While COVID-19 acquires the status of a global health emergency, its impact on businesses cannot be undermined. Companies of all sizes are struggling to stay afloat with all sorts of strategies, from embracing remote models to realigning their operations. Marketing is one area you cannot overlook because going slack today means that you may lose customers tomorrow. The key lies in making a shift towards digital, which is something you may have already done in the last few years.

But now is the time to realign your digital marketing strategies as you stare in the face of uncertainties ahead. Even though you will have to follow the basics of digital marketing, a new perspective is what you really need to do more with less and have a campaign that drives sustainable growth for your business. Here are some pieces of advice you can follow to come up with successful campaigns even amid this crisis.

Reassess the scheduled timelines and strategy

Even if you had a timeline and strategy in place before the pandemic, you will need to audit and reassess it right now. Check the digital content which is currently in the pipeline, for the coming few months at least. Identify the parts you would want to put on hold for now, such as your major brand launch campaigns that may have to be pushed back. Of course, you need not cancel them altogether but going ahead in times of crisis does not make sense. While holding some campaigns is a good idea, you may consider prioritizing or pivoting others. For example, you could pivot messaging that helps in disseminating health information and crisis response plan in some way. Think strategically because focusing on the right strategies at the right time can give your brand leverage to stay visible and connected with the audience.

Evaluate your brand’s imagery and tone of voice

Right now, you must have a look at your digital assets (mainly website and social media pages) and work on the visuals and messaging they have. Both elements have the potential to serve as powerful branding tools, especially in times of uncertainty. Experts at Falcon Digital Marketing recommend being mindful of your brand’s message and checking what your digital presence conveys. Avoid visuals of crowds as they do not promote social distancing and rephrase your marketing messages that denote close interactions. Switch to imagery and tone of voice that highlights the value of collaborating even while being at a distance. This will present your brand as a responsible, socially-conscious entity that cares about the well-being of its customers.

Don’t capitalize on the situation

Taking the responsible attitude one step ahead, make sure that your digital strategy does not capitalize on the anxiety of the consumers. Keep the consumers informed about your company’s COVID-19 response plan, whether it is about ensuring health and safety of your employees or maintaining continuity of your products or services in the market (while taking care of the safety of the consumers- think contactless delivery, for example!). Though keeping people informed is necessary, it is vital that you do not add to their panic and anxieties. Rather, align your marketing messages to reassure customers that nothing catastrophic lies ahead.

Highlight how your brand can help

The secret to successful brands lies in providing value to its consumers. When it comes to realigning your digital marketing strategies during this crisis situation, go the extra mile to highlight how you can help enhance their lives when they are quarantined. For example, retail brands can send customers free personal care products while delivering essentials. Creating helpful content is a great idea if you cannot offer something directly. Consider creating immersive content resources and posts that can entertain, inspire, and educate the audience while they are at home. Don’t think about selling with your online tactics at this time, focus on serving instead.

Be positive and spread light

Apart from going above and beyond to help consumers in any way you can, embracing a positive attitude helps. It is natural for people to become uneasy during a health crisis and the worse that businesses can do is to feed into that negativity. Now is the time to live the core values of your brand which you have always been talking about. Talk positively and personally rather than sending across robotic messages and mailers during a health crisis. When people are distanced, personalized interactions can make all the difference and they will probably remember your brand for spreading light, even after the crisis is over.

Digital marketers need to think human and that is how they can fit in their strategies and plans in the current situation. Right now, customers will probably not be in a mood to buy and businesses should also not try to sell. Rather, just be there and be connected!

Trade shows and events are an integral element of marketing and branding for businesses today. Brands participate in these events to showcase their products and promote themselves to the public so that they can extend their reach and enlarge their market as well. While these programs make a great opportunity for brand promotion, there are some security risks involved as well. Trade show events are often overcrowded, with hundreds of visitors strolling around the aisles and checking out the exhibitor booths. Maintaining the security of the booth stands is a major challenge for exhibitors, who also have to handle their visitors and prospects at the same time.

Still, security is something you cannot overlook when you have valuable products and sensitive information on exhibit in an open venue. Being able to manage it has another significant advantage; when you are sure that your booth is secure, you can focus completely on impressing your customers and prospects. For organizers too, security solutions and strategies can make all the difference because this can decide the reputation of your event in the long run. Here are some smart technology-based solutions that can take trade show security a notch higher.

Secure your valuables with smart lockers

Exhibitors often bring surplus products to events, apart from the ones on display because they need to have them in stock for the extra demand. When it is all valuable materials, such as electronics, gadgets, and precious jewelry, it becomes important to store them at a protected place. Stacking them cautiously under a table and supervising them would work in the ideal conditions but considering the risk out there, it does not make sense. You cannot just leave the valuables in the open during the rush hours and expect them to be safe. And this is a risk that you cannot afford to take because it can translate into massive losses to your business, depending on the value of the items on display.

Since portable things are at high risk of being robbed, a smart locker is a reliable way to protect them throughout the event. These are protected by technologies such as passwords, facial recognition, and fingerprint recognition. Encourage your staff to keep high-value things in these smart safes and restrict password access to only the authorized people. Also, avoid storing the high-value products at your booth stand, particularly when the event runs for several days. Consult the trade show company to implement effective measures for facilitating the safe transportation of valuable products on a daily basis.

Safeguard your digital information as well

The security concerns of trade show exhibitors go beyond protecting the valuable and tangible items. You need to be equally careful about the safekeeping of the computerized data of your business and customers, which may also be on exhibit. And you may have plenty of digital assets in use, right from product presentations to pricing sheets and more. Since your competitors are likely to be around at such events, they may look for an opportunity to access this sensitive information and misuse it. Hence, attention to cybersecurity becomes as vital as that to the physical security of your producers. Keep your data safe by utilizing password-protected PCs and tablets.

Integrating the necessary software applications to guard the information on these digital documents is equally necessary. If employees are allowed to access data from their personal devices, make sure that you have a clear BYOD policy in place. Never store any confidential business data related to PCs and tablets that you carry and use at trade show events because they can fall into the wrong hands. Even if you need to carry confidential data with you, use a pen drive to store it. Go the extra mile to ensure the safety of the storage device because it shouldn’t also be accessible to an unauthorized person, whether it is a customer or a competitor.

Invest in video surveillance

Apart from smart safes for valuable products and cybersecurity solutions for digital information, a mobile video surveillance camera system is an effective measure to fortify your booth. You can check Mobilevideoguard.com to see how these systems operate. Typically, a mobile video surveillance system offers a wide range of features that ensure reliable monitoring of your booth, along with complete visibility and control.

The multiple camera views offer full visibility of your space and around, while there are audible alarms and flashing lights for deterring the intruders. Further, you get the benefit of real-time, after-hours remote monitoring by security professionals so that you can be stress-free about your booth’s security. And you can check the place anytime and from anywhere because the system can be integrated with a mobile app. Time-lapse recording and video storage are some other features that take protection to the next level.

Rely on additional security measures as well

Apart from the high-tech security solutions for protecting your trade show booth from theft and pilferage, you should also stick to the basic security measures. Essentially, these are the ones that have always been used, even before the advent of smart technologies. Here are additional measures that you should absolutely have in place:

• Don’t just assume that the security services offered by event organizers will be enough for covering your needs. While they do ensure that the attendees have proper credentials, they are not responsible for the safety of individual booths. Rather, you need to safeguard your own booth, products, digital displays, A/V equipment, and everything else on display.
• Train your staff to manage the booth properly and handle the security issues as well. Anyone who is in charge of the booth also has to manage its security. Ensure that the members of your team understand that their role includes vigilance to ensure the booth and the products and equipment stay secure at all times.
• Mounting digital equipment on display properly and securing them with locks is equally important. Anyone can just slip a tablet in their bag in just a few seconds and walk away if your stuff is easy to reach and take off from the display. You can use cables and mounts that come with locking features to minimize the risk.
• Though you would want to flaunt your products, it is always wise to avoid making them too prominent if you want to prevent theft. Consider mislabelling the boxes so that anyone trying to steal stuff is not able to lay their hands on high-value items.
• Keeping your booth clutter-free also helps in cutting down the risk of theft. At the same time, it can also make the area appealing to the customers. Lack of organization makes your booth a soft target for culprits because they may be able to sneak away things without even a hint. On the other hand, you can keep an eye on things easily if the place is in order.
• Never leave your booth unattended during the day, even when there aren’t a lot of attendees around. Rather, make sure that you have at least two people on duty all the time. Schedule breaks and lunch hours accordingly to ensure that the place has ample vigilance throughout the day.
• Maintain a list of products, displays, and even digital information that you have on exhibit during the show. Check every item off at the end of every single day to ensure that all of them are safe and accounted for.

Don’t forget the transport security

Though a lot has been said about ensuring the safety of your exhibits and booths at a trade show, one thing that is easy to miss is transport security. But this is as important as any other aspect of event security and surveillance. Trade shows often distribute a security manual that features definitive measures which exhibitors can follow at airports, taxis, and hotels for minimizing the risk of theft. Going through this manual can help. Keeping your stuff under vigil, anchoring it securely, and attaching simple identifiers and customary identity cards are some effective measures to ensure security in transit. Also, pay attention to the safety measures at the accommodation with a thorough check of the door locks and windows. Be alert while transporting the items to the trade show site and back to the accommodation. Watch out for any suspicious people and activities and take quick action to report them to the security personnel. Steer clear of stress because it can increase the possibility of theft.

When exhibiting at a trade show, you would want the initiative to give your brand a marketing advantage. It can give you the right kind of exposure while establishing a trust for the existing customers and bringing on the new ones. However, theft is one issue that you will have to deal with from start to end. Still, the right security solutions and measures can go a long way in making it a safe and stress-free experience for your business. With the assurance that you are covered, you will be able to concentrate on customers and promotions rather than worry about keeping an eye on your products and equipment.

Sometimes searching on Mac OS can be a bit confusing. Here is a guide to the best user-friendly web browsers for Mac OS.

Are you a Mac user? Do you feel that your Safari browser no longer meets your requirements? Then you need to start looking for better browsers out there.

Though Safari is the default Mac browser, it doesn’t mean it is the best you can use. Safari is no stranger to technical issues. But beyond the issues, it is the performance of other browsers that leave the Safari behind.

Their user-friendliness also keeps them a step or two ahead.

What are the other browsers for Mac that are worth checking out? In which aspects do they perform better than the Safari?

Continue reading below as we take a look at some of the best alternatives to your Safari browser.

Characteristics of a Great Browser

To better appreciate our list of the most user-friendly browsers for Mac, let us first discuss the characteristics of a great web browser. When we talk about the best browsers for Mac, they must first offer remarkable speed.

Speed impacts the overall user experience in a web browser. If your browser doesn’t load your pages fast, your productivity becomes compromised.

Another is security. You want your browser to provide topnotch protection against common cyber-attacks. These threats include malware or hacking.

These can destroy your system or steal your valuable data.

You also want a browser that comes with unique features. These are extras that may seem minor but contribute to your overall user experience.

Last but not least, you want a browser that is easy to use. You don’t want a browser that makes you do so many things before making it perform a particular task. Find one that is easy to understand and takes a short time to master.

Browsers for Mac: The Best Alternatives to Safari 

With these characteristics in mind, you will have an idea if a web browser is worth using or not. Let us now look at five of the best browsers, in no particular order, and why you should add them to your shortlist.

1. Torch

Since its introduction in 2013, the Torch browser for Mac always tried to be different from the competition. It used the open-source Chromium code as the basis for its structure. This allows Torch to offer extensive functionality to more than 10 million users.

Apart from displaying websites, Torch allows you to share these sites on social media. You can also download torrents using its built-in torrent client.

If you’re a music lover, you’re in luck. The browser also offers Torch Music.

This free service also helps you organize your YouTube videos. Torch presents all of these features in a user-friendly interface.

You have more than enough room to customize the browser using some of its available themes.

2. Brave

Brave is another excellent web browser that packs a punch. It features a “shields” menu that contains all its key features.

Of all its features, Brave stands out in the area of security. It comes with a built-in ad-blocker, script blocking, and automatic HTTPS upgrades. Through the menu, you can also monitor the items that the browser is blocking on the websites you visit.

Furthermore, Brave allows you to block different kinds of social media content. These include Twitter embedded posts and login buttons on Facebook and Google.

You can also prevent the WebRTC to reveal your IP address. This is helpful since it eliminates the need for a virtual private network.

Best of all, Brave doesn’t come with any user tracking. This means its servers cannot see or store your browsing activities.

Brave also allows a smooth transition from your Safari browser. You can import your bookmarks and settings from Safari to Brave.

3. Mozilla Firefox

Though the best days of Firefox are over, it can still keep up with its younger competitors. Mozilla reinvented Firefox and filled it up with numerous features.

With Firefox, you can enjoy a more balanced memory usage. You can also manage your password more efficiently. You can also perform cross-device data synchronization.

When it comes to security, Firefox is also one of the most reliable. It uses Google Safe Browsing that keeps you away from shady websites. You can also use its privacy controls to allow or block specific cookies and trackers.

With all these features striking a balance, you can say that Firefox is the quintessential browser.

4. Chrome

If we’re going to talk about the best web browsers in general, any list will be incomplete without Chrome. The majority of the world’s web traffic goes through Chrome. Experts attribute its popularity to its design and usability.

This means even if you are going to use it on your Mac, you will have the same feel as if you were still using your old Windows computer.

When it comes to its features, its extensive library of extensions is topnotch. It allows you to download thousands of applications. You can download virus protection, ad-blockers, and note-taking apps.

Though Google Chrome does not have many unique features compared to other web browsers, the thousands of extensions are more than enough to fill the void.

5. Vivaldi

Last but not least is Vivaldi, which is the best choice if you want a browser that offers superb customization. It allows you to tweak the browser’s aesthetics and overall feel in any way you want.

From the fonts and colors to the menu element and button placements, Vivaldi lets you customize to your heart’s content. The interface also comes with multiple minor features. There is a tool for taking screenshots and note-taking.

There is a reader that optimizes your documents to make them easier to read. Best of all, Vivaldi is also compatible with most of the extension library of Google Chrome.

Beef Up Your Mac Knowledge

By using some of the best browsers for Mac, you can further improve your browsing experience. You can also maximize your Mac’s capabilities. But don’t stop with your new browser.

We encourage you to continue increasing your Mac knowledge. Check out our other blog posts to learn more about your Mac and other Apple devices.

The modern business setting is growing ever-competitive. And the most affected domain within the company setups is the changing marketing practices. For instance, only a handful of brands leveraged a multitude of marketing channels about two decades ago. But, with the realization of the internet, small and young companies are also profiting from high-scale selling tactics.

Simply put, it is particularly the online marketing that has enabled every company, regardless of the size, to leverage celebrity promotions. However, the type of celebrities that they collaborate with are not the same.

In this piece, you will come across some of the most useful tactics that you can follow to increase the ROI of your digital marketing efforts. But before jumping to the strategies, you may need to know what web marketing is and what it includes.

What is Web Marketing?

‘The practice of promoting businesses and their services using online modes is known as web marketing.’

This is one of the easiest definitions you can find across the internet. However, the ultimate motive of marketing through web portals is also improving brand awareness and driving sales.

Having said that, it is necessary to mention that, just like any other business-related activity, digital marketing also needs continuous optimization for driving effective results. The article “8 Game of Thrones Marketing Lessons” from Digitrio explains why being able to adapt is such an important part of successful marketing. After all, the market trends keep on evolving and so does the need to follow them up.

Now that you have a tad-bit idea of what web-marketing is, the next thing you would wish to learn is to plan a strategy.

How to Plan Effective Strategy?

Planning an effective marketing strategy is a lot easier than said. All you need to ensure is to stick to some basic rules. Read on to find out how.

• Follow up the consumer interests

You already know what you need to do before you even begin putting up a marketing plan. How can you possibly miss out on the audience you wish to target? In the end, it is your target market that has the potential to reward your marketing efforts by purchasing your services and products. And the easiest way to identify your target audience is to develop a buyer persona that aligns with your trade’s interests. As long as your audience is interested in your product, it is sure to benefit your business.

• Serve helpful content to your patrons

Whether you are marketing online or offline, the information that you convey to your audience holds paramount importance. So much so that, in the digital world, the quality of your content can either ramp up your business or toll it down the search rankings. If leaders in the digital marketing domain are to be believed, the content that helps users is rewarded with better organic traffic. Thus, as long as you keep creating content that either solves a problem for your audience or offers them helpful advice, you can expect your business to benefit from your efforts.

• Diversify the channels you leverage

The digital world, although has many similarities with the analog, there are still some remarkable differences. For instance, unlike analog or traditional marketing, you can measure the total number of users that come across your content online. And to add to it, you can even measure the fraction that has converted and the one that didn’t like your content. As a result, it becomes necessary to tap into more than one online channel. For instance, you can make use of social media, PPC campaigns, and email marketing to tap into your target audience from different interest groups. The key is to reach your audience wherever they are.

• Partner with online influencers

As you may already know, endorsing celebrities for your brand’s promotion is a highly rewarding practice. But at the same time, the high cost of endorsing such renowned personalities can flip the overall budget of your company. However, digital marketing offers a more economical and highly effective substitute for celeb endorsements. Yes, you guessed it right- influencer marketing. You can collaborate with influencers to help you with your online promotions. Depending upon your target audience, and the budget you can invest, you have a plethora of options ranging from micro-bloggers to mega-influencers. And it goes without saying, their words matter more than yours when it comes to engaging with the audience and influencing their buying decisions online.

• Optimize your website with appropriate search terms

Most importantly, all of your web marketing plans can go haywire if your audience cannot find your business online. Just to make sure that they do, it is necessary to optimize your website for relevant keywords. Now, it might be a bit confusing as to what relevant keywords mean. Simply put, the terms that can relate to your business, and also are being searched by your target audience are the ones that you need to focus on. Since your target audience may not know your business by its name, it is best to optimize for the keywords that relate to your services or products. However, when optimizing your website for suitable keywords, make sure you understand the intent of the user search. This is to ensure that even if your target user searches for something closely relevant to your target keywords, they can still find you. Or more accurately, your business.

• Ensure engagement with your customers

In the end, it all boils down to the experience your customers have with your business. A good way to enhance your users’ experience is to engage with them. For instance, you can respond to their reviews and comments that you receive on all of your online content. This would not just help your consumers but also incubate a sense of belongingness in them. Therefore, bringing in loyalty to your brand.

As you can follow, these tips are not that tough to keep up with. But, it is still advisable that you predict the results and measure them. After all, if you cannot keep track of the progress made by your marketing efforts, it is all in vain. Once you start practicing these tips, make sure you keep up with them consistently. Rest assured, nothing is stopping your business from taking the high road.

Business success goes much beyond selling. It is all about building long-term relationships with your customers, that too with the ones who are capable of making your business grow and thrive in the future. This is exactly what account management focuses on. Whether you run an established business or have just started up, you need to invest in nurturing your key accounts.

As a startup, you may not be really sure about the role of an account manager considering the limited number of accounts you have. Further, you may be apprehensive about the costing aspect because of the budget constraints that new businesses typically face. But here are some good reasons why you should prioritize account management even as a startup.

Ensures smooth onboarding of new customers

Obviously, you will onboard new customers as your startup grows. Since you are new in the domain, you need to focus as much on customer experience as on your product or service quality. An account management strategy enables you to make the customer onboarding process smooth and seamless. Since they always have an account manager to connect with, the chances of customer frustration are minimal and the collaborations are likely to go long-term.

Promotes long-term customer retention

Customer satisfaction and retention are critical for all businesses, even more for the startups.  Alex Raymond from Kapta (https://kapta.com/) says that while it’s good to seek new clients, it’s more important to focus on keeping your current clients happy. This requires less work and time than acquiring new customers, which probably can make all the difference for new businesses. Account management serves a vital role in promoting customer retention by nurturing relationships through personalized connections.

Gathers valuable product/service feedback

Another reason why startups should absolutely invest in account management is that it gets them valuable product/service feedback from the customers. This really matters at the initial stages of the business, when there is a great scope for improvement. Genuine feedback enables you to enhance and align your product/service with customer expectations. Further, you can also keep it in mind while developing new products as your business grows. An account manager who is in direct contact with your customers is best placed to get you genuine inputs from them.

Produces referrals and testimonials

When you start a new business, every avenue of growth is important. Referrals and testimonials, in particular, can be valuable because they give you access to new customers through word-of-mouth. Further, they can strengthen the reputation of your startup as well. Having an account manager to nurture relationships with your “hero” customers serves a great opportunity to produce referrals and testimonials for your business.

Generally, startups are not keen to invest in additional resources such as account management personnel and tools because of their cash constraints. However, having an account management strategy is the smartest thing to do because it can push your business on the growth route. It can play a significant role in making your business scale by nurturing the accounts that matter the most. Rather than cringing on the cost, this is one expense that you should happily make for your startup!