(Source: search.hmrc.gov.uk)

Starting a new business?

More and more people are incorporating their own businesses with companies house online when previously it was the role of your accountant. If you register your business at your own address (not your accountant’s as is the usual practice) you might find some interesting scam letters through your door.

If you receive a very convincing letter from Intracom VAT registry (see link for sample http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/security/vat-scam.pdf) shred it!

If you would like to help protect other businesses share the information at your business networks and share this post on Facebook, retweet on Tritter or simply write your own.

(Source: search.hmrc.gov.uk)

If you receive an email claiming to be an “important notice” regarding your domain name renewal, a domain service notice or a search engine submission notice don’t be fooled. Read the small print at the bottom. It is a solicitation (phishing) email designed to make domain owners panic and sign up to something they don’t need.

Do not reply to them just add them to your junk list.

If you are an AsOne customer and are unsure about any renewal notices you receive for domains, hosting, search engine marketing or anything internet related please ask us. Fill in a support request at www.asone.co.uk/support and we will look into it for you.

Google have now published a new initiative called “Search, Plus Your World”, which aims to bring you more personalised search results.  Now, when you search for anything in particular, you have the option to include related data from your Google+ profile as well as those privately shared with you.

The change will also provide auto complete results from your contacts, so if you begin typing their name into a search field, Google will automatically recommend their Google+ profile.

These changes have now come into practice, and you should be able to see two small icons on the top right of your search page that lets you toggle between two types of results – a globe (which offers the standard results) and a human icon – which will display related data form Google+.

But is this a good thing, or a bad thing?

The simple answer is, if you are a Google user then this is fantastic news- bad if you are a direct competitor.  If you have a Google+ profile and depending on the various circles you are a part of, you have the chance to gain personal, unrivalled information that can only be beneficial when you make a search. However, if you are a rival to Google, in what is now becoming a social media world, then it’s not so good – just as Twitter found out! 

Social Media is where you want to be when it comes to helping your business expand, as it is a priceless asset in the marketing world. Social media channels like Twitter, Facebook and Linkedin attract so much continual attention from Internet users, it has become a phenomenal and powerful venue for advertisers to create interest and traffic. Here are five reasons to use social media for business.

1. Help Increased Search Engine Rankings:  Social media profiles frequently rank highly with major search engines. Using brand names and keywords in your profiles can help you to generate traffic for your social media sites and company homepage.
2. Generate Site Traffic:  By updating regularly on sites such as Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn with posts that link back to your site, you can create additional traffic to your site.
3. Find New Customers Through a Company Profile:  Your company profile is a great opportunity for you to post regular updates on your activities, but also about important news and trends in your industry. It’s critical to post regularly if you want to increase your followers or fans and convert them to potential leads.
4. Brand Monitoring:  Having a social media presence allows you to better understand what current and potential customers are saying about your product or services.
5. Networking:  Through social media you can quickly build a network of core supporters, which is essential for any up and coming business to keep growing and expanding. It is that group of loyal followers that will keep bringing your company business and referring it to others if they are pleased with what they are finding.

Following on from this, here is a little bit of ‘New News’ - Introducing Tokkster, a new type of chat room.

Tokkster is a new type of Internet chat room, which enables users to chat with other people over the same webpage. Pretty Unique.

All you need to do is sign up with a Tokkster account (and yes, it’s free). And that’s it. Once signed up, you browse websites like usual. What you will notice is a Tokkster Status bar in which you are able to see other peoples faces that are browsing the same page at the same time. Of course, if you don’t feel like chatting, either minimize the app (to become invisible) or don’t log in.

Only available in Internet Explorer version 7.0 and above (other version coming out soon).

1. Assess your website:  Websites are a fantastic way in drumming up business, and with the continuous ways of being able to advertise, it’s a great opportunity to obtain customers. But like anything, first impressions count, so make sure your website is impactful and accurately represents your business.It doesn’t matter what product or service you are selling, if someone takes a disliking to it – it will be hard to retrieve them again. There are cost effective services that will design/redesign and help you manage your website throughout the year. Make sure you have a website service that allows you to make edits yourself, like AsOne’s CMS or have someone do it for you. Finally, update your website content throughout the year to keep it current to visitors and also refresh the search engine friendliness. Search engines like new content and come back often if your website is updated frequently. All of these activities will ensure that your business is running efficiently in 2012.


2. Access Social Media:  Social media is a powerful way to gain new visibility by connecting with people that are interested in your products or services. With the likes of Facebook, Twitter and Google+ at your fingertips, you can advertise all about your business. This will not only help get your business recognised, but the more traffic generated through social media, the sooner your website can earn a higher ranking among search engines.


3. Reward your loyal customers:  Long-term customers are customers that keep coming back because they enjoy your product or service. Make sure you take care of these people with discounts and cost savers. You can advertise exclusive specials on your company website or Facebook page, or through email communications like AsOne’s eShot eMail marketing system.

Google+ (Google Plus), Googles answer to Facebook, may not have the massive membership numbers that Facebook now enjoys, but it has just recorded its strongest-month ever and, according to Experian Hitwise, should reach 400million users by the end of the year.

Hitwise tweeted: “Google+ total US visits reach more than 49 million in Dec-11, biggest month to date & up 55% compared to Nov-11 ow.ly/i/oT3R,” 

they further tweeted that Google+ visits have increased in all but one week over the last 5 weeks. As usual figures are base in the US but are a good indicator of the global uptake in english speaking countries.

Analysts expect that Google+ will reach about 400 million users by the end of 2012, thats half the current number of Facebook users but it will have taken Google+ just over a year to reach compared to Facebook taking 4 years to reach 60 million. Of course, Social networking is now in the public conscience and many will try a new network out or simply stamp their mark on it.

Google integrates its Android smartphones with Google+ so it is now even easier for users to access Google+. With sales of Android devices of more than 700,000 per day the numbers should soon increase.

What does this mean for business owners? It is one more place to advertise and engage with potential or existing customers. Have you set up your Google+ Business Page? Talk to AsOne about how you can make steps to leverage the potential of Google+, Facebook and other social networking services.

Look out Birdcage Manchester, we’re off on our works do tonight! Dinner and dancing, just like the good olde days!

Do you check in on Foursquare, Facebook or another location-based app at least once a week? If so, you’re among just 2% of the adult population, according to a new US report.

Forrester Research surveyed 37,000 people with mobile phones and discovered that 70% no only didn’t regularly use location based check-in apps but didn’t even know what they were. On the bright side thats better than last years 84%. From the 30% this year who are aware of the Geo-Social applications only a tiny 5% are classed as active and only 2% check-in at least once a week.

If “checking-in” is not mainstream, what is the point of using it as a marketing tool?

Forrester found that American adult location-based service app users are twice as likely to share information about products or services they are considering purchasing or have purchased. Its those tiny minority who are the powerful influencers and early adopters who can also start trends and generate hype for brand other will later follow.

Promoting Check-Ins for your business can improve Checkouts!

Think, what can you do in your sleep to earn you money?

Well if you have a ‘real world’ shop, if you make something, import something or in any way have items you can pop in the post; you could be selling online while you lie in your bed.

AsOne can build a fully featured eCommerce solution integrated into your existing social network for under £4000? Be up and running in weeks and capitalising on eCommerce instead of struggling on the high street. You can even spread the cost over 10 months interest free.

Ideal if you are already trading in a shop, by mail order or on a market. Expand your customer base by taking your products online.

Contact the innovative award winning web design team at AsOne for more information.

If you don’t know what to do about Social Networking or you need help to market your brand digitally you need to check out AsOne’s exclusive Innovation Club from only £39/month you can have your domains, hosting and regular guidance on your marketing and results.

To complete the Commerce week today is all about the letter ‘S’ as in sCommerce. We have talked about eCommerce (electronic commerce) and mCommerce (mobile commerce, also electronic) and no it is the turn of sCommerce or social commerce.

It is to be expected that sCommerce is becoming more popular as the social media platforms it is driven by gain influence.  Bit is sCommerce simply getting your visitors to ‘Like’ your shop? Far from it sCommerce is powered by engagement.

Many businesses are failing to capitalise on this rapidly rising trend. Adding little more than adding a ‘Like’ button or setting up a Twitter feed. This is a great first step and gets you ready for the future but it is not a recipe for long-term success in sCommerce, which is likely to be one of the biggest generators of revenue for retailers over the next few years, but perhaps not just now. Even with the might of Facebook’s 800 million users their commerce project (shall we call it fCommerce?) was not successful. Most online retailers struggle to leverage social activities to increase their turnover.

Where newspaper advertising could be, and sometimes had to be, quite generic in its appeal and broad in its approach social commerce will thrive when retailers engage with their users and learn how to offer specific deals and products to the right people. Review sites are sketchy at the best of times. Who knows if the 1-star review was from a competitor and the 5-star reviews were written by the owner? Connection with people you trust and learning from their buying behaviour and brand choices will help retailers to discover people with influence who can be enticed into their product range and may become evangilists, spreading the word amongst those they influence. This is engagement, not with everyone but with those who can help you achieve your goals.

Unilever, the brand giant, have a clever approach. They invite users of social networks such as Facebook to ‘help them generate ideas and make their product better’. They offer points for engagement and even the chance of winning cash for ideas. This helps to make many feel like they are being heard and will help to generate loyalty. Almost as if they were ‘socialising’ with people who both talk and listen. Who would have thought social networking could mimic the real world! :)

sCommerce is not so much a new way of buying products but rather a way for retailers to market their goods and services and listen to feedback and the needs of their customers in an unobtrusive way, quickly and easily.

Have you got your social engagement started? Can you engage with your customers? Do you activly search out conversation about your brand and show the world you want to improve? If not its time to start, if you have started its time to get better!

AsOne can help setup and manage your social network and with our exclusive Innovation Club we can help to guide you through the ever shifting techniques to capitalise on this exciting medium. 

Did you know AsOne can build a fully featured eCommerce solution integrated into your social network for under £4000? Be up and running in weeks and capitalising on eCommerce instead of struggling on the high street. You can even spread the cost over 10 months interest free.

Have you ever used your smartphone to check prices before making a purchase? Its quick and easy and ensures you are getting the best price. Because of this ‘quick check’ mCommerce is becoming big news.

While checking prices it is easy simply complete the purchase on your phone. In the Christmas shopping rush you might even complete the process before you get served. Its part of the ‘try in store - buy online’ culture that is shifting sales from the high street to the internet. And you don’t even have to carry your bags home!

A shift in consumer behaviour is happening, Not only are we more likely to find out what other retailers are charging online and instore using our smartphones and tablets before we go shopping, we are also very likely to use our smartphones and other mobile devices while we are actually in store to check prices of competitor retailers?

Usablenet, the company who power so many US retail sites, states that mobile mobile traffic up 60% with iOS devices (iPhone, iPad etc.) being used by over half of mobile surfers. Statistics confirmed by AsOne’s eMail marketing statistics which also show over 50% of emails sent through our eShot system are opened on Apple devices with a tiny 5% opened on android and other smartphones. Apple users not only use their devices more smartly but are also more likely to purchase making iOS users a vital sector to target for digital marketing.

Shoppers also use their mobiles to read reviews on the products they might buy to help with the decision making process. Shoppers can now be directed to easy purchasing options while in the store of a competitor using GEO location, whats more, the shopper can be directed to other stores on the high street and tempted out of the shop they are in using the same location aware services.

Mobile promotions are an untapped market for many retailers and could be used to encourage more real world footfall. Its not just the ‘daily deal’ sites where you have to tempt in large number with massive discounts. Using services such as Facebook and Foursquare, AsOne can offer simple deals that can be the tipping point for mobile users to take a few more steps to your store when they are out shopping.

Shops should embrues the mobile technology and remind shoppers to ‘check in’ which will advertise to all their friends the are shopping there and reward them with vouchers or other offers.

Have you used your phone to get a better deal?

(Source: Flickr / fernando)

Over the last few weeks the news has been occupied with the downturn in sales for high street stores. The Arcadia Group, which runs many of the well known high street chains such as Topshop, Wallis, BhS, Burtons, Evans and Dorothy Perkins, has announced that it will close 250 to 260 stores over the next few years when their leases expire, mostly on the UK’s high streets.

Retailers are suffering several fronts, with increased operation costs, VAT rises and fuel and energy costs restricting household budgets. 

Arcadia owner Philip Green said in a recent interview: “We’ve got 450 or 460 stores where leases expire in the next three years and … we will close more than half of those on lease expiry” He added that most closures would be on the UK’s high streets while it protects its presence on retail parks and shopping centres.

This is not a new concept. The high street was the hub of consumer shopping just like newspapers used to be the place the nation got their news. Shoppers are moving to more convenient locations (often with free parking) just like they are getting their news online or digitally rather than from the printed page. Retailers must follow the crowed to where they are, and a growth sector is online through eCommerce. 

Green’s prediction come after Arcadia reported a loss for the year, and like many retailers, said like-for-like sales for the same period last year are down 4.4%, although online sales are up 21%. Online sales are soaring while high street follows printed publishing and suffers constant declines.

If you are thinking of selling your products online, there has never been a better time. AsOne can get you up and running in weeks and you too can begin to see sale increase rather than continue to decline on the high street.

Contact AsOne today on 0161 368 9100 or email here@asone.co.uk.

(Source: Flickr / magnus_d)