Working from Home - Our Favorite Products for Productivity and Health

Are you working from home? Here’s a list of our favorite products including everything from electronics and computer equipment to natural snacks and ergonomic gear to make you more productive and energized.

Shop our favorite home office products from electronics to healthy snacks

The list includes:

• Backup cables (don't be quarantined without a spare charger!) #preparation

• Ergonomic desk gear (see Emily’s reviews of the best standing desks for more info)

• The best quality water filter (the Big Berkey removes pathogens, impurities, and more)

• Aromatherapy for natural energizing ambience (peppermint helps when you have OD’d on caffeine)

• Natural healthy snacks and mold-free coffee

• Laptops and USB-c / USB hub adapters (especially handy for Macbook and Macbook Pro)

Links support our podcast and help pay for hosting, so if you’re going to buy something, we appreciate your click-through!

YOUR HOME OFFICE SHOPPING LIST:

Working from Home Goodies and Gadgets - from Emily Binder's Recommendations

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Listen to Some Good News

Coronavirus got you down? Need a break from the headlines? Get Emily’s daily update about marketing and voice, a Flash Briefing of 2019 Award Finalist. It’s one to three minutes, every weekday.

How to listen:

1. Enable this Alexa Flash Briefing skill then say “Alexa, news”

2. Subscribe free in your favorite podcast app:

Best Podcasting Equipment

Clients getting started with a podcast or Flash Briefing often ask what they should buy. In the last few years, the technology and equipment available to anyone who wants to record and publish audio has improved considerably and prices have dropped.

Sound good, easily.

You can get a quality podcast recording setup for a couple hundred bucks.

This post has the perfect equipment for podcasting beginners or intermediate level. It’s short so you don’t have to wade through reviews and tons of information. Just buy a few of the items we recommend and start recording!

Reach out if you want help with your content strategy or podcast marketing.

(Updated): Best Easy Video Podcasting Setup for Zoom:

Watch Emily’s video showing the best home podcasting setup for video podcasting with Zoom:

Podcast Hosting (RSS Feed and Scheduling Tool):

You will need an affordable podcast host to generate your RSS feed and store your audio files (your episode mp3s). We recommend Acast. You can get a $25 Amazon Gift Card when you sign up from our page. Our clients have been happy using Acast for podcasts and Flash Briefings.

Watch Emily’s interview with Tess Neudeck from Acast: What Podcasters Should Know.

Read the rest: Best Easy Podcasting Equipment – Microphone and More

10 Best Podcast Episodes: Voice Marketing and #VoiceFirst Technology (Part 1)

Looking for great podcasts about voice technology? Here are some of our favorite episodes that aired in roughly the last six months. Get notified via email when we publish Part 2.

Download these for offline listening for your next flight or road trip to hear a nice overview of voice technology, voice marketing, speech recognition, Alexa Flash Briefing, podcasting, smart speakers and voice assistants, and the future of voice-first interfaces and computing. #Voicefirst baby.

For anyone new to voice or even if you’re familiar but want to learn more - this list is for you. In no particular order:

Podcast Episodes about Voice Marketing and Technology that You Need to Hear:

1. The Last Interface with Brian Roemmele on Voice First Health ep. 27 with Teri Fisher.
   About: The future of Voice: The Last Interface, the Intelligence Amplifier and the Wisdom Keeper. (February 19, 2019)

2. Be Here First: The Future of Voice-Interface Marketing on The Marketing Agency Leadership Podcast - Emily Binder with host Rob Kischuk. (May 16, 2019)
   About: Voice search, voice SEO, brands must play in Alexa's ecosystem, the power of Flash Briefing and tips for a good one.

3. Podcasts of the Future – Bryan Colligan, AlphaVoice – Voice Tech Podcast ep. 010 with host Carl Robinson.
   About: Bryan Colligan is the co-founder of AlphaVoice, the easiest way to get your podcast and audio content onto Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant. Bryan shares his vision of how the podcasting and voice technology worlds are set to collide, and how the implications will be felt by platforms, content producers and consumers alike.

4. Voice Strategy with Emily Binder of Beetle Moment Marketing on Alexa in Canada with Teri Fisher. (February 26, 2019)
   About: The power of voice marketing, what sonic branding means, and why Flash Briefings are such an incredible opportunity when it comes to getting a brand’s voice heard in the voice-first world.

5. Heidi Culbertson CEO of Marvee on Voice and the Elder Community – Voicebot Podcast Ep. 68 with host Bret Kinsella. (November 5, 2018)
   About: Culbertson discusses voice UX principles and how requirements must be modified when serving older users. She also discusses the Marvee Alexa skill, what the team has learned about elder users and why they are changing the skill significantly to better align with user needs. Heidi is a former professional tennis player and a cool and interesting lady. We polled several people to recommend episodes featuring women and nearly all mentioned this episode.

6. This Week in Voice: Season 3, Episode 13 - Emily Binder and Voicify’s Jason Fields with host Bradley Metrock.
   Topics: Amazon's Super Bowl Ad, Siri Shortcuts, Walmart pulling out of Google Express, and whether or not smart speakers are good for kids, and gender and bias in voice design. (January 31, 2019)

7. What to Know about Voice AI w/ Katie McMahon at SoundHound - DataTalk podcast with host Mike Delgado.
   About: Touch, Type, and Swipe era is giving way to #VoiceFirst.

8. Top Five Tips for a Great Flash Briefing - Daniel Hill from The Instagram Stories Flash Briefing on Beetle Moment Marketing Podcast ep. 33 with host Emily Binder. (April 28, 2019)

9. a16z Podcast: Talent, Tech Trends, and Culture with Marc Andreessen, Ben Horowitz, and Tyler Cowen (this is not 100% focused on voice but Andreessen’s points about technology and innovation definitely apply. He says the big box store is going away, which obviously relates to voice enabled shopping. (December 29, 2018)

10. This Week in Voice: Season 3, Episode 9: Brian Roemmele with host Bradley Metrock (November 15, 2018)
    About: The current state of #VoiceFirst technology and what stories were top-of-mind in 2018. Brian is called The Oracle of Voice for a reason, so we consider this evergreen.

A note about representation: we want to feature more women hosts or solo guests. If you have any suggestions, please comment or tweet us @beetlemoment and we’ll review the episode to potentially be included in Part 2. Thanks!