Various applications are churned out daily by app developers and this entails that only curageous, inquisitive and ready-to-learn business owners can tap into the reality of a world that is influenced by apps and the social media.
In today’s world, smartphones are no longer for voice calls, sending text messges, watching movies and playing favorite games. The device has transformed into more of a business tool than a communication and fashion accessory. According to a recent study conducted by Huthwaite, an organisation that helps businesses improve sales, using a smartphone is one of the best ways to grow any business. In fact, many small business owners are using their iPhone or android phone to run their business, and have experienced over 30 per cent increase in sales because of it.
And as many as 42 per cent of business owners reported that they couldn’t imagine running a business without their smartphones.
Now, this is how a smartphone would help a business to grow. There are several apps, such as Spark (unified inbox that allows users to view all emails), Basecomp (helps to manage tasks, whether in office or out), Hipchat (helps to collaborate using group messaging, instant messaging and file shaaring), Tape and Call Pro (easily record client calls for later response), and wunderlist (helps to address the list of ‘To dos’, upload large files rather than be stuck with papers).
Manage your tasks
There are now many mobile apps that help you to stay on top of your to-do list. One such app is Toodledo, which tracks everything you need to do. It sorts your tasks into categorised folders, sets priorities and provides reminders and due dates so you’ll have no excuse for falling behind.
You can upgrade to the pro version and get more out of the app for your business. But there are many other free and paid apps that you can download for iOS, Android, Windows, and BlackBerry 10. You’ll only need to find the appropriate app store for your operating system and download an app to meet your task management needs.
Download videos
There are currently 222.9 million smartphones active in the United States, and they are millions more around the world. Nigeria recently crossed the 30 per cent penetration mark. Like social media, smartphones are becoming the most popular means of communication. So, instead of promising to email a product demonstration video when you get back to the office, you can provide a demonstration to a prospective customer right then and there.
We live in an age where people want answers right away and your ability to deliver on the spot will increase your chances of closing the sale.
If your phone is equipped with the right apps, you would probably close the sale and take the payment directly on your smartphone. This type of mobile functionality is exactly what you need to grow your business.
Respond faster to customers
The way you communicate with your customers is a crucial part of your business. In fact, delayed communication could drive your customers straight into the arms of your competitors. Responding to requests for quotes from your website, emails, and comments on your blog demonstrate your commitment to your business. If you spend more time out in the field instead of in front of the computer screen, your smartphone will ensure that you’re never out of touch.
Equip your smartphone with the right apps, so you can respond to customers quickly, access your office files on the go, and close sales when you’re in the field.
*Culled from geekycom. Additional report by Olaleye Olabisi
‘FG should adopt October as cybersecurity month’
Stakeholders in Nigeria’s converged ICT and broadcasting sectors have asked the federal government of Nigeria to consider the adoption of October as the national cybersecurity awareness month in line with global best practices, as a matter of urgent national priority.
This call was made at the National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NASCAM) conference held reecently in Lagos, after a consensus of most speakers and participants at the one-day event.
They stressed that cyber security should be given additional attention by the government of Nigeria going by the exponential growth of Internet activities in the country and the growing vulnerability of government, corporate and individual citizens to the threats of cyber criminals.
Delivering a paper on “Internet Jurisdiction: A Catch-22 Situation and the Trajectory of Nigeria’s Judicial System,” Kunle Adegoke, managing partner M. A. Banire & Associates, said, “The evil effect of cybercrimes can be hardly exhaustively appreciated as same may seem to be limitless. According to a report, ‘Cybercrime costs the global economy about $445 billion every year, with the damage to business from the theft of intellectual property exceeding the $160 billion loss to individuals from hacking.’ A 2012 report says that Nigeria lost over N2 trillion to cybercrime in 2012 and $200 million per annum. The amount of loss annually occasioned now can be better imagined as youths today see cybercrime as an open sesame to sudden riches.”
While commending the Nigerian government for enacting the enabling law to deal with cybercrime, he called for the strengthening of laws because, “The computer has created a different world of cyber existence, where man can live without laws of ancient regime. The benefits of burden of human relations have occasioned cybercrime as well.” He expressed concern that “it is not good for technology to run faster than law. Whenever, technology moves faster than law, what you have is a legal vacuum. Nigeria suffered this legal vacuum for a long while.”
Immediate past Director-General, National Broadcasting Commission, Emeka Mba, also expressed the need for increased citizen and government participation in awareness and pragmatic interventions in cyber security issues and challenges of the nation. He said that even the broadcast industry that used to have a sense of immunity against cyber attacks was now as vulnerable as other IT entities because of the convergence of technology, which has allowed for the integration of Internet protocols in the broadcast industry and the emergence of smart television sets.
Mba underscored this concern when he cited the instance of April 8, 2015, when hackers penetrated the French broadcaster TV5Monde, crippling email and production facilities, hijacking social media accounts and disrupting the transmission of 11 channels for three hours. Putting it in context, Mba said, “Few years ago, the major headache for a payTV service was smart card hacking and piracy, today its much worse. According to a new report in Digital TV Europe, “Cybercriminals target broadcasters up to 1,000 times a day.”