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Even as dooms day has been predicted for search marketing, 2016 will present a new approach with the mobility shift - as growing number of individuals and businesses will migrate to native marketing. As 2015 comes to a close, more and more marketing technology companies continue vying for a piece of the pie in the burgeoning mobile market, which hitherto has been dominated by Facebook and Google.

Below are five predictions, distilled from a handful of marketing experts, for trends to watch in 2016.

Re-invention of Social Marketing

As social media adoption reaches its crescendo, a generation shift from how contents are consumed is perhaps more likely, with the likes of Facebook and Twitter losing significant grounds to newer services. Albeit, the user base will continue to grow, Facebook will face huge competition from emerging social networking platforms.

Meanwhile, Instagram has been projected to attain a growth of about 49 per cent in 2016, from the current 32 per cent.

End of the Cookies

Browser-based metrics will gradually be effaced, as the emerging measurement guideline comes to play with the growing adoption of mobile technology. The new formats won't work with cookies and can't be built upon existing legacy Web technologies.

Mobility will drive Visual Social Platforms

Social networking platforms like Instagram, SnapChat and Pinterest will increasingly attract more marketing spends as they'll be naturally appealing to more mobile consumers.

Increasing access to Big Data for Marketing

Brands will be able to incorporate data sets into their marketing campaign strategies with ease, as data exchanges continue to evolve, and will look to share their anonymized user data in exchange for access to the same from other relevant companies.

Native is the new "cool"!

Advertising that matches the platform with which it is delivered is defined as "Native advertising", and often presented in the forms of article, infographic or video, with the specific intent to promote a product, while matching the form and style of the original contents.

For all the hypes around marketing technology, it still doesn't move as fast as you think. Let us know your own predictions in the comment section and at the end of the year we'll see who has the gloating rights!

Top 5 Marketing Technology trends to watch in 2016

Lean product development (LPD) is an approach to meet the challenges of product development based on innovative solutions, and cutting costs through narrowing down on redevelopment cycles. Now, what has the Wright Brothers go to do with it, you may ask?

Notable for building the world's first successful airplane and making the first controlled, powered and sustained heavier-than-air human flight, the Wright Brothers, albeit not the first to build and fly experimental aircraft, were the first to invent aircraft controls that made fixed-wing powered flight possible.

Infographic brought to you by Wrike - Product Management Tasks

How To Plan Software Development

INFOGRAPHIC: 5 Lessons in Lean Product Development from the Wright Brothers

As we close out 2015, our traditions on looking back and looking ahead on technology trends for the coming year, continues. Acumatica, The Next Generation Cloud ERP Software company, sat down with four of its top analysts and thought leaders, to find out what happened in the ERP world this past year, and what to expect in the New Year.

While, the conversations were created originally as video series, “Deck the Cloud”, we’ll be highlighting a few of the questions discussed.

The key question each analyst was asked is: What ERP buying trends do you see in the marketplace?

The 4 Speakers in no particular order, are as follows:

Esteban Kolsky, Founder and Principal of thinkJar, a thinktank focusing on how organizations can better use technology.

Frank Scavo, President of Strativa, an IT and management consulting firm, and President of Computer Economics, an IT research firm.

Jon Reed, Co-Founder of Diginomica, a disruptive tech media blog focusing on enterprise issues and concerns.

Cindy Jutras, President of Mint Jutras, an independent research-based consulting firm that specializes in analyzing the business impact of enterprise applications.

Find their answers below:

“Virtually every single enterprise application and technology purchased today is going to be on a cloud basis. Cloud is a commodity that is baked into every single decision.” - Esteban Kolsky

“The first-time ERP buyers are growing and are ready to come off their small business accounting systems and get onto a real, full-blown ERP system.” - Frank Scavo

“In general, today’s buyer is a much more informed buyer. They have a much better BS detector.” - Jon Reed

“This year, what was a lot different was the attitude towards deployment options. There is a clear trend toward people wanting to move toward the cloud.” - Cindy Jutra

Let us know what ERP buying trends you see in the marketplace today in the comments, or you can join the conversation on Twitter with the hashtag #DecktheCloud.

Predictions: The future of ERP and Cloud computing for 2016

Apple kept to the promise of making its hugely popular programming language, Swift open source, allowing anyone to download, modify and to share the changes as they deem wise. While the promise was made months ago, and everyone expecting it, the stymied excitement was tied to the humorous unavailability of the codes on GitHub on launch day.

Swift has been in development for many years, and supports modern programming conventions, such as closures, generics, type inference, multiple return types and namespaces.

It's not only faster, but also easier to learn, and to help that process, Apple has created an 'interactive playground' for developers. And it's all good news, since the code is no longer locked up behind prohibitive licenses, the code-base is freed up for developers to use.

The company is hoping Swift will inspire the new generation to get into coding, and be able to take their ideas anywhere, from mobile devices to maybe even the cloud.

Meanwhile, with the project now open source, means that developers can choose to bring it to Windows and Android.

Developers will be able to download Swift and start building things with it from the new website: Swift.org, albeit, it won't be able to build apps that go into the App Store.

Swift supposedly faster than Objective-C, also with built-in protections against common issues and errors, currently supports iOS and OS X apps, and can also be used for tvOS and watchOS apps.

Swift Programming Language now open source; What's the big deal?

More often than not, you may have heard torrenting talked about in a negative light, as a way to illegally share movies and music, but that's not all there is to it. Actually, torrenting can be useful for sharing larger files, of course legally, such as a presentations in the form of videos and photos, or for downloading out-of-print books or non-copyrighted files.

While unfortunately, because of the bad reputation of torrenting, most internet service providers (ISPs) and probably the government may not support it, even when it's totally legal. Regardless of what you're downloading, if your ISP perceives that you're torrenting files, there's a possibility that your account may be suspended out of fear that you're breaking copyright laws.

Nonetheless, if you're downloading illegal files and the government caught up with you, you may face legal actions and possibly, jailed.

Additionally, you're also open to other risks when torrenting files, as often it means downloading content whose source is unknown, which could be choosing untrustworthy files that will do nothing but load malware unto your machine.

Below are some tips to make sure you stay safe while torrenting:

Pick Safe Contents

Your first step to protecting yourself on torrent sites is to make sure you're sourcing from legitimate sites. But, most importantly, make sure that you're downloading from a link that's been accessed and upvoted recently. There are lots of sites to torrent from, however, the most popular ones are KickassTorrents, the Pirate Bay and Torrentz.

Keep Your Anti-virus Software Updated

This may seem like something that goes without saying, but there are far too many people who don't bother to update their anti-virus software at all. While, it'll suffice that what you're doing is just for a minute or two, but if you contract a virus, you're going to have a heck of a time with it. Don't leave things up to chance, and make sure you have sorted out your PCs protection in case you accidentally download something malicious.

Use Virtual Private Network (VPN)

Rather than guessing which links are safe and hoping for the best, you should use a VPN to torrent securely. If you're unfamiliar with VPNs, they stand between you and the site that you're accessing, giving you a safer connection that won't leak as much of your information and will usually give you a head-up if you're downloading something unsafe. Not only will this protect you against malware, but it'll also hide your IP address, making it far more difficult for your ISP and the government to catch you on what you're doing and penalize you for it.

Is the Use of VPN Illegal?

While in some countries, it is illegal, but that's not the case in most countries, you'll want to make sure you're up-to-date with the local laws of course. But if it's legal to use a VPN in your country, there's no reason not to use it. Truth be told, using a VPN is kind of like closing the blinds on your internet activity. Just because you don't want the neighbors to see what you're doing doesn't mean you're doing anything wrong.

Downloading torrent files may not always be the safest thing to do, but with a little foresight and research, you don't need to worry about the possible outcomes. Remember, there are plenty of legal reasons why you are doing what you're doing, so the fact that you're torrenting doesn't raise a red flag. Protect yourself against possible viruses and prying eyes, and you're good to go!

3 Ways to Stay Safe while Torrenting

Definitely, the holiday season is the time for a lot of gift collections, and nobody would want such memories wiped out in an accidental data loss. If you've got anything important on your PC or Mac, you'd always be safer to have a backup to protect those files.

While, AOMEI Backupper comes free for personal home use, providing complete backup solution to everyday Windows users, the Backupper Pro solution is for intermediate and advanced PC users.

Albeit, the standard edition remains a preferred choice for individual PC users with many of the important basic functions needed to safeguard and protect important data, business upgrades are still available for advanced users.

What are the features in AOMEI Backupper Pro?


  • Utilities: backup schemes; make bootable discs; command line backup/restore/clone; check, explore, and merge images. 
  • Backup: easily and safely protect everything, including system, disk, individual files and partition.
  • Restore: fast and reliable disaster recovery, supporting universal restore and selective restoration.
  • Clone: step-by-step transfer OS or upgrade hard drive without reinstalling Windows and applications.
  • Multi-Language: support English, Français, Deutsch, 日本語, Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese.


Once you launch the program you will be presented a small window with all the navigation buttons.



And AOMEI Backupper Pro has support for multiple backup options, meaning you can backup your files in the different options listed.



Folder syncing and backup: Is backup from a selected folder and also syncs files as they're added. Scheduled backups: Automates you backup preference, allowing you to sit back while you backup is carried out. Incremental backup: Is backup option that adds any changed file to old backup without creating a new backup.

AOMEI Backupper Pro 3.2 has one of the best interface in the industry, well-designed and works seamlessly, supporting both Windows and Linux with bootable image creation and unlimited client boot and also supports backup to NAS (Network-attached storage).

AOMEI Backupper Pro 3.2 Review

Black Friday which started as a brick-and-mortar store affair is now mainstream online, meaning you don't have to leave the sitting room to do shopping any more - right with your pajamas, you're good to go shopping at any online store at your convenience.

But, with the ease also comes other risk factors to have at the back of your mind while doing your shopping online on Black Friday.

Below are 5 tips for staying safe online, so you can start checking out items on the shopping list for Black Friday.

Use Credible Websites

Trust is the watchword to staying safe online, so it is always recommended to shop at popular and trusted sites. If peradventure you don't know the site address and wish to utilize search engines, do not drift past the first page result as only the trusted and established sites can make the cut.

Security signs to lookout

Misspellings or websites using different domain extensions like (.net instead of .com, for instance) are some of the things to lookout for online. And ensure you do not enter credit/debit card details on a site without SSL Certification, that is, the site will start with HTTPS:// (instead of HTTP://), and a padlock icon will appear in the status bar on the web browser.

Avoid Public WiFi

Now is certainly not a good time to try out a free hotspot, only use the wireless facility if you have a virtual private network (VPN) connection. And if you must use a public WiFi, stick to known and popular providers.

Create Strong Password

The humble password remains the Achilles heel in many security breaches. So adhere to rules in creating unique and strong password for your account, as shopping online involves creating account, beating this old horse isn't completely out of place.

Think Mobile

Mobile apps are quite unmistakeable in the various app stores, more reason it is recommended to use apps for online shopping. The mobile apps are provided by the eTailers directly and you can find whatever you want to buy and then make the purchase without going to the store or the website.

In conclusion, it is advised to know what is too good to be true. In other words, avoid bogus offers, as many of such "offers" will come in via social media. Stay safe shopping online as there's no need to be any more nervous about shopping online than at offline store after all.

5 Tips for safe Online Shopping on Black Friday

Black Friday, for those not in the know, is the day following the fourth Thursday of November, generally regarded as the beginning of Christmas shopping in the United States. But now, it has spread over to other parts of the world, and major retailers around the world cut prices to insanely low rate, as much as 90% off, making it the biggest shopping day for bargain hunters.

It falls on November 27, this year - and Nigerians already given to eCommerce, have come to expect much on Black Friday deals.

Albeit, the trend is relatively new in Nigeria, this year's event may perhaps be a record breaker given the growing adoption of smartphones and increasing knowledge on the activities of eCommerce in the country.

While, Black Friday isn't restricted to online shopping, as offline stores are equally caught in the seasonal fever, we'd be concerned in presenting to you our best picks for online shopping with regards to trust and low price bargain.

Jumia Nigeria




Jumia Nigeria is arguably the eCommerce store that first introduced the Black Friday deals in Nigeria back in 2013, and since then has carved a niche for itself in the heart of consumers. The online store is promising to bring an extensive selection of products from top brands at rock bottom prices to consumers this Black Friday. With perhaps the most convenient and easy payment methods available, your Black Friday shopping will be an unforgettable experience with Jumia Nigeria. Simply head to their Black Friday page for more information.

Yudala Nigeria



This relatively new eTailer is a no pushover, with quite some stunning magic up its sleeve, it has positioned itself as the eCommerce store to beat in the growing competition in Nigeria. Launched in mid 2015, Yudala Nigeria delivers a hell of shopping convenience with an online and offline presence in more than 10 locations in Nigeria. With a promise of delivery to your doorstep anywhere in Nigeria in 24 - 48 hours, you simply can't beat the reach. You can get more details on their Black Friday page.

Konga Nigeria



Konga is the "YAKATA" eTailer, the huge market disruptor when it comes to price slashes in Nigeria. Konga Black Friday sales is actually starting from the 26th to the 27th of November, and they're promising free delivery to boot! Get more details here: http://www.konga.com/yakata.

Are you getting ready for the biggest online shopping of the year? You won't have anything to worry about choosing from the above online stores.

Black Friday: Where to get the best deals online in Nigeria?

Apple's new streaming set top box, Apple TV, has laid the ground work for a truly live TV experience, allowing users to order for whatsoever they're watching right on the screen. Apple TV connects to compatible big screens through HDMI input, while a dedicated App Store ensures unending entertainment contents such as movies and music videos, or even live game streaming.

The iconic fourth generation set box was unveiled on September 9, with a bevy of new features, including an awesome remote touch-pad and Siri voice recognition.

Siri support takes the obvious task off watching TV, allowing users to search and select contents through voice command, and quite capable of sifting through multiple apps at a go to find the exact music, movie or games.

While, the remote touch-pad has two microphones for picking up Siri voice commands, with built-in accelerometer and gyroscope that let it double as a game controller.

Apple's focus on a dedicated operating system, tvOS, with powerful hardware ensures better user experience, and effective tools for developers to create apps. It brings a redesigned iOS 9 feel to the TV set, with all the apps highlighted to make it easier to find contents for your TV.

Apple TV includes 2GB RAM, which is ample enough for the device to run a full-fledged App Store, with an A8 chip that's much faster than the A5 in the previous version, supporting up to 1080p video at 60 frames per second.

Albeit, keyboards are not supported, with Bluetooth 4.0 Apple TV can support third-party gaming controllers.

Apple TV is now available for US$ 149 (32GB) and US$ 199 (64GB), depending on the storage space to store apps, games, TV shows, movies, and music.

Apple TV: Is Streaming contents (videos, music and games) the future of TV?

The rumor was everywhere earlier this month about a purported Google's plan to merge Android with Chrome OS, and thereby face-out the later. The WSJ report claimed the Android/Chrome OS merger would happen in 2016, with Google set to launch new devices running the combined OSes in 2017.

While the Chromebook, the foster child of Chrome OS would ostensibly be subjected to an early death according to the report.

Lockheimer, SVP Android, Chrome OS and Chromecast has cleared the air refuting the report in its entirety, maintaining unequivocally that Android and Chrome OS will remain two separate products, and that Chromebooks aren't going away anytime soon.

What are the 7 Reasons Android will never merge with Chrome OS?

  1. Android caters for smartphone and tablet devices
  2. Chrome OS is mainly for netbooks and other lightweight computers
  3. Chrome OS is designed to work with "keyboard-based" platforms
  4. Android is optimized for all things touch
  5. Chrome OS is first Cloud
  6. Android is app-centric
  7. Security is fundamental for Chrome OS


Additionally, Chrome OS is built to run entirely off the Internet, and won't allow you to install programs or store any data locally; instead, all apps will run from the Web - with preferences and settings stored online.

Google, however, hinted that Chrome OS may eventually reach other platforms - like tablets and TVs, with a possible convergence of Android and Chrome OS. Albeit, Google is working on bringing the best features of Chrome OS and Android together, they will ever remain two distinct products.

7 Reasons Android will never merge with Chrome OS

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