98 Percent of Mobile Malware is Aimed at Android Users

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• 98 Percent of Mobile Malware is Aimed at Android Users
• CrowdtiltOpen Allows Free Crowdsourcing on Your Own Domain
• Customer Service Matters Much More Than You May Think
• China Based Huawei Introduces Five New Devices, Eyes U.S. Market
• Are You Discriminating Against Women Employees Without Even Knowing It?
• Have You Ever Been to a 3D Printed Fashion Show?

98 Percent of Mobile Malware is Aimed at Android Users Posted: 27 Feb 2014 02:30 PM PST Ninety-eight percent of mobile malware is aimed at Android users, a report from security experts Kaspersky Labs says. This is largely because of the popularity of the platform. But the study also notes the “vulnerability” of Android’s architecture as a reason the mobile operating system is vulnerable. And most of this malware is aimed at stealing money, including targeting credit card information. The report also says the mobile malware economy has moved from individual actors to more organized groups of programmers and developers mostly designing malware for profit. The study notes: “It is safe to say that today's cybercriminal is no longer a lone hacker but part of a serious business operation. There are various types of actors involved in the mobile malware industry: virus writers, testers, interface designers of both the malicious apps and the Web pages they are distributed from, owners of the partner programs that spread the malware, and mobile botnet owners.” According to the study, a total of 143,211 new modifications of malicious programs targeting mobile devices were detected last year. Also, nearly 4 million installation packages were used by cyber criminals to distribute mobile malware. In the last two years, Kaspersky has identified 10 million unique malicious installation packages. Malware is spread primarily through apps downloaded from third party sites other than Google Play though a recent report also indicates the amount of Google malware on Google’s store is also increasing. Of course, being aware that your mobile device is nearly as vulnerable as your computer is the first step in protecting your business from being the next victim to an attack. We’ve recently noted that although mobile devices are increasingly being targeted, device makers are investing in defenses, too. Image: Securelist/Kaspersky The post 98 Percent of Mobile Malware is Aimed at Android Users appeared first on Small Business Trends.

CrowdtiltOpen Allows Free Crowdsourcing on Your Own Domain Posted: 27 Feb 2014 12:30 PM PST The free, open-source crowdfunding site was launched last week. Unlike Indigogo, Kickstarter and similar sites, CrowdtiltOpen allows for full customization of the look and feel of your business’ crowdfunding site. You can even use your existing domain or another one. For startups or companies looking to expand their profile by launching a crowdfunding campaign, this may be an ideal option. The company says that you can raise more money, establish your brand, and establish longer term relationships with your supporters through CrowdtiltOpen. CrowdtiltOpen has several templates created for you to use, according to the company website. It also allows for HTML and CSS tweaking to get your crowdfunding pages exactly as you need them. Crowdtilt’s Ajay Mehta writes that CrowdtiltOpen is doing for crowdfunding what WordPress did for blogging: “By making powerful crowdfunding accessible, we've hopefully just scratched the surface of how organizations are using CrowdtiltOpen … and we can't wait to see what the next year holds. [WordPress] changed blogging by making tools powerful enough for brands and individuals to create their own experiences. It's time for crowdfunding to grow up, the same way that blogging has, over the past decade.” CrowdtiltOpen allows your business to start a crowdfunding, pre-order or donation campaign through the platform. The site says it will handle the “back end” of your crowdfunding site, including processing payments and donations for non-profit organizations. The customizing of the look and feel is up to you. Since it’s an open-source platform, CrowdtiltOpen is free to use. There are third-party services that can be integrated into your campaign, like ones that manage your payments and shipping. All campaigns provide analytics which tell you who your customers are. Successful campaigns only pay standard credit card fees. This project started as Crowdhoster last year. Crowdtilt allowed hundreds of companies and non-profits toexperiment with the Crowdhoster platform. The company claims that some of the most successful crowdfunding campaigns have been launched through Crowdhoster. That includes a campaign for Soylent, a food/drink, which raised $2.1 million from about 20,000 contributors. Crowdtilt says the company is working to integrate Bitcoin payment options for campaigns. It’s also developing a way to purchase multiple rewards in a single transaction. Image: CrowdtiltOpen The post CrowdtiltOpen Allows Free Crowdsourcing on Your Own Domain appeared first on Small Business Trends.

Customer Service Matters Much More Than You May Think Posted: 27 Feb 2014 10:00 AM PST Customer service is a big "elephant in the room" for so many businesses out there. It’s really not easy to train yourself or your employees with the virtues required to be a well-rounded, service-minded personality – a person with all the necessary attributes to make patrons to your business happy each and every time. Learn From the Baby Boomers… One thing that’s caught a lot of young entrepreneurs off-guard as they’ve built their business is the fact that there’s an aged segment of customers out there (baby-boomers) who care just as much about the customer service experience they receive, as they do the quality of the product you’re selling them. Scott Hume, Editor at BurgerBusiness, says: “Baby boomers, guys like me, really value good service and a good experience.” Gen Y and Gen Z individuals often don’t have the same expectations. To them, the concept of chivalry is a foreign one, and they’ve learned not to expect too much, particularly with regard to value-added-service. Does that mean if your business sells more to one and not so much (or at all) to the other, that you should develop customer service practices that suit that specific demographic? Absolutely not. Even if your target demo doesn’t expect much of you, they’re ten times more likely to come back and do business with you next time, if they have a decent experience. This is a universal reality across all businesses, regardless if you sell tangible or intangible products. Poorly Misunderstood Benefits From Providing Top-Notch Customer Service 1. Getting it Right the First Time Generates More Profits Poor service can be about how the order system functions, how the sales staff treats prospects, how you develop and then satisfy consumer expectations of your product/service, or simply the overall perception they’re left with after doing business with you (i.e. did they feel treated fairly or rudely). What does this have to do with saving money, you ask? Poor service = Poor quality = Poor Profits It’s all about reworking. Every time you have to rework something it costs you money. If the customer feels like they were deceived, treated rudely, or any of their expectations weren’t met, it’s likely they’ll demand a refund, a redo, or a freebie – if you’re lucky. They may simply not come back and certainly won’t recommend you. One time sales rarely a rich man make. Every rework costs you money, unless the customer’s the type to only give you one chance. Then you just lost a repeat customer and the word-of-mouth marketing they could have provided you. Indeed, poor service quality directly affects your bottom line. 2. When They Come Back and Bring Others With Them, You Make More Money In most businesses, return customers and word-of-mouth are what will make you successful. Using the burger analogy, let’s run with a fictional customer service scenario about two different burger joints: Exhibit A: The first burger place (Let’s call it "McGurdy’s"). Customers are greeted with a smile and the staff is taught to take their time answering any and all questions the customer might have. Each staff member is paid above minimum wage and the atmosphere is one of teamwork and positivity. The burgers aren’t going to be featured on Gordon Ramsay’s signature menu at Caesar’s Palace, but the health standards are excellent, the service impeccable, and the food is on par with other fast food joints. Exhibit B: The next burger place ("The Burger Pit") makes the best burger mankind has ever tasted. This little shop is run under the thumb of one man; a surly old fella who screams orders at his staff, who get paid the minimum pay allowed by law. The customer service staff jumps every time the old fella yells, often interrupting the customer service flow and interaction. The old man screams at staff for "talking to customers for too long" and tells customers who complain to leave his store and never return. The health standards are impeccable under the iron rule of the old fella, service is slow and disjointed, and the burgers are a fantastic experience to say the least. Which would you choose? Naturally, customers will choose the best burger on the planet, no? After all, the quality of the product should dictate popularity. But it doesn’t. Customers want to feel respected and listened to. Very few return customers would go to the Burger Pit over McGurdy’s because going to get the best burger means their patience is likely to be tried to the extreme, and they might have a downright unpleasant experience. The majority will go where the combination of product quality and service are best (a "happy medium" in the absence of a business that truly has all elements of their product and service covered.) 3. Staff Turnover Will Burn a Hole in Your Pocket Franchise businesses understand this concept very well, yet they deal with more turnover costs than most small businesses make in a year. The small business owner has to learn this lesson the hard way, often letting ego get in the way of good judgement. The "take it or leave it" approach to staff management will eat a hole in your profits every time. You’re probably wondering: How the heck did we get here? What does this have to do with good customer service and how poor service can cost me loads of cash? Most employees, including front-line service employees, want to take pride in what they do. Also, every one of those employees is, and will again be, a customer at some point in their life. Question: So they’re not happy because you don’t care about the service level – what are they going to do? Answer: They’ll be less passionate about their job, making the customer’s experience even worse. Eventually, they’ll quit. Creating a positive, customer-focused environment is key. If your service levels are up to par, the majority of new hires will stick around longer-term, even if you’re in a high turnover industry like fast food. How much money does turnover cost your business? A lot more than most inexperienced managers and business owners think. Most employees are worth at least a couple of thousand (just in paperwork and training costs) after their first few days on the job. Customer service matters – much more than you may think. Customer Service Photo via Shutterstock The post Customer Service Matters Much More Than You May Think appeared first on Small Business Trends.

China Based Huawei Introduces Five New Devices, Eyes U.S. Market Posted: 27 Feb 2014 07:30 AM PST Chinese smart device maker Huawei unveiled a raft of new products at the GSM Association Mobile World Congress (MWC) over the weekend in Barcelona. The company is the world’s third largest maker of smart phones and tablets right now, and that’s all without much activity in the U.S. But that may change soon. The company unveiled a smartphone, a 7-inch phablet, an 8-inch tablet, a mobile hotspot, and a wrist activity tracker at the event. Company leadership said that making headway in the U.S. is its next goal, according to a Reuters report. If Huawei can eventually gain a footing in the U.S. market, it could be a boon for small business owners who feel they’re spending too much on technology. Huawei devices are known for their affordable prices but few mobile carriers are actually offering the phones and tablets. At MWC, the company unveiled its new smartphone, the Ascend G6 4G. The new smartphone features a 4.5-inch LCD display, weighs 115 grams and is 7.85 millimeters thick. It  features a 5 megapixel front-facing camera and an 8 megapixel camera mounted on the rear of the device, too. The company is also planning a 3G version of the Ascend G6 smartphone in a few weeks and 4G version available starting in April. There was no word on pricing but one review suggests that it could retail for about $330 US. In addition to the smartphone, Huawei also unveiled its new 7-inch phablet device called the MediaPad X1 and an 8-inch tablet called the MediaPad M1. Businesses might use the devices as a way to keep connected in an ever more mobile work environment. The company calls the MediaPad X1 the slimmest 7-inch phablet of its kind. It weighs 239 grams, is 7.18 millimeters thick and has a 13MP rear-facing camera. But it’s uncertain when the device will be available in the U.S. The 8-inch MediaPad M1 is touted as an entertainment device, But it is loaded enough to get work accomplished, too. The device supports multi-window display so you can stream video while getting some work done at the same time. The device also has fast download and built in WiFi routers. The device will come to developing countries first before hopefully being available in the U.S. Huawei also introduced its first mobile WiFi hotspot device, the Huawei E5786. The company also unveiled its first wearable device, the TalkBand B1. It has a curved 1.4-inch screen and fits around the wrist. It can make and receive voice calls and can be synced to compatible Apple and Android devices. Image: Huawei The post China Based Huawei Introduces Five New Devices, Eyes U.S. Market appeared first on Small Business Trends.

Are You Discriminating Against Women Employees Without Even Knowing It? Posted: 27 Feb 2014 05:00 AM PST The collaboration between Getty Images and Sheryl Sandberg's Lean In organization to make stock photos less sexist is getting a lot of publicity. It's also a great example of how stereotypes find their way into our minds. When we see businesswomen portrayed in photos as weak, ineffective or overtly sexualized, it has a cumulative effect on how we think about women in the workplace. A Pew study about men and women at work reveals how stereotypes about working fathers and mothers are having a negative effect on women in the workplace. Discrimination Against Women in the Workplace The intensive investigation into how men and women balance work and family found that even when men and women do the same things to care for their families, such as cutting back hours or taking time off from work, it disproportionately affects women's career progress more than men's. Could you be discriminating against female employees who have children without even knowing it? Overall, 27 percent of working parents in the study say being a working parent made it harder for them to advance in their jobs. Just 7 percent percent say this made things easier. However, there was a major gender gap: 51 percent of working mothers with children under 18 say parenthood has made it harder to advance in their jobs. 16 percent of working fathers with children under 18 say the same. While you might think Millennials would be better at the whole "balancing act," in fact, Millennial working mothers were even more likely to say that having children hinders their career advancement, and the gender gap was even bigger for them. Fifty-eight percent of Millennial mothers, compared to 19 percent of Millennial fathers, say being a parent makes it harder to advance in their jobs. Of course, part of the traditional justification for women's careers being negatively affected by motherhood is that women are more likely to take time out of the workforce to raise children. About half (53 percent) of working mothers with children under age 18 have taken a significant amount of time off from work, while 51 percent have reduced work hours, to care for a child or other family member. However, the study found that taking time off, reducing hours or refusing a promotion in order to care for a family member was far more likely to hurt a woman's career than a man's. Thirty-five percent of women who took significant time off to care for a family member say it hurt their career, while just 17 percent of men who did the same say their advancement was hampered. Are You Guilty of Stereotypes Against Working Moms? Is a mom who takes time off, needs flexible hours or refuses a promotion seen as unreliable and uncommitted? While for a man, do you see these acts as short-term needs that you'll have to accommodate for a little while, but soon dad will be "back in the saddle" and ready to commit wholeheartedly to work again? Just because you're offering flextime or time off doesn't mean you can't be guilty of stereotyping. Are you offering working dads more challenging assignments or bigger clients, while assuming working moms won't have time or dedication for such career-advancing projects? Next time you think about who to promote, take a long, hard look about whether gender issues are entering into the equation. You might be surprised at what you find when you're willing to look at the whole picture. Discrimination Resentment Photo via Shutterstock The post Are You Discriminating Against Women Employees Without Even Knowing It? appeared first on Small Business Trends.

Have You Ever Been to a 3D Printed Fashion Show? Posted: 27 Feb 2014 02:30 AM PST There are many ways 3D printing can be used in small business. It can be used to make prototypes, do small scale manufacturing and even industrial designing. And recently, a big show in New York City gave a glimpse of the full range of possibilities. New York Fashion Week is a pretty well known event. But there was a new type of fashion show taking place in NYC recently, and it was a little unorthodox. 3D Printshow is an event that fuses fashion and other types of art with 3D printing. 3D Printshow originated in London in 2012 and has since expanded to five additional cities worldwide, including New York. The NYC event launched with a fashion catwalk featuring 3D printed clothing from more than 20 designers. But the four-day event included more than just a fashion show. There were workshops and speakers to teach guests about 3D printing and how it can impact different types of businesses. Creator Kerry Hogarth spoke with Popular Mechanics about the event: “The show is designed not as a trade show. It’s designed as an experiential thing. The idea is that you show people where the technology is and where it’s going. The show is built to bring together the creative world and the manufacturing world and business and engineering, all in one platform, to talk about what’s possible and also [for people] to show their work.” 3D Printing has many potential business applications, particularly in creative fields. Movie studios can use it to create special effects and props. And thus video creators have similar options when creating creative content. Artists can use it to create sculptures or models. Designers can use it to create head-to-toe wearable art. The technology has already allowed for great advances in the medical field and a handful of other industries. Last year UPS announced it would the add the printers to some of its stores so that businesses didn’t have to absorb the cost of purchasing one of these machines. But even though it's already been put into use by some businesses, it remains a new technology. Some businesses may still be trying to determine if and how this technology can  benefit them. The 3D Printshow and similar events can provide creative and more practical entrepreneurs with the inspiration to use the technology to benefit their businesses in new ways. It will be interesting to see what innovations in business use will arise as a result. Image: 3D Printshow The post Have You Ever Been to a 3D Printed Fashion Show? appeared first on Small Business Trends.

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Social Media Customer Care Company Raises $1 Million for Growth

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• Social Media Customer Care Company Raises $1 Million for Growth
• New TouchBase Business Card Could Transfer Digital Profile to a Smartphone
• Chuck Hamrick on Succeeding with Affiliate Marketing in 2014 #AMDays
• 11 Direct Mail Marketing Secrets
• Pinterest Marketing Tool Discover Can Give Better View of Your Brand
• Automate The Hiring Of New Staff For Your Business With iCIMS
• Got a Startup Tech Hardware Product to Sell? Try Grand St.

Social Media Customer Care Company Raises $1 Million for Growth Posted: 26 Feb 2014 04:30 PM PST UK-based Brand Embassy, a company that offers management of social media mentions, recently raised $1 million in funding. The company currently has only 20+ employees, but the money will be used to take its service global and to expand its features. Co-founder and CEO Vit Horky explains in a recent post on the official Brand Embassy blog: “We’ve opened offices in the USA, Dubai, Portugal, Slovakia, Spain, and Latin America to complement our offices in Prague and London. The partnership with new investors will help us expand our sales and product development team and launch new unique product features.” Besides monitoring your company’s social media mentions, Brand Embassy places a big emphasis on customer service. Managers can assign social media mentions to company employees (known as ambassadors) so they can respond. If the mention is a complaint and likely to gain traction online, it is given high priority. In the past few years, customers have increasingly abandoned toll-free telephone numbers, and instead taken to social media to praise a brand or complain. So businesses must focus more on monitoring social media everyday.  It can become quite a chore to keep on top of all the social channels separately. So having a dashboard where it all comes together is a huge plus. Vit says his company’s clients have handled over 7.5 million service issues via its service since 2012. Currently Brand Embassy primarily serves companies in the telecom and financial services sectors. The company’s clients may include mainly larger brands at the moment like Vodafone, Telefonica O2, T-Mobile, General Motors and ING.com. But with professional packages starting at $70 per month, it’s conceivable Brand Embassy could become an option for small boutique social media marketing firms with multiple brands to manage. If you are curious about how Brand Embassy works, the company has released an 8 minute video, showing the main features: As brand management on social media becomes ever more important, Brand Embassy would appear to offer a higher end service than tools like HootSuite, for example. Other services, like Socialbakers, offer variations on social media measuring and management for brands. Socialbakers also recently announced it had raised additional funding to expand its services. The post Social Media Customer Care Company Raises $1 Million for Growth appeared first on Small Business Trends.

New TouchBase Business Card Could Transfer Digital Profile to a Smartphone Posted: 26 Feb 2014 02:30 PM PST The way people network may be changing. Swapping business cards has been a mainstay of small business networking. Sites like LinkedIn and a number of others have offered new ways to connect with industry professionals. But through it all, traditional paper stock cards have stuck around. One startup, however, is proposing a new option that doesn't aim to replace business cards, but to enhance them instead. TouchBase Technologies, a startup out of MIT, is pitching a new business card embedded with conductive ink. The company says the technology allows users to transfer their information by tapping the card against a smartphone. But the new cards would contain more information than what you might find on a typical business card. It might include, for example, digital information, including links to your profiles on sites like LinkedIn and Twitter. Even digital photos, videos, contact and biographical information could be transferred to a contact’s smartphone, company representatives say. Here’s the idea behind the cards the company’s CEO shared with Mashable: “We realized that business cards really aren’t going away. It’s a critical part of business etiquette…This is a way to keep the look and feel of your card, but when you want to share more information, you have that ability.” Though the company still has some kinks to work out, such as creating cards that are flexible enough to transfer information to phones with cases, the concept is an interesting one. In-person networking is not going away. But there may be ways to improve the process with technology . Whether TouchBase can make the cards convenient and inexpensive enough to catch on with business owners remains to be seen. To do that, the app will have to run on as many devices as possible, and the cards will have to be easy to obtain and use. Will TouchBase cards, or ones like them, actually replace traditional business cards? Maybe not. But smartphones and social media have greatly changed the way we communicate. So at some point it would make sense for the plain old business card to catch up and integrate those features. The company is currently running an Indiegogo campaign to fund the project. The pilot version of the product will only include apps for the iPhone 5, 5S, and 5C. But TouchBase plans to add other native iPhone and Android apps in the future. Image: TouchBase Technologies The post New TouchBase Business Card Could Transfer Digital Profile to a Smartphone appeared first on Small Business Trends.

Chuck Hamrick on Succeeding with Affiliate Marketing in 2014 #AMDays Posted: 26 Feb 2014 12:30 PM PST Meet Chuck Hamrick, a 15-year veteran of digital marketing, seasoned outsourced affiliate program manager (OPM) who currently serves as the administrator of the world’s largest affiliate marketing forum, ABestWeb.com. At the upcoming Affiliate Management Days SF 2014 conference (March 19-20) Chuck will moderate “Inside the Mind of the Super Affiliate” panel, as well as speak on “Using Affiliate Forums and Blogs to Create an Online Reputation.” * * * * * Question: If you were to emphasize one area that every affiliate manager should be paying attention to in 2014, what would it be, and why? Chuck Hamrick: Mobile marketing. This spring mobile will surpass traditional desktop/laptop as the main way consumers shop and make online purchases. Is your site optimized for mobile and your cart? Do you offer mobile banners to your affiliates? Does your affiliate software/network track mobile traffic and sales? Question: What do you see as the main areas of opportunity for affiliate marketing (and affiliate marketers) 2014? Chuck Hamrick: Online sales grow year over year. Are you taking advantage of it? Affiliate marketing isn't shrinking, it's growing. Poorly managed affiliate programs are no different than poorly managed social media, SEO or paid search. Site conversion is your first step while you grow your advertising and traffic. Affiliate marketing is an incremental addition to a successful eCommerce merchant. Question: As a veteran digital marketer and affiliate program manager, what do you view as the main areas where affiliates can truly help online merchants? Chuck Hamrick: To partner with the merchant/AM/OPM. When I send out a newsletter we have pushed the affiliates – the latest promotion, hottest products, latest coupon. These are also promoted through the merchants email, display and social channels. Consumers may check via a search engine to research the product before purchase or if it's the best deal. Affiliates can endorse this for the merchants brand and are rewarded with a commission for closing the sale. Merchants are spending heavily on TV and radio yet consumers will go to the Web to purchase. Affiliates can be there to capture those eyeballs. Question: With the vast majority of merchants interested in having their affiliate programs drive truly incremental business, what types of affiliates you would recommend they recruit, and why? Chuck Hamrick: My preference is a mix and it takes time to recruit productive affiliates to your program and get them active. Partner with 1-2 PPC affiliates who "bid the gap" for your merchant, finding terms they missed. Pick 5-10 coupon/deal sites that are responsive to getting your ads up quickly and taking them down when expired.  Content/Review sites are great and will need content/videos. Bloggers have low conversion so you need a bunch. Offer samples for reviews. Datafeed/price comparison needs a detailed datafeed with sales price (often left out). Partner with a few loyalty but insure they are not using software to hijack others sales. Specialty affiliates can be tested such as email marketers, contextual, third party tool sites, cart abandonment, social. Be open minded as affiliates are the R&D arm of online marketing. When in doubt, talk to the affiliate directly. Question: If you were to leave online advertisers/merchants and affiliate managers with one piece of advice, what would it be? Chuck Hamrick: Investigate and understand attribution. With total visibility through your total online marketing channel you can better understand where to allocate resources. Marketing channels need to complement each other and not compete with each other. Don't double pay for sales. * * * * * The upcoming Affiliate Management Days conference takes place March 19-20, 2014 in San Francisco, CA. Follow @AMDays or #AMDays on Twitter as well as Facebook.com/AMDays. When registering, make sure to use the code SMBTRENDS to receive $500.00 off your two-day and all-access passes. See the rest of the interview series here. The post Chuck Hamrick on Succeeding with Affiliate Marketing in 2014 #AMDays appeared first on Small Business Trends.

11 Direct Mail Marketing Secrets Posted: 26 Feb 2014 10:00 AM PST Remember when getting a letter in the mail was exciting? So do we. But how do you recreate that feeling and get customers excited about your business when they’re facing a sea of junk mail, flyers and credit card offers? We asked 11 members of the Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) their top secrets for making direct mail marketing more appealing to the people who matter most — those opening the envelopes. “What is one way brands can make direct mail marketing more appealing to potential (and current) customers?” Here's what YEC community members had to say: 1. Make Mailers Useful “Consumers use scrap paper every day for grocery and to-do lists, phone books and notepads. So, why should your promo, assuming it’s not immediately trashed, languish uselessly in a drawer somewhere? This year, we sent something people tend to keep — a New Year’s resolution sheet (with business info, of course). Brands should think of an additional use for their mailers; consumers sure could.” ~ Manpreet Singh, Seva Call 2. Open With a Proposition “Consumers have short attention spans. Instead of building excitement toward your value proposition, just open with it. This will attract the recipient’s attention and force you, the sender, to see if your value proposition is worth sending to potential customers.” ~ Brett Farmiloe, Internet Marketing Company 3. Make It Lumpy “The first goal of a direct mail campaign is to get your envelope opened. We’ve sent thousands of direct mail pieces to prospects, and we find mailers with a lumpy object inside of the envelope have a near 100 percent open rate. People are curious what’s inside, and the curiosity gets them to open it. Now your job is to make it personal, relevant and captivating to get your piece read.” ~ Charles Gaudet, Predictable Profits 4. Include Product Samples “Paper direct mail can be a nuisance to most customers, but if you include a product sample, the direct mail instantly becomes more valuable as a trial tool. There are several companies that specialize in creating product samples, such as Arcade Marketing for the fragrance and makeup industries, and they often have interactive programs that aim to increase the ROI for your brand.” ~ Doreen Bloch, Poshly Inc. 5. Make Mailers Creative “Direct mail can be very, very powerful. The key is what you send out. Last week, someone mailed me a message in a bottle. The message was about the company changes this business planned to instill in the new year, and the idea was so well put out that I called them immediately. Here’s the key: Send a more creative message to less people. It’s about quality, not quantity. “ ~ Joe Apfelbaum, Ajax Union 6. Include Something Useful “People often only think of promotional products as items to give away during a tradeshow or to clients. But what about using them in direct mail campaigns? Along with your sales/marketing message, include something like a pen. Those who are on the receiving end are at least 50% more likely to keep the pen, and in doing so, you’ll remain in their house in the future, used or not. “ ~ Logan Lenz, Endagon 7. Tailor Content to the Consumer “Invest in learning about your customer, and communicate with them accordingly. Leverage information on customer purchasing behavior and shopping preferences to segment and personalize marketing content and drive sales.” ~ Katie Finnegan, Hukkster 8. Use MailLift “MailLift is basically an API for direct mail marketing. It allows you to integrate your CRM or customer service software directly into its messaging system. You can write out a message, and it will be transcribed as a handwritten letter and sent to your customer. It’s completely revolutionary because you can do mass mail customization efficiently for the first time.” ~ Liam Martin, Staff.com 9. Provide Value “Most direct mail pieces deserve the moniker of “junk mail.” To make sure yours stands out from the crowd, you must deliver some kind of real value that transcends your brand message. There are so many creative things you can do that are cheap: Deliver curated content, use creative techniques (such as punch-outs or folds) to make something that consumers can use or write witty copy. Be boldly creative!” ~ Brittany Hodak, ZinePak 10. Partner Up “Partner up with a complementary company to increase the value of the piece. By doing this you can create a more creative, useful piece. Tap into their customer base as well and use the piece both ways.” ~ Brooke Bergman, Allied Business Network Inc. 11. Use a Stamp “Consumers can tell when something has been mass-mailed. If you make the envelope look like it came from a person rather than a machine, then the piece will more likely get opened. Try using stamps instead of metered mail, and use a font that looks like handwriting instead of typed text.” ~ Sarah Schupp, UniversityParent Direct Mail Photo via Shutterstock The post 11 Direct Mail Marketing Secrets appeared first on Small Business Trends.

Pinterest Marketing Tool Discover Can Give Better View of Your Brand Posted: 26 Feb 2014 07:30 AM PST Tailwind, the analytics and marketing suite specifically for Pinterest, has announced an interesting new service called Discover. The company claims it is the first ever targeted Pinterest marketing tool, and will seamlessly integrate into the existing Tailwind suite. Discover will give a more “holistic view” of a company’s customers, community and brand. Companies will be able to see all Pinterest content related to a campaign, including pins from the brand’s website, repins from their Pinterest profile and recent pins about related topics. The company says the new tool allows users to: Track the increase in followers, repins, likes and comments for your brand and compare growth in engagement across various time periods. Measure Key Performance Indicators including virality, fan engagement level and content engagement rate. You can also benchmark and compare your results with competitors. Analyze content performance by category, keyword, hashtag and pin. Discover has been compared to Twitter listening and monitoring tools. But since Pinterest is based on images, Tailwind believes that their tool provides a different kind of insight. In an official release on the new tool, Tailwind CEO and Co-Founder Danny Maloney explains: “Yesterday’s listening and monitoring tools use simple text-based analysis or outdated pixel-matching technology, which simply do not serve the needs of today’s visual marketer. In a visual world, real insights come from understanding the complete context of an image – including accompanying text, as well as image analysis and factors such as where the content originated. Tailwind provides such insights, helping marketers engage customers in meaningful ways that drive awareness, purchase intent and brand loyalty.” Tailwind is positioning Discover as a way to engage with people in real-time on Pinterest, and to build a “targeted community” which will include influential pinners in their area of expertise. Prices start at $29 a month for the Lite plan, but the $99 monthly Professional package is prominently displayed. Each package has a 14 day free trial. For most small businesses, the $29 monthly package should be more than enough. The post Pinterest Marketing Tool Discover Can Give Better View of Your Brand appeared first on Small Business Trends.

Automate The Hiring Of New Staff For Your Business With iCIMS Posted: 26 Feb 2014 05:00 AM PST Sponsored Post Sometimes one of the most difficult aspects of running a small business is the hiring of new staff. That’s because it doesn’t just involve an interview and a handshake. As any Human Resource employee will tell you, there are other aspects to keep on top of. They include keeping in touch with interested parties, searching for talent yourself and keeping a list of all the open jobs. But you also need to maintain career portals so prospective candidates can submit their resumes. And this is only part of the list of tasks. iCIMS is a complete system that can handle all of these tasks, and more. Automate The Hiring of New Staff If you do a lot of hiring of new staff, then iCIMS is definitely something you should think about using. It enables you to maintain a broad overview of everything your company needs to do and remember to fill your job openings. For example, you’ll need to advertise the vacancy on your site, collect resumes, keep notes and interview questions. Then you’ll need to keep track of the paperwork needed for a successful candidate. All of this can be viewed and edited from the convenience of one single dashboard. Though iCIMS hosts the system on its servers, configuration and branding can make it look as if the pages are on your company’s website.  iCIMS guarantees a 99.9% uptime, so there’s no need to worry about the pages crashing when you need them the most. People interested in applying for a job with your company can submit their resumes through the Candidate Career Portal. Resumes can be sent via Google Drive or Dropbox. After all, the applicant may not have his or her resume immediately on hand. Job vacancies can be shared via social media, and you can refer a vacancy to a friend. Interested applicants must create a profile on the iCIMS system.  If you prefer, you can make the profile using an account on either Facebook, Google Plus, or LinkedIn. Or you can do it the old-fashioned way and make an account with the online form, or by email. When the profile has been created, the applicant can log in and see the vacancies they have applied for in your company. They can leave their resume (which can be uploaded from LinkedIn), and their contact details such as email and Skype ID. They can even upload a photo. In addition to resumes, a candidate can also submit images and even a 2 minute video cover letter. A video cover letter is especially useful if the candidate is too far away for an initial interview, for example. Video cover letters are a great tool to find the candidates you need before you spend the time and resources on a face-to-face interview. On the employer side, all job vacancies and descriptions can be edited using HTML markup. But the system also gives you the ability to set pre-screening questions, to make sure that the applicant is qualified to apply for the job. There is also an iForms section, where relevant forms can be sent to the applicant electronically. But what if you have a sudden vacancy and you need to find a suitable candidate? iCIMS allows you to search for applicants in the system who specified the relevant skills in their application. So if you’re looking for someone with Java and XML experience, you could type “Java XML.” You would then be given all of the applicants in the system who have that experience listed in their resumes. The system’s email templates should also save you time when responding to applicants. If you want to send out an email offering a job, or requesting more information on a job, then you can pull up the appropriate template, and just add the applicant’s details. The iCIMS system can be configured for companies of many different sizes from a few dozen to 10,000 or more. And since the company handles all hosting, configuration and branding, you don’t need an IT department to maintain it all. For pricing, contact iCIMS and tell them the details of your company, including the number of employees and your specific needs. But regardless of your company’s size or industry, the system should streamline your hiring process, and automate the many tasks you need to handle in the process. The post Automate The Hiring Of New Staff For Your Business With iCIMS appeared first on Small Business Trends.

Got a Startup Tech Hardware Product to Sell? Try Grand St. Posted: 26 Feb 2014 02:30 AM PST Grand St. aims to give independent hardware manufacturers a place to sell their products and to test prototypes. If you’re looking to get any consumer electronic to the marketplace, there’s an arduous process involved. One of the biggest obstacles is getting funding for a venture that could miss the mark. Another is finding customers interested in your product. Grand St. provides potential solutions for both problems. Right now, the site is the place to get The Loop, a leather organizer that can charge your iPhone. There’s also a hackable alarm clock kit and an iOS enabled guitar for sale there, now. Fortune says that the addition of independent manufacturers selling their gadgets on the site has turned it into the Etsy of the electronics world. On the official Grand St. blog, co-founder Amanda Peyton explains: “Our goal has always been to create a better way for hardware creators to find an audience and get their products to market. For this new version of Grand St. we wanted to create a flexible solution that addressed indie hardware makers at different stages in the development cycle.” The company says it now has about 200,000 users. And indie gadget makers have three ways to sell their new products through the site: Consumer Ready When you’re ready to sell the gadget you’ve created, you can list it through the Grand St. Shop. Grand St. says it previews and must approve any new listing. If a product doesn’t make the cut, Grand St. notifies the maker of its reasons for rejection. If a product is approved and listed, the site takes an 8 percent commission on all sales. It takes the same commission on Beta sales. These are products that haven’t received any customer feedback and aren’t quite ready for a mass audience. Beta A Beta product maker can pick testers for the products and await their feedback. Based on the feedback, Grand St. says the maker of the product can then decide to seek more funding for changes or get the product ready for the marketplace or pre-order sales. Pre-Order If a product is within six months of being ready for the marketplace, it can be sold through a pre-order feature on Grand St. The site doesn’t take a commission on those sales and there are no monthly fees linked to selling on Grand St. Sellers need to handle all their customer service and shipping commitments, the company notes in its seller guidelines. The post Got a Startup Tech Hardware Product to Sell? Try Grand St. appeared first on Small Business Trends.

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