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A Meeting Agenda Guide That Actually Works (Infographic)

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Running a meeting isn’t always easy. However, this guide will make them a piece of cake.


2 min read


Meetings can go two ways: They can end up being hour-long slow-talking processes that rarely cover what they needed to cover, or they can be productive, to-the-point collaborative get-togethers that solve problems and move a business forward. Clearly, everyone should strive for the latter case. How can that be done, you might ask? Start with setting a strong agenda. By having a clear agenda to guide your meeting, you can ensure you cover what needs to be covered, get to the point and waste no one’s time. Meetings are major opportunities to move a business forward.

Related: Why Elon Musk Hates Meetings

First on your meeting agenda, list out the topics you’d like to cover, how long to spend on each, who will be leading them, their levels of importance and most importantly, their purposes and desired outcomes. Ask yourself: What do I want to see as the end result of discussing this topic? Also, it’s important to note if any preparation needs to be done beforehand and list out the proposed process the leader will take in discussing the topic — that can simply be done with a couple of bullet points (no need to go overboard).

Related: Science Has Some Suggestions for Making Meetings Productive

Another great tip when drafting your meeting agenda is to lead with questions. When you list out a topic, turn it into a question so the team feels like they have to answer it. For example, instead of writing “Social Media Engagement” as a topic, write “How can we increase our engagement on social media?” Make sure your agenda is brief and quick-to-read so people will actually take the time to look at it and find it valuable. Lastly, by the end of the meeting do a quick survey of the room to discuss how the meeting went and how it could be improved for next time.

Related: 5 Reasons In-Person Meetings Still Matter

If you start implementing these tips, you’ll maximize the productivity of your meetings and no one’s time will ever go to waste. To learn more, check out The Business Backer’s infographic below.

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Improve Your Conversion Rate and Increase Revenue With These User Experience Design Essentials

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Don’t deter your customers with a poor website design.


6 min read


Did you know that 88 percent of consumers are unlikely to return to a website after one bad experience?

It’s a staggering statistic, but it certainly says something about the importance of user experience in website design.

Related: 50 Must-Have Features for Small-Business Websites (Infographic)

User experience (UX) is the overall experience a visitor has on a website, in a program or in a mobile app. It’s not any single design element or layout that defines the experience — instead, it is a comprehensive compilation of many little interactions woven together, producing positive or negative feelings about the website and, by default, the parent company.

The emotional connection that users feel as a direct result of the UX design directly impacts brand identity, consumer retention and a business’s bottom line.

Plus, according to research from Stanford University, over 46 percent of consumers view a website design as a top indicator of credibility — a quality that is imperative for brands to secure to captivate new consumers and then turn them into returning customers.

Related: How to Upgrade Your Small Business’s Website Through Purpose-Driven Design

But these three simple design tips will improve your user experience, increase conversions and revenue and ultimately grow your business.

1. Incorporate consistent branding.

Studies show that consistent branding can increase revenue by up to 23 percent. Plus, a cohesive visual identity across every platform and device — including your website — will aid in creating a brand that consumers enjoy engaging with, leading them to want to engage with you over and over and over again.

This cohesive visual identity is quite easy to reproduce. The top website designs utilize a recognizable color palette, imagery that provides value and information to users, consistent typography and a subtle branding on each page of the website — often in the form of a watermark-like logo. This consistent branding creates a stable environment that empowers your users to find the products or information they are looking for without distracting or confusing them. They know where they are, what they can expect and now have the time to determine what they want to do.

Walmart is an excellent example of consistent branding and strong user experience design. The megastore’s investment in a modern, simple logo design and an easy-to-use website have resulted in a digital destination that is completely intuitive and easy to shop on. The regularly large logo design condenses to a simple responsive symbol, but in every iteration of the design — desktop, tablet and mobile-friendly — the bones and structure of the site remain intact.

Users can quickly search, easily access their cart and personal account, and speedily find their way back to the homepage should they get lost while journeying deep into the website’s many pages. This simple, clean, consumer-centric design is branded in Walmart’s signature blue and yellow hues and mirrors the visuals and messaging that every piece of Walmart’s marketing collateral has, from commercials to social media posts to banner ads. Walmart prioritized a consistent brand and simple site over bells and whistles — and it paid off, too. Their e-commerce sales grew by 23 percent in Q4 of 2017 — just like the study said they could.

Related: 10 Steps to Creating an Engaging Digital Experience

2. Utilize clear calls to action.

As author Nora Roberts said, “If you don’t go after what you want, you’ll never have it.” That idea certainly rings true in website design. Amazingly enough, even after they have found their way to your online site, some consumers won’t know the action you want them to take until you make it crystal clear with direct language and calls to action (CTA).

To maximize the UX design — and effectiveness — of a CTA button, there are a few rules to live by:

  • Make buttons large and fully clickable — don’t just rely on the text within the button
  • Write clear, easy to understand messaging. This can be playful and on-brand, but most importantly, users should immediately understand what will happen when they click the button. (Bonus tip: Include a verb, an urgent adjective and keep the whole CTA short and sweet).
  • The font itself should be readable and large — now is not the time to play with any trendy, swirling fonts you may have recently discovered. Stick to simple sans-serif typography.
  • Ensure the call to action stands out. Stay within your color palette but use a hue or unique shape that makes the action stand out and grabs a user’s attention to boost conversions.
  • If it fits with your aesthetic, include tiny complementary design elements, such as an arrow or a shopping cart.
  • Utilize white space to allow the message to breathe.

Related: 4 Ways to Make Your Business Website More User-Friendly

3. Create for consumers — not designers.

At the end of the day, a website isn’t for designers or a company — it is for the consumers. Therefore, before adding any features or implementing any changes, designers should walk through what that means for the user experience and customer journey, first.

Once you conduct consumer research, you and your team will understand the features that are the most important to them and those that — even if they are beautiful — won’t make a difference in a customer’s overall experience and interaction with your brand.

Finally, once you design any UX design improvement, take the time to A/B test the new feature to ensure it is functional and breeds better conversions. Studies show that most companies discover the best conversion rate optimization through A/B testing as opposed to total implementation.

Ultimately, investing in user experience design will provide a strong return on investment down the road. Of course, there are always other improvements that will improve UX, such as fast loading time and site speed, strong SEO, and integrated content marketing and videos. But by paying attention to the customer journey on every device, creating intuitive navigation and focusing on clear messaging and calls to action, you’ll dazzle consumers with a pleasant interaction and keep them coming back for more.

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Here’s Why So Many Fast Food Logos Are Red

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It’s a primal thing.


This story originally appeared on Business Insider

By David Anderson and Jordan Bowman

McDonald’s. Arby’s. Wendy’s. Burger King. Jack in the Box. In-N-Out and more all use the color red heavily in their logos, why? The answer goes back thousands of years. Following is a transcript of the video. 

Hmmmm… These companies have something in common. Can you spot it? 

Well, besides all being fast food chains… They’re all red. And it’s not a coincidence. Color is one of the many tactics companies use to connect with customers. And if swearing off fast food wasn’t hard enough, those colorful red logos might make it even harder to ignore. 

The average human can see ten million colors, but red is special. Turns out, it’s one of the first colors our ancient ancestors thought important enough to name. Back before alphabets and writing, early human languages were surprising… uncolorful. There were words for “black” and “white’ and “red” but not much else. In fact, blue didn’t show up until thousands of years later in 200 A.D. 

As a result, we have a deeper connection to red than any other color on the spectrum and we react to it in certain ways that actually play to fast food companies’ advantage. For starters, researchers have found that red can evoke a sense of urgency. On top of that, it also has an innate ability to whet our appetites. And when you pair those two together you’ve got the perfect recipe to attract hungry customers who want food, fast. 

Related: The Secrets of Successful Logos

So that red logo isn’t just a welcoming sign it’s a sly seduction for your brain. Now, it’s unclear why red makes us feel this way. But perhaps it has something to do with where the word comes from. Many ancient languages, including Hebrew and from tribes of New Guinea, first named red from their word for “blood.” 

For example, red in Hebrew looks like this  and is pronounced “ah-dohm,” while blood looks like  and pronounced “dahm.” But red’s bloody beginning has transformed over millennia. During medieval times, for example, red was worn by royals as a status symbol. And today, brides in many parts of India are married in red dress. 

In fact, red is one of the few colors today that cultures all over the world view positively. And it’s no wonder companies dedicate so much thought to their logos. After all, we’re a visual species. Despite having five senses, 80 percent of the information our brains process on a daily basis comes from our eyes. 

Related: Why Small Businesses Need Strong Logos

And according to marketing company WebPageFX, nearly 85 percent of consumers say the main reason they choose one product over the other is color. Another 80 percentsaid that colors are what give brands that memorable stamp of recognition. 

Just think what the McDonald’s logo would look like in blue, green or pink. It’s just not the same, right?

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What Crisis? – 58% of Small Businesses Will Invest More in Facebook Marketing

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The latest round of privacy scandals at Facebook might have been enough to crush a lesser company, but not this social media giant — at least not where small businesses are concerned. As a matter of fact, a new survey by The Manifest titled, How Small Businesses Invest in Social Media in 2018 has revealed 58 percent of respondents plan to increase their marketing investment in Facebook.

2018 Small Business Social Media Spending

In addition to the Cambridge Analytica fiasco, Facebook also admitted it scanned Messenger and was collecting massive amounts of data about its users. But all of this didn’t affect its user base or bottom line. Facebook’s Q1 2018 earnings report beat Wall Street’s revenue estimate with $11.79 billion while adding 48 million daily active users to boot.

For small businesses, this is great news because 80 percent of them use Facebook for their marketing. What’s more, the Manifest surveyed 351 of these small business owners and managers across the US and found 92 percent plan to invest more time and money on social media in 2018.

Kristen Herhold, who wrote the report on the survey, said “Smaller business owners are focusing on what they see as more important tasks to keep their company running, but they should also focus on social media. Although larger businesses are more likely to invest in social media, smaller businesses can also find success with this technology.”

How Are Small Businesses Investing in Social Media?

First it is important to repeat 92% of small businesses in 2018 plan to increase their investment in at least one social media platform. And when it comes time to make this investment, Facebook is the number one choice with 58% of respondents. Facebook is followed by YouTube and Instagram at 39%, and Twitter at 32 percent. An amazing 31% still say they would invest in Google+. Snapchat is also still relevant for a certain demographic with 21% of respondents said they would invest their marketing dollars there.

The reason social media is a good investment for small businesses at this time is that it provides measurable metrics that can be analyzed and acted upon. When it comes to the most important metric for the business owners 20% said engagement and 19 percent indicated audience growth, according to the survey. Other important metrics for small business owners and managers included clicks to website at 16%, leads or conversions at 15%, number of posts at 13% and reach at 12%.

2018 Small Business Social Media Spending Set to Rise

 

Regarding the kinds of resources small businesses use to manage their social media marketing efforts, 53% said they use in-house staff while 33% of respondents each said they used software, freelancers or consultants. Only 24% said they used digital marketing or social media marketing agencies to maintain their online social presence.

You can read the rest of the report on The Manifest here.

In the report, Herhold says small businesses can gain inspiration for their own social media strategies by learning how other businesses invest in this space. She goes on to say businesses should invest in social media because, “Social media is a part of consumers’ everyday lives, and companies are hard-pressed to find consumers who aren’t affected by social media in some way.”

Image: The Manifest

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Today’s Retail Needs Both Tech and the Human Touch

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Retail has become synonymous with digital bells and whistles. Artificial intelligence is helping retailers detect patterns and predict customer preferences, augmented reality enables customers to try on clothes or test out room decor, and “scan and go” apps are changing the way shoppers pay. But even as technology has enhanced the shopping experience, consumers are often coming away unsatisfied. Call it an experience disconnect: Companies tout their latest digital innovation, but fail to focus on the aspects of customer experience that are the most meaningful.

Findings from a recent PwC Consumer Intelligence Series (CIS) survey of 15,000 global consumers confirm what we’ve observed in countless shopper–retailer interactions: The human touch still matters. Seventy-five percent of survey respondents report that they want more human interaction in the future, not less. Further, nearly three-quarters of shoppers say customer experience is more important than price and product quality when it comes to purchasing decisions; 65 percent of U.S. consumers say a positive experience with a brand is more influential than advertising, even advertising they consider “great.”

These numbers should serve as a wake-up call to retailers as they consider how best to engage with shoppers. Technology will remain central to retailers’ ability to understand and predict customer behavior. But none of these high-tech capabilities would be possible without people. Whether on the front lines or behind the scenes, it takes a veritable army of specialized staff — floor associates, data scientists, product designers, artificial intelligence experts, supply chain specialists, distribution center workers, and more, all operating in concert with technology — to delight customers with products and services they didn’t even know they wanted and keep them coming back. Stories of a retail apocalypse notwithstanding, this is a time of revival and reinvention for retailers able and willing to deliver the experience that customers increasingly demand. Here are three ways they can start.

Inspire a community of commerce. Innovative retailers understand the imperative to create a welcoming environment where shoppers enjoy spending their time as much as their money. Liberated from being just an inventory repository, today’s reimagined store is a community of commerce — an outlet for product discovery, a forum to educate and entertain, and a channel to reinforce the brand. And the opportunity for stores to transform is ripe: In PwC’s 2018 Global Consumer Insights Survey, 44 percent of shoppers reported visiting a physical store at least weekly, up from 42 percent in 2012.

In April 2018, traditional retailer Nordstrom opened a Manhattan boutique catering solely to men. Customers can have their shoes shined and meet with a tailor for custom alterations, and can virtually try on clothes using a digital avatar. The retailer is also breaking new ground with Nordstrom Local, its new concept for women. The small boutique does not carry inventory for immediate purchase but has items available for shoppers to try on. They can then buy online or order merchandise for in-store or curbside pickup. To promote a sense of community, the store also boasts shopper-friendly amenities such as personal stylists and on-site alterations, as well as a cocktail bar and nail salon.

Some companies that started as online pure plays are also finding that physical stores are a critical way to build in-person connections with customers. This omnichannel experience makes good business sense, considering that online sales still represent just 10 percent of core retail sales. Even Amazon is blurring the lines between online and offline retail with the launch of its first Amazon Go in Seattle — a cashier-less grocery store, but one with employees on site to help troubleshoot, locate items, and prepare meals for purchase.

Warby Parker, which started selling its reasonably priced, direct-to-consumer eyeglasses as an online-only brand in 2010, now has more than 60 boutiques across the U.S. and aggressive plans for more. Other online upstarts, such as mattress company Casper and socially conscious clothes brand Everlane, have recently opened physical stores to enable shoppers to interact with their products in person.

Create a culture that empowers employees. Even as technology plays a larger role, the most successful retailers understand that employees are the connective tissue in the retail experience. The risk of not getting the human element right is significant: PwC’s CIS survey found that 56 percent of shoppers will turn away from their favorite products or brands after several bad experiences, and 32 percent will walk after just one bad experience. Meanwhile, 53 percent of respondents to PwC’s Global Consumer Insights study reported that interaction with knowledgeable, helpful salespeople gave them the most satisfaction as shoppers — a higher percentage than those who named technology-enabled experiences such as personalized offers or in-store screens that display an extended range of products.

Some companies have taken the need for excellent service to heart. The Ritz-Carlton, for example, empowers each employee to spend as much as US$2,000 per guest to provide superior service, and encourages employees to use their creativity to ensure every customer experience is memorable. That relentless focus on the customer works: The Ritz-Carlton has received numerous prestigious hospitality awards for guest satisfaction and has among the highest employee retention rates in an industry notorious for employee attrition.

Another company whose core values are infused throughout the customer experience is outdoor equipment retailer REI. REI’s culture encourages employees to embrace the sporting lifestyle and share their experiences with customers. Employees get two extra days off each year to participate in outdoor and wellness-related activities. REI also closes its doors on Black Friday, encouraging employees get into nature instead. This strategy has translated into deeper customer engagement, with millions of customers participating in REI’s #OptOutside movement.

Recruit a data-literate workforce. Being in the retail business today means being in the data business. Customer experience falls short if retailers can’t effectively harness the power of technology in order to engage customers. Retailers need data scientists and other professionals with advanced analytics skills who can help companies carry out analyses and apply data to better understand customers and predict trends.

Analysis from a 2017 report by PwC and the Business-Higher Education Forum finds that retail has the highest proportion of job openings for data-driven decision makers. And retail is in the top three industries seeking functional analysts. By 2021, employer demand for data science and analytics skills will far exceed supply. To fulfill current and future needs, savvy retailers are rethinking the talent pipeline and doing more outreach to identify, develop, and recruit retail workers with in-demand skills.

To aid in this effort, some trade groups are implementing programs that prepare workers for tomorrow’s retail environment. One such program run by the NRF Foundation, the philanthropic arm of the National Retail Federation (of which one of the authors is the president, and another is on the board) offers college students — with majors as diverse as merchandising, economics, and computer engineering — an opportunity to explore retail career paths spanning the entirety of the retail ecosystem, including supply chain, logistics, marketing, finance, and technology. Elsewhere, UpSkill America, a coalition of businesses that promotes retraining, partners with retailers to reskill and upskill employees in areas such as marketing analytics, user experience, and software development.

Ultimately, the human element remains central to customer interactions, even if it’s embedded within automation, artificial intelligence, advanced analytics, or other technologies. The premiums shoppers are willing to pay — as well as the value of their loyalty — add up for companies who heed the call for a customer experience that hinges on human connection.

Author Profiles:

  • Steve Barr is a partner with PwC US, based in San Francisco. He is the PwC US retail and consumer markets leader, and is a member of the board of directors of the National Retail Federation (NRF) Foundation.

  • Ellen Davis is senior vice president of research and strategic initiatives at the National Retail Federation and president of the NRF Foundation.

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How to Install a Content Delivery Network (CDN) on Your Site

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When you’re a small business owner, you have to wear many hats, especially in the beginning. One of those hats has you continually maintaining and upgrading your website. In that capacity, you know a content delivery network (CDN) will speed up your site. However, installing one is complicated.

Isn’t it?

Wrong.

Some CDN’s do have complex implementation sequences, but others are as simple as boiling an egg. There’s an obvious sequence of actions you need to complete, but each one is easy and quick.

The sequence below relates to implementing an Incapsula CDN on any domain.

 

Signing Up

A good quality CDN uses expensive hardware such as solid state disks (SSDs), the latest super-fast CPUs and the fastest Internet connections. Each of these costs money.

A free CDN won’t compare to a paid one, and the monthly charges for a good one start at around $59 per month. However, that is a small price to pay for the increased conversions your faster site will give you.

Incapsula offers a free trial, but you do need to give your credit card details. If things don’t work out, though, just cancel the pending payment.

We lay out the entire, step-by-step CDN implementation process in the screenshots below from Incapsula.

Start by clicking on the green “Pricing & Sign Up” button and choose the level of CDN cover you need.

CDN Implementation 1

If you click on the PRO plan, the next screen asks for your name, email address, and company details.

CDN Implementation 2

When you click on the “Create Account” button you are taken to the screen below to fill in your credit card details.

CDN Implementation 3

Enter your card details and press the big green button. Provided you have enough unused credit on your card, you will be directed to the screen where you will enter your domain name.

 

Adding Your Site

Adding your site to any CDN has a few more steps than most company sites reveal in their marketing.

CDN Implementation 4

Type in a domain name you own and press the green button to add the site to your Incapsula account. Just add one domain at this stage, or things will get too complicated.

Incapsula tells you what is happening.

CDN Implementation 5

You will see a message on the next screen about verifying your identity using the email address you gave when you signed up.

CDN Implementation 6

Click on the link in the email that Incapsula sent you.

CDN Implementation 7

Clicking the link clears the ID verification message.

CDN Implementation 8

Click the orange triangle under “status,” and you start a sequence that will set up your site on Incapsula.

CDN Implementation 9

Now, click on the green “Set up HTTP” link.

CDN Implementation 10

Click on the friendly-looking green “Let’s start” button. And you get the rather unfriendly looking screen below. Never fear, Click the green “Check DNS” button anyway.

CDN Implementation 11

You then see the scary screen below, where you have to DO something.

CDN Implementation 12

Validate by e-mail sounds easier, so click that box.

You now have a drop-down choice of email addresses to choose from.

CDN Implementation 13

You probably don’t have any of those addresses set up, so you need to set one up in your cPanel dashboard. (If you do have one of these email addresses set up you can skip the next few steps.)

CDN Implementation 14

Scroll down through your cPanel screen until you reach the EMAIL section. Click the “Email Accounts” link. Scroll down the available email domains until you come to the one you need. Then add “admin” or your chosen email user and generate a password.

CDN Implementation 15

 

Be Sure to Copy Your Password

Click on the “eye” to see your password and copy it (Ctrl C). (This is a vital step!)

Press “Create Account.”

You will need to set up your new email account in whichever email client you use (Outlook, Thunderbird, etc.).

The screenshots below show how to set up your new account in Thunderbird. Download Thunderbird free from here.

CDN Implementation 16

Click on File, New, Existing Mail Account, and a pop-up will appear as below.

CDN Implementation 17

Put your name on the top line, your new email address in the second line, and paste your password (Ctrl V) into the third line. Click “Confirm,” and you are done.

Go back to your Incapsula browser tab.

CDN Implementation 18

Choose the email address you have just set up and click the “Send email” link.

The screen below then opens up.

CDN Implementation 19

Open your email client, scroll down to the address you have given and open your inbox.

CDN Implementation 20

Open the email from Incapsula and click the link.

CDN Implementation 21

 

And Now You Wait…

You must wait a few hours until the SSL certificate is issued before you can go on to the next step.

CDN Implementation 22

When you click on the “Go to management console” button, you see the screen below.

CDN Implementation 23

That’s it for now. Go and do something else for a few hours, because you need an email from Incapsula before you can go to the next step.

Eventually, you will get an email as shown below.

CDN Implementation 24

Open the email.

CDN Implementation 25

 

It’s Really Easier Than It Seems

This all sounds pretty complicated. Don’t give up, though, because it’s easier than it seems.

Open your cPanel screen and scroll down until you find the “Domains” section. Click on the “DNS Zone Editor” link.

CDN Implementation 26

The DNS editor will open.

CDN Implementation 27

Find the domain you are setting up on Incapsula and click the “Manage” link.

CDN Implementation 28

You are now ready to change the “A record.” Copy the new IP address from the recent Incapsula email and click “edit” as shown below.

CDN Implementation 29

Click “Save Record.”

You will get an acknowledgment screen saying you have updated the “A record” successfully.

 

Now, Add Another One

Now you get to add another “A record.”

Click on the “Add Record” button.

CDN Implementation 30

When you click, you will get the screen below.

CDN Implementation 31

Paste in your naked domain name and the new “A record” IP address as shown below, then click the “Add Record” button.

CDN Implementation 32

Well done. You have now completed two of the three DNS changes. (DNS, by the way, stands for Domain Name System.)

Your next step is to change the CNAME record.

Click the CNAME link, as below.

CDN Implementation 33

Follow the email instructions and click “Edit” for the domain.

CDN Implementation 34

You will see the screen below. You are going to replace the highlighted domain in the “Record” column with whatever your Incapsula email said to use.

CDN Implementation 35

Paste in the new CNAME record from your email and click “Save Record.”

CDN Implementation 36

 

Practice Patience

You’ve finished, but the changes you have just made will take up to 48 hours to propagate, so Incapsula still marks your domain as “not configured.”

The next day or the day after, you will receive an email as shown below.

CDN Implementation 37

When you open the email, you find everything is in order.

CDN Implementation 38

When you log in to Incapsula again, you should see a screen similar to the one below.

CDN Implementation 39

That happy green check mark tells you your DNS changes have propagated. Now all your traffic will go through your Incapsula CDN.

 

RELATED ARTICLE: 2 SIMPLE WAYS TO HELP YOUR IT DEPARTMENT HELP YOUR BUSINESS

 

Long Story Short

You need a content delivery network to stay one step ahead of your competitors. Your website needs to lead the pack in every way, including design, interactivity, and speed. A quality CDN is part of that.

So choose your CDN carefully. You don’t need a perfect Eggs Benedict. All you want is a poached egg on toast, so choose one that is simplicity itself to implement. Incapsula’s CDN is one of the simplest to set up, as you can see from the series of screenshots above.

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16 High-Tech Cities You’ll Want to Call Home

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7 min read


This story originally appeared on PCMag

Location, location, location doesn’t just apply to your first apartment post-graduation; it also refers to what city you move to. Yes, there are tech jobs everywhere but some cities have more of a payoff.

For its annual salary survey, Dice.com, a career site for those in technology and engineering, got the input of over 10,000 professionals in 2017 about how much they make. The number of cities with average salaries in the six figures is half of what it was two years ago. Silicon Valley still has the highest at $114,654.

Dice notes that salaries have been stagnant but that can mean some employers are offering perks and bonuses in place of higher pay. Those little extras won’t help you if you’re paying rent in San Francisco or New York, though. So while they might be the first cities you think of moving to when looking for a tech-savvy, post-college abode, you should broaden your horizons.

That’s where this list comes in. These cities come in after Silicon Valley, Boston, and New York in terms of salary but they have more livable rents and lots of reasons you might want to call them home.

Related: 5 U.S. Cities Luring Tech Talent Away From Silicon Valley

1. San Diego

If you’re talking tech and start a sentence with “San,” you’d probably expect the next word to be “Francisco,” but San Diego residents get great weather and great salaries. And those sunny skies are about to be filled with drones thanks to a three-year testing program the city secured with the Department of Transportation. The city is also home to behemoth Qualcomm and lots of startups, over 170 of which are part of the EvoNexus incubator. The average tech salary in San Diego is $101,025.

2. Washington D.C./Baltimore

In keeping with Dice’s findings about companies working to offer things that make them stand out, D.C. has received recognition for some features that make its tech offices stand out. You can’t expect immersive gaming environments and oxygen rooms in every workplace, but know that a salary of $99,937 is the average.

3. Seattle

Yes, it’s always sort of gray in Seattle, but the Emerald City is also pretty green. The average salary for those in tech is $99,352. Nearby Redmond, Washington, is home to Microsoft. But there are plenty of other tech companies in the area, including Amazon and Boeing. And if you’re concerned about your internet data, the city has strict broadband privacy rules. One thing to watch, though, is a proposed tax bill that might halt Amazon expansion and limit how many other tech companies want to set up shop in Seattle.

4. Los Angeles 

Tech workers in Los Angeles might have to deal with the freeways, but if they can find a job close to home and a home not far from the beach, they’ll be happy enjoying the $99,145 average salary they bring in. Tesla’s Design Studio is in nearby Hawthorne, (if you work there, your boss is working on that traffic problem), but the city itself has some high-tech career options, too.

5. Philadelphia

Philly Tech Week has just passed but that doesn’t mean the future isn’t moving forward there. There are startups working on feeding at-risk newborns, helping doctors understand patients’ mental health, and programs for increasing diversity in tech. Salaries average $97,415.

6. Minneapolis

Minneapolis has been building some titans of technology these past few years. With average salaries at $96,936, it’s easy to see how. Use some of that paycheck to buy a warm winter coat, though.

7. Dallas 

Dallas joined this list just last year, but tech companies like AT&T have called it home for a while. The University of Texas at Dallas has a unique program that merges the arts and technology. An average tech salary there is $95,222.

Related: 10 U.S. Cities Where Tech Workers Make Good Money and Don’t Pay Sky-High Rent

8. Denver

There are a lot of Rocky Mountain highs in Denver and one of them is that those in tech can expect to earn on average $94,668. The Denver Tech Center has been in business since the 1970s, encouraging tech companies to settle in the city. Ahead of ski season, put Denver Startup Week on you calendar this fall, and don’t miss the emerging smart cityPanasonic is building out in the great expanse near the airport.

9. Chicago 

Chicago is filled with as much culture as New York but it also has midwestern friendliness going for it. Salaries are good at an average of $93,025 and there are plenty of companies hiring.

10. Atlanta

If you’re looking for a place to house your small startup, you might want to look at the Atlanta Tech Village. If you’re instead looking to join a company, lots of them are hiring, including Pandora. The average salary in the area is $92,637.

11. Charlotte

Financial tech is what rules the Charlotte tech scene but it’s not all there is. The tech scene there is growing like crazy, so snagging the average salary of $92,507 probably won’t be too hard.

12. Portland

Portlandia might be over but Portland isn’t. Women especially might want to consider the support they’ll receive from organizations like PDX Women in Tech, which has a mentorship program. An average tech salary in the city is $91,192.

13. Houston

Though it’s been associated with oil for decades, Houston also has a bit of silicon in its veins. The city has partnered with Microsoft for a computer literacy effort for its citizens and work on smart-city projects like reducing traffic through data and technology. Microsoft also said it will support local startups, so if you’re considering moving to Houston now is the time. You can expect an average salary of $90,265.

14. Austin

You might have already been to Austin for SXSW Interactive, but there are plenty of good reasons to stay. It’s where many a tech giant got its start, including Twitter. It’s also the second city to get Google Fiber, a move that prompted rival AT&T to roll out its own gigabit internet service in the region. Tech workers can make an average of about $90,214 each year, according to Dice. If you’re looking for a place to start, there are plenty of startups that are set to take off this year.

15. Phoenix

Tech companies are blooming in the Phoenix desert. An average tech salary is $89,749. The city is home to PHX Startup Week and if you take advantage of all it has to offer, you could one day find yourself receiving an AZ Top Tech Exec Award.

16. Chattanooga

Chattanooga didn’t make the Dice list, but PCMag’s Rob Marvin recently sat down with area startups, VC investors, and city government officials to break down Chattanooga’s transformation into a startup tech hub, thanks in part to its fiber internet.

Related: The Average Salaries of Tech Works in Major Cities (Infographic)

 

 



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7 Steps to Improve Heart Health While Building Your Business

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Work-related stress has been found to increase the risk of heart problems. Researchers from the University College London have associated stress at work with a 23 percent increase in the risk of heart attack. And Harvard researchers say women whose work is highly stressful have a 40 percent increased risk of heart disease compared with their less-stressed colleagues, including risk of heart attacks.

If you have a demanding job, which may in fact include most small business owners, it is in your best interest to take measures to manage stress and prevent the heart risks your work is causing.

Ways to Reduce Heart Related Health Risks at Work

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), you should not allow your health to suffer due to the demands of your work. CDC acknowledges the dangers of work-related stress and recommends some healthy behaviors to combat the risk of heart problems:

1. Stop Smoking

Not smoking is one of the most important ways CDC identifies for preventing heart disease and lung cancer. Quit smoking and using other forms of tobacco to avert heart issues.

2. Limit Alcohol Use

Excessive drinking is bad for your heart and productivity. Cut or limit your alcohol intake to stay healthy.

3. Limit Salt Intake

Too much salt (sodium) in your diet can cause high blood pressure, which can lead to heart problems. Limit your salt intake to ensure you maintain normal blood pressure.

4. Limit Sugar Intake

Similarly, too much sugar in your diet can raise you blood sugar levels, which can lead to heart problems. Limit your sugar intake to prevent or control heart disease.

5. Limit Cholesterol Intake

Eating foods high in cholesterol, saturated fats and trans fat increases the risk of coming down with heart problems. Eat foods high in fiber instead to prevent high cholesterol and avoid heart issues.

6. Maintain Healthy Weight

Lack of sleep is cited as one reason people sometimes become overweight and end up feeling tired and cranky all the time at work. If you lose enough sleep, you could be too tired look for healthy eating options like fresh fruits and vegetables or to exercise. Make sure one of your strategies for maintaining a healthy weight is getting enough sleep each night, 6 to 9 hours of shuteye at least.

7. Stay Physically Active

Engaging in physical activities like jogging, bicycling or walking is another factor identified as central to preventing obesity, heart disease and helping to improve productivity.

The CDC notes most Americans engage in two or three of these healthy behaviors, but only a handful do all seven. It is important that you and your team adopt all seven habits to stay healthy at work.

More Tips for a Healthy Heart at Work

Dr. Steven Gundry, a cardiac surgeon based in Palm Springs, CA, medical innovator, and the mind behind Gundry MD, offers additional tips to upgrade your workday from harmful to healthy. From the type of food you eat to how long you stare at a computer screen, his tips provide effective ways to stay healthy at work.

Check out Dr. Gundy’s tips in this neat inforgraphic below.

7 Ways to Reduce Heart Related Health Risks at Work

Image: Dr.Gundy

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