The StartUp Blog at PartnerUp

Not taking the time to properly defend your network against hackers, spammers and viruses will jeopardize the security of your company’s vital information and data, not to mention really tick you off. Unfortunately no security software is perfect. They’re all likely to have glitches here and there because new threats are always emerging. That’s why antivirus software developers create software patches, which basically patch up holes in the system as they arise. These patches are why it’s important to have the latest version of your software installed. It will cover all of the holes that the previous version didn’t.

Through its new BizSpark program, Microsoft is enticing startups to build their businesses with Microsoft’s full-featured development tools—for free. Basically the BizSpark program goes like this:

To be eligible a startup must meet three requirements. It must be a private company, make less than $1 million in annual revenue and be less than three years old.

If your startup meets these requirements, then you’re eligible to be a BizSpark member. As such you’ll get a free three-year package that includes a license to Microsoft software and servers and access to professional support from “Network Partners” from around the world. (Network Partners are units like investors or university incubators that are vested in software-fueled innovation and entrepreneurship. Startups must go through these Network Partners to get involved in the BizSpark program.)

Once the three years is up, BizSpark members can either begin paying for these Microsoft resources and continue business as usual, or pay an offering fee of $100 dollars and exit the program, no strings attached.

BizSpark really is a great way for startups to catapult themselves into successful businesses. It gives entrepreneurs more resources and opportunities than most could ever harvest on their own. If you want to read more commentary, I suggest you check out TechCrunch, GigaOM or VentureBeat. They each had great write-ups on the program.

As a note of disclosure, Microsoft is a sponsor of PartnerUp.

PartnerUp hosted this month’s Twin Cities’ Social Media Breakfast (SMB) this morning, and it was a hit! It just so happens that I had the perfect seat for eavesdropping in on several conversations and people could not believe how great the turn out was, how awesome the speakers were and how delicious the muffins tasted. One organizer even said it was the largest turnout in SMB history…worldwide!

Thanks to all of the speakers and everyone who attended!

For those of you who don’t know what it is, SMB is an event where people who are or want to become involved in social media get together to meet, eat, share their experiences and learn from experts in the field.

David Meerman Scott was the first speaker and basically the main event. He gave an awesome presentation about his book World Wide Rave, due out this spring. A world wide rave is the idea that all kinds of people around the world are flocking to you online because of some cool buzz that you created (also online). This is typically seen in crazy YouTube videos that take off and turn into…

 “Hey, did you see that one YouTube video about ________?”

“Yeah, isn’t that awesome!”

That’s the kind of thing that David says gets people excited and makes them actually WANT to be involved with your blog or your Web site or whatever. He’s a cool guy with a lot of great insight. You should definitely check out his blog.

PartnerUp’s CEO Steve Nielsen then gave a short presentation on how Deluxe, the corporation that acquired us earlier this year, is taking steps to join the world of social media (primarily by purchasing a cool company that already works in that space).

The last presentation was from an agency called Fallon. They gave their talk about a Twitter campaign they ran for a show on the SciFi channel called “Eureka.” I’ve been trying to figure the whole Twitter thing out recently, so it was cool to see how another group used the program to create some buzz and give fans another way to get involved with the show other than just watching it.

All in all it was awesome to see a room full of people blogging and Twittering as speakers addressed the ever-changing landscape of social media. I think it goes to show that everyone is going online, and if you’re not, then you’re missing out on a huge opportunity to reach people.

Technology has positively influenced the world in more ways than I could ever name given an entire lifetime. One of technology’s greatest benefits, at least where business is concerned, is its ability to drastically increase productivity. Businesses can leverage technology to work faster, safer, better, less; and they can do it cheaper. Basically technology is awesome.

The problem with technology, however, is that it can sometimes create distance between businesses and their customers. One of the most common complaints I hear is about phone systems that are seemingly designed to keep you from ever speaking to an actual human being. In such cases customer service has been sacrificed for productivity and saving money.

I get that through technology one person can do the work of many, but at what cost? Customer service is an area where small businesses can gain a competitive edge on large corporations. At the same time, staffing large call centers is an expense that most small businesses can’t afford.

What’s the answer to this dilemma? Balance. Technology will no doubt help your business run more efficiently and will be much cheaper, but don’t let your customer service policies be driven entirely by cost cutting. When possible, take the time to work with your customers directly; then leave the rest up to technology.

When asked if they believe that online social networking has a place in the business world, 55 percent of small business owners said “yes,” according to a recent survey conducted by online payroll service SurePayroll. The survey also indicated that one out of five small business owners polled had obtained at least one new customer as a direct result of online social media.

Engaging in online social media is becoming a must for small business owners wishing to stay competitive with big business. While many are becoming more and more aware of its importance, they don’t always know how to get started. Here are a couple quick tips on how to dive head first into online social media.

1. Join social networks. Whether it’s PartnerUp, LinkedIn, Facebook or whatever, joining small-business-friendly social networks is a great way to interact with your existing customers as well as gain new ones.
2. Join the blogosphere.  If you have the time and are willing to make the commitment, start your own blog. Customers will appreciate your industry insight and advice. If you don’t feel that you can commit to the blogging process, then at the very least read and comment on other blogs to show a level of industry engagement.

I hate talking on my cell phone, or any phone for that matter, but now the British Association of Dermatologists has given me one more reason to hate my nickel-plated nemesis—“mobile phone dermatitis” (yeah, that’s an actual term).

Mobile phone dermatitis is a red, itchy rash that occurs on people’s ears and cheeks as a result of mobile phone overuse. By spending too much time on your cell phone, you can over time develop an allergic reaction to the nickel surface present on many mobile devices. In fact, the rash isn’t necessarily confined to your face. According to doctors, in theory it can also occur on your fingertips if you’re an out-of-control text messager. Crazy stuff!

I don’t usually consider irritating skin conditions to be a laughing matter, but I think this is kind of funny. Mobile devices are no doubt a major part of our day-to-day lives, and our use of them will only increase over time. But don’t you think that giant red rashes on people’s faces is a sign that maybe we need to start limiting our use, or overuse, of mobile devices? Just a thought. Happy Friday and have a great weekend!

I was reading a post on Silicon Alley Insider last week when I came across an interesting concept—technology-driven Darwinism. The post focuses on the recent crisis on Wall Street, but points to technology-driven Darwinism as part of the problem.

“People tend to think of the newspaper or music business when they think of industries that are being destroyed by technology, but we have to admit the same thing is happening to the traditional investment banking and brokerage industry.”

Basically the writer equates the idea that technological innovation is destroying certain industries with the theory of evolution. He writes that technology is causing certain industries, or more appropriately the standard (weaker) practices of certain industries, to die off, while the technology-driven (stronger) practices survive and thrive. It’s as simple as that.

Business owners in these industries need to stop fighting this natural progression and either get on board or make room for those who will. Instead of putting their resources toward pushing their stale practices on consumers, they should start allocating those resources toward technological innovation.

“That’s why we need to be careful of all of the bailout activity…it’s propping up bad businesses that need to fail so talent and capital can move to more productive efforts.”

Businesses that are innovation driven and understand the future of their industries will fair much better in the current climate than those that don’t.

Keywords are one of the most important tools to driving traffic to your Web site. They’re the words that people type into their search engines to find the resources they’re looking for, which is why optimizing your site with terms that aren’t going to give you the right traffic is stupid.

So in order to save you from making some simple mistakes, here are two misconceptions that rookie keyword optimizers sometimes fall into.

1. Thinking that your customers know your industry-specific terms. Just because you know what your site is about, doesn’t mean you know how a customer would go about finding it. Because of how closely they work with their sites, owners tend to view them through a narrow lens, and therefore optimize their sites using jargon that the everyday consumer either doesn’t understand or doesn’t automatically think of when they begin their searches.
2. Thinking that “high-profile” or generic terms are best. There might be thousands of people who type the word “google” into their search engines, but they’re looking for Google, not you. If the term has little or nothing to do with your site and you’re just looking for traffic, then you’re wasting your time. Even if you do end up getting traffic, it’s not going to be the quality traffic that you’re looking for. Also, if you go overly broad with your terms, your search engine rankings will be poor. Terms like “car” or “internet” register billions of results each, so you’re not likely to be high on that list.

What I do suggest is that you perform keyword research to find the words that people are really using to search online. Through keyword research you can also find out how many Web sites are currently optimized for certain keywords and useful synonyms for the words that best describe your business. There are a number of keyword research tools out there on the Web, so I encourage you to check them out and do your homework to make sure your keywords are giving you the best results possible.