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Welcome! This is the survival guide for all of you (and us) focusing on working from home during this emergency.  

Let us start with the morning rituals.  

Every start is easier after you take the first dose of coffee. The only difference from before is that we no longer need to prepare for work or travel to our workplace.  

We just need to put on some comfortable clothes that we usually wear around the house (sweatpants, ahem – pajamas) and then nest in front of our computer screen to start working.  

Completing tasks  

Of course, there are advantages and disadvantages to working from home. The question is: How to be productive and complete all (or most) tasks?  

First, you must show enough respect for the work on an individual and team level. Try to improve yourself as a person who works from home and build a team culture (even though you are at home).  

We’re in this together (except for those who decide not to participate and then go watch Netflix instead of getting work done). The team must develop an awareness that everyone plays by the same rules, but also that each member of the team has their own rituals.  

This actually means that each team member is synchronized with the others (like gears in a machine).  

Second, you must develop a flexible schedule. If you don’t get up every day on time and complete the assigned tasks, you will scr*w things up, and everything will collapse.  

For example, I have to set 3 alarms to get up on time. But that’s the way I have adapted to. I also try to get at least 7 hours of sleep every night.  

Third, you have to have focus. To achieve that, I drink coffee, and it works for me. Also, whenever I work, I listen to some background instrumental music that doesn’t distract me.  

My point is, without focus, you won’t be able to follow the team directions or the customers needs. This leads me to the following conclusion:  

Communication is key.  

We are fortunate to live in a time when technology is at our disposal. We can use Skype / Zoom / Microsoft Teams to communicate. On the plus side, instead of fumbling through 159318651 million messages in a group chat, we save significantly more time by having a video call with the team, client, etc.  

We can communicate through software like Skype, where everyone can participate in the decision-making. We also report regularly to our superiors to keep them up-to-date.  

What also helps us coordinate is that we use Trello to delegate tasks to all departments.  

And finally (in this part, not in this article), deadlines and the responsibility you have are motivators for your productivity. These are the things that make you more aware and more agile.  

You know you have no room for error because customers are counting on you (especially during the current global crisis), but also because you don’t want to let down your team that trusts your ability to get the job done.  

Time management tips for working from home  

Set boundaries for yourself.  

I’m sure someone thinks: Because I’m at home 24/7, I can work whenever I want. No, no, no. Don’t do that. Don’t allow yourself to mix your work with your private time.  

You are either working or not. There is no third option. Answering emails while working out at home is totally unproductive.  

Take control of your schedule.  

If your day is not structured you will not have a good time. Therefore, take care of your calendar and update it in a way that will optimize your productivity.  

Optimize your work environment.  

Some people like to work in total chaos, with piles of objects everywhere, next to them, on them and under them (as if a hurricane had passed through the room). On the other hand, some people like to have a desk in front of them, on which only work-related objects will sit.  

The purpose of this is to arrange your workspace in a way that will increase your productivity. It’s a matter of taste so to each their own.  

Mythbusters (Work From Home Edition)  

There are people who “mock” those who work from home. They were like this, like that, they didn’t work hard enough… Let’s prove them it’s not how it is.   

Myth no. 1: Those who work from home don’t work enough  

If you don’t physically see people working from home, then they are 100% useless and totally unproductive. Realistically, any employee can neglect work if management does not delegate tasks well or if there is a communication breakdown, regardless of the employee’s location.  

If I know exactly what my responsibilities are, when my tasks are due, and if I regularly inform my team/superiors, then there is no theoretical chance that I will be labeled a “work slacker” no matter where I work.  

A little intermezzo. Never work from bed. Don’t be a “couch potato” like me. That is, in this case, a “bed potato.”  

Why? Because if you regularly work from bed, you will reduce the mental connection between sleep and the bedroom, which makes falling asleep more difficult. You will start to feel you are constantly at work and will no longer have a place to “recover” from work.  

Also, if you use electronic devices before bed, your melatonin level will decrease, and your sleep quality will be impaired.  

Myth no. 2: Those who work from home constantly have to prove themselves  

Some people working from home constantly need to prove they are actually working. They think they have to answer every possible email within two minutes or that they have to be present at every possible meeting.  

Don’t you think this is too much? Instead of working, these people worry excessively about how their work is perceived, which results in unnecessary anxiety due to the excessive pressure they put on themselves.  

The reality is that people who work from home go to work like any other employee (minus the time it takes to get to work).  

Myth no. 3: Home-based workers are available 24/7  

It’s great to assume that people who work from home can answer work-related questions anytime, but in reality, it’s not great at all. Just because I’m working from home doesn’t mean I’m available and on the hook.   

Because of this, the best practice is to determine which part of the day will be dedicated to work, just as it happens in the office. Don’t turn into a workaholic.  

We all need a break occasionally to get out of the working space. Separating work and private life is possible, even if you work from home.  

As for the end  

Take care of yourself and #StayHome. Not as bad as you think. Now you have time to watch all the movies and binge all the series. You even have time to find your talent for a hobby. You can have fun with your loved ones (if they live with you and if they keep a distance from you).  

We hope this pandemic will end soon, but for that to happen, we must do our part by #StayingAtHome.  

There are many more topics to cover, but let’s leave something for the future. 🙂

If you have a product that responds to the crisis, you must not allow yourself to not advertise. You must be attentive to the social component and show care for the community, believes Vladimir Ristevski, marketing director at Piksel.

Business Info: In the last few weeks, our country and the world have been pulsating in the rhythm dictated by the coronavirus. What lessons does this pandemic teach us?

The first lesson was definitely a lesson in agility and the ability of companies to quickly adapt to new circumstances that I believe no one expected would happen.

The second, and I think much more important lesson, was empathy and humanity. Here, we all had to realize that we are in the same basket. Everyone was either healthily or financially affected by this situation, not to mention the issues with mobility. Therefore, we all had to realize that now, more than ever, communication is the key to continue working.

And the final lesson is remote work, which we all once thought was impossible, has become routine for us. We have learned many things. Most of all the importance of starting the digital transformation of companies. For us at Piksel as a digital software and marketing agency, this is key in our mission and vision.

Business Info: Although it is normal for someone to work remotely (from home), some companies are just now introducing such a way of working. What does it take to successfully manage a cross-functional team?

First, the process has to be set up to suit the work as it would be in the office, or, in other words, the first and most important rule is, if people are at home, it does not mean they are available for work 24/7. If they have a lunch break at work, they would also have it at home. But, at home, they may not have the ideal working conditions, so they cannot be as effective and efficient, even though research shows that people are more efficient when working from home. 

Furthermore, the process must set ground rules for communication – email should be the primary channel so there are no misunderstandings. Then, one of the electronic video conferencing tools (Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, Skype, etc.) should replace the need for physical meetings. Phone calls and instant chat should be put as a last option.  

This is especially important because the first impulse of everyone in the business community is to call about something every five minutes or “limp” on Skype, Viber, and Messenger, forgetting that if people are constantly micro-communicating, then no one will have time to do anything.

Finally, it is essential to use software for monitoring company processes, delegating tasks, and improving productivity. We saw this a long time ago (fortunately) before the crisis, and we developed internal software for business analysis. It proved to be quite good and gave us new ideas on how to upgrade it in the future.

Business Info: How to raise motivation, encourage creativity, and maintain the condition of employees in crises?

As I mentioned earlier, a key moment in this situation is empathy. A good owner/manager/team leader must put employees first and show that he really cares about them. Hence, the most important element is communication with the entire company (via video call, of course), but also individually with each employee, as often as possible, on a more personal level to provide them with support in dealing with the consequences of the pandemic and restrictive measures.

As much as we may think that the situation is not terrible, fear, uncertainty, and restrictions have taken a toll. So, the role of the leader must be to listen to colleagues. Ask them how they cope with everything that happens to them. Check if he/she can help and inform them about everything that happens in the company.

Transparency in these difficult times is key, and everyone must be updated with everything happening in the company. This can only help to strengthen the team and the mutual trust when the company comes out of the crisis.

Business Info: Will the coronavirus remind us of some crucial things we have forgotten? And what should we do to remember them for life?

It definitely reminded us to take care of each other more.

It reminded us how nice it was when we were all at home, together.

It emphasized the importance of family lunches and dinners, cooking together, taking more care of personal health, and physical activities. And also, the fact that material things are not as important as mobility and freedom of movement.

It will remind us in the future how much we should value healthcare workers. How much we should further develop some skills that may have been considered traditional and unimportant before, but now we realize that they are necessary in a given situation (such as cooking, “housekeeping” and so on).

We need to further develop the collective awareness for protecting the environment and creating a better world for all of us. But, I will emphasize again: empathy is the one that should raise us to a completely different level and make us better people.

Business Info: In such crisis situations, we realize the importance of technology. How much can we “turn” it in our favor and let it “work” for us?

The sooner the digital transformation process starts, the better. If this was the rule before the pandemic, today it has become mandatory for every company. The beauty of digitization is the automation of certain processes and the ease of getting everything in one place.

In addition, process automation can be closely related to the automation of marketing activities. Here is the ideal combination that every company should strive for. Debunking the myth that digital transformation leads to job cuts is a much-needed discussion. I believe that if a company goes digital, it may just free up more time for employees to focus on the more challenging part of maintaining and growing the business rather than on tasks that can be performed automatically.

Segmenting and nurturing consumers and bringing in new quality customers requires a human touch. Тhese are processes that technology can only facilitate. We still need people who will have time to grow and develop professionally to be even better at doing their job.

Business Info: How can digital marketing “shine” when everyone is afraid to take a bold step and keep their brand in front of an online audience?

Several things come to the fore in this situation. As previously mentioned, transparency is the key here as well. You must communicate with your customers and followers on social networks and other digital channels. If you have a product that responds to the crisis, you can’t afford not to advertise.

However, you must be attentive to the social component and show concern for the community. Those who can donate in times of crisis, to show that despite the difficult time humanity comes first, will have a chance to survive in the coming months. Therefore, those with extra resources should reach out to the community. To offer their services to anyone who can’t afford them and needs them. The easiest way to do this is by posting on social media.

The rest should find a way to lift the spirits of their followers with positive posts, posts related to their employees, and entertaining content and thus raise awareness of their brand. Quarantine must not stop the world. We must keep the hope that we will come out of this stronger and more prepared than before.

Business Info: What do you expect to change drastically after this crisis is over?

People’s inertia regarding communication will change, that’s for sure. Being in different locations will no longer be an excuse to find time to physically see each other. Video calls will already become quite normal and easy. Some industries will never be the same again, but the opportunity will open up for new potential businesses that will explode in the future.

Online stores will finally come to the fore in Macedonia. Delivery companies will be forced to invest in human resources, software, and a system of bonuses so that everything can run flawlessly. Restaurants will devote more time to conceptualizing the way of food delivery.

Online education will certainly be here as a primary industry that will further explode in the future, which will entail diversification of knowledge and skills among all those who want to invest in themselves and in greater agility in the workforce, and thus greater competitiveness of the labor market.

Business Info: Do you have a motto that motivates you?

If you put enough effort into what you love and become an expert at it, you will always find others who need that talent and skill, and there will always be work for you. Is there anything better than loving what you do? It’s definitely something that guides me in life, that’s why I always try to upgrade myself.

That’s how, over the years, I’ve developed new skills and changed professions based on what was my passion at the given moment. So, I went from being a translator and interpreter to a writer. Then I retrained in the world of digital marketing and entrepreneurship.

Business Info: What would you say to our readers?

Always be hungry for knowledge. It’s something that is at the core of how I function as a human being, and it’s something that everyone should consider.

You cannot allow yourself to stand still in life. This way you will only cement yourself in your comfort zone and be afraid to live life to the fullest. New knowledge provides new opportunities. And a new way to be happier in your career, earn more, and be more successful.

If the last Piksel Year in Review taught us anything, the last days of December are probably the worst time to write a Piksel in 2019 review.  

Not that there is nothing to write and share, on the contrary, but amid all friendship gatherings, celebrations, and preparations for what awaits us in 2020, such a review may not get the attention it deserves.  

And, as we will see in the rest of this blog (I tried to be as short as possible), it does deserve attention.  

Let’s pick up where we left off in December 2018. Remember when Piksel won the Entrepreneur of the Year award for the country’s most successful micro and small business entrepreneurs?  

Recognition that only (re)traced our path in 2019, a year in which we expanded the team, and to our great pleasure, domestic and foreign clients became part of our everyday life, in which our Piksel gatherings were not absent and which, naturally, we finished with a new round of Piksel memes.  

But let’s do this in order.  

We use this opportunity to welcome all the new Piksels that became part of our story in 2019 and for which the second visual display in this blog is reserved.  

Emma, Angela, Emilija S., Emilija R., and Tea, this is for you! … (and only now I realized that in 2019 we have become a much more beautiful agency) …  

(photos of Tea and Emilija R. coming soon)

Here’s what the girls above, as well as the rest of the Piksel team, have been working on in the year we’ve already posted, in which we’ve once again had major web projects, major digital campaigns, and been part of some of the industry’s biggest events worldwide. And finally, to finish with Digital for Entrepreneurship, we organized an event together with the EBA (European Business Association) and the City of Skopje. 

In 2019, we enjoyed IBC 2019, THE WORLD’S MOST INFLUENTIAL MEDIA, ENTERTAINMENT & TECHNOLOGY SHOW. A gigantic multi-day event and company with the giants of the media, entertainment, and technology industry that was a unique experience to remember.  

More events

The experiences from events that only got richer continued with the participation in the first Balkan Entrepreneurship Summit and MASIT Conference – Data as an Asset, where we were sponsors, the second Macedonian e-Commerce conference: Grow with E-commerce, New Communication Trends – Influencer Marketing by MAAM, the sixth and seventh – InTech MeetUp – as media partners, and the mentoring role we had at Startup Weekend Skopje in 2019 (tnx Emma).  

And something that we are especially happy about – visiting several major events in the USA this past fall, where Dimitar had the honor of being a speaker at DevFest in Orlando and the Digital Marketing Academy, which Dimitar led in tandem with Vladimir. This tandem also held a training in Digital Marketing for small businesses in SOS Children’s Village supported by the project of Social Inclusion and Economic Empowerment of Youth.  

Crossover wins in 2019

Our development team, together with the design and account team, developed several web projects “from scratch” in 2019, with a complete design from the UI/UX and marketing aspect and, of course, unique design and functionalities.   

Such is the brand new website of the best fitness center in town, Synergy Fitness & Spa, where the focus has been placed on facilitating the online payment process for all current and future members. Functionality which in the first few months proved to be a complete hit. For more info, read our case study on Synergy Fitness & Spa.  

Speaking of case studies of successful Piksel projects in 2019, here is the new website for Pandev DOO, a client for whom we implemented a complete rebranding solution that ultimately culminated in a new website and a strategy for representing the company on social networks with a completely new slogan and communication.  

More wins

Another crossover between our three sectors in 2018 was the development of the website for SOS Children’s Village, a collaboration that last year was expanded by the conception and implementation of the campaign The World of SOS Superheroes in which each of you can become what the children from SOS Children’s Village need the most, and that is a superhero who will help them achieve their daily wishes.  

The campaign focused on online donations and at the moment of writing this blog, managed to collect 139,510 denars only through the specially developed online donation system.  

In the web development department, we ended the year with a completely new website for one of the oldest travel agencies in the country, Papillon. We gave them a completely new and refreshed online presence, with a series of new functionalities to facilitate the end goal of the user, choosing the best option for summer or winter break, or simply, a weekend escape from the city.  

New clients and friends

Some new clients have become part of our Piksel family, such as Roche Macedonia, InterWorks, Jet Minds, Office Plus, Carpe Diem, Top Gun Lounge Bar, Kreddy, House of Samsonite Macedonia, Albi bookstores, City Fashion.  

And for the current campaigns for our clients, who in the past year have enriched their portfolios with new products, I would single out Bimilk, who have completely refreshed the packaging of their milk. This activity was followed up with the design and development of a new landing page and a social media campaign.  

In the summer of 2019, We were able to do everything with Ohridska Banka Societe Generale, through the campaign with which we promoted payment credit cards and all the opportunities they offer, especially in the summer period. The record number of credit card applications also speaks for the success of the Ova leto mozesh se campaign, which covered all digital channels.  

For the same client, the transition from Ohridska Banka Societe Generale to Ohridska Banka was a big challenge. A transition that, in detailed coordination with the OB marketing team, went well, with a new and refreshed visual communication. 

New Piksel projects

Of course, to make sure that we did something for ourselves in 2019, here are Momenti.mk and Where to Go on the Weekend.  

From our campaigns in 2019, we can’t help but single out I am a Woman. With this campaign, we congratulated all our dear ones on March 8th through selfie videos recorded by our clients for Women’s Month…  

In 2019, we went deep with the campaign with the ideal love duo Debeliot Kraj for the love seats in Cineplexx.  

Piksel fun activities

We joked about the last season of Game of Thrones, with montages that turned out to be even better than that last season. Same as the post with “milk lover” Tormund.  

And yes, in 2019 we celebrated Piksel’s sixth birthday, we ran really slow in the Skopje Marathon, passed 3,000 fans on our Facebook page, and followed trends like #FaceApp and #10YearChallenge with Bitolsko, Balans+, and Bifruit packs.  

But that’s not all.  

We conclude this review of the 2019 Piksel with two videos, different from each other but with the same message in the background, which is the creativity of our team to do the best for our customers… and to have fun doing it. 

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=553776845096847