Hackers Are On The Lookout For Mobile Targets. What You Need To Know To Stay Safe.

“The problem lies with the solution”.

Mark these words as you will probably know the impact of this sooner or later. No matter what human’s engineer to make our lives more comfortable, some people know how to turn it into a nightmare and exploit us with what we made to pacify us. Digital security is also not an exception to this fact as today there are all sorts of threats existing in the digital world in devices ranging from big servers to small Smartphones. Hackers and other frauds are constantly exploiting digital vulnerabilities in technology platforms spread across the entire spectrum. The latest addition to this list of victims is the Smartphone.

Smartphones have somewhat replaced the computer as the dominant computing platform on this planet and this makes more than just a convincing reason for hackers to venture into its vulnerabilities. According to a recent report by security firm McAfee, the threat to mobile phones is on the rise. Malicious applications engage in wild shopping spree’s in online stores without the consent of users and guess what… the authors of such malicious programs net a fortune for themselves from such encounters.

NFC (Near Field Communication) technology is another targeted Smartphone security vulnerability where criminals use the power of NFC to steal people’s digital wallet and also propagate the content from one device to all nearby devices capable of NFC.

As expected, Android powered phones are the biggest target mainly because of the immense popularity of the operating system and the fact that almost every major manufacturer has an Android based model in the market. As per a recent research by security firm Bit9, nearly 100,000 applications from the Play Store (also known as the Android Market) were found to be suspicious and could possibly have malicious content in them. Add this to the fact that almost a dozen apps are added to the play store every minute, the numbers could have doubled by the time you are reading this. Another infographic from Lookout’s 2012 State of Mobile Security Report points out that almost 62 % of Malware infected users have been tricked into being a victim by premium SMS and Wallpaper apps which, were cleverly disguised.

This is a serious dampener for brands who have large scale presence in mobile e-commerce as well as developers of apps with a huge fan following and involves financial capabilities. So what must IT managers do to help their customers from being exploited and what can you do to keep your devices safe

Well, the biggest relief to smartphone security flaws is that unless the phone is rooted by the owner, it is easy for the manufacturer to undo the effects of a malicious app with a security update. So it is advisable for app developers as well as the manufacturers to promote this message to create awareness.

In the event of a disaster, recovery should be of top priority. If hackers gain access to your data centers possessing crucial financial and personal information of your customers, then you need to shift operations out, identify and fix the channel through which the Malware entered and clean your systems before resorting to restore operations to the infected facility.

To keep your own device safe, we recently published a guide on Smartphone Security Best Practices, that we encourage everyone to read so they know the steps they can take to protect themselves.

Nevertheless, cyber security remains a top priority agenda for brands as well as manufacturers because no one can determine the philosophy or motive behind an attack unless it is spotted. Once begun, such attacks usually go viral making things more complicated. So stay vigil and have your users practice safe play strategies like preventing rooting of their phones, downloading only trustful apps and so on.



14 Days of Facebook Marketing Tips. Tip #9: Use Facebook Places and Check-In Deals To Increase Local Foot Traffic

14 Days of Facebook Marketing Tips - Tip #9: Use Check-In Deals To Get People To Your Location

Welcome to 14 Days of Facebook Marketing Tips, on the occasion of the upcoming launch of “The Facebook Guide to Small Business Marketing” (Wiley) by Ramon Ray, of Smallbiztechnology.com and Infusionsoft.

Buy Ramon’s latest book on February 19th and get a digital box of goodies as your gift for buying the book, educating yourself and growing your business with Facebook.

In The Facebook Guide to Small Business Marketing, you will overall learn how to get more customers and keep the ones you have. You’ll also learn how to leverage overall online marketing, how to better use social media and, more specifically, how to use the power of Facebook for YOUR business.

Tip #9: Use Check-In Deals To Get People To Your Location

The reality is that just about everyone these days has a smartphone and a very large majority of those have the Facebook application downloaded on it.  You see it all the time - your standing in the line at Starbucks and the guy in front of you is ‘checking in’ and letting everyone know where he is and what he’ll be having for breakfast this morning. Because he did this, now all of his friends on Facebook not only know a bit too much about his morning, but they also know about this local Starbucks, which they may not have known existed before. Furthermore, if this guy is credible and all his friends know he only frequents great restaurants and stores, then they are even more apt to visit and give it a try. Talk about GREAT advertising and an EASY way to spread the word about your business!

By creating your Facebook Place Page, you can open a whole new world of marketing opportunities. This includes creating Facebook Check-in Deals, which are incentives you can offer to your customers that ‘check-in’ to your location. Check-in Deals are a great way to generate more local foot traffic and increase engagement and interactions on Facebook, because they require that the user follow a specific action to redeem. There are four types of Check-in deals you can choose from; Individual (a one-time offer for new or existing customers), Loyalty (available to only your loyal customers), Friend (a deal that requires a ‘group’ of people to check-in to redeem) and Charity (a deal that makes a donation to a charity of your choice).

Like any promotional campaign, you’ll want to do a bit of homework and strategizing before setting up a deal to ensure that it fits your desired outcome.  Here are a few tips to consider when creating a Check-in Deal:

  • Keep It Clear and Simple - Make sure what you are offering is clear and simple.  For example, ‘Check-in To Receive A 10% Discount on Today’s Purchase’.  This makes it obvious to both the customer and your staff what is being offered.
  • Educate Your Staff - Make sure your entire staff is aware of the deal you are offering and how to process it properly for the customer so their interaction is quick and positive.
  • Promote the Deal At Your Location - Let everyone that visits your store know about the Check-in Deal. This further encourages engagement and interaction.

For more great tips on how to market your business with Facebook, check out ‘The Facebook Guide to Small Business Marketing’. And don’t forget - buy it on Feb. 19th and you’ll get the great digital ‘Goody Bag’ of special discounts and gifts!



14 Days of Facebook Marketing Tips. Tip #9: Use Facebook Places and Check-In Deals To Increase Local Foot Traffic

14 Days of Facebook Marketing Tips - Tip #9: Use Check-In Deals To Get People To Your Location

Welcome to 14 Days of Facebook Marketing Tips, on the occasion of the upcoming launch of “The Facebook Guide to Small Business Marketing” (Wiley) by Ramon Ray, of Smallbiztechnology.com and Infusionsoft.

Buy Ramon’s latest book on February 19th and get a digital box of goodies as your gift for buying the book, educating yourself and growing your business with Facebook.

In The Facebook Guide to Small Business Marketing, you will overall learn how to get more customers and keep the ones you have. You’ll also learn how to leverage overall online marketing, how to better use social media and, more specifically, how to use the power of Facebook for YOUR business.

Tip #9: Use Check-In Deals To Get People To Your Location

The reality is that just about everyone these days has a smartphone and a very large majority of those have the Facebook application downloaded on it.  You see it all the time - your standing in the line at Starbucks and the guy in front of you is ‘checking in’ and letting everyone know where he is and what he’ll be having for breakfast this morning. Because he did this, now all of his friends on Facebook not only know a bit too much about his morning, but they also know about this local Starbucks, which they may not have known existed before. Furthermore, if this guy is credible and all his friends know he only frequents great restaurants and stores, then they are even more apt to visit and give it a try. Talk about GREAT advertising and an EASY way to spread the word about your business!

By creating your Facebook Place Page, you can open a whole new world of marketing opportunities. This includes creating Facebook Check-in Deals, which are incentives you can offer to your customers that ‘check-in’ to your location. Check-in Deals are a great way to generate more local foot traffic and increase engagement and interactions on Facebook, because they require that the user follow a specific action to redeem. There are four types of Check-in deals you can choose from; Individual (a one-time offer for new or existing customers), Loyalty (available to only your loyal customers), Friend (a deal that requires a ‘group’ of people to check-in to redeem) and Charity (a deal that makes a donation to a charity of your choice).

Like any promotional campaign, you’ll want to do a bit of homework and strategizing before setting up a deal to ensure that it fits your desired outcome.  Here are a few tips to consider when creating a Check-in Deal:

  • Keep It Clear and Simple - Make sure what you are offering is clear and simple.  For example, ‘Check-in To Receive A 10% Discount on Today’s Purchase’.  This makes it obvious to both the customer and your staff what is being offered.
  • Educate Your Staff - Make sure your entire staff is aware of the deal you are offering and how to process it properly for the customer so their interaction is quick and positive.
  • Promote the Deal At Your Location - Let everyone that visits your store know about the Check-in Deal. This further encourages engagement and interaction.

For more great tips on how to market your business with Facebook, check out ‘The Facebook Guide to Small Business Marketing’. And don’t forget - buy it on Feb. 19th and you’ll get the great digital ‘Goody Bag’ of special discounts and gifts!



Hackers Are On The Lookout For Mobile Targets. What You Need To Know To Stay Safe.

“The problem lies with the solution”.

Mark these words as you will probably know the impact of this sooner or later. No matter what human’s engineer to make our lives more comfortable, some people know how to turn it into a nightmare and exploit us with what we made to pacify us. Digital security is also not an exception to this fact as today there are all sorts of threats existing in the digital world in devices ranging from big servers to small Smartphones. Hackers and other frauds are constantly exploiting digital vulnerabilities in technology platforms spread across the entire spectrum. The latest addition to this list of victims is the Smartphone.

Smartphones have somewhat replaced the computer as the dominant computing platform on this planet and this makes more than just a convincing reason for hackers to venture into its vulnerabilities. According to a recent report by security firm McAfee, the threat to mobile phones is on the rise. Malicious applications engage in wild shopping spree’s in online stores without the consent of users and guess what… the authors of such malicious programs net a fortune for themselves from such encounters.

NFC (Near Field Communication) technology is another targeted Smartphone security vulnerability where criminals use the power of NFC to steal people’s digital wallet and also propagate the content from one device to all nearby devices capable of NFC.

As expected, Android powered phones are the biggest target mainly because of the immense popularity of the operating system and the fact that almost every major manufacturer has an Android based model in the market. As per a recent research by security firm Bit9, nearly 100,000 applications from the Play Store (also known as the Android Market) were found to be suspicious and could possibly have malicious content in them. Add this to the fact that almost a dozen apps are added to the play store every minute, the numbers could have doubled by the time you are reading this. Another infographic from Lookout’s 2012 State of Mobile Security Report points out that almost 62 % of Malware infected users have been tricked into being a victim by premium SMS and Wallpaper apps which, were cleverly disguised.

This is a serious dampener for brands who have large scale presence in mobile e-commerce as well as developers of apps with a huge fan following and involves financial capabilities. So what must IT managers do to help their customers from being exploited and what can you do to keep your devices safe

Well, the biggest relief to smartphone security flaws is that unless the phone is rooted by the owner, it is easy for the manufacturer to undo the effects of a malicious app with a security update. So it is advisable for app developers as well as the manufacturers to promote this message to create awareness.

In the event of a disaster, recovery should be of top priority. If hackers gain access to your data centers possessing crucial financial and personal information of your customers, then you need to shift operations out, identify and fix the channel through which the Malware entered and clean your systems before resorting to restore operations to the infected facility.

To keep your own device safe, we recently published a guide on Smartphone Security Best Practices, that we encourage everyone to read so they know the steps they can take to protect themselves.

Nevertheless, cyber security remains a top priority agenda for brands as well as manufacturers because no one can determine the philosophy or motive behind an attack unless it is spotted. Once begun, such attacks usually go viral making things more complicated. So stay vigil and have your users practice safe play strategies like preventing rooting of their phones, downloading only trustful apps and so on.



14 Days of Facebook Marketing Tips. Tip #9: Use Facebook Places and Check-In Deals To Increase Local Foot Traffic

14 Days of Facebook Marketing Tips - Tip #9: Use Check-In Deals To Get People To Your Location

Welcome to 14 Days of Facebook Marketing Tips, on the occasion of the upcoming launch of “The Facebook Guide to Small Business Marketing” (Wiley) by Ramon Ray, of Smallbiztechnology.com and Infusionsoft.

Buy Ramon’s latest book on February 19th and get a digital box of goodies as your gift for buying the book, educating yourself and growing your business with Facebook.

In The Facebook Guide to Small Business Marketing, you will overall learn how to get more customers and keep the ones you have. You’ll also learn how to leverage overall online marketing, how to better use social media and, more specifically, how to use the power of Facebook for YOUR business.

Tip #9: Use Check-In Deals To Get People To Your Location

The reality is that just about everyone these days has a smartphone and a very large majority of those have the Facebook application downloaded on it.  You see it all the time - your standing in the line at Starbucks and the guy in front of you is ‘checking in’ and letting everyone know where he is and what he’ll be having for breakfast this morning. Because he did this, now all of his friends on Facebook not only know a bit too much about his morning, but they also know about this local Starbucks, which they may not have known existed before. Furthermore, if this guy is credible and all his friends know he only frequents great restaurants and stores, then they are even more apt to visit and give it a try. Talk about GREAT advertising and an EASY way to spread the word about your business!

By creating your Facebook Place Page, you can open a whole new world of marketing opportunities. This includes creating Facebook Check-in Deals, which are incentives you can offer to your customers that ‘check-in’ to your location. Check-in Deals are a great way to generate more local foot traffic and increase engagement and interactions on Facebook, because they require that the user follow a specific action to redeem. There are four types of Check-in deals you can choose from; Individual (a one-time offer for new or existing customers), Loyalty (available to only your loyal customers), Friend (a deal that requires a ‘group’ of people to check-in to redeem) and Charity (a deal that makes a donation to a charity of your choice).

Like any promotional campaign, you’ll want to do a bit of homework and strategizing before setting up a deal to ensure that it fits your desired outcome.  Here are a few tips to consider when creating a Check-in Deal:

  • Keep It Clear and Simple - Make sure what you are offering is clear and simple.  For example, ‘Check-in To Receive A 10% Discount on Today’s Purchase’.  This makes it obvious to both the customer and your staff what is being offered.
  • Educate Your Staff - Make sure your entire staff is aware of the deal you are offering and how to process it properly for the customer so their interaction is quick and positive.
  • Promote the Deal At Your Location - Let everyone that visits your store know about the Check-in Deal. This further encourages engagement and interaction.

For more great tips on how to market your business with Facebook, check out ‘The Facebook Guide to Small Business Marketing’. And don’t forget - buy it on Feb. 19th and you’ll get the great digital ‘Goody Bag’ of special discounts and gifts!



14 Days of Facebook Marketing Tips. Tip #9: Use Facebook Places and Check-In Deals To Increase Local Foot Traffic

14 Days of Facebook Marketing Tips - Tip #9: Use Check-In Deals To Get People To Your Location

Welcome to 14 Days of Facebook Marketing Tips, on the occasion of the upcoming launch of “The Facebook Guide to Small Business Marketing” (Wiley) by Ramon Ray, of Smallbiztechnology.com and Infusionsoft.

Buy Ramon’s latest book on February 19th and get a digital box of goodies as your gift for buying the book, educating yourself and growing your business with Facebook.

In The Facebook Guide to Small Business Marketing, you will overall learn how to get more customers and keep the ones you have. You’ll also learn how to leverage overall online marketing, how to better use social media and, more specifically, how to use the power of Facebook for YOUR business.

Tip #9: Use Check-In Deals To Get People To Your Location

The reality is that just about everyone these days has a smartphone and a very large majority of those have the Facebook application downloaded on it.  You see it all the time - your standing in the line at Starbucks and the guy in front of you is ‘checking in’ and letting everyone know where he is and what he’ll be having for breakfast this morning. Because he did this, now all of his friends on Facebook not only know a bit too much about his morning, but they also know about this local Starbucks, which they may not have known existed before. Furthermore, if this guy is credible and all his friends know he only frequents great restaurants and stores, then they are even more apt to visit and give it a try. Talk about GREAT advertising and an EASY way to spread the word about your business!

By creating your Facebook Place Page, you can open a whole new world of marketing opportunities. This includes creating Facebook Check-in Deals, which are incentives you can offer to your customers that ‘check-in’ to your location. Check-in Deals are a great way to generate more local foot traffic and increase engagement and interactions on Facebook, because they require that the user follow a specific action to redeem. There are four types of Check-in deals you can choose from; Individual (a one-time offer for new or existing customers), Loyalty (available to only your loyal customers), Friend (a deal that requires a ‘group’ of people to check-in to redeem) and Charity (a deal that makes a donation to a charity of your choice).

Like any promotional campaign, you’ll want to do a bit of homework and strategizing before setting up a deal to ensure that it fits your desired outcome.  Here are a few tips to consider when creating a Check-in Deal:

  • Keep It Clear and Simple - Make sure what you are offering is clear and simple.  For example, ‘Check-in To Receive A 10% Discount on Today’s Purchase’.  This makes it obvious to both the customer and your staff what is being offered.
  • Educate Your Staff - Make sure your entire staff is aware of the deal you are offering and how to process it properly for the customer so their interaction is quick and positive.
  • Promote the Deal At Your Location - Let everyone that visits your store know about the Check-in Deal. This further encourages engagement and interaction.

For more great tips on how to market your business with Facebook, check out ‘The Facebook Guide to Small Business Marketing’. And don’t forget - buy it on Feb. 19th and you’ll get the great digital ‘Goody Bag’ of special discounts and gifts!



6 Reasons For You To Love Small Businesses

small business surveysAccording to a 2012 Public Affairs Pulse Survey, 88% of adults interviewed have a favorable view of small businesses. Only 16% said the same about major corporations.

Below are six reasons for you to love small businesses and continue to support small business owners in every way possible:

1. Small Business Owners Work Tirelessly

Entrepreneurs and small business owners are used to working long hours. The latest SMB Wellness Index from Manta found that small business owners are working longer hours than they have in the past. Nearly half (49%) said they worked more than 50 hours/week in 2012, compared to 40% in 2011 and 26% worked up to 60 hours a week in 2012, 14% worked up to 70 hours, and 9% admitted to working more than 70 hours a week.

2. Small Businesses are the Heart of the American Economy

If you had any doubts about the importance of small businesses to our economy, take a look at the following statistics from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). Small firms:

  • Make up more than 99.7% of all employers.
  • Create more than 50% of the non-farm private gross domestic product (GDP).
  • Make up 97% of exporters and produce 29 percent of all export value.

3. Small Businesses Spurs Job Growth

It’s the small business engine that’s turning our economy around and putting our country back to work. The latest figures from the SBA show that small businesses create 75% of new jobs in our economy, creating more than 15 million new jobs between 1993 and 2009. Small businesses employ half of all private sector employees and hire 43% of high tech workers (scientists, engineers, computer programmers, and others).

4. Small Business Owners are Gutsy 

The bulk of small businesses are self-financed, with owners digging into their savings, home equity, stocks, 401k/retirement accounts, and credit cards to fund their business. The large number of bootstrapping startups is, in part, due to a tighter lending market. Most small business owners find they need to sign a personal guarantee in order to get a loan.

This kind of bootstrapping makes a small business self-reliant, but it’s also risky as owners may stand to lose their entire wealth if the business fails. Yet despite this fact, small business owners are ready to take the plunge because they believe in their vision and want to do whatever they can to make it happen.

5. Small Businesses Build Relationships 

As the founder of a small business, I enjoy doing as much business as I can with fellow small companies. Small businesses often share a uniquely genuine culture - after all, small business owners typically have a closer connection to their customers and marketplace. There are fewer bureaucratic layers and armies of consultants standing between the owner and customer. Smaller organizations take a vested interest in the needs of their customers, and build strong relationships with their customers and community.

6. Small Business Owners are Optimistic

2013 brought a flurry of small business surveys all pointing to increased optimism for the coming year. The SMB Wellness Index from Manta found that more than 75% of the small business owners polled are confident about their company’s growth prospects in 2013. A Dell Think Tank poll showed that business owners in their six markets expect their finances and sales to improve this year. And the American Express OPEN Small Business Monitor found that 77% of small businesses polled are optimistic about their business prospects.

While these findings are certainly indicative of positive trends in our economy, I think that by nature, small business owners are an optimistic group. It’s an unfailing belief in themselves and a hope for the future that gives entrepreneurs the strength to take risks.

I hope more courageous and creative individuals join the ranks of small business owners in years to come.

Pastry Business Owner Photo via Shutterstock




Three Online Invoicing Tools That Help You Track Time and Get Paid Faster

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Getting payment from clients used to a difficult process which often involved significant amounts of manual labor and numerous calls and emails to the client, however today thanks to online invoicing, getting paid by clients is significantly easier than in the past. In fact, many invoicing tools allow clients to make payments virtually upon receipt thanks to integration with many payment processors such as PayPal, while also streamlining the invoice creation process by allowing time sheet data to be entered automatically into all notices. Add the fact that many online invoicing tools have nominal fees and interfaces which are much easier to use than Microsoft Excel and QuickBooks and it becomes clear that today using an online invoice provider is a no brainier in today’s hectic world.

One of the leading invoicing tools on the market is Zoho Invoices which provides users with a simple to use interface which allows for:  rapid creation of  elegant invoices,  time tracking of client projects, creation of estimates, tracking of expenses, and tight integration with a wide array of other business tools make the program much more than a one trick pony. Aside from integrating Google Checkout, Paypal, and Stripe (amongst many other options) into invoices, Zoho provides users with the ability to mail paper invoices to clients on their behalf for a  nominal fee if they prefer paper over electronic copies. Zoho’s free tier has a cap of five customers and unlimited invoices and estimates while the premium plan provides unlimited customer support, users, and invoices for $30/month.

Harvest is another useful invoicing tool which is popular with business owners for its easy to use interface and powerful feature set. By allowing business owners to track time in one click while still being able to view highly detailed reports of employee activity, Harvest is a great tool for any project manager or business owner who needs fine detail for their financials. A key feature in the tool not found in many other tools is the ability to track a client retainer. Additionally Harvest’s mid and premium plans include the ability to have an administrator approve all employee timesheets before they are officially entered. The free tier of Harvest allows for two projects, four clients, and one user while the premium plan sells for $99/month; includes 10 users; and unlimited clients, projects, invoicing; and timesheet approval.

Last but not least, Chrometa is an invoicing tool which helps business owners save time by automatically logging the time and applications being run throughout the work day. This eliminates the need to manually punch a time clock and also helps ensure accuracy when invoicing clients. Although this form of logging might sound extreme, it’s important to note that screengrabs are not being taken and the only data saved is the name and duration an application runs. In contrast, many outsourcing sites provide employers with highly intrusive systems to view the screens and keystrokes of employees. Pricing for Chrometa with invoicing capability starts at $29/month, which includes two months of data storage and supports exporting data to a wide array of applications. The top plan costs $49/month and bumps the device cap to four devices.

The advantage of  online invoicing is that all the tools have iOS, and Android apps available plus invoicing data is available from any internet connected computer meaning no matter where the user is, they can still conduct business on the go.



The Facebook Guide to Small Business Marketing: New Book Shows How Facebook Marketing Liberates Small Businesses

A new book for small business from Ramon Ray

Facebook helps small business owners grow their businesses, attract new customers and build long term relationships with social media engagement.

Ramon Ray, marketing and technology evangelist of Infusionsoft and Smallbiztechnology.com, today announced the release of his third book, The Facebook® Guide to Small Business Marketing, a complete guide for small business professionals to learn new ways to attract customers, create a business profile and take advantage of social media and in particular - Facebook’s many marketing features.

For anyone with a small or local business, this is the essential guide to learn how to attract customers using Facebook. Packed with insider tips and proven best practices, this book will help any small business and entrepreneur harness the worldwide marketing potential of Facebook. The Facebook® Guide to Small Business Marketing is now available for purchase online and at retailers nationwide in both print and all e-book formats.

Those who buy the book on February 19th, the official launch of the book, will receive a digital ‘Goody Bag’ of gifts. See the details here.

You can view the full press release for more information. 



Three Online Invoicing Tools That Help You Track Time and Get Paid Faster

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Getting payment from clients used to a difficult process which often involved significant amounts of manual labor and numerous calls and emails to the client, however today thanks to online invoicing, getting paid by clients is significantly easier than in the past. In fact, many invoicing tools allow clients to make payments virtually upon receipt thanks to integration with many payment processors such as PayPal, while also streamlining the invoice creation process by allowing time sheet data to be entered automatically into all notices. Add the fact that many online invoicing tools have nominal fees and interfaces which are much easier to use than Microsoft Excel and QuickBooks and it becomes clear that today using an online invoice provider is a no brainier in today’s hectic world.

One of the leading invoicing tools on the market is Zoho Invoices which provides users with a simple to use interface which allows for:  rapid creation of  elegant invoices,  time tracking of client projects, creation of estimates, tracking of expenses, and tight integration with a wide array of other business tools make the program much more than a one trick pony. Aside from integrating Google Checkout, Paypal, and Stripe (amongst many other options) into invoices, Zoho provides users with the ability to mail paper invoices to clients on their behalf for a  nominal fee if they prefer paper over electronic copies. Zoho’s free tier has a cap of five customers and unlimited invoices and estimates while the premium plan provides unlimited customer support, users, and invoices for $30/month.

Harvest is another useful invoicing tool which is popular with business owners for its easy to use interface and powerful feature set. By allowing business owners to track time in one click while still being able to view highly detailed reports of employee activity, Harvest is a great tool for any project manager or business owner who needs fine detail for their financials. A key feature in the tool not found in many other tools is the ability to track a client retainer. Additionally Harvest’s mid and premium plans include the ability to have an administrator approve all employee timesheets before they are officially entered. The free tier of Harvest allows for two projects, four clients, and one user while the premium plan sells for $99/month; includes 10 users; and unlimited clients, projects, invoicing; and timesheet approval.

Last but not least, Chrometa is an invoicing tool which helps business owners save time by automatically logging the time and applications being run throughout the work day. This eliminates the need to manually punch a time clock and also helps ensure accuracy when invoicing clients. Although this form of logging might sound extreme, it’s important to note that screengrabs are not being taken and the only data saved is the name and duration an application runs. In contrast, many outsourcing sites provide employers with highly intrusive systems to view the screens and keystrokes of employees. Pricing for Chrometa with invoicing capability starts at $29/month, which includes two months of data storage and supports exporting data to a wide array of applications. The top plan costs $49/month and bumps the device cap to four devices.

The advantage of  online invoicing is that all the tools have iOS, and Android apps available plus invoicing data is available from any internet connected computer meaning no matter where the user is, they can still conduct business on the go.



The Facebook Guide to Small Business Marketing: New Book Shows How Facebook Marketing Liberates Small Businesses

A new book for small business from Ramon Ray

Facebook helps small business owners grow their businesses, attract new customers and build long term relationships with social media engagement.

Ramon Ray, marketing and technology evangelist of Infusionsoft and Smallbiztechnology.com, today announced the release of his third book, The Facebook® Guide to Small Business Marketing, a complete guide for small business professionals to learn new ways to attract customers, create a business profile and take advantage of social media and in particular - Facebook’s many marketing features.

For anyone with a small or local business, this is the essential guide to learn how to attract customers using Facebook. Packed with insider tips and proven best practices, this book will help any small business and entrepreneur harness the worldwide marketing potential of Facebook. The Facebook® Guide to Small Business Marketing is now available for purchase online and at retailers nationwide in both print and all e-book formats.

Those who buy the book on February 19th, the official launch of the book, will receive a digital ‘Goody Bag’ of gifts. See the details here.

You can view the full press release for more information. 



Jeremy Epstein of Sprinklr: Why Company Culture is Key in Building Customer Relationships

Company culture, not technology, is key to successfully building customer relationships. At least that’s what Jeremy Epstein, Vice President of Marketing at Sprinklr, believes. Tune in as Jeremy joins Brent Leary to discuss the importance of company culture, particularly regarding global brands, when it comes to social media monitoring - and what lessons small businesses can learn from them.

* * * * *

social media monitoringSmall Business Trends: Can you tell a little bit about your background

Jeremy Epstein: I spent about six years working at Microsoft, mostly working with small businesses. About four and a half years ago, I got the entrepreneurial fire lit within me and I decided that the future of marketing needed to be investigated.  So I branched out and started my own company which was called Never Stop Marketing. I like to say it is not just a company, but a mantra, in the way of life.

I did that for a couple of years and that was a great experience. Then I was recruited to join Sprinklr.

Small Business Trends: Can you tell us what Sprinklr does

Jeremy Epstein: Sprinklr is specifically focused on helping the world’s largest global brands. Help them manage, and more importantly, be social at a global scale. We provide software and a service platform and some services were necessary to help companies do exactly that.

Small Business Trends: You have a small business background and a social media monitoring background at the enterprise level. What are some of the changes that small business people should know about with social media monitoring

Jeremy Epstein: First of all is the sophistication of monitoring and listening, in and of itself. I think when we first started out we were just listening for key words, or listening for mentions. That was great, but now we have the ability to not only find the conversations that are happening about us, but also to be able to understand the context in which they are happening and who is talking about you so you have an idea of who this person is. How influential are they using whatever measure you have to figure out which person do I respond to first Then tying that back to your CRM System.

The second thing is the complexity of it. Because when we first started we had a hand full of channels. Maybe you were listening to blogs, maybe you got into Twitter. But now you have Instagram, Foursquare, Tumblr and Linkedin. How many people had heard about Pinterest before 7 or 8 months ago

The third part is, how quickly do you respond when the issue comes up Expectation now in the online world is if I Tweet you, I am expecting to hear from you pretty quick.  So monitoring is only half of it. You need to have an entire workflow and process behind it to deliver the experience that people expect in a reasonable amount of time. Of course, that shrinks every day that we are involved in this.

Small Business Trends: Can you judge on a scale of 1 to 10, how effective companies have been, in your estimation, with listening and responding

Jeremy Epstein: If I had to aggregate everywhere from small businesses up to large enterprises and do it globally, I would say that we are at the beginning of this whole revolution. I would say that, overall, maturity is two or three, maybe four, but probably not.

Small Business Trends: Where do small businesses rank

Jeremy Epstein: Most small businesses de-prioritize it, compared to what they think are the most important things in their day. I put them a little bit higher than larger enterprises because they have less bureaucracy. Let’s call them a four.

Small Business Trends: So we are at a 4. What are some of the characteristics that are important to move from a 4 to an 8, 9 or 10

Jeremy Epstein: The first thing I will tell you is, it is not technology, it’s culture. It is recognizing that the most important thing is the voice of the customer. It is having an organization where people - the whole team - have the opportunity and the responsibility and the empowerment to go out and engage and build those relationships.

Small Business Trends: Let’s think of companies that are starting from ground zero. What are the two or three must-do things

Jeremy Epstein: In a small business you might have one person playing multiple roles. But you need to be very clear about what those roles and activities are so you will have one person who is responsible, or one role that is responsible for content. One role responsible for managing the community; one role responsible for reporting; one role responsible for setting up the various social media properties.  Be very clear about what those roles are.

Then operational guidelines of, “How do we set these things up” I mean, look at what Intel and IBM have put out. Those are very good ones that you can use for small businesses.

These need not be massively complicated at the small business level, but they do require some thought. Do we want to set up a Facebook page just for an event Fine, but we need to know how to deactivate it at the end of that event so it doesn’t just hang out there.

Then a brand guideline. Again, a style guide to make sure we are using the right logos and the right terminology to get that consistency. I think doing those couple of steps, identify the KPIs.  You really care about that kind of tie back to your core of business.

We don’t care about the likes and followers, that is meaningless. You have to be able to say what are we going to use as a proxy for the health of the business. How are we going to start connecting the dots between the social metrics and the business metrics that we really care about

I think if you do that planning up front and you lay down the foundation, the rest of the technology and execution will be a lot easier.

Small Business Trends: Where can people learn more

Jeremy Epstein: The best place, of course, is Sprinklr.

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.




Five Ways Using The Right Technology Can Help Increase Sales and Reach New Customers

When Jessica Russel, owner of Tumbleweed Bead Co. Etsy shop and Washington-based Tumbleweed Studio, decided to take her successful jewelry line to the streets in order to reach new customers and take advantage of untouched holiday sales, she knew she would face some huge challenges, but she had no idea how much her base business would suffer.  After all, it’s hard enough managing an online and retail business from an office, where you have all the tools you need at your fingertips, but how could she make it all run smoothly remotely  Well, the reality is, she didn’t - at least not the first year she attempted it.

Jessica and husband Tyler operate both an Etsy shop and a brick-and-mortar storefront that offer handcrafted eco-friendly jewelry pieces, crafted from recycled Bronze, Sterling Silver and 14k Gold, to a broad and diverse demographic. In 2010, in an effort to increase sales and reach new customers, Jessica took her successful jewelry line to the streets during the busiest shopping season of the year in what she called her ‘Holiday Trunk Show Tour’. Unfortunately, the tour didn’t turn into the wild success she had anticipated. Away from the office, long periods of time elapsed before she could respond to customer emails or Etsy messages, which created a lapse in the great customer service they were known for providing. Product design concepts from her designer sat in limbo, which slowed production and introduction of new products.  Credit card payments they took manually meant long hours keying credit card numbers from carbon slips created earlier with the manual credit card imprinter. So,even though they had additional sales, the loss of efficiency, lacking customer service and additional time spent processing those sales cost them more than any profit they took in.

Jessica wasn’t willing to give up. There were additional sales to be made by doing her ‘Holiday Trunk Show’. It was just a matter of figuring out how to make it all work remotely, so the sales processing was simple and they were still able to manage their retail and online business.  Jessica knew she’d need to employ the right technology solutions to make it happen and then she realized that the right technology was right in her hand - her T-Mobile Android smartphone.

Determined to make it work, Jessica downloaded some key mobile applications such as eFax, Evernote, Instagram and Dropbox to her phone.  She also got herself a Square credit card reader, which attached directly to her phone, so she could swipe credit cards on site.  With these new tools at her fingertips, Jessica hit the road in 2011 and was able to:

  • Save time. Using Square, Jessica reduced payment processing time by at least 10 hours per week. 
  • Collaborate. Dropbox allowed her to share new ideas with her designer and marketing team. 
  • Update customer records. Evernote enabled Jessica to take notes on customers and their preferences, which helped maintain strong relationships. 
  • Maintain cash flow. When on the road, she used eFax to send photos and invoices to wholesale customers. 
  • Interact with customers and promote marketing campaigns. Using Instagram and Facebook, Jessica was able to spark conversations between followers and drive traffic to stores. 

The results of her 2011 Holiday Trunk Show were so significant, that Jessica doubled the number of trunk show stops in 2012 and she more than doubled her sales!

“We made five times as much profit during the 2012 holiday season as we do in a normal month between our store, Etsy shop and trunk show sales thanks to our ability to stay constantly connected from the road.” said Jessica. “With T-Mobile, we saved money, grew our business and earned back time that we were able to enjoy as a family. These are real luxuries for a small business owner.”

“Increasingly, mobile apps are becoming go-to tools for accessing and managing critical business priorities. But, with more than one million available, how can small business choose the right one T-Mobile wants to help businesses find an application that best fits based on industry, job function and business priority.” says, Milan Ruzicka, Vice President B2B Marketing at T-Mobile.

By using technology tools that were readily available to them, and at very limited cost, Jessica and Tyler were able to increase sales, create a new revenue stream for their small business and reach a whole new customer base.  There isn’t a greater success than that in small business!

What technology tools do you use to keep you business running smooth while working remotely  Let us know, we’d love to hear from you!



Five Ways Using The Right Technology Can Help Increase Sales and Reach New Customers

When Jessica Russel, owner of Tumbleweed Bead Co. Etsy shop and Washington-based Tumbleweed Studio, decided to take her successful jewelry line to the streets in order to reach new customers and take advantage of untouched holiday sales, she knew she would face some huge challenges, but she had no idea how much her base business would suffer.  After all, it’s hard enough managing an online and retail business from an office, where you have all the tools you need at your fingertips, but how could she make it all run smoothly remotely  Well, the reality is, she didn’t - at least not the first year she attempted it.

Jessica and husband Tyler operate both an Etsy shop and a brick-and-mortar storefront that offer handcrafted eco-friendly jewelry pieces, crafted from recycled Bronze, Sterling Silver and 14k Gold, to a broad and diverse demographic. In 2010, in an effort to increase sales and reach new customers, Jessica took her successful jewelry line to the streets during the busiest shopping season of the year in what she called her ‘Holiday Trunk Show Tour’. Unfortunately, the tour didn’t turn into the wild success she had anticipated. Away from the office, long periods of time elapsed before she could respond to customer emails or Etsy messages, which created a lapse in the great customer service they were known for providing. Product design concepts from her designer sat in limbo, which slowed production and introduction of new products.  Credit card payments they took manually meant long hours keying credit card numbers from carbon slips created earlier with the manual credit card imprinter. So,even though they had additional sales, the loss of efficiency, lacking customer service and additional time spent processing those sales cost them more than any profit they took in.

Jessica wasn’t willing to give up. There were additional sales to be made by doing her ‘Holiday Trunk Show’. It was just a matter of figuring out how to make it all work remotely, so the sales processing was simple and they were still able to manage their retail and online business.  Jessica knew she’d need to employ the right technology solutions to make it happen and then she realized that the right technology was right in her hand - her T-Mobile Android smartphone.

Determined to make it work, Jessica downloaded some key mobile applications such as eFax, Evernote, Instagram and Dropbox to her phone.  She also got herself a Square credit card reader, which attached directly to her phone, so she could swipe credit cards on site.  With these new tools at her fingertips, Jessica hit the road in 2011 and was able to:

  • Save time. Using Square, Jessica reduced payment processing time by at least 10 hours per week. 
  • Collaborate. Dropbox allowed her to share new ideas with her designer and marketing team. 
  • Update customer records. Evernote enabled Jessica to take notes on customers and their preferences, which helped maintain strong relationships. 
  • Maintain cash flow. When on the road, she used eFax to send photos and invoices to wholesale customers. 
  • Interact with customers and promote marketing campaigns. Using Instagram and Facebook, Jessica was able to spark conversations between followers and drive traffic to stores. 

The results of her 2011 Holiday Trunk Show were so significant, that Jessica doubled the number of trunk show stops in 2012 and she more than doubled her sales!

“We made five times as much profit during the 2012 holiday season as we do in a normal month between our store, Etsy shop and trunk show sales thanks to our ability to stay constantly connected from the road.” said Jessica. “With T-Mobile, we saved money, grew our business and earned back time that we were able to enjoy as a family. These are real luxuries for a small business owner.”

“Increasingly, mobile apps are becoming go-to tools for accessing and managing critical business priorities. But, with more than one million available, how can small business choose the right one T-Mobile wants to help businesses find an application that best fits based on industry, job function and business priority.” says, Milan Ruzicka, Vice President B2B Marketing at T-Mobile.

By using technology tools that were readily available to them, and at very limited cost, Jessica and Tyler were able to increase sales, create a new revenue stream for their small business and reach a whole new customer base.  There isn’t a greater success than that in small business!

What technology tools do you use to keep you business running smooth while working remotely  Let us know, we’d love to hear from you!



Five Ways Using The Right Technology Can Help Increase Sales and Reach New Customers

When Jessica Russel, owner of Tumbleweed Bead Co. Etsy shop and Washington-based Tumbleweed Studio, decided to take her successful jewelry line to the streets in order to reach new customers and take advantage of untouched holiday sales, she knew she would face some huge challenges, but she had no idea how much her base business would suffer.  After all, it’s hard enough managing an online and retail business from an office, where you have all the tools you need at your fingertips, but how could she make it all run smoothly remotely  Well, the reality is, she didn’t - at least not the first year she attempted it.

Jessica and husband Tyler operate both an Etsy shop and a brick-and-mortar storefront that offer handcrafted eco-friendly jewelry pieces, crafted from recycled Bronze, Sterling Silver and 14k Gold, to a broad and diverse demographic. In 2010, in an effort to increase sales and reach new customers, Jessica took her successful jewelry line to the streets during the busiest shopping season of the year in what she called her ‘Holiday Trunk Show Tour’. Unfortunately, the tour didn’t turn into the wild success she had anticipated. Away from the office, long periods of time elapsed before she could respond to customer emails or Etsy messages, which created a lapse in the great customer service they were known for providing. Product design concepts from her designer sat in limbo, which slowed production and introduction of new products.  Credit card payments they took manually meant long hours keying credit card numbers from carbon slips created earlier with the manual credit card imprinter. So,even though they had additional sales, the loss of efficiency, lacking customer service and additional time spent processing those sales cost them more than any profit they took in.

Jessica wasn’t willing to give up. There were additional sales to be made by doing her ‘Holiday Trunk Show’. It was just a matter of figuring out how to make it all work remotely, so the sales processing was simple and they were still able to manage their retail and online business.  Jessica knew she’d need to employ the right technology solutions to make it happen and then she realized that the right technology was right in her hand - her T-Mobile Android smartphone.

Determined to make it work, Jessica downloaded some key mobile applications such as eFax, Evernote, Instagram and Dropbox to her phone.  She also got herself a Square credit card reader, which attached directly to her phone, so she could swipe credit cards on site.  With these new tools at her fingertips, Jessica hit the road in 2011 and was able to:

  • Save time. Using Square, Jessica reduced payment processing time by at least 10 hours per week. 
  • Collaborate. Dropbox allowed her to share new ideas with her designer and marketing team. 
  • Update customer records. Evernote enabled Jessica to take notes on customers and their preferences, which helped maintain strong relationships. 
  • Maintain cash flow. When on the road, she used eFax to send photos and invoices to wholesale customers. 
  • Interact with customers and promote marketing campaigns. Using Instagram and Facebook, Jessica was able to spark conversations between followers and drive traffic to stores. 

The results of her 2011 Holiday Trunk Show were so significant, that Jessica doubled the number of trunk show stops in 2012 and she more than doubled her sales!

“We made five times as much profit during the 2012 holiday season as we do in a normal month between our store, Etsy shop and trunk show sales thanks to our ability to stay constantly connected from the road.” said Jessica. “With T-Mobile, we saved money, grew our business and earned back time that we were able to enjoy as a family. These are real luxuries for a small business owner.”

“Increasingly, mobile apps are becoming go-to tools for accessing and managing critical business priorities. But, with more than one million available, how can small business choose the right one T-Mobile wants to help businesses find an application that best fits based on industry, job function and business priority.” says, Milan Ruzicka, Vice President B2B Marketing at T-Mobile.

By using technology tools that were readily available to them, and at very limited cost, Jessica and Tyler were able to increase sales, create a new revenue stream for their small business and reach a whole new customer base.  There isn’t a greater success than that in small business!

What technology tools do you use to keep you business running smooth while working remotely  Let us know, we’d love to hear from you!



Let Sleeping Dogs Lie

let sleeping dogs lie

I understand the idea behind letting a sleeping dog lie, but if there’s any animal that’s identified with sleep, it’s definitely cats.

I knew I wanted to play with that idea but that germ sat in my idea box, passed over week after week, until one day I heard “co-opt” on the morning news. Then this cartoon popped into my head.

So my idea box is one idea lighter now, but I’m happy I got this to finally work.




10 Ways To Kickstart Your Business Today

Small businesses are finding it harder than ever to get loans either for startup or expansion. Fortunately, that hasn’t stopped entrepreneurs raising funds from less traditional sources. Products including the Pebble Smart Watch, Ouya Game Console, Safecast Geiger Counter, Luminae Multitouch Keyboard & Touchpad, and SLXtreme Waterproof Solar iPhone Case were all launched by startups in 2012 with funding collected through Kickstarter. The site is one of the funding alternatives available to small business owners unable to secure a traditional loan. Here are 10 ways, including Kickstarter, to expand your business when traditional sources fail.
kickstarter-badge-funded
1. Use the Kickstarter ecosystem. As observed above, Kickstarter has become a major player in small business funding. The site allows entrepreneurs  to seek funding by explaining their business, product, or project and collecting contributions from the Website’s community. The process is called “crowdfunding”, and since 2009 Kickstarter has helped raise $450 million for startup projects, $275 million last year alone. Reuters

2. Seek customer validation. An important component of crowdfunding and potentially other efforts to kickstart your business, is to seek customer validation of your product or service first. Gem Misa, CEO of U.K.-based Righteous, a vegan, chemical-free salad dressing, says her company made sure customers had already tasted its product and supported its brand before attempting to crowdfund for expansion. Career Fuel

3. Try bootstrapping. If you can’t find traditional funding to start your business, try bootstrapping instead. Bootrapping means launching or growing your business without outside investment, usually by using your own money or the company’s revenue for reinvestment. Serial entrepreneur Ilya Pozin has some bootstrapping suggestions including finding good partners to reduce costs, bringing in great sales people to generate revenue from day one, and hiring contractors instead of full-time employees. LinkedIn

4. Court friends and family. For years, entrepreneurs have been going to friends and family for money to start and expand businesses. When doing so, Randy Myers suggests you set the same ground rules you would for any other investor.  Create a sound business plan, put your deal in writing, set clear repayment terms, explain what happens if you can’t pay back your investment, and keep the lines of communication open. Business On Main

5. Improve your cash flow. Maximizing cash flow is another way to kickstart your business, whether starting a new company or expanding an existing one. Eliminate unnecessary expenses, don’t squander your assets, make sure your method of invoicing and bringing in cash is efficient, and create a cash flow reserve, says blogger Gerwyn Wallto. Print Runner Blog

6. Tap your existing customers. Another way to raise money is to maximize revenue from your existing customer base. These are people who already love you and your business. Gary Shouldis gives some suggestions for boosting the revenue coming from your current customers, by increasing prices, offering upsells,  offering a subscription model of your business and more. The Small Business Playbook

7. Serve a smaller market. It may sound counter intuitive, but the key to rapidly growing your business is not always expanding your customer base or your range of offerings. When looking at kickstarting your company’s growth, advisers Karl Stark and Bill Stewart recommend serving fewer customers and focusing on your strengths. Inc.com

8. Look for special funding opportunities. Astia, a non-profit organization working to increase the number of women at the helms of fast growing companies, recently launched a network of angel investors who will focus their resources on businesses led by women. You should always look for unique funding opportunities where you have an edge in receiving the resources you need. Bloomberg Businessweek

9. Look for government grant opportunities. The benefit of funding your business with government grants is that they do not need to be repaid and do not require company founders to give up any equity. Martin Zwilling explains how to take advantage of this lesser known funding source to kickstart your business and some of the difficulties involved. Startup Professionals Musings

10. Look to asset-based lending and other alternatives. Another approach when banks say no is to sell your invoices or receivables to a “factoring company” which will pay you 80 to 90 percent of their value up front and the rest when payments are collected. There is a cost for these and other alternatives, so you must decide whether pursuing this type of funding is worthwhile. The New York Times