Renterra is a venture-backed software company, building the next generation of software for heavy equipment rental companies. Renterra is a fully remote company.

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What does it mean to be a woman in tech? For starters, a woman in tech knows that she has to go the extra mile or at least has had to, traditionally. A woman in tech knows she must build her own support system in a traditionally male-dominated domain. A woman in tech has extraordinary resiliency to stay the course against all odds. Women are unstoppable when they continue on their paths despite failures, setbacks, and doubts. The fields of science and technology have historically placed several barriers to entry and advancement for women, and yet women overcome them too. But do all women overcome these barriers? Is the road to success in technology now a smooth one for women? Do women feel safe opting for a career in technology? How do women in tech brace themselves for the challenges ahead? These and many such questions have buzzed in my head for a long time and coaxed me to read innumerable articles carrying stories of women’s resilience. Reading articles alone was not sufficient, so I decided to contact women and know their side of the stories.  I had the good fortune of connecting with some women who have been working in the field of technology for a substantial period. This article outlines some of the key points I gleaned from the articles I read and the women I contacted. The lack of confidence in self It sounds surprising, doesn’t it? We are talking about women’s resiliency at one end, and then one of their main challenges is overcoming self-doubt! The doubt, however, is an outcome of years of conditioning. Nishi Churiwala, ex-Head of Technology, ParentNetwork.io and current Engineering Manager, Glance, says, “Women should be taught how to be braver and pick up opportunities and roles even if they do not know a domain or have not had much experience with some things. We tend to be underconfident in our skills.” Nishi is not the only one who feels that. Sheryl Sandberg has said in her book, , that women hold themselves back in ways both big and small, by lacking self-confidence, by not raising their hands, and by pulling back when they should be leaning in. Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead Impostor syndrome refers to the feeling that one does not belong or does not deserve to be where they are professionally compared to others. While impostor syndrome is common across men and women in technology, women are 22% more likely to be suffering from it, as per a by TrustRadius. 2020 women-in-tech report Where does it all stem from?  Not seeing enough women in leadership positions, seeing women struggle to get equal pay, being continuously reminded that they are women and that they do not belong in technology, and their ideas being dismissed and their contributions not recognized - have all ingrained a sense of insecurity in women. The need to constantly prove that they belong Tanvi Kumar, a software engineer with 14 years of experience, says, “The biggest challenge for women in tech is making people believe that being a girl, getting married, or having a kid doesn’t stop us from learning new things or delivering our work. If we take responsibility, we can finish the work, drive the project, take care of family, and attend parent-teacher meetings. When I had my baby and even now when I tell people that I have a kid, people sometimes feel bad that I am leaving early to pick up my kid, but I ensure I am available when need be; I am available for a night release. At the time of work, work is my priority, and at the time my family needs me, I will give them the time.” Hemanginy Anand, Senior Quality Assurance Engineer at a leading automobile company, says, “I'm a woman in a man's world. So, the biggest challenge was to prove to a male chauvinistic society that females are equally competent, and I'm dealing with it by taking challenges as opportunities and delivering the output with full conviction.” Perhaps, the most annoying thing for women in tech is the need to prove themselves constantly. This, despite a gender-diverse companies outperform industry standards by 15% and ethnically diverse companies do 35% better than their competition. The study presents a strong case for diversity and inclusion. It shows that the most diverse companies believe that I&D enables radical growth and creates value. However, it also points out that adopting diversity has been slow across nations and industries. Adopting minimum standards of 30% women representation on boards has not yet been achieved and displays a missed opportunity. research that McKinsey According to the , 78% of women in tech feel that they need to work harder than their coworkers to prove their worth. This statistic is disheartening. Women across all job levels feel the pressure to prove themselves, though the women in leadership positions feel the maximum pressure. Interestingly, men at C-level positions tend to feel less pressure! 2021 TrustRadius report To compete with their male counterparts and constantly prove their worth, women put in extra hours or do extra work. Women also work harder to get equal recognition and compensation as their male peers. And yet, the representation of women in leadership positions is not very encouraging. The study by LeanIn.org and McKinsey & Company shows that while the overall representation of women in the American workforce has increased between 2016 and 2021, women, especially women of color, are still underrepresented in leadership. Women in the Workplace 2021 While several studies put forth a compelling case for diversity and inclusion, numbers such as the above prove that there is still a long way to go. Lack of role models Meghann, a fine-arts major, who is currently living and working in Japan, and working towards a shift to web development, says, “I think personally getting over my own idea of someone who works in tech and not being able to imagine myself, as a woman, being able to become a professional in that field. Most people I hear about are men, and most of the women around me in my life are not interested in that field, so I didn't have any encouragement or support to pursue a career or hobby in technology.” Many women have a similar concern. They see a lack of support as well as a lack of motivation because of a lack of role models in technology. I recently attended a #WomenInTechWeek event organized by Turing Community, where Amanda Renteria, the CEO of Code for America, said, “if we don’t have women at the table, we simply won’t be our best as a country, as a world.” She added that she thought diversity was essentially four things - “an absolute responsibility for people who are leaders; a requirement; an opportunity to reconstruct who we are as an organization, an industry; and more fun with different people who bring different perspectives and life experiences to the table.” I loved the perspectives of all the panel members, primarily female and leaders of their organizations. Most of them resonated with the sentiment that there hasn’t been a better time for women in technology. Xiaoyin Qu, the Co-Founder of Run The World, said that the sky is the limit for women today as there is money available for female entrepreneurs. While the number of women donning the entrepreneurial cap has been increasing in the recent past, a large number of women still don’t feel motivated enough to take on leadership roles. The main reason most women in my personal interactions cited for this was a lack of role models. The field of tech is still largely male-dominated, and hence, women feel uncomfortable bringing up problems that may not be big but can still stunt women’s growth. For example, Xiaoyin mentioned that women could talk to her about their periods and how they didn’t have the energy those couple of days in the month, but they would find it difficult to have the same conversation with a male boss. Similarly, all women may not have the same experience during their pregnancies. Some women have a more difficult pregnancy than others, which is not part of regular conversations. Accordingly, some women may need a longer maternity break than others. However, having a child does not take away their competence at work. Since leadership positions are teeming with males, most females assume that women who make it to the c-suite are either super talented or just lucky. It is not often that they come across a woman at that level who goes through pregnancy or shares her struggles with the menstrual cycle, or menopause, or managing her child while taking care of the demands of her important position at the office. Xiaoyin also talked about encouraging male employees and leaders in her company to learn the nuances of working with women, to understand the problems they face, and how they juggle several hats. An interesting thing she shared was how 12 noon is sleep time for kids and hence, having meetings with parents who work from home may not be suitable at that time. At the same panel, Jonathan Siddharth, the CEO of Turing, said that he felt diversity was important for two main reasons. One that a company with a diverse workforce gets diverse perspectives that can help solve problems better and build better products catering to a broader customer base. Two, it’s only when a company has a diverse team that they can recruit amazing people from a diverse pool. This kind of thought leadership is needed across the board in tech organizations. If men understand the needs of women at work and also that those needs in no way diminish their capacity to perform, and women see the environment and the dialogues at the office evolve to become more inclusive, and they see more women in leadership to emulate, the current problems can be overcome. The leadership landscape is changing, and more women will hopefully be role models for the future crop of women in tech.

How Women in Tech Brace for Challenges and Overcome Them!

¡Cómo las mujeres en tecnología se preparan para los desafíos y los superan!

Comment les femmes de la technologie se préparent aux défis et les surmontent !

टेक में महिलाएं कैसे चुनौतियों का सामना करती हैं और उनसे पार पाती हैं!

テクノロジー業界の女性はどのように課題に立ち向かい、それを克服するのか!

Como as mulheres na tecnologia se preparam para os desafios e os superam!

Phụ nữ trong lĩnh vực công nghệ vượt qua thử thách và vượt qua chúng như thế nào!

科技界的女性如何迎接挑战并克服挑战！

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a beautiful piece of technology made to seamlessly augment our everyday experience. It is widely utilized in everything starting from marketing to even traffic light moderation in cities like Pittsburg. However, swords have two edges and the AI is no different. There are a fair number of upsides as well as downsides that follow such technological advancements. One way or another, the technology is moving too quickly while the education about the risks and safeguards that are in place are falling behind for the vast majority of the population. The whole situation is as much of a blessing for humankind as it is a curse. In this article, we will be mainly discussing how the AI is being utilized, how the ease of processing data-enabled companies and government agencies to have power over online privacy, and how to stay careful of possible abuses of said power. A Blessing Have you ever noticed that every application lately has been asking your permission for personalized ads? These are advertisements from companies that are targeting you. However, how do they know what you may want? This is due to the hard work done by a good number of AIs. They are constantly sifting through and analyzing what you are looking at. Everything is being calculated like: for how long or what you are even messaging sometimes. Do not be afraid though, they are not reading your secret messages. Reputable companies have these robots looking for some keywords in your conversation. For example, if you are speaking to your friend about bicycles the AI gets excited and offers you an ad from Specialized, Cube, or Ghost offering their brand new mountain bikes. This is how companies like Facebook, Google, Twitter, and others make money. If the product is free - you are the product. In these cases, a product for marketing companies that pay hefty amounts to have their ads on one or all of these platforms. AI in Everyday Life | The Good The AI enhances user experience to totally new levels. Unfortunately, analyzing and sifting through huge masses of data is not something the human brain specializes in. To properly process a big chunk of data the companies have to hire a team of individuals. The whole ordeal can take hours, days, weeks, or even months depending on what they are trying to analyze and we are not even taking into consideration the financial expenses. Even with the professionals, there are moments of subjective bias involved in the result. Humans also tend to flat out ignore or forget a good number of details. An AI though is a different case. Data processing is their specialization. It is something they love doing the most and are happy to continue doing until the end of time. The process is becoming more and more efficient the longer this process goes on. The whole point of artificial intelligence is the ability to enhance their capabilities by finding better and efficient ways to do the same task. Banking, for example, is the one that has benefitted the most from an AI. As an example, most of the top banks now offer online financial advising. This is done by AIs on the starting level. These programs analyze your spending, give visualized charts, and help save money where possible. Different exchanges like stock market, foreign exchange market (Forex, FX), cryptocurrency markets, etc. are using the AIs to predict where the market is going to move. Apart from this, the historic data is also always being summarized for personal and corporate use. As it was once said the future is nothing but a repetition of the past. AI in Military | The Good The military is very fond of the potential of AI. In 2018 the US announced that they will be implementing artificial intelligence in every branch where it is applicable. The AI is going to help the military in analyzing intelligence, making lightning-fast decisions, automatization of vehicles, weaponry, and logistics as a whole. It is worth noting that the US military is one of the prime places to develop such cutting edge development since they are showering in finances. In 2020 the US congress has approved as much as $718 billion for the Department of Defense out of which $927 million is going to be moving towards the AI and machine learning development. It is worth noting that the technology has evolved quite a lot during the last decade. Although the good nature of this is debatable the idea that no military personnel has to risk their lives to gather information that can be done using a robot is a huge achievement. AI in Cyber Security | The Good Although technically doing cyber crimes is harder now since there are a bunch of protocols available to protect end-user from possible threats it’s also easier because there are a fair number of scripts available that automate very tiresome and complex processes. Cybersecurity is related to several problems that experts have been trying to deal with as they go along. Once the corporate network becomes large the surface at which the attacks may proceed increases exponentially. This can be done either via breaching , , or basic social engineering. Today’s systems are protected using multilayer security systems. During the development, the software undergoes an intense testing phase to root out all of the possible hoops that hackers can use to exploit a vulnerability. After the product is finished, there are teams working day and night on enhancing, adding functionality, and patching previous problems. Once the code becomes big enough though the issues are extremely hard to cover and the IT teams have to prioritize some over the others. This is why some of the bugs in your favorite video games are not being patched out quickly and may stay forever if they aren’t game-breaking. application security network security Companies usually build their infrastructure with their intranet protocols that are hiding all of the necessary information from unwelcome guests. However, this means that the network security aspect has to also be covered fully. This is done via firewalls, anti-virus and anti-malware software, data loss prevention, virtual private networks, etc. A good number of programs are written to alleviate this whole process. For example, behavioral analysis is almost solely done with artificial intelligence. This means that there is a software setting and gathering data about how certain individuals are acting while they are inside of the system. The moment there is a suspicious activity the AI either has the right to restrict access temporarily or straight up direct an IT specialist to take a closer look. A Curse Artificial Intelligence is a double-edged sword though. It is important to understand that there are a fair number of precautions that need to be taken before utilizing a service of your choice. It is important to know which company is pulling the strings. Your personal information can and will be utilized to gain more and more funds. However, some companies are going to tell you upfront and some won’t. National security agencies have been targeting these data-gathering companies for years already. Google for example has much more capacities to spy on people than a lot of developed, developing, and underdeveloped countries. The data that goes through their servers is a huge point of interest in a number of both good and bad people. Some of the companies are going to monetize on these offers selling out their collected data to the highest bidder. AI for Data Collection | The Bad The European Union has enacted a (GDPR) law for companies that are operating in the EU space. The GDPR regulates the acquisition of information from online customers. Numerous methods are utilized to achieve this goal. It can be anything from what we have already mentioned like robots skimming through the data that you freely share (like status updates, likes, etc.) or more hidden files designated for this very same purpose like cookies that you download from websites upon visit. There are different types of cookies, of course, but all of them can be utilized to gather data. This is why currently most of the websites are asking for your permission to use them. This is why it is recommended to check the cookie policy for a website that you frequently visit. For the ones that you don’t - just don’t allow cookies at all. General Data Protection Regulation Most of the time cookies are used to enhance already existing websites. They are the sole purpose why it takes considerably less time to load pages once you’ve already visited them. However, some of these cookies (tracker cookies) are used to track your activity on the internet. This is not even limited to the website that you are using. For example, Facebook cookies get activated every time there is a company API being used. This means that every page that uses Facebook comments, likes, or other services automatically activate their cookies on your computer. This is why you can be commenting something on one website with Twitter addon and then get an ad centered around that very same topic on Twitter. Although I have not mentioned the AI here it is obvious that all of these processes are going through machine learning algorithms that process and dish out the results. You cannot fully hide your activities on the internet though. People have utilized virtual machines to do different tasks, turned off all of the data collection options, used VPN, but the core idea is that the trail, even though very convoluted at this point, is still going to be leading towards you and it all depends on how badly someone or something wants to find you. Either way, you need to trust someone when you are using the internet. Why Trust One Company Over the Other? This leads us to one of the final topics of this article. Why should you trust specific developer companies and not others? Apart from the general reputation that company gets it’s important to understand that where the firm is based and takes orders from is a big deciding factor. For example, why are Chinese companies not trusted overal? There is a fair argument saying that if you don’t use TikTok due to concerns about Chinese agencies collecting your data you shouldn’t be using Instagram because the US national security departments will also be doing the same. However, things are not that straightforward. Apple vs FBI | A Case of Integrity There have been cases where these agencies have demanded access to user data or even straight up requested to have a backdoor into every device. is a prime example of one such instance. To summarize in 2015 the FBI extracted iPhone 5C from a shooter who participated in a December 2015 San Bernardino terrorist attack. They demanded Apple to unlock this device and Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple, has kindly rejected this notion. The company has outlined the importance of preventing terrorism but they couldn’t just give out a backdoor to every iPhone to the FBI. This is in light of the situation that the US government, or the National Security Agency (NSA) in particular, was already by a famous whistleblower and founder of WikiLeaks, Edward Snowden. Apple’s dispute against the FBI in 2016 outed to be spying on the citizens Apple took this case to court where they used an argument that their customer privacy would be in vain if such instance comes to happen. The FBI didn’t just want one iPhone to be unlocked but they wanted a software backdoor into every past, current, and future smartphone from Apple. The court has ruled in favor of Apple and the case was closed. This is a happy ending to this scenario. However, we have to keep in mind that the US constitution gives companies an ability to argue such cases in court. Whereas if such thing happens in China, Russia, or any less-democratic country the companies simply do not have the power to go to court and defend their case. Company Origin Matters The political nature of the nation is also extremely important. All of the middle to large-sized corporations in China are under the direct supervision of the Chinese Communist Party and share the information with their national security agencies. Tencent, for example, which is a Chinese company that has developed most of the popular applications like TikTok, WeChat, and has numerous companies under its umbrella-like Riot Games (League of Legends, Valorant, Teamfight Tactics, Legends of Runterra) and Epic Games does not and cannot uphold such standards. More importantly, the CEO and founder father if the company Ma Huateng is a prominent member of the CCP as well as one of the most influential persons across the world. The argument can be made that TikTok doesn’t keep US customer data on Chinese servers but this is a soft barrier. A company can transfer this data for as much as they like and there are a good number of triggers that the Chinese government can pull to make them do their bidding. A department of this very same company called researched the security features of Tesla car’s autopilot function. They messed around with sensors and found ways to make the AI go haywire. Tencent is also a 5% stakeholder of Tesla company. This is important information to keep in mind. Tencent Keen Security Lab has Conclusion The 21st century is a period of technological wonders. Things that were only available in SciFi movies and books are slowly coming to life. While technology is integrating itself into our daily lives it is important to start learning about security aspects as well as the technology that is being utilized. Being picky is not bad when it comes to the usage of the internet. It is strongly encouraged by security professionals across the world. While the digital world may seem like it's separate from our real lives. The reality stands that it is an integral part and as real as the physical one. The usage of an AI is making it possible to enlarge operations to scales unseen before. There are some positive sides like ad campaigns but also negative ones like surveillance systems working against consumers. This is all dependent on who’s driving the car and we, the users, can decide which cars to ride and who will be the driver. This article is designated to highlight some of the uses of AI and how it augments our lives. The core idea is that if users become knowledgable about the subject we can pick and choose which companies to trust. In a capitalist market, consumer trust drives income and the companies will act in any way necessary to keep their user bases.

Artificial Intelligence and Online Privacy: Blessing and a Curse

You probably already know that Google will shut down Dynamic Links, one of the most popular Firebase features that allows building a referral system for your service or app. Deprecated: Firebase Dynamic Links is deprecated and should not be adopted in projects that don’t already use it. The service will shut down on August 25, 2025. See the Dynamic Links Deprecation FAQ for more information. Source. I was looking for a replacement solution for Firebase for my web application written in Flutter but failed. Maybe I’m just not good at searching on Google (Googler — a person who uses Google a lot). All similar services seemed too complicated or just didn’t fit me. So, I decided to build my referral system and solve a few problems along the way. If you are interested in learning how to build your referral system, enjoy reading. The referral link idea The first thing you will have to handle when working with a web app is the domain name. Let me explain. My goal was to make the process of sharing referral links between users as simple as copying and pasting. I want to be able to send to someone a link like this: https://somedomain.com/referral?user=some-unique-user-id. This link has to bring the user to the registration form on my service’s web app. After registration, there has to be a record in the database that this new user was brought to the service within my referral link, for example. And later, I would enjoy some added benefits as a result, but this is not the point of the article. Back to the domain name. The problem is that it does not change while you route in the web app (see the pics below). No changes in the address bar. But, do we actually need these changes? The answer is — NO! There is a much better way — we can read the value of the address bar. To do this, you have to write a few lines of code — the piece of production code for the service that we are currently developing. String? referralUserId;
@override
void initState() {
// Parse the current URL - you will have exactly what is in
// the address bar.
Uri uri = Uri.parse(html.window.location.href);
// Extract query parameters that we put in link earlier
referralUserId = uri.queryParameters['user'];
// Use the extracted parameters in your Flutter app
log('User ref ID: $referralUserId');
super.initState();
}
@override
Widget build(
BuildContext context,
) =>
Observer(
// If there was a referal link, take me to Sign Up page and
// pass referral user ID to it.
builder: (_) => referralUserId == null
? const SignInPage() /// The `referralUserId` is an optional value.
        : SignUpPage(
            referralUserId: referralUserId,
          ),
  ); And so, my referral link is as follows (try it!): https://langualog.com/referral?user=60a60ef0-cdee-40b5-afa2-c5d8cc004e73 The log will then write to the console: User ref ID: 60a60ef0-cdee-40b5-afa2-c5d8cc004e73 What happened just now is that we followed the referral link, detected and took the user’s ID from the link, and passed it to the Sign Up Page to store it later in this new user’s profile. The server side Of course, you have to make changes to the server that manages your domain and web app accordingly, otherwise, you will get a 404 response. My server runs on Nginx and the configuration has the following section to pass the referral path. Handle requests to /referral
location /referral {
try_files $uri $uri/ /index.html;
} Now everything is working fine. And when the user signs up for the service, the unique ID will be stored in the database like this: Also, a new user will get their referral code that will be placed in the share link. So now you have your referral system in a Flutter web app and can share links to your service easily to manage later how many new users bring you the old users. Thanks for reading. You probably already know that Google will shut down Dynamic Links, one of the most popular Firebase features that allows building a referral system for your service or app. Deprecated: Firebase Dynamic Links is deprecated and should not be adopted in projects that don’t already use it. The service will shut down on August 25, 2025. See the Dynamic Links Deprecation FAQ for more information. Source. Deprecated: Firebase Dynamic Links is deprecated and should not be adopted in projects that don’t already use it. The service will shut down on August 25, 2025. See the Dynamic Links Deprecation FAQ for more information. Source. Source. I was looking for a replacement solution for Firebase for my web application written in Flutter but failed. Maybe I’m just not good at searching on Google (Googler — a person who uses Google a lot). All similar services seemed too complicated or just didn’t fit me. So, I decided to build my referral system and solve a few problems along the way. If you are interested in learning how to build your referral system, enjoy reading. The referral link idea The first thing you will have to handle when working with a web app is the domain name. Let me explain. My goal was to make the process of sharing referral links between users as simple as copying and pasting. I want to be able to send to someone a link like this: I want to be able to send to someone a link like this: https://somedomain.com/referral?user=some-unique-user-id. https://somedomain.com/referral?user=some-unique-user-id. https://somedomain.com/referral?user=some-unique-user-id. This link has to bring the user to the registration form on my service’s web app. After registration, there has to be a record in the database that this new user was brought to the service within my referral link, for example. And later, I would enjoy some added benefits as a result, but this is not the point of the article. Back to the domain name. The problem is that it does not change while you route in the web app (see the pics below). No changes in the address bar. But, do we actually need these changes? The answer is — NO! There is a much better way — we can read the value of the address bar. To do this, you have to write a few lines of code — the piece of production code for the service that we are currently developing. String? referralUserId;
@override
void initState() {
// Parse the current URL - you will have exactly what is in
// the address bar.
Uri uri = Uri.parse(html.window.location.href);
// Extract query parameters that we put in link earlier
referralUserId = uri.queryParameters['user'];
// Use the extracted parameters in your Flutter app
log('User ref ID: $referralUserId');
super.initState();
}
@override
Widget build(
BuildContext context,
) =>
Observer(
// If there was a referal link, take me to Sign Up page and
// pass referral user ID to it.
builder: (_) => referralUserId == null
? const SignInPage() String? referralUserId;
@override
void initState() {
// Parse the current URL - you will have exactly what is in
// the address bar.
Uri uri = Uri.parse(html.window.location.href);
// Extract query parameters that we put in link earlier
referralUserId = uri.queryParameters['user'];
// Use the extracted parameters in your Flutter app
log('User ref ID: $referralUserId');
super.initState();
}
@override
Widget build(
BuildContext context,
) =>
Observer(
// If there was a referal link, take me to Sign Up page and
// pass referral user ID to it.
builder: (_) => referralUserId == null
? const SignInPage() /// The `referralUserId` is an optional value.
        : SignUpPage(
            referralUserId: referralUserId,
          ),
  ); /// The `referralUserId` is an optional value.
        : SignUpPage(
            referralUserId: referralUserId,
          ),
  ); And so, my referral link is as follows (try it!): https://langualog.com/referral?user=60a60ef0-cdee-40b5-afa2-c5d8cc004e73 https://langualog.com/referral?user=60a60ef0-cdee-40b5-afa2-c5d8cc004e73 The log will then write to the console: log User ref ID: 60a60ef0-cdee-40b5-afa2-c5d8cc004e73 User ref ID: 60a60ef0-cdee-40b5-afa2-c5d8cc004e73 What happened just now is that we followed the referral link, detected and took the user’s ID from the link, and passed it to the Sign Up Page to store it later in this new user’s profile. The server side Of course, you have to make changes to the server that manages your domain and web app accordingly, otherwise, you will get a 404 response. My server runs on Nginx and the configuration has the following section to pass the referral path. Handle requests to /referral
location /referral {
try_files $uri $uri/ /index.html;
} Handle requests to /referral
location /referral {
try_files $uri $uri/ /index.html;
} Now everything is working fine. And when the user signs up for the service, the unique ID will be stored in the database like this: Also, a new user will get their referral code that will be placed in the share link. So now you have your referral system in a Flutter web app and can share links to your service easily to manage later how many new users bring you the old users. Thanks for reading.

How To Build a Referral System for Your Flutter Web App

Microsoft's Referral Server Agreements: The Details Regarding the Good and the Bad

In this YouTube interview with Eddie Konialian, the founder and CEO of DirectRope, we delved into the transformative potential of blockchain technology in the realm of referral networking. Eddie firmly believes that blockchain technology holds the key to the future of referral networking. He noted, "Blockchain is a game changer in referral networking." He explained that by operating on a , DirectRope ensures that individuals have complete control over their data while maintaining data accuracy and validation. Eddie added, blockchain "There's an environment where we can coexist with existing CRMs where we can share data and share information with our users. And that user can feel empowered by owning that data." The following is a summary of the key points from our discussion. You can watch the full interview by clicking on the link below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jPdFnJPBRN4&embedable=true A Journey Rooted in Collaboration Eddie's journey into the world of referral networking is marked by his upbringing, which instilled in him the values of collaboration and working with others. Reflecting on his family's influence, Eddie noted, "Our upbringing had allowed us to work with people to get goals accomplished." His background, having emigrated from the Middle East to the United States during the Lebanese Civil War, laid the foundation for his unique approach to business and leadership. With over two decades of experience in the financial industry, Eddie has held key managerial and executive roles, where he placed a strong emphasis on accountability, mutual growth, and individual empowerment. He shared, "It's about not only asking my employees to be loyal to me, but I wanted to be loyal to my employees by teaching them by making sure that they were self-sufficient in everything that they did, and always started off with knowledge." The Trilateral Referral Concept: Empowering Customers DirectRope, under Eddie's leadership, champions the trilateral referral concept. This innovative approach goes beyond traditional unilateral or bilateral referral methods by actively involving customers in the referral process. Eddie believes this approach empowers customers by giving them a say in who contacts them and underlines the importance of networking with the customer's needs and preferences in mind. Eddie stated, "The whole trilateral concept is being able to network with the customer in mind and the customer involved." DirectRope's Founding Vision: Data Ownership and Transparency DirectRope emerged from a vision to revolutionize the referral process. Eddie explained, "We want to give people the ability to own their own data... DirectRope is understanding your return on activity and your network's return on activity versus just simply your return on investment." Enhancing Networking Opportunities with Trust and Transparency DirectRope's primary goal is to enhance networking opportunities by bringing transparency and trust into the equation. Eddie emphasized, "With DirectRope, we are trying to make sure that everybody knows who they're dealing with and who they're working with. That way, the relationships are strong from the beginning and last longer." Blockchain as the Game Changer Eddie firmly believes that blockchain technology holds the key to the future of referral networking. He noted, "Blockchain is a game changer in referral networking." He explained that by operating on a blockchain, DirectRope ensures that individuals have complete control over their data while maintaining data accuracy and validation. Eddie added, "There's an environment where we can coexist with existing CRMs where we can share data and share information with our users. And that user can feel empowered by owning that data." DirectRope in Action DirectRope, in practice, automates historical networking practices transparently. Eddie described it as "Humans have networked for years on end...but now we're doing it in an automated fashion." He emphasized the platform's focus on trust and transparency, ensuring that users can rely on real results without the potential for data manipulation. Words of Wisdom for Startup Founders In closing, Eddie shared valuable advice for fellow startup founders: "Believe in yourself and your vision." He acknowledged the roller-coaster journey of entrepreneurship, with its ups and downs and moments of doubt. Eddie emphasized that unwavering commitment to one's ideas and vision will ultimately lead to success. He also cautioned about recognizing the point of no return, emphasizing that crossing this threshold can mean the difference between pursuing entrepreneurial dreams and returning to a salaried employee role. Eddie's core message revolved around self-belief and emotional resilience as the keys to navigating the startup world and bringing innovative ideas to life. Conclusion Eddie Konialian has invaluable insights into the innovative world of referral networking and the transformative potential of blockchain technology. His journey, shaped by a background of collaboration and accountability, underscores the importance of fostering genuine relationships in business.

Blockchain For Referral Marketing: A Conversation With DirectRope CEO Eddie Konialian

A potent method for encouraging individuals to engage in any activity is through word of mouth. It stands as one of the most impactful strategies for acquiring and losing customers or users swiftly. Businesses aim to expand their customer base and reduce customer turnover. This goal has led to the exploration of different strategies. One prominent approach is advertising through various channels, both online and offline, which strongly influences people to consider the offered products or services. Another method I've come across is using incentives. This involves offering value to individuals, motivating them to engage in word-of-mouth promotion, and ultimately attracting new potential customers and users. The word that easily conveys the marketing epistle above is referral systems, and having built a few code-led referral marketing campaigns, I am opining that there are two types of referrals which I consider and referral systems. “Open” “Closed” A closed referral system The term itself implies a sense of control, where information is shared and (Know Your Customer) is performed for the newly obtained lead. Once this process is finished by the lead, the referrer receives the incentive. The closed system provides a way to prevent misuse and maintain control. KYC Open referral system You can consider them to be like open season. There is no throttle of access and the conversion metric in this case is majorly getting people to land on a page, hoping that the page provides conversion or can lead people to perform a task without being prompted. Enough of my shallow marketing information from here. Engineering-wise, The Closed Referral System seems to offer more control and suggests gaming can be prevented or controlled. Although I agree the engineering piece below will harden the closed system. Some engineering finally. Here, I will provide a user story where your implementation would be solely up to you. Open Referral Campaign - User Story In a presale campaign, a product affiliate link is used to showcase the product to potential customers. The goal is to attract traffic, and each marketer who generates traffic becomes eligible for a publicly agreed incentive, as outlined in the Terms and Conditions. In this case, we will be marketing and trying to increase acquired users in Nigeria. Spotify I assume that we've implemented this code in our preferred programming languages. We have a prototype in place, and when server requests are made, we guide them toward the final objective while also maintaining our internal records. However, we are aware of the possibility of misuse, where if someone uses the same device to make requests multiple times, the count increases accordingly. An illustration So, let's assume I am trying to get people to use Spotify such that if I get a 100 referral count my incentive is free Spotify premium for a Family circle. Yes, it makes sense to use a closed system such that the new lead joins Spotify and then the referrer gets his count increase. But, let's assume that it is an open referral campaign, I could click on my link 92 times to get to the score/statistics that I am interested in. Case in point: my count increased to 9 because I clicked on the link. This poses a challenge, how can we prevent gaming? I present to you encoding-serialization and data structures. I used a hash map as the source of the truth that keeps track of the data. it is adaptable to all cases so let me explain my reason for a hashmap. FYI: hashmap is a Dict in Python, Object in Js, Struct in Go etc. The Time and Space Complexity of this data structure is the reason for my decision, the keys being unique and values being extensible (malleable, it is another data structure). The only thing that could grow is the space of the data, lookups are at constant time, same with inserts which means that I could look up and if the lookup is false I could insert. https://gist.github.com/philipokiokio/62df7226e33d42ac1a0f6f05e1bf89a9?embedable=true Else Predication This is from line 33 in the gist above. So if gaming_data is empty that means that the device that clicked on the link is a unique visitor and as such the click is considered legit and not gamed. We can increase the count score and also provide the end-goal URL if there is any, if not the URL would be a string of length 0 specified on line 4. If Predication There are two cases possible here. 1. The data of interest is not in the dict and then we assign the data in dict. 2. The data exists in the dict but in the value (which is also a dict) the value of interest. (link_code) does not exist. When this is the case we add the data to the value. The reverse is when it exists in that case we get the URL and return it. This function just manipulates data, outside of this function there are a few things that can be/should be done. Updating the record in the DB based on the fact that the URL length is > 0. Another way to do the following statement is if the URL length is 0 throw an HTTPException, if this condition does not run then update the record score and return the URL. This implementation requires a process to close it out, the first thing is to encode the dict to a string format. Here is an example below: I used a package in Python called to convert the gaming_data dict to a string that decodes back to the data structure of its input. ItsDangerous Now we have concluded the backend’s part of this solution, our system is meant to expect this gaming token to come with the request from the client side to the backend. So I will leave how you attach the data to your discretion, there are numerous decisions that can be made, query params or headers. The Frontend/Clientside is the gatekeeper of this implementation, to explain what occurs let me show you the response now with this implementation. In this response, we return the URL and a token to the client side, the clientside could help us store this token in the device of whoever clicks our link. The implementation of the request from the frontend to the backend should check for this token, if this token exists we then include it in whatever method we decide. So the Count should have increased to 10 with the request above. Here is how I specified for the token to be sent back to my system. If we check the score for the owner of the link it should freeze at 10 and not increase (fingers crossed). The count is frozen. One thing that should be pointed out is that we would always provide a token irrespective of the data in the token, as such we can continually rotate the token. The above is how I architected a fraud prevention system, that involves backend heavy lifting and syncing with the frontend. There is a potential way to persist this data in the backend. Recently, I attempted to explore user agents, but I just learned that user-agent can be spoofed so I am looking for a fail-proof way to identify devices. If that is possible we can persist this token in a table and the identifier can be stored in a device table and foreign_keys could be used to relate between them or whatever method you would prefer. The fraud system layered on the closed referral system reduces the chances of gaming and even my suggestion above could be implemented especially since we know the primary key of each user, the referer, and the new lead. Till next time, peace! Also published here.

Building Secure Open Referral Systems: Harnessing HashMaps for Effective Fraud Prevention 

Many businesses rely on referrals to market their products, and of course, you'll most likely trust a product or service that your friend/family has tried and enjoyed more than a random ad on Instagram. A recent study by Chatter Matters discovered that 83% of consumers consult their friends and families before purchasing a product or service. The effectiveness of referral programs is heavily dependent on human relationships. Many prospective customers would trust their friends' opinions on your products and services more than an online ad. Now, while few of your current consumers might recommend you highly to their friends, imagine a marketing strategy where you pay your customers for that recommendation. That's a referral program. The benefits of referral programs are vast. This article will also shed light on its disadvantages, the types of businesses it suits, and the ones that shouldn't consider it. Why Do Companies Venture Into Referral Programs? Market me, and I'll offer you rewards in return. That's the deal with referral programs. Like companies pay for online ads, you can create a that incentivizes your current consumers to recommend your business to their friends and family. marketing system You might wonder if it's necessary to pay people to recommend your company when they can do it for free. A survey by Texas Tech discovered that while of satisfied clients won't mind referring your enterprise to other people, only 29% actually do it. Giving a reward for referring your business to other people is a great way to get that 83% recommending your brand in no time. These rewards can be discounts, promotional merchandise, g ft rewards, and product upgrades. 83% i Benefits Of Referral Programs For Businesses Source Referral programs offer a lot of benefits. One of the reasons many companies opt for this marketing strategy is that it doesn't require stressful audience targeting. Want to learn more?  These are some of the benefits of referral programs for businesses: Direct Lead Generation It automatically generates direct leads and sales through referrals. For instance, if your customer recommends your furniture company to her friend who admires her pink recliner, there's a higher chance that the friend will get the couch from your company than a company she has no connection to. This marketing option gives you precise customers who actually need what you're selling. Loyal Customer Base Mouth-to-mouth marketing is one of the best marketing strategies. It allows prospects to understand the legitimacy of your products or services before buying. After all, someone that uses your products referred them to you. This creates a loyal customer base. It doesn't end there; customers that get paid for putting in good words will continue to buy and refer that brand to others. It's simple arithmetic. It Also Boosts Your Brand Awareness Customer referrals, partnerships, and content creation are solid ways to make your company known to the world. It's also one of the benefits of referral programs that don't need you to do the extra work. Through this method, you can use referral marketing software to tap into new markets with new or existing product launches. The sweet part is you don't even have to pay your referral partners until the customer converts and pays up. However, several cons attached to this marketing method begs the question, "Are referral programs good for your business? The truth is, there are a lot of disadvantages associated with referral programs for businesses, especially if it's not the right marketing strategy for your brand. Luciano Viterale, a content marketer, says, "a successful referral program mostly depends on how big the incentives are; otherwise, your customers might lose interest, calling an impending doom for your campaign." Viterale's Newsletter, Ticker Nerd, had experimented with referral programs and realized that it doesn't work when your competitors have more money and back-end products that allow them to utilize their customer base to the full capacity. A low marketing budget puts you in a futile race against big competitors. In the end, you might lose a lot of money without gaining many clients. This is one of the drawbacks. Helen Walker, a creative and content marketing executive at White Label Loyalty, says, "a company must have the right technology in place for them to work seamlessly, and referral programs for business work best when they're automated. The issue with many companies that use this system is that it doesn't talk about them as much as it should. Companies should initiate the internet, social media platforms, and marketing software to reach potential customers online. Your brand should focus on its technological advances; words spread faster on social media, and you should take advantage of that. Also, many businesses don't include timing in their planning. For instance, new customers are not an excellent target for referral programs. The benefits of referral programs are effectively earned when your customers are loyal to you. You should only engage your customers in a referral program when they've shown a consistent pattern of interest in your company. This consistency can be a subscription, a membership renewal, or anything that shows they constantly buy from you. Another downside of referral programs for business is that your company's growth heavily depends on your referral partners (customers or partnering companies), which determines your success rate. This literally puts your customer acquisition in the hands of your referees, and you might risk losing more if they don't bring enough customers in. Most importantly, this marketing strategy won't work if it isn't the right approach for your company. You should understand its effect on your company before opting for it. Which Businesses Should Try Referral Programs, and Which Shouldn't? Source The logic is simple. While the benefits of referral programs are valid, some businesses shouldn't try them. On the other hand, it's the perfect marketing strategy for some. The point is knowing your goals before settling into them. Try referral bonuses if you're: Trying to increase your social media presence since these programs work faster online. You have a clear selling intent; your products and services are direct-use, like food, spa treatment, and insurance agency. A better example is retail companies, hotels, and resorts. You have a significant marketing budget: most referees focus on the benefits of referral programs, and that's the rewards. The rewards you offer mostly determine the success of the program. The uncommon reality about referral programs is that it gets you the customer, but it doesn't make them stay. , a customer experience analyst at Konabus Consulting, says that "businesses can use referral programs as a marketing strategy but more in terms of acquisition of the customer then customer retention. Complete retention and loyalty depend on the service and the product, the offering to continue to provide the customer service, the experience, and a lot more." Vaishali Dialani You shouldn't consider referral programs if: Your business offers little or no reward. Referrals work best when there's a nice reward at hand for referees. Your business is a small-scale establishment. You should focus your money and energy on growing your business first. You can enjoy the benefits of referral programs when you have a significant customer base. Only a great business is worth referring to people, anyway. If your company sells high and expensive products and services like real estate, purchasing from you requires big money. It's a great choice if your products and services aren't so expensive, and people can buy them on impulse. You should avoid the program if it's not. The Bottom Line A successful referral program depends on many factors, from customer acquisition rate to your marketing budget. There's also the clause about what kind of products and services you offer. These are the influencing factors on the success of your referral program. You might luck out if your company ticks all the boxes, but it's best to avoid unnecessary budget spending if it isn't the right marketing strategy for your company. I hope this article helps you decide on the benefits of referral programs for your business and if you should even venture into it in the first place.

Are Referral Programs Good For Your Business?

In mid-November 2022, Lendingblock announced the launch of , our referral scheme program. Over the last 9 months, our compliance team has learned a few things about catching out referral scheme abusers. Below, we’ll take a look at some common tactics used to unfairly game the system, some more sophisticated than others. Refer & Earn #1 - The Flash As part of the referral scheme conditions, all participants have to verify their identities to prove that they’re a real person, otherwise, a single individual could create multiple anonymous accounts to pocket multiple referral bonuses. We call this one, The Flash: an individual begins the ID verification process in one city on a desktop computer and finishes the verification on a smartphone in a city miles away a few minutes later, as seen by this Italian example below. This individual began the ID verification on a desktop in Turin, and finished it on their smartphone in Milan 142km in a little over 2 minutes. Clearly, the individual who created the Lendingblock account in Turin can’t be the same person who verified their identity in Milan! Of course, there is a possibility that this difference in location could be caused by using a VPN, however, VPN use goes against the platform T&Cs, so any accounts created using a VPN would be in breach of the accepted terms and subject to suspension/deletion. #2 - The Clone This tactic involves signing up with multiple accounts using the same ID for verification! Here’s an example below, that’s right Sergey, you didn’t throw us off by wearing a headset! #3 - The Multiple Personality Disorder This tactic involves the same individual signing up with multiple accounts under different names using fake IDs for verification. #4 - The One Wallet To Rule Them All Here, we would see multiple accounts withdrawing their referral rewards to the same wallet, sometimes up to 30 times, as seen in the below example! It’s also a red flag when all these withdrawals were initiated at roughly the same time on the 5th and 9th of May. #5 - The Car Gang One very well-traveled car in Georgia managed to create over 20 accounts, here’s an example of 6 of the verifications we received. Seem familiar? #6 - The Hostel One user created 4 accounts using the identities of 4 people staying in the same hostel, as seen below. Closing remarks We hope this has opened your eyes to some of the different types of abuse that your referral scheme could be subject to. Scammers, stay away! If you’re looking for market-leading interest rates on your crypto, head on over to , but please, one account only! Lendingblock

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