More Business Apps and Websites: Producteev.com

Vector notepad template (horizontal)Recently, the internet has been ablaze with new products and services designed to organize your professional life and make your business team more productive. In a sense, choosing your organizational platform is actually a new step—in and of itself—in becoming organized. In our most recent article on business apps and websites, we’ll try to cut through some of this clutter with a brief introduction to one of the most popular new productivity apps: Producteev.

What exactly does Producteev do? Well, it’s essentially a very fancy way of managing to-do lists. We’ve looked at similar office networking software, such as Yammer.com, in past articles. Producteev is somewhat unique in that it seeks to carve out task-management in general—and to-do lists in particular—as its niche and do it the best.

What does Producteev do particularly well? Producteev prides itself on two features: it’s easy to use and it plays well with others. This is important if you’re working with a team to accomplish complicated projects. Producteev credits its ease of use to its clean interface and use of labels and reminders, and it boasts task and file sharing, real-time tracking tools, and calendar, Instant Message, and email integration.

Pricing is based on the number of users in your “workspace.” The first two users are free. Beyond that, you pay a diminishing rate for each new workspace, beginning at $20/month for each new workspace.  In essence, that means that the more powerful collaboration elements will cost you more to enact in a larger workgroup.

In a rapidly growing and changing world of task-management services, Producteev is one of several new option worth considering.

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Google AdWords

Internet SearchBy now, most people are so used to seeing the “sponsored links” on Google searches (and Google products, such as YouTube, Gmail, and countless others) that they seem to merge with the modern landscape, similar to the billboards on a freeway or cityscape. In truth, this form of advertising, officially called “Google AdWords,” is a powerful and flexible new way to promote yourself or your business’s professional offerings. There are several key features to understand about Google AdWords:

1. You only pay when a user clicks on your link. Google played a major role in the now common “Pay-Per-Click” system, in which the advertiser pays when the user clicks on the ad and lands on their site. This gives the advertiser the ability to set a daily budget. When a certain number of clicks has been reached (each at a predetermined dollar value based on the popularity of the keywords used to target the ad), the ad is no longer displayed for the remainder of the day. This system allows the advertiser to know in advance exactly how much money to budget and how many visitors to expect on the site as a result of the campaign.

2. Google is a network. While we still often think of Google as a website, it is now a complex network, comprising not only the Google-owned sites mentioned above, but also independent sites that choose to monetize their services by reserving a space on their page for Google to display their ads.  The “Google Display Network” allows advertisers to choose what kinds of ads to display (text, picture, flash video, etc) based on the page context in which they will appear.

3. Google is scalable. Google offers viable marketing options for the smallest and largest businesses and everything in between. If your company or private enterprise is looking to expand its operating base, its likely that Google has something of value for you.

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FreshBooks: Is QuickBooks Still The Best Accounting Option?

stack of receiptsWhile there are many software solutions for personal and business accounting, QuickBooks has long dominated among the industry standards. However, in a trend we’re now seeing across many sectors and industries, new web-based startup companies—which are often leaner, cheaper, simpler, and more flexible—are giving the old giants a run for their money.

One hot new company is FreshBooks. Originally launched as “2ndSite” in 2003, and rebranded with its current name in 2006, FreshBooks is a Canada-based software solution that has been ranked as Canada’s #1 Web 2.0 Pioneer. FreshBooks is emblematic of the “Web 2.0” approach to doing business: They rely heavily on social media both in the functionality and marketing of their product, enabling users to join and take advantage of an online community; they have more flexible pricing options; they add a fun, creative, and artistic flair to the otherwise dry and boring world of bookkeeping.

FreshBooks mainly offers professional invoicing and receipt tracking, mobile phone integration, national and international payment options for your clients, which means that their services only cover a portion of what QuickBooks does. Most customers use FreshBooks as an add-on—not a replacement—to QuickBooks. However, whereas Quickbooks is a software suite that generally costs companies several hundred dollars to upgrade every year or two, FreshBooks has a monthly fee of $20-$40 depending on the scope of the services required. It should be noted that QuickBooks offers a similar, “QuickBooks  Online” program that starts around $13 per month, so if you’re in the market for online Bookkeeping, it’s definitely worth comparing QuickBooks, QuickBooks Online, and FreshBooks to see which program or combination is best for your business.

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New at Work: How to Have a Fun Lunch

businesswoman eating sandwichYou’ve just begun your new job, and it feels a little like the first day of high school. You’ve had a couple awkward handshakes, some confusion as to where the best bathroom is, and worst of all, you don’t know who to eat lunch with. What if you end up eating alone in your cubicle or walking sadly to the most convenient (yet of course grossest) deli on the corner? Never fear. There are ways around this first-day plight. Some advice:

Initiate. Find out who’s on your level in the office hierarchy. Likely, your manager will introduce you around and you can then figure out who does what. Then ask them an intro question like, “What do you usually do for coffee around here?” Or, to address an earlier problem, “Where’s the best bathroom?” Once you’ve got your initial answer, ask, “What’s your typical lunch strategy?” Take it from there.

Offer suggestions. A little later in the week, offer your own two cents. “I read about this fantastic little Mexican place down the street from here. I can drive if you guys are interested in going.” You’re easily transitioning into a contributing member of the group.

Make other plans. If you don’t want to take the risk of getting left behind by your co-workers, make plans with others. Ask your sister if she wants to get a bite of sushi during your break, or volunteer to do the grocery shopping for your significant other. If no one asks, someone undesireable asks, or a cubicle-mate clearly takes pity on you, you can assert yourself as a capable being from the get-go. “Oh, I have plans today,” you can respond. “But want to have lunch tomorrow?” Now, lunches are on your terms.

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Business Apps and Websites: Expensify

stack of receiptsFrom their tongue-in-cheek motto, “Expense Reports That Don’t Suck!” to their easy-to-use website and mobile phone apps, Expensify.com is changing the way we deal with a very dry, serious duty: creating and filing expense reports.  If you’ve ever had to deal with tracking expenses for a business trip, managing multiple business accounts, or dealing with earmarked funds, such as tax-free donations to non-profits, you know what a time-consuming headache these expense reports can be.

Enter Expensify. Expensify is essentially a web-based application that syncs with your bank/credit card accounts and uses your smartphone in place of filing paper receipts. Expensify offers four essential levels of service, so there is a payment tier available businesses of many different structures and sizes:

The “Core” account is free. It allows you to take pictures on your mobile phone of any paper receipts you receive from business expenses. The software then scans these receipts and withdraws the pertinent information, such as price, expense category, date, and location. In fact, for expenses under $75, the program can create a digital receipt by directly syncing with your credit card, eliminating the need for paper receipts of petty expenses. There is an absolute limit of 10 receipt scans per month.

The “Professional” account allows you to pay for additional receipt scans ($.20 each), establish automated systems like gmail filters and sync with the Freshbooks software.

The “Team” account allows all of these rules and features to be shared among your entire team and takes care of automating all of your expense policies, as well as syncing with additional software options. The cost is $5 per team member when the expense report is created.

The “Corporate” account allows for very sophisticated integration into your company’s accounting software framework, as well as features such as digital signatures, corporate expense policy enforcement, and the ability to create automated direct deposits to reimburse your employees. The cost is $10 per employee per month.

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Edit Your Resume to Be More Business-Like

ResumeChances are, you have a resume. Maybe it’s from that one time you applied to work at Yogurt Palace the semester before college began. Maybe it’s the one your liberal arts professor deemed “passable.” Whatever the case, you realize it’s time for an upgrade. The fancy font and curly borders don’t seem like the accessories to win a top-notch position in the professional world (unless you want to be a card-maker—then go wild). Revamping your resume is easy when you break it down into approachable themes

1.      Keep it simple. Take away the borders, keep it Times New Roman, and remove the color. Remember, this resume is meant to work for any occasion. If you end up applying to a summer camp as a balloon maker, you can always highlight the text and change it to fuchsia. However, what you want in this moment is a foundation resume.

2.      Find the numbers. If you work online, find out how much traffic your website gets. If you executed a particular business strategy, figure out how much money you saved the company. If you’re a therapist, count your clients. When an employer glances at your resume, they want to see signs of impact. Numbers are a clear way to convey the scale of the differences you make.

3.      Pare it down. Include only the most basic information. Try to remove adjectives from your job descriptions and in the “Skills” section, include only talents that will benefit you in your field of work.

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Tweet Etiquette

Modern Business Man TextingTwitter has quickly become one of the most-used forms of social media around. It’s an online platform that allows people to connect via 140-character posts. It is quick, streamlined, and a fantastic way to make professional connections. If you’re new to the service, you may not be aware of the basic Twitter guidelines. So, we’ve put together a quick and dirty list of dos and don’ts:

Do state your profession in your bio. When you follow people, you do yourself an easy favor by mentioning your job in your Twitter “headline.” If your workplace has a Twitter handle, link to them. For example, you might write, “Account Planner @favoriteagency,” in addition to whatever defining characteristics you choose to mention. If your Twitter objective is professional network expansion, you may decide to keep your bio simple, with only your job title. That can be enough, just make sure you’re giving potential followers a point of identification from the get-go.

Do follow accounts related to your field. If you’re all about video games, follow Kotaku or Ars Technica. If you’re an organic farmer, check out The Community Farm and Organic News. Chances are, there will be a long list of fellow businesses and individuals that connect you to your desired field. When you follow them, you’ll be instantly informed on your professional world as soon as you log on to Twitter!

Don’t overdo it. Aim to tweet three to four times a day. More than that, and you clog your followers’ feed. Less, and you become irrelevant. But still, less is better than more. Consider your audience, and avoid bombarding them with your thoughts.

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Write an Effective Cover Letter

Woman Reading Letter Thinking/WonderingWriting a cover letter can be a daunting task. You’re meant to expand upon your resume, detail your desire for the job to which you’re applying, and specify any related qualifications, all in one page. How can you be eloquent, to-the-point, and engaging all at once? We’ve got some tips:

Do your research. Don’t just look at your prospective company’s website. Find out who sits on their advisory board, look at the CFO’s Twitter account. Get a feel for this place’s overarching sentiment and mission. Then, engage with them on that level in your cover letter. If you’re applying to an approachable music magazine, don’t be afraid to throw in a Radiohead joke. It’s important to convey that you’ll be a good fit in the work environment, both experience and personality-wise.

Tell a story.  When you reference your resume, make sure you’re not simply regurgitating. A cover letter (unless otherwise specified by your potential employer) is not a place for bulletpoints or condensed sentences. How did you contribute at your previous workplaces? What are you passionate about? Give your future employer a vivid timeline they can follow, to the point that they want to provide for its continuation.

Be clear on the “why.” Why do you want this job? What draws you to it? Don’t exaggerate if the reasons are simple: no need to claim this is a life-changing opportunity unless it is.  It’s also not simply a means to paying the rent though: decide what sets this opportunity apart from the rest. Will it expand your creative repertoire, are you looking forward to being a part of a solid community? Detail your vision for a successful future, and make your cover letter the passport to it all.

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Diverting Gossip

women eavesdropping through a wallPeople talk. No matter how loving your workplace, you’re likely to run into a situation where one colleague talks negatively behind the other’s back. We all wish we’d left these situations behind with football games and prom queens, but inevitably, gossip seeps into most communities. Call it natural human curiosity and social engagement, if you will.

However, the presence of pervasive gossip doesn’t mean you have to participate. Instead, there are several ways in which you can divert the flow of salacious, snarky information in your office. Our guide:

Don’t laugh. Maybe sometimes, around the proverbial water cooler, you feel better about your gossip habits because you don’t actually contribute any mean tidbits. But if you laugh or react in general, you give the talkers reason to continue. Next time gossip rears its head, make your excuses and exit the space. It’s hard for people to reveal juicy details when they have no perceptive audience.

Keep it casual. If your office is home to a persistent group of gossips, you may realize their social group is not for you. Keep things cordial, hang out with them at lunch, but keep your more intimate or confidential conversations for a group of people outside of work. That way, you’ll be able to focus better in your professional environment, and you save yourself the bother of repeating all your social news twice!

Have a frank talk. This is the boldest move, but also possibly the most effective. Pull the primary gossip perpetrator aside and tell it straight: “I’d like to connect with you, but it’s hard for me to do that when I hear you making negative judgments about these people with whom we both work in close proximity. Can we talk without falling into that mode of conversation?”

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Applying For Jobs Online

online jobsThere are many obvious advantages to applying for jobs online. You can cover a wide swath of job applications, geographic regions, and message boards very quickly and efficiently. However, job search websites are certainly no silver bullet for finding a job, and you still have to apply many of the same considerations that you would for a traditional job search. With literally thousands of new job sites cropping up each year (some more reputable than others), here are a few things to keep in mind:

1. Maintain control. Job sites offer a service, but there’s always something in it for them. Ultimately, a website is just one more tool in the tool kit, and you want the end result to be the same: you send your application to a particular individual within the company. It is important that you are apply on your own behalf, as some websites will offer to do this for you. This is one of the reasons that a low-tech online search, such as a google search that leads to the webpage of the hiring manager, is often more productive than a fancy automated service.

2. Look before you leap. Online job services are required to provide you with the fine print. Check out their privacy policy and the details of their service agreements before you give away your information. The internet is a powerful and wonderful place, but it is also very dangerous, and once your information is given to the wrong people, it can never be retracted or undone.

3. Maintain your profile. As you know, job searching is a job in itself. Make sure you’re putting sufficient time into maintaining your online profiles on job sites and LinkedIn.

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