BUSINESS PHONE NEWS

Hot Holiday Party Techno Chit-Chat: What to know in advance of your next business cocktail party...

By Dan Baldwin, Editor
951-251-5155 email

Business owners and managers are kind of funny when they get together for drinks during the holidays.

For whatever reason, after reviewing the big deals that were won or lost over the past year, people seem to want to talk about the latest ways they're rolling out and using all the coolest new office technologies to bring in much more business in the new year.

So that you're not left in the lurch when someone turns to you and asks, "So what new office technologies are you leveraging next year?", following are some recent office technology headlines that will help you carry your end of the "my smartphone's better" holiday party techno chit-chat.

 

Here comes the Windows Phone Hail Mary! by CNN Money  

If you're a business owner that is "all in" with Microsoft as your business productivity platform then read this article to learn that industry critics think Microsoft has finally rolled out a winner in the smartphone marketplace with the Windows Phone 8. Read this article for a big picture "office suite" understanding. Here's a couple YouTube videos to help: Windows Phone 8 Rant, Windows Phone vs. Android

 

Samsung Galaxy S III Dethrones iPhone as World's Top Seller by CNN Tech

Yes, this is the phone in those mocking TV ads about Apple groupies, obsessing over their impending purchase while a happy Galaxy S III owner saves a place in line ... for his parents. In the 2012 Q3, The Galaxy S III shipped 18 million units worldwide, compared with 16.2 million for the iPhone 4S.  For more info view the "Wirefly Smackdown" on Youtube.

 

Killing the Market for Stolen Cell Phones  by CNN

Recently several U.S. wireless carriers implemented the first part of a national strategy to deter cell phone theft: a joint "blacklist" database of identifying information about cell phones reported lost or stolen. As of now, cell phone dealers are supposed check this database before honoring requests to reactivate allegedly "locked-out" phones, in order to prevent people from using stolen phones.

 

Feast Your Way through Google Business Tips  by Google & Your Business Blog

Apparently your business can use Chrome, Gmail, Google+ and Google Calendar in a sophisticated business manner and this blog writer wants to show us all the tricks. More Google business tool tips.

 

Google's "Get Your Business Online" Free Websites for Businesses  by Google

Seriously, if your business is one of the 50% of US businesses without a website by now then there's something seriously wrong with you or your business (or both). Google is giving away business websites and showing you how to put them on the web with their GYBO initiative. Click here to do it now!

 

Google Cancels Christmas (and all of December) by CNN

Is Google in a hurry to get 2012 over with?  Probably not. But that didn't stop the snarky headlines after it was discovered that a buggy app in the new version of Google's mobile operating system omits the month of December.

Does Your Business Telephone Number Show Up Correctly in a Google Search? Here's How to Check it (and Fix it...)

By Dan Baldwin, Editor
951-251-5155 email

The whole point of having a business phone number and a published listing is so people can call you and do business with you.

But until customers and prospects commit your phone number to memory or your business phone number earns a spot on their speed dial list, how do you suppose they're going to find your number?

Pull out the latest 10-pound printed phone book from their desk drawer - no.

They'll Google it, if course.  

But does your business phone number, your address and a little map pop up as the top listing when your business name is Googled by customers and prospects?

If not, you need to fix that. It doesn't cost anything and it's pretty simple to do

 

Google Business  Listings 101

To see an example of what a semi-proper Google listing should look like, Google search "ATEL Communications".  

Below is an example of what this search delivered the day I wrote this blog post. Click on the image to see it bigger.

When's The Last Time You Reviewed the 411 Directory Listings for Your Business? How to Fix Problems the Problems...

By Dan Baldwin, Editor
951-251-5155 email

 If a prospective customer or business partner calls 411 directory assistance in an effort to get your phone number, what happens?  

Are you having trouble getting credit extended to your business? Maybe your prospective creditor couldn't find your business in the phone directory.

When's the last time you called 411 yourself to make sure your business phone listings are correct in both your main location and all your satellite locations?

 

Business Phone Listings & Yellow Page Ads are Different

Many business owners cancelled all their Yellow Page ads long ago in favor of Google ads or some other form of Internet marketing.  Because many people equate Yellow Page ads with White Page business listings, many people neglect to make sure their business phone listings are kept up to date after they stop paying for Yellow page ads.

It's not uncommon for a business owner to brush off a business listing when switching from AT&T or Verizon to some other business phone service provider by saying, "Oh we don't need those listings because we're advertised on the Internet".

While the Internet may be sending a business all their new customers, proper business phone listings are still required to ensure that a business is seen as credible in a local community.  Business owners need to pay as much attention to their 411 listing as they do to their 911 service.

 

Call 411 Yourself to Make Sure All Your Listings are Correct

You may have decided that your business does not need AT&T, Verizon or the other old "Ma Bell" phone companies because you've rolled your service to business VoIP or some other new business phone service, but you really do still need the "big 3" phone companies for your proper 411 listings.