The Smallbiztechnology Weekly Roundup and Look At What’s Ahead

Each week on Smallbiztechnology.com, we post a lot of articles that help small businesses GROW their business. We want to make sure you didn’t miss anything, so here’s a quick roundup of what we talked about last week and a sneak peek at what we’ll be sending your way in the week to come. Check out our video here, or watch below:

This past week, in our Mobile category we posted:

In our Office Tech category:

In Software:

In Social:

In Security:

In Collaborate:

In Keeping Customers:

In Getting Customers:

We also have some amazing stuff coming up this week! Here’s a sneak peek:

On Monday, we’ll have 13 Tools To Seamlessly Share Business Leads and A Look at Rocket Lawyer, which gives you the power of a legal team on your phone.

Tuesday, we have Five Tools For Starting a Home- Based Business and The Good, The Bad and The Ugly of Social Media’s Impact on Your Brand.

Wednesday, we have Four Essentials For Growing a Top Notch Contract List For Email Marketing Campaigns and Five Ways To Keep Your Business’s Wireless Network Secure.

Thursday, we have a look at Cloud-Based Accounting Apps and How YouTube New Channel Design Presents New Marketing Opportunities.

Friday, we’ll tell you How To Avoid Downtime With a Proactive Approach To IT and we’ll have 16 Ways You Can Save On Your Top Ten Business Expenses.

You won’t want to miss any of that, and there’s a lot more beyond what I just mentioned, so come on back and let us know what you think in the comments!

The Smallbiztechnology Weekly Roundup and Look At What’s Ahead

Each week on Smallbiztechnology.com, we post a lot of articles that help small businesses GROW their business. We want to make sure you didn’t miss anything, so here’s a quick roundup of what we talked about last week and a sneak peek at what we’ll be sending your way in the week to come. Check out our video here, or watch below:

This past week, in our Mobile category we posted:

In our Office Tech category:

In Software:

In Social:

In Security:

In Collaborate:

In Keeping Customers:

In Getting Customers:

We also have some amazing stuff coming up this week! Here’s a sneak peek:

On Monday, we’ll have 13 Tools To Seamlessly Share Business Leads and A Look at Rocket Lawyer, which gives you the power of a legal team on your phone.

Tuesday, we have Five Tools For Starting a Home- Based Business and The Good, The Bad and The Ugly of Social Media’s Impact on Your Brand.

Wednesday, we have Four Essentials For Growing a Top Notch Contract List For Email Marketing Campaigns and Five Ways To Keep Your Business’s Wireless Network Secure.

Thursday, we have a look at Cloud-Based Accounting Apps and How YouTube New Channel Design Presents New Marketing Opportunities.

Friday, we’ll tell you How To Avoid Downtime With a Proactive Approach To IT and we’ll have 16 Ways You Can Save On Your Top Ten Business Expenses.

You won’t want to miss any of that, and there’s a lot more beyond what I just mentioned, so come on back and let us know what you think in the comments!

20 Signs That You’re a Success in Your Industry

Running a small business can be confusing and the path forward is often unclear. Many small business owners are hanging on the brink of being just successful enough to not go out of business.  In otherwords, many are just getting by.

If that’s the case, should you keep the business open in hopes of future success or just close up shop And on the flip side, what if your business is doing well and profiting What is that moment of truth that tells you, as a small business owner, that your company is a success in your industry Below are 20 signs that you’ve got something beyond mere survival.

1. Your Company Earns Money While You’re on Vacation

Going on vacation and earning money at the same time means you have built a company, not just a job. This means that your business is at the level where, during your absence, it just doesn’t survive, but thrives.

2. You Show Up on the First Page of Search Results

The new main streets for the digital age are search engines like Bing and Google. Some business owners feel that when they organically show up on the first page of their favorite search engine, they have made it. And there’s truth to that, because it means you have risen to the top when it comes to SEO (search engine optimization).

3. You Change a Customer’s Life

Many small business owners seek to make a difference in the world through their businesses. When a customer writes or visits the office to tell you the difference you have made in their life, it’s one of those moments you know that you are unstoppable.

4. Clients Find You

When people you do not know and have never contacted start purchasing from your business, then you can be sure that you’ve developed your reach. In fact, your product may have become such that people cannot do without it, hence the avalanche of patronage.

5. You Know You’re Not Alone

A time will come when you finally realize that many other small business owners share the same problems as you. It is at this time, when you have become a success in your industry, where competitors start copying your strategies and principles. It’s at this point that you’re sure of progress.

6. Customers Refer You

The highest compliment is when one of your customers refers another person to your business. Customers will freely recommend your product when they know that you have what it takes to satisfy your customers. This could be a sign that your business is booming.

7. You Bounce Back

When you go through bad times and you are able to bounce back to success, this means you’ve attained a good level of resilience. Successful companies can recover despite economic recessions. This should be your goal.

8. News Media Take Notice

A news article publishes your brand and helps to get the word out, and it flushes out other “believers” besides you. This means that one advertisement can greatly increase your company’s visibility, enticing clients from all walks of life to buy into your brand, thus boosting business.

9. You Fire Customers

When your business is successful enough, it can let go of customers that are unprofitable. Your business can get to a stage where you cannot deal with all the customers you have. Therefore, focusing on customers that can contribute more to your income can make your business more profitable.

10. You Achieve Positive Cash Flow

This implies that the business has recorded success, whereby it can reinvest its profits for future growth. Here, your business has grown so much that you gain high paying clients. When this happens, reinvesting in your business becomes easy.

11. A Publisher Asks You to Write a Book

Even in the digital age, when you write a book you instantly add to your company’s expertise. Publishers will want to woo you to write a book that has to do with your industry because you have become an expert. This increases your online reputation and what follows is nothing other than more clients.

12. Demand From Customers is in Abundance

The time has come when customers all over the globe are now demanding your product. When there is very a high rate of demand, this means that they are getting their money’s worth from your brand.

13. Partnership

You’ve arrived when you are able to sponsor grand projects in your community, state or country. You can now attract smaller brands that will come under the umbrella of your brand by partnering with you.

14.You Have an Exceptional Team

There is a point when you realize your employees are exceptional and that your partners are selling your products in abundance. This means that your hiring choices were on point, which is why your company is yielding great results.

15.Playing As a Team or Sharing and Collaborating With Other Lines of Business

You ensure that sales intelligence is available to other functions within the company, like marketing, customer service and operations. When all departments of a company are armed with the same information, it allows for a much more cohesive unit and a more highly functioning machine.

16. Accountability Via Goal Setting and Milestone Achievement

You never toy with accountability. Smart sales teams define sales milestones, including the use of available sales intelligence data. Good business intelligence has been proven to be valuable and effective, so you are taking full advantage of it.

17. Know Your Opponent or Keep Your Sales Intelligence Intelligent

You don’t just do reconnaissance on future opponents at the beginning of the season. It’s a constant process, with scouts posted all over the country, reporting back constantly, and the analysis never ends. If a team is working with outdated information, that’s trouble.

18. You Keep Your Data Organized and in One Place

Your most effective sales teams capture sales intelligence on their prospects, customers and markets and organize all of the data in one place, like a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) solution. This makes it accessible to everyone who needs it.

19. You Operate on an International Level

You do not operate on just a national level. This means that your business has transcended into a global one. Your branches are spread throughout the world. This shows that you have a universal vision for your business.

20. Your Team is Second to None

Your employees are unbeatable wherever they go, because you invest a whole lot in their personal development. Plus, you don’t overlook their training on business development. This shows that providing customers with top notch service is your priority.

Now think about your company; does it have the characteristics of a winning team If so, great, but there are probably areas where you think there can be improvement.

If not, there’s no magic bullet that will make everything fall into place. But you can take steps to become a champion and a success in your industry.

Crystal Ball Photo via Shutterstock

Infusionsoft Announces My Day and Campaign Marketplace

Infusioncon is the annual user conference for customers of Infusionsoft marketing automation software. This year Infusioncon was host to over 2,000 people, mostly entrepreneurs and those representing small businesses, at the Westin Kierland Resort & Spa in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Like most user conferences, Infusioncon 2013 started off with product announcements.

We caught up with Richard Tripp, who is Infusionsoft’s Chief Product Officer, where he is responsible not only for product management, but for customer service.

He  offered a few key Read More

The post Infusionsoft Announces My Day and Campaign Marketplace appeared first on Small Business Trends.

Amazon Acquires Goodreads: Impact and Alternatives

Bookselling giant Amazon announced late last week that it is acquiring Goodreads.  The purchase price was not revealed. The transaction is expected to close later this year.

Book lovers know Goodreads as the large and increasingly popular book-review site with a strong  social element.  At Goodreads you can review books, discuss books, and connect with other readers based on mutual interests. Goodreads says on its website that it is  “the world’s largest site for readers and book recommendations.”  Based in San Francisco, Goodreads has 16 million members and 23 million book reviews.

One of the plans is to make Goodreads integrate with Kindle.  Goodreads CEO Otis Chandler will report to Amazon’s Vice President of Kindle content, Russ Grandinetti â€" a telling clue to where Goodreads fits in the overall Amazon strategy.

Goodreads Autonomy Not Assured

Goodreads will be run as a separate subsidiary of Amazon, much like Zappos.  A concern among Goodreads users is whether the review site can maintain neutrality toward other retailers, once it is part of the Amazon family.

I logged on this morning to my Goodreads account and noticed that one of my 700+ friends there posted this message - she’s clearly not happy with the Amazon takeover:

While some will surely make similar gestures, the announcement is unlikely to cause a mass defection immediately.  People don’t like to switch apps, and as I point out below, there aren’t many Goodreads alternatives that offer the same social community and ecommerce-platform independence.  The real impact will depend on what Amazon does with Goodreads over the medium and long term.

Up to now Goodreads has been seen as independent of any particular retailer.  In an interview on Paid Content, Goodreads CEO Otis Chandler reiterated his desire for that retailer-neutral element to remain.

However, that decision will not be up to Chandler alone.  Autonomy has a way of going out the window after a while, in most acquisitions.  Amazon has shown intolerance when it comes to using its data in sites that give visibility to competing retailers.  Goodreads itself discovered that last year, causing it to stop using the Amazon API.

Chandler said that Goodreads would continue to offer its own API.  The API gives third parties access to certain Goodreads data.

Goodreads for Business Books

Entrepreneur authors of business books have caught on to Goodreads as another place to develop an audience for their books.  When I first joined the site two years ago, it had a decided focus on fiction books.  But in the past year I’ve noticed business books being reviewed and discussed more frequently there â€" and more business authors joining.

Goodreads encourages authors to connect with fans and develop a following, through its Author Program.  Authors can have blogs, and host giveaways and Q&As on the site.  There is a self-serve advertising program â€" and thousands of book clubs on the site to tap into and connect with.

Goodreads Alternatives

For those concerned about Goodreads becoming part of Amazon, there are some alternatives.

Shelfari is not one of them.  Amazon acquired Shelfari in 2008.  Once promising, Shelfari seems to have been eclipsed by Goodreads.   Of course, Shelfari never had as strong a social element as Goodreads.

LibraryThing is another reader site with an Amazon connection.  Abebooks, which is owned by Amazon, has a 40% stake in LibraryThing. LibraryThing’s website says it has 1.6 million book lovers as members.

Google Books, through Google Play, offers a book app that combines the ability to purchase, store and review books.  The Google Books app on my Nexus 10 tablet has a simple elegant interface. Goodreads reviews are incorporated into Google Books as one review source (along with some other sources).  It’s not clear whether that will continue.  But Google is ramping up its own social review capabilities.  When you leave a review on Google Books it ties in with your Google+ account, so that your connections on Google’s social network can see what you think about a particular book, and vice versa, as the notice below indicates.

Bookish, a joint venture of three publishers (Hachette, Penguin Books and Simon & Schuster) was launched just this year.  It is an e-commerce site but also gives users their own book shelves.  As you might imagine with a site owned by publishers, Bookish appears to be focused on presenting and selling books from a publisher’s perspective, and promoting their big-name authors.  The community interaction element seems limited.

Book Crossing, Book Rabbit and Revish are three smaller book-lover community/bookshelf sites.

And then there are dozens of book apps - each seems to offer some different combination of features.  Some are ebook readers tied to specific retailers (like iBooks, Nook and Kindle) that also allow you to keep track of your electronic books that you’ve purchased, but typically offer little in the way of social interaction and discussion around books.

Book Crawler and ReadMill are two iOS book apps independent of any retailer and popular with readers.

Kobo, headquartered in Japan, also has its own bookstore, tablet readers, and free reader apps.

If you know of others, please share in the comments below.

Review of “Roadmap to Profitable Growth”

Did I ever tell you about the time my husband and I nearly broke up over a map

We had just started dating and decided to drive down to D.C. from Philadelphia, where we lived at the time.  You know the kind of spontaneous road-trip I’m talking about It’s the one where you have this great idea and decide on the spur of the moment to throw a few things into a bag, jump in the car and head out for a romantic weekend.

It was glorious for about 90% of the trip, until I made a wrong turn into the worst part of D.C.  It was getting dark, we were lost and Tony said, “Where’s your map” I just looked at him blankly and said, “Map Uh, let me see if I have one.”

Well, let me tell you that was a moment.  I wasn’t sure if our relationship would survive it at the time.  But since then, I’ve learned how to read a map and both our travel and our relationship have been on relatively smooth sailing since.

Until that moment, I hadn’t realized how powerful a map could be.  But when you really need to get to a destination and you aren’t quite sure where you’re going, a map is your best bet.

The Roadmap to Profitable Growth has Business Wisdom at Every Turn

The reason I shared one of my personal map stories (yes, I have more) is that it’s a lot like being in business. I guess John Mariotti, Author of Roadmap to Profitable Growth saw the same connection between maps and business.  In the introduction to Roadmap to Profitable Growth, he explains:

Too many people get lost and wander aimlessly because they have no “roadmap” for where they wanted to go or if they did, they failed to use it.

While so many books today seek to intellectualize or romanticize the business-building and business-running experience, Mariotti does nothing more than speak from his experience of running several world-class organizations. He served as the CEO of Huffy (when Huffy was the darling of marketing case studies) and Rubbermaid Office Products.

What I’m trying to say is that this book is a pragmatic business owner’s handbook.  It’s not grounded in any kind of lofty research nor does it contain dozens of case studies from big brands that you can’t possibly relate your smaller business to.  Instead, it’s filled with practical lessons gained from real-world, on-the-job experiences Mariotti has learned from and now shares with you.

What Makes Mariotti An Expert Worth Listening To

I first met John Mariotti almost 13 years ago through a mutual friend who invited me to be a part of John’s Enterprise Group, a coalition of time-shared advisors™ which he founded 18 years ago after having been the President of two companies and then Chairman of World Kitchen.

John has written eight business books, a mini-book and even a prescient novel about cyber terrorism.  In addition to all of his books, he’s written hundreds (maybe even thousands) of articles which have been published on Forbes and here on Small Business Trends.

What makes him worth listening to is his experience of managing big businesses, small businesses and everything in between.  I’m going to go out on a limb and say that if he hasn’t seen it all, he’s seen at least the 80% that counts.  And more than that, Mariotti isn’t afraid of acting, failing, learning and trying again to gain better results.

What I respect most about Mariotti is his openness, honesty and pragmatic sensibility when it comes to running a business.

A Few Fun Tidbits From the Book

Like I said, I happen to have known John for quite a few years and was comforted to see so many of his favorite phrases and stories in this book mashed and combined with classic quotes from folks like Peter Drucker.

Here are just a few of the “Mariotti mantras” that any business owner can appreciate:

• Planning and acting is better than waiting and acting.
• Complexity is created with the best of intentions.
• PP*2 Does not equal FF â€" (Preserving the Past) and (Perfecting the Present) does not equal (Finding the Future).
• Nothing is more important in business - and in life - than people.

There are many more of these simple phrases and explanations of how to use them to successfully run your business and make good decisions inside this small book of 122 pages.

Read It and Reap

I would say that this book isn’t just for business owners.  In today’s age where everyone is expected to be entrepreneurial - chances are, you’ll want to have a copy of this book and read it often.

Roadmap to Profitable Growth is a book that you’ll read once all the way through, dog ear some of the sections that are worth returning to and then go back again and again to simply make sure that you’re still on the right path to profitability.

Review of “Roadmap to Profitable Growth”

Did I ever tell you about the time my husband and I nearly broke up over a map

We had just started dating and decided to drive down to D.C. from Philadelphia, where we lived at the time.  You know the kind of spontaneous road-trip I’m talking about It’s the one where you have this great idea and decide on the spur of the moment to throw a few things into a bag, jump in the car and head out for a romantic weekend.

It was glorious for about 90% of the trip, until I made a wrong turn into the worst part of D.C.  It was getting dark, we were lost and Tony said, “Where’s your map” I just looked at him blankly and said, “Map Uh, let me see if I have one.”

Well, let me tell you that was a moment.  I wasn’t sure if our relationship would survive it at the time.  But since then, I’ve learned how to read a map and both our travel and our relationship have been on relatively smooth sailing since.

Until that moment, I hadn’t realized how powerful a map could be.  But when you really need to get to a destination and you aren’t quite sure where you’re going, a map is your best bet.

The Roadmap to Profitable Growth has Business Wisdom at Every Turn

The reason I shared one of my personal map stories (yes, I have more) is that it’s a lot like being in business. I guess John Mariotti, Author of Roadmap to Profitable Growth saw the same connection between maps and business.  In the introduction to Roadmap to Profitable Growth, he explains:

Too many people get lost and wander aimlessly because they have no “roadmap” for where they wanted to go or if they did, they failed to use it.

While so many books today seek to intellectualize or romanticize the business-building and business-running experience, Mariotti does nothing more than speak from his experience of running several world-class organizations. He served as the CEO of Huffy (when Huffy was the darling of marketing case studies) and Rubbermaid Office Products.

What I’m trying to say is that this book is a pragmatic business owner’s handbook.  It’s not grounded in any kind of lofty research nor does it contain dozens of case studies from big brands that you can’t possibly relate your smaller business to.  Instead, it’s filled with practical lessons gained from real-world, on-the-job experiences Mariotti has learned from and now shares with you.

What Makes Mariotti An Expert Worth Listening To

I first met John Mariotti almost 13 years ago through a mutual friend who invited me to be a part of John’s Enterprise Group, a coalition of time-shared advisors™ which he founded 18 years ago after having been the President of two companies and then Chairman of World Kitchen.

John has written eight business books, a mini-book and even a prescient novel about cyber terrorism.  In addition to all of his books, he’s written hundreds (maybe even thousands) of articles which have been published on Forbes and here on Small Business Trends.

What makes him worth listening to is his experience of managing big businesses, small businesses and everything in between.  I’m going to go out on a limb and say that if he hasn’t seen it all, he’s seen at least the 80% that counts.  And more than that, Mariotti isn’t afraid of acting, failing, learning and trying again to gain better results.

What I respect most about Mariotti is his openness, honesty and pragmatic sensibility when it comes to running a business.

A Few Fun Tidbits From the Book

Like I said, I happen to have known John for quite a few years and was comforted to see so many of his favorite phrases and stories in this book mashed and combined with classic quotes from folks like Peter Drucker.

Here are just a few of the “Mariotti mantras” that any business owner can appreciate:

• Planning and acting is better than waiting and acting.
• Complexity is created with the best of intentions.
• PP*2 Does not equal FF â€" (Preserving the Past) and (Perfecting the Present) does not equal (Finding the Future).
• Nothing is more important in business - and in life - than people.

There are many more of these simple phrases and explanations of how to use them to successfully run your business and make good decisions inside this small book of 122 pages.

Read It and Reap

I would say that this book isn’t just for business owners.  In today’s age where everyone is expected to be entrepreneurial - chances are, you’ll want to have a copy of this book and read it often.

Roadmap to Profitable Growth is a book that you’ll read once all the way through, dog ear some of the sections that are worth returning to and then go back again and again to simply make sure that you’re still on the right path to profitability.

Our Latest List: Small Business Events, Contests and Awards

Here at Small Business Trends we want you to have access to the most up-to-date educational resources to run your business.  That includes access to educational materials.  Below is our latest curated list of events, contests and awards for small businesses, for the next 60 days. 

We also invite you to submit your own event, contest or award listing to the community calendar, also. To see the full list or to submit your own, please visit the Small Business Events Calendar.

Featured Events, Contests and Awards

Affiliate Management Days
April 16, 2013, San Francisco, CA

Whether your company already offers an affiliate program, or you are considering offering an affiliate program, Affiliate Management Days offers insights into how other online retailers are successfully implementing and managing their affiliate programs. Learn about: affiliate recruitment techniques, communication with affiliates, affiliate analytics, landing page and conversion optimization, legislative issues, and mobile affiliate marketing. Twitter hashtag: #AMDays

Discount Code
SBTAM250 (Get $250 off)

2013 Content Marketing Strategies Conference
May 09, 2013, Berkeley, CA

Marketing and PR professionals from companies of all sizes will gather at the 3rd annual Content Marketing Strategies Conference, hosted by dlvr.it and Business Wire, to gain practical “how to” advice on content marketing SEO, content distribution optimization, content ROI, and learn from case studies by brands including Red Hat, New Belgium Brewing, FOX’s hit show Glee and much more.

Access to Capital Chicago
May 22, 2013, Chicago, Illinois

Join us at the Navy Pier to learn how you can raise capital for your small business. Meet 1:1 with loan officers. Attend panels on traditional and alternative lending options, start-ups, crowd-funding, and more.

Discount Code
sbtrends (Get 30% off)

More Events

• Women Business Owners Symposium
  March 29, 2013, Chicago, Illinois
• Financial Cloud Power Series
  April 04, 2013, Boston, MA
• Techspeak for Entrepreneurs
  April 06, 2013, Phoenix, AZ
• Social Media Marketing World
  April 07, 2013, San Diego, CA
• SugarCon 2013
  April 08, 2013, New York, NY
• Inc. GROWCO
  April 11, 2013, New Orleans, LA
• Ultra Light Startups Investor Feedback Forum
  April 11, 2013, New York, NY
• Springtime Soukle in the ‘Park’ - Networking Event
  April 12, 2013, Atlanta, Georgia
• Yes, Women Can!
  April 14, 2013, Vankleek Hill, Ontario, Canada
• Social Fresh East 2013
  April 19, 2013, Tampa, FL
• Drop Anchor Conference
  April 19, 2013, Norfolk, VA
• More Money Tour, Revenue Breakthrough Event in NYC
  April 20, 2013, New York City, New York
• Spark And Hustle Tour - Seattle
  April 22, 2013, Seattle, WA
• Pubcon New Orleans
  April 22, 2013, New Orleans, LA
• NYCBNG April Business Networking Mixer
  April 23, 2013, New York City, NY
• The Big Event
  April 24, 2013, Tuscon, AZ
• BizBlast@Noon
  April 25, 2013, Coraopolis, PA
• Creating Action Plans - Breaking Large Goals into Smaller Steps
  April 26, 2013, Online
• Techcrunch Disrupt NY
  April 27, 2013, New York, NY
• America’s Small Business Summit
  April 29, 2013, Washington, DC

More Contests and Awards

• The Company Corporation Business Plan Contest
  March 31, 2013, Online
• 2013 SCORE Awards
  March 31, 2013, Online
• Freelancer.com 1 in 1000 Contest
  March 31, 2013, Online
• Huntsville/Madison 2013 Small Business Awards
  April 05, 2013, Online
• StartupNation’s 2013 Leading Moms in Business Competition
  April 13, 2013, Online
• Win a $1500 Facebook Marketing Makeover
  April 16, 2013, Online
• Inc. 500|5000
  April 30, 2013, Online
• Content Marketing Awards
  May 17, 2013, Online
• CrowdIt Launch Challenge
  June 04, 2013, Online

This weekly listing of small business events, contests and awards is provided as a community service by Small Business Trends and SmallBizTechnology.

IRS: Dirty Dozen Tax Scams Threaten Your Business

You’ve worked hard on your business, and don’t want all that hard work destroyed by scammers aimed at draining your company of profits and cash flow.

Identity theft continues to lead the Internal Revenue Service’s annual Dirty Dozen list of scams perpetrated on individuals and businesses.

The IRS issued its yearly list this week as tax preparation season reaches its peak, a time when scammers are more likely to defraud people of their money.

IRS Acting Commissioner Steven T. Miller said in a statement accompanying the release of the list:

This tax season, the IRS has stepped up its efforts to protect taxpayers from a wide range of schemes, including moving aggressively to combat identity theft and refund fraud. The Dirty Dozen list shows that scams come in many forms during filing season. Don’t let a scam artist steal from you or talk you into doing something you will regret later.

Despite heightened efforts in recent years to counter identity theft, this particular scam continues to claim new victims every year. At tax time, the IRS notes that people who fraudulently obtain another person’s Social Security number and other personal and financial information could file a tax return for that person and claim their refund.

The IRS notes in its reports on the Dirty Dozen list that is has take steps to prevent identity theft and detect refund fraud before it occurs, with enhanced systems.

Among the other most popular scams making the IRS list involving identity theft were phishing and return preparer fraud.

Phishing nabs sensitive personal and financial information through emails and bogus websites that pose as reputable sites from financial institutions. If an unsuspecting person enters information on this site, they’re greatly increasing the chances their identity will be stolen.

The federal tax agency also warned against fraudulent tax return services. While the IRS believes most tax preparers to be honest, reports of identity theft accusations, and other cases in which taxpayers were bilked out of their returns by preparers exist. The IRS adds a reminder that taxpayers should only use preparers “who sign the returns they prepare and enter their IRS Preparer Tax Identification Numbers (PTINs).”

Many other items on the Dirty Dozen list from the IRS impact small business owners directly. Hiding income offshore, falsifying and inflating income and expenses, filing false Form 1099 Refund Claims, claiming zero wages and disguising corporate ownership are the most commonly perpetrated scams at tax time.

The IRS notes on disguising the ownership of a company to avoid paying taxes:

These entities can be used to underreport income, claim fictitious deductions, avoid filing tax returns, participate in listed transactions and facilitate money laundering and financial crimes. The IRS is working with state authorities to identify these entities and bring the owners into compliance with the law.

“Business Model Generation” Offers Profitable, Creative Ways to Make Money

What do you think is the most powerful component of a successful and profitable business You might say marketing or technology - but I think it’s the business model.

When you think about all the companies that shifted and transformed how we consume products and services, you’ll notice that it was the creativity of the business model that made the difference - Blockbuster, Netflix, the Internet, Circue De Soleil and countless others that I’m sure you’ve thought of.

I realized this a long time ago and have always looked for some kind of book or resource that would give me this magical list of business models that I could choose from.  I never did find a good one - until now.

About two weeks ago, I went into the local book store on a whim and was immediately grabbed by Business Model Generation: A Handbook for Visionaries, Game Changers, and Challengers by Alexander Osterwalder & Yves Pigneur.  It literally took a village to put this book together as it was co-created by 470 Practitioners from 45 countries and designed by Alan Smith.

Business Model Generation is a high quality book; slick, high quality paper, full color and graphics that will knock your socks off.  It’s definitely not what you might associate with a book about dry and boring business models.   I’m not sure if Wiley, who published the book in 2010, or maybe the authors thought that the subject required an extra “Ooomph” of graphics to attract readers or if this was an experiment. But whatever the reason, I can tell you that this is a book that I would have picked up regardless of what it looked like.

Just as I Suspected - There’s a Model for Developing a Business Model

Aside from the sheer visual and tactile experience, you’re going to love Business Model Generation for the simplicity and accessibility they create around the subject of deconstructing and reconstructing business models.  Of course, there’s a model for that and the book is written, designed and constructed around this model. Here’s a quick overview.

Canvas: The first element is the Canvas.  This is a sort of map or chart of all the elements that you will need to create your business model and it includes:

• Customer Segments - who you are selling to
• Value Propositions - what you’ll be selling
• Channels - how the offer is delivered to the customer
• Customer relationships - how you will connect with your customer
• Revenue streams - how you will make money
• Key resources - what you’ll need to make it all happen
• Key activities - what actions HAVE to take place
• Key partnerships - who will help
• Cost structure - how you’ll pay for it
• Patterns: The next level is to use the canvas as the platform to brainstorm as many possibilities as you can for each component.  This is the most critical activity because truly elegant, creative and profitable business models come from this kind of thinking.
• Design: Profitable business models aren’t born, they are created and designed with purpose.  This part of the process gives you tools to give your ideas structure.
• Strategy: The next phase is to take your model into the real world.

Business Model Generation by the Numbers

I don’t normally share this kind of information, but this book is different because it’s an example of a true global effort:

• The book took 9 years to write.
• It had 470 co-authors.
• There were 8 prototypes.
• The contributors spanned 45 countries.
• There were 1,360 comments on the book.
• 137,757 views of the method before publishing.
• It consumed 4,000 hours of work and 28,456 Post-Itâ„¢ Notes.

There are many more numbers involved here. I just thought I’d share just a few of what made this book an experience all the way around - to create, to read, to use and to share.

Do I Need to Read This Book

• Do you see yourself as having an entrepreneurial spirit (Yes/No)
• Are you constantly thinking about how to create value and build new business or transform a business (Yes/No)
• Are you trying to find innovative ways of doing business to replace old outdated ones (Yes/No)

You know what comes next don’t you  If you said “Yes” to any of these - this is a book for you.

We all work the most basic of business models. Some charge by the hour and others sell products and have set up some kind of pricing or process for doing business.  But seriously, be honest, how many of you have actually dedicated serious strategic thought of how your business is going to best achieve its mission in the world and make money

If you are a fan of the classic Blue Ocean Strategy then you may recall that a solid and creative business model can transform an industry and knock out the bulk of your competitors simply because they have invested and built an infrastructure that the competition simply cannot get around.

Business Model Generation is one of those books that’s going to serve as a reference and a guide to help your business make more money, serve more customers and become a bigger expression of your mission.

Four Key Tips To Follow When Designing A Website To Ensure It’s Tablet Worthy

It’s happened plenty of times before: you’re out and about, and need to access a website. You pull out your tablet, load up the URL and it’s just not right. Maybe the page is formatted terribly. Maybe it’s just a mobile view that doesn’t cut it compared to the computer experience. Regardless, in a rapidly evolving technological age, these types of mistakes just don’t cut it anymore.

Kevin McNally, the CEO and founder of Interactive Palette, is at the forefront of web design and knows that tablets are quickly becoming a bigger market, and what millions of Americans use to access the internet every day. When asked about the subject, McNally had much to say about it. He comments that often, much of what appears on the web is simply just too much for a tablet display to handle. Therefore, designers should focus on a quick-loading and clean-looking mobile design that is specific to tablets. Further, when browsing a tablet, consumers don’t have the ease of control that a mouse or trackpad allows for. Designers should keep this in mind as well, and design to accommodate for the human finger.

When designing for tablets, often many designers want to incorporate Flash browser plugins and surplus software, as they would for their computer counterparts. McNally stresses to simply leave that all behind.  HTML5 is the simplest route, and it will work well across many different platforms. Also, while the grid system of most web sites works at roughly 960 pixels, resolutions should be designed at around 1024 pixels for tablets to allow for better, smoother displays.

Tablets, over the past couple years, have rapidly become a vast market to expand into. iPads, Kindle Fires, Galaxy Tabs have all come to create a new kind of ‘fold’, says McNally. He notes that designers must remember to keep orientation in mind when designing for tablets. Often, what looks spot on in portrait mode will look stretched or distorted in landscape, and likewise it is important that the vital information of your webpage not be covered when switching orientation, or that consumers not need to swipe and scroll to find that information.

Finally, McNally points out the easiest way to ensure that your webpage fits the bill for tablets: testing. Test your design on as many tablets as possible to be sure of its viability, that the resolution and orientation are consistent, and that it won’t fail the “touch test.” If it doesn’t respond to your fingers, it’s not much use being loaded onto a tablet.

The future of business and technology is changing, and it’s tantamount that companies change with them. Kevin McNally knows all too well the importance these emerging technologies have on how consumers access the web and makes a clear-cut case for how designers should begin to view the tablet space. Either they should bear in mind how they appear on the widening tablet market, or they had better get used to being a thing of the past.

Video Is Now Essential In Marketing. Check Out This One Stop Shop For Business Video Production

Does your business need a video An ad, a profile, an explainer SoMedia Networks wants to be your first and last call to get the job done. This Vancouver startup says they can cut video production costs by 50 per cent with their services and they’ve partnered with 3,400 videographers across North America in order to create great business videos.

“Traditionally, video production has been expensive, time consuming, and not available for resale,” said George Fleming, CEO of SoMedia Networks. “Well not any moreâ€"SoMedia’s ScalableVideo Service provides digital agencies and web services companies with reliable, professional video production anywhere in North America at the lowest price point possible.”

Here’s how it works:

You select the kind of video you need from a wide variety offered. Maybe you need a testimonial video, or a commercial. There are templates, as well as video lengths,  to choose from. Thirty seconds or one minute - it’s totally up to you. Then you can manage the shooting, editing and creative from the website, while SoMedia’s partners work away on your video.

The video can be shot by videographers, or you can build a video from existing footage and animation in minutes. If you’re using original footage, the video is available for review and download in fewer than fourteen days from the scheduled shoot - guaranteed.

As part of the ScalableVideo Service, SoMedia provides its partners with end-to-end implementation and marketing support, custom branded collateral, dedicated sales specialists, and market planning.

“According to a recent survey of SoMedia partners, 79 per cent believe that offering video services will give them a competitive advantage in the marketplace.” said Colin Osing, Vice President of Marketing for SoMedia Networks. “ScalableVideo provides our partners with the competitive edge they are looking for as well as a new profit center for their business.”

Customers want to see your product or service in action. Our archives have some great resources for video marketing: 3 Reasons Why Your Business Needs To Get Into Video, and 3 Videos Every Business Should Have.

Video Is Now Essential In Marketing. Check Out This One Stop Shop For Business Video Production

Does your business need a video An ad, a profile, an explainer SoMedia Networks wants to be your first and last call to get the job done. This Vancouver startup says they can cut video production costs by 50 per cent with their services and they’ve partnered with 3,400 videographers across North America in order to create great business videos.

“Traditionally, video production has been expensive, time consuming, and not available for resale,” said George Fleming, CEO of SoMedia Networks. “Well not any moreâ€"SoMedia’s ScalableVideo Service provides digital agencies and web services companies with reliable, professional video production anywhere in North America at the lowest price point possible.”

Here’s how it works:

You select the kind of video you need from a wide variety offered. Maybe you need a testimonial video, or a commercial. There are templates, as well as video lengths,  to choose from. Thirty seconds or one minute - it’s totally up to you. Then you can manage the shooting, editing and creative from the website, while SoMedia’s partners work away on your video.

The video can be shot by videographers, or you can build a video from existing footage and animation in minutes. If you’re using original footage, the video is available for review and download in fewer than fourteen days from the scheduled shoot - guaranteed.

As part of the ScalableVideo Service, SoMedia provides its partners with end-to-end implementation and marketing support, custom branded collateral, dedicated sales specialists, and market planning.

“According to a recent survey of SoMedia partners, 79 per cent believe that offering video services will give them a competitive advantage in the marketplace.” said Colin Osing, Vice President of Marketing for SoMedia Networks. “ScalableVideo provides our partners with the competitive edge they are looking for as well as a new profit center for their business.”

Customers want to see your product or service in action. Our archives have some great resources for video marketing: 3 Reasons Why Your Business Needs To Get Into Video, and 3 Videos Every Business Should Have.

Four Key Tips To Follow When Designing A Website To Ensure It’s Tablet Worthy

It’s happened plenty of times before: you’re out and about, and need to access a website. You pull out your tablet, load up the URL and it’s just not right. Maybe the page is formatted terribly. Maybe it’s just a mobile view that doesn’t cut it compared to the computer experience. Regardless, in a rapidly evolving technological age, these types of mistakes just don’t cut it anymore.

Kevin McNally, the CEO and founder of Interactive Palette, is at the forefront of web design and knows that tablets are quickly becoming a bigger market, and what millions of Americans use to access the internet every day. When asked about the subject, McNally had much to say about it. He comments that often, much of what appears on the web is simply just too much for a tablet display to handle. Therefore, designers should focus on a quick-loading and clean-looking mobile design that is specific to tablets. Further, when browsing a tablet, consumers don’t have the ease of control that a mouse or trackpad allows for. Designers should keep this in mind as well, and design to accommodate for the human finger.

When designing for tablets, often many designers want to incorporate Flash browser plugins and surplus software, as they would for their computer counterparts. McNally stresses to simply leave that all behind.  HTML5 is the simplest route, and it will work well across many different platforms. Also, while the grid system of most web sites works at roughly 960 pixels, resolutions should be designed at around 1024 pixels for tablets to allow for better, smoother displays.

Tablets, over the past couple years, have rapidly become a vast market to expand into. iPads, Kindle Fires, Galaxy Tabs have all come to create a new kind of ‘fold’, says McNally. He notes that designers must remember to keep orientation in mind when designing for tablets. Often, what looks spot on in portrait mode will look stretched or distorted in landscape, and likewise it is important that the vital information of your webpage not be covered when switching orientation, or that consumers not need to swipe and scroll to find that information.

Finally, McNally points out the easiest way to ensure that your webpage fits the bill for tablets: testing. Test your design on as many tablets as possible to be sure of its viability, that the resolution and orientation are consistent, and that it won’t fail the “touch test.” If it doesn’t respond to your fingers, it’s not much use being loaded onto a tablet.

The future of business and technology is changing, and it’s tantamount that companies change with them. Kevin McNally knows all too well the importance these emerging technologies have on how consumers access the web and makes a clear-cut case for how designers should begin to view the tablet space. Either they should bear in mind how they appear on the widening tablet market, or they had better get used to being a thing of the past.

Survey Reveals Three Trends To Follow To Successful Internet Marketing

Small businesses typically tend to have more lasting and intimate relationship with their customers. But who is really an engaged customer Is it someone -

(a) who will continue to buy from you in the near future

(b) who would recommend your business to a friend or

(c) who might feel a sense of loss if your product/ service was no longer available

 A truly loyal customer will check all these boxes. Besides being good for business, an engaged customer also serves as a brand ambassador, bringing in new customers without any additional advertising costs. This is why besides acquiring new customers, engaging your existing customer base makes such good business sense.

In many of our recent updates we have seen how social media marketing ,email marketing , mobile text campaigns, CRM systems, online surveys , online communiies and other internet based tools have become increasingly accessible to small businesses as client engagement tools. So the next question that follows is which of these internet marketing methods is the most effective for engaging existing customers and acquiring new ones

Constant Contact, the comprehensive marketing solution provider with special focus on small businesses, has conducted its second survey on the effectiveness of online marketing tools for small businesses.  The survey covered 1305 respondents and comprised a mixed bag of U.S based small businesses and non- profit organizations involved in B2B as well as B2C industries.  Here are the key results of the survey which provide an invaluable insight into the most effective online marketing tools for small businesses.

Trend 1:  Online surveys, digital loyalty tracking systems and client relationship management systems were deemed to be the most effective in engaging existing customers by majority of the respondents

Trend 2:  For all the criticism levied on daily deal offers towards eroding business value, the majority of the small businesses still view daily deals as the most effective way for acquiring new customers.  Dave Gilberston, Vice President and General Manager, SaveLocal, recommends that small businesses should structure deals in a manner that allows them to control the volumes and discounts offered because of the smaller margins that they operate within. Interestingly, 82 percent of small businesses confirmed that referrals were the main source of new business and small businesses are increasingly using the internet to drive their referral model.

Trend 3:  When asked which were the most effective tools for creating awareness and strengthening customer relationship,  respondents chose a healthy mix of all available online tools from websites to email marketing.

While the survey on the effectiveness of these online marketing tools is a good indicator of strategies that may be adopted, small businesses must also continue to leverage other aspects of marketing such as in-person networking . Handing out business cards, attending local fairs and a cohesive visual branding are also important for bringing in new customers and can at times reap huge rewards. Also, depending on the resources available and the target segment, small businesses may have to choose an optimum mix of online marketing tools that works best for their business. Finally, a staggered approach to adding to the repertoire of online marketing methods makes a lot more sense than trying to do too much in one go and failing to have the desired customer impact.

Dell’s New XPS 18 All-In-One: Video Interview with Neil Hand at SXSW 2013

Ramon Ray, editor of Smallbiztechnology.com, got a peek at the new XPS 18 from Dell at SXSW 2013 when he ran into Neil Hand, VP of Tablets and Performance PC’s.

The XPS 18 is the World’s thinnest and lightest All-In-One that weighs just 4.85 lbs - making it perfect for portability.  Equipped with a large 18.4″ full HD capacitive touch display, full PC performance and a 7 hour battery life, this new machine offers a totally new way to work and collaborate.

Check out the full video interview at this link or watch below:

Dell’s New XPS 18 All-In-One: Video Interview with Neil Hand at SXSW 2013

Ramon Ray, editor of Smallbiztechnology.com, got a peek at the new XPS 18 from Dell at SXSW 2013 when he ran into Neil Hand, VP of Tablets and Performance PC’s.

The XPS 18 is the World’s thinnest and lightest All-In-One that weighs just 4.85 lbs - making it perfect for portability.  Equipped with a large 18.4″ full HD capacitive touch display, full PC performance and a 7 hour battery life, this new machine offers a totally new way to work and collaborate.

Check out the full video interview at this link or watch below:

Survey Reveals Three Trends To Follow To Successful Internet Marketing

Small businesses typically tend to have more lasting and intimate relationship with their customers. But who is really an engaged customer Is it someone -

(a) who will continue to buy from you in the near future

(b) who would recommend your business to a friend or

(c) who might feel a sense of loss if your product/ service was no longer available

 A truly loyal customer will check all these boxes. Besides being good for business, an engaged customer also serves as a brand ambassador, bringing in new customers without any additional advertising costs. This is why besides acquiring new customers, engaging your existing customer base makes such good business sense.

In many of our recent updates we have seen how social media marketing ,email marketing , mobile text campaigns, CRM systems, online surveys , online communiies and other internet based tools have become increasingly accessible to small businesses as client engagement tools. So the next question that follows is which of these internet marketing methods is the most effective for engaging existing customers and acquiring new ones

Constant Contact, the comprehensive marketing solution provider with special focus on small businesses, has conducted its second survey on the effectiveness of online marketing tools for small businesses.  The survey covered 1305 respondents and comprised a mixed bag of U.S based small businesses and non- profit organizations involved in B2B as well as B2C industries.  Here are the key results of the survey which provide an invaluable insight into the most effective online marketing tools for small businesses.

Trend 1:  Online surveys, digital loyalty tracking systems and client relationship management systems were deemed to be the most effective in engaging existing customers by majority of the respondents

Trend 2:  For all the criticism levied on daily deal offers towards eroding business value, the majority of the small businesses still view daily deals as the most effective way for acquiring new customers.  Dave Gilberston, Vice President and General Manager, SaveLocal, recommends that small businesses should structure deals in a manner that allows them to control the volumes and discounts offered because of the smaller margins that they operate within. Interestingly, 82 percent of small businesses confirmed that referrals were the main source of new business and small businesses are increasingly using the internet to drive their referral model.

Trend 3:  When asked which were the most effective tools for creating awareness and strengthening customer relationship,  respondents chose a healthy mix of all available online tools from websites to email marketing.

While the survey on the effectiveness of these online marketing tools is a good indicator of strategies that may be adopted, small businesses must also continue to leverage other aspects of marketing such as in-person networking . Handing out business cards, attending local fairs and a cohesive visual branding are also important for bringing in new customers and can at times reap huge rewards. Also, depending on the resources available and the target segment, small businesses may have to choose an optimum mix of online marketing tools that works best for their business. Finally, a staggered approach to adding to the repertoire of online marketing methods makes a lot more sense than trying to do too much in one go and failing to have the desired customer impact.

Business in Bulgaria: One Entrepreneur’s Journey

The narratives that surround the past and present economic state of Bulgaria are not unfamiliar ones. The transition to a liberal market economy culminated in complete economic collapse. From 1996 - 1997 Bulgaria experienced a period of instability and hyper-inflation.

The establishment of a fixed exchange rate for the Bulgarian currency and the nation’s entry into the European Union, has since stimulated macroeconomic growth. But Bulgaria remained one of the poorest member states of the European Union. Despite an improving economy and rising living standards, unemployment continued at high percentage levels. Though foreign direct investment has managed to stimulate some economic growth, entrepreneurship in Bulgaria encounters a host of challenges.

Bulgaria experienced a revival of the entrepreneurial spirit in the late 19th century, following their declaration of independence from the Ottoman Empire. Despite continued warring, international trade flourished. It was between 1949 - 1989, during the Communist regime, that prosperity through private entrepreneurship was suppressed and designated as self-serving. Negative attitudes toward entrepreneurs continue to influence the Bulgarian economy.

In today’s volatile economic climate, Bulgaria does not possess enough free money to make investments in innovation. Predictably, the Bulgarian government has rendered private property and trade nonexistent, depriving aspiring entrepreneurs of private resources to mobilize. The process of partaking in capitalism without sufficient capital has resulted in fragmented entrepreneurial efforts, and often limits them to the service sector.

Business In Bulgaria: One Entrepreneur’s Journey

Victor Alexiev, entrepreneur and general renaissance man, would thus appear to be succeeding against all odds. Born and raised in Sofia, Bulgaria, Victor’s past 13 years credit him with work in mathematics, software development, network architecture and investment banking, to name a few. In that time, he also attached two Bachelors and three Masters degrees to his name. Of late, however, Victor has realized his erratic work life could feasibly lead to unemployment, as no one can make sense of his past.

As a result Victor has refocused his efforts on entrepreneurship, a personal passion from his childhood. Victor had started his first business at age 14, building his own Internet Service Provider (ISP) and selling and installing the service in his hometown. With the help of classmate and fellow budding entrepreneur Todor Kolev, Victor’s business grew to 150 customers spanning three towns in 2001. And when underage Victor was contacted by the government’s commission for regulation of telecommunications due to licensing issues, he simply sold the venture to local competitors and transferred his customers to them.

Victor and Todor bonded over their shared passion for entrepreneurship and in 2008, the two began to work together. Obecto, a software development venture, grew steadily for four years before the co-founders encountered difficulty expanding their team. Job postings and hiring services yielded disappointing results, and candidates always seemed to be lacking the connection that made them a strong fit. In 2011, the two began to consider more effective and efficient ways to source and evaluate talent.

The issue of staffing was one many companies faced, in particular those looking to hire software engineers in a market that had grown beyond its carrying capacity. The job market was certainly not improved by an attitude of skepticism toward independent ventures and risks. Victor explains:

Employers were making promises they could not deliver upon, talents were making unrealistic demands, and there was a need for a more transparent marketplace.

That same year, Victor and Todor joined forces with their third partner, Ivan. Drawing upon his background in psychology and psychometrics, the three came together to build a recommendation platform specifically for software engineers in Bulgaria.

PoolTalent

The result is PoolTalent, a job board and recommendation aggregate. Though PoolTalent is intended for use entirely by job seekers and employers, the use of matching and personal profiles is strongly modeled on a typical dating site. The site makes uses of a compensatory algorithm that incorporates matching skill sets as well as cultural fit into its final scoring.

PoolTalent’s first version was released in late 2011, with a focus on data collection as well as social media and community features for users. However, a lack of engagement forced Victor and his co-founders to return to the drawing board, this time designing with users in mind. After a second disappointing release, the three decided to put the project on hold temporarily.

It was during that summer of 2012 that Victor happened upon and learned the methodology of customer validation. Victor and his co-founders went and gathered feedback from large IT recruiters based in Bulgaria, such as Hewlett Packard Bulgaria, Playtech and VMware.

The resulting version has abandoned social features in favor of focusing on becoming an information platform for jobseekers in the software development community. Customer input has now led to validation of the concept and ultimately, preliminary partnership agreements. PoolTalent now has 150 registered users, four partner companies and two active clients. They have recently expanded their reach to the career center of the Technical University of Sofia.

A New Bulgarian Economy

PoolTalent is an example of a new Bulgarian economy, as the entrepreneur movement gains popularity once again. Several of the nation’s non-profits provide small amounts of seed capital through competitions in order to promote entrepreneurship. Entry into the European Union has opened access to assistance funds that are now being utilized.

Victor’s story is an important one, because of his success in an environment that so clearly worked against him. Despite the improving economic climate, legislative framework, educational infrastructure and financing options remain insufficient to support disruptive or capital intensive startups.

Bulgaria’s attempts at developing entrepreneurs, albeit slow, is a much needed change. With a clear set of goals in mind for the immediate future, Victor is on his way to becoming just what Bulgaria needs: A practicing entrepreneur building a serious business.

Against all odds You bet.

Bulgaria Photo via Shutterstock

Soap Warehouse Finds New Ways To Use Social Media To Get Sales: Video Interview with Linda Chambers at SXSW 2013

Ramon Ray, editor of Smallbiztechnology and Technology Guru, had a chance to speak with Linda Chambers, Brand and Sales Manager of Soap Warehouse at SXSW 2013.

Soap Warehouse is an industrial soap company serving many different industries.  Linda has found interesting ways to use their social media channels, specifically Pinterest, to engage with their customers and potential customers and convert that engagement into sales.

Check out the video at this link, or view below:

Daymond John’s Social Media Guru (Cliff Worley): 6 Social Media Tips For Your Business To Succeed Online!

On the occasion of Infusionsoft’s 2,000 attendee InfusionCon 2013 Daymond John’s social media guru, Cliff Worley, shares his insight how small business owners can succeed online. His advice includes:

1. Use contests and give aways through social media
2. As you grow have a team assist with your social media engagement
3. You must participate in the conversation
4. Give lots of great content to your audience
5. Be on all the platforms so you know where your audience is
6. Go beyond social media but bringing social to your sales funnel and use marketing automation so you can do MORE by leveraging technologyWatch the video here or below.

Soap Warehouse Finds New Ways To Use Social Media To Get Sales: Video Interview with Linda Chambers at SXSW 2013

Ramon Ray, editor of Smallbiztechnology and Technology Guru, had a chance to speak with Linda Chambers, Brand and Sales Manager of Soap Warehouse at SXSW 2013.

Soap Warehouse is an industrial soap company serving many different industries.  Linda has found interesting ways to use their social media channels, specifically Pinterest, to engage with their customers and potential customers and convert that engagement into sales.

Check out the video at this link, or view below:

Loni Stark of Adobe: Digital Marketing Solutions in the Cloud

Bob Dylan once sang, The Times They Are A-Changin’ and these words still ring true today, some 49 years later. Marketers need to understand how their message can now be honed in with data and Loni Stark, Director of Product & Industry Marketing at Adobe, has a solution. She joins Brent Leary to discuss the five key areas of digital marketing available in the Adobe Marketing Cloud.

* * * * *

Small Business Trends: Can you tell us a little bit about your background

Loni Stark: I have been at Adobe for over 12 years. I am responsible for product marketing for our Adobe Experience Managers Solution, which is part of the Adobe Marketing Cloud. It is really perfect in the sense that I have come from a technology background.

I am at the heart of digital marketing now so that combination of technology and creativity is really important as folks are looking at how to do digital marketing well.

Small Business Trends: How important is it today that creative folks understand social and mobile in order to create the right kind of customer experiences

Loni Stark: I think it is really important to understand what is possible, and how people want to interact through these technology channels.

I liken this era of moving to digital marketing similar to when television was first invented. It really changed how marketers got to reach their audience and mass communications, broadcasting what was out there. Now, marketers need to understand how their message can then be honed in with data.

Small Business Trends: I had a conversation with Anil Dash and one of the things he talked about was the show, ‘I Love Lucy.’ It was the marriage of somebody who understood the power of television and knew how to create something that really showed it off. There were other television shows, but none of them really captivated and took advantage of what television had to offer. 

Are we at the point where we are understanding the power of social and digital marketing

Loni Stark: Attention is scarce and when attention is scarce, similar to what happened with television, there is flight to quality. So marketers are starting to figure out. ‘How do I create more compelling content and how do I make sure it is more relevant, more useful’

I am amazed at the creativity in the ads that are now in digital magazines as well. Before it was static images, and they are now interactive. I think we are at a point of the ‘I love Lucy’ moment.

Small Business Trends: Can you talk a little bit about the five key areas of your Adobe Marketing Cloud

Loni Stark: We have brought them down into what we consider the foundation for visual marketing; to be able to do things well in these five core areas. One of them we have already touched upon which is the analytics. That is about measurement. What most folks talk about, or know about from Adobe, is the online metrics that we have. But little is known about the fact that we also have the capability to measure offline. And that is really important.

We talk about eCommerce, it is hot. People talk about how much money people are spending. We tend to forget that even though it is growing fast, and it will continue to grow onwards and upwards, it is still about six percent of total spend in the retail sector in the United States. So a lot of things happen offline as well and that is an important piece.

The second piece is Adobe Experience Manager. That is all about the owned digital properties that companies have. In the online world Experience Manager is really about helping companies build out their own digital properties. An example of this is Hyatt, a hotel chain, and they use Experience Manager to be able to create a destination spot that people can come to and shop, and purchase hotels rooms. So that is two of the five.

The third is Adobe Social. With any digital marketing strategy you’ve got to have a social component to that. Adobe Social is all about running social marketing campaigns through Twitter, Facebook and having fan pages managed through those channels.

The fourth is Adobe Media Optimizer, so part of the marketing mix is spending it on ads. Being able to do that effectively, being able to optimize your spend to say, ‘Hey, this ad placement through this channel is working better than this other one, so maybe I want to move more of my investment over to this other channel.’ Being able to do that in real time and being able to figure out what is the best price to pay for a particular ad based on the return. It is critical for any digital marketer.

The final piece is Target. We talked about data, we talked about content and Target is the solution that brings it all together to do tests. I have a hypothesis I think you love music and I think you love this type of music, so I am going to target this particular image of this band that I think you are going to really like called The Black Keys. I could be right, but I could be wrong. So I might say there are a couple of other bands that I think you might like, I’ll will try out those images.

Adobe Target lets me quickly test out different images against you and people like you to figure out what image, what piece of content you are going to best resonate with.

Small Business Trends: Adobe’s CMO, Ann Lewnes, mentioned that Adobe is spending about 74% of their digital marketing budget compared to the average of large companies in the 20% range. What is it going to take for companies to be more like you and focus their marketing in this space

Loni Stark: With digital marketing, the more efforts that can be measured and be more data driven, the more they can see where they are driving the highest value across  to pour more money in to it. The big piece is becoming more data driven and then being able to speed up the content creation piece of it.

Small Business Trends: Where can people learn more

Loni Stark: Our website Adobe. You can check out the Adobe Marketing Cloud, which will go into all of the five solutions. And then also I think another great resource is CMO.com.

This interview is part of our One on One series of conversations with some of the most thought-provoking entrepreneurs, authors and experts in business today. This interview has been edited for publication. To hear audio of the full interview, click the right arrow on the gray player below. You can also see more interviews in our interview series.

Ninchat Removes Limits From Team Collaboration: Video Interview with Jari Jaanto at SXSW 2013

Ramon Ray, editor of Smallbiztechnology and Technology Guru, caught up with Jari Jaanto of Ninchat at SXSW 2013.

Ninchat, based out of Finland, is a team communication tool for organizations. It’s a channel based cloud software that allows teams to better collaborate with features like group chat, that has no limitations to members.

Watch the full video interview at this link, or below:

Did You Get The Memo CRM’s Are Now Social!

Managing projects and customers is one of the headaches you have to deal with on a daily basis. It’s not exactly glamorous to have to spend most of your time trying to coordinate activities in a way that would make them productive. This is why the customer relationship management (CRM) platform has become the centerpiece of a lot of technologically-inclined businesses. To address these issues, CRMs often include various task management, contact management, and lead-chasing solutions that allow businesses to better cater to their customers.

Recently, many CRMs have come up with something wonderful: An internal social network where one can share posts, subscribe to others, and focus on tasks rather than chasing after everyone to keep progress on projects synchronized. This new medium for exchanging ideas vastly changes the landscape of the CRM stage. Their numbers are growing, and here are three powerful CRM solutions that contain social networks:

• Batchbook - This software gives you a very good “out of the box” experience and lets you interact with other collaborators with significant ease. One of the hallmark perks in Batchbook is its pricing. For an unlimited amount of users, you can start out at $10 a month, giving you up to 2,000 contacts and 5 GB of storage space. The only drawback in this service, according to user reviews, seems to be its inability to properly import contacts. According to one user, Batchbook does not add custom fields in imported CSV files. Some other minor bugs have been found, like the inability to automatically add pictures of contacts from social media. Before paying for anything, you get a 30-day free trial of the application.
• HyperOffice - This CRM provides you with a very modern interface, email-driven contact management, and several perks that might make it worth the price you pay for it ($15/user/month in the Enterprise package, with 250 MB document storage + 5 GB email storage). Their basic “Core Collaboration” package is $7/user/month, and it has everything Enterprise offers except for the project management, email, publisher, and Outlook Sync features. There have been mixed reviews about the software, particularly regarding its slow speed. Others have said that it worked quickly, but there were a few glitches when using HyperDrive (a drive you can mount on your computer). You can obviously try it before you buy in its free trial.
• Podio - Probably one of the most interesting CRM suites, Podio lets you create your own apps without any prior programming training. It’s as easy as dragging components and dropping them in place. The CRM also gives you pre-packaged applications such as a lead manager, client project collaboration, project manager, recruitment app, workspace, intranet, and full-blown CRM (of course). The solution is free for up to 5 users, and it’s generally received good reviews save for a few complaints about a slight learning curve and the lack of real-time IM capabilities. For more than 5 users, Podio charges you $9 per user per month. You get unlimited storage, apps, and external members.

Each of the three solutions mentioned above have their own pros and cons, and they each offer something innovative to the marketplace. At least one of them must appeal to you. Try them out!