Tag Archive for: establishing a target market

With the global pandemic of COVID-19 going on, many people have been asked to work from home to lower the spread of the virus. However, it can be difficult when working from home to manage when and where to work, and to set boundaries between work time and personal time.

If you’re new to working from home, you will need to alter your normal habits in order to be successful.

We have come up with 10 tips to help you work remotely effectively.

Maintain a Set Schedule

It is important to create a set schedule and stick to it. When you have set work hours, this helps to maintain your work-life balance. If you are working at odd times during the day, this can make it harder to create that balance and hard to decipher when it is time to work, and when it is time to relax.

Don’t Oversleep

When you’re working from home, it makes it easier for you to decide to get those few extra hours of sleep in the morning and then start your work later on in the day. We don’t recommend doing this. If you stick to your typical schedule of waking up at the same time you normally do when going to work, this will make it a lot easier to be productive and easier to adjust to your new work lifestyle.

Create a Separate Workspace

One of the most important things to do when working from home is by creating a workspace environment for yourself. We understand that having a whole room for an office space is not realistic for everyone as not everyone has that extra space. However, try to at least have your own desk in a quiet space of your home. When you have a dedicated workspace, it makes it easier for you to separate your work time from your personal time. Doing your work from your bed or kitchen table can make it hard to separate your work and personal time. When you’re in your workspace, you are expected to work. And when you aren’t in your workspace, you are on your own time.

Leave Your House

It is important to still keep your body moving and getting some Vitamin D. Take a break from work at least once a day and while of course maintaining social distancing, try going for a walk, sitting out in your backyard, cutting the grass, etc.

Maintain a Morning Routine

Start your day off right by maintaining your regular morning routine. You wouldn’t go to your regular place of work without getting dressed, washing your face, brushing your teeth, making yourself breakfast, etc. So, don’t do that while working from home either. Working in your pajamas is okay on occasion, but doing this everyday will lead to tiredness, laziness, and lack of desire to actually work.

Have an Understanding With the People in Your Household

Ensure that the people you live with understand your situation. It is key to not be bothered while doing your work, the same way you are not bothered when you are at your physical job location. Let your family members know that you need your own time and space while you are working. Make sure you have ground rules with your family in regard to what they can and can’t do while you are working. For example, having someone play the drums in the room beside you is not beneficial to your focus and concentration. This is a time of understanding and working together to ensure that everyone can still continue their work and responsibility effectively.

Stay Connected with Your Colleagues

It’s a hard time for everyone right now, so be sure to stay connected with your colleagues and check in with them. Working from home can make you feel disconnected, so be sure to continue to socialize with the people you work with, even if you’re not working in the same environment right now.

For us here at Rosewood, we absolutely love using Slack. Slack is a great business messaging app that you can get on your smartphone and computer. For visual communication, we recommend Zoom. Zoom is great for meetings and makes collaboration easier.

Maintain Positivity

We know it can be difficult to remain positive through all the negativity going on right now. However, maintaining positivity is a must in order to work remotely effectively. I always try to keep positive by listening to my favourite songs while getting ready in the morning, by allowing myself the breaks I deserve during the day, and by always reminding myself that I am blessed to still be able to continue working during this pandemic.

Don’t Be Too Hard on Yourself

Working from home isn’t easy – and it isn’t for everyone. That is perfectly okay. Some people work more effectively when they are in a separate physical space for their work that is not their own home. Don’t be too hard on yourself. Try to remember that this is difficult for everyone and that you are not the only one struggling. Don’t be afraid to ask for help! If you are struggling, reach out to your boss, manager, or colleagues for help.

Keep Organized

With all the new adjusting to working from home, it may be hard to keep track of everything you need to do in a day. That is completely understandable, and you shouldn’t be too hard on yourself if there are things you forget. We are all human and this new version of life is taking some adjusting. Using organization applications like Trello or ClickUp can really help you for all your organization needs. Or, if you’d prefer something that is tangible, a good ol’ fashion day planner is extremely beneficial.

Let’s Connect

Rosewood is a full-service digital marketing agency outside Toronto dedicated to helping entrepreneurs and small businesses grow their online presence. We work with clients across North America and Europe to identify, strategize and reach their marketing goals!

You can join the conversation online on InstagramFacebook and LinkedIn. Or contact us to chat about your marketing goals for 2020 or to discuss how Rosewood can assist you in building your website!

Sign up for our Newsletter to keep up with our latest news!

Until next time,

Cassandra

stock photo

A picture is worth a thousand words. This saying is very accurate! Using photos is extremely important as people are drawn more to photos rather than text. Using stock photos has become a very popular choice for people as it saves you the time and money of hiring a photographer. Stock photos can be found online and are already created and ready to be downloaded for your use. Before downloading a stock photo, you will need to pay for it in order to hold the license (although some websites do offer free stock photos).

Types of Uses for Stock Photos

There are two most common uses for stock photos: commercial use and editorial use.

Commercial Use:

  • Marketing
  • Social Media
  • Branding
  • Used on Your Website

Editorial Use:

Accompanying text content such as:

  • Blogs
  • Articles
  • Magazines
  • Newspapers

We have done extensive research on various stock photo websites and have come up with our top 3. Best of all, we have included paid and free options.

Pexels (Free)

Pexels is a royalty free, high-resolution photo marketplace. All photos on Pexels are free for commercial and personal use. Pexels offers thousands of photo options all at high resolution, and they even offer free stock videos as well. Unlike many stock photo websites, Pexels does not require you to register for an account – anyone can upload and download photos! Giving credit to the author is not necessary but is definitely appreciated by both Pexels and the author. Just remember, you CANNOT use these photos for resale.

Pixabay (Free)

Pixabay is another free stock photo website that offers photos, videos, vectors, illustrations and more. Currently, there are more than 1 million options to choose from on Pixabay. All contents are released under Creative Commons CC0. This makes them safe to use without asking for permission or giving credit to the author/artist. Like Pexels, Pixabay does not require you to create an account in order to download the photos, although certain features do require registration. You may not use the photos and videos from Pixabay for resale, but you can most definitely use the graphics they offer for personal or commercial use.

123rf (Paid)

123rf is a paid stock photo website that offers millions of options to choose from, however this is our personal favourite here at Rosewood. This stock photo site offers thousands of photos, videos, audio, and vectors. You can choose to either do a monthly subscription plan or pay for credits and top them up as you need them.

Each photo/video is downloaded based on size. You can choose to download small (2 credits), medium (4 credits), large (6 credits), or extra-large (10 credits). Typically for most uses, small will work just fine. However, if you require a higher resolution photo, you may want to purchase medium, large, or extra-large. Like Pexels and Pixabay, the contents offered on 123rf are not allowed for resale, unless you purchase an extended license. One thing that is especially great about 123rf is the customer support they offer. When you create an account, you will be assigned an account manager who can help you with any questions or concerns you may have.

Let’s Recap

After looking into Pexels, Pixabay and 123rf, we can honestly say that all three of the stock photo platforms are great! If you aren’t looking to spend money at this time, Pexels or Pixabay is a great option for you. If you are looking for a little bit of an improved and efficient library to choose from and are willing to pay for it, 123rf is your best option.

Let’s Connect

Rosewood is a digital marketing agency outside Toronto dedicated to helping entrepreneurs and small businesses grow their online presence. We work with clients across North America and Europe to identify, strategize and reach their marketing goals!

You can join the conversation online on InstagramFacebook and LinkedIn. Or contact us to chat about your marketing goals for 2020!

Sign up for our Newsletter to keep up with our latest news!

Until next time,

Cassandra

course

Online courses have become huge over the last couple of years. With people’s busy schedules, online courses make it easy to learn from the comfort of your own home at your own pace. Whether your course is meant for your staff members, students in school, or just sharing your knowledge with individuals eager to learn, it is important to look for which platform best suits your needs for what you are offering.

Three of the most popular course creation platforms include Thinkific, Udemy, and Teachable. In this blog, we will be comparing the three different platforms and making our recommendations.

Plan Pricing & Features

Thinkific Pricing & Features

Plans

What Does the Plan Offer?

Who is This Plan Recommended For?

Offers a FREE plan with basic features

  • 3 Courses
  • Unlimited students
  • Quizzes & surveys
  • Content hosting
  • Instant access to your funds

Individuals looking to test the course platform

Essentials Plan: $49/month

  • Unlimited courses & students
  • Coupons
  • Email students
  • Affiliate reporting
  • Custom domain
  • Email integrations
  • & More!

Starters with minimal course creation experience

Business Plan: $99/month

  • Unlimited courses & students
  • 2 Site admin accounts
  • 5 Course admins/authors
  • Private & hidden courses
  • Memberships and bundles
  • Certificates
  • Assignments
  • & More!

For course designers that are building a successful online course

Advanced Plan: $279/month

For advanced businesses ready to build an education realm

 

To learn more about Thinkific’s plans and features click here.

Udemy Pricing & Features

Plans

What Does the Plan Offer?

Who is This Plan Recommended For?

FREE Plan

  • Unlimited Courses
  • Video Lectures
  • Audio Lectures
  • Quizzes/Exams
  • Text Lectures
  • Certificate of Completion
  • Q&A
  • Coupon Codes
  • & More!
For course designers that are building a successful online course

Team Plan: $240/month

  • Branded Dashboard and Custom URL
  • Video Lectures
  • Audio Lectures
  • Quizzes/Exams
  • Text Lectures
  • Certificate of Completion
  • Q&A
  • Coupon Codes
  • Unlimited Courses
  • & More!

 

Small teams of 5-20 users that will be contributing to course

Enterprise Plan: Must Contact Udemy for Pricing
  • Branded Dashboard and Custom URL
  • Create and Host Custom Content
  • Create and Share Learning Paths
  • Custom Categories
  • Video Lectures
  • Audio Lectures
  • Quizzes/Exams
  • Text Lectures
  • Certificate of Completion
  • Q&A
  • Coupon Codes
  • Unlimited Courses
  • & More!

Bigger teams of 21 or more users

To learn more about Udemy’s plans and features click here.

Teachable Pricing & Features

Plans

What Does the Plan Offer?

Who is This Plan Recommended For?

Offers a FREE plan with basic features

  • Unlimited Video
  • Unlimited Courses
  • Unlimited Hosting
Individuals looking to try out the course creator

Basic Plan: $29/month

  • Unlimited Video
  • Unlimited Courses
  • 5% Transaction fees
  • Instant Payouts
  • Unlimited Hosting
  • Unlimited Students
  • Course Creation Training
  • Coupon Codes
  • Integrated Affiliate Marketing and Email Marketing
  • & More!

Starters with minimal course creation experience

Professional Plan: $79/month

  • Everything in Basic PLUS:
  • No Transaction Fees
  • 5 Admin Users
  • Product Support
  • Graded Quizzes
  • Course Completion Certificates
  • & More!

Small teams of 5 that will be contributing to the course

Business Plan: $399
  • Everything in Professional Plan PLUS:
  • 100 Admin Users
  • Manual Student Imports
  • Bulk Student Enrollments
  • Custom User Roles

Large teams of up to 100 that will be contributing to the course

To learn more about Teachable’s plans and features click here.

Which Course Platform is Best?

In our opinion, after investigating the three platforms, we have decided that Udemy is best. We think Udemy is best for several reasons. For us, we have a small team and therefore don’t require the more expensive plans that allow for a lot of team users to build to content for the course. The free courses for Teachable and Thinkific do not appear to have as many features as the free version of Udemy. After reading many reviews online for all three of the platforms, we found that majority of people who used Udemy said that they built up a large following due to the built-in promotion engine that Udemy offers. If you’re a starter, Udemy is definitely the best option.

In Conclusion

While Udemy would work best for smaller businesses, it definitely is not the realistic option for larger companies and corporations that have many contributing team members. It is important to do your own research on different platforms to determine which would work best for you and what you are looking to achieve.

Rosewood is a digital marketing agency outside Toronto dedicated to helping entrepreneurs and small businesses grow their online presence. We work with clients across North America and Europe to identify, strategize and reach their marketing goals!

You can join the conversation online on InstagramFacebook and LinkedIn. Or contact us to chat about your marketing goals for 2020!

Sign up for our Newsletter to be notified when we launch our online course!

Until next time,

Cassandra