Check In to a Nap Pod For a Rest on Your Next Business Trip

If you do a lot of traveling for business, you may have already seen them. They’re little enclosures, sometimes called nap pods, where travelers can crash for an hour or more to unwind.

Nap pods have evolved as both a business solution and a business model. They provide a brief nap for travelers who have neither the time nor the budget for a hotel room and who don’t want to sleep on the plane.

For example, rooms by Sleepbox at Sheremetyevo International Airport near Moscow are designed for those who are traveling with associates or friends. Rooms offer three bunk beds, a table, reading lamp, TV and alarm clock.

Meanwhile, Yotel in London’s Heathrow Airport is a bit higher end. This nap pod offers a single or double bed, your own entertainment system, a bathroom in your suite and a “rainfall” shower. You can stay there for as little as four hours or for the entire night. Take a look at this brief video tour:

A nap pod in London may go for just $39 per four hour stretch and $93 for the entire night. But there are places where the accommodations are a bit steeper, even if some of the features seem totally worth it:

Snoozecube operates small, soundproof rooms at Dubai International Airport where travelers can power down and rest up. Starting at just $16 an hour, travelers have access to a twin bed, a touch screen TV, and Wi-Fi - as well as a nature-inspired mural to brighten up each pod.

Nap pod costs and accommodations vary considerably depending upon your destination and the airports you pass through. Take the brief tour of airport nap pods around the world with Condé Nast Traveler.

Double Edged Sword of the Holidays: Bad Weather and Increase In Sales. Ready?

Well, it’s November and “the Holidays” are here. The Holiday cheer of cash registers ringing is HERE. What’s also here? Inclement weather that could hamper your business. Are you ready? Is your business prepared?

Here’s some tips and advice from Symantec:

The holidays are a major revenue driver for many small businesses. Yet environmental and other external challenges - from weather to system outages and more - can be debilitating. In fact, 62 percent of small businesses lack an emergency plan1, and 25 percent never reopen after a natural or man-made disaster2.

As we head into the holiday season, it’s a good time to remind readers about the importance of disaster preparedness. Symantec suggests the following tips for small businesses:

1. Start planning now - and avoid cutting corners: Develop a disaster-preparedness plan. Evaluate how technologies such as mobile, virtualization and cloud can strategically help in those efforts
2. Implement strategic technologies: Adopt integrated cloud backup for offsite storage and disaster recovery, and automated physical and virtual (P2V) backup conversion so you can recover your physical system to a virtual machine in case of a server failure
3. Protect your information: Use comprehensive security and backup solutions to protect your physical, virtual and mobile systems. You may even opt to automate backup processes or backup to the cloud
4. Review and test your disaster preparedness: Complete reviews and testing at least once a quarter

For more information, please take a look at the 2012 SMB Disaster Preparedness Survey, or visithttp://www.symantec.com/small-business/.

I used List.ly to create a few resources for you:

If You’re Ready to Take on the World, Focus Is Key to Global Success

Whether you sell digital downloads or designer diapers, there’s a big wide world out there full of opportunities. It has never been easier for small and medium sized businesses to reach a global marketplace and attain global success. It’s not just theory, it’s actually happening. In 2011, export sales from from businesses with under 500 employees were estimated to be worth $1.7 trillion.

In June, the US Small Business Administration published an excellent article here on Small Business Trends that outlined six steps to check if your business is prepared for exporting. It’s full of useful information and links to invaluable resources.

But there’s one thing I’d like to add that’s a key ingredient, vital to the success of all overseas ventures: Focus.

Geographical Focus

They say it’s a small world â€" but it’s not that small. Unless you have a product or service that can be delivered anywhere at all with equal efficiency, it’s important to target specific territories and develop success in those locales before moving on to the next. That way, any obstacles (and there are bound to be some) should remain a manageable size. You won’t get overextended.

This is not just about language. The UK and Australia both speak English, but there are considerable cultural differences. A marketing approach that works in one might fall completely flat in the other.

Specialists in exporting often cite local knowledge as a key factor in business success. Fortunately, both government-sponsored agencies and private contractors are readily accessible today. It may be impractical for you to travel across the globe, but there’s no reason you can’t learn all you need to know before you commit.

Focused Supply Chain

Whatever you sell, you need to get it delivered or you won’t get paid. In the digital product or service arenas, that might seem easier than for companies working with physical products. But there are still pitfalls.

What if there’s a sudden explosion of interest? Can your IT infrastructure cope? A system that’s down for hours is just as bad for business as a box that doesn’t arrive.

If you manufacture something, you’ll probably already have thoughts about how to cope with increased demand. But what about getting it there? Global logistics companies are one solution, but depending on the territory, other warehousing and delivery methods might prove more efficient.

Amazon, for example, offers you the opportunity to sell into any of their markets and they’ll stock and distribute the products for you. There are similar networks in countries where Amazon isn’t represented.

Would it be better to establish a local presence through a strategic partner? Or through franchising? These can be complex solutions, but the drive to assist exports is one of the main reasons the SBA was set up, so there’s a wealth of information available to help you.

Focused Support

It’s all too easy to fall into the trap of thinking that email or online support is the answer to everything. Yes, it offers an extremely cost-effective way of dealing with inquiries, but is it entirely appropriate to the market you’re dealing with?

A lot of people still want to talk to someone on the phone. In some markets where Internet connectivity is poor to nonexistent, email is not even an option. Fortunately, providing such a service is less expensive than you might think.

Use a 1-800 number service and your prospective customer won’t be put off by some long (and expensive-looking) string of international digits. As far as they’re concerned, they’re just making a local call. Modern telephone technology routes it wherever you want it to go - either to you, a designated employee, or an outsourced call center.

Going Global by Being Local

Many of the world’s most successful global brands are actually seen as “local” by the majority of their customers. Even when we buy online, our decision is affected by where we perceive the goods are coming from.

Doing business internationally may have become easier in terms of the sales and delivery processes, but in the end it’s still about people. Only people buy things.

Focus on how to satisfy their demands and your small business can be as effective in foreign markets as the global giants.

Double Edged Sword of the Holidays: Bad Weather and Increase In Sales. Ready?

Well, it’s November and “the Holidays” are here. The Holiday cheer of cash registers ringing is HERE. What’s also here? Inclement weather that could hamper your business. Are you ready? Is your business prepared?

Here’s some tips and advice from Symantec:

The holidays are a major revenue driver for many small businesses. Yet environmental and other external challenges - from weather to system outages and more - can be debilitating. In fact, 62 percent of small businesses lack an emergency plan1, and 25 percent never reopen after a natural or man-made disaster2.

As we head into the holiday season, it’s a good time to remind readers about the importance of disaster preparedness. Symantec suggests the following tips for small businesses:

1. Start planning now - and avoid cutting corners: Develop a disaster-preparedness plan. Evaluate how technologies such as mobile, virtualization and cloud can strategically help in those efforts
2. Implement strategic technologies: Adopt integrated cloud backup for offsite storage and disaster recovery, and automated physical and virtual (P2V) backup conversion so you can recover your physical system to a virtual machine in case of a server failure
3. Protect your information: Use comprehensive security and backup solutions to protect your physical, virtual and mobile systems. You may even opt to automate backup processes or backup to the cloud
4. Review and test your disaster preparedness: Complete reviews and testing at least once a quarter

For more information, please take a look at the 2012 SMB Disaster Preparedness Survey, or visithttp://www.symantec.com/small-business/.

I used List.ly to create a few resources for you:

Double Edged Sword of the Holidays: Bad Weather and Increase In Sales. Ready?

Well, it’s November and “the Holidays” are here. The Holiday cheer of cash registers ringing is HERE. What’s also here? Inclement weather that could hamper your business. Are you ready? Is your business prepared?

Here’s some tips and advice from Symantec:

The holidays are a major revenue driver for many small businesses. Yet environmental and other external challenges - from weather to system outages and more - can be debilitating. In fact, 62 percent of small businesses lack an emergency plan1, and 25 percent never reopen after a natural or man-made disaster2.

As we head into the holiday season, it’s a good time to remind readers about the importance of disaster preparedness. Symantec suggests the following tips for small businesses:

1. Start planning now - and avoid cutting corners: Develop a disaster-preparedness plan. Evaluate how technologies such as mobile, virtualization and cloud can strategically help in those efforts
2. Implement strategic technologies: Adopt integrated cloud backup for offsite storage and disaster recovery, and automated physical and virtual (P2V) backup conversion so you can recover your physical system to a virtual machine in case of a server failure
3. Protect your information: Use comprehensive security and backup solutions to protect your physical, virtual and mobile systems. You may even opt to automate backup processes or backup to the cloud
4. Review and test your disaster preparedness: Complete reviews and testing at least once a quarter

For more information, please take a look at the 2012 SMB Disaster Preparedness Survey, or visithttp://www.symantec.com/small-business/.

I used List.ly to create a few resources for you:

Small Liquor Stores Hurt by Licensing Tax

Some rules affect large and small businesses differently, even if they are applied equally to everyone. Take, for example, the state of Washington’s Initiative 1183 approved by the voters back in 2011.

The law effectively ended the state monopoly, still at least partially in place in other states like Pennsylvania, for example, on the wholesale distribution and retail sale of alcohol.

It was good news for large and small businesses alike who might have been previously prevented from selling alcohol to the public â€" or so it seemed at first.

Not All Taxes Are Created Equal

But along with the lifting of restrictions, the state also imposed a 17 percent licensing fee on every sale of alcohol. That’s on top of the 10 percent excise tax already added to those sales.

The reason was simple. Washington stood to loose millions in revenue from its state controlled liquor store system in place before the new initiative. And state officials needed some way to make up for that loss in the budget.

For big boxes, it turned out, this added tax was no problem. Yes, it was high, but big retailers knew alcohol sales would bring in customers. They sold enough clothing, food, housewares, office supplies, CDs, books, electronics and other assorted products that they could easily spread that cost out.

In fact, since state law doesn’t require the 17 percent be actually collected from customers, some in the state say bigger stores are simply selling alcohol to customers without collecting it. They then pay the state what is owed as a cost of doing business.

Falling Behind

But for smaller businesses like Colville Liquor & Wine and Deer Park Liquor & Wine in Spokane, who rely much more heavily on alcohol sales for their revenue, things haven’t been so easy, reports the Associated Press.

In fact, 22 small liquor stores in the state are already in danger of losing their licenses after getting behind on taxes and fees, the Spokesman-Review says.

The problem these small businesses face?

They are too small and too specialized. They cannot compete for sales with larger retailers by offering alcohol at lower prices or by absorbing the cost of the tax themselves.

Unfortunately, the new law â€" though equally applied in theory â€" is bringing about very different results for small businesses.

Sales Photo via Shutterstock

What is ERP? Does It Have a Place In Small Business?

The internet has really opened up things for small businesses all across the globe. Because of the proliferation of the cloud, smaller enterprises can compete with the bigwigs and tap into markets that only were previously available to larger companies with more locations. This new era of competition has made running a small business increasingly difficult, and many of them have outgrown QuickBooks and other simple accounting software.

A new wave of online commerce is literally forcing you to choose a better solution than the one you have, which may be putting some unnecessary strain that becomes costly in the long run. Information technology is only going to improve and you don’t want to be left behind. This is why some small businesses are asking themselves whether they need an enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution under their belts; a question that once upon a time was only asked as they reached the mid-market stage.

Still, some folks may not know what ERP does. Others don’t know whether ERP is the right solution for them. After looking at the price tag attached, many feel like it’s a hard pill to swallow, probably because they are unaware that there are solutions out there that cater perfectly to people running smaller operations.

What Does ERP Do For My Business?

An ERP creates a framework by which your business can plan its resources, as the name implies. What resources? Everything from inventory to accounts receivable, to your entire accounting infrastructure can be managed by an ERP. Depending on what you choose, it may also come with a highly-competent customer relationship management (CRM) platform.

I’ve spoken with Douglas Johnson, Senior Sales Engineer at Acumatica, a company that offers ERP to small- and medium-sized businesses and has been in the game since 2007, about what specific benefits such a solution would actually bring to a small business. Here’s what he had to say, in summary:

• Your invoices and reports will not only look more professional, but they will also comply with each client’s preference, which is great if you’re running a B2B company.
• Likewise, your financial documents will also comply with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (US GAAP) and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). In essence, it keeps auditors at bay and prevents any mishaps from occurring due to an ambiguously-formatted document.
• ERP software will also manage your inventory, time sheets, and expense reports. In addition to this, some of them also include a cool CRM that manages the front end of your business’ activity.
• A good ERP software for small business will streamline most of your operations so you can worry strictly about the business end of the business. Isn’t that what you wanted to do when you started the whole thing? Some integrate seamlessly into your company so that you and your employees do not waste too much time trying to work out the kinks.
• With ERP, you respond much more quickly to changes in the market and make smarter decisions. You also consolidate accounting in a way that makes it easier to spot mistakes that may lead you to pay for something you did not receive from a vendor.

In essence, ERP is a platform that manages a company’s entire financial and workflow ecosystems.

What Choices Are Out There?

Most ERPs are made for the big boys. It’s a fact. As a small business owner, you want all the advantages without having to dole out a sack of cash every month. In the end, the ERP you adopt shouldn’t drive you bankrupt. In this realm, you’ll find three different choices of ERP software for small business: Cloud-based, on-premise, and open source. Let’s compare them.

Cloud-Based vs. On-Premise

A cloud ERP may well be a gift from above for many who are already dedicating their computing resources to other things. It’s a flexible option that is hosted on another place far, far away. But is it really advantageous?

Cloud-based systems require much lower initial investment than on-premise ERPs. The implementation time is nearly zero compared to how long it would take you to work out the kinks with a system that you install on-location and you don’t run the risk of needing IT experts to come in and implement the system for you.

However, in the long term, an on-premise installation will lead to lower costs of operation, despite the higher premium on the price tag. You’ll still have to pay for some maintenance, but it’s really not comparable to the amount you have to pay for cloud-based implementations. On-premise software works wonders on internet connection outages, which would otherwise interrupt all operations until the connection is back.

Remember, with on-premise ERP, you’re responsible for your own backups, disaster recovery, and updates. Control over your data and resources is a luxury in itself that comes at a cost.

Let’s have a look at a few companies that offer both cloud and on-premise solutions:

• Acumatica - Perhaps the most flexible ERP software for small businesses out there, Acumatica offers a wide variety of different packages, such as financial management, customer management (CRM), distribution management, project accounting, intercompany accounting, and fixed assets management. Its product scales as you grow, allowing you to add more components on top of what you already have whenever you need them. Deployment is available in three forms: SaaS, SOP (pay-as-you-go on-site deployment), and perpetual (one-time investment and a license ‘till death do you part). Its software has been particularly designed to cater to the needs of smaller organizations, in contrast to other companies that just shave features off of their clunky ERPs that they would normally offer to larger clients. The muscle behind its software comes from years of working strictly to satisfy the demands of organizations looking to slim down their redundancies and serve their customes more efficiently. Acumatica is also particularly advantageous if you have an e-commerce site.
• Microsoft Dynamics - One of the most well-known ERPs, Microsoft Dynamics offers two one-size-fits-all solutions: one for large organizations, and one for small- and medium-sized businesses. It has two options: You can either opt for a cloud-based solution or haul some cash up front for its permanent license. Microsoft Dynamics includes workflow and financial management, as well as CRM.
• SAP Business One - This is by far the easiest ERP solution to implement from SAP. Their lightweight software captures crucial business information and automates end-to-end processes, taking some weight off your shoulders and allowing you to direct your focus in other areas. It comes with a mobile app that you and your employees can use to access the platform from any place. As far as SAP’s solutions go, this is the quickest to implement, taking anywhere from two to eight weeks. The platform is highly customizable with over 550 different add-ons, each adding functionality and powering up your business. If you’re looking for mobility, flexibility, and light functionality, SAP Business One is going to make you smile.

Open Source vs. Everything Else

If you’re looking for something you don’t even have to pay a dime for, open source is the way to go. If you’ve ever used Libre Office, Google Chrome, or Android, you have already had a taste of what this kind of software can bring.

With open source ERP, you’re the sheriff. Everything is yours to toy and tinker with. Some may ask for a price, but it usually isn’t anywhere near the ballpark you’d be looking at with proprietary ERPs. And that’s about the extent of all the benefits of open source ERPs. There really isn’t much to say except for the fact that it can be easily personalized and costs nothing (or nearly nothing).

As for the disadvantages, open source packages can have many. There is so much diversity in open ERP software for small businesses that it is really difficult to gauge everything that can go wrong. Despite this, I can still safely make some broad statements about what you’ll experience in most open platforms.

First off, open products aren’t as mature or well-maintained as the proprietary ones. Vendors are often too small to deal with high demands for technical support, so don’t expect someone to answer the phone at 2 AM. Implementation might also be complex and difficult. The interface is also not as intuitive in such solutions.

Still, you may find a few open ERPs that excel above the rest and are nearly as great as the cloud-based and on-premise proprietary ERPs. Here are two that I found:

• OpenERP - Forget about having one ERP. Why not have two, or 10, or 200? OpenERP offers a wide variety of different ERP components that fit like pieces of a puzzle into your business in one way or another. You can choose anything from invoicing to point of sale, to a social network, or a full-blown CRM. They are one of the few open source ERPs that offer cloud-based setups as well as on-premise.
• erpNext - If you’re looking for something a bit on the simpler side, you can use erpNext, which includes account management, CRM, HR management, manufacturing, and many other features that cover a very elementary set of ERP principles. See for yourself in their demo.

Making The Right Choice

Even with all this advice, choosing the right ERP will still be a challenge. Hopefully, I have narrowed the search down for you, showing you the cream of the crop in this confusing world of business management software. It’s time you look into an ERP that keeps your business relevant and efficient in an ever-changing and aggressive market.

What is ERP? Does It Have a Place In Small Business?

The internet has really opened up things for small businesses all across the globe. Because of the proliferation of the cloud, smaller enterprises can compete with the bigwigs and tap into markets that only were previously available to larger companies with more locations. This new era of competition has made running a small business increasingly difficult, and many of them have outgrown QuickBooks and other simple accounting software.

A new wave of online commerce is literally forcing you to choose a better solution than the one you have, which may be putting some unnecessary strain that becomes costly in the long run. Information technology is only going to improve and you don’t want to be left behind. This is why some small businesses are asking themselves whether they need an enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution under their belts; a question that once upon a time was only asked as they reached the mid-market stage.

Still, some folks may not know what ERP does. Others don’t know whether ERP is the right solution for them. After looking at the price tag attached, many feel like it’s a hard pill to swallow, probably because they are unaware that there are solutions out there that cater perfectly to people running smaller operations.

What Does ERP Do For My Business?

An ERP creates a framework by which your business can plan its resources, as the name implies. What resources? Everything from inventory to accounts receivable, to your entire accounting infrastructure can be managed by an ERP. Depending on what you choose, it may also come with a highly-competent customer relationship management (CRM) platform.

I’ve spoken with Douglas Johnson, Senior Sales Engineer at Acumatica, a company that offers ERP to small- and medium-sized businesses and has been in the game since 2007, about what specific benefits such a solution would actually bring to a small business. Here’s what he had to say, in summary:

• Your invoices and reports will not only look more professional, but they will also comply with each client’s preference, which is great if you’re running a B2B company.
• Likewise, your financial documents will also comply with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (US GAAP) and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). In essence, it keeps auditors at bay and prevents any mishaps from occurring due to an ambiguously-formatted document.
• ERP software will also manage your inventory, time sheets, and expense reports. In addition to this, some of them also include a cool CRM that manages the front end of your business’ activity.
• A good ERP software for small business will streamline most of your operations so you can worry strictly about the business end of the business. Isn’t that what you wanted to do when you started the whole thing? Some integrate seamlessly into your company so that you and your employees do not waste too much time trying to work out the kinks.
• With ERP, you respond much more quickly to changes in the market and make smarter decisions. You also consolidate accounting in a way that makes it easier to spot mistakes that may lead you to pay for something you did not receive from a vendor.

In essence, ERP is a platform that manages a company’s entire financial and workflow ecosystems.

What Choices Are Out There?

Most ERPs are made for the big boys. It’s a fact. As a small business owner, you want all the advantages without having to dole out a sack of cash every month. In the end, the ERP you adopt shouldn’t drive you bankrupt. In this realm, you’ll find three different choices of ERP software for small business: Cloud-based, on-premise, and open source. Let’s compare them.

Cloud-Based vs. On-Premise

A cloud ERP may well be a gift from above for many who are already dedicating their computing resources to other things. It’s a flexible option that is hosted on another place far, far away. But is it really advantageous?

Cloud-based systems require much lower initial investment than on-premise ERPs. The implementation time is nearly zero compared to how long it would take you to work out the kinks with a system that you install on-location and you don’t run the risk of needing IT experts to come in and implement the system for you.

However, in the long term, an on-premise installation will lead to lower costs of operation, despite the higher premium on the price tag. You’ll still have to pay for some maintenance, but it’s really not comparable to the amount you have to pay for cloud-based implementations. On-premise software works wonders on internet connection outages, which would otherwise interrupt all operations until the connection is back.

Remember, with on-premise ERP, you’re responsible for your own backups, disaster recovery, and updates. Control over your data and resources is a luxury in itself that comes at a cost.

Let’s have a look at a few companies that offer both cloud and on-premise solutions:

• Acumatica - Perhaps the most flexible ERP software for small businesses out there, Acumatica offers a wide variety of different packages, such as financial management, customer management (CRM), distribution management, project accounting, intercompany accounting, and fixed assets management. Its product scales as you grow, allowing you to add more components on top of what you already have whenever you need them. Deployment is available in three forms: SaaS, SOP (pay-as-you-go on-site deployment), and perpetual (one-time investment and a license ‘till death do you part). Its software has been particularly designed to cater to the needs of smaller organizations, in contrast to other companies that just shave features off of their clunky ERPs that they would normally offer to larger clients. The muscle behind its software comes from years of working strictly to satisfy the demands of organizations looking to slim down their redundancies and serve their customes more efficiently. Acumatica is also particularly advantageous if you have an e-commerce site.
• Microsoft Dynamics - One of the most well-known ERPs, Microsoft Dynamics offers two one-size-fits-all solutions: one for large organizations, and one for small- and medium-sized businesses. It has two options: You can either opt for a cloud-based solution or haul some cash up front for its permanent license. Microsoft Dynamics includes workflow and financial management, as well as CRM.
• SAP Business One - This is by far the easiest ERP solution to implement from SAP. Their lightweight software captures crucial business information and automates end-to-end processes, taking some weight off your shoulders and allowing you to direct your focus in other areas. It comes with a mobile app that you and your employees can use to access the platform from any place. As far as SAP’s solutions go, this is the quickest to implement, taking anywhere from two to eight weeks. The platform is highly customizable with over 550 different add-ons, each adding functionality and powering up your business. If you’re looking for mobility, flexibility, and light functionality, SAP Business One is going to make you smile.

Open Source vs. Everything Else

If you’re looking for something you don’t even have to pay a dime for, open source is the way to go. If you’ve ever used Libre Office, Google Chrome, or Android, you have already had a taste of what this kind of software can bring.

With open source ERP, you’re the sheriff. Everything is yours to toy and tinker with. Some may ask for a price, but it usually isn’t anywhere near the ballpark you’d be looking at with proprietary ERPs. And that’s about the extent of all the benefits of open source ERPs. There really isn’t much to say except for the fact that it can be easily personalized and costs nothing (or nearly nothing).

As for the disadvantages, open source packages can have many. There is so much diversity in open ERP software for small businesses that it is really difficult to gauge everything that can go wrong. Despite this, I can still safely make some broad statements about what you’ll experience in most open platforms.

First off, open products aren’t as mature or well-maintained as the proprietary ones. Vendors are often too small to deal with high demands for technical support, so don’t expect someone to answer the phone at 2 AM. Implementation might also be complex and difficult. The interface is also not as intuitive in such solutions.

Still, you may find a few open ERPs that excel above the rest and are nearly as great as the cloud-based and on-premise proprietary ERPs. Here are two that I found:

• OpenERP - Forget about having one ERP. Why not have two, or 10, or 200? OpenERP offers a wide variety of different ERP components that fit like pieces of a puzzle into your business in one way or another. You can choose anything from invoicing to point of sale, to a social network, or a full-blown CRM. They are one of the few open source ERPs that offer cloud-based setups as well as on-premise.
• erpNext - If you’re looking for something a bit on the simpler side, you can use erpNext, which includes account management, CRM, HR management, manufacturing, and many other features that cover a very elementary set of ERP principles. See for yourself in their demo.

Making The Right Choice

Even with all this advice, choosing the right ERP will still be a challenge. Hopefully, I have narrowed the search down for you, showing you the cream of the crop in this confusing world of business management software. It’s time you look into an ERP that keeps your business relevant and efficient in an ever-changing and aggressive market.

You Might be Surprised at the Current State of Independent Workers

Call them freelancers, self-employed or independent - people who work for themselves have been the subject of much debate since the Great Recession hit five years ago. Are today’s independent workers entrepreneurs, or just people who can’t get jobs and are forced to fend for themselves?

The 3rd annual MBO Partners State of Independence Report (PDF) shows that by and large - it’s the former.

Far from pining for traditional jobs, independent workers in the in-depth survey generally report being highly satisfied with their lives, and few have any desire to return to traditional employment. In addition, more independents than previously believed are “job creators,” who hire other independent workers to help them.

No wonder that the number of independent workers is expected to keep soaring in the next 10 years.

Self-Image and Satisfaction

Independents in the study run the gamut from Millennials to 80-year-olds and are fairly evenly divided among men and women. While all age groups are generally happy with their work, the older the independents are, the more satisfied they are likely to be.

How independents view themselves has a lot to do with their level of satisfaction. The study asked independent workers how they describe themselves and found some key differences:

Millennials

They are more likely to self-describe as a freelancer, creative professional or temporary worker. Millennials are less likely to say they’re self-employed or business owners.

Gen Xers

They are more likely to label themselves creative professionals and independent contractor/professional services.

Baby Boomers

They are more likely to self-describe as self-employed or business owners. They are less likely to describe themselves as freelancers, temporary workers or creative professionals.

Matures

They are more likely to say they are consultants or self-employed. They are less likely to self-describe as freelancers or temporary workers.

Those who describe themselves as business owners or self-employed are most likely to be satisfied with their work - 75 percent of those who describe themselves as business owners and 69 percent of the self-employed are highly satisfied, compared to 64 percent of independents overall.

By contrast, just 17 percent of those who describe themselves as temporary workers are highly satisfied. No wonder 79 percent of temp workers plan to look for traditional jobs, compared to 31 percent of independent contractors and 25 percent of freelancers.

Just 16 percent of self-employed people and only 9 percent of business owners express any interest in traditional employment. Clearly, having control over your schedule, time and work - as opposed to being handed assignments by an agency - is a big driver of satisfaction.

Independent Workers Are Growing Strong

Currently there are 17.7 million independents in the U.S., up 5 percent from 2012 and 10 percent from 2011 (the first year the study was conducted). MBO Partners predicts by 2018, the number of independents will grow to 24 million and by 2020, about half of the U.S. workforce will have spent some time as independent workers.

While independents may be viewed as solopreneurs, they don’t always work alone. In fact, the study found that 25 percent of independents hire other independents via contracting, spending $96 billion overall and an average of $8,500 per independent outsourcing work. Men are more likely than women to outsource work to others.

In addition, independents are big contributors to the U.S. economy. Nearly 10 million households receive at least half their income from independents, and this year independent workers generated nearly $1.2 trillion in total income - an increase of 20 percent over 2012. That number is set to grow, as one in seven independents (nearly 2.5 million people) plan to launch larger businesses.

Why Be Independent?

Female independents are more likely to choose independent work because they want more control over their time and schedules, while men are more likely to say they want control over their work. In general, however, most independents say they chose this work style to gain control over their lives and be able to determine when and where they work and what type of work they do.

Nearly two-thirds (64 percent) of independents rate their satisfaction as very high (8-10 on a 10-point scale) and 20 percent rate it a 10. Independents say the biggest disadvantage of independent work is lack of a predictable income (57 percent), while 38 percent cite lack of benefits. However, the benefits of being independent, including controlling one’s own schedule (cited by 66 percent) and more flexibility (61 percent), far outweigh the disadvantages.

When all age groups in the study are considered, the average independent has been working this way for over 10 years. Clearly, independence isn’t a short-term response to the Great Recession - but a long-term way of life and work.

Independently Employed Photo via Shutterstock

Twitter Begins Trading on New York Stock Exchange

You’ve heard all the hubbub. Now the big day has arrived and Twitter stock is now available. Twitter began trading publicly on the New York Stock Exchange at 9:30 a.m. under the ticker TWTR. Yesterday, the company announced that it had officially priced its IPO.

Twitter says it hopes to sell 70,000,000 shares of its common stock at a price of $26 per share. That would allow Twitter to raise about $1.8 billion in capital.

It’s fair to say the Twitter IPO has been highly anticipated. But what does it mean for users, and more particularly small businesses?

What the Twitter Stock IPO Means

Well, at first blush, nothing. If you’re a small business person or entrepreneur using social media to market your business or network, you’ll go right on doing what you always have.

The new capitalization may even give the company the ability to invest in additional features that will improve the experience. And certainly, Twitter stock would seem to be an indication that Twitter is here to stay.

More Advertising Likely

Of course, more investors mean the need for more profits, most probably through advertising, reports USA Today. Clearly, Twitter hasn’t waited for an IPO to start generating profits in this area.

The company has already introduced promoted and targeted tweets to allow brands, and sometimes unexpectedly customers, to have a greater voice. The company also announced plans to acquire MoPub, a mobile ad exchange startup, for $350 million earlier this year.

All of this could theoretically offer small businesses more opportunity to target messages that reach their audiences effectively.

Of course, there is also the fear that, as with Facebook, Twitter may start charging for the social reach Twitter users once were able to obtain for free.

In the end, the IPO suggests Twitter will be a major communications force and so a major way to communicate with customers, clients and partners for some time to come.

Bird Photo via Shutterstock

Top 10 CRM Tools For Small Business and Tips To Find The One For You

Every business, small and large, needs to have some method to keep track of, and manage, their customers and contacts. While for some small businesses using a simple contact manager is sufficient, many find that those lack the additional bells and whistles that allow them to create better interaction between their business and customers or potential customers. This is where a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system comes into play and here is a list of the Top 10 CRM tools for small business.

There are a number of CRM systems on the market, all with many of the same essential tools to manage your customers and communications you have with them, but each sporting and offering little ‘extras’ to take your business to the next level. Here are some key things to consider when choosing a CRM for your business:

• Does the CRM fit your business wants and needs? Because each small business is so different, what extras you’ll want will differ and you should concentrate on finding a system that offers the extras you want to manage your customer base.
• Is the system intuitive and easy to use? As with any software, if the system you choose is not intuitive and easy to use, you will either spend exuberant amounts of time trying to set-up and learn the system or even worse, you won’t use it at all.
• Does the system integrate with your other software and processes? Many CRM systems have the ability to integrate with other business tools and systems. Find one that works with your existing tools to make the process more simple for you and your employees.

Managing your customers and the communications you have with them allows you the ability to better connect and provide a more personal experience. It streamlines the marketing process for your business and opens a number of opportunities to ‘touch’ your customers and create more sales opportunities.

Top 10 CRM Tools For Small Business and Tips To Find The One For You

Every business, small and large, needs to have some method to keep track of, and manage, their customers and contacts. While for some small businesses using a simple contact manager is sufficient, many find that those lack the additional bells and whistles that allow them to create better interaction between their business and customers or potential customers. This is where a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system comes into play and here is a list of the Top 10 CRM tools for small business.

There are a number of CRM systems on the market, all with many of the same essential tools to manage your customers and communications you have with them, but each sporting and offering little ‘extras’ to take your business to the next level. Here are some key things to consider when choosing a CRM for your business:

• Does the CRM fit your business wants and needs? Because each small business is so different, what extras you’ll want will differ and you should concentrate on finding a system that offers the extras you want to manage your customer base.
• Is the system intuitive and easy to use? As with any software, if the system you choose is not intuitive and easy to use, you will either spend exuberant amounts of time trying to set-up and learn the system or even worse, you won’t use it at all.
• Does the system integrate with your other software and processes? Many CRM systems have the ability to integrate with other business tools and systems. Find one that works with your existing tools to make the process more simple for you and your employees.

Managing your customers and the communications you have with them allows you the ability to better connect and provide a more personal experience. It streamlines the marketing process for your business and opens a number of opportunities to ‘touch’ your customers and create more sales opportunities.

What Happens When A Blogger Dies?

Recently two bloggers I know passed away.  I never met either of them in real life.  The only dealings I had with them were online.  I guess today, in a world of Facebook and Twitter, communicating with someone long distance and online for years qualifies you to be their “friend”  - or at least an online friend.

This article is part eulogy for the two people I knew.  And it is part an examination of how we honor and remember our online friends when they die, in the age of blogs and social media.

It’s surprising how well you can get to know people solely through interactions online.  You learn about their character by whether they follow through on commitments, and by the small things they do for people without expecting anything in return.  Little bits of personality come through in everything a person writes.   If you eventually meet your online friends in real life, it adds another dimension to the relationships.

And what happens when a blogger dies â€" then how do we honor our online friend?  Let’s take a look at two situations I have encountered in just the past three weeks.

RIP: Wayne Hurlbert of Blog Business World

Wayne Hurlbert, the proprietor of Blog Business World, died unexpectedly on October 14, 2013.

Wayne was one of the kindest people you will ever encounter.  He was among the first “business bloggers” I met, back in 2004 when business blogging was a new and unique thing.  He started his site around the same time that I started Small Business Trends - more than 10 years ago.

I met him through online events that bloggers organized, called blog carnivals. Blog carnivals are roundups of interesting blog posts from across the Web on a certain topic.

Wayne was a man of many interests.  I remember him telling me once that he grew up on a farm in Manitoba, Canada.  In the age of the Web, he was able to start and run a search marketing business from his home.

He was quite a communicator with varied interests.  Along with his  business blog, Wayne also authored a comedy blog and a roller derby blog.  He had been involved in the roller derby business. He also was one of the first hosts on the then-new BlogTalkRadio network.  For seven years he ran a talk radio show, right up until he passed on.  In later years, he reviewed business books on his site and on his radio show.

Wayne was all about being real.  He was straight forward in his dealings.  You always knew where he stood â€" there was nothing going on under the surface.  He was skilled in marketing, but he wasn’t about self-promotion. Very self-effacing and modest, was Wayne. One of the common threads through all the online comments about Wayne was how modest and kind he was.

My big regret with Wayne is that I fell out of touch, and never had the chance to circle back with him before he passed on.  I thought of him out of the blue a few days before he died.  Don’t ask me why â€" he just popped into my mind one day as I was out cycling.  Maybe it was pure coincidence â€" or maybe it was a premonition (if you believe in those things).  I made a mental note to touch base with him. Regrettably, I waited too long.  The next thing I knew Paul Chaney, another online friend, had sent around an email announcing the sad news of Wayne’s untimely death.

Lesson learned: don’t wait to reach out to someone â€" whether an “online friend,” a lonely shut-in, a neighbor in need, a true friend, or a loved one.  Unexpected things happen. They â€" or you â€" may not have much time left.

What the Online Community of Friends Did Next

When there’s a death, a family member usually steps up and tells the online community.

And that’s what happened here.  Wayne’s sister let people know on Facebook.  It doesn’t take much - soon the word spreads.  Later we learned that Wayne died of a massive heart attack, and was found slumped over this computer.

The online community stepped in to honor Wayne.  I saw a dozen or more blog posts in remembrance, and many more comments. There were literally hundreds of remembrances via social media. Alan Levy, the Founder of BlogTalkRadio.com did a tribute show, including Toby Bloomberg, a good online friend of Wayne’s, who also wrote a tribute, and Blog Bloke, who also wrote a tribute. Paul Chaney shared information about a memorial fund on Facebook.

There was at least one Twitter chat that honored Wayne using his name as a hashtag for that event.  It turns out that Wayne often participated in chats.

You can follow many the online remembrances for @WayneHurlbert  by searching Twitter.

Wayne’s Blog Business World website is hosted on the free Blogger platform. I am hopeful that it will remain online indefinitely as a memorial to Wayne’s memory.

RIP: Ed of Blawg Review

“Ed” â€" short for Editor â€" was the long-time anonymous Editor of Blawg Review.  I didn’t know Ed as well as I knew Wayne â€" my dealings were fewer and more sporadic.  But I had just as much respect for Ed.

Rare are people who dedicate as much time and effort to the online community as Ed.  In his case, it was the community of lawyers, judges and law professors â€" the writers of law blogs, also known as blawgs.

Ed created a site and weekly event called Blawg Review.  Blawg Review was a carnival of law-related blog posts for the week.

Mark Bennett, a lawyer who blogs at Defending People, summarizes what Ed did and what happened next:

“From April 11, 2005 (Evan Schaeffer’s Blawg Review #1) to July 2, 2012 (Paul Kennedy’s Blawg Review #324) “Ed.,” the anony­mous edi­tor of Blawg Review, mid­wifed into exis­tence a weekly (for the first six years, inter­mit­tent after that) “blog car­ni­val,” in which one law blog­ger or another, host­ing on his or her blog, gath­ered inter­est­ing law blog posts from the pre­vi­ous week and con­nected them together in a post with a theme of the blogger’s choice.

The blaw­gos­phere learned this week that Ed had died of esophageal cancer.”

Ed’s son announced it on the BlawgReview Twitter feed, in a series of 140 character tweets about his father.  I’ve strung all the tweeted messages together so you can read the entire thing:

“Dear Blawg Review Community, I am the son of Ed, writing today with a heavy heart, to inform you of his passing after a courageous battle with esophageal cancer. I believe it would have been his wish for Ed to remain anonymous - and so I will respect those wishes. I would like to thank each of you for bringing joy to Ed’s life as part of this online community. There was nothing my father enjoyed more than debating the philosophies, merits, and impacts of laws around the world - sharing opinions… and celebrating the discourse you helped create here at Blawg Review.

- Ed’s loving son”

How the Online Legal Community Honored Ed

Here again, people wrote blog posts paying tribute to him.

Twelve lawyers decided to do a final 12-part Blawg Review in his honor, also, and to permanently bring closure to Blawg Review.  You can start here and just following the links at the end of each post, to read  this final 12-part Blawg Review “blow out.”

One of the lawyer-authors even linked to every one of the 324 Blawg Review Editions. That way, if the BlawgReview.com site went away, a record would be preserved for posterity.

I’ll forever be grateful to Ed for including Small Business Trends to host several Blawg Reviews.  It was a leap of faith for Ed to choose us, because it was a bit of a stretch, topic-wise.

While I used to practice law back in the day, this site is and always has been about business.  Even when I practiced law, business was top of mind. I spent most of my career as a corporate attorney in-house.   These days I run an online publishing company where I can be a business news junkie to my heart’s content.

But I loved and still love reading blawgs to discover new legal developments.  I find many law bloggers to be erudite and articulate. Most have incisive minds.  Many are courageous and fearlessly spread the word of what they believe in â€" whether it is the constitution or intellectual property law.  Hosting and reading blawg reviews became a fascinating past time.

To most of us, Ed was anonymous.  He was always just Ed.  Yet his identity became a small (OK, tiny) cause celebre online.  Matt Homann of the [Non]Billable Hour speculated on his identity, with several denials following.  Kevin O’Keefe, the founder of LexBlog, at one point years ago wrote several articles wondering why the secrecy.

Some who questioned Ed’s anonymity got past their initial concerns about his motives, but some never did.  I think Ed’s motive for anonymity was simply that he didn’t want to grab the limelight.

Regardless of who he was, the online community took the time to remember Ed.  Dozens of remembrances can be found via this Twitter search for BlawgReview.

Our Condolences

Our condolences to the family and close friends of Wayne and Ed, who may run across this article.  In ways you may never realize, your loved ones touched our lives and changed us for the better.

Wayne and Ed â€" we miss you.

What Happens When A Blogger Dies?

Recently two bloggers I know passed away.  I never met either of them in real life.  The only dealings I had with them were online.  I guess today, in a world of Facebook and Twitter, communicating with someone long distance and online for years qualifies you to be their “friend”  - or at least an online friend.

This article is part eulogy for the two people I knew.  And it is part an examination of how we honor and remember our online friends when they die, in the age of blogs and social media.

It’s surprising how well you can get to know people solely through interactions online.  You learn about their character by whether they follow through on commitments, and by the small things they do for people without expecting anything in return.  Little bits of personality come through in everything a person writes.   If you eventually meet your online friends in real life, it adds another dimension to the relationships.

And what happens when a blogger dies â€" then how do we honor our online friend?  Let’s take a look at two situations I have encountered in just the past three weeks.

RIP: Wayne Hurlbert of Blog Business World

Wayne Hurlbert, the proprietor of Blog Business World, died unexpectedly on October 14, 2013.

Wayne was one of the kindest people you will ever encounter.  He was among the first “business bloggers” I met, back in 2004 when business blogging was a new and unique thing.  He started his site around the same time that I started Small Business Trends - more than 10 years ago.

I met him through online events that bloggers organized, called blog carnivals. Blog carnivals are roundups of interesting blog posts from across the Web on a certain topic.

Wayne was a man of many interests.  I remember him telling me once that he grew up on a farm in Manitoba, Canada.  In the age of the Web, he was able to start and run a search marketing business from his home.

He was quite a communicator with varied interests.  Along with his  business blog, Wayne also authored a comedy blog and a roller derby blog.  He had been involved in the roller derby business. He also was one of the first hosts on the then-new BlogTalkRadio network.  For seven years he ran a talk radio show, right up until he passed on.  In later years, he reviewed business books on his site and on his radio show.

Wayne was all about being real.  He was straight forward in his dealings.  You always knew where he stood â€" there was nothing going on under the surface.  He was skilled in marketing, but he wasn’t about self-promotion. Very self-effacing and modest, was Wayne. One of the common threads through all the online comments about Wayne was how modest and kind he was.

My big regret with Wayne is that I fell out of touch, and never had the chance to circle back with him before he passed on.  I thought of him out of the blue a few days before he died.  Don’t ask me why â€" he just popped into my mind one day as I was out cycling.  Maybe it was pure coincidence â€" or maybe it was a premonition (if you believe in those things).  I made a mental note to touch base with him. Regrettably, I waited too long.  The next thing I knew Paul Chaney, another online friend, had sent around an email announcing the sad news of Wayne’s untimely death.

Lesson learned: don’t wait to reach out to someone â€" whether an “online friend,” a lonely shut-in, a neighbor in need, a true friend, or a loved one.  Unexpected things happen. They â€" or you â€" may not have much time left.

What the Online Community of Friends Did Next

When there’s a death, a family member usually steps up and tells the online community.

And that’s what happened here.  Wayne’s sister let people know on Facebook.  It doesn’t take much - soon the word spreads.  Later we learned that Wayne died of a massive heart attack, and was found slumped over this computer.

The online community stepped in to honor Wayne.  I saw a dozen or more blog posts in remembrance, and many more comments. There were literally hundreds of remembrances via social media. Alan Levy, the Founder of BlogTalkRadio.com did a tribute show, including Toby Bloomberg, a good online friend of Wayne’s, who also wrote a tribute, and Blog Bloke, who also wrote a tribute. Paul Chaney shared information about a memorial fund on Facebook.

There was at least one Twitter chat that honored Wayne using his name as a hashtag for that event.  It turns out that Wayne often participated in chats.

You can follow many the online remembrances for @WayneHurlbert  by searching Twitter.

Wayne’s Blog Business World website is hosted on the free Blogger platform. I am hopeful that it will remain online indefinitely as a memorial to Wayne’s memory.

RIP: Ed of Blawg Review

“Ed” â€" short for Editor â€" was the long-time anonymous Editor of Blawg Review.  I didn’t know Ed as well as I knew Wayne â€" my dealings were fewer and more sporadic.  But I had just as much respect for Ed.

Rare are people who dedicate as much time and effort to the online community as Ed.  In his case, it was the community of lawyers, judges and law professors â€" the writers of law blogs, also known as blawgs.

Ed created a site and weekly event called Blawg Review.  Blawg Review was a carnival of law-related blog posts for the week.

Mark Bennett, a lawyer who blogs at Defending People, summarizes what Ed did and what happened next:

“From April 11, 2005 (Evan Schaeffer’s Blawg Review #1) to July 2, 2012 (Paul Kennedy’s Blawg Review #324) “Ed.,” the anony­mous edi­tor of Blawg Review, mid­wifed into exis­tence a weekly (for the first six years, inter­mit­tent after that) “blog car­ni­val,” in which one law blog­ger or another, host­ing on his or her blog, gath­ered inter­est­ing law blog posts from the pre­vi­ous week and con­nected them together in a post with a theme of the blogger’s choice.

The blaw­gos­phere learned this week that Ed had died of esophageal cancer.”

Ed’s son announced it on the BlawgReview Twitter feed, in a series of 140 character tweets about his father.  I’ve strung all the tweeted messages together so you can read the entire thing:

“Dear Blawg Review Community, I am the son of Ed, writing today with a heavy heart, to inform you of his passing after a courageous battle with esophageal cancer. I believe it would have been his wish for Ed to remain anonymous - and so I will respect those wishes. I would like to thank each of you for bringing joy to Ed’s life as part of this online community. There was nothing my father enjoyed more than debating the philosophies, merits, and impacts of laws around the world - sharing opinions… and celebrating the discourse you helped create here at Blawg Review.

- Ed’s loving son”

How the Online Legal Community Honored Ed

Here again, people wrote blog posts paying tribute to him.

Twelve lawyers decided to do a final 12-part Blawg Review in his honor, also, and to permanently bring closure to Blawg Review.  You can start here and just following the links at the end of each post, to read  this final 12-part Blawg Review “blow out.”

One of the lawyer-authors even linked to every one of the 324 Blawg Review Editions. That way, if the BlawgReview.com site went away, a record would be preserved for posterity.

I’ll forever be grateful to Ed for including Small Business Trends to host several Blawg Reviews.  It was a leap of faith for Ed to choose us, because it was a bit of a stretch, topic-wise.

While I used to practice law back in the day, this site is and always has been about business.  Even when I practiced law, business was top of mind. I spent most of my career as a corporate attorney in-house.   These days I run an online publishing company where I can be a business news junkie to my heart’s content.

But I loved and still love reading blawgs to discover new legal developments.  I find many law bloggers to be erudite and articulate. Most have incisive minds.  Many are courageous and fearlessly spread the word of what they believe in â€" whether it is the constitution or intellectual property law.  Hosting and reading blawg reviews became a fascinating past time.

To most of us, Ed was anonymous.  He was always just Ed.  Yet his identity became a small (OK, tiny) cause celebre online.  Matt Homann of the [Non]Billable Hour speculated on his identity, with several denials following.  Kevin O’Keefe, the founder of LexBlog, at one point years ago wrote several articles wondering why the secrecy.

Some who questioned Ed’s anonymity got past their initial concerns about his motives, but some never did.  I think Ed’s motive for anonymity was simply that he didn’t want to grab the limelight.

Regardless of who he was, the online community took the time to remember Ed.  Dozens of remembrances can be found via this Twitter search for BlawgReview.

Our Condolences

Our condolences to the family and close friends of Wayne and Ed, who may run across this article.  In ways you may never realize, your loved ones touched our lives and changed us for the better.

Wayne and Ed â€" we miss you.

AT&T Abandons Voice Minutes for Unlimited Calling But…

If you use your smartphone to place a lot of calls for business, here’s some potentially good news. AT&T is eliminating voice minutes from most of its future plans, offering unlimited voice calls and texting instead.

But that’s only because AT&T and other major carriers know the real wave of the future isn’t in voice calls at all, but in data transfer.

AT&T was the last holdout among major U.S. mobile carriers. Only one AT&T plan remains that still offers the voice minutes option. Sprint, Verizon and T-Mobile have already made similar moves, offering unlimited calling and texting to all or most customers.

U.S. carriers have figured out they can make much more money on data transfer fees than on charging for calls and texts, the Wall Street Journal reports. This is when you use your smartphone more like a mini computer to search the Web and do things online than like a communications device.

AT&T noted a 17.6 percent increase in revenue on data and a 5.1 percent increase in wireless revenue as part of its report on third quarter earnings recently. Meanwhile, voice, text and other services saw a 2.6 percent drop over the same period.

The increased popularity of data transfer can be seen in AT&T data shared from a recent World Series game in St. Louis. While AT&T says fans placed about 18,000 voice calls and sent about 61,000 text messages, the real action was in data transfer.

There AT&T noted fans had used 173GB of data during the game. To put that into perspective, AT&T says it would be the equivalent of sending 494,000 social media updates with photos or listening to more than 5,700 hours of streaming online music.

The news that AT&T has followed other major carriers in offering unlimited calling on most plans may be great for businesses that use their phones mainly for voice calls. Just be sure to check the data transfer charges on your plan. That’s where carriers will be making their money in the future.

Image: Wikipedia