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Advice for the New Year

If I had I could only give a business one piece of advice for the upcoming year, it would be to invest in a Technology Consultant.

As a Technology Consultant, you may think that this is just an advertisement for my services. Maybe it is, but technology changes everyday and keeping up with those changes is in itself a full time job. Having a Technology Manager is the way to keep pace.  It’s advisable to have one either on the payroll or on retainer.

Are there things on the horizon, or even already being used, that a small business owner needs to consider or at least know are there? Absolutely!

Social Networking has been gaining popularity during the past couple of years. Do you know what available? What is hot today?

Are you getting the services that is being billed to you each month? Are these services the correct ones? Are you paying for services that you don’t use or need?

All of these questions and more can be answered by a Technology Consultant or Technology Manager.  They may not pay for themselves, but it is possible that having one can save money and even possibly keep you in business.

I was once asked by a business owner why they should consider paying for my services and not use the free services that their technology vendor offered.

At first I couldn’t understand why he would ask that question. Then it occurred to me that his technology vendor had convinced him that the Free consultant would be making recommendations on what he needed after evaluating his needs. And that consultant probably would be gathering the same information and asking the same questions a I.

What he wasn’t considering was that this consultant was actually a part of the vendor’s sales team. And that they would be making the recommendation on the best product and/or services that they supplied not necessarily what was the best for his company. That’s if they aren’t just trying to make a sales.

In 2009 I will be beginning my 4th year delivery tips to SMBs. I started in April of 2006. When I started I was trying to deliver a new tip twice a week, sometimes more. As this new year begins, I hope to post more regular than I did during 2008 and back at the rate of at least two tips or more each week.

Thank You for taking the time to read my tips. I realize that sometimes may seem obvious, but I believe it never hurts to be reminded.  And please subscribe to my feed.

I will also be using twitter in 2009 to post quick bits of information that I have heard or send links to news articles I recommend reading. I can be follow on on twitter at Twitter.com at twitter.com/smbtechtips.

Hope that everyone has a nice as well as profitable new year.

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