The Main Benefits Of Having Business Cards

December 9, 2021

In the digital age, it’s easy to forget how important a business card can be. Your printed name and contact information are still vital for networking, meeting new people, and giving out to potential clients or employers. In fact, many professionals will say that your business card is one of the most important tools you have in your arsenal—not just because it says so much about who you are professionally but also because of its versatility. A well-designed business card prepared by store.printedinus.com can work as a conversation starter or even a phone number exchange. Plus, there are plenty of other benefits that come with business cards. This article will outline some of the top reasons you should consider investing in some business cards for your next marketing or branding campaign.

Business Cards Leave Professional Impression

One of the first benefits of a business card is that it leaves a professional impression. With a well-designed business card online, by Adobe Express, you can show potential clients or employers that you are serious about your work and that you take your business seriously. This is an important first impression to make, and it can help set the tone for future interactions. So, if you don’t already own one, it’s time to get your business cards printed. The printing prices can vary, but you should be able to find a quality printing service for a reasonable price. And don’t forget: whatever the initial cost is, it will pay off in the long run!

Business Cards Are Perfect Size

Another great thing about business cards is that they are the perfect size for handshakes and small talk. They’re also easy to store in a pocket or wallet, so you can always have them on hand when you need them. This makes them a great tool for networking events and other business-related gatherings. And if you need to give out your contact information to someone on the spot, a business card is the perfect way to do it. They are also great to display at countertops, so you can give out a card to anyone who expresses interest in your work.

Potential Clients Will Memorize Your Business

When you hand out a business card, there’s a good chance that the potential client or employer will memorize your logo, brand, or contact information. This is especially true if you have an interesting or eye-catching design on your card. This is because you’re providing them with something physical they can hold on to—in this case, the business card itself. Customers are always on the lookout for great new businesses, so having a sharp-looking business card might help get you to get their attention over the competition.

They Are Efficient Marketing Tool

Business cards are also viable marketing tools. In other words, they can help you reach more people in a shorter amount of time. How? By handing out your business cards to everyone you meet, you’re essentially putting your contact information in front of as many people as possible. And with quality printing services, you can make sure that your cards stand out from the rest. So, if you’re looking for a cost-effective way to market your business, then business cards are a great option.

In addition to being an efficient marketing tool, business cards can also be used as swag. What is swag? It’s an acronym for “stuff we all get.” In other words, it’s promotional items that are given away for free. And business cards make great swag because they’re small, lightweight, and easy to carry around.

Business Cards Are Evergreen Product

Another benefit of business cards is that they are an evergreen product. And by that, we mean they are the same for business as vinyl is for music. In other words, they will always be in demand because people will always need them. Also, they’re a little part of your business people can take home and show off. This is proof that you and/or your company does great work and takes it seriously. So, if you’re looking for a product that has long-term potential, then business cards are a great option.

They’re Perfect For Some Industries

So many industries can benefit from business cards! Of course, all businesses can use them, but some industries can really make a statement with their cards. For example, some industries that can benefit from professional and/or stylish cards include real estate, construction, law, street food, and home services. These businesses can really make a statement with their cards because they are providing potential clients or employers an immediate representation of themselves. And since many business cards are made from quality materials, your personal brand can be seen long after the exchange is over.

It’s Affordable!

Business cards are also extremely affordable! You can find them almost anywhere. Even though design and printing options vary, business cards can be as cheap or expensive as you want them to be. In addition, customizing your own design is simple and affordable. This is because there are tons of free online sites that allow you to create a card from scratch without any knowledge of graphic design.

In addition, if you have a design that you want to use, then there are also plenty of printing services that allow you to upload your own design. They will take care of the entire process for you—all you have to do is pay for it!

Business Cards Add A Personal Touch

Finally, one of the best benefits of business cards is that they add a personal touch to your business. This is because they are a physical embodiment of you and your work. When you hand someone your card, you’re not only giving them your contact information, but you’re also giving them a piece of yourself. Also, since business cards come in all shapes and sizes, you can really let your personality shine through with your card design. So, if you’re looking to add a personal touch to your business, then business cards are a great option.

As you can see, there are many benefits to having business cards for your business. From being a great marketing tool to adding a personal touch, business cards can help your business in many ways. So, if you’re looking for an easy and cost-effective way to promote your company, then be sure to invest in some high-quality business cards!

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Top Ways to Quickly Get a College Degree

December 9, 2021

College degrees are often necessary for success in the modern world, but many people don’t have time to spend four or more years of their lives on a degree that may not even be related to their career. This article will explore some of the quickest ways to get your college degree and start working towards your goals!

1. Join Accelerated Classes

If you’re looking to get your college degree quickly, you may want to consider joining accelerated classes. These fast courses move quickly and allow you to complete your degree in less time. There are many different accelerated degree programs available. So, research and find the one that’s best for you.

2. Plan Ahead Financially

Often, students drop out of school because of financial problems causing delays in getting a degree. The earlier you start working in saving for college, the less likely you will have these problems down the road. There are also many different ways to get scholarships and grants, which can help offset some of the cost of school.

3. Take One Class at a Time

While you may be looking forward to taking many classes at a go, it is better to focus on one at a time. This way, you will devote your attention and the necessary resources that the class requires. Additionally, this approach helps with scheduling if it’s an online course or working around your other courses so you can fit in study time too!

Taking one class per semester/quarter/trimester (depending on how fast they move at your school) also ensures that each of those courses is done well. If not, then there’s always next term for another chance which takes the pressure off of succeeding now.

4. Work on your Grades

Failing in college can slow your journey to graduation. You can try to work ahead in your classes or switch majors, but working on your grades is one of the surest ways to speed up this process. You may have to retake courses or get tutor help, but it will be worth it in the end.

5. Take Summer Classes

If you want to graduate sooner, take summer classes! You can usually take more credits during the summer semester than you can during the fall or spring semesters. This is a great method to catch up on classes you’ve missed or get ahead on your degree requirements.

6. Study Online

Online learning is convenient and allows you to complete your study in less time. You can study at your own pace and take advantage of flexible learning options. Plus, you’ll have access to top-notch resources and support from instructors. However, discipline is vital for online learning, so make sure you set aside enough time each week to complete your coursework.

Having a business, tech, or criminal psychology degree is something to be proud of and will make your CV look great when looking for a job. It is an accomplishment that takes a lot of hard work and dedication. If you are thinking about earning your college degree but may not have the time or money it will take, this article has many different options for you to consider. From online colleges to accelerated degree programs, you can find a way to get the education you need and deserve. So don’t wait any longer. Start researching today and see what option is best for you!

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How 2021 Became the Year of the Armchair Investor

December 9, 2021

The world of investing has always been exclusive, but not anymore. With the advent of the internet and mobile devices, regular Americans have gotten themselves involved in investment opportunities that would have otherwise never even crossed their minds. This article discusses the various ways in which everyday Americans have gotten themselves involved in investment opportunities in 2021.

Robin Hood

Investors interested in companies that they believe have value but do not want to act as “accredited investors” under the law can now invest via an app called Robin Hood. The company allows for small investments which go towards buying up massive quantities of stock shares. This way, when a specific price is reached by shareholders selling their stocks, everyone gets paid back with interest.

Penny Stocks

Another popular investment opportunity among average Americans has been penny stocks – traditionally viewed as extremely risky and unreliable options. However, brokerage firms allow for individual accounts so long as you meet their minimum deposit amount. With this type of account, regular folks can purchase any number of cheap-priced yet promising stocks.

Crowdfunding startups

Since the economic downturn of 2020, more and more people have started to invest in startups. It’s riskier than any other kind of funding, but it also has a lot of potential for significant returns if you do your research on startup founders, their teams, etc. Notably, the popularity of equity crowdfunding options offers investors the chance to diversify in ways previously unavailable to ordinary people. You can crowdfund by investing small amounts of money to support a startup.

You can keep track of their progress, see how much you’ve invested and the returns on your investment are pretty substantial compared to any other kind of investing. Startups can include anything from new social media apps to blockchain businesses or even real estate developments.

Real estate

People are buying old buildings renovating them, and renting them out for a profit. The majority of the work is done by machines, and plenty of investors need reliable places to put their money.

Gold

People still like gold, especially in 2021 when many other investments went down the drain. Gold always has value and can be sold off or converted into cash should you ever need it. Just make sure that you don’t buy fake bars or coins – they’re all over these days.

Bitcoin and Ethereum

These two cryptocurrencies have been extremely volatile but also profitable so far in 2021. They’ve seen significant fluctuations in price since 2018, with Ethereum going from $500-$1500 around December 2019 while Bitcoin jumped from about $20,000 per coin back in late 2017 to around $8000-10000 in 2019.

Marijuana

In 2021 it has been legalized on the federal level, and people have started to invest in this industry. It’s a risky business, but there are bound to be some big winners in this space; at least, that is what many investors believe. Having a dispensary is a great side business as well.

NFTs

Non-Fungible Tokens are a new kind of cryptocurrency introduced in 2021. They were extremely popular back in 2019 and 2020 because they could be used to tokenize anything from personal data, pieces of art, or even the deed on someone’s house. There have been some major security issues with NFTs so far; however, people continue buying them up for substantial returns over time.

Mortgages

Interest rates are still pretty high, so everyone is looking at ways to make money with their money rather than just putting it into savings accounts or certificates of deposit that pay virtually nothing these days.

Since 2021 interest rates on mortgages are not as low as they once were – around 12% actually – there are plenty of investors out there who want to take advantage. This means that home loans have become extremely popular investment vehicles since 2019, thus being one of the best options available to investors.

With all these options available for investment opportunities, regular Americans can now get involved with investments previously only accessible by accredited investors or well-established institutions. The world of investing has become more democratic than ever before, despite its risks. The market conditions still make it difficult for small-time investors, but they create great opportunities when the economy goes right – as we saw from 2020 onwards.

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Top 10 Apps to Calculate a Loan Before Applying

December 9, 2021

If you want to find a way to save money, reduce unexpected and anticipated expenses, and have more in your pocket at the end of the month, then online calculator applications will come to the rescue! The loan apps will help you to calculate your loan before applying.

Certain loan applications are designed to help you figure out your personal finances, the fees you pay for loans to create your own budget, and track all your spending habits. These apps can shed light on your personal finances, and you might just get some extra cash. To help you make your choice, learn more about the top 10 financial calculators. Some of these applications are based on classic financial calculators designed for serious calculations.

Vicinno

If you are looking for an original and handy financial app that provides the same functionality as the original HP 12c financial calculator, then you should try the Vicinno loan calculator. It uses a record-back (RPN) system to get reliable lending results every time. Thanks to the Vicinno calculator, you can calculate TVM or bonds. You can also use it to estimate the depreciation of your assets or statistical analysis of lending data. Vicinno allows users to copy and paste calculation results.

Title Loan Calculator at MoneyZap

MoneyZap calculator is a practical financial calculator that concentrates on title loan calculations and gives users complete info on what they could expect they apply for one. It’s relatively new but completely free and based on the online platform which means that you do not even need to install anything.

Expense Manager Pro

If you need an effective app that helps you keep track of your expenses, ExpenseManagerPro is the right choice! Thanks to the expense and income calendar, it is very easy enough to achieve your financial goals. You can use the app to track your expenses and organize your bills and budget.

ExpenseManagerPro will also help you learn how to save money correctly. If you keep bills and receipts in different places, then this app will help you bring everything together in one place for easy access. It also makes sure you don’t miss out on a payment thanks to its payment notification feature.

To keep track of your expenses, the app records each item in a specific category along with the corresponding amount. This way you get an overview of your spending habits. ExpenseManagerPro will also help you decide where to cut and what category of expenses you are actually spending your money on.

EMI Calulator

To help borrowers more easily calculate how much they will need to pay for a loan on a monthly basis, the reliable EMI (Equal Monthly Payment) calculator is at the top of our list. This is exactly what this financial app offers. The app can calculate mortgages or other loans. The EMI calculator also allows you to keep track of all your current loans. EMI also has a payment reminder feature that alerts you when the EMI is due so you don’t miss a single payment.

10bii

Financial сalculator 10bii is an excellent and effective application. Bii has over a hundred advanced functions to calculate the financial, mathematical, or statistical answers you need. 10 bii is the app you need when you need accurate TVM calculations. The results are presented in the form of a cash flow diagram.

Other calculations that you can easily do with this financial calculator include loan payments, mortgage payments, interest rates, and investment costs. The financial calculator is great for finance and business experts. Bii is available for those borrowers who might need a high-performance calculation tool.

Touch RPN Calculator

This is another top financial emulator application based on HP 12c RPN system. This calculator is also available for all iOS or Android users. Even though TouchRPN Calculator is an emulator application based on the HP 12c principle, it also has the HP 12c limitation. You have the choice to use the app as a scientific or financial calculator.

BigHorn Loan Calculator

With this handy and practical financial calculator, you can easily track your loan payments. This is a fast and reliable way to find out about the status of the loan. The BigHornLoan app is ideal for those working in the financial sector such as accountants and real estate agents, or those seeking a tool that delivers quick settlement results. You can create PDF versions of repayment charts. This app also has an exchange feature that allows you to send redemption schedules by email to your colleagues or clients. You can also sync your files with iCloud to ensure they are backed up.

Easy Loan Payoff Calculator

Before you apply for a loan, you will want to make sure you are getting a good deal and that payments are affordable. The Loan Calculator app helps you find out how much a loan will cost over time and what your monthly payment will be. This is ideal for car loans, making a large credit card purchase, and even large loans such as a mortgage. The app checks how much time and money you can save if you manage to also make additional annual or even monthly payments. All your loan calculations can be saved so that you can return them at any time.

Zillow Mortgages

Zillow Mortgages is a great option to get the full picture before choosing the right loan calculator. The Zillow Mortgages calculator will help you determine what exactly you may afford and then break down your mortgage. Thus, you can see what the monthly payments will be.

In the monthly calculation, you can view taxes, interest, mortgage insurance, and principal. To make this application useful, it offers real-time personalized mortgage rates based on your current location. There is also a bet history tool to get a clear idea of what they have been doing overtime.

Debt Free – Pay Off Your Debt

Having no debt may seem like a pipe dream. But with a budget and hard work, it can become a reality. The Debt-Free app gives borrowers the ability to first organize all of their debt and then start tracking it as you can pay and keep track of what you paid off.

Calculators are included to help you calculate the payments you need to make in order to get out of debt. The percentage payment progress bar acts as a great motivator. There is a notice about the due date so that you don’t forget the payment. You can check charts and reports on your progress and outstanding debt and even research different payment strategies.

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How US businesses Are Set to Boom as Gambling Takes Off

December 9, 2021

The gambling industry is huge. Globally, online casinos alone are worth around $377 billion to the economy. While online gambling was already on an upwards trajectory in terms of popularity, what the conditions caused by Covid have led to is an explosion in the numbers looking to gamble. With bricks and mortar bookies and land-based casinos out of the equation, online was the way to go. Many who have now experienced the thrill of online casinos are likely to continue long after the world emerges from the pandemic.

Given the size of the US economy and the fact that it is seen as a forward-thinking nation, it is a little surprising to realise that this country has long been missing out. While legislators are softening their approach to gambling, and while there are a growing number of online casinos accepting PayPal, is the US about to realise the benefits that the likes of the UK have been experiencing for some time?

The traditional US approach to gambling

Gambling is not illegal in the US, despite numerous sources that claim this to be the case. When you look at the likes of the casinos in Las Vegas, it is apparent that these are operating within the laws of the land. What makes the US a little complicated is its vast size and the fact that each state has the ability to impose the laws that it wants to. While some had embraced gambling and sports betting, others had always actively discouraged this with their legislation. Despite this, the US gaming industry was worth an impressive $240 billion in 2017 and the activity contributed over $8 billion in taxes.

The stance against gambling comes from traditional views. There are those who are concerned that with gambling come certain behaviours. An association with addiction and crime are present. Regardless of the truth of these, the ideas were pushed and the legalisation of gambling, in certain states, would have been viewed as promoting these behaviours. What these people are no longer able to ignore is the worth of the gambling industry to the economy. The iGaming industry is set to soar and with this, there will be opportunities for businesses to benefit as well as huge tax revenues being generated.

How change began

While the journey to online casinos being universally accepted across the US is still in its early stages, sports betting is a little further along. It was May 2018 that saw a historic decision being made. The US Supreme Court legalised sports betting across the entire country. It had been reported that while this activity was outlawed, Americans bet around $150 billion illegally each and every year. The act of legalising this allowed for regulation and also allowed for the country to benefit from a new form of income.

While countries such as the UK have long enjoyed all that sports betting brings, for the US this is largely a new experience. Since the law change in 2018, the number of sportsbooks offered across the country has exploded. This has been a major step in terms of the entertainment industry as it has opened up a whole new marketplace where companies are keen to do business. Right now there are numerous British companies looking to breakthrough in the US and this can only be good news for all parties.

What this means for casinos

With an acceptance of sports betting across the country, it would make sense to go further and to explore all that online and land-based casinos have to offer the nation. To effectively launch online casinos that are sufficient to keep up with the appetite of Americans, there will be a need to partner with European companies or even the need to buy them out. The truth is that it is the European iGaming companies that have huge back catalogues of games. They have developed these over a period of years and created an online casino experience that is nothing short of exceptional.

While it seems to make sense to legalise gambling across the board, there is still an uphill battle to fully get there:

Hawaii and Utah have a complete ban on all forms of gambling both online and land-based
In terms of land-based casinos, there are two types: Commercial and Native.
You can find commercial casinos in just Atlantic City and Nevada
In terms of Native Tribe casinos, there are 524 of these spread across 20 states. They regulate themselves
States that have no land-based casinos at all are: Georgia, Hawaii, Kentucky, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Vermont, and Virginia
Internet gambling is regulated in Delaware, California, Illinois, Indiana, Nevada, Iowa, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Rhode Island, West Virginia
It is a crime to gamble online in Utah, Washington, and Louisiana

This is the backdrop faced by gaming in the US and shows how the road to full acceptance is a long one. The positive point to note here is that only a few years ago, sports betting faced the same opposition and was in a similar position.

The future of iGaming in the US

There is no doubt that change is coming. Attitudes towards online gambling are already softening and the economic arguments are undeniable. As US citizens begin to look forward to gambling with a growing freedom, there are numerous opportunities that will appear for businesses. Sponsorship details can bring in millions of dollars to businesses as can partnerships with an industry that is becoming more acceptable.

Examples of how this is already working can be seen by looking at the NFL and the benefits brought about by legalising sports betting. 2021 saw the NFL enter into deals with three gambling companies: Caesars Entertainment, DraftKings, and FanDuel. These deals are said to be worth $1 billion over the next five years. This is just one opportunity brought about by legalising sports betting. Legalising gambling as a whole and accepting online casinos across the country will only lead to more.

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How to Calculate Free Margin in Forex CFD Brokers: What Does It Mean and How Can You Benefit?

December 9, 2021

The free margin in a Forex CFD broker is a crucial factor that has a significant impact on its profitability. It allows you to trade with leverage and take more risks without the need of investing additional capital. As a result, it creates more possibilities for you to make money.

In this article, we will teach you how to calculate free margins in Forex CFD brokers and the advantages of knowing these margins.

What is a Free Margin

The difference between the actual margin and the commission paid to your broker is referred to as the free margin in Forex CFD brokers. It is the difference between the amount of money you get and the amount of money you have to pay the broker.

As a rule, the free margin is not disclosed in the broker’s terms and conditions. The free margin is hidden from you as it can’t be determined by the broker until you analyze the results of your trades.

Before we go any further, it’s worth mentioning that there is no actual free margin in Forex. In practice, you’ll often see different indicators, such as 95% Gain, Profit Margin, and Limit Order Book, which you should understand when reading an explainer.

These indicators mean that your broker gives you a certain amount of leverage. They are used to calculate your profit/loss and the required amount of collateral to trade with. Larger numbers are better.

Of course, this is not the case. When it comes to trading with leverage, you don’t get any leverage. So what you are getting is a way to calculate your profit and gain. So the real margin is the amount of profit you need to cover losses.

The Importance of Free Margin

There are many advantages of using Forex CFD brokers to trade. The first advantage is the ability to take leveraged positions that help you use your capital in the most profitable way possible.

However, the free margin in a Forex CFD broker is a crucial factor that has a significant impact on its profitability. It allows you to trade with leverage and take more risks without the need of investing additional capital. As a result, it creates more possibilities for you to make money.

Leverage in a Forex CFD Broker

Leverage means how an investor takes additional risks to make profits. Using leverage also known as external sources of leverage in forex trading helps you to trade. But if you do it often, it will significantly increase your losses.

How to Calculate the Free Margin in CFD Brokers

To calculate the free margin, you will need to divide the profit/loss of the trade by the trade commission cost in dollars.

This is different from other trading strategies, which include any sum of the funds cost divided by the trading amount. However, as the profit/loss is usually less than 0.1% of the amount of trading, you usually want to use the same principle for calculating the free margin.

By dividing the profit/loss with the trade commission cost, you will obtain the amount of free margin you have in a trade.

Why is the Free Margin Important in Forex

To have a free margin, you have to invest in a Forex broker with high leverage. Therefore, it will be difficult to reach a profit for the clients without using leverage.

Other Factors That Affect the Free Margin

Expert traders usually get a higher profit on trading. Hence, it is often easier for traders to see the profit in Forex. It helps them in making a profit by following their trading rules. The freedom to trade without the requirement of an account to be able to enter the trade. As well, it minimizes the risk of losing all the profit you have invested in the CFD contract.

Another factor that increases the profitability of a trader is the difference in the different currency pairs (futures). Different pairs of currency pairs like EUR/GBP and EUR/USD are expected to trade at different levels than the other pairs. This is why different brokers offer variations of the contracts in which they offer leverage. It is because the cost of these leverage items varies.

Advantages of Knowing Your Free Margin

To understand how a Forex CFD broker calculates free margin, you need to understand the rules they follow when you execute a trade. The profit you earn is the amount minus the amount you have to pay to the broker. This implies that the bigger your portfolio is, the bigger the impact is on the amount you pay.

With the help of this concept, you will easily be able to calculate the potential return you stand to make after trading with the broker. However, before that, it’s important to know the minimum amount of leverage you can use in a Forex trading account.

The Risks of Free Margin

The key advantages of free margin trading are unlimited leverage, low minimum trade sizes, and maximum level of daily profit that can be obtained.

However, this doesn’t mean that the disadvantages of free margin trading are non-existent. Free margin trading carries with it several risks. First of all, it increases the probability of trading losses since it is not risk-free. The more the margin, the higher the risk.

Another risk associated with the free margin is that when a brokerage loses money, it may remove leverage. Therefore, you might have to start trading with less leverage to earn profits. You can make trades with less leverage, but you can’t lose less. Without leverage, you may have to set an entry and exit point for a trade.

Several online brokers provide Forex CFD trading services, and the differences are significant. Investing money for trading is not a simple thing; therefore, you should take the time to compare CFD brokers and be sure that you end up with the most reliable and affordable broker to trade Forex.

Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced trader, several advantages come with having free margin trading in Forex CFD brokers. You can make easy money without trading with high leverage, and using free margin trading in CFD brokers is one of the most important strategies for Forex traders.

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How Much Has the Portrayal of Minorities in Film Really Changed?

December 9, 2021

It’s easy to assume a lot has changed in the American film industry since its inception over 120 years ago. As in mainstream American society, it’s undeniable that the film industry doesn’t look the same as it has in the past.

While that’s true in some ways, many of the same issues about the representation of minorities in film remain. Many of the same questions remain, too, with answers to them being far from what many fans want to hear.

Who’s Portraying Minorities?

There was a time that characters in blackface—mocking portrayals of African-Americans as inferior—were such a commonplace part of film that even sweet little Shirley Temple and the world’s most famous cartoon rabbit, Bugs Bunny, appeared that way. Blackface was even a feature of the first feature-length film with synchronized sound, The Jazz Singer. Along with yellowface representations of East Asians such as I.Y. Yunioshi in Breakfast at Tiffany’s, not to mention representations of Native Americans by actors in redface, classic blackface is rarely done now (and of course, it’s never acceptable, no matter the intention).

Instead, offensive portrayals of minorities persist in a more subtle but no less insidious form: whitewashing, when white actors are cast in non-white roles. (For a term that’s more inclusive of all kinds of minority groups being inauthentically cast, erasing is often used).

Whitewashing isn’t just about wearing shoe polish, either; it involves the whole person. And film history is rife with it.

What’s more, whitewashing’s impacts on the representation of minorities in film aren’t just broadly sociocultural. The practice prevents actual members of underrepresented groups from being hired for relevant roles, with lots of diverse actors available to work but being blocked by such miscasting.

While statistics show that the level of minority leads in the last two years (39.7%) has been proportionate to the overall population, pre-pandemic numbers show that only 17% of all movies released in 2019 depicted a lead or co-lead from an underrepresented racial or ethnic group. There’s no indication that post-pandemic numbers will be any different, either, with whitewashing still compounding the lack of authentic representation.

For LGB actors, straightwashing—the heteronormative on-screen portrayal of characters originally authored as gay or bisexual—represents how gender is portrayed in movies in skewed and discriminating ways. For transgender performers, ciswashing is a similar and just as troubling practice.

It’s no different for characters with disabilities being represented, either. Although nearly 20% of people have a kind of disability, only 2.4% of speaking or named characters were shown to have a disability, according to a recent pre-pandemic report. Considering such low numbers, any amount of erasing hurts the disabled community, especially, and cripface in contemporary films is certainly not uncommon.

Beyond the Big Six studios specifically, streaming movies indeed outdo Hollywood productions somewhat for how gender is portrayed in movies and for gender inclusion, especially. However, speaking roles for minority groups such as Middle Eastern and Native American women in these movies hasn’t proven to be any more prevalent.

How Have Minorities Been Portrayed Historically?

It’s easy to see examples of people from various minority groups in classic films being stereotyped through cookie-cutter roles. A complete treatment of such roles, including related stereotyped gender roles, would be too sizeable to include here, but here are just a few examples: African-American women as subservient mammies, jezebels or sassy sapphires; African-American men as happy slaves, magical servants, hypersexualized brutes, or goofy freedmen; East Asian men as extremely goofy, evil, or asexual; East Asian women as exotic, male pleasure-serving lotus blossoms or dragon ladies; indigenous people as the extremes of noble savages and uncivilized warriors; and Latinos and Latinas as vicious, criminal, lazy, or buffoonish.

Considering that many of these stereotypes still exist for the same minority groups, the representation of minorities in film isn’t significantly less caricatured or textured now than in the past.

Even when minority characterizations in contemporary films look much different than those of the past, the Big Movie bakery has simply morphed many of the old stereotypes into new cookie cutter shapes: African-American men are expendable by dying first or acting subserviently as the white lead’s best friend; African-American women are sassy (like only a mammy was allowed to be on a plantation); East Asian men are nerdy, goofy and sexually inept socially if not intellectually; East Asian women are tiger moms instead of dragon ladies; and Latinos and Latinas are hot-blooded.

Whether or not the current stereotyped representation of minorities in film is intended, tradition left uncorrected, or just the kind of cookie the established movie industry thinks fans want to consume, it ends up painting minorities as having a set of characteristics that are limited and thus easily controllable in a predominantly white world.

And this obviously needs to change.

How Often Do Actual Minorities Portray Minorities?

Despite the need for change, several myths underlie the continued misrepresentation or lack of representation of actual minorities in the established film industry.

Myth 1: Whitewashing is Ultimately What Fans Want

Some might point out that the most qualified actors are cast and that most of them, proportionate to the overall population, are white, thus making whitewashing not a kind of discrimination in movies. However, this supposed fact simply isn’t true. Instead, it’s a matter of how business is done and who does it most.

As author Jeffery Mio writes of this justification: “A lot of times ethnic actors will tell us that when they say we’re just choosing the best actor, they mean we’re choosing our friends, or people we’re used to.”

In this case, “they” refers to a group of people at the top who are 92% white, with 68% male.

How can discrimination in movies not be a reality?

Myth 2: Fans Don’t Want to See Minorities in Movies

Despite persistent myths such as “black doesn’t travel”—that white people are cast more because white stars are the ones bringing in the profits—fans do want to see movies with diverse casts.

Although more and more examples of movies such as Moonlight and Hidden Figures and, more recently, Black Panther, make such obviously out-of-touch traditions divorced from reality.

The metrics of fans preferring diverse casts only serve to reinforce this reality, too, showing them to be false justifications for discrimination in movies. Although one could say the pandemic explains how 41-50% minority casts have been doing the best and films with less than 11% minorities doing the worst, numbers just before the pandemic differ little.

Indeed, the $10 billion that movie studios could be earning with more diversity in casting—but aren’t—only underscores the damage that this myth creates for all stakeholders. Ironically, as film professor Mitchell W. Block writes, studios follow casting norms to please investors and producers.

What’s worse, it’s a sad irony for fans, who spend good money and much of their leisure time on movies, just to see minorities so misrepresented or underrepresented.

On a closer look, too, you’ll find more subtle problems with the representation of minorities in film, such as how the achievement of a few minority actors can mask systemic issues. Or how studios can promote a minority actor on the surface but then make them less than a headliner in the actual production.

Ultimately, one question remains—what can be done about these problems ?

Film.io: Towards a Movie Industry Everyone Deserves

It’s not true that no one has been doing anything about these problems. The established movie industry’s historical and continued lack of inclusiveness has become much more common knowledge over the last few years, and many organizations have pledged their support and activism for greater inclusivity and representation of minorities in film both offscreen and onscreen.

But Film.io is making an alternative movie industry to bypass the mainstream’s tangled path of minority representation altogether and head straight for the future.

While archaic but persistent traditions can overrule who fans want to see on screen and how they’re portrayed, fans always play the leading role at Film.io.

Not only do fans using Film.io’s movie crowdfunding platform choose which movie projects get made, they interact with creators directly and are continually kept apprised of what’s going on with their projects. The portrayal and inclusion of characters in projects on the platform are as textured, authentic and appropriate as creators and fans want them to be.

At last, discrimination in movies isn’t just made public as it sometimes is. Instead, it’s publicly prevented.

A closer look at Film.io’s system shows fans using FAN Tokens to make decisions on the platform’s blockchain, to support creators in participating in a variety of ways, and even donate to projects. Through their tokens, fans evaluate projects toward an aggregated ‘Go Score’ that helps greenlight which films get made.

In the process, fans show investors that the projects they support are worth investing in and market-validated. Projects become profitable while expressing and bolstering the inclusion and representation of minorities in film. Even better, investors don’t lose money due to decision-making that doesn’t consider inclusion and appropriate representation well enough or at all.

What’s more, transparent interactions and engagement run the show at Film.io, not unequitable and uninclusive practices and attitudes. And that’s because everything is done on a decentralized film financing blockchain, where what’s going on is always on view to everyone and not controlled by any individual or centralized entity.

With Film.io, it’s finally time to liberate creators and empower fans by allowing anyone from anywhere to create and experience the movies they really want.

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Why Did Remote Simultaneous Interpretation Become a Necessity?

December 9, 2021

The use of remote interpreting makes it possible for people to communicate with one another regardless of where they are physically located. In order for any organization to have a global reach, remote translation services can be a great asset. In the event of a pandemic, it allows people who speak different languages to communicate with one another by facilitating conference calls and other large gatherings. In the medical arena, this service has clearly helped to overcome language obstacles and to guarantee the right to dialogue and understanding.

What does Remote Simultaneous Interpreting mean?

The process of simultaneously translating the speech of one person into the language of another is called simultaneous interpretation. This is a one-way kind of interpretation. One person, the interpreter, listens intently. Simultaneous interpretation has always been performed on-site. The United Nations, for example, used to house all of its simultaneous interpreters in one location. The work of simultaneous interpreters necessitates the usage of specialized equipment. Real-time interpretation is done in sound-proof booths using headsets.

Simultaneous translation of speech between two languages in a remote place is known as remote simultaneous interpretation (RSI). Simultaneous interpretation over long distances was uncommon prior to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. This is due to the fact that procedures for on-site simultaneous interpreting were already in place. RSI, on the other hand, is more popular because of the virtual nature of huge conferences and gatherings.

What is the Process of Remote Simultaneous Interpretation?

Smart devices and online broadcasting are used for remote simultaneous interpretation. An interpreter may work from any location, because of RSI. The interpreter will be able to hear the speaker’s voice via an internet platform. Teams and Zoom, two popular commercial video conferencing tools, are easily integrated into many platforms. The interpreter utilizes a headset and microphone of the highest quality to translate. Listeners can see the speaker’s face and hear their words as they are broadcast to them. Virtual attendees have nothing but praise for RSI’s work.

Intensification of remote interpreting

Due to a variety of factors, multilingual services are virtually always needed in our modern society. We live in a globalized society, where firms try to reach new markets and customers by claiming to be international. Increasingly, professionals are working from home, which allows them to travel while they are working. In addition, firms are bringing in employees from other parts of the world. And the number of immigrants is increasing. The language industry is affected by this. A greater number of interpreters and translators is required.

There has been a reasonable increase in demand for translation services following the outbreak of the global pandemic COVID-19. Almost immediately, interpreting services became more in demand than ever before in courts, businesses, medical clinics, schools, and other organizations. This might mean the difference between life and death in a healthcare setting.

Advantages of remote interpreting

While a speaker is delivering a message in their native tongue, a professional language interpreter is translating the message into another language for the benefit of listeners who aren’t fluent in the one being spoken.

Organizations throughout the world have discovered the benefits of remote simultaneous interpretation in today’s global marketplace.

Remote simultaneous interpretation (RSI), often known as RSI, has many advantages.

Time

Remote interpretation enables people to listen to translated content in real-time on their own devices, such as smartphones, tablets, or computers as if they were in the same room as everyone else. When you don’t have to drive for hours to get it to the on-site meeting on time, just imagine how much time you’ll save!

Savings

RSI’s lower price tag is an undeniable advantage. Because this is a live feed, many businesses can avoid the expenses that would otherwise be associated with it. In order to be effective, remote simultaneous interpretation (RSI) requires the presence of an operator at all times. Although an RSI platform is required, typical interpreter booths and other on-site equipment can be eliminated, saving you money on transportation and other set-up costs at event locations.

It is not a problem where you are located

Interpretations are more efficient and the geographical gap is closed because people don’t need to be in the same spot. People can be in various cities, states, or even nations at the same time! This is a major advantage of remote interpretation. Consider how many customers from other countries will be able to benefit from this as well.

Audience

Sessions can be held at any time and in any location without regard to the number of participants. This is a huge time-saver for multinational firms that employ people across the globe, as they don’t have to bother about synchronizing time zones for each location.

Reduce the amount of hardware you have

Some additional equipment and setup are needed for on-site interpretation as we have previously discussed. Remote interpretation allows you to utilize a standard computer, tablet, or phone, making it easier for businesses and their clients to set up appointments at the same time.

Efficiency

As part of RSI’s amazing universe, companies can serve their clientele with as many languages as they need in virtual events. Most of the time, a listener can select the language in which he or she wants to hear the message presented. Also, don’t forget that RSI is only feasible with a good WIFI or cellphone data connection!

Last but not least, there is no limit to the number of meetings that can benefit from remote simultaneous interpretation. Simultaneous interpretation was previously only available at a select few events because of the high costs and restricted space required for booths. Any form of virtual event could benefit from using the Relative Strength Index (RSI). Meetings of all sizes can benefit from RSI’s versatility. Anyone can benefit from interpreting services at a minimal cost and with no setup required.

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Debt Recovery Tools and Strategies to Improve Debt Collection

December 9, 2021

There are many reasons for why customers and clients fail to pay their debts on time. Reasons, such as bad health, bad customer-service experience, or loss of employment may contribute toward debt default. Every year, a lot of money owed to governments, businesses, credit-card companies, healthcare providers, and utility companies cannot be recovered because of ineffective use of tools and technology, outdated information on the debtors, or the debtors just falls off the radar.

Debt-recovery tools and strategies can help streamline communication with the debtors, while also providing them the option to choose among various debt-payment solutions.

To help you recover your debt, the following is a list of tools and strategies that you need to employ.

Get Professional Help for Debtor Tracing

Sometimes, debtors move to a new place without notifying the debt-providers of the change in address, making it hard for the debt providers to then locate their whereabouts in case of default on a repayment. It is understood that, in cases of shifting to a new place, the debtor will let the provider know the forwarding address to the new location. But, if a forwarding address is not provided, commercial collection services will help you pin-point the location of the missing defaulters.

Auto Generation of Your Expected Debt Statements

Auto-generated notifications about the status of debt-recovery process, sent to the debtor via SMS or Email, can also take the burden off the shoulders of the debt collection agents.

These messages are tailored to the debtors’ preferred channels of communication. The digitization of the debt-collection process not only saves up on paperwork and time for the debt collectors as the process becomes automated, but the borrowers, too, benefit because they don’t have to make multiple trips to the debt-collectors’ offices.

Furthermore, an instant repayment solution option, sent along with a message, called UPI debt repayment, can really streamline the process.

Multi-Channel Contact Technique

The digitization of the debt collection process helps lenders recover loans in a timely manner. The most convenient method for reaching out is through digital channels, since everyone nowadays has an email address, a cellphone, and social media accounts. Due attention should be given to personal contact preferences, and as well as multi-channel techniques need to be adopted for communication.

Machine learning, advanced analytics, and automation can all send tailored messages at particular times to the customers’ preferred channels. Investing in Al, data analytics, and automation will help you easily organize customer contact preferences. The cost of implementing these latest technology tools is insignificant when compared to its return on investment.

Real-Time Monitoring of Transaction Activity

Debt collection companies can monitor a debtor’s transaction activities in real-time. Such data is valuable to the company for assessing the debtor’s ability to pay. Secondly, this also helps with keeping track of paid and unpaid debt. You definitely do not want to bother your customers with messages that don’t concern them. Putting AI tools at the front and center of the debt-collection process will make debt recovery a manageable scenario.

Improved Self-Service Abilities

Every customer-oriented debt collection strategy enhances the success rate of debt collection while, at the same time, decreasing operating costs. Implementing self-servicing solutions turns the entire debt collection process from an impossible nightmare to something that is effortless. Such approaches enable borrowers to follow a self-service option for clearing their overdue balances. By using different tools for debt collection, lenders improve customer experience, automate debt collection, and facilitate compliance through self-servicing systems.

Utilize Account Receivable Scores and Debt Recovery Analytics

Debt collectors need to change the way they think about non-paying customer accounts. Instead of considering them as defaulters, they must focus on the whole account receivables cycle. Implementing a multi-pronged approach towards debt recovery through the use of analytics, an account receivables scores can bring better revenues. For lenders to target defaulting accounts, it’s important to follow what the analytics are saying.

Establish Scheduled Follow-Ups for Tracking

Lenders don’t have to resort to extreme measures, like legal actions, to recover their debt. Establishing scheduled debt payment reminders like emails and SMS texts are some of the easiest ways to follow-up with a borrower.

Systemic follow-up tracking of a borrower’s account underlines the importance of assessing customer seriousness in repaying debt. Besides, scheduled follow-up tracking is considered a less-intrusive approach to recover debts.

Use Tools for Efficient Debt Recovery

There are various debt-collection apps available that facilitate debt recovery. A debt-recovery app is a debt defaulting management solution that can help lenders with timely collections, which makes the process of debt recovery easier. Such a specialized collection app eliminates the need for paperwork and streamlines the collection process by easing the troubles of collection agents. Also, the use of these apps can eliminate human error.

The debt recovery apps have many features that can simplify debt collection process, such as PTP tracking, real-time customer information, follow-up tracking, location tracking, address locator, and collection updates via mobile and web.

It offers a loan management solution and fills the gaps in the debt collection process. Furthermore, operational efficiency is improved by incorporating these apps along with the added benefit of eliminating human error. Further, operational costs are reduced, and the placement of AI tools for debt collection increases ROI for the company.

Conclusion

Although companies might have a complete record on the loan defaulters, the process of loan recovery is not straightforward. There is a growing need for AI tools and applications in assisting with loan recovery. When a company needs to recover debt, they don’t have the strategies, tools, or channels for efficient loan recovery. Data on customers that you can use to track or communicate is invaluable during this process. That’s why using debt-recovery strategies and using different AI tools and techniques can help make the debt collection process more efficient and as well as reduce costs. These tools and strategies also enable the lenders to recover debt in a timelier manner.

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Wages up as Americans are Encouraged Back To Work and Into the Office – 3 Takeaways from the Latest Jobs Report

December 9, 2021

After a lackluster jobs report in September 2021, the latest news on employment gives Americans plenty of cheer about ahead of the holiday season.

In total, 531,000 jobs were added in October – outstripping the already optimistic predictions of economists. This caused the unemployment rate to fall 0.2 percentage points to 4.6%.

Even with those gains, the U.S. is still below pre-pandemic employment levels. But as an economist, I see details in the latest jobs report that suggest the workforce is emerging from 18 months of what has been the “new normal” and getting back to, well, the “normal normal.”

Remote working in the rear-view mirror?

Americans are returning to offices after a year-and-a-half of Zoom meetings and digital water cooler moments. The pandemic had opened the eyes of many potential workers to the possibility that working from home might be preferable to on-site work.

But the jobs report shows that this may be passing. In October, 11.6% of employees worked remotely due to the pandemic, down from 13.2% in the previous month.

Working from home offered flexibility, especially to people who held down two jobs. A lot of people found they could get by with one job, work from home and save money on commuting and child care. The drop in remote working could indicate that some families came to realize that while this worked to cover a shorter-term period during the pandemic, it ate away at household savings, getting to a point where working on site was necessary again.

It also signifies a change of attitude that may explain why employment in the leisure and hospitality sector has bounced back. One possible reason for lower-than-expected job gains in September was that people were hesitant to return to worksites where they would have to mix with people – such as at bars, restaurants and in stores – preferring to spend more time at home.

October’s jobs report – which saw strong gains in leisure and hospitality – suggests that peoples’ ability to delay returning to work may be coming to an end and potentially that they are more open to returning to on-site jobs, perhaps encouraged by vaccination rates and falling case numbers.

Wages up, workers back … time for the Fed to act?

There is some evidence that the “great resignation” – or more accurately, the great “not taking up low-paid jobs” – era was short-lived and winding down.

Many potential workers had seemingly been hesitant to return to lower-paid food service jobs as well as employment in the leisure and hospitality sector due to relative low wages and rigid work schedules.

But the latest report shows evidence of increases in wages and salaries. In October, average hourly earnings increased by 11 cents to US$30.96 – continuing the upward trend of recent months. It means that average earnings are almost 5% higher that they were a year ago.

Wage increases look set to continue for some time. The latest report shows that labor costs increased 8.3% year-on-year in the third quarter as job opening rates remained pretty high, putting further upward pressure on pay.

This is great for workers but does pose a challenge to the Federal Reserve, which must keep inflation in check.

On Nov. 3, the Fed said it would begin scaling down its pandemic-era policy of buying Treasury bonds and other assets, which has the effect of gently reducing the supply of money in the economy. The Fed has also said it might lift interest rates earlier than planned if necessary to tamp down inflation risks.

The stronger-than-expected jobs report and increases in employment costs may prompt it to act more quickly. That said, the Fed may still want to tread cautiously here. Supply chain concerns remain and will need to be worked out before central bankers can conclude that overall inflation is more than a short-term issue.

Not all American workers are seeing the bounce

There is no doubt that the October jobs report was encouraging.

But public sector employment was down, and that is important. This is largely a result of the pandemic. Retail sales were down significantly in 2020 and as a result state budgets are tight – in short, they have suffered from lackluster tax revenue sources.

This might make it harder for public sector jobs – in local government and schools – to bounce back as robustly as the rest of the economy.

This article was first published in The Conversation

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About the Author

Professor Cristopher Decker received his Ph.D. in Business Economics from Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business in 2000 and teaches courses in Microeconomics, Business Economics, Economic Forecasting, and Natural Resource Economics at UNO. His academic work has been published in a verity of academic journals including Economic Inquiry, Journal of Law and Economics, Environmental and Resource Economics, Annals of Regional Science, Review of Regional Studies, Applied Economics, Ecological Economics, and Contemporary Economic Policy.

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