tech at work

If you’re a business owner who doesn’t regularly use email marketing, you could be missing out on one of the most effective ways to reach customers. Modern email providers offer more personalized tools and metrics, to the point where it's now possible to see and even anticipate consumer behaviours, which make email marketing more valuable than ever. Here are the top email marketing services available today, and tips for how you can pick the right software for your company.

As people buy ever more wirelessly connected devices, home network security has become increasingly important. These days, you can connect nearly every device in your home to your WiFi, from your desktop PC, laptop, and smartphone, to smart home Internet of Things (IoT) devices like baby monitors, refrigerators, fire alarms, and door locks. With all of these devices connected to a single internet access point, homeowners need to make sure their home WiFi network’s security is up to snuff. And while this may seem intimidating to do on your own, you don’t have to be a tech expert to safeguard your network.

The wine business in the U.S. is hitting its stride, with $75.1 billion in sales nationwide in 2019, the most recent numbers available. The pandemic slowed down some aspects of the business, including the closure of many wineries and in-person tasting events, but online sales grew by 80% over the past year. This shows how one trend of technology in the wine industry, ecommerce, can save and even transform the business. Here are five other trends set to change how the wine industry plans, produces, and distributes its product.

If you’re like most companies, you needed your latest new hire to start work yesterday. Cutting corners and providing a rushed onboarding experience isn’t likely to get you the positive outcome you desire, even if you can get your employee started sooner. Fortunately, effective onboarding can actually help your urgency because 62% of companies that do it well can experience a higher time-to-productivity ratio. It may also result in a 54% increase in engagement, which is tied to better overall workplace experiences.

Efficiency makes or breaks a business, but too much time management advice goes nowhere. That’s why we’ve collected the 10 best research-backed productivity hacks for small business owners. We’ll give you real insight into ways to make the most of the precious resource known as time. These efficiency hacks focus on growing passion, delegating smarter, and choosing goals that ramp up your efficiency. You’ll also find out why some kinds of work breaks are better than others, and why tracking your time can be a great first step.

It’s harder than ever to get people to tune into marketing messages. From ad blockers to simply muting posts on their social media timelines, customers are exercising more control over which messages get through. Is personalized marketing the answer for brands? With 78.6% of consumers stating that they won’t even consider using promotional offers that aren’t tied to past behaviours, it’s definitely worth considering.

No matter how old we get, we all love to play. Maybe that's why gamification marketing is reaching into every facet of marketing these days, with agencies setting up shop specifically to address this need. Global gamification is expected to grow from $6.8 billion in 2018 to $40 billion by 2024. Plus, a U.K. marketing agency reported that while 58% of shoppers claim they’re not influenced by traditional online display ads, 60% of these same consumers admitted they’re more likely to buy from a company using gamification.

Engaged employees are more productive and likely to share good things about your workplace. They are, in a way, the best kind of brand ambassador. But how do you improve employee engagement? One way is to recognize them with employee appreciation awards, though not every idea will work for every employee.

The cost of cyber terrorism is real and significant to businesses today. The harm they cause is increasing each year, with estimates showing that 78% of US organizations have fielded a cyber attack in the past year. The threats come with a price tag, too, with an attacked company spending roughly $13 million to fix the harm done. What can companies do in the face of such a growing threat? One way is to stay informed of the dangers that lurk online. We’ll go over the most anticipated new threats in cyber security to your business in the coming year.

Making a job offering attractive to today's workers means more than just giving them a suitable salary. Benefits are incredibly important and encompass myriad aspects of employees’ lives outside the workplace. So if a job candidate asks whether you offer a competitive employee benefits package, how do you know that you actually do?