Lexie Lu

For as long as anyone can remember, buildings have always been rigid, unintelligent things. Most are nothing more than a frame or structure used to provide shelter, a place of work or general space. However, as is evident from the advancement of modern technology, that’s soon to change with the next generation of structural areas.

Intelligent, more-aware buildings are being developed to offer unprecedented levels of energy and resource efficiency, organizational management, general optimization, and improved occupant health and productivity.

As a technology-based business, you know you need to be on the cutting edge with the technology you use as well as what you provide to your customers. Cloud computing gives you the ability to take your work remote, make it easily accessible and even integrate it with business intelligence (BI) so you can cultivate data which allows you to improve and grow over time.

Finding success with a startup requires careful planning and hard work. One of the areas you can easily control is where you locate your business. Choosing the right location helps you in seeking out the absolute best employees in your area and in the number of resources available to you as a business owner. The right location can even provide networking opportunities with other tech biz owners.

The growth of artificial intelligence (AI) in recent years has been at a lightning pace. AI now impacts nearly every element of our lives. Smart programs have filtered into our homes and workplaces. You can use AI to create a website, to order a meal in a fast food restaurant and in the background of any number of applications.

You've put hours into your web design, and your landing page seems to have everything in order. However, people are bouncing away without converting into customers. There are many possible reasons why your landing page is not working the way it should, and thankfully, there are remedies.

Around 80 percent of marketers archive their conversion rate optimization results so they can measure progress over time. If you aren't tracking this, start keeping the data today so you can see what tactics work and what needs adjusting. That way, you can avoid constantly doing something that's not working.

There is an entire science behind colors and why they impact users the way they do. Designers understand some hues clash while others complement one another. Most designers are also skilled at putting a palette together that reflects the personality of the brand. Complementary colors, however, have several advantages that improve the overall impact of a design and draw users in.

You've worked hard to make your company the success it is today. Those little and big milestones are worth celebrating. However, knowing you've hit a milestone, and coming up with unique ways of marking the occasion, are two different things.

According to the U.S. government, about 50 percent of businesses fail by year five and 70 percent by year 10. Even making it through your first year is something to celebrate. Some of the milestones you should revel in are the number of years in business, meeting big goals, awards and accolades. Use any excuse to have a party.

An enterprise resource planning (ERP) system ties everything in your organization together and allows you to take advantage of big data to grow your business. However, not all ERP systems are created equal, and some lack essential features.

About 50 percent of companies surveyed state that they plan to either implement or upgrade an ERP system. If you already have an ERP system in place, you might wonder what you should work toward for improvement. Fortunately, there are some common areas where ERP systems fail that you can focus on to improve all your business processes and data processing.

Driving visitors to your site is only half the battle in gathering leads and converting people into customers. You must also engage and entertain them.

Around 86 percent of customers are willing to pay more for a good experience with your brand. Investing in UX pays off in more engaged and loyal customers who are eager to buy from you.

One trend that's been gaining momentum in recent months is the sticky navigation bar. A sticky navbar follows the user as they scroll down your page, making it easy to move to any area of your site without the need to scroll back to the top.

You have just a few seconds to make a good first impression on site visitors. If your navigation bar is easy to find and intuitive, people are more likely to form a positive image of your brand. One user experience (UX) study showed fixed navbars reduce browsing by 22 percent.