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Actualités, Méthodes et organisation des process IT

30 mars 2023/par Service comm.

Optimisation de clusters GKE: 14 tactiques pour un déploiement K8s plus fluide

Découvrez comment optimiser vos clusters GKE et améliorer la fluidité de votre déploiement K8s grâce à ces 14 tactiques simples !

Comment s’assurer que votre cluster Google Kubernetes Engine est prêt pour les tempêtes à venir ?

Premièrement, l’optimisation de la sécurité. En tant qu’ingénieur informatique enthousiaste, je sais que la sécurité est une priorité absolue. Vous devez donc veiller à ce que votre cluster GKE soit protégé contre les menaces extérieures. Pour ce faire, vous devez configurer la sécurité des nœuds, définir des règles de pare-feu et utiliser des certificats TLS pour vous assurer que votre cluster est sûr et sécurisé. Vous devez également mettre en œuvre des contrôles d’accès et des stratégies de sécurité pour vous assurer que vos données et vos applications sont protégées.

Deuxièmement, l’optimisation de la disponibilité. Pour assurer une disponibilité maximale de votre cluster GKE, vous devez configurer le nombre de nœuds et leurs tailles pour répondre aux exigences de votre application. Vous devez également configurer des réplicas pour vos services et définir des règles de mise à l’échelle pour vous assurer que votre application est toujours disponible. Enfin, vous devez mettre en place des outils de surveillance pour vous assurer que votre cluster est toujours opérationnel.

Enfin, l’optimisation des coûts. Pour optimiser les coûts liés à votre cluster GKE, vous devez configurer le nombre de nœuds et leurs tailles pour répondre aux exigences de votre application. Vous pouvez également utiliser des outils tels que le codage pour réduire les coûts en réutilisant le code existant et en automatisant certaines tâches. Vous pouvez également utiliser des outils tels que Kubernetes pour optimiser les performances et réduire les coûts en répartissant les charges de travail sur plusieurs nœuds.

Source de l’article sur DZONE

23 février 2023/par Service comm.

Google Cloud Platform: Revolutionary Discovery

Actualités

Google Cloud Platform: A Revolutionary Discovery

As a scientist, I am always looking for new and innovative ways to make discoveries and advance my research. Recently, I have made a revolutionary discovery that has the potential to revolutionize the way we conduct research and analyze data. This discovery is Google Cloud Platform.

Google Cloud Platform is a suite of cloud computing services that runs on the same infrastructure that Google uses internally for its end-user products, such as Google Search and YouTube. It provides a range of services including computing, storage, networking, big data, machine learning, and more. With Google Cloud Platform, researchers can access powerful computing resources without having to purchase and maintain their own hardware. This makes it much easier and more cost-effective to conduct research, analyze data, and develop new applications.

The power of Google Cloud Platform lies in its scalability. Researchers can easily scale up their computing resources as needed, without having to invest in additional hardware. This makes it ideal for large-scale research projects that require a lot of computing power. Additionally, Google Cloud Platform provides a wide range of tools and services that make it easy to manage and analyze data. This includes BigQuery, which allows researchers to query large datasets quickly and easily, as well as tools for machine learning and artificial intelligence.

In conclusion, Google Cloud Platform is a revolutionary discovery that has the potential to revolutionize the way we conduct research and analyze data. With its scalability and range of tools and services, it makes it much easier and more cost-effective to conduct research and develop new applications. I am excited to see how this discovery will continue to shape the future of research and data analysis.

8 février 2023/par Service comm.

Renforcer les résultats clés d’une entreprise grâce à la durabilité sociale

Actualités, ERP & Applications, SAP

Il ne fait aucun doute que le concept de durabilité est en passe de transformer l’économie mondiale. L’épuisement des ressources de la planète, les bouleversements climatiques, la fracture sociale et économique, l’évolution des préférences de consommation, l’activisme salarial, la multiplication des réglementations et la crise de confiance dans les institutions sont autant de facteurs qui poussent les entreprises à se montrer toujours plus prudentes dans leurs objectifs et dans leurs bénéfices. Et tout cela est bon pour les affaires.

En assumant sa responsabilité sociétale, une entreprise renforce la réputation de sa marque. En effet, les demandeurs d’emploi et les consommateurs d’aujourd’hui cherchent à soutenir les organisations qui défendent des valeurs importantes et qui ont une incidence positive sur la société dans son ensemble. Quant aux investisseurs, ils s’intéressent de plus en plus aux objectifs de développement durable, et en particulier à leur impact social. Enfin, les réglementations concernant les droits humains et l’environnement se développent rapidement. De quoi pousser les PDG et les dirigeants d’entreprises à adopter une approche plus durable.

Les personnes, la planète et la prospérité

Quand vous entendez le mot « durabilité », vous avez peut-être le réflexe de penser au recyclage ou à l’environnement. Mais le concept ne se résume pas à éliminer les bouteilles d’eau à usage unique ou à réduire la consommation des combustibles fossiles. Le développement durable, c’est bien plus que cela. C’est une approche globale qui intègre des aspects sociaux, environnementaux et économiques – en somme, qui implique les personnes, la planète et la prospérité.

Les entreprises sont de plus en plus conscientes de la nécessité de se préoccuper autant de la durabilité sociale, ou durabilité en ressources humaines, que de ses volets économique et environnemental – car ce sont ces trois facteurs indissociables qui soutiennent et stimulent la durabilité de leurs activités. Les personnes sont les éléments constitutifs de la société ; elles exercent un impact sur l’environnement et alimentent l’économie. Elles sont naturellement au cœur de toute stratégie visant à atteindre des objectifs de développement durable. Dans le monde du travail actuel, les RH ont à la fois l’opportunité et la responsabilité de s’assurer que l’humain est au centre des différentes tâches, en créant un environnement propice aussi bien à l’épanouissement des collaborateurs qu’à la prospérité de l’entreprise dans son ensemble.

People Sustainability Is Emerging as a New Strategic Business Imperative

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People Sustainability Is Emerging as a New Strategic Business Imperative

Définir la durabilité sociale

La durabilité sociale repose sur un traitement éthique et équitable des personnes au sein d’une entreprise, de sa Supply Chain et des populations parmi lesquelles elle opère.

La durabilité environnementale et économique implique de préserver et d’utiliser avec prudence les ressources naturelles et financières ; de la même manière, la durabilité sociale nécessite de considérer les personnes et le potentiel humain comme des ressources précieuses, qui doivent être entretenues et valorisées afin de favoriser la résilience, l’agilité et la réalisation d’objectifs pérennes.

Les entreprises qui font de la durabilité sociale une priorité en générant un impact social et en créant une culture plus diversifiée et inclusive sont mieux à même de stimuler l’implication et la productivité de leurs collaborateurs. Elles sont également mieux placées pour attirer et retenir les talents. Penny Stoker, responsable des talents internationaux chez EY, nous explique en quoi la durabilité sociale est centrale dans la construction d’un monde du travail meilleur.

Identifier les six piliers de la durabilité sociale

L’équipe de recherche en RH SAP SuccessFactors a identifié six domaines qui forment les piliers de la durabilité sociale. Bien que ces piliers soient distincts les uns des autres, on peut bien entendu identifier des recoupements. Et au centre de tout, il y a évidemment la notion de culture, qui détermine tant de comportements à l’intérieur d’une entreprise aussi bien qu’en dehors. Intéressons-nous à ces piliers, sous l’angle des RH et des processus de gestion du personnel.

Santé et sécurité
A minima, vous devez garantir la sécurité physique de votre personnel, le protéger contre les risques et subvenir à ses besoins de base. Votre processus d’intégration offre-t-il aux nouvelles recrues une formation et un équipement de sécurité appropriés dès le premier jour ? Avez-vous une bonne visibilité sur l’ensemble de vos collaborateurs, et notamment sur l’endroit où ils se trouvent ? Savoir qui sont vos salariés et où ils sont, à tout moment, vous permet de réagir rapidement en cas de crise et de proposer une assistance si nécessaire.

Diversité, équité et inclusion
En la matière, il s’agit de garantir à chaque individu un traitement juste et équitable, quels que soient son identité sociale et son système de croyances, de telle sorte qu’il en retire un sentiment authentique d’appartenance. Êtes-vous en mesure d’attirer et de recruter des demandeurs d’emploi issus de milieux divers ? Disposez-vous d’un processus de sélection et d’entretien standardisé ? Votre système de rémunération est-il transparent ? Avez-vous mis en place des métriques et un suivi des objectifs en matière de diversité, d’équité et d’inclusion ?

Bien-être et équilibre
Au-delà des impératifs de santé et de sécurité de base, il s’agit de prioriser le bien-être global (psychologique, social, financier et professionnel) de vos collaborateurs en mettant à leur disposition les outils et les ressources pertinents. Proposez-vous un ensemble complet d’avantages avec des options attrayantes ? Vos collaborateurs sont-ils suffisamment en confiance pour être pleinement eux-mêmes au travail ? Encouragez-vous une culture du dialogue permanent entre les responsables et leurs équipes ?

Confiance et transparence
Dans ce domaine, il importe que les collaborateurs puissent s’exprimer, comprendre comment sont prises les principales décisions qui les concernent, et être certains que leur entreprise agit de manière éthique. Écoutez-vous régulièrement vos collaborateurs et tenez-vous compte de leurs retours ? Avez-vous mis en place des règles et des processus garantissant l’utilisation éthique des technologies intelligentes ainsi que la confidentialité et la protection des données ? Vos métriques de diversité sont-elles publiées et accessibles à tous ?

Autonomie et développement personnel
Vos collaborateurs doivent bénéficier d’informations claires, du soutien et des outils nécessaires pour développer leurs compétences et agir sur leur parcours professionnel. Proposez-vous des options de formation inclusives pour répondre aux besoins et aux préférences d’un personnel diversifié ? Veillez-vous à ce que les responsables transmettent des retours équitables et exploitables à leurs équipes ? Offrez-vous un accès équitable aux opportunités de développement ?

Objectif organisationnel et RSE
Dans ce dernier domaine, l’entreprise s’efforce activement de rendre ce qu’elle reçoit et d’exercer un impact positif sur le monde ; ses collaborateurs sont encouragés à s’impliquer et se sentent galvanisés par la mission et les valeurs du groupe. Veillez-vous à ce que les objectifs individuels soient alignés sur ceux de l’entreprise afin de donner du sens au travail accompli ? Donnez-vous à vos collaborateurs la possibilité de s’adonner à leurs passions ?

Que peuvent faire les entreprises pour favoriser la durabilité sociale ?

Aujourd’hui, dans la plupart des entreprises, différents acteurs mènent ce genre d’initiatives sans trop connaître les stratégies des autres ni mettre en place de collaborations. Cela dit, il faut bien commencer quelque part. La première étape, en toute logique, consiste à déterminer où vous en êtes. Disposez-vous d’une stratégie unifiée, au moins dans certains des domaines évoqués plus haut ? Entamez des discussions et lancez-vous dans l’élimination des silos organisationnels.

Accordez la priorité aux personnes. Les progrès pour la planète et la prospérité suivront. C’est cela, être une entreprise résiliente, orientée sur les résultats et sur les personnes. Une entreprise qui n’est pas seulement parée pour répondre aux besoins de gestion d’aujourd’hui, mais qui saura s’adapter à ceux de demain.

Pour en savoir plus, regardez une rediffusion du discours d’ouverture SuccessConnect « Libérez toute la puissance du potentiel humain et transformez définitivement le monde du travail ».

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Kim Lessley est directrice mondiale du marketing des solutions chez SAP SuccessFactors.

The post Renforcer les résultats clés d’une entreprise grâce à la durabilité sociale appeared first on SAP France News.

6 février 2023/par Service comm.

La logistique durable en mouvement Till Dengel, Richard Howells | 14 min de lecture

Actualités, ERP & Applications, Innovation, SAP, Supply-Chain

Installer des panneaux solaires sur les camions frigorifiques, dématérialiser les processus dans les entrepôts, utiliser des données précises en temps réel pour gérer le coût environnemental des livraisons par produit et par itinéraire… Ces initiatives, et bien d’autres, sont au centre des préoccupations des leaders de la Supply Chain, qui s’efforcent de rendre cette dernière plus durable et d’alléger le fardeau pour la planète.

Si ces actions figurent en bonne place dans l’agenda logistique, c’est que la durabilité est un levier important. Selon le Forum international des transports, les émissions de dioxyde de carbone devraient afficher une hausse de 16 % d’ici 2050, à la suite de l’augmentation du transport de marchandises – et ce, même si les pays s’engagent à les freiner. Si l’on n’intervient pas, les villes du monde entier accueilleront des millions de véhicules de livraison de fret et de colis en plus au cours de la prochaine décennie. Résultat : davantage d’embouteillages et une augmentation équivalente des émissions de gaz à effet de serre, comme le signale le Forum économique mondial.

La conclusion qui s’impose : il est primordial de trouver comment rendre la logistique et les livraisons plus durables du point de vue environnemental.

« Les entreprises s’intéressent de plus en plus à la durabilité des opérations logistiques », remarque Josué Velázquez Martínez, directeur du laboratoire des Supply Chains durables du Centre de transport et de logistique du MIT. « Elles font face à des pressions croissantes de la part du législateur et des consommateurs, et s’efforcent vraiment d’améliorer tous les aspects de la Supply Chain ».

Ces mêmes entreprises pourraient se trouver contraintes de prendre davantage de mesures. Si l’on se réfère aux règles en vigueur, nombre d’entre elles n’indiquent pas suffisamment les émissions générées par leur Supply Chain dans leurs rapports de durabilité, voire les omettent totalement, indique le New York Times. Or, il est possible qu’elles y soient bientôt obligées, car les autorités de régulation ont aujourd’hui la logistique dans le collimateur. Aux États-Unis, le législateur envisage de demander aux entreprises publiques de déclarer leurs émissions tout au long de leur Supply Chain. L’UE a également élaboré une proposition de directive qui renforce les règles de communication d’informations en matière de durabilité.

Les entreprises s’intéressent de plus en plus à la durabilité des opérations logistiques. Elles font face à des pressions croissantes de la part du législateur et des consommateurs.

Josué Velázquez Martínez, Centre de transport et de logistique du MIT

Les attentes des consommateurs, les réglementations et la demande du marché poussent les dirigeants d’entreprises à agir davantage sur le terrain de la durabilité. Tout naturellement, c’est au niveau des systèmes de logistique et de distribution que sont mises en place de nouvelles normes, qui contribueront largement à créer un avantage concurrentiel. En effet, les entreprises qui économisent sur la livraison en utilisant moins d’énergie et de ressources bénéficient d’un meilleur retour sur investissement (sur leur parc de camions, par exemple) et imaginent des modes de livraison plus efficaces. À cela s’ajoute, du côté des consommateurs, une conscience accrue du coût environnemental des livraisons et une volonté de choisir des options moins rapides pour préserver la planète.

Mais pour voir l’avènement d’une logistique durable, nous devons optimiser nos itinéraires de transport, construire des entrepôts plus efficaces et utiliser plus souvent et plus efficacement les données. Autant de tâches qui n’ont rien de simple. Avant de pouvoir réellement mesurer les progrès en matière de développement durable et agir sur l’empreinte carbone des produits, il y a de nombreuses étapes à mettre en œuvre.

Pas de temps à perdre: Découvrez pourquoi les entreprises doivent faire coïncider leurs ambitions et leurs actes en matière de durabilité.

Lire les actualités

D’après le rapport « Le paradoxe de la Supply Chain durable » établi par SAP et Oxford Economics, les cadres dirigeants ne connaissent pas encore suffisamment leur Supply Chain et éprouvent des difficultés à la rendre plus durable. Ils en sont encore à fixer des objectifs, et non à les mettre en application. Près de la moitié des personnes interrogées jugent que la complexité et le coût sont les deux principaux obstacles dans cette démarche de durabilité.

Mais comme l’explique Shimon Gowda, responsable de configuration de la Supply Chain chez Chainalytics, une pression croissante incite les entreprises à gagner en visibilité sur leur Supply Chain globale et à atteindre la neutralité carbone. « De plus en plus d’entreprises s’efforcent de mesurer l’empreinte carbone de leur réseau actuel », ajoute-t-il. « Les leaders du secteur mettent tout en œuvre pour élaborer une mesure précise et exacte, qui servirait de point de référence auquel comparer une situation à l’instant t. »

Pourquoi la logistique constitue un objectif de durabilité majeur

La logistique est une mission complexe. Elle consiste à gérer l’acheminement des matières premières, des produits intermédiaires et des emballages à travers le monde en direction des sites de production, mais aussi la distribution des produits depuis leur lieu de fabrication jusqu’au consommateur. Or, le transport fait partie des domaines dans lesquels l’objectif « zéro émissions » est un enjeu important. Il s’agit notamment de réduire les distances parcourues et d’utiliser plus efficacement les différentes options. Il n’est pas rare, par exemple, que des camions reviennent à vide une fois leur livraison effectuée.

Prenons l’exemple des transports frigorifiques : nous utilisons des camions réfrigérés pour transporter les produits pharmaceutiques, les fruits et légumes, les produits laitiers, la viande et les boissons. Cela nécessite de maintenir la chaîne du froid à l’intérieur de la remorque – ce qui consomme beaucoup d’énergie, traditionnellement de l’essence.

Certaines entreprises contribuent à rendre le transport frigorifique par camion plus durable en alimentant les systèmes de réfrigération à partir de sources d’énergie alternatives. eNow, par exemple, installe des panneaux solaires sur le toit des remorques. Quant à Coldtainer, il fabrique des boîtes de stockage pour la chaîne du froid.

Certaines entreprises s’efforcent de rendre le transport frigorifique par camion plus durable en alimentant les systèmes de réfrigération à partir de sources d’énergie alternatives.

D’après le média NPR, des entreprises bien établies telles que FedEx et DHL investissent dans des matériels et des équipements tels que des véhicules électriques. Mais M. Martínez en est convaincu : se concentrer uniquement sur de nouveaux véhicules est le meilleur moyen de manquer d’importantes opportunités.

« Je constate qu’on s’intéresse beaucoup aux équipements, ce qui est vraiment une bonne chose pour le long terme », explique-t-il. « Mais en attendant, il y a de nombreuses opportunités auxquelles les entreprises ne font pas vraiment attention à ce stade. »

Lorsque votre kilométrage varie, choisissez le bon véhicule pour chaque itinéraire de livraison

Ces opportunités, qu’étudient notamment M. Martínez et bien d’autres personnes, ce sont notamment des systèmes de planification des transports qui optimisent les itinéraires, réduisent le kilométrage et les émissions, et analysent les effets de la topographie sur les performances des camions.

Renouveler sa flotte n’est pas, en soi, un mauvais choix. Mais un camion neuf n’est pas nécessairement la meilleure option, écologiquement parlant. Les recherches du laboratoire d’étude de durabilité des Supply Chains ont permis d’établir que le kilométrage, tel qu’il est mentionné sur les sites Internet des constructeurs automobiles, est divisé par deux environ en conditions de livraison réelles. L’écart tient probablement au fait que les tests des camions sont réalisés dans des conditions différentes.

Un leadership porteur de sens: Découvrez comment les entreprises placent la durabilité au cœur de leur stratégie.

Lire le témoignage

« Les constructeurs font probablement leurs tests dans des conditions qui n’ont rien à voir avec une exploitation réelle, en particulier sur les derniers kilomètres parcourus », avance M. Martínez.

Il suffit de comparer les performances d’un camion qui se déplace sur autoroute, à une vitesse moyenne comprise entre 65 et 80 km/h, et qui fait trois arrêts de livraison, avec celles du même camion qui parcourt une zone très vallonnée à 8 ou 16 km/h et qui effectue vingt arrêts de livraison. Les chiffres seront très différents, et dépendront du modèle. Les camions anciens ont tendance à afficher de meilleures performances que les neufs sur autoroute ; dans une étude menée avec l’entreprise de logistique mexicaine Coppel, l’équipe de M. Martínez a trouvé des exemples attestant d’une meilleure efficacité en carburant (jusqu’à 15 % de différence). L’étude a été réalisée en utilisant une vitesse, des longueurs de segments (soit la quantité d’arrêts sur un itinéraire donné) et un profil topographique moyens, et en s’appuyant sur l’apprentissage automatique pour classer les régions en fonction de ces caractéristiques – certaines étant plus résidentielles, d’autres urbaines, d’autres mixtes.

Imaginez que vous puissiez dire à un client : « Si vous êtes prêt à atteindre deux, trois, quatre jours de plus, vous pourrez réduire l’empreinte carbone de tel pourcentage. »

Josué Velázquez Martínez, Centre de transport et de logistique du MIT

Sur la base de l’analyse effectuée, l’équipe de Martínez a modélisé une réaffectation des véhicules permettant d’exploiter chacun sur les zones dans lesquelles il réalise les meilleures performances. Les résultats indiquent une réduction de 3 % du carburant utilisé – un chiffre non négligeable pour les entreprises, qui consacrent chaque année des millions à ce poste. À partir de la même hypothèse, l’équipe a également mis en place un projet pilote en conditions réelles, avec 10 véhicules sur un mois. Elle a constaté 8 % d’économies de carburant.

« Il n’est pas vraiment nécessaire d’investir, seulement de réaffecter le matériel existant », conclut M. Martínez. « Mais si vous comptez renouveler votre parc de véhicules, alors vous devez vous assurer que les nouveaux seront utilisés dans les régions attendues, puis réaffecter ceux que vous allez conserver dans votre exploitation. »

Ces résultats montrent comment la combinaison des données, des capacités de calcul et des algorithmes peut participer à améliorer le transport. La topographie a aussi son importance, ajoute M. Martínez, mais elle n’est généralement pas prise en compte dans les évaluations environnementales, car on opte plutôt pour les itinéraires les plus courts et les plus rapides, et parce que c’est un facteur complexe. Pourtant, c’est logique : monter une pente ne nécessite pas la même quantité d’énergie que de la descendre.

« Gérer ces données en utilisant le suivi GPS pour mieux cerner les faits et prendre des décisions mieux informées représente une opportunité considérable », explique-t-il. « C’est ce que j’appelle faire une petite place aux problématiques de la Supply Chain pour réduire réellement les émissions autant que possible, tout en continuant de répondre aux attentes de vos clients et d’atteindre vos objectifs commerciaux. »

Lettre d’information SAP Insights: Obtenez des insights stratégiques en vous abonnant à notre lettre d’information.

S’abonner

Une livraison le jour même est une opération complexe, car elle implique de nombreux déplacements dans les mêmes zones, avec des camions qui ne sont pas toujours pleins – ce qui augmente les émissions. Le laboratoire de recherche sur la durabilité des Supply Chains a réalisé une expérience pour voir si les consommateurs font des choix différents en fonction de leur sensibilité écologique et de leur capacité à attendre.

Dans cette expérience du « bouton vert », 52 % des clients ont effectivement changé leurs choix de livraison pour limiter leur impact environnemental. Le laboratoire a essayé différentes manières de quantifier ce paramètre pour l’utilisateur, par exemple la réduction des émissions de CO2 ou le nombre d’arbres sauvés. Avec l’exemple des arbres, les chercheurs ont établi que les clients étaient prêts à attendre quatre jours de plus en moyenne pour être livrés. Pour être précis, 70 % ont seulement déclaré qu’ils feraient ce choix, tandis que 52 % l’ont réellement fait – ce qui représente déjà plus de la moitié de la population considérée.

« Il est possible de communiquer avec transparence autour de la Supply Chain avec les clients, afin qu’ils puissent utiliser ces informations au moment d’acheter », insiste M. Martínez. Bien sûr, ce n’est pas simple. Il faut pouvoir indiquer les émissions de CO2 correspondant à chaque commande qui s’affiche dans le panier d’un consommateur, afin que ce dernier dispose de données précises et comprenne l’impact de sa décision. Cela nécessite de nombreuses analyses, voire la validation d’un tiers pour légitimer l’information fournie. Mais ce procédé représenterait un avantage significatif pour asseoir la crédibilité environnementale des marques.

« Imaginez que vous puissiez dire à un client : si vous êtes prêt à atteindre deux, trois, quatre jours de plus, vous pourrez réduire l’empreinte carbone de tel pourcentage ; vous participerez à préserver l’environnement », explique M. Martínez.

La valeur ajoutée des entrepôts locaux en termes de durabilité

Ancrer les Supply Chains localement, en alternant entre les sources d’approvisionnement et sites de production locaux et éloignés, est une autre manière de renforcer leur durabilité. Dans cette perspective, les entrepôts jouent un rôle important : construire des hangars de petite taille, à proximité de la demande, permet en effet de réduire les temps de trajet et les émissions. Les entrepôts constituent aujourd’hui le type de bâtiment commercial le plus volumineux aux États-Unis et, à en croire l’Agence américaine d’information sur l’énergie, les chiffres ne font qu’augmenter.

Il serait possible d’imposer aux entrepôts qu’ils soient autonomes énergétiquement et de les concevoir neutres en carbone. La production d’énergie alternative – par exemple, à l’aide de panneaux solaires installés sur le toit – semble couler de source et, dans certaines zones, elle est d’ores et déjà obligatoire ou subventionnée. L’Allemagne, par exemple, propose un soutien financier à l’installation d’infrastructures solaires. Aux États-Unis, il existe une multitudes d’aides fédérales et étatiques.

À Elizabeth, dans le New Jersey, East Coast Warehouse dispose de panneaux solaires sur son entrepôt, l’un des plus grands du Nord-Est des États-Unis. Kevin Daly, directeur commercial, indique que l’entreprise a récemment installé 4 900 modules solaires à haut rendement supplémentaires, qui ont généré plus de 2,5 GW en 2020. « Nos panneaux solaires ont vraiment dépassé nos attentes », se félicite-t-il.

L’entreprise s’étend dans le Maryland et en Géorgie, et envisage d’utiliser l’énergie solaire sur les entrepôts qu’elle y crée. M. Daly fait remarquer que le processus est plus simple pour les sociétés qui sont propriétaires de leurs bâtiments, entre autres parce que la communauté des développeurs s’inquiète des obligations que les panneaux peuvent engendrer, et du poids qu’ils peuvent ajouter à une structure. Ce point mis à part, ajoute-t-il, c’est une décision d’investissement, qui est souvent liée aux subventions.

À l’intérieur des entrepôts, placer les unités de gestion de stock les plus importantes et qui transitent le plus dans des emplacements rapidement et aisément accessibles est un moyen de limiter l’énergie utilisée par les chariots élévateurs.

M.Daly pense que davantage d’entrepôts adopteront l’énergie solaire et d’autres formes d’énergie alternatives. « Je ne doute pas qu’à mesure que la technologie se perfectionnera, elle deviendra encore plus efficace et plus bénéfique pour tout le monde. »

Des systèmes de gestion des entrepôts plus intelligents: Les entreprises utilisent des technologies intelligentes pour optimiser leurs opérations quotidiennes dans les entrepôts.

Le fonctionnement interne des entrepôts et les livraisons sont également devenus plus durables. East Coast Warehouse a choisi de gérer ses opérations de répartition sur des tablettes et des terminaux mobiles, et de se débarrasser autant que possible du papier – et ce, dans un secteur qui en a toujours utilisé beaucoup.

Grâce aux options numériques, les chauffeurs routiers peuvent rester dans leurs camions pour gérer toutes les formalités depuis leur tablette, y compris les lettres de voiture, qui peuvent être envoyées directement aux destinataires par voie électronique. En plus de limiter la consommation de papier, ce mode de fonctionnement permet davantage de transparence. La preuve de livraison – où, quand et qui a signé – peut être intégrée à un système de gestion du transport et archivée automatiquement.

« Ce processus, qui nécessitait beaucoup d’heures de travail et d’opérations manuelles pour numériser et remplir les papiers, est devenu beaucoup plus gérable si on fait les choses de la bonne manière » conclut M. Daly.

De plus en plus d’entreprises cherchent à optimiser les opérations au sein de leurs entrepôts, comme l’explique Mme Gowda, de Chainalytics. Revenir aux principes fondamentaux de l’organisation et, par exemple, placer les unités de gestion de stock les plus importantes et qui transitent le plus dans des emplacements rapidement et aisément accessibles, est un moyen de limiter l’énergie utilisée par les chariots élévateurs.

« Le simple fait de rationaliser tout cela peut vraiment changer la donne, même au niveau de l’émission de gaz à effet de serre, car cela revient à optimiser vos opérations en tentant de tirer le meilleur parti des ressources disponibles sur le site », insiste Mme Gowda.

La logistique durable s’appuie sur des données

On en revient toujours à la même question : « Vos données sont-elles de bonne qualité ? » Parce qu’il ne suffit plus d’utiliser des données d’historique ou d’estimer des paramètres tels que les émissions générées par les camions.

Désormais, des sociétés tierces proposent les outils nécessaires pour déterminer les émissions de CO2 réelles d’un véhicule donné, à partir des informations opérationnelles collectées. Ces outils sont capables de transmettre ces informations sur des tableaux de bord, de manière à faciliter une approche stratégique dans la réflexion et les actions à mener – et à créer ainsi une Supply Chain plus cohérente de bout en bout.

Autre grand objectif d’un grand nombre de marques et de fabricants : pouvoir ventiler les émissions par produit, de leur conception à leur mise hors service. Ces informations, réclamées par les consommateurs, peuvent constituer un facteur de différenciation considérables pour une marque si elles sont bien compilées et communiquées avec précision (c’est-à-dire sans déclarations non étayées ni « greenwashing »).

D’après Mme Gowda, on prête de plus en plus d’attention à la logistique inverse, car les entreprises modernes consacrent davantage d’analyses à mieux comprendre le coût environnemental de leurs produits, tout au long de leur cycle de vie. Les clients de Chainalytics souhaitent aujourd’hui élaborer des scénarios qui accordent la priorité aux gaz à effet de serre, et non aux coûts. Dans ce domaine, la création d’un jumeau numérique se révèle très utile.

« Il devient un peu difficile de répondre à ce genre de questions sans disposer d’une plateforme de jumeau numérique complètement fonctionnelle », explique Mme Gowda. « Mais nous sommes définitivement plus efficaces qu’il y a dix ans. Nous sommes vraiment en mesure de comprendre notre propre impact, et nous essayons de créer davantage de solutions pour favoriser des Supply Chains plus vertes. »

Nous sommes vraiment en mesure de comprendre notre propre impact, et nous essayons de créer davantage de solutions pour favoriser des Supply Chains plus vertes.

Shimon Gowda, responsable de conception de la Supply Chain chez Chainalytics

Rationaliser l’approvisionnement et les prévisions de la demande peut également renforcer la durabilité, indique Mme Gowda. Tout au long de la Supply Chain, chaque acteur dispose de ses propres métriques prévisionnelles. Mais s’il y a une faille en amont, elle se répète et s’amplifie en aval. Cela peut entraîner une surproduction de la part de toutes les entreprises de la chaîne, ce qui signifie des déchets ou des produits excédentaires qui se retrouvent dans les entrepôts après avoir voyagé dans le monde entier. « C’est typiquement le scénario que nous cherchons à éviter quand nous essayons d’évoluer vers un fonctionnement plus durable, neutre en carbone », conclut-elle.

Un concept de Supply Chain appelé « planification collaborative et réapprovisionnement prévisionnel » est en train de gagner du terrain. C’est un autre exemple de scénario dans lequel les jumeaux numériques jouent un rôle essentiel, car chaque acteur de la Supply Chain peut voir les données transférées par les autres. Par exemple, le fabricant est en mesure de consulter les prévisions du détaillant final trois mois à l’avance. Tout problème peut ainsi être identifié et résolu plus tôt. « Cette solution renferme un vrai potentiel de progression vers l’économie circulaire, car elle implique de se montrer minimaliste dans sa consommation, dans ses transferts… sur tous les points, en somme », explique Mme Gowda.

À mesure que les entreprises s’attachent à évaluer l’impact environnemental réel de leur Supply Chain et de leurs opérations logistiques, les livraisons se rationalisent, de manière à générer moins de déchets et moins d’émissions. Un bonne nouvelle pour l’environnement comme pour les clients !

Note des éditeurs : Découvrez des idées logistiques plus durables et des exemples pratiques dans L’économie circulaire se popularise ; 5 vérités sur la Supply Chain dans le monde post-COVID-19 ; et Sur la terre, la mer et dans les airs : des technologies émergentes pour maîtriser le changement climatique.

The post La logistique durable en mouvement Till Dengel, Richard Howells | 14 min de lecture appeared first on SAP France News.

Read the Quarterly Statement

6 février 2023/par Service comm.

SAP Announces Fourth Quarter and Full-Year 2022 Results

Actualités, ERP & Applications, SAP

WALLDORF — SAP SE (NYSE: SAP) today announced its financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ended December 31, 2022.

SAP Announces Q4 and FY 2022 Results

All financial outlook metrics met in FY 2022
Cloud revenue up 33% and up 24% at constant currencies in FY 2022. Q4 S/4HANA cloud revenue further accelerates, up 101% and up 90% at constant currencies
Current cloud backlog exceeds €12 billion, up 27% and up 24% at constant currencies
IFRS cloud gross profit up 38%, non-IFRS cloud gross profit up 37% and up 28% at constant currencies in FY 2022
IFRS operating profit flat, non-IFRS operating profit down 2% and down 7% at constant currencies in FY 2022. Q4 IFRS operating profit up 17%, non-IFRS operating profit up 5% and up 2% at constant currencies
2023 outlook anticipates accelerating topline and double-digit non-IFRS operating profit growth
Targeted restructuring in 2023 reflects focus on strategic growth areas and accelerated cloud transformation
SAP has decided to explore a sale of its stake in Qualtrics

“SAP is more resilient than ever. We end 2022 with continued strong cloud momentum and a return to operating profit growth in the fourth quarter, marking an important inflection point. Heading into 2023, this gives us great confidence in delivering on our promise of accelerating topline and double-digit non-IFRS operating profit growth. As we enter the next chapter of SAP, I want to thank Luka for his great partnership on this journey.”

Christian Klein, CEO

“In my 37th and final earnings for SAP, I am proud that the SAP team is announcing excellent results and continued cloud momentum. We are on track to deliver our growth and profitability commitments for 2023. I am extremely confident in the continued success of SAP’s most exciting transformation in its history. Thank you to the wonderful SAP family that I have been part of for 27 years.”

Luka Mucic, CFO

The post SAP Announces Fourth Quarter and Full-Year 2022 Results appeared first on SAP France News.

26 janvier 2023/par Service comm.

15 Best Podcast Hosting Platforms

Podcasts are on the rise. In 2020 consumption of podcasts reached 332.2 million internet users, and this number grew to 383.7 in 2021. And it is increasing steadily – with the number of listeners slated to reach about 509.4 in 2024.

Podcasts have moved from a niche market of discussants in their parent’s basements to being spread across the globe into everyone’s earsets.

However, it’s more complex than just creating a decent show and uploading it. First, your website needs to be able to handle the traffic, lest you want your listeners attempting to sign up for your newsletter on a frisbee. But where does one start?

And that’s where podcast hosting sites come into the picture!

You need a podcast hosting service to publish your podcast episodes online and make them available to your audience. Podcasts are called interactive audio content for a reason. Your podcast listeners can get in touch with you through the comments section, emailing you their feedback, sharing your episodes on social media, and more.

It doesn’t matter if you’re looking to become a mega-star or want to solidify your brand; knowing which podcast hosting platform to use is essential to the podcasting process.

In today’s article, we have covered the 15 best podcasting sites. So whether you are looking for free or paid podcast hosting sites, we have covered everything in detail.

1. Podbean

Podbean is a podcast hosting and monetizing platform that lets you publish your podcasts in minutes. Just set up some basic information about your podcast – and you are set to publish your first episode on Podbean. With Podbean’s intuitive user interface, getting started with the service is as easy as pie!

In the above image, you can see how Podbean will ask you to set up your podcast. Podbean makes it easy to create a professional-looking site from title and description to category and podcast logo. Once you upload your episode, you can also pick a theme for your site.

As you see in the below image, you can customize its fonts and colors and test the audio and appearance before it launches.

Podcasts can also be listened to on Apple, Google, Shopify, and other podcast apps. If you want to embed your podcast on your website or blogs, Podbeans Embeddable Players will make that easy for you. The Embeddable player is also customizable and lets you add branded elements, making the design professional.

You can even connect your social media handle with your Podbean account to directly share podcasts on your social pages.

It doesn’t skimp on statistics, either. Podbean statistics will give you all the insights you need to know about your podcast’s audience, including the top 10 episodes, how many downloads there are at a particular time, where your customers come from, and user retention data.

All in all, it’s a great option to get started with your podcasting journey. However, one downside is that the podcast website isn’t as polished as some podcasters might prefer.

Other key features include

You can host audio and video files without limits on storage and bandwidth.
You can personalize your podcast with your own domain.
You can also schedule your podcast episode in advance.
Once you publish your podcast, users can access it on Alexa devices.
Its Mailchimp integration will help you collect emails for future distribution.
You can monetize your podcast using ads.
Live stream your podcast with a remote co-host or guest.

Pros

They offer a free plan, which provides iPhone and Android app players with 100GB of monthly bandwidth and their own podcast site.
Even though the interface is very intuitive, the resources in their knowledge base will be helpful to beginners.

Cons

You can’t host video podcasts unless you are on their Plus & Business plans.
The podcasting website should be more professional.

Pricing

It starts at $9/month for unlimited storage space, unmetered bandwidth, distribution on significant podcast apps, customizable themes, and more.

2. Buzzsprout

Buzzsprout is a podcasting platform that provides hosting, promotion, and analytics solutions. You can directly distribute your podcast on Google, Apple, Spotify, Stitcher, iHeartRadio, Alexa, Overcast, and more through Buzzsprout.

You can start with easy and free learning material provided by Buzzsprout, including podcasting guides, courses, video tutorials, industry podcasts, and community.

It’s also worth noting that Professional-sounding podcasts don’t come easy. That’s why Buzzsprout’s MagicMastering tool is available for you to use. It’s an audio filter that sweetens your podcast and optimizes it for the best industry standards.

That said, the Magic Mastering feature is only available with the pricier plans, so you’ll have to shell out more money for it.

You don’t have to worry about optimizing your episodes yourself either because Buzzsprout optimizes all episodes in terms of file type, bitrates, ID3 tags, etc.

The best part is that it has dynamic content flexibility, letting you decide whether audio should go at the beginning or end of an episode. It does everything to make your podcast search engine friendly, including transcribing each episode for people with hearing disabilities.

Buzzsprout’s users also usually have good things to say about the platform.

For example, Neil Thacker, founder of Casual Car Guide, who uses Buzzsprout himself, is a big fan of the platform.

Thacker says,

“I have been lucky enough to host a few different podcasts in various industries. Every time, my hosting platform of choice is Buzzsprout. They just get it. Buzzsprout makes it super easy to publish and syndicate your podcast episodes across various mainstream streaming platforms and directories.

If you need a website for your podcast, Buzzsprout gives you the tools to create one. Simply pick a domain and host your podcast there for the world to see. It’s quick and easy to set up and won’t cost you the earth. Go, Buzzsprout!”

Other key features include

It offers a customizable podcast player that lets you skip to the next track or move backward. You can also share your episode on social media and make the player match your website’s branding.
One account can hold multiple podcasts and team members.
You can find all the necessary help through its YouTube channel and Facebook community.
It integrates with tools such as Chartable, Podtrac, Hindenburg, and more.
It also offers Visual Soundbites to match your brand colors.

Pros

It offers competitive pricing and features.
Clean & easy-to-use UI.
Plenty of learning resources.
Free version for 90 days.

Cons

Limited upload time, even with paid plans.
Your episodes will be hosted only for 90 days with the basic plan.
The basic plan does not include Magic Mastering.

Pricing

Starts at $12/month for 3 hours of upload, advanced statistics, unlimited storage, and more.

3. Simplecast

Simplecast is the all-in-one solution for your podcasting needs – including podcast publishing, distribution, analytics, and sharing. Whether you’re a large or small business, it also has similar tool access for all sizes of companies.

Your podcast can be set up anywhere, including Shopify, Google Podcast, Apple Podcast, and other podcast directories. Simplecast gets your podcast on these directories and apps as soon as you publish any episode and then automatically sends it to your listeners.

Then it will provide you with advanced analytics to show how many listeners you have, how many downloads you get, your listeners’ locations, and more. See below for a visual representation of how this works:

It also has a website. That’s right; you’ll get your own website.

This website automatically updates as you publish new episodes and is customizable, mobile-friendly, search engine optimized, and Google Podcast optimized. You can even use your own domain names.

In addition, it allows the user to manage multiple shows in a single account. The image below will show you what the Podcast Dashboard looks like. It displays the number of episodes for each show and other information, such as role and owner.

Other key features include

Its audio analytics come in easy-to-understand visuals and show you different trends – for example, which device listeners use to listen to your podcasts.
Simplecast’s framework is a rock-solid, no-nonsense platform that keeps your stream playing 24/7.
You can import your existing podcast from any platform with just a few clicks.
You can use its players to embed your podcasts on your web.

Pros

All of its plans offer unlimited uploads and storage.

Cons

It does not offer a free version.
I see users getting frustrated with the limited customization options for website themes.

Pricing

It starts at $15/month for two seats, unlimited storage and uploads, basic analytics, a custom domain, a customizable website, and more.

4. Anchor.fm

Anchor is one of the – if not the best free podcast hosting services by Spotify that takes care of creation, distribution, monetization, analytics, and more.

Creating Music+talk episodes on Anchor is as easy as pie. Choose any song from Spotify’s library, place it in your episode builder, add an audio file that you wish to go with the music file, and then submit your episode for review.

Some of the best ways to make money from your podcast are by building an audience and monetizing that audience. And with Anchor, you can monetize in various ways, including by adding paid advertisements to your podcast or asking for donations from listeners.

In addition, the IAB 2.0-certified metrics from Spotify let you measure your podcast’s performance in detail. For example, you can see where listeners are abandoning you on the track and adjust accordingly by adding content that really matters to them. You can also see what type of listeners interact with your podcasts – how old they are, what gender they identify with, and more.

Luciano Colos, founder and CEO of PitchGrade, who uses Anchor for his own podcast, talks about his experience with the platform.

He believes that the end-to-end control of the whole process is what makes Anchor.fm unique.

Colos further shares,

“Even if you’re not a technical person, the interface is so simple that you’ll be able to learn it in minutes. I’ve been using it since the day I started my podcast, and I’m so glad I found it. It’s also worth mentioning that the support on the platform is great. If you ever have a question, you can contact the staff on their Discord channel and will get an answer within minutes.”

Other key features include

All the content rights are yours.
You can distribute your podcast to Google, Apple, Pocket Casts, Spotify, and more.
You can directly record from your phone, tablet, or computer and sync them to all devices.
You can create both audio and video podcasts.
The episode builder has easy-to-visualize building blocks.

Pros

Anchor offers free and unlimited hosting in all plans.
Easy monetization options, that too with ads in your own voice.
You can distribute your podcast to all major podcasting platforms.

Cons

You can host only one podcast per account.
Interview features on phone hosting are limited.
Customer support is limited to online resources.

Pricing

It’s a free platform.

5. SoundCloud

SoundCloud is a platform for both streaming audio and hosting podcasts. Majorly, it’s a popular music-sharing platform, but it also offers a robust podcast-hosting platform used by over 75 million people worldwide.

Creating a SoundCloud profile is also as simple as pie. You can personalize your profile with your own username, profile URL, custom profile image, and header.

SoundCloud is also one of the few podcast-hosting platforms that allow you to create a community around your podcasts. This is handy if you want to grow awareness about your podcast among other users.

Users can comment on specific moments of the track, and other users can see those comments when they reach that moment on the track.

The podcast hosting platform is available for Android and iOS, and you can sign up for free. Of course, there’s an affordable fee for upgrading your account to a creator account.

In addition, SoundCloud lets you distribute your tracks on various channels, including Spotify, YouTube, Apple Music, and more.

Then you have the SoundCloud Analytics dashboard that gives you a quick overview of the number of streams, revenue, and top tracks — but it’s not as detailed as you can get with other podcasting sites. After all, it’s a music streaming platform primarily rather than one specifically for podcasts.

There is little to no knowledge on their website for beginners, which is another disadvantage. That said, it’s pretty easy to use, so anyone without experience in podcasting can easily use the platform.

Other key features include

SoundCloud allows you to share your music on Apple Music, TikTok, Spotify, and more.
Except for the free version, SoundCloud offers unlimited upload time.
If you have collaborators in your profile, you can split the payments with them.
You can also schedule your podcast releases in advance.

Pros

It offers a free plan with 3 hours of upload time.
The hosting fee is affordable.
Listeners can comment on specific moments from your track.

Cons

Many users report that it takes a long time to load the track.

Pricing

It starts at $2.50/month for monetization, distribution, promotion, and split payment features.

6. Transistor.fm

Transistor’s like other podcasting platforms – you can create a podcast from scratch or import it from another platform. Just follow the instructions, and you’re good to go.

Once your podcast is recorded and ready to go, you can invite multiple members to contribute. Its analytics software provides clean visuals and robust insights into listener trends.

For instance, the below image is an overview of the podcast performance:

Now observe that the amount of data and clear visuals make this less overwhelming. As you can see, it gives you insights into average downloads per episode for the specific period, estimated subscribers, and total downloads (month-wise visual presentation).

In addition to providing one-click submissions to significant podcast platforms such as Spotify, Google, Apple Podcasts, Podcast Addict, and more, Transistor also offers one-click submissions to search engines like Listen Notes and The Podcast Index. Transistor is one of the few podcasting hosting platforms to provide a service like this.

Corey Haines, Founder of SwipeWell, shares his experience with the platform,

“I’ve been super happy with Transistor.fm for hosting all my podcasts. Instead of paying for each one individually, Transistor allows me to host all the podcasts I want for a single price. This made me feel free to experiment and start as many podcasts as I wanted. They also have great integrations, analytics, and sharing capabilities to embed on a website or newsletter.”

Other key features include

You can create, import, and host multiple podcasts in a single Transistor account.
You get a unique RSS feed, advanced analytics, a basic webpage, and collaborator invites for each podcast you create.
The analytics tool gives you insights like the number of plays, total plays per episode, average download, devices, and more.
It offers a podcast player that you can embed on your website, landing page, or tweet.

Pros

Multiple podcast hosting options allow you to test different podcast formats for varied groups of listeners.
You can host unlimited podcasts in one account.
It offers a free trial.

Cons

The starter plan, which is a paid one, does not include dynamic ads. It also does not allow you to automate YouTube posting.
There are plenty of resources in their knowledge base, but finding what you’re looking for is confusing.
Only the Business plan allows you to remove Transistor branding from the player.

Pricing

It starts at $19/month for unlimited podcasts, private podcasts, live customer support, a built-in podcast website, and more.

7. Libsyn

Libsyn has the tools to help you get started regardless of your level of podcasting expertise. It assists you in recording, publishing, distributing, and monetizing your podcasts.

The best part? You can host both audio and video podcasts on Libsyn.

To get started with Libsyn, you’ll have to provide a few details, including podcast title, subtitle, description, category, owner’s name & email, author, website URL, and more.

The below image shows what the Libsyn podcast settings look like:

You can also add your own artwork to your podcast. Click “Add artwork” or drag and drop the images in the upload area. Suppose you don’t have your artwork ready. In that case, you can design one on Canva – Libsyn’s integration with Canva makes creating a professional-looking podcast cover simple without any graphic design experience.

Once you are ready with everything, publish your podcast and distribute it to the platforms where your listeners could be, such as Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Play Music.

Libsyn gives you more ways to make money with your podcast, including advertising and subscriptions. For example, you can pitch to the big advertisers on Libsyn’s AdvertiseCast Marketplace or build a community of members who get exclusive access to your content.

Antreas Koutis, Administrative Manager at Financer, shares his experience with Libsyn,

“When I started podcasting on the side, I wasn’t sure which hosting platform to use. There are a lot of options out there, and it can be overwhelming to try to figure out which one is the best. After trying out a few different platforms, I found that I liked Libsyn the best.

It was easy to use and had all the features that I was looking for. I also liked the fact that they offered unlimited storage and bandwidth, which was important to me since I wanted to be able to grow my podcast without having to worry about running out of space. The only downside is that it can be a bit expensive, but overall I thought it was the best option for me.”

Other key features include

Its podcast players allow you to drag and drop your uploads, and you can create an episode from any page.
You can also publish your episodes in batches or pre-schedule them.
With Snippets, you can create a description for your podcasts just once and reuse it with every post.
It provides IAB Tech Lab Verified Stats, which means you can trust the accuracy of the data.
Get access to advanced analytics, including an interactive worldwide map, listener app analytics, demographics, and more.

Pros

Podcasting can be a cinch for anyone who starts with Libsyn’s in-depth, step-by-step guides and other valuable resources.
Its integration with Canva helps you design your artwork with ease.

Cons

The basic plan does not offer unlimited storage or uploading hours.
For advanced features, the price is quite high.

Pricing

Starts at $5/month for 3 hours of uploading, 162MB storage, stats snapshot, basic social promotion, unlimited bandwidth, ad-free website, and more.

8. Podcastics

Podcastics is a complete suite of tools for hosting, sharing, and monetizing your podcasts. The prime reason to give Podcastics a try is its 1-month free trial – no credit card required! And you don’t even need the training to use this platform. But if you need assistance, there’s plenty of help in the help section.

It takes just a few clicks to get Podcastincs up and running. The editor is clean and self-explanatory, as shown in the image below. Just follow the steps, and your podcast will be ready in minutes.

Moreover, if you already have your podcasts on the Apple Podcasts platform, you can easily import all of them into your Podcastics account in just two clicks. Simply type your podcast name in the search box and select yours from the list that appears. This will collect and save all your data, such as titles, descriptions, episodes, etc.

Podcastics is also one of the few podcast hosting platforms that allow you to host multiple podcasts with unlimited episodes under one roof.

Once your podcast is up and ready to be distributed, you can share it with the world on major listening platforms such as Spotify, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, and more. Podcastics makes distribution so much easier by automatically creating an RSS feed for you.

Its magic link never misses redirecting your listeners to the correct platform. You can also add QR codes to your magazines or print flyers to get user subscriptions.

Other key features include

You can host multiple podcasts in one account.
It also records heat maps for you with the most and least active time during the week.
The text editor lets you insert links and lists and style your fonts in episode descriptions.
If you are using a free version, you can use your own server to upload your podcasts. Paid plans offer to host by Amazon Servers.
You can also monetize your episodes using Patreon and affiliate programs.
You can segment your podcasts into sessions and assign episode numbers.
You can schedule your podcasts for specific dates & times.

Pros

It saves your time with the duplicate episodes feature; then, you can edit a few details and post another episode in minutes.
Its description snippets eliminate the redundant task of adding a few same elements for each episode.

Cons

Although it contains so many advanced features, newbies can quickly become confused by the program for the same reason.
For the free plan, you have to use your own server.

Pricing

Starts at $8/month for worldwide distribution, easy import, unlimited episodes, private/unlisted episodes, and more.

9. Spreaker

Spreaker comes with a bundle of tools for you to create, distribute, monetize, grow an audience, and track the progress of your podcasts. You can host and monetize your podcasts with programmatic ads from big brands, such as Green Chef, Lego, Swag.com, CareerBuilder, and more.

Spreaker’s how-to guide for podcasting will get you started in no time. Once you have your podcast’s name, length, and format ready, Spreaker Studio will help you record it, add sound effects, and crop or trim your audio. Finally, add the cover art, and you are ready to publish your first podcast on Spreaker.

Martyna Inkielman, Community Manager at PhotoAiD, shares her experience with Spreaker,

“I find Spreaker the best and most reliable platform. My favorite thing about it is that it provides most of the essential features in one place – pretty much everything related to your podcast can be done on Spreaker. It’s also very intuitive, so it’s effortless to use, even for beginner podcasters.”

Martyna mostly has good things to say about Spreaker, but one thing that bothers her – it doesn’t support video podcasting, so she can’t post on YouTube with it.

Other key features include

With Spreaker, you can share your podcasts on Google Podcasts, Amazon, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and iHeartRadio.
For monetizing, Spreaker inserts relevant ads in your podcasts no matter how new your episode is.
For analytics, you can choose the plan for the level of detail you need about your podcast interactions. From downloads to listeners’ geolocation, Spreaker shows you every statistic vital to you.
Spreaker Enterprise offers full-stack audio publishing, single-click distribution to various podcast channels, ad campaign manager, and more.

Pros

You can monetize your podcasts regardless of the size of your audience, the number of downloads, or your account age.
You can see real-time analytics of your podcasts because of their IAB Tech Lab certification.

Cons

Users have reported limited options for customer service.

Pricing

It starts at $8/month for 6-months statistics, 100-hours storage, auto-upload to Spotify, iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, and more.

10. Podomatic

Podomatic allows you to build your podcasting career in four easy steps: create a free account, record and publish, submit your podcast to big podcast platforms such as Spotify, and keep repeating.

To upload media, you must first add it to Podomatic’s library of supported file formats. It supports file formats including m4a, mp3, mp4, BMP, jpg, png, mp4, m4v, and more.

Podomatic will store your audio and video files in an unpublishable section if they are larger than 350MB, lack an extension, or has an unsupported extension.

To upload a podcast, you only need to determine the title, tagline, cover art, description, category, tags, and language. Then, once published, you can start monetizing it using Patreon, Popcorn, and What For Apparel ads.

You can also get stats on your podcast, including total plays, mobile plays, embeds, downloads, visits, and more. The service goes further into analytics to show your performance over a selected period of time, the performance of individual episodes, and listeners’ graphs.

Other key features include

You can store up to 6 hours of recording (free) or 500MB of files.
It gives you 15GB of bandwidth for a month.
It also offers free tracking of your podcasts daily.

Pros

You don’t pay for your first 20 episodes.
Its premium plans are affordable.
Premium plans offer unlimited bandwidth and storage.
Be it a computer or mobile – you can record and publish high-quality episodes.

Cons

It doesn’t allow the scheduling of episodes.

Pricing

Starts at $2.49/month for 100GB bandwidth, 2GB storage, and more.

11. Blubrry

Blubrry is a podcast hosting platform where you find easy podcast migration from other platforms, live customer support, and in-depth statistics. Blurry is also ready to host your single podcast or a whole slew of them.

With Blubrry, you can get more than just a podcast hosting service. You can grow your audience and connect with listeners by using Podcast Audience Surveys. These surveys give you valuable information about your audience, allowing you to develop a more robust publishing strategy.

For instance, you can see who completed your surveys and see their entire profile with information like identification, age, employment, education, demographics, audience’s listening habits, feedback, and more.

Once you’ve got all these metrics in place, you can then use them to compare and contrast with one another to come up with a more robust publishing strategy. This is something that no other podcast hosting platform does.

Blubrry also offers a free and optional managed WordPress website – designed with all the necessary modules a podcast website needs. In addition, this site automates podcast publishing on your website by using PowerPress Plugin.

And if you’re not looking to host an entire website, Blubrry offers a podcast landing page with a quick display of the show and listen and subscription module.

Want to further know where your listeners are coming from and which device they’re using? Blubrry Stats can help you analyze all of that!

However, it’s worth noting that Blubrry’s Standard plan is so basic that you can’t even use your own domain with it. It doesn’t come with advanced statistics or additional themes and plugins either – so be prepared to buy a pricier plan if you want all of those features.

Other key features include

It allows private podcasting for secured delivery of audio and video to any device.
It comes with a podcast media kit – which gives you an overview of your podcast performance.
It also lets you choose your own logo, branding, and theme.
You can also use your own domain with its advanced plan.

Pros

Additional storage is available for an extra charge.
Listeners’ survey helps build a closer connection with the audience.
Its visual reports are detailed and easy to understand.

Cons

Both paid plans offer minimal storage. The maximum is as little as 400MB.

Pricing

It starts at $10/month for 125MB storage, standard statistics, monetization, email and phone support, unlimited downloads, a custom embedded player, and more.

12. Captivate.fm

Captivate takes pride in its simple, easy-to-use dashboard that covers all the necessary functions and metrics to create, distribute, monetize, and promote your podcast.

Although it does not come for free, the range of hosting features and storage and upload capacities makes the price worth it. Captivate is designed by podcasters for podcasters, so it knows about their needs.

Creating a podcast in Captivate is a 5-step process. First, you’ll need the podcast name, author name, podcast cover art, description, category, directory setting, and more. Once you have all the necessary details, you can start importing your podcast into the Captivate Dashboard.

Then copy your current RSS feed into the current feed URL box and choose the current host—and voila! You are ready to go.

As soon as you publish your first episode, your podcast can be listed on one of the directories that Captivate integrates with.

With Captivate Analytics, you can see total downloads, total listeners, unique listeners, website traffic, listener demographic, and more.

It also offers responsive podcast websites where you can select from 3 templates, add bios, sign-up forms, lead generation modules, and more.

Nina Paczka, Community Manager at Resume Now, shares her experience with Captivate.fm,

“What I like the most is their dashboard – minimalistic yet providing everything you need. If you’re experiencing some trouble, Captivate’s team is there to support you. Considering the above, there’s nothing to dislike there. The platform offers a seven-day free trial. All paid plans cover unlimited podcasts and team members, with access to analytics and marketing tools.”

Other key features include

Each plan offers unlimited podcasts and unlimited storage.
You can import, add, and edit podcast transcriptions within Captivate thanks to its support of podcasting 2.0.
It offers an international support team of 11 that covers four time zones, which means no matter where you are, their customer support will always be available.
It offers Advanced IAB Tech Lab-certified podcast analytics to all podcasters.

Pros

Their blog section is the source for every little question you could have while you are using this platform.
Analytics goes deeper with each metric giving you a complete picture of your podcast performance.
It offers a 7-day trial with all the features.

Cons

It does not offer a free version.

Pricing

Starts at $17/month for 12K downloads, unlimited podcasts, unlimited uploads & storage, podcasting 2.0 support, and more.

13. Sounder

Sounder is another podcast platform on this list that offers tools to monetize, analyze, and promote your podcast across global directories. It follows IAB & GARM industry standards to generate accurate episode ratings, transcripts, keywords, summaries, and more within seconds.

You can create your podcast on Sounder either from scratch or by importing it from an existing platform. Once you sign-up for a free account, you can start with the podcast by entering details such as title, description, category, and artwork.

You can tinker with many more details, including your podcast’s name and description, author name, language, timezone, and more. While setting up these details, you can enable monetization by simply clicking on the relevant option. And that’s it!

Now you can create an episode by uploading an audio file and adding its title and description. Here you can set episode numbers, types, and artwork. You can also pre-schedule them.

If you’ve enabled monetization, you can select whether pre or post-rolls ads should go to your show.

Once you publish your podcast, Sounder will help you distribute it to popular listening apps such as Spotify, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, iHeartRadio, Amazon Music, Pandora, and more.

With Sounder Analytics Dashboard, you can get insights into streams, listeners, revenue, listeners’ demographics, keywords, referrals, and more.

Other key features include

You can have up to four collaborators on your podcast.
You can publish your podcasts under custom domains.
It comes with a podcast player with audio search functionality.
You can host unlimited podcasts in one account.
If you have 50K+ streams per month, you can get early access to host-read DAI opportunities.

Pros

Unlimited podcasts.
Offers a free version for limited features.
UI is clean and intuitive.

Cons

Only offers audio podcasting.
You cannot create membership programs.

Pricing

Available on request.

14. Fusebox

If you’re looking for an affordable podcast hosting platform, then Fusebox is the tool for you! It’s also pretty easy to use and provides a step-by-step guide through the entire process.

To start a podcast using Fusebox, you need to choose whether you’re starting a new podcast or importing from an existing one. In the below image, you can see that the UI is straightforward and easy to follow, even for newbies to podcasting.

If you’re creating your podcast from scratch, you must be ready with the details, such as the podcast title, description, and cover artwork.

Here’s what the form will look like:

You can also import data from your existing podcast by simply entering your feed RSS URL. It will lead you to the subscription page, where you can select a free or pro plan.

If you’re a new user of Fusebox or creating a podcast for the first time, you should enable Easy Hosting from your dashboard. It comes in every paid subscription.

Here, Fusebox will find your podcast and import all the files and data into your Fusebox account – you can just sit back and relax.

Once you’ve set up podcast information, you can start customizing your podcast player. The Branding page lets you select the brand colors that match your podcast or website branding.

You can also add a call to action – a button that prompts listeners to buy your music or sign up for your mailing list.

You can further:

Control the speed of the player
Add a download button and subscribe button
Include a custom URL that sends listeners directly to your online store when they click on the cover art in their iTunes library.

Other key features include

Customizable podcast players will help you stay aligned with your branding.
Fusebox focuses on the metrics that count, such as downloads, referral sources, and top-performing podcasts and episodes.
The easy hosting feature comes with step-by-step instructions to create podcasts.
The built-in mobile player allows you to target listeners on the go.
The podcast player comes with a download, subscribe, and social sharing buttons.
It offers three types of podcast players – including sticky player, full player, and single player.

Pros

Its podcast players are customizable.
Easy, self-guided UI.

Cons

The free version forces you to use your own host and gives you a single-track player with limited customization features.
The starter plan includes only single-track players. To offer the rest of the players to your listeners, you’ll have to upgrade to the Pro plan.

Pricing

Starts at $7.50/month for a single track player, essential analysis, easy hosting, and more.

15. RSS.com

Rss.com is a podcasting app for people on the go. It’s like a Swiss army knife for busy podcasters, with features such as cross-platform analytics, automatic podcast distribution, and unlimited audio storage.

You can start by creating your podcast from scratch or importing it from an existing podcast platform. Both are super easy. To create from scratch, you will need to enter its title, description, language, and more.

Check out the image below to see what you will need:

As you can see, the UI is clean, easy to use, and self-explanatory. Every field is explained as you fill it out, and tips appear onscreen if you need more information. Once you create your podcast, you’re ready to upload your first episode.

The good thing about episodes is that they can be assigned season numbers, episode numbers, and types – giving you the flexibility to publish your episodes in the form of different series or trailers.

If you want to monetize your podcast, you’re in luck – RSS has in-built tools for that. The activation process is also easy and just takes one click.

Rss.com offers you three ways to monetize your podcasts: donations, bitcoin payments, and sponsor ads.

You can also distribute your podcast to listening platforms such as Google, Amazon, Spotify, Samsung, Amazon Music, and more.

Other key features include

Its all-in-one dashboard shows you a complete picture of your podcasts. You can see scheduled episodes and navigate to your podcasts, analytics, distribution, or settings. You can also create a new episode from the dashboard.
Its cross-platform analytics enables you to compare the metrics from different sources. For example, you can determine which podcast channel gives you more listeners or downloads.
It uses podcasting 2.0 – which means you can transcribe your audio and use them for SEO purposes.
From analytics, you can determine the best time to publish your episode and schedule it for the right time.
With its embedded episode player, you can easily embed your podcast to any third-party website.
You can get more reach using social share buttons on your podcast players.

Pros

You can add chapters and soundbites to your episodes.
You can schedule episodes in advance.
Your podcasts are automatically distributed to popular podcast platforms.
It offers a free podcast website.
Each plan includes a free trial with no credit card.
Affordable plans.

Cons

Does not support mobile apps.
No forever-free plan.
Does not support any WP plugin.

Pricing

It starts at $4.99/month for unlimited episodes & audio, cross-platform analysis, RSS feed, free website, custom embedded player, and more.

Frequently Asked Questions about Podcast Hosting Platforms

1. What is a podcast hosting platform?

Podcast hosting platforms are the middleman between you and your audience. They’re a necessary part of the podcast ecosystem — they provide the basic infrastructure that makes it possible for you to create and publish your show.

2. How do I choose a podcast hosting platform?

There are many factors to consider when choosing a podcast hosting platform, including:

Cost – How much does it cost to use the platform? Paid services don’t always offer better features than free ones, but they may come with more support options or other perks.

Features – What does the platform offer in terms of features? Does it have things like automated episode creation, automatic distribution, social media integration, and more?

Support – How good is their support team? Can you reach them if you need help?

Bandwidth – The amount of data that can be transferred from one location to another in a certain amount of time (usually measured in bits per second). The more bandwidth available on your account, the more listeners will be able to download your episodes without having their connection interrupted or experiencing any buffering issues.
A built-in audio player – This allows listeners to listen to your episodes without having to download an external app or visit another website. You can even add social sharing buttons so people can easily share your episode on Facebook or Twitter.

3. Do I need to use a podcast hosting platform?

If you’re just starting out, then it might be easier for you to use a podcast hosting platform because there are so many options available. However, if you have some experience with WordPress, then you can host your own podcast to avoid paying monthly fees and have more control over your content and website design.

4. How does podcast hosting work?

Podcast hosting services provide a platform to upload your audio files as well as convert them into an MP3 format. After uploading your content, it will be available on their servers so that anyone can access them online.

Most of these services also offer some basic analytics and statistics that help you track how many people have listened to your podcast and where they live.

Some even offer more advanced analytics like ranking charts, number of downloads per episode, etc., which helps you understand what people like about your show and how they listen to it (e.g., through mobile devices).

5. What do you mean by “Hosting?”

Hosting refers to storing your files on the Internet. It’s like storing your files on an external hard drive, except that they’re stored online rather than on a physical device. When you upload an episode to a podcast hosting platform, it will be saved there so that listeners can access it easily.

6. How do I upload my podcast?

You need to sign up for an account with a podcast hosting platform (like Libsyn). Once you have your account set up, there is usually an upload tool that allows you to select the files from your computer and add them to your account.

7. What are the best podcast hosting platforms?

Libsyn, Buzzsprout, Blubrry, and PodBean are all popular options for podcasters. It really comes down to personal preference and what type of features you’re looking for. You can also check out our post on how to choose a podcast host if you need more information on making this decision.

8. Can I use iTunes or Stitcher?

No, those aren’t podcast hosting platforms — they’re directories that people use to find podcasts. You’ll need to host your own MP3 files off-site so that they can be accessed by these directories (and other apps/devices).

9. Do I need a website?

No! Your podcast will be hosted on a website provided by the platform you choose, so you don’t need your own domain name or web hosting account. You may want to create an email address for your show so listeners can contact you directly with questions or feedback, though.

10. What are the different types of podcast hosting?

There are two main types of podcast hosting: free and paid. Free hosts do not give you full control over your episodes, while paid hosts usually offer more features and flexibility.

Ready to start podcasting with a suitable podcast host?

Hopefully, we’ve answered a few of your questions and given you the information you need to help you pick the right podcast host for your needs. Whether you’re looking for the best professional podcast host, the cheapest option for monetizing your podcasts, or something in between, there are podcast hosting sites out there that will help you meet your specific requirements.

We think the best way to choose whichever podcast hosting service is right for you is to check out how they handle certain features and what level of support they offer.

Note that free podcast hosting services are a great way to get your podcast started. The free option is perfect for a hobbyist or someone who is interested in the process of making a podcast. From there, you can upgrade to paid accounts for a more dedicated podcast hosting service with some of these platforms or go with a self-hosted option.

Whichever you choose, make sure you read the fine print, so your podcast isn’t censored for inappropriate content or hurt yourself by not having the proper legal disclaimers in place.

Featured image by Freepik.

The post 15 Best Podcast Hosting Platforms first appeared on Webdesigner Depot.

2 novembre 2022/par Service comm.

3 Best Website Uptime Monitoring Tools

An unreliable, semi-broken and unresponsive website is an excellent way to lose leads and visitors — regardless of how aesthetically pleasing or well-designed, the visual elements are.

Over the past decade, we’ve seen more initiative to deliver faster internet to regions of the world that were previously devoid of it. With online communities expanding and more people becoming receptive to online shopping, ensuring your site’s dependability is now more important than ever.

One way to achieve this is by employing uptime and downtime monitoring tools. This guide will examine the best ways to get alerts when something goes wrong and your website falters.

Why Is Website Uptime Monitoring Important?

Downtime is bound to occur occasionally. Nonetheless, the goal is to minimize it. The longer the downtime occurs, the more traffic and potential clients you lose. A dysfunctional website is also detrimental to your credibility and reputation. People may associate your website’s unreliability with your real-world products or services.

With web developers charging an average of $200 per hour, high-quality websites can be expensive to build and maintain. Nevertheless, it’s often worth the investment. However, an unreliable website can backfire on you. Instead of attracting more customers, it could potentially repel them. This can result in lost revenue.

An uptime monitoring solution can help you prevent or reduce these losses. It verifies if your website is up and functional and notifies you if it’s not. This allows you to troubleshoot the issue and get your website back up and running as soon as you’re alerted. The most common issues behind your website’s downtime include:

Server faults;
Network outages;
Power outage;
Traffic spikes;
Cyberattacks;
Domain name issues;
An erroneous web application deployment;
Increased server loads;
DNS Resolve issues;
Human error.

Thus, you must employ a dependable tool that detects downtime or any interruptions related to your website as soon as they occur. They are must-have tools for web designers, developers, and network administrators. However, not all of them are built the same. So how do you identify the best uptime monitoring tools?

Essential Features of Uptime Monitoring Tools

Uptime monitoring tools typically detect interruptions by running network tests such as pings and trace routes. You could practically monitor your website’s uptime by constantly running these tests yourself.

However, this isn’t an efficient way to monitor your website’s uptime. A comprehensive uptime monitoring tool will automatically monitor your website’s uptime in the background. It will then alert you through various channels as soon as it senses that your website may be down.

Furthermore, high-quality uptime monitoring solutions tend to offer additional information regarding your website’s uptime/downtime and its performance. These tools commonly feature dashboards, status pages, badges, exportable records, etc., to help you keep track of your site’s overall health.

9 Best Features of an Uptime Monitoring Solution

The ideal uptime monitoring tool or service should feature:

Website security features that notify of and repel potential cyber attacks;
24/7 uninterrupted background website monitoring;
Multi-channel alerts (email, SMS, push notifications, instant messages, social media, etc.);
Report generation;
24/7 customer support available through different channels (email, phone, chat, etc.);
Be capable of monitoring multiple websites and proxies at the same time;
Offer insights and suggestions to improve your website’s performance;
Be affordable;
High customizability should allow you to choose which features to enable and disable.

Another optional feature to look out for is public status pages that your clients can access to determine if all your services are up and running. GetWeave is an excellent example of this. The website features a well-organized systems status page where customers can check if all of Weave’s services are functional.

Nevertheless, you can use the above information as a buying guide when assessing potential uptime monitoring tools. The rest of this guide will supply a few suggestions as to which tools you should use for your website.

3 Best Website Uptime Monitoring Tools

Some of the best uptime monitoring tools for website downtime alerts include:

1. Uptrends

Uptrends isn’t just a downtime detection tool; it’s a complete web performance monitoring solution. It will notify you as soon as it detects any disturbance in your website’s performance. It features highly customizable checks. For instance, you can set performance check limits for load times. Uptrends will notify you instantly if your website takes too long to load.

You can also configure from which locations you want it to monitor your website. Uptrends will then point you to where your website usually suffers performance dips in the real world.

The service uses multiple communication channels to send users notifications: email, phone calls, and SMS. Alternatively, you can download one of Uptrend’s mobile applications and receive push notifications. Additionally, you can integrate Uptrends with messaging and communication applications such as PagerDuty, Slack, and Microsoft Teams.

Another impressive Uptrend feature is its ability to emulate your website’s performance on different browsers. It runs Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, and Microsoft Edge on its servers. Thus, you can compare how your website runs on these web browsers without installing them on your servers or computer.

Uptrends supplies users with various charts, reports, and graphs to help identify sudden spikes or dips. Waterfall reports display the complete page-load from the initial request to the last download. This allows you to compare the history of your website’s performance element by element. It comes with three price plans whose costs depend on the number of monitors you would like. Starting at $16.21 (at the time of writing) the Starter Plan is the most affordable.

2. Oh Dear

Oh Dear is a slightly cheaper option than Uptrends, with the most affordable plan starting at $12 per month (at the time of writing). However, while Uptrends offers a 30-day free trial, Oh Dear only provides a 12-day trial period. Nevertheless, Oh Dear’s interface is a lot cleaner and more minimal.

Since Oh Dear runs servers in different locations across the globe, it can track how your website performs in various regions. Oh Dear will scan through your website and index all the pages. If it detects any issues, it will alert you immediately.

Oh Dear also features a continuous certificate monitoring function. Site owners who are concerned with their website’s security may find this feature to be especially useful. It will verify your SSL certificate expiration dates and alert you of any changes.

Oh Dear’s public status page enables your clients to keep track of your website’s availability.

Oh Dear uses email and SMS text messages to alert site owners of any issues. It also features integrations with communications and social media applications such as Telegram, Discord, Slack, Microsoft Teams, etc. Oh Dear ensures that messages are as detailed and user-friendly. This makes it easier to troubleshoot and find the origin of your problem. Oh Dear is more than a worthy alternative to Uptrends.

3. WP Umbrella

WP Umbrella is a little different from the previous entries. It’s intended to help users manage and monitor multiple WordPress sites. Thus, it is far more particularized in its approach to website uptime monitoring. Again, as is the primary function of the uptime monitoring tool, it offers a real-time alert system that will contact you through email, SMS, Slack, etc.

WP Umbrella employs a simple minimal UI. Its main screen consists of a dashboard that allows you to view all your WordPress websites. By default, this dashboard features four columns: Site, Uptime, Speed, and Issues.

WP Umbrella will alert you of any outdated or erroneous plugins or themes. While it doesn’t offer dedicated public status pages, it does have a client report generation feature. You can automatically send these reports to your various subscribers or clients when your website is down.

WP Umbrella is the most affordable option on this list. Users are charged $1.99 per month (at the time of writing) for each website monitored. In addition, WP Umbrella offers a 14-day trial and does not require your credit card details. It’s an excellent option for anyone running a WordPress website or two.

Conclusion

This guide has only explored three possible uptime monitoring solutions. They won’t only assist you in detecting downtimes, they can also help you find the reason your site may be slow.

These solutions are an excellent place to start. But there are many other options coming to market all the time. You may find that this is the first step to converting more leads and reducing your bounce rate.

The post 3 Best Website Uptime Monitoring Tools first appeared on Webdesigner Depot.

1 juillet 2022/par Service comm.

10 Top WordPress Themes for 2022

If you’re looking for a WordPress theme for your 2022 projects, it never hurts to see what the experts consider to be the best of the bunch. That’s not to say that experts don’t have their favorites. They often do, and we are no different.

We’ve tried, successfully, we believe, to avoid any biases we may have in compiling what we believe to be the 10 top WordPress themes going into 2022.

Working with a WordPress theme has the advantage of giving you a great starting point. It makes it much easier to create an attractive website that will charm any visitors who stop by and convince them to linger awhile.

Another advantage of using a theme can be its cost-effectiveness. Most of the popular WordPress themes are reasonably priced, they save you time, and they can save you money as well.

The main problem you’re apt to encounter is finding the right one since many of them are out there. You could spend hours and hours making comparisons among a host of candidates that appear to be reliable and easily customizable. Or you could select from among the following 10 top WordPress themes, all of which are guaranteed to give you your money’s worth and more.

1. BeTheme – The Biggest Multipurpose WordPress Theme with 650+ Pre-Built Websites

BeTheme justifiably lays claim to being the biggest WordPress and WooCommerce theme of all for several reasons.

BeTheme’s 40+ core features give its users a complete tool kit to work with that includes 650+ pre-built websites and tons of design elements, aids, and options.
A 240,000+ customer base also contributes to making this the biggest WordPress theme of them all.

It’s not just about size, of course. Performance is all-important, and BeTheme has it in spades thanks to:

The Muffin Live Builder lets users edit live content visually and create, save, and restore design elements, blocks, and sections.
The WooCommerce Builder helps users design engaging shop and single product layouts and is packed with customer-centric features and options.
Full Elementor compatibility, with 30+ unique design elements and 120+ dedicated pre-built websites.
Assurance that every website is 100% responsive.
The Muffin Builder: this old standby is more intuitive than any other page builder on the market.
Regular Updates, plus BeTheme purchasers also receive free lifetime updates.

Click on the banner. There’s much, much more to see.

2. Total WordPress Theme

Total is aptly named because of the tools it gives its users; tools that include a premium page builder, demo and template libraries, an assortment of design and layout options, and cool navigation features.

The premium page builder is an extended version of the popular WPBakery frontend drag and drop page builder. Slider Revolution, another premium design aide, also comes with the package.
Design options include more than 500 live customizer options and 100+ customizable builder blocks, page builder block animation capabilities, custom backgrounds, and custom title backgrounds.
Layout options range from boxed and full-width and dynamic layouts to page and post designs and one-page site layouts.
Header styles, local scroll menus, and mobile menu styles contribute to website navigation capabilities.

Total is easy to set up and work with, plus it is 100% responsive. Click on the banner to find out more.

3. WoodMart

WoodMart is a premium WordPress theme that has been designed from the ground up to enable its users to create superlative WooCommerce online stores. WoodMart doesn’t require the use of multiple plugins as the most important tools, and features users simply must have come right out of the box.

They include:

For starters, a supply of 70+ demo layouts, 370 premade sections, plus an extensive template library for Elementor and WP Bakery.
A powerful Theme Settings Panel with a graphics interface to make changes quickly and easily.
AJAX techniques that guarantee the super-fast loading that is so important with multi-product pages and galleries.

WoodMart-built websites are search engine friendly, multilanguage ready, 100% responsive, and RTL and retina ready, and GDPR compliant.

Click on the banner to see what your WooCommerce store could look like.

4. TheGem – Creative Multi-Purpose & WooCommerce WordPress Theme

TheGem is the best-selling theme on ThemeForest, which isn’t surprising since its multiplicity of features has led to it being called the Swiss Army Knife of WordPress themes.

Key features include –

400+ beautiful websites and templates for any purpose or niche.
TheGem Blocks with its 300+ pre-designed section templates to speed up your workflow – a genuine game-changer.
Elementor and WPBakery page builders.
An outstanding collection of WooCommerce templates for any shop type.

5. Uncode – Creative & WooCommerce WordPress Theme

Uncode is a pixel-perfect theme packed with dozens of advanced and unique features designed to produce a pixel-perfect website.

These features include:

An enhanced Page Builder with a juiced-up Frontend editor
A WooCommerce Custom Builder
A wireframes plugin for importing 550+ professionally designed section templates

Uncode has sold more than 85,000 copies to date. It is the ideal WordPress theme for building an impressive blog, portfolio, eCommerce, and magazine sites.

6. Rey Theme for WooCommerce

eCommerce is said to rest on four pillars – filtering, search, navigation, and presentation. This WooCommerce-oriented WordPress theme fully addresses each one. Rey lets you experience design, innovation, and performance in ways you could only dream of before.

There’s:

The powerful and popular Elementor page builder with built-in features supplemented with Rey’s extra spices.
Ajax navigation, including infinite loading.

Rey is multilanguage-ready, obviously responsive, SEO friendly, developer-friendly, and performance-oriented.

7. Avada Theme

One easy way to know you’ve picked the right theme is to select Avada, the #1 best-selling theme of all time, a popular theme that is loved by 450,000+ happy users.

Avada’s Fusion Theme Options, Fusion Page Options, and Fusion Builder will give you more than enough flexibility, while its 40+ free eye-candy demos provide the inspiration.
Avada also gives you easy access to some of the most popular premium plugins.

And that’s just the beginning.

8. Impeka – Creative Multipurpose WordPress Theme

This simply impeccable WordPress theme is filled with potential for the advanced user and, at the same time, easy for a beginner to use. Using Impeka simply involves:

Selecting Elementor, Gutenberg, or an enhanced WPBakery as your page builder.
Using WooCommerce to build your online shop.
Sifting through a multitude of features that include the Mega Menu and Footer and Popup builders.

Your website will be super-attractive, lightning-fast, fully responsive, and SEO perfected.

9. Litho – Multipurpose Elementor WordPress Theme

This popular multipurpose WordPress theme is built with Elementor, the world’s #1-page builder.

Litho can be used to build websites of any type and for any business niche.
It is excellent for building portfolio, blog, and eCommerce websites.
There are 37+ home pages, 200+ creative elements, and 300+ templates to get you started and assist you along the way.

Litho-built websites are fast loading and deliver healthy SEO results.

10. XStore – Best Premium WordPress WooCommerce Theme for eCommerce

You can start with one of XStore’s more than 110 amazing pre-built shops, or start from scratch and let Elementor or WPBakery and more than 550 pre-built blocks help you along the way, together with:

$559 worth of premium plugins.
A Live Ajax theme option.
A header builder and a single product page builder.
A built-in WooCommerce email builder.

You can get this complete and highly customizable WooCommerce theme for an amazing $39.

One of the benefits of using WordPress is the number of great WordPress themes you can work with. Whatever your niche, your target audience, or your skill level may be, there’s a premium WordPress theme out there that looks and feels as though it was made, especially with you in mind.

If you’re planning to create a fresh and beautiful website for 2022, or you want to completely rebuild an existing one, or simply make some design changes, this roundup of the most popular and the best WordPress themes in the market is meant for you. And we really mean it!

This is a sponsored post.

The post 10 Top WordPress Themes for 2022 first appeared on Webdesigner Depot.

18 janvier 2022/par Service comm.

10 Cool WordPress Plugins You Should Check Out

If you have a WordPress website, you’re obviously aware of the benefits this premier open-source website-building platform brings to the table.

But are you aware of the legion of website and business enhancement tools lying in wait among the thousands of cool WordPress plugins currently on the market; one or more of which could easily take your site or business to the next level?

What’s out there? Quite a bit, obviously.

Which useful WordPress plugins are “must-haves” for me? It could take you a ton of time to find the answer to that one.

That’s what we’re here for.

10 essential WordPress plugins are admittedly a small sample size. But these are 10 of the very best, and we’re guessing that one or more of them could be just what you’ve been looking for.

1. Amelia WordPress Booking Plugin

This game-changing booking plugin fully automates your business’s interaction with existing and potential clients and allows you to focus on key business operations instead of having to constantly interrupt your workflow to manage appointments.

Installing and configuring Amelia can be done with just a few clicks. You don’t have to know anything about coding.
Amelia can manage an unlimited number of appointments for an unlimited number of clients, an unlimited number of employees, and at multiple locations.
Clients can book appointments 24/7 and manage their own appointments as well as their profiles from the front end.
Amelia accepts deposit payments, sends out appointment reminders, and can charge different rates for different appointments.
If you have a global clientele, Amelia takes into account customer time zones as well as manages translated notifications if you have a multilingual site.
Amelia also manages event bookings, whether they are recurring or one-time.

In the unlikely event you encounter a problem with Amelia, the customer support team stands ready to help.

2. wpDataTables

The wpDataTables WordPress plugin allows users to quickly and easily create responsive, interactive, and highly customizable tables and charts from large amounts of data.

Key features include:

The ability to create tables that allow front-end editing, whether they are created manually or are MySQL-based
Advanced filtering capabilities that enable front-end users to filter table data by single or multiple column values
Automatic syncing of created and published Google Sheets
Simple wpDataTables wizards to access the HighCharts, Chart.js, and Google free charts libraries

wpDataTables’ many other features include:

Connection support to MySQL, MS SQL, and PostgreSQL databases
Responsive design from any data source
Creating tables from CSV, JSON, MySQL, and Excel and Google spreadsheet data
Formidable Forms plugin support
Sorting by single or multiple columns
Data color-coding using conditional formatting

More than 50,000 companies and individuals have placed their trust in wpDataTables.

3. Visual Composer Website Builder

Visual Composer is a new, ReactJS-based intuitive drag and drop website builder that enables you to create a website quickly, easily, and hassle-free.

This website-building popular plugin:

Enables business owners to showcase their brand online with its drag and drop editor and professional templates.
Its feature-rich design controls enable designers to achieve pixel-perfect perfection as they bring their projects to life.
Its top-of-the-line marketing content elements give its users the ability to create high-conversion landing pages, integrate with social platforms, and more.
Makes building a beautiful WooCommerce-based online store a piece of cake.
Features a library of 500+ content elements and templates that is downloadable from the cloud
Offers free and premium versions for business owners to start easily and scale their online presence

Your site will be SEO-friendly, fast, and responsive, and the support is terrific. Free and Premium versions (Starting at $49) are available.

4. Slider Revolution

Slider Revolution can do more than create sliders. A lot more.

It can add impressive (read that WOW) effects to an already notable website design.
It can give you new and unusual visual editing capabilities without requiring any coding on your part.
With its collection of hero blocks, sliders, WooCommerce carousels, and more, it brings beauty to any WordPress website.

5. Logic Hop

Logic Hop lets you customize your site’s content for individual customers or customer types.

Logic Hop supports personalizing your site in response to dozens of criteria so you can tailor your content to address a unique audience.
Logic Hop works with Gutenberg, Divi, Elementor, Beaver Builder, and every other page builder.

Any design or content element you can customize in WordPress can be customized in Logic Hop in minutes.

6. Stacks

The Stacks drag and drop native mobile app builder offers a full package of features to help you design your website or mobile app without coding.

Stacks works perfectly with WooCommerce and WordPress
Certificates required for Google Play Store or Apple Appstore are automatically generated
It takes but a single click to generate and upload the Android & iOS Application Package (APK & IPA)
Notifications to customers are easy to generate and send, and Stacks utilizes WooCommerce payment gateways.

7. Heroic Inbox

The Heroic Inbox plugin enables a business to manage all of its emails in shared inboxes right inside WordPress.

Customer data is presented on the sidebar next to your ongoing chat or message.
Key performance metrics are tracked so the team and overall company performance can be assessed.
Zero Inbox status can be quickly achieved and maintained.

8. Tablesome

This powerful WordPress table plugin allows you to quickly create a table and embed it in a post or page.

Tables can be imported from CSV and XLSX files.
Types of tables that can be created include large data tables, product catalogs, comparison tables, sports statistics, and more.
A shortcode builder for table and table element customizing is included

Tablesome is performance-optimized and SEO friendly and works smoothly with any WordPress theme.

9. Ads Pro Plugin – Multi-Purpose WordPress Advertising Manager

Ads Pro is the best ad manager for WordPress you are likely to come across.

Ads Pro features:

An intuitive backend Admin Panel that allows you to manage an unlimited number of ad spaces
A frontend User’s Panel from which you can control access to manage ads
25+ user-friendly and responsive Ad Templates in 8 categories
20 ad display options
3 Billing Models (CPC, CPM, CPD) and 4 Payment Methods (PayPal, Stripe, Bank Transfer, WooCommerce)

10. Static Pages

Static pages/sites do not require any web programming or database design.

The Static Pages plugin allows you to publish any static page on a WordPress website in a matter of seconds.
You can improve sales by adding a beautiful landing page to your existing shop or blog or add a page with a Mailchimp subscribe form.
Or use Static Pages as an easy way to test something quickly and easily.

Have you been searching for a top-of-the-line WordPress plugin that will help you take your business to the next level?

There are 58,000+ useful WordPress plugins for you to choose from. That would be good news, except you could easily be overwhelmed trying to find just the right plugin for your website.

This post features a collection of top plugins for WordPress websites. Chances are good, you’ll find something here that will make your day.

[– This is a sponsored post on behalf of BAW media –]

The post 10 Cool WordPress Plugins You Should Check Out first appeared on Webdesigner Depot.