3 trends to consider in your 2014 small business planning

It’s that time of year when all the experts put on their prognosticating hats and tell us what’s going to be big in 2014. It can be exhausting, not to mention confusing, to take in all this information. So, to save you precious time, I scoured blog posts and articles from one end of the Internet to the other and found three trends that are mentioned repeatedly as major developments that you should be aware of as you plan to grow your small business in 2014. Here they are:

• New payment methods – The momentum behind electronic wallets, mobile credit card payments, smartphone-powered gift cards, and other forms of new payment methods will continue to grow in 2014. It is only a matter of time before cash transactions at retail locations become a rarity. If your business has a cash register, it is imperative that you get up to speed on this rapidly evolving technological change so you can determine the best course of action to provide your customers with the increased convenience they crave when it comes to paying for goods and services.

Cloud-based software – Keeping up to date with the latest software has always been expensive for small businesses. Because of the expense, many business owners opt to stick with the tried and true and miss out on the efficiencies and capabilities that come with new software. But now along comes cloud-based software, which in many cases is either free or offered on a less-expensive pay-for-use basis.

Not only does cloud-based software reduce costs, but it also provides more security since nothing is stored on hard drives or other media that can crash and burn or be lost or stolen. And the accessibility can’t be beat; you and your employees can access documents anywhere, any time on any device.

I could go on and on about the benefits of this technological innovation, but suffice it to say that this is a money-saving trend that you need to consider when you’re reviewing your IT capabilities and needs for 2014. If you’re still not convinced, here is a good article that provides more info on this development.

• Videos as a marketing tool – If you’re looking to rev up your marketing in 2014, consider the growing power and popularity of videos. With 100 hours of video being uploaded to YouTube every hour, you are wise to give serious consideration as to how you can make use of this popular medium as part of your social media marketing. Also, the trend in all social media is shorter, shorter, shorter, so consider tools like Vine, which features 6-second videos, and Instagram, which features 15-second videos that can be fully integrated with your Facebook page.

10 comments

  1. I am agreed with you. If you're searching to rev up your business in 2014, accede the growing ability and acceptance of videos. With 100 hours of video getting uploaded to YouTube every hour, you are astute to accord austere application as to how you can accomplish use of this accepted average as allotment of your amusing media marketing.

  2. Great post Jeanne. These must be considered when starting your small business plan. Videos in youtube / other social media sites play an important role in small business marketing. Since most of the prospective clients.customers can be easily found online.

  3. TrewIDM says:

    Great Post!! Cloud computing has proven a boon to businesses especially small businesses. With cloud services, small businesses reap the benefits of not having to deploy physical infrastructure like file and e-mail servers, storage systems or shrink-wrapped software. Plus, the anywhere, anytime availability of these solutions, means hassle-free collaboration among business partners and employees.

  4. wilbermj says:

    Accepting mobile payments is going to be huge for small businesses to conform to.

  5. Christopher says:

    There was an interesting article I read last week which involved a well known brand designing suits with wireless contact payment method built into the sleeve of the suit. Seems all a little crazy. Next think you know we will be making payments through our finger prints. I think cloud computing as a general term has hit the market with great force over the last two years. Cloud computing is awesome, long term and short term it tops the checklist rather than having solid state and tangible hardware.

  6. Berger says:

    Great post. I totally agree with trend topics.

  7. Webdesign says:

    High-quality article . I am searching wonderful news articles and plan . What I have found from your website , it really is highly website content . You have spent long time in the article . It's a very useful and wonderful web-page . Cheers for sharing .

  8. Adam says:

    Some of the new payment methods available have literally transformed my clients businesses. Amazing new tech.

  9. cloudags says:

    Great Post!! Cloud computing has proven a boon to businesses especially small businesses. With cloud services, small businesses reap the benefits of not having to deploy physical infrastructure like file and e-mail servers, storage systems or shrink-wrapped software. Plus, the anywhere, anytime availability of these solutions, means hassle-free collaboration among business partners and employees.

    We @ http://www.cloudags.com offer SaaS based access governance solutions, which is available as enterprise and cloud model.

  10. Tony says:

    Video marketing is a combination video into your marketing campaign or to promote your company brand or product or your service. Customer Testimonials events with online video is becoming increasingly popular as companies are trying to take advantage of multi-media content into their marketing efforts. Marketers can get many benefits with just a video by integrating it into all of your marketing channels -from email go to the landing page. Furthermore, research shows that video can increase your rankings on Google and more. So, it is suitable for small businesses.

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