Customers make the world of business go round. If you are an entrepreneur, much of your focus usually points to that of keeping them happy, contented, and loyal to your products, services, or brand. If they need the moon, you will very much pick it from the sky and deliver it to their doorsteps. Truly, your customers’ happiness and satisfaction come first and foremost.

Today, however, it is wise to accept the truth that customer loyalty is a highly volatile aspect of business. Markets, with the aid of technological and Internet advancements, have become so customer-centric leading to business to be always on their toes to prevent using costly means to keep them satisfied. Be reminded that loyal customers are automatically considered brand advocates. Their “word of mouth” recommendations are often, preferred due to high trust ratings noting the fact that their feedback emanate from actual experience.

This is why many companies, big or small, engage in market research. Such efforts help to point specifically where target markets thrive. Studies are also being done internally via social media interaction to put your own selves in their shoes, that is, to look at your products or services via the customers’ lens. After all, customer behavior is best understood from within.

While market research may seem the best approach, it still has holes that need to be looked at—closely. You need to be in the very position that will help convert customers to make purchase decision and be able to share such decision to others. This is why the need to understand customer behavior at a much closer vantage point helps to strengthen your clout on the future of your product, service, brand or company as a whole.

1. Observe carefully customers behavior on your own website. People rely mostly on the Internet to search for products or services and often, they leave traces behind like where they usually go, the amount of time they usually allot for such, and the keywords and phrases they often use to search for you. Some website analytics also offer insights on how well your website perform in terms of traffic and conversion, and other factors which you may deem pivotal to the purchasing power of your customers. All these will help point strengths of the business and the weaknesses for you to immediately patch up.

2. Social media is another important route to gather salient points on customer behavior. Crowdsourcing, for instance, is some form of behavioral targeting that allows businesses to take a closer glimpse to what the customer deep down wants. Some agencies and consultancy firm also make use of social media to gather behavioral data.

3. Carefully identify customer types and pursue each of them accordingly. This is going to be tedious but, when done appropriately, can mean the world to your business. Focusing your efforts on customer types that appeal more to the business will help point you to the right direction.

4. Make good use of the “mystery shopper” approach. Be a customer yourself and see for yourself how your business truly deals customers on the level. This helps to gain complete knowledge on how the purchasing and feedback process run.

5. You may also try to get into the recordings of customer care and assistance to verify if policies are followed. Sometimes, the problem is not in your product or service offerings but in your customer support.

Customer behavior is everything to a business. No matter how good a product, service or brand, if your efforts are not aligned with that of your customers, everything is for nothing. With these pointers, you can finally analyze customer behavior and craft ways to satisfy their needs.

How many women in business have continued working even while being wheeled into labor rooms? Or have jumped back right to answering business queries a few hours after delivery? While maternity leave may sound next-to-impossible to womenpreneurs, there are actually some options in place to ensure that you do not sacrifice health and well-being while keeping the business afloat. To give you an idea, here are some key points shared by womenpreneurs across industries on how they survived the ordeal of pre- and post- partum challenges while running a business.

Maternity leave to womenpreneurs is a challenging process. Even with all the help a new mom gets, she will always find a way to exercise her entrepreneurial rights. A business is her baby, after all. But every once in a while, it is highly recommended to rest and to think of nothing but your own self. This will not only keep your health in check, it will also help keep your sanity.

While it is easy to choose buying a house over leasing one, it cannot be said the same to an office space. For one, you need to understand that this means lack of flexibility in your current space. Your business will be “tied-up” to the current location making it harder to expand when the need requires so at a later time. Of course, this also entails coughing off a big chunk off your capital for the down payment, improvement, and maintenance costs.

However, buying also comes with astounding perks. For one, it allows you to have a clearer perspective on your fixed costs. Keep in mind that office rental usually increases year after year. Mortgage interest and property taxes also provide hefty tax deductions thereby, increasing your “income” potential. Take note also that real property rarely depreciates allowing you to have a solid investment for the future or as a retirement fund.

Many startup businesses and small-scale entities prefer leasing or renting an office space over buying to give them more flexibility. Not only does renting allow them to be flexible in terms of image and location, renting also allows them to covet prime property in a more affordable way. Basically, one does not have to shell out huge capital investments that only get tied up to idle asset like an office space. Subsequently, this also allows them to simply let the business grow first and then, be able to move from one prime location to another as they thrive.

But while the option may seem perfect for up and starting businesses, leasing also have notable disadvantages. Remember that lease increases annually and if your business does not take-off as planned, such cost may be too much of a burden. Leasing does not also assure you long-term hold on a strategic location. Often, some landlords tend to toughen their agreement once they see potential in their property.

So, should you lease or should you buy an office space? Again, it all depends on your long-term goals as a business entity. Often, one’s decision will involve not just strategic location but also tax, financial, and personal reasons. Do take note that the surge of rent-to-own office spaces is fast becoming the trend these days. With the help of a financial planner and broker, finding the best deal may give you the win-win situation you want.

Technological investments, however, are not created equal. Some of these tech solutions will provide the necessary advantages. For the year 2017, the following tactics can be used to spruce up your tech investments and enjoy more promising results and returns.

From data acquisition, advances in computer technology have shifted to “data-curation.” Data collection will finally become more interactive and intuitive delivering a certain level of a collaborative environment without sacrificing privacy. Web optimization or having a strong online presence will continue to become a major player in small businesses. Project tracking in terms of expenditures, cash flow, transparency, and so on will become more advanced and usually done in real time. Cloud-based solutions will continue to provide more insights but will become largely encrypted leading to more freedom yet more private data communication. With this, small businesses must learn to gain key focus on the business and the right tools to generate more productive results.

Streamlining business cost is one of the most important achievements of outsourcing. Small businesses can put expertise as well as economies of scale to good use without having to create “costly” ancillary departments. By outsourcing specialized services like IT, HR, accounting, and customer support, you spend less time on these matters and put more focus on your core competencies and processes. Aside from convenience and cost saved, outsourcing also allows you to innovate more and find a new niche in the market. Finding a reliable business outsourcing partner, however, must be dealt accordingly to ensure positive results.

Mobile technology is the team to beat in the years to come. It’s no longer just mobile tech but SMART mobile technology. Intuitive and interactive, smart mobile technology will continually impact business communications, sales, logistics, marketing, and other business tactics. Smartphones and tablets, as well as hybrids, will continue to utilize promising mobile technologies. Interfaces will become more simplified. Connections will be faster and more wide-ranging while maintaining more privacy.

Small business will be powered by more sustainable sources like solar, wind, water, or biomass. This will echo the growing needs of the environment due to continuous decline. While global warming is heavily debated, more and more small business will engage in tech-savvy sustainable energy to ensure cultivating a culture of accountability and co-existence.

Innovative technology has a strategic role to play in the rise of small businesses today. These tactics will help deliver them to another level of growth without having to overspend. In the end, technology and other innovations will keep pushing them to become more competitive.

So, what are the most notable innovations hailed as “game changers” in business these days? Here are some of the thriving ones:

Drones. What used to be a hobby-based industry, drones have become a must-have commodity in the agricultural and industrial market. Farmers and factories make use of drones to improve their operations as well as make better monitoring of field works. Commercial services like that of Amazon are also earning praise for their use of drone and we can expect more to come in the years to come.

Perpetual Connectivity. Wi-Fi will become a thing of the past. Telecommunication signals will become more available as tech innovations focus on nano-sensors. Wireless gadgets will repurpose radio signals to power their own selves and communicate.

Ultra Encryption. Privacy issues are continually gnawing at the root of communication channels. Today, companies are gearing for ultra-encryption allowing voice calls, SMS, files and attachments, emails, and other online communication to be protected from “eavesdroppers”. Smartphones will come equipped with such encryption software and tools to secure data and tighten privacy.

Collaborative Mobile Platform. New apps like Quip help to correct the current infrastructure in work collaboration. Now, you and your team can work together every step of the process in the same digital environment. This makes current workflows more efficient and more productive.

Virtual Reality. Facebook’s purchase of Oculus Rift has opened a whole new world in virtual reality. While immersive video games are becoming ultra-popular, virtual reality’s impact to businesses has also become more profound. Now, the same technology is extending an arm of support to emergency response training, architecture design, therapies, training, and much more.

Voice Tech. It is time to forget typing search terms when looking for something. Alexa, Siri, Cortana, Google, and a hodgepodge of voice recognition system will become a norm. Voice technology will make more effective speech interfaces leaving tech usage more interactive. This technology, though not yet perfect, will eventually deliver a more nimble future to businesses.

As technology continues to soar, more innovative processes and solutions will be available for businesses to become more productive. Be on the lookout for fresh new ideas in the market. Do not be left behind in utter obsolescence.

Economic experts have fearlessly forecasted 2017 to be swelling with new ideas and opportunities. Various sectors on the global landscape will be enjoying a more “mature” entrepreneurial environment partly due to the growing population leading to more demands for goods and services from housing to food, clothes, technology, support, research, and much more. Add to that the global clout of the Internet made even more available by smart gadgets—and voila!

So, what businesses are showing huge promise in the upcoming year? Noting positive market trends, the following businesses will definitely rock in 2017:

From the Americas to the Far East, the shift in shopping behavior to online has become more prominent over the years. It is said to blow-up in 2017 as more and more countries open their firewalls for free trade. This will be the perfect time for your unique local goodies to be showcased to the world and get the standing ovation they so deserved.

With a robust market, businesses will be expanding at a steady pace in 2017—and this means a swell in employment. While having its own HR team to do just that, companies will be keener in finding the best candidates. What better way to do that than by tapping a third party headhunting firm. These specialized units will tap on the right candidates capable to handle the tasks enumerated by the hiring company. If you have human resource management skills, starting an online consultancy firm will definitely be promising next year.

Correlating to the robustness of the economy and the aggressiveness of real-time reporting due to social media’s growing presence, companies will be padding its customer relations department, too. This will give rise to the number of home-based BPOs. While this may seem a boon to third world nations, local representatives will be at the helm of this outsourcing initiatives. Start by creating a team of experts and see how fast your venture will grow in a year’s time.

With the e-commerce business in full swing, logistic services will also come handy. Both inbound and outbound services will be needed to keep up with the growing demand of an equally growing market. So, why not turn this into a good business opportunity for you?

With the rise of online shopping, mobile gadget development, and growing Internet dependency by consumers, most brick-and-mortar companies will be required to have an online presence to handle real-time management and marketing needs. This will drive them to look for reliable web design and development experts to handle such huge online requirements. Such will also open huge opportunities for you to make good use of your coding and programming skills. Build a team of experts to cohesively handle all the business needs for best results.

Indeed, 2017 is going to be a promising year for everyone. It is high time to rethink about your business portfolio and to come up with new strategies. One can never go wrong with such an exciting year ahead!

Timing is essential when it comes to posting content on social media. Add to that the type of platform being used, the target audience, type of content, and marketing goals in mind. But while there is no best time to post such contents, there are optimal times to post on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, SnapChat, and so on. Here are the recent guidelines on social media posting time for US audiences:

Millions of people nationwide are perpetually logged in to Facebook on their mobile devices than their desktop PCs. Though mostly used for personal networking, Facebook has also started becoming a must-have for businesses. When it comes to posting quality content that earns more clicks and shares, the best time is slated on Wednesdays at 3 PM, 12 PM to 1 PM on Saturdays and Sundays, and between 1 PM to 4 PM on Thursdays and Fridays. These time slots tend to deliver the highest clickthrough rates and traffic spikes. Do remember that Friday posts must either be upbeat or funny to match audience’s mood.

Twitter is another platform embraced by millions. The best times to post, however, are during weekdays between 12 PM to 3 PM and then, at 5 PM. Businesses make good use of Twitter postings from Mondays to Fridays with special engagement on Wednesdays and the weekends. Other tweets coming at 2 AM to 3 AM, 6 AM to 7 AM, and 9 PM to 10 PM are deemed successful. Basically, this platform is as varied as it can get to learn to experiment.

Being a network frequented by professionals, it goes to follow that LinkedIn engagement is always at its peak during workdays and preferably just before and just after working hours. The most optimized posts garner the best clickthroughs during midweek at around 5 PM to 6 PM. Tuesday is the top day-of-the-week contender garnering the most clicks and shares at around 730AM to 830AM and on 10 AM to 11 AM. Other days also enjoy the same time slot with the addition of 12 PM on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Steer clear of Mondays as well as the middle of the night posting though.

A female-dominated social media platform, posting on Pinterest tend to be more active during night time at around 8 PM to 11 PM including Saturdays. Optimize your posts for the rest of the week between 2 AM to 4 AM and 2 PM to 4 PM. On Fridays, go light and bubbly by posting feel-good posts at around 3 PM.

These platforms are largely developed for mobile-savvy social media users, who tend to engage during off-work hours when the fun begins. A favorite among the millennial crowd, it is crucial to get that when building a post concept. The best times to post on these platforms is any time with the exclusion of 3 PM to 4 PM. Other businesses have also seen a huge success in posting during these times—2AM and 5 PM on any day of the week as well as at 7 PM on Wednesdays. Video and photo posts, however, get the most hits between 9 PM till 8 AM, any day.

To conclude, social media platforms are definitely here to stay. These platforms will remain in demand as more and more people become hooked to these communication avenues for information and knowledge. To successfully engage with your audience, proper timing, appropriate content, and consistency must go together to help deliver your message across.

While working from home has become an open source of employment, the idea of customizing a healthy and productive workspace is another matter. Some simply make good use of their bedroom corner without minding much about the furniture they use to keep their creative juices going. But do you know that designing a healthy home office can deliver more positive results? To kickstart your new employment opportunity at home here are useful tips to get you started:

Start your home employment going by designing your workspace accordingly. The right office furniture, lighting, and other fixtures will not only enhance its functionality and ambiance but also help improve your health and quality of life. With this, you can also guarantee more productive output and a thriving career albeit based at home.

Yes, being environmentally-friendly is good business. Aside from giving back to the environment, operating via eco-friendly means generate a culture of responsibility and selflessness proven to be endearing to conscious consumers. Apart from the benefits enjoyed, there are also important lessons to learn from becoming a “green business.”

1. Being environmentally friendly develops a sense of frugality to a business. Using LED lighting, for instance, drastically cut electricity bills and maintenance costs to a half. Other efforts like turning off the light or heating units when not in use or decreasing the number of air-conditioned units to utilize do not only cut carbon footprints but help the business save a lot of operation cost, too. Using emails and cloud platforms are also eco-friendly ways of saving paper, storage, and maintenance cost. Definitely, the effort of making one’s business “green” helps eliminate wasteful spending.

2. Your health and that of the rest of the planet is of utmost significance. In the drive to instill an eco-friendly culture for a business, you are actually supporting good health of the planet, everyone in your company, and the future generation. Cutting down on your carbon footprint will ultimately create a domino effect to your own life. You and your employees—and your families—will find your own selves engaging in such actions even in your daily lives. From eating healthy to recycling your waste to cutting on fuel dependency and using the equally eco-friendly stuff at home, you are indirectly promoting a healthier way of living.

3. Engaging in a green business allows you to be more open-minded and compassionate. It will change your outlook on life. You will begin to see the beauty of sourcing out supplies from local producers and, in effect, create a positive domino effect in the community where the business thrives. Such efforts also open opportunities for you to join a cause or an advocacy relevant to the business.

4. Crafting a green objective for your business will allow you to collaborate with others leading to productive efforts in keeping Earth a much better place to live. For instance, you can donate recycled cans and bottles from your restaurant to a group that builds homes using such materials.  Such change in mindset will allow you to put more value in everything about your business.

5. Being an environmentally friendly business allows you to realize that there is more to business than just earning the big bucks. Without a doubt using LED lights or recycling will lower your operational cost buffing-up your profit margin but beyond that, you begin to realize how your actions or inaction will greatly impact wildlife and the rest of humanity. Environmental conservation does not have any limitations or saturation points. No matter what positivity you give back to the environment and the living things thriving therein, the more remarkable things will also happen.

Without a doubt, the thought of engaging in green business by consuming less and recycling more allow you the biggest opportunities to learn. It will create a domino effect creating a huge impact not just on how you operate your business and influence buying decisions of your consumers but also ongoing through your personal day to day living as well as that of your employees. In doing so, this will also be passed down to your family, your employee’s family, your friends, business partners, the community where you thrive—raising a certain level of consciousness to make this world a little better.

The number of sponsored ads and social media subscribers will grow at a rate of 9% of 3 billion?  That’s …hmm, you do the math.  Consumers and businesses are all over social media.  You can find them on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, LinkedIn and more.   This is a digital venue that allows users to maintain relationships.  Those relationships become a great avenue for word-of-mouth recommendations and client reviews.  For businesses, these platforms are where you can promote products and services.

As social media continues to grow, the electronic gadgets we use to also continue to evolve.  Those gadgets allow real-time activity driven by real-time marketing.  Sounds like a win/win but not without challenges.  It’s important to stay ahead of the social media by keeping us with the digital trends.  To get you started, here are Social Media Fun Facts To Up Your Digital Game in 2017:

Live streaming has become more popular. We’ve leaped beyond the days where youtube was the only place to use your video.   Facebook Live is dominating and Instastories and Snapchats are close behind.  But don’t be mistaken, YouTube is still the place to be.  Real-time activity with real-time marketing is the key to success.    Remove your social media fears and get creative on YouTube, Facebook Live, Snapchat, and Instagram Stories.   Ultimately, your business can stay ahead of the competition with a sound video strategy.

Social media is the place where friends become customers and strangers become friends.  And social commerce is the ability to purchase products and services during your social media experience.  Facebook is making it convenient with the Shop Now option and Twitter with the Buy Now options.   They’ve become the one-stop shop for business.  It’s the best digital workspace you could image.  Of course, you want to use your website as your core foundation but remember to catch your customers where you can.  And there are 3 billion waiting on social media.

The demand for fast response and instant solution is surging.  Messaging apps make it easy to achieve both and increase customer engagement. This way you win customers and create ambassadors for your brand. Want to power up your customer service?  Download messenger and never miss an opportunity to ensure quick validation and fast interaction.  Customers appreciate the fast response and personalized engagement with your business teams.

It’s opened a new window on organic visibility, paid or sponsored advertising, and a more creative approach for consumers to enjoy your brand.  Advertising has become even more pronounced and versatility is the top concern as it becomes global in scope.

This year you have seen how brands ever evolving with creative and emerging tactics, to intrigue the social subscribers’ memory, interest and need. But instead of dividing efforts on various platforms, focus on one platform that will deliver the most-est results.  Use your other channels to share the interest and gather new prospects while leading them to your product and services awesomeness!

Truly, it is perplexing to imagine a life without social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google+ or WhatsApp.  At least not without a large advertising budget in media and print!  Social media has become a part of today’s highly connected society and fast-moving society. To keep up, it’s important to stay relevant, be creative and content, content, content! This way, you guarantee that you keep up in an ever-evolving market and achieve sustainable success.