Small businesses embrace mobile devices to save money, time

Small businesses embrace mobile devices to save money, time 



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BY VIRGINIA BRIDGES

The News & Observer (Raleigh, N.C.)May 29, 2014

On the hunt for a point-of-sale system, the partners behind Crank Arm Brewing were looking for a specific but affordable solution. They wanted to process credit card payments on their own terminal, and they needed a system in which bartenders could easily establish, track and process tabs.

Registration was free for the cheapest service but required monthly payments that included higher credit card processing fees. The most expensive option was about $20,000 per terminal.

"As a startup, you could see how it was a little crazy to think about that," said Adam Eckhardt, one of Crank Arm's four owners.

Instead, they bought two used iPads and subscribed to point-of-sale application TouchBistro, which they have been using since Crank Arm opened in Raleigh, N.C., in July 2013.

"It runs pretty well," Eckhardt said.

The owners are not alone in their decision. A recent survey indicates that small firms are increasing smartphone, tablet and app use.

About 94 percent of businesses use a smartphone to conduct business - up 9 percent compared with last year - while 51.5 percent use apps and 61.7 percent use tablets, according to a recent small-business survey conducted by AT&T and the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council.

When small-business owners are able to improve systems and save time that they or their employees would have previously spent on tasks such as document management, then they can invest in other areas of their business, said Cathy Martine, AT&T president of enterprise business solutions.

Mobile devices have enabled everyone from doctors to attorneys to improve their internal office procedures, as well as access to information. Other businesses, such as landscapers, are using devices and applications to improve routes and track their fleet, Martine said.

"Saving time and money is the No. 1 objective here in terms of what motivates them," she said. "Areas that we continue to see the same repetitive themes coming back is document access, financial management, and then planning and operations of their business."

The survey found that smartphones save businesses 1.24 billion hours and $32.3 billion annually, while tablets save 754.2 million hours and $19.6 billion a year.

Many entrepreneurs are using devices and applications to organize, find places, store information and receipts, and monitor their time and revenue. Others use devices to watch their shop when they aren't there, regulate temperatures in conference rooms and set mood lighting in spas.

A lot of service industry businesses are turning to tablet-based point-of-sale systems, said Brian Hernandez, marketing manager for Apex, N.C.-based Convergence Technologies, which installs automation technology at residential and commercial properties.

A few restaurants and bars are using tablets as menus and at-the-table checkout systems.

Jimmy V's Osteria and Bar in Raleigh uses eight iPads to supplement its beer, wine and cocktail experience.

Customers use the tablets to explore the adult beverage offerings, allowing customers to see related wine tasting notes, learn about vineyards and bookmark bottles or drinks they are interested in. Customers can even email themselves the name of the wine or a specialty drink recipe.

"It is a really cool add-on that the app gives you," said Jack Benton, the restaurant's bar manager. "It is just the next step to service."

Since opening in July last year, two iPads have been replaced because of screen damage.

This summer, Jimmy V's plans to roll out an application in which customers can access the bar app from their own devices, along with performing other actions, such as checking in on social media or writing a review, said Karen Diaz, the restaurant's marketing director.

Beyond the service industry, Hernandez said, companies are using devices to make presentations and control technology that can adjust the conference room temperature before it is used.

They also use the devices like a key to get into their offices or to view the cameras installed for 24-hour surveillance.

Raleigh hair stylist Andrea Connelly said her iPad Mini has been an important tool in her transition to small-business owner five years ago. Connelly went from working on a commission basis for a salon to being an independent contractor.

"I cannot imagine not having it now," said Connelly, 40. "Just the paperwork that it has released me of is amazing."

Connelly uses her iPad for online banking and to process credit card payments. Her clients use it to peruse apps with salon magazines, and Connelly takes and stores photos of her clients to remember their haircuts.

She also uses it to store documents, information on new products or notes from a class she recently took.

"It is like having a portable laptop with the Internet connected at all times," she said.

Crank Arm Brewing paid about $5,000 for the initial iPad point-of-sale system setup, which required an Apple Mac mini, two iPads, cash drawers and printers. The owners pay about $300 a year per terminal to use the app.

For the most part, the system delivers what it promises, said Eckhardt and fellow co-owner Mike Morris, both 37 and of Raleigh. They use the iPad app to ring up sales, manage tabs, and monitor inventory and sales. They also use it to keep track of beer recipes and scheduled events.

Sometimes the app does get bogged down when it's really busy, the owners said, and sometimes it crashes.

It's not that bad, Morris said, as it only takes a couple of minutes to get it back up and running.

As the business approaches its first anniversary, its owners plan to explore other options. They want an application that generates a tab name at the swipe of a credit card instead of requiring the user to type it in. But they aren't interested in making too big an investment for a larger system.

If it doesn't increase their capacity or improve their beer, Eckhardt said, "It's just not worth it for us."

DEVICE AND APPLICATION USE BY THE NUMBERS:

_About 31 percent of small businesses report they save at least five hours per week because they use laptops or notebooks.

_About three-fourths of small businesses report their use of mobile devices has increased as it allows them to operate remotely.

_Nearly one-third of small businesses have seen their use of mobile data double in the past two years because of activities such as downloading and uploading files on their mobile devices.

_The use of mobile apps by small businesses has increased by 65 percent over the past two years.

SOURCE: Survey by AT&T and Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council: http://bit.ly/bizdevices

Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2014/05/29/3895253/small-businesses-embrace-mobile.html#storylink=cpy

Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2014/05/29/3895253/small-businesses-embrace-mobile.html#storylink=cpy

New Study Shows Targeting Push Notifications Increases Response Rates Up to 300%/

New Study Shows Targeting Push Notifications Increases Response Rates Up to 300%/ 



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Posted yesterday by RICHARD HARRIS

Urban Airship has released the findings from its latest Good Push Index (GPI) data study examining response rates of highly targeted push notifications compared to messages broadcast to most of an app’s audience. 

The study, which includes analysis of more than 1,000 apps and 3.8 billion push notifications, shows that highly targeted messages drive 293 percent more influenced app opens on average than broadcast messages.

Urban Airship analyzed its customers' data in aggregate to compare push influenced open rates for messages sent to more than 95 percent of an app’s active audience (broadcast) versus messages sent to less than 5 percent of an app’s active audience (highly targeted). The study’s findings are broken out by six industry verticals - Retail, Media, Games, Entertainment, Sports and Gambling.

Urban Airship suggests that while targeted push messages drive performance improvements, other data shows the industry is in early stages of using mobile to establish deeper relationships through personally relevant messaging and app experiences. 

In a separate study, 500 individuals involved in IT completed Urban Airship’s Mobile Maturity Self-Assessment with results showing that 85 percent have adopted mobile apps, which were identified as the most “essential channel” for engagement above all other common mobile tactics. However, the study showed majority of apps deliver the same messages and app experience to all users. 

According to Urban Airship’s Mobile Maturity Benchmarks Report (February 2014), one-third of companies that collect user preferences, behaviors and location data indicated they don’t actually use the insight to tailor content and messaging.

Urban Airship offers mobile relationship management solutions to streamline the creation, delivery and management of highly targeted cross-platform mobile push messages, in-app messages, rich app pages, Apple Passbook passes and Google Wallet cards.

Mobile Devices Boosting, Not Hurting, In-Store Shopping

Mobile Devices Boosting, Not Hurting, In-Store Shopping 



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Mobile usage before or while shopping in a store accounts for one-fifth of US in-store retail sales



Consumers may be getting more comfortable with mcommerce, but that doesn’t mean in-store retail sales are suffering. In fact, when Gallup polled US consumers in March 2014, it found that, if anything, mobile technology had actually played a positive role when it came to driving in-person retail shopping.

 

Among US consumers polled, 22% said that mobile had increased their retail store trips, beating out those who said it decreased by 3 percentage points. But in the end, mobile hadn’t had too much of an influence on the amount of brick-and-mortar shopping by consumers.

Data released in April 2014 by Deloitte broke down the influence of mobile device usage on in-store retail sales.

The research found that the use of mobile devices before or during in-store shopping trips influenced or helped to convert approximately $593 billion in US in-store retail sales in 2013—or 19% of total brick-and-mortar sales—compared with $159 billion in 2012. 

Distinct multi-screen behaviors emerge, opening up new marketing opportunities:

Distinct multi-screen behaviors emerge, opening up new marketing opportunities: report

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May 22, 2014

Multi-screen use reflects different behaviors and needs

While marketers increasingly recognize the need for multichannel marketing as multi-screen content consumption grows, many fail to grasp the different needs driving distinct cross-device behaviors.

From Facebook’s announcement this week that it will enable its mobile apps to recognize the music, movies or TV shows its users are enjoying to AT&T's recent $48.5 billion deal to buy DirecTV, evidence of multi-screen's significance is growing. A new report from Microsoft sheds some light on multi-screen consumers, pinpointing four common pathways and the underlying needs that drive each, so marketers create campaigns that better meet the needs of the always-on consumer.

“Mobile device and multi-screen are creating super human consumers,” said Frederick Stallings, senior director of mobile product strategy at ad technology company Collective, New York. “Every single thing you do now as a consumer is enhanced by Internet connectivity, so what you are getting now is smarter, faster, more intelligent consumers.

“The opportunity is that you have the ability to have very loyal customers because if they look better, smarter, more super human because they are connected to your brand and your brand is helping them achieve that success in life, that becomes extremely valuable,” he said.

“The motivation for getting these marketing efforts right is, whatever brand does a better job of understanding this mobile behavior, whatever brand can connect from a behavioral level to these users, that’s the one that is going step out in front.”

Mr. Stallings is not affiliated with Microsoft and spoke based on his experience.

Microsoft was not able to meet the press deadline.

Content GrazingIndustry data suggests seven out of 10 consumers use a second screen device such as a tablet or a smartphone while watching television.

Understanding consumer behavior across screens, especially the smartphone screen, is necessary for marketers to take advantage of the opportunities multi-screen content habits present.

According to Microsoft research, there are four pathways of multi-screen behavior, with distinct motivations behind each.

The report discusses four distinct multi-screen behaviors.

Content Grazing is the most common style of cross device behavior and refers to when consumers use two or more screen simultaneously to access unrelated content.

The research suggests this behavior is less about multi-tasking than it is about grabbing a quick moment of fun or escape. A large number of consumers, 47 percent, say they engage in this behavior out of habit, the largest percentage naming "habit" of the four groups discussed in the report.

For marketers, this means either inserting themselves into the moment of distraction with a quick snippet of content or overcoming short-attention spans to encourage deeper engagement.

Investigative Spider-WebbingMicrosoft calls the second style of multi-screen behavior Investigative Spider-Webbing, referring to consumers who view related content on two or more devices at the same time.

In contrast to Content Grazers, deep engagement exemplifies this type of cross-screen behavior, with consumers likely to get frustrated if they cannot find compelling enough supplementary information, causing them to abandon the original content or activity.

The opportunity for marketers is to distribute content thoughtfully and to disperse it along exploratory threads to encourage deeper exploration.

Investigative Spider-Webbing typically fulfills entertainment and relaxation needs but could also be an entry into shopping or other transactional activities.

Compared to other pathways, Investigative Spider-Webbing indexes lower on social motivations.

QuantumSocial Spider-Webbing, in contrast, is extroverted, with content acting as the catalyst to encourage consumers to connect to like-minded communities and add to the conversation. For example, one in five consumers engages in Social Spider-Webbing while watching live events on TV.

While the opportunity to interact with consumers where they are deeply and emotionally engaged is compelling, the challenge for brands with Social Spider-Webbing is integrating with socially generated content.

The last pathway is called Quantum and refers to consumers starting an activity on one screen and continuing it on another, with efficiency the dominant reason consumers take this pathway. Activities such as working, shopping and completing tasks are at the forefront here.

Quantum pathways are the ones consumers are most likely to start at work or on-the-go.

Consumers expect consistent, cohesive experiences across screens but technology does not always allow for this, resulting in disjointed experiences for consumers.

Microsoft suggests marketers seek out partners who can help them see ideas on one screen for further exploration on another and then encourage consumers to move to the screen that best fits the marketer's goals.

“The biggest challenge is that traditional digital marketing has always been about knowing that the consumer is sitting stationary in front of a screen and not moving for x amount of hours,” Mr. Stallings said. “Because somebody is always going through browser, the information can be tracked by a cookie, it is all pretty uniform and pretty obvious.

“The challenge now with multi-screen is that we have an enormous amount of devices that are connected now to the Internet,” he said.

Final TakeChantal Tode is associate editor on Mobile Marketer, New York

The top online ordering trends restaurants can’t ignore

The top online ordering trends restaurants can’t ignore:



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In trend news that will surprise no one, younger consumers are more likely to place food orders online and through their mobile device than older consumers. The younger generations are driving digital ordering, which is growing 300 percent faster than dine-in traffic, according to Marcus Higgins, VP of sales at EatStreet, an online ordering provider.

The mobile component of digital ordering is growing at an even faster rate and now makes up about 23 percent of food orders, mostly in the sandwich category.

During a webinar last week, Higgins, in partnership with the National Restaurant Association, provided an overview of the top online ordering trends that can help grow a restaurant business.

“The reason consumers prefer online versus traditional (phone or in-person) orders is because it offers instant gratification. It’s all about being able to have the convenience to go online, look at a menu, look at the items you want and not have to wait for someone,” Higgins said. “There are also other benefits, such as order accuracy and price checking, the elimination of any language barriers, and the convenience of already having your payment information on file, instead of having to enter it every time.”

Additionally, restaurants benefit from digital ordering because phone-in orders distract employees from their work. Having a staff without interruptions, Higgins said, pays for itself.

Some of the top trends in digital ordering include:

Single app spaces: Companies (like EatStreet, for example) are taking restaurants in a market area and making them all available in a single app, like a digital mall food court. This drives spontaneous ordering and provides a good way for consumers to learn more about what’s available.

“Participating is risk free. Online ordering companies usually charge a portion of the new orders we bring you through the app. It’s a great way to find new customers at a low risk,” Higgins said.

Loyalty and re-engagement programs: These are heavily impacting the restaurant industry and allow businesses to collect important information about their customers. The entire goal behind these programs, Higgins said, is to increase revenue per customer and increase newer customers coming through the door.

“Businesses that run loyalty programs have a 20-percent lift of frequency of visitation and have on average a 7-percent lift on average ticket,” he said. “The reason is the gamification of the model – it benefits them to come back, but also they know in real-time what they need to achieve to get to that next level.”

Social media to drive revenue: There are plenty of companies that can implement an online ordering function onto your restaurant’s Facebook page, to try and monetize your relationship with your social fans. Higgins said it is relatively easy to do and customers who use the functionality will spend more time on your page.

“You can see how many likes convert to sales. Restaurants are starting to see this as a trend and they really value the ability to offer online ordering to Facebook’s 1.5 billion users,” he said.

Mobile wallets: Higgins highlighted the three most common mobile payments options for restaurants, including:

• Mobile commerce, or paying online via an online wallet;
• Mobile payments that use in-app technology, where consumers download an app that has their information stored; and
• Mobile wallets, which replace the complete wallet and offer more security, he said.

“Consumers are using these programs to get back rewards, or some sort of incentive,” Higgins said. The benefit for restaurants is typically lower merchant transaction fees.

“Things are moving this way because it allows restaurants to track consumer buying habits, and it increases speed, customer loyalty and operational efficiency,” he said.

Restaurant delivery: Restaurants are increasingly partnering with delivery services, such as Eat24, GrubHub and EatStreet, because of online ordering. It allows restaurants to generate more customers through these providers’ extensive user lists, and to find new consumers without having to pay commission fees, Higgins said.

“For example, with EatStreet, restaurants can have access to hundreds of thousands of users. The restaurant delivery service pays online portal fees, which is a more cost effective way for restaurants to acquire new customers,” he said.  

Try before you buy partners: This idea – companies that charge a small percentage of incremental fees for the customers they bring you, instead of flat fees – is continuing to grow. Restaurants can align incentives with the partners they choose to work with and avoid upfront capital.

“If a restaurant determines they’re getting a lot of orders through a partner, then they can go out and spend capital to make it more effective down the line,” Higgins said. “And it forces the partners to keep up with technology to bring you new orders. This way restaurants can focus on their areas of expertise – the food and the customer service – and not so much the technology upgrades.”

The value of online ordering. Finally, Higgins said not only is it important not to ignore online ordering because of the younger-consumer preference, but also because online customers are valuable. An online customer is more likely to re-order within 60 days than a walk-in customer, simply because the platform is more accessible, he added.

Also, when someone places and order online, a restaurant can learn a lot of information about them – their address, what they order, what they spend. This can help shape marketing strategies and motivate purchases.

At the end of the day, however, Higgins said it’s important to have a good balance between both online and in-store. "Both have their benefits," he said. "And neither are going anywhere."

The difference between ‘OK’ and ‘delightful’ restaurant experiences

The difference between ‘OK’ and ‘delightful’ restaurant experiences:



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Market Force Information recently polled more than 6,100 consumers on what their favorite restaurant brands are based on their best experiences. The research study attempted to gauge the difference between an “OK” dining experience and one that "delighted" the customer.

OK vs. Delighted
According to the data, 59 percent of customers who tried a new restaurant said it was bad or OK, while 41 percent were delighted. Of those who expressed dissatisfaction, the top reasons given were that the price was too high for the value, poor food quality and it took too long to receive an order. Notably, “delighted” customers are nearly 8 times more likely to recommend a restaurant than those who just had an “OK” experience.

Market Force CMO Janet Eden-Harris said consumers were asked to rate a restaurant they had visited recently for the first time, and those who rated the experience a “5 out of 5” on satisfaction were eight times more likely to recommend the restaurant to others than those who rated the experience a “4 out of 5.”

“That’s a stunning difference between two scores that look close to the casual observer,” she said.

For brands to effectively compete, she suggests they:

• Know what matters most to your customers; observe and measure what is going on in your restaurants. “Understanding what matters most to drive sales will require an analytics model leveraging customer survey data, audit/mystery shopping data and sales data,” she said.
• Train your teams to follow those behaviors. Install programs to make sure your restaurants are executing.
• Consistently measure performance across every location using multiple tools such as customer surveys, mystery shopping and internal audit teams.
• Reward staff for executing. “It’s the best investment a brand can make,” she said.
• Keep on measuring. “I think the encouraging news for most brands is that, in almost every case, once the data reveals what behaviors and characteristics will create the biggest lift, those four, five or six things are often not difficult to do,” Eden-Harris said. “It usually centers around the greeting and attentiveness, offering upsells of some kind, having consistent cleanliness and delivering on food preparation and timeliness. It’s less costly than an advertising campaign, and it works.”

Most respondents reported that they had visited a QSR for lunch or dinner at least two to three times in the previous month, with slightly more dining out for lunch. One-third said that they eat out at least three times a week at a QSR.

Loyalty

Among the macrotrends that emerged from the study, 55 percent of respondents said they participate in loyalty programs offered by QSRs and, of those, 48 percent participate in three or more programs. This was the first year the loyalty question was asked, based on what brands wanted to know about their customers. Eden-Harris admitted she was surprised by the high adoption and participation rates of loyalty programs, but added it’s a good surprise.

“What do loyalty programs encourage consumers to do? To come back more often. Consistent with every benchmark research study that we’ve done in this industry for the past several years, the best way to ensure that consumers come back more often, spend more when they do, and tell their friends, is to delight them when they visit. Every restaurant, every time,” she said.

Freestyle

Another new stat from the report: 60 percent had visited a restaurant with a Coca-Cola Freestyle dispenser and, of those, 94 percent used it.  

“I was actually impressed with the Coca-Cola Freestyle’s presence and the fact that 7 out of 10 consumers gave the experience of using the machine a 5 out of 5 satisfaction rating, and that almost half (43 percent) said that the Freestyle fountain machine would make them more inclined to return to that restaurant. That’s pretty impressive,” Eden-Harris said.

Brand rankings

Finally, Market Force research also revealed consumer brand preferences based on a variety of attributes in four categories – pizza, Mexican, sandwiches and chicken. Highlights are included below.

Pizza

Papa Murphy’s is the favorite pizza chain among respondents, standing out for food and service. Pizza Ranch ranked second, and Papa John’s was third.

“The model of take-and-bake is a real winner for consumers. When we look at how Papa Murphy’s was rated on various attributes, they won by wide margins on ‘high quality food’ and friendly service,” Eden-Harris said. “You can deliver that with the take-and-bake model that I think gives them an edge. But note that Pizza Ranch does almost as well in those categories in their more traditional fast casual setting. So it’s about the food quality and service above all, however you deliver it.”

CiCi’s Pizza, Domino’s and Pizza Hut also rated high in satisfaction, but consumers were less likely to recommend them to friends and family.

Pizza consumers were asked to rank the pizza chains based on attributes such as food quality, customer service, atmosphere and overall value. Papa Murphy’s rated first for both quality and healthy food, and second in fast service and value. Pizza Ranch received the most votes for atmosphere and accommodating children, and CiCi’s was second in both categories. The fastest service went to Little Caesar’s, while CiCi’s took the top spot for value. Pizza Hut also fared well, ranking in the top five for most of the attributes studied, a Market Force release said.

Mexican

Qdoba is No. 1 for Mexican, edging out Chipotle and Moe’s, although Chipotle topped both in the food categories. Del Taco, Taco John’s and Taco Bell also made it into the top six.

Study participants were asked to select the attributes that described their most recent experience, and Chipotle’s offerings stood out with diners, who ranked it first in the healthy food and quality food categories. Qdoba led the pack for fast and friendly service, and was second in most of the other attributes, including food and atmosphere. Moe’s claimed the top spot for atmosphere and ranked in the top four of every other category. Taco John’s was named the most kid-friendly, and Del Taco topped the other chains in value.

Sandwiches

Firehouse Subs and Panera Bread are far-and-away the nation’s preferred sandwich chains, according to Market Force’s study. Firehouse Subs earned a 68-percent Composite Loyalty Score, followed by Panera Bread with 62 percent and Jimmy John’s with 54 percent. Subway, Arby’s and Tim Horton’s also ranked high on the list.

Sandwich restaurant concepts are broadly doing well by offering innovative food options to consumers who seek out convenience, variety and nutrition. Firehouse Subs has made inroads with diners with its specialty hot sandwiches and support of public safety organizations and causes, the release said.

For attributes, Panera Bread had the top votes in the quality food, healthy food and atmosphere categories. Firehouse Subs was the favorite in friendly service and accommodating children, and took second place in quality food and atmosphere. Subway was the value leader, followed by Tim Horton’s and Jimmy John’s.

Subway, the world’s largest restaurant chain by unit count, sits in the midline of customer satisfaction and likelihood to recommend. Eden-Harris said this is because it’s harder for such a big, ubiquitous brand to score in the “exceptional quadrant” when considering satisfaction levels.

“The very thing that makes them attractive to consumers — the same food, really reasonable prices and fact that I can find them almost anywhere — tends to have consumers view them as a good ‘safe’ choice, but not a ‘wow’ choice,” she said.

Chicken

Finally, Raising Cane’s edged out Chick-fil-A in the chicken category, followed by Zaxby’s, Wingstop, El Pollo Loco and Boston Market.

The top three overall favorite chicken chains also fared well in the quality food category, with Raising Cane’s ranking first, Chick-fil-A second and Zaxby’s third. Raising Cane’s also performed well in the service-oriented attributes, including the top spot for fast service. El Pollo Loco and Boston Market were tied for healthy food, and El Pollo Loco was also the value leader, followed by Church’s Chicken. Chick-fil-A ranked highest for friendly service, atmosphere and accommodating children, as well as in the top three for quality and healthy food.  

Building True Customer Loyalty, One Customer At A Time

Building True Customer Loyalty, One Customer At A Time - Forbes:



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The single most important thing you can do for your business is to get to work building true customer loyalty, one customer at a time.

Stop fiddling with your pricing, stop tinkering with your technology, stop fishing for likes on Facebook.

And start engaging with your customers one on one: Checking on them, hearing what they have to say, letting them know that their business matters to you, and that they matter to you.

At its root, creating loyal customers is about taking the time to learn about your customers individually and then systematically turning that knowledge into enduring business relationships. In doing so, you turn your offering into much more than a commodity—you turn it into a personal relationship.Because everything changes when a customer becomes loyal. To the truly engaged customer, you are the only business in your category — the only shop in your particular marketplace. All the other brands and all the other vendors don’t even come into focus. Like someone in love, the loyal customer only has eyes for you.

The primary threat to a business today is the perception by customers that all you offer is a replaceable, interchangeable commodity. This hazard stalks your every move: No matter how solid your business’s advantages may appear right now, whether they are advantages of technology, geography, or branding, eventually your business model is going to be knocked off. And, in this era of accelerating change, it will likely happen sooner than you think.

Escape this threat of commoditization by creating enduring, loyal, human relationships with customers. It’s the surest way to escape market obsolescence.

The payoff is huge.

A company of any size can build wealth and stability through customer loyalty. Businesses with loyal customers grow faster than others when times are good, and they have the most breathing room when times are bad.

And that can make all the difference.

The reward isn’t only financial. As you begin building customer loyalty, you’ll find that your pride in your profession, your integrity, and your ability to build positive relationships (at work, and even in your own home) will also bloom. This happens naturally, because the process of earning loyalty involves caring about your customers, respecting them, and thinking constantly about their needs.

Spending this time being deeply attentive will tone your personality. Building customer loyalty will require your hard work and thoughtfulness, but it is under your control: While so many aspects of business are out of your control—exchange rates, international tension, technological changes—the single most important process, creating loyal customers, is in your own hands.

Micah Solomon is a keynote speaker, customer loyalty speaker and customer experience consultant.

Want to Connect with Customers? Think Mobile First | Visual.ly

Want to Connect with Customers? Think Mobile First | Visual.ly:



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Push-button pizza: West Chester firm has magnetic idea for ordering take-out

Push-button pizza: West Chester firm has magnetic idea for ordering take-out:



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WEST CHESTER — With his idea for a WiFi-enabled push-button refrigerator magnet, entrepreneur Gregory Panos believes he can make ordering take-out food easier than ever.

When pushed, his button’s wireless technology sends a preset order from a smartphone or computer to a takeout shop for delivery and automatically pays for it.

And that’s it. One touch and the food shows up.

The order is paid automatically with funds from a personalized account, much like EZ-Pass, and the customers receive an alert when their balance is getting low.

His venture — to date a patent-pending concept with a prototype — is called The Bite Button Co. and is the brainchild of the three founders of ThinkActBuyLocal.com: Panos, Raymond Steinbacher and Jeffrey Morgan. They formed ThinkActBuyLocal.com in 2013 as a limited liability company “devoted to helping local, small businesses grow and compete in this ever-changing business environment, with our mission being to provide products (applications) and resources that will allow small businesses to optimize all the latest technology.”

Panos said he was impressed by how big companies like Dominos Pizza employ technology to help their customers order online and wanted to help small, local businesses tap into that kind of modern advantage without all the trouble of learning computer science.

“I’m a firm believer that local business is really good for the community and the economy,” he said in a telephone interview.

The venture is now in the “crowd funding” stage at Indiegogo.com, a website where people who want to raise money can create fundraising campaigns. Panos said his company has invested about $200,000 in this project so far.

The idea for an easier way to order food for delivery came about when the founders ordered pizza for their office at 120 N. Church St. in West Chester. They realized that they ordered the same items on the same day of the week, every week. After some research, they discovered about 86 percent of all pizza orders for delivery follow this pattern.

“National pizza chains have the resources to create online ordering systems that make it easier for patrons to order pizza,” Panos explains on his Indiegogo page. “During our discussion, we discovered that we had all ordered from one of these national chains, not because of the quality of their product, but due to the convenience of ordering through their system. This is when the light bulb went on. Small businesses need to be integrated into the mobile landscape and connected to the world of social media. That’s where we come in.”

With money raised on Indiegogo, they plan to fund the initial production run of Pizza Bite Buttons and the integration of their proprietary back-end software.

“We have been working for a while now — from our first Frankensteined prototype to a more refined button — on perfecting the process involved in ordering from the Pizza Bite Button,” Panos explains.

Long term, they plan to offer other buttons for Chinese food, delis and other types of delivery food, but for now the focus is on pizza.

A Marshallton resident, Panos has 30 years experience in retailing and marketing. As an entrepreneur, he has specialized in many industries and owned and operated several restaurants, which he joked is probably a genetic trait because he’s Greek.

Steinbacher is the tech guru of the management team and the author of several books, including “Computer Friendly!” with which has helped more than 1.4 million people learn how to use computers in plain English. The electrical engineer’s proficiencies include custom programming, SQL database design, management and implementation, network management and troubleshooting, technical writing, website and product brand development using social media, SEO and traditional advertising, video production and editing.

Morgan handles many of the company’s creative tasks and has been a graphic designer and photographer for 19 years. He spent five years as an art director for Saks Fifth Avenue in New York City then worked for two different ad agencies and a trade show design firm. In 2007 he started his own ad agency.

To further their push-button delivery idea, the three entrepreneurs faced several obstacles besides funding.

For instance, they had to figure out how to make it work without tethering it to a specific phone or device, such as with Bluetooth technology, so that the button can be used even when the smartphone is out of the area. This enables parents to allow their children or a baby-sitter to order dinner while they are away, for example.

They also had to devise a way to make the entire process of ordering seamless, so that all financial transactions are automatic.

“In the matter of a few days, we felt that we pretty much had a solution. The button would act somewhat like an EZ-Pass used on highways for tolls,” he explained.

They decided their company would create the back-end dashboard, where participating vendors post menus. The patrons would activate their buttons by making a minimum deposit. They would then be able to choose a vendor and set up a standing order. When the button is pushed, the order is sent to the chosen vendor, and upon delivery, the vendor would be paid — less a small commission for the inventors — through the funds on deposit with the button. The funds would be automatically replenished at a chosen level.

“We then built a rough (very rough) prototype for proof of concept,” Panos said. “When it worked, we felt we had a winning concept, so we applied for a patent — and are currently patent-pending, — created a business plan and decided to crowd-source our funding.”

Their goal is to raise enough capital to manufacture the first 10,000 Pizza Bite Buttons and an infrastructure that will be capable of handling the growth they anticipate.

For more information, visitThinkActBuyLocal.com or visit their IndieGoGo,com concept page.