Ways

3 Insanely Clever Ways to Use Promo Products to Market Your Business

We know that you’re always looking for the best — and the most cost-effective — ways to market your brand.

While marketing gimmicks and viral videos might get you attention for a brief amount of time, promo products ensure that your leads will think about your company for long after an event or transaction has ended.

But how can you get creative when it comes to the top promotional products?

Keep on reading this post to find out.

1. Choose the Right Products

The first step in mastering promotional products?

You need to make sure that you’re not only selecting quality promo products, but also ones that are directly relevant to your brand.

For example, while promo pens would work well for an office supply store, they might not be as effective for a wine company. For the latter, a branded wine opener is a much better choice.

Also, although we know the temptation is real, resist the urge to buy trendy products in bulk. The must-have fad of the moment is going to fade. Then, you’ll be left with a bunch of products you can’t really use.

If you want to go trendy, only buy small amounts.

2. Have a Fashion Show with Promo Products

We also love the idea of hosting a small fashion show that features your models wearing your top promotional products.

This works especially well if you’re an e-commerce store that sells clothing and accessories. This way, your promo products aren’t just items you use to generate buzz around your brand.

They actually become coveted pieces of clothing and accessories that your target market wants to wear.

For example, look into promotional hats, branded scarves, and even promo shirts and tees with your logo splashed across them. Then, work them into outfits with other pieces of clothing that you sell.

3. Involve Social Media

You also want your products to generate a buzz about your brand online.

Plus, you can use your promotional products to help you create a community of your leads and customers. (Not to mention, this will allow you to check out their buying and social media habits.)

We urge you to print a hashtag on your promotional products. When you hand them out to people, encourage them to post their pictures on social media holding the promotional products.

Then, like, comment, and share the pictures you find online to your company social media accounts.

Need More Ways to Market Your Business?

While this post has introduced you to some of the top promo products and how to use them, this is far from the only way that you can market your business.

You still need to develop a digital marketing strategy and master SEO, claim your third-party web listings, and perhaps even create a winning logo design for your brand.

We know: it certainly sounds like a lot!

Don’t worry, we’re here to help you understand the next step to take after investing in the right promo products. When you’re ready to learn inbound marketing techniques and more, bookmark our blog.

5 Ways to Diversify Your Marketing Tactics

A diverse set of marketing tactics lets you cast a wide net over your target audience. This creates enough coverage to connect through their preferred channels and engagement funnels.

86% of marketers cite a customer journey is the up-most important business concept. This “journey” is the experience of an interested party to a verified customer.

Many will approach the journey only through digital marketing tactics.

But:

There’s a broad selection worth exploring if profits and ROI are your key metrics.

Let’s explore this broad selection.

A Diverse Customer Journey: 5 Harmonious Marketing Tactics

Consider the “big picture” of marketing.

There are several touch-points along the way, each building brand value and authority. This blog explains this concept in deeper detail. Let’s go beyond the concepts and focus on actions to create this customer journey.

This is how you should approach it:

Part 1: Face-to-Face and Relationship Marketing

Consider: Nielsen found 92% of people trust referrals from people they know.

Friends and family are the two largest influencers. But, imagine becoming part of the trust factor through your marketing efforts! This process begins on a local level through face-to-face interactions and relationship building.

How can you build locally and radiate your brand?

1. Get your site listed in local search platforms like Google Business or Yelp
2. Rapidly respond to reviews to show you care and display authority
3. Create localize content highlighting your expertise and community

Attending local meetups and sponsoring local events are a priority, too.

These parties funnel through a CRM creating qualified local leads and touchpoints.

What else can you do locally?

• Contribute to news articles and local industry thinktanks
• Encourage word-of-mouth marketing through incentives
• Host contests or provide tours of your facility

The point is being active in your local community. And, leveraging the connections to grow outward. This creates reviews and feedback needed to improve branding and marketing efforts.

Part 2: Print Advertising and Offline Efforts

Consider: 4/5 SBO’s find print effective with standing out.

The info gained through local efforts and existing business assets fuel your print marketing efforts. You likely have the data/materials else work with design talent to secure the following:

• Business cards
• Flyers
• Brochures
• Postcards
• Mailers

What can you do with these?

• Distribute business cards at local events, conferences, and meetings
• Place flyers at relevant business locations and bulletin boards
• Include brochures with each shipment or handed out at events
• Send postcards to new prospects or customers to retain business
• Mass distribute mailers (including coupons) to cold contact prospects

Each item should include contact details and site URL. This will funnel people through your marketing funnel. Or, drive them to targeted landing pages promoting offers and branded materials.

Part 3: Digital Assets and Distribution Channels

Much of the offline efforts and print materials morph into digital assets:

• Website
• Social Media Account
• Display and PPC Advertising
• Digital Media and Branding

There are hundreds of digital marketing strategies you could explore. Each provides unique challenges and ROI.

Where should you start?

1. Website + Content Marketing

Do this:

1. Set up a website adhering to best practices and mobile-friendliness
2. Populate the basic pages with killer content mixed with branding
3. Brainstorm ideas and create a content schedule
4. Produce amazing content based on keyword research and feedback
5. Distribute the content through social channels and email newsletter

This will boost your search listings. And, provide entry-points for those searching for your business and/or its offers.

2. Social Media + Contests

Do this:

1. Join the major social channels like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn
2. Find, follow, and start discussions with your targeted audience
3. Share your blog’s content and interesting industry-related pieces
4. Use social for customer relations and brand reputation management
5. Encourage backlinks, reviews, and mentions from passionate followers

This interaction builds trust and authority helping it reach more people. And, close more sales.

3. Display + Contextual Ads

Do this:

1. Gather your business assets including offer photos and design elements
2. Sign up, fund, and begin running Facebook and Google display ads
3. Send visitors to targeted landing pages with sales pitches or opt-in forms
4. Track and optimized campaigns through A/B testing and CRO efforts

This bypasses barriers by placing your ads and materials in-front of targeted prospects.

Part 4: Multi-Media Channels and Visual Engagement

The print materials become digital content:

• Brochures become interactive landing pages
• Business cards become microsites
• Flyers (with added data) become infographics
• Presentations become explainer videos

Consider: Cisco predicts video will be 80% of all online traffic.

How can you leverage this?

1. Pull site data to find 10 – 20 popular search queries and pages
2. Condense the page data into a script (50 words per 1-minute of video)
3. Set up a camera & mic and record yourself (or team member)
4. Edit the video while including titles and call-outs
5. Publish the video to video sites and embedded in relevant blogs

This now gives you content for:

• Social sharing
• Blog media
• Internal training
• Email newsletters
• Free or paid training
• Landing page content

This diverse marketing effort gets content shared (and reshared) on platforms and channels.

Part 5: Social Outreach and Closed-Loop Marketing

Lastly:

• Create a list of your most passionate followers
• Create a list of potential industry influencers
• Create a list of relevant industry blogs and sites

These are your three targets for social outreach.

Here’s how to work them:

• Followers — Provide incentives to encourage shares/reviews to build your reputation and reach.
• Influencers — Use their popularity to reach people while leveraging the association to build your authority.
• Blogs/Sites — Contribute to get in front of audiences while building backlinks and business relationships.

Approach these efforts with closed-loop marketing in mind. This exchanges information between the sales and marketing team. Better data for optimization is the result of this closed-loop system.

Combining the Efforts and Moving Forward

There are hundreds of marketing tactics you could explore within each of these five main categories. Each will likely improve your effectiveness. But, it’s very typical to overwhelmed yourself (and team) by taking on too much.

Instead:

1. Base your marketing strategy on top-tier, proven methods
2. Test the major offline and digital marketing tactics
3. Track data and feedback comparing them to key metrics
4. Refine and double-down on those strategies showing a positive ROI

This combined strategy will ultimately cement your sales and marketing funnel.

Excited and ready to move forward? Explore more marketing tutorials on our blog to diversify and show positive returns!

10 Simplest Ways to Promote Your Vape Shop

Ever heard of vape marketing?

It’s a thing. And it’s easier than you think.

More than 9 million Americans vape. That’s a whole lot of untapped business there for the taking. With more people vaping every day, the potential for massive sales is huge.

You don’t need an MBA to reach these potential customers. The secrets to your success involve a simple and cost-effective marketing strategy for your vape shop.

Here are 10 simple ways to bring in more business.

1. Get Social Savvy

Every business should be marketing on social media. It’s a way to reach new customers, connect with the online community, and create some cool content for your brand.

Encourage customers to promote your business in their posts. Have them tag your location, use branded hashtags, and snap and share pics.

Focus on growing these channels:

Instagram – Post creative imagery, captions, and hashtags. Share short videos of a day in the life of your vape shop. Engage with the online community by liking, commenting and sharing pictures that relate to your brand.

Facebook – Share trending articles, company updates, and images. All your company contact information should be present, with accurate hours of operation.

Twitter – Share fun articles on vaping trends and follow inspirational vapers. Post witty quotes and shop specials. Make sure you check out their cheap ads as well.

LinkedIn – As a business owner, you should be on this channel. Your connections have the potential to turn into new customers.

You can also use social media to keep an eye on the competition. Learn from their mistakes and victories, and see how you can do it better.

Here are more tips for making your vape shop a social success.

2. Wow with a Website

Do you have a website? If not, you should.

It opens your business up to a whole new audience and makes it easier for people to find you.

Once someone clicks on your website, you only have less than a few seconds to wow them. Do so by making your website creative, visual, and easy to navigate.

You can enlist a professional, or use a free and easy website tool such as Wix. Images are everything, so hire a creative eye to help you take photographs.

Lace keywords throughout the content on your site, including titles and headlines. This will all help people to find your website better.

Make sure your content gets localized and relevant to your audience. For example, CBD website content should be factual and full of local keywords. Learn more here from this example of a great vape shop website.

Include these pages:

• About us
• Product pages
• Testimonials
• Photo gallery
• Contact us
• Customer Support

Use Google Analytics to measure traffic and evaluate your website pages.

3. Make Friends with Google

People turn to Google’s search engine to find the things they need.

Want to impress Google? Include branded and local keywords and meta tags in all your website content. Link your website to your social profiles. Add your business to local directories.

A strategy for local searches should be part of your digital marketing campaign. It will bring in local visitors who are searching for vape shops in your area.

Create a Google business listing, with accurate and up to date company information. Consider an AdWords campaign as part of your digital marketing campaign. Reach new audiences and increase awareness with online advertising for vape shop.

Here are more ways to get better Google rankings for your business.

4. Blog About It

This is a great way to create fresh new content for your website and boost your SEO.

Blog about vaping trends, benefits of vaping, and new products at the shop. For new ideas on blog posts look to what people are saying on community boards. Or scan magazine covers that relate to the vape industry.

Remember that great blog posts often answer questions that your customers need answering. Think about what you would want to know as a vaping enthusiast or new vaper. Answering these questions and establish yourself as an expert in the field.

Use your blog to develop a relationship with the online vape community. Respond to comments and encourage people to link back to your posts. Share blog posts on social media, to get your topics trending.

Don’t let your blog go stale, try updating an average of three times per week. Once you get the hang of it, you can guest blog on other sites, linking back to your own. Here are some tips for getting more traffic on your blog.

5. Get People to Talk About You

But make sure what they are saying is all good.

92% of consumers read online reviews. They do their research and trust the ratings of the online community. They want to make sure past customers have had a good experience with your shop.

Ask happy customers to leave you an online review. You should also be responding to reviews, both good and bad. Show that you value their feedback, appreciate compliments, and take requests into consideration.

Online reviews also help with SEO, which can put your business ahead of the competition.

Word of mouth still matters. Get friends, family, and employees to spread the word about your vape shop.

6. Got Swag?

If not, then get some. Put your company name and logo on anything and everything that relates to your customers.

• Lighters and matches (…kidding)
• Reusable water bottles
• Keychains
• Stress balls
• Small canisters or flip-top bottles (you can put your weed in there)
• Lanyards
• Tshirts
• Baseball hats or beanies
• Hot sauce
• Munchie snacks and candies
• Stickers

Make your friends and employees your brand ambassadors. They can wear and hand out your swag because everybody loves freebies. Post pictures of your new swag on social channels for extra exposure.

7. Host a Vape Party

Invite customers, friends, family and potential business to an event at your shop. Use social media, email marketing, and word of mouth to spread the word.

Make it an event people can’t say no to. Serve food and drinks and offer door prizes. Have a local musician strumming tunes in the corner.

If you have a vape lounge in your shop, this is a great spot to hold the event. Give guests a chance to explore your merchandise and offer free samples. Handout business cards and capture emails.

To save on the budget, partner up with a local business. It can be a restaurant or brewery that could use the promotional exposure.

Think of a way to tie your vape party in with current events. This could get your business some PR. Music festivals, seasonal events, or community outreach all speak to the media.

Make it a social media blitz by inviting local influencers and encouraging them to post during the event. Influencer marketing tactics make for great vape marketing strategies.

8. Collect Emails and Communicate

Once you’ve grabbed enough emails from your event, consider an email marketing campaign. Use this as a way to communicate with present and potential customers.

Share news on vape shop specials, seasonal highlights, and company updates. This is a great way to follow up with leads and keep communication flowing.

Use an automation system, such as MailChimp, to keep track of email lists and deployment. All company contact information should get included in your template design.

Offer an incentive for people to sign up for your newsletter. A 10% discount on first-time purchase is always a winner.

9. Make More Sales Through E-Commerce

Consider an e-commerce site to boost sales and open up new markets.

Shopify, Wix, or Weebly all have platforms that can promote your products online. E-commerce lets you keep your store open at all hours and it’s easy to add new merchandise as it comes in.

To encourage more online sales, make an offer (spend $75+) for free shipping.

10. Reward Those Loyal Followers

Rewards or loyalty programs bring in new business and keep current customers coming back for more.

Encourage customers to spread the word about your vape shop with a “refer a friend” incentive. Offer reward points for repeat customers in the form of discounts or buy five get one free. Send free swag and holiday gifts to loyal customers.

Thank customers for following you on social by giving them points towards purchases.

Marketing Your Vape Shop, Like a Pro

In today’s world of Insta-stories, selfies, and Snapchats, every type of business should adopt digital marketing tactics.

Use these tactics to reach new audiences and expand your vape shop business. Be sure to keep up with vape news and trends and apply them to your evolving marketing strategy.

Live long and vape on.

7 Ways to Relieve Chronic Foot and Back Pain

Struggling with foot and back pain? Have a hard time sleeping and moving around? Before popping pills, consider making some lifestyle changes.

Painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs come with a myriad of side effects. Kidney problems, bloating, depression, and fluid retention are just a few to mention. Even the humble aspirin may cause stomach ulcers and indigestion when used for a long time.

The good news is that there are plenty of ways to relieve pain naturally. For instance, certain exercises can strengthen the back muscles and reduce tension. Ice packs help with inflammation and swelling.

First, it’s important to determine the root cause of pain. This way, you’ll be able to find a treatment that best suits your needs.

What Causes Foot and Back Pain?

More than 31 million Americans have lower back pain at any given time. This is leading cause of disability worldwide. It can affect your flexibility, mobility, and quality of life.

Sometimes, the pain can radiate into the legs and foot. It may also cause aches in the chest or abdominal area. Sciatica, for example, may can to chronic pain in the back and legs.

Foot and back pain can be related or not. It all comes down to the cause of your symptoms. Your feet can hurt for various reasons, such as:

• Bone spurs
• Achilles tendinitis
• Stress fractures
• Psoriatic arthritis
• Plantar fasciitis
• Osteoarthritis
• Gout
• Flatfeet
• Diabetic neuropathy
• Bursitis
• Bunions
• Calluses
• Sports injuries

Certain lifestyle factors, such as sitting for too long or wearing high heels, may cause foot pain too. However, this symptom can also indicate a serious condition like arthritis. In this case, you may experience back pain as well.

Under normal conditions, pain should subside within a few days or weeks. If it doesn’t, see your doctor as soon as possible.

How to Relieve Pain Naturally

Unless you suffer from a serious condition, natural remedies should do the trick. Even if you do have chronic pain, they can help relieve discomfort.

Regardless of the cause of your problem, it’s important to act as soon as possible. If left untreated, pain can persist and become chronic. In the worst case scenario, it can leave you disabled.

To help you out, we’ve compiled a list of the best ways to relieve foot and back pain naturally. Let’s get into it!

Book a Massage

Massage therapy has long been used for its ability to reduce pain and aches. It not only improves these symptoms but also helps with depression and sleep problems. Moreover, it boosts endorphin levels, which helps relieve pain and lifts your mood.

This healing practice increases blood flow to your joints and muscles, accelerating recovery. At the same time, it improves flexibility and range of motion. Plus, you’ll catch more Zzz’s and have greater energy.

Stay Active

When you’re struggling with foot and back pain, you want to get as much rest as possible. However, too much bed rest can worsen your symptoms and reduce joint mobility.

Research shows that regular exercise, especially strength training can significantly relieve pain and speed up healing.

Furthermore, it helps you maintain a healthy body weight. Every extra pound puts pressure on your spine and joints, making pain worse.

Try Yoga

In clinical trials, subjects who practiced yoga showed a greater reduction in pain and increase in flexibility compared to the control group. They also reported enhanced mental well-being and stress relief.

Yoga stretches and strengthens your spine while improving joint flexibility. It also helps develop core strength, which contributes to a good posture.

Certain poses are particularly effective against back pain. Your workout should include the bow pose, the bridge pose, the camel pose, the cat pose, and the dolphin pose.

Avoid Prolonged Sitting

Prolonged sitting is a major contributing factor to foot and back pain. In the long run, it may increase your risk of insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, diabetes, and obesity.

Statistics indicate that sitting for too long doubles the risk of death from any cause. This should be reason enough to leave the couch and get active.

Wear Orthotics

Physiotherapists recommend foot orthotics for a good reason. These accessories help realign foot positioning on the ground, which in turn, improves your gait and posture. As a result, you’ll experience less pain.

Insoles are among the most popular and convenient orthotics. They’re particularly beneficial for those with Achilles tendonitis, knee pain, and backaches. Plus, they prevent blisters and rubbing.

To reap the benefits, choose a quality brand. Samurai Insoles, for instance, are designed to relieve pain and improve comfort. Each pair comes with a one year warranty, so they’re designed to last.

Use a Foam Roller

Athletes and gym goers use foam rolling to sooth tensed muscles and recover faster from training.

This practice involves massaging the affected areas with a lacrosse ball or foam roller. Think of it as a firm of self-massage or deep tissue massage.

Foam rolling works by breaking down the muscle knots or trigger points that cause pain. It also improves circulation and supports tissue repair.

Take Natural Supplements

Glucosamine sulfate, magnesium, calcium, and other supplements can help relieve foot and back pain naturally. Some increase bone strength and increase your pain threshold. Others improve lumbar spine mobility.

If your pain is due to arthritis, take glucosamine. This compound lubricates the joints and increases mobility. For this reason, it’s often prescribed to those with arthritis and severe joint pain.

Restore Your Health and Range of Motion

These are just a few of the many ways to reduce pain and keep your joints healthy. Depending on your needs, you can also try Epsom salt baths, ice therapy, Pilates, and stretching.

Try to limit stress and squeeze more “me” time into your routine. The more relaxed you are, the less discomfort you will experience. Relaxation techniques like yoga and meditation can improve your body’s ability to cope with pain.

Do you have any other tips? What treatments for foot and back pain have you tried so far? Share your experience below!

10 Ways Fitbit Helps You Achieve Your Workout Results

There’s no denying the growing trend of Fitbit users over the past few years.

What used to be dismissed as a high-tech toy is now valued for its game-changing qualities. However, fitbits won’t magically make someone healthy if they don’t change bad dieting habits or break enough sweat.

What a Fitbit can do is completely change the way we think about fitness and give a clearer picture of it. Fitbit helps you achieve your workout results by acting as a consistent and reliable coach. It increases your tolerance for exercise, removing that barrier for taking on more strenuous challenges.

With Fitbit looking to become even more than an exercise tool, we want to take a look at ten key benefits wearing one can provide for your workouts.

1. Positive Feedback Loop

After you hit your first step goal and get that buzz of victory, it’s hard not to be proud of yourself. Each time you hit your goals, it fuels more motivation. No one can take these wins away from you when it comes to personal fitness.

This positive, habit-forming behavior is a big part of how Fitbit helps you achieve your workout results.

2. Sleep Monitoring

If you’re not getting a quality night’s rest, then you’re going to feel it. Your energy will be sapped, your personal achievements will be stagnant, and any fitness goals will come up short. The great thing about the Fitbit is that you can use it to track your sleep patterns.

By knowing just how many hours of full R.E.M. rest, you can make the necessary adjustments needed to improve your workout results.

3. Behavioral Changes

Everything that a Fitbit tracks translates into information that can be used to change the way you look at fitness. This includes both sleep patterns and eating habits. Being healthy is a lifestyle, not a status.

You have to think fit to become fit, which is what these simple gadgets effectively do by changing your behavioral patterns.

4. Competition with Yourself and Others

Another benefit that is often overlooked as to how Fitbit helps you achieve your workout results lies in the competitive scene. For those who used to play sports or likes a little friendly contest every now and then, the Fitbit is perfect. It’s basically a scorekeeper on your wrist.

Go toe-to-toe with your steps or completion times, it’s fun to compete at any level of fitness.

5. Rewarding Good Diets

Having quick access to calorie, fat, carbohydrate, sodium, and sugar totals makes for a much better dietary plan. Keeping track of all of these things with your Fitbit helps you achieve your workout results better by not letting you forget.

This might sound easy, to just stick to set limits on the things you eat, but how quick are we to eat things we forget are bad? A simple bagel with cream cheese can drastically alter a diet plan, but with a Fitbit, you can reward yourself with one without impacting our daily/weekly totals.

6. Being in Control of Yourself

What we mean by this is never wasting time or effort in life — whether you’re working out for a set time, a set goal, or sleeping at a specific time.

Can’t work out because you have low energy? Make some coffee, but don’t skip out.

Can’t sleep because you’re wide awake? Do a boring task or listen to melodic sleep aids.

Whatever the case may be, with a Fitbit, you are given clear goals and it is up to you to meet them however you can. No excuses.

7. The Most Accurate Journal Log

Tracking progress is a very important aspect in fitness. Things can start to get fuzzy or discouraging if you’re just guesstimating your numbers or schedule. It is much easier to compromise on things if you convince yourself that you’re doing better than you are in reality.

The Fitbit automatically knows your workout needs, charts your progress, and shows you what you need to do to continue making gains. Smart.

8. A Sense of Community and Support

The Fitbit community is huge and growing every year. You’ll not only find plenty of wearers at your local gym to befriend and compare notes, you’ll find even more help online. Fitbit forums and blogs share valuable information, like how to fix a Fitbit charge not charging or select recipes or techniques to try out.

Your thorough Fitbit data comes in handy when in the hands of experts and nutritionists who can give you professional advice for free. You can’t get that from any of the million cheap pedometers out there.

9. Fine-tune Workouts

What many non-adopters miss about the Fitbit is the fact that everything can be custom-tailored on the fly. If one program isn’t working for you, it can be adjusted to better match your skills or fitness level.

You can squeeze more out of your workout sessions by monitoring your heart rate, calorie burn, and more. Post-workout you can do even more fine-tuning to increase gains by reading your charts.

10. Comprehensive App Support

There are a number of fitness apps out there for your smartphone, each offering their own set of pros and cons. The Fitbit app that comes with your device is pretty much an all-in-one powerhouse. You can read all your vitals in detail, water intake, diet, sleep patterns, and workout routine with ease.

You can control your entire diet and lifestyle outlook from just one place and on any smartphone or mobile device.

Fitbit Helps You Achieve Your Workout Results

We’re truly living in a digital health renaissance right now, with tons of gadgets and information at our disposal. If you are ever in the need of more health guides or tips in the future, be sure to regularly check our health section.

10 Ways to Express Your Style in a Uniform

If you’re one of the 1-in-5 workers who wear a uniform to work on a regular basis, you may sometimes feel like you can’t be you when you’re at work. While many jobs require a uniform to help identify workers in a crowd or keep your own clothes clean, you can still express your style.

Some workers wear uniforms to protect them from harm, like workers wearing neon and reflective vests. Other workers, like postal carriers, wear uniforms so that people know how to identify someone who otherwise might look like an intruder.

The variety of jobs that require uniforms are all fulfilled by unique people with individual personalities. Because you’re one of these people, you should follow one of these 10 creative tips to express your style while you’re at work.

1. Flaunt Your Hairstyle

If you work at a restaurant or cafe, you may be required to wear a hairnet or a head covering. If you’re at a retail job, you can probably do lots of different things with your hair that still fit within company policies.

As long as you always look clean and well groomed, your employer will be lenient with how you do your hair. Check out online tutorials or style magazines if you’re looking for new ideas.

Before you try something really wild, ask your boss or coworkers what they think. With most cute cuts and subtle dyeing, you should be within the boundaries. Some workplaces require short or tied back hair for safety around machinery.

2. Check Your Neck

If you have to wear a suit or dress shirt to work, you can get a lot of style mileage out of ties. You can express your individuality or your hobbies through a cool tie or make your outfit pop with a great bowtie.

Scarves are also great ways to express yourself. There are so many patterns to choose from that you could express something different every day of the week.

If you wear a lanyard at work, check out what’s available at Lanyards USA for ideas on how you can spruce yours up.

3. Flash Your Wrist

Depending on the kind of work you do, you could express a lot with a great watch or bracelets.

Of course, if you work in food service or get your hands dirty on a regular basis, you might not want to wear something expensive. But wrist wear is probably the most subtle way to express who you are.

If you’re into social activism or awareness around a particular issue, you can wear one of those rubber bracelets to let people know who you support.

4. Desk Decor

While not something that you wear, the things on your desk can be great for expressing your style. If you’re a big sci-fi fan, you can put decorate your desk with a few action figures or a cool mug to hold pens.

Think about clever and colorful things that will inspire you during those slower moments at work. You’ll also earn some compliments and make new friends from someone who says “Hey, I didn’t know you loved that great dog movie? I do too!”

5. Socks Say a Lot

Whether you’re at an office or a restaurant, you probably won’t have any limitations to the kinds of socks you can wear. Express yourself in the same way you would with a tie.

Try something striped, colorful, Argyle, or fun. If you’re an animal lover, you can likely find something with your favorite animals on it. Every cool movie and TV show has some kind of corresponding socks with characters on them.

Try out something fun and you’ll see compliments start piling up at your desk.

6. Earrings and Necklaces

If you love to wear earrings and necklaces, you’ll find they’re a great way to express who you are. During the holidays, you can wear something fun and festive. If you want to be bold, hoops or bright gems and say a lot.

Statement necklaces are becoming one of the most common ways to express style against a monochrome top. If you’re dressed in all black, an angular, geometric necklace will say a lot about who you are.

7. Stockings and Shoes

Great stockings can boost a simple skirt and top in a big way. Subtle patterns or polka dots will make heads turn and get people telling you what cool style you have. Combined with some colorful flats, you’ll be letting people know you’re fashionable and professional.

While there are probably limitations to the kinds of shoes you can wear, combining cool boots, flashy sneakers or heels can take your uniform to the next level.

8. Patterned Scrubs

If you’re in the health and wellness industry, there are certain uniform standards for health and safety. You need things that are durable and washable while also cut to the expectations of your supervisors.

Within those limitations, there are lots of possible prints and patterns. Look for specialty companies that offer cool scrub tops. It can be reassuring for patients to work with a medical professional who has an approachable style.

9. Backpacks and Bags

If you’re dealing with the limitations of an academic uniform, your backpack or bag is where you can be who you are. Look for cool patterns, interesting materials, and clever designs.

Add buttons and pins to your bag to customize it. One or two great little pins can make a solid colored bag look cool and modern.

10. Notebooks and Pens

If you can’t seem to find a way to express yourself within the limits of your dress code, you can always express yourself through your notetaking materials. There are so many cool notebooks and pens.

Get something colorful and wild if you want to express something fun. If you are looking for something more professional, a great refillable pen and leather bound notebook can express your style in a cool and subtle way.

Express Your Style Your Own Way

If this is your first time dealing with a uniform, it can feel restricting at first. You’ll want to be able to be yourself while not causing any problems with your new work or school environment. Ask around and you’ll get an idea of what the parameters are and ease into anything new.

You might be surprised what you can pull off.

If you’re ready to find an exciting way to express your style, check out our article on vintage watches for a cool classic addition to your uniform.

10 Ways Veterinary Apps Are Changing the Medical Field

Veterinary Apps are changing the veterinary world for everyone.

Pet owners can now schedule appointments in a matter of seconds, veterinarians can keep track of important information easily, and students have unlimited information on their phones.

But let’s backtrack. What are veterinarian apps?

Take a look at this quick veterinary app guide and find out how they’re making a difference.

What are Veterinary Apps?

There are a lot of veterinary apps out there, and they all do different things.

For example, some apps are created for veterinarians specifically and help them keep track of and complete their day to day tasks. Others are designed for customers looking for veterinarian help.

There are even apps out there tailored to veterinarian students. These apps provide them with valuable information that gets them through school and prepares them for their career.

Each of these apps takes a lot of stress out of veterinarian life and animal health. In case you don’t know about all the benefits from these veterinary apps yet, we’ll break them down for you below.

1. Schedule New Appointments

With an app, scheduling an appointment takes just a few minutes.

Instead of calling a veterinarian clinic or pet hospital and maybe getting put on hold, you can make the appointment yourself on your phone. You don’t have to go back and forth about what dates work for who. You can just pick a date and time yourself.

All you have to do is open the app and press a few buttons.

You can even get reminders for your pets check-up appointments, something that is otherwise dangerously easy to forget about.

2. Get Important Information Easily

If your pet gets sick or has some other medical emergency, you don’t want to waste time Googling what you should do.

Many veterinarian apps will keep emergency information available for you. If you need to rush your pet over to an emergency appointment, they’ll have their address and contact information somewhere easy to find.

3. Order New Medical Supplies

If your pet is on medication or has a special prescription diet, this feature is especially useful.

When you notice your pet is running out of food or needs a refill of medication, you can just hop on the app and make the order. Instead of finding a time to sit down and call them or drive to the vet in person, you can just order the supplies right as you notice you need them.

4. Use In-House Call Veterinarians

This is perhaps the best part of veterinary apps. You can schedule appointments with different veterinarians for in-house calls, taking a lot of stress out of your vet appointments.

These in-house appointments can be very flexible because they are available anytime between eight in the morning and eight in the evening. (Some apps may be different.) When you book an in-house appointment, the vets can usually see your pet that same day.

Some of these in-house services even include grooming.

Unfortunately, these types of apps are location-based, and only a few cities have them. For example, Treat.co is a veterinary app that is based in San Francisco while VetPronto also covers places like New York and New Orleans.

However, due to their popularity, these apps will probably keep being made for other places.

5. Keeps Your Pet healthy and Calm

Obviously, taking your pet to the vet or refilling their medicine keeps them in good condition, but some animals have a hard time going to the vet.

A lot of animals are afraid of going to the vet, either because they don’t like the traveling to the vet or because they don’t like being handled by the vet.

Cat’s especially have a difficult time at the vet.

Roughly 85% of cat owners don’t take their cats to the vet because they are afraid of being put into a carrier. A lot of pet parents have a hard time taking their pets to the vet because they have to spend a great deal of energy trying to find ways to calm their pets down (learn more).

In-house visits make vet appointments easier for the animals, the owners, and the vets. The animals will be calmer in their natural environment, and the veterinarian won’t have to inspect a worked up dog or angry cat.

6. Helps Manage Clients

With an app, a veterinarian can easily keep track of what pets they are seeing on any particular day. They can check the time for each appointment, look at the details of the visit, and stay on track with all their clients.

7. Keeps Everything They Need to Know Close

Some veterinarian apps work just like a desktop computer. Everything that’s stored on the computer is now available for the vet on their phone, making looking things up easier and faster.

8. Gives Vets More Flexibility

Like Uber, veterinary apps allow veterinarians to find extra work alongside their normal jobs. This benefits both them and their customers because they are able to make in-house visits when they aren’t working at a clinic.

9. Provides More Job Opportunities

It can be hard to find a job in a pet hospital or clinic, so these apps allow vets struggling to find a job a way to work.

10. Keeps People Learning

Students going through vet school now have the ability to keep all the information they need on their phone.

Some of these apps are expensive, like Merck Veterinary Manual and iDEA, but they let students find information whenever they need it, not just when they are in class.

Veterinary Apps Making the World Easier

Veterinarian apps help students, veterinarians, and pet parents alike. They make keeping track of appointments, scheduling new appointments, ordering new medical supplies, or studying for the next test as simple as pressing a few buttons.

Interested to learn more about life-changing apps? Take a look at how these online medical apps are changing the medical world.

5 Unique and Healthy Ways to Break a Smoking Addiction

You may smoke, but that doesn’t mean that you’re happy to be a smoker. Smoking addiction affects a lot of people and many wish that they could drop the habit altogether.

According to a survey from the American Cancer Society, 70% of the participants want to stop smoking. Giving up smoking can be one of the most challenging things you do, but that doesn’t mean that it’s impossible.

Ending Smoking Addiction

If you want to stop smoking, there are a variety of things you can do to help get rid of your habit. People have used mental tricks, products, and even medical help to stop their habit.

Are you ready to stop smoking? Any of these five methods could help you finally quit for good.

Delay

Are you close to giving in to your tobacco craving? Instead of taking a smoke break right now, just wait a few minutes. It may sound crazy, but those few minutes can help do a lot to stop a craving in its tracks.

Spend 5-10 minutes doing something else. Check your e-mail, look at social media, or basically do anything to get your mind off of your craving. After awhile it should pass and you won’t feel the need to smoke anymore.

Deal With Stress Constructively

Smoking and stress almost work together hand-in-hand. A study from the Pew Research Center shows that a lot of smokers struggle with stress, and those stressful feelings cause them to light up more cigarettes.

If you’re a stress smoker you need to find a different way to handle feelings of stress. Some people find that using a stress ball helps them. Others have used yoga or meditation to center themselves and fight off cravings.

Find New Routines

Some people like to end their lunch breaks with a cigarette or two, and others need a smoke before they go to sleep. Smokers that fall into routines can have trouble quitting because it became a part of their daily schedule.

Finding a new routine can help you break your smoking habit. Replace your scheduled smoke breaks with new routines that are satisfying.

Instead of having that post-lunch smoke, take a quick walk to energize yourself for the next half of the day. Consider having a snack instead of a smoke before bed.

Think About Natural Remedies

If you want to quit smoking, mother nature may be able to help.There are a variety of herbs and other natural things that can help break your smoking addiction.

Cream of tartar health benefits have been touted by naturalists for years, and it can also help you quit smoking. Ginseng has also been known to help combat cravings.

Reward Yourself

Quitting smoking is tough, and even just slowing down your habit is a cause for celebration. Quitting comes with a variety of health benefits, but small rewards along the way can make it easier to end your smoking addiction.

If you just went your first day without smoking, treat yourself to a fancy coffee in the morning. If you’ve gone weeks or months without a cigarette, it may be time to buy the new pair of shoes you’ve been eyeing.

Your Turn

What helped you end your smoking addiction? Did we miss your favorite method to break habits? Tell our readers about it in the comments!

5 Ways to Know You Need Drug Rehab

Have drugs or alcohol taken over your life?

Your immediate answer may be “no, of course not.” You could quit anytime you want. While you may say that to yourself, you know that you slip deeper and deeper into addiction every day.

If you or a loved one is abusing substances, you may try to turn the other cheek at first. Eventually, it gets to be too much.

Here are five definitive signs that drug rehab is the best option.

1. You Spend All Your Money on Drugs

Before addiction took over, you used to spend your money responsibly. Now, most of your finances go toward paying for your addiction. Depending on which substance you’re abusing, you could be spending hundreds of dollars a day.

You’re running out of money. You’ve started to sell belongings just to afford your next high. While you know you could lose your home and/or car, you’re not concerned with that right now.

This is very risky behavior. You’re putting your future in danger.

2. You’ve Cut out Friends and Family

Your friends and family don’t understand your life since you’ve become addicted. All they do is judge you, so you don’t see them anymore.

As time goes by, you become more and more isolated. The only people you speak to are your drug dealers and fellow users. This keeps your downward spiral going.

3. You’ve Lost Your Job (or Are at Risk of Losing Your Job) Because of Your Addiction

When you were sober, you never missed a day of work unless you were sick. Now, you couldn’t care less about your attendance.

It’s hard for you to get out of bed in the morning when you’re hungover. You regularly show up to work late. Sometimes you don’t show up at all.

If you’re there, it’s tough to concentrate. You’re always thinking about your next high.

You know you’re going to lose your job soon. That will make it much more difficult to pay for your addiction.

4. You Can Never Get Enough

Your body can become used to drugs and alcohol. That means the usual amount just doesn’t do it for you anymore. You need more to feel the buzz.

Your addiction becomes life-threatening at this point. You could overdose, which can be deadly.

5. How Do You Know It’s Time for Drug Rehab? You Can’t Quit Alone

Perhaps you tried to stop using drugs or alcohol once. You realized your addiction was taking over your life so you withdrew at home.

Within a day, the pain and cravings were so strong you went right back to using again.

It’s generally inadvisable to withdraw at home without medical supervision. A rehab facility can help you through the difficulty that is detoxing from drugs. Once you get past that point, getting sober is a lot easier.

Do you need help overcoming your addiction to drugs or alcohol?

Find help now.

5 Ways Everyone Can Improve Their Restaurant Management

They say to work smarter rather than harder, and the restaurant industry is no exception to this rule.

Clinging to outdated management processes while the competition continues to innovate will only put you one step behind in the long run.

As a manager, you’ll know that customer experiences hinge on both the food and the service. Recent studies of Yelp customer reviews have even shown that customers react to bad restaurant experiences with signs of mild trauma!

No one wants to be responsible for that, so here are five ways you can help improve your restaurant management.

Gather customer feedback

Collecting customer feedback is, and always will be, the best place to start when you’re looking to improve.

By asking them to fill out a short survey, leave a review online or fill out a comment card, you can see the areas you’re excelling in and areas that might need improvement.

Remember to stay impartial when reading your feedback–hard as that may be! Some things may be more useful than others, but it’s crucial not to discard feedback because you don’t like it.

Bookkeeping software

Is your outdated restaurant bookkeeping software holding you back?

Time is money and efficiency is always key, so you need to look to save time wherever you can.

New, more up-to-date software will allow you to manage your inventory, look at the cost of your menu, digitize your invoices and expenses.

You can even send checks to vendors in just a few clicks, bringing management admin time right down while maintaining the high level of transparency and efficiency.

Give your team the tools they need

This seems simple but really can make all the difference.

Being fully stocked with linens, trays, cutlery, glasses and pads means your team will have all they need to do a good job.

Making sure you’re properly fitted out isn’t just helpful for the team, it also helps to maintain a high level of quality and consistency for customers.

Ratty old linens and mismatched cutlery won’t do your reputation any favors.

Incentivise your team

Even if you’re lucky enough to have a team filled with compassionate, enthusiastic individuals with a natural tendency towards hospitality, incentivisation goes a long way to maintaining high service standards.

Set goals based on your KPIs and customer service targets and reward the staff members that hit those markers.

You can even make it into a competition to help stoke the fires of participation!

Hold a monthly team meeting

It’s not just the customers who have important business insights to share.

Try holding a team meeting every month or every quarter and collect the feedback that the whole team has to offer–chefs, kitchen porters, waiting staff, and hosts.

There could be processes that are causing friction across the teams or slowing down service, so bring the issue out into the open and try new ways of doing things.

It’s important for staff to feel like they have a voice, so let them speak!

Try implementing a few of these ideas and see the difference they can bring to your restaurant efficiency.