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Who’s Got Smartphones and Apps? Gen Y

February 1st, 2013 ::

By Rieva Lesonsky
It may not be a surprise, but Gen Y is leading the way when it comes to adoption of smartphones and smartphone and tablet apps, eMarketer reports. A study by Forrester, cited in eMarketer, found that consumers aged 24 to 32 are the most likely to own smartphones. Ninety-seven percent of Gen Y consumers have a mobile phone, and 72 percent have smartphones, higher than any other age group.

Overall, 93 percent of Americans owned mobile phones; however, only 50% have smartphones. Gen Z (age 18-23) was the second most likely group to own a smartphone, at 64 percent, followed by Gen X at 61 percent. After that, smartphone use declines rather drastically, with just 39 percent of younger boomers (47-56) owning them, 28 percent of older boomers (57-67) owning them, and 16 percent of those over 68 owning them.

Gen Y consumers are also more likely than any other age group to use smartphone and tablet apps, a different study by Flurry found. (This study defined Gen Y as 25 to 34.) Of the Gen Y users surveyed, 33 percent used smartphone apps and 26 percent used tablet apps. The 35-to-54 age group was next most likely to use apps.

You might be surprised that Gen Y are bigger users of smartphones than the younger generations, but eMarketer notes this group is in the “sweet spot” in terms of being old enough that they can afford more expensive smartphones, but young enough to want them and know how to make the most of them. In fact, the biggest reason younger customers cited for not having a smartphone was that they couldn’t afford it, while the top reason cited by older consumers was that they didn’t think it was useful or necessary for their lives.

What do these stats mean to you?

  • If your target market falls in the younger end of the spectrum, you’ll want to make sure your business website is mobile-friendly.
  • You’ll also want to consider developing useful, relevant and/or fun apps for your business that encourage sharing with friends.
  • Keep in mind that Gen Y is most likely to own iPhones, while in other age groups and overall, Samsung phones dominate.
  • Finally, keep in mind that Gen Y’s smartphone-dependency isn’t going away. As these customers move into their prime buying years, they’ll rely on their devices even more—so be ready to grow with them.

Image by Flickr user milesopie (Creative Commons)

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Posted in Generational Marketing, Marketing, sales process, Small Business, small business, Technology, Web Design | No Comments »

Why Your Emails Must Be Mobile-Optimized

January 30th, 2013 ::

By RIeva Lesonsky

Are your email marketing messages optimized for mobile? They’d better be. According to the latest Return Path global bi-annual mobile email report, 37 percent of U.S. respondents surveyed now open their email on mobile devices, compared with the 30 percent opening them through webmail in a browser. The percentage of emails opened on mobile devices has increased 300 percent since 2010 and shows no sign of slowing down, says the report. Here’s some more of what you need to know:

 

Platform matters: While Android mobile phones still dominate in the U.S., Apple device users are more likely to open and read email on a mobile device than any other group. Although Windows Mobile saw an 85 percent increase in email opens since April 2012, it still accounts for just 0.3 percent of total email opens on smartphones.

Industry variation: Certain industries’ emails are more likely to get opened on a mobile device than others. The retail (40 percent), consumer product (40 percent) and real estate (38 percent) industries lead the way.

Is it safe? The information being sent via email is also a concern. For example, banking-related emails were less likely to be opened on mobile devices due to security worries.

Desktops aren’t obsolete…yet: Users check email more often on a desktop than on a mobile device during the day. I’d surmise that’s probably because they are sitting in front of their computers at work, but as more workplaces incorporate tablets into the work day, the desktop is likely to become less and less dominant.

Mobile sitting still: It’s a myth that mobile purchasing is taking place out of home. Just 22 percent of mobile purchases take place on the go; 18 percent occur at work and more than half (51 percent) take place at home. Your customers are more likely to be opening that email in bed or on the couch than in the car, so keep that in mind when designing your message.

If you doubt optimizing email for mobile matters, keep these facts in mind: Return Path found that email marketing messages drive twice as many conversions as social media or search. In addition, the average order value is higher on mobile devices, whether tablet or smartphone.  However, since even those who open their emails on mobile devices still make most of their purchases on the desktop, you need to make sure your emails are optimized for both platforms.

Image by Flickr user Brad Flickinger (Creative Commons)

 

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Posted in Email Marketing, Marketing, Small Business, small business, Technology, Web Design | No Comments »

Mobile Commerce, Mobile Payments: What’s the Future?

January 28th, 2013 ::

By Rieva Lesonsky

While mobile payments and m-commerce have generated a lot of buzz in the media recently, both have been slow to take off and still comprise a very small percentage of payments and sales in the U.S. However, that may soon change, as two separate studies by Forrester reported in MediaPost project that mobile payments and m-commerce will surge in the U.S. in the next few years.

Payment Predictions

The first study projects mobile payments will increase from $18.2 billion this year to $90 billion in 2017—growth of nearly 50 percent. The study looked at three kinds of mobile payments. Mobile proximity, or in-store, payments are expected to grow fastest, increasing 137% to $41 billion by 2017, and going from 6% of mobile payments to 45%.

Much of the proximity payment growth is predicted to come next year, when Forrester says “early adopters” will begin using mobile payment solutions. This will force retail businesses to play catch-up and offer more mobile payment alternatives, as well as to incorporate Near Field Communication (NFC) technology into their point-of-sale systems.

Mobile Matters

The second study predicts that m-commerce will rise from $12 billion in 2013 to $31 billion in 2017, but its growth rate of 31 percent will be low compared to that of mobile payments. What’s holding m-commerce back? Currently, Forrester says, consumers are worried about security issues related to mobile transactions; m-commerce still isn’t well integrated with other ways to shop; and the checkout process needs to be simplified. (Both reports focused solely on the use of smartphones for payments and m-commerce, not on tablets.)

Currently, just 3 percent of ecommerce sales occur on smartphones, compared to some 57 percent that take place on tablets. Because of this wide discrepancy, Forrester’s report suggests that instead of worrying about how to encourage shopping on smartphones, retailers might be wise to focus on creating a better tablet shopping experience. After all, as tablet prices drop and tablets become even more widely adopted, it’s likely consumers will gravitate to them over smartphones when they want to browse or buy.

Image by Flickr user loupiote (Creative Commons)

 

 

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Posted in Small Business, small business, Technology | 1 Comment »

2013 Hiring Forecast: A Good Employee Is Hard to Find

January 25th, 2013 ::

By Rieva Lesonsky

Will you be hiring employees for your small business this year? If so, you’re in good company–but you might face challenges as tough as looking for a needle in a haystack. More than one-fourth of hiring managers polled in the CareerBuilder Hiring Forecast for 2013 say their companies will be hiring full-time, permanent employees in 2013, up 3 percent compared to 2012. However, that doesn’t mean the hiring outlook is rosy.

Many businesses are still on the fence about hiring. Although more than 60 percent of employers in the survey say they are in a better financial position than last year, the slow pace of recovery is still affecting hiring plans, and the percentage of companies planning layoffs also increased, from 7 percent last year to 9 percent this year. Small businesses, in particular, show signs of indecision, with both the percentage planning to hire and the percentage planning to lay people off up 3 percent from last year.

If you are planning to hire, what markets will see the most competition? Sales (29 percent) and IT (27 percent) are the top areas where companies plan to hire. These are also the two areas that will see the biggest salary increases. Customer service, engineering and production are close behind sales and IT, with slightly over 20 percent of companies planning to hire for these roles.

While it may be hard to believe, in many industries and/or regions of the country, it’s hard to fill skilled positions, and employers are struggling to find workers. How are companies dealing with the shortage?

  • Temp time: More businesses are relying on temporary employees or using staffing services to fill in the gaps. Some 40 percent of companies surveyed report plans to hire temporary and/or contract workers in 2013, an increase from 36 percent last year.
  • Talent poaching: More employers are actively recruiting employees from other companies. Almost 20 percent of employees in the survey reported having been approached by a potential employer in 2012 even though they hadn’t applied for a job at that company.
  • Pay raises: Employers are concerned not only about finding skilled workers, but holding on to those they already have. No wonder many employers in the survey said they plan to increase compensation for both existing staff and prospective hires.
  • Do-it-yourself: Instead of searching for skilled employees, more companies are training their existing employees to move up to positions of greater responsibility or learn new skills that are needed within the business. Some 39 percent of employers said they will train current employees for new positions this year, up from 38 percent last year.

Image by Flickr user John Pavelka (Creative Commons)

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Posted in Recruiters, Small Business, small business, Workforce | No Comments »

Affluent Men Are From Mars, Affluent Women Are From Venus

January 23rd, 2013 ::

By Rieva Lesonsky

Both affluent men and affluent women have optimistic outlooks about their personal financial situations in 2013, a new report from Shullman Research found. However, there are significant differences in the optimism levels of men and women that could affect how you market to these wealthy consumers.

The Shullman Luxury and Affluence Monthly Pulse conducted in December found that 48 percent of U.S. adults with a household income of over $250,000 believe the U.S. economy is doing better today than it was a year ago. About one-third (34 percent) thought the economy was doing the same as 12 months ago.

However, when you dig down into the men’s vs. the women’s responses, some key differences emerge:

  • Some 45 percent of men are very optimistic or optimistic about the economy, compared to just 35 percent of women.
  • About 42 percent of female respondents say that the economy is essentially the same today as it was 12 months ago, compared to just 26 percent of male respondents.
  • While men and women generally felt positive about their current financial situations, with 78 percent of men and 73 percent of women describing themselves as financially stable, men were more positive about the future. Nearly three-fourths (74 percent) of men believe they will definitely or most likely be better off financially one year from now than they are today, compared to 64 percent of women.
  • Overall, 90 percent of those surveyed reporting that as long as the economy keeps improving, they will spend either more than they did in 2012, or the same amount. However, men were more likely to spend more; 43 percent of men said they will spend a lot more or slightly more than they did last year. Just 36 percent of women said the same.

Shullman Research Center founder Bob Shullman says women tend to take a more cautious approach to their finances than do men. What do these numbers mean to your business?

If you’re targeting upscale women, your marketing message will need to work harder to reach them and overcome that inclination to be conservative in their spending. Use marketing messaging that will calm their financial concerns, such as emphasizing the value of your product or service, how it will benefit them or their families, and how it’s a smart investment.

If you’re targeting upscale men, marketing messages that focus more on “fun” and rewarding oneself may be more effective. Affluent men are more willing to boost their spending and feeling more confident, so tap into their pent-up desires to spend a little more by playing up the desirable features of your product or service.

Image by Flickr user ToGa Wanderings (Creative Commons)

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Posted in Business Development, Marketing, Sales Process, sales process, Small Business, small business | No Comments »

Why Your Business Website Must Be Mobile-Friendly—and How to Do It

January 21st, 2013 ::

By Rieva Lesonsky

There’s no question that consumer and business use of tablet computers is growing by leaps and bounds. The recent holiday shopping season put millions more tablets into consumers’ hands. Meanwhile, a recent report by Gartner notes that businesses are buying fewer PCs and instead turning to tablet computers.

Given all this, it’s clear why your small business website needs to be mobile-friendly, if it isn’t already. What are some factors to consider when optimizing your website for mobile use?

Use images wisely. The ability to display high-resolution photographs is a key part of the appeal of tablet computers like the iPad, but you need to make sure photos load quickly on a tablet or smartphone. Widely cited stats from Google say 60 percent of users expect mobile sites to load in 3 seconds or less, so don’t let photos slow you down.

Consider responsive design. The new trend in Web design, responsive design means creating sites in such a way that they “adapt” to the device being used and display differently depending on screen orientation, screen size and other factors. This can be a simpler option than the older method of developing different websites for each type of device or browser.

Use consistent elements. Your site should have the same overall look and feel whether it is viewed on a smartphone, tablet or desktop/laptop. Sure, there will be fewer and simpler elements on the smaller displays, but your website’s logo, colors, fonts and other elements of your brand image should carry over from one device to the next so that your site is instantly recognizable.

Develop simple navigation. Navigation on a touchscreen of a tablet or smartphone is different than mouse or trackpad navigation on a laptop or desktop. Account for the “fat-finger” factor; make sure users can easily tap, touch or swipe the icons they need to without hitting the wrong command by mistake.

Consider the competition. Before revamping your website for mobile use, check out what your key competitors are doing. Pay attention to what you like and don’t like when you access their sites on mobile devices. What seems to be missing that you could add to your site? Or what’s unnecessary on their site that you can eliminate from yours?

Borrow from the pros. Are there websites you frequently access on mobile devices that have a fantastic user experience? Whether or not these companies are competitors or even in your industry, take note of what makes them so enjoyable, and copy some of the same design, navigation and usability features on your own mobile site.

Editor’s Note : Network Solutions offers an easy way to build a website for mobile devices in mere minutes goMobi™, powered by dotMobi

Image by Flickr user muir.ceardach (Creative Commons)

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9 Employment Trends You Need to Know About for 2013

January 18th, 2013 ::

By Rieva Lesonsky

What does 2013 hold in store for your employees and your business? According to the 2013 Workforce/Workplace Forecast from The Herman Group, 2013 will look much like 2012, with most employers adopting a “wait-and-see” approach to hiring and U.S. unemployment remaining above 7 percent for the year.

Here are 9 other trends you need to know about:

  1. Recruiting will intensify in many industries. Both big and small companies, especially in the IT sector, will feel pressure to hire due to burned-out, overworked staff. The bad news for small employers is that with big companies (with bigger benefits) hiring too, competition will be fierce.
  2. Trained, experienced workers will be in short supply in many fields. Consider promoting from within and providing your entry-level employees with the training they need to move into higher positions. Also develop relationships with local schools, colleges and universities to give you a pipeline to educated workers.
  3. Communities will become more aware of the lack of skilled employees, and smart local leadership will invest money and effort into developing the local workforce for the careers of tomorrow.
  4. Gamification will be used in training, performance evaluations and as a bonding tool to make work more fun and build relationships. It’s an especially important tool for companies seeking to engage their Millennial employees.
  5. Companies will use social networking to recruit new employees and to train and develop those they have. Don’t forget the internal social networks that even small companies have: If you’re looking to hire, try looking for referrals from your existing team.
  6. Companies will keep trying to do more with less—cutting staff and hiring independent contractors to squeeze still more productivity and profit out of their teams. There’s a right way and wrong way to re-engineer, Herman Group notes. Try to do it without cutting staff.
  7. “Job churn” will grow as too many employers continue to ignore what’s needed to create a happy, engaged work force. “There is a tremendous pent-up energy for job-hopping, which many employees have been putting off for years,” Herman Group warns. Ignore it at your peril.
  8. A second Obama Administration will likely mean greater regulation. You’d be smart to have access to an attorney with HR expertise, just in case. Herman Group believes that the Affordable Care Act may spur small and midsized employers to move from providing health insurance to taking part in “insurance exchanges” and funding their employees’ purchase of coverage there.
  9. Last, but not least, your small business might see more competition in 2013: Herman Group believes more unemployed people will take advantage of the growth in independent contracting by starting their own businesses (or at least becoming freelancers) to supply the services that businesses need.

Image by Flickr user brian Dhawkins (Creative Commons)

 

 

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100 Trends to Watch for 2013

January 17th, 2013 ::

By Karen Axelton

As you prepare your small business for greater success in the coming year, be sure to take a look through trendspotting company JWT’s list of 100 Things to Watch for 2013. While you’ll want to peruse the whole list at leisure, here are a few that stood out to us as of interest to business owners:

  1. Allergen-free foods: JWT cites a 2011 study showing that as many as 1 in 12 American children may have a food allergy. That’s twice as high as previously believed. In 2013, JWT predicts that “allergen-free” will become as ubiquitous as gluten-free, with more food manufacturers, restaurants and retailers devoting themselves to allergy-free meals and snacks.
  2. Ambushed by Amazon: Is Amazon today’s Wal-Mart or Barnes & Noble? Like those mass merchants before it, the ecommerce giant is threatening to run all types of independent retailers out of town. With same-day delivery currently being tested in some cities, its Amazon Flow app that shows shoppers in your store how much the same product costs on Amazon, and everything from luxury jewelry to food for sale, Amazon is a major “disruptor” that retailers and etailers will have to take into account. Latest news? It’s reportedly considering opening brick-and-mortar stores
  3. Appcessories: Accessories are taking on high-tech functionality, turning into “appcessories.” Whether it’s smart eyeglasses, wristwatches or wristbands that integrate with tech toys, or even gloves and socks with RFID tags or embedded microphones, companies are creating dozens of ways for consumers to integrate technology into their clothing and accessories.
  4. Coaching brands: Companies now have the ability to gather unheard-of reams of data about their customers. In 2013, they’ll increasingly use that data to “coach” their customers on how to do things better, provide personalized recommendations for products and services, and otherwise provide customized assistance to help clients improve their lives.
  5. Hyper-personalized customer service: In a closely related trend, businesses in some industries are using information about customers to provide extremely personalized service. For example, restaurants can log details about customer preferences and then provide “the usual” cocktail or a gluten-free menu without the person even having to ask. As technology enables bigger companies to provide the kind of personal touch that used to belong to small companies, your firm will have to find new ways to keep pace.
  6. Dads in the aisles: With women working outside the home and the number of stay-at-home dads multiplying, more marketers that used to focus
on moms will need to include dad as well. Whether you sell cleaning supplies, household products and décor, children’s clothing or food, you will need to market to men and take into account how they like to shop, buy and spend.

Read the full report for 94 more thought-provoking trends.

Image by Flickr user Steve Bowbrick (Creative Commons)

 

 

 

 

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Are You Leaving Money in Customers’ Online Shopping Carts?

January 16th, 2013 ::

By Rieva Lesonsky

The holiday shopping season resulted in as much as $43.4 billion in sales for online retailers. But a study performed by The Adcom Group for Virtual Hold Technology (VHT) suggests that number could have been much higher if consumers hadn’t struggled with a variety of obstacles to completing the online sale.

The study found that more than three-fourths of online shoppers ran into shopping roadblocks when they had a problem completing the purchase, but couldn’t find help online. A similar number reported that this frustration led them to give up entirely and abandon their online shopping cart.

What specific issues were causing problems?

  • Problems correctly reading and using the captcha – 80.3 percent
  • Trouble using promo codes, gift card redemption, or with other discount – 46 percent
  • Product was back-ordered – 32.5 percent
  • Had questions about product features and had difficulty finding answers  - 31 percent
  • The site timed out (or appeared to) – 30.5 percent
  • Had problems logging onto the site, setting up your account or remembering your password – 29.3 percent
  • Had questions about shipping and had difficulty finding answers – 24.7 percent
  • Had problems entering  credit card data or with credit card acceptance -22.6 percent
  • Had questions about product availability and had difficulty finding answers – 20.1 percent
  • Had problems re-setting your password – 18.9 percent
  • Had questions about the return policy and had difficulty finding answers – 15.9 percent

Here’s the really scary part: When faced with these problems, more than 37 percent of customers just give up, and 25.5 percent head to a competitor.

How could online retailers help combat the problem of abandoned shopping carts? Rapidly resolving the problems that get in the way of buying was the number-one answer. Customers overwhelmingly said they would buy more from a site that offered the ability to click or tap to get immediate customer service assistance. In fact, more than three-fourths said they would prefer a site that offered this convenience to a competing site that didn’t.

Providing better customer service would not only drive customers to complete purchases, but also inspire new business. Over half of survey respondents said they would become promoters of brands that offered the ability to click or tap for customer service, and that they would refer others to the brand, website or mobile app.

Of course, many of the issues mentioned above could be solved with a robust set of FAQs that’s easy to find on your site. Make sure FAQs about issues such as shipping, return policies and more are clearly visible on every page of your site navigation.

You can download the full results of the study at www.virtualhold.com/onlineshopping.

Image by Flickr user zion fiction (Creative Commons)

 

 

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6 Legal Tips to Start Your New Year Out Right

January 14th, 2013 ::

By Rieva Lesonsky

Want to make 2013 a year of unprecedented growth for your business? I asked the experts at online legal service RocketLawyer for their best tips.

1      Properly incorporate. The No. 1 legal mistake made by small businesses is the failure to incorporate. When you incorporate your business, you create a legal entity separate from yourself that conducts business, generates income, and assumes tax and legal liabilities. By creating a “corporate veil,” incorporation legally shields your personal assets in the event that your business faces a lawsuit. Online legal services offer free incorporations (you pay only the state fees!) and cost-effective monthly legal plans for small businesses. Plus, you can get legal advice from real attorneys and documents ranging from hiring agreements to contracts.

2      Start the New Year on the “write” foot. According to a recent Rocket Lawyer survey, one in four businesses have had trouble collecting payments from their customers; and of those businesses, 60 percent have written off bad debt. To ensure payment, always create a contract that clarifies what work will be done, for what pay, and the billing procedure before beginning the work. Creating a contract is essential to ensure on-time payment and puts you and your client on the same page.

3      Let it grow, let it grow, let it grow. Expand your presence online by monitoring information on business-focused websites such as Google +, Yelp and Manta.  If your online presence on such sites is not maintained internally, your company may be buzzing in places whether you’ve created a profile or not. Claim your company profile and help it attract more traffic by adding your logo, product and service offerings, social feeds and more.

4      Cultivate peace of mind.  Create a Buy-Sell Agreement, commonly referred to as a “Business Will.”  This document details what happens should one party leave the business, either through active means (alive) or circumstance (death).

5      Protect what’s earned and what’s given. Intellectual property is a legal fortress that protects your valuable assets and defends against your competitors.  Do yourself a favor and know the advantages of, and the differences between, trade secrets, trademarks, copyrights and patents.

  • Trade secrets are the most common form of intellectual property, offer a perpetual monopoly, will not expire like a patent and can be protected through simple non-compete and non-disclosure contracts with your employees.
  • Trademarks protect your logo, brand and business name from unfair use.
  • Copyrights protect other original content.
  • Patents, give you the rights to your invention: a useful and actual process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter.

Since you’ve already done all the hard work, make it count!

6       Always keep good counsel. Good legal advice is a competitive advantage and can be the difference between success and failure, so it’s really important to have an attorney to keep you on the right path. There are a lot of things you can do yourself, but an attorney can help you strategize, plan for growth and answer the questions you didn’t even know to ask. In the event of an unfortunate or unforeseen incident, your attorney will be there to help protect you and your business.  Remember, it’s better to pay a little up front than a lot down the road.

Image by Flickr user Steve Snodgrass (Creative Commons)

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