Wildfire Joins Google: Serving All Social Media Platforms |  |
- Wildfire Joins Google: Serving All Social Media Platforms
- The Current State of Small Business Lending
- Eliminate To Innovate
- Make Blog Reading Part Of Your Day
- Facebook Stock Continues to Slump
| Wildfire Joins Google: Serving All Social Media Platforms Posted: 01 Aug 2012 01:00 PM PDT Google has just announced its purchase of social media marketing software developer, Wildfire.
The acquisition will likely lead to Google providing advanced promotional services for businesses and brands that want to run marketing campaigns on Google+. However, Wildfire has stated that it will continue to deliver marketing services across all social services including Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Pinterest, LinkedIn and more, even though these sites make up much of Google+'s competition. This means that Google will now run a service that actually benefits from the success of its competitors. So as networks such as Facebook and Twitter gain popularity with brands, Google can cash in on that success. But as Google focuses more and more on the promoting Google+, will it decide to change up Wildfire's offerings to mainly benefit its own social network? Currently, Wildfire offers marketing tools that can help brands manage activity on multiple social networks, measure activities and results, build strategies, monetize social audiences, and more. One feature, however, that isn't run by Wildfire is social media advertising. Currently, Wildfire only sells ads through its partner, Adaptly. So if Google decides that it wants a full-service social media marketing suite, it would have to also purchase Adaptly or another social ads platform. But for now, Adaptly and Wildfire will continue their partnership. So Wildfire users won't necessarily see any immediate changes to the service because of this acquisition. Wildfire was started in 2008 when its founders were looking to host a Facebook contest for their New Zealand based travel company. When they discovered that running the promotion on Facebook would require a separate application, they decided to create their own software, which became the first version of Wildfire. Today, Wildfire continues to help different brands run similar promotions and a variety of different marketing efforts across Facebook and other platforms. And now that Wildfire has joined up with Google, Wildfire says it will continue to deliver those same services, while it builds and improves new tools for companies wanting to use social media to promote their businesses in new and different ways. From Small Business Trends |
| The Current State of Small Business Lending Posted: 01 Aug 2012 11:00 AM PDT How did small business lending fare last year? The SBA's Office of Advocacy recently released its annual report on small business lending, Small Business Lending in the United States 2010-2011.
As might be expected, the report found that both small business borrowers and lenders were less active in 2011 than in 2010, with both sides cautious about either taking on debt or extending capital in a still-shaky economy. This report's data are based on the size of the loan, not the size of the business, so it defines "small business loans" as those under $1 million. Within that number, loans are further broken down into "macro business loans" (between $100,000 and $1 million) and "micro business loans" (under $100,000). Here's what the SBA found:
While the SBA study reflects what was happening last year, the Thomson Reuters PayNet Small Business Lending Index for June paints a more optimistic picture. That index shows small business borrowing at its highest level of the year, what Thomson Reuters president William Phelan calls in this Reuters video one of the most dramatic jumps since they began tracking the data in 2005. Phelan says:
Phelan attributes the surge to small businesses having learned how to do more with less. They've adjusted to new economic reality by becoming more productive and investing in new technology, he says. As a result, small businesses are in good financial shape and loan delinquencies are down to an all-time low. Phelan explains:
Is your business ready to borrow? Money Photo via Shutterstock From Small Business Trends |
| Posted: 01 Aug 2012 08:00 AM PDT Several years back, while talking on the phone with a friend from college, I was also going though my pile of things-to-fix-up-and-reuse. When she asked what I was doing, I told her and her reply was certain and final enough to get my full attention:
She went on with what she was talking about, but her statement stuck with me. In “The Upside-Down Approach To Innovation,” Anita Campbell asks a core question:
What if we cleaned house first, addressed the mess and made room for innovation? What if we let go of the junk now and let it become somebody else's treasure? It's time to quit wasting our energy on hackneyed systems and broken equipment. It's like Spring cleaning, getting the house ready for the new year, except doing it now. A Good Reason To Get Rid of The Mess Christmas is coming! If you get rid of the things that don't work, maybe Santa will bring you something that does. Ok, I'm kidding (a little). Besides I don't know if Santa makes office calls, but the Holiday season does bring sales and that includes sales in the business community. However, you can't know what deals to take advantage of if you don't know what you need. You can't get intimate with what you need until you let go of what you don't need. Eliminate first. That process alone will make you feel lighter and smarter. Then you can innovate with more focus and precision. Don't let the junk get in the way of your next steps. Removing Trash Photo via Shutterstock From Small Business Trends |
| Make Blog Reading Part Of Your Day Posted: 01 Aug 2012 05:00 AM PDT We're constantly being told how important it is to read blog related to our industry and keep up with the news of the day. By taking on this practice it keeps us in the loop, alerts us to conversations happening off our site, and it gives us fodder for our own blogging and/or social media updates.
But…with everything else you have to do, how are you supposed to find the time to read those blogs in the first place? How can you move blog reading from a "should do" to an "already done?" As someone who has always had to make time for blog reading (and writing) this is one issue I'm particularly sensitive to. Because, as a business owner, you can't afford to miss important industry updates or not know what's going on. You have to be alert so that you can take advantage of what's happening around you. Reading blogs is your job. Below are five ways to make blog reading part of your day: 1. Justify the Investment First off, understand why it's so important that you (and the people on your team) take the time out of your day (or even your week) to stay up-to-date on blogs in your industry. Like with most things, once you break down the value it brings to your business, the more likely it is you'll dedicate resources to it. As a business owner, reading blogs:
And that's just the tip of the iceberg. Being serious about your business means being serious about your industry and taking part in it. One big way to do that is to read blogs and become part of those conversations that may (and usually do) lead to bigger opportunities. 2. Find Blogs Worth Reading It goes without saying that not every blog is going to be worth your time. As with anything, there are high quality blogs that will bring a lot of value to you as a business owner and then there are blogs made up of just filler. To get the most out of your investment, you want to find the blogs that are worth reading. How do you do that?
That should help you get your initial list down. From there, you'll need to manage it… 3. Use a Feed Reader At Home & On The Go You're probably already using a feed reader to help you manage your blogs while at your desk, but what about when you're on your smart phone or seated in front of your iPad? If you're currently using Google Reader, you can take advantage of its mobile app or upgrade to a service like Feedly, which will give your Google Reader subscriptions a more magazine-style layout to make them easier to read on a smaller screen. Other apps like Feeddler, Reeder or NewsRack will give your feeds a simple and intuitive interface; PulseNews to make your blogs more interactive; or use a service like InstaPaper to help you save blog posts or pages you want to read later. Regardless of which app you use, by using a feed reader it allows you to take your blogs with you. You can read them on the train into work, while you're eating lunch, or during commercial breaks when you're sitting on your couch. With all the reading options available, SMBs will find it hard to use the "I don't have time" excuse. 4. Schedule the Time Hey, sometimes that's the only way things will get done. Make blog reading part of your day by making it part of your day. Set aside 20 minutes to catch up on what's happening in your industry. The 20 minutes could come at the start of your day over coffee, it could happen after lunch, or it could be at 11pm before you hit the sack. It doesn't matter when you find that time, just that do you, consistently, and that you make it part of your ritual. 5. Do Something With What You've Read I don't know about you, but the best way to make me accountable for a task is to tie an action item to it. Maybe your blog reading will result in a weekly post for your blog or maybe it will be your job to share three interesting stories a week with your team. Whatever it is, look for ways to use what you're reading about. After all, that's the point of doing the reading in the first place, right? While many of us can certainly sympathize that it's difficult to dedicate time to reading blogs, it doesn't make it any less important. The tactics above help me to stay up to date on my blog reading. What works for you? Blog Reading at Lunch Photo via Shutterstock From Small Business Trends |
| Facebook Stock Continues to Slump Posted: 01 Aug 2012 02:30 AM PDT Facebook stock continues its downward slide, but it may be too early to panic. There are signs the company’s revenue base is continuing to expand and, of course, Facebook continues to lead a social media revolution that has been vital to businesses of every type and size. Here’s more about where things stand, with thoughts from some leading business bloggers. Too Hard to FaceGoing down. Facebook’s stock slides another 6.2 percent, reaching another record low for the third day of trading Tuesday. The company has lost 40 percent of its value since it went public May 18. Doubts swirl about the company’s ability to retain its valuation among rumors of an increase in automated accounts on the site and a planned sell-off of employee stock next month. Yahoo! News Help Wanted: A new CEO. Some people are placing blame for Facebook’s poor stock performance squarely on the shoulders of the company’s fearless leader, CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Columnist John C. Abell insists the real problem with Facebook is that Zuckerberg is no longer playing to his strengths. He should be back in his hoodie, creating awesome tools that improve user experience, not working to soothe stockholder worries. Reuters Socially AwkwardPlay the game. Facebook’s dependence on revenue from social gaming company Zynga, maker of games like Farmville, dropped while overall Facebook earnings increased, showing the company is diversifying its revenue stream. One growing source of revenue is Facebook advertising. Forbes Browsing for business. Gradually people are moving away from using Facebook as a form of leisure toward using it as a tool for business. Growth in the social network, while perhaps not impressing Wall Street, is possibly a result of this trend. No matter how Facebook performs in the stock market, businesses and individuals who use its services will continue to see its value. U.S. News & World Report We’re EngagedThe great Exodus. Controversial reports suggest that there is an increasing number of “likes” by automated or fake Facebook accounts. Critics say manipulation by bots instead of real people on the networking site make engagement worthless and devalues Facebook’s advertising . Startup Junkies Interested in Pinterest. Marketing professional Mark Riemer thinks Facebook’s new “want” feature reminds him of a Pinterest function. Here are the positives and negatives Riemer sees in the new tool and what he thinks it will mean to the social network’s users. Adam Riemer Marketing LLC Putting the work into networking. If you don’t use social networking for your business, you can’t reap its benefits. Here are some of the things you’re missing out on if you’re one of those people who just doesn’t get social media sites like Facebook or what they can do for your business. Firefly Coaching From Small Business Trends |
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