MATRIX

Posts Tagged ‘Innovative’

Small businesses, also known as SMEs (Small and Medium-size Enterprises) follow, in general, the following phases of lifecycle: (1) launch, (2) initial development and growth, (3) consolidation and growth, and (4) maturity or exit. There are some characteristics that identify SMEs from larger firms, as discussed in other papers; there are, also, many powers and constraints that affect and direct the growth-path of an innovation SME – internal and external ones.

The greatest power/ constraint affecting and shaping an SME’s growth is the financial factor. As confirmed by numerous studies, around three-quarters of technology-bases SMEs (or NTBFs) are launched as a result of the founders’ frustration from their previous position at a large organisation; given this desire for independence, many entrepreneurs avoid the institutional financial aids, which come with binding conditions. For the first stage of the formation of an SME, the founders can provide the relatively small amount of investment from their own personal sources (between $10k-$50k in the US, as indicated by studies). Nevertheless, for the second phase of the SME’s lifecycle, which involves a significant growth and heavy investments (£200k to £750k in the UK, for instance), there is a need for an institutional financing. This requires the SME to prepare a business plan, and to be committed to minimum financial performance and ROI. SMEs’ founders that are reluctant to compromise find themselves selling their “baby” to large firms, only to launch a new one, later.

Another characteristic of SMEs that limits their growth and financial performance is their reliance on very few, sometime a single customer in their early stage. Sometimes one of these customers can be a source of financing, by either a direct or indirect investment in its innovation supplier. A major drawback for such a close relationship with very few customers might be in less incentive to innovation, which results in no-growth or little-growth; this, in turns, results in low ROI and financial performance. Moreover, studies have confirmed that NTBFs are not creating more innovations than large established firms; in contrary to the general belief, when innovations are weighted with all factors, large firms are those who produce more innovations, henceforth, have higher ROI and overall growth of financial performance. In the early phase, an SME’s growth is related to sales and turn-over, with little attention to the growth of net profit. Other factors that influence growth and profitability of SMEs are owners’ technical qualifications, as well as their attention to product planning and marketing.

Two sectors of NTBFs were studied for analysing the factors affecting their success. Software start-ups identified the following five factors as most critical to their success: (1) level of R&D expenditure, (2) how radical new products were, (3) intensity of product upgrades, (4) use of external technology, and (5) management of intellectual property. Biotechnology start-up identified the following three factors: (1) proximity to similar firms, (2) quality of scientific staff, and (3) commercial experience of the founders.

While studying online for IT investment opportunities, I found that one main factor was constant. All of the biggest money makers have eye-catching, simple, innovative, and the cleanest websites online!

Having a corporate style website may greatly increase your business!

Looking professional online is extremely important, especially if you want to attract big money to your door. There are literally 1000′s of people and companies searching every single day for their next big purchase, will your company be the next one they contact?

As you notice with all three of those examples, they are clean, simple, innovative and easy to navigate. You won’t notice any flashing buttons, 10 different text colors, everything packed into one page, banner ads in every corner, etc.

The point is – keep it clean!

Have you ever visited a website and you left with a headache? This might be the same for your visitors. People notice when they find clean websites, it actually increases your chances of people reading your content more often than not.

Appearance is everything online. What your website tells people subconsciously is the message they perceive about your business. The more “Mickey mouse” your website looks, the more “Mickey mouse” visitors will think about your business. The internet is very impersonal and in order to increase our business, you need to find ways to subconsciously tell your visitors that you mean business and you’re the right choice for their purchase online.

It takes 2 seconds to look bad online:

This whole process happens within seconds of visiting your website. Let’s say that 70% of your visitors are 1st time visitors and only 4% ever come back, by simply cleaning up your style, it may actually increase that 4% return visitors into 10% overnight. It is that simple.

Redesigning your existing website is very important:

Many people who Redesign their existing website once every 3 years end up increasing their business overnight. Those of you who have had the same website for the last 10 years should really consider updating right away. Updating your website is like turning over a new leaf and coming up with new and innovative ideas to connect with your visitors.

Yahoo.com & MSN consistently update their template(s):

Yahoo & MSN also understand the importance of “keeping up with the Jones’s”. Keeping your website fresh and up to date will give your existing visitors another reason to browse through other sections simply because they have a new found interest and curiosity. Please note: Changing everything around every month is not the key, this method may actually confuse your visitors more than increase their curiosity.

Humans get bored easily:

It is actually really easy to have your visitors lose interest in your company. What would spawn such loss?

- Old outdated content
- Broken links everywhere
- Contact forms that don’t work anymore
- Website templates from the “50′s”
- Content that isn’t related to their search

We as humans have a short attention span. If the website we are visiting doesn’t pique our interest right away, as we say “there they where, GONE!” This is the very reason why BLOGS attract a huge amount of attention online. Not only can you read people’s thoughts, but you can read them every day!

Blogs are a great way to connect with new & existing visitors on a daily basis. Don’t forget, search engines tend to like updated content as well.

Getting back to making more money…

The better you look online, the better your checks will be. People want to know that they made the right decision for their family, friends, or business. Going with a company that doesn’t feel right may embarrass them and decrease your chances at repeat business. People will always recommend a company that they are proud to do business with. It’s the same as getting “recognition” for their recommendation.

It’s finally here! The hugely anticipated Apple iPhone is finally a reality. As what we have expected, it makes calls and supports a digital music player that syncs with iTunes. The Apple iPhone has a thin design and is dominated by a vivid touch screen that showcases photos and videos beautifully. People will also note a lack of controls and buttons as all menu navigation and data entry from dialing numbers and typing messages is done on the touch screen. The Apple iPhone is three devices in one: a cell phone, a wide-screen iPod with touch controls, and an Internet communications device. Apple iPhone is not just a phone; it is a phone with a video player, music player, internet device, and camera all in one.

Apple iPhone Features

Other features of the Apple iPhone include quad-band world phone support, a 2-megapixel still camera, Wi-Fi capability, stereo Bluetooth, a speakerphone, e-mail and a Safari Web browser. Memory caps out at 8MB and although there’s no 3G support or wireless downloads the Apple iPhone will garner interest simply because it exists.

The Apple iPhone has only one hardware control called the Home key. The device is dominated by a huge, 3.5-inch display. Inside are an iPod music and video player, a full Safari Web browser, a 2-megapixel camera and integrated support for Google Maps. People who use iPhone will be able to scroll through songs, artists, albums, and play lists with just a flick of a finger. One cool new feature is the display of album artwork.

Apple iPhone can make a call by simply touching a finger at a name or number in the address book, a favorites list, or a call log. All the contacts from a PC, Mac, or Internet device are also automatically synched with the device. Users can also select and listen to voicemail messages in whatever order they want, just like email. Calls can easily be merged together with just the touch of a button to you can create a conference call by easily merging the calls with just the touch of a button. This makes conference calling easier!

The iPhone can also send text messages with an SMS application with a predictive QWERTY soft keyboard that can correct mistakes such as misspellings. It makes it easier and more efficient to use than the small plastic keyboards found in other phones.