In the old days when the conductor of the train was ready to leave a station the whistle blew and he shouted “All Aboard!”.Yesterdays presentation at the SAP Anniversary session of The Cluetrain ignited the blogosphere with conversational rivers that will likely swell for weeks. Doc Searls presentation ripped open minds and made us all think about today’s social web realities and what seems to be the “blinding flash of the obvious” when presented as only Doc can present.

Labeled as provocative, radical and disruptive the comments were aimed at the existing institutional and corporate mindsets that continue to create barriers to the very conversational freedoms afforded us by the enabling technologies of the social web.

Doc’s comments flew through the web as if it were a giant copy machine and bloggers added to the commentary largely in agreement but with an awoken spirit motivated and with passion. The copies magnified, flourished and the conversational rivers turned into a sea full of waves roaring with enthusiasm and energy.

Doc’s says “Groundswell - a social trend in which people use technologies to get the things they need from each other, rather than from traditional institutions like corporations. Companies sees the one-to-one communication, can’t measure it, but now there are ways to do this at scale. CBS Jericho TV show - what happens after a nuclear bomb goes off near a town. Jericho message boards were active, show went on hiatus came back placed against American Idol, same audience, show canceled. Shaun Daily, on BlogTalk radio, would not accept the cancellation. Collaborated with Nuts online, asked people to send nuts to Nina Tassler at CBS, had 20 tons of nuts that were delivered to the show. Saw that the decision to cancel Jericho was a mistake.”

CBS announced the comeback of the show on the CBS fan message boards, said that they will count on the fans to rally their friends - PS, stop sending us nuts Jericho Wiki, Jericho Widget - things are very 2.0 now. Companies don’t really understand that markets are conversations, but understand that the groundswell is there and that they have to manage it.

Revolutionaries Create Change, Radicals Create Upheaval.

If the social web had a constitution it would read “We the People of the Social Web, in Order to form a free exchange, establish free conversations, insure seamless transactions, provide for the common voice, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our community, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the Seamless Web“.

The subsequent articles would address the powers of self governance, self organization and freedom of expression. In essence such a constitution exist in the minds and hearts of those that not only agree with much of what Doc says but desire to unite in one voice and together break down the barriers with our collective influence.

Consider the comment Groundswell - a social trend in which people use technologies to get the things they need from each other, rather than from traditional institutions like corporations”. How much more productive could we be, could our world be, if we united together and applied influence towards mindsets that try and control our conversations with archaic rules and power plays. Consider what happen when Robert Scoble’s Facebook incident created a groundswell of support from other users. Facebook changed their rules. Examples abound that united we stand, divided we fall.

When Cluetrain first came out in 1999 it did indeed create a river of conversations but the flow of these conversations were constrained by the technology of the moment. Ten years later the technology has advanced, the people are smarter, more adaptive and are embodied in the power of social influence. The empowerment has been self assumed and as mentioned in Doc’s recent speech, Leadership is needed. The definition and assumption about leadership of the past implies one. The past is behind us and the new definition of leadership is many. However to lead one must be willing to stand up united and be heard so that the conversation unites many others and provokes leadership actions.

Based on the ebb and flow of the recent Cluetrain conversations sparked, copied and distributed is seems that the train is getting ready to leave the station and the conductor is yelling “All Aboard The Crazy Train!”. Are you aboard or will you stand by and watch the train leave hoping that the people reach their destination but leave the “nuts” along the way?

What say you?

www.relationship-economy.com

Many companies outsource their fulfillment services to save time and money running their business. Most small and medium sized business do not want to hire an employee to run their fulfillment division because frankly, they don’t have that much to do. Unless that employee has other responsibilities, there should be no reason to hire a person to run your fulfillment duties. Outsourcing it is the most cost effective way to handle those tasks.

So, where do you start when looking for fulfillment companies to work with? First, you have to understand what your companies marketing strategies are and how a fulfillment service will benefit your company. You can find companies that can provide a complete turnkey solution to where they store, process, and send all of your company’s literature and marketing pieces. Some of these companies also offer marketing services so they can put together your literature and marketing pieces. You will have to have a realistic budget put together so when you’re locating your fulfillment business partner you will be able to decide if their services will remain under your budget.

Once you’ve done these two things, you should have a better understanding of the products, marketing pieces and the fulfillment services you will need.

Just with any employee you hire, you want to make sure that an outsourcing company understands your business and you can have a beneficial working relationship with that company. Too many businesses try to do too much and control everything. If you want your business to go to the next level, you will need to find quality partners to work with to ease the burden on yourself. Once this is done, you will be able to focus more on your expertise and the products you offer to clients. This in turn will increase your sales and bring in more revenue.

All forms of business need some sort of credit card processing so they can accept debit cards, credit cards, and checks for payment of products or services. Most large companies can outsource these services to companies that can deliver customized solutions just for them. Many of my small business clients say that they can’t find a solution fit for them. Just because you have a small business doesn’t mean you can’t have something tailored to your needs.

There are a number of companies that offer credit card processing that can meet and exceed your business needs. The trick is to find a solution that best fits your business desires and goals. It’s important to communicate clearly to the sales rep so they understand your business and how it accepts money. This can be done by making some telephone calls to the different providers.

If your small business is more complex, you may have to look around a little bit more to find exactly what you need. Many small businesses not only do business with people in person at their retail shop, but they also take orders online via their website. You could find a solution that will meet both of these needs individually, but it would probably be more cost effective if you bundled it into one service provider.

Also, small businesses can also outsource phone order or mail order so they can process orders directly over the phone with their customers. A solution like this will give the impression that you have a much larger company and customers will feel more confident when they buy from you. It may be hard to higher a single employee and delegate enough responsibility to have them on salary, but when you outsource it to another group you can manage your phone order or mail order business much more cost effectively.

One of the newest methods is taking orders wirelessly. If you have a wireless solution, you can meet with your customers onsite and process their transaction directly through your phone or other mobile device. These types of transactions are unique in that you can seal a deal right in front of your customer and there is no need to go back to the office and process paperwork and transaction details. This benefits your outside sales team most because they will be able to reduce their time doing the backend work and spending more time on sales.

There is a company that I’ve recommended to others before called First Data Independent Sales that can meet many of your needs. They offer many different types of accounts including e-commerce, retail, phone/mail order, wireless, restaurant, and TeleCheck. They work with business large and small to deliver a cost effective solution for your business. They give away free software and other free services to win your business and offer first quality service to retain it. They’ve been in business since 1988 and are very knowledgeable in the industry and have brought great products, services, and technology to the industry.

Through their innovative products, services, and technology they have been able to stay one step in front of their competition and remain a forerunner in the market. You can rest assured that when you call them they will be able to work with your unique business plan and deliver solutions to keep you one step ahead of your competition.

Whatever you choose, make sure you’ve done your homework and you truly understand the process and details of the service. You want to make sure any solution is going to benefit you and your provider demonstrates the value that they will bring to your business. It could save you literally hundreds, if not thousands of dollars in the long run and that adds up at the end of the year. Just like anything else you outsource, you want to make sure that company or person you bring on fits well on your team. Businesses that have great teams put together can produce more than their competition.

If you’re like most companies, security is a top priority for your business. We live in a day and age that corporations and small businesses alike must keep a certain amount of secrecy to keep a competitive edge.

It was just last month that 2 Coke employees were sentence to prison for trying to sell company secrets to rival Pepsi. How much would it effect your business if employees sold proprietary information to your competitors? It may not take much to put your business under.

With the Internet and the way that digital documents can be filed, more and more companies are storing company data digitally on internal Intranets and on directories that can be accessed from outside locations via a password.

There are companies that can do online data monitoring to make sure your company’s files aren’t floating around the Internet for the entire public to see. If you want to make sure your company’s data is safe and secure, this is another method to protect that data.

webArgos is one of the leading providers of online data monitoring and protection. You can view their website at webArgos.com.

It only takes one bad or disgruntled employee to steal your information and sell it to the highest bidder. Especially in today’s world where knowledge is power, make sure you have your data and intellectual property protected.

Unless you have been living under a rock the last 10 years, you very well know that if you want to increase your business revenue, you need to be doing it through an online presence.

Business first began to utilize the World Wide Web in the early 90’s when the Internet first became available to business and home users.  Ever since then, they have been trying to figure out how to create more sales through their website.

Before they can create more sales, they have to figure out how to drive more traffic to their website.  That is when many companies will outsource their Search Engine Marketing to companies that specialize in online marketing and search engine optimization.

It makes sense to do this as well because these marketing companies have specialist that know how to drive traffic to your website in different ways.  From pay per click, keywords, and visual design you want your potential clients to visit your website and have the ability to motivate them to make a purchase.  With online advertising and marketing changing with the pace of technology, it’s important that you have a group that can keep up the pace.

Because there’s so much competition in the market place for online marketing companies, you want to make sure you choose a quality provider as well.  Make sure that you sit down with the representative and clarify all of your goals and set benchmarks to achieve.  You must make sure that the company that you are going to work with completely understands your business objectives and they will be able to meet them as well.

There is enough software available that you should be able to track, analyze, and evaluate any online marketing strategy.  You can sit down with your online marketing company have review all the strategies and evaluate what is working and what is not, and how to improve performance.

After all of this, you should have been able to find an Ethical SEO company that will be able to work with your company and take your online presence to the next level.

You’ve paid good money to have your company on the Internet, make sure you take maximum advantage of it to drive more traffic to your website and create more sales!

 

*Thank you to my sponsor Apogee Search

Who do you use for your Online Search Engine Marketing (SEO) company, or do you even have one?

Search Engine Marketing is a must for any business that has an online presence. The purpose of a website is to allow customers to find you, a place to display your products or services, and to stand out from your competition.

SEO companies such as Discount Click have the tools to drive traffic to your website and place you in front of your competition. There are many SEO companies to choose from, but you want to find one that best suites your needs. You also want to make sure they have the talent and resources to provide your company with the best solutions.

Many companies cannot afford to have their own in-house SEO team so they contract it out to companies that specialize in SEO and website analytics. Get out there and find the one for you to get ahead of your competition and stay there.

Copyright © 2006 Sherry Harris

Global supply chain management has emerged as a major topic in the age of globalization and now it is sitting at the heart of the whole system.  But you might be asking yourself, so what exactly is supply chain management and how can it affect my company?

Let’s understand what it is first.

From the production house the product starts it journey and travels through to the supplier, distributor, retailer and ends at the hands of the consumer.  This whole journey is a well managed mechanism and controlled by supply chain management.  When it goes global and the journey of the product covers multiple countries, then it is called global supply chain management.

With globalization, business has become more complex.  Global supply chain management not only mobilizes products but also the entire value added chain, in which financial activities and sharing of information are also included.

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Copyright © 2006 John Tedeschi

If you rely on online marketing to promote and market your business, you know that you must accept credit card payments online to be successful.  Immediacy and convenience are the hallmarks of online transactions.  When you’re making a decision about which online payment solution to use, you will ask yourself the following question.

“Should I pay a bit extra for a professional solution or should I pinch pennies and hope that a free solution will do?”

This is a fair and legitimate question for all online businesses especially those that are new and financially constrained.  We all want to save money.

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Copyright © 2006 Mark Meshulam

The advent of email has created a new environment for human interaction which is simultaneously more and less personal, but much less private. Above all, it is unforgiving. Once you click the “send” button, it is as irretrievable as a nickle down a sewerpipe.

Consider these actual emails which floated around my office, but probably shouldn’t have. The names are changed but the text, other than being shortened, is in its full original glory.

In the first vignette, Mark (me, the customer) asks Jim and Ron (the vendors) to add special markings to their shop drawings…

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Copyright 2006 Titus Hoskins

Online or Internet Fax Services are becoming extremely
popular with our ever increasingly mobile workplace and
workforce. As we become more mobile, we want the ability to
receive and send   faxes through our email and the
Internet. It’s as simple as that!

Receive and send your faxes anywhere, anytime.

Plus, you have no more paper jams, no more bulky fax
machines, no more busy signals and no more return trips to
the office to retrieve  that important fax at 10 o’clock at
night!

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