Productivity: Tools I Use

With all the mobile devices available today, seems like we all use at least 1 to connect to our businesses on a daily basis.

There are some apps and plugins that I've used to save time so I can work smarter and not harder. See if any of these can help you be more efficient.

WordPress  - if you have a site or blog built with WordPress you can set up a post-by-email feature so you can make updates on the fly. Find it under Settings/Writing/Post by Email.

Facebook app - get the Facebook app for iPhone, iPad or Android to access and update a mobile version of your Facebook or business page. The app also allows sharing of photos or videos. If you use text messaging, you can set up your account so that you can post updates from your smartphone via text message.

GMail - I like this web-based email service better than my old Outlook. It's easier to access no matter where I am. Get GMail using your Google account or sign up here.
Warning: I don't have this automatically sync to my device. I don't want to be that connected! But if I need to access email on-the-go, I have the option.

Evernote - I have this add-on to my Firefox browser as well as an app on my mobile devices. It allows me to save my notes, ideas or a web page. This free service is available for your computer and almost any phone or mobile device. Bonus = the things you save are searchable by keyword even if the text is within an image! Really handy way for me to keep notes since a large part of what I do for a living is consume, distill, write and share information.

LogMeIn - when I go to a meeting or travel, some times I need something from my computer at home. I use this free service to log into my computer and get what I need (your computer at home has to be on in order for you to use it remotely). If that's not practical, try DropBox. You can save any file using this free online file storage service and access it from anywhere.

Woobox - free Facebook app that allowed me to create a custom tab for one of my business pages on Facebook. Use it to personalize your Page with additional tabs. It can be hard to find within Facebook. Go to your business page, choose "edit page", then choose "Apps" from the left-hand menu. Use the search bar to find it. You'll have to walk through some permission steps to install it to your page.

What types of tools do you use to improve your business efficiency? Share them here!

Ciao for now, Paula

Are You Using Facebook Advertising?

If you are a web-only merchant or a brick and mortar store and have a Facebook business page, why not consider giving Facebook advertising a try.

Since Facebook knows a lot about its users from data shared on profiles and pages, you have a great opportunity to target only those that might have a specific interest in what you sell. Now where else are you going to get advertising that focused? You can set your budget and choose very specific demographics so you can get the most for your dollars.

Consider these facts about Facebook:

• People are hanging out and spending an inordinate amount of time on the social network; users spend on average more than 6 hours on the social network, nearly 5 times the amount spent on Google.
• Users share information about themselves, share photos, comment on posts, make updates, and like products/posts.
• Users aren't looking for anything specific, you have the ability to to spark their interest in something they didn't know they wanted.
• Advertisers have the opportunity to invite customers to a private Facebook-only sale or promotion - there's no better way to track your advertising ROI.
• Facebook is also a way to grow your network for hiring, networking, etc. by using the app BranchOut

These facts make it a must for any retailer's marketing strategy making the social Web a crucial part of e-commerce.

Don't want to advertise? There are other Facebook marketing tools you might consider to engage friends and Web visitors.

Like Button
By now you've probably seen what many Web sites are using to get visitors to interact. They've implemented a Facebook plugin that allows your Web site visitors to click a "Like" button and spread the word to their friends right from your site. Put it anywhere on your site. In less than 1 year, 2.5 million Web sites have integrated a Facebook Like plug-in.

Comments Box
If you have products, put a Like button or Comments Box on each product page so users can quickly provide reviews and endorse the product. Clicks and Comments are broadcast to the clicker's Facebook friends.

Places
Another Facebook marketing tool is Places. A mobile user can broadcast their location by "checking in" to your place of business, thereby letting their friends know their location, similar to FourSquare.

Dig into Facebook today and see how it can help your business grow!
Ciao for now, Paula

Facebook fact source: Nielsen, May issue of Internet Retailer Magazine