“Double-tapping” is a phrase used to describe the liking of photos on Instagram, as a business you’d want to get as many double-taps as you can, but how? Should you invest in buying followers or start an excavation project in search of the genie lamp your parents buried in the backyard? Before breaking out the shovels, try these recently-announced tools to help make your company’s presence on Instagram a valuable one:

Business profile pages

Previously, it was hard for Instagram users to distinguish an account belonging to a business from one that is dedicated to cats, but with the Business Profile feature, that’s a problem of the past. By taking advantage of this, you are giving customers directions to your business with just one tap - and on top of that, you can also establish a contact call to action with choices that include: text message, phone call or email.

The posts themselves are identical to those from other accounts, but as previously mentioned, the major difference is the account’s profile page itself. Especially when customers are given directions and various channels for communication with just a single tap. This fills in the void many business owners experience: converting the interest sparked on Instagram and converting it into action.

For example, if you stumble upon something you like on the page of a clothing boutique, you’ll be able to initiate contact with a single tap to inquire or to make a purchase.

Insights

Inspired by Twitter and Facebook, Instagram will now offer analytical data that tracks how the content is performing. Business owners will get to see reach and impressions data along with demographics (ex. On location and age) for each post.

This data won’t be available on Instagram itself, to access it you’ll need a business Facebook page that is linked to the Instagram account. By analyzing user demographics and behavioral data, you’ll be able to create Instagram content geared towards users that are more likely to engage with it.

Promote, promote, promote

Both the Business Profile and Insight features are free, but companies with a generous advertising budget can utilize the Promote feature to enhance top-performing posts through paid advertisements. Instagram will also suggest which posts should be promoted, and you can use the data gathered from Insights to designate top-performing posts based on your target audience.

Plus with customizable targeting options, you are in control of how little or how much you want your content promoted. Promoted content also comes with a call-to-action embedded in the post, for example: triggering a phone call or redirecting traffic to your website.

Both Instagram and Snapchat are emerging as the most popular social media platforms to date, and before these features are released later this year, you should consider establishing an Instagram presence for your business as soon as possible. For any further questions, feel free to contact us. #wereheretohelp

Keeping up with tech trends as a small or medium-sized business owner is tough. Virtualization may be a great example of this, but it’s definitely worth the effort. Between the boost to network security and ability to scale your workstations and servers according to your business growth, it’s time to start learning a little more about it. One of the first steps towards virtualizing your business is picking a software provider, which is why we’ve put together 5 of the most prominent platforms into one list.

VMware

Any conversation about virtualization for small and medium-sized businesses usually starts around VMware. Although it wasn’t necessarily the first, VMware was the company that really put office virtualization on everyone’s action item list. The company offers a number of different solutions for different sized businesses with a wide variety of needs. Its ease of use and robust security features have secured its reputation as one of the best options for virtualization at SMBs.

Citrix

An average user may not recognize the company name, but has a good shot at previous knowledge of their popular remote access tools, GoToMyPC and GoToMeeting. Citrix has specifically geared their virtualization software, XenApp, XenDesktop, and VDI-in-a-box toward SMBs and even claims that non-IT staff can easily manage and administer the services. They even provide a free trial to prove it.

Microsoft

Although it may be a little more difficult to manage without an in-house or outsourced IT staff, Microsoft’s Hyper-V option is hard to ignore considering its integration with the popular cloud platform Azure. Whether you’re a Microsoft loyalist or you just want to minimize the number of vendors in your network, Hyper-V offers everything you need from a virtualization service.

Oracle

This company just keeps getting bigger and bigger. Specializing in marketing software, they also offer database management, cloud storage and customer relationship management software. If you’re using any of their services already, there could be benefits to enlisting their virtualization services as well. Oracle does everything, server, desktop and app virtualization, and they believe that consolidation of all of these into one solution is what sets them apart.

Amazon

And since we’re on the topic of household names, let’s talk about Amazon’s EC2 platform, which hosts scalable virtual private servers. The ability to scale and configure capacity is definitely EC2’s biggest draw for SMBs, who are preparing for the possibility of rapid growth. Although almost any virtualization service is rooted in scalability, Amazon is leading the pack in how quickly and finely you can adjust your solution to your individual needs.

Virtualization is a really hard topic for most SMBs to tackle. This list only covers the most popular vendors, and there are plenty more out there. Choosing one based on its application possibilities and management requirements is not a subject for the lighthearted. Get in touch with us today so we can break down all of the technobabble into easy-to-understand advice and expertise.

What’s ice cream without syrup? What’s cocoa without marshmallows? What’s a computer without an Android phone and Google Chrome working hand in hand? The last analogy might sound less decadent and be a little harder to picture than the rest. That’s exactly why you should allow these five following benefits that every Android phone and Chrome combo brings to your computer to fill in the blanks:

Before getting started, you must make sure that Google Now is activated on your Android phone and the same account must be logged in for both the phone and for Chrome.

Send directions from Google Maps to your Android phone

You’re taking your time looking up directions for a restaurant on Google Maps, but your friends called to tell you everyone’s already there; fear not. You can send the location details directly to your phone. Start by typing in the destination on Google Maps and look for the Send to your phone option in the center left, click on that and click on your phone’s name. Et Voila! Co-ordinates should appear in your phone’s notifications.

Sync your computer’s Chrome tabs to your phone

This is especially useful when you are working on or researching something on your computer and need to continue on your phone after work or when heading outside. Tap on the Settings icon (3 vertically aligned dots) on the top of right of the Chrome App in your Android phone, go to Recent tabs, and you’ll see all the devices when you’re logged into Chrome.

Finding your phone

Simply typing “find my phone” in the Google search bar prompts Google to look for the last known location of your phone. On top of that, you can also ring your device in the hopes that someone will pick it up and tell you where you can come pick it up.

Use your phone to control your computer

Start off by installing the Chrome Remote Desktop app from the Google Play Store on your Android phone and the Chrome Remote Desktop app for Chrome on your computer. With this you can see and work on your Mac via Android phones as if you were sitting right in front of your desktop. This also works for Windows computers as well!

Set reminders for yourself with Google Search

If calendar entries aren’t doing the trick, this alternative is perfect for you. After activating Google Now, type in “remind me X to Y” in the Google search bar then click the blue “Remind on Google Now” nestled at the bottom of the reminders box. Google Now will then remind you of whatever you need reminding at that time - you can also set reminders to alert when you reach a certain location as well.

Now that you know that Android has more than just cute names for operating system updates, you should look into investing on a new device for yourself. Especially when there are so many things it’s capable of doing when paired with Google Chrome, expand your tech horizon and make the most of both Apple and Android. For any questions regarding the Android/Chrome combo, feel free to give us a call anytime!

Managing and monitoring medical data is incredibly complex, especially for the layman who won’t be able to understand the terminology. With the iOS 10 update rapidly approaching, both consumers and healthcare industries will have something to be excited about - the Apple HealthKit. The built-in health app allows you to save and manage medical records with just a simple tap of a button. But as you’ll soon find out, it has even more practical applications. Here are the capabilities that we can expect with the new update.

Medical records stored on your phone

With HealthKit, patients will be able to request and store their health information in the HL7 format, which is the standardized format used between healthcare providers and patients. While storing your own medical records in your phone isn’t new, the app will allow you to directly save your physician-created electronic medical record (EMR) data into the app.

This means you will have an updated version of your EMR with you at all times, which can be handy, especially if you are changing hospitals or physicians. Patients can simply share their standardized HL7 formatted records with another healthcare provider and upload the necessary data digitally to their physician, so they’ll be up-to-date on your medical history or any health issues. This also eliminates the need for you to coordinate between hospitals on the migration of your medical records.

By having an automated log of accurate medical information, healthcare providers can track patterns in the patient’s medical history that will allow them to quickly diagnose existing health issues.

Interpret cryptic medical data

Unlike other apps in the market, this built-in app is designed as a medium through which all your relevant medical data can be synced. Since your medical records are given to you in a raw XML file, the content stored within the document can seem intimidating. However, with data stored in a standardized format, applications can simply tap into the data, share information between different apps and display them in a format that you can easily interpret. For example, a fitness app like Nike+ Running will be able to accurately calculate calories burned because it has up-to-date information about your weight, height, body mass index, as well as other statistics. These apps can also take your EMR and display them on a chart to show any significant developments in your health.

Wearables

With the Apple Watch built-in pedometer, health records can also be automatically and consistently updated. This means things like blood pressure and heart rate can be easily monitored and applied to your EMR, without having to go to the doctor’s office for a checkup. At the end of the day, the potential for this new technology is still unknown, but it seems to be heading towards a clear direction - making EMR management more convenient for patients.

Contact us today if you are interested in learning more about the latest developments with Apple and their healthcare app.