5 Of The Best Business Blogs You Should Be Following

27 May, 2015 | Tags: , , , , ,

You’re a business owner, and as a business owner, you want to keep up with the latest tech trends, social media accounts, ways to succeed as an entrepreneur, gain new customers, and so on. To help you out in keeping up with the fast pace of the 21st century, we’ve found 5 of the best business blogs you should be following.

1. Chris Brogan – ChrisBrogan.com

Brogan’s posts are short and to the point. His portfolio is very impressive, and he has consulted for some very big brands you’re sure to recognize: Google, Coke, Disney, Microsoft, and many others. What we love about Chris Brogan is his direct and informative posts about everything from online business courses to social media content to creating clear business plans. He also offers many options more involved than his blog, if you’re up to learning beyond the blog from the masterful Chris Brogan.

2. Mashable – Mashable.com

The probability is high that you’ve seen a Mashable article pop up in your Facebook feed today. Mashable is a highly relatable blogging site. College students, business owners, and your parents alike can find informative information on Mashable. The amount of practical and fun information you will find on Mashable will make your visit and eventual follow well worth your time.

3. CopyBlogger – CopyBlogger.com

CopyBlogger is a fast growing online blog, and they’ve also got a great podcast. They’re best known for their online marketing advice, but they’ve been listed as one of the best blogs to follow for entrepreneurial business owners as well. For the amount of content they share, they are only run by a few individuals, which makes it fun to learn the individuals behind the computer screen. Expand your knowledge when it comes it SEO, copywriting, page landing, and content marketing with CopyBlogger.

4. The Official LinkedIn Blog – blog.linkedin.com

As one of the largest (and growing) business social media accounts on the Internet, of course LinkedIn would be on the list. Their official LinkedIn blog is full of business related information. While you’re there reading and learning, make sure you take notes on how to keep up your own business feed on LinkedIn.

5. Seth Godin – SethGodin.com

The whole Internet can’t be wrong; Seth Godin’s personal business blog is one of the largest followed business blogs on the Internet. In addition to his online blog, he is the author of several best selling books, including his newest best seller, “What To Do When It’s Your Turn (and it’s always your turn)”. Follow Seth for great advice on growing your blog, while also developing yourself personally. He’s friendly and easy to follow. 

These are just 5 of the many business blogs available, and while there are many options, remember that as Conrad Hall once said, “You are always a student, never a master. You have to keep moving forward.” Learning is moving forward, and blogs are a great way to learn and get advice for growing your business. Do you already follow some of the blogs listed? Do you have other suggestions for business blogs you enjoy?

10 Mobile Applications for Your Growing Restaurant

20 Apr, 2015 | Tags: , , , , , ,

Mobile app technology is growing exponentially and the tools available at your disposal are becoming harder to filter out. With numerous applications that serve the same function, it becomes a tiresome exercise made up of 2 key questions: 1. Which tool is best? and 2. Do we really even need this?

There is no general right answer for any of these questions. Each business and restaurant will have different sizes, customers, and objectives so it’s futile to define who needs what. With this list we provide a basic overview of several online and mobile applications that are designed to make life easier as a restaurant owner.

If any of our suggestions make you think “Hey, this would really help us out a lot”, then go check it out. Make sure you search for and compare between similar applications so you can properly decide which one is right for you.

1. The Suggestion Box– If your establishment is already using table technology to make payments and take orders, this app is a great add on to let customers provide anonymous reviews and ratings of their overall customer experience.

2. Accupos–  If you are just getting started and are looking for a point of sale system, AccuPOS might be the right place to start looking. It integrates cleanly with Quickbooks and it’s scaleable design allows you to add-on tools like magnetic card readers, touchscreen pc’s and receipt printers.

3. Appsuite- Appsuite is a restaurant loyalty and reward program software that tracks your customer’s order history and “behavior”. It allows you to customize loyalty programs based on what the customer has purchased in the past.

4. Canvas–  Canvas is a great tool for any kind of business that needs proper tracking of inventory, cleaning supplies, restaurant inventory, employee time sheets,  etc. It also works together with Spreadsheet Processors and Quickbooks.

5. Ezee menu- When a customer is making a decision on wether to visit your restaurant or not, a well made menu goes a long way in drawing them in. With the prevalence of mobile devices, it is important to have digital version of your menus available online. Sometimes the restaurant that a customer ends up choosing is the one whose menu loaded quicker on their phone.

6. What Time do I Work– This one is our favorite for no specific reason. If you are tired of employee scheduling conflicts and the internal communication issues that come along with it, then this might be the app for you.  Not only does it offer clean scheduling options, but it allows you to contact your entire staff, handle employee request, and manage employee alerts with just a few clicks.

7. Gopago– Gopago makes a heavy promise by stating it is “Everything you need to get your business up and running”. It certainly offers many tools, among them being credit card processing, cloud storage, loyalty programs, invoicing systems, and mobile ordering.

8. Nowaitapp- The nowait app makes life easier for your employees as well as your customers. Your customers can hold a place online before ever arriving to your location. It is a real time wait list and seating tool for restaurants that allow your hosts and customers to see where they are in the wait list.

9. Chownow.com– Chownow is a web app that allows you to take orders online. This obviously allows you to digitize your menu as well. If your restaurant is located near office business centers, it will greatly facilitate patrons to place their orders while they are at work so that they are ready for pickup by lunch time.

10. Uncorkd –  Uncorkd is a wine and beverage menu app that lets you go the extra mile whith your wine menu.  You can provide extensive information on the wines you offer, even allowing you to offer pairing suggestions and options.

These are just a few of the thousands of tools available at your disposal. Some of these might be useful for you. It’s always a wise idea to research all your options before deciding on one particular choice.