Tag: tips

Your Beginner’s Guide To Essential Email

Your Beginner’s Guide To Essential Email by MELLE STAELENBERG.  Available from <http://www.bandt.com.au/marketing/beginners-guide-essential-email-salmat-lifecycle-marketing-manager> [December 22, 2016]

Essential email is the fast-growing category of non-marketing communications which we have seen increasing in Australia. In this guest piece, Melle Staelenberg, Business Manager – Lifecycle Marketing at Salmat, dives deep into essential email.

Much is written about email marketing and how email is the best digital communications channel in terms of return on investment. Less is published around essential email.

Also referred to as ‘e-invoicing’ or ‘e-billing’, essential email is the fast-growing category of non-marketing communications such as statements, invoices and policy updates that have made it to the inbox.

According to a 2016 study by Billentis, essential email adoption in Australia and New Zealand is on par with the US and UK (but behind the Nordics and some South American markets) with an estimated annual volume increase of 10-20 per cent[1].

‘Essential’ refers to the regulation and compliance requirements of the sender to provide the information to their customers. Although few customers would complain about missing out on a newsletter, not receiving your electronic bill on time can cause serious issues.

Here, we provide some background on what essential email is and tips on how you can execute it effectively.

WHY ESSENTIAL EMAIL?
  • Customer preference

It’s no secret that more and more customers switch to receiving their bills and statements via email. Essential email has clear advantages for customers: besides doing the right thing for the environment, it means no more stolen or misplaced statements.

With most bills being paid online these days, having your bill available on your smartphone, laptop or work computer is simply convenient.

  • Deliverability

With 17 per cent of Australians changing address each year[2] and a large share of mail returned to sender, it’s becoming more difficult for companies to make sure customers receive their direct mail on time. When the right verification is put in place for online sign-up, it’s much easier to generate and keep a valid database of customer email addresses and mobile phone numbers.

In fact, Salmat’s essential email solution is proven to reach as many as 99.5 per cent of customers for a typical statement run or bill cycle.

  • Improve speed, reduce costs

Businesses save more than trees and energy by switching to electronic statements. In November 2015, the Digital Business Council (DCB) was established to drive the implementation of e-invoicing across the Australian business community.

According to DBC, e- invoicing is estimated to be 60-80 per cent more efficient than traditional paper based invoice processing[3]. The cost of printing and mailing a bill easily adds up to a dollar or two, whereas an email costs only a fraction of that.

Especially in large countries like Australia and the US, being able to provide all your customers with their bill overnight means you can optimise your payment due dates and receive funds sooner.

TIPS TO UNLOCK THE POWER OF ESSENTIAL EMAIL
  • Run an opt-in campaign

When your company starts offering electronic statements, run an opt-in campaign so your customers can make the switch from print to email. Don’t hesitate to incentivise the switch: running a promotion where one lucky person wins an iPad can do wonders in terms of awareness and uptake.

Continuously remind those who still receive paper bills by including a clear call to action on their printed bills with easy steps on how to switch to electronic statements.

  • Use dynamic content

Dynamic content allows you to vary the content of your email based on user preferences, insights or behaviour. If your customer has direct debit set up, don’t bother them with a generic ‘payments are due by …’ line as that will only cause confusion and unnecessary calls to your call centre.

Instead, make it clear that you have their direct debit set up and their account will be debited on the due date.

Most email platforms will allow you to use dynamic content through rules or content blocks, resulting in more tailored messaging compared to printed statements. It is even possible to count down to the due date, showing that payments are due in ‘three days’ when opened on Monday and ‘today’ when that same email is opened (again) on Thursday.

  • SMS as fall-back

Email is a much more efficient channel than regular mail but the real power lies in reporting. With direct mail, you often don’t know or find out late when your communication has not reached your customer.

Using email, you know within 24 hours which messages failed and why (it’s always good to let your platform retry deliveries for at least 12 hours). Was their inbox full? An SMS can be triggered automatically, asking your customer to clear their inbox.

Email account closed? Use SMS to ask clients to update their email address. The ability to use both email and SMS in an integrated way means there is always a way for you to reach your customer.

The essential email space is a rapidly growing delivery channel. With clear advantages for both consumers and businesses, essential email is the logical next step in the evolution of customer communications.

[1] Koch, B. (2016), E-Invoicing / E-Billing, Digitisation & Automation (page 22), Billentis.
[2] Experian, Does your mail move with your customers?, http://www.qas-experian.com.au/products/change-of-address.htm
[3] Digital Business Council, Wide-spread digital transformation will revolutionise the whole Australian economy
Your Beginner’s Guide To Essential Email by MELLE STAELENBERG.  Available from <http://www.bandt.com.au/marketing/beginners-guide-essential-email-salmat-lifecycle-marketing-manager> [December 22, 2016]

Want to Increase Your Website’s Visibility? SEO is The Answer

Want to Increase Your Website’s Visibility? SEO is The Answer by Manli Su.  Available from <http://is4profit.com/want-to-increase-your-websites-visibility-seo-is-the-answer/> [December 22, 2016]

If your business is lingering down in the dark depths of the search results, you’ll have little hope of online sales – but you can change that

For any small business with a web presence, the goal is to rank high on a search engine results lists. If your website lands anywhere past the third page of results, people are unlikely to find it in their search.

So how can you increase the visibility of your website? The key is to design your website and its content so that search engines can find the pages easily and index them. This is a practice known as search engine optimisation (SEO), which we will take a closer look at in this article, as well as the best practices to optimise your business’s SEO strategy.

How does search engine optimisation work?

SEO is more complex than filling your website’s pages with keywords to be picked up by search engines. Search engines have their own criteria for ranking web pages, which are periodically changed and updated to prevent websites from falsely obtaining a permanent high ranking. Their intricate algorithms take into account keywords within the content, website traffic and accessibility.

For example, Google’s Penguin algorithm update, first launched in April 2012, was developed to catch websites deemed to be spamming its search results. It targeted techniques used to artificially inflate rankings, such as keyword stuffing and link spam. This meant that pages with lower quality content were considered less authoritative and therefore ranked lower.

Keyword research

Determining which keywords and phrases your website should target is an important start for good SEO. If your page targets keywords that no one is searching for, then the search engines won’t send you any traffic.

There are several free keyword research tools that you can use to help you. Google’s AdWords Tool allows you to search for keyword ideas, look at historical statistics and see how a list of keywords might perform. You should build a target list of keywords for your business and re-visit it periodically. If your industry is prone to quick changes, try to check and update your keywords every three to six months.

Particularly competitive industries, such as fashion, may struggle to utilise keywords to gain more exposure and rank higher on search engines. This is when professionals can help. You can use a digital marketing company’s expertise in SEO to give you a competitive edge.

Optimised content

High quality content is still the best way for a website to rank higher on search engine results.  Your keyword research will come in handy when deciding on what content you should be writing for your audience or customer. Focusing on useful content that helps to answer the questions that people are searching for will help your website to receive traffic.

Quality content should be informative, interesting and rich in keywords, establishing your authority on the subject. If your customer feels as though they have learned something, then they are more likely to return to your website.

In addition, strong content will encourage external sites to link to your site, making you more authoritative in Google’s eyes. The ways of increasing your website traffic and gaining more external links can be helped by your social media strategy.

Social media marketing

A business’s social media strategy goes hand in hand with SEO. Both aim to attract visitors to your website and having a strong strategy for both will increase your search result rankings.

A good tactic to gain visibility on social media is by using hashtags and encouraging social sharing. Likes, shares, favourites and retweets will all contribute to your website being viewed as an authority by search engines and draw in links, traffic and positive brand awareness. There are many ways to do this, including surveys that encourage people to like your post if they agree, or competitions where users are asked to like and share your posts.

Optimising for mobiles

As internet usage is moving more towards mobile devices and smartphones, you need to ensure that your site is mobile-friendly.

Google have recently introduced an updated mobile-friendly algorithm that ranks sites higher if they are easily accessible on mobile sites. It considers how your website’s information and usability is optimised for use on mobiles, taking into account site design, structure and page speed.

Here are some tips for optimising your business’s website for mobile devices:

  • Don’t use Flash – this plugin may not be available on your user’s phone so they may miss the effects.
  • Limit your use pop-ups – it can be difficult to close these on a mobile and frustrated users may leave your site, leading to a high bounce rate.
  • Remember the importance of page speed – optimise any images and reduce redirects.

Finally, use Google Analytics to track how your SEO is performing. With this handy tool, you can see trends and how users interact with your website, and use the data to improve anything that may not be working well.

If you want to improve your business’s SEO strategy and increase your visibility on search engine rankings, then consider our five top tips. Optimising your SEO will help your website get ranked higher on search engine results, gain more followers and encourage customers and clients to return to your website.

Want to Increase Your Website’s Visibility? SEO is The Answer by Manli Su.  Available from <http://is4profit.com/want-to-increase-your-websites-visibility-seo-is-the-answer/> [December 22, 2016]

Expert Tips and Tools You Can Use to Safeguard Your Privacy Online

Expert Tips and Tools You Can Use to Safeguard Your Privacy Online  by Mike Peterson.  Available from <https://www.idropnews.com/how-to/how-to-remain-private-or-anonymous-online/28441/> [December 23, 2016]

As we’ve become more and more reliant on devices and the internet in our day-to-day lives, the more of our data and information has been uploaded to the web. Not only that, but many of us rely on the internet for work or play — and internet security is essential to that. Whether you’re worried about nefarious hackers, government spying, or nosy advertisers, you can help protect your data by following a few easy steps and using a few different (and free) tools.

Here are the cybersecurity essentials — used by everyone from security experts to journalists — to get you started.

Ground Rules

If you’re worried about privacy and protecting your information, you can follow some simple rules to make sure you have a head start against any would-be spies.

First, use a strong password. The best kind of password doesn’t contain words or fragments, but rather a random assortment of letters, numbers and special characters. You can also use a password manager like LastPass, Password Safe, or KeePass. 1Password is a popular option for iOS. Additionally, don’t use the same password across all of your accounts.

Next, make sure not to over-share information on social media. You really don’t need your phone number, email address or birth dates readily accessible to the public, do you?

Set up a Google alert for your name, so you can keep tabs on how your identity is being perceived or used without your consent. Don’t like advertisers gathering information about you? Use a non-tracking search engine like DuckDuckGo.

Lastly, try to enable two-factor authentication whenever you can. In that case, your accounts will have an extra layer of security even if your passwords become compromised.

Message Safer

There are many options when it comes to encrypted messaging services, but two of the best are WhatsApp and Signal.

WhatsApp is a popular messaging app, and it might be one that you already use. But what you might not know is that WhatsApp actually features end-to-end encryption: the messages you send are scrambled, ensuring that only you and the recipient have the key needed to read them.

Signal is another excellent choice, and is popular among journalist and security experts. Along with end-to-end encryption, it also features disappearing messages — meaning that there will be no record of the conversation after the messages expire.

Signal is arguably better encrypted, but a messaging app is only useful if you use it — and you probably have more friends on WhatsApp.

Get a Secure Email Client

If you’re worried about various entities reading your email, you should look into Proton. It’s a free, secure email client based in Switzerland — meaning that it falls under Swiss, rather than American, privacy laws. That means the U.S. government can’t force Proton to give up your data. Forbes famously called it “the only email system NSA can’t access.

All emails sent through the service are end-to-end encrypted, and the client never logs your IP address. Besides a browser-based version, the service also has an Android and iOS app so you can take your secure emails on-the-go.

Some other options are Tutanota and KolabNow. Both are open-source and free-to-use. For something a bit more feature-packed, Berlin-based Posteo.de is held in very high regard among security experts. It doesn’t ask for any information when you sign up, it features two-factor authentication, and it allows you to pay others anonymously. Unfortunately, it’s not free.

Download TOR

If you’re serious about encrypting your online activities on your computer, there’s The Onion Router, also known as the TOR project.

TOR Browser is a lightweight program, available to download for both PC and Mac, that obscures your online browsing via a proxy network. When you use TOR, your computer doesn’t directly access a site — the program sends your request through various servers spread across the world. That way, the site you’re accessing never actually sees your IP address.

Of course, this security doesn’t work if you’re accessing a site that asks for login or other personal information — like Facebook or other account-based services. While your computer and IP address might be anonymous, TOR doesn’t hide the specific, possibly compromising activities that could give your identity away.

Use a VPN

A VPN works by extending a private network over the public connections we use daily. VPNs use a series of discrete networks or computers to secure and encrypt communication when using the internet. A user logging into a VPN would typically access it via a client/browser window, log-in with special credentials (really similar to how you’d log into your email) and voila — once inside the VPN, the user is secure from any eavesdropping or spying.

Any time you’re doing something on the internet, you’re exchanging and sending data to another source. A VPN ensures that each time you do so, all the data that’s being sent from your end is encrypted, and safe from people seeking to steal it. Learn more about VPNs and some of the best VPN services available, here.

Additional Considerations

Even with using privacy services like TOR, some of your DNS traffic might still leak through, potentially compromising your anonymity. To find and plug those leaks, you can use DNSLeakTest.com.

Similarly, you can see just how much information your computer web browser is giving away by going to BrowserLeaks.com or Panopticlick. You can take notes and additional steps to plug those leaks, too — like turning off cookies and disabling site tracking.

Many apps on the iPhone use location services — while this can be great for remembering exactly where you took that iPhone picture, it also means that your data might have scarily specific locations attached to them. For example, the Exif data embedded into your bathroom selfie can potentially let attackers know exactly where you live. Paranoid? Just turn off location services for any or all apps via Settings > Privacy > Location Services.

Expert Tips and Tools You Can Use to Safeguard Your Privacy Online  by Mike Peterson.  Available from <https://www.idropnews.com/how-to/how-to-remain-private-or-anonymous-online/28441/> [December 23, 2016]

How to secure your digital transactions

How to secure your digital transactions by Abhijit Ahaskar.  Available from <http://www.livemint.com/Leisure/eAqnDAFMqB4Vfxe7yyOfgO/How-to-secure-your-digital-transactions.html> [Last Modified: Mon, Dec 19 2016. 06 16 PM IST]

Demonetisation and the subsequent cash crunch has compelled people to use their debit or credit cards. Many are using payment wallets such as FreeCharge and Paytm to avoid using their cards all the time. Many of these first-time users are not fully aware of what is secure and what is not. This makes them an easy prey for hackers and people with malicious intent. According to Norton’s Cyber Security Insights Report (published in November 2016), 55% of users born between 1980 and 2000 have been victims of cyber crime.

Here are some tips that you can keep in mind if you are using one of the digital platforms for making your next cash transaction.

Be more cautious with public WiFi networks

Easy and fast access to internet through public WiFi networks such as at railway stations, airports and coffee shops attracts many users. Users need to keep a few things in mind before connecting to any public WiFi network. One of them is to make sure you know the right SSID (service set identifier) name of the WiFi network you are connecting to. Hackers often set up WiFi network with almost similar SSID names making users believe that there are two such networks and they can connect to any of them. Any communication made using such dubious networks will be at risk of malicious activity. It is safer to avoid WiFi networks that are not protected by a password.

Use VPN

Using a Virtual Private Network (VPN) not just sidesteps geographical restrictions on online content but can also add a layer of security to your online communications. It is widely used as a tool to secure web browsing sessions by enterprise as well as individual users. You can add a VPN on your smartphone or your WiFi network at home. For a smartphone, you will have to downloaded and install a VPN app. Most VPN apps charge a monthly subscription, while some like Opera VPN are completely free to use. Deploying a VPN in wireless router will transmit all online communication through an encrypted tunnel created by the VPN.

Use OTP during transactions

During online transactions made using a credit or debit card, banks ask users to enter their 3D secure PIN (personal identification number) or request for an OTP (one-time password). Using the latter will prompt the bank to send a six-digit number through a text message on the user’s registered mobile number. This is a unique number and is generated only for one transaction. Using a 3D secure PIN on a public WiFi can be risky. Paying through an OTP is still a safer option.

Identify secure webpages

Most websites rely on certain security protocols such as HTTPS (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol Secure) to protect users and keep their transactions secure. These websites can be identified with a green sticker and through the browser url, where the link address will start with https instead of http or www.

Alternative to online transactions—Use NUPP for transaction

Another way of bypassing the risk of online fraud during transactions is using National Unified USSD Platform (NUPP) for sending money directly to the other person’s bank account. NUPP is based on USSD (Unstructured Supplementary Service Data) technology which uses GSM networks for communication with the user and the bank and this makes it free from the risk of online hacking. To use it, dial *99# in your phone and enter and type the three letters used to identify your bank or the IFSC (Indian Financial System Code) of your bank in the next pop-up page. This will open another page with options to pay using MMID (Mobile Money Identification Number) or IFSC.

If you are paying through MMID, enter the seven-digit MMID code and the beneficiary’s mobile number. In case you are using the IFSC, enter the IFSC code and the bank account number of the beneficiary and the amount that you are paying. To complete the transaction, you will be asked to enter your four-digit mobile banking PIN number issued by your bank. For every transaction, users will be charged a nominal fee of 50 paise.

How to secure your digital transactions by Abhijit Ahaskar.  Available from <http://www.livemint.com/Leisure/eAqnDAFMqB4Vfxe7yyOfgO/How-to-secure-your-digital-transactions.html> [Last Modified: Mon, Dec 19 2016. 06 16 PM IST]

Top 12 Tips for staying safe online

Top 12 Tips for staying safe online by Kuwait Times.  Available from <https://www.zawya.com/mena/en/story/Top_twelve_tips_for_staying_safe_online-ZAWYA20161215052009/> [14 December 2016]

As the popularity of online shopping increases in Kuwait, so does the likelihood of falling foul of cyber crooks, not necessarily because they are putting in extra effort during the festive season, but simply because more of us are doing more online shopping at this time of the year, and we’re on the lookout for the hottest deals.

Sophos has put together the following cyber security tips to help you focus on family, food and fun over during this season, rather than dealing with the headache of stolen credit card details or important documents lost to ransom ware.

1) Clean up your passwords before you start shopping
Don’t use the same password on more than one website. If the crooks get one password, they’ll immediately try it on all your other accounts. Make your passwords as long and complex as you can; in fact, consider using a password manager, which will come up with a unique password for each website automatically.

2) Update your devices
When patches come out, most of them fix security holes that the crooks either already know about or will find out about soon. Don’t put off security updates because “later will be fine”. Follow our advice: patch early, patch often.

3) Back up your files
Whether you’re taking your laptop on holiday, or staying at home with your faithful desktop this festive season, don’t forget to back up your precious documents on all of your devices. That way if your files are lost, stolen, “reconfigured” by a teenaged “expert”, or, worst of all, held for extortion by ransom ware, you can still get your data back.

4) Watch out for booby-trapped ATMs when shopping on the High Street
Watch out for modified ATMs when you withdraw money. Crooks often glue fake parts onto or around ATMs in the hope of covertly reading both your card data and your PIN. If you see an ATM with any components that look as though they don’t belong, report it to the bank and the police. That way you protect yourself and everyone else too.

5) Beware of login links in emails
With so many emails flying around over the festive shopping period, it’s a popular time for cyber crooks to use fake ‘phishing’ emails to trick you into handing over personal data. When an email urges you to click on a link to login to your account and change your password, or some similar sort of subterfuge, it’s probably crooks trying to trick you onto a fake site that will look exactly like the real thing, except that the crooks get your password, not the real website. If you want to check a transaction on one of your accounts, open your browser and browse to the website yourself.

6) Look for the padlock in the URL bar when shopping online
A padlock in the address bar and a URL that starts with “HTTPS” means the website uses an encrypted or secure connection. All major websites, not just financial institutions, use HTTPS these days, so if you see a site that’s asking for personal information but doesn’t have the padlock, you can be sure it’s a fake.

7) Watch out for bogus courier emails
During this time, you may very well get products delivered to your home, so you’ll be expecting a visit from a courier company. Crooks know this and send fake emails about bogus delivery problems, hoping to draw you into their web. If you want to contact a courier company to check on a delivery, look up their phone number or email address yourself – don’t use any links or information from an email.

8) Don’t email your credit card details
Sometimes you’ll try to buy that special gift , but your credit card won’t go through. In perfectly good faith, the seller may ask you to email through your card details to try again later. But that email could end up in the hands of cyber crooks, even if the seller handles it with care once they’ve received it. Remember: if in doubt, don’t give it out!

9) Turn off Flash on your devices
Want to do one single, simple thing to improve your security, now and forever? Turn off Flash, or uninstall it altogether if you can. Booby-trapped Flash files are still a popular way of spreading malware, and with fewer and fewer sites actually requiring Flash, it’s safer to do without it altogether.

10) Change default passwords before using any new home video devices
Whether it’s a new baby monitor, home surveillance system, or any other internet-enabled camera, it probably has a default password. If you don’t change the password then you are making it easy for a cybercriminal to hack in and watch whatever you’re filming. That could be you, your house, your baby, or something else that you’d prefer to keep away from prying eyes.

11) Think before you share on social media
Maybe it sounds obvious, but over sharing on social media is a bad idea, and there is no better time to remind you of this than the party season. Whether it’s photos of other people, your credit card details, the fact that you’re holding a really amazing party on Friday night or anything else, stop and think before you share. Once you post it, you’ll never be able to take it back.

12) Upgrade the software on any new devices before using them
Even “new” computers and hardware devices usually need updates right away. After all, between when they were made and when you first use them, the crooks have had time to find new security holes to attack. If you want to protect your new devices, always patch before using them, even if it’s Christmas Day and you’re dying to try out your brand new present.

Finally, make sure your computers at home are secure. Sophos Home is free and allows you to protect up to 10 Windows and Mac computers from malware, ransom ware, phishing and more. You can have different settings for adults and kids, and the web filter lets you block ads. It’s an easy-to-use solution that takes minutes to download and get started. And remember, when 2017 comes around, all of these tips will still be valid. In other words, as much as we’re urging you not to let your computer security guard down over the festive season, we’re also encouraging you to keep your security guard up every day. Cyber security is for life, not just for this season.

Top 12 Tips for staying safe online by Kuwait Times.  Available from <https://www.zawya.com/mena/en/story/Top_twelve_tips_for_staying_safe_online-ZAWYA20161215052009/> [14 December 2016]