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12 Most Important 2021 Social Media Trends You Need to Know

Published on February 7, 2021February 17, 2021

The only inevitable characteristic of social media represents it’s ever-changing nature with almost always brand-new upcoming trends and ideas. It makes it really exciting for all of us to predict or see the up-to-the-minute fads. It is always exciting to foresee how much of an influence will a trend have or what will endure the most impactful thing on social media in the present day. The following are the few social media trends that are presumably going to take over in 2021.

Important Social Media Trends

Influencer Marketing Creating Buzz

Social media influencers are going to expand and produce a more massive impact. Research shows it is one of the most important social media trends and will increase by 59% this year. The presumption is already in the power of influencers. This is going to be the year of genuine influencers with more original content, of those who will be considered to be more real and show the legitimate content to their viewers. The reason behind it is the idea that such influencers will present and promote items that they had personal experience with. Viewers not only just follow reviews about products, but also get to know the product’s authenticity. The point of significance is that the influencer’s plan of action should be in congruence with the marketing plans of the brand as well as with brand representation. For this to happen, one must be absolutely clear about their brand’s vision and should let the influencers send out the message to their viewers through their own distinct ways, while still sticking to the brand’s objectives.

Shopping on Social Media

Shop til you drop!

Not in 2021, though, as you can easily shop while scrolling through social media apps.

Shopping craze among the audiences never goes out of the question. It is one of the significant factors that leads to user interaction with the brand. With online shopping taking over the world by the storm, the easier your brand gives its users access to a shop, the better it gets for you. Advertising on social networking apps such as Facebook or Instagram has proven to be extremely beneficial. This is why the opportunity to shop right there with a few basic steps has derived a remarkable response. If you come across something that has seized your attention, you can purchase it right away with a single tap. This hassle-free experience is definitely going to be a trend that stays put.

Improved Customer Service

While marketing a brand or a business, after having an audience appointment, the thing that carries out the most important role and should be considered an absolute priority is the service that you provide to your customers. Being available and responding to your customers queries right away is definitely a need of the hour. In this modern-day life, where time is literally money, one has to keep up with the fast pace of social media life. To keep your customers and consumers captivated, it is of high significance that customers receive a response as soon as possible.

Do not MISS out the opportunity to engage potential customers!

Chatbots

Cater for multiple queries at the SAME TIME!

Once introduced, in the beginning, chatbots could only answer a few customers’ queries by responding to the cue words that were considered as the most asked questions.

However, in the previous year, after taking into account the feedback from consumers, companies have modified their chatbots in a way that they comprehend questions proposed and provide answers by searching through available information online. They not only provide quick solutions but also respond to multiple queries what will be a challenge to a human.

User-Generated Content on Social Media Platforms

User-generated content adds to the value of your brand like nothing else. Enjoying something posted by a customer or consumer is likely to develop an increased trust than content that comes from the company itself. To get this extending, one should stay engaged with the users and provide consumers occupied in activities that urge them to generate content. There are many good writers at professional essay writing service Studyclerk.com who will write professional essays for you or help you with generating professional content.

Live videos

From the day they were introduced, live videos have been capturing the attention of the users ever since. According to research, more than eighty-five percent of people actually prefer to watch live streaming rather than reading a blog or a post. Therefore, we will certainly watch more live streams this year.

Paid Advertisements

With competition growing, companies have been advertising on every possible platform to reach out to the audience. And with social media sites being the center of attention, each business has invested in promotion and advertising through social media. Entrepreneurs are using paid advertisements to get closer to their audience and this has proven to be tremendously effective, which is why this seems to be a growing trend in 2021 as well.

Augmented Reality

Big companies like IKEA have been using this technology to produce a broader and more clear vision to consumers about their products and their utilization. Augmented reality is an advanced tech that we can make use of in the most beneficial way for a business. It allows RAND to present its products in the most effective way possible. However, due to investment limitations and tech barriers, this has been used on a small scale. In 2021, we can anticipate more use of AR.

Ephemeral Content

Drawing the audience’s attention through stories or content available for a limited time is proven to be an effective way. Viewers are exceedingly fond of brief and genuine content, whether it is a story or a short video what will carry on as a trend as well.

Social Media as Discovery Engine

Using social media as a leading platform through which you seek out to your specific target audience is proving to remain an overwhelming success. Taking advantage of this and leading people straight through social media to being a customer is something all entrepreneurs should go for.

Micro-videos

Micro-videos represent a trend that viewers are going to keep up with. Who doesn’t consider a compact version of prolonged videos uploaded? Almost everyone. That is why micro-videos are a present-day social media marketing need that entrepreneurs should invest in.

Audience as a part of content

The relationship built with customers is the primary focus of any influencer or entrepreneur, and in order to enhance the quality of that relationship, it is extremely important for entrepreneurs to connect with their viewers at an individual level and find ways to gain their confidence which will ultimately act as a cause of the success of their business.

In conclusion, these few social media trends will keep up in 2021. However, change is the only and certain thing. Innovative ideas and ever-growing interests will surely come into view as time passes. However, these tools will prove to be an efficient strategy to obtain the output you wish for.

10 Common Cash Loan Scams & How to Avoid Them

Published on August 31, 2020September 1, 2020

Uncategorized

Fraud is constantly happening around us, and it is becoming an increasingly common phenomenon. The reason for that is the great development of internet companies and among so many companies there is always a certain number of scammers that people should pay attention to. However, how to protect yourself from such types of fraud?It is a question that has plagued a large number of people, but we have the answer to it. Since most of the work is done over the Internet, a lot of sites are not legitimate and they are just a danger that is constantly lurking. Such an organization steals from people both money and personal data. In this way, without your knowledge, they impose loans on you, and by the time you realize this, the debt is already so great that you cannot repay it.

On the other hand, there are those who do not stop annoying people through various ways of communication such as calls, messages and more. In the end, they did exactly the same as the previous fraudsters. Don’t allow yourself to find yourself in the role of a victim of loan scam, and we will explain to you below how to avoid them.

Scammers use various tricks to entice you to fall prey to their offers and thus take away all your money, some of the most common attempts they use are:

1. Payment in advance

As much as this may seem to you exclusively as a harmless compensation that the lender can reasonably ask of you, be careful. Why do we say that? We advise you for this reason because this can only be the background of some illegal action. Isn’t it suspicious that someone there is asking for money without prior service?

You will agree with us that it is by no means logical to give someone money while asking them for a loan. If you come across something like this, 99% is a scam. Those real lenders will expose you to all the fees and the future process in advance, and generally nothing is paid in advance.

2. Offer via telephone

Did you know that it is not legal to offer loan over the phone? If this happens to you, by no means be gullible. Any type of offer must be exclusively in written form and in no other way. It must also contain all the necessary fees.

3. Wire transfer

Before any cooperation, check who you are dealing with. You need to immediately look for the address of your lender and investigate with the help of a lawyer or financial regulations who you are dealing with. This means that you need to make sure that the lender is doing the job legitimately. It is a sign of alarm if you have not done anything, and he asks you to hand over some kind of compensation. This is an alarm to do what we advised you to do.

4. Failure to check your credit rating

Every lender that does legitimate work will first check your credit status. This assessment refers to checking the possibility of cooperation, because if you are not creditworthy, you will not be a suitable candidate. On the other hand, if you have communication with someone who is not interested in your creditworthiness at all or approves your large loan – this is not good. They are probably not legal business and you have nothing to do with such a lender for your safety. The only exception may be rapid cash offers and you can click here for more info.

5. Suspicious name

The post office box address of the lender is very suspicious. Experienced scammers often use the names of other companies or use their locations to look authentic to you. Don’t fall for something like that, but check immediately with the help of companies that deal with this, and they will confirm everything you need to know.

6. Personal information

You know very well that the main target is the personal information of many fraudsters, not only when it comes to credit, but also everything else. However, this is a good reason for them to ask you for something like your personal data. Of course, you will not have your social security number, account number, etc. give it to anyone, so don’t trust a potential lender right away.
Before you take any step in cooperating with him, first check if you are dealing with the right one. Our advice is to provide such information exclusively to a credit institution for which you have all the evidence that they are operating legitimately.

7. State registration

This is another way you can detect a scammer. More precisely, before entering into a business relationship, you can always check in your state where the person is registered. Every lender must do this if they are legitimately engaged in loan intermediation. Of course, you need to take more steps to make sure you do business with the right people, but this is definitely one of them that will bring you closer to the truth.

8. Reviews

Reviews are a great thing that can say a lot about something. Look at it this way … When you want to watch a movie or go to a new restaurant, be sure to look at the reviews and mostly decide on that. On the other hand, it doesn’t hurt to watch a bad movie or make a mistake with a restaurant. However, if you do it for less important things then imagine how much you risk with important things like money or personal data. If you make a mistake, the damage is huge and sometimes irreparable. Focus on reputable lenders, and you can do it very easily – via Google or social networks. Today, at least, it is very easy.

9. Customer Service

Try to find customer service, and if it does not exist, then it is a very suspicious. It is best to bypass such companies, and don’t even settle for bots. Every respectable company in this business has this service and all the necessary answers to questions as well as other additional information.

10. Red flags

These are some more warning signs that we haven’t listed, and you may not notice because they are very small and sometimes negligible. However, open both eyes in this case and keep in mind that serious lenders will never make stupid mistakes. These are errors like spelling, punctuation, or grammar. This is simply not professional, and that raises doubts as well.

Conclusion:

We hope that this text has helped you see ways in which you can avoid all the pitfalls that lead to loan scam. It is important that you adopt our advice, because today fraudsters are finding new ways every day, as internet technology develops more and more.

How Did the Biggest Retailers Use Automation in 2020?

Published on May 26, 2020June 1, 2020

Business

The news has not been great for retailers dependent on mall walkers for sales. Many people blame internet-based giants like Amazon for the rapid decline in profits experienced by these seemingly archaic brands. However, a deeper inspection seems to point toward the lack of innovation as the culprit for the impending demise of once-popular chains like Macy’s and JC Penney.

Big box stores like Target, Walmart, Best Buy, and cult favorite Costco are seeing steady or improving numbers despite the onslaught of convenience from Amazon. How are these brands managing to keep up?

Target is relying on improved revenue from clothing sales while Walmart has found its boon in grocery receipts. Costco seems to be doing well by luring customers with their free, liberal samples policy. Meanwhile, Amazon continues to barrel along with the perfect mix of every product on the planet and leading the field in automation and efficiency.

Automation and the Customer Experience

The beauty of automation is that its reach goes beyond one facet. Automation has long been in existence in the retail and customer service worlds. There was once a time when doors needed to be opened by pulling on a handle. How did we make entering a store more convenient? By automating them!

Large retailers like Target, Best Buy, Walmart, and Costco have tapped into the variety of segments of automation to help them retain and gain a strong consumer base. Amazon continues to drive the online sector and has led to creative innovations for all the “brick and mortar” brands. Some of those innovations have managed to cross from the fulfillment world into customer service.

Shoppers are frequently benefited by automation without even knowing it. The automatic door opener is an example of tangible automation but there are many things that are less physical going on to improve consumer experiences.

Have you noticed that your local Target seems to have more employees? How can Target be growing revenue while paying for more workers? They aren’t. Automation has freed employees from mundane tasks like counting cash in a back room and put them in customer-facing positions. Customers enjoy rapid replies from chatbots (a form of digital automation) that can provide technical support and give the appearance of no wait time in the dreaded queue.

The bottom line is that automation improves experiences for shoppers and workers. Things are at a tipping point now for retailers. The decision between investing in automation and keeping the status quo will make or break once-reliable brands. Brick and mortar is not dead as evidenced by positive forecasts for Target and the like but the choice remains – evolve or shutter.

Data is King

The drive for obtaining as much data about shoppers, their habits, and what is popular is an important part of why the biggest retailers are pushing forward with automation. Of course, insights into what customers want is a benefit but automation helps use data to improve the bottom line in other ways.

Digital automation combined with the application of robotics in stores has improved inventory management to the point of keeping almost exactly the right amount of stock on the shelf. There is no quicker way to lose a customer than for them to find an empty space where their favorite product should be.

Using data for the purposes of precise inventorying helps in two ways. First, it allows retailers to stock what they need to while avoiding over or understocking. This helps keep money in the companies’ pockets. Secondly, it keeps workers who could be helping customers and improving the overall shopping experience from being bogged down with unnecessary stocking duties. This helps with consumer retention and acquisition by providing exemplary customer service.

Taking data collection and processing a step further, robotic automation has proven immensely beneficial. Walmart has employed robots created by Bossa Nova to roam the aisles scanning the shelves for stock levels. This automation has freed labor to do other tasks like assist customers, keep stores neater, and provide a generally better experience.

Enter the Robot Army

Walmart has always been a harbinger of things to come in the large scale retail industry. While many decry the pushing out of local retailers, Walmart stores have offered unprecedented access to products that some communities might never have had before.

It is no surprise then, that one of the world’s largest brick and mortar retail chains is one of the leaders in automation. Robotics and digital automation are abundant at Walmart and similar brands – from automated self-checkout kiosks to the floor mopping robot called the Auto C.

These retailers insist that the onslaught of robots is a positive thing for workers. The machines will do the mundane, tedious tasks while human workers can go about more fulfilling roles like engaging customers more frequently.

Automation like the Auto C or the Auto S (the robot that scans the shelves for inventory) has already proven itself useful and beneficial to consumer experience and the bottom line. Unfortunately, their human counterparts offer mixed reviews.

Some workers see robotics as an impending doom for jobs. If robots take all the work, what will the humans do for a paycheck? This continues to be refuted by Amazon and other retail brands. First, the technology is still a decade or more away from being able to fulfill an Amazon order on its own, according to Amazon’s Scott Anderson (director of Amazon Robotics Fulfillment). This means human workers are still needed in the sector.

There is also some standard pushback from those who are simply resistant to robotics entering public and professional life. This is likely related to the previously stated concerns and an awkward mesh point of robots that are not quite perfect being deployed amongst humans who tend to expect perfection from technology. Others say that the standards being set by robots in the workplace from an efficiency perspective are leading to the feeling that they cannot keep up with the subsequent demands.

There is some indication that robots and cobots (the human-friendly cousins of robots) might soon be performing the intricate tasks that human arms and hands currently do. A robot called “Blue” is part of the Berkeley Open Robotics program. Blue is outperforming the previous expectations we held for robotics and has been capable of doing intricate tasks like folding towels or using a Keurig-like coffee machine appropriately.

Robots hold some distinct advantages over human workers – no time off, no boredom or being off task, and for now no eyes to roll when given direction by a superior. Retailers who have done well to implement robotics as part of their automation plan are reaping the reward of continued viability while those who insist on staying behind are facing closures and a true reduction in available human jobs.

Large Retailers and Their Use of Automation

The use of automation in the retail sector is undeniably beneficial from multiple angles. Those who have led the way like Amazon and Walmart are seeing growth in revenue, improved customer satisfaction, and have positive forecasts for the future.

Automation continues to grow throughout the retail industry as Wi-Fi connectivity is improved and the technology becomes less expensive. Even small to mid-sized manufacturing shops are able to partner with robotics vendors like Rozum Robotics and gain access to affordable, effective tools to create robots and cobots that will improve their business models.

Large retailers like Amazon, Target, Best Buy, and Walmart all have the resources to spend on automation and they are certainly ahead of the curve in the implementation of automated tools.

Amazon is leading the way with its own robotics development program and the results are astonishing. The recent announcement by Jeff Bezos that Amazon Prime customers would have access to one-day shipping for many products would have seemed impossible just a couple of years ago. It would have taken some Santa and his elves level magic to making that happen in 2015. Yet, here we are.

Amazon has virtually perfected automation and human interaction by streamlining work for its human workers with use of Drive robots. Over 100,000 robots with shelves mounted on top make their way around Amazon fulfillment centers providing the humans (who do the packing tasks) with the products they need.

The improvement in automated technology is palpable with the Amazon Drive models, as they have increased their payload capabilities by 100% (in 2014, the Drive could lift only 750 pounds but is now up to a 1,500-pound capacity). This has led to making one-day shipping a reality for Prime customers.

Amazon also utilizes less flexible automated tools for repetitive tasks like lifting bins and raising pallets to high places.

Walmart is enhancing customer experiences by deploying automation in all the right places. As we have made plain, you cannot simply throw a bunch of robots into a store and call it a day. The smart deployment of resources is the key to the fiscal improvements automation can drive.

By having robots scan shelves or mop floors, employees can be shifted to customer-facing or client-assisting responsibilities. Walmart is also introducing automated conveyor belts to help streamline unloading trucks at its retail stores. This enables employees to get out of the backrooms and perform tasks like filling online orders for in-store pick-up.

Target has improved its automated systems to make workflows more efficient. As self-checkout becomes more popular, the lines waiting to use the kiosks grow. Target has stayed ahead of the game by using automation (cash-counting, for example) to get its employees in a position to help expedite the process. This also improves service at specialty counters like cosmetics and electronics.

Best Buy is experiencing a growth trend simply by introducing automation in its distribution processes. The household electronics giant has streamlined storage, retrieval, and packaging with automated systems. This has brought their bottom line into an ideal position and will get credit for the recent announcement of a project 8% earnings increase and 11.8% improvement of the bottom line.

Best Buy is also leading the way in employee engagement during this automation revolution. It has created a model that dictates the use of its stores as satellite distribution hubs. This has both made online fulfillment more efficient and gives employees a sense of security and necessity.

Automation is Here to Stay

There are certainly naysayers who aim to vilify automation, primarily those working off of misinformation and a dislike for change of any kind. The rapid decline of malls and increase of revenues amongst the largest retailers is a sign that automation is here for the long haul.

While the revolution of automation will change the landscape of retail as we know it, one thing will always ring true – exceptional service wins. As the technology continues to improve, retailers must find ways to incorporate automation effectively while engaging human workers in tasks that bring tangible value to consumers.

General objectives that guide the activities and relationships of one state in its interactions with other states.

customer service