Business Marketing | Goodbye NetBooks, Hello WorkingPoint

By Lauren Simonds
Back in 2007 when we first wrote about NetBooks (the software), netbooks (the hardware) had not yet arrived on the scene in any substantial way. But you just can't beat some trends, which is why NetBooks is now known as WorkingPoint.The meteoric rise of this new product category caused quite a problem for NetBooks, Inc., a company whose Web-based financial and business management software bears the same name.
But the new name is not the only change. Far from it, according to Tate Holt, the company's new CEO. In its previous incarnation, NetBooks provided bookkeeping, invoicing, inventory management, sales, marketing and customer relationship management for what it called "true small businesses"...companies with up to 25 employees. And it charged $200 a month for up to five people.
The problem with the true small business model, said Tate, is that nearly 25 million small businesses don't fit that criterion. "NetBooks wasn't working the way we wanted, so we rebuilt it from scratch," he said. "It's meant for businesses with way less than five employees. Working Point focuses mainly on the business owner...not the bookkeeper."
The company says it overhauled Working Point with the needs of a new business owner in mind. The company's Web site claims that it provides "everything you need to start, manage and grow your small business." WorkingPoint provides a range of business management features including:
Bookkeeping: "Anyone starting a new business needs to track their income and expenses, and invoices," said Tate. "Most small business owners don't need to learn double-entry bookkeeping. They're too busy starting their business." He added that the service performs double-entry calculations behind the scenes so it can grow with your business, and it generates income statements and balance sheets for an accountant.
CRM: You can import contacts from Outlook, Yahoo and Gmail and track sales history and customer information. "It's never too early to start tracking the conversations you have with your customers," said Tate.
Inventory Control: Even the smallest businesses sell products or services, said Tate, whether it's a photographer selling picture frames or a landscaper selling fertilizer. "WorkingPoint's inventory control lets you place product quotes, services and inventory on the same invoice. And that information flows through to the incomes statement and the balance sheet automatically," he said.
Business Dashboard:Provides a single-screen point of reference into the state of your business. "Why not have one screen where you can see your checking and savings account balances, along with overdue invoices and bills you need to pay in the next several days?" said Tate.
Mobile Access: While not yet available, WorkingPoint will soon offer mobile access from the iPhone. "If you're at a site preparing a quote on a house, for example," said Tate, "you can access WorkingPoint on your iPhone and e-mail the quote to the customer." He added that the mobile access will be Web-based at first, followed by a native app foro the iPhone.
But the biggest difference between the old NetBooks and WorkingPoint is the price. WorkingPoint is free.
"The core products, bookkeeping, CRM, inventory control, community pages and mobile access will be free to the owner forever," said Tate. Free is one of our favorite words, especially in this economy, but it begs the question: how can WorkingPoint make any money?

In two ways, said Tate. First, they'll charge $10 per month for additional users. So when your company grows and you add a bookkeeper or need to share information with employees, you'll pay to add them to the account.
Second, they'll offer premium features. The company plans to roll out premium features such as banking integration, Web-store integration and back-order control. The first premium feature, banking integration, is due in August and will cost $10per month. Tate estimated that between 75 and 80 percent of WorkingPlace customers will never pay to use the service.
Startup is the most cash-sensitive time in the life of a business, said Tate. "If someone's moving their hobby to a business, they don't need to spend money on QuickBooks. WorkingPoint lets them wade in and try it for free."

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Business Marketing | Top Ten E-mail Marketing Tips

By Lauren Simonds
Mélanie Attia, the product-marketing manager for Campaigner, spoke recently at the Small Business Summit in New York City and presented 10 tips for a building a successful e-mail marketing campaign. Her best-practice tips make an excellent starting point for reaching out to customers and building loyal and lasting relationships.
1.Don't Buy E-mail Lists

Unsolicited e-mail is just a polite term for spam. When you buy an e-mail list, you're simply spamming people who never asked you to e-mail them. Unsolicited e-mail promotions can quickly ruin your company's reputation.

2. Build Your Own E-mail List

Permission-based e-mail builds the value of your brands, increases sales and builds relationships with your current and prospective customers. You can build your list by talking to people, adding a sign-up form to your Web site and by providing something of value in exchange for their e-mail address - a newsletter, a discount coupon or other incentive, or more information about your products and services.

3. Segment: Divide and Conquer

You have different relationships with your customers, so there's no point in sending the same e-mail to all of them. Personalize your message based on who they are. Segment based on the information that you have through previous interactions: what they've purchased or info they've requested.

4. Be Aware of Regulations

You need to know about and comply with regulations such as Can-Spam, or face financial penalties. For example, if someone opts out of your e-mail newsletter, you have to remove that person from your list within 10 days. Also keep in mind that f you're e-mailing outside the U.S., it's important to be aware of laws in those countries, too

5. Frequency and Length are Inversely Proportional

If you e-mail your customers frequently, you need to keep the communication short and to the point. Limit a daily e-mail to a page or less and a weekly to five pages or less. You can go longer with a monthly, but only if your news is really exciting.

6. Build Loyalty Through E-mail

Your e-mail list is your most precious asset. Reward the customers who let you e-mail them with discounts and other offers. Make them VIPs, and let them know they get this info because they're apart of the VIP list. People enjoy feeling special, and that they're getting something extra.

7. Use Your Metrics

Measuring your results lets you know if what you're trying is effective. Are your customers opening and reading your e-mails? Are they clicking through to your site? It's crucial for you to understand what works and what doesn't. Apply what you learn from trial-and-error testing.

8. Holidays All Year 'Round

Holidays are more than Christmas. Leverage all of them -Valentine's Day, Presidents Day, Halloween -- and create specific promotions around them.

9. Automate Your Campaigns

You can automate key messaging or even reward customers. For example, you can set up a campaign that sends a greeting - and a 15 percent off their next purchase coupon -- to your customers on their birthdays.

10. Give Your E-mail Personality

Use your own voice. Your customers want to hear from you. A nice, conversational tone lets you reach out on a personal level and build rapport with your customers.

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Business Marketing | 5 Tips to Increase E-mail Marketing Results

E-mail marketing, when done well, is a highly effective tool to drive sales and to build customer loyalty. It's no secret that 2010 will be a challenging year for business owners. As the line between success and failure shrinks, it pays to make the most of your marketing efforts.
As the head of marketing at Campaigner.com, an e-mail marketing solutions provider based in Canada, Luc Vezina knows a thing or two about e-mail marketing. Vezina sent us his top five suggestions on how to improve the results you get in your 2009 e-mail marketing campaigns.
1. Clean Your E-mail List
Maintaining a clean list is a challenge for businesses of all sizes, especially small business owners who often don't have dedicated staff to handle such tasks. Start fresh by scrubbing your list before sending your first campaign of the New Year. You'll improve your e-mail marketing performance, your reputation and your deliverability rates. The first step is make sure your unsubscribe requests are up-to-date.
2. Review What Worked and What Didn't
Take a close look at your 2008e-mail marketing successes and failures so you can repeat the winning campaigns and cut the under-performers. Refresh your 2010 campaigns by combining elements of your most successful e-mail marketing tactics to get even better results.

3. Make a 2010 E-mail Marketing Plan

We all work so hard and run so fast that many of us leave e-mail marketing campaigns to the last minute. A great way to improve e-mail marketing effectiveness is to look at the calendar through your customer's eyes.
Ask yourself what business and seasonal cycles are most relevant to your target audiences, and then create an e-mail marketing campaign calendar mapped to those cycles. Planning your top campaigns for the year will ensure that your e-mail marketing campaigns are timely and relevant - something customers always appreciate.
4. Use Customer Data
Many small businesses use CRM and lead-generation systems that are filled with rich customer data that you can integrate with your e-mail marketing service to dramatically improve campaign results. You can also build more targeted, segmented lists based on customer data.
Even if you don't use a CRM system, you can still segment your lists based on purchasing data. You can also conduct a quick poll through your e-mail marketing service to gather more information from your customers that will help you improve the targeting, relevance and timeliness of your campaigns.
5. Try Something New
Challenge yourself in 2010 by trying something new in your e-mail marketing campaigns. Embed a video file or podcast to make your campaigns more interactive and engaging. If you haven't used A/B testing to gauge response to your campaigns, give it a whirl in 2009. You'll be amazed at what you learn about your customers, and how you can use that information to improve results and drive sales.
Automated trigger campaigns can also improve the timeliness and relevance of your e-mail marketing campaigns. It might sound too complicated or time intensive, but a good e-mail marketing service should have the tools and technologies to make it easy for you.

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