4 Reasons to Use a CRM System

Author: Paul Nichols, CPA
Paul is the President and co-founder of Nexxtep Technology Services.  

Customers have more control, choice, and information than ever. The companies most connected to their customers will win. Period.

11 Ways to Kick-start Your Video Marketing Strategy

Online video is a very hot topic in marketing this year.  Why? Because it’s effective. Video is an easy, inexpensive way to show off  your business, help your customers, and set you apart from your competitors.  Online video will become a dominant marketing tool this year, and I strongly believe that any business can use video as a part of their marketing mix.  In this post, I’m going to cover 5 ideas for video topics, 3 questions you should ask yourself before making your next video, and 3 tools you can use to get started.

• Product/Service Overview.  The purpose of this video should be help your potential customers answer the questions “What do you do?” and “Why should I choose you?” as clearly and briefly as possible.
• CEO/Owner Interview.  One of the reasons video is so popular is that people crave human interaction, even when they’re online.  Help your customers and prospects get to know who’s behind your products or services by setting up an interview with the founder or CEO of your company.  You might ask questions about his industry experience, business philosophy, and why he chose to start/run the business.
• How-To.  Generally, people can follow video easier than written instructions.  Use a how-to video to guide customers through an online ordering process, installation of a product, proper care for your products, etc.
• Working for _____.  Ask several employees why they love working for your company and record their answers on video.  You can compile their answers into one short video and post it on the career/jobs section of your website.
• Testimonials. In my opinion, testimonials are the most powerful marketing tool there is, and video only makes them more powerful.  Ask some of your best customers what you do that they value, and record their answers.  You can post these testimonials throughout your website to establish credibility for your business.

• Who is your audience?  Who is this video intended for– your prospects, existing customers, potential employees?  Keep this in mind as you develop your script and be sure your video ends up in the proper place.  For example, a general product overview might be a good fit for your website’s homepage, but a specific how-to video would work better in a “Existing Customers” or “Resources” section.
• What problem/issue are you trying to address?  Try to think from your audience’s perspective, and address their concerns.
• What are your expectations?  Why are you making this video?   Do you want to generate sales, improve customer service ratings, or increase your hiring pool?  Figure out what you want to achieve with this video and find a way to measure the results.

• CNET Camera Reviews.  Even though some of the newest Android phones and iPhones can record decent high definition video, you might want an enhanced experience. These camera reviews on CNET will help you find a good HD video camera that fits your needs and your budget.
• Wevideo. Edit your videos in the cloud directly from the Wevideo website.  It’s very easy to use and free for a limited amount of space.
• Viewbix. Allows you to add interactive calls to action to your videos (links to your website, social network icons, etc.).  Like Wevideo, it’s also very easy to use and free for a limited amount of videos.

3 Ways to Protect the Important Business Information on Your Smartphones

If your smartphone was lost or stolen today, do you know how you would find it?  If your answer is no, please keep reading.

As mobility increases, people are carrying around more and more important business information on their phones, laptops and tablets. If your phone is lost or stolen, that information could end up in the hands of the wrong people.  Protect your information and your business by taking a few preventative measures:

1. Install and setup a tracking app on your phone. 

If you’re an iPhone/iPad user, setup Find my iPhone using the easy instructions from Apple (make sure you have updated your phone or iPad to the 5.0 or higher OS). After setting up the app, you can log in to iCloud.com using your iTunes username and password.  Then, you can track the location of your phone, play a sound and message, or wipe the device.

If you’re an Android user, check out this post which has several options for phone-tracking apps. We recommend an app like iHound which can also wipe your phone in the event it’s lost or stolen.

2. Use a passcode to lock your phone.

Setup a passcode for your phone to prevent someone from accessing your information before you realize your device has gone missing.

iPhone/iPad Users: Go to Settings, then General, then tap on Passcode lock. Tap “Turn Passcode On.” and enter your chosen passcode.  Stay away from easy guesses like “1234″ or “5555.”

Android Users:  You have the option to set a password, draw a pattern, or set a PIN number for your phone.  Watch this instructional video to learn how. 

3. Ask employees to follow steps 1 and 2.

If you supply employees with their smartphones or they use their own phones for business use, make sure they follow these instructions as well.

Document and Spreadsheet Options for Mac Users

Photo source: twek.wordpress.com

This week, we received a question from one of our readers.  Jessica in Virginia asks:

My office uses Microsoft office on Windows, and I have a desktop there.  I need to purchase a new computer for home.  I occasionally need to take Word and/or Excel files home to work on them.  I would like to move to Apple at home, and I understand Microsoft Office for Mac is available.  I haven’t been able to get a straight, thorough answer about whether files on Windows Office and Mac Office are directly compatible such that I can save a file at work and then open, edit and save the same file on an Apple.

Also, my boss said he heard that operating Office on the Mac opens you up to the Windows-related security issues that people use Macs to avoid.  If you could address that point as well, it would be great.

Answer:

First, I’ll address the issue of compatibility.  If you download Office on your Mac, you should be able to open documents from your work PC without any problems. This compatibility is verified on both Apple’s website and Microsoft’s.

Other Options:

• If you don’t want to spend the money on MS Office ($250), consider buying iWork ($80).  iWork is Apple’s own suite of productivity software, and it’s very similar to MS Office.  Keep in mind that all of the features you enjoy in Office might not be available in iWork.  Read a comparison of MS Office vs. iWork.   As with MS Office for Mac, you can save files in iWork that can be opened on a PC, and vice versa.
• If you don’t want to purchase any software at all, check out Google Docs.  Google Docs has most of the functionality of MS Office, but there are some disadvantages.  First of all, it’s not nearly as secure as MS Office or iWork.  Once you open, create or edit a file in Google Docs, it becomes the property of Google.  Also, you have to have an Internet connection to use Google Docs.  For most enterprise-level users, Google Docs is not a viable option for work-related use, whether you’re using it in the office or at home.

If your employer permits, use Dropbox to easily access your files from work and home.

As for the security concerns with MS Office on Mac, Jessica’s boss is probably talking about macro viruses.  A macro is a “series of commands and functions that are stored in a Microsoft Visual Basic module and can be run whenever you need to perform the task. For example, if you often enter long text strings in cells, you can create a macro to format those cells so that the text wraps.”You can tell if a file has macros by its extensions (for example, instead of a .docx file, it would be a .docm file).  Hackers use macros to write viruses that can attack your computer and erase all the files.  These viruses are embedded in an MS Office file and can be transferred when you open the file on your Mac.  If you never use files with macros, then seeing the .docm file extension is a red flag that the file could be infected—don’t open it on your Mac until you verify that the file is supposed to have macros.

A security lapse like this is unlikely, and virtually impossible if you’re just working with your own files from your work PC.  Also, Microsoft recently released a security update for MS Office for Mac to prevent security issues like this  from happening at all.  You would have to open an infected file on your Mac to be vulnerable at all, and as long as you have a good antivirus program in place on your work PC and Mac, files like this will be blocked completely.

Readers: do you have experience coordinating documents and spreadsheets on both PCs and Macs? If so, which programs do you use and how well do they work?  Let us know in the comments.  

Log Into Your PC or Mac from Your iPhone and iPad–Now Free!

Remote access tools allow you to connect to your PC or Mac from another computer or mobile device.  You can access all of your files, programs and see your desktop as it appears on your actual PC.

We’ve written about remote access tools like GoToMyPC and LogMeIn before, but none have been offered for free on iPad and iPhone until now. LogMeIn now offers its iOS app for free in the app store.  If you already have an account with LogMeIn, you can download the app here.

If you aren’t already using LogMeIn, you can get started in just a few short steps.  Setting up an account is free and easy.

1. Go to LogMeIn.com and register for a free account.
2. Follow the on-screen instructions to setup your computer for remote access.
3. Download the LogMeIn app on your iPhone or iPad. (There’s an Android version as well, but it costs $29.99)
4. Open the app, and login using your LogMeIn username and password.
5. Click on the mouse pointer icon next to your listed computer:

It’s (Almost) Perfect

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