Sage Payments Solutions has already provided financing options for small businesses. But this particular platform is currently being repositioned, with the new tool called Paya. In addition, Infusionsoft has launched a new version of its own tool for marketing and consulting partners.
These are just a few of the news from last week that could have an impact on small businesses. Read on for more information in this week's Small Business Trends news and information newsletter.
Technological Trends
Sage Payment Solutions Now Called Paya
Sage Payment Solutions has been rebranded and will work under its new name, Paya (pronounced pie-ya). The name change comes after the acquisition of the company in June 2017 by GTCR for $ 260 million. As part of the brand change, Paya will focus on innovation in the financial technology segment and expand its distribution partner program.
Marketing agencies and consultants save 25 hours a month with the new Infusionsoft Tool
Infusionsoft has launched a new tool to help marketing agencies and consultants working with small businesses. Partner Edition, as it's called, gives Infusionsoft partners a unique platform to manage all their different customers and campaigns.
The Intuit Small Business Movie Shows the Power of Technology and Artificial Intelligence for Every Small Business
I started four businesses and I sold one. Starting and developing a business is difficult and difficult. We, the entrepreneurs, spend the night doing paperwork, spending days working on client projects and spending the weekends catching up and getting ready for the week ahead.
The new ezeep Dash service deploys small business printing to the cloud
ThinPrint Cloud Services offers a new solution called ezeep Dash that allows you to move your entire print management system to the cloud. Printers and printer drivers can now be fully managed in a serverless portal while being able to print locally if there is no internet connection.
70% of your employees bring phone chargers home, putting your small business at risk
More than two-thirds of employees charge their phones at work with their own chargers, which can compromise office security. This is the conclusion of an independent survey conducted by the power module provider, CMD. The survey asked 751 members of the British public what electrical appliances they brought from home and made them pay at work.
Economics
Jobs in Small Business Increase and Salaries Rise in January
Job growth in small businesses and wages rose in the first month of 2018, according to The Paychex | IHS Markit Small Business Employment. While the small business employment index was below the break-even point of 100 to 99.88, it still recorded a slight increase from 0.18% in December. However, the job growth rate in January is down 0.74% from the same period last year.
As companies wait in uncertainty, NAFTA negotiations progress slowly
U.S. Negotiators finally see progress in trade negotiations with Mexico and Canada after months of work and six rounds of NAFTA negotiations. Update on NAFTA Negotiations "We finally started discussing some of the fundamental issues, so this round was a step forward," said Robert Lighthizer, the US representative, during remarks after the end of negotiations on Monday.
Trump addresses the issue of small businesses in the state of the Union, but leaders say more
President Donald Trump noted the small business and even invited two small business owners and one of their employees to sit with First Lady Melania Trump to watch the speech. Trump delivered his first State of the Union address on Tuesday night and devoted much of his time to the economy.
Franchise
Tax cuts and regulatory reform expected to benefit franchise businesses in the United States, according to a report
Franchise companies can look to 2018 with confidence and optimism, benefiting from a climate of tax relief and regulatory reform. That's what the new Business Outlook for 2018 report reveals, which predicts that the franchise business will be strong and should grow faster than the rest of the US economy.
Marketing Tips
Polarizing brands are not exactly harmful, but should your small business enter the law?
Morning Consult and its survey of 336,370 Americans revealed that the most polarizing brands in the country do not really hurt businesses. The top 10 brands are directly or indirectly related to the president, with Trump Hotels in first place.
Grinch earns $ 710,001 in litigation against small brands of beverage
Grumpy Cat – or at least the company behind the famous internet feline – has just won a lawsuit for infringement of copyright and trademark rights against a beverage company that used the name and the image of the cat without permission. Granada, the family business specializing in beverages, had reached an initial agreement with Grumpy Cat Limited to sell a drink called Grumpy Cat Grumppuccino.
Retail Trade Trends
A report suggests that physical retail stores need to create experiences that customers cherish
Costco, Sam's Club and BJ's Wholesale Are They Convicted? According to a Washington Post article, Millennials and Generation Z – the future of retail – have not warmed up to big box stores like baby boomers and Gen X customers .
Small Retailers, Google Drops Integration with BigCommerce, Others
The integration of BigCommerce, Magento and PrestaShop with Google Merchant Center will be completed on March 20, 2018. The news has been reported via an email sent to BigCommerce retailers, reports Sales & Orders.
Sales
eBay signs an agreement with Adyen to launch a new payment processing service
In an effort to manage the flow of payments and simplify the end-to-end experience for sellers and buyers, eBay has signed an agreement with Adyen, the world's leading payment processor. By providing payment intermediation on its Marketplace platform, eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY) intends to improve the customer journey.
Zoho Transactions Approval aims to reduce errors in purchase orders
A new feature called Zoho's Transactions Approval will reduce or eliminate errors made during sales and purchase transactions within Zoho Finance applications, the company says. With this new feature, you and your employees will be able to verify and approve transactions in the Zoho Books, Zoho Invoice and Zoho Inventory apps.
Zoho CRM Blueprint processes the process for your sales team
Zoho's Blueho Plan Plan sets up a sales process designed to help businesses streamline and improve sales activities. Blueprint, Zoho's new CRM feature, aims to effectively align sales processes with CRM. Blueprint is also designed to ensure that sales teams follow the streamlined process.
Small advertising projector
Spotlight: Main Squeeze Juice Co. Seeking a Natural Product Niche
More and more consumers are demanding products made with all natural ingredients. And when it comes to juices, smoothies and bowls, Main Squeeze Juice Co. requires. The company meets a significant need in a growing industry. Learn more about this in this week's Focus Small Business.
Freelance
Fiverr announces an acquisition for freelancers and sole proprietors
Fiverr has just announced the acquisition of AND CO, a service platform primarily for the self-employed and individual businesses. The AND CO SaaS platform, which includes billing, contract and payment services, is now available for free as part of the acquisition. Previously, AND CO was available as a paid subscription.
The Mastercard Inclusive Futures Project Creates Opportunities for Freelancers
Mastercard (NYSE: MA) 's address to the concert economy and new generation workers with the launch of the Inclusive Futures project. The project brings together digital businesses to specifically generate products and services for this workforce, which now includes a broad representative sample of the population.
Social Networks
Facebook Armageddon's news feed should not be bad, 10 things your brand should know
Recently, Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook, announced the end of the Facebook News Feed as we know it. In a word, the public publications of the brands, pages and publishers are considerably reduced by the Facebook News Feed. Here are 10 things you need to know about the next Armageddon news feed.
Startup
The unique distillery shows why the location can still be important for small manufacturers
About 95% of the world's bourbon is made in Kentucky. But now there's a new distillery in town – and she's specializing in something totally different. AMBRAbev is named for the mix he creates between Brazilian and American culture in his minds.
Thinking of the cannabis industry? Here are some useful data (INFOGRAPHIC)
Not so long ago, the marijuana trade was considered illegal in most American states. Today, it is a fast growing, legal industry in several US states. Not surprisingly, the number of "potpreneurs" increases every minute.
Computer Trends
The new PaymentSpring affiliate program was designed for small businesses
IT professionals can now participate in a new affiliate program geared toward online payments for their customers. PaymentSpring has just announced the product by which IT professionals like developers can sign their customers for the payment processing gateway. They then earn a share of each payment under the program.
Computer Downtime Costs $ 1.55 Million a Year for Businesses, Report Shows (INFOGRAPHIC)
Whether it is small or large, the downtime of technology is a concern for all types of businesses. The cost of a technological failure According to a new report from Ireland-based IT solutions company, ERS IT Solutions, the average IT downtime cost businesses $ 1.55 million a year. Businesses are not only losing money because of computer failures.
Meltdown and Specter Bugs Could Threaten Computers in Your Small Business
Almost all computers made in the last 20 years are affected by Meltdown and Specter, two major computer bugs. And the rollout of patches is not going well, which leads an expert in the field to say that it will take years for a full implementation. One of these experts is Paul Kocher, who was part of the research team that discovered Specter.
Image: Paya