Latest Blogs

Cloud Computing

Arpatech Website

Jan 07, 2025

Application Modernization Strategies: 5 Best Practices Explained

As technology evolves at a rapid pace, businesses must modernize their legacy applications to remain competitive and meet changing customer expectations. Application modernization involves updating outdated software systems to improve their performance, scalability, and alignment with current business requirements. Whether...

Read More...

Blog Directory

Everything You Need to Know About Managed Cloud Services

Everything You Need to Know About Managed Cloud Service...

The top managed cloud services have significantly changed the worldwide landscape for the IT industry. Many are still oblivious to the importance of cloud managed services, their providers, and how they have transformed business operations.

So, here we will give you a brief overview of the managed cloud services for a clearer understanding. Let’s begin.

What is a Managed Cloud Service?

Basically, managed cloud services give any business access to cloud computing networks without them having to learn the cloud’s infrastructure and its accompanying tools. They offer complete or even partial cloud management resources to clients. Some of the management tasks may include configurations, security, migration, maintenance, optimizations, and more. In any cloud adoption cycle, there are public, private, and hybrid cloud environments that you can access for managed cloud services.

Managed cloud services enable a business to ensure the cloud resources run flawlessly. These services allow the initial adoption or can be continuously provided. Working in managed cloud services gives a collaborative process to the provider as well.

How do cloud management services help an organization?

  1. Workflow automation facilitates operations as it manages cloud instances without human interference.
  2. Cloud analysis allows the tracking of cloud workloads and better user experiences.
  3. Cloud services provide flexibility which is achieved when IT experts create and access new cloud resources, monitor the usage and cost, and make proper adjustments to resource allocation.

Cloud managed services cannot show results without qualified IT experts. With the knowledge of proper tools and best practices, the cloud management goals of the business can be easily met. Not every cloud management service can be best suited for every organization so they create a contract for services that include counseling and execution of the cloud resources to ensure that configuration is performed in the right manner.

What Tasks Are Included in Managed Cloud Services?

Managed cloud services include a wide variety of tasks such as

  1. Hosting
  2. Implementation
  3. On-demand engineering
  4. Round-the-clock help desk support
  5. Management of operations

When these tasks are taken care of by managed cloud services, they do not need manual help. Then, the IT team can focus on other complex matters that can help businesses thrive.

What is a Managed Cloud Service Provider (MCSP)?

An MCSP is a vendor that offers cloud managed services. These vendors are either directly connected to the cloud resources or use a third-party operator to do so. MCSPs offer several cloud services typically after subscription. They can act as a substitute for in-house cloud IT or as a substitute for the in-house team. A managed cloud service provider helps the client to decide the IT functions they can manage themselves and those that can be done in-house.

Some of the best Managed Cloud Service Provider includes

  1. Microsoft Azure
  2. Google Cloud Platform (GCP)
  3. Amazon Web Services (AWS)
  4. IBM Cloud
  5. Oracle Cloud

Key Factors to Consider When Opting for a Managed Cloud Service Provider

Choosing an MCSP for your business can be challenging and it may be difficult for you to understand the qualities that you require in an MCSP. A few questions that you can help with in this regard are.

  1. How familiar they are with the industry’s tools and workflows.
  2. The cloud services they have worked on.
  3. Security measures they take to secure their clients’ data and how they protect them from being compromised.
  4. If there are any built-in security solutions they provide.
  5. If there are any compliance regulations the MCSP provides or if it offers any audit compliance.
  6. Do these managed cloud service providers use proprietary or open-source tools for the management of services?
  7. How do they receive notifications or alerts of changes, problems, maintenance, and more?

What are the Benefits of a Managed Cloud Service Provider?

1.     Optimization of Resources

MCSPs not only provide managed cloud services but also help their clients to determine the best fit of cloud services based on the business, workload, requirements, budget, and more. The MCSPs also help optimize performances within the right pricing. Some vendors also provide performance reports of your and suggest how the configurations can be improved.

2.     Cybersecurity

An MCSP provides the security of the data built inside the network. Cloud security is a complex process and the network is always vulnerable to cyberattacks. Therefore, MCSPs provide an extra layer of security as they have the right knowledge necessary to keep the cloud network safe from every malicious or unauthorized access.

3.     Round the Clock Support

With an MCSP onboard, a 24/7 support is certain. The provider with his or her skillset will ensure to be available at all times and address your queries or issues that you might face in the network. With quick support at any time, you are expected to find quick solutions for any detected issue.

4.     Long-Term Investment

A qualified MCSP can be a good investment for any business. Using an MCSCP will allow the client to save money in the longer run. There are fewer operational expenses incurred in maintaining cloud infrastructure. The only job of the client is to make regular payments to the service provider and he or she does the rest.

5.     Recovery of Loss

When it comes to cloud networks, one must be careful about any unforeseen circumstances. Therefore, a recovery plan to retrieve data is a safe bet in any disastrous situation. A managed cloud service provider provides support in the recovery plan so that even if there is minimal inconvenience, the plan can be followed and save the network from bigger problems.

The Bottom Line

Companies are moving to managed cloud services because it helps in the growth of the business. These services are becoming popular and they are developed with the idea of facilitating enterprises in maximizing the benefits of cloud computing. Managed cloud services also offer agility and scalability to the business and allow them to be more responsive and competitive, all that is required to make a great profit.

Arpatech Website

Jan 23, 2023

6 Cutting-Edge Tech Inventions

6 Cutting-Edge Tech Inventions

Technology has grown beyond our imagination to the point that it has become a necessity. It is also fascinating to discover new innovations and how they have changed our lives forever. Thanks to ongoing technological advancements, the features of tech gadgets keep changing and surprising us. These gadgets are created by highly inventive individuals who are ready to push the envelope and try to introduce bigger and more unique things to the world by encouraging B2B technology partners.

Many futuristic techs are still in the developing phase; however, the idea and the story behind their invention are what pique everyone’s interest. These tech gadgets are surely fun and broaden our horizons in ways we can barely imagine. Below is a list of some of the mind-blowing futuristic techs that are bound to change the world.

1.     Handjet EBS-260 Handheld Printer

The first one on the list is Handjet EBS-260 which is a handy printer that you can take anywhere and print everywhere. It is wonderful to discover how you can use this printer on metal, plastic, wood, cement, and anywhere you want. You can operate it with a simple touchscreen. Yes, it is that simple! Who needs the printing machine for photocopies when we will have Handjet EBS-260 in the future! This surely will be the kind of invention everyone would love!

2.     Withings Body Scan

Modern technology not only has an impact in the tech world but also in healthcare and fitness domains. Powered by behavioral science, the Withings Body Scan is set to make its way into the world. The device shows you the fat mass of the entire body, separately from every body part such as arms, legs, etc., along with your vascular age.

The device helps bridge the gap between health and fitness and technology. It identifies your overall cardiovascular health and determines how well your blood vessels are working. You can create a record of your daily routine, lifestyle, and habits for more efficient results. Moreover, soon a new feature will be introduced in the device that will determine the results by logging in your food and sleep record.

3.     PhoneSoap 3 UV Phone Sanitizer

COVID-19 has changed the world. With surgical masks, hand sanitizers, and other accessories, it added one more thing to carry in your bag at all times: phone sanitizers because, sadly, our phones have germs too. If you are one of those who clean their phones a hundred times a day, this invention is just the right one for you!

PhoneSoap 3 UV Phone Sanitizer is the best way to stay away from germs. Just place your phone inside the device, close the lid, and BAM! You get back a clean and germ-free phone. This futuristic UV phone sanitizer uses UV light technology that helps get rid of the germs on your phone.

Moreover, this patented 360-degree disinfectant allows germicidal light in every nook and corner of the object, leaving behind other liquid cleaners and causing no damage. The best part is that it is not just for sanitizing your smartphone; you can insert your keys, wallets, and other relevant accessories to eliminate germs.

4.     NordicTrack X32i Smart HD Touchscreen Treadmill

If you despise a workout and need a push to help you get off the couch onto the treadmill, NordicTrack X32i Smart HD Touchscreen Treadmill can be very beneficial for you. This is the futuristic treadmill that contains a 32-inch LED display with which you can join live and motivational workout sessions. And in case you get bored of following the same workout routine every day, you have 16,000 other options to choose from, streaming the worldwide workouts on demand.

Moreover, if you want to feel like you are working out outdoors, you can use Google Maps and select the location of your choosing from the comfort of your home. Do you want to get the touch of yoga in the Maldives? With NordicTrack X32i you got it! The strength training workouts, cardio sessions, HIIT, yoga, and meditation, you got it all and more with a relaxing, mindful series.

5.     BMW Electrified Wingsuit

As a kid, we all wanted a flying vehicle like Harry Potter, right?

Well, BMW is here to fulfill this wish for you with the futuristic its Electrified Wingsuit. After a wide range of luxury cars, BMW has embodied a futuristic approach with the new tech. It is a carbon, fiber, and aluminum wingsuit powered by an electric propulsion system. This wingsuit has two 13cm carbon impellers that have an overall output of 15 kilowatts (kW).

With this wingsuit, you can fly into the sky at the speed of 186mph. It has a compact and high-quality design that depicts perfection with the never-imagined experience. This suit is completely safe as it was tested in BMW’s horizontal and vertical wind tunnels. Who cares about traffic and commute time when you can get BMW Electrified Wingsuit?

6.     townew Self-Changing Trash Can

Cleaning trash cans is one of the most disliked chores there is, right? Well, not anymore. A new futuristic tech is the townew Self-Changing Trash Can that remove garbage itself. How? With an advanced mechanism inside and built-in sensors, the bin knows when the garbage is full and seals and changes it automatically.

Taking it a step further, the self-changing trash can replace the bag on its own. It has a large capacity with a wide open top barrel, making it less messy for you. Given the hands-free operation, this trash can may be the best invention for germophobes.

The Bottom Line

Gadgets like the ones mentioned above continue to enthrall and amaze us. Innovation knows no bounds; it’s like an eye-opener that inspires us beyond measure, pushing us to think nothing is impossible in today’s technology-driven world. After all, it all boils down to an ingenious idea, leading you to move towards innovation and making inventive products. All one needs is sheer grit to push the limits and take risks that could help change our world for the better.

Arpatech Website

Dec 12, 2022

Best Automation Testing Tools You Need

Best Automation Testing Tools You Need

Software development is a tough job and in order to deliver successful products and services, software developers must use automation testing tools as a part of effective software development practice. With a wide variety of open-source and commercial automation tools, it is difficult to identify which one is the right choice for your project. The impact of such tools can alter your project upside down. More so, selection of the suitable automation testing tools can also be tricky. So, which are the best tools you need as a software developer?

We have curated a list of the top automation testing tool you need for your business. Let’s take a look.

Top Automation Testing Tools

1.     Tenjin Online

Tenjin Online is a codeless and SaaS-based automation testing tool that has simple applications. The platform doesn’t need any critical configuration or skills due to the wide variety of features and functionalities it has.  A software developer can test Android as well as iOS applications on this platform.

Some of the best aspects of Tenjin Online are

  1. It does not need any technical knowledge for you to begin with
  2. It saves your testing time and cost up to 75%
  3. The functional and UI tests of this platform can be easily executed
  4. It is cost effective
  5. This test platform is fast, independent, and effective

2.     Selenium

Unarguably, Selenium is one of the most popular automation testing platforms among developers and QA engineers. Released in 2004, Selenium has greatly evolved and become the most used automation tool. This testing tool came up with many versions over the years containing main components such as Selenium IDE and Selenium WebDriver.

It is an open-source automation tool that is used to automate across many operating systems such as Mac, Windows, Linux, and other browsers such as Chrome, Firefox, and other Headless Browsers. Selenium is compatible with every programming language and offers a big number of commands and options that you can manipulate. When combined with Python and Web Scraping, the platform has reportedly shown the best results. In order to use Selenium, you do not need to learn any programming skills or difficult scripts.

Selenium provides playback features and record with its browser and add-on Selenium IDE. The best part is that Selenium is free and all over the world and it is one of the best professional investments.

3.     Laravel

Laravel is another popular automation testing tool. It is a web app framework that has simple and expressive syntax. This platform promotes simplified syntax and clean code. Software developers use it for many purposes such as quick error handling, using single commands, expressive coding, and more.

Laravel gets testing support with PHPUnit having the predefined setup i.e. phpunit.xml file. This automation testing tool minimizes many security risks such as cross-site scripting, SQL injection, and cross-site request forgery. These are the reasons that make Laravel one of the best testing tools for developers.

4.     Robotium

Robotium is a software program that allows you to test Android-based applications. This framework introduces you to a variety of testing areas such as gray box UI testing, user acceptance testing, and system testing – all for native and hybrid android applications.

With the help of Robotium, you can write strong and effective automatic black-box UI tests. It helps test case developers write functions, and systems, spanning android activities, and other user acceptance test scenarios. You can test your Android-based applications for free using Robotium.

5.     Watir

Watir is an acronym for Web Application Testing In Ruby. It is a Ruby library that allows you to do multiple things such as automation testing like clicking, filling forms, and more. It is an open-source web automation tool that is best for automated scripts that support IE on Windows. The scripting language of Watir is Ruby; however, it can be used to automate web applications created in any language.

Watir has many features such as connection with the database, reading flat files, excel, and more. It is considered one of the best automation testing tools because it can also integrate with BDD tools such as Cucumber, RSpec, and more. Watir supports many Firefox and headless browser HTML Unit.

Fun fact: Watir is pronounced as “water”.

6.     Katalon Platform

Alongside Selenium, another automation testing tool that is famous among the developers is Katalon Platform. It is one of the best open-source automation tools that supports web and mobile environments for end-to-end testing. It is a simple and easy-to-use platform and with that, it has some brilliant JIRA implementations as well.

The platform smoothly integrates automated tests into the CI/CD ecosystem. With the use of Katalon TestOps, you get great insights and required centralized reports. The automation tool can be used to test desktop applications, mobile, web, and API. It uses Groovy as the scripting language and supports any external Java library. You can use this automation testing tool for a user-friendly interface for the management of codeless test automation and works smoothly with Continuous Integration systems such as TeamCity, Bamboo, and more.

7.     Cucumber

This cucumber may not give you health benefits but it offers many automated software testing advantages that support Behavior Driven Development (BDD). Initially, Cucumber was developed specifically for Ruby testing; however, it now supports many programming languages through many implementations such as Lua, JavaScript, PHP, and Java. It also has its own programming language known as Gherkin.

Cucumber is best-suited for developers whose focus is on the end-user experience. The automation testing tool is free and its setup is quite simple as well. The interesting fact is that this tool has been downloaded more than 30 million times which makes it the most popular automation software testing tool for BDD.

The Bottom Line

Automation testing has become seamless with the help of a wide variety of automation testing tools. Before you choose one, you must understand your automation needs. So, research and analyze every automation tool; you can also have a trial period of the tools you find the best and select whichever works for you.

Arpatech Website

Nov 15, 2022

Top AI Apps for E-commerce Businesses

Top AI Apps for E-commerce Businesses

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is ruling the planet as one of the most essential tools that uses the technology at its best and ramps up any business to generate profit. Tech giants such as Facebook and IBM have now started using AI as a source of income. Lately, AI has gradually made its way to every field, including e-commerce and retail businesses, especially when the world is moving towards online shopping and promoting e-commerce businesses. AI has not only helped increase the sales of e-commerce businesses; it has also made the stakeholders smarter when it comes to improving conversion rate and time reduction.

There are many AI-based apps or tools that have paved the way for success for e-commerce businesses. Let’s take a look at some of them.

 Best Artificial Intelligence-Based Tools for Ecommerce Businesses

1.     TUP Ecommerce

TUP e-commerce is a tool that helps increase the conversion rate by combining a few segments such as machine learning models, on-screen user behavior, understanding the buying pattern of a user, and external stimuli. It works on all e-commerce platforms such as Shopify, Magento, WooCommerce, and the list goes on. It helps e-commerce online stores in two ways

  • By optimizing revenue
  • Persona identification

TUP Ecommerce comes with a free trial without the requirement of a credit card payment, giving you a good chance to use it and decide if it suits the needs of your e-commerce business.

2.     Wacul-AI

Ecommerce businesses have many subsections that need professional attention and this is where Artificial intelligence comes in. For marketing purposes of your e-commerce business, Wacul-AI may turn out to be a fruitful app. These days many retail businesses are using this tool as it offers user-friendly solutions for all kinds of website’s needs. The tool gets access to your data, analyzes it, and gives detailed and simplified advice for future outcomes. The AI-driven tool helps transforms your marketing and inventory methods and it is perfect for all business sizes, especially mid+ e-commerce businesses.

3.     Granify

Granify is one of the best tools for e-commerce owners who are eyeing revenue optimization. Fast machine learning helps operate it in a straightforward manner that is necessary for the business. How does it work? Granify gathers 500 data facts per second of the user behavior when the potential customer interacts with the store. It then uses the data to match the behavioral ways of billions of other customers and makes an estimate of the chances of conversion.

The app also notifies you when it identifies the conversion opportunity which results in an increase in revenue. The predictive analysis helps every customer with the product they are looking for. You can also inquire them about the pricing with the help of a contact form on the website.

4.     Seventh Sense

Artificial intelligence is also integrated into email marketing campaigns and for one such use, we have an AI-based app known as Seventh Sense. This app aids in enhancing the performance of your email marketing campaigns which can boost the engagement of your e-commerce business.

The app is important because the email inbox is cluttered with irrelevant emails but with artificial intelligence, you can deliver emails and provide analytics.

What does Seventh Sense do for you?

  1. It delivers an email to everyone during the best engagement time.
  2. Email throttling helps increase the delivery process.
  3. With frequency optimization, the email is sent to your potential customers at their required frequency.

4.     PriSync

As a business owner, you must be aware of what is going on in the market. You must know what your competitors are doing, the prices they offer, etc. For this purpose, we have PriSync that helps you grow sales and revenue by allowing you to find your competitors’ insights such as their strategies, their profit, the pricing range, and more. The app works efficiently on all platforms. You can enhance your functions by using this app, how?

  1. You may add or describe the products your online store sells.
  2. Add the products of your competitors as well.
  3. Once the products are added, you can check the price shift of the market on your dashboard.
  4. You may also find the price trends in the market and export the pricing list to create an excel sheet for future reference.

Hence, with the help of pricing data, indexes, and recent trends you may strive for your growth in the market using updated and needful insights.

5.     NeoWize

NeoWize is a tool that helps you strategize better for your online store. With its data-driven and active functions, you can become the leading e-commerce business in the industry. The use of machine learning, neural networks, and artificial intelligence, helps seek modern and dynamic algorithms that help create better strategies.

It helps you access the behavior of shoppers and transform the data into productive and actionable insights. It is best suited for all e-commerce business sizes. Using this tool, you can also personalize your store and enhance business wisdom and intelligence.

6.     Phrasee

Phrasee is an AI-based tool that boosts your e-commerce marketing agenda and optimizes business with email marketing campaigns. The tool optimizes the rates of email opens, click-throughs, and conversions using artificial intelligence. The tool allows you to reduce abandoned carts that affect the sales of online stores.

You can optimize your brand language and connect with customers’ journey that generates sales. You can optimize your brand persona, develop brand awareness, and create more engagement. This AI tool will help you decrease your bounce rate by sending your customers a customized email message at the serious point of their customer journey. By using Phrasee, you can access useful tools such as split test calculator, opportunity cost calculator, subject line analyzer, and more for on-time automation.

The Bottom Line

If used smartly, AI-based tools can help you significantly expand your business. However, the most important part is that you have to make sure that your e-commerce online store is hosted on scalable, fast, easy, and well-managed infrastructure. This specific property will help you focus better on the automation of your e-commerce business.

Arpatech Website

Oct 25, 2022

Useful Mobile App Development Guidelines for Startups

Useful Mobile App Development Guidelines for Startups

In this era of technology and smartphones, as a startup, the best way to get through to your customers and clients is via a mobile app. In a world where everything is just a tap away, it gets difficult for startups to make their mark in the industry without having a competitive edge. For this, they need to push their boundaries to facilitate their clients and stand out among their competitors with the help of digitalization. These days, online mobile apps have become something we can rely on. From your daily tasks to your household chores, or your drive to work is dependent on technology.

Dependence on technology is a sign that tech-based businesses have to put in more effort to build their name. Mobile application development is a good option especially when there is an app for everything around us. For this, you need a solid mobile app that engages your users and makes your startup a strong brand.

 So, How Can You Do It?

We will give a list of guidelines for you to embark on your journey of mobile application development. Let’s get started.

1.     Have a Clear Idea

Before you do anything, the first thing you must know is to have a clear understanding of what you want in your final product. You can use as many resources as you want but for a top-notch mobile app, if you are not sure what you want from it, your efforts are likely to go in vain. Sit. List down your requirements, and create a draft of the functionalities and features you want in your app.

It will not only help you remember everything; it will also help your development team understand your vision to achieve the target and create the best mobile app. You can list down the core factors of your app and how it can serve your audience.

2.     Research is the Key

You may have heard it a million times already but here are we reiterating that research is the most essential part of the process. You may believe that you have overdosed your project with excessive research; but honestly, it is never enough. You can do everything to make the finest mobile application but as a developer, if you have not done a sufficient amount of research, you are lacking the crucial part of it. Mobile app development is a vast field, so, doing just the basics will not give you a competitive advantage.

Do extensive research about who you are, what you want, how you want to be known in the industry if you want to scale up the business, and many more. Research is not a one-off thing, it has to be conducted throughout the process – every step of the way.

3.     Team Building

You are nothing without a strong workforce. Your team plays a huge role in whatever you want to do; your final app will reflect your teamwork. Bad teams make projects suffer and this is the reason you must build the right team. Get skillful people on board who have the right knowledge of development projects and who can bring different aspects of innovation as well.

In case you plan to outsource the project, make sure that you are working with a reputed and high-end service provider who can smoothly work with your core team. You must not initiate the process of development until you know you have a great team onboard. Start only when you are sure that your team has your back.

4.     Understanding Competitors

The most important part of the extensive research is learning about your competitors. Play Store and App Store are already flooding with applications with different motives. When you plan to launch an app, you should have a good idea of the pre-existing apps. What you have to do is research each of those apps and understand your competition in the market. Analyze your competitors – their strengths, their weaknesses, their niche, and everything. This is the practice that will help you determine what you need to focus on, what your audience likes or dislikes, and what can help you stand out.

5.     Strategize Better

Your company’s strategy has a big impact on everything you do. It comprises your vision, your goal, your mission, your products, and more. So, when you aim to develop a mobile application, you need to have an appropriate approach that can help your company and your product in the long run. Revise your previous strategies; if they are not effective anymore, it is time to come up with new ones. This may take more time than expected but it will give your start-up many long-term benefits. Take your time and strategize better.

6.     Right Development Methods

Mobile application development consists of many types of methods and choosing the right one for your app can be risky but equally important. The specifications of your mobile app depend on these methods. Therefore, you must be careful before you choose a particular method.

7.     Data Security

As a startup with an aim of building a mobile app, data security should be your major concern. Why? Because people with sick intentions are present everywhere and are ready to abuse your personal data from any application if it is not properly secured.

What you must do to stay safe?

You must take correct security measures to keep your users’ data secure before you launch the app. The privacy policies, terms and conditions, non-disclosure agreements, and more must be taken seriously to prevent any mishap. One small security issue can be the end of your mobile app. So, better be safe than sorry.

The Bottom Line

Mobile apps can take your tech-based business one step ahead, only if you know the right way. Sometimes, even after doing everything, some apps fail to make a mark because mobile app development companies do not pay attention to the necessary details.  As a startup, you can use multiple ways to help you take a solid start on a striking mobile app.

Arpatech Website

Sep 22, 2022

Everything you Need to Know about Google’s Helpful Content Update

Everything you Need to Know about Google’s Helpful Co...

We all have been in a situation where we are looking for the best search results on Google but all we get are random pages with mediocre information stuffed with keywords. It is very annoying especially when you have to run solid research on a particular topic, right?

Lately, we have seen that Google searches are not helpful or authentic because it has become easier to rank a page if you pay a good amount and have strong SEO services in the backend. This works badly for the legitimacy of Google, more so, when it is considered the encyclopedia of everything. Optimizing your content for a good search ranking is nothing wrong but over-optimizing it neither helps the business page nor the readers.

Amidst the whole over-optimization fiasco, Google “Helpful Content Update” came in as fresh and the most-anticipated action. But what is the new Helpful Content Update? What does it do? Let’s talk about it

What is Google’s Helpful Content Update?

The Helpful Content Update is one of the wisest decisions Google has taken as a search engine. It is the method of diversifying the results for the readers and writers. According to Google, it will help reveal more genuine and helpful content written for people. It will improve the overall quality of the ranking page and give its users a satisfying experience.

The update is set to launch in the next week for English searches and aims to filter out the genuine content from the content written typically for SEO purposes. Many researchers said that this is the reward Google has for its readers to demote the type of content that shows the results of high-end SEO services. The update will help Google evaluate the quality of specific content and also identify how it helps the overall website.

Google has made it very clear that the soon-to-launch update will not be validating the best methods of SEO because it is aware that SEO services are helpful when they are used for people-first content. The update solely targets the systems that have gamed their way up to the search results containing no helpful information or have a merit to be on the top.

As for the SEO service providers who believed that this will be a penalty, the search engine clarified that the update is not a punishment for a badly performed SEO but a “signal” like many other ranking signals of the search engine. However, if your website is impacted by the signal, you may as well feel like it’s a penalty and try to improve.

How to Check your Content for This Update?

Google is considerate about the content that may get affected by the update when it is launched. Therefore, for content producers and SEO service providers, it has given a list of evaluation criteria so that their piece of content doesn’t get affected by the new signal.

1.     Search Engine First Content

SEO is the best ranking activity only when it is applied to people-first content and completely covers Google’s SEO guide. However, when the content is produced primarily for ranking purposes and has no meaningful substance, that’s when you know that the content will be the first target of the new Helpful Content Update.

So, what you need to do is say goodbye to your search engine-first approach and reevaluate how your content comes across your site.

2.     Plenty of Content

In case you are producing heaps of content with the hope that some might perform well, let me tell you it is the wrong strategy. Quantity never matters, quality does. One good quality content is better than hundreds of mediocre ones. A chain of low-quality content will give your website no benefit.

3.     Self-Assess

There is no better judge for your content than yourself. So, ask yourself a few questions. What do you think of your write-up? Does it seem up to the mark to you? Does it have answers and solutions to your target audience’s problems? Does your content satisfy your readers so that they don’t have to check other pages? Is it your best work or do you write it just for the sake of a certain word count to complete SEO service providers’ demands?

4.     People-First Content

People-first content is written with the focus of developing it for the readers. It is something that helps them, gives them a solution or is based on putting their need first. It means instead of prioritizing your business page, you are choosing the people reading the content and instead of bad SEO services, you are using the right guidelines.

If you want your piece of content to not be impacted by the Helpful Content Update, you have to create audience-oriented content. Do you think after reading your content people will feel satisfied? Will the readers feel like they have learned enough about the said topic?

5.     Summarized Content

It is fine to research the given topic. Everyone does that. But, when you only summarize other’s content without making an effort of adding value, that is when it looks like a chunk of some mediocre information right off the random pages. To make your content seem more genuine, you must try to add a personal touch; something that your audience can relate to. The summary of everything present on the internet should not be your strategy.

Types of Content to be Affected by The Update

Google Helpful Content Update will not be targeted to any particular niche. It is a general algorithm for all English search results. However, some of the types of content that can have a larger impact on the update include

  1. Tech-based
  2. Online educational pages
  3. Arts
  4. Entertainment pages
  5. Online shopping

If you are wondering why these pages will be more affected than the rest, you have to understand that these topics have been written on several search engines over and over again for years. So, the chances of redundancy are more here than in others.

Will The Update Have an Impact on Organic SEO?

It has been clarified many times that Google Helpful Content Update is not an attack but an action to promote genuine content. If your page is built with the idea to benefit the audience and not just the ranking, you have a good chance of not getting affected by it.

It is important to understand that the Helpful Content Update works sitewide instead of checking individual pages or sections. If the Google crawler spots too much unhelpful and meaning less content, it will have a drastic impact on the search engine rankings no matter how important that part of the content is for the website. This implies that it will eventually have an effect on the organic SEO services.

Therefore, it is suggested that if you are aware that you have a good quantity of useless content on your website, either rewrite it or remove it before it damages your ranking altogether.

What to Do If the Update Impacts Your Ranking?

Google will soon launch the Helpful Content Update; so, it will not impact your search results immediately. However, if it happens to you in the future, the first thing you need to do is keep calm. You will need to come up with a solution, not a reaction. If you panic and react too much, you may cause more damage.

What you can do is collect all your data and analyze it. Read everything to understand what needs to be updated. Google suggests that if an update hits you, remove the useless or unnecessary content from your website, it may help the ranking. Moreover, you can try to add more value by any means; take your time, it won’t happen overnight.

What you should understand about this update is that once it classifies your site as the one that builds content typically for search engine ranking, the sitewide signal will affect the rest of the content on your website too. So, if you have a big quantity on your website with bad SEO, you will experience a considerable decline in traffic in the next few months. Hence, updating and removal of unnecessary content is the only option for recovery for you. However, if your site gets hit by the update, it may take several months to recover.

The Bottom Line

It is important to understand that Helpful Content Update is not targeted to the SEO Company in Pakistan or it’s not a punishment for anyone. More so, it is an algorithm that will run automatically to help give the due recognition and ranking to the content that deserves to be on the top. So, keep calm, the update is not launched yet meaning that you still have a lot of time to enhance your website. In case you were already planning on updating your business page content, there is no better time to do that than now. All you need to do is focus on the quality, produce people-first content, and take the help from the best SEO service provider following the best SEO practices.

Arpatech Website

Aug 31, 2022

A Guide to Starting IT Service Business

A Guide to Starting IT Service Business

This is the era of technology and entrepreneurs, where IT professionals and IT-based services are in high demand across the industry. As a budding entrepreneur, if you are looking for options to capitalize on your earnings and profit, you must consider establishing the best IT company in Pakistan.

IT businesses are boosted given that it is an ever-thriving industry driven by competition and IT professionals that help generate profit. According to the statistics, global IT spending will increase by 6.2% in the future.

If you are an IT entrepreneur, you need a guide to learn the ropes of starting your own IT business and making it the leading IT company in Pakistan. So, here we have a few guidelines that can help you with starting your own IT-based startup.

1.    Choose your Services

When you decide to start your own IT company, you must do some thorough homework beforehand including the research about the services your IT company will offer. Your services are your selling points as they attract your potential clients. Therefore, you must have a good understanding of your company’s offerings.

You have the leading IT companies in Pakistan to learn what your target market wants which will help you decide your offerings better. Some of the services you can offer are tech support, IT budgeting, risk assessments, network design and installation, cyber security, mobile app development, remote admin management, game development, and the list goes on.

2.    What’s Your Business Structure?

Business structure is one of the integral parts of starting your business especially when you are developing an IT service-based company. Most of the time, small IT companies start from a sole proprietorship, a limited liability company (LLC), or a partnership. You have to plan your business structure beforehand because it will impact your taxes, liabilities, and the paperwork your business requires.

In the case of single-person companies, a sole proprietorship is the right choice. However, forming an LLC can be a little expensive and your state could take some time to get the paperwork started. You may also take help from a professional accountant to assist you in understanding the sense of your current state and the future of your business.

3.    Sufficient Fundings

What is more important than starting a business? It is to get the grounds of your business secure with certain costs that may come unexpectedly to you. Your business has to be secure with the funding for which you can raise money from venture capital firms. In that case, you will need a venture firm or leading investors that are specifically dedicated to IT service businesses.

A venture capitalist requires a pitch that explains why your business needs investment and what you return to offer them. You can also research business grants funded by third-party companies. Other funding sources may also include low-interest credit cards.

4.    Do You Have a Business Plan?

To establish the best IT company in Pakistan, you must have a business plan. A business plan consists of the company’s current state and the pathway for its future growth. It is fine to not have a business plan initially but if you want to acquire business funding, you need to create one that supports your ideas and roadmap for your future.

For beginners, professional templates for business templates are easily available. Old-school and traditional business plans don’t work anymore, you need the one that becomes an attractive pitch to the investors.

Typically, a business plan consists of the following:

  1. Funding sources
  2. Budget
  3. Company summary
  4. Hiring strategy
  5. Market analysis
  6. Your Unique Selling Points
  7. Business structure

5.    Basic Business Budget

In order to start any business, you must have at least some amount of money to invest. Similarly, your IT-based company also requires a basic budget. For this, you need to do a lot of homework on the upfront costs that help your IT business save money and time. So, before you set your business’s grounds, develop a small and a simple budget, to begin with.

How can you do it?

  1. You must calculate the cost of every expense your business may have inclusive of loans, rent, licenses, host websites, applications, and more.
  2. Make an estimated amount of what you expect as revenue. If you have already started earning something out of it, you can use that amount as a base to predict future revenue.
  3. Earning profit takes time, but as an IT company in Pakistan, you must monitor your profit margin which allows you to see if you are charging enough for your services.

6.    Business License

You can’t run a business if you do not have a business license. How can you get it? Well, you have to formally apply for this. To apply for a business license, you must submit the basic documents of your business including the number of business owners, business names, business owner name, contact information, employer identification number (EIN), business type, business address, and more.

The fees for a business license depend on the country your business is located in. Some states charge the filing or processing fee. Once you receive your business license you must check its validity date because in some countries, business owners have to reapply after every few years.

7.    Get a Workplace

The best and the most convenient part about having your own IT based company is choosing where you work from. You can opt for a traditional office but if you are tight on budget, you can start from a home office. Initially, every company starts from home.

With respect to the budget of your office location, you can decide the working style, plans, recruitment, and client meetings. If you rent out an office space, you will need property insurance to have protection against damage or theft.

The Bottom Line

Starting the best IT company in Pakistan of your own is a profitable business decision. You must be ready to take risks because it is a long road with pitfalls. Startups flourish and grow big if they have the right action plan; only then can they turn into successful, money-making enterprises.

Arpatech Website

Aug 15, 2022

How to Make an App Like Craigslist in 2022

How to Make an App Like Craigslist in 2022

Building duplicates of a website has become a common practice for website developers. However, adding a unique feature to the replica website is essential because not only does it add value to your business, but it also helps your new site stand out.

Online advertisement websites for buying or selling purposes such as OLX, Craigslist, Wallapop, and more are very commonly used. In addition to that, more the apps like Craigslist are built, adding competition to the market to generate revenue.

If you wish to make an app like Craigslist in 2022, you need to understand the basics of this website first. So, let’s begin with it.

What is Craigslist?

Craigslist is an American classified advertisement website that has specified sections for wanted items or services, jobs, housing, gigs, resumes, community services, and discussion forums.

Craigslist was founded by Craig Newmark in 1995 with the idea of providing an email distribution list to his friends. In 1996, it expanded into a web-based service with a wide range of classified categories. As they got successful, the office started expanding to the cities of the USA and Canada in the 2000s. Fast forward to the present, Craigslist now covers 70 countries.

To date, Craigslist has over 60 million users across 70 countries who post ads for services, purchases of property, events, jobs, and more. The discussion forum is a platform that allows users to share their queries and experience of using the website.

Craigslist is considered a low-key site as compared to its competitors, yet it receives over 200 million users posting monthly for different reasons.

Many other platforms try to build an app like Craigslist. However, this app has some unique features that can’t be found in others. Some of them include

1.    Strong Community

No matter how many platforms develop an app like Craigslist, they can’t compete with the huge community this app has created in these 25 years. The discussion forum helped the community interact, coordinate, and grow on legal issues, job markets, computers, selling items, and more.

2.     Easy Interface

For the longest time, we have used newspapers to publish ads or search for them until technology took over. To give Craigslist the same traditional touch, its interface looks like a newspaper with several ads. Some people do not like this design and they find it dull and outdated. However, Craigslist believes in keeping a minimalistic and easy interface. The text-driven ad pages help the website load quickly and reduce bounce rate.

3.    Free Advertisements

Craigslist has a wide variety of ads from all categories and most of them are free or available at cheap rates. Only some categories such as rental apartments, job hunts, and a few more, cost a small amount of money that is not too heavy on the users’ pockets.

4.    Ads Variety

The best part about Craigslist is the diverse range of ads. It is not niche-specific which allows all types of people to use it. From buying a book to getting your own property, the app caters to everyone. The fact that 80 million ads are posted every month on Craigslist speaks volumes of its diversity. If you wish to create an app like Craigslist, make sure that the ad category is vast.

5.    No Spams

Craigslist uses an automated flagging system to keep the spammers away from bombarding the website with unnecessary spam ads. Moreover, the flagging system can also remove inappropriate ads posted on the website to keep it a safe space for all users.

How to Make an App like Craigslist?

If you want to build an app like Craigslist, there are thing some of the factors that you must consider such as

  1. Features
  2. Business model
  3. Monetization approach
  4. Development Procedure

1.   Features

If you want to make a Craigslist-inspired app, you may add the features that enhance your website including

·       Communication Medium

You must integrate a messaging platform to make it easier for your users to interact with buyers and sellers and share their experiences. A communication channel helps them take reviews from others allowing you to take feedback before making a final call.

·       Flag Ads

Your users must have access to a flagging ads method that they can use every time they suspect a post to be spam, inappropriate, or fraud. This will instill a sense of security in your users that they can easily block anything that makes them uncomfortable.

·       Review and Rating Feature

You must add a review and rating option if you are planning to make an app like Craigslist. It will allow buyers and sellers to rate each other, helping the new users know their best options based on ratings and reviews.

·       Mobile Application

Do not keep your platform restricted to a website only, create a mobile app that people can use on the go any time they want. Interaction via mobile is easier than compared to browsers; so, do not skip on the mobile application of your new Craigslist-inspired site.

·       Cross-Platform App

Your website should not be confined to one operating platform only. Make sure that it is compatible with all the devices. It will expand your list of users using iOS, Windows, or Android platforms.

·       Account Verification

Add the feature of account verification to your website. Allow users to register or sign up using their social media or mobile number. Ensure safety by verifying their number or account to avoid spam or fake identity issues.

2.    Business Model

You have a list of four business models to choose from for your app

·       Freemium Classified

Freemium bases business model helps you post free classified ads, giving you the chance to earn from banner advertising. The model is useful for people looking to post ads for free and build a customer base.

·       Niche Classified

For a specific niche, this is the right business model. For example, job, property purchase, fashion, and more are the specific niche for which you can create listings to attract people looking for the particular category of services.

·       Fixed Classified

Big classified ads use a Fixed Classified business model. With the help of this, you can charge users a specific rate based on the ads they wish to post on your website. For more ad boosting, you can offer them packages or discounts. This model doesn’t guarantee a stable revenue but it can work well for you to gain customers.

·       All-in-one Classified

If you want a generic business model to gain a large customer base, you should opt for an all-in-one classified to build an app like Craigslist. It means that your model is a hybrid that contains features of all the niches such as freemium, niche, and fixed.

3.   Monetization Approach

Craigslist is a non-profit platform that earns specifically through paid ads. However, as a new platform, this may not be a suitable option for you. Therefore, you need a monetization model to help you gain profit.

·       Subscription

This monetization model is best suited for niche-specific websites and businesses that need to post frequently. All you need to do is charge a monthly or yearly fee for your website from the advertisers. But before you ask them to subscribe, make sure they have had a free trial.

·       Pay Per Post

It is a straightforward method that requires advertisers to pay for every post.

·       Membership

Offer your users a membership option if they wish to avail of premium services. It gives your customers extra features than the normal users of your platform.

·       Sponsored Ads

Paid advertisements are also an essential part of any business, especially in the initial days. You can give enterprises an opportunity to advertise their ads in return for a designated payment if you want to develop an app like Craigslist.

4.   Development Procedure

In order to make an app like Craigslist, you have to choose the development process you would like to opt for. For this, you have two options:

·       Open Source

Open source is easy for you as it is a platform like WordPress where you do not have to create a website from the scratch. You have a set of available designs, templates, features, and plugins to choose from. All you have to do is just drag and drop your preferred choices. However, it comes with its limitations such as no support, scalability issues, no custom theme, and more.

·       Custom-developed

Custom development is best for a classified website. It gives you different features, functionalities, and designs to acquire your Craigslist clone including the script for its development. The best part is that you will have control over the data of your website and will be getting the development team’s support if you are stuck at any point. However, it can be a little costly and time-consuming but all will be worth it when you see the results.

The Bottom Line

If you want to build an app like Craigslist, it is very important that you understand the purpose of your platform before you jump onto this bandwagon. You can make your own online marketplace and excel at your e-commerce and advertising if you have good knowledge of its basics. This market offers genuine buyers, good profits, and revenue if you are following the right practices to develop an app like Craigslist.

Arpatech Website

May 19, 2022

7 Best Productivity Apps For 2022

7 Best Productivity Apps For 2022

Staying productive is difficult, especially when you are surrounded by distractions that kill your productivity. To perform well in our respective jobs, we all need a way to be productive and organized. However, productivity is different for every individual. For some, it is a good brainstorming session and for others, it is completing the to-do task before day end. No matter what it means to you, we all need to be focused to maintain productivity in all kinds of projects.

This is why we have a list of the best productivity apps to help you become organized and excel more in your respective field. Let’s take a look.

1. Forest

Forest is the best-suited app for people who have a hard time maintaining their focus. If you easily get distracted, you must try Forest. What does this app do?

As you begin your task, the app plants a seed and starts the timer. When you continue working, your seed grows into a tree. However, if you leave the app for whatever reason, the tree immediately dies down. If you stick to the timer, the app keeps growing the plants that form an entire tree. This idea motivates people to keep everything aside and focus on their tasks.

You can also benefit your ecosystem using this app. How? Forest has collaborated with a non-profit organization, Trees for the Future. So, every time you plant a seed in the app, the organization plants a real tree.

2. Todoist

A to-do list is the best way to keep your schedule and deadlines aligned. Therefore, you need an app that organizes all your daily to-do lists. Todoist is a perfect task management app that helps you set due dates, track progress, and collaborate on different projects with other people. Moreover, it also has a location-based reminder that reminds you to perform tasks you have been assigned in different places. Todoist is the best and an upgraded version of a traditional to-do list and it is available on iOS, Windows Desktop as well as Android platforms.

3. Calendly

With tight schedules, does your inbox get flooded with back-and-forth emails? Calendly is the app for you. With meetings left, right, and center, all you need is an app that can sync your calendar to the preferred task and that’s what Calendly does for you.

All you have to do is create an account and you can sync time slots for when you are available, allowing you to manage your schedule. You can also share your meeting schedule with other people using your Calendly link to let them choose the best time slot with you. Get rid of back-and-forth schedule changes, meeting cancellations, and email bombardment, and download Calendly.

Calendly helps you organize your schedule and enhance your productivity. The app is available for Android and iOS only.

4. Trello

Trello is a well-known project management app used in many organizations for its user-friendly features meant for collaborative teams. The tasks on this app are categorized into different status options such as “to-do”, “going”, and “done”.

Trello works best for group projects, which is why it is best suited for group projects and office use. It assigns an individual task to group members with the designated deadlines and requirements. The app has a dashboard that helps you create and manage the list of cards that have to-do lists.

Allowing teammates to coordinate on a task’s progress, the app has a real-time messenger to discuss task-related queries. The team members can join in for free from any part of the world. Moreover, you can also invite other people from across the globe, such as your clients, to keep them in the loop of the task’s progress.

5. Evernote

If you brainstorm or write down every point of the meeting, Evernote can be very helpful for your productivity. It is a famous note organizer that helps you arrange all your ideas in one place. Also, not just textual information, if you have photos, audio, drawings, PDFs, or even digital sketches, you can use them easily as they are instantly searchable.

This app is not only helpful for notes on one device; it can help you sync notes from different devices in one place to access on the go.

Evernote is a free app and can be used on Android and iOS operating platforms.

6. Freedom

There is no bigger distraction than social media. With a single tap, it takes you to a virtual world and gives your productivity a backseat and this is exactly what you don’t want. Freedom is the app for everyone who can’t keep their hands off of social media sites, especially students preparing for their exams. It helps block all distracting websites and apps for your task-assigned time.

You can customize your list of sites and apps and block them for some time. And if social media blockage is not enough to boost your productivity, you may also block the entire access to the Internet to keep the focus on your task only.

Freedom is a free app available on iOS and Android.

7. Be Focused

Everyone has their own way of staying productive. If you are one of those who need short breaks to keep the mind running, Be Focused is the right app for you. It involves breaking your day into a 25-minute work slot where your entire focus is on the project you are working on. The slot is followed by a 5-minutes break to help you relax your mind.

You can use your interval durations for anything you wish. By the end of the day, the app gives you the tracking progress and goals for the day or the week. Be Focused is a free app and it can be easily accessed by iOS and Android users.

The Bottom Line

These productivity apps have shown great results as they serve as a platform to keep your focus intact. It is true that productivity is personal and works differently for everybody, but enlisting support from external sites and apps that match your work style only helps you achieve bigger goals. With many different tools and apps, if you find even one that works for you, you must definitely incorporate it into your work management practices.

 

Arpatech Website

Apr 27, 2022

More Articles by Arpatech

Design

design for business
logo design
problem-solving web design
ui/ux
product design

Art

motion design
branding
illustration
icons
logo design

AI

machine learning
deep learning
theory of mind
expert system

Development

web development
app development
software development

Apps

app design
usability
mobile app
animations