Business and Marketing

With Sworkit there's no excuse for not working out—even when on the road.

Sworkit offers video workouts for any area of the body and many varied forms of exercise.

The life of a marketer can be extremely hectic. Whether it's meeting with clients, attending conferences, or coming up with the next big idea, there is rarely time to fit in exercise. However, Sworkit hopes to change that.

The app fancies itself a personal trainer in a user's pocket who's there for those times when the gym is not an option. Sworkit offers video workouts for any area of the body and many varied forms of exercise: cardio, Pilates, strength, stretching, and yoga. Users can even create custom workouts from more than 160 different exercises.

Sworkit combines interval training with randomized exercises as it aims to maximize each workout's effectiveness. Each of the app's workouts can be performed without weights or other equipment, so there's no excuse for not working out—even when on the road.

Swork it real good.

I like the way you SWORKIT!!! @Duncanwonderers @Sworkit #pegeeks #scdsb http://bit.ly/1zC17pA

— Deb Shackell (@debshackell) November 21, 2014

Credit where credit is due.

I have to say... I worked really hard this month to start my body on a whole new track for my health. I give the credit to @Sworkit

— claιre✌️ (@macauleybear) November 12, 2014

Amazing!

So I'm trying a new health app called @Sworkit it's amazing I'm feeling the work out !

— Leilani Makani (@princesssariiel) October 13, 2014

But would it beat the ‘92 Dream Team?

So obsessed with the @MyFitnessPal and @Sworkit app. They are like my dream team ☺️

— Christina Schrader (@cschrader14) October 3, 2014

What an age we live in…

Using sworkit for our fitness unit. #peel21st #techinthegym http://bit.ly/1yoItmx

— James Potter GYM (@james_potter_ps) November 12, 2014

Business Breaking News: Facebook 'Rooms' Update Helps You Boost Engagement

Last month, Facebook unveiled Rooms, the social network's version of message boards and discussion forums. The company issued its first update to the Rooms app for iOS today (Nov. 25), adding new features to help Room owners monitor activity and drive engagement.

Though owned by Facebook, Rooms is a standalone service outside of the social network. It lets you create, join and participate in "rooms" about any topic you're interested in. Each room contains a feed of content — photos, videos and text — about that topic, much like Instagram and other social networks.

Rooms offers businesses a new venue to market their brands, showcase their expertise, and spark conversations with current and prospective customers. Users can invite their friends and share content, just as you would with any other social network. [21 Social Media Marketing Solutions for Small Businesses]

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New York and LA top the list. Warm weather cities show a proclivity for mobile purchases.

NY sits atop the list.

MyThings, a programmatic ad-buying platform for e-commerce sites including Best Buy, Disney, Walmart, and T-Mobile, analyzed data from hundreds of top retail websites during October and determined the top 10 burgs for online buying, which are:

1. New York

2. Los Angeles

3. Houston

4. Chicago

5. Phoenix

6. Dallas

7. Washington, DC

8. Miami

9. San Francisco

10. Philadelphia

For mobile transactions, Phoenix assumes the number three spot, and Las Vegas, San Diego, and San Antonio come in eight through 10.

Business Breaking News: Nokia Lumia 830: An Entry-Level Windows Phone for Business

In September, Microsoft unveiled the Lumia 830, its new flagship phone that's packed with premium features at a midrange price.

Marketed as an "affordable flagship," the Lumia 830 is now available for only $99 with a contract on AT&T. Could this entry-level smartphone be the Windows Phone for your business?

Here's what the Lumia 830 has to offer small businesses.

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It unveils a new version of Social Studio meant to be shared and employed across marketing, sales, and service clouds.

Social is for everyone, says Salesforce.

At its Salesforce World Tour event in New York today, Salesforce.com introduced a next-generation version of Social Studio featuring a simple user interface that extends the power of social media marketing to the desktops or mobile devices of any and all employees.

A Radian6 social listening module has been made standard in Social Studio, which has been integrated across the marketing, sales, and service clouds. The company promises that sales teams will be able to connect to new customers faster through social lead generation, and that service teams can tap social conversation threads to surprise and delight customers.

“We're extending social not just to the marketing cloud but across the entire Customer Success Platform. We brought all the elements of the social media manager in one place for all employees to interact with it,” says Salesforce VP of Product Marketing Gordon Evans.

An improved and simplified dashboard lets users monitor social activity in aggregate or by individual post, react immediately with a response, or refer a potential lead to sales or an unsatisfied customer to service. Users of the Salesforce Service Cloud have been extended a “freemium” offer that allows them to monitor Twitter and Facebook conversations.

The Radian6-powered social listening engine in the Salesforce Marketing Cloud can monitor more than a billion social data sources from Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and news sites, according to the company. Integration with Social.com, the marketing cloud's social advertising solution, allows teams to monitor top-performing content published via Social Studio.

“A lot of social teams are not currently connected to where the interactions are taking place,” Evans says. “There's been massive adoption of multiple social networks, and there have been missed opportunities to engage with consumers in real time.”

Business Breaking News: Top iPhone 6 Accessories for Business

The iPhone 6 is a great business tool on its own, but it's even better when paired with the right accessories. These tools can help you process payments, stream presentations, take notes and more with your iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus.

Payment processing: Square Reader

Credit card readers like the Square Reader let you use your iPhone to process payments anywhere, at any time. It's extremely handy, since it gives your customers tons of flexibility over how they pay, and it's simple to use, too. First, plug the device into your smartphone's headphone jack and sign up for the Square Register service. After that, you can immediately start swiping cards to process transactions. Of course, just like other credit card processing companies, Square takes a small cut of each transaction. The technology is also about to become more secure when Square launches an EMV-compatible card processor early next year. The updated device can accept new cards with an EMV microchip built in, which are less susceptible to fraud than their magnet-stripe-based counterparts.

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Facebook announced further changes to the organic reach of promotional posts last week. Marketers are still fuming.

Change in the social media space is seldom well received, especially when it comes to Facebook. Mark Zuckerberg's social networking powerhouse has once again earned the ire of many marketers for its announcement last week to reduce the organic reach of so-called overly promotional posts starting in January. Facebook implemented a similar policy early this year.

Marketers are taking to social media rival Twitter to voice their opinions about the new changes at Facebook.

Gotta love having nearly 2,000 fans on a Facebook page but posts only reach 57. Gotta complain about it on here, cause I can't risk the 57.

— Mike Styles (@mikestyles909) November 19, 2014

With Facebook dropping organic reach again, I bet those companies who focused on Likes sure feel dumb now.

— Elliot Volkman (@TheJournalizer) November 18, 2014

Anyone sick with Facebook limiting organic reach day in day out? #FacebookReleaseOurFans

— Pat Mavromatis (@PatMavromatis) November 19, 2014

The good news about Facebook is brands can do what they want now, it's not going to matter since you won't get organic reach anyway.

— Chris Thilk (@ChrisThilk) November 18, 2014

Facebook will limit the reach of "promotional posts" starting in january, forcing many businesses to buy more ads. Bye bye, organic reach...

— Marcos Viladomiu (@MarcosViladomiu) November 19, 2014

From @forrester "People access addicting apps like Facebook for an average of three hours per week." Invest more in experience strategies.

— Beth Torrie (@bethtorrie) November 18, 2014

Facebook organic reach is estimated to have slipped to somewhere between 2% and 8%. No pay, no play.

— Marc Gordon (@MarcGordonDotCA) November 19, 2014

Business Breaking News: 12 Fun (and Affordable) Gifts for Your Business Clients

If you think it's hard to shop for your friends and family during the holidays, think again — shopping for the people you work with is even worse. Finding something that's both fun and professional is no easy feat. Add a budget to the mix and it's even more difficult.

But what's even harder than buying gifts for your co-workers? Finding the perfect holiday presents to say "thank you" to your favorite clients. When you're shopping for clients, it's even more important for your gifts to be thoughtful and unique.

To keep your best clients coming back in the new year, try sending them one of these cool holiday gifts. Each item is under $20 — so you don't have to break the bank in the process, either.

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CMOs and CIOs have been trying desperately to get something going between them, but they don't seem to share the same assessment of their relationships, according to a study conducted by Forrester and Forbes Insights.

In a survey of 308 marketing and technology management leaders, CIOs seemed to have much brighter prospects for their futures together than did CMOs. Sixty-nine percent of tech chiefs said they were able to communicate the priorities of both partners, while only 49% of the marketers felt the same.

One of the reasons for the disconnect appears to be a lingering problem—the lack of suitable talent. Only 54% of those surveyed—87% of whom hailed from billion-dollar-plus enterprises—felt that competent leadership was in place to support marketing technology strategies.

Exacerbating the communications breakdown in this blooming relationship is overconfidence on the part of marketers, 71% of whom felt that their teams understand marketing technology. Only 54% of CIOs agreed.

At least the two would-be corporate partners are talking. Seventy percent of CIOs and 59% of CMOs said that they got together on a regular basis to review progress and objectives. That's a percentage point increase of nine and 14, respectively, compared to the same survey conducted last year.

Business Breaking News: Google Updates Google Apps with New Security Tools

Managing devices and cloud-based apps isn't easy for small businesses. In addition to managing users, administrators have to maintain security and troubleshoot cyberattacks. But not all small businesses can afford to hire IT professionals to manage these security tasks. If you use Google Apps or Google for Work, however, there are new tools that can help.

Google launched two new features today (Nov. 24) to help Google business users take more control of their security. The new Devices and Activity dashboard and security wizard provide businesses with improved tools to better manage and beef up the security of Google Apps devices and Google for Work accounts.

"Security in the cloud is a shared responsibility, and keeping your company information secure is at the core of what we do every day," wrote Eran Feigenbaum, director of security for Google for Work, wrote in a blog post announcing the launch. "By making users more aware of their security settings and the activity on their devices, we can work together to stay a step ahead of any bad guys." [Google for Business: A Small Business Guide]

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Some e-tailers are actually repelling customers.

The holidays are all about spending time with those you care about. But this season, many online retailers could be celebrating alone. A new study from commerce solution provider OrderDynamics suggests that some e-tailers are repelling customers instead of reaping the economic benefits that they provide this time of year.

According to the study, almost three quarters of online retailers miss out on sales opportunities by promoting irrelevant products to shoppers. Failing to follow up with customers and ignoring their order tracking preferences are also pain points. These blunders could be costly for online retailers in particular given that consumers are planning on doing 44% of their holiday shopping online this year.

The study—based on surveys of more than 60 retailers and 2,000 customers—compares customer acquisition and retention to a dating game and finds that myriad retailers should get dumped in many areas of the customer relationship. The study analyzes retailers' effectiveness in securing “first dates,” or purchases, and building long-term relationships that lead to additional purchases.

“Retailers must walk a fine line between romancing customers and over-approaching them to ensure that shopping is a seamless experience,” says Kevin Sterneckert, CMO, OrderDynamics. “If retailers disappoint shoppers, they risk losing not only the initial sale but the customer relationship as well.”

Additional findings include:

• Seventy-four percent of retailers promote irrelevant items to shoppers. Some of the study's examples show an apparel retailer sending emails about women's sweaters to a customer that saved men's fleecewear in a shopping cart. Also, a pet supplies retailer sent cat and dog food promos to a person who browsed strictly in the aquatics department.


• One third of retailers never follow up with shoppers, while others pepper shoppers with emails. Thirty-three percent of retailers never follow up with customers, even though they signed up for the mailing list. On the other end of the spectrum, one retailer sent 17 emails in a four-week period—the tell-tale sign of desperation.


• Poor site search results lead to missed sales opportunities. Forty-six percent of shoppers like to peruse retailers' websites to search for products, yet many sites give way to customer defection and missed sales. For instance, one retailer's site returned 65 results for “silver cufflinks,” but only three items were actually cufflinks.


• Just 15% of retailers offer order tracking through their website despite the lion's share of consumers expressing a strong interest in receiving tracking information directly from the retailer.

“We call these disappointments and disconnects in data and operations the Ghost Economy,” Sterneckert says, “and it is worth more than $800 billion annually to global retailers to solve these issues and create frictionless experiences for their customers.”

Business Breaking News: New Dropbox 'Groups' Helps Businesses Collaborate

Dropbox has been making many improvements to its Dropbox for Business service, and it doesn't look like the company is going to stop anytime soon.

After launching features ranging from a new admin dashboard to integration with new apps and business solutions — Salesforce, Wunderlist, Any.do and Microsoft Office, to name a few — the company is offering yet another enhancement to its cloud-storage and file-sharing services.

Dropbox announced this week early access to its new "groups" feature, a tool that aims to make it easier to manage teams using Dropbox for Business. The new tool offers several capabilities that aim to help administrators and project managers take better control of projects, so that, using the platform, team members can "collaborate much faster and more efficiently." [Dropbox for Business: Top 3 Features]

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The Colombian pop superstar bests Darth Vader to claim "Most Shared Video Ad Ever" honors, says Unruly's Top 20 Most Shared Ads of 2014 list.

The Dark Side's influence on the video advertising channel has come to an end at last. Three years after it first claimed the title of “Most Shared Video Ad Ever,” Volkswagen's Super Bowl ad starring a pint-sized Darth Vader has fallen to a whimsical, musical, three-and-a-half-minute ode to joy starring Shakira, sponsored by Activia, and supporting the World Food Programme.

The tally, from Unruly's Top 20 Most Shared Ads of 2014 list released today: 5,819,822 for Activia's “La La La” to 5,278,399 for VW's “The Force.” Take that, Dark Sith Lord!

“La La La” emerged just before The World Cup kicked off and got a huge boost in shares when 1) the immensely popular Colombian songstress sang the Brazilian national anthem at the event, and 2) rumors started circulating almost simultaneously that Shakira was pregnant. But the video had a lot more going for it than that.

“It wasn't just Shakira's star power; that video did a lot of things right,” says Unruly VP Marketing Devra Prywes. “Trackvertisements, or branded music videos, are among the most shared; it tied in with both a charity and the Cup; and there was brand presence at the beginning and end.”

The biggest mistake made by content marketers with their videos, says Prywes, is under-branding. “Coca-cola does this subtly and well, with a bottle or a vending machine in videos,” Prywes says. “We tell marketers to ‘Please promote your brand in videos!' Our research shows that the presence of a brand does not hurt views or shares if you've got a strong spot."

And speaking of views, Prywes notes that they are often an overrated measure of the effectiveness of a branded video. Activia picked well. One of its goals was to feed people in need, and the spot wound up generating the donation of 4.3 million meals.

Other research done by Unruly uncovered 18 different aspects of video content that trigger sharing, including humor, pathos, surprise, and compassion, and this year's Top 20 list displayed a wide variety of emotional triggers.

Shock was one. In one of two leading videos promoting feminist issues, grade school girls in princess dresses liberally dropped f-bombs while enumerating issues such as unequal pay and sexual abuse. “Here's some words more f---ed up than the word ‘f--k'—Pay inequality!” announced one young lady in the "Potty-Mouthed Princesses” video sponsored by FCKH8.

Shock and humor together can be even more effective, as evidenced by the number two most shared video of the year for the 20th ^{Century Fox movie Devil's Due. With the unfair advantage of studio prop and special effects masters who can do things such as place a realistic-looking demon baby in a stroller that propels itself down a sidewalk, the studio stretched the limits of its liability exposure by motoring Little Lucifer down the streets of Manhattan and scaring the bejeezus out of people.}

^{But 2014 was a big year for love and warmth, as well. Cardstore's “World's Toughest Job” celebrated moms and Thai Life Insurance's “Unsung Hero” rhapsodized the rewards of giving. “We saw a lot of joy, happiness, and exhilaration in the top videos this year,” Prywes said.}

^{Business Breaking News: Businesses Can Now Add Google 'Street View' to Websites}

^{Back in March, Google released a new tool that lets businesses display their locations by embedding Google Maps into their websites. Now, you can take it a step further by showcasing your business's storefront, too.}

^{Google introduced this week a new Google Maps capability that lets businesses embed Street View functionality and 360-degree, panoramic Photo Sphere images right on their websites — and it's all free, requiring minimal tech skills to implement.}

^{Here's how the feature works and why you should use it on your website. [Google for Business: A Small Business Guide]}

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The author of the Senate's postal reform bill wants to know more about the process used in her selection.

Incoming Postmaster General Megan Brennan will be the first woman in the job.

In a statement lauding outgoing Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe for his service, Sen. Tom Carper (D-DE) at the same time questioned the choice of Postal Service COO Megan Brennan as Donahoe's successor.

”At a time when the future of the Postal Service is unclear, largely because of Congress's inability to agree on a comprehensive reform bill, it's important that the Board of Governors has the best person it can find to take the helm,” Carper said in a statement issued last Friday, the day Brennan's appointment was announced. “I am eager to learn more about the Board's process to find a new Postmaster General and hope that it conducted a robust and thorough search before appointing Ms. Brennan.”

Carper also expressed concern about a quorum on the Postal Board of Governors, a body designed to include nine members that currently seats only four. He warned that, if five pending nominees to the board are not confirmed by the Senate before December 8, it would not be able to conduct business, leaving postal management to act without its oversight.

“More than ever, the Postal Service needs bold leadership that will enable [it] to emerge from its current difficulties, pursue promising new ideas, foster innovation and growth, and instill confidence in postal employees and customers,” Carper added.

Carper, who intends to bring his Postal Reform Act to a vote in the Senate during the lame duck session, is chairman of the Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs Committee that oversees postal operations. His party having lost control of the Senate in the midterm elections, Carper will turn over the committee gavel to a Republican senator in January, most likely Wisconsin's Ron Johnson.

Business Breaking News: Facebook to Combat 'Overly Promotional' Pages with New Update

Facebook pages and ads may be a great way to expand your social audience and customer reach, but getting too promotional could cost you.

The social network reached out to its users to find out how they feel about the content on their news feeds. According to the Facebook for Business blog, the company surveyed hundreds of thousands of people as a part of an ongoing survey. What did they find?

"People told us they wanted to see more stories from friends and pages they care about, and less promotional content," the company wrote. "We dug further into the data to better understand this feedback. What we discovered is that a lot of the content people see as too promotional is posts from pages they like, rather than ads."

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How consumers' motivations differ from country to country.

All connected consumers are not created equal.

Global management consulting firm A.T. Kearney recently released the findings of a study that aimed to better understand today's connected consumers. The study, “Connected Consumers Are Not Created Equal: A Global Perspective,” surveyed about 10,000 connected consumers—defined as those who claim to connect to the Internet at least once a week but actually surf the Web much more often—from five continents: Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, and South America. The report analyzed what motivates them to move from connectivity to consumption.

Conventional wisdom dictates that having connected consumers would be the ideal situation for marketers; but in actuality, reaching this audience is a cross to bear. Siloed and dislocated marketing budgets, divided shopper approaches, and more sophisticated consumers are just a few of the challenges organizations face.

Some findings include:

Continuous connectivity. More than half of respondents connect to the Internet nearly every waking hour. According to the study, Brazil and Nigeria are more connected, while Japan and China are less so. In terms of demographics, continuously connected consumers tend to be on the younger side and unmarried. They're also, generally, mobile mavens. In fact, respondents who are online at least 10 times a day say that they prefer smartphone connections; however, only 12% of global connected consumers frequently use tablets to access the Web.

Four motivations for connectivity. People venture online because of four universal needs: convenience, exploration, interpersonal connection, and self expression. However, respondents from different countries are motivated by differing factors. In emerging markets and places where offline expression is limited, for instance, the ability to express an opinion rates very high; in more mature markets, on the other hand, exploration and convenience are favored.

The power of social media. Social networks are where respondents spend the majority of their online time. Indeed, social marketing is extremely effective in generating brand interest and purchases among younger consumers.

The number of users on a social network, though, is not necessarily an indication of engagement or purchases. Also, different social media sites display different usage patterns in different countries.

Pop-up ads are surprisingly effective—but only in some markets. Respondents from emerging markets—particularly Brazil, China, and Nigeria—don't mind pop-ups and banner ads. Actually, they click on them often. In Western Europe and the U.S., however, these ads are not as popular.

The convergence of physical and online stores. More than half of the respondents prefer shopping online in addition to the online experience; although, the majority of today's purchases are still made in-store. Connectivity doesn't mean that consumers do everything online, but the connection offers access, speed, and convenience, not to mention it enhances the overall experience.

As evidenced, all connected consumers are not created equal—whether they differ by behavior, motivation, or who's in their ear. These consumers may share some similarities, but there are myriad differences from market to market and consumer to consumer based on numerous factors.

Business Breaking News: 12 Gift Exchange Ideas for Your Office Holiday Party

Throwing an office holiday party this year? A great way to celebrate and get in the holiday spirit is by having themed gift exchanges. These activities add some fun into passing out presents, and themes takes the pressure off employees who struggle with gift shopping.

From thoughtful charity donations to co-worker trivia games, here are 10 fun gift exchange ideas for your next holiday party.

You've probably already participated in a few Secret Santa exchanges in the past, but in case you've forgotten how this long-time tradition works, everyone in the office gets anonymously assigned one co-worker for whom they will buy an inexpensive gift. Usually, names are drawn from a hat and there's a strict spending limit. And if you want to make it more fun, encourage employees to leave hints about their identities for their recipients up until the big reveal.

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Congress isn't the problem, special interests are, says the paper. Meanwhile, Wisconsin Republican Ron Johnson waits to take over Senate postal oversight committee.

Sen. Ron Johnson, who is expected to chair postal oversight committee in new Congress.

As Republicans prepare to take over both houses of Congress, talk is rife over what bills will be prioritized for passing in the lame duck session. The Keystone pipeline, tax reform, trade agreements, and immigration are often mentioned. Few players in Washington mention the postal reform bills that languish in the Senate and the House of Representatives.

But the Washington Post inserted postal reform into the conversation yesterday with an editorial that urged legislators to pay some mind to the “workhorse agency” that touches the daily lives of all citizens. “Of all the tasks confronting the newly elected Congress, none is more basic, in terms of plain old democratic governance, than reforming the U.S. Postal Service,” read the admonition authored by the Post's editorial board.

The paper said that significant bipartisan effort had gone into crafting both bills. It lauded the Carper-Coburn proposal in the Senate for relieving USPS from its suffocating payments for retiree healthcare benefits and its elimination of Saturday delivery. And it praised Rep. Darrell Issa's House bill for requiring that retirees be shifted into Medicare.

The Post concluded that interest-group politics, not partisan politics, were at issue in stalling reform. “Postal unions, rural states, large-scale commercial mailers, and others that depend on the dysfunctional status quo lobby furiously to protect it, or at least those parts of it that favor their particular interests,” the editorial argued.

“Financial relief in exchange for structural reform,” said the piece, has enough support of key players on both sides of the aisle to pass postal reform in the lame duck. It noted that Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI)—who has said he'd like to see the Post Office go through bankruptcy proceedings—is poised to take over from Tom Carper as chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee that oversees postal issues.

Business Breaking News: Box for iOS Now Offers Touch ID and Better Web Security

Since the launch of iOS 8 this fall, many business tech companies have redesigned their iOS apps to better fit Apple's new operating system and put its new features to work. Hot on the trail of updates by Dropbox and Microsoft, the latest to do so is Box.

The enterprise cloud storage and collaboration company this week released new updates to its iOS app and website. Aimed at business owners, the updates feature improved navigation and design that support a better, more efficient user experience.

Here are some of the features the new Box for iPhone and iPad and the refreshed Box.com website have in store. [24 Cloud Storage Solutions for Small Business]

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Who needs celebrities to market a product when you've got genuine, passionate influencers—on every level.

You know the saying: It's not what you know, it's who you know. That old maxim so often holds true for marketers who are trying to build awareness and loyalty for their products and services. But many times the who has translated into pricey celebrity endorsements. Time and again brands struggle to morph a massive celebrity following into affinity and sales.

Celebrity endorsements do not guarantee positive effects on the bottom line. Just ask marketers at the host of e-commerce sites with celeb connections but no tangible impact on sales.

Yesterday afternoon, marketers gathered at ad:tech New York to determine how brands can leverage influencers to drive growth for businesses—that's influencers on all levels, not just with celebrity status. The discussion included marketers across varied industries; and all of the panelists agreed on one thing: everyday shoppers can be more powerful than traditional celebrity endorsements.



“Power is not just in reach; it's in influence,” said Kunal Muzumdar, managing director at digital marketing agency POSSIBLE. Muzumdar said that one problem is that marketers look for influencers that are media platforms rather than people who have genuine connections to a brand's products and services. “Don't just look at influencers as a media channel,” he said. “Spend time to get to know them; make sure they're a fit to your brand.” He added that marketers should push to connect with influencers who share the same authentic concerns, interests, and passions with a brand: “Sometimes, it's like marketers are trying to fit a square peg into a round hole. Make sure [those influencers] are a true fit.”

Jann Schwarz, global agency partner lead for professional social network LinkedIn, says that marketers at his company have worked to build relationships for individuals and companies that, quite often, aren't the most hip or trendy. “There are no Kardashians [promoting] our platform,” Schwarz explained. “It's more about connecting influential professionals. We're here to speak out for the 99 percent of companies that will never be considered cool.”

In fact, Schwarz pointed to this year's Edelman Trust Barometer, an annual global survey that gauges trust among employees, consumers, and across industries. As he noted, the survey showed that since 2009 the biggest gains of trust are for spokespeople who are “regular employees” (32% in 2009 and 55% in 2014); the study also showed notable gains in trust for “a person like yourself” (47% and 62%).

“Yes, you can go try and hire a celebrity to do your influencing for you,” Schwarz said. “But you really need to be looking inward; ask, are you a great company for your employees? Those [are the people who] will be your best advocates.”

So how do you get your industry's influencers to work for you?

“By moving hearts, not minds,” said Seth Combs, cofounder and CMO of Sol Republic, a manufacturer of popular headphones and other audio products. Combs described how he and his marketing team managed to get 285 celebrity influencers in the music industry to join them in a music movement, rather than pay for pricey celeb endorsements. But these “saviors of sound,” as Combs called them, are only a small percentage of the company's influential network. “We have more than 40,000 soldiers of sound; it's basically a street team on steroids,” he explained. “They've all found Sol through other influencers—lovers of music. Musicians are modern-day storytellers.”

Panelists also warned marketers not to get caught up in promoting taglines and hashtags over real interactions. As the panel discussion came to a close, Lin Dai, CMO at Keek, an online social networking service that allows its users to upload video status updates, had this to say: “We can't predict which moments and conversations will go viral; just always be authentic in your messages and be [active] in the conversation. That'll draw influencers to you.”

Business Breaking News: 5 Ways Marketers Get Digital Video Wrong

Video is a powerful force in today's media landscape. YouTube receives more than 1 billion unique visitors each month, and many of those users are looking for content about their favorite products.

According to Google data, the number of shopping videos — such as product reviews, how-to's and "haul" videos that display a YouTuber's recent purchases — is growing. And this presents a huge opportunity for companies to create and share branded video content. While some brands have seamlessly incorporated digital video into their sales and marketing strategies, others still haven't mastered this increasingly popular medium. Experts debunked five common myths about video marketing, and offered their advice for making it work.

MYTH: View count is the only metric that matters.

TRUTH: Many brands make the mistake of believing that the only measure of success in a video campaign is how many views it gets. Lisa Green, head of industry for fashion and luxury at Google, noted that brands can get hung up on the myth of the viral video, and will therefore believe that the only hallmark of success is whether a campaign "goes viral."

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Consumers will take greater advantage of digital deals, while retailers will see more click-throughs thanks to improved application of data analytics.

You know the holiday retail season is nigh when the IBM Digital Analytics Benchmark releases its first projections, and it predicts shoppers will continue to break new ground online this year. Here's what to expect in the five-day shop-a-thon commencing on Thanksgiving Day, according to IBM:

Digital deals will deliver. Consumers on average will spend 3% less online ($123.28), but they will buy 4.4 items—17% more than they did last year. The reason: They've become more comfortable with and more adept at using digital coupons.

Retailers will get more personal. As online retailers perfect methods of personalization through better data analysis, they will realize 10% higher click-through rates on emails. IBM estimates that 35% of those clicks will be made via mobile devices.

Mo' mobile. For the first time, the majority (53%) of online shopping traffic this Thanksgiving will be mobile. The portable devices will account for 28% of all online sales, a 9% increase over 2013.

Tablets will pay the tab. The larger devices, able to display more merchandise choices, will account for twice as many transactions as smartphones. Cells, meanwhile, will do twice the online traffic of tablets.

IBM Digital Analytics Benchmark arrives at its forecasts by analyzing billions of online and in-store transactions across 370 performance indicators.

Business Breaking News: A 'Culture of Cybersecurity' Is Best Small Business Defense

By now, most business owners are aware that, regardless of your business size, no one is immune from the risk of a cyberbreach. Today's hackers are highly sophisticated and have the means to attack any target they choose.

While most small businesses don't live in blissful state of ignorance about the need for cybersecurity, many still haven't taken sufficient measures to guard themselves against hackers. A recent infographic by the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) reported that 71 percent of security breaches target small businesses, and nearly half of all small businesses have been victims of cyberattacks. Perhaps most alarming of all is the fact that 60 percent of small businesses that suffer a breach go out of business after six months, according to Experian.

"Small businesses by their nature are more fragile than larger enterprises," said Michael Kaiser, executive director of the NCSA. "They likely haven't taken the time to develop a contingency plan or response plan in the case of a cybersecurity incident and when an event happens, they don't have what they need in place to recover."

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The two companies find common ground in a commitment to customer experience as a core business competency.

Allegiance CEO Carine Clark

Maritz, the St. Louis-based motivational marketing company, announced the acquisition of Allegiance Software and revealed plans to merge it with Maritz Research to form a stand-alone company called MaritzCX.

Drawing on Allegiance's software platform and the data and specific industry experience of Maritz, the new company will endeavor to create customer experience operations for clients that will help them better interact with customers individually and in real time. Current Allegiance president and CEO Carine Clark will carry over those titles to MaritzCX, which will be based in Salt Lake City. The business will field 18 offices and serve some 500 clients globally.

"The focus of the company won't be on data collection and scores, but on how we're driving change at a client organization; how its staff can see data faster, and react more personally," says Allegiance EVP of Marketing Chris Cottle. "If we're doing that right we'll help clients retain more customers, grow faster, and increase lifetime value."

Maritz had been working on a customer experience project with Allegiance for most of the last year and both found a common philosophical commitment to customer experience. “CX has reached its arrival point. A CX platform and solution is just as important as ERP or CRM today,” Cottle says. “We're seeing interest in the C-suite and we're acting on that."

Business Breaking News: Microsoft Office Is Now Free for iOS, Android to Follow

Microsoft Office is now free — on mobile devices, at least.

The company announced today (Oct. 6) that mobile versions of Office are now available for all iOS devices and will soon come to Android tablets. With this move, Microsoft aims to make Office accessible to everyone, while also delivering a "consistently beautiful and productive" Office experience for all users across all devices.

Now called Office for iOS and Office for Android, these new Office apps let users create and edit Office documents across mobile devices, with the integration of Dropbox cloud-storage capabilities. And this is the best part — it's all free. Here's how the new Office apps work and what they have to offer small business owners. [Best Free Office Suites: Microsoft Office Alternatives]

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Business Breaking News: Customers Want Answers on Social Media — Don't Leave Them Hanging

If you think you're seeing more and more brand interactions on your social feeds, it's not your imagination. According to a recent report by social media management tool Sprout Social, the number of social media messages customers send to brands has increased by 77 percent since 2013.

"The general volume of social [messages] increased, and that's not surprising," said Andrew Caravella, vice president of marketing at Sprout Social. "What is surprising is how many of those messages are inbound toward brands and how many require a response."

The 2014 Sprout Social Index found that the number of customer messages that need a response or issue resolution (i.e., questions about products or complaints about services) has doubled in the last year. The problem is, the rate at which brands respond to these messages has actually gone down: Five in six messages that need an answer from a brand never receive one. [For a side-by-side comparison of the best social media marketing services, visit our sister site Top Ten Reviews]

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The move would accompany a focus on Internet sales, which the retailer intends to grow by as much as 40% over the next four years.

Wal-Mart brick-and-mortar stores may extend their price-matching policy to online competitors, according to a Wall Street Journal report that quotes Walmart spokeswoman Deisha Barnett. The retailer is apparently testing the policy now and considering how much it might lose by rolling it out nationwide.

At its annual stockholders meeting on October 15, Walmart officials revealed a sharpened focus on Internet retailing, saying they would increase investments in e-commerce and digital strategies to between $1.2 and $1.5 billion next year from this year's $1 billion. “We will invest more heavily in e-commerce initiatives, while temporarily moderating our physical growth, particularly larger stores,” said EVP and CFO Charles Holley.

Holley said Walmart's goal was to increase global e-commerce sales by 25% in its fiscal 2016, with total growth to range between 30-40% through 2018. Part of the investment in e-commerce will come in the form of operating loss, though it was not clear if any part of the intended loss would go to fund the price-matching program. “The greatest investment of capital and in operating loss for our e-commerce operations will come over the next 18 to 24 months,” Holley said.

Walmart expects to finish its fiscal year ending on January 31 with $12.5 billion in Internet sales. Amazon logged $74 billion in sales in 2013, though the e-com leader's own policy of investing in market share through operating loss may subside to some degree after it posted a $437 million loss in quarterly net income last week.

Business Breaking News: Pinterest, Twitter and LinkedIn Share Secrets to Social Success

NEW YORK — Want to know the secrets to small business social media success? Why not ask the social giants themselves?

At American Express OPEN's second annual New York CEO BootCamp yesterday (Nov. 3), representatives from three of today's biggest social networks shared valuable insights for small business owners. The "Social Media Power Hour" panel, moderated by Lolly Wolly Doodle founder and CEO Brandi Temple, featured Twitter small business marketing manager Brinn Sanders, Pinterest partnerships manager Sandy Diao and LinkedIn senior account executive of marketing solutions Stacey Aronstein.

Sanders, Diao and Aronstein discussed some best practices for businesses on their respective sites, and what business owners can expect in terms of trends and future developments. [For a side-by-side comparison of the best social media marketing services, visit our sister site Top Ten Reviews]

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Business Breaking News: 3 Seasonal Business Secrets to Year-Round Profitability

When you're running a seasonal business, it's often difficult to stretch the profits you made during the height of your sales throughout the rest of the year. But with the right tactics, you can make sure you stay afloat — and maybe even turn a profit — in your off-season. Whether you're gearing up for your holiday season peak or slowing down after your summertime rush, here's how you can keep your business in the black all year round.

Minimize your expenses in the off-season

If your business shuts down completely during your non-peak seasons, then it's unlikely you'll have to worry about many overhead expenses eating into your profits. However, if you're open for business all year, the easiest and most obvious way to stay profitable when sales are slow is to cut down on your bills.

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Business Breaking News: Microsoft Band: Top 3 Business Features

Can a fitness band actually help you do your job? Maybe if it's the Microsoft Band, a fitness device that integrates a slew of smartwatch features into an affordable, cross-platform package. In addition to tracking your physical activity, the device pairs with your smartphone to deliver alerts and notifications right to your wrist. It also responds to voice commands, letting you quickly save reminders and notes on the fly. And at $200, it's pretty affordable compared to devices like the $349 Apple Watch, set to launch early next year. The Microsoft Band went on sale Thursday on both Microsoft's website and in brick-and-mortar Microsoft stores. Read on for three features that make it good for work.

Notifications

A good smartwatch can pair with your smartphone to deliver alerts and notifications right to your wrist, so you don't have to worry about missing an important email, message or phone call. But not many fitness bands include that functionality, which is what makes the Microsoft Band a great productivity tool. And while most smartwatches can only connect to a limited number of devices, Microsoft's wearable is a cross-platform device. It pairs with iPhone, Android and Windows Phone devices via Bluetooth to grab alerts and display them on your wrist, where you can't miss or ignore them. No, the device isn't as fashionable as smartwatches like the Apple Watch or Motorola's Moto 360, but it wasn't necessarily designed to be a watch replacement (even though it does tell the time.) Theoretically, business users could wear the Microsoft Band on one wrist and their regular wristwatch on the other.

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