Tag: Communication

3 Ways for Small Business Owners To Improve Company-Wide Collaboration

Posted on by Temitope Adelekan

Read more engaging articles on the Knowledge Vault today!

If you own a small business, you’re keenly aware of every employee’s role in your enterprise. What may be missing, though, are the significant gains that come from group efforts. Consider these ideas from Knowledge Vault for transforming your company culture into one where everyone works separately (or even remotely) to one that shifts from solo work to collaborative work with ease.

1. Foster a Pro-Communication Culture

It should go without saying that if you want your employees to feel comfortable sharing ideas and offering constructive critiques, you should foster an environment of open communication, non-judgmental discourse, and respect. Positivity begins with the business owners and leaders, but it’s also reinforced by your meetings, training, company policies, and feedback you give to your employees.

If your employees work in the office, do your best to create a comfortable physical environment. If your employees are remote-only or hybrid teams, ensure that they have what they need to thrive including proper office equipment and a way to communicate with everyone. This could include Slack or another popular workplace messenger app to ensure that no one gets left out of a discussion.

It’s also important that you and your team are open to hear difficult feedback from coworkers, including points like, they don’t feel heard, are not comfortable with one another, or simply don’t trust each other. You cannot address problems if you don’t know they exist, so this kind of open communication is vital, even if it is painful. Ask one another how you can gain each other’s trust, and own up to your mistakes. Never make excuses.

2. Consider Your Collaborative Platforms

The fact that life has increasingly moved online in the past decade has increased the need for high-quality virtual platforms and messaging systems. Consider the size of your entire company as well as the usual number of people in your collaborative teams to determine which platforms will suit your business.

Here are a few options that are especially suited to remote or hybrid work:

  • Zoom: you likely know and love (or hate!) this virtual meeting platform. Video calls are necessary in the age of remote work, and they can often save an employee who has to stay home with a sick child or care for an aging relative.
  • Slack: this app is essential for day-to-day communication with your office staff as well as for collaborative efforts in smaller teams. 
  • Trello: make project management easier by using a visual board to envision everyone’s duties and due dates. Everyone is able to see their personal to-do list and understand where the project is in terms of completion.
  • Workfront: collaborate in real time with this project management software that also comes with some handy automation features.

3. Keep Your Project Teams Small

LinkedIn reports that creating teams of over 15 individuals (although 10 is better) can decrease employees’ motivation to collaborate and work as a group. Too-large groups result in a few hardworking employees assigning duties to the rest of the group and picking up slack. It may also cause a phenomenon where some employees render themselves invisible by not communicating or offering any input — and letting others do the heavy lifting for them.

Make it a point to split large teams into small groups. In groups of three to eight, your employees have more incentive to speak up and work with their teammates. The Art of Teamwork recommends assigning five or six employees to a collaborative team. Employees may feel more comfortable collaborating and expressing their thoughts when working in smaller groups as well.

Finally, take the time to cultivate healthy communication practices. Company culture isn’t invented overnight. It takes time to build, and it takes into account your employees’ personalities, your leadership style, and your vision for the future. If you feel that your business isn’t as collaborative as you had wished it would be, use the tips listed here to adjust to a culture that works for everyone.

Feel free to share this post on social networks. This opinion article is for informational purposes only.

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Brought to you by Lisa Walker

Edited by Temitope Adelekan

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Why use Anti-Phishing Attack Software to Ensure Cybersecurity?

Posted on by Temitope Adelekan

Phishing

A phishing attack is a process in which an imposter or an attacker sends emails to the users at large claiming to be someone they know or belonging to a brand/ services they use. Most of these emails ask users to share their personal information such as the bank account details, credit card number and pin numbers, or other such information which can lead to identity and financial theft. The emails would also ask the users to open a link or the attached document and download a file. When the user falls prey and performs any of the said actions, the malicious virus hidden in the email will enter their computer. It will provide the attackers access to the computer and allow them to steal the information stored on it without the user’s knowledge.

Over the years, many antivirus software products, spam and malware filters have been developed to detect such emails and prevent the users from being duped. Enterprises have become a hot target for the attackers. Even if one employee in the entire organization would become a victim, the attackers could access and control the entire system of the enterprise.

Almost every enterprise has antivirus software installed along with firewalls, spam filters, and other such email security systems. Yet, a good number of phishing emails slip past the filters and end up reaching the employees. Many employees have been duped and as a result, the enterprises have suffered losses in more ways than one.

If we wonder why, the answer is quite simple. Despite the claims, the traditional antivirus software packages do not successfully detect and prevent all kinds of phishing attacks. With changing technology, attackers are creating innovative methods to slip past the security filters.

What the companies need is phishing attack software that will provide all-round protection by identifying every suspicious and fraudulent email and alerting the users. The attackers not following the old methods of sending easily detectable fake emails. Instead, they are targeting a certain section of employees with highly intelligent email techniques. It is more or less impossible for the traditional antivirus software that relies on a standard database to compare the emails to identify and detect the latest phishing attacks.

If we consider Zero Day Attack as an example, it is one of the newest phishing attacks in the market that doesn’t get detected by most software packages. On average, about 1.5 million new phishing sites and email ids are created. To keep up with the ever-increasing list of fake websites is not a solution. It takes 24-48 hours to create a signature of complex malware, while it takes less than 82 seconds for an employee to fall victim to the phishing attack.

So, we need something uses a different technique to detect fake URLs without spending hours of time on it. Only then can the employees and enterprises be saved from phishing attacks. The latest and advanced phishing attack software used artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms to scan and recognize the hidden malicious code in the emails and alert the employees. The most common type of Zero Day attacks are-

  • Microsoft Office Marcos
    • Macros are one of the most helpful tools offered by Microsoft. With one click, the repetitive tasks can be automated, thereby saving time for the employees.
    • When the attacker sends an email attachment with an Excel or other Microsoft file, the macros are coded to install malware throughout the system.
    • Using the machine learning technology, the latest anti phishing software identifies the hidden code and alerts the users about the email be a phishing attack.
  • Malicious Links
    • Embedded links within emails make it easy for websites to share information with their customers.
    • The same feature is used by scammers. They include links that will lead the user to a fake website. The IP address and domain names are similar to the brand they impersonate making it impossible for users to detect it as fraudulent at a single glance.
    • The anti-phishing software uses computer vision technology to read the minute changes in the domain names and also checks the final page which the link leads to.
  • Infected PDFs
    • The attackers take advantage of the features offered by Adobe Acrobat to include malicious software in the PDF files and send them to their victims.
    • The phishing attack software identifies the malware and blocks the email.
  • Embedded Code
    • HTML emails allow employees to include code in the email, which will be executed when the email is opened.
    • The next-generation anti phishing software detects this hidden code and stops it from being executed.

The anti-phishing software works on any device in any location. It can be deployed throughout an enterprise within a matter of minutes.

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Brought to you by David Neeble

Edited by Temitope Adelekan

Underrated Link Building Tactics!

Posted on by Temitope Adelekan

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If you wish to expand your client list and attract more quality leads, you need to market and sell your brand. Along the same line, if you aim to rank high on the search engine results pages (SERPs), you need to build links for SEO.

Some of the most popular link building techniques that have been proven effective are guest posting, link reclamation, broken link building, and content syndication, among others. While these have stood the test of time, it’s worth looking into other methods, especially since a lot of link builders have been doing the same strategies for years.

If you want to get ahead of the curve and become the best marketer out there, you need to expand your strategies and find which ones work best.

This infographic guide from Spiralytics enumerates the underrated link building techniques you can add to your SEO strategy.

Below, you’ll find methods that are equally, if not more, effective than the usual ones.

Underrated Link Building Tactics

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Brought to you by Spiralytics

Edited by Temitope Adelekan

A Complete Guide to Using Infographics for Lead Generation

Posted on by Temitope Adelekan

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It’s no secret that lead generation is an essential cocktail in ensuring that your business will take flight. If you’re reading this article, there’s a good chance you’re thinking that you’ve already exhausted all possible efforts in attracting high-quality prospects that your brand can easily convert, but you’re still looking for creative ways to push these efforts forward. Well then, you came to the right place.

Here’s a question to start the discussion: What comes to mind when you think of infographics? Some people would say stunning graphics of visuals; others would say it’s an excellent way to get engagement. Readers are usually captivated by this content type since it combines information and aesthetic. It’s a creative way to present data without overwhelming your audience.

Infographics are so valuable to content marketers because of its proven track record in increasing site traffic and tripling social media engagement. However, it’s not often associated with lead generation—a missed opportunity.

It’s time to change this! In the infographic below, you’ll discover that it’s possible to optimize your infographics so you can reap its benefits and get quality prospects for your business. Learn how to generate leads with infographics and get ahead of the competition.

A Complete Guide to Using Infographics for Lead Generation

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Brought to you by Spiralytics

Post submitted by Ushabelle Bongo – Popularly know as Shaw is a proud daughter of the Queen City of the South who has been hustling in Makati since 2016. She initially tried her hands at banking, only to be proven once and for all that her hands are made for playing with words, not handling numbers. Now Shaw is in a better place–a digital marketing paradise otherwise known as Spiralytics, where she’s making waves as a Content Specialist.

Edited by Temitope Adelekan

Four Pillars of Brainstorming

Posted on by Temitope Adelekan

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Whether you love brainstorming or feel intimidated by the process, it’s always great to brush up on your idea generation skills. Coming up with creative ideas on demand is no easy feat, but implementing tried and true brainstorming best practices can help make the process easier. If you’re feeling stuck during a brainstorm, consider implementing the four pillars of brainstorming, a framework created by advertiser Alex F. Osborn in the 1940s. Alex F. Osborn created the term “brainstorm” and developed four pillars that you can use when coming up with new ideas.

By going for quality, withholding criticism, welcoming wild ideas, and combining and improving ideas, you can radically transform the success of your brainstorming sessions. Check out the infographic below from our friends at Fundera that outlines the four pillars and provides actionable tips to improve idea generation. Feel free to add your suggestions in the comment box below.

Brainstorming-ideas-infographic

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Brought to you by Fundera

Edited by Temitope Adelekan

24 Google Doc Hacks & Add-ons to Make Your Life Easier

Posted on by Temitope Adelekan

Google-Hacks

Twenty years ago, collaborating with people in real-time over the internet seemed difficult to understand. Now we do it every day with the click of a button. Google Docs is a powerful tool that makes working with people both near and far a breeze, but do you know how to use it to its full capacity? Go beyond just sharing docs and leaving comments with these 24 Google Doc hacks and add-ons.

Google Hacks Infograph

Excited to save some time? With these hacks you no longer have to manually go through a document and look for duplicates or change the capitalization structure letter by letter. Though these may just seem like minor details, they will make a major difference in productivity!

To keep your files neat and organized on your computer, you can go the extra step and download Google Drive for Mac. This will save and sync your files on both your hard drive and in the cloud, so you have a backup.

You can also download the Google Doc phone application to easily view documents when you’re on the go. If you’re worried about losing internet connection and have to do a last minute edit, you can set particular documents to be available offline. Just click the three dots next to the document’s title and choose “Available offline”. These documents are automatically put in an “Offline” folder.

Staying organized is the key to managing your workload and optimizing your time, and these easy, actionable tips are sure to help you do just that.

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Brought to you by GetVoip

Edited by Temitope Adelekan

16 Gmail Tips & Tricks To Streamline Your Inbox

Posted on by Temitope Adelekan

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Are you suffering from email overload?

The average person spends 28% of the work week reading and responding to emails. This equates to 13 hours a week, and 650 hours a year. Consider how productive you could be if you had a few extra hours every week to focus on the projects that really matter.

It’s not just your professional life that suffers due to information overload. 59% of Americans say that they check their emails outside of office hours.

So what’s wrong with that?

Constant connection comes with a price. Even if you stay on top of your inbox, studies have found that constantly checking your email can lead to burnout, health issues, and personal problems. A work/life balance is essential to staying healthy — both physically and mentally. It’s a no-brainer that burnt-out, sick, and unhappy employees aren’t going to be at their best when it really matters.

While you might not be able to cut down the volume of emails that you receive from colleagues and clients, you can use a variety of tools, tips, and tricks to help you make your inbox more manageable.

One of the reasons why Gmail is preferred by individuals and corporations alike is due to Google’s attention to detail when it comes to features and functionalities. Many of these tips and techniques will require you to spend some time tinkering around with your settings. But once you’ve mastered some of these shortcuts and helpful hacks, you’ll save yourself from hours of wasted time.

Below is the visual to learn the tricks.

Gmail Hack

By optimising your email account to work for you instead of against you, you can boost your productivity levels, get more work done, and reduce the risk of allowing an important email to slip through the cracks.

Do you have any preferred methods for keeping your inbox manageable and tidy? Share them in the comment section below!

Feel free to share on social networks. Find the buttons below this post. This opinion article is for informational purposes only.

Remember, information/knowledge is never enough in our world. Let us spread the word!

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Brought to you by GetVoip

Edited by Temitope Adelekan

29 Microsoft Excel Hacks to Make Life Easier and More Productive (Infographic)

Posted on by Temitope Adelekan

Related image

Regardless of what industry you work in, chances are you’ve probably dealt with spreadsheets in some capacity. Using spreadsheets typically means using Microsoft Excel.

Excel is far and away the leading spreadsheet software as it is used by most businesses. However, Excel has a bit of a learning curve, and if you’re new to the program, it can be a bit overwhelming.

Fortunately, GetVoIP has created an infographic that shares tips, shortcuts, and hacks for using Microsoft Excel more efficiently. These hacks include:

  • Selecting all cells.
  • Inserting new rows or columns.
  • Bolding, italicising and underlining text.
  • Inserting date and time.
  • Switching between formulas and values e.t.c

Below is the visual to learn the highlighted tricks and other helpful keyboard shortcuts for Excel.

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Brought to you by GetVoip

Edited by Temitope Adelekan

How to De-Stress at Work [Infographic]

Posted on by Temitope Adelekan

Do you ever feel like the stress at work is getting to you, and you need to take a breather?

I believe this infographic can help you understand how to handle stress because stress is something most people deal with on a regular basis. And not everyone knows how to cope with it, especially at work. Please, find below the infographic:

de-stress-at-work

Hope this is helpful?? Feel free to share on social networks. Find the buttons below this post. Remember, information/knowledge is never enough. Let us spread the word!

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infographic supplied by Eva

Edited by Temitope Adelekan

Productivity On The Road: Work Full-Time, Travel Solo, Have Fun

Posted on by Temitope Adelekan

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I’ve traveled solo while working full-time for ten-plus months, across more than 15 countries. It’s one of the most fun and rewarding things I’ve ever done. My work breaks over the past year have included things like scuba diving in Belize, polo lessons in Buenos Aires, music festivals in Hungary, and more.

Working full-time while on the road is not easy, but it’s definitely a skill that can be mastered over time.

For those interested in the nuts and bolts of how to travel while working, there are already several great articles out there explaining how it’s done. If you’re not familiar, I recommend starting with Toptal COO Breanden Beneschott’s guide.

In terms of logistics and planning, pulling off a full-time work schedule while on the road is much easier and cheaper than you probably think (at least in my experience), and the infrastructure for doing so continues to grow rapidly.

However, the following problem is far more difficult to solve, especially when traveling solo: Can you fully enjoy your travels while not sacrificing the quality of your work?

Striking The Right Balance

Can you navigate travel logistics, work full-time, and take care of yourself physically and mentally, all while setting aside enough time to explore the places you’re visiting, find fun things to do, and meet new people?

Since you won’t have much of a support system when you’re alone in a foreign country and (usually) don’t speak the language, finding the right balance is critical. Your routine has to be sustainable in the long run, and if you aren’t careful, things can go downhill in a hurry.

As I’ve been traveling, I’ve gotten a lot of questions from friends and colleagues about the psychology of this lifestyle, including everything from how to avoid loneliness to how to maximize productivity.

It’s not for everyone, but this lifestyle can be both incredibly fun and extremely productive, provided you figure out how to do it in a way that works for you. As I’ve traveled, I’ve noticed some key habits, mindsets, and tricks that are important for anyone who is considering working and traveling to keep in mind, regardless of their occupation or interests.

This post covers some of the most important strategies I’ve picked up while on the road.

Go To X To Do Y

When you have the option of living anywhere, it can be difficult to choose a destination, and going to places to see/do touristy things can get old fast. I’m a big fan of going to places to do specific (non-touristy) activities, as opposed to just going to places that sound interesting on paper.

In the past months, I’ve gone to:

  • Portugal to learn how to surf.
  • Berlin and Zurich for conferences.
  • The UK to take a trip through Wales.
  • Santorini to join friends who were on vacation.
  • Israel to visit family and work on my Hebrew.
  • Belize to learn how to scuba dive.

Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina for the Toptal Roadtrip.

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Working full-time and traveling the world might be easier than you think, especially when you’re traveling for a purpose.

I’ve found that having a purpose to your travels leads to a few great outcomes:

  • It’s a lot easier to structure your time and priorities.
  • It’s easier to meet fascinating people with shared interests.
  • You learn amazing new skills that you’ve always wanted to learn.

When you’re traveling solo and devoting a lot of time to work, it’s important to limit the extent to which you’re “re-solving” the same problems on a daily basis. What I mean by that is, you don’t want to find yourself waking up every morning without any plans for where you’re going to work, what you’re going to work on, where you’re going to eat, who you’re going to meet, what non-work things you’re going to do, and so on.

Not only is it easy to waste a lot of time and energy answering the same questions over and over again, but it will also quickly make you feel like you’re swimming in circles without accomplishing much.

To be clear, I am just as strongly against doing anything that’s “too organized” while traveling. I’m pretty averse to resorts, guided tours, and so on.

As a good friend of mine likes to say:

“I always love seeing big cruise ships. The more I see of them, the fewer people there will be wherever I am.”

The adventure and uncertainty of traveling is half the fun, and it’s important not to lose sight of that by planning too much.

In short, don’t just go to Thailand. Go to Thailand to motorbike from Bangkok to Chiang Mai. Go to Brazil because you’ve always wanted to experience Carnival. Go to Nepal because you dream of hiking the Annapurna trail.

The possibilities are endless, and it’s when you go somewhere with a goal in mind that things begin to take off.

Set Aside Time Every Day For Learning

When you’re working at a startup, there are always a million different tasks that need to be accomplished, and you’re constantly in a race against time. You can easily spend all of your waking hours knocking things off of your to-do list, and with so much that needs to get done, it can be hard to justify investing time in anything that’s not the task at hand, or at least directly related to the task.

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Being on the road is no excuse for complacency. You can work, play, and master new skills, just as you would from home.

However, taking time each day for the explicit purpose of improving your skills and learning new things has a profound and positive impact in several important ways: Continue reading “Productivity On The Road: Work Full-Time, Travel Solo, Have Fun” →