Android extends smartphone dominance over iPhone

Got an iPhone? You're in the minority.

There were four Android phones for every iPhone shipped in the second quarter, research firm IDC said today. That's up from a ratio of 2.5 to 1 in the same period last year.

The success of Samsung's Android phones helped Google's operating system extend its dominance in the smartphone market.

Samsung and other phone makers shipped nearly 105 million Android smartphones in the April-June quarter, giving Android 68 per cent of the worldwide market, up from 47 per cent last year.

The gains came largely at the expense of BlackBerry phones made by Research in Motion Ltd. and Symbian phones made largely by Nokia. Each saw its market share drop below 5 per cent. Nokia is now making phones that use Microsoft's Windows system.

The market share for Apple's iPhone, powered by its iOS software, fell slightly to 17 per cent, from 19 per cent. But the company shipped more iPhones than a year ago. Apple is the No. 2 smartphone maker, behind Samsung, and is likely to get a boost when it releases its new iPhone model as expected this fall.

Apple shook up the smartphone market when it released its first iPhone in 2007. It showed that phones can do much more than make calls and send email.

But in recent years, Google has mounted a serious challenge with Android and benefits from having several manufacturers as partners, including Samsung, HTC and Motorola Mobility, which Google ended up buying this year.

Apple still dominates in tablet computers, with Android tablets well behind the iPad. Google is trying to close the gap with its own branded tablet, the Nexus 7. Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble have made some in-roads will lower-cost tablets that run modified versions of Android.

Samsung's Galaxy S III phone received good reviews when it was released late in the second quarter. It also benefits from the company's strategy of making various devices that target a range of consumers. By contrast, Apple targets only the high-end market with its iPhone.

According to IDC, Samsung accounted for 44 per cent of all Android phones in the second quarter and shipped more Android phones than the next seven Android phone makers combined.

IDC estimates that Samsung shipped 50.2 million smartphones in the quarter, though that includes a few million phones running the Bada system based on Linux. Apple shipped 26 million iPhones.

Worldwide smartphone shipments grew 42 per cent to 154 million in the second quarter. Combined, Android and Apple had 85 per cent of the market, up from 66 per cent a year ago.

"The mobile OS market is now unquestionably a two-horse race due to the dominance of Android and iOS," Kevin Restivo, a senior research analyst at IDC, said in a statement.

But it's still possible for rivals to gain share because smartphones represent fewer than 40 per cent of all cellphones shipped in the quarter. However, "such efforts will become increasingly difficult as smartphone penetration increases," Restivo said.

Microsoft and RIM are both coming out with new versions of their operating systems Windows in October and BlackBerry early next year. The share of Windows phone grew to 3.5 per cent, from 2.3 per cent, in the latest quarter, largely because of its adoption by Nokia. Windows was the fifth-largest phone operating system but was gaining on No. 3 BlackBerry and No. 4 Symbian.

-AP

Android extends smartphone dominance over iPhone

Got an iPhone? You're in the minority.

There were four Android phones for every iPhone shipped in the second quarter, research firm IDC said today. That's up from a ratio of 2.5 to 1 in the same period last year.

The success of Samsung's Android phones helped Google's operating system extend its dominance in the smartphone market.

Samsung and other phone makers shipped nearly 105 million Android smartphones in the April-June quarter, giving Android 68 per cent of the worldwide market, up from 47 per cent last year.

The gains came largely at the expense of BlackBerry phones made by Research in Motion Ltd. and Symbian phones made largely by Nokia. Each saw its market share drop below 5 per cent. Nokia is now making phones that use Microsoft's Windows system.

The market share for Apple's iPhone, powered by its iOS software, fell slightly to 17 per cent, from 19 per cent. But the company shipped more iPhones than a year ago. Apple is the No. 2 smartphone maker, behind Samsung, and is likely to get a boost when it releases its new iPhone model as expected this fall.

Apple shook up the smartphone market when it released its first iPhone in 2007. It showed that phones can do much more than make calls and send email.

But in recent years, Google has mounted a serious challenge with Android and benefits from having several manufacturers as partners, including Samsung, HTC and Motorola Mobility, which Google ended up buying this year.

Apple still dominates in tablet computers, with Android tablets well behind the iPad. Google is trying to close the gap with its own branded tablet, the Nexus 7. Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble have made some in-roads will lower-cost tablets that run modified versions of Android.

Samsung's Galaxy S III phone received good reviews when it was released late in the second quarter. It also benefits from the company's strategy of making various devices that target a range of consumers. By contrast, Apple targets only the high-end market with its iPhone.

According to IDC, Samsung accounted for 44 per cent of all Android phones in the second quarter and shipped more Android phones than the next seven Android phone makers combined.

IDC estimates that Samsung shipped 50.2 million smartphones in the quarter, though that includes a few million phones running the Bada system based on Linux. Apple shipped 26 million iPhones.

Worldwide smartphone shipments grew 42 per cent to 154 million in the second quarter. Combined, Android and Apple had 85 per cent of the market, up from 66 per cent a year ago.

"The mobile OS market is now unquestionably a two-horse race due to the dominance of Android and iOS," Kevin Restivo, a senior research analyst at IDC, said in a statement.

But it's still possible for rivals to gain share because smartphones represent fewer than 40 per cent of all cellphones shipped in the quarter. However, "such efforts will become increasingly difficult as smartphone penetration increases," Restivo said.

Microsoft and RIM are both coming out with new versions of their operating systems Windows in October and BlackBerry early next year. The share of Windows phone grew to 3.5 per cent, from 2.3 per cent, in the latest quarter, largely because of its adoption by Nokia. Windows was the fifth-largest phone operating system but was gaining on No. 3 BlackBerry and No. 4 Symbian.

-AP

10 Lessons We Can Learn from Athletes about Entrepreneurship

I am blogging on behalf of Visa's Go World Olympic Campaign and receive compensation for my time from Visa for sharing my views in this post, but the views expressed here are solely mine, not Visa's. This post was sponsored by Visa Small Business. From now through August 31st, visit http://www.inc.com/visa-business-of-the-olympic-games/  to learn about Team Visa Olympic athletes who are also dedicated small business owners. Visit Visa Business's newly-launched Facebook Page (http://www.facebook.com/visasmallbiz) for more details, and follow @VisaSmallBiz for ways to help make your small business more efficient and successful. Discover more at http://visa.com/business.

 

Many future entrepreneurs learn important lessons about life while playing sports in youth. Lessons about teamwork, winning and losing gracefully, and the importance of good leadership are all learned from little league through college football. But it's easy to forget these lessons in our day-to-day business lives.

However, watching professional sports teams can remind us of those lessons we learned early on. Here are a few lessons we can learn from professional athletes to help us as entrepreneurs.

• The importance of a mentor. Young athletes benefit greatly from the guidance of older, more experienced athletes. Even athletes at the top of their game look to previous medalists for advice. In business, the young, aspiring entrepreneur seeks the example of the business leader who has climbed the ranks. By taking the younger businessperson under his wing, the more experienced person acts as a mentor, passing on wisdom he learned over years in his field.
• Teamwork. One downfall of many entrepreneurs is that they allow a competitive nature to overshadow all else at the expense of co-workers. Good managers recognize employees who work together, rather than rewarding competitive, “me-first” behavior. Athletes learn that a team is at its best when members work together, focusing on beating the competition rather than each other.
• The value of camaraderie. Teamwork in competitive sports goes beyond helping each other out on the field or court. Successful athletes often report that support from team members made a big difference in their success. By the same token, in the business world, team members who share knowledge and encourage each other have the most long-term success.
• Perseverance. An old saying goes, “The race is not always to the swift, but to those who keep on running.” In business and on the field, success goes to the person who gets back up every time he's knocked down. Even small failures don't stop him. He keeps trying, day after day, year after year.
• Winning with grace. Some people are so fiercely competitive, they gloat over accomplishments. This, of course, alienates teammates and clients. As athletes learn on the field, winning gracefully is as important as losing gracefully. The true winner shakes the hand of each member of the opposing team, thanks him for a good game, and exits the field. In the boardroom, a professional entrepreneur maintains his cool at all times, even when having accomplished the deal of a lifetime.
• Losing with grace. Losing is never easy, but a gracious loser congratulates the opposing team on a win. He tells himself that although he didn't win this time, there's always the next game, as in the board room the next big deal is just around the corner.
• Working under pressure. Think of the professional athlete preparing to take the field on Super Bowl Sunday. Imagine the pressure of millions of eyes watching you, anticipating your next play. An entrepreneur must be able to tackle a big presentation in front of a crowded room as easily as that professional football player handles the Super Bowl.
• Exercising good judgment. Athletes often must make split-second decisions that make or break an entire career. While an entrepreneur often has more time to carefully weigh out each decision, his judgment must be sound. A successful business is often the result of a series of good decisions over many years.
• Strategizing. While it's easy to assume all those brilliant plays are last-minute decisions, many sports teams plan out their plays. Football teams often review tapes of their opponents prior to playing them. A successful entrepreneur researches potential clients and keeps up with the successes of competing businesses.
• Continuing to dream. Professional athletes and entrepreneurs set goals and strive to reach them. True successes never stop striving for that next big achievement. By continuing to work toward bigger and better things, an entrepreneur keeps growing, both personally and professionally.

Whether you're a sports fan or not, professional athletes have a goal-oriented attitude that every business owner needs in order to continue to grow. Like competitive athletes, entrepreneurs must keep their head in the game, remaining focused at all times.

 

 

The Days of Not Collecting Internet Sales Tax Could Be Ending

One of the many benefits of buying online is that often the seller does not collect sales tax on the transaction (unless the seller does business in the consumer's state).  In essence, it's as if the cost of buying something is lower when no sales tax is collected, especially on big ticket items.

But some people - state tax authorities and brick-and-mortar retailers to name a few - see “no Internet tax” as just a loophole that consumers take advantage of because no one has stopped them yet.  They also see it as something that gives some sellers what they consider an unfair marketplace advantage over other in-state sellers that are required to collect sales tax.  Brick-and-mortar retailers have complained loudly, pointing to eCommerce behemoth Amazon.com as the prime example of what they consider having an unfair advantage.

Add to that the fact that lawmakers in states keep looking for more sources of tax revenue - and what you have is a perfect storm around this issue of collecting sales tax on Internet purchases.   To help fill their tax coffers, politicians want to require all online retailers to start collect sales taxes from the states where their customers are located.

Background

Currently, online retailers collect sales tax only for states where they have a physical presence or some other “nexus” to the state.  This is due to Federal court law exempting companies from having to comply with a hodgepodge of 50 different state tax laws and thousands of local tax laws, when they are selling in interstate commerce.  To have to comply with thousands of tax requirements, it is said, would be unduly burdensome on retailers and have a chilling effect on interstate commerce.  It would put Internet retailers at a disadvantage compared to their in-state counterparts, which have to collect taxes only for the state where the transaction took place.

This debate has been bubbling for several years.  At first the battle was waged at the state level, in the form of state lawmakers passing legislation to require online sellers to remit sales tax if they had website affiliates located in their  states.  This often backfired.  It resulted in companies ending their affiliate relationships to avoid having to collect tax in such states.  Often the affiliates were small businesses and entrepreneurs who ended up as carnage in the crossfire.

Enter Washington, and the Marketplace Fairness Act

Recently, though, the Internet tax issue has bubbled up in a different place, this time at the Federal level in Washington.  The proposed Marketplace Fairness Act, which is currently making its way through Congress, proposes to change things.

In fact, it appears that Amazon is behind the lobbying effort for this Act.  Why?  Because Amazon is building warehouses in multiple states and would have to pay tax anyway.  So some believe they want to put smaller competitors at a further disadvantage.

If the Act were to pass, retailers could be required to collect taxes for states even if they have no physical presence there and receive no services from that state.

Supporters of the measure say that the Marketplace Fairness Act will simplify tax law and make collection of sales taxes easier. According to a website set up to spread the word about the Act,  passage would simply allow states to enforce their existing tax laws that actually require the consumer to pay sales taxes on all purchases (rather than the seller collecting and remitting sales tax).  Of course, few consumers actually report Internet transactions and pay the tax to their states.

Proponents also claim the Act would ensure minimal burden and actually make it easier for multi-state retailers to collect and remit sales tax due.  They point to an online service, called TaxCloud.net, that is free for merchants and - they claim - will simplify the tax collection and reporting process across all 50 states.

Small Business Exemption? 

According to the Act's website, there is an exemption for small businesses built in:

Online sellers with less than $500,000 in remote sales annually will be exempt from collection requirements. Remote sales are sales to customers in states where the seller does not already have a physical presence.

Furthermore, any seller (regardless of remote sales volume) can easily rely upon completely free services available on the internet to manage all of their sales tax management needs.

However, it remains to be seen whether the small-business exemption would be retained in final passage of any act.  Remember, Congress is not bound by what's written on a website.

Also, Congress needs to gather facts about whether $500,000 is the proper level of exemption, or whether it should be higher (or lower).  On the surface it sounds like a big number, but as eCommerce goes, it's not.

Opponents Say …

Those against the Act note that it won't stop competition from Internet retailers.  Paying sales tax is just one of a long list of advantages of buying online.  Other advantages are wider selection, convenience without having to fight traffic along  with fast delivery to your door, and lower prices that come from the unmatched scale of giant retailers like Amazon.

Further, opponents say it is not about simplifying taxes. In reality, it adds complexity, because paying tax in 50 states is not just about 50 different laws, but there are actually 9600 taxing jurisdictions at the state and local level.  Senator DeMint's office published a rundown about flaws in the Marketplace Fairness Act.

The Marketplace Fairness Act is currently in the Senate.  As usual these days, you can expect some to cloak themselves in the mantle of “helping small businesses.”  However, keep this in mind:  small businesses do not have one single interest in this.  The interests of small businesses vary widely:

• small brick-and-mortar retailers who are at a disadvantage compared to online retailers, especially large ones; versus
• small online etailers who would be burdened by complying with 9600 taxing jurisdictions, and being subject to audit in potentially 50 different states.

What can you do? Be heard.  Contact your Senators to let them know how this issue will impact YOUR business, so that they get all the facts.

Online Taxes Photo via Shutterstock

The Importance of Employee Recognition Programs

What's the mood in your small business lately? How does it compare to the results of the latest Globoforce Workforce Mood Tracker?

This six-month survey of U.S. employees' satisfaction levels had some good-and bad-news for small business owners.

First, the good news: U.S. workers are feeling more satisfied than they did six months ago. Half of employees report having been recognized for their on-the-job efforts in the past three months, up from 44 percent in Fall 2011 when the last survey was conducted. And more than 80 percent say receiving recognition in the workplace makes them more satisfied with their jobs. Additionally, more than half believe their employers are doing a good job offering adequate recognition for work well done.

Now, the bad news: Even though many employees are happier with their jobs, things could be better for the 55 percent of employees who say they're ready to leave their current jobs for a company that would better recognize their efforts.

Not convinced that recognizing your employees' efforts is directly related to their satisfaction? Check out this data:

• Just 23 percent of employees who have been recognized at work say they plan to search for a new job when the economy improves, compared to 51 percent of those who have never been recognized.
• A vast majority-89 percent-of those who have been recognized feel appreciated at their job, compared to 17 percent of those never recognized.
• Most-76 percent-of those who have been recognized by their employers love their jobs, compared to 37 percent of those who haven't been.

If you haven't implemented some type of employee recognition program, now is the time. For a small business, recognition is easy.

For one thing, you're probably out walking around and interacting with your team already (at least, I hope so). Be sure to provide ongoing recognition of their efforts by acknowledging them, thanking them, and calling them out in front of the rest of the team. Recognizing people's efforts publicly is important-don't just do it behind closed doors.

Of course, another often-appreciated way to recognize your people is with a written note. I know many workers who have treasured little mementos like this for years. In today's instant-communication world, taking the time to write a note means a lot. (That doesn't mean you can't send a quick email to thank workers for their efforts, of course.)

Finally, consider recognition in a more tangible way, such as a gift card, cash or a paid day or afternoon off.

How do you recognize your employees?  How has it helped you retain key people?

Employee Recognition Photo via Shutterstock

Mobile-ad service to lift sales at Facebook

Facebook unveiled a tool that helps developers advertise their wares, adding to services aimed at boosting sales from people who socialise using smartphones and tablets.

The service helps game makers and other software developers encourage users to install applications on their mobile devices, Menlo Park, California-based Facebook said yesterday on a blog. The mobile-ad service is also designed to help app developers measure the effectiveness of their ads.

"We're announcing a new way for mobile app developers to grow their business with an ad unit that helps them reach and re-engage their users," Facebook said.

Chief executive Mark Zuckerberg is under pressure to find ways to increase sales of ads aimed at people who use Facebook on mobile devices. The company's shares have tumbled 45 per cent since the initial public offering amid concern that it isn't boosting sales quickly enough.

Mobile Ads for Apps, as Facebook calls it, is being tested with a limited number of partners, the company said.

Here's how it works: a user who clicks on an ad on Facebook's pages will be linked to an online store where they can purchase the application. The new service works with Apple's App Store or Google's Android market, known as Google Play. Facebook is also providing tools for monitoring the performance of an ad.

Facebook said in the run-up to its May 17 initial public offering that sales growth wasn't keeping pace with gains in users who, in growing numbers, are accessing the site via handheld computers. The company, which only rolled out its first mobile ad service in March, reported sales grew 32 per cent in the second quarter, down from 45 per cent in the early period.

Mobile is a key area of focus for the company, Zuckerberg said during a call with analysts last month. Mobile users, who make up more than half of the membership, are more active than counterparts who use only the desktop version, he said.

"Mobile is a huge opportunity for Facebook," Zuckerberg said. "Our goal is to connect everyone in the world. And over the next five years, we expect 4 or 5 billion people to have smartphones. That's more than twice as many people as have computers today."

Facebook shares fell 5.5 per cent to US$20.72 at the close in New York. The stock floated at US$38.

- Bloomberg

Legal patent stoush reveals ties that bind

Whatever the jury decides at the end of Apple's trial against Samsung, Apple's deep ties to Samsung are becoming more apparent even as the two companies clash in court.

Apple accounts for 8.8 per cent of Samsung's revenue, making it the company's largest customer, according to a Bloomberg supply-chain analysis.

Apple is producing testimony intended to prove that the South Korean company copied patented technology for smartphones and tablet computers.

"There are a number of Samsung phones and two Samsung tablets that are substantially the same as those" described by Apple patents, Peter Bressler, an inventor of 70 design and utility patents, yesterday told a jury in San Jose, California.

Bressler, who teaches product design at the University of Pennsylvania, was the latest expert to testify for Apple, laying the groundwork for infringement claims. The California-based company seeks US$2.5 billion in damages.

The allegations over intellectual property contrast with the lucrative commercial ties that bind the two companies.

Apple's reliance on Samsung chips for its best-selling phones and tablets will be worth as much as US$7.5 billion to Samsung this year, a 60 per cent jump from 2011.

Because Apple would struggle to find an alternative supplier for the main processor in its mobile devices, the computer maker can't quit buying from its competitor any time soon, whatever the trial's outcome.

"As much as these companies go head to head, there's a definite intertwining there that makes it a real ugly divorce if it were to take place," said Len Jelinek, an analyst at market researcher IHS.

"Apple cannot, under any circumstances, be caught in a capacity-crunch situation."

Apple's spending has helped arm Samsung with resources to fuel a surging mobile-phone business that's now the global leader.

At a time when there are few other manufacturers able to reliably produce the millions of key chips Apple needs each quarter, switching to an unproven partner could result in parts shortages that might help Samsung grab even more market share.

Samsung, meanwhile, would risk losing the business of its biggest customer if Apple were to move elsewhere.

The two companies on July 30 began the jury trial in San Jose to try Apple's claims that Samsung copied its iPad and iPhone designs and Samsung's counterclaims that it is the victim of patent infringement by Apple. Samsung's next biggest customer is Hewlett-Packard, providing 3.2 per cent.

Samsung and Apple's interdependence traces its roots to the beginning of the iPhone.

Ahead of the 2007 debut, Apple realised it needed a processor better tailored to the device.

A microprocessor acts as the brains of a device, determining how fast it runs and letting it perform critical tasks.

Apple turned to Samsung, then ramping up a division that makes so-called logic chips, which handle the devices' other functions.

The two companies, which had already worked together in screens and memory chips, cut a deal that resulted in Samsung becoming the sole manufacturer of the so-called A-series of chips, which are at the heart of the iPhone and iPad.

Together, those products generated US$67.4 billion in sales for Apple in the latest fiscal year.

The company may spend about US$2.1 billion on A-series chips this year alone. About 20 per cent of Apple's iPhone is comprised of Samsung technology, the South Korea-based company said last week.

Other chipmakers would probably welcome Apple's business.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, the largest maker of chips to order, said last month that it was open to devoting one or more factories to a single customer.

The statement was aimed at Apple or Qualcomm, another maker of mobile chips, according to Sam Wang, an analyst at Gartner.

Still, switching to another foundry such as TSMC would bring challenges.

TSMC would have to limit orders from other customers to accommodate Apple's needs, and it uses a different production technology than Samsung, requiring a redesign of the processors from the ground up, Wang said.

TSMC rival United Microelectronics (2303) is too small, and Globalfoundries is too far behind on production technology, he said.

"There's an incredible cost to doing that, and it would be very difficult," said Michael Hasler, a former supply-chain management executive at chipmaker Applied Materials, who now lectures at the University of Texas at Austin.

"On the surface it seems like an obvious thing to do, but actually executing it would be very expensive."

HIGH STAKES
* Apple claims that Samsung copied its iPad and iPhone designs and Samsung counterclaims that it is the victim of patent infringement by Apple.
* The companies also have sued each other in other countries in a bid for dominance of a mobile-phone market.
* That market was estimated to be worth about US$320.4 billion last year.

- Bloomberg

By Adam Satariano and Ian King

What Do Small Businesses Really Think of Cloud Computing? (Infographic)

Cloud computing, Infrastructure as a Service or whatever you want to call it, is getting bigger by the day. While previously you had only a couple of cloud-system providers to choose from,  today you can  install your own cloud system or choose a system from a variety of providers. Even big companies, which used to be server and system integrators, are now turning their businesses to providing cloud systems for small businesses as they are much more affordable.

On the other hand, small businesses aren't likely to constantly choose different providers for this service, but are probably more likely to find that one trusted vendor and stick with it, right? If it ain't broke, don't fix it applies here â€" if your system integrator is working for you, there's no reason to change it. A recent study by an SMB analyst firm Techaisle confirmed this and found that 69 percent of SMB's prefer to use a single trusted vendor for their cloud applications, while 43% of them found it challenging to coordinate multiple vendors for integration.

If we go back only a couple of years to 2010, you'll see that in average, small businesses used only two cloud business applications, while in 2012 that number doubled. This data can be related to the fact that businesses are making sure the preparation for implementation goes smoohtly; training and strict SLA agreements are fundamentals for a successful system integration. The successful integration of cloud systems will ensure you a maximum return on investment.  The analysis also showed that 54% of companies improved operational efficiency, 52% improved employee productivity and 52% of them improved connectivity with partners.

As for the future, most small businesses (63%) would like to easily modify integrations, 58% of them would like to enhance existing integrations and 54% of them would like integrated business analytics. The research shows it nicely, but you knew this already â€" cloud systems are going to be here for a while, so why not use them?

If you still need to be assured that cloud is the way to go, take a look at this infographic from Dell, which nicely presents all the data important to small businesses on cloud computing.

Are You Getting Gold Medal Help?

Even if you're not normally a fan of sports like gymnastics or water polo it's hard not to be a fan of the Olympics. There's something about watching the best in the world that gives watching those sports a whole different perspective. I may not understand all the nuances of those sports, but I understand the desire to be the best.

I clearly recall one of my earliest job interviews sitting across the desk of the big boss of one of the best ad agencies in Chicago. “Why should I hire you?” he asked bluntly. “Because I'm determined to be the best” I quickly replied. I got the job.

My desire to be the best continued when I moved to New York three years later. Like an aspiring Olympian I knew that to be the best I had to compete with the best. New York was definitely more competitive than Chicago and on more than one occasion, I felt like giving up.

Yet, I stuck with it. After losing my job I began freelancing, got some good projects and eventually started my own agency. That led to some great work for some great clients which eventually led to winning several gold medals in the award shows. I'd finally won my gold.

The qualities that it takes to be best in the Olympics - dedication, talent, training, passion - are the same qualities that it takes to be the best at anything. And, to be successful in today's competitive business environment, every business owner must seek out and get the help of those people â€" those who are truly the best at what they do.

Steve Jobs realized that 37 years ago while starting Apple. Anita Campbell, Founder of Small Business Trends, is someone who realizes it now.

When Anita and I spoke she told me that, while many business owners claim they can't afford the best help or just can't afford it “at the moment,” they won't succeed if they don't change that tune. As Steve Jobs did, Anita says those business need to view high-powered help as a wise, bigger-picture investment in their business.

Another person who understands that is Ryan Blair. Ryan is a former gang member who founded his first company at 21 and now owns a company, ViSalus, valued at over $600 million.

When asked about his most valuable business lesson, he answered:

“Hire the best possible people that money or equity can buy.”

Ryan goes on to say that he did this (as Jobs did) even when he was in start-up mode, and even when he had to pay some top talents more than he paid himself.

So, as you think about your own business situation and how you might make it more successful, maybe it's time to ask yourself a simple question:

“Are you willing to pay for the best?”

Gold Medal Photo via Shutterstock

How To Merge Your Google+ Local and Business Pages

Earlier this summer we introduced you to Google+ Local Pages, a new way for users to share and discover local businesses using Google's social network. These new profile pages were created to replace existing Google Place Pages and added a host of new features by integrating directly into Google+.

However, many business owners also had a Google+ Business page. With no way to merge them, it meant they now had two different Google+ profiles to monitor and update. When your day is busy enough, adding another mouth to feed doesn't always feel like a welcomed change. If often feels like a headache.
Well, today you get to merge those two profiles. Rejoice!

Mike Blumenthal points us to the announcement that the process for integrating your Google+ Local page with the social Google+ Business page is officially live. Now business owners can take advantage of all the available features while creating a unified presence.

From Googler Jade W:

For those of you that have created local Google+ pages (with social features) - good news! Today, you can become the verified business owner for that local Google+ page.

In essence, this will combine the page you created in Google+ with the page in Google+ Local (formerly Places listing). Your business' presence across Google Search, Google Maps, and Google+ will be unified. You'll be able to manage this page from Google+ Pages admin. Check out the Meatball Shop for an example of a combined page, with both social features and reviews.

As Jade explains, once merged, small business owners will have one place (and one dashboard) to manage their verified brand presence. To merge your pages, simply click the Verify Now button on the right side of your Google+ Local page. It's that simple. Sort of.

A few things to know about the merge:

• This is the beginning of what (I assume) will become a much larger rollout, so the process right now seems a bit cumbersome in parts. For example, even if you're currently a verified business owner on Google Places for Business, you'll still have to go through the postcard verification process again when you merge your two profiles.
• In order to merge your Google+ Business page the page has to be listed in the local business/place category. If you set yourself up as a brand page, you can't merge it. In her post, Jade suggests creating a new page and putting it in the right category, however, I'm not sure I'd recommend creating a duplicate Business page for your brand.
• If you only have a Google+ Local Page (previously a Google Place Page) you won't be able to take advantage of the upgraded experience. You need to have both a Local page and a Google+ Business page. So if you want to upgrade to take advantage of the new features, you'll need to create a Business page first.

So, assuming you set up your Google+ Business page properly and you also have a Local page, the option to merge and verify is now available. If you didn't set it up that way, you may want to wait unless the next stages of Google's rollout are available. Hopefully it won't be too long.

And hopefully Google will find a way to make all of this seem less complicated for SMBs in the future.

Merge Photo via Shutterstock

ICO issues top five areas for improvement for SMBs

Small and medium-sized businesses should train staff in data protection, use encryption on portable devices and only keep people's information for as long as necessary.

According to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) within the top five areas for improvement for small and medium-sized organisations, staff training and communication with customers on their details are the most important areas.

Its top five areas are as follows:

• Tell people what you are doing with their data. People should know what you are doing with their information and who it will be shared with. This is a legal requirement (as well as established best practice) so it is important you are open and honest with people about how their data will be used.

• Make sure your staff are adequately trained. New employees must receive data protection training to explain how they should store and handle personal information. Refresher training should be provided at regular intervals for existing staff.

• Use strong passwords. There is no point protecting the personal information you hold with a password if that password is easy to guess. All passwords should contain upper and lower case letters, a number and ideally a symbol. This will help to keep your information secure from would-be thieves.

• Encrypt all portable devices. Make sure all portable devices â€" such as memory sticks and laptops â€" used to store personal information are encrypted.

• Only keep people's information for as long as necessary. Make sure your organisation has established retention periods in place and set up a process for deleting personal information once it is no longer required.  

The ICO has also recommended charities and third sector organisations do a data protection ‘check-up', as they often handle sensitive information such as individuals' medical details and are potentially more susceptible to encountering a serious data breach.

Louise Byers, head of good practice at the ICO, said: “We are aware that charities are often handling extremely sensitive information relating to the health and wellbeing of vulnerable people. With these organisations often lacking the money to employ dedicated information governance staff, there's a danger that many charities may be struggling to look after people's data.

“A one-day advisory visit from the ICO provides charities with a data protection ‘check-up' and practical advice on how they can look after people's information.  We are now calling on these organisations to use the summer period to check that their data protection practices are adequate and get in touch before it is too late.”

Sam Younger, chief executive of the Charity Commission, said: “Trustees are responsible for ensuring their charity complies with relevant legislation â€" including the Data Protection Act â€" and for protecting their charity's reputation. Mishandling sensitive data not only causes individuals serious distress, it can also damage the good name of your charity. So I encourage trustees of charities that handle sensitive data to take note of the ICO's guidance and consider taking part in an ICO advisory visit.”

An ICO advisory visit is offered free of charge to give small and medium-sized organisations the opportunity to discuss and receive practical advice from the ICO aimed at improving their data protection practices.

It said that the visits last one day and each organisation is provided with a short report summarising the ICO's findings and providing practical advice on how they can improve. These can be organised by sending an email to advisory@ico.gsi.gov.uk, with more information available here.

Web applications under attack for a third of the year

Web applications may face more than 2,700 attacks per year, according to research by Imperva.

It said that monitoring 50 web applications saw annual attack levels of 274 times a year, with one application experiencing more than 2,700 attack incidents. Its Web Application Attack Report also found that the average attack incident for the observed web applications lasted seven minutes and 42 seconds, but the longest attack incident lasted an hour and 19 minutes.

Amichai Shulman, CTO at Imperva, said: “These findings indicate a significant difference between an average web application attack incident and the upper limit. We believe that organisations that are only prepared for an average attack incident may be overwhelmed by larger attack incidents, like a flood bursting through a levy.

“The cyber battlefield looks a lot more like a border keeping mission than total war â€" most of the time very little happens, but every once in a while there's an outbreak of attacks. Regardless of the frequency of attacks and peaceful periods, we believe organisations need to be prepared for these bursts of activity during attack incidents.”

The report also said that applications can expect attack incidents for a third of the year (120 days per year), some targets experience attacks for 292 days of the year or nearly 80 per cent of the time. It also claimed that the intensity of attacks is increasing, with some applications typically seeing some serious attack action roughly every third day for just a few minutes.

Rob Rachwald, director of security strategy at Imperva, said: “Chances are most companies are totally unaware of the application attacks they experience. Why? Part of the answer came out on July 30th, when Gartner released the Forecast: Security Infrastructure Worldwide, 2010-2016, 2Q12, featuring security spend figures for the security industry.

“In 2011, nearly $56 billion was spent on security consulting, hardware and software. How much was spent to secure applications? Not much. In fact, Gartner didn't even bother to break out application security, instead grouping it into the ‘Other Security Software' category, which was just 6.6 per cent of total spend. By contrast, network firewalls and IPS, which are completely blind to the attacks we describe in our report, received the bulk of the spend.”

Post hack, Reuters continues to run outdated WordPress software

News service Reuters appears to still be running the same outdated version of WordPress that allowed its blogging platform to be compromised by attackers last week.

Attackers published fake blog posts on Friday, including a purported interview with the leader of the Free Syrian Army.

Mark Jaquith, one of the lead developers behind WordPress, told The Wall Street Journal that Reuters had been running version 3.1.1 instead of the latest version, 3.4.1. There are at least 20 reported vulnerabilities in version 3.1.1.

While blogs.reuters.com was taken offline shortly after the attack, the site is again operational. According to Jaquith, it may still be running a vulnerable version, despite WordPress developers implementing update notifications and a self-updating feature to help users stay in line with the latest security patches.

Attackers originally broke into the blog platform and published fake news stories on Friday including an alleged interview with Riad Al-Assad claiming the Free Syria Army was withdrawing from Aleppo. A follow-up attack came on Sunday, when attackers took control of the @ReutersTECH Twitter account and posted 22 different messages, such as reports of a rebel exodus from Aleppo and claims that the United States was providing financial and technical support to Al-Qaeda operatives in Syria.

Ebay Introduces Same-Day Delivery

Following moves by several other online companies including Amazon, Ebay has announced its own experimentation with same-day delivery called Ebay Now. The move toward instant gratification and numerous other e-commerce trends will have many implications for online companies large and small in the near future.

A New Approach

For your eyes only. Selected customers in the San Francisco area have been invited to participate in the new Ebay Now program offering same-day delivery of items from participating stores including Macy's, Toys R'Us, Target, and Best Buy. The service has several conditions including a minimum order requirement and added shipping fee, but may be the shape of things to come. TechCrunch

Reinventing retail. Ebay's new service is just the latest in a surprise comeback for the online retail giant. Surprisingly, Ebay's turnaround is not coming from its traditional auction or retail businesses but from its very popular mobile retailing app and its PayPal division, which helps small businesses beyond Ebay receive payments from customers easily. The New York Times

Shopping with Your Smartphone

Top of the charts. In fact, Ebay's mobile shopping app is so popular, Nielsen recently listed it as having the largest unique audience among U.S. smartphone users, even outdistancing Amazon's mobile shopping app with only fourth ranked Shopkick beating it in terms of the amount of time spent on its app. Nielsen Wire

Maintaining mobility. The most important e-commerce lesson coming out of all this may be that mobile commerce will soon dominate. According to one set of figures, m-commerce revenue in the U.S. alone could hit $18 billion by 2014, and $119 billion world wide the year after that. Businesses already selling online should be prepared for the shift. Fox Small Business Center

E-commerce evolution

Building a better shopping cart. If you're just at the starting point of creating your online store, things can be a bit overwhelming in terms of the choices you need to make. Perhaps the most important decision is which online shopping cart you will use for your business. Instead of reinventing the wheel, take a look at these six easy suggestions perfect for small business. CIO

Customize our e-commerce solution. Or depending upon your needs, a new breed of e-commerce store providers may take many of these decisions completely out of your hands by creating basic stores and allowing you to customize the merchandise and other specifics to your needs. One example is Kitsy Lane, an e-commerce platform that allows small fashion businesses to customize their own online boutiques. Direct Marketing News

Sales Tax Scenarios

Equity acts may be unfair. But another cloud is looming for small business owners interested in moving into the e-commerce space. Two bills already discussed in Congress could force small e-commerce companies to collect sales tax even from customers living in a different state. Critics say the bills as written could create an unfair burden for small e-commerce businesses. Forbes

Six Ways Printed Booklets Can Build Your Brand and Boost Your Online Marketing

This insight published in cooperation with Uprinting.com â€" read, be informed and GROW your business.

Small business owners have been focused on online marketing in recent years, but traditional marketing concepts are still as important as ever.

Sure online marketing is low cost, easy to track and can be started for very little investment.

However, online marketing can have a bigger impact when enhanced by word of mouth and print, television, and radio ads.

But for most small businesses, funds are limited.

For this reason, many small business owners choose printing services like UPrinting.com for vivid, professional-looking printed collateral that make your marketing material SIZZLE and GRAB ATTENTION.

It's important, that your printed marketing campaign act as an enhancement to your online marketing to get the most bang for the buck. Here are a few ways UPrinting can help boost your marketing efforts, in particular we focus on booklet printing:

• Provide “takeaway” materials. Most small business owners are always on the move. Whether you're meeting with potential clients or presenting to a roomful of colleagues at a conference, a booklet can make a much more lasting impression than printouts of a PowerPoint presentation. Additionally, you'll be giving your audience something to take with them and review later.
• Better target your audience. Each marketing campaign should be specifically geared toward your target customer base. For businesses that provide services or products to college students, for instance, a booklet can provide stacks of materials that can be displayed around campus.
• Provide information without overwhelming. Many customers avoid direct sales pitches. By utilizing a booklet, your small business can hand over the information in a well-designed, informative format that gives customers everything they'd need to know. They then will read the information on their own terms.
• Interact with customers. As great as social networking is for reaching large groups of people inexpensively, it lacks one major component: human interaction. While a booklet printing will not, in itself, allow you to interact with customers, presumably you'll be distributing it to customers standing directly in front of you. This gives you an invaluable opportunity to engage the customer and create a dialogue that will possibly continue online.
• Reach every customer. Believe it or not, there are still people without internet access. Sure, they are a small group, but even among those who are regularly online, it may not be an option all the time. UPrinting booklet printing provides paper-based marketing materials that can be read anywhere. In fact, if your readers are away from an internet connection, your booklet may become handy reading material.
• Proven success. Study after study proves traditional marketing still has a place in today's business world. But online marketing has a place, as well. It's important not to dismiss one in favor of the other. By operating both traditional and online marketing efforts in tandem, you'll be able to maximize your reach.

When preparing your UPrinting booklet printing job, be sure to include information about your online presence, including URLs for your social media sites, your website, and your YouTube channel. This is a great opportunity to gather followers who might not have found you online.

Leverage PAPER and ONLINE PRINTING to boost your business, reinforce your brand and GROW YOUR REVENUES!

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