Small & Medium Business

Note from Lionel: Below is a guest post from Ramon Ray, Editor and Technology Evangelist, http://www.smallbiztechnology.com. Last week, Ramon spoke to a group of entrepreneurs at the GrowSmartBiz Conference in Washington D.C. on the topic of small business technology. Below are some of the tips he shared with the attendees:

• Spend money on technology as an investment - not as a cost

If you are building a business that's built to last you must think of your technology spending as an investment in how technology can help your business GROW. You must spend money on technology that will help you now and in the future. The right investments in technology today will help you save money, save time, do more with lesson and overall grow your business tomorrow.

• Email is NOT CRM

If you want to increase sales to your current customers and really know everything you can about each customer, based on each interaction they have with you - you must use a true CRM product or service and not email.

• Web 2.0 is no joke

You must leverage social media tools. It's not enough to give content or a sales pitch to someone - a one way conversation. It's about having a conversation with customers and letting customers have a conversation with each other - all about you and your product or service.

• Mobile technology matters

If you and your staff are traveling around (as I suspect you do) then you need to implement mobile technology solutions. This means that you can access your office wherever you are - email, faxes, files - you can access it all.

• Outsource your technology

There is NO need at all for you to manage and implement technology on your own. Sure, you are an expert in what you sell (be you a florist, computer vendor, lawyer, graphic artists or media consultant).

The only way you are going to maximize your use of technology is to outsource your use and implementation of it in your business.

• Don't technologize a bad business process

I'm sure you run a very good business and do your best to manage its various processes, however if there are parts of your business that are not going so well and you think technology is the answer, you're wrong.

Over the past several weeks you’ve read about the U.S. finalists from the Dell/NFIB Small Business Excellence Award and how each company uniquely uses technology in their business.

From a record-breaking 3,000 applicants for this year’s award, BusinesSuites was selected as the U.S. national winner for its entrepreneurial approach to using technology to better serve its customers. Based in Austin, Texas, BusinesSuites provides executive suites and virtual office services in 15 locations nationwide.

BusinesSuites’ strong focus on hands-on customer service, backed by innovative use of technology, really set them apart from the other applicants and finalists.

As the winner, BusinesSuites will receive $25,000 in Dell products and services, a lifetime membership to NFIB, valued at $15,000, and a day of best-practice sharing with Dell experts, including time with Chairman and CEO Michael Dell.

To hear about how BusinesSuites uses technology to serve its clients, check out the video below featuring John Jordan, President of BusinesSuites.

For more on the award program and the other winners from around the world, check out http://www.dellhero.com

In trying times, it is more important than ever for businesses to stay focused on long term objectives, maximize value and gain productivity in everything they do.  That is why most organizations are looking to get more out of their IT. When it comes to technology, Dell supports the needs of businesses of all sizes, and has solutions for the printing needs of businesses.

You see, every print command is a tiny expense of toner and power. This ends up getting multiplied by hundreds and thousands or more. When all that is added up, printing can be a significant expense for growing businesses.

For large and medium businesses, the focus is on productivity, reliability and Total Cost of Ownership (TCO). Dell's imaging division has designed an award winning portfolio spanning multi-function(MF), single function(SF), monochrome and color lasers and inkjets.  Made for demanding business networks, they are capable of producing professional-grade color or black-and-white printing, scanning or faxing. You can learn more about some of the latest additions to Dell's growing printer offerings here.

Today, Dell launched the 3330dn; a fast workhorse printer that is built for reliability, with a low total cost of ownership and expansion capabilities that scale with growing business demands. Not only does this mono laser networked printer make black and white printing more affordable for medium and large businesses, it also makes them more productive by quickly printing more than 40 pages-per-minute (ppm). 

With a true print resolution of 1200x1200 dpi, the 3330dn produces razor sharp print outs for both business graphics and text while an 80,000 page-per-month duty cycle means this machine is fully capable of handling even the most demanding printing needs. Today's launch marks Dell's continued commitment to printing by providing an advanced category mono laser to strengthen Dell's printer portfolio. You can find out more about the technical specifications and features of the 3330dn here.

Most importantly, the 3330dn is a printer that grows with your business as it features an optional 550-sheet paper drawer as well as additional memory power for high capacity printing, as well as a 50-sheet multipurpose tray that lets you print media of different sizes.

Other key features include:

• User friendly with an intuitive 4-line graphical display
• Enhanced security features with a 10 digit numeric pad
• Complete suite of management software including the Dell Toner Management System, Dell Open Manager Printer Manager and Dell Printer Configuration Web Tool
• Environmentally friendly with double-sided printing standard and ENERGY STAR 1.1 certification

The 3330dn includes the same level of great service you've come to expect from Dell with a standard 1-Year Limited Hardware Warranty and 1-Year-Next-Business Day Advance Exchange Experience. And if that doesn't set your mind at ease, you can extend your warranty protection with terms of up to five years.  Installation and customizable ProSupport service options are also available. 

Update 10-14-09: The Dell 3330dn is available direct and through select Dell partners now in the US at a price of $599 and in Europe starting October 13 at  429 GBP or 499 €.

I’m writing this post from San Francisco where we’ve just finished up briefing reporters and bloggers on one of the coolest laptops Dell has ever introduced. And guess what – it’s designed for corporate customers and it’s called the Dell Latitude Z.

Yes, that’s right, while my consumer colleagues are typically all giddy with their latest gadgets, I get to brief the world on a laptop that just about every single design-savvy individual will want but one that your IT department will like as well. A system that is predictable, easy to manage. And now I am the one doing a little jig of excitement because this laptop is very cool.

Of course, there’s been some rumor and speculation about this new system for some time. Robert Scoble got an early peek at it (suggesting he would be throwing away his Mac when it comes out), there’s been some chatter on it over at Notebook Review’s Forum and, as always, our friends at Engadget and Gizmodo couldn’t pass up talking about it. Some secrets are hard to keep.

Before I share more details on the “Z,” let me give you some background on our overall commercial client strategy and how this fits in:

• Stability in our core, mainstream family of products. For example, Latitude E-Family laptops and OptiPlex desktops, with virtues grounded in commonality, image stability and extended lifecycles;
• Choice in innovative, purpose-engineered products designed for specific usage needs. like our Latitude E6400 XFR fully rugged laptop, Latitude 2100 education netbook and even our massively scalable Dell Precision workstations; and finally,
• Efficiency in flexible computing solutions that simplify management, speed up deployment, secure information from data center to desktop and reduce TCO.

With this in mind, we set out to develop another product that falls into our strategy. For many of our customers, their “personal brand” is critical to their success -- entrepreneurs, sales staff, executives, creative agencies, thought leaders and policy makers in higher education, and attorneys, to name just a few. We set out to bring together super svelte design with breakthrough features in a laptop that your IT department will support and manage.

The result: the Latitude Z600 – the thinnest, lightest 16-inch notebook in the world. The design isn’t the only advanced feature -- we’ve gone beyond to introduce several industry firsts such as wireless docking and inductive charging. We're also introducing Latitude ON, a hardware-based feature that allows you the full power of your laptop with the flexibility of your smartphone.

Latitude ON is essentially a motherboard within a motherboard where a separate processor and OS boot into Latitude ON “mode” to provide instant, interactive access to email, contacts, calendar and the Web. And, it hooks into Microsoft Exchange, IMAP, POP and Novell GroupWise email, while delivering battery life that lasts for days, not hours. See Lionel's Latitude ON post for more details.

Note: Click on the images in this post to see larger versions. If you want to see more, check out the Dell Latitude Z set on Flickr. Since there are many details to go through, I’ve listed out the details of the Latitude Z600 into bite-sized pieces. Here we go:

• Half an inch thin, 4.5 pounds with a four-cell battery with a lean, tapered design and soft-touch Black Cherry finish;
• World’s first laptop with optional wireless docking, that relies on a UWB radio for point-to-point communications, and inductive charging, which eliminates the need for power cords by using a dynamic power transfer between system primary stand and secondary module. Both will be available in the coming weeks;
• Dell’s first-of-its-kind EdgeTouch allows users to interact with commonly used applications and media controls through a touch interface that is on the edge of the system’s screen;
• Spacious multi-touch touchpad and silky-touch backlit keyboard;
• High-definition (1600x900) WLED display and two megapixel camera featuring Dell Capture technology that allows users to scan and save business cards to Microsoft Outlook contacts and copy documents;
• Dell FaceAware Lock-Out automatically locks out other users when a user steps away from the laptop;
• Ultra-small power adapter;
• Custom bags by Cole Haan and Timbuk2 designed specifically for the Latitude Z;
• Wireless options include WLAN, Bluetooth, optional 3G WWAN.

The Latitude Z is available starting today in select countries in Europe and Asia, as well as Canada and the U.S., starting at $1,999.

These new products are designed to meet the unique needs of our customers when they are ready to refresh or add to their existing infrastructure. We hope you like what you see. I would love to get your feedback and thoughts.

Check out this video on Latitude Z that will give you a better idea of how all its features work.

For the second year in succession, the UK has a very worthy Dell Small Business Excellence Award winner in the (well-tailored) shape of A Suit That Fits.com. And like all great business stories, there’s a humble beginning.

Warren Bennett had always had a passion for suits, which became more than an interest after a high quality fine woollen suit was made for him whilst doing voluntary work in Nepal in 2005. On his return to the UK, he met up with old schoolfriend David Hathiramini, who like Warren had a keen eye for fine suits. Together, they decided to combine their engineering and software backgrounds to simplify and improve tailoring. And it’s from here that A Suit That Fits.com was born.

Four years on and Warren and David, as co-founders and directors, can enjoy the recognition from Dell and its global partners of being a truly innovative and customer-focused business.

Like a fine French wine or classic Swiss timepiece, there’s something seriously sophisticated and timeless about a hand-made tailored suit – and quintessentially British. Offer them at high street prices with complete control over design and you’ve got one half of a sustainable business. Bring in unique web technology to enable this customisation and a highly skilled manufacturing base in Nepal and you’ve got a winner.

In three years, Warren and David have sold over 17,000 suits - recording very impressive year on year growth – and boast 22,000 registered members. A Suit That Fits.com is also No.1 on Google-ranking for “tailored suits” and 36% of customers reorder online within six months of buying their first suit. Today, 85% of existing customers reorder online, without having to visit one of their 4 branches in London or ‘Travelling Tailorstops’. These statistics certainly cut an impressive figure.

With their tailors in Nepal paid more than 50% over the local rate for manufacture, together with 5% from all suit costs donated to projects in the Nepalese community, there’s a strong sense of ethical responsibility at work.

A Suit That Fits.com emerged from a very strong field to take this year’s prestigious UK award title. They are a great example to small businesses everywhere that success can be achieved with a great business idea, hard work and innovative and imaginative use of technology. Our congratulations to Warren, David and the whole team. To hear from the winners, check out the video below.

So last year it was worms, this year it’s suits. I wonder what we’ll be celebrating in 2010?