Archive for September, 2011

RedBoard Biz celebrates one-year anniversary

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RedBoard Biz celebrates 1 year anniversaryOne year ago today, we officially launched RedBoard Biz.

In our first post, we told you our vision for RedBoard Biz was to be a forum for discussions with small and medium businesses. We wanted this blog to be a place for us to share topics of interest and the latest news about Rogers products and services and how your business can use them.

We’re thrilled we’ve attracted a community of like-minded business professionals. From apps and interviews, to the latest product and network launches, we’ve covered a broad range of topics on this blog in the past year. We also launched a business focused Twitter account, @RogersBiz, which is growing steadily day by day.

We know you’re reading but now we want to hear from you. To celebrate our one-year anniversary and ensure that we continue to provide you with a broad range of content that’s of interest to your business, we’re having a contest.

Just tell us in the comments section of this post, in 100 words or less, what topics you’d like to see covered on our blog in the next year and you could win a new BlackBerry Curve 9360. How about game-changing technology trends? Q&As with business thought leaders? Tips to make you a smartphone power user? We’re open to your ideas.

We’ll be announcing the winner of the contest on this post and on Twitter next week. Good luck!

UPDATE (October 5, 2011, 12:14 pm): The RedBoard Biz Anniversary Contest is now closed. Thanks to everyone for your great suggestions and feedback. We’ll be announcing the winner of the BlackBerry Curve 9360 both here on our blog and on our Twitter account, @RogersBiz. The post will remain open for comments, so please continue to send us your suggestions, however, any comments received after 12 noon on October 5 will be ineligible for the draw for the BlackBerry.

UPDATE (October 6, 2011, 9:27 a.m): Congratulations to our winner Matt! We’ll be sending you your new BlackBerry Curve 9360 soon. Thanks again to everyone who participated in the RedBoard Biz Anniversary contest!

Miranda MacDonald is a regular contributor to RedBoard Biz.

Contest closes on October 5, 2011 at 12 noon. Open to residents of Canada who are 18 years or older, excluding residents of Quebec. To enter, tell us in 100 words or less, in the Comments section of this post, what topics you want to see on RedBoard Biz in the coming year.  Prize: one (1) BlackBerry Curve 9360 valued at $349.99 to be won. One entry/person. Odds of winning depend on the number of eligible entries. Mathematical skill-testing question to be correctly answered to win. No Purchase Necessary. Full rules here.

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Customer Experience, General
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Speed up your business: Rogers LTE network now live in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver

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HTC Jetstream LTE tablet from RogersAs a small business, you know that mobility is a key part of your life every day. We’re excited to share that from east to west, a new wireless experience for your business is here.

Major markets in Canada’s three largest provinces now have access to the world’s fastest wireless network technology. Rogers launched its LTE network today in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver, joining Ottawa where Rogers launched Canada’s first LTE network back in July.

Now, more than 5.5 million Canadians have access to LTE with Rogers– more than any other wireless company in Canada.

Rogers has already started to introduce its first line up of great LTE devices. If you’re in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver or Ottawa, you can now purchase the Rogers LTE Rocketstick, which plugs into your laptop and gives you speeds similar to what you currently have through your broadband connection.

On October 18, we kick off what will be the widest selection of devices with a Rogers exclusive HTC Jetstream LTE tablet, the fastest tablet in Canada. This Android 3.1 tablet boasts LTE + Wi-Fi  connectivity, a 10” high resolution touchscreen, 32 GB capacity, and dual-core 1.5GHz processor. Add the HTC Scribe digital pen accessory and you can even sketch, highlight, take notes, or sign documents on your tablet.

Using these devices on Rogers LTE network will make it easier for you to download apps, large PowerPoint files and stream live web conferences to customers and your team with virtually no delay or buffering.

To celebrate the expansion of Canada’s first LTE network, we’ve also introduced a special, limited time offer that provides LTE customers a chance to purchase Rogers largest ever data bucket – 10GB for $52.93 per month.

LTE promises to revolutionize your wireless experience and we’re happy to be the first to bring this new technology to Canadians.

With tablets, smartphones, sticks and hotspots coming in the next few weeks, which LTE device are you most excited about?

Allison Fitton is a regular contributor to RedBoard Biz

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Product news, Wireless
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Rogers Technology Showcase visits Calgary and Edmonton

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We just wrapped up the Tech Showcase in Calgary and Edmonton – thanks to all of you who joined us, we had a great time!

We had the opportunity to catch up with Kurtis McGeachy, Director of Enterprise Sales at Mentor Engineering when he was in Toronto to learn about fleet tracking and driver behaviour monitoring – check out what he had to say:

We’re now heading to the Convention Centre in Winnipeg for October 5. The show is free and we’d love to have you join us. To secure your spot, register in advance at www.rogerstechshowcase.com.

Allison Fitton is a regular contributor to RedBoardBiz.

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Featured Video, Transportation, Trends
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Get your business online: tools and know-how for creating a strong web presence

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Get your Business Online CanadaFor small businesses, getting online and building a web presence is crucial.  Today, customers turn to the Internet to research products and services before they buy.  In Canada, 77% of the population is online and 82% of that group shops online.

Getting your business online makes your business visible to customers around the world.  But, where do you start and what do you do to ensure it’s working effectively?

The RBC Royal Bank Business Series, Google and Rogers bring you a series of events that will help you learn about the online market and how it can help build your business.  Whether you’re just starting out or want to increase your site’s visibility using online campaigns, these events will give you the know-how to succeed online.

Conferences are taking place in cities across the country.  Check below to see when we’ll be in your city:

October 4th – Toronto

October 5th – Burlington

October 12th – Halifax

October 13th – Ottawa

October 18th – Vancouver

October 20th – Calgary

October 25th – Regina

October 27th – Edmonton

November 8th – Montreal

To register for the event, or to find out more information, go to www.gybo.ca/events

Does your business have a website? What tips can you offer to small businesses just getting started on their web presence?

Alex Skillings is a regular contributor to RedBoard Biz

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Internet, Trends
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The real deal for entrepreneurs: Idea2Delivery series launches

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Idea2DeliveryAre you considering starting your own business but looking for some inspiration and guidance? Would you like to shadow other businesses that are going through the same process, so that you can learn from their successes and challenges and benefit from the mentoring they receive? Well, there’s a new Web-based reality series that lets you do just that.

Idea2Delivery is a video series that follows real entrepreneurs through the whole process of launching a business, from the “big idea” right through to the first sale. In each episode, the budding business people face challenges common to almost anyone starting a new venture, and they spend time with a business expert who mentors them and helps them with the fundamentals they need to move ahead.

According to Wendy Mayhew, the show’s creator, “Research has shown that there is a need for the type of information provided in the Idea2Delivery video series. My goal with the series is to help entrepreneurs make the right decisions before they launch their business, which will save them time and money and get them to commercialization faster.”

The first episode is available on the Idea2Delivery website. A couple of young entrepreneurs face the challenge of writing “the dreaded business plan” for their fledgling idea and present it for feedback to a business expert. It’s lively, entertaining reality-format content that also has a lot to offer anyone thinking about or already involved in a start-up. And because it’s on the Web, you can watch it whenever you have time.

You can join the mailing list to be notified whenever a new episode appears. You’ll also find tools and resources on the website to help you launch, manage and grow a business.

Idea2Delivery is an initiative of Business Launch Solutions, a company that consults with the start-up community on the fundamentals that are often overlooked when launching a business. Rogers is proud to sponsor Idea2Delivery.

What are you watching or reading to inspire or educate you about entrepreneurship?

Geoffrey Booth is a regular contributor to Redboard Biz

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Entrepreneurship, Trends, Video
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We’re hitting the road with Rogers Technology Showcase

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Last week, we kicked off our national tour of the Rogers Technology Showcase in Ottawa and Toronto. Over two hundred partners,  IT professionals and members of the Rogers Data Alliance joined us to check out the latest in wireless business solutions.

We also showed off new devices, smart phones and tablets from Cisco, Research in Motion and Panasonic.

In Toronto, we had the chance to catch up with Mansell Nelson, vice president of M2M at Rogers to talk about what’s new at this year’s Technology Showcase. Take a look:

We’re heading west this week to start the next leg of our tour. If you are interested to learn more about how wireless and M2M solutions can help your business, please come out and join us. The show is free – to secure your spot, register in advance at www.rogerstechshowcase.com. Here is where we are heading:

Vancouver: Friday September 16th

Vancouver Convention Centre

Calgary: Tuesday September 20th

BMO Centre

Edmonton: Thursday September 22nd

Edmonton Expo Centre

Winnipeg: Wednesday October 5th,

Conventions Centre

Montreal: Thursday October 13th

Centre Mont-Royal

We’ll also be bringing the Technology Showcase to  Halifax on October 19th and in London on October 27th. Locations to be confirmed.

Over the coming weeks, we’ll be featuring a series of video interviews with partners demonstrating their M2M solutions at this year’s show so if you can’t be there in person, this is the next best thing. Stay tuned.

Allison Fitton is a regular contributor to RedBoardBiz

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Corporate, Featured Video, Trends, Wireless
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Lessons from a teacher: How to stay productive during the back to school rush

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Top Android apps for teachersThe September rush is upon us.  Vacations are over, things are getting crazier at work, there are new classes to go to, new commitments and new commutes. Luckily, there are some great apps available to help us stay organised and keep us productive.

We asked our favourite high-tech teacher, Farhad Mordy Sabeti, from the Anne and Max Tanenbaum Community Hebrew Academy of Toronto (TanenbaumCHAT), to give us all a lesson on what to download to stay efficient.

Here’s his list of must-have apps that are great for teachers – and really anybody interested in getting the most out of their Android device.

A File Manager: Metago’s Astro File Manager

While some Android phones and tablets come pre-loaded with a file manager, many lack an easy method for managing all file types – texts, emails, music, video, etc. – that live on your device. Enter Metago’s Astro File Manager: a simple and intuitive, yet powerful way to organize your files. In addition to easily organizing files by selecting, moving, copying, and deleting them, Astro also allows users to back-up the apps that are currently installed on their device.

A Document Scanner: IntSig Information’s CamScanner PDF Creator

While tablets support the move towards a more digital work flow, many documents are still exchanged in hard-copy. Instead of photocopying documents, keeping a digital copy on a mobile device can simplify filing and help you stay organized. There are many scanning tools available on the Android Market, but IntSig Information’s CamScanner PDF Creator leads the pack with its user-friendly interface and features. Using the camera on the device, you can capture an image and easily convert it to a PDF document. Images can then be cropped, saved, and even e-mailed.

A Document Editor: DataViz’s Documents To Go

DataViz’s Documents To Go is essential for people using their tablets or smartphones to edit word documents, spreadsheet, and presentations. While Documents To Go is the most expensive app featured in this list, it is the app that most resembles your desktop applications. Google Docs provides a practical and powerful alternative to purchasing this editing app, but users must be online to take advantage of its features, while Documents To Go works offline.

A PDF Annotator: Unidoc’s ezPDF Reader and Cerience Corporation’s RepliGo Reader

One of the great advantages of a tablet is its ability to replace handwritten paper notes – feedback to students, short memos, or more complicated illustrations and diagrams – with digital ones. There are many note-taking apps for the Android platform, but two that stand out are Unidoc’s ezPDF Reader and Cerience Corporation’s RepliGo Reader. Both apps provide users with a simple way to view, annotate, highlight and mark up a PDF document, which can be saved and shared.

A Content Organizer: Dropbox

Most tablet users have additional computing devices such as desktop or laptop computers and a smartphone, and keeping track of all your documents can get confusing. Dropbox helps you get organized by placing folders on all your devices and synchronizing them, so your files are accessible from any device, as well as on the Dropbox website. The Dropbox app helps you stay productive, whether you’re working from home, your school or office, and on the go.

Are you a teacher? What are your must-have apps?

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Security tips for BlackBerry users

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BlackBerry security tips from RogersOur days are filled with little routines to keep ourselves safe, such as looking both ways before crossing the street and buckling our seatbelts before starting our cars. But what do we do to keep the business and personal information on our mobile devices protected?

We asked our security expert friends at RIM to provide us with some security tips for BlackBerry smartphones and PlayBook tablets. Here are some you can act on today. (These tips are for BlackBerry 6 OS. Instructions for other operating systems may vary.

Password Protection

Ensure that only you have access to the information on your smartphone. To add a password, simply select the Options menu, then Security, then Password. Type and confirm a password in the Password field and click the Enable checkbox.

On the PlayBook, you’ll need to go to the Settings gear in the upper right hand corner, select Security from the left hand menu, then Password. Select Enable then type in a password.

Encrypt Data

Keep your data secure. On your smartphone, open the Options menu, then Security, then Encryption. In the Encryption screen, select the Encrypt checkbox.  You can also choose what to encrypt and the encryption strength.

Bluetooth Security

Keep your device safe when Bluetooth is on. Open the Manage Connections menu and click on the Bluetooth checkbox. While you’re still in the Manage Connections screen, scroll down and select Bluetooth Options. You’ll see a variety of Bluetooth connections. You can change your discoverable status to show up or remain undetected when nearby users search for Bluetooth connections.

Password Keeper

Keep your security passwords and account numbers safe. Open the Password Keeper icon from your BlackBerry home screen. (If you don’t see the icon, type “password keeper” from your home screen and the universal search function should locate it for you.) You’ll be prompted to create a password to protect all your other passwords. Then simply select the Menu key and choose New to add a new password item.

Wiping

Transitioning a used device to a new employee? Keep everyone’s information safe by wiping the device between users. Select the Options menu, then Security, then Security Wipe. You’ll be prompted to type “BlackBerry” to complete the wipe. While the device is wiping, make sure you don’t turn it off or pull the battery out.

Which BlackBerry security features do you currently use?

Haley Morrison is a regular contributor to Redboard Biz

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Search engine marketing tips for SMBs from BizLaunch

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Andrew PatricioOne of the best parts of working with small businesses is hearing about how they are overcoming challenges to grow and prosper. We also understand the value of Canada’s small business community and we are honoured to be part of that community.

To continue sharing relevant and valuable content with you, we have invited Andrew Patricio, a co-founder of Canada’s largest SMB training company, BizLaunch, to share expert advice on marketing for small business in a series of posts – the first, focused on search engine marketing.

Andrew is an owner of www.BizLaunch.com, a company that trains, coaches and mentors Entrepreneurs. Andrew is the author of two books on small business and has started seven businesses of his own and worked with entrepreneurs in Canada, Russia, Latvia, Italy, Portugal, Sweden, Korea, Holland, Nambia, Belgium, South Africa and the USA.

6 steps to kick-start your search engine marketing

Did you know that 86% of Canadian consumer’s research products online before making a purchase, but less than half of all small businesses in Canada have a website? This was announced this week by Google Canada at an event for small business owners. The good news is that Search Engine Marketing (SEM) can help you reach that online audience – fast!

Step 1. Prepare to Measure and Track

Use Google Analytics to track where your visitors come from, and what keyword(s) were used to find you. While there are many paid analytics programs on the market – Google Analytics will do a great job for free. And free is good.

Step 2. Keywords Are Key to Online Business Success

Ask your customers – how they would find you on Google? What problem are they trying to solve? In addition to basic key words, include the location if you run a local business. For example, ‘Vancouver cupcakes’ is more likely to be typed in when customers are ready to purchase – not just ‘cupcakes’. Develop a set of at least 10 key words and put them online. Alexa.com will tell you what keywords are being used by your competition.

Use key words within:

  • The title tags and meta-descriptions for each page of your website
  • The web (copy) content and URL (website address)
  • Your paid advertising and social media accounts

Step 3. Every Local Business Needs a Google Place page… and a Facebook Page

Create a Google Place page. Use your key phrases in the Category section and start asking your customers to write positive reviews. These pages are given a higher ranking priority by Google.

A  MerchantCircle survey in early 2011 found that Facebook has surpassed Google as the #1 choice for small businesses when it comes to marketing. Create a Facebook page and promote it.

Step 4. Paid Advertising Gets the Click

Create a Google AdWords account and make the best offer you can for each ad. Set your initial budget conservatively and monitor it carefully until you have ads that work.

Use the same basic process with very specific demographics to create Facebook ads.

Step 5. Use a Call to Action

Always remember that the goal is not more traffic but more on-site “conversions” or calls to action. For example, a call to action could be signing up for a mailing list, or purchasing an item online. If customers don’t buy or contact you, all of the Internet traffic in the world won’t help. Keep changing the key words and update your pages until it works.

Step 6. Ask for Help, Learning is Constant

It’s no longer optional – people go online first to find out information about products and services – and they use a search engine as the very first step. If your small business is not doing SEM, ask your colleagues or other small business owners to recommend an SEM agency or individual. Don’t lose out on sales just because they can’t find you in the first place.

What are your Search Engine Marketing tips for small business?

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