Tag: Keller website design

  • Opioid Crisis Explained | Employee Benefits Blog Content

    Lately, there’s been a big focus on America’s opioid addiction in the news. Whether it’s news on the abuse of the drug or it’s information sharing on how the drug works, Americans are talking about this subject regularly. We want to help educate you on this hot topic.

    Opioids are made from the opium poppy plant.  Opium has been around since 3,400 BC and it was first referenced as being cultivated in Southwest Asia. The drug traveled the Silk Road from the Mediterranean to Asia to China. Since then, the drug has gained popularity for pain relief but it also has gained notoriety as an abused drug. Morphine, Codeine, and Heroin are all derived from the opium poppy and are all highly addictive drugs that are abused all around the world. As the demand for these drugs has increased, so has the production.  From 2016 to 2017, the area under opium poppy cultivation in Afghanistan increased by 63 percent. In 2016, it killed some 64,000 Americans, more than double the number in 2005.

    We can see that the danger from this drug is growing rapidly. What can we do to recognize potential abuse problems and to get help? Here are some facts about opioid addiction:

    • How do they work? Opioids attach to pain receptors in your brain spinal cord, and other areas that recognize pain signals. As they attach to the receptors, it reduces the sending of pain messages to the brain and therefore reduces the feelings of pain in your body.
    • Short-acting opiates are typically prescribed for injuries and only for a few days. They take 15-30 minutes for pain relief to begin and this relief lasts for 3-4 hours. Long-acting opiates are prescribed for moderate to severe pain and are used over a long period of time. Relief typically lasts for 8-12 hours and can be used alongside a short-acting drug for breakthrough pain.
    • Dependence is common with long-term use of an opiate. This means that the patient needs to take more of and higher doses of the medicine to get the same pain relieving effect. This does not necessarily mean the patient is addicted. Addiction is the abuse of the drug by taking it in an unprescribed way—like crushing tablets or using intravenously.
    • Americans account for less than 5% of the world’s population, but take 80% of the world’s opioid About 5% of the people who take opiates become addicted to the drug.
    • Help is available through many channels from private recovery centers to insurance providers. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration helpline is 1-800-662-HELP. This line is confidential, free, and available 24-hours a day and 7 days a week. Family and friends may also call this number for resources for help. Additional resources can be found at drugabuse.com.

    Make sure you are educated about the dangers of opioid abuse. But, don’t be discouraged and think that the abuse is incurable! There are many resources that can be used to break the addiction cycle and can make real change in the lives of its victims. Ask for help and offer help.

  • Custom Content Article

    At eTekhnos, we post for clients weekly to ensure traffic on their Social Media sites. Here is an example of our latest custom piece about Holiday Parties that our content writer on staff recently wrote and published for our clients.

    The Perks of Holiday Parties: How They’re Still an Asset to Your Company

    The end of the year is upon us and a majority of companies celebrate with an end-of-year/holiday party. Although the trend of holiday parties has diminished in recent years, it’s still a good idea to commemorate the year with an office perk like a fun, festive party.

    BENEFITS OF A YEAR-END CELEBRATION

    • Holiday staff parties are a perfect way to thank your employees for a great year. All employees want to feel appreciated and valued. What better way to serve this purpose, than with an end of the year office celebration. Hosting a night out to honor your employees during a festive time of year boosts morale. And if done right, your party can jump start the new year with refreshed, productive employees.
    • End-of-year celebrations allow employees to come together outside of their own team. The average American will spend 90,000 hours (45 years) of their life at work. Unless you have a very small office, most employees only engage in relationships within their department. When employees have a chance to mingle outside of their regular 9 to 5 day, they’ll build and cultivate relationships across different teams within the organization; creating a more loyal, cohesive and motivated culture.
    • Seasonal parties can provide employers insight on those who work for them. Spending the evening with your employees in a more casual and relaxed atmosphere may reveal talents and ideas you may not have otherwise seen during traditional work hours.

    CREATING THE RIGHT FIT

    Regardless of office size, if planned right, employers can make a holiday party pop, no matter your budget. Whether this is your first go at an end-of-year celebration for your employees, or you host one every year, keep a few things in mind:

    • Plan early. Establish a steering committee to generate ideas for your holiday party. Allow the committee to involve all employees early on in the process. Utilize voting tools like Survey Monkey or Outlook to compile employee votes. This engages not only your entire workforce, but serves you as well when tailoring your party to fit your culture.
    • Create set activities. Engaging employees in some type of organized activity not only eases any social anxiety for them and their guests, it cultivates memories and allows colleagues to get to know each other. Consider a “Casino Night”, a photo booth (or two if your company can justify to size), an escape room outing—anything that will kick the night off with ease.
    • Incorporate entertainment during the dinner. Have team leads or management members come up with fun awards that emphasize character traits, strengths, and talents others may not know of. This is a great way to create cohesiveness, build relationships, and have your employees enjoy a good laugh at dinner.
    • Offer fun door prizes every 15 minutes or so. Prizes don’t have to be expensive to have an impact on employees, just relevant to them. However, with the right planning you may be able to throw in a raffle of larger gift items as well. Just keep in the specific tax rules when it relates to gift-giving. Gift cards associated with a specific dollar amount available to use at any establishment, and larger ticket items, can be subject to your employees having to claim income on them and pay the tax.
    • Make the dress code inclusive of everyone. Employees should not feel a financial pinch to attend a holiday office party. Establish a dress code that fits your culture, not the other way around.

    TAKE AWAY TIPS FOR A SUCCESSFUL HOLIDAY PARTY

    According to the Society of Human Resource Management, statistics show in recent years only 65% of employers have offered holiday parties—down from 72% five years ago. Consider the following tips when hosting your next year-end celebration.

    • Keep it light. Eliminate itineraries and board-room like structure. Choose to separate productivity/award celebrations and upcoming year projections from your holiday party.
    • Invite spouses and significant others to attend the party. Employees spend a majority of their week with their colleagues. Giving employees this option is a great way to show you value who they spend their time with outside of work.
    • Allow employees to leave early on a work day to give them time to get ready and pick up who is attending the party with them.
    • Show how you value your employees by chatting with them and meeting their guests.
    • Provide comfortable seating areas where employees can rest, eat and talk. Position these in main action areas so no one feels anti-social for taking a seat somewhere.
    • Consider tying in employees that work in different locations. Have a slideshow running throughout the night on what events other office locations have done throughout the year.
    • Create low-key conversation starters and get people to chat it up. This is valuable especially for those that are new to the company and guests of your employees. Incorporate trivia questions into the décor and table settings. Get them to engage by tying in a prize.
    • Keep the tastes and comfort level of your employees in mind. Include a variety of menu items that fit dietary restrictions. Not all employees drink alcohol and not all employees eat meat.
    • Limit alcohol to a 2 ticket system per guest. Opt for a cash bar after that to reduce liability.
    • Provide access to accommodations or coordinate transportation like Uber or Lyft to get your employees somewhere safely after the party if they choose to drink.

    Ultimately, holiday parties can still be a value-add for your employees if done the right way. Feel free to change it up from year to year so these parties don’t get stale and continue to fit to your company’s culture. Contemplate new venues, ideas and activities and change up your steering committee to keep these parties fresh. Employees are more likely to enjoy themselves at an event that fits with their lifestyle, so don’t be afraid to get creative!

    Contact us about our custom content and article postings!

     

     

  • Agency website advice: Creating impactful TEAM PAGES.

    Agency website advice: Creating impactful TEAM PAGES.

    Does your About Page grab potential clients’ attention or does it leave them yawning? We’re sharing tips on tone, content and format for creating an engaging TEAM page that will make people want to work with your agency today!

    Personality – Does the team page reflect the personality and uniqueness of your team and highlight the talents each of them bring to your clients?

    Characters Welcome!! Creating pages that either list hobbies, passions or even candid images of your team get notice and talked about by clients and site visitors.

    See the BJA Partners site to see the team images change as you scroll over: www.bjapartners.com ( click WHO WE ARE)

    Think your About Page needs a revamp? Contact us today and we’ll get you started!

  • New Website Launched for Synergy Solutions Group of Virginia

    Here is our latest website redesign, just launched for Synergy Solutions Group of Virginia.

    The new SSG website was recently launched with rotating home page images creating a professional, modern feel that is easy to navigate.  The site is mobile-responsive, clean and concise, and provides a one-stop resource for potential and current clients.

    Visit the new SSG site at http://synergysolutionsgroupofvirginia.com/.

  • New Website Launched for The LBL Group

    Here is our latest website redesign, just launched for The LBL Group.

    lbl

    The LBL Group website was recently launched with distinctive home page images and single long page style for the subpages.  We used an alternating subpage color scheme, stock icons as section dividers, and a bevy of employer and client resources. The site is mobile-responsive, easy to navigate, clean and concise, providing a one-stop resource for potential and current clients.

    Visit the new LBL site at http://www.lblgroup.com.

  • New Website Launched for GIA

    Here is our latest website redesign, just launched for Group Insurance Associates.

    gia2

    The Group Insurance Associates website was recently launched with unique animated videos custom-made for GIA embedded throughout the site.  We also embedded an HR360 login widget, link to a custom EBC demo, and UBA news feed. The site is mobile-responsive, easy to navigate, clean and concise, providing a one-stop resource for potential and current clients.

    Visit the new GIA site at http://gianow.com.

  • We are Rockstar Technology. Affordable Web Design, Branding and Online Marketing Solutions.

  • 5 Content Tips For Your Facebook Business Page

    How much time are you devoting to your Facebook business page? If it’s something you created awhile ago but don’t regularly review, you may be missing a valuable way to grow your business.

    Whether your goal is to boost sales, engage with current and prospective customers or simply build awareness of your brand—having a Facebook strategy in mind will enable you to use this immensely popular resource more effectively.

    Here are tips for generating content that gets Facebook users hooked and coming back for more:

    1. Offer value.

    Your Facebook page is a great venue for updates on your business, but don’t get carried away. People don’t want or need an in-depth report on your latest company picnic. Instead, offer greater value by combining a timely mix of content about your business (product tips, sales events, behind-the-scenes items and photos) with third-party content, such as links to industry blogs and forums. This builds your credibility as a resource of value to users.

    Try including a regular weekly or monthly feature, such as a “discount of the week” with a special offer on a product or service. Let fans know this is an ongoing feature, so they’ll come back next time as well.

    2. Be strategic with images.

    Don’t post stand-alone photos of your products or services. Show them being used by happy, satisfied customers. Also, make it easy for fans to tag photos of their own, wherever they use your product or service, and share these as well.

    3. Avoid lengthy posts.

    You might find every aspect of your business fascinating, but a long, rambling posts will never garner the likes, shares and comments you’re looking for. If you want fans to read your posts, keep them short and sweet, generally between 100-250 characters. (Even shorter posts of 60-80 characters are likely to be more easily absorbed by fans with rapid-fire attention spans.)

    4. Focus on engagement.

    How can you stimulate users to get involved with your business? Try asking questions and offering polls that invite a response. At the end of a post, remember to invite fans to comment, like or share. When people do respond, keep the conversation going with comments of your own.

    5. Connect like a friend, not a business.

    Facebook is all about the personal experience, so treating it simply as a promotional outlet will get you nowhere. Post news and updates in a simple, informal and fun way. No marketing hype or press release stuff!

    Facebook milestones are one area where a little self-promotion won’t hurt. When you hit 1,000 fans or get 100 or 200 likes for a post, share the news. This makes people feel they’re part of a growing community.

    Other content-related tips:

    Always link back to your business website and other social media accounts. This boosts your page’s search engine rankings, thus increasing your potential visibility with prospective customers.
    Scramble content between posts, videos, photos, contests, polls, etc. Keep things lively and unexpected!
    If you run into a dry spell, look to your archives for posts or fans’ comments that can be repurposed or given a new spin. Posts relating your business to pop cultural events are always a hit with Facebook users.

    By staying focused on a key principle—Facebook is less about marketing and sales and more about conversations and relationships—you’ll come up with plenty of ideas for content that builds a growing and enthusiastic group of followers.

    Read More …

  • Reasons to Invest in a Well Designed Website

    You may ask yourself the question, “My business is ticking over nicely, why should I pay for a well designed website?”

    Your website is open 24/7

    A website allows your business to be open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. There are millions of people, from all over the world, online at any time of the day. Many of them are looking to source products or services. If you run a conventional brick and mortar business, you can only attract the people who walk or drive past your shop, in any one day. Having a website designed for you allows you to attract new customers that would otherwise never find you – and they can do so when your shop is closed! A well designed web site also gives them a reason to revisit the site in the future.

    Websites increase customer confidence

    A professional, well designed website, with the right content, easy navigation and quickly accessible contact details, greatly increases customer confidence in your company. A well designed website shows people that you are forward thinking and customer focused, much in the way a well designed business card did in the past, which is an important factor in any buying decision that they have to make.

    Websites increase customer referrals

    What is easier to remember, mysite.com or 01215501528?
    A website address is much easier to remember than a telephone number, so it stands to reason that having a website increases the likelihood of referrals – and let’s face it, referrals are one of the most important sources of new business.

    A website address increases the ROI when advertising

    Including your website address on all of your adverts, business cards, letterheads, invoices, etc allows people to take action straight away, when they view an advert, or hear about your product or service. Visiting your website is so much easier than driving to your store, telephoning or writing a letter to you. When online, a potential customer can take their time and enjoy finding out about your products or services without the pressure of having a salesman floating about in the background.

    Website sales

    Your website is one of the most impressive sales presentations that you will ever have. Allowing your customers to buy your products or services online is a wonderful and inexpensive way to expand your business. Spending thousands on advertising, for an ad that is featured in one mag, for one month simply doesn’t compare to investing in a long term sales marketing solution – or a well designed website as we like to call them!

    Even if you do not offer a product or service that can easily be purchased over the Internet, a website still acts as an impressive first contact, convincing the potential customer that they need what you are offering and inviting them to contact you, via telephone, email or contact form on your website.

    Websites promote future business

    When a potential customer comes into your shop and leaves without making a purchase and without speaking to anyone, they are basically a dead prospect. When someone views your well designed website and doesn’t make a purchase straight away, they can easily revisit anytime to make the purchase in the future. On top of that, you can use your website to collect the email addresses of visitors and send them periodical promotional emails, newsletters or updates on your product or service. So although they may not buy first time around, you have more than one opportunity to close the sale!

    So there you go, what are you waiting for? Don’t waste time -get a well designed website now!  We are here to help you get your website where it needs to be!

    Source

     

  • Benefit Communication in the Mobile World – Benefits Technology

    Benefit and HR communications have long been a challenge for HR departments and the benefit consultants that support them. The struggle to communicate effectively with employees so that they better understand and utilize their employee benefits has made little progress in recent years. Now more than ever benefit professionals are looking at cross selling voluntary benefits to generate new or additional revenue sources, and the need for better communication with employees is even more vital.

    The topic of how better to leverage the latest in technology is a regular in our industry news and articles, mostly related to marketing for new business.  Until recently we have all looked at paper, onsite enrollers, and email blasts to try to interact with employees so they will understand and use their benefits.  The simple problem with these options is that they are all very easy to ignore and often miss entirely. These methods are work-related and as we all know work is the easiest thing to tune out or save for some later date that never seems to arrive.

    The clear opportunity before us all is that better utilizing technology and social media for employee-directed material is the true “ah-ha” moment that has been missing.  Utilizing the technology that employees use and access 100 times a day is the real key to interacting with your employees and getting the response you crave. Platforms like mobile-friendly websites, SMS/text-based reminders, and social media profiles are the next generation of employee engagement.

    Case in point:  at the next enrollment meeting notice before, after, and sadly DURING the presentation how many employees check their mobile devices. I think we can all agree they are probably NOT checking if a vital work email has come through. Text messages and social media clearly rule the attention of employees and ask yourself how much of that attention do you have?

    Examples to consider adopting for your agency:

    • Text-based messaging blasts
    • Social media / hashtag content posts
    • Incentive-driven voluntary benefit sign-ups

    Each solution could be easier than you think to leverage and might be a simple extra step with how your clients may already be connected with employees.  Be intentional and meet with your client and ask what types of communications they may already be doing and suggest one or more of these options. There are various vendors that can support and provide these services so do a little homework in advance to feel comfortable with delivering on your ideas.

    BIO:

    Jeff Hill has been passionate and working with Benefits Technology since 1998 starting with Resource Financial Group in Austin, TX. Developing employee benefit platforms for the broker community related to benefit websites, online and paperless enrollment, and communications has been Jeff’s constant focus in all areas of professional work. Jeff was on the original staff as Director of Technology for United Benefit Advisers and traveled the country presenting to agencies on how to best use technology to attract and win new business. As a leading expert in web design for the employee benefit market, his work has been utilized by agencies, carriers, and benefit industry professionals nationwide.

    As President of eTekhnos Benefit Technology, Jeff has led the company to annual double-digit growth and new innovations in the benefit technology industry.  eTekhnos is also the nation’s only Benefit Industry-focused web design and internet marketing agency. The benefit world is very unique in its marketing and branding needs and eTekhnos knows that world inside and out.  eTekhnos saves agencies time and money and delivers stunning client technology web design and social media content.