There are more jobs which require humans to work with computers today than there has ever been. Additionally, there are more people with computers in their homes than ever before. So, what does this translate to? A lot more Internet surfing for starters! But are we “surfing the Internet” too much? When does it cross over from just being a hobby into being more of an obsession?

“Just one more page…I’ve got to find this site to show you something..” insists my boyfriend, who is more than eager to show me…well, something fascinating that he saw on the Internet. At one point, we had to have a discussion about how the Internet, not the computer, was beginning to interfere with our relationship. Now, we have a deal where neither one of us will use the Internet or even go near the computer while we are in each other’s company. Now, there are, of course, exceptions to this rule. For example, if we need to look up directions to something or if he has to do work for school, etc., then it’s ok.

We aren’t the only people suffering from Internet overload though. There are millions of people out there (I’m sure of it) who can’t seem to peel themselves away from their computers. And what are these people looking up? Is it information related to work? Is it for laughs? There’s no telling. With the invention of laptop computers, web surfing has only gotten worse, not better. I just recently started using a laptop, and it’s insane how difficult it is to not want to use it! There are only 24 hours in a day; yet, there seems to be an infinite number of web sites out there..waiting…waiting for a surfer like you or me to stumble upon it!

For more information about Internet Marketing, contact Create Business Growth today!

Tags: Blogging, Internet Related by Janelle - No Comments »

Do you live a life where you wake up each morning anxious or simply thinking about the work day ahead of you and then return each evening to your home to do even more work while thinking about all of the work you didn’t get done while at work? What about those of you who work for a boss who is somewhat disorganized and who doesn’t necessarily know how to manage that well? If any of these situations sound familiar, it isn’t surprising. There are millions of Americans who go to work each day and are miserable because they are being overworked, underpaid and mismanaged. However, there are some things you can do to improve your work productivity and overall happiness.

10 Ways to Increase Productivity at Work

1. Take a Break:
   • We all need breaks, and research shows that working long hours without a break is not nearly as productive as working in short bursts.
2. Get Rid of Distractions:
   • If you’re a popular person who tends to receive a lot of phone calls, then make sure that your phone is either out of sight or turned off so that it won’t distract you or others around you who may be trying to work. If you work in a small office with several other employees who tend to talk a lot, try talking to them or letting your boss know that the added noise is a distraction that is taking away from your productivity.
3. Use Music to Soothe:
   • If you can’t escape the noises around you, then try to listen to a little bit of soothing music such as classical music or something that doesn’t require too much attention, this way you will be able to continue to work. Research also shows that listening to soothing music can help to relax you (which is always a good thing).
4. Save the Easiest for Last:
   • Whatever task is the most difficult, make sure that you start with that one first. It’ll save you the time of having to worry about it later, plus it will make you feel better to have easier things to look forward to as the day progresses.
5. Learn to Say “No”:
   • Many bosses take advantage of salaried employees by loading them down with work that will never get finished in a 40 hour workweek unless they put in extra, unpaid time outside of work. If you find that your boss is giving you work that falls outside of the general working parameters, let him/her know. You don’t always have to agree with what your boss or another employer tells you. Simply find a polite way to say that you are overloaded with work (i.e. “While I would love to complete this task, my plate is already full. Perhaps we can take something off of my plate so that I can help out; or perhaps we can re-assign it to someone else..”).
6. Figure Out Your “Time of Day”:
   • There are some people who are extremely lucid during the early morning hours and grow less productive as the day wears on. On the other hand, there are those of us who are extremely productive at night. Figure out what kind of person you are and tailor your work around it.
7. Plan out Meals Ahead:
   • You would think that eating would be the easiest and perhaps most basic function. However, many people neglect to prepare meals ahead of time that they can bring with them to work. Therefore, they are tasked with trying to figure out where and when they are going to fit lunch in around their busy afternoons. Save yourself the trouble of eating junk food as well as spending unnecessary money on gas and food by preparing meals ahead of time. It’ll save you an incredible amount of stress (and weight) in the end.
8. Avoid Too Much Multi-Tasking:
   • Many employees feel that the better they are able to multi-task, the more work they are getting done. This is true and false…mostly false. Research has shown that multi-tasking is not as productive as the vast majority of people think. Contrary to popular belief, if you focus on one thing at a time, you will do a much better job and be that much more effective as an employee.
9. Stay Organized:
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   • When you are given what seems like an infinite amount of work, take a deep breath and make a list to help you organize it all. If you have to, invest in a desk planner or some sort of calendar program that you can use to help you keep track of what your daily tasks are. As you are assigned more tasks throughout the day, you should already have a list made for the next day that you can simply add the task to (listed from highest to lowest priority of course).

For more information about Internet Marketing, contact Create Business Growth today!

Tags: General Business Issues, Internet Marketing, Internet Related by Fred - 1 Comment »

Have you ever looked up information that led you to a web site and when you finally got to the web site, you were waiting forever for the page to load? Chances are that if the page took forever to load, you didn’t hang around to wait for it. With more and more people using the Internet to do business as well as connect with other people, it seems like no one has the patience to wait for slow sites.

According to eMarketer, 16% of people leave the page if it takes longer than 10 seconds to load, and only every second person or so will wait longer than 15 seconds. If you’re an SEO company or even if you’re a business owner, this should send up a red flag. As a general rule, Search Engine Journal suggests keeping your web page size up to 150k because pages that are any bigger than this are not fully cached by search engines.  For example, the longer a search crawler waits, the less it will visit your page.

Three sites that Search Engine Journal suggests to help you with your improve your page loading time as well as the overall performance of your web page include:

1. Web Page Speed Report
2. Page Size Extractor
3. Web Developer FireFox Extension
   

With regards to running a business online, little things such as how long it takes your page to load can equate from hundreds to billions of dollars of business lost (depending on who your company is).  After all, you must remember, the Internet is a popular tool that many people use; millions of businesses are competing for the consumer’s attention.  It only takes a split second for a person to realize that they are interested based on what they see….or don’t see.

For more information about Internet marketing, contact Create Business Growth today!

Tags: Internet Marketing, Internet Related by Janelle - No Comments »

We’ve all had it happen to us at one point or another. For me, it’s an everyday thing- although it is not that bad. I’m talking about spam. I’ve been making a somewhat weak attempt NOT to check my email as much over the weekend as part of this great plan to try to keep work separate from my personal life. However, I can be sure that by the time Monday rolls around, I will have at least 20 messages in my inbox, 80% of which will be spam.

Now, I realize that I don’t have it nearly as bad as some other people; but nonetheless, spam is a real concern for a lot of people. It certainly matters in Canada. A recent article published in thestar.com talks about how spam has become such a problem in Canada that the Canadian government has tried, unsuccessfully, to address the issue by passing an anti-spam bill through legislation. There is no doubt that a great majority of email that is transmitted is spam. This can lead to all sorts of problems including but not limited to things such as bandwidth overloads, slower servers, hacking, viruses and identity theft.

What to Do

Some suggestions for dealing with spam include:

• Create a separate “spam” folder in your email account.
• Switch to a more secure email account.
• Keep your email address private.
• Filter your email by using the spam features to identify spam.
• Do not click on an email if you aren’t sure who sent it.

For more information on Internet marketing, contact Create Business Growth today!

Tags: Internet Marketing, Internet Related by Janelle - No Comments »