SMBs in India are on track to invest about $ 640 million on buying packaged software this year, up more than 25% over what they invested in 2006. Spending on databases, accounting, networking, productivity and system software will account for more than 90% of the total software spending by SMBs this year, according to the latest report by New York-based Access Markets International (AMI) Partners.According to Nirupam Chaudhuri, research manager with AMI Partners. “SMB users have become more alert and they know what they need to be able to accelerate their business. A small percentage of IT-savvy SMBs have progressed to the third wave of IT adoption and are now demanding tailor-made solutions with superior support services.”Small businesses posted a 23% rise in software spending while medium businesses showed 30% growth in software spend last year.Investment in packaged software is driven by business needs. SMBs are most concerned about rationalisation of investments. Having state of the art technology with the latest security features is viewed as a major factor in overcoming competition. Vendors can no longer push anything and everything as a package to users. "These days SMBs need to be convinced on all the features a software package contains, and are only willing to pay for features they plan to use,” Chaudhuri says. “In keeping with this trend, vendors have also launched solutions and packages in which pay-as-you-use features are incorporated, thus allowing SMBs to access only the modules they’ve paid for."
Source : Sme Zone
Showing posts with label Information Technology. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Information Technology. Show all posts
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Multi-function devices for SMBs
It wasn't long ago when a printer was just another printer - it did what it was supposed to do - Print! Fastforward to today, there has been a near 180-degree shift. As business demands increase, the printer is morphing beyond its core functions, offering customers more value for money and is rapidly evolving. While printers have added copying functionality, copiers have added print controllers. As a result, the printer and copier markets are converging. Printer-based MFPs typically offer the lowest acquisition price while copier-based MFPs provide a low cost per page. However, under-utilised copiers represent another type of additional cost. While they offer a low cost-per-page, the actual cost of the hardware in conjunction with low utilisation is dramatically higher. For volumes below 20,000 pages-per-month, printer-based MFPs are typically more economical. In addition, you have the option to buy several MFPs and reduce the number of users per device without significantly increasing your total cost. "Multi-function devices are increasingly redefining office life, helping organisations to consolidate investment, maximise space and simplify workflow processes. MFDs also simplify supply ordering and minimise maintenance calls, saving time, money, and critical resources for SMBs," says Samir Shah, director, commercial and enterprise printing business, Imaging and Printing Group, HP India. An increasing number of customers are considering color MFDs that not only combine printing and copying but also produce black-and-white output at the same cost and performance as black-and-white devices. "The new generation color MFDs are designed to remove one of the key barriers to color adoption by reducing the cost of printing black and white documents to the same level as that on monochrome printers, while simultaneously delivering on the quality and experience of color in the office," explains Shah. Capabilities such as HP Edgeline technology illustrate one of the most important milestones in the evolution of MFP technology. "The Edgeline offerings will transform the industry, providing customers a multifunction printing solution with unprecedented ease of use that can improve productivity and lower color operating costs by up to 30 per cent," says Shah. "SMEs today operate in an extremely competitive business environment. They want to cope by opting for business infrastructure that makes them do more for less, i.e. makes them more cost competitive. Samsung has recently introduced its 'Printelligense' range of laser printers with intelligent technology that helps customer save up to 50 per cent on their printing costs, lowers their printing downtime and makes printing less fussy. Some of these new technologies have been developed especially for the cost-conscious Indian customers. We hope our new range of 'Printelligense ' laser printers will help our SME customers become more efficient, competitive and successful,” says Hari Pandey, senior marketing manager, Samsung India.
Information spurs growth
The mantra repeated over the years is that ‘India is growing at a blistering pace, and it is the SME sector that is powering this growth’. However, the question is - what is really powering the SME growth engine? In this context, it is apt to recall a view of one of the well-known CEOs. He was of the opinion that even in these turbulent times, our economy is still resilient. India also has a vast population (fortunately or unfortunately), to ensure consistent consumption. These comments are often viewed with scepticism. If the growth of our SMEs was indeed infallible, would not India have emerged as a superpower overnight? Notwithstanding, this opinion, the truth lies somewhere in between. Hence it is very important to seek the answers to these questions, as information is the key for progress and further growth in any sector. From general observations, most of the SMEs are contemplating a scaling down of their existing businesses altogether. There are companies, which are struggling to survive, forget about growing and expanding further. So, what is it that has caused cracks in the erstwhile shining armour of these SMEs? Is it the inflation or the severe liquidity crisis or is it a combination of several macroeconomic factors? It can be stated that macro-economic factors have been a mere speck of influence on the overall performance of the SMEs. To begin with, the real causes have been a lack of planning by most entrepreneurs while pursuing the feverish growth targets of the past. Eventually, it always boils down to one thing – lack of accurate and scientific information about their business, their competition and their end users. Nine out of ten SMEs in our country unfortunately are completely oblivious to any form of organised information. Business decisions have often been based on ‘gut-feel’, and the assumption about a general estimate on the ‘business climate’.
Naturally, the bubble is bound to burst some time. Often, it will be sooner rather than later. When the dotcom boom happened, every business – large and small alike – were inclined towards that online domain. Nevertheless, the irony is that, questions like - ‘What exactly did they want to start? And why did they want to do so?’ - were mostly unanswered. The issue that should have been addressed ideally is – what is the sustainable competitive advantage that the business will continue to have over the medium term? This is a question that has not been pondered upon by most of the SME owners. Retail, real estate and IT companies have recently gone the same way. Very often, businesses in these so-called ‘emerging sectors’ have started exploiting the ostensible valuations they would attract – valuations, which are very often restricted to paper, or at best to the Bill Gates’ spread sheets. This is the fundamental ill ailing the bulk of India’s SMEs. Most of these businesses – regardless of the sector – lack a credible, unique value proposition. Without this kind of a value proposition, they continue to remain a mere statistic, not having the ability to become a brand. In addition, this in turn means, without a brand there is no brand value. Therefore, it is crucial for the owners of all the small and medium enterprises to wake up and smell the coffee, and plan their expansion and diversification more meticulously. This plan of course needs to be based on reliable and accurate information. The kind of information the Indian SMEs need to seek are as follows: a) Firstly, they need to understand their own DNA and core values. What is making the business tick? (May be even something like – what is the singular reason they have for continuing to exist for so long?).
b) Secondly, the enterprise needs to understand its competition. The more thorough the information, the more effective can be the SMEs’ plan of growth. (Remember, in today’s times, a watch no longer competes with another watch. It actually competes with a shirt, a pen or a wallet. And in most economics, Coca-Cola’s biggest competition is plain old water!) c) Next, the SMEs need to study and comprehend their end users intimately. The process would involve knowing every single stakeholder interacting with their products or availing their services. They should learn from these insights gathered and understand their requirements. d) SMEs need to then make smart inferences on what is going to ensure their stakeholders’ continued loyalty to their products or services. e) Finally, SMEs need to understand the environment, the various channels of communication and the clutter and budget constraints. How will they enjoy maximum mindshare for themselves? Yes, all this ‘understanding’ stems from insights, which are based on rigorous information. In addition, the information needs to be gathered through detailed scientific processes. The scientific process is no doubt painstaking and perhaps, seemingly expensive for an SME. However, apparently there is simply no other choice for today’s entrepreneurs or their small and medium ventures. Today’s entrepreneurs need to invest more in the process of gathering and effectively collating scientific information. To put it simply, they need to do sufficient ‘looking’ before the ‘leaping’ to the next level. Otherwise, with an ill-informed approach the SMEs will plunge into a cavern of no return.
Source : Indiatimes
Naturally, the bubble is bound to burst some time. Often, it will be sooner rather than later. When the dotcom boom happened, every business – large and small alike – were inclined towards that online domain. Nevertheless, the irony is that, questions like - ‘What exactly did they want to start? And why did they want to do so?’ - were mostly unanswered. The issue that should have been addressed ideally is – what is the sustainable competitive advantage that the business will continue to have over the medium term? This is a question that has not been pondered upon by most of the SME owners. Retail, real estate and IT companies have recently gone the same way. Very often, businesses in these so-called ‘emerging sectors’ have started exploiting the ostensible valuations they would attract – valuations, which are very often restricted to paper, or at best to the Bill Gates’ spread sheets. This is the fundamental ill ailing the bulk of India’s SMEs. Most of these businesses – regardless of the sector – lack a credible, unique value proposition. Without this kind of a value proposition, they continue to remain a mere statistic, not having the ability to become a brand. In addition, this in turn means, without a brand there is no brand value. Therefore, it is crucial for the owners of all the small and medium enterprises to wake up and smell the coffee, and plan their expansion and diversification more meticulously. This plan of course needs to be based on reliable and accurate information. The kind of information the Indian SMEs need to seek are as follows: a) Firstly, they need to understand their own DNA and core values. What is making the business tick? (May be even something like – what is the singular reason they have for continuing to exist for so long?).
b) Secondly, the enterprise needs to understand its competition. The more thorough the information, the more effective can be the SMEs’ plan of growth. (Remember, in today’s times, a watch no longer competes with another watch. It actually competes with a shirt, a pen or a wallet. And in most economics, Coca-Cola’s biggest competition is plain old water!) c) Next, the SMEs need to study and comprehend their end users intimately. The process would involve knowing every single stakeholder interacting with their products or availing their services. They should learn from these insights gathered and understand their requirements. d) SMEs need to then make smart inferences on what is going to ensure their stakeholders’ continued loyalty to their products or services. e) Finally, SMEs need to understand the environment, the various channels of communication and the clutter and budget constraints. How will they enjoy maximum mindshare for themselves? Yes, all this ‘understanding’ stems from insights, which are based on rigorous information. In addition, the information needs to be gathered through detailed scientific processes. The scientific process is no doubt painstaking and perhaps, seemingly expensive for an SME. However, apparently there is simply no other choice for today’s entrepreneurs or their small and medium ventures. Today’s entrepreneurs need to invest more in the process of gathering and effectively collating scientific information. To put it simply, they need to do sufficient ‘looking’ before the ‘leaping’ to the next level. Otherwise, with an ill-informed approach the SMEs will plunge into a cavern of no return.
Source : Indiatimes
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Top 5 Ways To Generate Low Cost Website Traffic
There is one hard and fast rule in generating income for your website: A steady flow of website traffic. If no one goes to your site, it hardly bares a chance of generating an income. Many sites have tried and failed in doing so, and these results to the sites demise. It takes money to maintain an income generating site; it also takes money to make money.
BUT, it doesn’t take a whole caboodle of cash to generate website traffic for your site.
Ever wonder how does big hit sites drive traffic top their site? Most of them are spending tons of money to drive the traffic to their sites, investing in many advertising campaigns and different forms of marketing schemes and gimmickries. This is all worthwhile because, well, they are what they are now, high earning, big hitting websites.
You don’t have to do this if you don’t really have their resources. There are many ways to generate low cost website traffic without having to spend what you don’t have or can’t afford. Many people have banked on high cost methods and have ended up losing their shirt over it.
Here I present to you the Top five ways to generate low cost website traffic that could help your site a whole lot. Even if you only get a small percentage of successful visitors in to client ratio it still works especially if you get a high number of website traffic.
Exchange Links
This is a sure and proven method. Rarely would you see a site where there is no link to another site. Many webmasters are willing to exchange links with one another so that they could produce more public awareness about their sites. You’ll soon see and feel the sudden upsurge of the traffic coming in to your site from other sites.
A major prerequisite in exchanging links with other sites is having the same niche or content as the other site. They should share a common subject so that there is continuity in the providing of service and information to what interests your target traffic.
Exchanging links also boosts your chances of getting a high ranking in search engine results. It is common knowledge that search engines ranks high sites that have inbound and outbound theme-related links. With a good ranking position in the search engines, you will generate more traffic in your website without the high costs.
Traffic Exchange
This is like exchanging links but on a different higher level. This may cost a bit more than exchanging or trading links but could be made cheaper because you get to earn credits. You can use those credits when viewing others traffic, while you earn credits when someone views yours.
Traffic exchange services are the viewing of another’s site or page. This is done vice versa where a site can use your sites contents and so can you to his or her site. You both benefit from each others efforts to generate traffic. The other sites visitors can go to your pages and know more about your site as well as theirs. Once again the public awareness of your sites existence is boosted.
Write and Submit Articles
There are many e-zines and online encyclopedias in the internet which provides free space for articles to be submitted. If you want to save costs, you can do the articles yourself. There are many freelance writers who are willing to write for you for a small fee, but to save money, it is wise to do those articles yourself.
Write news articles or marketing news articles that are themed along with the niche of your site. Write something that you have expertise on so that when they read it, they can feel your knowledge about the subject and will be eager to go to your site. Write articles that produce tips and guidelines to the subject or niche your site has.
Include a resource box at the end of your article that can link them to your site. Write a little about yourself and your site. If you provide a light, information-laden and interesting article, they will go to your site for more.
Make a Newsletter.
This may sound like hard work because of all the articles you may need to use to build a newsletter but on the contrary, this is not so. There are many writers and sites that are willing to provide free articles as long as they can get their name in on your newsletter. This will also provide free advertising for them as well.
As your newsletter gets pass around, you can widen your public awareness and build an opt-in list that can regularly visit your site.
Join Online Communities and Forums
This only requires your time and nothing else. You can share your knowledge and expertise with many online communities as well as your website. You can get free advertising when you go to forums that have the same subject or niche with your site.
Share your small amount of money and let them see how knowledgeable you are with the subject. As you build your reputation, you also build the reputation of your site, making it a reputable and honest business that could be frequented and trusted by many people.
Source : The Works-Small Business Hub
BUT, it doesn’t take a whole caboodle of cash to generate website traffic for your site.
Ever wonder how does big hit sites drive traffic top their site? Most of them are spending tons of money to drive the traffic to their sites, investing in many advertising campaigns and different forms of marketing schemes and gimmickries. This is all worthwhile because, well, they are what they are now, high earning, big hitting websites.
You don’t have to do this if you don’t really have their resources. There are many ways to generate low cost website traffic without having to spend what you don’t have or can’t afford. Many people have banked on high cost methods and have ended up losing their shirt over it.
Here I present to you the Top five ways to generate low cost website traffic that could help your site a whole lot. Even if you only get a small percentage of successful visitors in to client ratio it still works especially if you get a high number of website traffic.
Exchange Links
This is a sure and proven method. Rarely would you see a site where there is no link to another site. Many webmasters are willing to exchange links with one another so that they could produce more public awareness about their sites. You’ll soon see and feel the sudden upsurge of the traffic coming in to your site from other sites.
A major prerequisite in exchanging links with other sites is having the same niche or content as the other site. They should share a common subject so that there is continuity in the providing of service and information to what interests your target traffic.
Exchanging links also boosts your chances of getting a high ranking in search engine results. It is common knowledge that search engines ranks high sites that have inbound and outbound theme-related links. With a good ranking position in the search engines, you will generate more traffic in your website without the high costs.
Traffic Exchange
This is like exchanging links but on a different higher level. This may cost a bit more than exchanging or trading links but could be made cheaper because you get to earn credits. You can use those credits when viewing others traffic, while you earn credits when someone views yours.
Traffic exchange services are the viewing of another’s site or page. This is done vice versa where a site can use your sites contents and so can you to his or her site. You both benefit from each others efforts to generate traffic. The other sites visitors can go to your pages and know more about your site as well as theirs. Once again the public awareness of your sites existence is boosted.
Write and Submit Articles
There are many e-zines and online encyclopedias in the internet which provides free space for articles to be submitted. If you want to save costs, you can do the articles yourself. There are many freelance writers who are willing to write for you for a small fee, but to save money, it is wise to do those articles yourself.
Write news articles or marketing news articles that are themed along with the niche of your site. Write something that you have expertise on so that when they read it, they can feel your knowledge about the subject and will be eager to go to your site. Write articles that produce tips and guidelines to the subject or niche your site has.
Include a resource box at the end of your article that can link them to your site. Write a little about yourself and your site. If you provide a light, information-laden and interesting article, they will go to your site for more.
Make a Newsletter.
This may sound like hard work because of all the articles you may need to use to build a newsletter but on the contrary, this is not so. There are many writers and sites that are willing to provide free articles as long as they can get their name in on your newsletter. This will also provide free advertising for them as well.
As your newsletter gets pass around, you can widen your public awareness and build an opt-in list that can regularly visit your site.
Join Online Communities and Forums
This only requires your time and nothing else. You can share your knowledge and expertise with many online communities as well as your website. You can get free advertising when you go to forums that have the same subject or niche with your site.
Share your small amount of money and let them see how knowledgeable you are with the subject. As you build your reputation, you also build the reputation of your site, making it a reputable and honest business that could be frequented and trusted by many people.
Source : The Works-Small Business Hub
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
