Friday November 20, 2009
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technology
From WSJ.com/Small-Business
Three Best Ways to Reduce Tech Costs
By Raymund Flandez
It's tough to run a company without a serious investment in technology. Here's how to stretch the budget and not waste cash on needless products.
Take Charge of Mobile Commerce
When you can connect with customers wherever they are, you're ahead of the game.
More Than Just a Pretty Faceplate
Apple's fifth-generation iPod Nano successfully splits the difference between work and play.
Keeping Your Site Out of Hackers' Clutches
Attackers are increasingly infiltrating small businesses' Web sites. Once hacked, your site can wind up blacklisted by search engines. Here's how to fight back.
The New Information Goldmine
Small-business owners try their luck selling 'Data as a Service.'
Smartphone Apps Fuel Business
Smartphone applications don't just help business owners run companies. They can also improve the way customers interact with products and services.
For Business Owners, iPhone Apps Abound
Need to get deals done while on the road? There's an app for that.
Create Your Own Online Network
It can grow right along with your company – and help your company grow.
Can Chrome Help Your Startup Shine?
Google's new operating system has serious small-business potential.
Should You Buy a Prepackaged Website?
Buying an off-the-shelf web site can help you get started up online quickly. Just make sure that it can accommodate all your needs.
5 Great New Web Tools
Modernize your business with these great alternatives to traditional tech.
Find the Perfect Smartphone
It's not just a phone – it's a portable office. Here’s a breakdown of what the latest smartphones can do for your business.
New Wolfram Search Service Has Techies Talking
A small software company's new Internet-search service has some speculating it could eventually challenge Google.
BlackBerry vs. iPhone: A Battle of Small-Biz 'Apps'
Which smartphone wins on key small-business tasks? Our face-off.
Understanding Computer Viruses
Don’t let the latest Conflicker worm get you down. Here’s a primer on computer viruses.
Get a Handle on Your Overhead
Technology is making it easier for you to keep tabs on your business's resources.
Mobile Social Networking
With computer-like smart phones poised to surpass 308 million shipments in the next two years, small businesses had better get a jump on mobile technology. Here’s what to know.
Telecommuting Securely
As more businesses ditch their office space to cut costs, virtual private networks can offer security as you and your employees telecommute.
Google’s Phone Service May Be Worth Switching For
The search-engine giant's new phone service might not be perfect, but it has potential for entrepreneurs on the go.
Web Conferencing Can Save You Money
Online conferencing can help increase productivity and lower travel expenditures.
From Small Tech Show, New Ideas
Demonstrators at the Demo technology showcase are plowing ahead with new products and services -- most aimed at saving business owners time and money.
Entrepreneurs Remix the iPhone App
The device's musical interface capabilities are creating a world of pocket producers.
Filling in the Gaps
As the economic storm builds, local chambers of commerce have geared up to help small businesses in a key area: technology.
Computer Backup Options
There is more than one way to back up your data, so make sure your methods are optimized for your budget and your technological setup.
Computer Servers Made Simple
When attempting to install your company’s computer server, it helps to know what it does. Here’s a brief tutorial.
Smart Ways for Businesses to Cut Costs
Business Solutions: If the early returns are any indication, the hot technology for 2009 will be...anything that can save money.
Thwarting an Internal Hacker
Insiders are a bigger security threat than computer hackers from the outside. Here’s how companies both large and small can prevent internal attacks.
How to Beat a Goliath
New technology can help a start-up David beat a corporate Goliath.
Laptop Quick Fixes
For small business owners who can't afford an in-house IT department, here are some emergency-care options for your ailing notebook.
Starting Up: Tech Cos Offer Range of Financing Deals
Can't afford to pay for new technology upfront? Try one of these financing deals.
Not So Tech-Savvy?
Look like the real deal with these easy-to-use tech resources for e-mail, web design, conference calling and more.
Frugal Choices for On-Demand Tech
The software-as-a-service concept is growing, bringing low-cost internet applications to businesses of all sizes and saving entrepreneurs much needed cash.
Switching Off Standby Mode
The standby mode on appliances is silently drawing energy from the grid. Now, Spanish entrepreneurs claim to have invented a way to end the problem.
Twitter Goes Mainstream
Twitter, it’s not just for egoists anymore. Business owners are increasingly finding uses for the technology that seeks to update users on their activities.
How to Keep Your Web Site Secure
Vandals have attacked and defaced some of the world's most prominent Web sites. Here’s how to protect yours.
New Data Privacy Laws Set For Firms
Think small businesses don’t have to worry about data encryption? Think again
Frugal Choices for On-Demand Tech
Software-as-a-service applications offer savings for businesses of all sizes.
Computer Problems Got You Stranded?
Here's how to find emergency care for your ailing laptop.
Where to Find Good, Cheap Tech Help
Most small-business owners can't afford consultants or an IT staff. As such, here are a few cost effective technology help options.
Top 5 Innovations for Business Owners
Since we haven't found a way to invent 25 hours in a day, these smart gadgets are the next best thing.
Cutting the Cord
Weigh all the options when choosing between traditional and online software solutions.
Components of an Effective Small Business Network
As technology continues to move forward, you want to make sure that you have the best computer network for your company.
Ways to Follow Friends on the Web
Web users now have solutions to content overload: applications that clean up the digital clutter of social-networking sites.
Eight Top Web Site Design Issues
Does your Web site keep people captivated, or does it send them fleeing as soon as they get to your home page?
Online Customer Service Basics
How can you provide excellent customer service online? It's easier than you think.
Some Facebook Programs Thrive, Others Flop
A year after the launch of Facebook Apps, it's time to ask: What has worked and what hasn't?
What Your Keyboard Says About You
Don't look like a Luddite. Invest in a keyboard that'll get potential customers peering over your shoulder.
Double Duty for Personal Smartphones
Personal smartphones can save small firms a lot of money. But they also can create security headaches.
7 Deadly Design Sins That Can Kill Your Conversions
Don't let design flaws scare away your online customers.
Top 10 Business Web Site Mistakes
Today, it takes more than just having a Web site to make the Internet work for your company. Here are 10 common Web site mistakes.
Understand Google's Guidelines
Don't be a rank amateur! To get listed fast and not banned, know what the leading search engine does and doesn't look for—and what to avoid.
Software, Not Hardware, Should Guide PC Buying
Software needs should dictate what hardware to buy for a small business.
Starting Up: Small Biz Tech Speak
Drowning in acronym soup? Here's a tech glossary for small-business owners.
Database in the Sky
Using a web service as your database can save you lots of time, money and frustration.
9 Steps to Better Security
As your business gets more dependent on technology, your computer becomes more targeted by hackers and others constantly on the prowl for vulnerabilities.
Starting Up: Adding a Layer of Security
As hackers wage more attacks, small businesses look for ways to protect networks.
Top 10 Network Security Mistakes
Some businesses do not take the time to make sure all security measures are in place. Here are a few common network security mistakes.
Starting Up: No More Software in a Box?
Small businesses are downloading cheap web applications to handle office tasks.
Work & Life: Letting Staff Telecommute
Tech-savvy small businesses gain a hiring edge by allowing work-at-home set-ups.
Starting Up: What's CRM?
More small businesses are tracking customers' buying habits through CRM software.
The Best Salesperson: Your Website
Transform your website into a sales representative by using these online features.
Start-Up Service Offers Web-Security Tool
A start-up run by former Microsoft Corp. employees said it has made a tool to combat growing security risks on the Web.
Design for Profit: Tips for Building Your Website
Good Web design makes the difference between a so-so site and a winning site that sells customers on your product.
Building a Robust Customer Forum
An active online forum can serve as an extension of good customer service as well as a low-cost way for small companies to drive sales.
Transform Your Website Into a Sales Powerhouse
With the growing rate of internet shoppers, make sure you design your site with the customer in mind.
A Small Company's Web Video Contest Gets People Talking
Community-generated video can be a smart — and low cost — marketing tactic for small companies.
Internet Phone Service Gets Plush
Corporate-style, full-featured phone systems aren't just for the big guys anymore.
Buying Bundled Telecom Services: The Pros and Cons
Research your telecommunications company before you buy to avoid getting disconnected.
11 Internet Myths Debunked
Think creating a website for your biz is too complicated? Avoid the myths and find out the simple truth.
Some Small Firms Try WiMax
More small companies are exploring WiMax, the technology for wireless broadband connections, to improve their office Internet connections.
Why Can't Computers (Fill in the Blank)?
This year's Demo show is expected to draw backers of 77 new services or products to Palm Desert, Calif.
Should I Pay to Build My Own Site?
Yahoo offers free web sites to small businesses. Should I do this, or pay to build my own site?
My Way: Making a Virtual Company Into a Reality
How to find the tools, employees and office arrangements to run a successful virtual company.
Cloaked Room
Virtual meetings are keeping quieter employees plugged in.
Bloggers Bring in Ad Revenue
If you're not making money off your blog, 2008 might be the year.
Quick Tips: Resolve to Build That Web Site
Many resource-strapped business owners fail to create a web site. Big mistake.
Stanford's Facebook Apps Class Proves a Quick Hit
A course based on the social networking site results in millions of downloads, serious job offers and venture capital bids.
Quick Tips: Turning Your Office Green
Boosting energy efficiency allows entrepreneurs to go green while cutting costs.
Top 11 Money-Wasting AdWords Mistakes
Learn how to avoid costly errors and save yourself from big headaches in pay-per-click advertising, specifically AdWords.
Work & Life: Goodbye Crackberry?
Technology can help entrepreneurs stay in touch — or keep them from letting go.
Starting Up: MyBusinessName.com
Chances are, the dream URL for your business is already taken. Here's what to do.
5 Out-of-the-Ordinary Outsourcing Trends
Outsourcing is reaching new levels of creativity as entrepreneurial minds figure out more and more tasks that can be sourced elsewhere.
Real Moms Do Blog
Whether you start your own or visit someone else's, blogs can help you build the relationships your business needs.
Optimizing for Blogs and Videos
Learn how to leverage these mediums for your brand and what you can do to optimize for search.
Making It to the Inbox
Six steps to better email deliverability.
How to Get to the Top of Search-Engine Results
Getting your company listed in the first page of a search on Yahoo or Google can transform an also-ran into a front-runner.
Time to 'Mobilize' Your Site?
With more people accessing websites through mobile web browsers, it might be time to redesign your site with them in mind.
Is This Web 3.0?
Rich Internet applications are bringing client server functionality to the web and could dominate Web 3.0.
10 Search Engines You Don't Know About
Go beyond Google and get vertical. These specialized search sites will help you find the business information you need quickly.
Plug In, Turn On and Go Virtual
Reap profits in real life by becoming an entrepreneur in Second Life's virtual world.
Online Tools Give Home-Based Firms Office-Style Services
Providers like Google and Microsoft tout low cost, ease of use.
Hiring an SEO Consultant
Don't outsource your search engine optimization without asking these 10 questions.
Now See This
Whether you're demonstrating products or sharing your company's vision, online video has many marketing applications
Get Your Business Online for Less Than $200
For the cost of a nice dinner, you can have your business online in one month.
The Future of Small Business Technology
A recent report predicts what technology will look like in the future and discusses what companies should be doing now to stay ahead.
Web 2.0 Tools for Getting Noticed
These latest web tools can help you differentiate your business.
Satisfying Your Tech Cravings
Technology is a key part of any business. Here's how to break down your needs.
- Take Advantage of Electronic Communication
Friday, November 6, 2009 - Refranchising: Should You Buy In?
Friday, November 6, 2009 - The Intersection of Awareness and New Media
Friday, November 6, 2009 - Market With Meaning
Friday, November 6, 2009 - Cash Shy? Try Bootstrapping
Thursday, November 5, 2009 - More Business News @ FoxBusiness.com
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