Archive for August, 2010



Bloggers Pay Up in Philly

August 25th, 2010 by Erin Posted in Small Business | No Comments »

It doesn’t pay to be a blogger, at least not in Philadelphia. In fact, some bloggers have to pay themselves – and not just for a snazzy WordPress template either.

You know those little Amazon ads you find in the corners of blogs? You know the ones that link to books that people recommend? They’re helpful, sure. But buy one, and you risk holding some Philadelphia bloggers responsible for getting a business license.

Yes, you read that right.

Since a percentage of that Amazon purchase – or any purchase from an enabled advertisement –  is money in the blogger’s pocket, the city of Philadelphia considers that business revenue. Thus it is demanding that bloggers who report even a meager $11 in revenue pay to get a business license.

The license is $300 for a lifetime or $50 a year. And, the city only knows about the ads bloggers are placing on their sites if they report that income on their taxes.

Why a blogger would report $11 baffles me, but still… something is seriously wrong with this picture.

Sean Barry, a Philadelphia blogger, writes Circle of Fits from his free Blogger account. He earned $11 in profit over two years and received a letter from Philadelphia city officials.

Barry writes:

I never expected Circle of Fits to “make money” or be deemed a “business”… I put ads on it as an experiment, and I don’t ever expect anyone to click on them..I don’t even know how to put the time in to learn how to control which ones are being presented.

Bloggers are just a subset of workers affected by this regressive tax. According to the city’s strict rules, any freelancer based in the city qualifies as a business and needs to get the license.

It seems to me that the city of Philadelphia is trying to set a new precedent for microbusinesses.

Should a person who bakes and sells homemade pies out of his or her home be required to purchase a business license? Yes – definitely.

But to call a blogger who makes less than $20 over two years a microbusiness owner is just ridiculous.

This is the time to promote economic growth, not hit workers and entrepreneurs where it hurts the most.

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U.S. Mobile Culture is an Embarrassment!

August 18th, 2010 by Erin Posted in Business, Technology | No Comments »

I just got back from a trip overseas. I thought I was cool because I had my new BlackBerry Storm 2 with me – equipped with cutting edge global capability, super speed, navigation, and a whole lot of other bells and whistles.

I was not cool. Far from it.

As soon as I set foot in Italy, I realized that, yes, Italians do lead a simple, slower lifestyle. But part of that lifestyle stems from their efficient use of mobile devices and the services provided to them.

The mobile culture among Italians, along with many other Europeans and beyond, is surprisingly well more advance than here in the U.S.

How?

Well, according to a mobile culture survey conducted by Sybase 365, Americans are simply not adopting mobile technologies as fast as other parts of the world.

Their key finding: The United States finished dead last in the use of text messaging and instant messaging. Only one in three U.S. respondents take advantage of these services. In comparison, nine out of 10 respondents in China text on their mobile phones.

Parents of US teenagers who spend the bulk of their days texting would probably disagree… but wait, there’s more.

Sybase indicates that Americans have also been VERY SLOW to adopt the use of mobile commerce and mobile customer relations solutions. Want to pay your cable TV bill or buy office supplies? Most people here still get on the computer or pick up their land line phones to complete the transaction.  In other parts of the world, it’s quite the opposite.

According to Diarmuid Mallon, product marketing manager at Sybase, people in Africa can pay for goods with a simple text message and a payment card that acts as currency. That is, they don’t need a bank account. In the United States, however, most people have access to banks and ATM machines.

People around the globe are using their mobile devices to gather information, check finances, and manage their social lives. Here, well, we still use our mobile phones as… phones. Our problem, perhaps, is that we have too many choices; too many ways to buy things, communicate, and help us manage our personals lives and businesses.

Reflecting back on my trip to Italy, I realize that the Italians (and so many people in other countries) have it right. They value mobile speed, mobile services, and connectivity. While technologically advanced, their lives are still simple – easier to manage. Their mobile devices help them enjoy life a little bit more.

Of course, a bottle of Chianti doesn’t hurt either.

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Keep the Tone of Your Emails in Check

August 4th, 2010 by Erin Posted in Business, Small Business, Software Development | No Comments »

It’s happened to the best of us. You fire off an email to a friend or colleague, only to have a snide reply sent back. Your email was misconstrued and now a potential business deal (or dinner date) has fallen by the wayside.

You ask yourself, what just happened?

It was the tone of your email, my friend. The recipient opened it, read it, and thought, “Who does this S.O.B. think he is?”

One wrong salutation, phrase or punctuation can – believe it or not – spark World War III via email. BUT, it can be avoided with a handy new tool I just discovered. It’s called ToneCheck by Lymbix.

With ToneCheck, a simple thought will no longer be interpreted as hostile, threatening or something far different than you intended. ToneCheck actually checks your outgoing email for any false “tones.”

Simply specify your “tone tolerance” and the program will flag any phrases or sentences that look angry – then, offers a substitute. And, get this, ToneCheck also flags lines that appear too “contented” or overly cheerful when you are actually trying to strike a tougher tone.

The program’s sensitivity can also be adjusted and it offers eight different ‘emotional ratings’  - like affection and amusement- to help you get the tone of your email just right. Anger, fear, and humiliation are generally the emotions users will try and avoid.

Lymbix has also developed a program which monitors your updates on Twitter for any unintentional deviation in tone. Brilliant!

You can download ToneCheck and use the service free for 30 days.

I’ve been using it for several days now and while I have ignored a few of ToneCheck’s warnings, the program has indeed stopped me from sending the wrong message on one occasion.

As the saying goes, impressions count – even when you’re trying to make one by email.

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