Top Stories: Microsoft Changes Leadership, Facebook in Name Dispute |  |
- Top Stories: Microsoft Changes Leadership, Facebook in Name Dispute
- Confide App Lets Businesses Keep Text Messages Off-the-Record
- Colorado Business Gives Tours of Legalized Marijuana Industry
- Pebble Launches Its Own App Store, a Place for Users and Developers
- 7 Zen Principles Make You Happier and More Successful in Business
- Has Your Business Performed a Hat Trick?
| Top Stories: Microsoft Changes Leadership, Facebook in Name Dispute Posted: 07 Feb 2014 05:00 PM PST
Here’s the news you need to know as a savvy small business owner this week. Our Small Business Trends editorial team has you covered. LeadershipMicrosoft has a new CEO. Microsoft announced Satya Nadella as new head of the company this week. Many people are talking about what Nadella’s new leadership may mean. It could signal a new era and a new direction for the iconic technology company. Apps & Social MediaFacebook won’t change the name of its Paper app. That’s despite the fact that another company, FiftyThree, already has an app by the same name…or nearly the same. The smaller company trademarked the name “Paper by FiftyThree” and is now considering its options. Schedule your home deliveries with Doorman. The new startup combines an app with a local delivery service. Send packages to Doorman’s delivery center, then set up an evening delivery time with the company’s mobile app. It’s an example of finding and filling a need. Klout is reinventing itself. You probably haven’t heard that name in a while. But the app that tries to measure a user’s social media influence is retooling. Small Business Trends publisher Anita Campbell has the story about the company’s come-back attempt. The Pebble App Store is open. The device that led the way in the smartwatch market is now leading in another way. Pebble has launched an app store for its popular wearable device. The store will be a one-stop for users and developers alike interested in a better Pebble experience. Confide keeps business texting private. The app lets you send an encrypted text to another user. Recipients can read the message a few characters at a time, but can’t take a screenshot or share it with others. And after they read it, the message is deleted. Marketing BasicsMarketing is the differentiator. Read about this unique business. Quality Logo Products is a commercial products distributor that distinguishes itself with its engaging Web presence. But as Co-Founder Bret Bonnet reminds us, the company’s people are also key to its success. The new art of viral. It used to be that the secret to making a great Super Bowl ad was to create a visually arresting experience that would grab the audience’s attention for the short period of time it appeared on the screen. Then the trick was to get your ad talked about even before the big game. Today, the key may be to get your ad banned. Did somebody say instant online viral appeal? Products & ServicesAmazon Kindles may soon be your point of sale. It’s uncertain whether this plan will ever come to fruition. But there’s a possibility that Amazon Kindles may be finding their way into small retailers. They won’t be products. They will be part of the payment system. 37 Signals is now Basecamp. In some ways, it has been for a long time. Founder Jason Fried says the company name change makes sense. The Basecamp product is so closely associated with 37 Signals. Other products will be either spun off as other businesses or sold. Is your IT just right? These days increasingly your small business can have IT services just like the big guys. One such service is Just Right IT from HP. Here is a closer look at how the service is expanding. Marijuana tourism creates whole new business model. Who would have thought a few years ago that Marijuana could go from illegal substance to a tourist attraction. But the launch of My 420 Tours has done just that, giving customers a closer look at Colorado’s now totally legal Marijuana industry. Web50 new domain extensions are now available. No, they may not all be as desirable as a .com, explains Web.com, which markets some of the new extensions. But the number of available .com names is dwindling and the cost for many of these new domain extensions is lower. So they may be an appealing alternative for some. NBC adopts infinite scroll. The website for NBC News has unveiled a new infinite scroll format. Like it or hate it, it is cutting edge. Small Business Trends publisher Anita Campbell explains the new Web design. It’s one option for businesses with a website, particularly media groups. But it may not be for everyone. StatsSmall businesses create more jobs. Want proof that small businesses remain an economic force? Just look at the latest ADP Employment Report. You’ll see that in January, small businesses outperformed big businesses for job creation again. Reading Photo via Shutterstock The post Top Stories: Microsoft Changes Leadership, Facebook in Name Dispute appeared first on Small Business Trends. |
| Confide App Lets Businesses Keep Text Messages Off-the-Record Posted: 07 Feb 2014 02:30 PM PST
A new app called Confide allows you to take your text messages off-the-record, for business or other purposes. The app is so far available for download to iPhone only. The way Confide works is a bit different than a traditional messenger service. To read a message, a recipient needs to swipe over orange blocks that let you read only one word at a time. The previous word changes to a gray block when read. When the message is read entirely, it is permanently deleted, even from Confide’s server. That enables you to keep text messages private. In order to exchange messages, both sender and recipient must have the app downloaded. A person receiving a message through the Confide app will not be able to forward it to another person, save it on their phone or even take a screenshot of it. Confide Co-Founder Jon Brod told Fox Business Network that if someone tries to take a screenshot of a message, they’re “kicked out of the app.” The sender and the recipient are alerted of the violation of terms immediately. The idea for Confide came to Co-Founders Brod and Howard Lerman while attempting to have a confidential exchange via email. The two wanted to speak candidly about a prospective employee but didn’t feel secure discussing the topic knowing files of their conversation would remain. In a post on the official Confide blog, Brod explains:
In its review of Confide, PC Mag notes that, unlike other encrypted messaging services like Wickr, Confide is for text only and doesn’t allow users to send photos or video. This also sets Confide apart from more general use apps like SnapChat, which also delete messages sent to select people in your network but generally includes visual content. Image: Confide App The post Confide App Lets Businesses Keep Text Messages Off-the-Record appeared first on Small Business Trends. |
| Colorado Business Gives Tours of Legalized Marijuana Industry Posted: 07 Feb 2014 12:30 PM PST
Matt Brown’s isn’t your average tourism business. Brown is co-owner of My 420 Tours, a company that conducts tours into Colorado’s legalized marijuana industry. On Jan. 1, 2014 recreational use of marijuana was legalized in Colorado (and also Washington state). And the legalized marijuana business is booming. Time magazine reported that there are already fears of a shortage. My 420 Tours doesn’t sell dime bags to its guests, i.e., it doesn’t sell any marijuana. Instead, as a tour guide the company arranges samples of product as visitors tour locations in Colorado’s marijuana industry. The upcoming “Love of Cannabis” tour includes edible marijuana product samples from vendors, a visit to a growing operation, as well as a cooking class that incorporates the herb into recipes. A special social gathering and other events are included in the three-day package, according to a description at the company’s website. All guests of My 420 Tours are given private transportation for their entire stay, from the moment they leave the airport until the end of the tour. Hotel accommodations are also provided, at a “420 friendly” location, of course. The idea behind the tours is to connect the public with the product, like Coors does with its beer. Tours show guests how to legally enjoy marijuana within the confines of state laws. Brown tells Fox Business News recently in an interview:
This tour business has also avoided one major hangup noticed during legalization’s early days: it’s a cash only industry. We noted recently that federal banking laws as well as credit card company policies restrict marijuana sales via credit card. Since it’s not selling marijuana, My 420 Tours bypasses those restrictions and takes major credit cards for purchases. That’s a good thing, too. A couple can expect to pay at least $2,500 for the upcoming Valentine’s Day-themed tours, according to the company’s site. For those who don’t know, “420″ is an underground code name for cannabis or marijuana – hence the company’s name. But marijuana is emerging from the underground, and fast becoming the bastion of startups. While My 420 Tours claims to be the first in its industry, a quick Google search yields other companies offering pot tours, too. And what exactly are the rules around marijuana usage in Colorado? This summary appears on the My 420 Tours website:
Marijuana image via Shutterstock The post Colorado Business Gives Tours of Legalized Marijuana Industry appeared first on Small Business Trends. |
| Pebble Launches Its Own App Store, a Place for Users and Developers Posted: 07 Feb 2014 10:30 AM PST
It started with the iOS App Store for iPhones and iPads. Then Google Play for Android phones came along. Even the Mac OSX has its own app store. Now Pebble has its own app store for iPhone operating systems too. An Android version will be coming “very, very soon.” The Pebble Store officially opened its doors this week. The store will allow Pebble’s growing developer community a one-stop shop for their apps and watch faces. The store will bring access to thousands of apps, including Yelp, Foursquare, ESPN and Pandora. Here’s a closer look at some of the features from Pocketnow: The Pebble started the trend of checking your watch instead of your phone for email messages and social media updates. Now users will have a place to look for the perfect app to complement it. Once something has been found, two taps will download the app to the watch. The Pebble is not meant to replace your smartphone, but instead to work alongside it, using Bluetooth. Sales of the watch have been good, with developers offering third-party software. But unlike the other app stores we know and use, Pebble didn’t have its own central place where customers could browse for add-ons…until now. However, before a new Pebble user gets too carried away with downloading apps, it should be noted that you can only download a maximum of 8 apps at any one time. So the App Store will also be a way to manage the apps that you are not using at the present time, in order to activate new ones. Pebble tweeted an image of the new store just ahead of the store’s launch last week: In the new store, users are able to browse categories, search for a particular app, or see suggestions at the bottom of the screen. Each app has ratings from other users, so you can see which apps are worth using and which should be avoided. The post Pebble Launches Its Own App Store, a Place for Users and Developers appeared first on Small Business Trends. |
| 7 Zen Principles Make You Happier and More Successful in Business Posted: 07 Feb 2014 07:30 AM PST
7 years ago on February 7, 2007, I launched my business and became an entrepreneur for the second time. I am quite in awe that I am still here given the tumultuous years and change we have all been through. I consider myself a "spiritual entrepreneur," as I deeply care about the what, why and how of giving back to the community, people and world that supports me. Professional fundamentals and personal values are the keystone of long term success. I am so intrigued with this that I made this timeless ideal the focus of my new book #trusthewhy coming soon:
Zen is one of the oldest most enduring Japanese schools of Mahayana Buddism, emphasizing the value of meditation. It emphasizes experiential wisdom in the attainment of enlightenment. Simply put, we live it, we learn from it and we share it. Below are seven principles of Zen that can be applied to your personal happiness and business success. 7 Zen Principles in BusinessEliminate the Clutter – KansoTake a good hard look at pruning people, places, processes and things that are cluttering up your path that are not adding to you and helping you to grow. Who and what do you need to let go of and move on from? Work-Life Integration – FukinseiWe must always be improving and refining our work-life integration or else it's just a continuum of crash and burn. How can you recharge and renew your priorities, energy and health? Simplify and Streamline – ShibumiTry to make things easier to do and follow by making efficiency your goal in multi-tasking. This is about finding and using appropriate apps, technologies and systems to help make things simpler and more user friendly for you and your customer. Remember, creating the memorable customer experience is the key to customer retention. Authenticity – ShizenNothing is more important than being who you say you are and delivering that consistently. Come out more from behind your business so that people can get to know the real you. We want to know more about who we are trusting and engaging with today. Subtlety – YugenLess is more. Focusing on how you can make a difference and solve problems through education and inspiration. Contribute consistently in a thought provoking way by sharing your “experiential wisdom” through content marketing, social media and volunteering. Amazement – DatsuzokuThere is nothing more wonderful and exciting than hearing and reading about the stories of real people and the amazing things that happen to them daily. Share your story and the stories of ordinary, real people doing extraordinary things. Find RAK (random acts of kindness) that are happening in your world and beyond and celebrate them. This is the Zen and Karma that multiples and attracts more to you. Calm Solitude – SeijakuTake time to reflect, muse and meditate even for short dedicated amounts of time. Zen is about intuition and listening for the prompts and messages that are all around us. This principle is so essential to well being and translates to our families, community and businesses. Listen, look and pay attention to the day you are in. The Zen of my business success has always started with me and continues with we. The journey has had its own ebb, flow and pace and has continued to move me exactly in the direction I am supposed to be going. Here's to your Heiwa (peace) and Seiko (success), always. Zen Photo via Shutterstock The post 7 Zen Principles Make You Happier and More Successful in Business appeared first on Small Business Trends. |
| Has Your Business Performed a Hat Trick? Posted: 07 Feb 2014 05:00 AM PST
I’m not really much of a sports guy. I live in the Chicago area and by default root for the Cubs. But if you asked me to name a single player on the team, you’d be waiting a while. Still, I’ve been trying to do more sports themed cartoons recently and had written down words to play with: Touchdown, home run, slam dunk, etc. And then I remembered something called a hat trick. I thought it had to do with hockey goals and three of something or other, so it was off to the Internet where Wikipedia told me that:
Mix it all together in a business setting and you’ve got this cartoon. Game, set, match! The post Has Your Business Performed a Hat Trick? appeared first on Small Business Trends. |
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