Can you use a Blink Outdoor Camera without a subscription? | Digital Trends

Blink’s Outdoor Camera has made it into some of our top recommendations thanks to its affordability and ease of use. The cam is weatherproof, wireless with a two-year battery life, and includes important smart features like motion detection with customizable zones and two-way audio from the Blink app.

But home security cams come with a key caveat these days: Video storage often depends on subscription plans and may be highly limited outside of live feeds unless you pay an extra fee. Blink’s plans (purchased through Amazon) start at $3 per month. It’s always a good idea to ask about the features included with any security cam, and if it can be used without a subscription so you can save money.

Read More

A 5-Point Guide to Online Marketing | The Startup Magazine

The modern world requires you to have more than one storefront. You must represent your brand in your bricks & mortar building, online via your website, through your social channels, and in any other ad campaigns you run. Online marketing is equally as important as representing yourself physically among competitors. It provides your business with unlimited potential to tap into endless audiences. If you go viral, your brand will soar.

How to Master Online Marketing in 5 Steps

Your online reputation is what drives your share in the $5.7 trillion E-commerce industry. If you are missing traffic, you are missing sales. Use these techniques to grab yourself a piece of the pie.

1 – Expanding your online presence

If your customers cannot see you, they will not buy from you. So it is on the high street and so it is online. You will need a professionally made website, social media accounts on all the currently trendy platforms, and the skill to incorporate SEO techniques. Don’t panic, you can outsource all the digital aspects of setting up your startup business online nowadays.

Once you have an online space, we call this your online platform. The next steps to mastering online marketing include using this platform as your online HQ. All your ads, all your social posts, each blog or guest blog you add will all direct your customers to this HQ.

Read More

The 3 Ways To Take On An Entrepreneurial Mindset For Success | The Startup Magazine

Successful people are just made differently. They aren’t like you and I at all. What makes them so different and why are they successful? The reality is they aren’t different, they just have a different mindset. Having the right entrepreneurial mindset is like having a secret tool in your pocket. It can guide you towards success in business and beyond.

To achieve the same level of success of the people you admire you need to take on an entrepreneurial mindset. It’s a set of traits and habits that successful entrepreneurs share. They think and behave in certain ways that give them an edge in business. In this article, we will go over several ways you can take on this mindset and achieve the success you dream of.

1 – Be a continuous learner

One common trait among entrepreneurs is that they are always looking to learn more. They never think that they already have all the answers. As soon as one thinks this, growth is sure to stop.  Continuous learning helps entrepreneurs stay up-to-date with trends, understand new technologies, and find better ways to serve their customers. But it’s not just about learning business-related stuff. It’s also about personal growth and self-improvement.

Read More

Google Search can check your grammar now | Mashable

Google can now help you check your grammar, right there in the search bar.

The new AI-powered grammar check, which is only available in English so far, can help users see if “a phrase or sentence is written in a grammatically correct way or how to correct it, if not.”

It’s a pretty easy feature to use. Enter a sentence or phrase into Google Search, followed with the word: “grammar check” or “check grammar” or “grammar checker”. Sometimes these phrases aren’t even needed, but using them will ensure that the tool will pop up.

If the phrase entered is correct, Google will present a green check mark.

Read More

These Jobs Are Most at Risk of Layoffs | Business News Daily

  • Layoffs continue to pile up across several industries thanks to inflation — and there might be more still to come in 2023.
  • Professionals in product management, quality assurance and marketing are the most likely to worry about budget and job cuts.
  • With the right strategies, you can tighten your balance sheet and navigate economic turbulence without letting workers go.
  • This article is for small business owners seeking advice on how to avoid layoffs, or those who want to execute layoffs properly if necessary.

Massive layoffs — at a pace nearing the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic — have rocked the workforce as the global economy inches toward recession. Within weeks, Twitter, Meta, Salesforce, Goldman Sachs, Amazon and other high-profile companies have laid off thousands of staff as businesses scramble to get ahead.

Read More

How to Access Your PC From a Smartphone or Tablet | Business News Daily

  • You can use remote PC access software to connect to your computer from a mobile device, such as a smartphone or tablet.
  • When you’re remotely connected, you can transfer files, print documents, and assist colleagues.
  • Consider security options and other features when choosing a remote PC access program that fits your organization’s needs.
  • This article is for business owners and IT managers who want their teams to connect remotely to their office computers.

The percentage of employees working remotely has remained high for the last two years. This arrangement leaves millions of employees needing remote access to the files stored on their office computers.

With remote access software, you can connect to your office PC while working remotely – even from your smartphone. We’ll explore how to access your computer from a mobile device and how remote PC access software can benefit your organization.

Read More

What Are Internal Distractions? (With Examples) | LifeHack

Ever tried to focus on a task, but found your mind wandering to that uncomfortable conversation from yesterday? Or maybe, right in the middle of an important presentation, you started planning what to cook for dinner? We all face the siren song of distractions, constantly luring our minds away from the task at hand.

It’s easy to point fingers on external distractions – the constant ping of our phones, the lure of social media, the colleague dropping by for a quick chat, or even the too-cold air conditioning in your office space.

But often, the culprit isn’t something outside of us; it’s within. It’s what we call internal distractions.

In this article, we’ll delve deeper into understanding how internal distractions cleverly hijack our focus, often unnoticed.

Read More

As solar panels wear out, this massive recycling plant in Yuma, Arizona | Fast Company

Sunlight beats down on a graveyard for dead solar panels in Yuma, Arizona, hundreds stacked in neat piles, waiting for their next life. The great majority of worn and damaged panels are still dumped in landfills. But with more and more piling up, many people know that needs to change.

In this desert city where Arizona, California, Sonora, and Baja California meet, North America’s first utility-scale solar panel recycling plant has opened to address what founders of We Recycle Solar call a “tsunami” of solar waste. Plans to address climate change rely on massively scaling up clean, solar electricity.

The panels, stacked and banded, come here from the company’s main collection warehouse in Hackettstown, New Jersey, plus six other locations across the country.

Read More

How to Hire Seasonal Workers | AllBusiness.com

With the unemployment rate remaining low throughout the country, small business owners continue to grapple with the labor shortage, making it especially difficult to find and hire employees. And if your business experiences seasonal ebbs and flows, attracting employees interested in temporary or seasonal work is even more challenging.

But finding seasonal workers is not impossible. To get insights and advice about seasonal hiring, I talked to Natalie Dopp, chief people officer at HireVue, a hiring technology company.

How to hire seasonal workers

Read More

American consumers in no mood to give up daily coffee | Food Truck Operator

Good news for restaurants and food trucks offering a cup of joe — American consumers are in no mood to go without their daily pick-me-up: coffee.

That’s according to the most recent National Coffee Trends Study Specialty Coffee Report sponsored by the National Coffee Association.

“Inflation is on everyone’s mind,” said Samantha Evans, senior research manager at Dig Insights, during a webinar on the study. “It’s impacting everything everywhere, and seemingly all at once, including how Americans drink and purchase coffee.”

While inflation has come down from 7.5% in January of 2022, people remain worried about personal finances, Evans said. This isn’t surprising as interest rates have increased dramatically in the past year.

“It’s really starting to take a toll on consumers and their finances,” she said.

Read More