How to Prepare for a Cyber Attack (Infographic)

Posted on May 20, 2018 by randylewiskemp

Cyber attacks are proliferating in number and complexity. From the exposed personal information of customers to fraudulent tax returns, recent high-profile cyber crimes have proven that every business needs have a comprehensive cybersecurity strategy.

However, the Equifax breach of 2017 has also shown us that companies might be as prepared as they think they are. An IBM report found that 77% of organizations admitted to not having a formal cybersecurity response plan in place. Almost half of those surveyed said their plan was ad hoc if one existed at all.  

A thorough cybersecurity plan is both preventive and proactive. It covers multiple cyber attack entry points like insider threats, unsecured accounts, and weak passwords, as well as extends into the organization’s operations such as internal audits and compliance with regulations.

While it’s impossible to have total security, a cybersecurity strategy will go a long way in minimizing the disruption, damage, and losses if your organization is hacked. To see how your company’s cybersecurity preparedness measures up, follow this infographic from Varonis and find out where you need to add more layers to your cybersecurity.

A special thanks to Varonis  for this graphic.

Cyber Attack Flowchart

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Benefits of Including PDF to Word in Your Daily Workflow

Posted on June 18, 2017 by randylewiskemp

In today’s fast-paced work environment, the amount of workload is constantly increasing, but the time for its execution remains the same. However, that’s not all. In addition, there are stress, deadlines, pressure, and other silent threats to your job success and accomplishment.

Therefore, nowadays professionals have to contrive different tricks, try out new tactics in order to boost their productivity and make their job easier.

One such handy trick is definitely using a smartphone to help you manage your time and tasks well.

Mobile phones have become an essential part of our private and business life, maybe a bit more of our private life. For this reason, it’s high time to include smartphones in our daily workflow. Not only will you speed up repetitive tasks, but you’ll also achieve more with less effort.

On the App Store and Google Play, you can find various useful apps that fit your job requirements.

Given that document management is a common part of every business, usually the most annoying and time-consuming activity, we’ll show you a convenient app that will help you manipulate your documents with ease.

PDF to Word Converter will allow you to edit your PDF documents without a difficulty and effort. In other words, you’ll be able to reuse your old documents and if necessary, add new information or delete parts that aren’t relevant anymore. Besides, there are other useful features, such as:

  • Industry-leading OCR technology that enables high-rate PDF to Word conversion quality

  • No matter how complex your file is, it will be converted accurately

  • Scanned documents are convertible, as well

  • The converted file will look like the original document; layout, formatting, tables are preserved

  • It’s possible to convert PDFs from Gmail attachments and popular cloud service

Last but not the least, PDF to Word Converter owns simply and user-friendly design, that makes it pretty easy to navigate. There’s no redundant registration and account creation. Just a few steps and you’ll make your PDF editable:

  1. Download PDF to Word Converter from the App Store or Google Play

  2. Choose a file you need to convert. Look for it on your phone or a cloud storage and tap on it

  3. Once your file is converted, simply open it in Word app and make required changes

Piece of cake, isn’t it?

Now, let’s see how you will benefit from this productivity app:

  • You will quickly create new documents. Most of your documents, such as reports, presentations, lectures and others are reusable. This means you can use again old documents with some modifications and create new ones in no time.

  • Easily edit existing PDF documents. Whether you need to correct or to add/delete something in your file, you are able to do it right away. This will make you look even more professional and very responsive in every situation.

  • Manage your documents anywhere. Mobile phones allow us to handle things on the go, you don’t have to be attached to your desktop computer. This is perfect for urgent situations when you need to create or modify business documentation immediately.

Sounds pretty good, right? In that case, check out PDF to Word Converter and other helpful apps and begin to work smarter, faster and better!

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Why Green Tech is Good for Business, As Well as The Environment

Posted on June 11, 2017 by randylewiskemp

The government’s stance of green technology and the environment has changed considerably since Barack Obama stood down and Donald Trump entered the Oval Office. This has left both B2B Green technology companies and enlightened investors in a difficult position, as they struggle to ascertain how this new governmental stance will affect the industry and whether the rapidly changing regulations surrounding the environmental market will have a negative impact on their existing investments. Certainly, green tech is not the fail-safe investment that it once was (particularly under the stewardship of Barak Obama) but

The Trump administration attitude is that environmental concerns should not stand in the way of corporate progress, but in reality, green tech is good for business rather than holding it back. Some of the largest corporations based in the US have recently signed a joint statement announcing that they are committed to continuing to use renewable power throughout their sizeable organisations: the corporations that made these commitments include Apple, Alphabet, and Microsoft.

Go Green to Boost Your Own Business

Introducing green innovations to your own B2B company, as well as supporting and investing in innovative green start-ups, is a great way to protect the environment whilst simultaneously boosting your own business. Enlightened consumers like to know that the businesses they are choosing to work with have environmental aspirations, and ensuring that your company has a visible green policy doesn’t have to cost a fortune. If your budget won’t stretch to new green technology innovation then why not consider smaller ways that your business can contribute to a more environmentally friendly economy: a great place to start is switching your energy supplier to one that is committed to only supplying energy from green sources. You could also think about going paperless or, if that simply isn’t viable for your business model, look at the way that you recycle your paper. These simple changes are enough to be considered a company environmental policy, and are a great place to start.

Does this mean that now is the right time to make a significant financial investment in the green technology markets? There’s no right or wrong answer to this question, and any potential investment opportunities should be assessed day by day. What we do know though is that the negative impact of the Trump administration’s stance is unlikely to be as wide reaching as it was anticipated to be prior to the President’s inauguration: this is because many of the federal recommendations surrounding environmental control are not being implemented at a state level. Many states, including financially important states such as California and New York, have reaffirmed their commitment in the last couple of months to reducing their state-wide carbon emissions, continuing with the targets they set under the Obama administration.  These states are working together, and working with the businesses under their jurisdiction, to exceed these targets where possible. This is a great example of states leading by example and showing what can still be achieved when federal funding has been cut.

The Green Tech bubble 2.0 has not burst: people want to see green technology succeed and are prepared to invest in it both for personal use and for their companies. This shift in perception has happened in conjunction with a boost in the technologies that can make these concepts an affordable reality. As digital technologies have developed and innovation is moving at a rapid pace, green tech is now in a position to have the systems in place behind it to put his money where its mouth is.

Big Business Leading By Example

Where government is choosing to take a step back, our nation’s largest corporations are stepping up to the plate and putting their money where their mouth is: showing their commitment to sourcing and using green and renewable energy sources throughout their business. As small and medium B2B businesses, there are a myriad of benefits to be reaped from stepping up to this same plate and following their example. This is an area of investment that is ripe for exploitation, If you are prepared to strike whilst the iron is hot.

 

Author Gemma (Banks) is a freelance business and finance writer. After a successful career she needed something more flexible to fit around family life after becoming a mother. Writing gives Gemma that flexibility and also enables her to keep her skills refreshed and up to date in the business sector.

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Making Online Customer Service Information Safer

Posted on March 5, 2017 by randylewiskemp

People tend to trust search engines. The concept seems simple, actually. When you have a question, click over to your favorite search engine, ask your question, and browse through the results offering a bevy of information that usually – hopefully – answers your question.

However, phishers, scammers and anyone with the intention of stealing information and personal data are now leveraging search engines for their own use. One recent story suggests these harmful users are taking advantage of unknowing people who attempt to find customer service contact information for mega-sized companies such as Facebook and Google. After all, do you know Facebook’s customer service 800-number? Why not “Google” it?

When a person types in “Facebook customer service”, there are results that appear that look to be official web pages offering up contact numbers for the company’s customer service department.

Upon further review, these numbers lead people directly to harmful scammers who are quick to use tactics that obtain personal information and security details.

We shouldn’t be quick to sound the alarm. This article isn’t designed to deter people from using their favorite search engine, which still serve a monumentally helpful purpose in research and obtaining information.

However, when it comes to engaging and communicating with a certain company or brand, such as contacting the customer service team at a specific company, there may be a better, safer, way.

Customer service is moving toward more digital support and for many brands a self-support environment, where consumers log onto a brand’s website or social channels, type in their query and access a variety of digital support materials available to help answer their question. And since those channels and the website are controlled by the brand, the information is more trusted and reliable than what may be found in general search engine results.

The upside here, besides the increased security of the data, is the fact that people of all age groups are now used to searching online for answers to their own queries. Favorite things to do in Key West? Best minivan for my family? Cooking instructions for a turkey at Thanksgiving? These are all questions we ask a search engine, and the results help get answers to what we’re looking for.

Customers call on service departments all the time, or even walk into their local store to get help. Consider a new smartphone purchase; often times after the purchase, customers will have a variety of questions regarding their account, or the functionality of the mobile device itself. Rather than waiting on hold for thirty minutes to speak with a customer service agent at their mobile carrier to ask questions, this same customer service information is now pre-loaded onto the carrier’s website and digital properties like Facebook, accessible to any customer, anytime, anywhere, for a more convenient way of handling customer queries and concerns.

With today’s artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning technologies, the more customers utilize this type of channel with a positive outcome, the “smarter” the process becomes for future customer interactions.

For example, the way to optimize search for self-service is to implement a metric that allows the best results to match a user’s satisfaction rating. The best measure of quality for search results is content effectiveness. Content effectiveness combines the frequency with which a customer selects a piece of content based on the search terms and the quality of the interaction with content as measured by positive feedback, time spent on content and deflection of calls to customer service.

As more customers rely on branded websites and self-service digital support materials, the more convenient and safer the customer support process will become in the future.

Editor’s Note: James Ramey is CEO of DeviceBits, a software company that services clients through a predictive and personalized understanding of interactive tutorials, adaptive FAQs, Interactive Guides, and Videos designed to for self-serving consumers. For more info visit Device Bits.

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How Your Customer Service Strategy Will Change Beginning in 2017

Posted on January 29, 2017 by randylewiskemp

smartphone weight training

The way brands and retailers have operated their businesses has changed significantly over the years, due to technology such as the Internet, online shopping and mobile devices. However, the way we handle customer questions, complaints and queries has not changed all that much. By and large, your customers still approach brands and retailers by seeking out the customer service desk in-store, or by calling an 800-number to try and resolve an issue.

This is about to change in a radical way.

The consumers of today are tech-savvy, do-it-yourself people. According to a recent survey, 36 percent of consumers now prefer using self-service customer service tools rather than traditional customer service agents. The way consumers shop is changing and brands should be aware of the new tools and trends at hand.

The Changing Shopping Path

It used to be that if a customer had questions while shopping, or a problem after they made their purchase, they would ask a sales associate in the store or call the customer service phone number. Now, customers are seeking alternate ways to get their answers. Customers can simply look up the answers to their questions, compare prices and get other useful information from their mobile devices or laptop computers. This growing trend of consumer self-sufficiency is why brands are looking at revamping their customer service departments and overall customer experience strategies in 2017.

A More DIY Approach To Customer Service

This change in consumer behavior is a natural progression. As technology becomes more readily available in the shoppers’ everyday lives, the need for one-on-one communication with customer service and sales personnel will evolve into different formats. Digital customer service options are more efficient, easier to access and provide a faster response time for customers.

New Tools To Consider

There are a few different tools that are behind this growth in popularity of self-service customer service techniques. Perhaps some of the most popular are artificial intelligence (AI) and self-discovery methods.

AI, in the form of chatbots and other tools, is helping bridge the gap in customer-brand communications. By allowing customers to engage with a brand via SMS messaging, social media messaging and live chat options on a brand’s website, customers can quickly and easily get their questions answered without the complications of sending emails and waiting on hold on a customer care hotline.

Self-service is another rapidly growing customer care trend among shoppers. Self-discovery tools such as interactive tutorials, adaptive FAQ’s, interactive guides and videos contain the simple, DIY answers that customers are looking for. These tools allow the customer to solve most of their problems themselves, putting the power back into the customer’s hands.

The Role of Self-Discovery Applications

Putting these trendy tools to work can be as simple or complex as a brand or retailer wants. The easiest way to get the ball rolling would be to make interactive guides and adaptive FAQ’s for common customer problems and questions. These tools can help customers by providing answer to questions that other customers have previously asked and showing users step-by-step how they can reach a common goal. Other tools such as interactive tutorials and videos can also aid customers in their customer car journey by visually showing them how to resolve a problem.

These tools and technologies are the next big things in the world of customer service. Help your customers help themselves by leveraging the power of the self-service customer care.

Editor’s Note: James Ramey is CEO of DeviceBits, a software company that services clients through a predictive and personalized understanding of interactive tutorials, adaptive FAQs, Interactive Guides, and Videos designed to for self-serving consumers. For more info visit Device Bits.

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Time to turn the attention on structured cabling

Posted on November 27, 2016 by randylewiskemp


A structured cabling system can be defined as a comprehensive system or network of cables and associated hardware devices that collectively offer a holistic telecommunication infrastructure and a platform on which an overall hierarchy or system of information is established. Structured cabling is the foundation of today’s business houses, government organization, and so on. It is also the base of today’s IT network including data voice, alarms or videos. It also defines the transmission patter of the signals through the communication network.

Structured-Cabling

Structured cables are set up and maintained by the contractors who are specialized in this area networking technology. Now, this ensures that the structured cabling system that they set up is absolutely seamless and is best fitted to meet the needs of the businesses. However, the methodology of setting up a structured cabling system is a generic one and is standardized. The standardization the procedure is imperative as it is imperative for the businesses to ensure a universally accepted system performance rather than a complex arrangement, which might put the companies in tight fix.

Even though the methodology of setting up structured cabling system is a generic and standardized one, each and every system develops s a unique identity after it is set up. This ensures that it is absolutely safe and there is no chance of any data pilferage, which is the last thing that a business organization would want to happen. Here are the factors that make each and every structured cabling system is unique.

  • The cables and the connection products used

  • The structure of the architecture of the business premises or the building, where the system is being set up

  • The functionalities of the cabling installation

  • The types of the apparatus and the equipment that the cabling system is expected or intended to support – at present and in the short as well as long term future

  • The configuration of the system that is already installed (if any)

  • Requirements of the customers and the warranties of the manufacturers

Here are the benefits of having a structured cabling system:

  • The communication becomes fast, cost effective as well as reliable. Most importantly, the cabling system is suitable and effective for any type of infrastructure

  • In case the business wants to relocate, the system is flexible enough to be taken down and refitted at the new location with hardly any hassle

  • The system is adaptable o future improvements as well as additions

  • This type of system ensure better and more authentic data encryption, and offers more safety and better and safer storage facilities

Data as well as voice management

Structured cabling helps in simultaneous data as well as voice management and this helps the business to put in the two aspects of communication under one umbrella, thereby reducing the cost and the botheration by a significant aspect.

Talking about them separately, data cabling can defined as setting up of a network of cables that relay or transmit data from one point or place to another. Data cabling helps to set up communication between an effective communication between multiple users and helps analyze the exchanged data at a centralized point.

Voice cabling, on the other hand is the network of cables that helps in setting up of the basic communication, which also includes the land based telephone system, modems and the analog lines.

Structured cables put these separate genres of functionalities within one bracket, thereby setting up a unique data transfer system that indulges in data as well as voice management simultaneously and that too in a seamless and effective way.

This unique feature of this system compels the companies to more and more shift towards structured cabling.

Author – Michelle Patterson

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Is VOIP Technology Going Social?

Posted on August 28, 2016 by randylewiskemp

No one can deny the impact of social media on the global population and the way it has affected business across the world. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and many other social media platforms are continually using new ideas to connect individuals. How can VoIP or Voice over IP be left behind? VoIP too has been affected by the social media revolution and its integration is becoming more and more obvious.

Is VOIP Technology Going Social?

Innovations in social media with VoIP being the focal point

Almost all the popular social media platforms were initiated in the form of desktop websites. However, with mobile devices gaining prominence, the social media platform too evolved. Though initially these sites were not meant to be mobile but they changed for the better. Nowadays, the social media innovations are built around VoIP and all innovations keep VoIP as the focal point.

If we take a closer look at mobile apps like WhatsApp, and Viber, we can see that here the users are able to share text, images and video with one another. Though these sites are not as big as Facebook but their very existence is based on VoIP. Making calls and messages are sent over the internet. Well, the days of social media built around the VoIP has already started and things are getting better and better with every passing day.

Facebook Too Is Making Its Move

Zuckerberg has created the best ever social media platform for the modern world. This can be judged from its growing user base, which has already crossed the 1 billion mark. Every time there is some innovation or news of some new move from the company it garners huge interest among users.

A couple of years back, Facebook purchased WhatsApp for whopping sum of $22 billion. The app was originally a part of the growing social media but immediately after the acquisition, VoIP calling feature was added. Thus, instead of slamming the door on its competitor, Facebook used the opportunity to expand its services.


The messenger app even has internet calling facility besides the VoIP calling feature. Now, there are many other companies that would follow suit. They are going to replicate the Facebook model to enhance their businesses as well.


Businesses Are Already Using VoIP And Social Media

All leading businesses are using social media to reach out to their customers. Customers too expect quick response to their queries. All this is done with the help of social media. This gives a head-start to  IP-PBX based VoIP integration with social media.

Companies often make it mandatory to fill up a form before making their content available to customers. Now this data automatically goes into the company’s CRM or Customer Relationship Management software. Executives in the company can use the VoIP integrated with the CRM to call up new prospects or follow up with existing customers.


What Does The Future Hold For Social Media And VoIP?

According to industry data, 79% of the businesses in the US have already started to use VoIP services. Another report reveals that an equal percentage of users are using social media as well. Features like messaging will soon be integrated with VoIP. VoIP and Social Media are made for each other. The day is not far when probably we will not even be aware where and how we are using them.

About The Author

Michelle Patterson


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