How to Create a Mobile Office for Your Small Business

Technology is a wonderful thing. Now that just about every imaginable gadget is portable and affordable, your small business doesn’t have to be confined to a rented office or your dining room table. You can create a mobile office and take your work anywhere, with room to spare with the use of mobile broadband in your small business.

There are plenty of advantages to having a fully mobile office. Just a few of them include:

• Cost savings (i.e. the overhead for a fixed office).
• Increased productivity â€" no more wasted downtime.
• New promotional opportunities, since you can network in person.
• Streamlined business processes, with everything in one place.

So how do you create the perfect mobile office? Below are the basic considerations for finding the right mix of technology to serve your small business on the go.

Command Central: Laptop or Tablet?

Smartphones have come a long way in a short time, with bigger screens and more capabilities, but they’re still not enough to power your mobile office alone. You’ll need either a laptop or a tablet PC.

The right choice depends on your business and your daily activities. If you do a lot of typing and document creation, it’s best to go with a laptop. Otherwise, you may be able to work with a smaller, lighter tablet. A tablet is also a good choice because it frees up your business by allowing you to do things your laptop can’t, such as using apps for paying and receiving invoices.

Of course, you’ll still need a primary machine for storage, backups and heavy projects, but choosing the right mobile computer means you won’t have to spend most of your working time chained to a desk.

Staying Connected When Hot Spots Get Cold

There are more WiFi hot spots than ever but they never seem to be around when you need them. Additionally, public Internet access is never secure. For your mobile office, you’ll need a reliable, private connection for your laptop or tablet.

If you don’t spend much time online, you can use prepaid wireless Internet cards that run on 3G or 4G mobile networks. For businesses that require heavy Internet use, there are long-term solutions like high-speed mobile access cards with data plans similar to smartphones. You can also get a MiFi, a compact wireless router that acts as a portable, personal hot spot.

Building Your Virtual File Cabinets

Going mobile means a mostly paperless office, so you’ll need a place to store your virtual files â€" preferably with anywhere access, so you can share files between your primary machine, command center and smartphone.

There are plenty of cloud storage solutions to help with that. Some are straightforward virtual hard drives, like Box.com and Dropbox. Others come bundled with cloud software you’re likely to use anyway, such as Microsoft’s Office 365 and Intuit’s Online Plus programs,  QuickBooks and Payroll.

Extras: Peripherals and Apps You Might Need

Depending on your business functions, you may need a portable printer, scanner or other peripheral hardware for your mobile office. Whatever you bring along, don’t forget to keep power cords and chargers on hand, and you should also invest in a travel-sized surge protector to protect your equipment.

What apps will you need? In addition to the software you use for your business, you might consider:

• A payment processor like Intuit’s GoPayment or PayPal’s smartphone card swipe device (free for business use).
• A voice recorder app for capturing thoughts and notes when you can’t use your laptop or tablet.
• GPS capabilities for navigating unfamiliar territory.
• A voice and video connection platform like Skype for virtual conference calls.

As a small business owner, you may have dreamed about working from the beach. Technology has made that possible and now you can have a truly mobile office that goes with you anywhere. With a little planning, you’ll be ready to take your show on the road.

Working Mobile Photo via Shutterstock

Over 100k serial devices online and unsecured, says HD Moore

Security researcher HD Moore announced earlier this week that Internet scans he had performed turned up 114,000 serial devices attached to the Internet, nearly all of which are either poorly secured or not secured at all. Since his initial announcement, Moore has added a group of modules that scan for such devices to theMetasploit penetration testing framework, which he created in 2003.

Specifically, Moore reported that: "Over 95,000 of these systems were exposed to the Internet through mobile connections such as GPRS, EDGE and 3G. Another 14,000 unique IPs were identified running Digi, or Digi-based devices using Digi's proprietary Advanced Device Discovery Protocol (ADDP). FTP and telnet banners identified another 8500 devices as either Digi or Lantronix boxes."

In an online FAQ that accompanied a blog posting on the subject, Moore said: "Serial servers act as a glue between archaic systems and the networked world." Historically, they are old-school gear used to connect a mainframe computer to an Ethernet network. Users could then access the mainframe remotely via the telnet utility.

There's not too much telneting into VAX computers going on these days, but the basic principle of being able to connect to a device through a serial port and a terminal server still has plenty of uses. A primary use is placing a serial port on a network device so it can be configured for use. Since it can't be configured over the network (the point of the configuration, after all, is to make it see the network), you can plug into the serial port and configure the device in terminal mode.

So there are plenty of serial devices out there, made principally by Digi International and Lantronix. Moore said thousands of the devices will interact across the network without requiring authentication. These devices are connected to real-world devices such as traffic lights and fuel pumps, and are in tracking devices used to monitor the locations of those big flashing highway signs that alert motorists to upcoming road repair sites.

There is, Moore said, a national chain of dry cleaners that uses these devices to access the point-of-sale systems at each location. Serial port devices used by the chain provide direct access to employee terminals containing confidential payment information.

While the devices Moore found are largely unsecured, in many cases, there are ways to considerably improve their defenses. Asked in a telephone interview whether users should replace their serial devices, Moore said they "don't necessarily need to replace these devices. With many of the devices, especially the newer devices from Digi, the device supports Secure Shell transport. Once you authenticate, it drops to the serial port. It's a straightforward way to secure these things, but no one happens to be using it," Moore said.

BlackBerry Smartphone Features Skype, Physical Keyboard

BlackBerry launches its Q10 smartphone with new features and a blast from the past.

Like BlackBerry’s Z10, the new smartphone will feature apps including Skype, something missing from the company’s earlier devices. However, the device still includes a full physical keyboard, bucking trends in the industry but keeping typing purists happy.

“We are excited about our plans to bring Skype to smartphones running the brand new BlackBerry 10 platform,” said Bob Rosin, VP & GM of business development for Microsoft’s Skype division. “We are working closely with BlackBerry to ensure Skype runs great on BlackBerry 10 devices. This will give BlackBerry 10 users a great Skype experience, including free voice and video calling, sending instant messages and text messages, sharing photos, videos and files and calling to landlines and mobiles at Skype’s low rates.”

The Q10 features a wider 3.1-inch screen, allowing the physical keyboard to be bigger. Metal frets separate the keys. This feature means you’re more likely to send a quick message to your associates about a “change in the meeting time” rather than a “cjanhe in thr meeyinh time” if you still haven’t mastered typing on a screen.

It’s clear from online discussions of the new BlackBerry Q10 smartphone that people who’ve used a BlackBerry phone in the past enjoy the fact that this smartphone still sports a physical QWERTY keyboard.

An admitted BlackBerry fan who still keeps an older BlackBerry device alongside her iPhone, Joanna Stern of ABC News is one such keyboard advocate. In her early review of the BlackBerry Q10 she writes, “It’s actually hard for me to write about the keyboard and not completely gush about it - the keys are the right amount of “clicky” and the perfect amount of firmness.”

BlackBerry officially launches the Q10 almost a month after the company began shipping its new Z10 phone, a more conventional-looking smartphone with an on-screen keyboard. The move may indicate BlackBerry is betting customers miss a physical keyboard, and the strategy could win over a percentage of smartphone users. The Q10 will be available at the beginning of May in Canada with a U.S. launch soon to follow.

With the launch, BlackBerry is also partnering with makers of popular smartphone apps specifically designed to run on the Q10. Besides Skype, apps for Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, and LinkedIn will come pre-installed on the new device.

Q10 Photo via Blackberry

4 New Apps Help To Customize Your Email Marketing Campaigns

As per a May 2012 report by the National Economic Council titled Moving America’s Small Business and Entrepreneurs Forward, almost 28 million firms in America continue to work with limited marketing budgets due to a persistently weak economy. No wonder then that all marketing battles in the small business space continue to be fought over two key aspects - affordability and ease of access. In an article last month we saw how ReachMail had launched a campaign called ‘This Mean War’, taking a direct shot at its key competitors Constant Contact and iContact.  The crux of the campaign is access of hundreds of free email marketing templates for small businesses.

ConstantContact which already has more than half a million small businesses as its customers is also looking to target a large untapped market with its affordable, easy to use online marketing solutions. It has recently launched its AppConnect platform that enables seamless integration of applications to help clients do more with their online marketing efforts. As per Kevin O’Brien, senior director of the AppConnect program at Constant Contact, “When we talk to customers, we constantly hear how they are time-starved and looking for ways to quickly develop email marketing campaigns to meet their business goals”.

As part of its new platform Constant Contact has launched four new apps ( basic versions are free) specifically to help small businesses enhance their websites and email marketing campaigns. Let’s review these.

Glyder:  This app allows mobile access to the ConstantContact mailing list. Use your iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad to access constant contact templates, create marketing campaigns and consistently update messages at the press of a single button across your social, email and mobile platforms.   For small business owners (who may not have a dedicated marketing staff as part of their team) being able to design and initiate campaigns while on the move can be a real help in keeping marketing content fresh and engaging.

Rafflecopter: This app helps you design creative and fun giveaway campaigns. Once you give permission to the app to integrate with your ConstantContact account mailing list, the app makes it easy for prospects to become part of the giveaway.  Also, it lets you integrate customer responses across your Facebook, email and blog to help you choose a random winner.

LoopLogic:  This app lets you easily embed video thumbnails as part of your email campaigns.  It also gives you information on when the videos were viewed and by how many people. It makes it easier to build your email database by asking unauthenticated viewers to fill a lead generation form before accessing the video. The information captured automatically gets updated on your ConstantContact account.

Digioh:  This app lets you easily send out attachments such a PDF report, coupons, calendars as part of your campaign.  As with LoopLogic, this app also gives you data analytics on viewership of the attachments as well as compelling non-subscribers to first enter their email address before accessing the file.

As per a survey conducted by SiteApps (they also offer more than 200 web applications for easy website personalization), the majority of small businesses considered their website, followed by email campaigns to be the most effective marketing investment.  Clearly, these apps are a great way to enhance the potency of your email marketing campaigns, while also providing an effective method for building your customer base.

Top Small Business News Stories: Week of April 26

A report says your company could be a target. The Internet Security Threat Report 2013 issued by Symantec suggests small businesses of less than 250 employees were the focus of 31 percent of cyber attacks last year. That’s up 18 percent from the previous year. Symantec has been issuing similar reports since 2002.

Dell introduced a huge 18-inch tablet/laptop hybrid. Dubbed the XS 18, the device weighs less than 5 pounds and features an 18.4-inch touchscreen display. Despite its portability, it can be used as a desktop or laptop with keyboard and mouse.

Google Drive, Gmail went down for a bit. Users noticed disruption in the service after 9 a.m. Wednesday April 17. Some users may have experienced outage as early as 8 a.m. Srrvice was returned by 11 a.m. but the company has still offered Symantecno definitive explanation.

Senate Considering New Visa Program To Encourage Tech Startups

Latino Small Business Owners Lack Financing

How to Get a Startup Visa Act Passed

Texas Tops List of Best Small Business Tax Systems, California At Bottom

CISPA Passes House Amid Worries Over Privacy

IRS Looking to Tax Free Lunches Offered at Tech Firms

Small Business Groups Offer Mixed Reaction to Obama Budget

Facebook Home Reaches 500,000 Downloads

39% of Small Businesses Get a Return On Investment From Social Media

What Does the Obama Budget Mean For Small Business Owners?

Small Businesses Divided on Internet Sales Tax

Tech Thursday (4/25): News From CellControl, Samsung and DocuSign

It’s Tech Thursday from Smallbiztechnology.com. Each week we take a quick look at business and technology news and updates for the small business community and share them with you in a quick and simple round-up.

 

Tablets, Laptops and Other Mobile Devices Creating Major Distracted Driving Issue For Both Mobile Employees and Their Employers

50% of Customer Inquiries by Fleet Operators Reveal that Laptop and Tablet Use by Employees in Company-Owned Vehicles is Bigger Distracted Driving Concern than Cell Phone Use

Cellcontrol, the leading developer of distracted driving solutions, announced that tablets, laptops and other mobile devices (i.e. Intermec, Motorola and others) are becoming a bigger distraction than cell phones for employees. According to internal company reports from Cellcontrol, over 50% of inquiries by fleet managers since the beginning of 2012 revealed that laptop and tablet use by their on-the-go employees was a bigger risk concern than cell phone use while driving. As a result, Cellcontrol business customers that are based in multiple markets such as professional services, energy, and transportation services, were some of the first brands in the world using the Cellcontrol anti-distracted driving technology to ensure their employees were not distracted by a cell phone or a company-owned laptop or tablet while driving.

According to the most recent National Highway Transportation Safety Administration report, issued this past October, 10% of all fatal accidents in 2010 were caused by distracted driving Currently no data is available for the number of distracted driving accidents caused by the use of a non-mobile phone devices, but in 2012 corporations have quickly increased the need to find a technology solution that can enforce company policies regarding the use of mobile devices by employees who are operating a moving vehicle. Earlier this year a landmark court judgment regarding distracted driving and employer mobile device policies was made against Coca-Cola for a salesperson who had caused an accident while using a hands-free mobile device in a company owned vehicle.

For more on this story, click here.

Samsung Brings Power and Portability to the U.S. with the Galaxy Note® 8.0 Tablet

Galaxy Note 8.0 delivers an unparalleled tablet experience for work and play

Samsung Electronics America, Inc. today announces that the Galaxy Note 8.0 is coming to the U.S. market on April 11. Unveiled globally at Mobile World Congress in February, the Galaxy Note 8.0 will be available in stores and online at retailers including Amazon, Best Buy/Best Buy Mobile, h.h. gregg, Newegg, P.C. Richard & Son, Staples and TigerDirect.com

A mid-sized addition to the Galaxy Note family of products, the Galaxy Note 8.0 has the power and advanced technology to enable multi-tasking at home, at work or on the go. The Galaxy Note 8.0 is the perfect size for entertainment and productivity, with unrivaled multimedia performance in a compact format. The S Pen has evolved to improve everyday usability with Air View; and Multi Window now supports more apps to perform tasks simultaneously allowing users to do more.

“The Galaxy Note defined an entirely new smartphone category and the Galaxy Note 10.1 tablet redefined the tablet experience for consumers,” said Travis Merrill, vice president of Samsung Electronics America, Inc. “With the Galaxy Note 8.0, we fully expect to ignite the mid-size tablet market Samsung pioneered with the first Galaxy Tab. The Galaxy Note 8.0 is small enough to fit in your pocket or purse and packs the power needed for full mobile entertainment and productivity.”

For all the information on the new tablet, click here.

Latest DocuSign Ink for Android App Makes It Easier, Faster to Send and Sign Documents

DocuSign Ink Downloads Grow 175% vs. 62% Average Growth In Download Volume Across U.S. App Market

DocuSign, The Global Standard for eSignature®, announced a new version of DocuSign Ink for Android to help consumers and businesses eliminate the hassles, costs, and lack of security in printing, faxing, scanning, and overnighting documents for signature. Built on the world’s most trusted eSignature network of more than 35 million users, DocuSign Ink downloads grew at 175% as compared to the average growth in U.S. app downloads at 62% (according to Distimo Analytics).

“The dramatic growth in DocuSign Ink downloads is another sign that electronic signatures are a mobile must have,” said Robin Ducot, vice president of product development, DocuSign. “What once may have been a nice to have is now indispensible to busy, on-the-go consumers and professionals simplifying their lives with mobile apps like DocuSign Ink. DocuSign Ink is simply a better, faster, more convenient and secure way to do business.”

Safe, secure, and legally binding, DocuSign Ink for Android leverages some of DocuSign’s most powerful commercial service features with an even more intuitive user experience tailored for Android users across 4-, 7- and 10-inch screens. DocuSign Ink makes it even easier to get and give legally binding signatures on documents - from contracts and rental agreements, to account openings, parent permission slips, and more.

For more on this story, click here.

8 Reasons Your Facebook Page Stinks

You’ve had your Facebook page up and running for over a year, and still have almost no followers, likes, shares or any interest at all. What are you doing wrong?

Surprisingly, many businesses overlook the “social” part of social media, creating a Facebook page that garners no enthusiasm. Here’s why your Facebook page stinks and ways to make it sweet instead.

1. You Haven’t Set a Clear Goal

Tangled Road Photo via Shutterstock

Unfortunately, the goal is not simply “set up a Facebook page.” There actually has to be some thought and a clear goal behind it. What is the ultimate goal of the page? Do you want to find new customers? Build better relationships with your existing customer base? Inform people of exciting developments?

State your goal clearly before attempting to design your Facebook page. If you can’t tell what your goal is, don’t bet on your visitors figuring it out either.

2. You’re Not Updating Frequently Enough

Sleeping Photo via Shutterstock

If someone comes to your Facebook page and your last update was in May 2012, there’s obviously no reason for them to stick around. After all, they’re there to engage with you and find out something new.

Daily updates are a good idea, but at least shoot for one update per week. Let visitors know you’re still out there somewhere.

3. Your Page is Boring

Bored Photo via Shutterstock

When you look at your page, what interests you? What would cause visitors to want to come by and stick around awhile? Give them information, offer them tips and do something to get them interested.

People love to engage in polls, give their response to intriguing questions and learn ‘behind the scenes insider info’ and generally get to know you socially - that’s why it’s called social media. Boring your visitors is one of the 7 deadly sins of social media.

4. Your Page Doesn’t Answer the Customer’s Obvious Questions

Confused Photo via Shutterstock

You own Zoopapooha Corporation. But this isn’t very informative for the casual visitor who knows absolutely nothing about your company or what you do.

When someone comes to your Facebook page, give them immediate access to who you are, what you’re about and why you’re different from your competitors. Never assume a visitor knows anything about your company.

5. Your Page Isn’t Visual Enough

Blank Page Photo via Shutterstock

Pictures, graphics, videos - all these things make the page more interesting and inviting. If you want to engage visitors, make it visually appealing so they’ll stick around and give you a follow.

Bland text doesn’t really inspire much social media action.

6. You’re Rehashing the Same Stuff Over and Over

Repetitive Photo via Shutterstock

Are your updates and posts redundant? You’ll need to create some fresh, new material to garner interest in your page.

Post relevant news, new technologies or put a new spin on your ordinary business communications.

7. You’re Not Responding to Comments

Silence Photo via Shutterstock

Nothing says, “We don’t care about our customers,” like unanswered Facebook comments.

However negative or meaningless, take the time for a polite response and, when necessary, follow up with an email.

8. Your Updates Are Too Wordy

Disgusted Photo via Shutterstock

Long posts look exhausting to online readers and most get skipped entirely. If you’ve got information to share, keep it brief and interesting. If it’s a complex subject requiring further explanation, include a link to your website where the whole story is available.

This is why your Facebook page stinks. But at least you can fix it. Remember, it takes a long time to build a social media presence and most Facebook pages take a year or more to fully mature.

Infosec 2013: Remain ahead of attackers by identifying, tracking and \'fingerprinting\' them

Adversaries can be kept at bay by being identified and given a 'fingerprint' to ensure you know where they are.

Speaking at the Infosecurity Europe 2013 conference, Nawaf Bitar, general manager of the security business unit at Juniper Networks, said that the Sony attacks of 2011 were a major problem as the same attackers kept coming back and attacking over and over again. Bitar said: “If this happens, something has gone wrong with the security and you have to do something different.

“I am not a fan of anti-virus, and what tests show is that for 40 anti-virus systems, there is a five per cent catch rate and we have to bolster our defences, but how do we get 95 per cent protection?”

Bitar said that looking at outsider attacks, you can make life difficult for the attacker and if they find it too difficult to break your defences, they may well go away and find out how sophisticated they are. “It can be a script kiddie or a nation state, but once you have determined their capability and once you know it is a bad actor,” he said.

“You need a better way to treat bad guys and we say it is with digital fingerprints which gives them a specifics to detect the attacker with no false positives as you have identified the attacker. With a fingeprint there is a probability that you can identify them and you can do something with them or not, but I think that this would have stopped the Sony attacks.”

Bitar said that this gives the company a huge amount of power as the greatest threat is the theft of intellectual property. Asked how attackers are identified in the first place, Bitar said that this is done by a deception point, of which there are thousands, to determine the attacker.

He said: “You can look at the characteristics of their device, what fonts they use, what patches they have not installed and their IP address among others. With that you can push the fingerprint to the cloud and share the details.”

He explained that the attacker is not aware that they have been identified as they will not know which characteristics you have to detect them and short of wiping their device - desktop, laptop or mobile - they will find it hard to shake the fingerprint off.

Bitar further told SC Magazine that Juniper was very willing to share the information with partners as well as users, and it had signed an agreement with RSA Security for their Spotlight Data product. He said that the product, 'Web Application Security', built from the acquisition of Mykonos last year, gets around the problem of picking up an attacker simply by their IP address as an attacker can use a proxy or cloaking device to hide their IP address.

“You can take a device and turn it into a person and apart from them wiping or re-imaging their device, this is the easiest way to detect someone; fingerprinting will serve the greater good,” he said.

Infosec 2013: Remain ahead of attackers by identifying, tracking and \'fingerprinting\' them

Adversaries can be kept at bay by being identified and given a 'fingerprint' to ensure you know where they are.

Speaking at the Infosecurity Europe 2013 conference, Nawaf Bitar, general manager of the security business unit at Juniper Networks, said that the Sony attacks of 2011 were a major problem as the same attackers kept coming back and attacking over and over again. Bitar said: “If this happens, something has gone wrong with the security and you have to do something different.

“I am not a fan of anti-virus, and what tests show is that for 40 anti-virus systems, there is a five per cent catch rate and we have to bolster our defences, but how do we get 95 per cent protection?”

Bitar said that looking at outsider attacks, you can make life difficult for the attacker and if they find it too difficult to break your defences, they may well go away and find out how sophisticated they are. “It can be a script kiddie or a nation state, but once you have determined their capability and once you know it is a bad actor,” he said.

“You need a better way to treat bad guys and we say it is with digital fingerprints which gives them a specifics to detect the attacker with no false positives as you have identified the attacker. With a fingeprint there is a probability that you can identify them and you can do something with them or not, but I think that this would have stopped the Sony attacks.”

Bitar said that this gives the company a huge amount of power as the greatest threat is the theft of intellectual property. Asked how attackers are identified in the first place, Bitar said that this is done by a deception point, of which there are thousands, to determine the attacker.

He said: “You can look at the characteristics of their device, what fonts they use, what patches they have not installed and their IP address among others. With that you can push the fingerprint to the cloud and share the details.”

He explained that the attacker is not aware that they have been identified as they will not know which characteristics you have to detect them and short of wiping their device - desktop, laptop or mobile - they will find it hard to shake the fingerprint off.

Bitar further told SC Magazine that Juniper was very willing to share the information with partners as well as users, and it had signed an agreement with RSA Security for their Spotlight Data product. He said that the product, 'Web Application Security', built from the acquisition of Mykonos last year, gets around the problem of picking up an attacker simply by their IP address as an attacker can use a proxy or cloaking device to hide their IP address.

“You can take a device and turn it into a person and apart from them wiping or re-imaging their device, this is the easiest way to detect someone; fingerprinting will serve the greater good,” he said.

Survey Reveals New Marketing Challenges: Sales Cycles Longer, Brand Differentiation Harder

We cover a lot of different products and services and methods for marketing your businesses and products. But are these offerings and techniques that are available out there meeting your needs? According to a new survey by BtoB Magazine of business-to-business marketers across the US, the answer is no. Sales cycles are getting longer, and brand differentiation and targeting decision-makers are becoming more difficult.

Only 40 percent of respondents say that their online marketing mix is meeting the needs of the sales pipeline.

Those are just some of the findings from the survey. BtoB Magazine sent us a breakdown of the key findings:

1. The marketing mix is still not meeting the needs of the sales pipeline.

The survey shows a continued gap between the needs of sales organizations and the ability of online marketing to deliver and nurture leads. Less than half of respondents (40 percent) say that their online marketing mix is meeting the needs of the sales pipeline; this measurement has been consistent for two consecutive years. In fact, 60 percent say that their greatest marketing challenge is generating more leads, while 55 percent say that reaching more of their target audience is their biggest challenge. Only 36 percent feel that their current marketing programs very effectively address stakeholders in the buying decision.

The survey also revealed that for many companies, the sales cycle has actually gotten longer over the past three years: 43 percent of respondents report a slowing of the sales cycle, putting more pressure on the online marketing mix to nurture leads through a prolonged purchase process.

2. Brand differentiation is becoming increasingly important, but marketers struggle to achieve it.

As a result of the perceived weakness of the marketing mix and longer sales cycles, branding has come to take a paramount position for B2B marketers: 79 percent say that differentiating on brand is a priority for their organization.

However, most marketers (60 percent) report that they are not fully satisfied with their current efforts to differentiate on brand. There is also confusion about which marketing channels drive brand awareness. For example, 27 percent believe that the corporate website - a lower-funnel channel - works best at driving brand awareness.

3. B2B marketers are not able to effectively target and engage decision makers.

Another challenge for today’s marketers is targeting and engaging decision makers in the buying process. The vast majority (81 percent) of B2B marketers must contend with multiple decision-makers during the sales process, but only about one-third (36 percent) feel their current marketing programs effectively address all these stakeholders.

One reason for this may be that only about one-third of marketers are incorporating targeting and segmentation in their digital advertising, search and social programs. When they do use targeting and segmentation, only 40 percent of respondents say that these tools very effectively help them reach the people involved in the typical buying decision.

4. Marketers need better visibility into the value of their marketing programs.

Measurement continues to be an issue for B2B marketers. More than one-third (36 percent) of respondents report their biggest online marketing challenge is accurately measuring and attributing online conversions to the correct marketing channels. Less than half (42 percent) of marketers say they attribute success across the entire marketing funnel.

One major obstacle to measurement is poor data infrastructure: 34 percent say they do not have the right tools to collect and analyze marketing program data. Another challenge is a lack of understanding of the metrics needed at each stage of the buying decision, with 22 percent citing this as a top obstacle to meeting the evolving needs of the market.

-

For a fuller discussion, BtoB Magazine has a webinar about the survey coming up on April 25. Register here.

The findings are definitely good food for thought. It underlines the importance of good sales and marketing software that encourages nurturing leads, like Infusionsoft, and a good tracker to see how you’re getting your conversions, like Google Analytics.

For more on online marketing, check out our archives.

What do you think about the results of the survey? Do you agree with the results? Are your sales cycles getting longer? Let us know in the comments below!

Infosec 2013: Incident response sector expected to increase significantly

The 'after' protection market has been predicted to grow massively in the future.

Speaking to SC Magazine at the Infosecurity Europe conference in London, Oliver Friedrichs, senior vice president of the cloud technology group at Sourcefire, said that technologies from the likes of Mandiant, Guidance Software, Damballa and its own advanced malware protection (AMP and FireAmp) solutions are boosting a $200-400 million market.

Friedrichs said: “The problem is trying to solve a before, during and after market. During is about intrusion detection and protection to detect what comes in. with after. This is interesting as forensic tools are in the market and what we users spend on is recovery with services and a recovery angle for diagnostics and I think this side will rise dramatically.

“The before side is where users have invested and the 'during' concept is half of that and that has the potential to address knowledge of 'after' issues. It is about how you perceive the challenge and this is a way to address it.”

He said that 'after' technologies offer an ability to determine who accessed a network, how they got in and focus on detection and do 'advanced machine learning'.

“You do need automated analysis as with human analytics, this is very limited and you are relying on algorithms and good or bad categories,” he said.

“The problem of 'after' research is that attacks get better and security technology is less about the network and more about the endpoint, but anti-virus detections are less than 50 per cent, so it is not about what is inside but how you find it and we see an opportunity for newer technologies for advanced threats.”

Asked if he felt there was a better option in choosing a service or a product, Friedrichs said that he chooses technology as it does not require people to be involved and the process has to be resilient, to record activity and perpetually feed information on the threat and what happened.

“Look at anti-virus, intrusion prevention; they are collecting at one point but don't remember what happened,” he said.

“It is the concept of content analysis and Big Data, which you don't have to retain, we say you store it in the cloud and analyse it. FireAmp stores the data in the cloud and tracks incidents and where things came from.”

Infosec 2013: Incident response sector expected to increase significantly

The 'after' protection market has been predicted to grow massively in the future.

Speaking to SC Magazine at the Infosecurity Europe conference in London, Oliver Friedrichs, senior vice president of the cloud technology group at Sourcefire, said that technologies from the likes of Mandiant, Guidance Software, Damballa and its own advanced malware protection (AMP and FireAmp) solutions are boosting a $200-400 million market.

Friedrichs said: “The problem is trying to solve a before, during and after market. During is about intrusion detection and protection to detect what comes in. with after. This is interesting as forensic tools are in the market and what we users spend on is recovery with services and a recovery angle for diagnostics and I think this side will rise dramatically.

“The before side is where users have invested and the 'during' concept is half of that and that has the potential to address knowledge of 'after' issues. It is about how you perceive the challenge and this is a way to address it.”

He said that 'after' technologies offer an ability to determine who accessed a network, how they got in and focus on detection and do 'advanced machine learning'.

“You do need automated analysis as with human analytics, this is very limited and you are relying on algorithms and good or bad categories,” he said.

“The problem of 'after' research is that attacks get better and security technology is less about the network and more about the endpoint, but anti-virus detections are less than 50 per cent, so it is not about what is inside but how you find it and we see an opportunity for newer technologies for advanced threats.”

Asked if he felt there was a better option in choosing a service or a product, Friedrichs said that he chooses technology as it does not require people to be involved and the process has to be resilient, to record activity and perpetually feed information on the threat and what happened.

“Look at anti-virus, intrusion prevention; they are collecting at one point but don't remember what happened,” he said.

“It is the concept of content analysis and Big Data, which you don't have to retain, we say you store it in the cloud and analyse it. FireAmp stores the data in the cloud and tracks incidents and where things came from.”

Infosec 2013: A lack of security development and technology transparecy harms users

A failure to write secure code comes from the problem of not being able to compare technologies and vendors not disclosing the source code of their technologies.

Speaking to SC Magazine at the Infosecurity Europe conference in London, Dinis Cruz, principal security engineer at Security Innovation, said that there is no way to quantify security technology, as there is no standard metric to compare and more trust is needed.

He said: “The problem is technologies are created to move the vendor up the Gartner magic quadrant but there is nothing about how secure your product is and vendors at conferences like Infosecurity Europe are selling security software, but if you ask how secure their software is, how their security development lifecycle works, they will not tell you.

“We want to see an improvement in application security and want to write secure code and there is not enough driving the market, and a lot of people have a negative impact as there is more complexity associated with more technology.”

Cruz said that secure code is not impossible to write, but it is the difference between building a shack and a house, and building something good with no foundation. Cruz said that "you can build a bank as fast as you can build a restaurant, but where do you put your money?"

“Your customers cannot have any say in how secure technologies are and don't know the difference,” he said.

“If you want to protect your identity, then from a security point of view, it is more expensive to write a secure password system. You do not store your stuff in the cupboard, you put it in a safe.”

He later said that security architecture is about development and testing, and if you do not do automated tests, how can you test how secure your code is? “It is about secure code versus security features, you buy a technology for billions of pounds and then spend millions on application security,” he said.

NYC Events: Upcoming NYC Business and Technology Events (4/26 - 5/2)

Here is a listing of NYC Business and Technology Events for the upcoming week (4/26 - 5/2) that we thought would be beneficial to our small business community in the Greater NYC area.

Have a business and/or technology event coming up in the New York City area that you’d like us to add to our weekly post? If so, email us at eve...@smallbiztechnology.com.

FREE! Microsoft Excel Hands-On Workshop: The Power of Pivot Tables

April 27th, 2013, -  11:00 AM to 12:00 PM, Brooklyn Public Library, 1305 Cortelyou Road, Brooklyn, NY 11226

Professionals and Business Owners will learn about Microsoft Excel Pivot Tables, a tool used to summarize complicated data into reports.  Hear a Microsoft Excel expert (Othniel Denis, MBA). Please bring laptops with wifi access, and Excel 2007 or higher.

HOW YOU WILL BENEFIT

· Create effective reports to meet your business needs

· Quickly quantify rows of data

· Evaluate patterns in your historical data

· Explain your findings to team members and senior management

 

Grow Your Business with Content Marketing and Social Media

April 30th, 2013, - 8:00 AM to 10:00 AM, 317 Madison Ave, New York, NY 10017

Join Ramon Ray, Marketing & Technology Evangelist of Infusionsoft and Smallbiztechnology.com as he shares with you:

• Why social media is so powerful
• Why web sites and email marketing are not dead
• Why you should STOP SELLING on social media
• What content works BEST on social media
• How you CAN make money through social content and more!

At the MCC’s Online Marketing Business Growth Series you’ll leave packed with practical information, best practices to get more customers and keep the ones you have (and you might even laugh a few times).

BRONX SEMINAR SERIES: 4th of 5 Workshops - Simple Steps for Starting Your Business

May 1st, 2013, - 9:30 AM to 11:30 AM, 1040 Grand Concourse,The Bronx Museum, Main Floor Conference Room, Bronx, New York 10456

Session 4: FINANCIAL PROJECTIONS

The fourth workshop uses exercises to help you better understand financial concepts. This session reviews sales and prices, financial risks and rewards, true start-up costs, ongoing operating expenses, setting benchmarks for tracking progress and the organization of all your financial information. Using a hands-on approach, you learn how to use our financial model to forecast sales revenue and build solid pro-forma financial forecasts.

 

Don’t Pay Someone Else to Do Your Online Marketing: Three Steps to Save You Thousands

May 1st, 2013, - 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM, 1231 Lafayette Ave, Bronx, New York 10474

How important is online marketing to your business? Can you afford not use it? Have you been burned in the past by one of those so-called SEO Guru’s? You will walk away from this workshop knowing and controlling your own online marketing destiny.This interactive workshop will give you the tools you need to make sure your site is not invisible to the search engines and teach you the theory behind how search engines rank sites.

RebelMouse Brings You “Your Social Front Page”

In the ever growing world of social media, it can be rather difficult to keep up with the waves of new sites, apps, features and functions that are constantly evolving. One site that may have slipped under one or two radars is RebelMouse.

RebelMouse is your online base of operations, which allows users to aggregate all their various social media sites, whether it’s Facebook and Twitter or Tumblr and YouTube, into one central location. Your RebelMouse page is essentially your own website but without much of the hassle of setting up a traditional homepage, which its creators call “Your Social Front Page”.

What makes your RebelMouse presence different to a conventional website is the refreshing function. Your homepage, which will be linked with various different social media accounts, refreshes automatically so only the most recent and fresh content and info is displayed, whether it’s your latest tweets, updates or videos. The newest addition to the site is the RebelMouse newsletter, which also keeps users up to speed on any new developments and features.

RebelMouse is the brainchild of former Huffington Post chief tech officer, Paul Berry, who launched the site in early 2012.  “I was CTO of HuffingtonPost where I ran product, design, engineering and infrastructure,” explained Paul in an interview last year with Digital Journal. “It became clear to me that too many people were struggling to create and maintain a website that was social and beautiful. It was costing them so much money and the results were very bad.”

Simplicity appears to be the key for RebelMouse, whether you’re just one person looking to collate your online presence or a business.

For a business, RebelMouse will allow you to create one simple go-to place for customers to get information and find out where else they can find you. If, for example, you’re familiar with a company’s Facebook page, you can visit their RebelMouse and possibly discover a Tumblr account with more details or a YouTube channel with many videos of the product/service.

RebelMouse allows the user a lot of room to change things around with the style, more so than profile or cover photos, with the user having the option to customize their fonts, unlike Facebook. This can be important for tailoring your account to your business and the tone and vibe you want to set for the visitor.

For small businesses interested in using RebelMouse, the site provides analytics to gauge how and when your pages are being viewed and where from. Much like Pinterest’s analytics, this is vital for a company to know whether they are using social media efficiently and what they need to improve on to be more effective.

Are you a RebelMouse user?  If so, let us know how it’s working for you in the comments below.  We’d love to know!

RebelMouse Brings You “Your Social Front Page”

In the ever growing world of social media, it can be rather difficult to keep up with the waves of new sites, apps, features and functions that are constantly evolving. One site that may have slipped under one or two radars is RebelMouse. RebelMouse is your online base of operations, which allows users to aggregate...

The post RebelMouse Brings You “Your Social Front Page” appeared first on Small Business Technology.

RebelMouse Brings You “Your Social Front Page”

In the ever growing world of social media, it can be rather difficult to keep up with the waves of new sites, apps, features and functions that are constantly evolving. One site that may have slipped under one or two radars is RebelMouse.

RebelMouse is your online base of operations, which allows users to aggregate all their various social media sites, whether it’s Facebook and Twitter or Tumblr and YouTube, into one central location. Your RebelMouse page is essentially your own website but without much of the hassle of setting up a traditional homepage, which its creators call “Your Social Front Page”.

What makes your RebelMouse presence different to a conventional website is the refreshing function. Your homepage, which will be linked with various different social media accounts, refreshes automatically so only the most recent and fresh content and info is displayed, whether it’s your latest tweets, updates or videos. The newest addition to the site is the RebelMouse newsletter, which also keeps users up to speed on any new developments and features.

RebelMouse is the brainchild of former Huffington Post chief tech officer, Paul Berry, who launched the site in early 2012.  “I was CTO of HuffingtonPost where I ran product, design, engineering and infrastructure,” explained Paul in an interview last year with Digital Journal. “It became clear to me that too many people were struggling to create and maintain a website that was social and beautiful. It was costing them so much money and the results were very bad.”

Simplicity appears to be the key for RebelMouse, whether you’re just one person looking to collate your online presence or a business.

For a business, RebelMouse will allow you to create one simple go-to place for customers to get information and find out where else they can find you. If, for example, you’re familiar with a company’s Facebook page, you can visit their RebelMouse and possibly discover a Tumblr account with more details or a YouTube channel with many videos of the product/service.

RebelMouse allows the user a lot of room to change things around with the style, more so than profile or cover photos, with the user having the option to customize their fonts, unlike Facebook. This can be important for tailoring your account to your business and the tone and vibe you want to set for the visitor.

For small businesses interested in using RebelMouse, the site provides analytics to gauge how and when your pages are being viewed and where from. Much like Pinterest’s analytics, this is vital for a company to know whether they are using social media efficiently and what they need to improve on to be more effective.

Are you a RebelMouse user?  If so, let us know how it’s working for you in the comments below.  We’d love to know!

What Does the Obama Budget Mean For Small Business Owners?

2012 was the political year of small business. The election was a big reason for that. An even bigger reason is the fact that small business accounts for 60% of jobs in this country.

However, economic uncertainty and a lack of capital are currently discouraging hiring. As long as small business owners lack the cash flow for growth, the economy will remain stagnant. Fortunately, Washington is finally starting to catch on.

President Obama recently revealed his $3.8 trillion 2014 budget proposal and it contains several provisions that are designed to support small business owners. But it also contains other stipulations that could potentially hurt small business. Below are the main things that small business owners need to know about the Obama budget:

Taxes

The budget proposes a tax credit for small business owners who hired new employees and gave raises to current employees in 2012. The one-time credit would apply to companies that paid less than $20 million in wages in 2012 and would be equivalent to 10% of the amount paid to new workers and/or the raises given to current employees. The credit would cap at $5 million.

Would you benefit from the proposed credit?

President Obama has also proposed a minimum tax rate of 30% for households earning $1 million or more annually. Small business interest groups are protesting this proposal on the grounds that many small business owners pay pass-through taxes on their business income.This would place them in the proposed 30% tax bracket - higher than is appropriate for their actual personal income.

Minimum Wage

President Obama’s State of the Union proposal to raise the minimum wage to $9/hour from the current $7.25/hour made it into the budget. Expect Republicans and small business owners alike to rally against this one.

Entitlements

In an effort to compromise with conservatives in Congress, Obama has proposed cuts to some entitlement programs including Social Security and Medicare. The cuts would trim $1.2 billion from spending on these programs over the next ten years. Many former small business owners rely heavily on these programs during their retirements and are opposed to the cuts.

They are joined in their criticism by members of the President’s own party.

The SBA

Perhaps the most significant of the proposed budget changes are related to the Small Business Administration (SBA). The plan will chop 12% or $109 million from the SBA budget, bringing the total budget down to $810 million.

But the SBA would get an additional $4 million to hire 32 government contract specialists to work towards facilitating more small business government contracts. The proposal also includes measures to streamline the application process for SBA loans and to increase the number of lenders working with the SBA. Fees for small business loans under $150,000 would be waived, which will help maintain cash flow for the smaller businesses who typically apply for loans of that size.

What are your thoughts on President Obama’s proposed budget? Do you think these changes would help or hurt small business?

Obama Photo via Shutterstock

What Does the Obama Budget Mean For Small Business Owners?

2012 was the political year of small business. The election was a big reason for that. An even bigger reason is the fact that small business accounts for 60% of jobs in this country.

However, economic uncertainty and a lack of capital are currently discouraging hiring. As long as small business owners lack the cash flow for growth, the economy will remain stagnant. Fortunately, Washington is finally starting to catch on.

President Obama recently revealed his $3.8 trillion 2014 budget proposal and it contains several provisions that are designed to support small business owners. But it also contains other stipulations that could potentially hurt small business. Below are the main things that small business owners need to know about the Obama budget:

Taxes

The budget proposes a tax credit for small business owners who hired new employees and gave raises to current employees in 2012. The one-time credit would apply to companies that paid less than $20 million in wages in 2012 and would be equivalent to 10% of the amount paid to new workers and/or the raises given to current employees. The credit would cap at $5 million.

Would you benefit from the proposed credit?

President Obama has also proposed a minimum tax rate of 30% for households earning $1 million or more annually. Small business interest groups are protesting this proposal on the grounds that many small business owners pay pass-through taxes on their business income.This would place them in the proposed 30% tax bracket - higher than is appropriate for their actual personal income.

Minimum Wage

President Obama’s State of the Union proposal to raise the minimum wage to $9/hour from the current $7.25/hour made it into the budget. Expect Republicans and small business owners alike to rally against this one.

Entitlements

In an effort to compromise with conservatives in Congress, Obama has proposed cuts to some entitlement programs including Social Security and Medicare. The cuts would trim $1.2 billion from spending on these programs over the next ten years. Many former small business owners rely heavily on these programs during their retirements and are opposed to the cuts.

They are joined in their criticism by members of the President’s own party.

The SBA

Perhaps the most significant of the proposed budget changes are related to the Small Business Administration (SBA). The plan will chop 12% or $109 million from the SBA budget, bringing the total budget down to $810 million.

But the SBA would get an additional $4 million to hire 32 government contract specialists to work towards facilitating more small business government contracts. The proposal also includes measures to streamline the application process for SBA loans and to increase the number of lenders working with the SBA. Fees for small business loans under $150,000 would be waived, which will help maintain cash flow for the smaller businesses who typically apply for loans of that size.

What are your thoughts on President Obama’s proposed budget? Do you think these changes would help or hurt small business?

Obama Photo via Shutterstock

Infosec 2013: \'Malevolent\' hacktivists to get hold of advanced state-sponsored malware

Analysts at Infosecurity 2013 predicted that although the practice of hacktivism by groups such as Anonymous may quieten down this year, any attacks could become more malevolent and advanced.

Andrew Rose, principal security and risk analyst at Forrester research, said, "You look at the ways they attack, and it has been distributed denial-of-service for quite a while, an annoyance to organisations. But I think lately we've started to see more malevolence from them."

Rose used last year's attack on Saudi oil company Saudi Aramco as an example, with malware infecting its systems and its official Twitter account being hacked last month.

He said: "I suspect that's going to be a trend carrying on. They've seen that they have the power and capability to do damage to organisations now. I suspect hacktivists will continue that threat.

"I don't want to start using terms like digital terrorism, but we're starting to see organisations more at risk of damage and destruction. People will not be ding this just for financial reasons, but for ideological reasons as well."

Rose went on further to say the number of state sponsored hacks had become "intolerable", and that it would be interesting to see whether governments and political powers would continue to refer to "unnamed countries" doing damage, rather than putting political pressure to make it "unacceptable".

Bob Tarzey, analyst and director at Quocirca, believed that worryingly, hacktivists and cyber criminals would get hold of sophisticated advanced malicious tools such as Stuxnet, and use them as they saw fit. 

He said, "We're going to see a situation where lower order criminals use state-level technology."

Infosec 2013: Loss of military information could lead to \'wholesale loss of life\'

The head of information security at the Military of Defence warned that the loss of sensitive military information through cyber crime could lead to "wholesale loss of life".

Adrian Price, speaking at Infosecurity 2013, said that the biggest concern from cyber criminals for UK defence were from intrusions. He said that hacktivists such as Anonymous, as well as foreign intelligence, were constantly trying to break into its systems to get information useful for their causes.

He said, "It is particularly vital that we protect this information due to the national security implications, and more importantly, international relations with our allies.

"There is also a potential insider threat as well - for ideological reasons people might wish to hand state information to foreign governments. This is something we take very seriously."

"Obviously at the moment with our current operations in Afghanistan, if we do lose very sensitive military information, the impact is potentially wholesale los of life. That is something we clearly wish to avoid." 

Misha Glenny, a writer and broadcaster specialising in security speaking on the same panel as Price, said that the threats and techniques used had not changed a lot since the late 90's.

He said, "Phishing and social engineering are still a popular way of getting into a network system. DDoS attacks which the hacktivists like are still very popular. Then you have database intrusions, SQL injections and so on.

"It is pretty much the standard toolkit. What has changed is the environment that all this takes place in. You have many more actors involved. 

"In the last five years there's no question we've seen an increase in sophisticated commercial cyber espionage, sometimes done by state backing, sometimes done by commercial competitors."

12 Tips and Tools for Better Facebook Management

A recent small business survey suggests businesses are increasing their use of social media. They are also seeing increasing return on investment. The survey also shows small businesses continue to struggle with maintaining their Facebook management. This is despite the fact that, at 1 billion members, the Facebook audience remains the largest in social media.

Below, we’ve collected 12 Facebook management tips and tools. We hope they help you make the most of of your Facebook efforts.

Embrace Basic Techniques for Creating Customer Engagement ~ Capture Commerce

SEO professional Tim Shivers interviews Meghan Nichols of the online seasonal store, The Jolly Christmas Shop. Nichols explains some of the basic techniques small businesses should use to get engagement on Facebook, and recommends sharing information about your products or services to get fans excited about them. She also suggests giving customers fun ways to interact by posting contests and games, encouraging your audience to give you feedback. Making sure your Facebook page remains active is important.

Give Your Facebook Page a Few Extra Frills ~ CorpNet

Blogger and social media marketer Sian Phillips shares some additional features you can add to your Facebook management. Adding a vanity url, more photos and apps makes for a more attractive page. Learn how to set your page apart from others where owners have clearly taken a lot less time. Also use simple techniques like scheduling posts ahead and promoting and sharing “link only” updates. These steps improve your productivity and get your page better visibility.

Use Even Negative Comments to Build Your Brand ~ Social Brothers

Social media consultants Nicholas and Trevor Kohlhepp share how one of their clients, a dog groomer, responded to a negative comment circulated on Facebook. She published her side of the story, sharing it with the community, eventually successfully addressing the complaint. The client’s efforts got the offending comment removed from social channels. Meanwhile, the good will she generated through her thoughtful response won her a 200 percent increase in traffic and two new clients, the Kohlhepp brothers said.

Put a True Dollar Value on Your Facebook Fan ~ You’re the Boss

Michael Scissons, chief executive of social media marketing firm Syncapse, says his company has put a true dollar value on the average Facebook fan. It’s about $174.17, says Scissons. He tells blogger Gene Marks any small business can do the same. Scissons advises business owners start by considering the amount of spending a fan has done on a product or service over the past twelve months. Consider loyalty and purchasing intent into the future. Also evaluate the likelihood of their recommending the brand to others. Scissons also makes some other suggestions to help you assess the value of your Facebook fans.

Make Decisions About Your Goals and Target Audience ~ The Social Media Hat

Web developer and small business owner Mike Allton says it’s time to rethink Facebook for your business. He points out that changes in Facebook’s business model and EdgeRank algorithm make it more useful to some businesses than others. This doesn’t mean you should abandon your Facebook efforts, of course. But you should be realistic about how you use the site for your business. Allton says emphasis has shifted away from profiles used in networking. He says focus is now on promoted posts and the increased reach possible through a paid marketing campaign. This may make Facebook more ideal for B2C rather than B2B marketers, he speculates.

Use the New Facebook Reply Button for Brand Management ~ V3

Erica McClenny, senior vice president of client services at social media management firm Expion, says Facebook’s new Reply Button is important for managing your brand. It also helps create deeper engagement with fans and customers. McClenny says the Reply Button allows you to respond directly to a specific comment. It creates an individual thread and arranges comments based on relevance. McClenny says use of the Reply Button will create a new layer of insight for marketers to see what kind of comments generate the most responses.

Use Mobile Layout to Monitor and Manage on the Go ~ Facebook Studio

It’s certainly possible to program updates ahead of time in an effort to be more efficient at Facebook management. But the social media world does operate 24/7. In order to engage with fans and customers or even update your page while traveling, mobile tools are helpful. Facebook’s latest mobile layout has been designed with the consumer in mind. But Facebook page owners also use it for their own Facebook management from mobile devices, the company says.

Don’t Forget About Facebook Home ~ The Huffington Post

Some have dismissed the new Facebook app for Android. But Andrew Cherwenka, CEO and co-founder of Authintic, says marketers should be asking what’s in it for them. Cherwenka’s firm provides personalization data for retailers. He says Home will provide brands with larger audiences in the short run as the app increases the amount of content Facebook users consume. Long-run, Cherwenka says Home will provide another way to reach Facebook users with targeted advertising.

Include Facebook Local Search in Your Marketing Strategy ~ AdWeek

Facebook’s new mobile and desktop business pages let you boost your visibility in local search. Tim Peterson says small businesses are already using local online marketing on Yelp and Google. Facebook’s updated pages include more prominent check-in and click-to-call buttons. They also feature an enlarged map and starred rating box for local businesses. Peterson writes brands should focus on increasing local social interaction to improve visibility in local search on Facebook, too.

Take Advantage of Cost-Per-Action Bidding ~ Marketing Land

Facebook recently introduced another marketing opportunity for businesses seeking to boost their social marketing campaigns. Greg Sterling gives an overview of bidding on ads and actions connected with page likes, offer claims and link clicks to product profile pages. Eventually, Sterling reports, all Facebook advertising will be available as cost-per-action, giving all businesses a better way to measure success.

Sign Up for Circl to Measure Conversion From Social to Foot Traffic ~ TechCrunch

Founders of new tech startup Circl say they can track a customer from the minute they engage socially to the minute they walk in your front door. That means better Facebook management. Here’s how it works. Circl lets you make offers on your Facebook or other social networks. It lets customers get that message forwarded to their smartphone via email or text. They then click on the text at point-of-sale, allowing you to measure conversion.

Use new Salesforce software to run your Facebook campaign. ~ Bloomberg

Salesforce calls the software Social.com. It allows marketers to create campaigns for the Web and mobile devices using Facebook, Twitter and other analytics data. This allows marketers to track ad performance over many platforms, adding new value to Facebook and other social media advertising.

Like Photo via Shutterstock

12 Tips and Tools for Better Facebook Management

A recent small business survey suggests businesses are increasing their use of social media. They are also seeing increasing return on investment. The survey also shows small businesses continue to struggle with maintaining their Facebook management. This is despite the fact that, at 1 billion members, the Facebook audience remains the largest in social media.

Below, we’ve collected 12 Facebook management tips and tools. We hope they help you make the most of of your Facebook efforts.

Embrace Basic Techniques for Creating Customer Engagement ~ Capture Commerce

SEO professional Tim Shivers interviews Meghan Nichols of the online seasonal store, The Jolly Christmas Shop. Nichols explains some of the basic techniques small businesses should use to get engagement on Facebook, and recommends sharing information about your products or services to get fans excited about them. She also suggests giving customers fun ways to interact by posting contests and games, encouraging your audience to give you feedback. Making sure your Facebook page remains active is important.

Give Your Facebook Page a Few Extra Frills ~ CorpNet

Blogger and social media marketer Sian Phillips shares some additional features you can add to your Facebook management. Adding a vanity url, more photos and apps makes for a more attractive page. Learn how to set your page apart from others where owners have clearly taken a lot less time. Also use simple techniques like scheduling posts ahead and promoting and sharing “link only” updates. These steps improve your productivity and get your page better visibility.

Use Even Negative Comments to Build Your Brand ~ Social Brothers

Social media consultants Nicholas and Trevor Kohlhepp share how one of their clients, a dog groomer, responded to a negative comment circulated on Facebook. She published her side of the story, sharing it with the community, eventually successfully addressing the complaint. The client’s efforts got the offending comment removed from social channels. Meanwhile, the good will she generated through her thoughtful response won her a 200 percent increase in traffic and two new clients, the Kohlhepp brothers said.

Put a True Dollar Value on Your Facebook Fan ~ You’re the Boss

Michael Scissons, chief executive of social media marketing firm Syncapse, says his company has put a true dollar value on the average Facebook fan. It’s about $174.17, says Scissons. He tells blogger Gene Marks any small business can do the same. Scissons advises business owners start by considering the amount of spending a fan has done on a product or service over the past twelve months. Consider loyalty and purchasing intent into the future. Also evaluate the likelihood of their recommending the brand to others. Scissons also makes some other suggestions to help you assess the value of your Facebook fans.

Make Decisions About Your Goals and Target Audience ~ The Social Media Hat

Web developer and small business owner Mike Allton says it’s time to rethink Facebook for your business. He points out that changes in Facebook’s business model and EdgeRank algorithm make it more useful to some businesses than others. This doesn’t mean you should abandon your Facebook efforts, of course. But you should be realistic about how you use the site for your business. Allton says emphasis has shifted away from profiles used in networking. He says focus is now on promoted posts and the increased reach possible through a paid marketing campaign. This may make Facebook more ideal for B2C rather than B2B marketers, he speculates.

Use the New Facebook Reply Button for Brand Management ~ V3

Erica McClenny, senior vice president of client services at social media management firm Expion, says Facebook’s new Reply Button is important for managing your brand. It also helps create deeper engagement with fans and customers. McClenny says the Reply Button allows you to respond directly to a specific comment. It creates an individual thread and arranges comments based on relevance. McClenny says use of the Reply Button will create a new layer of insight for marketers to see what kind of comments generate the most responses.

Use Mobile Layout to Monitor and Manage on the Go ~ Facebook Studio

It’s certainly possible to program updates ahead of time in an effort to be more efficient at Facebook management. But the social media world does operate 24/7. In order to engage with fans and customers or even update your page while traveling, mobile tools are helpful. Facebook’s latest mobile layout has been designed with the consumer in mind. But Facebook page owners also use it for their own Facebook management from mobile devices, the company says.

Don’t Forget About Facebook Home ~ The Huffington Post

Some have dismissed the new Facebook app for Android. But Andrew Cherwenka, CEO and co-founder of Authintic, says marketers should be asking what’s in it for them. Cherwenka’s firm provides personalization data for retailers. He says Home will provide brands with larger audiences in the short run as the app increases the amount of content Facebook users consume. Long-run, Cherwenka says Home will provide another way to reach Facebook users with targeted advertising.

Include Facebook Local Search in Your Marketing Strategy ~ AdWeek

Facebook’s new mobile and desktop business pages let you boost your visibility in local search. Tim Peterson says small businesses are already using local online marketing on Yelp and Google. Facebook’s updated pages include more prominent check-in and click-to-call buttons. They also feature an enlarged map and starred rating box for local businesses. Peterson writes brands should focus on increasing local social interaction to improve visibility in local search on Facebook, too.

Take Advantage of Cost-Per-Action Bidding ~ Marketing Land

Facebook recently introduced another marketing opportunity for businesses seeking to boost their social marketing campaigns. Greg Sterling gives an overview of bidding on ads and actions connected with page likes, offer claims and link clicks to product profile pages. Eventually, Sterling reports, all Facebook advertising will be available as cost-per-action, giving all businesses a better way to measure success.

Sign Up for Circl to Measure Conversion From Social to Foot Traffic ~ TechCrunch

Founders of new tech startup Circl say they can track a customer from the minute they engage socially to the minute they walk in your front door. That means better Facebook management. Here’s how it works. Circl lets you make offers on your Facebook or other social networks. It lets customers get that message forwarded to their smartphone via email or text. They then click on the text at point-of-sale, allowing you to measure conversion.

Use new Salesforce software to run your Facebook campaign. ~ Bloomberg

Salesforce calls the software Social.com. It allows marketers to create campaigns for the Web and mobile devices using Facebook, Twitter and other analytics data. This allows marketers to track ad performance over many platforms, adding new value to Facebook and other social media advertising.

Like Photo via Shutterstock

12 Tips and Tools for Better Facebook Management

A recent small business survey suggests businesses are increasing their use of social media. They are also seeing increasing return on investment. The survey also shows small businesses continue to struggle with maintaining their Facebook management. This is despite the fact that, at 1 billion members, the Facebook audience remains the largest in social media.

Below, we’ve collected 12 Facebook management tips and tools. We hope they help you make the most of of your Facebook efforts.

Embrace Basic Techniques for Creating Customer Engagement ~ Capture Commerce

SEO professional Tim Shivers interviews Meghan Nichols of the online seasonal store, The Jolly Christmas Shop. Nichols explains some of the basic techniques small businesses should use to get engagement on Facebook, and recommends sharing information about your products or services to get fans excited about them. She also suggests giving customers fun ways to interact by posting contests and games, encouraging your audience to give you feedback. Making sure your Facebook page remains active is important.

Give Your Facebook Page a Few Extra Frills ~ CorpNet

Blogger and social media marketer Sian Phillips shares some additional features you can add to your Facebook management. Adding a vanity url, more photos and apps makes for a more attractive page. Learn how to set your page apart from others where owners have clearly taken a lot less time. Also use simple techniques like scheduling posts ahead and promoting and sharing “link only” updates. These steps improve your productivity and get your page better visibility.

Use Even Negative Comments to Build Your Brand ~ Social Brothers

Social media consultants Nicholas and Trevor Kohlhepp share how one of their clients, a dog groomer, responded to a negative comment circulated on Facebook. She published her side of the story, sharing it with the community, eventually successfully addressing the complaint. The client’s efforts got the offending comment removed from social channels. Meanwhile, the good will she generated through her thoughtful response won her a 200 percent increase in traffic and two new clients, the Kohlhepp brothers said.

Put a True Dollar Value on Your Facebook Fan ~ You’re the Boss

Michael Scissons, chief executive of social media marketing firm Syncapse, says his company has put a true dollar value on the average Facebook fan. It’s about $174.17, says Scissons. He tells blogger Gene Marks any small business can do the same. Scissons advises business owners start by considering the amount of spending a fan has done on a product or service over the past twelve months. Consider loyalty and purchasing intent into the future. Also evaluate the likelihood of their recommending the brand to others. Scissons also makes some other suggestions to help you assess the value of your Facebook fans.

Make Decisions About Your Goals and Target Audience ~ The Social Media Hat

Web developer and small business owner Mike Allton says it’s time to rethink Facebook for your business. He points out that changes in Facebook’s business model and EdgeRank algorithm make it more useful to some businesses than others. This doesn’t mean you should abandon your Facebook efforts, of course. But you should be realistic about how you use the site for your business. Allton says emphasis has shifted away from profiles used in networking. He says focus is now on promoted posts and the increased reach possible through a paid marketing campaign. This may make Facebook more ideal for B2C rather than B2B marketers, he speculates.

Use the New Facebook Reply Button for Brand Management ~ V3

Erica McClenny, senior vice president of client services at social media management firm Expion, says Facebook’s new Reply Button is important for managing your brand. It also helps create deeper engagement with fans and customers. McClenny says the Reply Button allows you to respond directly to a specific comment. It creates an individual thread and arranges comments based on relevance. McClenny says use of the Reply Button will create a new layer of insight for marketers to see what kind of comments generate the most responses.

Use Mobile Layout to Monitor and Manage on the Go ~ Facebook Studio

It’s certainly possible to program updates ahead of time in an effort to be more efficient at Facebook management. But the social media world does operate 24/7. In order to engage with fans and customers or even update your page while traveling, mobile tools are helpful. Facebook’s latest mobile layout has been designed with the consumer in mind. But Facebook page owners also use it for their own Facebook management from mobile devices, the company says.

Don’t Forget About Facebook Home ~ The Huffington Post

Some have dismissed the new Facebook app for Android. But Andrew Cherwenka, CEO and co-founder of Authintic, says marketers should be asking what’s in it for them. Cherwenka’s firm provides personalization data for retailers. He says Home will provide brands with larger audiences in the short run as the app increases the amount of content Facebook users consume. Long-run, Cherwenka says Home will provide another way to reach Facebook users with targeted advertising.

Include Facebook Local Search in Your Marketing Strategy ~ AdWeek

Facebook’s new mobile and desktop business pages let you boost your visibility in local search. Tim Peterson says small businesses are already using local online marketing on Yelp and Google. Facebook’s updated pages include more prominent check-in and click-to-call buttons. They also feature an enlarged map and starred rating box for local businesses. Peterson writes brands should focus on increasing local social interaction to improve visibility in local search on Facebook, too.

Take Advantage of Cost-Per-Action Bidding ~ Marketing Land

Facebook recently introduced another marketing opportunity for businesses seeking to boost their social marketing campaigns. Greg Sterling gives an overview of bidding on ads and actions connected with page likes, offer claims and link clicks to product profile pages. Eventually, Sterling reports, all Facebook advertising will be available as cost-per-action, giving all businesses a better way to measure success.

Sign Up for Circl to Measure Conversion From Social to Foot Traffic ~ TechCrunch

Founders of new tech startup Circl say they can track a customer from the minute they engage socially to the minute they walk in your front door. That means better Facebook management. Here’s how it works. Circl lets you make offers on your Facebook or other social networks. It lets customers get that message forwarded to their smartphone via email or text. They then click on the text at point-of-sale, allowing you to measure conversion.

Use new Salesforce software to run your Facebook campaign. ~ Bloomberg

Salesforce calls the software Social.com. It allows marketers to create campaigns for the Web and mobile devices using Facebook, Twitter and other analytics data. This allows marketers to track ad performance over many platforms, adding new value to Facebook and other social media advertising.

Like Photo via Shutterstock