Posts for Tips Category

Effective Google Analytics Tips

Guide, Internet, Tips - Patrick - January 26, 2021

Nowadays, for a company to be competitive in the market, utilizing digital tools is a must. One of those tools is Google Analytics. However, for you to fully utilize this tool, it is important that you understand how it works so you can cut your mistakes in half when using it. To help you out, here are some of the Google Analytics Tips that will help you grow your business.

One of the important things that you need to consider when using Google Analytics is to start with business questions. As we you may know, Google analytics is one of the effective means to extract insights that will soon turn into business value. As such, it is important that your analytics are driven by crucial business questions. To start with, you should consider identifying the challenges that your business is facing. By knowing the challenges in your business, you can craft your analysis work into something that would address the problems. You need to consider some aspects of your business such as their purchase behavior the marginal value of your display, the changes in your product and others.

Now that you know the problems already, the next step you need to take is to set up your business goals. Keep in mind that using Google analytics would be useless if you don’t have the goals for your business. By doing so, you will be able to take a strategic approach to your measurement. Your measurement could be the traffic numbers, bounce rate and the changes happened over time. One of the best things about Google analytics is that it allows you to easily set up your goals. All you have to do is click Admin and navigate to your desired view. Consequently, click Goals in the view column and the click NEW GOAL.

It is also important to map out your event tracking strategically. Events in the tool will support you to fill the gaps between goal analysis and traffic analysis. With this, you can keep track of the activities on your site. Tracking your event strategically will also allow you to identify the current changes on your site and whether the strategies you implemented are working well. It is a continuous work so it is important to keep track of your activities and events.

Setting up funnels are also crucial in the process. As mentioned earlier, setting up goals is one of the crucial steps you need to consider. Now, as you set up your goal, you are also able to set up a funnel that will allow you to view the journey of your users. By setting up funnels, you can also view the steps at which users fall off. As such, you can identify leaks in your conversion funnel. Consequently, this will allow you to track the issues and make the necessary improvements to address the leaks on the steps. Configuring view filters for different countries will also allow you to customize your users’ experience when navigating through your site.

Last but not the least, you should be able to integrate Google Analytics with your testing tool. There is no other way you could evaluate or assess whether your strategies are effective or not than using testing tools. With the help of testing tools, you can see any leaks or problems that affect your traffic rates and bounce rates. It will also help you improve aspects of your site that require enhancement and development. Always keep in mind that Google Analytics is a helpful tool. As long as you are knowledgeable and strategic in using it, you can fully utilize its benefits for your site.

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Beyond Facebook And Twitter Leverage Tweetups To Drive Business

Tips - Patrick - October 3, 2020

Social media can be leveraged to build deep connections with existing and potential customers. When people think of social media, they think of sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. However, social media extends beyond these popular social networks with millions of active members across the globe. Tweetups, in-person, impromptu meetings organized by Twitter users across different geographic locations, can be just as important in helping business owners connect with their potential consumers. Voy Media Courses are there to help you with all this, sharing all the vital information and strategies that you need for social media marketing. 

Extending conversations initiated in social networks such as Facebook and Twitter to offline can strengthen these relationships and convert fans and followers into brand advocates. Tweetups are especially beneficial to local businesses or national businesses that wish to advertise in a specific region. For example. NASA is hosting a special Tweetup in May, where they will randomly select 150 of their Twitter followers to view a shuttle launch in person at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. At Kennedy, NASA Twitter followers will take a tour of the center, view the shuttle launch, and speak with shuttle technicians, managers, engineers, and astronauts. Another great use of Tweetups is by the Grammy Award-winning British singer, Imogen Heap, who leveraged Tweetups in New York and Los Angeles to turn online interactions into real-life connections, providing her Twitter followers with exclusive first listen of her album, “Ellipse.” In addition, one of the most-popular Tweetup events is the National Hockey League’s (NHL) first Tweetup (now taking place in over 20 cities across the U.S.) kicking off the Stanley Cup Playoffs in the league’s NYC store back in April 2009.

How can Tweetups help your business?

Meet with existing or potential customers. Invite people who are interested in what your business has to offer. For example, Tommy Hilfiger and Lucky Magazine are hosting a Tweetup today, April 24, in NYC to draw customers into the Fifth Avenue store to shop their Spring collection. Connect you with people in your local community who are passionate about your industry. By bringing people together around a common interest, you help them to get to know each other better. Activate offline and inspire online actions. Another benefit to these Twitter-based gatherings is the number of messages your attendees will spread before, during, and after the event. Twitter users will tweet their experiences, photos, and possibly blog about the event. Introduce and help fuel demand for new products or services. Invite an expert to speak about the products and issues that the brand and customers both care about in order to establish or increase your business’ credibility. Build your content inventory that can be repurposed across the interwebs. If you are struggling for content on your Facebook, YouTube, or Twitter page(s), hosting events and capturing content at those events, including videos of experts, how-tos, photos of guests, or captured by guests can all make engaging, diverse UGC posts across these platforms.

Hosting a tweetup is simple. All you need to do is suggest a date, location, and time on Twitter. Your followers chime in if they want to join you, and you instantly have a gathering!

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Types of Beamsplitters

Tips - Patrick - June 12, 2020

Short and long Wavelength

One of the common types of beamsplitters that is commonly used in wide variety of applications is the long and short wavelength pass filter. Basically, modified N4 stacks are what make or create an edge filter coating. These edge filters are also known as short and long wavelength filters. Now, what is the difference between the two? Usually, long wave pass filter is described as a kind of pass filter where longer wavelengths are transmitted ( at 45 degrees). On the other hand, short wave pass filter is described as a kind of filter where shorter wavelength is transmitted (at 90 degrees). But what these tow filters share in common is that they both have 50 % edge centred around 700 nm. Just like optical dichroic mirror, this coating can be beneficial to designers. 

Plate BeamSplitters

Another type of beamsplitter is plate beamsplitter. It is made up of an optical crown glasses ‘thin plate that has various kinds of coating. These types of coating are deposited on every side of the splitter. The first side of this beamsplitter is coated with a film that has divided reflection properties over the near infrared spectrum or the visible spectrum. The film coated to the first surface of the beamsplitter is considered as an all dielectric one. One of the common advantage that a designer can get from this kind of filter is that it has only low absorption. This means that in general counting, this kind of beamsplitter has 0.5% for a 50/50 splitter at 45 degrees. 

Cube Beamsplitters

As a designer, you certainly want to use a kind of beamsplitter that can provide you wide variety of benefits. If so, cube beamsplitters are the right ones for you. Basically, cube beamsplitters are rugged beamsplitters that are perfect for superposition applications of beam. This beamsplitter is also very simple and easy to mount. Another good thing about this kind of beam splitter is that the coating it has is very degradation resistant. This is possible because the coating is sea;led within the body of the cube.

Nonpolarizing plate 

In cases where there is a need for the characteristics of the polarization to be sustained in the transmitted and reflected beams, nonpolarizing plate beamspitters are the best kind of beamsplitters to use. Nenpolarizing plate beamsplitters are also used to get a 50 50 split in laser energy not considering the state of the polarization in the beam. This is what makes nonpolarizing plate unique from other kinds of beamsplitters. This is the only filter that has  high polarization sensitivity. 

Hybrid Partial Reflection

Another type of beamsplitter is the hybrid partial reflection coatings and this is usuaually used both for dielectrics and metals in order to generate a moderate absorption beamsplitter that has low polarization sensitivity. One of the main benefits that desigtner can get from hybrid partial redelction coating is its insensitive characteristic to change in the incidence angle. Comapred to cube beamsplitter that has the ability to cause 45 degrees of incidence angle, hybrid partial-reflection coatings has an advantage of creating such beamsplitters to be neutral in a chromatic way for divergent or convergent beams.

Pellicle Beamsplitter

While there are several more types of beamsplitters such as all-doelectric nonpolarizing coating, broadband partial reflection coatings and so many more for designers, our last pick is pellicle beamsplitter. This kind of coating has a high tensile stremgth elastic membrane. Since this beamsplitter has a thin membrane, it can be advantageous over traditional plate beamsplitters. This is because problems will be virtually eliminated through negligible covering beams and very low absorption. 

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Geocaching 101: Finding Your First Geocache

Tips - Patrick - June 5, 2020

If geocaching sounds like something you’d like to try, then you’ve come to the right place. This article will take you step by step through finding your first geocache.

In order to get started, you’ll need to visit the website, www.geocaching.com. It’s free to sign up and only takes a minute. When choosing a username, choose something you will want to keep; it’s the name you will use to log your finds and how you will eventually become known in the geocaching community. Of course you can always use your real name if you prefer.

Once you are signed in, decide on an area in which to seek your first cache. While geocaches are hidden all over the world, I recommend staying close to home for now, but any familiar place will do. Go to the “Hide  amp; Seek a Cache” page and search your area of choice for a cache to find. If you want to narrow your search area, you can choose “Search with Google Maps” and enter a zip code or an entire address.

Once you have the possible caches in your area on screen you will want to pay attention to several things. First, the Difficulty and Terrain ratings will let you know what to expect from the cache. The Difficulty indicates, on a scale of one to five stars, how hard the actual hiding place will be. A cache with a one star Difficulty rating might simply be hidden under a pile of sticks; a two may be less obvious and a four or five may be extremely well camouflaged. The Terrain rating, on the other hand is a measure of the physical exertion required to get to the cache site. A Terrain rating of one is wheelchair accessible, whereas a 1.5 might require the seeker to step up onto a curb or steps. A Terrain rating of five stars would require special equipment to reach the coordinates – perhaps a boat, mountain climbing gear or scuba equipment.

The other thing to look for when choosing a cache is the size. The smallest, a “micro”, is the size of a film canister or smaller. A “small” may be about the size of a peanut butter jar and a “regular” might be a 1-gallon container. This information will help you to know what you are looking for. Once you choose the cache that you will seek, you should print out the cache info page and take it with you. Before you log off, zoom in on your map and take a good look at the cache area so you have an idea to where you will drive. You can print the map as well if your GPS receiver doesn’t have built-in maps. You will need to input the coordinates from the cache page into your handheld GPS receiver as well.

Before you head out the door, there are a few more things you should do. Preparing to go geocaching is much like preparing for any outdoor sport like hiking or camping: check the weather and dress appropriately; wear good tennis shoes or boots if you are going into the woods; wear sunscreen and/or bug spray if needed and maybe take along a poncho. I also suggest that you carry a backpack with a pencil, a water bottle, your handheld GPS receiver, spare batteries and a few items for trading. For more information on trade items, watch for my upcoming article, “Geocaching 102: Trade Items – Trade Up or Trade Even”.

Now that you are prepared, you can head out to the cache location. Generally speaking, there are three steps involved: driving, hiking and searching. You’ll want to drive to the general area of the cache based on your map. Obviously, if the cache is located in a local playground or park, for example, you will only be able to get as close as the parking lot.

For the second step, hiking or walking, take your handheld GPS receiver and follow the pointer on the Compass screen (Garmin models) to the cache coordinates. This may take you on a walk of as little as 100 feet or as much as ¼ mile, ½ mile, or considerably more. If there is a path or trail, stay on it for as long as possible, even if it doesn’t seem the most direct route. On my first cache hunt, my daughter and I bushwhacked through 100 yards of thorns only to find that the cache was right off the trail we had started on.

As you approach the coordinates of the cache you will begin to search the area. It’s important to note that GPS receivers are accurate to within about six to 20 feet under the best conditions. That means that once you arrive at the listed coordinates (“ground zero”), you may still have to search a 20 foot radius around you. If you are under tree cover, or standing near a mountain or building that may inhibit satellite reception, your search area may be considerably larger.

Begin searching for things that seem out of place or spaces in which a container could be hidden. Remember that a well placed cache will not be immediately visible to anyone not playing the game. If there are people around, please try to be discreet so as to not give away the cache location to non-players (affectionately called “muggles”).

Once you find the cache, open it up and find the log book inside. Sign it with the date and your chosen geocaching name. If the cache contains trade items, feel free to take some thing as long as you leave something of equal or greater value. Note in the log book what trades you made. If you would like to write a few words about your experience, feel free to do so. Some geocachers enjoy reading the logs of previous finders. Make a note for yourself as to what you took and left, if anything, and then carefully rehide the cache exactly as you found it. If you don’t make a trade, you can write “TNLN” – took nothing, left nothing.

Congratulations! Now that you have found a geocache, logged it and replaced it, you can head back to your car, remembering to pick up any trash you may find on your way back. When you get home, log back into www.geocaching.com, go back to the cache page and log your find online.

Search for the relevant info about geocache and utilize it to your advantage where everyone is spoilt for choice where you also need to look up the best treestands for hunters that would aid you in the quest.

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Christmas Gift Basket Ideas for the Elderly

Tips - Patrick - May 16, 2020

Christmas gift baskets are a fun and creative way to surprise the elderly with a bunch of wonderful gifts. Sometimes it is hard to figure out what to buy for the elderly at Christmas time, but a Christmas gift basket is a wonderful way to buy them several fun items. This article will give you detailed instructions on assembling a Christmas gift basket that an elderly person will love.

Basket

First, it is important to pick the perfect basket. Baskets are nice for people who will use them for decorating or crafting, but not all elderly people will enjoy an actual basket. You can buy a tackle box, toolbox, or storage box if this is a more appropriate idea, and nice travel bags are a better gift for the elderly person on the go. The basket may only seem like what the gift is coming in, but it can also be one of the gifts itself.

Books

Books are a great gift for an elderly person, and there are so many possibilities when buying a book that you may end up getting a few. Fiction is fun for the avid reader, and how-to books are a great way to inspire the elderly person in your life to try something new. You can also find books on certain subjects the recipient enjoys such as cooking, fishing, crafting, or any other hobby they are interested in. A book is always a great present for the elderly person in your life.

Games

Games are fun for everyone, and the elderly person receiving this gift basket will enjoy this gift idea as well. Crossword puzzles, Sudoku, and cryptoquips are fun for many elderly people, and you can find a large variety of these games at many stores. You can also choose to get the elderly person in your life a nice board game that you know they enjoy; if the elderly person receiving this basket enjoys scrabble why not get him the deluxe edition. Games are a gift idea that will be fun for years to come.

Something to Warm Them Up

Many elderly people can become cold easily, and you should include a gift in their basket that will help warm them up. Fleece blankets can be bought inexpensively in a variety of patterns and colors, and they can be rolled up tightly to fit easily in the basket. Scarves, hats, and gloves are also great items to help keep the elderly warm; don’t forget socks because keeping your feet warm is essential to staying warm.

Candy

Another good item to include in the Christmas gift basket for the elderly is candy, cookies, and other delicious treats. Who doesn’t like to get something tasty as a gift? If you are making this gift basket for someone in your life who has certain health conditions just check in your supermarket’s special food section and get them something that suits their condition. Making a gift basket for the elderly person in your life does not have to be hard; in fact, you can find many of the items needed for this gift in your local supermarket. Make the elderly person you care about a fun personalized gift basket this Christmas!

If you are not ready for candy baskets, you can try more practical gifts that are there in the market for the elderly. Over toilet frame is a good option in this case. Besides that, you can talk to your elders about the problems that they are facing and choose a gift accordingly.

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