Articles

What makes your business stand out above your competitors? What makes individuals select your products and services over theirs? What makes them stare at your website, brochures or you, desiring what you have to offer, and yet, at the end of the day, they fail to make a purchase and then move on to one of your competitors? The ‘inconvenient’ truth is that your business simply isn’t remarkable.

It's been a whole decade since the Loveletter virus said "I love you" to millions of email recipients across the world and caused email systems to grind to a halt. Once upon a time, coke-gulping teens would write malicious code so that their friends, and possibly the geek world, would bow down to their cyber brilliance. These days, the motivation for disrupting a network is usually a commercial one.

The Law of Success in Sixteen Lessons, Napoleon Hill’s 1,600+ page first draft published prior to Think and Grow Rich, contains a lot of useful information that can help business builders realise their potential. In this series, Joshua Moore covers each of Hill’s attributes in a practical way. Today, he discusses the value of improving your character and listening to others.

Why should I buy from your business compared to any of your competitors? This is one of the most critical questions you need to answer if you run your own business. I am amazed at how many business owners aren't clear and concise in their response. But get this right and your sales and marketing worries will be over for good.

A common theme among failed businesses is inadequately managed finances and accounting irregularities. As a business owner it is important to have adequate measures in place to protect your finances and assets. An example highlighting this necessity is the recent case with electrical goods retailer Clive Peeters, where an employee allegedly siphoned $20 million of company funds.

Over the past six months, we have watched the public meltdown of three major, formerly stellar brands – Tiger Woods, Toyota and BP. Fortunately, in the world of marketing, as in science, for every action there is almost always an equal and opposite reaction.

It’s no surprise that the epilogue of so many technology procurements is one of hardship and misfortune. Transitioning to a new or upgraded IT system is a major undertaking for most businesses. This article takes inspiration from Shakespeare to impart five top tips for avoiding a tragic technology procurement.

The Commercialisation Australia program, the successor to the Government's COMET scheme, has proved a boon to many but a bane to others. Inevitably it was going to have a few teething problems. As with any new incentive program, it can involve navigating the industry-specific details to work out whether it's right for your business. Here, Adrian Spencer explains the pros and cons that the grant can have for the technology sector.

The rapid adoption of this service highlights the suitability of mobile payment technology in developing countries, which often do not have access to the same payment methods and services available in developed markets. It also highlights a trend that Australian software and application developers best not ignore.

A young entrepreneur asked me an interesting question, “If Twitter hadn’t happened yet and you had the chance to invest in it at start-up, would you?” As it turns out this is quite relevant as I did have the chance to invest in Twitter during a very early funding round through my own networks in Silicon Valley.

The markets and audiences of the 21st century are a savvy bunch. No longer gullible and susceptible to the heavy handed and brash branding practices of the past, they're looking for the 'why' and not the 'what' when they buy into a product or service, and this leaves companies and organisations charting new and unfamiliar territory. Andrew Collins explores the changing face of brand promotion.

The Law of Success in Sixteen Lessons, Napoleon Hill’s 1,600+ page first draft published prior to Think and Grow Rich, contains a lot of useful information that can help business builders realise their potential. In this series, Joshua Moore covers each of Hill's attributes in a practical way. Today, he discusses the value of doing more than you're paid for.

Be it in good economic times or bad, interest rates dictate how we spend our lives. Or more importantly, how we spend. Period. For many of us, how they are determined and interpreted seems to be the work of economics wizards and the faceless gods at the top of banking towers.

Better Place, an ambitious, venture capital backed company, is building electric car infrastructures targeting major cities around the world. The idea is simple yet constitutes a radical departure from conventional wisdom – instead of stretching the technological limits of a battery’s life, Better Place is constructing a network of battery swap stations that will allow electric cars to replace its depleted battery for a new one in less than 60 seconds.

Small businesses need to start treating their customers like toddlers and train them to pay on time. Carl Taylor looks at six methods of getting your customers to pay up.

In this podcast, Fanshake's Dana Al Salem tells Brad Howarth about the opportunities for brands of all kinds to engage with the people that love them and gives some tips on how to work with that most fickle of audiences, like Generation Y.

In this podcast, Fanshake's Dana Al Salem tells Brad Howarth about the opportunities for brands of all kinds to engage with the people that love them and gives some tips on how to work with that most fickle of audiences, like Generation Y.

A sale is a process and the first step in that process is not to demand exclusivity. Exclusivity is either bought or earned and, in the case of raising capital, it is usually earned. An NDA implies exclusivity and that brings with it constraints on both parties. Would you ask a date to sign a pre-nuptial agreement before the first date?

A sale is a process and the first step in that process is not to demand exclusivity. Exclusivity is either bought or earned and, in the case of raising capital, it is usually earned. An NDA implies exclusivity and that brings with it constraints on both parties. Would you ask a date to sign a pre-nuptial agreement before the first date?

This week, Barker and Gettlere talk with AFL CEO Andrew Demetriou on the AFL’s expansion plans, its business model and its involvement with communities outside Victoria, where the organisation is pushing development of the Australian Rules code. And what will happen if Australia gets the World Cup?