Learn the Dos and Don'ts of Social Media for Business

From Visually.

Must See: Smile of the Century

Source: +Mory F 

This smile is worth over $1 million in my estimation. What do you think?

Tech Gadgets: Breaking The "Made In China" Stereotype

A lot of effective, reliable, and cutting-edge tech gadgets come from China. In fact, many of the world's most recognizable names in technology – Sony, Apple, Microsoft to name a few – source components and entire electronic gadgets from China in the first place.

Yet why do the words "Made in China" still elicit hesitation amongst some consumers? Here are the important bits – as well as a few tips to help you better identify reliable China-based partners to work with.

Looking Beyond Headlines

When it comes to the news, the bad and the controversial topics tend to stick to our minds while the good and the laudable tends to pass by unnoticed. The latter is especially true when everything works as intended.

Electronics that blow up, bootleggers that sell obviously copied knockoffs, tech gadgets that fail to work out of the box – these topics make for deliciously controversial headlines that stick to your consciousness. It is rare, however, for Chinese-made gadgets that work properly and are reliable enough to last to make it out of very specific circles. This type of news only interests the knowledgeable tech-enthusiasts, and even then the news often focuses on the technical aspects of the latest gadgets.

This is why it is very easy to overlook news of quality and reliable tech gadgets made in China, especially when said news items are overshadowed by horror stories that have much higher shock value than gadgets working as expected.

Dodgy VS Reliable Marketplaces

Another important factor that can make or break the "Made in China" perception is the actual venue for purchases and exchanges.

It is one thing to purchase cool gadgets from some unknown vendor on your local auction house, and quite another to buy direct from retailers that have been around for more than a decade. Auction sites that let anyone sell whatever they want offer a lot of freedom, true, but these same auction sites make it very easy for crooks, frauds, and bootleggers to unload their wares.

Legitimate resellers, on the other hand, need a lot of trust to build their reputations from the ground-up. These are the vendors selling tech gadgets for years on end, and understand that building trust is the key to bringing in profits in the long run. It is for this reason that legitimate Chinese vendors stick to reliable marketplaces to market their goods – oftentimes creating their own ecommerce portals to do so.

Support And Protection

And last but not the least, the level of support a China-based company provides is a strong indicator of its dedication to high-quality tech gadgets.

Shady sellers often know little about what they're selling. Their only goal is to unload their products as fast as possible, meaning they often focus on imagery and strong language to get your attention. These sellers, however, spend little money on customer support. They avoid live communications like the plague, and will almost always be unable to answer specific questions about specifications and licenses. Some may even flat-out lie in an attempt to sound confident about their products.

On the other hand, reliable Chinese companies invest heavily in customer support. Not only can you communicate live with someone on the other end, but the customer support agents you talk to know about the products they're selling. They are also quite knowledgeable about the extent of warranties and return-policies – outlining the limitations instead of simply saying whatever can be said to win you over.

Keep all these in mind, and you'll have a much easier time understanding that the "Made in China" label is only just that – a label – and that the quality of your chosen tech gadgets depends entirely on the manufacturer and seller!

Chinavasion is a Hong Kong-based gadget wholesaler sourcing its tech gadgets straight from Shenzhen, the manufacturing heart of China. Retailers and consumers alike will be able to avail of a wide array of high-tech gizmos, from mini projectors and CCTV systems to Android smartphones and Windows PC sticks.

How to Get a Free Smartphone from Glo

Globacom aka Glo, Nigeria's leading and fastest-growing data network is apparently giving away free smartphones. I got the following SMS from them today:

"Get a FREE SMARTPHONE instantly when you subscribe to a 1-year data plan! 

No raffles, no draws. Hurry to the nearest Gloworld shop to subscribe & get yours now!"

There you have it! Let me know if they did deliver as promised after visiting.

Learn the 10 Big Website Mistakes that Even Great Marketers Can Make

FFEA 2016 -10 Website Mistakes Even Great Marketers Can Make de Saffire

If the gurus are making these mistakes, you would do well to avoid them too. The truth is that we all learn by doing on the Internet and no one has perfect knowledge of what works and what does not work.

10 Tips for Making Your Brand a Hit on WeChat

10 Tips for WeChat de Chris Baker

The Water Bus Could Improve Transportation in Lagos and Other Coastal cities

This amphibious bus also known as the water bus can travel in water as well as roads. It was tested in Scotland in 2010 and for a city like Lagos with its lagoons, largely surrounded by the sea and ocean is a very attractive prospect.

Imagine boarding a water bus at Iyana Oworo to get to Victoria Island or Lekki to beat early morning traffic or residing in Badagry and working in Ikoyi with the water bus as your means of transportation.

I suggest that Lagos State Government and others in Nigeria should study this and add it to our transportation mix.

See What A Tiger Hug Looks Like

Source: +Amusing Feed 

Tigers are huge cats!

Funny: See This Black Cat's Reaction to Donald Trump Speaking on TV

That Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump seems to have a creepy effect on many people is not news. However, that he has such an effect on animals an as it seems black cats in particular is definitely news.

The question is: what did Trump say that scared this cat so much?

All You Need About Mobile: The New Tech Ecosystem

Mobile Is Eating the World (2016) from a16z

This is an amazing body of information that every serious businessperson should study and understand.

Joseph Yobo Meets President Buhari at Aso Rock

Nigeria's most capped football player at senior level and former Super Eagles captain, Joseph Yobo met President Buhari as part of the Ogoni delegation visiting him this morning at Aso Rock, I am not quite sure who is taller between the 2 gentlemen, can you tell?

Facebook Opens Area 404 Lab to Develop Its Hardware

We have always known Facebook as the social networking website that has literally changed the world. However, we have not really seen the company try really hard to make its own hardware in a way that Amazon and Google have done. True it sells Oculus Virtual Reality headsets but those would stilll be available had the company not been bought by Facebook.

Inside Area 404

This is about to change with the creation of Area 404 which is the name given to the Facebook's new hardware lab. The name is from the internal joke within Facebook caused by the fact that its engineers previously did not have an appropriate facility to test their hardware ideas. Just like the 'error 404' message you see when you are trying to visit a website that cannot be found.

It will be interesting to see what devices Facebook comes up with in the near future if any at all.

Learn the Advantages of Handwriting Over Typing

From Visually.

Watch the Chicken Footballer in Action

I think Manchester United should sign him for 200 million pounds, he could do better than Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Paul Pogba put together! #Hehehe

All You Need to Know About Raising Venture Capital as a Startup

When & How to Raise Venture Capital from NYU Tandon School of Engineering

This is a really good guide if you have or are about to have a startup.

Dangote Frustrated By Zimbabwe

Aliko Dangote's Business Being Hampered in Zimbabwe

Africa's richest man, Aliko Dangote is used to being given enhanced support by African governments from Kenya to Togo and of course his country, Nigeria.

However, the government of Zimbabwe seems not to have gotten the memo as it has denied experts from the Dangote Group entry visas into Zimbabwe to do the necessary groundwork for the already approved businesses of the company in Robert Mugabe's country.

Whether, this is a lasting setback or temporary one is yet to be determined but knowing Dangote from his antecedents, we can be sure he will not take it lightly and will try to ensure all the issues are resolved.

Read more about this story here.

UAE Wants to Build Its Own Mount Everest

Imagine this kind of sight coming from the United Arab Emirates

Okay, my headline was maybe  a little bit over-the-top but crazy as it seems, the United Arab Emirates is actually planning on building a mountain to help change its weather. As a Nigerian living in a country where we have not managed to get 10 hours of uninterrupted electricity for major cities in decades, you can understand my total dismay at the UAE's 'unbridled' ambition ... if you like call me bad belle.

Quite an idea though, I would be interested to know if this works out as planned for Emiratis. If you want to know some of the science behind this idea, read the Voice of America report.

Jobsearch in Nigeria: The Story of Frank and Ade

Listen to what happens when Frank meets with Ade after 2 years of completing national youth service (NYSC) in Nigeria.

Why You Should Take Mobile Marketing Serious on Facebook

What would you do if you had a very limited amount to spend on Facebook advertising? Focus on a narrow demographic that is highly targeted or focus more on having your ads appear on mobile devices?

Well, if you are going to follow the data from the chart below, it might be best to combine the 2; define your target audience not too strictly and focus solely on mobile devices, see the chat below.

As you can see 92% of Facebook users access it from a mobile device, while 56% access it exclusively from mobile devices.

Mobile rules and if you want to reach your target market more effectively with your advertising, you should follow them to where they are.