The New Fathers of Technology

Today, users of a multitude of mobile and desktop applications regularly take advantage of Voice over Internet Protocol technology. Many popular communication apps, from Cisco Systems’ WebEx to Skype, trace their lineage back to technology pioneered by Alon Cohen. VoIP uses IP to transmit real-time voice communications, and its foundation dates back several decades (voice packets were sent over ARPANET in the 1970s, notes the website Get VoIP). “The original idea behind VoIP was to transmit real-time speech signal over a data network and to reduce the cost” for long-distance calls, because VoIP calls would go over packet-based networks at a flat rate, instead

Your startup might be lurching along without much capital, but that doesn’t mean you can drop off the grid. Your business needs social media, and, fortunately, you don’t have to drain your account to get a big boost from today’s hottest platforms. You just have to be strategic without becoming too stingy. Read full article here >

Even entrepreneurs who wouldn’t necessarily designate themselves “traveling businesspeople” aren’t immune to traveling for work. In fact, of the millions of trips Americans take annually, 16 percent are at least partially for business purposes, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. Read full article here >

Despite lower unemployment rates and a stronger market, the startup slump is very real. Shortly before the recession in 2006, more than 550,000 businesses opened their doors. In 2015, the most recent year surveyed by the U.S. Census Bureau, that number was 414,000. Read full article here >

Elon Musk is a man who is accustomed to getting what he wants, and right now, it seems that he wants to put people on Mars. He’s not alone, as there are a few other high-profile efforts to put humans on the red planet. Read full article here >

For many companies, investing in the right tools can pay serious dividends, which is why more companies are making room for them in their annual budgets. However, a powerful piece of expensive software won’t drive growth on its own. Businesses are getting smarter – or they’re trying to. Gartner Inc. predicts that the global business intelligence and analytics software market will eclipse $18 billion in revenue this year, and that number will be even larger by the end of the decade. Read full article here >

As a marketing guy at an e-commerce service provider, I often ask myself this question. We know that we get 85% of our business through direct signups on our website. The remaining 15% is split between sales calls, request a quote submissions and other direct outreach methods. In terms of signups, events struggle to break out of the “other” category on the pie chart of our efforts. And yet we spend thousands of dollars on signage, swag, space and sponsorships. Why? Read full article here >

Chatbot technology is nothing new — what’s new is the growing number of industries that are now able to take advantage of it. From taking a pizza order to building a strong financial portfolio, artificial intelligence (AI) and chatbot technology is becoming more functional and more prevalent than ever before.   Read full article here >

Our CEOs latest thoughts on customer service published at Entrepreneur.com: Customer service is entering a renaissance. Technology is completely redefining what it means to help your customer base, with use of live chat expected to grow by 87 percent over the next 12 months to 18 months. Read full article here >

“Meeting” has become a dirty word. Diatribes against meetings exploded in recent years, on the grounds that they’re counterproductive and bad for business. Researchers estimate that unproductive in-house meetings cost U.S. businesses $37 billion in wasted resources. Read full article here >

The biggest brands in the world become what they are with the help of one elusive ingredient: customer loyalty. In a world oversaturated with scattershot marketing messages, successful companies take the time to truly get to know their customers — their motivations, fears, ideas, and priorities — and tackle customer service with relentless dedication. Read full article here >

In a recent product review, GetApp.com compared the functionality of the Phone.com virtual PBX system to that of a traditional (landline) office phone system.  The article reviews Phone.com through a small business lens and remarks, “Small businesses and savvy shoppers… agree that Phone.com’s system offers the most flexibility and freedom for organizations.” The ability to answer calls from anywhere, and the multitude of options for managing voicemail and receiving SMS, are some of the things that set Phone.com ahead of landline systems.  The 24/7 US-based customer service and highly flexible set up from the web-based control panel are other important

Phone.com Vice President of Channel Development Joel Maloff spoke with TMCnet at ITEXPO East 2014 about the need for SMB disaster recovery and business continuity planning. Read the full article here.