If you're starting your own business or currently work for a start-up, you wear a lot of hats. Any disruption in your business can eat up hours of your time and kill your productivity. Many start-ups are so focused on getting their business off the ground, that they overlook technology considerations that can help increase their productivity and enhance their efficiency. Unlike mid to large corporations that have dedicated IT personnel, start-ups typically do not have in-house IT resources to evaluate and deploy new technologies to pre-empt unforeseen issues, such as virus attacks, and streamline processes to increase efficiency gains. This is due partly to time and partly due to budgetary constraints. Small businesses want to focus on the next sale, not the next purchase. Largely for this reason, many small to medium businesses (SMBs) are categorized as laggers on the technology spectrum -- classified as conservative IT buyers and slow adopters of new technologies. This profile make it seems as if SMBs are risk adverse, when in actuality, SMBs are more risk takers than corporate employees ? after all, they've started their own business or are part of a start-up where the P&L is felt throughout the company.
So why are so many SMBs behind on the technology spectrum? As mentioned, without dedicated IT personnel making system recommendations, SMBs are on their own in terms of finding out the latest and greatest products. They need small business solutions that are affordable and scalable, and most importantly, do not disrupt business operations. Without the luxury of having dedicated IT resources, SMBs do not have time or the desire to seek out the latest gadgets or attend tradeshows featuring next-gen products.
This begs the question: how do SMBs stay on top of new technologies that can help them run their business more effectively? The technologies have to come to them: bring the new products to the SMB community.
The big trend with major hi-tech vendors in the past 2-3 years has been building marketing initiatives to tap into the SMB market. To many companies, the SMB space is still a gray cloud: how do SMBs behave and what are their demographics? Each company has its own definition of an SMB: ranging from less than 100 employees to less than 1000 employees. Many hi-tech manufacturers have beta programs, usability tests and focus groups to collect feedback on how SMBs react and behave. Many of these programs offer very attractive incentives such as free product, cash, corporate branded giveaways "tchotchkes" in exchange for some form of market validation: user feedback, quotes for a press release, or customer references to serve as real world proof points. These exchange opportunities are always available ? one just has to know where to look.
Here's a testament to the kind of exchange opportunities that are available all around us: in the July 2005 edition of Runner's World, there is an ad from Factory Outlets (http://www.factoryoutlets.com/) promoting its pre-launch site. Factory Outlets needs traffic to test its ordering, fulfillment and customer service systems and is giving away $350 worth of free merchandise in exchange for time. If you don't believe it, pick up a copy of Runner's World to get an authorization code into the site ? and shop your heart out (the merchandise is limited, but it's free).
Manufacturers invest millions of dollars into marketing to the SMBs and yet there has not been a centralized place where SMBs can get an aggregated listing of exchange opportunities offered by manufacturers. Until now.
SMBxchange, Inc. is a new technology community geared to providing exchange opportunities to SMBs, including useful tools and resources to help them run their business. By this, we don't mean resources on how to get a loan, where to get legal advice, etc. There are plenty of small business portals that do the job. The tools, resources and exchange opportunities featured on www.smbxchange.com are around useful technologies that can improve the way SMBs work -- perhaps even introduce products that people never knew existed. SMBxchange is a relatively new community and exchange opportunities are in the near horizon. Types of "exchange opportunities" will include: focus groups, beta programs, whitepaper campaigns ? where there would be some type of incentive (free product, cash, etc.) in exchange for user feedback.
Membership into SMBxchange is free and there is no obligation or commitment. By joining, members get access to SMBxchange newsletters and a secure members-only site where there will be a listing of opportunities that match the member's product interests. Members only participate in programs for products they're interested in. SMBxchange is the first community that bridges these two audiences (SMB and manufacturer) into a symbiotic environment. This is a community that brings the technology to the SMB, and aggregates opportunities and offers tailored to the SMB's product interests.
To join SMBxchange, complete the online form at www.smbxchange.com
Betty Liang, spent most of her professional career in various marketing management positions with companies such as Ricoh, Cisco, and Oracle. She is now focused on her own small business helping other small and medium businesses advance their technology capabilities through exchange opportunities.
recurring cleaning service Wilmette ..Here are some sound debt collection techniques that can be... Read More
Expanding your business requires you to take a good hard... Read More
Have you ever wondered what the difference is between a... Read More
First, we need to define the different kinds of skip... Read More
Many smaller businesses choose niche markets for various reasons and... Read More
Many of us have noticed how some nearby communities seem... Read More
1. Everyone Makes A Difference ? Despite not letting him... Read More
Send handwritten notes. That applies whether you're a guy or... Read More
What is the satisfaction & expectation review of the business... Read More
Have you been searching for the perfect home-based business? I... Read More
Boston itself covers 50 square miles of concrete and traffic,... Read More
If you ask most small business owners what priority CRM... Read More
Anyone who is serious about washing aircraft as a full... Read More
When a person knows and knows not that he knows.... Read More
SBIR vs. STTR: If you are participating in the SBIR... Read More
It's a strange anomaly.Most people who set out to start... Read More
At first blush this idea might be difficult to wrap... Read More
One of the biggest excuses franchisees of home based and... Read More
How a donation is different from a sponsorship and what... Read More
If you're serious about wanting to start a business, the... Read More
How often have you thumbed through a business opportunity magazine,... Read More
Ok, you have successfully accomplished your dream of being the... Read More
Writing a business plan for your Solo Entrepreneur business doesn't... Read More
If you own a Pressure Washing Company and wish to... Read More
We visited Lexus USA, home of the Lexus North America... Read More
reliable maid service Morton Grove ..What was your aim when you went into business for... Read More
Cash flow. To stay in business, you've got to keep... Read More
When it comes to cost, how much can you afford... Read More
I recently met with a very successful magazine publisher who... Read More
Yes, that IS security when nobody can downsize you because... Read More
You've heard it before; we're living in an information age.... Read More
The following tips have come from a wide variety of... Read More
Do you own a franchised business? Over 400,000 franchised businesses... Read More
One of the most common issues that comes up for... Read More
We are noticing an increase in the length of time... Read More
Hogwash!That's what I say to people who tell me that... Read More
Continuing from the second article:6. About the aground mathematical model,... Read More
Writing a business plan is a fundamental step to ensuring... Read More
Sometimes the simple businesses are the ones, which make good... Read More
If you are a motorcycle detailer and need to expand... Read More
A lot of business owners I've spoken with lately have... Read More
You want to know more about making money with your... Read More
If you are just starting your business, or if you... Read More
Many people ask how many graphs or charts they should... Read More
Having a successful business means also having a good working... Read More
The way you manage your money is one of the... Read More
1. Know Where You're Going ? Coach Herb Brooks had... Read More
One of the critical success factors for service-related businesses is... Read More
Anyone in business today realizes both the natural dependency on... Read More
Are you thinking of starting a small pressure washer business... Read More
Small Business |