DEV Community: techugo

What Must You Know About Tech In Education?

techugo — Wed, 02 Jun 2021 16:22:41 +0000

Online education market is growing rapidly. The corresponding apps and websites are offering promising opportunities to students, teachers, learners and educators everywhere. The best part? Gaining knowledge or acquiring a new skill is not territorially restricted anymore!

People can learn from the comfort of their rooms or homes, using a small portable device, with continuous internet connection. This enables them to binge-watch educational content too. This doesn’t just reflect nicely on online learning, but speaks volumes about the kind of content that is being put up and used on such platforms. It is interesting, engaging and interactive!

Remote learning became a mandatory mode especially after the pandemic hit and thus, corresponding app development got more popular. Businesses and entrepreneurs everywhere wish to invest in this sector and bring in enormous revenues. They are absolutely right as the education sector, even online, presents a potent business model.

This piece will tell you everything about the important role “techno-educators” have to play in our daily lives. Read on to know better…

The associated benefits you must know about…

Remote learning requires re-imagination of education and teaching methods. This doesn’t just help students or learners learn better, but enables educators to constantly keep honing their teaching skills.
Since it is easily adoptable and successfully eliminates the ‘distance’ part, it is a great option to address the education crisis in many areas.
Through electronic learning, it is possible to access personalized, modular, interactive and enhanced digital content.
Though serving as a boon, one factor which is unavoidable is digital literacy or gap! If that is taken care of, this technology is great to go forever!
It provides an opportunity for students, educators/teachers and parents/guardians to engage simultaneously, as and when anyone of them feel like doing so.
It enables teachers to provide a blended learning environment.
Since the system is tech-supported and depends majorly on digital content, assessment of learning can become formative, personalised and continuous in lesser time.

Can AR/VR be used in e-Learning?

AR/VR tech, without a doubt is the future! It has the capacity to transform the way content is produced and consumed. This technology can also transform teaching. Let us get to know, how:

Enabling practical learning
Providing personalised experiences to learn better
Increasing engagement
Boosting potential of students to learn, etc.

No domain has been left untouched by these wondrous, awe-inspiring technologies. Since both these techs offer immersive experiences, they ought to find a way bigger fan-base in the education sector. Why? Any interactive experience binds the users to a particular technology and ensures better learning outcomes as well. Digital content, online assessments, smart classes are slowly transforming the education sector, for better.

Incorporating new and wonderful technologies like Augmented and Virtual Reality can work wonders – for both, students and teachers:

The students can learn more efficiently and efficaciously.
Teachers can teach in a more interactive and interesting manner.

So, it is double win for the two sides, one that imparts the knowledge and the other that consumes it.

Mind you, AR and VR can be implemented at all levels to educate students – from elementary to higher and then advanced studies. They fuel vocational training, provide better outcomes to learn, ensure faster learning, etc. Thus, it would be absolutely right to claim that these technologies can have a stupendously meaningful impact on students at all levels.

The kinds of education applications you can choose from

You must decide about the kind of education app you wish to develop. Yes! You have to make a choice… as these apps also have different types and it is crucial to decide upon which kind to move forward with.
Be mindful; do a thorough research and analysis about the market, trends and your target audience can help you come to a conclusion... For the remaining part, the types have been mentioned here. Read on, to make a well-informed decision. You will be investing time, money and efforts into it, you must be completely satisfied with what you decide upon, right?! Hope it helps…

Memory apps
Classroom applications
Exam preparation app
Language app
Playful and interactive learning applications
Apps for differently abled people

To sum things up…

Using ICT in education or opting for education through digital means, can play a crucial role in providing new and innovative forms of support to students, teachers alike! It can further improve the process of gaining knowledge and hence, expertise.
Clearly, technology in this sector is here to stay and further help the learners and the educators. Do you want to make hay, while the sun shines? Do you wish to develop an online education app, then connect with experts that can guide you right, today!
If your peers are already thriving in the same domain, why shouldn’t you, right! Get going, already!

What Is The Best Strategy To Increase Mobile App Downloads?

techugo — Mon, 25 Jan 2021 08:22:36 +0000

"A lot of businesses these days are worried about boosting their mobile app downloads. Let's make it simple by listing the most effective ways to achieve the targets."

The application industry is exploring the newly integrated technologies and finding its own way to unmatchable popularity. This is inspiring businesses from all over the world with different domains to jump on the bandwagon with 100% enthusiasm. Digital platforms are bridging the gap present between the process and the users. That is why more and more brands are integrating their platforms with the seamlessness of apps, which has increased the number of apps on the Play Store and App Store.

With the rise in applications, the number of downloads for every app has decreased. It is impacting the growth of the brands by slowing down the sales. Have you been suffering from the same problem? If yes, then we have a solution for you.

Increasing the number of mobile app downloads can be a very difficult process. If you are in the online business world, then you know about the planning and strategizing that goes into creating an impactful digital presence. Today, in this blog, we would be sharing some of the effective ways to trigger the number of downloads.

Make sure you study them thoroughly to develop a better understanding.

1. App store optimization

Make sure that you optimize your application to survive the tough competition in the stores. Your app's idea can be outstanding and still would not have any loyal user base. The reason is simply lousy ASO. Here you can use the right keywords in the description and the title. Use the screenshots from your app to give a preview of the features that it delivers.

2. Take reviews and feedbacks seriously

The user base will constantly send you reviews and feedbacks about your application. It is your responsibility to generate trust by working on those problems.

3. Connect with a talented marketing team

One way to end all your worries at once is by connecting with a talented marketing team that has the right experience. They will promote your application on all the major platforms by following all the effective strategies. For example, social media marketing, e-mail marketing, content marketing, search engine optimization, app store optimization, and much more.

4. Give influencer marketing a try

Social media is currently being dominated by small and large influencers. They market a product by generating creative content that would leave an impact on the following. You can try out this popular technique and choose the influencers from your domain to hit the target audience.

5. Content marketing would go a long way

You need to have a separate blog section on your website where you can regularly post content and generate engagement. Through your blogs, you can talk about the stuff that the user must know about your brand. For example, features, affordability, quality, and much more. You can also create blogs that trigger engagement with the content that the users want to know more about. FOr example, trends, tips, hacks, and much more.

6. Make sure you put a link to the app in the email signature

Email marketing is probably the oldest way to reach out to the user base. You can update them about your brand and your application. It is also a great way to draw their attention towards the unique features and functionalities that your digital platforms deliver. But the most important thing that you must do is to put a link to the application in the email signature. It is an effective way to increase your app's loyal users, that too without spending a lot in the marketing process.

In A Nutshell

These are the most effective ways in which you can boost mobile app downloads. But these are not all. If you want to specifically learn about the ways that concern only your application, then you need to reach out to the experts. A team of talented professionals will be able to help by finding out all the shortcomings that are keeping the users from downloading your application. They will also be able to guide you to the integration of the right features, which would eventually trigger the number of app downloads. Make sure that you choose a perfect team, as the bootless one will only jeopardize your success.

Before you move any further, you must study each step. The competition in the market is very cutting-edge and one can easily get lost in implementing various strategies all at once. This would eventually lead to the failure of a brand. If you want to avoid that and expand your growth opportunities then make sure you adopt a strategic approach for better results.

Mobile app development has a lot in store for businesses. But it is important to curate a platform that would cater to the rising demands of the customer base by delivering a user-friendly experience.

If you have any doubt regarding this blog or any other query related to mobile app downloads, then feel free to connect with us in the comment section. We would love to solve all your doubts. So until the next update, stay tuned to this space for more tech-related buzz. Happy reading!

Necessary Details About Creating A Parking Finder App

techugo — Fri, 09 Oct 2020 06:46:49 +0000

For quite some time, there has been a buzz surrounding the popular concept of the parking finder app. As the cities and towns get crowded, there is an urgent need for an application that can streamline different processes like parking issues. Today in this blog, we will help young and budding entrepreneurs like you understand the necessary ingredients of a parking-finder application.

Are you ready?

If yes, then take a look further to unbox the basic idea of developing this app.

Major Advantages Of Developing A Parking-Finder App

Why would anyone even bother about creating a car parking finder app? How does it help a business? Why would users want to download it? We are sure that these questions are bugging you currently. Well, if these are the questions dominating your thoughts too, then take a look at its benefits listed below. They will help you to understand the growing demand for this app in the market.

Users can access digital platform.
A parking app avoids unnecessary crowding.
Streamlines the parking process.
Helps in maintaining the social distance, which limits the exposure to the coronavirus.
One can access parking at any time.
Allows the user base to pre-book the parking area.
Saves a lot of time.
Helps to find near-by parking spaces.
Users can fetch insights about parking lots.
One can easily avail real-time data on parking spaces from anywhere.
With this application, a huge drop can be observed in the management cost.
Management can generate automatic reports.

These are the twelve major advantages of building a parking application. But this is not all, as there are a lot of other benefits that are layered in it. If you are planning to create one for yourself, then you would be able to relish all the above listed advantages.

Necessary Features Developers Must Include In The App

Features are another major thing any business needs to think about, way before creating the app. It helps companies to create an outline of how things will be. In a car parking app, these features need your special focus. To help you out with some, here we have listed a few. Take a look to develop a better understanding.

• Registration and login
• Maps
• Near-by parking destination
• Powerful communication system
• A secure platform
• Smooth navigation
• Exquisite control system
• Various payment modes

Expert's Advice On Creating A Parking-Finder App

Creating a parking finder app is not a child's game. Therefore, you must refer to an expert. Here we have listed six tips from our experience technocrats. These will help you to solve a lot of problems. So shall we begin?

1. Make sure to deliver value to the user base

There is a lot of applications already present in the market, but the users still keep looking for a better option. The reason behind this is applications that are currently present in the market fail to meet the user's expectation. This leads to a catastrophic situation. So if you are planning to create a parking-finder application, make sure that you direct your complete focus on delivering value to the user base. Doing this will help you to win the hearts of your user base.

2. Deliver flawless User experience (UX)

Delivering on-point user experience is not like shooting fish in the barrel. Any sort of negligence in this particular domain can push your app towards failure. So make sure you leave no stone unturned while to create your application. If you want to discover what it takes to create an exceptional application, then feel free to reach out to the experts. They will help you discover the importance of UX and enhance it at the same time.

3. Provide a personalized platform

Every user these days is looking to operate an app that he/ she can use to look for the best possible results. For many, this means personalizing the platform. With the help of rising technologies like artificial intelligence and machine learning, developers can personalize the complete platform for the users. From receiving customer information to enhanced services as per one's request, they can help the audience in multiple ways.

4. Conduct thorough market research

Before taking any step, it is a must that you evaluate the complete market thoroughly. Make a complete to-do list and keep checking them step-by-step. The first step begins with analyzing the current competition. Assess the strategies implemented by your competitors and then make one for your self. Make a list of what the users are actually looking for and then move forward.

5. Include seamless features

Features complement the app in multiple ways. They must also fulfill the users' requirements. Here it is necessary that you include features that eliminates the basic problem of parking that the majority is facing, without complicating the process. Add features that can minimize effort and maximize convenience.

6. Focus on enhancing the design

Last but not least, we have the design. It is too an integral part of the development process. Any complication in this domain can push the users away and force them to switch to your competitors. Do you want that? We are sure you don't! So the last expert advice is to make the design seamless. Curate the app in a way that it streamlines the complicated process.

In A Nutshell

This is the basic outline for you to create a parking-finder app. But it's not all. If you want to dig deeper into the technicalities, then make sure to connect with an expert team. This emerging concept is full of opportunities for businesses. All it takes is the right step to make it happen.

Until the next update, stay tuned to this space.

First Dollar- healthcare savings startup closed $5 million seed funding for HSAs

techugo — Mon, 01 Jun 2020 14:10:50 +0000

Healthcare care services become a necessity to be addressed in the world we are living in today. No doubt, the catastrophe of the pandemic has brought many significant changes in our lives, and in this run, it is most important to know the money spent on healthcare.

You would be surprised to know that in the United States, it’s next to impossible to think about healthcare without thinking about its associated costs. As the high prices and painful medical bills are a tough task for the people who don’t have the right insurance. However, to help Americans in this league, there are health savings accounts (HSAs).

A quick overview of HSAs

HSAs- health savings accounts, as the name suggests, let people put aside their pre-tax dollars and save their medical expenses. As of now, there are more than 26 million HSAs in the U.S., which collectively control $61.7 billion in assets.

Now, in another glad-tiding, Austin-based startup First Dollar has announced that it has raised seed funding and this will help the users in many ways.

First Dollar, the very first human-centric health care savings platform has closed a Seed round of $5 million!

Do you find it exciting? So we do!

However, to help you get a closer look at the functioning of this platform. And bring you more updates about this funding round, we’ve brought this post today. Let’s read ahead further.

What you should know about First Dollar?

First and foremost, you must know that First Dollar targets Millennials and Gen Z. As this is considered to be a healthy population, spending too much per year on healthcare coverage than they need. Surprisingly, only 1 out of 5 people in such demographics receive their deductible amount every year. Here First Dollar comes as a savior and provides them a better platform and allows them to spend on premiums into a simple, informative, 100% fee-free HSA account.

In its working mechanism, First Dollar enables employers and end-users to work along with its platform. Also, it charges employers a monthly administration fee to manage payroll contributions and HSA reporting, Also, customers get the option to set up a free account through their site and manage their money there.

Who is behind this Seed round funding?

First Dollar announced its $5 million seed funding round, which is further led by Next Coast Ventures with participation from Meridian Street Capital. Also, the other investors include former athenahealth CEO Jonathan Bush, Everlywell CEO Julia Cheek, Bright Health CTO Brian Gambs, and Capital Factory.

How does First Dollar work?

As stated by the founders of First Dollar, the platform aims to help consumers to get better use out of their healthcare savings accounts. The HSA is basically a non-taxable savings account, which can be used by the users to address their medical expenses, doctor visit co-pays, or medical prescriptions.

However, you should not forget that First Dollar works on both the front end and back end of HSAs. And charges a minimal monthly administration fee to employers, to manage payroll contributions and HSA reporting.
On the other hand, from the users’ perspective, First Dollar allows consumers to set up a free account via their website and manage the money.

Also, users can avail of the First Dollar debit card as well and earns money from a percentage of transactions on the debit card.

With this card, users get the opportunity to see where they get the most savings on certain medical products. And the company has also associated with RxSaver to get the discounts on the drugs. In another exciting way, the users can transfer their existing HSA to First Dollar or create and fund a First Dollar HSA.

With the help of First Dollar account, users receive the discounted healthcare products and services. And if required they can also attain the discount at a local pharmacy by showing the cashier a code from First Dollar.

How the First Dollar is different from Lively?

The closest venture-backed competitor for First Dollar is Lively, which has already raised $27 million back in October for its HSA product.

Lively also targets millennials with low fees and online management and provides the users with a great way to use HSA as an investment account.
However, First Dollar is different from Lively, as it focuses on educational content as well. Also, its offerings are not limited to this, but it creates a marketplace for customers, helping them to find healthcare products and services at lower price points.

On a quick comparison guide, Lively is more about the saving and investment side, whereas First Dollar focuses more on saving and spending simultaneously.

How First Dollar will utilize this funding?

With this seed funding, it is expected that the company shall hire engineers and designers to scale its HSA services. And there will be a glut of new features coming sooner on the platform as well. As of now, First Dollar has 10 employees, but now the company is planning to expand.
It is expected that the company will have a marketing and one customer executive as well. There will also be virtual employee onboardings to make the adjustment work in their favor.

As stated by First Dollar Chief Product Officer Colin, “I’ve been an HSA user for years, and it’s an amazing tool if you know how to use it. I’m excited to build a product that people will love that makes their finances healthier and also helps them make more informed decisions about their long-term health.”

Final thoughts

The concept of First Dollar is based on offering convenience to the users to create and manage health savings accounts without any hassle. And further allows them to buy discounted health care products. This move has indeed simplified the health care savings account creating process. It is expected that the healthcare industry will see some better opportunities in the near future. And these new advancements will create an opportunity to combine industry knowledge and will let people access to improved services at their fingertips.