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We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. You know that I love a good running watch, but there’s a soft spot in my heart for the more lifestyle-y Garmin Vivoactive 5. It’s a sleek touchscreen watch with plenty of fitness features, and it’s going for as little as $209 today in Amazon’s Big Spring Sale. The original price of the Vivoactive 5 is $299, and depending on the color you want, you can get it for somewhere between $209 and $219 in today’s sale. It’s available in black, white, navy blue, and orchid purple. Garmin Vivoactive 5 GPS Smartwatch With AMOLED Display (Black) $209.00 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $299.99 Save $90.99 Get Deal Get Deal $209.00 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $299.99 Save $90.99 This watch is one of the most underrated out there, in my opinion. It beat out the Pixel Watch 3 in my comparison of the two watches, due to its week-long battery life and built-in fitness features. Its GPS accuracy is great, and while its heart rate accuracy is only OK, it can connect to a chest strap for the best possible data. (Pixels and Fitbits cannot.) The Vivoactive 5 uses a touchscreen for most of its functions, but still has two buttons that you can use to start and lap an activity—essential for when you’re fumbling around at the end of a hard interval. During everyday use, it’s sleek and simple, with fitness features and stats only a swipe or button press away. The aesthetic is a bit more fashionable than something like a Forerunner; where the Forerunner is chunky and sporty, the Vivoactive 5 will blend in nicely with a regular (i.e., non-sweatpants-based) outfit. Heck, get the black or white model, and pair it with a fancier-looking strap for a further visual upgrade. The Vivoactive 5 takes standard 20-millimeter watch bands. On the other hand, if you’re looking for something with more running-specific features, consider the Garmin Forerunner 165, which is a similar price right now at $225 (normally $249). Or lean into the smartwatch features with a Venu 3, which is slightly larger and has some extra features, like the ability to take calls from your wrist if your phone is nearby. The Venu 3 is $410 today, normally $449. Shopping for tech? Lifehacker can help you make the right decision. Browse our tech reviews and head-to-head comparisons for everything from laptops and smartwatches to e-bikes and home gyms. Subscribe to our deals newsletter, Add to Cart, for the best sales sent to your inbox, or browse our best-of lists directly on Amazon, including: The Best Over-Ear Headphones The Best Wireless Earbuds The Best Adjustable Dumbbell Sets The Best Projectors View the full article

Nearly all respondents to the NextGen survey, Gen Z and millennial, said they want to achieve homeownership, but only about 60% considered it possible. View the full article

If you’ve ever run an ad campaign, you know that keyword costs can quickly eat up your budget. This is especially true if you’re not strategic about your selections. Of course, you can’t control all the factors that determine pricing. But you can reduce costs by choosing the right keywords and creating experiences that convert. Take digital marketing agency Turn Key Lead, for example. They reduced a mortgage bank client’s cost per conversion in Google Ads by 30% in seven days. Source How’d they do it? Through keyword and landing page optimization—tactics you’ll master today. In this guide, you’ll learn: How to find keyword costs using proven tools Optimization tactics to reduce spend and choose high-performing keywords Expert insights from Andrew Peluso of Bananas Marketing Agency Let’s start by learning how keyword cost is determined. What Is Keyword Cost? Keyword cost is the amount you pay to advertising platforms (like Google Ads) when someone clicks on your ad. It’s commonly referred to as cost per click (CPC). Some keywords cost a few cents, while others cost $50+ per click. For example, insurance, healthcare, finance, and legal terms have some of the highest CPCs. Like “mesothelioma attorney,” which has an eye-watering $159.60 CPC. Other keywords cost under a dollar per click. Including “bird watching supplies,” which has a $0.74 CPC. Understanding keyword costs helps you: Make smarter bidding decisions Choose high-value keywords Maximize your ROI Optimize your campaigns for lower costs But before you can lower costs, it’s helpful to understand what goes into keyword pricing. How Google Determines Keyword Price What drives keyword costs up or down? There’s a lot going on behind the scenes that affects pricing. Here’s how Google calculates CPC: Quality Score Quality Score is Google’s 1-10 rating of how relevant and useful your ads are. Higher Quality Scores mean lower costs. And better ad positions. Your Quality Score is based on three factors: Ad relevance: How closely your keyword matches your ad text and landing page Landing page experience: How useful your landing page is to visitors Expected click-through rate (CTR): How likely users are to click your ad According to WordStream data, an advertiser with a perfect Quality Score of 10 pays 50% less than someone with an average score of 5. Even improving to a 7 saves you 28.6% on every click. Search Volume Keywords with thousands of monthly searches typically cost more than niche terms. Higher search volume = greater demand = higher prices. Industry The more advertisers who bid on a keyword, the higher the cost. For example, check out how the average CPC varies by industry: Industry Average CPC Legal $5.00 Insurance $19.45 Online education $9.10 Marketing $4.28 Home services $6.23 Auto $1.83 Healthcare $7.09 Travel $0.96 Hospitality $5.30 Retail $3.63 Real estate $0.96 Finance $3.50 Sports $3.48 Fitness $2.20 Semrush’s Keyword Overview and Keyword Magic Tool provide a “Competitive Density” score. Rated on a scale of zero (easiest) to 1.00 (hardest), it tells you how competitive a keyword will be in your PPC campaign. A high Competitive Density score (.80 and up) means tougher competition in search results. But don’t ignore these keywords. High competition often signals strong conversion potential. Never base decisions on low CPC alone. The math is simple: If a $5 keyword converts much better than a $1 keyword, it’s worth the cost. Ad Network Selection Where you choose to run your ads can impact your costs: Google Search Network: Your ads appear on Google search results pages and properties like Google Maps and Shopping. Search Network typically delivers higher-intent traffic but at higher costs since users are actively searching for specific terms. Google Display Network: Your ads show on Google sites like YouTube, Blogger, and Gmail, as well as partner websites. Display Network usually offers lower costs per click but may bring less immediate purchase intent since users aren’t actively searching. Seasonality Keyword costs fluctuate throughout the year. For example, “Christmas gifts” will cost more in December. “Tax preparation” will spike in March and April. And “Swimwear” peaks during summer months. It helps to adjust your budget for these seasonal shifts. Bidding Strategy Your bidding strategy can affect your Google keyword costs: Manual bidding: You set the maximum amount you’re willing to pay for each click. This gives you complete control but requires more hands-on management. Automated bidding: Google’s AI adjusts your bids in real time to help you meet specific goals (like maximizing clicks or conversions). This can be more efficient but may initially result in higher costs while the system learns your patterns. Pro tip: New to Google Ads? Start with manual bidding to maintain stricter cost control, then experiment with automation as you gather more performance data. How to Find Keyword Cost With the right tools, you can learn keyword costs before launching a pay-per-click (PPC) campaign. So, you can prioritize terms that deliver maximum ROI for minimum spend. Google Keyword Planner Why not go right to the source to learn CPC costs? Google Keyword Planner shows estimated bid ranges that give you an idea of the high and low you’ll pay. Plus, these estimates come straight from Google’s own data — making them a reliable starting point for budget planning. Here’s how to use Google Keyword Planner to research keyword prices: After signing into your account, click “Tools” in the navigation. Then, select “Keyword Planner” from the dropdown. You’ll see two options. If you already have specific keywords in mind, choose “Get search volume and forecasts.” Starting from scratch? Select “Discover new keywords.” For this example, let’s go with “Get search volume and forecasts.” Enter your keywords manually or click “Upload a file.” Then, click “Get started.” Review the “Top of page bid (low range)” and “Top of page bid (high range)” columns. These show the estimated historical CPC ranges for your keywords. For example, “garden decor” has a low of $0.33 and a high of $1.49. So, advertisers with a great Quality Score might pay $0.33 per click. But those with average or below-average Quality Scores could pay up to $1.49. Keep in mind that these ranges are influenced by: Your geographic location Your Search Network settings Seasonal competition fluctuations Industry trends The actual cost you’ll pay can fall anywhere within this range — or occasionally outside it during periods of intense competition. Now, let’s look at another method to find keyword pricing. Keyword Magic Tool Want a deeper dive into keyword costs? Semrush’s Keyword Magic Tool gives you the full picture. It provides CPC estimates along with other crucial metrics. Like search volume, keyword difficulty, and user intent so you can spot high-converting, affordable keywords your competitors might miss. Note: A free Semrush account gives you 10 searches in the Keyword Magic Tool per day. Or you can use this link to access a 14-day trial on a Semrush Pro subscription. Here’s how to use it: Enter a broad keyword, such as “CRM software.” Click “Search.” The tool will return a list of keyword suggestions. View the “CPC” column to learn the estimated cost for each term. On a limited budget? Add a filter to find keywords within your price range: Click the “CPC” filter Enter your desired range Click “Apply“ Now, you’ll only see keywords that fit your budget. Pro tip: The Keyword Magic Tool is best for researching keywords. Already have a list? Use Keyword Overview instead. This allows you to enter up to 100 keywords at once to see the average CPC, search volume, difficulty, and more for each term. 7 Steps to Selecting High-Converting PPC Keywords Knowing what keywords cost is just the starting point. The real magic happens when you identify terms that fit your budget and drive sales. 1. See What’s Working for Your Competition Before choosing keywords, analyze your competitors’ ad performance. For this example, I’ll be using Semrush’s Advertising Research tool. Note: A free Semrush account gives you up to 10 credits in the Advertising Research tool per day. Or you can use this link to access a 14-day trial on a Semrush Pro subscription. Enter a competitor’s domain into the tool. Click “Search.” Now, you’ll see an overview of your competitor’s paid search performance. Including the total number of keywords and traffic from paid campaigns. Even better? You’ll also learn how much it costs them to rank for these terms in Google Ads. Scroll to the “Paid Search Positions” report for a peek at their top-performing keywords. Including CPC, search volume, and position data for each one. Note which keywords have high traffic but reasonable costs. Then, add the promising keywords to your list. Next, click the “Competitors” tab to learn who your competitor’s top paid rivals are. (Hint: They may be your rivals, too.) Click on any competitor’s URL and follow the same steps as above to assess their highest-performing keywords. Finally, click the “Ads Copies” tab. This reveals your competitor’s actual ad copy—giving you an inside look at exactly what messaging is attracting clicks and conversions in your industry. Study the language, offers, and unique selling points they use. Then, create your own ads that address the same pain points but with stronger, more compelling copy. Pro tip: Writer’s block killing your ad copy? Let AI handle the first draft. Tools like AdCreative.ai instantly generate ad copy variations in seconds—all you have to do is edit and refine. 2. Identify Long-Tail Keywords Long-tail keywords are highly specific phrases that match exactly what your customer is searching for. Think “women’s long sleeve vintage graphic tshirts” instead of just “shirts.” The benefits are too good to ignore: Lower competition (and lower costs) Higher conversion rates More qualified traffic Let’s see this in action. “Shirts” has the highest Competitive Density score possible (1.00) and a CPC of $2.38. But “fall shirts for women” has a much lower CPC ($0.49). And a Competitive Density (.80) that is reduced enough to help you on the SERPs. But high enough to signal transactional interest. Sure, this keyword gets significantly fewer searches. But those searches come from people who know exactly what they want. And those are the clicks that convert into customers. Ready to find long-tail keywords? Here’s how: Head back to the Keyword Magic Tool and enter a term like “women’s shirts.” Select the “KD %” filter on the menu. In the “Custom Range” field, enter “0” to “29.” This will limit your results to keywords with “Very easy” or “Easy” difficulty—prime territory for conversion-friendly, long-tail terms. Scroll through the results to find long-tail keywords for your ad campaign. Like “women’s button down tshirt” and “usa women’s soccer shirt.” 3. Confirm Your Keywords Are Relevant to What You Sell Don’t get so caught up in metrics that you forget the basics. Every keyword in your campaign should directly connect to your products or services. For example, if you sell premium handmade leather wallets, targeting “cheap wallets” might bring traffic but not conversions. Your ideal customers are searching for quality, not bargains. This is why you’ll want to pay special attention to keyword match types in Google Ads: Broad match: Triggers your ad for related searches, variations, and synonyms (lowest relevance, highest reach) Phrase match: Triggers your ad when the search includes your keyword phrase (medium relevance) Exact match: Triggers your ad only for searches very close to your exact keyword (highest relevance, lowest reach) Start with exact and phrase match to ensure relevance and prevent wasted spend. As you gather data on what works for your industry and budget, you can carefully expand to broader terms. Pro tip: Have a “Below Average” ad relevance score? Group your keywords into tight themes, like “engagement rings” and “wedding bands,” instead of cramming diverse terms into one ad group. This simple reorganization can dramatically improve your Quality Score. 4. Target Purchase Intent Keywords Every keyword reveals something about what the searcher wants. Some people are researching. Others are ready to buy. Purchase intent keywords signal that someone is in buying mode — not just browsing or learning. As PPC expert Andrew Peluso says: The best tip I can give for selecting the ideal keywords is to only target keywords with high purchase intent, meaning only advertise against keywords where the user is in a buying mode. If you spend money targeting keywords where the user is just looking for information, then that’s likely not a great use of your budget. When it comes to paid advertising, focus on: Commercial intent: Users are comparing options before buying (“best CRM software”) Transactional intent: Users are ready to make a purchase (“buy Salesforce subscription”) 5. Focus on Cost per Conversion, Not Just Cost per Click Keywords with low CPCs might seem attractive, but they’re worthless if they don’t convert. Set up proper tracking to identify which keywords actually deliver customers, not just traffic. Andrew explains: To keep keyword costs under control, make sure you have really accurate attribution in place so you know what your cost per conversion is. Without this data being accurate, your cost-per-click number in isolation is almost useless. You need to have a goal in mind for your cost per conversion. Regardless of what your cost-per-click is, make sure you’re happy with how much the conversion costs you. What does this mean for your campaigns? Set up proper conversion tracking in Google Ads Monitor which keywords drive sales, not just clicks Be willing to pay more for keywords with higher conversion rates Pro tip: To boost CTR without sacrificing conversions, test different value propositions in your ads. A “free shipping” message might get more clicks, but “handcrafted quality” might attract buyers who convert. 6. Build a Negative Keyword List to Reduce Ad Waste Negative keywords prevent your ads from appearing for search terms that might seem relevant but attract the wrong audience. Here’s how to implement this strategy: Pull your Google Ads search terms report for the last 90 days Look for terms that drive costs but few conversions — these are your negative keywords Build a comprehensive negative keyword list. This way, your ads no longer show for underperforming keywords to prevent ad waste. 7. Test Different Keywords to See What Performs Best Keyword selection isn’t a set-it-and-forget-it task. It’s an ongoing experiment that gets better with time. Follow these best practices for testing keywords in your ad campaigns: Review performance weekly, looking beyond clicks to focus on conversions Gradually shift budget from underperformers to high-converting terms Add new keyword variations based on what’s already working Look for seasonal patterns that affect performance As you gather data, your campaigns will become more efficient, driving down costs while improving results. How to Optimize Your Quality Score and Lower Keyword Costs Even the best keyword strategy falls flat without a strong Quality Score. Instead of just bidding higher, focus on these three critical components that Google rewards with lower costs and better positions. Ad Relevance: Match User Intent We touched on this above, but it’s worth repeating: Your ads must align with search intent. One of the best ways to gauge intent is by analyzing the Google SERP. What Google ranks organically gives strong clues. Are users looking for information, or are they in buying mode? Your ad should reflect that intent. For example, if someone searches “best running shoes for flat feet,” they’re in research mode. Your ad should highlight expert reviews or comparison features. But for “buy nike running shoes,” they’re ready to purchase. Your ad should emphasize pricing, fast shipping, or size availability. Expected CTR: Create Compelling Ads Expected CTR measures how likely users are to click your ad when it appears. To improve expected CTR: Include the keyword in your headline Use action-oriented language (“Get,” “Try,” “Start”) Highlight unique selling points Test different ad variations Include a clear call to action Further reading: Copywriting: What It Is + 7 Lessons to Help You Write Better Copy Landing Page Experience: Deliver on Promises Your landing page must fulfill what your ad promised. To create a high-scoring landing page: Match headline language from your ad to your landing page headline Place your primary keyword in the H1, first paragraph, and at least one subheading Keep loading time under three seconds (compress images and minimize redirects) Add testimonials or reviews to build credibility Include a single CTA that matches your ad’s offer For landing page experience, the key is continuity. The landing page should match both the ad and the intent behind the keyword. If users click your ad expecting one thing and land on a page that doesn’t deliver, your score will take a hit. For instance, if your ad promotes “home garden design ideas,” your landing page should feature garden inspiration prominently—not a general plant catalog or seed shop. The key takeaway? Everything must work together: Everything needs to flow seamlessly—keyword intent, ad messaging, and landing page content. When these elements are aligned, your Quality Score improves. Ready to Find Keywords That Get Clicks and Conversions? Optimizing your ad keyword strategy can help you pay less for better results. (And outperform the competition while you’re at it.) Remember these principles: Quality is key: Improve your Quality Score to reduce costs Get specific: Long-tail keywords often deliver better ROI than broad terms Follow the data: Let performance metrics guide your strategy Test continuously: What works today might not work tomorrow Finding high-performing keywords starts with having the right tools. Check out our comprehensive guide to the best keyword research tools. Including features and pricing comparisons to help you choose. The post How to Find Keyword Cost and Optimize Your PPC Campaigns appeared first on Backlinko. View the full article

OBR forecasts 305,000 more new homes a year by 2029 as a result of changesView the full article

Are all Google Ads conversions created equal? Let’s say a $500 sale and a $50 sale both land in your lap: do you treat them the same? If not, you need to test Maximize Conversion Value, one of the four Smart Bidding strategies in Google Ads. We’re going to cover: What is Maximize Conversion Value bidding? What’s the difference between Maximize Conversion Value and Maximize Conversions? Should you use Maximize Conversion Value bidding? What’s the difference between Maximize Conversion Value and Target ROAS? Do you need a Target ROAS with Maximize Conversion Value? When can you use Maximize Conversion Value bidding? Tips for optimizing your Maximize Conversion Value bid strategy What is Maximize Conversion Value bidding? Maximize Conversion Value is an AI-powered smart bidding strategy that focuses on maximizing the total value of your conversions, within your specified budget. Those values may be revenue, profit, lead scoring… whatever conversion values you’ve assigned to your conversion actions. Importantly, Maximize Conversion Value’s first goal is to spend your budget, and its second goal is to maximize value. If you have a specific efficiency goal in mind, you’ll probably want to add an optional Target ROAS, to turn this into a Target ROAS bid strategy instead (we’ll get to that in a bit). What’s the difference between Maximize Conversion Value and Maximize Conversions? Unlike Maximize Conversions, which aims to get as many conversions as possible within your budget, Maximize Conversion Value considers the different values assigned to each conversion. In short: Maximize Conversions tells Google, “Get me as many customers as possible.” Maximize Conversion Value says, “Get me the most valuable customers possible.” Should you use Maximize Conversion Value bidding? You’ll want to use Maximize Conversion Value when not all conversions are created equal. If some conversions bring in significantly more revenue, profit or value than others, this strategy helps Google prioritize those higher-value actions. Consider a software company where a free trial sign-up is worth less than a full subscription. Maximize Conversion Value helps Google focus on driving those high-value subscriptions. For example, these types of businesses will find Maximize Conversion Value useful: An ecommerce store selling items ranging from $50 to $500. A lead generation business that assigns different values to leads based on their qualification stage. A software company that tracks both free trial sign-ups and subscription sign-ups as Primary conversion actions. However, if all you’re tracking as a Primary conversion action is a phone call, or a lead, or a meeting booking – some kind of binary “conversion happened / conversion didn’t happen” – then you don’t need a value-based bid strategy. What’s the difference between Maximize Conversion Value and Target ROAS? Target ROAS (Return on Ad Spend) is a more advanced version of Maximize Conversion Value. When you’re using Maximize Conversion Value, you’re telling Google to spend your budget in order to get as much value as possible. With Target ROAS, you’re telling Google that efficiency (return on ad spend) is your first priority, and to only spend your budget when it believes it can achieve your efficiency goals. Think of it like this. Let’s say you’re playing darts, where the objective is to hit a bullseye. If Maximize Conversion Value were playing, her approach would be, “Keep throwing darts until we get as close to the center as possible.” If Target ROAS were playing, her approach would be, “Don’t bother throwing the dart if you’re not pretty darn sure you’re getting a bullseye.” In general, you should start with Maximize Conversion Value to gather data, then consider adding a Target ROAS once your actual ROAS has stabilized at or near an acceptable level. When can you use Maximize Conversion Value bidding? Maximize Conversion Value bidding works with Search, Display, Demand Gen and Performance Max campaigns. Unfortunately, it’s not compatible with Shopping campaigns. For Shopping, you’ll need to use manual bidding (Manual CPC or Maximize Clicks) or Target ROAS. Tips for optimizing your Maximize Conversion Value bid strategy Although Maximize Conversion Value is a fully automated Smart Bidding strategy, you’ve still got a variety of tools at your disposal to optimize and guide the algorithm. These include: Conversion Value Rules: Use these to set different conversion values based on audience, device, or location. This allows for more granular control. Device Bid Adjustments: This is the only bid adjustment that works with Maximize Conversion Value, if you want to exclude certain devices altogether. Conversion Data: Aim for 50-60 conversions every 30 days for Maximize Conversion Value to work effectively. If you’re falling short, consider sticking with Maximize Conversions until you have enough data. Maximize Conversion Value is a great starter bid strategy for businesses that value conversions differently. These types of businesses should aim to transition to Target ROAS in order to scale and drive sustainable performance. This article is part of our ongoing weekly Search Engine Land series, Everything you need to know about Google Ads in less than 3 minutes. Every Wednesday, Jyll highlights a different Google Ads feature, and what you need to know to get the best results from it – all in a quick 3-minute read. View the full article

April brings the highly anticipated return of some of Netflix's most popular series, including Season 7 of Black Mirror (April 10) and Season 5 of You (April 24). The former—Charlie Brooker's dystopian sci-fi anthology series—is getting six new episodes, including a sequel to "USS Callister" from season 4. The new season includes appearances from Paul Giamatti, Issa Rae, Will Poulter, Chris O'Dowd, Rashida Jones, Awkwafina, and Tracee Ellis Ross. And in the final 10-episode season of psychological thriller You, serial killer Joe Goldberg (played by Penn Badgley) returns to New York to live peacefully but is haunted by his past. Also debuting in April is Western romance Ransom Canyon (April 17) starring Josh Duhamel and Minka Kelly. An adaptation of the Jodi Thomas books, the Yellowstone-esque series follows ranching families in Texas Hill Country. And medical drama Pulse (April 3), set in a Miami trauma center, may capture fans of Max's hit show The Pitt. On the film side, Tom Hardy plays a detective navigating the criminal underworld on a rescue mission in the gritty thriller Havoc (April 25). Finally, Netflix's documentary lineup includes sports series Carlos Alcaraz: My Way (April 23) and The Clubhouse: A Year with the Red Sox (April 8); another installment of Turning Point, this one focused on the Vietnam War (April 30); and Chef's Table: Legends (April 28), a new season of the Emmy-nominated culinary series with episodes following Jamie Oliver, José Andrés, Alice Waters, and Thomas Keller. Here's everything coming to Netflix in April, and everything that's leaving. What's coming to Netflix in April 2025Available soonJewel Thief - The Heist Begins—Netflix Film Weak Hero Class 2—Netflix Series Available April 1The Age of Innocence Big Daddy Bonnie & Clyde The Breakfast Club Conan the Destroyer Couples Retreat The Croods Draft Day Field of Dreams For Love of the Game Geostorm Get Him to the Greek Heat Insidious: Chapter 2 K-9 Lucy Matilda The Mauritanian The Place Beyond the Pines Psycho Rise of the Guardians Rooster Cogburn (...and the Lady) Rudy Sicario: Day of the Soldado Smokey and the Bandit Smokey and the Bandit II Uncle Buck Available April 2Banger—Netflix Film Garnachas: Glorious Street Food!—Netflix Documentary Love on the Spectrum: Season 3—Netflix Series Available April 3Devil May Cry—Netflix Series Jurassic World: Chaos Theory: Season 3—Netflix Family PULSE—Netflix Series Available April 4Karma—Netflix Series TEST—Netflix Film Available April 7Blippi's Job Show—Netflix Family Kill Tony: Kill or Be Killed—Netflix Comedy Special Available April 8The Clubhouse: A Year with the Red Sox—Netflix Sports Series How to Sell Drugs Online (Fast): Season 4—Netflix Series Kian’s Bizarre B&B—Netflix Series My Next Guest Needs No Introduction With David Letterman: Season 5 Part 2—Netflix Series Available April 9The Addams Family Bad Influence: The Dark Side of Kidfluencing—Netflix Documentary The Dad Quest—Netflix Film The Hating Game Unicorn Academy: Chapter 3—Netflix Family Available April 10Black Mirror: Season 7—Netflix Series Frozen Hot Boys—Netflix Film Moonrise—Netflix Anime North of North—Netflix Series Available April 11The Gardener—Netflix Series Meet the Khumalos—Netflix Film Available April 12Resident Playbook—Netflix Series Available April 13Life or Something Like It Available April 15The Glass Dome—Netflix Series Young Sheldon: Season 7 Available April 16Baby Mama The Diamond Heist—Netflix Documentary I Am Not Mendoza—Netflix Series Project UFO—Netflix Series Available April 17Istanbul Encyclopedia—Netflix Series Ransom Canyon—Netflix Series Available April 18iHostage—Netflix Film Oklahoma City Bombing: American Terror—Netflix Documentary Available April 19Heavenly Ever After Available April 21Pangolin: Kulu’s Journey—Netflix Documentary Available April 23A Tragedy Foretold: Flight 3054—Netflix Documentary Battle Camp—Netflix Series Bullet Train Explosion—Netflix Film Carlos Alcaraz: My Way—Netflix Sports Series UnBroken Available April 24A Dog's Way Home You: Season 5—Netflix Series Available April 25Havoc—Netflix Film Pokémon Horizons: Season 2—The Search for Laqua Part 2—Netflix Family Available April 28Chef's Table: Legends—Netflix Documentary Available April 30Asterix & Obelix: The Big Fight—Netflix Family The Eternaut—Netflix Series Exterritorial—Netflix Film Turning Point: The Vietnam War—Netflix Documentary What's leaving Netflix in April 2025Leaving April 1Baby Driver Boyz n the Hood Bruce Almighty Dr. Seuss' The Cat in the Hat Dr. Seuss' The Lorax Elysium Happy Feet Happy Feet Two How to Train Your Dragon How to Train Your Dragon 2 Interstellar It The Karate Kid The Karate Kid Part II The Karate Kid Part III Legion Miss Congeniality Molly's Game The Nice Guys Richie Rich Rush Hour Rush Hour 2 Rush Hour 3 Rust and Bone Space Jam When in Rome Leaving April 4Serena Leaving April 8Megan Leavey Leaving April 11Pixels Scream Leaving April 12A Quiet Place Part II Leaving April 15Hereditary Leaving April 16The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent Leaving April 21No Hard Feelings Leaving April 24Minions Leaving April 29Patriots Day View the full article

This post was written by Alison Green and published on Ask a Manager. A reader writes: I work in a small workplace, we’re about 40 employees. When I started at the company about five years ago, I started ordering granola bars and some treats. Then I started adding on some fizzy drinks and then progressed to some other snacks, like nuts, fruits, and cookies. None of this is supposed to be the only food people eat, but it’s nice to have some quick to grab in the middle of a busy day. I have an employee now who manages the stocking of this, plus coffee, tea, milk, and cream. An issue has arisen because we have a coworker who is vegan and he’s decided that we need to stop bringing in what he deems to be unhealthy snacks. Which are basically any processed foods. He’s brought this up to me, to my employee, and to our Health and Safety committee in their quarterly meeting. He obviously has strong beliefs about what people should be eating. When he came to me about it, I told him that we are all adults and that everyone has the right to choose what food they wish to eat. What I wish I had said to him is that unsolicited health advice is not okay. People are not coming to work to be lectured on what he believes is healthy eating. I don’t make him listen to rants about why he should eat meat, because these are individual choices that people need to make. On top of this, I think we need to respect that many people have complicated relationship with food, and he is trying to put his nutrition beliefs on others in a space that should be not about this. He’s also made unsolicited remarks about what coworkers are eating, to coworkers who were not discussing food in any way. While I believe he has good intentions, I think he’s overstepping. What is the best way to tell him to keep his beliefs to himself (on top of the fact that he’s not a trained nutritionist)? I just want a good way to shut him down that’s not too confrontational, because he does make me want to be. Yeah, you absolutely need to shut him down. He’s being rude and obnoxious, and because it’s happening at work, his coworkers are a captive audience for it. No one has asked for his evaluation of their diets, and he needs to respect people’s autonomy and privacy and stay out of their food choices. For the record, that would be true even if he were a nutritionist. Unless he were their nutritionist, it would still be overstepping and out of line to go around critiquing what people eat. (In fact, here’s some fun reading: my company’s pushy new dietician won’t leave me alone, and the update.) I’m not entirely sure whether you’re this guy’s manager or not, but I think you are. (I hope you are!) If so, sit down with him and say this: “I should have been clearer when we last talked about this. I need you to stop commenting on other people’s food choices, unless they actively and specifically request your critique. You are welcome to have whatever private opinions you’d like about what other people eat, but you cannot continuing critiquing their diets in our office. It’s unwelcome, people deserve to be able to come to work without having to fend that off, and it’s going to affect your working relationships with people.” (I deleted that clause because it’s better not to muddy the waters; just stick with “you need to stop.”) If he brings up the office-provided snacks again, you should say, “If there are specific snacks that you would like us to add to what we’re providing, you can absolutely submit suggestions for them. I am open to making additional things available, but we’re not going to restrict what we provide based on one person’s preferences.” You might add, “It’s becoming disruptive to continue bringing this up, so I need you to accept that that’s the final answer.” If you’re not his manager and he’s just a coworker who you have no authority over, the framing would be more like this: “I want to ask you to stop commenting on other people’s food choices. I don’t know if you realize how often you do it, but people deserve to be able to come to work without having their diets critiqued, and I think you’re really alienating people. That’s before we even get into how fraught food issues can be for people, which isn’t something anyone should have to share to be left alone.” (There’s additional advice here if he’s not someone you manage.) View the full article

Changes will see 800,000 lose disability payments by 2029-30 View the full article

The chief-executive-to-be at money-losing Japanese automaker Nissan is determined to speed up decision-making to come up with models that say Nissan—and really sell. Ivan Espinosa, 46, chief planning officer and a Mexican with two decades of experience at Nissan Motor Corp., told reporters in embargoed comments for Wednesday that the company’s corporate culture is “lacking empathy” and has to change. “We need to work together as one single team,” he said at the Nissan Technical Center in Atsugi city on the outskirts of Tokyo. “We need to work together hand in hand.” Nissan recently appointed Espinosa to take its helm, effective April 1, replacing Makoto Uchida. Espinosa has his work cut out for him as the maker of the Sentra sedan and Infiniti luxury cars faces yet another crisis, which began decades ago when Carlos Ghosn was sent in by French alliance partner Renault to save it from the brink of bankruptcy. Ghosn was arrested by Japanese authorities in 2018 on financial misconduct allegations but jumped bail and is now in Lebanon. Uchida, chief since 2019 when Ghosn’s successor Hiroto Saikawa resigned over a separate money scandal, stepped down after the company projected a loss for the fiscal year through March. Espinosa expressed an openness to partnerships, including with parties outside the auto industry, although he declined to give specifics. Nissan recently ditched talks with Japanese rival Honda Motor Co. to set up a joint holding company. They will continue to cooperate on technology development. Espinosa repeatedly came back to the importance of being nimble. New cars will be developed in 37 months, and offshoot models within 30 months, he said. Auto production, starting with design and culminating in product tests, takes several years. Bringing a product to market in 30 months would be relatively quick for the industry. To showcase its turnaround plans, Nissan showed an array of models rolling out in the next two years for the U.S., Europe, Japan, and other markets, some of them as mockup models. Espinosa and other officials promised a lineup that highlights Nissan’s legacy, like the Leaf electric car, and models that sell in greater volumes. It’s also bringing out various ecological models, like hybrids, plug-ins and electric vehicles, and cutting-edge technology like self-driving cars. When announcing his replacement, Uchida called Espinosa “a car guy.” Espinosa, who drives a Z sportscar, Nissan’s flagship nameplate, said he saw himself as “a car lover.” He loves the stories behind each car, he said, like how it’s developed and becomes loved by customers. Analysts have so far taken a cautious approach to Espinosa’s appointment. As an insider, he takes up where Uchida left off, meaning the verdict is still out. “We view it as unlikely that Nissan would be open to becoming a subsidiary of Honda at this time, at least until the board has time to assess the effectiveness of Espinosa’s strategy, once it is unveiled and put into action,” CreditSights analysts Todd Duvick and Will Lee wrote in a recent commentary. Yuri Kageyama is on Threads: https://www.threads.net/@yurikageyama —Yuri Kageyama, AP Business Writer View the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. If you're in the market for a sleek wireless speaker, the Sonos Era 100 is currently $50 off during Amazon's Big Spring Sale. Normally priced at $249, the current discount brings the speaker down to just $199. This is as low a price as this speaker has ever been, according to price-tracking tools. The Sonos Era 100 is a smart speaker that can work as stereo with a pair or as rear speakers in a Sonos surround sound system. It is an updated version of the Sonos One smart speaker, offering better bass and other improvements. The speaker is a favorite among anyone looking for high-quality sound in a smart-system package. It has an "excellent" review from PCMag for its ability to play stereo with a single device (it has a dual tweeter setup), its balanced audio, and the well-developed companion app that allows you to adjust the EQ. Sonos Era 100 $198.00 at Walmart $807.42 Save $609.42 Get Deal Get Deal $198.00 at Walmart $807.42 Save $609.42 As Lifehacker's deals expert Daniel Oropeza explains, Sonos takes their user-friendliness seriously. When people complained about an update on their companion app that got rid of many cool features, Sonos listened and put them back. It's no wonder they've been so popular in the audio market. Shopping for tech? Lifehacker can help you make the right decision. Browse our tech reviews and head-to-head comparisons for everything from laptops and smartwatches to e-bikes and home gyms. Subscribe to our deals newsletter, Add to Cart, for the best sales sent to your inbox, or browse our best-of lists directly on Amazon, including: The Best Over-Ear Headphones The Best Wireless Earbuds The Best Adjustable Dumbbell Sets The Best Projectors View the full article

Has your organic traffic looked like this over the past couple of years? I’ve evaluated a handful of global websites negatively impacted by core updates related to page experience, helpful content, and spam. This specific site is a large enterprise global site with multiple subdomains and millions of orphaned pages without proper URL structure. If you’re an SEO professional seeing an impact like this on your organic traffic, you may want to read on. Many websites struggle with buried content, missing internal links, and a lack of logical hierarchy. The good news? You can optimize your site architecture and give users and search engines the road map they need to explore your site efficiently. By the end of this guide, you’ll have actionable insights into improving your site’s structure and a step-by-step approach to building site architecture that drives results. Site architecture is more important than ever About 11 months ago, Google’s Gary Illyes posted on LinkedIn that Google is crawling less pages. Illyes is indirectly telling us having a clean site architecture is vital to help signal to Google what your priority pages are. You want to prioritize your highest-quality content pages and ensure Google is crawling those pages. And if you’re like me, you spend hours trying to dissent the updated SEO Starter Guide by Google. Google recently revamped the SEO Starter Guide, and specifically, it updated the site structure section to highlight how important linking to your high-priority pages is. Take this gift from Google. Google directly tells you what they want to see in your site architecture. I’ve also been watching SEO Office Hours on repeat lately. On top of this, Illyes stated in SEO Office Hours that Google prefers a hierarchical structure for large sites. Illyes also mentioned that crawls could crawl directories differently. For example, if you have a /news/ section, that content may be crawled faster. If you have an /archive/ subfolder filled with old content, that could be crawled less than. However, putting everything under one directory makes it difficult for the crawler to segment its crawls. Google has been dropping these golden nuggets of information, just waiting for SEO professionals to take advantage of it. Let me show you how you can do that. 3 hints from Google that signal poor site architecture 1. Sitelinks Sitelinks are a good indicator of a potentially poor site structure. For example, here we can see one product name listed, but more than five products exist. What can you do to increase the chances of the other product pages showing up in the sitelinks? Google chooses what links to put in your sitelinks. If you’re missing key pages you’d like to see above, that’s a sign you need to restructure your site or add more internal links. 2. Missing breadcrumbs If you’re missing breadcrumbs, that’s another signal of poor site structure. Google has been hinting at its love for breadcrumbs more, so this is now not an option. Every page needs breadcrumbs. Users use breadcrumbs to help orient themselves on the site. Here is an example of what good breadcrumbs look like from Gusto. 3. Your subdomains get crawled more than your root domain Crawl stats in Google Search Console are a hidden gem for signals on how Google is crawling your site. If you see subdomains eating up your crawl requests, it could signal that Google is wasting time crawling lower-priority pages. How to use Screaming Frog’s visualization tools to build your information architecture Let’s walk through how to use Screaming Frog’s visualization tools. Screaming Frog’s crawl diagrams should never be used as a replacement for a website audit. Full website audits should include Hotjar recordings and heaps, Google Analytics user flow analysis, real user research with card sorting, and journey mapping. Understanding the difference between crawl diagrams vs. directory diagrams in Screaming Frog Crawl diagrams are the shortest path to page from start URL Crawl diagrams are the best option for information architecture. For example, if you are crawling your entire site, your homepage will be the center of the crawl, and the other pages will be shown based on proximity (the link depth) to the home page. The circles are called nodes. The darker the green circle, the shorter the click depth (likely less than 2 clicks). The red nodes are non-indexable pages. Directory diagrams show the directory level by URL path Directory diagrams let you explore your website on a directory level. The URLs are connected to a directory path. Since we’re talking about site structure and ways to improve our information architecture, I will dive into the crawl diagrams because this gives us the best view of how crawlers crawl your site. Good vs. bad site architecture in crawl diagrams On the good side, we can see clear groupings of topics with clean, full circles of nodes. The greens are spread out evenly. There are a lot of low-priority pages. Good On the bad side, the groupings are scattered all over the place. There’s no clear loop. Many nodes are dark, signaling that there are a lot of high-priority pages that might not be accurate. Bad The chart above tells us that our user experience isn’t solid. How much time you spend on product images, beautiful design, or landing page optimization doesn’t matter. If your user’s overall experience looks like the bad example above, you fail at user experience. Integrate your Google Search Console with Screaming Frog to get click data Integrating your Google Search Console with Screaming Frog gives you a bird’s eye view of your whole website in terms of pages with the most clicks. Once you have Google Search Console integrated into Screaming Frog, go to Settings and choose GSC clicks. Ask yourself: Why are these pages getting the most clicks? What keywords do these pages rank for? What is the value of these pages? Are these orphaned pages without any internal links? Next, let’s investigate the /blogs/ subfolder. Our awards and news announcements are performing well with low click depth. However, users cannot easily find this category on the website. They need to click on the blog and then the category. There are two things we can do: Update the XML sitemap to ensure category pages are listed Update the blog menu to include the most clicked category pages Use Google Analytics 4 path exploration report to guide assumptions The GA4 path exploration report allows us to determine a sequence of pages visited by users and the actions they performed. The GA4 path exploration report shows the top pages new users visited after visiting the homepage. And you can uncover users’ looping behavior. For example, if users continuously go back to visit page A, then B, and then A again. How to use ChatGPT to build your main navigation structure and URL map Let’s walk through how to use ChatGPT for information architecture and building your site. Shout out to AI for Work website. I’ve tried a bunch of different prompts, but this ChatGPT prompt “Create a navigation structure document,” is the most detailed. You can copy/paste the prompt directly into ChatGPT. You can also access my ChatGPT interaction directly. After entering the prompt, you’ll be asked a few additional questions. Questions like who your target audience is, how many sections you want, and type of style of navigation. Once you answer those sets of questions, you’ll be served your main navigation elements. You’ll go through a couple of rounds of edits on your main navigation. I went through 5 rounds before I ended on a site structure relevant to the site. Round 1 of main navigation elements Round 2 of main navigation elements Round 5 of main navigation elements The best part about this ChatGPT prompt? It provides an evaluation to get you to a rating of 10/10 on key components essential to a clean site structure. You can emulate focused group feedback or automatically make it a 10/10. Turn your ChatGPT main navigation into a wireframe Next, copy/paste your final site structure from ChatGPT into a wireframe tool like Relume. Relume will automatically generate a wireframe with AI. Here’s an example of the wireframe from Relume. Relume allows you to export to Figma, Webflow, and CSV files. This way, you can communicate your vision to your UX, dev, or C-suite teams. Create a URL map with ChatGPT Then, if you go back to ChatGPT in the same conversation, you can ask ChatGPT to build your URL mapping based on your site structure. It will provide a list of proper URL structures. You can export that into a spreadsheet to share with the Dev team. 4 tips to remember when building your main navigation 1. Priority begins from left to right People read from left to right, and crawlers attempt to emulate how users view your site. Also, think of this like a list. The items at the beginning and end are the most effective because that’s where attention and retention are highest. This refers to the serial-position effect. Items at the beginning are easy to remember. Items at the end (or things that just happened) are more easily remembered. When thinking about your navigation, anything you put at the beginning or end becomes more prominent. Remember, 7 is the magic number when thinking about your main nav. You want to avoid overcategorization. When considering subcategories in the drop-down menu, you want to keep them to less than 10. 2. Highlight the user’s current section You want to highlight the user’s current scope in the main navigation to help the user quickly determine their position in the site hierarchy. You want to make it easy to internalize a site’s structure and navigate to a new top-level scope. 3. Crawling may be split into page-type templates SEO professionals learned in 2022 that Google’s page experience update may split your site into different sections for crawling. Search engines are trying to understand the similarities between page types and templates. If you have a page template like a product page optimized with breadcrumbs, quality content, and it’s fast, they will look at product pages separately and treat them like their own. This will help you prioritize your money pages. Product page template example Information page template example 4. Stick to sentence case unless referring to products Try to stick to sentence case when building out your main navigation. It’s hidden in Google’s Developers’ best practices. I see a lot of websites using ALL CAPS in the main navigation. It might be great for certain things, but think about accessibility and what this means in context. As you think about the future of navigation, some software may read each capitalized text letter-by-letter if you’re using text-to-audio. Remember, if you make crawling easier, it’ll be easier. Site structure case study that improved organic traffic by 131% in less than 3 months Here is an example of a website I worked on that lost 45% of organic traffic due to site structure changes without SEO support. The site broke all internal links, removed subfolders, and changed the main navigation. Sadly, the site went an entire year with a giant drop in organic traffic before they partnered with an SEO. Luckily, within less than three months, the site saw a 131% improvement in organic traffic by changing the main navigation, subtopics, URL structure, and internal links. Make a business use case to gain buy-in from your C-suite for site architecture changes How do you bring this to your C-suite? Let’s use some back of the napkin math. If you’re a SaaS product, you’ll need access to trial downloads and revenue from organic traffic. You assume the site structure will increase 5% of trial downloads. I start small with 5% because I’d rather underpromise and overdeliver. What is that 5% equal in trial downloads per bring and what is the potential revenue impact? In this example, I can show an ROI of 31%. You want to subtract the potential costs of tools like Figma and any human investment like focus groups, and you still get an ROI of 31%. Again, this is a guesstimate, but you will speak the language of your C-suite. The people who are ultimately responsible for believing in you to make this decision. The future of site architecture is through conversational web navigation Looking ahead, conversational navigation is likely to play a leading role. Tools like Hume AI are already showcasing how chatbots can revolutionize experiences by guiding users to the exact pages they need. Whether through natural language queries or dynamic search features, the Internet is moving toward smarter, more intuitive navigation models. For now, however, the fundamental pillars of site structure – hierarchy, navigation clarity, and priority signaling – remain your best tools for making your site the smartest, most discoverable version of itself. By improving your site architecture, you’re paving the way for both search engines and users to unlock the true potential of your digital presence. Now’s the time to fine-tune your architecture to meet the demands of an increasingly intelligent web. Watch: Build a better, smarter, and more discoverable site architecture Feeling inspired to improve your site’s navigation and structure? Check out my presentation from SMX Next: View the full article

Refunds average around 5 percent over last year. By Beth Bellor Go PRO for members-only access to more Beth Bellor. View the full article

Refunds average around 5 percent over last year. By Beth Bellor Go PRO for members-only access to more Beth Bellor. View the full article

What do tax pros need to know about the uncertainty in Washington? Quick Tax Tip With Art Werner CPE Today Go PRO for members-only access to more Art Werner. View the full article

What do tax pros need to know about the uncertainty in Washington? Quick Tax Tip With Art Werner CPE Today Go PRO for members-only access to more Art Werner. View the full article

You may have seen a headline this week imply that OneNote, the extremely popular note-taking application from Microsoft, is shutting down. That's not the case—only a specific version of OneNote, named "OneNote for Windows 10," is shutting down. What's this mean? If you don't use Windows, this news doesn't affect you. If you do use Windows, and your version of OneNote does not say "OneNote for Windows 10" at the top of the window, this news doesn't affect you. If your version of OneNote does say "OneNote for Windows 10" at the top of the window, then this news is relevant: The version of OneNote you're currently using will be discontinued on Oct. 14. You can download the desktop version of OneNote for free, though, and all of your notes will sync over. It's worth noting that the desktop version of OneNote offers features that OneNote for Windows 10 never did—it can save your notebooks offline, for example, meaning you don't need a OneDrive account to use the application. And the shutdown isn't a surprise by any means—Microsoft announced this transition would happen years ago. Still, not everyone is happy about this. OneNote for Windows 10 was built to work well on mobile devices and, to this day, some users prefer it for touch screen Windows devices. I tested both versions while writing and regularly updating the OneNote review for PCMag and I personally find the desktop version more complete, but I understand why some might prefer the "for Windows 10" version—it's clean, fast, and does what most people want. You can still, as of this writing, download OneNote for Windows 10 at this link. Microsoft advises you not to, and plans to show pop-ups and even intentionally slow down syncing speed in order to persuade people to switch. Support ends completely in October, after which there will be no security updates and, if history is any guide, functionality will likely slowly break. So, if you're using OneNote for Windows 10, it's time to figure out what you want to use for note-taking going forward. I'd recommend downloading and trying the desktop version of OneNote first. If you're not a fan, there are other note-taking applications out there: Obsidian, which I've written about, can even import your notes from OneNote. View the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. As we appear to be living in an age of perpetually rising grocery prices, we're all looking for ways to lower our food bills. Considering the average spend on groceriesis over $500 every month, I'm all open to suggestions. Extreme couponing? Tell me more. Intermittent fasting? Sounds doable. Ugly produce? Bring it on! Spending money to save money? How does that work? Kitchen tools like bread makers or chest freezers tend to pay for themselves over time, but often come with a hefty upfront cost. Yet there are some inexpensive gadgets that don’t require a big investment but which can trim your grocery bills significantly. Here are eight of them. Bottle connectorsThere’s nothing more frustrating than paying for a bottle of something and leaving a bunch of it in the bottle because physics refuses to release it. But if you throw away bottles of stuff—whether it’s condiments, shampoo, or anything else you pick up at the grocery store—with product still trapped in there, you’re throwing away money. Instead, pick up a bottle connector (which will let you transfer the dregs of an old bottle to a new one), a zero-waste cap (which will use gravity to help you use every drop of something in the bottle), or a bottle scraper of some kind to get every bit out of the bottle. It’s difficult to quantify how much money you can save by doing all these things, but it’s not nothing. A food vacuum sealerA food vacuum sealer isn’t the cheapest option; while you can find sealers for about $10, that could definitely be a penny-wise, pound-foolish kind of decision. But an initial investment of anywhere from $40 to $100 will save you money in several ways: Reduce waste. Vacuum-sealing your leftovers and overflow ingredients will keep them fresher far longer. Make bulk buying pay. Buying in bulk usually reduces your per-unit costs—but only if you can actually use what you buy. Vacuum-sealing makes it easier to buy something like meat or fish in bulk and keep it fresh long enough to actually eat. Additionally, if you happen upon a terrific sale on something perishable, you can make an unusually large purchase work economically by sealing and freezing most of it. Herb keepersIf you cook with a lot of fresh herbs, a herb keeper can help keep them fresh for more than a week longer than if you just stick them in the crisper (or in a plastic bag, where all herbs go to wilt). That means you can actually use them in multiple meals and buy less of them overall. Produce saversBuying fresh produce is often an exercise in expensive frustration. You pay for a bunch of apples, and some of them are already rotting seemingly before you even get them home from the store, and the rest don’t fare well no matter where you store them. You might be one of those folks who thrills at turning black bananas into banana bread and soft apples into pies, but it would be better if everything just lasted longer. That’s where products like GreenBags and the BlueApple Produce Saver come in. Both extend the life of fresh produce by days, giving you extra time to use up what you buy and improving the taste and overall experience of the produce you’re eating. Over time they’ll pay for themselves in fresher fruits and veg, and lower grocery bills. A cheese graterYou might not think of a cheese grater as a gadget, but tell that to the people who lived before its invention. Buying your cheese pre-grated will definitely save you money (and give you a better cheese experience, as pre-grated cheese usually is coated with a bunch of stabilizers and preservatives in it to keep it from clumping). Block cheese will almost always be cheaper than pre-grated cheese, so aside from the better eating and cooking experience, grating your own cheese will pay for the grater over time, and then some. Silicone stretch lidsIf you use foil or plastic wrap on a regular basis to cover bowls, old plastic storage tubs that have lost their lids, or pots straight off the stove (smash cut to your eating directly from the saucepan with a spoon later that night), you’re paying money every time you tear off a sheet. Instead, use these stretchy silicone lids. They’ll fit just about any bowl or tub you’ve got and will keep their contents nice and fresh, with an airtight seal that’s almost certainly better than that mangled lump of aluminum foil you were going to use. One note: You shouldn’t use these to leave extra canned goods in the can. Yes, the lid will cover and seal the can effectively, but once opened, your food will start reacting to the metal of the can, which can degrade the flavor and kickstart bacteria growth. Reusable paper towelsIf you’re using a lot of disposable stuff from the grocery store, a great way to save money is to switch to reusable, washable versions. Makeup removal pads and paper towels (which can also be used as casual napkins) are two easy switches. Rayon paper towels made from bamboo are sustainable and can be used about 50 times. In the meantime, not buying a new supply every week or so will definitely save you some cash—have you seen what Target wants for a thing of paper towels these days? Dryer ballsIf you use dryer sheets when you do laundry, you can probably reduce your shopping bills by switching to wool dryer balls. Dryer sheets range in price from about four cents per sheet on the low end to about ten cents a sheet (mainly for specialty sheets, like the ones intended for homes with a lot of pet fur). Wool dryer balls help reduce drying time, wrinkles, and static cling and are reusable (up to about 1,000 times). So a six-pack of dryer balls will get you at least 6,000 loads of laundry for about $10, as opposed to $240 for dryer sheets. Even if you wash large loads and use 2-3 balls per load, you’ll still seeing significant savings over dryer sheets. View the full article

Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today...View the full article

Featuring Gene Eidelman, Cofounder, Azure Printed Homes; Kate McLeod, Cofounder and Formulator, Kate McLeod and Nicole Richards, CEO, Allonnia. Moderated by Rebecca Barker, Editorial Event Producer, Fast Company. It’s not enough for companies to declare their commitment to the environment. As the federal government rolls back environmental programs and policies at a head-spinning pace, businesses are on their own to maintain momentum in the push toward sustainability. Hear from leaders who are spearheading climate-positive practices by tackling forever chemicals, reimagining what’s possible with recycled plastic and packaging, and more. View the full article

UK chancellor makes long-awaited announcement ahead of £24bn in tax rises from next monthView the full article

Rise funded largely through borrowing will pay for biggest rearmament since cold war, says prime ministerView the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. If you like to do your own home repairs and improvements, you know that a good tool set is a game changer. Having the right bits, blades, and other miscellaneous tools can save you time and effort, not to mention cutting down on the trips to the hardware store you’ll need to make while working on a project. But these smaller things can add up quickly, exhausting your DIY budget. Here are some good deals on bits, blades, measuring tools, and accessories for all your DIY projects. BitsWith so many different sizes and types of hardware, having the right drill or driver bit can be tricky. If you’re doing more than one specific project, a variety of bits is your best bet in order to handle the broadest possible array of fastener types. But all those bits can add up quickly. Here are some good deals on bits for almost any type of hardware you’ll encounter in your DIY adventures. A set of 21 Bosch drill bits ranging in size from 1/16 inch to ½ inch is on sale for $26.46, 48% off its regular price. These are multi-material bits that can drill through wood, plastic, and aluminum. They will fit a drill with a standard chuck as well as an impact driver. A 20-piece set of DeWalt bits is on sale for $15.29, 43% off its typical price. This set includes a small range of drill bits, a variety of driver bits, a magnetic bit extension, and a drywall bit holder that are compatible with a drill or an impact driver. BOSCH BL21A 21-Piece Assorted Set Black Oxide Metal Drill Bits with Included Case for Applications in Light-Gauge Metal, Wood, Plastic $26.46 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $50.49 Save $24.03 Get Deal Get Deal $26.46 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $50.49 Save $24.03 BladesSaw blades can be expensive, but not having a few extras on hand can mean extra trips to the hardware store when you’re working on a project. Here are some deals on saw blades to keep you going on your DIY projects. A set of 30 Bosch t-shank jigsaw blades are on sale for $34.78, 46% off their regular price. The set comes with a range of wood and metal blades that will fit a jigsaw with a t-shank blade receptacle. A set of 12 DeWalt reciprocating saw blades is on sale for $24.80, 53% off their usual price. This set includes a range of wood and metal blades. A 10-pack of 7 ¼ inch Makita general purpose wood circular saw blades is on sale for $55.12, 34% off their typical price. These blades will fit a 7 ¼ inch circular saw. Makita D-45989-10 7-1/4" 24T Carbide-Tipped Circular Saw Blade, Framing/General Purpose, 10/pk $54.46 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $83.98 Save $29.52 Get Deal Get Deal $54.46 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $83.98 Save $29.52 Measuring toolsHaving the right measuring tools can make or break your DIY project, but these tools can be expensive. Here are some deals on measuring tools to get the right cut the first time. The Crescent Lufkin 25-foot tape measure is on sale for $8.90, 44% off its regular price. This tape has a locking mechanism to keep it extended hands-free and a stiff metal tape to reach longer distances without buckling. The Bosch 50-foot laser level is on sale for $66.44, 44% off its regular price. This tool will project a plumb line as well as a horizontal level line that’s helpful for projects like hanging shelves or cabinets. The Crescent Lufkin 100-foot tape measure is on sale for $16.99, 36% off its typical price. This tape is useful for larger areas, landscaping, and grading. BOSCH GLL50-20G 50 Ft Green-Beam Self-Leveling Cross-Line Laser, Includes Integrated Magnetic Mount, 2 AA Batteries, & Soft Pouch $66.44 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $119.00 Save $52.56 Get Deal Get Deal $66.44 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $119.00 Save $52.56 AccessoriesAttachments for your tools can make them more versatile, and setting up a jig to make a repetitive task faster and more precise will simplify your DIY projects. A right-angle drill adapter is on sale for $12.99, 46% off its regular price. This adapter allows you to use your drill in tight spaces, and it comes with nut driver attachments. A Milescraft pocket hole jig is on sale for $20.99, 36% off its usual price. This jig allows you to drive screws at an angle and conceal your fastener for a strong, clean joint on woodworking projects. A DeWalt magnetic bit guide set is on sale for $12.99, 35% off its regular price. This set includes a magnetic bit sleeve, a bit extension, and three driver bits that will fit an impact driver or standard drill. Shopping for tech? Lifehacker can help you make the right decision. Browse our tech reviews and head-to-head comparisons for everything from laptops and smartwatches to e-bikes and home gyms. Subscribe to our deals newsletter, Add to Cart, for the best sales sent to your inbox, or browse our best-of lists directly on Amazon, including: The Best Over-Ear Headphones The Best Wireless Earbuds The Best Adjustable Dumbbell Sets The Best Projectors View the full article

Using transition words in your writing can help you enhance the readability of your content. They help your text flow and show readers the relationship between phrases and paragraphs. That’s why the readability checks in Yoast SEO provide feedback on your use of transition words. But what are transition words, and why are they so important? And how should you use them? Table of contents What are transition words? Why you should use transition words Types of transition words Why are they important for SEO? What does the transition word check in Yoast SEO do? How to improve your usage Conclusion What are transition words? Transition words like ‘and’, ‘but’, ‘so’, and ‘because’ are words that show readers the relationship between phrases. Or sentences or even paragraphs. In a way, transition words act like the glue that holds your text together. Without them, your text is a collection of sentences. But with them, the individual parts come together to form one whole. Let’s look at an example: I pushed the domino. As a result, it fell over. When you start a sentence with ‘as a result’, your reader will immediately know two things: First, what happened in the first sentence caused something. Second, the sentence after that will describe the effect. By using the phrase ‘as a result’, you show that the two separate sentences are related to each other and should be read together. Read more: Examples of transition words in your language » Transition words to start a paragraph Transition words can be used to connect short phrases, sentences and paragraphs. When you use them to start a new paragraph, this allows you to showcase the relationship to the former paragraph. This helps keep your text flowing and readers understand what direction the next paragraph is going into. Examples of transition words for starting paragraphs are ‘for example’, ‘firstly’, ‘likewise’, ‘however’ and ‘to sum it up’. Transition word at the end of a sentence You don’t always have to place transition words at the beginning of a sentence. You can also add a transition word at the end to change it up or when it feels more fitting. For example: He’s a very nice guy. He took us out to dinner yesterday, for instance. Even though ‘for instance’ is placed at the end of the sentence, it still provides the reader with information on how the two sentences relate. Why you should use transition words You might be wondering: are transition words really that important? Let’s look at a text (Text A) where we don’t use them and the same where we do (Text B). Text A I’m going to discuss a few reasons why practice is important to learning skills. The only way to truly master a skill is by actually doing what you’ll have to do in the real world. I think practice can be a fun way of putting in the necessary hours. There are people who disagree. It is said that people tend to remember only 10-20% of what they’ve heard or read. That number rises to as much as 90% when you put theory into practice. Following up explanation with practice is key to mastering a skill. Text B In this paragraph, I’m going to discuss a few reasons why practice is important to mastering skills. Firstly, the only way to truly learn a skill is by actually doing what you’ll have to do in the real world. Secondly, I think practice can be a fun way of putting in the necessary hours. There are, however, people who disagree. Thirdly, and most importantly, it is said that people tend to remember only 10-20% of what they read or hear. Moreover, that number rises to as much as 90% when you put theory to practice. In conclusion, following up explanation with practice is key to mastering a skill. Text A is not a terrible paragraph. But it’s not the easiest to read, is it? Plus, text B does a better job of showing there are three separate arguments to support the statement with a definite conclusion. The reader never has to wonder whether a sentence still belongs to the previous argument or a new one. It even shows the relationship between sentences within one argument. In conclusion, most people will find text B easier to read, so they’ll stay on your page longer. Types of transition words Transition words can be divided into several categories, based on the type of connection you want to make. There are often several transition words available for the most common kinds of relationships between texts, or transitions as we call them in the table below. Sometimes, they mean the same; sometimes, there are slight differences. If you’re not a native speaker or are not familiar with these words, you’ll probably have to study and practice their use. Transition/type of relationshipExample word/phraseExample sentenceCause and effectTherefore, as a result, so, consequentlyI’m tired. Therefore, I’m going to bed.ClarificationThat is to say, in other words, to clarifyWe’re letting you go. In other words, you’re fired.ContrastBut, however, on the other handI am not fond of fruit. However, I do like bananas.ExampleFor example, for instanceIn the evening, I like to relax. For instance, I enjoy watching TV.EmphasisAbove all, most importantly, certainlyThere are many reasons to exercise regularly. Above all, it keeps you healthy.EnumerationFirstly/secondly, further, and, moreover, in additionToday, I’m going to write a post. In addition, I’m recording some video lessons.TimeMeanwhile, during, subsequently, after thatI’ll start by telling you what transition words are. After that, I’ll tell you why you should always use them.SimilarityLikewise, similarly, in the same veinShe tried really hard to entertain her guests. Similarly, he put all his heart and soul in cooking a great dinner.Summarize/concludeIn conclusion, to sum up, in shortIn conclusion, transition words are an important aspect of SEO copywriting.Table 1: transition words with example sentences Why are they important for SEO? As we’ve just seen, transition words make it easier to read and understand a text. They’re one of the key factors to readability. And readability is very important for SEO. Nobody likes to read a text that’s difficult to follow or boring. Your focus might be on creating a text that’s easy to understand for search engines, but that’s not how SEO works anymore. You need to write for people first and one of the ways to do that is to guide them through the text with easy language and well-placed transition words. This fits in nicely with the idea of holistic SEO. If you write a text that’s hard to understand, people won’t find what they need. What’s more, you’ll end up with unsatisfied visitors who bounce back to Google right when they hit your site. Google sees this as a sign of bad user experience, resulting in lower rankings. So make sure to write for your audience and search engines will follow. Moreover, these helpful words play a crucial role in structuring your text. Well-structured text is easier to understand, making your blog easier to read. This helps to retain readers and, therefore, contributes to SEO. What does the transition word check in Yoast SEO do? The transition words check in Yoast SEO assesses whether or not you use enough of these linking words. If at least 30% of the sentences in your text contain a transition word, the traffic light will be green. You get an orange light if you use them in more than 20% or less than 30% of your sentences. The light will be red if less than 20% of the sentences of your text contain a transition word. That would be less than 1 in 5 sentences. The readability analysis in Yoast SEO showing a red traffic light for the transition words check. Want to read more on how we came to the exact measurements of the transition words check and the other readability checks? Then you should read our article about the methodological choices of the readability analysis. How to improve your usage While most of us use transition words here and there, not everyone uses them frequently enough. That’s why it’s important to know when you can use them, and that you’re aware of the relationship between your sentences or paragraphs. Know the words (and when to use them) This sounds obvious, but it’s good to know all (or most of) the different transition words you can use. Even if you’re familiar with a language, it pays off to refresh your memory occasionally. Especially if you also write in other languages than your own. We have a few examples per language (that we offer in Yoast SEO right now) to help you get started. Or look online for examples and their meaning to get some inspiration, examples from literature and fiction can be a fun way to learn the words and when you can use them. Understand the relationship between sentences One of the tips we often give when writing a text is to just start writing a first draft and put everything in there that you want to say. After that, you can look at the structure of the text and what needs to be elaborated on or removed. This phase of ‘cleaning up’ is also where the addition of transition words comes in. When you’re happy with the order of your paragraphs and sentences, you can reread your text and spot opportunities to tie them together with the right transition words. This will probably come quite naturally to you when rereading, as that often helps you figure out which parts end too abruptly or could use a good transition. If it doesn’t come that naturally to you, or if you just want to make sure that you use them enough, our transition words check in Yoast SEO (free or Premium) will help out with that. This checks if you use enough transition words, depending on how long your content is. It will give you a green, orange or red traffic light to indicate your use of transition words and improvements that can be made in that regard. Want to know more? If you want to learn more about transition words and how to write great content in general, then our SEO Copywriting course can help you. You can preview this course for free, but if you choose to use Yoast SEO Premium, you get access to the full course (along with 15 other courses). If you use Shopify and want to work on the readability of your site, you can check out our Yoast SEO for Shopify app. Conclusion Transition words are important for the readability of your text. They explain, give examples, and help your readers understand your texts. They guide them through it. If you still need to get it into your system to use them more often, remember to add the step to your writing process! In addition, pay attention to the structure of your text. If you understand the point and goal of your paragraphs, it will be easier to pick the best transition words available. Keep reading: How to use the readability analysis in Yoast SEO » The post Transition words: why and how to use them appeared first on Yoast. View the full article

A quick guide to the UK chancellor’s main policy announcements and official forecastsView the full article

After years of struggling with the complexities of a merger that saw the combination of two major discount retailers a decade ago, Dollar Tree has decided to cut ties with Family Dollar. The company has announced an agreement to divest its Family Dollar business to private equity firms Brigade Capital Management and Macellum Capital Management for $1 billion, a strategic move that aims to streamline operations and enhance focus on its core Dollar Tree segment. Following the announcement, Dollar Tree’s shares surged nearly 7% in premarket trading on Wednesday. The deal is part of the company’s ongoing efforts to improve performance, with CEO Rick Dreiling emphasizing that the divestiture “enables us to better allocate capital and resources to support our long-term growth strategy.” The transaction is expected to be completed later this year. Writing on the wall The 2015 merger of Dollar Tree and Family Dollar, initially viewed as a strategic move to expand market reach, ultimately highlighted the complexities of integrating large retail operations. The decision to divest Family Dollar reflects a reassessment of strategic priorities and a focus on core business operations.​ During Q4 of fiscal 2023, the company announced that it had initiated a “comprehensive store portfolio optimization review.” This review focused on, among other things, identifying underperforming stores for closure. Following Dollar Tree’s Q1 results for 2024, there were hints that the company might spin off Family Dollar to focus on its core business after it announced it would close about 600 Family Dollar stores in the first half of fiscal year 2024 and 370 more over a period of a few years as their lease terms expire. Dollar Tree said in its earnings report on Wednesday that it closed 695 stores in fiscal 2024 as part of its review. Dollar Tree has not yet responded to Fast Company‘s inquiry regarding whether additional store closures are now anticipated. A new chapter With Brigade and Macellum’s backing, Family Dollar is poised for future success, according to Mike Creedon, CEO of Dollar Tree, as the discount retailer transitions into a new phase of growth. “Under the experienced, dynamic leadership of Family Dollar President Jason Nordin, and with the financial support of Brigade and Macellum, Family Dollar will be well-positioned for growth as a private company,” said Creedon in a statement. “With the support of a dedicated team, Family Dollar will be able to strengthen its commitment to providing affordable and essential goods to customers so they can do more with less.” Fast Company also reached out to Brigade Capital Management to ask if it planned to make any additional reductions to Family Dollar’s physical footprint View the full article