Archive for the ‘Business’ Category
Small Business Marketing Ideas - Part 1 of 6
Here’s a series of small business marketing ideas I created a little while ago.
Interesting story behind this.
I was *suppose* to put these audios/videos on my Web site as a lead in to an information marketing product, but, quite honestly, I was side-tracked by some other small business marketing idea and got distracted off to the next thing.
Well, the other day I found this series on an old hard drive and figured, “Hey — what the hell? Why not just give them away to my subscribers as a gift just to be cool?”.
(I actually found some other cool stuff too that I’ll post up here on my blog over the next few weeks and months, but I’ll tell you about that later.)
Anyway — when I found this series on an old hard drive the other day, I was stoked to share them with you.
Just press play here to listen to Small Business Marketing Ideas - Part 1 of 6
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- Ron Reed
Oh — do me a favor and send your friends to this post.
Tell ‘em I’m super swell and and they can find cool stuff here on my blog. 
.
Future Trends in Technology for 2010
As we roll into a New Year (and New Decade) I find it relevant to discuss the Future Trends in Technology for 2010.
Last year I wrote an article titled “Top 20 Social Media Sites of 2008… Where Do You Rank??” where I spouted a prediction for 2009…
… the prediction was this: Twitter.com would have a percentage increase and user base similar to Facebook.com by the end of 2009. As it turns out, my prediction was correct. So, my first blog post of the year will be solely based on predictions for 2010 related to technology.
Let’s begin:
#1 – Real-time vs. Batch
In years past it was effective and efficient to run data through batch processing because the information wasn’t needed immediately. However, in today’s fast paced world we are rapidly moving towards the need for real-time information. For example, Twitter. I’ve found that I can get real-time news from Twitter faster than I can get it from other sources like newspapers, articles and even online media like CNN.com. In fact, lately I’ve been using Twitter and Facebook for the sole purpose of getting real-time feedback and news updates.
Batch is the process of a business waiting until the end of the week (or month) to collect data from customer reports, billing, etc. This is “batch processing”. There is an obvious gap between when the information is generated and when the information is understood. In traditional business, batch processing is commonly used.
To make this clear I’ll give you an example: In the music recording industry, artists will write, play and record music, produce it into format, design album artwork, prepare a marketing campaign and schedule a tour of concerts to promote the new album. All of this is generally done BEFORE the customer hears a single song. That is batch processing.
On the other hand, you have real-time processing. An example would be an artist writing and recording a song, putting it on their blog (and Twitter, Facebook, etc.) for the customer to listen to. At that time, the artist can then interact in real-time and get instant feedback from the listener as to weather the music is what they’re interested in or not. The artist can then structure the rest of the album around what the customers wants to hear and would be interested in purchasing. That is real-time processing. Another example would be the American Idol process of finding stars that people are interested in. The whole framework is based on real-time processing.
This example is a basic one, but I’m sure you get the idea. Real-time processing is the wave of the future for technology. If you can process information in real-time instead of waiting for a certain amount of data you will be leaps and bounds ahead of your competition.
#2 – Augmented Reality
This concept was found in 2009, but not widely used. However, I believe we will see more and more companies use augmented reality to attract customers in 2010.
Augmented reality(AR) is fueled by GPS, mapping data from sites like Google and MapQuest along with the speedy technology from today’s smartphones. AR is basically the overlaying of data on top of your current environment. In other words, imagine walking down the street looking for a place to eat. As you walk you notice a slew of restaurants ahead, so you pull out your smartphone and point it in the direction of the restaurants. At an instant you’re connected to customer reviews of the restaurants and what you can expect on their menu if you venture inside.
When using Layar, for instance, a picture from your smartphone’s video camera is overlaid with bubbles of information from Wikipedia, Yelp, Google Search and Twitter. This will empower customer’s and individuals to collect data in real-time about what interests them while they’re on the move. As cool as this is… I’m still a little leary to how it will become useful in years to come, but in 2010 I believe this will become mainstream.
#3 – Mobile Marketing
This is something I’ve been touting for the past year. With the recent debacle of Google purchasing AdMob, one of the world’s largest mobile advertising networks, I believe 2010 will be the breakthrough year for mobile marketing. With Apple’s iPhone gaining more and more ground in the mobile market and Google stepping up with their Android Operating System(OS) it will only be a matter of time (months) before mobile marketing is mainstream for big businesses. Along with that will come mobile payment processing.
Imagine you’re at the store about to purchase some items at the checkout. Instead of swiping your credit card to purchase the items you scan your smartphone and put it on your phone bill.
Sounds weird to us here in the U.S., but much of Asia has already embraced this technology. Businesses like PayPalX and Amazon are developing platforms to make this a reality. I can certainly understand the optimism and hesitation, but let’s take a look at the recent credit crunch and market meltdowns. Credit card companies and banks are getting beat up with the slow economy. Will it only be a matter of time before they start to look at alternatives to getting customer’s business? Will they look to merge with service providers to enhance their foothold in the mobile market? Only time will tell, but it is evident that this technology will become available in 2010 and beyond.
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Realistically, I could go on forever about my predictions for 2010 and the coming Decade, but I’ll leave it at this for now. As we come out of the Information Age and venture into the Attention Age it will be interesting to see how the market reacts to the ever increasing technology trends.
Ron Reed
P.S. – Leave a comment and let me know what you think 2010 will bring in relation to future trends in technology.
Speed of Implementation
Ever heard the phrase: “Knowledge is power”?
Of course… it’s been around since Gandhi, right?
However, do you believe in it? Do you believe that knowledge is power?
Recently, I had a passionate debate with an individual over this phrase. We wrestled back and forth over the validity of the concept.
You see, for him, he went to college for 8 years, racked up $100,000 in student loans, lives in his parent’s basement to pay down the massive debt, and is still looking for the girl of his dreams at 30 years old…
… oh, and I almost forgot… he also firmly believes in the concept of “knowledge is power“.
He went to school for 8 years to load his brain full of knowledge only before taking another year to finally land a job in his desired field. And more power to him…
… however, is this really what the ultra-successful do to obtain that title?
Personally, I think NO!
Who ever sold us on that plan is smoking some funky stuff! Seriously.
Don’t get me wrong… I’m all for getting an education and applying yourself in the real world, but some of the ways our education system is set-up is ludacris.
Instead of knowledge equaling power…
.. the USE of knowledge is power.
To me, knowledge is worthless unless it’s put to use.
Unless you actually use the knowledge you’ve obtained it remains useless.
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So, I come to you today on a simliar line of thought with Speed of Implementation.
I learned of this concept from my mentor, Eben Pagan, during his top-gun entrepreneurial training program titled Altitude. In the program he talks about the concept of Speed of Implementation, and pondered the idea that it’s the most distinct trait which separates the ultra-successful from their counterparts.
Speed of Implementation: the difference between the time you hear something and the time you put it into action.
Many people (98% of modern society) make the mistake of assuming that if you load your head with an abundance of knowledge you will automatically become successful.
Nothing could be further from the truth!
Instead, the ultra-successful are usually the first to TAKE ACTION.
They don’t necessarily have all the knowledge which allows one to advance to the next level. Instead, they possess the unique trait of knowing that if they take action today they’ll be further ahead tomorrow than those who lack action.
In other words, failures do not achieve the level of success they desire because they fail to take the appropriate actions needed to advance to higher levels.
You name it… procrastination, perfectionism, lack of confidence, low self-esteem, fear, etc. They all amount to a deficiency in the “take action 101″ department.
However, the ultra-successful individuals hear a new concept or a new idea and…
… BAM!! …
… they put it into action IMMEDIATELY!
They don’t sit around thinking about it, or say to themselves, “oh, I dunno… maybe we should think about this first, or run it by 32 of our friends who aren’t that successful to see what they think of it.”
No, they put it into action RIGHT NOW!!
Granted, I know I’m being a little over-the-top here, and fully realize there is a point where you need to plan your course of action before diving in head-first…
… but I’m sure you can clearly see the point I’m trying to make.
I think if you look around to the successful people in your life or the successful people you’ve seen in other areas of your life you’ll find they have this trait in common.
Now, I know I’m going to hear some people say that knowledge is very important. And indeed it is! By no means do I want to come across as an ignorant man by discrediting the importance of proper education and specialized knowledge. That’s not the purpose here.
In the end, what I’m trying to say is, do you really need to have all the knowledge in your own brain?
Do we need to know everything? Do we need to know every minute detail? Every single idea? Every inkling known to man? Of course not…
… but, we need to know as much as possible about our given career, right??
Wrong!
To illustrate my point… below you’ll find a story about the Great Henry Ford from one of my favorite books “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill.
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The “Ignorant” Man Who Made a Fortune
During the First World War, a Chicago newspaper published certain editorials in which, among other statements, Henry Ford was called “an ignorant pacifist”. Mr. Ford objected to the statement, and brought suit against the paper for libeling him. When the suit was tried in the courts, the attorneys for the paper pleaded justification, and place Mr. Ford, himself, on the witness stand, for the purpose of proving to the jury that he was ignorant. The attorneys asked Mr. Ford a great variety of questions, all of them intended to prove, by his own evidence that, while he might possess considerable specialized knowledge pertaining to the manufacture of automobiles, he was, in the main, ignorant.
Mr. Ford was plied with such questions as the following:
“Who was Benedict Arnold?” and “How many soldiers did the British send over to America to put down the Rebellion of 1776?” In answer to the last question, Mr. Ford replied, “I do not know the exact number of soldiers the British sent over, but I have heard that it was a considerably larger number than ever went back.”
Finally, Mr. Ford became tired of this line of questioning, and in reply to a particularly offensive question, he leaned over, pointed his finger at the lawyer who had asked the question and said, “If I should really want to answer the foolish question you have just asked, or any of the other questions you have been asking me, let me remind you that I have a row of electric push-buttons on my desk, and by pushing the right button, I can summon to my aid men who can answer any question I desire to ask concerning the business in which I am devoting most of my efforts. Now, you will kindly tell me, why should I clutter up my mind with general knowledge, for the purpose of being able to answer questions, when I have men around me who can supply any knowledge I require?”
There certainly was good logic to that reply.
The answer floored the lawyer. Every person in the courtroom realized it was the answer, not of an ignorant man, but of a man of education. Any person is educated who knows where to get knowledge when they need it, and how to organize that knowledge into definite plans of action. Through the assistance of his “Master Mind” group Henry Ford had at his command all the specialized knowledge he need to enable him to become one of the wealthiest men in America. It was not essential that he have this knowledge in his own mind.
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In my next blog, we’ll uncover and discuss the concept of the “Master Mind“.
-Ron Reed