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Your EnterQuest Bulletin - Issue 249
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| Thought for the week: "I wanted to be an editor or a journalist, I wasn't really interested in being an entrepreneur, but I soon found I had to become an entrepreneur in order to keep my magazine going." Richard Branson |
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In this week's issue:
For blog's sake ...
Blogs by their nature are 'in the moment' accounts of anything and everything. But for business owners blogging is different. If you want to blog for your business, you need to include information about your product or service, in addition to relevant news, in order to engage website visitors. Blogging is also useful for building up reciprocal relationships with other businesses and can help earn you a little extra cash.
Here's a quick look at business blogging basics:
1. Blogging takes commitment and time. You'll have to dedicate your time to providing customers and other site visitors (and this may include other bloggers) with new information. There's nothing more off-putting for readers when they visit a blog only to find stale, old content. This doesn't mean you have to type forever - some of the best blogs are short, pithy entries that the reader can view and understand easily.
2. The content must be relevant. Blogs can help to position you as an expert in your field if they're written the right way. They also enable you to promote your products and services with the personal touch, as you can link to news articles, pictures etc, to keep the content fresh and inspiring.
3. Links are important. It's easy to forget the business behind the blog and get lost in the blog's content. Build links to the site from other websites related to your business or your expertise. More links generally mean more traffic and a better search engine position.
4. Blogs are interactive. Readers can normally post their own comments to your blog entries. This allows existing and potential customers to comment on your product or service, or the process involved in buying that product or service. Bear in mind that it might take some time for someone to comment on your entries, so persevere. Install a site counter or check your website statistics to see how many people are viewing your blog. Blog Patrol has free blog counting tools you can download.
5. Is there a call to action? Does the blog link through to a special offer or service you're currently running? Calls to action will help you win new customers or encourage existing ones to try out new products or services.
6. Can you make cash from your blog? For instance, is there advertising space on it which an organisation could use to market to your audience? Is there an affiliate programme you can join? Post some affiliate links within your blog and you could earn money when a reader clicks through to the affiliate site and buys a product.
Data protection and the Internet
The Data Protection Act 1998, which sets out to safeguard personal data, applies to information on websites as much as it does to paper records. The Act enforces eight principles of good practice.
As well as these eight principles, there are a few other rules you should adhere to when handling information over the Internet or via e-mail:
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Personal data placed on the Internet is available worldwide. In many countries it may not be protected. So it is wise, and in some cases essential, to gain consent from individuals before publishing their personal data on your website.
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Always inform the user who you are, and explain why you are collecting information. Do this up front, before they give you their details. It is good practice to ask for consent to collect personal data; it is essential to get consent if you want to process sensitive personal data.
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Provide a privacy statement on your website and provide a mechanism for people to opt out of receiving your e-mails.
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Let people know when you intend to use cookies or other hidden software to collect information about them.
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Only collect information where strictly necessary. Do you really need a full address to provide an online quotation?
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If you are collecting information for marketing purposes, clarify this at the outset and make provision of the information optional.
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Design your systems to avoid or minimise the use of personal data. Ensure your personnel know that data handled over the Internet is confidential.
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Use up-to-date technologies to protect the personal data collected or stored on your site. Sensitive or valuable information, such as financial details should be protected by reliable encryption technologies.
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If you rent other people's e-mail lists, the onus is on you to ensure that those list owners have complied with the law. It's a case of buyer beware!
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If you are asking customers to reveal their credit card and bank account details ensure they use a secured server page where data is encrypted and safe from unauthorised access.
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E-mail addresses are personal data. People whose e-mail addresses are in a directory or user list on your site can ask to be deleted from it.
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Consider using reliable encryption software for confidential e-mail.
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Regularly update information, particularly where a visitor to your site has asked you to correct, change or delete inaccurate details. Remember to notify any third parties who may also hold the data that you have done this.
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Keep up to date with the latest privacy and security risks on the Internet. Look up 'privacy' and 'security' in search engines.
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To receive regular tips, articles and how-to guides like these to help you run your business more effectively you can subscribe to BETTER business magazine.
To receive a free copy of BETTER business magazine simply send us your name and address to enterquest@cobwebinfo.com, putting 'EQ magazine offer' in the subject box. |
Each week we provide you with summaries of some popular or emerging business ideas in the UK and elsewhere around the world.
- French wines for women. A new wine business is targeting women with middle and premium wines. wineSight and its sister site Sublimelle aim to target women connoisseurs without patronising marketing drivel. Instead it relies on the quality of its wines, from key wine-making regions in France.
Regularly improving your vocabulary is not just about learning a new word and its meaning. It will improve your general knowledge and make you feel and act smarter in all sorts of personal and business situations.
Do you know the meaning of the word 'excursive'?
a) overly cautious
b) long-winded or rambling
c) a tendency to make up excuses
d) self-explanatory
Answer at the end of the Bulletin.
The following topical business issues have been recently reported in the media. Did your radar pick them up?
1) Microsoft has launched an ambitious bid to buy out Internet firm Yahoo! so that it can gain a bigger share of the online search engine market. Google currently dominates this market but by what percentage, according to reports?
a) 35%
b) 55%
c) 65%
d) 75%
2) The Government has announced more post office closures across the UK to the dismay of many business leaders. The Forum of Private Business (FPB) says that the closures will be detrimental to small businesses that rely on passing trade from post offices. How many post offices are earmarked for closure?
a) 250
b) 500
c) 1,500
d) 2,500
3) Research by the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) has revealed that UK businesses may be unable to cope with uncertainty and change. Among its findings, just 22% of respondents think which key factor is important in today's working environment?
a) risk management
b) innovation
c) assessing regulatory impacts
d) staff development
Answers at the end of the Bulletin.
SEO tools for Firefox users
The writers at TopRankBlog have come up with a list of tools to help Firefox users get more out of their search engine optimisation techniques and Firefox itself. The list includes keyword generators, metatag tools and search result analysis tools.
PC World downloads
Computing magazine PC World has released a top 15 of the best downloads of 2007 and early 2008. The downloads are a mixture of utilities and productivity tools and, best of all for EQ readers, the majority of them are free. Anti-spyware programmes, file converters and file cleaners count among the best downloads of last year.
How linkable is your blog post?
This tool will come in handy for bloggers everywhere. Simply answer the questions in the How Linkable tool and click on 'submit' once you're finished. Up pops an assessment of your blog, which includes hints and tips to help you improve on how linkable your blog is.
RoSPA safety guide for small businesses
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) provides occupational safety guidance to small firms. The guidance is available on the RoSPA website and includes a basic health and safety questionnaire, a list of resources and an at-a-glance summary of the law relating to health and safety at work.
Win an OKI A3 colour laser printer worth £1,500!
EnterQuest has teamed up with OKI Printing Solutions to give readers the chance to win the C8800, top-of-the-range, A3 colour laser printer worth nearly £1,500.
With the C8800, which is both Mac and Windows-compatible, businesses can save money and build a competitive edge by producing high-quality, colour documents quickly and efficiently. The printer can print the first colour page in just 10 seconds and delivers up to 26 colour pages per minute (ppm) in A4 and 15ppm in A3.
To enter this competition, simply answer the following question:
Q. How many A3 sheets can the OKI C8800 print in one minute?
a) 15
b) 20
c) 25
E-mail your answer, together with your name, address and daytime telephone number, using "OKI laser competition" as the e-mail subject line, to enterquest@cobwebinfo.com.
All entries must be received by February 29. EnterQuest and OKI will use the information you provide for their own marketing purposes only and your details will never be shared with any third parties (except to arrange delivery of the prize).
This book from marketing guru Seth Godin focuses on the concept of 'new marketing' such as social networks and web marketing. Seth says that businesses should be asking 'How can we alter our business to become an organisation that thrives on new marketing?' and be prepared to adapt their business to the shifts taking place in the marketing and business worlds. Check out:
Just one word answer
The answer is b).
Excursive means long-winded or rambling.
The speech made by the key note speaker was surprisingly excursive. |
How's your business radar? The answers
1) The answer is d). Google's market share of the online search engine market is around 75%, according to figures in the Guardian newspaper. Both Microsoft and Yahoo! have failed to eclipse Google in the search engine stakes over recent years.
2) The answer is d). 2,500 post offices are set to close over the next few years. The FPB says that more must be done to help businesses in rural areas deal with the closures and minimise any adverse impact on their businesses.
3) The answer is b). The survey by the CMI revealed that innovation is a low priority for many UK managers, with just 22% saying it is important to them. |
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Good luck
The EnterQuest Team
This information is meant as a starting point only. Whilst all reasonable efforts have been made, the publisher makes no warranties that the information is accurate and up-to-date and will not be responsible for any errors or omissions in the information nor any consequences of any errors or omissions. Professional advice should be sought where appropriate. |
