Articles - Page 50

The Top 10 AI Tools for Small Business: From Automation to a Coordinated Team of AI Agents

matt-garrepy

I'm a huge fan of simplicity and elegance and I was very excited when I first saw a new Linux distribution called <a href="https://budgie-remix.org/">Budgie Remix</a> hit the news. For those who are unaware, Budgie Remix is a distribution featuring the beautiful Budgie Desktop.
Here's a screenshot of my desktop as I write this:
<img alt="Screenshot from 2016-04-26 16-31-25" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/screenshot-from-2016-04-26-16-31-25.png" />
Yes, I'm a bit of a gamer and Budgie Remix does a great job of getting out of the way and looking good doing it. For those who are curious, the bottom panel is <a href="https://launchpad.net/plank">Plank</a> which is installed as part of the desktop. Some may not be fans but I think the overall look is pretty sweet and I've found myself preferring it over Gnome and Unity.
Based on Ubuntu 16.04, Budgie Remix is aiming to be an official Ubuntu flavor, specifically, Ubuntu Budgie and needs your help to get there. If you are a fan of the Budgie Desktop, don't hesitate to head on over to their <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/BudgieRemix/">subreddit</a> or <a href="https://plus.google.com/communities/106822666079268690759">Google Plus community</a> and get involved with testing, development, etc.
Obviously, the advantage to being based off of Ubuntu is the amazing amount of software and support from various vendors. Furthermore, most game makers tend to favor Ubuntu as a testing ground for their latest releases and as much as I love Archlinux as well, Ubuntu is just a more commonly supported distro.
For those who are interested in learning more about Budgie Remix or grabbing a copy to play with, head on over to <a href="https://sourceforge.net/projects/budgie-remix/files/">Sourceforge</a> and start downloading your today. I'd love to hear about your experiences in the comments below as well.

First Look at Budgie Remix

mike-johnston

<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/intranet-development.jpg" />
You’ve been chasing the client for months. Bringing on this account would mean the world to your firm, and you’d get all the glory. Countless proposals and presentations to try and get them across the line, and finally—you get the phone call. They want to start doing business.
But it’s not your usual request. They want you to build them an office intranet.
Developing a bespoke intranet can be a long and arduous process, with no guarantees at the end of your finished product. This is not your firm’s specialty—how do you select the right <a href="https://www.myhubintranet.com/intranet-development">intranet development</a> option to meet the client’s needs, without committing too much time and resource, or even worse, flunking the opportunity you’ve been given?
We’ve got good news. There’s another way, and it’s faster, cheaper and safer. Introducing: pre-built CMS intranet systems. Read on to learn how this can be a viable option for your customers, and the answer to all your intranet development worries.
<h2>A World Without Pre-Built CMS Intranet Systems</h2>
To truly understand the value of a pre-built CMS intranet system, it pays to first look at the other side of the coin. What does it typically take to build a bespoke intranet from scratch? Here are the standard steps:
<h3>1. Requirements Analysis</h3>
Firstly, detailed information needs to be gathered from your client around their requirements. What are they hoping to use the intranet for? Are there any particular activities they will be using it for, and any special tools they may require? What baseline requirements do they have around data and security? All of this information is gathered as a needs analysis, and typically involves staff questionnaires, workshops and focus groups. No surprises that it takes a while to complete! 
<h3>2. Documentation</h3>
Following the needs analysis comes documenting—essentially detailing all the information gathered. This involves the mapping out of the necessary business processes, data flow diagrams and information, including an initial site map. Again, a slow and labor intensive process.
<h3>3. Development</h3>
Next, a prototype must be developed to give your client a feel for the solution you’re proposing. This not only allows your client to see what the end product will look like, but enables you to move forward with confidence, knowing that your intranet will be the right fit. Creating a prototype can be a lengthy ordeal, particularly as it is an important point in the process from the customer’s point of view—show them a mediocre prototype, and they might pull the pin altogether.
<h3>4. Testing</h3>
Once your intranet is completely developed, the final step is testing. No one wants to present a solution only to find out it’s full of glitches that undermine your credibility immediately! Testing should cover functionality, ease of use, device compatibility, end user appeal, speed, reliability, user load and ongoing management. As well as this, it’s important to step back from the practical perspective, and look at the intranet’s visual appeal—after all, it’s being used by humans, not machines.
It goes without saying that developing a bespoke intranet is not a straightforward process. The potential for the process to quickly suck up time and money is very real—it’s a significant investment, not to be taken lightly. This holds a degree of risk to you as a developer. Too often the journey is embarked on optimistically, only to end in high costs due to unforeseen changes and labor intensive design. 
We’ve seen what it’s like building your own intranet. Now, let’s look at a pre-built CMS intranet. 
<h2>A Better World: Pre-Built CMS Intranet</h2>
When you need to drive to work, you don’t build the road to get there. You use a pre-built road. Why? Because it’s simpler, cheaper, faster.
Intranet is much the same—using a pre-built CMS intranet negates many of the issues we’ve seen in building a bespoke intranet. Here’s a quick look at how a pre-built intranet can save you time, money and hassle along each step of the development process.
<h3>1. Requirements Analysis</h3>
No more starting from scratch. Conducting a needs analysis looks very different with a pre-built intranet. Essentially, it involves walking your client through all of the already available functions and features within the CMS intranet software, and noting down which ones are needed for their particular business. This inverted approach is fantastic because it shifts the client’s perspective—they choose from what’s available initially, rather than dreaming up a plethora of potentially unrealistic options. Risk is also reduced for you as the developer, as the pre-set options mean you’re more likely to end up creating an intranet well suited to your client’s needs.
<h3>2. Documentation</h3>
Implementing a template approach means extensive documentation is no longer required. Your pre-built intranet comes already equipped with a site map, and modules which can easily be customized. Pre-planning becomes unnecessary, as adding or editing pages is straightforward.
<h3>3. Development</h3>
Say goodbye to tedious prototype creation, and hello to simple free trials. The majority of CMS intranet providers offer the option of ‘try before you buy’, meaning, as a developer, there’s no need to build a prototype or even go through the process of installing intranet software. Simply use the step-by-step building process, utilizing the flexible page options and design. 
<h3>4. Testing</h3>
Again—no need for any testing with a pre-built CMS intranet. All the pre-testing has been performed in advance, meaning functionality can be assured from day one. In fact, this aspect of a pre-built intranet is an easy sell to your clients—there are hundreds of users out there already using the product, who can attest to its usability. 
Clearly, pre-built CMS intranet systems offer huge benefits, with very little downside compared to bespoke intranets. As well as saving time and money in the needs analysis and documentation phases, a pre-built intranet is able to be customized to meet the requirements of the majority of companies, with all the development and testing already completed and proven. 
<h2>The Cherry On Top: Cloud Intranet Hosting</h2>
As if the benefits of saved time and money aren’t enough, cloud-hosted CMS intranets offer even more benefit for your customers. Instead of having to purchase additional servers, then hosting and maintaining the intranet themselves, customers are able to outsource it to a hosting company. What this means is:
<ul>
<li>Automatic backups</li>
<li>Fixed low monthly costs</li>
<li>Up-to-date security features</li>
<li>Unlimited users</li>
<li>Automatic updates </li>
<li>Managed storage</li>
</ul>
At MyHub, we firmly believe that configuration, as opposed to development, is the best approach when implementing a new intranet. Uncertainty is lowered and return on investment is maximized. From the developer’s perspective, this means more time to focus on what you do best: understand customers, and deliver requirements. Instead of spending the time and money necessary to become proficient in intranet development, market yourself as having a competitive edge over other developers when it comes to responsiveness and understanding.
Ultimately, CMS intranets can both meet your customers’ needs, and those of your web development agency. <a href="https://www.myhubintranet.com/book-demo/">Contact us at MyHub</a> for a free consultation on how a cloud intranet can make intranet development a much easier task.

Never Stress About Intranet Development Again

SiteExecutive 2012 promises to treat your content with care allowing you simple and complete content control. Since content needs to look as beautiful on the small screens as it does on the larger displays, SE2012 introduces responsive support.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/siteexecutive_whatsnew.png" alt="SiteExecutive_whatsnew" />
<h3>Structured Content – Web Content Creation Simplified</h3>
The process of creating, correlating and distributing content can be simplified with the separation of content and presentation. Structured content enables users to define content types, presentation layers and collection methods not only in SiteExecutive, but for other devices as well. Through REST, a form of API, external systems are able to consume the data directly from structured content and deploy that content on their own devices.
Predefined fields allow for simplified content creation, requiring less time and effort. Content types are defined and created specific to organizations’ content strategy and goals using a variety of field types including WYSIWYG, Dates, Text, Numerical, Picklist/Selectors (populators), Image, and Video. Presentation layouts define how the content gathered from the content fields should display on the website, while URL interpreters and Viewlets determine what data to display in which channel (i.e. web, mobile, social media, etc.)
<h3>Enhanced Mobile Delivery Processes</h3>
The ability to reach all users regardless of device is crucial. Bridging the gap between mobile and desktop devices is easy in the latest version of SiteExecutive, which introduces support for Responsive Web Design using external style sheets. Responsive Web Design uses CSS media queries to detect the browser screen size and capabilities to deliver a tailored experience regardless of screen size.
MediaExecutive, (hosted online video service) now simplifies the delivery of video to mobile devices via streaming video support for Apple and Android products. Video is automatically encoded to the optimal format for mobile delivery using HTML5 video encoding, ensuring an optimal viewing experience across multiple device types.
For more information visit: <a href="http://www.siteexecutive.com" target="_blank">siteexecutive.com</a>

SiteExecutive 2012 release

Translation is becoming more and more relevant by the day, with content management systems and the brands they serve having to think about catering to different tongues. After all, the larger your business, the further your reach.
<img style="max-width:220px" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/sdl_logo-220x220.jpg" alt="SDL_logo" />
<a href="http://www.sdl.com/">SDL's</a> Machine Translation (MT) Engine now translates <a href="http://www.sdl.com/about/news-media/press/2016/sdl-machine-translation-translates-20-billion-words-per-month.html">over 20 billion words every month</a>. They have been developing MT technology for over 20 years, with the latest technology, <a href="http://www.sdl.com/cxc/language/machine-translation/xmt.html">XMT</a>, released in 2015.
<h2>Breaking Down Barriers</h2>
Brands across the globe are now using SDL’s MT for instant communication, translating and sharing user-generated content and analyzing Big Data sets. This powerful engine helps organizations break down the barriers of multilingual communication by providing a scalable infrastructure for the development and rapid deployment of real-time translation capabilities.
To illustrate the growing need for language translation in today's content-centric world, SDL has produced this cool infographic:
<a href="http://www.sdl.com/about/news-media/press/2016/sdl-machine-translation-translates-20-billion-words-per-month.html"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/sdl_ig_machine_translation_volume-5-11-16_tcm73-104045.jpg" alt="SDL Translation" /></a>
SDL offers MT engines that are scaled, trained and deployed to meet the unique needs of each individual organization. Key capabilities include:
<ul>
<li>Engine Training – Industry-trained and custom-trained engines produce higher quality MT output to match the terminology and style of the individual organization.</li>
<li>Secure Deployment Options – SDL’s secure cloud offering can be hosted either in a class III data center, where all customer content is destroyed at the completion of the translation, or onsite behind a customer’s firewall.</li>
<li>Post-Editing MT – An increasingly popular translation option is to have human translators Post-Editing Machine Translation (PEMT), doubling their daily production. SDL offers PEMT optimized engines, training and best practices to increase translator output.</li>
<li>Integrations – As organizations look to incorporate their translation activities into their overarching global content strategy, SDL’s MT capabilities integrate directly with other business applications.</li>
<li>Social Media – SDL’s MT engines are particularly adept at translating unstructured, social media content as its algorithms manage metadata, morphology and abbreviations common to social communications.</li>
</ul>
Upon reaching this massive milestone,  SDL's President of Global Language Solutions, Dominic Kinnon, made these comments:
<blockquote>“Machine Translation has become critical to improving language translation workflows as well as enabling global business management.
Our MT technology is used by companies from a wide variety of sectors including finance, life sciences, travel, and government to equip them to solve their language challenges.”</blockquote>
To find out more about SDL's MT Engine, <a href="http://www.sdl.com/about/news-media/press/2016/sdl-machine-translation-translates-20-billion-words-per-month.html">visit their website</a>.
And as always, you can explore more through the SDL Hub on our CMS Directory.

Infographic: SDL Now Translates 20Bn Words Per Month

B2Evolution has just launched their new revamped skins site for users of the open source blog platform. B2Evolution, for those unaware, is a great alternative to more popular tools like WordPress and Blogger.
With the new Skin repository, users can now browse all available skins for B2Evolution quickly and easily using a ton of handy filters. Skin authors can also submit their skins to the repository for inclusion.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/b2evolution-skins900x0.png" alt="b2evolution-skinsio" />
As of now, there are already a significant number of skins within the repository so if you are looking for a good skin or just want to take a look and see how B2Evolution can look, <a href="http://skins.b2evolution.net/">head on over</a> and browse it.

Looking for B2Evolution Skins? Check out their new Skin site!

CMS Critic is proud to announce their status as a media sponsor for the <a href="https://conference.modmore.com/" target="_blank"> MODX Weekend by Modmore conference</a>.
The event begins on Friday 19th and ends Sunday 21st of September 2014. 
The venue is to be within the Netherlands, in the heart of a privately owned 111 acre forest. Along with all-inclusive hotel rooms, food and drink, attendees can enjoy listening to a range of speakers who will be speaking on all the latest goings on at <a href="http://modx.com/" target="_blank"> MODX</a>. Additionally, the weekend talks will serve to update the MODX community on whatever is coming soon for the platform, as well as the Web industry as a whole. 
 The MODX Weekend conference promises to offer a high quality experience on a number of fronts, so let's take a closer look at what's on offer.
<h2>All-inclusive Treatment at a Stunning Venue</h2>
Attendees of the MODX Weekend by modmore conference can essentially kick back and relax, as the hosts take care of pretty much everything – from start to finish. 
 Luxurious VIP coaches are scheduled to pick up attendees from local airports and train stations, taking them right to the Conference Center Woudschoten, where the event will be held. 
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/woudschotenbovenaf700x0.jpg" alt="MODX Weekend by Modmore" /> The Conference Center Woudschoten is home to a professional conference center, complete with three star hotel rooms, multiple bars and restaurants, and a breathtaking view. 
Every hotel and conference room has a beautiful view of the natural environment surrounding the buildings, which will certainly enhance the typical conference experience. To explore the forest, attendees are also more than welcome to go for a stroll or even a bike ride. 
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/woudschotenhotel700x0.jpg" alt="MODX Weekend by Modmore" />
The rooms provided all have a great view of the surrounding grounds, and come with two single beds, a shower, a flatscreen TV, a desk to work on and some friendly amenities. 
A full list of what's on offer throughout the conference can be seen below:
<ul>
<li>3 nights in an on-site three star hotel room (Check-in Friday afternoon/evening, checkout Monday morning)</li>
<li>Breakfast Buffet on Saturday, Sunday and Monday morning</li>
<li>Lunch Buffet on Saturday and Sunday</li>
<li>Dinner on Friday (buffet), Saturday (three-course menu) and Sunday (BBQ)</li>
<li>Unlimited coffee, tea, water and a variety of soft drinks and snacks during the day</li>
<li>Drinks (including a selection of alcoholic beverages) and snacks every evening</li>
<li>Munchies and water in the hotel room</li>
<li>Evening Entertainment, including live music on Friday and Saturday, a Fussball tournament and more</li>
<li>Complimentary maps of the estate for walking or biking</li>
<li>Bikes are available at no charge at a first come-first serve basis</li>
<li>Access to at least 15 sessions on MODX and the Web</li>
<li>Unlimited streaming access to professionally recorded and edited videofootage for the sessions, available within a week or two after the event.</li>
<li>Pick-up on Friday from Schiphol Airport or Utrecht Central Station with a luxury VIP Coach.</li>
<li>Drop-off at the same location on Sunday evening or Monday morning.</li>
<li>Free goodies from modmore and event partners</li>
</ul>
<h2>The MODX Weekend Programme</h2>
MODX's weekend event boasts over 15 individual sessions, all of which will stretch from between Friday 19th to Sunday 21st of September 2014. 
The official programme can be seen below.
<blockquote>
 Friday (Sept 19th): We look forward to welcoming you to the venue on Friday afternoon/evening. There will be a dinner buffet served in the bar at 6pm, with plenty of drinks and opportunity to socialise while the lounge band plays. 
 Saturday (Sept 20th): The conference starts around 9.30. The morning programme is all about the latest and upcoming techniques to use in MODX and the web in general. After lunch we look at performance and workflow in the broadest sense of the words. Attendees are also invited to do a 5 minute lighting talk at the end of the day. After a three-course menu in the restaurant there will be a good ol' fashioned party night in the bar complete with live band, stand-up comedy and more…
 Sunday (Sept 21st): On Sunday there will be two tracks of sessions. In the front-end track we talk about web techniques and front-end integration with MODX. The back-end track will be about developing custom components, plugins and other techniques on the manager or framework level. To end the conference we're firing up the BBQ and enjoying the last evening together.
 Monday (Sept 22nd): After breakfast it's time to check out. We're looking into some activities for the monday morning.
</blockquote>
Early Bird Tickets are available at €699 (including VAT) until February 28th. After that, the price goes up to €799. So, make sure you <a href="https://conference.modmore.com/register/" target="_blank"> take advantage of the massive €100 discount</a> before it's too late! 
 To find out more about the all-inclusive MODX Weekend by modmore, check out the event's <a href="https://conference.modmore.com/" target="_blank"> official website</a>.

All-inclusive "MODX Weekend by Modmore Conference" Set for September 2014

Adobe has announced the arrival of <a href="https://spark.adobe.com" target="_blank">Adobe Spark</a>, a web-integrated mobile solution for creating social graphics, web stories and animated videos.
The web and mobile app hybrid let users whip up images and videos for use on social media, or within their marketing campaigns. As for the web stories, these are essentially one-page-style websites that can be built in a matter of minutes.
Adobe claims that the app is ideal for small businesses, bloggers, marketers, and students.
<h2>Adobe App Unification</h2>
Adobe Spark is basically the end result of a unification process. To make Adobe Spark, Adobe has combined and re-released; Adobe Post, Adobe Slate, and Adobe Voice.
Here's a video put together by Adobe, introducing their latest project:
<iframe src="//www.youtube.com/embed/ZWEVOghjkaw" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Here's a further break down of what <a href="https://youtu.be/ZWEVOghjkaw" target="_blank">Adobe Spark</a> consists of:
<ul>
<li><a href="http://spark.adobe.com/">Adobe Spark web app</a>: a browser-based web experience for creating social posts and graphics, web stories and animated videos.</li>
<li><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/adobe-spark-post-create-stunning/id1051937863?mt=8">Spark Post</a>: an iOS mobile app that enables anyone to create stunning social posts and graphics in seconds. (previously Adobe Post)</li>
<li><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/id/app/adobe-spark-page-create-stunning/id968433730?mt=8&amp;ign-mpt=uo%3D4">Spark Page</a>: an iOS mobile app that helps users create beautiful web stories. (previously Adobe Slate)</li>
<li><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/adobe-spark-video-easily-create/id852555131?mt=8">Spark Video</a>: an iOS mobile app that enables users to create compelling animated videos in minutes. (previously Adobe Voice)</li>
</ul>
<h2>Hands-on With Adobe Spark</h2>
I took Adobe Spark's web app for a short spin, and I liked what I saw. With the app, users can add captions to images, create videos, and tell a story about their brand's journey.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/sshot-4.png" alt="Adobe Spark Dashboard" />
I decided to create a social graphic. Adobe spark prompted me to choose a caption, and then an image size. Image sizes were pre-optimized for Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, and other social networks.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/sshot-2.png" alt="Adobe Spark interface" />
I ended up making a simple yet motivational image that's perfect for Instagram. And it took me a matter of seconds.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/sshot-3.png" alt="Adobe Spark interface" />
The user interface was smooth and speedy, while the customization options were vast. Adobe has packed Spark full of pre-designed fonts and themes that your message just slots into. The hard work has already been done.
For now, Adobe is only catering to iOS users – but I'm sure they will expand to Android before long.
My verdict? For a free app that's accessible on iOS and through my browser – it's fantastic.
I have no doubt that Adobe Spark will help boost the creativity of brands that rely heavily on image-based social networks like Instagram and Pinterest.
To find out more about Adobe Spark, <a href="https://spark.adobe.com/" target="_blank">visit the app's dedicated website</a>.
You can also explore more of Adobe's solutions through our directory hubs for; Adobe Business Catalyst, Adobe Analytics, and Adobe Experience Manager.

Hands-on With Adobe Spark: Social Graphics, Web Stories & Animated Videos

Shopify - The global commerce platform

Build your business with Shopify to sell online, offline, and everywhere in between.

The global commerce platform

#ffffff

<a href="https://www.cubecart.com/" target="_blank">CubeCart</a> has announced that all previous, current and future versions of its software will be under GPL 3.0 licence. Put simply, CubeCart is now open source.
Plus, the popular eCommerce platform has released its first beta for CubeCart version 6, along with a brand new <a href="https://www.cubecart.com/extensions" target="_blank">Extensions Marketplace</a>. It's fair to say that the CubeCart team has been hard at work over the last few weeks and months. 
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/1634_1634_37_37_cubecart_logo210.jpg" />
<h2>Going Open Source</h2>
Now that CubeCart is fully open source, developers can start to really get their hands dirty with some CubeCart coding, building extensions and designig templates. The move should guarantee a much brighter future for CubeCart as far as flexibility and extendability is concerned.
Developers wishing to sell or distribute their CubeCart extensions and templates can do so via the <a href="https://www.cubecart.com/extensions/seller/login" target="_blank">Sellers log in page</a> for the Extensions Marketplace. 
CubeCart's open source future does come with a price though, for technical support anyway. Enterprise Support is what's being offered, and it starts from £21 per month, which is roughly  $32.
<h2>CubeCart 6: The Details</h2>
CubeCart have called version 6 of their product, “a whole new philosophy for online commerce.”
Of course, CubeCart 6 is still in its early stages, but let's take a look at what's on offer anyway.
<ul>
<li>Strictly no bloatware. CubeCart v6 ships with no extensions with the aim to make it as lightweight and as optimized as possible. Extensions can be easily installed, upgraded or downgraded by copying and pasting a “token” generated from the extensions marketplace.</li>
<li>Extensions such as payment gateways, shipping rate calculators, skins etc now have individual version releases which means updates can get to you faster than having to wait and upgrade your store entirely.</li>
<li>CubeCart v6 ships with one (intentionally basic looking) responsive theme powered by the brilliant <a href="http://foundation.zurb.com/">Foundation Framework</a>. Users are encouraged to customise it themselves or to grab an off the shelf skin from the marketplace.</li>
<li>Performance enhancements like improved caching is enabled by default and the homepage should have just three lightweight MySQL queries after the cache is built.</li>
<li>Tweaks have been made to existing features such as dynamic product options on the manual order builder and improvements to the product import tool.</li>
<li>All templates &amp; extensions for v5 are forward compatible with CubeCart version 6.</li>
</ul>
To find out more about CubeCart's recent announcements, <a href="http://forums.cubecart.com/topic/49092-cubecart-v6-beta-launched-all-versions-now-open-source/" target="_blank">check out theri official announcement, made via their community forum</a>.

CubeCart Goes Open Source, Launches V6 Beta & Extensions Marketplace

Do you want to improve your company culture while also getting your employees to share your content? Would you like to choose the right employee advocacy tool to help you achieve this?
Work occupies a major chunk of your employees’ lives. They spend about one-third of their days working, and on average, 89% of them are satisfied with their jobs. As it is a major part of their lives, they will chat about work life both online and offline. <a href="http://www.webershandwick.com/news/article/employee-activists-spark-a-new-social-movement-in-the-digital-age">50% of employees</a> already share content about their employers online, and many of them are always on the lookout for quality content to share.
Therefore, it is important for companies to equip employees with the right information. Employees can share this information while having conversations on social media.
An informed employee will share the latest and most flattering information about your industry and company. This can help create a positive brand impression and drive back traffic to your website, as employees can increase brands’ reach <a href="https://www.scribd.com/doc/249153637/Infographic-MSLGROUP-Employee-Impact">tenfold</a>.
The best way to keep employees informed is with an employee advocacy platform. Choosing the right platform can be hard, though, as there are so many options available. Two of the options you can’t go wrong with are Smarp and Dynamic Signal. Both have their strengths and weaknesses. I have compared them side by side in this article, to help you select the right one.
Check out what they offer, and pick your favourite.
Smarp
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/smarp1132x0-is.png" />
<a href="http://www.smarp.com/">Smarp</a> is a full-featured employee advocacy tool. It has all the functionality you need to spark lively internal discussions and encourage employees to share content onto social media.
One of the best aspects of Smarp is how easily you can use it to queue up content for group sharing. You can post links, images and text messages. You can also move the content so that the most important content appears at the top and apply categories, so that your team members can work with topic-specific feeds. To save time, you can even integrate your social media accounts and RSS feeds so that content appears automatically. Posts can also be scheduled in advance to go live and be archived at set times.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/smarp2760x0-is.png" />
Employees can access this information via their browsers – or Android and iOS devices. They can comment on this content and share it with their friends and followers on social networks like Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin and many more.
Smarp also integrates with apps like Slack, MailChimp, Google Analytics and Dropbox. This simplifies various tasks and makes it easy to track performance metrics, like traffic generated.
 <img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/smarp3666x0-is.png" />
Their advanced gamification features entice employees to share more by making sharing an enjoyable experience. One of these features is leader board that creates a contest between employees. Employees also get points for sharing. These points can either be exchanged to donate money to charities or to claim rewards.
Smarp’s messaging and communication features aren’t the best. The only way employees can communicate with each other and with the company is through comments. Of course, you can track employees with analytics, but if you are looking for more detailed written communication this isn’t the best option.
Smarp’s advanced analytics is second to none. They provide both companyanalytics for admins and personal analytics for employees. Using company analytics, you will be able to see your best performing content and most influential employees. Smarp also calculates the “estimated earned media value” of employees’ shares.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/smarp4861x0-is.png" />
The employees’ personal analytics helps them check how their shared content is performing across social media. They also have a feature called SmarpScore that makes it easy to measure their performance.
Most employee advocacy software companies get you to sit through a demo. You will only be able to sign up and get a quote after this taxing session. But not with Smarp. Here you can instantly sign up for a free 14 day trial and test drive the tool. Pricing is also available publicly. It starts at 3.5€ / user / month. If you prefer a demo they have that option too.
Smarp’s strength lies in keeping employees informed and getting them to share your content.
Dynamic Signal
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/dynamic1016x0-is.png" />
<a href="http://dynamicsignal.com/">Dynamic Signal</a> isn’t as comprehensive a tool as Smarp. But it does do everything it needs to, and it also sports some great features that other employee advocacy tools do not.
Dynamic Signal has well-designed native mobile apps that make it easy for you to share latest news and other content with your employees. Delivery and readership of messages can be tracked. This helps you share content at the right time with only interested employees.
You can also alert employees about the latest content using Facebook Messenger, SMS and Slack.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/dynamic2283x0-is.png" />
Employees can share content they like on to social networks like Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin.
Their advanced communication features help you get detailed feedback from employees through quizzes and surveys. This will help you build an engaged internal community on the app. You can also use the data to craft a work culture that will improve company performance.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/dynamic3.png" />

You also have detailed analytics to track other metrics that you cannot obtain through communication only.
Sharing features aren’t very well developed, though, as Dynamic Signal is more focused on improving communication.
It is necessary for everyone to sign up for a demo. Pricing information can only be obtained after this session. You cannot sign up for a trial instantly.
Summary
As you can see above, both of these employee advocacy tools have their pros and cons. Smarp is a more well-rounded tool, but it lacks some internal communication features, while Dynamic Signal is more focused on team conversations.
You should choose the tool that satisfies all your needs. If you are looking for one to help understand your employees better, Dynamic Signal is the best option, while if you want one to help your company content’s distribution and performance, you should go with Smarp. Also, Smarp is the better choice if you want self-service onboarding.
Have you used both the above tools? Which is more useful, Smarp or Dynamic Signal? Please leave your comments below.

Smarp vs. Dynamic Signal: Which Employee Advocacy Platform Is Best for You?

Your work space has a bigger impact on your productivity than you might imagine.
 
A cluttered, disorganized office slows you down and makes you less productive, while an organized, streamlined office can help you to become a better and more efficient employee. Feel like you don’t have any time to organize your office? Think again.<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/organized-office.jpg" alt="messy office" /> 
Following these six basic principles will help you to become and stay more organized, saving you time that would otherwise be wasted sorting through the clutter around your desk.
<h2>1. Only Touch Documents Once</h2>
According to professional organizer Ellen Delap, executives spend 6 weeks of every year just looking for documents. Imagine how much of that time could be saved if you only touched each document once. No more rifling through papers again and again. No more searching for the same file multiple times.
Instead, when you receive a file, digitize it immediately. Put it into an electronic document management system where the document becomes a searchable PDF file. And if you receive the files electronically in the first place, immediately enter it into your DMS—you don’t even need to touch the physical file once. After the files are in the DMS, they become easier and faster to find, saving you time that would otherwise be spent elbow-deep in a filing cabinet drawer.
As an added bonus, you’ll clear out those piles of paper that are always surrounding you on your desk. A less cluttered workspace will give you a greater sense of control over your environment and help you to become more effective as you work.
<h2>2. Establish Functional Work Zones</h2>
Each section of your office should have a dedicated purpose. Some of these zones will be obvious; where your computer is located is where you do all of your computer-related work. Other zones will have to be established. First, establish a zone for any non-computer work. This may include things like sorting through mail or reviewing other physical files (before you digitize them, of course). 
You can establish this zone in a separate area of your office, or on the same desk where you do your computer work. Just make sure that you have a clear, designated space for this type of work, and don’t allow clutter or other items take over that space.
You will also want to establish zones for activities like filing and digitizing files. Make sure you have everything you need in these areas in order to complete this task. Have the scanner near the filing cabinets, and a shredder nearby. This allows you to quickly grab a file, scan it into your system, and shred it without having to walk across the office to do it.
Create a designated zone for every task you complete on a regular basis, and ensure you always have the tools you need close at hand for that zone’s work. This will make sure you don’t have to hunt for things and can remain completely effective with every minute you spend in the office.
<h2>3. Don’t Let Paper Touch Your Desk</h2>
Paper is one of the biggest clutter-causers in any office, so if you want to ensure that your space stays organized, it’s best to never let paper even touch your desk. Of course, there will be times when papers are brought to you or documents need to be reviewed. Don’t let people just toss the documents into a messy pile on your desk.
Instead, put some kind of paper receptacle on your desk or on your door. When people bring you documents, just point to the paper tray on your desk. Though it would be best to keep things in electronic format, using a tray at least keeps items organized and reminds you that those documents still need your attention.
Better yet, if you have your own office, hang a paper receptacle on the door for people to drop in contracts, mail, and other files. This makes it so that you’re not interrupted every time someone needs to hand a document to you, allowing you to stay on task at all times.
<h2>4. Organize Your Office Supplies</h2>
We’ve already talked about having the right supplies in the right work zones, but you should take that idea one step further and ensure that every office supply you use is properly organized. First and foremost, this means not keeping all of your supplies out on your desk. Sure, you may have spent a little extra to have that super cute matching stapler and hole puncher, but you shouldn’t keep them out on display. This just adds to the clutter on your desk.
Keep your office supplies in an organized, easy-to-reach space like a desk drawer. Use organizing trays to keep small items like paperclips organized. Office supplies that are frequently used together should be close to each other—notepads should be near the pens, extra staples should be near the stapler, and so on.
Use a separate drawer or storage space for your personal items, like your wallet, sunglasses, and phone. This will keep your personal items from getting in the way when you need supplies. Plus, you won’t have to dig through all of your drawers at the end of the day, wondering where you left your keys.
<h2>5. Get a Bigger Trashcan</h2>
This might sound a little strange, but it can be surprisingly effective. When you get documents that you don’t need, you may be tempted to through it in an “I’ll deal with this later” pile. Dealing with paper is one of the most time-consuming tasks in an office, and therefore, it is the one that people put off the most. But most papers can either be discarded, or digitized and then discarded.
A larger trashcan has more of a physical presence, so you will be more aware of it and think of it more often, and will therefore be more likely to use it. Rather than piling up those papers to “deal with later,” you can quickly toss whatever needs to be tossed. In fact, make it a bigger recycle bin instead of a bigger trashcan; you can save the environment while saving your desk space.
<h2>6. The Five-Minute Rule</h2>
Don’t think that organizing your office is a one-time task. It is something that takes regular effort—but luckily, it doesn’t take much. Dedicate at least 5 minutes of your day to keeping your office organized. This is best done at the end of the day, when you can clear your desk and get yourself reorganized for the next day. Don’t skip this important task. Putting it off will result in things piling up, and if you’re not careful, you’ll once again be left with a disorganized space.
Put in just a few minutes every day, and your desk can stay neat and organized, and you’ll be more efficient as a result. 
<h2>Conclusion</h2>
Though initially organizing your office will take a bit of time and effort, you will get that time back ten times over by improving your productivity and eliminating a lot of wasted time. As we mentioned many times in this article, paper is one of the biggest time wasters in your office, and puts a huge damper on your ability to be efficient. So if you are dealing with large amounts of paper, make it your priority to deal with that problem first.
<a href="http://www.efilecabinet.com/">eFileCabinet</a> offers an easy way to digitize those papers so that you only have to touch them once, and they stay off of your desk for good. Look into this document management solution so you can be on your way to a more organized office.
Sources: <a href="http://www.inc.com/neil-patel/how-to-organize-your-office-for-maximum-productivity.html">Inc</a>, <a href="http://www.cio.com/article/2404456/time-management-productivity/how-to-organize-your-office-and-boost-your-productivity.html">Cio</a>, <a href="http://www.lifehack.org/articles/productivity/21-tips-to-organize-your-office-and-get-more-done.html">LifeHack</a>

The 6 Basic Principles of an Organized Office

<a href="https://automattic.com/">Automattic</a>, the parent company of WordPress, has announced that .blog domains will be available for everybody sometime during 2016.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/pr_sharable.jpg" alt="pr_sharable" />
According to <a href="https://en.blog.wordpress.com/2016/05/12/coming-soon-new-blog-domains-for-websites/">Automattic's announcement</a>, they have recently secured the rights to oversee and operate the sale and registration of .blog domains, a new and never-before available top-level domain.
<h2>.blog For All</h2>
Webmasters will be able to purchase .blog domains at <a href="https://wordpress.com/">WordPress.com</a> as well as through Automattic's partner domain name registrars (somehow <a href="/123-reg-deletes-customer-websites/">I doubt that 123-reg will be on the list</a>).
This means that .blog isn't dependent on WordPress. Even if you're running a Joomla website, a .blog domain could soon be yours to use as you wish, just like a .com.
Automattic themselves made a bolder comparison to .com domains, stating that the .blog domain extension will give people an alternative:
<blockquote>
For years, .com was the dominant choice for website names, but it’s become increasingly difficult to find a name. With a top-level domain like .blog, you can get a name that truly matches your identity. Plus, you’ll get all the same benefits with Google search results.
</blockquote>
<h2>What Does This Mean for Blogging?</h2>
There's no doubting the influence that Automattic has on the blogosphere. It has become a cliche statistic, but through WordPress, Automattic powers almost a quarter of the Internet's websites (the CMS' of which we have knowledge of).
But will this change the face of blogging? Probably not.
Will we see people using .blogs for anything other than small and personal websites? Will it rival .com domains and become as widely used? I don't even think Automattic believes that.
But still, it's exciting, tempting – and about damn time, too.
After all, with tacky domain extensions like .guru and .cash flying around, I'm surprised it's taken until 2016 to see .blog make an entrance.
Will you be picking up a .blog domain? Let me know in the comments section below.

Automattic Set to Launch .Blog Domains: A New Blogging Horizon?

Piwik is a free web analytics platform. Worked on by a dedicated group of developers as a free, open source, real-time web analytics platform, Piwik provides a nice interface and great functionality that is easy to install and use. I like it so much that I use it in conjunction with Google Analytics here on CMS Critic and thought I'd share my thoughts in this Piwik Review.
Piwik web analytics comes in a small 5.7 mb package that can be install on any traditional web server or host that uses PHP. In my case, I installed it on our web hosting service but you can use pretty much anything or host it yourself. Installation is one of the smoothest and quickest I've experienced and in the number of times I've installed it, I've never encountered any hiccups preventing me from completing successfully. I'd show you the install routine but it's really quite quick and I'd rather dive right into the meat of the matter and show you the tool itself instead.
This is what the default setup looks like once you've installed Piwik web analytics and have logged into the tool for the first time. In this Piwik review, we're using screenshots pulled from their demo (we'll post a link to it at the end of this article).
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/bigstock-customer-relationship-manageme-95142614_ammalr.jpg" alt="piwik review - screenshot #1" />
As you can see, the dashboard is made up of a number of widgets which you can remove, minimize or re-add with ease using their Widgets &amp; Dashboard drop down menu. By default, Piwik has the following widget areas enabled, but you can easily add more if you like:
<ul>
<li>Last Visits Graph</li>
<li>Visitors in Real Time</li>
<li>List of Keywords</li>
<li>Visitor Countries (Map)</li>
<li>Visitor Browsers</li>
<li>Best Search Engines</li>
<li>Visits by Server Time</li>
<li>List of External Websites</li>
<li>Length of Visits</li>
<li>RSS of the Piwik.org Blog</li>
</ul>
There are a number of tabs along the top of the dashboard that take you to even more information. The first of which is the Visitors tab which gives you an overview of the visitors to your site over the last few weeks with additional information such as the percentage of bounces, downloads, outlinks and actions.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/piwik-2-620x393.jpg" alt="piwik review - screenshot 2" />One of the sub categories on the Visitors tab is the Engagement one. In this section, you are provided with a look at the number of returning visits to your site (graphed out over a period of a few weeks) as well as the Visits per visit duration, visits per number of pages and visits by visit number. Piwik Web Analytics also gives you a quick list of additional info such as the number of returning visits, actions by the returning visits, average visit duration of returning visitors and return visitors that have bounced.
I particularly find it useful for finding out how engaging our content is and this is a often frequented page in my daily review of statistics to see how well the site is performing. Of particular interest is the number of actions per visit as this is directly indicative of how well additional content is positioned within the site.
On the Actions tab, you will find information about the performance of various Pages within the tracked site. In the screenshot below you'll see that each page has it's own Pageviews, Unique Pageviews, Bounce rate, Exit Rate and Average time on the page tracked. This is obviously a great overview as to what content is being consumed on the site and how engaging it is.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/wordpress-589121_960_720_qr4zun.jpg" alt="piwik review - screenshot 4" />
Have a high bounce rate? Perhaps the title isn't well aligned with the content or you need to consider restructuring the article to better present your points. Is the bounce rate low on a particular page? I guess you've nailed it and people find the content useful and well targeted towards what they were searching for.
Obviously, as with anything, this is a tool best used in conjunction with others content analytics tools in order to get truly in-depth detail, but it certainly assists in giving you the quick and dirty info on content / site performance.
On the Referrers tab you'll find information about (wait for it…) referrers. Shocking right? The overview page gives you quick information about the type of referrers (direct, search engine, websites or campaigns) and various information about each including evolution over a period of time.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/piwik-5-620x409.jpg" alt="piwik review - screenshot 5" />
In the past, the Search Engines &amp; Keywords sub category was a favorite haunt of mine but with the recent changes made to the way Google handles tracking of these things, a large portion of the keywords passed by Google are no longer provided and come across as “keyword not defined”. This is the same for other analytics tools we've tried although the results may not come across with the same term. For instance, in Google Analytics, they show up as “not set” as opposed to “keyword not defined”.
Some keywords still come across from Google users who are not logged into a Google account so it's still a good stop on the review but not as valuable as it once was.
Piwik also provides you with the ability to create and track goals using their Goal Conversion tracking option. Simply add a new goal using the screen below and you'll be able to track performance quickly and easily.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/piwik-8-620x414.jpg" alt="piwik review - screenshot 8" />
The results of your goal tracking will be shown as below on the Goals tab. You can select an overview or individual goals in the sub categories provided.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/ingeniux_cms_logo_bpfghz.png" alt="piwik review - screenshot 6" />
Piwik doesn't just work for a single website either, you can manage multiple websites from a single installation. To change, simply select the one you wish to view statistics for. To track a site, you add a simple snippet of javascript to your site and you are off to the races.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/piwik-7-620x114.jpg" alt="piwik review - screenshot 7" />
<h3>Conclusion</h3>
This brings me to the end of my Piwik Review. While it's certainly true that I can get this same information (in some form or another) from Google Analytics as well.. I find the Piwik interface to be faster and easier when it comes to finding something out quickly and easily. That is not to say that it is better than Google Analytics but they are, in my mind, two completely different beasts. I tend to use Google Analytics for advanced reports and in depth research, while with Piwik, I get quick insight into site performance, visits and referrers.
If you are looking for a quick, easy to install, real time analytics platform that is both open source and free, look no further than Piwik. You won't regret it.
You can try out a <a href="http://demo.piwik.org/" target="_blank">demo of Piwik</a> or download it from their webpage, <a href="http://piwik.org/" target="_blank">Piwik.org</a>. Do you have any thoughts you'd like to share on Piwik or this Piwik Review? We'd love to hear them in the comments below!

Piwik Review - An Open Source Web Analytics Tool

<a href="http://www.ibm.com/us-en/">IBM</a> announced the expansion of their product portfolio today, bringing in new “cognitive technologies” to bolster their <a href="http://www-03.ibm.com/software/products/en/category/real-time-personalization">Real-Time Personalization</a> &amp; <a href="https://www.ibm.com/commerce/us-en/campaigns/commerce-insights/">Commerce Insights</a> solutions.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/ibm.jpg" alt="IBM" />
The plan is to empower marketers and e-commerce professionals to learn, predict and guide customer engagement throughout custom brand journeys.
<h2>IBM: Impressive Returns</h2>
According to a recent report from Nucleus Research, IBM delivers a $15.82 return on investment (ROI) for every dollar spent on its marketing, sales, merchandising and analytics products. Those offerings are used today by the likes of ING Direct and The Home Shopping Network.
With these announcements, IBM is merging cognitive technologies into existing tools that practitioners already work with to deliver complete end-to-end customer experiences.
“Every customer is unique and has little tolerance for businesses that fail to recognize their specific interests, wants and needs,” said Harriet Green, General Manager, Watson IoT, Commerce and Education, IBM. “Today we continue to invest in building our portfolio which includes new cognitive solutions that will completely transform how companies serve each customer. Businesses will be able to quickly understand, reason and learn from every customer interaction – and put that knowledge to use to uncover new opportunities from insights.”
<h2>IBM Real-Time Personalization</h2>
With IBM Real-Time Personalization, marketers can deliver the right message and offer to customers every time.
Part of the IBM Marketing Cloud, Real-Time Personalization understands that a person’s preferences change over time and addresses this through its Cognitive Rule Adviser, which learns, advises and suggests the offer and message should be shared with each visitor. It then discovers which segments are responding best to each variation (broken down by factors such as age, geography, etc..) and through self-learning algorithms and analytics fine-tunes the experiences over time.
For example, a sporting goods retailer identifies a customer whose site profile indicates they are interested in taking up cycling. Recognizing she’s a novice, the site responds with deals on bikes and everything she needs to get started, all presented with visual images that help her make the right purchase. Through its cognitive technologies, the site later learns that her needs have shifted based on activity focused on nutrition for long-distance rides, automatically adapts and shares content on local races and nutrition recommendations and offers on foods items in the store.
<h2>IBM Commerce Insights</h2>
IBM also announced new cognitive technologies in <a href="https://www.ibm.com/marketplace/cloud/online-merchandising/us/en-us">Commerce Insights</a>, which provides merchandizers with a real-time view of their business, specifically focused on how products and categories are performing.
Now, with new cognitive-powered category sequencing capabilities, the site automatically places products on a web page based current demand and inventory and adapts the sequencing as sales and inventory levels change.
Commerce Insights is also infusing cognitive into its anomaly detection capabilities so teams are automatically alerted to significant spikes and dips in sales and presented contributing factors such as inventory, promotional event, channel activities and soon input from social sentiment and competitive pricing.
For example, a retailer receives two messages from the solution’s Notification Center. First, the team is alerted that inventory on the new 4K TVs are running low.
Through its cognitive category sequencing capabilities, the site automatically re-order products on the page so the items with low inventory levels are dropped down until new shipments are received. A second alert identifies a top video game consoles that’s not selling as projected and automatically discovers that the issue is caused by a shift in competitor pricing.
With this insight, it recommends the retailer lower their offering price and shows what the resulting margin will be so they are prepared for a sudden surge in sales.
To find out more, visit the <a href="http://www.ibm.com/us-en/">IBM website</a>.

IBM Unveils Additions to Real-Time Personalization & Commerce Insights

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