Apple, Acer Push Mobile, LinkedIn Goes Down, More |  |
- Apple, Acer Push Mobile, LinkedIn Goes Down, More
- Facebook Introduces Mobile Video Ads
- 20 Things Your Website Should Do and 5 Things It Shouldn’t
- Wilson Raj of SAS: Personalization Versus Privacy
- The Grim Reaper Will Seek Your Opinion
| Apple, Acer Push Mobile, LinkedIn Goes Down, More Posted: 25 Oct 2013 04:00 PM PDT
Changes in the small business world seem to happen at the speed of light these days. And technology has only hastened this change. The Small Business Tends editorial team knows you have to keep up. And you need to do so even though you’ve got a business to run. That’s why we provide a simple alternative to hours spent browsing news feeds. Here’s our weekly roundup of the stories that count. Dig in! New Mobile Products EmergeThe iPad Air is here. That’s the iPad 5 for the uninitiated. The question is, with the cost of Windows tablets dropping, is an Apple product really your best option for business mobility these days? Acer’s Chromebook makes Web access easy. Low cost and fast login are the big selling points here. But for entrepreneurs trying to stay connected while also watching the bottom line, what a selling point it is. Cheaper phones from China. It used to be that lower cost technology meant cheaper and sometimes less reliable components. And don’t forget fewer features. Not so today as Xiaomi ushers in a new low cost high tech era. New mobile ads from Facebook. New mobile video ads are targeted primarily at app developers for now. But it’s clear the social network is trying to expand its mobile marketing offerings. It’s time to plan a more mobile Facebook campaign for your business too. Website TroublesLinkedIn disruption makes waves. Business leaders and professionals discovered just how important LinkedIn has become to them Wednesday. That’s the day the site became inaccessible to many…for hours! Obamacare website has troubles too. A mandate for businesses with 50 or more employees to provide healthcare insurance for their workers doesn’t kick in until 2015. Let’s hope the website works by then. New Smartphone ToolsThere’s a new Windows Phone 8…again. Yes, it’s the third time Microsoft has upgraded its Windows Phone 8 operating system. But this new version leaves room for a bigger Windows Phone experience. Turn your smartphone into a recruitment tool. This new LinkedIn app lets you browse candidates, read what other reviewers are saying and then follow through. And all you need is a phone. Crowdfunding TrendsCrowdfunding for craft brew. The fact that a site like CrowdBrewed exists proves that this trend has reached the niche level. What other specific small business markets can you think of that deserve their own crowdfunding site? The Business of SecurityIs iMessenger really hack proof? In the end this story has less too do with yet another Apple product claim. But it has everything to do with how safe your business information can ever really be. TaxesIRS delay adds some pressure. Fortunately, says CPA Jody L. Padar, it shouldn’t be a problem if you get all your tax information to your accountant well before filling begins. Be sure to contact your accountant early. Reading Photo via Shutterstock The post Apple, Acer Push Mobile, LinkedIn Goes Down, More appeared first on Small Business Trends. |
| Facebook Introduces Mobile Video Ads Posted: 25 Oct 2013 01:30 PM PDT
Facebook announced recently it will introduce video ads on its mobile iPhone and Android apps. For now, that advertising service will be marketed primarily to other app developers. Facebook mobile video ads might show a video demonstrating how another application works, for example. In an announcement on the official Facebook Developer Blog, software engineer Radu Margarint wrote:
Advertisers will bid for the new video ads on a cost per action basis. This means advertisers will pay only when a customer downloads and installs their app. It’s uncertain how this bidding concept might eventually apply to other products and services. However, the new feature suggests Facebook is actively pushing toward more ad revenue from its mobile presence. Facebook Acquires Mobile Analytics Company OnavoAnother indication that Facebook is tooling up to become more of an asset to mobile marketers is its recent acquisition of mobile data analytics company Onavo. Announcing the plans last week on the official Onavo blog, co-founder and CEO Guy Rosen wrote:
TechCrunch reports the purchase price might be between $100 and $200 million. The social networking giant will likely use Onavo’s mobile analytics technology to further enhance its own recently updated Facebook Page Insights tool. Image: Facebook The post Facebook Introduces Mobile Video Ads appeared first on Small Business Trends. |
| 20 Things Your Website Should Do and 5 Things It Shouldn’t Posted: 25 Oct 2013 11:00 AM PDT
Is your small business website effectively pulling in visitors, keeping them around and converting them to customers? If your website is a little more than an online placeholder, it's time to start putting it to work so you can grow your business and take advantage of the huge potential consumer base for the online market. Today's consumers are accessing your website from their desktops and laptops, and also from their smartphones and tablets. This checklist will help you make sure that your site is doing what it should for your small business – increasing your profits. Your Website Should. . .Look Professional Sloppy, plain or homemade-looking websites are a visitor turnoff. Have a Private Domain Name Even if you're using a WordPress.com, investing the few dollars a month in a web host and domain name tells visitors you're serious about your company—and makes you more trustworthy. Be Secure If you accept online credit card payments for products or services, your site must comply with the requirements of the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council (PCI DSS). Have a Memorable Domain Name Make your private domain name something easy to remember. Preferably the name of your business. Contain Your Business Name in Text Search engines can't index words from your logo image. Make sure your company is findable. Contain Your Business Address in Text Once again—no text, no search indexing. Local search results are more important than ever, so your address should be prominent. Have Your Company Phone Number in Click-to-Call Format With so many people looking up businesses on smartphones, offering a one-touch way to contact you will bring you more customers. Make Contact Info Easy to Find Search engines aren't the only ones that need easy access to your contact information. Make sure visitors can get in touch with you quickly and conveniently. Tell Visitors What You Do at a Glance Through images, succinct descriptions or both, visitors to your site should be able to figure out right away what your company does. Highlight Your USP Your unique selling point (USP) lets visitors know why they should stick around and do business with you, instead of click back to the search results. What makes you stand out from the competition? Show Off Customer Testimonials The best way to tell people how great your company is is through someone else's words. Invite Visitor Feedback You can learn more about what's working and what isn't on your website—and get more testimonials—by having a feedback form for visitors. Speak to Your Visitors—Not Your Ego Your website content should focus on how you can benefit your customers, instead of how awesome you are. Offer Fresh Content Keeping your site updated makes both visitors and search engines happy. An integrated small business blog is a great way to do this. Contain Keywords Natural SEO (search engine optimization) strategies are essential in getting new visitors to your website. Make sure you understand Google's Panda and Penguin updates for the best effectiveness. Make it Personal You don't have to share your favorite colors or foods, but including the names and bios of business owners and staff on your website gives things a personal touch. Link to Other Websites Outbound links can help improve search engine results and make you look like a valuable resource. Have Other Websites Link to Yours Inbound links carry even more search engine juice. Make Checkout Easy The more steps customers have to go through to buy something from your website, the more often they'll abandon their carts. Don't make them jump through hoops for an online purchase. Connect with Social Media Place social sharing buttons prominently on your website for increased reach. Your Website Should Not. . .Have a Lot of Bells and Whistles Like every widget and form you can find stuffed onto your home page. Clean and to the point works much better. Use Flash Animation, Moving Text, Fancy Cursors or Music These things are unnecessary, annoying to most visitors and slow down your loading time. Post Images Without ALT Tags or Text Captions Because search engines can't read images and descriptive text helps to increase your rankings. Have Dead Links Ones that lead nowhere or to an error page. Check your links frequently to make sure they still work. List All Your Products and Services Don’t do this in one long, continuous scroll. Break things up naturally and use smart navigation to help visitors find what they need. Checklist Photo via Shutterstock The post 20 Things Your Website Should Do and 5 Things It Shouldn't appeared first on Small Business Trends. |
| Wilson Raj of SAS: Personalization Versus Privacy Posted: 25 Oct 2013 08:00 AM PDT Every day it seems companies like Facebook, Google and others are constantly updating their data privacy guidelines, causing many users to be concerned over how their personal information is being used. But that concern can be overcome by companies if they use the knowledge gained by analyzing data to improve products, services and experiences customers have in dealing with them. Wilson Raj, Director of Customer Intelligence with SAS, discusses the results of a recent survey of 1,200 U.S. consumers around the issues of data privacy, personalization versus privacy, and how they feel vendors are using their information. And you may be surprised with some of the findings. * * * * *
Wilson Raj: Sure, my background has purely been in marketing for the past 20 years. Meaning, from a communication side; writing, program management, brand management. I did a lot of global work and several stints in various industries. Not only in just tech, but in the medical side as well. I also had experience in digital agencies where we did large digital initiatives for clients. But, at the end of the day, my love is really for the art of marketing and how that influences people’s lives on a daily basis. Really, this is a fun fun trip for me. Small Business Trends: Can you talk about the personalization versus privacy conundrum and why you did the survey? Wilson Raj: We looked at a lot of surveys currently in play around the idea of big data, analytics. All of those are very interesting. But we thought the one question that was not answered was what do consumers think about this? They’re reading about this in the newspapers on a daily basis. Constant Facebook privacy changes. Google. The recent ‘Snowden Effect’ with the NSA. Consumers are reading about this on a daily basis. And also reading about how customers are using data to provide better experiences for them. We just wanted to find out what they were thinking about this. We surveyed about 1,200 consumers picked from the banking, retail side as well as mobile operations or mobile services. Small Business Trends: You also look at folks under 30 verses those folks a little bit older, correct? Wilson Raj: That’s right. Basically it was 18 and above in the U.S. We did look at segments. Now the over-arching conclusion was that seven out of ten of these folks did have privacy concerns. Given what they were reading and perhaps even experiencing. But, the interesting counterpoint to that was, even with this amount of concern, about six in ten stated that they expect and want companies they do business with to be highly, highly relevant and highly personalized and able to understand them. When you break it down, the things that came from them include wanting to be treated as individuals. They certainly want those personal offers and messages that come through various channels. They want to be able to be communicated with in the channels that they prefer or choose. Which changes by the way. The other big piece was they wanted a consistent customer experience. We also saw some interesting nuances as you mentioned in some of the segments. The folks 30 and under, had an even higher expectation. Overall, it was six out of ten, but with the under 30 group it was seven out of ten. Severnty percent are saying, ‘Hey, we expect this.’ We saw similar results, close to seven out of ten, with consumers in the high income bracket about 100K and above. Small Business Trends: It sounds like the digital native generation that grew up with this stuff. They know what the trade off is, basically, and feel more comfortable. It seems like the folks who make more money feel like they have a little bit of a better understanding of how this works, and they feel a little bit more comfortable with it. Wilson Raj: Right. I would say certainly the digital natives and probably the higher income digital immigrants working in tech and are familiar with these things. Small Business Trends: It doesn’t dispel that they don’t have concerns, but they feel like as long as companies are using this data to improve their experiences, then they are okay with that. Wilson Raj: That’s correct. And that’s where we come to the second finding, which is really interesting. They certainly had high expectations. But when we ask them, particularly in banks, mobile operators, as well as retail, ‘Are you getting that level of personalization and relevance expected?’ It was a resounding positive. Basically, almost six in ten said they saw improvements in the relevancy and personalization of messages that were coming in. In addition to that, 38%, noticed a reduction in irrelevant communication. So we see that the brand performance is matching the consumer expectations. Small Business Trends: The consumers are expecting companies to use the data. But, they’re also expecting them to use the data in a way that makes their lives better. What you’re seeing, from the consumers’ perspective, is companies that are doing this seem to be at least doing it effectively to an extent. Wilson Raj: To a certain extent. From a general perception perspective, the online retailers scored the highest points. Small Business Trends: Like Amazon? Wilson Raj: Absolutely, I think everyone has an expectation of Amazon. In terms of how perception, even if they did not do business with Amazon. Which, we find hard to believe these days. But, the perception is that these guys have got it down to a science. When we asked them, ‘From your own experience, score the companies that you do business with. The banks, the retailers, the mobile service providers.’ The banks came up on top. They scored about 3.8 out of a possible high score of five. And, the other two, retail as well as mobile service, were down at about 3.5. From an actual experience perspective, bank customers felt that they were easy to do business with in most of the channels. Coming from a branch or a digital service, for example. They felt there were more personalized activities. I think when we think of a bank versus Amazon, there’s a range of things you would do, from checking to banking to savings to investments. Again, that transactional data is being used both in a digital setting as well as an offline setting. That’s why they scored a little bit higher. But, the interesting thing about this when we did a deeper dive, in terms of what were some of the enablers from a brand or a company perspective, these things really stand out. First one is:
Sentiment is a big one. When you link the hindsight with the insight from these things you get what we call ‘foresight.’ Where you’re able to better predict. I think that’s another best practice. The other piece is really fronting the customer-centricity, right? The use of information with really strong data management principals and priorities. Small Business Trends: There’s a lot that goes into turning that data into great experiences. How does a company get started? Wilson Raj: You can break it down into three categories:
The easier ones are typically, in my opinion, process and technology. Start there. Although, it’s better coming from the people aspect which means there’s a cultural mind shift. I think most organizations are starting with the premise that. ‘For me to survive, it’s all about the customers. Not just in marketing, but in every aspect of my operations.’ Small Business Trends: The bottom line is companies do need to leverage the information that is at their disposal about customers. But, make sure they use it for good, not nefarious purposes. Wilson Raj: Right. And something could be as innocuous as trying to get them to do an up sell and cross sell. Right? And, move to the next service offering. If you know the sentiment of the customers to mentally to go there. Then, it’s really the wrong thing to send them offers. Where, you know they’re not interested in moving. It could be as innocuous as that. Of course, there are other kinds of bad uses of data. Spamming and selling their data to other parties. What does a customer want? How can I best meet that need? Sometimes, it may not be sending them an email for an offer. It could be education of some sort or giving them another value add. Or, maybe partnering with another vendor. It all boils down to, ‘What value are you providing them in their journey?’ Small Business Trends: Their experience with you is only as good as their last interaction with you. Wilson Raj: Exactly. Small Business Trends: Where can people learn more about the survey? Wilson Raj: We have the survey posted on SAS.com. Under SAS voices there’s a post by the Chief Researcher, Pamela Prentice. This interview on personalization versus privacy is part of the One on One interview series with thought-provoking entrepreneurs, authors and experts in business today. This transcript has been edited for publication. To hear audio of the full interview, click on the player above. The post Wilson Raj of SAS: Personalization Versus Privacy appeared first on Small Business Trends. |
| The Grim Reaper Will Seek Your Opinion Posted: 25 Oct 2013 05:00 AM PDT
The idea for this cartoon came from a visit to my bank. For some reason, they’re really, really pushy about these customer service surveys.
I’m not kidding. It was one of those things that, once you notice it, you can’t help but notice these custom survey attacks everywhere you shop. Hence, this cartoon. The post The Grim Reaper Will Seek Your Opinion appeared first on Small Business Trends. |
Small Business Trends: SAS recently put out an interesting infographic from a study talking about personalization versus privacy. But, before we get into that discussion, can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
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