Wikipedia to PR Firms: Sockpuppets Not Welcome

Wikipedia doesn’t want any more Sockpuppets.

Hey, that’s not our term — it’s a term Wikipedia actually used.

First, some marketers and businesses apparently faked tons of reviews on sites like Yelp. Now, marketing and PR firms may be using hundreds of fake accounts to try to improve clients’ images on Wikipedia.

In a post on the official Wikimedia Blog in November, Wikimedia Foundation spokesman Matthew Roth noted:

“On October 21, the Wikimedia Foundation (WMF) issued a statement from Sue Gardner, our [former] executive director, condemning the black hat practice of paid advocacy editing and sockpuppeting on Wikipedia. The statement followed widespread press coverage of an investigation undertaken by Wikipedia's volunteer editor community into more than 300 sockpuppet accounts that were alleged to belong to a public relations firm. In Gardner's statement, she noted that the ‘Wikimedia Foundation is closely monitoring this ongoing investigation and we are currently assessing all the options at our disposal.’”

Roth went on to share a cease and desist letter sent by the foundation’s law firm Cooley LLP to Wiki-PR, the PR firm in question, demanding the company stop editing Wikipedia posts until fully complying with the website’s terms of use.

Wikimedia also temporarily banned the firm and anyone suspected of working with the company. The action seems to have sent a shockwave through the PR and marketing community.

More recently, a collection of “the world’s leading communications agencies” gathered to offer a “Statement on Wikipedia from participating communications firms.” In the statement, leading agencies like Ogilvy & Mather and Voce Communications pledged to attempt to understand Wikipedia better and abide by its rules.

This week, the Wikimedia Foundation announced yet another step toward addressing the issue of biased editing on the Wikipedia website.

Changes in the site’s “Terms of Use” state that those editing as volunteers or for a library, archive or similar organization based on their expertise may carry on as before. However, those paid to edit by a client or business that might be covered in Wikipedia will face stricter guidelines including the requirement that they disclose their affiliation for all readers to see.

It’s one thing to update your company’s blog or the blog of a client or occasionally update their social media channels. etc. But business owners and other marketers should think twice before contributing to more objective sites without disclosing their interests and those of their clients.

Transparency, in this case, is in everyone’s interest. If caught without being honest about who you are and who you represent — and let’s face it, you probably will be — what impression will you have created of your business, brand or client?

Image: Wikipedia

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YouTube to launch paid music service

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Google Inc's YouTube said on Tuesday that it plans to launch a paid streaming music service, amid criticism that its existing, free video website might block the music videos of labels that do not agree to its terms.

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Local Business Leads: Quality, Conversion and ROI – Interview with ReachLocal CEO Sharon Rowlands

I recently had the opportunity to sit down with Sharon Rowlands, CEO at ReachLocal, to discuss the importance of local marketing for small business, how to generate more local business leads and, more importantly convert those leads to actual sales. One of the factors we discussed is how to not only generate effective business leads, but determine the value of qualified leads versus the quantity of leads you are receiving.

ReachLocal is a digital marketing company that serves the small business marke by providing high quality lead generation at an affordable cost per lead. According to Sharon, when a customer engages ReachLocal, ReachLocal’s first priority is to discover what the businesses needs are and what their goals are so they can set expectations for their online marketing and lead generation.  To support that, ReachLocal provides a number of tools to help the local small business get better leads and create higher conversion so they see a positive ROI.

One such product is ReachEdge – a total digital marketing platform that allows you to see the performance of all of your digital marketing spending in one place. From your organic website to your Facebook page and ads, its all your digital marketing efforts in one place and a full review of the effectiveness of those efforts.

I also asked Sharon about a recent Wall Street Journal article that outlined small business dissatisfaction with online advertising and local lead generation. See Sharon’s response by watching the full interview below, or click HERE to watch.

How are you collecting leads to capture the local market? Are your leads converting? Let us know in the comments below what has been working for you or where you struggle with lead generation and local marketing.

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Lessons Learned on the Road: Smart Tips and Tricks for Small Business Travelers

Lessons Learned on the Road: Smart Tips and Tricks for Small Business Travelers

Traveling is a necessary part of growing a business, whether it's attending conferences for learning and networking or meeting with investors and potential clients. Thanks to technology, today's small business professionals can continue operations and communicating with clients and staff from airports, hotel rooms, and coffee shops around the world. Here are my smart tips and tricks for small business travelers.

I am blogging on behalf of Visa Business and received compensation for my time from Visa for sharing my views in this post, but the views expressed here are solely mine, not Visa's. Visit http://facebook.com/visasmallbiz to take a look at the reinvented Facebook Page: Well Sourced by Visa Business. The Page serves as a space where small business owners can access educational resources, read success stories from other business owners, engage with peers, and find tips to help businesses run more efficiently. Every month, the Page will introduce a new theme that will focus on a topic important to a small business owner's success. For additional tips and advice, and information about Visa's small business solutions, follow @VisaSmallBiz and visit http://visa.com/business.

Smart Tips and Tricks for Small Business Travelers

In the early years, many entrepreneurs (including myself!) learn a few things the hard way. By learning from their experiences, small business professionals can have more successful road trips, and network without missing out on crucial business processes. Here are a few things I've learned during my time on the road as a small business owner.

Invest in WiFi / MiFi Connectivity

Many professionals spend their time traveling from hotel room to coffee shop, desperately seeking to remain connected at all times. One of the best investments a traveler can make is in a WiFi hotspot to ensure internet connectivity from anywhere. This means no more paying airport WiFi subscriptions or trying to make a password work in a hotel room. Each of the mobile phone providers has MiFi solutions that can be added to your account for a reasonable monthly price.

Always Have Access to Files

Few things are more frustrating than arriving at your destination to find you're missing crucial files. In previous years, professionals were forced to try to get someone back at the office to email those files. Thanks to the cloud, and solutions like Dropbox and box, a traveling employee can access everything from a virtual file cabinet.

Stay Charged

One problem we all run into when traveling is the draining of the battery – whether on our smartphone, laptop or tablet – so it's imperative that you have the ability to extend your battery life or charge on the go. Travel chargers like the Mophie Powerstation Duo allow you to charge two devices at the same time – so you can charge your device and offer an outlet to any newbie travelers that might be with you!

Travel Light

Technology has allowed us the ability to travel much lighter than ever – leaving bulky laptops and paper-loaded file folders back in the office. Today's tablets, such as the Apple iPad or Samsung Galaxy Tab, allow you functionality and access almost equal to your laptop or PC. By creatively using the cloud and apps, like GoToMyPC, you can travel with a tablet only and stay just as productive and connected as if you were in the office.

Use Wireless Printing

Printing on the go can be a headache, but technology has made this easier, as well. Wireless printing allows professionals to send a document to a printer using a tablet, smartphone, or PC without requiring manual driver installation. In some cases, the document can be emailed to the printer, while in others, the device automatically recognizes nearby printers and installs necessary drivers. If no printer is available in the business center of your hotel, FedEx Office locations now offer Cloud Print, providing a variety of ways to print documents for pickup.

It's easier than ever for professionals to continue business operations while traveling the globe. Using the technology available today, small business owners can stay in touch with team members and clients, and have the tools they need to conduct business successfully while traveling.

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Will Your Next Business Suit Be an Executive Hoodie?

Whoever thinks that hoodies don't belong in the workplace has probably never seen the Executive Pinstripe Hoodie from Betabrand.

The Executive Hoodie is made from suit fabric and retails for $168. Mark Zuckerberg provided the inspiration behind the hoodie, and its launch coincided with the social media giant's IPO.

So could a hoodie become the next big thing for business professionals? Probably not. But some office environments are becoming more casual. And even more consumers can appreciate the humor of Betabrand's creation.

The San Francisco based startup focuses on clothing items that display a bit of quirky humor. Founder Chris Lindland originally launched the clothing company in 2005 as Cordarounds.com, a retailer of horizontal corduroy pants. He marketed these using pseudo scientific facts such as sideways corduroy's ability to create less friction, (which leads to cooler crotches.)

In 2010, he decided to broaden the company's offerings and changed the name to Betabrand.

The brand's strategy is to create unique products with a sense of humor and then allow the people of the Internet to help the products go viral.

Even the product descriptions display some novelty and humor. The Executive Hoodie's description reads:

"After years of experimentation and one enormous bill at our local particle accelerator, the fashion physicists at Betabrand have finally combined business-suit and hoodie molecules at the subatomic level. The result: Our new, limited-edition Gray Pinstripe Executive Hoodie, a revolutionary business-casual (or casual-business, if you prefer) breakthrough."

Other Betabrand products include Dress Pant Sweatpants, Disco Hoodies, Dress Pant Yogapants, and Sons of Britches.

In addition to unique products and funny descriptions, the company also relies on participation from its customers and fans. The site displays images of customers wearing their purchases underneath the official product photos. It also utilizes a Think Tank, where customers can submit, vote for, and crowdfund new products and ideas.

That mix of customer involvement and a sense of humor that resonates with active Internet users is what has led to Betabrand's viral success. Lindland had no prior fashion experience when he first launched the brand. But he did have an understanding of online marketing and a unique vision. And that has been enough to lead to online success so far.

Image: Betabrand

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DOL to Seek Comments on Minimum Wage For Government Contracts

The Department of Labor will seek comments on a proposed rule raising minimum wage for employees of federal contractors to $10.10. The comment period is expected to extend from June 17 to July 17.

The rule change is the result of an executive order signed by President Barrack Obama Feb. 12. The order gives the Department of Labor until Oct. 1 to issue regulations implementing the requirement. But the rule wouldn’t actually go into effect until Jan1, 2015.

A bill to increase the federal minimum wage for all U.S. workers failed earlier this year in the Senate. But just a few months later, Seattle passed what many consider a much more drastic ordinance raising the minimum wage in the city to $15.

Debate over Seattle’s minimum wage continues especially over the designation of franchises within the city limits. Particularly in contention is whether franchises qualify as a large or small business which determines the amount of time they should have to implement the increase.

The new rule for federal contractors will raise wages for an estimated 200,000 workers, Bloomberg reports. But it will only apply to new contracts added after Jan. 1, 2015.

The new regulation will certainly affect businesses trying to enter the federal contracting field after it is implemented. It means these businesses will need to have deeper pockets and more resources just to be considered for a federal contract.

Meanwhile, the federal government is obliged to bring in more small businesses as federal contractors. It was estimated the government shorted small businesses $3 billion in 2012. That’s because the feds managed to award only 22.25 percent of the 23 percent set aside for small businesses out of a $400 billion federal budget.

U.S. Rep. Sam Graves, Chairman of the House Small Business Committee, would like to see that discrepancy corrected. But Graves would also like to see that goal raised to 25 percent.

Commenting on the new federal contracting rule was officially set to begin with its publication in the Federal Register June 17. Those wishing to comment can do so online at Regulations.gov.

Image: Wikipedia

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Warning: Be Sure to Back Up Sensitive Documents on Your Phone

Researchers say a new kind of malware will encrypt all the files on your phone and then demand a ransom to release them. With an increasing reliance on mobile devices among small business owners, one danger is the loss of valuable documents carried on your mobile device.

Robert Lipovsky, malware researcher with ESET Antivirus Software, reports on the discovery of the new Android malware dubbed Android/Simplocker.

On the We Live Security blog, the official site of the ESET security community, Lipovsky explains:

“Android/Simplocker…will scan the SD card for files with any of the following image, document or video extensions: jpeg, jpg, png, bmp, gif, pdf, doc, docx, txt, avi, mkv, 3gp, mp4 and encrypt them using AES [Advanced Encryption Standard].”

Once this is accomplished, researchers say a message will appear on your phone’s screen demanding payment in exchange for releasing the files. The malware even goes so far as suggesting the victim make sure they get a receipt via a difficult-to-trace electronic transaction known as MoneXy.

Though so far only spotted in Eastern Europe, researchers believe the malware may be in the testing stages with the intention to eventually release it worldwide.

Lipovsky adds:

“The ransom message is written in Russian and the payment demanded in Ukrainian hryvnias, so it's fair to assume that the threat is targeted against this region. This is not surprising, the very first Android SMS trojans (including Android/Fakeplayer) back in 2010 also originated from Russia and Ukraine.”

Lipovsky says experts strongly recommend against paying the ransom. First, this is because rewarding such activities only encourages more developers to create similar threats in the future. Second, Lipovsky points out there is no way of knowing whether attackers will even follow through on their promise to release your files.

Experts say the easiest way to dismantle the malware is by rebooting the phone into safe mode to remove it manually, but this will mean the loss of all your documents too.

To protect yourself and your business from losing potentially irreplaceable data, Lipovsky recommends making sure your mobile device contains adequate mobile security software.

He concludes:

“Adhering to security best practices, such as keeping away from untrustworthy apps and app sources, will reduce your risks. And if you keep current backups of all your devices then any ransomware or Filecoder trojan – be it on Android, Windows, or any operating system – is nothing more than a nuisance.”

Phone Photo via Shutterstock

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YouTube to launch paid music service

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Google Inc's YouTube said on Tuesday that it plans to launch a paid streaming music service, amid criticism that its existing, free video website might block the music videos of labels that do not agree to its terms.

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Oracle may buy Micros Systems for more than $5 bln - Bloomberg

(Reuters) - Oracle Corp is in talks to buy Micros Systems Inc, which makes software for retailers and hotel chains, for more than $5 billion, Bloomberg reported citing people familiar with the matter.

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