Category: Small Biz Go Mobile

Scan Documents, Create PDFs On Your Mobile with Pocket Scanner

by Mario Armstrong

Mobile workers need critical tools that help keep them productive in the field. The Pocket Scanner – Documents on the Go app by Kdan Mobile Software LTD gives users the ability to scan documents while on the go.

This type of app can be a huge time-saver and keep your workers out in the field instead of waisting valuable time coming back to the office. According to key findings from the Worldwide Mobile Worker Population 2009-2013 forecast, the United States and Japan have the highest percentage of mobile workers in their workforce.

More than 72% of U.S. workers were mobile in 2008 and this percentage will grow to 75.5%, representing 119.7 million mobile workers, by 2013. Take a look at the video below to see one of several ways you could use this mobile app in your business.


Read more: Scan documents, create PDFs on your mobile – Washington Business Journal

Examples of 5 social media policies from the ‘Big Guys’

by Jean Westcott

Previously I posted about the importance of having a social media policy.  I didn’t give you any advice on where to start, just warned you of the pitfalls.  One of the best ways to get started on your own policy is to look into the policies of some of the largest and most well-known brands.  Via Twitter I learned about this great article from Likeable Media on the social media policies of Best Buy, Coca-Cola, Intel, IBM and Kodak.

You see that each reflects its own traditions and cultures.  Are you surprised that IBM’s is traditional and formal and very business-like, while Best Buy keeps it friendly, simple and informal?  Each reflect their own understanding of their employees and how it communicates its brand internally so that their employees can reflect that to the public.

Think of how your employees are already using social media, even if your only employee is yourself.  Work from your understanding of your company and move that message outward.  Social media is about sharing your vision about your goals to the world at large and connecting with the visions of those you meet in the social media space

Tonya R. Taylor’s Report Answers Why Small Biz Owners Need to “Get Twitter”

by BrothaTech

I attended a local business networking event last night, and was amazed at the number of business owners who are NOT on Twitter.

After doing the typical networking “elevator pitch dance”, when I got around to asking people for their Twitter handle, there were various reasons as to why they didn’t use Twitter. Most of the time, folks really didn’t see how Twitter could help their business. So most of my time spent at the event was schooling folks on how I use Twitter for my business.

So while researching a small biz topic to write about (I’m a last minute type of guy) I decided to give you are quick breakdown of Tony R. Taylor’s FREE report “I Don’t Get Twitter” – 5 Answers To Getting Greater Results Using Twitter For Your Business.

In the report, Tonya explains how people typically view Twitter, goes over how people who are not on Twitter reach out to their audience, and of course, why small biz owners should be on Twitter.

The real “meat and potatoes” of the report is Tonya’s breakdown of how small biz owners can get the most out of Twitter by answering the top 5 questions of small biz owners interested in learning more about Twitter. Without giving TOO much of it away, here are her top 5 questions small biz owners have about Twitter:

#1 – What’s the biggest mistake Small Business Owners who don’t get Twitter make?

#2 – Where should Small Business Owners who don’t get Twitter focus most of their initial effort?

#3 – What have businesses done specifically that has been very successful?

#4 – Give Small Business Owners who don’t get Twitter 5 quick ways to use Twitter for business.

#5 – What’s the easiest thing Small Business Owners who don’t get Twitter can do right now to see results?

Tonya’s report goes in depth to answering the above questions (in a short, sweet, and to the point way) to give any small biz owner looking to: Rub elbows with other industry professionals; reach a larger market; create better relationships with customers/clients; AND MAKE MONEY (notice how I put that last) via Twitter. She also gives the fact, figures, and statistics about small biz owners who do successfully use Twitter and dishes out information about her Twitter Quick-Start Academy for professionals looking for even more information, and results, out of Twitter.

For more information about Tonya R. Taylor, her company Rising Star Ideas, and to get her FREE report “I Don’t Get Twitter!” – 5 Answers To Getting Greater Results Using Twitter For Your Business, follow @risingstarideas on Twitter

*Notice how I am forcing you to go on Twitter in order to get more information about Twitter*

Use September as a chance to review projects for the fall

by Jean Westcott

I always look at back to school time as a time of fresh starts, even if it has been decades since I last had first day of school jitters.  You can use that sense of a blank slate to help you prepare for the increasingly busier days into the end of the year.

Many of us with families have our schedules shift as schools get back into gear.  Even if you don’t have kids, traffic patterns change and schedules that may have been looser to accomodate vacationing clients and colleagues are back to the regular hectic pace.

We all need reminders to re-visit, re-think, re-energize–maybe a quick ‘school supply’ shopping trip to get a few organizing essentials could do the trick.  Or perhaps, actually use the calendar functions on your smartphone and have it synch with your desktop or laptop.  Clean out the email box and set some mail rules.  A fresh start goes a long way to getting your languishing projects back on track!

20% of Business Users Cling to IE6

by Jean Westcott

As reported in Information Week, some 20% of business users still use Internet Explorer 6 despite known security risks.  Despite the urging from Microsoft themselves, whether through inertia, lack of knowledge or an odd attachment to the underdog, businesses haven’t all seen the value in updating this ‘expired’ software.  And these ‘old-school’ browser fans will have the good company of Her Majesty’s government, as the UK government has resisted employee led efforts to have government computers upgrade.

Right now, some Google Apps won’t work with IE6, nor Amazon and it was announced this week Facebook chat will no longer support IE6 integration.  Hitting people where it hurts, their online shopping and chatting with friends, might just be the  impetus to get some users to modernize.

Internet Explorer 8 is free and has much improved security in addition to lots of other improvements.  Don’t let inertia keep you back, upgrade now!

http://www.bringdownie6.com/

Request DropBox Files From Anyone with AirDropper

by BrothaTech

If you don’t already know by now, I’m a fan of the DropBox cloud storage app/service that allows me to store files in the cloud AND synchronize my files across ALL my devices. DropBox even allows for sharing files with other DropBox users.

But what if the other person is not a DropBox user? If you want to receive a file to add to your DropBox directory from somebody who is not using DropBox, you have to go through the normal challenge of sending it via email (and praying it’s small enough), or using another download site where you are bombarded with a 5000 eleven ads, and other various un-solicited software to download. Once you get the file, you have to upload it DropBox yourself.

If you use DropBox heavy like me and need a simple way to receive files, check out AirDropper – the neat little service that allows you to receive files and send them directly to DropBox.

It works like this: You go to the AirDropper site and connect it to your DropBox account. Don’t worry, AirDropper does not access your files. It simply creates a secure upload site where the recipient of the site (the person you are requesting the file from) can upload the file you are requesting. Once you enter your email address and recipient’s email address and a brief description of the file, they are sent an email with the site where they upload the file.

Once they upload the file, AirDropper doesn’t send you the file to then upload to DropBox, it is actually uploading the file to your DropBox directory using a special “AirDropper” folder. You just go into the AirDropper folder and do what you want with the file. Once you receive the file, it is synched and made available to all your other devices running DropBox.

No software to download, no special instructions to send, no jumping through hoops to receive/get access to a file. The AirDropper service is currently in beta, so they are currently testing things out. One of the things they are aware of and working on is the ability to upload multiple files instead of just one at a time. One thing they are NOT working on is putting a cap on the size of the file you want to send. On the site, they claim to have sent/receive a 75mb file with hopes of supporting 100mb file transfers. So rest assured, it’s highly likely you will get that PowerPoint presentation you requested. Additionally, AirDropper promises secure file transfers to the tune of industry-standard SSL encryption at each stage of the request process. Once the file is sent, AirDropper does not store/archive any files. What you see in DropBox is the only copy out there!

I did mention it’s free (for now) to use AirDropper right?

If you are using DropBox, try them out and send feedback so those guys (and gals I’m assuming) can get out of beta and provide their hardcore users (I plan to be one) with a nice, smooth, and simple AirDropper service to receive files directly to DropBox.

Know your customers: Are they internet avoiders?

by Jean Westcott

According to the latest Pew Internet & American Life report “Home Broadband 2010“,  “One in five American adults (21%) do not use the internet or email from any location, and a majority of these non-users have little exposure to the online world.”  The reasons given for non-access range from the expense of access, to difficulty of use to the even broader lack of relevance to their world.

Reasons for not

As we all know, 20% of Americans is a significant share of any market in general, but are they your market?  Take the time and effort to look at your customers and your competition’s customers.  Do your customers use the phone, email or walk-in visits as your primary contact?  Are you located in a semi-rural location?

While you may be more comfortable in the online space, and feel that being online is being connected, your customers may not be there.  Consider maintaining some physical presence such as a public mailing address or office address to reassure your more nervous customers.  Maintain a public phone number that is advertised in a medium that is discoverable by the internet-averse.  It may seem like a safe time to jump onto the internet and out of the physical space but can your customers find you?  Knowing your customer is the most important part of knowing your business.

QR Code – What’s the Hold Up?

by BrothaTech

I’ve been waiting for this mobile technology to take off here in the U.S. So far the reaction/adaptation of this technology has been a steady “meh”.

If you’re not familiar with QR Code (Quick-Response Code), I’ll give you the background. It’s essentially a mobile barcode that you can encrypt with any type of information. Contact info, calendar appointments, even URL’s can be encoded via QR code for mobile devices to “scan” and decrypt the information. It’s a very quick way to pass along information to anybody using a mobile device.

Business owners can create codes to quickly get their contact info into a client’s mobile address book. Companies can create codes that will send mobile users to online coupons they can use in-store without downloading the image and figuring out how to print them to hand to the cashier. There is even a real estate company out in Wisconsin that is using QR Code as yard signs to drive home shoppers to their mobile site to find out more about the property for sale. Or just create a code to get users to your mobile site (If you are using WordPress, I certainly hope you are using a plug-in that creates a “mobile-friendly” version of your website).

Once you create the code encrypted with information like your business info. (name, address, phone number and website) you can put that code…anywhere! On the back of a business card, on flyers, on a t-shirt, as an image on your website, etc. Anybody with a QR code reader app on their mobile device can scan the code using their device’s camera and instantly, users can opt to add your information to their mobile device’s contact list.

There are tons of apps available that will enable you to create the code and most (if not all) mobile devices offer mobile apps that will scan the code to access the information. And they are not expensive at all (most are free).

Services/apps to create QR Code:

BeeTag
Kaywa
Mobile Barcodes

Mobile Apps to read QR Code:

BlackBerry
iPhone
Android
Windows Mobile

Now i’m pretty sure you’ve seen these things out in the wild, but my question is why haven’t they taken over as the de facto way to access information via a mobile device? They are easy to make (The image in the article when scanned will take you to…you have to scan it to find out). And easy to scan – it’s just as simple as taking a pic of an image with your smart phone’s camera. So what’s the hold up?

Do U.S. companies fail to realize that a large number of people accessing the internet are doing so via their mobile devices? Some companies get it, and are using QR Codes to welcome their mobile device users:

Google
AT&T
HBO

Or is it education? Do people really know enough about QR Codes to create the demand for more entities to adopt the technology? If that’s the case then do me a favor, share this article with everybody you know so we can get the ball rolling! SmallBizGoMobile has done it’s job, now it’s time to do yours!

Are your employees flexible? Are you?

by Jean Westcott

One of the most valuable assets in your workplace is the ability of your team to adapt to changes.  It can mean the difference between watching the world and more importantly your competition pass you by to being the one smart enough to lead the change.  I know this sounds vague and more inspirational than technical, but the first place most of us encounter change is changing technology.

Think of many of us just last year.  I was skeptical about Twitter–“Who cares what I had for lunch? Why do I want to read about someone else’s random musings on the latest gossip?”  But then I jumped in, followed people who I knew were leading the conversation.  I followed journalists and entrepreneurs; novelists and marketers; businesses and non-profits.  Reading their posts I discovered new points of view, learned about breaking news, and frankly ditched my RSS feeds because the need to read articles were posted in real time in a convenient column that I could browse between projects.  I learned how to engage my own point of view and gained attention for my book and our blog. 

And that is just one example.  I let my curiosity and good business sense overcome skepticism and torpor.  It took learning new programs (easy of course) and learning how to effectively use it.  

In today’s business climate we all have to work with all of our cylinders firing–there isn’t much downtime.  It is easy to succumb to wanting to tread water, to do what it takes to get by.  But we need to inspire ourselves and our team to stretch a bit.  Reward your team when they bring new ideas by giving them a chance.  Let them lead from pack, if you will.  Set a good example.  Try to pick up a new skill or a new way of doing things.  Because, like it or not, the technology around us is changing.  Be agile–your clients expect it, your competition knows it and your employees and your business will benefit from it. 

And you know what, following those who inspire you on Twitter is a great way to find out what’s coming up, what’s working, what’s next.  Just be flexible enough to reach for it!

Is it spam? Remain open to business but avoid trouble

by Jean Westcott

As soon as your email address gets ‘out there’, you will receive spam.  It is a part of modern life.  So, how do you remain available to your clients and your potential new business contacts and still protect yourself?

One way to keep your inbox clean is to not let your email address get out into the public.  You can use a website form instead of publishing your address.  Your web designer can set up a form that will forward messages to the proper email recipient.  Another approach is to put your email address in a human readable format such as theboss AT business.com that might thwart malicious web crawlers that harvest email addresses for spam.

The flip side is having a good spam filter.  Most commercially available spam filters will do a good job at catching the bulk of obvious spam.  The drug and sex come-ons, the fake degrees and the ‘login to your bank account here’ phishing scams don’t have too try to hard to get people to click on them.  It is just as easy for them to give a little effort in sending out thousands of emails hoping just a few click on through, so they don’t have to try complicated methods of getting past even the most basic spam filter.  Be sure that you chose a spam filter that will allow you to whitelist either domains, individuals or individual emails.  A potential client not getting past your spam filter means a lost opportunity.

My advice is to just be levelheaded in your attitude towards email.  If it is obvious spam, delete away.  No harm, no foul.  If it is too good to be true–it probably is.  If you aren’t sure if that really is your bank, Amazon, eBay, PayPal contacting you–contact them, don’t click through.  Don’t open attachments from an unknown sender.  If they look to be a legitimate customer, reply and connect before opening a file.  Most of us using our smartphones don’t have an easy time with attachments on our mobile devices anyway.  Just as if you have ever worked a cash register, the vast majority of customers who come in the door are there to be customers, but every now and again a quick-charge artist or other type of fraudster is going to show up.  You can be available and open for communication–just be smart about it. 

Like the Gipper always said, “doveryai, no proveryai”, “trust, but verify.”