Social media has turned out to be a culture-defining technology. The massive amounts of people that use the services each week, and the large amount of time people spend on these platforms, makes them important resources for the lion’s share of businesses. The fact that the average user spends around two hours and 24 minutes per day perusing their social media gives businesses opportunities that weren’t available to them only a few short years ago. Today, we thought we would give you a look at how different sizes of SMBs utilize this technology. 

With smartphones becoming more expensive every year, the top offerings from major manufacturers price some out of the market. This provides an opportunity for these companies to offer budget smartphones to a growing market of people who don’t want to drop a $1,000 on a new phone. Today, we discuss options from Samsung, Google, and Apple that can be had for a fraction of the cost of today’s flagship smartphones. 

In last week’s blog we took a brief look at the best phones money can buy. This week we take a look at some devices that cost more than the flagship devices and don’t necessarily have the specs that back up the price. These devices, however, have something else: an innovative new twist or two. Let’s take a look at some of the most innovative new devices that you can find on the market right now.

As technology has become smarter, artificial intelligence has evolved into a more and more applicable solution that businesses of all sizes can use. Let’s take a few minutes to consider the various ways in which AI can be used to support businesses.

The average person checks their phone 58 times a day. With so much use, many users want to know that they have a powerful smartphone that will give them the best chance of having the proper tool when they need it. The flagship smartphones—being the best devices each manufacturer releases each year—typically give users all the bells and whistles they need to be successful. Let’s take a look at some of the top smartphones available right now.

If there’s one trend that is going to continue having an impact on a business’ technology, it’s mobility. People are simply doing more while mobile, having the technology to shop, manage their finances, and yes, work productively. Let’s pause and consider how a small business could leverage this mobility to its benefit.

Owners of Nintendo’s Switch console should know that, as per an announcement from Nintendo, the battery life of their device could be negatively impacted if the device isn’t charged up at least every six months. While this may not be the kind of news you’d expect to find on a business technology blog, it does open the door to a bigger, more pertinent topic: should devices that aren’t used very often be kept charged up?

Unfortunately, we are not yet rid of the concern of COVID-19 and the impact that it has had on business survivability. With “business as usual” requiring a few drastic adjustments to continue, it is important that small businesses are able and willing to embrace these changes. Research conducted by Salesforce presented in their fourth Small & Medium Business Trends Report shows that many businesses are seeing the importance of these changes.

While it’s hard to say anything positive about the COVID-19 pandemic, it has given many business owners the motivation to pick up a few more technical skills. Many have sought to improve their own grasp on the software, marketing, and telecommunications that their business relies on each day. As these business owners have done so, they have often turned to a very popular resource: YouTube.

The world isn’t the same as it was at this time last year. With months of question marks surrounding business, and with more people than ever searching for their place, companies have had to make some operational concessions that, if we were to assess the situation today, don’t seem to be going anywhere, anytime soon. 

Traditionally, the business telephone system is one of the most expensive operational costs, especially if you take into account a business’ expanding mobility. Today, there is an option that changes the way that businesses look at their phone platform. That option is VoIP, or Voice over Internet Protocol. Today we’ll tell you a little bit about VoIP and tell you how it can drastically improve your business’ communication.

Since 1982, the technology known as the Internet of Things has given the devices around us greater capabilities through artificial intelligence and Internet connectivity. While this technology spent a long time existing under the radar, so to speak, many business functions are now relying on its benefits. Let’s take a few moments to look at how the IoT can be of use in your business.

It’s important to note that all parties involved in patient care (including the patient) benefit from the Electronic Health Record (EHR). These systems are now fundamental to a successful health maintenance system. As more technology is developed that could be integrated into the EHR platform, there is a stalemate of sorts keeping EHR technology from being what it could be. Today, we will briefly discuss some of the issues. 

While it may sound strange coming from a managed service provider, there is some wisdom to the adage, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” We know, we know… it sounds a little hypocritical for us to say something like this, when we spend so much time touting the values of proactive maintenance and similar strategies. However, this now-cliché statement certainly holds water, as exemplified by many modern technologies—including the Boeing 747.

Clearly demonstrating their prioritization of their G Suite offering, Google continues to innovate the platform’s many solutions to improve the user experience. Most recently, this has included giving Gmail a few extra functionalities to help further integrate a business’ communications. Let’s look at these functionalities together.

VoIP—Voice over Internet Protocol—is an incredibly useful tool for today’s businesses to make use of, especially in terms of improving productivity. Let’s consider a few capabilities that can give you and your team a leg up.

If I were to tell you that one variable was responsible for more than 80 percent of cyberattacks, what would you guess that variable was? If you guessed “stolen access credentials,” you’d be correct. The traditional username/password combination may soon be a thing of the past as more tech companies transition to alternative authentication measures.

There may not be any “official” date set for the release of Android 11, we have gotten a glimpse of it through beta testing. Let’s take a look at some of the features you might see when the OS officially launches.

As businesses have advanced, the use of tools to improve their communication has become paramount to success, with ongoing global developments only contributing further to their importance. With new challenges and opportunities presenting themselves each day, your team needs the tools that allow them to work together and accomplish all that needs to be done.

Email is easily one of the most commonly (and most often) used business tools there are, but as with any tool, some options are better than others. This week, we’re giving you some tips on how to best use email in your business by using hosted email.