Category: BUSINESS TIPS

Business tips

5 Video Production Skills That Will Make You Money Online in Kenya Today
The demand for video services online today is huge. More and more companies are looking for competent video producers to work on their video projects.

Watch video – 5 Skills to Make You Money Online Today

Anyone who is committed can succeed making money online producing videos for individuals and businesses.

In this day and era, you can learn any skill related to video production online for free on YouTube.

Arts and Design category leads with 77% in representation by freelancers compared to other categories. This is according to Freelance Forward Economist Report 2021. This means there is a huge demand for Arts and Design skills compared to others.
Upwork

Getting Started

So how does the video producer decide which skills to employ in a given project?

Its mainly based on the script provided to them by the client. Largely, video producers, editors, animators and motion graphics designers are paid to work on projects that are meant for use commercially.

The end determines the means. How best will the message be communicated? This question will be answered based on the assets the client has and proposes to be used in producing the video. From here the skills needed will come out automatically.

On this blogpost, I will be sharing with you Top 5 video production skills that can make you money online in Kenya and are self thought.

List of top 5 Categories in Video production that will make you money online.
1. Screencast Video Production
2. Motion graphics and infographics animations
3. Production of 2D Animation And Whiteboard Explainer videos
4. 3D animation
5. Video Editing
1. Screencast Video Production

Screencast video production is a little hyped category in video production but has a lot of demand in the tech space. The potential of growth with this category of video production is high. Screencast video production is basically recording computer/tablet/phone screens of a software or SaaS application in action showing users how to use the product or service.

Application of screencast video production knowledge can be used in many areas in video production.

Screencast videos are the ones you find posted on most of the giant website help pages showing users how to do certain tasks on the platform.

While this can be done by anyone, most of the product owners prefer to have the work done by someone else professionally.

This is where they employ the skills of a screencast video producer, freelancer or a production agency. Screencast video production is more than recording the computer or software screens.

There is a learning phase where you study how the software or application works before doing the actual work.

To do screencast videos, you need to have access to a professional screen recording and editing software like Camtasia studio.

Potential Earnings Per Month

This skill has potential of earning you a minimum of $1000 to $5000 a month as a freelancer. It requires a lot of patience and commitment at the beginning before you break through.

2. Motion Graphics and Infographics Animation

Photo by RODNAE Productions on Pexels.com

Motion graphics has many different definitions. I will define it using my own words. Its basically animation of text, graphic designs, videos and images to communicate a message in the most entertaining way.

Kinetic typography is a good example of a motion graphic videos.

Infographics animation on the other hand is more less the same. The difference is that with infographics, your are adding motion to existing informational graphics or data. e.g case studies.

Depending on your experience, you can use basically any professional software. To be on the safe side, I recommend learning how to use Adobe after effects. With the software, you are not limited in what you can create.

Motion graphics skill has demand all over. Once you have built a name around it, your earning potential will be huge.

Potential Earnings Per Month: One video of 2 Mins can make you $300-1000. If you do let’s say 5 videos a month, you are good.

3. Production of 2D Animation and Whiteboard Explainer Videos

2D animations and whiteboard explainer videos are two different things but share a common ground. Vector graphics and illustrations are used to produce them. For 2D, its more of custom designs and animations. e.g Tom and Jerry or the The Pink Panter.

On the other hand, whiteboard explainer videos are produced using pre-designed templates that comes with the video production software you purchase. You just only drag and drop the elements you need in the video based on the script you have.

2D animation projects pays well if the assignment at hand entails working on a TV show or a movie.

Potential Earnings on 2D Animation

One can earn up to $100k to work on a long form movie animation that may take almost a year to produce.

On the other hand, whiteboard explainer videos created using premade illustrations and templates don’t pay much but is highly on demand.

Earning Potential Doing Whiteboard Explainers

On average one gets paid a minimum of $100 to create a 1 minute whiteboard explainer video. You only need to produce 10 Minutes of animation to make $1000.

Software’s like Animaker, Vyond and Powtoon are popular for use in creating whiteboard explainer videos.

4. 3D Animations

Photo by ThisIsEngineering on Pexels.com

3D animation is one of the most demanding skill compared to other categories in video production. That’s why many video producers don’t like it much. In order to model a very smooth and good quality 3D animation video, you need a computer with high specs, time and a lot of RAM to render your animations.

That’s why it may cost up to $3000 to develop a 1 Minute high end 3D Animation.

If you have the right equipment’s and software to work on 3D animations, the potential to earn good money as an independent professional is high online.

Earning potential

$500-3000 per minute of a 3D animation.

5. Video Editing

With many individuals and businesses embracing Youtube as a way of marketing their businesses, there is a constant and growing demand for video editing services. Business minded individuals are looking for video editors to work on their YouTube content.

This means if you are a good video editor, you have the potential to earn good money editing videos.
The secret behind succeeding as a video editor is looking for many long term clients.

Earning Potential

If you charge $20/hour to edit a video and a client hires you to work for 10 hours a week, you make $200/week. In a month, you make $800 from one client.

If you are able to get clients who collectively pays you for 40 hours a week and offers to assign you work for a long term, you make good money. In a week you will be making $800 and $2400 a month.

Conclusion

Earning potential of any creative in the video production industry depends majorly on their aggressiveness, how well they communicate, their creativity and negotiation skills. If one is able to negotiate for a good pay, they will earn good money at the end.

And that is it from me here.

What other category of skill in video production can a creative make money with online?

Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

And if you are looking for professional video production services, Techtube Video Studio is ready to sort you out. You can request a quote for Free on their site here.

Until next time, bye bye and take care.

Follow me on twitter @cheptiony
April 19, 2022
8 Common Forms Of Debit And Credit Card Fraud in Kenya
Owing rampart cases of card fraud where individuals are billed for purchases they did not authorize, many Kenyans are afraid of using their debit or credit cards online when shopping.

Watch Video Forms of Card Fraud Cases In Kenya

One of the popular online card fraud case in the past years worldwide is carding. It originated from the dark web. Most of the activities that takes place in the dark web are not traceable. That’s how dark web infrastructure is structured.

What is Carding?

According to Wikipedia, carding is the trafficking and unauthorized use of credit cards. The stolen credit cards or credit card numbers are then used to buy prepaid gift cards to cover up the tracks. The process encompasses exploitation of personal data, and money laundering techniques.

In other words, the scammer makes sure the stolen card is working. He then uses it to purchase a prepaid card on his name. From there, further purchases with the prepaid card will be hard to trace.

Though cases of carding has not been reported in Kenya yet, scammers popularly known as wash wash are doing it.

On this blogpost, I will focus on 8 common card fraud cases in Kenya. I will cover them from the most common to the least common.
1. Card Cracking
2. Chargeback fraud or friendly fraud
3. Account takeover on e-commerce website
4. Interception fraud
5. Point of Sales(POS) Fraud
6. Phishing and Vishing
7. Keystroke logging
8. Application Fraud
1. Card Cracking

Card cracking is the use card stolen numbers.

A good case of card cracking is the one that was reported by Nation Media last year here.

Two Bulgarians, Ivan Petkov and Milko Kostadinov, were arrested and charged in a Kilifi court when they were found with 44 ATM cards and over Sh2 million.

A Screenshot of Card Cracking case reported by nation Media

The money is believed to have been stolen from various bank accounts using the cards.

When enquiries was made on the affected banks, they were unable to trace or explain how the money was getting lost. This left them with no option but to refund the affected customers.

2. Chargeback or Friendly Fraud

This is a case where a customer makes purchases using their own credit or debit card and then disowns that transaction saying that it was not them. This kind of fraud is usually easy to trace.

Evidence can found in form of – cvv/avs match, IP address match, location data, copies of e-mailed invoices, the terms and conditions the customer agreed at the time of purchase e.t.c

3. Account Takeover On a E-commerce Website

Ever heard of people complain that their account has been hacked on a merchant site like Jumia, Amazon e.t.c? If the user had their credit card registered as a payment method on the hacked account, the fraudster will make purchases from the site until the debit account runs dry.

If this is not reported early, the fraudster can get away with it. On the other hand if the case is reported early enough, the hacker can be easily traced using the delivery address he/she has entered for the ordered items or the billing address he used in purchasing a given digital product e.tc.

4. Interception Fraud

Lets say you are browsing online and you found a product you like on a given website. Let’s call the site A. You do your own due diligence and you find out that site A is safe and secure. You use your card to purchase the product. A week later, you receive an e-mail notification that your have made another purchase (that you did not authorize) on a different site (lets call it site B) using the same card you used to make a purchase a week earlier.

This is what is called card interception fraud. The site owner or admin of site A took your card details and card information you supplied and used it to make the purchase on site B.

I recently saw a tweet of a foreigner warning travelers coming to Kenya to watch out for fraudulent e-visa scam sites especially kenyan-travels.com. They site appears legit but they will scam users ID and credit card.

5. Point of Sales (POS) Fraud

Point of sales fraud happens when a skimming device is attached to the POS devices to scan and store card information while the customer completes a swipe transaction. Several cases of scammers attaching a skimming devices on an ATM machine has been reported in US in the past years.

POS machine with skimming devise attached.

6. Phishing and Vishing

Phishing is very common in Kenya especially with Mpesa users and KCB bank account holders. This is where fraudsters impersonates official communication from the bank or service provider with the aim of duping unsuspecting users into revealing their credit card details. If they succeed, they will withdraw everything from the account of the victim.

7. Keystroke Logging

In order for the fraudster to succeed with Keystroke logging, they will first need install a malicious software or hardware on the target device. The malicious software will be used to capture credit card details through recording every key pressed on their system.

Keystroke logging happens mostly to users who purchase cheap used gadgets online.

8. Application Fraud

This is a type of identity theft where fraudulent actors impersonates a genuine customer to obtain a credit card. The fraudsters uses customers stolen or counterfeit documents to make their application.

How are the banks are working to curb card Fraud

Most banks are now upgrading from 3D secure version 1 to 3D secure version 2. With 3D card authentication, the system identifies you as the actual card holder before any transaction can take place by sending a One time password(OTP) on users registered mobile number. This will prove that the actual card holder is the one undertaking an online transaction and therefore it is a genuine transaction.

Global card payment industry mandate requires all the banks to move to the newest version of 3D secure by October 2022.

Ways to Safeguard Yourself Against Debit/Credit Card Fraud
- Report stolen cards to your bank.
- Be careful when using your card online. Do not give out your credit card number online unless the site is secure and reputable.
- Memorize your CVV number then scratch it off the card to avoid misuse when you lose or its stolen.
- Setup alerts of all your transactions. This way you will be notified of any fraudulent transactions on your card.
- Be careful when responding to special investment offers especially from unsolicited e-mail addresses.
- Keep track of your documents and ensure you destroy redundant copies before disposal. This way, none of your private information will be exposed.
- Be extra careful when dealing with foreign businesses or companies outside your country.
And that is it from me.

What’s your card fraud story? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

And if you are in need of video production services, let me know here. Alternatively, you can you can request a quote for free here.

Until next time, bye and take care.

Follow me on twitter @cheptiony.
April 7, 2022
Commonly Overlooked Elements That Make Videos Look Professional And Pleasing To Watch
There are many elements that makes up a video. While each one of them is important, there are those that are basic. Basic elements are the ones that makes a video presentation look professional and pleasing to watch.

In todays fast paced world, one must be able to match the industry production standards in order to compete. If you learn to include the elements I am going to discuss on this blogpost on your videos, they are going to stand out.

Before I begin sharing with you what these elements are, I will like point out why people create videos today.

When you scroll through different content on Youtube you will notice that many people create videos for different reasons e.g as a hobby, selling, marketing, teaching, entertainment, e.t.c.

If you are a beginner, it is important to know the kind of video elements to use for different type of videos.

With this said, let’s now get right into the elements that will make your videos pleasing to watch. I will put them in two categories namely;
- Reusable Elements
- Non-reusable Elements
Watch Video- 8 Things To Add To Your Video And Make It Pleasing To Watch

Reusable Elements

Reusable elements are designs that you create once and can later be modified and reused again and again.

Animated Intro/Outro

This is your brand identity or that of your business. For companies, animated intro video is usually a logo and a tagline. The impact of it depends on the way animation is done. Simple animation still works well today.

When working on animated intros and outros, consider including your address and contact information in it. For example, in my vlogs intro, I have a logo with my domain. This is because I want people to visit my blog. The intro is only 3 seconds.

Lower Thirds Templates

If you are a seasoned video editor, you know what lower thirds is. The latest versions of video editing software’s come with ready made collection of lower thirds.

Lower thirds is the title design that appears below the video and has the name and tittle of the person appearing. You can include social media handles of that person.

Quotes And Long Form Text Templates

If you are a vlogger like me and produces videos on a regular basis, you will need to have a reusable template for quotes and long form text. For instance, if you are quoting something or someone in your videos, you can use this tittle template. You only change the text and maybe the color if necessary.

Also, if there is something that you are emphasizing on your videos, you can use this template.

Animated List Template

Animated list template comes in handy when you are sharing a number of things in form of a list. It’s good when the items appear one by one.

When you have a template for it, things will be easy for you. You will be only changing text and adjusting time.

Title Templates

Premade tittle templates work in many areas of a video. Mostly, title template are used when talking about a subtopic in a video. Create one that reflects the theme of your brand.

When you have a collection of tittle templates, your editing will easy and seamless as you will only be changing the text each time you use it.

Non-Reusable Elements

Video Subtitles .

Video subtitles are very relevant today. For example, if you are posting your content on YouTube, that video will be watched by different people including the deaf. Having subtitles will help them follow and understand what you are saying.

Also, some people who find it hard to grasp what you are saying because of the accent, can follow your videos using subtitles. Having subtitles is a professional way of presenting your content today.

Video Thumbnail

For a video to attract attention of online users and make them click, video thumbnail is necessary.

While you can have a thumbnail template that can be re-used, a new thumbnail design for every new video is good.

Video Credits

Professionally, its necessary to have credits on your videos. Credits are the list of names of people and brands who played different major roles in your entire production. It can appear anywhere in the video.

Many vloggers don’t have this on their videos-me included😃- because they think that no one will notice or care to go through the list of credits. But credits are very important.

It make your content rich and professional.

If someone considers hiring you, they can do that confidently knowing that you have a team behind.

And that is it from me here.

I know there are many more.

Which ones did I miss to mention? Let me know by sharing your thoughts in the comments section below.

And if you need professional video production services, do not hesitate to contact us.

You can request a free quote here.

Until next time, bye bye and take care.

Follow me on twitter @cheptiony.
March 10, 2022
3 Common Video Editing Mistakes That Most Beginners Make

Video editing is a skill that one gets better with time. When one is on their early stages, they make simple mistakes that only professionals in the video production industry can spot.

If you are a beginner video editor, you will relate with some the video editing mistakes that I am going to share with you here. How you edit a video will determine the viewers perception. People rate the quality of content by how it is edited.

Does it communicate clearly?

Is the sequence pleasant to watch?

These questions can only be addressed by a video editor who knows how to well arrange different video components on the video editing timeline.

On this blogpost, I will be sharing 3 common mistakes that beginner video editors make so that you can watch out.

Balancing the Background Music and Voice over

This is a mistake commonly made by beginners. You find out that the volume of the background music is higher than the presenters voice. This makes audibility very difficult to the personal watching the video.

In order to contain this, its important for the video editor to learn how to control audio on the timeline. Learning how to do this manually as opposed to using automatic premade audio templates is the only way out. When you approach it this way, you will be able to control the volume as you listen to changes in real time. You can do this until its on the right levels that you are satisfied with.

Adding Several Transitions and Sound Effects

Video transitions and sound effects are cool as it spices up a video. But too much of it becomes distractive and draws away the viewer. Most beginners love to use several video transitions and sound effects as a way to wow their viewers. It’s fine if creatively put together.

Video: 3 Common Video Editing Mistakes People Make

But as they say, too much of something is poisonous. As an editor, try to minimize the use many of those effects.

My rule of thumb when it comes to video transitions is narrowing down to a minimum of two per video. This way, if it appears in multiple sections of a video, the viewer will be already familiar with it as it’s registered in the subconscious part of the brain. Also, it makes my work have a professional ‘corporate feel.’

Serious action takers appreciate videos with little or no ‘koso koso‘ in it. They are interested with the information you are sharing with them. So, prioritize your message.

Poorly Designed and Placed Text Or Graphics

This is a very popular mistake many video editors make thinking it’s creativity. You watch a video and text suddenly appears and disappears fast before you can even read them. On some occasions, the video editor uses very bright background color with text formatted in different colors and font. They have no transition or animation at the beginning and the end of the title.

Such kind of text and graphics presentation on a video is unprofessional in my view especially in this day and age. As a video editor, you should first do your research, see how other people design their tittles and then learn how to do it directly from your video editing software.

Basic knowledge on design requires that you use a minimum of 3 colors on a tittle for it to look professional. Secondly, choose a font that is visible and easy to read. And lastly, add a transition at the beginning and the end of the tittle. ‘Fade in‘ transition works well on most corporate type of videos.

And that is it from me here.

I know there are more. What are those mistakes that you see video editors make every day?

Share them with me on the comments section below.

And if you need help to produce any of type of video, do not hesitate to let me know here. Remember you can request a free quote on www.techtubestudio.com.

And until next time, bye bye and take.

Follow me on twitter @cheptiony.

February 23, 2022
5 Factors To Consider When Choosing A Business or Company Name To Register in Kenya
Photo by nappy on Pexels.com

Before deciding to register a business or company, having a name in mind that want to register is key. Most business name choices are dependent on many factors like brands, associations, type of business, location and more.

When choosing a business name, it’s important to draw inspiration from the popular successful businesses around you.

Ask yourself; What makes their name unique? Can you recall their name easily? These questions will be very helpful when you are deciding a business name to register.

On this blogpost, I will share with you 5 factors to consider when you choosing a business name to register.

Watch video : 5 Factors to Consider When Choosing A Business or Company Name To Register in Kenya

Choose A Name That’s Simple And Easy to Pronounce

Stick to a short name with few words. Choose a name that anyone can easily read and recall. For example, the name Lincolyn Ventures may be unique, but a bit hard for some people to read and master. On the other hand shortening the name to Linco Ventures will make it easy for anyone to read, pronounce and write.

Consider the customers you are going to interact with when telling them about your business. How easy will it be for you to pronounce the name to anyone?

Pick A Name Around Your Type of Business

What type of business are you into? Many a times, coming up with a name that is neutral or related to your business is key. Draw inspiration from other successful businesses that you see around.

For example, YUM! BRANDS owns many fast food franchise outlets across the world. These includes KFC, Pizza Hut and Tacco Bell. The first word in the business name is simple, unique and easy to master -YUM. We all know that when the food is sweet it’s ‘Yummy.’ This is what makes it easy to master.

Consider A Neutral Name

Doing business in todays fast paced world is tough. Trends change thus what we do or offer as a business entity. It’s therefore important to come up with a neutral business name that you can use in any field.

For instance, business name Dan & Jeff Consultants can only work well in consultancy type of businesses. This is unless you have different brand names operating under the company name.

Business name Linco Ventures Limited is a good example of a neutral name. If you find an opportunity to do business in any field, you can accept it without any conflict.

Think of A Name Around Your Origin And Identity

Which country do you come from? Do you come from a region with rich traditional cultures? Think of an easy name that identifies with your culture of origin. This will make your business stand out. The idea of forming a business name around your origin can be a secret that you can only share when asked.

Avoid obvious names that sounds tribal. Carefully sort out the words you use to make it neutral. Relative names will remind you of where you come from as a business person.

Follow Business Name Reservation Guidelines

When thinking of registering a business, it’s very important to first go through the business name reservation guidelines available here on the Business Registration Portal (BRS). The list outlines what one needs to have in mind when planning to apply for business name reservation.

For instance;
- Businesses with the word “Enterprises” at the end cannot use Initials e.g J.K and Brian Enterprises.
- Single words are not accepted.
- Names with the word “Foundation” must be registered as Companies limited by guarantee.
- Names starting with the word “Kenya” are only reserved for the government.
- Names with “welfare”, Organization, Association, are not allowed.
There are nine more conditions you have to adhere to when registering a company in Kenya which can be found here on the BRS portal.

Conclusion

Business registration is the first step towards starting and running a legal business in Kenya. It’s guided by the business registration service act 2015. Please take a moment to read the article, How to Start a Business In Kenya Today here to learn more.

Don’t be a in a rush to register any business name. Be patient with your yourself and take your time before going ahead and applying for a name reservation. Do it only when you are ready.

Is there any other factor that I missed out that one need to consider when registering a business in Kenya?

Please let me know by sharing your thoughts in the comments section below.

And if you are in need of professional video production services, let me know here. You may want to request a free quote on www.techtubestudio.com.

That is it from here today.

And until next time, bye bye and take care.

Follow me on twitter @cheptiony.
February 9, 2022
6 Mandatory Requirements Needed In Order To Register a Foreign Business or Company in Kenya

The process of registering any business in Kenya online is nearly the same. However, when registering a foreign company, the mandatory requirements needed to complete the process are quite different. This is based on the companies act 2015.

You can make your application online via the BRS portal.

In this blogpost, I will highlight six mandatory requirements you need to have in order to register a foreign company.

Watch Video: 6 Requirements to Register a Foreign Company in Kenya

PS: This is just a summary of the mandatory requirements based on the information collected on the Kenya Business Registration Portal. You can find a detailed guide about registering a foreign company in Kenya here.

#1 Copy of Certificate of Registration or Incorporation

This is the copy of the certificate of registration from the country of origin. The copy of the certificate must be notarized. Also, if the certificate of incorporation and charter is not in English, the applicant must provide a translation of the same.

#2 Local Representation

This process also requires that the company or business to have a local representation.

They representative can be part of local board of directors and may be assigned specific powers in addition to it’s foreign directors.

On top of this, the applicant must also share names and postal addresses of one of the local representative in Kenya. They will be authorized to accept notices when needed to be served on behalf of the company.

#3 Companies Constitution

Attach a certified/notarized copy of of the companies constitution/ the Charter/Statutes/ Articles or other instruments defining the constitution of the company or the equivalent. If it is in other language, it has to be translated to English.

#4 List of Shareholders And Directors

In your application, you have to attach names and details of shareholders and directors of the company or business.

#5 Memorandum of Association

Attach a memorandum of association drafted locally which is certified and executed by or on behalf of the company.

The memorandum should state the powers of the directors who (a) reside in Kenya (b) are members of a local board of directors.

#6 Notice of The Companies Registered Office

When making your application, there is form that you fill and it requires you enter details of the companies registered office in its place of origin. If the company doesn’t have such an office, then it’s principal place of business in its place of origin.

There are more other requirements which are dependent on how big the company you are registering is. You can find the instruction about registering a foreign company here.

I hope to this article was helpful. If you have any questions related to business registration in Kenya, do not hesitate to consult BRS support. I wish you the very best as you set up your business in Kenya.

And if you are in need of professional video production services, let me know here. You may want to request a free quote on www.techtubestudio.com.

And until next time, bye bye and take care.

Follow me on twitter @cheptiony.

January 26, 2022
8 Kenyan Websites And Apps That Toped My List in 2021

Online service delivery is proving to be very efficient and convenient in Kenya. 2 years ago, you could not get an e-mail reply from many of the government institutions’ websites if you contacted them via their contact form. That’s still the case today in a some of them.

Watch Video – Kenyan Websites That Topped My List in 2021

I used and reviewed some of the Kenyan websites in 2021 which include government, parastatals and banks. Based on my experience, all of them got good rating when it came to resolving issues related to their services.

On this blogpost, I will highlight some of the top sites and mobile applications which many Kenyans use on their daily basis. Almost all of the services that I am going to review here saved me a great deal in 2021.

Mpesa App

I love this app for what it does. Let me start with its ability to allow users to transact globally. Some of the clients I work with reside in different parts of the world and pay me using Paypal. Being able to receive payments from PayPal in minutes to Mpesa with good exchange rate is great deal.

Paypal to Mpesa and vice versa

Inside the app, you can see the link to either top up PayPal or Withdraw money from PayPal. The process is as easy as paying a bill. Also, you will receive your money within few minutes.
The second beautiful thing I love about Mpesa app is being able tag expenses each time you spend. E.g when you pay for shopping, you can tag the expense as ‘shopping.’
At the end of the month, you will be able to see how much money you spent on shopping. This really helps in managing expenses and being accountable.

The third feature I have been using and love is the Mpesa mini-apps. The mini-apps within the Mpesa app is quite convenient to those using the app. E.g With mini-apps, am able to book a flight, train, buy electricity tokens, pay for insurance e.t.c.

If you are someone who is looking for ways to save time and money, then you will enjoy using Mpesa App for the convenience that it brings.

KRA iTax Portal

KRA iTax portal services

KRA iTax portal is another very convenient website for me that I use in filling my monthly Tax returns.

I visited the iTax portal a lot in 2021 to file returns, request for waiver, update my personal information and more. The portal really saved me time and money.
You don’t have to pay someone to help you file returns if you have little transactions every month. It’s easy to file returns once you learn how to do it.
One can use iTax portal to file returns, generate payment receipts’, clear all penalties associated with their PIN and more.

Also, I used the portal to request for a Tax Compliance Certificate (TCC).

For more information on the tasks you can accomplish on the kRA iTax portal, here is blogpost that I wrote on 10 things you can do there.

Business Registration Portal (BRS)

Register Business in Kenya

This is a site I like when it comes to registering and managing my businesses.

On BRS portal, I was able to update my registered businesses’ contact information directly on the portal. Also, I updated the beneficiaries of my company as per companies act 2015.

At the the comfort of your home, you can apply and pay for business registration on the BRS portal today.

Office of The Attorney General(AG) Portal

This is the site for requesting company closure or strike off.

Closing a company in Kenya

Towards the end of the year 2021, I initiated the process of striking off Trendline Network Ltd here. You can access the portal on the address www.ag.ecitizen.go.ke.
When you make an application to strike off your company, it will take up 5 days to be reviewed. It will either be approved or rejected.

Kenya Gazette Weekly

Kenya Law

You can find useful resources related to law on Kenya law website.

I found this site last year when looking for the weekly Kenya Gazette publication. The Gazette is free to download on the site.
After my application for company strike off was approved, I was advised to regularly check the weekly Kenya Gazette, for the first publication on the first month, and the last publication after 90 days.
Kenya Law website has been very helpful to me when following up on company closure.

NHIF Portal

NHIF Self Care Services

NHIF selfcare portal was very helpful to me in 2021. After many years of not paying for my medical insurance, In 2021, I was able to finally update my personal data via the NHIF self care portal.
Also, I was able to change the outpatient hospital via the portal.

It’s easy and secure to use NHIF online services besides being able to do everything at home.

Ardhisasa Portal

I did a review of ArdhiSasa portal in 2021 and published it here. During the review, I tried different things on the site and I was contented with the portal speed and ease of use.

Ardhisasa Kenya Review

On Ardhisasa, you can search and transfer property, order a plan and order a tittle of any property in Nairobi county. They say they aim to expand the service to contain land information from all other counties in Kenya.

Online Banking Service

KCB online banking services

I signed up for online banking with Diamond Trust Bank (DTB), KCB Bank and I &M Bank owing to the fact that I have an account with the banks.
My experience with their online banking services was satisfying. I was very happy with each one of them.

They embrace 2 factor authentication which is a good practice when it comes to safety online.
With the introduction of online banking in Kenya, customers now have an additional option of transacting money from their bank accounts when other options fails or are not available.

From transacting over the bank counter, using mobile short codes, debit and credit cards and bank mobile apps; one is not limited on how they can transact.

Conclusion

Technology is proving to be the effective in many sectors of the economy in Kenya.
Being able access many of these services online anywhere across Kenya is a good thing. This is the way to go for many small and big companies/businesses.

And that is it from me on the 8 Top Sites and Apps I Used Most in 2021.

If you need help to create video reviews for websites, apps or software’s, you can request a free quote on www.techtubestudio.com.

Until next time, bye bye and take care.

Follow on twitter on @cheptiony.

January 4, 2022
How To Kickstart Your Freelance Video Editing Career Using FREE Resources Online

You can build a very rewarding career as a freelance video editor working from home. The challenge most professional video editors have is how to get started.

In order to be taken seriously as a video editor, one needs many things. The first one, is a license to a paid professional video editing software. This is besides a computer with high specs to use in editing videos.

Watch video: How to kickstart Freelance Video Editing Career Online

Photo by Alex Fu on Pexels.com

Having a access to premium quality royalty free videos, photos, music and sound effects is an added advantage when looking for work.

With all these requirements at hand, you will be well equipped to go out and look for video editing work.

But what if you don’t have the money to purchase licenses to all the recommended software’s and you are very good at video editing? Will you opt for the cracked version of the software’s you need?

It’s obvious most people will opt to go for the later because its easy and you make all the money without paying for the software license. Sadly, it has more downsides than one would imagine when it comes to private data. I don’t recommend downloading cracked software even if your friend is using and recommends it.

In 2022, it is possible kickstart your career as video editor serving online clients using free legit resources.

In this blogpost, I will share with a sure path to success as a beginner professional video editor.

Getting The Tools You Need

By the time you are reading this, I assume you have a computer with the right specs and video editing/creation skills. With this said, here are some softwire’s you can download and use for free and pay for it later when you have work that pays.

Camtasia Studio

Camtasia studio is an easy to use software that I use all the time for my vlogs. As a beginner, you get 30 days trial when you sign up to download it. Within this period, you will be in a position to do many things with the software among them screencast video recording and editing.

You can even produce paid work using the software!

This way, when you get paid for the video editing job, you can upgrade to a paid version of the software.

DaVinci Resolve 17

DaVinci resolve 17 a free video editing software recommended for creators who are into filmmaking. You can do many things using the software on a professional level for FREE.

It’s important to note that the computer specs needed in order to use this software is a bit higher. Be prepared to purchase Blackmagic products as you progress.

Final Cut Pro

Final cut pro is another great video editing tool if you are a Mac user. When you download the software, you get a 90 day free trial.

This the longest window period that no other video editing software company has attempted to offer. Their competitor Adobe premiere pro gives users only 7 days to try.

I believe they did this considering the video production industry terrain. There is no guarantee for work when beginning or at all time. Its a good offer for a starter who is hard working as they can learn to use the software and do a lot with it during this period.

Avid Media Composer

This is another professional software that one can consider when starting up. It was widely used between 2000-2010 before final cut Pro came in for Mac. The company offers four different versions of the software.

As a beginner, you can start with the free version –Media composer first– then progress to the professional version of it once you start making money from video editing.

These are few of the many professional video editing software’s that I have tried and used for free in the past. I know you are wondering; what about Adobe Premiere and Adobe After effects? I don’t think they are good for starter who have no money to spend on software. 7 Days is not enough to explore a software and get comfortable with.

Secondly, I understand that many people have access and use patched/cracked version of all Adobe Software’s and uses it to do their work, it am totally against piracy. I say from a businessman perspective.

If you want to organically grow your freelancing profession editing videos, I recommend purchasing software license or use the ones I have recommended above when starting up until you make money.

Getting Free Video And Photo Assets Online

Photo by Artem Beliaikin on Pexels.com

There are many websites outside there that offer free videos and photos. I have written a review on websites that offer free videos and photos here.

These include Pexels, Videvo, Pixabay, Vidsplay and Pikwizard. Utilize these sites when starting up to get free videos and photos to use in creating stunning videos for your clients. 0

Getting Free Music and Sound Effects

You will need music for use in video intros and general video production. For instance, some videos will not need a voice over narration but instead a background music.

You can get free music on YouTube audio Library here. This is a sure place I know. Of course google search offers you with a whole lot of other alternative places.

How Can These Resources Help You Get Work?

Creating A Video Portfolio

With the free videos and photos, you can create a nice video demo to showcase your skills. Plan this by writing a script that communicates a message. It can be a short video to market a product or service.

Create a couple of different styles of professional videos for use in showcasing your video editing skills. Each time you are requested to send a proposal, send links to the videos alongside it.

Creating Videos For Clients

Some clients don’t have a budget to purchase royalty free videos, photos and music. Having an idea on where to get free assets online will give you an upper hand on getting hired. This means that, you can use the free resources to produce videos and get paid.

And this wraps up our blogpost today on the steps you need to kickstart your video editing career online as a beginner.

Once you have earned money offering video editing services, you can invest the income in purchasing licenses to your favorite video editing software. Your video editing career path will be easy if you patiently follow this advise.

and that is it.

Which professional video editing software do you recommend for beginners to use when starting up for free? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

And if you need help to create and produce professional screencast videos and GIF’s for your business, you can request a FREE quote here.

And until next time, bye bye and take care.

Follow me on twitter @cheptiony

December 21, 2021
How To Hire A Freelance WordPress Website Designer

As one grows as a freelancer, there is a need to own a website where you can share your skills and ideas. WordPress is one of the best and most popular platform to host your website.

It’s easy to use. Moreover you can start publishing on the platform for free. All you need to do is sign up. This means that you can build your online business from scratch on WordPress.

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

While anyone is capable of building their website on WordPress, along the way as workload increases, they will need a helping hand. By hiring a freelance WordPress website designer, you will save time and money.

In this blogpost, I will be sharing my process of hiring a WordPress website designer as well as some of the things I look at when hiring one.

Where to Hire

Hiring a freelancer through the freelance marketplaces is what I will focus on in this blogpost. It’s the safest and most reliable way to hire a freelancer. This is owing to it’s Escrow payment protection, ability to get a variety of freelancers, affordability e.t.c.

Of-course there are other alternative ways of hiring a freelancer.

One of them is through referrals. If you know individuals who offers web design services, I urge you to contact them directly on their websites and discuss with them your project. If their quote is within your budget, go ahead and give them a contract. It’s a good deed.

Video: How I Hire a Freelance WordPress Website Designer

With this said, lets now dive into what I look at when hiring a freelance WordPress Website designer.

It Starts With Cover Letter

If you are a freelancer, you know that cover letter is everything a client needs to make that decision of hiring you. CV’s here don’t work. Your profile and past client reviews is what someone will look at if they need further clarification on your portfolio before they hire.

That’s what I also do. I base their experience with the number of happy clients they have served.

So in this case, what do I look at when reviewing a cover letter?

Cover Letter Greetings

How do they address me? This is very important. Some addresses me personally by my name and others prefer to use ‘sir/madam.’ This tells me that the freelancer is kind and respectful.

On the other hand, someone who just writes ‘Hi or Hello‘ to me sounds a bit mean and unprofessional.

Reading further the cover letters of most of second type of freelancers confirms that truly they are unprofessional because they don’t know what they are talking about.

Most of them send generic cover letters. That is why I think every detail in the cover letter matters.

Addressing The Problem

When you Post A Job, you as the client is supposed to describe in detail what you are looking for in a WordPress web designer. Also, you need to describe the tasks you want accomplished on your WordPress website.

I expect a freelancer applying to my job post to mention something about my needs in the first paragraph.

In many occasions, I decline 40 to 60% of the applications. This is because their cover letters are generic. In this I mean they have one copy of cover letter which they reuse on all their applications.

Links To Their Portfolio

This is another most important aspect. Have they designed a WordPress website before? How do their past designs look like? Does any of them impress me? If I like some of their past designs in their portfolio, I proceed and shortlist the candidate right away.

Depending on my urgency, I can proceed and send them a message informing them that I have seen their application and I like specific website designs they have in their design portfolio.

I then remove or decline all applications without links to any past project.

This is unless I have few freelancers applying to the job post.

Cost

By the time I am looking at the applicants quoted price, I would have filtered about 80% of the applications. For the ones remaining, I will look at their costs and compare it with the value they intend to offer.

While cost does not come first, its an important aspect that I look at when evaluating a freelance WordPress designer.

Timelines

How much time do I have with me to focus on this?

While this is communicated upfront while posting the job-depending on how experienced and committed the freelancer is- I expect them to propose their own timelines for completion of the project during the interview.

If my preferred freelancer does not propose a different timeline, it means they are fine with the timeline I proposed to them. This for me is a perfect candidate for the job.

Revisions and Bug Fixes

At my early stages of hiring a freelance WordPress designer, there was a lot of bug fixes and revisions that I requested fixed each time. I suspected the errors was created by the designer so that I could give him more work and hence more money.

Today, if you are hiring a designer, you will find out that some guarantee you 30 days FREE maintenance on your site. Someone who can make such an offer knows what they are doing.

They mean business and you rarely request revisions from them.

Long Term Commitment

This for people who foresee building and making changes on their websites over time. Once you find a suitable freelancer, tell them about your plans to continue improving on your website. Having a consistent designer to your site is good. They get familiar with your website the more they work on it.

Conclusion

Communication still stands out when hiring a freelancer online. Someone who is able to communicate well via e-mail is a suitable candidate so long as they are honest. I rarely interview freelancers via video call unless its absolutely necessary.

Escrow protection on payments is a security assurance for both parties in the freelance marketplaces. You only release payment when you are satisfied with the work delivered.

So, don’t tolerate poor communication on e-mail exchanges during the interview process. It’s that important.

And that is it.

What is it that you look at when hiring a freelance WordPress website designer? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

And if you need professional screencast video production services or production of GIF’s for your website, you can request a free quote on www.techtubestudio.com.

Until next time, bye bye and take care.

Follow me on twitter @cheptiony.

December 4, 2021
My YouTube Vlogging Story And Lessons I Have Learnt

Creatives in the YouTube vlog business face many hurdles in their journey to success. Vlogging is a practical business school of it’s own. Those who have succeeded and now earns from this channels are good examples of resilient creators.

Sadly, people who have not vlogged before cannot understand the REAL meaning of ‘giving up on something‘ until they get involved in the vlogging business.

The most common question I am ask by people is; do you make money from your blog or YouTube channel? Its a really tricky question because the value one gets by creating content is beyond money.

In this blogpost, I will share my vlogging story as well as some hurdles creatives go through to get their videos out there to their targeted audiences.

The Creative Process

“What I am going to share?” That’s what goes through the mind of a creator each week when planning to produce their content. With time, one realizes that unique and original content takes time to create and sell.

Video:- My Vlogging Story & Lessons I Have Learnt

My regular blogging and vlogging experience has thought me that google and YouTube algorithms are unpredictable. It therefore means that the only way to beat it is to come up with original content targeted at a very specific niche/market.

It took me a year to realize this. At my early stages, like any newbie creator I wanted ‘many views.’ In the channels I owned in the past, I bought ‘views’. This never made any difference in my life apart from seeing that I had many views on my videos:-). I was getting no feedback from those who watched or liked the videos I created.

I did this for a year. Over this period, I realized that the contentment I wanted from it was missing. So, I had to sit down and rethink on my content.

Why was I having a YouTube channel in the first place? What was my purpose? Thinking through these questions helped me restart and reorganize myself again.

My Vlogging Story

In my life, I have had more than 5 YouTube channels that are no more. The first original one was suspended back in the year 2014. I was not told the reason why despite trying to appeal unsuccessfully. The channel that followed after that was similar to the original one but never got anywhere because I was not getting views like I did in the first channel.

The third channel was for my business which I closed it down this year 2021 because of permanent dissolution of my company.

The other two was targeting a niche market. I was leveraging on information found on the internet to create the videos. I will explain how I did this in a moment.

Leveraging On Information Found Online to Create Content

If you search on YouTube today, ‘How to make money on YouTube without shooting/creating any video‘ you will get several video tutorials showing you how to do it. I find many of these tutorials ‘predatory’ in some way depending on how you look at them. If you believe that video creation is art- and you are an artist- I suggest you don’t follow what any of these videos tell you because you will end up wasting your time.

With that said let me tell what happened after I followed one of the video tutorials. So, I stumbled upon the video while scrolling down on YouTube.

The idea is to produce videos on a daily basis on the trending topics they tell you. For example, today you may decide to do a video about ‘Health.‘ Lets say that based on your SEO keyword research, you notice that many people are searching for ‘How to lose belly fat.‘ You google the same and find many articles talking about belly fat.

The idea here is to use someone else’s blogpost to create the video. You copy word by word but reorganize the points. For example, if the article is about 10 ways to lose belly fat, you create a video about top 5 ways to lose belly fat. You get the point right?

Next step, is to open a Cloud Text-to-Speech app or software and paste your script there. In this blogpost, I will use Google text to speech online program. Choose the voice over you want (either male or female) and click play to listen and record the script.

Google Text to speech synthesizer

Download free videos and photos online relevant to your script. Match it with voice over recording from text to speech program and add a free music from YouTube Music Library. Create a nice intro and outro for branding. Once ready post your video on YouTube.

Credit the blog author in the video description area by pasting a link to the blogpost you got your script from.

This sounds like a good and legit idea right?

The Question is How Sustainable is it?

At the beginning of taking this route, you will find yourself very excited that you are finally building a YouTube channel. This is especially if you love video editing. But the excitement will only last long if you intend to use your channel to market your ‘video editing skills.’

If your motivation is to make money out of your channel, the probability of being disappointed by the ‘search engine‘ algorithms is high. For the six months that I ran my channel this way, I never succeeded to make any dime. I used to post 2-3 times a week.

It therefore means that having a purpose for starting to vlog at the very beginning in very important.

What is ‘A Purpose‘ in Vlogging?

I will try to define this from my own experience. Having been fully suspended or expelled from YouTube once and having ran unsuccessful channels in the past, I have found out that having a YouTube Channel is not about the views you get. It’s about the contentment you get from creating the content.

YouTubing is an art. You must resonate with your target audience. My channel on Freelance and business is about a year now and it doesn’t have several views as one would expect.

This doesn’t worry me at all because, I am sure a time will come when I will be able to connect with very specific audience on YouTube. When that time comes, those who will be subscribing to my channel will be real fans.

That’s what will give me more contentment. It starts with the creator being proud of their content. This only comes when you are original.

Avoid Greed On Your Way Up

Don’t be greedy to have many channels. Run one channel consistently until it’s successful. When that happens, you can consider having a second channel when you are capable of hiring someone to run it. Greed took toll on me earlier thus I did not succeed.

When you are able to overcome greed, you will be in a good position to explore your creativity to the latter.

So What Does It Take to Succeed?

When you are able to take care of your psychological issues surrounding starting a YouTube channel, it will be very easy to remain consistent once you begin.

Success begins with you. Do you like the information you are sharing on your vlogs? Do you enjoy writing your scripts? Attach your vision to the content that you create.

Link your idea to the business that you are doing.

For example, at the end of my every vlog, I tell people about my business. Also, at the description area of each of the video that I post, I have a link to my business and my blog.

I believe if one does this for a long-time, it will help them grow their business in many ways i.e SEO, backlinking e.t.c

Conclusion

If you do something that you love, you will enjoy the process and getting many views will be the last thing that will worry you. Your mental health is directly linked with the content that you create. If the information is useful to you, it will also be useful to others because people will react by responding.

What do you think people should focus on in order to succeed on YouTube Vlogging? Share your thoughts in the comments section below here.

And if you need help to create and produce professional screencast videos, you can request a free quote here.

Until next time, bye bye and take care.

Follow me on twitter @cheptiony.

November 29, 2021