Anthill Magazine
What is Anthill Magazine? It's a fun and experimental (ooher!) source of news, views and opinions for Australian business builders. Sign up to stay at the coal-face of innovation and entrepreneurship.
Freelancer survey reveals technology winners and losers for 2010 (PHP biggest winner; Microsoft biggest...
Online outsourcing marketplace (and Anthill Cool Company Award winner) Freelancer.com has released the results of its 2010 Freelancer Fast 50 index, an analysis of 320,000 online job postings, revealing the most (and least) popular technologies desired for freelance jobs in 2010, providing a barometer of technology trends.
Internet TV will soon overtake cable, Ovum predicts
Over the next five years, internet protocol TV (IPTV) is expected to grow, globally, at an annual rate of 24%, reaching 109 million households. But this number is still very far from the 573 million homes that cable TV is expected to reach by 2015, at a growth of 3% per year, predicts Ovum in its most recent report.
The NSW Government opens its $6 million program to “revitalise” ICT industry
The NSW Government has issued a call for applications for its $6 million Collaborative Solutions program. This first initiative in the program, called Mobile Concierge, focuses on mobile and wireless technologies in the tourism and retail sector.
Veda Advantage says credit enquiries enjoy first bump since 2008, but mortgage applications still...
Applications for credit card and personal loans in Australia in fourth-quarter 2010 showed year-to-year growth for the first time since 2008. The credit push, however, couldn't counterbalance a continuing freefall in mortage applications.
Cut through the junk! Five easy steps to a more effective direct mail campaign
With the ease and popularity of electronic marketing on the rise, there has never been a better time to take a new look at direct marketing. But to cut through the overload of promotional material, catalogues, brochures and free samples that we are bombarded with everyday, you need to get a little creative, so here are five steps to keep you on track...
The waters may be subsiding but what would you do to keep your business...
Whether they were affected directly or indirectly, businesses everywhere are grappling with how the floods will influence their operations in the long run. Some are teetering with optimism, others are wretched with horror. How would you keep things ticking in times of disaster? Here are five top tips.
General Pants exec Phil Staub’s success due to “sensible passion”
The good folk at Gen-Y entrepreneur community The Entourage recently sat down with General Pants executive chairman Phil Staub to learn what it takes to build a multimillion dollar business. With 80 stores, 1500 staff, and over $250 million in annual revenue, Staub is one of Australia’s most successful entrepreneurs. The result, he claims, of understanding, empathy and “sensible passion”.
Finally, a big corporate has learnt how to exploit Twitter [Twelpforce]
This is not a story about Twitter being used to influence an election or kick-start a sit-com. This is a story about using Twitter commercially. Retail giant Best Buy has moved social media intelligence and online engagement toward the core of its marketing strategy. But one of its latest moves pushes that philosophy even further. It's called Twelpforce, and it appears to be a bold and brilliant move.
New ad raises bar for iPad engagement [‘Click-to-Interact’ versus ‘Touch-to-Experience’]
HTML5 has been put through its paces to create a snazzy promotional game, in an effort to increase lacklustre response rates to banner ads on the iPad. The HTML5 ‘gamified’ banner, created by US creative agency Glow Interactive for USA Network’s ‘White Collar’, can be found on the New York Times’ page when browsing on an iPad. The ad integrates the brand with the ad source, creating a deeper level of engagement.
Reality goes mobile with new augmented app to promote KIA at the Australian Open
In an Australian first, mobile solutions group Mnet has delivered an augmented reality experience to capitalise on KIA's sponsorship of the Australian Open. Triggered by broadcast television, online and print media advertising, the mobile application, available on smartphone platforms iPhone and Android, uses augmented reality to bring a 3D animation of the KIA Optima from different channels, such as television, to the mobile phone.
8-year-old Juju gives Egypt’s Mubarak a lecture on democracy [VIDEO]
You can shut down the Internet in Egypt, Mr. Mubarak. You can threaten to cut off mobile phone communication. But you can't silence the people -- especially little Juju.
Groupon starts hiring in Australia [Want a job working for the world’s largest collective-buying...
Collective-buying behemoth Groupon is coming to Australia and is now hiring. The company that triggered Australia's recent obsession with deal-sites, such as Ouffer, Cudo and recently acquired Spreets, will initially be trading under the name StarDeals and is rumoured to be considering former MySpace HQ to set up shop in Sydney.
Hello, you’ve reached Pranksters Ltd. Press one. Thank you. Please hold. Hello, you’ve reached...
Anyone who has found themselves in please-hold hell will appreciate this video. It tells the story of a Belgian TV show that decided to pull a prank on a Brussels-based telephony company that is notorious for its crummy customer service.
The Rise of the Social Economy, Part 1: What is social media really?
It seems as if every company is now looking to social media as a marketing panacea for the woes of the GFC. In this three-part series, Mark Cameron takes a close look at the social media landscape, describes some of the 'platforms', examines how these are changing the market place and outlines a strategic framework for deploying social media as a branding, marketing, PR and intelligence tool.
OfferMe on ‘verge of’ venture capital deal. But why make such a vague announcement...
Offer Me, one of Australia's early adopters of the group-buying model, released a media statement on Friday alerting the media that it is on the "verge of" receiving "substantial" venture funding from overseas investors. But being on the 'verge' of a big deal is, indeed, not a big deal (and possibly not even news). So, why would someone produce a media release and court the media's attention about a deal not done?
Apartmentreviews.com.au sells for $8,700. Was this a fair price? [How much is your site...
On 29 January 2010, after a month of spirited bidding, 2009 Anthill Smart 100 honoree Apartmentreviews.com.au was sold for $8,700 on the website-auction site Flippa. In a message to Anthill, founder Shane Moore said, "There aren't so many Australian websites that sell for more than a few grand on Flippa." Moore is clearly happy with the sale price. But why $8,700? Was this a fair value?
Creative Industries Innovation Centre serves monthly business advice — and it’s free
Businesses operating in the creative field will be able to discuss their challenges in a free one-hour session with senior consultants in a new service beginning this month. The CIIC Biztro, an initiative of the Creative Industries Innovation Centre (CIIC), will be available in five cities.
Cisco says cybercriminals are shifting to mobile platforms, and spam volumes are down (for...
In a major turning point in cybercrime, scammers have begun to shift their focus from Windows-based PCs to smaller operating systems and platforms, such as smart phones and tablets, according to Cisco's annual security report. Plus, spam volumes are down, for the first year ever!
Aussie businesses in for a cash-strapped 2011, says D&B
Australian firms took, on average, 51.2 days to settle accounts in Q4 – well above the standard 30 day payment term. Some industries were found to be tardier than others. The electric, gas and sanitary services sector took 60.8 days to settle its accounts in Q4 - more than twice the standard 30 days. The services sector was best in group, settling accounts in just 50.7 days. State by state, Western Australia was the quickest, on average, while the ACT was the slowest.
The solution to global warning: Grow more plankton?
In a research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, a team of Australian, New Zealand and Belgian scientists explain how plankton could offer a solution to global warming.
