This week, Amazon announced their newest creation. Think the Amazon Echo that also doubles as a stylist. The $200 device is called the Echo Look and it’s geared towards consumers seeking fashion advice. The camera in combination with a few algorithms allow consumers to take photos and compare their outfits. Continue reading
Author Archives: aladrian
Dogs on Instagram: Cute & Charitable
At first glance, dogs on Instagram may appear to dish out a daily dose of cuteness and nothing more. There are, however, plenty of dogs on Instagram who are just as charitable as they are cute. Many Instagram-famous dogs are shelter rescues who proudly raise awareness about the dangers of puppy mills while simultaneously promoting adoption. The reach of these dogs is substantial enough to profoundly benefit the animal community.
Using A Mobile Device as a Tool to Improve Health
Improving your health may be simpler than you think. In fact, you can use your mobile device as a tool to make small changes that have a big impact on your wellbeing. A few ways to use your phone on your journey to improved health are: downloadable apps, accessories, alerts and podcasts. Continue reading
Mobile Apps Erase the Need to Shop in Person With This New Feature
The emergence of e-commerce and online shopping in 1995 revolutionized the retail market. Today, we are beginning to see another major shift in shopping culture with retail companies launching mobile apps. These apps completely eliminate the need to shop in person, a feat that e-commerce couldn’t accomplish. The shortcomings that came along with online shopping have maintained the demand for retail stores. So although shopping online is convenient and widespread, it also adds an additional hassle of having to return items that don’t fit. This need to try on items is what has prevented the elimination of retail stores altogether. But, retail stores may no longer be needed to fill a void in the e-commerce model as mobile apps work to overcome the shortcomings. It is my prediction that mobile apps will completely turn the retail market on its head. Continue reading
Increase Productivity with Time-Saving Apps
Time is our most valuable commodity and one that we seem to never have enough of. We can, however, save a little extra time if we increase our productivity and efficiency. Small improvements to our daily routines can save a great deal of time. Luckily there are plenty of time-saving apps that can help. Continue reading
Psychological Effects of Unhealthy Social Media Practices
In the spirit of spring cleaning and in the season of lent, many people turn to digital detoxes to reap the 
benefits of eliminating social media from their daily activities. But what exactly are the negative psychological effects of social media and how do users get them? The more obvious, non-psychological effect of social media use is wasted time. The psychological drawbacks of incorporating social media into our daily lives are harder to discern. Continue reading
Social Media & Hollywood Award Shows
A few years ago it would have been rude for a Hollywood celebrity to be on their phone at an award show. But today that is not the case.
Just check social media during tonight’s Oscars for proof that celebrities were on their social media platforms. From just a few years ago to now, there has been a major shift in what is deemed acceptable social media practices at Hollywood’s biggest nights. This change is a result of the large role that social media has started to play at ceremonies like the Academy Awards, Golden Globes, and Grammys. The pioneering moment where social media officially became a big part of award shows was when Ellen DeGeneres took a star-studded selfie at the 2014 Oscars. From that moment on, award show hosts have tried to create viral moments on social media.
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Using Pinterest for Business Purposes
Plenty of businesses successfully utilize social media platforms such as Twitter, Instagram and Facebook but for some reason there aren’t many using Pinterest for business. Maybe businesses avoid Pinterest due to the stigma that only crafty women who love DIY use it or the idea that Pinterest is not an effective marketing tool. Regardless of the reason, businesses are losing access to customers and potential sales. Not only is it important for businesses to be on Pinterest in the first place, but also it is important that they use the platform effectively. Continue reading
News Consumption in Today’s Digital World
The average human attention span is roughly 8 seconds, according to a New York Times Source, so it seems logical that the mobile applications that have concise, bite-sized content are most popular. Two perfect examples are Snapchat and Instagram that both have content short enough to keep the users engaged and coming back for more. It would make sense, then, that news apps with short content would be preferred methods of consuming news, however a recent Pew Research study draws other conclusions. Pew Research discovered that long-form journalism will not go extinct despite society’s obsession with digital technology. Longer articles attract an equal number of mobile visitors as shorter news articles do, demonstrating that bite-sized news does not trump full-length articles. With that being said, Pew Research also reported that only 22 percent of Americans trust social media as an accurate news source.
Pew Research’s study is in line with a recent article by Business Insider that points to headlines involving Facebook’s fake news and how “messy” the digital world is. Situations like Facebook’s create additional trust issues among users who question the accuracy of the news they read. A very interesting statista chart included in the Business Insider article shows the percent of Americans who trust each news source. The data depicted in the chart should be a slight relief for print newspapers and broadcast TV who don’t have to be too threatened by social media entering their news landscape due to the fact that 59 percent of Americans trust broadcast tv over 15 percent who trust social media. 
So even though we have shorter attention spans than goldfish (New York Times), we still prefer full-length articles from credible sources like news apps over finding news on our social media apps. This information is meaningful to almost anyone in the business world because of digital media’s relevancy in all facets of business. The knowledge that full-length articles and apps other than social media are preferred methods of getting news should influence how businesses establish themselves in the digital space.
To read more about short attention spans click here .
To see Pew Research’s findings click here .