Now that’s all about to change.  With the release of Safari 5, Safari is now the fastest browser out there, and with all the new compelling features, I believe the browser that you should start using today.  I’m going to delineate the case for Safari below, and why I think anyone using the web should be using this browser.

#1 – Speed

A few months ago, Chrome was the fastest browser for PC/Mac, bar none.  Now, with the release of Safari 5, Safari has now taken that title.  Here are some quick specs, which Apple has made nice charts of here. Here’s the breakdown, with approximate percents of how much faster Safari is than comparative browsers:

HTML Rendering (I-Bench):
Chrome: ~58% faster (eg Safari is 58% faster at rendering pages than Chrome)
Opera: ~177% faster
Firefox: ~227% faster

Javascript Rendering (I-Bench):
Chrome: ~75% faster
Opera: ~88% faster
Firefox: ~537.5% faster (WOW!)

2.  Reader

A lot of people love reading articles on the web, and let’s face it, sometimes websites can be a cluttered place. Not only does Safari have built-in RSS, it has a great new feature called Reader, which essentially turns a web page into a sheet of paper, which eliminates Ads and other nuisances when you are trying to read an article. Safari does the legwork for you, all you have to do is click the ‘Reader’ button on the URL bar, and it will only appear for supported sites. How will this affect the web? Well since user is king, it’s a great move, but at the same time it could seriously affect revenue of blogs and other ad-dependent sites.

3.  Extensions (FINALLY)

Safari supports extensions. They are making an official extension gallery, which is currently taking submissions, but there are other sites with a ton of Safari extensions that devs have released already. They still need a solid web developer add-on to rival Firefox, but I’ve read that that is in the works. Here are some current extension indexes:
Safari Extensions
Pimp My Safari
Safari Extensions – Tumblr Blog

4.  Web Standards

Safari supports a ton of HTML5 and CSS3 properties, including canvas, API for media playback (sans Flash, YAY), location services, captioned video, and more. Plus, Safari is one of the few browsers (Chrome too?) to score 100/100 on the Acid3 test. Download a copy of Safari and head on over to Acid3 to see for yourself!

5.  Web Dev

Safari’s internal web inspector is awesome, think Firebug except native and with more resources (thank you webkit). Plus, it has a slick Develop and Debug menu, with user agent spoofing, stylesheet/javascript/etc toggling, rendering page as different browser, and other goodies for you to check out. Since Chrome uses webkit as well, Safari and Chrome have very similar web inspectors, but I think Safari has a more diverse Develop/Debug menu.

Bottom line, Safari now has all the tools you need to experience the web in the fastest, most accessible, and most streamlined way. If you haven’t used Safari yet, be sure to check it out, you can download it here.

-Alex

Most of the observations seem like common sense. Researchers found that when “politically unskilled employees flatter,” their flattery is very obvious to the boss. [Translation: successful flattery depends on who is doing it].

They also found that “if a superior perceives a subordinate’s flattery as a ploy to get ahead, she’ll rate the employee lower on job performance.” [Translation: if your boss thinks your flattery has an ulterior motive, she’s not going to buy it].

Lastly, they concluded that “if a superior is fooled into thinking the sentiments are sincere, the supervisor rates the complimenter higher.” [Translation: if your boss thinks you truly mean it, she’ll give you brownie points.]

How are you using social media to innovate?

Best,

Alex

Tags will allow small business owners to enhance their listings on Google Maps as well as Google.com. The tag feature will allow small business owners to add a small yellow tag to their current listing. This tag can emphasize a particular aspect of your business that you want to stand out. This feature is great for highlighting specials, sales, promotions, offering coupons, announcements, links to your website, photos, and more. It will surely help to attract the attention of those who previously may have skipped past your listing.

An example of Google Tags:

Currently very few businesses have taken advantage of the Tags, but those that have, stand out. Tags won’t improve a business’ rankings, but they add an extra little something that will make your business more appealing. Tags are relatively new, but will soon be commonplace within the online marketing lingo. Don’t wait for your competitors to get Tagged up before you decide to try it out. Be one of the first in your area and start enjoying the fruits now!

Just do a search for “Project Management Tool” in Google and you’ll see what I’m talking about.

Take Your Business Sky High with Cloud Based Software

Many of these software platforms are cloud-based and don’t require you to download anything onto your computer. A cloud-based platform or application simply means you can access all of your data or a platform from anywhere there is an internet connection, at anytime you want with the click of a mouse! Perform YAGS, Yet Another Google Search, and you’ll see for yourself – apps galore! The online marketplace is currently being fueled by creative innovation and literally thousands of startups are jumping at the opportunity to help small businesses grow by developing niche specific tools daily.

So I know you’re probably thinking…Why should this interest me? As an entrepreneur, the potential to increase productivity, communication, and efficiency by utilizing cloud-based apps is unreal. Not only are these tools incredibly valuable to your organization, they are usually very inexpensive, or even free. Just by implementing one of these tools into your business, you could free up 5-10 hours of work a week, if not more. Not to mention the positive environmental impacts you’ll be having by moving to cloud-based, paper-less software. Sounds good, right?

Here are just a few tools that are available to you. Once you start searching, you’ll see just how deep the rabbit hole goes.

• TeamworkPM or Basecamp – Two awesome tools designed to help your team collaborate on projects from anywhere in the world. Our personal favorite is TeamworkPM.

• CapsuleCRM or Salesforce – Have trouble remembering what was said to your top customer last time you spoke? Log your conversations, track contact details and even set automated follow-up sequences so you never forget even the tiniest of details. CapsuleCRM is designed for smaller organizations while Salesforce is much more robust.

• ZenDesk – Manage customer support inquiries with ease. ZenDesk’s ticketing system combined with personalized online forums and tutorials, lets your customers get the answers they need fast.

• MailChimp – Want to start building a list of email subscribers for your company newsletter? MailChimp is incredibly intuitive, user-friendly and overall a lot of fun to use.

• Grasshopper - Hands down, our favorite app out there. Grasshopper automagically helps your small business look and feel like a Fortune 500 company. From voice extensions to customized greetings and hold music, Grasshopper will transform your businesses’ phone system into a professional support center.

These are just a few of the apps we use here at Wafflehaus – there are way too many for me to share them all in just one blog post! We hope this brief introduction to the wonderful world of cloud-based software was enough to pique your interest. There’s never been a better time to be an entrepreneur; the potential of these tools on your businesses’ growth and productivity is limitless. Not to mention, the rate of innovation and new technology is exponentially increasing everyday… the future looks bright my friends.

Yours in business success,

Evan Shoemaker
Director of Marketing

P.S. Here’s an awesome new startup we recently came across that will help give you an idea of just how crazy the market is. Shoeboxed. You can literally outsource your life!

Why intuitiveness?

If people can’t easily grasp your idea (which is what you’re selling), it’s difficult to create a large following or reach a wide audience. Say your product requires expert knowledge: those who don’t understand your idea won’t buy-into it, and these people are unlikely to pass it on. Zarrella suggests that we should make it easy for the average listener to “understand, remember, and re-tell.” Word of mouth is infinitely more effective when people know what they’re talking about, they embrace your idea,  and they can take pride in sharing the news.

Who is doing it?

Many companies exemplify this concept well. Some of the biggest companies have stunningly simple ideas. Google, when it started, was simply a search engine (AKA Google helped you find things online). The Apple iPod put 1000 songs in your pocket. That’s right – it doesn’t take a complex concept for people to love it. Tom’s shoes has a simple idea they call “One for One”: when you buy a pair of Tom’s shoes, they give a child a pair of shoes. Is your business idea intuitive?

For small business grappling with how to compete in this market, consider that one of the best things is to focus on what you do best and make sure that people understand your idea.

How can YOU do it?

So you want to create an intuitive idea – what’s the hook for the customers? Zarrella suggests using the “New/Old tactic,” because the combination of novelty & familiar content attracts brand attention. Try this:

• Take old content and “fit into a new structure”
• Use an established concept and put your spin on it (though people have been making cakes forever, Charm City bakery makes wild, fun cakes that you design)
• Run your ideas by friends, peers, and co-workers to see if they grasp your idea. Find out what they don’t understand… and improve it.

Source: http://danzarrella.com/the-8-elements-of-contagious-ideas.html

Best,

Alex

Death to Phonebooks

Sometime within the next month your phone will ring. Chances are, you will pick it up and not be prepared for the conversation you are about to have. On the other end of the phone will be a half-jaded, caffeine fueled sales rep from your local newspaper or Yellowbook.

The conversation will most likely sound a little like this, “(Insert your name here), by advertising in our daily newspaper, your business will get noticed by over (enter circulation number here) potential customers! Can’t you see the impact this will have on your sales? And since you have been a dedicated customer for 5 years now, we are willing to give you 30% off of the regular price of half page ads! When would you like to get started?”

At this point, you have 2 options. After reading this blog post I hope you will calmly say, “I appreciate your time (enter cheesy sales rep’s name here), but I switched my business advertising to the internet and have so much new work, I can’t waste my time talking with sales reps like you anymore.  Have a great day!”

Let’s face it. The tides of advertising have changed dramatically over the past 10+ years. Traditional media sources such as the huge powerhouse newspapers, television networks, and advertising agencies that have been around since the early 1900’s are closing up shop by the handful. Coincidence? I think not.

Why? Because our “audiences” have moved… To the internet.  Are you finding your audience?

IMPORTANT: We are currently experiencing one of the largest fundamental shifts in how people consume information and media since the invention of the printing press.

Do you remember the song, “Video Killed the Radio Star“? I am patiently waiting for a remix called, “Internet Killed the Traditional Media Platforms.” Maybe we should create one here at Wafflehaus…

Let’s discuss some basic facts about internet searches:

• 75% of Americans use search engines on a regular basis
• 56% of Americans use Search Engines every day
• 92% of all local searches will eventually convert into a sale
• Roughly 10 billion search queries made per day

http://www.searchingsolutions.com/interesting-search-engine-blogging-statistics/

• “63% of consumers and small business owners turn to the internet first for information about local companies and 82% use search engines to do so.”- Webvisible and Nielsen.

http://www.marketingcharts.com/interactive/‘great-divide’-separates-small-biz-online-consumers-7612/

• “Over the past two years, 43% of small businesses say they have increased the use of search engines in their marketing efforts. Perhaps as a consequence, their use of some traditional media is declining with 23% of small businesses saying they use Yellow Pages less and 42% using local newspapers less.”

http://www.bizreport.com/2009/01/nearly_half_of_small_businesses_have_no_website.html#

The internet can provide an amazing amount of new business growth at the most affordable advertising rates available.  Empower yourself by learning more about internet advertising solutions.  As small businesses, we need to make educated decisions about crafting strategic, targeted, and effective marketing plans.

I will leave you with one final question, are your current advertising efforts reaching your audience?

P.S. – What are you going to do with all those unused phonebooks? Here’s an idea : )

Yours in Business Success,

Andy Josuweit