“It’s the economy, stupid!” This phrase gained fame from the political strategist, James Carville, who was trying to describe what voters cared about in 1992. We’re not even going to dip our toe into today’s political maelstrom; however, I could not help but think about the strange economic environment we are in today. Perhaps a more apt statement for today would be, “It’s the inflation, stupid!”
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Some industry sectors like e-commerce and mortgage re-fi are getting whacked by the Fed’s determination to slow economic demand and boost unemployment via higher interest rates — think of all those mortgage specialists at Wells Fargo reportedly hiding from looming mass layoffs with Wells Fargo re-fi loan volume down 90% this year.
Other sectors are getting crushed due to changing tech landscapes. For example, Apple has nearly singlehandedly wiped out $900 billion in Facebook’s (Meta) value over the last year, when it made it default that Facebook could not track iPhone users sufficiently enough to support Facebook’s digital ad re-targeting ambitions. Meanwhile, other sectors seem to be doing just fine, like cybersecurity.
I sat in a private equity portfolio conference this past week, and each of the businesses that were reliant on in-person events, supply chain, and/or low borrowing rates had either seen drops in their revenue or profits (or both). Worse still, many had to entirely re-invent their businesses.
After a C-level session with my Wharton colleagues, an informal poll left no consensus as to whether we were in a recession or entering one based on today’s amorphous definition of recession and the unprecedented nature of this strange, post-pandemic economy.
So I’d like to now present my insights on today’s economy (limited only to its relation to our Tech Essentials topic of course).
1. Focus on Profits. You are either in an industry that has slowed or is expected to slow. If so, revenue will decrease. Sure, you might be able to raise prices, but you could also look at cutting costs to compensate.
Think of it this way: For every $10K you spend on eSignature software, if you switch to RSign eSignatures, you can put $5K back into your pocket. RSign runs inside Microsoft Outlook, iManage, NetDocuments, Salesforce, Applied, and more. It generally costs less than half that of other major eSign company services – with no skimping on features, security, or user experience. Plus, RSign is reported by our readers and verified customers to be much friendlier to work with.
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And for every user you move to RMail — since it is one install that does it all — you can reduce your costs for other email encryption and file share services. (Try them free now here.)
2. Strained Staffing Brings on Cybercriminal Opportunities (Cybercriminal Bliss). As your staff becomes more strained (perhaps fewer people needing to each do more), targeted cybercriminal activities become more successful. This is true especially for those criminals who aim to induce mis-payments via human error (i.e., sending money to the cybercrook instead of the true intended recipient). You need RMail’s PRE-Crime services now more than ever, and below are some of its key features to combat what techies call Business Email Compromise attacks. (Try free now here.)
RMail’s Email Eavesdropping™ alerts show you in real-time which email accounts are being eavesdropped on, whether it’s the sender, recipient or future forwarded recipient in addition to all the metadata related to the eavesdropping activity. These alerts are packaged clearly for further IT expert analysis and response. Plus, this service can be enabled on any outbound email from any device without need for plugins or changes to other inbound or outbound security gateways.
RMail’s Lookalike Domain™ alerts run inside Microsoft Outlook. These alerts protect against both human error and tricky cybercriminal lures that exploit how the human mind processes information (e.g., using domains that appear to be those of a trusted real estate transaction participant but are, in fact, one letter off).
3. Click on Ten Happy Articles on Your Phone. Ok, so this one is a bit on the lighter, fluffier side, but each article on your phone that you click on generates more articles in the same genre to be emailed or displayed to you. If you click on ten feel good articles, you will enter a circle of positivity. We guarantee you’ll enjoy your weekend more!
As stated, these economic times are unlike any in recent memory, so business uncertainty currently reigns supreme. Whether or not we are technically in a recession is almost academic. Cutting costs while effectively adding superior services will be the inflation hedge what will make you and your company look the exact opposite of stupid.
Please contact us to learn more about RMail and RSign.
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