Survey – Jessica N. Abraham | Designer. Writer. Publicist.

14 of the Most Common Remote Jobs & Annual Salaries, as According to FlexJobs

January 3, 2019 No Comments

PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED ON RESUME.ACADEMY’S OFFICIAL BLOG

In a recent press release by the world’s favorite remote jobsearch site, FlexJobs identified “14 of the Most Common Remote Jobs” and the average annual pay per position. This list was based on data gathered from within an ever-growing database of work-at-home positions and key factors were highlighted for each of those positions. Additional data was gathered at PayScale.com, and annual salary data was determined in relation to those factors.

The bottom line is this.

As millennials continue to take the workforce by storm, a preference for out-of-office experiences has become the norm. As opposed to sitting behind a wooden desk in a stuffy office environment, many companies are finding value in providing the younger, more vibrant demographic with a more satisfying work-life balance. Contrary to reports that these professionals are being underpaid, as in contrast to previous generation s , these numbers show that some companies still value their workforce and aren’t against compensating them accordingly.

According to the FlexJobs’ 7th annual survey on remote candidacy, 97% of all applicants said that “a job with flexibility would have either a huge improvement or a more positive impact on their overall quality of life.” 28% percent went on to discuss how they were very willing to take a pay cut in exchange for the option to telecommute. They would rather deal with computer-related issues than wear-and-tear on their vehicles, traffic jams and long trips to a physical office location.

Businesses are finding that happier employees, means increased productivity. Work is taking place in record time and with greater quality, overall. Teamwork is less dreaded, as everyone stays connected through cloud-based systems and always-on technology. Collaboration increases, and performance thrives. Not only that, but they are saving money by cutting costs to overhead expenses and salary expectations.

“With many more job openings than workers to fill them, job seekers can better leverage the current tight labor market to land a job that offers the opportunity to work remotely, which has become a high priority for today’s workforce,” explained Sara Sutton, founder and CEO of FlexJobs. “As leaders in the remote work industry, we want job seekers to be aware that the remote job marketplace covers more than one or two industries, and remote jobs are available across different career levels as well,” she concluded.

FlexJobs revealed that “securing a new job is often cited as a common New Year’s resolution, and with historically low unemployment rates in the U.S., job seekers are in excellent positions to find a job with a flexibility that helps them better achieve work-life balance, such as those that offer work-from-home options.” They went on to discuss the fact that “77% of workers said they’d be more likely to accept a job offer if they knew they could work remotely at least some of the time.” FlexJob helps job seekers find remote opportunities on both a full-time and part-time basis.

RESEARCH BY FLEXJOBS.COM:

1. Account Manager | Average: $52K/year
Account managers can be found at a variety of companies. Their tasks typically involve managing client accounts and relationships. Account managers may ensure client deliverables are met by running status meetings or giving presentations. Some account manager roles may involve sales and travel.

2. Accountant | Average: $50K/year
Accountants handle a multitude of financial-related tasks such as invoices, billing, taxes, payments, and more. Remote accountants can typically work from home easily utilizing general accounting or company-specific software.

3. Bookkeeper | Average: $41K/year
Bookkeepers typically prepare financial reports, allocate and verify accounts, reconcile accounts, perform audits, and more. Bookkeepers are often needed to work from home and usually require previous accounting experience.

4. Business Development Manager | Average: $71K/year
Business development managers typically work to gain new clients and business via phone, emails, in-person meetings, and video calls. Most remote business development managers need to have sales experience, and some positions may require specific knowledge of an industry.

5. Client Services Director | Average: $87.5K/year
Client services director positions involve handling client relationships. Duties typically include making sales pitches, developing client relationships, and identifying client needs. While there are many remote work offerings, many client services director jobs do require travel.

6. Customer Service Representative | Average: $37K/year
Remote customer service representatives assist customers via email, phone, chat, or social media. Customer service reps typically find themselves answering product questions, helping resolve problems, and potentially selling services to customers as well.

7. Developer | Average: $70K/year
Software developers can come with a variety of titles, such as front-end developer, back-end developer, iOS developer, and JavaScript developer, to name a few. Typical duties include programming, developing, and architecting software, websites, apps, or products.

8. Medical Coder | Average pay $41K/year
Medical coders assign and validate appropriate procedural and diagnostic codes in a medical setting. Specific certifications are often required, such as RHIA, RHIT, CCS, CCS-P, CPC, or CPC-H.

9. Nurse | Average: $63K/year
Remote nurses provide support via phone or video conferencing to answer patient questions. Some travel to patients’ homes to provide care. Remote nurses need to be excellent communicators and able to coordinate with doctors and other medical professionals in a virtual capacity.

10. Online Tutor | Average: $35K/year
Remote tutors are needed for all grade levels, including college. Tutoring can be conducted via phone, email, or video chat and a bachelor’s degree or expertise in the subject being tutored is typically required.

11. Speech Language Pathologist | Average: $60K/year
Speech-language pathologists provide speech therapy services by conducting evaluations, creating treatment plans, and writing progress reports. Remote speech pathologists are most often hired by medical or educational companies and utilize online software and video conferencing to perform tasks from home.

12. Teacher | Average: $46K/year
Remote teachers utilize online platforms to teach students via video or voice. Much like in-person teachers, virtual teachers may grade student work, hold conferences with parents, and provide one-on-one student assistance.

13. Virtual Assistant | Average: $35K/year
Virtual assistants provide administrative support to individuals, teams, or companies. Some tasks include handling correspondence, answering phones, booking travel, helping customers or clients, and more.

14. Writer | Average: $49K/year
A quintessential work-from-home job, writers can find jobs writing on a wide variety of topics and for a wide variety of companies. Those wanting freelance or part-time options can find a plethora, while full-time employee positions exist as well.

Disclaimer: All job descriptions were provided by FlexJobs.com and unaltered to provide our readers with more accurate insight, directly from the source.

DigitalPivot Contributions

Five Necessary Elements for Effective Mobile App Downloads & Development

February 9, 2016 No Comments

Digital Gadgetry, Cool Technologies, Technology News, Product Launch, Future Solutions

PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED TO TALENT ZOO’S DIGITAL PIVOT

It’s okay if your company still has no mobile presence. What’s more important is that you are ready to redeem yourself now. It’s better late than never. And as late bloomers are beginning to understand the importance of branding in mobile, especially in 2016, joining the ranks of millions of businesses taking advantage of the mobile economy is probably one of the smartest things you can do.

Snapp, an app development platform for mobile presences, recently highlighted five tips to build a successful app for your small to medium business. We at Digital Pivot elaborated on each item. We found them to be very beneficial to your upcoming mobile presence and wanted to share!

Please keep in mind; engagement and interaction will always be the bottom line when it comes to branding in the digital space — or any space, for that matter. In the mobile marketplace, however, it is especially important, because we are battling apps from various other industries in claiming that precious device space.

If your app isn’t used regularly, it might just find itself uninstalled, defeating its purpose altogether.

Increasing productivity for your end-user and catering to consumer needs and interests while keeping them entertained are probably some of the most important elements to implement into your mobile marketing and branding strategies. Keep their attention while on the go. Keep your app in their smartphone. Influence sharing amongst their circle of trusted friends.

These five tips should have you off to a good start.

Tip #1 | Provide consumers with exclusive offers and incentives for using the app

Everyone loves to get something for nothing. In a world of rising costs, it not only feels good to be rewarded by the brands we support, but it feels good to hold on to a few bucks now and then. In fact, we are most likely to share our awesome rewards with friends and family.

By providing exclusive offers and incentives to your already-supportive customer base, you are basically showing them that you value them as customers, while showing that your brand isn’t as greedy as many of your competitors. A “this drink’s on me” attitude almost establishes a bond and friendship between your customer and your brand. These are the beginnings of loyalty that often become viral and word-of-mouth topics for the day.

While you may be giving away free product — or even paying vendors to make provisions on your behalf — you are actually saving valuable marketing dollars. Think of how many marketing dollars go down the drain with no return on investment. Now, think of how many people are telling others about your product, simply because you gave them a “free” sample. Think of how many people are returning because you once gave them something — and it was something they liked.

The incentive keeps them coming back for more.

Tip #2 | Share the app every and anywhere.

Create awareness that your app even exists. Sharing your app on social media, and even attaching incentive to the download, will encourage sharing. Not only should your brand provide a reason for download, it should convey a clear message that can be understood. Providing elements that educate, entertain, or provide incentive will lead to social sharing by outside influences. Fans will share your message on the merit of interest alone. Downloading the app itself will be a whole different “ball game.”

Tip # 3 | Make sure to take advantage of push notifications.

Don’t underestimate the power of a push notification. Whether serving as a reminder for your weekly television show, an exclusive offer, or breaking news impacting the end-user, push notifications can keep consumers engaged and regularly returning to your app — for whatever reason — until the process becomes self-initiated!

As manipulative as this sounds, you can create a habit for your consumers through continuous and non-invasive engagement. Keeping your user engaged will keep them antsy as they continually refresh the app for updated information. As with any habit, good or bad, it takes repetition to form naturally. Repetition is key, alongside content and consistency, in making your brand work for you in digital territory.

Tip #4 | Be as personal as you can be.

One reason the mobile jungle is one of the most powerful tools to digitally brand yourself today is personalization. I am sure that you have heard that more people are willing to share their toothbrush than to share their mobile device. Such is true.

People keep their secrets locked on their devices. They have very personal conversations archived. They have each and every moment of their lives scheduled in a calendar. They have thrown out their debit cards and now use their phone for mobile currency. You can take advantage of that!

Create direct-to-customer content. Allow them to select which type of content they see. Find ways to include their name into the mix. While a very basic trick that we have been doing since the days of mIRC and Yahoo! Messenger, allowing a user’s name to appear within the app someplace will make the connection to their brain that “this app is for me.” Egocentric as it is, it works!

Allow them to contact you directly. Invite them to your social media presence; give them one-touch clickability in connecting to your direct line of business. Allow them to chat with customer service — shoot, allow them to chat! Show them that they matter and that they have a voice when it comes to your brand.

Tip #5 | Know your niche, cater to them.

Find your niche. Learn your niche.

If you already know your niche, it might be easy to cater to them already. For those who are stumped on the content that they should be including in their apps, understand your niche and you will have your answer. Remember, content is king. A majority of our marketing is being done through content marketing, native marketing, and so on.

Feed them content that they will share. Feed them content that they will return to your app for. Partner with others within your niche if necessary. Seek sponsors within your niche if necessary.

Repetition and engagement. Repetition and engagement. Content gives you a reason to stay in contact. And it gives them a reason to keep your app!

TMC Net Contributions

2015 Report Reaffirms Contact Center Business Model

November 23, 2015 No Comments

PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED TO TMC NET’S CLOUD CONTACT CENTER

Last week, The Sander’s Retail Insights report was released. It reinforced a lot of common sense assumptions, but it also gave us deeper insight on just how important customer service is and why. Through their report, “Click & Collect, Contactless and Customer Service: What We Learned From the Retail Insights Survey 2015,” Business 2 Community highlighted important points that can also be found in this Sanderson’s Retail Insights 2015. They remind us that, to remain competitive in today’s market, we have to must the customer experience memorable. This also may mean evolving our business for accommodation.

In fact, Business 2 Community suggests bringing Online platforms to the actual store environment. According to the Sanderson Retail Insights Survey, “Nearly two-thirds of retailers believe that selling Online in-store using ordering solution kiosks will become commonplace by 2016.” Wal-Mart has recently spoken about implementing this, keeping shipping costs low by offering a larger variety of products not carried in store and shipping to the store for free.

Retailers around the world are creating kiosk space by adopting iPad kiosks for both in-store and online purchases. Customer service professionals are able to explain, and even upsell, purchases. They are also able to check inventory to see if the product is stocked in-store. This ironically increases customer interaction. This is also providing assurance to the 47% of consumers, since March, that wouldn’t have bought online, otherwise, due to skepticism. For this, 90% of retailers who have implemented multi-channel shopping say it is extremely important to allow online and in-store deliveries to rub elbows, as one in the same.

Once a customer goes to make a purchase, how is your store facilitating various payment methods? Many businesses have slowly tested and rolled out contactless payment methods through PayPal integrations, ApplePay and even mobile payment methods, as associated with wearable technologies.

In the past, we have seen people lose money, switching to a purely debit card method for payment, only to lose the debit card and have to wait 5-7 business days to receive a new one by US Mail. But, how often do we see people lose a cell phone?

It’s under this ideal that many businesses have begun facilitating alternative pay methods and services to this audience, which — by the way — has grown from the previous year. In fact, 67% of consumers are using alternative payment methods on a daily basis. That’s over $13B spent this year through alternative payment methods – a year that isn’t even over!

Finally, we can learn a lot just by listening to our consumer’s needs. Somewhere around 81% of retailers utilize social media strategies, as a tool into a customer’s mind. They monitor public conversations and find ways to meet the needs of consumers, providing them with the level of customer service that they seek or should have gotten the first time.

Responding to unhappy customers in real-time prevents negative reporting and comments to go viral and for customers to be retained for the long-term. It also allows a brand to adopt new consumers and for the implementation of product lines and business strategies that will meet the continual demand from a growing customer base.