Study Shows One “Like” Leads to Others in Social Media

If you want your content to be “liked” by others on social media, get a friend to “like” it first.

Believe it or not, there is some scientific basis for this.

In fact, researchers who recently published their findings in the journal of Science say giving your content a positive vote immediately after publication makes it 32 percent more likely others will do the same.

Researchers also found this content scored 25 percent higher when calculating the total amount of Read More

The post Study Shows One “Like” Leads to Others in Social Media appeared first on Small Business Trends.

Six Myths About Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate marketing exists because it can be very successful. However, there are quite a few affiliate marketing myths that revolve around this topic.

For those who are unfamiliar, affiliate marketing is a way of rewarding other companies and/or business partners who bring you customers because of their marketing efforts. You can also think of affiliate marketing from the flip-side: If you wanted to be an affiliate company, your job is to bring online traffic and/or customers to businesses and then you get paid for it.

It seems like a win-win situation, right?

While affiliate marketing is great, it’s a little bit more complicated than meets the eye. For this reason, there are tons of different affiliate marketing myths out there surrounding all it entails. Whether you’re a company needing help or someone looking to start a business, it’s important to understand these affiliate marketing myths before diving into this marketing method.

Below are six of the most common affiliate marketing myths as well as reasons why these myths might exist. As a side note, most come from the point of view of someone trying to get involved in affiliate marketing as a business (as opposed to for their already existing business).

1. It’s Difficult to Get Involved with Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate marketing is something that virtually anyone can do if they put their mind to learning how things work (even learning as they go).

It doesn’t take a ton of money or a ton of experience, just a desire to get involved and the ability to really learn.

2. Affiliate Websites Don’t Require Much Management

This myth actually goes against the last myth (it seems that no one knows what kind of work it takes to be an affiliate marketer). Although it’s possible for anyone, it isn’t as easy as setting up a website, putting some affiliate links and banners on that website, and then letting it sit. Google bots don’t like to see this, which means they could very well penalize your site and essentially bring your business to a halt.

You need to have quality content and make changes to your website to improve it in order to be successful, and this takes lots of management.

3. You Should Always Choose the Niche that is the Most Profitable

Many people believe this because they believe that’s how you will make the most money. Of course certain niches that sell products people buy most often have a good chance of being successful, but that doesn’t mean it’s automatic. Although certain niches might be successful for some, they won’t necessarily be successful for you.

You have to really understand that niche. If you don’t, you’re going to have more success picking something you’re comfortable with.

4. You Only Need One Good Affiliate Program to be Successful

This is an affiliate marketing myth that companies looking to get involved in affiliate marketing seem to find quite often. Joining just one affiliate program could work, but you have to remember that your customers are going to compare as they shop. You want to work with a few different programs that compliment each other.

For example, if you’re a dentist you may want to market toothpaste as well as dental services.

5. Consumers Don’t Like Affiliate Marketing

Sometimes it can seem like affiliate marketing is an extra step and will therefore annoy consumers because they can just go to eBay or Amazon instead. However, it is important to realize that customers want information about certain products and they want to shop around the Web.

In other words, they don’t want to go straight to Amazon or EBay, they actually want to visit your website.

6. Affiliate Marketing Won’t Last Much Longer

Last but not least, this is probably the most popular affiliate marketing myth and it goes right along with the last myth. Because Google algorithms are changing and putting less value on sites that offer more links than quality content, it’s safe to say that affiliate marketing has had better days. Still, it has not lost life and surely won’t for a long time to come.

It’s still successful and still makes sense - and Google sees that as well as consumers.

Do you have any additional affiliate marketing myths to add to the list?

Genie Lamp Photo via Shutterstock

Six Myths About Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate marketing exists because it can be very successful. However, there are quite a few affiliate marketing myths that revolve around this topic.

For those who are unfamiliar, affiliate marketing is a way of rewarding other companies and/or business partners who bring you customers because of their marketing efforts. You can also think of affiliate marketing from the flip-side: If you wanted to be an affiliate company, your job is to bring online traffic and/or customers to businesses and then you get paid for it.

It seems like a win-win situation, right?

While affiliate marketing is great, it’s a little bit more complicated than meets the eye. For this reason, there are tons of different affiliate marketing myths out there surrounding all it entails. Whether you’re a company needing help or someone looking to start a business, it’s important to understand these affiliate marketing myths before diving into this marketing method.

Below are six of the most common affiliate marketing myths as well as reasons why these myths might exist. As a side note, most come from the point of view of someone trying to get involved in affiliate marketing as a business (as opposed to for their already existing business).

1. It’s Difficult to Get Involved with Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate marketing is something that virtually anyone can do if they put their mind to learning how things work (even learning as they go).

It doesn’t take a ton of money or a ton of experience, just a desire to get involved and the ability to really learn.

2. Affiliate Websites Don’t Require Much Management

This myth actually goes against the last myth (it seems that no one knows what kind of work it takes to be an affiliate marketer). Although it’s possible for anyone, it isn’t as easy as setting up a website, putting some affiliate links and banners on that website, and then letting it sit. Google bots don’t like to see this, which means they could very well penalize your site and essentially bring your business to a halt.

You need to have quality content and make changes to your website to improve it in order to be successful, and this takes lots of management.

3. You Should Always Choose the Niche that is the Most Profitable

Many people believe this because they believe that’s how you will make the most money. Of course certain niches that sell products people buy most often have a good chance of being successful, but that doesn’t mean it’s automatic. Although certain niches might be successful for some, they won’t necessarily be successful for you.

You have to really understand that niche. If you don’t, you’re going to have more success picking something you’re comfortable with.

4. You Only Need One Good Affiliate Program to be Successful

This is an affiliate marketing myth that companies looking to get involved in affiliate marketing seem to find quite often. Joining just one affiliate program could work, but you have to remember that your customers are going to compare as they shop. You want to work with a few different programs that compliment each other.

For example, if you’re a dentist you may want to market toothpaste as well as dental services.

5. Consumers Don’t Like Affiliate Marketing

Sometimes it can seem like affiliate marketing is an extra step and will therefore annoy consumers because they can just go to eBay or Amazon instead. However, it is important to realize that customers want information about certain products and they want to shop around the Web.

In other words, they don’t want to go straight to Amazon or EBay, they actually want to visit your website.

6. Affiliate Marketing Won’t Last Much Longer

Last but not least, this is probably the most popular affiliate marketing myth and it goes right along with the last myth. Because Google algorithms are changing and putting less value on sites that offer more links than quality content, it’s safe to say that affiliate marketing has had better days. Still, it has not lost life and surely won’t for a long time to come.

It’s still successful and still makes sense - and Google sees that as well as consumers.

Do you have any additional affiliate marketing myths to add to the list?

Genie Lamp Photo via Shutterstock

Third Party Information Technology (IT) Professionals Can Bring Skill and Expertise To Your Business

At first glance, managing your own IT resources may appear to be your most sensible and cost-effective option. But outsourcing these responsibilities to a professional can actually mean long-term cost savings.

I recently wrote and article for Wells Fargo Business Insight Resource Center and cited three tips for finding an IT provider who has a track record of successfully working with businesses like yours - and who can grow with your business, too.  They include:

1. Be clear about your business and IT needs.
2. Prepare for your costs and your savings.
3. Find the right provider.

You can read the full article on the Wells Fargo Business Insight Resource Center webpage here.

Third Party Information Technology (IT) Professionals Can Bring Skill and Expertise To Your Business

At first glance, managing your own IT resources may appear to be your most sensible and cost-effective option. But outsourcing these responsibilities to a professional can actually mean long-term cost savings.

I recently wrote and article for Wells Fargo Business Insight Resource Center and cited three tips for finding an IT provider who has a track record of successfully working with businesses like yours - and who can grow with your business, too.  They include:

1. Be clear about your business and IT needs.
2. Prepare for your costs and your savings.
3. Find the right provider.

You can read the full article on the Wells Fargo Business Insight Resource Center webpage here.

Online Male Shoppers Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus

Do men and women shop differently? “Of course,” answers anyone who’s ever witnessed a married couple on a trip to the mall. Typically, when it comes to brick-and-mortar retail stores, men like to get in, get what they need and get out fast. They’re not major comparison shoppers and they’re more willing to pay a little more to speed the process than they are to spend time hunting down bargains.

But does the same difference between the sexes hold true when it comes to eCommerceâ€"and if so, how can you tailor your marketing to attract both men and women? A recent Shopzilla survey polled men and women ecommerce shoppers about their latest online purchase. Here’s some of what it found.

Men and Women’s Online Shopping Behavior

Overall, men and women’s eCommerce shopping behavior was almost exactly alike. The vast majority of purchases (87 percent for men and 82 percent for women) were made on a desktop. Next most popular was an iPad, used by 13 percent of women and 10 percent of men. All other devices were far behind.

The bulk of eCommerce orders were placed from home (84 percent for women and 81 percent for men), which kind of gives the lie to the idea that employees are spending much of their time shopping online. Just 15 percent of men and 13 percent of women had made their most recent purchases while at work.

While “showrooming,” researching products in stores and then buying them cheaper online, has gotten a lot of play in the media, 79 percent of women and 76 percent of men bought products online without ever looking at them in a store. Showrooming behavior was slightly more common among menâ€"12 percent of men say they looked at something in-store and then bought it online from a different store, but only 9 percent of women had.

Price matters to both men and womenâ€"77 percent of women and 74 percent of men say price influenced their purchases, while 80 percent of men and 79 percent of women say they bought from the store that “offered the best all-around price” for the product in question. Both sexes also care about free shipping, with close to 60 percent saying they chose a store that offered it.

However, women are more likely to actively hunt for bargains and deals. Just 57 percent of men, compared to 71 percent of women, say the item they purchased was on sale. Women are also more likely to use coupons, with 34 percent of women using them vs. 26 percent of men.

Male vs Female: Where the Sexes Differ Online

While marketing methods such as print advertising, social media, word-of-mouth and blogs worked equally well (or poorly) on men and women, there are a couple areas where the sexes differ:

• Women are more likely to pay attention to marketing emails. Fourteen percent of women, compared to 8 percent of men, say they first saw their most recent online purchase in an email from a store.

• Men are more likely to find a product when “surfing around” online. Thirty three percent of men, versus 26 percent of women, first saw their most recent purchase this way.

What do these stats mean to you?

If You’re Targeting Men:

• Consider paid search advertising: So your product pops up when men are searching or reading about related or competing products. Improve your SEO (Search Engine Optimization) so your products and website are more likely to show up when they’re actively searching.

• If you own a brick-and-mortar store:  Combat male showrooming by ensuring your employees are well-prepared and well-versed in what you sell. Offer the option to order the product in-store from your own website for (semi) instant gratification.

If You’re Targeting Women:

• Emails get results: With most women shopping online from home, don’t worry about sending emails during the busy part of the work day. Try emailing in the afternoon (around 3PM) to ignite her interest as her workday energy flags) and again after dinnertime when she’s likely to be settling down and relaxing.

• Offer coupons: Whether you post discount codes and coupons on online coupon sites, on your social media accounts, on your website or in emails, use them. Women love to feel the thrill of the hunt when shopping, and tracking down that great coupon offer is part of it.

Men Mars Women Venus Photo via Shutterstock

How To Cash In On Spouting Off

If there’s one thing that the Internet Age has taught us, it’s that almost everyone has an opinion on almost everything. A 200-word post on why the local supermarket’s Little League baseball team lost Tuesday’s game will be followed by 47 comments, 24 Facebook shares and 14 tweets.

For most people, opining on the Internet is just a way to vent a little steam and waste a little time, but for the savvy business with a website or blog, that primal urge can be transformed into bottom line profits.

Using opinion polls as a way to build email marketing lists is one of the most powerful tools business owners have to really target the people they want to contact.

Sounding Off and Taking Names

To boil this down to its essence, the idea is to collect names and email addresses as a precursor to participating in an online poll or survey. You are going to add those names and addresses to your email marketing list so you need to be very clear about what you are doing and your privacy policy. Be sure you have a good understanding of email marketing in general and the legal requirements.

Of course you need to have a user-friendly and robust unsubscribe system. By the way, test it yourself from time to time to know what your customers are experiencing and to make sure it works as advertised.

Nothing is more valuable than a well-qualified prospect and by asking the right kinds of survey or polling questions, you can be certain that you are reaching your target audience. Further, if you’re clever in the way you construct your poll questions, you can gather a lot of valuable information about your prospects.

Framework for Success

Children of the 1960s anti-Vietnam War movement would remember one of the day’s catchphrases lifted from an old Bertolt Brech poem: What if they gave a war and nobody came? The same principle applies to your online poll: What if you gave a poll and no one sees it. This strategy for building or adding to your email list presupposes a website or blog that gets some traffic. If that’s the case, this is absolutely one of the best email marketing tips, if not, first you need to do some serious search engine optimization. Of course, if you’ve been busy building your social media presence, you can use those avenues to drive contacts to your poll.

Over the weeks and months you can experiment with a wide range of poll and survey questions. Controversial statements always create a lot of interest and can be a good way to way to generate a lot of leads. More finely tuned questions can help you segment your list. Going into the spring and summer seasons a woman’s clothing store, for example, might ask a question like:

This season I’m going to hit the beach in:

• The tiniest bikini I can find, just to drive my ex crazy.
• A stylish two-piece that leaves something to the imagination.
• A one-piece that will stay in place while I’m body surfing!

This information can guide follow up email offers and also help somewhat in purchasing decisions. Companies in the service sector can use survey questions to help them refine their business and better meet the needs of their clients.

Sweeten the Pot

It’s also a good idea to do more for your potential customers than just give them the chance to weigh in on an issue. Offering a free informational download as an added incentive to participate in your poll is a smart move. If you provide useful information along with the chance to opine, you have taken two important steps toward finding and converting a prospect into a customer.

This isn’t the only way to build your email marketing list, there are other good techniques as well as pitfalls to avoidâ€"like buying lists.

Finally, while there is free software available for polls, most of those do not include the ability to collect names and email addresses. However, there are inexpensive ways to accomplish this on your website or blog, and if you use WordPress to power your site, you have some plugins available.

So, what do you think (choose one)? This blog:

• Delivered useful ideas and inspiration.
• Bored me to tears.

Happy and profitable polling!

Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mattcornock/8801652469/ “LT - Quizzes - Pre-session Poll,” © 2013 Matt Cornock, used under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/   Megan Totka is the Chief Editor for ChamberofCommerce.com. She specializes on the topic of small business tips and resources. ChamberofCommerce.com helps small businesses grow their business on the web and facilitates connectivity between local businesses and more than 7,000 Chambers of Commerce worldwide.

How To Cash In On Spouting Off

If there’s one thing that the Internet Age has taught us, it’s that almost everyone has an opinion on almost everything. A 200-word post on why the local supermarket’s Little League baseball team lost Tuesday’s game will be followed by 47 comments, 24 Facebook shares and 14 tweets.

For most people, opining on the Internet is just a way to vent a little steam and waste a little time, but for the savvy business with a website or blog, that primal urge can be transformed into bottom line profits.

Using opinion polls as a way to build email marketing lists is one of the most powerful tools business owners have to really target the people they want to contact.

Sounding Off and Taking Names

To boil this down to its essence, the idea is to collect names and email addresses as a precursor to participating in an online poll or survey. You are going to add those names and addresses to your email marketing list so you need to be very clear about what you are doing and your privacy policy. Be sure you have a good understanding of email marketing in general and the legal requirements.

Of course you need to have a user-friendly and robust unsubscribe system. By the way, test it yourself from time to time to know what your customers are experiencing and to make sure it works as advertised.

Nothing is more valuable than a well-qualified prospect and by asking the right kinds of survey or polling questions, you can be certain that you are reaching your target audience. Further, if you’re clever in the way you construct your poll questions, you can gather a lot of valuable information about your prospects.

Framework for Success

Children of the 1960s anti-Vietnam War movement would remember one of the day’s catchphrases lifted from an old Bertolt Brech poem: What if they gave a war and nobody came? The same principle applies to your online poll: What if you gave a poll and no one sees it. This strategy for building or adding to your email list presupposes a website or blog that gets some traffic. If that’s the case, this is absolutely one of the best email marketing tips, if not, first you need to do some serious search engine optimization. Of course, if you’ve been busy building your social media presence, you can use those avenues to drive contacts to your poll.

Over the weeks and months you can experiment with a wide range of poll and survey questions. Controversial statements always create a lot of interest and can be a good way to way to generate a lot of leads. More finely tuned questions can help you segment your list. Going into the spring and summer seasons a woman’s clothing store, for example, might ask a question like:

This season I’m going to hit the beach in:

• The tiniest bikini I can find, just to drive my ex crazy.
• A stylish two-piece that leaves something to the imagination.
• A one-piece that will stay in place while I’m body surfing!

This information can guide follow up email offers and also help somewhat in purchasing decisions. Companies in the service sector can use survey questions to help them refine their business and better meet the needs of their clients.

Sweeten the Pot

It’s also a good idea to do more for your potential customers than just give them the chance to weigh in on an issue. Offering a free informational download as an added incentive to participate in your poll is a smart move. If you provide useful information along with the chance to opine, you have taken two important steps toward finding and converting a prospect into a customer.

This isn’t the only way to build your email marketing list, there are other good techniques as well as pitfalls to avoidâ€"like buying lists.

Finally, while there is free software available for polls, most of those do not include the ability to collect names and email addresses. However, there are inexpensive ways to accomplish this on your website or blog, and if you use WordPress to power your site, you have some plugins available.

So, what do you think (choose one)? This blog:

• Delivered useful ideas and inspiration.
• Bored me to tears.

Happy and profitable polling!

Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mattcornock/8801652469/ “LT - Quizzes - Pre-session Poll,” © 2013 Matt Cornock, used under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/   Megan Totka is the Chief Editor for ChamberofCommerce.com. She specializes on the topic of small business tips and resources. ChamberofCommerce.com helps small businesses grow their business on the web and facilitates connectivity between local businesses and more than 7,000 Chambers of Commerce worldwide.

3 Reasons It’s Not All About the Millennials

If you want to feel old, then turn on the television - seriously.

Whether it’s the restaurant industry or the latest fashion designer, every brand in America seems to be targeting Millennials in their advertising. Now, I’m not saying that Millennials aren’t a coveted demographic to target - they certainly are - but let’s not forget about the rest of us either.

The fact is that because brands are so adamant about appealing to Millennials, they’re missing out on many advertising opportunities. For instance, the restaurant industry clearly targets young audiences, but did you know that Baby Boomers eat out more than any other demographic? According to a recent study by NPD Group, the trend is so strong that many restaurants are even redesigning their entire menu to appeal to our elders.

Do you like how restaurants are now allowing you to make custom orders that mix and match soups, salads, and sandwiches? Then thank the boomers.

While this isn’t to say that businesses are wrongly targeting Millennials, it offers an interesting perspective: What if we aren’t fully capitalizing on our ideal audience?

Millennials Are Broke

According to the latest statistics, over 21 million Millennials now live at home with their parents. Saddled with student loan debt and a stubbornly slow economy, young adults are struggling more than those before them.

If so many Millennials are financially struggling to the point of being unable to regularly pay rent, why are they the center of every advertising campaign?

Young Adults Tend To Be Flighty

When you think about the boomers and other age demographics, you’ll see trends of brand loyalty. Older consumers establish relationships and attachments to specific brands and customers. Millennials, on the other hand, are more likely to follow the current modern trends and focus on the best prices.

This isn’t to say that Millennials can’t be loyal customers, many are, but you might get a higher long-term ROI (Return On Investment) by targeting other age demographics.

Other Demographics Are More Predictable

With the YOLO (You Only Live Once) fad still strong among Millennials, it has become hard to predict spending and buying patterns among this unpredictable consumer group. With Baby Boomers on the other hand, consumer-purchasing trends are relatively stable and easily predictable.

None of this is to say that you should completely ignore Millennials in your advertising campaigns. After all, they’re one of the most coveted demographics for a reason. However, similar to the restaurant industry wrongfully aligning their focus on Millennials when Baby Boomers compose a larger share of their market, it’s important to ensure that your marketing is hitting the mark in terms of who your customers really are.

Are you targeting your brand’s ideal demographics?

Millennials On Phones Photo via Shutterstock

New ransomware threat \'Browlock\' freezes computers and demands payment

Security firm F-Secure is tracking a new ransomware family known as Browlock, which spreads by tricking unsuspecting web surfers into believing the police are after them.

Researchers said they have detected infections on machines in the United States, Canada and the UK, and now other countries are experiencing attacks. F-Secure traced the attacks to a server in St. Petersburg, Russia.

If users surf to a compromised site foisting the scam or click on a malicious ad, their screen becomes locked, and a message is displayed. The messages are customised to appear like they come from federal authorities in the victim's home country or region, including the European Cybercrime Centre and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

Users are told they have violated the law because either they have committed copyright infringement, viewed or distributed child pornography, or unknowingly allowed their computer to be accessed to install malware. They are further advised that to unlock their computer and avoid prosecution, they must pay a fine of, in one case, £200 or $310, through an online payment site.

"This ransomware is very simple, and just uses the browser to display a lock screen demanding the victim to pay a fake fine and plays tricks to prevent closing the browser tab," F-Secure Labs wrote in a blog post.

Ransomware scams are prevalent. The FBI has estimated criminals profit roughly $150 million annually through the ruses.

Victims are advised to keep their anti-virus technology up to date and to never pay the miscreants behind the scams. Removing ransomware is usually possible with the help of a security solution, but often the process can be complicated and may require restoration of one's operating system, which could result in the loss of documents or applications.

Espionage group that planted malware at New York Times is back

Researchers believe the China-based cyber espionage group that carried out a month-long breach of The New York Times' network is responsible for a spate of recent attacks leveraging new variants of the Trojans used to attack the newspaper.

Security firm FireEye revealed that the group, dubbed 'APT12' and believed to be backed by China's People's Liberation Army, updated the code for the backdoors Aumlib and IXESHE (pronounced i-sushi) to strike more organisations in May and June, several months after the attacks on the Times.

FireEye researchers Ned Moran and Nart Villeneuve blogged about the findings on Monday and said that the Trojans were used against an unnamed organisation that focuses on international economic and financial policy, as well as entities in Taiwan.

In an email sent on Tuesday, FireEye researcher Ned Moran told SCMagazine.com that the two Trojans were updated to evade detection.

The new Aumlib iteration now encodes its command-and-control server communications. In addition, IXESHE - advanced malware known for stealing critical data from government and private entities in Germany, Taiwan and other countries - also displayed different network traffic patterns that could help it remain under the radar.

“The most notable difference is the network communications protocol,” Moran said. "The changes in the network communications protocol appear to be designed to defeat network signatures and allow the attackers to operate undetected. Most network signatures tuned to detect the old variants are unlikely to work on the new variants,” Moran explained.

SCMagazine.com reached out to security firm Mandiant, which has closely studied attacks out of China, to confirm the ties between the Times attacks and the ones that occurred in May and June, but a spokeswoman said the company did not have enough details to verify the attacks were carried out by the same group.

In a follow-up email sent to SCMagazine.com on Wednesday, Moran said FireEye believes they are the same assailants because they reused command-and-control infrastructure and malware code in the attacks.

Espionage group that planted malware at New York Times is back

Researchers believe the China-based cyber espionage group that carried out a month-long breach of The New York Times' network is responsible for a spate of recent attacks leveraging new variants of the Trojans used to attack the newspaper.

Security firm FireEye revealed that the group, dubbed 'APT12' and believed to be backed by China's People's Liberation Army, updated the code for the backdoors Aumlib and IXESHE (pronounced i-sushi) to strike more organisations in May and June, several months after the attacks on the Times.

FireEye researchers Ned Moran and Nart Villeneuve blogged about the findings on Monday and said that the Trojans were used against an unnamed organisation that focuses on international economic and financial policy, as well as entities in Taiwan.

In an email sent on Tuesday, FireEye researcher Ned Moran told SCMagazine.com that the two Trojans were updated to evade detection.

The new Aumlib iteration now encodes its command-and-control server communications. In addition, IXESHE - advanced malware known for stealing critical data from government and private entities in Germany, Taiwan and other countries - also displayed different network traffic patterns that could help it remain under the radar.

“The most notable difference is the network communications protocol,” Moran said. "The changes in the network communications protocol appear to be designed to defeat network signatures and allow the attackers to operate undetected. Most network signatures tuned to detect the old variants are unlikely to work on the new variants,” Moran explained.

SCMagazine.com reached out to security firm Mandiant, which has closely studied attacks out of China, to confirm the ties between the Times attacks and the ones that occurred in May and June, but a spokeswoman said the company did not have enough details to verify the attacks were carried out by the same group.

In a follow-up email sent to SCMagazine.com on Wednesday, Moran said FireEye believes they are the same assailants because they reused command-and-control infrastructure and malware code in the attacks.

Microsoft removes Exchange 2013 patch after customers report problems

Microsoft has pulled one of the patches it released on Tuesday as part of its monthly security update.

MS13-061, which addresses three vulnerabilities in Exchange Server, was scrapped after Microsoft became aware that installing it causes problems. The issues do not occur in Exchange 2007 or 2010 environments, only 2013.

"Specifically, the content index for mailbox databases shows as 'failed' and the Microsoft Exchange Search Host Controller service is renamed," according to a blog post from Ross Smith, principal program manager of the Exchange Server product group.

The three bugs actually lie in the way Exchange files are processed by Oracle Outside In, a set of libraries that software developers use to decode hundreds of file formats.

For administrators that have already deployed the patch, Microsoft recommends they apply KB 2879739, a workaround described here. For those who have not yet installed the fix, the software giant suggests they do not and instead follow the simple Exploitable Vulnerabilities portion of the original security bulletin.

Comparing Card Processing Rates As a Merchant: Getting the Best Deal

If you’re a merchant that accepts credit cards, you undoubtedly know exactly what your card processing rate is. You know it’s called a merchant discount rate, and it’s some percentage of the total bill, maybe a flat fee per transaction is also attached. If you did a little research, you would even know exactly how much you pay each month toward this merchant discount fee.

But do you know where that money goes? Or what, exactly, you’re paying for? Probably not, and you’re not alone. Credit card transaction fees are made up of many different elements, so they can seem, at best, confusing.

To help you better understand this fee, we break down the merchant discount rate into three key pieces: interchange fees, card brand fees and what we will generally call “everything else.” Getting to know these pieces will help you to compare rates among processing companies and to know where you can haggle for a better rate.

Interchange Fees

You’ve probably heard this term knocked around quite a bit. It is often used as a synonym for credit card rates in general. In reality, it is only one piece of those fees, albeit the biggest piece.

The interchange fee is the money that your merchant bank pays to the cardholder’s bank to help cover the risk of nonpayment or fraud and the operational costs related to moving funds to your bank. It helps to pay for things such as transaction monitoring and the technology it takes to make a payment happen instantly.

Tip for a better deal: The interchange fee will change based on the transaction type (for example, card present vs. card not present), the type of card used, and the type of business you are in (the riskier your business is for chargebacks, for example, the higher the rate). The lowest interchange rate you can get is called the qualified rate, and there are varying requirements to get it. Talk with the card processor about what those requirements are and then strive to meet them with every transaction.

Card Brand Fees

Credit card brands charge a variety of fees for transactions that involve their cards. The payment industry sometimes refers to them collectively as “assessments.” These assessments are how Visa, MasterCard or Discover get paid - they get a percentage of all transactions involving their credit card.

Tip for a better deal: Unfortunately, there’s little room for negotiation here. These fees are published, however, on each credit card brand’s website, so you can keep your card processing company honest.

Everything Else

The money from this piece of the merchant discount fee is divvied out to the other entities that play a role in processing a credit card transaction, including the processing company and the acquiring bank (i.e. your merchant bank). While a portion of this money covers operational costs, there is also a portion of this fee that covers mark-ups for the processor.

Tip for a better deal: This mark-up portion is where you have the possibility of negotiating a lower rate. Keep in mind too that card processing companies may offer different rates for different services. Make sure you don’t pay a higher rate for a service you don’t need.

No Time to Compare Rates? No Worries.

So now you have a better grasp on that merchant discount rate, but who has the time to do all the research needed to get the best deal? Don’t worry. Community Merchants USA, in partnership with FeeSeeker.com, has an online tool that will send you rates from various processors. All you do is fill out some information regarding your business, and this site will come back with a list of processors and their rates. The best part - it’s free. You’re saving money already.

Credit Card Photo via Shutterstock

Comparing Card Processing Rates As a Merchant: Getting the Best Deal

If you’re a merchant that accepts credit cards, you undoubtedly know exactly what your card processing rate is. You know it’s called a merchant discount rate, and it’s some percentage of the total bill, maybe a flat fee per transaction is also attached. If you did a little research, you would even know exactly how much you pay each month toward this merchant discount fee.

But do you know where that money goes? Or what, exactly, you’re paying for? Probably not, and you’re not alone. Credit card transaction fees are made up of many different elements, so they can seem, at best, confusing.

To help you better understand this fee, we break down the merchant discount rate into three key pieces: interchange fees, card brand fees and what we will generally call “everything else.” Getting to know these pieces will help you to compare rates among processing companies and to know where you can haggle for a better rate.

Interchange Fees

You’ve probably heard this term knocked around quite a bit. It is often used as a synonym for credit card rates in general. In reality, it is only one piece of those fees, albeit the biggest piece.

The interchange fee is the money that your merchant bank pays to the cardholder’s bank to help cover the risk of nonpayment or fraud and the operational costs related to moving funds to your bank. It helps to pay for things such as transaction monitoring and the technology it takes to make a payment happen instantly.

Tip for a better deal: The interchange fee will change based on the transaction type (for example, card present vs. card not present), the type of card used, and the type of business you are in (the riskier your business is for chargebacks, for example, the higher the rate). The lowest interchange rate you can get is called the qualified rate, and there are varying requirements to get it. Talk with the card processor about what those requirements are and then strive to meet them with every transaction.

Card Brand Fees

Credit card brands charge a variety of fees for transactions that involve their cards. The payment industry sometimes refers to them collectively as “assessments.” These assessments are how Visa, MasterCard or Discover get paid - they get a percentage of all transactions involving their credit card.

Tip for a better deal: Unfortunately, there’s little room for negotiation here. These fees are published, however, on each credit card brand’s website, so you can keep your card processing company honest.

Everything Else

The money from this piece of the merchant discount fee is divvied out to the other entities that play a role in processing a credit card transaction, including the processing company and the acquiring bank (i.e. your merchant bank). While a portion of this money covers operational costs, there is also a portion of this fee that covers mark-ups for the processor.

Tip for a better deal: This mark-up portion is where you have the possibility of negotiating a lower rate. Keep in mind too that card processing companies may offer different rates for different services. Make sure you don’t pay a higher rate for a service you don’t need.

No Time to Compare Rates? No Worries.

So now you have a better grasp on that merchant discount rate, but who has the time to do all the research needed to get the best deal? Don’t worry. Community Merchants USA, in partnership with FeeSeeker.com, has an online tool that will send you rates from various processors. All you do is fill out some information regarding your business, and this site will come back with a list of processors and their rates. The best part - it’s free. You’re saving money already.

Credit Card Photo via Shutterstock