Professional social networks like LinkedIn are a great way for professionals, experts, companies and job searchers to connect with one another. Like any social network, LinkedIn does take a bit of work in order to see benefits. If you have an account with LinkedIn there are some things you may be doing wrong.

Below are five common mistakes professionals make on LinkedIn.

• Using it only for job searches. One of LinkedIn’s most powerful tools is the job search, as you can tap into the hidden market of jobs, or reach out to contacts for potential for potential openings, or to hire them. The only problem with this is: Many LinkedIn users only use the network when they are actively looking for a job. You should make an effort to keep your profile and connections up-to-date and be active even when you’re not looking for a job or to hire.
• Having an incomplete profile. One of the key aspects of any social network is your profile. It’s the online representation of who you are, and an incomplete profile is like an incomplete picture of who you are. At the very least, you should have information about all the important companies/jobs you’ve had and your main achievements associated with them. Having industry recognized keywords sprinkled in helps as well; it makes you and your expertise easier to find.
• Not belonging to groups. The groups we associate with make up a large part of who we are. LinkedIn is no different and has a ton of professional groups, including alumni and industry specific groups. Joining these groups is a good idea as you can connect with colleagues and other professionals, share your experience and keep your finger on what’s going on; maybe even find your next big business idea.
• Not making connections. We’ve said it before, we’ll say it again: LinkedIn is all about connections. If you only connect with people when you need something you will reduce the efficiency of the network. You should be actively looking for people that you know - personally or professionally - to connect with. At the same time, don’t connect with anybody and everybody, LinkedIn should be your online professional network - only connect with people you know or have met.
• Not a team effort. With other social networks like Facebook, colleagues are usually against connecting with workmates. While this is probably a good idea for Facebook, after all, who wants their boss seeing pics from your weekend shenanigans? LinkedIn is different, it’s beneficial to connect with your current colleagues as the main idea of LinkedIn is to establish professional connections. The best place to start making connections is your current job, so encourage your team members to have profiles and connect with each other.

Through effective use of LinkedIn, you should be able to build a solid professional network that spans countries and could provide you with your next big opportunity. If you have questions about LinkedIn or social networking in general, please contact/connect with us.

Hackers are starting to move away from "big scores" that are harder to accomplish, and are moving on to smaller and ultimately easier and more profitable thefts from small and medium-sized businesses, whose generally lax to non-existent security systems make for easy and quick money.

In physics, there's a concept called 'the path of least resistance'. The meaning is plain enough – objects that move in a system take the path where they will encounter the least challenges and hurdles in order to quickly move to wherever they are going.

Apparently, the same principle applies to hackers nowadays. Instead of targeting larger firms for that big 'score', hackers are now considering it more feasible and much easier to victimize smaller firms and companies, even for a much smaller amount of money.

Why is that? First, smaller companies generally have much more vulnerable IT systems. Security is minimal or average at best, and the hackers don't get as much heat or attention when compared to trying to breach the much more complicated, state-of-the-art security systems of bigger firms and businesses. Take a small newsstand business in Chicago: cyberthieves were able to install a Trojan in the cash registers which sent swiped credit card numbers to Russia. When the jig was discovered, Mastercard subsequently demanded an investigation – at the expense of the business owner – and the proprietor had to shell out a hefty $22,000.⁽ⁱ⁾

A survey in the United States reveals that more than half of small or medium-sized businesses believed that they ran no risk of being victimized by hackers, and less than half of the respondents had security systems in place.⁽ⁱⁱ⁾ That looks like a path of least resistance, as far as hackers are concerned.

The loss of a few thousand bucks may not be much for a big business, but it can make a significant dent on the profits and sustainability of smaller organizations. And in the case of implanted viruses that steal credit card information, your reputation can also take a big hit. So if you want your business to stay truly safe before it's too late, please contact us so we can discuss options and blueprints to make your business secure.

References: (i) and (ii)

There are many different ways a company can sell their products to customers, and one of the most underutilized is selling through social media. From one-man operations to multinational corporations, social media should be an integral part of marketing strategies. For many small businesses, social media is a new frontier that they can use to push forward sales.

Using social media to advertise or sell products and services, commonly called ‘social selling’, should be an integral part of your marketing and sales promotions. Here are five reasons why your sales force should be social.

1. Cost effective. Of the main marketing and sales pipelines, social media is by-far the most cost effective way to connect with people and build a solid marketing funnel.
2. Level playing field. The best thing about social media is that there’s no size requirement. One man companies can benefit in exactly the same way as multinational corporations. With a well crafted and executed plan, you could see your company achieve Internet fame and increased revenue as a result.
3. Less investment of time. Marketing and sales is a full time job, and using a website or other technical mediums requires the time of other departments as well. With social media, sales people can run campaigns themselves thereby reducing the demands on other departments.
4. Highly trackable. Social networks like Facebook and Google+ have built in analytics making it easy to track nearly anything related to social media sales. If a mistake is made changes can be made quickly and results will show instantly.
5. Drives loyalty and brand presence. With successful social media interactions, customers will often be more loyal as they feel a connection with the brand and will be less willing to change to buy from other companies. Social media also gives customers a chance to truly let you know how they feel, and other customers can see this. Visible comments are one of the most effective ways to build brand identity.

Using social media to conduct social selling is a great way for small businesses to not only grow their business but also market their brand. If you’re not using social media in your company, or would like to know more about how social media can help your business grow, please contact us.

One of the most prevalent aspects of modern technology is social media. Many companies and people have adapted it as a part of daily life, some going so far as to rely on it as their main form of communication. There’s no doubt as to the benefits of being on social media but many companies are unsure of the options they have.

Here’s some important information about each of the top five, as of 2012, social networks, that as a whole make up social media.

1. Facebook. With around 900 million users, Facebook is “the” social network for connecting with nearly everyone and has become one of the main forms of communication among the younger generation. In general, over half of users are between the age of 18 and 34, and spend an average of 405 minutes a month connected. If you’re looking to connect to customers, while driving brand awareness, your company should be utilizing this network.
2. Linkedin. Linkedin is the social network for professionals to connect with other professionals, share their experience and find a job. There are around 150 million users, 55% of whom are between the ages 26 and 44 and spend, on average, 21 minutes a month logged in. If you’re looking to connect with your colleagues, other businesses or potential employees, this is the network that allows you to do so.
3. Twitter. Twitter is the social network that allows users to announce, or find events going on nearby. With a 140 character limit, twitter is great for those who are efficient with their words, which is apparently over 550 million people. The majority of twitter users are between the ages of 26 and 44 and spend an average of 89 minutes a month logged in. Twitter is a great way for small businesses to broadcast announcements and promotions, with the goal of driving traffic to other social networks.
4. Google +. Google + is the closest competitor to Facebook with many similar features. There are two major differences however. The first is the userbase is quite a bit lower, around 170 million users. The second difference is users only spend 3 minutes a month, on average logged in. If your business has a Google Places page, you’re already on Google +, and with recent changes to the platform, it should become a solid network to connect with your customers in the near future.
5. Pinterest. Pinterest is the network to discover new content and products and is one of the fastest growing social networks. Founded in 2010 and coming to prominence in 2011, the userbase is around 11.4 million and growing rapidly. What’s intriguing about Pinterest is that users spend, on average, 90 minutes a month logged in, second only to Facebook. This network is a great way for companies to drive interest in their physical products.

These five networks are by far the most popular in terms of both users, time spent logged in and overall content. What social networks you use and why do you use them? We look forward to your comments below.

One of the most popular things software developers do is provide hidden functions, often called easter eggs. These features are sometimes jokes, other times they’re a useful function that for some reason was deemed not important enough to make it onto the main parts of the program. Facebook has some hidden features that are useful to small businesses with profiles.

Here are four hidden features you can use.

1. App Settings. This setting tab lets you view and manage all the apps you’ve installed to your profile. From your profile, click the grey arrow near your name at the top of the window, select Account Settings and Apps to view your apps. Clicking the X will delete the app, while Edit will allow you to edit the settings. This feature is good for managing your profile.
2. Archive Facebook. There’s a hidden feature in the Account Settings page that allows you to download your wall posts, everything you’ve shared and your friend's email addresses. You can also download an enhanced archive which includes info like IP addresses. This feature is in the General tab in Account Settings and is underLanguage. If your company wants to backup its Facebook data, this is the way to do so.
3. Customize Username. You can customize the username attached to your Facebook account, which in turn changes the URL of your profile to the username selected e.g., www.facebook.com/myprofile. This is useful for businesses as it allows them to have a unique username that they can use on their websites, newsletters and other communication to encourage visits. To change your username, click the grey arrow beside your name at the top of the Facebook window and select Account Settings. Under the General tab, select Edit beside Username. Be aware that at this time, Facebook only allows you to change your username once, so make sure you’re okay with the selection.
4. Facebook email. Did you know that you can message Facebook users from any email account? All you have to do is enter username@facebook.com and anything you type will be sent to that user’s messaging tab (the speech bubble in the top left of the screen). This is a great feature that allows you to quickly and easily send a message to your friends without actually opening Facebook.

These are just four of the many useful features of Facebook that you could use in your business to help further your brand, or make it easier to reach out to your followers. If you’d like to learn more about utilizing Facebook in your business, please contact us.

One of the major downsides of buying a smartphone is that you’ll normally be restricted to a contract of two to three years in length, making it costly to update to a new phone. The Apple iPhone is no exception, and many users of older models who are unable to upgrade have started to find that the device is running a lot slower.

Here are five tips on how to speed up your older iPhone:

1. Clear multitasking tray The multi-task tray can be one of the most useful features of the iPhone, but it can also take up a lot of processing power. About once a week be sure to double click on the Home button, press and hold an app and select the minus (-) sign on all apps.

2. Delete pictures, music and apps As the majority of iPhone users use their phone for pretty much everything, they can run out of storage space astonishingly fast. To see how much space you’ve used, press Settings, General followed by Usage. You’ll see two numbers at the top of the screen. On the left is how much space you have left, and on the right is total space used. In general, the more space used, the slower your phone will run. It’s recommended to leave 10-15% of total storage space free for operations.

To free up some space, it’s a good idea to delete old pictures, music and apps you don’t use. To delete all your music at once, go to Settings, General followed byUsage and select Music. Tap Edit followed by the red circle with white line. This will delete all associated files. Alternatively, you can open your music player and delete individual songs by pressing and holding your selection, and then selecting Delete.

To get rid of pictures, you need to open the Photos app and select the album you’d like to delete. Press the icon on the top left of the album, and select which photos you want to get rid of. When you’re finished, press the red circle with the white line. Be sure to either upload your pictures to iCloud, or your computer before you delete them.

To get rid of apps, go to your phone’s home screen, press and hold the app you’d like to get rid of and select the black “X”. A window will pop up asking if you want to delete it, confirm it and the app will be deleted.

3. Clear Safari’s cache The cache is where your browser stores temporary files to decrease bandwidth usage and increase the loading speed of a page. To clear it, press Settings and select Safari. In the window that opens select Clear History and Clear Cookies and data. This will clear all browser related data including passwords. You’ll need to log in to services like Google again.

4. Factory reset If your phone is still sluggish, you could try a factory reset. This will wipe the phone and reset it to the way it came out of the factory. To do this: plug your phone into your computer and open iTunes. Select your phone, click Summary followed by Restore. Follow the instructions from there. Before you do this, it’s recommended that you backup your device.

5. Bite the bullet If a factory reset doesn’t work, it may be time to bite the bullet and upgrade. Talk to your mobile carrier to see if there are any deals or trade-in programs. Be aware that a new version of the iPhone is rumored to be released in October of this year, so if you can hold off until it’s released you’ll be better off.

A smooth running phone is important to all of us, and these tips can help extend the life your device. For more iPhone tips, please contact us.

One of the major downsides of buying a smartphone is that you’ll normally be restricted to a contract of two to three years in length, making it costly to update to a new phone. The Apple iPhone is no exception, and many users of older models who are unable to upgrade have started to find that the device is running a lot slower.

Here are five tips on how to speed up your older iPhone:

1. Clear multitasking tray The multi-task tray can be one of the most useful features of the iPhone, but it can also take up a lot of processing power. About once a week be sure to double click on the Home button, press and hold an app and select the minus (-) sign on all apps.

2. Delete pictures, music and apps As the majority of iPhone users use their phone for pretty much everything, they can run out of storage space astonishingly fast. To see how much space you’ve used, press Settings, General followed by Usage. You’ll see two numbers at the top of the screen. On the left is how much space you have left, and on the right is total space used. In general, the more space used, the slower your phone will run. It’s recommended to leave 10-15% of total storage space free for operations.

To free up some space, it’s a good idea to delete old pictures, music and apps you don’t use. To delete all your music at once, go to Settings, General followed byUsage and select Music. Tap Edit followed by the red circle with white line. This will delete all associated files. Alternatively, you can open your music player and delete individual songs by pressing and holding your selection, and then selecting Delete.

To get rid of pictures, you need to open the Photos app and select the album you’d like to delete. Press the icon on the top left of the album, and select which photos you want to get rid of. When you’re finished, press the red circle with the white line. Be sure to either upload your pictures to iCloud, or your computer before you delete them.

To get rid of apps, go to your phone’s home screen, press and hold the app you’d like to get rid of and select the black “X”. A window will pop up asking if you want to delete it, confirm it and the app will be deleted.

3. Clear Safari’s cache The cache is where your browser stores temporary files to decrease bandwidth usage and increase the loading speed of a page. To clear it, press Settings and select Safari. In the window that opens select Clear History and Clear Cookies and data. This will clear all browser related data including passwords. You’ll need to log in to services like Google again.

4. Factory reset If your phone is still sluggish, you could try a factory reset. This will wipe the phone and reset it to the way it came out of the factory. To do this: plug your phone into your computer and open iTunes. Select your phone, click Summary followed by Restore. Follow the instructions from there. Before you do this, it’s recommended that you backup your device.

5. Bite the bullet If a factory reset doesn’t work, it may be time to bite the bullet and upgrade. Talk to your mobile carrier to see if there are any deals or trade-in programs. Be aware that a new version of the iPhone is rumored to be released in October of this year, so if you can hold off until it’s released you’ll be better off.

A smooth running phone is important to all of us, and these tips can help extend the life your device. For more iPhone tips, please contact us.

There’s no doubt in the value of using social media to build your brand. But opinions differ in the use of social media by employees. It seems that companies are polarized in the issue, but are being slowly awakened to the fact that allowing employees to access social media at work has great benefits. Do you allow employees to access social media in your office?

There are four distinct advantages to allowing social media:

• Increased productivity. There have been a number of studies that have found that judicious use of social media in the workplace will actually increase productivity. A study conducted by the University of Melbourne found that employees with access to social media are 9% more productive than those without.
• Increased buy-in. Employees like to feel trusted and empowered. If they don’t you can expect to experience higher turnover and lower morale. A good way to gain trust is to allow employees to use social media in the workplace. If an employee feels like they are trusted, they’ll be more likely to stay with the company.
• Recruiting. Small businesses have started to use social media for recruitment, but limit efforts to one account. If you have 10 employees in your organization, each with a social media account with 100 friends, you have the potential to reach 1,000 people. This is achievable if employees are allowed to access social media at work and are encouraged to share posts.
• Identification of business opportunities. Through the use of social media, employees in charge of sales and business development can source new clients and build fruitful relationships.

There are many advantages to allowing access to social networks at the office. If you‘re hesitant to completely open the social media floodgates, try doing so in short periods, like the final three hours of the working day.

No matter what you decide, allowing access to social media is a good practice for your business. If you would like to learn more about social media and how you can leverage it in your business, we are happy to talk with you.

Social media has really become a major way for businesses to get their name out and gain exposure to the many different people on the Internet, build their brand and find new customers. With the large numbers of people currently using the Internet, it makes sense for businesses to have some form of online presence as they will be able to connect with more customers.

Social media, once called a fad, has become the norm and is going to be with us for some time. A large number of companies already have an online presence, and are taking advantage of the benefits that social media can bring. Here are a number of things you can do to get your social media adventures underway.

Be Clear on Social Media It’s important that before you start looking into the different forms of social media that are out there, you are clear on what social media is, and what it isn’t. Social media is a way to meet people, and share content and ideas with them. For companies it’s a form of non-traditional marketing - think of it as soft marketing - it’s not meant to be the place where you flog your products, rather a place to develop interest in your company, so people will want to do business with you. By using social media you can show people who your company is, and connect with them on a more personal level. If you are clear on what social media is from the beginning, there’s a higher chance that you’ll be successful when you develop your online presence.

Before You Launch Into Social Media There are a number of things that your company needs to have either already done, or considered, before you jump in:

• Have a website: It’s a good idea to have a solid website with information about your company, contact information, products and services. Most potential customers will look at your website after looking searching for you online, and before they choose to do business with you, so your website needs to provide the relevant information they are looking for. If you don’t have a website, or feel yours is lacking, it’s easier than ever to get a professional looking site. With a quick search you will be able to find some competent designers.
• Get educated: It will be beneficial to educate yourself on current trends regarding social media. This can be done by simply going to social media websites, taking the free introduction tours and reading blogs related to the sites. Beyond that you should also research your competitors’ websites and Internet presence. Observe what content they have online, and more importantly: what they don’t have. It will also help to connect with and observe industry experts, see what they post online, and note the style and tone they use. This will help provide you with a sound knowledge base from which you can then create a more effective online presence.
• Set goals: As with any step in business, you should have a plan with realistic goals. Aim for results that are achievable for your company. If you’re a small, local IT company that focuses on providing support for banks, don’t expect to have the same massive hype that Microsoft and Apple do. Clearly set objectives and review periodically.
• Develop a focus: In real life, you can’t be all things to all people. The same goes for social media. You need to develop a focus on what type of online content you would like to share. You should aim to create content that your customers will want to share with people.
• Stake a claim: You should to go to the main social media websites - Google+, Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube - and reserve your personal and business usernames. This is important because it will make you look more professional by having the same username across all sites, and users will be able to find you easier.
• Ask for help if you need it: While some companies make social media sound easy, it can be deceptively hard to master. If you feel lost, or are having a tough time with it, there are knowledgeable consultants out there who are happy to help.

Time to Get Social When you feel you know what direction you will take, it’s time to start developing your online profiles. It can be tough to decide which social media tools to utilize. Unfortunately there is no right answer. Most small businesses follow the crowd, and this means having pages on Facebook and Linkedin. This does not mean that you should join these networks simply because they have the most users. It is recommended that you follow what similar businesses or direct competitors are doing. If they are on one service but not another, do the same to begin with, but be on the lookout for new social media sites, or features being added to existing sites.

One Thing to Not Forget There is one really important thing we can share with businesses thinking of pursuing social media: it isn’t a turnkey operation. You can’t just, “set it and forget it.” To be successful, you need to be active by posting updates, news, and above all interacting with the people who reach out to you. After all, they are your customers. If you do establish your social presence but forget to keep it up to date, you will be the company that’s forgotten.

If you would like help with your social media strategy, please get in touch with us. We’d love to hear from you.

Just when you think things have peaked – in this case the social media boom – somebody comes up and thinks of a way to make things more interesting. Case in point: Pinterest. While it can hardly stand shoulder to shoulder with giants like Facebook or Twitter, it certainly brings something new to the fold that could prove useful to businesses.

What is Pinterest? In a nutshell, it's something like a social media scrapbook, album, and bulletin board combined. Each interest / theme has its own 'Pinboard' where you put photos, videos, or other media that interest you.

What makes Pinterest unique is its concept, which has been consistently growing in popularity, especially with female audiences. And while Facebook and Twitter are more open to overt advertising, Pinterest takes a more conservative stance. While advertising isn't exactly prohibited, the marketing should definitely be more subtle and more consistent with a personal Pinterest profile. Here are some basic tips that will help you utilize Pinterest to your advantage.

1. Understand your market. The first question you should ask yourself is if Pinterest is something worth your time investment. Since the majority of Pinterest users are female, ask yourself if your products and services appeal to them directly.

2. Invest time. As in many other social networking sites, you need to put a personal and human touch to your Pinterest profile and in the way you interact with your audience. Log in often, update regularly, and respond quickly to any kind of feedback. Let your audience know that you're there.

3. Use other social media to augment Pinterest. Since Pinterest is less known, use your other social media accounts to point people your way in Pinterest, such as Tweeting or updating your Facebook status with your most recent Pinterest profile update.

4. Talk about what you represent. As mentioned earlier, since Pinterest isn't big on overt advertising, you need to market yourself in a different way. Talk about what your brand is all about. What do you represent? What content can you provide that would inspire your audience to share on their own Pinboards? If you're a furniture company, for example, you can try giving some tips on basic interior design and picking the right furniture pieces for spaces, with pictures or videos. What's good about Pinterest is that it challenges you to be more creative, and thus, more appealing to potential clients.

If Pinterest interests you, give us a call so we can discuss how you can maximize this new social media platform for your business.