As creatives and computer technicians, globalization is very much a part of our industry. One of the challenges of having clients and staff all over the world is evident when trying to schedule meeting times that work for everyone.

Today we share with you a web service that can help you arrange a meeting time regardless of your time zone. It is very practical and easy to use, and is called WorldTimeServer.com

It allows you to see the time corresponding to your location in table so you can set the best time possible for your clients or team around the world.

For example

We in New York are setting up a meeting on the 15th September 2009 for our clients from the United Kingdom and Nova Scotia, Canada.

Above see the table of time differences produced by the WorldTimeObserver.com

Notice the color difference. This feature assists you with the decision making in choosing the most suitable time for your meeting. For this example, taking the fact that we are in New York, the ideal time for the meeting any time between will be:

• 9.00am – 12.00pm in the New York
• 2.00pm – 5.00pm in the United Kingdom
• 10.00am – 1.00pm in the Nova Scotia

iPhone Apps

If you have an iPhone or iPod Touch, you might want to try this app: iTimeZone by Tangerine Element Inc. It doesn’t do exactly the same thing,  but it does show different time zone interactively. Read more about iTimeZone features.

Below is the screen shot of the app:

Widget

If you have offices located around the world, you might want to get a widget that allows you to set clock widgets for different time zone. If you are on Mac OS X, you can open on your Dashboard and add the World Clock widget.

World Clock widget on Mac OS X

We hope that these web service and mobile tools are helpful for you and your business. If require any consultation regarding how to improve your daily-to-daily business, feel free to contact us.

It is a great take on the pitfalls to avoid – while giving the valuable warning to corporations that they should not be too “Draconian” in the the rules they set for use of social media.

Considering that Facebook just hit 300 million registered users, this article is very timely. Social media is here to stay.

Stylo Creative Communications’ Mission to to allow small businesses to enjoy big-business impact through the intelligent use of integrated digital technology and the application of savvy marketing consulting.  The following Google tools, for example, are a must for any small business and we love to watch our clients experience amazing business impact from using them.

1.0 Google Docs – http://docs.google.com/

These tools are completely free to use as you wish. You can create a Word, Excel, or even PowerPoint presentation online. This is especially especially convenient when you are on-the-go. You won’t want to disregard the “form” feature, which allows you the ability to build customized forms to collect useful information. Once the user submits the form, the information will be stored in a spreadsheet on your Google account. For example, take a look at this Event Feedback Survey form built on Google Docs, or browse the template directory.

2.0 Google Analytics – http://www.google.com/analytics

I encourage everyone I speak with to read what Matt Cutts said about Google Analytics. Google Analytics is the enterprise-class web analytics solution that gives you rich insights into your website traffic and marketing effectiveness (from Google Analytics website).

Would you like to learn more with a tour of Google Analytics? We certainly encourage it!

3.0 Google Webmasters – http://www.google.com/webmasters

If your company has a webmaster who manages your website, he or she should be using this tool. It is a useful tool that helps you to make your website more search engine friendly. It is not a magic button to  Search Engine Optimization (SEO) greatness, but rather a measurement of how your website is doing. On the other hand, this tools also has a YouTube channel and share useful information regarding optimizing your website. As an example, take a look at the video below.

Video – Is Google putting more weight on brands in rankings? (20:28)

4.0 Google Local Business Center – http://www.google.com/local/add/

People nowadays are busy and on the move. When they need to know something, they know they can “Google” it and most likely get the answer(s) they need. Wouldn’t it be good if they search, let’s say “Miami law firm” and what appears on the list are three lead keys to your business:

• your business name
• your website address
• your company phone number.

Not just that, but they also get a snapshot of  Google Maps showing your business location.

Countless businesses do not utilize this very easy-to-use tool. Are you one of them?

5.0 Google Search – http://www.google.com

Rather than doing a typical search, let us have some fun. Type this into the Google Search box: “1 GBP to USD”. Immediately you get currency conversion of British Pound to US Dollar.

What about “New York weather“? Up it comes – exactly what you need. See below.

Oh and that is just the beginning, check out the full list of what you can do with the Google search box.

They best thing about these wonderful tools? They are spelled F.R.E.E….You can’t get anything cheaper than that. Anyhow, you might find this Fun Facts about Google useful when a talking with a geek. We hope you will find these tools useful and we wish you a nice day!

Mohd Rafie Kamaruzaman (”Rafie”) is the Minister of Technology at Stylo Creative Communications. He currently lives in the United Kingdom, where he is completing his graduate studies in Mechanical Engineering at Cardiff University. It’s great fun to follow his tweets. Interesting fact: Rafie and Stylo founder Julien met on Twitter and were thrilled to discover their mutual love of small business and good design.

The Super Slow Studio is a place to rebuild your body and mind in 30 minutes per week

http://www.superslowstudio.com/category/from-the-desk-of-ana-nieto/