Category Archives: IT

Ideas and thoughts on IT

Social Media for small business

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One of the areas most small business owners ask me about is Social Media. Everybody wants to know if social media is worth it? How much time does it take a week? How quickly will they see the results (paying customers)?

The truth is that social media is a multi-headed beast. Not all platforms will be useful for every business. Most businesses will see a benefit from utilising wisely 2 or 3 platforms. Though, in rare cases some business will see little to no benefit from using Social Media if for example the customers are all Octogenarians.

Before making the leap into the world of social media it is important to know ‘why’ you are getting online. Being trendy and innovative is not a reason to invest your time and brand into social media (unless they are some of your core values- in which case you have already missed the boat). Think like a business person, are you there to communicate with existing clients, to share testimonials, to build relationships and strategic allegiances, to take complaints, to make your customer service easier for clients, to create an online catalogue?

Social Media can do more harm than good is used poorly. For example creating a Facebook page for your business will do more harm than good if there is nothing on it or it is not regularly updated. Instead of coming across accessible and professional you look sloppy, unprofessional and dated.

So before you leap, take some time to think about what you want to achieve online. When you have distilled down your goals then look at the various platforms and select 2 or 3 that will help you achieve your goals. Create the pages, or hire someone to brand them for you  (I know a guy that can help you out there). Set yourself a limit of 20 minutes, or an hour a business day to invest in social media and stick to that limit. Social Media is surprisingly addictive.

With all social media remember you are there to build relationships not sell to customers. So don’t be discouraged if there aren’t people beating down your door straight away. Instead measure your strategy’s effectiveness against your goals.

Searchable Sites

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A prospective client recently came to me with a problem: his new website, which looks great, isn’t performing at all on search for his keywords.

This is a problem I see very frequently. Most of the time I can assist by simply providing some advice about improving onsite Search Engine Optimisation factors and acquiring backlinks as well as writing new and unique content; but on this occasion the issue was a lot deeper.

The whole site is a collection of images. The designer who built the site did not place any searchable content on the page!!! What’s more he/she charged quiet a lot for the site.

This is a warning: A website that cannot be searched is as useful as a rained on catalog stuffed in a random mailbox. No. It’s worse!

When you are planning to launch a new website, or to refresh your existing site, make sure that the designer/developer knows how to make the site searchable. Ask him/her lots of questions. If you don’t understand his/her answers ask them to explain.

The worst thing that can happen is you spend a few thousand dollars on a new site and no one ever finds it!

If you need advice on your particular project a business consultant can assist.

Google+ and the alleged Photo Search feature

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I really hope this isn’t for real. For the first time in my professional life I actually hope that an account has been hacked. The Google Plus Page on Facebook posted a status on its wall that has left me (and a lot of others) very concerned.

Google+, Google’s latest foray into Social Media, has announced on Facebook that it has a new upcoming feature, “Google Plus Search by Image”. The new feature is allegedly designed to allow users of the service to search for people to follow/befriend by nothing more than their picture! If that’s not scary enough, take a look at how the new feature was broadcast:

Google+ Advert for alleged photo search feature on Facebook Wall

The Facebook Notification

There’s no denying that this sort of facial recognition technology is amazing! It really is breath taking. The feat of engineering required to complete this is astounding. If Google can actually pull this off on a massive scale (Google+ already has more than 10 million active accounts) then it is something for them to be really proud of.

Unfortunately, it is also the biggest mistake Google could possible make with its new fledgling network. Google has, in the past, struggled with social networking and privacy issues. This latest feature would add a massive strain to the ability of users to maintain privacy of any sort.

This new supposed feature is a great example of innovation for innovation’s sake. It will add little to the actual usability of the service but may prove to be a major negative impact on the continued uptake of it. Innovation that drives customer satisfaction is great, but when it exists as an end in itself it can be a wasteful use of resources or worst detrimental to your offering.

I really do hope that this is not real.

The iPad: A game changer

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Every so often technology changes the way we experience the world. The iPad is one of those monumental shifts.

I know a lot of people who still claim to “Not get it” or to argue about the value of a tablet, saying that they would prefer a laptop/netbook which has more “power”. These, mind you, are often the same people who have not actually used an iPad for any prolonged period of time.

The iPad is a game changer because it changes the user experience so drastically. It enables the user to overcome the limitations and preconceived notions that computers are “tools to do a job”. Its form factor, operating system and tightly controlled user experience allow users to lose themselves in a completely different reality, one where you are not bound by deadlines or other commitments.

iPads can do a lot for businesses too. They can allow customers to interact with products and catalogs in a completely new and less mentally cluttered way. They allow for tangibility in oft intangible products like business plans or financial advice.

Consider adding an iPad app to your marketing material, it may well be worth the effort.

Source: What the iPad’s success says about us | iPad Atlas – CNET Reviews.

Aussie Developers are hurting: Apple’s New App Store Pricing

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Apple’s App Store price cut yesterday brought the Australian App Store to practical parity with the US App Store on the lower priced apps. Actually, when you take into account GST, the lower priced apps are now actually cheaper then they are in the US. This is great news for consumers! With the Australian Dollar at or better than parity for the past several months this was one area that was really irritating a lot of people.

Unfortunately, these price cuts leave a lot of developers in the lurch. Apple pays developers about two thirds of every app sale. It’s a pretty sweet deal when you consider the cost of the micro-transactions (bank fees on credit cards etc) & the platform which Apple provides. Unfortunately, developers then need to pay their GST obligations on that 66%, so at 99c an download, developers get 66c and then pay 6c in GST leaving 60c to cover all development costs associated with regular updates etc.

Before the price cut developers would get 71c for every download. Doesn’t sound like a big loss right? Now consider the cost of development, hours of coding, continuous support and updates. These all cost money, and quiet a bit.

Small businesses, some of which have full-time staff and fixed costs, just lost up to 16% of their revenue without any input into the equation and that really smarts!

(Article inspired by Delimiter article: iOS price cuts catch Aussie developers off-guard)