Maps have been integrated with great success into many businesses as a way to provide directions to customers. But what happens when a customer is looking at a map, and would like to know more about the businesses in the area? Before, they would have to close the map, open a new window and search. Now, there’s a new solution.

CityMaps is a novel new online map. At first look it appears similar to any other online map: streets, check; transport routes, check; geographic features, check. So, what sets it apart? Well, when you zoom in on a neighbourhood you don’t get a fancy street view, or outlines of buildings, you get a map populated with businesses.

What is CityMaps? Think of those city maps that we’ve all used while on vacation, the ones with restaurants, shops and tourist attractions, and that’s the basic idea of CityMaps. When you zoom in on an area, you will see icons and logos of businesses. Click on one and a popup window will open with the business name, contact information, pictures, related tweets, reviews, and more.

Essentially, it’s a tool to help you plan your next adventure in the city. If you’re out with your friends and looking for a place to go for dinner, you can search for nearby restaurants, look at reviews and deals, and finally: make a reservation, all from the app.

How will this help my business? With social integration, a business like yours can post a special offer on one of the many deal websites, and it will show up in CityMaps as an unobtrusive blinking green dollar sign. If someone tweets about your business, the tweet will show up on the map as well.

This program is a great example of good integration across social media and business. If a review is posted online, it’ll show up on the map. This can also be beneficial to your business as you will get near real-time feedback. CityMaps also encourages businesses to develop and maintain an Internet presence, while giving them a practically free way to literally put their name on the map.

Currently, the map is only available for New York, San Francisco and Austin. There’ll be more cities soon, but it’ll be a few years before every city in the US is on the map. So keep your eye on this program if you’re not in the three cities, as you’ll soon be able to take advantage of it.

If you would like to learn more about CityMaps, or other Web trends, please let us know, we are happy to help.

Most businesses have started to take social media seriously. They are spending time and effort developing their profiles and reaching out to customers. It makes sense for a business to have an online presence beyond their website. Are you taking advantage of all the available options the Internet has to offer? If not, it may be time to start.

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.

Many companies are turning to Twitter to increase their online presence. This is a bit of a double-edged sword, as companies can easily reach a large amount of existing and potential clients at the same time. The downside is, if there is a negative tweet about your business, all subscribers can see the complaint. Does your company have a plan to address negative tweets?

Traditionally, the general rule regarding complaints was that a disgruntled customer or client will tell up to 20 people when they are unhappy, versus 5 when they are happy. When a complaint is made on Twitter, chances are very high it will be seen by more than 20 people. Complaints on Twitter should be taken seriously, even one complaint could damage your online reputation. Here are a few tips on dealing with this new breed of online customer service.

Ensure Team Alignment If you have more than one person looking over your social media accounts, or someone other than you looking over it, you need to be sure that they are experts on your products and services. This is important because it is them who will be responding to questions and complaints. If you don’t have an FAQ section set up, it is a good idea to establish answers to the most commonly asked questions, as well as answers or responses to any frequent complaints. This will provide you and your employees with a way to quickly handle displeased customers.

Prompt Response is Key Oftentimes, a quick response will go a long way in dampening the complaint. As people, we like to be acknowledged and when it is done promptly, we are more likely to be open. Many complaints are made when people are mad, and as such, the complaints tend not to show the whole picture. If you quickly respond, ask for more information or suggestions on what you can do to help, the complainer will often give you valuable feedback to use. If the complaint is serious, it is a good idea to acknowledge the complaint briefly, and then pursue a private dialogue. The average window to respond is 2-3 hours from the time of the complaint, so try to at least acknowledge the complaint within that time.

Personal Responses go a Long Way As with any response to complaints, it is a good idea to personally respond. If you use a company account, the response or apology will be read as insincere, and potentially make the problem worse. Many people feel valued when they are contacted from the owner’s or manager’s personal company account. In small businesses like yours, it is a good idea that someone at the very top replies. This will make it look like you care.

Word Limits, We Don’t Need No Word Limits The 140 character limit is usually not enough to explain yourself, or conduct damage control. So, don’t limit yourself to just the 140 characters. Use the space to acknowledge the complaint, and ask the person who lodged the complaint for their email so you can help them.

Pick Your Battles Remember one of the most important sayings in business: “You can’t please everyone, all the time.” There will always be people who complain simply because they can. In an ideal world, you would be able to personally address and solve each and every complaint, but chances are high you won’t be able to do that. Use your business sense about the complaints, or have a colleague look at the complaint and debate about what you should do.

With careful responses that are prompt and personal, there is a high chance you will turn the complaint into praise, and not only keep your client, but look good while doing it. If you have any questions about Twitter or any other social media tools, please give us a call.

One issue that has caused business owners and managers many headaches, and possible sleepless nights, is cybercrime. Businesses are always under threat of having data or money stolen, and need to be taking actions to stop this. Do you know what you need to protect your business?

A quick Google search for “cybercrime trends” yields over 78 million results, the majority of which are likely to affect large enterprises or governments. While it is beneficial for all businesses to be aware of the major trends, there are a number of threats that will affect small businesses more than others. Here are some current cybercrime trends that SMEs should be aware of.

Mobile Malware Smartphones are becoming ever more popular, and with this popularity has come an exploding number of apps. Malware developers have been picking up on this during the past few years and there have been an expanding number of apps dedicated to attacking your phone or mobile platform. The most common type of malware on mobile devices is spyware, followed by SMS Trojans. SMS Trojans run in the background of some applications, and make international calls or text messages from the developers’ services causing huge phone bills. The final form of malware targets online payment apps on the phone.

One of the main reasons this form of malware has become so popular is due to the openness of some markets, such as the Android Market. The owners of the app markets are working to track down and get rid of the guilty apps on their marketplaces, but you still need to remain vigilant. while installing apps. Look at the developer of the app - how many times has it been downloaded? Maybe double check the app’s integrity online before installing and double check the app on the internet.

Open-Source Malware Kits A common thing malware developers do is write code for malware and then sell it to interested buyers. But a rising trend is that developers are writing malware that is open-source—any person can download and change it. The worrying thing is, many developers of already powerful malware have been releasing open-source versions of their software. This means that there will be an increase in the number of malware attacks out there, as devious developers can easily come up with more elaborate hacks.

Banking Trojans Along with the open-source malware kits, there has been an increase in the number of banking trojans—aimed at stealing account information and passwords. While these trojans have been a threat ever since banks first started offering online banking, they have become popular again as people and businesses are starting to move their online banking onto mobile devices, and the trojan software is easily accessible. This makes mobile banking apps an easy target.

With cybercrime on the increase, now is a good time to review your security, ensure its up to date and remind employees of your mobile device policy. If you don’t have a policy in place, or feel that your security is inadequate, give us a call, we are happy to help you. Remember: with good security and knowledge, there is no reason you should fall victim to cyber theft.

In this modern age, many businesses have become reliant on technological networks, with businesses big and small using some form of network in their day-to-day operations. But what happens when one of those networks goes down? Larger businesses will normally lose some profit, but will be able to recover. However, a network outage could be the death of a smaller business. 24/7 networking can help prevent this.

How can 24/7 network monitoring help your business, you ask? Through preventative operations. The main idea of network monitoring is to act as an “Early Warning System” to let managers and owners know of potential problems before they strike.

What Does Network Monitoring Monitor? There are a number of things you can monitor with Network Monitoring. The most popular areas include application and system performance, bandwidth usage, and server status. You can also set up monitoring of additional areas, for instance: server load, ink levels in printers, time left on software license agreements, which devices are connected to the network, their data usage, and more. This is all done 24/7.

The one thing Network Monitoring does not normally monitor is unauthorized access to networks. It can be set up to look for unauthorized access, but this is normally taken care of by another system.  

How Does Network Monitoring Help Me? Network Monitoring is a preventative system, intended to warn you about potential network problems so you can proactively seek solutions before a vital network goes down. This makes it, in a round-about way, a justifiable addition to business value since, when implemented right, there will be less network crashes—which means less or no profit loss.

What Should I Monitor? In an ideal world, you would monitor each and every network. Over time, you can get there, but if you’re like most Small Business owners or managers, you have neither the time nor the budget to implement a full system. As with most projects, it’s suggested that you implement a system like this in stages. The most common areas to start with are:

• Local Area Network (LAN) Data
• Internet data usage
• server status
• alerts to existing networks

If you’re unsure of where to start, try contacting a local Network Monitoring service, or hire a consultant to establish a system. If you would like to know more about 24/7 Network Monitoring, or other ways to improve business value, please contact us.

Cloud computing is fairly new, which only means that there are still a lot of good things about it to be discovered and developed. Let’s take a look at some promising trends in the industry that are poised to make cloud computing even better than it is right now.

Anyone who tells you that the cloud has reached a peak is definitely mistaken. While cloud computing is already a powerful IT service that has made a positive difference in the way businesses operate—especially small and medium sized ones—there are still many aspects of it that are continuously being improved and developed.

Better security One of the major trends in cloud services is improvements in the security aspect. Businesses trust cloud providers with important and sensitive data, and with cyber-attacks becoming more frequent and clever, vendors have to step up their security protocols and keep clients’ data safe.

Wider integration and compatibility As it stands, there are still several issues between clouds (especially public ones) and an enterprise's systems, which limits the connectivity and data exchange between users. The same can be said for the current standards being used, which have the tendency to be very vendor-centric. The trend now is to reverse this, and provide better connectivity and data sharing, as well as less vendor-centric standards for better compatibility and integration.

A more ‘solid’ cloud It’s unfortunate, but expected, that there are service providers who are hitching onto the increasing popularity of cloud computing by offering half-baked cloud services. As time progresses, expect to see a better definition—which will reflect in the service provided—of what cloud computing can and cannot do.

As expected of any emerging technology, cloud computing has a ways to go before it reaches its peak. Expect to hear better things about the cloud in the coming months and years as businesses continue to maximize the potential of cloud computing, and vendors and service providers constantly find ways to improve what is already a fantastic concept.

If you are interested in knowing more about cloud services and what it can do for your business, please don’t hesitate to contact us so we can address your specific inquiries and concerns.

In a little over four years, virtualization has gone from an idea that was practiced by few to a standard process in many organizations. It’s evident that there are cost savings, and a recent report has confirmed this. The report states that some organizations have enjoyed a return on investment of up to 269% from virtualization. Read on for more information.

What is Virtualization? Virtualization is the creation of a virtual computing environment, where one hardware system can run multiple virtual environments. Common types of virtualization include servers, storage devices, or networks. The benefits of virtualization include lower costs, improved IT management, and reduced energy consumption.

The Survey A report published by CDW-G focuses on government organizations in the United Sates. Many SME owners and managers like yourselves are probably asking, “How do study results involving the government help my business?” Well, if you look closer you can see that what the government organizations did can easily be replicated by SMEs, just on a smaller scale.

Results In recent years, many companies have had to tighten their belts due to economic difficulties. Government agencies are no exception. The results of the survey found that agencies and organizations realized investment returns as high as 134 to 269%. The survey found that if IT managers invest in Server Virtualization, Document Management, Storage Virtualization, and Cloud Computing in that order, the returns on Server Virtualization alone can help pay for, if not totally cover the cost of, the other three processes. CDW-G found that on average, the total cost of implementing all four separately is over USD 1.1million, but when implemented in order, the average cost was around USD 400,000.

While it is unlikely that SMEs will see a return on investments of this magnitude, it is highly likely that they will see increased returns if they follow this method of re-investing returns from Server Virtualization into the other three steps. In times of economic stress, this could be a huge boost to your bottom line.

Helpful Recommendations From the results, CDW-G offered some useful recommendations that all businesses can use:

• When budget cuts are needed, first look for ways to increase efficiency without service cuts.
• Review technologies and processes to identify inefficiencies.
• Consider savings and efficiency opportunities in all new solutions.
• Leverage available savings into new projects.

As with any new process, it’s equally important to ensure that you educate the users of the processes and stay on your toes to keep updated.

Business Intelligence (BI) is not a new idea; many large MNCs and enterprises have been using BI for many years. The only problem is that the practice of BI and the software used has been beyond reach for many SMEs due to cost and complexity. This is changing as more and more companies are offering BI solutions to SMEs. Are you thinking of implementing BI into your organization?

If you are looking into integrating Business Intelligence at your company, no matter what system you choose or the size of the project, there are a number of things you need to be aware of in order to make the implementation successful.

4 Things to Know before You Start Before you start any BI project, there are 4 key BI implementation areas that you and your company will need to be clear on:

1. Data or Information: In most SMEs there is a limited amount of data available, so you need to be sure where all the relevant data is located. This typically includes client and employee information kept on accounting systems, spreadsheets or contact manager databases, sales or business reports, industry and competitor information, and more.
2. Technology: A large number of BI programs require technical systems that are stable and have minimal downtime. It’s a good idea to ensure that your systems meet the requirements and are stable. As with any software, be sure to do your homework and pick a system that is reliable and compatible with your business. Don’t just pick the cheapest system – pick the system that best meets your needs.
3. Knowledge: Many SMEs have employees that wear more than one hat, and as such may not be experts in any one thing. It’s important that, when implementing BI, you have employees who understand it and the related systems. If you don’t, there are many qualified BI consultants out there you can turn to for help and training.
4. Communication: It’s crucial that you have constant communication with the employees involved in the implementation, and that you explain what BI is, the analytics used, how to interpret what the results mean, and the actions to take.

Your Criteria To Success Once you have picked a good system, there are a number of criteria you should aim for to ensure successful implementation:

• Align Business and Technical: It’s important that the business side of your company knows about the implementation and will actually use it. Both sides need to work together to ensure an aligned team.
• Piece by Piece: It’s a good idea to not implement BI across your whole organization in one go because that involves far too much work and complication. Instead, look at the areas of your organization that could benefit the most from BI and start there. For the majority of organizations, Customer Service and Sales are a good choice.
• Ease of Use: Chances are, your employees do different jobs and won’t concentrate solely on BI. Therefore, you might want to pick or develop a system that is easy to use. As a benchmark, pick a sales or business manager and, if possible, a business analyst, and see how long it takes them to learn the system. The bigger the gap between the learning time of these employees, the harder the system is to use.
• Flexibility: It’s common knowledge that your business is always changing. Therefore, It’s a good idea to ensure that the BI system you choose is flexible and can be quickly and easily adapted to meet changing needs. If you have a rigid system, it will be successful in the short term, but a nightmare or even a failure in the future.

With planning and patience, BI will bring about an improved business and bottom line. If you would like to learn more about BI or would like help implementing it please contact us.

Many businesses are aware that they can be targets for hackers, and take necessary precautions to protect themselves. However, there is a new hack out there that is targeting your business’s banking information through a devious method. Be prepared, this hack could pose a difficult one to eradicate.

The hack, a variation of the Man-in-the-browser (MITB) hack, is a form of Trojan horse that mainly infects a Web browser and has the ability to change a Web page, insert orders or transactions covertly. The user will not notice any change to the website. This particular hack infects user’s computers with a Shylock malware program, a new form of malware that focuses on bank accounts and financial transactions.

The user goes to a banking website, attempts to log in and is given an error message stating that security checks are being undertaken. After a few minutes a window pops up telling the user that a representative from the bank will be contacting them to go over their account details. A chat window will open up and the “representative”, who is really the hacker, will ask the user for their account information. While the user and hacker are talking, the hacker will log into the account and proceed to go to town, so to speak.

At this time, it seems like the hack is not widespread, but it is spreading, and it is one of the more sophisticated programs out there. To learn more about this or any other security threat that may have you worried, please contact us.

The thing about the social media boom is that so many people are thinking of ways to make it better and to put a unique twist on an otherwise used and reused concept. Pinterest is one of the few that have been successful at this – which means, like in any other social media platform, businesses stand to benefit provided they use it the right way.

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.