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Welcome to the very firstSmall Business News for 2010!
I hope you had a restful and enjoyable Christmas and New Year, with lots of happy times spent with family and friends. We had a fairly quiet, low-key Christmas in our house this year, but it was so refreshing to take some time out for a few days.
A lot of new readers joined us over the last month ... if you're one of them, welcome. I hope you find the information shared in the Business Tips Newsletter very straight-forward and helpful.
Thank you to those of you who kindly completed last month's survey. This has provided a wealth of information about what you want to know. I'll be making every effort to cover each of the topics listed in your responses throughout 2010's Business Tips Newsletter, including marketing and promotions, time management techniques, 'how-to...' tips, effective management strategies and various other small, micro and online business resources.
And if you haven't completed the survey yet you're not too late ... there's still time to do it. Simply click on the link below and you'll be directed to the survey page where you can answer a couple of very quick questions.
This month's feature article explains the importance of regular and effective backup systems for your computer. Also this month, we look at why I choose to send this newsletter as a plain text email with a link to the newsletter, and some simple strategies to use if you find yourself drowning in a sea of never-ending emails.
Enjoy!
Why 'Ugly' Emails Are Better For Newsletters...
The other day someone suggested to me that I should send my newsletter as a gorgeously presented HTML newsletter within the email.
While there's no doubt this sort of newsletter looks very lovely, the reason I don't send my newsletters in that style is this...
With so much spam, viruses and rubbish being sent by email these days it's becoming more difficult for genuine emails to get through to the intended recipient. Did you know that some ISPs automatically block many email messages that are sent by an official email management program? If you ever wondered why you sometimes don't receive confirmation messages, automated receipts or newsletters, this could be why.
By sending a newsletter in the body of an email you increase the chances of your newsletter being blocked by ISPs or spam filters. Also, some people's email settings mean that some HTML messages aren't viewed properly.
So plain text messages - those with the boring 12pt Times New Roman font and very ... well, plain-looking - are less likely to have problems. And if you keep it nice and short - something like, "Our latest newsletter is now avialable to view online at ..." and include a link to a web page, there's much less chance of the email being blocked.
I really didn't like the look of these short, plain emails at first but decided to give it a try about 18 months ago. After all, statistics can be very swaying.
I have to admit, as 'ugly' as those emails look, they do serve a purpose. If you're finding some of your newsletter readers, customers or subscribers are having trouble reading or receiving your emails, perhaps try sending an ugly message directing readers to your website.
Feature Article: The Importance Of Backing Up Your Data ... Effectively
As a small business owner, whether it’s an online or “bricks and mortar” business, you most likely depend squarely on your computer system and the data it contains for nearly every aspect of running your business. What many people don’t pay enough attention to, however, is the critical importance of backing up that data frequently and effectively.
Why backup your data?
This is the most basic question and the one that’s easiest to answer. It’s important to backup your data because if you were to lose some (or all) of it your small business could be severely impacted at best and perhaps even crippled at worst. Your business information is quite literally the lifeblood of your operation; lose that information and you will be faced with all sorts of dramas.
Most people know that, but many keep saying they'll get around to backing up 'one day', or simply hope it won't happen to them.
While setting up an effective backup system and program might be a bit tedious and even seem like a lot of work, it’s best to view it as an integral part of your business management. You take care of accounting tasks on a regular basis, you take care of inventory tasks on a regular basis, and so too should you take care of data backup tasks on a regular basis.
How to backup your data
There are a number of options available for you to backup your data. Two of the best methods include:
Separate (external/portable) hard drive – A stand-alone hard disk drive is an economical choice; they are available with all sorts of storage capacity for as little as $50 to $150 in many cases. Simply hook the separate hard disk up to your computer via the USB drive and then copy vital files over to it. To maximize safety of the data you should then keep the external hard drive in a location that’s separate from your main computer location.
Or better still, have two of these. Alternate backing up on to each of these drives, keeping one off-site.
Keeping one of them off-site means that if - heaven forbid - your office were destroyed by fire/flood and your computer is destroyed or damaged beyond repair, you'll still have a copy of all your important computer data safe and sound.
Off-site backup – This is often the safest solution because it not only creates copies of your vital data, but does so in a way that is extra safe and secure. There are a number of excellent commercial providers of this type of service, such as Carbonite, Mozy and iDrive. Pricing and storage limits can vary so be sure to check out a number of different providers before making a final decision.
When you first begin with this type of system it will do a complete back-up of your entire hard drive which can take days, depending on how much data you have on your computer.
But once that's done, the system only backs ups files as they're updated or changed. The best thing about this system is that it is, to some degree, a 'set and forget' solution.
Personally, I use both an off-site backup service and external hard-drives.
How often should you backup your data?
The right answer to this question depends in part on the quantity of data you need to back up, how frequently that data changes, and the method you choose for regular backup. At a bare minimum, some experts I spoke with recommend backing up business information once per month but in practice I honestly believe this is usually not nearly often enough.
For most small business management purposes, performing data backup once per week at a minimum may be sufficient - more fequently for vital data.
However, if you’re using an offsite storage provider most of them offer a range of backup options from allowing you to create a set schedule to, in some cases, performing continuous backup of your data files.
In the end, the frequency of your data backups is something where you’ll need to balance the importance of having access to the most current data with the time and effort necessary to conduct such backups. The more automated your backup process, the easier it is to implement on a more frequent basis.
When backing up, remember to backup your Internet favourites, emails and contacts too.
The bottom line is this ... you need to pay attention to your business information and structure your backup systems to best protect and preserve that information from loss or file corruption.
Interesting Blog Post - "Are You Drowning In A Sea Of Never-Ending Emails?":
This month's Interesting Blog Post is one several readers listed in December's survey as wanting some suggestions with ... how to manage seemingly non-stop emails! So here's a plan that will help free you from that dreaded inbox nightmare - you can read all about it here:
I hope you've enjoyed this month's newsletter. Remember, if there’s a particular topic you’d like to know more about, you're very welcome to email me and let me know.
Wishing you a brilliant month.
Warmly,
Donna-Marie xx
If you were given the link to this newsletter by a friend or associate and would like to receive your own copy each month, you can subscribe to Business Tips News here.
Disclosure: Please note that if you purchase through links on this site I may receive a commission payment. Some recommended products are my own, others I may be affiliated with and yet others I have no affiliation with. But one thing's for certain ... I won't recommend something I don't believe is worthwhile. If I do receive some form of commission, this will help me to stay in business in order to continue to provide reviews, tips, news and resources for free :-)
