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What the Square + Starbucks Mobile Partnership Means for Small Businesses

Katie Hellmuth's picture Submitted by Katie Hellmuth on   |  0 Comments

Starbucks Square Deal and Small BusinessSabina, my amazing business partner here at Tin Shingle, forwarded to me a PR Lead for an article being written for TheStreet.com covering this question - what the Starbucks/Square deal means for small business. I was balancing about three things at once and knew that I couldn't think of a non-fluff answer fast enough, so I passed on submitting any ideas to the writer, Laurie Kulikowski (who may have written the article by now). Now that it's the weekend, which found me hand-washing dishes because our dishwasher broke, I had more time to think about Square and Starbucks. I was also finally able to watch the CBS This Morning interview with Jack Dorsey and Howard Schultz. It was during this time that the partnership meant more to me as a serial small business owner.

So what does it mean for small business?

Local and super small businesses remain ahead of the curve
Ever since I moved out of Manhattan and into a small (but darn cool) mountain/river town called Beacon 60 miles north of the city, I noticed that several shops on our Main Street were using Square on their iPhones or iPads to accept sales (Crumb Bakery, Dream in Plastic, Gourmetibles, Paws and Mittens, Ella's Bellas, and more). And then it spread like wildfire to other businesses on the street. The other group who has been using Square for a while are those 'prenuers who sell at markets because they need to take payments while vending in the middle of the street. These small businesses experimented with and embraced the technology long before big business did.

Local Businesses Should Stop Putting Off Square
Some local businesses have their reservations about moving from their traditional, and very expensive, non-customer-support-friendly credit card companies because they fear change, or I'm not sure really what the reason is. For example: any business who does not accept American Express because the transaction fee is higher, can just use Square for a universal fee - no favorites or exceptions (I also love this about PayPal). Just accept the plastic and move on to the next customer.  

Small Businesses Change The Face of Commerce and Our Lives
Howard Schultz predicted in his interview with Charlie Rose and Gale King on CBS This Morning that cash will soon be extinct. Rather than wait for a mandate or law that says how cash will be used or printed, businesses react to how people are using currency now, and move quickly to keep collecting it. The federal government will move to keep up (hence the CyberSecurity bill that is tied up in whatever ties things up in Washington).

Schultz declared during his CBS interview: "Washington is not doing much, and companies have a bigger responsibility today than they have before, because I think the rules of engagement have changed, where cooperate CEOs and businesses have to step up and do more for the communities we serve."

A Founder Can Be a Founder More Than Once at the Same Time
Jack Dorsey is a co-founder of Twitter (established in 2006), and a co-founder of Square (established in 2009...granted, Dorsey had stopped being CEO at Twitter in 2008, so maybe had more focus available to push through Square...he has since returned to Twitter as executive chairman focusing on product development). This is a rather large indication that a business owner who is committed to more than one idea can execute. Warning: this takes an enormous amount of dedication and compartmentalization.

The keys are focus, team, and an understanding of your product (product being a physical product, or a service you are providing). If you understand your product inside and out, then I think you can handle running another one - assuming you will quickly come to understand it inside and out as you build it. And, you must have a team of support in place to make things happen. It's just like having more than one kid! No big deal. ;)

Small Businesses Need to Consider Mobile for Their Websites
I'm with you - it's yet another thing that we don't want to think about right now because there is so much to think about. But we have to face the reality. We're all checking things on the Internet from the car, while walking, while watching TV, while in bed. Our websites better be able to easily deliver to these readers/clickers.

Watch the interview. It covers a lot of ground quickly that will get you thinking about your business:

Category: 
Strategy
Entrepreneurship News

Tin Shingle News Round-Up: Your Daily Dose of Things to Read

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We find the must-know news so you don’t have to.

Category: 
News Round Up

#SmallBizSpotlight Interview: Sharon Gaffney, co-founder MeebleMail.com

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Sharon Gaffney

Sharon Gaffney is a seasoned entrepreneur, and mother of two (read our interview with her about that). She is the type of small business owner who takes inventory of her surroundings, matches them with her personal gifts and passions, and then builds a business around them. As you'll learn in this interview, Sharon went to school for Interior Design, but started a website business, sold it, and is currently the co-founder of her next baby, Meeble Mail, the personalized email stationery computer app that is changing the face of your emails forever...

 

What inspired you to get started?
I fell in love with paper stationery the first moment I saw my mother's box of engraved stationery as a child.  As I grew up, I had drawers full of personalized stationery and began saving invitations and holiday cards that I loved.  As the Internet became my career - though I loved paper stationery - I realized that the majority of my communications were done by email.  I looked around the Internet for the same style and sensibility I found in paper stationery for email and couldn't find it, so MeebleMail.com was born.
 
 

What was your background? Was it in what you were doing now?
My degree is in interior design, but I fell into working with the web in the mid-90s, first developing communities on AOL and then launching my own full-service web development firm in 1997.  As my web development business grew, I began designing traditional print materials for my clients as well as their websites.  Having a background in website development and graphic design enabled us to get started without huge start-up costs and has been a huge help in the growth of our business.
 
 
What challenge have you had to face that led to a big growth for your company?
We started out with email stationery and design partners that appealed to women ages 25 to 60ish.  Over the past six months, we have brought on big name partners that appeal to a wider audience.  We are now offering email skins & email stationery for the NBA, Star Trek and will be debuting more big name partners in the coming months - this allows us to reach a far greater audience.
 
 
What do you have going on in your business right now that you're excited about?
We're currently adding investors which is very exciting.  I am really looking forward to working with the advisors and having their expertise at my fingertips!  It also means we'll be adding to our team and I am very excited about the prospect of working with a larger group of people and the energy that will bring to MeebleMail!
 
Where would you love to see your business in 5 years?
Our goal is to change the face of email from a bland white background to a stylish expression of the sender's personality - we hope in 5 years that no one sends a plain white email!
Category: 
SmallBizSpotlight

Tin Shingle News Round-Up: Your Daily Dose of Things to Read

Sabina Hitchen's picture Submitted by Sabina Hitchen on   |  0 Comments

We find the must-know small business news so you don’t have to.

Category: 
News Round Up

Return on Relationship Chat with Ted Rubin: Relationships ARE the New Currency

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I "met" Ted Rubin on Twitter long before I met him in person when we were both speaking at Tory Johnson's Spark & Hustle Tour in New York City.  Since them I've become a fan of his social media expertise, tweets and posts.  What I like the most is that Ted knows that the key to business success is relationships: authentic, sincere relationships.  Too often these days I see small business owners trying to rush to the finish line or to the next deal and focus too much on numbers as goals (dollars, page views, Twitter followers) instead of focusing on the relationships that will get them to those very numbers they want so badly.  Ted's whole theory is something he calls Return on Relationship™ (#RonR via Twitter).  Today he posted a story about it on Facebook and I had to share.  Give it a quick read and think of it as you make your way through the week! 

PS - Get more Ted-isms by following him on Twitter here.

AS POSTED BY TED RUBIN:
I was with a senior marketing executive from a major retailer recently and we got into an hour long conversation about Return on Relationship™, my philosophy, and what it means to me. He was incredibly interested personally and for his company, is a very thoughtful person and was interested in digging down to what my mission is… or better yet, what I want most to accomplish with respect to ROR (#RonR). What it seems to come down to, after discussing, riffing on the topic, and a bit of introspection, was helping others without expectations of what you get directly from that person in return. And how that plays into the old adage… “what goes around, comes around.” We then had an inspirational discussion of what that means to us personally and can mean for brands with consumers.

Short and simple: if you are only focused on the money, you risk completely overlooking the people. Don’t make that mistake! If you don’t know who your people are, you might as well toss your marketing and prospecting money down the drain.

Relationships ARE the new currency – honor them, invest in them, and start measuring your ROR.

Category: 
Publicity
Life of Biz Owners
Branding

#SmallBizSpotlight Interview:Kelly Kepner & Jordan Landes-Brenman, founders Haute House PR and Marketing

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Haute House PR and MarketingMembers Kelly Kepner and Jordan Landes-Brenman are founders of Haute House PR and Marketing, which is a force to be reckoned with in the fashion industry. Specializing in all facets of the fashion industry such as; business consulting, designer resources, sales and retail strategizing, Haute House is a firm you want on your team.

We interviewed them to get a behind the scenes glimpse of how they got started and what makes them tick. Successful partnerships in business can be hard to maintain, but this duo aligns perfectly to create a well rounded experience and results for their clients.

What inspired you to get started?
We worked together at another firm in Hollywood for several years, but eventually wanted to expand and do our own thing so that we would have more creative freedom.  We knew we had what it takes to make it big in this industry: strong relationships with every media outlet, hard work and dedication, and a keen eye for classic fashion and accessory lines that will soon be seen in magazines and on celebrities.

What was your background? Was it in what you were doing now?
Kelly studied Communications in college and then worked for a PR firm in Los Angeles that placed luxury brands like CHANEL, Donald J. Pliner and Asics into various films.  After that job, and some time studying in London, Kelly met Jordan and a PR firm in Hollywood where she launched and developed the Men's Division and produced various events like runway shows, gifting suits, and retail events.

Jordan majored in Retailing and Consumer Sciences and then, following her studies in Paris, she organized everything from trunk shows with Diane Von Furstenberg and CHANEL to Mercedes-Benz IMG Fashion Week and Prêt à Porter Paris.  At her previous PR firm, Jordan quickly rose to the top serving as second in command to the owner as Director of Product Placement & Publicity.  It is here where she met Kelly and they decided to launch Haute House PR over three years ago.

What challenge have you had to face that led to a big growth for your company?
We decided to start integrating Social Media systems since that's the future of PR today. It was a learning curve, but something that has only helped us to grow our business exponentially.

What do you have going on in your business right now that you're excited about?
Haute House PR is thrilled to announce a new celebrity preview/gifting event that we've conceptualized, and will be hosting in Los Angeles this summer...called PR e t t y ♥ by Haute House PR! Our first event will be a collaboration with green nail spa, Bellacures in Brentwood, CA on August 27th, 2012! Having been in the industry for years, we know exactly what today's gifting suites are missing, and it's that organic celebrity interest in a product, so this is going to be a gifting event that delivers the images that the tabloids actually WANT to run, and give items that the celebrities actually WILL wear, and can pick out with their stylists in a private setting.

About the Event:

Haute House PR has teamed up with Hollywood's top celebrity fashion stylists, and Bellacures to create  PR e t t y ♥.  Taking place during the summer, PR e t t y ♥ offers  a day of pampering for the leading ladies of Hollywood.  

In addition to receiving manicures and pedicures, each celebrity will have one-on-one time with their trusted wardrobe stylist to browse through Haute House PR's racks of gifting which includes apparel, accessories and jewelry from our clients. We'll also be showing the newest items for the season to the celebrities  should they want to borrow anything for award show season as well.  This event is priceless, as it allows the celebrities the luxury of getting to personally pick out pieces that they love and will want to wear...both on and off the red carpet in the weeks following the event.

Many of the starlets will even leave the actual event wearing the items, all while being photographed by the paparazzi on their way out; resulting in an organic, tabloid-worthy shot shot of a celebrity wearing the brand and polish around town. (As opposed to an image of them merely holding up an item, which the tabloids will rarely publish.)  These images will be serviced to each participating brand as they arise, which can then be used to drive sales at retail.

If you would like more information about participating in the event or donating product for the 75 VIP gift bags, feel free to email us at info@hautehousepr.com.

Where would you love to see your business in 5 years?
We would love to see an East Coast office for our firm at some point in time.  We have an extremely established presence in New York already (and are working with all of the NY editors there daily) but would love to also have a space there; so that we could spend more time with the editors and host more fashion-related events in the city.  We'd also love to do more on-air style segments, and trend forecasting. Since we work so closely with editors and celebrities, we always know what's HAUTE, 3-4 months in advance and can predict the trends since we get them straight from the top tastemakers themselves.

###
 

Thank you Kelly and Jordan for sharing this with us! We want to also mention that we love your Pinterest world, so props to you on building that!

Category: 
SmallBizSpotlight

Highlighted: Your Brand Name Above the Fold in Search Engines

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Search Engine Brand Above the Fold StudyI'm a person who has her eye in search engines a lot to see where brands are ranking in those search results, and how I as a writer can influence those results. If you don't know, this is called SEO (search engine optimization). One interesting factor I always come up against is competition against yourself in search engine results. This means if a blog reviewed your product or service, and then outranks your own website for a term you are competing for.

MarketingProfs highlighted a study by Conductor where a brand name's recognition was measured in search engine results, and it included PPC (pay per click) campaigns, which is essentially the Sponsored ads that run down the right side or directly above search engine results.

The study measured how people viewed a brand by just seeing it in the search results for a generic term, which in this case was "buy refrigerator", to see if a brand that came above the fold for any reason (on a blog, the brand's own website, Google Ads, etc) made a lasting impact for later buying decisions.

And it did.

My highlighted takeaway: even though you're competing against yourself in search engine results, if your brand name is in the title (the blue underlined link), chances are good that you are sealing the deal for brand awareness and possibly to land the sale come purchase time.

Read MarketingProfs article here, and get the full study from Conductor here.

NYC Jewelry Designers Treated to JA NY Tour + Manufacturing Plant Tour (a ticket discount)

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Our friends at the Jeweler's Resource Bureau are having two days of up-close, hands-on seminars and tours for jewelry designers looking to get insider information into the world of marketing, manufacturing, wholesale, and more. And - they are giving our members and readers 20% off the tickets to one or both of the seminars when you enter referrer code PREN at checkout. The seminars are next week, so get to your calendar. If you're not in NYC, consider coming in for the day or two because the educational events put together by the Jeweler's Resource Bureau are known for high-value, to-the-point forums and tours. When you learn about what more you could be doing with your packaging or other branding, do visit the Tin Shingle Business Directory to see about fellow preneurs who specialize in creating what you need to boost your branding.

DETAILS:
Get tickets and more information here: http://bit.ly/JRBtix  (use referrer code PREN for the 20% off)
(ps: there are more ways to save if you come with a friend)

Tuesday (7/31/12) Three workshops + a panel on salesmanship and a behind-the-scenes tour of the JA NY Show including JA Designer Showcase and time to visit with the suppliers at the show. Meet some of the best gem dealers, packaging companies, tool suppliers and more.

Wednesday (8/1/12) An interactive seminar w/ 5 sessions  and factory tour that gives a wide overview of what small design shops can learn from a large manufacturing facility filled with master craftsmen and experienced IT, accounting, sales and marketing professionals. Please bring samples, design challenges and lots of questions!

Get your ticket now! Click here to learn more and get details >

Tin Shingle Partner Approved. Partner Policy.

Highlighted: Local Search Tips 101

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My morning reading came across this SEO article regarding local search at Marketing Profs, which had some simple, yet highly effective tips you can employ or have your web team employ for your website this week to start benefiting from local search. Local search has been growing steadily in terms of what is offered to you as a searcher, and tools made for you as a business owner. Both service and product type businesses benefit from local search, and you'll want to figure out how your website will shimmy into those results.

As quoted in the Marketing Profs article: 'Google pointed out in 2010 that location-related searches make up over 20% of all desktop searches, and that number was closer to 40% for mobile users." And that was 2.5 years ago.

You should read their full article, but here were items that I highlighted:

  • Ranking History Not Created Equal: I was reminded that search results for each person are going to be different based on their physical location of typing in the search, as well as their browsing history.
  • Create That Google Places Page: Be you a product or service website, create that Google Places page. It's free, and Google does a lot of the work for you.
  • Google Searches other Search Engines: Even Yahoo Local is included in rankings. Google's main goal is to get you good info, no matter where it came from.
  • Get Thee in Business Review Sites: Service-based business owners are often too busy servicing clients to mind their own online marketing efforts. But clients are looking for you in these business directories, so get your fingers typing so that you can get listed.
  • Buddy Up With Bloggers: Yup, see how you can fit in a blog post. Do some thinking for them, be friendly, and suggest ways that they can cover you. These can be great links for your website.

Go read the full article! Click here to start >

Fortune Cookie is Tin Shingleing-esque

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Spotted in our Twitter feed, as tweeted by one of our #ProPreneur members Emily Elizabeth Jewelry, and loved:

Want to know who else makes amazing fortune cookies? Lady Fortunes Gourmet Cookie Company, another #ProPreneur member who continues to make greatness in this world!

Category: 
Life of Biz Owners
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