As you may know, I’m a strong advocated of blogging. It’s a powerful tool used to attracted large audiences of every niche. There’s also monetization benefits too!
I’m also a proponent of social media. Working towards growing a dedicated following on popular social platforms may prove to pay off.
For many new comers attempting to drive traffic to their websites, they may face the challenge of competing against more established sites with high Domain Authority.
With social media, this gives users a chance to build an audience.
She went with celebrity blogging in spite of the naysayers. Several opportunities for bloggers are becoming competitive. Find creative ways to stand out.
She valued her first 3,500 followers and engaged with them as a way to connect with them.
She leveraged her following base by selling advertising space on her website.
Her audience were more interested in what THEY wanted as opposed to her blogging opinions. Give the people what they want.
Diversify topics as the audience grows
Conclusion..
While I’m not a fan of gossip blogs, it’s always nice to hear of their success stories. The Shade Room offers another example of how the Internet is a benefit to hard work and a great idea.
While many use Cryptocurrencies, it’s not clear if the future’s bright for global acceptance due to some concerns and criticisms. Thus, the Lakshmi Coin may face steady challenges for the future.
John Crestani has a keen eye on identifying online opportunities. Check the video below to learn about his suggested way to make money online:
In summary, he mentions four ways to making money online. Not surprisingly, many of those listed were mentioned in this blog entry. As per the video, these methods are:
Blogging is a great way to promote affiliate products. It makes sense to use a content rich blog. Adding banner links and reviews of products help with potential rankings in Google. Read the previous blog post for more details.
Social Media can also attract potential customers. Many marketers (including bloggers) set up Facebook pages as a way to build an audience around topics that are helpful to them. Being an authority and “thought leader” helps build trust among followers.
Vlogging through YouTube and other video platforms can attract a loyal audience. The marketer uses videos to help their audience and promote products in their prefered niche.
Ecommerce
Setting up an Amazon FBA. Basically, shipping products directly Amazon for more convenience.
Obviously, Ebay’s still the top choice for merchants.
Etsy and Shopify are emerging platforms to consider.
Ebooks
Many authors use Kindle to sell books. Ironically, many sellers pay Ghostwriters to write for them before promoting on Amazon. For those concerned about hiring one, The Letter Pile gives some great advice.
Mobile App
Apps make money from ads, affiliate products, In-App purchases or the application itself. Additionally, the Huffington Post gave a list of apps that could make you money.
Which pretty much means it’s for Muslim men in Indonesia:
App Launch Controversy
Of course, dating was part of the Internet Daily Life post regarding society’s online activity. And as you may know, the Internet has given a platform for anyone with an idea to reach the masses.
But, I wasn’t expecting to come across this. The Ayopoligami founder ran into a few glitches, however.
Turns out, upon it’s initial launch, a bit of controversy followed. In fact, some of the criticisms of the app include:
Because of the Internet, Hip Hop radio online has changed the way we tune in and hear the latest tracks.
This includes up and coming, mainstream and underground artists.
Gone are the days of recording your favorite jams every Friday or Saturday night with the 90 minute cassette tape.
Additionally, we’re no longer obligated to listen to commercial radio’s cookie cutter playlist. With streaming, terrestrial radio has found itself facing competition now that music lovers have more of a say in what we listen to (provided one’s connected to a service).
In fact, previously, online radio was included in the Internet Daily Life blog post.
Anyway, here’s a list of Hip Hop radio shows worth checking out:
TuneIn vs. Everybody
Of course, a Hip Hop radio online list wouldn’t be complete without Tunein.com (Apple, Android) .
Homeboyz Radio – based inKenya. Some mainstream mixed with up and coming and African artists.
Dirty South Radio – mostly underground and up and coming. Good source if you’re into the trap sound.
Organic Hip Hop Radio – 90’s flavor, exclusive tracks, some mainstream and up and comers.
Hip Hop Live – underground, up and coming and exclusive tracks.
Radio Hip Hop – personal favorite. A lot of underground and 90’s tracks. You should also visit their website.
Rinse FM – personally recommended for open minded listeners. Rinse is located in London so expect UK Hip Hop and Grime tunes. Check out shows from SK Vibemaker and Sir Spyro (The Grime Show).
Hip Hop has gone digital
Speaking Of London….
The Rap Show With Charlie Sloth – known for the Fire In The Booth freestyle sessions, Charlie Sloth has made a name for himself playing exclusive and up and coming artists from the UK and North America.
DJ Semtex – another top choice show for Hip Hop anywhere in the world (my opinion). A mix of mainstream, up and comers as well as exclusive interviews from US and UK artists.
Tim Westwood – veteran DJ with a lengthy resume. Variety of genres including mainstream.
Other Recommendations
Cosmic Kev – Philadelphia’s veteran DJ. Mainstream, up and comers and exclusive tracks. Weeknights, 7:00 pm-Midnight.
997 Hip Hop – mixture of mainstream and up and comers.
Amsterdam’s Most Wanted – some underground artists. A lot of exclusive tracks from well known acts as well.
Party Vibe Radio – top recommendation for up and comers, 90’s flavor, mainstream and the trap sound.
Did anyone read about the Estonia cryptocurrency development? Turns out, the nation responsible for Skype and TransferWise was rumored to issue their own digital currency called estcoins.
Through its e-Residency program (a system that allows entrepreneurs a chance at running a business globally), the proposal would make the Baltic country the first to have an Initial Coin Offering.
Interestingly, although this news has been reported on by TechCrunch, there’s nothing written in stone.
In fact, according to QC.com, Mario Draghi, president of the European Central Bank, was quoted as stating:
No member state can introduce its own currency; the currency of the euro zone is the euro.
While his statement may come off as a dash in hopes, the e-Residency website continues to stay updated with news for its readers however.
Of course, while crypotocurrencies are popular among the tech savvy generation, it still has a long way to go before being recognized by the masses as a form of exchange.
Some more resources worth reading on this subject:
It’s been mentioned previously in the Internet Daily Life entry about the convenience of sending and receiving money digitally. Because cryptocurrencies are gaining momentum, there’s possibility for more blog posts on this subject in the near future.
The previous blog post detailed some success stories with individuals making money promoting affiliate programs. So, it’s only right to discuss the basics of affiliate marketing for dummies.
Now, this in no way implies anyone reading this is ‘dumb’. It’s just that this entry will attempt to explain this market in such a way that even this guy could understand:
We will try to make this blog post so simple even this guy would understand.
Yet, affiliate marketing should personally receive another post because of it’s growth and potential.
Why Affiliate Marketing?
Affiliate marketing is an opportunity for website owners to earn passive income. There are several ways to become an affiliate marketer as well as implement the marketing process.
There are two important aspects of affiliate marketing, and both require research.
First, you need to develop a marketing plan that works for your audience, and then you will need to decide on the best ways to execute your plan.
Affiliate marketing does not have a one-size-fits-all formula, but everyone has the opportunity to develop the skills to perform well in this field.
How Do I Get Started?
Avoid The Scams
As one can see, success is possible, especially for those willing to put in time to learn the nuts and bolts of this industry. You owe it to yourself to invest a lot in becoming educated on this subject.
In fact, there’s a lot of scams out there, and that’s why it’s imperative for “newbies” to stay alert of vultures seeking hard earned money while offering nothing of value in return.
Trust me, I’ve seen the videos from Clickbank and YouTube where the guy pulls up to a big house in a luxury ride. They (allegedly) make $10,000-20,000 a month with minimum effort.
Some would have you believe you’re able to earn large profits in no time if you follow this simple system. (And it’s not lost on me that most of them love using the words “profits” and “systems” often!)
You may also wish to stay on alert in regards to online courses.
I’m not knocking paid training nor am I against the purchase of a simple to follow e-book. I actually own a course I had printed from Staples with an actual cover and binding spines.
Affiliate marketing course I had printed from Staples.
Just know that there are several options out there to learn and benefit from to avoid being ripped off.
In my early days of learning about affiliate marketing, I ran across lot’s of programs to join for a small fee, initially. From my understanding, browsing a popular online forum, most are nothing more than pyramid schemes with ridiculously priced upsells.
Your best bet would be to use Google and YouTube at your convenience to find as many useful tips on this subject. Because, most of the resources to help you are already available (and in most cases free).
With access to their quick-start guide, members are no in obligation to purchase anything as it’s free to join.
With an online community forum and over 120 video lessons, that’s more than enough to get anyone started.
Finding A Niche
If there’s a subject matter you’re well informed about (or at least willing to research) , then affiliate marketing may be the place for you.
For instance, if one has an interest in gold investments, traveling, shoes, etc., it would make sense to create a blog site around this topic. You’re goal as a blogger would be to provide value to readers by educating them in this area.
You would then compare and review products and services in that particular niche, including the affiliate link of the advertisers website.
The process would be the same for those interested in creating a social media page (more on that below), although it’s still recommended to own a website.
Affiliate marketing companies work as a middleman between the company requesting advertising, the advertiser, and the website applying to advertise on behalf of the business called the publisher.
As a publisher, you may create a space on your website for an ad. Every reader who clicks on the ad earns a few cents.
If you prefer a subtle marketing technique, you can include referral links in blog posts or via social media. In these cases, if a person arrives at the advertiser’s website and completes a purchase a percentage of the sale goes to the publisher.
The great thing about working with an affiliate marketing company is the opportunity to have a broad variety of products and services to host. A diverse list of partnerships increases the number of opportunities to advertise. On the downside, three parties dividing a sales profit results in less income. It can take a lot of clicks each month to earn a passive income as a publisher through affiliate marketing programs if you don’t choose the right ones.
Blogging & SEO
The larger your network, the more people you are communicating with that may click on a well-placed link or ad. When it comes to developing a blog for your business website the statistics are clear the average company that has a blog receives:
Hubspot explains their stats by pointing out, “Companies that blog have far better marketing results.” But just having a blog isn’t going to be enough to drive in traffic. You will need to make sure your blog is publishing great content frequently.
Most companies publish posts more 2-3 times a week. Consistent publishing is a benefit to affiliate marketing because it gives you many chances to feature links on your blog.
Keyword Usage
SEO (search engine optimization) is important to pay attention to with all blog posts. If you write a post that includes irrelevant links, broken links or too many links the search engines will identify your post as SPAM, and it won’t rank high (or at all) on search engine pages.
Additionally, with the presence of Google, many now know and understand keywords are important to driving traffic to a website. But it’s not just any keywords.
Long-tail keyword phrases are much more specific and targeted terms searchers type in the search engines. The intent used are either for decisions on purchasing or details on a subject. It’s the duty of bloggers to provide valuable content around these terms (Neil Patel recommends long form content).
Take the example of an affiliate who blogs about gold investment. Because the phrase “gold” is too broad and comes with a lot of competition, it would make more sense to create content around terms like:
Best Gold Investment For Retirement
Gold Investment Companies
Gold 401k Rollover
Buy Gold Bars Online
Best (Company name) Review
Gold Affiliate Program
Take time to develop excellent blog content with each post, but especially with those that include affiliate links. If you are going to feature a product or explain why someone should purchase a particular customer relationship software, write “how-to” content.
Go through a tutorial of the product and describe a unique feature. Blog posts that teach someone how to use a program may give them the confidence to take the next step towards purchasing.
Helpful content has another important aspect to consider. Readers that trust you will come back, they will share your posts with their friends, and they are more likely to take your recommendations on purchases.
WordPress Setup
It’s probably a matter of personal opinion, but I’d recommend using the self hosted version of WordPress. Most seasoned webmasters, bloggers and affiliate marketers agree to the benefits of it.
Even Matt Cutts of Google, who uses WordPress, stated pros and cons of the platform:
Do not become intimidated by the idea of setting up self hosting. There are plenty of free resources available online to lean from.
Below, here’s an example of how one can create a WordPress website (1:46:30 long):
The video tutorial included a PDF website checklist which one could access here.
Social Media Marketing
Obviously, social media platforms have become huge areas of affiliate marketing. Companies have jumped onto social to push their brands, and it’s well-received when done properly.
“found that three-quarters of consumers surveyed believe there’s value in brands exhibiting humor on social but only one-third actually want brands to bring on the snark full force. This pales in comparison to the majority of consumers, who buy from brands that are honest (86%), helpful (78%) and friendly (83%). It turns out that at the end of the day, consumers want brands to use social as a customer care channel.”
Honesty goes beyond the legal obligation of identifying an affiliate link. If someone purchases an item because you raved about it and decided the quality is subpar, they are likely to distrust your future reviews.
There are several ways to promote affiliate links through social. You can share a link directly, share a blog post that has a link already embedded, or you can use a program like linktree on Instagram connect a photo to a website through your affiliate link.
For example, someone wears a t-shirt, talks about how amazing it is and then mentions if someone would like to purchase the shirt they can click on the photo.
An important part of social media marketing is enabling sharing options on posts. Social accounts need to be set publicly and include options to share. Blog posts and marketing emails should also have social sharing buttons enabled.
As with all marketing content, there is a balance between bombarding those who follow you and maintaining a relationship. Be mindful of how many posts are sales focused.
To avoid appearing as a spammer or “snake oil salesman”, consider using your social media page to engage with you followers.
ClickBank – Popular network among many affiliates. Many of the digital products are easy to join. For WordPress users, it’s recommended to use the Pretty Link plug-in to cloak their ugly links.
ShareASale – Product based network. Good for blogging, e-mail, PPC and SEO campaigns.
ClickSure – Similar to Clickbank with digital products. Many of the programs include (but not exclusive to) forex, make money online and binary options.
Independent programs are different from a network in that they’re separate from networks like ClickBank or Commission Junction. Based on the specific niche, you can easily perform a search of a program on Google or Bing.
Amazon Affiliate
Of course, while commissions are smaller, there’s been a lot of talk on joining Amazon Associates. And building a niche site around Amazon products definitely has a lot of potential of bringing passive income.
I’ve done a lot of research from blogs on successful Amazon Affiliate sites, and here’s a few things discovered:
Content Is Still King – While it’s an uphill battle attempting to outrank Amazon in the search engines, many marketers work around this. Don’t believe me? Just study the examples of these sites.
Amazon Affiliates Provide Value – Potential customers type keywords into Google and Bing using phrases considered Commercial, Transactional or Informational. Commercial Intent obviously are phrases like “Review”, “Best” or “Compare”. Like any affiliate program, Amazon affiliates provide value by helping readers understand more about the items they’re interested in purchasing.
The Concept Is Pretty Simple – While there’s still competition with Amazon Associates, the concept seems simple. Find a niche, research the keywords of that market and products, write blog posts for targeted audience.
E-mail List Building
Building a list of e-mails is a common practice of businesses and bloggers. At one time it was considered an industry norm to purchase records of e-mails and then send “cold-call” style sales e-mails. Google has changed their algorithms to protect their e-mail users. Mass e-mails that go to lists can now be identified and labeled as SPAM before they enter an inbox.
The best option for e-mail list building is to ask your readers for their address.
Asking can be done by just requesting someone sign-up to receive e-mails from you, or you can create a free offer that they’ll receive in exchange for providing you their email for future use.
A free offer could consist of any incentive pertaining to the niche market of your choice. You want to give potential subscribers a reason to opt in
Deals, coupons, offers and discounts (Here’s an example).
Whenever possible, create an offer around a future affiliate marketing promotion. The content will allow you to identify best which of your readers are most likely to purchase the item you are promoting. If you are partnering with a stock photo company, a webinar on how to use digital photo editing software would be a relevant offer.
E-mail list segmentation is essential for list retainment. Hubspot research discovered 63% of people who responded to their email marketing survey indicating they unsubscribe from e-mails with content they consider irrelevant (source).
Marketing e-mails are a great conversation tool for your blog readers. An e-mail can remind a reader of an important blog post published a few weeks ago.
Sometimes a second review of information will encourage a reader to become a buyer.
E-mails can also follow up on offers and further promote an exclusive product.
“Email marketing databases naturally degrade by about 22.5% every year. So it’s important to have a strategy to make up for these lost contacts.” Hotspot.com
Obviously, relevant content sent to segmented lists as well as continued development of free content keeps databases growing.
Affiliate Marketing Tips And Book Recommendations
There is a lot of information about affiliate marketing. Just For Websites has compiled an updated list of the top affiliate marketing books.
What’s ideal about this list is the way they highlighted variety. Additionally, you may purchase most of these books from Amazon.
Save your money and sharpen SEO skill by reading the Yoast SEO blog.
Best Practices For Blog Content and Social Media
Follow industry standards at all times. There are strict regulations for both link disclosure and e-mail marketing. If broken you could be required to pay huge fines. Lawyer and Blogger Trisha Meyer lays out the basics for FTC guidelines and how to apply laws to affiliate marketing.
Following the law cannot be emphasized enough. Trisha wrote up a summary of a lawsuit that is worth your time to read.
“Blogger Involved in FTC Lawsuit for Failure to Disclose: This is one of the biggest applications of the Guidelines so far. Both merchants and bloggers need to read my post on this case because it reiterates in practice much of what I said above. The merchant and the agency were held liable for the blogger’s failure to disclose. This was a paid placement rather than an affiliate relationship, but the principles are the same.”
The lawsuit verdict resulted in a $40 million penalty.
Also, to fully disclosing partnerships, write evergreen blog content. Affiliate links don’t have short expiration dates; your content shouldn’t either.
Engage with people who comment. If someone comments on a post you need to comment back. If you were trying to promote a product in person and someone asked a question you would answer it. The same should be true online.
Write marketing e-mails for the reader. What information will they find helpful? Treat the person receiving your e-mails how you prefer receiving treatment. Marketing e-mails must follow the CAN-SPAM Act. Every individual email in violation of the CAN-SPAM Act is subject to penalties of up to $40,654. Read the entire law before sending emails, but the rules are straightforward. E-mails must be truthful both in content and without a misleading subject line. Your email address needs to be accurate, and you have to honor opt-out requests promptly.
Companies can set up additional rules around affiliate links in emails. Amazon affiliates are not allowed to embed links in emails. You need to make sure you know the specifics of every agreement you enter. You also need to make sure to optimize email for mobile. You cannot ignore statistics from Hubspot on the importance of e-mail optimization for smartphones:
Of course, Affiliate marketing is an ever-evolving industry that is available to anyone. Adding an ad or link to a website is not enough.
Lastly, do your research, partner with companies that your niche audience will be interested in, and develop honest and transparent content. Successful affiliate marketing that sets you apart will evolve in the details. Don’t stop learning and trying new things.
What could we say about the uses of Internet in our daily life?Well, several generations ago, our great grandparents and ancestors were able to conduct several areas of activity without the presence of Facebook, Expedia, Google, Amazon, YouTube or Netflix. Today, however, it’s hard to imagine living without any of these (for most of us, anyway).
In the early 2000’s, I took my first trips to Canada and Ghana on separate occasions without using online bookings. In contrast, from 2004 until present I’ve booked all round trips and accommodations via laptop. This has made life as convenient as possible in my opinion because I’m not at the mercy of a travel agent.
Now, of course there are debates about the differences in self booking verses agency booking. But I personally feel comfortable going independent because I’m in charge of my own itinerary and can save (or spend) money where ever I see fit.
Obviously, that’s a brief example of the role the Internet has played in my personal life. And so this blog entry focuses on more ways web access has been a benefit in modern society.
I say more ways because there’s been posts regarding the role of the internet such as:
The internet offers a platform where people can buy and sell products with just a click of the button. Online shoppers are likely to get huge discounts because of the huge competition and a variety of goods to choose from. You can buy virtually everything and have it delivered to your doorsteps, laptops or mobile device.
Online shopping is affordable, saves time and very convenient. Customers can pay for goods once they are delivered or through online money transfer.
For entrepreneurs, the eCommerce market has given internet users an opportunity to create simple user-friendly websites for potential customers.
Need proof? Just look at the various top eCommerce platforms available to give one an edge in competing against the big guys for a part in the economic pie.
So with or with out the traditional Brick & Mortar business, who can deny the convenience of owning ones own online shop?!
Job Searching
The uses of internet in our daily life also includes searching and posting for employment. You can easily find employments by visiting the websites of companies you are interested in working with. Whether Adzuna, TotalJobs or any other agency, most businesses use their websites to advertise existing vacancies. You also get the chance of applying for the position online.
News
The internet lets you stay informed with the latest news in politics, entertainment and showbiz, sports and the financial markets. The internet is a sea of information, and you will always get the trending news about virtually anything.
Travel and tours
The internet allows you view the places you are planning to visit. You will get alerts on the most exciting areas to visit. Blogs and content on tour websites offer descriptions on different tourist destinations. By reading these blogs, you can easily compare and make a decision.
Tour agents have also embraced the internet to advertise and market their companies. Through the web, you will be able to choose a tour agent depending on their quality of service and the package they offer. Or, as I’ve stated, you can go it alone planning your entire trips independently.
Dating
Many people have found love online. Dating sites offer a platform for many singles to meet and mingle.
I can admit most of my past encounters in dating females have mostly come through online communication.
You can get a partner on dating sites or through social media, chat and eventually plan your lives together.
Online connection platforms accommodate users in that they offer services based on personal preferences (long term, short term, age, religion, etc) .
The previous ways of meeting ones desired partner were through websites. However, with the increase in mobile device ownership, connections are made using a simple smart phone.
The internet is a source of entertainment for kids, youths and even adults. You can watch and download movies online. Children can play games and watch cartoons. YouTube offers a platform where you can listen to the latest music and watch different movies.
For viewing pleasures, who needs a cable bill when there’s an increase in online streaming services.
To name a few, these services include:
Amazon Video
YouTube Red
Netflix
Vudu
Crackle
Although television packages may or may not see their last days anytime soon, online users can now rejoice in knowing there are several options as previously indicated in this blog post.
For listening, we won’t waste much time stating the obvious. The opportunity for streaming music free and premium is here to stay.
That’s why the following have earned an honorable mention:
Napster (Formerly Rhapsody)
Spotify
Pandora
iHeartRadio
TuneIn (my personal favorite)
Deezer
Tidal
Gambling
Now I’m not speaking up for or against virtual gambling. Let’s just point out that this has grown throughout the world among laptop, PC and mobile device users.
Online casinos provide a platform through the use of the internet for players to place their bets and earn online. If you love gaming, you can easily learn the odds and place bets from the comfort of your home. If you win, the money is transferred to your account through online money transfer.
There’s many discussions surrounding addiction to gambling both online and physical casinos. It’s just quite obvious, though, that access to gaming sites provide the type of convenience users love regardless of time or location.
So as long as there’s a connection. there’s a way!
Enables Quick and Swift Communication
Gone are the days you could wait for sunrise-to-sunset to receive a letter from the post office. The internet has made communication faster, cheaper and very efficient. When you send an email to your employees, there is 100% guarantee that the information will reach them. Texts and chats on social media allow people who are miles apart to communicate and know each others’ welfare by a click of the button.
Efforts made by Facebook have also given users an opportunity to send and receive words with their instant messenger service.
You can also video chat through applications such as:
Skype
Google Duo
Google Hangouts
IMO
JusTalk
Tango
Viber
WhatsApp
With these platforms, connecting with friends and family who are miles away by chatting or through video calls allows you to share on your experiences and this can also be a great source of fun.
Investing
The internet provides lots of information that you can use to make money. Selling products from different companies online can earn you a commission.
You can also invest in an online course in finance, freelancing and internet marketing then use the acquired skill to provide a service that will help you earn a living.
The beauty of working online is that it gives you the flexibility of working and making money remotely as long as there is an internet connection.
Education And Research
Students can use the internet to learn. They can also research on different topics and get the information they need. There is a lot of information on the web where students can get resources online in their various courses. Professors can also use the internet through video conferencing to share information and study material with their students.
Money Management
Everybody is looking for ways to which they can be financially disciplined. Banks are working tirelessly to provide their customers with apps that they can use to manage their finances.
There are also online money transfer apps that you can install on your phone that will enable you to transfer money to the bank. This strategy makes it easier to save.
Enhance Cashless Economy
With the increase in popularity of Cryptocurrencies, individuals are now able to buy and sell goods and services virtually, making the flow of business easier.
You can send and receive money digitally. E-wallet, mobile money transfers, and internet banking also enable you to pay your utility bills from the comfort of your home.
It also reduces corruption in government offices because any money transferred digitally will be recorded. You can also not evade taxes if you use this form of money transfer.
The Internet Of Things
IOT consists of everyday objects embedded with network connectivity thats allows those items to communicate between each other. These objects could include:
Because IOT involves the majority of gadgets and objects that turn on and off, this continues to impact a growing portion of society.
One notable usage consists of IOT working in conjunction with security systems for home and even work place buildings. Those who use this form of technology often rely on IP Camera Hosting. That means there’s no need for complicated installation or software (if ever). The main requirement are obviously cameras an internet connection.
Someone rang a doorbell while on vacation in Florida? No Problem! Users can then view their perimeter from anywhere using most electronic devices.
Additionally, I must point out IOT isn’t just confined to the young or wealthy tech savvy community. There’s also a growing push towards sensors and gadgets working for the benefit of senior citizens and disabled. Many companies favor the welfare of these groups by tracking and learning their movements (such as daily routines) in the household. Data then gets stored once a consistent pattern has been established, only to alert caregivers and family members should he or she makes sudden changes in behavior.
Google Is Your Friend
Lastly, and quite obviously, what would the uses of Internet in our daily life be without Google.
Some of the most common uses of Google are Gmail, YouTube, and Chrome. There are however other services performed by Google, and some of them are:
Google trends – enables users to view the most popular topics. You can quickly see trends in different categories like entertainment, health, sports, business and science/technology. You can also view and compare various topics and see how a particular subject has been performing over some time.
The find my android app – it’s a common thing to misplace your phone. This app enables you to find your phone without much hassle. You can see where your phone is on a map by going to google.com and typing find my phone.
Google Hangouts – allows you to chat with your loved ones and workmates by sending text messages and through video calls. It’s available on your phone, tablets or computers. It also allows you to have group video calls with up to five people.
Field trip – the app shows you the surrounding when you are on a voyage. It will alert you when you are next to an interesting place. You will get alerts of museums, restaurants, historical sites parks and much more.
Google maps– it will show you areas you are interested in. You’ll know the area traffic, directions, routes, public transportation information and images of places. You can set the day and time information to help you see roads with heavy traffic through past information.
Google translate – you can easily learn the translation of words in over 100 different languages. By copying and pasting text into the Google translate website, you get the meaning of various phrases and expressions in your mother tongue. If you are not sure of a particular language, Google translate will quickly detect and alert you.
Google dictionary – makes it easier to learn the definition of different words. It also helps you in pronunciations.
Google flights – find the most convenient and lowest priced flights when planning a trip through Google flights. It gives you the convenience of viewing the prices of flights on different dates through the calendar view.
Google alerts – helps you stay informed at all times. You can easily set alerts and receive information on a particular topic of interest anytime it is mentioned.
Your area of interest could be your company’s name, your favorite programs or even your name.
You have the flexibility of setting the frequency, the sources and where the information is sent to.
Additionally, for bloggers, this provides a great way to stay updated on fresh content for readers,
Conclusion
The internet has enhanced and made life easier for everyone. It has expanded people’s knowledge and led to the tapping of potentials that were unheard of.
Good utilization of the internet is a great way of empowering yourself socially and economically. Caution should, however, be exercised when using the internet because it can also be a source of moral degradation.
Democratization by way of Technology and the Information Age
