Originally written by Geoff Forsyth on Small Business
PCI DSS compliance can often seem like a mountain to climb for small businesses, but that needn’t be the case. With the right knowledge and the right partners, it can be understood (and achieved) without much trouble at all.
What is the PCI DSS?
PCI DSS stands for Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard. It is an international security standard which was set up by the biggest names in the payment card industry (Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express and JCB) to help businesses process card payments safely and securely, helping them to avoid credit card fraud.
The standard enforces strict guidelines regarding the processing, storage and transmission of private cardholder data.
See also: 40% of the UK’s micro businesses do not accept card payments
Who needs to be PCI DSS compliant?
All companies that take credit card payments. If you accept, store, transmit or process cardholder data then PCI DSS applies to you. It doesn’t matter how large or small your business may be, you are obliged to comply with the standard.
What is PCI DSS Compliance?
PCI DSS sets out 12 requirements that merchants need to meet if they are to comply, as follows:
►Build and maintain a secure network
• Install
Tag Archive for Business Technology
Hot Business News Today
The best free online survey platforms for small businesses
by Anna Jordan • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Anna Jordan on Small Business
An online survey can be a useful way to connect with your customers while learning more about their likes and interests.
They go way beyond SurveyMonkey, with plenty of platforms offering creative, fun and interesting poll building services. Use them to assist in product development, measure customer satisfaction, establish market trends or test a campaign.
Key survey features which can help your business
If you’re new to survey tools, you may not know which features to look out for – but some of these might swing your decision.
Common features include:
Question types
Options to skip
Data export
Customisation
Reporting and analytics
Automatic data collection
Embedding
Surveys in different languages
App integration – Salesforce, Google Sheets, Google Docs, HubSpot, MailChimp
Email marketing
Branching/skip logic – the ability to move respondents to a different question or page based on their response to a certain question
Customisable company branding
What to be aware of
The only real limitations to be aware of are the features that you can’t get in the free version. On some platforms there’s little difference between the free and premium versions whereas others are stingy in their free offering.
We’ve included some of the features in the paid-for versions to give you an idea of how generous the free versions
Hot Business News Today
8 of the best electric cars for small business leasing
by Anna Jordan • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Anna Jordan on Small Business
In the UK, we’re inching towards electric cars as a viable alternative for both buying and leasing.
But the Government plans to be the catalyst in this change by pumping money into electrical charging points. A total of twelve eco-driven projects are set to receive almost £40 million to fund improvements like solar-powered forecourts and underground charging systems.
The hope is that these measures will encourage uptake of electric vehicles at a time where sales are declining. Drivers cite cost and availability of charging points as a barrier to switching, which suggests that leasing could be the better option for electric vehicles in the short-term.
Is leasing an electric car right for me?
We chat to Paul Barker, editor of Company Car Today, about the considerations small businesses should make when leasing an electric car and the benefits having one (or more) can bring to your business.
What considerations should small businesses make when leasing an electric car?
The key thing is an understanding of how you’re going to use the car. Electric vehicles make a massive amount of sense as long as you’re doing the right kind of mileage. As weird as it sounds, it’s about doing enough
Hot Business News Today
What’s the best website builder for my small business?
by Timothy Adler • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Timothy Adler on Small Business
Nearly two million small and medium-sized businesses do not even have a website. Yet it has been estimated that the cost to any business that doesn’t have a website averages at £173,769 per year in lost revenue, despite the average monthly running cost of a website being less than £18.
If creating a website for your business can boost your profits by nearly £200,000 a year, the only question left to ask is…
What’s the best website builder for my small business?
Site 123Wix Business UnlimitedWeebly*GoDaddy online storeSquareSpace online store basic*Basic Shopify
Accept online payments☑☑☑☑☑☑
No transaction fee☑☑☑2.2% + 20p online credit card / 1.7% in person
Unlimited bandwidth5GB☑☑☑
Storage10GB35GBUnlimitedUnlimited
Connect your domain☑☑☑☑☑
Ad free☑☑☑☑
10 video hours☑
Analytics☑☑☑☑☑
Free domain for one year☑☑☑
Free SSL security☑☑☑☑☑
Site searchProduct onlyProduct only
Product badges☑☑
Inventory management☑☑☑
Shipping calculator☑☑
Integrated shipping labels☑☑☑
Shipping discounts☑☑
SEO☑☑☑☑☑☑
Lead capture and contact forms☑☑☑
Support☑☑☑☑
Mobile optimized websites☑☑☑☑
Products on Instagram☑☑☑
Integrated accounting with digital accounting☑☑
Staff accounts2☑☑
Sales channels☑☑☑
Discount codes☑☑☑
Abandoned cart recovery☑☑☑
PayPal button☑☑☑☑
Email marketing☑☑
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Pricing plan pm£10£16£18£19.99£20£23
Source: company websites
*verified
Below are capsule reviews of six of the most popular off-the-shelf e-commerce platforms in Britain to help you choose the best website builder.
Until a few years ago, you had to hire a website designer if you wanted to sell off the internet.
Hot Business News Today
Upgrading business technology – new vs refurbished
by Anna Jordan • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Anna Jordan on Small Business
In many people’s minds, upgrading your business technology comes down to one trade-off: cost vs reliability. This could be the deciding factor of going new or opting for refurbished.
The choice spans way beyond computers: it applies when replacing tablets, phones, POS systems, TVs, routers and much more.
Find out which option is best for your business, whether you even need to upgrade in the first place and how to dispose of your old tech if you do.
Do I need to replace my tech?
Though you think your machine might be knackered, it could have a good two or three years left in it.
Before you decide to go for a different model, ask:
Does it impact on the productivity of my business?
Is it almost as costly to repair as it is to run?
If the machine could work well with less software and fewer capabilities, your third option is to shift the functions that your old tech used to perform onto another machine, using the older one for basic tasks.
Once it’s time to upgrade, take the costs of the tech itself and the time/expense to train employees into account. You should also factor in how the new tech
Hot Business News Today
How 5G mobile technology will help your small business
by Gavin Davis • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Gavin Davis on Small Business
This year will be the one long-awaited 5G technology starts to take off. Many expect this to be a game-changer and, according to Ericsson, by 2024 there will be over 1.5 billion of us connected to 5G.
However, 5G technology offers more than mobile calling or faster internet browsing. Increased productivity and the emergence of new industries are additional potential benefits.
According to a study from Qualcomm, by 2035 5G technology could underpin up to £9.3 trillion worth of goods and services in industries such as retail, healthcare, education, transportation, entertainment and more.
‘82% of business leaders, analysts and tech enthusiasts think 5G will drive small business growth, with SMEs becoming more competitive’
As reported by a PSB Research study which surveyed over 3,500 people, 91pc of business decision leaders, analysts and technology enthusiasts expect new products and services to be invented as a result of 5G.
Additionally, 82pc forecast small business growth and SMEs to become more globally competitive.
What exactly is 5G?
The “G” in 5G stands for “generation”. Now the world is hyperconnected, 5G takes things to a new level. It will dramatically increase the speed at which data is transferred across the network and will greatly
Hot Business News Today
Half of the UK’s micro businesses do not accept card payments
by Timothy Adler • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Timothy Adler on Small Business
Half of the UK’s micro businesses do not accept card payments, according to payments provider Square.
Square’s research has found that 56pc of shoppers aged between 25 and 34 prefer paying by card, and 47pc of shoppers overall.
Jack Dorsey, CEO of Square, told the Daily Telegraph that payments technology could save small businesses now that consumers are turning away from cash.
“The real challenge is keeping small businesses in business,” Dorsey said.
Dorsey, who is also chief executive of Twitter, said he is convinced there is a future for bricks-and-mortar businesses on the UK high street.
“There are going to be a lot that moves on but the pub isn’t going to move on and restaurants aren’t going to move on,” he said. “There are lots of businesses that won’t be served by Amazon. In the worst case this will push some businesses to be a lot more creative. It will never get rid of the physical spaces that we love to hang out [in].”
Square is targeted at micro businesses, those employing fewer than 10 people, enabling them to offer card payments in store with accompanying valuable consumer insights via a tablet or smartphone.
Under pressure
So-called “micro businesses”
Hot Business News Today
The best CRM system for your micro business
by Anna Jordan • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Anna Jordan on Small Business
Customer relationship management (CRM) systems help micro business owners to keep all of their communications together.
If you’re a company struggling under a growing mound of paperwork, any kind of streamlining is hugely appreciated. But it can be easy for a micro business to buy the wrong system, overloaded with features that they don’t need, draining their pockets unnecessarily.
To give you some steer, we’ve asked an expert what you should be looking for in a CRM as well looking at what’s available on the market right now.
What is a CRM?
A CRM is a customer relationship management system. It’s a technology that’s used to manage interactions with customers and potential customers. They can help increase sales, improve customer service and increase profitability.
It’s a more advanced solution to keeping information in spreadsheets, electronic documents, in a notepad or even in your head.
They collate data and turn them into actionable insights. Everyone in a business can update records and access this up-to-date information. On top of that, they often have contact management, lead management, sales forecasting, instant messaging between employees, email tracking and integration and file content sharing as well as dashboard-based analytics. Some premium services provide
Hot Business News Today
Digital transformation – a disruptive force for all sectors of the economy
by Stephanie Spicer • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Stephanie Spicer on Small Business
Amid the drama of 2018’s technology markets, one sector showed notable resilience: enterprise software. This was no accident, these companies are geared into a major shift in the way the corporate sector manages its technology needs. This ‘digital transformation’ (tackling traditional problems with digital technology) is dramatically changing industries from the healthcare to consumer sectors and beyond. In 2018, more companies woke up to the potential gains from a digital strategy.
What is digital transformation?
The definition of digital transformation strategies will be as disparate as the companies that employ them. However, at its heart, it involves rethinking existing business models and processes through the use of technology. As such, it may incorporate many aspects of technology, including artificial intelligence, the internet of things, cloud computing and software-as-a-service.
For example, moving to software as a service and cloud computing as part of a digital transformation lets companies circumvent a costly upgrade cycle. Rather than having to support expensive in-house technology capability, they can pick and mix their technology requirements to suit their business requirements. They can move data storage to the cloud and buy their software on a subscription basis. This means companies don’t have to
Hot Business News Today
Your first website – a 6-step guide
by Partner Content • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Partner Content on Small Business
You know you need to be online, but it’s more complicated than it sounds. This six-step guide will walk you through all the decisions so you will have a functioning and attractive website next week.
1. Domain name
Your home on the Internet needs an address. This is called your domain name or URL (uniform resource locator). You can get a free web address as an add-on to another domain name, but it looks amateurish. You will need to pay for your own .com web address, and the payment is an annual one. Special offers abound, from free for the first year to a full price of around £14 a year.
Buy from a UK domain reselling company to avoid the hassle of currency fluctuations and managing foreign currency in your accounts.
Your domain should be short, memorable and easy to pronounce. Ideally, it should not be in a dictionary, making it brandable. You may not be able to buy the domain name that exactly matches your existing business name, so be flexible.
If you run a high street hardware shop called Green’s in Croydon, then look at greenshardware.com, greensofcroyden.com, and greenshardwarecroyden.com.
2. Design
If you are in a hurry,