Small Business Grant | "Best Buy Jumps Into Small Business IT"

By : SARAH E. NEEDLEMAN
Source : http://online.wsj.com
Category : Small Business Grant

Small-business owners in need of IT support may soon find it at Best Buy Co.

Next week brings the expected closing of the world's largest electronics chain's deal to buy Mindshift Technologies Inc.

Mindshift, of Waltham, Mass., was founded in 1999, and provides IT services to more than 5,400 small and medium-sized businesses throughout the U.S.

Best Buy has more than 1,100 big-box stores. But the retailer and other traditional chains face the prospect of becoming showrooms for online-only competitors. Some shoppers visit a mall or big-box location to check out merchandise and then find lower prices on the Web, sometimes while using smartphones right in the store's aisles.

A spokesperson for Best Buy didn't immediately return messages seeking comment.

Via email, Mindshift spokeswoman Lisa Masiello said the company currently has no plans to make changes to its prices or list of services, which include simple cloud-based email as well as more advanced services such as virtual servers and desktops, VoIP solutions, and overall IT management.

Demand for outsourced IT services among small businesses has been growing in recent years. Overall, the IT outsourcing market in the U.S. is expected to grow 1.9% to $40.6 billion in 2012, up from $39.8 billion in 2011, according to research firm IDC.

Small businesses in many cases can't afford to employ large numbers of full-time IT professionals. At the same time, office technology has become more complex and diverse, and the threat of viruses and worms has increased.

Best Buy's acquisition of Mindshift compliments its 2002 purchase of Geek Squad, a provider of IT support services to consumers, according to Jeff Roster, a retail analyst for research firm Gartner Inc. "It's a really interesting cross-sell opportunity," he says. "An owner of a small business is likely coming into their stores already" to look for electronics and other products, he adds.

Mindshift, meanwhile, is likely to gain more than just access to Best Buy's massive customer audience. It could also benefit from the electronics chain's legal muscle.

Case in point: Best Buy has disputed more than a dozen geek-themed trademarks in the past decade, The Wall Street Journal reported in June, citing federal records.

For example, earlier this year the Richfield, Minn., company threatened online rival Newegg.com with legal action, arguing that its Geek On advertising slogan sounded too similar to Geek Squad. Newegg responded, according to WSJ, by posting a cease-and-desist letter on Facebook.

Source : http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204552304577114760715912888.html

Small Business Grant | "Small business marketing trends for 2012 "

By : Mark Nolan
Source : http://www.amsterdamprinting.com
Category : Small Business Grant

MacInnis Marketing recently released several small business marketing predictions for the new year.

As more small enterprises expand their business advertising efforts to the social media sphere, Facebook and similar sites will be making an effort to appeal to more entrepreneurs. Earlier this year, Facebook unveiled a plan to offer free $50 advertising credits to as many as 200,000 small businesses looking to expand their market by placing ads on the site.

If handled the right way, social media advertising can prove lucrative for companies of all sizes. MacInnis recommends increasing the amount of time spent on social media management, analyzing competitors' efforts when it comes to handling consumer complaints, reaching out to their targeted customer base, advertising deals and putting together business marketing ideas.

Along with a rise in social media, mobile shopping and search is also becoming more common. Groupon and other deal sites have skyrocketed in popularity, thanks in part to consumers' increased adoption of smartphones and tablets. However, failure to optimize websites for mobile browsing can result in lost revenue for companies.

"A frustrating interface is as bad as an unclean, disorganized store," notes the Business Finance Store.

Providing an incentive for customers to visit the website can help drive traffic - for example, partnering with a daily deal site or creating downloadable online coupons.

Email marketing is another cheap but effective way to inform customers of special offers and other company news. That being said, it's important not to bombard them with marketing that isn't relevant to their interests. Setting up an opt-in mailing list with weekly or monthly news lets the consumer control how often they receive promotional emails.

However, don't get so caught up in mobile and online marketing that you forget about traditional marketing methods, such as direct mail campaigns and custom promotional products.

Source : http://www.amsterdamprinting.com/Article/Small+business+marketing+trends+for+2012+/800669601/Default.aspx

Small Business Grant | "Business as usual not an option"

By : Stanley S. Litow 
Source : http://www.ajc.com
Category : Small Business Grant

While the nation’s overall unemployment rate may have dipped below 9 percent, the reported rates for young people are double that and have not declined. The Metro Atlanta Chamber recently convened business and education leaders to discuss ways to attract and retain businesses, and to bring more good-paying jobs to the area.

In my keynote address to that gathering, I shared three ideas that could hold some promise in overcoming the city’s current challenges.

Expand the growth potential of small business. Research shows that on average, a small business that gets a contract with a large company will increase revenues and double employment rolls within only two years. To capitalize on this phenomenon, IBM created Supplier Connection— a free website that connects small businesses with an initial group of 12 member companies, including Citibank, Pfizer, Office Depot and UPS. The combined supply chain spending of Supplier Connection members exceeds $200 billion per year. Since launching the site, IBM has increased its spending with American small businesses by $40 million this year alone. Multiply that by 12, and the benefits to Atlanta’s small businesses could enable them to generate significant numbers of new jobs.

Close the gap between skills and jobs. As commentator Thomas Friedman has observed, the United States suffers from a skills crisis, not a jobs crisis. Over the next 10 years, nearly 14 million new jobs will be created for those with the right types of two-year community college degrees. These jobs in technology and other growth sectors are the gateway from poverty to the middle class for many Americans. But that gate will remain shut for the three out of every four community college students who currently fail to complete their degrees.

We must increase community college completion rates by improving the preparation for college-level work. One way to do that is through adoption of a new grades 9 through 14 model school pioneered by IBM. The first of these schools, the Pathways in Technology Early College High School, opened in New York City this fall. P-TECH will award both a high school diploma and an associate’s degree in technology to graduates who will then be first in line for jobs at IBM. Chicago will open five similar schools next fall, each focused on specific growth industries. The P-TECH model can work in any city under current budgets.

Create public-private partnerships to tackle big problems. Neither the public nor private sectors can overcome our current challenges by acting alone. Furthermore, cities cannot successfully attract and create jobs without coordinating education and economic development. But public-private partnerships can enable the creation and execution of targeted strategies that connect education to employment, and improve other areas of urban life.

The consensus of the metro Atlanta roundtable was that “business as usual” is no longer an option. As it has in the past, Atlanta needs to reach beyond its comfort zone to bring about its next era of prosperity. Public and private sector leaders will need to work together to bolster k-12 education, give students the academic tools and workplace perspectives they’ll need to complete their associate’s degrees, and focus those degrees on growth industries supported by a strengthened small business sector.

Atlantans have always worked together to rebuild, grow and lead. That spirit — that strength — has the power to transform the economic challenges of recent years into growth opportunities of tomorrow.

Stanley S. Litow is IBM’s vice president of corporate citizenship and corporate responsibility and president of the IBM International Foundation.

Source : http://www.ajc.com/opinion/business-as-usual-not-1269822.html

Small Business Grant | "Help for small firms working over Christmas"

By : By Maximilian Clarke
Source : http://www.freshbusinessthinking.com
Category : Small Business Grant

Nearly two thirds of small business owners in the UK won’t stop working between Christmas and the New Year and only one in ten resents having to work during that time, new research from business software and service provider, Sage UK, today revealed.

The Sage Omnibus surveyed over 1,000 small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) from its 800,000 strong UK customer base and found that:

• 5% of business owners are planning on working on Christmas Day
• 7% of small business owners are planning on working on Boxing Day
• 10% of small business owners are planning on working on New Year’s Day
• 4 out of 10 business owners (39%) will work over the festive period, even though their business is officially closed.

According to Sage’s research, whilst 10% of entrepreneurs will be using the peace and quiet to plan for 2012, the majority will use the time to get on top of key business processes such as finances and payroll. One of the reasons business owners are happy to work during this period is that they can focus on tasks without distractions, and as a result 84% of respondents said that they are productive or very productive at this time of year.

However, with the majority of firms in the UK closing over the festive break the study also highlighted that this can pose challenges to the entrepreneurs that remain working. The top three frustrations for business owners are key suppliers being closed, banks being closed and IT support being unavailable.

The findings from Sage’s Omnibus come as the company announced the launch of Sage One Payroll, the first addition to its highly anticipated family of online software as a service tools, offering small business owners a simple, secure, low cost way to manage their payroll online.

Designed to help entrepreneurs who have no specialist payroll knowledge or IT skills to effectively and efficiently run their payroll, the software automatically takes care of all legislative updates and calculates statutory payments and deductions, giving business owners confidence that their payroll is accurate and peace of mind that that they are always compliant.

Sage One Payroll has been created to help firms with 15 or less employees to pay staff quickly and accurately online. It contains a number of features that save entrepreneurs valuable time, including:

• Automatic recording and updating of P11 records;
• Retrospective correction facility that means if a mistake has been made with pay earlier in the year it is easy to correct and ensures employees are compensated in the current pay run;
• Ability to export data for payroll year-end reports directly to HMRC website, eliminating the need to re-enter data.

Furthermore, because the software seamlessly integrates with Sage One Accounts, it helps provide a real time perspective on a business’ cash flow and can automatically make the information available to your accountant.

“Working over Christmas can prove quite challenging if you hit a problem but have no one to turn to because the support team are tucking into turkey,” comments Chris Stonehouse, Head of Sage Online. “That’s why Sage One Payroll comes with 24/7 telephone support 365 days a year, giving business owners access to an unrivalled infrastructure of payroll expertise and software support whenever they need it.”

“Sage has a fantastic pedigree within the payroll software space and this expertise has helped shape and inform our first SaaS payroll product. We also spent a lot of time consulting with small businesses and their insights fed into every element from the design to the language used, enabling us to create what we believe is one of the industry's most user-friendly pieces of software .for processing the pay run.”

Costing only £5 per month for up to 5 employees, £10 per month for up to 10 employees and £15 per month for up to 15 employees, Sage One Payroll is one of the best value for money payroll software packages available. Until July 2012 it is available to businesses for free.

Source : http://www.freshbusinessthinking.com/news.php?CID=0&NID=11921&PGID=3

Small BusinessGrant | "Brite Enables Intel AppUp Small Business Service"

By : THN News
Source : http://www.thehostingnews.com
Category : Small Business Grant 

Managed service providers looking for robust hardware solutions for the Intel App Up SM Small Business Service can find the answer with Brite’s newly offered white box solutions. Brite’s offering, now available from the Intel service include two pedestal options, with a 2U rack mount server built on Intel’s Beartooth Pass server platform, complete with redundant power supplies, RAID 5 and a comprehensive three year onsite warranty.

“We are excited that Intel has chosen to work with Brite to provide a best in class Intel Xeon® based server platform to enable the Intel App Up Small Business Service,” states Justin Smith, President & COO of Brite. “This hybrid ‘cloud’ computing solution will allow managed service providers, and other value added resellers, to provide both on-premises and off-premises computing solutions as needed to small and medium sized businesses alike on a month-to-month basis. The extreme flexibility of the Intel App Up Small Business Service built on the Intel Hybrid Cloud platform and operating on Brite technology is something that is typically found ONLY in enterprise data centers, and that usually comes with large price tags. We are expecting, with Intel’s help, this solution to be very successful.”

The Intel Hybrid Cloud (IHC) program allows MSPs to offer customers an innovative, subscription based model of locally operating, remotely managed server software on a pay-as-you-go basis. This on-demand service gives customers access to a catalog of pre-configured business applications, which until now, were expensive to acquire and required a full-time staff to manage. Intel presented its IHC program at several Partner events including Intel Technology Conferences, and the feedback from MSPs was the desire for a more powerful server solution capable of redundancy and stable hardware. Brite developed the 2U rackmount option to its standard pedestal Intel-based server offerings in response to that need.

“The addition of new server hardware to the Intel App Up Small Business Service from a leading hardware provider like Brite greatly expands the white box options available to MSPs directly through the Intel Hybrid Cloud program,” said Bridget Karlin, General Manager of Intel Hybrid Cloud. “For MSPs who want a self-branded server offering built on Intel Server Products, this is an ideal solution. The Intel App Up Small Business Service gives our reseller MSPs a compelling way to deliver servers and software for their small business customers on a monthly service subscription basis without the large cash outlay that typically has caused small business customers to delay upgrades and risk hardware failures from aging servers. With the addition of Brite servers to the Intel App Up Small Business Service catalog, MSPs now have access to a 2U rack version of the Intel Hybrid Cloud platform with redundant power and hardware RAID, as well as traditional pedestal systems featuring the latest Intel Xeon Processor E3-1200 series.”

Brite has been manufacturing, servicing and supporting custom configured computing platforms since 1983. The organization is ISO-9001:2008 quality certified and utilizes ITIL foundations version 2 for its manufacturing and services processes. In addition, Brite’s expert information technology engineers will ensure the Intel based servers achieve maximum uptime and stability.

About Brite: Brite is a full systems integrator and consultancy focused on providing IT solutions that allow customers to achieve their business goals and objectives. In business since 1983, Brite is a privately held organization dedicated to delighting customers. By listening to customers, their team of Account Managers, Engineers, and Consultants deliver IT solutions with tangible and measurable return on investment.

Source : http://www.thehostingnews.com/brite-enables-intel-appup-small-business-service-22245.html

Small Business Grant | "5 Ways Microsoft Excel Can Help Small Businesses Increase Sales This Holiday Season"

By :  Brooklyn, NY
Source : http://www.expertclick.com
Category : Small Business Grant

Small Businesses are consistently trumpeted as the backbone and economic engine of the economy. However, many small businesses lack the information needed to capitalize on opportunities to grow. A white paper titled, "5 Ways Excel Can Help Business Make Money" aims to educate small businesses on how this common tool can be used to attain exponential growth.

"In the business world, the rearview mirror is always clearer than the windshield," said Warren Buffet. One application of Microsoft Excel is by taking data from the past and making inferences about the future. Decisions should be based on data rather than intuition, facts not fiction. Small Business owners routinely make decisions based on intuition rather than data.

Point number one on the white paper is a case for analytics. "Business - Analytics = Extinction, small businesses can only grow and compete if analytics are used. Measure everything from the number of turns of a door knob to the flushes of the toilet; everything is valuable information," said Othniel Denis, Principal of Excellent Ones Consulting. 

Source : http://www.expertclick.com/NewsReleaseWire/5_Ways_Microsoft_Excel_Can_Help_Small_Businesses_Increase_Sales_This_Holiday_Season,201138745.aspx

Small Business Grant | "The season of goodwill lasts all year "

By : MAX NEWNHAM
Source : http://www.stuff.co.nz
Category : Small Busines Grant

Small businesses and Christmas have one big thing in common, and that's goodwill.

Christmas is a season of goodwill, a time when it is better to give than receive. But for small businesses, goodwill with customers must be cultivated to ensure the business grows and has value.

A recent experience of mine reinforced the need to develop goodwill. I had arrived at a cinema just before the movie started with only a credit card and no cash. When trying to book and pay for two seats, in a cinema that only had six occupied seats, I was told the cinema chain was having trouble with its credit card system.

After unsuccessfully trying to use the credit card, and even offering to leave something of value and return with payment after the movie had finished, I was told that as I couldn't pay, I couldn't see the movie. This decision was all the more surprising given that on a previous visit the cinema had freely handed out complimentary tickets to compensate for another problem.

This most recent situation is what many customers experience when dealing with inflexible big businesses, where rules and regulations take priority over customer satisfaction. By failing to have some way of dealing with a problem, irreparable damage can be done to the business' goodwill. If a small business acted the same way, its long-term survival would likely be threatened.

By acting in the inflexible way it did, the cinema chain has lost more than the price of a cinema ticket. It's unlikely that I will ever use this chain again.

This concept of the value of a satisfied customer is not often understood. The true value of a customer's goodwill is the total of many transactions over a number of years, and not just a single transaction.

As I said in the introduction, small business is about creating goodwill and often involves give and take. A smart small business owner in the same situation as the cinema could have done one of two things - issue a complimentary ticket for that session, or trust I would pay after the movie.

By doing this a small business owner would have increased his or her level of goodwill with me and turned me into an advocate for their business. This is why if you own a small business you cannot put barriers, petty rules and regulations between you and your customers.

This spirit of Christmas and goodwill for small business is not limited to customers. Engendering goodwill among employees is just as - if not more - important.

Business owners who take a Scrooge-like approach to their staff at Christmas do so at the risk of those employees then treating customers in the same way.

Source : http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/small-business/6173567/The-season-of-goodwill-lasts-all-year

Small Business Grant | "Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs to be Offered Essential Info and Resources From New Mobile Applications"

 By : Alex Ferreras
Source : http://www.loansafe.org
Category : Small Busines Grant

A new electronic application that quickly and efficiently finds loans, grants, and other useful small business resources, and its developer Somesh Kumar of Freemont, Calif., won first prize and $5,000 in a nationwide competition sponsored by the U.S. Small Business Administration. The competition and resulting seven “apps” are meant to put new and useful web tools at the fingertips of growing entrepreneurs.

As a result of SBA’s “Apps for Entrepreneurs Challenge,” a competition for tech-savvy developers to build new and useful web tools for small businesses, entrepreneurs can reach for their smartphone or tablet and search federal, state and local databases for vital information by using one of seven award-winning apps.

“It was a great learning experience to participate in SBA’s Apps for Entrepreneurs Challenge and to create SBA Gems,” said Kumar, whose winning app can be downloaded at “SBA Gems” at entrepreneurs.challenge.gov/submissions/5458.

“Smart phones and tablets are increasingly the vehicles through which Americans access information,” said SBA Administrator Karen Mills. “This is certainly true of many entrepreneurs and small business owners.  Greater mobility fits with SBA’s new focus and is among the steps we are taking to do a better job of connecting entrepreneurs and small business owners with the tools to help them start or grow their businesses and create jobs.”

The SBA competition produced seven winners – one First Place winner ($5,000), three Second Place winners ($3,000 each), and three Third Place winners ($2,000 each) for a total of $20,000 in prize money – as follows (all seven apps can be downloaded from SBA’s web site, with URLs listed below):

First Place [1 Prize at $5,000]
– SBA Gems – Find loans, grants permits etc.
Developer – Somesh Kumar, Freemont, California
entrepreneurs.challenge.gov/submissions/5458
Second Place [3 Prizes at $3,000 each]
– CapitaList – Find federal databases for licenses, awards, proposals and websites.
Developer – Muneeb Akhter, Springfield, Virginia
entrepreneurs.challenge.gov/submissions/5464
– Small Business Toolbox – Find small business programs SBA offices etc.
Developer — Joseph Blough, Dexter, Michigan
entrepreneurs.challenge.gov/submissions/5450
– SBA Loan Search App — Find loans, venture capital, tax incentives etc.
Developer – Richard Murphy, Silver Spring, Maryland
entrepreneurs.challenge.gov/submissions/5462
Third Place [3 Prizes at $2,000 each]
– Energy SBA – Find property rights, oil and gas leases, solar etc.
Developer – Robert Grogan, Eden Prairie, Minnesota
entrepreneurs.challenge.gov/submissions/5470
– SB Alert – Find contracting opportunities and get push notification.
Developers – Ben McGinnis and Team, Fairfax, Virginia
entrepreneurs.challenge.gov/submissions/5445
– Every Thing For The Entrepreneur – Find SBIR solicitations and more.
Developer – Edwardo Martinez, San Francisco, California
entrepreneurs.challenge.gov/submissions/5469

These new mobile apps complement SBA’s mobile application created for iPhone in partnership with Palo Alto Software.  Users can employ the SBA app to find local Small Business Administration-affiliated advisers and get free, personal, one-on-one help with starting and growing their businesses.

The SBA mobile app also features a built-in startup cost calculator to help estimate the costs associated with getting a business off the ground, plus an SBA partner locator to help users find SBA offices, Small Business Development Centers, Women’s Business Centers and SCORE.

Users will also have mobile access to SBA video content and social media alerts to provide them with tips on the go.  This will include live updates from the SBA’s YouTube channel and from SBA’s Twitter feeds.  The free mobile app can be downloaded from the SBA’s website at sba.gov/content/sba-mobile-app.

Source : http://www.loansafe.org/small-business-owners-and-entrepreneurs-to-be-offered-essential-info-and-resources-from-new-mobile-applications

Small Business Grant | "Top 10 Small Business Tech Predictions for 2012"

By : o Paul Mah 
Source : http://news.idg.no
Category : Small Business Grant

For small and midsize businesses, 2011 was an eventful year for the owners and managers tasked with technology decisions. The year's highlights range from the arrival of new technologies such as the introduction of Intel's Thunderbolt peripheral interface to the release of Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich.

But it wasn't all highlights. Beyond the promising new products and technologies, you saw many tech titans at their worst: RIM stumbled big-time in October with the most severe service outage in its history while Sony saw its Playstation Network so badly hacked it took more than a month to fix.

As 2011 draws to a close, it's time to look ahead to 2012. Namely, what can small and mid-sized businesses (SMB) expect to see in the next 12 months? The 10 technological trends listed below will affect businesses of all sizes in the coming year, but they promise to have an particular impact on small and mid-size businesses in 2012.

1. Microsoft Hyper-V3 Means Cheaper, More Powerful Virtualization Microsoft looks set to single-handedly up the ante on the virtualization front with the release of Windows Server 8, which will incorporate a seriously beefed-up hypervisor. Hyper-V 3 will come with substantial improvements in the areas of network, storage, scalability and live migration capability. Its significance for SMBs and SMEs that have yet to deploy virtualization is substantial, allowing them to create a full-fledged virtualization setup with minimum capital outlay with regards to software licensing fees.

Hyper-V 3 will exert significant pressure on market leader VMware by delivering "good enough" virtualization at a fraction of the cost of a full vSphere implementation. More importantly, Hyper-V 3 will recast the capabilities that businesses expect in a free virtualization product. Expect cheaper, more powerful virtualization to materialize as virtualization vendors react with price cuts and more advanced capabilities at lower (or free) price points. No date has been announced for Windows Server 8 at the time of writing, though it's anticipated to debut in 2012.

2. More Network Attached Storage AppliancesNetwork Attached Storage (NAS) appliances have been growing progressively more powerful over the years, narrowing the gap with entry-level SANs. Indeed, many new NAS products released today are certified for virtualization platforms such as VMware, Hyper-V and Citrix, with more advanced models capable of replication between NAS or even supporting cloud storage such as Amazon's Simple Storage Service as an additional tier of data backup.

Expect this trend of powerful NAS to continue and even accelerate in 2012. For SMBs, mid- to high-end NAS models have attained a sufficient level of performance and features to effectively serve as the primary storage for smaller businesses, or in branch offices of larger organizations. As such, small business and enterprise will deploy more NAS in 2012, and possibly even using them as SAN-replacements in certain cases.

3. USB 3.0 Devices Abound You've heard this before, but USB 3.0 should finally make itself felt in 2012. One key change is Intel's official commitment to "SuperSpeed" USB, evidenced by the integration of USB 3.0 support in upcoming chipsets. This is expected to drive USB 3.0 adoption next year as they become available, greatly increasing the overall appeal for manufacturers to make USB 3.0 devices.

With a data transfer rate of up to 5Gbps, the widespread availability of USB 3.0 will have wide-ranging effects. For one, portable storage devices such as flash drives and portable HDDs will be even more popular than before. Moreover, SMBs are likely to be presented with more options in terms of easy-to-deploy USB 3.0-based Direct Attached Storage (DAS) devices. Instead of having to struggle with eSATA or fiddling with special interface cards, new USB 3.0 storage appliances or tape drives could be easily deployed for the purpose of data backup and restoration for key workstations and servers.

4. Thinner, Lighter Ultrabooks Challenge MacBook Air

Despite the criticism that Intel has attracted over its execution strategy for the company's Ultrabooks, the chip maker is serious about taking on Apple's increasingly popular MacBook Air with a new generation of thin and lightweight laptops. More than 60 models of Ultrabooks will be available in 2012, while rival chip maker AMD has also recently indicated that it is working on its own ultra-thin laptops.

Ultimately, it is clear that a fundamental shift is taking place to the laptop's form factor. By stripping out the venerable optical disc drive and moving towards more advanced materials, computer makers are shifting from thick and bulky laptops to a computing future that is both thin and light. With a longer battery life and lower prices than conventional laptops, we suspect that many SMBs will buy into Ultrabooks for use in the office.

5. SSD Prices Fall, HDDs Gets Faster Another trend you can count on in 2012 will be the availability of faster local storage at more affordable prices. Prices of Solid State Disks (SSDs) have been declining steadily and are also increasingly being offered as options on laptops. Moreover, Seagate in November launched its second generation Hybrid Hard Disk (HHD), which is a standard hard disk drive paired with built-in SLC-based flash memory for heightened performance — Seagate says the Momentus XT can achieve a boot up time comparable to SSDs after a brief "learning" period.

The availability of faster local storage will benefit small business in the form of workstations and laptops that just perform faster. Alternatively, businesses may also opt to prolong the lifespan of existing workstations or laptops with a strategic upgrade to an SSD or HHD.

6. Tablets, Tablets Everywhere

If you've thought that you've seen enough of tablets this year, wait till the next generation of tablets lands in 2012. You can get the full scoop on what to expect with tablets in 2012 a quick roundup would include the iPad 3, tablets based on Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, Windows 8 tablets and v2.0 of the BlackBerry PlayBook OS.

The onslaught of tablets goes both ways. For one, agile SMBs that successfully leverage tablets can bolster their competitive advantage and achieve greater work efficiencies. The obvious challenges though, would be the associated headache of trying to manage so many disparate platforms and the risks inherent to developing for such rapidly evolving devices.

7. BYOD Goes to Smaller Businesses BYOD, or "Bring Your Own Device," is a term used to describe the use of personal devices in the office. BYOD will become an accepted business practice in 2012 for small businesses, even as the arrival of more powerful smartphones, tablets and ultra-thin laptops trigger an avalanche of such devices into the workplace.

This is a mixed blessing for SMBs as employees start using their favorite duo (or trio) of Wi-Fi gadgets at work. While an IT-savvy workforce is certainly better than a tech-illiterate one, one downside may be the potential overloading of wireless networks as the density of wireless devices increase beyond what the network was originally designed for. Moreover, administrators may find themselves badgered with support requests that may not necessarily be work-related.

8. Small Business Finds Apps on the Cloud It is entirely possible for businesses to set up an online presence without having to purchase a single hardware server today. After all, services such as online storage, B2B services, web hosting, email, collaboration, even productivity suites (Google Apps, Office 365) can be purchased online with nothing more than a credit card.

Moving forward, we expect startups and SMBs to ride hard on this trend as a means to circumvent traditional infrastructure and hardware barriers, making use of online services so that they can concentrate on their primary focus of doing business. We would have used the word "cloud computing" too, except that these businesses won't care what it's called by then.

9. Gigabit Wireless Starts replacing Ethernet Two organizations are known to be working towards gigabit wireless at the moment, with limited product shipments expected to arrive in 2012. The Wireless Gigabit Alliance (WiGig) operates on the 60GHz band and supports bus protocols such as PCI Express and USB; the IEEE 802.11ac operates on 5GHz and can provide throughputs of more than 1Gbps and backwards compatibility with 802.11n. For now, research by ABI Research predicts that IEEE 802.11ac will emerge as the dominant Wi-Fi protocol by 2014.

While the effect of gigabit wireless on large enterprises or established businesses is debatable, expect SMBs to prefer wireless as their primary connectivity option due to the convenience and the comparatively modest needs of smaller businesses. Given the prospect of future upgradability, the arrival of 802.11ac may also prompt organizations currently adopting a "wait and see" posture to finally deploy 802.11n. Given that gigabit wireless may well be adequate to meet the needs of most SMBs, its arrival may well result in businesses replacing wired Ethernet with wireless in 2012.

10. Windows 8 Triggers Big Changes Despite being a singular product, there is no doubt mind that this hotly anticipated operating system will trigger a wave of change across the entire PC industry. Expected to be released in the second half of 2012, Microsoft has given the assurance that Windows 8 will not require new hardware. Indeed, the use of advanced memory management techniques and memory deduplication could well see Windows 8 running on slightly older hardware—a boon to SMBs looking to keep their IT budgets down.

Windows 8 will work with both traditional desktops as well as tablet devices, and will be available in x86 and ARM versions to facilitate the use of devices based on power-efficient ARM-based processors. Though it is too early at this point to tell the effect that Windows 8 desktop will have on SMBs, it is evident that Microsoft has incorporated its business-management smarts into Windows 8. Specifically, administrators will be able to make use of group policy and PowerShell to manage Metro-style apps on Windows 8— allowing for a level of fine-grained control not available on competing platforms.

Source : http://news.idg.no/cw/art.cfm?id=9848A8E5-D40B-5444-075531FCD5E16AA3

Small Business Grant | "Shaheen: SBIR funding 'good news' for N.H. businesses "

By : New Hampshire Business Review
Source : http://www.nhbr.com
Category : Small Business Grant

After years of short-term extensions, two popular federal programs that make it easier for innovative small businesses to win federal grants have secured long-term reauthorization.

The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs, which were set to expire Dec. 16, have been reauthorized for six years. The funding levels set aside for small businesses will also be increased over that period.

"I am so pleased that we have a six-year reauthorization for the SBIR program," U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., told NHBR. "I think that's very good news for businesses in New Hampshire and across the country, and it's good news for innovation and job creation."

Through the SBIR program, participating federal agencies set aside 2.5 percent of their R&D budgets for competitive grants to small defense and high-tech companies. STTR is similar but smaller, setting aside an additional 0.3 percent of grants for partnerships between small businesses and nonprofit research institutions.

Since its inception, New Hampshire firms have been quite successful at winning SBIR grants, with awards to firms in the state totaling $370 million, which Shaheen attributes to the state's "innovative" and "entrepreneurial" economy.

The programs have been praised by both sides of the aisle for spurring job creation and innovation, but have been squeaking by on short-term extensions for years as Congress has been unable to reach a compromise on what the terms of the programs should be.

"Unfortunately, I think it's something that got bogged down not on partisan differences, because we generally had broad bipartisan support in the Senate, (but) there was a difference in opinion in the Senate and House," said Shaheen, who has been a longtime proponent of SBIR.

The Senate and House have historically disagreed on numerous aspects of the programs -- from how long their reauthorization should be to how many phases they should encompass and whether there should be a cap on the number of awards a company can receive.

As a result, the programs have been temporarily extended 14 times since 2008, a tenuousness that has made it difficult for the agencies and companies to plan for the future.

"Of course we're enormously pleased that it's going towards stability," said Bill Hersman, a physics professor at the University of New Hampshire and owner of Durham-based Xemed, a firm developing a new method for producing gases that can be used to diagnose lung disease with magnetic resonance imaging.

"I realized that the projects I was working on academically could be advanced much faster and with greater quality if they were done in an entrepreneurial environment in addition to an academic environment," said Hersman. Since he founded the company in 2004, it has won 23 SBIR grants totaling $10.5 million and now employs 10.

Still, some of the SBIR grants his company has applied for have received very high scores but have been stalled in an unfunded holding period, he said. That's probably due to a multitude of factors, but the biggest is almost definitely the agencies' uncertainty in not knowing where their budgets will be a year or two down the road, he said.

Securing this long-term reauthorization hasn't been all smooth sailing this time around. Once the long-term reauthorization amendment passed the Senate as part of the National Defense Authorization Act of 2012, it still had to be synched with the House version of the bill that differed widely on several fronts. The House version, for example, called for just a three-year extension of SBIR, while the Senate amendment initially sought an eight-year extension.

And once they had compromised, it still wasn't clear whether it would pass, since the president had threatened to veto the NDAA because of some of its provisions relating to detaining suspected terrorists. But after some of the language of the provisions was updated, the president rescinded the veto threat.

"I think persistence has been important," said Shaheen. "Also hearing from the business community that this has been important to them. One of the things that's critical to the economy, how to compete globally, how we continue to get the country out of the recession we were in, is innovation -- it's innovation that's going to allow for job creation."

Among the terms of the compromise:

    The SBIR allocation will be raised from 2.5 percent to 3.2 percent and the STTR allocation from 0.3 percent to 0.45 percent over the six-year period, which Shaheen said would amount to $641 million extra a year for small businesses.

    Funding available for majority-owned venture capital firms will be increased to 25 percent for three participating agencies and 15 percent for the remainder.

    The programs will remain merit-based, with no cap on the number of awards a company can receive.

    Both Phase I and Phase II award levels, which have not been raised since 1982, will be increased from $100,000 to $150,000 for Phase I and from $750,000 to $1 million for Phase II, allowing for an additional Phase II for projects that demonstrate particular promise.

    Most agencies will be required to complete their review process for applicants within 90 days, to give small businesses more certainty as to when they can expect a decision on their awards.

    Performance-based standards will be introduced to encourage companies to focus on commercialization through Phase III of the program.

Hersman is pleased that SBIR has finally been reauthorized in the long term, but has some trepidation about the increased funds for private equity companies.

"I'm extremely happy that the funding level has been bumped up, but I understand that we will be competing with VC-backed small businesses, which could be an asymmetric advantage they enjoy with more resources to write polished proposals that are professionally edited," said Hersman. "So there may be a period of time before the (allotment for the) SBIR program increases that we actually experience increased competition."

But, he said, "We're still happy it's funded for the long term. It's meeting the objective that it was originally intended for -- it's inspiring individuals to become entrepreneurs, it's motivating academics to transition new technologies out of the academic labs and into the marketplace, and creating jobs, and small businesses are likely to thrive and expand and become commercially independent."

"This is one of those programs that makes sense for a lot of reasons," said Shaheen. "It supports small businesses, it doesn't add to the bottom line of the cost of programs ... and it creates jobs, and particularly now, that's so critical." -- KATHLEEN CALLAHAN/NEW HAMPSHIRE BUSINESS REVIEW

Source : http://www.nhbr.com/businessnewsstatenews/943751-257/shaheen-sbir-funding-good-news-for-n.h..html

Small Business Grant | "95 CT small firms apply for new state help"

By : Hartford Business.com
Source : http://www.hartfordbusiness.com
Category : Small Business Grant

Connecticut's top economic development official says her office had received 95 applications for the state's new small business assistance program and that she expects more will be filed, The Associated Press reports.

The Small Business Express Program includes three initiatives: a revolving loan fund, a matching grant program and a job creation incentive program.

On Friday, the State Bond Commission approved $50 million to fund the Small Business Express Program.

The Department of Economic and Community Development's commissioner, Catherine Smith, said businesses have been seeking loans and grants for things such as new equipment and for help hiring more employees and covering shortfalls. Smith said Friday that interest from businesses "has exceeded my expectations."

Smith said she ultimately expects hundreds of companies will participate in the program, approved by the General Assembly during a special session on job creation in October.

Smith said the first checks to eligible businesses should be sent out by the end of this month. There is a 30-day approval process.

Source : http://www.hartfordbusiness.com/news21916.html

Small Business Grant | "U.S. Bank Rewards Small Business Owners on Facebook"

By : Brian O'Connell
Source : http://www.mainstreet.com
Category : Small Business Grant

U.S. Bank (Stock Quote: USB) is one of the few banks seeing some positive reviews from customers, a rarity in today’s banking environment, and a closer look at its customer relations tactics may explain the phenomenon.

The bank’s high rank by the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) centers on the key customer service areas of “quality and value,” and it seems to want to keep the mojo going. One way U.S. Bank is doing so is by reaching out to small business owners (a highly coveted demographic for banks) via social networking technologies like Twitter and Facebook.

On Oct. 18, the bank rolled out a new campaign to connect with small business owners called “Look Up With Us.” The idea was to use Facebook to enable business owners to network with one another, with the bank giving $15,000 to the small business owner who offers the best story on why his or her business is “looking up.”

The “challenge” was open to any U.S.-based business with less than $10 million in assets, and the voting ended on Nov. 15, with the $15,000 ultimately split among three winners. One winner (Ozzie’s Cake Designs) earned the popular vote, another (Adkins Auto Salvage) got the most votes from a panel of small business experts, and the third victor (Willowroot Wands) was chosen at random. Overall, the “Look Up” campaign earned 476 entries.

Aislinn Barnes, owner of Ozzie's Cake Designs in Bountiful, Utah, was a popular pick, opening a new business after some family financial troubles began to mount. She told an audience at the $5,000 check ceremony that her husband was out of work, but that she was “looking up” just the same with the holiday season approaching.

As far as social media campaigns go, it wasn’t perfect, as a good number of the respondents just asked for the money rather than tell an inspiring story. But the contest did draw the attention of about 10,000 small business owners, who presumably now know more about U.S. Bank’s small business services than they did before (the bank liberally sprinkled advertisements for its business reward credit cards on the Facebook page).

Above all, Barnes’ story was a compelling one that resonated with other business owners who visited the contest Facebook page. That seems to be what U.S. Bank was after, and in a unique pubic relations campaign, that’s exactly what the bank received.

Not a bad story going into the holiday season – a big bank gives a struggling business owner a much-needed financial boost and the bank walks away with 10,000 new business contacts. In business school circles, that one’s called a “win-win” for both parties.

Source : http://www.mainstreet.com/article/small-business/us-bank-rewards-small-business-owners-facebook

Small Business Grant | "Government Grants for Small Business"

By : Government Grants
Source : http://pr-canada.net
Category : Small Business Grant 

Government Grants Australia is a registered Australian independent research company that has current and up to date information on funding and grants program. They are giving information from both the Federal and State Government.

Government Grants Australia, 12.19.11- Now a day, many countries provide government business grants and loans. The Australian government also provides Government Grants for their people that ranges from $500 - $500,000. You may have many questions related to government grants and whether you are eligible for a grant or loan or is your business eligible. Here is a solution; Government Grants Australia gives you all information related to government business grants and loans in Australia.

Government Grants Australia’s main objective is to provide information related to Government and private funding agencies. There are different types of funding systems, e.g. non repayable monies, low interest loans, training programs and mentoring programs. You may also apply for government grants for starting a small business. When applying for small business grants, you must produce a business plan. With a business plan, marketing plan, the target market, expenses and first three years of operation must be included.

Government Grants Australia gives information regarding business grants, funding, mentoring services, government rebates, funds for new equipment, advertising, R&D and more. They are helping you by providing hundreds of programs. Their are Government Grants programs for both brand new business operation and business development.

In the Government Grants Australia website, their recent posts are Funding a new business with government research grants, Why does the Australian government support small businesses, Grants for starting up a business in Australia, Australian business development grants, government grants and loans for new businesses and more.

Every year the Australian government spends billions of dollars for small business grants, green loans and business loans. All these funds are managed by government business development groups. The funds are also given to existing companies to develop them further. Government Grants Australia helps you by giving the latest information about the government grants.

Source :http://pr-canada.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=488754&Itemid=59a

Small Business Grant | "Maturing Technology: NASA Selects 85 Small Business Research And Technology Projects For Continued Development"

By : W. Wiesel
Source : http://www.iewy.com
Category : Small Business Grant

NASA has selected 85 small business proposals to enter into negotiations for Phase II contract awards through the agency’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program.

The selected projects have a total value of approximately $63 million. NASA will award the contracts to 79 small high technology firms in 27 states. These competitive awards-based programs encourage U.S. small businesses to engage in federal research, development and commercialization. The programs also enable businesses to explore technological potential, while providing the incentive to profit from new commercial products and services.

“Small businesses are not only crucial to NASA’s trailblazing achievements in space exploration; they are the backbone of the American economy,” said NASA Administrator Charles Bolden.” As the wheels of our economy continue to pick up speed, it is important to remember that small business is the engine that is getting us moving again. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, small firms have generated 65 percent of net new jobs over the past 17 years. And federal procurement for women-, minority- and veteran-owned small businesses are a big part of that equation.”

NASA’s SBIR programs address specific technology gaps in agency missions, while striving to complement other agency research investments. Program results have benefited many NASA efforts, including modern air traffic control systems, Earth-observing spacecraft, the International Space Station and the Mars rovers.

“Working with small businesses through Phase 2 SBIR awards, NASA helps mature novel technologies and concepts to demonstrate their applicability to NASA’s current and future space and aeronautics needs,” said Michael Gazarik, director of NASA’s Space Technology Program. “This maturation process also provides NASA’s small business partners to more fully explore opportunities to transfer that technology to the marketplace, while creating new jobs and growing our economy.”

In addition to meeting NASA’s needs, the proposals also provide innovative research in areas that have other commercial applications. Examples include:

– Development of design and fabrication techniques that will be used to create better UV detectors useful to NASA’s missions to monitor ozone, aerosols and air pollution, which also are essential in the semiconductor, food processing and healthcare industries, where bacterial sterilization is important.
– A new composite material manufacturing process which could decrease manufacturing costs for NASA’s future heavy lift launch vehicles, as well as military and commercial aircraft, wind blades and towers, civil and automotive infrastructure and marine vessels.
– New high-performance lubricants beneficial to robotic spacecraft operations in extreme temperature ranges that also may benefit automobile performance
– A laser-ranging technology that can be used as the next generation air data system for aircraft that will measure velocity, wind speed, air pressure and temperature. This will help predict turbulence, ensuring a safer and more comfortable flight.

The SBIR program is a highly competitive, three-phase award system. It provides qualified small businesses, including those owned by women and the disadvantaged, with opportunities to propose unique ideas that meet specific research and development needs of the federal government.

Phase 1 is a feasibility study to evaluate the scientific and technical merit of an idea. Awards are for as long as six months. The selected Phase 2 projects will expand on the results of Phase 1 projects selected last year, with up to $750,000 to support research for up to two years. Phase 3 is for the commercialization of the results of Phase 2 and requires the use of private sector or non-SBIR federal funding.
Participants submitted 428 Phase 2 proposals. The criteria used to select the winning proposals included technical merit and innovation, Phase 1 performance and results, value to NASA, commercial potential and company capabilities.

NASA’s Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, Calif., manages the SBIR program for the agency’s Space Technology Program. NASA’s 10 field centers manage individual projects.

Source : http://www.iewy.com/38431-maturing-technology-nasa-selects-85-small-business-research-and-technology-projects-for-continued-development.html

Small Business Grant | "Administration Grants States Leeway on Health Benefits Package"

By : Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar
Source : http://www.insurancejournal.com
Category : Small Business Grant

The Obama administration has rolled out a benefits framework for millions of people who will get private insurance through the health care overhaul, but states will decide the specifics.

The new law calls for the federal government to set a basic benefits package for private insurance. But that’s tricky territory for the administration as it tries to avoid the “big brother” label on health care. Obama will be defending his signature domestic law on two fronts next year — before the Supreme Court and the voters.

The latest proposal from Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius allows states to retain some leeway. Private insurance traditionally has been regulated at the state level, and many state officials don’t like having to answer to Washington.

The basic benefits package could eventually affect 90 million people, HHS said. That includes those who would gain private insurance thanks to the health care law, as well as many more currently enrolled in small employer and individual plans.

The new proposal would let states pick a benefits package from several federally approved options. Those range from benefits offered to federal and state employees to the most popular small business plans in the state and to a large health maintenance organization, or HMO.

“The proposal we’re putting forward today reflects our commitment to giving states the flexibility they need,” Sebelius said. It’s a prickly relationship, with 26 states asking the Supreme Court to toss out the law.

If a state doesn’t want to pick benefits, the default will be the package available through the largest small business plan in that state.

Initial state reaction was positive. “Quite frankly, this was a very smart approach for HHS,” said Kansas Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger. “It builds on existing state law.” Praeger, a Republican, chairs the health care committee of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.

Starting in 2014, millions of people now uninsured will be able to buy private coverage in new state markets; taxpayer subsidies would help with premiums.

Insurers wanting to participate in the new state health insurance exchanges will have to offer at least the federally approved “essential benefits package.”

Business groups and consumer advocates are watching closely because they expect the federal government’s decisions to set new national standards for health insurance. At issue is the right balance between affordable coverage and comprehensive benefits.

Under the law, the benefits package must include such fundamentals as inpatient and outpatient care, emergency services, maternity and childhood care, prescription drugs, preventive screenings and labs.

It must also cover mental health and substance abuse treatment, as well as rehabilitation for physical and cognitive disorders, and dental and vision care for children. Such additional benefits are often not fully covered by frugal plans that are now the best that many small businesses can afford.

Traditionally regulated by the states, private insurance benefits vary widely across the country. Large companies can opt out of most state rules, although they usually offer comprehensive coverage.

Consumer advocates had hoped Obama would set a robust standard for the whole nation. But his administration only met them part way.

“The essential health benefits package will for the first time define a minimum standard for health insurance coverage,” said Stephen Finan of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network. “We urge states to choose a benchmark plan that provides the best care for someone at risk of a life-threatening chronic disease such as cancer.”

Source : http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/national/2011/12/19/228093.htm

Small Business Grant | "Small business owners look ahead to new year"

By : Matt de Nesnera 
Source : http://www.kionrightnow.com 
Category : Small Business Grant

Many small businesses are eager to turn the page on what has been a tough financial year, hoping that a new year and clean slate will bring the promise of growth and improvement.

Continued stresses in Europe, along with a sluggish economy back home, will worry market watchers long after the new year celebrations end.  But John Lewis, who owns three businesses in Salinas, including the Glass Guru and Lewis Builders, said he predicts business will be "slightly better than flat" next year.

These days, any growth feels like cause to celebrate.  Lewis said the last quarter of 2011 has been better than the rest of the year, and he expects that trend to continue.  He currently employs 13 people, and hopes to add at least one or two new positions to his team in 2012.

But Lewis's optimism is tempered by Congress's inability to find compromise, as well as new regulations that affect small businesses and the industries that support them.

"For example, here in Salinas, the homes that we work on are in the agriculture industry.  From the EPA and other federal agencies, they're getting more and more regulations that are giving them the inability to grow," said Lewis.

Across the country, some members of the business community have warned legislators and the president that regulations would hamper their ability to help lead the nation out of the economic doldrums.  According to the Small Business Administration, small businesses employ roughly half the private workforce, so any recovery will be critically dependent on their growth.

Earlier this year, Lewis expressed concern about partisan politics when the government was brought to the brink of default during the debt ceiling debate.  2012 will be a major year politically, and Lewis said the heated rhetoric in the presidential race is already having an effect.

"Exaggerating small business challenges and that sort of thing, it's just painting a worse picture than it really is," said Lewis.  Lewis added that the federal government has made strides to encourage lending, but he said that needs to be the focus.

With new uncertainty surrounding a deal extending the payroll tax cut and congressional leaders seemingly unable to find any common ground, the year on the calendar will change –- but some things will likely remain all too familiar.

Source : http://www.kionrightnow.com/story/16353240/small-business-owners-look-ahead-to-new-year

Small Business Grant | "January SBDC Calendar for Paris"

By : Paris Junior College
Source : http://www.ntxe-news.com
Category : Small Business Grant

The Small Business Development Center at Paris Junior College will offer several workshops as well as free counseling for current and prospective small business owners in the Paris area during the month of January, according to Director Bradley Gottshalk.

The workshops will be held at the Bobby Walters Workforce Training Center on Clarksville Street, west entrance. To register, contact the Continuing Education Department at 903-782-0447 or the Paris Small Business Development Center at 903-782-0224.

Create Your Own Job - Start Your Own Business will be offered from 9-11 a.m. on Friday, January 6. This free workshop will include information needed to start a small business. Topics will include legal requirements, the different forms of business organization and their advantages and disadvantages, conducting a feasibility study, writing a business plan, getting a sales tax permit, types of financing available for a start-up business, and what lenders want to know, as well as information on SBA guaranteed loan programs.  This information is also available on DVD and online.

QuickBooks Level II: Beyond the Basics will meet from 1-5 p.m. each Tuesday, January 10-24. This course offers training in tracking inventory and handling payroll requirements. Also dealing with physical inventory; selling inventory items; usage QuickBooks for payroll; working with balance sheet accounts; dealing with errors, refunds, and NSF checks; and customizing QuickBooks.

CRM: An Introduction to Customer Relationship Management is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Thursday, January 26. This one-day course offers different facets of customer relationship management and shows how to identify customers, analyze key components of CRM, and how to integrate it into a business.

Free, confidential counseling to start or expand a small business is offered every Monday and Tuesday at the PJC Small Business Development Center, 1405 S. Collegiate. Call 903-782-0224 to make an appointment for free counseling.

Free training for small businesses is now being offered through two grant programs from Texas Workforce Commission.

Through the Skills for Small Business Grant, owners and their employees can apply for free tuition to take any Paris Junior College course, credit or non-credit (limited to $1,450 for new employees and $725 for existing employees).

Through the Entrepreneurial Training Grant, business owners or persons interested in starting a new business, can apply for free training (limit of $500 per person). Call the Paris Small Business Development Center at 903-782-0224 for details on how to take advantage of these limited-time training grant programs awarded by the Texas Workforce Commission.

The Small Business Development Center is funded by the U.S. Small Business Administration, the State of Texas, and Paris Junior College.

Source : http://www.ntxe-news.com/artman/publish/article_73720.shtml

Small Business Grant | "Montana exporters encouraged to apply for grants"

By : MT Dept of Commerce
Source : http://www.krtv.com
Category : Small Business Grant

A grant from the Small Business Administration is enabling the Montana Department of Commerce (MDOC) to provide financial assistance to Montana exporters.

The SBA awarded MDOC's Office of International Trade and Relations a one-year grant of $307,849 to provide financial assistance to qualified Montana small businesses for their promotional efforts in beginning to export or expanding exports into new markets.

The Montana International Marketing Assistance Grant program is a result of President Obama's current initiative to double U.S. exports by 2015 through the rural and small business sectors.

Funds are available for the following activities:

- Marketing expenses for attending international trade shows

- Language Translation and Production Services for marketing materials and websites

- Market Research and Other Services from the U.S. Commercial Service

In a press release, Governor Brian Schweitzer noted, "Ninety-five percent of the world's consumers live outside of the United States and as the world continues to grow, so do the demands for Montana goods. Montana's businesses are perfectly positioned to make the most of this booming, world-wide marketplace."

Small and medium sized companies with fewer than 20 employees make up the majority of growth in new exporters nationally.

That is good news according to Dore Schwinden, MDOC Director, who said, "Small businesses reign in Montana. Of those, about 850 currently export. This funding allows us to not only increase that number but also help current exporters expand their markets. It can be the difference between a company standing still or growing. And growth means jobs."

The Office of Trade and International Relations provides technical assistance for exporting companies. "Our office is contacted daily by companies requesting assistance," said Lonie Stimac, Senior Marketing Officer. "This grant allows us to, for the first time, couple technical guidance with financial assistance for marketing."

In 2010, Montana's combined bulk wheat and manufactured exports reached a near record high total of $1.96 billion. This is a 33% increase over 2009 figures, making 2010 the second highest export year following Montana's record high peak of $2.06 billion in 2008.

Those numbers don't tell the whole story because it isn't only manufactured products and value added agriculture that make up Montana's exports. Tourism and education are both considered service exports.

"We hope that major resorts, recreation associations, and colleges and universities consider using this opportunity," said Stimac.

Source : http://www.krtv.com/news/montana-exporters-encouraged-to-apply-for-grants/

Small Business Grant | "Small business: Whip out your phone to make sales"

By : RHONDA ABRAMS
Source : http://www.news-press.com
Category : Small Business Grant 

Many of us use mobile devices to find businesses or make restaurant reservations, but are you using any mobile marketing for your small business to capture all those customers on their phones?

Sure, the idea of mobile marketing seems daunting, especially for a small business. After all, how can you develop a smartphone application when you haven’t had time to update your website in six years?

Relax, you don’t have to develop a gee-whiz app or use every mobile method available. Enter the world of mobile marketing slowly, and you still can improve your bottom line. The good news is many mobile marketing techniques are easy — and even free.

First, acknowledge that mobile devices transform the way customers deal with small businesses and that some of those are your customers and prospects. After all, more than a third of all Americans own a smartphone, equipped with data services such as Internet access and mobile applications, according to the Pew Internet Project. Pew estimates that 11 percent of Americans now own a tablet device as well.

That’s a lot of people looking at their phones. Some are absolutely addicted to it.

Take my experience during the Thanksgiving holiday: Everywhere I went with my two nephews — 24-year-old Seth and 32-year-old Aaron — the first thing they did was whip out their smartphones. They checked in on Foursquare, posted on Facebook, tweeted on Twitter.

They weren’t just checking in with friends. At one restaurant, Seth looked up dishes others recommended on Foursquare; at another, he got a discount coupon on his phone. At yet another restaurant, Aaron ran his phone over a QR — Quick Response — code, one of those squiggly square graphics that take you to a website, that was pasted in the guest check folder to earn points on RewardMe toward a future free meal or dessert.

What ways can you get started with mobile marketing for your small business?

1. Get found. Let’s say someone is in Chicago’s North Side looking for a Thai restaurant.

Their GPS-equipped mobile phone shows them which Thai restaurants are nearby. If you own a nearby Thai restaurant, you want to show up.

Easy solutions? Claim your business on sites such as Yelp, Bing, Yahoo Local, Google Places, and Foursquare. Free and easy.

2. Give coupons and deals. The easiest — and free — way to offer deals is to add a coupon to those same sites.

But business-oriented applications also are especially designed to present coupons to customers based on location, such as Yowza or CouponSherpa as well as the daily deal sites like Groupon or LivingSocial.

3. Build relationships with customers. The easiest and free way is through social media sites such as Facebook or Twitter.

Many people, especially younger consumers, check these sites on their phones continually. Posting once a day or a few times a week keeps your name in front of them. More powerful customer connection programs, like RewardMe, enable customers to receive rewards for coming back to you repeatedly.

4. Help shoppers find your location, hours, main products or services. I’m betting it’s tough navigating your decades-old website on a tiny phone screen.

Talk to your website designer or host about options for mobile versions of your web page. In any case, make sure that your home page has the most critical info in highly readable type — large fonts, dark print — that doesn’t require typing or moving away from the home page.

5. Accept payment. Maybe you, not your customer, is the one who’s mobile.

If you’re a plumber or contractor or sell at crafts fairs or farmers markets, you can accept payment right on your cell phone.

Services such as Square, or Intuit GoPayment have credit-card swipers that attach to your cell phone. You pay a percentage fee for every charge processed, but you get paid right on the spot.

More mobile services for small businesses are being created every day. So whip out your phone and say hi to the new marketing powerhouse for your company.

Source : http://www.news-press.com/article/20111218/BUSINESS/312180013/Small-business-Whip-out-your-phone-make-sales

Small Business Grant | "Small business health and safety revamp welcomed "

By : Harborough Mail
Source : http://www.harboroughmail.co.uk
Category : Small Business Grant 

SMALL businesses will benefit from plans to slash health and safety red tape according to an industry body.

The Forum of Private Business says the measures, due to come into effect in January, says a recent review which recommends that health and safety law should not apply to self-employed people whose work poses no risk to others will be beneficial.

Forum senior policy adviser Alex Jackman, said: “We have waited a while for the results of the Government review, and now they are here we’re not disappointed.

“There are recommendations that will see a tangible difference to the shop floor, but also a wider acknowledgement for the needs of health and safety to be a shared burden with staff as well as employers.”

“Many businesses have positive views of the benefits of health and safety, but the proposals today will – once implemented – go some way towards reducing the wider perception that small businesses have on the issue and make it harder to litigate when employers are not at fault.”


Source : http://www.harboroughmail.co.uk/news/business/small_business_health_and_safety_revamp_welcomed_1_3321265

Small Business Grant | "For small businesses, StreetWise MBA is a real-world solution"

By : Christina Reinwald 
Source : http://bostonglobe.com 
Category : Smalll Business Grant 

Owners believe program helps increase sales, create positions

Kate Saliba, co-owner of Smudge Ink, a greeting card designer and printer, knew her small Charlestown business needed help competing in a crowded industry dominated by huge players such as Hallmark Cards Inc.

So Saliba last year turned to the StreetWise MBA program, an initiative by the Boston-based nonprofit Interise to provide management, marketing, and other business school level programs to small enterprises. Over several months, Saliba learned financial analysis, better human resource practices, and streamlined processing and shipping of orders.

The result: a 19 percent increase in sales last year, a projected 25 percent increase this year, and the hiring of three new employees.
Related

    Video: Business owner talks about StreetWise MBA program

“The StreetWise program opened a door for me,’’ said Saliba, 36, who has co-owned Smudge Ink for nine years. “I needed to dedicate time on my business if I wanted it to grow in a strategic way, which sometimes can be the most difficult part.’’

The StreetWise MBA program aims to increase economic activity and opportunities for lower income communities by helping their small businesses succeed, grow, and create jobs. Since the program was launched in Boston in 2004, more than 1,200 small business owners nationwide have taken courses, with nearly 60 percent reporting revenue increases last year and about half adding full-time employees, according to an Interise survey.

All told, the businesses have created more than 500 jobs, according to Interise, which runs similar programs in 32 other cities.

“Part of the reason StreetWise is successful, is that the people who take the program really work it,’’ said Jean Hortsman, Interise’s chief executive. “You don’t join and sit or forget about the class. If you work it to its full potential, you will see your business be successful and prove they are resilient.’’

Owners of small businesses spend 100 hours in class and coursework and approximately $10,000 tuition for the nine-month program - a bargain compared with business school tuitions that can top $50,000 a year. Many StreetWise participants receive scholarships.

The StreetWise MBA follows the case study approach pioneered by Harvard Business School. But in this program, the cases studied come from the real world challenges and problems of the business owners in the program. The issues are discussed, analyzed, and addressed in classes. The end result is a three-year plan for the each of companies.

Dana Gonsal’s three-year plan included upgrading the services of his Boston shoeshine company. Now, he is looking to add massaging chairs and offer coffee to customers.

Gonsal founded Classic Shoeshine Valet Corp. 30 years ago, and operates in 11 locations, including prime spots at Logan International Airport and the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center. Through StreetWise, he was connected with a mentor, who helped him work through business issues, and other business owners with whom to share ideas.

The program helped him to decide to move one of his Logan shoeshine stations to serve customers who have already cleared security and are waiting for flights. Since Gonsal graduated from the StreetWise course in July, Classic Shoeshine has hired three more employees.

“It’s a different company and very different economic climate in 2011 from what it was in 1982,’’ said Gonsal. “Every owner needs to step back every three to five years, just to look at how the company is growing or not growing. If you want to grow, you need to step back and examine where the business is now and where it can go.’’

Taza Chocolate produces thousands of chocolate bars each month in its Somerville factory, but two years ago, cofounder Alex Whitmore was having difficulty managing the growth of the company, which doubled its employment.

Since Whitmore participated in the program in 2009, Taza has also doubled its revenues.

“We took part in the program because we needed help navigating that and met people going through similar situations who could help us,’’ Whitmore said. “The material in the curriculum is good, but the real value is making a lot of connections with local entrepreneurs.’’

Source : http://bostonglobe.com/business/2011/12/17/for-small-businesses-streetwise-mba-real-world-solution/4kZ0lUxfOrG2EjzN7dzp1N/story.html

Small Business Grant | "The Business Finance Store Looks at Small Business Trends That Are Worth Following"

By : SF Gate
Source : http://www.sfgate.com
Category : Small Business Grant 

The Business Finance Store looks at recent trends in the small business world in order to help small business owners plan for 2012.

PR Wire predicts that more small businesses will take advantage of social media advertising in 2012. PR Wire also estimated that mobile shopping will also grow in popularity. With the New Year approaching fast, it's a great time to look toward the future. Looking at upcoming trends is a great way to start thinking of ways to improve business in the coming year and might give businesses a leg up. In the recent blog post "2012 Small Business Resolutions," the Businesses Finance Store looks at recent trends in the small business world in order to help small business owners plan for 2012.

A number of 2012 predictions are already circulating but figuring out which ones are most relevant to small businesses can be a challenge. The Business Finance Store is simplifying this and pointing out four major trends that small businesses should keep an eye on and strive toward in the coming year. Read more about small business trends and ways to improve small businesses in the coming year at the Business Finance Store Blog.

The Business Finance Store is a business financing and consulting firm that offers customized Business Financial Solutions. Seasoned professionals offer assistance in a variety of financial solutions to help small businesses succeed such as: Business Financial Solutions, Legal Solutions, and Accounting Solutions.

The staff at The Business Finance Store understands that starting and growing a business is an exciting time. They keep it exciting by taking care of some of the most difficult aspects, by providing legal advice, helping with vital responsibilities like accounting & bookkeeping, and by obtaining business finance. They can quickly and easily guide entrepreneurs through many different complicated processes, and put them on the path to success.

For 10 years The Business Finance Store has been helping startups and other small businesses legally structure their companies, find the right franchises, get the funding they need, and to achieve the American Dream of owning their own successful business. Since expanding nationwide in 2007 they have helped thousands of companies and have funded over $60 Million in business credit lines, not including SBA loans. The Business Finance Store sees limitless potential in the current climate, and looks forward to many strong years of growth to come. Take some time to review their services, and give them a call.

Source : http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2011/12/17/prweb9050531.DTL

Small Business Grant | "State's growth capital plan still in rehearsal"

By : Tom Still 
Source : http://www.jsonline.com 
Category : Small Business Grant 

In the Samuel Beckett play "Waiting for Godot," two characters named Vladimir and Estragon wait in vain on a roadside for someone named Godot to arrive. They pass the time by eating, sleeping, talking, arguing, singing and more to "to hold the terrible silence at bay."

A similar plot line seems to be playing out in Wisconsin when it comes to growth capital creation.

While the Wisconsin Legislature slowly immerses itself - again - in the paralyzing Godot of recall politics, other states aren't content to sit and wait. Almost daily, it seems, one state or another is announcing a program or fund aimed at fostering economic growth.

Meanwhile, the idea of creating a state-leveraged venture capital fund in Wisconsin continues to wait on the side of the road. A bill with the conceptual support of Gov. Scott Walker and many legislators seems trapped in the "terrible silence" of election recall uncertainties that seemingly have no end.

On any given day, the press covering America's innovation economy carries news from states such as Iowa, Michigan, Colorado, Utah, North Dakota, Texas and Minnesota about public-private initiatives designed to increase investment in the high-growth economy.

Even the stalemated U.S. Congress last week reauthorized the 29-year-old Small Business Innovation Research grant program, proving that both Republicans and Democrats in Washington see the value of investing in the start-up economy.

Legislation being discussed in Wisconsin would authorize about $100 million in state support, to be repaid over time, for a fund that would invest broadly in other Wisconsin funds. This "fund-of-funds" approach would require significant private matching dollars and enable homegrown angel and venture funds to invest in Wisconsin companies, many of which are poised to grow quickly. The state would be a "limited partner" and get repaid just like other investors - with the added benefit of tax revenue from new companies and jobs.

It's an approach akin to what has worked in many other states. As Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. CEO/Secretary Paul Jadin noted in a recent guest column for the Journal Sentinel: "Thirty states already have capital investment programs because they realize that new businesses are the foundation for new jobs."

The bill is unlikely to surface until January, at the earliest, in part because of recall politics but also because of the curious grip of CAPCOs on the Capitol debate. Certified capital companies, or CAPCOs, are often billed as an alternative to the "fund-of-funds" approach, but the experience in Wisconsin and elsewhere suggests it's a less efficient, more costly option that more traditional venture and angel capital.

Even in Wisconsin, however, there are signs that others aren't merely waiting for the Legislature to act.

    In a move that signals its continued interest in emerging markets in the Upper Midwest, the State of Wisconsin Investment Board announced last week it will commit up to $80 million to Northgate Capital through SWIB's Venture Capital Catalyst Portfolio. Northgate Capital is a California private equity firm with more than a decade of top-tier investment and fund partnerships. The commitment allows SWIB to access and invest in Northgate's worldwide network. It also allows SWIB to pursue a Midwest and Wisconsin development strategy, as identified in past SWIB reports and other independent studies on the region's largely untapped venture capital investment opportunities.
     The Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority is marching ahead with plans to create a Wisconsin Equity Investment Fund with $7 million of federal funding. The fund is being established to increase capital available to venture capital and private equity firms in Wisconsin, with an emphasis on job creation and investment in low-income communities. The fund is expected to generate $70 million in capital investments for Wisconsin small businesses. WHEDA recently collected proposals from experienced investment managers and will announce a rollout in 2012.
     At WEDC, the successor agency to the former state Department of Commerce, Jadin is examining other options for investing in industries and sectors beyond the traditional venture and angel capital mold.

With those developments in play, the growth capital bill pending in the Legislature is all the more vital because it would signal to the nation's capital markets that Wisconsin is truly serious about expanding its economy. In fact, legislative inaction at this point would likely be taken as a sign that Wisconsin isn't as "open for business" as it claims.

In "Waiting for Godot," the play ends with Vladimir asking, "Well? Shall we go?" Estragon responds: "Yes, let's go." And neither man moves. Let's hope the curtain doesn't fall the same way on Wisconsin's venture capital drama.

Source : http://www.jsonline.com/business/states-growth-capital-plan-still-in-rehearsal-rd3fkqq-135763298.html

Small Business Grant | "Startup funding helps to create jobs"

By : Jake Halliday 
Source : http://www.columbiatribune.com
Category : Small Business Grant 

Opinions vary on the value of government-funded programs, but thank goodness for the Small Business Innovation Research program.

The Small Business Innovation Research, or SBIR, program was created in 1982 to provide support to small high-tech firms that play a role in technological advancement and to increase private-sector commercialization of innovation derived from federal research and development.

Federal agencies with outside research-and-development budgets of more than $100 million are required by Congress to administer SBIR programs using an annual set-aside of 2.5 percent for small companies to conduct innovative research or R&D that has potential for commercialization and public benefit.

SBIR grants are awarded only to for-profit companies — not to universities. Some might challenge why public funds are being awarded to private companies, but there is a clear public benefit: jobs.

Virtually all job growth over the past two decades has been by innovative small businesses. Large corporations have given us shrinking employment over the same period.

Overall, Missouri businesses lag behind many states in tapping these grant funding resources.

But here at the incubator in Columbia, we are doing fairly well.

One of our companies recently received a $671,000 SBIR award from the National Institute of Mental Health. Another has completed a $250,000 Phase I grant from the National Cancer Institute and is in line for a $1.6 million Phase II award.

The significance of SBIR funding for high-tech startups cannot be overemphasized.

Venture capital firms do not fund startups. They come into the picture later, after the companies emerge from their period of highest risk.

Startups are funded mainly by angel investors — brave souls with extra cash and an above-average tolerance for risk.

Actually, angel investment across the country totals about $25 billion annually — on a par with the total investment by professionally managed venture capital firms.

There is a problem with angel capital, however.

It is very, very expensive for the entrepreneur. An entrepreneur can expect to give up, on average, a 25 percent to 30 percent ownership stake in his or her startup for a $300,000 angel investment.

That is where the SBIR funding comes into its own.

No equity ownership is surrendered; there is no debt to be paid back. Angel investors really like to see their companies secure SBIR grants. A grant benefits the company without diluting the investors’ ownership. Also, the scientific review conducted by the granting agency is rigorous and equivalent to a “seal of approval” by world experts in the field.

Funding strategies for startups usually are a combination of angel investment and SBIR grants. One of our incubator companies took its technology from the lab to the marketplace with $300,000 in angel investment and $700,000 in grants. Long may this continue.

Sorece : http://www.columbiatribune.com/news/2011/dec/17/startup-funding-helps-to-create-jobs/

Small Business Grant | "Small Business Strategies: Using cell phones to make sales"

By : Rhonda Abrams
Source : http://www.usatoday.com
Category : Small Business Grant 

How long has it been since you used your cell phone to find a business? To make a reservation at a restaurant? Not long. Most of us use mobile devices to shop. But are you using any mobile marketing for your small business, to capture all those customers on their phones?

Sure, the idea of "mobile marketing" seems daunting, especially for a small business. After all, how can you develop a smartphone application ("app") when you haven't even had time to update your webpage in six years?

Relax, you don't have to develop a gee-whiz app or use every mobile method available. Enter the world of mobile marketing slowly, and you can still improve business and your bottom line. The good news is many mobile marketing techniques are easy - and even FREE.

First, acknowledge that mobile devices transform the way customers deal with small businesses, and some of those are your customers and prospects. After all, more than a third of Americans own a smartphone - equipped with data services such as Internet access and mobile applications, or "apps," according to the Pew Internet Project. Pew estimates that 11% of Americans now own a tablet device as well.

That's a lot of people looking at smartphones. Some are absolutely addicted to it.

Take my experience over Thanksgiving. Everywhere I went with my nephews - 24-year-old Seth and 32-year-old Aaron - the first thing they did was whip out their smartphones. They checked in on FourSquare, posted on Facebook, tweeted on Twitter. They weren't just checking in with friends. At one restaurant, Seth looked up which dishes others recommended on FourSquare; at another, he got a discount coupon on his phone. At yet another restaurant, Aaron ran his phone over a "QR" - Quick Response - code (one of those squiggly square graphics that take you to a website) pasted in the guest check folder to earn points toward a future meal or dessert.

So how can you get started with mobile marketing for your small business?

1. Get found. Let's say someone is in Chicago's North Side looking for a Thai restaurant. Their GPS-equipped mobile phone shows them which Thai restaurants are nearby. If you own a Thai restaurant in the neighborhood, you want to show up. Easy solutions? "Claim" your business on sites such as Yelp, Bing, Yahoo Local, Google Places, Foursquare. Free and easy.

2. Give coupons and deals. The easiest - and free - way to offer deals is to add a coupon to those sites listed above. But there are also business-oriented applications especially designed to present coupons to customers based on location, such as Yowza (getyowza.com) or CouponSherpa (couponsherpa.com) or DealChicken (dealchicken.com, owned by USA TODAY parent Gannett) as well as the daily deal sites like Groupon or LivingSocial.

3. Build relationships with customers. The easiest - and free - way is through social media sites such as Facebook or Twitter. Many people, especially younger consumers, check these on their phones continually. Posting once a day or a few times a week keeps your name in front of them. More powerful customer connection programs, like RewardMe, enable customers to receive rewards for coming back to you repeatedly.

4. Help shoppers find your location, hours, main products or services. I'm betting it's tough navigating your decades-old website on a tiny phone screen. Talk to your website designer or host about options for mobile versions of your web page. In any case, make sure your home page has the most critical info in highly readable type - large fonts, dark print - that doesn't require typing or moving away from the home page.

5. Accept payment. Maybe it's you - not your customer - who's mobile. In many mobile service businesses, such as plumbing and contracting, or if you sell at crafts fairs or farmers markets, you can accept payment right on your cell phone. Services like Square, (squareup.com) or Intuit GoPayment (gopayment.com) have little credit card swipers that attach to your cell phone. You pay a percent fee for every charge processed, but you get paid on the spot.

More mobile services for small businesses are being created every day. So whip out your phone and say hi to the new marketing powerhouse for your company.

Source : http://www.usatoday.com/money/smallbusiness/columnist/abrams/story/2011-12-16/abrams-mobile-marketing/51967754/1

Small Business Grant | "Nefsis Virtualization Technology Benefits Small Business and Non-Profit Video Conferencing Customers "

By : Nefsis 
Source : http://www.sacbee.com 
Category : Small Business Grant

Online services innovator Nefsis® highlighted today the benefits of its virtualization and cloud computing technology for small business and non-profit video conferencing customers. Unlike boardroom equipment and telepresence systems prevalent in large corporate settings, cloud-based video conferencing requires only a web browser, inexpensive webcam, and existing Internet access to get started. Technical functions previously provided by on-premise infrastructure hardware are now provided via the cloud. The benefits of the cloud-based approach are lower cost, automated maintenance, and easy web-based access anywhere worldwide – compelling benefits in small business and non-profit settings that require secure, high-quality video, but do not have the budget or physical resources typically found in large corporate organizations.

(Logo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110114/MM30776LOGO)

The initial application of cloud-based video conferencing solutions mirrored that of earlier boardroom equipment: interoffice meetings. As the cloud-based approach evolved, it enabled a much greater variety of applications such as sales presentations, customer support, employee and customer online training, plus specialty applications such as video remote interpreting, online project reviews, telemedicine, and telepsychiatry to name a few.

For example, Advancial Federal Credit Union has deployed Nefsis video conferencing for employee online training. AspenPointe, a Colorado-based provider of behavioral health and counseling services, uses Nefsis for connecting staff members to rural patients. In these applications low cost and easy, web-based access were required.

The following are the top three benefits of cloud-based video conferencing in small-to-medium business (SMB) and non-profit settings:

    The Nefsis cloud lowers the cost of video conferencing applications in two important ways: The use of off-the-shelf webcams, HD webcams, and other video peripherals drops the endpoint video conferencing equipment cost to within the budget of any small business. Moreover, Nefsis does not require expensive, infrastructure equipment such as video-specific routers, multipoint channel units (MCUs), and desktop gateway and collaboration servers. These functions are provided by the Nefsis cloud via software and virtualization technology.
    In addition to eliminating the up-front expense of infrastructure equipment, the physical maintenance is eliminated too. The Nefsis cloud is automatically maintained on behalf of Nefsis customers, enabling new video conferencing applications where no IT staff is available.
    The third benefit is easy, web-based access from virtually anywhere, including the desktops and multipurpose conference rooms of remote sites and customer locations. This is a distinct improvement over traditional, installed-site systems that were limited to connections with like-equipped sites. Now video conferencing applications can reach anywhere participants can click on a web link. An essential technology in providing easy, web-based access is Nefsis' dynamic scalable video. This real-time, software-based technology provides the highest-quality video possible, including up to multipoint HD, over a variety of constantly changing bandwidth conditions often found in desktop, small business and non-profit environments.

Nefsis offers a full-featured, free trial of Nefsis Professional. Nefsis Professional is compatible with Microsoft, Logitech, and other USB webcams, and a wide variety of audio and video peripherals. For more information or a free trial, visit http://www.nefsis.com.

About NefsisHeadquartered in San Diego, California, Nefsis is a technology specialist in video conferencing software and cloud computing online services. The Company's global cloud provides multipoint HD video and advanced collaboration tools to business, government and educational customers in more than 45 countries worldwide. Compared to previous generations of infrastructure hardware solutions, such as video routers, MCUs and gateways, the Nefsis cloud-based offering is less expensive, automatically maintained, and easier to expand.

Source : http://www.sacbee.com/2011/12/15/4125341/nefsis-virtualization-technology.html