Business

Working from home has become a popular choice for certain employees as more organizations adopt the hybrid model and new work from home trends develop.

A distinct office is becoming more important to employees, particularly those who live in a house with roommates or other family members. When individuals consider moving to or renting a new apartment, an extra bedroom or nook is becoming a must-have amenity.

While some workers have returned to work, others work for organizations that allow for a hybrid schedule and just need them to come into the office two to three days each week. Creating an office environment is crucial, especially for employees who work in groups or spend many hours a day on phone calls or video meetings. For some people who want a discrete workspace, sitting at the dining table or in a corner of the living room is no longer a viable option.

Here are six work-from-home trends for 2022 that tenants are looking for.

Added bedroom nook

According to Downtown Apartment Company, renters will continue to seek effective remote offices. The company also anticipates that tenants would choose work from home floor ideas with additional rooms or pocket office nooks.

Working from home has become a permanent part of the landscape for Chicago renters, and they are modifying their living arrangements to meet it. While some workers have returned to the office, many continue to work from home part-time or full-time and want a more practical place for their home office. Many people have moved to a bigger living area with an additional room dedicated to a home office, while others have relocated to buildings that provide a more typical co-working environment.

Areas of storage

Many individuals who like to spend their time outside and want to properly hide their sports or exercise equipment, such as a bicycle, value having enough storage in an apartment or another section of the building. Storage space in common spaces is crucial these days. A consideration is secure storage in a nearby place. A community in a walkable urban neighborhood requires a lot of room for bike storage. Renters who work from home prefer to keep their bikes out of the rental houses and in a safe location.

More windows/adequate natural light

When you work from home all day, getting adequate natural light becomes a concern. Some people flourish and are more productive in work situations with a lot of sunshine. Having natural light or a large window to situate your workstation is essential for the workday. Renters like anything green or with trees outside. They enjoy being able to take a short stroll on calm streets for breaks or phone conversations.

The most common request received from tenants regarding working from home is the possibility to carve off a small piece of the flat as a workspace with plenty of natural light or LED lighting. Landlords have started staging model flats to include such rooms so prospective renters may imagine what working from home might look like.

Noise reduction

It is vital for persons who want less noise to finish projects to be able to limit the quantity of noise coming from within the apartment and from within the building. This is a need for WFH employees, especially if they live with a spouse, kids, or housemates.

“There has always been a great demand for solid, well-built houses for rent, but now that more of our residents work remotely, they appreciate that our developments are created to high acoustical standards,” says the developer “According to Kozloski. “The double-glazed glass in the Porte and Cascade façades acts as a noise-mitigation mechanism, ensuring that most exterior sounds are undetectable.” Others want a calm refuge from street noise or do not want to hear their neighbor going around their flats. “I think the ability to moderate noise is incredibly crucial, especially for couples,” said Michael Dehls, an IT worker residing in Rutherford, NJ.

Room for meetings or co-working

It is essential to be able to operate in a conference room in the apartment lobby or to have a quiet booth for accepting phone calls. Others require time apart from their housemates or family members.

“Building facilities such as co-working areas with conference rooms, private booths, or specialized Zoom rooms will be in great demand in the next year,” Rios said. “Renters also desire the opportunity to build such environments across the community, whether it’s individual ‘phone booth’ private locations for making calls and having virtual meetings, or co-working facilities for small groups to get tasks done,” DeVos added. “We make every effort to accommodate modest offices into roofs, especially in cities with spectacular views.”

The demand for co-working spaces is increasing

“Residents at their Logan Square building like having access to a full coworking suite with individual booths providing separation with a sense of openness, small offices offering a less distracting, more private space for phone calls and focused work, and a more traditional conference room with a large table and wall-mounted monitor for group meetings or space to spread out,” Schneider explained.

“Having this shared area allows residents to lease whichever floor plan best matches their budget and lifestyle since they know work-from-home space is covered,” he added. “The houses for rent in our buildings, such as Logan Apartments and Westerly, are constantly used, and some tenants even bring a whole computer set-up, complete with monitors and PCs, down to the co-working area on a daily basis.” In terms of COVID protocols, we adhere to whatever local government rules exist.

The trend of working from home will continue

As renters look for new rental houses, many work-from-home trends will continue in 2022. Some will maintain their dual work styles, while others will devote more time to the office.

Employees like a defined workspace, whether it’s an additional room or places dedicated to relaxation or exercise, such as a balcony, little green space, or a dog park. They prefer to spend time outside, away from screens.

Also Read Working From Home Lets Me Connect With My Family More

I think everyone who has thin hair will understand me. I have been struggling with this problem for a long time. I know that if I have naturally thin hair it will not become thick, because I can not change the structure, but I know I can make it thicker by using good treatment.

It always was such a struggle to brush or style my hair. It is tangled and does not want to hold the shape. I tried out different products and they did make any difference, or the difference was too little. Today I want to tell you what helped me to make my thin hair thicker and more voluminous.

I made a list of Top Kevin Murphy Products for Thin Hair

Kevin.Murphy Plumping.Wash

A thickening shampoo for dry and thinning hair. It strengthens and thickens hair, renews and cleanses the scalp. Formulated with Biotin B Vitamin to reduce hair loss and stimulate hair growth. Makes hair plump, thick, and strong. This is the description from the website. And I can tell it is true. The best thing about this shampoo is it does not weigh the hair down, it makes the hair mobile and elastic. The shampoo normalizes the production of sebum, activates blood circulation, and in this way stimulates hair growth. It does not contain parabens and sulfates, which is good for thin hair as well.

Kevin.Murphy Body.Mass

I like it because it helps to strengthen the hair structure and gives visible thickness. I noticed that since I started using Body.Mass my hair breaches less and my ends look much better. I think it is because Body.Mass is enriched with ascorbic acid, which enhances growth and repairs split ends. It also has oleanolic acid and juniper oil in the composition, it prevents hair loss and improves the structure. And patchouli oil reduces brittleness and dryness. I can highly recommend this product!

Tip: apply it to the roots of damp or towel-dried hair and scalp. It does not require rinsing. You can also combine the Full.Again and Staying.Alive  with the Plumping.Rinse conditioner to complete this thickening trio combination.

Kevin.Murphy Body.Builder

Is what gives me volume. This volumizing mousse is completely weightless and does not stick hair together. Contains sunscreen and UV filters, sunflower seed oil, and vitamin B. The mousse contains almond oil and citrus extracts to make hair silky and shiny. Sulfate and paraben-free.

Kevin.Murphy Fresh.Hair

This is one of my favorite dry shampoos. Perfect tool when you need to refresh the hair after the gym, or on the second day after washing. It restores freshness to the hair, absorbs excess fat, eliminates unpleasant odors, and creates volume. The shampoo has a pleasant aroma and does not leave marks on the hair. I also use it as a styling tool. Kevin Murphy Products gives my hair texture and makes it easier to style.

You can purchase these products at utiee.com. They offer free US shipping and the price for these products is good.

Also Read about Men’s haircuts: how to choose the right look

Some real estate crowdfunding platforms are open to only accredited investors, and you might be wondering why. We have answers to your questions. Technically, accredited investors are people who have earned a minimum of $200,000 for over two years, including this current year or $300,000, if you intend to file for it alongside your spouse. Suppose you have at least $1 million net worth, minus your primary residence; you’re also eligible to be accredited.

At this point, you may be wondering why the standard? Stick with us as we explain what an accredited investor implies and ways to discover accredited investor investment opportunities so you can start making money immediately as a newly-accredited investor.

Investment Opportunities Available to Accredited Investors

What passive income generation opportunities are available to accredited investors? As a newly accredited investor, suppose you’re wondering about the accredited investor opportunities to earn passive returns; here’s a list of potential options.

• Real Estate

There are numerous ways to invest in real estate, and the good news is, some don’t require accreditation to start them. However, accredited investors have more investment options. For instance, Holdfolio contains many real estate products for accredited investors, such as crowdfunding debt on various property types. 

• Crowdfunding Platforms

Over time, FinTech companies have made more investment opportunities available to accredited investors. Many of these companies list their accredited investor investment opportunities in single asset classes such as real estate or offer various alternative asset classes. 

• Hedge Funds

One best way to take advantage of being an accredited investor is through hedge fund investment. You can choose a fund manager from the numerous ones available in your location. Also, ensure you do your due diligence before making any investments. 

You can find hedge funds to invest in various asset classes ranging from real estate and cryptocurrencies to bonds and stocks. Ensure you check the fund manager’s recent returns before hiring them to ensure you don’t make a mistake.

• Venture Capital/Angel Investing

Angel investing or venture capital firms invest in new businesses. Although venture capital is a form of private equity; it’s riskier. Before startups are acquired or go public, they usually receive growth capital via venture capital investments. 

• Private Equity 

Called PE for short, private equity involves buying shares in private firms. There are often more risks in private equity because the investors don’t have much public information about the firm selling the shares.

Why Accreditation?

Accreditation is the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) brainchild, created to serve as a distinction between those considered “sophisticated investors” and those who aren’t. Accredited investors might not really require the same protection as a novice, and smaller investors might when investing. 

Accreditation was established as a protective measurement against novice investors to prevent them from investing in riskier projects, seeing as they might not have reserve funds to endure such loss. 

As a matter of fact, the SEC employs this label to regulate firms against soliciting or advertising investments from non-accredited investors.  

Advantages of Accreditation 

One of the advantages of being an accredited investor is that you’ll quickly hear more deals and decide if you want to invest in them. Like we mentioned earlier, some of the opportunities available to newly accredited investors include real estate crowdfunding, real estate syndications, hedge funds, and angel investing/venture capital. 

While some will argue that accreditation makes the rich richer, the government seems to share that sentiment. Therefore, in 2016, they passed the Title III of the Jobs Act. This new law has opened some investments to non-accredited investors under great sites like Holdfolio. However, it’s subject to certain conditions. 

Accredited Investor Eligibility

Suppose you’re wondering about the best investment for 2021 for beginners that recently got accredited and how to become eligible for them; it might interest you to know that there isn’t a specific application process to becoming an accredited investor. 

Suppose you saw investment opportunities that caught your attention and are open to only accredited investors; you’ll need to follow a few steps. For example, if you’re interested in investing in Rule 506(c) of Regulation D security, the company managing the investment opportunity will have to verify that you’re eligible.  

It’s either they verify your income or net worth based on the Regulation D rules. You’ll be required to submit documentation demonstrating your accreditation status. Some documents you’ll need include:

1. W-2s
2. Bank statements
3. Credit report disclosing any liability
4. Brokerage accounts
5. Professional certifications or proof of knowledge
6. Specific third-party statements from relevant institutions
7. Business ownership documentation and operating agreement, like tax filing

Don’t forget that the value of your primary home or residence isn’t part of your net worth. Nonetheless, you can include investment and vacation properties in your net worth. You’ll need to undergo proper valuation and submit proof of ownership.

Once you’ve submitted your documentation, the managing firm will check it, accept or reject your status. Immediately, the managing firm approves your accreditation; it becomes valid for a year until the next time you pay tax. Thus, you can start investing. 

Why Holdfolio

Investors using the Holdfolio crowdfunding platform can own multi-family properties from the site while the company handles the due diligence and financing. Investors can then decide to contribute capital and become a partner to the LLC holding the investment. 

Initially, Holdfolio was limited to only single-family homes investment. However, since 2019, the company is now focused on multi-family property investments. With as little as $20,000, you can become an investor in Holdfolio.

Summary

Being an accredited investor will give you special access to specific deals. However, some deals like crowdfunding are more open; thus, you can easily find them online than investors’ meetings and dinners or country clubs. 

Suppose you’re looking for accredited investor investment opportunities in country clubs or investors dinners; other investors are likely to become more open to you once they identify you as an accredited investor in compliance with regulations.

However, if you don’t meet the requirements to become an accredited investor, don’t fret. Real estate crowdfunding platforms like Holdfolio offers many opportunities to even non-accredited investors. 

While some of these investment options are riskier, you can easily pick the ones you want and invest in them.

Customer engagement is the key to building a strong customer base. However, contrary to popular belief, customer engagement begins much before the customer buys your product or service and continues even after the purchase is made. Marketing experts believe that strong customer engagement in the pre-purchase and post-purchase stages is critical to building a loyal customer base in the long run.

Building a mistake-proof customer engagement model requires proper knowledge management for customer service. This is done on the way towards the creation of an entire ecosystem that engages across the customer journey. Knowledge management for customer engagement is an integral pillar in modern times due to multiple factors like changing technological ecosystem, multiple customer touchpoints, and increasing competition.

Steps to building a mistake-proof customer engagement strategy

Step 1: Understand the customer journey

The first step towards building a mistake-proof customer engagement strategy is to understand the customer journey. This will also help you to map the engagement strategy along the customer journey. To understand the customer journey better, you need to have the following information:

• Customer expectations: You and your customer should be on the same page when it comes to customer expectations. You should have a clear understanding of the customer’s expectations. This will help you deliver maximum value to your customers.
• Build a customer journey map: Once you are clear on the expectations, you should build a customer journey map. A customer journey map is the visual representation of possible touchpoints of a customer with your company across his/her life span. Building a customer journey map helps in understanding the possible engagement points, and accordingly building the strategy.
• Build customer data: You should have rich data of your customers so that you can segment it as per requirements and provide tailored experiences.

Step 2: Build Better Customer Experiences

Now that you have understood the customer journey and expectations, it is time to build better customer experiences. It is better to provide well-structured information to the user at the source itself so that the customer does not feel the need to visit third-party sources for the same set of questions.

As a result, you need to ensure that content across your website, social media platforms, and any other form of digital and physical presence are speaking in the same tone and language.

At the same time, it is equally important to provide the customer with comprehensive knowledge about important aspects related to the business.

You can do the following to build a better customer experience:

• Build an appealing email sequence: An email sequence that can evoke interest can build trust in the long run. You can build an appealing email sequence with the help of welcome messages, educational resources, and showcasing the benefits. This will help in converting the cold customers to warm leads. Apart from the email sequence, you can use the database to announce major updates and offers that you launch.
• Build guided tours: You can also build guided tours for your new customers to familiarize them with the key functions and benefits. It is also a good method to convert the free trial customers into paying customers.
• Create educational content: You can create educational content that will help in explaining key features of your product or service at each stage of the customer journey. You can create videos, articles, templates, infographics, presentations, etc. that will help the customer in getting comprehensive answers to the queries.

Step 3: Automate and Improve Customer Service

After you have been able to create content for various touchpoints across the customer journey, it is now time to automate customer service as much as possible. It is important to note that customers today have a very short attention span.

According to a Microsoft study, the digital consumer of today has an attention span of 8 seconds. This is even lower than the 12-second attention span recorded in the year 2000.

To handle the reduced attention span and other benefits, it is in the brand’s favor to automate customer service to the extent possible.

You can always use an AI-backed knowledge management platform to enhance your customer’s experience. Apart from making your customer service automation efficient through its self-service portals, a robust knowledge management platform ensures consistent customer engagement across multiple channels across customer touchpoints.

You can use automated customer service also known as self-service with the following mediums:

• Chatbots: Use of chatbots for automated customer service has been most favored by many major brands worldwide. You can join the bandwagon by providing your customers with the next best action through a module called decision trees. The decision tree software guides your customers to solutions within a click through the chatbot function.

• Self-help guides: You may create interactive self-help guides in the form of FAQs, articles, or visual guides to help customers troubleshoot any kind of query throughout their customer journey. These guides can be put up across all channels for viewing or download through a knowledge management platform.

Step 4: Collect feedback

After all engagement touchpoints have been covered with relevant content and customer service has been automated, it is now time to collect feedback at all stages and regularly. Customer feedback can be taken in a variety of ways. Some of the most popular mediums for customer feedback are as follows:

• Survey
• Social media
• Analytics
• Community engagement

You can use a mix of these elements to collect feedback. Remember that acknowledging the feedback and keeping the customers informed about changes made because of the feedback is equally important. A customer service executive’s input on call flow scripts should also be taken to improve agents’ working and contextual delivery of information to customers. 

This kind of feedback collection can be done on robust knowledge management platforms. 

As enterprises are also shifting to hybrid culture due to the pandemic. C-SAT score is being affected by this. Thus, enterprises can integrate the KM tool with remote employee monitoring software to cure this vulnerability. 

Step 5: Cultivate a culture of celebration

The last step in building a mistake-proof customer engagement journey is to cultivate a culture of celebration. You can use it across various things like first purchase, monthly summary, or crossing of a particular milestone and keep the customer informed in a celebratory manner. This will not only improve the relationship but will also create a sense of trust and belongingness in the long run.

This is the five-step framework that can help you build a mistake-proof customer engagement strategy. Please remember that these steps will work only if you are primarily focused on understanding the needs of your customers, and providing solutions that solve those problems. This will help you create a highly engaged customer base in a short time.

Making candles is a rewarding and satisfying activity. Candles can be useful for many occasions and are a great way to keep your home decorated.

Candle making can be fun and interesting, and you will soon discover the process. There are also many benefits to doing this. How can you make candles? Where can I find supplies for candle making? These are the following items that are required for candle making:

Candle Wax

Wax is the most important ingredient for candle making. It prevents the wicks from burning and melting, and then evaporates in the air.

Candle Wicks

Candle wax and candle wicking are equally important. Candles wouldn’t be lit without them. Once you light the candle, it will melt. As the flame burns, the wax will vapourise and eventually, the wick will fall apart.

There are many types available in wicks. The type of candle you have and the size of your wick will determine which size and what type of wick you need. This table will help to choose the right size and type of wick.

Some wicks have been pre-waxed. They have been dipped in honey wax or paraffin wax. These wicks are suitable for small jar candles and tea lights. Because they are more rigid than other wick holders, they are ideal for them.

Candle Molds

Candle molds should be included in your supply of candle-making material. With their many shapes, you can create interesting shapes with your candles.

There are three types: silicone, plastic and metal candle molds. Metal will give you the best finish, but silicone and plastic can be used to create your designs.

Certain waxes may not be suitable for pouring in molds. Paraffin wax is the best choice. You can use paraffin/soy mixture or beeswax if you prefer.

Gel waxes and pure soy are not recommended. A stronger, more stable wax is needed that can hold its weight.

Candle Jars

Aussie Candle Supplies also sells candle-making containers. These jars are a great alternative to traditional freestanding candles, and they look great. Candle making can be done with any type of wax.

It doesn’t have to be a jar. However, decorative candle tins are just as elegant and luxurious.

Jar candles are not easy to make. Because candle wax contracts when it cools, this is why jar candles can be difficult to make. This can be made more apparent by using a transparent jar.

You will need to purchase supplies for making candles. Make sure you choose a jar that has a smooth and polished interior. Frosted jars are also available to cover any imperfections.

Double Boiler

Double boilers are the best way to melt wax.  A double boiler is a metal pan with water inside. A metal or heatproof bowl can be placed on top. The bowl will heat slowly while the water in the saucepan boils.

Instructions for Candle Making

1. Heat, processing, mixing and pouring waxes

Heat the candle wax in a pouring pitcher or wax heater until it is completely liquefied. It is fine to heat the candle wax at 200 degrees F. It is best to add the colour or additives to the wax at around 190°F. This will ensure that the wax remains uniform in temperature and that it is thoroughly blended. Let the wax cool down on your heater and allow it to cool to the recommended pouring temperature. It is best to add the fragrance right before pouring.

This will prevent the wax from being heated for too long, which can cause some fragrance loss. Before pouring the fragrance into containers or molds, it is important to stir the mixture again. It is crucial to pour at the right temperature. Too hot can cause shrinkage, which could lead to multiple repours. To the contrary, too cold can cause air bubbles, blemishes and other defects to your candle’s finish. It can be very difficult to remove the candle from the mold if you pour at an incorrect temperature.

After you’ve completed the first pour, it is not finished. You may need to repour the wax as it has a tendency to shrink once it cools. Some container candle wax blends may not require a repour. Most waxes require a top off or repour. You should save enough wax from your original batch to ensure that the colour of the top off matches the first pour.

Container waxes should be allowed to solidify completely before repouring. This will ensure that you only pour one top off. It may take some experimentation to get the wax to solidify in votive and pillar candles, but it is worth waiting an hour before you repour. If you wait too long, the wax can shrink and pull away from your mold. This is a problem when you top off your candle. Molten wax from the top will run down the sides, causing undesirable wax streaks.

2. Preparations for mold or containers

We recommend that you heat your containers or molds before you start making container candles, votives and/or pillar candles. The surface of your candle may be affected by a cold container or mold. You can heat them to achieve a smooth, clean finish for your candle. It is also recommended that you use a silicone mold release after every 4 to 5 pours. This will make it easy to get your candle out.

3. Cooling

You will need to decide on the cooling method depending on the wax formula and the finish you want to achieve with your finished candle. You can cool candles at room temperature, or force cool them using circulating air, refrigeration or cold baths. To minimise shrinkage, it is best to let container candles cool at room temperature if you make them. Container candles that are force cooled often result in separation of the wax and glass, which can lead to undesirable wet spots.

Also Read the Dimensional Analysis- Principle, Example, Application, and Limitations