Taking Corrective Action - With Your Boss

Every supervisor has to take corrective action with their direct reports from time to time. But what do you do when your boss … even a good one …crosses the line? Most people simmer in quiet anger, which can build up and boil over into destructive actions over what are usually insignificant matters. To be certain, it’s a scary endeavor to take corrective action when you believe your supervisor (or supervisor’s supervisor) is in the wrong and you need them to change course. But there are incidents that if left unchecked will decrease your job satisfaction and performance. In these instances, you owe it to yourself and your organization to take corrective action with your boss. Here’s how you can approach it so you, your boss and the organization get what they need.

Can You Live With an Undesirable Result?

That is the first and most important question you need to answer before you approach your boss. What will be the result of this? What is the worst result possible? Can you live with that result? Just because the issue is a problem to you, doesn’t mean your boss will agree. They have their own perspective on things so you should be ready for differences of opinion. If you will feel better for having addressed the issue even if the outcome is not desirable to you, then go ahead and talk to your boss about what they did that you think needs correcting. If you think the worst possible outcome will lead to bigger problems, you may need to wait for a better time to make your opinion known.

Try to See Things from Their Perspective

Once you’ve decided to take corrective action with your boss remember that they probably will have different perspectives and even different motivators than you. If their greatest intrinsic reward for working is to be in control while yours is taking on new adventures, you will have quite different viewpoints. If their greatest workplace extrinsic reward is money and yours is security, you have differing values and you will need to speak from their most important value to relate. Show them how the issue not only affects you, but by them changing the way they would approach it in the future, they will be better able to meet their important work rewards, in this case greater control and greater pay.

Be Cause and Effect Oriented

Feelings are valid, but dwelling on them too much while taking corrective action, especially with a superior, will come off as personal and emotional. It’s okay to say that what the boss did made you feel angry or hurt, but don’t stop there. Focus on the business need. Talk about what this issue could have or did cause in business dealings and the negative effect it generated or could have. Your emotional reaction to the situation will come off as more justified and more professional because it’s related to business success, not personal feelings.

Offer a Solution

Nobody likes a whiner. Especially at work where a challenging economy puts stress on everyone. How you approach the situation is a big determinant to how it will get resolved. Keep your cool and after explaining why the boss’s words or actions are unacceptable, offer what you believe is a solution that will benefit everyone. That requires forethought before you speak. Thinking about what you need will also put the focus on resolution, not on anger. Your boss may have a new appreciation for you as a team member and hold you in higher professional esteem. That may be the best solution of all to your situation, because you will have turned a negative into a positive.

Taking Corrective Action - With a Peer

Even very small businesses require that its employees work in cross functional teams. Those experiences are usually very positive. You forge friendships with co-workers and you learn something from outside of your particular area of expertise. But what happens when this goes wrong? When a peer is doing something that need correcting and you are the one that needs to correct them? Here are some steps that may help you.

Clearly Explain the Business Ramifications of Their Actions

If your peer works in a different department, chances are they don’t always know how their actions affect you and your department. Explain to them why you need what you need and how their actions hinder your department’s chances for success. Assume they don’t know this and if you haven’t had any previous negative experiences with them, give them the benefit of the doubt. Being positive and rationally explaining the situation and your needs will get the results you need and strengthen your work relationship with your peer.

Don’t Wait

If you like and respect your peer, you may not want to call attention to the issue that needs correcting. It is wise to judge the situation and determine if it’s worth pursuing corrective action. If it is, don’t wait to discuss it. Bring it up at the earliest, most appropriate time. If you don’t, chances are it will repeat itself. Your peer needs to function well but they are not required to be mind readers. Tell them what you think, again keeping it on a business level, and why their course of action needs to change. You may have shed light on a negative practice they didn’t know they were doing and you may have a better functioning peer and team as a result.

Positive, Negative, Positive

Framing your corrective action discussion is as important as clearly explaining what needs to be corrected. When doing so, use the tried and tested “positive, negative, positive” feedback model. Start with something they do well and praise them for it. Relate that to the negative action they took and explain how it is incongruent with their usual performance. Wrap it up with a positive conclusion on how and why you believe they will be even better after taking your suggestion.

Be Open Minded

Taking corrective action is a dialogue, not a monologue. Listen to what your peer has to say. They may have insight as to why they needed to take the action they took. Be an active listener, engaging them with thoughtful, non-combative questions. This will do at least three positive things. It will allow you to identify possible circumstances that may lead to further negative actions and you can correct them now versus cleaning up a mess later. It will also teach you more about what your peer needs in their job and will give you a greater appreciation for them. This will lead to the third positive thing; you will have a stronger team and working relationship as a result.

Do Unto Others

The Golden Rule applies here; treat others as you would like to be treated. By putting yourself in their shoes, you’ll see how you would like the situation to be handled and may handle it better. Because the goal of taking this form of corrective action is not to make your peer feel bad. It is to make the team and your working relationship better.

Reducing Anxiety In the Office

Even if you have a job you love, you will be stressed at work on occasion. Just as each office has different workers with different skills, the anxiety triggers for workers are as varied as the workers themselves. As a worker or manager, you will never completely eliminate workplace anxiety in yourself or your employees. But you can help reduce or relieve it with several simple steps.

Know Yourself and Your People

Recognizing what triggers anxiety in you or your staff is the most important step to reducing it. Not everybody is the same. We all have different talents and are stressed by different factors. Take stock in yourself. What ties your stomach in knots in the workplace? In what situations are your colleagues or employees uncomfortable? Knowledge is power, so know what triggers anxiety and to the best of your ability minimize those situations for yourself and your staff.

Communicate

Communication is the essential element to a healthy, productive relationship. Work relationships are no exception. If you are feeling anxiety, talk about it to your supervisor. Not in a complaining way, but rationally. Explain what makes you anxious and be solutions oriented. You may not be able to eliminate the duties that make you anxious, but talking about them may help reduce your anxiety and help you cope. If you notice someone is anxious, ask them why. It may be something unrelated to work, but if not, that person will most likely be able to explain why. There may be an underlying business problem they see that nobody else does. If they uncover that problem, a solution to it is more readily found.

Breathe and Walk

When anxious, a person’s heart rate increases and they hyperventilate. If you notice this happening, pause. Take a moment and take several deep breaths. Even if this is happening during a tense meeting, your pause will make people believe you are thinking about the issue and if you silently breathe deep, you’ll get the same results as if you did it audibly. Breath is essential to life and breathing deeply adds more oxygen to your bloodstream and makes tense muscles relax, relieving physical signs of anxiety. If possible, take a brisk walk, hopefully outdoors to clear your head for 5 minutes. That brief respite may be all you need to refocus on a solution to the issue instead of the anxiety it’s causing you.

Deal With the Issue Now

Breathing and taking a walk are not meant to avoid the problem, they are meant to alleviate the physical symptoms of stress. Ignoring the problems that cause anxiety is not the answer. That only allows problems to fester and cause greater anxiety. Dealing with them early on actually reduces their anxiety producing effects. If you are angry, then it is best to walk away for a moment until you can approach the situation or people that caused the anxiety and anger more rationally. But don’t wait too long. People may forget about the problem they caused and your efforts to correct the situation will be lost.

Remember, You’ve Seen This Movie Before

Most anxiety triggers probably have been with you for a long time. Remember how you dealt effectively with them in the past and put that plan into action. Or remember what you wished you had done and do it this time. Remembering the past challenges you overcame will diminish the anxiety and help you cope. If your anxiety is because of new duties, remember the times where you took on new duties in the past. Once you mastered them, the anxiety faded. And so it will this time. You are up to any challenge. Remember that, have a healthy dose of self-efficacy, and realize that you are bigger than any problem or anxiety that comes your way.

Coping With Sources of Work Stress

Where there is work, there will always be workplace stress. Some of it is situational. The days before the April 15th tax deadline for an accounting firm, a cleaning service whose largest client hired them for a big, time sensitive job, a catering company preparing a big order for a premiere event that evening. These are performance related stressors that actually cause positive stress called Eustress. But there are common work stressors that are negative, and they need to be dealt with

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Having too much or too little work to do

When you are facing work overload or too many task demands on a regular basis, you can feel overwhelmed. Surprisingly, the same is true when a worker has too little to do. Especially in this economy of job elimination, nobody wants to appear to be expendable. The solution may be as simple as letting your supervisor know and getting a better distribution of duties. If you’re in a self-managing team, ask co-workers if you can shift or share some duties. Speak up. The worst thing you can do is suffer in silence and let the problem fester.

Role ambiguities and conflicts

Role ambiguity is not knowing what is expected of you in your job or how you will be evaluated. Role conflict is feeling unable to satisfy multiple or conflicting job expectations. Both bring on stress. If you have a job description, read it and make sure that what you’re doing is in line with it. Reading and knowing your job description may help you define your role better and relieve stress. If it doesn’t, talk to your supervisor or HR and suggest duties that are more in line with what you are capable of. If you have a well thought out description, your company may just allow you to implement your plan. If you are a supervisor and you feel this stress, it’s time to effectively delegate some duties to your staff.

Conflict with co-workers

A sour work relationship can bring lots of stress. You can hope the offending party transfers or takes another job. Communication is the key. If you can talk it out with them, do it. If you can’t, then avoid them as much as possible while still doing your job well. Bring in a supervisor or HR if things get really bad.

Physical setting

A bad work environment where there is too much noise, bad lighting, temperatures not conducive to doing your job and other elements create workplace stress. Make these known to the office manager or your supervisor and when these changes are made, stress could be reduced.

Other ways to cope with stress

The first key to solving workplace stress is to communicate with as much professionalism and calm as you can. But there are proactive measures you can take to help cope with workplace stress as well. Studies show that regular exercise reduces stress. Adopt a regular workout routine. The first two weeks may be challenging as your energy may sap. But after that period, you will feel invigorated and the endorphins released from a vigorous workout provide physiological stress relief. Also get organized. Prioritizing duties and removing clutter are two steps to getting organized and reducing stress. There are a variety of Organizational Coaches you can choose from to help you manage this stress reducing step. Stress will always be a part of workplace life. That is an unpleasant fact. But by communicating with those who can help change things and taking proactive steps such as organizing and adopting a personal wellness plan, stress can be reduced.

Creating a Vision That Others Will Buy Into

Eureka! You’ve had a vision for success for your business or team and you’re ready to share it. Now what? You’ve got to spell it out for your team and get them as excited about the prospect of carrying it out as you are. Without their buy in, your vision is just a dream. Here’s how you can get your team involved and make this vision a reality.

Spell it out clearly

You had the vision, others didn’t. You remember the soaring emotions you felt when you had it, they probably won’t connect with that experience. What you need to do is spell out clearly what the vision is and why you believe it will be successful. Tell it with passion and make your team or co-workers feel part of it. Your experience wasn’t theirs. Make it theirs by articulating what the vision is and clearly define it.

Talk about the short and long term applications for success

Clearly defining the vision is the “what” of the equation. Now your people need to see the “why.” Why is the vision so important? Explain why turning this vision into an action plan will benefit the organization both in the short and long term. Be specific. Don’t talk about “gut feelings” or something that is non-tangible. Spell out in as great a detail as possible what the benefits are. This is a great exercise for you to do before you try to rally your people’s support. If you find that you can’t articulate why implementing your vision will benefit the organization when you’re alone, you won’t be able to do it in front of others. In that case, your vision, while inspiring to you, may not be compelling enough for others.

Tell your people what’s in it for them

You’re asking for your team’s buy in, so you need to tell them of the pay off. Specifically, how it will benefit them. This requires that you know what they need before you explain the vision. If you’re not clear about their needs, ask them before you share your vision. Then you can truly show whether your vision will meet their wants and needs and is right for them.

Make your people feel needed

One of the biggest elements of job satisfaction is for workers to feel needed. Empower your people. Tell and show them that though the vision was yours to start with, you can’t do it without them. By telling what you need from them and how they can help, your vision may become a shared vision. When the vision is shared, you are more likely to get the buy in you need.

Tie it back to your Mission Statement

Is the vision about your entire organization? Then compare it to the company mission statement. Will it help the organization achieve its mission and goals? If so, articulate that. Every once in a while people need to reconnect with what they’re in the business of doing. Looking at a mission statement will do that. Showing how your vision will help meet that statement will help you sell it to your people. If your vision statement is about a team versus the organization, ask yourself if it will help the team achieve its objectives and how. If it passes this test, make sure you effectively articulate this to your people.

A vision may have come from you, but if it’s not about the “we” in your organization, chances are you won’t get much cooperation. If you believe in the vision and you know it’s right for the organization, put it out there with passion. But make sure it has enough room for everyone involved to share the credit when it succeeds.

Ways to Influence People When You Have No Authority

No matter what business you’re in or what job you do, you will need to influence others. If you’re the boss, influencing is easier. But what if you need to influence a colleague or even your supervisor? Just because you don’t have the job title to force a decision doesn’t mean you can’t have tremendous influence. Here’s how you can be influential, despite not having the authority.

Be respected because you’re good at what you do

The people that have the most influence in an organization aren’t always the ones with the biggest titles. It’s the people that are good at what they do. When you do your job well and take initiative, people notice. By being good at what you do, you become a professional resource for your co-workers. They will value your opinion more because they value your work. And if they value your opinion, they are more likely to be influenced by you.

Have solid reasoning behind your suggestions

Do your homework. If you think there is a work issue to be solved or a methodology your organization needs to adopt, make sure you have good reasons why. Don’t just offer your opinion. Offer facts, statistics, experiences and industry knowledge if possible. Be a credible source of information and you may be able to influence your colleagues.

Think win-win

As helpful as your co-workers can be, they still want to know what’s in it for them. Think about how your solutions or needs will benefit them. That’s a good check-up for you to make sure your motives are benign. Nobody wants to accommodate someone who is a constant self-server. It’s best for your workplace if you think about what would benefit the organization and everyone involved. Does your idea pass this test? If so, then make your opinion known and try to influence others.

Know your co-workers

If you want to influence things or people at work, then you need to know your co-workers. Be as cordial as possible to everyone and get involved with company functions. Don’t make the mistake of being a chatty time waster, but simple and earnest pleasantries can help you build your work relationships. If your work relationships are strong, you have a better chance of influencing things.

Channel the masters

There were many great influencers throughout history. Three of which were Niccolo Machiavelli, Confucius and Rousseau. Each of whom had a specific methodology for influence. Machiavelli gets a bad rap for being underhanded and manipulative. While manipulation was part of his methodology, Machiavelli pointed out what motivates people and how to deal with those forces. He was more practical than people give him credit for. In his piece, The Prince, Machiavelli talks about how to manage and use people’s own motivations to wield influence. Confucius was concerned with virtue and Rousseau wrote about how regulate the needs of people and organizations in his work The Social Contract. There are many other people you can study who had great influential skills. Some may be in your own organization. Look at what works and try to emulate those tactics while still being true to yourself. Because at the end of the day, those who influence are the ones who are authentic

How to Predict The Most Effective Leaders in an Organization

Keeping your organization in top running shape requires you to know who the most effective leaders are.

As your organization grows, you will need to recruit more managers. A key component of this is recognizing leadership talent early. While some people grow into leadership roles later, others have a natural knack for leadership. You will want to rely upon these people whenever possible.

Leaders Put Themselves Second

It’s not that leaders are selfless. In fact, selflessness is not a leadership quality. However, leaders know that they are part of a team. They put that team’s success above their own personal success, because they know the group success is where they sink or swim.

People Go To Leaders

Your team will tell you who the most effective leaders are without your even having to ask. Who do your team members go to when there is a problem? Who do they feel they can trust? This person is the most effective leader in the organization. He inspires the rest of the team and they view him as someone they can confide in or bring thorny problems to.

Leaders are Innovators

Leaders will tell you they’re leaders by doing something new or in a different way. The person you reprimanded for doing the wrong thing without permission might be a leader: The initiatory impulse is one that shows leadership qualities. Often times it is raw and needs to be honed. Other times, it requires little in the way of training. Who is doing things without your knowledge -- good or bad -- at your company? Keep your eye on them. They could be the next member of management.

Leaders Help Others

Every organization is a bell curve. People on one end excel, people on another end struggle. Leaders are people from the excelling end (though not necessary the most excellent employees) who take time to help the people at the struggling end. This is part of putting yourself second. A leader recognizes implicitly that his team is only as good as its weakest link. He consciously strives to strengthen that link and improve the team.

Leaders are Communicators

Leaders communicate ideas in ways other people cannot. It is a basic cornerstone of leadership. One can have all the ideas in the world, but if he can’t communicate them in a way others understand, he will never be someone others look to for leadership.

Leaders Have Integrity

A leader owns up to mistakes. A leader always acts in good faith, even when he is wrong. In short, a leader has integrity. He is someone that you can trust. A leader is someone you will, in theory, trust with executive decisions and keys to your business. What could be more important in a leader than trustworthiness and personal integrity?

Finding Leaders In Your Organization

Pay attention to your employees. Hear what they say about each other. Cutting through petty office gossip, it will be easy to see who is respected in the organization -- and who is not. A leader will be respected by his peers, as well as an excellent worker.

How To Stay On Track During Holiday Season

Staying on track during the holiday season is essential for keeping your business profitable.

The holiday season is one of the most hectic times of year. However, you can’t let that distract you from staying on track with your business. The holidays are also one of the most profitable times of the year. You won’t be able to reap those profits, however, if you don’t stay focused.

Take Care Of Your Health

Getting a flu shot will help you to stay healthy during the holiday season. Few things are worse than getting sick in the middle of already hectic holiday season. You can only truly stay on track if you are firing on all cylinders. Get plenty of rest, drink juice and take extra good care of yourself.

Make a List

Making lists is always a good way to stay on track. There is no time of year that this is more important than during the holiday season. Not only is there more to do, between business and your personal life. You also have more distractions coming your way. Keeping a list -- and yes, checking it twice -- ensures that you know what your tasks are and you’re keeping on them.

Restrain Your Social Life

The holidays aren’t just a time of tasks and busy work. They’re also a time of revelry. However, taking part in too much revelry won’t help you to stay on track. Not only will going out and partying a lot take focus off of your work and other essential personal tasks; It will also take a toll on your body. You don’t have to be a hermit for the holiday season, but you should carefully pick and choose what social engagements you participate in and which you do not.

Make Time For Exercise

Making sure that you take time out to exercise is crucial for your health. It also aids mental concentration and focus. At a time of year when there are so many distractions, it’s even more essential than ever that you take time out for your regular exercise routine. Besides, you’ll thank yourself when January comes and you haven’t packed on your “winter weight.”

Don’t Make Excuses

When you get off track, don’t make excuses about why it’s ok. Don’t pillory yourself either. Rather, acknowledge that you have gotten off track, and then get back on it. There’s no use in wasting time with either excuses or punishing yourself. You have way too much to do this holiday season already.

Your Calendar Is Your Best Friend

Be a vicious task master with yourself in terms of time management. At other times of year, your calendar is something you can be a little lax about. However, with the holiday season packed with tasks, you can’t afford such luxuries. Keep a detailed schedule of what you plan to do with each day and stick to it.

Getting Through the Holidays Alive

The holidays are stressful, no doubt. Business is more intense, you have more personal commitment and the short winter days don’t help, either. However, with a little attention to the peculiar nature of the season you can get through relatively unscathed.

Playbook OS 2.0 - Blackberry still has hopes

CES is not generally a place where you will find the Canadian manufacturer go all in, yet as they say desperate times call for desperate or at-least strong measures. RIM was here in the full force and showcased the much awaited Playbook OS 2.0. Finally as I would say playbook will have the features which it should have had from the start. RIM is finally bringing email to the PlayBook. PlayBook 2.0 will bring a host of new email management tools to the tablet: unified inbox with social network integration, tabbed email, rich-text email editing, multi-account search. The unified inbox sounds like a souped-up version of the loved BlackBerry version. It supports multiple accounts from personal and enterprise sources. It also brings in feeds from Twitter, LinkedIn and other sources. Thankfully, with that much info in one place, the interface supports tabs. The next PlayBook OS version will also introduce al new calendar features that, like the new inbox, pull info from social networking sites i.e facebook , twitter and linked meaning you can check the social media status of the people you would have a meeting with. The contacts app works that way as well, pulling in info from email and social channels and collating the information into each contact. Another feature which catches the eye is the new 'blackberry bridge' app will let you use your blackberry phone as an all essential remote control for the playbook. What it means is you can soon use it as keyboard or even mouse pointer for the tablet that I say is really cool. So when my tablet is connected with TV I will not have to get up to switch to next movie. Also add a all new browser and a better app ecosystem. So is Playbook still dead, I beg to differ. With the recent price cuts and new OS 2.0 you suddenly have a device which will do all it promises and more that too at a very affordable price. I do understand RIM had a terrible 2011 but company seems to be working hard to get its ecosystem right and with Android market integration Playbook suddenly seems to be good bet as finally it’s screaming hardware specs will have the software to match and perform upto the mark and beyond

Apple releases iOS 5.1

As part of the iPad 3 announcements late last night, Apple also showed off some of the new functionality that will be available through the latest iOS firmware release, version 5.1.

First of all, firmware 5.1 adds voice dictation for English (US, UK, Australian) including German, French and Japanese for iPad users, as showed off in the demo for iPad 3. Further improvements come in the form of an improved camera interface for the iPad.

For iPhone and iPod Touch users, we now get face detection in the camera. The camera app itself will now also have a permanent icon on the lockscreen. Last but not least is the ability to delete photos from your iCloud Photo Stream, and not just the built-in storage on your iPhone/ iPod.

Other improvements come in the form of better battery information display and fixing the occasional audio dropouts on outgoing calls. The iOS v5.1 is now available for download on your iOS devices and through iTunes itself.

Building a Mobile App for Your Small Business

More businesses are finding benefit to having a mobile app for smart phone users. Are you one of them? Here’s your how-to guide for getting started.

Assuming you’ve done your homework and determined that your small business would benefit from a mobile phone application, let’s look at the actual planning, execution and implementation process.

Start With an Idea

You probably have a few ideas about what kind of app you want. Keep in mind that it should be functional, useful or amusing. Don’t waste your time developing an app that might get attention for a day, then gather dust in the corners of the iTunes store. Here are some notoriously unsuccessful types of apps:

    Store Locators: People now use Google Maps to find any type of store, so developing an app to find yours is redundant.

    Novelty Apps: Popping bubbles, simulating a lighter, or making ugly noises. They’re cute for about a minute, then people forget about them.

    Poorly Designed Apps: Some apps simply are difficult to use or figure out their purposes. Better to have no app than one of these.

Make sure the idea for your app jibes with your company’s voice and mission. If you’re PETA, you shouldn’t have a “shoot the puppy app.” Remember that the purpose of an app isn’t to sell your product but rather brand your business and introduce it to new people in a mobile format.

What to Look for in an App Designer

Assuming you don’t design your own app, you’ll need to find a mobile app designer who has experience in the type of app you want. Ask for referrals offline and through your social media contacts first, then begin a search for an app designer.

If you want a game, don’t hire a designer who creates productivity apps. Look at the design firm’s portfolio online (which they should have, readily available) to find a company that’s created apps like what you want, or at least for your industry.

Interview several firms or independent designers, and make sure to find out:

    What the design process is

    How involved you will need to be

    How many employees they will have on your project

    What the expected turnaround is

    How much it will cost

    Any possible additional fees

Some designers charge a fixed-price fee, while others use an hourly model. Determine which is a better fit, and if it’s the fixed-price, find out what is included. There may be additional fees for changes you request.

Before you hire a firm, spend more time researching its reputation. See if you can find any reviews online, or any other mention of their services. If not, ask to speak to former clients of the firm. Ask them about their experiences and whether expectations were met.

There are mobile app designers located overseas, especially in India. Using an overseas designer can save you a bundle, but you may find that the language barrier (accent) and time difference make it difficult to communicate.

A Word on Platforms

Sometimes companies focus on a single mobile phone platform to save money. But with the mobile market so segmented among iPhone, Android, Blackberry and new up-and-comers, it’s necessary to create apps across all platforms. And keep in mind that the tablet market, especially the iPad, is opening up to apps too, so you may need to include that in your list.

Typically tweaking an app to work on these different platforms isn’t a major undertaking for a skilled designer, but ask for it up front to bring down the costs. If your chosen designer doesn’t offer services for all phone platforms, find one that does, as this is a normal skill requirement for designers.

Getting in the Stores

Your app must be approved by each of the mobile application stores, including iTunes, Android Market and Blackberry’s App World, before it will be hosted there for people to download. Each store has its own requirements for apps, but your designer should be able to meet those specifications and help you get it in the store.

Once it’s there, you need to market the app so that people download it. Share a link to each store via social media, your website, your blog and email newsletters. Encourage reviews of the app, which will bring more people to download it.

Your app will remain in the marketplace for the foreseeable future, so don’t neglect it. Pay attention to reviews that mention bugs, and make sure the designer makes corrections to the app. Release new versions so that there are always new features for users to enjoy.

Chile social network shatters shyness barrier

You're madly in love but you just can't work up the nerve to let him or her know? Chile's social network Huntcha is out to blast through that great wall of shyness and hook people up.

It's been around for just a few months and already some 45,000 people have signed up -- perhaps some of them eyeing the celebrations for St. Valentine's Day on February 14.

Natalia Rojas is 27, and -- hard to imagine for those who are not shy -- spent 10 long years in love with the friend of a friend. She dated other people, as did Javier Alvarez, a platonic friend unaware of her true feelings.

They ran into each other at a few parties and events but never said more than "hello."

"That went on for 10 years," she recalled with some dismay.

But her luck, and her life, changed when she decided to see if she could use Huntcha to see if there was any chance Javier was interested in her, too.

She got the surprise of her life.

"We have been together for four months now. And this is going to sound impossible, but it is the solidest relationship I have had, in my life," said Natalia, who still can't believe a social network helped bring them together.

Sebastian Arteaga, one of the partners at Huntcha, wants to make something very clear: "We are not a dating site.

"This is a network for people who are romantically interested in someone and have not dared to say so, to do it in a safe place," he said in an interview with AFP.

Confidentiality and privacy are key to what Huntcha does.

So it uses social media giant Facebook as a platform to put would-be lovers in contact; to verify that people actually do exist; and to check that they already know each other.

"It works if you want to make known your special interest in friends, teachers, neighbors or your brothers' and sisters' friends, not with people like Angelina Jolie," Arteaga said, explaining that each person's Facebook profile is used as a digital identity document which can be used as a search engine.

When you set up a Huntcha account, you make a list of 1-9 platonic friends you would like to turn into something else.

If any of the people listed in turn puts you on their list, shazam, a match is automatically generated. Both parties get a note saying that someone on their list shares a mutual interest.

"At that point, you may well develop acute anxiety wondering who it actually is," he joked.

Then comes the moment to give your would-be suitor a clue: you can send them a song you danced to two years ago, or maybe a video or a photo to help them figure out who you are.

"Why not look for that song that you two danced to, so that the moment they hear it, they know who it is," Arteaga said.

When someone figures out who the clue-dropper is, and the two know there is some mutual admiration, they can contact each other on Facebook, knowing that their love -- never before professed -- is good news.

And the parties involved avoid feeling like idiots in the sometimes cold woods of courting.

For Natalia, Huntcha was all about avoiding frustration.

"If your (currently but hopefully not permanently) platonic interest does not put you on his list, then nothing happens. And he is never even going to know that you were interested in him," she said.

Huntcha said that in its four-month war on shyness, 30,000 people have signed up and more than 1,500 matches have been made.

Early Huntcha use shows some social trends: women tend to put one or two love interests, while men tend to put more, and change them more often.

Arteaga said the idea for the company was born in a meeting with twins Sebastian and Cristobal Zegers who run an advertising agency, during a brainstorming session on another idea.

The Zegers were inspired by the movie "Social Network," which tells the tale of the birth of Facebook which twins Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss say was their idea which was stolen from them by Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg.

"We realized that Facebook was born as a tool for men to meet women," Arteaga said. So they took it from there, and narrowed their scope. The rest, they hope, will be a shyness-busting smashing success.

Microsoft to shut down Zune and Windows Live brands

After changing its logo a short while ago, it looks like Microsoft might be doing some major overhauling with its brand names as well.

Apparently Microsoft is planning to shut down the Windows Live and Zune brand names next week when it will announce the preview version of Windows 8 in Barcelona. No reason has been given, but presumably its for better integration of all its services in one place (like that Google Privacy Policy you might've heard of).

Most industry watchers say its about time Microsoft fixes the bewildering cocktail of brand names its dumped on the consumer. Especially, why Windows Live was called that when it was accessible from non-Windows devices has long seemed to be beyond comprehension.

In the upcoming Windows 8, Windows Live apps will be put into a collection of pre-installed applications called Windows Communications while Windows Live ID is set to become Microsoft Account. The Zune services will be added to the Xbox Live for Windows brand name.

Via Cnet

 

Who needs backup!

Something that has been recommended for computer users for many years, yet one that we almost instinctively ignore is backing up our data. While the introduction of Time Machine on Mac has made things simpler for a lot of Mac users, the vast majority still don't back things up in the traditional way- i.e. on an internal or external hard drive connected to your computer. But you know what? Maybe they don't need to. Slowly, gradually and silently, our backups are already being done for much of our data without us even realizing it.
In case you haven't already guessed, I'm talking about how much of our digital life has moved to the Cloud. Ten years back, I used to install Microsoft Office as one of the first things on a new computer, but now GMail and Google Docs take care of my emails and documents. MSN and ICQ are also gone, replaced by Facebook and Twitter. The pictures that I used to take from my digital camera and copy to my computer are now replaced with pictures taken from my Smartphone and uplaoded directly to iCloud or Picasa. My music sits in iTunes while streaming local radio stations have taken over my listening.
So basically, if my computer fails, there won't really be much that I'd lose. All my photos, music, emails and documents are already backed up to the cloud without me having to worry about it. All I need to do is just load up Chrome on a new PC and I have pretty much all my data available to me.
So now that all our data resides in the cloud, the next change will be using all our applications on the web as well. There are already many instances of this- such as Google Docs or Microsoft Office Web apps, but there are still quite a few apps that I use on the desktop such as Photoshop and Premiere for working on images and videos before uploading them on the cloud. Yes, I know we have Pixlr.com and Brightcove that I can use alternatively, but they're not as good- yet.
All I'm saying is that it's just a matter of time before the Cloud becomes our primary platform for our digital life. And the device that provides you the best experience to do that will win. iPad anyone?

 

Microsoft shows off its 'any surface' touch screen technology

Soon there will be no smartphones, but just projectors worn besides our heads that will work as a display and a touch screen. It sounds a bit ridiculous right now, but folks at Microsoft Research are steadily moving in that direction with their 'any surface' touch screen technology called OmniTouch

.

In this video, Microsoft researcher Hrvoje Benko shows a bulky contraption that has a projector and a Kinect motion sensor working in tandem to provide a visual smartphone interface by simply touching on a solid surface like a wall. The moment the gadget is 'instructed' to display the interface, it projects an image which can be controlled by finger taps and gestures just like on a smartphone. Benko also used a notepad to project the image, showing the gadget's capability of adapting to surface size.

It's an impressive piece of technology although it is still years away from public consumption. Microsoft hopes to minimize the size so its easier to carry and implement into other technology.

5 Crucial Features Customers Want on a Website

These days a web-presence for your business is crucial, whether you are well-established or a fledgling newcomer. The task of setting up a website can make many owners anxious, let alone building something your customers love to visit. There are five features so critical to the success of a consumer website, even the most un-tech-savvy among us should know.

Five things every customer wants to see on a website:

1) Mobile Version

Customers live an increasingly mobile life and conduct more and more of it on their smartphones. Don't miss out on sales by neglecting to optimize your web-presence for mobile users. A graphics-heavy, clunky design will kill desire to visit your website on a mobile device. There's really no excuse for not having a mobile version of your website, but in all cases pages must load quickly and be easy to read.

2) Security & Encryption

Online customers are acutely aware of security concerns and don't take well to the thought of identity theft and scams. Feature security safeguards your business takes with your website in areas customers can see them. Make sure to use encryption systems for sensitive data, like credit cards. Having Secure Socket Layer (SSL) is crucial if you want to do any significant amount of commerce through your website.

3) Crystal-clear Navigation

Navigating a website should never be guesswork. There are some basics to make this simple, keep websites crisp with clear navigation buttons for home pages, contact pages, and product/service specific pages. Make them easy to understand and logical. If your website is more than a few pages, a site map or index is obligatory. A good site map makes an average website, great.

Shoddy website navigation will result in unsatisfactory bounce rates, so don't ignore this. In fact, continually tweak your website by tracking analytics and search data. Use the clues to figure out what customers are looking for, whether your website is addressing it and how to make it easier for people to find exactly what they want.

4) Validation

Do you offer the best products and/or services? Why should the customer take your word for it? Give them examples by featuring client lists, awards, case studies, and testimonials. This lets customers visualize for themselves, other people and businesses who trust what you offer/sell. Have you recently received some positive local press? Scan the relevant pages or link to the articles. A good website should speak to your reputation.

5) Contact Information

Adding relevant contact information lends a certain immediate legitimacy to your web presence that you are unlikely to achieve with only an email address. Pictures of your team or facilities with specific physical address, phone and fax numbers builds comfort and trust with customers. If including a phone number, an 800 number will do, but a specific number that matches with your location is even better. Another plus side to including detailed contact information? The ability to reach out and leave customer feedback. Find out what your customers are saying and use positive experiences to constantly refresh your featured customer testimonials. Consider devoting an area of your website to informing where customers can email, mail and call you, along with a simple web form.

Taking your business Mobile what you need to know

Being part of the mobile revolution can help your business get new customers and stay cutting-edge. But develop a careful mobile strategy before spending any money.

Taking your business mobile has a few different connotations; which you choose will depend largely on your small business’ needs, budget and audience. There are now over 100 million smart phones sold each quarter, so it’s only natural that you should want to reach some of that audience through their phones.

But first, analyze your target market. Do they use smart phones? Would being able to connect with your brand through a phone make sense? If you sell products to the senior citizen market, who are not big buyers of smart phones, your mobile efforts would be wasted.

Option 1: Optimize Your Site for Mobile

One way to “go mobile” is to create a mobile-friendly version of your website. Because websites are large and require scrolling, the way most are built for computers is difficult to view on a small phone screen.

If you’re not technical or don’t have someone on staff with the experience to convert to a mobile site, hire a mobile website developer. An experienced firm can take your existing website and modify versions of it for the most popular smart phones, like iPhone, Android and Blackberry. You’ll want to make versions for each phone’s operating system, as the market is still so divided among the major brands. Focus on only one phone type, and you’ll frustrate owners of other styles.

If a developer isn’t in your budget, look at DIY mobile website builder option like mobiSiteGalore. The only drawback to tools like these is that they provide templates, which may not match your existing site well enough for your tastes. Still, they’re simple enough for anyone to use, and can get you started with a mobile version of your site until you can afford to customize it.

Before Spending Money:

Before investing in a mobile optimized website, ask yourself these questions:

    Does our audience access the internet via smart phones?

    Do people want to view our site on the go?

    Would optimizing provide increased web visits?

    What’s our budget for this?

    How can we market our optimized site?

Option 2: Build an App

The other half of the mobile equation is mobile app development. Brands are trying to find ways to connect with consumers through applications that are useful or amusing. The key is creating one that will get more than a passing glance, when there are hundreds upon hundreds of apps to choose from.

If you want to develop an app for your company, first think strategically about what would be a good fit for your brand. Store locator apps are so 2010, so avoid those at all costs. Instead, think about what your brand represents and how you can make your customers’ lives easier or more fun. Here are some ideas:

    For an eco-friendly products company, an app could give information on how long a given object takes to decompose in a landfill, and show recycling locations.

    A pet products company could offer an app to find other pet owners in your area.

    An accounting firm could offer a free tax tips app.

    A toy company could create a fun learning app for kids.

Brainstorm a list of app ideas and choose the top one based on your team’s input. Just like with website optimization, you can hire an application design firm or do it yourself. Ultimately, the design firm will be able to create exactly what you want to spec, while the DIY version may have limited functionality.

And again, aim for a version of the app for each major phone brand to reach the most people.

From here, link to the app download on your website, and promote it through social media, your blog and email. If you’ve gotten the app in the iTunes, Android and Blackberry marketplaces, you can decide whether to charge for it or give it away for free. If your ultimate goal is to direct people back to your site and buy from you, it should be free. On the other hand, if you want to use the app as another revenue stream, test different price points.

Before Spending Money:

    Who is your target audience for your products? Make sure they are the same ones you’re gearing the app towards.

    Would you buy or download this app if it wasn’t yours? Make sure it’s exciting enough to generate buzz.

    What ROI do you expect from this? Is it monetary, or are you looking for more web traffic?

Last Words

Keep in mind it’s not necessary (yet) to go mobile, especially if your core clients aren’t there. Make sure your strategy includes solid reasons for jumping into the mobile market, and that you’re not just doing it because everyone else is.

 Does Your Brand Need an App?

Everyone’s jumping on the app bandwagon, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you need to. Look to understand what benefits having an app would add to your business. If there are none, save your money for other things.

These days, it seems like there’s an app from everything, from finding the nearest bathroom to keeping virtual plants. Every company, it seems, has a mobile app. But does that mean your brand needs one? Not necessarily.

It’s important to have a goal in mind when considering an app. Would you want to make money by selling it? Use it as a way to send people to your website? Further brand your company? These are all valid reasons for designing an app. If you just think they’re cool, or want one to keep up with the competition, that might not be reason enough.

How Can You Help People?

Some apps are one hit wonders. Many do nothing more than help a user find the store who created the app. But now that more generic map apps like Google Maps help you find any business, these apps are quickly fading away. If you decide to design an app or hire a mobile app design firm, you need to think about how you can provide a useful or interesting tool to users.

If you own a bar, your app could offer drink recipes for your top selling drinks, as well as daily specials. If you sell eco-friendly cleaners, you could create an app with a database of the most toxic products being sold on shelves. Both of these provide value to the user, and by putting your name on them, you’re helping them associate positive ideas with your name.

DIY or Hire a Firm?

There are websites that let you design your own mobile apps, such as iSites and MyAppCreator.

This can be a good, affordable option if the app you envision is simple and you have someone who feels comfortable using one of these programs.

On the other hand, if you need a full-on app developer, find a mobile app design firm that has experience in multiple platforms, including iPhone, iPad, Android and Windows phones. And ensure that you get versions of your app on all systems: the phone that’s hot today will be yesterday’s news come tomorrow, so it’s important to have different versions for different phone systems.

When interviewing mobile app creators, ask to see samples of past work. Also ask to get a free download of some of their apps so you can see if the apps run smoothly. Looking in app stores, like iTunes can let you access customer reviews, which can reveal if the firm’s apps have bugs or are difficult to navigate. In that case, move on to another design firm.

Free or Pay?

There are two schools of thought about apps:

    1. Charge for your apps. You recoup your costs faster, and by charging you give more value to the application.

    2. Give it away for free. You get more users faster if you give it away, and you can create a free version of a pay app that will draw people in and get them to your site or to buy the full version.

If you decide to sell your app, read this presentation from Google on making money from your app. It’s important you consider this app as another product, as it will need its own marketing and attention to make sales a success.

If you go the free route, build in opportunities to promote what you’re really selling. That might be the full version app, or other products. Include an ad at the launch of the app with the opportunity for users to click to your website for more information.

The Time May Not Be Right

If after thinking about it, you don’t see enough benefit in investing the money on a mobile app right now, don’t beat yourself up about it. We’re starting to see that not every app is a successful marketing tool if it’s not planned out in advance, so you may be saving time and money that your competitors are wasting on an app that won’t help them get more sales in the lon

Importance of iTunes Podcast

Due to their rising popularity in recent years, you may have heard of “podcasting” and “podcasts” if you have spent any time on blogs, iTunes or generally around on the internet. Every day, people on the move rely on podcasts as an alternative to traditional TV and radio shows as a source of information, programming and music. Even some of your favorite traditional programs probably have a podcast version available for downloading.

Podcasts can be an extremely valuable addition to your business in terms of increasing visibility and customer loyalty. Chances are, your competition is not currently using podcasts to their advantage. As a relatively simple, low-cost option to traditional advertising and outreach, why not explore what podcasting could offer your business?

Podcasting is free

The most attractive upside to podcasting is the low-to-no cost. As long as you have a computer and some sort of recording device, you can produce and distribute your podcast. There is even free sound editing software, like Audacity, that will help you create and edit a clean recording. There is no need to invest in the infrastructure behind a radio channel and there are no FCC limitations with podcasts. You are free to say and discuss anything you please.

Gain real attention

Even with the best web metrics software it is difficult to gauge how much attention a web visitor gives your business as they click through the site. With a podcast you control the message and communicate verbally exactly what you wish. The people who take the time to subscribe to a podcast and download them onto their computer, phone or mp3 player are going to lend their attention to your message. They have taken just a little more extra time to hear what you have to say. Inflection and tone that goes along with spoken word also allows you to connect with your listeners in the way only “word of mouth” can achieve.

Offer your expertise

What to talk about in your podcast is pretty much limitless. The importance is to create something of value for your listeners. One of the appeals of podcasts is that they are mobile and can be set up to be available to those on the subway, in their cars, on a run, etc. Give these type of people a reason to download and listen to your business' podcast by offering your expertise. Do you have a tutoring service? Why not offer short tutorials in podcast form to show listeners and potential clients what you can offer them? Consultants in any kind of field could use podcasts to display their knowledge and specialities. Make sure to always sign off with information pertinent to your business: address, website, phone number, etc.

Be creative!

Podcasts can only positively complement your business. The costs of TV or radio commercials can be prohibitive and result in little quantitative return for effort. That is not the case with podcasts. Stop stressing about 30 second spots on traditional media platforms and unleash the creativity of the web with a podcast. You control the length and content. Immediately reach thousands of listeners and brainstorm today on how your business could use podcasting.

 Efficient Network Growth on Social Media

Social media is all about networking, but if you’re strapped for time, you may need more efficient strategies for growing your network. 

By now, most business owners understand that social media is the way to go when it comes to promoting their business, but most people aren’t as efficient as they could be. It’s possible to spend hours every day on Twitter and Facebook and still find yourself stumbling along at the back of the pack. Fortunately, there are some techniques to streamline your network growth on all social media networks.

Have a Plan Laid Out

Without a plan, you’re just running in circles on any social media site. What are your goals for your social media efforts? What are you hoping to achieve? How will you get there? Knowing where you’re going will give you purpose and that will show up in your interactions.

Whether your plan is to drive more traffic to your website or to increase your number of potential business contacts, know what it is you want and how you want to get it. Then follow your plan.

Set a Time Limit

Social media can be a real time suck, where you get on intending to post a link and end up reading other people’s updates for an hour. The best way to avoid this and to make your time online more efficient is to set a time limit for yourself.

Ten minutes per day, per social media site, is usually more than enough to get everything you need to done. You can either use your time all at once, or you might want to split it over the day, but the idea here is to ensure that you don’t get carried away. Consider setting an alarm to help you remember when your time is up.

Cash in on World Events

Did something huge just happen somewhere in the world? By staying on top of current events, you can ensure that you are one of the first people to mention it on your social media networks. This almost guarantees people will be sharing or retweeting your status. Make sure you link to the original news source to give more perspective. In most cases, you’ll end up with more followers simply because they realize that you are on top of things.

Do be careful as to what news you choose to pass on. While there are many sad events every day in the world, you may find that people are more interested in happy news. Try it and see what the response is like. As with any social media techniques, testing is always recommended.

Use Hashtags

If you don’t know what hashtags are, you are probably confused by references on Twitter to things like #itsmylife and #americanidol. These are like small clubs on Twitter and all the tweets using the same hashtag can easily be accessed by clicking on the tag. That opens up a whole world of potential new followers and while you can find plenty of interesting people by following the hashtags that interest you, you’ll find that it is also an excellent method of gaining new followers, as well.

This method goes very well with staying on top of foreign affairs and news, since you can then use the news as the hashtag. Top television shows, particularly reality shows, are also a good way to use hashtags. Try to stick to things that are relevant to your business, however, since these will be people most interested in your business and more likely to follow you.

Actively Engage

There are millions of people using social media networks these days and it can rapidly become confusing for the average person. You’ll find yourself struggling to keep up with everyone, particularly if you follow more than ten or twenty people, but this doesn’t have to stop you. Instead, learn to skim and then start to actively engage with a handful of people who interest you.

Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should interact with everyone who follows you. Instead, make sure that you talk regularly with the chosen people. Your network will grow and you will find yourself with a number of new followers, simply by having a conversation with someone.

Use Filters

To make it easier to keep track of what is going on while using a site like Twitter, which can rapidly become confusing with so many tweets, try using a site like Hootsuite or something similar which allows you to filter your stream and see at a glance if anyone is talking to you. This makes life much easier and you can easily respond to anyone speaking directly to you, without sifting through hundreds of unrelated tweets.

Social media is a huge part of marketing these days, but that doesn’t mean you have to let it take up too much time. Plan ahead, set time limits and you should be able to build your networks without spending hours on it.

Online entertainment bigger than gaming on Xbox 360

Microsoft's invasion of the living room is going into overdrive.

Comcast's Xfinity on-demand service, HBO Go and MLB.tv are now available through Xbox Live -- and they're arriving right as the console undergoes a major transition in how people use it.

While the Xbox is still very much a gaming machine, it's now being used more for watching TV and movies and listening to music than it is for blasting opponents in Halo or Call of Duty.

"The original vision for the Xbox was for it to be the heart of connected digital entertainment and it has been amazing to watch the arc," Otto Berkes, a senior vice president of consumer technology at HBO and part of the team that helped launch the Xbox at Microsoft, told the Los Angeles Times.

Over the past year, entertainment usage on the 360 has grown 30 percent. All totaled, Xbox Live gold members spend an average of 84 hours a month on Xbox Live in the U.S.

To put that in perspective, the average household spends about 150 hours a month watching television

The Xbox is no longer just the domain of core gamers, either. Family content consumption has jumped 236 percent in the last year. Zune, meanwhile, has become the second largest transaction service for films, behind iTunes.

The addition of Comcast, MLB and HBO is likely to further boost those numbers. Comcast is the nation's largest cable system and HBO's on-demand system is one of the most robust of any cable company (you'll still need active subscriptions to both HBO and Comcast to watch them on your Xbox 360). The looming start of baseball season often brings a boost to MLB subscriptions, since users can access up to 2,400 games per season and even watch two at the same time.

With the new services, Xbox Live now has 36 music, television and movie services available to Xbox Live members, including channels for Netflix, ESPN, UFC and Hulu Plus.

"We've really seen this amazing explosion at Xbox the last four months that's honestly even surprised our own hopes and aspirations," says Yusuf Mehdi, chief marketing officer for Microsoft's Interactive Entertainment Business. "What we're seeing is that people are turning on the Xbox to play games and then keeping it on afterwards to get other types of entertainment."

Working With Ad Networks and Maximizing Your Site's Reach

With a limited advertising budget, you've got to make every penny count. Working with carefully selected ad networks can maximize the effectiveness of your advertising dollars.

How Most Ad Networks Work

Ad networks were once uncommon. Businessweek estimated that in 2008, ad networks only received 30 percent the money spent on online advertising. However, ad networks have quickly grown in popularity because they offer effective advertising at cheap rates.

Many ad networks only charge when a visitor clicks on your advertisement. Some ad networks only charge if the results of their advertising leads a visitor to buy a product or fill out a form. Traditional websites often charge for every viewer of your advertisement.

An ad network can use a network of hundreds of websites to target a specific type of individual. However, you can't always specify where your ad will appear. You may find the trade-off to be worth it if you have a limited budget.

Choosing an Ad Network

There are hundreds of ad networks, but they can be divided into three basic groups. Blind networks offer the cheapest advertising options. The trade-off is you can't specify where your ads will run. A blind network functions by buying large blocks of advertising. If you chose a blind ad network, be sure the network allows you to opt-out of specific websites. Blind networks are the most popular and most common ad networks.

Vertical networks give you greater advertising control. These ad networks function like traditional website advertising. You will know where your ads will run and will usually have premium ad spaces on a page. Vertical networks offer high quality traffic, but costs can be high. These ad networks often use revenue sharing.

Target networks use new technologies, such as contextual or behavioral targeting, to reach visitors. They can be highly effective but only work if you can clearly identify who you want to target. The New York Times notes that new privacy laws could greatly affect how target ad networks function. If enough users choose to opt-out of sharing information, this type of ad network could become useless.

Consider looking at websites you admire for ad network leads. If your website or product is geared to a specific industry, choose an industry-specific ad network. You may be on the same ad network as your competitors, but you're guaranteed to find more people interested in your product. If you're advertising your website just to gain more readership, choosing an industry-specific ad network is essential.

If you're interested in mobile advertising, make sure that the ad server works with most smart phones. Mobile ad networks are often buggy and difficult to integrate into mobile websites. Make sure that the ad network you chose is enticing, not aggravating, users.

Maximizing Your Website's Exposure

After you've chosen an ad network, use the provided tools to maximize your site's exposure. Frequency capping is an essential tool to ensure your advertising is effective. Your ad network should let you limit how many times a specific user sees your ad. This practice allows you to reach a wider audience.

If you have advertising that uses a storyline, sequencing ads is an important functionality. Sequencing allows you to use a series of ads to target a user. Sequencing ads is also useful if you want to reinforce an advertising message.

Be sure to target users based on their IP addresses if you have a highly local business. Local businesses, such as lawn care services or building contractors, should only pay to advertise in their area. By targeting only the city or county where your business is located, you can attract more local visitors.

The most essential feature of any ad network is the ability to tailor your campaign. Examine data from your reporting software and ad network closely. If you can pinpoint who is clicking on your ads, you can better focus your efforts.

Mobile Payments for Your Business

Being able to accept credit card payments on the go opens up a world of possibilities for retailers. Learn about current options and decide which one is right for your small business.

Although much more popular in Asia and Europe, mobile payments are up and coming in the US. With your smart phone, you can download an app or attach a small card slider and read credit cards for payments, just like you would with a credit card machine.

Consumers like this flexibility, as it means they do not have to carry cash, and can make more purchases and charge them to their credit cards, debit cards or cell phone bill. As we all carry our phones with us, the mobile phone is becoming a “digital wallet” of sorts.

Who They’re Good For

If you are a retailer and sell goods on the go, like at a farmer’s market or festival, taking a credit card machine, plugging it in and finding an internet or phone connection can be difficult. Your other solution has been to write down credit card info and run the cards later, but there are always errors with that system.

Now your phone can help you take charges on the spot, resulting in more revenue and fewer errors in accounting. Here are some examples of where mobile payments can come in handy:

    Selling crafts at a fair with no electrical outlets

    Selling ice cream from ice cream truck

    Selling produce or other goods at farmer’s market

    Table-side checkout at restaurants

    Small store without internet or phone service

    Door-to-door sales

Is It Safe?

Many business owners are understandably concerned about mobile payment security. The truth is, it’s as safe to take payments over a mobile phone as a credit card machine. There are several safety certification systems in place that mobile carriers require before backing a mobile payment system, such as Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards. (PCI DSS). These standards ensure that the sensitive data is not compromised in a transaction.

Types of Mobile Payments

Card Swipers

Just like you would swipe a card on a credit card machine, there are mobile payment apps that use a small card reader that attaches to your phone, allowing you to swipe card information for a customer.

Input the sale on your phone, swipe the Visa, Mastercard, American Express or Discover Card, and the transaction is immediately processed.

Companies offering mobile card readers:

    Square

    MercantAnywhere

    Mophie

SMS Payments

Another payment method for smart phones is via text messaging. Your customer enters your phone number at the checkout process, receives a text confirming the purchase amount and completes the transaction by replying “yes” to the text.

Charges may go directly to the customer’s credit card or bank account, or may be added to their cell phone bills.

Companies offering SMS payments:

    DAOPay

    MobileTransaction

Application Based Payments

Some mobile payment providers have created their own applications to use for payment processing. These providers must be connected to merchants, so if you elect to accept payments through one or more, be sure your customers are already using it.

Companies offering app-based payments:

    Charge Anywhere

           Zong

The Last Word on Mobile Payments

Accepting mobile payments may help you increase sales, as people often do not carry cash with them when on the go. Let’s say you sell crafts at the local farmer’s market. How many times have people looked at your products and left sadly because they didn’t have the cash to buy them? Now setting up a sign that announces you accept credit card payments will immediately boost sales.

You can also decrease accounts receivables. If you send invoices and are waiting for people to send in their checks or credit card information via mail, you can now process their cards in their offices or stores, making it convenient for both parties, helping you get paid faster and saving a stamp.

Currently, credit card processing fees vary, depending on the provider, but are still very competitive with credit card processing machines. Keep in mind that the cost to get started is much lower, at zero or under $100, compared to any up front fees for the credit card processing machine and service.

The mobile payment market is only beginning to flourish in the United States. Look for more solutions and lower fees as more competitors enter the market.