Small Business Blog from Microsoft

Guest Blog: Five ways small firms can compete with bigger rivals

Microsoft Small Business — Thu, 23 May 2013 14:28:00 GMT

Five ways small firms can compete with bigger rivals

There's no point in patronising anyone by claiming the internet has levelled the playing field for small businesses looking to take on larger rivals. Competing with the big boys is still incredibly tough and although the internet has made it easier, it certainly hasn't made it easy.

So how can companies with limited resources score victories against firms with revenues you can only dream of?

Be the best in your niche

If you're a marketing company, the chances are you're not going to win many battles by going head-to-head with the giants of the sector. In a straight fight, they'll out-pitch you, outspend you and, if they need to, undercut you just to stop you taking business away from them.

None of which seems fair, but there are ways to hit back. Calling Distilled a small business almost seems patronising. After all, they have offices in London, New York and Seattle. But they only have 50 employees, so in the strictest sense they are small.

Regardless of this, they still do business for some of the biggest brands you can think of, including Microsoft, the Telegraph and Staples. Why? Because they're one of the best search engine optimisation firms around. Put simply, they offer a service larger rivals just can't match.

Getting to this position is by no means easy, but it is achievable no matter what sector you're operating in. The more you stand out in your niche, be that SEO or wooden pallet manufacturing or whatever, the more likely you are to win big contracts.

Remember (some) big firms are your friends

Right now you're probably eyeing Distilled's client list with a large degree of jealousy, and you'd be right to do so. The lesson you should take away from it though, is that not all big firms are your rivals. In fact, plenty of them will want to help you out as long as you're offering what they need.

It stands to reason that in a business-to-business environment your customers are other companies, whether they're big or small. But even if you're a consumer-centric firm, you can still do business with larger companies.. Subcontracting is common, the key is making sure your firm is positioned to take advantage of any opportunities that arise.

Networking is vital here - so make sure you attend key events and make contacts. Write for industry publications, speak to journalists, get your name and your company's name out there. That way, you'll be better positioned to land big deals when they come up.

Think local, act local

Of course, there are some sectors for which the above tips don't apply. Starbucks, for example, don't subcontract their sales of coffee. Most small firms in this position will have a limited catchment area, so the focus has to be on attracting attention and standing out from the crowd.

That people are conducting large parts of their lives online has made it easier for local companies to attract attention. The topic of local SEO deserves a blog post to itself, but put simply if you have a business and you don't show up on Search Engine Maps then you're miles behind your rivals - big and small.

Learn about Google Places, and at the very least get yourself listed. If you've got the budget to spare, you might want to employ a specialist SEO agency to help.

Being more visible online will help get people through the door, after that you can woo them however you want; a quirky theme, special offers, anything you think might make them come back for more.

Love your customers

The internet has made it somewhat easier for big companies to deliver good customer service, but their very nature means they'll never be able to compete with small businesses when it comes to making people happy. The bigger the company, the harder it is to make individual customers feel special. As a small firm, you need to make sure you're dedicated to making your customers happy. Doing so means you'll secure repeat business and word of mouth recommendations.

Use the cloud

This article started with a pledge not to patronise people by claiming the internet has levelled the playing field for small firms, but when it comes to cloud computing it has. Of course, the cloud isn't a magic wand which can transform your company into a world beater overnight, but it has made top-level business applications more affordable, putting them within reach of even the most humble of start-ups. <a href=http://mailchimp.com/>MailChimp</a> lets you handle your marketing emails for next to nothing, Trello allows you to manage workflows with ease. In fact, if you can think of it, there's probably a cloud service which does it. These tools can give you a competitive edge but, as with all these tips, it's up to you to make it count.

Guest post by Will Stevens of 123-reg - the UK's largest provider of domain names. The company has recently launched a new line of cloud servers.

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Guest Post: Is Your Business as Organised Offline as it is Online?

Microsoft Small Business — Wed, 22 May 2013 10:43:34 GMT

A new study from office experts Avery has revealed that an incredible 70% of UK workers admit to finding it hard to stay on top of organisation at work. Whether it’s getting paperwork in order, organising accounts or simply keeping desks and workspaces tidy, it seems that the task of being organised at work is a growing challenge for businesses today.

It’s clear that while cloud computing keeps us organised online and Outlook takes care of our inboxes and daily schedules, many businesses are struggling when it comes to maintaining offline order around the office. According to the Avery research, these struggles could seriously be holding back productivity in the workplace. Nearly one in five people admit to losing important paperwork through not being organised enough, with the same number stating that important business tasks can often be delayed due to the time spent on looking for missing documents. The findings highlighted that in the most severe cases many staff are even working overtime to try and restore order, with one in ten people confessing they’ve had to work late simply to try and make their office a little more organised.

When it comes to essential offline organisation tasks that staff fall behind on, filing important hardcopy paperwork scored highly on the list, with 38% of workers admitting to this. It was closely following by the proper labelling of files and folders where it also emerged that just four in ten workers actually have a strict hardcopy filing system in place!

Time pressures in the office were frequently cited by workers as the main reason for letting organisation slip, with a quarter of workers claiming there are simply so many other important things to prioritise that paperwork and organising always get left to one side. One of the first and most common consequences of this lack of time to get organised was a messy desk, with 43% of workers admitting their workspace was impacted by poor organisation.

So, you may have your online inbox in order but what about the intray on your desk? If any of the survey findings from Avery sound familiar here are some top tips to get you started on the path to better office organisation:

If the amount of office clutter and paperwork that has built-up around you seems daunting and you don’t know where to start, the best thing to do is create a list of manageable tasks which address each area of the office. Break it down into smaller, more achievable jobs -never try to do too much at once or you’ll get disheartened.
Start off by archiving documents that you don’t need on a daily basis and store them tidily in files and folders. Make sure they’re clearly labelled so you can easily find them again.
It’s clear that a well labelled filing system needs to be put in place in order to promote better organisation and reduce the time spent looking for things. Once you have a filing system in place it’s much easier to encourage good organisation and
ensure order is maintained long-term. Try Avery Organising & Filing Labels, available in a variety of sizes and colours, they fit perfectly on to all types of files, folders and binders. You can even customise your labels with logos and images for quick reference, using free online Avery Software & Templates.
Consider implementing a colour-coded filing system to help make finding important documents more efficient. Studies have shown that the mind notices bright colours more easily than black and white text, making scanning and locating important files faster for everyone in the office.
Implementing an efficient new filing system doesn’t have to mean buying all new folders either. Save on the stationery order by giving old files and folders a new lease of life with Avery’s opaque BlockOut™ Labels to completely cover over old text and labels.
Remember not to let organising the office become a once-a-year nightmare. Encourage staff to leave their desks tidy and make time every few months for a good clear out as it’s very easy to let things build up.
Most people have a tendency to hold on to things ‘just in case’ – but this can lead to unnecessary clutter. Assess whether you are really ever going to make use of something and, if the answer’s no, get rid!

Put in place some of these tips and you’ll soon have your office organisation back under control. Some of the effects of an organised office might even pleasantly surprised you, from the positive impact on productivity and the speed at which administrative tasks get done, right through to the atmosphere in the office and staff’s overall morale.

For more information visit www.avery.co.uk/filinglabels

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Guest Blog: Security Issues Facing The Cloud

Microsoft Small Business — Tue, 21 May 2013 14:38:08 GMT

The cloud has been in the tech spotlight for quite some time now. A number of people understand its underlying advantages and the mode of its operation, but few are aware of security threats that face the cloud.

Just recently, part of Amazon’s cloud computing service crashed, crippling Instagram and Netflix, together with millions of users. Clearly, even the cloud is at threat just like all other computer systems.

Here are 6 of the most common security threats that most cloud systems face:

Data Breach

Contrary to the tight security measures that organisations put in place for their cloud systems, there are actually a number of loopholes that experienced hackers can exploit in a cloud that isn’t so well-protected. A virtual machine in a cloud, for instance, can be used to obtain cryptographic keys that are being used by another virtual machine on the same server. As such, a hacker’s job would be relatively easy. Additionally, if a cloud database isn’t properly designed, a flaw in a client’s application can allow a hacker to gain access to all other clients’ data in the database.

Data Loss

While organisations are striving to constantly protect their data from unauthorized access by using encryption, there are still a number of things that can compromise the cloud. In data encryption, losing an encryption key, is no different than losing all your data. However, it is shocking that only 36% of the organisations are confident that they won’t lose their data due to loss of the encryption key. Moreover, 26% of the organizations in the U.S. alone do not use encryption to protect their sensitive data, making it easier for attackers to access their cloud.

Traffic Hijacking

Despite high levels of data encryption and proper storage of encryption keys, eavesdropping also poses as a great threat to cloud computing. CSA believes that if someone gains unauthorized access to your credentials, he/she can easily eavesdrop on all your activities. Once he/she has gained access, it will be slightly easier to attack more accounts on the cloud system. However, traffic hijacking is relatively easy to curb. Organisations should only ensure that account credentials are never shared.

Malicious Insiders

A cloud system may be totally perfect when it comes to security, but whenever a human being is involved in the operation of any perfect computer system, several loopholes begin to surface. Former employees,
rival companies, or contractors can gain access to a poorly designed cloud systems while impersonating some of the current employees in an organisation. Additionally, if the encryption keys are stored in an easily accessible area, it becomes even easier for an attacker to gain access into the company’s cloud.

Complexity of a Cloud

The larger the cloud, the more difficult it becomes to manage it. This makes it more difficult for even the most competent system analysts to fish out all the loopholes and block them. In fact, this is one of the reasons why most big companies are constantly being attacked by hackers. In 2011, the PlayStation network, for instance, was hacked into and over 70 million accounts were compromised. In general, a simple, light, and easy to use interface is much preferred to complex cloud systems.

Ignorance

While the cloud is still relatively new, not everyone knows exactly how it operates and what constitutes a cloud environment. As such, some organisations embrace the cloud technology without clearly understanding what the cloud is. These organizations should instead ensure that they have sufficient resources which will enable them to carry out extensive due diligence before fully relying on the cloud system.

All in all, there are numerous threats that the cloud faces. However, it is evident that many of these threats revolve around the people who operate the cloud regardless of how many dedicated servers a cloud has.

Article inspired by Ninefold

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Guest Blog: 4 top ways to ensure business success

Microsoft Small Business — Mon, 20 May 2013 15:21:21 GMT

Countless companies, and even some countries, are struggling and may go bust. Unsurprisingly, this affects business confidence globally, causing investors to hold on to their cash and markets to stall. But even in these testing times plenty of businesses are faring well too.

So how can you ensure that your business is one of them? We can all take some lessons from a particular breed of businessmen and women: entrepreneurs.

As any thriving entrepreneur will tell you, there is no single, foolproof formula to ensuring business success. Plenty don’t get distracted by the macro-economic climate and just get on with it. But speak to enough entrepreneurs and common patterns emerge.

In Growth in a Difficult Decade, a book commissioned by Regus, more than 60 entrepreneurs share their advice on how to achieve growth in the economic downturn.

Here are the findings:

1. Perseverance, positivism and people

In the face of adversity – plough on, stay upbeat and be decisive.

“People who love what they’re doing don’t give up. It’s never even a consideration. It’s a pretty simple formula”, said Donald Trump (pictured), head of the Trump Organization.

Others highlight the importance of hiring people who are better at something than you are.

Coffee shop-chain Starbucks’ chairman and CEO, Howard Schultz, said: “There is no more precious commodity than the relationship of trust and confidence a company has with its employees.”

2. Harness the power of marketing

Today’s multi-channel world offers vast opportunities. Make the most out of them.

Dame Mary Perkins, co-founder of opticians chain Specsavers, said: “Customers are more demanding and more knowledgeable using the internet to find out things for themselves, and they want better service. So they need to be told why they should spend money with you.”

3. Learn from your mentors

Take learnings from people whose opinion you trust.

“I’ve found that some of my best mentors will paint a picture for me, but they won’t suggest any sort of direction. They’ll say: ‘Here are the five things that you can do, here are similar experiences that I’ve had'”, said Jason Ross of menswear retailer JackThreads.

4. Think globally and go for growth

Having a global vision is vital in a world where thanks to technology there are no longer any geographical barriers. Marc Benioff, founder, chairman and CEO of Salesforce.com, said: “The biggest lesson that I draw from the past decade is
the importance of innovating on every level.”

And with innovation comes the potential for growth.

Footwear giant Geox’s founder Mario Moretti Polegato hit it on the head when he said: “It’s not true that everything has already been invented: there is plenty of scope out there for great innovation.”

So, do you feel as upbeat about the future? What’s the growth outlook for your company?

Regus is currently working with Microsoft to offer its customers in the UK a free 90 day trial to experience Office 365 and Microsoft Dynamics CRM - if you are a Regus customer then please email microsoft@regus.com or call 0845 872 0100 to take advantage of this exclusive offer. If you would like to find out more about Regus, then simply head to our website www.regus.co.uk

Guest author

Steve Purdy – Managing Director, Regus UK

About Regus

Regus is the world’s largest provider of flexible workplaces. Over a million customers a day benefit from our locations spread across almost 100 countries. With our ever expanding range of innovative products and services we enable people to work their way whether it’s from home, on the road or from an office.

Where we do it

Regus is a global organisation with more than 1500 business centres across some 600 cities. We were founded in Brussels in 1989, are currently headquartered in Luxembourg and our shares are listed on the London Stock Exchange.

Who we do it for

More than a million customers including half of the Fortune 500, as well as hundreds of thousands of start-ups, small and medium sized companies across every sector.

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Surface Pro is coming soon

Microsoft Small Business — Thu, 16 May 2013 16:33:39 GMT

Microsoft today announced that Surface Pro will be available for purchase in the UK beginning 23^rd May.

Surface Pro is designed to showcase Windows 8 Pro and represents exceptional value, providing customers with a fully functional Windows 8 PC that looks, feels and acts like a tablet. With an estimated retail price of £719 for the 64GB configuration, and £799 for the 128 GB configuration[1], Surface Pro will be available online at http://www.microsoftstore.co.uk.
A range of accessories for the Surface Pro is also available. These include Touch Cover - a super-thin, spill resistant cover with a pressure sensitive keyboard that comes in a variety of colours as well as a Type Cover – one of the thinnest mechanical keyboards available, HD AV and VGA adaptors and the Wedge Touch Mouse Surface Edition.

“The response to Surface RT has already been great to see,” said Robert Epstein, UK Surface Lead “There has been strong anticipation for Surface Pro in the UK and we’re excited to be able to offer people a fully blown Windows 8 PC packed with powerful processing features in the innovative Surface design.”

The Surface family of devices represents an extension of the Windows experience, letting customers work easy, play hard, and connect with the people who matter to them. Surface lets customers transition between entertainment and creation. It offers an ultra-light durable casing and an integrated kickstand and cover that allow customers to be productive anywhere, as well as a full-sized USB port and microSDXC card slot for adding additional storage and a 16:9 widescreen high-definition display that makes it optimal for viewing and sharing content easily.

Surface Pro, powered by an Intel Core i5 processor, is equivalent to a full-blown Windows 8 laptop that also boasts tablet capabilities. For the first time, customers can have a fully functional PC that looks, feels and acts like a tablet and allows handwriting and sketching with the Surface pen in a natural and intuitive way. With Surface Pro, customers can do virtually everything they have ever done on a PC, ranging from using their favourite desktop applications to enjoying the protection of
world-class safety and security software.

Additional details on Surface are available at http://www.Surface.co.uk, the Surface Blog and Surface on Facebook. Those interested can follow Surface on Twitter for additional updates.

[1] System software uses significant storage space; your storage capacity will be less. See surface.co.uk/storage 1 GB = 1 billion bytes

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Guest Blog: Yammer for business

Microsoft Small Business — Thu, 16 May 2013 10:51:39 GMT

In the last few years, Microsoft have put huge focus on developing the social side of their products. Social Media is not going away, it will only evolve positively to encompass more and more - in life, and in business. Most small business owners are aware of the “Social Media” buzz-phrase, but not all have the time to devote towards devising and applying a social media strategy for marketing purposes. Often, small businesses also lack the spare capital to employ a marketing agency or an individual to take care of social media management.

Despite this, social media for customer and client-facing marketing is now relatively established. But what about utilising social media within businesses as an internal employee tool?

You may have already heard about Yammer, which Microsoft bought in 2012 for $1.2 billion. The price they paid highlighted Microsoft’s commitment to improving the social side of their products, and the value they consider Yammer would hold to their customers and their business. So what exactly does Yammer do? How does an enterprise social network actually work, and what benefits does it bring?

Yammer is an internal social network, only open to those given permission and access by the business they work for. This access is determined by the user’s email domain - a simple and effective way of managing profiles for IT support. Users can create customised profiles, much like other social networks such as LinkedIn and Facebook.

There are many features that make Yammer beneficial to business; in fact, almost too many to list. In a nutshell, at the core of this tool are features that improve employee engagement, such as Trending Files and Popular Content feeds, as well as the Online Now live chat feature. Another major bonus is the ability for users to access it via the web. By utilising cloud technology, it is available from anywhere with an internet connection on a wide range of devices including Apple, Blackberry, Android, and Windows products. The Groups feature is one of the most celebrated, and this can benefit teamwork by allowing users to create groups based on interest, role, or company department. Again, this is similar to other popular social networks, and is a key element of bringing people together.

Social networks aren’t there just for people to waste time, they can be useful tools for collaboration, so Yammer fits in perfectly with Microsoft’s vision for products such as SharePoint - where collaboration and communication is key. Integration with Microsoft’s other products is one feature which makes Yammer such a good business tool, and this is available for SharePoint 2007, SharePoint 2010, and Office 365. According to the Microsoft and Yammer team themselves, 85% of Fortune 500 companies use it as a team communication tool. With this sort of uptake, it’s hard to ignore.

Some tips for using Yammer:

Larger businesses should only open up the tool to a few individuals at a time, to prepare for what features work for them best.
When using Yammer, remember it is an internal enterprise tool and you should act as appropriately as you would in a professional setting.
Test some business ideas by putting them forward to your connections and getting feedback through Yammer.

Ultimately, the most important aspect of utilising Yammer is to maximise buy-in among the team. With a well-designed user interface and smooth design, that shouldn’t be a difficult task. It is a great way of communicating ideas and interests in the workplace, and will form a key element in the development of Microsoft’s tools for business in the future. No doubt, it will evolve as a product over time, but the first year of Microsoft’s ownership of Yammer highlights their passion for bringing the benefits of social to enterprise.

Author bio:

Marc Defosse is managing director ofRibbonFish Ltd, a London-based IT consultancy specialising in Microsoft technologies. Marc enjoys blogging about the RibbonFish areas of expertise such as CRM, SharePoint and web development, as well as the latest business IT & tech trends.

See how Windows Phone 8 is suited for Business

Microsoft Small Business — Wed, 15 May 2013 13:19:00 GMT

(Please visit the site to view this video)

Jamie Lumley explains why the Nokia Lumia 920 is a vital tool for his remote working lifestyle. Jamie owns a professional photography business so he requires a phone that supports his clients needs at shoot locations.

Find out more about Windows Phone 8.

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5 Common SEO Mistakes Small Businesses Make

Microsoft Small Business — Tue, 14 May 2013 13:58:20 GMT

Search engine optimisation, or SEO, refers to the miscellany of things a business does to affect the visibility of a web page or website in the search results of a search engine like Google or Bing. As a small-business owner, you must keep an eye on SEO strategy and tactics to make sure customers and the general public know the work your company is doing in terms of items produced, services provided and excellence in customer service, among others. When it comes to SEO tactics, the five common mistakes you must avoid include splash pages, duplicate content on your website, images contained text, keyword-laden pages and hyper-linked sections. Remember also that an effective SEO strategy emphasizes difference - versus potential entrants in your sector, versus potential substitutes to your products or services, and versus your direct competitors.

1. Splash Pages

A splash page is aesthetically pleasing but does little to enhance your SEO status. You see this type of page generally on the home page with an image and a button that says "enter" or "enter the website." A splash page is ineffective because it contains little text, which doesn't help your company rank highly in search results. Second, you are forcing the user to click an extra link before visiting your site - another recipe for commercial disaster because your organization might be losing out financially if impatient prospects just leave the page altogether and move to the competitor's portal.

2. Duplicate Content across Your Site

Don't create multiple web pages with the same content. This creates a problem for search engines because they don't know which page to display in search results, a situation that could deliver devastation to your SEO efforts and ranking goals. Besides, search engines often treat repeated text as spam, which also is a negative element for your SEO initiatives.

3. Images Containing Text

Text-stuffed images also don't make SEO sense because search engines like Google and Bing cannot read text embedded in a picture. So if you stuff all, or most of, your content in pictures, your website will not appear in search results -- or, at least, not as prominently as you would like. Given that content plays an integral role in search results, try to free up your content and don't box them into pictures or other graphical elements.

4. Keyword-Laden Pages

Within the SEO context, conversations about keyword stuffing still matter, but they often are loose and disjointed because many SEO professionals now know that search engine algorithms have better, more sophisticated ways to ignore repeated content - be it a keyword or otherwise. Instead of clogging your website content with keywords, try to display that is relevant and informative to your current customers, prospective clients and the occasional reader who is just passing by and happens to stumble on your website. Content clarity and helpfulness should be the objective here, not a deluge of keywords to trick search engines.

5. Hyper-Linked Pages

Adding tens, if not hundreds, of internal links to each web page will not help your company's search rankings. From a user experience, the most salient thing to implement is a primary page that naturally flows to secondary pages, which also smoothly mesh with other pages. Again, the key element in SEO strategy is content, content, content - so stuffing internal links to your company's web pages is inefficient, and the links most likely will be ignored by search engines.

To make your SEO strategy a success, opt for special capabilities that are unique in nature and few in number. Work with a marketing company with SEO expertise; revamp your website to make it more user-friendly and optimized for search engine algorithms; and constantly monitor what the competition is doing, from an online visibility perspective. Key SEO blunders to avoid include hyper-linked and keyword-laden pages along with splash pages and duplicate content throughout your company's website.

About the author:

Kyle Sanders is the founder of Complete Web Resources, a small business SEO company based out of Denver, Colorado. When he’s not helping clients and writing for the web, he enjoys kayaking, fishing, and sunshine.

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Stay secure. Learn what to do when support ends for Windows XP

Microsoft Small Business — Tue, 14 May 2013 09:54:34 GMT

What were you doing on your computers 12 years ago? Windows XP was a new operating system, touting a best of class experience for your small business. Today, Windows XP is out of date and soon to be at risk because support for the product is ending on April 8, 2014. Unsupported versions of Windows XP will continue to operate but can leave your business unprotected. Without the software updates, there is nothing to protect your PC from harmful viruses, spyware, and other malicious software, which can steal your personal information.

End of support means no further support will be provided for the product:

No security updates
No free or paid assisted support options
No updates to online content (KB articles, etc.) although online content may be available, if still in the Online Self Help Support phase

Continuing to operate Windows XP will also make using new hardware, such as monitors and printers, and new software difficult. As new hardware and software are released, their drivers will not be updated for Windows XP. In most scenarios this means the new software and hardware will be incompatible with your Windows XP machine.

Visit the Support for Small Business site to find links to tools, guides, information and other options to help you get updated, and keep your business more secure.

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Guest Blog: Would a small business consultant make your business better?

Microsoft Small Business — Thu, 09 May 2013 10:10:39 GMT

One of the classics mistakes in business operations is to get so bogged down in the minutiae of day to day operations that you forget to look at the bigger picture of how your business is travelling in the competitive field. As manager or owner, you want to control as many aspects of your business operations as possible, but you also want to do work that is as qualitative as it is quantitive. The challenge is keeping as close an eye as possible on as many things as possible. Public relations and marketing are the benchmarks of parameters like how competitive your business is within the industry, and how well your investments are converting into revenue, and they are central to any business strategy.

Providing an excellent product is only the first step, the rest of the work is in creating brand awareness, and making sure that the product is accessible, and that your potential customers know about it. Measuring the effects of the strategies that you put in place can be an endlessly complex operation. It's not always efficient to do this kind of thing yourself, unless you feel confident that it's an area of specialty that you can tackle.

To properly assess the way a business operates, it is useful to get an outsiders view. We aren't always capable of judging our own actions. Although it's hard to imagine, others may know better than you how to run your business. This is where a small business consultant, like Good Business PR and consulting in Sydney, comes in.

The very best business tip that I can give you is to hire a small business consultant. If you are looking to hire a consultant, make sure you hire one that has experience and expertise in your area, and that has dealt with businesses of your size and calibre before. The more they know about your industry, the better. An effective consultant will be able to look at your business operations and improve them, as well as your ROI, by implementing strategies that you never previously would have thought of. It is up to a business consultant to stay on top of exactly what consumers are doing and what they are interacting with, and how that can be deployed to the advantage of small businesses trying to capture the imaginations of new customers. Let them
do the hard work, not you.

This is originally posted by Isabelle Riley of http://www.goodbusiness.net.au

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