Microsoft Office 365: A Quantum Leap in Cloud Computing Technology

Article by Harout Albanian of The Digital Terror

With the recent release of the public beta of Microsoft 365, experts only have one thing to say about this software: It will change IT in a manner that has never been seen before. For most people who think that this offering is about providing customers with a bunch of productivity tools, nothing can be further from the truth.

Small businesses, enterprises and governments are the ones who will stand to gain from this suite of applications, and has been presented in such a way that the services offered by Google pale in comparison.

Very simply, it represents a quantum leap into next generation computing.

So, what does Microsoft Office 365 do?

#1: Microsoft Office 365 offers all its top services such as Exchange, Outlook, SharePoint and Lync (also known as OCS) together for about $6 a month to a company of at least 25 users.

#2: These applications integrate with Office 2010 as well as older platforms as well as Office Live too, which is free and the online version of its productivity suite.

 #3: Not only does it work seamlessly with Mac OS X but it also integrates this technology with mobile platforms such as Windows Phone 7 and the iPhone.

#4: It’s quick. There is no latency when using Office 365 with a 3G connection.

#5: Easy to set up. It takes about 5 minutes to set up a small and medium business enterprise collaboration and productivity infrastructure while also taking a minute or two to add users and moderate levels of access. And most of all, with no downtime, it looks to be a reliable network for production-quality business solution for the cloud.

The Best Strategies in Email Marketing

There’s no doubt that email marketing strategies can help you increase the profitability of your business by not only directing them to your websites, but also by playing a key role in website conversion rate (how many visitors to your website were converted into customers).

Apart from having the best email marketing software that delivers from the technology end, the strategies that you use to bring interested customers to your websites are just as important. Here are a few strategies that that can be used to your advantage:

Strategy #1: An eye-catching headline

Creating an excellent headline is one of the best ways to arouse the curiosity of your subscribers to read the entire email, and if possible, visit your website to buy the product.

Strategy #2: Great content

Detailing how good your product is or even writing a long newsletter could put your subscribers to sleep. Try to keep it to at least two paragraphs and, better still, give them free gifts, techniques, and tips to gain their trust so that they will spend money on your product.  One important thing to keep in mind is to write the content out in such a way that implies that they are losing out on a product that you are gaining from.

Strategy #3: Email template

Varying the email or newsletter template from time to time is not a good idea because customers will think that you are playing around with them. It is important to choose the best from the list of newsletter templates that your email marketing software offers you and stick with that template for a long time.

Three Reasons Why You Should Opt For an International SIM Card When Traveling

If there’s anything that is true of traveling, it is the fact that your cellular phone costs can often skyrocket to a sizeable bill. If that’s not enough, people often get disconnected if they use their local cellular service when traveling abroad, which is a nuisance.

There are some travelers who have heard about the benefits that an international SIM card can offer them, and in doing so, take advantage of a service that has been tailor-made to their needs.

Here are three reasons why you should also take advantage of this international service as well:

#1: Reduction of costs

When you travel and have to attend to calls from your family, boss, or colleagues, the costs of international roaming is anything but little. In purchasing an international prepaid SIM card, not only do you eliminate these costs, but the companies that offer them can create a plan according to the country/countries that you will visit shortly, and help you get the cheapest deals when it comes to talk time.

#2: Seamless communication

If the problem of getting disconnected as soon as you hit the ground has continued to annoy you with your local cellular service that you use for your international travel, all this can be eliminated as soon as you opt for these cheap international SIM cards that will provide you with seamless service no matter which country you travel to. You can finally get rid of the issue of not being able to get in touch with your loved ones or the professionals that you work with for good.

#3: Peace of mind

In taking advantage of these services, you not only get to enjoy the benefits of lowered costs and uninterrupted service, but you can also drop the anxiety and stress that comes with not being able to get in touch with your loved ones.

80+ Upcoming Social Media & Tech Events

Every week, Mashable puts together a calendar of upcoming social media and web events, parties and conferences. Here are some tips on how to network, share your information and/or promote your event(s) using social media: The Future of Event Planning and Social Media HOW TO: Plan and Promote Events with Social Media 35+ Ways to Find and Plan Events Online 8 Ways to Create Paperless Business Cards 5 Useful iPhone Apps for Business Networking Mashable’s Weekly Social Media and Marketing Event Guide is proudly supported by Eventbrite , the Web’s Event Marketplace. Upcoming Mashable Events Mashable Connect — May 12-14, 2011, Orlando, FL : Mashable Connect 2011 will be an intimate experience that brings together leaders from the digital world for a weekend away to share and connect offline. Set away from the distractions of traditional conferences, Mashable Connect will recreate the Mashable web experience on the grounds of Disney World, creating an environment where attendees can truly engage and build lasting connections. The invite-only conference will cover new territory, break news and feature special events, with a touch of Disney magic. April 17-21, 2011, Las Vegas, NV : The Mobile Connections Conference is a first of its kind technology event that provides technical cross-platform knowledge for mobile developers. Attendees will gain understanding on how to leverage cloud based services, how to market and sell apps, app security solutions and the latest market predictions. Developers will be able to network with peers, IT professionals, carriers and a wide range of mobile infrastructure, product and service vendors. Register with promo code 100MASH and save $100! April 18-20, 2011, Dubai, UAE : Planet of the Apps Arabia 2011 is a three day conference dedicated to the opportunities and challenges of mobile applications in the Arab world

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Digital Coupons Outperform Print Coupons But Cost More [REPORT]

Digital print-at-home coupons get more first-time buyers to try a product, but they aren’t as cost-efficient as standard coupons, according to a new report. Analyzing data from a panel of 23 million loyalty card shoppers from 2008 to 2010, Knowledge Networks found printable digital coupons generally performed better than standard coupons. The company reports that such coupons were more likely to attract new consumers — 46% of digital coupon redeemers hadn’t bought the product before, compared with 34% of standard coupon redeemers. Overall, digital coupons drew more new buyers than print coupons did by a margin of 35%. Digital coupons also drove incremental redemptions (purchases that wouldn’t have occurred without the coupon) at a greater rate — 77% versus 68%. But such coupons yield 18% less return on investment than standard coupons, the study found. Knowledge Networks attributed the lower ROI for digital coupons to the “historically low distribution costs” for standard print coupons.

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