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What is Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) and what are its Benefits?

Monday, August 9th, 2010

These past few months, we have been focusing on the Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solutions being launched. The main questions being asked (which we shall answer) is: What is Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) an what are its benefits?

Software-as-a-Service (SaaS)Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) has its origins in cloud computing. Cloud computing gets its name from the drawings typically used to describe the Internet. Cloud computing is a new consumption and delivery model for IT services. The concept of cloud computing represents a shift in thought, in that end users need not know the details of a specific technology. The service is fully managed by the provider. Users can consume services at a rate that is set by their particular needs. This on-demand service can be provided at any time.

Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) is a cloud computing model is designed to provide everything and simply rent out the software to the user. The service is usually provided through some type of front end or web portal. While the end user is free to use the service from anywhere, the company pays a per use fee.

  1. Save money: SaaS requires minimal upfront costs, as you pay only for what you use. It helps to reduce physical and financial resources.
  2. Minimal Risk: You’ll sleep easier at night knowing that your systems are always available and secure for your users. Your cost base is predictable and if the system fails you’ll be able to recover it. SaaS offers a Try-Before-You-Buy option where users can sign up and use the application before making the decision to purchase.
  3. Concentrate resources on the business, not IT: With SaaS, you will concentrate on using capital funds in areas where they improve and add value to your business and not on IT infrastructure and maintenance.
  4. Use it whenever, wherever you are: So long as you have access to the internet, you can access the service from the office, on holiday, on the road. With SaaS your Multi-site businesses can be supported at no extra cost.
  5. Rapid deployment, configuration and integration: SaaS offers rapid deployment, configuration and integration of the software for your present and future needs.

These are just a few of the benefits you will derive when you use our SaaS solutions for your business. Contact Mauco Internet Consultants if you have further questions or queries or need a live demonstration.

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Posted in Articles, IT Solutions, Internet Business Solutions, Online Business | No Comments »

Online Marketing Trends To Grow Your Business

Wednesday, June 30th, 2010
Online Marketing Trends

Online Marketing

As we come to the end of the first half of 2010, businesses in Nigeria need to look to meet the needs of an increasingly mobile and social customer. It’s our opinion that the businesses in Nigeria that will be the most successful are those who adapt their strategies to align with shifting online trends.

The adoption of new online marketing techniques will also be paramount to keeping a competitive edge and ensuring return on investment (ROI). To help point you in the right direction, we have identified five trends likely to impact online marketing ROI in 2010 and beyond.

  • Email Marketing: Contrary to speculations, email is not dead. With its low cost and targeted reach, it is the perfect base from which to build other online marketing initiatives. Email is the most measurable marketing channel, with proven and reliable high rates of return on investments (RoI). And when combined with other online marketing channels it becomes even more powerful and effective.
  • Online Marketing Analytics: If your business has an online presence (not just a website!), improved integration with online marketing analytics tools will empower your business to extract detailed data reporting, offering new opportunities for you to optimize your marketing campaigns, show results and demonstrate market share. Currently there are several companies investing huge resources to ensure that they improve internet connectivity in Nigeria. Therefore, your business most be prepared to explore new opportunities.
  • Blending Email Marketing With Social Networking: Social networking is now being described as the number one activity on the Web and it plays an integral role in a large majority of customer buying decisions. When you blend email marketing with social networking, it becomes more effective and can extend reach, enhance engagement, grow customer opt-in lists and build customers’ trust and loyalty to your brand.
  • Mobile Marketing: The presence of different telecom operators in Nigeria has opened up different avenues for mobile marketing. Mobile marketing reaches your targeted audiences and drives the urgency of your message in real-time while extending marketing reach, building customer retention and loyalty, and building a strong, interested and opted-in customer base. Mobile’s low execution cost means maximized campaign effectiveness.
  • Integrated, Online Marketing: In 2010 your business now has the opportunity and the ability to easily create integrated online marketing programs – joining email, search, social, mobile and other online marketing channels – and most importantly measure and optimize those programs with integrated metrics.

There’s no question that email marketing is the anchor for online marketing, and significant opportunities exist for your business to take advantage of synergies between online marketing channels.

Mauco Internet Consultants is ready to assist you with your online marketing efforts. We have made it our goal to help your empower your business online to make you more successful. Contact Mauco now if you need help in developing an effective online marketing strategy.

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Posted in Articles, Business Success, Internet Business Solutions, Online Business, management, social media | No Comments »

5 Rules of Social Media Engagement

Thursday, June 3rd, 2010
5 Rules of Social Media Engagement

5 Rules of Social Media Engagement

Are you one of those that have jumped on the social media bandwagon to promote your business? Were told social media would boost your sales, improve customer relations, manage your online reputation, and reduce every bit of overhead you have? So what happened? Why have you not started reaping those benefits, despite the fact that your having a presence of Facebook, Twitter, YouTube etc?

What most business owners fail to understand is that social media is not just a two-way communication between you and your customers, social media is rather a multi medium that lets your customers have conversations with other (potential) customers.

Your potential customers/target market would prefer to learn more about your brand from your existing customers rather than being bombarded with print/electronic adverts. Social media is the perfect platform for this to take place. Since social media a relationship driven multi-medium, there are 5 basic rules of social media engagement that you need to respect. The rules are:

  1. Relationships come before sales: Building relationships takes time because building trust takes time. Social media can only impact your sales after you have built a strong relationship with your customers to become more loyal customers. These loyal customers will in turn refer their friends and family to you.
  2. You go to the community, the community doesn’t come to you: Don’t wait for your customers to come to you, rather you should go to them. If you target market are using Facebook, join the Facebook community, if they are on Twitter or LinkedIn, join those communities too.
  3. Communities are grown, not built: Once you’ve got your social presence set up, go out there and talk to people. Get to know them, and start building relationships. Don’t just expect that since you’ve setup and account on Facebook or Twitter, then they should automatically start flocking to you. You still have to put in some effort. You have to make some noise. You have to go out of your way to make friends. You have to show your friends and your community what you can offer them.
  4. Don’t try to replace the community: Don’t try to re-invent the wheel by building your own customized online communities from scratch to compete with Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn etc. Instead concentrate on adding value to these communities through your brand’s presence on these social networks.
  5. Content is king: On the worldwide web, content is king! Content can be anything from articles, blog posts, pictures, tutorials, videos, reviews etc. So if regular content production isn’t part of your social media strategy, it’s going to fail. But it has to be relevant to your customers’ demographic and it has to be regular. Because once you stop producing content, you stop participating, and relationships whither.

 So if social media isn’t working for you, ask yourself if you are breaking any of these rules.

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Posted in Articles, Branding, Business Success, Online Business, social media | No Comments »

Tips To Save Money In Your Business Using Technology

Monday, May 17th, 2010
Tips To Save Money In Your Business Using Technology

Tips To Save Money In Your Business Using Technology

Business owners are always looking for ways to save money in running their business. Adopting technology in the daily operations of your business is a good way to acheive this.

Here are a few ways your business can save money by using technology.

Adopting A Paperless Office Strategy

Invoicing, accounting, HR and other business processes can be automated. Automating these processes will save you and your staff a lot of time and money. Your customers would also benefit if you automate these process as it will enable you serve them better.

Adopting Instant Messaging Systems

Using Yahoo/MSN Chat, Skype, VOIP calls, video chat, project management software and the various cloud document storage facilities available, will empower you and your staff to get more work done even from remote locations and eventually make your business more efficient and profitable.

Adopting Open Source Solutions

When it comes to ways to save operating costs in running your business, we are strong advocates of adopting free and Open Source software. If you can’t spend money to get the original software, rather than opting for pirated software, we recommend you use open source software.

Adopting A Social Media Strategy

Do you know how much it costs to personally create a Facebook page or Twitter account to promote your business within your local community or to your target audience? Nothing! Its only when you cannot afford the time to do so yourself that you need to get a Social Media Expert like Mauco Internet Consultants to do same for you. Many small businesses have cut marketing back to social media alone and have seen substantial returns from focusing their efforts on a medium that truly works.

These are just a few tips we feel you can implement to save money in your business using technology. If you’ve got tips to share or ways you’ve used technology to cut work hours and save money, be sure to let us know about them in the comments below or on our Facebook page.

Posted in Articles, Business Success, IT Solutions, Internet Business Solutions, Online Business, social media | 5 Comments »

10 Tips For An Eco-Friendly Office

Thursday, April 22nd, 2010
10 Tips For An Eco-Friendly Office

10 Tips For An Eco-Friendly Office

April 22 is Earth Day. This day is set aside to encourage humans to live in an eco friendly way. We have compiled a list of 10 eco friendly tips for your office/company.

  1. Clean your office or company and donate your unwanted, but still good items, to a charity.
  2. Use email instead of paper whenever possible.
  3. Replace normal light bulbs your office with energy saving light bulbs.
  4. Buy and use office products made from recycled materials.
  5. Avoid printing documents that could just as easily be emailed, and print or photocopy necessary papers on both sides.
  6. Place a plant in your office or company premises.
  7. Conserve energy by turning of the lights, computers and other appliances when out of the office.
  8. Donate money to your favorite charity (preferably a green cause charity).
  9. Consider replacing aging desktop computers with laptops instead, which can use up to 70 percent less electricity and generate less heat waste.
  10. Instead of buying new furniture, consider refurbishing old ones. It may be less expensive than buying new and its certainly better for the environment.

Living in an eco friendly way should not just be practiced once a year on Earth Day. Rather let’s make living in an eco friendly way a daily habit both at home and in the office.

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Posted in Articles | 1 Comment »

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