Hey hey!

I’ve got a big announcement to make here. (Where’s my gong? I feel like this really needs a good gong hit.)

CSS-Tricks, this very website you’re looking at, has been acquired by DigitalOcean!

You can hear from them directly on the DigitalOcean blog as well.

This will be the most fun if we have a conversation about it, so allow me to kick it off. I’ll pretend to be you at first and then you can be you in the comments.

OK! Your turn! If you have any thoughts or questions, feel free to comment below. We’ll read them all and publish anything useful and constructive.

---

CSS-Tricks is joining DigitalOcean! originally published on CSS-Tricks. You should get the newsletter.

Agile working and Flexible working is not something new but surely they are more prominent than ever after the pandemic. A lot of times, we use these terms interchangeably but there is a difference between them. 

Agile working and Flexible working are focused on changing the way we work. To apply these principles, we have to understand the difference between the two. 

People are no longer interested in a 40-hour workweek by sitting in front of the desktop or laptop for hours. According to a report by Statista, the number of people working from home rose to 44% during the pandemic as compared to the 17% before. 

The employees do not tend to go back to the same routine again and continue the work like before. They have lived with their families and enjoyed that luxury to work from home and now they are not ready to go back to their offices. 

People are demanding work from home policies upfront as they do not intend to go back to the same routine. Companies are facing difficulties in retaining their employees as they are now preferring companies with flexible or agile work policies. But a lot of industries can’t do that as their work requires fieldwork and a need to be there like farming, pizza stores, retail outlets, and businesses like these. But, those who can do it, for eg. IT companies are doing every bit of it to attract talent and retain their existing workforce.

People require work satisfaction more than anything now as they have discovered ways to work from home more efficiently. There are many productivity tools available such as Asana, SmartTask, ClickUp, etc. to name a few that allow employees to handle multiple projects, track the working time, communicate with colleagues, do video meetings, share files, collaborate on activities, share remote desktops, maintain relationships with clients by providing remote support, take notes, and much more. 

How can companies make an employee stay when the technology is on the side of employees? By making them feel worthy and letting them decide the way they want to work. What will be the outcome of this activity? The employees will stay focused and will make sharp decisions as they are motivated to do productive work. Here we will discuss Agile Working and Flexible Working and the differences between them.

What is Flexible Working?

Flexible Working is an employee-centric approach. Also known as Flexitime, it gives an employee the choice of working from wherever they want, whenever they want. It refers to a request made by an employee for an alternative working pattern from the ordinary 9-5 job. This option is inclusively given to employees according to their needs, such as parenting, study, and caring responsibilities. 

Flexible Working includes: 

• Part-time work, where someone works fewer hours compared to the full-time hours set by their company 
• Compressed hours, where full-time hours are worked over a short period of time, for eg. working for 4 days full time instead of 5 days per week, resulting in a day off per week. A lot of people are now looking at this option (4 days working week) for increasing work productivity and reducing stress. People are ready to work 12 hours for 4 days just to reduce the workload and get an extra day off apart from the weekend.
• Job Sharing – This is an interesting aspect of Flexible Working. Here 2 persons share their job and workload for the same position. For example, two persons will be hired for the same position where they will be paid half of the amount for half of the time that they dedicate to the job. This particular policy is helping a lot of people to start their careers again.
• Remote Working – This is the most revolutionized thing that has happened to the corporate culture. You don’t have to come to the office for work. You can work from home or any other location apart from the office.
• Flexitime – This option allows the employees to choose their own working hours instead of working 9-5. They just have to be present for some important hours of the day and the remaining they can adjust by themselves. 

Benefits Of Flexible Working

There are a lot of benefits of Flexible Working for both employees and employers. The employees feel more valued and less stressed whereas the employers get benefitted from the increased productivity of the workforce. Some of the benefits are stated below: 

• Improves Retention – Flexible working makes the employee feel valued and listened to. This helps employers to retain their top talent and reduce the attrition rate.
• Attracts Top talent – The persons at the top in any company require flexible working as they are bound to commitments with their family and people around them. This flexibility of working is what attracts them towards any new company as they are already having great packages. 
• Improves Diversity– The flexible approach improves diversity as employers can hire from a vast pool of employees across the world.
• Cost-Efficient – If the employees aren’t coming to the office, then a lot of expense is being saved.
• Eco Friendly – Fewer employees in the office means less usage of resources like electricity, vehicles, and everything. Hence, less wastage of resources. This is an eco-friendly option.
• Increased Employee Engagement – When employees are at their home, they are more relaxed and hence they engage more compared to the office where they have to sit in front of the screen, willingly or unwillingly.
• Increased Productivity – Working on your own terms gives a different sense of freedom and this thing is responsible for the increased productivity in employees.

What is Agile Working?

Agile Working is organization-centric. It mainly focuses on the whole organization rather than a single employee. Agile Working creates the flexible environment of working from anywhere and deciding your working day for the whole workforce. It gives autonomy to the organization and all of its employees to get the work done as per their way. It is mostly about bringing people, process, time, technology, and everybody together to get the work done within the guidelines but without any boundaries.

Agile Working makes the employees flexible but it demands the impact as a whole. The main aim behind this approach is to create friendly, efficient, and effective organizations that provide work satisfaction to their employees. 

Benefits Of Agile Working

Agile working focuses on getting the job done rather than working flexibly. It is a change in mindset as a whole to increase productivity, and work effectiveness. This approach will create more interactive and productive employees who own their work and mistakes rather than denying them. It can also increase the freedom and sense of entitlement for the workforce. 

Differences Between Agile Working and Flexible Working

Agile working requires a lot of commitment from the management and staff whereas in flexible working an individual is responsible and hence it is easier to implement.

Flexible working is more employee-centric whereas Agile Working is organization-centric where the mission is to make the workplace more efficient and effective.

Agile working is designed to benefit both employers and employees as it is performance-based whereas in flexible working, only the employee will be benefitted.

Flexible Working is a habit change for an individual but Agile Working is a mindset change for the whole organization to derive a similar goal. The ownership factor comes into agile working whereas it isn’t like that in the Flexible approach.

Agile working encourages face-to-face meetings whereas this isn’t the case with Flexible working.

To conclude, both approaches have their own challenges but they share the same goal, i.e to make work easier and more productive. It needs a cultural shift in flexible approach whereas it needs trust and flexible infrastructure to make the agile approach work. Both approaches have their own pros and cons. It’s up to you which approach you choose based on your organization.

The post Agile working vs Flexible working: What’s the difference? appeared first on noupe.

We’re going to have some fun this month. There are so many new tools and resources out there for designers that make life easier, and others are simply enjoyable.

Here’s what is new for designers this month …

Polka Dot Generator

Polka Dot Generator is exactly what you think. Adjust colors, dot size, shadow, and fuzziness, and then export the CSS for use in your projects. This could make for fun effects or backgrounds.

Design Memes

Design Memes is just a lot of fun. It’s a collection of memes based on design culture updated daily. It’s a little silly and a little reflective. Yes, it’s completely ok to laugh at yourself.

Pppointed

Pppointed is an SVG arrow-making tool that helps you create cool pointers without a lot of effort. Just pick a color, shape, and style, and you are ready to go. Save your custom arrows as SVG files or copy the code and use them on the web whenever you want to point at things visually.

Open Source Color System

Open Source Color System is a set of palettes that include carefully picked colors to help you overcome interface challenges. For example, it is one of the only color tools out there that includes palettes for light and dark modes. It’s also designed with accessibility in mind to help you create a complete and usable system.

Cowsay

Cowsay is a nifty little web interface of the same name made with Svelte and HTML Canvas. Play with it and then copy your art as ASCII or an image.

Minze

Minze is a simple JavaScript framework for native web components. It’s tiny and fast, modern, shareable, framework agnostic, and uses TypeScript to scale your component library. Plus, you can get started with it right away.

Tally

Tally is a simple – and free – online form builder. You can use it without coding, and it works like a document file, so there’s no learning curve. You can create unlimited forms, integrate with other tools, set logic, collect payments, and more. There’s a pro version as well if you need even more features.

Hue.Tools

Hue.Tools is another color tool to help you maximize effort when creating palettes. Generate a color you like, see specs and values in all the different color spaces, inspiration from design sites, and colors that work with it. It’s fun and functional.

Sturdy

Sturdy is a low overhead code collaboration platform for fast-moving teams. With Sturdy, you work in the open with your team. Discover and interact with draft code as it is written. Those team drafts are like live pull requests (Figma or Google Docs) but using your local editor.

Mage

Mage is a tool that transforms your data into predictions. Build, train, and deploy predictive models in minutes with no AI experience required. This is a premium tool, but you can try it for free.

Huemint

Huemint is a machine-learning-based color scheme generator for websites, graphics, and branding. There are many options to play with, and you can generate some pretty interesting combinations that ordinarily you might not think of.

CSSUI

CSSUI is another tool you’ll love because it includes pure CSS interactive components without any JavaScript. It’s easy to customize, uses standard HTML, is easy for all levels to use, is tiny and fast, and supports pretty much all modern browsers. It’s an open-source tool that you can download and use immediately.

UI Icons Line – Free

UI Icons Line – Free is a set of 1,000 free vectors for use in your projects. Who doesn’t need a robust set of icons?

Skill Icons

Skill Icons is a set of icons to help you showcase your design and development skills on your resume or GitHub. They all look great and match.

Ambient Design

Ambient Design is a mobile app design market where you can get mobile UI kits for Figma. Purchase kits separately, or buy quarterly or yearly plans to access all current and future UI kits.

TextFrame

TextFrame lets you create animated tutorials for your users to get the help they need. It integrates directly with WordPress or any other website with just a couple of lines of code and includes plenty of customizable options to make it easy for you to help others understand how to use the website. The tool is free for one site and just a few bucks per month for additional sites.

Booqsi

Booqsi is a fun new social media network for book lovers. The platform is still in beta and lets you save and share books, create shelves for reading, and doesn’t force a connection to Amazon. It’s just all about the books. And there’s a bonus: every link from the site goes back to bookshop.org to help you find and support local bookstores.

Stylo

Stylo is an open-source WYSIWYG interactive editor for JavaScript. It is made to bring great user experience and interactivity to the web, for everyone, with no dependencies. It has an interactive design, is customizable, and is future-proof.

Tutorial: How to Favicon in 2022

How to Favicon in 2022 is an excellent lesson on the five icon files every website needs (plus one JSON file). If you are creating more than that, this is a must-read.

Tutorial: Creating Generative SVG Grids

Creating Generative SVG Grids is an in-depth, step-by-step tutorial for anyone who wants to create a more artistic SVG. It uses a handful of tools, including SVG.js, Generative Utils, TinyColor, and GSAP.

Fromage

Fromage is a new and beautiful premium typeface family from Adam Ladd. It includes 14 styles with an interesting serif and alternative sans option. The high-contrast design is great for a variety of projects.

HD Colton

HD Colton is a premium super sans serif typeface with a whopping 91 styles and family package options. It would make a bold statement as a display option.

Source

The post Exciting New Tools For Designers, March 2022 first appeared on Webdesigner Depot.

Writing content is mostly a rewarding activity for writers. It allows writers to educate themselves while educating others. In particular, several people are actively trying to make a living through writing. The occupation of choice is mostly blogging. As a result, many writers spend most of their time creating blog posts for their blogs and others.

If you are a blog writer, you may require a lot of strength to create new articles. Nonetheless, writing blog content can be demotivating. You can significantly boost productivity by using a handful of writing tools. In this article, you will learn about 7 writing tools to increase your productivity as a blogger.

Grammarly

When writing content, spelling and grammatical errors will surely occur. This problem can become a significant issue for a blog writer. In particular, it gets challenging to keep up with mistakes when you have a lot of content to write. A few errors can sometimes be impossible to spot. With the help of Grammarly, you can easily and quickly spot these mistakes.

Grammarly is a robust writing tool that lets you correct grammar, spelling errors, and content structure. Also, you get to run plagiarism checks on the content. This tool enables you to restructure writings using different modes. However, you can only access most of these features by buying a premium subscription. Nonetheless, you can edit written content while using the free version. You may want to hire someone to write your essay for your writing needs with a service like GrabMyEssay. You are sure of getting quality content from this platform.

Hemingway App

Like Grammarly, Hemingway is another spelling and grammar error detection and correction application. It allows bloggers to handle mistakes of different forms. In addition, you have the option of swapping one form of a word for another to prevent monotony. Named after the famous American novelist Ernest Hemingway, Hemingway is a significant competitor and alternative to Grammarly.

Hemingway App gives you two modes (write and edit mode). There is also a sidebar that allows you to identify overuse of:

• Adverbs;
• Passive voice;
• Complex sentences;
• Hard to read sentences.

However, the free version only offers you access through the browser. You will need to pay a fixed amount to access the desktop or Mac option.

Asana

Asana is a tool that helps you to manage projects and tasks. It gives you the ability to manage and track the work you do. In addition, you get to schedule projects and tasks with timelines and deadlines. These options and features let you stay on top of the articles you need to create. You can also use the different modes to see your daily workload. Similarly, you can see exactly how each project is moving.

If you have other writers contributing to your blog(s), you can also assign milestones to them. You also get to track their progress along the way. Asana gives you access to limited features unless you subscribe to premium or business plans.

Zapier

Zapier is another productivity tool. However, it is completely different from Asana. It lets you connect two or more processes. Once connected, you are able to automate each method, which eases workflow. As an example, you or your team can schedule and publish blog posts directly from Zapier. The good part of this platform is that it is compatible with several popular applications. Like most productivity applications, you require a subscription to get the most out of this software. Also, there are various types of subscriptions to choose from, depending on your needs.

Pocket

Writing is one task that requires a lot of concentration. Therefore, you may not write quality content without a conducive environment. In the event you do, you are likely to create poor-quality articles. Pocket is an application that helps you focus. It also helps increase your creativity. Therefore, you have the option of writing and saving content as a draft with Pocket. After some reflection, you can review each draft and make improvements. Pocket gives you the chance to organize all your content by adding categories and tags.

Draft

Draft is a writing application. It is available on iOS and Android. Unlike most writing tools, this app gives you excellent features for free. However, you need to pay a subscription to access the pro version of the application. Draft allows users to track the number of words they write within any given day. So, bloggers that struggle with productivity can organize their work with this tool. As a writer, some options allow you to set the goals you want to achieve. You instantaneously receive an email once you reach your intended daily goal.

Feedly

Keywords are the backbone of blog writing. Your blog needs keywords to rank on search engines. With the help of keywords, search engines’ crawlers grade and place content accordingly when people conduct searches. Therefore, you need to create unique content all the time. You can only write content based on keywords through keyword research.

With Feedly, you get to access an extensive database of blogs and websites in different niches. Therefore, this tool allows you to access the latest trends in any topic or industry without needing to search through the internet. Writing content based on trending topics can get your blog a lot of exposure.

Apart from keyword research, you are able to access the strategies of your competitors. Like most productivity applications, you will need to subscribe to the pro version to access the best features.

Conclusion

Productivity is an essential aspect of writing. It gives you the chance to create excellent content with ease. In addition, these tools help you stay motivated and in the mindset to write articles and blog posts. Some of the 7 writing tools to increase your productivity as a blogger are:

• Grammarly
• Hemingway App
• Asana
• Zapier
• Pocket
• Draft
• Feedly

You get to become more productive when using any of these applications.

The post 7 Writing Tools to Increase Your Productivity as a Blogger appeared first on noupe.

Every day design fans submit incredible industry stories to our sister-site, Webdesigner News. Our colleagues sift through it, selecting the very best stories from the design, UX, tech, and development worlds and posting them live on the site.
The best way to keep up with the most important stories for web professionals is to subscribe to Webdesigner News or check out the site regularly. However, in case you missed a day this week, here’s a handy compilation of the top curated stories from the last seven days. Enjoy!”

Need a Laugh? Check Out these Car Logos Drawn from Memory

10 Useful CSS Tricks for Front-end Developers

13 Inspiring Examples of Contact Page Design

5 Tips for Creating Innovative UX Design

Mockover – Create Mockups from any Image on the Web

5 Must-Have Elements of a Successful Footer in 2022

MDB – Super Cool Badges for your Projects

Uimini – Uimini Modern and Lightweight CSS Framework

16 Google Search Tips for Developers

Chrome OS Flex: What It Is, and Why You Should Use It

Doodle Icons – 400+ Handcrafted Icons Free for your Next Project

CSS Box Shadow Tutorial: A Step-By-Step Guide (+ Examples)

Type Trends 2022

Source

The post Popular Design News of the Week: March 7, 2022 – March 13, 2022 first appeared on Webdesigner Depot.

Alongside HTML and CSS, JavaScript makes up the holy trinity of front-end technologies.

JavaScript is cross-platform and object-orientated. You can use it for everything from simple animation to complex server-side operations. JavaScript fell out of fashion after its initial release; however, it has grown to dominate web coding in the last decade.

But how much do you actually know about JavaScript? Let’s find out…

Source

The post Quiz: The Surprisingly Difficult JavaScript Quiz first appeared on Webdesigner Depot.

Artificial intelligence has evolved into one of the most awe-inspiring technologies in recent years. Gradually, this powerful technology has made an enormous place in the business world.

According to research, the AI market value is expected to reach $267 billion by 2027. Moreover, 9 out of 10 leading businesses have investments in AI technologies. But, less than 15% deploy AI capabilities in their work. This is because AI deployment is a huge challenge. 

The demand for professionals possessing enormous AI capabilities and suitable professional degrees is much higher than the availability. Even those who have studied AI in their college, don’t always possess mastery in this area. The lack of resources and suitable infrastructure are two prominent reasons for the same. 

However, sometimes those who self-learn from resources such as books, online courses, etc. develop better AI capabilities than their college-educated counterparts. This gives rise to the very important question, “How to determine whether a candidate possesses the skills required to become a true AI deployment asset?”  This blog will help you with this challenging task in today’s scenario. Now, let’s proceed to discuss the 5 crucial skills that are needed for successful AI deployments. 

5 indispensable skills required for excellent AI deployments

1. Abilities to learn, adapt and match strides with the advancements happening in the field of AI: 

Technology is ever-evolving and AI is no exception. The secret to being competitive in this highly technological and evolving world is to upgrade yourself consistently. Similarly, if your organization aspires to excel in the field of AI deployment, it should be equipped with AI professionals who possess the ability to learn, adapt and match strides with the advancements happening in the field of AI. New algorithms, tools, strategies keep emerging in the field of Artificial Intelligence. 

If your competitors use the latest algorithms but your AI team doesn’t possess the caliber to learn and use them, obviously you’ll lag behind. Having said that, you should examine whether a new hire or the members of your AI team possess self-improvement and consistent learning skills. Now, the question that arises here is how to examine the learning abilities of a candidate? The following are some pointers to help you with that.

1.1. Determine the additional certifications a candidate has achieved: 

One of the clearest indicators of a candidate’s learning abilities is the additional certifications he has achieved. Only those who are passionate about learning to undertake the journey of learning additional skills. A majority of individuals only learn what is taught to them in college and expect to get hired on that basis. But, passionate learners don’t stop at college learning, they expand their skills and obtain a clear edge over their competitors. 

1.2. Examine their willingness to accept others’ opinions: 

Those who possess good learning abilities are open to accepting others’ opinions. They don’t get fixated on their opinions and beliefs. They stay open to new ideas, perspectives and are willing to change their opinions if they learn something new. 

To evaluate the willingness of a candidate to consider others’ opinions, you can ask him some questions. One example of such a question is, “ Have you ever had a disagreement with a team member? If yes, what did you do or how did you deal with it?” 

Further, when it comes to your existing AI team, you can determine the willingness of your employees to learn by carefully watching how they deal with disagreements or how they respond when you try to teach them something new.

1.3. Ask about future endeavors: 

This is one of the best ways to determine someone’s passion for learning. Ask about his future endeavors. If those consist of something to learn or gain expertise at, the candidate or team member is definitely dedicated to the expansion of his knowledge. 

2. Industry expertise with domain and sector knowledge: 

Along with excellent knowledge of AI operations, algorithms and tools, there is something else that your AI deployment team will need to succeed. It is- industry expertise with domain and sector knowledge. It is only when your AI experts have significant knowledge of your industry and domain that they can devise accurate algorithms to bolster your business. Without proper knowledge of your domain and sector, their algorithms might be more complex than required. 

Insensitive sectors such as healthcare, these complexities can even be dangerous. Errors and misinterpretations can put people’s lives at risk. Given that, it is best to hire those AI experts who know your industry and the intricacies involved in your domain properly. Even if they don’t, it will come down to their learning ability when it comes to being a great fit for your AI deployment team. A good learner possesses the capabilities to learn effectively and excel under any circumstances. 

3. Governance skills: 

AI bias is one of the major issues that need to be addressed when it comes to AI deployment. For example, it is crucial that the identity verification processes work well without any discrepancies for everyone without any bias based on gender, race, religion, ethnicity, etc. If AI biases exist in your products, services, or other machine tools, it is obviously unfortunate and may take your organization downhill rather than uphill.

 To minimize AI bias, it is important for AI teams to possess governance skills. Also, AI teams can use governance framework tools to enhance their decision-making skills and get rid of all biasing tendencies. The success of AI in the future depends on to what extent discriminatory and biasing tendencies can be eradicated. Given that, your AI deployment team should be well versed with AI bias and possess governance skills. 

4. Communication skills: 

AI deployment teams should possess excellent communication skills. Why is that so? Good communication is what helps team members interact effectively and produce the desired results together. Imagine, if your AI team lacks effective communication, can it’s functioning ever be smooth? The answer is obviously a big no. Strategic planning, discussion, and nearly everything require good communication skills. 

Moreover, everyone doesn’t possess technical expertise in AI. Given that, when interacting with your clients or non-technical members of the team, AI engineers should be able to explain things to them in a non-technical yet well-understandable manner. That is why your AI deployment team should possess excellent communication skills. You should definitely analyze a candidate’s communication skills before recruiting him. Even if he doesn’t possess good communication skills, but has good knowledge of AI and an ability to learn quickly, you can work on enhancing his communication skills after hiring him. 

5. Thorough knowledge of compliance practices: 

Artificial intelligence is a tremendous technology. It has a vast wingspan with immense possibilities. If the usage of AI is not bound by certain rules and regulations it can pose a huge risk to individuals, groups, and even society. AI can even violate the basic rights of individuals. For example, resume screening based on AI tools that are biased towards certain backgrounds and religions may definitely pose a threat to individuals from minority groups. 

Given that, it is essential to bind the usage of AI with certain rules. Authoritative rules come in 0multiple forms. There are International laws, country laws, and regulations set by companies on their own. Your AI deployment team should possess thorough technical knowledge of compliance practices. It is with this knowledge that they can help you stay secure legally when it comes to the usage of AI. 

Artificial Intelligence has become one of the trending technologies in the business world today. To make the most of this awe-inspiring technology, it is crucial for you to build a skillful AI deployment team. For this, you should know exactly what skills do AI deployment engineers need to possess to function effectively. The above-mentioned listicle contains the most important skills required for successful AI deployment. Don’t forget to consider them when hiring AI engineers. Wish you All the Best and immense success in your endeavors. 

The post 5 Crucial Skills that are Needed for Successful AI Deployments appeared first on noupe.

Sometimes the simplest tools can be deceptively tricky, even dangerous. For example, the lowly calendar can cause everyone — business people, students, and homemakers alike — incredible inconvenience when poorly managed.

Fortunately, the calendaring solutions on view today are far more advanced than those available to us even just 10 years ago. Not only are there more electronic tools than ever before, but people are beginning to discern where a laptop or smartphone should be the tool of choice vs. when it’s time to break out nothing fancier than a pencil and piece of paper.

8 Ways to Sharpen Your Personal Calendaring Skills

1. Stop relying on your power of memory.

Perhaps you take pride in your exceptional power to remember people, places, and things that cross your path, but keep in mind that pride often precedes a fall. The truth is that writing something down reinforces an already-strong ability to remember. If you pay attention, you’ll notice that the people with the best memories tend to only take notes as needed, rather than obsessively jotting down everything. Being intentional about selecting what you want to remember and writing it down on your calendar will free you up to think clearly.

2. Pick the view that works for your lifestyle and temperament.

Have you ever looked at someone else’s calendar and felt like you might have a panic attack? When you are building out your preferred calendaring system, don’t be overly influenced by what anyone else does. The trick to long-term success with calendaring is to pick out a tool that provides the view you want to see as you make decisions and plan your week. Some people prefer to use an Outlook calendar synced to all of their devices. Others will pull out a leatherbound book and a fountain pen. The point is to keep trying tools and systems until you find what works best for you, not what works for that entrepreneur you’re trying to emulate.

3. Pick a color-coding scheme that makes sense to you.

Some people use color-coding notes and events to draw a sharp distinction between work commitments and lifestyle. Blue for work, green for leisure activities. Others use the color-coding functionality to toggle back and forth quickly between multiple views of their various commitments. Whatever color scheme you choose, adopting some format for quick visual distinction is probably the single most important means you can use to bring sanity to your schedule. Spend a bit of time on the front end thinking carefully about how you’d like to get started so you’re not making a lot of color-coding adjustments further down the road.

4. Do not tolerate ghosting from anyone…especially yourself.

Let your word be your bond. Show up when you say you will. Under-promise and over-deliver. When you adopt a code such as this for yourself, you silently convey to others that you carry an expectation for them as well. Get in the habit of showing up to in-person meetings at least 10-15 minutes ahead of the start time. That way, you’ll have plenty of time to plug in your laptop, get coffee, and shuffle your papers. If you simply must stay in a relationship with someone who “ghosts” others, make a habit of confirming meetings and deadlines at regular intervals.

5. Use labels that make sense at a glance.

Words matter. Where color-coding can help you quickly distinguish between categories, effective meeting labels may take a few extra seconds of thought on the front end but will save you missed cues and opening up a reminder multiple times to check for more information. For example, “Meeting with Jeff” is a good start for your meeting label, but “Meeting w/Jeff: Quarterly Sales Numbers” tells you a lot more when you see it pop up on your laptop or look at your weekly planning. The additional information might spur you to move the meeting whereas a less-informative label passes quickly through your awareness unnoticed.

6. Share your calendaring data across all platforms.

Perhaps the single greatest advantage to electronic calendaring is that, when configured properly, you can access your information from anywhere in the world, using any device. While the smartphone seems to be the weapon of choice for many, it won’t do you any good should the battery die. Furthermore, many of us spend a good portion of the workweek with a computer keyboard at our fingertips. Using the “tool of the moment” while being confident that your saved data will be available anywhere, anytime, frees you up to focus intently on the task at hand.

7. Pay attention to recurring “time management hand grenades.”

Over time, you may notice that some of your calendaring habits cause problems for you. The typical example is scheduling one meeting from 9:00 to 10:00 and another from 10:00 to 10:30 on the same day. This practice allows no time for moving from one location to another or for a meeting to unexpectedly run long. Many online apps now permit users to factor in travel time. Even if you don’t have to drive anywhere, consider using this feature to give you some cushion of time to “travel” to the bathroom or the coffee machine.

8. Be intentional with your use of calendar notifications.

Many calendaring systems default to a setting of sending out a notification 10 or perhaps 15 minutes ahead of every meeting you schedule. This is a great feature, of course, but many of us have noticed that our productivity is being “notified to death.” Again, a few seconds on the front end thinking this through will pay dividends later on. Maybe you don’t want to be notified of anything and everything. Perhaps you’d rather not have yet another device interrupting your thought processes. Of course, be certain that you aren’t missing important events and deadlines simply because you’ve chosen to shut off various notifications.

Give grace where needed, yes…but always follow up.

Life is unpredictable. Unexpected things happen, and we must allow “space and grace” in our lives to accommodate interruptions, unanticipated events, or even the occasional traffic jam. If you construct your weekly calendar and then demand that life cooperate, you are headed for a lot of emotional angst and perhaps even some serious health issues. Additionally, you are likely to cause damage to all of your relationships, personal and professional.

While it is important to allow some margin for error and miscommunication, it is equally important to hold people accountable. When, for example, a colleague consistently arrives late to meetings, or misses them entirely, don’t allow yourself to get overheated. Simply open up that meeting on your personal calendar (not the shared meeting invitation) and make a non-judgmental notation of the fact.

Over time, you’ll begin to use your time more wisely as you take multiple factors (such as consistently-unreliable colleagues) into account. The simple act of note-taking will help you develop a keen eye for spotting time management hand grenades and tossing them back before they blow up your week.

The post How to Make the Most of Your Digital Calendar appeared first on noupe.

The pandemic has accelerated a massive shift towards online shopping. More consumers are preferring online shopping over traditional ones, and most of the brick and mortar stores have started declining.

Even after the pandemic, the use of digital channels has increased significantly. This urged customers to purchase online from small household items to daily essentials.

Since the last few years, eCommerce has been one of the widely used platforms by most professional companies and has gained tremendous popularity. It provides an outstanding opportunity for businesses to grow and sell their products worldwide.

Customer experience plays an evident role and is at the center of the growth of any eCommerce business. To ensure utmost customer satisfaction, most eCommerce businesses opt for providing the most preferred and convenient payment method. The store owners collect payments from their customers through credit cards, debit cards, or digital wallets.

Till now, Credit cards have been highly preferred for making payments. But, in recent years, Buy Now, Pay Later options have gained significant popularity globally. Out of multiple payment options in the market, utilizing the best payment method is the prime concern. Buy Now, Pay Later is more prevalent amongst the young generation, especially while shopping online. Most companies have started to offer Buy Now, Pay Later options. 

The future of BNPL seems to be shining amongst the youth as by offering such a payment facility, they can easily purchase the item of their choice. Moreover, it is nothing but a type of loan that the customers have to repay within a specified time frame. 

Here, the store owners need to be careful while purchasing as everyone is not capable of making a repayment. BNPL has proved beneficial for those who want to make large purchases or have too pricey products. 

By adopting such a flexible payment option, layaway has proved to be highly advantageous for store owners that have helped to reach new customers, increase conversions, and best serve existing ones. 

According to a survey, nearly 55.8% of consumers have opted to use the Buy Now, Pay Later service, which is an almost 50% increase in less than one year compared to 2020. So, what are you waiting for to start providing your customers with Buy Now, Pay Later service to your customers? 

Incorporate Buy Now, Pay Later functionality in your eCommerce store easily to fascinate a great pool of customers and leverage sales. So, if you are using Magento for your online store, you can easily assist your customers with Buy Now, Pay Later functionality using the Partial Payment extension for Magento 2 and provide them with the best payment experience. 

What is ‘Buy Now, Pay Later?

‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ can be defined as the short-term financing option that attracts customers to purchase and make payments in the future without any interest. Here, the customers can pay in installments instead of paying the entire amount at that time frame. 

Companies such as Klarna and Affirm even provide Buy now, pay later payment options for the purchase made from the merchants involved. As such, PayPal has also launched its installment loan program. Such financing options are even provided by other top companies like Chase, American Express, and much more. 

The repayment needs to be done within the mentioned time period. The customers are allowed to pay either in equated monthly installments (EMI) or as a lump sum amount. The store owner can charge interest from the customers if they fail to make repayments within the mentioned time frame. 

How ‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ Works?

‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ payment option is available primarily for the young generation, millennials, or those who do not have credit cards. At present, almost all eCommerce companies and banks have started to offer BNPL options. Banks such as HDFC, ICICI, and other eCommerce platforms like Amazon and Flipkart provide split payment options. 

This helps attract potential customers to make a purchase. Such payment options have proved useful where the customers need to pay a certain amount in advance, the customers do not have a significant amount in cash, or the product is too costly. 

BNPL facilitates customers to make purchases online and then pay over some time in weekly, monthly, or yearly installments. Usually, the interest rates of BNPL are comparatively high, but if they are paid within that specified time frame, you can avail it for free. 

For instance, if you make a purchase worth $1000, you might be provided with a BNPL option. Here, you can pay in four equal monthly installments of $250 each without paying any interest. If you miss out on paying installments within the determined time, you will have to pay extra charges for the same. 

Terms and conditions offered by various service providers may vary accordingly, which are as follows: 

• Avail BNPL option from the merchant providing such payment facility.
• You might need to make a down payment of around one-fourth part of the total amount purchased. 
• Make the repayments in equal interest-free monthly installments.
• Quickly make payments via debit card, credit card, or bank account. 

‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ has proved to be compelling enough while making purchases online and has gained massive popularity in recent years with the rising trend of the eCommerce market. 

How does BNPL differ from Credit Card Payments?

In most cases, BNPL and credit cards are similar in that they both provide deferred repayment options to the customers. However, specific critical differences are observed amongst these two products that are easily accessible. Using a credit card requires a good credit history and verification, whereas BNPL provides hassle-free access. 

It is even possible to shop online and quickly opt for the BNPL option to make a payment. BNPL offers easy access, convenience and differs from many other aspects. Generally, credit cards offer free credit periods for upto 45 days, whereas BNPL offers to provide equal monthly installments that may vary from 15 days to one month. 

Any business can easily use credit cards, and BNPL can be used via partner merchants. There are joining fees associated with the credit cards, whereas BNPL does not charge any joining fees or extra charges. Using credit cards, you can earn discounts, offers, and air tickets. However, there are no chances to gain rewards using the BNPL payment option. 

Top BNPL Companies

BNPL has been serving the market for many years. But, a sudden upsurge in demand has been observed in the market due to the pandemic. According to the survey by Statista, it has been noted that one out of the three UK customers used the BNPL option to make payments. Moreover, the younger generation preferred using the BNPL facility compared to the older generation. 

Some of the top players in the market are as follows: 

• Afterpay
• Klarna
• Zip
• Openpay
• Payright
• Splitit
• Latitudepay
• LayBuy 

Reasons Why Customers Prefer BNPL

With the eCommerce market continuously evolving, there comes a significant change in the payment facility such as “pay at the time of checkout” to provide customers with flexible payment options. Youths entering the market have brought a complete revolution in their shopping habits, from purchasing online to making payments. Provided here is a list of the top reasons for choosing BNPL as the most preferred payment option: 

Feasible Rates

Compared to traditional credit cards, BNPL provides the most flexible payment option without charging any interest. Generally, BNPL does not carry any joining fees associated with it, whereas specific bank lenders may charge a small processing fee.

Moving Away from Traditional Credit Cards

BNPL has been the most flexible and preferred payment option amongst the young generation. A tremendous shift towards BNPL payment options has been observed while making larger purchases or too pricey products. High costs are associated with traditional credit cards, such as joining fees and interest charges. 

Convenient & Flexible

BNPL offers flexibility and convenience to the customers by allowing them to make payments over a later period. Offering such flexibility encourages customers to make large purchases or easily purchase pricey products, and this will also help customers engage with the stores. 

How is BNPL Beneficial to eCommerce Store?

BNPL has proved beneficial to my eCommerce store in many ways, such as boosting conversions, increasing sales, attracting potential visitors, and quickly focusing on the existing ones. 

Increased Sales

As per the survey, the site providing the BNPL option has a 6% chance of conversion compared to others that do not provide such a payment facility. There are chances that customers might not make a purchase because of the unavailability of the payment method. 

Customers might think of purchasing if they are comfortable enough with the available payment option. As a result, this will help to boost sales and increase conversions. 

Facilitates to stand out in the Competition

Presently, BNPL has gained widespread popularity amongst most of the eCommerce stores. It is advisable to offer the best payment option to your customers to stand ahead of the competition. There are high chances that you may miss out on potential customers if you are not providing a BNPL facility. Adversely, it will highly impact your competitors if they are not providing the service.

Reduced Cart Abandonment

Offering pocket-friendly options encourages visitors to purchase without thinking about the cost associated with the product. Having an installment facility, the customers feel relaxed thinking about the product cost. This will motivate customers to purchase an item, and as a result, the chances of cart abandonment will likely reduce. 

Advantages of Buy Now, Pay Later

• Convenient and flexible payment options.
• Low or zero interest rates as compared to credit cards.
• Easy approval.
• No joining fees.
• Transparent and straightforward process. 
• Safe and secure transaction. 
• Not essential to have a credit history. 

Disadvantages of Buy Now, Pay Later 

• Tracking payments is a challenging task.
• Delay in payments may result in late fees.
• No chances to gain rewards.
• Even if the item is returned, you still have to make payments. 
• Credit limits are comparatively small. 

Conclusion

Buy Now, Pay Later seems attractive enough if the customers don’t want to make a complete payment altogether. It facilitates customers by providing a little extra time for making payments. 

Implementing Buy Now, Pay Later in your eCommerce store has proved highly beneficial. Providing such a payment facility shows that you care about your customer’s needs and, as a result, will help to grow your sales and can easily attract huge customers. 
Hence, think of incorporating Buy Now, Pay Later into your online shopping platform that will help to allure a pool of huge customers and will help improve sales. This will help provide an in-class shopping experience to the customers with flexible payment options. As a result, it facilitates creating a win-win situation for both customers and store owners.

The post Importance of ‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ in the eCommerce market appeared first on noupe.

Logistics and supply chain management has seen several technological advancements in a short time span while remaining mostly unscathed.

The number of consumers shopping at prominent online retailers is increasing. When faced with a growing workload, the sector is fast to adopt technological improvements like the adoption of the document scanning app that improves overall efficiency.

Covid-19 has led to a global shift toward secure contactless shipping items. This smooth shift has been made possible in large part because of mobile scanning software.

 In addition to communication, the additional capabilities and programmable applications have been extensively deployed in practically every corporate area, including logistics and supply chain management activities.

There has been a tepid reception to the document scanning app from businesses and consumers alike for some time. Many top logistics solution providers are now making good use of it, thanks to the Covid-19 epidemic. In addition, it takes up less room.

Key Benefits and Gains from a Mobile Scanning App

Images may be identified and processed more quickly using document scanner app vision. Similar to artificial intelligence, the discipline of computer science works with camera-equipped gadgets and empowers the user to choose the next suitable move. With the right tools, it is now a simple matter to access and analyze any visual data that may be available.

With compliant QR codes, the industrial possibilities are almost limitless, particularly when it comes to supply chain and logistics. Here are a few noteworthy examples:

Facilities for receiving and disbursing goods 

The product’s information is included in the QR codes. Companies may simply employ smartphone handhelds in warehouse scanning systems with the correct software. Product sorting and identification are a breeze for company employees. Better warehouse organization, efficient shipment, and loading/unloading of packages are the results of this.

Smartphone scanning applications have made it feasible to do tasks such as precise ID’ing in a high-speed workflow at a minimal cost. It is less costly to use a mobile phone than to purchase specialized scanning equipment. In addition, there are no concerns regarding a prospective encounter with the iOS scanner app. They were seen as absolutely necessary procedures after the coronavirus outbreak.

Operations in the Last Mile 

The last-mile delivery sector saw the most change as a result of cell phones. Customers may be certain that their packages will arrive exactly when and where they need them. The operator has to know the exact location of the drop site, as well as the current time and date, in order to complete this operation.

Smartphones are used by delivery staff and drivers to access consumer information and scan documents with iPhones. It’s also a multi-purpose tool. When a smartphone hovers over the QR overlays on the packages, it is possible to quickly identify the proper delivery item. The drivers on the road may also access Real-time information updates.

All-out digitization of the whole process

The pandemic has resulted in more and more contactless working culture, contactless delivery, and contactless attendance. And mobile scanning systems are an affordable option for touchless transactions.

The whole transfer procedure may be improved and made more efficient by digitizing the process and using the free scanner app.

Managing a Driver’s Time 

Drivers may be tracked using the best scanner app for android. Drivers are listed and documented in great detail in these apps, which are available for free download. For the delivery of products to customers, logistics businesses utilize these devices in conjunction with smartphone scanning applications to keep track of the time spent at each stop. Details such as the customer’s name and arrival and departure times are also included in the app.

Resolving Issues Raised by Customers

The precise position of the delivery vehicle may now be determined via GPS, thanks to logistics scanning solutions and other specialist software. If a consumer complains or has a question, the response will have all the information they need to help them out.

Mobile scanning vision software reduces the risk of sending the wrong goods. Unfortunate mistakes may be swiftly corrected by the delivery person. Scanning and text reader software also makes rapid synchronization of the most recent address updates.

Scanners for Barcodes 

Readers using IR, LED, or LASER technology are inferior to scan documents iPhone scanners that use picture recognition and analysis as their primary means of data collection. Because they are faster and more capable than their predecessors, image-capture-based scanners can capture a barcode and conduct a variety of functions at the same time.

The digital camera’s lens captures a barcode picture, which the program then processes. In addition, optical barcode scanners are more adaptable than LASER scanners in terms of application. A further advantage is that a single scanner may be used to read many barcodes at the same time.

Streamlining the supply chain

Warehouses may be a confusing place to keep track of all of the stored products. It is a waste of time and money to order products that have passed their expiration date. Such items must be removed as soon as possible.

When it comes to the amount of data that may be stored in a QR code, bar code readers just can’t keep up. Warehouse’s free scanner app for iPhone and inventory optimization software may help companies maintain track of product details and solve problems with faulty or expired items quickly.

Contactless Delivery Proof 

In order to avoid any potential touch-interaction, new software was created to do just that. To verify delivery, recipients don’t even have to sign the driver’s device. QR codes on packages are scanned using the web app on a smartphone or tablet. Customer confirmation of receipt of delivery completes the transaction.

Customers don’t have to download anything in order to use these OCR scanner apps, and they integrate seamlessly with the current process.

Text Recognition

Document scanning apps for android now have the ability to recognize text. A barcode scan button may be added to the keyboard, making it quick and straightforward to scan barcodes. Additionally, mobile vision scanners are very useful in low-light environments, such as warehouses. It would have been difficult to package and identify the shipment without it, prolonging the whole procedure.

Real-Time Augmentation

An AR (Augmented Reality) output is possible with the receipt scanner apps for logistics in smart devices. Artificial intelligence (AI) and human intelligence (HI) are combined in augmented reality features. In addition to tracking shipments inside the warehouse and detecting incorrect loads, AR output may be utilized for a wide range of other purposes.

Key Takeaways

With the worldwide pandemic, the pace at which technology advancements were expected to be integrated into the supply chain and logistical operations has been slowed down. Although it was unavoidable, as various reports and published publications have pointed out, it was also unavoidable.

While these changes are being implemented at every level of the business, from the warehouse to the last mile or point of delivery, the digital logistics scanning solution guarantees that they are done correctly.

The post Significant Benefits of Mobile Scanning App in Transportation Sector? appeared first on noupe.