The Akron Beacon Journal from Akron, Ohio • Page C009

CCYYMK www.ohio.com/business BUILDING CUSTOMER LOYALTY USING THE INTERNET A kron business consultant Do nP hilabaum offers his book I nternetD ough for free on the Internet at internetdough net hilabaum said business owners who find ways to interact with their customers online can build loyalty and, in turn, more profits ere are a few ideas: Collect mail addresses from customers Us ee mail to send out highly targeted promotions, such as coupons for products, news of special events, or daily specials or sales. One way to collect addresses is by gathering business cards of customers for a weekly or monthly raffle for free products or services. Create ways for your customers to meet each other online. ffer a bulletin board for fans of some niche in your industry or have an online contest that results in photos or conversation between site visitors Show your customers your expertise. pload videos of what you oo nYou ube and link it for free to your Web site.

Create online seminars webinars relating to something in your field and send invitations to customers Ifyou have trouble coming up with ideas, put a young employee to work on it. hey have grown up with I nternet technology and will probably have many thoughts about how to connect to people in cyberspace. ource nP hilabaum I nternetS trategiesG roupi nAkron hone :800 805 9413 http www internetstrategies group com oomers find a tough job market Weak economy hurting workers in 50s and 60s who retire just yet By Bob Moos allasM orningN ews ooking for a job was an exercise in frustration for Mike a nothing was more aggravating than the interview. Hi s25 years in information technology turned out to be more a liability than an asset. mployers looked at the 60- year old applicant and asked him whether he might be overqualified guess my age scared he said.

must have thought that if they hired me, retire A fter a dozen disappointing interviews a ndecided to become a self employed financial planner. With retirement nowhere on his horizon he helps his clients plan for their golden years. now my own boss. a fGrapevine exas Th eweak economy is putting a squeeze on workers in their 50s and 60s. Having spent their career with only one or two employers many are looking for work for the first time in years.

ome have been laid off. Others have taken buyouts but afford to retire. Still others are coming out of retirement because their nest eggs have shrunk orkers 55 and older take an average of 21 weeks to find a job, about five weeks longer than younger job seekers, according to the AARP Public Policy I nstitute lder workers who suddenly have to apply for another job may be out of and not know how to make their pitch to employers said Renee ard leasesee oomers 0 Market product while bringing people together online WEB SETS UP LINK TO CUSTOMERS Internet sites help businesses bond with communities By Paula Schleis eaconJ ournal business writer Th ereasons for selling your products and services on the Internet are obvious. Bu tthe value of building an interactive eb based community for your customers is less understood and appreciated, said Akron business consultant Don hilabaum udevelop kinship and hilabaumsaid that pays dividends. ake the case of WKSU, the public FM radio station once content to serve listeners in the Kent State niversityregion A Web site has brought the hometown station a global following and an international paycheck because in 2003 it began putting archives of weekend folk music programming on the I nternet In addition to giving folk fans access to music around the clock, the site invited musicians and listeners to talk to each other in bulletin boards feature allows visitors to upload their own music and invite public reviews.

Th esite Folk Alley (at http www folkalley com quickly became a hangout for folk music devotees on six continents rowingsuccess Al Bartholet executive director, says the evidence is statistical and anecdotal We bhits have been registered in 130 countries, and registered membership exceeds 89,0 0 0. are the No provider of folk music in the world he said. qually reassuring are the stories that trickle back to the station like a news clipping of a New Hampshire folk group who told an interviewer that their members met on Folk A lley An dwhen the site held a contest inviting people to send in pictures of themselves wearing Folk Alley shirts the snapshots poured in from A ustralia outhA frica cotland apan So how do all those nice warm feelings translate into profit WKSU started getting leasesee We bsite 0 INTERVIEW ADVICE and sfor older workers in interviews DO Go online and research the company eave those white shoes and belt in the closet and buy a new wardrobe tress your interest in learning new skills. mphasize you are computer savvy ear a beard, especially if graying ell your interviewer the same age as your son. alk about the good old Sa yy to work for only a few more years.

ource allasM orning ewsresearch As kSCORE a question end questions about issues that local entrepreneurs and small businessowners face to Gary utherland chairman of A kron sSCORE chapter l.c m. utherlandc a to all questions, but answers to some will appear in future columns rotect your data. ereare some tips Even small businesses can take security steps ocks alarms and cameras can help guard your facilities and equipment. But what about your computer databases hey are the places where valuable, sensitive and potentially irreplaceable assets of your business are stored. It is easy to assume that I nternet firewalls and PC passwords are enough to prevent unauthorized access.

Th a necessarily the case oFredric Pa and editor-i n- chief of w. ighty com an online resource that specializes in IT needs of small and medium businesses. atabase breaches from both external and internal sources are increasing and cause for serious concern. a lbusinesses face a higher risk because they usually lack the IT security infrastructures and expertise of larger, but no less vulnerable aul pointed out. small businesses also lack the resources and expertise to detect and respond quickly to a breach, the consequences are greater as ere are some steps to keep your small businessdatabase as safe as possible: nablesecurity capabilities anyoff the shelf databases have only limited default security controls ake sure that all authentication controls are enabled void using common passwords for user and administrative accounts.

ive the database a security checkup: efore entering any data, make sure no unwanted or unnecessary sharing features are activated by default. Check the software developer sWe bsite every few months to ensure that your version is up to date with all the latest security patches. estrictdatabase access ven if you have a small trusted staff, access to the database should be limited to a need to know basis his will prevent passwords and other important information from being misused or unintentionally shared.I talso provides an extra measure of safety in the event colleague becomes competitor ncrypt sensitive data elements xamine all the data elements in your database to determine whether any are extraordinarily critical. Would disclosure to the public or your competitors cause you to lose customers or put you out of business via lawsuits (for example all the recent reports of credit card numbers and ocialS ecurity numbers stolen by hackers)? Encrypt this data within your live database so that it would be valueless if your entire live database is hacked into and copied. naively think it happen ake regular backups: epending on the size and extent of your small business databases backups should be made on a monthly, weekly or even daily basis.

The data should be stored in encrypted format to further minimize its value to a data thief. Backups should also be kept at a secure, off site location in case your normal place of business becomes inaccessible because of weather, fire or natural disaster eep track of trends: ven if you consider yourself a computer whiz, guarding IT resources is easier when you take a proactive approach If you would like more information about this or other business relatedsubjects A kron SCORE at http akronscore orgor call 330 379 3163 ervices are free and confidential SCORE is a resource partner of the U.S. Small Business A dministration MIKE STONE allasM orningN ews arahD rake ,6 fCoppell exas has spent most of her life in banking but is seeking work at a nonprofit agency. She says her experience and strong work ethic make her a good job candidate. Th eB eaconJ ournal onday A ugust4, 2008 ageC9 LEW STAMP A kronB eaconJ ournal Al Bartholet president of Ohio edia shows off the Folk Alley Web site, which gives folk fans in six continents access to music around the clock.

GARY SUTHERLAND Small Business Solutions Story 8-04 c9 System AKRE by AASHWORT Time 23:13:34 Date 94X Pg. Date 8-04 c9Topic: 8-04 bus Keyword 8-04 c9Page 1 CyanMagentaYellowBlack.