Development Insights Martech Products SaaS

Educational Mobile App Features that Enhance the Learning Process

Miley on September 24, 2019

Over the last decade, the educational sector has witnessed a huge transformation on a global scale. Undeniably, the digital education system is the need of the hour. And, to put it simply, the major players that have contributed towards this amazing transformation is the educational mobile apps.

Such kind of apps is a blessing for the students as they no longer have to attend monotonous lectures, and follow the traditional teaching methodology. All thanks to these educational apps which have eased out the learning process for the students. And, they can learn things as per their convenience.

If you’re planning to develop your educational app soon, then don’t forget to add the below-mentioned features in it.

Build a robust database

The powerful and supportive database will ensure the success of your educational app. All the essential information related to the study material and guide will be uploaded on the database. You need to update it regularly with the latest content, videos, facts, and figures. This helps to smooth the growth of the learning process, and the students will get faster access to the relevant information they want.

Comprehensive and quality content

The content that arrests the eyes of the learner at one sight will increase the app download probability. Just keep these crucial factors into consideration:

Content should be qualitative and meaningful.

Content should be created by keeping the target audience in mind.

Remember, all the learners don’t have the same grasping speed, so make use of easy words that they can understand with no hassle.

Content must be mobile-friendly.

Live Tutorials

This is another essential feature that you can add within your educational app. Interaction with the teachers allows the students to clear all their queries in one go. The live tutorials help in creating a virtual class atmosphere, and with “chat now” option, you can make the learning experience even better for the students.

Providing regular mock and practice test

It’s best to provide mock or practice tests on different topics and subjects where the students can find out their preparation level before the final exams. You can upload test papers and make the students download them. The students mostly search for the mock papers, and this feature will not only be profitable for the learners but boost your app’s growth. LMS developers are professionals that provide Custom LMS development. They can develop a training program that is targeted towards needs and goals of your organization.

Easy login with dashboard facility

While building an app, you should ensure that your educational app should offer easy login process. This implies that the user can create his profile in just a few simple steps. Also, you can add a dashboard where the users can save the important topics and learn them whenever they want.

Interactive user-interface

This is one specific area where the app developers should pay great attention. This will give you the competitive edge over your rivals. So, it would be wonderful if you provide excellent user-interface with appealing outlook and flawless functionality.

Use of social media platform

Today, social media platforms are used widely for the promotion of an app. And, many businesses are making the most out of these platforms for their app marketing. Whatever content you upload for any topic on your app, you should never forget posting on Facebook, Twitter, etc. You can even create a YouTube channel where you can regularly post tutorials like “how to use” guide related to your app.

Push Notifications

The basic purpose of the push notification is to make the users updated with the right information. It acts as a powerful tool which facilitates people sending messages to the schools and users. This is the best advertisement that informs the users about the latest uploaded topics, so they can easily learn the topic on the go.

Final Words

The education is becoming digitalized, and the feature-enriched educational apps ruling the app stores. Therefore, if you want to give a tough fight to your competitors, adding these features in your app will make you shine in the app world. One more thing, you’re required to be pro-active when it comes to grabbing valuable insights on the latest technical developments, so you can implement them faster.

Author’s bio

Tom Hardy is a dedicated mobile app developer associated with Sparx IT Solutions for so long. He has rich exposure in developing apps for several industries and has handled projects with a high intricacy level efficaciously. Through his write-ups, he likes to educate the tech-lovers about the emerging technologies in the app development world.

Development Insights Martech SaaS

5 Ways Technology is Making Student’s Life Easier Today

Miley on September 18, 2019

Technology continues evolving all the time. Every day an invention, an idea, or a process emerges that can help millions of people around the globe.

Technology has proven to play a vital role in young people’s lives. Google became a study-buddy for students, and it is always accessible to them when they need a piece of information or an anonymous inquiry. This is just a puzzle piece in the big technology jigsaw.

Imagine how this advancement empowers people today and how it influences their work and education, as well as their personal lives. Let’s look closer at some key cases of technology changing the lives of young people:

1. Opportunity to Earn Through Online Gigs

Students have always been offered different opportunities to make money through waiting on tables, running delivery errands, babysitting and other part-time jobs that didn’t require much training. Today, however, they can be self-employed freelancers working flexible hours thanks to the internet. Copywriting, transcribing, writing essays for sale online, data handling, coding, designing and other gigs help them to work intellectually and lay the foundation of their future career instead of simply boosting their budget.

Technology helps them to save money and empowers them to become independent. Young people of today have a more mature understanding of the world and reality.

2. Instant and Easy Access to Knowledge

A handheld smartphone acts as a minicomputer. You can easily access information anywhere and anytime. For a student, this helps to save time and energy to complete school projects and assignments, since it’s much faster and simpler to do the research online compared to the traditional library. More up-to-date resources become available since many academics share scholarly articles with their research findings in online periodic. Technology makes the information accessible to all.

The information has stopped being a privilege and anyone can access it if only one wants to. That’s the major positive effect of the digital revolution and it certainly opened many possibilities for young people whose families wouldn’t be able to afford a traditional education. Now they can learn as much as they wish. It makes them resourceful and competitive individuals. They learn different techniques, improve their skills, and enhance their performance at school. With this rapid evolution of technology, people believe that gen-Z may be the most intelligent demographic cohort of the century.

3. Preservation of culture

Technology can also link the past to the present and keep it for the future. The historical records, important art objects, and cultural artifacts can be immortalized in digital form and kept safe using modern storage facilities. This is an important milestone to preserve our history and pass the information to the next generations.

As the popular saying goes, the past is the key to the future. Of course, physical carriers of cultural information – books, buildings, art objects – may regretfully keep perishing in wars, fires, or slowly deteriorate with time, but starting from now we can preserve the heritage thanks to the technology that what we have today.

4. A Virtual Social Network

Communication and a healthy social network are vital for human mental health as they give the sense of security and belonging we all need, being naturally social creatures. Technology makes the world small. It connects different people across the globe into communities that would otherwise be dispersed and disconnected. For example, people with rare health conditions find support from other individuals coping with the same affliction, even if they live on different continents.

Using popular social media apps, young people can express their thoughts and find like-minded peers, which is very important for the adolescent. Fandoms and communities often become their “tribe” and provide an escape from troubles of the “awkward age”.

Technology makes it possible to work together as a group in virtual space. It saves time and makes all the people flexible in their schedule. Various social apps and websites make communication interactive and creative – people express themselves by creating art, video, music and other types of content with a wide array of tools.

5. Educational Tools for Personal Approach

E-learning digital materials help young people to achieve more in academic life by learning efficiently. Technology accommodates unique learning styles and provides customizable learning tools. It bridges the gaps created by various physical and learning disabilities and makes learning more accessible to everyone.

In some schools and colleges, they provide tablets for their students as their main means of learning to access digital books, handouts, and lecture materials. The students don’t have to carry heavy books and stacks of paper in their backpacks, which is good for posture, especially in younger students.

As you can see, technology literally takes the weight off the students’ shoulders. Enlightening, isn’t it?

Development Insights Martech Products

5 Reasons You Should Own A 3D Printer At Home

Miley on September 17, 2019

Developments in 3D printing technology are ever-changing and the possibilities of what a 3D Printer can do are endless. When you’re on the fence about buying a 3D printer, you could be wondering whether you should make the investment now or wait.

You don’t have to wonder any longer, with 3D printers being more cost-effective than ever and easy to use, you too can reap the benefits of having 3D capabilities right in your own home! Still not convinced it’s the right move for you? Here are 5 reasons why you should own a 3D printer.

1. You Will Save Money

When you have a 3D printer at the ready you can easily print items that you would otherwise have to buy. Do you need a new case for your mobile phone? Print one. With your own printer, you can create and design items for your home that will be more personalized and to your taste than what the stores would have.

With the capability to print with many different materials and colors, you can be certain that your printed items will look great and hold up over time. They even have a glow-in-the-dark filament, so you don’t have to buy decorative stars for the ceiling or Halloween decorations because you could make your own.

Being able to print replacement parts for things you already own can extend their life. Creating 3D printed items on demand does not require any additional machinery after you have your own printer and software. Not only will you save on the cost of those items you are printing, but you also won’t have to pay for the gas or the mileage on your vehicle.

2. It Can Be Educational

“Learn something new every day” is a euphemism for a reason. Lifelong learning is key to a successful career and what better way to challenge yourself to learn new skills by buying a 3D printer? Using a 3D printer will quite literally add dimension to your life and can engage you in new skills that you will enjoy.

Printing can be a fun way to help your children learn as well. Hands-on learning is always appealing to children and 3D printing is a great way to make education fun and interesting. With loads of applications that are geared towards printing with children, once you own a printer you can promote the educational goals and values that are important to you.

Even if your children aren’t interested in the actual 3D printing process, though it’s a safe bet they will be, you can still use the printer to create models, puzzles and learning manipulatives that can help your child with their homework.

Allowing your child the chance to design their own item to be printed will enhance their creativity and problem solving while they are being innovative. As long as all safety precautions are followed and your child understands that printers can be heated at high temperatures, there is no reason you can’t enjoy the educational benefits of printing at home with your kids.

3. 3D Printing Is Fun

Whether you’re a complete beginner or an experienced pro you will quickly realize that 3D printing is fun. You create useable three-dimensional objects out of nothing but a printer and filament. While doctors are printing usable organs and the technology advances the practical uses are impossible to fully comprehend.

But you can’t downplay the fun that will come from just printing whatever you want to print. If you’re feeling like printing figurines to display is what gets you excited about printing that’s great. 3D printing doesn’t have to be all about what is useful and unique, if you would like it to that’s wonderful but as long as you’re enjoying your printer that is what matters.

As your confidence grows with your ability to print what you want you could find camaraderie with others who enjoy 3D printing at home. Buying yourself a 3D printer will put you in charge of what’s printed beginning to end letting you enjoy your time designing and creating whatever you think it the most enjoyable.

4. It Can Be A Good Business

While maybe this isn’t the right option for everything, If you discover you really enjoy printing in 3D, you can turn your hobby into a business. In the same way, your printer can save you money, it could also provide a small income fulfilling other people’s needs.

Once you are proficient at printing things you could accept orders for those objects and sell them. There are websites where people place orders for things to be 3D printed and you can log in an accept the job. This could be an easy supplemental income for you if you are interested in it becoming one.

While personal 3D printers can range in cost and quality if you are hoping to make money selling the items you are printing it is best to invest in a higher-caliber printer that is capable of printing more consistently. Some low-cost printers are great for home use but can have some problems printing the same way every time which could affect the resale value of the item.

5. You Can Express Yourself

Have you ever bought something and liked it but wished maybe it was a little bit different? 3D printing gives you the chance and technology to make those changes and create something that is specifically the way you want it.

If you have an idea for an invention that you would like to patent, it could take years to convince a manufacturer to build you a prototype but you could print your very own model for a fraction of the price and time, getting your ideas into the world faster and easier.

When you own your own printer you are limited by anyone but yourself, so if you dream up the perfect mask, you can print it. Your self-expression is only limited by what you can design–so it’s limitless. There’s no reason to wait for something you want to be created by someone else when you can do it yourself.

Conclusion

While 3D printing has its own learning curve there is no better way to get ahead than by having your own printer at home to practice and reap the benefits from. Why would you spend money to buy 3D printed things from others when you could create the same thing and inspire your children at the same time?

With so many different kinds of printers to choose from it may seem overwhelming but with a little research you will find the right printer for your home and you will begin to see the miracle of objects being created right in front of you. The novelty of being able to create something out of thin air will never grow old, having a 3D printer of your own is a fantastic investment in you!

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How to Integrate Spring Boot with Thymeleaf: A Step-by-Step Guide

Miley on September 16, 2019

Spring framework is one of the leading frameworks in the JAVA world and developers across the globe utilize it for developing reliable and high-quality Enterprise-level applications. Of late, developers have also started using the alternative form of Spring framework popularly termed as Spring Boot.

This blog post will take you through a series of steps each designed in a way to help you understand how to integrate Spring Boot with Thymeleaf. However, before we begin, we do need to understand a little about Spring Boot and Thymeleaf too.

What is the Spring Boot Framework?

The Spring Boot framework came into existence to resolve bootstrapping issues and design new applications. It provides a default set of codes and configuration steps which makes it easier for the developers to integrate it into their applications.

The framework operates on the “Opinionated Defaults Configuration” approach and boasts three major aspects of any application development process:

Development
Unit Testing
Integration Testing

What is Thymeleaf?

Thymeleaf is a simple Java-based template which allows you to create both web and standalone applications. By default, Thymeleaf comes with 6 templates namely:

XML
Valid XML
XHTML
Valid XHTML
HTML5
Legacy HTML5

Additionally, developers also consider Thymeleaf ideal for HTML5 JVM web development because it gives them the flexibility to customize the code based on their project requirements and because it supports a good range of Spring frameworks and additional tools.

Integrating Spring Boot with Thymeleaf – A Step Guide

With the basics in place, it is time to begin with our next segment which details the actual integration process in a step-wise manner. You can integrate both in multiple ways, however, for the sake of convenience, we will walk you through a manual JAVA configuration to set up Thymeleaf with Spring Boot.

Checking Pre-requisite Tools and Software

Your system must have the following tools and software installed before you start with the integration process:

JAVA 8
Spring Boot
Thymeleaf v3.0
Maven v3.3
Eclipse

Project Structure

Once you have executed all the steps carefully, your basic project structure should look something like the following:

pom.xml

src

├───main

│ ├───java

│ │ └───com

│ │ └───zetcode

│ │ │ Application.java

│ │ └───config

│ │ WebConfig.java

│ └───resources

│ └───my templates

│ index.html

└───test

└───java

Note: Thymeleaf stores all its template files in the following custom directory: src/main/resources/mytemplates while its default template directory is: src/main/resources/templates.

Working Out the Basic Installation

Spring Boot uses JAVA SDK v1.8 or higher by default to run smoothly. To check which version of JAVA is installed on your system, you need to run the following code on your DOS prompt:

$ java –version

java version “1.8.0_102”

Java(TM) SE Runtime Environment (build 1.8.0_102-b14)

Java HotSpot(TM) 64-Bit Server VM (build 25.102-b14, mixed mode)

If you see a similar output on your DOS prompt you do have JAVA installed. In case, nothing appears, proceed to the given link to install JDK and set up the PATH Environment variable on your system.
As Eclipse is also a mandate, you need to download the latest build and install Eclipse on your system based on your operating system. Once it’s done, execute the Eclipse.exe file.
Next, you can install Maven in two ways:

Within the Eclipse IDE: The steps are as follows:
1. Open your Eclipse IDE and click HELP >> Install New Software
2. Click on the ADD button to add a new repository
3. In the popup box, fill out the:
  1. Name: M2Eclipse
  2. Location: http://download.eclipse.org/technology/m2e/releases
4. Once done, select all the plugins and click on NEXT
5. Accept the terms and conditions of the agreement and click Finish
6. Once the process is complete, you will be asked to restart Eclipse IDE. Click on YES to restart the IDE.
Installing Maven using the PATH variable: In this process, you need to add the bin folder with the mvn command to the PATH variable. Follow the installation guide here: Installing Maven through PATH

Next, run the following command to check for Maven installation:

$ mvn –v

Apache Maven 3.5.4 (1edded0938998edf8bf061f1ceb3cfdeccf443fe; 2018-06-17T14:33:14-04:00)

Maven home: /usr/local/Cellar/maven/3.3.9/libexec

Java version: 1.8.0_102, vendor: Oracle Corporation

Once both Eclipse and Maven are installed, move onto the next section and check for the dependencies required to integrate Thymeleaf with Spring Boot.

Integrating Thymeleaf with Spring Boot – The Actual Process

To integrate Thymeleaf with Spring Boot, we first need to execute the following Maven dependency:

<groupId>org.springframework.boot</groupId>

<artifactId>spring-boot-starter-thymeleaf</artifactId>

</dependency>

Since, we are using Thymeleaf v3.0 in this guide, we also need to configure the following two properties in the “pom.xml” file:

thymeleaf.version
thymeleaf-layout-dialect.version

<thymeleaf.version>3.0.6.RELEASE</thymeleaf.version>

<thymeleaf-layout-dialect.version>2.2.2</thymeleaf-layout-dialect.version>

<java.version>1.8</java.version>

</properties>

In this step, we would create our “pom.xml” file. To create, open any text editor of your choice like say “Notepad++” and add the following code to it. Once done, save the file under the name “pom.xml” which you can later use to build up your project.

<?xml version=”1.0″ encoding=”UTF-8″?>

<project xmlns=”http://maven.apache.org/POM/4.0.0″

xmlns:xsi=”http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance”

xsi:schemaLocation=”http://maven.apache.org/POM/4.0.0

http://maven.apache.org/xsd/maven-4.0.0.xsd”>

<groupId>com.zetcode</groupId>

<artifactId>thymeleafconfigex</artifactId>

<version>1.0-SNAPSHOT</version>

<project.build.sourceEncoding>UTF-8</project.build.sourceEncoding>

<maven.compiler.source>11</maven.compiler.source>

<maven.compiler.target>11</maven.compiler.target>

</properties>

<groupId>org.springframework.boot</groupId>

<artifactId>spring-boot-starter-parent</artifactId>

<version>2.1.0.RELEASE</version>

</parent>

<groupId>org.springframework.boot</groupId>

<artifactId>spring-boot-devtools</artifactId>

</dependency>

<groupId>org.springframework.boot</groupId>

<artifactId>spring-boot-starter-web</artifactId>

</dependency>

<groupId>org.springframework.boot</groupId>

<artifactId>spring-boot-starter-thymeleaf</artifactId>

</dependency>

</dependencies>

<build>

<groupId>org.springframework.boot</groupId>

<artifactId>spring-boot-maven-plugin</artifactId>

</plugin>

</plugins>

</build>

</project>

Once you have created the “pom.xml” file, you need to configure Thymeleaf using the “WebConfig.java” file and set up a ‘view’ and ‘controller’ for the homepage.

Use the following programming code to achieve the stated task:

package com.zetcode.config;

import org.springframework.context.annotation.Bean;

import org.springframework.context.annotation.Configuration;

import org.springframework.context.annotation.Description;

import org.springframework.web.servlet.ViewResolver;

import org.springframework.web.servlet.config.annotation.ViewControllerRegistry;

import org.springframework.web.servlet.config.annotation.WebMvcConfigurer;

import org.thymeleaf.spring5.SpringTemplateEngine;

import org.thymeleaf.spring5.view.ThymeleafViewResolver;

import org.thymeleaf.templateresolver.ClassLoaderTemplateResolver;

@Configuration

public class WebConfig implements WebMvcConfigurer {

@Bean

@Description(“Thymeleaf template resolver serving HTML 5”)

public ClassLoaderTemplateResolver templateResolver() {

var templateResolver = new ClassLoaderTemplateResolver();

templateResolver.setPrefix(“mytemplates/”);

templateResolver.setCacheable(false);

templateResolver.setSuffix(“.html”);

templateResolver.setTemplateMode(“HTML5”);

templateResolver.setCharacterEncoding(“UTF-8”);

return templateResolver;

}

@Bean

@Description(“Thymeleaf template engine with Spring integration”)

public SpringTemplateEngine templateEngine() {

var templateEngine = new SpringTemplateEngine();

templateEngine.setTemplateResolver(templateResolver());

return templateEngine;

}

@Bean

@Description(“Thymeleaf view resolver”)

public ViewResolver viewResolver() {

var viewResolver = new ThymeleafViewResolver();

viewResolver.setTemplateEngine(templateEngine());

viewResolver.setCharacterEncoding(“UTF-8”);

return viewResolver;

}

@Override

public void addViewControllers(ViewControllerRegistry registry) {

registry.addViewController(“/”).setViewName(“index”);

}

We also need to define a dedicated template resolver which would help us resolve various templates into different “TemplateResolution” objects.

You can call up the templates located on your CLASSPATH using “ClassLoaderTemplateResolver” method.

@Bean

@Description(“Thymeleaf template resolver serving HTML 5”)

public ClassLoaderTemplateResolver templateResolver() {

Note: To serve HTML5 content, you can execute the following code:

templateResolver.setTemplateMode(“HTML5”);

The following code will help you create a Thymeleaf template engine with Spring integration:

@Bean

@Description(“Thymeleaf template engine with Spring integration”)

public SpringTemplateEngine templateEngine() {

var templateEngine = new SpringTemplateEngine();

templateEngine.setTemplateResolver(templateResolver());

return templateEngine;

}

In case you need to display the current date, change the “resources/templates/index.html” file with the following code:

<!DOCTYPE html>

<head>

</head>

<body>

</body>

</html>

To set up the Spring Boot application for execution, you need to edit the “com/zetcode/Application.java” file with the following code:

package com.zetcode;

import org.springframework.boot.SpringApplication;

import org.springframework.boot.autoconfigure.SpringBootApplication;

@SpringBootApplication

public class Application {

public static void main(String[] args) {

SpringApplication.run(Application.class, args);

}

Executing the Code

With all the files edited successfully, execute your application using the following code:

$ mvn spring-boot:run

Once executed your output should look similar to the following:

$ curl localhost:8080

<!DOCTYPE html>

<html>

<head>

</head>

<body>

Today is: 08 Sep 2019 02:01

</body>

If you do see a similar output, that means you have successfully integrated Spring Boot into Thymeleaf.

Note: You can exit the application using the following key combination: CTRL + C

We hope you will find this step-by-guide to Spring Boot integration with Thymeleaf helpful. Do comment below and let us know how it turned out for you!

About Author: Johnny Morgan Technical writer with a keen interest in new technology and innovation areas. He focuses on web architecture, web technologies, Java/J2EE, open-source, WebRTC, big data and CRM. He is also associated with Aegis Infoways which offers Java Programmers India .

References

Products

What is the Purpose of Push Buttons in Electrical Systems?

Miley on September 16, 2019

In the vast majority of cases, a circuit must be capable of being switched on and off to be useful. According to ph-el.dk an uninterrupted flow of electricity through the various components is usually key to the functioning of a circuit. However, there are also times when the current must be arrested in order for a given system to function properly.

This is why switches were created.

Offered in a variety of different types, design concerns, functionality and aesthetic considerations can often combine to create situations in which the use of rotary, rocker, slide, or toggle switches are inappropriate. The purpose of push buttons in electrical systems then becomes apparent.

Advantages of Push Buttons

Typically requiring less space on a faceplate or a console, push-button switches are ideal when placement is a major concern. They can also be easier to use, as they require a simple touch rather than a range of movement.

Further, the potential for accidental engagement is reduced with push buttons. There’s less chance of inadvertently bumping into it and activating or deactivating the circuit. Push buttons must be definitively touched to function.

How Push Buttons Work

A common variety of switches employed on industrial control panels, most push buttons, like some of those offered by Schneider Electric, have internal spring mechanisms returning the buttons to their “out” or “unpressed” positions for momentary operation.

This spring contacts two wires, allowing electricity to flow when the switch is in the “on” position. The spring retracts; interrupting contact and breaking the circuit when the switch is in the “off” position.

Types of Push Button Switches

By and large, push button switches fall into one of the following categories.

• Normally-Off: The circuit is broken until the button is pressed. A good example of this a doorbell. Touching the button completes the circuit and causes the bell to ring. The ringer continues to function as long as you hold the button depressed and stops when you release it.

• Normally-On: The circuit is complete until the button is depressed, and interrupts the flow of electricity. In other words, pressing the button turns the device off.

• Non-Momentary Contact: Typically found on radios, television sets and audio amplifiers, these push buttons require a touch to close the circuit and another touch to open it. In other words, the device will continue to function once you press the button, until it is pressed again. In some instances, a non-momentary pushbutton will require the user to physically pull the button out to interrupt the circuit once it has been activated.

Push Button Categories

Separated into types, usually based upon the method by which they function, push button switches are categorized based upon the following attributes.

• Single-throw

• Double-throw

• Contact type

• Mounting type

• Actuator type

• Panel cutout diameter

Regarding the latter, the most commonly employed industrial size is 30 mm.

Push Button Ratings

Push button switches are also rated according to the current and voltage they are designed to manage. This is important to understand, as system designers must specify the appropriate component for everything to properly function.

You’ll need to specify larger, more expensive parts when you’re dealing with higher voltage and/or current requirements. However, it’s also important to ensure the switches employed are only as large as necessary to keep costs in line.

Simply put, the purpose of push button switches in electrical systems is to serve convenience, aesthetic, and safety needs. While their basic function is to close and/or open a circuit, push button switches also give designers a wider range of configuration options.

Insights

Psychology Tricks That Will Help You Improve Your Online Shop

Miley on September 16, 2019

Every shop owner knows just how important it is to appeal to her or his customers. When you’re setting up an online shop, your website plays an essential role in the process of determining whether your product, brand, or services are suitable for the visitors that scroll through your online store.

Understing what drives your potential buyers is one of the most crucial aspects of running any business that aims at being successful. That’s why you need to use every trick in the book to maximize your profit and ROI (return on investment). There are arguably only a few better ways to accomplish this than by using psychology.

A huge part of the discipline is connected to trying to better understand our behaviors, desires, needs, ideas, cognitive functions, the way we perceive the world and how we react to it, as well as how we interact with one another. That’s why this field of human practice can be proven to be so effective in business-related things. And that’s exactly why, in this article, we’re going to talk about some psychology tricks that you can use and implement to improve your online shop.

Get the Most Out of ’Priming’ – Use the Power of Associations to Your Advantage

Priming is a technical term used to describe a memory effect where one stimulus triggers another, through the process of making associations. The fact that we constantly use associations to better understand what happens around us can be a deciding factor in what a person will buy, for example.

One study, in particular, showed that there’s a big difference in which wine the consumers were choosing to buy, depending on the type of music that played in the background. When the store owners were playing French-sounding music, there was an increase in sales of French wines. On another occasion, the store owners were playing German-sounding music and they sold more German wines as a consequence.

There are many more examples similar to this, but all of them show you that anything you put on your website will hugely impact how the visitors perceive your brand. The fact that you can influence their decisions like this shouldn’t be taken lightly.

Steer the Visitors Into Making the Right Choice

Because you have this power to influence your visitors’ opinions about your brand, product, or services, you need to make sure to use the most of it. With the right graphic design solutions, like those that Orion Creative provides, for instance, you can point your visitors into any direction you like. For example, if you want them to opt for a certain product, you should direct them towards your priority choice.

One way to effectively accomplish this is by giving them multiple choices. Let’s say you have a product 1, 2, and 3, and you want them to buy the product number 2. You make a design that accentuates the merits of product number 2. Product numbers 1 and 3 are there only to emphasize these benefits of product number 2. You should note that this should be done rather discretely since you don’t want your customers to realize that you’re steering them in a certain direction.

Establish a Connection With the Potential Consumers

Another great way to further engage your potential clients is to establish a strong connection, the one that’s long-lasting preferably. You want the consumers to come back time and time again and shop at your online store. The best way to accomplish this is by having a good brand or product, naturally. But in many cases, this is not enough. That’s why you have to consider these effective psychological tricks.

For instance, one way to engage your consumers better and make this connection with them is by addressing them in an effective tone of voice. You need to know what your target audience is first, to make this work. You’re not going to talk the same way to all age groups and genders. Your potential buyers should have a feeling like you’re talking directly to them. No one likes to read automated messages or sentences – you need to realize that you’re addressing living beings, not robots.

Use Different Perspectives to Attract and Target Different Audiences

While we’re on the subject, we also want to talk about using different perspectives to attract and target different audiences. The fact that you’re talking to the living, human beings also means that you need to pay attention to the way you’re addressing these people. We’ve already indicated that you’re probably not going to talk the same way to someone who’s 7 or 77.

This is why you want to make sure you’re using a different perspective to talk to these persons. You should always keep in mind this fact and adjust the lingo accordingly. If you want to appeal to teenagers, for example, you probably don’t want to sound too rigid or uptight. And if your website aims at addressing a certain scientific community, for instance, you definitely don’t want to sound too informal and laid-back.

In Summary

Psychology is a field of human practice that has developed many powerful tools. Some of them can be used effectively in business-related things. In this article, we’ve tried to show you some psychology tricks that can help you improve your online shop. These include getting most out of priming, steering the visitors into making the right choice, establishing a connection with your consumers, and using different perspectives to attract and target different audiences. It goes without saying that all these techniques are useful only if you develop a strong visual identity for your online store or a brand.

Development Insights Martech

Why a Data-Driven Construction Process is the Only Way Forward

Miley on September 12, 2019

Being data-driven means building abilities, tools and a culture that acts on data. With the emergence of big data seeping in the construction industry, construction companies are adapting and innovating construction technology tools to process large quantities of construction data and extracting their value to their advantage. As more construction technology suppliers continue to study construction data and how to utilize them, it has become apparent that data-drivenness not only advances individual construction companies, it is vital for maturing the entire global construction industry.

How do we create a data-driven construction company?

According to Carl Anderson in his book, Creating a Data-Driven Organisation, for a company to become data-driven, it has to have the following company qualities:

1. It must collect data.

For a construction company to be data-driven, it has to collect the right data. The collected data set must be relevant, timely, accurate, clean, unbiased and reliable. Data alone is not enough, quality data is what’s valuable.

2. It can access and query its data.

Other than being accurate, timely, and relevant, data must also be:

Joinable. The data must be in a form that can be joined to other enterprise data, when necessary.
Shareable. For data to be joined, they must be shareable within a data-sharing company culture.
Queryable. There must be proper tools to query the data. Data reporting and analysis require grouping, filtering, and aggregating of data to prune large raw data into smaller sets of quality numbers and to compute metrics easily.

3. It has the right people with the right skills to use its data.

For a construction company to be data-driven, it has to have the right people to ask the correct questions of the data with the skills to extract the right data and metrics and to use that data for future steps. The right people should be able to utilise the data for:

Reporting. Reporting is basically extracting data and generating a report from it.
Alerting. Alerts are basically reports of what is currently happening. They provide specific data with well-designed metrics.
Analysis. The analysis is the investigation of data assets into usable insights that will help in decision making and drive actions using people, processes, and technologies.

The hallmarks of data-drivenness

A data-driven construction company does at least one of the following three things that prioritize high-quality data and skilled analysis for future-proofed decision making, according to Anderson:

A data-driven company performs continuous tests for process improvement.
A data-driven company has a continuous improvement mindset.
A data-driven company is involved in predictive actions.

Data-driven processes demand transformation

Other than promoting an evidence-based culture, being data-driven makes construction processes and operations more precise, predictable and efficient. From greater demands in quality construction execution to building end-user comfort, data-driven efficiency demands for transformation in a lot of construction aspects.

Construction technologies and big data

The development and use of digital technologies and processes are essential in the required transformation of construction as an industry. Digitalization creates new functionalities along the entire value chain from the early phases of design to the final handover, up until the operational maintenance of a building project. The use of big data and analytics generate quality insights from the data gathered during the construction and the operations phase. Simulations and virtual reality identify clashes (clash detection) during the design stages. Using mobile connectivity allows real-time communication within companies and provide their construction teams with vital on-site information.

A single platform for construction management

No two projects are identical but useful concepts and processes from one project can prove helpful when applied to another. The ideal goal is for companies to standardize these “lessons” for construction management to go through continuous improvement across projects. To facilitate the implementation of such standardization, using a company-wide software tool is ideal while taking note of the following steps.

Collect and consolidate construction project management data. Ideally, a monitoring system with a robust reporting tool should be in place to enable the continuous collection of project data.
Standardize best practices. Evaluate individual projects and develop a list of best practice processes that can be used in a variety of different projects.
Apply best-practice standards at the project level. Make your best practices mandatory and apply at the project level.

Better management of subcontractors and suppliers

Poor coordination of purchasing materials and components delay projects and can create serious scheduling and costing problems. Hence, it is critical to integrate suppliers and subcontractors more effectively. Adopting construction technologies and related tools can help integrate the supply chain more closely and establish an agile and transparent supply chain throughout the entire project. These digital tools can improve service and reduce costs by providing end-to-end visibility and solution to the supply chain.

BIM

Building Information Modeling (BIM) is gaining importance as a platform for central integrated design, modeling, planning, and collaboration. BIM provides all stakeholders with a digital representation of a building’s characteristics throughout its life cycle and provides several important opportunities. It facilitates a collaborative way of working among all stakeholders, from early design until operations and maintenance. By doing so, it promises great efficiency gains.

Lean construction methods and management

A lean approach reduces complexity and uncertainty by reducing waste and non-value-adding activities throughout the entire value chain: it reduces, for instance, schedule deviations, waiting, stocks of building materials, transportation, rework and unused or underutilized resources. In that way, it makes processes more stable, predictable and efficient. That’s according to Lean Station. Other than improvements in cost and delivery, lean processes also better quality and safety with new digital construction tools that can help greatly in performing crucial safety processes and inspections.

Meticulous project monitoring

Project monitoring, especially on site, needs to be more real-time, forward-looking and future-proofed. It is also imperative for it to provide actionable data that can bring projects back on track.

Smart buildings

With more technological advances being incorporated in modern buildings and construction, the cost of sensors, data storage, and computing services have gone down. With the prices getting more affordable, the general consumers and the government have been demanding greater energy efficiency in buildings and improved safety and convenience through connected devices and the Internet of Things (IoT). These improved and automated lighting and temperature controls and remote servicing also benefit the building owners and building end-users: reduced operating costs, reduced energy usage, greater comfort, and increased operational efficiency.

Construction software and apps play an important role in the implementation of the mentioned demands and needed transformations. They can also play a role in the crucial process of capturing as-built data from projects versus “as-designed”, which contains the original design drawings. The current construction industry transformation will rely increasingly on construction management software tools and BIM: they are capable of coordinating all stakeholders of a project and can facilitate on-site construction processes. The key is rethinking the approach to these construction processes and operations, that they can be receptive to these digital tools.

The Way Forward

The construction industry has been slow in adopting new technologies and is only embarking on a journey of the modern transformation. According to the World Economic Forum, this new era in construction will bring benefits for the wider society, the environment, and the economy by

reducing construction costs and adverse social effects
improving the efficient use of scarce materials and reducing adverse environmental impact of buildings over time
narrowing the global infrastructure gap and boosting economic development in general.

This promise will unfold very soon, and very remarkably. Sweeping changes are taking place, however not yet on a wide scale. A lot of things are to be done.

To move the industry forward, all stakeholders along the construction value chain should take action. The industry in its entirety should improve coordination and cooperation and agree on standards and common industry goals. Many of the challenges are common across the sector, but the industry remains variegated and fragmented. Construction companies have to choose their own paths of innovations and actions that suit their own visions and their clients’ needs to secure their individual futures and ensure an inspiring future for the entire industry.

About the author

Anastasios Koutsogiannis is Content Marketing Manager at LetsBuild.

Insights

Top Perks of LED Lighting for Our Environment

Miley on September 9, 2019

Keeping our environment safe is everyone’s responsibility. You already know of eco-friendly products such as solar panels and recycling processes to keep our ecology safe for the years to come. These initiatives help in reducing the waste that’s produced every day and minimizing the carbon footprint. Most offices today have gone green with a paperless environment. Then, many people are still unaware of new technologies and products. An ideal example is LED lighting in homes and streets.

According to an article published on https://www.huffpost.com, LED lights are an essential climate change solutions, minimizing air pollution. Read on to learn about the top benefits of LED lights to our environment.

No deadly substances

LED lights have no toxic or poisonous elements. Many commercial establishments use fluorescent strip lights containing toxic chemicals like mercury. Mercury pollutes our environment when the same is thrown in landfills as waste.

Therefore, it is imperative to ditch fluorescent lights and embrace LEDs for a cleaner, safer environment. Even if you have lights with noxious elements, they should be disposed of through proper waste carriers. LED lights are also cost-effective and protect our ecology from air pollution. Install LED lights in your home and office and do your part to keep the environment clean.

Save energy

Did you know that LED lights are up to 80 percent more energy-efficient than conventional bulbs and tubes? Most of the energy, 95 percent of it in LEDs are transformed into light and just five percent into heat. Fluorescent lights, on the contrary, change 95 percent of electrical energy into heat and only five percent into the light. You can read more about LEDs on websites like http://www.ph-el.dk or similar ones.

LED lights also absorb less energy than traditional lighting systems. Did you know that a 36-watt LED could emit the same amount of light and take the place of a standard fluorescent light? Less energy consumption means less demand from power plants, thus cutting back on greenhouse gas emissions into our environment leading to global warming and climate change.

More light distribution

Led lights have much better light distribution capacity and focus the light in a single direction. Conventional lights waste electrical energy by emitting light to all directions, even illumining areas or parts of a room where light is not required, like the room ceiling.

LEDs have the same brightness levels provided by incandescent and fluorescent lights without inflating your power bills. Fewer lights in homes and streets will minimize electrical energy consumption and benefit the environment as a whole.

Durability

LEDs last longer than traditional lights and therefore means reduced carbon emissions. Your LED lights last up to six times more than standard lighting systems. Therefore, you do not need to replace them often compared to traditional lighting. All this means the use of fewer lights and fewer resources required for the production process, packaging, and transportation of lights. It is not only beneficial for our environment but also saves much of your money.

Conclusion

Now that you know about the benefits of LED lights, install these and remove the standard lights. You will save money and contribute to a green environment.

Insights Martech Products SaaS

Toronto: Drone Filming Tips for the Best Videos Ever

Miley on September 3, 2019

Drone Filming has started to become popular and most of the experienced, as well as beginner filmmakers, are using drone shots in the films. As a professional, it is not difficult to understand the kinds of shots that will help in performing the best. However, as a beginner, it is crucial to have certain tips in your mind so that you can get killer shots while drone filming. You need to consider the tips that have been mentioned above so that you can help your footage become unique and stand out.

Combine the different movements of the Axis

Your footage is not going to stand out if your drone is only moving forward and backward. It is your responsibility to add depth to the footage and to do so you must try different combinations of the axis movements. For example, you can fly up as well as backward and fly sideways when you are flying forward and up. Ensure that you are being gentle on the control sticks because steady and slow movements can help in making the footage cinematic. If you are not well versed with operating your drone, you can use the Tapfly method. This method will help you to fly your drone steadily and allow you to achieve complex flights easily.

Orbit

Circling any particular object is responsible for adding a huge and great cinematic impact to the entire footage. You have the option of navigating circles manually by taking care of the target while flying sideways as well as moving in the opposite directions. You have to understand that circling any particular object is going to take the training. You can use the point of interest in intelligent flight mode. This mode will help you to circle any object smoothly, and you have to adjust the radius and height. This is one of the most important and crucial tips that you need to follow if you are interested in drone filming.

Fly your drone at low altitude

Most people are responsible for assuming that drone filming is mostly associated with gaining height. Flying at a high altitude can indeed help in accommodating more shooting space; however, flying your drone at a low altitude can help in showing detailed objects and can also create immersive experiences. Apart from that, when you are speeding up, you have the freedom of conveying intense feelings through the footage. Ensure that you are paying attention to your flight environment, especially any kind of obstacle so that you can ensure the safety of flight.

Follow the subject from various angles

According to www.store.dji.com, following a particular subject right from behind is one of the classic filming moves. However, it is not difficult to film your subject from various angles with the help of your drone and it is suggested that you try them. This is going to help in making your footage creative as well as intriguing and interesting.

Conclusion

Drone filming is extremely exciting. Ensure that you are keeping these maneuvers and techniques on your mind so that it becomes easy for you to get the best shots.

Insights Products Startups

5 Startups in the Cannabis Industry That Will Inspire You to Start Your Own Business

Miley on August 30, 2019

If you are thinking of starting a business in the cannabis industry, you are definitely on the right track when it comes to profit. With the right idea and a good team, you will be able to thrive and advance with almost unstoppable speed.

The cannabis industry is now legal across different countries, making it one of the fastest-growing in the world. This is the main reason why a lot of people decide to invest their money in it. Not to mention the fact that it was worth $13.8 billion in 2018.

The cannabis industry is made out of four different branches – medical, recreational, industrial, and CBD oil. Though you will often see these branches crossing over to suit consumer needs. For example, some take CBD with THC for medical and recreational use. Depending on your ideas, don’t be afraid to mix and match branches for your target audience or business needs.

That being said, the most profitable one (and fastest-growing) at the moment is medical cannabis – worth $5.1 billion! Recreational cannabis is close second and is worth $3.2 billion. Those are indeed some inspiring numbers.

So if you are looking for business inspiration, you are in the right place! In this article, we will take a look at some of the most popular startups in the cannabis industry. The secret to their success is unique ideas and of course, a good business plan. This will give you an idea of what is already out there and how it functions.

LeafLink

LeafLink is an online marketplace for wholesale cannabis. This service helps retailers with the management aspects of all cannabis businesses, providing products like CRM, streamlined ordering, reporting tools, and shipment queues.

MassRoots

If you want to connect with other cannabis enthusiasts, then MassRoots is a platform designed just for you! You can use it for searching nearby dispensaries, write and get reviews, and post your own photos.

Eaze

According to recent reports, Amazon is the most popular online retailer in the world. Eaze is known as the Amazon for medical cannabis and is rapidly expanding. It is connected with a lot of dispensaries, offering a variety of products and delivering them to your homes.

Surterra Holdings

Surterra Holdings is most known as a cannabis-based therapy company. It manufactures and distributes medical cannabis products, such as vape pens, oils, transdermal patches, tinctures, sprays, and lotions.

Vangst

Last but not least is the recruitment platform that helps connect people who are looking for a career in the cannabis industry. The service managed to find jobs for thousands of people so far and help them earn money by doing what they are inspired to do.

Bottom Line

As you can see, all these services offer something unique and what people really need. This is a powerful combination when it comes to business.

So what do you think? Are you still interested in starting a business in the cannabis industry? Or maybe you already have a startup? Share your thoughts and experiences with us in the comment section below.

For more information about the cannabis industry, take a look at the infographic below.