CRM Update – Mar 05 : 3:12 pm

Flash sales website Gilt Groupe this week will dish out discounts solely determined by its members’ Klout scores, with rollbacks as high as 100% off apparel and home decor.
Gilt has partnered with Klout — which measures a social media user’s online influence from 0 to 100 on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn and Foursquare — to offer the unique discount on Klout’s Perks platform.
The discount begins Tuesday with people who have lower scores and opens up to others during the week:

March 6: 20% off for users with scores up to 20 (up to $50)
March 7: 40% off for users with scores between 21-40 (up to $50)
March 8: 60% off for users with scores between 41-60 (up to $75)
March 9: 80% off for users with scores between 61-80 (up to $100)
March 10: 100% for users off with scores between 81-100 (up to $100)

“Gilt is working with us in a way that brings significant value to our users, and has the foresight to see how important it is to connect to influencers at scale,” says Klout CEO Joe Fernandez…

Look for these 3 warning signs to see whether that PR ‘star’ is just offering empty promises & hot air.A few years ago, I had a call with a potential client–the president of a digital marketing agency. Within minutes he began sharing his (strong) distrust of PR people. He had hired several agencies in the past, he said, all of which had lavished him with praise and promised big things—but none of which had delivered.I’ve heard the same story over and over: Client meets PR agency. PR agency makes big promises…

Your golden years come with a gold rush of discounts. Looking to cater to seniors eager to stretch out their funds, businesses offer sweet deals to the older set.

Main Street rounds up some of the most attractive senior discounts. Bear in mind that these deals may not be honored at every location:

* Doughnuts. This month, Dunkin’ Donuts started offering a free doughnut with the purchase of a large coffee to AARP members. The offer is good until the end of February 2013.

* Cell phone service…

The Los Angeles District Attorney revealed that a California doctor faces murder charges for allegedly pushing unneeded prescription drugs to patients, three of whom died of overdoses in 2009. She also faces 21 felony counts of writing fraudulent, purposeless prescriptions. Authorities says she prescribed tens of thousands of unneeded prescriptions to various patients, including methadone, Xanax, oxycodone to patients.

According to the AP, the Drug Enforcement Authority and California Medical Board had their eyes on the doctor after pharmacies raised questions about her prescription practices in 2008…

Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) is asking the Federal Trade Commission to investigate Apple and Google, charging that both steal users’ private contacts and photos without users’ consent.
Schumer, whose plea was prompted by recent reports that both Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android platforms accessed such data, lobbed a letter to the FTC, asking it to intervene. “These uses go well beyond what a reasonable user understands himself to be consenting to when he allows an app to access data on the phone for purposes of the app’s functionality,” Schumer wrote in the letter…

YELP is priced above high range
In what seems to be the theme of late, social media stocks are being priced above their anticipated high range. Case in point Yelp, Incorporated (YELP). The Yelp shares were expected to be priced in the $12 to $14 range, however, demand was such that the company thought why not squeeze another dollar out so the IPO shares debuted at an even $15.
Well, the company could have upped the ante by another $5 and the shares still would have been sought after. In Wall Street’s latest feeding frenzy, the $15 IPO shares of YELP opened up at $22…

If you’re accustomed to paying just the minimum payment on your credit card bills each month, you might change your ways if you discover how long it will take you to get rid of your debt.

ReadyForZero created a calculator that can shock you into doing everything you can to pay down your balance. Using an annual percentage rate of 15 percent, the tool calculates the total cost of your debt, as well as how long it will take you to pay off the cards.

For instance, if your balance is $2,000, you’ll pay $1,946 by the time you’ve zeroed out your balance — 14 years, 6 months and one day from now…

We’re in the home stretch now. We started off talking about game dynamics and how they can positively affect customer motivation and experience, then we moved to truly understanding the core of customer experience and then moved to a discussion of Insight Solutions.
Now we’re fixing to cut the cord completely.
Mobile Revolution
By this point it’s common knowledge that a lot of people take in the Internet via mobile devices. Between smartphones, tablets and everything in between, mobile Internet usage is expected to overtake desktop computer use by as early as 2014…

Facebook pages are changing. And that means your business strategy will need to change.In fact, Facebook has made many new changes that will impact anyone with a Facebook page.These changes emerged from Facebook’s fMC 2012 Conference.The overall message was that Facebook is looking at pages as a “mission control” point (which is where the MC comes from in the conference title).Here is an overview of the changes and how brands can take advantage of some of the new features.#1: Cover Photo and Profile ImageObviously one of the biggest changes that we all knew was coming was the cover photo…

Renowned children’s author Dr. Seuss was great at instilling life lessons through resonant rhymes and artwork. His books also pack some poignant financial lessons.

Always the Planner gleans some personal finance knowledge from Dr. Seuss books. Some of the parallels are stretches, but they all make sense:

* The Cat in the Hat — You don’t need to spend a lot to have a good time. Conversation and imagination are as entertaining as pricey outings. If you’re trying to save money, look first at scaling back your entertainment budget…

Goal setting is embedded in my personal DNA. Because something deep inside me gets so much satisfaction from completing a goal I’ve set, I must be careful that the goals I set are not colossal wastes of time and energy.Not long ago I gave myself the goal of quintupling the number of connections I have. Ultimately of course, my goal was to gain more clients, do more speaking engagements, produce my own events and also just get the information I have to share, out to more of the people who need it…

Consistently do these five things and the results you want from your employees–and your business–will follow.Remarkable bosses aren’t great on paper. Great bosses are remarkable based on their actions.Results are everything—but not the results you might think.Consistently do these five things and everything else follows. You and your business benefit greatly.More importantly, so do your employees.1. Develop every employee. Sure, you can put your primary focus on reaching targets, achieving results, and accomplishing concrete goals—but do that and you put your leadership cart before your achievement horse…

Great leaders reserve their advice for the people and situations in which it will do the most good. And they never forget one key secret.One afternoon when American League baseball umpire Bill Guthrie was working behind the plate, the catcher of the visiting team repeatedly protested his calls. Guthrie endured this for three innings. But in the fourth inning when the catcher started to complain again, Guthrie stopped him.“Son,” he said gently, “you’ve been a big help to me calling balls and strikes, and I appreciate it…

When it comes to assessing your customer’s satisfaction with your products, services or business as an entity, it’s important to consider a few key components before firing them out at your customers. Maintaining a professional appearance, approach and tone is the first step in any customer satisfaction online survey, and that starts with the questions and the overall design.
Customer Satisfaction
Customer satisfaction isn’t only about their product or service. While that might be their initial opinion when you’re asking about the level of satisfaction, it’s important to lurk a little deeper to discover any missing gaps or holes within your business that need addressing…

Your tech company is probably under-serving customers over 50, says Weebly co-founder David Rusenko. (He’s made a bundle designing products with this market in mind.)Call them Gen Y, the Millennials, Generation Catalano, or now even Generation C, but whatever name you use for the young and plugged, this group certainly gets a lot of press. Members of this generation are also called “digital natives,” which gives you a partial clue as to why the 20-something set is seen as the prime driver of tech innovation…

Android‘s web browser Robot has overtaken Opera to become the top mobile browser, according to StatCounter’s data.
In February 2012, Android Robot had 22.67% market share, followed by Opera with 21.7% and iPhone‘s Safari with 21.06% share.
Nokia and BlackBerry remain distant fourth and fifth, with 11.24% and 6.53% share, respectively.
If you trust StatCounter’s data, Opera – which has been the top dog throughout the last 12 months – has started losing market share quite quickly in January 2012, while both iPhone Safari and Android Robot did very well in that two-month period…

With youth unemployment at a 60-year high and student-loan debt nearing the $1 trillion mark, can anything be done by the technology sector to help young Americans struggling to find work? Yes, says the #FixYoungAmerica campaign, launching Monday.
#FixYoungAmerica is seeking to address a single, nagging question in the U.S.: How do we overcome the twin epidemics of youth unemployment and underemployment?
To that end, #FixYoungAmerica campaign is releasing a book designed to help fix those problems…

ClothingCalvin Klein: [Apparel] Calvin Klein Clearance Sale: Up to 85% OffSierra Trading Post: [Apparel] 30% Off Entire Purchase w/ Coupon ALRMNMAR2Bealls: [Apparel] $10 Off $25 Purchase w/ Coupon BIGGEST10 + PrintableShoebuy: [Shoes] $15 Off $60 Purchase w/ Coupon EMLGOODBYE12

Computers and Electronics

HP: [Computers] 17.3″ HP dv7t Quad Core i7-2670QM, Radeon HD 7470M, 8GB RAM, Blu-ray Player $799.99, free shipLenovo: [Computers] Lenovo N3902A Wireless Mouse $11.99, free shipLenovo [Electronics] [coupon: 12% off Lenovo Thinkpad X220 Laptops]eBay: [Laptops] Acer Aspire Core i5 Dual 1…

Daydreaming about leaving your day job? See if you fit the profile of a successful entrepreneur–or if you’re better off staying where you are.So, you have a great idea for a business. You believe in it with all your heart. (On your better days anyway.) Furthermore, you are really tired of the 8-to-6 grind. (Hey, didn’t that used to be 9-5?) On some days you are absolutely certain that it’s time to follow your dream and take the plunge into entrepreneurialism. But on other days the doubt, and yes, even the fear, are enough to make you pack your lunch and trek off to another day on the J-O-B…

Social media and content marketing are often used interchangeably, so what’s the difference for marketers and why should they care?
At its core social media is about engaging and building relationships that form a community where the greater good is more important than the needs of any one individual.

Social media is dependent on content marketing because distributing content and encouraging conversation about the information conveyed is at the heart of the community. Often these translate to stories…

Postbox, Inc. has updated its cross-platform, commercial email client with a minor update. Postbox 3.0.3 includes a number of enhancements, some platform-specific, plus fixes a number of issues, including one that meant the “Check this folder for new Mail” feature didn’t work with IMAP accounts.
Postbox 3.0 released last November and introduced tighter integration with a range of third-party apps and services, including Gmail, Dropbox, Facebook and Twitter. The full version costs $29.95, and a 30-day trial is available…

Walmart is reportedly working with other retailers on a mobile payments solution
Walmart, Target and other retailers are collaborating on their own mobile payments system that would compete with Google Wallet and Isis.
The potentially significant amount of money that could exchange hands via mobile in the near future is attracting a host of different parties to the mobile payments space. While a lot of details about what retailers will offer are not available yet, it is clear that the entry could potentially slow adoption for Google Wallet and Isis by creating confusion for consumers…

In a business sense, I did everything right when I sold my company. But I forgot to ask myself one essential question.In 2007, I had a great chance to sell my business, and I did. I asked all the right questions before I made the move, except one: How did I really feel about it? And that was a mistake I regret to this day.Exiting the company you founded is a natural part of entrepreneurship, and it can provide great financial rewards. It has great consequences for your successors in management and the employees you leave behind…

The self-proclaimed “Worldwide Leader in Sports” launched the ESPN Developer Center on Monday, for the first time allowing software developers to use APIs providing a plethora of information from around the sports universe.
“The play for us is making sure we have our content in all these different digital ecosystems,” Jason Guenther, ESPN’s vice president of digital media technology, told Mashable last week. “Connected devices are only going to proliferate in every aspect of life, so it’s important that we can reach fans no matter the product or place…

This post originally appeared on the American Express OPEN Forum, where Mashable regularly contributes articles about leveraging social media and technology in small business.
Facebook has become a no-brainer for small business owners looking for an easy way to promote and interact with new and regular customers. But before a small business owner launches a promotion on the platform, there are several things to consider — and a couple things to keep in mind after the launch.
North Social‘s managing partner David Brody, who specializes in promotion strategy and creative concepts, says that a small business owner should always take the time to craft the right objective, strategy and motivating value-based idea…

To a large extent, your belief system determines your success. See which beliefs to cherish–& which you should avoid.What you believe about yourself determines your level of success. If you want to be successful, incorporate the following beliefs into your daily way of thinking:1. “I am confident.” If you believe in yourself, you tend to see problems and challenges as speed bumps rather than roadblocks, and have certainty that you’ll eventually succeed.2. “I am committed…

Spring is just around the corner, and this weekend at Mashable, there was another big event around the corner that proved itself to be a subtext for the entire weekend: the advent of the next edition iPad, which might be called the iPad 3, iPad HD, or something else altogether. Whatever it’s going to be called, we found stories about it, including one intriguing video purporting to show the new tablet’s screen, its thickness, and lots of other heretofore unseen details.
Beyond the anticipation of Apple’s next move, we’re still playing around with Windows 8, and presented a video of the Windows 8 Consumer Preview installed on a tablet…

After confirming an incompatibility between the iPhone 4S and China Mobile’s SIM cards last month, Apple has now fixed the issue, according to China Mobile.
The issue was in iPhone 4S’s GSM chip, which only supported the P frequency band (885-915MHZ), but not the E frequency band (880-890MHz), China Mobile explained.
The problem has now been solved, and all devices manufactured after Feb. 8 fully support China Mobile’s network.
For customers who bought an iPhone 4S before that date and are using China Mobile’s network, Apple may release a China-specific iOS update in early March to resolve the signal problems…

FiftyOne Global, the leading international ecommerce company, has purchased Borderfree to strengthen its Canadian operations as well as improve its technology platform. It will be opening a branch in Toronto to improve logistics in Canada. Borderfree was a business unit of Canada Post until this acquisition.
FiftyOne Global uses an ecommerce services and technology platform that enables retailers in the United States to sell to consumers in over 100 countries using more than 40 currencies to transact the business…