Posts Tagged ‘Skype’

Run Your Business With Skype

Tuesday, November 15th, 2011

Skype is one of the leaders in voice over internet technology, if not THE leader in VOIP. They have some awesome services for businesses who are ready to enter the 21st century. Consider these:

  • Free Skype to Skype calling
  • You can have your own online phone number
  • Anyone from anywhere can call you and it’s local
  • Conference calls through Skype
  • Skype To Go allows you to use Skype on your mobile phone

I realize not every business in the world can benefit from this technology, but many can. In addition, you can use Skype for group calling, video calling, and screen sharing. That makes Skype a useful videoconferencing solution for small businesses. I know some small business owners who have ditched their land lines and have gone completely wireless using Skype and their mobile phones.

Skype is an affordable business solution if you find yourself wanting to ditch that old 20th century mainstay, the land line. Tired of the add-on charges your phone company keeps giving you? Tired of the disconnected service whenever you experience a storm? Skype could be a tool you’ll enjoy having around.

I think it’s just a matter of time before the whole world is connected via VOIP. Skype could be the leader for homes and small businesses when that happens.

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Posted in Tools for Small Business | 5 Comments »

Facebook Offers In-Browser Skype Chat

Tuesday, July 5th, 2011

I said it was going to happen. Of course, it happened sooner than I thought it would. But I’m more than pleased to announce that my prediction was correct. Facebook is now offering Skype video chat.

WebProNews reported the news over the weekend.

So what’s this mean for small businesses? Imagine this:

Suppose you were able to embed a Skype button onto your business page at Facebook so that people who view your page could contact you via Skype in real time. No need to Like the page. They can, of course, do that if they want. But what if they have a question about your service or product? They click the Skype button and video chat pops up on your screen. You’re at your desk so you answer.

    “Good morning, Facebook friend. How are you?”

    “I’m fine, Mr. Product Salesman. I have a question about your red, white, and blue widget. Does it dance and sing the National Anthem?”

    “It sure does. And it curtsies and says, ‘Happy Fourth of July’ too.”

    “Marvelous! So how do I buy one?”

And then you can direct your new customer to your website to make a purchase. Wouldn’t that be cool?

Well, according to Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, this ability is right around the corner. The particulars on how Skype video chat will work on Facebook are not yet known, but you can be sure we’ll find out in short time. That’s great news for small business owners.

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Posted in Social Media | 6 Comments »

Facebook, Skype, And Small Business

Tuesday, June 21st, 2011

It has become fashionable for businesses to hold webinars online. That’s a good thing. Webinars can be powerful marketing tools. But with Facebook and Skype, online webinars can take on a whole new flavor.

Consider this: Facebook and Skype have integrated. So what, you say?

I’ll tell you so what.

Facebook is the most trafficked website online. You knew that, I’m sure. What that means is, there’s more than a fair chance that your target market is hanging out there. If you instant message with your customers or potential customers through Facebook, you can now do that through Skype. And, you can also like comments and comment on status updates through Skype.

That might seem like a small thing, and it really is. But if you consider that Skype is also a powerful voice and video communication system through which you can interact with your customers and potential customers, then the integration takes on whole new meaning. You can incorporate Skype into your small business website, allowing your customers to field questions with a simple Skype call.

How hard would it be to Like a friend’s comment and have that friend drop by your business page and leave a comment. Then you could direct your friend to your website to Skype their question to you and get the answer in real time with your voice and video image interacting with them through their computer screen. Someday, I envision being able to call your Facebook friends with Skype right inside of Facebook. Now, wouldn’t that be cool?

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Posted in Social Media | 4 Comments »

Do You Have To Meet Face To Face?

Friday, December 10th, 2010

In the old days of doing business, if you wanted to get the contract you had to meet face to face, shake hands, and make a personal connection. Today, you still make personal connection, but it doesn’t necessarily take place face to face. You can do all your business online.

How’s that possible?

And, I might add, before I answer that question, you can do this even if you’re a local business.

Let’s see …. there’s Facebook, LinkedIn, Web conferencing, Skype, e-mail, IM, texting, Twitter. How many ways do I need to count? All of them are communication tools and none of them require a face to face meeting (unless you call Skype face to face). You can run your entire business online while sitting in your easy chair at home, or your executive chair at the office.

While this is possible, do you want to do it?

I’m not going to say you should, or you have to, but you can. No matter what kind of business you are in, social networking, Twitter, texting, e-mail, Skype, Web conferencing, all of these tools can be used for communicating with your business partners and customers. The face to face meeting is no longer necessary. You can also secure deals online without ever meeting the people you are doing business with. And we’re just getting started.

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Posted in Small Business Internet Marketing | 1 Comment »

Skype Offers A Leg Up For Small Business Website Owners

Wednesday, July 21st, 2010

Skype is a software program you can download to your computer and talk person to person with anyone in the world over the Internet. It’s called Voice Over Internet Protocol, or VOIP by industry insiders.

VOIP has been around for a while and in some quarters it is quite popular. Small businesses, however, have not taken to it in the same way big businesses have. If you work for a large corporation where you frequently discuss business with other employees of the corporation who office in a different location from you where you’d pay long distance phone fees then you may already by using VOIP. But it may be a different provider than Skype, which is free. There are paid VOIP services that offer more and better services than Skype. But we’re not talking about those.

A small business cannot afford more costly VOIP services. That’s why Skype has been a good alternative. It’s free. But Skype has recently introduced a pay-per-call model. It works like this:

  • You put the code on your website that shows a Skype button
  • Your website visitor sees the Skype button and clicks it to call you
  • You answer, pay the per-call fee

Will this give your business the edge over the competition? It may.

Imagine that your website visitors can call you for free at the click of a button. You’re there to answer and offer immediate assistance to their needs. It’s free for them and you pay only when you get a call. Would it be worth it?

I think so, but there is one catch. Your caller has to have Skype loaded on their computer. Otherwise, they won’t be able to make the call. Still, it could be a competitive edge. Would you use it?

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Posted in Tools for Small Business | 4 Comments »