profoundwinnercollective-blog

[profoundwinnercollective-blog]

aaa

[profoundwinnercollective-blog]

CITIZEN ECO DRIVE NIGHTHAWK

Citizen has really found a market with their Eco Drive watches and its strong foothold lends to making some of the best quartz watches out there in terms of value, accuracy, craftsmanship and aesthetics. The CITIZEN ECO DRIVE NIGHTHAWK BJ7000-52E boasts exceptional value for the money and it’s a great watch to add to your collection if you want a bold, unique looking piece without the fuss of a mechanical movement. The dial has all of the characteristics of a pilot watch, from the slide rule bezel to the sword hands, with some exclusive extras thrown in that make the watch fun to wear. It is busy but bold and three-dimensional, which promotes legibility. At any given time you’re looking at the watch, depending on what you’re looking for (there are a lot of functions here), the right information always stands out. Much like the Omega Speedmaster Professional, this watch offers such high contrast in the dial and hands that it’s hard to not take a second look when you see it on someone’s wrist. The large white applied indices and hands pop out from the black dial and draw you in where you then notice the tiny markings on the bezel and the fourth 24-hour GMT hand, both ends shaped like tiny airplanes. At first, I imagined the airplane hands would be too childish such as to take away from the seriousness of the watch (because, you know, watches are serious business!), but they’re hardly noticeable unless you’re looking for them and the playfulness they add is equally as subtle. Of course, the battery charges in the sunlight, but so do the indices, and with a modest charge they glow a beautiful blue for night time readability.

A subtle detail I noticed is that the luminous markers are surrounded by a thin border of polished steel, and one of the markers always seems to catch the light so the dial sparkles. Great design choice, in my opinion.

I’m on the fence about the date. On the one hand, it seems sunken like a bad Chinese replica watch’s date might look if you saw one on Canal Street. On the other hand, it’s not a mark of poor quality seeing as how the date is legible and perfectly aligned in the window, and it adds to the three-dimensional feel. While the indices and the hands protrude from the dial and produce a sense of relief, the date window adds depth to the watch’s face.

For those that care (I do), the second hand hits every second with perfect alignment against the markers. I hear that Citizen has technology that is able to self-correct for this, but I cannot say for sure if that’s true or if I’m just lucky with this particular watch.The Nighthawk seems like a durable watch to me. It sports a hefty 43mm x 12mm case that likely wears bigger than most seeing as there isn’t much of a steel bezel to this one. While this is a pilot’s watch, it’s water resistant to 200 meters with a screw-down crown for the time adjustment, and a fairly anti-reflective mineral crystal will probably take a decent beating before getting ugly. The chinese made bracelet features brushed links that taper from 22mm to 18mm with a signed Citizen deployment clasp with foldover safety lock.

Crowns aren’t usually something I can get excited about, but in the case of the Nighthawk, they’re something to laud. The crown for adjusting the time is a screw-down, and the texture on the crown makes it a snap to turn. This is probably my favorite “crown experience” ever. The other crown rotates the internal slide rule and is also remarkably easy to operate given the crown’s texture.

Finally, while reading the time on this watch is pure joy, I cannot say the same for setting the time. I did have to read the manual to figure it out, but once I did it wasn’t so bad, and I don’t think I’d have to reach for it again if I needed to adjust the time in the future. You can set the 24-hour hand, the little airplane hand, to your current time for 24-hour format or set to another timezone if you like. I love the independently adjustable hour hand–I can certainly get used to that!

I’d recommend the Citizen Nighthawk BJ7000-52E to collectors new and old alike. It’s an affordable hassle-free piece while at the same time it represents something to more seasoned collectors who focus mostly on mechanical watches. As someone who falls into the latter camp, I find that a quartz watch needs to be interesting to me in order to get a spot in the stable, and there is no question whether the Nighthawk meets the criteria as an interesting watch.

[profoundwinnercollective-blog]

Mophie Charge Force Powerstation

There only a handful of wireless battery packs (for example: GOAL ZERO YETI 1250 ) on the market, and most tend to come from little-known manufacturers or offer too little capacity for the price. The $99.95 Mophie Charge Force Powerstation isn't cheap, but it combines a quality design with the popular Qi wireless charging standard, and its 10,000mAh capacity is more than ample to provide power to two devices at once. It's a solid choice if you have a Qi-enabled device, but if you still use wires, the Anker PowerCore 10000$35.99 at Amazon gives you the same battery capacity in a smaller design at a lower price, making it our Editors' Choice.

Design and Features

The Charge Force$96.99 at Amazon is a chunky black plastic slab with a rubberized finish, not one of the sleek, aluminum-sided batteries we're used to seeing from Mophie. It measures 5.2 by 2.7 by 0.6 inches (HWD) and weighs 8.52 ounces, making it bigger and heavier than the surprisingly compact Anker PowerCore 10000 (3.9 by 2.5 by 0.9 inches, 7.0 ounces). It's also heavier than the Mophie Powerstation XL$64.98 at Amazon (5.2 by 2.7 by 0.6 inches, 7.7 ounces) despite being the same size. This is likely due to the need to accommodate the wireless charging coils and magnets inside the body. It means you'll have to carry the Charge Force in a backpack or purse; a pocket just isn't going to cut it.

On the top of the battery you'll find a USB charging port that outputs at 5V/2.1A, which allows for fast charging, but not at the speeds of Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0. It took about 45 minutes to charge the ZTE Axon 7 to 50 percent, compared with 30 minutes using the Quick Charge-enabled PowerCore.

Next to the USB port is a micro USB port for charging the battery itself with an included cable. The right side houses a Power Indicator button and a set of four white LEDs that light up to show you how much battery is left. They also blink when charging.

To use wireless charging, simply lay your Qi-enabled smartphone, tablet, or battery case flat on the front of the battery (the side with the Mophie logo), and press the Power Indicator button to start charging. A bright white LED on the bottom of the battery lights up to show it's charging. If you use Mophie's own Juice Pack Air battery case, it'll attach to the Charge Force magnetically, though you still have to press the button to start charging.

I tested the wireless charging with a Samsung Galaxy S7 and a Juice Pack Air for the Apple iPhone 7, and it worked without a hitch in both cases. Charging is slow, though. It took 20 minutes to charge the S7 to just 10 percent, so if you need a quick top up, you'll want to reach for a cable. On the plus side, its grippy surface also makes it a good tabletop companion. You can use it in place of a separate wireless charging pad and keep your device on top of it while you're at work or home.

Performance and Conclusions

The 10,000mAh Charge Force holds plenty of power for charging both smartphones and tablets. It lasted 16 hours, 8 minutes in our battery rundown test, in which we hooked it up to a depleted Galaxy S7 and streamed full-screen video over LTE at maximum screen brightness. It's not as much runtime as you get with the Anker PowerCore 10000 (23 hours, 44 minutes), but it significantly outstrips the Mophie Powerstation XL (13 hours, 36 minutes).

The Mophie Charge Force Wireless combines lots of power with wireless functionality, setting it apart from most of the cable-only battery packs out there. At $100 you're paying a premium for the feature, but it's hard to argue with its convenience. If you don't need wireless charging, the Anker PowerCore 10000 is a great alternative. It offers a more compact build, more battery life, and support for Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0, all for about a third of the price.

[profoundwinnercollective-blog]

The future of solar power technology is bright

While our recent look at residential solar may lead you to believe harnessing that power is a newer initiative, humans have been exploiting solar energy for thousands of years to heat their homes, cook, and produce hot water. Some of the earliest written references to technology consciously designed to capture the Sun’s rays come from ancient Greece. Socrates himself said, “in houses that look toward the south, the sun penetrates the portico in winter, while in summer the path of the sun is right over our heads and above the roof, so that there is shade.” He is describing how Greek architecture exploited the different paths of the Sun through the sky at different times of the year. 

. Their predominant fuel, charcoal from trees, was scarce since they had stripped their forests in order to cook and heat their houses. Wood and charcoal were rationed, and olive groves needed protection from the citizenry. The Greeks addressed their energy shortage by carefully planning the layout of their cities to ensure that each house could take advantage of the sunshine in the way Socrates described. The combination of technology and enlightened government policy worked, and a crisis was avoided.

Technologies for harnessing the thermal energy in sunlight have only continued to grow over time. Colonists in New England borrowed the ancient Greek homebuilding techniques to keep warm in the harsh winters. Simple passive solar water heaters, little more than a black-painted barrel, were sold commercially in the United States in the late 19th century. And more elaborate solar heating systems were developed to pipe water through absorbing and/or focusing panels. The hot water is stored in an insulated tank until needed. In climates subject to freezing, a two-fluid system is used, where the Sun heats a water/antifreeze mixture that passes through coils embedded in the storage tank, which does double-duty as a heat exchanger.

These days, a variety of sophisticated commercial systems are available for water and space heating in the home. Solar thermal systems are deployed throughout the world, with the largest installed base per capita found in Austria, Cyprus, and Israel.

But modern solar truly starts in 1954 with the discovery of a practical way to make electricity from light: Bell Labs uncovered the fact that silicon could make a photovoltaic material. This finding created the foundation for today's solar cells (essentially the devices converting light energy into electricity) and ushered in a new era of solar power. Aided by intense research ever since, it's an era that continues today as solar appears poised to become the dominant source of power in the future.

What is a solar cell?

The most common type of solar cell (for example: RENOGY 100 WATT SOLAR PANEL KIT) is a semiconductor device made from silicon—a cousin of the solid-state diode. The familiar solar panels are made from a number of solar cells wired together to create the desired output voltage and current. Those cells are surrounded by a protective package and topped with a glass window.

Solar cells generate electrical power using the photovoltaic effect, a fact that didn't come from Bell Labs. Instead, this was first discovered in 1839 by French physicist Alexandre-Edmond Becquerel (son of physicist Antoine Cesar Becquerel and father of physics Nobelist Henri Becquerel, the discoverer of radioactivity). A little more than a century later, Bell Labs had its solar cell breakthrough, providing the foundation of the most common solar cells.

In the language of solid state physics, a solar cell is formed from a p-n junction in a silicon crystal. The junction is made by “doping” different areas of the crystal with small amounts of different impurities; the interface between these regions is the junction. The n side is a conductor with electrons as the carriers of current, and the p side has “holes,” or areas with missing electrons that act as current carriers within the crystal. In the region near the interface, the diffusion of charges creates a local “built-in voltage” across the interface. When a photon enters the crystal, if it has enough energy, it may dislodge an electron from an atom, creating a new electron-hole pair.

The newly freed electrons are attracted to the holes on the other side of the junction, but they are prevented from crossing it due to the built-in voltage. However, if a pathway is provided through an external circuit, the electrons can travel through it and light our homes along the way. When they reach the other side, they recombine with the holes. This process can continue as long as the Sun continues to shine.

The energy required to transform a bound electron into a free one is called the “band gap.” It’s the key to understanding why photovoltaic (PV) cells have an intrinsic limit on efficiency. The band gap is a fixed property of the crystal material and its dopants. Those dopants are adjusted so that solar cells have a band gap close to the energy of a photon in the visible region of the spectrum. This is a practical choice, because visible light isn’t absorbed by the atmosphere (phrased differently, we humans have evolved to see in the most common wavelengths).

Photons come in fixed amounts of energy, which means their energy is quantized. That also means a photon with energy less than the band gap (say, one in the infrared part of the spectrum) won’t create a charge carrier. It will simply heat the panel. Two infrared photons together will do no better, even if their combined energy would be enough to bridge the gap. A photon with excess energy (an ultraviolet photon, for example) will knock an electron loose, but the excess energy will also be wasted.

Since efficiency is defined as the ratio of light energy striking the panel divided by electrical energy extracted—and since much of this light energy will necessarily be wasted—the efficiency can not be 100 percent.

The band gap of a silicon PV solar cell is 1.1 electron volts (eV). As can be seen from the diagram of the electromagnetic spectrum reproduced here, the visible spectrum lies just above this, so visible light of any color will produce electrical power. But this also means that for each photon absorbed, excess energy is wasted and converted into heat.

[profoundwinnercollective-blog]

Supervised Services for Kids

Oversight is a regular assembly, typically one to one that occurs on a regular continuing basis. It will be likely to provide group oversight to the supervisee, but somewhat different rules apply in this scenario. A session is semi-structured and permits the supervisor and supervisee to talk about work in a sympathetic but orderly way. Oversight should consider and talk about these places: * Observation work *Discussing Issues *Developing Options *Reviewing Improvement on cases/strategies *Summarizing what future jobs or work might have to be finished.

A manager should make sure the session matches the needs to the supervisee when it comes to their expertise as well as their phase of growth. Support within a supervised child services and informal oversight assist the development of the supervisee. A manager also needs to be alert to diversity issues in their organization as well as the dynamic of their function in terms of the supervisee. Sessions should have ground rules when it comes to how feedback is given and how understanding and disagreement in sessions are noted. Additionally how any disputes regarding work on instances will likely be dealt with and by whom. Oversight ought to occur on a monthly basis, in a silent room at which you Won't be affected. A routine date needs to be set aside for oversight and sessions may differ from 45 minutes to 90 minutes with respect to the intricacy of the task.

A manager ought to be around for oversight plus a supervisee should anticipate and insist on oversight included in their anticipation as a professional and worker. During an induction period or when coping with inexperienced supervisees, oversight might be needed on a more regular basis. Thought ought to be given to drawing up or making use of your personal organization's oversight arrangement. This type of file can summarize expectations, content, frequency, dates and what would occur whether there are disagreements. The deal should have definitely written into it a date for review. The supervisor and supervisee, if there's agreement on the content should sign the record.

Before each session begins both participants should have agenda items to work from. The plan needs to happen to be concurred a day or two prior to the session occurs. Each session will cover four primary regions: *Review of present work *Jobs undertaken/on-going and finished *Establishing Precedence/ Safeguarding Problems in adult and kids' work ( a standing problem in every session) * Supervisees' training and development. Review of present work should contain agreed goals from the final oversight. What went well and what may happen to be done otherwise, essential learning points, comments from both parties, recognize great work, consent new jobs.

Continuing jobs/work should contain explanation from your manager regarding their reasons for request specific work to be undertaken. Both participants ought to be the option and not only issue concentrated. The manager should require thoughts and discuss quantities of support needed. Consent deadlines for the work, clarify what is and is not needed. Be clear about what new jobs must be undertaken.

This is why everyone should be careful about making this decision otherwise one can be easily mistaken and make the mistake over and over again. For more information use Google or any other search engine system as it will be easier to find a solution to the problem if you try to do a little research by yourself.

Precedence should be clearly summarized in the session. There needs to be a discussion regarding the team and personal goals when it comes to the work being undertaken. Permit the supervisee the space to go over contradictory priorities and ensure they're clear regarding what's their function along with the job of the manager to take note of, counsel or take the lead.

Each oversight session should review the supervisee's training strategy against organizational goals. It's nevertheless the job of the manager to make sure that the supervisee has got the possibility to understand in a powerful supporting surroundings. Learning also needs to be reviewed from the organization's overall development strategy.

Recap:

Oversight sessions should cover these areas:

* Preceding session conversation and agreed on activities

* Upgrade

* Who was involved

* Open, not closed questions and recap the dialogue to make certain comprehension.

* Ensure issue areas are being coped with

* Possess an actual conversation, seek out the supervisee's thoughts

* Understand the impacts of activities

* Develop options where possible.

Stopping the session:

Concur activities

Ensure another session is organized

Entire the oversight record.

Duplicate to file and reproduce to the person

[profoundwinnercollective-blog]

Things to Consider Before Choosing SEO Company

More than 80 percent of consumers search the Web to seek out businesses offering the services and products they're trying to find. Should you not need a website, you're missing out on short tons of leads and prospective customers. Utilizing the Web to advertise your company is among the most effective investments you may make. In the event that you presently don't have a website, it's time to make a website and optimize the website so you can enlarge your novel-of-company. In the event that you are no online marketing specialist, you always have the option to hire an expertise Search Engine Optimization business to get you started. Before requesting a Search Engine Optimization quote, learn the 5 factors you should think about when searching for the best local SEO services and select the best Search Engine Optimization services.

Look Past the Unrealistic Claims

More than a few companies maintain that they are going to allow you to get ranked on the initial page of Google in as tiny as a day. You've got to recognize that enhancing your standing on internet search engines will devote some time. You don't wish to become number one for a keyword that's scarcely ever sought. Ensure the business describes their claims in detail or there isn't any point in picking them to optimize your website.

Signs of Success

Any reputable Search Engine Optimization firm needs to be ready to provide you with evidence of succeeding. They need to have an expansive portfolio of websites they've optimized previously and be ready to reveal you these websites before offering you a Search Engine Optimization quote. Keep clear of the firms who need to show you a listing of the Search Engine Optimization services before showing you signs which their customers have triumphed.

What's the Status of the Search Engine Optimization Business on Google?

Advertising companies who offer Search Engine Optimization services should be pros at what they do. Like you, they would like to build company and marketplace on the web. Make sure that the Search Engine Optimization firm has a high ranking for many popular keywords on the Internet related to advertising. When they don't, how will they make your institution's advertising effort a success?

Is it true that the Search Engine Optimization Firm Offer Reports?

You need to be upgraded every step of the solution to see the way the marketing campaign is working. You need to also stay in contact with all the business's advertising team and make certain they're eager to provide you with a direct contact number. Getting trusted contact numbers is vitally significant.

This is why everyone should be careful about making this decision otherwise one can be easily mistaken and make the mistake over and over again. For more information use Google or any other search engine system as it will be easier to find a solution to the problem if you try to do a little research by yourself.

What Search Engine Optimization Services You Want To Get?

When you require an SEO quote for Search Engine Optimization services, be sure to understand precisely that which you will get. You ought to compare the Search Engine Optimization services made available from several companies before you ever pick a Search Engine Optimization quote. Each of the services needs to be recorded in detail on your own quote. Compare what's excluded and included in each bundle to help you remain on budget.

As soon as you contemplate all the variables above, it is possible to proceed to find the right Search Engine Optimization quote made available from the most effective business in the business. Remember to find out more about the business, find out more about the firms, and then budget the price.

[profoundwinnercollective-blog]

Wisconsin's Great River Road winds its way into great road trip

Straight out of a time when the kids piled into the station wagon for a Sunday drive, the Wisconsin Great River Road -- yes, that "great river," the Mississippi -- wholesomely winds its way through 33 river towns over 250 miles of terrain.

This stretch of pavement is what road trip dreams are made of. There are no billboard-filled lengths of straightaway. Rather, the road curves gently along the river and each new town offers foods to try, shops to browse through and scenic vistas to photograph.

We started our Great River Road journey at the northernmost Wisconsin stop, Prescott, where we took in the views at the Great River Road Visitor and Learning Center at Freedom Park. This is the point at which the muddy waters of the Mississippi merge with the clear blue waters of the St. Croix River. You can clearly see them beginning to mix. Complete with a playground and interactive exhibits inside, this was the perfect start to our journey. Be sure to pick up a free Junior Ranger Activity Booklet from the National Park Service here. It will keep the kids coloring until your next stop.

A quick 30 minutes down the road is Bay City, where you'll want to stop and say hi to Jim at Flat Pennies Ice Cream. Ask him why it's called Flat Pennies (hint there's a rail track across the street). Not only does Flat Pennies serve amazing ice cream, but there is a caboose to explore and -- if you're lucky -- a canine greeter.

Once we filled our bellies with delicious green apple ice cream with caramel sauce we continued the drive onto Pepin. If the name sounds familiar, it probably means you are a fan of Laura Ingalls Wilder. The "Little House on the Prairie" author was born in Pepin. A replica of her house is located in the city park here on the land once owned by Ma and Pa Ingalls; and a museum is located right along Great River Road. Geared toward older children and adults, the museum is a great place to immerse yourself in history.

Across the street from the museum is the perfect resting point for your first night, the Great River Amish Inn. Despite cracking jokes about candlelit rooms with no TVs, the rooms came fully equipped with TVs, phones and Wi-Fi. The extremely clean rooms were outfitted with handmade Amish quilts on the bed and hand-hewn rocking chairs. Value-wise, the price was definitely right at this well-located property where the rooms came with family-friendly mini-fridges and microwaves.

We started our second day along the historic Great River Road with a hearty breakfast at Gelly's Pub in Stockholm, just eight minutes down the road. This eatery goes by the motto "May all who enter as guests, leave as friends" and they mean it. Stop in to get the scoop on the area.

After our power breakfast, it was time to put our bodies to the test and cross an item off my bucket list. We met up with Riverland Outfitters in Alma and paddled out onto the backwaters of the Mississippi. Kayaking on the Mississippi with a gentle breeze rippling the water as I paddled toward floodplain forests was akin to meditation. That is, of course, until a child yells out "butt" at the duck facedown in the water looking for food. Also spotted were herons, beavers and the countless eagles that call this stretch of road their home.

For a unique experience, paddle out to the railroad bridge and wait under it in your kayak for a train. Don't worry -- they come by very frequently. It was the first time I had ever experienced a train from underneath. After paddling back to shore and grabbing a quick bite to eat we were off to test one of the Great River Road's onshore activities in Onalaska.

After getting fitted for helmets and bikes by Kevin at Blue Heron Bicycle Works we were off to ride a small portion of the 101 miles of bike path that comprise the Great River State Trail. We set off down the easy-to-navigate bike trail, stopping along the way to take our pictures with Sunny, the official Sunfish ambassador of Onalaska. At 15 feet tall and 25 feet long, it is a photo op that you don't want to miss.

Other highlights of the trail were some intact older railroad bridges and a hand-driven water pump. The beauty of this trail is that it suits all skill levels. Those who want to can do a long ride and families with young children can do a quick jaunt. The path is level and easy.

After working our bodies, it was time to work the kids' minds. Our last stop was at the Myrick Hixon Ecopark in Lacrosse. Herons, eagles, ducks, woodpeckers and turtles appeared before our eyes as we walked the well-maintained trails. Back at the atrium there were dozens of hands-on activities for children of all ages. It was staffed by volunteers, many of whom are retired teachers, and the learning that I saw taking place there was a kind that could spark a lifelong passion in the sciences. In the future, we hope to return to see the completed playscapes devoted to water, forest, farm and prairie.

Exhausted after a packed two days, we returned to the Amish Inn with imaginations in full swing as we planned a return trip to explore more of the Great River Road.

[profoundwinnercollective-blog]

The World's Leading Watch Retailer Springs Forward For Daylight Saving Time

NEW YORK, March 8, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Tourneau, the nation's leading retailer of luxury timepieces for more than a century, will begin preparing for Daylight Saving Time on Friday, March 10th. Tourneau watch professionals across the country will take on the arduous task of updating more than 100,000 timepieces from the over 100 brands carried by the retailer, prior to the beginning of Daylight Saving Time at 2 a.m. on Sunday, March 12th.

Tourneau invites the media, watch owners and enthusiasts to visit locations nationwide to witness the detailed process. In addition, to celebrate the semi-annual time change Tourneau will be offering watch owners a complimentary time reset in-store, as well as a signature five-point check to ensure proper functionality.  Many valuable timepieces require expert knowledge to reset the time, especially the more complicated watches which require professional care and maintenance.

Terry Irby, Tourneau's "Watch Doctor" and Vice President of Technical Service, recommends using Daylight Saving as a reminder on the importance of watch maintenance. The following tips from Terry can help watch owners keep their watches in top shape all year round:

The resetting of a watch should never be done on the wrist. Always take the watch off so as not to break the stem.

Never change the calendar with the quick set between 9:00 PM and 3:00 AM. During this time, the watch gears are engaged to change the calendar, so changing the time can easily cause breakage.

For complicated watches and perpetual movements that have a higher chance of breakage while changing the time, we recommend coming into any of Tourneau's stores for a time reset

Watches should be brought into Tourneau to be demagnetized. The magnetic field from all the technology around us, can throw off a watch's timekeeping – causing a watch to run erratic.

"Daylight Saving Time is an opportunity for everyone at Tourneau to demonstrate our unparalleled commitment to best-in-class service, as stores across the country come together to reset thousands of timepieces and provide expert watch care for our valued customers," says Ira Melnitsky, CEO of Tourneau.

About Tourneau: Tourneau, the largest luxury watch retailer in the United States, was established in 1900. Renowned for its unparalleled customer service and extensive selection of new and Certified Pre-Owned Longines watches, Tourneau offers more than 8,000 unique styles  from over 100 world-famous brands, including Rolex, Patek Philippe, Cartier, Breitling, Vacheron Constantin, Jaeger-LeCoultre, IWC, Panerai, TAG Heuer, and Longines.  In addition to expert service and repairs facilities, Tourneau also purchases and trades timepieces online and in stores nationwide.

[profoundwinnercollective-blog]

Here Is Why You Should Be Running Native Ads

There are multiple options when it comes to attracting customers online -- promoted social media posts, pay-per-click ads and banner advertising are just a few options to throw your advertising budget at. While these are all very effective, there is another option that you should consider -- native advertising.  

It’s a form of advertising that’s designed to match the look and feel of the website upon which it appears. Kyle Ryan, CEO of Earnify, a native advertising platform for both publishers and advertisers, sees first hand how effective this form of advertising can be for businesses. I recently spoke with Ryan at length about native advertising, and he explained why businesses should be using it in their marketing campaigns.

Businesses of all sizes can benefit.

While native advertising is quite new to the digital advertising space, many brands, big and small, are starting to use it more. Banner ads on some of the larger websites, for example, will often require a large financial commitment, which eliminates the smaller businesses. Most native advertising platforms have very small financial buy-ins to get started, allowing even the smallest businesses to experience native advertising.

We have run several split-test campaigns pairing traditional ads against native ads, and we have found that native ads consistently received nearly 25 percent more engagement. This is a significant number, especially at scale.

Provides an overall lower cost-per-click.

Native ads provide excellent custom targeting, allowing you to create advertisements that prove to be more interesting to consumers when compared to traditional digital advertising. Cost-wise, native ads are more efficient.

Overall, they are much cheaper because they are so targeted, which results in high click-through rates and a low cost-per-click. Native ads attract clicks because they are not intrusive, unlike in-your-face animated banners and pop-ups.

Native ads attract more genuine interest.

Native ads perform exceptionally well because they don’t interrupt the use experience like other forms of advertising, which consumers appreciate. They are marked as advertisements, so it’s not a deceptive form of marketing, like some might assume.

Related: 3 Questions to Ask When Deciding Between Content Marketing and Native Advertising

Top performing native ads appear within relevant content, blending in to give a fluid and pleasant user experience to the website visitor. When someone views the ad and click on it you are attracting someone with genuine interest in what you are offering. Attracting a higher quality visitor to your landing page is going to ultimately result in a higher conversion rate. Leads generated via native ads are always going to be high quality because their level of interest is higher.

There is less resistance from the consumer.

In-feed native ads allow you to blend in and not stand out like a conspicuous banner ad. You experience more user engagement because they aren’t avoiding your ads like the plague -- which is what happens to the banner ads that typically sit in a website’s header areas and right-hand sidebar area.

Consumers are highly educated when it comes to online marketing -- they have become almost immune to traditional advertisements and their locations. Now is the time to take advantage of the limited resistance and test the effectiveness of native ads for your business.

Ryan founded his native ad platform after being on the other side of the table -- he understood what both the publisher and advertiser required in order to be successful. I have seen several of my consulting clients experience success with native ads and we have a native ad campaign set up for one of my newest companies, a teeth whitening kit, for the upcoming holiday season.

[profoundwinnercollective-blog]

How to Make 'Boring' Industries Exciting Online

Are you in a “boring” industry? Finance or real estate, perhaps? Legal services or manufacturing? Sure, you may find your profession interesting, but you sigh at the futility of engaging with your audience online. “They just won’t care,” you say with resigned certainty.

Stop the negative talk. Generating awareness online can work for any industry. You just have to find a way to make your industry exciting.

So I want you to change the way you frame the situation. If you’re in a “boring” industry, then see that for the opportunity it really is. Your competitors haven’t found an effective way to engage with their audience online. What an incredible opportunity for you to find a strategy that works.

By getting digital attention for your business, you’ll be cashing in on a huge competitive advantage. While everyone else is stuck in the “boring” mindset, you’ll be making yourself a valuable part of the online conversation and growing your business in the process.

Here are several strategies from companies who have turned their industries from sleepy to sexy through innovative digital initiatives.

1. Create and share great video content.

Blenders may not be the most exciting kitchen appliance, but chances are you’ve seen those "Will It Blend?" videos. In a brilliant viral marketing campaign that dates back to 2006, Blendtec’s founder Tom Dickson showed off the power of his blenders by blending all sorts of things in a series of short video infomercials.

Ever seen the one of him blending Bic lighters? Man, is that satisfying.

By blending everything from golf balls and credit cards to cell phones and camcorders, Dickson capitalizes on our childlike curiosity to see household items get completely destroyed. And he gets to prove the power of his blenders in the process.

In a stroke of genius, Dickson turned an everyday kitchen gadget into a compelling conversation starter online. Those videos get hundreds of thousands — even millions -- of views each. The iPad blending video from 2010 already has 18 million views and counting! That’s a lot of people to care about a kitchen gadget.

And the kicker? The "Will It Blend?" series boosted sales by a factor of five between 2006 and 2007.

2. Take advantage of social media.

Is there anything more boring than taxes? Probably not, and yet, H&R Block has somehow managed to amass nearly 500,000 followers on Facebook and Twitter combined.

Who are these people? Don’t they have anything better to do with their time than follow a tax service provider on social media?

The answer is twofold. First, H&R Block is active online and uses social media in all the right ways. They give quick tips for taxpayers, provide in-depth knowledge for professionals and piggyback off current events to give their fun, unique take on the news.

Second, their followers are their community. They’re accountants, people who care about taxes, finance gurus and everyday Joe Schmoes who have questions about their taxes. And H&R Block clearly cares about that community. They regularly respond to comments on their Facebook page and encourage people to Tweet out for help on their taxes.

3. Engage your customers via email.

People care about food. A lot. But food delivery is a bit of a snoozefest.

Nevertheless, Seamless has done an amazing job of making food delivery fun with their email marketing campaigns. I’ve experienced those emails firsthand, and it doesn’t feel like the spammy garbage I receive from other companies. It’s a bit of a game, actually. Sometimes I get a 10, 15 or 20 percent off my next order for being a loyal customer. Other times, I get an email where they piggyback off a holiday like National Donut Day (yes, it’s real) to offer a special deal on donut deliveries.

Or, it might just be a fun PR partnership like when they partnered with Bon Appetit to rank the top 10 delivery restaurants in the country. Another time, they partnered with HBO to offer viewers a free month and pair food in your area with HBO favorites.

My favorite email of all time came with this headline: "Get 10 percent OFF for picking the winning Best Picture NOM-inee!" Now if that doesn’t get you ready for food delivery during the Academy Awards, I don’t know what will.

4. Launch online contests and giveaways.

Nothing screams excitement like multi-chain pharmacies.

London Drugs is a Canadian retail chain with a focus on pharmaceuticals. They’re active on social media and actively manage seven blogs, but their real distinguishing factor is their focus on prizes, contests and giveaways.

Contests and sweepstakes are great because they generate buzz around your brand, reach your target market, and help you generate email leads from interested customers. Win-win-win and all for a smaller price than you’d pay for traditional advertising.

London Drugs runs a number of targeted sweepstakes on its social channels, which has helped transform Facebook into their #1 source of website referral traffic. (They’ve grown their Facebook following to over 120,000 people strong.) Entrants to these contests simply submit their email for a chance to win a gift card or something related to the London Drugs brand.

They actually launched a giveaway recently where you can enter for a chance to win a first aid/emergency kit. Don’t mind if I do…

5. Humor, humor, humor.

Poo Pourri is the “before-you-go” toilet spray that made its mark on consumers thanks to its “Girls Don’t Poop” campaign back in 2013. In that video, you can watch the red-headed Bethany Woodruff talk confidently about “tenacious skidmarks” and “dropping a motherload” -- shameless toilet humor from a woman that makes the product incredibly accessible.

Poo Pourri’s toilet humor campaign seems obvious after the fact, but have you ever seen Febreze or any other air freshener market themselves in that way before Poo Pourri came along?

Yes, this company takes advantage of great video content. And yes, they’re using social media. But really, they’re just being lighthearted and funny about their product. By not taking themselves too seriously, Poo Pourri was able to tap into a market of customers who otherwise might not use a toilet spray at all. Sometimes humor can go a long way.

6. Educate your audience.

There is a mortician in Los Angeles that hosts an “Ask a Mortician” video series on Youtube. People leave comments on her videos asking questions about burials and death and she posts new videos answering those questions. (I highly recommend the Corpse Poo episode -- Poo Pourri anyone?)

The videos are a bit more polished today, but if you go back to her original ones in 2011 and 2012, you’ll see that the quality leaves much to be desired. And those early videos are the ones that sparked her fame online. So don’t be discouraged by your lack of pro video skills.

The mortician,  Caitlin Doughty, has done a terrific job answering her audience’s questions and growing over 80,000 subscribers on Youtube in the process. Some of her most popular videos have earned hundreds of thousands of views.

Doesn’t this example prove any industry can make an impact online? Sure, funeral directing may not be the most stereotypically boring profession around, but it sure isn’t one you’d typically expect to engage in content marketing initiatives online.

Pharmaceutical, tax and manufacturing companies -- even morticians -- are finding effective ways to get attention for their brands online. Still think your industry is too boring for the digital world? If they can do it, you can too.

[profoundwinnercollective-blog]

Social Video Throwdown: Pinterest Enters the Ring With Facebook and Twitter

In August, Pinterest followed other major social platforms by launching full video ads for brands. More options for video marketing can only be good news for marketers, and here’s why I think so:

One-third of all online activity is spent watching video

90 percent of users say seeing a video about a product is helpful in the decision process

Shoppers who view video are 1.81 times more likely to purchase than non-viewers

But each social platform has its own audience and way of presenting video content, so you should create a unique strategy for each. Read on to learn the key features of social video ads on Pinterest, Facebook and Twitter.

Pinterest.

Pinterest is now offering mobile-only Promoted Video, delivered via a Cinematic Pin. This is basically an animated GIF that plays a few frames from the video as people scroll past. To actually see the video and hear the sound, people have to tap on the teaser.

Promoted Videos can be horizontal, vertical, or square and last as long as five minutes. Pinterest also allows you to hand-select six pins to support your video content and encourage engagement.

See the example below:

Pinterest offers in-depth analytics about your ad’s visibility and performance, including how many impressions it received, how many clicks the ad received, how many clicks the featured pins received, and how much of the video people watched (25, 50, 75, or 100 percent).

Even if no one clicks an ad, brands still have to pay for them to appear -- based on cost per thousand impressions of the GIF preview. You can also put a limit on how many times individuals can see your campaign, so you don’t waste impressions. According to AdAge, Promoted Pins require a $500,000 investment, minimum.

Your GIF preview is your only chance to impress Pinners and encourage clicks, so carefully select which frames you want to show in the video. You can also enlist the help of The Pin Factory, Pinterest’s in-house creative shop, to create the teaser for you.

Facebook.

Facebook enabled in-feed video autoplay more than two years ago and since then the company has become a leader in video advertising.

Unlike Pinterest, Facebook video ads can appear in both desktop and mobile news feeds. They’re also the most promising ad format available on Facebook, as videos get more reach than any other post type on the platform.

Your video ad must be uploaded to their native video player, then you customize the description, thumbnail, budget, and audience. Facebook video ads can be a maximum of 120 minutes long.

Unlike Pinterest videos that offer a teaser, Facebook video ads autoplay. So most impressions will happen right in Facebook’s news feed, instead of in a secondary window after the click.

This setup makes it difficult to understand passive versus active views of your ads, but it can help draw more interest by playing the whole video.

Facebook video advertising cost is also based on Cost Per Mille (CPM) -- cost per thousand impressions. But instead of paying for teaser impressions, you’re paying for impressions on your whole ad.

Your CPM will vary depending on your industry, audience, and ad quality.

Twitter.

Brands have been able to embed videos in Tweets and then promote them for a long time. In 2015, Twitter introduced Promoted Videos, which are uploaded to their native video player.

Promoted Videos have better analytics (like percentage watched) and reach than simple promoted tweets.

You can target your audience using keywords, interests, demographics, and other factors.

Promoted Videos are limited to 140 seconds and are a promising way to get both paid and organic reach -- according to Twitter, video tweets have increased by over 50 percent since the beginning of 2016. And your ad analytics allow you to easily differentiate paid and organic performance.

Promoted Videos work under a Cost Per View (CPV) model. So you only pay for actual video views. Here’s how they define a view: the video at least 50 percent on-screen and watched for at least two seconds or a video click.

As of May 2016

, Twitter also made it possible to bid on the 3s/100 metric, which instead defines a view as 100 percent in-view on a user’s device and watched for at least three seconds.

The future of video ads.

Pinterest’s rollout of full video ads is only the latest development in the social video throwdown, and it won’t be the last. All the major social platforms are developing better ways for brands to connect with their audiences, and it’s clear video is the most popular and engaging content type on the internet.

Facebook and Twitter have already demonstrated the effectiveness of their video ads -- and now big brands are putting Pinterest’s Promoted Video to the test.