Outsourced Product Development Gaining Popularity Among Small Businesses

A great product idea alone is no guarantee of success for an entrepreneur. The time taken to develop a product and take it to market within reasonable costs is a key aspect.

Steve Owens, a serial entrepreneur with more than 20 years of experience, was always frustrated by how long it took to put good product development teams together and bring a product to market. And each time, he had to incur fixed costs for setting up the infrastructure and developing the product. All this reduced the flexibility and risk-taking ability of his startups and got him thinking.

To provide a solution to these problems for his fellow entrepreneurs, in 2002 Steve started a product development service company Finish Line Product Development Services. Finish Line develops technology products for small companies in the down hole tool and machine-to-machine (M2M)/Internet of Things (IoT) technology markets.

Finish Line’s pricing model is economical and well suited for small businesses running on low budgets and time constraints. It charges only for the hours they work on the project and provides written estimates for each phase of the project. Typically, their customers are able to break even on their investment in less than a year from product launch, and sometimes just a few months.

Its overarching strategy is to develop products for small businesses where they have a very high degree of existing expertise and reference designs. This strategy allows them to develop the product for significantly less cost than its customers can in-house.

Using proven processes and creative solutions, Finish Line converts product ideas into innovative and cost-effective products. It has technical expertise in low power, long life battery operated devices, RF communications, low cost wireless sensing and communications products, machine controllers, motion control, and power solutions. It caters to product development challenges in a wide range of industries including oil and gas, industrial and manufacturing, electronics and controllers, and healthcare and life sciences.

In addition to these segments, it also offers specialized services in niche technology areas like low-cost RF communications, remote monitoring, industrial controls, and Internet connectivity.

Since inception, Finish Line has worked on more than a thousand projects for more than 200 small companies. It has also incubated two startups, WellTronics and EnerTrac. WellTronics, which provides cost effective technology solutions like FloDrift to the oil and gas drilling industry, was sold to National Oilwell Varco.

EnerTrac, a provider of propane tank delivery automation systems and leader in the rapidly growing M2M market, with annual revenue of more than $2 million has raised more than $8 million from three venture capitalists.

As its clients have grown, so has Finish Line. Revenues are now a little more than one million dollars a year.

Steve says Finish Line does not have a clear direct competitor in its niche. Though there are several other product development companies, unlike Finish Line, they are restricted to narrower technologies and platforms. The main challenge or competition it faces is from potential client companies hiring their own engineers.

Outsourcing product development (OPD) is proving to be a sensible strategy for staying ahead of competition and ensuring timely product releases. Other factors driving its adoption are the lack of talent at a single location, lower costs for better quality, and higher business flexibility.

According to a recent Gartner report, the global IT outsourcing market is expected to increase 2.8% over the year to reach $288 billion in 2013. For the R&D/product engineering services market, a recent IDC report forecasts that customers will increase their outsourcing spend in 2014 for these services and the market will reach approximately $66.2 billion in 2017.

Further, IDC forecasts fairly robust growth in the long term as technology product customers continue to move away from a labor arbitrage approach and award long term outsourcing contracts for their product development, engineering and innovation work to outsourcing vendors.

Overall, the OPD trend is gaining speed in the small business sector. For a long time, we’ve seen the trend develop very well in the software industry with companies like Persistent, Symphony, Globant, etc. Now, the trend is crossing over to a broader realm of hardware, manufacturing, etc. More specifically, into the domain of small, innovative companies.

Product Development Photo via Shutterstock

Microsoft’s Cortana Set To Rival Siri and Google Now

Microsoft is set to introduce its own personal digital assistant very soon. ”Her” name is Cortana. According to several reports, this service will be added to the Windows Phone 8.1 update in the next month or two.

If its launch is successful, Cortana could become a competitor to Apple’s Siri and even Google Now in the realm of digital assistants. These are services that can answer random questions, maintain your personal and work schedules, and even send you reminders of upcoming meetings or other deadlines.

Microsoft may not be completely sold on the name Cortana, though, according to The Verge. It could change by the time the update is released. Cortana, by the way, is the name of a female character [pictured below] in the video game Halo 5, another Microsoft product.

Microsoft’s new digital assistant will not appear as a female, as she does in the popular game. Instead, an animated circle appears when you request Cortana’s assistance. The circle spins while Cortana is listening to your questions and animates when it’s replying. Microsoft also claims it will develop a personality as its services are used more.

IGN details how Cortana will work. The features are essentially similar to Siri and Google Now. Cortana will use Web searches through Bing to provide answers to your questions. It will be able to be set up to address you as you’d like and it will also be able to be customized to scan emails for contacts and other scheduling information. That data will be stored in a Notebook that can be accessed later by you or Cortana.

Media reports suggest a recent investment in Foursquare by Microsoft indicates that Cortana may use a lot of location-based data to provide more pertinent information to you when you ask a question.

Another feature will be a personal notification system, IGN reports.

Here’s a leaked video supposedly showing Cortana being set up on Windows Phone 8.1:

Small business owners may be unimpressed with the geek factor connected to Microsoft naming a virtual assistant after a video game character. But Cortana could offer many features to rival Siri or Google Now for the dedicated Microsoft user.

Image: Video Still/Wikipedia

Looking for A US Manufacturer? Are Chinese Prices No Longer Cheap?

On the last episode of Shark Tank one businesses story was that China was no longer the low cost oasis that it used to be. When you add in the incidents of inferior quality which has happened at times - more and more executives are choosing to use USA based manufacturers.

For companies who need manufacturing and want to find a us based manufacturer a ’hidden gem’ is ThomasNet.com. See more information about ThomasNet below

Whether entrepreneurs are looking for contract manufacturers, parts and components,packaging, promotional products, or distribution partners, ThomasNet.com is a central resource for finding everything they need. It’s also a platform for them to grow their businesses by connecting with large organizations that need their products and services.

For example, Spanx founder Sara Blakely, one of the world’s youngest self-made female billionaires, went to ThomasNet.com to find potential U.S. manufacturing partners. From there, she cold called them and visited their mills until she found a company who believed in her idea, and the rest is history.

Another example is Mompreneur Tina Gelhausen, The Quick Split, LLC, who developed small rotary cutters with covers that mothers can tuck into a bag and carry into a restaurant to neatly cut food into small pieces for their children. She used ThomasNet.com to help find manufacturers of plastic and steel products.

Once they’ve started their businesses, these companies can gain another advantage by being featured on ThomasNet.com, too. Manufacturers, distributors and service providers can post detailed information on their companies for free at http://promoteyourbusiness.thomasnet.com/free-profile/.  In addition, many of these buyers need to meet supplier diversity requirements and want to work with small and disadvantaged businesses.

What advantages can a business gain by utilizing North American manufacturers/suppliers?

For many businesses, working with North American manufacturers and suppliers provides a marketing advantage. Over the past two years or so, we’ve been seeing buyers actively seeking out Made in America products. We surfaced this in our Industry Market Barometer research on thegrowth of the manufacturing sector in 2012, when we saw companies taking business back from countries like China. Usage of ThomasNet.com is going up, too, and we believe that this is a driving factor. U.S. manufacturers have built new efficiencies into their processes that enable them to provide quality products at very competitive costs. This eliminates the incentive for prospective buyers to look elsewhere.

Many small companies are taking advantage of this trend. SpecCoat(SM), for example, is a small California company that coats printed circuit boards and heavily markets their Made in America quality. Acompany called Monkeyelectric, which builds LED lights for bicycles, found them on ThomasNet.com. They moved their manufacturing from overseas to the U.S., and they asked SpecCoat to do potting/encapsulating work for them because of this “US quality” focus.

It All Begins With Your LinkedIn Profile

LinkedIn is the best place for business professionals to post information about themselves, regardless of your discipline. As a business professional, regardless of what your function is, you need to be findable to those in your field.

And to be findable among 300 million other professionals will take some hard work -  but it is doable.

A good to great profile can make the difference between you getting your next client, consulting agreement or that elusive speaking gig. This is the place where you need to define and discuss the value you bring to your profession without hyperbole.

To become more findable by those who need your expertise, you need to address the top elements of your LinkedIn profile, in order of importance.

Photo

This is the first thing people gravitate to as we are all visual beings. A professional looking photo of you smiling is usually best.

Nobody needs to see your boat, your dog or your family - just you.

Headline

This is the tag line under your name and it is valuable real estate. The default mode is your current title.

A good tag line gets people to read your LinkedIn profile, just like a good email subject line gets people to read your email.

Name

This is your name. We have all seen people with email addresses, professional designations and more in the name field.

Use your name - just your name. Anything else is clutter.

Summary/Specialties

View this as your first conversation with your LinkedIn profile visitor. Make it an interesting conversation and talk about what you bring to the market.

The specialties (2nd part of the summary) is where you enumerate each of your skills. Use the jargon of your particular industry, that’s what people search on. There were 5.7 billion searches done on LinkedIn in 2012.

Experience

This is where you highlight your talent and expertise. Tell people what you do, what you’ve done, and what your small business does - make it interesting.

There are several other facets to your LinkedIn profile, but these are the biggies. Do these right and you will start attracting attention from the people you want attention from.

Your LinkedIn profile is always a work in progress. Check out OPP (other people’s profiles) and get some ideas on how to improve yours.

Remember, a good to great profile can make the difference between you and your next client, consulting agreement or that elusive speaking gig.

A bad profile is the difference between your next piece of work - and staying at home, watching daytime TV.

LinkedIn Photo via Shutterstock

More in: LinkedIn

HTTPS: not as secure as previously thought?

March 06, 2014

Tapping Gaussian functions to analyse which HTTPS pages are being accessed exposes website usage.

US Researchers have developed a methodology to effectively side step the security behind HTTPS-secured IP transmissions typically used for online banking, payments and other private sessions on the Web.

According to the researchers with the University of California, Berkeley - with support from Intel Labs - if someone has access to the secure Web site that a user is visiting, then they can use pattern analysis to derive what pages the user is visiting, and what data they are inputting.

The report - entitled `Risks and Realisation of HTTPS Traffic Analysis' by Brad Miller, Ling Huang, A. D. Joseph, and J. D. Tygar - suggests the use of Gaussian functions, which are widely used in statistics where they describe the normal distributions. With sufficient Gaussian functions - like venn diagrams - it is possible to derive specific data.

"Due to [the] similarity with the Bag-of-Words approach to document classification, we refer to our technique as Bag-of-Gaussians (BoG). This approach allows us to identify specific pages within a Web site, even when the pages have similar structures and shared resources," says the report.

According to Nigel Stanley, EO and analyst with Incoming Thought, the research paper makes for some interesting reading, but in order to execute this method of eavesdropping, the hacker would need have access to the user's ISP or corporate systems in order to analyse their `digital exhaust'.

"Quite frankly, if you have this level of access, there are other more simpler methods available," he said.

"Whilst it is interesting, people should not look at this paper and presume that HTTPS is no longer secure. It simply proves that - given enough time, research and resources - any system can be cracked," he added.

For their analysis, US and Intel researchers tested several Web sites in the banking, healthcare and entertainment sectors (eg Netflix) - and achieved 90 percent efficiencies when matching users to the Web pages they had accessed.

To counter the eavesdropping methodology, the researchers suggest that users should consider an electronic chaff technique called `burst padding' which involves the generation of random padding packets when no data is normally transmitted.

Stanley says this technique - security by obfuscation using extraneous data - is nothing new, and dates all the way back to the Second World War, when operators used to generate random noise on their circuits to confuse the enemy.

Mike McLaughlin, a senior pen tester and technical team leader with First Base Technologies, told SCMagazineUK.com that the techniques used by the researchers are quite fascinating and clearly involve a lot of work to conduct successfully.

"Since the technique requires ISP-level access, it's clear that there other simpler approaches that could be used," he said, adding that other techniques such as SSL stripping - first proposed several years back - would be a lot easier to use.

"Basically you would need access to the user's IP stream, and if you have that, then you could use a number of other techniques to work out which sites were being accessed," he explained.

Chinese cybercriminals buy ranking for malware Apps

March 06, 2014

Boosting an iPhone app into the top five of Apple's China app store costs around £5,800 says Trend Micro, while 10,000 android downloads cost £3.90.

Operating a business is all about effective planning and making the best use of the available resources to optimise efficiency - and according to a report from Trend Micro, this is exactly what Chinese cybercriminals are doing, and on an industrial scale.

According to the report - entitled `The Mobile Cybercriminal Underground Market in China' - Chinese cybercriminals are using advanced cellular technology to make their revenue extraction processes more efficient.

[Report URL: http://www.trendmicro.com/cloud-content/us/pdfs/security-intelligence/white-papers/wp-the-mobile-cybercriminal-underground-market-in-china.pdf ]

In his report, Lion Gu of Trend's Forward-Looking Threat Research Team, says that cybercriminals are using cellular number verification units that use pattern dialling to check whether a given number is active. Using units containing 16 SIM cards, the custom devices are capable of verifying several thousand numbers per hour.

A typical 16-slot GSM modem, says the report, sells for around £254 and can also generate up to 9,600 text messages per hour, for spam adverts, as well as tricking users into visiting malicious Web sites. The report also discusses the technology behind SMS forwarders - which are trojans designed to steal authentication or verification codes sent via text messages.

These custom Android apps monitor text messages sent from online payment service providers and banks, and intercept authentication or verification codes which are then forwarded to cybercriminals. Apple users, meanwhile, are also being targeted via iMessage spammers that are able to buy 1,000 spam services for under £10.00.

Perhaps the most intriguing services available on the Chinese dark Web are app-rank boosting services, which can promote a malicious app by creating several dummy accounts to download and write positive user reviews for it. Trend's report claims that, to boost an iPhone app into the top five of Apple's China app store costs around £5,800.

Android app store manipulation is a lot cheaper as cybercriminals will generate 10,000 downloads of a given app for as little as £3.90 using automated processes.

Like any other market, says Trend, the laws of supply and demand dictate prices and feature offerings. But what is more interesting to note, adds the report, is that recently prices have been going down.

China is not the only country where cybercriminal automation is taking off. Other countries include Brazil and Russia - which Trend says it has investigated in similar depth.

Commenting on the report, Michael Sutton, VP of Security Research with security vendor Zscaler, said that market for mobile malware is particularly strong in China as Android users commonly use third party app stores, rather than the official Google Play store.

"The more open nature of Android may be desirable for consumers, but it's also desirable for criminals. Criminals take advantage of the fact that Android permits apps to be installed from third party app stores, many of which do little to filter out content that may be malicious," he explained.

The mobile malware underground, says Sutton, is slowly maturing.

“As with the traditional malware scene, specialists are emerging who then sell or rent their services as opposed to trying to conduct the full attack independently,” he said.

Jaime Blasco, Director of open source security software specialist AlienVault's research operation, said that most of the profitable mobile malware out there is based on SMS premium services.

"Once banks started to add a second-factor authentication via SMS for transactions, we saw how cybercriminals started to create pieces of malware for Blackberry, Android and Windows phone to forward the text messages sent by the bank. One of the most famous ones is called Zitmo (Zeus in the mobile)," he added.

Professor John Walker, a Visiting Professor with Nottingham-Trent University's School of Science and Technology, said that advanced cybercriminal techniques - such as ones detailed in Trend's report - are often dismissed when experts first start talking about them.

"I well remember Winn Schwartau [author: Information Warfare: Chaos on the Electronic Superhighway 1994] standing up at a conference in the early 1990s and discussing cybercrime and cyber attacks. Everyone thought he was a little off-beam. History has subsequently proven him to be right. The problem is that, when IT thought leaders make new claims they tend to be shot down - when in fact organisations should be heeding the conclusions and taking steps to remediate the attack vectors being used," he said.

SmallBizLady Celebrates 15 Years with 15 Days of Giveaways for Small Business Owners

At Small Biz Technology, we always love to see examples of small business success - stories that prove if you are willing to work and give it all you have then you just might survive and thrive, even among the big guys. That’s why we’re excited to celebrate with Melinda Emerson as she reaches her 15th year in business.

Melinda Emerson is better known to the world as SmallBizLady, and in her 15 years she’s been quite busy. Her list of accomplishments include being the founder and president of Quintessence Group, a regular columnist for the New York Times, and a bestselling author of Become Your Own Boss in 12 Months.

What we also love about Melinda is her mission to give back to other small businesses. She provides many small business resources, such as her Twitter chat #Smallbizchat, her blog Succeed as Your Own Boss, and the Melinda F. Emerson Foundation which provides training materials for future entrepreneurs.

For her 15th year celebration, Melinda is at it again. She’s holding a huge event called 15 Days of Giveaways, where each business day she will be giving away prizes to help out small business owners. The prizes include:

• SmallBizLady Powerpacks including an autographed copy of her Become Your Own Boss Workbook
• SmallBizLady’s Social Media Ninja Kits including her e-book and audio CDs
• A 6-hour coaching session one-on-one with the SmallBizLady in Philadelphia
• A collection of her favorite business books
• A website redesign provided by Duda
• A Voyager Legend CS Bluetooth headset provided by Plantronics
• Google Chromecast
• A Toshiba CB30-A3120 Chromebook
• An all-expense paid trip to Infusionsoft’s conference ICON 2014 in Phoenix, AZ from April 23-25
• Up to 15 lines of VOIP phone service for 12 months provided by Nextiva
• A package to get your business online provided by GoDaddy, including 1 year of domain, WordPress hosting and more
• A NeatDesk Digital Filing System from Sam’s Club
• A Space-Save 10 Sheet Cross-Cut Shredder and a Vayder Technical Mesh Manager’s Chair from Staples
• A $250 gift card to The UPS Store
• A $250 eGift Certificate from Scan My Photos

Want a chance to win one of these prizes? Sign up for Melinda’s email list here. Each day you’ll get an email about the daily giveaway, including a special message that you have to post on Twitter and her Facebook fan page in order to get your name into the drawing.

The contest will run on business days only, from March 5-25, and each day you have between noon and 6pm EST to enter. Winners are randomly selected at the end of the day.

Congratulations to SmallBizLady for reaching the 15 year mark! And good luck to all the small business owners who enter to win these fabulous prizes.

Verizon Will Now Let You Roll Over Data Like You Once Rolled Over Minutes

Verizon Wireless has restructured its pre-paid phone and data pricing in plans called Allset Plans. It introduced these plans this week.

A pre-paid phone and data plan may not be the most ideal for all small businesses. Those looking to have more control over these costs, though, may find them a sensible option.

In an official announcement posted in the Verizon Wireless News Center, Albert Aydin, Verizon Wireless analyst for corporate communications, explains:

“Similar to modern smartphones, which have different features to fit individual mobile needs, there is no such thing as a “one size fits all” wireless plan. Many people have their own mobile lifestyles, so it’s important to have options in order to find the plan that fits best.”

The most basic Allset Plan starts at $35. The base price for a smartphone Allset Plan is $45. This plan includes unlimited calling within the U.S. and unlimited texting to Canada, Mexico and Puerto Rico.

With the base plan for smartphones, Verizon is including 500 MB of data. If you use up all that data in the month, you can buy more data in units called “bridges.”

Another 500 MB “bridge” costs $5. It has a 30-day expiration on it. So, if you start an Allset Plan on the first day of the month but need a small bridge by the 20th, for example, you’ll have until the 20th day of the following month to use it. That’s after you’ve used the original data included with the plan.

Bigger “bridges” last for 90 days, meaning you can actually roll over that data allotment past several billing cycles.

A 1GB “bridge” costs $10 and 3GB of data costs $20. But then that data will last you three months and can be added to the 500MB you get monthly with your basic plan. So if you buy data and don’t use it that month, you’re not wasting that money you’ve spent.

You can manage an Allset Plan account from an online dashboard, where you can add more data and renew your monthly plan, the company’s site notes.

Gigaom’s Kevin Fitchard reminds customers that Verizon restricts Allset Plan pre-paid users to the 3G network, even if your phone is 4G-enabled. And Verizon’s plan, including the data, isn’t on par with what some pre-paid competitors offer. However, the company has the most wide-ranging network so access to 3G is available to you in more locations.

While pre-paid plans usually limit you to some subpar smartphone options, Verizon will let you activate most devices you already own. You can also buy a new phone to accommodate these pre-paid plans, including an iPhone4 and Motorola Moto G, each at $99, according to the company site.

Verizon Photo via Shutterstock

Should You Trust A Startup With Your Data?

Everyone has challenges in securing their data. Big companies and small companies. What’s at least a little bit comforting is that big companies have teams and departments focused on managing and securing their enterprises.

The New York Times writes that for startups it’s more of a challenge. They’re strapped for funds and do not have the breadth of resources to secure their software.

What should small businesses do?

I love startups but for small business owners, it’s best to NOT dump your entire business into a startup. Give them a few years (or some reasonable amount of time) to mature, grow and use funding to enhance their security.

Two guys in a garage are awesome - but I don’t think you should let them hold your credit card data, personal customer data and etc.

The NY Times writes:

Government officials say the amount of data flowing through some young companies’ networks rivals what the government itself can collect. The danger, some officials note, is that government agencies have no jurisdiction to protect it, or even the ability to share classified threat information with the companies, leaving the onus to protect personal data from cybercriminals and nation-states upon the companies themselves.

BYOD - the hidden dangers

March 06, 2014

Amir Lehr asks, What happens when your mobile ends up in someone else's hands?

The thought of losing our mobile phone fills many of us with dread and fear. After all, we run our entire lives from these pocket devices. Gone are the days of using our mobile phones exclusively for making calls, sending text messages and light internet surfing. Now we keep all our personal information on them including text messages, contacts, emails, photographs and videos, birthdays, identification data and so much more. To find that you've forever lost a sentimental text message from your husband or an old photograph of your grandmother would be devastating enough - but what if your mobile phone held valuable information belonging to the company you work for?

With many employees now owning an exclusively work mobile phone and others holding business information on their personal phones, their devices could hold anything including usernames, passwords, financial information and highly confidential data. So now the devastation doesn't just affect the individual, but the entire business.

The Bring Your Own Device (or BYOD) policy allows employees to bring personally owned mobile devices (laptops, tablets, and smart phones) to their workplace, and use those devices to access company information. This phenomenon has taken the world by storm but by utilising private smartphones alongside professional handsets, especially as the refreshment cycle for consumer handsets is more rapid than work devices, this brings even more danger and precautions must be taken at all stages.

As current developments indicate, our mobile phones could soon be used to control everything we do - from giving us access to our home, car, medical and financial records, to being a communications hub, for email accounts, internet and managing social media profiles. The potential for the business world is enormous, but with that comes enormous risk.

Security breaches are commonplace these days and employees must do all they can to ensure they are not making such an incident easy, as many often overlook how much risk their mobile phone carries.

There are two main scenarios in which specific precautions need to be taken.

One sees the mobile phone being sent to a laboratory or workshop for critical repairs. Once the phone is out of its owner's hands, it is difficult to protect the data it contains. The other is when a phone is traded-in for a newer model while the old phone - and all its content - is left with the store or recycler. In fact, research has found that between 54* and 60** per cent of discarded or traded-in used mobile phones still contain the personal data of their previous owners.

One instance of overlooking data can risk a whole business, and with all this highly sensitive information at stake, employers and employees alike should be advocating the need to protect themselves and company information from risk. Many may be reassured by the fact that resetting the phone would dispose of some information but actually, unless expert equipment is used, no deletion is permanent. While mobile phone security during usage is important, it is imperative to see security right through to the end. Information will still remain on the phone even if you're not using it unless it is correctly wiped.

Contributed by Amir Lehr, VP Cellular Products and Business Development, Cellebrite

How to Use Events to Market Your Retail Store

Are you looking for a cost-effective and fun way to raise your retail store’s profile in the local community? Then consider hosting events to market your business.

Even if your location is snow-bound right now, this is the perfect time to start planning some Spring events to attract shoppers who will be eager to get outdoors once the weather turns pleasant.

There are all kinds of options for hosting events, from having local musicians play in the shop, to hosting an art opening, to having a VIP only sale for your best customers after hours. Below are some steps to get your event rolling.

Figure Out Your Goals for Your Event

Do you want to reward existing customers or attract new ones?

A VIP only sale could work for the first option, while an event that attracts passersby (like live music or a cooking demonstration) could work for the second.

Determine Your Budget

Consider factors like extra employees to handle the register, the cost of staying open later, refreshments and decorations. Also, figure out if your event will be a reoccuring one or a single occasion event.

Find Participants

Do you need outside participation to make the event work? For instance, if you own a boutique and want to host an art show, you could reach out to local artists to let them know your store is going to start featuring original art work. Offer them the chance to sell their art in exchange for a small commission and having them bring in their fans and friends to the event.

Similarly, plenty of local musicians are probably willing to play for free or a nominal fee, and this can expose your store to a whole new clientele. Think creatively and you’ll be able to recruit participants for little or no cost.

Create a Marketing Plan for Your Event

This could include store signage, email marketing, social media outreach and, of course, PR with local media outlets.

Be sure to start marketing well in advance so you have plenty of time to spread the word.

Plan the Logistics of Your Event

Consider factors such as:

• How much space is needed? For instance, if you’re hosting a cooking lesson in your housewares boutique or a fashion show in your clothing store, you may need extra space and seating. Depending on space needs, you may also want customers to RSVP or register in advance.
• How many employees will you need?
• Are any permits needed? Such as for live music or other events that create noise or crowds?
• Plan for refreshment preparation and also cleanup.

Gather Customer Information

This is a key part of every event. After all, you want a way to stay in touch with people who came in to your store:

• Have an signup sheet on hand for customers to subscribe to email newsletters or marketing messages from you.
• Have plenty of business cards, brochures or fliers customers can take with them to remember your business.
• If your event involves showing customers how to do something, like a florist hosting a floral arrangement class, give out informational handouts with your business information on them.
• Have customers fill out forms to win a prize or drop their business card in a fishbowl.

Follow Up

Once you’ve gathered contact information from customers, be sure that you follow up with them within the next two weeks while the event is still fresh in their minds. Get them back into your store by providing a special offer or discount that’s good for a limited time.

By hosting events on a regular basis, you can make your store more than just a store - it can become a gathering place for the local community, strengthening your ties with your customers and differentiating you from your big competitors.

Event Photo via Shutterstock

How to Use Events to Market Your Retail Store

Are you looking for a cost-effective and fun way to raise your retail store’s profile in the local community? Then consider hosting events to market your business.

Even if your location is snow-bound right now, this is the perfect time to start planning some Spring events to attract shoppers who will be eager to get outdoors once the weather turns pleasant.

There are all kinds of options for hosting events, from having local musicians play in the shop, to hosting an art opening, to having a VIP only sale for your best customers after hours. Below are some steps to get your event rolling.

Figure Out Your Goals for Your Event

Do you want to reward existing customers or attract new ones?

A VIP only sale could work for the first option, while an event that attracts passersby (like live music or a cooking demonstration) could work for the second.

Determine Your Budget

Consider factors like extra employees to handle the register, the cost of staying open later, refreshments and decorations. Also, figure out if your event will be a reoccuring one or a single occasion event.

Find Participants

Do you need outside participation to make the event work? For instance, if you own a boutique and want to host an art show, you could reach out to local artists to let them know your store is going to start featuring original art work. Offer them the chance to sell their art in exchange for a small commission and having them bring in their fans and friends to the event.

Similarly, plenty of local musicians are probably willing to play for free or a nominal fee, and this can expose your store to a whole new clientele. Think creatively and you’ll be able to recruit participants for little or no cost.

Create a Marketing Plan for Your Event

This could include store signage, email marketing, social media outreach and, of course, PR with local media outlets.

Be sure to start marketing well in advance so you have plenty of time to spread the word.

Plan the Logistics of Your Event

Consider factors such as:

• How much space is needed? For instance, if you’re hosting a cooking lesson in your housewares boutique or a fashion show in your clothing store, you may need extra space and seating. Depending on space needs, you may also want customers to RSVP or register in advance.
• How many employees will you need?
• Are any permits needed? Such as for live music or other events that create noise or crowds?
• Plan for refreshment preparation and also cleanup.

Gather Customer Information

This is a key part of every event. After all, you want a way to stay in touch with people who came in to your store:

• Have an signup sheet on hand for customers to subscribe to email newsletters or marketing messages from you.
• Have plenty of business cards, brochures or fliers customers can take with them to remember your business.
• If your event involves showing customers how to do something, like a florist hosting a floral arrangement class, give out informational handouts with your business information on them.
• Have customers fill out forms to win a prize or drop their business card in a fishbowl.

Follow Up

Once you’ve gathered contact information from customers, be sure that you follow up with them within the next two weeks while the event is still fresh in their minds. Get them back into your store by providing a special offer or discount that’s good for a limited time.

By hosting events on a regular basis, you can make your store more than just a store - it can become a gathering place for the local community, strengthening your ties with your customers and differentiating you from your big competitors.

Event Photo via Shutterstock

Who Has the Better Job: Software Developer or Architect?

If you answered architect, you’d be flat wrong!

According to U.S. News and World Report’s list of 100 Best Jobs in 2014, software developer is the top job in America right now. Software developers are in great demand and make handsome salaries. The Bureau of Labor Statistics suggests that 140,000 new software developer jobs will be created by 2020.

Other jobs high on the list include computer systems analyst, dentist and physical therapist. Small business owners shouldn’t be too surprised by the ranking. Many of the jobs on the list can easily be filled by a small business person. These can either be self-employed people, or those working with a small support staff.

As for the position of architect, well, it sounds like an exciting career indeed. But, it’s way down the list at number 92, just above customer service rep and plumber. The field has suffered somewhat in overall earnings and demand since the building slump during the recession. The field is also highly stressful, U.S. News and World Report judges.

It’s not just demand and high salaries that caused some positions to be placed high on the list and others down near the bottom. And it may not be demand and earning potential alone that attracts small businesses to these fields. There are also factors like work-life balance and job security to consider.

For software developers, unemployment rates are at just 2.8 percent nationally, U.S. News and World Report explains. Getting started in the field only requires some basic computer programming knowledge. This can be gained at local community colleges or even through job experience.

Here are the top 25 jobs, according to the rankings:

1. Software developer
2. Computer systems analyst
3. Dentist
4. Nurse practitioner
5. Pharmacist
6. Registered nurse
7. Physical therapist
8. Physician
9. Web developer
10. Dental hygienist
11. Information security analyst
12. Database administrator
13. Physician assistant
14. Occupational therapist
15. Market research analyst
16. Phlebotomist
17. Physical therapist assistant
18. Civil Engineer
19. Mechanical engineer
20. Veterinarian
21. Occupational therapy assistant
22. Clinical laboratory technician
23. Operations research analyst
24. IT manager
25. Dietitian, nutritionist

Jobs Photo via Shutterstock