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How to adjust your Windows 10 notifications

Unless the computer app is critical for your work, alerts about a new patch update or incoming message can distract you. Luckily, you can personalize your notifications settings on Windows 10’s action center using these three simple steps.

Overarching action center settings

First of all, you should customize your Windows 10 system-wide notifications settings.

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11 Sep, 2018 / by Complete Technology Resources / in Windows category
How to adjust your Windows 10 notifications

Unless the computer app is critical for your work, alerts about a new patch update or incoming message can distract you. Luckily, you can personalize your notifications settings on Windows 10’s action center using these three simple steps.

Overarching action center settings

First of all, you should customize your Windows 10 system-wide notifications settings. To view these:

  • Click on the Cortana icon on your taskbar and type ‘Notifications’.
  • Click ‘Notifications & actions settings’.

Here, you can turn off alerts entirely or customize the alerts for core functions such as alarms, reminders, and incoming VoIP calls.

Settings for individual applications

If you want to take a far more nuanced approach to your notifications, there are advanced options to create rules on an app-by-app basis. At the bottom of the ‘Notifications & actions’ setting screen is a section titled ‘Get notifications from these senders.’ By enabling any of the items in this list, you can open a new window full of more graded notifications options. From here, users can specify lock screen, sound, and priority settings for individual software.

You can also adjust the amount of notifications of a particular app in the ‘Number of notifications visible in action center’ setting. To do so, click on the app’s name and select the amount of notifications you’d like to receive at any given time. Although the default amount is three, you can choose to get up to 20 notifications.

Closing the blinds

For users who have no interest whatsoever in the Windows 10 action center, you can banish it entirely. To do this:

  • Open Cortana and search ‘Notification area’.
  • Click ‘Turn system icons on or off’.
  • Toggle the Action Center option to remove the icon from your taskbar.

You can also choose which apps to remove from your taskbar entirely. To do so, click the back arrow to return to the ‘Notification area’ window and choose ‘Select which icons appear on the taskbar’.

If artists have tools unique to their style, why shouldn’t the tools of your trade be tailored to your preferences? Get in touch with us today to speak with one of our tech-savvy specialists about your technology goals to start achieving new levels of productivity and efficiency on your Windows machine today.

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.

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Valuable strategies for SMBs on Facebook

Facebook’s most recent monthly active users numbered over 2.3 billion. That’s almost one account for every three people on the planet! Many of your ideal customers use this platform to interact with businesses and creating a page for them to engage with yours costs almost nothing.

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10 Sep, 2018 / by Complete Technology Resources / in Facebook, Social Media category
Valuable strategies for SMBs on Facebook

Facebook’s most recent monthly active users numbered over 2.3 billion. That’s almost one account for every three people on the planet! Many of your ideal customers use this platform to interact with businesses and creating a page for them to engage with yours costs almost nothing. Here are six free ways to get more eyes on your business’s Facebook page.

Focus on getting comments

In the beginning of 2018, Facebook announced broad changes to what it shows to users. Notably, the social platform now prioritizes posts from friends and family over those from businesses. Zuckerberg says the aim is for users to engage with their connections more often, and going forward, the number of comments a post has will be the biggest factor in how many newsfeeds it shows up in. Posts from businesses lost a lot of visibility, but the ones that generated the most conversation weren’t hit as hard.

Facebook-only promos

Another great strategy for boosting user engagement is to offer product or service discounts that are only available through Facebook. You want users to see value in your page, so avoid copying and pasting a special, such as a discount code, from another marketing channel. One popular option is to promise the release of a new promotion in your next live video broadcast. Announce the details during the broadcast and tell viewers to leave a comment if they want to be included. Then, you can send them a direct message with a confirmation and a thank you.

Facebook CTAs: Update them often

Businesses have several text options for the ‘call to action’ button on their Facebook page. Would ‘Contact Us’ get more clicks than ‘Learn More’ for your page? Experiment with the different options and where they link to until you find the most successful combination. You probably spent more than a few minutes working on the CTAs for your website — why wouldn’t you do the same on Facebook?

Don’t just post about yourself

If a user has already liked your page, they know you exist and they have a decent idea of what you sell. Occasionally take a break from posting links to your site and include news and information that relates to your products or services. Remember, Facebook places the most value on social posts, and limiting yourself to company updates and promotions will bore your followers.

Pin posts to the top of your page

When a post generates lots of engagement and holds users’ attentions for a long time, don’t let it get buried underneath less popular posts. Click the arrow in the upper-right corner of the post and select Pin to Top to make it one of the first things people see when they visit your page.

Be personal
Most importantly, always look for ways to make your company’s Facebook page more personal. Stiff and formal posts are a dime a dozen and rarely catch anyone’s attention. If you share fun, behind-the-scenes photos of your business, respond to comments in a conversational tone, and make jokes, your page will stand out from the rest.

A Facebook business profile may be free, but generating engagement will take some effort. We can help by installing and supporting communication and customer relationship management solutions that simplify the engagement process. Contact us today to find out more.

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.

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5 Simple but effective cybersecurity tricks

Can you name five cybersecurity best practices? Most people can’t, and few of those who can, actually follow them. Unfortunately, cyberattacks are far too common to be lax about staying safe online. Your identity could be stolen, or even worse, you could expose private information belonging to your company’s clients.

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07 Sep, 2018 / by Complete Technology Resources / in Security category
5 Simple but effective cybersecurity tricks

Can you name five cybersecurity best practices? Most people can’t, and few of those who can, actually follow them. Unfortunately, cyberattacks are far too common to be lax about staying safe online. Your identity could be stolen, or even worse, you could expose private information belonging to your company’s clients. There are many ways you can protect yourself, but this list is a great starting point.

1. Multi-factor authentication (MFA)

This tool earns the number one spot on our list because it can keep you safe even after a hacker has stolen one of your passwords. That’s because MFA requires more than one form of identification to grant access to an account.

The most common example is a temporary code that is sent to your mobile device. Only someone with both the password and access to your smartphone will be able to log in. Almost any online account provider offers this service, and some let you require additional types of verification, such as a fingerprint or facial scan.

2. Password managers

Every online account linked to your name should have a unique password with at least 12 characters that doesn’t contain facts about you (avoid anniversary dates, pet names, etc.). Hackers have tools to guess thousands of passwords per second based on your personal details, and the first thing they do after cracking a password is to try it on other accounts.

Password manager apps create random strings of characters and let you save them in an encrypted list. You only need one complex password to log into the manager, and you’ll have easy access to all your credentials. No more memorizing long phrases, or reusing passwords!

3. Software updates

Software developers and hackers are constantly searching for vulnerabilities that can be exploited. Sometimes, a developer will find one before hackers and release a proactive update to fix it. Other times, hackers find the vulnerability first and release malware to exploit it, forcing the developer to issue a reactive update as quickly as possible.

Either way, you must update all your applications as often as possible. If you are too busy, check the software settings for an automatic update option. The inconvenience of updating when you aren’t prepared to is nothing compared to the pain of a data breach.

4. Disable flash player

Adobe Flash Player is one of the most popular ways to stream media on the web, but it has such a poor security record that most experts recommend that users block the plugin on all their devices. Flash Player has been hacked thousands of times, and products from companies like Microsoft, Apple, and Google regularly display reminders to turn it off. Open your web browser’s settings and look for the Plugins or Content Settings menu, then disable Adobe Flash Player.

5. HTTPS Everywhere

Just a few years ago, most websites used unencrypted connections, which meant anything you typed into a form on that site would be sent in plain text and could be intercepted with little effort. HTTPS was created to facilitate safer connections, but many sites were slow to adopt it or didn’t make it the default option.

HTTPS Everywhere is a browser extension that ensures you use an encrypted connection whenever possible and are alerted when one isn’t available on a page that requests sensitive information. It takes less than one minute and a few clicks to install it.

If you run a business with 10 or more employees, these simple tips won’t be enough to keep you safe. You’ll need a team of certified professionals that can install and manage several security solutions that work in unison. If you don’t have access to that level of expertise, our team is available to help. Give us a call today to learn more.

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.

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5 helpful small-business apps for iPad

Apple’s iPad continues to grow in popularity as a personal tablet, but it also has a lot of potential for small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). You may be using your iPad for surfing the web and composing the occasional work email, but it can do a lot more than that.

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06 Sep, 2018 / by Complete Technology Resources / in iPad, Social Media category
5 helpful small-business apps for iPad

Apple’s iPad continues to grow in popularity as a personal tablet, but it also has a lot of potential for small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). You may be using your iPad for surfing the web and composing the occasional work email, but it can do a lot more than that. Take a look at our five essential iPad applications that help employees work more productively.

Point of sale apps

One of the most popular uses for iPads in SMBs is as a means of ringing up customer purchases. The checkout aisle has slowly been giving way to automation, and with apps like Vend and Revel you can save a great deal of money on expensive point of sale hardware and wasted employee time. From customer relationship management to loyalty programs and gift cards, these apps give your business a polished, professional front end.

Presentation apps

Business presentations are a staple of the white-collar world, and being ill-prepared for one can sabotage your profitability. Although in the past users were generally averse to creating presentations on ‘restrictive’ touchscreens, Apple’s continued dedication to making it possible is evidenced by their Keynote app. Before writing it off, check out the extremely intuitive creation and delivery functions.

Social media management

For better or worse, the number of social media avenues to promote your business are growing every day. Updating and managing each of them individually is tedious, and ultimately a waste of valuable time. Social media managers like HootSuite allow you to manage multiple accounts, schedule posts, and reply to messages — all from one place. HootSuite even has analytics and campaign plans directed toward small businesses looking to engage new customers.

Remote Access

Mobility is one of the most sought-after traits of any modern business. If you find yourself constantly away from your desk, a remote access app may be your golden ticket to staying productive on the road. Apps like LogMeIn and GoToMyPc give you unfettered access to your designated desktops. This way you can keep working from the cab, home, or airplane, like you never left the office.

Invoicing/Payment tracking

A desktop computer might seem like the ideal place to track invoices, expenses and employee hours, but mobile accounting apps are freeing up business owners to take their company on the road. SMBs with multiple locations or remote workers will love the cloud access afforded to them by the likes of FreshBooks and Outright. CEOs can push data to these apps from their iPad while their accountants review it from the other side of the country.

When it comes to SMB technologies, we’re the experts. And whether it’s security or usability that has kept you from utilizing mobile devices in your business processes, we have a solution for you. Don’t risk exposing your business to unnecessary risks. Contact us today to set up a consultation.

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.

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