twelveoaksgroup.net » Elizabeth

Making Video Conferencing Work For You

Elizabeth — Thu, 17 Jan 2013 19:19:35 +0000

Video Conferencing has a long history that dates back to the 1960’s when ATT released the first picture phone at the New York World’s Fair. Today video conferencing has asserted its place in business, saving big and small companies time and money. Turning to video chat has become somewhat common place to help cut costs on travel expenses, employee reimbursement expenses, job interviews, and collaboration efforts.

The best part about it? It’s accessible to anyone. Brett Bajcsi an IT Operations Manager is quoted in an InformationWeek article saying, “Start Small”. He says, “Keep your scope small to begin with, understand how it’s implemented and how it’s going to work, and then expand from there”. Charted below are reviews taken from pcmag.com. For a more in depth analysis of these, click here.

Elizabeth

Elizabeth McPhail grew up learning about the trials, tribulations, and perks of small family-owned business. She creates and maintains websites and blogs, and in her spare time can be found on the water boating!

You Are the Expert

Elizabeth — Mon, 14 Jan 2013 20:05:28 +0000

Give away your knowledge and market yourself as the expert! Your knowledge and experience within your industry is invaluable and by offering it to others you will increase your credibility in the eye of the consumer and your peers which in turn yields sales. There’s no doubt this will require some invested time and thoughtfulness, and you may even give away secrets to your competition, but if you’re offering valuable information and it has your name attached to it, people will know where to go when they’re ready to spend their money.

Get creative! This is a fun way to market and connect with your customers and it doesn’t have to be complicated. There are a variety of ways to disseminate your information; think Facebook, email, Twitter, website, blog, Youtube, radio, newspaper, podcasts, or letters. Then think about what you’d like to offer up –this of course should relate back to your business. Could you share articles or books, DIY project ideas, money saver ideas, tip and tricks, offer guidance to others in your industry, share interesting facts, or the latest trends? The truth is, whether your business is just starting out or you’re an old pro, if you can offer people relevant information; increased trust and sales will be close behind!

Need more ideas or help executing your own ideas? See what Twelve Oaks Group can offer your small business!

Elizabeth

Mom and Pop CAN Go Virtual

Elizabeth — Mon, 03 Sep 2012 17:08:24 +0000

For small business owners the thought of a website can be a daunting idea. Limited time, skills or budget is enough to turn many away, and can be the demise of existing sites. Allow me to clear the air and bring a new perspective…

Fact: Today’s consumer turns to the internet before the phone book. We go there for reviews, pricing, hours of operation, contact info, latest happenings, buying, comparison, location, videos and pictures –to name a few. If a small business is able to address even some of these key issues with their website, they will inevitably reach new customers, save time spent on the phone, and have a leg up over competitors.

Fiction: Websites need to be updated all the time. Yeah, it’s great to keep potential customers in the loop about what’s happening with your business, but this info doesn’t have to be posted to your website. If site maintenance is of concern to you, you’re better off omitting time sensitive information to avoid outdated pages.

Fact: Sometimes less is more. If you don’t have the budget or skills to create a site with all the bells and whistles, that’s not a deal breaker. Websites should be clean, informative, and functional. Simplicity in many cases will provide the user with the information they need, and will allow them to take the next step by visiting your business in person.

For more information about how a website might benefit your small biz or to get pricing info, please contact Twelve Oaks Group. It maybe more affordable than you think!

Elizabeth

Realizing 3D Potential for Your Business

Elizabeth — Tue, 28 Aug 2012 02:39:27 +0000

When I hear the term 3D animation, the first thing that pops into my head is of course the Pixar movie Toy Story. Until digging a little deeper, it never occurred to me that the same technology that’s used to create Buzz Lightyear, is easily applied to the business world as an effective means of marketing companies and products.

3D design can dramatize boring info and data

~ Chris Blaylock

Chris Blaylock of Chris Blaylock 3D Designs sheds a little insight on how all this technology can positively impact your business. Let us start with the basics…first up, “3D design can dramatize boring info and data”, says Blaylock.

He explains, and it kind of goes without saying, that 3D animation can make anything look cutting edge and state of the art, which in turn will effectively capture the attention of viewers and introduce a novelty that is almost impossible to duplicate with live-shot video. Blaylock’s portfolio displays video intros, company logos, and products –all of which offer his clients an opportunity to convey their message with increased professionalism. 3D animation doesn’t just add to a company’s image, in some cases it offers businesses practical alternatives to explaining product. It can give the viewer a better understanding of how something works without the setup or take down, and can sometimes offer clearer images than live-shot video.

Investing in quality 3D animation does not come cheap, but the payoff can be BIG. Blaylock says “an animator will charge around $50-$75 per second of animation. One second equals roughly one hour of work”. Though, in some cases, the designer will quote a flat price after evaluating the overall scale of the project.

Chris Blaylock is a 3D Designer and Animator in Nashville, Tennessee.

Do the math and you’re looking at a $2,000 investment for 30 seconds of animation. More often than not the investment is well worth it; especially if your business depends on a clear and concise way of explaining product. In addition, the animation may be something you can use in a variety of settings, like your website’s homepage, Youtube, Facebook, tradeshows, meetings, etc.

While the connections between 3D animation and marketing may seem pretty straight forward, they can easily be overlooked. It wasn’t until I starting thinking about 3D design that I noticed exactly how much of it exists in the business world. So let this be a reminder that 3D animation is accessible to all of us, and making it work for your business could be well worth the investment.

Elizabeth

Branding Your Small Biz

Elizabeth — Tue, 24 Jul 2012 17:51:27 +0000

Big-businesses can offer product or service with a “take it or leave it” attitude –small businesses however, are not afforded this luxury. The little guys –in an effort to stay in the game or grow—are often left to tweak the image of their product or service in different situations so that meaningful messages are conveyed to potential customers at all times. This creates a tricky situation for branding consistency. Below are a few things to keep in mind as you strive to brand and grow your business.

1) Potential customers need to have a clear understanding of what and who your business is before they will buy anything.

If your business is not self-explanatory, it’s important that you convey clear and concise messages about what you have to offer and the application of it –think elevator speech, and then where you’re going to publicize that info. If your business is self-explanatory, think about the image you’d like to convey to people and how you might set yourself apart from other businesses like yours.

2) Keep everyone on the same page.

It’s Important that businesses strive for consistency and cohesion with all publicized info. The way information is presented on Twitter, Facebook, and websites varies greatly, but because each of these platforms is so effective at relating to the customer on different levels, there is immense opportunity to enhance the image of your business. That being said, it’s important the customer doesn’t receive conflicting ideas. Social media admin need to have a clear understanding of what the short-term and long-term marketing objectives are and an overall understanding of how to put forth info and respond to comments in a way that aligns with the priorities and values of the business.

3) Maintain consistent logos, colors, and fonts.

While you may be a long way from the widely-recognized Swoosh, it’s important to remain consistent with these nuances. Some brand recognition is better than none. Brochures, business cards, website headers, etc. should all maintain the same look and color scheme.

Small-business is full of compromise. Next time you find yourself at a crossroads, weigh your options and stay mindful of your business branding. Would you like some hands-on assistance? See what Twelve Oaks Group has to offer.

Elizabeth

Doodle Takes the Headache Out of Scheduling

Elizabeth — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 12:55:33 +0000

Scheduling a group event while being respectful of people’s prior engagements is a tricky undertaking. It often results in an endless email chain that yields verbosely unclear answers. Well, I’ve got good news; your email skimming and sifting days are over! Meet Doodle.

Doodle helps you figure out the best time to schedule meetings and events by sending participants a number of dates that have been pre-selected by you the organizer. The participant then has an opportunity to approve each date and time. As responses trickle in, Doodle compiles an easy-to-read table showing everyone the logical date and time, which is later confirmed by the organizer. In addition, Doodle is mindful of the “wordier” participant and kindly offers space to write a note to the group.

Next time you’re ready to schedule your staff meeting or networking event, give Doodle a shot. The Twelve Oaks team members are avid supporters!

Elizabeth

Your Business and PPC Ads

Elizabeth — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 12:50:07 +0000

Friday, May 18^th 2012 marked the first day Facebook became a publicly traded entity. Opening at $42.025 per share; the stock dropped in value just days after it opened, and GM’s announcement to stop advertising on Facebook has businesses everywhere questioning the effectiveness of Pay Per Click Ads. But is our hesitation warranted?

John Larkin of Supermedia.com sheds some light on the pros and cons of PPC ads through the lens of time, money, and goals. Larkin notes that effective PPC adds take a substantial amount of time –something most business owners are short on.

“…though…not having time doesn’t mean you can’t run PPC ads,” says Larkin.

With “…a reasonable budget, you can dedicate some of it to hiring an agency to handle your PPC ads. You’ll get support from people who know the ins and outs of online PPC marketing and your campaigns will be better for it.”

The truth is, PPC ads are not always a good fit for your particular goals. Larkin advises that Pay Per Click ads make the most sense for people selling product online. In short? “Don’t pay for each individual visitor if you don’t think there’s a potential to turn each one into a customer.”

-Should I Run Pay Per Click Ads?

For more info on the ins and outs of online marketing and what it can do for your business, contact Twelve Oakes Group –we’ve got your back.

Elizabeth

Social Media Education: 21st century perks and 21st century risks

Elizabeth — Thu, 05 Jul 2012 12:50:58 +0000

It’s true that more and more private information is being used and shared via the internet, and small businesses are no exception to the trend. Marshable Business offers up four tips to protect your small biz against cyber attacks: smart passwords, mobile devise education, risk management and perhaps the trickiest of them all, social media education

Cyber security expert Rick Doten tells Marshable,

“…companies should allow employees to post online about the company in a positive light, but cautions that employees who use social media too carelessly can give away sensitive details about a firm’s internal business.”

“If I see someone tweeting about a conference in Omaha, I can guess what’s happening there. Social media’s great from a competitive counter-intelligence point of view. I can learn a lot [by] following tweets.”

- 4 Tips to Protect Your Small Business Against Cyberattacks

Twelve Oaks Group realizes that not every company is at extreme risk of sharing counter-intel information via Facebook or Twitter, but it is important to think about what kind of company information is being represented on the internet. Companies that don’t have a Facebook and Twitter account still need to take into consideration how an employee might be representing their business online. In some cases, business that do not have a social media account will find that their business is listed on Facebook and may even have a few “likes”, but the rest of the pages are completely empty. While this does not necessarily pose as a counter-intel threat, it doesn’t help your business put its best foot forward either. Or perhaps you’ve got a product or service on the market that’s loved by customers –loved so much that one of those customers created an unofficial business page for you. Again, not necessarily a counter-intel threat, but it does pose a risk.

If used correctly, Facebook is a very effective tool in helping you connect with current and potential customers. Interested in getting your business on Facebook? Contact Twelve Oaks Group! We can help your business master the perks of Facebook –one of the best values in online advertising anywhere.

Elizabeth

Inbox Efficiency: Gmail Tips & Tricks

Elizabeth — Wed, 04 Jul 2012 12:50:33 +0000

You know the feeling: The number next to your inbox has ticked upwards –surely that reply email you’ve been waiting for has finally come in– but alas you’re left to sort through deals of the day, newsletters from a site you visited two years ago, and yet another only mildly-funny email from a relative. Managing your inbox can be a daunting task to say the least, and at the end of the day, most of us resort to the search box. Mashable Tech offers us a glimmer of hope with a very promising title, How to Filter Your Gmail Like a Pro.

The article offers several helpful hints for getting and maintaining control over your inbox, but perhaps one of the most unknown hints lies within “The Power of the Plus Sign”.

“Say you want to sign up for a social network or need to register your email address to receive a coupon, but you don’t want to receive associated emails or notifications from those sites. Add a plus sign to your email and those messages will skip your inbox altogether.”

-How To Filter Your Gmail Like a Pro

Adding the plus sign and a keyword serves as a sorting mechanism once you’ve set up your Gmail filter tool, e.g. “love.12oaks@gmail.com”, becomes “love.12oaks+shipping.confirmation@gmail.com”. The mail will still make it to you, but will be filtered to its designated spot, allowing you to find it easily if necessary and avoid the hassle of manually managing it yourself.

Efficiency is the name of the game! To see other ways Twelve Oaks Group can help you run your business more efficiently, check out our Web Services page.