In Case You Missed It: June 2103

noteworthy articles on business, social media, and tech

$100 Bill Golden Timing

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Time is money.  And if you’re like me there never seems to be enough of either.  With that idea in mind this week I decided to try out a new format for my weekly ‘Business & Design’ post.   I’m sharing the links to what I consider to be the best articles from the content sources I read on being an entrepreneur, on social media, and on technology.  I’m hoping to save you some time – and help you make some money.

I’m starting off with a ’12 Days of Christmas’ approach.  There was helpful advise from 18 of the countries most successful small business owners, a list of the 12 most common mistakes start-up businesses make, insight into the 9 members of the new guard of entrepreneurs hoping to become the next Mark Zuckerberg, 7 necessary things to accomplish to ensure the success of your business in the second half of 2013, and a succinct explanation of the 4 most formidable roadblocks for start-up (or any business in my opinion) success.  It’s all knowledge to help you get the 5 golden rings.

Philosophically speaking I read an interesting article about the inherent value in making mistakes, another on the hidden value in being rejected, and finally one that draws correlations between effective military preparedness and running a stealth business that I found incredibly thought provoking.

If you haven’t already leapt across the career chasm into self employment you might want to consider this research on the potential pitfalls as few it seems these days can transition back.  And have you been thinking about a cooperative office space as much as I have?  This set-up looks like a benchmark for the idea.  If you’ve been feeling like it’s getting harder and harder to run your business you’re not alone, and if you’re looking for guidance on the correct etiquette for picking up the check at a business meal you’ll find this helpful.

In the world of social media news I came across articles about 2 relatively new concepts – ‘connection economy‘ and ‘permission marketing‘ which were very interesting.  There was some expert advise in the ongoing debate about how often to post on your platforms, and an expert opinion suggesting there is room for both Vine and Instagram in the world of video (not that I’ve figured the differences out just yet – but hey, give me a break I’m over 50.)

You’ve likely heard it said that Facebook is waning, but before you count the SM titan out consider how adept they are at adapting to the landscape.  Interested in some advise on how to use Facebook to drive traffic to your website? Or perhaps you’re curious about the 2 new changes to LinkedIn’s homepage that will help you track engagement.  Have you heard of ‘Netiquette‘?  And finally as blogs are considered to be social media there was some helpful tutelage on creating content that will resonate with your audience.

Technologically speaking there was an article about the 25 ‘Tech Terms’ business owners need to know, another about 6 Apps you don’t want to miss, and one that explains why ‘responsive design’ in mobile strategies is gaining momentum.  The week’s news seemed to point ever more clearly toward the idea of paper currency disappearing – as one new (and mysterious) payment app raises record funding, and smart-watches seek to replace smart-phones as the preferred (and slightly more secure) way to pay.  Oh, and let’s not forget the almost inconceivable idea of Bitcoins revolutionizing the world of finance.

And finally the best article of the week explains how Google has just made it unbelievable easy to survey the satisfaction of your website’s visitors with an incredibly well designed mechanism to help you adjust it for future success.

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Written by CJ Dellatore