can be exchanged globally for goods and services.
  • It can appreciate in value (investment).
  • It is decentralized so that no government or individual bank is in control.

Technological disruption often eliminates middlemen. It allows people to deal directly rather than indirectly. Bitcoin is eliminating the arbitrage of a bank. It allows people to control their own funds directly.

What’s Wrong With Bitcoin?

For all the things that are positive about bitcoin, there are a number of problems worth discussing. These problems are being worked on by teams around the world, and given the decentralized nature of bitcoin, will require consensus to solve.

  • Bitcoin is slow. Transactions, sending money and receiving it is slow; currently too slow for real-time purchases. Bitcoin is faster and more secure than sending a check, but it’s often measured in minutes and hours, not milliseconds.
  • Bitcoin uses a lot of electricity. Part of the algorithm of bitcoin is designed to make it difficult to create new bitcoins. This process is intentionally inefficient. Because of the rapid scale of the currency, it’s estimated to be using enough energy to power about 2 million homes.
  • Bitcoin is currently an unstable currency. It’s so new that it changes price daily in 10 percent swings both positively and negatively. This can equate to even larger weekly fluctuations. I expect it will settle, but it’s hard to tell how long this will take. In the meantime, there will be investment winners, losers and inevitable bubbles.

The Future of Cryptocurrencies

Global wealth is measured in the $100 trillion range and up. Cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin, are in the $200 billion range. I believe that the future will have more cryptocurrencies rather than fewer. My predictions:

  • I expect cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin will grow north of 1 percent or $1 trillion in global value in the next year. Over the next few years, I expect it to be 5–10 percent.
  • The decentralized encryption technology behind bitcoin (blockchains) will be used for many new things including accounting, medical records, insurance and more.
  • New cryptocurrencies may begin to grow even faster than bitcoin as the performance and energy issues with bitcoin become more pronounced.
  • When the growth rate stabilizes, we’ll see more personal payment solutions (similar to PayPal) as well as traditional banking solutions built on top of cryptocurrencies.
  • Governments and tax agencies will begin to pay a lot more attention. Bitcoin is considered an “intangible property” by the IRS. Expect further regulation and taxes around cryptocurrency to measure and track capital gains.
  • Exciting new technologies will become more popular. New currencies and blockchain tools like Ethereum will allow a new breed of apps to be built and run in the cloud. This is still in the experimental phase, but people are already using Ethereum for identity, crowdfunding, voting, and even breeding digital cats (yeah, really.) More complex and sophisticated apps will evolve to use the technology that will further digital currency and decentralized trust.

I believe that many aspects of cryptocurrencies will become inevitable. Not everyone wants to trust banks with their money, but to date, it’s been impractical to do otherwise. The collapse of Lehman Brothers, the fraud at Wells Fargo and others have created new opportunities for bitcoin and beyond. I believe the future is bright for digital currencies.

Warning: Never invest in something you don’t understand and don’t risk money you’re not willing to lose.

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How Blockchain Could Impact Your Business and Taxes https://businesscollective.com/how-blockchain-could-impact-your-business-and-taxes/ Thu, 04 Jan 2018 13:00:20 +0000 https://businesscollective.com?p=52685&preview=true&preview_id=52685 Bitcoin and ethereum are popular investment options, but it is the underlying blockchain technology that holds real value in the way we can revolutionize big data and transactions over the internet. The potential of blockchain goes well beyond cryptocurrency. It will remain in the fabric of our technological lives and, hence, entrepreneurs should recognize its power and use it to their advantage.

Blockchain was originally designed to facilitate transactions of the cryptocurrency bitcoin. But bitcoin was only the first large-scale application of the blockchain platform. Blockchain technology has immense potential beyond just cryptocurrency transactions. It could completely change financial and business transactions and real estate deals.

From a tax perspective, blockchain has the ability to disrupt global taxation.

What is Blockchain?

Blockchain is essentially a decentralized transaction ledger, in which digital information can be distributed and viewed but not copied or altered. As a distributed database, it lives across a network of computers, which makes it exceptionally secure.

Blockchain stores transaction records in groups called blocks. Each block is time-stamped and added to a chain, linked to the previous block. It is completely transparent and cannot be changed, eliminating the need for a third party audit.

A transaction can involve money, contracts, records and other information. Therefore, blockchain is not limited to financial transactions but can be used for anything of value.

The Potential Impact of Blockchain on Businesses

Since blockchain technology fundamentally changes how transactions are made and recorded, the accounting industry will likely see the biggest impact. But the disruption will not stop there. Real estate transactions could be greatly simplified using blockchain technology instead of manual paperwork. Distributed ledgers provide an easy way to trace the origins of goods (for example, fair trade products), thus simplifying supply chain audits.

In the sharing economy, blockchain could enable true peer-to-peer transactions, thus eliminating the intermediary, like an Uber or Airbnb. Blockchain technology could take crowdfunding to the next level, potentially creating crowd-sourced venture capital funds. Using smart contracts, creators can protect intellectual property and sell creative work directly to their audiences online. Client verification, often a cumbersome manual process, could be simplified through cross-institution verification based on blockchain. This could also have applications in anti-money laundering efforts. In politics and governance, a distributed database could make results fully transparent and publicly accessible.

How Blockchain Could Transform Taxation

Blockchain’s core characteristics give it significant potential for use in taxation.

Transparent Real-Time Information

Businesses could see less cost and more efficiency, as blockchain technology could automate the manual processing of payroll tax, employment tax and any transaction-based taxes. Instead of self-reporting, every single transaction would be recorded and paid immediately, ensuring almost 100 percent compliance.

Blockchain could also help with verifying transfer pricing and valuation. Using this technology would make it easier to value what is the “fair market price” between a willing buyer and willing seller to ensure all related party transactions are valued appropriately. It would help make valuations more of a science than an art and keep these valuations supportable and up to date.

Increased Security and Fraud Protection

With blockchain incorporated into the tax collection process, audit detection occurs automatically and instantaneously. The digital ledger cannot be tempered with once the data is entered. Any changes are fully transparent to all identified network users, thus limiting the potential for errors and fraud.

Tax authorities would also benefit from that. The transparency inherent to blockchain would change how tax audits are performed. Some governments, such as Luxembourg, have already started to experiment with blockchain-based solutions for tax filings and audits.

While blockchain has its roots in cryptocurrencies, it has the potential and trajectory to profoundly impact financial services, taxation and global business in general. This is something that will impact 2018 and beyond. So the people who get involved now in learning, understanding and developing this technology and these solutions are not only boosting a trend, but impacting our society for years to come.

A version of this post originally appeared here

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Six New Apps to Help You Get Organized in 2018 https://businesscollective.com/six-new-apps-to-help-you-get-organized-in-2018/ Wed, 06 Dec 2017 13:00:27 +0000 https://businesscollective.com?p=52539&preview=true&preview_id=52539 I like being as busy as possible. However, I don’t like busy trying to figure out everything that I have to do or planning the best way to be working on multiple ventures and activities at once. That’s why I continually aim to improve my organization skills each year. This year, I have no excuse but to achieve that resolution because of the numerous new apps that are available to organize my work and life.

I am not affiliated with any of the companies in the article. They have been selected because I am currently using them and wanted to share them with other entrepreneurs who may be resolving to make improvements in how they structure their days, weeks and months.

Calendar.com

Every smartphone or mobile device comes with a calendar. In fact, I’ve always sworn by my Google calendar. However, Calendar.com has an app that brings the many calendars I have together in one spot and even allows me to easily share this information with whomever I choose. It even has a natural language feature so I can just input a couple words and the app then recognizes what I’m trying to do or find. It’s ideal for meetings and working with teams. Another cool feature is that it calculates the best route, mode of transportation and optimum time it will take to get to an event, appointment or meeting. Basically, it does a lot of the thinking for me, which is helpful when you are on the go and have many things on your mind.

Momentum

I like this Chrome extension because it gives me a personal dashboard that is designed to help me stay focused on my priorities, deliver positive inspiration to ramp up motivation and offer customized information that helps me achieve those priorities. The extension asks me each day what my main task is that day, which helps me to really think about what I’m doing rather than making a mental list and hoping I get through some of it. Even better is that it serves as a parent or teacher by taking away the main browser tab that often leads me astray to sites where I am not accomplishing my list of priorities.

Things

Don’t let the title fool you. This is no general organization site for “stuff” and “things” that go on a to-do list. Instead, this app is the real deal when it comes to helping me organize tasks in a thoughtful way. While it does a lot of the heavy lifting in terms of putting it down and offering me reminders and visual plans to complete my day, it also makes me think more deeply and reflect on how I approach each day. This reduces a lot of the stress for me. It also helps that the app divides up the day so I don’t have to look at those things I have to do that can only be finished at home. Not having to look at them creates a better focus on only the tasks that really need my attention and that I can control. This includes larger tasks where the app breaks it down into manageable items that relate to the bigger one. Also, there is the option to look at the upcoming tasks so I maintain a longer range sense of planning and organization.

Reeder 3

The newest version of this relatively new app for iOS and the Mac helps me stay updated and organized when it comes to all the content that I want to consume. This helps me be more efficient with how I use my time to catch up on the trends, issues, and insights out there. It supports multiple media sites I like to get my information from and organizes it for me so I don’t have to go to each site and find articles of interest. These media sites include Feedly, Fever, NewsBlur and more. Plus, it supports local and standalone RSS. Additionally, it includes sharing services so I can send anything of interest to my team who may be on Buffer, Evernote, Facebook, Twitter, email or other sites and platforms.

Google Keep

Sometimes the hardest things to organize and keep where I can find them are my thoughts. That’s what Google must have realized when they created the Keep app. I can record audio, save notes and thoughts and add photos — all in one place. This has helped me from losing ideas and other valuable content that could have been useful later on during a project. Notebooks and scraps of paper can get lost, but the Keep app is always with me. The location-based and time-based reminders are other features that keep me on time and on task.

DayOne

While Keep is great for passing thoughts and brainstorming, DayOne is a way for me to keep a daily journal of reflections that help me find time to work on my personal development. It’s an easy way to keep a journal, which helps me think more consciously about the goals I set for myself in life and business. If I didn’t have a digital way to do this with cloud management so I could access it from anywhere, I probably wouldn’t keep a journal. It has password capability to keep my thoughts secure and private, which helps especially if I’m putting down new business ideas or thoughts related to any type of proprietary information I have through my business.

Go Beyond Technology

Although it benefits me and my organization skills immensely to have these new apps, their power is not truly activated until I completely commit to working on becoming more organized. There is a mental process where you must decide that you want to be more organized and efficient with your time. Otherwise, these tools will rust in their toolbox, unused and unappreciated. When you truly want to be organized, you will put your mental energy to work to do so.

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9 Easy Tools for Load-Testing Your App or Website https://businesscollective.com/9-easy-tools-for-load-testing-your-app-or-website/ Fri, 10 Nov 2017 14:00:45 +0000 https://businesscollective.com?p=52286&preview=true&preview_id=52286 Question: What is your favorite tool for load-testing your app or website and why?

Bees With Machine Guns

"I use Bees With Machine Guns because it uses Amazon Web Services (AWS) to spin up servers immediately to make requests onto your site. It’s open source, and the only cost comes from the servers it spins up and tears down in a matter of seconds."


Perfecto Mobile

"We have used Perfecto Mobile for years. We can create any number of users to do load testing, and the best thing is that it does testing on real devices in a cloud environment rather than using simulator-based testing. Also, it allows us to test mobile apps on 100+ mobile devices of different make and model. We can test the UI/UX and do performance testing. It's also subscription- and cloud-based, which saves money."


Blitz

"Blitz.io has been a fantastic resource for us. It's about as easy to set up as load testing can be, which is extremely helpful. It can handle up to 200,000 users from multiple regions, so there's a lot of versatility there as well."


GTmetrix

"I like to cross-reference multiple tools, which is why I use GTmetrix. It pulls in data from Google's PageSpeed as well as Yahoo's YSlow. In addition, it lets you compare historic crawls, capture a video of the website loading, test from different geo locations on different internet speeds and browsers and prioritize high-value areas -- all for free."


Google Insights

"I use the tool Google offers because they are the search engine we are looking to rank for. If 85 percent of traffic comes from Google, then why not use the product they judge your site by? They give you the speeds as well as errors to fix."


Loader.io

"You can't go wrong with Loader.io. It has great documentation, lets you test via API or web interface and has amazing reports. You can test literally anything with this tool. "


Pingdom

"Pingdom's waterfall report gives an at-a-glance view of which elements on a page are large and slow. Sort the list of all your elements by size to quickly identify large files and consider removing them to improve load times. Then, sort the list by time to spot those slow-loading elements and, again, consider if you can compress the file or eliminate it altogether."


Gatling

"We are big on stress testing. Slow page loads are death for us, being a platform that handles people's financial info in environments they expect to load quickly. For an open source option, we like Gatling, with its record feature and colorful reports."


WebPageTest

"WebPageTest is a great tool to test the performance of a website. You can run performance tests from multiple locations around the world with various browsers and even specify mobile connections (i.e. 3G, 2G)."


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8 Best Appointment Scheduling Apps and What Makes Them Great https://businesscollective.com/8-best-appointment-scheduling-apps-and-what-makes-them-great/ Mon, 06 Nov 2017 16:00:19 +0000 https://businesscollective.com?p=52277&preview=true&preview_id=52277 Question: What is your favorite appointment scheduling app, and what sets it apart from the rest?

Calendly

"We've had great success using Calendly. You include your link with available meeting times in an email, and the client schedules their own appointment from there. It eliminates the back and forth of trying to find a time that works for everyone and is super easy to use."


ScheduleOnce

"Since using ScheduleOnce's MeetMe for scheduling meetings with clients, there's been a vast improvement in organization and a reduction in the back-and-forth emails that normally ensue when trying to set up an appointment. It's easy to use, reduces admin effort and removes headaches. "


x.ai

"Amy, the virtual artificial assistant from x.ai, is really sophisticated and has handled a number of my complicated scheduling requests without fail. Most of the time, the other side has no idea that they are interacting with a computer-generated program."


Google Apps

"Google Calendars is tried and true for a reason. It syncs with nearly every phone, computer and email account, allowing me to have constant access to my calendar and add appointments wherever I am. While there are other options out there, this is easy to use and virtually everywhere. "


Mixmax

"Mixmax is a Gmail integration app that has a feature that really takes the hassle out of scheduling meetings. You just add calendar spots to your email and the person you send it to just clicks on the time that works for them and it's booked. There is no back and forth. It easily saves me hours every week."


Pick.co

"Scheduling should be an easy task but tends to have the most complicated solutions catering to it. Most of them often miss the point: getting the appointment set quickly. Pick.co makes it so easy to set your preferred times and connect with your existing calendar. Then you're good to share your calendar link with the world."


Front Desk

"Front Desk is the most reliable, simple and flexible solution that I've used for scheduling within my team, company and clients. The software adapts to my company's unique workflow and does not force us to schedule in ways that we are not used to. The entire team adapted to Front Desk immediately, and it makes communication flow easily and successfully."


Keeping It Old School

"I prefer the old school method of having a secretary or personal assistant to take over once a connection has been made. This way makes us different compared to everyone else using online apps and provides a personal touch when scheduling that brings us back to the days when folks would connect much more in person."


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