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HP Stitches Together a New Era of Fabric Printing

Posted: 22 Apr 2019 10:01 PM PDT

Printing items, such as clothes, wallpapers, drapes, architectural drawings, or advertising banners, is a slow, labor-intensive process that can require lead times of up to three months to do it right. It also requires a wide-format printer that specializes in printing on specific materials, such as fabrics. HP and its new line of Stitch large-format printers are attempting to reduce that lead time to just two days while injecting a healthy dose of design and production flexibility into this market. 

Wide format printers, or large format printers, are computer-controlled machines that support bigger print rolls than your average 8.5 x 11-inch paper. Generally, the print sizes vary between 18 and 100 inches. 

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Based on HP's dye sublimation printing technology, the Stitch family could nudge the $300-billion printed textile industry away from traditional block, screen or roller printing to a new world of rapidly designed and created custom fabrics made by dye sublimation printing. 

Waste busters

HP Stitch printers place an emphasis on reducing waste, boosting efficiency and offer automatic controls for unattended operations. As the printer's built-in spectrophotometer monitors the printing process, the HP Smart Nozzle Compensation system makes color and ink density adjustments on the fly for fewer misprints. The four-color printers bring together enhanced color consistency with user-replaceable printheads and HP SmartColor Tools software. 

Look for two 64-inch Stitch models in the coming months that are aimed at speed and efficiency. A third member is coming later this year that can print on media more than 10 feet wide. 

To start, the Stich S300 is aimed at ease of use and simplicity, yet can handle delicate interior decor textiles, fashion fabrics and custom sports uniforms. Its 64-inch carriage and 1,200 dot-per-inch resolution combine for sharp imaging, gentle gradients and repeatable patterns. The S300's two-pass speed is 665 square feet per hour. 

While the Stitch S500 starts with the same chassis and basic design, it is a speedster with a double printhead design that's capable of 1,185 square feet per hour of single-pass printing. Once printed, HP's Drop & Dry ink dryer fuses the ink to the media. Unlike some piezoelectric printheads that can clog under intense heat, HPs thermal printheads work well with the dryer. The Stitch S500 adds a tension sensing winder that continually monitors the media's feeding and adjusts its movement to prevent skewing, wrinkling and cockling that can ruin a long print run. [Interested in large-format printers? Check out our reviews and best picks on our sister site Business.com.] 

Touch control

Controlled by an 8-inch touchscreen, both Stich printers can work with media between 23 and 64 inches wide. Media is loaded from the front, making for quick roll changes on the S300 and S500. Further, because media is loaded from the front, the printers have a slimmer design that, at 4.5 x 8.4 x 2.3 feet (H x W x D), take up one-third less floor space than the $26,000 rear-loading Mutoh ValueJet 1638WX. 

Both the S300 and S500 work with a variety of Stitch S media, and HP will start certifying papers and fabrics made by others. They can print on heat-activated paper transfers as well as directly onto an assortment of fabrics. While the S300 uses small 775ml ink cartridges, the S500 has been designed around larger 3-liter tanks for lower printing costs. 

The best is yet to come with the Stitch S1000 model on the way. Set to be formally announced in mid-May, its details are few and far between. A sneak peek shows it to be a monster of an industrial printer with 10-liter ink reservoirs and a 126-inch wide carriage. In other words, it will be able to economically print fabrics that are more than 10 feet wide, perfect for making ultra-size banners and bolts of material. 

This puts the Stitch S1000 in the same class as Mimaki's TS500P-3200 model, a dye sublimation printer that has a slightly wider 129.9-inch carriage. The TS500P-3200's dozen printheads translate into high-speed operations, but it uses much smaller 3-liter ink tanks. 

Pricing

Look for the Stitch S300 and S500 to be available this June, although there's no word yet on pricing. For the Stitch S1000, buyers will have to wait until later in the summer, but for those who need to supersize their printing, it should be worth the wait. 

Generally speaking, the price range for a wide-format printer ranges from $2,000 to $100,000 for a top-of-the-line machine with tons of extra features. You can often lease or rent a wide-format printer from a variety of brokers or third-parties. 

There are two types of lease agreements. The buck-out lease sets a time frame (generally 36 months) when you pay a monthly fee and after which time you agree to buy the machine for $1. In a fair-market value lease, you pay a monthly fee for a set amount of time, and, afterward, you can purchase the equipment for the remainder of what the machine is worth, or you can upgrade with a new lease. 

Other models

HP is already established in the large-format printing market. In addition to the new Stitch line, the company offers HP Latex printers for banners, canvas and wallpaper. The HP DesignJet line is designed for maps, technical drawings and high-resolution graphics. HP PageWide printers are for enterprise-level printing of technical documents. And HP Indigo digital presses use offset- and gravure-matching print quality for label printing.

How to Leverage Social Good for Effective PR

Posted: 22 Apr 2019 01:00 PM PDT

It's no surprise that in the last few years businesses have begun incorporating social responsibility into their marketing and public relations strategies. Sometimes these efforts work very well (think Colin Kapernick for Nike), and sometimes they fall flat (think Bell Let's Talk's lack of authenticity). So how do you create a strategy that will both bolster your business and contribute to the greater good?

Consumers are looking to their brands more than ever to have personalities, and are willing to pay a premium to align themselves with a brand that shares their values. This differs greatly from brands of the 50s and 60s, which were seen as stoic, unrelatable entities. You're not going to impress everybody with your social strategy. However, if you can figure out who your target audience is, it's wise to ensure that your mutual social values are reflected in every aspect of your marketing and PR strategies. Check out my top five tips on how to leverage social good for effective PR.

1. Know your values

Businesses are more value-driven than they've ever been. While this may sound counter-intuitive to some, it often results in higher profit margins. This is thanks to the value-driven mindset of the millennial generation, made up of individuals that watched their parents struggle through the recession and are just beginning to have more disposable with which income to play. As a brand and as a business leader, it's important for you to reflect on what your values are. Whether it's women's rights or issues of racial inequality, take some time to figure out what is important to you. No matter what it is – even if it seems like it doesn't directly relate to your business, these values will become a core component of your strategy.

2. Use social to your advantage

Your brand's voice is most easily recognized through your social channels, so the best way to establish your values to reflect them in your posts. When posting about social justice, your brand's voice should be used to amplify, rather than overpower the individuals at the forefront of the movements. Instead of simply slapping a hashtag with your brand's name on it, try interacting with your followers who are driving social change by reposting, responding and including them in your posts. Not only will this build a community around your shared values, but it will also give your brand a more authentic voice among the clutter of social media pandering.

3. Partner with other brands

We've seen time and time again that collaboration is more valuable than the competition. Chances are, other brands share your values, and are equally committed to supporting your cause. Joining forces with like-minded brands will connect you to a larger audience of individuals with your values, resulting in a larger impact. A successful partnership will consist of each brand contributing equally, and engaging with their shared audience. Before partnering with a brand, be mindful of their previous social engagement. If the brand's activity can be interpreted as problematic or missing the mark, it's best to steer clear of them.

4. Practice what you preach

If you're just talking about these values and not doing anything, consumers will question what your true motives are. For example, numerous brands during Pride month will cover their products with rainbow flags and tweet their support for the LGBTQ community (also known as rainbow washing), and will be exposed shortly after for their mistreatment of LGBTQ employees. We saw this happen in 2014 with Burger King when they released their "Proud Whopper" in support of the pride parade in San Francisco, but scored only 55 out of 100 on the HRC Corporate Equity Index. Before boasting about your brand's social values, look inward at your own practices, and make a concrete effort to reflect these values in everything that your company does.

5. Be authentic

Most importantly, your brand's commitment to social good must come from a place of authenticity. If you don't have the greater social good at heart, don't bother jumping on the social justice bandwagon. Being authentic means maintaining an unwavering devotion to your cause. It means avoiding profiting at the expense of your cause. It means showing that you genuinely care about your cause. Ask yourself if you can genuinely commit to these principles – and if the answer is yes, you're well on your way to doing some good for the world.

 

Rethinking Traditional Approaches to Mergers and Acquisitions

Posted: 22 Apr 2019 11:00 AM PDT

Merger and acquisition markets are thriving. According to the Institute of Mergers, Acquisitions and Alliances, capital markets are seeing the highest levels of M&A activity ever, and in 2017 hit more than $2.9 trillion for the fourth year in a row.

This continued and steady growth casts mergers and acquisitions (M&A) on a modern trajectory. However, will an industry, often resolute in tradition and antiquated convention, be ready?

Advanced organizations, predominantly in the technology and software sphere, have begun implementing new M&A and corporate development techniques to meet this increasing demand and promote successful, efficient outcomes.

Christina Amiry, head of M&A strategic operations at Atlassian, an enterprise software company, says that the organization is moving away from traditional M&A approaches and embracing what she calls "Agile" methodologies. Amiry explains that this modernized approach creates a more collaborative, people-driven and efficient M&A process.

In a traditional M&A strategy, the deal's end-state is predefined while the requirements and practices are flushed out to a microscopic level of detail. However, the nature of M&A is unpredictable and dynamic. The deal's end state evolves as diligence uncovers new information, as finances fluctuate and as integration begins aligning diverse, unique cultures. A product of this traditional approach is the M&A playbook.

The heavily relied upon playbook offers a structured set of practices and procedures to aid in solving the labyrinth that is diligence and integration. More often than not, this methodology and these playbooks are seen as the secret to harmonious M&A.

However, a KPMG study recently indicated that 83% of deals do not boost shareholder returns. To create more successful, modern and efficient deals, there must be a better approach. Amiry explains that Atlassian no longer uses traditional M&A playbooks, rather they use what is called a "game plan" approach.

Game plan approach

This new approach is comprised of an iterative technique called "plays." Instead of trying to squeeze all complexities into predefined templates, "plays" are administered and tailored to complete goals that arise during a deal's lifecycle.

This approach applies a more flexible, malleable operating model. Rather than setting and following a predefined end goal, plans are iterated on during the process, allowing for a more malleable target. As new information is uncovered and integration begins, deal teams are able to collaborate and align themselves with the deal's ever-changing ecosystem.

This approach is one way in which Atlassian is embracing Agile methodology.

Agile, originally developed by software developers in the early 2000s to eliminate duplicate work, streamline production and mirror customer needs, is now being used by numerous industries to modernize project management. At its core, Agile is a problem-solving mindset and a way of conceptualizing and responding to constantly-changing environments.

Amiry shed light on two main areas within M&A that Agile improves:

  • How teams work with each other

  • How the organization works with acquired companies

How teams work with each other

While employing traditional methodologies, Amiry expressed that teams tend to be more siloed. One team defines needs, and then hands them off to the team downstream that consumes analysis or requirements, then gives it to another team to execute.

Information is often housed and shared in static Excel spreadsheets rather than more robust and reactive collaboration software. Teams meet frequently in structured meetings for status updates with a majority of the individuals focusing on what they are going to say next rather than actively listening.

Teams often wait for the end of the quarter or next cycle to review inefficiencies and problems, hindering the potential to readjust for a more successful deal.

On the other hand, Amiry emphasizes how Agile fosters cross-functional teams within Atlassian to unite and construct a holistic solution. Defined, self-governed teams are able to organize themselves, communicate and share dependencies. Teams embody dynamism, integrating effective communication and relationship building within all of the parties involved.

Live communication tools are the essence of being Agile. These collaboration mechanisms allow for teams to notify each other on changes and updates instantaneously, rather than waiting for the next meeting to be scheduled or the next spreadsheet to be emailed, with hopes that the information is current.

How the company works with the acquired company

The efficiencies bolstered by Agile teams are similarly depicted in how the company works with the acquired company. When using Agile, the acquired company is continually involved, from project management tools to stand-ups, to workshops and design. These once two separate entities join together more successfully and efficiently due to increased contact. This greatly improves change management, employee morale and value creation.

Overall, Amiry expressed that the traditional method leaves little flexibility and tolerance for risk and ambiguity. Flushing out extensive levels of detail could easily leave teams unable to successfully process unpredictable events or information. As no two deals are the same, the rigid nature of approaches such as playbooks may mislead teams on direction and implementation, leaving little wiggle room for change.

Meanwhile, Agile rewards iterations and permits teams to hone in on the right goals quicker rather than trapping them within predefined goals. Rather than being captured in the details and trying to delineate every move from your M&A playbook, utilizing tactical "plays" in an adaptive game plan that companies such as Atlassian employ, could bolster communication, learning, and operational efficiency during your next integration.

How Artificial Intelligence Will Transform Business

Posted: 22 Apr 2019 09:33 AM PDT

Many people still associate artificial intelligence with science fiction dystopias, but that characterization is waning as artificial intelligence develops and becomes more commonplace in our daily lives. Today, artificial intelligence is a household name (and sometimes even a household presence – hi, Alexa!).

While artificial intelligence's acceptance in mainstream society is a new phenomenon, it is not a new concept. The modern field of artificial intelligence came into existence in 1956, but it took decades of work to make significant progress toward developing an artificial intelligence system and making it a technological reality.

In business, artificial intelligence has a wide range of uses. In fact, most of us interact with artificial intelligence in some form or another on a daily basis. From the mundane to the breathtaking, artificial intelligence is already disrupting virtually every business process in every industry. As artificial intelligence technologies proliferate, they are becoming an imperative for businesses that want to maintain a competitive edge.

What is artificial intelligence?

Before examining how artificial intelligence technologies are impacting the business world, it's important to define the term. "Artificial intelligence" is a broad and general term that refers to any type of computer software that engages in humanlike activities, including learning, planning and problem-solving. Calling specific applications "artificial intelligence" is like calling a 2013 Honda Accord a "vehicle" – it's technically correct, but it doesn't cover any of the specifics. To understand what type of artificial intelligence is predominant in business, we have to dig deeper.

Machine learning

Machine learning is one of the most common types of artificial intelligence in development for business purposes today. Machine learning is primarily used to process large amounts of data quickly. These types of artificial intelligence are algorithms that appear to "learn" over time, getting better at what they do the more often they do it. Feed a machine learning algorithm more data and its modeling should improve. Machine learning is useful for putting vast troves of data – increasingly captured by connected devices and the internet of things – into a digestible context for humans.

For example, if you manage a manufacturing plant, your machinery is likely hooked up to the network. Connected devices feed a constant stream of data about functionality, production and more to a central location. Unfortunately, it's too much data for a human to ever sift through, and even if they could, they would likely miss most of the patterns. Machine learning can rapidly analyze the data as it comes in, identifying patterns and anomalies. If a machine in the manufacturing plant is working at a reduced capacity, a machine learning algorithm can catch it and notify decision-makers that it's time to dispatch a preventive maintenance team.

But machine learning is also a relatively broad category. The development of artificial neural networks, an interconnected web of artificial intelligence "nodes," has given rise to what is known as "deep learning."

Deep learning

Deep learning is an even more specific version of machine learning that relies on neural networks to engage in nonlinear reasoning. Deep learning is critical to performing more advanced functions, such as fraud detection. It can do this by analyzing a wide range of factors at once. For example, for self-driving cars to work, several factors must be identified, analyzed and responded to at once. Deep learning algorithms are used to help self-driving cars contextualize information picked up by their sensors, like the distance of other objects, the speed at which they are moving and a prediction of where they will be in 5-10 seconds. All this information is calculated side by side to help a self-driving car make decisions like when to change lanes.

Deep learning has a great deal of promise in business and is likely to be more commonly used soon. Older machine learning algorithms tend to plateau in their capability once a certain amount of data has been captured, but deep learning models continue to improve their performance as more data is received. This makes deep learning models far more scalable and detailed; you could even say deep learning models are far more independent.

Artificial intelligence and business today

Rather than serving as a replacement for human intelligence and ingenuity, artificial intelligence is generally seen as a supporting tool. Although artificial intelligence currently has a difficult time completing commonsense tasks in the real world, it is adept at processing and analyzing troves of data far more quickly than a human brain could. Artificial intelligence software can then return with synthesized courses of action and present them to the human user. In this way, humans can use artificial intelligence to help game out possible consequences of each action and streamline the decision-making process.

"Artificial intelligence is kind of the second coming of software," said Amir Husain, founder and CEO of machine learning company SparkCognition. "It's a form of software that makes decisions on its own, that's able to act even in situations not foreseen by the programmers. Artificial intelligence has a wider latitude of decision-making ability as opposed to traditional software."

Those traits make artificial intelligence highly valuable throughout many industries, whether it's simply helping visitors and staff make their way around a corporate campus efficiently or performing a task as complex as monitoring a wind turbine to predict when it will need repairs.

Machine learning is used often in systems that capture vast amounts of data. For example, smart energy management systems collect data from sensors affixed to various assets. The troves of data are then contextualized by machine learning algorithms and delivered to human decision-makers to better understand energy usage and maintenance demands.

Artificial intelligence is even an indispensable ally when it comes to looking for holes in computer network defenses, Husain said.

"You really can't have enough cybersecurity experts to look at these problems, because of scale and increasing complexity," he said. "Artificial intelligence is playing an increasing role here as well."

Artificial intelligence is also changing customer relationship management (CRM) systems. Software like Salesforce or Zoho requires heavy human intervention to remain up to date and accurate. But when you apply artificial intelligence to these platforms, a normal CRM system transforms into a self-updating, auto-correcting system that stays on top of your relationship management for you. [For those in brand-new companies, read our report on CRM tools for startups.]

Another example of artificial intelligence's versatility is within the financial sector. Dr. Hossein Rahnama, founder and CEO of artificial intelligence concierge company Flybits and visiting professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, worked with TD Bank to integrate artificial intelligence into regular banking operations, such as mortgage loans.

"Using this technology, if you have a mortgage with the bank and it's up for renewal in 90 days or less … if you're walking by a branch, you get a personalized message inviting you to go to the branch and renew purchase," Rahnama said. "If you're looking at a property for sale and you spend more than 10 minutes there, it will send you a possible mortgage offer.

"We're no longer expecting the user to constantly be on a search box Googling what they need," he added. "The paradigm is shifting as to how the right information finds the right user at the right time."

The future of artificial intelligence

So, how might artificial intelligence be used in the future? It's hard to say how the technology will develop, but most experts see those "commonsense" tasks becoming even easier for computers to process. That means robots will become extremely useful in day-to-day life.

"AI is starting to make what was once considered impossible possible, like driverless cars," said Russell Glenister, CEO and founder of Curation Zone. "Driverless cars are only a reality because of access to training data and fast GPUs, which are both key enablers. To train driverless cars, an enormous amount of accurate data is required, and speed is key to undertake the training. Five years ago, the processors were too slow, but the introduction of GPUs made it all possible."

Glenister said GPUs are only going to get faster, improving the applications of artificial intelligence software across the board.

"Fast processes and lots of clean data are key to the success of AI," he said.

Other analysts, like co-founder and CTO of Nara Logics Dr. Nathan Wilson, said they see artificial intelligence on the cusp of revolutionizing familiar activities, such as dining. Wilson predicted that artificial intelligence could be used by a restaurant, for example, to decide which music to play based on the interests of the guests in attendance. Artificial intelligence could even alter the appearance of the wallpaper based on what the technology anticipates the aesthetic preferences of the crowd might be.

If that isn't far-out enough for you, Rahnama predicted that artificial intelligence will take digital technology out of the two-dimensional, screen-imprisoned form to which people have grown accustomed. Instead, the primary user interface will become the physical environment surrounding an individual.

"We've always relied on a two-dimensional display to play a game or interact with a webpage or read an e-book," Rahnama said. "What's going to happen now with artificial intelligence and a combination of [the internet of things] is that the display won't be the main interface – the environment will be. You'll see people designing experiences around them, whether it's in connected buildings or connected boardrooms. These will be 3D experiences you can actually feel." [Interacting with digital overlays in your immediate environment? Sounds like a job for augmented reality.]

What does artificial intelligence mean for the worker?

With all these new artificial intelligence use cases comes the daunting question of whether machines will force humans into obsolescence. The jury is still out: Some experts vehemently deny that artificial intelligence will automate so many jobs that millions of people find themselves unemployed, while other experts see it as a pressing problem.

"The structure of the workforce is changing, but I don't think artificial intelligence is essentially replacing jobs," Rahnama said. "It allows us to really create a knowledge-based economy and leverage that to create better automation for a better form of life. It might be a little bit theoretical, but I think if you have to worry about artificial intelligence and robots replacing our jobs, it's probably algorithms replacing white-collar jobs such as business analysts, hedge fund managers and lawyers."

Wilson said the shift toward artificial intelligence-based systems will likely cause the economy to add jobs that facilitate the transition.

"Artificial intelligence will create more wealth than it destroys," Wilson said, "but it will not be equitably distributed, especially at first. The changes will be subliminally felt and not overt. [For example,] a tax accountant won't one day receive a pink slip and meet the robot that is now going to sit at her desk. Rather, the next time the tax accountant applies for a job, it will be a bit harder to find one."

Wilson said he anticipates that artificial intelligence in the workplace will fragment long-standing workflows, creating many human jobs to integrate those workflows. Other experts, like Husain, are not as sure about where the new jobs will come from once artificial intelligence becomes ubiquitous.

"[In the past,] there were opportunities to move from farming to manufacturing to services," Husain said. "Now, that's not the case. Why? Industry has been completely robotized, and we see that automation makes more sense economically."

Husain pointed to self-driving trucks and artificial intelligence concierges like Siri and Cortana as examples, stating that as these technologies improve, widespread use could eliminate as many as 8 million jobs in the U.S. alone.

"When all these jobs start going away, we need to ask, 'What is it that makes us productive? What does productivity mean?'" Husain said. "Now we're confronting the changing reality and questioning society's underlying assumptions. We must really think about this and decide what makes us productive and what is the value of people in society. We need to have this debate and have it quickly, because the technology won't wait for us."

Whether rosy or rocky, the future is coming quickly, and artificial intelligence will certainly be a part of it. As this technology develops, the world will see new startups, numerous business applications and consumer uses, as well as the displacement of certain jobs and the creation of entirely new ones. Along with the internet of things, artificial intelligence has the potential to dramatically remake the economy, but its exact impact remains to be seen.

Some source interviews were conducted for a previous version of this article.

How to Buy a Work Smartphone

Posted: 22 Apr 2019 09:25 AM PDT

Investing in high-quality phones for your employees can increase productivity and connectivity, especially if your business utilizes work apps to get things done. This smartphone buying guide is constructed with the needs and limitations of small business owners in mind, many of whom lack in-house IT talent and have limited experience buying hardware for groups. By working through the steps outlined here, you should be able to eliminate unsuitable options and find the right phones to help your team work efficiently.

Step No. 1: Choose a smartphone service provider

The first step before buying most business technology is to set a budget. With smartphones, however, this is trickier, because the long-term costs are tied to paying for continued service as well as the hardware itself. Additionally, the choice of service provider is just as important as the choice of phone, since even high-end iOS devices are useless if there's no reliable coverage. For that reason, we encourage all small business owners to do their homework when it comes to service providers before buying any devices.

As you research the following major service providers, pay close attention not only to the phones each provider supports, but also the small business plans offered (many of which make buying for groups more affordable) and local coverage maps. Opt for a service provider that has a diverse offering of smartphones, solid service and affordable business rates.

Service providers to consider:

  • AT&T
  • Google Fi
  • Republic Wireless
  • Sprint
  • T-Mobile
  • Verizon

Step No. 2: Shop iOS and Android devices

For simplified mobile device management, we recommend small business owners choose one general operating system for all of their mobile devices. Using different versions of Android across devices usually isn't problematic. However, managing both Apple (iOS) smartphones and Android phones is needlessly complicated.

Unless you have a compelling reason to choose iOS for your business, such as the need to run a specific business app that can only work on Apple products, Android is usually the better choice. There are far more types of Android smartphones, with more security features and a broader range of prices, so you'll have many more choices if you eschew Apple.

If you choose to purchase iOS smartphones, expect to spend at least $750 per device at the lowest end, whereas solid Android smartphones can be purchased for as little as $130 at the low end and go up to $1,000 for the most luxurious phones. If these numbers seem shocking, remember that many service providers offer monthly financing wrapped into the service fees, so it's unlikely you'll have to shell out the full cost upfront.

Step No. 3: Compare specific features

At this point, you should have your service provider and operating system narrowed down, so it's time to look at specs to find the right smartphone for your employees. Not every spec will be make or break for your purposes, so if you can't think of a use case for an OLED screen or headphone jack, don't let those details impact your purchasing decisions.

Battery: For business users, battery life can be a make-or-break spec, as can charging time. When looking at phones, keep in mind that claimed battery life from the manufacturer is just that – a claim. It's best to compare the retailer's claimed battery life against the battery life that review websites have recorded for the phone. Unless your workforce includes field workers who are deployed to remote locations for days at a time, a battery life between six to eight hours is sufficient.

Camera: Most midrange (and higher-end) smartphones have dual cameras (a front camera, or selfie camera, and a rear camera). Selfie cameras are especially important if your employees will be using their mobile device for video chatting with clients. Reading reviews of smartphone cameras and looking at example images can be helpful, as can test-driving different phones in person. The reason we recommend this approach rather than simply comparing specs is because camera and lens specs are relatively complicated to learn about if you have no prior experience with cameras. In general, though, most phones in the $500+ range have acceptable cameras for most standard business users.

Display: Even low-end smartphones have decent displays these days, and for most business users, a display isn't an absolutely critical feature, however, there are some exceptions. If you have field workers who frequently use mobile devices in extreme lighting (or lack of lighting), graphics or otherwise creative employees who use their phones for design work, or other extenuating scenarios that make display a major priority, you should examine the display specs. Many high-end iOS and Android devices have OLED or AMOLED screens rather than LCD screens, so look for those descriptors as well as high resolution, as determined by a dense PPI (or pixels per inch) rate.

Ports and slots: A surprising number of new, luxury smartphones no longer have headphone jacks. If you aren't sure what types of ports and slots your employees will be using on a regular basis, ask them before you make any buying decisions. Along with headphone jacks, microSD and SIM card slots are widely used, so inquire about those as well, if you aren't sure. If you intend on buying smartphones without headphone jacks, you should factor the cost of wireless earbuds into your business hardware budget.

Processor: A lot has changed in smartphone processing in the last five years. Even lower-end (under $300) and midrange ($300 to $500) smartphones have enough power for basic smartphone needs, like texting, web browsing and accessing apps. If you want top-of-the-line performance, you can opt for a $1,000 device with the fastest processor on the market, but it's certainly not the only viable option for business users. If most of the apps your employees will be using are widely used business apps like Evernote, Trello, and Slack, standard processing power should be fine. If your employees will use apps that involve processing huge amounts of data or advanced visuals (like VR, MR or AR), go for the high-end smartphones.

Security: Like design preferences, security needs vary from user to user. If you require business-class security features, you may benefit from selecting an established phone manufacturer, like Samsung. Samsung offers an add-on product called Samsung Knox, which is essentially a lightweight SaaS MDM solution. You may also opt for a third-party MDM solution, but for microbusinesses and solopreneurs, it may be easier to get everything from one provider.

Storage: Most business users won't need a lot of phone storage, with the exception perhaps of mobile game developers or people who will be spending a lot of time downloading and storing large amounts of sensitive data or media on their phones. In general, though, the standard 64GB of storage (which is built into most smartphone) should be adequate.

Step No. 4: Buy smartphones for your business

Hopefully, by this point, you've identified one or two devices that will work for most of your employees, and you can buy smartphones for everyone on your team. Many SMB owners select multiple tiers of smartphones to suit the needs of their lower level, midlevel and high-level employees. You may also want to consider investing in a mobile device management (MDM) system to manage your business's hardware.

MDM is offered in a SaaS format for SMBs, and it's become much simpler and more affordable in recent years. It can help you do things like track employee activity and location, manage security, and protect lost or stolen phones (by locking/wiping them remotely). For more information on MDM, check out our buying guide now.

3 Marketing Mistakes to Avoid

Posted: 22 Apr 2019 09:00 AM PDT

When most people think about starting a company, they often think too far ahead. While the long term plan is important, it's also important to take some time to think about your short term marketing strategy.

Instead of focusing heavily on niche specific marketing mistakes, we are going to take a look at mistakes that new business owners can make when working out how they are going to market their company.

You need a complete website for marketing

One of the first mistakes many business owners make is to believe they must have a complete website to start marketing to their audience. A common trend among new startups is creating a 'coming soon' page for their potential customers.

A coming soon page is a way to give customers a taste of what's to come when your website and business officially launches. We often have it set in our minds that it is impossible to promote something that doesn't yet exist, but that's not true.

Don't forget a contact page

Surprisingly, many new business owners forget about this crucial aspect of their website. It doesn't matter if you're creating a coming soon page, or just launching your site on day one. You must have an easy way for customers to contact your business.

There are a whole host of free and premium form builders you can download for your website. These builders give you the freedom and flexibility to build custom contact pages for your customers so they can communicate what they need help with regarding your product or service. You could also use this as an opportunity to discover what kind of pain points your customers have – as it pertains to your niche – so you can work on improving your company once you notice a reoccurring problem.

Contact pages are relevant because they are a way for you to keep in contact with the people who buy your products, potentially adding them to your email marketing list. This strategy could open the door for future email offers and makes marketing new products to a test audience easy.

Editor's note: Looking for email marketing software for your business? Fill out the questionnaire below to have our vendor partners contact you about your needs.

 

 

Don't be afraid to experiment

When people start marketing their website to a broader audience, they often feel as if their way is the right way. You have to be able to come to terms with your notions of what customers want and run split tests on your email marketing campaign and on-site ads to learn what your customers expect from your brand.

For example, if you're running a site about content marketing and keep pushing a free checklist for new bloggers and no one is responding, maybe it's time to think about other things that could benefit your audience. You can run split tests with two ad campaigns, one with the free checklist, and one with access to an SEO webinar, for example, and see which ad gets the most traction.

The point here is that sometimes you have to put different options out there, see how the customers respond, and use that analytic data to determine where to take your business model next. [Interested in email marketing services for your small business? Check out our best picks and reviews.]

Conclusion

As a new business owner, your marketing strategy should change rapidly during the first few years of business. You'll learn how to handle customer issues and how you can use their problems to build a better product.

After you've nailed down a formula, it's essential to keep your mind open and anticipate small changes while marketing. The small changes can and will add up to more significant changes over time. One final tip is that you must be prepared to evolve with your brand and your customers. Don't get too comfortable or set in your ways.

If the past decade has taught us anything, it's that marketing is continually changing based on social media, customer perception and needs, and how you present your business to potential leads.

 

How to Find the Best Coworking Space for Your Business

Posted: 22 Apr 2019 09:00 AM PDT

If you're a small business owner and you need an office, coworking spaces can provide you with a business community, enterprise-level perks and a versatile office space. If you're based in or near a city, there are likely some, if not hundreds, of coworking spaces you can join. Think of coworking spaces like renting a home instead of buying one – you can set up a "lease" with the company for six months, a year or longer. The company you join will handle the nuts and bolts of your office; all you have to do is show up and work on your company.

Coworking spaces provide some serious advantages when it comes to networking and creating a positive culture for your small business. As with any business decision, however, there are some cons. If you need privacy and a lot of space, you may be better off finding an office specific to your company. Before you decide whether joining a coworking space is right for you, it's important to understand the different types of coworking spaces, the value of a coworking community, standard amenities coworking spaces provide, and some current examples of coworking spaces.

Editor's note: Are you in the market for new desks for your small business? Fill out this questionnaire to get quotes from our vendor partners.

 

 

What you need

Picking the right coworking space is all about what you, your coworkers and your business need. If you run a fledgling company, joining an industry-specific coworking space can expose you to like-minded people. For an established small business looking to get out of a drab office, some coworking spaces offer amenities like free coffee, beer, food and activities for employees. If you need a cheap alternative and a short-term lease, some coworking spaces are designed for high turnover. Your needs are important in deciding where to move.

After assessing exactly what you need out of a coworking space, it's important to know what standard coworking spaces offer.

Amenities

WeWork, which is a national organization, offers its members Wi-Fi, printers, fruit water, coffee, tea, refrigerator access, microwaves, onsite staff, phone booths, cleaning services, lifestyle perks such as gym membership discounts, business benefits, free food events, and access to community events where

speakers address relevant business topics. WeWork is one of the most popular and best coworking spaces in the world, with 400,000 members and offices in 100 cities. When choosing a coworking space, look for ones that provide high-speed internet or Wi-Fi, basic kitchen access, and cleaning services as a base for amenities. You should also have access to conference rooms. This will ensure you won't have to worry about upkeep and can instead focus on your business.

Community

Accessing a network of other business owners can be very valuable, and working with like-minded individuals can help you grow your business. Coworking spaces give small businesses the opportunity to collaborate and push each other forward. Whether you attend a community-designated event or strike up a conversation with a stranger in the kitchen area, coworking spaces can be breeding grounds for creativity and collaboration.

When you visit a coworking space, ask about the community and take note of the office's vibe. If people are chatting and connecting, it could be a good indicator that the office is a relaxed environment where spontaneous interaction is natural. If the atmosphere is cold and partitioned offices feel like iron curtains instead of designated cubbies, this could mean that the coworking space doesn't prioritize the community aspect. Once again, WeWork's model is built around its community culture. It has an app that functions almost like a social media network for WeWork members. It also hosts events at its offices that any WeWork member can attend.

Common areas

Great coworking spaces have beautiful, open common areas. While your office may be a little tight, these common areas can serve as a place for your employees to stretch out, eat lunch or take a quick break. Common areas can tie into the coworking space's community aspect, as they're often some of the main areas where you collaborate with fellow business owners. They can also tie together your floor or building, which is especially important in large coworking spaces like WeWork or Regus.

Location

Just about every major city has options for coworking spaces. Even if you live near a midsize or small city, there are often coworking spaces to join. Rochester, Minnesota, for example, is one of America's top midsize cities. It also has a coworking space where entrepreneurs, freelancers, remote workers and nonprofits can set up shop. Mojo and Hatchworks Coworking are two coworking spaces in Asheville, North Carolina, a growing city with a population below 100,000 people. You don't have to live in a major metropolitan area to enjoy the benefits of a coworking space. Find a location that works for you and your employees.

Safety

There should be some basic safety features at whatever coworking space you choose. For example, there should be a lock on the door to your private office (if you elect to have one). There should also be a front desk or check-in station for newcomers and visitors. Busy coworking spaces often give ID swipe cards to ensure only their members can access the building and its features. If you're concerned with cybersecurity, talk to your prospective coworking spaces about network security and options for setting up your own secure router.

National vs. local coworking spaces

Once you assess your needs and understand some basic features to coworking spaces, it's important to decide whether you want to join a national chain (or international one, for that matter) or a local coworking space. Both have their advantages. Big coworking spaces like Regus, WeWork and Spaces have massive communities, thousands of offices and enterprise-level amenities. It also means you'll be partnering with a large company where not everyone knows your business and its presence in the community. Smaller coworking spaces may provide a more intimate customer service experience but lack some of the big features of a WeWork. As with any business decision, it's all about balancing your needs with what you can get from the coworking space.

Industry-specific coworking spaces

While many coworking spaces are general, accepting all businesses that would like to partner, some are for specific industries. This can be valuable for businesses in highly technical areas looking to build a network, or for businesses looking to tap into a specific type of community. In Chicago, Coalition has a coworking space focused on companies creating renewable energy solutions. La Cocina, in San Francisco, is a coworking space for food entrepreneurs solving problems of equality in business ownership.

3 examples of coworking spaces for small business

While coworking spaces exist in small and midsize cities, we'll focus on major cities to showcase some examples of coworking spaces throughout the nation.

Pittsburgh, PA – Alloy26

Alloy26 is a 50,000-square-foot coworking space located in the heart of Pittsburgh's North Side. It provides free snacks and drinks, coffee, private phone booths, conference room access, and a ping pong table. It also has a deal with a local gym. It offers an active community of entrepreneurs, with nine companies already working in the office. You can view pricing here.

Minneapolis, MN – Industrious

Industrious has two locations in Minneapolis, one in the North Loop and the other in the Downtown district. As a national company, Industrious has offices in almost 30 cities in America. Companies that partner with Industrious in Minneapolis have access to Wi-Fi, printing, wellness rooms, member events and parties, coffee, fruit, and snacks. There's also an active community of members. You can read more about its North Loop space here.

San Antonio, TX – Geekdom

This coworking space focuses mainly on startups and even offers an accelerator program. Members have access to coffee, happy hours, free events, startup workshops and monthly business lectures. As a startup-focused community, this coworking space can help new businesses get up and running. You can read more about the opportunity at Geekdom here.

You Have Developed a Product, Now What?

Posted: 22 Apr 2019 07:00 AM PDT

Having worked in manufacturing for the past 10 years, and as part-owner of my contract manufacturing company in China, I have had the pleasure of supporting entrepreneurs bring their product concepts to life. It amazes me how many people neglect to plan how to get their product to market. It is like what they say, ideas are free, execution is everything.

Let's assume you have developed a new product in the XYZ industry. You performed your due diligence and you firmly believe your product is a better mousetrap and an improvement to your competitors in the market – now what?

First, you will need to get your product made. Second, you will need to generate product hype. Understanding these two parts will lead to your product being in the hands of the masses.

Getting it made

Getting your product in the hands of millions requires a systematic approach to having your product made efficiently. If you are like most startups, you need to keep a lean team, thus, forming partnerships with the right companies will become very important.

One of the earliest partnerships you should make is working with a contract manufacturer (CM). Working with the right CM will not just provide you with production expertise, but also engineering, development, logistics, supply chain expertise and more. This will allow you to allocate more resources to sales and marketing.

It's best to connect with a CM sooner rather than later, considering there are a few things they can help with.

  1. Prototypes

    While you may already have a prototype on hand, keep in mind not all prototypes are created equal. Not all prototypes can be mass produced. Some changes may need to be made to the overall design to ensure your product can be made as efficiently and cost-effectively as possible during mass production.

    Design for manufacturing (DFM) becomes very important. The best resources for this are engineers that understand the production process. The goal of DFM is to drive down manufacturing costs by eliminating unnecessary parts and choosing the most cost-effective materials.

  2. Costing

    You might have an idea about the price, but if you want to market the product you will need to develop a pricing plan. When setting your price, you will need to know how much it costs you. Provide your CM with a target price and let them provide design and engineering changes that will make your target price manageable to reach.

  3. Tooling

    Tools are essential for production to provide consistency to the product. Each production line requires different tools and the lead time associated with the tooling stage will vary depending on the production line needed.  

  4. Lead Time

    When you start planning, you will need to know the production lead time. Make sure you understand that production lead time is precisely that, the lead time associated with the production process and doesn't take into account for any sea or air freight.

Getting your product out there

The next step is building hype and distribution lines for your product. However, you will need to validate your product before taking the plunge.

Once you have a prototype you are satisfied with, validate it. This should have been already completed during the due diligence stage, but once you have a prototype, it helps to do it again to see how the market reacts to your physical sample. This does not mean the old lady across the street who gets excited about everything you do – the goal is to seek critical feedback. Ask people who are not immediate friends or family.

Also, once you have the prototype and have a rough idea of your landing cost (the cost to get the product to your doorstep), you can develop tentative pricing strategies. Getting your product to the market can be a rather costly process. You might need to seek outside investments to do this.

Investments

Getting your product made is not cheap, so you might want to seek outside investment to bring your idea to life. When seeking investment, target individuals that can provide additional value other than just providing cash. Also, find someone that can compliment you, such as choosing someone that has manufacturing or distribution experience in your field.

Seed investors, angel investors and venture capitalists are the most common forms of investments out there for entrepreneurs. However, investments through CM are starting to gain popularity due to their knowledge that's backed by the investment.

Crowdfunding

A new and trending way of launching products are through crowdfunding campaigns, which allow people to give you money to open up tools and manufacture your product in return for receiving the product first. This is a great way to market your product and to raise funds without giving up any equity.

After the campaign, it is important to know that you're not done with your marketing. Many Kickstarters lose traction because they believe the hype of their campaign will outlive their time on Kickstarter. The most successful brands on Kickstarter constantly launch new and innovative products while continuing to market their existing products.

Conclusion

Taking an idea to a product in the hands of the masses can be a considerable challenge for new entrepreneurs. It's important to take it in strides and to not bite off more than you can chew. Seek strategic partnerships with companies that can provide you with expertise that last longer than the value of a dollar. 

4 Ways to Get your Podcast Heard

Posted: 22 Apr 2019 05:00 AM PDT

Nielsen reports that there are more than 660,000 active podcasts right now, and that number continues to increase as podcasts' popularity goes up. With numbers like that, it's evident that podcasting is a great way to reach your target audience and build a sustainable platform.

There are also many benefits to creating and promoting a podcast. It's a great alternative to video, which consumers already love as 45% watch an hour of video a day. Podcasts allow listeners to multitask while still absorbing the information and living productively. They're also easy to create and help build a better relationship with your audience because it's a more personalized experience.

It's tough with so many podcasts out there to get yours to shine in the limelight. Here are four ways you can get your podcast heard in a crowded market.

1. Find a niche and stick to it

It's better to have a dedicated niche than to call yourself a general podcaster who talks about everything under the sun. The truth is, the more you narrow down your niche, the more listeners and increased interactions you'll end up with. People look to podcasters with experience in a particular topic to listen to, and it's impossible to be an expert in every single subject out there.

Narrow down your niche to two or three sub subtopics at the most. It's okay to branch out a little, but going off kilter and discussing several random topics will throw off your audience and nudge them to go elsewhere.

2. Network and then network some more

People assume that creation is difficult, but promotion is most of the battle. The best way to get your content in front of your audience is by networking. This puts your brand in front of new eyes without coming off as "salesy" or forceful, and there are several ways you can go about doing this.

Take advantage of social media to find people in your industry, both content creators and listeners alike. Comment on your favorite podcasts and tell the podcasters how much you enjoy their content. If your social media accounts are optimized, it's likely they'll check out your page and interact with you. You can post snippets and sneak peeks of your podcast on Facebook or Twitter to give listeners a taste of what your podcast is about. It's also wise to use industry hashtags so users can find your content easily.

3. Optimize for SEO

Optimizing your podcast for search is a must if you're going to be heard in such a crowded market. The more optimized your content is, the better chances it has of reaching more people within your audience. You want your podcast to rank high in search so that it has the best chance of getting interactions and shares.

Conduct keyword research and apply it to your episodes. Optimize the title and description so that users and search engines have a clear understanding of what your content is about and what audience it suits best.

4. Hold contests and giveaways

It doesn't hurt to add a little incentive for listeners, and contests or giveaways are a great way to spice things up. If they have something to look forward to that will bring them joy, why not use that to encourage their engagement and market your content?

You can set the rules so that you see a spike in your interactions and shares. When holding the giveaway, you can make one of the requirements that your listeners follow you on social media or share one of your episodes. In return, they have a shot at winning something valuable from you. It's a win-win for both parties and an excellent tactic for your podcast to gain traction in your industry.

How will you market your podcast?

Getting your podcast heard when there's so much competition around is tough, but not impossible. You have to know what tactics to use to encourage interaction from listeners, and though it may take time to build a substantial following, it'll be worth it in the end when you finally see the numbers you want. How will you market your podcast?
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