How Technology Can Help Your Business

How Technology Can Help Your BusinessOctober 26, 2011

Friday, October 28, 2011

Our Technology Focus Today

Obvious, well-known

technologies

Less obvious, less well-known

technologies

What We Won’t Discuss

Nothing I Discuss Will Break the Bank

Low cost No cost

Lots of Technology Buckets

How Technology Can Help

Productivity

BI Better HiringEfficiency

Employee Retention

Customer Acquisition

Appearances

ProfitabilityFriday, October 28, 2011

Reduce Costs

eBay Business

• Launched 2003

• 10-15% of all eBay volume comes from SMBs

• Get new/used/refurbished equipment/stuff

• Often 20¢, 30¢, 40¢ on the dollar

• Small business owner’s secret weapon

Cut Credit Card Processing Costs

• Processing fees can be huge cost for CC-reliant businesses

• FeeFighters is a comparison shopping site for CC processing

• Sort of like Lending Tree

• All processors vetted

• FeeFighters saves businesses 40% on average

• Annual saved sums can be as high as $50,000

Portal-Based Discount Programs

• AMEX OPEN the grandaddy

• Discounts from 2,000+ partners for business card holders

• More and more technology providers building SMB portals with similar discounts

• Some will be adding “deal” programs

• AMEX OPEN also offers lots of BI and AMEX OPEN FORUM

Better Hiring

• Make your company discoverable

• Use for free to search and connect

• Pay $50 a month to get free InMails

• Use Groups and Answers

• Check out DIY text advertising

• Hire employees

Business Intelligence

Google Alerts

• Google Alerts is content detection and notification service

• Taps content changes in news, web, blog, video or discussion sites

• Matches set of terms users select and program

• You can monitor pretty much anything, no matter how granular

• Can be notified by email, web feed, or via iGoogle

Twitter Aggregator Sites

• Business intelligence tools

• My main use of Twitter

• Know what’s being said on the “real-time” web

• Track yourself, customers, competitors, trends

• Tweetdeck, Hootsuite are the biggies

IncreasedEfficiency and Productivity

Google Docs

• Everybody should be using Google Docs

• FREE

• Ultimate in sharing and collaboration

• Spreadsheets, documents, presentations, forms, drawings

• Easy conversion of MS docs—and back to MS and PDFs

Cloud Computing

• SaaS business apps found in cloud very compelling for SMBs

• You can now run previously “too expensive” solutions

• You can now run your business as efficiently as larger companies

• New SMB guide from Dell: Bringing the Cloud Down to Earth

• But security (malware, phishing, viruses) is one of top 3 SMB concerns

• http://www.dellcloudapplications.com/resources/ebook-bringing-cloud-down-earth

Tablet/Smartphone Apps

• We all now use Apps...maybe a lot, maybe a few

• World of tablet/smartphone apps is vast...probably a million+

• Best aggregator/advisor is Chicago-based Appolicious

• Guide to iPhone, iPad, Android and newer video apps

• 2,500 apps alone reviewed in “Business” section

Mobile Sites

• 58 million Americans browse the Web on mobile devices

• Almost as many shop the Web that way

• If we want to be fully discoverable online, no longer enough to have a website

• We all need an easy to read and navigate site on mobile devices

• Good news is, it’s faster, easier and cheaper than building websites

• Great SMB guide at: http://bit.ly/mQT4UH

B2B Deal Sites

• B2B versions of Groupon

• Small business are the buyers (not sellers)

• Sellers are firms that provide products and services SMBs need ton run their businesses

• Generally weekly offers

• Products, services, software

• Our Bizy is one of 5-6 out there

Skype for Business

• You may already use the basic Skype

• Skype for Business recently launched

• Added services: caller ID, Skype WiFi, voicemail, online number, SMS, group video

• Can load $$$ and assign to specific employees

Cloud Back Up

• Cloud back-up essential today

• But adoption at small business level surprisingly low

• Data protection and security are key issues

• But anti-virus protection is not enough

• Cloud back-up eliminates hardware, software costs

• Generally, dirt cheap (as low as $59/year)

Online Payroll Management

• Already a pretty low-cost service

• Convenience, affordability main benefits

• Chicago’s SurePayroll, now owned by Paychex

• Silicon Valley’s PayCycle, now owned by Intuit

• Traditionals...ADP, Austin Gregg...catching up

Live Virtual Receptionist

• So many businesses have eliminated receptionists

• We call ours, the “Director of First Impressions”

• We’re bigger, so we can afford one

• Many very small businesses looking at virtual receptionists

• Providers are both off-shore and all over U.S. (Iowa)

• Especially useful to businesses where service is a priority

CustomerAcquisition

AMEX’s Small Business Saturday

• In 2nd year

• Nov. 26 in U.S.

• Encourages communities to shop at local businesses

• Google and AMEX also sponsoring “My Business Story”

• A tool to help Small business create professional quality videos

• Check out AMEX OPEN, too

Using Social Media

• Facebook helps humanize your business and create community

• Fill your business page with more candid, personal, friendly content

• Save unique things like flash sales, special announcements, etc., for Facebook only

• Boosting "likes" is key because these people are more likely to buy or recommend

• Facebook polling is a secret weapon to get feedback from potential customers

Telemarketing to Prospects

• For many, customer acquisition means cold calling

• How good are you and your staff at cold calling?

• Consider testing outsourcing services, including Office Goblins

• They’ll script calls, train employees or do it themselves

• You supply prospect lists, or they can find them

• Pay for effort or for results; plans vary

Clone Your Customers

• From Experian’s Small Business unit

• Called “Clone My Customer”

• Upload data on your 50 best customers

• Get “X” similar prospects in your area in return

• Great for very local, store-based businesses

QR Codes

• QR stand for Quick Response

• Originally designed by Toyota for vehicle tracking

• Now used everywhere and especially by people with smartphones

• Take customers directly to your landing page or site

• Use on flyers, store signage, trade show booths, business cards, ads, promos, etc.

Video Sharing

• YouTube now 2nd largest search engine

• 50%+ of searches are b2b focused

• Video use by all businesses is exploding

• Lower production values OK these days

• Editing tools at your desktop

Groupon Now!

• New service from Groupon

• Real-time consumer discovery service

• Works best for retail, store-based local businesses

• Schedule deals at slow times when you need them most

• Signed-in consumers see nearby deals while on the go

• Shopping, meals, classes, sales, etc.

Employee and Customer

Retention

Employee Feedback Tools

• Are your employees happy or have one foot out the door

• Replacement costs can be high

• Many employers scared or shy to seek direct input

• Input Ladder is an early warning system

• Helps employees convey feelings anonymously

• System gathers, analyzes and displays findings

Customer Feedback Tools

• Customer research often expensive

• But we still need to know what our customers want and think

• Boxwire is the equivalent of an online suggestion box

• Gather and analyze customer feedback

• Does so privately and anonymously

• Online dashboards/displays

What We Didn't Discuss, But Could Have

• Online banking

• Mobile payments

• Other VOIP solutions

• Other video conferencing solutions

• Email marketing

• Digital advertising

• Webinars and virtual events

Thank you

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