January 6, 2012
//
No Comments »
Technology analyst Gartner, Inc. has come out with it’s hottest mobile applications for 2012. All related to high-end devices ($300 average price tag), the pros at Garner have named their top 10 cutting-edge technologies and trends for next year.
Winning mobile apps are no longer just extensions of online services – they offer specific, unique features that cater to the mobile environment.
“Mobile applications will be a highly competitive marketplace that attracts the interest of many stakeholders,” said Sandy Shen, research director at Gartner. “Increasingly, mobile applications will define the user experience on high-end devices and device vendors that proactively integrate innovative apps and technologies at the platform layer will have the competitive edge.”
Did you know that mobile apps generate a huge amount of revenue ($15.9 billion expected in 2012), but will also drive hardware sales, advertising spending and technology innovation.
Gartner tells us that more and more big brand companies will shift more of their marketing budget to the mobile channel, and experiment with cutting-edge apps. Companies must focus on the latest technology to help their products and services stand out in a highly competitive marketing environment. Here’s the top ten:
1. Context-aware consumer location-based servicesthat take the user’s location, personal preference, gender, age, profession, intention and more, offering a much more-intelligent user experience than basic location services can. Gartner analysts believe context-aware services are a key trend for mobile apps, and location is a key enabler of that.
2. Mobile social networking, the fastest-growing consumer mobile app category of the 19 currently followed by Gartner.
3. Mobile search - advancing price comparisons product information searches to the next level, where apps allow users to take actions based on the result, such as making a call or reservation, buying a ticket, placing an order, and other similar functions.
4. Improved mobile commerce applications that let consumers “check in” to a store to alert a retailer and the ability to add items to a shopping cart simply by taking a photo of an item or bar code in the physical store.
5. Mobile payment solutions that improve ease-of-use and implementation for users without compromising security.
6. More context-aware apps that improve user experiences by using the information about a person’s interests, intentions, history, environment, activities, schedule, priorities, connections and preferences to anticipate their needs and proactively serve up the most appropriate content, product or service.
7. Object recognition (OR) where the mobile camera, as well as other device sensors, will act as a communication tool when OR capabilities are combined with more-traditional app functions, giving users advanced search capabilities and extended entertainment and productivity options.
8. Mobile instant messaging (MIM) that offers new types of unified communication (UC) clients, provided by over the top (OTT) service providers like Skype.
9. Mobile email - Gartner expects mobile e-mail users worldwide to increase from 354 million in 2009 to more than 700 million by 2014, accounting for 10.6 percent of the global mobile user base.
10. Mobile video applications that work with YouTube and other popular video providers, with mobile device manufacturers integrating HD and 3D capabilities in their high-end devices and bundling content pre-loaded or as free downloads through an app store.
Mobile services are all about the user experience. These exciting app trends will continue to focus on what consumers really want for entertainment, productivity and ease of use. We are looking forward to all the new and exciting apps yet to come this year! What app is on your wish list?
Posted in
Marketing, Resources, Small Business, Social Media, Software, Technology, Uncategorized
December 12, 2011
//
No Comments »
As we wind down 2011, it is always a good idea to reflect on processes and focus on doing things better for the upcoming year. Have you ever thought about the passwords you use? If you are like most people, children’s birthdays, pet names and even the word “password” rank top of the list. However, these types of passwords make you an easy target for hackers.
In fact the password “Password” ranks first on password management application provider SplashData’s annual list of worst internet passwords, which are ordered by how common they are. (“Passw0rd,” with a numeral zero, isn’t much smarter, ranking 18th on the list.)
The list is somewhat predictable: Sequences of adjacent numbers or letters on the keyboard, such as “qwerty” and “123456,” and popular names, such as “ashley” and “michael,” all are common choices. Other common choices, such as “monkey” and “shadow,” are harder to explain.
Many websites have started a new trend that requires passwords to include both numbers and letters, it makes sense varied choices, such as “abc123″ and “trustno1,” are popular choices.
SplashData created the rankings based on millions of stolen passwords posted online by hackers. Here is the complete list:
•1. password
•2. 123456
•3.12345678
•4. qwerty
•5. abc123
•6. monkey
•7. 1234567
•8. letmein
•9. trustno1
•10. dragon
•11. baseball
•12. 111111
•13. iloveyou
•14. master
•15. sunshine
•16. ashley
•17. bailey
•18. passw0rd
•19. shadow
•20. 123123
•21. 654321
•22. superman
•23. qazwsx
•24. michael
•25. football
SplashData CEO Morgan Slain urges businesses and consumers using any password on the list to change them immediately. “Hackers can easily break into many accounts just by repeatedly trying common passwords,” Slain says. “Even though people are encouraged to select secure, strong passwords, many people continue to choose weak, easy-to-guess ones, placing themselves at risk from fraud and identity theft.”
The company provided some tips for choosing secure passwords in a statement:
•1. Vary different types of characters in your passwords; include numbers, letters and special characters when possible.
•2. Choose passwords of eight characters or more. Separate short words with spaces or underscores.
•3. Don’t use the same password and username combination for multiple websites. Use an online password manager to keep track of your different accounts.
Are these lists helpful? Do you need to rethink any of your password choices? Contact us and we can help get you on the right track to keeping your accounts safe!
Article by: Zoe Fox
Posted in
Resources, Small Business, Technology, Uncategorized
November 9, 2011
//
No Comments »
Screen sharing is wildly popular these days and the team at LogMeIn has a great new app, join.me. This software lets users share screens to review files, images, and documents, demo new products, train staff and conduct meetings anywhere, anytime. You can sign up for free, and get a number of great features at no charge, including basic screen sharing, 250 viewers, share control, multi-monitor capabilities, chat, and the ability to send files along to other users as well.
This free screen sharing tool is very easy to use. For more advanced users, a Pro version of the tool is available for a fee that offers all the functionality of the free service, plus presenter swap, pro desktop app, a personal link and background function, a meeting scheduler, user management and international conference lines.
Using an iPad or iPhone? The join.me app in the iTunes App Store also gives you VoIP solutions that let you have voice conversations as you share your screens. The addition of VoIP means that uses can have voice conversations and talk about the session with no additional hardware required.
This summer, TIME named join.me one of the 50 best Web sites of 2011, calling the free version one of the Web’s ‘great bargains’ and a viable alternative to more complex paid services like WebEx and GoToMeeting. With no registration and a simple click-though process, join.me is definitely worth a try.
Posted in
Resources, Small Business, Technology, Uncategorized
May 27, 2011
//
No Comments »
The battle of the browsers continues – here are the top five browsers (by number of global users):
- Internet Explorer (IE)
- Firefox
- Chrome
- Safari
- Opera
IE still has a commanding lead, but its followers are dropping, while Firefox users are consistent (not much growth or decline) and Google Chrome users are rising and may overtake Firefox soon. No browser is perfect, and each one has strengths and weaknesses that the individual user has to either accept or find add on features to make it usable for specific functions.
Most of us get comfortable with a specific browser and stick with it – however, there are a number of either new or updated browsers worth looking at if you are ready for a change. ‘s take a look at some of the rising stars.
Chromium is the open source project that developed Chrome, but the the browsers are not identical. For those of you frustrated with the limitations of Chrome, you may want to look at both. Chromium and Google Chrome both offer Search Suggest, but Chromium does not offer PDF Viewer and Adobe Flash Player. To make up for the differences you can access extensions in Chrome’s Web Store in Chromium.
SRWare’s Iron Web browser is also based on Chromium open source, and is similar to Chrome, but reportedly much faster.
RockMelt is one of the truly new browsers available, and is in fact, just in beta version. RockMelt is designed for social media mavens on Facebook, Twitter and email, integrating notifications from social media sites like Facebook and Twitter and also has the ability to synch your items through Facebook.
Mozilla-based Wyzo keeps reinventing itself. Wyzo offers FireDownload, a download accelerator, and FireTorrent. One of its new features (Wyzo 3) is SkipScreen, the extension that allows you to skip waiting screens.
Maxthon has also been around for several years, starting as an extension of Internet Explorer and using the same rendering engine. It also gives you Webkit, which powers Google Chrome and Safari and helps load pages almost instantly. Other great Maxthon features include as mouse gestures, bookmark sync, Passport, speed dial, popup blocker, online notepad, RSS reader, instant translator, screen capturing tools and resource sniffer.
Opera has stood the test of time and continues to be one of the world’s most popular browsers. Opera offers a desktop mail program, torrent client and Web server. Opera also offers browsers for mobile phones and tablets, sync features, speed dial and custom searches
The top gun, IE has come out with IE9, which testers tell us is much improved from recent predecessors. Its top feature over the competition is its integration with the Windows OS. IE9 jumplists enhance Twitter and Facebook, which behave more like applications here.
If you’ve stuck with the same old browser for a long time, give one of these latest versions or new browsers a try – each has something cool to offer.
Posted in
Resources, Small Business, Technology, Uncategorized
April 1, 2011
//
No Comments »
People have been wanting to process credit card payments on the go for years. As with anything, new technology makes it lighter and easier than ever. Take Square for example. It is a small little card reader that you plug into your phone or iPad!
When you sign up for an account with Square, you will get the card reader free in the mail. Then you can start processing payments. There are no monthly contracts or fees or merchant account involved. They do take a cut out of each payment and card swipe but that’s to be expected. The fee’s however are very reasonable; 2.75% for swiped transactions, 3.5% + 15¢ for keyed-in transactions.
Supported phones or devices are iPhone, iPad, iPod touch and selected Android devices but they plan on adding additonal phones in the future. If you have been looking for a tool that can help you process payments on the go check this unique new tool!
Posted in
Small Business, Software, Technology, Uncategorized
February 17, 2011
//
No Comments »
You see them all the time. Chances are you would recognize the Pepsi Logo or the Nike Swoop anywhere. These icons are an example of the kind of logos that branding hinges on. However, these are huge companies so a common question is-does branding work for small businesses?
Many logos are simply graphics that are designed with little to no thought about how the logo becomes a brand. There are many things to take into consideration when branding a small business because your brand is your identity to your customers. However, does it make a difference in the marketing of your products or services?
In the case of Nike for example, the “brand” was already in place before a clever marketer made a slogan which will forever be connected with that swoop. The phrase “Just Do It” in many minds is interchangeable with the “brand” itself. So, did the swoop help sell shoes? The answer is no, the brand in itself identifies the product on the shelf. If a person is already looking for Nike shoes they will be able to pick them out.
There is no branding substitute for a good product and great service. Nick Rice who writes for SBB had the following to say:
The design of your logo really doesn’t matter. Would you choose MSN as your search engine over Google because of their logo? No, having a nice professional logo is great, but it very rarely increases sales. I’m all for a professional logo, but don’t think you need to spend a fortune on it. It’s more important to include your logo on every piece of communication. Put it on business cards, letterhead, envelopes, invoices, yellow page ads, building signage, newsletters etc..
Stand for something. People latch on to something they can understand and appreciate. If you’re trying to be everything to everybody, chances are you’ll attract no one. If you think it’s too controversial to choose a niche, remember the power of being seen as an expert. Experts are not good at everything, they’re awesome at one thing. This allows you to better position yourself and charge more for your services. People seek out experts, not generalists
So, while it may not be a substitute for a great product, your brand may be the difference when you already stand out as a company. Keep in mind that the Logo you choose will be identified with your company indefinitely. Like a tattoo, make sure its something will be proud of and that you can live with. While some companies have successfully done it, changing a logo years after you are established can be tough and risky. It takes a sizeable effort to re-brand your company.
Posted in
Clients, Marketing, Resources, Small Business
November 12, 2010
//
No Comments »
It’s great to build email lists, and we know that your subscribers love to hear from you – but how often? If you are a prolific emailer, your favorite subscribers may end up hitting the delete button before the ever open your message. Eventually, they may even unsubscribe just to lighten up their email boxes.
So why not help them lighten their load? With a couple of content changes and technical switches, you can create email lighter frequency lists that give your subscribers the options to get your broadcasts weekly, bi-monthly or monthly. Here’s how:
Condense your content:
- Highlight the top news stories or tips each day
- Remove any announcements for timely events that will be obsolete
- Merge related articles
- Create topic lists that link back to the full story on your Web site
Tweak the Opt-In
- Make sure that your subscribers who opt in to lighter frequency aren’t still on the original daily deluge list
- Create a self-explanatory Web form for each list that makes it clear they are signing up for fewer emails
- Create confirmation messages that spell out what they have signed up for and when they will get emails
If you make the decision to offer lighter frequency email content, now may be the perfect time to reach out t your subscribers who haven’t opened your emails in a while. Send them an email that lets them know they can opt- in for your email lite version. Write a subject that lets them know it’s a new opportunity. Ask them to select a frequency option and link them to a Web form that will set them up seamlessly. It may be just the way to get their attention again!
Posted in
Clients, Customer Service, Marketing, Resources, Small Business, Virtual Assistants
November 3, 2010
//
No Comments »
If you aren’t using some type of Web analytics and Web usability tool, you should be. Now we have new, free usability tools springing up that are worth checking out and running on your site, even as a test. The latest cool tool is called Youseeble, a brand-new Internet tool that lets you see your Web site the way your visitors do.
Do you have your most important content in the right place? What are your visitors (and potential customers) really looking at? What gets ignored?
Youseeable doesn’t really replace a comprehensive Web analytics tool (Google Analytics is one that you can use for free), but it does let you see how people interact with your Web site, which is really the name of the game these days. Here’s how it works:
- Youseeable records the activity of each visitor then creates three different “heat maps” that show where people go on your site
- The Interaction heat map shows where visitors go and what they ignore; the Attention heat map shows cursor movement; and the Visibility heat map shows what visitors actually see on your pages based screen resolutions and browser differences
- Just insert a couple of lines of segments of HTML code into all your pages, then create a test
- Youseeable also offers a playback function that lets you watch the actions of a real visitor
The real benefit to Youseeable is the ability to take your visitor numbers and actually understand them by looking at the behavior patterns. It’s free to try – all you need to get started is an email address and the ability to add the code onto your pages.
Today’s Web marketers must be relevant, real and responsive. Tools like Youseeable help you create and place content and design to keep visitors on the site and to give users the information and applications they are looking for in Web 3.0.
Posted in
Marketing, Resources, Small Business, Software, Technology
September 3, 2010
//
No Comments »
If you host small online meetings or conferences, teach online or have any need to share content but don’t want to pay high prices, then you should check out the latest desktop sharing tool – Mikogo.
Mikago lets you share any screen content or application over the Internet with up to 10 users simultaneously. And it’s free for both commercial and private use! Here are some of the applications:
- Web conferences
- Online meetings
- Product demonstrations
- Web presentations
- Remote support
- Team projects
- Webinars
Mikogo comes from BeamYourScreen, who offers a number of Web collaboration solutions. Most of BeamYourScreen’s products are not free – they offer more sophisticated features like a greater number of participants (up to 25), an HTML viewer and live customer support. The free version is great for small, simple applications. All of Mikogo’s features work on a Windows platform – a number will also run on a MAC platform.
Here’s how Mikogo works:
- The organizer initiates a phone conference.
- The organizer starts a Mikogo session, gets a unique 9-digit session ID from the Mikogo server, and distributes the session ID to the participants.
- Participants open their Internet browser, go to www.mikogo.com, and click on “Join Session”. No installations or registrations required for the participants. They simply join the session by entering the session ID.
- A connection is instantly established, and the participants can view the organizer’s screen in real time via the Mikogo viewer window.
Download it here and give the application a try. It’s cool, it’s free and it’s available in several languages.
Posted in
Resources, Small Business, Software, Technology
August 5, 2010
//
No Comments »
When it comes to online communication, it’s just as important as offline communication, if not more important. Oftentimes when speaking to someone in an online atmosphere, they can take things the wrong way, simply because they cannot hear your voice or see your face. Because of this, it is vital that you get your message across right the first time because you might not get another chance, especially if you offend someone. Here are a few guidelines to follow when you are speaking to someone online; have it be through email or IM.
- It is typically considered rude and impolite to talk IN ALL CAPITAL LETTERS LIKE THIS. It is commonly referred to as shouting. Shouting = rude. Instead, you can emphasize words using bold or italics but if at all possible stay away from all caps.
- Make sure you check your spelling and grammar before sending out emails and IMs. Most IM and email programs these days have a spell check function. Be sure to turn it on, this will allow you to look professional. It will also keep people from getting confused by sloppy typing.
- Make sure when you send an email, that you use a signature file. Email programs and sites like Gmail and Hotmail have an option for this. It will allow you to “attach” it to the bottom of all your emails you send out. This email signature will contain your name, business name, phone number, URL, etc. Whatever you want. There are two points to this. First is to introduce who you are and possibly what you want. Second is to possibly promote your website or business.
- Make your email subjects text as concise as possible. Keep it short and to the point.. Oftentimes when people read or receive an email that is incredibly long, especially when it comes to a partnership, sale, email sales letter or newsletter, if it’s too long, they will just delete it. Remember to always enter a subject, if you leave it blank it has a greater chance of being filtered into spam or just deleted.
- Always use the best customer service skills possible. It doesn’t matter if it’s through an email program or if you have a support desk. Don’t make your clients, customers or prospects wait more than two days at a time for an answer. If you get a lot of people that email you once, email you twice and email you three times in a very minimal amount of time – set up an auto responder. Gmail has one of these and it is quite frankly, very useful. It tells people, okay, I got your email, and I will get back to you soon. It shows you care and it puts them at ease.
By using these few guidelines, your business will run smoother, and people will be able to communicate with you on a clearer level. Communication is such a HUGE aspect in the online world. Use these guidelines as you will, when you want and customize them for your businesses.
Posted in
Customer Service
