Ahmad Kareh

More than one-third of Americans will take a vacation this year, according to a report by AAA. Summer is, literally, the hottest time for employees to request time off and take advantage of a vacation.

Aside from colleagues, clients are some of the people you spend a significant amount of time with. After all, you're in business to serve your customer base. However, depending on the relationship between you and the client, sometimes the time and money aren't worth it. Since these relationships are not one-size-fits-all, you have to be careful about which clients you choose to work with in order to maximize results.

Modern marketers really have their work cut out for them. Consumers are savvier and have higher expectations than ever, and the traditional "hard sell" approach to advertising lost its effectiveness years ago.

America is in the midst of a great cultural shift. At the center of this change is a new brand of social activism -- a technology-enabled wave of consumer consciousness and support for deeply-held values and beliefs, on all points of the political spectrum.

No brand wants to get bad press, but sooner or later, some negative feedback is bound to pop up. It might be a disgruntled customer complaining on social media or a review website, or a litigious employee suing the company for a perceived injustice. Either way, it's easy for an isolated incident like this to gather steam and explode into a full-blown public relations crisis.

There has been a lot of buzz about blockchain and what it can and cannot do. While it has revolutionized some transactions, its future still feels a bit uncertain for some entrepreneurs. What will it be capable of doing and how will that affect consumers in the long run?

Every company must be prepared for the possibility of a public relations crisis. Whether it's a data breach, an executive scandal or just a bad piece of press, any negative event connected to your brand requires a swift and carefully crafted response if you want to keep your reputation intact.

Winning a business award is an exciting achievement. It feels good to have your team's hard work and dedication recognized by a prestigious organization. Even more important is the fact that this award can serve as a great marketing tool if properly publicized.

The social media giant has vowed to make local news a priority, making your ability to reach your local customer base through the platform a little more difficult in the future. You need to be proactive in your approach and consider that you have news to present as well. Keeping your posts about information that is locally concentrated and topical for your community can ensure you get the results you are looking for with Facebook without abandoning for another medium.

With 87 million people affected by the Facebook-Cambridge Analytica data scandal, online privacy is becoming even more of a question. What you post on social media and the data you provide may leave the door open to an invasion of your personal freedom.