Happy 2018! This first post of the year is a fun one and is perhaps overdue, since chatbots really came into their own many months ago. I kinda thought my readers would already know about them, but a pithy discussion on my Facebook page showed me that this would be a great topic. What is a chatbot? According to the …
Money-Saving Chatbots with a Cute Factor
Digit Delightful Text-Based Savings Chatbot Penny Text-Based Budget Chatbot with an Attitude Since this week is all about chatbots, I just had to share two of my favorites. These money-saving chatbots are so much fun! Both Digit and Penny are chatbots that work through text messaging. Penny presents itself as an adorable girl named, well, Penny, who tracks your expenses, …
The Equifax Data Breach Is Bad. Really.
Sometimes data breach news is kinda overhyped. The notice that credit-reporting company Equifax had a breach that affects up to 143 million consumers is not #fakenews. This is serious stuff, folks. (Click here for closed-captioned video) Here’s What’s Happening Hackers broke into Equifax and stole personal information from up to 143 million consumers — the vast majority in the U.S. …
All about Digital Wallets and Mobile Pay
A couple of weeks ago, two members of our community asked questions about tap-and-pay mobile wallets. So I’ve been doing a little research to give you a short guide to how to use your phone to pay at retail stores. To be honest, I don’t use mobile pay often. I simply forget I have it, and I end up pulling …
Nerdwords: Top 10 Office Apps
A guest post from Molly Gardner, Beth Z’s business manager. Working for Beth, a lot of apps and tools come across my desk. The ones you see here are my favorite tools that I use in the office day in and day out. This is the technology that keeps Nerd Headquarters running smoothly and Beth on the road bringing new ideas …
Best Apps for the New Year
Now that you’ve cleared the deck of all your other New Year’s Resolutions, you might consider adding “Get Organized” to your digital to-do list. Every one of these tools will help save you time (and money!) so you can concentrate on your work and get ready for a great year. Here are 10 tech tools to help you organize several areas …
Slice: Track packages with zero effort
You sent a new Lego set for your nephew’s 9th birthday, and he knows it’s coming. So he calls you. And texts you. And calls again. “Where is my present, Auntie Beth?” A time-tested app has the answer in a couple of clicks. When you sign up for Slice, the service sweeps through your emails looking for phrases like “your …
FileThis Fetch: Automated statement downloads
Around tax time, my husband and I are always behind, and one of the things we put off the longest is downloading all the bank and credit card statements. We sit across the table from one another and scowl, spending way too long on this menial task. That’s why I was SO EXCITED to discover a new tool called FileThis, …
Expense Management and Accounting: Expensify, Shoeboxed and Wave Accounting
(This post goes really well with this one!) OK, ’fess up. Do you have a pile of wrinkled, stained, faded receipts sitting around your office that you’re supposed to do something with? It’s time to take control with these receipt management tools. All things considered, my favorite receipt management tool is still Shoeboxed, even though there are less expensive alternatives …
NerdWords Yearbook: My holiday gift to you
My dear readers, People I meet during my presentations tell me that they treasure their copies of NerdWords, my weekly newsletter with tech tools and tips. Many say they save them for reference, which gave me a brilliant idea for a gift to you, my fellow nerds. I spent the last few weeks compiling all the tech tools from every …
FastDue.com – Free Online Accounting with Contract Template Library
I’ve written before about Microsoft Office Accounting Express, which is an awesome free accounting tool (and a Beth Favorite) that works like QuickBooks, at least for amateurs like me. Someone sent me a link to FastDue, which is intriguing as well. It’s got the same kind of invoicing capabilities and also lets you accept PayPal. But the coolest thing is …
Mint.com: Free online money manager
I love it when people share their favorite free tools with me. Shanna, who provided the recommendation, started using Mint.com for her personal expense tracking. The system takes you a few minutes to set up, and then all of your expenses and income are aggregated to the same place. Mint makes its money by providing recommendations that could save you …
Recent Comments