Archive for 2009

Over the last 20 years, businesses in every sector have become increasingly dependent on technology. At first it was the fax machine. Then came word processing. As technology has grown more complex each and every company has come to rely upon it more and more. So why are they afraid to put in the money to keep that technology going?

David Lane looks at this topic more in depth at:

How Can Companies That Rely on Technology Consistently Not Pay for It?

I have seen this happen myself: server closets without adequate ventilation. Phone systems held together with duct tape and paperclips. When I asked about it I was always told the issues where due to “budget constraints”. I am always amazed that people will risk their entire business for just a few thousand dollars.

Do you have a blog? Are you using it to bring in sales? Well Scott Ginsberg has a great post on 6 ways to use your blog to close sales. But here is the catch:

“Keep in mind that none of these six blogging practices will work unless you’ve already taken preparatory action.

That means you need to actually HAVE a blog.
That means you need to be WRITING, every day.
That means you need to POST on your blog, every day.
That means you need to attract decent TRAFFIC to your blog.
That means you need to gather TESTIMONIALS from your customers fans.
That means you need to earn your readers’ TRUST through (consistently) practical and helpful content.”

So, if you are on board of all of that, head over to HELLO, my name is BLOG!

If you’re like us, you switched to Firefox for a lot of reasons. However, security was probably the biggest and most commonly cited reason for switching to FF from IE. But just how secure is it really? Are we better off now than we were with IE or Netscape?

Test Center: How Secure is Firefox? (InfoWorld)

There is a lot of good stuff in that article. What do you think?

No big surprise here. Sometimes I often wonder why Sony and Microsoft even bother with the console market. I know they both have divisions that make games, but it is not their primary business.

Once upon a time a man would buy a razor and then spend almost nothing on cheap blades. The razor manufacturers never made a lot of money. Then one day a company realized “Hey! Lets give the razor away and make our money on the blades!” This thought revolutionized not only the razor industry, but many others as well.

Nintendo has learned from this lesson. Most Wii games come from Nintendo itself. Xbox and PS games mostly come from other developers. Sure, these developers pay Microsoft and Sony to be allowed to develop for the platform but MS and Sony take huge losses on the hardware, and reap little reward from the software.

Nintendo gives the razor away and sells the blades. MS and Sony charge an arm and a leg for the razor, still take a loss on it, then let others make money selling the blades.

Is there any wonder Sony and Microsoft both have been quoted as saying that consoles are a dead end industry? Both parties want to get out by 2012 unless there is a major change.

I say “Go Nintendo, Go!”

For more information, take a look at:

Sony, Nintendo give dim forecast

As for Nintendo cutting its profit forecast, that is just a smart move. Will make them look all that much better at the end of the next quarter.

On January 16th opened a new expanded IRS e-file program for 2008 federal tax returns. In 2008 the average return was $2,429 and nearly 27 million people prepared and filed their own return electronically. This represented an over 19% increase from 2007.

An even larger surge is expected this year. People want their tax returns handled quickly and efficiently. The new system is designed to work with the many commercial tax software products that are available. Many of which, for the first time, will not be charging additional fees to file electronically.

For more information check out:

IRS ready to open the gate for 2009 e-filing with new features

Many times companies use celebrities to get extra attention for their products or services. Even in politics and endorsement from a well known political star can mean the difference between a victory and an “also ran”. But it is important to remember that the transference of clout doesn’t just run one way. Michael Jordan found this out the hard way.

Michael Jordan has consistently been one of the most sought after and well paid celebrities for endorsements. Shoes, Gatorade, and McDonalds made Jordan not only a star on the court but also a star of the television screen. In each case, Jordans image made millions of dollars for his customers. Air Jordan graced the feet of children around the world. Gatorade “quenched the thirsts” of athletes globally. And McDonalds? McDonalds took a bite out of Jordans reputation that never quite healed.

Customers and critics of the McDonalds commercials couldn’t quite understand the connection between the super athlete and the calorie rich foods he was selling on the TV. Nobody really believed that after the big game Jordan sat down to a Big Mac with a Super Size order of fries.

As always, McDonalds survived the critics. Jordan’s reputation, however, took a severe beating. Even over a decade later Jordan’s actions off the court are getting more attention than anyting he ever did while playing the game.

So pick your branding, your advertising, and your other messages carefully. Does everything match up or is your Jordan eating a Big Mac?

For a (snarky) look at Michael Jordans history take a look at Slate’s:

Citizen Jordan

Liberty Mutual Web is a great resource for employees and their employers. The content of the site focuses on two new regulations that affect how employers manage family medical leave. These regulations are: The Family and Medical Leave Act Final Rule and New Jersey’s state paid leave program.

Key rule changes affect:

Military Family Leave Programs
Light Duty
Intermittent Leave
Concurrent Leave
Bonuses and Awards

For more information check out:

Family and Medical Leave Act rules change for 2009

DailyNews.com recently posted an article listing ways that those currently looking for a job could cut their taxes. Methods listed include: deducting mileage to interviews, mailing and printing costs, and other costs incurred while looking for a job.

The full article can be read at:

Uncle Sam has eye on jobless aid

“The Internal Revenue Service has announced that taxpayers in Delaware, Illinois, New York, and Rhode Island who file paper income tax returns will send them to different processing centers this year.

Taxpayers in Delaware, New York, and Rhode Island will now send their tax returns to the IRS Kansas City Service Center in Kansas City, MO. Taxpayers in Illinois will now send their tax returns to the IRS Fresno Service Center, in Fresno, CA.”

For more information check out:

IRS announces last minute address changes for filing tax returns

A lot of people say that your advertising needs to meet the needs and requirements of the culture around you. With all of the law suits and regulations that are being thrown around, you definitely cannot ignore the constraints thrown onto a business by what culture demands.

Kellogg’s latest changes to their advertising are a perfect example of this point. The company’s CoCo Pop’s cereal has been a mainstay in many households morning routine for years. Prior to 2004 100% of their advertising was targeted directly at children. The commercials were fun and usually involved animated mascots or popular characters. However, culture has demanded that companies stop selling to children. Adults have grown tired of children whining and groaning in the grocery store breakfast aisle to get their way. Today, 90% of Kellogg’s breakfast cereal advertising occurring during “family prime airtime”. The new commercials spend more time on the quality of the product than on proving how fun it is to eat.

That is not to say that a company cannot mold culture to its needs. In the early 20th century bad breath was nothing to be afraid of. A firm handshake and a steady eye were all that people were judged by. However, Listerine’s product advertisements soon changed this. By 1920 “Chronic Halitosis” was a catch phrase known well throughout the United States. Advertisements asked women if they could live with their man “even with breath like that.” Listerine, a product originally intended as a battlefield antiseptic, suddenly became a household name.

Companies need to pay attention to current cultural and legal trends regarding advertising. It is hard to sell a product when the customer has been offended and the FTC levies hefty fines on those that disregard advertising regulations. However, culture is not static. The culture of the United States, what is popular and what is not, changes on a constant basis. Never miss the opportunity to mold culture to the needs of your product. As author James B. Twitchell says,”Listerine did not make mouthwash as much as it made halitosis.”

For more information on advertisements that shaped our culture, check out James B. Twitchell’s book: “20 Ads that Changed the World: The Century’s Most Groundbreaking Advertising and How It Changed Us All.”